@Iglooo i do hope you reported this to the police and are pressing charges. These people broke into your place. And did damage.
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Do you have an alarm system?
No alarm. @thumper1 I pressed the charge for the first break in. They are getting a plea deal, I think.
But did this other break in happen recentlyâŠif so, it needs to be added to the issues being discussed. When one asks for a plea bargain, I donât believe the judging parties expect an additional breach to take place.
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All the same questions and thoughts!
I sent the clip to the sheriff. Unfortunately, the image is blurry. It was taken at night. It may not serve as rock solid evidence. The next day they were in m y yard checking out my cameras. The image is clear and I pressed the charge again. I have a feeling they are just dismissing it. It is a simple trespass. I did write to the prosecutor giving him a bit of background and mentioned the second break in. No idea if it would help. I havenât heard back.
Looks like burglary, a much more serious crime than trespassing.
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Any chance there are fingerprints? Or if itâs too late, if they do anything else, make sure things get dusted if the cameras donât catch them clear enough.
Iâd be very concerned if they are coming on your property to do damage even after being charged. Something isnât right with them.
THIS!
These people are trying for a plea bargain? And they canât stop harassing you?
I forgetâŠdo you have a lawyer representing you? If not, I would be getting one now.
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At this point, I would consider trying to sell the house. I would also try to minimize potential items that would come up in a public internet search of your address. If this is a second home, and you are not there often, it sounds like a precarious (and perhaps more importantly, unsafe) situation and one that you will have difficulty controlling from afar. One personâs opinion anyway.
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If you are going to keep the home I would request some sort of meeting or mediation as part of the plea agreement. You need to find out why they are harassing you and whether there is a reasonable solution to the issue. If it is a lighting issue perhaps the hours the lights are on can be modified. If they just object to a house being there you may need to decide whether to sell or put up with them. The plea agreement will only address what they have done in the past, not what they may do in the future
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Iâll have to put up with them. I am not selling the house. I just had it built. It was a lot of work and I like the house itself. I am also making friends in the neighborhood. It is a second home for them. They are not here full time thankfully.
Seems like they need a third home (prison) if they commit more serious crimes like burglary.
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Re: lighting
I live in a neighborhood with mainly second homes. Over the past few years, one at a time, 5 homes, of the half dozen I can see, have added some sort of on all night outdoor lighting, though one guy just has a motion detector light which the raccoons seems to dance around.
Who is around to see this lighting? Me and one other neighbor, the two unlighted homes⊠If I could figure out how to do it and not have my unreasonable level of feelings show through, I would ask them what the point is. Am I supposed to be watching for bad guys for them?
Some have cameras so perhaps it gives them more accurate footage, all I know is that the lights shine in my room & make me cranky (er.) Even the one that shines in my kitchen annoys me. 
But we have a lovely neighborhood with great relationships, so I just need to figure out how to say it without making them feel bad & decide if itâs worth mentioning at all as I donât expect them to take it down. I know it is my irritant and I am the weirdo. Iâve lived other places where people all leave their porch lights on overnight, it seems to be a popular choice.
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The police in our area tell residents to leave porch lights on all night. We also have one on our detached garage and a motion light back our back door. Well lit homes are a deterrent for crime.
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Like @momofboiler1 said, it is a deterrent. When I moved in first, I was sure there was a peeper. It was so dark that I couldnât tell who or if. My lot stood empty for a long time and people believe it was an unbuildable lot. Not knowing any of the history, I barged in and built a house. There was a great deal of opposition and hostility I may say. Vandalism was a good possibility. I am not turning the light off anytime soon.
@somemom, I donât know what you mean by âshiningâ. I had a neighbor in my old place who had a flood light directly pointed at my bedroom. If that is what you mean by shining, my lighting doesnât shine on anyone. They are 60W equivalent installed at about 7â high. The light only points down and spreads about 5-6â when it hits the ground. I am guessing they are offended by the glow. I canât really help there. Isnât that called having a neighbor? If they didnât like it, they should have bought the land themselves. In my old house when the neighbor pointed the light to my bedroom, I pulled the window shades. IMO, you first do what you can to minimize your irritation rather than expect others change their ways.
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There was an interesting discussion on the Boglehead forum recently on exterior lights. Some people thought it was fine to leave them on all night and others disagreed. Ours are off before midnight, but one of our neighbors leaves a light on all night which shines in our bedroom. It is annoying as the neighborhood is otherwise dark. If you are the only one leaving exterior lights on and others are not I can see why it creates issues. If leaving exterior lights on is the norm there you are probably being targeted just because they donât want a home there. Not much you can do about that.
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I know itâs my issue, not theirs! I have one neighbor/good friend who has a light and he told me I can move it any which way I want, if it helps.
Is it a deterrent because the bad guys avoid lighted places or because someone would actually see the bad guy? I prefer the house/garage exterior lights that turn on with motion, rather than on 24/7 or dusk to dawn. We are not a dark sky community so none are pointed down.
I wonder if your peeper was this neighbor. So odd that they wouldnât just talk to you about an issue. I have an A frame style tall triangle window that cannot be covered, the motion sensor light next door lights up my ceiling, then goes off, then on, etc. There is really no way to block it, so I turn over. But I do wonder what the point is of these lights?
You also bring up a salient point in that our old established neighborhood has a lot that has been vacant for decades, but which was purchased by an offensive guy who wants to spec the house. Itâs an awkward lot, a difficult build, and he is rather a jerk. All the neighbors are grumbly, but I promise, no vandalism will occur, but youâd better believe we will all keep him honest with building as per the permit, he has already been caught (by us, not the permit dept) submitting plans with blatant lies.
That is my lot, awkward unbuildable, except it isnât. If you look under the surface, youâd realize it is the best lot in town. The neighbors were vigilant about codes, which was great for me. I was building remotely but knew the codes will be met to a T. My neighbors went a step too far at times. They manufactured codes and tried to enforce them. Fun to rebut them each time. Not.
My neighborâs windows are standard windows that are easy to dress if they choose to. These days you can dress any window, any shape, any size, any location if you choose to. But it is easier to make others change. That way you donât have to do anything.
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Your issue is the neighbor is coming on your property. And basically breaking into your property. This isnât something someone who is desiring a pleas bargain should be doingâŠand should jettison his chance of getting it,
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