Posted by Nydia Streets of Streets Law in Florida Domestic Violence

Can a Florida stalking injunction be used to stop discourteous neighbors from taking action which disturbs other neighbors? Unless the action fits the statutory definition of stalking, a domestic violence injunction petition is not the way to address these matters. This was an issue in the case Brennan v. Syfrett, 1D22-1286 (Fla. 1st DCA August 2, 2023).

In this case, there were allegations that neighbors shined lights into another neighbor’s yard, that animal manure was spread on the fence line separating the parties’ homes, and that the alleged offending neighbors rode ATVs on their property at night, among other allegations. Based on these allegations, the trial court entered a stalking injunction against the alleged offending neighbors. They appealed.

The appellate court noted “Before a court may impose an injunction against stalking, the court must find that the alleged conduct would inflict substantial emotional distress on a reasonable person. [. . . ] It is imperative to recognize that the act of ‘stalking,’ upon which a petition for injunction may be based, is abhorrent and criminal conduct, a first-degree misdemeanor under section 784.084(2), Florida Statutes.” The court went on “As this court has noted, the stalking statutes authorizing protective injunctions are not designed to ‘keep the peace’ between neighbors ‘who for whatever reason, are unable to get along and behave civilly toward each other.’ [internal citations omitted]. Courts must be careful not to apply the stalking statute to infringe on another person’s constitutionally protected freedom of association or free speech or apply in an overbroad manner to reach non-malicious conduct.”

The court concluded “We do not discount the discomfort caused to Appellees. But the trial court reversibly erred by granting the injunction under section 748.0485, Florida Statutes, because the conduct at issue would not have caused serious emotional distress in a reasonable person, and in addition, there was no evidence that the conduct lacked any legitimate purpose.” Schedule your one-on-one meeting with a Florida family law lawyer to understand how the law may apply to your case.