Court today inhaled deeply

DammitJanet

Well-Known Member
We had to go to court today over the whole neighbor fiasco. I have never seen such an inept bunch of people.

My neighbors claimed that Cory had broken into their home at a time when he was physically in the presence of his father, girlfriend and my other son. He simply couldnt have done it this time. This neighbor is the parents of the boy who stole the gun at thanksgiving. Because they decided to blame Cory, the boy who stole the gun and his sister came to my house, kicked open my door and came inside with a large stick looking for Cory to hurt him. My oldest, Billy, was inside the house at the time the door was kicked in so he witnessed it all.

When Billy told him to leave after saying Cory wasnt in the house (he didnt tell this guy that Cory was out in our chicken yard), this guy got in his car and made threats about what he was going to do to us/Cory. Billy also called us (tony and I) while we were at the courthouse paying my property taxes. We ran over to the magistrates office to attempt to take out breaking and entering and trespassing charges on them. We couldnt do it without our witness so we ran home to wait for the cops that Billy had called. While sitting in our yard waiting for the cops to come, we got a phone call saying someone was in our back yard. I ran in the house to get my camera to capture evidence. I heard Cory yell that Dwayne, the oldest son in the family, had a gun. Tony started walking towards the car while Cory ran back around the house to get the only weapon we had...a bush ax. When I came outside, along with Billy, I had my camera and Dwayne started making threats of violence to me, threatening to F up me, my belongings and whatnot.

So when the cops arrived we told our side of the story...the neighbors told theirs. Supposedly some indian figurines and pictures were taken. Now what Cory would want with them is idiotic.

Back when the gun was stolen around thanksgiving, we called the cops and told them who we suspected. They never investigated much but someone else told us where the gun ended up. It was at a drug dealers house and the dealer told us that Chris had sold it to him for drugs. The dealer gave back the gun to us but that was on the promise that he wouldnt be dragged into this whole thing. At that time I went down to the Sheriffs office and talked to the head sheriff and explained the whole situation. He advised me to post my land with no trespassing signs. I asked him if I should also notify Chris in writing by certified letter that he was no longer allowed on our property but the sheriff said that just posting it was fine. I posted about 8 signs on the land outside plus two in the windows of my home.

When they put me on the stand today to question me, I was asked if I notified Chris about the no trespassing order. Uhhh...I was told I didnt need to. However, Tony DID see him and tell him in person he wasnt allowed near us.

I told the truth on the stand and said that I posted it but Tony told Chris. We had gone down to take out all these papers against the two brothers. I took one out for communicating threats to me, Cory did one for assault by pointing a gun, and we took out warrants against Chris for breaking and entering and criminal trespass.

I tried to be a good witness and follow the rules of a courtroom for only answering questions asked of me instead of telling exactly how this whole thing started when Chris stole the gun because I knew it was inadmissible because it would have been considered hearsay. I shouldnt have been that worried about the hearsay rule. No one else stuck to that rule!

While I was testifying, the boys mother kept interrupting so much that the judge had to threaten to remove her from court. She brought up stuff that had nothing to do with this case and things that had not been proven or even had charges filed.

We live on 8 acres but only use about two of them because the rest are wooded and swampland. The part we use is 200 feet wide and 300 yards long. We are considered to live on the same private road as these neighbors but it really makes no sense since we have to drive over two fields and past a cow pasture to get to that private road. We have our own driveway leading to the main road. There is a strip of land right in front of us that is about 200 feet wide but about 8 acres deep. On that piece of property, there are hundreds of medium sized pine trees so you cannot see our house from all but one of the houses on the private road and we can only see that house if we walk down our driveway to look.

The mother got up and claimed that they could visibly see what was going on at our house from their house. Impossible. Number one, the trees and two, they live at least 5 football fields away from us.

The guy who pointed the gun at house claimed that he had been on our backyard neighbors land and he had got permission from that neighbor to be on it. He also claimed that he had no gun even though both Cory and Tony saw it. He also claimed that there was no way any of us could have seen it because he was "on this neighbors land"...uhhh...he was no more than 30 feet from my house when this happened. I have pictures of him getting out of his large white SUV plus have one of Tony leaning on the door, open window, trying to get Dwayne to calm down. Dwayne was certainly not feeling threatened by any of this. But he took out papers saying Cory came running after him with a bush ax. Cory had the bush ax stuck in the ground at the corner of my house in case things got worse. Cory never threatened him or rushed him with the ax held high in the air saying he was going to kill him.

All this inadmissible stuff was brought up like there being an old shed on this backyard neighbors land that was used for drug use. Uhhh...only by Chris! The shed is locked. The mother also started ranting on about how they knew Cory had broken into their house and that Cory stabbed her daughter. None of that was proven...well Cory did stab the daughter but the cops ruled it self defense because Chris and his sister ambushed Cory and Mandy (girlfriend) when they were walking home on the main road in another neighbors yard...who testified to what happened to the cops. Chris and sister attacked them with a knife, broken bottle and big sticks. They also attacked Tony and he took out papers for that but even though the magistrate listed the date of that case as these other charges, Chris was never served that warrant so nothing was done to him about that.

My pictures were never entered into evidence, the ADA never raised objections to hearsay evidence about Cory, and she never asked questions when I pointed out discrepancies in the testimony.

This idiot judge convicted everyone...including Cory...for all the charges. Now I am stumped at how a person can be charged with communicating threats when on your own property and someone has raised a gun at you. That is self defense at its finest. But our backwoods idiot judge convicted Cory anyway. I am going to look into how to appeal his decision because Cory doesnt need more on his record. When the judge handed down his verdicts, he told each of them to leave the courthouse individually 5 minutes apart and to have nothing to do with each other. Cory gets down there and Chris tried to talk to him asking for a truce...even asked Cory for a cigarette! Dwayne threatened Cory verbally saying this wasnt over and he would get him. So much for following the orders of the judge.

What really killed me is that when they called these boys moms to the stand, they said what a good christian woman she was. Oh please...she lied through her teeth on the stand. This is also the woman who accosted me in our grocery store that day.

Believe me, if I can get this verdict appealed I will have pictures of all our properties and get sworn statements from all the neighbors. This woman is still claiming they are going to charge Cory with the breaking into her house but the cops investigated that...even brought out dogs to see if that would lead them back to our house...and the dogs didnt. They went the opposite direction. The cops searched our stuff looking for the stolen items and nothing was found. There was no time to hide anything because this all happened so fast after they "found out" that the house was broken into. Supposedly Cory and Mandy did this at 12:30 and he was at our house. We left at 1 and were back by 1:45.

They cant charge Cory with the fight and stabbing the daughter because it was already ruled self defense because she was hitting Mandy with a bottle and trying to stab Cory with a knife.

Is this not just unreal. Nobody can do their jobs here.
 
F

flutterbee

Guest
Janet -

I'm sorry you have to go through this and I'm sorry with the way things turned out. I would more than likely appeal.

But, I have to say that I could not live with that kind of drama all the time. It made me tired just reading it! I would not interact with these people at all. Just call the police and hole up inside your house until they get there. Maybe get a voice activated recorder for whenever you go somewhere where you might run into them (after you check the laws in your state first). I would send that letter certified to them about being on your property.

It just seems that any kind of confrontation with these people just fuels the fire. And, probably, once they stop getting a reaction, they'll back off. They sound like those kind of people.

I hope it quiets down for you.

(((hugs)))
 

KTMom91

Well-Known Member
What a mess! I believe I'd appeal as well. Do these people have an in with the court system or something? Like a friend on the bench? Unbelievable...

Hope it quiets down and you can get this off Cory's record.
 

DammitJanet

Well-Known Member
The thing is we DONT interact with them and havent for several years. Chris is a huge difficult child in his own right: cant read, drug addict/dealer on pot, coke and crack. He has done numerous robberies including stripping copper from vacant houses. We just happen to live on the same road...though they rent a lot for their mobile home and we own.

It was actually amusing yesterday as we waited for them to let us in the courtroom. Chris picked up a paper to "hide" behind and pretend to read. Stupid idiot didnt realize the paper was upside down!
 

Hound dog

Nana's are Beautiful
Janet

I'd apeal. You have grounds and sufficient evidence to have the decision overruled. Odds are the judge probably had a head ache by that time and decided to make sure she got the guilty party by punishing everyone involved. Or thought maybe it would prevent backlash by doing so.

Stupidity. These people could actually care less.

I'd get a couple of rotties myself, and train them well.

((((hugs))))
 

susiestar

Roll With It
Janet,

I am SO sorry. This is simply ridiculous. I would appeal, AND I would call whomever is in charge of oversight of judges - this entire thing sounds, well, like someone got paid off. Please don't let this stand, you certainly have many grounds for appeal, I would think.

Sorry court hoovered.

Hugs,

Susie
 

Star*

call 911........call 911
Janet,

I wish I could say that I'm surprised...but I'm not.

I have no doubts that you will straighten this mess OUT!

Take lots of pictures, and have them BLOWN up -

Video tape a walk from your house, through the woods to their house.

If they rent maybe a call to their landlord to make an offer to buy their land is in order?

Hugs
Star
I
 
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