South Gate Resident Contests Eviction, Faces Criminal Charges

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On Wednesday, Ana Casas Wilson, 50, a South Gate resident and stage four breast cancer patient, gathered with supporters in front her foreclosed home in San Juan Avenue. Wells Fargo, which serviced the loan, has yet to agree to negotiate a loan modification with Casas Wilson.

“My health has gotten a little worse,” said a Casas Wilson, who is also wheelchair bound and suffers from cerebral palsy, in a brief interview with Patch.  “I am looking for justice.”

Casas Wilson fell back on her home-mortgage payments shortly after being diagnosed with cancer in 2009.  Her husband, James Wilson, was forced to quit one of his two jobs in order to take care of her.

“My wife comes first,” said Wilson, as he repositioned Ana on her wheelchair. “There is nobody else who can take care of her.”

Wilson is now working fulltime with the Lynwood Unified School District. Because of this, the Wilson’s could make the required payments on the mortgage, if the bank agrees to a loan modification plan.

The Wilson's foreclosure notification expired three weeks ago, but the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department has not stopped by to enforce the eviction order. 

Peter Kuhns, an organizer with Alliance of Californians for Community Empowerment (ACCE) told Patch that Wells Fargo is claiming that Casas Wilson does not qualify for a loan modification.

“The bank does want tot explain how they have calculated that she does not qualify for a loan modification,” said Kuhns. “As we have mentioned before, Ana has been working with a [Housing Urban Development] certified counselor that believes she would qualify.”

In a statement to Patch, Wells Fargo, maintained that they had made several attempts to try and fix the situation.

“We provided loan modifications on two separate occasions [to James and Ana Casas-Wilson] and both offers were declined,” said Veronica Clemons, a spokeswoman for Wells Fargo’s Home Mortgage, in an email. “We also have offered financial relocation assistance to help transition them to a new residence.  Those offers were turned down.”

In the same email, Wells Fargo also told Patch that Casas Wilson had not made any payments since 2008.

This was a claim that has been denied by the Wilson’s and their supporters.

In April, San Marino Police arrested Casas Wilson as she allegedly attempted to make a direct payment to Tim Sloan, the Chief Financial Officer of Wells Fargo, at his home in San Marino.

This is an action that has come back to haunt her in the form of a trial set for November 26.

“There were a number of people with her in San Marino and she got arrested,” said Geoffrey Pope, who is representing Casas Wilson in this lawsuit. “Ana got arrested and has been charged by the district attorney of Los Angeles County with two misdemeanor counts”

According to Pope, Wells Fargo ignored Casas Wilson’s requests and it was this that led her to San Marino.

“She had not been able to get anybody in the bank to talk to her,” said Pope. “She got the old classic shuffle.”

Pope further added that he was optimistic about his client’s chances for being given an innocent verdict.

“I am optimistic that the jury will accept Ana’s explanation,” said Pope. “She was acting out of necessity.” 

If found guilty, Casas Wilson could face up to $2000 in fines, and a year in jail. 

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