Location: Massachusetts
I live in a condo, attached townhouses. My 11 year old frequently walks the dog by leaving through the back slider, walking behind the houses, up and around to the parking lot, and then back in either through the front door or back down through the slider. I’ve had problems with a neighbor before who seems to think that the area behind his unit is his own private property, and today he approached my 11 year old who was by himself and told him not to walk the dog past his unit anymore.
I spoke to him to remind him that this is common property and he’s not allowed to do that, and he insisted that this is an inconvenience and he will continue to tell him to stop. I told him to not speak to my child and he said he will continue to do so, every time, which makes me extremely uneasy. If he continues to bother my child and tell him that he can’t walk the dog on common property, is that grounds to get a no harassment order? For reference the dog never relieves himself anywhere near this guy’s unit, makes any noise, or does any kind of damage. It’s literally just walking past his doors.
Comments
Have you gone through your HOA? This should likely be the first step (and through written email)
Have your son record any interaction with this man but tell your son not to engage at all other than “please leave me alone”. Just get a concrete record of it.
Go to your city’s municipal website and look up instructions for filing a restraining order. There is a cost but you can opt to have the person being served pay for it. You don’t need a lawyer to do this (but in my case with a crazy harassing neighbor who threatened to go into my kids’ school) I chose to hire a lawyer who took care of all the paperwork.
A judge will review your petition based upon the situation and evidence and either grant or not grant the RO. But they may offer a stay away order which has no legal ramifications when violated but 1. Offers a deterrent and 2. Will push forward an RO if previously denied.
Most cases a temporary RO is automatically granted pending judge review- usually about 2 weeks. Then a hearing date will be set to make it “permanent” which is only for a few years
If it continues I think you will be forced to call the police. Tell them something like “the adult neighbor refuses to stop harassing my 11 year old”. I’m pretty sure they will be happy to have a long talk with him.