noise ordinance

[mikefitz]

What is the name of your state?

IN

so i was with my girlfriend in my apartment in a college town listening to some loudish music tonight. we heard a knock on the door, looked through the peephole and saw it was the cops, turned the music off and went back into my room. 30 minutes later i opened my door to let my roommate in and there was a note "we will be back" along with 5 missed calls from the cops and 2 voice mails saying we should "open the door". and "its in our best interest to answer the door"

WTF, as soon as we knew it was the cops we turned the music down. i knew i didnt have to answer the door as this is America and we have these silly things called "fourth amendment rights". after i turned the music off and the cops left i called their number back and they said they "might be back tomorrow" to talk about our situation.

What can they do? what can i do? i thought i was being pretty reasonable turning the music off but they wanted to leave voicemails and silly notes taped to my door even after i turned my music off....

 

[CavemanLawyer]

Legally they can cite you for the violation. If this is all they want to do then, well, it is in your best interest to open the door. Its best to get the citation in hand than to hope it comes to you properly in the mail. Because if it is mailed than a court date will be set and if you don't appear, because you didn't get the citation for example, than a warrant will be issued for your arrest.

The officers might just want to give you a stiff talking to. Either way you absolutely have the right not to open the door, but it doesn't mean they can't still cite you.

 

[BL]

What is loudish music ?

 

[Hot Topic]

The police don't have time to leave "silly" notes for people. You should have opened the door and dealt with the situation because it may had nothing to do with your music being too loud. It doesn't seem likely that you get a note on your door, plus five calls and two voice messages over that.

You shouldn't be patting yourself on the back for turning off the music. That's what a reasonable person does.

 

[mikefitz]

You should have opened the door and dealt with the situation because it may had nothing to do with your music being too loud. It doesn't seem likely that you get a note on your door, plus five calls and two voice messages over that.

Did you read the part where I said I called back? Yea, it was just for a noise ordinance, and they 'might talk to me today'.

Maybe they should give it up when these reasonable people turn their music off and, I don't know, spend less time calling me, leaving voicemails, and writing notes and more time going after real criminals like drunk drivers. I know, what a silly idea right....

 

[BL]

What is silly is your language and attitude on about the issue .

Police deal w/ noise complaints all the time . The offenders turn the " loudishness " off when they arrive , and back on after they have left .

The police don't want to come back again . They want to warn you .

But then , most offenders think it's petty , and have no respect for others peace,quiet,and enjoyment of the premises they live in .

 

[CdwJava]

We have found quite a few interesting things when dealing with repeat offenders ... much of the time their homes are hangouts for derelicts and criminals, and we often find drugs, guns, and contraband in these premises.

Noise calls are annoying, but they also allow us to stumble upon some very interesting activity that we might otherwise never have been aware of.

- Carl