FRIEDEL V. SUN COMMUNITIES, INC., PARK PLACE COMMUNITY L.L.C., (11TH CIR. 2021) [EMOTIONAL SUPPORT ANIMALS]

A resident of a mobile home park suffered from "several chronic physical and mental impairments" and major depressive disorder. The Friedels say that because the resident’s "disabilities substantially limit one or more of his major life activities," he has a "handicap" under the FHA. He kept an aggressive golden retriever with a propensity for biting and alleged that it was his emotional support animal. After the dog attacked and injured another dog, which was not the first time the dog displayed aggressive behavior, the mobile home park ordered Freidel to remove the dog. He sued claiming the park was obligated by the federal Fair Housing Act to allow him to keep the dog as an emotional support animal. The court disagreed, finding that no reasonable accommodation would have eliminated or acceptably minimized the risk the dog posed to other residents. The risk to the community outweighed his claim for reasonable accommodation as a disabled resident. The court stated that the Friedels are not seeking a reasonable accommodation but simply their "preferred accommodation," which is not required under the law.