1 of 3 Tenants Went to Jail

[Josh Darley]

We rented a home to three adult brothers just over a year ago and just signed the lease renewal.  Overall they WERE problem free tenants until yesterday when we received a letter from an attorney stating one of the three brothers has been arrested for possession of child pornography.  The two younger brothers are asking to be let out of the lease, as they fear the jailed brother will eventually seek revenge on them for complying with the search warrant at the property where all of the electronic assets were seized.  The jailed brother makes the most income, and I assume the other two would have a hard time covering the rent each month.  We are inclined to let them out of the lease as we'd rather find a new tenant that can afford the home.  The problem I foresee is that the jailed tenant would still be on the lease.  Is the only way to evict him to wait for non-payment of rent if he goes to jail long term?  Are there any other approaches to getting all three of out at the same time?  I can't find any real info on what to do with a jailed tenant other than honoring the lease until they miss a payment.  As awful as the accusations are, I don't think we have the ability to break the lease with him until the terms are broken.  I also need to mention he hasn't been to trial yet, so we don't even know if he's guilty of the accusations.  Has anyone been through something like this?  We will talk to an attorney before making any real decisions, but at this point any advice y'all have would be appreciated.  We're in Arizona if that makes any legal difference.

[Theresa Harris]

Get all of them to sign the lease saying they are moving by the end of Aug and will have all of their possessions out and the place in good condition at that point.  Contact the one in jail via his lawyer.  If the two are afraid for their well-being most places have laws in place to protect them by letting them out of leases-given it is usually women escaping domestic violence.