Lackawanna County Judge James Gibbons granted a “motion for contempt” by plaintiff Kathleen Mulholland and ordered a receiver to assume management and control of the apartment building, including collecting its rents and “attaching” a landlord bank account for use in performing lead abatement.
Mulholland on Sept. 27 sued 961 Wheeler LLC of Scranton, which bought the apartment building in February, and Vertex Management Group, which has managed it since February. Both are from Brooklyn, New York. 961 Wheeler LLC also has a registered office in Scranton, according to the complaint.
No one from 961 Wheeler LLC or Vertex, or their principal, attended the hearing. They also have not responded to the lawsuit in pleadings or attended a prior hearing in the case, said attorney Marielle Macher of the Community Justice Project, a nonprofit civil legal assistance organization representing Mulholland.
The lawsuit initially sought an injunction for immediate lead abatement and hotel accommodations for the mother and daughter until remediation is completed.
The court first issued an order Oct. 2 directing the defendants to file a reply within 15 days and scheduled a hearing for Oct. 23 before Gibbons. The defendants did not file any replies and did not attend that hearing, according to an injunction order issued Oct. 24 in favor of the plaintiff.
In that Oct. 24 order, Gibbons required the defendants to perform interim lead control measures within 48 hours, consult with a lead-certified contractor within seven days to develop a remediation plan and begin permanent abatement within 20 days, and provide or pay for suitable alternative housing for the mother and daughter while the abatement takes place.
“Not one of these items have happened. The defendants have not responded in any format,” Macher told the judge on Tuesday during a hearing on the motion for contempt.
United Neighborhood Centers of Northeastern Pennsylvania is willing to serve as a receiver to collect rents and attach the bank account, Macher told the judge.
While the defendants have not responded to the Mulholland lawsuit in county court, Vertex filed in magisterial district courts 22 eviction actions involving other properties, Macher said.
Gibbons asked if Macher knew how much lead abatement at 961 Wheeler Ave. might cost. Macher said no, because the organization did not want to enter into such a contract without the ability to pay for it. Mulholland moved to 961 Wheeler Ave. in 2020, when the building was owned by a prior owner. Her daughter, who was born in November of 2022 and has not lived anywhere else, is developmentally delayed and mostly nonverbal. She likely ingested lead via hand-to-mouth activities typical for a toddler and probably ate flaked-off paint chips, according to the lawsuit.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention considers blood lead levels of 3.5 micrograms per deciliter or higher as elevated, but there is no acceptable exposure to lead for children. After testing of the girl’s blood in June showed a level of lead at 12.8 micrograms per deciliter, a medical insurer had a firm inspect the apartment. This inspection found deteriorated lead-based paint throughout the apartment, including on window, door and stairs components, walls and ceilings; as well as lead contamination in the soil in the yard.The child’s speech and developmental delays are consistent with elevated levels of lead in blood, the lawsuit claims.
In Pennsylvania, the primary source of childhood lead poisoning has been exposure to aging, deteriorating lead-based paint, in the form of chips and dust, in older homes with lead paint from before its 1978 ban. Lead can cause serious health problems if too much enters the body from any source. It can damage the brain and kidneys, and the greatest risk of lead exposure is to infants, young children and pregnant women. The CDC cautions that no blood lead level in children is safe and even low levels can be harmful. An elevated blood lead level poses serious risks to a young child’s health, including risks of permanent brain damage, developmental delays, learning difficulties, behavioral problems and other problems.
According to the lawsuit: Mulholland requested in June and July that the defendants remediate the lead hazards. The defendants tried to evict her in August, but a magisterial district judge ruled in her favor. Vertex then told her the owner is not going to be able to remove the lead from the residence. They suggested moving her and her daughter to a different apartment, but they ignored her when she tried to follow up. She searched for alternative housing, but has not been able to find a suitable place that she can afford.
Mulholland and a neighbor attended Tuesday’s hearing. Afterward, she said she still lives in the apartment at 961 Wheeler Ave. and uses playpens to keep her daughter away from areas of deteriorated lead-based paint.
“I just want my house fixed,” Mulholland said.