Dunnings, firm resign from Housing Commission duties

LANSING -- A lawyer who pleaded guilty to paying for sex will no longer represent a publicly-funded agency in court for landlord-tenant matters.

The Lansing Housing Commission confirmed Monday it accepted the resignation of Steven Dunnings, of the Lansing-based Dunnings Law Firm, as its landlord-tenant attorney. A press release sent to the Lansing State Journal from the Housing Commission said the search begins "immediately" for new legal counsel to handle 40 to 60 landlord-tenant cases per month.

Attempts to reach Dunnings were unsuccessful. A message left Monday afternoon at the Dunnings Law Firm and his home weren't returned.

Dunnings, the brother of former Ingham County Prosecutor Stuart Dunnings III, pleaded guilty Aug. 18 to engaging in the services of a prostitute. The Dunnings brothers  were charged in March following an investigation by county, state and federal law enforcement agencies.

Terms of Steven Dunnings' plea, released two weeks ago by the State Attorney General's Office, show he is required to pay a $600 fine plus court costs and perform 80 hours of community service at the Greater Lansing Food Bank. He also must undergo mandatory testing for AIDS and sexually transmitted disease. Dunnings has declined to comment about his role with the Housing Commission.

Tony Baltimore, the Housing Commission's board chair, said in a statement that Steven Dunnings has "always put the needs of the Housing Commission and the rights of tenants at the forefront of his representation." Baltimore thanked Dunnings for "his thoughtfulness in terminating services so that the commission can move forward without any distractions."

"We wish Mr. Dunnings and his family well, as they deal with this private and personal matter," Baltimore said. "They are in my thoughts and prayers.”

Dunnings had done legal work for the Housing Commission for at least a few years and still has an active law license. He joined the bar in 1984. Copies of invoices sent from Dunnings' law firm to the Housing Commission for landlord-tenant work by Dunnings from June 30, 2014, to April 30 ranged from $498.69 to $4,579.25. The invoices were obtained by the Lansing State Journal in a Freedom of Information Act request.

Stuart Dunnings III pleaded guilty Aug. 2 to a felony charge of misconduct in office and a misdemeanor charge of engaging in the services of a prostitute. He has yet to be sentenced.

In addition to Steven Dunnings' resignation, the Housing Commission has accepted the entire Dunnings Law Firm's request to be released from an attorney-client relationship it has had with the commission for over 30 years.

Patricia Baines-Lake, the Housing Commission's executive director, said in a statement that it will be difficult to find new legal counsel because of the "unique nuances and complexities of Housing and Urban Development proscribed tenant-landlord rights."

The Housing Commission receives funding from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and consists of a five-member unpaid Board of Commissioners appointed by Mayor Virg Bernero. The board has the authority to hire Baines-Lake's successor. Baines-Lake has said she plans to retire in January.

The Housing Commission's website, as of Monday, had job postings for an executive director and chief finance officer.

Eric Lacy is a reporter for the Lansing State Journal. Contact him at (517) 377-1206 or elacy@lsj.com. Follow him on Twitter @EricLacy.