Reclaim RI and tenants file Federal RICO Case against slumlord Jeff Butler and Elmwood Realty

“Let me be clear: It is not normal to live with no heat. It is not normal to live among rodents. It is not normal to be afraid of going home... These are not isolated incidents."

From a press release:

Reclaim RI and thirteen current and former tenants filed a RICO case in the United States District Court for the District of Rhode Island against landlord Jeffrey Butler and Elmwood Reality, detailing a conspiracy to rent apartments with dangerous conditions and threaten tenants with eviction when they requested repairs or organized a tenant union.

“I stand not only for myself but for every tenant who has been silenced, ignored, or forced to live in unacceptable conditions out of fear,” said plaintiff and former Elmwood tenant Kellee Silva. “It’s time for tenants to stand up and make a change. It’s time we use the rights we already have — rights that too often go unused because of fear. Fear of retaliation. Fear of rent hikes. Fear of eviction. That fear should not be the price of simply asking to live in a safe home.

“Let me be clear: It is not normal to live with no heat. It is not normal to live among rodents. It is not normal to be afraid of going home,” continued Silva. “These are not isolated incidents. This is happening in our communities — destroying people’s lives, damaging families, and taking away the dignity that everyone deserves. We are not asking for luxuries. We ask for basic human rights — safe, clean, livable housing. No one should dread walking through their front door. No one should be punished for asking that their home be made safe. That needs to end. It’s time we stand together. It’s time we raise our voices — not in fear but in strength. Together, we can and will fight for change. We are the voices that have been quieted — but not anymore. Now is the time to fight and win.”

Reclaim began organizing Elmwood tenants in September 2023, and the conditions our staff and volunteers witnessed were horrific: raw sewage in a front yard where children were playing, broken windows, lack of heat, and open construction sites with no progress toward completion.

“The allegations in our complaint speak for themselves,” said Attorney Frank Curren. “No one should have to endure the housing conditions and conduct described therein. In coming forward, these tenants have demonstrated remarkable courage and solidarity.”

In October 2023, Butler emailed all his tenants, threatening to evict anyone who organized with Reclaim RI. Current Rhode Island law guarantees tenants the right to organize, and threats to evict tenants for doing so are illegal. Reclaim RI continued to organize Elmwood tenants despite the attempted union busting. In April 2024, the first Elmwood union at 1890 Broad Street went public and delivered a demand for collective bargaining.

“Filing this case should stand as a warning to all landlords whose only concern about their properties is the bottom line,” said plaintiff and former Elmwood tenant Melissa Potter. “Tenants are tired of being taken advantage of and always being the cause of problems in an apartment just because a landlord doesn’t want to do their job. Tenants who pay their rent every month and abide by their leases when renting a unit should not have to endure living in unhealthy and unsafe conditions. Landlords should be held accountable for the proper maintenance and repair of their units, just as we are expected to abide by our end of a lease.

“Tenants should not have to fear asking for repairs because of landlords resorting to retaliatory actions, evicting tenants, or just plain ignoring a tenant’s requests,” continued Potter. “This is the start of tenants coming together and helping ensure that our community does not have to endure the same issues we have had to contend with, and hopefully making greedy landlords realize we have rights, just as much as they do. We will no longer allow a landlord to dictate what is safe and what is not, and do whatever they feel like doing, knowing full well it’s not in the best interest of the tenants.”

The illegal retaliation in this case, says Reclaim RI, is staggering, with a clear pattern of swift and undisguised retaliation against tenants who demanded necessary repairs or organized with their neighbors. The case is filed under RICO, the Racketeering-Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act. The RICO enterprise in this case is the scheme to fraudulently rent apartments that the landlord never intends to repair, and then punish tenants who demand repairs or fight back. There are thirteen tenant-plaintiffs, three of whom were leaders of the 1890 Broad Street Elmwood Tenants Union. Reclaim RI is an organizational plaintiff because Elmwood’s illegal retaliation undermined the group’s organizing drive.

“Tenants have had the right to demand repairs and organize tenant unions free from retaliation for 40 years in the State of Rhode Island,” said Shana Crandell, Executive Director of Reclaim RI. “The egregious and unchecked violation of tenants’ rights in this case reflects how poorly our laws are enforced when landlords are being held accountable—because, of course, when the rent is late, enforcement is swift. We hope this case vindicates the longstanding prohibition on retaliation, delivers compensation to affected tenants, and deters other slumlords from violating our rights. However, we as tenants cannot and will not wait for the government to enforce our rights, and that’s exactly why we organize fighting tenant unions that can take on predatory landlords directly and win transformative change and control over our homes.”