A Kansas City woman was awarded $40,000 after renting a home on the East Side where she was subjected to unsafe conditions, including living without electricity, a jury found.

In 2017, Mary Smith and her then-teenage son became tenants in a two-bedroom house near 50th and The Paseo owned by Charles White and Sheldon Gray, who own several properties.

But she encountered problems with the residence, including a rat infestation.

“It was a living hell,” she said.

Court documents said she also provided evidence of locks that were in disrepair, leaks, and crumbling walls and ceilings. She went without electricity for a month. Healthy Homes, the city’s inspection program, intervened to get the electricity fixed, court records noted.

The conditions made her depressed, she told The Star. Smith, who has a disability, said the situation was stressful and that she lost sleep over it.

When she did not pay rent for seven months, White and Gray took her to court to evict her.

Court documents said the two plaintiffs blamed Smith for some of the problems. When a kitchen cabinet fell down, they alleged it was because she had put too many cans in it. They also argued that they had fixed many of the other issues.

A trial began Jan. 22 in Jackson County Circuit Court and ended late Friday with the jury awarding Smith $40,000.

Smith was represented by the Heartland Center for Jobs and Freedom. The organization’s executive director, Gina Chiala, said eviction cases rarely reach a jury.

“So this was a historical moment,” Chiala said in a statement. “The message is clear: landlords need to clean up their properties and ensure that tenants’ homes are safe and healthy or the consequences could be heavy.”

The Heartland Center filed two counterclaims alleging the landlord violated a Missouri law requiring rentals are habitable and the Merchandising Practices Act, which protects consumers against fraud and deception.

An attorney for White and Gray did not return a call seeking comment.

Smith’s court victory comes as a tenants’ movement in Kansas City pushes for expanded rights. The efforts, led by activists with KC Tenants, have previously halted evictions and helped secure a $50 million housing trust fund.

In 2021, the City Council passed an ordinance guaranteeing legal representation to tenants facing eviction. Last week the council passed an ordinance that will require landlords rent to people who wish to pay the bulk of their rent with federal housing assistance vouchers.

Smith said she felt “happy and relieved” after the verdict. She wanted others to know that they “shouldn’t have to go through this and if they did, they have rights.”

“There’s help,” she said. “They shouldn’t have to suffer like I did.”