Music Nuisance Advice

What is the name of your state?What is the name of your state?State: Caifornia/ Bay Area

Hi everybody, I've been browsing the forums and noticed that you all seem to be helpful and have a good sense of humor, I'm hoping you can give me some advice...

Issue: Music Nuisance

I practice drums in my garage about 3-4 times a week, for no more than 30 minutes a day. In the past week the cops have come over 3 times about a noise complaint. No neighbor had come over to just ask me to stop or compromise, they just called the cops.

The first time was at 700 pm. I didn't know which neighbor it was so I could talk to them. I figured it WAS rather late, and some neighbors might be sleeping, so I moved my curfew to 5pm

The second time the police came was at 4pm. I talked to the nice officer, got his name, and case no. and at this point decided to go to the surrounding neighbors (Houses) and ask them if they had a problem with it. Out of the 4 neighbors, 1 wasn't home, 2 didn't mind (as long as it wasn't past 10pm), and 1 I had yet to ask.

The third time the police came was at 12pm in the afternoon. By now, the officer decided to go and talk to THEM (the neighbor), but they said that they didn't want to talk to me, OR compromise with me. The officer said to me that there's nothing they (the officers) can do as there was no violation. They even called code enforcement, they said the same thing.

So..

I get a letter in the mail today from their attorney with all these statements that are just absurd. I would like to know... what can they do legally?

Edit: Also, what would you do if you were in this position?

(Keep in mind, I keep the garage closed, and it's less than 2 hours practice time a WEEK. I did go to their residence to talk, but they seem to refuse to answer their door.)



Thank You.

SanMurray said:

I get a letter in the mail today from their attorney with all these statements that are just absurd. I would like to know... what can they do legally?

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There are several things they could claim, such as loss of enjoyment, diminished property values, etc. Whether they would 'stick' or not, depends entirely on the full circumstances.

Also, what would you do if you were in this position?

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Either soundproof the garage or move your 'practice' out of a residential neighborhood. What is an attempt at music to you, is apparently 'racket' to someone else.

Hmm, under what circumstances would those reasons 'stick'?

These are elderly people...One of the things they are trying to claim is 'intentional emotional distress,' when
A) I had no prior knowledge to their problem with the drums and
B) they never came over and told me before calling the police

another thing is 'loss of sleep' when
A) I play during the daytime and
B) they claim that the noise is affecting their kitchen

Any other comments or advice?

Thanks guys.

SanMurray said:

Hmm, under what circumstances would those reasons 'stick'?

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None.

These are elderly people

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Not relevant in the law.

One of the things they are trying to claim is 'intentional emotional distress,' when
A) I had no prior knowledge to their problem with the drums

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Not relevant. There is no statutory obligation on whether you had knowledge or not.

and B) they never came over and told me before calling the police

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Guess what??? Again, not relevant. There is no requirement that they 'prenotice' you.

another thing is 'loss of sleep' when
A) I play during the daytime and
B) they claim that the noise is affecting their kitchen

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Okay. Both of those could be valid complaints.

Any other comments or advice?

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Yep. Soundproof your garage or find another place to play.... or face their likely continued complaints and possible litigation.

I know.... someone is going to come along and mention 'noise ordinances' and that you may not be in violation of them. However, that has absolutely nothing to do with the PERSONAL civil complaints that the neighbors can pursue against you.

Another option to soundproofing the garage would be to use practice pads or invest in an electronic drum set and use headphones. I have played Roland and Yamaha brands and they are real cool.

So, in regards to emotional distress, would practicing drums in the afternoon be considered 'outrageous behavior' that is 'intolerable in a civilized society?'

emotional distress seems to be kind of vague, but under that definition, none of the other neighbors see it that way.

Maybe you can clear up some of the other things in the letter which include:

Nuisance from excessive and unreasonable noise
This is subjective, but wouldn't common sense say that
A) less than 1/2 an hour a day is not excessive? and
B) playing in the afternoon isn't unreasonable?

The other one listed is punitive damages which I'm not clear on. Is this related to emotional distress?

I really would like to compromise with these people. If they couldn't put up with the drums every now and then, I can only imagine how they handled the construction on their home.

Thanks for the replies.

This is a LEGAL advice site and not a debate site. You have been provided with excellent legal advice... and even some pretty damn good music advice. If you want to debate, ignore the letter and you can debate with the court.

Yes, damn good legal advice. Got electronic drums? Check out www.musiciansfriend.com

Yes, your right. I didn't want you to get all defensive here. I just wanted to understand a little bit about the advice your all giving. I found some of these definitions to be vague, are they not? But I suppose that's what the courts are for.

Thanks for all the help.

In the case that they decide to take it to court, how do these types of cases usually work out?


Thanks.

SanMurray said:

In the case that they decide to take it to court, how do these types of cases usually work out?

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Of course that depends on exactly what court and what claim is made. Generally, at the least, they 'work out' with you spending hundreds or thousands of dollars on legal fees. And then, if you lose, you would be ordered to stop your 'nuisance conduct' and possibly pay them for their 'damages'.

Yes, and after that, you would be marching to a different drum.

Thanks fellas.

Rock on.........