Several groups that fight discrimination in the state called Attorney General Jon Bruning's record a shameful debacle on Tuesday, with one considering a lawsuit against him if he doesn't change cour
NATE JENKINS / The Associated Press | Posted: Monday, May 5, 2008 7:00 pm
Several groups that fight discrimination in the state called Attorney General Jon Bruning’s record a shameful debacle on Tuesday, with one considering a lawsuit against him if he doesn’t change course.
But at the same time the advocacy groups sought to pressure the state’s top prosecutor, there were signs that his office could soon reach a truce with a state commission angry at him for not prosecuting more cases of alleged discrimination.
Officials from Bruning’s office and a member of the Nebraska Equal Opportunity Commission have been in talks the last several days trying to reach an agreement on how to prosecute more discrimination cases to satisfy both federal officials and the commission, according to both sides.
“I hope we can reach an agreement where we prosecute more people who violate the Fair Housing Act in Nebraska, which will necessarily include groups that may include illegal immigrants,” said Commissioner J.L. Spray.
At stake are hundreds of thousands of federal dollars the NEOC uses to investigate discrimination cases.
The commission, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, and Bruning disagree over whether he has to file suit when the commission forwards him a case. Bruning maintains that he doesn’t, which prompted HUD to provisionally pull its funding.
On Tuesday, six groups including the Fair Housing Center of Nebraska, the Anti Defamation League and the Nebraska Appleseed Center for Law in the Public Interest jointly criticized Bruning. Norman Pflanz, an attorney with Appleseed, said the group would “seriously consider” suing Bruning if he doesn’t begin prosecuting more cases of alleged discrimination.
“When we don’t go after discrimination, it sends the message to unscrupulous landlords and employers that they will not be held accountable and gives them a green light to create deplorable conditions or deny access to housing. This brings down conditions for all of us,” said Becky Gould, executive director of Nebraska Appleseed Center.
The disagreement between Bruning and the NEOC boiled over last month when Bruning said that while the law protects illegal immigrants from discrimination, he isn’t legally obligated to prosecute on their behalf and that they should seek legal counsel elsewhere.
HUD says that in housing law, a person’s immigration status is irrelevant.
Bruning’s office is confident it can find a middle ground that will satisfy HUD and the NEOC.
“There are ways to work it out where we would not have to bring lawsuits for monetary damages for illegal immigrants,” but would prosecute cases of alleged discrimination against illegal immigrants on behalf of the state, said David Cookson, Bruning’s chief deputy.
The discrimination law doesn’t require that landlords, for example, rent to illegal aliens, only that they not treat people differently based on their race, national origin or other factors.
Bruning has said that he would prosecute landlords if they discriminated against Hispanics or other groups, but he would not be a free civil lawyer for individuals who are illegal immigrants.
A proposed agreement between Bruning’s office and the NEOC could be before the commission to consider at its meeting May 16. If approved, it could end the commission’s consideration of whether to accept offers of free counsel from law firms lining up to sue Bruning.
He argues that the commission must have his approval to get legal help — free or not — and says he won’t sign off on the commission retaining an attorney.
The commission already has enlisted the help of a California law firm, over Bruning’s objection, to negotiate with federal officials and Bruning about the commission’s handling of housing discrimination cases.
While Bruning’s office and NEOC are now talking and hopeful an agreement can be reached, recent history suggests talks could fall apart quickly.
Commission members and Bruning thought they had reached an agreement last month. But just minutes after the commission expressed hope more discrimination cases would be prosecuted, the deal crumbled when Bruning restated that he wouldn’t prosecute cases on behalf of illegal immigrants.
That position, combined with his contentious relationship with the NEOC, puts Bruning in a difficult political position, said Arnold Nesbitt, chairman of the NEOC.
“The key to it now is the attorney general finding a way to save face. Legally I don’t think he has ground to stand on,” Nesbitt said. “He’s backed himself into a corner and everybody’s trying to help him out of the corner and take his foot out of his mouth at the same time.”
Cookson said that if people, including groups that criticized Bruning on Tuesday, want to resolve the issue they need to “stand down and let us work this out”