These days I understand living in town there is likely to be some issues with neighbors.  We've lived in this house since 2004 and never really had any serious issues with neighbors though.  Some minor annoyances, but nothing serious.  

Well last Sunday my wife had to call the cops for the first time since living here.

We have an alley beside our house that T's into another alley behind our property.  So the east and north side of the property is marked by gravel alley's.  The property to the east on the other side of the alley actually has two very small 2 bedroom rental houses on a single lot.  Our issue is with the people in the second house down on the east side of that lot.  The house between us hasn't been a problem.

The house in question has a tiny mexican dude that looks 19, but we found out is actually 35 years old.  His girl friend in her 20's, both of her parents, 3 little kids the oldest is in pre-school, and 4 large dogs.  The dogs are two old german shepards, a young lab about 1 year old, and another mixed dog.  These dogs are allowed to run loose and obviously they have only a half a lot so they leave the property and often do what dogs do in our yard.  This has been going on all summer.  They also come over and pester me while I'm grilling.  The dogs aren't mean and I usually just talk to them and keep them calm as they come over sniffing at my food.  Eventually the owners will yell at them and get them.  

Fast forward to last Sunday when things escalated.  The little mexican guy is out with the dogs while smoking and playing on his phone.  I'm walking my little min pin/Chihuahua which is about 15 lbs.  I always have him on a leash and rarely leave the yard, but do sometimes walk down the alley with him.  We were in our back yard when the large one year old lab comes over and jumps on him.  The dog isn't mean, but that large of a dog jumping on my little guy was a problem so I picked up my dog.  I turn my back to the lab because it's jumping up in my face barking and pawing at my dog in my arms.  I try talking nice to the dog to calm it down, but it's wound up and wants to play and is scratching my back and arm with his paws.  

The little mexican comes over laughing and yells at his dog, but it doesn't listen.  Eventually he grabs it and starts walking back across the alley.  Keep in mind this entire time my dog and I are in our own back yard and he had to come into our yard to get his dog.  At this point I think he's got control so I sit my dog back down.  Immediately his dog gets away from him and jumps on my dog again.  Mexican guy is more worried about his phone and cigarette and eventually gets the dog again.  This actually happens 3 times within 5-10 minutes time frame.  The 3rd time I lost my temper because his dog actually bit my dog after jumping on it and my dog then went into defense mode to try to fight back, but knowing that wasn't going to end well I grabbed my dog and picked him up as fast as I could.  The mexican laughed.  So I said get control of your dog and keep it off my property.  He says what you gunna do bitch.  I said really?  He says you aint gunna do shit.  At that point I said get off my property or I'll beat your ass and kill your dog if it tries to get my dog again.  At this point he runs home calling me the N word among other names screaming at the top of his lungs the whole way.  So I take my dog inside and tell the wife what just happened.  

At this point I hear screaming again.  I look out the window and he's in our driveway beside our house screaming and see's me at the window and says come out side bitch.  So against my wife's wishes I go outside.  When I go outside he hustles back over to his property and pulls out a big knife with about a 10" blade.  He also seems to have something else in his pants.  I stop in the alley and say why do you have the knife.  He says it's for my protection N word, bitch, etc, etc.  He's screaming jumping up and down waving the knife around.  I say well if you want to put down the knife we can talk about this and try to get along.  He is having no part of it telling me to get some N word etc, etc.  At that point my wife decides to call the cops and I agree that is a good decision.

Cops inform us they have dealt with them before and we tell them we have seen them over there many times.  Apparently they had been raided for drugs at their previous address as well.  They say they can't charge them for anything as they have the right to self defense on their own property and we didn't see the knife until he was on his own property.  They said there are leash laws and they informed them of that.  They told us we have the right to shoot the dog if it's loose on our property or we feel it's threatening our dog if we are walking our dog on a leash.  Or we can call them again if it's loose.  

Since this time I have asked around about the mexican and he is bad news.  Several people I've talked to said they know of him and he's a punk that may even mess with our property.  He usually yells at me across the lawn when I'm outside now and I just ignore him.  We did decided to put up cameras.

So this morning one week later I see him at 5:24 am sneaking across his back yard and the neighbor between us back yard.  Heading towards our back yard behind our garage where we have two vehicles parked.  We have a camera on the back of the garage watching the area so I woke up the wife and had her watch that camera while I looked out the back window to watch the area.  Our motion light back there also came on and the camera did record an event, but he wasn't seen on our property.  When our camera detects something it says smile you are being recorded.  That may have deterred him.  Apparently he went back in the house and came out with his dog on a leash giving himself an excuse if someone caught him.  I checked this morning and there is no damage to the vehicles or anything and he may have been messing with the neighbor between us little shed also that is in a blind spot because of our garage.  

We currently have 3 cameras setup and plan to add another one.  These are the kind that use wifi and can be viewed on our phones.

I had a friend tell me it's not legal to video someone even on your own property without signs up telling them they are being recorded.  Also he said that courts would throw it out since they weren't warned that they are being recorded.  

The dog was loose in our yard caught on camera yesterday and the old man was yelling for it and stopped at the edge of our yard in the alley.  I was going to go out and tell him he could go ahead and go get the dog, but he did get it to come to him before I could go outside.  All of them are trashy, but it seems the mexican is the only problem to worry about at this time.  

Any advice or input on the use of camera's on my own property?  It seems like everyone has camera's now, but I don't see signs up so I'm assuming my friend is wrong about not being able to record people on your own property.

I just want to make sure we are within our rights to use video.  I also plan to call the cops if we see him on our property at night even if he is on video to hopefully remove all doubt and catch him in the act.  We are about 7 blocks from the police station.  My wife makes me carry concealed every time I'm outside now which is probably a good idea.  I mowed the yard a few days ago and no one came out and said anything, but I was going out back one day to get in the truck and the mexican was out yelling names at me...I just smiled and went about my business.

You can use videos.  I don't know where you live but it's common knowledge many people and places use videos, having to tell someone you have them is redundant but I don't know your local judges.  You might want to post a 12"x12" sign at the back of your garage just to cover your butt.  You are on the right track to mount the cameras.  people change their minds about their behavior if they know they are being recorded.   Even idiots don't want video evidence being used against them.  

It sounds like the biggest issue is his dogs and the lack of control.  If the opportunity presents itself you can always sue him or make an insurance claim about being injured by the dog and then the insurance companies make their life miserable.  Another option is to catch the dog and turn it over to animal control.  He can go reclaim it if he really wants the dog.  I can only guess this is normal behavior in his home country and he thinks he can do it here.  We had similar issues with the Bosnians when they arrived 30 years ago.  There was a learning curve for them.  Many of them figured it out quickly and have adapted very well and have become great citizens.  Some are still learning.

Good luck.

kwg

Thank you.  I'm pretty sure he was born here.  He speaks fluent english and has slang trash talking down very well also.  The police told us we could shoot the dog if it was loose in our yard again, but we don't want to do that.  They said we could also let them handle it or call animal control.  They said we have a leash law and since that day was their warning if it's loose again we could call them or animal control and if they catch it they will take it to the pound.  They would then have to pay a fine to get the dog back.  I don't think they can afford fines.  I think they struggle to pay rent as him and his gf both work part time at what appears to be taco bell uniforms.  Neither of her parents work and they are most likely on foodstamps etc.  With two part time fast food incomes and 4 adults with 3 little ones in there I doubt they have extra money for fines.  

We are hopeful they will not last much longer in the rental before they get kicked out or move.  

Good luck. Your dealing with a protected species.

As you’ve seen the “law enforcement” most likely won’t do a damn thing. My best advice is move to a better place where that won’t be a problem.

These problems exist all across America now. Hmm I wonder why…….Even these small rural Iowa towns are no longer safe and quiet as they once were.

Eventually this side is going to start fighting back.

We have talked about moving a little bit.  We refinanced in 2009/10 to a 15 year mortgage so we are about paid off.  We don't really think any place we move within our budget is going to eliminate the potential for neighbor problems.  We also like the idea of not having a house payment as I'm about to turn 48 I don't want a morgage payment when I retire.  

I think our money best spent would be to buy the lot with the two rental houses on it next to our property if that opportunity arises.  

I did go ahead and put up video surveillance/no trespassing signs on the back of the property along the alley's.  We have talked to some of the other good neighbors to help each other keep an eye on things, but it's hard to keep up with crack heads that don't have to work.

Good luck you'll need it dealing with dirtbags like that.


Only problems(and it's been a lot) I've had with neighbors is over their dogs I've shot one and about did 3 others.  It's beyond me why people let their large aggressive dip shit dogs run loose

Any update op?

We've had no issues since we put up several cameras and video surveillance signs.  They keep the dogs on a leash and don't yell at us or even look over at us anymore.  

Funny thing is recently I was talking to a coworker about their crack head neighbor problems and mentioned this.  My coworker actually knows them and went to school with one of them.  Their entire family is on disability govt assistance of various types it goes for 3 generations.  None of them work and are all drunks/druggies.