SALEM–In the wake of a temporary injunction issued by a federal judge barring the city from enforcing sections of the city housing code which criminalize failure to renew an occupancy license and require an inspection, Health Commissioner Kayla Crowl has addressed question regarding the immediate impact of that order. 

U.S. District Court Judge Charles E. Fleming granted the preliminary injunction Oct. 20 in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Ohio Eastern Division in Youngstown in the case filed earlier this year by Mark Courtney that challenged occupancy license rules. He owns multiple rental units in Salem. The case was originally filed in Columbiana County Common Pleas Court and then was removed to federal court at the request of counsel for the city, Gregory Beck of Baker Dublikar of North Canton. 

The order states that administrative searches like the inspections required by the city prior to issuing an occupancy license violate the Fourth Amendment when authorized and conducted without a warrant procedure and prohibits the city from punishing “a landlord’s refusal to consent to such a search with criminal penalties.” The courts also ruled that the sections of the housing code in question which outline criminal penalties and require preapplication inspections were unconstitutional. 

The current order only halts enforcement during the pendency of the case, with a final ruling still to come. In the meantime, while she stressed it was not an exact figure, Crowl estimated that there are approximately 200 or less rental units with pending renewals in the city which could potentially be impacted by the ruling. She also noted that thus far the department has not had any issues with an increase in non-consent for inspections following the ruling. 

With the order preventing the department from denying a license for failure to schedule and comply with a pre-occupancy inspection, Crowl said that if a property owner declined an inspection but met all other requirements the department would issue the license and move forward with obtaining an 

administrative search warrant for the unit if safety concerns were present. She explained that while the exact procedure for establishing probable cause and obtaining the warrant was still being determined by the city’s legal counsel, once one was obtained, if any issues were found with a unit during inspection the department would move forward with its typical code enforcement and remediation procedures.  She also noted that the sections of the city’s housing code pertaining to code enforcement and remediation were being reviewed by Beck to ensure they were legally compliant and constitutional. 

When asked how a potential permanent injunction requiring the department to obtain search warrants for all non-consenting inspections would affect the department’s ability to enforce housing code standards for rental units Crowl said that it might slow enforcement down but would not stop it. 

“At a macro scale, it will just be more paperwork. It will be a longer process for the ones we have concerns about, but ultimately our goal remains the same. Having safe places for people to live, and if that means more paperwork and trips to Lisbon, then that’s what we’ll do,” said Crowl. 

Crowl said that if the court were to rule in Courtney’s favor that once all updates to the code suggested by the city’s legal were presented to City Law Director Brooke Zellers and the city council for approval that the department would begin “the process of looking forward and saying ‘this is what it’s going to be’, and ‘this is how it’s going to look.'” She also said that the department has been able to complete most of its inspections this year with consent from property owners, and to bring those properties into compliance with the housing code with their collaboration.  

“We have been able to place a lot of focus on code compliance this year, not just in rentals but in all properties, and that is going to continue to be what we do going forward, and we’ll see what we need to do to continue to do that and make this work,” said Crowl. 

Crowl said that no further hearings in the case had been set yet Wednesday, but that the city and Courtney’s attorneys have remained in communication since the injunction was issued. She also stressed that the department’s mission was to ensure the safety of residents, and that it would continue to do so regardless of any adjustments which might need to be made to do so. 

“We’re still here. We’re still going to be working to protect [tenants] and their dwellings, the places where they live, and we’re going to be working with our team to ensure we can continue doing that,” said Crowl.