Kathie Bernsten v. Jeffrey P. Santopietro
The Sixth District reversed a permanent stalking injunction entered against a condominium resident whose conduct toward her neighbor consisted of crude name-calling, false and demeaning rumors, staring, photographing his lanai for the association, and nighttime walks with a flashlight. Applying the objective 'reasonable person' test, the court held this evidence was legally insufficient to establish the 'substantial emotional distress' that section 784.048(1)(a) requires for harassment-based stalking, noting there was no evidence Santopietro suffered emotional distress at all. The court reaffirmed that the stalking injunction statutes are not a mechanism for keeping the peace between neighbors who cannot behave civilly toward one another.
Key facts
- Kathie Bernsten and Jeffrey Santopietro were neighbors in a Lee County condominium complex — she lived two doors down and one floor up — and their initially cordial relationship deteriorated badly.
- Santopietro petitioned for an injunction for protection against stalking under section 784.0485, Florida Statutes (2023), testifying that Bernsten insulted his weight and his handicap daily while sitting on the lawn staring toward his unit, spread a false rumor that he lost control of his bowels in the community pool, sent photos of his lanai to the condominium association, and had begun walking the neighborhood at night with a flashlight.
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Holdings
- Whether harassment caused 'substantial emotional distress' under section 784.048(1)(a), Florida Statutes, is measured by an objective standard — whether the conduct would cause substantial…
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Why it matters
This opinion is a useful tool for civil practitioners defending against — or evaluating — protective injunctions arising out of community association and neighbor disputes, which are increasingly filed in condominium… — full analysis with a trial
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