CINCINNATI (AP) — A landlord found to have discriminated
against a black girl by posting a "White Only" sign at a swimming pool
wants a state civil rights commission to reconsider its decision.
The
Ohio Civil Rights Commission found on Sept. 29 that Jamie Hein, who’s
white, violated the Ohio Civil Rights Act by posting the sign at a pool
at the duplex where the teenage girl was visiting her parents. The
parents filed a discrimination charge with the commission and moved out
of the duplex in the racially diverse city to "avoid subjecting their
family to further humiliating treatment," the commission said in a
release announcing its finding.
An investigation revealed that
Hein in May posted on the gated entrance to the pool an iron sign that
stated "Public Swimming Pool, White Only," the commission statement
said.
Several witnesses confirmed that the sign was posted, and
the landlord indicated that she posted it because the girl used in her
hair chemicals that would make the pool "cloudy," according to the
commission.
Hein, of Cincinnati, hung up when The Associated Press
called her for comment Tuesday. A message was left at her lawyer’s
office.
The commission’s statement said that its investigation
concluded that the posting of such a sign "restricts the social
interaction between Caucasians and African-Americans and reinforces
discriminatory actions aimed at oppressing people of color."
Commissioners
were scheduled to hear Hein’s request for reconsideration at a meeting
Thursday in Columbus, commission spokeswoman Brandi Martin said.
If
the commissioners uphold their original finding, the case would be
referred to the Ohio attorney general’s office, which would represent
the commission’s findings before an administrative law judge, Martin
said.
Penalties in the case could include a cease-and-desist order
and even punitive damages, but the administrative law judge would
determine any penalties, Martin said.
It still would be possible for the parties to reach a settlement before resorting to legal action, she
said.
Any decision by the administrative judge could be appealed to Hamilton County Common Pleas Court in
Cincinnati, Martin said.
Copyright 2011 The Associated Press.