jr4182018
New Member
- Jurisdiction
- Virginia
Howdy folks.
I'm faced with an unfortunate situation. On two occasions now, my neighbor in the apartment below has stormed upstairs and pounded on my door, threatening to call the police if I do not stop making, and I quote, "that noise". Unfortunately he has been very non-specific when I asked him what noise he was referring to, and his physically confrontational nature has made me want to avoid him as much as possible. He speaks as though I am supposed to know exactly what he is talking about; I asked him "What noise?" three times during the conversation and he completely disregarded me each time.
Between these two confrontations, he filed a complaint with our landlord's representatives, who were unfortunately just as non-specific as he was, probably because he didn't give them any details either. I've requested further mediation from these representatives, but I'm doubtful of the results.
Primary concern: In the event he does call the police, and deputies show up at my apartment, what would be the best way to handle the situation?
Secondary concern: What if he never calls the police and just keeps threatening me? Do I have any legitimate recourse or must I allow myself to be terrorized?
Tertiary concern / possible paranoia: Part of me believes that when he says "call the police" he's actually talking about swatting me, or making some other kind of criminally exaggerated report. What could I even do to preempt, prepare for, or even simply respond to such a situation?
Ultimately I feel like I am boxed into a situation where I have to prove a negative... Any advice is greatly appreciated. Below is some additional context, please consider anything that appears relevant.
Evidence:
I'm faced with an unfortunate situation. On two occasions now, my neighbor in the apartment below has stormed upstairs and pounded on my door, threatening to call the police if I do not stop making, and I quote, "that noise". Unfortunately he has been very non-specific when I asked him what noise he was referring to, and his physically confrontational nature has made me want to avoid him as much as possible. He speaks as though I am supposed to know exactly what he is talking about; I asked him "What noise?" three times during the conversation and he completely disregarded me each time.
Between these two confrontations, he filed a complaint with our landlord's representatives, who were unfortunately just as non-specific as he was, probably because he didn't give them any details either. I've requested further mediation from these representatives, but I'm doubtful of the results.
Primary concern: In the event he does call the police, and deputies show up at my apartment, what would be the best way to handle the situation?
Secondary concern: What if he never calls the police and just keeps threatening me? Do I have any legitimate recourse or must I allow myself to be terrorized?
Tertiary concern / possible paranoia: Part of me believes that when he says "call the police" he's actually talking about swatting me, or making some other kind of criminally exaggerated report. What could I even do to preempt, prepare for, or even simply respond to such a situation?
Ultimately I feel like I am boxed into a situation where I have to prove a negative... Any advice is greatly appreciated. Below is some additional context, please consider anything that appears relevant.
Evidence:
- I do not have any evidence of the two aggressive/confrontational/threatening interactions
- I am capable of setting up a decibel meter but unsure if it will be of any use
- I intend to record future confrontations (VA is a one-party state) but again, unsure if useful
- I have e-mail correspondence with the landlord explaining most of what is explained here
- I've only lived here for two months
- No other neighbors have complained to me
- I do not feel comfortable approaching anyone for testimony
- I often hear loud noises, at random intervals, from elsewhere in the unit
- On a scale of 1 (ghetto) to 5 (white picket fence suburban) I would rate this place a 3
- I am extremely avoidant of my neighbors; I have never even so much as made eye contact
- My apartment door had signs of forced entry from before I even moved in
- My job requires me to be awake overnight (remote IT stuff, network/software ops)
- More than 96% of my time between 8PM and 6AM is spent in front of a computer screen
- I always wear headphones, and during the few calls I take, I speak at a very low volume
- Ironically many of my clients are law enforcement but I have not disclosed that to anyone