Need desperately to evict my roommate or otherwise need action in NORth Dakota!
nickhunt222
Registered User new member
Registered User new member
I live in Fargo, ND with my fiance and her uncle. The apartment is in her name. He is terrorizing her and I. He will go on pill and alcohol binges and start destroying things and yelling, and getting physically threatening and we do not know how to get him out. There is nothing in his name as far as utilities or leases. Please please help.
nickhunt222 on
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If he has established residency it can be hard to evict someone, IANAL but residency in California normally requires something like mail to be arriving with the occupants name on a regular basis, or their place of residence listed on their ID to be the place they are staying. If they don't have any of that you can probably just throw his shit out on the lawn and call the cops.
but IANAL so check your state and local laws, also a restraining order is in order, but so is protection. Piece of paper can't stop a full grown man in the long run.
Generally speaking, if he does not have a lease, you still have to give him notice.
Sit down and write a letter...send it certified mail to him (yes even to the same address).
Basically the letter should state that you are evicting him from the home and that he has 30 days in which to relocate himself and all his belongings.
Sign it.
Print multiple copies - post one on the front door, one on the back door, and one on the bedroom door.
Put the girl up in a hotel if you think shes in danger.
The second you even THINK he might hit you, you call the cops. Have them on speed dial.
Maybe consider asking a policeman or sherrif to be present when you hand him the notice.
Incidentally if by "pills" you mean illegal narcotics, you might want to lawyer up a smidgen, because if he's keeping them on your property and he's not legally resident there, the onus might be on you to prove that they're not yours. They might be your responsibility anyway.
Keep a journal. Have her keep a journal too. Don't let him know (journals can be stolen). Write down everything right after it happens, as much as you can remember. Anything at all related to him. When you serve a notice, when you have a convo with him. It could all be important later. Use different pens (so the court doesn't think you wrote it all at one time). Hopefully it doesn't come down to court, but if it does, this can be admitted as evidence and will be stronger than a simple he-said-she-said.
If she gets attacked and there is an injury, take a photo and take her to the hospital, along with calling the cops. This generates reports. Reports are more evidence on your side.
If you think you have enough to do it, get a restraining order. I believe you can because she's been attacked before and has reason to believe it will happen again.
Don't forget to protect yourself. His brain is pickled so he isn't thinking straight. You may not be able to anticipate something crazy he does. Destroying property, coming after you, lying to get someone else to come after you, etc. It's nice to build evidence to get him out of there and protect yourself in case of a court battle, but an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. If you've got something irreplaceable, have a friend hold it for you.
Many areas have some sort of legal aid, though it may not officially be called "legal aid" (because the "legal aid" places may be way slower in getting an appt and be oriented toward people already in a legal battle). You need to find consult with someone who can point you in the right direction to get this guy out as quickly as possible.
As someone pointed out, don't be afraid to do the hotel thing if that is what you need to do to be safe. At some point a court may ask "well, if things were that bad, why didn't you just leave and go to a hotel instead of staying until this horrible injury took place?" I realize you probably don't have a lot of money, but you'll have less money if this results in a visit to the emergency room.
Also, don't lock him out or do anything that's not by the book in getting this guy out or you leave yourself open to him coming back to haunt you through a court case or other nastiness (and he'll win, despite being in the wrong morally). I believe there is a way to get an emergency eviction, but I do not know how that works. A lawyer in your area would.
If you have any animals, get them to a friend's house ASAP.
BTW, although the violence issue may be family law, this is a renter's law issue. You are the "landlord" and you are trying to get a nasty tenant out.
EDIT: I found a link that may help you: http://www.ndaa.net/rights.htm#evict
One of the items mentioned is "drug use," but you have to be prepared to back it up. Of course, it has to be illegal drug use. You may be in a unique position to take photos (when he is not home - do nothing to provoke him! You'll come off smelling dirty). He may have pills stashed in all manner of places, if he's got lots of booze bottles, take pictures of those too. It may not be illegal, but it may help show he's an alcoholic if he has beer stashed in the toilet tank (seriously, this is a common hiding place) and other locations. He'll claim that he's just got an rx from the doc "for pain" and that he enjoys the occasional alcoholic beverage. You can disprove this easily. Even the doc thing, if you show the same class of drug from multiple docs.
However, it is really sounding like getting that restraining order might be a good move. You can find some basic info here: http://www.womenslaw.org/laws_state_type.php?id=565&state_code=ND
Again, you'll want to ask a lawyer in your area how this relates to kicking someone out and to be very certain you dot all your i's and cross all your t's so you have the law on your side and this guy can't come back at you. And anytime he wants to get his stuff or do anything where he'll be present and potentially grumpy and you are allowed, to have a sheriff present.
Oh cool, he's probably eligible for a domestic violence restraining order (he's related by blood) AND a disorderly conduct order: http://www.ndcourts.gov/court/forms/Petition_Disorderly_Restraining/Petition_for_Disorderly_Conduct_Restraining_Order.pdf
Here's another thread that may be relevant and helpful for ideas: http://www.beginnertriathlete.com/discussion/forums/thread-view.asp?tid=460628&start=1&posts=16
Ok, I'll shush now.