Need Advice

I need some advice. Last week we held our annual HOA meeting. Out of 125 homeowners only six showed up and five of the six board members. We had an agenda to follow and a lot of business to cover. The meeting opened an a board member,lit into me about changes the board wanted to make to a document. He had had his car towed and went on and on, asking who called and how he should be paid back. He had a neighbor with him that did the same, leaned over the table and got in my face. They shouted at me. Berated me, saying I had no right to change the document, which I had not. This board member had gotten the document a week before the meeting along with everyone else. All it was, was a reformatting the covenants to make them easier to read, and a few additions about trash. It was terrible. One board member got up and left. I finally got up and left. I was embarrassed and frightened. I'm a woman and these two men were verbally abusive and I did not know how far they were going to go. The president tried to calm them down, but they went on and on. No one asked them to leave. I was told later that nothing got accomplished at the meeting except to schedule the next one. It was shameful to have this kind of thing going on in front of homeowners.

Do any of your HOAs require that if someone wants to be on the board that a criminal background check is done first? Otherwise, how do you know if your not bringing someone on the board with a record, or someone with anger and assault issues?

Would you resign if you were verbally attacked in a meeting and it was not justified?

What advice do you have on handling this?

Your president or another member should have motioned to adjourn the meeting when it got out of control. No board member should have to put up with verbal abuse. If the president could not get the meeting under control, then it needs to be adjourned and the entire board should have gotten up and left.

Brian, it's been my experience that people like that speak to ALL women that way. They're adult school yard bullies.

The meeting should ahve been closed right away.I would document what happened the time date, who was there. If this happens again, I would again end the meeting. You could also stop this person from coming to meetings until he apolgizes to all.I am the President of our HOA, and I am a woman, and do not back down to anyone!!You do not have to stand there and take it for a volunteer job. As far a sthe criminal back ground check, on who? Here in Fl. anyone can do it. Just hit in our county and all comes up about anyone. Good luck and don't give up. This is what this person wants!!!LaVerne Fl