I-Team Exclusive: Next Door Nightmare
By Charlotte Huffman
HAVERFORD, Pa., (CBS) -- Getting along with your neighbor isn't always easy.
And one local man says what was happening next door was making life miserable for him.
So he called the I-Team.
Eyewitness News Investigative Reporter Charlotte Huffman went to work and shows us what happened when she talked to the woman next door.
Doug Croft of Haverford, Pa. told the I-Team he'd been dealing with a difficult neighbor for more than a year.
"It's torture to pull into my driveway not knowing what I'm going to be facing," said Croft.
Croft's neighbor, Christine McCormick put derogatory signs in her windows that seemed to target Croft's sexual orientation.
"I don't think she had the right to out me to the community," he told us.
It's unclear what prompted McCormick's behavior who also installed four YardGard devices on her property line aimed at Croft's property less than 15 feet away.
YardGards are electronic devices that when turned on, emit a non-stop high-pitched sound.
The product is designed to keep unwanted animals, like wildlife, away from yards.
The manufacturer's warnings state that the sound can cause "damage to the ear" and cautions "do not aim the product into neighboring yards."
The devices made Croft's dog afraid to go outside.
"So we spend no time in the backyard anymore," said Croft. "Its excruciatingly loud like something piercing through your head."
Even his other neighbors and friends complained about the noise.
"If I go to visit Doug, they bother my ears," said Lisa Curran who descibed feeling a vibration sensation from the devices.
It's a problem that left Croft, who is a gardener by trade, unable to enjoy his own backyard.
"I get headaches when I'm working out in my backyard," he said.
For more than a year Doug tried resolving the issue.
"I contacted the Haverford Township Codes Enforcement," he said. "I've also contacted Haverford Township Police."
Officials told McCormick to point the devices away from Croft's home but that didn't seem to solve the problem.
"Little by little she points them back into my yard," said Croft.
Meanwhile, the derogotary signs stayed put.
Recently district court judge, Robert R. Burke, found Christine McCormick guilty of harassment, fining her $50 and ordering her to remove the harassing signs or face jail time.
Judge Burke also ordered McCormick to remove two of the YardGard devices and cement the remaining two into the ground pointing away from Croft's house.
After the ruling, when the Eyewitness News I-Team caught up with McCormick she would refused to discuss her side of the story.
But Croft's friends think they know her motive.
"This seems to be more of a vendetta against Doug for who Doug is," said Andy Mariano.
Croft said he had explored every option to get the issue resolved peacefully before finally contacting the I-Team and taking his neighbor to court.
"I had to fight this for the well-being of the community, for the animals, for my lifestyle, for other people who might be facing similar harassment," he said.
The I-Team asked Haverford Township Code Enforcement officials and Haverford Township Police Department why it so long for them to take any action. Both code enforcement and police had no comment.
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So what can you do if you have a bad neighbor and reason hasn't worked?
Experts say to document everything and take photos if possible.
Take all pertinent documents with you and file a complaint with authorities.
And lastly, you can contact your community mediation center for help.
To find a community mediation center:
