Firm News

Attorney Lattarulo Enforces Lease Provision Requiring Eviction for Off-Premises Drug-Activity

Frebruary 7, 2012:  Attorney Donna Lattarulo obtained a judgment of possession in favor of the landlord due to the violation of a lease provision prohibiting drug-related criminal activity on or off of the tenant's premises by any member of the tenant's household.  The case, Norwalk Housing Authority v. Suzette McCrae, Connecticut Superior Court for Stamford/Norwalk, SNSP-038326, was tried on February 7, 2012 before the Honorable Judge Michael Moranich.

The case involved the arrest of Suzette McCrae's son, Lamont McCrae, for drug-related criminal activity on another property owned by the landlord, approximately one mile from the McCrae residence.  When Lamont was arrested, he was in possession of 7 individual bags of suspected marijuana, a loaded .38 caliber weapon and two cell phones.  The lease provides that the tenants could be evicted in the event of drug-related criminal activity on or off of tenants' premises.  The defendants were represented by Abram Heisler. 

Donna Lattarulo Successfully Defends Appeal        in Off-Premises Drug Eviction

June 7, 2011:  The Appellate Court denied the appeal of Gloria Brown, who was evicted by Attorney Donna Lattarulo due to the drug-related criminal activity of her son.  The case, Norwalk Housing Authority v. Gloria Brown, __ Conn. App. ___ (AC 31214) (2011), held that the Housing Authority was justified in evicting Brown based upon her son's illegal drug activity.  The court further held that Brown could not "cure" the violation of her public housing lease based upon the incarceration of her son subsequent to his arrest.  The court stated that some violations, specifically illegal drug activity, are not capable of being cured in accordance with Connecticut General Statutes Sec. 47a-15. 

Attorney Lattarulo Evicts Family  for                      Off-Premises Drug-Activity

June 10, 2009:  Attorney Donna Lattarulo recovered a judgment of possession in favor of the landlord due to the tenant's violation of a lease provision prohibiting drug-related criminal activity on or off of the tenant's premises.  The case, Norwalk Housing Authority v. Gloria Brown, Connecticut Superior Court for Stamford/Norwalk, SNSP-035601, was tried on May 19, 2009.

The case involved the arrest of Gloria Brown's son, George Kalu, for drug-related criminal activity on another property owned by the landlord, approximately one to one and a half miles from the tenants' residence.  When Kalu was arrested, he was in possession of 17 individual bags of crack cocaine.  The lease provided that the tenants could be evicted in the event of drug-related criminal activity on or off of tenants' premises.  The defendants were represented by Abram Heisler, who argued that Mrs. Brown could not be held accountable for the acts of her adult son which occurred off of the premises where she resided.  The Court disagreed and entered judgment in favor of the landlord.  The defendants were unsuccessful at overturning the trial court on appeal.  

This website provides general information only, not legal advice.  An attorney-client relationship with the Lattarulo Law Firm, LLC, can only be established by a fully executed retainer agreement.  Because every legal action is different, we cannot guarantee any results.  No representation is made in this website that your case will result in any particular outcome.

Donna Lattarulo Evicts Tenants in Case                  Involving Murder of Cab Driver

September 19, 2006: Attorney Donna Lattarulo successfully prosecutes action to evict a family in connection with the murder of a cab driver at the Roodner Court Public Housing Complex in Norwalk, Connecticut. The case, Norwalk Housing Authority v. Shanee McFadden, Connecticut Superior Court for Stamford/Norwalk at Norwalk, SNSP-031819, was tried on September 19, 2006.

In the case, a cab driver, Ralph Moreau, was shot to death during a failed robbery attempt on November 13, 2004. Attorney Donna Lattarulo established that members of two resident families conspired with two other individuals to rob a cab driver at gunpoint.  The group walked from one resident's apartment towards the entrance of the public housing complex and used a cell phone to lure the cab driver to the area. When the cab driver arived, he was approached at gunpoint and the group demanded the cab driver's money but he refused and attempted to drive away. The cab driver was shot twice as he attempted to drive away. 

Judge Jack Grogins presided over the eviction trial and found that the defendant family had breached her public housing lease and entered judgment in favor of the Housing Authority. Judge Grogins ordered the defendant to vacate her apartment by December 29, 2006.

The Housing Authority was represented by Attorney Donna Lattarulo, of Norwalk, Connecticut. The defendant was represented by Attorney Mark Sank of Sank & Associates in Stamford, Connecticut.

"The evidence in this case proved that the conspiracy to rob the cab driver at gunpoint was hatched on Housing Authority property, carried out at the entrance of the housing complex, endangered the lives and safety of all residents, and resulted in the death of an innocent cab driver," Attorney Donna Lattarulo stated. "We are satisfied that the Court's decision sends a strong message to other families in this community that the Housing Authority will not tolerate violent criminal activity by its residents."

Donna Lattarulo Defends Landowner from             Contamination Claims Stemming from UST

May 17, 2005: Attorney Donna Lattarulo successfully defends a property owner in an oil contamination case. The case, 50 Day Street Associates, LP v. Norwalk Housing Authority, was tried in the Stamford Superior Court, Complex Litigation Docket, before the Honorable Judge Taggart Adams in September and October, 2004. The Plaintiff's complaint sought damages for the clean-up of its property estimated at over $830,000, damages for the diminution in value of its property and attorney's fees. The court issued its judgment in favor of the Housing Authority on five of the six counts of the Plaintiff's complaint. The Judge held that the Plaintiff failed to establish the groundwater flow direction and, therefore, was unable to demonstrate that any oil which may have leaked from NHA's oil tanks traveled through the groundwater and migrated onto the Plaintiff's property. The Judge's ruling included a finding in favor of the Plaintiff on the remaining count of the complaint which alleged that the Housing Authority had violated the Connecticut Environmental Protection Act by causing pollution to its own property.

January 23, 2006: Judge affirms previous ruling in favor of the Norwalk Housing Authority in a case where an adjoining landowner claimed that the Housing Authority's oil tanks had caused contamination of Plaintiff's property. Attorney Donna Lattarulo had previously obtained a judgment in May, 2005 which found that the Plaintiff had failed to prove that the contamination on its property emanated from the Housing Authority's oil tanks. The Plaintiff filed several motions seeking to overturn the judgment, including a motion to open the judgment, motion for reargument and reconsideration, and a motion to open the evidence so that the Plaintiff could submit additional evidence. The Judge denied the Plaintiff's motions and re-affirmed its previous decision which found that the Housing Authority was not responsible to pay the costs for clean-up of the Plaintiff's property.

Norwalk Attorney Donna Lattarulo Recovers            $105k Judgment in Commercial Dispute with Purchaser of Business

May 4, 2004:  Attorney Donna Lattarulo obtains a judgment in United States District Court for the Southern District of New York in favor of a business owner In the amount of $105,365.18.  In the case, the business owner sold a bakery route to the defendant Stephen A. Smith, who failed to pay the balance due on a promissory note given to the owner at the closing of the purchase.  The defendant claimed that the owner had made material misrepresentations concerning the route and refused to pay the balance due under the note.  The case was tried before the Honorable Coleen McMahon, United States District Judge.  The Court  held that the defendant failed to prove that there was any misrepresentation in connection with the sale of the route and entered judgment for the balance due under the note plus attorneys' fees and costs.