Los Angeles News

LOS ANGELES (CBS) ― The Justice Department announced Tuesday that they have agreed to settle fair housing lawsuits against Los Angeles Clippers owner Donald T. Sterling for $2.7 million.

The hearly three million resolution is the largest monetary payment ever
obtained by the department for the settlement of a case alleging housing
discrimination in the rental of apartments.

Federal authorities accused Sterling, his wife and the Sterling Family Trust of discriminating against non-Koreans, namely blacks and Latinos or
families with children, at buildings he controls in Los Angeles' Koreatown.

Sterling's attorney, Robert Platt of the Los Angeles firm Manatt, Phelps & Phillips, denied his client discriminated against anyone.

"After three years of litigation, the fair housing attorneys could not prove a single violation of the Fair Housing Act," Platt said.

"My clients vehemently and unequivocally deny that anyone was discriminated against. Nevertheless, the insurance companies for the Trust decided to settle the case because the cost of continued litigation far exceeded the cost of settlement," he said.

The settlement must be approved by U.S. District Judge Dale S. Fischer.

The lawsuit, filed by the Justice Department in August 2006, alleged that Sterling, his wife Rochelle and the Sterling Family Trust engaged in discriminatory rental practices on the basis of race, national origin and for having children under 18 at various apartment buildings they own and manage in Los Angeles.

In court filings, the federal authorites contended that the couple's employees prepared internal reports identifying the race of tenants at properties the defendants purchased in Koreatown.

Additionally, the Sterlings made statements to employees at Koreatown buildings indicating that blacks and Latinos were not desirable tenants, according to the Justice Department.

"Housing is a basic human need, and yet decades after passage of the
Fair Housing Act, far too many still encounter barriers like discrimination.
Particularly in times of economic distress and rising foreclosures, we must remain vigilant to ensure all individuals have equal access to housing," said Thomas E. Perez, Assistant Attorney General for the Civil Rights Division.

"The magnitude of this settlement should send a message to all landlords that we will vigorously pursue violations of the Fair Housing Act."

The Sterlings manage their apartments under the name Beverly Hills Properties. They own 119 apartment buildings comprising more than 5,000 apartments in the county.

"The expert testimony from the case also conclusively confirmed that
the Trust did not discriminate against anyone," Platt said.

However, two families, a black family and an interracial married couple with
bi-racial children, alleged that the defendants demolished the private yards that had been part of their apartment and took other actions against them
because of their race.

Under the settlement, the defendants would pay $2.625 million into
a fund that would be used to pay monetary damages to people who were harmed by the defendants' alleged discriminatory practices. Another 100,000 would go to the feds.

The terms of the distribution of the $2.625 million will be determined in a separate disbursement order that will be submitted by the federal government for approval to the judge.

(© 2008 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. Wire services contributed to this report.)