Opinion ID: 668244
Heading Depth: 4
Heading Rank: 3

Heading: Other Arguments on Standing

Text: 27 The County argues that the plaintiffs have no standing because they are not entitled to select the site for the public housing themselves. See Jaimes v. Toledo Metro. Housing Auth., 758 F.2d at 1093-94. The relief that the plaintiffs request, however, does not purport to select a certain site, it merely requests a remedy that eliminates the Policy. Courts have observed that governmental bodies are bound to uphold and obey the provisions of the Fair Housing Act, ... and cannot seek refuge in broad generalizations regarding the absence of a constitutional guarantee of adequate housing. Smith v. Town of Clarkton, 682 F.2d 1055, 1067 (4th Cir.1982). If the district court finds that the allegations in the complaint are true, then the district court has broad and flexible powers to fashion a remedy to fully correct past wrongs. Id. at 1068. 28 The County argues that neither Jackson's nor Musgrove's claims are redressable because striking down the Policy will not guarantee that the facility will be constructed in the unincorporated five-mile area or even that it will be built in an integrated area. Additionally, the County contends that Jackson cannot prove that she would live in the project. The plaintiffs need not reach either level of certainty in order to show redressability. The requirement of redressability is not a demand for complete certainty in results, for requiring absolute certainty would be to close our eyes to the uncertainties which shroud human affairs. Huntington Branch, NAACP v. Town of Huntington, 689 F.2d at 394 (granting standing to plaintiffs challenging a refusal to amend zoning ordinances even though HUD funding had not been secured for the proposed project). Jackson has shown a substantial probability that she would live in the new public housing facility and that, but for the acts of the defendants, the new facility would be built at the specific proposed site in a racially integrated location. Musgrove has shown a substantial probability that the facility would not be built next door to her if the courts intervened. That is sufficient for standing. 29