Complaints to the Police
A quick way to discourage you from exercising your civil liberties

Tools of the Trade
Complaints to the police about things you do that are not illegal, especially when no one seems to complain when others do them. Playing music within the limits of local codes is a common example here. Another might be attempting to draw the police into the situation by giving some extra attention to your parking practices, even in neighborhoods where home owners enjoy a relaxed approach to enforcement. You should not be subject to a double-standard that is not supported by law.

Countermeasures
Know your rights.
You need to know your rights before you can protect them. What rights you have depend on any written lease that exists between your landlord and yourself. For example, signing some rental agreements in some places may constitute agreement to park only in a designated private zone. The terms of rental agreements are often mediated by local law, however. For example, in some cities any clause of your agreement that is not in accord with local law is invalid.  In addition, some cities enforce codes in addition to state law. For these reasons, to assure that you're protecting yourself and advocating for yourself to the fullest extent possible, learn what rights you have under the following:

• Your rental agreement
• City codes, if any
• County codes
• State codes

If you're fortunate, you are in a city where your landlord is required to distribute written information about tenants' rights and you have a tenants' rights organization that can help to clarify them in relation to the terms of your rental agreement.
Document the complaints.

• Public disclosure requests. Your right to disclosure may vary depending on local law and you may have to exercise persistence and use appeals to obtain whatever information is maintained in local databases and files. The public disclosure process can be highly contentious and there are many instances of lawsuits filed as a direct result of the failures of public agencies to comply with the laws governing disclosure. Use web search to locate information about how your city handles disclosure requests and learn how to form a proper request. In Seattle, for example, there is a Seattle Police Department web page that provides some rudimentary information on the public disclosure process as well as links for more information at http://www.seattle.gov/spd/records/PublicDisclosure.htm. As a general rule, when you compose your public disclosure request, cite the local code that specifies the public right to the information. If you need help with composing the letter, look for a template and boilerplate online, if you can, or consult any local organization that may exist in your area in support of public disclosure in the name of transparent government. In Seattle, for example, see the Washington Coalition for Open Government at http://www.washingtoncog.org/. For links to organizations and agencies advocating for or participating in the public disclosure process, see Resources. Some of these organizations have forums or email lists where you can get help. If you are having trouble writing a productive request, in other words, if an agency refuses to release records that they must by law release, try to get the help of an attorney. There are low-cost and even free clinics in some cities where you can consult with a volunteer attorney on a wide range of matters. Check the website of the bar association for your county.
  
• Record of the complainant call. Sometimes  you can get a record of the call that was made to the police, especially when the police recognize and grow tired of a chronic complaint situation. 9-1-1 calls are often available through the public disclosure request process. This technique can prove useful for complaints for which the police do not write a report because the complaint is false. For example, for a noise complaint, the responding patrol car may only drive by and conclude that the complaint was unfounded or that the noise abated. In such cases, if a report is not filed, a public disclosure request for incident reports may not yield results. If you suspect that false complaints are being made about you to the police, you might also check to see if there is a website documenting calls to the police. For example, some police departments provide an online log of the 9-1-1 calls that come in. If they provide an online map of the calls they receive, you may also be able to take a screenshot of it to add to your documentation.
  
• Talk to the police. Even if the reports are false, the fact that they are being made makes it important that you understand what the law is. This helps to clarify your rights. Talking to the police also helps to verify that complaints are being made since, if the police cruise your house and don't see anything wrong, they may not file a report. Lastly, talking to the police gives you a chance to explain that you are being harassed and could give them a bit more insight into the situation. Be cautious, however, because biased policing is endemic and bias may likely fall on the side of home owners instead of the law. If you have contact with an officer, ask for his or her card and badge number and get the identifying number of the patrol car. These are all good documentation.