My question involves landlord-tenant law in the State of: New York
My roommate rented out a room in our apartment to this girl. Apparently, the girl only ever saw pictures of the room, though her friend had come to look at the room for her. The girl paid her deposit and first month's rent, then when she came to move in, decided she hated the room, and decided to move out. She wants her deposit back, as well as the full month's rent, and is threatening to sue. No lease was signed. Is she entitled to her deposit? We're searching for a roommate, but it may be necessary to use all or part of the deposit to cover this month's rent. We want to give her back as much money as we can, but we also want to be fair to the potential new roommates, and not make them pay a full month's rent to live somewhere for half a month.

