One tenant of 3 trashed house, left. Landlord suing ME

[croller]

What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? Arizona

Long story short, one of my former roommates got strung out on drugs, robbed the house, trashed his room completely and damaged some other parts of the house. Police reports were filed for the robbery/trashing. Carpet had to be replaced and some painting needed to be done. The other roommate left without giving me a forwarding address. Now, the landlord is suing me (not anyone else on the lease) because I am the only one that she knows how to contact. The roommate who trashed the house has a warrant out for his arrest but has not been arrested yet (I don't know where he is either). Landlord is also suing for an extra month's rent for not being able to rent it out right away and for all the damages the roommate on drugs caused.

What are my rights here? Can I legally be held responsible for all the damages just because the others cannot be reached? Are there loopholes I should be aware of in Arizona laws?

 

[Zigner]

What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? Arizona

Long story short, one of my former roommates got strung out on drugs, robbed the house, trashed his room completely and damaged some other parts of the house. Police reports were filed for the robbery/trashing. Carpet had to be replaced and some painting needed to be done. The other roommate left without giving me a forwarding address. Now, the landlord is suing me (not anyone else on the lease) because I am the only one that she knows how to contact. The roommate who trashed the house has a warrant out for his arrest but has not been arrested yet (I don't know where he is either). Landlord is also suing for an extra month's rent for not being able to rent it out right away and for all the damages the roommate on drugs caused.

What are my rights here? Can I legally be held responsible for all the damages just because the others cannot be reached? Are there loopholes I should be aware of in Arizona laws?

Sounds to me like the LL feels you are each jointly and severally liable for the damages (per your lease). That means that he CAN sue you (or any other lessee) for up to the FULL amount.

Your rights? You can sue the roommate for any money you are out due to his/her actions.

 

[Who's Liable?]

What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? Arizona

Long story short, one of my former roommates got strung out on drugs, robbed the house, trashed his room completely and damaged some other parts of the house. Police reports were filed for the robbery/trashing. Carpet had to be replaced and some painting needed to be done. The other roommate left without giving me a forwarding address. Now, the landlord is suing me (not anyone else on the lease) because I am the only one that she knows how to contact. The roommate who trashed the house has a warrant out for his arrest but has not been arrested yet (I don't know where he is either). Landlord is also suing for an extra month's rent for not being able to rent it out right away and for all the damages the roommate on drugs caused.

What are my rights here? Can I legally be held responsible for all the damages just because the others cannot be reached? Are there loopholes I should be aware of in Arizona laws?

You will need to check your lease to see if there is a joint and severally liable clause. If so, as stated, yes the LL can sue you. You in turn would need to sue your roommate(s) for their portion of the damage. If you feel their portion is much higher than yours, you can add that amount and argue to the judge when you have your day in court.
You did not say if you had to break your lease or if it ended. If you had to break your lease, you can also sue the roommate for the extra month rent the LL is demanding, and claim but for the actions of the roommate you would not have broken the lease.

I would recommend NOT verbally communicating with the LL ANYMORE and demand all communications in WRITING via USPS only. This includes text message, and emails.

 

[croller]

Thank you for responding. Because my roommate trashed my house/robbed me/stole my identity, he made off with all of my important documents, so I do not have a copy of the lease. I have pretrial conference this Friday and have relatively little in terms of evidence besides my police report, etc. Was wondering if there is a timeframe that the landlord had to notify me of charges after the end of the lease? It was over 30 days but I don't know if that applies in Arizona or not. Lease ended July 1, was verbally agreed that we stay another month, so rent was paid through Aug 1. Also, is there any use in disputing the cost of the services they chose to "fix" the damages ... like if I feel they went out and hired the most expensive carpet installers etc. to put their claim in civil instead of small claims? Thank you for your help. I just want this to be over.