Neighbour shooting crossbow in back garden

Rosemary7391

What sort of bolts is he using? Big difference between blunted practice ones (I assume they exist?) and sharp ones. Obviously you don't want to get hit by either though! Have you actually had one over to look at yet? I'd be tempted to call the police for advice re returning them especially if they're sharp. And on the situation in general.



Make sure the landlord is aware of the damage and keep them up to date - you don't want to get charged for it at the end of your tenancy.


Does/Would he stop shooting if you were in the garden?

Yorkie006

Not sure what type of bolts they are, but they make holes in the oil drum (there's a couple embedded in it right now) so they're sharp enough to injure someone (or worse).

greyteam1959

AndyPix wrote: »

Next time one comes over your fence , make a slapping noise , scream at the top of your voice , and then start hopping around going ..

"aaarrggghhh my leg my leg , quick <insert spouses name> call the police call and ambulance iv been shot" !!

Bet that shuts him up for a bit

tool

Just what I would do........
Then he will be cra**ing his self for days !!!
:rotfl::rotfl:

Les79

I feel compelled to make a Skyrim joke:

Rosemary7391

Yorkie006 wrote: »

Not sure what type of bolts they are, but they make holes in the oil drum (there's a couple embedded in it right now) so they're sharp enough to injure someone (or worse).

Ouch!


I'd call the police now for advice and in the moment if one comes over so you can show it to them before you hand it back (or let the police do so). Hopefully they'll read your neighbour the riot act.

wesleyad

Just go round, politely explain you're a bit worried about the danger of having bolts fired at you, and ask if he could changed the direction he fires in. No point going straight to the police etc for something that can be easily solved with a quick chat.

Mojisola

Yorkie006 wrote: »

We asked him to move the target away so if he misses it doesn't go into our garden but he said he can do whatever he wants...

wesleyad wrote: »

Just go round, politely explain you're a bit worried about the danger of having bolts fired at you, and ask if he could changed the direction he fires in. No point going straight to the police etc for something that can be easily solved with a quick chat.

Except that the quick chat didn't solve anything!

Svein_Forkbeard

This probably won't end well.

robatwork

You've already tried the reasonable approach. If the guy was really so unreceptive then it's time for something more formal.

I would write (on paper) a letter to him, and cc the council (env health? not sure) and CI at the local police station. Make the letter completely unemotional and to the point. Something like Following our conversation where you were unprepared to move the target for your crossbow, I feel unsafe in my garden as bolts are coming over the fence and have hit the gate on the other side of the garden. You are now on notice that your actions are putting my family, pets and anyone in the garden at risk of injury, and any injury or damage to property sustained will be result in the strongest possible legal action against yourself.

Silvertabby

IF there is absolutely NO risk that the crossbow bolt (arrow) will leave your property and you are 18 or over (or continuously supervised by someone over 21), then it's legal. But if there is ANY risk, however small, that a bolt will enter your neighbour's property, or the public road, then you are breaking the law.

You must be 100% certain of the safety of this. It iis not good enough just to claim "I only shoot at low angles so the bolt won't go over the fence" or something similar. You need a protected and shielded area similar to a cricket net to shoot in. This is because the penalties to you are very severe if a bolt "gets out".

If only a single misfired bolt to enter a neighbour's garden, or if you shot any person in your own garden then you will be in court faster than you can sing the "William Tell" theme song. This would be because the weapon would then be considered to have been used in a "public place". The logic of this is that if it was used wholey in private then the bolt could not have entered someone else's or public property - you won't be able to argue against that in court.

The penalty could be a fine (up to £5,000) and possible 6 months in prison depending on how serious the court considers the particular offence and its consequences to be. If the case goes above a magistrate to a crown court the penalties go up to 2 years prison simply for possession, with more if someone is injured.
Note that "I didn't mean it to happen" will be a Very Weak defence and won't help you.

Source(s): Crossbows Act 1997 (and subsequent amendments).
Criminal Justice Act 1998 (and subsequent amendments).
Offensive Weapons Act 1996.

There are crossbows and there are crossbows - and one that is powerful enough to pierce a metal drum is not a toy.

Remember when someone fired a crossbow bolt into the Oval cricket ground some time ago? Police firearms response teams were there in minutes.