Are there any charges I can pursue on my neighbor and/or her boyfriend?

[sekerofanswers]

Connecticut

My neighbor constantly blasts loud music and hosts screaming matches with everyone she knows, always from 10pm to 7am. I called the police several times and only succeeded in stopping her for a few days at a time. Two days ago, at 6:30 a.m. after a virtually sleepless night due to her blaring music and having a screaming argument with her boyfriend, I regrettably lost my temper and banged on the wall and asked if she could turn the music down so I can finally sleep (I haven't spoken to her in person because I've heard her issue all sorts of threats to other people and fear for my safety). They screamed all sorts of obscene language back, while I repeatedly said I just wanted quiet . My neighbor sent her boyfriend over to scream at us. We argued for a bit (I only opened my door, we never invited him in) but I quickly tired of it and told him to leave. We tried to shut the door but he shoved it back open and began screaming that he didn't care how many people were in my house (me, my boyfriend, my cousin and two friends), he'd "f--- us all up". He eventually left after we informed him several times that we were calling the police. We filed a police report but my neighbor claimed he left when the police knocked on her door. I also informed my landlord in person and will be sending a certified letter detailing the incident and a copy of the police report.

Can I file any formal charges on my neighbor's boyfriend, like threatening and breaking and entering? Can I file anything on my neighbor herself? Do my friends count as witnesses? Do I have any hope of filing a restraining order on the boyfriend? And can I call the police and have him arrested for the incident described above if I see him in my building again? He is not on the lease or a resident here. I don't know his name yet. Thank you for your time.

 

[anearthw]

You can speak with the police officer with whom you originally spoke to after the incident. It sounds as if they did not feel there was enough to substantiate any sort of charges (and did you even ask about pressing charges at the time? Or is this an afterthought?). You opened the door and engaged in a verbal altercation, I suspect the police do not feel that there is really much to go on in terms of "B&E" and "threats". Mutual he-said-she-said. I'm not sure why you think you can 'file' something on her, it was him and you involved in this incident. You ARE reporting these domestic disputes to 911 immediately, correct? He has a right to enter the building and visit his girlfriend, just the same as your friends.

A restraining order is for family/romantic partners in CT. A protective order can be given to non-family/romantic partners but that is given after criminal charges are laid, so again, this must be discussed with police first. I don't see any grounds for a protective order here or criminal charges between you and him, you should not be opening your door to argue with the guy, you should have phoned the police instead.

If your landlord refuses to evict her over these disturbances then your best choice is to move, as much as that is inconvenient. Pick your battles.

 

[ERAUPIKE]

If your landlord refuses to evict her over these disturbances then your best choice is to move, as much as that is inconvenient. Pick your battles.

You need to continue to document these incidents with your landlord. Once you have established a pattern, you can give the landlord a choice, her or you. The landlord has a legal obligation to provide you with a safe and quiet place to live. I faced a slightly similar situation, except my upstairs neighbors had two children that would constantly run across the apartment, it sounded akin to a herd of elephants. I emailed and submitted written notices to my complex after each incident. The complex manger asked me finally, "What do you want me to do about it?" I told her, it was either them or me. I believed I had submitted collected enough documented evidence to justify some sort of claim against them for my previous living expenses and what it is going to cost me to move on such short notice. The positive note was that we could easily avoid any type of litigation by simply removing the problem. The family was moved to a different building later that week.

 

[HighwayMan]

YOU can't file anything except a police report.

As mentioned, document everything. Keep calling the police when there is an issue. Make a report about the boyfriend incident and it will be up to the police to decide whether to take this further criminally.

Make sure your landlord knows about everything.