FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE                                          CR

THURSDAY, APRIL 2, 1998                                                                                                             (202) 616-2765

                                                                                                                                                                TDD (202) 514-1888




JUSTICE DEPARTMENT REACHES FAIR HOUSING AGREEMENT


WITH NEW JERSEY APARTMENT OWNERS







	WASHINGTON, D.C. -- The owners and operators of two large
Clark, New Jersey apartment complexes--accounting for nearly 50
percent of the rental housing market in the city--have agreed to
pay $300,000 in damages and penalties for allegedly
discriminating against minorities.

	The agreement, filed today in U.S. District Court in Newark,
resolves two suits filed in December 1997, alleging that the
owners and operators of Hillcrest Village and Lexington Village
violated the federal Fair Housing Act of 1968 by falsely
informing African Americans about the availability of apartments
to discourage them from renting.

	"Even today, on the eve of the 30th anniversary of the
passage of the Fair Housing Act, we continue to find racial
discrimination in rental housing," said Bill Lann Lee, Acting
Assistant Attorney General for Civil Rights. "We must and we will
remain vigilant to make the promises of the Fair Housing Act a
reality for all Americans."

	Under the terms of the decree, the defendants will:

	include notices of nondiscrimination in their advertising
and public statements;




	provide fair housing training for their employees and rental
agents;




	establish a fund of $250,000 to compensate victims of the
defendants' allegedly discriminatory rental practices;




	pay any money remaining from the victim fund to the Fair
Housing Council of Northern New Jersey to further fair
housing activities; and,




	pay $50,000 in civil penalties. 




	Victims will be identified through a claims process to
conducted by the Department over the course of the next nine
months.  

	"This settlement signals a continuing commitment on the part
of the Department of Justice to ensure that no individual in this
community is denied an equal opportunity to obtain the housing of
his or her choice" said Faith Hochberg, the United States
Attorney for the District of New Jersey.

	The two lawsuits were part of a group of four in New Jersey
that the Department developed through its testing program.  Under
the program, the Department sends trained pairs of African
American and white individuals, posing as prospective tenants, to
inquire about the availability of apartments.  By comparing the
experiences of the testers, investigators discover whether
African Americans were treated less favorably than their white
counterparts.   

	With the settlements announced today, the Department has now
resolved three of the four New Jersey lawsuits, obtaining
$1,870,000 in damages, civil penalties, and other monetary
relief. Nationally, settlements stemming from testing cases have
totaled more than $7,000,000. 

	Any person who believes he or she has been a victim of race
discrimination at Hillcrest Village or Lexington Village to
contact the Civil Rights Division at 1-800-896-7743.

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