Exclusive: Somers domestic violence survivor forced onto apartment waiting list after leaving home, seeks law change
Christina Raimondi and her sister are working with state Assemblyman Matt Slater on a solution for other survivors who might be forced from their homes.
More Stories
A woman who survived a shooting in her Somers home that left her son dead is now supporting new legislation to give other survivors something she never received.
A new law would keep survivors safe and housed, even when they are forced to leave their homes.
When Christina Raimondi vacated her home this past fall, she was dropped back into a nearly impossible renter's market with no help.
She is scrambling to find a new home and was still relying on donations from her community.
In October, Raimondi's now-former boyfriend Fernando Jimenez, allegedly shot Raimondi and her two sons in an apartment off Route 6 in Somers.
Her older son, Michael, died.
She and her younger son survived.
They had to get out.
They were once excited to be living in the apartment, which they landed in because they won an apartment lottery.
"I had to terminate my lease because there was no way I could stay in that apartment," Raimondi said, "because that's where — you know."
Her landlord wanted to relocate her and her son to another unit in the complex, only to learn state law does not allow the switch.
To obtain another similar unit in the same complex, or anywhere else, Raimondi must return to a long waiting list.
She found temporary accommodations while she and her support system search for an apartment or an affordable house.
"I'm stuck trying to find comparable housing," she said, "but the pricing is the challenge because it's not within my means."
She and her sister, Kimberly, are working with state Assemblyman Matt Slater on a solution for other survivors who might be forced from their homes.
They stood with Slater at a press conference at Somers Town Hall, where Slater announced he had just filed a bill that would change state housing law to allow such a transfer without having to wait several months on a waiting list.
Slater said he filed the bill "to try to rectify the shortcomings in the law when it comes to housing domestic violence victims."
"I think this legislation is a wonderful opportunity for future victims," Raimondi said at the press conference, "because unfortunately, domestic violence — there's no end in sight. Unfortunately, it's a big problem."
Slater expects the bill to pass the full legislature, which might set a nationwide precedent.
Domestic violence survivors who have federal housing vouchers are allowed to transfer units without waiting.
News 12 has been unable to find laws in other states that provide the same protections.
