New York – A jury in Manhattan federal court Wednesday awarded $150,000 in punitive damages against a Manhattan rental agency, Space Hunters, Inc., and its principal, John McDermott, for discriminating against a prospective tenant because of his disability, in violation of the federal Fair Housing Act.

The Government filed its civil lawsuit against the defendants in March of 2000, alleging that in January 1999, the defendants, who sell listings of rooms for rent, refused to serve a prospective tenant, Keith Toto, because he is hearing impaired.

In October 2002, a jury in an earlier phase of the case found that the defendants had intentionally discriminated against Toto because of his hearing impairment, and awarded Toto $1,500 in compensatory damages. That jury did not consider, however, whether to award punitive damages.