Should we press charges?

I would ask your homeowners insurance if it would be required in order to be reimbursed.
The guy is sick. There are already enough people in our prison system that should be in hospitals instead. Personally I would not burden the poor guy with the threat of jail because he was mentally ill. And if the damage was less than $1000 I wouldn’t even involve my insurance.

Probably released to the Fire Department because many fire departments also run the EMS services. In other words they put him in the back of an ambulance for the trip back to the hospital.

I’d press charges. What if he was stealing your satellite while not on meds while suffering from bi polar? It doesn’t replace the fact that vandalism basically occurred.

Trying to look at this factually. He’ll never be off his meds again.

Will he be held in the hospital for long enough to get him stabilized? If so, I wouldn’t press charges if your insurance will cover it without that. If it’s only going to be a 48/72 hour hold, I’d seriously consider pressing charges just to keep him off the streets (depending on how long a sentence he’s likely to get).

Yes, press charges. It may be necessary, to claim on your home insurance for the repairs.

My wife had a problem at the hospital she works at with a patient and ended up pressing charges. She made it clear to the prosecutor that she wasn’t interested in anything more than making sure the lady didn’t mess with anyone else, and got some help, so that’s what the prosecutor worked towards.

I was initially against her pressing charges because I think we lose a lot of control once something becomes “official” and someone with no connection to the situation, or the people involved, gets it on their desk. There is just no telling what their motivation will be.

As it turned out they required a few things of her, but they worked around her job or other responsibilities. There was no fine or time in jail. I’d like to think it worked out well.

Maybe you can find out more about what the process would be, what the charges would be, and how it would be handled and then make an informed decision?

I understand worrying about some sort of vendetta, but I think the likelihood of someone blaming you (a person they’ve never seen) for them having trouble with the police after climbing on your roof would be fairly slim, right? People understand when they’ve screwed up.

Sorry this happened to you and I hope it works out the best it can from here.

If you take it to your insurance, your premiums might go up. It wouldn’t hurt to call your insurance company and ask how that works. It certainly works that way with car claims.

Edit: It might be best to find out the total cost of repairs, and then you can speak intelligently with them.

Thinking of what people have said about finding out the repercussions if you don’t press charges, consider that you can tell the police “yes”, but then drop the charges later. And there are alternatives to consider if you feel in danger- you can ask for a restraining order so he can’t come by your house.

To me it sounds like you have a good heart and just want your stuff repaired and to be left alone. So in the light of day, find out if it is necessary to press charges to get reimbursed, and if you’re really in any danger. And you can find out if the guy has any money or insurance available to cover your repairs. If he can make you whole, that’s all that is needed.

@zenvelo Yeah, as if a restraining order is going to work on someone who’s on a maniacal high. It might get the guy locked up longer if/when they do catch him again, but it’s not really protection against crazy.

@zenvelo has a point. We had a resident in our apartments go off his meds, clog all the sinks and toilet in his apartment, turn on all the water and leave on a walk about.
The flood damaged 4 apartments.
His parents had co signed for him and their homeowners insurance paid for the damage.
If this guy owns a home his homeowners insurance might pay. It’s not like he maliciously damaged your property. He actually believed the voices in his head that were telling him it was necessary. (An assumption I know based on my experience working in mental health years ago.)

Find out what the attorney fees will be when you are figuring costs. The first visit to an attorney is free and you can discuss costs at that time.

@Sunny2 , if they press charges the district attorney will basically represent them. They won’t have ant attorney fees.

My moral sense is that I would not press charges on a mentally ill person if your insurance will cover the loss or if it is minimal. Why add to his misery?

I’d press charges. This guy clearly needs a legal kick in the pants to get him to stay on his meds.

Just because he’s mentally ill doesn’t mean he has 0 control. He can choose to take meds to stop these episodes. He alone has to make that choice.

He needs to learn that the sympathy card only works so long. He needs to step up and take responsibility for his treatment.

I’m with @janbb, guy needs help not more thing’s against him.

“Crazy’ isn’t very nice either, my mom’s bi-polar and is the most loving, kind person I’ve ever met now that she’s on meds and not drinking.

@pleiades The motivation and circumstances matter to me. This guy most definitely was not trying to steal our satellite. But if he was trying to steal it to fend off some imaginary assailant, I would not treat it the same as if they were stealing it for cable. Also, it doesn’t really mean he will never be off meds again. I wish it were that simple.

@augustlan He’s already on the streets! He escaped from the hospital. Also, I’m not sure whether or not pressing charges would lengthen his stay. I think that would be up to the hospital that’s admitting him to decide whether or not he needs a 5150.

@funkdaddy This sounds like the best solution/approach. Could you PM me more about it?

Another not entirely related story, we’re also dealing with another situation at our other property. There’s a lady that is in some feud with her brother. She asked a neighbor to call the police on her behalf (as witnessed by several other neighbors). When the police came, she was belligerent and they arrested her. When she was released, she came back with a personal vendetta against the neighbor who called the police on her behalf. She tried to set his car on fire and she jammed stuff into his door keyhole so he couldn’t get out. Vendettas and feuds don’t always follow lines of logic.

@zenvelo That’s similar to my husband’s line of thinking. He didn’t want to forgo his right to press charges. He figured that he could drop the charge later. I’m not sure a restraining order would do much in this situation.

@seekingwolf I don’t think pressing charges is going to teach him a valuable lesson. Though I’m wondering if it might help his family get some legal leverage to get him back on his meds (ie conservatorship).

@KNOWITALL I didn’t say all bipolar people are crazy. But I think climbing onto someone’s roof and tearing off a satellite dish, thinking someone is after you just might be a good example of crazy.

Okay, this is what I’ve done so far. I’ve called the police to ask about the guy’s previous record. If he has a record of violence or aggressive behavior, I think we will press charges. If this is his first incident, we may drop the charges.

Also, I have asked Police Records to look back five years of calls/incidents from our residence. I want to make sure that Monday’s incident was random and that he doesn’t have a relationship/obsession with our house for some reason.

Some back story. My aunt has trespassed onto our neighbor’s property before thinking it was our house. My aunt was very scared that someone was in “our house”. Our neighbors were very understanding.

My schizophrenic sister hit a teenage boy who was taunting her. While the kid probably deserved it, the mother was well in her right to press charges. And to that I am grateful. I feel like the universe has given me a chance to return the favor.

Yet, on the other hand, I almost wish she had pressed charges because that would have given us the legal leverage to get my sister a conservatorship to get her back on her meds. It’s something we constantly struggle with.

Also, while my sister is one of the kindest most gentle people I know, I also know that she is capable of violence. Not malevolent violence, but violence nonetheless. If she feels threatened, she reacts on an almost primal level.

@everyone Thanks, guys. I didn’t get a chance to address everyone individually, but I appreciate all of your input.

@Judi Of course! Silly me.