Assemb. Hooper evicted by Albany landlord

ALBANY -- Assemb. Earlene Hooper (D-Hempstead), the deputy speaker of the Assembly, has received tens of thousands of dollars in extra state pay for living expenses this year, but her Albany landlord says she couldn't come up with $525 for her rent.

Acting on a warrant, Albany County sheriff's deputies evicted Hooper from her State Street apartment near the Capitol after her landlord, RSA Properties, obtained an eviction order from a city judge, according to Capt. Brad Roy.

They also evicted Assemb. Annette Robinson (D-Brooklyn) from across the hall, Roy said. Both lockouts were for failure to pay rent, RSA lawyer David R. Green said.

Hooper said the eviction order was an error because she was not in default.

The landlord, Avtar Sharma, declined to confirm her account, but said "she is still my tenant. She is still there, not removed."

He would not elaborate on why his company petitioned city court for the two evictions from the 35-unit apartment building, across from the Alfred E. Smith Building.

In court papers, Green said Hooper had not paid her $525-per-month rent for July, August and September plus $150 in late fees, a total of $1,750.

He petitioned city court for an eviction warrant on behalf of RSA after three notices were made to Hooper on Oct. 19 and Oct. 20, including a certified letter and a notice affixed to her apartment door.

In time for a court date on Oct. 28, Hooper had paid two months of back rent but was still late for one and another had become due, Green said. He said she was being an irresponsible tenant by not honoring her rent obligations or reading her mail.

"It was a mistake on her part," he said. "There's no mistake on the landlord's part."

Hooper annually tops the list of lawmakers receiving state per-diem payments for trips to Albany. The Long Island lawmaker has reported being in Albany more frequently than even Speaker Sheldon Silver in recent years.

The locks on the Hempstead Democrat's apartment were changed on Nov. 4, said Roy, of the sheriff's department, the same day that Robinson (D-Brooklyn), who is chairwoman of the Assembly Banks Committee, lost privileges to her separate apartment.

He said no one was home at the time of the sheriff-supervised visit at 9:30 a.m. that Friday.

State records show Hooper received per-diem payments for stays in Albany in September, October and November.

Hooper, who also stays in Hempstead, said she made trips to the Dominican Republic in September and to Turkey in October and was at her Albany apartment intermittently since session ended in late June.

State records show Hooper received per-diem payments substantially beyond her rent costs.