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Amend restraining order to prevent neighbour returning after prison
aroominyork
Posts: 3,238 Forumite
I'm not sure where to post this but hope it's allowed here. I am going to cut a very long story short.
Our next door neighbour will shortly finish his second jail sentence for crimes against us. After many times threatening to burn down our house, and then assaulting me (for which no charges were laid as there were no independent witnesses), in 2020 he screamed racist abuse at us and then came round with an iron bar and went round the house smashing every window and glass door. The cost of the damage was c.£16,000. He served 18 months and had an indefinite restraining order imposed to never make contact with us.
A year after returning home, he screamed more threats and abuse. The police attended and heard the abuse. He was arrested and charged with breaching his restraining order. He was sentenced to 16 months custody. He is currently on licence which includes an exclusion zone of about 20 sq miles. This terminates next month and he will then be able to visit, but not live at, his house during an additional four months of post-sentence supervision. He can then return to live at home.
At his last sentencing, the CPS barrister suggested, in a private discussion, that we might be able to have the restraining order amended to prevent him returning to his house after he completes his sentence. He has alcohol and mental health issues and I think the authorities are clear that he continues to pose a serious risk to us.
A barrister friend has put us in contact with a lawyer to advise us, whose fee for a first discussion would be over £1000. Our hunch is that once he has completed his sentence, he cannot be prevented from returning home. We have experience of expensive legal consultations where we are told 'there's not much you can do' and we do not want to pursue a ‘speculative’ case. However, if there is a clear and tested legal path to prevent him returning to his home permanently, we would be interested in knowing this. My question is whether this path exists, and what the legal basis would be?
Our next door neighbour will shortly finish his second jail sentence for crimes against us. After many times threatening to burn down our house, and then assaulting me (for which no charges were laid as there were no independent witnesses), in 2020 he screamed racist abuse at us and then came round with an iron bar and went round the house smashing every window and glass door. The cost of the damage was c.£16,000. He served 18 months and had an indefinite restraining order imposed to never make contact with us.
A year after returning home, he screamed more threats and abuse. The police attended and heard the abuse. He was arrested and charged with breaching his restraining order. He was sentenced to 16 months custody. He is currently on licence which includes an exclusion zone of about 20 sq miles. This terminates next month and he will then be able to visit, but not live at, his house during an additional four months of post-sentence supervision. He can then return to live at home.
At his last sentencing, the CPS barrister suggested, in a private discussion, that we might be able to have the restraining order amended to prevent him returning to his house after he completes his sentence. He has alcohol and mental health issues and I think the authorities are clear that he continues to pose a serious risk to us.
A barrister friend has put us in contact with a lawyer to advise us, whose fee for a first discussion would be over £1000. Our hunch is that once he has completed his sentence, he cannot be prevented from returning home. We have experience of expensive legal consultations where we are told 'there's not much you can do' and we do not want to pursue a ‘speculative’ case. However, if there is a clear and tested legal path to prevent him returning to his home permanently, we would be interested in knowing this. My question is whether this path exists, and what the legal basis would be?
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Comments
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What does your barrister friend think?3
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Was the victim contact scheme ever mentioned to you? I am not sure if violent crime needs to be violence against you and not your property. These pages may be worth reading:
But a banker, engaged at enormous expense,Had the whole of their cash in his care.
Lewis Carroll1 -
He thought it was unlikely there is a case but it is not his field.user1977 said:What does your barrister friend think?
They have been very supportive throughout the case but they cannot advise on this.theoretica said:Was the victim contact scheme ever mentioned to you? I am not sure if violent crime needs to be violence against you and not your property. These pages may be worth reading:0 -
I appreciate you are the victim here and it sounds awful, my question would be why are you still living there? I don't anyone here can give what sounds like specialist advice, hope things turn out ok."You've been reading SOS when it's just your clock reading 5:05 "6
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I don't really understand why you've not moved in the interim period.2
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Emmia said:I don't really understand why you've not moved in the interim period.
Possibly easier said than done. Selling a house when you really do have the Neighbour From Hell is likely to be sticky to say the least. Of course, we also have no idea of the OP's circumstances (financial or otherwise). OP, I can only say that I hope things work out for you- it sounds a dreadful situation to be in.
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sammyjammy said:I appreciate you are the victim here and it sounds awful, my question would be why are you still living there? I don't anyone here can give what sounds like specialist advice, hope things turn out ok.
I understand that is an obvious point but do you mind if we stick to the question I've asked? Take 'stubborn' as a simple answer if you wish!Emmia said:I don't really understand why you've not moved in the interim period.4 -
Your neighbour presumably still owns his house? As a result an order preventing him returning (whatever his behaviour) to what is his home is tricky... He has a right in many ways to return.
You're stubborn and don't want to move, but perhaps he doesn't want to move either... The problem is you probably don't present a risk to his safety, but he probably does to yours.
What will you do if he moves back in next door?1 -
I think for something this serious you shouldn’t be relying on advice from anonymous posters on the Internet.It would be one for proper legal advice, if you can afford it.All shall be well, and all shall be well, and all manner of things shall be well.
Pedant alert - it's could have, not could of.8 -
If what you're after is legal advice, then I suggest you go and see (and pay for) a qualified lawyer.1
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