CARIBOU, Maine — The barking of a dog, the laughter of children playing in the yard, and the sound of an early morning lawn mower are just a few elements that create the soundtrack of a suburban neighborhood. When the Caribou police department receives a complaint, even something as trivial as a noise complaint, they make an effort to respond, but this puts a strain on the city’s resources.
“We respond to every complaint and we only have so much manpower,” Caribou Police Chief Michael Gahagan said. “We receive a number of calls and we have to prioritize and something like an accident takes precedence.”
Filing a frivolous complaint not only wastes local law enforcement’s time it can also clog up the courts, Gahagan said. Local courts are backed up sorting through heavier offenses and are asking the police to cool it when it comes to something like turning in a report about a barking dog.
“A lot of issues that Code Enforcement deals with certainly stem from these types of complaints,” City Manager Austin Bleess said. “It’s hard to put a firm number on the amount of hours spent on that each week, but some weeks it is certainly 20-30 hours of staff time.”
Some use the police department as a crutch, Gahagan suggested. “What’s considered a nuisance is subjective to the individual,” he said. “But just because you believe it’s a nuisance doesn’t mean it’s a crime.”
It is up to the responding officer to determine at the scene whether a complaint rises to the level of a crime. Gahagan said most folks understand what it’s like to live close to neighbors like in parts of Caribou, but he suggested that maybe those few who can’t handle the sights and sounds of suburban living might find life more suitable in a rural and more isolated atmosphere.
