Cheating On Every Level: Anatomy of the Demise of a Civil Rights Consent Decree

Westchester Case

April 17, 2014 — ADC has just issued a report entitled “Cheating On Every Level: Anatomy of the Demise of a Civil Rights Consent Decree.” The report documents Westchester County’s ongoing violations of the housing desegregation consent decree that was entered into in August 2009 as a result of the False Claims Act case that ADC brought against the County. It also documents the failure of the Government and the Monitor to hold Westchester to account.

ADC has forwarded the report to the Hon. Denise Cote, the presiding judge in the case, in the hopes that Judge Cote will take an independent look at the facts and then act to vindicate the promise of the decree and the integrity of the rule of law.

It's really in the court order — take a look

Because Westchester has consistently muddied the waters, because the Government and the Monitor have failed to explain to the public the provisions of the consent decree, and because the press frequently engages in “on the one hand, on the other hand” journalism, it’s not surprising that many people believe that we have nothing more than an ongoing negotiation of a political dispute.

In fact, the consent decree sets out specific obligations (and several important acknowledgments that Westchester was forced to make, including its authority and responsibility to litigate against municipalities that retain barriers to fair housing choice, and the appropriateness of doing so).

Read the decree

Enough is enough

Tired of years of Westchester violating a historic housing desegregation consent decree? Disgusted with the pretense of “progress”? Sick of attempts to downplay the scope of the illegal barriers to fair housing choice in the county? Want to see Westchester actually held to account for all of its wrongdoing?

I want action

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