andrew david white eviction complaint

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COMPLAINT

Daniel R. Ybarra Bar # 14375

THE YBARRA LEGAL GROUP, LLC

1429 S. 550 East

Orem, UT 84097

(801) 310-7286

[email protected]

Attorney for Plaintiff

IN THE FOURTH JUDICIAL DISTRICT COURT

PROVO DEPARTMENT, OF UTAH COUNTY,

STATE OF UTAH

Andrew David White, Plaintiff,

vs.

Peak Joaquin Holdings LLC d/b/a The

Village At South Campus

Defendants.

COMPLAINT

Case No.

Judge:

1. Comes now Andrew David White and complains and alleges as follows.

2. The Village At South Campus is an apartment complex located at 602 East 600 North

Provo, Utah 84606.

3. Defendant Peak Joaquin Holdings, LLC owns, operates, and does business as The

Village At South Campus.

4. Lance Freeman is the manager of The Village At South Campus and an agent of Peak

Joaquin Holdings, LLC.

5. The acts and events herein described took place in Utah County.

6. On or about October 21, 2014 Plaintiff entered into a contract with Defendants for the

lease of an apartment located at 602 East 60 North Provo, Utah 84606.

7. The contract is attached hereto and its terms are hereby incorporated by reference.

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COMPLAINT

8. In or about October 21, 2014 Plaintiff took up residence at an apartment in 602 East

600 North Provo, Utah 84606.

9. On or about January 7, 2015 Plaintiff shared with one of his roommates that he felt

same-sex attraction. Plaintiff shared this information in confidence.

10. Unbeknownst to Plaintiff, this roommate shared that information with the other men

living in the apartment.

11. In the early morning hours of January 13, 2015, following a dispute over food in the

apartment, Plaintiff’s roommates told him that they would not allow him to live with

them anymore.

12. Plaintiff’s roommates threatened physical violence if he did not immediately vacate

the apartment, and used abusive language towards him, stating that, because of his

homosexuality, he should not be permitted to live at the apartment complex, to study

at Brigham Young University, be a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter

Day Saints or to work at the Missionary Training Center.

13. Plaintiff declined to leave the apartment, and went to bed.

14. Plaintiff’s roommates then entered his bedroom, pulled him from his bed, and began

removing his personal possessions from the apartment. They took his apartment

keys, and they again threatened him with physical violence if he did not immediately

leave the apartment. They also threatened to begin destroying his personal

possessions by throwing them off the top of the apartment complex.

15. Fearing for his personal safety, Plaintiff left the apartment and called the police. As

he left the apartment, he was pushed.

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COMPLAINT

16. The officer with whom Plaintiff spoke advised him to not return to the apartment

without an escort.

17. Plaintiff spent that night in his car.

18. Plaintiff arranged to spend the night of January 13th

with a friend, rather than at his

apartment.

19. Plaintiff sought medical treatment for injuries arising out of the assault, and was

diagnosed with bruised ribs.

20. On January 14th

, Plaintiff returned to the apartment with a police escort to gather a

few of his belongings.

21. Plaintiff then met with Lance Freeman, manager of the apartment complex, and

relayed what had happened.

22. Mr. Freeman told Plaintiff that he would be moved temporarily to an empty

apartment in the complex.

23. Plaintiff was not asked to surrender his key, and did not do so.

24. Mr. Freeman shared with multiple employees of the complex that Plaintiff was a

homosexual.

25. At various times over the next several days, Plaintiff returned to his apartment to

move his personal belongings to the new one. Most of these trips were undertaken

with the knowledge and implicit consent of management.

26. On January 23rd

, Plaintiff arrived at the old apartment at about 1 am to collect more

personal possessions. His former roommates were awake and told him to leave.

27. Several hours later, at approximately 3 am, without warning or notice, an employee of

the complex, under direction from Mr. Freeman, entered Plaintiff’s locked apartment

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COMPLAINT

with the police, woke Plaintiff from his bed while only wearing his underwear,

blocked Plaintiff from closing his bedroom door while he put his clothes on, and

demanded that he return the key to the former apartment. Plaintiff complied.

28. Without notice or other process, Mr. Freeman then had Plaintiff’s personal

possessions removed from his old apartment and placed in storage. During the move

and storage, certain items were damaged, broken, or went missing.

29. Later the same day, January 23rd

, Mr. Freeman posted a “Three Day Notice to

Vacate” on the door of Plaintiff’s temporary apartment, alleging nuisance and

purporting to evict him from both apartments. The notice did not give opportunity to

cure and did not specify the actions alleged to have created the nuisance. The notice

is attached.

30. In compliance with Defendant’s demand, Plaintiff vacated the premises and began

searching for new housing accommodations.

31. As a result of his removal from the apartment complex, Plaintiff incurred various

financial charges and costs associated with securing new housing.

32. Plaintiff has also suffered emotionally. His grades have declined as a result of the

stress of being evicted from his apartment, and he has begun seeing a therapist or

counselor to deal with the emotional trauma. He has had to drop various classes to

avoid failing grades and he will need to repeat his semester at the university, and will

incur costs and expenses as a result.

33. The manner of his eviction has caused Plaintiff to fear for his safety, to have trouble

sleeping, and to suffer anxiety about his personal safety and the security of his living

quarters.

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COMPLAINT

34. Plaintiff was forced to take time off of work to deal with the situation, and suffered

lost wages as a result.

35. Plaintiff suffered emotional distress as a result of management’s sharing his sexual

orientation, information that had previously led directly to an assault on him and loss

of his living quarters.

36. As Plaintiff’s damages are ongoing and continue to accrue, Plaintiff reserves the right

to amend this complaint.

First Cause of Action, Breach of Contract

37. The Defendants by their actions breached the October 21st contract.

Second Cause of Action, Forcible Detainer

38. The Defendant by its actions violated Utah Code § 78B-6-801 and engaged in self-

help, forcibly removing Plaintiff and his possessions from the property without proper

resort to judicial process.

Third Cause of Action, Wrongful Eviction

39. The Defendant by its actions committed a wrongful eviction, engaging in self-help to

evict Plaintiff without resort to proper judicial process.

Fourth Cause of Action, Negligent Infliction of Emotional Distress

40. Defendant should have realized that its conduct involved an unreasonable risk of

causing distress, should have realized that the distress, if it were caused, might result

in illness or bodily harm.

Fifth Cause of Action, Constructive Eviction

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COMPLAINT

41. Defendant, by its actions and inactions, interfered with the Plaintiffs right of

possession so as to render the premises, or a part thereof, unsuitable for the purposes

intended.

Sixth Cause of Action, Conversion

42. Defendant, by its actions and without lawful justification, interfered with Plaintiffs

right of possession to his personal property, so as to deny him its use and possession.

Seventh Cause of Action, Trespass

43. Defendant physically invaded and infringed upon Plaintiff’s apartment.

Eighth Cause of Action, Forcible Entry

44. The Defendant by its actions violated Utah Code § 78B-6-801 and engaged in self-

help, forcibly entering Plaintiff’s apartment without proper notice.

Damages

45. Wherefore, Plaintiff prays that this court award him an amount not less than $13,870

as reasonable compensation for the direct and indirect injuries he has suffered as a

result of Defendant’s Actions.

46. Plaintiff prays that the court award him no less than $20,000 as reasonable

compensation for the emotional trauma that he has suffered as a result of Defendant’s

actions.

47. Plaintiff prays that, pursuant to Utah Code § 78B-6-811, the damages be trebled and

the Defendant be liable for the amount of $101,610.

48. Plaintiff prays that this court award him reasonable attorney fees.

Dated March 19, 2015.

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COMPLAINT

THE YBARRA LEGAL GROUP, LLC

/s/ Daniel R. Ybarra

Attorney for the Plaintiff

Exhibit 1 Lease Agreement

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COMPLAINT

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COMPLAINT

Exhibit 2 Eviction Notice

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COMPLAINT

andrew david white eviction complaint

Documents