Posted on 01/24/2004 9:17:05 AM PST by mylife
Couple demands halt to neighbor's smoking Restraining order sought over nuisance to health By Phil Trexler Beacon Journal staff writer
Robert Zangrando has had it up to his chest, nose and eyes with his neighbor's smoking and he's taking her to court to get her to quit.
Zangrando, a retired University of Akron history professor who lives in Stow, was in Summit County court Thursday with his wife and lawyer.
Together they are seeking a restraining order against his next-door neighbor, Nicole Kuder, 28, that would prohibit her from smoking outdoors within 30 feet of her condominium.
Zangrando, 71, and his wife, UA instructor Lisa A. Pace, contend the smoking affects their health and has become a nuisance.
Before the hearing, Kuder said, ``I have tried to accommodate them, and this is the result.''
The couple's attorney, Ed Gilbert, called the situation an emergency and wanted Common Pleas Judge Marvin Shapiro to rule immediately on the restraining order request. Shapiro declined because Kuder came to court without an attorney.
Akron attorney Tom Adgate was retained by Kuder just before the hearing and was unable to attend. Shapiro delayed ruling until the hearing resumes Tuesday with Kuder and her attorney.
Kuder and Zangrando have been neighbors in a condominium complex on Higby Drive for about two years. Their two-story units are separated only by a shared wall. They share a front porch, and a wooden fence separates their back doors.
Zangrando said his neighbor's cigarette smoking is apparent whenever he opens a window or steps outside his home. He said the fumes compromise his health, causing him to wheeze and cough.
He said he suffers from lung problems, including emphysema, and has had asthma in the past. He said the smoking is such that he is reluctant to let his dog or two cats outside.
``It hits you right away, the minute you walk out the door. It catches me, I start coughing, I know she's smoking, I can see she's smoking visually, and I can get the effects of the smoke when I inhale what should be fresh air in my own back patio,'' Zangrando told the judge.
Kuder rents the condo she and her family live in and is not permitted to smoke inside the unit. Zangrando and Pace have owned their unit since marrying in 1996.
``It's a constant reality. She's out there smoking, and I have been appealing to her since she first moved: Please, if you're going smoke, would you move away from the house because the fumes come in our house, and we no longer have discretionary use of our house,'' Zangrando told the judge.
He said he has tried for more than a year to convince Kuder to smoke elsewhere, to no avail. He said he tried to reach an agreement in October, but Kuder and her husband, who does not smoke, refused to sign.
Kuder said Zangrando wanted her to walk to a nearby parking lot to smoke. She said he snoops on her, photographs her movements and has yelled at her to ``go, kill my family'' with her cigarettes.
``I tried to be nice and go out back and compromise, but they constantly harass us,'' Kuder said outside court. ``There have been times when I've had friends over, and he comes out screaming at us. It bothers me, but at the same time, I try to be a respectful smoker.''
"Country-western songwriter and entertainer Sollie "Tex" Williams, a heavy smoker best known for his tune, "Smoke, Smoke, Smoke That Cigarette," died after a year-long battle with cancer, his daughter said. . . . her father, who was diagnosed a year ago as having cancer, smoked two packs of cigarettes a day, dropping to about a pack a day before he died. "He tried to quit, but he couldn't," she said."
Together they are seeking a restraining order against his next-door neighbor, Nicole Kuder, 28, that would prohibit her from smoking outdoors within 30 feet of her condominium.
``It's a constant reality. She's out there smoking, and I have been appealing to her since she first moved: Please, if you're going smoke, would you move away from the house because the fumes come in our house, and we no longer have discretionary use of our house,'' Zangrando told the judge.
How's that song go? "Ahhhhhh if "I" ruled the world?"
The lady is smoking outside of the condo. If this fellow and his wife are that sensitive, they'd be walking around with respirators on 100% of the time.
Sorry, I just can't work up any sympathy for a group of folks who insists on doing stupid things to their own bodies, and in so doing makes things unpleasant for the rest of us, too.
If the fact that the lady is smoking outside doesn't please these folks, nothing will please them until she stands on the center line of the adjoining highway to smoke.
If you run an air quality test in these complaienrs' condo before, during and after this lady's smoking outside, you would find there is no difference. This is PC piling on, plain and simple.
It does not surprise me that the bitcher used to work in academia.
I thought surely that a sanctimonious Leftist like you would have seen the error of it's ways and be off to sell it's smog puffing vehicle(s). 
Michael miserable failureMoore
That's RIGHT! The TIRE Plants!!!! P-U!!!
Exactly! He's a weezel!
I'd get a particulate counter out on that porch, maybe hire a third-party to take the measurements, then I'd sue this bastard for libel, harassment, and anything else I could think of.
I might also try for a court order to have him keep the windows closed in January, due to his frail health. And a restraining order to have him stop yelling and taking photos. But's that's just a throwaway.
LOL! Since you're obviously checking up on me, I guess I ought to tell you more. I'm not really a rabid anti-smoker, and I actually oppose most of the smoke-free ordnances that have been going into effect. OTOH, I merely tolerate cigarette smoke in restaurants, and have to admit that I much prefer not to smell cigarettes when I'm trying to eat.
I know from personal experience the adverse health effects of working in a smoking building, and the tremendous improvement in my personal health when my workplace went smoke-free. (I have asthma, and the smoke really did cause me difficulties.)
Further, I think everybody knows that smoking is just plain bad for you -- and everybody on these threads would no doubt rightly scorn those people who sue the tobacco companies because they "didn't know" smoking was bad for them.
The reason I like to check in on these "smoking" threads is that it gives smokers a chance to say really dumb things, and to get all worked up over having it pointed out that they're doing something that imposes costs on others, as well as themselves. And, I must admit, I rather enjoy being called names by such people -- it makes me feel "ferior," or something.
Ahem. Who are YOU to tell a free citizen that they must bear the costs imposed on them by somebody else?
Expect shortly the WOD_List ping and subsequent banishment of this thread to the Smokey Backroom. Sweet irony . . .
Just ONE woman's opinion. This is how "YOU" feel.......quite a few do not feel the way you do!
This dude can move just five miles from Stow and be in the middle of nowhere, where the air is pristine.
LOL! If you're really offended ... perhaps you might consider my comments as the verbal equivalent of smoking.
Major Bump!
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.