Losing sleep over nuisance neighbor
Q: My friends have been renting a nearby apartment for over 10 years. Recently, the landlady rented the adjoining apartment to a bad tenant. This has made a lot of trouble, with no solution in sight.
The new tenant plays loud music from midnight till 5 a.m. at least three nights per week. My friends are losing sleep, and this is affecting their health. Appeals to the landlady have had no effect.
The police came out once but no longer answer calls for help. We complained to the housing authority, but they did not reply.
We’ve talked to attorneys, but they only recommend the avenues we’ve already tried. Is there any remedy to this awful situation?
A: It is frustrating to realize that someone can create a public nuisance of this kind with legal impunity.
There should be some form of recourse, but it seems that authorities are no longer willing or able to address such problems. How that can be is a question that measures the denigration of respect in our society.
There was a time, in a much older America, when a rude, offensive neighbor would have gotten a free ride in a dunking stool or spent the better part of a day with wrists and ankles in the stocks, the target of small boys with rotten tomatoes. As barbaric as that might sound to our modern sensibilities, it might seem a reasonable answer to the ill-mannered neighbor whose lifestyle shows no respect for neighbors.
As things presently appear, there may not be a fair solution to your friend's problem. But here are three suggestions: 1) Have an attorney write an intimidating letter to the landlady, informing her that legal actions will ensue if the problem is not resolved immediately. If the landlady has any idea how costly litigation can be, this could motivate her to take corrective actions. 2) A complaint against the landlady can be lodged with the district attorney's office. This may or may not work, but it is worth a try. 3) An appointment can be made to speak with a local city councilperson to complain that the police will not address the problem. Elected officials will often take steps to rattle the quiet cages of disinterested bureaucrats as a means to win the votes of appreciative citizens.
If none of these remedies produces fruit, perhaps your friends should find another home.
• Distributed by Action Coast Publishing. Questions to Barry Stone can be emailed to barry@housedetective.com.