Kaohsiung court sentences woman to three months for late-night noise disruptions

Kaohsiung, Feb. 12 (CNA) A Kaohsiung woman has been sentenced to three months in prison for using a megaphone to blast profanities at her neighbors in the middle of the night, the Kaohsiung District Court said.

In its Jan. 30 verdict, the court indicated that a woman, surnamed Chen (陳), frequently caused disruptions by shouting or playing recordings of profanities over a megaphone late at night or very early in the morning to deliberately disturb her neighbors.

The court stated that the woman was found guilty of frequently disturbing her neighbors from May 2023 to February 2025, often two to three days a week, and multiple times at approximately 10-minute intervals when she used the megaphone.

Chen, who resides on Mingfeng 6th Street in the southern port city's Cianjhen District, apparently got along poorly with her neighbors.

Her act disturbed the peace and sleep of not only residents on Mingfeng 6th Street, but also neighbors in the surrounding area, the court verdict determined.

During her initial interrogation by the Kaohsiung District Prosecutors' Office, Chen denied any wrongdoing and claimed the neighbors disturbed her first.

However, during the trial at Kaohsiung District Court, she changed her plea and admitted wrongdoing.

The court found Chen guilty of violating the personal rights provisions of the Criminal Code, stating that her disruptive acts infringed on the rights and health of the community where she lived.

However, because Chen had no criminal record and admitted to the crime, the court ruled on the side of leniency and sentenced her to three months in prison, commutable to a fine.