Legal Question in Landlord & Tenant Law in Washington

Re: tenant threatening manager

Most leases have something in them about causing a disturbance, being arrested, and then facing eviction. Doesn�t yours?

If this tenant is drunk and disorderly, obnoxiously loud, and is threatening you and the other tenants call the police and have him arrested. What you are describing sounds like disorderly conduct, breach of the peace, harassment, and possibly unlawful threats. Call the cops as it�s happening and they should come and arrest this guy.

If the tenant is abusive and threatening other times � maybe when sober � you should think about going into your local District Court and applying for a civil protective order. The application fee is typically about $41.00 and if the court issues an order, the tenant will be prohibited from having any contact with you, your family, or any other protected person named in the order. This might mean the tenant has to move out because he will be unable to stay there or he may violate the order.

In the meantime, document the heck out of the situation. I mean write down all of the times and dates and all the details of what occurs. Talk to your other tenants and get them to write things down too. Then collect all of these notes, copy them, and provide them to the police or the court.

Once you take this proactive police and court-involved route, this guy will almost certainly be asking you whether he can break his lease and move out. If he freaks out and things get worse, call 9-1-1 and have him removed.

Finally, go see a lawyer and have your leasing paperwork and tenant rules and regulations updated to address this kind of abusive and disorderly situation. Use this new paper on all new leases and work them in on renewals and month-to-month holdovers. Act quickly because if they haven't already, you other tenants might start complaining and maybe able to use this guy's situation to claim constructive eviction and breach of contract by you.