Newsweek – “Ask the Experts”
By Lucy Notarantonio On 8/13/23 at 6:00 AM EDT
Dear Newsweek,
I’m 73 years old and I live alone. I have owned the property for 34 years and 11 years ago, my neighbors from hell moved next door. They are in their 40s.
For the first eight years, at least three or four times a week, I would have 10 to 30 or more kids in my front, side and backyards with the parents outside. They would be having parties and blocking my driveway at all hours of the day and night.
The dad used to walk through my backyard when he pleased, so I rang his wife to complain. I have also called the police on a regular basis, but that never did any good.
The police would talk to them, but as soon as the officer left, they’d go right back into my yard. The kids would get bats and start hitting rocks and golf balls at my house. Then they would get mad because I called the police.
The most recent incident occurred a few months back. I was working in my yard and found a lot of dog poop. I had seen the man shoveling dog poop in his yard the night before. I called the police, and they told me that my property line is wrong and that it is their property, and they can do what they want.
I even took my property survey to the police to prove my property line is where I said. They rent the property, so they should have spoken with the landlord about the property line instead of being so mean and evil.
So finally, after 11 years, they got a citation, and I built a privacy fence on their side only because at this time I can’t afford to fence all of my property. But the fence is extended almost all the way to the front of my house, about 15 feet away from the curb.
Next time they decide to be a Karen, harass me, bully me or cause me any more mental stress, we will be in court. After 11 years of hell, it was time to get the owner of the property involved, and I only communicated with him. I feel that at my age and with my health, I don’t need this kind of treatment, and I need to find a way to legally deal with these people.
Ophelia
Get a Lawyer and Gather Concrete Evidence
Featured Expert:
Andrew A. Zashin is the managing partner of Zashin Law, where he leads the firm’s family law and international family law practice groups. He has represented parties in some of the rare family law cases heard by the Supreme Court.
Dear Reader,
I am sorry to learn of your situation. Sadly, what you are experiencing is more common than you might imagine. Unfortunately, the steps you have taken to appease your “neighbors from hell” have proven fruitless. I will suggest some additional actions.
First, document everything that happens in real time. If you see your neighbors shoveling dog feces into your yard, take a video of it. Take pictures. Telling anyone about what happened later is one thing. Proving what they did, capturing the offending parties in the act, with verifiable details of where and when –documenting the time and place with background or audio by calling out to them on video – is an entirely different matter altogether. Then, armed with this evidence, go to the police supervisor. It will be much harder to ignore a complaining citizen with concrete documentation.
Second, get a lawyer. Dealing with a matter like this should not be expensive. The cost, however, seems insignificant compared to the misery these neighbors are causing you. A simple letter from a lawyer manifesting your seriousness to neighbors, the police and the landlord may resolve the matter. Such a letter, putting the responsibility on the landlord to control his tenants, will take the burden off your shoulders and put that burden on the landlord, where it belongs. The landlord is the person, after all, who allowed these tenants to rent his or her property and behave like this in the first place.
Finally, your lawyer, armed with the video and photographic evidence you have already collected, is in a better position to file a lawsuit if necessary. It is realistic that your lawyer, either through negotiation or litigation, can recover your legal fees and expenses from the landlord. I hope this helps and I wish you the best of luck.
This article originally appeared on Newsweek – “Ask the Experts.”
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