Category: the Rant Board
Come to think of it I'm not entirely sure if I've ever even started a topic on this particular board. But I've certainly had occasion lately and this morning, and it's now just a little after 5:30 as I begin to write this, takes the cake.
Well it all started on Saturday evening, incidentally at just about the time when the world was supposed to come to an end in a giant earthquake as predicted by Harry False Profit Camping. I'm not sure that this personal problem has anything to do with that but I haven't entirely discounted the possibility either. FOreign folks wanting to save the poor, pathetic blind person (presumably their thoughts and not mine), from being left behind? Who knows? Not that I have anything at all against folks of different nationalities (in fact just the opposite). I generally very much enjoy meeting them. It gets to be a problem, however, when they can't speak my language and shout at me in their own while hammering on my front door. As I said, this began happening this last Saturday at around six or seven in the evening my time and has occurred continuously at least once every couple days since then. At first I wondered if they were would-be saviors with the wrong idea about me, then I got to wondering if they mistook my apartment as being occupied by someone else who was in fact aquainted with them. So the other day I finally opened my door, though only as far as my security chain would allow, in the hope that seeing my face would convince them once and for all that they had the wrong house. Well they seemed to get the hint finally since the one who seemed to do all the yelling (an elderly woman judging by her voice), said something more quietly to her partner and let the outer door close. So I finally hoped I'd heard the last of them. Well no such luck. THey showed up again this morning! At just before 5:30 of all times, hammering on my door again apparently with no concern whatever for the fact that I and my neighbors might not appreciate all the noise. Ive actually considered calling the cops, but all I'd be able to say is that some people who apparently don't speak a word of English have been rudely hammering on my door and trying to get into my home these past few days. But since I can't even be sure of their intentions I'd be wasting my time as well as the cops'. But I am seriously considering giving the Housing Authority a call, especially since this last time the leader of the group seemingly made an attempt to push me out of the way to get inside. I'm just glad the security chain was in place so they couldn't actually get the door open. And the alarming part is that on at least one occasion at least one of them has actually tried the doorknob. All I do know for sure is this is really starting to piss me off. Before it was just annoying but showing up and banging on my door before six in the morning is going too far no matter what the reason.
Hey
How about next time, you grab an iPhone and try to get a picture of them, or even a video, might be worth a try.
That sounds absolutely awful.
I agree with the last post completely. Nobody has this right. If they could speak English, I would give them a friendly warning telling them they were not welcome at your place, but since that doesn't appear to be the case, I would, as WB said, try to get a photo and/or video and then notify the proper athorities. Good luck.
I wonder if this is happening to anyone else in your area, or if this is specific to you? Maybe call your local police department, explain the situation, and see if they have any suggestions, even if they can't come charging out there. This definitely sounds like harassment.
My thoughts exactly. I mean come on! 5:30 in the morning? What gets me is that nobody else seems to have heard this.
I agree with post five. definitely call the police. this is outrageous.
I certainly will if it happens again. I don't care what they claim their reasons are, you don't just pound on someone's door and shout at them when you want to get in. And you sure as hell don't try the knob or try to push past the person if they do happen to open the door. Like I said, I'm just glad the chain was engaged so they couldn't actually open the door.
call the cops, at least there will be a record of it happening, and then call them again, and again, if these folks keep coming back, keep calling the police, you are being targeted and are in danger. If you were my kid, brother or Dad, sighted or blind, that is what I would advise doing.
This sounds pretty scary to me. I'd dial 9-1-1 as soon as they start pounding on your door the next time. Maybe the police will get there in time to catch them, but even if they don't you will have that complaint on record. And using the phone to take a picture if possible is also a good idea.
Well I think in the next few minutes I'm going to call the housing authority and let them know what's been happening in case these people are tenants of one of their properties. And yes, I'll be letting them know that I will be calling the police if this happens again.
Call your local police department: your front door is your property, and you pay for the service of having police: you wouldn't buy yourself a burger just to get up, walk away, and not eat it, would ya? The same goes here: foreign or domestic, constant pounding on the door is at least harrassment.
To solidify your case, ensure you have at least once told them to go away.
Your 911 operator will ask what's happening and if you say you told them to go away / they're still there, that will help solidify.
That, and WB's suggestions with the iPhone. I think religion has little to do with this, or if it does, it simply doesn't matter as it pertains to a registered complaint.
Yeah, probably not really a religious issue even if the timing for this to start was a bit coincidental. And I have asked them to leave several times since even if they choose not to speak English I have a hard time believing they don't understand at least some of what they hear. And while they did leave they were back within a couple days. Like I said this morning was probably the fourth or fifth time this week. And the housing authority indeed told me to call the cops if it happens again. Because even if they left while I was on the phone with the operator there would be a registered complaint. SInce right now they don't know if these people are tenants they can't really do much. But if the police did investigate and if that investigation did reveal them to be Fixed Income tenants then the folks at the housing authority could deal with the issue. I do know one thing for sure. I couldn't understand the actual words the one who did most of the talking, or rather shouting, said, but the tone of it sure didn't sound like "Hey, can I come hang out?" SOunded more along the lines of I wanna kick your ass for no apparent reason!
so, why not call the cops now? at least, then, you'll have a complaint on file. this is ridiculous!!
good point about calling the police now, not 911, but your local police department. I'm not too sure about trying to get a picture either, if they are that angry and that persisant about coming to your door, maybe you shouldn't open it at all, not even with a security chain. Good luck and keep us posted.
I'm gonna see what my folks say. Maybe I will indeed call the actual police department now and hold off on 911 until we see if they come bac again. In fact my job site develoepr told me that if I called the police department first there would be a case number or somesuch, so that if I did end up having to call 911 they would already be alert for new developments.
They might not understand much English, but I bet they understand the word police. Without opening the door, because a security chain is no defense against someone strong who can kick in the door, yell through the door that you are going to call the police. That might make them go away.
I wouldn't exactly advise calling 911 just yet, unless they do something seemingly threatening after you open the door; but as pretty much everyone else has said, call the police, or like you mentioned, your housing authorities, to see if maybe they can find a cause and solution for this mess, which by the way, would probably pis me off just as much, if not worse than it does you. :p
Rack a shotgun behind the door. They may not know english, but I garran-damn-tee you they know what that sound means.
If that doesn't work, or you don't have a shotgun, call the police. I would definantly not advice opening the door again. Even if you do have a security chain, it is very easy to get through those, and they can do damage to you through that six in crack anyway. Your best bet is to lock everything and call the police immediately.
Yeah. Especially since when they showed up this morning the lady who does most of the yelling actually tried to keep me from closing the door by shoving it from outside. That's not usually the sort of thing you do when your intentions are innocent. And ironically it's more likely they'll be around for the cops or whoever to catch them in the act if I DON't approach the door. Because they spend at least half a minute or longer sometimes banging on the door and trying the knob. And it's like I was teling some other friends earlier. If this was just a simple issue of these folks accidentally getting some of my mail they could easily leave it in my mailbox or even just open the outer door and slip the mail into the space between it and the inner door. Then the fact that they don't use a word of English wouldn't be an issue. And this has gone on far too long for it to be a simple case of mistaken identity or whatever. As for the housing authority, they told me that unless we can confirm that these folks are tenants of one of the complexes they run, there's not really a lot they can do about it legally. THey might be able to send someone to have a look but even then there's no guarantee either that there'll be someone available right then or that these folks will stick around. So they advised me to call the police department. I'll more than likely end up doing this since even if I wasn't concerned for my safety this entire business has been extremely annoying to say the least. But I also want to get my folks' advice on the matter. Hopefully I'll hear from them tomorrow. And i'm really hoping I don't have another visitation at 5:30 tomorrow morning.
If I were you, I'd be more scared than pissed off. This could be a very dangerous situation, and these people could get more violent each time they come back and eventually break in and hurt you. Good luck, and keep us informed about the situation.
What surprises me is the fact that none of my immediate neighbors have complained about the noise these people were making.
I wouldn't wait for your folks' advice to be honest. I'd be calling the police department on the double. If your folks advise something differently later on down the road and you agree, you can go from there, but in the meantime, you might be waiting for advice, but these people are not.
Probably because you live in public housing. Bad neighborhood.
Ahh, well sense you said one of the ladies tried pushing the door open even farther, their intentions probably aren't as innocent as they might clame them to be; therefore, I agree with cody; you should rack a shotgun behind the door, because like everyone else has already said, I'm sure they'll understand the sound of a shotgun, or maybe even the word "police!", if nothing else. I guess I didn't really realize how dangerous this situation could be until just now.
ask them if they'd like to be deported. Bet they'd understand that. LOL. If you just sit around, waiting for someone to give you advice that sounds right, some damage might already be done by the time you get around to taking it. I hope you've taken some action by now.
Get your ass down to the police station and file a formal complaint.
Why wait for your parents? You're your own man: deal with the situation before it gets out of hand, and don't drag other innocent people like your parents into it. The cops will suffice.
Love the rack the shotgun idea, though I personally am currently unarmed.
Unless you are physically fit and have a baseball bat do not open the door again when they come. And only then if a. you know how to use what you've got and b. are prepared to mean it when you strike.
Personally I think the cops will be best to manage this and you should remain locked inside, cut the lights if they're on and make no response at all when they come banging.
Island Girl may be correct: I was in Section 8 housing when in college, being blind also, and I had a neighbor would do this. Once I was drunk, flung the door open and scared the shit out of him. At a more sensible time I called his P.O. - that's not hard to find if you know where they live, and he went from one government roach hotel to another probably more restrictive one.
It's doable: just keep your head and don't lose.
How about getting your hands on either some pepper spray, or a stun gun? Both of those things could probably be used without having to open the door all the way, couldn't they?
yeah. you must have some first aid weapons like pepper spray or whatever which is legal. be brave and deal with them. as long as we're showing that we get scared, they may take advantage of that. so better keep something for prevention and lodge a complaint with your police department.
Raaj.
Please don't make me type out the whole shpeel on why stun guns and pepper spray are bad ideas, please don't make me do it. How about you all just go to concealedcampus.com and look at their commonly asked questions page, then you'll know why stun guns and pepper sprays and that kind of thing are bad ideas, and you'll know it without me typing it. Or, if you really want me to type it, PM me and I'll explain it to you in detail, just not right now. Now go read concealedcampus.com, go.
Bryan, hon, all I can say is it isn't your job to accommodate their language barrier. What I would do is call the local police and see what they say. You do not want these people in your house or even banging on your door, tell them that. Good grief, 5 or 6AM? Bill collectors aren't even supposed to bother a person before 8AM or after 9PM without their consent. Good luck!
Damn, Bryan! That sucks! Honestly, if it were me, I would be majorly pissed off. I didn't ask these assholes to go banging on my door and haranguing me.
In all seriousness though, call the police, if you've not done so already. Do keep us posted, and be safe!
Ceridwyn
Let us know what is going on. Have they come back lately?
Get a sighted friend who's not particularly fond of foreigners, one not afraid of confrontations, and ask for help. These idiots probably illegals, can't speak English and you can claim discrimination against the blind if it comes down to it. It's all about self-defence. *smile* I know lye makes people blind but am not sure if dropping it directly on the skin will burn. Draino has it as one of it's ingredients.
Calling the police is still probably the best bet if you do it now.
I don't mean to open up a can of worms, but it seems that as soon as most of us agree that the police ought to be called, instead of involving other people, the original poster has suddenly abandoned the board. I think that a lot of times, people just want the attention or the simpathy. I've been there before as well, so I do understand it. The only problem with sitting back and hoping someone else will come to the rescue is that either nothing will actually get done, or you're left in the rescuer's debt. Whatever the case may be, I hope it works out so that noone gets hurt. Sorry if I sound offensive, Brian. I really don't mean to.
I don't get the whole bit about seeking attention, but I also hope that it's resolved quickly and that no one innocent is harmed.
Anthony, I totally understand where you're coming from. I second you on that.
Devilish anthony, you could be right. Still, these people have no right to do what they're doing, and the best way to solve it is most likely whichever way involves the least amount of violence, since even in valid self-defence cases, someone somewhere gets the wrong idea and blames whomever was defending him/herself.
Exactly. I totally understand being in a situation where you're immobilized with fear, having never dealt with it before. It's a scarey feeling, and especially if you're not all that assertive to begin with. But, speaking for myself, if I got my mother involved in a situation like that, and they harmed her just because she was trying to protect me, I would feel very bad. I think that the police would probably have more training and authority in dealing with this situation. Noone deserves to be bothered like that, and these people don't need to be getting away with it. The longer they go undealt with, the worse they may become, and Brian might not be their only target.
But the police might just arrest them and send them to prison or give them a ticket. They won't actually teach them a lesson to not do that again. Still, the other prisoners there might, so it may work out.
yes, and brian could also include a restraining order as part of the charges. that doesn't solve all problems, but violation of a restraining order is an automatic crime, and if they're not legal citizens, they could be deported to wherever they came from if they violate it enough.
Maybe he hasn't been back to this board because there have been no more visits from these people. He did say somewhere in the beginning that he would let us know what happened if they came back.
perhaps they are scouting out the place? Some people do that in order to see if they can steal something.
Well just a quick update on this thread. I seem to have gotten rid of those people. It was rather funny actually since the last time they showed up I was just concluding a transaction with a pizza delivery man. The woman opened the front door just as he was leaving. THe really funny part is that the guy didn't even miss a beat even though she was gabbling on in her native language. He sort of escorted her back out the door and kept patiently telling her "This is Bryan's house." Must have been pretty unsettling for her. But since that day I haven't heard hide nor hair from them so I'm hoping they've given up. Of course if they do show up again you can bet the cops will be hearing from me. I like to think of myself as a fairly even-tempered guy but I'm only willing to tollerate so much, even if more than is probably wise. But anyway I'll likely be moving out of state soon so if these folks do plan on coming back they may have someone else to contend with. And if no one moves into that apartment for a while (although I doubt that's likely), they'll be banging on a door for nothing. But as I write this it's been pretty close to a month if not longer since the last time I heard from them.
Thanks for the update. I've been curious about whether or not they had come back.
Well they haven't unless they've started up again while I've been gone, in which case obviously they're even less likely to get an answer unless either a ghost has taken up residence in my apartment during my absence or I've been returning home at night during an out-of-body experience LOL.
Cool. Glad they seem to have given up. I too was wondering what the deal was.
Oh I still wonder what the deal was but as long as they don't come around anymore I can live with that.
good, glad you're rid of the bastards.
Me too. I found out there may have been a legit reason for their coming around, but of course it's hard to figure that out when the people involved can't or choose not to speak English. But apparently there's a gentleman in the complex who has this habit of leaving his weelchair out in front of his house whenever friends pick him up to go places (although why he doesn't take it I don't know unless they don't have a wheelchair accessible vehicle). Well apparently one of his neighbors was concerned about it and took it inside their own place to keep it safe. Seems to me that would come under the heading of illegal activity regardless of the intent. Well anyway wen this fellow found out his wheelchair was gone he and his friend, wife or whatever went looking for it and, for whatever reason, thought my place was as good a place as any to look. I'm not sure if it was because their apartment was actually close enough that they could truly be considered my neighbors. But I'm assuming they eventually found the chair because they haven't been back. Either that or the pizza man scared them off LOL. Even though I know that there MIGHT have been a legitimate reason for their trying to call on me the fact that they couldn't or refused to speak ENglish made it impossible to communicate, and their behavior could have easily been misconstrued as hostile whether they actually were or not.
Bad situation
And tey were back for more this morning. I need hardly point out that this time I definitely called the cops. Of course the cops didn't find these people but they said to call again if it happens again. Of course my only concern with that is that the more this happens and the more these folks are gone by the time the cops get here the more likely it'll be that I'll be the modern equivalent of the kid who cried wolf.
well, if you have to call the cops again, tell them that.
What, that I'll be the kid who cried wolf?
I can't believe this has started up again. Perhaps if you call the cops immediately even before answering the door, they will get there in time. I assume you can tell by the pounding on your door that it is these people before you actually open the door to them.
The one time I ever answered the door, and that only with the security chain still engaged, they tried to push inside. So I don't even answer the door when I hear them pounding. And I did call immediately and yet the cops were still too late to catch them. I'll keep trying of course but I hope they find them soon. THe last thing I want, aside from these people's continued presence, is to end up looking like the boy who cried wolf. Because for all my talk about it it's not as though I can afford to move at the moment, much less on short notice. Besides, the way the Twin Falls Housing Authority works is that if you move, even ust to another apartment in the same complex, you have to pay another security deposit because the deposit is tied to a specific unit and they're not transferable. But I've begun to suspect that my moving out is exactly what these people are after. I have a family friend who saw something like this happen at an apartment complex where her mother lived and it happened exactly the same way. The Russians wanted the American to move out so they could move a few more Russians in, and they thought that constant harrassment would get them what they wanted. And while these particular people may not be Russians (although there is a large Russian population in Twin Falls), they certainly aren't just dropping by for coffee an conversation.
Two mornings in a row. Yep, it happened again today. This time she actually hung around for the dispatcher to hear the pounding. The cops managed to make contact and they got her back to her own apartment. According to them, she's not all there, whatever that means. My first guess is Alzheimer's or something like that. But if that's true and she was genuinely confused about which apartment was hers then she probably shouldn't be out on her own for her own safety. Because while all I did was call the police someone else might have had a gun had it been their apartment she was trying to get into. And of course there's also the risk of getting hit by a car, what have you. But they said to call again if she shows up again. Guess we'll see what happens I suppose.
yes, I meant for you to tell the cops you're concerned about you being seen as the man who cried wolf.
Well hopefully this morning saw and end to this nonsense but I guess we'll see.
Well so far it didn't. She showed up again a little more than two ours ago and once again the cops had to come out. You'd have to modify the lyrics to more suit my situation but I'm starting to feel like the guy in THey're coming to take me away, ha-haaa!
Well the drama continues. The very next day after my last post in this topic she showed up at 3:30 in the morning. So again I called the police and, while they missed her in the act they knew where to look for her and what apartment she lived in so they said they were going to try to talk to her. Well after that shock I spent two days at my folks' in hopes of getting a couple nights' uninterrupted sleep. Well after that she seemed to have given up or maybe she was under observation, finally getting the support she needs in other words. Well either she wasn't, or they only observed her for a short time and decided there wasn't anything wrong with her. Well as of a week or two ago she's back. At first I wasn't sure if it was indeed her since while the person did open my storm door there was no banging on the inner door...until yesterday. In fact she showed up a total of three times yesterday, wel one of them was early this morning. And of course I called the police. But they're starting to sound indiferent to the situation, at least the dispatchers are. Oh they say call them if it happens again but they asked me why I don't just open the door and tell her that this is the wrong apartment. A reasonable question. And in fact I have tried it, and on several occasions. The problem is that the moment that inner door opens she tries to force her way inside. I understand she gets confused about what apartment is hers but if she's constantly that confused she obviously shouldn't be living on her own. Granted I don't know for sure that she is but I would think that if she was living with someone that person would be concerned that she's out wandering at three in the morning...unless they also have alzheimers, in which case the situation would be even more serious. But I'm at my wits' end since even the adult protective services agencies here don't seem to take even police reports seriously. O they claim that they talk to this lady but she seems fine when they do so they don't do anything further.
I'd be totally alarmed. My first instinct would be to call the police... As soon as you hear the banging.
A good idea. Harder to do though when she startles you out of sleep and you have to clear your head first so you can deliver a clear report to the dispatcher. Granted I haven't heard from her in over a month by now, but then perhaps I shouldn't say that. The last time I did she was back that night. And since I don't think the Housing Authority could legally tell me if she was still living in that apartment I have no way of knowing if I've heard the last of this business..
Go to bed ready to be awakened. And you've heard from several of us on the issue of defense and weapons.
Problem is if you go to bed ready to be awakened you then don't go to sleep. At least I can't.
Use your cane as a weapon.
I don't know what's going on with her, but if she truly does have Alzheimer's or some sort of dementia, then calling the police isn't going to do any good, and neither is answering the door ready to hit her with your cane because she simply won't remember the incident. The police really have no authority in that instance, especially if they've already talked to her and she seems to understand them at the time but then forgets again later. It's really too bad you can't get hold of someone in her family and tell them what is happening.
That sounds like a crazy sisttion.
Hope that this doesn't happen any more.
good luck.
True, the police themselves probably would be able to do little more than escort her to her proper apartment, but the housing authority can't do anything without records of police visits. This is because the agencies who would be in a position to make a proper diagnosis of Alzheimer's or whatever are generally more concerned with whether or not she's being taken advantage of or abused. And since there's no evidence of that they don't investigate as thoroughly as they should. Because I was apparently not the only person who reported this woman to Housing. Either she banged on more than one door or someone heard her pounding on mine on those occasions when she stuck around for longer than a few moments. And Housing has apparently reported her to the Adult Protective Services in this area many times in an effort to get a full evaluation. As I said however, they did a cursory interview and decided there wasn't a problem because no one seemed to be abusing her. I need hardly point out that the incidents continued many times and even the police told me to call again if she showed up, since obviously opening the door, even just to tell her that this was the wrong apartment, wouldn't be the best idea. The theory and hope was that the reoccurrence of these incidents and the police coroboration would eventually get through to someone important. I do know that during one of their visits one of the police officers mentioned trying to get in touch with this woman's family since she was getting confused at all hours and not just at night.
Well the update is that the last time I had an encounter with her was sometime in December, so I'm hoping that she finally got the help she so obviously needed. Unfortunately I'm not sure if I can legally find out for sure what her status is, so I still get a little jumpy at unexpected sounds. As I may have said before sometimes she has been absent or whatever for several months at a stretch. And since I'm pretty sure I can't legally ask about her I just have to hope I've heard the last of her. That alone would make 2012 a good year.