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Hi,
There is a sixth grade girl who attends the local public school right around the corner from me, and she trespassed onto my property and tried to use it as a short cut. She ended got really angry at me, told me to “Shut Up”, and then went to my next door neighbor’s house, who never gave her permission to enter their property either, and jumped over their fence. I tried to talk her out of it, but it didn’t work, so I e-mailed their school social worker and she told me to call the police the next time it happens. I just don’t feel like calling the police on a 12 year old, especially because I could tell that based on my interaction with her, she probably has some behavior issues and sending her to juvie will just make life worse for her. What do I do?
Call the police. She won’t be sent to juvie for this. Actually, the police probably won’t do anything at all.
(school social worker? what did you think they were going to do)
Sue her parents in civil court for trespass.
What damages were done? Are you accusing her of theft? Is their a dangerous condition that might injure her? The minhag of children is to take short cuts.
To put “tresspass” into context, until about 250 years ago, you had alledge (even if they ignored it most of the time) that the tresspasser had come into your property with force and arms and against the king’s peace – schoolgirls taking shortcuts didn’t count.
Get/borrow a yapping dog, like a terrier of some kind.
maybe get a feral dog
Living in Monsey, tresspassing is a very big deal. Besides the obvious loss of privacy (which many people paid big bucks for) there is also the aspect of legality. If c”v someone trips on something and falls on your property they can sue, and in this day and age they will sue and they’ll win and then your insurance rates will go out of this world. Call the police and let them do their job.
Put up a better fence.
Cover your property with itching powder.
Or, invite her in for juice and cookies. Explain that every time she trespasses, she has to sit and look at pictures of your cats for 20 minutes.
Or, ask her to do some service in exchange for trespassing on your property.
Why call the police?
Vogue,
I am fully aware that the law is the same everywhere in the United States. By referencing that I live in Monsey I was expressing that there are places that people have paid hundreds of thousands of dollars to have privacy and that having people walk through your backyard (whether to go to school or on Shabbos which disturbs any kind of restfulness or the ability to have family time and space that was duly paid for and continues to be paid for with exhorbitant taxes) it is a very big deal. There are plenty of places that having people walk through isn’t – but where I live – Monsey – it is a big deal.
you should do nothing. If your mother wants to do something though, its her property
Vogue -Ah, just call the cops – eventually the cops will get sick of you calling all the time and tell the kid to cut through s/o else’s property.
You’re not the homeowner. Why do you care?
interjection???? It’s Vogue’s MOTHER.
most people care about their mothers
(at least most of the time)
“the kids will damage our property.”
when they do, call the cops. till then, put up a fence that will keep them out.
apushatayid -“when they do, call the cops. till then, put up a fence that will keep them out.”
I agree to put up a fence, but you must call the cops at every incident. Why? Because they won’t do anything anyways and if they do damage something -then if you called previously they might actualy make an arrest.
I’m not a lawyer, but I think the law is like this. Let’s say they damage something -then they can be sued. The insurance of your home might not even cover criminal acts, which are not accidental. So you sue this kid -I doubt the kid has any assets -so you won’t get a dime.
But if you have called the cops numerous times and there is documentation and of course 99% of the time they’ll just take a report and not investigate or prosecute -now they are legally liable for their inaction. So instead of you getting the bill for the damage of your property -you can sue the cops, ie. the city, for the damage.
Unless the police in your area are really underworked, they might not be thrilled at being called out to pursue a sixth grade girl (most crimes are committed by boys, not girls) who is taking a short cut to school. Police tend to think they should be out chasing murderers and muggers and rapists and terrorists – not pre-teens on their way to and from school. Absent some indications of damage being done or more serious crimes being committee, you might reconsider calling out thousands of dollars in police assets. If it was your daughter who was taking a short cut to her Beis Yaakov, would you get annoyed if someone called for a SWAT team to stop her?
akuperma -“Unless the police in your area are really underworked, they might not be thrilled at being called out to pursue a sixth grade girl (most crimes are committed by boys, not girls) who is taking a short cut to school. Police tend to think they should be out chasing murderers and muggers and rapists and terrorists”
Really is that what they think? Maybe they think this in police academy, but e/o knows once they hit the street -they spend most of the day writing tickets and eating (Donuts, of course).
You’ve been watching too much of the show “Cops”. It probably takes them weeks of ride alongs to actually film one half-hour segment of “Cops”. Most of their career is Not playing “Cops and robbers”.
The girl is committing a crime of trespass. She has to learn that she may NOT go anywhere she pleases to go.
If SHE is allowed to continue, the next thing you know (as happened to us), more than the one inconsiderate girl (or boy) will be cutting through the property, maybe they will (as happened to us) choose to SMOKE on the property, or VANDALIZE the property. OR worse case scenario, if injured while trespassing, SUE the owner for damages. A sleazy lawyer can convince a judge that the property was an “attractive nusiance,” like a trampoline that is not enclosed, but nonetheless accessible to kids. There are crazy people who will actually BUY that notion and give the homeowner grief.
You cannot set a precedent by allowing this to continue, UNLESS you want it to. Next time this happens, follow her into the school and report her directly. The police will probably not do anything for you.
If this were one of our yeshivah kids, it is still a problem, and they need to learn derech eretz. No one should cut across someone’s property without rishus (And if they needed access, I probably WOULD give rishus, but do not assume that to be the case without asking). I taught my kids that from day one.
I have to constantly tell frum little kids to get down off my retaining wall. The problem is sometimes their parents are WITH them, watching them do it. I come out (yes, I am that old lady on the block I swore I would never be) and tell the parents that NO one is allowed to climb on the retaining wall, it is not safe, and it is private property, so get your kids down. Some of them even say sorry. Most do not. And THAT is what’s wrong with this generation, in a nutshell. How can kids learn derech eretz when their parents don’t recognize what that means?
Vogue- how did you talk to her? If she got angry at you, I assume you told her something. Maybe next time try not raising your voice, just saying calmly and and firmly “Excuse me- I don’t know whether you are aware of this or not but this is private property and you are trespassing. Use the sidewalk.” If she persists continue “Again, this is private property. I can call the police and report you for trespassing.” If she still persists then call the police. Unrelated- how is it to be back home? Do you miss New York?
1)electric fences are very useful in these kinds of situations
2)i concur with the suggestion of borrowing a dog for one day and give her a real good scare
3) and finally, a good ol fashioned super-soaker always does the trick
Have you ever considered planting some Poison ivy?
Vogue- I didn’t ask whether you spoke to her. I asked how. Did you perhaps raise your voice, or say something like “Get off my yard!”? Some ways of talking are more likely to get the other person angry than others.
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