Title: [Germany] I want to create a Game with some sort of Gambling without Real Money

Question:
Hey LegalAdvice!

I want to create a Browserbased Game, where you can bet on the Outcome of an Multiplayer RTS Game. You are able to bet Points which you cannot get with Real Money.

The only purpose of these Points is to get on a Leaderboard. You can't convert these Points to Real Money or something else.

I've heard that there are pretty strict Gambling Laws in America, i don't know if this could cause issues there.

Can anyone tell me if this would be legal in America and Europe?

Thanks in advantage!

Answer: If the points have no value and cannot be redeemed for anything of value then it's almost certainly not illegal AFAIK.


Title: Is it legal for underage people to produce underage pornography for other underage people to consume?

Question:
I’m asking because a friend of mine started drawing porn since 14, there is a community of people consist of teenagers and young adults drawing and sharing porns on certain forums. And a lot of the stuff would be considered child porn since the artists and consumers are both children.

Of course no actual children were harmed during the production, it’s just ink and paper and graphic boards.

If that is legal, would that become a problem when those child artists grow pass the 18 years old or whatever age of adulthood?
Topic:
Juvenile and Youth Law

Answer:
 #100% no.

Child porn is illegal to produce, possess, transmit, or receive no matter how old you are.

But drawn works are not child porn.


Title: Someone stole money from a till. The owner of the business agreed they would not press charges if it's paid back.

Question: If this agreement is broken is there still a chance charges and a court proceeding can be put against the thief in hope all the money can be paid back? Or if they made an agreement in keeping the criminal activity that had taken place between them (most likely because have a close relationship) void any chance of the victim being repaid. Thanks ! BTW Australian here though not looking for a specifics to my country.. I am interested in all.

Answer:
 Your question is not clear.  Let me try to understand it:

A.  You stole money from the till.

B.  The owner made a deal that if you pay them back, he/she won't go to the police.

C.  Having made that deal, you want to know if he/she is prohibited  from going to the police if you decide not to pay him back?

D.  Or, does the agreement itself somehow void you having to pay him back?

The answer to C is no.  If you don't pay him back, he can go to the police.

The answer to D is no.

Stop stealing.  Be thankful that you have the chance to pay it back, and pay it back.

If not you will likely be arrested.


Title: Car not in my name but can prove I've made the payments.

Question: Mom and stepdad are splitting. Car is in his name and he wants it. I've put in 8k into this car. My credit is just below getting it refinanced(if applicable). He's returning a truck that has 45k left in the loan that's going to wreck his and my moms credit. What can I do to keep the car? What can I do if he takes it so I'm not losing money I've put into it? Thank you for reading.

Answer:
 You don't keep the car.  It's his.

You can sue him for the amount of money you've paid already though.


Title: Interesting Miranda Rights question

Question:
Strange piece of advice I once received from a friend who's father is an attorney.  He said that if you're ever read your Miranda Rights, when they ask "do you understand your rights?" you answer **NO** (and presumably ask for an attorney to explain it to you).

Supposedly this prevents the police from being able to move forward with anything.  Since you don't even understand your own rights, it would be illegal for them to do anything further?

Does this hold any merit?  Or is it exactly the same as invoking the 5th?

Answer:
 Miranda rights are not necessary in the vast majority of arrests. They become important when police want to conduct a custodial interrogation; that is, they have you in custody and want to ask you questions and hopefully extract a confession. The ruling in Miranda v. Arizona requires that prior to asking you questions in custody, the police must remind you of your rights to remain silent and have an attorney present.

This is often not necessary, especially in cases where the officer observed the crime in question and don't really care what you have to say about it. Or, they've questioned you prior to an arrest, extracted their confession, and already know what they need to know before taking you into custody. There are many reasons an officer may not read Miranda rights and most of the time it doesn't make any difference.

If you pretend not to understand what officers are saying, it won't delay anything. It will be apparent that you are lying and will annoy the officers. You would be far better off just cooperating with the process, acknowledging that you understand your rights, then politely telling the officers you'd like to remain silent until you have a chance to speak with an attorney ("invoking the fifth"). Problem solved: you'll avoid further questioning, but still be viewed as compliant and respectful.

In short, this is terrible advice from someone who doesn't sound like a very qualified attorney.


Title: Legal sites, paranoid users

Question:
I saw there are dozens of posts about ppl visiting porn sites, finding illegal content there and freaking out.That's why I m using Tor Browser Bundle for watching porn vids (and to make my ISP unable to collect what sites I like) Still I am paranoid:

 * is it possible that in case of a legal site but an illegal video (assume that the user doesn't realize that the 'actors' are not legal age, or the user only realizes it after watching) police will investigate watchers? have U ever heard of such a case?
 * is it possible that TOR users will be treated as more suspicious in this case? will they be found?
 * are there any top porn sites that are FREE and LEGAL (all vids checked)?

Answer:
 Why are you writing "p0rn"?  Do you think that putting a zero somehow means something?  Also, porn is legal.  Porn porn porn.  /u/t0rat0ra loves porn.  He probably masturbates to it a lot.

Anyway, just watch normal porn.  Anything produced by a major studio or production company will be fine.  They're legally required to verify age and keep records.  If it's got a brand-name logo on the front end, spank away


Title: How can I remove points from my license? (Florida)

Question: I received a speeding ticket and the officer who pulled me over told me that if I paid the ticket I wouldn't receive any points on my license.  A few months later I went to an interview for a job that requires a license with a limited number of points and found out that because of that ticket I did not qualify.  How can I remove the points from my license?  It is, after some research that was far too late, my understanding that in the state of Florida you have to complete a driver's safety course within 30 days of receiving the ticket to affect your points.  Am I just screwed?

Answer:
 You wait it out. The system is working. What's happening is exactly what's supposed to be happening. if there were a shortcut it would defeat the whole purpose.

1. punish the bad driver

2. incentivize the driver to not let it happen again because of the negative consequences. (not getting a job in your case).

3. incentivize others drivers not to get points. (because I bet you've told others)


Title: I have a homeless person parked in my drive way.

Question:
My neighbor lost her home, a work crew is now remodeling and for the last two days she has parked in our drive way. My husband asked her to leave, but this morning she backed into the grassy part of our drive way. She just sits in her car all day watching the work crew that is remodeling the house.  When the work crew leaves for the day,  I suspect she is spending the night there. Moves her car about 7-ish in the morning to our side. What should we do, we have asked her to move on ...very politely. I've been watching her on our CCTV.

Edit: Washington State.

UPDATE: I contacted the county social services after my husband talked to her, and he said she wasn't lucid sounding but he told her more firmly she needed to leave. County said they would send someone by and do a welfare check. She has since moved her car to behind her old house in the woods setting up tent and tarps.

I appreciate the positive feedback I received.

Answer: You have asked her to leave your property. She has not complied. Call the police.Answer #2: The first thing I would do is contact police.  Answer #3: She's trespassing.


Title: [US] What is the difference between things that are obscene, lewd, lascivious, indecent, filthy or vile?

Question: For [mailing purposes](https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/18/1461). If there isn't a difference, why doesn't the law stick to a catch-all term like "Trumpesque"?

Answer:
 I can't define it, but I know it when I see it.Answer #2: Obscene: You wouldn't show your grandma.

Lewd: You would show your best friend.

Lascivious: You would show your spouse

Indecent: You only show yourself.

Filthy: You show your mistress.

Vile: You show your father-in-law.


Title: Hostile work environment following wreck?

Question:
I'm a paramedic and I work for a private ems company in  Ohio. About two months ago my partner and myself were involved in a single car (our ambulance) mvc vs tree due to having been awake for 27 hours. My partner was much more seriously injured then myself (on vent for a few days/permanently disfigured) and was off work until about two weeks ago.

Since he has gotten back we have been constantly over burdened with calls. In a vacuum each crew at our station should do an equal amount going in a rotation, but that is far from the case. We will come in to work with a run waiting on us while no other crew has moved. This allows us no time to check our truck to be certain it contains the equipment required to do our job. We also clear from a run and immediately be sent on another while other crews sit. It's become a joke between my partner and myself that we were the last truck to do a run... Guess that means we're up.

I brought up concerns with management about saftey seeing as I cant drive following the wreck so my partner has to do it all, and was told that we were to do what we were told to do because we got paid to do so.

I'm not sure what to do. This is going to result in us quitting or wrecking again and chances are we won't be as lucky as last time.

Any advice is appreciated. Thank you.

Answer:
 It isn't illegal.  But it is stupid of your employer.  They're the ones responsible if you get into an accident while on the job.  It is in their best interest to prevent it.

Start looking for another job if this is the way your management treats you.  You can also complain to HR, letting them know about the accident waiting to happen, and ask what can be done, but I wouldn't bank entirely on that.


Title: neighbor keeps selling cars on his property is this legal

Question:
So I have a neighbor who keeps selling cars he gets out of his house, he usually don't have more than 1 or 2 for sale. It has become quite a nuisance people always coming by to check out his cars for sale. I am sure he is always posting on craigslists where he buys and sells these vehicles. I don't usually complain about things happening in the neighborhood but there are always new people coming around and i am just trying to protect myself and my assets from potential theft because of the people always observing my property from his shoddy business. I live in Michigan. Anyone know legalities against this? Or someone to potentially contact?

Don't get me wrong, if this wasn't a residential neighborhood with houses 50 ft apart I would care less.

Answer: It depends on the number of cars he sells in a year, with regards to whether or not he needs to be licensed by the state.   http://www.michigan.gov/sos/0,4670,7-127-49534_50300_50308-29797--,00.html


Title: Can I serve process in a gated community?

Question: [deleted]

Answer: You can serve them somewhere other than their home. You understand that serving notice, often to people who don't want it, is what process servers do right?Answer #2: Uh... I'm sorry, but are you posting on Reddit to literally ask how to do your job? Answer #3: Serve the person at work. Or just wait outside the gate until he or she exits. Follow. Serve.


Title: (US)if somebody demands your wallet at gun/knifepoint, and you give it to them, does it count as self defence to shoot them in the back of the head as they leave?

Question:
And do you have to leave your wallet with the stiff as proof they mugged you or can you take it and go home.

also are you legally obliged to call of police after this went down?

Goas without saying this would take place in a conceled carry state.

Answer:
 No. You do not get to shoot somebody in the back who doesn't form a threat at that time.

edit:Goas without saying this would take place in a conceled carry state.

And it goes without saying that you probably shouldn't be allowed to carry a concealed firearm on you if you ask this question in a serious manner.


Title: (Oregon) Reoccurring issue with my home's water well - New home is inhabitable.

Question:
I will try to keep this short -
The start of my issue goes back to 2012 when I had a water well dug on my property in advance of the construction on my home. During the construction I had a temporary water spicket setup near the well head. Any time the well was ran before my house was finished, the discharged water was a very dirty/dark brown color. I called my driller and he assured me that is was a normal “growing pains” occurrence with any new well construction and it would work itself out. We moved into our house in December 2012. From day 1 the water was so dirty that, for example, when the toilet bowl was filled with water you could not see the porcelain at the bottom of bowl. BAD. I called my driller again and received zero help. In March of 2013 I spent an addition $6000 and installed a whole home water filtration system by Kinetico - this actually helped out quite a bit and made our house live able finally!

In July 2013 I purchased a 10’ X 10’ Tuff Shed and placed it over my well head so it could house all of my water filtration equipment. When I was painting the shed I noticed about a silver-dollar sized hole in the ground right next to my building/well head. I kneeled over and when I got closer you could see that this hole was very large under the surface so I grabbed a shovel and started poking around and realized I had a huge sinkhole developing right next to my newly drilled well. I called my driller back and he came to my property to see the issue, his solution was to dump some sort of concrete mixture slurry in the hole and assured me that all is well once again. Over time my Kinetico stopped performing well and we were back to very dirty water. I spent several more thousands of dollars with a water filtration company trying different media’s inside my filters, different heads, addition inline filters, etc.

In January 2014 I pulled up my driveway to the sight of my Tuff Shed cantilevered in the air teetering around a VERY large sinkhole. The ground had dropped roughly 10’ around the sides of my well casing. I called him back and his solution was to dump more concrete slurry and gravel down in the hole. He did so once again. Over the course of the next year we suffered at home with very poor water quality (never have been able to drink it, only occasional showers when we happen to have a “good day”, packing our clothes up and taking showers at family/friends houses, etc.) but the sinkhole issue was dormant.

Then, in October 2015 another hole started opening up in the same spot. It was much smaller but it was a sinkhole nonetheless. I called him again and initially his solution was more slurry but it was clear at this point that he was in way over his head with this issue so I consulted with other local drillers about this issue. Based on those conversations I ended up calling the Oregon State Water Resources office and explained the events over the last couple years. Once the water resources people were involved I received a call from my well driller and he was furious that I did that to him when he was “trying to help me”. Within days the State made the decision that my well had been compromised and demanded that he drill me a new well at his expense.

In January 2016 a new well was dug. I travel for work so the majority of this project was completed while I was out of the state unfortunately. As soon as this new well went online the very poor water condition persisted, even my water softener couldn’t keep up with it once again. Shortly after a new issue started to arise. Not only did we have poor water quality but then the water pressure started to suffer. To give you a visual, when I put a 1 gallon container under my bath tub faucet it took 3:15 seconds to fill, I have the video for anybody interested. Our brand new house was essentially inhabitable. To make this horrible story even worse, I was talking with a neighbor about something unrelated shortly after the new well was online and he asks me “I see you had a new well dug, is that even on your property”? It caught me a little off guard so I looked in to it. My driller installed the new well about 5’ onto the county road right-of-way, it isn’t even on my property! I called my guy and he told me to “never bring it up to anybody and nobody will ever know”.

I spend another ~$1500 on water filtration equipment and service visits until I finally called a competitor well drilling company in March 2017. It was clear at this point that the issues with my water quality was not iron, tannins, nitrites, etc. that a filtration system could address, the issue was sedimate being pumped from my well. This dirt was being pumped into our plumbing infrastructure and clogging everything up, including the filtration equipment. They came out and did 2 things for me after several hours of testing; 1) Raised the well pump up 40’ 2) Restricted my 25+ gpm well to just 5 gpm’s. This solution made our home somewhat livable again, we can shower and do laundry but cannot drink or cook with our water. This is where we are at today essentially. Our water quality is very cyclical. Some days it’s bearable and some days (like TODAY) it’s mud coming out of the faucet (I have videos to show).

What can I do? Who can I call? He refuses to acknowledge poor workmanship and is not helpful in any way at this point. I need help!

Answer:
 First, you need a tl;dr.

Second, you should get a competitor to come out and give you a written evaluation of the well, what it would take to fix it (if it's fixable) and his professional opinion on whether or not this was caused by subpar work or just a bad outcome on a well (I anticipate that it's subpar work, but could be a common thing in your area, I'm in Ohio and properly dug wells don't do that here).

Once you've got this written evaluation find a lawyer to give you a consultation. Often this can be free, though it may cost. Either way, it's probably worth it just to see if you can recoup any money and get your well fixed. The lawyer will then help you figure out where to go from there.


Title: Undercover cop seduces 18-year old student, gets him to give her weed as a gift. [from /r/TodayILearned] He apparently settled, but what could've been a defence? (Florida)

Question:
>One 18-year-old honor student named Justin fell in love with an attractive 25-year-old undercover cop after spending weeks sharing stories about their lives, texting and flirting with each other.

>One day she asked Justin if he smoked pot. Even though he didn't smoke marijuana, the love-struck teen promised to help find some for her. Every couple of days she would text him asking if he had the marijuana. Finally, Justin was able to get it to her. She tried to give him $25 for the marijuana and he said he didn't want the money -- he got it for her as a present.

Citation from: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/tony-newman/attractive-undercover-cop_b_1277330.html

Via: http://www.reddit.com/r/todayilearned/comments/2tl15m/til_that_an_undercover_cop_got_a_straight_a_high/

also http://www.thisamericanlife.org/radio-archives/episode/457/what-i-did-for-love?act=2
and the musical version http://www.thisamericanlife.org/radio-archives/episode/528/the-radio-drama-episode?act=1

Topic:
Criminal Law

Answer: Entrapment, as you probably read in the other threads.  Answer #2: Not sure if useful or even relevant but in Australia the defence would be that no sale transpired. Technically for the charge to occur (trafficking of a prohibited substance) money needs to of changed hands. Further than that, in Victoria, Australia (I am well aware this isn't everywhere) the person who 'sells' the substance needs to sell it above the 'cost price' and recieve a profit for it to be anything other than possesion.


Title: A soon-to-be-not-my-friend spent $600 over 2 months under my nose

Question:
More context, this person I'll call "m" from now on spent MY money from MY bank account on übers and übereats, door dash and was especially fond of Smokin' Joes Pizza

How this vile person got my card details? Well i have no idea but my most gleaming guess was when we where about to MOVE IN together because we thought it would be a WAY cheaper than just living alone
So we looked for houses to inspect so we can take the application and once we got 2 we left to go back to her place in a über and when we got back we started taking photos of our identification so we can score 100 points for a valad amount of identity (i think thats what its for) and she MUST have taken a picture of both sides of my bank card without me noticing probably when I needed to use the bathroom, when I was really into my phone or she grabbed it and whent to the other side of the room to take pictures of her identification

Okay my options? I have already disputed all of her transactions to my bank and they told me over the phone the door dash order was ordered by (her name) to (her adress)

I live in Melbourne, victoria in australia
What are my options here?
Topic:
Douche

Answer: Disputing it was great. I'm not a lawyer, but typically in the US you could take her to small claims court for the funds and damages. You can also file a police report for fraud so it's on record.


Title: [CA] Mom suing dad for back child support, when she let him stop paying when I was a teenager because he was unemployed

Question:
My parents got divorced when I was three, parents got split custody and my dad had to pay $248 a month. When I was a freshman, my dad got laid off, and my mom was at a new job where she was making a lot more money than him. When he lost his job my mom told him he didn’t need to pay child support until he was working again. It was a verbal agreement, and I was also there to see it. He had trouble finding a new job, and it ended up being a little under 4 years until he found a new job. He got this new job a few months after I turned 18. He didn’t purposely wait to get one until then or anything, that’s just how it ended up, and neither side is saying he waited to get a job because of child support. Well now 3 years later, she’s saying she’s going to sue him for the 4 years ($11,904) because he helped me pay rent after she kicked me out. She’s not doing it for the money, she’s doing it to spite me and him, because I told her I didn’t want her to talk crap about him to me.

The main question I have is will that verbal agreement hold up retroactively? He’s used some free legal help websites that said she doesn’t have a case, but looking myself it seems the answers are all over the place. It’s stressing me out a ton because both of them are my parents, yet there’s nothing I can really do. I just want them to stop fighting

Answer:
 > will that verbal agreement hold up retroactively?

If the child support is court-ordered, no, definitely not.  She can't override the court.

Even if it isn't, your presumption was that she was forgiving the debt instead of agreeing to delay repayment.  There's no issue with her allowing your father to stop paying for a period but still reserving her right to the money.


Title: Tricked my cousin with a DNA test. Was it criminal? [Arizona]

Question:
I have a racist cousin (like almost a nazi, volunteer weekend 3% militia border patrol level racist). Six years ago my sister and I decided to play a trick on him, mostly because I thought it would be funny but also that it would maybe some kind of life-lesson. I bought an online genetic testing kit for him for christmas that tells you your ancestry based on your DNA (he had always expressed interest in it because he's never met his biological father). They send a small plastic thing for you to spit in and then you mail it back to them for analysis. I got him to spit in it and then pretended to seal the return envelope. Later I washed it out, let it dry, and got my mixed-race friend (who is half-white, half-mexican) to spit in it and then I sent it off to the lab. A month or so goes by and he checks the site, and sure enough it shows mostly western european DNA, but also 50% Native American + Iberian European as well. He got really reflective about it, and pulled back from the militia stuff. Later he moved to Nevada and got married and he and his wife had a baby. In the interium he had become a sort-of evangelist for the DNA website, and would try to convince everybody he knew to do the test. Fast forward to a few months ago. He bought an exam for his baby and the website showed they weren't related to each other. His wife told my sister that he had confronted her about the baby not being his and they had a huge fight. His wife told him the test was wrong but he said that was impossible. He went to stay with friends. A few days later he told her over a super long late-night Facebook post how horrible she was and that he had cheated on her too and would be filling for a divorce. My sister freaked out and called them both and said that she and I had falsified the exam. My cousin apologized to his wife and then said he lied about the cheating and had just said it to upset her, but I guess she doesn't believe him and won't let him move back in. Yesterday he said he was contacting the police and that he'd be suing my sister and me (he also threatened to kill our pets). I know he can sue us, but is it a criminal offense? If we don't testify against ourselves, is there any way they'd be able to prove it was us and not a mistake by the company? If they somehow tracked down my friend who provided the sample (who was fully aware of what I wanted the saliva sample for, I have Facebook messages about all of it) Could they make my friend testify or wouldn't he be a co-conspirator? I know that if I get served I need a lawyer and of course I'm aware in hindsight that what I did was wrong.

Edit: Called my cousin and apologized for all the trouble we caused. I also told him it wasn't really a crime and that he doesn't really have a case. He apologized too for saying he would kill my cat and said he was just upset when he said it. I asked him if he really cheated on his wife and he said no. I told him to pull up the google location data from his phone and then check if it was able to contradict the info from his Facebook post (he said he went to a brothel on her birthday) He said it shows that he was just at work and then drove directly home, so hopefully that'll change his wife's mind. He also said he was sort of glad about the fake test because he used to be such an asshole. He's still super mad at us but he said he'll get over it if everything goes back to normal. I hope things will be fine.

Thank you all for your help.

Answer:
 Keep your pets inside and keep a close eye on them. If he keeps threatening you, call the police and get a restraining order.Answer #2: I think you did a very immoral thing but not a criminal one.Answer #3: The extent of a criminal offense I can think of is *maybe* damaging his property, since the test was his after you have it to him and you tampered with it.

More importantly, I think you need to totally come clean about everything to everyone. This is really screwing up his life and you should be incredibly apologetic about it. It may have started out by making him a better person, but now it's causing a lot of damage. Hopefully it can all be salvaged.


Title: [Canada - ON] Parents want to deport me

Question: So I am 17 years old. Born in Canada, but was living in Australia until when I was 15 moved here to Canada. My parents however, stayed in Australia and ive been living with my uncles. Ive been threatened to be deported back to Australia, but I really dont want to go back. Do they have the right to bring me back if im not 18 yet? I have full Canadian Citizenship, but my documents are in custody of my uncles. Do I need to get possesion of my documents to be secure?

Answer: The age at which you can take control of your own housing varies by province.


Title: (FL)Crazy ex gf/baby mama drama.

Question:
Hi all. This is my first time posting here, so I would like to apologize for any errors and the length. I am going to try and keep this simple. Also posting under a throwaway just in case.

Let me preface this by saying I am posting this on behalf of my boyfriend. He's has gotten himself involved in quite a pickle, and I'm not sure where to go from here. My boyfriend ("Mike") dated this girl ("Rebecca") for over a year and it was a toxic relationship. Mike ended up leaving Rebecca in September. A few weeks later, Mike gets the news from Rebecca that she is pregnant. Mike is hesitant at first because Rebecca has cheated on him numerous times in the relationship and because she told him that she was not able to get pregnant in the first place. Mike tried to help her out at first, to try to "work things out", but then decided he no longer wanted anything to do with her. She would then send him care packages to his job, show up and wait for him after work, she would constantly send him texts, phone calls, and emails. Rebecca has literally sent 100+ emails all saying "we need to talk" at once. She's gone into one of his jobs and became hostile to another female employee there because she thought they were involved together. She would send him pictures of herself and all the old texts or pictures they had together saying that Mike would regret this. She would also send aggressive emails saying she wished all these horrible things onto him (she has said verbatim that she wants to make it her life goal to ruin his life) and calling him names, or saying she was better off dead, or would photograph his car at work and tell him she was waiting for him. She's even found out where we live! Mike nor I have changed our mailing addresses yet...

Because of all this harassment, Mike filed for a restraining order, but was denied because the judge ruled that it was "not her intent to harass him", but that she just needed answers because Mike was "running from his obligations". Mind you, no paternity test has been taken, nor is his name on the birth certificate. That hearing happened last Tuesday. Rebecca contacted both Mike and I the following day. In the messages to me, she blamed me for Mike not wanting to do anything with her and in some of the messages to Mike, she again included photos they had when they were in a relationship together. Mike sent one message back saying that if she were to contact him again, he would go ahead and file for another restraining order. She continues to contact him even to this day. He has not replied since.

Another thing I would like to mention is that she keeps going back and forth with asking for paternity/child support. Sometimes, she says she'll drop it and not pursue it. Then, she'll say she'll get him for all he's got. During court, she said she would not pursue Mike for anything, but in the email the following day, she said she had already filed child support papers a few days before the hearing and is sending it to his job's address, but he has not received it yet. I understand this is perjury. What can we do about this?

All in all, I would just like opinions on the matter. How should we go about this?

Answer:
 He is running from his obligations.  He has an obligation to take a paternity test.  He needs to either arrange it between himself and Rebecca -- that is, find out when she can bring the baby to the lab, ans then himself make the appointment and tell her to be there -- or go to court and file a paternity suit that will compel her to bring the baby in and have a test done.

Child support or not isn't Rebecca's decision to make and it's childish of Mike to act as though it is.  That baby has a legal right to be supported by both parents.  Period.

And for fucks sake if he thinks he's not the father, paternity testing puts a beautiful golden end to this baloney.  If he is the father, they will go to court and the judge will put limits on how Rebecca may contact him, because he will be 800% more sympathetic when he's not willfully avoided his obligations.


Title: [AL] Contract termination by religious employer because of medical emergency [UPDATE]

Question:
Some of you may remember me. I posted [this](https://www.reddit.com/r/legaladvice/comments/6p4uko/al_contract_termination_by_religious_employer/) a few weeks ago but I couldn't remember my password. Things have shaken out and I want to provide an update for people who want to hear it.

First, we were able to trace back the source of the information transmitted to my employers. Due to a legal agreement I will not be sharing further information about this part of the situation. I ask that people respect this decision, but rest assured that I am satisfied with the outcome.

I didn't get my job back. Those who stated that the reasons for termination are irrelevant in the Church's teachings were correct. My administration was willing to let me appeal the decision if I could get the support of the Bishop (even though he didn't make the decision, they did). I knew that was probably not going to happen, and I reached a point where I didn't want to beg for a job that barely pays a living wage. Especially not over a personal and heart wrenching choice that was never supposed to be their business in the first place. I'm taking the school year off and working on coursework for another degree.......... and nesting because we officially have a little one due in June 2018! It's very early, but what little they can see this early looks like it's where it's supposed to be this time and is measuring normally, so we're keeping our fingers crossed. I will always grieve for the one that didn't make it, but I am thankful for this one.

Thank you all so much for your advice and support.

Answer: For those interested, discussion of this update is ongoing in [this bestoflegaladvice thread](https://www.reddit.com/r/bestoflegaladvice/comments/77ivef/al_contract_termination_by_religious_employer/).


Title: [California] Why is it impossible to sue your employer if you're hurt on the job? Why do we have to go through workers comp system?

Question:
I know if you're employer intentionally hurt you, you can sue.  But if you get hurt at work because of negligence, you have to go through the workers comp system that only pays for medical bills and disability.

Why can't one sue for punitive damages / pain and suffering if the employer was negligent?

Answer:
 In short, it's because those lawsuits used to clog up the courts, and a lot of time and money was spent proving negligence.  It could be years before the employee saw any money, if ever.

Worker's comp eliminates the need for proof of anything but the injury and the fact that you were working at the time.  Medical bills are covered right away.  It eliminates both windfall payouts that hurt employers and the uncertainty that plagued employees.


Title: Why are property taxes even a thing? Why are they allowed to get so ridiculously expensive and why are they allowed to take your house if you dont pay?

Question: I could understand paying a tax when you buy the home just like you would when you buy a onion at a grocery store there is a property tax. But unlike the onion you bought you get taxed for the house each year and if you dont pay you get foreclosed on and lose it even if you are a broke senior citizen with fixed income or a worker who was laid off or one that became disabled and cant work. It makes no sense as its supposed to be your property. Ive heard people use the excuse "Well property tax is needed to pay for things such as schools and roads". Well if thats the point why do we even have sales taxes then? Where does that money go to? Also why are they allowed to take the houses of people who cant afford property taxes ? Why not just shut off the mail and trash services to them instead? Why steal their property from them? Why is a state like Illinois allowed to raise them by 256% like I saw in a video on Youtube?  Why is there not a cap preventing such unfair and ridiculous increases? Property taxes have to be the most evil tax there is and Im saying this as someone who doesn't own a home. How can this happen in the united states of America in the 21st century?

Answer:
 Of all the various categories of people who get taxes levied on them, “people who own land” is really not the most sympathetic one.

In terms of taking your house, any tax ultimately authorizes the state to use deadly force to collect its toll. It’s better to pay your taxes.


Title: Please help us help my father. Arrested off international flight, taken.

Question:
My father was returning from an international trip with my brother, his wife and my mother.  When they reached customs after touching down in Chicago, an Officer ask him to produce ID, then took him.  He texted my mom shortly after:

"being held for extradition to Virginia for charges, go on, i love you"

That was Friday at 4PM.  All he has is a bag of dirty clothes and diapers for my niece.  He doesn't have his medications!!

Sat at 11PM - he calls me collect from cook county jail.  he knows NOTHING.

Sun 6AM - he calls my mom, pleading to help him, he's terrified, apparently still in chicago prison

I've emailed his attorney to no effect (will obv try to keep calling)  I did some research and it looks like Virginia sent him a summons for a Grand Jury on 8/14.  They send it to an old address of his, so he was out of the country when the event occurred, making him look like he was on the lamb.

We know NOTHING else.  My brothers and Mom and I complete wrecks.  My father is 68 years old, NO PRIORS, COMBAT WOUNDED VETERAN.  He has very little money.  He's selling his house, because he cannot pay all of his back taxes and monthly bills.  Our plan is to get an apartment together, just to make ends meet.

What is going on???  What should we do?  When do I get to see my dad again?

Answer:
 He'll likely have a waiver hearing tommorrow. If he doesn't waive extradition, he can post bail (assuming the judge doesn't hold without bail). Contact a bail bondsman now.
Answer #2: > Sat at 11PM - he calls me collect from cook county jail. he knows NOTHING.

1. Stop talking to your father on the phone. For the time being, your father's only communication's should only be between him and an attorney.

2. Do not talk about your father's case with anyone.Answer #3: was he asked to serve on a grand jury or appear in front of one? also, is this a state or federal grand jury?


Title: I [31M,GA] want custody of my sibling [17M, FL]

Question:
Throwaway account, obviously.

I, a Georgia resident, want to get custody over my 17 year old brother who lives in Florida with my aunt and uncle. My brother requested this, and my aunt and uncle agree to this arrangement, so no family court/fighting is necessary.  I called a lawyer, they said they charge $350/hour and frankly that's too expensive. I called the probate court and it *sounds* easy enough on the Georgia side. My uncle refuses to let him just come live with us, he will only give him up if we get custody - but he agrees to sign/notarize any paperwork that is necessary. Basically, he's willing to cooperate but unwilling to be helpful.

My questions are: Florida seems to have stricter custody rules. Do I need to satisfy Florida custody requirements, or Georgia's?  Is it even possible to do this without needing to see a judge?  Any advice would be greatly appreciated, thank you!

[I'm being vague about details, since this isn't r/relationships. I know like it seems like more sense to wait until he's 18/get emancipated, but this is the best course of action for all involved.]

Answer: Your uncle is dumb. You should wait until 18 if your uncle won't just let your brother come live with you. Your brother is 17 years old, it's not uncommon for someone that age to be living away from their parents/guardians.


Title: [CA] Pulled over for speeding but CHP officer didn't hand me a ticket, what happens now?

Question:
Officer pulled me over for going 87 in a 65. I was looking around trying to find a similar topic but couldn't really find one too well.

He pulled me over. Asked me if I had anything to drink. I hadn't so I said, "no sir." He asked for my license and asked me if I knew the speed limit around these parts. I said 65, and then he asked me how fast I was going, "I said about 70" (that was the speed I was at when he got behind me). He then told me they had radar on the back of their car and that they clocked me at 87. He asked me where I was coming from and where I was going. I told him ______ and going _______, which is home. (They're about an hour away from each other, it's also 12 midnight, so it's late, I just want to get home, and I feel like he noticed that when he looked at my license and saw my home address.) He did a basic follow my finger test, while I was sitting in my car. I didn't notice if he handed the license to the other officer to run it.

He did glance at my license, but it was a glance, he didn't walk away so that threw me off. After the test he handed me back my license and told me to get back home safe. He didn't hand me a ticket or mention one at all so I'm just worried if it was possible or rather, how much of a possibility would it be that I be mailed home a ticket.

I apologize if this is a really basic question, I'm just really frazzled right now and worried about it since it just happened.  It's my first run in with the police for speeding.

Answer: You're fine. You weren't cited for anything. He wasn't looking for speeders, he was looking for drunk drivers and other criminal-types.


Title: (CA) Was unwittingly involved in a set up that could get me fired/worse

Question: [deleted]

Answer:
 So you were invited to your boss's home. You brought alcohol, something that's a very common gesture. Your boss then allowed minors to consume the liquor, which was presumably then his property, in his own house. And he's claiming *you* broke the law. He's wrong. In fact, his argument is one of the stupidest ones I've ever heard, and we get some stupid ones here.Answer #2: I think you need to provide some more detail about what was actually filmed. If the video was taken in the guy's house, it's very hard to believe that it wouldn't incriminate him as well or him in particular. Who would believe that your chosen venue for providing to minors would be your boss's house hoping that somehow he is not aware that there are minors drinking? That's ludicrous.

Are you sure this is not a bizarre and positively idiotic attempt at hazing you?


Title: I have information on who robbed me and police don't care

Question:
Edit: The detective followed up with the Bodega worker and got an ID on the guy who used my credit card.  No guarantees obviously, but I'm satisfied.

This may not seem like a big deal, and that's probably why the police in the town I was robbed in aren't doing much. But I do pay taxes and I expect to be acknowledged and have my case taken seriously.

My car was broken into in Town 1 in New Jersey, while I trick or treating with my kid. My wallet was recovered about 100 yards away in Town 2 (I was parked close to border, and these are small towns). Witnesses saw three young (between 16 and 20yo) males fighting/arguing over who got to keep the money taken from the wallet. The police came and a report was filed. Police from town 2 came but said that town 1 had to deal with it because that was where it was stolen from.

The next day my credit card was used in a deli/corner store in town 3, about a mile away. I didn't realize that card was stolen. I canceled it right away and called the store. The owner said he knew the boy who used the card and he comes in often and he may know where he lives. He also has him on cctv. I called the detective dealing with my case (town 1), left messages, and got no answer for over 24 hours. So I went to see him in person and explained what I had found out. I gave him the store info and the owner's name. He said that he will look into it when he comes back from vacation in ten days and not to get my hopes up.

Should I just leave this be or be more persistent? These same clowns robbed a couple other cars the same night and I'd like some justice but I also understand that cops have bigger things to deal with.

Answer: So wait 10 days. Prepare to wait even longer if he has priority cases.


Title: [OH, USA] - Domestic violence victim. Male, immigrant, dependent on spouse for residency. What are my options?

Question:
My wife and I have been together for almost seven years now. We're both Arab Muslims, and came to the US three years ago, to work on H1B visas in the Akron area. One year ago, I got laid off, and since then I've been on a H4 visa (spouse visa) while I job hunt. Also, around the same time, I've been taking some psych medical help (we're both on my wife's company health insurance), that is not available back in my own country. PTSD from childhood sexual abuse, yada, yada.

Since we've moved to the US, my wife has been having mild anger issues. Initially, I ignored this as being due to the pressures of a new country/ new job etc, but it's gradually been getting worse. Last month, she was shouting at me so loudly that a neighbor knocked on the door, phone in hand (cheap apartment - the walls are made of paper, I guess). My wife opened the door, and the neighbor asked if she (my wife) was okay, and if she needed the cops. The neighbor also gave me the stink eye; I guess she assumed I had been violent. The wife brushed her out politely. Yesterday, she got pissed at me again for some reason, and was shouting at me. I turned my back for something, and she threw a spoon at my head. Though it didn't cut me, it did leave me a bit stunned. A line has just gotten crossed.

**What are my options right now?** If she hits me harder, or if things get worse, and I call the cops, what is going to happen? I'm more worried about this, than anything else. I'm too sick and too tired, to be able to survive a night or more, behind bars. Plus, something like this on my record, will screw up my chances of getting citizenship down the line.

PS: I will cross-post this in r/relationships, but wanted a legal perspective first. Thanks all.

Answer:
 Don't put up with abuse because you think it will negatively affect your citizenship.  There are a lot of resources out there to help people in your situation.

Please contact the [Ohio Domestic Violence Network](http://www.odvn.org/) and get the help you need.  Explain your situation, and they will do what they can to help.

If the abuse happens again, remove yourself from her presence and call the police.Answer #2: Is this a possibility for you?  I think it's called a "domestic violence green card."  https://www.uscis.gov/i-360  It looks like the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) provides help for domestic violence victimized spouses of US Citizens (despite the VAWA name, the abused/abuser may be of any gender).  http://www.nolo.com/legal-encyclopedia/green-card-under-the-violence-against-women-act-vawa-who-is-eligible.html

Maybe check that out.  You may also want to contact an immigration attorney.


Title: I’m scared and sent a bad text M16 Indiana

Question:
Hi reddit, I’m a male 16 year old and i have my I pad and phone and thought I would create a fake conversation between myself. I acted like I was trying to text my girlfriend and on the other I use my sisters friend that is in another state and used a picture of her and said something I can’t remember that’s not significant. sent her the fake conversation not realizing how bad of an idea it was however I never publicly posted them. She is 16 like me and said she was pressing charges so out of fear I deleted my Instagram account and from what I researched when you delete your account all messages anyone has ever received from you are deleted (unless she took snapshots) can I go to jail reddit? I deleted everything i possibly could including my Instagram. Please advise thank you.
Topic:
Computer and Internet

Answer:
 This is borderline incoherent. Can you just very simply explain what happened?

How was the conversation faked, did you make a fake profile for her?

Did you send her a screenshot of a conversation you had with a fake account?


Title: Required work breaks in Washington state.

Question:
So I have been working 5 hours shifts and when I go to take a 10 minute break my boss always tells me to get back to work. I then tell him in washington state if I've worked for a 4 hour period then  I'm legally allowed to take a 10 minute break. He then proceeds to tell me that in our state he is legally allowed to fire me for any reason at any given time. Is he right? Can he really fire me for taking a 10 min break that is required by WA state law?
Topic:
Business Law

Answer:
 The answer is yes and no. Washington is an at-will state without any of the exceptions. He wouldn't be allowed to fire you for taking your legally required breaks, but it's legal for him to simply not state a reason for your termination, unless you have a contract stating otherwise.

If this is a serious issue and he actually refuses you breaks at all or regularly you can file a workplace rights complaint [here](https://www.lni.wa.gov/WorkplaceRights/ComplainDiscrim/WRComplaint/). Just be prepared to be fired.


Title: [PA] My mother is forcing me into therapy and a restraining order against my boyfriend...

Question:
I'm 17 year old and currently living with my mother. She is a control freak and manipulative, also verbally and emotionally abusive (she's hit me before but it's usually not hard enough to leave marks). Ever since I was a kid, I've never been able to have friends unless she approved of them from the get-go. I got a boyfriend in high school, and then my problems started. She began to accuse him of being abusive and of fucking up my life due to my grades slipping since I began dating him, though that was mostly because I'm not good at certain subjects.

Although I've tried to keep the relationship afloat, it's beginning to fade away. My mother is forcing me to go to a therapist who seems to be creepily manipuilating me into believing I have been abused by my boyfriend. It feels so uncomfortable and wrong but she and my mom are forcing me to go to the sessions.

My mom is also planning to file a restraining order against my boyfriend. She's called the police on him twice, and he even got arrested though he was released shortly after.

I really need help. I want to get out of these sessions and also not get the restraining order. In fact, I even would like to see if I can somehow flee my mother's home before I turn 18. Is there a lawyer I can get for this? Is there any laws that can protect me?
Topic:
Juvenile and Youth Law

Answer: What does your boyfriend do that they insist is abusive?Answer #2: Prepare yourself to live on your own.


Title: I’m being charged with assault for nudging a table into a kid, as well as brushing shoulders with him

Question:
I’m in highschool and I recently had an altercation with another kid who accused me of stealing his phone. Basically to get to the point, I didn’t steal his phone, he had been making remarks to other kids about getting his friends together to jump me, one day I was walking in the halls and he was sitting at a table when I walked by he made a remark. I walked up to the table and leaned into it, putting both my hands on the edge and the table moved towards him and nudged into his gut. I moved said table out of the way at which point he stood up and pushed me, I then pushed him back and this went on for a minute before it was broken up.

On a separate occasion maybe a week afterwards, I was walking by the same kid and brushed shoulders with him. As in our bodies made brief contact while walking and nothing else. Words were exchanged after and a teacher overheard, reported it to the office.

I was asked to give written statements on both occasions which I declined to do, but the other kid involved did. He’s now pressing charges for assault with a dangerous weapon (the table) and assault for brushing shoulders. I have a court arraignment next month for the charges and I’m not sure how this is gonna go.

Is the judge going to want to hear this? I’ve been told by people who know the system well that the judge may just throw the case out entirely because it’s so ridiculous.

Not sure if this is relevant, but this kid pressing charges is a known drug dealer and has supposedly jumped kids before. Could this be used as a sort of testament to his character? Again, this might not be relevant.

I’m gonna be 18 in a couple days and this is being held in a juvenile court, so I’m not sure if this is going to stay on my record as a felony. That’s what worries me most.

Any advice on how to handle this situation would be appreciated, I can’t afford a lawyer and I’m guessing this other kid is going to have one.

I’m in Massachusetts
Topic:
Juvenile and Youth Law

Answer:
 The other guy doesn't get a lawyer, the state is pressing charges against you and has their prosecutors. The alleged victim does not have to pay a dime.

You need a lawyer, if you cannot afford one ask for a public defender at your arraignment. If they claim you can afford one, do whatever you have to get a criminal defense attorney including loans. You are facing felony assault, this will ruin the rest of your life if convicted, even if overturned on appeal.

Do not talk to the police without your lawyer present for ANY REASON. No matter what the police tell you, they can lie to you on nearly anything including what evidence they have, what you know, and what other people have said. If they ask you anything, tell them you want an attorney and nothing else till you can speak to a lawyer.

Once you have that lawyer, follow their advice or find another lawyer if you hired one yourself. You don't actually know how strong a case the prosecutor has, your lawyer will be able to make that determination.


Title: Vendor took employee. Do I have have legal rights?

Question:
I sent an employee to pick up products from a vendor. I did not know that the employee was in contact with one of the employees working with my vendor. My employee not only picked up products for me but also stayed extra minutes for an interview.

The next day my employee told me she was quitting and was going to work for vendor.

I am much too busy to pursue any legal actions but I am curious to know what someone else would do in this situation.

I think the vendor's action was very poor considering I have purchased over 82k worth of products from them and spend time and money promoting their product.

Answer: Do you have a non-compete with the the employee or a non-poaching agreement with the vendor? If not you are probably SOL. Maybe you should figure out why your employee was so eager to leave and do a better job at retaining them.


Title: [MN] Roommate has order of protection against me. Am i responsible for rent?

Question: I haven't lived at my apartment for months due to a protective order against me and I haven't paid my portion of rent for those months. My roommates never contacted me for my portion of the rent during that time but now that the lease is up my roommates are threatening me with small claims. Am i still liable for my portion of rent?

Answer: Yes, an order of protection against you doesn't absolve you of your obligation to pay rent.


Title: [PA] Gave 2 week notice, fired 2 days later for discussing salaries with co-workers. What are my options?

Question:
My last day was supposed to be May 16th. After working for a few hours this morning (May 7th), they called me in and accused me of offering to disclose salary information to another employee.

The relevant facts:

1. Numerous accounting and HR employees stored full salary information in shared, public folders on the company network that were accessible to all employees. It seems I may be one of the only people who happened to find them (or the only one who talked about it).
2. I did not give any of these lists to other employees.
3. I did not tell any other employees where to find these lists.
4. I talked about a few of the salaries I saw with my teammates because I felt some of them were extremely unfair and we were clearly getting short-changed. As far as I know, discussing salaries is protected by the NLRA, but I realize the circumstances regarding the source of the information may make this more complicated.

My questions are:
1. Did they have "cause" to fire me?
2. If not, would I be able to collect unemployment? And for how long? Only 2 weeks, or for as long as I'm unemployed?

Answer:
 Typically discussing your own salary is protected. However, it sounds like you discussed the salaries of other employees that you “found” on a file.

That’s gonna be a big no-go on that one. Answer #2: >I know, discussing salaries is protected by the NLRA, but I realize the circumstances regarding the source of the information may make this more complicated.

Discussing someone else's salary info that you surreptitiously found is not protected.

Given that you'd already resigned and they had justifiable cause to fire you, it would be tough to get unemployment. Answer #3: Ok WHOSE salaries did you share?


Title: [FL] Can my community college force me to get a mental health evaluation to stay enrolled?

Question:
I have a large vaccination scar on my arm, it was done many, many years ago in a second world country. I have no medical records from that time since the building burned down a few weeks after I left the country.

One of my professors had asked me what it is and I told her. I don't think she believed me since on Thursday the dean asked to see me, I was questioned on whether or not it's a self harm scar. He said that I would need a mental health assessment in order to stay enrolled.

Is that legal? Not only can I not afford it, it's obviously from a vaccination.

Answer: Even if it was self harm, I don't think it would be right to disenroll you.


Title: Advice on some weird things in a lease agreement

Question:
I'm looking at this house to rent and the landlord seems a bit weird, to put it nicely. A few things he put into the lease agreement are that we can't throw toilet paper in the toilet (apparently he thinks it will clog up the pipes, so he wants us throwing shit in the trash) and any complaints from neighbors will result in forfeiture of the security deposit. Here's an image http://i.imgur.com/3dMSgQF.png

What do we tell him? This doesn't hold any legal ground to be enforced does it? This is in VA btw.

Answer:
 If he is this picky in the lease, I don't think it will get any better if you live there. Personally, I would suggest getting a different place. I don't see this ending well. But that is totally a personal opinion.

[Here](http://leg1.state.va.us/cgi-bin/legp504.exe?000+cod+55-248.15:1) are the laws on the deposit. No, he cannot take it due to a complaint. But do you really want to fight him when you move out?


Title: Consultation! where do I look/find competent attorneys for civil lawsuit? COLORADO FRONT RANGE

Question:
my roommate bailed on me 1 week ago and there is 10 months left on joint contract. I do not intend to file a suit until my contract has been fully paid by me now of course. but I want to seek council so that I can be fully prepared when the contract ends and I'm ready to file suit. I just want to make sure I have all paperwork and other actions taken care of to give myself the best case in court and win against this scum bag

thank you

Answer: Do you really foresee a need to use a lawyer here?  That can certainly make things much more convenient for you, but just note that a case like this is fairly straightforward for small claims court.


Title: Can a US resident be required by their neighborhood to put up Christmas lights? (CA, but curious about elsewhere)

Question:
I learned of an area where, they claim, the residents are required to put up lights on their homes for certain days during December.

The entire neighborhood has several decorations that are coordinated by street, with various symbols of Winter/Christmas, some of which could be construed as religious (I recall doves and stars among them) though most are secular symbols (reindeer, wrapped gifts with bows).  The same decoration is in front of each house on a particular street, on the grassy area between the street and sidewalk (and thus possibly city property?)

My understanding is that a HOA is *not* involved here.  It is in the 'deed' or similar paperwork that comes with ownership of the property.  It was described to me as the same set of papers that mentions that there are underground pipes or electricity/telephone poles on the property, but this might not be technically accurate.

And yes, it looks great at Christmas time.

But can these 'covenants' still be considered legal today?  I assume that they were put in place by the original developers (which was well over 50, probably closer to 75 years ago).

California applies to the neighborhood I heard about, what of other areas of the United States?

Answer:
 >It is in the 'deed' or similar paperwork that comes with ownership of the property.

I believe that's usually how HOAs work.Answer #2: There's definitely nothing illegal about requiring you to have particular lights on the outside of your home, so long as it is outlined in your deed restrictions.


Title: [Indiana] Court ordered parenting time for an 18 year old

Question:
The court recently ordered telephone and in person visitation and counseling with the goal to improve the relationship with the non-custodial parent.  The child is and was 18 when the order was made.

The adult child doesn't want to visit with the parent.  The adult child is still in high school until May.  Does the adult child have to follow the court order? What about after graduation? Can the "custodial" parent of an 18 year old be found in contempt if an adult child refuses to follow these orders? The court order was made after the child turned 18.  The non custodial parent claims to not want to emancipate, but what else can a non custodial parent do but request not to pay support, insurance, and educational expenses?

Tldr; what control does a family court have over an 18 year old in regards to visitation of a non custodial parent?
Topic:
Custody Divorce and Family

Answer:
 >Does the adult child have to follow the court order?

Yes, it's a court order.  Refusing to follow the order can be met with contempt of court.  Looks like in Indiana, a child isn't emancipated till 19.

>Can the "custodial" parent of an 18 year old be found in contempt if an adult child refuses to follow these orders

Honestly not sure.  Since child is still in school, probably since it seems they're still dependant on one of the parents.

>but what else can a non custodial parent do but request not to pay support, insurance, and educational expenses?

By non custodial parent, are you talking about the one the child doesn't want to see?  I'm kinda confused with this sentence.Answer #2: A case in MI created a public uproar when a judge held 3 children (I think ages were 14 12 and 10) in contempt for refusing to have lunch with their father.  This was a long very exceptionally contentious case.  but the point is the 18 year old could be held in contempt , if the 18 year old feels unsafe they should appeal the decision.


Title: (Massachusetts) Landlord sold condo with 2-months notice to renter

Question:
I’m wondering if anyone out there has any information about Massachusetts landlord and tenant laws that might be helpful in this situation that I find myself in…

· I signed a 13-month lease in August 2017, with the landlord promising not to increase the price of rent upon the renewal of the lease this September.

· A few weeks ago the building manager forwarded over a lease renewal offer for September 1, 2018 for the agreed upon rental price.

· I responded indicating my intention to stay, and the building manager said he would get in touch in the next few weeks with the signed lease renewal document.

· I just received an email from the building manager saying that the owner has decided to sell the condo, and we will not be able to renew lease with him.

I now have two months to find a new dog-friendly apartment that starts on September 1. Are there any Massachusetts laws that I can look into that regulate the number of days notice a landlord must give in this type of situation? Any other options that we should look into?

Thanks!

Answer: In MA they only have to give 30 days notice. So your LL is generously giving you twice what the law requires.


Title: [TX] Sold a car through a dealership but they never paid

Question:
Posting this on behalf of family to help them get their money. Writing from their perspective so its easier to understand.

Decided to sell a rather expensive car last year, so I consulted a dealership. They agreed to hold and sell the vehicle. There was no contract written up, but I have e-mails that clearly explain the deal. They were to hold the vehicle and reach out to potential buyers and send me a check minus their 8% fee. We never discussed insurance, so I kept full coverage to protect my asset.

They never contacted me and sold the dealership (or there was a merger, either way there is a new owner). The new owner states that my car was never included in their inventory when they obtained it. They were unable to tell me where my car was or if it sold.

After several attempts over a few weeks, we were able to contact the old owner that was my original contact. They also weren't sure where the car was or if it sold.

We pulled the carfax and see that it was inspected for sale on February 1st of this year and likely sold shortly after that. When we brought this to the old owner, he agreed that the car likely sold in March with the title switching over in May.

Questions:

1) Can I ask them to reimburse me for the roughly $8000 insurance I have paid on the car since it was sold? Are they obligated to?

1a) If they refuse, Can I take it to small claims? Or rather, would I have a decent shot at winning?

1b) If I have a decent chance at small claims, who should be named in the suit? I am thinking that the dealership and both owners should be named and the judge can sort it out.

2) Is there anything I can do about them failing to contact me until I demanded to know where my car was? (like charging interest)

3) The old owner stated there was likely a trade in and I would need to wait until the trade in sold to collect the full amount. Does that sound right to you? There was never discussion about a trade-in in the e-mails where we discussed this.

Hopefully, Monday comes and they have a check for the full amount ready for me. I just want to be prepared if they don't.

TL;DR - Dealership sold car on my behalf, never contacted me to tell me it sold about 9 months ago. Have not paid me.
Topic:
Other Civil Matters

Answer:
 NAL But I am a CPA (not your CPA).  Have dealt with many titling issues.

My main question is ownership.  Who currently owns the vehicle?  Did your family member sign over the title to the vehicle to the acquired dealership?  This is a significant factor in who holds title to this vehicle and by what means said vehicle has been transferred to new hands.

Sounds like your family member needs to contact legal counsel.

If you paid:

> roughly $8000 insurance I have paid on the car since it was sold

I surmise that the vehicle is worth much more than that.  It [appears that only $10k](http://www.jp.hctx.net/suits/filingsc.html) of claims is able to be filed in small claims in the State of Texas.


Title: Can our landlord legally come in and take your pet and board them?

Question:
Currently out of town(Iowa, usa) visiting family for a day and our landlord said our cat has been meowing since 11 last night. They are threatening to take our cat out if our apartment without our permission. Is this legal?
Topic:
Landlord Tenant Housing

Answer:
 What does your lease say in reference to noise/maintaining the peace? Do you leave in an apartment complex where other neighbors can potentially hear your cat?Answer #2: Almost certainly yes, it's legal.

If it is due to a noise complaint, your landlord has the right to enter the property to attempt to resolve the source of the noise if you are not home and cannot resolve yourself. Also, if your landlord fears that a pet is in distress and is in danger of harming itself or the apartment, he or she could most likely legally enter in that case as well.

Can you arrange for a local friend to meet your landlord at the apartment and take possession of the cat?


Title: [WA] Can landlords enforce seemingly arbitrary rules?

Question:
Military housing, so LLs own the whole neighborhood.

So a few years ago, some punks set fire to a dumpster that was being properly stored on the side of the house. Everyone lived, but the house was a total tear-down. Ever since, the LL company has said bins must be stored in garages or inside the property line (like, in our backyard). This I understand and comply with.

Ever since, however, they seem to have gone a bit crazy with "rules." Our contract states that holes inside the home cannot be larger than a dime or else we get fined upon move-out, but everything else is okay. It also states that holiday decorations may be up for set amounts of time.

We recently received an email that had the "top ten community rules" that included the trash thing, that only Christmas decorations can be up for one month before and after the holiday (all other holidays get one week before and one day after), and that WE MAY NOT HANG UP CURTAINS IN OUR HOMES. They say the shitty ultra cheap blinds they installed would suffice (hint: they do not keep the light out). They also said we may not block the window that has no blinds in the garage.

This is WA. This time of year we only have total darkness from about 10PM to 4AM. I have young kids who will wake up from the room being too light. Can they seriously demand I take curtains down? And we also use our garage as storage for many things, including some costly items. The neighborhood is kind of known for petty crime, and we would like to prevent anyone who walks up to our window from seeing what's inside.

Can they legally enforce any of these rules?

Answer: Why no curtains? Because of the holes? You can use command strips to hang them w/o holes. Tell your husband to tell his chain of command, they'll get involved.Answer #2: You are only bound by the terms of your lease. If those rules are in your lease - then you should follow them.  If they are not, then... the LL will be unable to force compliance - but don't expect to be able to renew the lease later on.


Title: Employer charges a credit card surcharge against California law (I think). Could I be liable?

Question:
I work at a very small ice cream shop in California and we are trained to add an extra 75 cent charge for credit cards after confirming with the customer.

I was browsing our yelp page, seeing if anyone had complained about me, and one of the customers mentioned that the 75 cent surcharge was against California state law.

Sure enough, a quick google search says that this is true.

What should I do? Could my shop be allowed to surcharge through some exception? And could I somehow be held liable if someone were to try to take action against the shop?
Topic:
Business Law

Answer: Have your employer classify it as a discount for "cash" rather than a surcharge for credit.


Title: Brother does not help, does he still get half of the inheritance?

Question:
I cared for our dying parents for years, and have now spent almost a year preparing their out of state house for sale (doubling its value). My brother has hardly done anything to help with either, and I'm frustrated it seems he is still going to get 50% of the estate. From the start he said he wanted to help with all of it, but its been nothing but excuses since.

I've almost succesfully flipped the house from an as is cash only sale, to a move in ready property. This has nearly doubled the estates value.

In the will it says we get 50/50. I don't think there is a way to change that. I feel I've served my role of executor of the estate (called a personal representative here in Washington State) very well. I know they can be paid, but how much? When? Does time spent improving the real estate count as part of my work as executor? My signifigent other has been there every hour I have, can he be paid for his labor?

Or do I just have to take my half (and share with my S.O.) and be happy?

Answer:
 Your role as the executor is to carry out the decedents' wishes. If they wished to give half of their property to your brother, that was their right. Your work to support them does not change that.

Some jurisdictions allow executors to draw reasonable pay for their work, but you'd want an attorney's input, both on what's reasonable and on how to account for this in the estate records. It's likely the cost of the attorney's advice will wipe out what you'd be taking home, and there's a chance the answer is "Washington doesn't allow that."


Title: Where is it legal to sleep in your car?

Question: I'm in Wisconsin and currently don't have a place to stay, though currently crashing on a couple people's couches when I can. I was wondering if I'd be allowed to sleep in my vehicle at any place that allows parking overnight or elsewhere. Old vehicle but she's holding up.

Answer:
 There's a subreddit dedicated to van and vehicle living, and they've got some good practical advice in posts [like this one](http://www.reddit.com/r/vandwellers/comments/37h2cj/best_places_to_park_without_much_trouble/).

As noted, Walmart has a long tradition of allowing overnight RV parking, because those folks tend to spend money first thing in the morning.

In my neighborhood, there are a lot of vehicle dwellers because there's a stretch of industrial-zoned land on the edge of a residential neighborhood.   On my street, there are fifteen vans and vehicles occupied in a half-mile stretch, but if you go one-block over you'll get a knock from the police on your window.Answer #2: Down by the river, as is my understanding.Answer #3: From my understanding, not public streets. Truck stops are the safest place from what I have been toldAnswer #4: There are[ free campsites you can use as a well if one is close](http://freecampsites.net/#!Wisconsin&query=region) (Check the color code - green is free)Answer #5: On private property where they allow you, like Walmart or in your friends driveway. Most public streets and parks they don't allow it. Just park at Walmart and buy a stick of gum, most walmarts allow you to stay 24 hours with a receipt. Answer #6: Sleeping in your car isn't the legal issue. Just make sure it's legally parked, and you'll be fine. A place like Wal-Mart seems to be a popular destination.


Title: [California] Is it legal for me to hold tutoring sessions in private establishments, like a cafe?

Question:
Hi there,

So, I'm planning on private tutoring some adult students for some extra cash. I was curious if it is technically legal for me to hold these tutoring sessions in private places, such as a coffee shop?

Thank you!

Answer:
 Yes, unless they ask you to leave.

It's a pretty bad place to focus and have meaningful discussions, with the coffee grinders, blenders, and other noisy machines and people.


Title: FL Pregnant and soon to be divorced husband wants primary custody

Question:
Long story...

Met the father/husband in CA where I conceived. He pressured me into a quick shotun marriage prior to being pregnant so we could receive military benefits. I am military, he is former military.

Order of events is 1) got marriage license, 2) later that night found out I was pregnant, the next week got medical official documentation of pregnancy, 3) a week later finalized the marriage Jan 28.

He left 2 days after we got married and moved to TX. I have not seen him since then in January. He has been cheating, doing drugs, and harassing me for money under army regulation 608-99. His family is wealthy and fully support him. He already has a girlfriend living with him in his newly purchased apartment.

I had filed for annulment/divorce around Feb 7 when I realized I was being used for monetary gain. His promises to support our future child and me were false. Still waiting on his response to the annulment, 30 days will be up next week. I am leaving the military and moving back to my homestate of FL very soon so I will likely petition for a divorce and by the time the child is born in September, we will still be married for a short time.

I found out through his friend that his parents have paid for a fancy lawyer. I cannot afford any legal representation. They plan on taking full custody of the baby. I will be residing in FL, they in TX. They are trying to establish that I am unfit as a mother. They threatened to use my ptsd and anxiety from a sexual assualt reported through my military medical history. They said they can subpoena that info from the military while I am still in the service since I am married and pregnant. He is a sociopathic and has several suicide attempts and drug/alcohol abuse on his military record which is why he received his general discharge, but his lawyer claims that cant be looked at/ordered for subpoena since his discharge is finalized.

This guy is crazy, has accused me of doing everything wrong that I have not done wrong (cheating, being crazy, etc.). While he is riding a gravy train, doing drugs, binge drinking underage (he is 19), sleeping with other men and women, and has suicidal tendencies.

I am to the point where I may just seek an abortion (2nd trimester) because I am scared to even give him some rights to this kid because he is abusive and I know he is going to fight tooth and nail for custody while I have no money for a lawyer.

I looked up under Florida law that he has every right to the kid because of marriage at the time of birth of the child, even if someone else were to sign the birth certificate.

Please help.

Answer: You need to go talk to the chaplain. I don't care if you are religious or not. They are the most connected counselor available on post and can help you with options.


Title: [CA] A number texting me asking who I was and accused me of calling them. I never called them and they're saying they need my information to file a police report.

Question: Is this illegal? I googled the number and they seem to be close to my city. I got no name or anything. No social media account is affiliated with the number. Kind of creepy. What can I do?

Answer: Block the number and move on. Answer #2: Ignore them. Answer #3: Someone else may have spoofed your number when calling them. You could try explaining to them that even though it says it was you calling, it actually wasn't but (based in similar stories) they are likely not to get it. As everyone else is saying, block 'em and move on with life.Answer #4: Just... don't answer them? Answer #5: Use the block number feature on your smartphone.Answer #6: No, it isn't illegal for someone to text you and ask for information. Just block them and forget about it.


Title: Can parent kick me out without notice?

Question:
I live in Houston, Tx.

I pay rent, which is 25% of my income (300$) while I am in school. It is an oral agreement. I am 21, but due to severe illness I only started classes 4 semesters ago. My Mom is threatening to kick me out, although I'm not sure why as I have been gone for a few days. My Dad is on a business trip and not here to talk sense into her. Can she just kick me out with no notice?

I don't think she will go that far, because she is very "I HATE YOU GO AWAY / I love you, stay with me forever", but when he is gone she gets her temper going. Just worried that I will be stuck for a few weeks before he gets back. I do have a place to go if need be.

Answer:
 It would be illegal, but your only real recourse would be to sue her, which isn't going to keep you warm at night in the meantime. Answer #2: She can't legally kick you out without going through the eviction process. She can give you a 30 day notice vacate at any point. She can give you a 3 day notice to vacate if you fail to pay rent.

Nothing will stop her from illegally evicting you. If that happens you can call the police, they may convince her to let you back in they may not. You'd have to sue to recoup any damages due to her illegally evicting you.Answer #3: To add on what others have stated here, if by some chance you are kicked out suddenly (illegal eviction), when you call the police *do not* tell them that your mother kicked you out of the house. Tell them that your landlord has illegally evicted you from your home and won't let you back in. Otherwise they'll be much more likely to tell you it's a civil matter and bugger off without helping you. It's good you have a place to go if you need to. Look into creating a bug-out bag for yourself so that you'll have some stuff should this occur and while you sort things out. And it should go without saying, but you should also look into finding someplace else to live to get out of that situation if possible. If you insist on staying, look into drawing up a proper lease with your dad (since he seems to be the reasonable one) so you have actual documentation of this agreement, and stash your copy somewhere not in the house.


Title: Ex-Landlord threatening legal action, says we owe $14,000 plus potential legal expenses. (WA State)

Question:
Thank you all for taking the time out to do this, it is so helpful to many people. As suggested in the title, my former landlord is requesting $14,000 in damages.

A couple items of background:

- We are located in Washington State.

- We do not dispute many of these charges. This house was inhabited by us for 3 years during college. The condition of the house is undoubtedly worse than when we moved in, but the $14,000 charge is clearly imposed so our landlord can upgrade her rental.

A couple of questions:

1. Our landlord, upon renting the house to us, had installed some very cheap carpets. After three years, the carpets were clearly very dirty, and we made multiple attempts at cleaning them using a carpet cleaner, though these attempts were failures because the carpet was of such low quality that even the slightest dirt and stains could not possibly be removed. It was always clear that the carpets would have to be replaced by the landlord when we left, as this house was built as a cheap rental in general. I have read that tenants may not be required to pay for carpet replacement, but I wanted to ask around. We were surprised to see that the landlord charged us over $3,000 for this. We were also charged over $1500 to repaint. Are we obligated to pay for the landlord to replace the carpet and to repaint the walls?

2. Our landlord says our $2,000 dollar security deposit is forfeited because we broke our lease by subletting, which is true. Does she just get to keep the $2,000, with none of that money going toward the "damages"?

3. She has charged us for labor by her husband. Can she doe this?

4. She originally was charging $10,000. We took a couple weeks to come back with a formal response to her because we were looking at the receipts and we are busy. She did not give us a timeline, but today she came back with a $14,000 number (more damages that she graciously left out the first time...) and a letter from an attorney stating that she will take us to court AND be responsible for additional attorney fees that will accrue in court.

The problem is, I think we would win many of these battles in court and we would have to pay less. But it just doesn't seem worth it if we have to pay attorney fees too. Does anyone have any ideas about this? She seems to be blackmailing us into just paying her, and we don't know what to do.

Thank you very much for your time, it is greatly appreciated.

Answer:
 The landlord can charge for labor by her husband, but it must be for the market rate and labor hours that a particular job would usually take for someone licensed to do whatever he did (so, itemized). You really need a lawyer especially because $14,000 is far beyond the limit for small claims.Answer #2: 1. You do not usually have to pay for the installation of new carpets, just the reduced value of the old carpets. So if she paid $1000 for those carpets to last 10 years, and they only lasted 3, that'd be like...$700?

Were the walls dirty?

2. Does the lease say you forfeit the security deposit if you sub-let? Like, explicitly?

3. Probably not.

You really, really need a lawyer. And I am not one, but I think it would be worth it in this case. Even if the lawyer is $2000 and the expenses are knocked down to $5000, you'll have saved half the money.


Title: How to remove power-of-attorney and become power-of-attorney WITHOUT original document/copy of first power-of-attorney? [RI]

Question:
I have an elderly family member whose financial power of attorney is negligent, untrustworthy, and does not have the elderly family member's best interests. As a result, I'm interested in taking over as financial power of attorney, and my grandfather has agreed to this. However, I am quite young and new to real-world finances, and there are several complications:

1. I do not know where the original or copy of the document is. My grandfather is hard-of-hearing, poor sight, and bad memory, so it is unlikely I will find it.
2. The current power-of-attorney is unaware that I would like to make this change. I would like to keep it like this until the change is official because they possibly have access to the elderly family member's bank accounts and could wreak havoc.

How can I become financial power-of-attorney? What documents do I have to fill out, where do I have to go, any advice or information is helpful! So far, I know that I need to get the revoke power-of-attorney form and have it notarized, as well as a instill power of attorney form. But what do I do about the fact that the original document is possibly lost? Thank you so much!

TL;DR: I need to swap out an untrustworthy power-of-attorney for myself, but I don't have the original document.

Answer: If your family member is of sound mind he can void a POA without the other party being involved.


Title: Laws of the Butt

Question:
My girlfriend is 15 and I am 19 living in oregon. We have never had sexual contact in any way, besides kissing and holding hands. We were on a video call whilst she was in the shower and I saw her butt and back as she got into the shower. As a joke I took a screenshot and showed it to her, saying "nice butt lol" Her grandmother who did not know of me found it on her phone and now is trying to take me to court. What are the laws and/or state regulations around this and how would I be charged, if charged at all.

Only basing it upon the internet given of course

Answer: You could be charged with a variety of crimes. See a criminal defense attorney asap.Answer #2: You shouldn't be taking photos of your naked girlfriend.


Title: Missouri - ex girlfriend and I bought a house , now she wants her down payment back - And A Forced sale

Question: [deleted]

Answer: Your narrative is a little unclear.  Are you both listed on the deed and/or mortgage of the house?  Answer #2: It sounds like you can barely make the mortgage payment on your own? If so, selling seems wise


Title: [USA] Was harassed and threatened online and looking to get some legal help

Question:
I was harassed over the means of reddit & kik. I was constantly messaged by the same guy posting pictures of me (I am U18) and telling me he's coming for me. He recently told me he was part of some hacker group and that "he will see me again very shortly". Is there anything I can do about this? This guy is revealing my personal information (my age, Facebook and photos of me) publically and is sending me threats. Can I take legal action?

Throwaway of course.

Answer:
 If he's breaking the law, call the police. You can also report it to Reddit admin, and Kik admin (if they have a report mechanism).Answer #2: Age, Facebook profile address, and photos posted to Facebook are not private in the eyes of the law and it is perfectly legal for other people to post them (well, there are potential copyright claims you might make about the photos, but that's probably not relevant to your current situation).

If this person is making credible threats, however, you should report it to the police, who will investigate the issue.  Be aware, however, that if this person is not in your state or country there may not be much you can practically do because of the difficulties of tracking them down.


Title: [PA] After eviction, what happens if the tenant refuses to leave?

Question:
Using a throwaway because my properties are easy to identify based on my post history.

I've been a landlord for about five years now and I have my first eviction (unpaid rent) coming up. I have followed the law to the letter. All the required notices have been posted and/or served. I'm confident the judge is going to decide in my favor.

The tenant has allegedly made statements to neighbors that even if he loses, he won't leave. My lawyer said that after the judgement, I get the police involved. But when I spoke to my city's police department they told me that they do not get involved in evictions, even after a judgement has been issued, because they're a civil matter. I made sure to specifically ask "even after I take my tenant to court, he loses, the judge awards a judgement for possession to me, you won't evict the tenant", and she said "that's right".

My lawyer is unavailable today but I'm chatting with her tomorrow afternoon. In the meantime, can anyone shed some light on this? I always assumed the police take over after the court issues its judgement, but apparently I am mistaken.
Topic:
Landlord Tenant Housing

Answer:
 [my source](http://www.nolo.com/legal-encyclopedia/how-evictions-work-pennsylvania.html)

Based on what I could find you would need to go down to the court to get a writ of possession. And then a court offficer or a sherrif will evict the tenant. (So I would call your local sherrif's office to ask)


Title: Need some advice on what to do about being recorded in my own house. [Canada, B.C]

Question:
Long story short, myself and my mother rent the upstairs and another tenant rents the downstairs. The tenant downstairs decided to record me and my mother get into an argument to show to the landlord because she was upset about the yelling. I have the recording and proof that she did it. Is there anything that I can do about this? I've gone to the cops about it but they aren't able to do anything about it. So now I'm thinking of sueing is possible. I've never done anything like this before so that's why I'm asking for advice.

I've thought about going to lawyers but I don't have the extra cash at the moment to get one and I really don't know if it would be worth it for something like this. So now I'm thinking small claims court

Answer:
 In Canada it's generally illegal to intercept a private communication. You can legally record conversations to which you are a party. However, this doesn't mean the downstairs tenant broke the law. You and your mother yelling loudly enough that it could be heard throughout the house nullified any expectation of privacy, so the tenant had legal grounds to record. If the cops already told you there wasn't a case, you're beating at a dead horse now.

https://legaltree.ca/node/908

>So now I'm thinking of sueing is possible.

You can try suing her, but what are your damages? That your feelings got hurt because someone taped you acting inappropriately?


Title: Girlfriend being emotionally and physically abused by her mother, getting no help from her father, Police and CPS won't help her. -GA

Question:
we're 16 and 15.
Now, when we first got together, her Mom seemed to like me, but over time she started showing her true colors to my girlfriend. Constantly berating her, calling her names, and even getting physical to the point of hitting her upside the head. She did all of this for absolutely no reason. I've been trying to help her for a long time now, i managed to get her to stop self-harming, managed to help get her grades up, go to bed at reasonable times, etc. And according to her, she's been a lot happier, and she seems happier too.

ANYWAYS. We normally hang out on the weekends, due to school. And the day before she had told her Mom that she was going to hang out with me today, play some games, go swimming, my Mom even made us food, Her mom said okay, that's fine, I heard it, she heard it. We got her, did all of that, and even went to a concert at the Suwanee City Hall. Got her home around 9.

We dropped her off, I walked her up to the door, and then her Mom got out of the car in the driveway. Confronted us, and accused us of taking/kidnapping her daughter. Started once again, berating, and yelling at her because she didn't tell her where she was going, which she obviously did. And then the name calling comes out, cursing, Girlfriend is starting to cry and I don't like it. I walk back to my car really quickly and talk to my Mom, she's sitting in the car with the window rolled down watching all of this happen. I explain what was said, and asked if there was anything we could do. She didn't know. I run back over to both of them, her Mom is start to scream instead of yell, and when i say scream, i mean, the type that would hurt your ears from about 15-20 feet away. Called her a slut, said we were going to sell her as a sex slave(?) Girlfriend is now crying pretty hard, asking what she ever did to deserve this, her Mom laughs at her, telling her there's no reason to cry. I decide to step in, I take my girlfriend away from her Mother, and bring her over to the car to talk to mine. Asking if we should call her Dad to come get her, she was really scared, and she didn't want to be in that house. And i didn't feel comfortable with her being there either.
Her mom overhears us, walks over, starts yelling at me, telling me i'm a bad person, I've come into their family, and I've split them apart, when in reality, these were problems before I even came into the picture.
My Moms steps in to get her off of my back, she goes off on my Mom, saying that once again, we are bad people, interfering with family, going to do something bad to her, etc, etc.
I'm off to the side, trying to calm my girlfriend down a bit because she started hyper ventilating. I ask for her Dad's number, i start dialing it when..
The banshee screaming again, this time directed at my Mother, she's almost touching her face, she's waving her hands around, and then her fist comes by my Mom's face, and the only reason it didn't hit is because she moved back in time. She yells at me to call the cops, which I do.
I take Julia to the other side of the car, she's shaking, we get in and lock the doors while i talk to the operator, after a few minutes, two officers were sent out. While we were waiting for the cops to arrive, her Mom's attitude completely changed, she went crying to a neighbor who was apparently an ex-cop. He tries to get my girlfriend out of the car, repeatedly telling her to leave, get out, before finally asking if she was scared, if she wanted to go in. She told him yes and then no, he backed off til the cops arrived. Cop comes up to our window after talking to her, she's making up some story about how we tried to kidnap her, how we were taking her away. He asks what happened, and he didn't even let us get halfway through explaining when he just cut us off, turned to my girlfriend and asked the same questions the other guy did. She replies the same. And then she's told to get out, that she has no choice but to go back in, I've never seen my Mom cry for someone else before, but i did that night. She got out, answered more questions, her Mom is still lying, the cops seemed to believe her over 3 people saying otherwise.
The cop comes back to our window, says that the hitting over the face and such was "discipline" and that there's nothing wrong with it.
And we were told to leave. We left, her dad called my mom, and then me, I answered, he said he was pissed, threatened to get a restraining order, said that we tried to kidnap her.

NOW. A few more details, her Mom has hit her hard enough to leave marks, and even bleed a bit in the past.
Her parents are divorced, she lives with her Mom and two younger siblings.
Her Dad won't help her, he thinks that her mother is right, even though he's been sent to jail in the past by her for things he didn't even do. She also beat him.

I'm honestly lost in all of this.

---------------
Edit: No skype log

Answer: No one is reading your Skype log. Summarize what happened.