Title: Niece stole cash from me, feel like I'm running out of options.

Question:
So there's a lot of details going into this, so I'm going to try and summarize this as best as possible. My mom and I live together (we split the bills) and my niece who is currently 19 (from here on, I'll call her Mary) moved in last September, and has been paying $500 a month to rent a room/utilities. Early on in March, my older brother (We'll call him Brian) moved in after just getting out of jail on possession charges, in addition to him moving in, his girlfriend (We'll call her Samantha) came with him, also after getting out of jail on the same possession charges. Now, Mary has paid her rent on time without much of an issue. Her income was a mix of working a food service job, while also getting monthly checks from this foster care program she finished when she turned 18. As long as she worked a minimum of 20 hours a week.

The living situation between my mother and Mary has been hectic since she moved in. She had a newborn baby last October, and that child has been the main target of the fighting and general chaos in the household. Mary is a slob, to say the least - leaves dirty diapers in her room, month old bottles of rotting formula, trash, clothes, etc. It's disgusting, and part of the verbal rental agreement was to keep everything clean. Mary simply does not do that. The relationship between my mother and Mary has been getting more and more aggressive, lots of verbal fighting (nothing involving touching, though). Mary was served a 30-day eviction notice on the 12th of April.

Prior to this, Mary has been going around whenever she fights with my mom, to whoever will take her and the baby in. She's always back within a few days because literally no one puts up with her disgusting attitude and dirty lifestyle. Even the baby's father really wants nothing to do with her. Between jumping from house to house, Mary has not been working since mid-march, and has not been able to make that 20-hour minimum work week for her monthly check.

I get home from work on Wednesday the 24th, and my house is blowing up with arguing from my mother and Brian, something about finding $300 in the dryer. I don't know the full context of the situation. Eventually, this comes down to me checking to see if cash I had on hand had been taken - it was gone. $1500 worth of rent and general bill money. For the last year or so, I've been directly managing bills in the household, and any cash I get goes directly into this pencil box that I keep out of sight in my nightstand. I know it's sort of dumb to keep cash on hand, but I did it because it was easier to manage exactly where it went (And I pay certain bills in cash to keep from paying to pay fees to certain utility companies).

At this point, I'm having basically a panic attack. Never once have I had money of this amount taken from me, and I was basically in complete shock. At first, I didn't know who did it - I wanted to blame it on Brian and Sam, because they both have prior criminal records. The police were called, they showed up, talked to everyone (except for Mary, I didn't even really think to consider her at the time). The police left, saying there wasn't much to be done, short of more information arising or someone directly confessing.

The next day I was off of work. I got a call from my mom who was with Sam, who said that Mary did in fact take the cash. More information was coming from Sam, who claimed that Mary told her all of this the night before. I learned that:

\- The pencil box was stashed behind an A/C unit at a nearby church

\- Mary flashed around the money on either Snapchat/Instagram

\- She bought $300 worth of weed with the money

Now I took the time to go search the church, and I did in fact find the pencil box. Empty, of course. But I found it. I called the non-emergency number, gave them the new information. The police came by (same Deputy as before) and I told them the same new information. The deputy suspected Sam, thinking that all of the information was just too convenient. I did agree to a point, but I still suspected Mary overall. The deputy called in a woman officer to do a pat-down on Mary, and he asked if we could search her room - we agreed. Now, in my pencil box were a large assortment of coins. The coins weren't anything special, outside of the fact that my father was in possession of them when he passed. I kept them for the sentiment. Anyway, alongside the coins were paperclips. In my niece's room, I found a piggy bank, with a bunch of coins, and a few paperclips! I told the deputy about this, but overall he dismissed it. We found no cash, weed, or anything of that nature in the room - the deputy claimed he was more so looking for new apparel or items that were likely recently purchased with the money. He found a few small things, but not enough to make a case. He brought those items outside, questioned Mary about each item, and eventually had her take them back inside. During the search, the woman officer did the pat-down and found nothing. The deputy had his suspicions more towards Sam, thinking it was likely her, just because of the convenience of the information.

The deputy apologized, said again there was not enough to charge her with, and that he would try and setup polygraph tests for Mary, Brian and Sam. To which everyone agreed. He left right after. Mary left that night, and took her baby elsewhere. Nothing else happened with the situation until today (4/27).

I left the house, mid-morning around 10AM to pick up some of my mother's prescriptions. While I was gone, Mary came to the house with the baby (dressed in the same clothes they left with on 4/25). She showered, talked to Sam, and left. She told Sam she wanted to be gone before I arrived home, which ended up being the case. Now, after Mary left, she called Sam (this also happened while I was gone). And told her a few things:

\- That the cops were idiots and didn't search her well, the money was behind a pad she was wearing
\- That she bought a car with the money. A bright purple Mitsubishi Mirage (unknown year)

\- That she was planning on leaving town, and giving the baby to someone in a town north of us

\- That she sold the weed to help buy the car

Now, a few more notes - all of this information kind of won me over to Sam's side. She told me that before Mary left today, she took a couple personal items from her. It also told me how much of a moron Mary is, for divulging all of this information to Sam. I called the non-emergency number again with this new information. During this call, Sam came up with the idea to pull a fast one on Mary, and catch her driving (a quick note, Mary has never once had a drivers license. The car has dead tags, and is completely uninsured). This ended up working, actually. Sam claimed Mary needed to pick her up, that things were blowing up inside the house and she couldn't be there. Mary said she wouldn't come to the house, but she would pick her up the next neighborhood over. We gave the cops this information, and we would be given a call once anything happened.

She was pulled over. A street maybe 1000ft from our own. The officer who pulled her over called Sam, and let her know where she was, that he took the tags off the car, and that she needed to be picked up and the car driven to our home by a licensed driver. The baby was confirmed to still be with her. My mother and I left immediately, went to the street, and she was gone. No trace. She called Sam, and told her that she got three tickets (driving without a seatbelt, driving without a license, and driving with dead tags) and left the scene anyway. We called the dispatch office, and wanted to speak with the officer who pulled her over. We got ahold of him, let him know what happened. He said he knew, he drove by moments earlier and saw they were gone. I asked what was next, he replied that she was long gone, and would put it out to dispatch.

This is where we are now. Sam has been trying to get ahold of her since the last call about the tickets, but her phone has been going straight to voicemail ever since. I asked for Sam's permission to install a call-recorder on her phone (set to only record calls with Mary) and she agreed. I feel like Mary has gotten away with literally everything we've tried to pin her with, but nothing has happened. I've basically resigned to the fact that this money is never coming back to me, and I feel utterly hopeless overall. We're all just kind of in shambles watching this go down, it feels like some kind of disaster movie with no end.

So, Reddit, what can I do? Is there anything I can do? I'm trying to get a voice confession about taking the money, or something in that regard. I'm going to try my best to set up some sort of camera at our home just in case she comes back. Outside of this, am I just shit out of luck?

Answer: What is your goal here? The criminal charge won't get you the money back. That's likely gone.


Title: (CA) I have every reason to believe I have fallen victim to a fraud bond scheme.

Question:
My father has been incarcerated for a bit over 3 years and is due for release in 2018. Back in July, he heard about a plan that would get him out by the end of the year. This plan was secret and many did not believe in it. Rumors were said that the ones who followed through on it had success. He explained it to me the way they explained it to him, sweet sweet candy to the ears. I located the company doing the plans and followed through their steps. We had to buy a package that includes all documents and paperwork, around $500 spent. Over the course of these 4 months, we followed the steps to the plan and got to the point of creating a bank account. Everything went by so smooth, until we received a letter by an inmate friend of my dad. He explained that the plan was a fraud. Quickly, I did the research, and I found on the FBI website a list of online schemes to be aware of. I found the one called "Redemption / Strawman / Bond Fraud" and word for word matches exactly what we were doing. Oh man oh man.

I don't know what to do at this point, the fraud company has all my info and all paperwork with my signatures. Is there any way I could get myself out of this before the fraud documents become executed and we get ourselves into serious legal trouble? This is definitely not good.

TLDR; My father is incarcerated, heard a too good to be true plan to get him out early, followed through on it, we discover it's a fraud scheme. The fraud company has all our signatures and documents to execute fraud in our names.

Answer:
 >heard a too good to be true plan to get him out early,

Was this a plan to break him out...?

If there wasn't anything obviously illegal about the scheme, I'd go ahead and contact the police. Also, talk to your bank if you're worried about losing more money.


Title: [VA/WI] My cousin stole an irreplaceable instrument from me and will not make me whole. What are my legal options?

Question:
Hi LA, my situation is not the most urgent or complex but I'd still love to get some advice on how to proceed.

Tl;dr, a cousin sold my instrument without my permission and has refused numerous attempts to reimburse me. If I ask him one last time for reimbursement and inform him if he doesn't reimburse me I'll be going to the police, is that extortion? Are there any other options for me?

I live in Virginia, and my cousin who stole from me lives in Wisconsin.

The long version - one parent's side of the family is pretty screwed up. My uncle George (names changed of course) has lived a long life full of doing shitty things. A few years ago he was indicted of a sex crime and spent a few months in jail, but it does not seem to have changed him at all. (This is an important factor in my decision-making.) He is emotionally and physically abusive, so I have a lot of sympathy for his kids. One of his kids, Tim, is 17. A few years ago he asked if he could borrow an instrument I kept at our mutual grandparent's house. I said yes on the condition that he would give it back to me when I next visited and he said yes. (Unfortunately I don't have record of this, since I deactivated my Facebook after - and also didn't think this would turn out this way.) The first time I visited after he borrowed the instrument, I let him know in advance that we were coming and we'd like it back, but he didn't give it back. The second time I visited was this past September. I gave him advance notice that I'd like it back. He gave my parent a different instrument that was clearly not mine for me to bring home, before leaving for school for the day. Another family member informed me that Tim's mother knew Tim had sold the instrument to a friend. I left the "fake" instrument in his house with a letter politely telling him I knew the instrument he gave me was not mine, that he had sold mine, and to please Venmo or PayPal me $200 to go towards purchasing a new instrument. This was at the end of September. I do have pictures of the note and instrument in their house.

The instrument in question was purchased across the world, in an entirely different country, back in 2010. It was a starter instrument and $200 is about what it will cost to buy a comparable starter in today's market. Same brand and features. Much of the value of my instrument was sentimental, and it's irreplaceable, but the reimbursement will at least make me whole financially and allow me to replace it with a new one.

Here's the issue - Tim is refusing to pay. He was incredibly hostile and offensive when I reached out to him in early October to touch base on reimbursement. For a while he tried to tell me he would secure the original instrument for me and ship it to me if it meant he didn't have to pay the $200, but that conversation was back in October. He stopped responding to me and giving me updates on the status of returning the original instrument in November. I have all of this in writing via Facebook Messenger, including the phrase "I'm sorry I sold your [instrument]" and other admissions of guilt. My parent related to his father will not get involved because of father's toxicity.

Financially, not being reimbursed is not the end of the world. I am fortunate that $200 is something I can swing to replace the instrument. However, I shouldn't have to - my cousin stole from me by selling my possession without my knowledge or consent and pocketing the cash, and has admitted guilt in writing. More importantly, I do love and care for my cousin, and he has watched his dad do immoral and illegal things for years with minor consequences. I want him to have to face some kind of consequence for stealing, hopefully just reimbursing me. I really, genuinely hope it will deter him from going down a path of stealing. (He lives with his parents, works after school, and makes good money doing so - he can afford it, he just doesn't want to. He has an instrument worth ~$2,000 that money from selling mine could have gone to!!) I feel my last option at this time is to file a stolen item report with his local police department and have things progress from there.

I really don't want to involve the police if I don't have to. I have been trying to avoid it but he's no longer responsive and he never made it right. So here's my main question: if I tell him (and cc his mom) that I'm filing a police report tomorrow if he doesn't reimburse me, is that technically extortion? I really want to solve this without police involvement and have made numerous, good faith attempts to do so. I have been trying to treat him as an adult, as he wants to be treated, but I think he doesn't take me or the situation seriously and therefore it would take a more legitimate authority like the police for him to make things right. Additionally, I'm the victim of the crime, and I am not asking him for more money than it would take to replace the instrument. If informing him beforehand would be illegal, do I just file the police report tomorrow and let the chips fall where they may?

A minor question would be: is there anything else I can do legally beyond filing a report with the police? I lurk regularly and often see people suggest a lawyer writes the offender a letter - but that could cost as much as my reimbursement.

I should add that though I do love my cousin and want the best for him, I don't care if the final legal action I take pisses him off/could be considered a "relationship-ender". The disrespect he's shown me in selling my instrument, concealing the sale from me, and the awful things he's said to me were "relationship-enders" anyway.

Thanks in advance! Think I got all the details.

Answer:
 >A minor question would be: is there anything else I can do legally beyond filing a report with the police?

You can sue him, but going for criminal restitution is a better idea because it guarantees the money. It would make paying you part of his criminal sentence. The police need to be involved at this point.Answer #2: > It was a starter instrument and $200 is about what it will cost to buy a comparable starter in today's market. Same brand and features.

Is $200 what it would cost to buy a new replacement instrument, or a used replacement instrument?  You're not entitled to the money for a new replacement, only what it would cost for a similar, 8 year old, replacement instrument.


Title: Being investigated by DMV. What can they do to me/what are my rights? [CA]

Question:
Hi /r/legaladvice. I made a lot of bad decisions in my not-so-distant youth and they're coming back to haunt me. I could really use some counsel.
At the beginning of 2013 I was seriously in need of quick cash. A "friend" referred me to a car dealership. This dealership was in the business of exporting high-end luxury vehicles to China, and they needed straw buyers to purchase their cars for them. Some relevant articles: [1](http://www.autonews.com/article/20140721/LEGALFILE/307219975/selling-vehicles-for-export-angers-automakers-but-is-it-illegal) [2](https://www.nhbar.org/publications/display-news-issue.asp?id=6893)  Basically I went into a dealership and bought the car in full (with a cashier's check), signed all the paperwork, and brought all relevant paperwork back to the dealership along with a transfer of ownership document. Then I'd be paid $300 and that would conclude the transaction. The money was easy and much needed at the time. I probably did this 8-10 times.
I knew it was shady, but at the time I had bigger impending issues.
Two days ago a DMV investigator came to my door,hoping to meet me. I wasn't home at the time but he left a contact card with my roommate. I contacted the investigator who said he wanted to meet with me at the DMV and ask me about some cars I bought.

My questions:
* Does this DMV investigator have anything he can charge/sue/fine me with?
* Am I legally obligated to meet with him?
* Have I actually broken any laws?
The dealerships required I sign a document saying I would not export the vehicles within the next two years. However, ownership of the cars were transferred to a third party (the exporting dealership) and were never registered under my name. All bills of sale and transfer documentation can be provided.
So, how screwed am I?

Answer: At this point I would invoke my right to remain silent. I would consult with a criminal defense lawyer for legal advice about my very serious legal situation.


Title: I just scraped the paint off another car with my car

Question: So I today while I was diving I made a really tight turn that could’ve been avoided and scraped the paint of the other persons car (that was parked) with mine, it’s noticeable  but it isn’t super big, the person who owns the car is super rude and will probably take action, I’m freaking out because I don’t what will happen so what’s the worse they can do to me? *edit* and how what can I do? I live in California by the way

Answer: Contact your insurance and let them take care of this. You are liable for the damage to the other persons car, so you can be sued for the cost of a reasonable repair.


Title: [TX] My High School took away a credit I earned 2 years ago.

Question:
So my Sophomore year I took Computer Science in order to get a Math credit. At the end of my Junior year my school decided to no longer count Computer Science as a Math credit, and this applies to even those who had already earned their Math credit. The school is refusing to let me take online classes to make up for it. Is there anything I can do?

Update: Talked to my counselor, she said the teacher wasn't qualified to teach Math so it no longer could count as a Math credit. Looking into this now.

Answer:
 I would try talking to a school counselor. There are typically different "degree plans" based off of when you start and each may differ slightly. If that's the case in your district then you theoretically you need to follow that old plan which would include CS as the math credit, as stated in the plan.Answer #2: Although Computer Science is a field of math, I doubt much math was involved at the grade 10 level. It honestly should never have counted as a replacement for a regular math credit.

Presumably you are being told to take a regular, offline math course? Is there a good reason you can't do that?Answer #3: It's probably not the school making that decision, but the district or possibly the state. Your school likely has very little control over what can count as a math credit and what can't. Answer #4: Talk to your guidance counselor and also have your parents take this up with the school board or superintendent.


Title: Why don't federal workers file a class action law suit against the government for not paying them?

Question:
 Since workers are having financial loss, having to go in debt and paying interest on loans.

Not even considering that the time they spent with low/no money can be very disruptive, many choosing to go to work without eating to save money or other stuff.

Considering the Employer/Employee dynamic, if it weren't the government but a private entity would there be case? If so, where in the law does that dynamic change when it is the government?

Answer: They have.  According to this article, there have been six suits filed: https://www.law.com/nationallawjournal/2019/01/22/something-has-to-break-lawyer-in-federal-workers-shutdown-suit-says/Answer #2: Even if they win the lawsuit, they'd still need Congress to pass a budget to get paid.


Title: Got swindled by bathroom attendant

Question: I was at a nightclub and went to the bathroom to do what men do. after i took care of my business i noticed my shoe was not tied fully i went down to untie, remove, and retie my shoe and a bathroom attendant claimed I was doing coke. I am I studying to be a cop I have given up that life a long time ago. when I told the attendant he is wrong and I didn’t do that he looked at me and said if u leave me a tip i’ll look the other way. I left the bathroom and within minutes I heard him yell something to his buddy in Spanish and next thing i know I was kicked out. I was at the event for 10 min max and was with a group of 4 others. my question is can anything be done here or am I just shit outa luck

Answer:
 The night club has the authority to remove you for any reason, including suspicion of drug use. There is nothing you can do. Answer #2: I don't see any legal recourse you have (assuming USA).

Answer #3: You can call and talk to management about the incident. Unfortunately, you don't have a lot of proof of the encounter, but the manager may give you some recourse. Answer #4: Just write a yelp review and forget it. Nothing you can do. Answer #5: Vegas swindles people all the time, and despite its reputation drugs are strict and places are happy to hand over a few travellers who think it's a free for all... even more than other places police/security/mgmt all back each other up and dont care.  Every weekend another bunch of out of towners come in with money to spend.

Complain to mgmt, but drais isn't going to care unless they're getting tons of complaints.


Title: I'm the safety officer for a smell welding company (25-35 employees) and after a CALOSHA visit we were given a "serious citation" for not wearing a forklift seatbelt what are options-California

Question:
Hi there, so we had an inspector come out to do an air test and while he was there he saw our forklift driver operating the lift without a seatbelt. We just got a letter saying they intend to give us a "serious citation" for the seatbelt that potentially has a fine of 25,000 dollars.

Obviously my bosses are pissed

We have standard "wear your seatbelt" signange near the forklift and all employees who are allowed to drive the lift have passed a certification course.

Also documentation on their website says they issue the "serious" citation when "a substantial probability that death or serious physical harm could result from a violation."

They have an area to respond (and the form letter encourages us to do so)  and I'm here to ask for advice on how to respond. Thanks!

California

Answer:
 a) This is the kind of thing you should know how to do if you're a safety officer in an industrial setting.

b) Given that you don't know, it's time to hire a lawyer to help.  This isn't "Copy & paste it from a website" territory.Answer #2: You don't really have a defense, as the inspector saw the violation. The signage doesn't mean anything if it isn't enforced, and it sounds like enforcement of safety procedure is your job.

Would you have made him put on a seatbelt if they weren't there?

The only potential defense for the company that I can see would be to fire the operator and/or you and state that they're holding additional training seminars to drill home the need for safety in the use of forklifts.


Title: Did Piper Chapman commit perjury? (Litchfield NY/Chicago Il)

Question:
From Netflix series Orange is The New Black,

A woman (Piper) and her ex-girlfriend (Alex) are subpoenaed to testify against the ex-girlfriends former boss, a drug-lord. Alex insists that if they testify, the drug-lord will have them killed. On the stand, Piper claims that she doesn't recall meeting the drug-lord, she was only their to be with Alex, and everything else was back ground noise.

Alex has a change of heart and spills everything that happened (we aren't told specifically what she says). The drug lord's case is thrown due to physical evidence being mishandled. Did Piper commit perjury?

Answer: Well, we obviously know she did.  We have access to Piper's flashbacks, and know that she *does* in fact recall meeting the boss.  Thus, if she says she doesn't . . . then she has committed perjury.


Title: [FL] Disabled Parent with SSI only income paying child support

Question:
Short Version:

The sister of a friend of mine (~30) gets SSI benefits as her only source of income due to a progressive disability. Her monthly benefit is ~$800 and she pays ~$400 of that in child support. It includes current and owed child support. She was ordered to pay the child support before the disability. At this point, she is unable to support herself in any meaningful way and is not sustainable.
Are there any legal avenues that might lead to a better situation for her?

Long Version:

Her sister got pregnant with her first child ~15 years ago. The relationship doesn't last long and they split (Not married). Not long after she meets another guy and they get married. They have their first child within a few years. Turns out the husband is physically abusive and rapes her frequently. She tries to leave him several times, but ends up going back. Eventually they have 3 more children none of which were planned and have been implied to be a result of rape. After about a decade of abuse she reports him to the police after a particularity brutal beating. Charges are pressed and he was convicted of felony battery. For this betrayal he decides to divorce her (she apparently wasn't going to).

At some point in the last 15 years she was ordered to pay child support for child #1. She didn't work and her husband didn't make very much money. She didn't pay the child support and had her license suspended several times. She eventually starts to pay the current and back child support. (She speaks with this child, but hasn't seen her in several years because she lives several states away)

Sometime in this 10 year span she was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis. The disease progresses to the point where she is granted SSI benefits because she cannot work. However, now she is divorced and paying half of her income in child support for 1 of her 5 children. She then loses custody of her 4 children because she cannot provide stable living conditions for them. They now live with the father (felon) and his mother.

Are there any legal avenues that might lead to a better situation for her?

Answer: Has she requested a revision of her child support? I'd start there, frankly.


Title: PA - Accidentally forgetting LTCF.

Question:
Hi all,

I live in PA and I was wondering if anybody has experienced this or might know the procedure if one were to accidentally leave their LTCF at home.

I am very careful to always make sure I have mine on me if I conceal carry, but in the unlikely event I leave my permit at home and take my gun, what are the likely consequences.  How likely would a police officer accept an image on my phone?

I haven't been able to find an answer for any of these questions elsewhere.  I hope you guys can help me.

Thanks

Answer:
 I'm going to start off hostile, before getting to the legal advice.  If you can't remember to carry a piece of paper in your wallet, you aren't responsible enough to own or operate any firearm.  Seriously.  If this is remotely a real concern, do everyone a favor and sell your gun and go take a bunch of safety courses until you can operate it safely and responsibly

The likely consequence is getting arrested and charged with a felony and having your gun seized as evidence.  The law says you must possess a valid concealed carry permit, I don't have access to case law that interprets "possess", so I don't know if it means "have one in general" or "in your possession at the same time you possess the gun" offhand.  Not having it on you is more than enough to charge you with the crime.

If "possess" only requires you to be licensed, as opposed to carrying a copy, then you've got a good defense to the charge.  But that'll be an expensive and long process.

There's basically no chance they'll accept a photo of a license.  In the same way they won't accept a photo of your drivers' license


Title: [Meta] I guess there’s no way LA can have a sidebar FAQ?

Question:
I know questions vary widely by location, but a couple of things that come to mind:

1) Yes, the Tinder/Kik/Whatever underage girl scam is a scam.

1a) No, really, it’s a scam.

2) No, you can’t force your parents to evict your annoying sibling.

3) No, there’s no legal “solution” for your online friend who has verbally abusive parents.

4) Yes, kids, your parents can take away your phone.

5) “What does the lease say?”

6) A hostile work environment doesn’t mean what you think it means.

7) No, a typo doesn’t invalidate your traffic ticket.

8) No, you didn’t “pass” your field sobriety test.

Etc.

Answer:
 1) They wouldn't check the sidebar before posting

2) Even if they did, they would still think they are unique snowflakes with extenuating circumstances that make the standard wisdom totally inapplicable.

3) Those softballs are good practice for 1Ls. ;)Answer #2: Lots of those are in the wiki, which is linked to the sidebar.

But we can't do individual links, I don't think.


Title: Do I have a case for workplace discrimination? (WA)

Question:
I was disciplined at my job recently and put on a 3 month probationary period for what my supervisor said was a code violation. I have the backing of my professional society that I did not violate the code.

2 weeks after this incident I found out 2 of my coworkers did something very similar to what I did. I know this because one of my coworkers had a private conversation and showed me the discipline they received and it was only an email pretty much saying "don't do that".

It just so happens I am the only non white female. Everyone else at my job out of about 20 people is white and male. The customers we serve are majority non white. I have had asked for more responsibilities to grow in my role in the past but I've been passed up by people with the exact same credentials as me who started employment the same year. All 6 recent hires were white and male.

Do I have a case for workplace discrimination because I am being disciplined differently for similar circumstances? There hasn't been anything blatantly said about me being female and non-white but I don't know why I'm being treated differently and I have had no response from my manager or HR.

Answer:
 Unfortunately, you are unlikely to be able to make a case off of a single incident. And if you are the only non-white person, you won't be able to show that this is something systemic and happening to other non-white people at your job.

Not saying that they *aren't* discriminating against you because of race, but based on what you have, you don't likely have enough to make a compelling case in court.


Title: [X-Post from /r/relationships] I [29F] may be arrested tomorrow for not enforcing a custody arrangement between my hospitalized SMIL [44F] and my abusive FIL [62 MTF]

Question:
*I'm posting this here on advice from someone in /r/relationships.*

On Friday, my father-in-law will be stopping by for her first visitation (overnight) as agreed to in the temporary divorce agreement between my father-in-law and her soon to be ex-wife. This is visitation for a 14 year old female.

On Monday, my stepmother-in-law attempted suicide and has subsequently been hospitalized. The 14 year old has elected (upon the request of the mother) to remain with my husband (her biological half brother) and I until she is released (tentatively next week).

We have confirmed with the lawyer representing my stepmother-in-law that the minor can choose the temporary guardian (no paperwork necessary) and that the minor can refuse visitation if she wishes (so long as no one has encouraged or influenced her decision).

I should note here that the father-in-law has a history of violence and their temporary divorce agreement has a protection order built in that requires the presence of a sheriff in order to collect the minor for visitation.

On Wednesday, the father-in-law showed up to take the minor without the sheriff escort and prior to her assigned visitation. The father-in-law has also violated the temporary divorce agreement by showing up at the hospital to harass (and threaten family members).

The minor does not want to go. She has anxiety attacks at the thought of going. She's afraid of her father and has said she isn't ready to see her father after everything that has happened.

Our attorney said that the 14 year old can refuse visitation but the sheriff said we could be arrested for not enforcing visitation.

Our questions: what are our legal obligations in this situation? Could we get arrested and how do we prepare for that?

Edit: removed the sordid details, condensed the points.
Topic:
Custody Divorce and Family

Answer:
 TL;DR:  Parenting order gives father visitation.  14 year old child does not want to see father.  Mother is temporarily in a mental hospital.  Does adult sibling have to allow visitation pursuant to the order?  Will adult sibling be arrested/charged if he refuses to allow visitation?

Edit:  OP, I strongly suggest you copy and paste the above TL;DR to the TOP of your post.  You have some interesting legal issues here, but your post is too much for most people to wade through.Answer #2: Holy cow. That reads like a telenovela, only less realistic. And longer.

If you are concerned you might be arrested, contact a lawyer you can have on standby. And try to extricate yourselves from this circus at the earliest opportunity.Answer #3:
>Now, we've been reassured by Linda's attorney that this is false. The laws in our state are pretty clear and that the fourteen year old cannot be forced into visitation and that the parents (or temporary guardians) wouldn't be held legally responsible.

http://law.onecle.com/georgia/16/16-5-45.html

I strongly suggest that you contact your attorney immediately and discuss this statute.  In addition, what is your legal basis for stating that you are a temporary guardian?  Do you have anything in writing from the mother?

Frankly, I'm not sure that the father even has to return the child at the end of visitation, when the mother is institutionalized and flatly unable to care for the child.  The custody order gives you no rights and I'm not sure at all that you can enforce it.  I definitely would not suggest refusing the father's visitation.


Title: Preparing for Immigration Marriage Interview (Texas, USA)

Question:
My Husband and I (We're both male, its a same sex marriage if that has any relevancy, I figured it wouldn't after 2 years) have been together for a short time but I cannot stress enough how strongly and deeply we feel for each other. We met in the late spring/early summer and before long we were married.

He's currently here on a B2 Visa from Colombia that expires in early November. We're in the final steps of finishing and filing the paperwork (The I-130/ I-485 and all the subsequent forms that included) (EDIT: Forgot to clarify, we are appealing for adjustment of status from B2 Visa to Permanent Resident) I have a few questions that worry me and would love some peace of mind or at least honesty so I can prepare and adjust.

1. What counts as proof of living together besides him notifying the USCIS online of his address change? Im still a college student so I live in student style apartments, while I have the leasing manager on record saying they don't mind me having "visitors" as often as I'd like, I cant add my husband to my lease because he doesn't have a social security card. We planned to sublease my current 2 bedroom apartment and move into a new one apartment the second his work permission goes through and they assign him a SSN. We have letters from friends and it's on USCIS that he moved in with me, just not sure how concrete of a paper trail we need.

2. Will our short, rapid relationship seem suspicious because of how fast it all happened? What can we do to counteract that if so?

3. His English isn't perfect (he studied in high school and college) and my Spanish is abysmal, but through patience, and sometimes Google Translate we make it work. Is that a good enough explanation on how we communicate? It's the genuine truth, he's spent so much time with me my cadence and speech pattern is a bit easier to understand than other English speakers. Im worried whoever our Agent is will be suspicious of that.

4. When can we expect phone calls or emails from USCIS once we file the paperwork? What's the next step after papers?

5. I've seen comments about "joining assets" like banks. He currently can't work because his B2 Visa but is applying for the work permission. Would that basically mean just signing him onto my bank account?

6. What happens if the unthinkable happens and they deny our appeal of adjustment? Is that it? Is there opportunity to appeal the denial or re-apply in x many of years? I'd like not to reach this point but I don't want to give up after one No either.

7. We can't really afford a lawyer (I work a basic retail job after class to pay my bills and he's financially supported by family over seas), how badly will we fair without one during the rest of this process? We plan to go to a discount legal council with the YMCA they offer to have them look over all of our forms before we file.

I love my husband dearly and I'm terrified of it all being swept away by a simple no from someone

Answer: B2 expiring is a red herring. What matters is the entry date and the I-94.


Title: Wisconsin - Is it legal to throw out a minor if they aren't your kid?

Question:
His mom ( my aunt) dropped him off last year and later died of a drug overdose.

I am tired of his bad behavior and his friends I want him out. I am sick of people making excuses for him. He is 15 and can be legally emancipated. How can I sign him off on that and get him out?

Answer: You can't just throw a 15 year old out on the street. Talk to CPS if you really want him out. Answer #2: Not too many 15 yrs olds can obtain emancipation even when they want it. In fact, the facts you present would preclude it.Answer #3: Your relationship to the child matters quite a bit.  If you're his legal guardian, you're responsible for him.  And you can't forcibly emancipate a child.  If you're not his guardian, return him to his guardian.  Answer #4: Are you his legal guardian? Either way, call CPS and tell them you can't care for the kid and that he needs to go into the foster system.Answer #5: Who are you in this? Are you a cousin (your aunt's kid) and it's your parent(s) that is/are his guardian now? Or are you the guardian?


Title: (IL) 13 and 14 year old doing drugs and threatening their dad

Question: My mom’s boyfriend is a great guy but his teen kids (one 13M and 14F) are terrible. They don’t respect their dad whatsoever: they curse at him, threaten to call the police, they do drugs behind his back, etc. The boyfriend’s social worker called what they are going through as a phase. Both kids mainly smoke weed and if their dad does anything to them they would threaten to call the cops or immigration on him. What are things that he can do for a situation like this?

Answer: Immigration? More info Answer #2: Is the boyfriend committing any crimes for which his children can actually report him for? If not, that's a pretty empty threat.


Title: Need advice on a 2013 Collections notice I received in the mail in 2018 from a private towing company. It says I owed them $75 for NO PERMIT DISPLAYED. I paid for a permit and never received a ticket during that time (Denver, CO)

Question:
DENVER,CO So basically a few weeks ago I received a letter saying that I had a parking notice for NO PERMIT DISPLAYED from a previous address from 2013. They are saying they left a notice on my car but have no proof showing they did other than a "validation of debt" pdf which they clearly drafted right before sending it over to me vial email. I never received any such parking notice the entire time I lived there. The building I was living in did have a private lot but I was paying for a permit to park there and have proof I was. I called the leasing office and they said that I had no outstanding debt with them but I'd have to contact the towing company which happens to be working with the law office that contacted me. I showed them (the law firm/towing company) evidence that I had a spot at the time and I had no notice out through the building I lived in. They sent me no proof other then their "word" that an attendant in the lot put out a notice. They (law firm/towing company) said if I didn't pay they would send out a towing company to put a boot or tow my car. While I have a different car I have the same license plate # and am afraid I am going to get booted or towed even though I did nothing wrong and they have no evidence.
Firstly,
Where can this towing company legally come and tow my car?
What are my legal rights in this case and how can they just state I did something and boot my car without evidence?
Also will this affect my credit if I don't pay them?
 I am at a loss for what to do or who to contact since the law office and towing company refuse to answer any of my emails or calls. Any help is greatly appreciated.

UPDATE:
In /r/Denver I did receive this legal advice from /r/rijnzael
In the City and County of Denver, the owners of a private lot cannot tow you unless you are parked on their property. If you park in another private lot or on the public street, they cannot impound your car. The city itself will also not help a private lot enforce the supposed debt. Unless you pay, their only option is to sue you or report to your credit. You really shouldn't discuss this with them any further. Perhaps consider drafting a Fair Debt Collection Practices Act validation letter, which requires them to prove the debt is valid and yours. But honestly, the debt might not be be reportable on your credit, and they've failed to furnish any proof, so you could probably ignore them. YMMV, IANAL.

UPDATE #2: I just received this from the collectors...
Not displaying the parking permit and following the correct parking procedures has nothing to do with your lease. It is a seperate issue. as I stated before, the notice is valid. I am willing to lower this to $50.00 to close.
Let me knwo if you'd like to take the settlement offer.

Answer:
 Like all such:  Demand proof you owe the debt.  When they fail to provide sufficient proof tell them to sod off.

"Their word" is not proof.

They certainly have no right to boot or tow your car currently.  If they do, call the cops and a lawyer.Answer #2: Insisting their claim is valid (even a second time) does not make it so absent satisfactory evidence, which it is fairly apparent they do not have. Non-photographic records regarding what someone working for the lot claimed to see (or not see) four years ago would most likely not do well in front of a judge when you have a copy of a lease that says you had a permit.

I would ignore this person. They have virtually no evidence and no right to seize your property and can do essentially nothing to you other than sue, which will probably not favor them. The collector knows this, by the way.


Title: Would I get into any legal trouble in Russia for this?

Question:
I tried to lost this in reddit Russia but I can't because people down voted me so bad. I'm hoping someone here knows about Russian police

I live in America, but they are a girl in St Petersburg that works as a web cam model that I am a huge fan of, and kinda in love with her. I spend a lot of time with her online. She works in a house with other web cam girls, its not her home, its like a company that hires girls. After hours of searching for webcam jobs in st petersburg I found where she works.

I go on vacation in December and I was going to fly there and meet her. She post her schedule on her fan page. So I was just going to get a cab to go to the house about a hour before she starts work and wait for her outside. We do cam 2 cam a lot so she knows what I look like. I wouldn't tell her im coming, it would be a surprise

But this is no where near a tourist destination and I don't speak any russian, so I will stand out big time. And wont have a car so I won't be able to leave quickly. Would russian police ask me what I am doing? I would be scared to get arrested in another country, i dont know their laws

Answer:
 Dude, she's a cam girl. She's getting paid to act like she cares about you.  She likely doesn't give two shits about you and if you show up all creepy like and stalk her, there's a good chance you'll end up in jail. You don't want to be thrown in jail in a foreign country. Answer #2: This is by far one of the most unique and elaborate ways I've ever seen for somebody to commit suicide

Yes you could end up in trouble with the Russian police - but they're not number 1 on the list of people who are going to fuck you up if you try to pull a stunt like this.


Title: My state (Florida) won't let me run for public office.

Question:
Some background, I turn 18 the day before the general election, I am pre registered to vote and very much plan on voting on November 8th. So when I considered running for the position of Special District Trustee, where the only qualification requirement is to be a legal voter in Hillsborough County, I was ecstatic. I've always wanted to work in government, and this seemed like the most reasonable first step.

I emailed/called our Supervisor of Elections multiple times over discussing the legality of me being eligible to run, and at first it seemed like I wouldn't be able to get myself on the ballot due to legal forms regarding campaign funds would need to be signed by some time in June, when I'd still be 17. So from that, I assumed I'd be able to run a write-in campaign seeing how when voters will be at the ballot place on Election Day, I'd be of legal age. Yet when I went to meet the Supervisor in person to discuss this with him he told me that Florida state law states that all candidates must be electors (18 years old) by the date listed by the forms required, write in or otherwise.

How is this at all fair in any way? I'll be an eligible voter the day of the election itself, I'll be just as much a legal adult as anyone else by that point, why can't I be allowed to run as well? Should this be something I take to court?

Tldr; If I'm eligible to vote, why am I not eligible to run for a position where the only requirement is to be eligible to vote?

Answer:
 > How is this at all fair in any way?

It's fair because it applies equally to everybody. If the law actually says you need to be 18 by the date on the forms, then you have to be 18 by the date on the forms. It's also fair because you are *still* able to run, you just have to wait until the next election.Answer #2: Welcome to politics, where the rules are made up and the points only matter sometimes.


Title: Boyfriend was stealing Iphones from his job...

Question: [deleted]

Answer:
 He doesn't need a lawyer immediately, but if the Police come by and start asking questions, he needs to say nothing other than, i'm not speaking to you. At that point, he needs to get a lawyer.

If he is fired, he looks for another Job. Barring a Union or Contract, he can be fired for anything, so long as it is not for being a member of a protected class, or other 'protected activity'


Title: Missouri: Paid double on utility bill for 4 yrs

Question:
I have lived in a rented home for 4 years. I recently found that I have been paying for the trash and sewer  on two addresses. Apparently an empty cabinet shop behind me shares my water meter. No where on any bill, water or trash, shows that the bill is for two addresses. I only learned of it because I finally came across a document online showing residential accounts are charged half of what I've been paying.
My landlord claims the shop hasn't had water service for years.
Can I ever get my money back? This is 4 years of double payment, with nothing ever showing I was paying for two addresses. My landlord is looking into it supposedly and the city has told me it needs its own meter in order to stop the charges. Is that true?

Any advice would be welcome. Thank you.

Answer:
 Is there actually no water at the other address? You should get something back if you overpaid, but if they have no service you may not actually be paying anything extra.Answer #2: Four years for trash is like $20 x 12 x 4 for $960, and that's only one of your bills. You've got to figure out who owns that property through government records so you can add legitimacy to your claims to the utilities.

How sure are you that you're paying double? Based on your limited info, there's a good chance you're jumping to conclusions based on the shared water meter and no bill evidence. Remember this is the Show Me State.

Call the trash company, get an account quote, and get the addresses associated with the account.

What county are you in?


Title: Do a person's HIPAA rights apply after death?

Question: I was having a conversation with someone and we started talking about the three people killed in the attack in the planned parenthood building in colorado, and how only one's name has been released (the cop.)  I was thinking - is it possible that the other 2 names haven't been released because they were patients at the facility and are therefore subject to HIPAA protections?  Does HIPAA apply even after death?  of course, I'm not saying this is the case of what has actually happened, just as a hypothetical scenario.

Answer:
 [yes](http://www.hhs.gov/ocr/privacy/hipaa/understanding/coveredentities/decedents.html), for 50 years after death, although an authorized person can waive those rights on the decedent's behalf.

as far as the Colorado situation goes, the most likely reason that the names of the victims have not yet been released is because authorities may have had some issues notifying relatives due to the holiday weekend.


Title: (Canada) How can I sue someone who pulled weeds from my business property

Question: I caught someone from the business next door pulling weed from a strip of land on my property without MY PERMISSION because it was affecting their property. This has been a constant issue. There was no sorry or anything. Just a "to make it look nice for them". I have also talked to someone in charge because the boss was not around and when I asked for compensation for the damage to my property, the guy laughed and asked "$2 or $3?". I asked for $300 and told them I have taken pictures of what they have done. But the guy wants me to contact the boss instead. So I have called the boss and told him what happened and all he said we can speak in person when he is back to the office.

Answer:
 It's trespassing. I don't know that you'd be able to claim any damages for having weeds removed though. There's not really any value there. On a side note, if it's affecting their property, why aren't you maintaining it? This just sounds super petty. Answer #2: What's your justification for $300 in damages?  If that's how much it costs to put the weeds back, then you could get that.  Realistically, no.

Instead of being petty, why not work it out diplomatically with the people next door?


Title: I want to report a massage parlor for sex trafficking, but I got a "massage" there.

Question: I'm in NYC. Yes I'm fucked up. I realize I dont even know if the women there are there on purpose. The woman who runs it has my number in her phone cause I called it. If I report them, is there a chance I'll get in trouble?

Answer: Unless you know for sure that they are actually trafficked, please don't report them.  If they are there willingly, why would you want to get them arrested and possibly get felonies?


Title: Didn't know owning an Airsoft Gun was illegal, please help

Question:
Hello everyone, so I am a college student that goes to school in PA but is from NJ, I recently got an airsoft gun because I have wanted to play since I was a young kid and many of my friends are into it.  I had my gun shipped to NJ no problem.  Checking PA laws didn't seem bad, and I thought no worries I will just ship from the biggest airsoft retailer to my house in NJ and then just bring it back to with me to PA.  Last night I was watching the gubernatorial debate and one of the candidates mentioned how buying a BB gun was illegal unless you had a firearm permit, naturally this scared the crap out of me and further researched scared the crap out of me more as there is mandatory jail time if caught.  I have no idea what to do now since my gun is in NJ if I am allowed to return it, should I bring it to PA and leave it up at my house there, or just throw it out, I spent like a 100 dollars on it so yeah if throwing it out is the best option I will do that very angrily of course.  Please help as I have no idea what to do.  Can I even apply for a firearms permit retroactively if the airsoft gun ownership is not disclosed.  Thanks for any advice.

Edit:  I have no idea if I am classifying this wrong, but I also found a link to this law ftp://www.njleg.state.nj.us/20162017/A1500/1119_I1.HTM that I found on the airsoft reddit stating that the maximum fine for first offense is 500 dollars

Edit 2: I am going to call a local airsoft store in the morning since they would probably know the legality of buying/selling of them

Edit 3:  I know it may not be the hallmark of legal advice but wikipedia suggests that airsoft guns do not fall under firearms in NJ, and thanks to everyone who has commented, please feel free to add more since this is a gray area for me

Answer:
 [TIL NJ has strict gun laws](http://www.nj.gov/lps/dcj/agguide/pdfs/Graves-Act-Oct23-2008.pdf)

Get it to PA where it is legal.

If you do get stopped/charged with the airsoft gun, retain a criminal defense attorney.  Answer #2: A bb/pellet gun as in one that shoots metal projectiles requires a firearms ID card in NJ. Airsoft doesnt, they sell them at the local dicks sporting goods right out on the shelves for the taking.


Title: Mother placed an engagement announcement in her local paper without permission

Question:
Hello!

My mother took a picture off of my Facebook account and send a write up to a local newspaper for our engagement without our permission.
It includes wrong information in the text write up as well. I am very embarrassed that she did this to us. She didn't tell us she was doing this because we would have shut it down immediately.

Is there any way to try to get this removed or to get any money for posting our picture and information from Facebook for the announcement without permission?

Best

Thoughfeel

Answer:
 The only person or entity here that you could possibly sue is your mother.  Not Facebook.

And it would be an incredibly difficult defamation claim for you to make.Answer #2: > any way to try to get this removed

Contact the newspaper and ask if you can have the notice removed from the online version. You're out of luck for the dead tree version.

On a personal note, don't let your mother take over your wedding since it sounds like she is already starting.


Title: I think Dad who passed in 2002 had a safety deposit box at Wells Fargo in California. How can I check?

Question:
Mom has Alzheimer's, and sometimes says odd stuff.  She told me after our house was robbed eons ago (which actually happened) Dad put their wedding bands as well as some other stuff in a safety deposit box at the bank.  I vaguely remember Dad talking about it years ago.  He was killed in '02, and as far as I know, it's still there.  I have zero paperwork about his assets.  Doing an online search on California's unclaimed property website turned up an old checking account of about 1400, an old paycheck for a few hundred.  But that's it.  How can I find out if this is the total of Dad's assets?

**Edit** Huh?  Downvotes?
**Edit2** escheat [ esˈCHēt ] VERB revert to a lord or the state by escheat. Thanks, Bing!

Answer:
 The safe deposit box was likely linked to the checking account, so if you have the account number Wells Fargo should have records of the box. Unforetunatly, the box and its contents is likely gone since so much time has passed and the fee for the box hasn't been paid.

There is no magic way to discover assets, but perhaps having your mom get a credit report will turn up some information.


Title: [Ohio] School Refusing To Return Students Property

Question: [deleted]

Answer: What's your school's pollicy on returning contraband?  It should outline  when, if at all, it will be returned.


Title: Child Neglect?? (Maineville Ohio)

Question: [deleted]

Answer:
 How old are the kids?  So she gets home and her kids and spouse are still asleep and the kids wake up and get out?  Is this the first time this has happened?

First step, childproof everything before CPS pays a visit. This is big. She doesn't want CPS to come and see she's done nothing to prevent it from happening again.

Second, consult an attorney. This is critical if she's being charged. Beg and borrow to get the money. This isn't a situation where you mess around.


Title: 7th grade student humiliated by teacher about dress length at public middle school. How can I help? [AR]

Question: [deleted]

Answer: Dude. What on earth... . No. Nothing about anything here has any legal consequence.


Title: IRS letter 'SSN doesn't match name'

Question:
I am a teacher at a public school and one of my students is undocumented and got a letter saying that their SSN doesn't match the name on record. They asked my student to call and go to a local IRS office. I read this and was immediately very concerned. The student said that their tax lawyer said it was ok.

Is there risk of deportation if they comply with this?

Also, am I in legal trouble if I help students with this and/or similar immigration issues?
Topic:
Immigration

Answer: Don't give your students legal advice is the correct answer. It's not your job and you aren't qualified.


Title: [PA] bought a house less than a month ago and the sewage that “passed inspection” needs to be replaced.

Question:
My husband and I bought our first home on 3/15/2019 and moved in on 3/30. Since moving in we’ve had a plumber at the house to snake the drain due to it backing up into our basement 3 times. Last night he came and attempted to scope it to see what the issue may be. The scope going from the yard towards the house showed that the pipes badly need to be replaced. He was completely unable to scope it the other way towards the street as he tried for two hours and couldn’t get the camera through the trap. He said 1. It is highly unlikely that this portion of the drain was scoped recently, 2. What portion he could see should not have passed inspection and it is impossible that it’s only gotten to that point in one month and 3. The only alternate entry point (in the house) according to him has not been opened in years.

In our township, by law, to obtain a U&O the seller must have the lateral sewage inspected. I called the township who gave me the number for the plumbing company who did the inspection. They told me it was done March 8th and passed without any outstanding remarks. Of course the township came out and checked their end of things and whatever the issue is is on our end leaving us financially responsible to replace all of the pipes from the house to the street.

Not sure where to start here or if there’s anything we can do, happy to provide any additional info.

Answer:
 Talk to a real estate lawyer. If the inspection company deliberately lied on the inspection report, that's an issue that's going to need some lawyerin'. I wouldn't speak to them or the seller until you speak to a lawyer.

I'd also hire an independent home inspector, ideally one not recommended by your realtor, to come do an inspection right now. Pay them cash and offer to make a Sheetz / Wawa run for them.Answer #2: You probably have a case here.  Next steps: (1) get an estimate for the repair that is needed so you know how much to demand from the sellers, and (2) gather the evidence you have and bring it to a lawyer (your realtor can probably recommend one) to get started.  Ask your plumber to help you take photos or videos to explain his opinions.

You will probably end up suing both the sellers and the inspecting plumbers, under the theory that they are both responsible.


Title: [KS] Question about using your personal phone for work.

Question:
Location: KS, USA

I work for a security company and from when I first started working for the company we have used our personal phones to clock in and out as well as submit reports for our specific sites. The app we are using works just fine, and recently we are making the change to a new app.

I had heard about the app through the grapevine and was told a few things that it could do. Interestingly, the new app comes with the ability for our boss (or at least I assume my boss) to remotely access my personal phone's camera and microphone. This was shown to me by a few coworkers. At any point that my boss wishes he can get a live feed directly from my phone. I asked a few coworkers (the ones who were "test driving" the app) if they had the ability to access it whether or not we were clocked in and they answered yes.

We were told in an email we would be switching to everyone using said app and that we were all expected to start using it. I am slightly concerned about them accessing my personal phone's camera and microphone, whether or not I am at work. Plus, I have no idea who is actually viewing the video. I am curious what happens when I am going to the bathroom and they start to view the camera. The site I am on has plenty of cameras that if they wanted to view they could, they also have cameras in the work vehicle I use.

When I asked my boss about this, I received no response, even days later.

I did some research on the topic and could only find something called a "Bring Your Own Device agreement" that had to do mostly with documents and files that were on your phone related to work. I also know Kansas is a one party consent state and they technically don't have to tell me they are listening and I don't think they would have to tell me they are watching through my camera either. But this is my personal phone that I pay for.

It doesn't work on the iPhone (though I have Android), as the iPhone requests you to allow them to access the camera/microphone. They have asked everyone to buy Androids and those that have iPhone's will continue to use the old app.

Can I refuse to download the app, or can they legally require me to do so?

Answer:
 Android has granular permissions as well.

Install it and then disable its ability to access your camera/microphone:

https://support.google.com/googleplay/answer/6270602?hl=en

https://support.google.com/googleplay/answer/6014972

Of course, they'll probably tell you to unblock the permissions the first time they try to snoop, but this will give you two benefits

1. You'll *know* the first time they try to snoop even if you're not looking at your phone.
2. You might be able to avoid having to buy a second phone. Answer #2: > Can I refuse to download the app, or can they legally require me to do so?

They cannot make you do something you do not want to do.

On the other hand, they can fire you for not doing it.

Maybe you should look for another job? Or if you like this job a lot, you should consider a cheap phone for nothing but work use. The second option would likely be a tax deduction as well.Answer #3: To the lawyers out there,

Even if KS is a one party consent state, if they turn on recording while OP is off the clock wouldn't that still be considered eavesdropping since they are not a party to the conversation?

I would think this opens the company up to an immediate call from law enforcement if an employee can determine when the mic is being enabled.


Title: My boss is making me drive the company vehicle with a headlight out

Question:
My boss is making me drive at night, knowing full well one headlight is out. He says its my responsibility to report it but his to decide if its a safety issue. He says that he assumes ultimate responsibility when he tells me to keep diving. I don't believe him. What if I hit a pedestrian?

I live in California

Answer: Not legal but practical advice: quit this job if you can, replace the light yourself otherwise (they usually aren't that expensive). You absolutely shouldn't take this risk.


Title: Are there any states you can conceal carry while urban exploring, and not get arrested?

Question: I know in a lot of places this would be a felony. I'm just curious if there are any states where it would not be. Either would be a fine or like in many cases of urban exploring youd just get kicked out. I know some states like west virginia do not require permits to carry. But curious if carrying in an abandoned building would still get you arrested.

Answer: If you are breaking the law, carrying a pistol absolutely has the the possibility of enhancing the charges.


Title: School Closed Three Bathrooms

Question:
I live in New Jersey and one of the schools here closed three out of four boys' bathrooms on the first floor due to vandalism in them. Are they legally allowed to funnel all of the first floor boys into one bathroom?
Topic:
School Related Issues

Answer: Yes.


Title: [MA] are there any advantages or disadvantages to reporting a lawyer to the State Board?

Question: I am involved in a divorce in which the opposing attorney has 1) misrepresented the law 2) filed frivolous motions and 3) misled the court. All of these actions, I believe, are unethical, and cost me considerably, without any change in outcome. Will I receive death threats or the like for reporting my experience to the state board?

Answer:
 >Will I receive death threats

How on Earth are we supposed to guess if some random attorney would respond to getting an ethics complaint with death threats?

Anyways, if you have an attorney, you should ask your attorney. In my experience, grieving the opposing attorney almost never goes anywhere.Answer #2: I’m a bit skeptical of your analysis of the lawyer’s actions here. If he had truly misrepresented the law the judge would have chewed him out for this. Judges know the law.


Title: Possesion of marijuana over 25 grams in NY - what should I do

Question:
I was stupid the other night and agreed to pick up marijuana not only for myself but also my roommates. It was all packaged together but the total weight was 35 grams. I pulled out of the road and turned into a dead end by accident (following GPS) where a police officer happened to already be actually addressing a house call. He waved me down (idk why, although I was driving into a dead end like a fool) so i rolled down my window to see what was up and the very first thing he said to me was that the car smelled like marijuana. I knew he was probably right and there was no use fighting it so I let him search. I was arrested when they weighed the marijuana and found out it weighed 35 grams. I was charged with criminal possession 5th degree, 221.1002  this happened in a county just outside of Albany. I was just in the wrong place at the wrong time the officer said. I was issued a 6 month ACOD for possession of .5 grams 2.5 years ago in a court in NY but it was in another town about 2 hours away from where I live now.  My questions are, will that prior offense show up? What am I potentially looking at for charges? Should I get a lawyer?

Thanks in advance tried to keep it concise. First ever post on reddit honestly.

Answer: Yes, the prior offense will show up. Yes, get a lawyer. You already told us your charges. Criminal Possession of Marijuana 5th degree. It is a class B misdemeanor. No more than 3 months in jail and no more than $500 fine.


Title: [LA] I bought a car for $7250 and when it was time to register it the Vin came back as Auto Hulk thus unregisterable. Seller isn't responding.

Question: I contacted the seller about the situation and he said he'd attempt to get to the bottom of why the vin number was listed as Auto Hulk(crushed vehicle). A few weeks past he said he wasn't able to figure anything out and he'd just buy it back. Since he hasn't responded to any attempts to contact him. There is no proof that I actually paid $7250 for the vehicle other than the bank withdrawal, as on the title we listed the selling price as $3000. I'd just like to know what would be my best recourse to get my money back.

Answer: You could sue him. If you try to sue him you'd have to admit to tax fraud.


Title: Police took my phone. I am obtaining a lawyer

Question:
2 undercover officers showed up at my work.  Claimed I was accused of having illegal stuff on my phone. They asked to see my phone.  I asked for a lawyer.  They asked to see my phone again.  I gave my phone to them.  They asked for the password and I told them to get a search warrant.  They threatened to tell my work and then left with my phone. I am hiring a lawyer today but wanted to get some other advice too.

They only left a card for one of them.  No report number.  No receipt for the phone. I have no idea what to do...

Location: Ohio

Answer: And you are sure these are cops and not say two randos who just robbed you why? Answer #2: Are you sure this was actually the police, first of all? This reads like a robbery.Answer #3: I have the cards.  The lawyer knows the cops name. I gave the last name,  he knew the first name.  It was police but the tactics they used were just weird.  No warrant or anything. Answer #4: Get an attorney. You're  leaving a lot out which is fine but nobody can help you with this information except to tell you that police can seize your phone pending a warrant.


Title: Ex recorded intercourse along with others things without my consent [TX]

Question:
I just found out my ex took video of me having sex& oral with him while I was drunk. I did not consent to this, I do not even remember coming back into my apartment. He says in the video I asked for him to record along with me taking his phone to take nude selfies; in some videos I was the one holding and recording and even holding him tightly saying to record and  fuck me.. Though I DO NOT REMEMBER EVER SAYING YES TO IT. I was so drunk.. He says he has roughly 13 videos of that night. He purposely recorded them to show that I sought him out and asked him to come back to in to my place.

We have a few court proceedings in the days to come, he is being charged with a felony for assaulting me. I’ve kept documentation of the assaults and have taken this to our university along with the local DA. He says that if I back off he will delete the videos. Or he will turn them into his attorney- his attorney knows of the videos but has not seen them. He says that he has to cover his own ass, that i’ve held all the abuse on him so he had to get something too, that if I am to fight him he will fight back

This cant be right. There has to be something I can do. Can i subpoena the videos? What can I do????? I was so drunk I do not remember a thing!!

We have a hearing through our university on thursday, we were both sent an order of no contact through the university though we both have broken it. Him reaching out to me and me reaching out to him this past week. Should I notify the university?? Im so confused and in shock of everything.

He’s wanting peace between us and he’ll not show the videos. That if he can hold onto his life (school) he will not show anyone. Please someone help guide me in the right direction. Whether I said yes in the videos and recorded with my own hand I DO NOT REMEMBER, I blacked out. I trusted him. Im so stupid.

I just got off the phone with him and have voice recordings of the conversation of him saying what was in the videos along with him using it against me, him leaking them, him taking them to his attorney. Everything.

Answer:
 If relevant, the videos can be used in his defense.  His saying that he would turn the videos over to his attorney to aid in his defense if he is prosecuted for a crime would not be extortion.

The three words that raised my eyebrows were:  " him leaking them"

If he is threatening to leak the videos (and not turn them over to his attorney) if he is prosecuted, then that would be extortion.

It would also likely be considered witness tampering.

You should speak to the DA, and let him know what is going on.Answer #2: Contact the police and report this.  Even if the videos appear to be consensual the fact that he is threatening to release nude pics of you to get you to stop cooperating with prosecutors and/or drop your complaints with the university is, like, a ton of crimes.  If he really did show these videos to his lawyer and said “yeah I told her if she keeps it up I’ma release these” his lawyer probably turned four shades of red and had to say the Serenity Prayer to keep from hitting him.

I’m very sorry that you’re in this position, and I do think that if you report this it will help bring your ex to justice.


Title: Child's father PPO

Question:
Posting here because I nowhere else to turn. I (19f) filed for an exparte restraining order against my physically, emotionally and financially abusive boyfriend (26m) which he was served on the 12th of November. I received a phone call today (the 23rd) by his alleged lawyer saying I need to come collect court documents because he is moving to have the order lifted and that the hearing will be in December. I fear for the safety for myself and our unborn child in common, currently 22 weeks pregnant.

what steps should I be taking to protect myself now and in the future from whatever harassment he may send my way?

Answer:
 Lawyers know how to serve you.  DO NOT GO TO MEET ANYONE.  Do not give out personal information to anyone, especially about your location.

Keep your record of the call.Answer #2: There is no such thing as a "mother state." Get that out of your mind right away. If he is the father, he will have rights.

I'm sorry to put it so harshly, but I live in a state that people claim is biased toward the mother in custody disputes, and it absolutely is not that way in reality. I am forced to "co-parent" with my abuser, and, frankly, the court system does not care in the slightest.


Title: [USA] Karmaloop bankrupt, Owes me $10,000+, How do I file a thorough claim?

Question:
Hello, recently a streetwear distribution company called Karmaloop officially went bankrupt as of 3/23/15.

I placed many orders with them that were unfulfilled and racked up a loss of at least **$2,400**. Some of these orders were made with gift certificates and gift codes that have seemed to vanished. These unfulfilled orders were canceled, and in doing so, Karmaloop erases the evidence from our "Order History" page. Now I only have order confirmation emails as proof... and even then, they don't show the values of my gift certificates.

I was also (un)lucky to win a 2 year car lease that they gave me summer of 2014, however, they decided to pay monthly. Now that they're bankrupt, I'm afraid the payments will cease (but it will since bankruptcy). I have 15 months remaining on this lease which amounts to **$8892.45**.

Currently, Karmaloop is telling everyone who made an order prior to 3/24 to file a claim here: http://omnimgt.com/karmaloop

How would I go about filing this claim with my current situation? Some of the lingo used in the "Proof of Claim" form is beyond me... for example:
> Last four digits of any number by which creditor identifies debtor:

I have a copy of the poorly-written, error-ridden "car winner" contract that I signed but is this enough proof for a claim?
Topic:
Business Law

Answer:
 Sounds like a complete scam of a company, or at the best was based on a social-media bubble that was bound to fail.

I think you'll have to be more specific about the financials here. How much actual money did you spend here? How did you win a car lease? Did they just promise to give you $/month that would allow you to lease a car? Answer #2: Oh wow. I used to order from them occasionally and I can honestly say I saw them going bust about year ago. Never a good sign when a company spams your email inbox every single day with discount offers and free shipping.


Title: Questions about neighbors

Question: I didn't think this was a good enough question for r/legaladvice but I'm hoping you guys might have some ideas. I currently live in an apartment in an upstairs unit, and the people below us won't stop filing noise complaints. I would understand if we were being loud, but it's to the point we can't even walk to the restroom at night without getting a complaint. The other issue is this neighbor blasts his music and TV loudly outside of quiet time. The last tenants of this apartment got evicted for noise complaints by the same neighbor. Now the apartment manager is talking like we might get evicted as well. Any advice? Is this good enough for the legal advice sub?

Answer:
 Talk to the manager about installing some sort of sound deadening in your and your neighbor’s apartments.

Ask him for proof that you’re being too loud. Have the neighbor record what she’s hearing in her unit. Chances are, it’s nothing.


Title: New apartment has offensive odor

Question:
I just moved to a new apartment complex in NY (not NYC) and one of the bedrooms has an offensive odor which smells like a cross between sewage and a dead rodent. I contacted maintenance about it and they checked it out, verified they smelled something and were going to have an exterminator come with a dog to sniff for rodents. A few days later I was told the super vetoed that idea and suggested the odor was coming from fertilizer at the next property.

That definitely is not the case. While there is a fertilizer odor from the next property, you can only smell that while outside and the odor is different. I spoke to the maintenance guy and informed him of that, he said he didnt forget me and will be in touch in a few days. That never happened and it's been almost 2 weeks since they closed the maintenance request.

I emailed the property management about it over the weekend and waiting to see what they say. I'm trying to not make waves since I just moved in, but the odor is so tank that I can't even use this room which is a second bedroom that I am trying to use as an office.

What is a landlord's obligation to fix a problem like this? I'm already annoyed they pulled a bait and switch on the appartment (rented apartment is missing amenities we were shown in the model apartment and told we would have), and the rent is not cheap... so I would like full use the apartment I'm paying for.
Topic:
Landlord Tenant Housing

Answer: I would request the property manager to come to the apartment.  I understand not wanting to pay money unnecessarily but this seems pretty obvious.Answer #2:  you may want to make sure to run some water in all of your faucets if you haven't already.  Your P-traps could be empty and allowing raw sewer gases through them.  Water usually traps those, but if they dry out you get the kind of smell you're describing.


Title: What can I legally do as a man if I think I may have a dangerous stalker? [California]

Question:
California

The third incident happened tonight and it has me wondering what happened, I’ll try to be as brief as possible and try not to identify myself or talk in too much detail about this stalker just in case he reads Reddit.

Two weeks ago I was getting ready to leave my house when a guy comes walking down the middle of the road (how do I type this without too much detail?) I hope that’s enough. He kept walking toward me and saying he wanted to talk to me but he wouldn’t say what and his fingers, but not his palms were in his pockets. He was walking fast and I said sorry and left quickly. I had been busy at the time getting stuff in my car and am glad I had just barely gotten ready. He looked fairly disheveled and creeped me out immediately when I caught him walking toward me down the road.

Fast forward a week I went out to my car at night to sit alone and record myself singing songs. It’s something I do fairly frequently since I have nowhere else to sing without echo or background noise. Well when I went out that night there was a big truck that flashed its lights at me before I got in my car and turned on the truck and kept the lights on toward my car the entire time. I do not recognize this truck. I figured it was some kids making out or something and didn’t want me to see them since people aren’t usually out there so late. When I finished and got out of the car the truck immediately left, made a u-turn at the end of the street but turned around again when they saw I was looking at them which I thought was pretty weird.

Now I had not connected the two things (maybe they aren’t related) until tonight. I got home and a truck pulled up coming the same way but parked behind me across the street with its lights on in my eyes through the rear view mirror. I sat in the car for about 10 minutes and decided that I’d like to drive around the block once to see who this was since I was being paranoid. It takes about 20 seconds to get around the block but when I got back the truck was gone.

I’m seriously freaking out that someone might be stalking me and they might be dangerous. I’m not sure if I have enough info to call anyone or do anything and I’m not sure what I should do or if I’m overreacting. I saw the guys face when he was walking in the road but I’m not sure it was the same guy and I’m *Really* bad at remembering facial features.

What are some legal options I can take to try to protect myself if this is indeed some sort of stalker? He definitely would know where I live.

I never thought I’d use this account for a post like this, but here I am.

Answer:
 The formal answer is that stalking is a crime, and you can report it to the police.

The _practical_ answer is that three incidents even you admit you can't show are connected isn't going to lead to any kind of police investigation. Being fearful isn't doing you any favours: get a counsellor to help you manage your fear, and set up a security system if you want to take practical steps to keep a watch out.

If your security system produces anything concrete, or if you are able to confirm that the same person is involved in further incidents, _then_ the police might take you more seriously.


Title: My girlfriends parents are making it to where I can never see her again.

Question: Long story short my girlfriend ended up stealing her moms car to come and see me because apparently she was grounded from me. Now they are meeting with a “mediator” (idk what that is) to make it if she sees me then they will charge her with a bunch of stuff. They are saying I’m manipulative and controlling her to date me when that’s not true. I’m 18 years old and my girlfriend is 16. Is there anything I can do to stop this from happening. Pls ask if u need more info they are doing this Monday June 10th ( our anniversary )

Answer: Stay away from her until she is 18. They are allowed to tell her to stay away from you and punish her if she disobeys.


Title: [Ontario, Canada] Just got attacked by a dog. What steps should I take?

Question:
I got attacked by a dog about 2.5 hrs ago. For the record this happened in Ontario, Canada and I'm 22 years old.

I was delivering flyers for my boss to homes in a subdivision. I went up to this one house in particular and placed the flyer, then walked to the sidewalk when I realized a huge Newfoundland dog was barreling towards me from across the street (a school park) where he was being walked without a leash.

The owner, an older woman shouted "no!", but I was assuming it was because the dog was about to run across the street. I stayed still, didn't move to pet it, didn't move closer or father away. But the dog grabbed my arm. She shouted something at it in Russian and it let go.

At this point my hand was uncontrollably shaking and I had blood pooling on the sidewalk from a puncture wound on the top of my wrist. The woman yelled at her husband in Russian to get a medical kit and wiped away the blood and put a bandaid on.

She asked me "didn't you hear me say no?". I told her I though she said that because the dog was running across the street. Then she said "the dog attacks when you walk towards the house past the sidewalk".

I didn't say much at this point because I couldn't stop crying and shaking. I did get photos of the blood on the ground. I called my boss and he showed up within a few minutes.

She showed me papers that her dog has it's vaccinations and I told her I wanted photos of them. She refused and I told her I was calling the police. She said "call whoever you have to" and closed the car door on me. (I was sitting in my boss' car at this point).

We called the police and my boss drove me to the walk in clinic. I got the wound checked out. It was too deep for stitches. My boss had to hold me while the doctor dressed the wound because I was shaking so badly.

The police officer came and took a statement and gave me an incident number. I'm on antibiotics for 2 weeks in case of infection.

My boss drove me back to my car and we stopped by the house where the incident took place to take better photos of the blood on the pavement.

My mom wants to press charges and sue the owners. I'm not sure if there's any other precautions or measurements I need to take.

Answer:
 Steps to take:

1. call the police, which you did
2. see a doctor, which you did
3. alert your municipality's animal control
4. If you were working, make a WSIB claim.

Individuals do not press charges. Forget what TV tells you. Police and/or Crown prosecutors lay charges if they feel one is warranted.

If you were working, you can't sue. Instead, you file for WSIB benefits.Answer #2: She wouldn't let you photograph the papers (which might be forged) regarding the dog's vaccinations? You need rabies vaccine, and the dog needs to be quarantined.

She admitted that the dog attacks people? She's confessed to knowingly allowing a dangerous animal off-leash.


Title: Illegal evictions (Massachusetts)

Question:
Hi,

So here's my situation. I am 22, living at an apartment paid for by my mom. She's currently threatening to contact the landlord to evict me. I've been told that eviction without 30 days prior notice is illegal eviction. Is this true? If this happens, what are my options?

Thanks

Answer:
 If you're month to month, your landlord can give you 30 days' notice before the end of the month that they are terminating your lease for any reason at all, or even no reason. Unless you can demonstrate that you're the victim of housing discrimination on grounds protected by the Fair Housing Act, you have no recourse other than to find a new home. It doesn't matter if the reason your landlord terminates is "because my mom is a pain in the ass."

As your mother is paying your rent, you would be well served to either find a way to make rent on your own, or to make peace with your mother so that she is willing to continue subsidizing your life. She's not required to pay for anything you do. She can't get you evicted on her own, but if she's on your lease, then she may well be able to give notice to terminate your lease at the end of May (it's too late now for the end of April).

If your landlord terminates your tenancy, or if your mother can and does give notice terminating your tenancy, then if you don't move out by the termination date, you can be evicted for overholding. This will lead to a court date, likely followed by a court order for the sheriff's department to remove you after a specific date. It'll also damage your ability to find future apartments, as evictions (like all court proceedings) are a matter of public record.


Title: [California] Mother-in-law scammed out of a huge sum; Any hope to recover?

Question:
Let me just start out by saying that YES, I know this was insanely stupid, and YES, I know that there are not likely to be any legal remedies. I write just on the off chance that someone out there has anything at all to say that may be productive, but I don't expect any real actionable advice. This is also a bit therapeutic. I note that I am an attorney but do not practice this area of law, so I'm at a loss. A lot of the below is for your entertainment value only, so let me just quickly TL;DR this thing:

TL;DR: Mother-in-law, due to her own incompetence, was induced to send about $500k in cash to a scammer she never met and is now completely broke. Can anything be done?

\---

My wife's mother has been married half a dozen times. She has health problems that are severe enough for her to be on disability, but not to the point where she can't function in society. I do question the veracity of some of her "ailments" but that's not within the scope here.

About a year ago, her most recent husband died of a heart attack, leaving her as the only heir to his estate. He had no children and no will, so the whole matter passed through the intestacy statute of California. It took a while.

She ended up with the house, which had a small note, plus the proceeds of his life insurance and pension. She sold the house and all in, had (we think) about $550k in cash. Her plan was to pay cash for a small house in another, less expensive state and then find a way to invest the rest to attempt to find a way to build up some supplemental income. This income, together with her disability and Social Security would enable her to have a decent lifestyle.

She got moved to a cheaper area, closer (but not too close!) to us. We agreed to help her look at houses once she got settled.

My wife got a text one day a few months ago from MIL, saying (paraphrasing) that she now had $2.5m in the bank, so her budget for a house had increased dramatically. My wife, not being an attorney but hearing me talk about various forms of fraud, called her and asked her how she suddenly got $2.5m. MIL's answer was a nebulous, "I moved some money around for some people and they paid me once their funds cleared." My wife called me at my office and immediately I'm thinking, "Oh shit, this person has been used as an instrumentality for money laundering and probably is going to prison."

It turns out that MIL hadn't been "moving money around," but rather had been sending this scammer her money. My best guess is that the scammer then initiated an ACH or wire into MIL's account and then withdrew it, which is possible in some cases.

Anyway, some weeks later MIL told us that her accounts had been locked for fraudulent activity, which I thought was strange. Through some artfully crafted questioning, we pieced together that MIL had determined that the scammer was indeed a scammer and had reported to her bank that the outgoing transfers from her account to scammer's account were "fraud." Of course they *were not* fraud, because she initiated those transfers. So now the bank was treating MIL as a perpetrator of fraud for making false claims of fraudulent activity, thereby passing the risk to the bank. Of course they froze her accounts.

MIL was apparently interviewed by the FBI, FINCEN, and Homeland Security. I don't know the nature of those questions and I definitely *do not want to know* anything else about those questions.

The upshot is that MIL sent to this scammer over a period of about six months almost all of her money. She has less than $10,000 in the bank now and her disability and SS payments will barely cover minimal living expenses going forward. It's a disaster.

The question is: Can anything be done to recover any of these funds? Obviously, I think the answer is, "No, MIL is a huge idiot," but I ask selfishly because it seems likely that MIL will become our problem in some way before long. She's already asking us for money and we have already said HELL NO LADY, but this is not likely to just go away.

Thoughts?!

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Answer:
 In order to get the money back, you would need to...

1. Establish WHO the scammer is
2. Establish WHERE the scammer is
3. Find an attorney to represent you in the appropriate jurisdiction(s)
4. Bring legal claim in those jurisdictions (which may or may not have cooperative governments)
5. Get a judgement in favor of your mother
6. Track down assets which can be seized (again, with authorities and institutions which may or may not cooperate)
7. Seize those assets.

The problem with these scams....   Is they usually can't even move past step 1.

I feel terrible for you and your family.  I really do.  But realistically, that money is likely gone.Answer #2: No. The majority of the scams are out of the country. Once the money gets sent, it’s gone. If those federal agencies actually spoke with her, which is very rare, then they’re already looking into it. They probably figured she was somehow involved due to the large amount of money and once interviewing her, realized the opposite.

Nothing criminal will come of it, but the money is 100% gone.