Should I do anything about this?

[JLLee]

What is the name of your state? Indiana


Ok since March I have been at odds with our neighbors due to trouble with their dogs. It started out as a simple case of them not picking up dog waste in my yard and progressed to the chief of police saying neither of us can go on the others property with fear of tresspassing. We have not had trouble with being in their yard they were always in ours, ie their dogs. We also go to court in August over one of the 3 dogs biting my daughter. In the midst of all this they are going around and telling people in town (our town is small under 4000 people) that the reason we are calling the cops is we are rasict as one of the woman is black and a lesbian. That is not the case. I could care less. We had a talk with the assistant chief of police this week and he verified to us that they are saying this about my husband and me. I am very upset by this due to the fact it is not true, if it were I would not care but I am not. We are going to file a civil case against them after the ruling from the courts on the dog bite for person damages, ie. medical bills as they refuse to pay. Should I also seek about this? I do not want people to think I am something I am. I have not spoken to our lawyer about this as of yet. I do not want to start a big thing but I also do not want to be known for something I am not. If we should go ahead, what is done if you win? I am not looking for money I just want it known we are not racist. Thanks.What is the name of your state?

 

[quincy]

Your neighbors are calling you racist, and calling someone racist is slanderous - if it is not true. There are five elements to any defamation suit, however, and I am not sure you meet them well enough to have a successful suit brought against these neighbors.

The first condition that must be met is called "publication" - or the circulation of a statement that is derogatory. You meet that condition if your neighbors told the police officer. The derogatory statement needs to be told to any third person to meet this condition.

The second condition is "identification" - and you must demonstrate that you have been identified as the person to whom the derogatory statement referred. You meet this condition, apparently, as well.

The third condition is the defamation itself, which is slanderous.

The fourth condition is "fault" - and you need in this element of defamation to demonstrate that the statement was believed to be false and was said knowing it was false and that it was said without the due care that would be used by an average person of ordinary sensibilities. Here is one of the areas where you will have problems. It is extremely difficult to PROVE that these neighbors said this while believing its falsehood. They may very well believe you ARE racist. Plus, you must show that what they said was stated as fact and not opinion. In slander cases, once something is said, it is gone. There is no written record of it. So you need someone who will testify to what was said.

The fifth condition is "injury", and again you will find problems with this. You must demonstrate actual injury from this slander - a monetary loss or a reputational loss of some kind. If there is no injury, there is no case.

Lawsuits are expensive and time-consuming, and there is never a guarantee that you will win, even with more convincing conditions than you have here. I would concentrate on your dog bite case and deal with the trespassing issues and forget a defamation suit at this point.

You may want to wait for others to reply - they may have a different view on all of this than I do.

 

[JLLee]

This is progressing to the fact that they are saying things about my daughter who is 11 and bite by the dog. Can anything be done with that? I have called the police chief and left 2 messages, not saying why I needed to speak with him but that I needed to talk with him, and have not heard back on either, as if he is avoiding us. Hubby is calling him tomorrow and if we do not get a call back he plans on calling the county police but is also calling a guy who he worked with as one of his clients is a "big wig" of the FBI here in our state and see if he has any advice. As the local police will not do anything what else can we do? I find this to be a bit severe but since the local police will not handle it we need advice. I plan on calling my lawyer tomorrow but would like a second opinion. It is one thing to talk about us but another to involve our children. Is there a child protection law that can be used or something along those lines?

Side note: We are going to pursue the dog bite/medical bills with the lawyer my call was to be placed tomorrow to start the case and now I just have more to talk about.

 

[outonbail]

Personally, I wouldn't confuse the issue of holding them responsible for your daughters injuries by adding another cause of action because of whatever they may be saying to other people. I wouldn't do it because you really haven't been injured and I don't think you have to worry about your 11 year old daughter being thought any less of, as a result of whatever gossip they're spewing. I would also be concerned that by doing so, it would add validity to their claims of prejudice or influence the courts to view your complaint as a sour grapes type of situation, or filed for vindictive reasons.
Who cares what these neighbors say, your daughter was injured as a result of their negligence to restrain their dog, and you want to be compensated for it. That is reasonable. I can assure you that no one who finds themselves on the receiving end of a law suit, will ever have anything nice to say about the plaintiff, that's just life. What harm have their vindictive words actually caused you?

Stick to the issue of your daughter being attacked by this dog and stay focused on prevailing in that matter.

Also, the more you contact the police to complain about these neighbors and/or try to draw their involvement into this ongoing dispute, the less credibility they are going to place on your concerns. They don't enjoy being requested for a baby sitting service to keep peace between adult neighbors who are constantly stirring up trouble with each other over every petty little issue.

It takes two to tango, so don't let them draw you into the dance by playing their music.

 

[JLLee]

Also, the more you contact the police to complain about these neighbors and/or try to draw their involvement into this ongoing dispute, the less credibility they are going to place on your concerns. They don't enjoy being requested for a baby sitting service to keep peace between adult neighbors who are constantly stirring up trouble with each other over every petty little issue.

It takes two to tango, so don't let them draw you into the dance by playing their music.

I was told by the chief of police to call them if their dogs get in my yard or if we have ANY trouble as they are not going to deal with them causing us anymore trouble. Each time the police have been out, so far only for the dog issues, I was told that they are the ones with the problem and it shows as a report is filed and the paper trail grows. I have not done anything that I was not told to do by the local police. How can I be the one in the wrong when I am doing what was told to me?

Being in the situation it is very hard to not "dance" as I am so very upset with the rumors that have been passed about my daughter and family. I just worry due to the stress that has been brought upon my daughter. She should not have to deal with this. There should be something that could be done to protect her from a woman who is only interested in revenge.

 

[outonbail]

I was told by the chief of police to call them if their dogs get in my yard or if we have ANY trouble as they are not going to deal with them causing us anymore trouble. Each time the police have been out, so far only for the dog issues, I was told that they are the ones with the problem and it shows as a report is filed and the paper trail grows. I have not done anything that I was not told to do by the local police. How can I be the one in the wrong when I am doing what was told to me?

Well you didn't post that this is what the police have asked you to do, you posted that you have called them twice and they haven't called back so your husband was going to call them today. To me this sounded like they were growing tired of having to be called in to play referee in this ongoing dispute with your neighbors and understandably so.

The thing about these neighbor disputes, is that when you own the home your living in and the neighbors own theirs, then chances are, all of you are going to be neighbors for a very long time. Unfortunately, these disputes always seem to get worse as time goes on. Pretty soon everyone finds themselves dealing with every government department in existence over complaints filed against each other for every little thing. The zoning department, child protective services, the police, there are civil suits being filed and another to counter the one that is filed first, the nonsense is endless. pretty soon your walking on eggshells every time you walk outside into your yard. People get afraid to go on vacation because they don't know what their neighbors are going to pull while they're away and before you know it, everyone becomes a prisoner in their own home.
I'm not saying that these things will happen to you, but the potential is certainly there if these neighbors are already running their mouths because their dog has bitten your child.

I've personally known neighbors who have done some unbelievably horrible things to get back at each other, including arson and someone putting drugs in someone else's car, then notifying the police that they are selling drugs.

You have to ask yourself, where will it stop? You certainly can't enjoy your home if your in a constant state of alert because you don't know what the neighbors may do next.

Personally, I really don't give a damn what anyone says about me unless it begins to costs me money. If I lose customers or have to hire an attorney to fight erroneous charges, then I get upset. But otherwise, I don't really give a damn what any neighbors say about me to anyone else. My true friends know me so they are never going to stand to listen to some garbage anyway.

So, I'm just suggesting that your goal should be to get all of this tit for tat nonsense with your neighbors to stop as soon as possible. If you can't tolerate each other then at least ignore each other, but don't make each other live in hell for as long as you're all neighbors.

Being in the situation it is very hard to not "dance" as I am so very upset with the rumors that have been passed about my daughter and family. I just worry due to the stress that has been brought upon my daughter. She should not have to deal with this. There should be something that could be done to protect her from a woman who is only interested in revenge.

I don't know what is being said about your eleven year old daughter or how whatever is being said is getting back to her. She's eleven for God's sake, how much influence can she have in the community, how much of a reputation has she built that it could be damaged by a couple of neighbors talking a bunch of crap? Who would even listen to any verbal attack of an eleven year old girl anyway? I don't understand how she is getting stressed out over this stupidity. You should distance her from any and all ongoing matters between you and this neighbor. Don't even mention anything to her about it, as she doesn't need to be pulled into the mess.

Now please realize, that I'm not blaming you for being upset or angry with this dysfunctional neighbor situation and I don't blame you for wanting to bring the law down on them for whatever they are saying about your family, but many times ignoring these idiots and everything they say and do is the best defense. They want you to be upset, they want you to lose sleep, they want you to be in a constant state of stress over their actions, so don't give them what they want. Ignore their petty nonsense.

It's either that, or gear up for battle, because it can only get worse from here. You should start by installing a video surveillance system around your home so you can document their verbal and eventual physical attacks on you, your family and your property. Don't wait for it to start happening before you install cameras, do it now.

So hang on, you're probably going to be in for one hell of a ride!
I wish you luck,,,