UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT 

NORTHERN DISTRICT OF FLORIDA 

TALLAHASSEE DIVISION 

DELROY A. CHAMBERS, JR., 

 

 Plaintiff, 

 

v. 

 

H2 PROPERTY MANAGEMENT, LLC, 

doing business as HOLLAWAY 

PROPERTY MANAGEMENT 

 

Defendant. 

_____________________________________/ 

COMPLAINT 

and 

JURY DEMAND

Plaintiff, Delroy A. Chambers, Jr., by and through his undersigned attorneys, 

files this Complaint for injunctive and declaratory relief, damages, costs, and 

attorneys’ fees against Defendant, H2 Property Management, LLC, doing business 

as Hollaway Property Management (“Hollaway Property Management”), and as 

good grounds states as follows: 

PRELIMINARY STATEMENT 

1. This action arises as a result of Defendant’s discriminatory actions 

perpetrated against Black people with respect to the rental of a home located in 

Tallahassee, Florida (the “Dwelling”). 

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2. Specifically, Defendant has violated the Fair Housing Act by, among 

other things, refusing to negotiate, and otherwise making unavailable and denying 

the Dwelling to Mr. Chambers because of race. 

JURISDICTION AND VENUE

3. Jurisdiction is invoked pursuant to 42 U.S.C. § 3613(a), in that Plaintiff 

asserts his claims of housing discrimination in a civil action, and also pursuant to 28 

U.S.C. §§ 1331, 2201 and 1343(a)(4), in that this is a civil action seeking to redress 

the deprivation of the right to fair housing secured to Plaintiff by the Fair Housing 

Act. 

4. Plaintiff seeks declaratory relief pursuant to 28 U.S.C. §§ 2201 and 

2202. Plaintiff seeks permanent injunctive relief pursuant to Rule 65, Federal Rules 

of Civil Procedure. 

5. Venue is proper in this district pursuant to 28 U.S.C. §§ 1391(b) and 

1391(c) in that the subject property is located in this district, the events and/or 

omissions giving rise to the claims herein occurred in this district, and the 

Defendant’s principal place of business is in this district. 

PARTIES

6. Plaintiff, Delroy A. Chambers, Jr., is a Black male that serves as a fair 

housing tester who seeks to enforce fair housing laws so that people are protected 

from discriminatory housing practices. Mr. Chambers attempts to accomplish these 

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goals by engaging in testing for fair housing violations and pursuing enforcement of 

meritorious claims, among other things. In this capacity, Mr. Chambers poses as a 

renter or purchaser for the purpose of collecting evidence of discriminatory housing 

practices, without intent to rent or purchase a home. At all relevant times, Mr. 

Chambers was acting in this capacity as a tester when he conducted an investigation 

into the discriminatory actions perpetuated by Defendant. 

7. As a fair housing tester and advocate dedicated to advancing the rights 

of those historically discriminated against, Mr. Chambers attempts to locate housing 

providers and advertisers in order to test their compliance with various fair housing 

laws. Mr. Chambers conducts such testing efforts consistent with the guidance and 

instructions outlined by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development 

(HUD), housing advocacy groups, and established case law. 

8. Mr. Chambers is deeply committed to fair housing and the goals of the 

Fair Housing Act. Mr. Chambers was and continues to be adversely affected by the 

acts, omissions, policies, and practices of the Defendant. 

9. Defendant, Hollaway Property Management, is a Florida Limited 

Liability Company that is engaged in the business of real estate and is comprised of 

licensed real estate professionals. 

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FACTUAL ALLEGATIONS

10. While investigating discrimination in the housing market in June 2019, 

Mr. Chambers encountered an advertisement for the Dwelling. The advertisement 

stated, among other things, “No felonies.” 

11. The advertisement indicated that Defendant provided the listing and 

included contact information for Defendant. 

12. As part of Mr. Chambers’s fair housing testing efforts described above, 

Mr. Chambers, posing as a potential renter, attempted to negotiate for the rental of 

the Dwelling with Defendant by confirming the availability of the Dwelling. 

Defendant responded by confirming the availability of the Dwelling and that it could 

be occupied as soon as mid-August. 

13. Having confirmed that there was a Dwelling available for rental, Mr. 

Chambers continued the test by asking for additional details regarding the criminal 

record policy and whether a felony would result in a denial. 

14. Despite the apparent blanket prohibition stated in the advertisement, 

Defendant asked for details about Mr. Chambers’s felony history. 

15. Mr. Chambers responded by indicating that he had a felony arrest in 

2013, and provided details regarding the arrest. 

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16. In response, Defendant did not ask whether the arrest resulted in 

convictions, and instead, simply stated that it could not move forward with Mr. 

Chambers, because his felony arrest was less than ten years old. 

17. As such, Defendant improperly took arrests into consideration. 

18. Such actions and statements serve to discourage Mr. Chambers from 

applying, inspecting and renting the Dwelling; and restrict the choices of Mr. 

Chambers by word or conduct in connection with seeking, negotiating for, renting 

the Dwelling so as to perpetuate, or tend to perpetuate, segregated housing patterns, 

or to discourage or obstruct choices in a community, neighborhood or development. 

As such, these actions constitute efforts to deprive Mr. Chambers of housing 

opportunities. 

19. HUD has found that “where a policy or practice that restricts access to 

housing on the basis of criminal history has a disparate impact on individuals of a 

particular race ... such policy or practice is unlawful under the Fair Housing Act if 

it is not necessary to serve a substantial, legitimate, nondiscriminatory interest of the 

housing provider.” See HUD, “Office of General Counsel Guidance on Application 

of Fair Housing Act Standards to the Use of Criminal Records by Providers of 

Housing and Real Estate-Related Transactions” (April 4, 2016). 

20. According to recent data, studies and HUD findings, Black people are 

arrested, convicted, and imprisoned at vastly disproportionate rates in Florida and 

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the country as a whole. As such, Defendant's policy actually and predictably result 

in a disparate impact to Black people. 

21. HUD has found that “[a] housing provider with a policy or practice of 

excluding individuals because of one or more prior arrests (without any conviction) 

cannot satisfy its burden of showing that such policy or practice is necessary to 

achieve a substantial, legitimate, nondiscriminatory interest.” Id.

22. As such, Defendant’s actions in refusing to negotiate with Mr. 

Chambers and making the Dwelling unavailable to Mr. Chambers and denying it to 

him based on a criminal history policy that takes an applicant’s arrest history into 

consideration is unlawful under the Fair Housing Act, as it has a disparate impact on 

Black people, and fails to serve a substantial, legitimate, nondiscriminatory interest 

of the housing provider. 

23. Mr. Chambers was angered and insulted that Defendant was refusing to 

negotiate and making the Dwelling unavailable to him and denying it to him based 

on a criminal history policy, which takes an applicant’s arrest history into 

consideration. 

24. As a Black person who has been the subject of discrimination 

throughout his life, Mr. Chambers is particularly sensitive to discriminatory 

practices. As such, Mr. Chambers was insulted and emotionally distressed by being 

subjected to discriminatory housing policies by Defendant. 

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25. Mr. Chambers was and is saddened, angered, and insulted by the fact 

that the Defendant refused to negotiate and otherwise made unavailable and denied 

the Dwelling to him based on a criminal history policy that has a discriminatory 

impact and serves no substantial, legitimate, nondiscriminatory interest. Mr. 

Chambers has spent a significant amount of time thinking about what occurred and 

all the other Black people who may have had housing made unavailable to them by 

Defendant based on the criminal history policy that takes arrest history into 

consideration, and while doing so, has felt the aforementioned emotions. 

26. Defendant’s unlawful conduct proximately caused Mr. Chambers to 

suffer the aforementioned emotions, which have manifested into stress, unpleasant 

rumination, mental strain, and feelings of indignity, hopelessness and anxiety about 

race discrimination in housing. 

27. Consistent with his fair housing testing efforts, Mr. Chambers has a 

practice of continuing to monitor and test those entities and individuals found to 

have been discriminating. To those ends, Mr. Chambers has and will continue 

monitoring Defendant and its agents in order to determine its ongoing compliance 

with the Fair Housing Act, and will continue to do so throughout the pendency of 

this matter and after its conclusion. 

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COUNT 1: 

VIOLATION OF THE FAIR HOUSING ACT 

28. Plaintiff repeats and realleges paragraphs 1 through 27 as if fully set 

forth herein. 

29. This Count 1 is brought by Plaintiff against the Defendant, Hollaway 

Property Management 

30. Defendant is liable to Plaintiff for all injuries caused by the Fair 

Housing Act violations committed by Defendant, and its agents. 

31. Defendant Hollaway Property Management authorized its agents to act 

for it when they committed the Fair Housing Act violations alleged herein. 

Defendant’s agents accepted the undertaking of acting on behalf of Defendant 

Hollaway Property Management when they committed the Fair Housing Act 

violations alleged herein. Defendant Hollaway Property Management had control 

over its agents when they committed the Fair Housing Act violations alleged herein. 

32. Defendant has violated the Fair Housing Act by, among other things, 

otherwise making unavailable and denying the Dwelling to Mr. Chambers because 

of race. 

33. A discriminatory purpose, not any legitimate reason, was a motivating 

factor behind Defendant’s aforementioned discriminatory actions and/or omissions. 

34. As a result of Defendant’s discriminatory conduct - committed despite 

being engaged in the business of real estate, coupled with Plaintiff’s ongoing 

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monitoring efforts - Plaintiff has suffered, is continuing to suffer, and will in the 

future suffer irreparable loss and injury and a real and immediate threat of future 

discrimination by Defendant. 

35. Defendant’s unlawful conduct and actions constitute direct evidence of 

discrimination and proximately caused Plaintiff’s damages as described above. 

36. In engaging in this unlawful conduct described above, Defendant acted 

recklessly or intentionally. This is evidenced, in part, by the fact that Defendant is 

engaged in the real estate business, and despite that fact, chose to engage in unlawful 

discrimination. 

37. As a tester who has been treated in a discriminatory fashion by 

Defendant, Mr. Chambers has suffered an injury in precisely the form the Fair 

Housing Act was intended to guard against, and therefore he has standing to maintain 

his claims under the Act's provisions. 

38. Accordingly, Plaintiff is aggrieved by Defendant's discriminatory 

actions in violation of the Fair Housing Act. 

WHEREFORE, Plaintiff respectfully requests that the Court: 

A. declare the actions, omissions, policies, and procedures of 

Defendant, complained of herein to be in violation of the Fair Housing Act; 

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B. enter a permanent injunction enjoining Defendant, its successors, 

and its servants, agents and employees, and all those acting in concert with it, from 

engaging in discrimination based on race; 

C. enter a permanent injunction compelling Defendant, its 

successors, and its servants, agents and employees, and all those acting in concert 

with it, to amend any and all policies, procedures and practices, which discriminate 

against persons based on race; 

D. award compensatory damages to Plaintiff against Defendant, to 

compensate Plaintiff for, among other things, the emotional distress, anger, insult 

and injury caused by Defendant’s discriminatory actions; 

E. award Plaintiff his costs and reasonable attorneys’ fees in this 

action; and 

F. award Plaintiff such other and further relief as the Court deems 

just and proper. 

DEMAND FOR JURY TRIAL

 Pursuant to Rule 38(b), Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, Plaintiff demands a 

trial by jury on all issues so triable in this matter. 

 

 Respectfully submitted, 

 Joshua A. Glickman, Esq. 

 Florida Bar No. 43994 

 josh@sjlawcollective.com 

Case 4:20-cv-00234-WS-MAF Document 1 Filed 05/04/20 Page 10 of 11
 Shawn A. Heller, Esq. 

 Florida Bar No. 46346 

 shawn@sjlawcollective.com 

 Social Justice Law Collective, PL 

 974 Howard Avenue 

 Dunedin, Florida 34698 

 (202) 709-5744 

 (866) 893-0416 (Fax) 

 Attorneys for the Plaintiff 

 By: s/ Shawn A. Heller .

 Shawn A. Heller, Esq. 

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