Legal Question in Civil Rights Law in Massachusetts

I live in a rural area in New England. We bought our house a year and a half ago. The house next to ours has a very long driveway and their house is set back - behind ours. For the last year and a half their two teenage sons have been driving their atvs to the very end of their driveway 15 feet from my home and revving the engines. I tried talking to the kids and then to the father and got nowhere. The father was just as rude as his kids. While talking to the father the kids were driving in circles around me and the father kicking up dust. The father did nothing.

In the nice weather its impossible to have our windows open because the noise is so bad and then there is also the smell of the gasoline coming in the house. The is pretty bad even with the windows closed.

I got the police involved after nothing changed after talking to the father. The police have spoken to them 3 or 4 times now. One cop was understanding and said he understands my frustration and they are just doing it to cause trouble. He told them it needed to stop or the next time someone would be getting arrested. That was 3 months ago. In the last 3 months I have been recording with my phone the noise. I have 40 short videos of this happening. There is no point in them coming to the end of the driveway and revving the engines. These kids have 10 acres in the back of their home to ride. Most of the time this happens between 4-6 pm. This is harassment plain and simple. During the last visit I guess the kids got mouthy with the cop. So the father made the kids come down in person and apologize to the police. He even had them write letters. This is what the police told me. This father has never once knocked on my door and tried to make peace.

Today the noise went on for 2 hours. I called the police after 2 hours and complained. One officer showed up and hour later, after the riding had stopped. Either he is friends with this family or is just a jerk because he basically told me since they are on their private property and its during the day time that they can do whatever they want. I asked him if harassment was illegal. He said it was but he had kids too and he didn't think this was harassment. He then mentioned the fact that the father had the boys come to the police station to apologize. The father has this cop sold that hes Mr. Wonderful.

Today I was on a phone interview and I couldnt even hear what the person was saying because of the noise and I had to go into the basement.


Asked on 10/11/16, 5:41 pm

1 Answer from Attorneys
J. Whitfield Larrabee J. Whitfield Larrabee

There are a variety of laws that were potentially violated by this activity, including civil and criminal violations. Under Massachusetts laws prohibiting nuisance, a plaintiff can potentially obtain damages and an injunction by establishing that the defendant unreasonably and substantially interfered with the use and enjoyment of the plaintiff's property. There are also potential claims for violation of Massachusetts Harassment Prevention Act, which provides for the payment of a reasonable attorney's fee to successful plaintiffs. There are potential civil rights violations as well that may be occurring.

What you describe could also be a criminal violation of Massachusetts law prohibiting disturbance of the peace. I am available to consult with individuals with claims of this sort.

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Answered on 10/12/16, 10:18 am


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