Where to go when you can't go to the local police (Camden: foreclosures, rentals)

[SJ_2012]

Hello -

I have a bit of a domestic situation on my hands here with another tenant's live-in "guest" in my building. The guy has threatened me with physical assault and given his history as a convicted felon and child support deadbeat, I'm a bit concerned for my personal safety and that of my property. I suppose the first reaction might be to call the cops - the problem is I really can't.

**Disclaimer**I do not intend to offend anyone in writing this, only to lay out my interpretation of the aspects of this situation as they pertain to me. I foresee a great deal of conflict with the following assertions - probably most vocal will be members of the LE community that use this forum. Note that no broad stroke indictments should be inferred here - only specific concerns with a small subset of individuals in the LE community that have prompted suspicion of the remainder of the community in my own personal worldview. Statistically speaking, it's impossible for there not to be outliers from the mainstream LE community who legitimately care about doing their jobs in a professional and fair manner and have legitimate concern for the safety of others - unfortunately these outliers seem surprisingly rare relative to the bulk of the mainstream community based on my personal experience only. Simply put, these are only my opinions based on the facts as I know them.

I live in a small town in SJ with some really nasty, abusive cops. I have some history with them - namely an incident a few months ago where I was medically incapacitated and unconscious in a place I should not have been. All signs here seem to indicate the police physically beat me while I was incapacitated and unconscious due to my alleged "trespassing" in this particular place. Note I was not drunk or on drugs - my blood sugar dropped causing a hypoglycemic reaction which I do not remember. Regardless of anyone's position on whether I deserved to be beaten while unconscious and of no threat to anyone, the fact remains I'm absolutely terrified of my local police dept. The icing on the cake was their attempt at fabricating statements to support their charges which were subsequently dismissed given the gross mishandling of the actual citation which forced what is normally a rubber stamp municipal judicial process to dismiss the charges due to the dubious nature of the law cited in the complaint. I don't really trust any law enforcement agencies given this history and feel any attempt at pursuing this issue will only result in further beatings by these police officers or worse. Since no consequences ever seem to come of the misdeeds of the police beyond paid vacations and rubber stamp exonerations by internal investigative resources regardless of evidence or common sense, I feel no desire to risk my life filing any sort of complaint in furtherance of these concerns against such untouchable authority figures who can freely manipulate and/or destroy evidence and concoct accounts and statements to fit whatever version of the story they feel like telling. Stories abound in this town of police actively intimidating people who have filed complaints about their conduct which gives me further pause in filing anything against this local police force. What we have in this town is essentially a massively overpaid, government sponsored gang of miscreants who have all the authority of law, but apparently none of the responsibility that authority implies.

Going back to the original issue, the best I can really hope for is some place to at least hide my car from this person in a place where it won't be ticketed overnight so that it doesn't get smashed up, tires slashed, ect. I am not comfortable filing a complaint against the offending tenant's guest given he will probably never be adequately prosecuted and will be back to retaliate and possibly cause me significant harm after he's released (if they would even arrest him). I'm concerned namely due to the fact that the car is exposed to this individual at night and short of staying awake 24 hrs a day, I have no other way of protecting this property from retaliation. I feel compelled to arm myself to defend my property, home, and person from this individual given I have no other recourse in my local law enforcement, but I cannot justify this as a prudent response given my own legal liability in that situation. What other agencies have adequate jurisdiction in the state of NJ or at the county level that I can turn to for assistance with this situation without filing a formal complaint? I was thinking the state police, but they seem to only be involved in traffic matters, so I'm at a loss...does a county sheriff have adequate jurisdiction to assist in these kinds of issues? If not these agencies, what other options may exist (if any)? I guess I'm just looking for a waiver on the local overnight parking ordinance here to allow me to park safely and out of sight of this person to avoid future problems. I'd even be willing to park my car in another town, but I face the same liability for parking violations in surrounding communities. If I could just find a place to hide this car, the other hazards can be sufficiently mitigated with basic security procedures without police involvement.

Thanks in advance for your insight into this issue.

[frankgn87]

wow.. I really don't know what to say to help ya. Have you met with the mayor of your town or the police chief on this?

[NJGOAT]

Where to "hide" a car is basically a question no one can answer without knowing where you live. The most expedient option would be to find a local homeowner or store owner that is willing to let you park the car there, most likely for some amount of compensation. You can also look into local garage rentals and keep the car there.

As for the rest, the most direct path is always the local PD, they are the ones that handle these matters. Sheriffs in NJ do have county wide policing authority, but their responsibilities are almost entirely tied to handling prisoners and providing protection at the courts as well as executing things like foreclosures and handling siezed assets. The State Police has full authority over the entire state, but they are usually limited to only providing protection in places where there are no local police (rural towns), when the local police are overwhelmed (Camden) and on the highways. You could contact the State Police, but would most likely just be referred to the local police.

The only non-police recourse is going to be the local government and courts. You could speak to the mayor or a member of council for advice. You could also attempt to speak the towns prosecutor about what is going on. Just remember, this is a small town, as you said and all of these people are going to be part of the "system" that you want to avoid.

Ultimately, since you do not want to seek help from the one organization that may be able to help, your only real choice is to move.

[Tangled Threads]

How about hiring a lawyer to guide you through this issue and be your advocate?

[SJ_2012]

Thank you all for your replies - sorry for the delay in getting back to you, but I've been without internet for a bit.

I spoke w/ the lawyer I retained to defend me on the citation that I was issued about this and he strongly suggested I not press on this issue due to the aforementioned threats and harassment by the local police regarding conduct reports. He also said, as NJGOAT pointed out that the mayor and town officials are unsympathetic to anything beyond the police's version of events, so this will be a non-starter for sure.

Some good news though - the person who is giving me the problems is apparently moving out along with his mother to another location. As such, my problem here may work itself out on its own without any police involvement.

Thanks again for your insight here...always appreciated.

[nybbler]

Move. Going against the local police is an "every man's hand turned against you" situation. Even people you thought were your best friends will take the police side, such is the pro-police brainwashing prevalent today.

[soug]

Originally Posted by nybbler

Move. Going against the local police is an "every man's hand turned against you" situation. Even people you thought were your best friends will take the police side, such is the pro-police brainwashing prevalent today.

I think it's less brainwashing and more "I'm-scared-of-what-they-can-do-to-me."

[ElijahAstin]

Originally Posted by nybbler

Move. Going against the local police is an "every man's hand turned against you" situation. Even people you thought were your best friends will take the police side, such is the pro-police brainwashing prevalent today.

There are certainly bad cops out there (just like there are bad members of every profession), but really, "pro-police brainwashing?" If by pro-police brainwashing, you mean assuming that most law enforcement officers are good people to whom we should be grateful for making our streets safe and potentially putting their lives on their line, then call me brainwashed.