Would You Tell Someone?

Updated on May 27, 2011
H.G. asks from Mesquite, TX
26 answers

Afternoon ladies! Got a question. Im a sahm and we moved into our house nearly a yr ago and its a ok neighborhood and there are lots of kids. BUT, the house across the street makes me nervous. The guy always sits outside and numerous different cars come by all day and night. They stay about 2 minutes and leave. My husband said the other morning when he was leaving 4 work (he goes in at 3 am) 3 cars came and went in about a 5 minute span. I don't want to be the nosey lady that I always hated to hear about but then again I've got kids and if something is going on their safety is my concern. Ya know? So would you tell the police to check it out like a anonymous tip or just mind your own business?

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So What Happened?

Thank y'all! I think I will call. I didn't say this but its his dads house. From what I gather (he doesn't speak to us) he's divorced and he lives with his parents. He's in his thirties im sure and the cops have been there when he gets drunk and is hollering in his front yard. I don't really know the other people around here so that's why I wanted to ask what y'all thought. I just keep thinkin what if he pisses someone off or something and its just dangerous and from 3am-2pm my husband is gone. I just don't know!

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P.R.

answers from Cleveland on

I would call in an anonymous tip. Discussing it with neighbors could somehow get back to the homeowner and if they have nothing to hide, no harm done. I wouldn't really care if the police watched me for awhile bc I'm not doing anything wrong. It sounds suspicious enough that you're not just being nosy or unreasonable.

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S.C.

answers from San Antonio on

I would report it anonymously. There might be some innocent reason this is going on that is not illegal, but if it is a drug house, then having the tip would give the police reason to watch it.

6 moms found this helpful

J.S.

answers from Chicago on

Two words: Drug Dealing.

I would call Crime Stoppers. Definitely go the anonymous tip route. Good luck.

4 moms found this helpful

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C.C.

answers from Sacramento on

It's a drug house, I would bet money on it. Call the police. That situation could turn very ugly very fast. It's a safe bet there are guns in the house, and when you mix money and drugs, it's likely the guns will be used one day, and perhaps not very responsibly. You don't want your kids to get caught in the crossfire.

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A.G.

answers from Albuquerque on

Call the police. I had a neighbor doing similar things and i called the police. They parked an unmarked car and watched him for a few days. Turns out he was not only a drug dealer but part of an auto theft ring. Made me so glad I called the police.

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J.K.

answers from Phoenix on

Have the police check it out. If he's innocent, he would understand your concern. Normal people don't have people coming and going all hours of the night. If they do, they need to expect police to check on them. Call... don't feel guilty for doing it.

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R.L.

answers from Roanoke on

Well, it wouldn't hurt to call a tip in to the police. But keep in mind a few things: first, your husband or you did not actually see anything happen. Second, situations happen like this often, and when it comes to an issue like drugs, police are often too backed up to really check it out unless they hear about it multiple times. Third, there's really nothing they can do without reason to believe something actually happened.

If I were you, I'd make a note of it, and write down every time you see something. Write down what you see, what time, and see if you can get tags or car descriptions. You can call the police and leave a tip, too, just in case they've gotten calls from other people and are investigating. Good luck!

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J.L.

answers from Minneapolis on

s.

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S.W.

answers from Minneapolis on

Call the police. They are selling drugs.

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D.P.

answers from Pittsburgh on

We had a very similar situation with a neighbor. It turned out that the local police ARE well aware of it. Everybody in the area know what was going on. Except maybe the parents of this teenager. My husband knows the dad pretty well and he told him "I know you're at work, but wanted to let you know that there are a LOT of cars/people in & out of here everyday after the kids get out of school. The parents must have really clamped down b/c although we're sure he is still selling drugs, the house traffic has stopped.
If I was in your shoes (since it's an adult) I would at least alert the authorities to what you are seeing.

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I.G.

answers from Seattle on

He is probably dealing drugs. You can call the non-emergency number for your police department and report your suspicion, the may send a patrol car by a couple of times a day to show presence. Our police department was always very responsive to report of suspicious activity and usually that will slow down the "traffic".
Good luck!

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C.J.

answers from Milwaukee on

Call the police right now! Report what you see and let them take over from there.

I've lived in my house for 22 years and it's not in the best part of town BUT we never had any issues because me and my neighbors don't let anything past us.

A phone call is easy to do and will alert the police to investigate if they think it's necessary.

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E.P.

answers from New York on

Sounds like they're selling drugs out of their house. Sorry.

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M.C.

answers from Washington DC on

Yes. You should call the non-emergency # and explain your feelings.

I had a neighbor like this. I mentioned it to a friend who was a policeman. He said that if I got the address they would come over in an unmarked and watch that house.

I didn't know the address, and I would've been obvious trying to get it.

Good luck.

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A.A.

answers from Las Vegas on

oh yes def call and report it. He is selling drugs! Don't wait do it :)

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M.J.

answers from Sacramento on

Sounds like a drug house. We had one across the street, too. Not quite as much traffic as you're seeing but the people definitely didn't fit in our neighborhood and they had a lot of visitors. Apparently they weren't very good drug dealers, though, because the house foreclosed. The latest tenants report they still get drug-related magazines delivered there.

By the time I was ready to report them to the police, other neighbors already had. I would definitely take the step.

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B.C.

answers from Norfolk on

Tell the police. They need to stake out the place.
If you have a home owners association, they should be notified, too.
Our local police department LOVES HOAs as they have reported strange traffic like you are observing as well as busted up a few prostitution rings as well by pointing out suspicious activities.
The last thing you need is drug/gang activity going on in your neighborhood.
It's the sort of thing that leads to innocent bystanders getting caught in the crossfire.

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D.N.

answers from Chicago on

Do you have a neighborhood block number you can call? We had a similar problem a few years ago. I called the block #, and then wrote to the alderman about it because it was continous. We would get cars parking on the side street (and we are on the corner) by our building and one person would get out, go through the alley and come back 5 or 10 minutes later. Several different cars througout the day and night. they would even block our garage entrance. If it was really late, if we turned on the outside light or went outside, the car in our garage area would take off. We have not had this problem for a while but hope it does not return with the weather warming up. The police would come by and patrol a bit more and take note of people sitting in the car for a while.

3 moms found this helpful

S.M.

answers from Kansas City on

I asked a police officer daycare mom of mine how they choose who to raid. She told me that it's very difficult to get enough evidence and they have to go through a lot to get warrants. If I were you I would go to the local police and tell them you are afraid for your families safety and don't want to be named. BUT, you would like for them to provide a team to quietly outfit your house with surveillance cameras. I'm not sure if that can be done without a warrant. If they do need a warrant, then I would try to get the cameras set up yourself. Unfortunately, people do retaliate if it's not done right. They need to be raided and arrested before they start deciding who ratted them out. You could keep a log for a few weeks of who comes and goes and get license plates if you can do it without being seen. Then they might be able to use that to at least start their own investigation.

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K.P.

answers from New York on

You could call them, but I would suggest going to the police station and just talking with someone. They may already be aware of the situation and the fact that you are concerned about the safety of your children is reason enough to look into this.

Keep in mind that nothing is anonymous in reality and this is your FIL (?). I'm not a math wizard, but he must have been very very young when your husband was born and it sounds like he has a history of making poor choices. I would also consider moving- this whole situation sounds like a recipe for disaster.

Just FYI- growing up (in a really nice neighborhood in the 'burbs) we had prostitutes living next door. We didn't know what was going on as kids, but I remember my parents being very cautious of the fact that there were random (and different) cars there all day and night and the two women renting the house "worked from home". My dad mentioned it to a friend who was a police officer and they looked into it. Needless to say- within a month they were out of there.

2 moms found this helpful

E.B.

answers from Seattle on

We are watching a house three up from us for this reason. We have had issues with the youngster stealing from our yard and garage in the past few months and the dad has been a jerk more then once to my neighbors and I.

We have strong reason to believe that he(the dad) is dealing out of the house.

You can start by filing a report. Have everything documented. Get the police as involved as you can. Above all else though make sure you keep your name and what not out of it. You dont need this guy having any reason to come back at you.

I did not read the other responses first so if i was repetitive i am sorry:)

Good luck mama

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R.K.

answers from Appleton on

It's a drug house. Unless you go to a pay phone you can't call the police anonymously. I have a 'private number' and my number and address comes up if I call the police. But call anyway.
Don't fall into the idea many police departments have: get some video, pictures, license plate numbers and we will investigate. You would be putting your life in danger if you do. If your local police department won't get involved, go to your local library and set up a different email address and contact the DEA. If you set up a different email address from the library, send them the info, then delete the email account they can't track you. I would not want to have to testify in court on drug dealers.

1 mom found this helpful

A.G.

answers from Houston on

i had a neighbor who sold drugs once too. have you ever considered an anonymous letter.

'dear neighbor (could be anybody)

I know what you are doing, stop now and the police dont need to be involved"

1 mom found this helpful

C.F.

answers from Boston on

Have you mentioned this to any of the neighbors that have been there longer than you? Did/do they seem at all concerned with him and the situation? I would probly ask around w/ the neighbors I'm 'friendly' with First.

1 mom found this helpful

C.T.

answers from Santa Fe on

My friend lives on a nice quiet rural street with all families with kids. A few of the neighbors noticed that one car would regularly park at the end and then a 2nd car would drive up. Then they would both drive away one after the other. I would never have paid attention bc there is a trail there but these neighbors noticed this happening regularly and they notified the police. Well, it turns out someone was doing drug deals there every week. They got caught.

1 mom found this helpful

J.S.

answers from Hartford on

That sounds really, really suspicious and like cause for concern. My first thought is that he's dealing and selling. Whenever you see it happening call the police and you can request that they keep it anonymous. It's not about seeming nosy, but keeping watch in the neighborhood. Start a Neighborhood Watch group for your neighborhood. I'll bet that you're not the only neighbor that's concerned.

1 mom found this helpful
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