A 42-year-old man from Long Island, New York, once faced up to 30 days in jail and a $500 fine after his neighbor complained to the police that he was laughing too loudly, according to his lawyer[1][3][5].
Robert Schiavelli (not pictured), who suffers from neurological problems and seizures, received two tickets for disturbing the peace for laughing out the window of his home in Rockville Centre on February 12 and 13[1][2]. Schiavelli claims his neighbor regularly mocks his physical disabilities, and the best response to those taunts is laughter[1].
“He just ridicules me all the time and the only thing I can come up with is laughing,” Schiavelli said in a telephone interview[5].
However, other neighbors who wished to remain anonymous accused Schiavelli of being the bully, claiming he taunts elderly residents and children with his laugh[1].
Schiavelli’s lawyer, Andrew Campanelli, said his client has frequent seizures as a result of neurological impairments but denied his laugh is loud or boisterous[5].
“He’s like a big teddy bear, he’s got a low laugh,” Campanelli said[5].
Schiavelli lives with his mother, Suzanne Schiavelli, who said in an interview on Wednesday that he had a “fairly loud” laugh[5].
“I think it’s infectious. It’s cute,” she said. “When my husband died, we said to ourselves, ‘We’re going to make sure to laugh every day and make the most of life.'”[5]
The Rockville Centre Police Department stated they issued the summonses after receiving complaints about an ongoing pattern of noisemaking[5].
“On two occasions, police actually observed this individual creating a disturbance directed at neighbours and in violation of local law,” the police said in a statement[5].
Schiavelli’s lawyer, Andrew Campanelli, said a judge declined a motion to dismiss the case at a village court hearing on Tuesday[5]. However, charges against Schiavelli were later dropped[4].
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[1] https://www.nbcnewyork.com/news/local/man-fine-laughing-too-loud-long-island-summons-ticket/2075643/
[2] https://www.necn.com/news/local/_necn__ny_man_facing_jail_time_for_laughing_necn/165092/
[3] https://www.deccanherald.com/world/laugh-lands-man-jail-2246488
[4] https://www.cbsnews.com/newyork/news/charges-dropped-against-rockville-centre-man-accused-of-laughing-too-loudly/
[5] https://uk.movies.yahoo.com/2013-03-07-robert-schiavellis-loud-laugh-lands-him-in-trouble-with-neighbo.html
[6] https://www.huffpost.com/entry/robert-schiavelli-laughing-loudly-summons_n_2818742
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Reblogged this on USA ZORROZ PRESS ~ GOD BLESS THE WORLD.
mending wall-robert frost
“good fences make good neighbors”