Louisville woman sues landlord, subpoenas Department of Codes and Regulations inspectors

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WAVE) - A Louisville woman is suing her landlord and has tried to give subpoenas to inspectors from the Department of Codes and Regulations in the process.

In a video that’s being shared on social media, she tried to subpoena the inspectors who came to her house but was denied access to them leading to security and police being called.

In the video, you can see Tanyqua Oliver go to the Department of Codes and Regulations to Subpoena 3 inspectors who came to her home to check out the mold and moisture impacting her asthma and vocal cord dysfunction.

She claims some of the inspectors didn’t properly document her report, but hopes that if they take a stand the truth will come out.

To understand how the incident escalated to security being called and subpoenas being served you have to go back to August 24th.

That’s when Oliver says the first inspector from the Department of Codes and Regulations came to look at the moldy conditions she says were making her sick at the home she is renting from BTI LLC.

“My lungs and like my breathing is really suffering right now,” Oliver said. “I have asthma, I have a vocal cord dysfunction and I’m allergic to mold and I just need it fixed.”

Oliver says she has dealt with moldy conditions in a home before and relayed that information to her landlords at BTI LLC but she felt it fell upon deaf ears.

Almost two weeks after the first inspector paid her a visit, Oliver says a new inspector came to the house and she shared everything with him.

That same inspector came back a few days later with her landlord and Oliver says he told her they wouldn’t cite a claim until she had results from a $500 mold test she had to pay for herself, which she felt was unnecessary.

“You don’t even have to specialize in this to see and tell that it’s mold,” Oliver said. “I mean we got white, brown, green, I mean pick your color and it’s all over it.”

However, Oliver got the test anyway and the results showed four types of mold present including Chaetomium, Hyphae, Scopulariopsis and Trichoderma.

She then contacted Metro Councilmember Phillip Baker’s office who called the Department of Codes and Regulations and she later received a message from her landlord.

“I guess after I called my city council person they were forced to, I guess, cite him on it, which is the mold,” Oliver said. “And they labeled it a public nuisance and then he put a seven day notice on my door that same day.”

Days after, two more inspectors came to her home to check it out again but she says they reported there was no visible indication of mold.

Oliver then filed a suit against her landlord at BTI LLC and was then granted subpoenas for the inspectors.

“I subpoenaed them because I know he’s going to produce these fabricated documents in court and these fabricated documents could stop a judge from enforcing the repairs to save my life and to save my health,” Oliver said. “I don’t have COPD, I don’t have lung cancer but I’m in line for it if this don’t get fix.”

Her viral video sparked a response from homeowners and tenants all over Louisville claiming similar issues with the Department of Codes and Regulations, which have also been at the center of a WAVE News Troubleshooter investigation.

There is a court date Thursday morning, which Oliver feels represents something bigger than just herself.

“It’s not just my court hearing, it’s everybody’s court hearing. Because if I win then everybody wins and it becomes case law,” Oliver said. “That means if you’re going through what I’m going through you can say hey y’all afforded these rights to Miss Oliver so I want the same rights.”

WAVE News reached out to the Department of Codes and Regulations via email and phone calls and have yet to hear back..

However Oliver did say that Wednesday the Department of Codes and Regulations filed a motion to quash her subpoenas due to relevancy and lack of knowledge of the incident they’re testifying against.

The results of that motion are unclear at this time.

WAVE News also reached out to her landlord and their attorney but has yet to get a response.

Oliver’s hearing is Thursday morning at 9 a.m. and she says she hopes to have dozens of people in the courtroom in support.

We will let you know what happens.

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