Final Westchester Attempt to Excuse its Misconduct Rejected

Westchester tried to argue that the federal government was not hurt by the County’s fraud because the government got the “benefit” of the County performing the non-AFFH requirements of its grants.  The Court, in a decision dated April 24, 2009 (2009 WL 1108517) firmly rejected this argument:  “Accepting Westchester’s proffered argument that because the grants may have been administered in accordance with other program requirements, the damages to the government are mitigated, would essentially write the requirement to AFFH out of the statutes and regulations. Thus, in the circumstances of this case, Westchester’s damages cannot be reduced by reference to the alleged ‘benefit’ it provided to HUD by administering the grant funds at issue.”