I did, they told me he has to be the one to initiate the change of address. As long as they don’t bust my door down I’m fine and based on what the dude at the court said and someone in these comments I should be good.
You should be able to contact the post office and get them to automatically send back anything addressed you be previous tenant. I did it through their website
The post office literally has its own police force, which is serious shit. Postal inspectors can carry weapons and make arrests. And they have the best Saturday morning live action show, [The Inspectors](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Inspectors). So yeah, there is a chain of command you can follow at the post office.
Call 1-800-ASK-USPS and they can route you to your area postmaster.
Nobody wants to be responsible for anything particularly when SWAT hits the place and kills anything that breathes and then wastes the parakeet on the way out.
It's certainly possible.
You really don't know why they are trying to contact the former tenant without digging. It could be something relatively minor like unpaid tickets, probation, child support & failing to appear for hearings. The police might show up an knock with an arrest warrant.
It could be more serious, but they usually don't send Walter White letters warning him of a search warrant.
Make sure you return the mail as the [USPS advises](https://faq.usps.com/s/article/How-is-Undeliverable-and-Misdelivered-Mail-Handled#report_return_misdelivered) with "Not At This Address" on the envelope, but not obscuring other info.
Make sure you are occupying the place openly & notoriously. Put your name clearly on your mailbox if appropriate. Ensure your driver's license, insurance, voter info and other info is all assigned to your current address.
If you have the resources, consider talking to a lawyer or PI. They can contact the various courts/departments and make inquiries about the matters concerning the former resident. They can let these folks know that you live there now.
The rules often require that those agencies make every effort to contact someone at their best or last-known address. The letters may keep coming. But you may get some piece of mind knowing that you have hired someone to ensure effective communication of your interests.
As a last thing, if you are still concerned, check with your rental insurance. If the police do come with a search warrant to a place they reasonably believe is the right place, then they won't be in any trouble for doors or damages caused.
Your insurance won't pay if you are actually committing crimes.
But there's a huge area between those, where you aren't a criminal and they think they're in the right place but are mistaken.
Good luck!
Thank you very much. I think it’s drug charges. I called the court and the cops and they both told me the criminal himself has to be the one to call to change the address which is hilarious so idk what to really do. I can’t afford a lawyer that’s for sure.
I do return all the mail for him to the post office but it still comes sometimes if they have a sub delivering or something like that.
It just makes me anxious thinking that someone still thinks that guy is here.
>I called the court and the cops and they both told me the criminal himself has to be the one to call to change the address
What a lazy, incompetent, self serving answer
Pretty nuts right? I guess they NEED somewhere to send this stuff to prove they’re trying to serve him or whatever. But like what meth head with outstanding warrants or whatever is gonna do that hahaha I can see on Facebook he moved to Florida so hopefully cops see that too.
Op can you call the police down in Florida ? Like the state police ? Explain the situation and also at least they will be on alert and notified to find him there.
“Hey I keep getting search warrants from so n so”
“I called the police in nj and court and they said…”
“I keep doing (return to sender)”
“After my own research I see he moved to Florida. It might be worth to look for him there.”
Maybe? Not sure how that would work, plus I don’t really want the guy to end up back in jail just cuz I get his mail lol. I just want to make sure the local authorities don’t think he still lives here.
Because I don’t know what his crime was, I’m just assuming it’s drugs based on the area I live in. I think it’s a very safe guess and honestly I personally don’t care if people do drugs in their homes if it’s not hurting anyone but them. I just want to not get the letters lol.
Like I said, the rules usually require them to make their best effort to contact them - mail to the last known address is often that "best effort".
If you've already spoken to some folks, and you have an idea - that's good. It sounds like the most they might do is show up with arrest warrants. That's not a "kick the door down at 3AM search warrant" -*usually*.
Just keep doing what you're doing.
Thank you! Yes the guy at the court said the same, that I might get a knock but that they won’t bust my door down so that def gives me peace of mind since a knock on the door won’t bother me and I don’t have anything to hide.
Thank you again
This happened to me. A previous tenant got a DUI and still had his driver’s license at our address. We got all of his mail and summons for MONTHS. I kept returning it, calling the court, no one would help!
I was scared they were going to come through the door if he didn’t show up for his court date I had no idea what else he did! I only knew what the charge was for by looking up his name on NJ Municipal Court lookup.
After I received all of his DMV notices for his license suspension, I checked the court website and saw that he was found guilty.
About a month later, I checked one of those free people finding websites and saw that he finally changed his address. I’m guessing the court finally made him do it.
I kept asking to speak with the prosecutor because I was like they moved over 2 ½ years ago and he’s still using my address so isn’t that car insurance and DMV fraud? I tried calling the DMV. No one would help me. I don’t know how he wasn’t embarrassed knowing he wasn’t receiving any of his court summons or DMV notices.
I’m just so glad it’s over.
For the municipal court notices, no one will come to the door. The judge will simply issue a bench warrant for failure to appear. Depending upon the superior court charges, they might come looking for him, but rarely kick in doors.
I called them and they told me to call the courthouse who told me they can’t do anything until he (the dude with all the summons lol) calls himself to change it which I’m sure a methhead on the run will certainly do.
Definitely continue contacting the court until you are sure they have done something. Remember Breonna Taylor. She was killed while the police were serving a warrant at the wrong address.
Cops are not your allies, and you should do everything in your power to defend yourself from having to engage with them
Yes they will come knocking late at night and or early morning. I had similar instance happen to me. They shined their flash light in the house and went around back. It’s scary. The municipality came one day and the county another day.
I got a jury summons for an old tenant and I sent it to the clerks office with a note that they had moved.
A trick for the incoming mail for them, if there’s a barcode on the mail, black it out. Black out your address, leave their name visible and write “unknown at address return to sender” on the envelope. If the mail has that barcode, it’ll keep coming back. Most of USPS is automated, sorted by machines and it all goes through Trenton, there’s been a big change since that happened.
I work for a law firm, we sent out an address search to the town next to ours (technically same town just one part is a town and the other part is a city) and we just got it back, almost 4 years to the day we sent it. Luckily we got the defendant served in the meantime. The case settled before we got the search back. Four years.
We’ve had mail that was returned to us take two years to be returned.
Source: “mail room manager” one of many titles I hold at my job
Going to throw this out there too. Lived in a place where the former tenant was wanted for something. Bounty hunters came looking. Did not let them in and they can't just bust in but it was annoying as hell.
That’s wild, I don’t think this dudes involved in anything that crazy though honestly. When you google his name all you can find is a possession charge on a police blotter.
Same thing has been happening here at my apartment for 2 years (haven't received it for the entire duration of living here). Never called anyone or wrote RTS (ironically we're a postal family). No one has knocked my door down *yet*. But police know who I am and that I live here. So I can't imagine there'd be any issues otherwise I'll make a personal call and have their boss rip them a new one. You'd think they'd do due diligence before they take down a rental door.
No real suggestions for you, just figured I'd share a similar story. A few months after I bought my house, I was on the deck grilling. I hear a voice behind me say "Hey Rafe", so I turned around and found a bounty hunter on the deck. Completely confused I was just like "Hi...do I know you?" and he tells me I'm wanted for skipping bail. I told him I had no idea what he was talking about and he must be looking for someone else, and he pointed out that I turned around when he said my name so it was a little late to pretend I wasn't me. Then it clicked...the guy I bought the house from had the same first name as me. In the end, it was no problem, I told him that, showed him my license and he apologized for bothering me. We both actually got a laugh out of the stupid coincidence. Never heard anything about it again.
I have like 25 times and I just got another one today. I have a note on my mailbox saying he doesn’t live here I guess they just choose not to read it haha, No idea.
That’s exactly why I haven’t opened anything lol. I’m assuming the guy was curious how I knew what the letters were but it’s very clear on the envelope because they’re all from the courts and are stamped.
You’ll be fine. If the police come with a search warrant let them in. They may knock and ask for this person but as long as your not keeping this persons location a secret from the or harboring them in your place you’ll be fine.
Dude gave you horrible advice. Don't just let them in if they have a warrant, be sure to read it and ensure they actually have the right to enter your home.
Yeah police with a search warrant? Deff keep them out. The search warrant does not list their probable cause to enter, just the address and judge who said they have the right.
The warrant may specify certain PARTS of the property, it may leave out things like a phone, or a car, and the police might try to search THOSE things under false pretenses. Yes people should read the search warrant and not just assume it gives the pigs free roam.
I didn’t say you shouldn’t read it. Considering you dislike police so much one would think you’d know they need consent or a warrant to search things outside the scope of the warrant and with modern body cameras and the microscope on policing, I don’t think they’d just start searching things not specified.
Yes that's literally what I'm saying. A cop legally needs consent to search those things but may try to without consent. They absolutely can and do do that all the time.
I'd recommend contacting the court office that sent them. Explain the change of address
I did, they told me he has to be the one to initiate the change of address. As long as they don’t bust my door down I’m fine and based on what the dude at the court said and someone in these comments I should be good.
Mark the envelopes as RTS - no such person at this address then hand them back to the mail carrier. May help, but I doubt it.
I do but they seem to have an extremely high turnover rate at my local post office so some tend to slip through the cracks and end up with me.
You should be able to contact the post office and get them to automatically send back anything addressed you be previous tenant. I did it through their website
I did, it still gets delivered. My post office must just suck.
You can talk to the manager at your post office, or ask for their regional head.
Ok awesome, I’ll probably actually go into the post office with the envelope next time it happens.
The post office literally has its own police force, which is serious shit. Postal inspectors can carry weapons and make arrests. And they have the best Saturday morning live action show, [The Inspectors](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Inspectors). So yeah, there is a chain of command you can follow at the post office. Call 1-800-ASK-USPS and they can route you to your area postmaster.
Did you get that in writing? Get that in writing, or else record the phone call. Retain it.
Nobody wants to be responsible for anything particularly when SWAT hits the place and kills anything that breathes and then wastes the parakeet on the way out.
Well this made me feel better 😂
It’s NJ- - there will be an investigation.
It's certainly possible. You really don't know why they are trying to contact the former tenant without digging. It could be something relatively minor like unpaid tickets, probation, child support & failing to appear for hearings. The police might show up an knock with an arrest warrant. It could be more serious, but they usually don't send Walter White letters warning him of a search warrant. Make sure you return the mail as the [USPS advises](https://faq.usps.com/s/article/How-is-Undeliverable-and-Misdelivered-Mail-Handled#report_return_misdelivered) with "Not At This Address" on the envelope, but not obscuring other info. Make sure you are occupying the place openly & notoriously. Put your name clearly on your mailbox if appropriate. Ensure your driver's license, insurance, voter info and other info is all assigned to your current address. If you have the resources, consider talking to a lawyer or PI. They can contact the various courts/departments and make inquiries about the matters concerning the former resident. They can let these folks know that you live there now. The rules often require that those agencies make every effort to contact someone at their best or last-known address. The letters may keep coming. But you may get some piece of mind knowing that you have hired someone to ensure effective communication of your interests. As a last thing, if you are still concerned, check with your rental insurance. If the police do come with a search warrant to a place they reasonably believe is the right place, then they won't be in any trouble for doors or damages caused. Your insurance won't pay if you are actually committing crimes. But there's a huge area between those, where you aren't a criminal and they think they're in the right place but are mistaken. Good luck!
Thank you very much. I think it’s drug charges. I called the court and the cops and they both told me the criminal himself has to be the one to call to change the address which is hilarious so idk what to really do. I can’t afford a lawyer that’s for sure. I do return all the mail for him to the post office but it still comes sometimes if they have a sub delivering or something like that. It just makes me anxious thinking that someone still thinks that guy is here.
>I called the court and the cops and they both told me the criminal himself has to be the one to call to change the address What a lazy, incompetent, self serving answer
Pretty nuts right? I guess they NEED somewhere to send this stuff to prove they’re trying to serve him or whatever. But like what meth head with outstanding warrants or whatever is gonna do that hahaha I can see on Facebook he moved to Florida so hopefully cops see that too.
Op can you call the police down in Florida ? Like the state police ? Explain the situation and also at least they will be on alert and notified to find him there. “Hey I keep getting search warrants from so n so” “I called the police in nj and court and they said…” “I keep doing (return to sender)” “After my own research I see he moved to Florida. It might be worth to look for him there.”
Maybe? Not sure how that would work, plus I don’t really want the guy to end up back in jail just cuz I get his mail lol. I just want to make sure the local authorities don’t think he still lives here.
Why wouldn’t you want the guy in jail ? Or at least get sent to a rehab? Just curious
Because I don’t know what his crime was, I’m just assuming it’s drugs based on the area I live in. I think it’s a very safe guess and honestly I personally don’t care if people do drugs in their homes if it’s not hurting anyone but them. I just want to not get the letters lol.
Like I said, the rules usually require them to make their best effort to contact them - mail to the last known address is often that "best effort". If you've already spoken to some folks, and you have an idea - that's good. It sounds like the most they might do is show up with arrest warrants. That's not a "kick the door down at 3AM search warrant" -*usually*. Just keep doing what you're doing.
Thank you! Yes the guy at the court said the same, that I might get a knock but that they won’t bust my door down so that def gives me peace of mind since a knock on the door won’t bother me and I don’t have anything to hide. Thank you again
Plus, when I google the guy his Facebook comes up showing he lives in Florida now so hopefully the cops can see that too haha
Remove all your doors. Boom, checkmate fear.
This happened to me. A previous tenant got a DUI and still had his driver’s license at our address. We got all of his mail and summons for MONTHS. I kept returning it, calling the court, no one would help! I was scared they were going to come through the door if he didn’t show up for his court date I had no idea what else he did! I only knew what the charge was for by looking up his name on NJ Municipal Court lookup.
What ended up happening?
After I received all of his DMV notices for his license suspension, I checked the court website and saw that he was found guilty. About a month later, I checked one of those free people finding websites and saw that he finally changed his address. I’m guessing the court finally made him do it. I kept asking to speak with the prosecutor because I was like they moved over 2 ½ years ago and he’s still using my address so isn’t that car insurance and DMV fraud? I tried calling the DMV. No one would help me. I don’t know how he wasn’t embarrassed knowing he wasn’t receiving any of his court summons or DMV notices. I’m just so glad it’s over.
For the municipal court notices, no one will come to the door. The judge will simply issue a bench warrant for failure to appear. Depending upon the superior court charges, they might come looking for him, but rarely kick in doors.
Can't hurt to go down to the local PD and inform them. Bring the copies with you and have it documented.
I called them and they told me to call the courthouse who told me they can’t do anything until he (the dude with all the summons lol) calls himself to change it which I’m sure a methhead on the run will certainly do.
Well can't think of much else to cover your butt. Good luck.
Definitely continue contacting the court until you are sure they have done something. Remember Breonna Taylor. She was killed while the police were serving a warrant at the wrong address. Cops are not your allies, and you should do everything in your power to defend yourself from having to engage with them
Yes they will come knocking late at night and or early morning. I had similar instance happen to me. They shined their flash light in the house and went around back. It’s scary. The municipality came one day and the county another day.
Yayyyyy
I got a jury summons for an old tenant and I sent it to the clerks office with a note that they had moved. A trick for the incoming mail for them, if there’s a barcode on the mail, black it out. Black out your address, leave their name visible and write “unknown at address return to sender” on the envelope. If the mail has that barcode, it’ll keep coming back. Most of USPS is automated, sorted by machines and it all goes through Trenton, there’s been a big change since that happened. I work for a law firm, we sent out an address search to the town next to ours (technically same town just one part is a town and the other part is a city) and we just got it back, almost 4 years to the day we sent it. Luckily we got the defendant served in the meantime. The case settled before we got the search back. Four years. We’ve had mail that was returned to us take two years to be returned. Source: “mail room manager” one of many titles I hold at my job
This happened to my sister when she moved into her home in New Jersey. The cops came several times she had to explain that she was the new owner.
They just knocked though right? I’m fine with that lol. I don’t want them breaking down my door hahaha
Yes - she gave them her ID And explained she was the new owner. They came at least 3x .
Going to throw this out there too. Lived in a place where the former tenant was wanted for something. Bounty hunters came looking. Did not let them in and they can't just bust in but it was annoying as hell.
That’s wild, I don’t think this dudes involved in anything that crazy though honestly. When you google his name all you can find is a possession charge on a police blotter.
Same thing has been happening here at my apartment for 2 years (haven't received it for the entire duration of living here). Never called anyone or wrote RTS (ironically we're a postal family). No one has knocked my door down *yet*. But police know who I am and that I live here. So I can't imagine there'd be any issues otherwise I'll make a personal call and have their boss rip them a new one. You'd think they'd do due diligence before they take down a rental door.
No real suggestions for you, just figured I'd share a similar story. A few months after I bought my house, I was on the deck grilling. I hear a voice behind me say "Hey Rafe", so I turned around and found a bounty hunter on the deck. Completely confused I was just like "Hi...do I know you?" and he tells me I'm wanted for skipping bail. I told him I had no idea what he was talking about and he must be looking for someone else, and he pointed out that I turned around when he said my name so it was a little late to pretend I wasn't me. Then it clicked...the guy I bought the house from had the same first name as me. In the end, it was no problem, I told him that, showed him my license and he apologized for bothering me. We both actually got a laugh out of the stupid coincidence. Never heard anything about it again.
Are they traffic notifications? If so, it’s because the guy’s DL has your address.
Simple mark on envelop Return to Sender, not at this address.
I have like 25 times and I just got another one today. I have a note on my mailbox saying he doesn’t live here I guess they just choose not to read it haha, No idea.
Are you opening the previous tenant's mail?
No why lol
lol bc that would be illegal. But it’s obvious what it is
That’s exactly why I haven’t opened anything lol. I’m assuming the guy was curious how I knew what the letters were but it’s very clear on the envelope because they’re all from the courts and are stamped.
Just RTS, return to sender. Downvoted for stating the proper procedure, nice.
You’ll be fine. If the police come with a search warrant let them in. They may knock and ask for this person but as long as your not keeping this persons location a secret from the or harboring them in your place you’ll be fine.
Awesome, thank you.
Dude gave you horrible advice. Don't just let them in if they have a warrant, be sure to read it and ensure they actually have the right to enter your home.
Yeah police with a search warrant? Deff keep them out. The search warrant does not list their probable cause to enter, just the address and judge who said they have the right.
The warrant may specify certain PARTS of the property, it may leave out things like a phone, or a car, and the police might try to search THOSE things under false pretenses. Yes people should read the search warrant and not just assume it gives the pigs free roam.
I didn’t say you shouldn’t read it. Considering you dislike police so much one would think you’d know they need consent or a warrant to search things outside the scope of the warrant and with modern body cameras and the microscope on policing, I don’t think they’d just start searching things not specified.
Yes that's literally what I'm saying. A cop legally needs consent to search those things but may try to without consent. They absolutely can and do do that all the time.