Your Rights Under the Protection From Harassment Act 1997
Harassment can cause alarm, fear and distress. Many people who are the victims of any kind of harassment can end up becoming ill, both mentally and physically, as a result. It will almost certainly lead to increased stress which can have a major impact in raising blood pressure.
Harassment can also lead to insomnia, anxiety and depression, poor concentration and can dramatically affect your self-confidence and self-respect. People who are being harassed may take excessive intakes of alcohol or drugs to try to alleviate the problem which will, ultimately, only make matters worse. The Protection From Harassment Act 1997 offers you Protection From this Unwanted Behaviour.
The Protection From Harassment Act 1997
Under this Act it becomes a criminal offence if you:- Cause alarm, harassment or distress more than once as a result of an action you conduct against another person. The conduct might be verbal or non-verbal and it doesn’t have to be the same type of action on each occasion – if the person feels alarmed, harassed or distressed by your actions, then it is deemed harassment, even if that was not your intention.
- Take any kind of action against another person which causes a fear of violence. This must happen on at least two occasions. The alleged offender must be aware, or ought to be aware, that their actions are likely to induce a fear of violence in the other person.
Civil Injunctions
The Protection From Harassment Act 1997 also permits you to take out a civil injunction against the alleged offender, as a right to protection and possible compensation in cases where a criminal prosecution isn’t appropriate or there is insufficient evidence to pursue a criminal case. This can be very useful as it’s often a civil injunction being put in place which will prevent the alleged offender from persisting with the behaviour.Police Assistance
If you feel you are at immediate risk of violence as a result of harassment, then you should Call The Police. Under The Criminal Justice and Police Act 2001, the police can force the alleged offender to leave the vicinity of your home or the location where you might be at the time, and they have the powers of arrest if the alleged offender fails to comply with this order.Dealing With Stalkers
Harassment isn’t always about people wanting to cause harm to another. Sometimes, it’s completely the opposite. People who might have a strong admiration and perceived ‘love’ for another person can end up becoming so obsessed that they might end up stalking you. This doesn’t necessarily mean just following you around or calling you on the phone, but would include situations where they are writing to you persistently and/or sending you unwanted gifts. And, should this be the case, then they are also guilty of causing harassment for which they can ultimately be prosecuted.Therefore, whether it’s the intention of the alleged offender to cause harm by their harassment or not, or even if they’re unaware they might be causing alarm or distress, it is still an offence under the Act.
You might also like...
Comments...
How do I actually go about getting an injunction against my neighbour?After 4-5 years of threats, assaults, noise and intimidation it's time to put a stop to it. I have depression as a result. The Police and council have been involved but without witnesses, cannot really act.
lucies - 11 January 2012 @ 12:25 PM
Nikki, if you absolutely cannot move house (see my other posts on this site) speak to the Police & Data Protection about different ways that you can gather evidence against your neighbour, e.g. digital audio (perhaps a cheap handheld recorder which can record for days) and video. Ask them EXACTLY what you need to do to make sure that the evidence you acquire will be considered valid by the Police and courts. You then have a choice of either making a complaint to the Police after gathering one or two pieces of evidence, or waiting even longer and acquiring more evidence that perhaps the Police are then more likely to act upon. Keep a log of what the neighbour has been doing and when, but don't expect it to be considered of any evidential value by Police unless backed up by other material. Be prepared for retaliation and be aware that the advice of some bodies to "just carry on as normal" also exposes your patterns of behaviour and the things that you care about, thus allowing your neighbour to identify and target you in the ways that are most hurtful. Remember, the Police generally have little interest in taking realistic action to protect the public. But they don't want us to protect our own rights either, and if you do you can bet that they will come down on you like a ton of bricks. Because of this, the Police and legal system are now available as a tool of the wicked people in our community, just as much as the crowbar and the ghetto blaster. Do not put yourself or allow family members to be placed in situations where any of you lose composure after a long build up of frustration; this is exactly what your neighbours are trying to achieve, and the Police will look very unfavourably on it, no matter if you are the most decent, caring person for miles. Do you want to end up in the dock whilst the neighbours come and gloat from the gallery? Remember, keep your mouth shut and gather evidence. Think about the consequences of reacting and write them down, because as you get more and more frustrated you will only be able to think about stopping your neighbours' behaviour, and the serious consequences of reacting will fade from your mind. Good luck to you.
EscapeFromHell - 19 November 2011 @ 5:05 PM
My neighbour has been harrasing us for about 4 years now, loud music, assult, malicious calls to NSPCC and police saying we have a cannabis farm in our house (they've been in at least twice to search), throwing dead rats in my garden, being threatening, she also vandalised my fence and stole the sections that she vandalised, I could just about live with that until, she comes home from a months holiday, sees I have past my driving test and have a car, now she is telling people that I have "clipped" her daughter with my car and now all residents have had a letter from the police requesting no-one parks on the grass verge outside our houses. I guess my neighbour has not made an official complaint to the police as they have not knocked on my door yet. what can I do, can you give me advice?
nikki - 12 September 2011 @ 10:51 AM
Your site assumes the enquirer is the person who feels harassed.In my case, I am accused of harassing someone under this act for behaving in a way that anyone else would find entirely reasonable behaviour.Section 1(3)(c) would appear to provide a defence in such circumstances.Do you have any advice on how the courts would apply this section to uphold the rights of the defendant?
retahfufo - 20 April 2011 @ 12:52 AM
Title:
(never shown)
Firstname:
(never shown)
Surname:
(never shown)
Email:
(never shown)
Nickname:
(shown)
Comment:
Validate:
Enter word:
