Title: [PA] Police threatened me saying I'd be lucky to see 22 if I didn't move out of the way

Question:
So, I'm a college student in Pennsylvania, and as you can assume this has to do with liquor and alcohol and a whole bunch of other stuff.

Basically, I had friends over for drinks and we got a noise complaint. I opened the door and tried to get them to leave (obviously didn't happen). When I told them they weren't allowed to enter (I was honestly under that impression), one officer told me to step out of the way. Later on I got threatened that if I didn't move out of the way i'd be lucky to see 22 (I'm 21). The incident dealt with underage people drinking but no one got a citation or anything. My questions really arise around the whole threat and actually when police can enter a house in PA. I've been told before that they can't enter your house without a warrant, but they said that was false. I also feel like  police can't threaten you and push you around without you acting out physically yourself, but I could be totally wrong. I honestly just want to make sure that the police were acting justly and had the right to do what they did.

Also the same officer said she'd faceplant me on any other day but she was in a good mood. I really didn't push or shove or anything. I just said "I think you need a warrant" and (mistakenly) placed my hands on her like I would in a real situation without police.

Just, please, let me know if they were right or not. It's silently beating me up even though I basically saved all my friends from the blame. I want to contact an attorney if they were in the fault however. I just know nothing about law.

Answer: You placed your hands on a police officer? Am I reading that right?


Title: Help with my neighbor’s backyard breeding

Question: [deleted]

Answer:
 Have you called Animal Control?Answer #2: Also check your city’s ordinances on how many animals are allowed. Many cities have rules like only 4 animals allowed/only 4 animals 2 cats & 2 dogs/no intact(not spayed or neutered) dogs/no Pitbulls or Bully Breeds(I hate Breed Specific Legislation, but it may help both you and the dogs in this situation)/No breeding animals without a license/etc. Most cities have all the rules on their websites if you google Your City Animal Control.

I worked at an animal shelter for years so had to get really familiar with all the city rules on how many and what kind of animals were allowed in my area.Answer #3: \> We hear them hitting the dogs rather often.

and you've done nothing about that?Answer #4: What does your local zoning say for kennels? Normally if you have so many dogs over a certain age you need a kennel permit to do that. Also kennels many times have requirements for size of dog runs and distance from property lines as well as poo management having setback from property lines.


Title: [Utah] Bought my ex-girlfriend a dog, however, I continued to pay for the animal do I have any rights?

Question:
I've read extensively about the limits of the law when it comes to gift giving. He was technically a "gift" however, I continued to provide for the dog. His microchip is in my name. I pay for the microchip to remain active. I am paying for his neutering. I've been paying for his food, treats, toys etc. Things have gone particularly sour since the break up. Despite the fact that I continue to support this woman and keep her on her feet. I'm just wondering if there is anyway I have a legal right to this pup or if I'm shit out luck. My reading really hadn't covered this.

Edit: She has claimed she will be calling the microchip company with some crock story that I hacked into their database to change information. It has never been in her name, ever. I have receipts of his purchase. Receipts of me keeping his microchip active. It's absolutely ridiculous.

Edit: Misleading title due to my haste and frustrations. The dog in question was not given as a gift. She has since claimed he was a gift.

Answer:
 IANAL.

>He was technically a "gift" however

You've answered your own question. You can't create a property interest in someone else's dog by buying it food.


Title: What would happen if I brought a gun into a no gun zone and happened to kill some terrorists? Would I be prosecuted?

Question:
I'm not planning on doing that, but if it did happen, what would happen to me? I don't think a person should serve time for protecting others from terrorism. Nobody should serve time for saving the lives of others regardless of how many violations that person brought on to themselves. What do you guys think?

location: USA. more specifically New York, NY

Answer:
 The chance that you protect anyone from terrorism is so low that it's statistically impossible. In fact, I do not think there has ever been a terrorist attack foiled by an armed citizen let alone an illegally armed one.

Odds are you will be found carrying a gun some other way and face considerable criminal penalties for doing so.


Question:
Is there one specific law that says contracts must be followed?

Or is it a bunch of different laws?

Or is it just a common law principle?

What's the constitutional basis?

Answer: It's a common law tradition. State-specific laws also apply. The idea of enforceable agreements existed waaaaaay before the Constitution. The Constitution is about the government's role and the people's and states' rights against the government. It's not the source for all legal causes of action.


Title: High school teacher talking about my grades to other students

Question:
Hi,

I wanted to know if this is legal? My high school English teacher was talking about my grades to other students in different hours. Located in Michigan.

Answer:
 IANAL. Been in education for a while.

FERPA involves your grades being disclosed to other parties without you or (if you're a minor) your parent's consent. That is illegal under the statute.

This requires identifiable information disclosed to third parties without consent.

Example: Me saying "John Smith is not doing well in my class" is not actionable under FERPA.

Saying "John Smith has a failing grade in my class" is actionable.

Exceptions: Your parents allowed it, your teacher is disclosing it to other staff, you have already disclosed said information.

If you have a FERPA violation speak to your parents and file a complaint [here](http://familypolicy.ed.gov/complaint-form)


Title: (AZ) Friend wants me to report her two vehicles as abandoned then transfer the title back to her after 45 days.

Question: [deleted]

Answer:
 Don't do it.

You friend doesn't own the vehicles on paper her mom does. It reads to me as if she is trying to use you to potentially fraudulently obtain ownership or else she could ask her mom to transfer the titles.

(think also about the possible tax implecations)Answer #2: That is no friend at all. Tell this person you don't want any part of it and to keep you out. She will be mad and leave you alone....keep it that way.Answer #3: No. Just no.

Look at it this way: if she wants to report abandoned vehicles on her property then she can do it. Why involve you?

And don't get me started on the whole "they are under her mother's alias." thing


Title: Friend hit by school bus, cop says its his fault. does he have a case?

Question:
In California

here is the pic to help better understand the situation... http://imgur.com/a/hi2aU white cars are others, red is my friends and yellow is the bus.

they are at a one lane intersection with a stop sign. the street is backed up pretty far with cars. there is a car in front of red who is also making a right hand turn.. the street is wide enough so they can make a right hand turn without waiting.. pretty common in my city to have wide streets for cars to do this.. the car in from of my friends (red) turns right as the car in front of the bus goes forward.. Red and yellow arrive to the stop sight at about to same time. my friend pulls ahead of the schoolbus a bit to see the traffic coming from the left.. as he is turning right to his surprise the bus is making a right hand turn as well, he pulls as far right as he can but the bus hits him doesnt stop and continues to drive all the way through him then stops.

cop says since its not a turning lane its his fault even though there were several witnesses that said that red was at the stop first, pulled ahead of the bus to see more and then made his turn, the bus should have seen him.. i have no idea. what do you guys know about this kind of a case?

Answer: It was a one lane intersection. Period. Friend should not have been on the right side of the bus.


Title: [GA] Neighbor's outdoor cat won't stop harassing my indoor cat

Question:
I live in apartment complex in Fulton County, GA with my indoor cat (moved in July of this year). My neighbors directly below me also own a cat, but their cat is outside for most of the day, every day. I have a window in my living room that my cat enjoys sitting/laying in while watching squirrels, birds and whatever else is going on outside.

The problem I'm having is that their cat keeps coming up to my front door, which is on the same side and about 4 feet from my kittie's window, and will sit there and stare and meow at my cat. It will even lean as far forward as it can through the railing to get as close as possible to my cat in the window. This of course freaks my cat out and she will growl, whine, meow really loudly and literally start shaking until the cat goes away. Just as a fyi - I have no idea about the gender of their cat and yes, my cat has been fixed.

I've knocked on their door previously and asked them to remove their cat and to please keep it inside because it's bothering my cat. I've contacted the leasing office and offered to show them multiple videos and pictures of various incidents, but nothing has changed. I actually ran into a guy from the leasing office yesterday (had no idea he lived below the people with the cat) and asked me if if I've had any further issues with their cat. I asked if they had said something to them and he said no. I also asked about the many stray cats we have in the neighborhood and he said that animal control and rescue groups will do nothing about them unless the animals are being abused or in danger.

What other options do I have? I believe I read that leash laws don't really apply to cats like they do dogs, but it's becoming very frustrating that my cat is being continually being harassed sitting in her apartment by this damn neighbor cat who keeps invading her space. And I'm sure it happens more often than I've actually witnessed since I'm gone 8-9 hours a day for work 3 days a week.

Answer:
 You have no legal recourse.

It’s a cat. It will be just fine.


Title: (KY) Best way to get a news article removed?

Question:
A local news station and college picked up the 'story' of my case a few years back. When I google my name both of these articles show up on the front page. What would be the process to getting these removed? Do I have to hire a lawyer to do so, or could I just threaten the sources with a suit? Or could I just hire someone tech savvy to fix the way the search turns out? Thanks in advance.
Topic:
Computer and Internet

Answer: Ask super super nicely if they would remove it. They are under no legal obligation to remove the story. A search engine optimizer is likley the easiest option here. Answer #2: You can't.  It's not illegal to write true and accurate stories about you.


Title: Hit by drunk driver and I have to pay $1500 to LA water department for fire hydrant damages?

Question: [deleted]

Answer: If you had a stop sign why did you continue when the driver was coming towards you?Answer #2: You caused and accident but the other driver happened to be drunk. LA is holding you accountable for the accident as the only thing done wrong by the other guy was that he was over the legal limit to drive. You are at fault here and should inform your insurance.


Title: (New Mexico) Someone left the water running and now we are on the hook for $10K

Question:
I live in a condo, which means in our case the HOA pays the water gas and sewer. The board reached out to all of us to ask if anyone knew what they could do about this.

Here's the situation:
We all have swamp coolers (aka evaporative coolers) and if you don't know, they get filled up with water. Well once they are filled, the water usage is very little. Setting these up every summer is the responsibility of us who live there. According to the board, someone let their's overflow and continue to do so without fixing it, or notifying anyone.

Now the water bill for this month was 10K, and the board says we will basically all have to pitch in if they can't do anything about it. Can the board do anything to make the idiot who left their water running pay for this, instead of passing on the cost to us?

Answer: should be a meter for every single unit, using that they can track who caused the issue. If not thats a LARGE GLARING issue if everyone is on the same meter.Answer #2: What is a normal water bill? Is the $10K *in addition to* the normal monthly water bill? Can a single swamp cooler really trickle out enough "extra" water to generate $10,000 water charge by itself? If it was a huge amount of water, constantly flowing, why wouldn't the offending unit, and/or unit below (if offender wasn't ground floor), have obvious water damage from flooding?


Title: [Hawaii] My mom just discovered her husband has been using money from her business AND personal checking accounts to pay off his personal debts

Question:
My mom recently discovered that my stepfather has been using her company funds and personal funds to pay bills, pay off his credit card, and a few other things along those lines as well as make personal purchases etc.

They have been married for about 7 years and together for about 15. She is the clear breadwinner of the two and owns her own small business and makes probably 4-5x what he makes in any given year.

As far as I know, his name is not attached to the business in any way (although he did start doing the books about 2 years ago which is when this all started) and although he had access to her personal checking account, I do not believe that his name is on the account. If it matters, they live in Hawaii but the business is technically based in New Jersey.

Beyond the obvious personal and relationship nightmare that this creates, I’m wondering what legal action if any she should be taking to protect herself and potentially take action against him.

Thanks and let me know if you need any more information.

Answer: She needs to talk to an attorney in her jurisdiction. Depending on how the business is set up it can sue him civilly to recover the funds but it may also consider criminal embezzlement  or other criminal changes. But that’s really going to be a question of exactly how their business and finances are set up. You can consult with local DA’s white collar crime division but I’d probably have business hire attorney and start there.


Title: Being paid $5 an hour without tips as a delivery driver, boss now wants me to work register too regularly for same amount of money

Question: Hey so I'm a delivery driver in Florida. I work for a newish business with fairly lax regulations. I really like my two bosses, they're nice, but their boss is now trying to make it so that I also work the cash register regularly. We can go for hours without having a delivery, so this would be a pretty big part of the job. I'm still technically earning minimum wage, they keep track of how much I make in tips and stuff, but they are only paying me $5 an hour before taxes. Is this legal? If not, what should I do?

Answer: If you are working a significant amount of time behind the register (like greater than 20%) then legally they have to pay you the actual minimum wage for that time worked.


Title: My landlord humiliated me today. Help with lease question.

Question:
Throwaway here, from California. My landlord came over today to show the condo that we live in to two realtors. We have lived here an entire year and decided to sign again, but this time would be a 6-month lease. We have until April 30 to live here. The only thing is, the lease was signed here and then she took it with her to make copies at her home. She promised to send an electronic copy when she got back (she lives in Northern California; I live in Southern), but hasn't. It has been about 4 months now, and when she said she was coming down to visit, she'd bring the copy of the lease or send it (I have this in a text).

When she came over with the realtors, she accused the bathroom of being unsalvageable and in horrible condition. People, I cleaned the bathroom before she came, I would never in my right mind leave a dirty bathroom for her to show realtors. It wasn't perfect and can use a bit of a scrub, which I will get to when it's time to move out. Anyway, she embarrassed me so bad by saying all of her thoughts out loud, including swear words. I think she was trying to be cool in front of her male realtors and it was totally humiliating and cringey.

I just feel really uncomfortable living here and giving her more money. What I need to ask, is if she never sent us that signed lease, is it valid? She also promised to fix a broken window that's been in our living room since before we even moved in and never has. We have spent a fortune in heating/cooling bills.

I am also afraid she is going to keep all of our deposit which was over $2,000. Do I have the ability to leave earlier than the lease said if I give 30 days notice?

Answer: Take photos of the entire apartment before leaving. A video would probably be a good idea too. Plan to take 20 minutes or more just taking photos/video.Answer #2: You signed the lease. The fact that she embarrassed you during her visit does not provide you with legal grounds to terminate the lease early. If you are worried she will not return the security deposit, make sure to clean the condo well before you leave, and take plenty of pictures.


Title: If you can't pay your credit card debt do you becone a felon and go to prison?

Question: In the United States

Answer:
 No.  As long as you show up to court if/when you are sued, you won't go to prison.

You go to jail for violating a court order.  Not for the debt.


Title: Moved into apartment, first water bill $300 due to faulty toilet flapper.

Question: Lease says I'm responsible for the water bill, however it was a pre-existing problem before I moved in. Do I have any leverage in this situation? Landlord has turned into a slumlord overnight about it.

Answer: Generally you notice that right away. Did you ask them to fix it after you moved in?


Title: [South Carolina] Sister is living in an RV I own and is about to get evicted from the campground she's staying in. What are my rights?

Question: I bought an RV a few months ago planning to move into it and travel around in a few months.  In the meantime, my sister split up with her husband and ended up basically homeless and after staying with our parents for a while, I offered to let her use the RV if she paid lot rent where she parked it.  She's been living in it for about 4 months now and I just found out today she's behind on lot rent and may be evicted soon.  What happens then?  Can I legally go get my RV? Does it get towed to an impound lot? The title is in my name, there's no way the campground can take it is there?

Answer: You should call and ask, though I don't know why you wouldn't be able to retrieve your property


Title: Potential tenant threatening call Fair Housing on me

Question:
My fiancé and I own a few houses (10 units total). There are two that I have for rent at the moment.
A potential tenant inquired about them and as I always do I asked for full name and date of birth to check criminal history(as well as any previous evictions).
This woman has not one but three warrants for her arrest. One criminal conversion and two for disorderly conduct. I denied showing her the property and just now got a string of nasty emails from both her and her mother(she’s 30 by the way).
Mom says I’m discriminating against her mentally ill daughter-I didn’t know that obviously. And now she’s threatening to call Fair Housing.
But she has warrants for her arrest! I’m not answering back the emails just wanting to know if they even have a case.
Oh and the dates are from 2017 and 2018 so it’s not like it was a long time ago, if it was I’d consider it. What do y’all think?

Answer: If she files a complaint, so long as your decision was made solely on the criminal history and you have a history of checking criminal histories and not renting to folks with extensive criminal backgrounds, particularly active warrants, and you have not and do not say or write anything that is discriminatory to her/mother (race, religion, sexual orientation, disability, age, etc) then you will be fine.


Title: Mother in hospital after bad stay in psychiatric facility; is there a way to guarantee she doesn't go back?

Question:
TL;DR: Mom was at a psychiatric facility that more than likely was giving her too many medicines and she went into a catatonic state there. She's now at the hospital, and will be there for a week next Tuesday. Are there legal options for making sure she doesn't go back to that same facility? (Location: North Carolina.)

So my Mom's been dealing with a lot of stuff lately - anxiety, depression, thoughts of suicide (although she said she hasn't made any plans), etc.

It all culminated with her taking a ton of my Dad's heart medicine pills (said it was because she was confused, but obviously it's possibly suicidal), which sent her to a hospital in the Raleigh area.

After initial treatment they sent her to a psychiatric facility in the area (I know they take government money, not sure their official status). It was a bad experience - constantly being woken up so she couldn't get a good night's sleep, given four depression medicines at once (know that for sure) plus Ritalin (supposedly), the "free" time that was supposed to have tons of activities didn't have any and she was just sitting around, she felt like she couldn't think so the group therapy sessions made her really anxious, etc.

Eventually they moved her to their outpatient facility across the street, but she hated it because she felt super-anxious when going there for the group sessions and felt like she couldn't answer any questions because her mind was in a haze.

They ended up moving her back to the main psychiatric facility because they thought things had gotten worse, which of course was more of the same.

Then last Tuesday she goes catatonic at the psychiatric facility and they have to rush her to the hospital because she wasn't responding to touch or voice (another hospital in Raleigh related to the same one as before).

When the doctor at the hospital heard what they were giving her (one of the medicines was Welbutrin or something like that), he immediately took away Welbutrin and some of the other medicines and took her down to light doses of two medicines instead.

It's been a night-and-day difference - the last few days she's been able to form sentences, have conversations, and remember details from the past accurately (had a conversation with her about her and my Dad's trip to Vegas a while ago, since I had just gone to a convention there). We're assuming it's because of the medicine change, but time will tell.

She's been at the hospital since last Tuesday, and my Dad said something about involuntary admissions have to be renewed every week. We'd love for it to lapse at the current place so we can get her to a different inpatient. We've heard too many bad stories about the original place.

Do we have any legal options here? (North Carolina.) We've found a couple inpatient facilities that look better, but we don't know if we'll be allowed to choose something or not. Any help or recommendations would be amazing! Thanks so much.

Answer:
 Your mother wasn't confused. She took your father's medicines to commit suicide.

Not sleeping in a hospital stay is normal.

Four depression medicines is an odd choice. Ritalin is also an odd choice. I think your mother is lying and/or actually confused. What does her chart say?

Wellbutrin does not make you catatonic. It tends to make you more jumpy.

Older or elderly people in the hospital, even without being overmedicated, tend to become less responsive and more out of it over time in a hospitalization. It's hospital delirium and scary to see.

You have no legal remedies because you have no legal problem. The first place overmedicated her. She wasn't harmed in a way that you can put a dollar value on.

Get the involuntary hold renewed.She's still suicidal.


Title: (CA united states) GF's work may be illegally working her

Question:
I dont know where to post this i feel like this would be an alright spot because it does affect us financially so here it goes.

 She works at a restaurant that recently opened and doesn't have over 24 employees so the pay is $10/hr. However as a server usually you get to keep any tips you make since they're yours and distribute them as needed. Well her place every server pools all tips and divides evenly. The owners take tips too which I know is illegal. They cover it up by clocking on and "work".

They report all the tips she makes cash and credit, and divide the tips between who worked what days. She said one day she helped a party of 14 and they all left around $6-10 per tab and should've received the entire payout. However her coworker who wouldn't help her bring out drinks (server allegedly wasn't busy, early morning just a soccer party) and she half assed it.

Also they don't let her take a 30minute break when working 6 hours or more and makes her clock out for 10 min breaks...  she works 5 days a week and a double shift on Saturdays. Her tips she collects after being divided with everyone (~2days) is around $120-$-180 compared to  minimum $100 she makes a shift. She also had half an hr of OT one day and they "forgot" to pay her after we noticed it.

What can she do? We found our the owner can take tips if they clock on and "work" but what if they're taking more? My gf does the tips and says it never adds up with how much she saw they brought in. Same with the clock out for 10 minute and no 30minute breaks

Tl;dr:
-unpaid 10min breaks
 -no 30minute lunch for 6+hrs
-All her tips are pooled with every server and "split evenly with owners who serve too"

2 servers have left, 2 put in their 2 weeks. It's obvious she carries some amount of say there because without her, they would not succeed. She knows this but is afraid to confront about it also because she was late her first time this weekend due to oversleeping. Any. Advice appreciated

Answer:
 Not a lawyer. In CA I believe all rest breaks must be paid. Meal breaks don't have to be paid as long as she does NO work during her break.

Tip pooling is legal but only tipped employees can participate: no managers, owners, or back-of-house staff. If the owner is taking a cut of the pool for himself that's illegal. Answer #2: First off, as with any job someone doesnt like, your GF should start looking for another job immediately.

Regarding pooling the tips together, I am pretty sure this is legal. (After some research, it appears that it is legal, as long as the pool consists of people that regularly receive tips.)

As far as the breaks, I think it is also legal for employers to have workers clock out for breaks since you arent working. Not receiving a break for 6+ hours though I am pretty sure is not legal. Might be worth contacting the state labor department.

Clerical errors can occur. If they did actually forget to pay her OT but then gave it to her later, I dont think they did anything wrong. Now if they are constantly forgetting to give people OT, or carrying hours over to the next paycheck to avoid paying OT, I again would recommend contacting your state labor department to see if you have grounds for a complaint.

But most importantly, have your GF start looking for another job yesterday while you sort these problems out. Best of luck to you and her.


Title: Right to Refuse Service in California

Question:
So here is a little background story on why I'm asking for help on this matter so my question makes a little bit of sense.

There is a gas station at the bottom of the mountain from my work which my carpool and I go to almost everyday for either fuel, snacks, or just to sit and have an after work brew. The start of this stems from 3 years ago when one of the employees started complaining to me about how she didn't like the way my coworker parked. I told her that it wasn't my vehicle and to tell the driver. The next day it was the same thing except after again telling her that I wasn't driving she informed me that she wouldn't sell me anything and I wouldn't be allowed in if I did not tell my coworker to stop parking on the divider line. I informed her that her personal issues were not my concern and she needed to tell him herself which led to me no longer being allowed to come in. I stopped going there for over a year because the whole thing just irritated me and I didn't feel like my coworker was doing anything wrong. (BTW I was the one banned and not him).

So anyways, I joined a new carpool last year and they like to stop at the gas station everyday after work and get a drink. I started going in again hoping whatever issues this gas station attendant had with me would be forgotten. Well it wasn't. Shortly after I started going back she began to accuse me of sticking candy bars in the soda fridge. I told her I found that extremely amusing but that I was not the culprit as I didn't drink soda and therefor was never on that side of the store. This went on for a few weeks and finally I asked them to present proof of me performing these actions or seize their accusations. A few weeks later they found something new. Supposedly I had pushed beer bottles towards the back of the tray and off onto the floor causing them to shatter. Instead of arguing I simply told them that I didn't remember ever causing anything to break but if I somehow did then it was an accident. The next day I went in and looked at the trays. It would be physically impossible for me to push the bottles back and to have them fall at as the trays are closed in the back the same as they are in the front and I would have had to literally throw it above the bottle tops to get it over the tray so again I told them to provide proof (AKA video footage) or to stop trying to pin shit on me.

So this is the last part of where my question comes in. Today I went in and the attendant told me I had been "86ed" by the guy who was working yesterday. Who conveniently happens to be her husband. I will call him "Mark" This is how the conversation went:

Her: "You can't come in here anymore, Mark Eighty Six'd you"

      Me: "What is an Eighty Six and why would Mark want to Eighty Six me??"  (I was laughing my ass off at the time because I didn't know what that meant and it just sounded super dirty to me.)

Her: "It means you can't come in here anymore"

      Me: "Why, what did I do this time?"

Her: "Mark said you said a bunch of things to him he didn't like"

      Me: "I don't remember saying anything at all to him. What exactly did he say my words were?"

Her: "I don't know but do not come in here anymore"

      Me: "Uhhh, ok. Thank You"

So what allows them to refuse service to me? This is California and I know the Unruh Act covers a lot but this feels like a personal issue is coming into play. From what I have read there isn't any ground I can stand on here but these are employees. My next step is to contact the owner but I'm not sure what else I can do. Sorry for the lengthy story but I wanted to convey most of what I find relevant in this matter. Thank you for the help.

Edit: Sorry for the poor formatting. I was trying to quickly type this out on my phone at work. I'll try to correct it when I get home.
Also, I understand there isn't much I can do when it comes to service being refused when there is no civil rights in the matter. I guess my only question now is can an employee enact upon this without the owners knowledge or consent?

Answer: You can contact the owner, but if he stands behind them, you have no recourse.  Personal dislike is not a civil rights issue.


Title: Vehicle has water damage from rain during windshield replacement and business is blaming me !

Question:
Located in New York.
So I purchased a used vehicle that needed a new windshield before it could be NYS inspected. I called an Auto Glass company and the technician came out on a particular stormy day, no showers at our location but there were some nearby. The company called and asked if we could provide cover and we told them no, we live in an apartment complex there will be no cover. Technician shows up and removes the old windshield. While prepping the car for the new one it begins to absolutely pour. We were eating dinner and heard the rain, looked outside, and saw the technician run into his van to stay dry leaving my vehicle with no cover, no windshield, and drivers/passenger front windows all the way down. I see this and run and grab a tarp, run back out front and cover the vehicle as fast as I can, but it's been pouring for a few minutes at that point. After the rain stops the technician and I uncover the car. It is absolutely soaked inside. Standing water on the floor from front to back, water in the headliner, in the dash gauges and of course in the electronics. I have some words with the tech about how he left the car uncovered. He said it’s just water it'll be fine and it wasn't supposed to rain for another hour. 5 minutes later the horn starts going off randomly, the dash lights are flickering and I can hear the relays clicking behind the dash. He breaks the new windshield trying to install it. He says sorry it’s not getting done today (Saturday), packs up and leaves. I tell him not to come back Monday. At this point I disconnect the battery to stop further damage to the vehicle. Starting it could total the vehicle, the air bags could go off unexpectedly, and the soaked carpets are going to cause mold and rot. I’m left over the weekend with no form of transportation and I do not dare try to start it as it sits. I have made several calls to the company, they insist it was my fault and they will not provide any of their insurance information or managers. They have refunded my CC. My vehicle insurance has called them and they will not budge for them either. Unfortunately I did not have comprehensive at that time so all they can do is make a courtesy call. I am desperate for help and looking for direction. Do I immediately take this to small claims court (will I win?) and the BBB ? Do I wait to start the repairs ? What is the best way to handle this in court if it comes to that? I’ve called several local lawyers offices and they said they don’t handle cases like this or it’s $150 and they can advise me of my rights. The dealership quoted me somewhere in the range of ~$700 for towing ($110), diagnosis to trace all the wires ($109/hr for ”several hours to several weeks”) and cleaning ($109) plus $35/day for a rental.

Thank you all so much for your help and time you spend on here helping people.

Answer:
 You'll need to sue the glass repair company to recover your damages. You will likely be able to recover the damages you've actually suffered, so you should get that number solidified by having your vehicle repaired. Answer #2: The BBB is nothing.  Don't waste your time.

Get it fixed.  Sue them once you have receipts.


Title: Can I get another ID if mine was taken for speeding?

Question: I was pulled over for speeding when I honest to God should have gotten a reckless driving charge but by my lucky stars I didn't.  The officer took my license and I have my court date in March to get it back.  He gave me a paper temporary license so I can still drive.  However, I am planning on going on vacation in the next few weeks and was wondering can I go to the DMV to get a form of ID to allow me to get on the plane or will I not be able to because of my license being taken.  Any help is greatly appreciated.

Answer: You should be able to get a state ID that should help fill in the void in the mean time.


Title: [MN] Landlord charging to replace carpet for pet urine damage.

Question:
Hey all,

I am in quite the pickle with an old landlord right now. About a month ago (11/18), my girlfriend and I moved out of our apartment. The last two weeks were in the apartment, we kept getting pressure from the sales manager (as in 3-4 calls per week) to turn our keys in early as they were going to have a quick turn-around on our apartment and wanted to make sure it was in good shape for the next tenants. Every time he contacted us, we assured him we would have the keys to him on the last day of the lease we signed (11/18) and there would be no issues. Eventually, my girlfriend and I got sick of him contacting us and gave in to letting him do the pre-move out walk-around while we were not there to look for damages. After he conducted this, we did not hear back from him other than his usual begging us to get the keys in before our lease was up.

Fast forward 4 more weeks and we had still not received our $250 pet deposit from management. My girlfriend sent 3 emails to the manager asking about this pet deposit between the time frame of 12/5 and 12/9. After not hearing from him, she decided to email the main email address and CC the manager onto it. On 12/12, she finally received a message from the manager explaining we had not yet received our pet deposit because they had to Kilz the subfloor, replace the padding, and replace the carpet as they found pet urine (we have an 8 month old puppy who we got while living at the apartment). In this email, he also attached an itemized list of damages for our unit. After receiving this email, I called the landlord to get a bit more detail on this and he explained to me that this whole processes was done because pet urine was found in the padding and the processes cost them roughly $1500 but they are only charging us $500. After hearing this, I explained to him how this is not okay as we had absolutely no notice about this and are now 4 weeks past moving out. He told me they had previously sent a statement in the mail showing the damages as our "final statement" which my girlfriend and I never received at our new location. He told me he would look into this, talk to the sales manager about not explaining this to us and get back to me. After giving him a 3 days, I had still not heard from him. I called him on Friday (12/16) and he explained to me he had not had the time to look into it yet as they were in the process of renovating and he had planned to look into it early the next week. I gave him until Tuesday (12/20) and had still not heard from him. I called him 3 times before 4:00 and each time I was left with no answer. I tried again on Wednesday (12/21) and eventually was able to talk to him. After talking with him, he told me he would be willing to keep the $250 pet deposit and call the rest of the $500 a wash. He told me he did not have anything stating He also told me he would be sending the invoice to me right away so I could see it. As of this morning (12/22), I had yet to hear from him. So, I decided to take away from the phone calls and go to emails. In my email to him, I asked him for three pieces of information: the invoice, pictures of the pet urine damage, and a certified mail receipt showing when the damages sheet was sent to our new email address. In his response, he attached the invoice which shows the material cost ($686.21) and the labor cost ($669.76) and explained how he is having trouble locating the pictures his service manager took. He also explained "since the final account mailings are auto generated, it will take time to figure out exactly when it was sent, but I will do my best."

According the Minnesota law, the landlord needs to repay the deposit or have an itemized list of damages sent to my new location 21 days after moving out. I feel as though I have a very strong case against my landlord here but am afraid/scared to act on it. Please let me know what you think /r/legaladvice.

If there are any other questions, please ask and I will respond to them when I get a chance.

Thanks

Answer: You may have a strong case to get your security deposit back but that does not absolve you of responsibility for damages. They can still sue you for damages and it sounds like they may have a decent case.


Title: [CA] Boss just called and fired me

Question:
So this literally just happened as I was browsing this subreddit.

I work(ed) at a dog daycare and the owners of the business are notorious for doing shady shit that we've all been able to handle up to this point. so basically the owners are transporting dogs from store A to Store B to spend the night without the permission of the dog's parents or even notifying them. They expect me to drive to Store B in the AM before both stores are even open and before i'm even clocked in to transport the dogs back in my personal car. I said that I and NOBODY else are willing or even obligated to do that as we don't want to be held liable if an accident were to occur. as soon as I said no, he said i dont need to come into work or be scheduled from here on out. I asked if he was firing me just to clarify and he said yes. Is there anything I can do? I just worry for these pups :(

Answer:
 File for unemployment. If they appeal fight it. Contact Animal Control if you believe abuse is happening or the animals are in danger.Answer #2: If they don't send your final check right away you can file a claim in CA. They're supposed to pay all wages owed at termination.Answer #3: It would have been illegal for them to require you to transport the dogs off the clock, but they have ever right to make you do it so long as they pay you for it.

Find a new job.


Title: What to do

Question: Got into are car accident this morning in NYC, pulled in front of a truck which hit me at a red light and pushed me into another car. Car I hit rear bumper got pushed in a bit my car has a small ding. Gave insurance info to the lady I hit and truck driver wanted to call the cops for a report if I wanted his insurance, couldn't wait for cops to show as it would take a half hour to an hour and I didn't want to be late for work and not enough damage to my car to care so I told him I couldn't wait and left. Should I call my insurance and give them a heads up or wait for the person I hit to contact them? And what should I do in the future of this happens again?

Answer:
 >couldn't wait for cops to show

oops. Now the other two drivers can basically say whatever they would like to.

>Should I call my insurance and give them a heads up

You're joking right? Call your insurance company NOW. You were in a car accident!Answer #2: You should always wait for the police to come, even if you will be late for work. Now the other driver(s) will be able to spin the story however they want and claim no-fault.


Title: [US][Utah] my 14 son have been sexting with a late teen through an app called kik , what legal action can be done and will it backfire?

Question:
my 14 son came to me (out of guilt i suppose )and told me that he had been texting and receiving pics  from a 19 years old boy from the US he doesn't know the state  and he showed me the pics , they are genitals photo and face photos ,separated ,no pic have them both or his whole body , my son says that he didnt send any pics and it was just texts but lets assume my son did send pics to be ready for the worst , what legal action can be done with this guy? and the last thing should i?
Topic:
Computer and Internet

Answer:
 You can report it to the police and let them investigate it. The other individual can be in some fairly serious trouble.

However, you'll want to be 100% certain that your son never did send any photographs. While the other individual will be in trouble as well, your son can get charged with production and distribution of child pornography.Answer #2: Realistically, you're better to worry about disciplining your son and better monitoring his internet/app usage than you are to worry about legal action against some kid across the country.


Title: In diversion program in one county, got busted again in a different county, will I be able to join that other counties diversion program if I'm still in this one?

Question: I live in Ohio, My court date for the first diversion program im in is set in August so the sentence still remains on my record and hasn't been cleared yet. I got busted again in a different county but they said I could go through their diversion program as well but if they find out I'm already in a diversion program they won't allow me to join the new diversion program. I was wondering if they are going to be able to tell if I'm still in the diversion program in the other county or not. My court date for the second ticket is this Friday. When I go there do you think they will be able to see that I'm in the diversion program already ?

Answer: Not only are you not going to be able to join this other counties diversion program, you are going to fail the diversion program in the first county as well. You need a criminal defense attorney, now. Answer #2: They will see that you're in the diversion program. You near 100% will not get diversion. Your non compliance will also be reported so you just opened yourself back up to the original charges in the first case too. You really, really need a criminal defense attorney.Answer #3: The thing about diversion programs is that you must stay out of trouble or you can't get it and it would go back to the original. Get a lawyer today. Answer #4: Yes they will see and your current diversion will be voided. You'll likely be unable to avoid a criminal record. Answer #5: I believe since this is a subsequent charge of weed possession under 100 grams, you may face up to 60 days in jail.


Title: Accidental bumper to door.

Question:
So my dad was backing out from our garage and he accidentally hit a car behind him that he didn't see. It was a minor dent on the driver's side door. However the lady whose car was hit was parked in a fire lane zone. I have video and photo evidence of her parking. She was waiting for something or someone. I told her that her car was small enough to fit in her garage where there were was one car (also have photo evidence) but she laughed and walked off. My dad and the woman exchanged insurance information already as this happened 20 minutes ago. Is there any legal action that could be taken due to the fact that she wasn't supposed to be there in the first place? Any help is much appreciated. Thanks.
Topic:
Traffic and Parking

Answer:
 >Is there any legal action that could be taken due to the fact that she wasn't supposed to be there in the first place?

No. A driver is always responsible for avoiding fixed objects.


Title: Got arrested for Public Intoxication, arraignment tomorrow. What should I plead?!? Please help, very ignorant of the court system (Arkansas)

Question: So its a pretty cut and dry case.  I was drunk, I admitted to that and I was in public.  I have my arraignment tomorrow and many people are telling me that even if I dont plan to fight it I should plead not guilty because I will be better off doing that and waiting for a plea deal.  Do I have to have a lawyer to do this?  Pretty tight on cash.  Would it be better to just plead no contest?  How does all this work?  Thanks I am desperate.

Answer: Plead not guilty, see if the prosector offers a plea. I think it would be at least worth a free consult with a local attorney, as misdemeanors can hurt your future job prospects.


Title: On the Hillary Clinton Email scandal, what would the charges be?

Question:
Not sure if this is the correct place but I want to ask this. If Hillary Clinton would be charged for her email scandal, what would the charges be? I read a lot about possible charges and people angry she isn't being charged (yet?). But I don't know what the technical terms are for the charges she would receive.

Location: United States of America

Original post by me was moved to here from /r/legaladvice as someone mentioned it was not appropriate for that subreddit.

Answer:
 Let's first be very clear -- there is no evidence that the alleged "new emails" discussed in the FBI director's letter today implicate anyone in any wrongdoing.

As to the emails already reviewed, if the FBI determined charges were warranted (they didn't) then the charges would be related to the intentional mishandling of classified information.  Which they did not find.

[This](https://medium.com/the-curious-civilian/admit-it-the-clinton-email-controversy-bothers-you-yet-you-dont-actually-know-what-the-clinton-511dc1659eda#.yd3a73xo8) is a pretty fair overview of the entire thing.


Title: Ceiling collapse, don't think I should really have to pay rent right [California]

Question:
Hi legaladvice, long time lurker first time throwaway poster.

So the meat and potatoes: I lived in a duplex on the bottom floor and a major section of the ceiling collapsed Tuesday night and came into my apartment. I was very fortunate that it wasn't closer to my head and I was able to get out of the house with only a broken leg. That plaster is a lot heavier than it looks!

Now unfortunately that apparently created a cascade effect and other chunks of the ceiling have fallen in since, destroying a few of my things like my television and my couch as well as some consoles. I'd like to go in and grab some of the other stuff, but the inspector has barred entry. Likely the place is going to be condemned I guess, but the landlord says he's going to get it fixed.

Anyhow I'm living in my car at the moment,  which is really tricky in this cast, but it was the left leg so I can still drive, albeit awkwardly. I usually pay rent on the 1st, but since I was at the doctor most of Tuesday night and had to answer questions for the investigator on Wednesday I guess I just didn't think about it.

So the landlord has called me up and asked where the rent cheque is. I told him I'd forgotten what with all the hectic stuff plus my cheque book is still in the property and probably too near some of the biohazardous stuff to be safe to even use. So he's told me to get a cashier's cheque and I have until Monday at 5 to pay the rent plus a 150$ late fee or face legal action.

I told him I think that late fee is a bit excessive and I'll see what I can do. But the more I think about it, it doesn't seem right, does it? I don't mind losing my possessions because things are just things and I have renter's insurance that i plan on calling tomorrow and living in the car is kind of fun, though the cat seems to be getting bored with it.

What I'm really worried about is if he does sue, can he send papers to the address I can't access and then he can collect a default judgment when I don't even know I'm being sued? There are three months left on the lease, but I figure the lease is essentially just void now, right? I figured we'd just go our separate ways, since nobody got hurt that badly, but do I need to get a lawyer to protect myself?

Answer:
 First, you should definitely look into pursuing legal action for the broken leg and your broken stuff.  Ceilings don't just collapse.  It sounds like a major maintenance issue.

Second, your lease almost certainly has a provision that suspends the lease for the duration that the premises are rendered uninhabitable.  A collapsed ceiling would most definitely qualify, and you should not have to pay rent until the unit is repaired.

Third, lawsuits generally require proper service.  If you can show that you did not receive the summons (because it was sent to the wrong address), you can get a default judgment vacated.  But it's still a good idea to give the landlord a different address and set up mail forwarding.  If you have nowhere to stay, you could have mail sent to a post office for general delivery.
Answer #2: Get yourself a lawyer, not just for the rent, but because the landlord may be responsible for your broken leg.Answer #3: aAnswer #4: Please call your renters insurance company and ask about temporary housing. You should not be living in your car if you have coverage. If you're going to retain an attorney, coordinate your conversation with the attorney and your insurer to make sure everyone stays in the loop. Your insurer will likely pay for your stuff and your housing, then subrogate (assume your claim against your landlord) to recover against the landlord. Not an attorney, but I am a commercial insurance professional.


Title: While shopping at major big box place, item on wall fell and hit me on the head. Okay to send HR my medical record for the Dr visit or is this a bad idea?

Question:
[deleted]
Topic:
Drug Possession

Answer: Whose HR? The stores? If you don't send them evidence of  your medical expenses you can't expect them to pay anything. It's completely reasonable what they are asking.  They aren't asking for your full medical history.


Title: Mom gave her social security number to someone who then tells her she’s being sued

Question:
Okay, so my mom just came home and told me how she got a phone call from an 800 number. She decided to call them back to see what they wanted. They refused to tell her until she gave them her Social Security number. At that moment, she realized her mistake. They then tell my mom that a car in Texas (we live no where near Texas) in her name was found and had marijuana inside and she was being sued (or something. I’m retelling what my mom told me).

She isn’t sure what to do, let alone who to call, for this situation. We can’t afford any ‘court battles’ due to how we are financially struggling (my older sister is also in the hospital that is two hours away from us. Gas isn’t cheap.). What do we do?

Answer: Freeze your credit and watch for unauthorized charges.Answer #2: It's a scam.


Title: Bad houseguest.

Question: I had to take a month long work trip recently. I had a "friend" stay and take care of my pets. I've paid my pet deposit and the landlord acknowledges this. Well the electricity is included in my rent and it doubled so the landlord stopped by to see if maybe I left the lights on. He looked in the window and saw that my friend had made a huge mess. So he called to let me know and I told him that I would take care of it when I got back. Well he had to send the maintenance guys out when I returned due to the electricity. I found the problem as soon as I got home. Well he used this as an excuse to pop in and see if the friend had cleaned up. Well he hadn't cleaned out the litter box and my cats made a mess. I had the mess cleaned up the next day when I found it. I basically had one day to recoup from my day of flying before I had to go back to work. I hadn't had time to steam clean the carpet that needed to be done. I had the friend leave when I returned and my landlord is now threatening to kick me out if it isn't fixed. He's even pointed out in the 2 years I've lived here he's never had any issues out of me. I'm working on cleaning the carpet now. I'm just wondering is this a scare tactic or is there anything further that can come of this. Any advice would be so appreciated. I'm currently located in East Tennessee

Answer: You're quite likely legally responsible for your guests' conduct. I'd get to cleaning or hire someone if it's more than you can handle. Let your landlord know you're having it taken care of. Whether he can evict you or not will depend on what your lease says however it's common for there to be language in there about not causing damage. If you have a lease he'd have to take you to court and you'd have a chance to plead your case. If you're not on a lease then he can ask you to leave with the proper notice and doesn't need a reason. So I'd be finding someone else to watch my cat if I were you. Great friend.


Title: Legal advice for a US citizen detained overseas for nearly a year so far.

Question:
I was arrested last year in a wealthy SEA country for disorderly conduct.  Since that time the police have held my passport and kept me on bail while investigating a more serious charge of causing hurt.  The details of the incident aren't important for this question, what is important is that the charges are unfounded and I believe that the process I've been subjected to is unreasonable even by their legal standards.  I'm on a tourist visa and so barred from working here, and forbidden to leave.  It's been nearly a year since the initial arrest, and the case isn't scheduled to go to trial for another several months. Does anyone have experience with situations like this?  What advice would you give in terms of alerting US media to my situation?  The Embassy has been of limited help, offering to transfer funds from friends and relatives, and asking for the A.G. Chambers to expedite the process.

Topic:
Criminal Law

Answer:
 Do you have an attorney there?  Listen to him/her.  If you don't, get one.

Singapore is notorious for being very prickly about international publicity -- Bill Clinton's direct diplomacy over some kid who was caught vandalizing cars got them to reduce the number of lashes from six to four, and when the CIA tried to deny a particular negotiation had taken place years ago the Singaporean government released documents to prove that it had.  They execute drug smugglers despite all the international outcry, and if anything it seems to make them even more intransigent about the executions.  They are not going to let you go because they're afraid of being branded meanies by some foreign journalists.Answer #2: The involvement of the US media is likely to have zero effect on your case.

You need to work with the embassy and your legal representation to try to resolve this.

Without any more details (at a minimum, the country you are in, and the crime) we can't be of any more help.

~~Also, how do you have internet access from a SEA jail?~~

Nevermind.  [Apparently this isn't even you.](http://www.reddit.com/user/qwerty123456qwerty12).Answer #3: I'm not quite sure I understand the issue. You are subject to the laws of the foreign country you visit. You were arrested for breaking a law and have to go through the proceedings of the criminal justice system.


Title: My father-in-law just gave his personal information away to an email scam

Question: He fell for a Bank of America request for information and gave his name, address, SSN and bank account info. He already went to bank to notify them. What else should he do? He's 70 and lives in FL.

Answer:
 He should immediately freeze his credit reports. This will prevent anyone from accessing his credit reports, which in turn should prevent anyone from opening new lines of credit (credit cards, mortgages, car loans, etc) in his name. If he ever wants to obtain credit, he'll need to temporarily un-freeze the report. The cost is either $10 one time or $10 every 7 years, depending on the credit bureau.

Here are the URLs for the three major credit bureaus:

https://www.transunion.com/credit-freeze/place-credit-freeze

https://www.experian.com/freeze/center.html

https://www.freeze.equifax.com/Freeze/jsp/SFF_PersonalIDInfo.jsp

He may also want to file a police report with his local police department, but to be completely honest it's unlikely that anything will come of it. Phishing scams usually originate out of the country, and are notoriously difficult to track down.


Title: (Ohio) Someone damaged their car on my property and demanding that I pay for their car.

Question:
One day (roughly two-three weeks ago) Someone was in our driveway that we share with the neighbors. The neighbors had a visitor, and when he was backing out he was on our side which has a slight hill at the end of the driveway. When he was backing out he came on that hill and damaged his driver side bumper cover. Note that we both (wife and I) Weren't home, he did not report it to the police, or his insurance that moment (but did a day ago from today 2 weeks later)

Two weeks later he finally confronts me about this while outside talking to our neighbor and asks "When do you plan to pay for the damages your driveway did to my car?" I simply told him that he was on our property without our consent when he did it, we weren't home, and that there is no other eyewitness accounts.

Just yesterday he comes on to our property again, knocks on the door and gives us a envelope with a note in it. (the "note" was hand written on a piece of notebook paper) which had many grammar issues, misspelled words, and even misspelled my own name. He had it written to me (Coty) and I am not the owner of this property, my wife is. The note basically said that I am obligated to give my homeowner's insurance to him yesterday (Which he arrived, but did not ask), or that I could give the information to my neighbors to give to him. Also stated that if I refuse to do so will go to court.

Yesterday, he came to talk to our neighbors and during the visit he took several pictures of the driveway and the hillside it happened saying that we "Covered up the damaged property" (which was grass, so it grew back if it even was damaged, which I had looked when it happened and there were no sign of damage.)

Now if he arrives again to ask us anything I plan to tell him that I called the sheriff the other day and she said that there were no reports of a driveway incident in Flushing, Ohio that week or month.

Should I be legally obligated to pay for his damages? for all I know he had an accident at a Walmart parking lot and drove up to my house and said my property did it.

EDIT: I spoke to my neighbors today and they said "He should no longer be bothering us". It turns out that they have been fighting for us this whole time and he hasn't bothered us for the past two days, even though we have seen him drive past and visit the neighbors while we were outside. I don't think he should be a problem anymore. However, we are still keeping our meeting with our lawyer tomorrow (Sunday) to explain the situation to him and see what he says for the chance this still does become a court issue. (I personally know my lawyer and he said essentially the same things you all had said including the "pounding sand" parts.)

Answer:
 > Should I be legally obligated to pay for his damages?

I don't see where you have any liability in this situation.

Your choices are:

1.  Pay him what he wants(not recommended)
2.  Give him your insurance info and let your insurance company handle it.
3.  Tell him to pound sand, and risk a lawsuit.

I'd seriously consider opting for 3.  Unfortunately, 3 may end up being very expensive, compared to paying him off.  Answer #2: Next time he stops by, call the police, this is unwarranted harassment and he has no case. You don't even know if he really did mess his car up on your propertyAnswer #3: Please update this on how it ends.Answer #4: Reach out to your homeowners insurance and notify them of the situation. You pay them to represent you in cases like this. As for the gentleman that keeps coming on your property. Ask him politely to leave. (You don't even have to open your door. Just say "Please leave my property".) If he doesn't, call your local PD and state someone is trespassing on your property and that you've asked them to leave. They will come out and ask him to leave. If he continues to come back to your home after that then it opens him up to being arrested for trespassing.


Title: (PA, USA) Almost got an underage and I want to know if the cops were allowed to do what they did.

Question: I live in a small town in rural Pennsylvania and last night was scary as hell. Two of my friends and I were hanging out in my pool house (which is in a gated off back-yard) and we were having a beer and chatting. Two of us are under 21 (I'm 20 and he is 19) and a cop showed up saying he got a noise complaint but later omitted that our music was turned down below conversation level. 2 cops yelled from outside the fence for us to let them in which I replied "No" they said they were coming in and proceeded to jump the fence. I asked for a warrant and they had none so I told them they were trespassing and they said they had probable cause because they could see us drinking (from the other side of the fence) but there was no way they could know we were underage. They asked us for identification which i refused and one of the cops cuffed me and took my wallet and took my ID. They got my parents up and my mom ended up convincing them to let it slide and we just had to dump out the beer. They later said that they got a call for not our address but they couldnt find it and found ours instead. The address in question (my dad went and looked) was throwing a party and we believe they were looking for this house, not ours. If my mom hadn't talked them down and I would have been charged could I have fought it in court and won with the help of a lawyer?

Answer: If you appear to be underage and were seen drinking then you can be cited or arrested by the police in the absence of ID.


Title: Unexpected Pregnancy - Family Law Attorneys

Question:
I was in a relationship that was not for me. I wanted nothing more than to get married and raise a family, but I knew we weren't for one another. I worked remotely for a few months and visited her. She lives a plane ride away. When I decided to end the relationship, I did so abruptly. It's not that the signs weren't there, but I woke up one morning and realized that I didn't want to do this for the rest of my life.

After I left, I got a phone call a few days later. I was told by my ex girlfriend that she was pregnant. She immediately told me that she would terminate, but in her typical fashion, she's backed off that position and is undecided about whether she will give birth. I suspect that she will have the child.

I have provided support for her emotionally. The position I have taken is that I fully support her decision and that I will help her in any way possible. I also told her that I fully expect to raise this child and show the child all the love I have to offer.

My ex is upset. She hates me. She wishes I was dead. She has recently told me that I have no right to know what she ultimately decides to do about the pregnancy. She insists that I will have nothing to do with the child.

This is complicated and my head is spinning but I'm hoping for some insight on what to do about when the expecting mother will not communicate. My ex has said that she doesn't want me to speak to her, and that she will not tell me whether or not she decides to terminate or give birth.

If she does give birth, I want to participate in this child's life. I am flawed, but I was raised in a home with an ever present father. My Dad and I are best friends and I would never abandon a child. I would love this child with all my heart, but I know that my ex will do everything in her power to make my life miserable and try to create division between me and the child.

Any insight would be greatly appreciated. I might post this in a few subreddits.

Answer:
 Register [with your state's putitive father registry](www.ocfs.ny.gov/adopt/services.asp) to protect your rights. She does not have a right to extinguish parental rights on a whimAnswer #2: I would put money on this pregnancy being a ruse in an attempt to get you back. When you didn't immediately tell her you would live happily ever after, she got pissed.

She is right in that she doesn't have to tell you if she has the child or not. All you can do is wait and see if she gives birth.

I'd keep her at arms length but keep following social media (if she doesn't block you) to determine if she is actually pregnant and if she gives birth. Once that happens (if) you can file for a paternity test and visitation right.Answer #3: There is about a 1% chance that she is pregnant. You should probably ignore her. Don't even consider sending money for medical bills.


Title: I'm terrified of my room mate. I finally gave him a 20 day notice of termination of month to month agreement. He is now claiming him I owe him moving costs.

Question:
I live in Lynnwood, Wa. I had been renting a room in my apartment to some random dude off craigslist (DoC) for the last 4 months. As time has gone on DoC has bullied me, eaten my food, used my stuff, was always drunk, followed me around shouting at me, and walked into my bedroom in the middle of the night without knocking. I'm a female veteran with severe PTSD. This has led to me not staying overnight in my home for quite a while. I realize I got myself into this shitty situation.
 I finally found out that I cant sublease and he is required to be on the lease or I get evicted. So, I gave him 30 daya notice verbally and through text, then 20 days over email. AFAIK in WA state that is all that was required of me.
As far as what we have agreed thus far, this has been a month to month lease. We dont have a contract. Since I sent him the 20 day notice he has been aggressive and has been trying to get me to break my contract with my apartment complex. He is now stating that I owe him moving costs. DoC says that Im not upholding my end of the contract but he is required to leave.  He also says that his brother is a lawyer, and is sending me paperwork.

Where did he get the idea that I owe him moving costs, and did I follow the proper procedure to legally get him out of my home?

Answer: Not a vet, but have lived near a few. Do you have friends nearby that are also veterans? If not, is there a recruiting office nearby with some active duty soldiers assigned? My guess is that having some large, well-trained gentlemen volunteer to help him load a truck could go a long way to helping you feel safer. In my experience, these folks are always willing to help people in distress. Tell them this story, and you will likely get all the assistance you need. Have a couple stop by to assess the situation on a night that DoC will be home. Might cost you a case of beer, though.


Title: Hit a biker...worried and need advice [MI]

Question:
Today in Ann Arbor, Michigan I was making a left turn and hit a girl on a bicycle. I feel terrible but do not believe it was my fault. I believe the light had turned yellow but I was shook up at the time and told the officer I wasn't sure if it was green or yellow. She was moving fast and came out of nowhere. I slammed on my brakes but there wasn't enough time to stop and I hit her. She wasn't wearing a helmet and had a bump on her head but the officer said she'll be fine.

I'm worried about what I should do now. Do I need a lawyer? I was issued two tickets. One was because I was driving my mom's car and did not know she hadn't put her current insurance in the glove box. The officer told me to just bring my insurance to court and it would drop to an administrative charge.

The second ticket was for "failure to yield to pedestrian AA ordinance 10:148a". I assume AA stands for Ann Arbor. I am unsure if I should admit guilt, admit guilt with an explanation, or fight it.

In Michigan we have no-fault insurance so I believe I'm covered on that front. Any advice would be appreciated.

Answer:
 Did you have a protected left turn (an arrow)?  If so the bicyclist is at fault:

http://www.legislature.mi.gov/(S(2iqp2cyurbi1xanmsbux2bjx))/mileg.aspx?page=getObject&objectName=mcl-257-657

If she was on the road, she has to treat the red light the same as if the were a car.  Therefore the policeman erred when he cited you for failure to yield to a pedestrian, because she was not, under any circumstances, a pedestrian.

If she was riding on the sidewalk, and crossed at a crosswalk when she did not have a walk signal, then she is at fault for jaywalking:

http://www.legislature.mi.gov/(S(2iqp2cyurbi1xanmsbux2bjx))/mileg.aspx?page=getObject&objectName=mcl-257-660c


Title: [MN] Health Evaluation at work was strange. Possible HIPAA violation?

Question: [deleted]

Answer: You voluntarily gave your PHI to your company.  There's no HIPAA issue here.  HIPAA deals with third-party disclosures.  Your doctor can't tell your work stuff without your permission.  You can tell anyone you want.


Title: Cop lied about where my mother was pulled over. 66 Freeway in Northern Virginia

Question:
EDIT: The fact that she wasn't speeding that fast is one thing. But to put that she was speeding 25 is another thing. He lied about where she was pulled over. It's important to know this because if he had actually written down where she REALLY was pulled over, that part of the highway is 60. What he ACTUALLY wrote down was a lie, 6 miles down further along the highway where it is a 55 zone.

My mother received a speeding ticket of 80 over 55. Problem is, where she was pulled over was actually a 60 zone.
As I took closer look at the ticket, I realized he lied about where he pulled her over. He said he pulled her over at Route 286, which is 6 miles from her actually place from which he pulled her over. He pulled her right aside the county line.

I'm assuming it's hard to go against a cop's word. My mom is taking a driver improvement course and is debating if there's any point in fighting it. She has a good record with +4 points. I understand it's still 20, though she does not like being put extra miles she did not do.

Answer: The only way to fight this is if the speed matters. If it's only a simple speeding ticket then it only matters if she was exceeding the speed at all.  Those errors do not invalidate the ticket. He can simply correct them.


Title: Do I have cause for legal action? May have eaten tampered with food. Still have the food.

Question:
So last night I went to a nation-wide own pizza shop in Baltimore, MD.
My girlfriend and I ordered separate pizza but unfortunately, my pizza came out cold. I politely asked the waiter to warm it up some more and there were no issues at all. As the pizza was being warmed up the Manager came out and said that he apologized for the pizza and if there was anything he could do just ask. I personally thought the situation wasn't that serious so I just said, "Thank you" and that was it. My pizza came back out and unfortunately, it appeared that nothing was done and it was still cold. I explained to the waiter again that it was still cold. At this point I had only eaten 3 of the 8 slices that were in the pie. The manager came over, said the food was on him and said he'd make me a new pie to go. I only had 1 slice of that pie when my girlfriend said she threw up her food. The same night I woke up at 4am and had a mild case of dhiaryia. And again the next morning. I still have the 2nd made pizza. Should I send this pizza to poison control and see if it was tampered with? Do I have a case if I did and they find something? Any advice or answers is much appreciated. Thank you!

Answer: likely this was just a case of food poisoning, and not intentional.  The problem with sending it somewhere is you have no way to prove YOU didn't tamper with it and it may all be moot.


Title: Can I keep my kids away from my soon-to-be ex-wife's SO? (Wisconsin)

Question: My wife had an affair, and when she was caught she moved out and moved in with a man who has a long criminal record. He's wanted for attempted murder in Tennessee and he also has done time for murder. She believes he's this great guy who has turned over a new leaf but it's pretty apparent that he has her fooled. Presently we are abiding by a 120 day temporary order with an SO clause so that he can not have contact with the kids. However, she is telling them that when they can legally see him that he will be their step-dad, take them camping, etc. According to the temporary order, I have full custody and she can spend time with them with reasonable notice. When this gets to the divorce stage, what can I legally do to protect them from him and keep them away from him if anything? Does it matter if I still have full custody in the divorce hearing? I have an attorney and she does not, and naturally I will consult my attorney on this but it's going to be a while before we get to that point. I was hoping to get some preliminary thoughts. Thank you!

Answer:
 > When this gets to the divorce stage, what can I legally do to protect them from him and keep them away from him if anything?

You can ask the judge for such an order to be written into the custody/visitation documentation.  Practically speaking such orders are somewhat rare.

What do you mean by "wanted for attempted murder"?  If he's got a warrant out for him you can report him to the wanting agency and he may be arrested.Answer #2: Most wrap sheets are a matter of public record.

There are multiple places online you can pay for a background check that will provide you with plenty of ammo in court.

Get a lawyer, get as much info on his past as you can, and get in court ASAP.

If this guy is as bad as you say, any reasons judge would agree with not wanting your kids around a convicted felon - disabled or not.

INAL.


Title: Why would a lawyer request investigation reports of an IED?

Question: [deleted]

Answer:
 Depends on the kind of lawyer, but off the top of my head I would guess it relates to a claim by one of the other people there against the VA.  Probably they have some symptoms of TBI, but they never received a disability rating from the VA, probably because they were not listed as injured during service - which is to say that they did not go on sick call or whatever as a result of this explosion.

A few years later, they're having the symptoms of TBI, but there is no military record of their injury. So they hire a lawyer to prove that they have TBI and one of the first requirements for the VA is to show that they were involved in one or more blast type incidents. So the lawyer requests these records. Answer #2: Life insurance?


Title: Hit a Parked Car, Wanting Advice on how to protect myself legally and do right by the car's owner (OR)

Question:
I was pulling into a parking space while arriving to work today when I scraped against an unoccupied parked Subaru Outback. I immediately backed up when I felt the scrape and took pictures of the damage to both vehicles. I immediately freaked out and felt awful since I have never been in any sort of accident before (let alone one where I was at fault!), though the damage to their car appears to mainly be a bit of clear coat scraping and possibly a little paint loss on the bumper. The body of the car was luckily spared entiely. A wonderful bystander calmed me down and helped me write a note to the driver of the Subaru apologizing for the situation and containing all my contact information. He called me later in the evening, thanking me for being honest enough to leave a note. I stated to him that my deductible is fairly high so I would rather settle this without involving my insurance company if I can help it. However, I also provided him my insurance info as required by law. He has not yet provided me with his, but I won't push this point unless I have to (I have his name, phone number, and license plate number if shit goes south somehow). I use Amica if that helps. I also did not call the police because the damage did not appear to exceed $2500 and no injuries or deaths occurred as a result of the collision. I have not contacted my insurance company either, as I would like to keep them out of this if possible so my rates won't skyrocket.

My insurance deductible is $1000 so I would rather not make a claim if I can help it - however, I know that damage can be much more or much less than it appears to be. My current plan is to pay the owner the auto body shop's bill out of pocket if it doesn't exceed my deductible and draft a waiver for us both to sign stating that I agree to pay the amount on the body shop's estimate/bill and no more or less by a reasonable date (to be precisely defined on the waiver - I plan to hand over a check or cash at the same time), and that I and all others related to me will be free from all future claims of damage, expense, and legal action related to this collision. I also plan to write in this waiver an agreed upon sequence of events, from collision to payment.

Here is what I want to know: is there anything I could be doing differently or better? The man sounded very reasonable on the phone, and I made sure to make it clear that I want to make things right in a way that's fair to everyone.

As for poor Big Blue, my lovely new Mazda CX-5 I bought last week... Well, she honestly came out of this way worse than the Subaru, but even then it's a scratch and a pinhead-sized chip. I plan to just do some minor buffing and paint repairs myself and call it a day. I don't care enough about cosmetic wear to get the bumper repaired professionally, and I don't plan to ever sell this rig anyhow. I can deal with some battle scars.. I'm sure over the years I own Bluey, she'll see a lot more.

Answer: You either pay the entire damage or you make a claim.  If you pay anything, get a release of liability signed by the other party.  This means they forgo any ability to claim additional damages.Answer #2: Your deductible is irrelevant here. That's only for damages to your vehicle. Of course, using your insurance to pay a claim like this could hike your premium, but it has zero to do with your deductible,


Title: (Hypothetical) If I lie to my neighbor and say person X raped his daughter and neighbor murders X - am I legally responsible/liable in any way?

Answer: You can be.  So please don't.


Title: [Texas] Brake shop intentionally damaged my vehicle?

Question:
Hi /r/legaladvice,

I'm curious about what is the best way to proceed and sorry in advance about the length. I recently moved from Texas to Maryland for work and wanted to get my brakes replaced before making the drive. I took it to a notable brake repair chain down in Texas and when I went to pick it up, I had a audible and visual warnings from my dashboard that brake pads were worn. I had yet to leave the store and they put it back up and said the brake pads were fine (true) and the ABS cable needed to be replaced (sort of true) and that they'd cover the cost to replace the ABS cable.

I took it to the dealer once I reached Maryland and it turns out that my car doesn't have a straight cable, but a Y shaped cable that starts at the computer module and splits into two : one prong monitors a brake wear sensor and the other ABS system. The brake repair chain appears to have cut off the cable at the Y-shaped split that leads to the brake wear sensor, hence the false brake wear warnings.

Because there was no cable left (so they couldn't splice on a new sensor) and they some how mangled the connector on the brake pad itself, the cost of repair was $1500. I've called the store every week for over 2 months with no luck. I've sent them detailed explanation of what happened and multiple close up clearly showing that the cable was cut (the face of the split where they cut it is flush) I've gotten corporate office's number and have called every day for a week trying to speak to someone but always end up with voice mail. I finally spoke to a regional manager (I think) today and he tells me they won't cover the repair because there's no evidence that they intentionally cut the cable.  I've resent the regional manager a picture with an explanation and a diagram from the manufacturer showing how the cable is Y shaped and not a straight cable. I'm giving them one more chance but my questions are

* **Do I have a case?**

* **If I have a case should I hire a lawyer to represent me in small claims court or fly back and do this myself?**

* **If I do go through small claims court, can I get my legal fees and travel costs covered in my suit?**

* **If I do have a case, what documentation would I need to help me win the case. I still have the equipment they took out of my car.**

I don't want to litigate and want to just get my check and be done with this but it's been over 2 months with no progress on something I feel was clearly their fault. I may be wrong but I'm getting really annoyed.

edit : apparently Texas got rid of small claims court so this would be done through Justice court instead?

edit 2: for anyone curious about what happened, here's an [album](http://imgur.com/a/j0Tyt) with my layman descriptions.

Answer:
 Yes you have a case, whether your evidence is strong enough to win or not, I won't predict.  And just because you win a judgement doesn't mean you will get the money. It would still be your responsibility to collect the judgement, which is often the harder part.

You don't need to hire a lawyer for small claims court.

Your filing fees might be covered but not your travel. You will have to weigh the cost of traveling back to Texas in your decision.


Title: [VA] Can an employer change an employee's email password to be able to access their email and reset other passwords for out of company accounts?

Question:
My now ex-employer received my two week notice but immediately reset my email password to go in and reset some other passwords for accounts that I manage the operations for in the company such as our insurance provider, our HRIS system (3rd party), etc.

What is the legality of this? Should and who do I report this to if it illegal?

ETA: he did this before even letting me know that it would just be my last day there.

ETA2: my overall concern is he is making changes to employees info under my name. He had mentioned that he received a notification from my account that I did something but I had already been locked out.

ETA3: he (and several others) has accounts to access the portals and do whatever I was able to do. It is a small company so he's gotten away with doing dumb stuff before but I've been there to mitigate or address issues for around 3 years now. He has done this to someone else that left last year but the portal he accessed that time caused us issues. Also we work in a cleared space so some of these portals require strict confidentiality.

Answer:
 That’s very common.

Not illegal. Answer #2: Are you worried your employer is trying to make you look bad by making changes to company things under your name so they can take actions against you?Answer #3: You gave notice that you were quitting, employer said, fine, you are done now.  You no longer work there, you have no right to access the employers electronic systems at that point, of course the employer can change the passwords to lock you out.


Title: Secondhand Smoke Infiltrating our apartment

Question:
We live in a “luxury” apartment complex in Jersey City, NJ.  We moved to this apartment towards the end of October after having lived in a different building within the complex for the last 3.5 years. Our neighbors are constantly smoking cigarettes in their apartment and it somehow ends up in our apartment, sometimes making it nearly unlivable. It infiltrates everything from our kitchen to our living room to our bedroom, and we’ve had to sleep in the living room countless times due to the odor in our bedroom. They also have a tendency to party very late on week days, to which we always report the noise complaint to our “command center” who come by and ask them to stop, and they usually do for a few minutes then pick it back up. We’ve had maintenance out to our apartment on numerous occasions and they have no resolution for how to curb the smell from entering our apartment, as they claim the air ducts aren’t connected in any way so they can’t figure out how it enters our space (for reference, in our bedroom the smell seemingly emanates from the wall that separates our apartments.) The smoke is now affecting our health and I’m starting to seriously worry about the long term affects on me and my fiancé (and our dog.)

We’ve asked building management and their resolution was to transfer apartments, but moving was an enormous hassle and we chose this apartment because it was one of the largest footprints in the entire community. Our building is unfortunately not smoke free (only one building in our complex of 6 buildings is smoke free) so there is no legal recourse I’m aware of. We’ve also tried resolving directly with the neighbors to no avail. We’ve done a lot of research and it seems filing complaints with the health department are our only option because the smoke also affects the odor of the common hallway, but I don’t see how this will solve anything in a timeline that’s meaningful.  Any ideas that somehow involve us staying and then stopping smoking or leaving is our ultimate goal.

Answer: You moved into an apartment building that allows smoking and you refuse to move to a different apartment. What more do you think anyone can do for you here?


Title: Potential wrongful termination

Question:
Hello, I took a new job this past week as it was a better salary than my old job. Over the weekend in between my last day of my first job, and my first day of my new job (was going to start Monday) I had begun to suffer from a kidney stone.

I went to the hospital on Sunday, and not to make a bad first impression on this new job, I went in on Monday, but explicitly informed my new employer that I had a kidney stone and that it was expected to pass within the week, but if I should need to return to a clinic, this was the reason. So on Wednesday, I go to the clinic as I woke up in serious pain and informed my new employer that I would not be in as I was going to the clinic to address my kidney stone.

My new boss texted me saying that it was best for everyone if I took care of myself and made sure I wasn't showing up while medicated or anything, which I assured I wouldn't do. Later that same evening he calls me to inform me that it'd be best for the company if I took care of my health first and that we'd address my future employment at a later time. I assured him that it was only an issue that would be present that week, and that I'm perfectly healthy. He wasn't having it and said I couldn't come in, but didn't OFFICIALLY fire me or anything.

I left a job to work for this guy. It's been a week and I haven't heard from him since, do I have any legal grounds for anything here? He made me burn a bridge with my old job because he forced me to give shorter than 2 weeks' notice, so I can't even get my old job back. I'm in a little bit of a panic because I feel like I've just been super screwed and don't know what to do.

Can anyone help me out here?

P.S. I live and work in New Jersey if that has any bearing.

Answer: That's not even remotely close to wrongful termination. It sucks, but it makes total sense from a new employer's standpoint. They want someone reliable and while it's not your fault, you can't be that person right now.


Title: [OH, USA] Neighbor says her dog tore its ACL because of our dog and wants us to pay.

Question:
My husband and I just moved from Missouri to Ohio and are renting a condo. There's lots of dogs in the area and we have a park/ walking trail right behind the condos. Our neighbor (we'll call her TL) was walking her two smaller dogs on Saturday as my husband (we'll call him MH) was walking our dog.

Our dog is a 9year old Shar Pei who has never bit, lunged or been mean to anything other than the random squirrel. TL has two smaller dogs (Shih-Tzu type things), one of which has growled at ours on more than one occasion.

On Saturday, MH had our pup on a short leash held off to his side whereas TL let hers walk basically anywhere, although on leashes. She walks directly towards MH and her little dog growls at our pup, as its in her walking space. Our dog lunged, but immediately backed down as MH reprimanded her and pulled the leash. By this time, TL was a good 3-4 strides away checking her dog. The dog didn't yelp, cry or react in any way, there was no blood on the dog or pavement. Another neighbor asked if everything was alright and in the time it took to answer and turn back around, TL had disappeared.

Last night, TL told MH that she took her dog to the vet and they said its ACL was torn. She denied that her dog had EVER growled at ours (despite at least 3 occasions prior we can think of) and also stated that her dog had gotten hurt before in similar situations with dogs it was familiar with and that "these things happen." She handed over a vet bill for $375 for the visit and a survey estimate of $2000.

We haven't agreed to anything, I'll be calling our renters insurance in the morning, but something isn't sitting right with MH and I. The condos have 2 flights of stairs - the dog didn't go to the vet for 3 days - how do we know what caused it? TL seems to know everyone and also owns her condo, so we're concerned what will happen if this goes to court. We've never been in a situation like this, but aren't sure we're liable - if we are, we'll do the right thing, it just feels off. Any advice is appreciated.

TL;DR: Neighbor's dog growled at ours and got into her walking space. Our dog lunged, but we don't think she bit the dog. Neighbor says her dog's ACL is torn and wants us to pay.

Answer: IANAL but I am a veterinary professional and that's not how torn ACLs happen in dogs. Dogs tear their cruciate ligament all the time and it's never due to another dog lunging at them or whatever absurd reason she is claiming. Answer #2: Tell her to go pound sand. Or in Ohio, say "bless your heart" a bunch. Based on this she has no claim, and if she sues, defend it. Answer #3: Tell her your dog can’t sleep at night. Show her a vet bill and tell her they her dog caused yours trauma Answer #4: There is no way your dog caused her dog's torn ACL, and she will never get any vet to agree that it did. Just ignore her.


Title: Shady cops?

Question:
This is located in Indiana.

I really don't know who to ask for advice.  A guy named Ryan threatened to beat me up and curb stomp my son. My 5 year old. He told me he knew my address. This is my first time meeting him.

I called the sheriff's department and told the dispatcher and an officer the same story.

Ryan is my boyfriend's cousin and I know he has pounds of weed at his house and I had his address. He has illegal guns. I'm scared to death.

The officer told me that all he could do was go talk to Ryan and tell him to leave me alone. But then Ryan will think I'm a snitch and....well "snitches get stitches" so I don't want that to happen. The cop seemed totally uninterested in the amount of weed and guns Ryan has. As soon as I got off the phone with the officer, Ryan then messaged me saying, "Whether you believe it or not, I'm too important to go to jail."

Where do I go from here? Is he in with the local cops? There's a lot of small towns together, all the cops are buddy buddy with each other.

Answer:
 >This is my first time meeting him.

And yet you *know* he has pounds of weed and guns at his house?  The cops maybe seemed uninterested because it is next to impossible to get a search warrant for a house off of one tip.

If you think the cops are *in* with him then you can notify the state police of your suspicions.


Title: [FL] Need help understanding unemployment (we have a bad employee).

Question:
I work at a fro-yo shop in FL. We have this one employee who is frequently late, leaves in her car while on the clock for 15 mins at a time, and basically doesn't do any work.

The owners of the business would love to fire her, but are afraid of her filing for unemployment. That means the business would have to pay, yes? I don't have a super clear understanding on unemployment.

If she did file, could we argue against her and be like "here is all this video footage of her doing all these things wrong", and not have to pay?

Thank you for your time!

TL;DR Want to fire bad employee, don't want to pay her unemployment.
Topic:
Business Law

Answer:
 You can fight an unemployment claim. You want to document this poor performance. Dates, times, and details. You also want to have a meeting with this employee telling them that their job is on the line if they don't improve. Be specific. Like "if you are late by more than 5 minutes in any 30 day period, you will be fired". Then fire them if this happens. If they file for unemployment, contest it. It would be great if you could get them to sign a notice stating they understand, but if they refuse, you should still document the date, time, and details of the meeting with a note that the employee refused to sign anything.

Carefully read any notices you receive, specifically about rules for submitting evidence. In many States it has to be done in advance with copies sent to the claimant as well as the unemployment office.


Title: My order was seized by customs

Question:
(USA) It's not drugs or anything.

A while back, I ordered a pocket knife off of aliexpress, because I had read good reviews of the company. Kind of a diamond in the rough type of thing--excellent quality for the price. I received it and love it. It really is a pretty nice little knife.

So I decided to order a few more, including some other models. I wanted to try an assisted opening knife, and I found a review somewhere of an "assisted opening" knife by the same company with a model number.

I went on aliexpress to order it, but for whatever reason, I couldn't find a listing with a photo. It was just the model number and a broken-English description that seemed to match more-or-less.

I got a message from the seller saying that the shipment had been seized by customs, and on checking the tracking, it looks like it arrived in the customs office and never left. It turns out the review I read wasn't quite accurate, and that the knife is less "assisted opening" and more "switchblade".

Knowingly importing a switchblade is a felony. And, upon further review, I probably should have realized, because in the broken-English description it said "automatic".

I'm guessing CBP and the US Attorney have better things to do than prosecute some schmuck for ordering a ten dollar knife from China, right? I'll just get a letter saying "Dear Dipshit, we took your knife because you're too stupid" and that's the last I'll hear about it, right?

Answer:
 Chances are nothing will come of this. You may get the "Dear Dumbass" letter you're expecting, and if you do, or if you are contacted in any other way by the authorities, you should not respond.

Obviously if things start to seem dicey, say nothing and get a lawyer.