'REDRUM' Lawsuit

[bloodrayne]

'REDRUM' Focus Of Lawsuit

A local homebuilder has been stung with accusations of harassment by painting the letters "REDRUM" on the wall of a home he was remodeling and hitting on a client by saying he wanted to "kiss and lick" her.

The lawsuit against Robert Mineo, who is the president of Aspen-based Mineo & Associates Fine Home Builders Inc., was filed this week in Pitkin County District Court, and sits against a backdrop of prior civil allegations between him and client Karen Justis of San Francisco.

Mineo & Associates currently is suing a trust in which Justis is a member for unpaid bills in connection to the remodeling of a Hopkins Avenue residence.

But Justis has fired back against Mineo, claiming he harassed and threatened her on an unspecified date by painting the red letters "REDRUM" at the home in question. "REDRUM" is the word "murder" spelled backwards and was popularized in "The Shining" motion picture.

Justis also has accused Mineo of entering her home without knocking or ringing the doorbell in October 2002, and telling her, "I thought I'd come over here and kiss and lick you."

Those two instances, according to the lawsuit, came when Justis was trying to discuss problems with bookkeeping and remodeling work performed on the Hopkins Avenue home by Mineo.

Mineo declined to comment Thursday, and referred questions to his attorney, Deborah Davis, who was in Africa and could not be reached for comment.

"(Mineo's) conduct of insulting, ignoring, degrading and harassing Justis, including his statement to the effect that he would 'kiss and lick you' is extremely egregious conduct," the suit says.

The suit, filed by Aspen law firm Garfield & Hecht PC, seeks a six-member jury trial, along with attorney's fees, punitive damages and other costs.

"Mrs. Justis felt that he acted inappropriately and that's why we're doing this," said attorney Matt Ferguson of Garfield & Hecht.