What is the name of your state? Maryland
My son, 29 yrs old owns a townhouse in a community that has restrictions on many things such as fences, trailers, etc... A neighbor in the next street over parked his trailer with jet skis on the street. A week ago on Friday evening someone wrote "no trailers a??hole" in black magic marker on the trailer. In addition, a car was marked with the same magic marker that belonged to a neighbor of the neighbor that owned the jet skis. The next morning my son went to get his mail from the mailbox which is on the corner where he was approached by the jet ski neighbor that said "look at what someone wrote on the cover of the jet ski".
My son replied that trailers and not allowed in the neighborhood and was not sympathetic to the neighbor because the covenants are strictly enforced. He indicated that he did not know who vandalized the jet ski cover but that he was breaking the covenant. The neighbor was extremely angry. He happens to be a detective. My son indicated that he was watching movies until 12:30AM with his roommate and then went to bed.
About an hour later, my son and his roommate went to grocery store and the bank. They noticed that they were being followed by the detective neighbor. My son approached the neighbor and asked what he was doing and to stop harassing him.
Two days later, the neighbor that had car damage with the marker must have been talking to the jet ski neighbor at which point the neighbor with the car said that he actually saw my son around his car about 3AM . The car neighbor then went to my son's house and approached my son's roommate who is 10-12 years older than my son, 20 pounds heavier and almost no hair. The neighbor became verbally abuse to my son's roommate and he told him that he saw him vandalize his car and threatened to break his legs. My son's roommate replied that he didn't know anything about the vandalism and that he was watching movies till 12:30AM with the owner of the house (my son). At that point, the "car" neighbor then changed his mind and said, yeah, I saw him and not you. Tell him that I am going to break his legs. Again he iterated that neither he nor my son had anything to do with it.
The next evening at 9PM, the "car" neighbor came knocking at the door. My son and his roommate did not answer the door because it was dark and the neighbor appeared to be acting aggressive. The next evening my son was in his basement clubroom when the "car" neighbor entered his back yard, and started pounding on the sliding glass doors shouting profanities and that he knew he was in there and the he was going to break his legs. My son was quite nervous and did not confront the neighbor but called me. I went to his house and we called the police.
When the police arrived, we told them what had happened and that the "car" neighbor was threatening bodily harm and accusing my son of something that he did not do. The "car" neighbor has a checkered past as has been in and out of prison and currently involved in a questionable business. The police went to his residence to intervene and to let the "car" neighbor know that my son is denying any part of the vandalism and that the harassments and threats need to stop.
After the police returned to my son's house they indicated that the "car" neighbor was still accusing my son and he wanted to be paid to fix the damage. While the police were there, they also called the neighbor with the jet skis who is a detective and he indicated he wanted 300 dollars for the Jet Ski damage. Again, my son denied that he had anything to do with this and was at home with his roommate. They also said that the "car" neighbor will not come after my son, but that he was definitely going to send someone to hurt my son unless my son paid for the damage.
We informed the "jet ski" detective neighbor that my son could not have done this because he was at home. That the "car" neighbor if he saw my son do this at 3AM, being the aggressive person that he is, why didn't he go out and look at his car that evening. Why did he wait 2 or 3 days before approaching my son's roommate? Accusing my son's roommate and saying that he saw him, then when he discovered that the roommate was not my son, he changed his mind and said it was my son that he saw. Although we can not prove it, we feel that the reason that the "car" neighbor was accusing my son was because several days later the "car" neighbor was talking to the Jet Ski detective neighbor which was irritated with my son because of his attitude about the trailer and the jet skis, that my son did it.
While the police were at my son's, we called them because of the threats and escalating aggressive behavior, the jet ski detective neighbor indicated that he had the paperwork ready to file a complaint with the police department that my son had committed the vandalism. That if my son would give him 300 dollars that he would not file the papers. In addition, they also said that they "guarantee" that the "car neighbor" would not come after my son with violence is my son would pay.
When the police interviewed the "car" neighbor, he was totally aware of all the details of my son's past dwi's. It seems as though the detective neighbor did an independent background check and shared it with the "car" neighbor.
At this point, my question is, can my son be found guilty of vandalism that no one actually saw him doing? The reason being that he didn't do it.
Is the detective neighbor liable for dragging my son's name into this without ant proof? He has visited neighbors on the street and has threatened to file for prosecution unless my son pays him 300 dollars.
Is the "car" neighbor liable for trespassing and threatening my son and his roommate?
My son, 29 yrs old owns a townhouse in a community that has restrictions on many things such as fences, trailers, etc... A neighbor in the next street over parked his trailer with jet skis on the street. A week ago on Friday evening someone wrote "no trailers a??hole" in black magic marker on the trailer. In addition, a car was marked with the same magic marker that belonged to a neighbor of the neighbor that owned the jet skis. The next morning my son went to get his mail from the mailbox which is on the corner where he was approached by the jet ski neighbor that said "look at what someone wrote on the cover of the jet ski".
My son replied that trailers and not allowed in the neighborhood and was not sympathetic to the neighbor because the covenants are strictly enforced. He indicated that he did not know who vandalized the jet ski cover but that he was breaking the covenant. The neighbor was extremely angry. He happens to be a detective. My son indicated that he was watching movies until 12:30AM with his roommate and then went to bed.
About an hour later, my son and his roommate went to grocery store and the bank. They noticed that they were being followed by the detective neighbor. My son approached the neighbor and asked what he was doing and to stop harassing him.
Two days later, the neighbor that had car damage with the marker must have been talking to the jet ski neighbor at which point the neighbor with the car said that he actually saw my son around his car about 3AM . The car neighbor then went to my son's house and approached my son's roommate who is 10-12 years older than my son, 20 pounds heavier and almost no hair. The neighbor became verbally abuse to my son's roommate and he told him that he saw him vandalize his car and threatened to break his legs. My son's roommate replied that he didn't know anything about the vandalism and that he was watching movies till 12:30AM with the owner of the house (my son). At that point, the "car" neighbor then changed his mind and said, yeah, I saw him and not you. Tell him that I am going to break his legs. Again he iterated that neither he nor my son had anything to do with it.
The next evening at 9PM, the "car" neighbor came knocking at the door. My son and his roommate did not answer the door because it was dark and the neighbor appeared to be acting aggressive. The next evening my son was in his basement clubroom when the "car" neighbor entered his back yard, and started pounding on the sliding glass doors shouting profanities and that he knew he was in there and the he was going to break his legs. My son was quite nervous and did not confront the neighbor but called me. I went to his house and we called the police.
When the police arrived, we told them what had happened and that the "car" neighbor was threatening bodily harm and accusing my son of something that he did not do. The "car" neighbor has a checkered past as has been in and out of prison and currently involved in a questionable business. The police went to his residence to intervene and to let the "car" neighbor know that my son is denying any part of the vandalism and that the harassments and threats need to stop.
After the police returned to my son's house they indicated that the "car" neighbor was still accusing my son and he wanted to be paid to fix the damage. While the police were there, they also called the neighbor with the jet skis who is a detective and he indicated he wanted 300 dollars for the Jet Ski damage. Again, my son denied that he had anything to do with this and was at home with his roommate. They also said that the "car" neighbor will not come after my son, but that he was definitely going to send someone to hurt my son unless my son paid for the damage.
We informed the "jet ski" detective neighbor that my son could not have done this because he was at home. That the "car" neighbor if he saw my son do this at 3AM, being the aggressive person that he is, why didn't he go out and look at his car that evening. Why did he wait 2 or 3 days before approaching my son's roommate? Accusing my son's roommate and saying that he saw him, then when he discovered that the roommate was not my son, he changed his mind and said it was my son that he saw. Although we can not prove it, we feel that the reason that the "car" neighbor was accusing my son was because several days later the "car" neighbor was talking to the Jet Ski detective neighbor which was irritated with my son because of his attitude about the trailer and the jet skis, that my son did it.
While the police were at my son's, we called them because of the threats and escalating aggressive behavior, the jet ski detective neighbor indicated that he had the paperwork ready to file a complaint with the police department that my son had committed the vandalism. That if my son would give him 300 dollars that he would not file the papers. In addition, they also said that they "guarantee" that the "car neighbor" would not come after my son with violence is my son would pay.
When the police interviewed the "car" neighbor, he was totally aware of all the details of my son's past dwi's. It seems as though the detective neighbor did an independent background check and shared it with the "car" neighbor.
At this point, my question is, can my son be found guilty of vandalism that no one actually saw him doing? The reason being that he didn't do it.
Is the detective neighbor liable for dragging my son's name into this without ant proof? He has visited neighbors on the street and has threatened to file for prosecution unless my son pays him 300 dollars.
Is the "car" neighbor liable for trespassing and threatening my son and his roommate?