By Guy Page
An August 13 drug raid at a Barre federally subsidized housing apartment has reignited calls for tougher enforcement against so-called “trap houses” — drug dealing bases of operations, often located in taxpayer-funded housing.
Barre police say that at about 8 p.m., Barre City Police were called to the Green Acres housing complex on Bergeron Street after an Uber driver reported driving an individual from Springfield, Massachusetts to Barre — only to be stiffed for the fare. The passenger, later identified as Dynasty Wright, 19, of Springfield, was found inside Apartment 12.
A search turned up felony quantities of crack cocaine, fentanyl, and a stolen handgun. Wright — who was already facing charges in a separate Barre Town drug case in May — was jailed at Chittenden Regional Correctional Facility on $50,000 bail. She faces charges including fentanyl trafficking, cocaine possession, possession of stolen property, violation of conditions of release, theft of services, and giving false information to police.
Police also cited Abdulkadir Aden, 20, of Rochester, N.Y., for allegedly providing false information; Amber Hussey, 30, of Barre, and Dana Hill, 36, of Barre, for allegedly dispensing drugs from a dwelling. All four were scheduled to appear in court August 14.
Police and neighbors describe Green Acres as a chronic trouble spot. Apartment 12 has reportedly been raided four times in recent years without loss of housing benefits — something local officials say is a consequence of lax application of federal HUD rules.
The Green Acres complex, built in 1971 and managed by the Barre Housing Authority, contains 52 units, including three accessible units. It sits next to a public school.
Photos of the raid were shared on Facebook by Green Acres resident Michael Deering Jr., a city councilor and former candidate for U.S. Senate. “Another night at Green Acres. Will the charges actually stick?,” Deering said.
“Families there are held hostage. Can’t afford to move. Not safe to stay,” Barre City Rep. and podcast personality Michael Boutin commented on Facebook. “There were mixed opinions [in the Legislature this year] about whether or not people should have to work for government assistance. What about engaging in criminal activity?”
One commenter to Deering’s post summed up some of the frustration expressed by Boutin and others: “This is absolutely fraudulent use of public funding for housing. If you participate in drug distribution or allow it in your home, any public assistance should be rescinded. It’s clearly endangering every other neighbor and causing unnecessary chaos. Why our representatives in government think it’s okay for everyone else who is working, paying their bills, following the rules/law, families with children…to be exposed to this on a daily basis is beyond me.”
Both federal and state law appear to give prosecutors the tools to evict and/or incarcerate not only drug dealers but the landlords/tenants who house them.
Federal law gives housing authorities the power to evict tenants for illegal drug activity — a policy sometimes referred to as the “one-strike rule.” However, in practice, evictions from taxpayer-funded housing after drug raids are rare in Vermont.
The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) requires housing authorities to follow strict due process, meaning:
The tenant must be given notice and a chance to contest the eviction.
Housing authorities must show sufficient evidence that the tenant knew of or participated in the illegal activity.
Evictions can be challenged in court, often delaying or preventing removal.
In some cases, if a family member or guest — rather than the leaseholder — is caught dealing drugs, the housing authority may choose not to pursue eviction at all.
Housing officials say these protections are meant to prevent innocent tenants from losing their homes because of someone else’s actions. Critics counter that they allow “trap houses” to remain open even after repeated police raids.
One Barre observer of the ongoing problem at Green Acres says the federal Housing and Urban Development (HUD) eviction process is lengthy and complex, often requiring a year or more.
State law imposes fines and prison terms on landlords and tenants who allow drug trafficking in their homes: § 4252. Penalties for dispensing or selling regulated drugs in a dwelling
(a) No person shall knowingly permit a dwelling, building, or structure owned by or under the control of the person to be used for the purpose of illegally dispensing or selling a regulated drug.
(b) A landlord shall be in violation of subsection (a) of this section only if the landlord knew at the time he or she signed the lease agreement that the tenant intended to use the dwelling, building, or structure for the purpose of illegally dispensing or selling a regulated drug.
(c) A person who violates this section shall be imprisoned not more than two years or fined not more than $1,000.00 or both. (Added 2007, No. 187 (Adj. Sess.), § 3.)