It was around seven or eight o’clock at night, and she and her husband were putting their kids to bed, when a sheriff knocked on the door. The mom behind @taybsole says he was there to serve her with a civil protection order, filed by the very neighbor she says threatened to kill her children back in May. The reason, she says, was one security camera. She told her followers she was “so emotional right now” and could hardly believe this was happening to her family.
This was an update to a neighbor feud she has been sharing for months. According to her account, the trouble began in May, when the woman next door brought out a gun and threatened her kids. She says prosecutors have since filed charges against the neighbor for aggravated menacing and for violating an existing protection order. Her four-year-old daughter, she says, is now “petrified” to go outside because she understands what happened.
So on a nice Thursday, with the neighbors gone, the family finally took a chance. Her husband rode the kids around on a dirt bike. It was, she says, the first time they had really spent time outdoors since May.
Then the neighbors came home. She says the woman opened her garage, acted like she was sweeping, and started blasting loud rap music while the young kids were nearby. “It was a way for her to harass us,” she said.
Afterward, the family checked the camera on that side of their house, which they say they put up for safety after the threat. It is solar powered, and it kept shutting off to save battery. Her husband moved it into the sun so it would stay charged and would also cover more of the back of the house.
The neighbors called the police. Two deputies came out, one to each house. The neighbors claimed her husband had been revving the dirt bike to antagonize them, which she denies. She says the deputy told them he would just make a report. The next night, that same deputy came back with the protection order.
@taybsole
She says the neighbor’s statement claims the camera was put up to spy on them and is causing her great mental distress, and that she is worried about her teenage son. The neighbors had built a privacy fence, and the statement says the camera was moved to see over it. She says the family does not care about the fence. “We move the camera for our own safety,” she said. She points out the neighbors still have three cameras facing her property, and adds that the order was filed against her even though, in her words, “I’m not even the one that put up the cameras.”
What hurts most, she says, is that the order bars her from recording. “Every single time something happens, the cops are always telling me, well, you need to record her,” she said. “Now I can’t record her for my own safety.” She adds that the neighbor’s husband later revved a loud truck with no exhaust for 20 to 30 minutes and flipped her off, and that the family has now filed harassment charges of their own.
Her caption carries the quiet part. She says she is on Zillow every day looking at houses, “but who is going to want to buy this house with these crazy people living next door?” She ended the video with a question many people in her shoes have asked: “What do I do?”
What to Do If You Are Served With a Protection Order
Laws differ from state to state, and anyone in this spot should talk to a local attorney. But some general points apply in most places.
Follow it to the letter, even if you think it is unfair. Many protection orders are first issued on a temporary basis after only one side is heard. Violating one, even by accident, can lead to arrest. Read every condition and obey it until a judge changes it.
Find the hearing date. Temporary orders are usually followed by a full hearing where both sides can speak and present evidence. Missing it can mean the order is extended without your side being heard.
Get a lawyer. If cost is a worry, call your local legal aid office or the county bar association, which often runs a referral service with reduced-fee first consultations.
Gather your records. Police report numbers, prior court filings, existing orders, photos and dates all matter. Write a simple timeline while events are fresh.
Keeping Records When You Cannot Record
If an order limits recording, ask your lawyer exactly what it covers before doing anything. In the meantime, a handwritten log is still evidence. Write the date, time, what happened and who saw it. Call the non-emergency line or 911 when appropriate so there is an official record. Ask officers for report numbers every time.
For home cameras in general, most places allow you to record your own property, but it is wise to aim cameras at your own doors, driveway and yard rather than into a neighbor’s windows or fenced backyard. Audio recording laws are stricter than video in many states, so check before recording sound.
Selling a House Next to a Problem Neighbor
She is right to wonder about resale. Some states require sellers to disclose known neighbor disputes or ongoing legal issues that could affect a buyer, and staying silent can lead to lawsuits after closing. A local real estate attorney or experienced agent can explain what must be disclosed. Pricing honestly, highlighting the home’s strengths and selling to buyers who value the house itself can still lead to a sale.
For now, @taybsole and her family are stuck waiting for courts to sort out who is telling the truth, and a little girl is still afraid of her own backyard.
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