Another rule could also come into play in this particular situation. There's a (fairly) recently modified rule about kids under 18 being allowed to live with a Section 8 client without it affecting Section 8 status. (This in no way supercedes any landlord rules though). So the question is (and I forget): When was Mike Brown's birthday? How long had he been 18? If longer than the local mandate (two weeks or whatever it is in that particular district), then the grandmother should have reported him to their Section 8 governing agency. If less, then she was cool under Section 8 guidelines but might have still been in violation of landlord mandates.