Some of you may remember the beginning of the story and i am here to tell you how it all ended. Here is the story in the quick version:
November 2005 - I returned to Copenhagen from a 21 year old birthday party in Las Vegas. We heard the funny sounds of a baby rooster coming from the neighbor's yard. It sounded sick really but Jens told me it was learning how to crow. We didn't make much of it since New Years was on its way and we just figured the weirdo neighbor was going to have bird for New Years Eve dinner. New Years Eve 2006 came and gone but the bird was still there. After begging our neighbor to please get rid of that damn noisy thing, we finally had to take him to court. He was more than happy to go because his childhood friend, now a lawyer, was going to stick it to us. Long story short we got ourselves a lawyer who specializes in chicken-neighbor feuds. Bet you didn't know there was such a thing - right?
Our lawyer and the neighbor's lawyer put themselves together and set a date with the judge. We would have to wait 12 months before going to court. The court date was set for the middle of November. Our side (me, Jens and our neighbors to the right) had one witness and one representative from the home owners association. Our lawyer was a retired judge, in his early 80's, way over weight, kind of greasy looking and boring to listen to. I even saw the judge falling asleep a few times.
Their side had 8 witnesses - all in favor of the keeping the bird, claiming that it was cosy. And the childhood lawyer was in his late 50's, attractive, lively and even i enjoyed listening to him.
Let me tell you folks - if you never lived next door to a rooster, you should know it's not like the corn flakes commercial. The bird goes on and on and on. Each session last on average of 20 minutes and each session comes around every 45 to 90 minutes. ALL DAY LONG!
Our homer owner association rules clearly state that no one may have on their property any animal(s) that is irritating for the surrounding neighbors. The neighbor with the bird claimed that our homer owner association rules violated the county rules. And that is what they were going to present in the court case.
And just exactly what do the county rules say? It clearly states that these (the county rules) are general rules - so be sure to talk with your neighbors first to find out if it is ok with them because your home owner association rules may prevent you from having roosters and or chickens if your neighbors make a complaint against you.
The court case comes to an end and the judge tells us that he will make his decision and let us know the verdict January 29 2007 - that's today. Our lawyer called today to give us the judge's verdict. The neighbor has to get rid of the bird within 2 weeks and agree not to get a replacement bird. Oh - and he has to pay for the court case - which the judge says is 9000 Kr. Our lawyer says that is too low of a price and it does seem low to me so we may have to pay for part of the court cost ourselves. But as long as he gets rid of that screaming bird, I'll be happy.
Cock-a-doodle-doo
