Criminal damage?

telboyo

Life's too short to be worrying over 6 inches of garden- just leave the fence there and wait for the surveyors report.

mima

I've just realized the officer was PCSO.
Does this make any difference?


Cheers
Mike

Notmyrealname

mima wrote: »

I've just realized the officer was PCSO.
Does this make any difference?


Cheers
Mike

Tell them to sod off, that the fence is on your property and you warned the neighbour what would happen.

pelirocco

Why dont you put up a fence where you think the boundary is?

ILW

How much land are we talking about here?

Niv

..........

mima

Thanks to you all for all the advise and comments.

This is a very long story going back more than 12 years when, taking advantage of my very serious illness, they first erected a concrete bunker at the back of my garden on about a 9 feet wide strip of land which they 'acquired' from a developer, by threatening him to delay his building work.
That land at the back of my garden (once aptly called 'The Pit') is up to about 4 feet lower then mine thus forming a 'natural boundary'.
Yet they built the bunker so that the wall at my and is effectively a few inches over the boundary line.
Because it was only a few inches and we had a thick line of conifers on that stretch .... as someone already said "..the life is too short.." we took no further action.
However, some months later they informed me that they were intending to erect the fence right against their side of my conifers (another 18 inches or so into my garden). I pointed out where the boundary was and that under no circumstances will I allow them to do so.
This was seemingly accepted and nothing more was said or done for nearly 12 years.





In the meantime they have again 'acquired' another 3.5 feet strip of garden from our mutual neighbor on the bunker side of my garden by persuading them (a very young couple), that it belonged to them.
Consequently, I was now left with about a 3 foot gap in the fence and when I recently tried to close this gap, it become clear that their design on that additional piece of my garden has not in any way diminished.

The fence they have now erected runs diagonally between my end of that 3 foot gap and the far side of the bunker.


The above is just a very brief sketch of the problem (full details on request ) intended to answer why I can not install my own fence as well as some of the other comments as to why I feel so strongly about it.


If anyone is genuinely interested or can help in some way I'll be happy to attach a plan - having read the above, I wouldn't have a clue what this is all about, if I didn't know! :rotfl:

CKhalvashi

My personal opinion is to leave the fence there until the final decision, then force him to remove it upon that decision.

Tell the PCSO to sod off, they have no power to arrest you and IMO from your post, it sounds like he implied that he does. Dependent on what county you’re in will depend whether he can actually write a ticket or not.

I feel so sorry for you with neighbours like that

CK

olly300

I suggest you post on the gardenlaw website. (Google it.)

Your neighbour stealing the land is hoping that you don't complain as garden disputes are costly in solicitors fees also neither of you can sell your properties until the dispute is resolved.

If you are sure that the neighbour on the other side has been taken advantage of you need to have a word with them and inform them that you are going to take action against your land grabbing neighbour, and they should take legal advice. They may not do anything but it can come back to haunt them. (People steal land so they can change what is built on the property.)

I suggest if you get your boundary established you build something right up to the boundary line like a shed that they can't knock down.

brit1234

mima wrote: »

I've just realized the officer was PCSO.
Does this make any difference?


Cheers
Mike

Yes, they can ticket you for cycling on the pavement, littering and such like but not criminal damage.

Don't tell them to sod off as you are more likely to get arrested by their colleagues. Just be polite.

If I was called to the dispute I would arrest for criminal damage if I believed you were going to continue taking the fence down. If I didn't believe you were going to take any more down I would bring you in for a tapped interview (not arrested), however in both cases you could be charged with criminal damage.

As for lawful excuse:

Meaning of Without Lawful Excuse

Section 5 of the Act gives examples of actions that would constitute a lawful excuse and thus a defence to criminal damage charges, though not to aggravated criminal damage under Section 1(2). You must be aware of these, particularly in relation to the defences likely to be raised by motorists damaging wheel clamps.


A motorist who damages a wheel clamp to free his car, having parked on another's property knowing of the risk of being clamped, does not have a lawful excuse under the Act: see Lloyd v DPP [1992] 1 All ER 982 ; R v Mitchell 2004 RTR 14 CA.

Section 5(2) defines lawful excuse where there is belief in consent or belief in the immediate necessity to protect property.



Section 5(3) emphasises that the belief is subjective and must be honestly held.


http://www.cps.gov.uk/legal/a_to_c/criminal_damage/#a07

So you have no lawful excuse I would argue