ALLENTOWN – The mother of a six-year-old Pen Argyl boy has filed suit against her Florida-based landlord, charging that his failure to remediate lead from the home she rented has left her son with permanent brain damage.
D.H. (a minor, by his parent and natural guardian, Dana Kiefer) of Easton filed suit in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania on March 17 versus Kevin P. Ward of Tarpon Springs, Fla.
“In 2017, Ward owned a residential property at 500 ½ W. Pennsylvania Avenue in Pen Argyl, Pennsylvania. In or around April 2017, defendant rented the property to Dana Kiefer. Defendant knew that plaintiff Kiefer intended to reside in that property with D.H., her infant child, who at all times material hereto was a legal occupant of the property under the applicable lease. At all times material hereto, both plaintiffs were legal occupants of the Pen Argyl property,” the suit says.
“Unbeknownst to Dana Kiefer, the house was heavily contaminated with lead dust and lead-based chipped and deteriorating paint, on and around surfaces, making it particularly accessible to infants and toddlers, including D.H. On May 19, 2017, D.H.’s blood was tested, and the results showed he had an elevated level of lead in his blood, recorded as 11 micrograms per deciliter, a concentration more than double the ‘reference value’ established by the Centers for Disease Control to identify children with significantly excessive lead levels. During the time he and his mother lived in the Pen Argyl property, the concentration of lead in his blood reached even more excessive levels, as high as 35 micrograms per deciliter.”
The suit adds that D.H.’s lead burden was revealed on x-rays, with lead being a heavy metal and a neurotoxin, which even with low levels of exposure, can cause brain and nervous system damage, developmental delays and learning and behavioral problems, all of which are or may be permanent.
“Sometime after the detection of lead in D.H.’s blood, the rental property he occupied was inspected by the City of Bethlehem’s Board of Health. The inspection and related tests of samples taken from the property showed multiple lead exposure hazards throughout the living area, including areas readily accessible to D.H. The inspection also revealed that defendant had not provided Kiefer with lead hazard information required by federal law,” the suit states.
“As a direct result of being exposed to deteriorating lead paint, lead dust and other lead hazards in the Pen Argyl house, D.H. suffered lead poisoning and has experienced developmental delays, speech impairment, learning disabilities, acting-out behavior and loss of enjoyment of life, all of which may continue indefinitely in the future, may be permanent and will result in a loss of earnings and earning capacity. As a direct result of being exposed to the aforesaid lead hazards, D.H. has suffered brain damage and is receiving required, appropriate therapy and special educational services, which may continue indefinitely in the future.”
For counts of violating the Residential Lead-Based Paint Act and negligence, the plaintiff is seeking compensatory damages, treble damages, attorney’s fees, costs, punitive damages and such other relief as the Court deems just and equitable.
The plaintiff is represented by Gerald J. Williams of Williams Cedar, in Philadelphia.
The defendant has not yet secured legal counsel.
U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania case 5:22-cv-01028
From the Pennsylvania Record: Reach Courts Reporter Nicholas Malfitano at nick.malfitano@therecordinc.com