Woman evicted for emotional support parrots to be paid $750,000 after lawsuit

Polly is about to get all the crackers she wants after a federal lawsuit resulted in a Manhattan apartment owner getting $165,000 in damages plus $585,000 for her shares in a co-op — for a total of $750,000 — after a dispute over emotional support parrots.
Meril Lesser, who has owned a unit at The Rutherford apartment building in Manhattan since 1999, was evicted in 2016 due to alleged excessive noise from her three emotional support parrots, Ginger, Layla and Curtis. The New York Post reported that the New York City Department of Environmental Protection responded to 15 separate noise complaints regarding the parrots, but found no disturbances on any of the occasions.
Charlotte Kullen, Lesser’s former neighbor, told the Daily News that when Lesser first moved into the building, there were no noise problems. As soon as the third one came 16 years later, she said her life became “a living hell.”
According to the Department of Housing and Urban Development, which is more commonly known as HUD, it is “unlawful for a housing provider to refuse to make a reasonable accommodation that a person with a disability may need in order to have equal opportunity to enjoy and use a dwelling.”
In a different document, HUD said that eligible emotional support animals may include “dogs, cats, small birds, rabbits, hamsters, gerbils, other rodents, fish, turtles or other small, domesticated animals that are traditionally kept in the home for pleasure rather than for commercial purposes.”
The Associated Press reported that Lesser had submitted documents from a mental health professional stating that the parrots were necessary for her mental well-being. When The Rutherford proceeded with Lesser’s eviction, she argued that there was insufficient reason for eviction.
After being evicted, Lesser sublet her apartment and filed a grievance with HUD. She tried to sell the apartment in 2018, but the building’s co-op board rejected the sale.
The Rutherford opted not to settle outside of court, and Lesser ended up with the most money ever awarded in an emotional support animal claim, according to Manhattan U.S. Attorney Damian Williams.
Of the $750,000 awarded to Lesser, $585,000 was to buy out her shares in The Rutherford’s co-op board — an above-market rate, according to the New York Post. The remaining $165,000 was for damages.
“This outcome should prompt all housing providers to consider carefully whether their policies and procedures comply with federal law,” Williams told The Associated Press.