A local real estate broker who failed to tell a client about lead paint in a home was sentenced Tuesday to time served, a $1,000 fine and restitution of $53,326.
Maureen S. Walck, 73, of Lockport, pleaded guilty Sept. 7, 2017, to failure to provide a lead paint warning notice in a home sale that closed in April 2014 and may have led to a child being diagnosed with lead poisoning.
According to acting U.S. Attorney James P. Kennedy, Jr., Walck told the prospective buyers in early 2014 that the seller had no knowledge of lead-based paint or other lead hazards at the residence, and that there were no records pertaining to lead paint in the home.
Walck failed to disclose the presence of lead in a lead-based paint rider after the buyers made an offer on the house in February 2014. The owners closed on the house that April, and learned that their child was diagnosed with lead poisoning in September 2015.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Aaron J. Mango said Walck was informed of the lead hazard after executing a contract with the seller in January 2014, giving Walck exclusive rights to sell the house. The house was built circa 1900 and the former owner was aware of the presence of lead paint.
Later that month, Walck disclosed the lead-paint hazards to an earlier prospective buyer, according to Mango. But after the house inspection and reviewing lead paint records, that prospective buyer backed out of the deal.
Date : 1/9/2018
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