Tenant at Apartment Only Eight Days in Eight Months

Landlord sued to evict rent-stabilized tenant for nonprimary residence. Landlord claimed that tenant lived at another Manhattan address with her boyfriend and young child, while subletting the apartment to a series of people. Tenant claimed that the other apartment occupants were her roommates, that she spent some time at her mother's house when she became pregnant at age 45, and that she spends only weekends with her boyfriend, the child's father.

The court ruled for landlord. Landlord presented videotape evidence showing that tenant stayed at the apartment only eight nights during an eight-month period. She was also seen on the videotape reaching up to dismantle the camera when she discovered it. Landlord's resident building super saw tenant only twice a month during the two years before the case started, picking up her mail from her mailbox. The super also saw at least four other people living in the apartment during the two years in question and said that tenant didn't live with any of them. The apartment was a small one-bedroom unit, with a nonconvertible sofa in the living room. A porter from the boyfriend's building testified that he saw tenant leaving the boyfriend's building some mornings and saw her at other times in the laundry room, basement, and elevators. Tenant's son attended preschool next door to the boyfriend's apartment building. Tenant's trial testimony contradicted statements she made during pretrial questioning and wasn't credible.

• 120 West 86th St. LLC v. Bizzarro: Index No. 58609/2008 (Civ. Ct. NY; 9/24/10)