Slumlord Won’t Pay Penalty in Jail Time

A San Pedro slumlord who was late in paying $16,000 to help his tenants relocate will not have to spend extra time in jail for his tardiness, a San Pedro Municipal Court judge has ruled.

Judge Roy Ferkich on Wednesday declined a prosecutor’s request that he lengthen the sentence of landlord Martin Canter, whom health inspectors said operated a rat- and cockroach-infested apartment with a leaky roof and faulty wiring.

The judge told Canter in March that he would have to serve only 45 days of a six-month sentence if he sold his building and paid his tenants’ relocation costs.

Canter promised four tenants $4,000 each if they agreed to move out in March, but it was not until a sentencing hearing June 27 that the landlord’s lawyer turned over a check. When the check bounced, Judge Ferkich said he would consider ordering a longer jail sentence for Canter.

A second check delivered Monday was covered by sufficient funds, tenants’ lawyer David Salisbury of the Legal Aid Foundation of Long Beach told the judge on Wednesday.