Maryland Attorney General’s new civil rights division accuses landlords of harassment

“Housing providers lag far behind employers when it comes to preventing and combating sexual harassment. In the state of Maryland, that ends today,” Attorney General Anthony G. Brown (D) said at a press conference on Friday.

“We hope this case sheds light on this widespread and insidious problem and puts landlords and housing providers on notice,” Brown said. “You cannot sexually harass your tenants, you cannot demand sex as rent, and you cannot retaliate against tenants who reject your unwanted advances.”

Sessoms did not return a call to the number provided for him. It was not immediately clear whether he had a lawyer.

Brown said he would seek the authority to enforce civil rights laws when he takes office in 2023. Within months, the General Assembly passed a bill giving him the authority to prosecute such cases and providing funding, starting with $1 million in the 2024 fiscal year.

The Civil Rights Division was launched in January and has begun investigating patterns of rights violations across the state, said Brown, who described his agenda of “justice and equality” as a top priority.

Brown’s office took on the case against Sessoms in conjunction with Maryland Legal Aid, which had already litigated cases against Sessoms for other alleged tenant rights violations and had alerted the Civil Rights Division to the sexual harassment allegations.

Sessoms and his company, the Mt. Vernon Group, operate at least 23 single-family homes, many of which were rented to women “at risk of imminent homelessness,” Friday’s lawsuit says, detailing allegations from five women, including one who said Sessoms specifically demanded sexual acts from her in order to receive a rent reduction.

Sessoms took advantage of the woman’s “economic vulnerability and housing needs,” the lawsuit says. She responded to Sessoms’ advances to keep her home, but when she later rejected him, he retaliated by throwing her out of her home.

The lawsuit, filed in Wicomico County District Court, seeks, among other things, an injunction prohibiting Sessoms from engaging in residential landlord activities.

“Justice will certainly be served if we remove the defendant Sessoms from this profession” and obtain redress for the victims, Brown said.

The lawsuit seeks civil penalties and damages in excess of $75,000.

Civil rights violations may be reported to the Maryland Attorney General’s Office by email at [email protected] or by phone at 410-576-6300.