Sasha Wilkinson
New Member
- Jurisdiction
- United Kingdom
Hello, I am really just looking for some advice and guidance. I will explain the full situation as it is quite complex. Thank you in advance for anybody who has taken the time to read and reply!
I recently moved into a new property after giving birth to my only child. I am a single parent, so it's just myself and my, now 1 year old, son. My next door neighbours had been living elsewhere, but moved back into their property next door to me when my son (Leo) was 6 months old. There is a lady and her partner who is a police officer.
Upon moving in, I was having a lot of issues with noise. I have been diagnosed with severe social anxiety, especially from past traumas and really struggle with confrontation. So I did try to speak with them politely, but this resulted in next doors police partner threatening me. A while after this, I was sat on my front door step waiting for my sister to arrive and next door, the female, verbally attacked me because I looked at her as she was entering her property. About 2 days later, I get a knock on my door from the police, initially they said they had came out as our neighbour advised them we were having issues and they wanted this resolved. (At this point the council were involved and had already sent them a noise allegation letter for their loudness). The police visit seemed highly inappropriate and unprofessional. My son was woke to them and i was in a state of panic with my anxiety condition. The day after this, I rang the police station to complain, I also felt that next door being a police himself, had something to do with this, the issue was firstly a civil matter, but the council had been trying to contact them for a long time to resolve the issues and they had ignored. This felt like them organising a fake visit to try and scare me. I complained and was told no this wasn't a fake visit, but that next door had claimed there was an element of a public order offence, which wasn't truthful at all. I also explained and sent footage of next doors police partner threatening me and was eventually advised that my complaint regarding this was upheld and that he would be put onto a personal reflect project or something like this.
Anyway, this is a tiny bit of the background. Since this, things simmered down a little bit. At the end of October, I had invited my sister and my sons father (who I am still good friends with). It was an occasion and we had been drinking a little bit of alcohol in my house. At around midnight, my sister and sons dad were getting ready to leave, next door and her partner were coming home clearly quite intoxicated and saw me and my sister stood in the window. She proceeded to jump into my garden and start punching my front living room window and shouting a lot of abuse. I stupidly opened my front door as my son was sleeping upstairs and I just didn't really think, but wanted her to stop. She pushed me into my corridor and proceeded to physically attack me in my house. My sons dad heard and came out from the kitchen and put himself inbetween us. He proceeded to push her out and away from my property, she grabbed his hair and was pulling it and slapping him in the face and wouldn't stop, we both were not retaliating and trying to tell her to go home and stop. But she must have hit me in excess of 20 times and around 10 for my sons dad. She started to walk away and I followed while she was still in my garden, just to make sure she was leaving. She turned around and continued to punch and slap me, resulting in my eye and side of my face being cut and stratched. At this stage I was very disoriented and I was in an absolute state of panic, fear and anxiety. Her police partner then grabbed her and pulled her into her own front garden, instead of her going towards her property, she broke free from her partner and come back towards my front garden, in this moment I expected her to come back into my garden and carry on the attack, I could see I was bleeding and with my anxiety and the fact my 1 year old son was upstairs, I reacted by hitting my neighbours in the face. I know now how stupid this was, but in the moment, I felt this was the only way I could protect myself, my property and my family.
After this her partner managed to grab hold of her and drag her to their front door, so at this point I went inside and called the police. They attended and took statements and did not even attempt to go and speak to my neighbour. I asked to press charged and my neighbour 2 weeks later was interviewed under caution.
I was told countless times that the case was being sent to CPS and the council were also told the case was "sitting with CPS" and was told to just await an outcome, but that this can take a long time. I wasn't informed of any decision, then one day when I enquired with the council, they advised they had been given an outcome weeks ago. I was eventually contacted by the officer who said the case never went to CPS (even though the same officer had advised me and the council numerous times that the case had already gone to CPS). And was advised the case was closed by her superiors "due to evidential difficulties". I had provided security footage as well as phone video footage my sister had captured. They advised I was seen "punching the attacker in the face twice" and this was deemed as retaliation and was even told this could go as a charge of "affray". This is completely untrue so I have asked for a victims right to review. I never hit my neighbour twice at all and the video footage shows that. The video evidence shows my neighbour punching and slapping myself and my sons dad 10 and 20 plus times and then shows her continuing the attack and coming back towards my property, then shows me hit her, clearly after already being assaulted multiple times and already bleeding. I don't think this is right and I just want to see if anybody with a legal mind and legal knowledge to just advise me a little bit. I just feel I have been totally wrong treated by the police and now by the council. I already explained to the council I felt highly threatened by her and now they have acted on the police decision, even before I have had chance to carry out the VRR process.
Sorry for the long winded post, I am at a loss and this is taking a huge impact on my mental health.
Thank you again
I recently moved into a new property after giving birth to my only child. I am a single parent, so it's just myself and my, now 1 year old, son. My next door neighbours had been living elsewhere, but moved back into their property next door to me when my son (Leo) was 6 months old. There is a lady and her partner who is a police officer.
Upon moving in, I was having a lot of issues with noise. I have been diagnosed with severe social anxiety, especially from past traumas and really struggle with confrontation. So I did try to speak with them politely, but this resulted in next doors police partner threatening me. A while after this, I was sat on my front door step waiting for my sister to arrive and next door, the female, verbally attacked me because I looked at her as she was entering her property. About 2 days later, I get a knock on my door from the police, initially they said they had came out as our neighbour advised them we were having issues and they wanted this resolved. (At this point the council were involved and had already sent them a noise allegation letter for their loudness). The police visit seemed highly inappropriate and unprofessional. My son was woke to them and i was in a state of panic with my anxiety condition. The day after this, I rang the police station to complain, I also felt that next door being a police himself, had something to do with this, the issue was firstly a civil matter, but the council had been trying to contact them for a long time to resolve the issues and they had ignored. This felt like them organising a fake visit to try and scare me. I complained and was told no this wasn't a fake visit, but that next door had claimed there was an element of a public order offence, which wasn't truthful at all. I also explained and sent footage of next doors police partner threatening me and was eventually advised that my complaint regarding this was upheld and that he would be put onto a personal reflect project or something like this.
Anyway, this is a tiny bit of the background. Since this, things simmered down a little bit. At the end of October, I had invited my sister and my sons father (who I am still good friends with). It was an occasion and we had been drinking a little bit of alcohol in my house. At around midnight, my sister and sons dad were getting ready to leave, next door and her partner were coming home clearly quite intoxicated and saw me and my sister stood in the window. She proceeded to jump into my garden and start punching my front living room window and shouting a lot of abuse. I stupidly opened my front door as my son was sleeping upstairs and I just didn't really think, but wanted her to stop. She pushed me into my corridor and proceeded to physically attack me in my house. My sons dad heard and came out from the kitchen and put himself inbetween us. He proceeded to push her out and away from my property, she grabbed his hair and was pulling it and slapping him in the face and wouldn't stop, we both were not retaliating and trying to tell her to go home and stop. But she must have hit me in excess of 20 times and around 10 for my sons dad. She started to walk away and I followed while she was still in my garden, just to make sure she was leaving. She turned around and continued to punch and slap me, resulting in my eye and side of my face being cut and stratched. At this stage I was very disoriented and I was in an absolute state of panic, fear and anxiety. Her police partner then grabbed her and pulled her into her own front garden, instead of her going towards her property, she broke free from her partner and come back towards my front garden, in this moment I expected her to come back into my garden and carry on the attack, I could see I was bleeding and with my anxiety and the fact my 1 year old son was upstairs, I reacted by hitting my neighbours in the face. I know now how stupid this was, but in the moment, I felt this was the only way I could protect myself, my property and my family.
After this her partner managed to grab hold of her and drag her to their front door, so at this point I went inside and called the police. They attended and took statements and did not even attempt to go and speak to my neighbour. I asked to press charged and my neighbour 2 weeks later was interviewed under caution.
I was told countless times that the case was being sent to CPS and the council were also told the case was "sitting with CPS" and was told to just await an outcome, but that this can take a long time. I wasn't informed of any decision, then one day when I enquired with the council, they advised they had been given an outcome weeks ago. I was eventually contacted by the officer who said the case never went to CPS (even though the same officer had advised me and the council numerous times that the case had already gone to CPS). And was advised the case was closed by her superiors "due to evidential difficulties". I had provided security footage as well as phone video footage my sister had captured. They advised I was seen "punching the attacker in the face twice" and this was deemed as retaliation and was even told this could go as a charge of "affray". This is completely untrue so I have asked for a victims right to review. I never hit my neighbour twice at all and the video footage shows that. The video evidence shows my neighbour punching and slapping myself and my sons dad 10 and 20 plus times and then shows her continuing the attack and coming back towards my property, then shows me hit her, clearly after already being assaulted multiple times and already bleeding. I don't think this is right and I just want to see if anybody with a legal mind and legal knowledge to just advise me a little bit. I just feel I have been totally wrong treated by the police and now by the council. I already explained to the council I felt highly threatened by her and now they have acted on the police decision, even before I have had chance to carry out the VRR process.
Sorry for the long winded post, I am at a loss and this is taking a huge impact on my mental health.
Thank you again
