Black Family Receive Not So Warm Welcome With Threats From Racist Neighbor

Screenshot: KOIN6 News
Screenshot: KOIN6 News

A Black mother and her daughter have been experiencing racial harassment by their white neighbor since moving into their new place. This wasn’t the first time this menace to society caused this type of trouble either.

Nubrittany Smith told KOIN 6 News that after moving into Landings at Morrison Apartments in Gresham, Ore., Smith and her mom have been receiving racist threats. Caught redhanded on a Ring Security Camera was 19-year-old Dominic Austin punching the door like a boxing bag, wielding a knife and worse. At some point, Smith said his taunts escalated into racial slurs, rape threats and death threats.

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“Part of the rental agreement says that if a tenant should threaten another tenant, the landlord can throw the offender out in 24 hours notice,” Attorney Greg Kafoury said.

According to documents obtained by KOIN 6, Austin was only officially notified by the property on Sept. 8, and an eviction notice was only filed on Monday.

Between that and the multiple calls to 911 Kafoury said both police and property management failed to protect tenants.

“The people who run this very large apartment complex didn’t give a damn,” Kafoury said. “The police didn’t give a damn. And I don’t know how anyone can look at those videos and come to any other conclusion.”

Austin was arrested for menacing and violating a stalking protective order on Wednesday. That protective order came from a complaint from another neighbor, Brionna Tapia, in August for the same damn threats.

Gresham police acknowledged the racist language used by Austin but didn’t specify whether he’d face hate crimes in addition to his two charges. Instead, they told KOIN in a statement that they’d work with the district attorney’s office to make sure he gets charged with the most “appropriate” crimes.

According to the Multnomah County Sheriff’s Office, Austin was released without bail. Who knows what that means for Smith and her mother.

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