WASHINGTON (AP) -- Los Angeles Clippers owner and real estate mogul Donald Sterling
has agreed to pay a record $2.725 million to settle allegations by the
government that he refused to rent apartments to Hispanics, blacks and
to families with children, the Justice Department announced Tuesday.
The Justice Department
sued Sterling in August 2006 for allegations of housing discrimination
in the Koreatown area of Los Angeles. Other defendants were Sterling's
wife, Rochelle, and the Sterling Family Trust.
The defendants allegedly made statements to employees indicating
that African-Americans and Hispanics were not desirable tenants.
In addition to the pro basketball Clippers, Sterling owns and
manages 119 apartment buildings with over 5,000 apartment units in Los
Angeles County.
"The magnitude of this settlement should send a message to all
landlords that we will vigorously pursue violations of the Fair Housing
Act," Thomas Perez, assistant attorney general for the civil rights
division, said in a statement.
The settlement, which also covers two related lawsuits by former
tenants at one of the Sterling properties, now will be considered by a
federal judge. Under the settlement, Sterling and the other defendants
would pay a $100,000 civil penalty to the government and would pay
$2.625 million into a fund to pay monetary damages to tenants who were
harmed.
The Justice Department's previous record settlement for
discrimination in the area of rental housing was $2.2 million in a 1996
case.
Sterling spokesman Robert Platt had no immediate comment.
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