Title: Issue with shyster landlord

Question: [deleted]

Answer:
 If you and your landlord cannot come to terms of deductions from your security deposit, your remedy is to litigate.  You can sue her if you think she should return some of your deposit that she withheld.  You can refuse to pay and she can sue you if she believes you owe more than the security deposit.

Your move in inspection report seems a pretty sound defense to at least some of the charges.  And may establish a general condition of the property that will help you.  But the outcome in litigation will depend on the arguments raised by each party.

You might also be careful with the term "shyster" which is perceived as anti-semitic in many circles.


Title: [CA] Brother has student loans in Mom's name. Can she do anything to get untangled from this loan?

Question:
The title tells the story. My mom knowingly allowed my brother's loans be in her name and has payed off $30k so far of my brother's loan. Long story short, he went off the rails and there's scorched earth between them now. Can she unload the loan onto him?

Also, if I can sneak another question in - there's another student loan in her name ( she knew about it) which he was paying and he defaulted on it. My mom's credit score took a nose dive because of it.  Is there any recourse she has and is there any way she can force it back on him because of course he'd not willingly take it.

Answer:
 The title does not tell the story - the post does.

Your mom took loans in HER name and made the payments for a while. Your mom also took a loan in HER name that your brother made payments for.

Because your mother willingly took those loans in her name, she is FULLY responsible for paying them back. There is no way to force your brother to pay for them.

Depending on what the nature of the agreement between her and your brother is, she MIGHT be able to recover some of the funds from your brother by taking legal action.

Whether she is willing and/or able to do so, and whether it makes sense for her to do so depends on information not presented here: was there a written agreement between them? Written communication (letters, emails, texts)? Is there a history of her making payments and your brother reimbursing her? What are the disputed amounts? Etc...


Title: Employer is having all employees sign an agreement waiving HIPPA rights "for the duration of the pandemic"

Question:
This morning my employer presented all employees with a document saying we voluntarily waive our HIPAA rights. The documents text follows:

As an employee of _______ , I understand and acknowledge the importance of safety to myself, clients, and co-workers as it relates to viral and bacterial transmission in a coronavirus outbreak. By signing below, I herby agree to temporarily waive my HIPAA rights during the course of this pandemic and commit to disclose, as soon as possible, to a program medical professional or our company RN
1. If I am experiencing two or more symptoms of Corona virus.
2.if I plan or have completed a COVID-19 test
3. My results of a COVID-19 test.
4. If I am exposed to anyone with medical symptoms consistent with COVID-19.

I understand the company may, but it not obligated to, take any actions it considers to be warranted under the circumstances of a disease outbreak, for the health and safety of all personnel and clients of ______.

Basically I am concerned with the seemingly vague time frame of this agreement and also am wondering what risks if any waiving my HIPAA rights will expose me to?
Any advice around this will be appreciated. As of now I have not signed the document.

Answer:
 Aside from the other factors, did they really misspell it as "HIPPA" in the document they want you to sign? That indicates they didn't have counsel review it and they don't have any idea what they are doing.

You don't have to waive HIPAA to tell your workplace that you're sick. HIPAA applies to protected medical information from a covered entity.


Title: Daughter (5) came home from visitation with father with bruises (Ohio)

Question:
I’m sorry if this is a little scattered, I’ve just gotten my daughter to bed and I’m in a panic.

My daughter is five. Her father and I split up right after she turned one. I have sole legal and physical custody, he has visitation every other weekend. We (my husband and I) just got her back from her dad’s last night. She was exhausted so I didn’t give her a bath til today before bed, and while helping her with her bath I noticed a cluster of small bruises on the left side of her chest and stomach.

I asked her where she got them - she’s an active kid who wants to be Spider-Man so I expected that she’d crashed into something while playing. But she got really quiet and said that [kid from preschool] poked her a bunch of times. The thing is, she’s been out of preschool since the 11th and in her summer daycare. I reminded her that there were no bruises when she left preschool and she was quiet for a minute and then said, “Daddy got mad at me for writing on the pizza board and poked me really hard with his finger a bunch and it hurt really bad.”

I know you’re not supposed to ask kids questions about potential abuse but I was horrified and asked if this was the first time her dad had done it and she said no. I asked her to repeat how she got the bruises and filmed her response without her knowing I was doing so. Her response was the same as before. I took pictures of the bruises as well.

I just don’t know where to go from here. Do I call her father and ask about it? He lied to me about having bed bugs after she came home from his house covered in bites so I don’t think he’ll give me anything close to the truth if I ask him. Do I call the lawyer I used in the divorce and custody hearing? Do I call the police? CPS? Is this enough for anyone to take seriously or will they think it’s just a kid with some random bruises? Do the authorities believe little kids’ statements? I don’t think I’m overreacting but this is my little girl’s safety here.

For a little bit of background on her father, he’s a heavy pot smoker (illegal in Ohio), moves around a lot depending on what girl he’s dating at the time, used to have an extremely serious drinking problem, and has been emotionally and mentally abusive to every woman he dates long-term. He’s not been physically abusive as far as I know but he did throw my belongings and hit walls and break windows and stuff while we were together and I know he’s done it to at least one other woman he’s dated since. When he was drinking heavily after we split up, he didn’t see our daughter for 6+ months because I went to pick her up from him and he was wasted outside, she was alone inside with no baby gates on the stairs to the second floor or the basement, and she had awful diaper rash and was filthy. In retrospect I should have called CPS on him right then but I was just focused on getting her away and he didn’t try to contact me to see her for over half a year and by then he had quit drinking.

This is really unfamiliar and scary and I’m so worried about my daughter. My husband and I give her the best life we possibly can and for something like this to happen to her makes me feel like I can’t protect her and it’s terrible.
Topic:
Custody Divorce and Family

Answer:
 Don't call the father, he's likely going to deny it and you're just going to tip him off. You should notify your attorney, that's never a bad thing. I'd call the non-emergency police line now and ask to file a report. Do **not** keep interrogating your kid. I get the need to get information as a parent, but you can easily taint a child's memory.

I would ask your attorney whether this would support supervised visitation requirements. I'm sorry you're going through this.Answer #2: I can't speak about Ohio, but there are 2 things I'd suggest:

- ~~If you can while she's sleeping, take pictures.~~ I missed that you'd done this already. Sorry!
- Take her to a doctor. The doctor can talk to her gently and make a record of what's happened. The doc may also contact CPS so you don't have to initiate that.

Of course, talk to your attorney, but I'd say to get her to a doc ASAP so an impartial 3rd party can have a record of it. Don't tell her the real reason why you're going to the doc though. You can tell the doc's office yourself when you make the appointment that your little one came home from her dad's with bruises so doc is aware, but don't tip your kid off.Answer #3: I’m a mandatory reporter.  If a student had finger shaped bruises and told me they were poked I’d call CPS/DYFS.  This is not an overreaction if you decide to call.


Title: 19F, got a ticket for reckless driving in VA (85/65) just after the speed limit dropped from 70 to 65. second speeding ticket in a month, what should i do?

Question:
last night i got pulled over at for going 85 in a 65 at mm 103.2 on 64 east (coming over afton mountain). this is 0.2 miles after the limit drops, and i was slowing down as he pulled me over. (unsure if this is relevant, but i was driving a friends parents car home, they were in the car with me. few other cars were on the road).

three weeks ago i was pulled over in madison county for going 82 in a 60, though the officer wrote me up just for speeding. i havent gotten that ticket in the mail yet so i'm not sure how much the fine is or how many points ive gotten. besides that, my driving record is clean.

how should i handle this?

Answer:
 Reckless driving is an actual criminal offense in Virigina. Like, have a criminal record follow you around for the rest of your life. You need a criminal defense attorney, now.

Speeding 20 mph or more over the post limit, OR ever exceeding 80 mph in Virigina is reckless driving. You got lucky the first time. Start calling attorneys. Answer #2: You clearly have a speeding issue that needs to be tackled, you've been caught going 20mph over twice within a months span. At age 19 you are in track to losing your license and your insurance is going to go through the roof. Either take a defensive driving course and learn to control your speed or use cruise control.Answer #3: >Virginia reckless driving is a class 1 misdemeanor. That’s a criminal offense, and it carries six DMV points, a potential fine of $2,500, and a potential jail sentence of 12 months.

You need a lawyer.


Title: Can I legally register a company in the caribbean using the name of an American company

Question: I live in Grenada and I want to register a company. I already have the go ahead in my country that I can register the name. Now the problem is this company will be doing business in the USA and from my research there is already a company registered under that name in the USA. Will this cause a problem. What makes it even worse is that the company does the same thing I do but they seem non functional. I really want to use the name. Please Advise!

Answer:
 You should probably choose a new name that is distinct in your industry.Answer #2: I do this for a living.  The answer is yes as far as registering.

Simply having the same name as the company in the US is not an issue.  The issue is if they have established themselves in that line of business with that name and your use of the name causes confusion, but for anything more than that you will need a lawyer.

If they come after you they will try to go after you in the US, but if you have no assets there all they will do is try to get an injunction against you.

They can try to go after you in Grenada, but they will have a hard time.  If I was your registered agent in my jurisdiction and they sent me any communications to you I would forward to you and then throw away without responding to them.

Answer #3: NAL, someone correct me if I'm wrong. Can you just see if you can contact the owner of the company name and purchase rights to the name? I'm not sure how that works, so I guess I'm asking all you lawyers out there if that's an option


Title: [Georgia] 18-year-old charged for spending bank error of $30,000

Question:
http://myfox8.com/2015/03/10/teen-convicted-after-spending-30k-mistakenly-deposited-into-his-account/

Georgia's court records aren't online.  What's the charge here?  Is is financial transaction fraud or some sort of theft?

I have no personal stake in this; I'm merely curious.

Answer:
 God. The best part about the article is they interviewed, "The person he refers to has his mother." How hick is that? Also, she defended him, saying how excited he was when he saw the amount and how she would have been excited too.

WHO THINKS LIKE THAT? You don't get excited. You call the bank. It's like his family supported this fraud.


Title: [NY] The business next door is upset about our noise levels and has started harassing us, what to do?

Question:
There are three businesses next to each other in the basement of a building with shared walls and a shared hallway to the businesses. I'm in the middle and I run a sports/recreation space where people are able to run around, throw stuff, and basically just be active with equipment.

The neighbor to my left has been complaining ever since we moved in (even before we had customers) about the noise levels and just generally being an ass about everything. I tried to be neighborly and bought a lot of sound insulation foam to stick up on the walls but unfortunately since our connecting walls don't have insulation on the inside, it probably barely helps. Nothing short of tearing the entire wall down, stuffing it with insulation, and then redoing the walls will help the noise issue. To be honest, it can be quite loud at times, but my landlord approved my use before I signed the lease. Additionally, the other neighbor (the one to my right) is a hip-hop studio and they are literally 10-20 times louder than me, their music will literally shake my walls and my desk, but the left neighbor doesn't complain about them since they don't have connecting walls and don't hear their music as much as I do. Their music obviously bothers my clients and myself, but I don't complain about it.

After a few weeks of me telling the left neighbors there's not much I can do for noise short of tearing down the wall, they start ignoring me and giving me dirty looks whenever they see me. Last week they started writing nasty reviews on my business page, even though they have never been a client (they wrote it on their real accounts). I also got a couple missed calls from a number that leads to a website for legal services, and a voicemail from some place asking for mediation between our businesses (how can you call for mediation after literally giving me 1 star reviews and asking our landlord to kick us out multiple times?) Then just a few days ago during my first appointment of the day the neighbor to my left barges into my business and starts shouting about the noise (WHILE clients were in my business). I immediately told him to leave, but he stayed and kept complaining until I took out my phone to record him. Even while recording him he would not fully leave, he held the door open and had his body blocking the exit while yelling. I ended up calling the police and he finally left while I was on the phone with them. They came and gave him a warning to not trespass again, but seeing police concerned my clients. Literally two hours after that incident, the neighbor's wife (who is probably nastier than him) stopped one of my clients from coming into my business to tell them about how "horrible" my business was and how "inconsiderate" we were, thankfully the clients were nice people and understood the situation.

I've spoken with my landlord multiple times and they are on my side, saying that they were fine with my use. I am going to see if I can get a signed letter from the landlord saying that they approve my use/noise levels, but I feel like the neighbor to my left is going to try to sue me for.. something? What steps should I take now to ensure that if there were any legal troubles I could win them easily? What should/can I do about their harassment towards my business and my clients? We would really prefer not to have to hire an expensive lawyer to defend ourselves. Thank you.

Answer:
 IANAL.
If the landlord isn't complaining, and it's a commercial space then the neighbors probably don't really have any case but they can still file a lawsuit. If they do you should hire an attorney and respond immediately.

A call from a mediator may be an attempt to bring you to the table, but unless you get official paperwork from a government agency you can simply not respond.

Their approaching clients and blocking access to you business IS something you can act on, however. You might find some satisfaction (if not resolution yet) in hiring a lawyer to write them a nasty letter that's fairly liberal with terms like "tortious interference" and "defamation". IF they actually have the wherewithal to talk to a real attorney of their own that should shut them up.

Finally, if it's something the land lord would allow they COULD install a secondary sound wall on their side. Maybe the LL would help out, maybe you can buy them a pizza while they have the work done... maybe they can trade 20-50 sqft of their space for some quiet. You don't have to open an old wall to improve the soundproofing of a room, you can just build a whole new wall on top of the old one.

Ultimately tho, I could call the police every time they enter your private office space (can't do anything about common areas) and make note of any time they harass a client. Screenshot their false reviews as well, and store them on a cloud service as well as locally.  If/when you do go to a judge that will be evidence.


Title: [Canada, Quebec] I bought a service dog who is still a puppy and signed a contract with a trainer. Trainer is refusing to train puppy and is demanding full payment. Isn't there a loophole?

Question:
Contract: I, [MY NAME; Vince], will pay [TRAINER'S NAME; Cindy] the full costs of service support dog training fees after [DOG'S NAME; Bogey] has completed 1 year of training. Once [Vince] has paid full fees then ownership of [Bogey] will transfer to the new owner (me). If training remains unpaid by [DATE 2018] then ownership of [Bogey] remains with [Cindy].

(I edited out the redundant nonsense that just says that the trainer and owner will provide a loving and suitable home for the puppy during both training and ownership.)

So no prices were listed in the contract. I BOUGHT the puppy myself. My trainer made the demand that she owns the puppy/dog until training is done and I have paid in full.

Here's the kicker, I have had Bogey for 6 months now and she has NOT ONCE trained my puppy. He was supposed to be half way done by now. I have taught him ALL of the basic commands myself (sit, stay, etc.). But I cannot possibly teach him how to react to my seizures on my own, I do not know how to train a dog that way, hence why I found a trainer.

The reason she hasn't trained Bogey at all yet is because she got injured and took a break from her work. But she refused to void out the contract saying if I either didn't pay or hand over the puppy then she'd take me to court. She said she'd drop her fees to $3000 for me to keep the puppy. Her original training fees were over $5000. (CAD monies)

I told her I was no longer interested in her services because I wanted my puppy trained before adulthood and she wasn't going to be ready to even start training until he was already 2 years old. (The projected timeline she gave me.) I found this to be incredibly ridiculous and told her that her contract was void if she never did a single session of training or even met the puppy.

After days of yelling over the phone she threatened me with her lawyer, so I spoke to a lawyer in person who's only advice was to "negotiate with her". I was mind blown that this was his professional advice. I wanted a second opinion.

Also adding the fact that I've already paid $500 in deposits and such. She told me those were non-refundable even though the dog received no training. I can live with cutting that cost out of my life as a lesson learned, but am I legally entitled to that money back? Should I find a new lawyer and let her take me to court or should I just pay this ridiculous $3000 fee and be done with this shit?

Answer:
 You're probably dealing with a charlatan.  You can't just buy a random dog and train it to be a service animal.  Many dogs just won't be able to learn all the necessary skills and commands despite months of training.  Seizure dogs in particular are very difficult to train and there are a lot of failures.  (Source: Family with seizure disorders who tried to get one)

The contract is probably not enforceable against you if she's refused to provide services.  She's the one in breach.  Also, of course her lawyer will tell you to negotiate.  His job is to get his client paid, not to help you.

If she sues, get a lawyer to defend yourself, but if I were in your shoes, I'd tell her to eat shitAnswer #2: Almost all service dogs are taught basic commands until they are two years old, and then trained for task-specific issues. It was completely unrealistic to expect any dog to be fully trained by a year. Fuller trained at two is pushing it. You can't just train seizure dogs. Only a small number of dogs are actually capable of that.

Ehhh...I would let her keep her deposit and cut losses. It would be very easy for her to claim she did research on training methods for your specific requirements. Or has somehow put time and effort into some part of this -- ex. evaluated the dog, gave opinions, rendered input, etc.


Title: My friend was charged with vehicular manslaughter.

Question:
Ok, so this past weekend my friend made the mistake of drinking and driving.  He was driving on the freeway when he hit a man that was working on his broken down car on the side of the road.  The man was killed on the scene.  I'm not sure about the details as I haven't seen the police report yet but I think my friend stopped and waited for the authorities to arrive.  He blew a .148 so he was definitely drunk and other cars (with sober drivers) were able to serve and avoid that man that he hit.

I guess the man was partially in the rode.  Two other cars had to swerve to avoid him and my friend has bad vision and wasn't able to see the person.  I guess my question is how long can we expect him to go to prison.  I mean it seems to me that him being found not guilty at the end of this is a pretty long shot, so I just want to get an idea what he is looking at.  As of now he is facing up to 15 years and/or $15,000 in fines.  His charge is vehicular manslaughter and the statute has being drunk implied as gross negligence.

Any thing helps.  Thanks

Answer:
 He needs an attorney, there's no other way to go about this. If he cannot afford an attorney, he'll need to ask for a public defender. Nobody can really guess at a prison term, it all depends on if he can make a deal or not. Otherwise it can really vary.Answer #2: Was this [in Maryland](http://www.washingtonpost.com/local/route-29-batman-is-killed-after-his-car-breaks-down-along-a-maryland-highway/2015/08/17/13f0e9b2-44e3-11e5-8ab4-c73967a143d3_story.html)?Answer #3: You answered your own question: Up to 15 years, apparently.Answer #4: If I'm reading the article involving the correct incident, the guy also has a prior DUI from 6 years ago.  0.148 is almost double the legal limit.  I think he's certainly looking at the high end of that sentencing range.
Answer #5: No one can guess what the sentence will be. You know what the max is. So it will be between zero and the max.


Title: Assaulted by 3 men in Canada, I'd like to know what's gonna happen next

Question: I'm a 22 years old male, and I was assaulted by 3 men about a week ago. It took place in a go-karting place with bunch of witnesses, I don't know those guys and we had minimum words exchange. One of the guy started hitting me first and two of his friends jumped on me right after. They kicked, punch and throw helmet mainly on my right temple. My entire face got incredibly swollen up, my right eyes couldn't open until 3 days later, and a bone on my forehead was cracked. I had to skip school and work for most likely more than two weeks. The police has already  made the case, and a lot of witnesses at the place already testified too. Last time the police talked to me they said they already got all the information for the 3 suspects, and they just need me to sign the medical release and call the witnesses for photo packs before they arrest.  I'm not very familiar with the legal procedure in Canada, it would be appreciated if you guys can fill me in about what's going to happen next, what I need to do and what to expect about the compensation and the penalty to the guys who did it.

Answer:
 The police will either recommend charges to the crown or won't. You'll probably be asked to fill out a victim impact statement, which details stuff like the physical or emotional harm you suffered from your assault, economic loss, compensation, and how you personally feel with how they should be charged. You'll also probably be required to attend court on the stand when it goes to trial. Answer #2: The Police should have referred you to the local Victim's Services association, you can look up your local area here: http://www.justice.gc.ca/eng/cj-jp/victims-victimes/vsd-rsv/agencies-agences.aspx

They can answer your questions about the procedures, what to expect/what is expected of you, and most importantly- all the services that are available to help you through this including counselling, and having someone with you at the courthouse for support.


Title: My husbands grandfather passed away and left my husband money in his will. He had no money left, just a condo and a car and mother in law is asking us to sign a waiver that we won't go after the condo

Question:
Hello all,

So as the title says my husbands grandfather passed away in Florida last summer. Upon his death he had various debts to hospitals and credit cards.

Since his death my mother in law has been vague and evasive about everything to do with his assets and the will. She told us early on that he had no money left because his live in caretaker had stolen everything from jewellery to the money in his bank accounts and fled the country when his grandfather was hospitalized.

She asked my husband and his siblings to sign something in late summer of last year stating that we had been informed that he and his siblings had been named as beneficiaries in the will. At this time they did not receive any accompanying letter detailing in what manner they were detailed as beneficiaries, they were simply presented by his mother with the papers to sign and told that they would get nothing and it was a formality.

Today my mother in law texted my husband out of the blue saying that she would forward him papers to sign asap that would finalize settling the estate and legally state that he would not pursue the remaining assets (condo and car). She did not provide the inventory of the estate nor the will for him to see.

In the interest of being well informed about the paperwork we were to sign my husband contacted the lawyer asking for the inventory and will. The lawyer replied with the inventory as well as a letter addressed to my husband that had accompanied the acknowledgement letter he had signed in the late summer stating that he was left 25000 in the will. The address on the letter was my mother in laws address (we do not live with her) and he was never given that letter.

The car was appropriated to my mother in law by the lawyer as reimbursement for funeral costs, etc. She is named as the beneficiary for the condo in the will, and says that she wants us to sign the waiver so that the creditors don't try and come after the car and so that the live in caretaker can't get anything.

She wants to sell the condo for around 134000, and as it stands she will be the only person named as a beneficiary in the will to receive anything.

We aren't sure if she's telling the truth. At the very least she purposefully hid information directly addressed to him, and opened mail addressed to him.

By signing this are he and his siblings waiving any possible dividends from the sale of the condo or is it solely hers and we are just acknowledging that we would not take her to court unnecessarily?

Is signing this a good idea?

TL;DR
Mother in law has withheld information about husband's grandfathers will, where he was named as a beneficiary. She is trying to have him sign a waiver that may give up his rights to claim any money made from the sale of his grandfathers condo
Topic:
Wills Trusts and Estates

Answer:
 I think you are describing a waiver of his interest in anything from the estate. Husband should consult a lawyer. Depending on the wording of the will he may be entitled to have the condo sold
And get his bequest that way. Or he may not. He needs to consult an attorney who practices estate planning and probate. Answer #2: Call her bluff and ask for a police report about this so-called caregiver that supposedly broke several laws  and could be extradited for grand theft and elder abuse.


Title: I bought a houseplant from IKEA, my cat ate one bite and started vomiting up blood. The plant is apparently very poisonous to animals and there was no warning on the plant. Now I'm stuck with a $250 emergency vet bill.

Question:
Here is the plant on Ikea: http://www.ikea.com/gb/en/catalog/products/60177166/

Here is info on the plant:
http://www.petpoisonhelpline.com/poison/kalanchoe/

My cat seems fine, but the vet said to watch her. She apparently ate only a very small amount.

Is there any way to get Ikea to help pay for the bill? At the very least, having them put a damn warning on the plant would be nice.

Answer:
 It's up to you, the responsible pet owner, to know what is poisonous to your pet. Warning labels are not required on plants (and [please don't push us, as a society, to a point where they are](https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/736x/f5/c3/0d/f5c30d3bcbf3d745ee3cd77efd737c60.jpg)).

This is your bill, not theirs.

Also, now would be a good time to learn that there's actually a [whole bunch of plants that are poisonous to cats](http://www.cfainc.org/catcare/householdhazards/toxicplants.aspx), many of which would surprise a lot of people.Answer #2: No, Ikea is not at fault here at all. You are.Answer #3: Does chocolate have warnings on it for dogs?


Title: Fathers DUI gives me consequence, is this a lie? Can I protect myself from the consequence? What can I do legally at 16?

Question:
I suppose a little bit of background knowledge is needed for this to be understood (sorry if my formatting is bad I’m not a common redditor)

>Background

-Firstly it should be know my mother was mentally and sometimes physically abusive to me which is why I live with my dad full time.

-Secondly my father has had a drinking problem for a while this caused him to get in to trouble for domestic assault while under the influence he had to go to court and was placed on probation in which part of it was he shouldn’t be drinking. The drinking also brought on a major depression mixed with my dads chronic depression the depression is to the point where neither therapy nor medication helps. He also lost his job as a doctor due to his drinking.

-Also I did struggle with chronic depression about a year ago. It got to the point where I couldn’t go to school because I was thought to be at risk of hurting myself. I didn’t really recover for a long time. I stayed in my room 24/7 only got up to use the bathroom and for UberEats. My father couldn’t help me because he was depressed and drinking without end. This finally came to an end when my father temporarily stopped drinking after being put on probation for the domestic assault case. He was finally out to help me and got me medication which helped my depression. I was out of my depression later and was able to function but it had been decided the school I was going to wasn’t a good fit so we looked for an alternative. The alternative never came. Since then I had continuously asked my dad to get me back into a school so I get caught up (I forgot to mention I was already a year behind in freshman year due to bad decisions I made so for my Sophmore year I was retaking my freshman year before I fell into my depression so I was quite behind after I came out of my depression) but when he drinks nothing gets done. I kept asking but it never got done it was always “I’ll talk to someone who works in the school system I know about it” then “still waiting on a response” then “I talked to my other friend I’m considering options” then “I found a school” then after that the loop repeats I was never put into a school even though progress seemed like it was being made. Recently since my father had lost his job a plan was made to go to Vegas (currently in Washington) to look for work because he believed his old employer was bad mouthing him making it impossible for him to get a job (it wasn’t because of the domestic assault it was never put on his record) I had been told I would go back to school when we moved.

-Lastly after his breakup due to the sexual assault case he met another girl which has caused him to drink out of control again. His drinking went back to the point where it’s out of control. He was drinking and driving, smoking marijuana and drinking a 24 case of coors in 1-3 days on average.

>main problem (sorry for long introduction)

Yesterday I was woken up at about 5:00pm (my sleep schedule is screwed of my own accord since I have no obligations. I just like darkness instead of light not even the lights are ever on in my room) my father had told me the dogs had gotten out the night before and he went to go look for them but he had been drinking and got pulled over and picked up a DUI I was told I had to pack my things as my aunt and uncle were given temporary custody of me while my father went to rehab(my father is with my aunt and uncle as well as instructed by the court his flight leaves this afternoon) I was later told that I have to go to some mental health facility in Provo Utah or I would have to live with my mother. I’m not sure if this is because the court instructed it or if because my aunt and uncle don’t want to take care of me for the 3 months my dad will be away. I’m not sure if the court wants to send me because they think I’m depressed or because my dad uncle and aunt think I’m depressed (none would know since I rarely see any of them) I do not want to go because one, I just want to live a normal life and two, I be heard some things about this place such as abusive staff, mistreatment and more. Even if I were depressed from what I’ve read this does not sound like I place where I’d want to go. I’ve come to the conclusion that I cannot and will not go. What are my options? What can I do legally?

Feel free to ask any questions there might be more information that needs to be known. There was a lot of information I needed to give so sorry if it’s a cluttered mess. Thank you for reading and all help given.

Answer: You're going to have to be under the care of *someone*. Without knowing more about the situation, we can't tell you whether you have to go or not. It could be a possibility that CPS is requiring it. If it's a choice of your aunt and uncle, alone, you may have some more options. Do you have any other relatives you can stay with?


Title: I think we have another candidate for the "Check Your CO Detector" award

Question:
https://np.reddit.com/r/HomeImprovement/comments/50o8ed/serious_mouse_problem_that_i_cannot_solve_after/

And for when it inevitably gets deleted:

>So this has been going on for at least 4 months now though probably the better part of 6 & thus a pretty long story at this point so just the bullet points.

>Have tried many, many times with many different brands & types of poison & traps. Even an exterminator came which did work on most of them. But I am pretty certain that it's just the one mouse left & the worst part is, it's decided that it wants to live in my room, specifically underneath me (like under a leg or something) when I'm on my bed or in & around my blankets when I'm in bed. it moves & runs around my bed at night, I can't sleep & after months of this I am starting to really lose my mind. It's first day of spring here so maybe it will get better but I cannot take this anymore. The bastard is so fast & clever that I almost don't believe it.

>It's very quick & small, I can only feel it, have never seen any of the mice that came with this infestation, if it wasn't for my landlord telling me about seeing a horde running out of a garbage bag my neighbors left near my house I would think myself mad (he said they ran up his arm, he ignored this which gave them a few days to move into my place, didn't tell me until I called him to get the exterminator).

>So that's the nuts & bolts of it; mouse is staying in my blankets/about my person whenever I am in my room (at one point I removed my bed & I laid on the bare floor, it still got underneath my legs) which is a lot of the time atm as my mental health is really starting to suffer from the constant stress of it.

>I have tried several kinds of traps & poisons as well as professional extermination & despite the larger infestation having left this one remains.

>I even have one of those high frequency things that are meant to annoy & deter, I even stripped my room bare & left town for 5 nights but it was here when I got back. At this point I am getting pretty out there in the search for solutions, right now I am sitting on my bed on top of a pillow which is covering a towel which is covered in mushed up rat poison in the hopes that the fumes themselves might get this prick, because it won't eat it.

>Is there any sort of toxic substance or anything that I could feasibly use without doing myself serious harm? This towel thing is crazy enough but I am at my wits end & cannot function as a person at this point. Any help is much appreciated, though bear in mind that I have already done a lot of research online these past months so I know most of the general solutions including the bucket trap etc. I'm now thinking about spreading ammonia about the place but there's no way I could live around that stuff. Thanks!

Answer:
 I had to unplug my CO detector. The beeping was giving me a headache and making me feel dizzy and sick.

(Shamelessly cribbed from weird twitter)


Title: Won a TV as a Door Prize, Work Place is saying I cannot accept it, need advice/opinions.

Question:
So I just won a very nice 55" Samsung TV in a random drawing at a professional development opportunity at my University. The drawing chance was given to everyone at the conference/expo and it was open to the public (all you had to do was register). The TV was donated by an undisclosed group so far as I am aware. This was not given with the intent to garner favor, improve on a business relationship, or to sell something. Currently we do not have any contract or purchasing with the vendor sponsoring the expo.

My workplace defines gifts as,

"**Gifts**
A charitable donation made by a donor (individual or organization) for the benefit of the University to be used in accordance with donor intent.  Gifts may be transfers of money or property (i.e., equipment, land, etc.) for which the donor will not receive a direct economic benefit or any other tangible compensation (i.e., goods or services).

or a second definition (so which is it) of:

**“Gift”**

A transaction involving the transfer of funds by a third party to the University without any requirement on the University's part to provide the third party(i) and direct economic benefit, or (ii) a return of any unused funds.

&#x200B;

This prize was defined as a door prize and was NOT targeted to me specifically, therefore it was not "a transfer to the University." I obviously think I should be able to keep the TV, am I right on this?

&#x200B;

&#x200B;
Topic:
Employment Law

Answer: You can keep the TV. They can terminate your employment.


Title: Could measles be argued to be an STD?

Question:
I've been reading about how in many states, minors can get reproductive care without parental consent (including STDs). Since measles is very contagious and can be spread by touching, in theory you could contract it by having sex with an infected person.

How viable would this argument be for allowing minors to get the MMR without parental permission?

Answer: Being contagious ≠ sexual transmission.Answer #2: By that logic, everything that's contagious would be an STD.


Title: Cops are using friend's Snapchat account

Question:
A friend of mine who was as of recently a drug dealer got caught by police with enough marijuana for felony charges.

Police now have his phone, and are using his snapchat undercover to bait out people with drug deals, as he had advertised on SC prior.

He posted a facebook status alerting his friends that his snapchat was taken, not saying anything about the police, but regardless making it clear that any contact with him on snapchat isn't really him.

Is he further breaking the law by indirectly obstructing police in their undercover work? He didn't think of this or do any research before making the status. I don't want him to get himself into even more trouble.
Topic:
Drug Possession

Answer:
 To the lawyers out there, are police allowed to violate the CFAA for investigatory purposes? Would that at least require a warrant or something?

This sounds like they are using someone else's credentials to gain unauthorized access to a computer system for the purposes of impersonating them.Answer #2: He's facing felony charges. He needs a real lawyer, not "you asking Reddit."


Title: What can I do about an employer who turns off the provided refrigerator on a daily basis? OHIO

Answer:
 The fridge for your lunch? If that's the case then probably nothing since there is no law requiring them to provide a fridge for food in the first place. You can get freezies and a lunch cooler your tuna salad will be just fine.Answer #2: You stop expecting the fridge to be working.

Seriously though, your employer does not have to provide you with a refrigerator.  Get a well insulated lunch box and throw some ice packs in it when you pack your lunch.  If the fridge is cold when you come in go ahead and throw your lunch in there anyway.  But it really shouldn’t matter much with an insulated lunch box and ice packs.


Title: (CA, USA) Daycare recorded a conversation we had at the daycare without my knowledge.

Question:
The conversation was about a concern I had that I could have been a licensing violation. They recorded video and audio in the director's office without my knowledge, and now tell me that if I reported the violation to the state, they'd show them the tape, on which I say I'm satisfied with their proposed resolution.

 (I'm not, really, was just trying to end that particular conversation. We decided to pull our child out of the school.)

Was it okay for them to record me?
Can they really use this as evidence of what I agreed to?

Thank you!

Answer:
 California wiretapping laws aside, you do not have the authority to waive violations of state licensing laws and regulation.

The recording they may have of you saying that you are satisfied with their proposed resolution sounds to be irrelevant to whatever they violated. (I say without knowing what we are actually talking about).

I'd say go ahead and report them.  If they feel like introducing the recording as evidence, then yea..  they may have to answer to California's wiretapping laws.Answer #2: California is a two party consent state. Their recording of you may be illegal.Answer #3: The recording was likely illegal.  Furthermore, if they are violating licensing laws, then whether you are satisfied with their proposed resolution is irrelevant.

If you are pulling your child out, then I would go ahead and report them to the licensing authority.


Title: Is it illegal to threaten someone if you include a valid "if" statement?

Question: I've been told, and am probably mistaken, that threats are illegal in most states if they pose an immeadiete threat. However,would it still be unlawful if you included an "if" statement? Example: "If you touch my daughter again without her permission I will harm you." Completely theoretical situation not really an issue.

Answer: Don't forget an ELSE, otherwise you'll get an error when you compile your threat.


Title: [Pennsylvania] Ordered from a pizza shop and paid by credit card over the phone. They stored this info for future orders without asking for permission. Is this legal?

Question: [deleted]

Answer:
 Legal?  Absent a law specifically written to address this, probably so.

If they truly stored you credit card information in plain text, they violated their credit card merchant agreement and if discovered could lose their ability to process credit cards.

And if you suffered a loss because of their data breach, you could recover your damages from them.  Especially if, as you suspect, the loss was a result of gross negligence.


Title: Fiancé needs major hand surgery from champagne bottle exploding in her hand after it was opened. Should we be talking to a lawyer or is this just an unfortunate accident? NY

Question:
My fiancé opened a bottle of champagne last night and immediately after the cork came off, the bottom of the bottle exploded outward and a shard of the bottle sliced open one of her fingers.

She went to the ER last night, saw a specialist today, and we’re getting further tests, but she’ll need major surgery to reattach severed tendons. She will need to be on short term disability recovering for the next six weeks. The doctor says she may lose some functionality in her finger permanently.

I understand that champagne bottles are under pressure and should be handled with care but it was. She was opening the bottle normally, had not had a drink for several hours and was not drunk. The cork had come off so it seems like the bottle wasn’t strong enough to handle the pressure of the champagne fizzing up once opened.

We have photos of the broken bottle and although it’s hard to really say for sure, it does look from the break that it broke outward. The bottle was sold at a local winery but is from a _different_ local winery nearby. My fiancé called the winery she purchased the bottle at when they opened today to warn them about the particular champagne and explain that one broke and injured her but did not go into detail. They took her information down.

The hand specialist who saw her acted pretty shocked and had never seen this sort of accident.

Should we be finding and contacting a personal injury lawyer, or is this just an unfortunate freak accident? If we should be talking to someone, where should we look to find a lawyer / what would be the next steps?
Topic:
Personal Injury

Answer:
 This is remarkably fact specific. Most personal injury lawyers will offer a free consultation, so I would strongly recommend attending one. This is a very unusual fact situation which makes it a bit more challenging.Answer #2: Hello /u/1991919191991919191 ,

Within New York, there have been over 8.000 cases of "champagne bottle explode" that i could initially find.

You have a case here and I highly recommend reaching out to a law firm / lawyer that handles injuries and damages. The odds are that you can argue the case that the bottle was incorrectly sealed under too high of pressure (overcharged).

I recommend looking at the case O'Neill v. James that took place in the Supreme Court of Michigan back in 1904. In short, the defendant (bottler) had to award personal injury damages to the plaintiff (bartender) who lost his eye when the bottle exploded and the glass struck his eye.Answer #3: You say this was from a local winery. Could it be that an actual "wine" bottle was used as opposed to a thicker "sparkling wine" bottle required to handle the pressure? If so, you may need the services of a personal injury lawyer.

&#x200B;

As an aside, fiancé is the masculine and fiancée the feminine.Answer #4: What was the temperature of the bottle? Many Champagne bottles have warnings to chill the bottle to a certain temperature before opening. At room temperature, it is more likely to do something dangerous.


Title: Under "illegal but done with good intent", a school principal uses her own insurance to get medical care for an impoverished student. Arrested for fraud.

Answer:
 That was incredibly stupid on her part.  She committed fraud when a few phone calls would have found a physician to look in the child’s throat for free or the Medicaid rate (less than $50) and the antibiotic he needed costs around $5 without insurance.

Also, did she report the 15 year old’s guardian for medical neglect, as she is required to do?  Why wasn’t he covered by Medicaid or CHIP?  I have so many questions...


Title: [US, Oklahoma] Niece (FT college student) just discovered her mom opened an LLC in her name since August of 2017. How does she remove herself from this situation?

Question:
So, my niece called me and told me her mom (Jane) is pressuring her to put a business in her name even though she’s said no repeatedly. I told her if she really wants her mom off her back to just tell her that if her Jane does so without her permission she will call the Secretary of State and inform them the LLC was opened under fraudulent circumstances as she never granted permission, which should (hopefully) scare Jane off.

The reason why Jane can’t put the business in her own name is because something apparently happened in one of her own stores which made the government disqualify her from accepting EBT. I’m assuming something shady happened but obviously Jane isn’t being forthcoming with info.

Well, knowing her mother, I was afraid she might have done so already, so decided to search our state database. Sure enough, my niece is listed as the registered agent for an LLC. The kicker is, she did this August of 2017 (yep, last year) under a different LLC altogether. The new business is a completely different LLC.

What are her options. She is freaking out and asked me could this be why her financial aid got reduced. I said possibly as I don’t know all the circumstances but don’t really know what to do from here.

How do we get this out of her name and ensure all taxes have been filed and/or make sure she is not liable? Additionally, is there a way to prevent this from happening again? To her or her siblings? I also received phone calls from her younger brother and sister that mom is now trying to get them to put the “new” LLC in their name since Oldest niece just lost it on her mom.

Answer:
 Your niece must report this as identity theft. If her mother did this because she can't accept EBT, it probably means her mom is on a barred list & she's there because she was doing something illegal. She started a new company under her daughter's name which means unless you niece reports it, she may be on the hook for whatever activity is happening at that company.

This is self preservation. Your niece could be responsible for taxes, labor violations, be barred herself from doing business with the government. The latter may not be important now, but it may impact her when/if she wants to apply for a job. One of the most common background checks I do at work is a check to see if someone's name appears on barred or sanctioned lists (aka FACIS) .


Title: Fired due to leaving work due to a severe panic attack and feeling suicidal.

Question:
The other night I got fired from my job. I worked at one of the larger gas station chains in my state(Utah). I have been having panic attacks a lot recently and have visited several doctors about it. All they did was increase my antidepressant meds.

So I’m at work and I start having a severe panic attack. I go outside to vape and to try and breath and calm down. That didn’t work and my panic attack got worse. I started feeling really suicidal which in return made me freak out more and made things worse. I called my husband and he was trying to calm me down. I told him I can’t be here. I need to leave before I do something really bad. But if i left work, I was going to get fired. He told me to quit and come home. I knew he was right, but that made things worse and set me off again.

I waited until I could collect myself to a degree and went back inside. I walked up to the manager on shift and told her two things are happening. One, I’m either going to the hospital, or two, I’m going home. I told her I’m having severe panic attacks and that I’m feeling really suicidal. She told me that she’ll call my store manager. She came back out of the office and said that the boss said if I left, i wouldn’t have a job.

So I gathered up my stuff and left. I went home because if I went to the hospital, it would stress me out more and we can’t afford a hospital bill.

The next morning I went to the doctor to get checked out and discuss meds. I got a doctors note and sent a picture of it to my boss. She told it doesn’t matter because I abandoned my shift. I told her I will be talking to HR on Monday.

I love the company that I worked for. My husband works for the same company at another gas station and also loves his job. I want to continue to work for the company, but at a different gas station. The managers said that I would be marked as non-rehireable My question is, do I have anything that I can use legally to help my case? My state is an at will state.

Answer: There is no case to help, you lost your job. There's no point in talking to HR. Your only recourse is filing for unemployment (which assume they will dispute because they consider you to have quit) and finding a new job. Oh and if you keep doing this aggressive posturing with them, your husband is going to get fired soon too. I've seen it happen way too often at higher stakes positions.


Title: Is it possible to give debt to someone you want to screw over after your death via your will

Question: Say you have 100k in debt, can you write it into your will that person x is entitled to your entire estate, and what responsibility do they have to pay it.

Answer: They can just renounce your estate. No one is forced to take a deceased person’s property, debts and assets alike.


Title: Someone stole my long form birth certificate

Question:
Hopefully this is the right sub to post this in.

I went down to my birth county to pick up the long form of my birth certificate for a passport application. Since I needed to be back at work by mid afternoon, I left it in my vehicle. I let my brother borrow truck for a weekend and said he took some friends down to the beach and when I got it back the form was not where I left it.

My question is: am I at risk for any repercussions if someone with bad intentions has my birth certificate?

Answer:
 Of course - you made it much easier for anybody interested in stealing your identity to do so.

Freeze your credit and monitor it closely for a few years.

And stop leaving important documents in places where they can be easily stolen from.


Title: One 15 year old knocks up another - what are the legal implications for the parents?

Question:
Work buddy of mine has a son, 15, who goes to a special school (I think he has some tough combination of ADHD with mild autism /Asbergers - I'm no doctor, but the poor kid isn't right.)  He has a girlfriend from the same school with similar issues that he just knocked up.

Buddy is obviously distraught and is going to meet with the girl's parents to discuss the next step.

Worst case (for him) is that she want to keep it.  Who is on the hook for support?  (My buddy is upper middle class, the girlfriends family is less so.)

Would my buddy have to cough up child support, or would the burden be with his kid in three years once he turns 18?

Any other legal issues here besides the support issue when two minors (that are not full capacity - special schools and medications to keep their issues in check) that he should be aware of?  Note this is Massachusetts.

Thanks

Answer: IANAL one thing you should tell your friend is to delete any nudes that his son or the girl has sent/received.Answer #2: Can an abortion be done to a 15 year old girl?


Title: [WI] Chainsaw Went Through My Dad's Arm

Question:
Let me start off staying this probably doesn't belong here, but I'm sitting in an emergency room waiting for my dad... so why not post it.

Also part two of why I am writing this is because a friend said that usually you can go after the company that makes the chainsaw even if it was out of warranty. Again, I don't know, hence why this post is being made.

Dad was trimming the trees in his yard while my brother was moving bricks. All of the sudden my the chainsaw my dad was using on a branch went through his right arm, below the elbow, hitting the bone before doing anymore damage. My brother runs over, rips his shirt off and wraps his arm. Calls 911, ambulance comes and after one hospital transfer he is going into surgery I type this. (have pics if needed)

From what my brother gathered, the chainsaw was well attended (oiled, checked, safe, etc) before cutting branches. Don't know what my dad has to say, since he's passed out, but my brother says by the burn marks on the tree, the chainsaw got stuck, backfired, and went through the arm when it bounced out of getting unstuck.

Anything we should do or is this just a freak accident, have insurance go at it, hopefully arm is alive, and move on OR is there something legal to purse. Again, I'm not looking for hate or down votes, just asking and getting this off my chest because yeah...

Thanks.

Edit, I was not there, I don't live with my parents.

Edit, words
Topic:
Personal Injury

Answer: It sounds as though you would have a difficult time proving the cause of the accident was a malfunction of the chainsaw rather than your father making a mistake.


Title: Company wont hire me because I work for another company.

Question:
I have a government contracting job (with company 1), and work in a building with several companies that have various contracts and subcontracts with each other, and other companies.

I applied for a job with company 2, in the same building, and they say they will not interview let alone hire me because I work with company 1. I have all of the skills and experience to qualify.  Have not signed any non-compete documents.

(The hiring manager even set up a interview with me, and then canceled it last minute, and said they would not reschedule)

Is this legal?
Topic:
Employment Law

Answer: They can chose not to hire you for nearly any reason. As long as it does not discriminate against protected classes i.e race, religion. Refusing to not hire people from certain companies is perfectly legal.


Title: [NJ] Son injured by my brother's dog while visiting pet grooming shop where my brother works. Liability?

Question:
Pretty much as title says. My son got scratched, no serious damage but needs a couple stitches. I have decent insurance but am wondering if the business has any liability. I would not want to sue and jeapordize his job unless we got some sort of crazy bill and had no choice, but would this be covered under the shop's normal insurance?

Thank you.

Answer:
 Dog Law specialist here!

This would indeed be covered by the shop's liability insurance-- but understand that your brother is going to face some consequences for this. They could range from "your dog isn't welcome here anymore" to "you're fired" to (potentially) the shop suing him to cover their losses.

It's up to you, but it's probably worth taking a short paws to think about it...


Title: Nanny gets paid under the table then tears her ACL on the job. Is her employer obligated to pay for her doctor's bills?

Question: Asking for a friend.  She lives in Michigan, USA. I'm in Alabama.

Answer: Very likely


Title: Little brother arrested in a foreign country PLEASE HELP

Question: My brother is a US citizen on a work visa in Australia. He booked a flight to return to the us next week. However last night he got arrested while drinking, he fought some guy and the cops came then he tried to run and they caught him. So he is facing charges for assault and evading. His court date is after his flight home, he is wondering if he will be stopped at the airport and not allowed to leave Australia. Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

Answer: Contact the American Consul or Embassy in Australia.


Title: .boston was released last week. I registered lots of sites that are trademarked by most of my major competitors, $13 billion in market capitalization, and they're going to sue me. I hate two of them in particular so I don't want them to get the sites so what are my options? I live in Massachusetts.

Question: Help!

Answer:
 So you are cybersquatting? Answer #2: >  I hate two of them in particular so I don't want them to get the sites

Frankly, too bad. If the names are registered trademarks, your registrations can be revoked [by ICANN](https://www.icann.org/resources/pages/help/dndr/udrp-en) pursuant to an appropriate court order.Answer #3: Well aren’t you brave.Answer #4: If you are talking about domain names, then this sounds like textbook cyber squatting and you can be sued, probably successfully. I would turn the domains over before a court orders you to, possibly with damages.


Title: General Rape

Question: Question:[deleted]

Answer: Someone who is blackout drunk is not capable of consent.


Title: Do I need a permit to carry pepper spray in the state of MA?

Question: I bought pepper spray a few years ago and I’m looking to repurchase it again. As I was looking online for pepper spray, I found many links that referenced the need to have a FID to carry. Is this true? Luckily, I’ve never had the need to use it or take it out, but it makes me feel less anxious walking around with it in my bag. I have a clean record and I don’t want to be breaking any laws!

Answer: As of 2015, you generally do not need a permit to possess pepper spray in MA, as long as you are 18 or older.  It must be purchased from an in-state licensed firearms dealer - in other words, no mail order or out-of-state purchases.


Title: [CO] Does a retail store's break policy override state labor laws?

Question:
I work in a retail store in Colorado. Our store's policy for breaks is essentially if you have a shift that is less than 5 scheduled hours, you get a "duty-free 10 minute break". If the shift is 5> you get an "unpaid, duty-free period"

however I have several managers that say the 10 minute break is "a courtesy" and I have to ask to take it, and it is essentially at their discretion if I get to take it.

Along with that, if i am scheduled for a 5 (or more) hour shift I am entitled to a 30 minute break. However my managers say that "we're not going to be here for the full 5 hours so you don't get the 30"

Colorado labor laws dictate that should an employee be SCHEDULED for that time slot (4, 5 or more hours) the employee is allowed that break.

So my question is, does the retail store's break policy override the state law? Or is the state the ultimate authority always?

Hope all of that makes sense. Thanks guys.

Answer:
 >So my question is, does the retail store's break policy override the state law?

Of course not. They're the Colorado Revised Statutes, not the Colorado Revised Suggestions.

I would note that the 30 minute break is unpaid, though.


Title: (Iowa, USA) My cousin was arrested, filmed the arrest and the police tried to delete it off her phone.

Question:
So after a case of mistaken identity, my cousin was stopped by police. An altercation came about and she was arrested. She filmed the entire false arrest on her phone, which the police then deleted. Luckily, it backed up automatically to the cloud. She was charge with misdemeanor obstructing an official, but from the video, it is obvious that she was targeted and harassed by the officer despite not being the person they were looking for. She has a court date in July, can she use the video as evidence even though the police officer tried to delete it? Can she sue for wrongful arrest? Should she get a lawyer? Thanks!

TL;DR: cousin arrested after police thought she was someone whom she wasn't. Filmed the arrest, police tried to delete it, backed up automatically, video supports her claim. She is charged with a misdemeanor. What is her recourse?

Answer: She can speak to a criminal defense attorney, as mistaken identity is not a defense to resisting arrest. She can also speak to an attorney that specifically handles civil rights suits against the police to see if she has a viable case against them.


Title: Could you get in trouble if told a company that "you might be hearing from my lawyer than!"

Question: Like if it was a simple problem like an issue with a warranty on an item and than you say that could you get in trouble, I didn't do that but it seems like it'd be an easy way to get what you want if there's no legal issues.

Answer: Considering that every idiot tells some store owner they don't agree with they'll "be hearing from their lawyer", this is not a good strategy.


Title: [PA] I (18m) received unsolicited nude photos from a girl in my class (16f) UPDATE

Question:
Hey guys,

I was getting notifications from reddit all day! Thanks so much for your advice, I appreciated all of it and read every comment. So today at school I got called into the office during first period. All of the principals were there and asked me right off the bat if I had received any photos from the classmate. I immediately asked why they were questioning me and they told me that someone had reported me for trying to get explicit photos from the girl. At this point I had already read some of the advice posted and had deleted the photos, told the girl through text that I did not ask for those photos and that I did not want her texting me ever again, and then I proceeded to block her number and block her from all social media before she had a chance to respond. I told the deans the truth; she sent me photos I never asked for and that I immediately told her not to do so ever again and had blocked her after deleting the photos. They asked to see the text messages between us and I told them to search her phone instead and that I would not be giving them my phone or passcode. They tried to hardball me with threats of calling a police officer in to question me and I repeated that they should question her first and check her phone instead of questioning me.

So after about 20 minutes of back and forth with them they allowed me to return to class with my phone still in my possession with the warning that they may be pulling me out of class later in the day. As I was waiting in line for my lunch a little after noon, I overheard kids talking in the line behind me about the girl. Apparently she was called into the office and ended up getting suspended for ten days, although they never said what it was over.

I got called back into the office at the very end of the day where again I sat with the three principals. This time they apologized for questioning me so harshly and told me that "appropriate action" had been taken over the situation, although they wouldn't give me any details on what exactly happened. I was told I was not going to be punished and that they did not need to see my phone anymore. My assumption is that when she was called into the office she gave up her phone and the principals saw the messages. I'm still not sure who reported me to the office but I also found out today that my girlfriend got into an argument with this girl yesterday in class, so I think maybe the girl tried to set me up as revenge, although this is just a guess on my part. Regardless, it appears that I'm out of the woods and I don't have to worry about this anymore, I hope.

I just wanted to give everyone who helped an update and once again say thank you for all your advice. At this point I think the situation is over and dealt with, and although I don't know all the details, I'm just glad it all got handled without me getting in trouble.

Answer: This girl was trying to ruin this guys life by getting him on the Sex Offender registry because she got in an argument with his girlfriend. Let that sink in for a moment everyone. IMO OP should drop the dime on her for manufacturing and distributing child pornography. This kind of stuff is not cool and a 10 day time out is wholly unjust for what she tried to do.


Title: I was used as a stooge by a manipulative criminal

Question:
LOCATION: RI  -  I've known this guy for awhile. He has a history, been to federal prison twice. I knew about some of his past - enough to know his time away was for white collar.

I've always kept him at arms length because he is a smart mother fucker. He also keeps a very oddly loyal network of very dark, bad people. Drug addicts, petty criminals all the way up to serious felons. I've met some of them. And yes they are not good people.

Recently I helped him with a few things for his business. In return, he helped me with a couple of really menial tasks. All completely legal.

Today I found out he's been forging checks with my name. There's a bank account in my name as well. I figured it out because the bank called to ask about some returned mail. I didn't react to the bank phone call. Just asked a few questions, balance etc.

Later in the day I was able to gain access to the account. Lots of money going through, check images with a badly forged version of my signature (not even close).

I can't call him on it directly. I've seen the guy lose his shit at times. I believe he is personally capable of very bad things. He also is well connected with plenty of people who are capable of doing bad things. Since he'd be headed back to prison for a long long time if caught, he wouldn't have much to lose in disposing of me.

So, yeah, I'm worried for my safety.

I don't know what to do here. It's possible he's setting me up to take the fall for something (laundering or whatever). Whatever I do, it can never EVER be known that was part reporting him.

Guidance, please.

Answer:
 Go to the police. Bring the records you have. Inform them that you have concern for your safety due to the reasons you listed. Follow their recommendations.

You also need to put a freeze on your credit ASAP.


Title: Lawyers keep leaving the firm... Do I have any recourse?

Question:
We hesitantly paid big money to a big-name firm in Canada for a permanent residency application to go smoothly. We started working on it last year, and throughout the course of gathering all of the paperwork, our first lawyer we were appointed left to open her own practice. Fine. We chose to stay with the firm and were appointed a new lawyer. Now it's happening with the second lawyer we were appointed - he's leaving to join the first lawyer's practice.

The options are either a. Start over, for the second time, with a new lawyer at the same firm or b. lose the big-name firm that we were referred to, pay the same amount for a no-name firm, but save ourselves from having to start from scratch with a new lawyer.

Is this a common thing that happens in law? Is there anything I can do about it, i.e. get a refund from our huge retainer for having to start over with so many different lawyers? The experience I've had with this firm we were referred to has been bad and not worth the price that we've already paid. Any advice on which option might be best, or if I have any leverage in this situation would be much appreciated.

Answer:
 1.  Yes it happens all the time.

2.  You shouldn't get charged to have someone else come up to speed with your file, by your original law firm.

3.  Yes, you can go to the new law firm, if you want.

4.  For any part of the retainer that hasn't been spent, you will get a refund if you go with a different firm.

5.  You can & should probably ask your current lawyer for a quote for finishing this project.


Title: [Wednesday Shitpost] Kids...

Answer:
 What comes in the middle of a sentence?

>!An extension to the sentence, for criminal misuse of a comma.!<Answer #2: That kid is going places. Not to college, but places.Answer #3: This kids selling tickets to the gun show


Title: Failed drug test

Question: I work in Virginia and recently failed a drug test for my place of employment. I have a prescription vyvanse(which failed me for amphetamines). I was sent him immediately - with pay - until further testing could be done to make sure it was vyvanse in my urine. The company does have a copy of my prescription, my doctors contact information, and pharmacy information. I was supposed to work last night at 7p. I received a call from an outside company saying they needed a copy of my prescription before I could be cleared. I sent it to them(though I didn’t like doing that because I’m not even 100% sure the company was hired by my company). No one from HR has contacted me. My issue is I’m supposed to have a shift trade for 5 hours today so I can attend my wife’s company Christmas party. If I miss tho trade I’ll be forced to call in late and miss hours I need. Is being forced to stay home a violation of ADA even though I’m getting paid? How can they even test if it’s vyvanse in my system versus another amphetamine without a blood draw?

Answer:
 This is *not* a violation of the ADA. Your company can go through the process of verifying that you are not using illegal drugs.Answer #2: > Is being forced to stay home a violation of ADA even though I’m getting paid?

Nope. As you said, your getting paid, there is no demotion and they are working to accommodate your medicial issue which otherwise would disqualify you from employment with them.

> How can they even test if it’s vyvanse in my system versus another amphetamine without a blood draw?

Such is a question for scientists not lawyers.


Title: (UT) Ex emptied a savings account that his name WASN'T on. What are the hopes of criminal charges resolving if she goes forward?

Question:
Girlfriend's ex-husband was long-ago removed from her savings account.  However, he was somehow able to access the funds this weekend and emptied it (she suspects an accomplice at the bank).  The bank has acknowledged that he is not an account holder and should not have had access, and it seems like they will ultimately pony up a reimbursement, so my question doesn't apply so much to this side of things.

This ex followed up their divorce with episodes of harassment, vandalism, etc.  My girlfriend has weathered it with grace, considering it a small price to pay assuming that he was out of her life for good.  Obviously, the ex is happy to take advantage of grace.  So, the question is, what are the options for pursuing him directly, both in civil court for damages, or with criminal charges?  Additionally, is there any hope for recovering a car that she bought (both names on title) that he kept after the divorce?  There was no arbitration involved in the divorce, and to my understanding, no paperwork directly related to property signed.

Crime occurred in Utah, but we live in another state.  Happy to provide non-identifying details to illuminate further.  Thank you in advance for the advice!

Answer:
 >The bank has acknowledged that he is not an account holder and should not have had access, and it seems like they will ultimately pony up a reimbursement, so my question doesn't apply so much to this side of things.

Your title leads with the ex draining the bank account, yet your posts says your question does not apply to the ex draining the account?

Seems like the bank acknowledged they made an error and they are making you whole on the financial part.

Did your spouse file a police report after the vandalism?


Title: Arkansasan fired for being convicted felon. Disclosed was convicted felon on application and interviews. Fired 6 months later.

Question:
[deleted]
Topic:
Employment Law

Answer:
 do you still have copies of those signed documents?

probably you can get unemployment. it sounds like the company might be running a con against ex-cons.


Title: [CA] My roommate has filmed me while I’m sleeping and won’t delete the video

Question: Hi, my roommate has started filming me in my sleep for whatever reason and when I ask her to show/delete it, she refuses and says it’s her property. She’s also began filming me while I’m just doing my work? Do I have any recourse against her legally or with the apartment agency where we live? I’ve brought this up to management before but they didn’t seem to care

Answer: The context of this is going to matter.  Is she using a hidden camera?  Where were you sleeping?  Filming people without their consent in locations where they have an expectation of privacy can be illegal, but it sounds like there's more to this story.


Title: Verbal Agreement to buy can and Financing Fell Through, now have to pay a fee?

Question: I am from Wisconsin.  I recently tried to purchase a car from a dealership.  They offered me trade and said they had to run the numbers, I said call tomorrow.  They called the next day, we came to a price agreement, that I would put 3K down and give my trade and do financing through a local credit union I routinely use as they have 2.9% financing for 72 months going on which made my payment under 500 a month which I was willing to pay.   I contacted my bank and they said it should be fine, they just need the PO faxed over.  When I asked for it, the dealer said he needed a verbal agreement, I said we had one.  Now, financing fell through at the bank, I was approved for a much higher payment which I am not interested in making, I called back immediately when I was informed, and left a voice mail as he was out for the weekend.  When he called back he said I can't back out as we had an agreement and had to pay a 5% of the PO (which I never saw or signed a buying contract) to get out of it, which I never saw.  In my mind, the agreement was contingent on financing we had just discussed.  He said if I buy something else from him, he will waive the fee.  I feel blackmailed.  Do I have to pay this fee?

Answer: No, it doesn't work like that when it comes to car sales. It must be written. He knows that too. He just wants to scare you into buying a new car. Just ignore him from now on, calls and texts. He is clearly not a person you want to buy a car fromAnswer #2: Nope.


Title: 5 DUI's

Question:
So my boyfriend is on his 5th dui.
He keeps weaving in & out of sobriety but this has got to be the final straw
.

I'm worried about finding a lawyer who can help him avoid jail time ..is it possible or is he going behind bars regardless?

Answer:
 I hope you are still reading these comments. You really need to get away from this guy. You're having a baby it doesn't matter if it's his baby if he is going to endanger it.

He will probably be going to jail and never be able to drive again. So when he gets out are you going to drive him around like a kid plus you already have a kid?

You need to keep yourself and your baby safe. He is not safe!


Title: My (naked) picture was taken in the stall of a bar restroom by multiple employees of the establishment

Question:
Minnesota, male.

I was drunk last night and passed out in the stall of a bar restroom with the door locked. While a friend was waking me up, six or so employees came into the bathroom holding their phones over the stall trying to get pictures of me. Another employee went into the neighboring stall to stand high enough to take a video of me. My friend, bless his heart, was doing his best to fight off the people trying to do this but was ultimately unsuccessful in 100% of his efforts. Of course, my pants were down in the stall, any pictures or videos would inevitably include the family jewels.

Do I have any sort of legal case, being these were employees of the establishment? I'm guessing my right to reasonable expectations of privacy was violated. I'm absolutely not proud of my behavior, but my drunk self *WAS* in a restroom with the door locked. At least one employee of the establishment was trying to get them to stop as well, there are plenty of witnesses (unfortunately).

Again, I regret my behavior, it wasn't acceptable. I know I need to scale back the boozing. Please let me know if I can clarify anything, thank you all for your time.

EDIT: Hey guys, so I think I know what I'm going to do. My friend had already set up a meeting with the owner for tomorrow as well as met with a friend who is a lawyer, and the lawyer seems to think I have a case. Regardless, I will not make a big deal out of this or try for a lawsuit - I don't think it's worth anyone's trouble. I am going to ask the owner to take appropriate action so that this doesn't happen to anyone else. I am also going to ask the owner to make a donation to a charity of my choosing or his/hers for the Holiday season, so hopefully something positive can come of the situation.

Additionally, I think it's time I take a step back and evaluate myself and my drinking habits. That needs to stop as well.

Thank you everyone for your input, I appreciate it.

Answer:
 NAL. You can try talking to the manager or owner. For the love of God, be calm and don't make demands. They might try to make it right, can't promise they'll fire anyone.Answer #2: What is it you want to see happen? It's possible they were documenting the situation in case you caused damage.  How did it come to be that so many people became aware of your drunken presence in the bathroom?Answer #3: Responding to your edit:

Dont demand, just lay out the facts and see what he is willing to do to make it right. Some things to ask for would be:

Actions:

- GET THE PICTURES DELETED. Before any other requests, ask this.

- Ask about discipline for the employees. The owner likely wont fire them on the spot or anything like that, but it would be a good idea to ask what is going to be done.

Compensation, in either:

- Money, but you might struggle getting any without legal action. You might ask for a donation for a charity instead.

- If you are willing to return, you could ask for a gift card, a round of drinks or a meal on the house.


Title: Husband works for state government is being religiously discriminated against.

Question: My husband works for the government in our state. For religious reasons he is suppose to carry a beard and make prayer throughout his day. He went to his boss about his beard this boss preceded to tell him it was not allowed it was against policy. (We looked up the policy and no mention of exclusion for religious reasons) we looked up the EEOC laws and found that he must be allowed to carry his beard according to our religion per EEOC Laws. He printed out proof that our religion requires a beard and prayer throughout the day and took it back to his superior. His boss made him and another co worker of the same faith TAKE A TEST to prove they were actually of the faith. Denied my husbands co worker and my husband saying they didn't "pass the test". The co worker quit and found a new job my husband continued with the EEOC and filed a complaint. About 2 months later my husbands beard was approved. Now it has been about a year or more since that test incident. My husband is still not allowed to pray at work. We have a holiday coming up where we fast for a month, according to the EEOC my husband should be offered another shift or other accommodation to allow for ease of fasting and he should be given the opportunity to pray. Went back to his boss who again said "No I will not accommodate you we are law enforcement and I don't have to". My husband is fed up!  This man has done this to other people in other faiths; one seikh had to literally get the news station to cover his discrimination In order to practice his religious beliefs at work.  My husband has began keeping track of all their communications, has been getting witness statements from co workers who witness the discrimination and keeping copies of the IRs. We want this to go to court. This is so wrong this man is literally a reflection of the entire state government with his hateful behavior. What can we do to proceed. We are trying to find a lawyer to take our case (price is a big concern) but basically this discrimination against anyone's beliefs but your own is wrong. My husband feels if we move forward with this we can ease the troubles of future employees with religious needs.  My question is what else should we be doing and how to proceed? Neither of us have ever done anything like this (let alone have an employer behave like this)

Answer:
 They have to make REASONABLE accommodations for his religion.

If he has to be able to wear a gas mask as part of his job, then allowing a beard may not be reasonable.  If he has to be available to respond to emergency calls, then guaranteeing him time to stop and pray may not be reasonable.


Title: Police officers use my driveway to watch traffic. Would appreciate suggestions on stopping this without causing trouble.

Question:
I live in Illinois and own my own home. It is on a major roadway since when the area was just fields, but now the area has been developed and commercialized - Walmart, Target, etc.  I'm a house in a sea of businesses (but the city zoning board has allowed me to stay since I was there first, and I like the convenience).

Over the past month or so, several police officers have begun backing into my driveway to sit and wait - I assume watching for people speeding or whatever.

On several occasions now I have come home and need to pull into my driveway, but I cannot do so because the police car is there.  I will stop in front of my driveway and put my blinker (edit: to be clear I generally already have my blinker on already, should have phrased that better) on and wait for them to realize I need to pull in and move, but sometimes they are looking at the laptop and will not see me for quite a while. This is also an issue because people driving on this road aren't expecting people to stop - they assume if you're pulling in somewhere you'll just slow down and make the turn.

This week it has already happened twice. The first time after a while I honked but the officer didn't notice, but then finally looked up 30 seconds later and then saw me and drove away.  Today when I came to a full stop waiting for the officer to leave my driveway, the car behind me wasn't expecting me to stop and nearly rear-ended me. On the bright side they laid on their horn and the officer looked up and then moved, at least.

This is annoying and I would prefer that they not park in my driveway, but I also don't want to cause any problems or get on anyone's bad side.

Thoughts?

Answer:
 This is the perfect chance to get to know your local police when there isn't anything really bad going on.

Should you find a cruiser parked in your drive again, park your car safely, get out, and go tap on the cop's window.  Introduce your self, acknowledge his name, (off of his name tag,) and tell him how glad your are that this stretch of dangerous road is being monitored.  Insert small bit of chit chat, then get to "the only problem is, I'm afraid having my drive blocked is going to get me killed, or my car totaled."  Then listen to what he has to say. You might come up with a compromise where they don't sit there around the time you come home for work.  Or they park far enough to the side that you can still enter your drive.  The conversation should be as two peers speaking.  He's there to Protect and Serve you and you, as the guy who pays the taxes, are there to be his partner in his duty.

 edit: grammarAnswer #2: 1. Install Webcam so you can see your driveway.
2. Install electronically controlled bollard post(s) right in front of where police car parks.
4. Remotely lift bollard post after police park in your driveway.


Title: Ownership of vehicle in a marriage in Georgia

Question:
My grandmother lives in rural Georgia. She re-married at 75 years old to a man who essentially had no assets. He has a daughter who makes terrible decisions and is needy to the point of maliciousness. She only calls to ask for money and has stolen things from him in the past. She is actually much of the reason he had no assets in the first place. So, my grandmother fell in love, but didn't want her children to lose things she'd worked all her life for, so she put in place a prenuptial agreement to make sure all of her assets go to her children instead of his daughter in case something happened to her.

So, my grandmother bought a truck for her new husband soon after their marriage, but instead of putting it in her name or in both of their names, she put it in his so he would have it in case something happened to her. Well, the opposite just occurred. He had a stroke last week and likely will never be able to use the truck again. He's experiencing partial paralysis and his cognition is severely impaired. He doesn't recognize anyone, has trouble talking, and replies to pretty much everything with aggression and negativity. His favorite word right now is "no." Pretty much the only name he seems to recognize is that of his daughter.

So, my grandmother called to tell his daughter what happened and her first response was not to ask how he was, but instead to ask if she could have her father's truck. She has now called three different times asking for it and has called other family members to try to get us to talk my grandmother into giving her the truck. My grandmother really doesn't want to give it to her, because it's still got a lot of value if she sold it...and the last time they helped the daughter with a car she pawned it off (probably to buy drugs).

My grandmother has been unable to get her husband to sign off on a power of attorney (he keeps saying no) and is now worried because the daughter is saying she's going to get a friend to drive her up there and ask him directly for the truck. Given that her name is the only one he recognizes, he may be more likely to say yes to her. So, the question is...can my grandmother legally retain ownership of the vehicle she bought even thought it's not in her name if her impaired husband agrees to give it away without her having a power of attorney.
Topic:
Other Civil Matters

Answer:
 > can my grandmother legally retain ownership of the vehicle she bought even thought it's not in her name **if her impaired husband agrees to give it away** without her having a power of attorney.

No chance, sorry. She can't "legally retain" ownership because she doesn't have ownership.

Now, convincing a mentally incompetent person to give property away is financial abuse, but that won't give it back to your grandmother. Until he's declared incompetent he can still do what he wants.

If your mother had power of attorney (that's not what you want, FYI, you want guardianship of an incompetent person), transferring ownership to herself would be unjust enrichment and abuse of the power of attorney.


Title: Ex-wife (CA) is filing to find my boyfriend (MN) in Contempt. How can we put an end to this before it starts?

Question:
Asking for my boyfriend, who isn't on Reddit.

His divorce was just final last week. Today, his lawyers sent him a message saying that they have filed a Withdrawal of Attorney of Record with the court. He owes a ton of money and can only afford to pay them a very small amount per month. They stopped trying very hard when he couldn't pay the bill in full each month anymore, which was a long time ago. There is no money for a retainer for another attorney. She is representing herself, and doing a good job of it from what I can tell.

So now to the issue at hand: there are two children who live with her in CA. They attend summer camp, and the divorce judgement states that he is responsible for paying half of the camp fees. There is no time limit stated in the judgement as to how quickly payment must be made.  She asked for payment of $1,500 within 30 days of the day that the invoice was delivered to him. He didn't have it, so on day 31 she went to the courthouse and filed an Order to Show Cause and Affidavit for Contempt. She is threatening to file another if he does not pay her his share ($40) of a dental visit within 30 days.

The process server came to my house a few days ago and I answered the door. My boyfriend was home at the time but did not come to the door. The process server gave me the copy of the order and left.

We contacted his lawyers, who asked who accepted the paperwork, whether he had called the summer camp to verify what had been paid, and said they would discuss the contempt, but they filed the Notice of Withdrawal filed today and their email politely told him to get lost, so no further help is coming from that corner. The Order to Show Cause and Affidavit for Contempt says that he can request representation if he doesn't have any, so we will try that route, but I don't know how that will work. He doesn't have the time to take off of work nor the money to fly to California for this case next month, but she is already messaging him today telling him he has to show up or it's a warrant for his arrest.

Do we have any leg to stand on? If the server didn't deliver the paperwork to him but me instead, does that mean he wasn't served properly? If the divorce judgement doesn't spell out a specific timeline for reimbursement, can he make bi-weekly payments until he pays off the whole debt without being found in contempt of the court order?

This has been a long, ugly fight and he and I just want it to stop. She is unwilling to work out any kind of arrangement - there is mutual hatred on both sides of the divorce - and I think she just wants to see him in jail, as she spent a day of the court's time during the last hearing trying to found in contempt and thrown in jail. Thanks for reading and whatever advice you have to share.

Edit - I typed extra words.

Answer:
 Others have covered a lot of the procedural elements, here, but I wanted to spell this part out explicitly: _he needs to appear_. Not appearing for a contempt hearing will likely result in him being found in contempt, and to a bench warrant being issued for his arrest. That's not something he wants hanging over him if he's trying to reassemble his life.

He may be able to have the hearing rescheduled if he calls the clerk and asks, or he may be able to seek the judge's permission to appear by telephone/video conference. Failing that, well, it takes about four days to drive that distance in good weather and light traffic; can he take nine days off work, or would it be cheaper to fly?


Title: What Does 0/0 Equal?

Question:
I'm evaluating responses to a Request for Proposals where costs of various things are evaluated using the following equation:

(This proponent's price / the lowest proponent's price) * weighting

One of the proposals says that some of the services are free - they explicitly say $0. Which means that the equation ends up as:

($0 / $0) * weighting

Which is undefined in mathematics. Is anyone aware of case law that defines it?

Answer:
 Siri said:

>Imagine that you have zero cookies, and you split them evenly among zero friends. How many cookies does each person get? See, it doesn't make sense. And Cookie Monster is sad that there are no cookies. And you are sad that you have no friends.


Title: Blew under .08 still got charged with dui

Question:
Hi everyone,

I drove friday night after a few drinks. I was pulled for doing an illegal u-turn (don't get me started) and the cop decided he wanted to do a field sobriety test. He told me to watch his finger and moved it all around then said he wanted to do more tests. I, having read much on the topic, refused to continue with the subjective field tests and opted for the chemical test at the station.

Long story short I blew under .08 and yet I wasn't immediately let go. I had to get booked through their criminal system. Sat in the office for hours and left with a charge for both the turn and the dui. The cop assured me it would be dropped in court.  Am I right to be skeptical?  I am giving everything to my lawyer tomorrow but just wanted to know if this is standard procedure?

 My work found out online and now it looks like I'm a felon but I never blew above the legal limit. My boss, my bosses boss, and their boss now all know about this and I fear it will affect me negatively at the workplace. They have said they will support me, but now I'm no longer going to be considered responsible.

I'm really upset about them finding out and feel that it was wrong for me to be charged that way when I didn't break that law.

Thank you for any advice you are willing to give.

Answer: typically .08 is the prima facie limit, you are defined by law as intoxicated at .08, but evidence of intoxicated behavior can be enough for conviction below .08Answer #2: Nobody thinks you are a felon unless they are either stupid or you have many DUIs. As everyone has already told you, the .08 is simply a legal standard for presumption of violating the law. You were drinking and were impaired. You can be impaired at .01 or at .08. That's why you received a series of tests. You need to knock off your righteous indignation. You are not entitled to it. Don't drink and drive and you don't have an issue. Get an attorney and see if he or she can find some holes in your case. And go do your crying to your mama. You don't deserve any sympathy.