ACLU, senators: Calling police too much means eviction

The case of a Burlington man who says in a lawsuit he was evicted from his home for calling the police too many times is an example of a broader, nationwide problem, according to the American Civil Liberties Union and a group of U.S. senators.

The Burlington Free Press reported Friday on the case of Joe Montagno, who is suing the city of Burlington in federal court on claims that he was labeled a public nuisance and evicted because he called law enforcement too often.

The ACLU of Vermont is suing the city, and attorney Jay Diaz says he documented the pressure the city's code enforcement office put on landlord Joe Handy to evict tenant Montagno.

Diaz described Montagno as a "vulnerable individual" in his early 40s whom the lawsuit said had experienced threats and at least one assault with a metal pipe by a neighbor. A court later ordered the neighbor to have no contact with Montagno and to stay at least 10 feet from him, the lawsuit said.

Read more: http://www.burlingtonfreepress.com/story/news/local/2016/09/02/aclu-senators-calling-police-too-much-means-eviction/89791284/