House of horror in Cleveland

[RavenDarkendale]

I think the real horror in people like this man is that they plan very carefully and use every devious means they can to hide what they are doing. This is what results in neighbors, friends, and family being unaware of the ongoing series of horrible crime. Not all people who say they didn't suspect are lying, you know.

There was a serial killer here who dumped his last victim less than five miles from where I set typing this. She lived and was instrumental in his conviction. I had gone to high school with this guy, and he would have been the last person I would have suspected.

Another alumnus of this high school was president of the math and chess clubs, a real nerd, an honor student, and the son of the school librarian and one of the math teachers. He murdered his wife with arsenic poisoning giving the final dose as she lay dying in the hospital.

A third brutally murdered his wife and children giving the excuse they were better off with Jesus than with him.

You don't know people as well as you would like to think.

[Mayerling]

Since my mother died from cancer two years ago I have remained in our apartment building. I was pleased this week to finally have a visitor - my cousin popped up to discuss a family get-together next month. Aside from him I have some contact with the neighbors, but no visitors, and several visits by the super and the building staff on occasion. I bring all this out because, although it is an apartment house, the issue crops up about how much the neighbors know what you are up to. I'd say only the limited amount I'd admit to them about (health issues or something I'm reading).

As for people I know who committed crimes: well I recently talked about a friend and co-worker whose end was tragic due to the effects of an illness on his mind. It led not to murder but a grotesque act of dismemberment on his mother's body. A neighbor of his told the police about it after my friend died, and the remains were found. It was done (believe it or not) to maintain the victim's social security checks. As for the neighbor, his actions were a cover - he'd been blackmailing my friend and the police arrested him.

Outside of him, I have only known of another colleague who wrecked his political career in a sex scandal.

This apartment building never (as far as I know) had any killings in it - but one neighbor's mother was killed in another state earlier this year. But it was in another state.

Jeff

[kensei]

In the case of the crazy neighbor, they may have dispatched, because she'd just keep calling, and also because they were afraid she might take matters into her own hands if they didn't. I would think you could make a harassment complaint against her.

I did. They said they would talk to her which they did, she said she was going to keep on calling, and they told me they would still have to respond every time.

By the way, she also chipped my car windshield with a rock and vandalized my mailbox by repeatedly tearing the nametag off of it. Then she tried a new tactic- pulled the nametags off of every mailbox in the building EXCEPT mine to try (in her mind) to make it look like I did it. When complaining, I was always told that she'd have to be seen doing it in order for anyone to do anything. Sometimes I am amazed at how much a person can get away with without law enforcement being able to do anything, and other times I'm just as amazed how little a person can do and end up getting arrested.

[RivkahChaya]

I did. They said they would talk to her which they did, she said she was going to keep on calling, and they told me they would still have to respond every time.

By the way, she also chipped my car windshield with a rock and vandalized my mailbox by repeatedly tearing the nametag off of it. Then she tried a new tactic- pulled the nametags off of every mailbox in the building EXCEPT mine to try (in her mind) to make it look like I did it. When complaining, I was always told that she'd have to be seen doing it in order for anyone to do anything. Sometimes I am amazed at how much a person can get away with without law enforcement being able to do anything, and other times I'm just as amazed how little a person can do and end up getting arrested.

I'm assuming you are in the US.

Security cameras are not all that expensive, and it is not illegal to record a person without their knowledge, as long as you record only images, and not video. Also, you can record audio of yourself, for example, to prove that you were not making noises you were accused of making.

I'm assuming you have talked to your landlord. If the two of you have the same landlord, there may be something he or she can do. My building has things in the lease that add up to "not making life unpleasant for other tenants," and depending on what state you live in, the burden of proof may not be very high.

I cannot believe the police are not taking false 911 calls seriously. You get fined around here for doing that. There was a kid in our building who was pulling the fire alarm for fun, which amount to a false call, since the alarm triggers a 911 dispatch. The landlord knew who it was (actually, everyone did), and told his mother they were putting up security cameras, and if he did it again, they'd evict her. He stopped doing it. She could have been fined as well, since he was a minor. I think it's $500 for a first offense.

It really sounds like the police are stringing you along. I'd talk to a lawyer. If the woman has this many problems, is she supervised by anyone? maybe she has a caseworker you can talk to.

[kensei]

Yes RivkahChaya, I am in the U.S. But this was a situation several years ago. I had to deal with it for about two years and finally the person left. I never was clear on whether she was evicted or moved on her own.

[RivkahChaya]

Yes RivkahChaya, I am in the U.S. But this was a situation several years ago. I had to deal with it for about two years and finally the person left. I never was clear on whether she was evicted or moved on her own.

I don't know what the statutes are in your area, but where I live, people can be fined for 911 abuse, and it happens. I had a mildly retarded guy on my caseload when I did community living casework, and he had a bit of a panic disorder, and also no family in the area, so we had a problem with him "abusing" 911 in that every time he'd get a cut or a bruise he'd think he needed to go to the hospital, he'd call 911 for an ambulance. When the police (not an actual police officer, but a liaison person) called our office, and told us we needed to do something, or they were going to start fining him, we had to set up a protocol.

Anyway, I don't know anything about this person's mental status, but, while my first thought is that things really weren't handled satisfactorily, it's not impossible that the police checks were for your welfare, because she may have made threats to harm you to the 911 operator. They probably aren't allowed to tell you that, but it may have been documented nonetheless.

[RivkahChaya]

Regarding not knowing what your neighbors are up to: it's becoming a regular thing for the guy next door to use power tools on Wednesdays and Thursdays around 8pm, for around 1/2 an hour.

I'm getting a little creeped out about it.

[Steadmund Brand]

And so the story ends for Castro......

[Ginger]

Just another thousand years, and they can let him out.

[kensei]

Just to be clear after the last couple of comments- Castro is dead. He hanged himself in his jail cell. As I heard one commentator say in the news, "He couldn't take even one month of what he dished out for ten years."

Good riddance.

[kensei]

Now that this story is for the most part over, I just wanted to say a few words about how it has turned out for the victims. Amanda, Gina, and Michelle, though they have asked to have their privacy respected, have not gone completely into hiding but have appeared in the news and made public statements about how well they are doing and are just absolute poster children for victims recovering from horrible abuse. They are thriving, they have reclaimed their lives and shown that even a devil in human form could not rob them of who they are.

Castro plead guilty, though in so doing he made statements that things weren't really as bad as it was being made out to be. We had a real functioning family unit in that house, he said. Most of the sex was consensual! Sometimes they would even ask me for it! Yeah, but conveniently leaving out the fact that they thought he'd kill them if they didn't. This guy was the most evil, worthless scumbag criminal I can conjure from my darkest imagination. It came out that he impregnated Michelle Knight multiple times, and would punch her in the stomach to make her miscarry. But then when Amanda Berry was pregnant, he decided he wanted to keep that child and forced Michelle to act as midwife, telling her "If this baby dies I'll kill you." Since he plead guilty, it spared the women from having to testify in a trial and face him again. But at his sentencing, Michelle appeared anyway. She didn't have to. She wanted to, and from what I've read about her I thought yeah, if any of them were going to have the toughness to put themselves into his presence again it was definitely going to be her. She sat in the courtroom with her back to him, refusing to look at him, and gave a brave and eloquent victim impact statement.

He was sentenced to a millenium in prison. And now he is dead. I feel a great sense of triumph right now, that such an over the top case of great evil has ended with such incredible justice. There should be more cases like this. The good guys win, and win in spades! It's like when Elizabeth Smart was rescued, times ten. Ok, here ends my ranting happy dance.

[Mayerling]

Now that this story is for the most part over, I just wanted to say a few words about how it has turned out for the victims. Amanda, Gina, and Michelle, though they have asked to have their privacy respected, have not gone completely into hiding but have appeared in the news and made public statements about how well they are doing and are just absolute poster children for victims recovering from horrible abuse. They are thriving, they have reclaimed their lives and shown that even a devil in human form could not rob them of who they are.


He was sentenced to a millenium in prison. And now he is dead. I feel a great sense of triumph right now, that such an over the top case of great evil has ended with such incredible justice. There should be more cases like this. The good guys win, and win in spades! It's like when Elizabeth Smart was rescued, times ten. Ok, here ends my ranting happy dance.

Rant away, I fully agree with you. Actually it was the best news of the day yesterday.

Jeff

[RivkahChaya]

I flipped the TV on yesterday to put something on for my son, and it was on to a news channel, and the first words I caught were "Castro dead." It took me a minute.

We had a real functioning family unit in that house, he said. Most of the sex was consensual!

It wouldn't surprise me if that was actually his perception. I've met men who think there's nothing wrong with coercing women into sex, or getting them a little drunk on legal alcohol, as long as they are "good lovers." I've met men with all kinds of frightening perspectives on sex, who are otherwise normal, but somehow utterly incapable of the slightest understanding of what it's like to be a woman. I've met men who are 6'2 and 180lbs, who can't understand why the city bus lets women ride for free after 10pm. (People with disabilities can already get free passes for all times of day.)