In what cases can a complaint against neighbors to a local police officer solve the problem and how to properly complain to stop the chaos? In this material we will tell you how to calm down noisy neighbors and how to find justice for them by writing a statement to the local police officer against the neighbors.
It is not in vain that wise people say, “Buy not a house, but your neighbors.” It just so happens that not all families living in our neighborhood are respectable and attentive to those around them. Disputes can arise not only among residents of apartment buildings, but also among villagers. Some people are not happy with the boundaries of their property, some are disturbed by the barking and howling of the neighbor's dog, and some do not agree to live like on a farm because the smell of pig manure comes from the neighboring yard.
All these cases are a reason to contact the local police officer with a complaint against neighbors. However, not all claims will be considered, because there are established norms according to which a neighbor is allowed to engage in some activity, but at a certain time and under certain conditions.
For what reason can a neighbor get personal?
Unfortunately, conflict between neighbors is no exception.
The cause of a dispute, as a rule, is personal hostility or a violation of public order by one of the parties. Prolonged conflicts are accompanied by insults or threats.
Insult is a humiliation of the honor and dignity of a person, expressed in an indecent form (Article 5.61 of the Code of Administrative Offenses of the Russian Federation).
If there is a fact of insult, it should be remembered that it may be the basis for initiating an administrative case.
Who can initiate an eviction?
The following may file a claim in court for forced eviction:
- representatives of the management company;
- owners of neighboring apartments - you can file a claim with one person, or you can do it collectively;
- prosecutor.
Simply going to court to have noisy neighbors evicted will not work. First you need to go through the stage of preventive and administrative influence.
Threats and insults
A threat is a form of verbal or physical expression of causing a threat to human life or health. The measure of liability for a threat to human life and health is prescribed in the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation (Article 119 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation). If you receive a threat from your neighbors, you must remember about the possibility of initiating a criminal case.
What to do if a neighbor threatens violence? Let’s take a closer look at the current norm of the criminal legislation of the Russian Federation. For uttering threats of violence or other physical harm, a negligent neighbor can pay with his freedom for up to two years.
If a verbal threat is accompanied by objects of possible physical violence (weapons, sharp and dangerous objects), this may serve as an aggravating circumstance when imposing punishment. Thus, one should be more careful when expressing threats in a fit of anger and it is necessary to soberly assess the penalties under the current legislation.
Reasons
The grounds for eviction according to the law are the following:
- Use of the apartment for other purposes. We are talking about cases when a warehouse, grocery store, canteen, office or some kind of production is set up in a residential building
- Violation of the rules for operating the premises. Carrying out illegal redevelopment, creating an unsafe situation for other residents, refusing to carry out necessary repairs.
- Violation of the rights of other residents. For example, neighbors leading a riotous lifestyle prevent other residents from sleeping at night, create dangerous living conditions for them, and create conflict situations using physical force or even weapons.
You can't evict people just because they drink or take drugs. But, if such people create problems for others with their way of life, then measures can already be taken: write complaints to the Criminal Code, contact the local police officer, go to court to evict them.
What can be done to resolve the conflict - where to go
To avoid conflict, insults and threats, we recommend taking measures to resolve the situation . If there is just a nascent conflict and misunderstanding between you and your neighbor, you should resort to conversation. By talking and finding out the cause of the conflict, you can avoid a quarrel and the negative course of events, eliminating the recurrence of the causes of the conflict.
Conversation with a neighbor
There can be a huge number of examples. For example, by listening to loud music at an unspecified time, a neighbor may cause discomfort to you and your family. But you should not run to him with insults and threats, but you can talk and explain about the inconvenience that has arisen for you and other residents. As a rule, if both parties are in an adequate state, the conflict ends before it even begins.
There are numerous cases where a neighbor is negligent about the rules of living in an apartment building, thereby causing inconvenience to all residents of the building. In such cases, there is a collective appeal to stop the violations, but in response, respectable neighbors receive a barrage of insults and threats.
Contacting the landlord
As a rule, in such situations, the above-mentioned “violating neighbor” is not the owner of the apartment and neglects the rules of residence and use of common house needs. In this case, a solution to the situation may be to contact his landlord.
The landlord, in order to avoid conflict with other tenants, may ask to comply with the rules of residence or to move out of the rental property. But there are also significant cases when the landlord does not take part in resolving the conflict because he does not want to lose money from renting out housing.
Contacting the police
If neighbors repeatedly threaten with physical harm and insult you, you should stop trying to have peaceful conversations. It is necessary to contact the police to resolve the conflict situation. Contacting law enforcement agencies begins with writing a statement about the fact of threats or insults.
To confirm the above circumstances, you should take care of evidence (indicate witnesses to the situation, record insults).
Appeal to the district police officer
Directly contacting the district police officer will speed up the resolution of the situation, since the application will be immediately transferred to the responsible person for the territorial area. You should start writing your application in the following order:
- indicate the details of the district police officer;
- indicate the contact information of the person applying;
- describe the problem;
- report the presence of evidence (photo or video recording, witnesses);
- indicate the date and signature.
Having received the application, the district police officer must respond to it in accordance with the requirements of current legislation and take measures to resolve the situation.
You may be wondering what administrative liability is incurred for damage to property.
Read about liability under the article for beating minors here.
And also find out the punishment for arbitrariness under Article 330 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation.
Statement to the district police officer regarding neighbors smoking in the hallway
Before filing a complaint about a neighbor’s wrongdoing, it is necessary to prepare direct evidence of his unlawful actions. If a person smokes in the entrance, you will need to stock up on:
- Photographs documenting smoking.
- Written testimony from neighbors.
- Creation of video footage recording the offense.
Having prepared such evidence, you can safely send a complaint to the district police officer. The letter will need to display:
- Address of the stronghold, full name inspector and his rank.
- Applicant's address.
- Address, location of smoking - outlining details of smokers.
- Information about the actions taken to resolve the problem (conversations, asking people to smoke on the street, sticking up notices banning smoking.
- Requirements for taking action against the violator, with reference to legislative norms.
Sample application to the district police officer regarding neighbors smoking in the hallway
How to prove the fact of insult and threats
An important point in resolving a conflict between neighbors is proof of one or another illegal fact. The fact of insulting a person can be recorded using technical means (camera, telephone, voice recorder) or, if there are witnesses, indicate this in the statement.
If the insults and threats were written, then they must be attached to the application. The presence of a large number of witnesses will be a positive fact to confirm the threat or insult. Repeated calls to the police will also be confirmed by protocols that can be attached when contacting law enforcement agencies or other authorities.
If there is physical impact, we recommend that you register it in a medical institution (attach a copy of the medical examination to the application).
Sample statements to the district police officer about neighbors
A complaint is a tool for pre-trial conflict resolution, for taking action against the person who committed the offense. Receipt of a complaint obliges the district police officer to take the necessary measures and provide a response to the complainant.
Complaints are usually drawn up on a blank sheet of paper, A4 size. Considering that there is no unified form for such an application, the complaint is drawn up in a free style, in compliance with the rules for composing official business letters.
Below are samples of several different complaints, with the ability to download them.
What to do if the measures taken against your neighbor did not help
Above, we indicated ways to resolve the dispute, both peacefully and by resorting to the help of law enforcement agencies. What if the above methods did not help and where should I file a complaint against such a neighbor?
Unfortunately, the following scenario is possible:
- a conversation with a neighbor did not bring the desired result. The neighbor does not want to talk without insults;
- contacting the landlord did not help as expected;
- the application to the police is considered for an unreasonably long time and does not yield a result;
- The district police officer exhausted all possible measures of influence.
In this case, all that remains is to seek help in resolving this issue in the judicial authorities. You can apply to the court to initiate a criminal case, if there is a crime under the criminal code, as well as in civil proceedings with an application for compensation for moral damage.
Submission procedure
If you decide to file a complaint against your neighbors, then before doing so you should familiarize yourself with some of the features of drawing up and submitting a complaint to the district police officer, namely:
- A complaint to a district police officer does not have a clearly defined form and can be drawn up either according to a sample (see the following sections for the structure of the application and a sample for writing a statement) or in free form (subject to some formalities for drawing up this type of document).
- A complaint to the district police officer can be submitted either in writing and transferred to the district police officer in finished form, or in an established form. If the complaint is submitted orally, then what the applicant said is written down verbatim by the district police officer, after which the applicant checks the contents of the complaint and signs, thereby confirming the fact of familiarization with the contents;
- Regardless of the form of submission, the application undergoes a mandatory registration procedure. For the applicant, such action is a guarantee that his complaint will be accurately considered;
Registration of the application takes place either in the duty station where it is submitted, or directly in the office of the local inspector.
- After registration, the application is submitted either to the district police officer himself or to the head of the unit. After reviewing the application by a superior in position, it is again returned to the district police officer, who determines the procedure for its further consideration and actions;
Scope of powers of police officers
A district police officer is a universal police officer who works directly with the population.
He is responsible for maintaining public order in his assigned area, checking marginalized individuals (drunks, rowdy people, drug addicts, criminals, those released from prison, etc.), and he is known by sight to delinquents and house elders.
He investigates crimes, draws up administrative protocols, resolves family and neighborhood disputes in the legal field, and takes the necessary preventive measures against violators.
The district police officer has the right to detain and deliver people to police departments, bring them to administrative responsibility, and make the necessary requests when considering inspection materials.
According to his position, he can initiate criminal cases, but, as practice shows, the opinion of the district police officer differs from the view of the investigative authorities.
