Trouble Member

Hi guys,

I've found myself to be in a tricky situation, so I'd like your advice before I actually go through with my plans...

This problem involves another forum (Site A) and my forum (Site B). Our two sites are semi-related, and we share a lot of members; i.e., a lot of my members are on Site A and a lot of their members are on my forum.
This also involves a moderator of mine, who we will call "My Moderator". This person is a moderator on Site A as well, so she knows the ins and outs of both of our communities.

On Site A, a certain member has caused trouble in the past and has been banned multiple times. She has come back over the years with different accounts, causing more trouble each time.
From what I know, these problems have been going on for years on Site A. Well, my forum started in Feb '08, and she joined in August. But she wasn't active on my site until a few months ago; she posted an intro, made posts within threads around the community, etc.
At the time she made her intro, my moderator brought it to my attention in the Staff Forum that this member has caused problems in Site A in the past. The owner of Site A also notified me of this member's troubled past. We agreed that the entire staff team would keep an eye on her, and that I couldn't do anything (in terms of punitive actions) until she did something wrong.
Since then, she has signed on a few times per week and made a few posts. You know, just a casual visitor. Nothing she has done has been inappropriate or even close to undesirable.

Well, my moderator posted in the Staff Forum this evening, pasting a message that this member sent. To make a long story short, this member has PMed my moderator multiple times, trying to find out why she has continued to be banned from Site A, and if she could have her account back. Basically, she was using my site as a medium to get into contact with my moderator (who, as you know, is also a moderator on Site A - where the member is banned from).

This PM is inappropriate to say the least. She bashes the moderator by saying that Site A shows favoritism, isn't fair, bans members for no reason, etc. She claims that she is going to destroy the site's reputation if something is done. It's just typical whining and threatening from a banned member who is desperate to be able to cause more trouble.
While what she does on Site A isn't my problem, I don't like that she is using my forum to harass my moderator.

My moderator has requested that this member be banned when considering:
1) All of the trouble she has caused on Site A, and
2) The harassment via PM on my site, and
3) Her intentions of trashing any community she can (it's only a matter of time before my forum gets in her line of fire)

So I decided that I'm going to permanently ban this member. I've asked the owner of Site A to produce a list of all e-mail addresses and IP addresses this member has used (since she's been banned and come back multiple times) so that it's easier to get rid of her in one sweep.

Is this a viable solution? Am I wrong for banning her based mostly on her actions on Site A?

Site A and Site B are peaceful communities, and it's not very common at all to have to infract or even warn members. Our sites are full of mature people who never cause any problems, so I don't want to let this member's eagerness to stirrup trouble slip into my forum.

 

In my eyes, banning her is probably the best route to take - particularly considering the situation at hand.

It's a bit immature of her (and inappropriate) to be contacting this staff member in regards to a situation that she got herself involved in on a community other than yours, regardless of the fact that this particular moderator happens to hold a staff position over there, as well. She should not be using your community as an alternative form of communication - doing so is not only disrespectful, but not logical and/or mature in any way, shape, or form.

This is not your problem. Your community shouldn't have to deal with her.

 

I think you were right in the action you decided upon. I hate banning members, but sometimes it is necessary. This is also one of those cases where I think it is more important to keep your moderator happy than keep some user on your site happy.

 

... and also, has this member made the community aware of her "issue" (or in other words, made it public)?

 

Not on my forum, no. The only trouble that she has caused is this message via PM. I'm sure she doesn't mean harm to my community - she is just using my site as a way to contact my moderator.

I just read the entire message for the first time (It's long, so I only originally read some parts of it) and it is entirely disgusting. She said some HORRIBLE things.

 

Ugh, sounds dreadful. Banning her was a viable move.

 

Some notable highlights. I have replaced moderator names with numbers for anonymity, in the order they appeared.

This message is basically ridiculing of the staff on Site A. All because she has been banned multiple times over a span of several years and isn't happy.

 

She's clearly a troubled individual.

 

I consider my forum completely independent from all other forums.

If someone sent a 'bad PM' on my site regardless of topic/issues I'd tell the recipient (your moderator) not to respond to the PMs. Then send my own PM to that person and take care of it.

Putting that person in a group with no PM privileges might be appropriate, or ban. Depends how they would respond to my PMs.

 

I'm not sure to be honest. I've had 'troublemakers' on my site before. I now have them in a troublemaker group, where i have to approve any posts that they make. There aren't many of them, so this doesn't take much time. But i'd rather know where they are and let them post, with my moderation, rather than risk them coming back time and time again making trouble.

 

Some people take forums WAY too seriously. It's a message board. That's all. I mean, come on!

 

She needs to see a psychotherapist... Other than that, I think you made the right choice, it isn't in her place to complain about Site A, when she's on Site B~ Although the forum niche's are related and only one staff is what you guys have in common, if she has anything to complain about it, she can e-mail Site's A admin, and if the admin says 'She's still banned', oh well, she's still banned, lol.

 

This!

 

Whether or not she's behaved herself publicly is not the issue; if she's harassing someone via PM something must be done.