Record housing discrimination deal reached

LOS ANGELES, Nov. 3 (UPI) -- Los Angeles real-estate mogul Donald Sterling agreed to pay a record settlement for a housing discrimination lawsuit, the U.S. Department of Justice announced.

Sterling, who owns the Los Angeles Clippers basketball team, will shell out $2.725 million to settle allegations of discrimination against Hispanics, blacks and families with children at apartment buildings he controls in the L.A. area.

The lawsuit was filed in 2006 and alleged, among other things, that Sterling's company, Beverly Hills Properties, specifically discriminated against non-Korean tenants and prospective tenants in the Koreatown section of Los Angeles. The firm controls roughly 5,000 apartments in the city, the Justice Department said in a written statement Tuesday.

Prosecutors produced evidence that Sterling employees were told that blacks and Hispanics would not make good tenants in the Koreatown properties. Prosecutors also said statistics showed Sterling rented to far fewer non-Korean tenants than would be expected given the area's demographics.

There was no immediate comment from Sterling's office.