My Mad Parents and Their "Mad" Neighbour

Ok so I just spoke to my parents on the phone and have a bit more info which should hopefully fill in a few blanks.

The police did indeed come round last Sunday but didn't accuse my dad of anything. They just asked him not to do it again. They said that the police did however take measurements of my dad's car tires to see if they matched the footprints in the mud.

My parents had also in the past ask their neighbour if it was ok to use her drive and she said it was. It was only the recent incident that seems to be the problem.

The lady in question also used to go out with a family friend and after they broke up she phoned the police and took out a restraining order on him when he tried to talk to her in her workplaces car park.

I'm still baffled....

 

Sounds like she like hasling people

 

From what I understand there's a patch of grass between the two drives. I'm talking probably less than 12". Apparently she was taking pictures of these before she phoned the police.

My parents are really scared that it will go to court and that they will have to pay legal costs if they are found at fault. My parents are pretty hard up at the moment and really don't need this.

 

It will come to nothing. Can this woman prove trespass and/or criminal damage?

If she is one of these that likes complaining for the sake of complaining, she could even get into trouble herself. If, and its a monumentally massive and unlike if, but if it goes to court, and she gets all shouty, at the very least she will destroy her own case, and she may even get done for contempt of court. If she regularly tries to take action in the courts over trivial things, then she could get herself listed as a 'vexatious litigant'. If that happens, she can't even ask the courts to do anything for a set number of years unless she can persuade someone else to act on her behalf. I love the vexatious litigant concept, its like a law written especially to protect us from whinge bags.

 

Disagree. People like that take out home insurance policies with 'legal expenses cover' that will cover their costs from anything from taking out injunctions to High Court action . Solicitors/Barristers employed on a Legal Expenses basis milk it for all they're worth and you will have to pay to fight them.

 

None of that stops someone from being registered as a vexatious litigant if they take too many silly cases to court though.

http://www.justice.gov.uk/courts/vexatious-litigants

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vexatious_litigation

 

That hasn't stopped a local family of nutters from instigating a subsidised legal action against every one of their new neighbours in this village for the last 2o years they've resided here.

 

I would like to think the CPS have better things to do.

 

Nothing to do with the Crown Prosecution Service, but Solicitors given the go ahead for unlimited expenses.

 

Surely the CPS make the decision about bringing criminal charges?

 

It will not be a criminal case unless Jungle Jane's Dad buries an axe in the annoying woman's head

Difficult to do, but just ignore the woman

Jack McH

 

So why are the police getting involved?

 

Probably a box ticking exercise. If matters were to escalate into something criminal, and it was found that the coppers knew but did nothing, they'd get bad publicity again.

 

I'm quite confused now.

I'm confused because: I really cannot understand why a) the Police attended and b) if they did, they went to the trouble to take tyre measurements/mud examples This is all a matter of private land and, potentially, trespass - which, to my mind, really is a civil (not criminal) matter

If I were in your parents shoes, I would be having a word with daughter's boyfriend and saying: Oi! Don't take parking liberties again, without our prior consent - because look at the aggro it's caused!!

We can speculate on the neighbours if's/but's/maybe's ad infinitum. But, as you have already said, boyfriend parked car, jetted off, resulting in Dad having to park over neighbours bit of land and neighbour isn't too happy about it (as is her right! How she deals with it is another matter; obviously - but you can't deny she has a point? If she wants to be a "jobs worth", that's her prerogative, surely? )

Boyfriend was the result of parking limitations; Dad made the assumption of neighbours consent. Neighbour has made a fuss (for whatever reason/motivation/inclination) and ... by the sounds of it, justifiably (her land; her say so).

If your parents wish to stand their ground and argue 12 inches, that is (of course!) their prerogative. And yes, they may well have to pay for the privilege of defending their position The *real* question, they should be asking themselves, is this: is it *really* worth it? Are they genuinely so aggrieved they want to subject themselves to litigation with their neighbour?

They admit they parked on a part of her property because boyfriend has taken their own parking space. Now she has complained about it, they hope to defend their decision and have taken umbrage over the neighbour asserting their rights?

Life's too short