Passaic County sheriff suspends foreclosure sales, eviction enforcements due to coronavirus
By Jayed Rahman
Published: March 17, 2020
Passaic County sheriff Richard Berdnik has suspended foreclosure sales and enforcement of evictions due to the new coronavirus.
“The sheriff felt strongly that we needed to suspend these actions immediately. He is going to continually evaluate the situation and determine when it will be appropriate to continue the practice,” said Bill Maer, spokesman for the Passaic County Sheriff’s Office.
The sheriff’s office conducts foreclosure sales. It also enforces court orders for evictions.
Some had raised concerns that throwing people out of their homes during the spreading Covid-19 pandemic will only worsen the situation.
“I’m really happy to hear that there’s going to be a halt on foreclosure sales and a halt on enforcing evictions,” said Zellie Thomas, leader of the Paterson Black Lives Matter movement, who raised the issue on social media over the weekend. “People can’t self-quarantine at home if they don’t have a home.”
It’s not clear when the sheriff will unsuspend the foreclosure sales and eviction enforcements. Maer said the sheriff will determine when it’s “appropriate” to reinstitute the practices.
Passaic County has 8 cases of Covid-19. Three of those cases are in Paterson. A mother, father, and their child were tested positive for the virus, municipal officials said yesterday. New Jersey has 178 cases of the new coronavirus. 3 people have died in the state from the virus.
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