Landlord groped female tenants, entered their Kentucky homes without consent, feds say

A husband and wife landlord duo have agreed to pay $230,000 as they settle a lawsuit alleging sexual harassment against their female tenants in Kentucky, officials say.

In a federal lawsuit, the U.S. Justice Department says Chester Gordon Whitescarver and his wife, Betsy Whitescarver, violated the Fair Housing Act as women were harassed, groped and discriminated against since at least 2012 and as recent as 2018.

As co-owners and managers of at least 13 single-family homes and mobile homes in and near Russellville, Chester Whitescarver is accused of sexually harassing the female tenants as Betsy Whitescarver did nothing to stop his actions.

The defense attorney representing the Whitescarvers did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Some of the husband’s actions included making unwelcome sexual advances toward the women, entering their homes without consent, touching them on their breasts and kissing them without consent, according to the lawsuit. Officials also say Chester Whitescarver offered to “grant tangible housing benefits — such as reducing the rent and overlooking or excusing late or unpaid rent — to female tenants in exchange for sexual favors” as well as file eviction notices against women who objected or refused his sexually-motivated actions.

Meanwhile, authorities say Betsy Whitescarver knew their female tenants were alleging her husband sexually harassed them and “took no action to stop or curtail her husband’s sexually harassing behavior.”

In at least two different cases, once in 2012 and once in 2018, Betsy Whitescarver threatened or retaliated against women alleging that behavior, according to the lawsuit.

In one case, officials say she called a tenant and said the woman would “get what’s coming to (her)” after she and another tenant contacted police to report Chester Whitescarver had entered their home many times, once as they were sleeping, and made unwanted sexual advances.

“Defendant Betsy Whitescarver is directly liable for her own discriminatory conduct and vicariously liable for her husband’s discriminatory actions, all of which occurred while he was exercising his authority as her agent,” officials say.

With this settlement, 11 of their current or former tenants affected by their landlords’ “discriminatory conduct” will receive a combined $220,000 from the settlement, according to a Dec. 14 news release. The remaining $10,000 will cover a U.S. civil penalty.

The Whitescarvers are also required to dismiss pending evictions against any victims, remove adverse judgments against the women and take steps to repair the victims’ affected credit, officials say. They’ll also be permanently barred from property management.

“We all deserve to feel safe in our own homes,” said Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke for the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division. “Sexual harassment by housing providers deprives tenants of their right to be safe, secure and free from unlawful conduct. The Justice Department is committed to pursuing predatory landlords and will work resolutely to hold those landlords accountable and obtain relief for their victims.”

Russellville is about 150 miles southwest of Louisville, with a population of about 7,000.

This story was originally published December 14, 2021 at 12:49 PM with the headline "Landlord groped female tenants, entered their Kentucky homes without consent, feds say."