You can call the cops for someone opening your mail, especially if the person opened the mail intentionally and you know who opened it.
But if you don't know who opened your mail, it will be hard for the police to do something about it.
If someone accidentally opened your mail, but returned it to you and apologized there really would be no need to call the cops, unless it was something very sensitive in the mail that you would just like to have on record.
Sometimes mail even accidentally gets opened up or torn during the transit through the USPS sorting machines and in those cases it would do not good to call the cops.
You can go to jail or prison for 5 years for intentionally opening someone else's mail.
Opening someone else's mail intentionally is a federal offense in the United States, which can result in 5 years in prison and even fines up to $250,000.00.
A conviction for mail theft and opening of the mail or obstruction can result in 5 years in prison.
However you have to be charged with it and convicted and they have to prove that you intentionally opened someone's mail.
If it was by accident and you realized it was someone's else's mail and you can prove that you didn't intentionally open the mail then you likely will not get into trouble.
I've had mail come to my address before and on a few occasions, I failed to look at the address and name on the mail and simply opened it.
Then I realized it was my neighbors mail, down the street.
I gave it to them and apologized for opening the mail, and they were okay with it and didn't take it any further.
Just don't make it a habit to open someone else's mail and you should be okay, especially as long as you're not stealing the persons mail.
It is illegal to throw away mail, if the mail is not your mail and in your name and it's not addressed to you.
However if the mail is yours and the mail is addressed to you, then you can legally throw it away or dispose of it any way that you choose.
But make sure the mail has no personal information that could result in identity theft, if someone sorts through your trash.
It's best to shred the mail before throwing it away.
If the mail belongs to someone else and it came to your address by mistake or the person died or is no longer living at the address, you should write return to sender on the mail and send it back to the post office.
It is also illegal to open a deceased person's mail, unless you're an appointed executor or legal representative of the state.
Or if you're a close family member or son, daughter, spouse, etc then you could open the deceased persons mail without any issue.
But if it's someone else's mail and you don't know them or are not related to the deceased person it would be illegal to open their mail.
If you get mail in a deceased person's name and you're not related to them or not the legal representative then you should not open it.
Instead write "Deceased, Return to Sender" on the envelope or mail and leave it for the postal carrier or drop it off at the post office.
Inform the post office and if you're an executor, you can file a request at the post office to stop mail delivery for the deceased person or redirect it.
And for mail like subscriptions, you can also contact the company directly and inform them of a person's death.
Another thing you can do is register on the deceased do not contact list, which is an optional step that you can take to help reduce junk mail being sent to the deceased.
If you're the legal representative of the deceased person you do have the authority to open the deceased persons mail or also if you're the executor or the administrator of the estate.
The law is also strict about opening of mail that doesn't belong to you, even if you have no malicious intent.
Although if you lived with the person, you can still manage the deceased person's mail the same as you did when they were alive.
But to legally open and handle it you really have to be appointed the executor.
But in some cases, nothing will happen if you open the deceased persons mail and read it or throw it away if it really is not needed.
I still get some of my sister's mail and she died at 40 years old 3 years ago.
Most of it is just junk mail and so I open it and look at it and then dispose of it.