UES Woman Sued For Smoking Heavily During Lockdown, Report Says

UPPER EAST SIDE, NY — An Upper East Side building is suing one of its residents on claims that her excessive smoking is harming her neighbors as New Yorkers are forced to stay at home to curb the spread of the new coronavirus, according to reports.

Management company J & P Realty filed a lawsuit against its tenant Debora Schevill, who has been accused of turning her fourth-floor apartment in an East 83rd Street and First Avenue building into a makeshift smoking lounge in recent weeks, the New York Daily News first reported. Upstairs neighbor Marianne Spinelli described the constant stream of smoke as "a physical assault, burning her lungs an sinuses and causing a loss of sleep," in court papers.

The amount of smoke wafting into Spinelli's home has worsened since New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo ordered New Yorkers who are not essential workers to stay at home during the day, according to the report.

The accused chain smoker denied the claims in an interview with the Daily News, saying she quit the bad habit a long time ago. Schevill told the newspaper that Spinelli's medical problems are actually being caused by mold or other smokers in the building.

J & P Realty's lawsuit demands that Schevill pay $10,000 in legal fees and that the tenant stops smoking inside the building entirely.

Read the full Daily News report here.