Legal Question in Civil Rights Law in Massachusetts

Hello,

My girlfriend and I have been living in our apartment for a little more than a year. Throughout this time, our upstairs neighbor has accused us of breaking into her apartment to change the settings on her freezer, as well as to smoke cigarettes in her bedroom. She has made the accusations not only to our landlord, but to the police as well. The local police responded to a call that she made. There were no signs of entry and when they dismissed her claims, she became quite belligerent with them. She asserted that my girlfriend and I have been hired by "local goons" to drive her out. She is obviously suffering from some sort of delusional disorder. The situation has now escalated to include my place of work as well. She filed a formal complaint against me to my superiors that I was tampering with her finances (I work for a very large international bank of which she is coincidentally a client). She has come into my workplace on two occasions and created a scene both times. My direct supervisors are 100% in my corner, however she has gone over their heads and made numerous accusations not only about my conduct in the actual bank, but personal accusations about my character as well. What are my rights in this situation? As I said before, there is little doubt she is suffering from some sort of mental disorder. This has gone beyond an annoyance and now has the chance to affect my employment. Is there a way to forcer her to cease these baseless accusations. Any advice would be most welcome and appreciated.

Thank you.


Asked on 1/11/10, 11:43 am

1 Answer from Attorneys
Jonas Jacobson Law Offices of Jonas Jacobson

Sorry for your troubles. It might be time for you to file a restraining order.

First however, it is probably time for you to contact your landlord. If he owns the whole building, this woman may be inadvertently causing him to breach his part of the lease with you. (The landlord is liable for interference with quiet enjoyment if he causes or permits acts which result in substantial injury to the tenant in the peaceful enjoyment of the demised premises.)

It sounds as if she may need to be in a mental hospital. Appealing to the landlord to contact her relatives (he should have an emergency contact in the lease) is probably a worthwhile move. Noting your rights under the lease should provide the leverage necessary to see that this call is made before a restraining order is necessary.

Obviously, you could make some kind of defamation complaint against this woman, but where, as you note, she is clearly delusional, the value of this complaint, and the ethics of making such a claim, are unclear.

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Answered on 1/16/10, 3:23 pm


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