NY attorney general sues notorious Syracuse landlord over lead poisoning of 18 children
By Rick Moriarty
This article was originally published on Syracuse.com.
Syracuse, N.Y. -- New York Attorney General Letitia James is suing one of Syracuse’s most notorious landlords, John Kiggins, over lead paint law violations that she said have resulted in the poisoning of at least 18 children living at his properties.
The children were poisoned over six years while residing in 17 of an estimated 89 properties owned by Kiggins’ Endzone Properties Inc., James alleged in the lawsuit filed Thursday in state Supreme Court in Onondaga County.
The lawsuit alleges that from Jan. 1, 2015, to July 31, 2021, at least 32 Endzone properties were cited by inspectors from the Onondaga County Health Department and the Syracuse Division of Code Enforcement for chipping, peeling, deteriorating paint, and other conditions conducive to lead poisoning, which are prohibited by county and city laws.
Onondaga County and the city of Syracuse joined as plaintiffs in the lawsuit.
James said an investigation her office started in late 2020 found that during the six years, at least 18 children were poisoned by lead while residing the Endzone properties. All the children poisoned were children of color, she said.
“Exposure to lead paint is undoubtedly dangerous and disproportionately impacts Black and brown children,” James said in a statement.
“This company took advantage of low-income families of color, failed to provide them with the protections required by law, and knowingly put children in harm’s way. No family should have to fear for their health while living in their own homes, and my office will continue to hold individuals and companies responsible for putting our communities at risk.”
The Post-Standard | syracuse.com could find no public phone listed for Kiggins on Friday.
Kiggins spent time in jail in 1991 for mortgage fraud and again, briefly, in 2006 for refusing to address code violations on his properties. In 2016, a 13-year-old girl died in a fire in an apartment he owned at 722 Pond St. The fire was caused by candles her family was using to heat the house. Syracuse code officials said the home had not heat or electricity.
Endzone failed to follow laws requiring the company to maintain its properties in a lead-safe condition, and instead, allowed lead paint to deteriorate, according to the lawsuit. Endzone frequently allowed paint on its properties to deteriorate to the point of being a lead hazard, the lawsuit alleges.
Kiggins and Endzone also engaged in repeated “illegal and fraudulent acts” by either not providing federally required lead disclosures, or providing materially false and deceptive lead disclosures to tenants and purchasers of Endzone properties, James said.
In the lawsuit, James seeks a court order barring Kiggins and Endzone from “illegal conduct and dangerous housing practices” and compelling them to provide lead-safe housing and full lead disclosures to tenants and any purchasers of Endzone properties.
The lawsuit also asks the court to order Kiggins and Endzone to give up all profits they have realized from “their repeated and persistent violations of the law and their fraud in carrying out their property management business,” and order them to pay fines and penalties in an amount to be determined by the court.
Mayor Ben Walsh praised James for filing the lawsuit and said the city is taking a “zero tolerance approach” to lead poisoning.
“This legal action should serve as a message to all Syracuse landlords that it is unacceptable to allow tenants to live in sub-standard housing that contains lead paint hazards,” he said in a statement.
Lead is a toxic metal that can cause serious and irreversible adverse health effects. Children who have been exposed to even very low levels of lead are at risk for neurological and physical problems during critical stages of early development, according to the attorney general’s office.
James said lead poisoning in Onondaga County occurs predominantly within Syracuse, and disproportionately harms low-income communities and communities of color. Since 2012, 87% of all lead poisoned children in Onondaga County were from Syracuse, according to her office.
Data also shows that Black children are twice as likely as white children to have elevated blood lead levels, James said.