N.J. Woman Sues Home Developer Over 'Aggressive, Hostile' Neighbor

When Cyndee Phoenix, 53, bought a home in October, she thought she found the perfect neighborhood in a planned real estate development in Mays Landing, N.J., about 19 miles west of Atlantic City. But she says her life has been far short of perfect thanks to a cantankerous neighbor.

And now Phoenix is claiming the developer who sold her the unit "knowingly concealed" that a "dangerous individual" would be her future neighbor, which she alleges is material misrepresentation and fraud, according to the lawsuit filed last week in Atlantic County Superior Court of New Jersey.

"At the time Ms. Phoenix expressed interest in one of the units, the defendant knew there was a neighbor directly across the street who, for lack of better words, was a tremendous thorn in the side of Lennar," said her attorney, Brett Datto.

Lennar Corp., a national homebuilder headquartered in Miami, is the seller of Phoenix's new home and the target of her lawsuit. Phoenix says Lennar should have informed her about her neighbor across the street, who is named in the lawsuit.

"We contend Lennar omitted material information so that Ms. Phoenix would purchase the home," said Datto. "Omission of a material fact is an element of fraud. You can commit fraud under most jurisdictions by omitting material information."

Phoenix, a community outreach director for a casino, says the neighbor has directed "increasingly harassing" behavior at her family, including her mother and sister. Those incidents allegedly include: death threats to her sister, "snide and racist" comments, spitting in the direction of her family members, and calling the police on her guests.

"He's made snide and racist comments, like, 'Go back to Atlantic City where you belong,' which is a more urban area," Datto said. "He blares his music loudly, takes pictures of my client's guests. He's a problem person."

Lennar Corp. did not respond to requests for comment.

On Nov. 12, just five days after Phoenix and her family moved into the home, she and her sister filed complaints for harassment and stalking against the neighbor, says her attorney.

Phoenix hired a security guard on the day the complaints were filed in fear of retaliation, the lawsuit says.

The neighbor "started to confront the hired security guard by staring at him for long periods of time, calling the police on the security guard and even following the security guard for 15 miles on the Garden State Parkway when he left [Phoenix's] property to go home," according to the lawsuit.

Datto says the problem may have been sparked even before Phoenix bought the home.

In a visit to the property when Phoenix was trying to decide whether to buy the home, the neighbor approached the sales representative to talk about "the lack of services, like landscaping of his yard," the lawsuit states.

The sales rep "implied that [the neighbor] was no longer eligible for services as a result of the time that had passed since his house was purchased," the lawsuit states.

Lennar's general counsel then sent a letter to the neighbor's wife, who owns the home, on Oct. 1, warning about his behavior.

Tennessee Man Pleads Guilty to Federal Hate Crime Charge for Cross Burning

WASHINGTON—Timothy Stafford, 41, pleaded guilty today in federal court in Nashville, Tennessee, to his role in the April 30, 2012, cross burning in front of an interracial family’s home in Minor Hill, Tennessee, the Department of Justice announced.
Stafford pleaded guilty to conspiring with others to threaten, intimidate, and interfere with an interracial couple’s enjoyment of their housing rights. Stafford admitted in court that on the night of April 30, 2012, he and two other individuals devised a plan to burn a cross in the yard of an interracial couple in Minor Hill, Tennessee. Stafford constructed a wooden cross in a workshop behind his house. Stafford and his co-conspirators then purchased diesel fuel and covered the cross in diesel fuel-soaked cloth. Stafford then drove his conspirators and the cross to the victims’ residence. Upon arriving at the residence, the other conspirators placed the cross in the driveway and ignited it. Stafford and the conspirators chose to burn the cross at the victims’ house because of their race, as well as the race of their child. Stafford admitted to targeting the interracial couple because he did not want interracial dating in his community.
Ivan “Rusty” London IV, 21, of Lexington, Kentucky, previously pleaded guilty for his role in the conspiracy and is currently awaiting sentencing.
“Hate motivated crimes will not be tolerated in our country,” said Jocelyn Samuels, Acting Assistant Attorney General for the Civil Rights Division. “The Justice Department will vigorously prosecute individuals that violate the rights of others because of race.”
“The right to live in a community of your choosing, free of acts of intimidation that are meant to inspire fear, is a fundamental right in the United States,” said David Rivera, U.S. Attorney for the Middle District of Tennessee. “The Department of Justice takes these transgressions very seriously and to the extent that individuals interfere with fundamental civil rights, they will be prosecuted to the full extent of the law.”
Timothy Stafford faces a statutory maximum of 10 years in prison. Ivan London faces a statutory maximum of five years in prison.