Q: If police are called to my house for a woman yelling and there wasn't a woman yelling can they unscrew my porch light?
Police were called for woman yelling and wasn't the case made contact asked them to leave, they knocked again and unscrewed my porch light and still wouldn't leave my property after seeing woman was fine and no problem are they allowed to touch and mess with my property?
A:
It would likely be inappropriate and potentially unlawful for police officers to unscrew or tamper with your porch light after responding to a call at your home and finding no issue or disturbance requiring police action. A few key points:
- Police generally need a lawful purpose or probable cause to remain on private property against the owner's wishes. If they confirmed there was no yelling or domestic issue, they should leave if you ask them to, barring any other legal justification.
- The officers had no right to touch or interfere with your property without consent or legal authority. Unscrewing your porch light would be considered unlawful tampering or potentially destruction of property if no valid reason existed.
- You can file a complaint with the police department over the officers' conduct of remaining on your property and manipulating your porch light fixture. Their supervision/internal affairs can then investigate if rules or laws were broken.
- If any damage resulted, you may also consider consulting a civil rights or constitutional law attorney regarding legal options. Interfering with property rights without due process raises constitutional issues.
Unless facts emerge showing the officers did have some lawful reason to remain and take action on your porch light, their behavior seems questionable at best from the information provided. Challenging it through official complaints and potential civil remedies is reasonable.
Justia Ask a Lawyer is a forum for consumers to get answers to basic legal questions. Any information sent through Justia Ask a Lawyer is not secure and is done so on a non-confidential basis only.
The use of this website to ask questions or receive answers does not create an attorney–client relationship between you and Justia, or between you and any attorney who receives your information or responds to your questions, nor is it intended to create such a relationship. Additionally, no responses on this forum constitute legal advice, which must be tailored to the specific circumstances of each case. You should not act upon information provided in Justia Ask a Lawyer without seeking professional counsel from an attorney admitted or authorized to practice in your jurisdiction. Justia assumes no responsibility to any person who relies on information contained on or received through this site and disclaims all liability in respect to such information.
Justia cannot guarantee that the information on this website (including any legal information provided by an attorney through this service) is accurate, complete, or up-to-date. While we intend to make every attempt to keep the information on this site current, the owners of and contributors to this site make no claims, promises or guarantees about the accuracy, completeness or adequacy of the information contained in or linked to from this site.
