Supreme Court to hear bias suit against USPS from Black landlord

The U.S. Supreme Court has agreed to hear a case involving Lebene Konan, a Black landlord from Texas, who alleges that Postal Service employees intentionally withheld mail from her and her tenants due to racial bias. Konan claims the postal workers changed mailbox locks and property records to deny her and her Black tenants access to essential mail, leading to significant financial losses when tenants moved out. The central legal question is whether the Federal Tort Claims Act's 'postal exception,' which typically bars lawsuits over lost or misdelivered mail, applies to intentional acts of discrimination. The 5th Circuit Court of Appeals ruled in Konan's favor, allowing her suit to proceed, but other federal courts have interpreted the law differently. The federal government warns that allowing the suit could expose the Postal Service to numerous lawsuits, while Konan's attorneys argue such cases are rare and her claims represent a clear pattern of racial harassment. The Supreme Court's decision could clarify the scope of immunity for the Postal Service in cases alleging intentional discrimination.