Article Courtesy of The Palm
Beach Post
By Mike Diamond
Published January 29, 2021
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A
federal judge has declined to dismiss a lawsuit against Seven Bridges that
alleges the homeowner association failed to protect a Christian family from
religious discrimination.
The lawsuit has rocked
the predominantly Jewish community on Lyons Road west of
Boca Raton. A dispute between two women spawned the lawsuit,
with one woman allegedly telling the other that she should
move because she was not Jewish.
At issue is whether the Fair Housing Act required the HOA to
intervene and protect the family that was allegedly
mistreated. Judge Donald Middlebrooks ruled that the lawsuit
can proceed and that Jeffrey and Deborah LaGrasso, the
alleged victims, can seek punitive damages of $7 million
from the HOA. The LaGrassos also want the HOA to “de-annex”
their house from the development.
The judge concluded that the LaGrassos have “plausibly
alleged” violations of the Fair Housing Act. Middlebrooks
made no conclusions about the merits of the case, noting
that the bar is very high for him to dismiss a lawsuit. But
he added that he “seriously questions” whether the LaGrassos’
allegations amount to religious discrimination. Nonetheless,
he allowed the case to proceed because there is little, if
any, case law on the subject.
The lawyer for the
LaGrassos, Scott Weires, said there is considerable
“circumstantial evidence” that will be presented to
demonstrate that “religious motivation” was behind the
conduct directed at the LaGrassos. He noted that the judge
has yet to see all of the evidence that will be presented to
a jury. Seven Bridges is a high-end family development
consisting of 701 homes that sell for as much as $3 million.
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Jeffrey and Deborah LaGrasso have filed a $7 million
federal lawsuit against the homeowner association of the Seven
Bridges development west of Boca Raton.
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“The reason for the mistreatment was because they were not Jewish," Weires
said. "They were treated differently from everyone else.” Calls seeking
comment from the attorney for Seven Bridges were not returned.
In November 2019, the LaGrassos claim, a group of women harassed their
children while taking tennis lessons because they were using too many
courts. Deborah LaGrasso confronted the women, and the HOA claims she
assaulted some of them. LaGrasso denied the charge, but the HOA blocked her
from using any of the amenities at Seven Bridges for 90 days.
She then began posting what the HOA and other residents said were offensive
messages about the community on an anonymous Facebook page she created. A
resident, Rachel Tannenholz, identified LaGrasso as the page's
administrator. In a taped phone conversation, Tannenholz allegedly told
LaGrasso in May that she did not belong in a community that is 80% Jewish
and that she should “move the f--- out” and go to “a white supremacist
community.”
The LaGrassos complained to the HOA about the conduct of Tannenholz. The
lawsuit claims nothing was done.
Instead of addressing the alleged offensive conduct of Tannenholz, the
lawsuit says, the HOA issued another suspension to Deborah LaGrasso for 330
days and fined her $5,000 for Facebook posts it deemed offensive.
Middlebrooks said he was satisfied that “the LaGrassos have plausibly
alleged a claim against the association for its failure to respond to or
seek to control Ms. Tannenholz’s allegedly discriminatory conduct.”
But he questioned why the confrontation on the tennis court was part of the
lawsuit, noting that there was no allegation that religious discrimination
occurred in that incident. Tannenholz was not involved in the incident,
either.
The lawsuit says Tannenholz went to the LaGrasso home in May, rang the
doorbell repeatedly, banged on the front door and yelled for Deborah
LaGrasso to come outside. After Tannenholz refused to leave, the police were
called. Tannenholz was warned that if she returned, she would be arrested
for trespassing.
The lawsuit also named Tannenholz as a defendant, but Middlebrooks dismissed
the case against her for “lack of jurisdiction.”
Meanwhile, Tannenholz has filed a defamation lawsuit in Palm Beach County
against Deborah LaGrasso for making offensive posts about her on the
Facebook page. They included:
“Support Your Local Stripper” with a caption stating “Rachel’s GO FUND ME
PAGE."
"OH MY those platform shoes are horrendous . . must be so hard to type and
dance on the pole at the same time.!!!”
Tannenholz’s lawyer, Debra Klingsberg, said the evidence will show that the
offensive texts that her client allegedly sent to LaGrasso were never made.
Klingsberg said the phone conversation between the two women was illegally
recorded since LaGrasso needed Tannenholz’s permission, which was never
given.
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