Three women who lived at the Axis apartments in Oakland have filed a lawsuit alleging a live-in property manager sexually harassed and stalked them, and that the building's owners and management company ignored their repeated complaints. The lawsuit, filed last week, accuses the manager and the company of more than a half-dozen civil violations, including sexual harassment and negligence.
According to NBC Bay Area, the suit names Deonna “Dee Dee” Thompson, Chloe Shedrick and Jolie Zahra Drevitch as plaintiffs. Thompson and Shedrick each allege they had brief consensual relationships with the property manager before ending them, and that he then used his position in the building to stalk and harass them, per the lawsuit. The women claim the owners and management company failed to act appropriately once they raised concerns.
Per the lawsuit, Thompson says the manager allegedly tracked her movements using building security cameras for about a month after she ended the relationship, and that he showed up repeatedly, contacting her by calls and texts and trying to enter her apartment. Thompson also alleges that a building employee grabbed her buttocks without her consent at a Halloween party; that employee has denied the allegations against him. The following morning, the lawsuit states, the property manager left flowers at Thompson's door.
Incident Reports Allegedly Went Nowhere
Thompson and Shedrick said they filed incident reports with the building management company documenting what they experienced. But according to the lawsuit, those complaints went through the very property manager accused of harassment. Thompson told the outlet that the manager read her incident report and then texted her asking to discuss it.
Shedrick's allegations describe a similar pattern: the lawsuit claims the manager would show up at her door and try to enter during their relationship, sometimes while drunk, and that after she ended things, he tracked her movements using the building's security cameras as well. Thompson said she moved out of the building in March, earlier this year, in response to the alleged harassment, telling the station she believes speaking up can help prevent the behavior from continuing.
Juneteenth Party Incident Prompted a Police Report
Drevitch, who the lawsuit says had lived at Axis for four years without incident, alleges a different kind of encounter during a building Juneteenth party. According to the suit, the manager put his arm around her neck and pulled her face close during the celebration, then later made unwanted sexual advances toward her in a stairwell. When she declined to enter an apartment, the lawsuit alleges, he tried to block her path.
Drevitch reported the incident to upper management and also filed a police report, and Oakland police said the investigation into her report remains ongoing, the station reported. The lawsuit claims management promised to fire the property manager following her complaint, but that the manager remained at work when Drevitch came forward — an allegation the suit ties to the company's broader failure to act on the women's complaints.
Manager Denies Allegations, Owners Stay Silent
The property manager denied the allegations in an email to NBC Bay Area, saying the lawsuit does not accurately reflect his account and that he intends to contest the women's claims through the appropriate legal process. The building's owners and management company did not respond to the outlet's request for comment on the lawsuit. When asked whether the manager had been fired, neither he nor his employer would comment, according to the report.
Attorney Rahman Popal, who represents the women, said ownership is ultimately responsible for tenant rights and safety, and that he feared the alleged conduct could happen to other tenants if left unaddressed. Attorney Rachel Neff said photos of messages, emails and calls showed what she described as a prolonged pattern affecting multiple tenants in the building.
What Recourse Tenants Have in Oakland
Beyond the civil lawsuit itself, the City of Oakland says its Tenant Protection Ordinance gives tenants legal recourse when they are harassed by a property owner, offering a separate avenue outside of criminal investigation or a civil suit. It remains unclear how the Axis case will play out in court, and no outcome has been reported for either the civil claims or the ongoing police investigation into Drevitch's report.
