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FORT LAUDERDALE -- The owners association of a Hallandale condominium and the complex's manager were charged today by Attorney General Bob Butterworth with violating fair housing laws by refusing to provide a handicapped resident with appropriate parking.

A civil complaint was filed in Broward County Circuit Court against DeSoto Park North Condominium Association Inc. and complex manager Joanne Derosa. Filed on behalf of 84-year-old Sarah Walsey-Miller, the complaint asks the court to require the condominium to provide parking which better accommodates the woman's disability.

"An elderly and infirm woman's rights have been violated," Butterworth said. "We are determined to correct that situation and make it clear that fair housing practices must be followed in Florida."

Walsey-Miller was diagnosed in 1976 with myocardial infarction and scoliosis of the spine. She currently suffers from severe physical limitations, including shortness of breath and the inability to walk long distances.

In 1989, Walsey-Miller bought a unit at DeSoto Park North Condominium and was assigned a parking space 270 feet from her building. Last year, following the further deterioration of her health, the woman asked Derosa if she could be given a parking space closer to her building in the area reserved for guests.

According to the complaint, Derosa refused to grant Walsey-Miller's request and that refusal was subsequently upheld by the DeSoto owners association. Last April, Walsey-Miller filed a complaint with the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, which referred the complaint to the Florida Commission on Human Relations.

The state commission last June determined there is reasonable cause to believe Walsey-Miller was discriminated against under state and federal fair housing laws. The woman chose to have the attorney general file a civil complaint on her behalf.

The complaint was prepared by the attorney general's Director of Civil Rights Gregory Durden and Assistant Attorney General Terrence Smith.