Ex-BYU student settles with apartment complex over eviction

Ex-BYU student settles with apartment complex over eviction

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PROVO — A BYU student has settled a lawsuit with an apartment complex that he says wrongfully evicted him after an argument with his roommates over sexual orientation.

In a lawsuit filed March 19 in 4th District Court, Andrew White claimed he was served an eviction notice after a confrontation with his roommates at The Village at South Campus, 602 E. 60 North, operated by Peak Joaquin Holdings.

White sought $101,610 in damages for expenses, damage to his property and emotional trauma incurred in the Jan. 23 eviction. The terms of the settlement have not been disclosed.

In a statement issued Thursday on the heels of wide online media attention, White asserted that the lawsuit was a tenant dispute and not meant to imply discrimination by apartment management. However, the lawsuit claims that White "suffered emotional distress as a result of management's sharing his sexual orientation."

"I stand strongly against any form of invidious discrimination, particularly the type of behavior that my roommates exhibited toward me. However, my complaint against The Village did not allege discrimination by them," White said in the statement.

White was served an eviction notice just 10 days after the confrontation over same-sex attraction prompted him to call Provo police and to relocate to a different unit in the housing complex. The notice cites only "violation of lease policies, honor code, residential living standards," as well as "quiet enjoyment of other residents."

No details about the infractions were provided.


I stand strongly against any form of invidious discrimination, particularly the type of behavior that my roommates exhibited toward me. However, my complaint against The Village did not allege discrimination by them.

–Andrew White


Carri Jenkins, a BYU spokeswoman, confirmed that White is not enrolled in the current semester but that his absence is not the result of any BYU Honor Code violations. There is nothing to preclude him from returning to school, she said.

Daniel Ybarra, White's lawyer, indicated White is in the process of enrolling in an upcoming semester at BYU.

After almost three months living in the apartment, White told one of his roommates in early January that he "felt same-sex attraction," which the man then revealed to other residents in the apartment, according to the lawsuit.

Days later, what began as a quarrel over food in the apartment escalated. White's roommates told him that "because of his homosexuality, he should not be permitted to live in the apartment, to study at Brigham Young University, be a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints or work at the Missionary Training Center," the lawsuit states.

The men later awakened White in the night, threatening him and removing his possessions, according to the lawsuit. White claims he was pushed during the argument and was later treated for bruised ribs, the lawsuit states.

Jenkins confirmed that the school conducted an investigation into the incident, but would not disclose the findings of the review or whether any punitive action was taken. Assault, in general terms, would be considered a violation of BYU's Honor Code, she said.

Following the initial conflict with his roommates, police advised White not to return to the apartment without an escort, which he did on Jan. 14. White later met with the apartment complex's manager, Lance Freeman, and arranged to move temporarily into a vacant apartment in the complex.

The lawsuit alleges that Freeman told multiple employees at the complex that White was homosexual.

White went back various times to collect possessions from his previous apartment, and after encountering his former roommates when he returned at 1 a.m. on Jan. 23, an employee from the complex accompanied by police came into White's temporary apartment about 3 a.m. and roused him from bed, demanding he return the key to the previous apartment, unit according to the lawsuit.

Later that day, a three-day eviction notice signed by Freeman was posted on the door of White's temporary apartment. White complied.

White has sought counseling following the stressful confrontation and eviction, according to the lawsuit. He also took a leave of absence from work and dropped his classes, resulting in lost wages and unexpected costs to repeat the semester.

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