The Justice Department announced on Apr. 29 that the owners of residential rental properties in and around Springfield, Missouri have agreed to pay $250,000 to resolve a lawsuit alleging that the former owner and manager sexually harassed female tenants in violation of the Fair Housing Act.
The settlement addresses allegations of sexual harassment and retaliation against female tenants by Jimmie Bell, who owned or managed several rental homes. The case highlights ongoing efforts to protect vulnerable tenants from exploitation by those with power over their housing situations.
Assistant Attorney General Harmeet K. Dhillon of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division said, “A home should be a place of safety, not fear and exploitation. The Justice Department is committed to vigorously holding landlords accountable when they use their power to violate the rights of vulnerable tenants.” U.S. Attorney R. Matthew Price for the Western District of Missouri said, “No tenant should ever be forced to choose between their safety and keeping a roof over their head. Exploiting power for sexual coercion and retaliation is not only immoral, but it’s also illegal. The result of this case makes it clear that the Western District of Missouri will work tirelessly to hold accountable any landlord who violates a tenant’s rights.”
According to Assistant Secretary for Fair Housing and Equal Opportunity Craig Trainor at the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), “The Fair Housing Act protects against sex discrimination precisely to prohibit this kind of vile and predatory behavior against vulnerable women.” Special Agent in Charge Machelle Jindra with HUD’s Office of Inspector General added, “Today’s settlement makes clear that landlords who abuse their position of power by exploiting tenants’ basic needs for housing will be held accountable.”
Under the agreement, defendants must pay compensation to former tenants harmed by Bell’s conduct, remove retaliatory evictions from public records where possible, stop seeking payments from affected former tenants, and implement training aimed at preventing future discrimination at these properties.
The lawsuit was filed in March 2024 after an investigation prompted by a complaint received by HUD. Jimmie Bell died in February 2025; his son Mark Bell was substituted as defendant.
The U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Missouri handles federal prosecutions and civil litigation across 66 counties stretching from Iowa’s border southward to Arkansas’s border according to its official website. The office collaborates with federal, state, local and tribal law enforcement partners according to its official website as well as supporting community outreach programs addressing issues such as violent crime according to its official website. Offices are located in Kansas City, Jefferson City and Springfield according to its official website, covering jurisdiction roughly halfway across Missouri eastward from Kansas’ border according to its official website, all under affiliation with the U.S. Department of Justice according to its official website.
This settlement is part of an initiative launched by the department in October 2017 targeting sexual harassment in housing; since then it has filed 52 lawsuits on similar grounds.