What To Do About That Pesky Drug Dealer?
Here’s a specific situation facing a tenant in a building but his question could also apply more broadly to illicit activity going on in the vicinity of your home: I’ve got quite the interesting situation going on in my building. I live on the first floor, and I know for a fact that there’s a…
Here’s a specific situation facing a tenant in a building but his question could also apply more broadly to illicit activity going on in the vicinity of your home:
This makes me extremely uncomfortable to know that this type of activity is so close to home. Because this goes on at all hours of the night and keeps me awake, I want to call the police and report this, but I also am wary of the “don’t snitch” edict in this neighborhood. I should also mention that even when not dealing, this guy and some friends are usually smoking blunts in the hallway (right outside my door) from 12am to 2am on weeknights.
I just don’t know what to do: (A) suck it up and wait til August and hope to get some sleep before then OR (B) call the police, hope that the dealer doesn’t figure out it’s me, and maybe have an increased chance of sleep. I’ve posted about this before, and the situation is now even worse. Anyone out there have advice?
Any thoughts?
Drug Dealer in Building [Brooklynian]
Regular readers of this site should remember we had the same topic a few months ago – dealing in the lobby of a building. It isn’t rare at all. I haven’t looked at the old thread but I believe several contributors have changed their tunes since then.
Oh, but you are wrong about smoking mj in public – you will be arrested for that. Major change since 20 years ago.
I think you are accurate on the weed issue, dirty one.
Personally people deal near my house (crack). I walk around it. If they were in front of my house I’d ask/tell them to move it. Somehow feels different when it is happening in a hallway outside an apartment door. Too many possibilities for spur of the moment burglaries.
What in the world does gentrification have to do with wanting to get drug dealers out of your building? Is it “gentrification” to want toxic chemicals removed from your property, or rats and vermin exterminated from your building? Come on. This misplaced liberal (and I’m a card carrying liberal)bulldinky is condescending in the worst way. Ruin someone’s life???? How about all of the lives ruined by the by products of this person’s employment choices? People cut down in drive by’s, and fire fights for turf. Jealous dealers burning down rival dealer’s buildings. Even the chance that the police get the wrong apt number, and hurt or emotionally scar for life some innocent person, including the OP.
Criminal behavior is what it is, and wrong and shouldn’t be tolerated in some kind of misplaced “poor underpriveleged, misunderstood person” ridiculousness. The people who have lived in that building for years would probably be the first to cheer to have this idiot arrested and evicted, as they probably have been doing their best to do before the OP noticed the dealing going on.
I’m all for historic preservation, but that does not extend to preserving the injustices, inequalities and unacceptable social conditions that have plagued communities. It is not gentrification to want a drug dealer removed from one’s building, it’s the fervent desire of every one else in that building, old, new and otherwise.
Well if it’s coke or heroin then that changes the whole dynamic of things – but I guess there’s no real way of the OP knowing that. I just assumed due to the blunt smoking it was probably a weed dealer.
Putnamdenizen – I’m sure you’ve seen your fair share of cases involving marijuana in your line of work – I personally have never heard of a case where police are willing to dedicate what would likely be a large number or resources to bust what is likely (but maybe not) a small time weed dealer, as they simply cannot bust down his door due to one complaint. I have friends that are narcotics detectives and it’s really not their main focus. I would imagine the majority of weed arrests are street pushers or people who are found to be carrying during those wonderful “stop and searches” in “high crime” areas.
But that’s just my opinion – if it’s totally off base plz set me straight. I just know I’ve been caught smoking twice in public, once I was given a warning and second time I was given an open container ticket.
move
Old school people (before gentrification madness hit) were not rich enuf to buy half million dollar apts, but certainly did not welcome or appreciate drug dealing. Stop the madness!
Letting the landlord know about this activity and calling the police is what I suggest. If they are smoking meth/cocaine, move out – case closed!
If they are smoking marijuana, they may be reasonable. If you are a man, be a man and ask them to leave and don’t come back. Men protect their families and the environment of their family.
Calling the police because of what you hear may not work. I work part time from my apartment doing hair. My hair supplier drops off supplies to my home. He never comes in we make the transaction at the entrance door. A conversation between us can sound like a drug transaction – “give me two” “is this product good quality” “how much for a ounce of black” – or he may just hand me my products in a black plastic bag, and I hand him the money and he leaves.
You SHOULD talk to the police but at this point nothing productive would happen fast.
I would talk to the landlord and look for a new place. When you find something break the lease and move. If at all possible I would make sure that the landlord doesnt owe you any money when you move (ie deposit).
I’d send a letter or two to the landlord to document your position.
You could also put up a sign in the vestibule stating “never sell no crack where you rest at”. I bet he’d get the hint.
Funny that some are assuming this is marijuana – sounds more like coke or heroin to me. I think there is a factual basis to me more concerned about the customers of the latter two drugs than the former. But in either case the continued presence of strangers in my lobbby would be a source of concern to me what every the drug. Given the number of very “low level” cases I see coming through arraignments, I question dirty hipster’s assessment of what will register on the police radar or not.