Apartment Not Used for Sale of Drugs

The District Attorney's office sued to evict tenant from city housing, claiming she used the apartment for an illegal purpose. Police had arrested tenant's husband outside the building for selling drugs. At the same time, they entered the apartment and saw tenant throw a cigar box with drugs out the window. Tenant pleaded guilty to possession of a controlled substance. However, tenant and her husband both insisted that tenant never used or sold drugs and that she didn't let her husband sell drugs out of the apartment. The husband tried to sell whatever he had during the course of a day and kept the unsold drugs in the cigar box. Tenant had panicked when the police showed up and later plead guilty to possession only to avoid prison. Tenant was 54 and had lived in the apartment for six years without incident. The court ruled against the D.A. The guilty plea alone wasn't reason enough to evict tenant. There was no other proof supporting the D.A.'s claim that drugs were sold at the apartment.

NY County District Attorney's Office v. Feliciano: NYLJ, p. 26, col. 3 (6/21/95) (Civ. Ct. NY; Bransten, J)