Victims of Domestic Violence Face Second Assault from Landlords
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March 15, 2010
SPRINGFIELD, Ill. - Under current Illinois housing laws, victims of domestic violence can face eviction if they report the abuse. That happened to Kathy Cleaves Milan. She and her nine-year-old daughter were evicted soon after a frightening situation involving a live-in boyfriend. Despite a protection order and the removal of the boyfriend, the owners of the apartment complex cited violence in the home as a violation of the lease, and Cleaves Milan was told to go. Cleaves Milan says victims shouldn't be punished for taking action against an abuser.
"No one should be evicted from their home because they decide to stand up and report the violence and remove an abuser from their home. That's the responsible thing to do. And when someone takes those steps, you shouldn't still be punished for that. It's very unfair, and it sends the wrong message."
Although this is not a comfortable topic for Cleaves Milan, she feels it's important to tell her story in order to help protect victims affected by these evictions, especially children.
"Hopefully, this bill will pass and no other victim of violence, and their children, should have to experience what my daughter and I went through. That's why I've been fighting so hard for this bill to pass."
Advocacy groups like Housing Action Illinois and the Sargent Shriver National Center on Poverty Law are voicing their support of statewide legislation that would set up protections for victims of domestic violence.
The Illinois House is currently considering a bill that would continue to allow landlords to evict abusers, while making it criminal for them to force out innocent victims of violence. Twenty other states already have such laws.