Latino families living in an apartment complex and their advocates welcomed the fact that Los Angeles City Attorney Hydee Feldstein-Soto filed a lawsuit against the owner, Femi G. Olanipekun, for allegedly harassing tenants in their efforts to obtain higher rents.

The lawsuit describes that four of the complex's eight units are located at 4301-4303 ½ Woodlawn Avenue and the other four at 120 East 43rd Street. The property in question is located on the corner of Woodlawn and East 43rd, and consists of two separate structures, where there was a public demonstration by tenants intimidated by the property owner.

According to the complaint, Olanipekun acquired the property on October 29, 2025 and, just five days later, required all tenants to vacate their units by March 2026. The landlord gave written notice of eviction of “at least five rental units.”

What would happen if the building caught fire? In any case, the tenants had to leave, according to Olanipekun's alleged threats.

Despite the purported rent increase, the property is subject to rent protections set forth in the city's Rent Stabilization Ordinance (RSO), which protects landlords from excessive rent increases and arbitrary evictions.

“To protect tenants from arbitrary evictions intended to circumvent the rent control provisions of the RSO, said ordinance prohibits landlords from evicting tenants without good cause,” the lawsuit explains.

He adds that the eviction notices issued by the defendant did not indicate good cause. Therefore, when the notices were filed with the LAHD (Los Angeles Housing Department), as required by the RSO, the agency determined that these notices were invalid.”

Additionally, as stipulated by the Rent Stabilization Ordinance, landlords can only increase rent to current tenants once a year and increases between July 1, 2025 and June 30, 2026 were limited to three percent.

"When the man grabbed (bought) the apartments, then he wanted to raise our rent at a very high cost. I pay $1,850, I have a disabled baby and I couldn't pay more," said Carolina Contreras. “That man has not verbally harassed me, but we have already received the eviction demand.”

United and organized for battle

The lawsuit was the result of families organizing to fight for their rights, with the support of tenant advocacy organizations, lawyers, and the intervention of public officials such as Councilwoman Nithya Raman (District 4), who is a candidate for mayor of Los Angeles.

“For a long time, politics in the Los Angeles City Council was financed by property owners and large real estate interests,” Raman told La Opinión. "But my campaign was not funded through them. My political support came from the people, so I will always respond to them. Those who voted for me were renters, people with limited resources, but who wanted the city to do more for them."

During the meeting, the successful implementation of the Tenant Harassment Ordinance (TAHO) in Los Angeles was discussed, which was reinforced in 2024 and which protects the city's tenants against illegal harassment by landlords.

“The language of the law was very weak, but six years into the fight we were able to get the law stronger against tenant harassment,” said Nancy Villanueva, an organizer with the Alliance of Californians for Community Empowerment (ACCE). “We did it, thanks to the strong leadership of Councilor Nithya Raman and now we are seeing the fruits.”

The regulations prohibit property owners or managers from skipping repairs, eliminating home services (such as parking or laundry), entering the unit without prior notice or threatening tenants. Property owners may face civil penalties of up to $10,000 for each violation.

“The effectiveness of a law depends on its application, and the city of Los Angeles' enforcement of the TAHO ordinance has been poor since 2021,” attorney Faiza Malik, of Public Counsel, told La Opinión.

According to the lawyer, more than 24,000 complaints of tenant harassment have been filed with the city, without the city attorney's office, Feldstein-Soto, having taken enforcement action to date.

However, actions such as the lawsuit against Femi G. Olanipekun “have real force to understand that violating local regulations has consequences,” added the lawyer, who told the story of a homeowner who covered a door with plaster so that the tenant could not enter.

“This type of behavior should not be allowed, it is something that should be sanctioned,” he said. Olanipekun, the owner of the complex, did not respond to calls from La Opinión.

In addition to the chants of “When we fight, we win” and “The people united will never be defeated,” Eva García, a member of the Colectivo Poder Comunitario (CPC), led the protesters in singing an arranged version of “Cielito Lindo,” the popular Mexican song: “From the Sierra Morena, Cielito Lindo come down, a group of tenants who are fighting for housing… Ay, ay, ay, sing and don't cry, because by singing you earn decent housing and the hearts.”

“The filing of the lawsuit puts landlords across the city on notice that they will be held accountable if they break the law by harassing their tenants,” Attorney Malik said, while praising the city attorney for bringing the legal case to enforce the ordinance.

“Beginning of a new era”

Erin Joslin, an attorney at the California Center for Movement Legal Services (Movement Legal), which emerged as a legal department under the auspices of ACCE, explained that cases of harassment in south central Los Angeles are not isolated.

"I'm glad to see that the city has filed its first tenant harassment lawsuit. We need dozens of cases like this filed to show Los Angeles tenants that they are not alone. They don't have to fight this battle on their own, and we need to show Los Angeles landlords that they cannot act with impunity; that if they break the law there will be consequences."

So with the lawsuit, he said he would hope the message tenants receive is that the city is on their side and that homeowners should be held accountable when they cut off basic services, refuse to accept payment of rent, when they let their dogs loose in yards, threaten to call ICE or when they refuse to make repairs.

“I hope this [43rd Street and Woodlawn Avenue] case marks the beginning of a new era in Los Angeles, one where when a landlord breaks the law, they are afraid that the city will come after them,” he said, encouraging tenants to document any illegal behavior with photos and videos and file a complaint with the Los Angeles Department of Housing.

Fear was what Herminia Rodríguez, who lives in the building 4303 ½ Woodlawn Avenue, experienced. “Three months ago, the man came to harass me; he wanted me to get rid of my two dogs or take them out…

One day he opened the door, my animals left and my dog ​​never came back," said Rodríguez. The lawyer explained that when the Los Angeles City Attorney's Office files a case, it generally requests precautionary measures and punitive damages; therefore, the main consequences will be fines.

“I believe these range between $600,000 and 1.2 million dollars, including reimbursement to tenants for illegal charges and the imposition of measures to prevent them from continuing to obtain profits in this way,” reported the lawyer whose work focuses on the nonprofit sector.

What is the TAHO 2.0 law?

Thanks to the stricter regulations of the Tenant Anti-Harassment Ordinance (TAHO) 2.0, renters have the power to take direct legal action against landlords who engage in abuse. Prohibited conduct for owners includes:

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