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Mercy7 Asked December 2013

Is there any help in Jonesboro for seniors who are being stalked and abused by kids, teens, and adults in their neighborhood?

This has been happening for years and is getting much worse. JPD seems helpless to do anything definitive about the problem. There's no question about it's being illegal stalking and threatening had harassment but no one seems willing to help, not the city attorney's office, no one.

Labs4me Dec 2013
Not all communities are crime driven. You usually find it where poverty is more abundant. Seniors do not have the luxury of living in less crime filled communities, it is too expensive. There are places in Arkansas with senior friendly affordable communities, but are usually rural.

Mercy7 Dec 2013
I'll try to answer everyone's kind words here, please forgive me if I don't do a good job of it. I'm still kind of stunned at the callousness of the two JPD administrators. They weren't nasty, just not interested in helping, just want me to stop trying to protect myself and actually trying to blame me/us for the constant violence and criminal behavior on . the part of our so-called neighbors. It's not Georgia, it's Arkansas and at our age a move would be difficult at best, and pretty much devastating in most ways. We're not the only victims here. We've had people talk to us about prowlers and vandalism such as spray painting their homes, many, many thefts and having to put up with drunken parties and dogs and kids being allowed to terrorize and torment in ways I wouldn't have ever thought possible. There are drug pushers and even more drug addicts. Public cursing to a level I've never heard before, and that's by little kids on up. They have thrown rocks and metallic objects, rotten and hard green fruit, cans and bottles, bags of garbage, more things than I can remember at us and on our property. We did our best to tell the two officers all of that and about how surprised we were when all this happened because we had been told it was a nice neighborhood before we moved here. Perhaps it was before we moved here, I have no way of knowing. They had the audacity to ask us "how" they had been violent AFTER we had told them all the different ways they had been and had threatened to be. We did see an attorney and contacted the city attorney's office years ago -- neither was interested, the city attorney's office because then we didn't know any of the criminals' names and addresses and the private attorney because he said they didn't have any money and it would not be worth his while financially to try to do anything. When we talked to these last two policemen (administrators) we were able to give them lots of names and addresses, people they could talk to to find out who all are currently attacking us and they simply were not interested. We believe in living with everyone in peace as far as we are able, but these people do not want to live in peace and their lies and criminal activities have put up a barrier that would make that impossible and have assuaged their own black hearts by telling themselves that we are the problem instead of themselves. Please remember we have never threatened anyone and have never stalked anyone, it's always been them coming here time after time and attacking us. I've made inquiries as best I could and have learned that anyone who dares to go over their heads is made to be very sorry for doing that and nothing was solved, only made worse. Part of the "good old boy" system in the sad state of Arkansas. I have begged my husband to move out of Arkansas all together, but he was born and raised here (I was not) and never wants to leave, no matter how horrible it is. It's apparently just a matter of time before we (I, at least) become another statistic and I'm just to sick and tired to care any more. My idea was to move to senior housing before we moved here, but there is no independent senior living here and he would be truly miserable in any of the facilities they have here, with neither of us being willing to go to any of the actual full care nursing homes even if we could qualify. We'll keep doing what we can to protect ourselves and, more than anything else will trust God to do what mankind will not do and will keep praying for our enemies, though we will never understand the mentality that chose to be an enemy instead of friends or peaceful acquaintances. Our failed society has become a very dangerous place for its elderly and infirm and I see nothing to make me think that will change, not when the law enforcement upper echelon. As I said, some of the individual officers are the nicest people we've ever met and sincerely have tried to help, but their hands are tied by the others. Thanks for your advice and for caring.

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Veronica91 Dec 2013
I feel the only thing you can do is move as soon as possible. This is a terrible situation and you are already in poor health.
Are there other elders in your neighborhood?
Do they have the same problems?
Is there something different about you that attracted these hooligans such as a different ethnic background?
Do you own or rent your home?
If it is rented look to move somewhere safer in the area till your husband retires or sell and rent if that works too.
Just get out ASAP

JessieBelle Dec 2013
sickoldwoman, you are getting much advice. I have to ask you if this is Jonesboro, GA. Sometimes it is best not to do anything to stir a hornet's nest unless you have yourself thoroughly protected. As I said before, if it is bad the thing I would do is move. I would not want to give you advice that might end up in you getting hurt. I would be cautious if it is Jonesboro GA and you don't have a good support system to help you.

AKAlicious Dec 2013
I would also speak with an attorney. Find out if it's possible to sue some of the main people who are doing it as well as the police or city for some sort of violation. And you should at least be able to go small claims on the actual damages if you can figure out who did it. Sometimes it takes a lawsuit to get parents to discipline their kids.

assandache7 Dec 2013
I agree with call a newspaper or TV.. Go to the Mayor's office and tell them the cops refused to help. Show up a town meeting.. Or just pick up and move! Good luck!

Mercy7 Dec 2013
Thanks for the (all) good responses. I had wanted to move to a senior community before coming here, but my husband still wishes not to do that. I've talked to everyone I could think of, including the local area agency on aging, am supposed to talk with another rep from the local constabulary next week. My husband is still working and his schedule is so bad that between the hours and my being so sick so much of the time I haven't found a church here yet, though I've been invited by several nice people and that's my plan after my husband retires, before then if I get to where I can. He's usually working Sundays and we're afraid to both be gone at the same time because of the vandalism. We have no family and all our friends live elsewhere. Not all of the neighbors are the abusers, but it's kind of worrisome that some claim to be good Christians and are active in their own churches. If we had come here with any thought at all of bothering people or making enemies I'd understand what's going on, but we're both very shy and retiring and the people around us are scary and not people we'd feel good about trying to make friends with. We don't drink or do drugs and are appalled at the screaming and cursing and the such and really don't have anything in common with them, other than the fact that we're all human beings and God loves us all, even when we're not at our best. I have doctor appointments Monday afternoon and all day Tuesday but will come back after that and update if I can at all. Thank you so much.

lsmiami Dec 2013
Local news station willing to carry the story? Go viral with details? Absolutely reach out to your congressman and ask neighbors and church members to do the same

JessieBelle Dec 2013
In your position I would move to a senior community. It is sad to uproot your life, but some communities are just not suitable to live in. I wouldn't waste any more worry on the neighborhood. If you can afford to leave, just turn the neighborhood over to the thugs. There are too many other options out there.

Jinx4740 Dec 2013
This sounds like a job for the captain and his firewood! Sorry, inside joke.

Is there anyone in the community who could help you? Is there a church or a VFW or a senior center? Is everyone in the neighborhood in on this? Can you get in touch with the local newspaper, TV or radio station?

pamstegma Dec 2013
Good grief, call your congressman!!

Mercy7 Dec 2013
It started out with being cursed at and threatened to the point the police were called. The kids and their parents told the police that I started screaming and cursing at them for absolutely no reason whatsoever. That happened multiple times and, though I can't prove it, it had never even occurred to me to say anything whatsoever to them, I was always simply trying to do some yard work. It escalated to mob events with them surrounding our home screaming foul and threatening things. We put up cameras. We have hours of footage. The police were called many times. We always had video evidence. The officers stopped looking at it all together, though they always did and do respond to our calls. We contacted the city attorney's office at the officers' suggestion and received absolutely no help whatsoever, were treated as a nuisance. There was almost non-stop rock throwing at security lights and cameras and our house, breaking things, stomping on landscaping, even adults parking their cars and chopping up roses and things they could reach from the road. The adults and children did and do seem to make sport of coming up into our now posted (at the officers' suggestion) property and doing whatever damage they can before running away. There was a family of drunks across the street for a couple of years and it got a whole lot worse. Their boy even leveled a pellet gun at me and held it there until I called the police, did not shoot but was told by his mother in my hearing that he had done nothing wrong. She and another neighbor repeatedly stood across the street discussing in loud, lewd language how much they would like to beat me. By then the police had told us to not even speak to them, something which the self avowed Christian woman across the street never misses an opportunity to use as an assault weapon, shouting at people in loud voices that "she" will not speak to them when they start accosting me after stalking me while I'm trying to work in my yard. The teens are driven to our home by adults to trespass and damage property and the older teens come in loud, vulgar mobs screaming filth from the street and from our driveway; males and females. That's just a brief synopsis of what is happening. Some of the police officers are great, some rude to the point of being abusive. We respect the law and live very quiet lives and do our best to live in peace with people. We are completely perplexed at these constant hate attacks. We moved here with the idea of retiring here, but my poor health has deteriorated with the stress and I no longer have hopes of a retirement of any length if something's not done.

Jinx4740 Dec 2013
That sounds awful! Can you give us more information? Are they just saying things? Do they touch you? Do they pick out certain people, or just the old ones?

Can you ask for a patrol car to drive by while you are on the street? Can you go out in gangs of seniors for self-defense?

sunflo2 Dec 2013
The only thing you can do is document abuse with proof...letters, pictures, vandalism evidence, etc. and alert the police. Don't confront offenders. If you know who it is, file a written report.

Unless you have concrete proof and it is more than just a nuisance -- doubt they'll take up the cause. If you fear for your safety or the safety of your premises, then they may act.

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