Summary of Complaint

Plaintiff Timothy Pena, a U.S. Navy veteran with a 70% VA disability rating, brings this civil action pro se against the New York City Department of Homeless Services (DHS), the Institute for Community Living (ICL), Manhattan VA Homeless Services Manager Siobhan Dannacker, and Veterans Task Force Co-Chairs Adam Wawrynek and Teresa Santiago. The action arises under federal law, including the VA Grant and Per Diem (GPD) program regulations, the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), the False Claims Act, and the First Amendment.

Plaintiff alleges that Defendants systematically violated GPD program requirements by failing to provide safe, sober, and supportive transitional housing.

At the Borden Avenue Veterans Residence, veterans endured open drug use, violence, and unsanitary conditions, including a lack of required sinks and toilets. DHS and ICL allegedly denied transportation to VA medical and mental health appointments, provided no meaningful community engagement activities, and subjected veterans to degrading dormitory-style housing without adequate privacy and safety.

The Manhattan VA, NYC DHS, and ICL are further accused of unlawfully restricting GPD eligibility to only those male veterans with mental illness or chemical dependency, excluding eligible veterans without mental health or chemical abuse diagnosis in violation of HIPAA laws for self-disclosure. Women veterans are excluded from the program altogether.

As co-chairs of the NYC Veterans Task Force, defendants Adam Wawrynek and Teresa Santiago allegedly forced Plaintiff into a restrictive NDA that violated the ADA and suppressed his free speech. Plaintiff seeks declaratory, injunctive, and monetary relief, including damages, program reform, and independent auditing of GPD funds.