Title: Do I own the photos I take at work?

Question:
I work at a retail store in New York and last year I helped them create an Instagram and have a presence online. I was shooting the pictures while on the clock for the normal job as a retail sales person. I was never compensated additionally for the images or subsequent customers it drew.

I found out that the owners have been using my images to start an online business without asking me to use them.

What are the ramifications of being on the clock while I took pictures in terms of ownership?

Answer: Generally, the copyrights to photos you take for your job responsibilities are owned by the employer, especially if you use their equipment to take those photos.


Title: 9 hours of "unpaid, voluntary training" that acts as a second interview for a job? (PA)

Question:
I interviewed for a job at a coffee place and did well at the first interview.

The owner contacted me wanting me to do 3 shifts of 3 hours each. However, these are to be unpaid.

I told her I was uncomfortable with this and that i thought that is illegal. She responded that this is volunteer training, this acts as the second interview, and is legal in every way.

Specifically, she's saying I am a volunteer for those 9 hours and that the shop then hires their staff from their volunteers. The shop has a community building, social justice angle to the whole thing if that makes the volunteer angle any more believable.

I told her I'm not working 9 unpaid hours for a barista position that pays under $10/hour. I'm just wondering if what she's doing is actually legal.

This is in Pennsylvania.

Answer:
 You should report them to the labor board even though you're not taking the job. This is all kinds of not ok.Answer #2: There is no such thing as "volunteer training", at least not legally. . A limited skills test, like how well you know Excel, wouldn't have to be paid, but if you're performing job functions (even if just learning) that is still time worked and must be paid.Answer #3: Illegal, hands down.
http://www.lexology.com/library/detail.aspx?g=15c1f1fb-917b-40a4-a308-f115c566ba2cAnswer #4: Are they a non-profit coffee shop?Answer #5: Engineers are hired quicker than baristas?


Title: traffic accident involving tire in the road, believe to have caught person whose tire it was.

Question: My sister (16) was in an accident today (located in Westlake, Ohio) when she was travelling down the highway she hit what appeared to be a spare tire that was in the road. It caused hundreds if not thousands of dollars of damage to the vehicle and was quite traumatic for her. I was her first responder. After getting her to the safety of my vehicle and removing valuables we left her vehicle on the side of the road with the caution lights flashing. Upon further investigation of her need for a tow we had to circle back to place the keys in the vehicle for the tow driver/mechanic. While circling back we saw what we suspected was the owner of the tire pulling over on the side of the road trying to find their tire headed in the opposite direction of traffic to where the accident occurred. We had to go back to drop off the keys so we were lucky enough to have good timing. We have their license plate number, a description of the vehicle and a short video of them picking up the tire. Do we have a case? How do we proceed? No police report has been filed as of yet because we had no idea how this was going to play out and she was upset. Thanks for your help.

Answer:
 Why was your sister not able to dodge a stationary obstacle in the middle of the highway?

If someone left the tire there, then they could share liability, but that'll be a problem for your sister's insurance to handle.  They might ask you to file a police report.

Follow insurance's instructions.


Title: How to keep parents from knowing about red light ticket? CA

Question:
I was making a U turn on a yellow light, then a traffic light camera flashed a bunch of times. The car is registered underneath my moms name and I really don’t want her finding out about it.

Is there a way, I can be fined for the ticket instead of it going underneath her name? Also, I’m most likely not going to be able to pay the full fine, so what are my options?

Topic:
Traffic and Parking

Answer: Tell your parents. Your mom will be mailed a copy of the ticket. She needs to be aware now.


Title: My 4th amendment rights were just violated

Question:
And I feel really dirty right now, I do not enjoy being guilty until proven innocent.

I was taking my paid 15 minute break and I had to grab something out my car.  Nothing out of ordinally until officer unfriendly decides I'm acting nervous.  The officer approached me as I was closing the drivers door.  He asked if it was my car, I said yes, then started to walk back to work.  The officer then decided to ask for my ID, I politely declined as my boss was waiting for me to return.

He then went on a power trip spouting that when an officer demands your ID you will comply or face arrest.  I know better though, and I am sure he doesn't have probable cause.  He keeps saying I'm acting nervous, and this is enough in his mind.  I denied politely, stating I did nothing wrong.  At the point I have to get back to work, and suggested he talk to my boss to verify I work in this strip mall.

Well this officer didn't like the fact I am educated enough to understand the US Constitution.  He then proceeded to detain me, and took my wallet out of my pocket, without my consent.  He then patted me down without my consent. The officer never explained to me my rights, and he couldn't elaborate the probable cause.  Then the officer ran my license and everything checks out.  It turns out I'm an actual productive member of society.  I walked back to work shrugging, wondering what the fuck just occurred.

Was this legal?  This just happened 25 minutes ago.  Sorry if I missed any details.  Let me know if I missed anything, and I could use some advice how to proceed.

Answer:
 >  and I am sure he doesn't have probable cause.

Unless you can read minds, you can only guess what information he has.

> The officer never explained to me my rights, and he couldn't elaborate the probable cause.

He's not required to do that.  He doesn't have to tell you what his probable cause/reasonable suspicion is.

Whether it was illegal will depend on your location and what information was available to the officer.

You're welcome to file a complaint or contact an attorney if you feel you were mistreated.Answer #2: >I am educated enough to understand the US constitution

You have nothing else to learn here then.

This is not the echo chamber you are looking for

Try /r/amibeingdetained


Title: [Michigan] Firearm Sales Discrimination by Walmart

Question:
I am 19 and was recently denied the ability to purchase a Long Rifle at Walmart. The store policy now restricts the sale of firearms. I can and have gone to any other firearms selling store in the area and purchase one. The reason I was denied was not based on a background check. It was not based on and federal laws or guidelines. It was not even based on the stores right to refuse if they feel it would not make a safe sale. It was made purely on age. I even have that in writing.

MY question is, do I have a case in court against this as it is clearly age discrimination. Michigan has a specific law against this from my understanding. The Elliot-Larsen Civil Rights Act says:  The opportunity to obtain employment, housing and other real estate, and the full and equal utilization of public accommodations, public service, and educational facilities without discrimination because of religion, race, color, national origin, age, sex, height, weight, familial status, or marital status as prohibited by this act, is recognized and declared to be a civil right.

According the the Document which I obtained directly from [Michigan.Gov](https://Michigan.Gov) The Definition is as follows;

 “Place of public accommodation” means a business, or an educational, refreshment, entertainment, recreation, health, or transportation facility, or institution of any kind, whether licensed or not, whose goods, services, facilities, privileges, advantages, or accommodations are extended, offered, sold, or otherwise made available to the public.

By my understanding this would classify Walmart as a Place of Public Accommodation and be age discrimination.

Or would I be destroyed by a corporate giant like Walmart and be something that would take years and years in court to settle?

&#x200B;
Topic:
Consumer Law

Answer:
 IMHO, WalMart's new policy is clearly in violation of ELCRA. Replace "gun" with "brownie" and the violation becomes apparent. The fact that we're talking about guns doesn't change the result because there's no statutory exemption for them.Answer #2: FFL can deny the sale if they believe that there might be something wrong or illegitimate about it... purchase with intent to harm him/herself or others, potential straw purchase intending the firearm for someone else, or potential fraudulent activity.  FFLs have wide latitude in this.

Was your age specifically given as the reason for the denial?  What does the written reasoning actually say?


Title: Airbnb retracted a reservation due to technical mistake.

Question:
So I reserved a room using a code. I got a confirmation email from them and the host. Apparently, it turns out that the code was a technical glitch. Can they do that? I thought something like that usually gets honored. It was a $200 off coupon.

This is maine

Answer: Where'd you get this code? Was it from Airbnb?Answer #2: Yes, they can. You seem to want something for nothing.


Title: Friend works as a Service Sales guy, mechanics union on strike and he's being forced to work on cars..advice? (Chicago, IL)

Question:
My friend has worked at a dealer in the service department as one of the up front sales guys. A few weeks ago the mechanics union went on strike, so he's been doing odds and ends around the shop (cleaning, directing customers, whatever they can find) and making his base pay WITHOUT commission. Without commission his take home pay is about 1/3rd of normal ($10/hr base) which is after two weeks already killing his family's income and they're struggling financially - fortunately living off savings, but that only goes on so long.

The union is still on strike with no end in sight. Today the service guys (my friend included) were told that they would be required to work in the garage on cars doing "small" jobs like oil changes, tire rotations, things of that nature. They were told that if they don't like it they can quit - but quitting means no unemployment benefits.. Nobody will be laid off.

As a nice side benefit, they were also told that the shop insurance does not cover anyone besides the mechanics incase of workplace injury - so if he gets hurt on the job he's shit out of luck - he does not have insurance benefits on his own (not offered) and right now his family is without insurance. Basically, if something happens to him they're fucked pretty badly and he's kinda stuck.

Is there any recourse he can take to force them to lay him off? Or at least, force them to keep him out of the garage? He's doing work on cars that he's not qualified for, not covered on incase of injury and not getting paid for - he'll still be getting $11/hr with no commission on this work. Meanwhile, the dealership is getting what's essentially free labor while the mechanics continue to strike.

This is in Illinois, by the way (Chicago area)..for reference this is the same strike that resulted in that photo of a bunch of mechanics toolboxes sitting out in the parking lot during a storm..so these dealerships are pretty shitty to begin with.

Answer:
 Couple of things here. Quitting doesn't always mean no unemployment. A 2/3 reduction in pay and a drastic change in job duties *may* qualify him for benefits if he quits and goes to look for another equivalent sales job.

> so if he gets hurt on the job he's shit out of luck

No that's not true. The insurance covers the person doing the work. If he's hurt at work he can still get workers comp benefits. Answer #2: So, normally this guy is supposed to upsell transmission fluid changes and whatnot, but he can't do that as there are no mechanics.  So the boss is having him do odd jobs, at significantly reduced pay.

He can indeed quit, and (most likely) receive unemployment.  Although it isn't precisely the fault of the dealership, or at least not only the fault of the dealership, they're paying him less and asking him to do duties outside of of his normal job.  This is a significant adverse change in his employment, and he can demand that he be changed back to the normal job (upselling, full pay), which the dealership will refuse (no mechanics, duh).

This is called constructive dismissal.  Basically the idea is that he's been fired from his old job and offered a new, significantly worse job.  He doesn't have to take it, and should still be eligible for unemployment if he quits.

Whether he *should* quit is another matter, depends on how long the strike is likely to go, availability of other upselling jobs, etc. etc.

Even if he chooses to stay, he should avoid doing dangerous work or work he's unqualified for or uninsured for.  "Just say no!" as Nancy Reagan used to say.


Title: Girlfriend (Now Ex) tried to move my truck after a night of drinking and did ~$2,600.00 worth of damage to my truck. Refuses to pay for anything

Question:
So a few months ago my ex girlfriend came home after a night of drinking and wanted to move my truck so that she could get out of her parking space in the morning.  She ended up hitting my truck against the side of our rental property and doing around just over $2,600 worth of damage.  I trusted that she would pay to have my truck fixed and let her drag her feet for a few months.

We have since broken up and she is refusing to pay for anything and claiming she didn't do it.  I talked to my insurance company and they tell me since we were living together she had implied consent to drive my truck and she would be covered under my insurance if I file the claim, they won't go after her for repayment, and my rates will increase.  If I file the claim then I have a $500 deductible on my insurance policy and will have to face increased rates.

Would the best option be to sue her in small claims court?  Can I sue her for the full damages to my truck? Only the deductible? increased rates I will know have to face?  Should I go to the police now?  This happen less than six months ago in Ohio.

UPDATE: I went ahead and made the claim through my insurance company. Ex agreed to pay me the $500 deductible and keep all of the money I make from selling our furniture we acquired over the 3-1/2 years of living together.  Now the question is can I sell the Sleep Number Bed as long as I make sure to state up front that it is used? and if so does anyone wanna buy a used sleep number bed in Ohio?

Answer: You can sue her for the full amount of the damage she caused, same as your insurance company would if they sued her.Answer #2: Did you give her permission to move your truck?


Title: There is a new video rising quickly that centers around getting through a DUI checkpoint by placing your information in a plastic bag and hanging it outside your closed car window. Will this actually work/is it legal? (FL - Florida)

Question:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YqEXTVe7MCQ

I don't drive drunk, but it's not about that. It's about making sure you protect yourself from undue searches and charges.

Answer:
 Sobriety checkpoints have been held to be legal by the Supreme Court in by *Michigan Dept. of State Police v. Sitz* (1990).

Having your ID outside doesn't help, since such checkpoints aren't checking for ID, they are checking for sobriety/drunk driving.


Title: [WA] - Have to buy really expensive parking passes for work due to motion sickness that makes taking the bus not possible.

Question: I work in Seattle in place of higher education which makes me technically a WA state employee if that makes a difference. I have to buy a fairly expensive parking pass to park on  campus and I'm wondering if there is any thing I can say or do to get a discounted one. The reason being that I have always suffered from terrible motion sickness all my life and am unable to take the bus and make use of an arguably cheaper bus pass even though I would love to be able to and save the money I'm otherwise spending on gas and the parking pass. Is there anything that would qualify me for a discounted parking permit? The price is pretty outrageous and makes a fair dent in my salary.

Answer: At my state university that also has expensive on campus parking permits, it can be something that is negotiated when you are taking a job (ie ask for a higher salary that would cover the price of the permit). Once you're hired in the system though it's tough luck. There are state sponsored ride share programs or you could look into car pooling with other employees to split the price of the permit.


Title: What to do about neighbour stealing expensive vape when homeless

Question:
(UK) When I was homeless, I left my vape out on the window ledge. And after coming back from being scammed by a fake landlord my neighbour was peeping through the fence at me. He had my vape and he turned it on and a vape cloud formed and he was coughing.

Afterwards a signal went off and people surrounded the garden ( either he was trying to scare me. Or he called police in claiming I was trying to attack him, or a mafia. Cameras were popping up in the hedge and I could hear a helicopter and things spraying and trying to shock us.

I've tried reporting this to the police but there's no evidence. The vape cost me £120 and because he is an old man the police would beleive him over me and people would also beleive him over me and my family and parents down beleive me where it happend.

Is there anything I can actually do about this?

Answer: The police would believe him over you not because he’s an old man, but because you sound deranged.Answer #2: Sounds like you need to see a doctor for your paranoid delusions.


Title: Employer making a friend pay for damage to a customer's property. Is this legal?

Question:
We live in Ontario, and the other day a friend knocked a customer's tv over while doing his job. He installs tv/internet for a major cable company and bumped the dresser while he was doing the install. He's worked there for several years and this is the first time he's done anything like this. Basically, the customer doesn't care about the broken appliance but they're bothered about a chip in the dresser it was standing on. The day after the incident he got a call from his employer telling him that he had to cover the cost of the dresser which the customer was quoting at $2000.

Can the company do this? Could they garnish his wages to cover the cost?

Edit: Would it matter if her argued that no one can prove that the chip wasn't already on the dresser to begin with? Or is that just some law and order bull?

UPDATE: SO my friend talked to his company and his boss was just being a jerk. They DO have insurance, and he doesn't have to cover any damages.
Topic:
Labor Law

Answer:
 This is what the employer's professional liability insurance is for.  Individual employees should not be made to pay.Answer #2: Only if he agrees to it. Otherwise, he can be fired and apply for unemployment. At that price, and with that kind of management, he should not agree to it, in my non-lawyer opinion.

Edit: missed Canadian location, poster below me caught and has made a more accurate answer. All upvotes to him, please. Answer #3: If your friend works for a major internet/cable provider (i.e. Bell, Rogers, Telus, etc.), they will have liability insurance for these sorts of matters, and normally handle it internally.

It strikes me as odd that the employer would force an employee to make a payment of any sort in this regard. It would be unusual for the employer to garnish his wages, and certainly if they did he could file a complaint with the Ontario Labour Relations Board. For more information on that, check out the link below http://www.olrb.gov.on.ca/english/homepage.htm.

With respect to any potential termination, it is unlikely that your friend would be terminated as a result of this and that same would be determined to be with cause. Any termination that would flow from this incident would likely be deemed unjustifiable and seen as wrongful termination.

The Employment Standards Act is the governing law in Ontario and the large companies tend to abide by it. Even if he were terminated, he would be eligible to receive termination pay (in lieu of notice period, if applicable) and severance pay for his several years of service (in most circumstances). For more detailed information on worker's rights under the ESA, check here http://www.labour.gov.on.ca/english/es/pubs/guide/.


Title: Client suing me cause unhappy with color of business cards

Question:
I am a graphic designer with a small printing company. An ex-client of mine is suing me for some business cards that I did for them a year ago. They were unhappy with the shade of blue of the business cards, as it didn't match their old ones. Each printer is completely different and you can't get the exact blue, The client also signed off (signature in email with confirmation) on the PDF proofs (that showed the blue that I was going to print), and asked me to proceed with the business cards.

The client could have done a credit card charge back a year ago, but didn't proceed with it. I wonder why myself? I believe he would have lost, as I had his signature confirmation to proceed with the business cards.

The client is claiming in the lawsuit that the cards received did not match the business concept of the company. Except the shade of blue in his company logo for his email signature does not match the color of the blue of the original business cards that he is comparing the ones I printed either. That defeats the purpose of having a concept in my opinion. He is asking for full money back + interest.

Please help, as I am a small business owner and I run this business myself.  Any advice would greatly be appreciated.

&#x200B;

Answer:
 You can give in to this unreasonable customer by giving him a refund or redoing his order, or show up to court and and explain your side.

Based on what you said, it should be an easy win for you.

If you can afford to take half a day off to deal with this, I'd show up to court.


Title: My General Manager has been adjusting my hours without my approval.

Question:
So the company I work for (we will name "AT") just recently got a new GM. I will not go through all of the explanation on why this guy is a poor manager because this is not what this is about, but let it be know that he is a shit head.

For the past couple of weeks I have seen a slight drop in my pay checks. I am an hourly employee who usually ends up with overtime due to working 3rd shift and sometimes being unable to take breaks, or people don't show up on time. Recently, I noticed that I wasn't receiving this but just kind of shrugged it off thinking that maybe I wasn't actually getting it due to not making the hourly requirements.

This morning, I printed my clock reports that show when I clocked in, when I took breaks, when I clocked out, ect.  It also shows when my hours have been adjusted due to forgetting to clock out, clock back in from break, and things like that.  After looking at this, I noticed it had been adjusted for 30 minute breaks and overtime from where I had to stay over from employees not being on time. Overall, I have been shorted almost 2 hours for my last work week, and almost 6 hours over the span of 4 weeks.

When a manager adjusts an employees hours, they are supposed to have authorization from the employees via a worksheet that gives an explanation, adjustments, and the signatures of the GM and employee in question. I have never received one of these.

I have printed copies of all the adjustments in question and plan to confront my manager when he gets here in the morning.

Is there anything I should know before doing so?  I know that the state (TN) should help me if need be but personally, I just want it fixed to avoid the hassle.

Thanks for reading and sorry for the long post and poor grammar due to it being late and I'm using my phone.

TL:DR - Title

Edit, added tldr

Answer:
 No, he can't do that.

But I would start by asking him if there was some problems on your timesheet because you noticed he's been adjusting them. Then go from there. If he was indeed wrong in changing them, then tell him that the law requires you to be paid properly for the hours you work, and you'll be resubmitting the timesheet to be paid properly. If you have an HR department, also talk to them.


Title: What would happen here?

Question: Say theres 3 people, person A and B and yourself. Person A is walking home and gets a gun pulled on him by Person B. Person A then draws his own gun and shoots person B. You turn around the corner and see Person A shoot person B and assume Person A is the assailant when he was just defending himself, and as a result you draw your own gun and shoot Person A. Could you be charged with anything as a result?

Answer:
 Yes, you shot someone.

Of *course* you can be charged for that.


Title: CNI Missouri

Question:
My girlfriend was driving on a county road in Missouri and was in an accident. She was with 2 friends and driving the speed limit on a gravel road. One of the friends told the police she was going 90mph. It was a 2010 chevy malibu, so luckily it had a chip in it to verify if she was speeding or not. The other friend argued that she was not speeding and the curve came out of nowhere, "One minute the road was there and the next, it was gone". Unfortunately, the police took the friend's word and started yelling at my girlfriend, calling her irresponsible, accusing her of being drunk or on drugs. They all had injuries from the wreck, considering they went off an embankment into some trees. After voluntarily blowing 0 on a breathalyzer, the police patiently waited for a drug test to come back negative. The police would not have known if she had not admitted she was not wearing a seatbelt. I personally drove that road a week after. There are no signs indicating a sharp turn. Some trees in said location had already been cleared before the accident because multiple people have wrecked at that very turn. It is a state ticket, one she cannot afford. She is a CNA working at a nursing home. She lost her vehicle and I have had to drive her around since the accident. Her friends did not suffer the type of injuries she had, since they were both wearing their seatbelts. The crash report may state different, but the one who lied had a bruised rib and the other had a few scrapes and bruises. GF had a grade 5 concussion, bleeding in the brain, 3 herniated discs, and large bruises on her abdomen, leg, and right breast. After the drug test came back negative, the officer who was first on scene apologized for his superior yelling at her and accusing her of things that weren't true, then handed her two citations. One for a seatbelt (which she is pleading guilty for) and the other for CNI (class a misdemeanor). She does not belong in jail. We cannot pay a large fine. She fucked up, she knows she did. We don't have enough money for a lawyer. We will lose our house if she goes to jail because I am disabled. I will likely become homeless and not be able to see her for a long time. She has court tomorrow. I told her to call the prosecuting attorney and talk to him, but she failed to do that, claiming she works too much and doesn't have time. I don't know what to do. Are we going to lose everything? Should she plead guilty or not guilty tomorrow? Should she wait to plead?
Topic:
Traffic and Parking

Answer:
 It's hard to argue that she didn't deserve the ticket with the accident being evidence that she was, in fact, driving carelessly.

She can plead not guilty and make the state prove it.


Title: Just wondering if an HOA as bad as this one could be declared a Public Nuisance and legally be ordered to dissolve? Seeing more and more in the sub of HOA going after non members, wonder if this could be a way to get them to stop permanently. Like police going after drug/prostitution locations.

Answer: that thread gets my blood boiling. Hopefully the guy caught something on the cameras he said he installed.Answer #2: Probably not.  More likely to just sue them until the members see the rising legal bills and vote out the board members who are doing all this.


Title: Flying with a bench warrant

Question:
IL and MD
Hey guys, so essentially I have a bench warrant out and I'm trying to fly home for thanksgiving and I'm wondering if it's possible or I'll be arrested at the airport. It's all inside the continental US.

My warrant is for not paying restitution, and don't worry, I can finally pay it again. For awhile I really could not make it happen money wise and I just got so far behind it was inevitable. But I'm in a good position now.

Anyone know if I can make it home?

Answer:
 Since you are able, why don't you just pay the restitution and get the warrant lifted?Answer #2: It's possible, sure. You have an active warrant. But at least as of a few years ago no one at the airport (airline or TSA) checked for bench warrants on domestic travel. Google around and you'll read about people traveling domestically with active warrants. The only way I can imagine them running a check that might reveal the warrant is if you looked super-shady and suspicious at the TSA checkpoint -- not just the type of shady that gets you extra screening, but the type of shady that makes people think "holy shit this guy might be a terrorist!"

You're more likely to get stopped by a cop for some routine traffic incident, at which point they likely **will** run a check for active warrants and pull you in. I suppose it's also possible that license plate scanners could automatically look for people with bench warrants in their vehicles, but I'd be surprised.

That said, you would be 100% safe if you handled the warrant before flying, and if you have the funds to do that then you definitely should.

**Edited to add:** Not a lawyer but a business traveler who frequents airline forums, and I've seen this question multiple times over the year and the answer is always what I stated above.


Title: Can you avoid letting someone establish tenancy by having them stay elsewhere every 29 days?

Question:
I've heard hotels do this, if someone tries to stay for a time period longer than is required to legally establish tenancy, they'll make you check out near the end of the time period, go somewhere else for one night, and then let you come back the following night, thus resetting the timer.

That said, I've been thinking about letting my brother temporarily move in with me so he can save a little money and relocate. However, he's a generally horrible, useless, and manipulative person, the type who tries to lie and cheat his way through life and hasn't held a job in about 7 years now, and puts more effort into playing video games and trying to (so far unsuccessfully) fake his way onto disability than in actually trying to straighten out his life.

It is very possible that he'd attempt to take advantage of my offer, understanding my expectation is that he would find a job and save money until he has his own place again within 2 or 3 months, but with no intention of complying. I would like to make sure that he can't pull any dirty tricks like trying to slip under the radar and become a tenant that I have to evict. Would I be able to avoid this by just putting him in a hotel room once a month, or would the tenancy timer continue to tick for me if I did so?

Answer:
 The real answer here is by letting them stay any length of time you may run into tenancy issues. All he has to do is lie to the police and now you have to go to court. Rights vary by state so location is very important.

If you have any doubts about someone's reliability, don't let them stay in your house. If you have the space for it, drop a trailer on the property and use that as a guest house. It's a pain in the ass to get them out once they're in and you don't want them in your house.. Even if you DO like someone, they generally tend to be horrible roommates.


Title: Casino Valet says drunk guy hit my car and took off but refuses to show video of license plates of anything

Question:
Not sure if this matters or not but this happened a year ago(April 2016) and I just found this subreddit so I figured I'd just throw my story on here just in case I can still do something.

One late night, family member and I decide to go downtown to play at some cards at the casino and we used Valet. The way Valet works at this casino(Horseshoe Cleveland) is u pull into this u-turn kinda driveway garage entrance and valet comes out, takes your ticket, and proceeds to go forward into their garage.

So we do all that, park start heading up to the card room floor, head over to the cashier and after being there for maybe 10 minutes, security comes up to us and orders us to come with him without even telling us anything. We get out of the casino towards the elevators and he tells us a drunk guy pulled into our valet, hit your equinox and took off. Now if you seen this valet entrance it would be very difficult to hit a car, backup and wiggle out and take off without anyone seeing a license plate.

We get down, see the damage which was a caved in rear bumper and ask well did any of you see the license plate or make of vehicle or anything? They gave us 4 digits and the make of a truck and told us we had to go to a police station down the street. I also filled out a form the casino gave me like an accident report or something, Idk why I would have to fill it out when I wasnt even near it. I asked about security footage being a casino, cameras are everywhere. They said they called security and would have the footage to me within a couple days just to give them a call. I called a couple days later and they said I needed a warrant or something.

Back to that night, we talked to the cop on duty there and he told us to go down the street to make a police report. We should've called them out to there probably buy we didn't. We go to the police station and fill out a report of the very minimal information of what we were given and never received any call back. Big surprise, couldn't find the guy.

Casino security eventually tells us to call our insurance to get into contact with theirs and should be the end of it. Fast forward about a few weeks from that night the casino insurance calls and denies our claim claiming its not their fault.

Now if my car was parked in the lot and was nailed by some drunk guy, fine, whatever shit happens unfortunately. But my car was in their possession getting ready to be driven through the gates to the valet parking lot. Now by them not helping me get this mystery guys license plates, no security footage and even denying my claim, can't help but feel their hiding something or protecting their valet drivers. I ended up having to pay 500 deductible on my own insurance to get it fixed.. Lost money before I even got to sit at the card table.

Like I said, this happened April 2016, Im not sure if anything can be done buy I thought I'd take a shot at this subreddit. Also typing this on a phone on a road trip, sorry for errors.

Answer:
 Why didn't you escalate this with your insurance? Your next move would've been to sue the casino for your deductible back, and like the security said, get a subpoena for their security footage of the incident. That footage is now likely gone so you really can't do anything. Answer #2: >  But my car was in their possession

Doesn't matter.  Doesn't make it their fault.  If a drunk guy hit your car, then it's the drunk guy's fault.  Just as if he hit the vehicle when *you* were in possession of it.

You'd need to prove that the valet was complicit or negligent in order to prevail, and you don't have that.


Title: In the state of Illinois, or in the US in general, can you be sued for leaving a scathing bad review?

Answer:
 You could be sued if you wrote a defamatory review (eg the owner of Real Bakery has AIDS and jizzed all over my brownie before serving it to me), but I think it’s more likely that the owner would petition the review site to take it down. Answer #2: Yes you can be sued for leaving a scathing bad review in IL and the USA.

Will you be successfully sued?  Maybe.

If sued, will you potentially spend money to defend yourself? Maybe.

Are you likely to be sued?  Nobody can answer that with accuracy.


Title: (CA/FL) What are my chances of being awarded sole Legal Custody of my child?

Question:
Hey all, I have a few questions for you Legal people :)

I have a 4 year old from a previous relationship and the father and I were never married. He resides in FL (he up and left our child and I shortly before she turned 1 years old. She's now 4 years old).

I recently moved to California with our child (We had Father's verbal permission during one of our mediation sessions so I was allowed to move to CA with our child based on something called "Good Faith" since Father agreed in front of the mediator).

Basically, my situation is this: Each time we come close to an agreement for a custody plan and its basically a judge's signature away the Father will go no contact with me and his child for months at a time. My lawyer and I will try endlessly to re-establish contact with him to sign the custody agreement so it will be finalized but he does a very good job at ignoring any all attempts to reach out.

At the moment, I am trying to get him to agree to JOINT physical/legal custody but now I am having serious second thoughts considering at the current moment we are being ignored again. I have agreed to a lot of his ideas on visitation and even agreed to a significantly less amount of child support he would have to pay.

But each and every time it comes to signing the documents the He will go MIA. This has happened 3x over the past 2 years this has been going on. The first time he went MIA for 8 months, followed by 4 months, and then followed by another 5 months of silence. During these times, he blocks my phone and refuses to communicate with his child. It's very heart breaking for her and each time I am left picking up her shattered little heart because she truly doesn't understand.

Im starting to get the vibe that he is just wanting to screw with me. But who knows...

So my question: Based on his behavior am I likely to get sole Legal Custody of our child if I fight for it? I want to be able to make medical/school/etc decisions for her and I cant rely on him to be in the decision making process with me considering the majority of the time I am being ignored/blocked and he's alienating his child.

He has never been abusive and has no criminal history that I am aware of. I don't think hes a bad person, hes just not very interested in being a dad, I guess. He has been absent from her life for the greater majority that she's been alive.

I am coming here to ask for your ideas/opinions as I have just moved to CA and the state doesn't quite have jurisdiction for me to hire a CA lawyer quite yet. I was told i have to wait till the 6 month mark of living here. (I had a lawyer in the previous state we lived in and was advised by them to find one here in CA to sort this out).

And if Legal Custody is out of the question, I have no clue what else to do? Any advice/opinions are appreciated. Thank you!

TLDR: Father goes on several month long alienation of his child, do I have grounds to get sole legal custody of our kid?

Answer:
 Provided these incidents are documented (and they should be, since your lawyer was involved) you have a good case for abandonment.  Abandonment is one of the few cases in which the court will quickly (in relative court terms) and often aggressively allow one parent to begin cutting ties in order to gain sole custody of a child.

Make sure to keep everything meticulously documented.  Every attempt to contact him where he doesn't respond.  Every time you call and your number is blocked. While you wait for CA jurisdiction, work with your lawyer in FL to establish the history of his abandonment.

Once you have all that put together, a CA lawyer can help you submit this to the courts.  If he is still MIA at that time, you may be able to get the courts to require that he petition for reinstatement of visitation/custody due to his history of abandonment in order to show his real interest in parenting.  Be aggressive.  He's had 4 years to get it together.  Time's up, because now this could start really impacting your child.

And finally, keep everything even after the custody is set. Why?  If you ever meet a wonderful person who loves both you and your daughter, abandonment is one of the easiest ways to pave the way for a termination of his parental rights in order for that person to legally adopt your child.


Title: (VA) Boss keeps making comments about my weight. Is he doing anything legally wrong?

Question:
I lost over 60 pounds.  My boss couldn't stop complimenting my new figure (which I found inappropriate).  I have since put back on ~15 of those and he has said a few things that have made me uncomfortable:

1) "You know, we pay for your Y membership.  It's a shame your putting it to waste" (I go almost every day)

2) "You really don't need to be eating that donut" (after someone brought donuts in for everybody)

3) "You gotta lose that tummy, ______"

There have been other gibes, all along the same lines.

Honestly, it takes me by surprise and I can't muster anything to say in the moments, but is he currently out of line, legally? Or do I have to say something first?

He asks some other employees in dresses to turn around for him, calls them sexy, asks them in "just to look at them", and other things I think are inappropriate and maybe actionable, I just don't know if his comments to me about my weight were.

Answer: Complimenting you on your figure, asking employees to model, and calling them sexy is sexual harassment. General teasing about your weight is a dick move, but not illegal.


Title: Friend had plans to pick up recently rescued cat from recent ex-girlfriend, but ex-girlfriend rehomed cat first. Trying to get cat back.

Question: My friend and this girl had been dating for around a year when she found and rescued this kitten. She was always planning to give the cat to a new home, even making Facebook posts asking for people to take her in, until my friend decided he would make it work because he loved the cat. A couple of weeks later (after he had spent ~$200 on cat supplies), she told him she wasn’t happy with the relationship over the phone, and has been all but impossible to communicate with since then. They had plans for my friend to pick up the cat two days ago, but she stopped responding to all communications a couple days before that. She responded to a text of mine saying that the cat had been given a new home and she would be willing to either return the stuff he bought or give him the $200. Is there any way to get the cat back, or does my friend have to settle for $200?

Answer:
 >  Is there any way to get the cat back

If she rescued the cat, and never transferred ownership to him, it's her cat to do with as she pleases.  Including giving it to someone else.

Her offering a refund is very, very very very reasonable and likely more than she strictly needs to do.


Title: If reading LA has taught me anything it is never mess with someone else’s tree. I wonder how much a seven-story tall maple in NYC is worth?

Answer:
 Discounting treble damages (does NYC do that?), the reputational damage for being ecofriendly and yet killing a tree is going to be intense.

If the tree does die, as the roots degrade, is he liable for attending damages?Answer #2: A seven story maple tree in an urban setting? Yeah, that tree is worth at least a million, maybe more. That's the sort of tree that ups the property values and enjoyment of every house around it. In some countries the homeowner wouldn't even be able to take down that tree without their neighbor's permission.Answer #3: Millions...Answer #4: Killing a tree to direct more sunlight to his solar panels? Very eco-friendly!


Title: Got in a two vehicle accident at work, airbags didn’t deploy in the company vehicle, and my claim for workers comp was denied

Question:
I’m an EMT and I’ve been working with this company for about nine months now. It’s a private company, not state run. I was transporting a patient from one hospital to another. I won’t go into too much detail on how the accident occurred. Luckily we have DriveCams in our rigs, so corporate reviewed the film and determined that there was nothing I could do to avoid it. As stated above, my airbag did not deploy and that caused the steering wheel to smash into my abdomen. I told my manager about it and he said he would “look into it”. Went to a clinic to get examined and was diagnosed with internal abdominal contusions and was put off duty for the remainder of my shift and my next shift. I missed 36 hours of work. My manager assured me I would get paid for any days of work that I missed. I filed for workman’s comp, and it was denied. When I called the company in charge of that they said I was not out of work for 1 week, per state law. But I was out for exactly one week. I’m not that guy that threatens legal action, but these assholes are messing with my money.
Topic:
Personal Injury

Answer: You didn't post your state. But my state has a state run commission for appeals for Workmen's comp claims. I would look into that.


Title: [17][NYC] Can a minor open a business?

Question: I'm 17 and I was wondering if in NYC I would be able to open a business in my own name. I have some reasons I don't want it to be under my parents, and I'm honestly not too familiar with the law, so if someone could point me in the right direction it would be greatly appreciated. Sorry if this isn't the right format, I'm not sure what Im doing lol

Answer: The problem is not the New York state rules about who may file the forms, but that in the US, if a minor signs a contract, it is probably not enforceable.  Hence, nobody will want to do business with you.


Title: NY: Hard drive with small business records lost. How do we protect ourselves in case of a future audit?

Question:
We run a tiny consultancy out of our home (just me and my wife with the occasional freelance subcontractor). It’s an S-Corporation if that makes a difference.

Our ‘corporate’ drive (where we keep contracts, payment information) went belly up, and to our horror and chagrin, our backups are not recoverable. We’re still working with tech support to see if we can get the backups to work, but we’ve exhausted options to recover the drive. Sending it to a data recovery service is prohibitively expensive.

We’re okay work-wise, so this is a minor inconvenience to our day-to-day. But we no longer have scanned receipts, travel logs, expenses, etc. That’s also not a problem in general, but what do we do if we’re subject to a state or federal audit in the next few years?

We can’t be the only ones in this situation, and I assume ‘the dog ate my paperwork’ is a tired excuse that agents hear all the time. So what steps should we take now to ensure that if we do get audited (which we hopefully won’t) and they ask for verification things will go smoothly? Print out the history of tech support emails and forum posts? Save the drive somewhere in the office so they can examine it themselves? Cross our fingers and hope for the best?

Topic:
Tax Law

Answer: Generally audits arise when the government believes taxes haven't been paid. Is there any reason you know of why they may think this?


Title: (CA)Disabled aunt temporarily living with us, where can we put her?

Question: My father's sister had a stroke a year back and we took her in temporarily at the request of cousin. It has been a year now and we're trying to find ways to, put it bluntly, get rid of her. My aunt,not a US citizen, has been a financial burden on us this past year and we're at our wit's end. My cousin has cut off all contact with us, refusing to take back her mother, but she lives nearby. What should be our next course of action? Thank you for taking the time to read and listen.

Answer: Maybe try contacting California's Area Agencies on Aging. We have used them for difficult placements at the hospital I work at.


Title: (Minnesota) A Cable Company Wants To Run A Cable From the Cable Box in Our Front Yard To Our 3 Doors Down Neighbor's House

Question:
This is a company that we are not customers of, rather the neighbor 3 doors down is. The company wants to dig a hole in our yard and our neighbors yards. We're worried about damage to our yards and driveways. Basically I want to know if they are allowed to do this, and if not, how can I go about stopping it, or have them get easements for this one project. I did a crude image to give you an idea of what I'm talking about.
Image: https://imgur.com/a/oaZr5

Answer:
 Did you check if they already have an easement?Answer #2: In a word, yes, utilities have the rights to bury cables on your property. They'll have to repair (to reasonable satisfaction) any damage they do to your yard or property. This probably means filling a hole and seeding it. In the future, if you plan to do any digging in your yard, you'll want to call a toll free number, and they'll have to come out and mark the line with flags.

If they damage your driveway, they'll have to remove part or all of it and have it redone. My father had his concrete driveway damaged in this way. They had to remove one full slab and repour it. It's a SLIGHTLY different color, but it's reasonably satisfactory. If you had a decoratively stamped driveway, for instance, they'd have to get a company out with the same stamp.Answer #3: Yup, Called easements for utilities. No it is nearly impossible to stop an utility easement.


Title: Male with long hair. May not be promoted because of it.

Question:
I work in an optical lab in Texas. I am training to become a lab manager so I can relocate to somewhere I'd like to be more.

I was told I may have to cut my hair to get the job.

I am a stellar employee. Zero disciplinary actions in my year here so far.  I work hard and both my managers love me. All the other employees respect me.

Any legal advice or am I stuck just arguing the absurdity if it?

I know it's a minor thing but I just want to be me.

Edit: There is nothing preventing me having long hair in the employee manual.

Edit 2: Thanks everyone!

Answer:
 Long hair isn't a legally protected class so there is no legal issue. You'll just have to either try to appeal to them, cut your hair, or not pursue the promotion.

I'm sure there is nothing in the employee manual stating you need to wear clothes, but that doesn't mean you should show up to work naked.Answer #2: I can fire, refuse to hire, or refuse to promote, someone with long hair unless it is due to a religious reason they cannot cut hair. Having long hair is not a protected class. You can cut your hair or you can resign yourself to the fact you will not get the job. Your choice.


Title: My ex wont move out, what can I do?

Question:
I own the home, we weren't married. She did live with me but we have broken up. I had to leave town for a new job and will be selling the house, but she won't move out. She doesn't pay the house note or anything like that. I know they have rules for evection without contracts, but can I just change the locks etc.?
Louisiana, USA

Answer: She's a tenant.  You have to go through the legal eviction process for your state.


Title: [MD] Student loan taken out in my name, but not by me.

Question:
Okay I'm not sure what to do here, I even tried contacting the actual loan office that gave the loan and that apparently did nothing. This seems very hard for me to fight since it was a loan for an online school and the person that took out the loan actually went to classes but didn't get any actual money out of it like why someone would typically take a loan out in someone else's name. It's made it impossible for me to get an actual personal loan as this shows in my credit report which is the only way I even found out about it. The big problem with fighting this was that my actual address and cell number was used, so it was me they were always trying to contact instead of the actual person who took out the loan. I do recall looking at colleges to possibly attend which is probably where this person got my information but I'm not entirely certain. I was even told I would need a suspect in mind but how am I supposed to know any of that?

Any assistance or advice on what I should do with this to contest this would be greatly appreciated. As it is I would never be able to afford a lawyer because I work for just above minimum wage.
Topic:
School Related Issues

Answer:
 You sound like a victim of identity theft. Contact the police and follow the advice here:

http://www.consumer.ftc.gov/articles/0290-repairing-your-credit-after-identity-theft


Title: [Pheonix, AZ] My grandfather remarried a wretched woman. I fear being completely cut out of the will because of her, help?

Question: [deleted]

Answer: You can't ensure anything. If he wants to give her everything, that's his choice. You have no say.


Title: When does (a parental disciplinary) spanking because assault?

Question:
Hey /r/legaladvice, settle a debate between my friends and I.

So in most places, parents are allowed to use reasonable physical force to discipline their children. This generally means spankings, and within reasonable limits (ie before it becomes abuse). It is also my understand that they're allowed to use physical force to enact these punishments as well as other parental rules (ie you can pick your 6 year old up and haul him out of walmart when he decides to throw a tantrum).

The question that I have is when does this become assault or kidnapping? Obviously for somebody to do this to another person, sans the parent-child relationship, would be assault and kidnapping respectively.

When a child turns 18, can a parent still spank them or use physical force to enforce rules? If so, when does this ability end?

Just something that's been batted around by a couple of mates, thanks guys!

Answer: When it is no longer reasonable to do so.


Title: My mom died in 2005 and the executed never probated the Will and hid it for financial gain. What can I do now?

Question: [deleted]

Answer:
 Yes. Texas allows for whats called a "determination of heirship" even if the SOL has expired (claims must be made within 2 years of you reaching the age of majority normally).

If it's determined that you were improperly left out of said will and assets weren't dispersed, you will have a claim against the executor.

You can speak to a wills/trusts/probate attorney about this.


Title: Utility refuses to remove dangerous tree

Question:
I'm in Sacramento CA and I have a tree that has grown directly into power lines behind my house. I tried hiring contractors but 5/5 refused because of the power line hazard.

I tried calling SMUD to remove it but apparently the high voltage wiring stops two houses over and refuses to address the tree because its only growing into low voltage lines.

Today a huge piece of the tree came down as I expected due to wind. It seems to have missed the line.

Am I liable if the tree growing in my backyard damages the power line? How can i convince someone to remove this tree?

Answer: You can work with the utility company to shut off power, and ask they have someone on-site while a contractor does the work.


Title: [OHIO] Name changing for a baby. Psychologists' can help?? How does that work?

Question:
So I have decided that I am going to change the last name of my son to mine (I don't know if I should mention it, or if it matters but my son is only 15 weeks old). However, I know his father will protest it (for his own selfish reasons-- he's not even involved in the child's life aside from being made to pay child support ordered by the courts).
I read online that I need to have reasons why it would be in the best interest of the child. I have already written a well thought out statement for the courts, formally requesting that they grant me the option to change his name, for when we end up having a hearing for it. (I have not gone to the clerk of courts yet for the actual required paperwork yet, I plan on doing this tomorrow...)
[side note, what I find funny is that I know right now that the father's ONLY argument is going to be "i pay child support and im on the birth certifcate." *insert eye roll here* because thats the extent of his involvement, and he hasnt even paid anything in child support yet].

ANYWAY, I also read that "psychologists or other experts can also be used to bolster your argument."
My question is, how does that work and how do I use that to my advantage?
I have been going to therapy and seeing a counselor for a few months now to deal with anxiety and such- and he has heard all about my situation with the baby's father-- about how he is un-involved, left while I was 8 months pregnant, how he is more than willing to terminate parental rights, and basically what an irresponsible deadbeat he has turned out to be... I feel like he would be more than willing to write a statement saying he believes it would also be in the child's best interest.
But am I allowed to ask him to do such a thing? And if so, what exactly needs to be said in order for me to use this document in court?
What do I do??! Please help me.

I am so very grateful for this reddit legal advice forum.. I appreciate all of you who can, and do, give the advice you can. I am a single mom and cannot afford to hire a attorney to get this all taken care of so I am so extremely grateful for you all. Thank you, so very much.

Answer: I'm sorry, this is going to be disappointing to you. There won't be a name change.


Title: I'm being asked to work 10 consecutive days and my work believes they owe me only one day of overtime because the time worked straddles a pay period.

Question:
I work at a medical office in northern California and on the weekends, I will sometimes work as administrative support/intake for the field staff. I would work Saturday as a full 8 hour day and since Sundays are slow, I would get a small stipend and get paid overtime for anything I worked over 2 hours. I would take a day off during the week preceding the weekend to make up the Saturday I worked and if the hours I worked on Sunday is 8 hours or more, then I would get a day off the next week

I used to swap off weekends with my coworker but she recently left the company and there isn’t anybody trained to work intake/support besides me and my manager.  I took a day off on May 7th because I was working the 11th and 12th. Sunday was crazy busy and I ended up working 16 hours on Sunday. I thought I was going to get Tuesday off but when I talked about it on Monday with my manager, she told me that she was going to be off and I would not get the day off. I mentioned that Tuesday would be the seventh consecutive working for me and there weren’t any other days that I could take off this week because of different meetings that I needed to be available for. My manager told me that she would authorize overtime. I was surprised they would authorize overtime for 4 whole days and I asked them about it. My manager told me that they would only pay me eight hours’ worth of overtime because the 10 consecutive days I would be working straddled a pay period and the new pay period voided the need to pay for consecutive day overtime. I’m pretty sure that’s false and they owe me time and a half for my seventh day and then double pay for days eight, nine and ten.

I was hoping to get some advice as to who is correct in this matter. I know the normal advice is to ask the EOCC but every time I’ve had time to call, their wait time was over an hour. I also want to see if anyone has advice on whether to bring this up with my company first to see if they’ll correct it themselves or if I should just go straight to making an EOCC complaint. My company is very small and HR will definitely close ranks if they feel like the company is being threatened. I’ve heard tons of stories from the people who were previously in that position that were screwed out of owed overtime but were afraid to speak up.

Thank you for taking the time to read this and respond.

Answer:
 IANAL, but I have worked payroll in CA. Unless you are a part of a collective bargaining agreement that supersedes this, you get time and a half after 8 hrs, and double time after 12. Your 16 hr day should be 8 hrs straight time, 4 hrs 1.5 time, 2 hrs double time. And a meal penalty every 6 hrs if you did not get a break of at least 1 half hour ( the MP should be your hrly rate).

Yes, you will not get 6th and 7th day pay over periods that lapse a pay period. It's a little trick companies do. Also, even if it didn't, you would get 6th day (1.5hrly), then 7th day (dbl hrly) pay, and then even if you worked an 8th consecutive day it would reset to normal pay.

You can dig around [here](https://www.dir.ca.gov/dlse/faq_overtime.htm) for more info but they basically are in the right (tho it ain't exactly "right") and you're kinda beholden to their bullshit. Remember that next time they ask for a favor.


Title: Michigan - Basically got alpha'd by a cop where I couldn't even explain my situation and got written a ticket

Question:
So I have a paper route that I do every day for an honest couple bucks.  Anyways, I deliver to the police station and my car has a weird misfire with the sparkplug where it wont go past 2000rpm if I don't stop it and turn it on.  So I stopped on the side of the road parallel to the entrance doors to the station (East Lansing, 54b district court) and turned on all four of my blinkers and dropped off the papers, went back to my car to assess what was wrong when I was confronted by the officer.  The conversation went like this:

(Officer) - Do not park there, I will write you a ticket for impeding traffic
(Me) - I do this every day for my job, most of the other officers don't mind
(Officer) - That doesn't concern me, do not park there
(Me) - okay no need to be a dick about the situation

He then, in an aggressive manner (this is at 6:30am, mind you), exits the vehicle and, in a shouting manner, demands my license. I proceeded to give my license to him and he goes to the car and writes me a ticket for impeding traffic.  Did not ask for registration and proof of insurance or even why I was parked there.  If he even asked for my registration and insurance, I could have at least justified that the car I was driving wasn't my own (its my fathers) and wasn't working properly so I stopped there for functionality purposes and dropped off the papers while I was stopped.

Is there anything I can do to fight this? get it lowered to at least the parking ticket they give you when you're car is broken down? I feel like I was just yelled over by a guy who doesn't enjoy working mornings.  Any and all advice is appreciated.  Thank you guys!

Answer:
 > Is there anything I can do to fight this?

Like what?  What's your defense?

> I feel like I was just yelled over by a guy who doesn't enjoy working mornings

Or perhaps a guy who doesn't like being called 'a dick' when he was giving you a warning.  You had the opportunity to walk away with a simple warning, but decided that insulting the cop was a smarter move.  So he pulled the warning and gave you a ticket.


Title: WA: Had surgery to excise a cyst. Doctor excised something else and didn't touch the cyst I wanted removed. Now he is saying that the cyst I wanted removed was never there, must have appeared since the surgery, and I need to pay for a second (expensive) operation to have it removed. Help?

Question:
Hi Reddit!

Throwaway because this is about butt surgery.
So about five years ago I developed a pilonidal cyst on my tailbone. It was basically like a pimple that would never completely heal. It would get irritated, drain, go away for a few weeks, rinse and repeat. I did not seek treatment for it initially because it didn’t seem particularly risky and it was at its worst mildly annoying.

About six months ago, I discovered that it had spread under my skin and had formed a second cyst about an inch below the first (I was not aware of this second cyst, more on that in a moment) and an abscess with a sinus about an inch below that. This did warrant treatment, so I went to a colorectal surgeon.

I told the doctor the issue, he took a look, said it would need surgery to remove the cyst and drain the abscess. No big deal, I got the surgery, and a few days later when I was dressing the site I noticed that the doctor had opened the abscess and removed the lower of the two cysts, but the original one on my tailbone was still there. I was bummed (hyuk hyuk) because that means I’d need another expensive procedure before the issue was fully resolved but I assumed there was probably a medical reason for this decision so I accepted it and moved on.

A couple of weeks ago I went in for a checkup, and the doctor commented “Where did this other cyst come from? That wasn’t there earlier.” I explained that it had been there for years and is what preceded the features that were removed. The doctor told me that I’m mistaken, it was definitely not there when he examined me and performed the surgery and it must have appeared since the surgery. Of course, this will require another surgery to deal with.

I told him when I went in for the initial exam that I’d had a cyst on my tailbone for years and recently the abscess had formed (I couldn’t feel and didn’t know about the second cyst that he did remove.) This cyst is a very visible even when it is not inflamed as it has built up a lot of scar tissue over the last few years, and it was the only one directly on my tailbone which is what I asked him to treat. Also he had to probe around to see how these features were connected to each other, and it's one big channel going from the top cyst to the abscess on the bottom.

I feel like I did not receive the full treatment I asked for and paid for and now I have to do the exact same surgery a second time. It would have been one thing if it was medically necessary to do this in two procedures, but I was essentially told that it wasn’t removed because he just hadn’t noticed it and there is no reason it couldn’t have been removed if he had noticed it. Even with decent insurance and my deductible met, this surgery cost me $2,000 out of pocket. I’m in my early 20s and do not have a lot of extra money lying around, $2,000 was devastating just the one time.

Am I way off base here? Do I have any recourse, or am I just stuck with having to do it again? The problem is just going to come back if this original cyst isn’t dealt with so my hands are tied there, but I feel like it’s the doctor’s error for not removing it and I shouldn’t be forced to pay twice as much as anybody else to make up for that error. Is there anything I can do about this? Amy advice about how to proceed would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks for taking the time to read!

Answer:
 If your doctor is saying he never knew about the tailbone cyst/abscess, then you didn't pay for it. Your surgery and its cost were based on the actual medical procedures they did perform. You need to determine if any of the medical records made reference to the tailbone cyst, and that the doctor did actually fail to remove it. Answer #2: Request your records and have your GP take a look at them.

If you were referred or anyone else looked at it first, it would have been int he paperwork your surgeon saw, most likely.

If another doctor supports your idea that the cyst was definitely there and should have been removed during the surgery, maybe you can talk to the doctor and get it worked out.

Alternatively,  you may be able to complain about the doctor to some licensing board if the paperwork clearly indicate it was there and should have been removed. That would likely be free and might get him to remove it for free.Answer #3: not really worth pursuing for $2000, but don't use this doctor again


Title: [NY, NY] Is there a limit to how many cats you can have?

Question:
Not asking for myself, but for my former landlady. She has about five adult cats living with her and an untold amount of stray kittens, and she feeds I don't even know how many stray cats outside where the kittens come from. She participates in a lot of TNR programs but puts out so much food that new, unfixed stray cats are constantly showing up and staying. (I moved because I like cats but not like 30 in the backyard.) Is she a hoarder? She actively works with the ASPCA, so I'm not sure what the ASPCA would do. Do I have any obligation for the cats' sake to call someone about her? Is what she's doing legally okay/not violate health ordinances? I know the neighbors have complained because the stray cats poop in their flowers and kill all the pigeons, would it be up to them?

FWIW, the indoor cats all seem pretty healthy and enjoy having a colony and a safe space to sleep, and she's very diligent about administering medications that some of them need, but there are SO MANY CATS and I keep seeing pregnant kittens outside because the population is getting out of control and it was all congregating in the backyard before I left.

Answer: Varies by state and city.  I worked at a kitten rescue run by a woman who had 80 cats in her average-sized suburban house.  Her neighbors never knew (she kept the cats all in cages) until she died and her husband (with a sigh of relief I'm sure) moved all the stuff out.Answer #2: I do not know the laws, but if you have any concerns you can call the aspca to report them. They will know and can act on it if appropriate. they do not go easy on someone just because they are aspca involved.


Title: [CA] Sister bought a used car... Can it be returned?

Question:
So my sister bought a used car that she probably should not have.  My sister has a history of mental problems (diagnosed bipolar) and she went to a used car sales lot and came out of there with a 2012 VW Beetle with 125k miles for about 12k.  This was 4 days ago.  Fast forward family deciding for her to return the car I was tasked to read the contract.

I found a 'Seller's Right to Cancel' passage on the contract and it says the vehicle can be returned 10 day from contract date provided that the car is in the same condition (the car is still at the lot).  However, on the next page my sister signed a paper that says she is choosing NOT to purchase a contract cancellation option and proceeds to say California does not provide for a "cooling off" period etc.  So is my sister screwed and has to keep the car now?  Is there anyway to return this purchase at all?

Answer:
 Assuming your sister isn't declared mentally incompetent, it's her car.  She needs to pick it up before they tow it

Exception is if she bought it from car max type of place and has a return policy


Title: TN, US Amazon pulled automatic payment off of wrong card, caused me to overdraft. Costed me $250 in overdraft fees on my debit card.

Question: Basically title. I ordered a computer and set up auto withdrawal on my sisters card. They tried to pull it a couple times but her anti theft blocked the payment, so they charged my card. It caused me to overdraft multiple times, at $36 each time, costing me $252. Are they allowed to pull it off of my card, without my authorization? Also, they said they couldn't refund it to my card and pull it off of hers, since the payment was already made. Doing so would counteract the overdraft fees.

Answer:
 > Are they allowed to pull it off of my card, without my authorization?

Yes, the primary payment method you selected failed, so Amazon fell back to a secondary payment method on your account. Was this an item that you bought on a payment plan from Amazon?

&#x200B;


Title: [VA] Looking to break my lease for my apartment. May have found a loophole but wanted feedback.

Question: [deleted]

Answer:
 > Is it possible that I can use this as a negotiation to break a lease without penalty since they have broken federal law?

No and it borderlines extortion to try. You can however report to EPA **IF** Upon reviewing your lease you don't find a form that looks like this https://portal.hud.gov/hudportal/documents/huddoc?id=DOC_12345.pdf

If you are living in a multi-family apartment managed by any half-way professional management, this was in your lease.


Title: False advertising of schools and discrimination in special education

Question: [deleted]

Answer: So you want to sue your high school because you are not doing well in college and can't get a job?  Sorry, not how the world works.


Title: Workman's comp denied my surgery and called my shoulder injury preexisting.. It wasn't. Do I need a lawyer to appeal it with the labor commission? (Utah)

Answer:
 Aggravation of pre existing injuries is generally covered by workers compensation.

Retain a workers compensation attorney, they make everything buttery smooth.


Title: [California] Sent a married couple to collections...

Question:
I am a landlord in California and I recently evicted one of my tenants for damages to the house and missing rent. They weren't paying up, so I sent both the husband and the wife to collections.

The issue is, the husband is disputing the claim, as he never signed the lease agreement. Both the husband and the wife's names are on the agreement, but only the wife actually signed the agreement.

Is there a law in California that puts both of them financially responsible even if only the wife signed the agreement?

Answer: He was at least a month-to-month tenant, even if he didn't sign the lease. He's got liability either way.


Title: Can a debt collector levy my bank account after my employer refused to garnish because I have the maximum amount allowable going out to other creditors?

Question:
So, I suppose this about the "25% of disposable wage" rule. The debt collector in question is serving a legal judgement to collect on an outstanding credit card debt. They attempted to garnish my wages, but my employer refused because I already pay approximately $1k a month in child support and additional $900 to a 401k loan that can't be renegotiated. After taxes, this leaves me about $1500 a month net income (take home pay).

My wages are direct deposit. Today, out of nowhere, I find out my checking account balance is $0. The cc debt collector got a writ of non periodic garnishment against the account. It was $726 and a $125 fee from the bank.

Is this something I can dispute using the "maximum allowable amount being paid to others" rule?

I'm in Michigan.

Answer: Have you talked to a bankruptcy lawyer? If not, I'd say you're well to the point where that should probably be your next stop.Answer #2: Was this a one time withdrawal for the full amount, or do you owe more? I'd suggest taking to HR to get you a paper check for the time being so you don't find yourself with no money until you can figure this out.


Title: HELP! TEXAS LEGAL ADVICE NEEDED!

Question: Hey guys, long story short, my friends were driving from our hometown to Dallas to visit me. On their way in Livingston, Texas, my friends got pulled over for speeding ten miles over. They proceeded to say they smelt weed and ended up searching and my friend came forward saying it was his. He is now in a crappy jail over night on a friday (which I though judges were for Saturday or Sunday if you couldn't get bail? Question on that too). My other friend who was Ok'd with and set to go, has realized the cops still have her ID. She has called the station and said something but said they "will get back to her". My friend, inside now, can't see a judge until noon tomorrow. ANY ADVICE or answers would be much appreciated. ALSO, we know very little about this county so any answers are welcomed!

Answer: The friend in jail should get friends to start looking for a local lawyer who does know the county.


Title: If I'm currently enrolled in college, can my mother take me out for any reason?

Question:
I'm about to start my second year of college in the fall. However, my mother is threatening to pull me out of my university over an argument about my major of choice.

She is currently co-signing on both the federal subsidized and unsubsidized loans that she told me to take out to help pay for the costs. I was told (not by her) that once I graduate, those loans will become my full responsibility unless I did something like declare bankruptcy. I was also told that the government would be able to work with me to make a plan for properly paying them back if I was having a hard time finding a job out of school.

If that's true, would she be able to take me out of college under those circumstances and possibly a few that I might not be aware of? If anyone has any idea, please let me know.

Answer:
 She will not be able to take you out. Cosigning entails that if you fail to pay she agrees to make payments ont the loan. Not paying would affect her credit. There are situations where you can defer payments or make smaller payments depending on your situation and occupation but she cannot remove you from university because you are an adult who can make adult decisions.Answer #2: The loans are both you and your mothers responsibility as you both signed for them. You cannot bankrupt student loans except in rare circumstances. I don't see how she can pull you out of the semester or year is already paid for. You're a legal adultAnswer #3: She cant. Also, bankruptcy does not include student loans.Answer #4: She cannot pull you out.

However, if she were to use some other form of leverage to force you to drop out, *I believe* you would be looking at an accelerated loan payback schedule that starts immediately. Since you are both on the loan, (and assuming you don't have a career otherwise), this means thst she would be placing herself in a position to- as cosigner- have to ensure those payments get made, or watch her credit get destroyed along with yours.


Title: Missed a court date and not sure what to expect.

Question:
I just discovered that I had a court date on May 9th. I missed the date as I had mistakenly put it in my calendar and phone as June 9th instead of May. I just discovered I was wrong when I found the slip they gave me while looking for some financial documents. I know obviously I now have a bench warrant. I will be able to goto the court on Monday morning (have to work today or I would go) but I'm terrified that the judge may not recall the warrant due to the time that has passed since I was supposed to appear.

Non-violent misdemeanor and have completed all but one term of my probation. All fines are paid in full, all required classes and meeting have be completed and some of this has been since I last appeared in court. I am taking the charges seriously and have actively been working towards completing my probation but am now terrified the judge may throw out all of the work I've done. I'm located in Louisiana

Answer:
 Call your lawyer, ASAP.

How big of an effect this will have will depend on the judge.  People do make honest mistakes and if you've been fulfilling all the other terms of your probation on time and without issue, there's a fairly decent chance that the judge will be willing to let it slide.

Worst case, your lawyer can likely get the warrant quashed so you don't have that hanging over your head while you're fixing the rest of it.


Title: [FL] Mortgage was bought by new bank and now demanding windstorm insurance

Question: [deleted]

Answer:
 > Borrower shall keep the improvements now existing or hereafter erected on the Property insured against loss by fire hazards included within the term extended coverage **and any other hazards [...] for which Lender requires insurance**

I think that windstorm probably falls within the category of "any other hazards".  If you think that it is unreasonable to require windstorm insurance in your area, you can try to make an argument that the lender is violating the implied covenant of good faith and fair dealing by asking you to get that insurance, but by the terms of the loan that you posted, they do seem to have a somewhat legitimate right to ask you to get it.

Edit: typo


Title: What can I do about someone stealing and profiting from my art?

Question: I'm not sure if this is the right place to ask this, but here it goes. I make fan art. There's this website that hasn't only copy/pasted basically everything I've ever made in the last few years, but is also making a profit off of them. I've reported and had dozens of others report his various social media pages. Is there anything else I can do?

Answer: DMCA may also work.Answer #2: Not a lawyer, but: Talk to a lawyer about copyright infringement. Might send a notorized C&D (Cease and Desist) letter.


Title: Car seat legalities? IL

Question:
Hey legal advice

I was hoping to avoid buying a new car if I can. Anyway onto my question, is it legal or safe to put a carseat in my passenger seat? I can't really afford a new car so I'm hoping my five seater will work or if I have to bite the bullet and get a new car/minivan? Google only points me to articles about carseat safety.

Thanks in advance!

Edit: Looks like I'll be getting a new car like I thought. Thanks everyone for your advice, even if it is legal I'm just gonna get a bigger car for safety.

Answer:
 Legally yes as long as you can turn your passanger airbag off. If you cannot then DO NOT PUT IT THERE.

Answer #2: IANAL, but I have been a CPST (certified child passenger safety technician) for many years. It is illegal to use a seat improperly, or against manufacturer's instructions, so besides being incredibly unsafe, you cannot legally use any rear-facing seat in front of an airbag. It is otherwise legal to have a child up front when all backseat spaces are already occupied by other children.

The new baby will obviously be rear-facing and the 18-month-old should be as well, so they need to be in back.

Best practice when you need to put a child up front is that the oldest forward-facing harnessed child should be in the front seat. If the 6-year-old is still in a harnessed seat or you are able to put him or her back into a harnessed seat, then he or she should be up front. If the 6-year-old is in a booster, then put the 3-year-old in a harnessed seat up front.

EDIT: I see that you are planning to get a new vehicle, which is clearly the best and safest choice, but I am going to leave this screed in case it is of interest to anyone who is not able to get a new vehicle for a fourth child.


Title: New owner of our house in NC is threatening to have locksmith unlock our doors while we're abroad

Question:
My husband has lived in this house for 30+ years, I moved in after we got married 10 years ago, during this time we have paid the property taxes plus a small rent, in cash, to his grandparents who own the house. Just about a month ago the grandparents have deeded our house to his eldest son, since then he's been trying to push us out quickly, we have signed a lease to rent another house but that doesn't go into effect for another month.

We have been really polite and willing to work with him to let a contractor into our house to give him an estimate on remodeling the place, we've have given him plenty of chances to do so before leaving for our international trip, which had been schedule for a year in advance, now that we're gone he's tried to get into the house, along with a relative that has a copy of our keys for emergencies, the key didn't work and now he's threatening to call a locksmith to get in tomorrow with a contractor.

We don't have proof of paying rent/taxes to the grandparents for the time we've lived there. How can we stop him from getting into our house, since it now belongs to him? We have not been served an eviction notice. Do we have any rights?

We do not have cellphone coverage and our internet if very spot, the best way to reach him is via e-mail. Should we send him an e-mail letting him know that we intend to press charges if he gets inside?

Answer:
 > How can we stop him from getting into our house, since it now belongs to him?

You don't, because it's not your house.  He has a reasonable right of inspection and repair of the property.  He's giving you plenty of notice(more than 24 hours, right?) and there's no issue with him entering, having keys to the place, or re-keying the place if he does not have keys.

Your smart move is to make him a new set of keys, so you don't have to have the place re-keyed.


Title: [NYC] 25F with a very rare autoimmune disease terminated by employer exactly 12 weeks after diagnosis. Employers told me I could work from home in writing and we all agreed that is why I didn't sign FMLA. Sue for wrongful termination?

Question:
Hi all.

TLDR: employer fired me after exactly 12 weeks of being diagnosed with Goodpastures syndrome after promising I could work from home.

Throwaway for reasons.

So it is a bit of a story. I'll give the employment side first and then the medical side and then I'll tie it all together.

The first of July 2018 I was hired by a firm. I am relatively young to be a trader, 25, but have developed a lot of great relationships since I started at 21. I am (or was) an associate at a small b/d in Manhattan. Throughout the year I was given more responsibility, and was trained to trade in a completely new product. I was fired Monday for "performance issues".

Now to medical. In January I got pneumonia. I was out for ~2 weeks. Thinking I was better, I returned to work. I seemed to be fine. In April, I was admitted to the hospital with a kidney infection and sepsis. I was out in four days, only two being work days. About 3 weeks later I developed kidney issues again, and luckily a doctor took a chance on me and started autoimmune testing. After a renal biopsy I was diagnosed with Goodpastures syndrome, which in short is when your body attacks your kidneys and lungs and they bleed out. I was diagnosed early enough to only have to go through dialysis for a few months (still going), but the treatment is brutal. 6 weeks of plasmapheresis and 4+ months of chemotherapy and Prednisone. If you're wondering, I'm doing better, but chemo sucks a ton.

Anyways, I alerted my employer about my illness and my doctors recommendations. Clearly for the first six weeks I would definitely NOT be able to work. As I have been getting "better" or showing less symptoms, at 10 weeks my doctor said it would be okay to work from home and it would probably lift my spirits. I communicated this to my boss and HR and both, in writing, said this would be okay and my boss laid out specific tasks I would do. The week I would start working from home was the week of July 15.

Now, because I was only employed since July 1, I was ineligible to receive FMLA benefits. As my illness and employment continued past July 1st 2019 I was eligible. HR sent me over FMLA documentation and asked if I wanted to proceed. This is where problems begin. We had already determined that I would begin working from home as of July 15 in writing by both my boss with acknowledgement from HR. This would provide me with my full paycheck and also help me get back to a semi normal schedule. I showed the paperwork to the hospital attorneys and they advised me NOT to sign because not only did it not guarantee pay it actually had a clause that didn't guarantee employment. I told them I would be working from home based on my doctors recommendations and my boss and hrs views and they doubled down. The day after the paperwork was due, my employer fired me.

I realize I am an at will employee. I also realize I have this strange autoimmune disease that makes it difficult to return to work. However, exactly 12 weeks after my first day out, they terminated me. I feel like this is a wrongful and discriminatory termination due to my health and being the "new girl", although I probably brought the most profit to my desk in comparison to my colleagues due to my relationships. When terminating me, they said performance but could not name a specific example. Furthermore, I have never had a performance review that I have signed listing "bad performance" or whatever, because I grew the business.

Obviously I'm personally angry from a morality standpoint but I believe I was terminated for my illness rather than what they call "performance". I am a high income earner and they offered me 42,000 as a severance. I am furious at this number knowing the revenue I brought in, and knowing it basically equates to 12 weeks of pay. I expected a nice bonus this year and I feel like I'm getting slapped in the face for something I can't control and for something that my bosses and me agreed on, that I would work from home IN WRITING. do I have any case for wrongful termination? I am happy to provide more details if there are questions.

Answer:
 I’m concerned about the hospital’s lawyers giving you legal advice. You should have contacted a lawyer that represented youAnswer #2: This is way above reddits paygrade. You need to seek legal advice from your own lawyer, many plaintiff's employment lawyers will do so for free.

>I realize I am an at will employee. I also realize I have this strange autoimmune disease that makes it difficult to I am a high income earner

This is a good reason not to seek legal advice on reddit.

>and they offered me 42,000 as a severance. I am furious at this number knowing the revenue I brought in, and knowing it basically equates to 12 weeks of pay.

Again, a serious reason not to rely on reddit for answers. You are describing complicated employment issues worth (at least what you believe is) substantial money money. Get a legal opinion you'll know you can rely on.Answer #3: They offered a reasonable accommodation to work from home and you turned it down. I don’t see how you have a case here.


Title: (MD) Rear-Ended a Police Car While High, Think I Might Have Gotten Away With It

Answer:
 Is your passport up to date?  You can get some really cheap real estate in Greece right about now. Answer #2: Right now that cop is pulling all the private surveillance camera footage in the area to get your plate.Answer #3: This happened last night and you think you got away with it?

Start looking for a good lawyer.Answer #4: If this is legit, you should delete this post immediately.  Next you should park your car in a garage out of site for a long time, don't drive it anymore

Don't talk to anyone about this, and when the police come knocking say nothing, and call your lawyer.

Consult a lawyer now itself., probably on retainer.

Absolutely don't even mention weed, ever.Answer #5: Just to be sure you should post some more about it in a few more places.

I know that any time I think I've gotten away with a crime I make sure that I tell as many people about it as possible.

Perhaps you should get a billboard?Answer #6: push your car into a quarry lake and flee the state.  that cop is gonna be looking for you until he catches you or retires. you have made powerful enemies OP, and are a wanted man. Answer #7: Stop doing drugs, don't tell anyone what happened, and pray that they didn't get a license plate number off you as you drove off, or anything else that might identify the car and lead them to you.  If a police officer shows up at your door, decline to talk to them without a lawyer.  Better start looking for lawyers now.


Title: Got Rear ended, but worried I might hold some of the fault

Question: [deleted]

Answer: no, you sound like 100% at fault unless in a comparative state and other drivers actions were contributory.


Title: Dad bought me a house, now, 3 years later, he wants to charge me for it.

Question:
Like the title states, my dad bought a house with money he got from an insurance settlement when he found out we were expecting his grandchild.  Thanks to a depressing spiral into alcoholism he and my mother are getting a divorce and he has decided that buying that house was her idea and now he wants me to pay him for it.

We live in Washington state, the title is in my name.  Is there anything he can do to force me to pay him for this place?

Answer: No, probably not. He may be able to become a giant pain in your ass though. Your best bet is probably to smooth things over as best you can.


Title: Missouri: Landlord ending lease so daughter can move to property

Question: [deleted]

Answer:
 > is 30 days adequate notice to terminate a rental agreement?

For a month-to-month, yes.


Title: Dad stole daughter's birth certificate and son's passport

Question:
My friend's parents recently got divorced and her father is left with 10% custody. This guy recently moved out but keeps coming back for stuff. He stole her birth certificate and her brother's passport. He also let their dogs out and the dogs got injured, leaving my friend's mom to pay the vet bills.

Basically, she wants to find out if there's any legal action that can be taking. Is what he did illegal and what would the crime be? Can they take him to court over this?

Edit: this is in Southern California

Answer:
 Change the locks. He can make an appointment to come get his stuff when someone else is there. They could try to small claims the vet bills if they can prove it was him to let the dogs out to be injured.

For the birth certificate and passport you could report the theft to the police. They may or may not treat it as a civil matter though. If they do, report the passport as lost/stolen and have the brother apply for a replacement. The daughter can also contact the state she was born in for a copy of her birth certificate so it can also be fairly easily replaced.


Title: My neighbors are insane

Question:
So the context, my wife and I live in a townhouse, and our neighbor has some sort of allergy to odors. As such they asked us to stop using Glade and febreeze and thing's of that sort because it apparently seeps through the common wall and into their house causing her reactions.
We did as they asked trying to be good neighbors. Well they keep complaining of the odor, even though we can't smell it on our end. Even though our association has sent in two different expert's to look into this and found nothing.
In retaliation they had an "anonymous" call put into the Health department, which caused a representative to come to our house. They found that the claims against us we're unfounded. Laughed it off with us and left.
They then had a case opened up against us with DCFS. Claimed they're doctor called it in based on things they had told them during a visit.  After a month they also deemed our case to be unfounded.
Now they are picking at us again. Twice now in the last week they've pushed and pushed themselves into our house to try and find the scent(in 4 years they haven't). Even though I keep telling them no. We're just to scared of what they're going to try and do to us next.
The police say we should get a civil no contact order, but we don't know if it will actually stop these Maniacs.
Do we have any legal recourse?? Please help us.
Topic:
Other Civil Matters

Answer:
 Get a civil no-contact order, as the police recommended. Then, if they try to contact you again, you can call the police and they will be arrested.

In the meanwhile, do not let them push their way into your home. Don't even answer the door. Just stop all communications with them.


Title: When the land moves due to earthquakes, how does that affect property lines?

Answer: Property lines remain the same - physical boundaries are redrawn if necessary.


Title: Got my weed confiscated while I was work, what should I do?

Question:
So a couple weeks ago, the cops were called to my grandmas house & property who was on hospice. I live in Utah where weed is illegal. The cops apparently got a search warrant at 3 AM because my cousin called because of intruders (though that was probably a lie). They left a seizure recipt and the warrant paper and told me to call their front desk at the police department.

&#x200B;

I hired a lawyer and the prosecutor hasn't pressed any charges, what should I do? My lawyer also says not to move out of state because that's running away?

Answer: Listen to your lawyer, don't talk to the police without your lawyer present, and cross your fingers for a plea deal or deferred adjudication on this. "I need it for my anxiety" is not a defence to a possession charge in Utah.


Title: My roommate invites skeevy guys over and sometimes she isn't in the apartment with them. She has given her room key to some of them so they can just walk in too. Can I call the police if they refuse to leave when I ask? [Virginia]

Answer: If she gave them permission to be there, they can be there. Answer #2: Does your lease have any limitations on guests?Answer #3: Get the landlord involved. There's no way she's not breaking the lease, and if she gets evicted, then the unsavoury characters go with her.