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Problems with neighborhood kids - any suggestions?
I'll try to make this short. Problems started several years ago with
neighbor who has since moved. Eight year old son and two friends began breaking branches off plants and threw a dead rat in the back yard. A few months ago large group set off acid bombs in front of my house. I spoke (raising my voice at times, not yelling) to the "instigators" about it and called the police and the kids seemed responsive at the time, but then began organizing large groups of kids skateboarding in front of house, sitting on swale and throwing empty bottles and trash in the swale. At times they congregate in front of the driveway and are slow to move if backing out in the car. I have not been the only target. They engage in similar activites at times in front of the lady's house next door. I learned during a subsequent attempt to reason with two of the three principle instigators that they were disturbed with her because she had offered them a pizza party if they washed her car, which they did, but they never got the party. The guy who lives across from me had graffiti written on his van. I don't know what he did to offend these guys. This morning, one was skateboarding, just a few feet back and forth, out front while another "filmed" him with a camcorder aimed directly at my house. One of the two is a true leader. The kids all do everything he tells them from what I have seen. I heard him instruct his partners on how to start fights with black children without being held responsible. I watched him skateboard right up to, but stopping just short of a kid bouncing a basketball on his way to the courts. An apparent attempt to provoke a response. These guys live two, three and four houses away from here, not directly across the street. I had never had any contact with any of these kids before all this started. None. Just with the son in the family next door who moved away three years ago. Never had any conflict with any of the parents of any of these kids, ever, except the father in the family who moved. Relationships with the other parents had always been cordial. These kids are really quite smart. They don't behave like "bad" kids. They don't wise off or snarl at you. Don't speak to or even really look at me. So the police really have nothing to pursue. I'm sure this rant is going to sound a bit paranoid, but assuming that I'm rational, for the most part anyway, and people really are out to get me does anyone have any suggestions about how to approach this thing? All favorable comments are welcome and appreciated. |
#2
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Problems with neighborhood kids - any suggestions?
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#3
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Problems with neighborhood kids - any suggestions?
On May 12, 2:44 pm, Banty wrote:
In article .com, says... I'll try to make this short. Problems started several years ago with neighbor who has since moved. Eight year old son and two friends began breaking branches off plants and threw a dead rat in the back yard. A few months ago large group set off acid bombs in front of my house. I spoke (raising my voice at times, not yelling) to the "instigators" about it and called the police and the kids seemed responsive at the time, but then began organizing large groups of kids skateboarding in front of house, sitting on swale and throwing empty bottles and trash in the swale. At times they congregate in front of the driveway and are slow to move if backing out in the car. I have not been the only target. They engage in similar activites at times in front of the lady's house next door. I learned during a subsequent attempt to reason with two of the three principle instigators that they were disturbed with her because she had offered them a pizza party if they washed her car, which they did, but they never got the party. The guy who lives across from me had graffiti written on his van. I don't know what he did to offend these guys. This morning, one was skateboarding, just a few feet back and forth, out front while another "filmed" him with a camcorder aimed directly at my house. One of the two is a true leader. The kids all do everything he tells them from what I have seen. I heard him instruct his partners on how to start fights with black children without being held responsible. I watched him skateboard right up to, but stopping just short of a kid bouncing a basketball on his way to the courts. An apparent attempt to provoke a response. These guys live two, three and four houses away from here, not directly across the street. I had never had any contact with any of these kids before all this started. None. Just with the son in the family next door who moved away three years ago. Never had any conflict with any of the parents of any of these kids, ever, except the father in the family who moved. Relationships with the other parents had always been cordial. These kids are really quite smart. They don't behave like "bad" kids. They don't wise off or snarl at you. Don't speak to or even really look at me. So the police really have nothing to pursue. I'm sure this rant is going to sound a bit paranoid, but assuming that I'm rational, for the most part anyway, and people really are out to get me does anyone have any suggestions about how to approach this thing? All favorable comments are welcome and appreciated. Two suggestions - first is to talk with the police, and any other town/munincipality governing board about what exactly the rules are concerning loitering, harassment, and tresspassing (is the swale on your property?) Be prepared to call the police where that legality line is crossed, totally ignore it where it isn't. Secondly, get together with the other neighbors having similar problems, and see how they feel about it, what they've done or plan to do about it. Possibly, you'll be able to have the three households affected visit the parents and/or make a complaint about it. But don't get riled and have a plan in your pocket as to what you'll do and under what circumstances you'll do it. Consider putting up survelliance cameras on your property (ask the police and town about the rules concerning that first). Banty Thanks for the suggestions. Surveilliance cameras may well be in my future. The other affected people and I have spoken about this and are pretty much at a loss about what to do. I had suggested we all get together with the parents of the instigators to discuss things but that never happened and I ended up talking to two of the parents with two of the kids. The father of one said he agreed that it looked as though I was a target but didn't seem to think his son would be a participant in all that. The other, who is the boyfriend of the mother of one of the others also does not believe that his kids would be involved in the activities. He had even approached me a few weeks ago for suggestions about what to do about things when his kid had irritated the leader and been threatened with being beaten up. His girlfriend is naval reserve and left recently for Iraq and he asked me to drive his kids to karate when he isn't able to get home early enough to do it. I've done it a couple of times and when alone without their peers, they're meek quiet liitle children. Like all good bullies. The police have said that I may call if they are loitering in front of the house and I have done this. They do not consider skateboarding to be loitering, and I don't either for that matter. But I am annoyed when they congregate and stand or sit around in the driveway or the swale especially since they don't even live adjacent to me. Unfortunately each of the two times I did, the kids had dispersed by the time they responded. In any case the kids would just retaliate anyway which is what happens whenever I say anything to them. They'll ratchet things up a notch. Thanks again. Thanks again. |
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Problems with neighborhood kids - any suggestions?
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Problems with neighborhood kids - any suggestions?
wrote in message ups.com... ... Thanks for the suggestions. Surveilliance cameras may well be in my future. The other affected people and I have spoken about this and are pretty much at a loss about what to do. I had suggested we all get together with the parents of the instigators to discuss things but that never happened and I ended up talking to two of the parents with two of the kids. Maybe if you talked with the kids (and not the parents), they would listen. And it doesn't have to be about them hanging out on the street. I bet they are tired of being thought of as the problem rather than valued members of society, which they are. Talking to them as people may go a long way in solving the problem. Another thing is that if they are hanging out in front of your house, there is probably no place better to hang out. Talk to them and find out where they do want to hang out. Maybe you can work with them to convince your city to build a basketball or skateboarding place for them. Or keep the youth center open longer. Granted, their parents should have listen to you when you said they are causing problems. Like people come up to parents with complaints about their kids all the time for no reason. If you're kind to the kids and get them on your side, everyone wins. Jeff The father of one said he agreed that it looked as though I was a target but didn't seem to think his son would be a participant in all that. The other, who is the boyfriend of the mother of one of the others also does not believe that his kids would be involved in the activities. He had even approached me a few weeks ago for suggestions about what to do about things when his kid had irritated the leader and been threatened with being beaten up. His girlfriend is naval reserve and left recently for Iraq and he asked me to drive his kids to karate when he isn't able to get home early enough to do it. I've done it a couple of times and when alone without their peers, they're meek quiet liitle children. Like all good bullies. The police have said that I may call if they are loitering in front of the house and I have done this. They do not consider skateboarding to be loitering, and I don't either for that matter. But I am annoyed when they congregate and stand or sit around in the driveway or the swale especially since they don't even live adjacent to me. Unfortunately each of the two times I did, the kids had dispersed by the time they responded. In any case the kids would just retaliate anyway which is what happens whenever I say anything to them. They'll ratchet things up a notch. Thanks again. Thanks again. |
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