More advice Plz.

So I live in a pretty nice part of Springfield (not that that means anything to most of you, but whatever,) It's a nice quiet little neighborhood and nothing ever happens. Well every night for the past week or so, it seems we've been having some people messing around in my back patio, and doing some things that I've deemed a little impolite.

They've so far taken the mirror off my driver side and thrown it on the ground, loosened the lug nuts on my roommate's car, turned the propane on my grill all the way to on and tightened it to the point where I needed a wrench to undo it, they've taken my grill cover off and put it next to my side door, and just a bunch of shit like that.

Nikki's room is right in front of the back patio and she said she heard them last night laughing and telling each other to shut up and everything, but she was woken from a sound sleep and wasn't smart enough to call me or the cops. Either that or she was too scared, but whatever.

So tonight, I set up a trap. I have a steel canopy that goes over said porch and it has some steel supports, so I Macguyvered a trap that amounts to a trip wire rigged up to a hanging rock. I placed an aluminum chair underneath the rock, with the intent of not hurting them, because, according to mass laws, even if intruders get hurt on your property, you are still liable. So the 20 pound rock is hanging there, when they hit the trip wire, the rock is going to fall on the aluminum chair and make a shit-load of noise.

At which point, I'm not sure what I'm going to do. This is where you come in.

I'm either going to call the cops (boring)

OR

Run downstairs as fast as I can and haul ass after these guys and beat the shit out of at least one of them after I chase him down. I'm assuming that, since this started right after school let out for summer, that it is a bunch of douchebag high school kids, so I doubt they have any weapons or anything. Even so, I'm pretty confident I could still beat the hell out of someone that has a knife. When my instincts take over, it's pretty sweet.

So what should I do? I mean, I don't want to be the crazy guy that beats down high school kids, but they are putting me in potential danger. One of nikki's tires fell off, at which point she discovered all her lug nuts were loose, and putting the gas all the way on on a propane tank adjacent to my house is a problem too. I have no problem running after them. I'm pretty menacing when I'm angry, but I'd like to avoid consequences as well. I call the cops, they run away and escape............ What do you think???

Call the cops, take pictures, etc. Don't chase after them and start a fight, because it's not going to end the situation.

And I don't care how good you can fight, if they have a knife, you are going to get cut.

http//calltodecision.com/oaw.htm (not for the squeemish)

I don't remember the quote exactly, but it's something like "If it's a fair fight, then you're not prepared".

Anyway.. it may seem like the weak thing to do, but let cooler heads prevail. Is it near enough to a window to set up a cheap webcam as a motion detector that captures images when it detects motion?

Well you don't know where they live or what they look like, but they know where you live and may know what you look like if you kick the shit out of them, so kicking said shit out said offenders is probably not a smart move as they could then press charges against you.

I think that if I was them and you scared the shit out of me, I wouldn't go back, so scare them, let it be and see if they come back. If not, you win. If they do, try to tape them, call the police, ask for some spare moustaches and a couple of doughnuts and see if they'll let you join in on a stakeout.

In other words, call the cops.

CG Okay, wow, those pictures were horrible. Alright, maybe I don't want to engage in a knife fight with some punks. I don't want to look like that. As far as the window/webcam goes...... It IS near enough, but I don't have the money nor technical experience to be able to pull that off. So I guess I will call the cops, which leads me to

TSJ Do you think the hanging rock is enough to scare them? I mean, they're already going to be trying to tip toe around and if that thing crashes down onto that chair, it's going to make their hearts beat faster... You think as I'm calling the cops I should run down there and just yell a whole bunch? Or just hear the noise, call the cops and have that be the end of it?

Thanks guys D

I wouldn't even call the cops tonight. Just scare them and see if it keeps them away.

If they don't come back tonight, tomorrow or any other night then you're good.

If they come back, it didn't work and then call the cops.

Beat the shit out of them. That's what I'd do.

Alright cool. Scare tactics are on. I think my neighbors know something is up too because they have their spot light on and that thing has never been on since I've lived here. So no cops tonight, just fun scary things.

Twon, you think if I put them in a Figure 4 they would tap out and agree not to come back?

the Ric Flair figure 4 of the submission wrestling figure 4? I think if you could do the Ric Flair figure 4, that would definately scare them away. Make sure to give a loud "Wooooooooooooooo!"

When you want something on the internet, it's MOAR. Not "more."

If you have a gun, consider firing it in the air. Guarantee no one fucks with a guy who is firing a gun in their general direction.

I think it's very unlikely that they have knives or weapons. The shit they are doing is general vandalism—they're not even stealing anything. Just a bunch of idiots fucking with your shit.

The cops can't really do anything about this, and they're not going to waste manpower when these guys aren't doing anything dangerous to you. If I were you, I would beat the shit out of one of them well enough that you can make sure he stays on your premises until the police lock him up. You should probably talk to a lawyer first but the things they are doing are definitely putting you in danger and they can even possibly be charged with attempted murder (as has happened for smaller offenses).

Get an airhorn and blow it...I'm sure that will scare the crap out of them, along with wake up your neighbors.

As ilanbg suggested If you have a gun, fire a shot in the air and warn them that you have every right to use it on them the next time they trespass on your property, then call them "little shits" afterwards for added effect.

[quotef228fa5653="ilanbg"]If you have a gun, consider firing it in the air. Guarantee no one fucks with a guy who is firing a gun in their general direction.

I think it's very unlikely that they have knives or weapons. The shit they are doing is general vandalism—they're not even stealing anything. Just a bunch of idiots fucking with your shit.

The cops can't really do anything about this, and they're not going to waste manpower when these guys aren't doing anything dangerous to you. If I were you, I would beat the shit out of one of them well enough that you can make sure he stays on your premises until the police lock him up. You should probably talk to a lawyer first but the things they are doing are definitely putting you in danger and they can even possibly be charged with attempted murder (as has happened for smaller offenses).[/quotef228fa5653]

They, at the least, can get charged with recklessness and trepassing on several occassion. I would say, do a stakeout and watch for them. If you have a digital camera, record them in the act so you have hard evidence and have an ID for the little punks.

I would say, since they came back to your house over and over again, it has to be some kids that got something out for you. I mean, if they were un-bias, they would have hit your house and everyone else's house.

You also might want to check the front of your house for a weird car that shouldn't be there. If there is one, you can get the license plate number before going to take care of the little shits.

If there isn't, I would say they got to be neighborhood boys.

Heh, I remember the good old days when Hartford was safer than Springfield. I don't think there really is any safe place at Hartford anymore. Yeah scare those turds off, if they come back just call the cops. I learned that violence is not the solution usually. )

I say no guns and no knives, there are better ways to deal with this that won't end in escalating violence. You shoot a gun in the air? What if they have a gun and think you are shooting at them? Then they could shoot YOU.

I say do what my sister did to the neighbour's cat. Set up a motion-controlled sprinkler, aimed at the path to the porch. That way they get soaked if they move towards your property. If the nuisance continues, get floodlights and a camera, and call the cops.

I had the same problem at my house when i lived by a highschool. They would come into my bad yard at night and smoke weed or whatever cause i had a huge ass backyard. Well i was sick of them leaving trash and what not. So i left warning #1, i put a sign by where they always where and said pick your trash up and don't come on my property. Well that didn't get the point across and i got to the end of my fuse. So one night on a friday when they typically came around to have their pot smoking good times i was waiting for them a good 200ft away in a ditch with all my hunting gear on so they couldn't see my. Once they started to spark a bowl i flicked on the laser on my shotgun pointed it at them and pumped the action and told them that if they come back again the triggers getting pulled. And that was the end of the that, i wasnt worried about them saying something cause for one they cant prove i was armed cause they couldn't see the gun only hear it.
I say for you to wait outside and catch them red handed, take em to the ground and put cold steel to their head. If they run and go cry just say it was a airsoft gun, problem solved! twisted twisted twisted

Heres what you do.

Get some old rusty bear traps, hide them. When you hear a snap and a scream, you go outside and just pummel the guy/girl in the trap until unconscious. Tie them up. Put them in the trunk/bed of your car/truck. Take them to the local landfill. Leave. Problem solved.

Feed them to the pigs!

So, did anything happen last night?

ha, wow, some tips were very good, some were, well, interesting I suppose D

No, nothing actually happened last night. I was kind of hoping it would because I had all these good ideas from you guys and I was ready for it, and then, well, now it's just a lame story. I took down the trap in the morning before work. I'm thinking about putting it back up for one more night just in case.

I'm thinking it IS neighborhood punks though. There's a house a few houses up that always has all these little jerkoffs outside and they're always staring at me when I drive by.

I AM going to avoid violence though haha. The rusty bear trap may be a safe alternative however..........

Cover you entire property with cobras. Make sure you cover your ass by posting a beware of cobras sign...

[quoteebd438eb15="Twon"]Cover you entire property with cobras. Make sure you cover your ass by posting a beware of cobras sign...[/quoteebd438eb15]

LOLOL... this one is more than hilarious.. Please no cobras for they will bite you first... the camera and sprinkler ideas are quite brilliant ones... But don't use violence; better still consider the option with the cops. Hope you get it resolved right...

[quoted76ed0f0ed="Twon"]Cover you entire property with cobras. Make sure you cover your ass by posting a beware of cobras sign...[/quoted76ed0f0ed]

ooooOOOOhhhh. See, when I saw that tattooed on Twon's ass I thought the warning referred to something else entirely. Silly me.