Girard and Lindsay Jones, the mother and father of a family of six, appeal a judgment dismissing both state and federal disparate treatment housing discrimination claims against a landlord, John Baecker. The Joneses' race discrimination claims rest on Baecker's identification of Mr. Jones as "African American." The Joneses' family status discrimination claim mainly rests on Baecker's stated belief that the rental unit the Joneses' attempted to rent was too small to accommodate their family. The Joneses claim that the circuit court erred in granting summary judgment to Baecker when they found that no reasonable fact finder could conclude, on this record of facts, that the racial or familial status of the Joneses was a substantial factor in refusal to rent to the family. This case is Jones v. Baecker, No. 2015AP325, 2016 WL 7471577, (Wis. Ct. App. Dec. 28, 2016).

In the Summer of 2011, the Jones family attempted to obtain a rental property. Lindsay is white and Girard is African American. The couple is married and has two children together, while Girard has two children from previous relationships. Three of the children lived with the Joneses full time, while the fourth child had a visitation schedule for the weekends and the summer.

The Joneses were seeking rental property in an area that would allow their children to maintain their education at Putnam Heights Elementary School, and were looking for a three bedroom rental. Not many rentals were available that met those criteria, and although ten to twenty landlords were contacted the Joneses did not view any of those properties.