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IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE DISTRICT OF MARYLAND SOUTHERN DIVISION JOSEPH ANTONIO, et al., * * Plaintiffs, * * v. * Civil Action No. AW-05-2982 * SECURITY SERVICES OF * AMERICA, LLC, et al., * * Defendants. * * ****************************************************************************** MEMORANDUM OPINION Currently pending before the Court are Corporate Defendants' Motion for Summary Judgment (Doc. No. 315), Plaintiffs' Cross Motion for Partial Summary Judgment (Doc. No. 359), Defendant Michael Everhart's Motion for Partial Summary Judgment (Doc. No. 353), Defendant Patrick Stephen Walsh's Motion for Summary Judgment (Doc. No. 320), Defendant Jeremy Daniel Parady's Motion for Partial Summary Judgment (Doc. No. 355), Defendant Aaron Lee Speed, Sr.'s Motion for Summary Judgment (Doc. No. 358), and Defendant Roy T. McCann's Motion for Partial Summary Judgment (Doc. No. 357). The Court has reviewed the entire record, including the pleadings and exhibits, with respect to the instant motions. The Court also held a hearing on these motions on March 16, 2010. For the reasons stated below, the Court will GRANT IN PART and DENY IN PART the Corporate Defendants' Motion for Summary Judgment, DENY Plaintiffs' Cross Motion for Partial Summary Judgment, DENY Defendant Patrick Stephen Walsh's Motion for Summary Judgment, DENY Defendant Jeremy Daniel Parady's Motion for Partial Summary Judgment, DENY Defendant Michael Everhart's

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Motion for Partial Summary Judgment, DENY Defendant Aaron Lee Speed's Motion for Summary Judgment, and DENY Defendant Roy T. McCann's Motion for Partial Summary Judgment. 1. FACTUAL AND PROCEDURAL BACKGROUND This case arises out of the now notorious arson of December 6, 2004, in which five men executed a conspiracy to burn homes, most of which were minority-owned, in "Hunters Brooke," a newly developed neighborhood in Charles County, Maryland. The thirty-two Plaintiffs in this case owned, or had contracted to purchase, houses in this neighborhood and participated in their design. They entered into these purchase contracts with two subsidiaries of Lennar Homes, Inc., U.S. Home Corporation, and Patriot Homes, Inc., (collectively, the "Developer"). The individual defendants in this case, Michael Everhart ("Everhart"), Patrick Stephen Walsh ("Walsh"), Jeremy Daniel Parady ("Parady"), Aaron Lee Speed, Sr. ("Speed"), and Roy T. McCann's ("McCann"), (collectively, "Individual Defendants") have all either been found guilty of, or pled guilty to, serious felony criminal charges in federal court arising from their participation in the arson at Hunters Brooke and have all been sentenced to prison by this Court. Plaintiffs brought this ten-count suit against the Individual Defendants, as well as SSA Security, Inc. ("SSA, Inc."), the security guard company, ABM Industries, Inc. ("ABM"), its parent, and Security Services of America, LLC ("SSA, LLC"), its predecessor (collectively "Corporate Defendants"). The Developer hired SSA, Inc. to provide security services at Hunters Brooke, starting on November 12, 2004, until the fires occurred on December 6, 2004. SSA, Inc. employed Defendant Speed and William Fitzpatrick1 as security guards to work at Hunters Brooke during this period. Pursuant to the Developer's direction, SSA, Inc. assigned a single security guard to

The Plaintiffs never sought to bring in Fitzpatrick as a party to the suit, and Fitzpatrick was never criminally charged in connection with the arson.

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monitor Hunters Brooke during non-construction hours, from approximately 6:00 p.m. to 5:00 a.m. In this position, the security guard would station himself in a patrol vehicle at the front of the construction site, prevent unauthorized individuals from entering, and patrol the site periodically. During this period, Defendant Speed and the other Individual Defendants conspired to burn and damage the homes, and allegedly did so with racial animus against African-American and other minority families who planned to move into the houses. While on duty, Speed created a map of the neighborhood and determined the race of each house owner. Then, on December 3, 2004, while on duty, Speed allowed his co-conspirators to deposit flammable liquids within and around the houses in Hunters Brooke. On December 6, 2004, the morning of the fires, William Fitzpatrick (an employee of SSA, Inc.) was on duty at Hunters Brooke and left his post early, allegedly before 4:00 a.m. Fitzpatrick has declared that he left his post early because he felt ill, though Plaintiffs indicate that he may have departed early to allow Speed to enter the premises unobstructed. In any case, at 5:12 a.m. he returned his identification light to the SSA Inc.'s office in Waldorf, Maryland. At some point between midnight and 3:20 a.m. that morning, Defendant Walsh drove to Defendant Parady's house, picked him up, and they then met with the co-conspirators, including Defendant Speed, in a parking lot in Waldorf, Maryland. Fitzpatrick called Speed at 3:20 a.m., and Speed returned his call at 3:21 a.m. Around 4:00 a.m., the arsonists entered the site, and some of them entered the houses, poured accelerants in them, and lit them on fire. The arsonists remained there, pouring additional accelerant, for thirty to forty-five minutes, and saw the homes begin to flame. The Charles County 911 Emergency System received a call reporting the fire at 4:54 a.m. The houses sustained serious damage.

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Evidence indicates this arson was racially motivated. The Individual Defendants had uttered statements indicating they were angry that African-Americans were moving into the area. On the night of the fire, one of the Individual Defendants allegedly painted the words "Black Jokers" on a dumpster. Additionally, ninety percent of the homes damaged were owned or under contract to African-Americans or other minorities. Finally, one Defendant stipulated that the arson was racially motivated. (Doc. No. 375, Ex. 5, Parady Stip. Facts.) After the arson, the Developer offered to compensate Plaintiffs, and used insurance proceeds to make repairs. The insurance companies, as the Developer's subrogees, filed a lawsuit in this Court against the Corporate Defendants on July 22, 2005, in which they sought to recover payments they made to the Developer under the Developer's property insurance policies. The Corporate Defendants settled the case by "making a lump-sum payment to the Developer's subrogees and obtained a release of all claims without admitting" liability. (Doc No. 315.) All of the Plaintiffs eventually closed on their house purchase contracts. But, Plaintiffs continue to be haunted by the arson and suffer emotional injuries, which are accompanied by physical injuries in some cases. On November 2, 2005, Plaintiffs brought this ten-count suit against Individual Defendants, as well as SSA, Inc., ABM, and SSA, LLC. SSA, LLC is a North Carolina limited liability company formed in 1998 to provide security guard services, but ceased to exist as a corporate entity in 2006. ABM Industries, Inc. is the parent company of ABM Security Services, Inc., a Delaware corporation which acquired SSA, LLC in March of 2004. SSA, Inc. is a California corporation formed in January 2004 as a subsidiary of ABM to provide security services in states previously served by SSA, LLC. At the time of the fire, all Maryland business for ABM was handled by its subsidiary SSA, Inc.

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Plaintiffs allege all Defendants violated the Fair Housing Act (Count I), Maryland Fair Housing Law (Count II),2 42 U.S.C.

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