Title: [BC, CAN] Ex is pregnant, considering keeping it. Are there 'legal abortion' or 'paper abortion' options in BC for me as a 'father'?

Question:
Hey all,

Aside from the moral question of whether a father has an obligation to a pregnancy + child or not, I'm curious of the legal options here.

The mother is (currently) ok with my not being involved should she decide to keep it. I would like to legalize that. Is this possible in BC/Canada? Is there some paperwork or legal documentation that can be signed to absolve me of monetary obligation? I don't want to take her word on saying she won't come after me, and then have her change her mind in a year's time when she realizes how expensive a child really is.

Currently not interested in moral questions, I am confident in my decision and have made it clear that I would not like a child, would not like to be involved, and think her going through with the pregnancy is a bad idea.

Bring on the hate + downvotes, all I ask is someone provide some helpful information that speaks to the core of my question.

Thank you

Answer:
 No, you cannot do that.

Even if she never files child support the government may come after you.Answer #2: Who, precisely, are you hoping will pick up your obligations and take care of your child's needs, if you were to be excused?

The best thing you can do, both for yourself and your child, is to go to court to establish paternity, and then a custody and support schedule as a court order.Answer #3: Welcome to fatherhood.  You made the choice to have unprotected sex, this is what happens. You will be financially responsible for that child when she decides to come after youAnswer #4: NAL

>Is there some paperwork or legal documentation that can be signed to absolve me of monetary obligation?

No.

>I don't want to take her word on saying she won't come after me, and then have her change her mind in a year's time when she realizes how expensive a child really is

Too bad.

>I am confident in my decision and have made it clear that I would not like a child, would not like to be involved, and think her going through with the pregnancy is a bad idea.

Well, you're having one now. You can choose not to be involved, but you can't get out of financial responsibility.


Title: (WV) Coworker's ex - husband's family improperly putting 19 month old child in car seat, refuse to stop. What can be done?

Question: The dad's mom and sister have been putting the little girl in the back, facing front. State guidelines for height and weight say the child should be rear facing. The child is 33.5" and 25 lbs. State police agreed when contacted that my coworker is correct, but the ex insists she's wrong, and his mother and sister have proclaimed that they will continue to face the child forward when transporting her. Does my coworker have any legal options?

Answer:
 As far as I can determine, the actual law doesn’t state the child must remain rear facing. Only that they must remain in a federally approved seat until 8 years old or a certain height prior to turning 8.
https://transportation.wv.gov/DMV/Safety/CPS/Pages/Law.aspx

 I would try these guys for guidance : https://transportation.wv.gov/DMV/Safety/CPS/Pages/default.aspxAnswer #2: 33 inches and 25 pounds is big enough for front facing seats. Read the instructions on the seat or the manual. You must be really fun at parties.Answer #3: Legally, nothing is being done wrong.  WV law defers to the federal motor vehicle safety standards, under which a forward facing seat is acceptable for children over a year old.

Your co-worker's best legal option would be to go back to court and seek a modification of their custody agreement to mandate how car seats should be used.

IANAL.

Alegally,  your co-worker might want to reconsider choosing this mountain to die on.  Their child is being safely and legally transported and trying to force adherence to slightly stronger safety standards comes across to me as unreasonable and controlling.    Answer #4: IANAL, but a dad.  As others have said, they may not be breaking any laws, but doctors do recommend leaving rear facing as long as possible due to safety concerns.  A lot of people ignore this recent advice and switch to forward facing as soon as the child meets minimum forward facing criteria, as suggested by the manufacturer.

https://www.aap.org/en-us/about-the-aap/aap-press-room/Pages/AAP-Updates-Recommendations-on-Car-Seats-for-Children.aspxAnswer #5: IANAL, but I am a mom. 33.5 inches and 25 pounds seems appropriate for front facing car seat. Their legs shouldn’t be touching the back of the seat and seems like they will if rear facing. Also, they are 25 pounds, definitely should be forward facing now.


Title: We purchased a house in Largo Florida with a pond behind it- we have no contract with the pond maintenance crew but keep getting bills for maintainance

Question:
We purchased a home in Florida (Tampa Bay area) that is in an HOA. We pay our yearly dues to the HOA which are allotted to pay for community grounds maintenance.

We were surprised last year after receiving a $100 bill for pond maintenance for the retention pond behind our home that is surrounded by about 2 dozen homes including ours. I contacted the HOA who have no knowledge of the pond maintenance company.

I contacted the company who informed me that they were not associated with the HOA but were used by the previous homeowner- and that they pulled my husband's name (incorrectly) from the public information regarding the purchase of the house. I told her, we do not have a contract with you and we do not want pond maintenance behind our house.

 I just received another bill for 2015 and 2016 in the amount of $200. I'm really getting angry and wonder what my recourse is to not only stop this ridiculous billing but to protect us from attempts these idiots might make to claim a debt that we do not owe.

The only thing I can initially think of to do is to contact the Attorney General's office- is there more that I should be doing? I will try to call the pond maintenance business again tomorrow...

**EDIT**= *I hate to keep coming back to this, but I found out new information: Every house that borders this pond has property that extends into the pond. It's odd- most subdivisions do not have property that extends into the water- and adds a new element to the issue, because I know for a fact not everyone had been paying for upkeep. I assume this is how the HOA can avoid taking responsibility for taking care of the pond as well.* [Here is a map from the tax office about how the parcels are plotted](http://i.imgur.com/ahWuuHN.jpg)

Answer: Send them a letter certified mail return receive (keep a copy) that you have no contract with them, do not want their service, will not pay any outstanding balance, and to leave you alone.


Title: ARRESTED BUT NOT CHARGED

Question: Arrested but not charged can they choose to charge me in a later day or no

Answer: ARE YOU BEING DETAINED?Answer #2: Yes.  Any time up to the statue of limitations.


Title: [VA] Is notice from landlord nullified due to improper postage?

Question:
My lease ended on July 1st, and it was agreed that I would go month-to-month until I am able to close on a house (this agreement wasn't in writing).  Well, on Friday there was a letter in my mailbox saying that me and my roommates have to vacate within 30 days.  The envelope had no postage, so I'm assuming the landlord just dropped it in there by hand.

Do I have any options, or am I doomed to scrounging for another place>

Answer: You're grasping at straws. You have been notified.


Title: Can a police officer run my license plates without reason?

Question:
Can police officer run my license plates without probable cause, ya know, just for the hell of it and see what comes up?  Isn't that an unreasonable search?

Can I cover my plates when I'm not driving to prevent this?  Is he allowed to uncover them to run them.

New York, USA

Answer:
 Yes obviously they can just run plates. It isn't searching anything other then their records on the car. If they couldn't search plates how do you think they'd ever find a stolen car? A person who has a warrant out for his arrest? Driving is a privilege not a right. Part of that is having a license plate to identify your car just like your address to identify your house. They can look up your address if they want to.Answer #2: 1.  Yes, they can run your plates any time.  No probable cause needed.  You travel on public streets, that is public data.

2.  No it is not legal to drive with your plates covered up.  In any state.  Even doing something that makes the plates hard to read is illegal.

3.  Stop being an idiot and breaking the law.Answer #3: The reason it's not an unreasonable search is because you have no legitimate privacy interest in your license plate number, which is viewable by the public, and no interest in the DMV records of your vehicle, which are maintained by a governmental agency.


Title: 9 years ago I got a DWI and was required to put an interlock device in my car. I sold the car instead of doing that. Now, 9 years later, I applied for my permit and I am required to give them a form saying the interlock was removed (it was never installed) (NY)

Question: So the DMV requires that I submit a form from the people who installed the interlock in my car, the problem is, It never got installed.  I am not sure what to do, because they require that form for me to get my permit.

Answer: you must have a device on your car for a year. Not go without a car for a year. So if you haven't had a device on your car for a year you didn't meet that requirement and won't get a license until then. Answer #2: You are likely going to be required to put the interlock in your car now in order to get your license. I didn't drive for one year, thinking that I would not have to do the interlock thing. Surprised to find out that I had to do it anyway. That was 8 years ago.


Title: [AL] Ex husband is threatening to hire an attorney to make me refinance the house I kept in our divorce because even though his name isn’t on the deed, it is on the Mortgage. I can’t refinance because of Chapter 7.

Question:
Brand spanking new throwaway because obviously. On mobile. FTP, all that jazz. Thank you in advance. TLDR is the title.

Located in Alabama.

I met my now ex husband in 2014. We bought a house together in 2016 AND THEN got married same year. Separated January of 2017, finalized divorce in October 2017.

Since the separation I’ve had to deal with almost constant harassment from the ex in the beginning and then harassment that resurfaces every few months. To the point where he has been blocked on several accounts, a police report was filed, and I had to purchase home protection because of threats. A restraining order or protection order was never obtained. Mainly because my local police told me that I couldn’t prove it was him messaging me from these accounts. So a report is all I could do.

Important to note. We didn’t hire an attorney for our divorce. I went to the courthouse and got all the necessary paperwork, then we sat down together and agreed to what we want, then I paid to file it. Uncontested. No children. In our divorce papers and final decree is says that he gives me sole ownership of the home and gives his interest to me if I also agree to take on all our marital debt. So he wouldn’t be held responsible for the debt from our relationship and I get to keep the house.

A few months after our divorce he started messaging me complaining about his name being on the house. I paid an attorney to do a quit claim deed. Another legal document is signed by him stating the house is mine and he gives up claim to his interest in the house. His name has been removed from the deed of the house.

A few months after that he messages me again with the same complaint. I realize then he means the mortgage. I call the mortgage company and attempt to use our divorce judgment and quit claim deed to get his name removed from the mortgage loan. They tell me that the type of mortgage we got won’t allow that. My options are to refinance or sell.

I cannot refinance the house. The marital debt I was left with ended up being more than I could handle on my own and I ended up filing chapter 7 early 2018. The house payment is NEVER LATE and sometimes I pay more than minimum because I hope to get it all paid off sooner.

He messages me again this past weekend threatening legal action against me. I’ve never kept this a secret he has known about my bankruptcy and not being able refinance for over a year. He says if I don’t refinance and get his name off the mortgage he will hire an attorney and make me do it.

My question is basically whether or not he can do that. Our divorce judgement doesn’t have a clause in it stating I need to refinance or sell the home. I cannot refinance because of the chapter 7. Do I need to hire an attorney?
Topic:
Other Civil Matters

Answer:
 > My options are to refinance or sell.

Yes. If you can’t do A, then proceed to B. Zero surprise the lender won’t let the other income off the mortgage.


Title: [Ontario, Canada] Unsure how to proceed with someone possibly trying to extort money.

Question:
The FAQ says to provide flair for my post, but I'm not sure what this falls under, traffic and parking?  Civil?  Sorry, I'm not entirely too familiar with this :(

We live in the Greater Toronto Area and my girlfriend works in Toronto.  This incident happened in the city of Toronto.

A few weeks back my girlfriend was driving home from work at night.  Not pitch dark, but dusk I'd say.  Around 7:30/8pm approximately.  A cyclist was biking on the sidewalk, without a helmet and hopped the curb to ride across the intersection.

As she was beginning to make her turn, she clipped him, or he rode into her, she isn't clear on that fact.  He fell over and she got out and helped him.

She offered multiple times to help take him to the hospital.  She said he kept refusing saying he was fine.  She then gave him $60 in cash to try and pay for the repair of the front tire/brake system as that's where the damage occurred.  She left him with her phone number and told him to call her later to make sure he's okay.

A few days later she gets a text message saying he's going to the cops about the damage to his bike.  We decide it's best that she meet him there and they go over it together with an officer to make sure there's no confusion.

The three parties agreed that we would pay for the damage to the tire/brake system so long as he took it to a mechanic and got a quote.  He did and emailed us the quote of 93$ and some change (about 67 cents or so).  There was no official report made, but the officer wrote it all down on his notepad.

Now he's sending more aggressive emails saying that she completely damaged his bike and it's completely unrideable and he is demanding we either pay him the full amount of a new bike (in the neighbourhood of 550$) or flat out buy him a new bike or he will go to the police.

He has her phone number and her email and her full name.  I'm sort of worried that he's trying to blackmail us in some way as he won't provide any proof aside from saying he has friends and family that can confirm his bike was in "like new" (his words) condition before the accident.

Does he have any legal ability to force us to pay this money, or can we just ignore him since we paid in full as per our agreement?  Can we bring up the fact he wasn't wearing a helmet while biking on the sidewalk and not walking his bike through the intersection?  Are any of those points illegal in Toronto?

Please advise.

Thank you.

Answer:
 Ignore him. You paid what you agreed to, let him sue you if he wants anything more.

He wont get it, especially if you can get in contact with the officer that witnessed the agreement.


Title: (US) is it legal to hide evidence of perfectly legal activities?

Question: just in case they are retroactively made illegal later, is it legal the have hidden evidence of them beforehand?

Answer:
 That would be an ex post facto law, a law that criminalizes something before the law was made.

(Wikipedia)
>Ex post facto laws are expressly forbidden by the United States Constitution in Article 1, Section 9, Clause 3 (with respect to federal laws) and Article 1, Section 10 (with respect to state laws).

So this isn't something you need to worry about.


Title: Brother's 3rd DUI last night - first ever wreck but no victim. Just finished probation last week. How long? Options?

Question:
[deleted]
Topic:
DUI

Answer:
 He needs a criminal defense attorney yesterday.  At this point, it's a near certainty that he's going to jail, but a good attorney can minimize the damage.

Also, your brother has a drinking problem.  I don't care how "honest" or "true" he is, he also drives drunk consistently and clearly doesn't give a shit that he might go to jail or die while he has two young kids to care for.  Get him in a program.Answer #2: Never practiced in Texas but I'm thinking that he's on his 3rd DUI and finished probation, the state attorney will likely not offer probation again and go straight for prison time.

Get a good defense attorney.Answer #3: He can get a defense attorney, but be realistic here. If you're that young and already got caught three times driving drunk, a slap on the wrist is not what you need. Someone with a problem that bad has no business operating a multi-ton metal cage on a public road.Answer #4: Based on a quick google search, your brother is looking at 2 - 10 years in prison.  The only things you should do is help him get an attorney, and if he gets bonded out of jail help him get into alcohol treatment.  Answer #5: He needs an attorney that specializes in DUI/DWI cases. There are plenty in Houston. Beyond that, he needs to never get behind the wheel of a vehicle until he has been sober for quite some time. I know that means crap like taking the bus to work or ride sharing, but at least his kids will still have a father.

According to THIS site he's looking at 2 years minimum sentence, with a $10,000 fine and a license suspension of 180 days to 2 years.

http://dui.drivinglaws.org/texas.php


Title: Moving company scam - holding belongings hostage

Question:
Hi,

I have an unfortunate situation with a cross-country move (Canada). Hired a moving company to ship the remainder of items within Nova Scotia to move to Alberta. It was a very small move as the original bulk of items were moved months ago; this was the remainder belonging to my wife and we didn't originally intend to move it for at least a year but circumstances changed but I digress.

Contacted several moving companies and went with the company that could pickup at the earliest. They were polite and fast to arrange with and get a quote from. We had an open ended contract for 500 to 1000 lb, as I knew it would be slightly over 500 lb. We packed everything, itemized the boxes by dimensions and weights for our own purposes to ensure we had the cash to pay the bill and waited for pickup. In addition to the Excel sheet, I have timestamped text messages between my wife and I of the box weights and dimensions as I was inputting the values at another location with PC access. Company failed to contact us during the window of pickup, and when contacted stated their driver was delayed in another province but would be available to pickup within 6 days. With little time remaining to make alternate arrangements we agreed and **7** days later the driver showed up.

I get an email for the invoice 9 days after pickup and it looks like a billing error. It appears as if they added on 121 lb and multiplied it on the wrongly on the additional weight row. No problem, simple math mistakes happen. I email them back, explaining I have a detailed manifest and exact weights and dimensions if they need it and to simply fix the invoice and I'll pay immediately to avoid delays. 10 days after pickup they still haven't replied.

I call them 11 days after pickup and explain the situation. Their politeness is now gone. I am informed that their math is correct and that my 699 lb shipment was scaled at 1320 lb. They will not deliver until I pay in full and their credit card authorization form states **"I will not now, nor in the future contest charges made by the company"**. The weight is an impossible number for the small number of boxes containing mainly clothing. Equally my wife carried all of the boxes upstairs and she cannot lift >50 lb and they are claiming each box weighs 78 lb or more. Their only solution would be to pay $300, which is roughly the difference in price, to have the load rescaled.

They are currently holding my belongings hostage somewhere near their HQ in Ontario.

I've contacted VISA and they've stated because it is an open contract (based on weight) there is not much they can do but have informed me the practice is a common scam and to cancel and destroy my credit card if I do pay them. They've asked me to contact the police.

Speaking with the police they would file a report and contact the authorities within Ontario. The officer suggested holding off on this, as tipping them off may result in a far worse scenario for my belongings. His suggestion would be to pay the extortion and hope I get my belongings, afterwards file a small claims court case against them. My understanding is I would then need to have any judgement acknowledged within their primary province to see any potential cash.

I realize $300-400 is not a large sum of money, but being scammed so obviously is infuriating. We just moved and money isn't exactly freely flowing.

Any advice would be appreciated.

Thanks

Answer:
 If they accept credit card, I'm pretty sure they sign agreements with Visa and other parties saying that they will allow chargebacks.  If I were you, I would pay it, then do a chargeback right after you get your stuff, then get a new card #.  I would probably also still file a police report after you get your stuff, but before you do the chargeback, and provide all the information including the incorrect math.  Take video of them delivering your stuff in a way where you can count the number of boxes being delivered, etc.

Leave negative reviews wherever you can online.

You may or may not still wind up on the hook for the amount, but make them sweat it for a little while.  If you're expecting to need good credit in the next year or two (e.g. buying a car) then maybe this isn't a good idea, but if you already have car/home all settled, then a temporary credit ding isn't the worst thing in the world.  I've known far wealthier people do chargebacks and take a credit hit over far smaller dollar amounts.


Title: Boss has me cash company checks written out to my name...is this a red flag?

Question:
I started a new job recently and my boss has me do an...odd task about once a week.  He sends me to the bank about 1/2 mile away with a check for the company bank account written out to my name.  I don't know what he does with the money, but we're talking pretty big cash withdraws (~$300-$2000 each).

What worries me is a) why does he have me cashing checks for him? He's kind of a lazy useless prick so for a while I just thought it was that, but how nice he is about asking me to do it is out of character and very odd. B) should I be worried about having all of these checks cashed in my name?  Could this come back to bite me in the ass in the case of an audit?  We are a government contractor so audits are fairly common.   If he is doing something illegal or unethical (he is a VP/COO) can I be blamed? C) this seems very odd and very unprofessional at best.

Any advice or comments about whether this is common, or a red flag for some unethical behavior that could leave me in a legal pickle would be appreciated.  Maybe having the accountant write $2,000 checks to a low level employee to cash and give to you is common practice, but it just seems weird to me.  I am given a big check written out in my name, and instructed to bring cash back to him and give it to him with no receipt or proof that I actually handed it over.

Answer:
 Whoa, this is a really concerning. I cannot imagine any legit explanation for this.

Yes, theoretically you could be blamed, but I'm not sure what's going on. Presumably you're not signing the checks, so it'd be hard to blame you for embezzlement if the the books were ever checked. Unless he was going to frame you for forgery too, I guess.

But even though I'm really not sure what's going on here, you're right to be alarmed. It is definitely not "common practice."Answer #2: Yes, this is an enormous red flag.  He is making the checks out to you so that (1) you can be blamed for taking the cash, particularly since you have no proof that you are giving it to him; and (2) the transaction can be booked as some kind of legitimate payment, which will screw you tax-wise when it's treated as a wage or a contractor payment on your W2 or a 1099.  This is not a situation you want to be in for another day and if I were you I would be thinking very hard about reporting it (in writing) to the company CFO.


Title: [Albany, NY] Moved out of apartment December 1st. My lease says my deposit will be returned within 30 days. The new owner of the building still hasn't sent out my check yet.

Question:
So my building was bought by some company in NYC. The reviews about them are terrible so I moved out as soon as I could. My old LL was a slumlord and I didn't want to deal with another one.

The new LL retained a company to manage the building for them. They inspected my apt when I moved out and said the full deposit would be returned in 30 days. This was on Dec. 1st.

I called them last week asking where the heck my money was. They said I didn't pay my last month of rent, which is bullshit because I paid for my last month up front when I moved in years ago. I proved this to them by sending them a copy of my lease, which they didn't have for whatever reason.

I was told the management company would call me back on Monday of this week and that the LL was overnighting my check to them. They never did. I talked to them today and they still don't have the check. I am really losing my patience. It's not my fault they are so disorganized and I want my money back.

I called the LL's office and a secretary told me he would call me back. Still waiting on this call several hours later.

How do I light a fire under their ass so I can get the money that is rightfully mine? I'm already recording all calls between them in case this gets messy (and I'm worried it might).
Topic:
Landlord Tenant Housing

Answer:
 1. Send them a demand letter referencing NYC tenant law & damages for not returning the security deposit.

2. If they don't respond within the time frame you gave them (I'd say a week) take them to small claims court.


Title: Home buyers beware

Question:
In 2016: I sat down to close on my house and the surveyors found that my neighbor has his fence on roughly 900 square feet of property. I have a metal fence and can’t afford a new fence right now. He has a wood fence. I discussed the surveyors findings with the neighbor. He said that the city owns that land just in case they want to dig a ditch. The fence he has is pretty old... I assume he has had this chunk of property for years.

1. Can I ask him to sign a paper/contract and get it notarized that if he redoes his fence or intends to move that he will move his fence to his property line?

2. Should I just invest in a lawyer to handle this? I could get the property now or he can buy it from me.

I can’t build a fence at this time so I have done nothing so far but knowing that I’m paying taxes on property that isn’t fenced in on my side is irking me.

Topic:
Real Estate law

Answer: Definitely get a lawyer on this one. Depending how long he has had the land in his possession is might be his now, and you would need to fix that in the paperwork for the house. This would also help with the tax/insurance.


Title: [California] Having a battle over a tip pool with Management

Question:
I work in a café where general employees are divided as "front of house" and "back of house". Baristas are front of house employees with the added responsibility of handling the cash drawers before and after each shift, including being accountable for the shift deposit. We also have two managers with full managerial authority, ie. scheduling, hiring/firing… . These managers also work standard shifts in the "chain of service".

We have long maintained a tip pool system whereby all employees get a percentage of tips in accordance with their responsibility. We have only recently been a large enough business to require "actual" managers, so we went along including these managers in the tip pool without question and it was not a problem.

Recently, management declared that all tips would be split evenly across the board. No one, including myself, has a problem with letting everybody share the wealth, however, I feel that consideration should be given to those given the responsibility-and most importantly, the risk-of signing their names to the deposits. Baristas are the ones in the line of fire when there are drawer shortages, and on more than one occasion I have had to verify discrepancies in another employee's deposit for the owners-no one above me knew how to look for errors or where to find missing money.

Because of this change in tip policy, I have asked to no longer be scheduled for barista shifts in the future and for the remainder of those shifts I am already scheduled for, I have asked that a manager handle the drawer and deposit. The new schedule is up: I now get to work one day this week.

Looking into the California state regulations regarding tips, I found that [Labor Code Section 351](http://www.dir.ca.gov/dlse/FAQ_tipsandgratuities.htm) "No employer or agent shall collect, take, or receive any gratuity or a part thereof that is paid, given to, or left for an employee by a patron." Further research shows that in [Chau v. Starbucks Corps. (2009)](www.alston.com/files/Uploads/Documents/Chau_v._Starbucks.pdf) (.pdf), while a "shift supervisor" may take part in a tip pool, the distinction is made that "managers" do not.

If we are illegally expected to subsidize the pay of our management, should we not also be able to expect that they be responsible for managerial duties?

EDIT: I see now that the drawer issue is irrelevant; it happened to be the act of protest nearest at hand and I was being a drama queen.

It looks like this is something that is worth talking to a lawyer about. I really would like to know if I'm taking crazy pills of not. Regardless, I will be leaving. We already lost someone over this, I cannot understand their obstinacy.

Answer:
 the two issues are entirely unrelated.  your employer can assign you any task they want, if you don't like it your recourse is to find a new job.

if they are taking tips for management file a complaint with the state.


Title: I'm starting an Onion style blog for my city. Can I make up quotes for city officials/others under the umbrella of satire without being sued?

Question:
Pretty much says it all in the headline.

Edit sorry. MN, USA.

Answer:
 You'd have to make it REALLY clear that the blog and articles are satire. Using real people's nane is always risky. They or the city could choose to sue you. Even if you prevail, you'd be out quite a few thousands in legal fees.Answer #2: Good news: yes, this is strongly protected first amendment speech.

Bad news: local governments don't always care what's legal. Someone ran a satirical Twitter account making fun of the Peoria mayor a few years ago, so the mayor sent police officers to raid his house.

Good news: the Peoria government eventually paid that twitterer $125,000 in damages and attorney fees.


Title: (MI) For a Friend: Workplace is using her PTO hours to offset the cost of another employee working overtime to cover her shift. Sounds shady.

Question: So a coworker of mine is going on vacation. She is using her saved PTO to do so. Apparently our boss informed her (via text!) that he would be taking away the rest of her PTO and using it to pay for another employee (working overtime) to cover her shifts. This sounded incredibly shady to me, so I wanted to know what /r/legaladvice had to say. Thanks for the help!!

Answer:
 Wtf?  Are they Siamese twins?  Is this procedure written in the employee's contract/handbook? <stupid MI govt website uses parentheses in its URLs>(http://www.legislature.mi.gov/(S(mggvku55om3whlenf1e0qr45))/mileg.aspx?page=GetObject&objectname=mcl-408-473). If not, why would manager think this was an appropriate practice?

Keep in mind there is a [12-month tine limit to file a wage complaint](http://www.dleg.state.mi.us/email_parser/before_filing_wage_claim.htm) if that is the ultimate goal.  (Just be prepared there may be consequences for filing such a complaint.  Even though retaliating against an employee who does is strictly illegal, it still happens sometimes).
Answer #2: It looks like your legal advice is already covered, just wanted to say I'm rooting for your friend. That's so bizarre and WTF, I've never even heard of an employer trying to do that. Post an update if the issue gets resolved!


Title: Gun taken for safekeeping (CA)

Question: Police came to my home after they were contacted by the VA for a wellness check. I was having suicidal thoughts. They took my gun for safekeeping. They told me I needed to see a judge but the courthouse couldn't give me an answer on what I need to do. All I was told is that I need to file a petition and they couldn't tell me what it was. Any info would be appreciated.

Answer:
 The police aren't a good source for legal or court procedure advice.

The court clerk may be able to answer this if it's strictly a procedural question.   "What paper do I file where and by what date?" sounds like a procedural question to me.   Court clerks are NOT ALLOWED to give legal advice, so they can't advise you on what to put in it, whether it's likely to work, etc.

If the court clerk's office can't or won't tell you what you need to know, then contacting a local lawyer is going to be your best bet.


Title: Man has harassed and threatened my boyfriend for years (OH)

Question:
This dude has been convinced my boyfriend is obsessed with his wife for years.

He's delusional and abusive to his wife who he believes cheats on him.

He just Facebook messaged ME saying that if my boyfriend doesn't stop interacting with his wife (they literally like, comment on each others posts) it's going to "be the worst day of his life".

He has contacted my boyfriend's friends and relayed this threat to him and now me. He has come to my boyfriend's house and tried to fight, and wont let up on the threats. (For years)

What can I do legally? (I live in PA if that matters)

Answer:
 >He has come to my boyfriend's house and tried to fight

Your boyfriend should tell him that he is unwelcome and call the police when this happens.

Practically, if your boyfriend knows that interacting with this individual's wife is one of this guy's triggers, he may consider stopping the interactions with this individual's wife.Answer #2: You can ask this man to stop contacting you.

Your boyfriend may be able to seek an order of protection against this man.


Title: [Tx] i believe my wife was improperly released from the emergency room and as a result she was sexually assaulted.

Question: [deleted]

Answer:
 If it wasn't medically necessary to stay, then they did not commit malpractice by discharging her from the hospital.

Your wife had numerous options.  She could have stayed in the lobby, used the hospital's phone to call someone, waited for the bus, etc. etc.  It was her choice to walk back to the hotel.

It was also the choice of her friends and family to leave her alone at the hospital after she was sexually assaulted the first time.

That said, you're free to look for a lawyer to take the case.


Title: Is it legal to not disclose medical information to your child's school? NY

Question:
My niece is starting school and she is HIV+. She has been on medication since birth and the virus is incredibly well managed.

My sister in law asked if me she has to tell the school since I work there, but I honestly have no idea. It's a rural, conservative, less than open minded school and I don't think they should tell the school unless they legally have to.

I think in emergencies or if something happens they might need to disclose it, but I wasn't sure what the exact law was. I know the teachers and others would be weird and insensitive about it, I've seen them handle other situations with students with medical conditions poorly. I tried figuring out the disclosure laws but wasn't sure how schools fit in.

We have safe school training that tells us to treat all body fluids like they're contaminated so I feel like we can keep our mouth shut. My niece just turned 5 and moved closer to me, so they're hoping to enroll her soon.

It's probably not relevant, but she was adopted, and is hyper sensitive to being treated differently than others. Her meds are taken in the morning and at night so the school would not need to give her the medication during the day.

Answer: You may find [this document](https://www.health.ny.gov/diseases/aids/consumers/testing/confidentiality_law.htm) helpful. Also the centre for HIV law and Policy had a number of education related resources available [here](https://www.hivlawandpolicy.org/issues/education-schools)


Title: Chiropractor made my knee worst a month ago, even had bruising from treatment. Don't know if I should do something about it, or let it go.

Question:
I am located in Rockford, IL (Winnebago County) (Northwest from Chicago), I have been going to chiropractors for a decade, and always felt better from appointments. My favorite one retired, so I found a new one. He's younger, seems a little green.

He did some massaging on my knee (really hardcore muscle...hurt like hell when it happened), and the next day, I was in crazy pain. It was a big 6 inch bruise on my upper calf muscle. I have had to go to physical therapy, I can't kneel anymore...life's been hell.

My physical therapist said not to go back. A friend said I should go consult with a lawyer. I honestly don't know what to do. I can't workout at all, and I am so miserable. I didn't take pictures of the bruise. Don't know if I just call the place back (I've been avoiding them) and let them know I was hurt.

Thanks to anyone reading.

Answer: Beyond what others have said, take this as lesson to never, ever go to a chiropractor. They are not real doctors and no worthwhile college or university in the US even has a chiropractory school. Stick with a physical therapist


Title: Issues with being served divorce papers

Question:
Hi there,

My bf's ex-wife has said that she has filed for divorce and that her process server has attempted to serve him at our adrdress but out property manager (apartments) has escorted him off the premesis. No one has contacted us (server or apartments saying any such thing). Then she said that he left a card, but we haven't seen one. They (my bf and his ex) had previously talked and agreed upon a deadline for serving because of monteary issues, but she has basically taken his kids "hostage" and won't let him see them (presumably until she gets a court order for child support). He has been asking for them every weeekend so that he has proof of her keeping them from him, and we think this might just be a ploy for her to have some textual evidence that she's trying to get everything legalized on the up and up for when they do have a court date.

With  some initial investigation it looks like servers have some pretty sneaky ways of "trapping" my bf to serve him, but we've not been contacted at all. (She has a history of lying and manipulation, but we're going  to assume that she's telling the truth on this one because it would be on us if she did and we just didn't believe her.) My bf is going to talk to an attorney asap, but with the fourth of july weekend, it will probably be Monday before he can talk to anyone. Is there anything we can do to prove that we haven't been contacted or prove that she may be lying?

The first thing I thought about was that we could call the apartment office, which should be open on Friday 7/5. Other than that, I'm clueless.

Any advice is helpful. State is TX.

Answer: Your BF doesn’t have an ex-wife, he has a wife. If she isn’t properly serving him he can retain an attorney way of his own and file for divorce and custody. This is beyond internet help, he needs an attorney.


Title: I think my father is becoming a victim of, while victimizing Ukrainian female professionals and he has no clue.

Question:
Before reading: This may be long winded, but please read all the way through. My father's potential wrongdoing is towards the end. I can only give you the details I know, so please excuse the gaps and let me know where it is important for me to fill them. Olga is a pseudoname. My father and Olga are agreeing to answer any questions I have and they have agreed to sign a contract, little do they know I know nothing about this process. Here is the background.

My father, a Mississippi man who has been lonely for quite some time, began chatting with a Ukrainian doctor (as far as I know) on a mail order bride website. Since the website was making money off of their correspondence the Ukrianian, Olga, asked my father to start privately Skyping with her. Apparently he liked her because he brought her over to Houston, however they immediately do not get along. My father continues to pay for her stay in Houston.
My father buys her a car, and then tragically gets laid-off from his job of 26 years. Cancels last years Christmas because of the expenses towards the car. Yet, he still pays her bills in Houston.

Here is how he justifies it, Olga has her license to practice medicine in Ukraine, but they do not pay her well, so she wants to work in the US. She is here on some educational Visa that I am pretty sure my father spent a lot of money on since he once mentioned some lawyer expenses he had to pay. No clue what those are. She is also fighting for political asylum, another possible source for lawyer fees.
So my father is just dishing out her room and board in Houston, all the expenses for her to take this test and I think a prep course for the test to give her "the competitive edge against the younger American medical students," as Olga has told me.
My father speaks to me as a man who has made a big mistake and is in way over his head. He cannot stop paying Olga because he gave her his word, and he is her only hope or she has to go back to the Ukraine. Meanwhile, my father is financially suffering.

Now this is where he becomes, unknowingly, a victimizer. He and Olga agree that once she can practice in the States she will give him 20% of her salary indefinitely. He says, "Why not? I'm giving her her citizenship." When I spoke to the two of them and made my father defend such an awful idea he desperately looked to Olga for his defense. Olga then said her friend had a deal like that. I am somewhat lead to believe that this deal was Olga's idea.

Until Christmas, I had only spoken to my father over the phone about his ideas on how this "business plan" can secure my future and he hinted around at doing it with other girls, from possibly other countries, from what I understand. While he explained his plans he sounded slightly crazed and delusional, a man who could allow himself to go broke on a the hopes of a return that A) as handshake agreement, was not legally binding to Olga and she could just bail as soon as she started working, or B) if under any contract, or if he had any leverage over her he would become a criminal, extorting women who will offer any deal just to get here.
I sacrificed a somewhat normal Christmas to meet this girl, who came to my family's in Arkansas (yes, it was as awkward as it sounds.) I did this so that I can speak to the both of them. This on top of some bad decisions he has made in the past made me realize he was not capable protecting himself. Specifically, I went to Arkansas to ask Olga if she was willing to sign a legally binding contract mapping out the course of return for my father. My second reason for going was to tell the both of them that their initial agreement,the indefinite 20% of her income, was illegal  (I knew this intuitively and would like some validation and specifics on legislation that speaks to this). My third reason was to convince them both that if we are to look towards an agreement that would benefit the both of them it should be a loan with interest. Please let me know if that is a more reasonable agreement.

In addition to any insight or guidance to my predicament, I also need to know the best way of vetting this girl and what information I need to come up with a contract. I need to make sure her medical background in the Ukraine is legit and that she is doing what she says she is doing in Houston. I guess I should attain copies of diplomas (how do I know her Ukrainian diploma, supposedly in English, is not fake?) enrollment records, bank statements?

What about the timeline? The amount of time she has her is unclear, she has to take some test and she has to get political asylum, and hopefully get a residency. My father is suppose to support her throughout all of this and she would accumulate debt. Between her broken english and his convoluted way of explaining things, I am having a hard time understanding the timeline, which my father seems to not understand either. He once said he thought she was going to take the test after a year. She has been here two years and she doesn't seem any closer to taking this test.

If it is legal, how do I factor in interest? The bare bones goal of this agreement is to make sure my father gets paid back, I do not think I can protect him from going broke in the process, but maybe there is something I should make sure the contract has in case my father does run out of money so she cannot sue him. The interest is for my father's troubles. I don't see it as "business plan," but I think he should be compensated for his risk.

They also act as if they are open to giving me all their records, but it appears that my father hasn't been actively keeping them and defers me to Olga for records, which sounds like a terrible resource for these records. I am sure that I can attain information on rent, I am hoping legal expenses, and monthly allowances. Please let me now what else I should be looking into.

Please help.

Answer:
 This isn't really a legal issue.  Your father is simply a complete and total idiot and you need to shake some sense into him.

>My father speaks to me as a man who has made a big mistake and is in way over his head. He cannot stop paying Olga because he gave her his word,

Screw her.  This is your dad being an idiot.

>and he is her only hope or she has to go back to the Ukraine.

Good. Let her.

>Meanwhile, my father is financially suffering.

Because he doesn't have the balls to kick her to the curb.

>Now this is where he becomes, unknowingly, a victimizer. He and Olga agree that once she can practice in the States she will give him 20% of her salary indefinitely. He says, "Why not? I'm giving her her citizenship." When I spoke to the two of them and made my father defend such an awful idea he desperately looked to Olga for his defense. Olga then said her friend had a deal like that. I am somewhat lead to believe that this deal was Olga's idea.

Guess what?  She's never going to pay him.

He needs to just send her ass packing.


Title: Ex wife dating pedophile

Question:
My ex wife and mother to my nine year old daughter is dating a man who is a registered sex offender that raped a thirteen year old girl. We have a nine year old daughter and she, the ex, is talking about moving to the city he lives in with him.

She can't because it's in a different state and I'm an involved father, but I've been posting reviews on the company they both work for's website and independent websites to apply pressure to the situation.

I don't want to take the kids from their mother at all. I am not a jealous ex. While she's never been considerate of the children, she's had other boyfriends and I've been fine with that, because it's normally none if my business. I just found ask this it today and honestly I want to destroy this man trying to convince her to bring my daughter to him. I do not, however, want to go to prison for harassment.

Answer:
 Lawyer, you can get an order keeping her from moving the kid to another city or state and get an order to keep your daughter away from that guy.

It should be easy enough to do, but get a lawyer tomorrow.Answer #2: Is he on parole/probation? Is there anything in his release conditions which prohibit him from living with/being alone with minor children? Those are legitimate questions that should be asked of..someone. Not sure who.

Also stop leaving reviews on uninvolved parties websites. It just looks like crazy/jealous ex behavior. Answer #3: Listen to the other responses.  Get an attorney right away.  Stop trying to "put pressure" on anyone else by yourself.  Let your attorney do that.  And I don't care if you can't afford an attorney.  Your child's welfare may be at stake here.Answer #4: Take a deep breath. Remove the internet/social media stuff.

Then, call a lawyer.  You want to mess this guy up while at the same time getting a better relationship and more time with your daughter? A good lawyer can do that.  If this clown is violating his release terms a good lawyer can make sure he's never around your girl again.Answer #5: I'll admit there is a lot of rage and I'm not thinking clearly today, but the only concern I have is protecting my children. I'll contact a lawyer immediately.


Title: [CA] Step child is unvaccinated in California public school. School is not enforcing due to mother's wishes. Where to report the school?

Question:
Husband and his ex (never married) live in different states and have joint legal custody of their two children. The children (5M and 3M) reside in California with their mother and we live in Colorado. The mother is VERY anti-vax and has not gotten the required vaccinations for their 5 year old who is in Kindergarten in public school. Vaccinations are required by state law except when a medical exemption from a doctor is given to the school. This has not happened.

There is a court order from last month stating that the child must have the first round of immunizations required by the school and state. So far he has had a single polio shot. The mother is also seeking medical exemption for the child at this time but has not been able to successfully obtain one.

My husband called the school to inquire about the status of his child's vaccination and how that affects whether he can attend public school. The nurse seemed concerned about the unvaccinated child and was going to make a call and call back. Never did. Turns out mother showed up that same day with a note from a doctor saying that the mother's wants to schedule vaccinations every 6 weeks. The note did NOT say that was the doctor's recommendation. She also supplied a note saying that mother wants to opt out of the MMR vaccine for family history reasons. None of this is what is required to not get vaccinations.

My husband is pro-vax and is concerned about his children's health and how that will affect the children he attends school with (especially the weaker ones). The older son had whooping cough when he was 2 years old. We feel the school is not obeying the current law requiring vaccinations for public school and would like to know if there is a place to report that in California.  The child received the single polio vaccination and next "scheduled" vax is in February.  This seems exactly why a law was created to require a medical exemption from a doctor. My husband has a lawyer but as this law is still fairly new I thought there might be some extra information from this sub or some pointers on where to look to take action on the law being broken. Any advice would be helpful

My husband is currently is the process of getting all their medical records from their primary care physician (who has refused to give a medical exemption, so mom is shopping around). One more minor note, mom has a history of lying and manipulation especially surrounding medical issues with the children.

TL;DR: Anti-vax Mom won't vaccinate in California where required by law (court order exists as well to get vaccinations). Pro-vax dad (lives in Colorado) has called the school with nothing being done. School is not compliant, mom is not compliant, what can be done?

Topic:
Custody Divorce and Family

Answer:
 Your issue isn't with the school.   Trying to enforce this through the school is a waste of time.

>There is a court order from last month

This was issued in the family court case?  That is what your husband needs to enforce.  Answer #2: Get your kids vaccinated during their next visit with you.


Title: [Canada, ON] Any consequences to "gaming" a beer money app to earn more gift cards than I should be able to?

Question: Recently found a method to essentially earn more rewards than intended. I've so far cashed out most of them to amazon gift cards. I was wondering if it was a bad idea to spend any of it? Haven't touched them yet except for redeeming them. Been looking through the terms of service and stuff: the app says that it reserves the right to terminate any previously awarded gift cards. Amazon also says that it may bill alternative forms of payment should any gift cards used have come from the result of fraud, etc. Should I just go and spend em or just leave them there? The amount of money is decently significant? 1k+

Answer: Yes, committing fraud has consequences.


Title: New York State (not City) Transwoman question about workplace

Question:
In my workplace, I am out as a transwoman.  My name has been updated in a couple systems to my preferred name, but I'm told for things that are actually used in communication to other people, that they can't/won't update it until I legally change my name.  I do plan on doing this eventually, and I know I should suck it up, but my problem with this is there is another transwoman who has confirmed with me that she has not had a legal name change, and her name is updated in everything that doesn't require her to use her legal name by law.  I'm extremely upset that this would be done for one person, but when I try, I'm countered by a policy that either doesn't actually exist or was ignored for someone else, but enforced for me.  Do I have any recourse or contacts that may be able to help me?

Edit: Thank you for the responses, I know it's definitely not an issue that would be considered a violation of human rights or anything, but I just wanted to confirm that there was nothing I could do outside of the company instead of assuming. Thank you very much for your answers, it has been very informative and helpful.

Answer: Without a legal name change, they aren't obligated to update *any* of their systems with your preferred name. That they did that for someone else may be considered an exception.


Title: Is it really OK to just take someone's kid home without their knowledge?? Last I heard, that was called kidnapping...

Question:
Last month, I received a call from they daycare we took our son to. The owner/operator of this daycare informed me that there was “an incident” that day and proceeded to tell me that a man unknown to myself, my husband, my child, and even the daycare, walked in unnoticed, walked into my child’s classroom, said “I’m here for (my child’s name)”, and was given MY CHILD. The man was really the grandfather of another child with the same first name as my son. His grandson is 7 months old. My son is 15 months old. They weren’t even in the same classroom. But this man did not give the child’s first and last name, he was not asked for his ID, the pick up list was not consulted. Instead, the child care worker packed up my son’s bag and sent him on his way with this strange man. And the man actually left! Put my son in his car and left the daycare property! My son was gone, out of their care for nearly an hour. And when my child was returned, my husband and I were not immediately notified of the incident. I was not notified of the incident when I picked him up from the daycare after work that day. We weren’t called until 7pm that night.

My husband has filed reports with both the local police and the county Department of Human Services. The police seem to think there is nothing that warrants criminal charges and we haven’t heard back from DHS. Do we have any grounds for legal action against this facility or the man that took our son??

Answer:
 You can pursue a civil suit for negligence if you like but if the police don't want to pursue criminal charges, you can't force them to. Kidnapping is a specific intent crime, there doesn't appear to be the requisite mens rea here. It was a mistake, not an intentional act. Answer #2: Kidnapping generally involves intent and this seems to be a genuine mistake.

Report it to whoever oversees daycares (such as DHS) in your area.  Assuming this grandparent was on the pickup list for the correct child, there may not have been any actual violation.  For example grandparent checks in a front desk, shows ID, and then goes to get child.  The care providers in the room aren't responsible for checking the pickup list.

You may want to find a new daycare though.


Title: Bullied Into Resigning: Advice Needed

Question:
Hi, Smart Redditors!

Some months ago, I was told to come into our shop for a meeting,  (with my Manager and 2 Supervisors) where I was told that I could either:

Resign (my Manager said "I highly recommend you take this option") or;

Be assigned to work directly under someone with seniority.  Then my Supervisor added that I would stay in that situation for the rest of my career with ******** County Government.
This meant no promotions for the next 20 years!!!

I had a spotless record, and was regarded     as an unusually hard worker (they acknowledged this at the meeting before giving me the dilemma).

I live in North Carolina.

I have filed for unemployment and will soon file a complaint with the NC Labor Board.

Their reasons for doing so is complicated, but the short version is that they claim I "jumped the chain of command" when I emailed 2 county workers (outside and above our maintenance shop) with a suggestion on how to handle a delicate situation regarding our access to a department that deals with abused women and children.

Any thoughts???
Should I "Lawyer Up"?

Thanks in advance!!!

Edit:
I resigned, took my benefits, and am now very poor.

Answer:
 You could have taken the option to work under someone with seniority, then spent that time looking for another job.

I frankly don't see anything you are owed out of this. They could have fired you on the spot if they wanted to, barring a union or contract.


Title: [Neighbor in WA] Strong smell coming into my unit everyday!

Question:
I have been frustrated for over a year and now want to seek legal advise.

TLDR; Disturbed by downstair's cooking smell coming into my unit EVERY day, making my bed, closet smell like that. Wondering about possible legal steps to take around "Nuisance".

Story:

We are renting an apartment unit, where our neighbors downstairs cooks the same stuff every day, every night (smell lasting from 6pm - 1am). Because we are directly upstairs, the smell comes in through every window we have. We could close all the windows, but being on the top floor, it is steaming hot.

We have tried talking to the management about it and they are like "We talked to them. They are using the vents so nothing I can do." and also "We cannot tell them not to cook a certain food, it would be discrimination"

Well I understand you can eat/cook/do whatever you want at your home. But if it disturbs others I think something needs to be done right? Just like loud music.

As it gets hotter, I suspect that they are opening their windows more, the smell is getting stronger everyday. (I suspect something related to curry) Smelling someone else's cooking smell, in my own bed, is very disturbing.

We bought air purifiers, air refreshing bags, didn't help.

I guess we could move out, but it would be a lot of effort. Are there really nothing we could do? Under "nuisance" I believe my "peaceful and quiet enjoyment of my stay" is being disturbed.

Answer:
 > Under "nuisance" I believe my "peaceful and quiet enjoyment of my stay" is being disturbed.

Yea, no. Smelling strange cooking smells is part of living in an apartment community.


Title: I got arrested and the police office spelled my name wrong.

Question: I was arrested and sat in a cop car for an hour. The cop spelled my name wrong, can I got off in court? I'm from canada

Answer: Clerical errors rarely lead to charges being thrown out, the court will gladly correct the spelling of your name.Answer #2: Nope, your name is no longer Danny, its now forever Donny.


Title: My friends brother 18 just assaulted me a block from my house ...

Question: My friend doesn’t want me to tell the police but he nearly choked me to death. She’s afraid they’ll take away the children in the house if they find the home too violent. And she’s afraid if I tell they’ll search the house and find her weed . I have picture evidence what should I do ?

Answer:
 Report this to the police.
If he's violent the children aren't safe, and you warned her so she has time to hide her weed or nah - that's on her. Answer #2: Your friend is a selfish, crappy friend if she values her weed over your physical safety. Call the police and cut her off.Answer #3: Call the police ASAP.  Your friend can flush her weed or store it elsewhere.  The brother will be removed from the home before the children are relocated.  Getting in trouble for weed is better than you being murdered.Answer #4: If he's attacked you now he will most likely do it again. Answer #5: Report it. He has probably done this before and will do it again. He may even be abusing your friend or the kids. He needs to be reported.


Title: Brother's backpack found at a friends house with drugs

Question:
Hi all thank you for your time in giving insight. Getting a lawyer is definitely a priority.

Here's the story: My brother had a school bag with personal items inside that identify him as the owner. He forgot the bag at a friends house. It contained under 1 oz of weed, and about 3-4  xanax pills, 5 grams of THC concentrate, 3 grams of shatter (hash oil), and some 3-4 juul pods. He is 16 and has not had any prior offenses. The friends' parents found the bag, called the police and surrendered it to them. They have not contacted him yet which is weird. Will going to the police station to get the backpack (has hw and school materials inside) be a dumb idea? I feel if that happens, it's acknowledging and casting ownership over the bag. Needless to say, this experience made him realize what a damn idiot he is.

Answer:
 >Getting a lawyer is definitely a priority.

You should do that, and only that. Let that attorney decide the best course of action, which is likely leaving the backpack alone.


Title: [AL] Police called a tow truck for me after a wreck and the tow service wants +$400 for an 8 mile tow.

Question:
The officer told me they had to clear the interstate and to ride with the tow truck driver to their lot. Once I got to the lot the whole situation got shady. It felt like they were trying to give me the run around and not giving me any solid answers. Then they wrote up the bill for me. $413 for an 8 mile tow, $35 a day for storage until I pay the bill and move it.
I don’t have $413 and I also need to buy a new car. My insurance agent told me that this was priced entirely too high and called them on my behalf to find out why it was so expensive for an 8 mile tow.
The woman at her desk explained to him that they have a contract with the police department and that there’s a set price they have to charge for situations like this. But if I had called on my own it would have only been $75 and $3 a mile.  So now my car is basically being held ransom and I don’t know what to do.  When I called again the supervisor told me he was willing to work with me but because my insurance agent called and was rude to his people he couldn’t help me anymore.

How is this legal???
Do I have any options?

Edit: the car is totaled, I don’t even care about the car I just want to get this all taken care of and not have this debt mounting every day.

Answer: Why isn't your insurance just handling this? You said they are already involved and these situations are exactly what you pay them to resolve.


Title: Bad Judge

Question:
Hi there,

How difficult is it to appeal a judges decision in a case involving the euthanasia of a dog? What do you do? (Eugene, OR area)

Answer: It depends on the reason for your appeal, and on the nature of the decision. Did the judge make a mistake of law, or are you hoping to get your case re-heard on the same evidence already presented by someone who will decide differently?


Title: Gave incorrect information to police officer, what should I do?

Question:
I was involved in a car accident yesterday that was completely my fault. I went to turn left, didn't see a car coming, and got tboned. My car was totaled and had to be towed. When the cop took me into his car, I was pretty shaken up and I told him I failed to yield on a turn. He said something on the lines of "looks like you turned west, is that correct?" to which I said "yes". We finished, I got my ticket, and left.

 I then realized I turned *east*, which is illegal for this specific area. I don't know what I should do. Should I call the cop immediately and correct the mistake, or wait for them to contact me? From their perspective, it looks like I lied to a police officer to get out of an illegal turn. This is essentially the first time I've ever dealt with police, any advice is appreciated.

Edit: There was a witness behind me who I assume saw my left blinker, so I would be surprised if the police didn't already know

Answer: You should get a stiff drink and move on with your life. If every questioned under oath be truthful, doubt that will ever happen.


Title: [United States] I basically did hit and run in parking lot and I'm freaking out

Question:
This is in the United States, don't want to say state for anonymity reasons but will if it's really necessary.

I was driving a large van for work and was trying to park it in this super tiny parking space. I hit this car next to me's mirror and it scraped along side the van. The only way I could get out without damaging their car more was to drive straight, which meant driving over sidewalk/curb and into the street (second super illegal thing). I parked my van and had no paper or pen on me at all and ran into work basically having panic attack and a coworker saw me and told me I had to go to this meeting for an hour and I wasn't thinking straight so I just went. When I went back to the parking lot the car I hit was gone.

The next morning I went back and their car was there and I left a note with my phone number, explained their car was gone when I returned, and that I can pay for replacement. This was yesterday morning, their car was gone from the lot again at about 3 pm (so they should've gotten the unote by then) and now it's 7 am the next day and I haven't heard from them. When I looked at their mirror while leaving the note it looks like I may have actually even cracked the mirror a little instead of just scraping it.

I did not tell my work because terrified of getting fired which I know is even worse. Not going to say where I work but the fact that I did it in one of their vehicles makes it pretty bad (work vehicle not at all damaged). I just wanted to leave a note and take care of it privately.

I'm terrified because the person didn't respond maybe they are trying to build a hit and run case against me? I do not think there are any cctv in the lot or anything but you never know for sure and maybe they asked police to review them. Their car was very old and sort of dirty and already had some dings and stuff on it so I'm not sure it's like an audi owner who would potentially contact police over this but I have no idea.

What do I do if they don't contact me? Leave another note? Am I supposed to contact police? I didn't want to involve them or my work but I'm getting so nervous something terrible is going to come of this. I'm scared both of the hit and run and the sidewalk driving.

Answer:
 Stop worrying about the police and start worrying that you didn't inform your work that you hit a car in their vehicle. *Their* vehicle insurance is the one that's going to be used if you the car owner decides that's what they need to do. You likely can't withhold that information from them. You're required by law to exchange insurance information.

If that's how it's going to be handled, you're probably going to be fired for not telling your work.


Title: I reported a website that encourages and allows the distribution of revenge porn and child pornography. How to speed up the process for this website to be taken down?

Question: [deleted]

Answer:
 > I reported this website for child pornography and revenge porn

To whom?

Has your GF filed a police report?


Title: I (15) do not want to take a blood test that my doctor wants. Can I refuse it.

Question:
My doctor decided that my diet seems unhealthy to her. She says she want me to take a blood test to see my levels. I do not. I do not enjoy needles. My parents want me to. Can I refuse this? I am a resident of NY. Also, this is not a court ordered test, my doctor simply wants me to.
Topic:
Medicine and Malpractice

Answer:
 As you’re a minor in NY...

You can’t legally give consent nor can you legally refuse treatment except in cases regarding pregnancy, birth control, rape, STIs, or because you’re emancipated/marrieds

There’s a handy dandy form about this on the nyclu.org site.

Get the test. Your parents are fundamentally responsible here and if a doctor is worried about malnutrition and they do nothing and you get sick and die? They are liable.


Title: Predatory mortgage lending from 2005, 9+ years without payments. Need advice.

Question:
My finance lawyer recommended I ask /r/legaladvice if anyone knows of a way to speak directly with and/or give information to a representative of Fannie Mae. She believes Fannie Mae has been misinformed by both banks involved in my situation in order to avoid punitive action and said I should list details of my situation here to see if anyone has any input that can help.

Here’s my situation, I’ve condensed as much as possible due to the amount of information:

Mortgage set up in 2005, in Virginia, with Suntrust bank.
Last mortgage payment was made 9/2007, what follows are (most of?) the pertinent details.

**In deposition Suntrust loan originator testified:**
Bank used white-out on the HUD to remove wife with bad credit, the bank insisted only I sign the note.
Deed lists wife and I as we acquired the house through deed-of-gift from my mother.
No mention of wife on the mortgage paperwork at all. At all. They can’t even put it on her credit report.
Paperwork sent over for closing listed a $210k 5-year ARM defaulting to high rate, agreement had been for 30-year fixed with low rate.
Agent argued with closing lawyer over the phone, culminating with “just shut up and have him sign.”
Bank was aware of loan not having valid lien.
Bank sent paperwork to title insurer (Southern Title), paperwork was kicked back as uninsurable.
Suntrust re-sent paperwork to title insurer with a note saying it had been fixed, title insurers approved it but no one at Suntrust had even opened the folder.
Promissory note was approved, funds disbursed, I am the sole debtor.
Suntrust sold the loan immediately, what they knew to be a $210k unsecured loan was sold to Fannie Mae.

**Title insurers:**
Collapsed, went into receivership and is now owned by state. Makes no claim on this property.

**Bank details:**
Originating bank: Suntrust Mortgage (Virginia offices)
Current servicer: Nationstar Mortgage (Texas based company)

**Litigation details:**
Last payment made September 2007.
As of 1/1/2011, servicing rights acquired by Nationstar Mortgage.
Suntrust filed petition (after already transferring servicing rights) for foreclosure 2/2011.
Suntrust contacted our lawyer to schedule a court date, our lawyer responded that he was on vacation that week. Suntrust waiting until that week and attempted to schedule a court date on short notice to ask for summary judgment.
Suntrust litigation lasted until 12/2012 when they were provided with records showing that Nationstar had owned servicing rights for roughly 2 years. This happened while we were in a mediation, and Suntrust still continued to make offers of $2,000-$3,000 for moving expenses if we were willing to sign the house over to them that day, even though they did not own the loan or the servicing rights.
Suntrust continued to try and push a court date even with the knowledge that they had no claim over the property or loan, in a conference call the judge threatened them with punitive action if they came into court without representatives from Fannie Mae and Nationstar present. Suntrust no longer pursued the case after that point.
Litigation stayed inactive but the case was not dismissed, Nationstar revived it in early 2016 when they applied for and were allowed to replace Suntrust as plaintiff on the petition.
Legal action since 2011: 1 deposition (Suntrust), 2 mediations (1 with each bank), and 2 court dates (both with Nationstar).
During teleconference at last mediation, Nationstar home office rep stated he had no flexibility due to Fannie Mae ownership of loan. Local lawyer for Nationstar had not been made aware of Fannie Mae ownership prior to that time. He was vocally unhappy about it during the mediation.
Nationstar home office rep also stated they have no record of the amount paid to acquire servicing rights. He stated: “we buy batches of loans, we can’t be expected to know how much we pay for each one.”
Nationstar home office rep would not agree to acknowledge these statements in court.
Legal representatives for both parties agreed to start discovery proceedings in order to acquire more information to move forward with. My wife, our closing lawyer, the Suntrust loan originating agent, and I have all been deposed. I have no idea what the Nationstar lawyer could learn from discovery.
Court date was scheduled for March of 2017 but that Nationstar lawyer asked to reschedule and has made no contact since that time. He has also never filed for any type of discovery. We regularly go anywhere from months to over a year between contact from bank lawyers.

**Here’s what I consider the most interesting thing:**
Our finance and real-estate lawyers are both certain that Fannie Mae has never been notified that they own a large personal loan sold to them by Suntrust bank, and that all legal action has been in pursuit of keeping that fact hidden.
In every instance (court, mediation, offers directly to our lawyer) the banks push for the same 3 things:
First, for my wife to sign papers making her a valid partner in the mortgage and beyond that, this agreement must stipulate that she was a valid signee retroactive to the closing date in 2005.
Second, to immediately sign the house over with no stipulations. They’ve offered us $2,000-$3,000 in moving expenses and a promise not to start eviction attempts for 90 days but were never willing to put that on paper even when our lawyer requested it.
Third, both banks have insisted that they will never make an offer where we would not be pursued for the residual balance after a short sale or auction.

**Possibilities:**
Had consultation for bankruptcy multiple years ago, lawyer has done pro bono work since then just to keep abreast of the case.
Chapter 7: Unrealistic. Debt free but homeless with a household of 6.
Chapter 13: Complicated and unrealistic.

Tl;dr My finance lawyer loves my case enough to do free work on it, is a /r/personalfinance and /r/legaladvice lurker. She recommended asking for help here, specifically that I request a way to contact Fannie Mae to examine my case for fraud/intimidation/predatory lending.

edit: formatting

Edit part two: I see where my post is really ambiguous in regards to our legal representation. I'll clarify:

I've had 2 lawyers on the real-estate issues.

The first was a real douche, we parted ways when Suntrust stopped actively pursuing their petition in 2012.

Our current real-estate lawyer is a wonderful person, an amazing lawyer, and he's in it to help people who've been getting screwed over. Unfortunately, he overloads himself trying to help everyone. He can keep the banks at bay (until he dies from exhaustion), but he considers pursuing the bank a separate issue. He was willing to give us a flat fee for his services which is good because we're going on 1.5 years of back-and-forth on it already.

Our finance lawyer was retained in the past for a separate  issue. She recommended throwing this out to the the gods of /r/legaladvice when she couldn't come up with any real answers. When I say pro bono work, she's been willing to do a ton of research for us to see if there were possible solutions through the financial end (bankruptcy, etc.)

Answer:
 Update:

I took the advice of /u/Wanderlust917 and called Fannie Mae. I got the fraud people on the line and verbally dumped out some of the story I have listed here. She said it sounds interesting and will have a specialist get in contact with me. I'm excited!

Called my wife and told her that they were escalating it and I'd be talking to a specialist within the next couple of days. Appaaaaaaarently my wife has done this a couple times already and never gotten the callback, so she didn't bother to tell me about. The lawyer told her the same thing.

I'm gonna be optimistic anyways.


Title: Getting my physically abusive domestic partner to move. I NEED HELP! (Texas)

Question:
Currently, my girlfriend is living with me in my apartment.  Her name is not on the lease and everything is in my name.

Over the past 3 months, her abuse has escalated from emotional to physical.  On three separate occasions she has literally beat the shit out of me.  My face and neck are all scratched up and have bruises.  I didn't call the cops and diffused the situation after a few hours.

Every time I try to break up with her, she breaks down and turns into a nutcase.  I don't want to throw her on the streets because we are both about 1000 miles from home.  However, I have reached my last straw.

I can no longer be in this relationship and I can no longer live with her.  What is the best route I can take to have her take all of her stuff out of my apartment and move out of my life?

Answer:
 Echoing what has already been said here, definitely call the police **every** time she gets violent. You must give her 30 days' notice (preferably written) for her to vacate the unit.

Since Texas also has a one-party-consent wiretap law, you need to audio record her every single time she acts this way. The evidence will be crucial in court when getting an RO, and it will also prevent her from trying to flip the domestic violence incident on you when the cops arrive.


Title: Is it illegal to use images I find on Google Images on my website?

Question:
I would think they are, more specifically the non-watermarked images available on Google Images. I mean after all, aren't they a part of the public domain?

PS: I am located in the State of New York

Answer:
 You should only use images you have rights to use. Otherwise you could get sued. Just because they come up in a google image search doesn't mean they are public domain.Answer #2: > I mean after all, aren't they a part of the public domain?

They are not part of the public domain solely because they are on the internet.


Title: Currently being blackmailed by an employee of mine, what can I do?

Question:
Hi all. So for the past year and a half now I've been under constant blackmail from one of my employees. I work at a retail store in management, and like my job aside from this one problem. So the story is as follows: in 2017 the associate pretended to be my friend for a few months and asked me to come over his house for drinks and burgers, which I reluctantly agreed to (because I was nervous about hanging out with someone who I supervise). I went to his house, we both got drunk and talked about a lot of random stuff. Well during this drunken conversation, we got to talking about things we'd experimented before in our past including drugs (I no longer do them, but did experiment during college).

&#x200B;

After we hung out that day, about a month passes and I had to confront him about an issue at work and he does a complete 180 on me. When I confront him he says something along the lines of "if you make me do that, I'll show HR this video I recorded of you when you were at my house talking about drugs". I was completely shocked at that revelation and so I started giving into him and letting him get away with whatever he wanted. His attitude towards me changed completely after that day as well, constantly being angry with me and pressing his luck with what he could get away with. After a month or so I could no longer take it and went to my boss. My bosses reaction was to move me away from the employee to avoid the employee from going to HR, which he believed would get me fired. Well, due to circumstances at work I'm now back supervising the same employee and he is once again threatening to report me if I don't let him do whatever he wants.

&#x200B;

What are my options here? Should I go to HR first and just explain to them everything and start looking for a new job before it escalates?

&#x200B;

For reference I am in Kentucky, if that matters and have no physical evidence that I can think of that he is currently blackmailing me.

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Thanks.

Answer: Tell HR. They're not going to care that you tried drugs in college and giving in to the guy (has he even really got a vid?) will only get you fired eventually for being a shitty supervisor.


Title: What do I do if my husband is threatening to press charges for allegedly stealing his money?

Question: My husband and I have been married for 7 months now. I am also 4 months pregnant with his child. While I was 8 weeks pregnant, I found out he cheated on me via his email. I moved out and returned about a month later to reconcile with him. Well later on, we got in heated argument and he called the police on me saying I slapped him. The police officers separated us for the night and now he is accusing me of stealing money from his bank account. He sent me screenshots of when he did indeed sent me $1000 via Chase quickpay but he is saying I stole that money. Also, he made another $1000 withdraw from his account and is saying I stole that as well. I did not take his money but he doing this out of some type of revenge. He never made this accusations until the night of the argument. Also to mention, he is an undocumented alien. I am a US born citizen. I really don't know what to do. I am tired of him sending me messages that I am going to jail and I did warn him that he if continues I will contact law enforcement. I really do not wish for him to be deported but I don't know what else to do to protect my unborn child and I and how to resolve this. (Hammond, LA)

Answer:
 Louisiana is communal property state.  Its actually your money regardless of whose name is on the bank account.

I would give the [Louisiana Collision Against Domestic Violence](http://lcadv.org/programs-resources/) a call for help getting out of this relationship.  Answer #2: It sounds a lot like he married you for the green card, and now he's fabricating domestic abuse allegations in order to qualify for residency while divorcing you.

I would look for a divorce attorney.Answer #3: If he actually tells the police you slapped him when you didn't, and he tells the police that you stole money from him when you didn't, you need to complain to the police that he is making false reports to the police.

Probably the police are going to look at this theft claim of his as a civil issue.  But they should at least tell him that if he makes false claims about you to the police, it's a crime and he can be sent to jail for it.


Title: (Aus) Can I do anything about my horrible neighbour?

Question: [deleted]

Answer:
 I did read the whole thing but 90% of it is irrelevant. Get some cameras installed on your house so you can prove that your dogs are not a nuisance and to provide evidence in case your neighbour trespasses on your property. If she does trespass or interfere with your animals call the cops.

As for the rest of it that'll depend on the specific laws in your state or territory. Just saying Australia doesn't cut it because things change by jurisdiction.

I do suggest that you go see a counselor or other mental health professional about your anxiety though.


Title: Neighbor keeps driving over my lawn to get to his driveway...and he's a cop.

Question:
Claremore, OK, USA.
Our new neighbors moved in about a month ago. A man and woman, with the man being a police officer in a neighboring city. At first, no issues. Then he started parking in front of our mailbox. Not really a huge deal, but I'm guessing the post may have left him a note, as he quit doing that fairly quickly. Now, he parks his police car at the back of his driveway, and the two personal cars in front. Obviously no big deal.

Except, when he gets off shift, rather than move his cars, he pulls through my front yard to park behind them. As it's rainy season here, this is tearing up the yard pretty well. And our city has a hard on for enforcing appearance regulations. I got the official property line layouts just to be sure, and he is indeed using my property. I've tried to go next door and talk to them about it, but they don't answer.

So, what should I do? I don't want to make any missteps considering I work in the city where he has jurisdiction.  I've considered extending my fence to block his ability to do this, but I'm honestly not sure if that's legal. It's my property, and it wouldn't be blocking his driveway obviously, but it would be blocking off the side of it. Any help would be appreciated.
Topic:
Real Estate law

Answer:
 Consider a security camera with a clear view of your full front yard. They've come way down in price in recent years.

Video evidence would be good to have, should he prove problematic in future.

I would second the big decorative rocks idea, or some shrubs. Maybe a tree with some stuff around the base. A physical barrier will speak louder than words.Answer #2: I wonder what his superiors would say about using a government vehicle to commit property damage?Answer #3: You can place decorative rocks/boulders wherever you want in your yard. They don't have to be huge, maybe the size of a basketball.


Title: (California) Wife has to take a drug test, uses medical marijuana legally

Question: [deleted]

Answer:
 > We both smoke weed, but we also both have prescriptions so nothing is illegal.

You don't have a prescription, you have a recommendation.

And marijuana remains illegal at the federal level everywhere in the US.


Title: What is considered working off the clock?

Question: Can a company require that hourly associates be on break or off the clock in order to talk to them about work related issues in the State of CA? Wouldn't that be considered working off the clock and violate the FLSA?

Answer:
 If you're not free to leave without consequences to your job, you're generally considered to be engaged to work and must be paid for your time. If your boss wants to talk to you and would discipline or fire you for walking away, then you're at work. Heck, if your boss told you to go stand in a corner and do nothing, but would fire you if you walked away, you're working and must be paid.

Having said that, it's not worth the hassle of pursuing sort of legal remedy if you're talking about a minute or two's discussion at the end of the day. Getting the Department of Industrial Relations involved for a wage claim is appropriate if you're getting screwed out of substantial time, but not really worth doing for small amounts.


Title: Hit and Run Help

Question:
Not sure if this is the right place to post, but hope you nice people can help. I'm in Indiana.

My coworker's car was in the parking lot of our work. She tried to file a police report as the car took off, but the police wouldn't take it. She sent an email to the office and someone came forward stating he did it. He said he would pay out of pocket if she didn't go through insurance. She obtained a quote and asked him for a check up front. He said if she pays the bill he will pay her for the final total. She doesn't have the money to pay up front.

Should she just file through insurance or pay for the damage up front? I feel like he could get in trouble for the hit and run by itself if she were to turn him in.

Answer:
 She has more power here than she thinks - she should tell the other driver to either pay it the way she wants or she'll just talk to his insurance company who will surely do it her way.  He's asking for a favor, and he's being uncooperative about it.  She can't get in trouble for damage that he caused - she can do exactly that to him, though.

That said, the no police report thing is very sketchy and not something that I'm sure that I believe 100%.  For sure there's more to the story than that single line.


Title: Ex girlfriend won't return $600 of my items that were not gifts

Question:
My previous partner of 2.5 years and I split up in July 2016. I purchased about $600 worth of climbing gear (ropes, helmets for us both, anchors, etc) at the beginning of summer 2016. I have pics of receipts. We used it together for the summer, always kept it in my vehicle, then split up. I then went traveling for work from Feb - June and lent her the gear saying she could use it in my absence but would have to return it when I'm back. I have texts of this. Upon arriving back, she asked me for her remaining things back (4 books and some clothes), which I boxed up and left with her friend. She confirmed receiving them. I then asked how she wanted to handle returning my climbing gear. She said she's keeping it as payment for emotional distress of our rocky breakup. O...kay?

I was baffled, as we always bought our own things, split trips, etc. We're comfortably middle class on our own. I'm really not *too* concerned about it, but why should I let her effectively steal my things? I told her I'd like my gear back (not including the women's helmet I bought, she can of course keep that.) I even suggested she could buy it at half value. I thought pretty generous considering ropes and other gear often last 5 years minimum.

Anyhow, what are my options? Should I bother pursuing it? Taking a day off to go to small claims wouldn't earn me much even if I won (I'm a contractor, no paid vacation or time off, so I'd lose 8-10 hours x $35 to gain $500ish) Should I go to the police dept and ask their opinion? Maybe they'll escort me there and ask for items?

Typing this all out makes me realize I should probably just let it go, but since I did type it, I'll post for your entertainment!

This all occurred in New York

Answer:
 Contact your sheriff's department and ask for an officer to accompany you to pick up stolen items. Make sure ex is home and make sure you have proof they belong to you (receipts and texts from ex refusing to return items)Answer #2: You already know the legal options available to you - small claims, mostly, but you can always see if the police are interested in knocking on her door.

Call me petty, but if you'll still gain *something* net of your lost income from suing in small claims, I'd do it. This is such an outlandish thing to do that it warrants making her pay up, if only to show this isn't acceptable.


Title: [Location: USA, OH] Married to a soldier that will be forced to move within the year. Have residential custody of a child from previous relationship. Need advice.

Question:
I am going to try and make this as simple as I can.

I had a child at 17 years old. The father "A" and I never married and I was granted residential custody. He was granted every other weekend and typical visitation outlined in our parenting agreement. He has never followed the agreement. Usually he gets winter break and the majority of the summer. He still currently lives with his parents working when he can. We do work well to compromise as much as possible for the sake of our son when it comes to visitation.

The parenting agreement/child support case took place in Ohio. Shortly afterward, he moved to South Carolina where he does still currently reside (In his parent's house). Our son is now 11 years old and I am married to an active duty soldier (referred to as "S")with a two year old daughter.  My husband "S" is coming down on orders soon that could potentially have us moving across the US. With my son being old enough to fly on a plane, I do not think that this would interrupt the visitation schedule we already have followed for years even though it is not what is on paper. My ex "A" is furious. He does not want us to move even though he moved several states away himself.

Even with being a very young mother, I tried my best. I have never been in any kind of legal trouble, worked full time while attending school to support my son. My son has been on honor roll for several years, mathletes, chess club, principles list, etc. He is in a very good place and excelling. I don't want to cause stress to him or to my family.

My son has a fondness for his biological father. He gets to stay up late, eat junkfood, watch completely inappropriate movies, etc. Being at his biological father's house is definitely his favorite place to be. I understand why. Spoiled and no chores. Very rich grandparents that shower him with attention and gifts. Every kid's dream. At our house, we live in a very modest house and share a car. Everyone does chores and we are semi-strict and focus more on schoolwork and future college aspects.

His father recently told him that at his age, children have been able to tell the courts that they want to live with one parent over the other. A similar situation happened with my niece and nephew where they made a choice to live with their father. That absolute terrifies me.

Would a judge allow an 11 year old to make a decision like this?

If the judge does not allow me to go with my husband, what am I supposed to do?

Is it likely that the judge would grant me permission to leave?

I am completely stressing out. I don't want to be separated from either of my children nor do I want to be separated from my husband. He was deployed for most of my pregnancy and our daughter's life. I feel awful thinking he would have to be separated from her longer while we figure this out.

 If both of us are no longer in Ohio, would I need to file in a new state? We don't know a new address yet or even a new state. There is a good chance that we won't get much notice. Can I file for modification if I don't even know where we are going?

Answer:
 You need to file for a modification of the custody agreement.

You need to get a lawyer. Your son is 11 - he doesn't get to call the shots. You do. Talk to a lawyer and get the process started.

If you're in Ohio - the child is in Ohio - you'll be filing in Ohio (more than likely)


Title: Caught intoxicated without possession of alcohol + disorderly conduct

Question: I was arrested for underage intoxication and disorderly conduct. I was not in possession alcohol or anything illegal. I cooperated with the police offers. Now I have a complaint-summons for 2 charges, (underage intoxication and disorderly conduct). I did not damage any private property. Me and my friend were mildly intoxicated and began playfighting in a store in a mall NJ. One of the store employees reported a fight misinterpreting our playfighting. When the police arrived, they smelled the alcohol from my breath but I denied being intoxicated and I passed the "tilt head back pen test". What can I use to my defense in court and what could be the punishment for such a case? (extra details: this is was a tort NOT a crime, I am 18). There was no breathalyzer test performed on me nor did they prove that I was intoxicated. It was simply the stench of alcohol from my breath that made the officer presume I was intoxicated.

Answer:
 >  What can I use to my defense in court

Stupidity is not a defense, so I really don't know.

> and what could be the punishment for such a case?

A fine not less than $500.00 for the underage intox charge.

A fine of up to $500 plus assessments to Victims of Crime Compensation Board and to the Safe Neighborhood Services Fund of approximately $125, and possibly up to 30 days in jail for the disorderly conduct charge.

> extra details: this is was a tort NOT a crime, I am 18

Um, what? No.

> There was no breathalyzer test performed on me nor did they prove that I was intoxicated. It was simply the stench of alcohol from my breath that made the officer presume I was intoxicated.

Generally speaking, that is more than enough to charge and convict you of the charges.
Answer #2: How do you know you passed the tests? What are the clues of impairment on the Romberg balance test and the Horizontal gaze nystagmus test?


Title: ISP prohibits porn

Question: I live in a small town in Michigan and there is only one local ISP that provides decent internet. The area is fairly religious so it doesn't surprise me that in their terms and conditions they state they can shut service of service for watching porn, among other things. Is this legal? Is it like they enforce this? I don't really know what the current status of net neutrality is but the 2010 order had a "No blocking" provision that prohibited ISPS from blocking lawful content so I find it hard to believe that they would actually enforce this rule.

Answer: If you get a VPN they won't know what you are or aren't watching.Answer #2: They wouldn't have any customers.