Tenants with legal drama, liability and how to handle.

[Lauren Zehara]

I recently bought a duplex that had tenants with leases already in place.

I'm having trouble with one of the tenants. His girlfriend is living with him - she is not on the lease but she was there when I bought the building. Her ex is claiming that she has kidnapped their 15-year-old son and is hiding him in my unit. Both my tenant and this ex have messaged me this morning - the police are involved. 

My tenant claims that the sun is not in the building And that his mother doesn't know anything about his disappearance.

The ex-husband left a message implying that I may be subject to kidnapping charges because I own the building.

Clearly I'm within my rights to a victim just for having her there when she's not on the lease. But I am curious what my liability is, and what more experienced landlords would do in this situation.

[Greg M.]

In most places, if you fail to take action to remove an unauthorized guest, they become a technical tenant regardless of what the lease says. Basically, if you don't enforce the lease when you learn of the violation, don't expect a court to enforce it later on. I suspect the girlfriend has full tenant rights.

As for you being subject to kidnapping charges, that is laughable. They really should teach basic law in high school. You have no knowledge of the legal situation (who has custody, etc) and you are not actively assisting. Tell the ex-husband to call 911 if there is an emergency, but you aren't getting involved. Block their number.

Don't get involved. Let the police handle it.