A code enforcement officer has a responsibility to identify legal violations regarding cleanliness, property value, and safety of buildings and structures. So, they can issue a warning and a notice to people who violate those things.
However, sometimes a code enforcement officer does something that is too far and even it can be categorized into a harrassment. One of the code enforcement harassments is that a code enforcement officer asks for entering your property at unreasonable times.
If you experience code enforcement harassment, you have to fight it and here are several things that you are able to do.
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You need to know the law of code enforcement in your area.
It is important for you to know the law of code enforcement in your area because the law about it in your area may be different from the other areas. For example, in some areas, it is permitted for a code enforcement officer to ask for access to a property for inspection as long as it is done at reasonable times. However, in the other areas, it may be permitted if the request is made during appropriate times and the officer must identify themselves in advance. If you know the law, you will know whether the thing that the officer did is harassment or not.
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You must contact your local code enforcement office.
If you are sure that it is a harrassment, then you are able to contact your local code enforcement office. It is better if you have documentation of the evidence of the harassment.
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You are able to consult an attorney.
You may have contacted the code enforcement office, but it does not stop the harassment. If so, you are able to consult an attorney. It is better if you consult an attorney who has experience in code enforcement disputes. If you want to consult an attorney, make sure that you do it immediately.
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You may go to court.
You are able to file your code enforcement harassment to court. By doing it, a judge will be able to decide whether what you experience is categorized into code enforcement harassment or not. Of course, the judge’s decision will be according to the law. As explained in the previous point, you need to have proof that you have experienced code enforcement harassment. The proof can be in the form of photos, communication or notes from the officers.
That’s all several things that you are able to do if you experience code enforcement harassment according to the Fair Punishment site. Hopefully, this information can help you especially if you just experienced code enforcement harassment. If you think that what a code enforcement officer do is harassment, don’t doubt to do the things above to fight it.
A bookworm and researcher especially related to law and citizenship education. I spend time every day in front of the internet and the campus library.
