A public housing tenant alleges that management failed to protect her rights as a person with a disability, retaliated against her for filing complaints, and disclosed her confidential information to other tenants. The complaint was filed by Jasmine Morales in the United States District Court for the District of New Jersey on March 17, 2026, naming the Newark Housing Authority along with staff members Antoinette Howard, Kathy Waters-Grant, Kamisha Fairley, and Cedric Davis as defendants.
According to court documents, Morales is a tenant residing in public housing operated by the Newark Housing Authority. She states that she has a documented mobility disability and lives in an accessible unit approved as a reasonable accommodation since 2019. Morales claims she is entitled to protections under federal disability housing laws but has faced repeated incidents of discrimination and retaliation from management since 2025.
The complaint details several grievances filed by Morales against the housing authority. She reports that after participating in a grievance hearing on January 16, 2026, maintenance staff disclosed her confidential tenancy-related information to another tenant who had no legitimate reason to receive it. At the time of this disclosure, Morales asserts that staff were aware she was a victim of identity theft. “Despite this known risk Defendants failed to safeguard Plaintiff’s confidential information,” the complaint states. This incident allegedly destroyed Morales’s trust in the authority and caused fear regarding her personal security.
Morales also alleges retaliation after reporting discriminatory conduct. She claims that after filing complaints—including HUD Form 903 submissions on July 16, 2025 and January 20, 2026—staff delayed processing her interim recertification following job loss in January 2025. As a result of these delays, she continued being charged rent based on income she no longer received until September 15, 2025. According to written acknowledgments cited in the complaint, approximately $3,500 of her rent balance resulted from these delays.
The lawsuit further describes hostile interactions with staff members named as defendants. On May 29, 2025, Antoinette Howard allegedly told Morales: “You called the attorney, you filed a complaint on me I was going to do your interim but since you filed a complaint on me; I am not.” The complaint claims Howard did not process Morales’s interim recertification for months following this statement.
On April 17 and September 15 of 2025 respectively, Asset Manager Kathy Waters-Grant is reported to have raised her voice at Morales without cause and questioned the validity of her previously approved disability accommodation documentation: “I do not know why Newark Housing Authority went by this document your doctor gave…document does not show you have permanent disability.” These actions are cited as contributing to what Morales describes as a hostile environment.
Maintenance staff Cedric Davis and Kamisha Fairley are accused of disclosing confidential grievance information shortly after Morales participated in a hearing in January 2026 despite knowing about her identity theft situation.
Morales states that she submitted multiple records requests under New Jersey’s Open Public Records Act seeking access to her complete tenant file but alleges that key records remain withheld or incomplete despite repeated attempts.
The legal claims outlined include disability discrimination under both Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 and the Fair Housing Act; retaliation for engaging in protected activities such as filing grievances; interference with fair housing rights; violation of civil rights under color of state law (42 U.S.C. §1983); creation of a hostile housing environment; failure to safeguard confidential tenant information; and failure to respect or provide reasonable accommodation for disabilities.
In addition to declaratory relief stating that defendants violated federal housing laws—including an order preventing retaliatory eviction or further discrimination—Morales seeks compensatory damages for emotional distress (not less than $500,000), punitive damages against individual defendants “to deter similar misconduct,” costs including litigation expenses if permitted by law, and any additional relief deemed just by the court.
Morales is representing herself (pro se) in this matter. The case is identified as Civil Action No: 2:26-cv-02592-CCC-CF.
Source: 226cv02592_Morales_v_Newark_Housing_Authority_Complaint_District_New_Jersey.pdf
