Let’s be real, you can choose your friends, but you can’t choose your neighbors. When you move into a neighborhood, you’re kinda stuck with who you have around you, which can make things, how should we put it, interesting, to say the least.
One guy turned to an online community to share how his neighbors’ disabled son has a weird habit of breaking into his yard to raid his trash. After having his gate destroyed, he’s finally on the verge of calling the cops, but wonders if that would be a jerk move.
More info: Reddit
Good fences make good neighbors, but unfortunately, sometimes a fence just isn’t enough to keep the peace
Image credits: benzoix / Freepik (not the actual photo)
One guy bought a house on two acres of rural land, and it’s fenced all the way round, because he enjoys his privacy
Image credits: freepik / Freepik (not the actual photo)
Despite the fence, his neighbors’ 18-year-old disabled son has a nasty habit of breaking into his yard to raid his trash
Image credits: freepik / Freepik (not the actual photo)
The guy’s spoken to the kid’s parents about it, but, after two years and a whole new gate, the trash-raiding teen just won’t be stopped
Image credits: harborhound
At his wits’ end, the guy turned to an online community to ask if getting the cops, or at least CPS, involved would be a jerk move
Living in the countryside is supposed to be about peace and privacy, not endless property damage. The original poster (OP) thought a gated, two-acre rural property would guarantee solitude. Instead, his quiet dream has turned into a recurring nightmare thanks to an unexpected neighborly problem.
For two years, OP’s 18-year-old developmentally disabled neighbor has been repeatedly forcing open or jumping his gate to rummage through his garbage cans. Despite spending $2,000 on a reinforced gate and installing cameras, the teen just won’t quit. Each rubbish raid just brings with it more broken property and stress.
The kid’s parents, both in their sixties, have apologized multiple times, but the raids don’t stop. OP worries not only about the damage but also the teen’s safety; cars often speed past the property, and the kid seems to be left unsupervised a lot of the time.
Now, after years of patience, and some advice from his readers, OP says he’ll be reporting every incident, even if his mother, a special education teacher, says he should be leaning in the direction of compassion instead of calling the cops.
Image credits: New Africa / Freepik (not the actual photo)
Let’s be real - OP wouldn’t even be having this issue if his disabled neighbor’s parents did a better job of keeping an eye on their son instead of letting him be someone else’s persistent problem. So, is a call to CPS in order? And just what does that involve? We went looking for answers.
The folks at the Virginia Department of Social Services website say anyone can report suspected child maltreatment or neglect to a local department of social services or to the CPS Hotline. There’s just one catch: the alleged victim needs to be under the age of 18. That means OP will need to get Adult Protective Services (APS) involved.
The experts over at FindLaw break down how this works: after APS receives a report about a vulnerable adult being mistreated or neglected, they typically spring into action with services like investigations, evaluations of the person's risk level and any mental illness or impairment, plus developing and implementing a customized case plan specifically tailored to help the victim.
Honestly? It sounds like OP's best move would be picking up the phone and calling the relevant authorities. Patience and property damage can only stretch so far, and it's not like OP hasn't tried the polite approach about a million times already.
What do you think? Is OP within his rights to report the trash bandit, or should he just keep letting it slide? Share your thoughts in the comments!
In the comments, readers agreed that the guy would not be a jerk to get the authorities on the line and slammed the kid’s folks for their shoddy parenting
