Virus Patient Facing Eviction Can Stay In Home Until February

STRATFORD, CT — A Stratford woman who faced eviction while suffering from the coronavirus will be allowed to stay in her home into the new year.

The tenant, Jamaira Watson, and her landlord, Judith Esquivel, reached an agreement, which was accepted Wednesday by Judge Walter Spader during a virtual hearing. The involved parties had decided Friday that Watson would not be evicted until the matter was revisited Wednesday, according to court records.

Under the agreement, Watson must vacate the apartment she shares with her mother in the 1100 block of Barnum Avenue before Feb. 1, or risk eviction. The agreement waives any past rent claims and Watson will receive $750 if she leaves on or before Jan. 5.

“Your attorney got you some time here,” Spader said. “Good luck to you and your mom.”

Protesters gathered Friday outside Watson’s home to oppose the eviction, according to News12. Watson argued she was seriously ill, had been instructed by medical professionals not to leave her apartment and had nowhere else to go after losing her job over the summer due to the pandemic, according to her application seeking an injunction.

"If I was forced to move right now, I would have to violate medical advice to isolate from others," Watson said in the application, which noted her mother also had started to develop virus symptoms.

Esquivel sought the eviction in October, arguing in a complaint that her tenant had not paid rent since April 2020 and that the lease had ended in August. Additionally, Esquivel received grievances about marijuana being smoked in the apartment, according to the complaint.

While Connecticut does have an eviction moratorium in place, Esquivel sought to vacate the apartment in order to use it as her primary residence, which is among the moratorium exceptions, the Connecticut Post has reported.

"I sold my primary residence due to financial hardship," Esquivel said in the complaint.