U.S. Attorney's Office Secures Agreement in Sexual Harassment Lawsuit Against Owner and Property Manager of Eagle, Colorado Rental Property

DENVER – The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Colorado announced that a federal judge has approved a consent order that resolves a lawsuit filed in federal district court under the Fair Housing Act by the U.S. Attorney’s Office against Butters Investments, LLC, the owner of a rental property in Eagle, Colorado, and Kathryn Butters, the property manager.  The United States alleged that the defendants subjected a family to repeated sexual assault and harassment when they lived in a property owned by Butters Investments.  To resolve the lawsuit, Ms. Butters and Butters Investments agreed to several terms, including paying $300,000.00 to compensate the family.

In the complaint filed in the lawsuit, the United States alleged that in 2019 and 2020, the victim family, a couple and their minor children, rented a residential unit owned by Butters Investments, and that Ms. Butters served as the property manager.  The complaint alleged that Ms. Butters repeatedly made unannounced visits to the victim family’s home, during which she made unwanted sexual comments and contact with four family members, including a male child who was only eleven or twelve years old at the time of the events and another male child who was only ten years old at the time.  The complaint alleges that Ms. Butters made inappropriate sexual comments to the family, including referring to the genitals of one of the children, and on another occasion speculating about the color of one of the children’s pubic hair.  The complaint alleged that Ms. Butters’ conduct also included, on several occasions, slapping both parents’ buttocks, and grabbing the children’s genitals.  The complaint alleged that this conduct constituted housing discrimination based on sex in violation of the Fair Housing Act.

To resolve the allegations, Ms. Butters and Butters Investments agreed to a consent order, which was signed by the Honorable Kathryn A. Starnella of the United States District Court for the District of Colorado. Under the terms of the consent order, Ms. Butters and Butters Investments agreed to pay $300,000.00 to compensate the victim family.  In addition, under the terms of the consent order, Ms. Butters agreed not to have contact with residential housing tenants in the future.  Ms. Butters and Butters Investments also agreed that Ms. Butters and the owners and employees of Butters Investments would complete fair housing training, and that their compliance with the Fair Housing Act will be monitored by the U.S. Attorney’s Office under the court’s order.

The lawsuit stems from a complaint that the family filed with the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD).  HUD’s Office of Fair Housing and Equal Opportunity conducted an investigation and found reasonable cause that discrimination based on sex had occurred.  The parents then made an election under the Fair Housing Act to have the Department of Justice, through the U.S. Attorney’s Office, file a complaint in federal district court on their behalf.

“Sexual harassment in housing is particularly egregious because people deserve to feel safe in their homes,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Matt Kirsch.  “We are committed to protecting tenants who are subjected to sexual assault and harassment, and we will continue to work with HUD to hold accountable landlords and property managers who violate the Fair Housing Act.” 

“Absolutely no one, including families with children, should ever have to worry about being sexually harassed by their landlord or property manager,” said Demetria L. McCain, HUD’s Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary for Fair Housing and Equal Opportunity.  “HUD’s investigation and charge, which resulted in today’s settlement, should serve as notice that this type of behavior is illegal and will not be tolerated.”

To learn more about the U.S. Attorney’s Office’s civil rights enforcement program, or to file a complaint, please visit www.justice.gov/usao-co/civil-rights-enforcement.

Additional information about the Fair Housing Act, including information about how to file a complaint, can be found on HUD’s website at https://www.hud.gov/program_offices/fair_housing_equal_opp/fair_housing_act_overview.

The defendants have denied liability, and the claims made in the complaint are allegations that, if the case were to proceed to trial, the government would need to prove by a preponderance of the evidence.

This case is being handled by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Alicia Alvero Koski and Zeyen Wu.

Read the complaint here.