Title: (Ohio/Indiana) Fiancee (25F) has overwhelming student loan debt, her parents (50F/50M) are partially responsible to my limited knowledge. Her parents have not contributed.

Question:
To preface this, my Fiancee (24/F) and I (25/M) live in a suburb of Columbus, Ohio now, however when she took these loans out she lived in Valparaiso, Indiana. She went to school in Ohio. Her parents (50F/50M) still live in Indiana. The total debt owed is around 103k between gov't (40%) and private loans (60%). My fiancee's cosigner on the private loans were her grandfather.

To give background: Her parents are divorced. They have an on-going divorce settlement that has been going on for years. The ruling so far is that based on Indiana law, to my knowledge, states that parents in a divorce are responsible for a respective third of the child's higher education costs. The ruling for the father (who we no longer have a personal relationship with) is that he owes only a third of the amount during the time he had a relationship with my Fiancee while she was in college. The lack of personal relationship was a decision my Fiancee made for other reasons which are not related to finances. Essentially, this breaks down to $9k and change. She still talks to her mother, so her mother owes a true third, which is somewhere around the $33-35k range according to the divorce proceedings.

We have not been directly in this process so far simply because her mother was taking her father to court over these and we thought that would suffice. However, this will be changing. Neither her mother nor father has contributed anything, and the divorce proceedings have all but come to a halt. In fact, her mother just bought a new car with cash (from the equity selling her home) instead of helping my Fiancee with her loans (or anything, for that matter). We realize now that going through her mother to get any form of payment from either of them is not going to yield any results.

They have set her into a horrible financial future (a degree that would not lead to a job and did not advise her otherwise) and advised her that she finance her rent, cost of living, tuition, and literally everything she could think of through student loans. She had no real world experience coming from a boarding school, her parents were horrible with money (they both just got done with their bankruptcy), and is no longer being helped by her parents. Myself (going through college as a young adult) and my family are helping support her financially when need be (mostly living rent free).

With that little bit of background, what actions do we take from here? Does anyone have any idea what we can do? Do I need to provide more information? I assume we can file suit against both of them to fulfill their portions of the loans, but I have no idea how that works. The only reason I know about the law is hearing it from her mother when she spoke of the divorce hearings and the rulings.

My Fiancee is on board with this, but she is overwhelmed emotionally. This is why I am posting, rather than her. I hope that is OK. Thank you for any help in advance. I will try to figure out this flair thing, too.
Topic:
School Related Issues

Answer:
 >Does anyone have any idea what we can do?

Help your fiancé learn how to accept responsibility for her own shitty decisions.

[The default Indiana law on the matter IS NOT a one third split of college expenses.](http://www.divorcenet.com/states/indiana/college_costs_and_divorced_%20parent) The parents aren't required to pay anything more than what they would have paid were they still married. Judging by them both being in bankruptcy, we can assume they wouldn't have been paying much.

You need to see what the divorce settlement says to determine whether or not it goes beyond the default rules. And even if it does, you can't get blood from a stone. As of right now she should keep paying so her loans don't default. The creditors don't give a crap her parents aren't paying...it's only her and the grand parent listed on the loans.

You can also had over to r/personalfinance for help. $100k really isn't a frighteningly large number. And it shouldn't take you and your family to support a 25 year old college grad. That makes it seem like there are more serious issues at play.

Edit to add: the info i linked to also has an important distinction. It applies to post secondary *expenses*, not tuition costs. It specifically says parents aren't required to pay tuition. Unless their settlement agreement says they have to pay tuition, she's on her own.


Title: I NEED ADVICE ASAP!! PLEASE!! I'm being threatened with immediate eviction, and have nowhere to go.

Question:
I have lived in my mother/her husbands condo for three years, and they are saying i have to be out by this weekend. They found an oxycodone prescription in my name, and are saying i can go to rehab, or leave. I'm not going to rehab(please dont turn this into a drug debate). she is saying that she will cut the utilities off, and call the police to get me out if i do not leave. i said i have rights because of how long i have lived here, but she said there is now no evidence i rented it (no receipts, etc) i do have mail in my name there and have it as my address; I am terrified, me and my gf have nowhere to go right now. Do I have rights? What should i do? What do my first steps need to be? PLEASE ANY HELP! I live in Tennessee, but i do not know the laws well.

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Sorry for grammer or any other mistakes i am so scared.

Answer: Are you over 18? If so, thet need to give you 30-day notice to vacate as you are considered a month to minth tenant. They cannot kick you out overnight.Answer #2: Take the opportunity to go to rehab.


Title: Newspaper has mistakenly used my photo to identify a criminal

Question:
Not really sure where to start with this one...

A day ago I got a call from my dad saying my aunt had called him to say that there was an article about me in our local cities paper saying that I had been found guilty of a hit and run that left someone injured and wondering why we hadn’t told the family. He also had no clue and called me to ask what had happened, I found the website and found the online version and lo and behold there’s an article of someone with my name, but different age, who was involved in a hit and run. From what I can ascertain, they’ve taken my Facebook DP mistakenly thinking it was this persons?

What’s my legal scope here? I’ve emailed the news company to ask for them to take the article picture down but the newspaper is already printed and its pretty popular in our home town - I’ve already started to get hateful messages from people so I’ve shut down my social media so people can message but I’m worried I’m going to have people jumping me and all sorts

Answer:
 Your location matters here.

Obviously screen shot the article and keep hard copies of the news paper. Do not delete hateful messages, keep printed copies of them. Generally your remedy will be limited to a retraction but if you're getting flooded with harassing comments you may be entitled to something more aggressive than a single retraction printed in the paper.Answer #2: I had a friend from a few years ago that wrote for his college newspaper. He wrote an article about a girl that was raped on campus and they had a pic of my friend, the author, by the byline. Well long story short a local city newspaper wrote an article on the rapist and took my friends picture from the college article stating he was the one found guilty of rape. He was later confronted by someone in a gas station that called him a rapist and scum. This was enough for him to get a lawyer and sue the city newspaper. I think he ended up settling for close to a $100k high was pretty good for a small city newspaper.

I would strongly suggest saving and documenting any situation where you are negatively impacted due to the newspaper error and reach out to a lawyer.Answer #3: Anyone remember Zenaida Fernandez Gonzalez from the Casey Anthony case years ago? She got threats & job losses even AFTER the police & media cleared her. This might not be same set of cicumstances but once labeled, it can be a real bitch to get fully un-labeled.


Title: How do I escape?

Question:
I am 14 years old and I'll be 15 in a month.

My mom has refused to take me to the doctor for mental and physical issues ive been having, when I was deppressed she unenrolled me from school and now im kinda a dropout. She told me if i didnt smoke weed she had given me she was gonna take me to the mental hospital. I have no phone and no access to cps and dont know if i should call them.

Answer: What are you posting this on?  I think you can file a report online. Answer #2: If she takes you to a mental hospital for not smoking the weed she gives you, then you would be surrounded by professionals who could get you in touch with CPS..


Title: [NC] Friend has been lending roommate money for food, gas, utilities etc and when friend threatened to kick roommate out, roommmate lied to leasing office about drugs to get friend kicked out out of her own place

Question:
A friend of mine (we'll call her Emily) is allowing her roommate (we'll call her Brea) to live in her apartment rent-free (lease and utilities are all in Emily's name) as a favor since Brea was a friend and apparently "going through a rough spot". She claims to have anxiety so she can't work and her parents cut her off, but she's probably just lazy. Brea constantly pressured Emily into lending her money for gas, groceries, etc and would just expect Emily's credit card up to the point Emily gave her upwards of $1500 and she hasn't repaid a single cent. She was controlling and tried to tell Emily when she could and couldn't have friends over, kick her dog out, etc, all while living rent-free in Emily's apartment.

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I told Emily that she needs to kick Brea out and to give her a 2 week notice to get a job and move all her shit out before she'd change the locks. I guess Brea got the feeling she was about to get kicked out because she went to the leasing office and told them Emily was doing weed in the apartment. There is a zero drug tolerance policy so Emily was given until Saturday to move out of the complex. The leasing office found a bowl in the apartment that Brea claimed was Emily's, but was really her own. Emily was at work when this happened and was called out by the leasing office, so she wasn't there when all of this happened. Here's the kicker: Brea is planning on taking over the lease and suddenly has the money to pay for it, so she's been lying all along about not having money. She still doesn't work though, so it's most likely her parents' money.

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Emily is in the military and gets randomly drug-tested, Brea is not. Emily hasn't been tested in 6 months, but she is clean. What recourse does she have here, both with the leasing office, but more importantly to get Brea kicked out and hopefully make her pay for all the damages and fees Emily now has to pay?

Answer:
 Emily can put up a defense in court that she has not violated the lease. But, it doesn't look good. The landlord has Brea's statement. And, the found the bowl.  I suspect that the lease does not make exceptions which allow guests or sub tenants to have drugs in the apartment.

Her best recourse might be to sue Brea.


Title: I am being punished for uploading a picture of a teacher I took for yearbook class.

Question:
Today, I thought it would be fun to make a subreddit for my school. For the header image, I decided to use a picture of teacher 1. I took this photo for yearbook. I'm into photography, and have always used my own camera. I'd upload the pictures to my computer, which subsequently put them on my Google photos.

Anyway, as I was uploading the picture, a teacher saw what I was doing, and said that I should stop. This is a teacher I've always been friendly with, so I didn't really take them seriously.

Fast forward a few hours, and I get called to the office. "Teacher X told us they saw you uploading a photo of Teacher 1 to your personal Read-It."  They call the yearbook teacher down and we have a talk. They get angry at me and say that I'm stealing photos from yearbook, that I could, in theory, get expelled. They'll decide on a punishment on Monday.

I took the photo, during school hours, with my own camera. I did not, to my knowledge, sign anything giving anything I make to yearbook. The photo was on public property, and was just of teacher X smiling. I acknowledge that the school can punish me how they like. What I want to know is: does the school have any legal ground over me? Can I challenge their punishment? Did I do anything wrong by using the picture? Thank you!

Answer: Most likely your student handbook has something relative to this situation.  The argument that the picture is not yours to do as you wish is actually not a far fetched one.  Especially because the teacher also has their right of publicity, which you may have violated by uploading their picture.


Title: Domestic abuse by younger brother

Question:
(mods at /r/relationships told me to repost in here.)

Hello reddit, I'll try to keep this as short as possible.

Me and my brother are living together in my moms flat. My mom is over at her boyfriends place most of the weeek. We havent heard about our father for years since our parents divorced 6 years ago because of fathers alcoholic and aggresion problems.

Yesterday horrible stuff has happened. I was playing games on my pc when out of the blue my brother has brought a pile of dirty plates and put them in-front of me and told me to stand up and go immediately clean them. I asked him why did he tell me in the morning that we were gonna clean the place tommorow and is asking me now to do stuff when I made plans for the day. Then he suddenly started shouting at me that I am a worthless fucking fat piece of shit and stuff like that. Since he has these aggresive verbal outbursts quiet often (this one was second of the day). He has like 3/4 rage outbursts a week. I recieve all of them mostly since I live with him but sometimes even my mother get verbally attacked. But it was different this time. He then started shouting at me for some empty bottles that were on the kitchen counter and should've been in the trash bin. So i stood up went to kitchen and threw them to the bin. But I didn't leave. I stood there and asked my brother calmly to calm down because he doesn't know what he is talking about and I told him that I know he doesn't mean all those insults. All that created even more rage and he hit my face with something (I don't remember what). At that point I was full of adrenaline and my reaction to this was to hit his head aginst the counter hold his hands put him on the ground and tell him to stop because at that point he was swinging his fists and everything. This stopped him from attacking but the verbal abuse got even worse. He couldnt control himself he was in pure rage all muscles flexed shouting 1 cm from my ear while spitting all over my head. I repeatedly told him to calm down. Then he noticed as we fought his cats milk has spilled on the ground. He told me to clean the milk right away or he'll kill me. I once again told him to calm down and ask me to do it like a human asks human, not as if he was talking to some piece of shit. His reaction to this was him taking a 35cm knife from a kitchen and pointing it at me while telling me "You either clean this or you're gonna die." This wasnt first time he tryed to stab me. First time 2 years ago, second time half a year ago and yesterday.

When he tryed to stab me second time I had just in time put door between me and knife so we got a nice hole in our door. Anyway I stood up cleaned the milk as he was standing above me holding a knife with face of a psycho. He then put a knife away I quickly packed all my personal items while he was calling me names. I am now living over at my grandmas place where I can stay until my paycheck wich is 10th august. Mom is coming home tommorow and I don't know what to do. Help me reddit how do I deal with this situation. (My brother repeatedly abuses these substances: MDMA, cocaine, weed, LSD, mushrooms. NO meth or crack nor heroin.) Please keep in mind English is not my first language so I am sorry if this message is unclear. I was also thinking about moving out on my own but I make 650 a month and typical rent is around 380 a month without internet. So I would have to live on a very tight budget. I work 5 hours a day at night if it helps.

Edit: I am 21 and my brother is seventeen and we live in Slovakia.

tl;dr: Brother attacked me with knife third time. I am worried about my life so I don't think I can live with him anymore. What do I do?

Answer:
 I don't know anything about law in Slovakia but I have a few suggestions for you:

1: call the cops any time someone seriously threatens to kill you.

2: tell your brother feeding dairy to a cat is very unhealthy and he should stop it.

3: sounds like a toxic environment that you help contribute to and should leave before he or you do something stupid


Title: If someone were to take their car and crash it off a bridge in a suicide, would the person who had the car in their name still be legally obligated to pay off the car?

Question: [removed]

Answer:
 Yes, the owner of the car would still be responsible for the loan.

Call this number immediately: 1-800-273-8255

They are open 24 hours everyday.
Answer #2: Yes. If you take out money to buy something, you owe that money back regardless of what happens to the thing you bought.

This is why insurance exists. If someone steals your car and totals it, you call your insurance. Your insurance investigates and pays you out according to your policy, perhaps suing the person or estate of the person that wrecked your car.

You use that money to pay off your car.


Title: [Pennsylvania] Landlord does not want to investigate or fix gas leak

Question:
I rent a trailer and we use propane for heating and cooking. There is something seriously wrong with our gas lines, because the 100 pound bottles that we use, which last winter lasted for 6 weeks, are now lasting for about 8 days each.

We first contacted our landlord about this issue on December 3rd, and several times since. During that time, he has sent out a heating "expert" who also rents in this park. He has shown up three times, and each time told us that he knows very little about propane. "I haven't dealt with propane since I was in school", which to me says he has zero practical experience. The first time he looked at the heater, he did unclog part of it and discover that the thermostat was not set up right. That did make the furnace run better, but the problem isn't that the furnace isn't running, it's that the gas is running out too quick. The landlord has sent the same man out two times after that. In both the following trips he did absolutely nothing different than the first time except tell us that he couldn't help us. Not once did he look at the gas lines or bottles.

The most recent time he was here, he came up with a theory that the propane we are buying is tampered with. This man, who cannot name a single propane company, heard a story once about a place, somewhere in PA, where he believes that pipes were frozen because of propane being mixed down with water by the company selling it. The official story was that there was a water main break, so even if that is true it is a conspiracy theory by definition. However based on that "evidence" he told the landlord that we are buying bad gas and this is our fault.

The best part is, he even admitted he smelled gas while he was here.

The last time we called the landlord, he told us he agreed that we are buying bad gas and that is the reason the tanks are running out so fast. After much wrangling he agreed to send someone out with a sniffer to look for a leak, on Monday. It is now Tuesday night and no one has shown up.

We need the propane to heat the trailer and to cook. Both of these are needs and required to be provided, and as we are renters it is the landlords responsibility to make repairs. The way I see it the landlord has ignored this based on unqualified reports. What should I do about this? I don't think calling him again will make much of a difference since he just doesn't care. I was thinking about sending a letter via certified mail detailing the amount of time that has passed and lack of a solution, with a reminder of his responsibilities. I'm not sure what legal threats I can make. I know I can get my own repairman and take it off the rent, but not unless he agrees to beforehand and he'll never do that. I'm at a loss because we can't save up for a new place when all of our money is spent on propane and take out. Any advice is very much appreciated.

Answer:
 Not legal advice. The gas leak itself is more immediate. I'll wait for others to answer the legal issue, but definitely keep a log of times that you smelled gas, spoke to the landlord/"heating guy", any contact you made with your propane supplier, and so on.  Also, if you don't already have a carbon monoxide detector, please think about getting one. The chances of CO poisoning increase greatly when your system malfunctions.

Do you actively smell gas even when you are not using it?  Have you checked the lines personally? Do a visual inspection and then the bubble test. It's really easy, mix up some really soapy water (a mostly empty dish soap bottle works perfect) and spread it on the lines, especially any connections. Bubbles mean gas. You can also get a cheap detector for about $30 from your local home improvement store. Is your propane delivered and have you called the company? Have you stopped by your local fire department and asked if they have a detector? (It really depends on how big your town is and how bored they are on the likelihood they'll help). "Bad propane" is a thing, but it's way more likely to be the regulator (if it's not a leak). How old are these tanks?


Title: Am I breaking the law by posting screenshots of my death threats?

Question:
I have recently been put through the ringer on Instagram - a random follower has stolen my picture, posted death threats about me, called me every name under the sun, made fake love notes that he claims I wrote him, and other terrible things.

All of these posts are public things he has posted - not direct messages. This person has been blocked but I am able to see his account through a separate cell phone since he has a public page.

I have contacted law enforcement and the FBI, but they can do very little. They ask I continue to monitor him and get screenshots. They don't believe I am in immediate danger as this person is not super close by, but I still am obviously very alarmed.

I posted these pictures in my story on Instagram. My little group of followers has banded together to report individual posts and his account. My end game is to get his page banned so I can at least stop compulsively checking it for garbage about me. I don't know why instagram won't remove it.

Am I in the wrong for posting these screenshots? I post them as they appear on his page. They are public images and I don't want instagram to come at me for harassment or something.

Thanks for any and all advice!

Answer:
 *I am no way qualified for any opinion whatsoever, so take this with a grain of salt.*

To my knowledge, instagram's copyright rules for reuse essentially boils down to 'once you posted it, it can be reused if someone else wants to and you don't really need to give proper credit'. If they were serious, they could request a DMCA takedown but I doubt it would be effective as you are not exposing any private information as it is all already public and they can't claim copyright on most of the stuff if they say it is from you in the first place.

Anyway, good luck with your harasser


Title: Illegal consumption of alcohol at Indy 500

Question: Earlier this year at the Indy 500 I received an illegal consumption of alcohol charge.  Just received the letter in the mail with my court date.  The main problem is that I live in SC and am a college student here, making it hard to make it up there for my court date.  This is my first ever offense (not even a traffic ticket) and I don't really have  the money to afford a lawyer.  Would I be able to talk to the prosecutor/judge without a lawyer and try to work something out? Im trying to minimize the charges because I do have hopes and dreams of going to medical school, and I don't want anything to ruin that. Any advice is much appreciated. Thanks!

Answer:
 Is an appearance required? If so, you need to appear. The fact that it might be inconvenient to appear in court is something you should probably have considered before you decided to do something illegal.

It may be possible to hire an attorney to appear for you.


Title: North Dakota. Arrested for a DUI. Lots of questions regarding what happened durring arrest procedure.

Question: Last night I was charged with a DUI in North Dakota.  While leaving a gas station about 3 blocks from my home, while turning onto a main road,  I swerved off the road to avoid hitting a person on a bike that cossed the road in a spot with no crosswalk/intersection. I don't know if they were riding very quickly or if the blind spot on my vehicle cause by the door column hid them just right, but when I swerved to avoid them I hit a light pole. And the biker kept on biking like nothing happened. ---- my truck is equipped with onstar and it imeidietly actived. A man came over the speakers to ask if I was ok, to asses  the accident and to call the authorities.  He asked if my vehicle was in a safe spot and if I was ok. Being that I was only a short distance from home I told him I would take my truck home and to have the athorities dispatched to that location. When the cops arived I was issued a field sobriety test. I did fine on the test. But scored a wopping .17 on the breath analysis. I was placed under arrest but myself and my SO both do not remember me being read my rights. I was driven to the hospital in the front seat of an animal control truck and had blood drawn. I was then taken to the local police office (not the jail) and answered questions for the officer. I was never placed in a cell. I bailed myself out imeidietly and my girlfriend drove me home. --- I'm mostly wondering about the legality of me potentially not being read my right, and having blood drawn without a warrant.

Answer:
 >  I was placed under arrest but myself and my SO both do not remember me being read my rights.

Your Miranda warnings are only required when you are in custody **and** being questioned.  They're not required at the time of arrest.

> and having blood drawn without a warrant.

In North Dakota, you [automatically consent](http://www.legis.nd.gov/cencode/t39c20.pdf?20151016090804) to blood tests.  No warrant required.


Title: What to expect when calling CPS (eastern Kentucky)

Question:
I want to call CPS on my stepmother. My mom told me that if I called CPS then they'll record the report and then play the recording to my stepmother. I think she might be lying because she already advised me to not call since "family doesn't report family" and thinks I'll believe her because she works for foster care company.
Topic:
CPS and Dependency Law

Answer:
 They don't do that. Call if you feel you need toAnswer #2: I'm a CPS investigator, but not for Kentucky. What I can tell you is that for the vast majority of reports I have to investigate, I am not allowed to tell who made the initial report, whether they've asked to be kept confidential or not. The only time I am allowed to divulge that information is if becomes a court case for whatever reason. Then the person who made the report is mentioned as a possible witness to the abuse.

My state does not record the calls we receive from people making reports. There is no way for us to identify who made a report unless they choose to tell us who they are when they call. Answer #3: I’m pretty sure that CPS wouldn’t do something like that, as they aren’t allowed to reveal who calls them regardless of whether you call anonymously or not. She’s just trying to be manipulative. I hope things go well for you


Title: Want to draft a will

Question:
Hello /r/legaladvice, this is my first time here.  I live in TX and I have a few questions I would appreciate some input on.  I have always heard it's a good idea to have a will, it's just such a morbid thing to think about.  But I have a new baby at home and have started to accumulate a decent amount of net worth (just reached $1 million).  My biggest concern would be if something were to happen to my wife and I both, if we left the baby at home with grandparents and got in a bad wreck for instance.

My assets are split between retirement accounts, a taxable investment account, and home equity.

What I would like to do is set up a will so that if something happened to the two of us, it would outline in detail:

-who would take custody of our child

-how much they would be allocated annually to provide for her

-how the remaining funds would be invested, when she would get the money and how

I would rather avoid having to set up a trust right now.  I am not quite sure how I should pursue this, would an attorney alone be able to help me accomplish this?  Or would I need an investment advisor of some kind as well?  I have a fairly good idea of what I would want done in terms of who would assume custody and how much annually they would be allocated, but I suspect this would be complicated.  Would I go through a family attorney?  Some kind of estate planning firm?

Thanks in advance for any assistance.

Answer:
 Go to an estate planner.

You're going to want to think of two people: one person is a trustee, who will manage your child's finances and disburse money to their benefit as necessary, and the other person is a custodian.

Some of the stuff you're saying is kinda like you're trying to make decisions now that would make a trustee unnecessary later, but I think you really want an intelligent human in that role.  Someone you trust to be good with money and who will care about the child's best interests.

It's also good for the trustee to be independent from the custodian, that's how you prevent abuses from happening -- for instance -- the custodian taking money out of the child's trust in order to buy a bigger house, or something.


Title: What can I do about emotional/mental abuse?

Question:
I'm in Virginia

My mom has been with the same man for almost a decade now and over the passed few years he's been getting progressively more abusive. He berates me by calling me names like rat bitch, whore, cow, pig, etc. and would kick me out (as a minor) for days at a time. He encourages me to kill myself and encourages physical fights between my younger brother and I and limits things like bathroom use. I'm about to leave for college and I worry about my mom and little brothers. The treatment he gives me is a good example of how he treats them but because you can't see the abuse per se, I was wondering how I could get him in trouble with the law. There's no use talking my mom out of the relationship; over years of physical abuse from my dad, mental abuse isn't too bad to her... her self esteem has been beaten to ground zero and I don't know how to help them out of this. I want to know what my legal options were against emotional/mental abuse if there were any.

edit: per se*

Answer: Your mom can choose to leave him, or stick with him. If you feel your brother is being abused, call CPS, but it's probably going to take more than just him being mean.


Title: [CA] On probation, roommate is trying to get me in trouble for drinking.

Question:
Sorry for formatting, I'm on mobile.

My roommate and I don't get along. We both aren't bad people, but we have very different personalities and habits that clash. I got a DUI a few months ago (I moved a car in my apartment parking lot because it was blocking someone in. A cop was of course sitting there when I did. It was dumb but past is the past). So I've been on unsupervised probation. I have followed it to a T and not entered any bars, bought liquor, etc.

Yesterday my roommate just found out about my DUI and probation. Today he was pestering me about trying his new favorite beer. I should have connected the dots sooner but I didn't. I was really tired from work and after 5 minutes of him following me and asking me to try it, I gave in and took a sip. I was still holding the bottle while saying it wasn't bad and reaching into the fridge to grab something. During that time, he took out his phone and took pictures. I didn't realize what he was doing until he asked me what would happen if he turned in a picture of me drinking to my p.o.

Now I am currently freaking out. I know he wants me out of the apartment. If he finds out who my p.o is, will I get sent to jail? If he sends it to the police station instead of my p.o will they forward it on? Should I be contacting my lawyer again? I know it was stupid of me to do and I've been trying so hard to stay out of trouble. I don't want to go back to jail.

Answer:
 We can't guess what your PO will do.  You also can't prevent anything - you broke your probation, and what's done is done.

If your roommate tries to get you to do something you don't want to do, as a condition of not telling about your drinking, that's illegal.  You can report that to the police.  Doing so would require you to confess to your issue as well.


Title: [FL] Hotel destroyed expensive medicine

Question:
Miami, Florida

Shortening the story for brevity.

I take a biologic medicine that must be refrigerated at all times, stored between 2 and 8 degrees C, never frozen, and never shaken.  This is standard stuff for biologic medicines such as Humira.

I came to Miami on vacation.  Before coming, I emailed asking for a fridge in the room for the medicine, was assured there would be one.  There was no fridge available when I arrived.  I was told the front desk would refrigerate it for me.  I explained verbally to the desk staff how important it was for it to be refrigerated multiple times.  I told the front desk agent how expensive the medicine was.  He assured me it would be fine.  I followed up with an email saying how upset I was that there was no fridge and explaining that the medicine needed to be kept between 2 and 8 degrees.

Today I found out that they froze the medicine, presumably putting it in the freezer instead of the fridge.  It is destroyed.  I have photos.

Issues:

1. The medicine cost about $900.
2. It's unclear if I can get any more of it on short notice.  If I can, it is likely to cost much more than $900 since I get the medicine at a discount to the US list prices.
3. I need to take this medicine daily.  I'll already have missed a day today.  If I can't get medicine tomorrow, I'll miss tomorrow.  I will get sick if I don't take it, so that likely means for my health that I should cut my vacation short and get a last minute flight for myself and wife back home to Canada.  This will cost $$.

Legal questions:

1. I have my original email asking for a fridge, my follow-up email saying how upset I was about there not being a fridge which included reiteration of instructions for refrigeration, and I wrote the hotel manager a long narrative of what happened with as much detail as I could remember.  I have also taken pictures of the frozen medicine and the thermometer that was in the medicine bag showing that the temperature was -13C when I received the bag.  Is there anything else I should do to cover myself?
2. Are we in small claims court or lawyer territory?
3. In FL, can a lawyer represent me in small claims court?  I live in British Columbia, so coming here to pursue a claim would probably not be worth it.
4. What kind of lawyer should I be looking for here?
5. Any recommendations / referrals?

Thank you so much.

&#x200B;

EDIT: I think my questions have been answered.  Thank you everyone for your help!

EDIT 2: Lots of discussion about my specifying a temperature range in the comments and whether that could be construed as an instruction to freeze the medicine due to the difference between Celcius and Fahrenheit.  .  Here is what I actually wrote.  Bear in mind the entire context of the email was about fridges and a fridge not being available, but I understand that words matter.  So here is the exact sentence in the follow-up email:

>I have entrusted $5000 worth of medicine to your front desk staff who assured me that they would refrigerate the medicine and freeze the ice packs for me.  The medicine cannot be shaken and must be maintained between 1 and 8 degrees - roughly the temperature range of a normal fridge as long as the door does not stay open.

I don't think this is confusing, but I understand that if you were opposing counsel you would attack it as confusing.  (Ignore the $5000 part.  I have since calculated actual costs which are listed above.)

Answer:
 >  I followed up with an email saying how upset I was that there was no fridge and explaining that the medicine needed to be kept between 2 and 8 degrees.

If you told someone in Florida that something needed to be kept between 2 and 8 degrees, where the hell would you expect them to put it if not in a freezer?

The US doesn't use Celsius.Answer #2: 2-8 degrees means it needs to be frozen in the USA.Answer #3: It’s been asked. But how did you word the letter?

1. “ 2-8 degrees...”
2. “2-8 C...”

If worded like 1 then yeah, as mentioned, the follow up email would have assumed that that he needed to be frozen. Even though you said fridge, 2-8 degrees is much more explicit, most people would try to place it there. And since America, that would be on the Fahrenheit scale.Answer #4: You told low-level employees at a hotel in Florida the temperature the medicine needed to be at in Celsius?  Did it not occur to you to convert to Fahrenheit, the temperature standard used in the entire United States?Answer #5: Anything under $15k is small claims court in Florida.

Up to you if you want to try and sue for some sort of damages beyond the $900 for medication. I will say, it will be a challenge to sue for more than the $900 and you would want an attorney for that.


Title: My sister-in-law is drunk driving and using dabs in front of my nephews. My Father-in-law wants custody to prevent these actions further and child services are complicit.

Question:
So back up last winter on X-mas eve. My sis-in-law (let's call her M) and her boyfriend (R) decide it's okay to drunk drive with my two small nephews in the back of the car from mom-in-laws residence which is actually a local charity shelter that she lives at, but let's call her L. So L was okay with this and supplied them with the liquor to do so. My Husband tries to convince them he can drive them back, they said no. I called and made a DWI report.

We leave the area to go back home from holiday (we live in a different state). We come back April and R made a video of M at home with all the lights off, she so drunk she can't move, just throw up, and the baby crying by itself while in M's care. R wasn't even suppose to be there! And pics of M's bong and asking why she did this in front of the kids. So we all go to child protective services together (me, husband, M, R, father-in-law, father-in-law's wife (not L)) and the counselor says M didn't pass the weed portion of the drug test but everything is okay and she should get the kid back and do some classes. M continues to abuse drugs and alcohol and now is attempting to shut father-in-law out of the nephews lives. Keep in mind father-in-law pays for all of the children's medical care and whenever M wants to drink and smoke, he'll take them, sometimes for a good month.

Anyways, we all realize that we can't do anything further with child services so I found out that other sis-in-law works for a shipping co and ships weed to M (across statelines). So I made a DEA report online from my current residence. Is there anything else we can do? You really can't confront this woman, she's aggressive and L encourages the behavior and let's her smoke at her 'residence'(a local humane society).

Topic:
Other Civil Matters

Answer:
 OP- It sounds like to me that you need to make additional reports/follow-ups with CPS.

Do you mind if I ask where your brother is? Is he deceased?


Title: (TN) CPS report needs to be made, but if it's successful things will get worse.

Question:
He will either end up in the system, which there are so many horror stories about, or be given to a more abusive family guardian who has managed to not have any repercussions for decades. Every time they investigate, it fails and she simply beats them more.

He's not in a great situation but comparably to being physically beaten or lost in a wave of forgotten children, it feels like nothing can be done.

Answer:
 A lot of the "CPS are bogeymen that put kids in a situation that's Even Worse" gets inflated by the kind of people that don't want you/them to call so yeah, bad shit has happened but it sounds like you're hesitating to call because of a "maybe it will get worse" when things are definitely bad already.

Did the kid tell the truth the first few times it was reported or did they recant their story to try and avoid a beating at the time?


Title: Public defender vs hiring an attorney. Need advice!!

Question: So I got an aggravated dui and am waiting trial. I was appointed a public defender but I also spoke with an attorney who refers to himself as a "dui specialist". However he is not cheap. My question is, being that it is a dui with all evidence against me, is it worth paying for the attorney? The saved money will help me out with the rest of the expenses. But I don't want to be penalized more because I didn't hire my own attorney. Any advice would be great. This is my first offense and I'm just not familiar with how all this works. Thanks so much.

Answer:
  Generally speaking, you don't get to pick.

If you can afford an attorney on your own- even if it causes hardship,  generally you do not qualify for a public defender.

So you can go apply for a public defender, and see if you qualify.


Title: (Arkansas) I think my friend who had stroke is being held by his caretaker. She canceled his cell phone and no one can contact him.

Question:
His cousin and son and I are his only connections. We have all written to him with no response. He called me about a month ago but never answered his phone when I called back every day for two weeks. Then his number was disconnected. His cousin said he had talked to his ex-girlfriend and his caretaker disconnected the phone that day.

We have no absolute proof, but indications are that she is milking his money, stealing his medicine, and possibly messing with his will.

Our only thought is to just show up at his door where he live two hours away. I thought I would solicit tips and ideas from y'all before I did anything.

Answer: Call the local police department and ask for a welfare check on him.


Title: Landlord refused my entry to house without notice. Now she is ignoring my attempts to get in touch with her [San Diego, CA]

Question: I returned from a multi-day, out of town trip and landlord refused to let me enter house. I paid rent until 1 May, she refused entry as of April 20. We moved houses and the agreement (over text and verbally) was that I could stay until 1 May in new house, so I paid rent for the entire month of April (20 days in old house, 10 in new). Before the move to other house, I removed my stuff and put it in storage unit, so that is not a concern thankfully. She is ignoring my attempts to get in touch with her. I plan on pursuing this issue in small claims court, but I'm mostly interested in finding out if I can also tack on the amount I paid to find lodging during the 10 days I did not have a place to stay (I'm staying in a cheap motel). I couldnt find this issue addressed anywhere. Thank you for the advice!

Answer: you should be able to get back an amount equal to a prorated 10 days of rent refunded to you. So take the rent you paid for 30, divide by 30 and multiply by 10. That is how much you should get a refund on just initially, But you might also get other damages based on your state due to her illegal eviction.  Answer #2: Any costs incurred are due to be reimbursed for her illegal eviction. You should have called the police too, they would have informed her of what she’s doing is illegal.


Title: Girl online attempting to blackmail me after camsex

Question:
I know what I am about to describe will seem crude/disgusting/shamefull etc to many and I may be dismissed but I am quite worried. Location - Canada - I found a woman on omegle for camsex which moved to skype - something that I havent done before and heard could be fun. After we had camsex she claimed she was underage - I was mortified as she did not look or act underage however ignorance is not forgivable - She then preceded to tell me she had recorded us and said that she will report me to the authorities if I do not buy her a video game online. I mentioned that this was wrong and I was clearly horrified at this realization. She then sent me screenshots of her submitting a report to authorities saying if I didn't buy her a game she would submit it. I Immediately cut ties with this person. I did use a throwaway Skype account for this interaction and had saved the conversation to have proof of blackmail. I don't even know if this girl is underage or not, or just trolling and a rise in me is exactly what she wanted. But I am very worried something could come of this.

Any legal advice on this issue? Could something come of this? should I be very worried? any help is appreciated.

Answer:
 Total scam. Block her and cut all ties. Answer #2: Stop communicating with "her". It is a common scam. Just move on with your life.Answer #3: > She then preceded to tell me she had recorded us and said that she will report me to the authorities if I do not buy her a video game online.

Textbook extortion. Don't respond to her ever again, and if the police happen to show up, don't answer a single question without a lawyer.Answer #4: Wow the scam has grown. Using actual models now. Answer #5: It's a scam. She won't do anything to you. And if she did, she would most likely be charged with creating child pornography and extortion.


Title: Am i asking for to much?

Question:
Hi  my  state.  Minimum wage went up to 14$ an hour.
I've gotten a 1$ raise last year. My company bumped me up to 14.50.
Shouldn't i be getting  15$ hourly.?
Im stuck in between being grateful for a job and not wanting to be screwed out of money.
Topic:
Employment Law

Answer: No, legally you do not need to be given a raise to keep you where you were. As long as you are making above minimum wage that is all that matters.


Title: Trying to free my pregnant teen. She is on hold with no bail. What happens and who is involved with changing that status?

Answer: Your missing some key details but if she has been charged with a crime she needs a lawyer.


Title: Got a voicemail threatening arrest

Question:
[NJ]

So, I'm *pretty* sure this is a scam, but it terrified me.

I use a burner phone for internet dating. I've been stalked before (twice!) and got tired of it.  I've been using this particular burner for the last 4 months or so.

Just now, I got a call from a DC-area code phone number on that burner phone.  I generally don't answer phone calls from numbers I don't recognize, so I let it go to voicemail.

The voicemail was a computerized voice saying "This is (202)-XXX-XXXX. Make sure to give us a call before you get arrested."

I'm not from DC, haven't been to DC in a couple of years, and I'm pretty sure I haven't done anything worthy of arrest. But still, am I under any obligations? And if not, should I just burn this phone?

Answer: 100% a scam. Just delete it and forget about it.


Title: US: Is nudism or having sex in front of minors illegal?

Question:
Nudist colonies, nude beaches, "open" cultures (sex in front of children).....is any of that explicitly illlegal? (of course no nude children or sex with children under 18)

Does this differs upon jurisdiction? (California-if so)

Answer: I do not, repeat, *do not* want to know why you are asking this question. Having sex in front of a minor is a crime, in particular, but not limited to, it's a lewd act.


Title: UPDATE([TX] Neighbor claiming I ruined her clothes.)

Question: The landlord spoke to the crazy neighbor, this pissed her off and in retaliation she destroyed both washing machines. Now she has to buy new ones. She hasn't said a word to me since.

Answer:
 There is nothing that makes my day more than a /r/legaladvice update. Thanks :DAnswer #2: Jezus, what a nutcase. Make sure your renters insurance is up-to-date. You never know what she might pull next.Answer #3: WOW!  What a crazy neighbor!

Keep yourself (and your clothes) safe, and thank you for the update!Answer #4: HAHAHAHA. That's insane.

For those who are too lazy to look at OP's post history, here's a link to the original thread (well worth the read): [CLICK ME](http://www.reddit.com/r/legaladvice/comments/2ubwgy/tx_neighbor_claiming_i_ruined_her_clothes/)Answer #5: I suspect that if she's crazy enough to violently destroy two washing machines (with a wrench!), she's crazy enough to attack people. Stay far away from her and don't antagonize her.

You might want to review our renters ins policy in case she wrecks your stuff or burns down the building. Sorry you have to deal with this. Answer #6: That's a new level of crazy. Wow. Thanks for the update!Answer #7: If I were you I would not be using detergent left where she has access to it.  I can easily see her putting something in it to ruin your clothes.Answer #8: Thanks for the update, and I find this hilarious, but you really should consider investing in a security system and a surveillance camera.


Title: Bio-parent working under the table to underpay child support

Question:
Long story short my spouse and I have full custody of my step children. We have a ton of evidence that their other bio parent is working under the table for the family businesses so that they can claim unemployed on child support even though they’re making more than enough money. As it stands they only have to pay about $300 a month TOTAL for both children. Is there a way to take them to court for lying about income? Or report them to someone for unclaimed income?
Topic:
Custody Divorce and Family

Answer: If you have evidence, yes, you can take them to court and seek a modification of the child support based on the unreported work. You can also report them to the IRS since if they are hiding income they are likely not paying their taxes.


Title: [CA] 17 year old kid just got charged with 5 accounts. Nerd advice for my little brother.

Question:
I just got off the phone with my 17 year old brother. He told me he got charged with :

1 driving under the influence

2 driving without a license

3 driving without insurance

4 Obstruction of property

5 running from the cops

What are his options? What is he looking at? What can he do to lessen his sentence?

He said he doesn't remember doing these things because he got drunk at his friends. That he shouldn't have even been his car because he said he was supposed to be staying at the friend's house that night.

I can't help him. We have no money, and no family to bail him out.

I'm in desperate help for some advice for my kid brother.

Answer:
 He needs a lawyer, if you can't afford one, he can apply for a public defender.

He also needs to not talk to anyone but the lawyer about this.

>He said he doesn't remember doing these things because he got drunk at his friends.

Yeah, that's not going to help anything.

Some of the charges you posted aren't real things if you have statute numbers we can give an idea what he is facing.

Edit: Does he have a license and insurance but they were just not on him? Or does he somehow have a car without either of those things?


Title: DUI with cough syrup?

Question: SD. Was stopped recently and did a sobriety test. I have an uncle who uses cough syrup pretty regularly and I haven't cleaned my car in a while so they found five empty bottles of it. They arrested me because I had "glossy" eyes but I wear contacts and it was midnight so they were red. I blew 0's and asked for a blood test because I didn't do any of the cough syrup. I was originally stopped for a non-working license plate light, not for driving in an impaired way. I'm going to talk to an attorney tomorrow but I am just wondering if my blood test results, which will be 100% negative, will clear my case? I'm a college student at a really great school and I just don't want this to affect me for the rest of my life.

Answer: A prosecutor would have to be insane to pursue a DUI case where the suspect tested clean and the only apparent indicator of impairment is red eyes.


Title: My landlord is trying to evict me "effective immediately" Boston Massachussetts

Question: [deleted]

Answer:
 Landlord-tenant laws in MA are extremely friendly to tenants.  Your landlord is banking on you not knowing this.  The Boston Tenant Coalition can help you understand your rights and, if need be, refer you to a lawyer.

http://www.bostontenant.org/


Title: I believe my University is denying me the protections of the ADA Act.

Question:
I suffer from a documented health disability that causes me from time to time to miss class. I am registered with my School's disability services and receive accommodations. For three school years these accommodations have been given without issue and every professor has been extremely helpful and understanding of the situation, until one professor from this semester. Because of a flair up of my issue in the beginning of the semester, I was absent an unusually higher number of times, and by the second half of the semester, it returned to normal. For this class, class participation is a grade that we receive worth 15% of the overall grade.

I was given a 3/5, or 60% for the first half of the semester. (In this class, the lowest you can receive for participation is a 3.) And the only reasoning for the grade was that I was absent too much to participate. In my accommodations, I have the ability to excuse absences when my symptoms are heightened. The professor has been completely unwilling to change my participation grade to include only days when I was present, like every other professor has done.

I have filed a complaint and grade dispute with the dean of students and am awaiting a response. Am I right in thinking that this professor has violated my accommodations and what the ADA says I am entitled to, as far as not being penalized for my illness?

Answer: So, what is the work-around in place for missing the days? Like..what were you doing to counteract all the missed lessons? Typically, students that are excused from participation do some kind of assignment or work in their absence.


Title: My grandma and her boyfriend have been dating for awhile & today he decided to kick her out. Not only was this so out of the blue (wants her gone today), but she also has dementia. They are not married although we live in Indiana & I believe there is a law about being together for an extended time?

Answer: Indiana has banned the creation of new common-law marriages since 1958 (although some other states still allow them, so did they ever live together in any other state?). If she has been living there for more than 30 days or so, she's legally a tenant on a month-to-month tenancy and is entitled to one month's notice. If the boyfriend insists on kicking her out, she can argue to the police that this is an illegal eviction. However, if she has dementia and he doesn't want her there, is it going to be safe for her to remain?


Title: [MA] Local police told my elderly grandfather who is 75 years old, that he has to clear the side walks of snow in front of his house or face fines.

Question: [deleted]

Answer:
 > Can they force him to shovel snow off of town property?

Clearing snow off the sidewalks in front of your home is an extremely common ordinance in places that get snow.  If your town has such an ordinance, then yes, he's **absolutely** responsible for clearing the snow in front of his house.

However, the police aren't making him do it personally.  Your grandfather can hire it out, or the family can help.  He doesn't have to do it himself.


Title: Contractors knowingly buried construction waste when cleaning up the construction site. What can I do?

Question:
We currently live in Jefferson County in Alabama. Purchased a lot from a builder (similar to DR Horton; a regional brand with a better reputation) and after 8 months they had completed the home. During the build we noticed they were not being held to the standards of cleanliness or professionalism that we were told. During the last 3 or 4 days before closing they were pretty sketchy and tried to keep us away from the home until the final walk through, the day we signed. In that time span they had dug a hole the size of a 10 foot deep pool and began filling it with all sorts of construction debris; wood, wires, paper, plastic, paints, sheet rock, insulation, liquor containers, plastic containers that hold plants, shoes, clothing, and who knows what else.

We have only been in the home since November and with yard finally drying up and things beginning to bloom we are noticing more and more trash/debris sticking up through the soil. We've dug up quite a bit of trash so far and now that I've brought this to the attention of the builder (whom we have a 30 day, 60 day, 6 month, and 11 month warranty with them for these kinds of things) has now gone completely dark and refusing to communicate back with me.

What rights do I have? I cannot locate any information of construction waste laws in Alabama just demolition waste. The Builder is now refusing to communicate with us, and I just want my side yard fixed so that it does not create another problem in 8-10 years. Especially, since water pools on that side of my yard I feel like it will speed up the decomposition process and the void will be created sooner than later.

Answer:
 Looks like it is covered here

https://law.justia.com/codes/alabama/2015/title-22/title-1/chapter-27/article-1/section-22-27-11/

Seems pretty clear by your description that it falls under the creation of an unlawful dump.

What is unclear is if your local county courts can handle it, or if it needs to go through the state. Just give your sheriff's office a call to report it.


Title: I am so upset. Today we had to buy a new car, so we went to the dealership and traded in our old car for a good deal. I left for 5 minutes to check on the dog, and my mom had already signed paperwork for the car... charging us more than double the price on the sticker. Please help, im such a fool

Question:
[removed]
Topic:
Removed

Answer:
 I would see a consumer protection attorney. I would be shocked and amazed if a $4,000 finance charge on a $8,000 ($11,000) vehicle has been calculated correctly to comply with TILA.

Furthermore, your mother had your permission to act as your agent and sign on your behalf to purchase this car? Because you are making it sound like, you left the room and your mother purchased a car, not you. She can't just agree to a contract on your behalf on her own. However, after all of that, when you were given the contract you didn't somehow notice the fact the car was now 2x the value you expected to pay? And then you left the lot with the car, presumably knowing it just cost you 16k? Did you read anything presented to you? Was anything presented to you?

Either you aren't sharing the really relevant details, or the story is more fucked up than it sounds.

What I would do is go talk to a consumer protection attorney and see what they think of the situation. Right off the bat my gut says: TILA disclosures were inadequate, or are miscalculated, and there is a case of fraud or deceptive trade practices (possibly both).Answer #2: $200 per month for 6 years comes out to $14,400, I believe, which seems like what the principal plus interest with 11% interest would be on an $8k car.  If she has bad credit, this is what you would expect.


Title: restricted license in Maryland - can I still get gas/groceries?

Question: [deleted]

Answer:
 Gas- almost certainly

Groceries- call the court or ask your attorney

IANALAnswer #2: This is a question best answered by your attorney.


Title: [San Diego, CA] How do you advocate for a DA to press murder charges.

Question:
My girlfriend was killed 5 months ago by a 62 year old speeder.  The detectives said at the time that the investigation would take max 90 days.

The DA is quote "trying to find a reason"  why this man would kill someone.  They've been focusing on the man's health, hiring a medical investigator 3 months ago to do who knows what.

Her mom has started a JusticeforAmaranta campaign which is asking folks to email the DA and ADA.
Is this the best course of action for this type of issue?

Answer: It's entirely up to the DA. Emailing him is about all you can do, but he will never press murder charges if he thinks he can't make the case.


Title: Does my ex-roommate have a case against me?

Question:
Michigan, USA

So, here are the basics:
- I moved into a 3-bedroom condo in November of 2014 where two other university students had already been living. (They had advertised for a 3rd roommate)

- I read and signed the lease, which is up at the end of August and which I have honored.

- Around mid-June, I started moving my stuff out of the condo and living at my parents' house most of the time because the atmosphere at the condo was becoming hostile. Even after I was no longer living there, my roommates were impossible to please and texted me constantly and it made me feel like shit. I wanted to rent a truck and get the rest of my stuff so that I could be done with them, but my dad said that we should wait until I have a new place so we don't have to rent a truck twice.

- I've been looking for a new place but my furniture (dresser, desk, bed) has been still in the bedroom at the condo until this morning. As of now, none of my property is left in the condo. While my stuff WAS still there, I had everything unplugged from the wall sockets. There was absolutely nothing of mine that was using electricity or gas.

- My ex-roommate has been sending me messages on every possible medium because she wants me to pay one-third of the utilities for July. I have not lived in the condo since June. I have continued to pay rent to my landlady because I have a legal obligation. There was never a document that bound me to an agreement in which I would pay 1/3 of the utilities even if I was no longer living there. (Her continued harassment is what convinced my dad to let me move my furniture back home even though I haven't found a new place.)

- Said ex-roommate has now threatened to take me to small claims court for the 1/3 of the utilities bill that she thinks I owe her. It's $49. (which is higher than it ever has been in the past, by the way) I'm dropping off my rent check and my keys to the landlady tomorrow and after we had all of my stuff moved out, I took pictures on my phone of the empty room in case the ex-roommate tries to claim that I've damaged her property.

Here's my question: does she have a case?

If not, do I just have to wait this out and let a legal professional tell her that I owe her nothing, or is there some way for me to prove to her that I do not owe her utilities for a month that I was not living in the condo?

This whole thing has just been a huge headache and all I want to do is get back to focusing on my summer classes and my job (and my hunt for a new apartment). Any and all advice is appreciated.
Topic:
Other Civil Matters

Answer:
 Just pay the bill and walk away. It's only $50Answer #2: First of all, it's not just a straight price per kwh for electricity. There's usually a fee just for having electricity in the first place, so even if you used nothing, you owe something. Maybe there would be some debate here if it was thousands of dollars in electricity for the time when you weren't there, but it's only $50. Just pay up.Answer #3: So if you went on vacation for two weeks you wouldn't pay as much for that month??  Nope not how it works, you should pay utilities until the end of your lease.Answer #4: >does she have a case?

To put it bluntly yes.

 It is a reasonable expectation that you are responsible for the equal split of the utility regardless if you use it or not. Answer #5: >do I just have to wait this out and let a legal professional tell her that I owe her nothing

If you find any legal professional that would do this then you need to keep looking, because that legal professional would be wrong. Answer #6: But you *do* owe her that money.  Did your roommates and landlord agree to take your name off the lease once you'd moved out before the end of the lease?


Title: I'm being charged with "Obtaining Property By Deception"

Question: [deleted]

Answer: Why are you going to the police station next week? You shouldn't do that. Don't talk to the police about this without an attorney present.Answer #2: Are you saying that you were contacted by someone you didn't know who didn't know any of your friends, and who gave you money?  So you just couldn't just ask a friend let him know that your account was suspended?  Really?  Because that doesn't pass the smell test.


Title: Suddenly inheriting money and worried about young sibling's drug habit

Question:
We're in Utah in the USA. Some details changed in case family are searching on reddit.

My mother killed herself when my brother and I were teenagers. She was destitute, in and out of rehab, and estranged from most of the family but we had just started to reconcile, so it sucked a lot and came as a huge shock. We grieved, it was terrible, this was years ago. We didn't inherit anything and didn't expect to.

Suddenly over a decade later I get word from a family member that we've inherited my mother's share of my grandparents' estate now that they have both passed away. It isn't huge, but it will work out to about thirty thousand USD each for my sibling and I. This is life-changing money if spent wisely and I intend to be careful.

I'll preface this with a big bold understanding that I know my brother is an adult and I can't control him or his choices. Though I wish he made safer choices I've never tried to control him or harass him or talk down to him. I text and email him to say hi, he never really replies. He's not super communicative and currently in the throes of a deep depressive episode. I know through our surviving parent that he's been in and out of rehab and is really struggling with substance abuse, especially heavy drinking and opiates/xanax.

My brother was hurt in a car accident a few years ago and spent most of his settlement money on booze and drugs. He ended up getting several DUIs and lost his license for quite a while. Every time he comes into money of any kind, he spends it on pills and I am terrified that he's going to kill himself the same way our mother did, even if he does it accidentally rather than purposefully.

He and I are both equal executors of our mother's estate, though I'm the oldest. There's no stipulations in the trust or anything, it just required the sale of a couple properties before it would pay out and those have only just now gone through.

I have discussed this with my surviving parent and we've made the difficult decision to see if there's anything we can do to prevent my brother from receiving the money all at once. I feel like a shitheel for doing this because it feels like infringing on him as an adult, but he has young kids. I don't want them to grow up without a father or to miss out on money that could lift them out of poverty because he spends it all on self-medicating.

I am so worried about my brother. I tried to just talk to him about this and ask how he was doing but he rarely picks up the phone.

I'd give up my half of the inheritance in a heartbeat if I knew it would keep him safe. But I also know he's an adult and will make his own choices regardless of my meddling.

Is there anything I can legally do to pay his half of the trust out in increments or require a guarantee of sobriety or something? I'd be fine with doing the same to my own half if it meant less potential harm to come to him and his kids. After growing up without a parent I don't want to watch my nieces suffer the same thing.
Topic:
Wills Trusts and Estates

Answer: I think your best bet is to talk to a lawyer who specializes in trusts, or try to convince him to voluntarily put some safeguards on the money.


Title: Starting work as a tutor in NY, employer wants me to clock-out if I am not working with someone. Is this legal?

Question:
In the initial job offer through email my employer stated my hours, but during orientation my employer said that I must clock-out if I'm not helping anyone and clock back in when there is something to do. Since I am still required to be there, shouldn't I be paid for that time?

This is through a college if that makes a difference.
Topic:
Employment Law

Answer:
 IANAL.

That it is through a college doesn't make a difference. If you are required to be there while waiting for something to do, you are "engaged to wait", and must be paid for that time.


Title: Blackout Date Rape Video on Facebook

Question: Long story short, I was date raped in mexico, blacked out for three days and my "friends" took a purposeful embarassing video and are trying to use it to blackmail and threaten me.  It was once uploaded to Facebook, but quickly taken down.  I am a girl from Canada and my "friends" were some guys I knew living in mexico.  Help?  This video was taken without my consent during a serious medical emergency and I am appalled.  What can I do?

Answer:
 You can report it to the local police wherever you were in Mexico.Answer #2: First and foremost... I am sorry that this happened to you.
As for what to do... maybe go down to your local police station and tell them what happened. They might be able to help you formulate a plan of action.Answer #3: https://www.tvo.org/article/far-from-home-what-happens-when-a-canadian-is-sexually-assaulted-in-a-foreign-country

This article has a personal account of someone that was raped abroad. There are financial services available for Canadians victimised abroad.

If you are currently being harassed, threatened or extorted talk to your local police if they have a sex crimes unit or RCMP.


Title: Need advice on if this is illegal....

Question:
For spring break this year my friends and I decided to rent a house down in Gulf Shores, Alabama. We ended up renting a 14 person house right on the beach. We paid for the house months ago and everything was ready to go. Except I get a call THIS morning a WEEK before spring break and they say our house did not pss inspection so they cannot rent us the house anymore. Instead they gave us two other options. They gave us a condo on the beach that holds four, and a town house that holds 10 people 15 minutes inland not even close to where we originally rented.

I want to know if there is any legal action that I could take against these scumbags because this ruins everything.

Edit: They actually lied about it not passing an expection. They sold the house to another company/person instead. Not sure if this changes anything since the contract can say they can move locations if need be.

Answer: What does the contract you signed say? You did sign something in relation to the house you paid to rent months in advance, right?


Title: I was adopted IL in early 1980s. To complete the adoption, my adopted parents had to sue me. Same with my sister. Why did they have to sue us?

Question:
In the 1980s, kids who were adopted had to be used by their parents. My parents adopted two kids, and both times the lawyer told them that suing the adoptee was part of the process. As soon as I received the papers notifying me of the lawsuit, I became theirs. This was in the State of Illinois.

The lawyer said this was a normal part of the process.

Most families have pictures of the kids being born. My parents have pictures of me being served with legal papers.

We make jokes about "Baby's First Law Suit."

Why is this?

Addendum: Everything I know about this comes from my parents. I only know what they told me.

Addendum: My sister was adopted three years later. My parents used a different attorney, and there was a different judge. Yet, the same "lawsuit" and serving of papers occurred.

Answer:
 A petition to adopt is not the same as a lawsuit.  It's not Your Parents v. You -- it's probably In re the Adoption of You, or something similar.

Children can't sue or be sued except through a parent or legal guardian.


Title: Maryland 1st degree assault and conspiracy 2nd degree assault

Question: I was just locked up for what the title says. Long story short my friend punched a guy that had pulled a knife, the guy who got punched stabbed my friend repeatedly. I pulled the guy off of my friend and was stabbed in the top of my head, needless to say I got the guy off and we left. Now the stabber is saying I ran over him with my car(which I didn't)  Did the stabber fabricate evidence to have me locked up or is this a formality?

Answer:
 > I was just locked up for what the title says. Long story short my friend punched a guy that had pulled a knife, the guy who got punched stabbed my friend repeatedly. I pulled the guy off of my friend and was stabbed in the top of my head, needless to say I got the guy off and we left. Now the stabber is saying I ran over him with my car(which I didn't) Did the stabber fabricate evidence to have me locked up or is this a formality?

[I knew this story sounded familiar](http://www.reddit.com/r/legaladvice/comments/33ekr4/man_pulls_a_knife_and_gets_punched_in_the_face/)

Your two stories don't exactly add up, since you left out the part about you and your friend confronting the other guy. You also left out the part about lying to the police. Nice try though.

It is kinda funny how you argued and insisted you wouldn't get in trouble in the other thread, but now you're here asking advice again after going to jail.


Title: If I inform my employer I am actively seeking employment elsewhere. Can they fire me?

Question:
Illinois, no contract, "at will" state

Replacing me would require significantly more than 2 weeks notice as their are licenses needed to be obtained to work there. 4 months is the typical time frame from hired to actually working. I am tired of not being compensated fairly and I'm actively looking elsewhere. No offers yet but am starting the interview process with multiple companies. I feel morally I should inform them that I am actively looking elsewhere to provide them enough time to get the ball rolling to fill my position before an official 2 weeks notice is given. I fear that upon doing so they could fire me and figure a way to deal with the loss without having immediate replacement.

Can I be fired? And if so do I have any rights for unfair termination if so?
Topic:
Employment Law

Answer:
 >I feel morally I should inform them that I am actively looking elsewhere to provide them enough time to get the ball rolling to fill my position before an official 2 weeks notice is given.

Stop feeling that way, because...

>I fear that upon doing so they could fire me and figure a way to deal with the loss without having immediate replacement.

This is a very likely outcome.

>Can I be fired?

Yes, for that reason or no reason at all.

>And if so do I have any rights for unfair termination if so?

None.

Keep your mouth shut until you have a job lined up.

Give them two weeks notice only if you can afford getting by without being paid for those two weeks.Answer #2: Of course they can fire you.

No that isn't illegal.


Title: Who has legal ownership of a dog?

Question:
Hello Reddit.

Tonight is the first time i have really had a legal situation affect my life and being a long time lurker of reddit i decided to ask here.

Basically my Girlfriend and i broke up and had a dog together (chihuahua) now i paid for the dog $400 from a breeder however she has registered the dog under her name (which i did not now until now) now she wont give me my dog back claiming she has legal ownership of it. is this correct or do i have a leg to stand on being the purchaser of the dog also note she has never nor plans on paying the $400.

Regards a concerned pet owner, Richard

Edit: Location, Adelaide, SA, Australia

Answer:
 Dog Law expert here!

If the dog is registered to her, she has the stronger claim; paying for the dog gets "sticky."

Dog Law unfortunately doesn't recognize shared custody of pets; if you can negotiate something with her that might be the simplest solution. Otherwise you've gotta sue her to get a determination from a judge.

It is not advised at this time that you King Solomon the chihuahua by cutting it in half.Answer #2: You can sue her in small claims court.

While we can only guess as to how the judge would rule under those facts, I would guess that she would likely have the option to either pay you the money for the dog, or return the dog to you.

But that's just a guess.


Title: [NYC] Need advice about false DV accusations & locating children

Question: [removed]

Answer:
 Your brother can get a divorce and file foe custody with the help of a lawyer.Answer #2: Once your brother realizes that this relationship is over, he can file for divorce and ask the court to issue a temporary custody order.

https://www.nycourts.gov/courthelp/Family/custody.shtml

If he believes the children are in danger, he may be able to file a temporary restraining order against his ex, ordering her to return the children. This is a civil order and not criminal.

Outside of divorce, if she is acting crazy, he may also be able to get her involuntarily committed into a psychiatric ward, in NY for up to 72 hours.

This is, of course, all lawyer territory. And lawyer and court time, also means it's evidence time. Under New York wiretapping laws only one party has to consent to record a conversation. Advice is to get a recording app and record all phone calls for a while.


Title: Coworker scared he’ll lose custody of his kids. How strong is his ex’s case?

Question:
I’m writing this for my coworker, because he doesn’t know how to Reddit.

Little background:

Last December, he went to court with his ex wife for custody of his 2 daughters. He won the case, and gained custody of the kids. The ex is only allowed to have the kids every other weekend. The judge ordered her to pay $400 per month in child support, of which he has received $0 over ten months.  He went to visit family in Mexico for 2 months, and offered to give her the kids for one month, but she said she didn’t want them.

According to him, she has gotten physically violent with him on a number of occasions, and she has a history of mental health issues. Unfortunately, he’s never called the cops on her.

For the past 6 months, she’s been threatening to take the kids back. During this time, she would call the police multiple times per week, just to tell them where he was. Eventually, the cop that showed up told her he would arrest her for harassing 911 if she called again.

Recently, he took 6 weeks of paternity leave in Mexico to be with his current girlfriend during the final stages of pregnancy.

Recent incident:

He returned last week. And came back to work last Thursday (10/25). She showed up to his house Thursday night, once again threatening to take the kids. Made verbal threats towards him, and he finally lost his temper. He claims she was in his face screaming about how pathetic he was, and he lost his temper and shoved her towards the door.  That was the only physical contact.

The next day, (10/26), he told me something was wrong when we returned from lunch. His daughters school had called him, because the mother came and took the kids. That night, she brought them back. The following day, (10/27), he came home from work, where the police were waiting, and he was immediately arrested for domestic violence. He got out yesterday morning and came straight to work.

Now, she is in his house, which she hasn’t lived in since they separated. She claims that she’s been living there for 3 days, and that she is his wife. (They are divorced) and that they’re back together. The police have given her temporary custody, and he is staying with his sister.

Last night, the sheriff brought him some paperwork. It has her version of events. Where she claims that he dragged her by the feet from the couch, and hit her multiple times on the arms and legs. The paper work says that all she wants is child support.

The final page is a list of family violence favors. And from what he’s told me for the past few months, most of the claims she makes against him are things that SHE has done. She claims:

He’s threatened to destroy her property. (She has none)

He’s getting increasingly violent.

History of criminal arrest. (His only prior arrest was for an unpaid ticket)

He’s doing drugs around the kids. (He doesn’t do drugs)

He’s threatened to kill the kids pets. (His goldfish is fine)

He’s possessive of her. (He only talks to her when it’s about the kids)

He threatens to take the kids.

He has a mental health impairment. (No history of mental health issues.)

That’s all I’ve got for now.

Answer:
 Nobody can predict the way a judge is going to see this. But if he has text message proof and she’s been harassing him then with a good lawyer he should be ok. Answer #2: IANAL, but your friend needs to start documenting everything.  Every single detail.  Dates, Times, specifics on interactions.  He needs to collect evidence that she has been harassing him. Maybe get his neighbors to sign statements saying they're divorced and she doesn't live there anymore.  Information from the school on how involved the mother has been with the girls education.  Medical records for the kids proving they are in good health and maybe mental evaluations (it's always good in cases like this, as this woman seems bat shit and I wouldn't be surprised if she's gaslighting those kids while she's got them).

It's kind of ironic just because my boyfriend and I are going through almost this same exact situation right now with his kids mother.  Our entire case is basically showing the judge that while she likes to put on a show that she's a good mom, when it actually comes down to being a parent, she's not there.  She's not there for school, or extracurricular activities.  She's not there for any doctors appointments.  She just isn't there and the only reason she wants custody is because she doesn't want to pay child support (Hers is $50 a month total for 2 kids.  She can't come up with $1.75 a day for her kids!) and believes that she'll be able to be a stay at home mom with the child support she'll receive.


Title: [NY] Purely theoretical question. Friend's was unable to drive herself to her destination after blowing a 0.072

Question: My good friend was pulled over tonight, she's a responsible drinker and was not over the legal limit. She performed roadside sobriety tests and consented to a roadside breathalyzer. She was found to have a 0.072 BAC. She was driven home by another officer who she happens to know as it is the local police department's policy to not allow anyone over 0.06 BAC to drive their own vehicle home. This feels like bullshit to me, though myf friend has no issue with it. My friend was not over the limit, and was within her rights to drive herself home, right? Does local policy somehow override the NY legal limit for driving? Maybe i'm misunderstanding the law. This is purely theoretical, regardless of the legality no action will be taken, I'm just genuinely curious about 'local policy' overriding state law. Thanks in advance for any information.

Answer:
 You are misunderstanding the law. Above 0.08 means you are presumed too impaired to drive. Below 0.08 does *not* mean you are presumed ok to drive. A person can absolutely be legally too impaired to drive at 0.06.

In other words, over 0.08 you definitely can't drive. Below that you might not be able to drive. Answer #2: For starters, it is *not* responsible to drive at .072. Impairment can happen before .08.

Which leads into the next point, you're not free to drive if you're under .08. That limit is not the limit at which you can drive, it's the limit at which officers do not need to have further proof of intoxication for DUI charges. You can get a DUI at .072. You can get a DUI at 0.00 if you're high on another substance.

And yes, officers can let you go but not allow you to continue driving home. Mine do it very frequently.Answer #3: California (by example, since it's what I'm familiar with) DUI statute CVC 23157(a) makes one presumptively impaired at 0.08 or higher.  23157(b) allows for an officer to determine from objective observation that a driver was impaired.  It can be convicted with no BAC data at all (though it's not common).

Slurred speech, Horizontal Gaze Nystagmus, lack of coordination, odor of alcohol, inability to follow instructions, confusion about date/time and other observable factors can reach the "beyond a reasonable doubt" threshold independent of a presumptive breath test.


Title: Does all debt go away in death?

Question:
My FIL has two months or so to live and my MIL says she is going to claim he’s dead on all his credit cards (they are all in his name only) and not pay them. He’s a permanently disabled veteran and she says that no creditor can touch his pension.

Any truth to this? Anything she can do to protect herself before he passes?

This is for Kentucky in the United States.

Answer: She will still have to probate his estate. Creditors can make a claim on his estate. It would have to be determined by the probate court whether or not his estate owes that money.


Title: Ex-SO(32M) owes me 30+ thousand and is threatening me(27F) with revenge porn.

Question: About 3 years ago my ex moved to California and I made some bad judgments and loaned him money over a time period of a little more than a year. I told him recently that I was going to try and take some legal action to get him to even start paying me back. Now he has refused to give me his address so that the lawyer I am speaking to can check to make sure there is no conflict of interests. After I contacted one of his friends, he threatened to send a video of us having sex to my parents jobs and all my Facebook friends. I am in New York and he is in California. I really do not know how to proceed without instigating him to do this and having no recourse if he does.

Answer:
 California has a revenge law. Just Google "California Revenge Law" and you can see that he could be jailed and fined for posting anything without your consent.Answer #2: Good thing he moved to CA.  CA just passed a revenge porn law.  In December, we got our first conviction, a guy got a year in jail and 36 months probation for doing exactly what you just said, he posted her pictures on Facebook.  I hope you kept proof that he said that because that'll land him in jail for sure if he does end up doing it.  If you want to stop it before it happens, let him know it's illegal and that you already have him saying he would do it.

Now for the lawsuit...  You'd have to sue him in CA, and since it's $30K you can't use small claims court.  You're going to have to pay for airfare and a hotel, but $30K is worth it.  That's a lot of money.

Answer #3: California lawyer here. Sue him for the debt and include the extortion. Get a lawyer, don't try to do this yourself.


Title: Accidentally trespassed to throw trash away

Question: A friend of mine accidentally trespassed with his car into a gated location to throw trash away in Texas. Apparently he missed the sign that said no trespassing but he says the gate with "private property and "24 hr surveillance and violators will be prosecuted" was open. He only went into the gated parking lot and threw his trash in the dumpster and left and now is freaking out about the signs. This is in Texas. What can he do now and what can happen to him if they caught him on camera? How likely is it they they can actually prosecute and what's the likely outcome? Thank you

Answer: When you say he threw away trash do you mean his big gulp and McDouble wrapper or do you mean he threw away bags of trash like the dumpster was his personal landfill?  Because if it's the second one, and they have cameras and are mad they can absolutely go to the police.


Title: Doctor asking for a lot of personal information.

Question: [deleted]

Answer:
 Yes, they can (and will) refuse service if you don't give them your credit information. Since a significant percentage of dental patients don't have dental insurance (most employers don't offer it standard) they have a higher deadbeat rate than other medical providers.

These sorts of questions are pretty standard with any contract service, particularly ones that you aren't going to be paying for up front, and it gives them options to pursue a debt (reporting a collection to your credit, or even offering you credit for service)Answer #2: I would guess they're asking because some people go on payment plans for certain dental procedures (like braces, for example). They may refuse to serve you, but if you're just going for a routine visit, it doesn't seem problematic for you to refuse. Answer #3: >Can they refuse use service if we don't fill that out?

Sure.  Or they can simply ask you to pay for all visits and procedures up front, before the service is performed.  So if you are sitting in the chair, the dentist might say: "It looks like we'll need some xrays of your back teeth.  They cost $50.  We take cash or check."  :-)


Title: Landlord let people in unsupervised and they went through sterile diabetic equipment and threatened to steal airpods

Question:
Long story short my landlord asked to come down to view the work space whilst I had closed for the might. When I checked CCTV she had let two competitors in looking to take over when I vacate the premises this month. Not really a problem until she leaves them unsupervised while they then proceed to threaten to steal my clients airpods, threaten to remove results from the board and then actually rifle through a diabetic testing kit I have to log blood sugar of my clients when training contaminating the kit so now I will need to replace the sterile elements.

Whilst it will only cost small amounts I feel violated and the situation should never have happened. Is there anything I can fall back on legally at this point?

I've told the landlord under no circumstances can she show anyone else around unless I or my staff escort them around the site.

Answer: You should try out /r/LegalAdviceUK  . You're more than likely to get a better answer there.


Title: Can I fire an employee for Ashley Madison use?

Question: I'm a small business owner in Missouri. One of my employees used the website. The email address was a Gmail account they used to communicate during the hiring process. The employee is employed at will. Is this sufficient to fire with cause?

Answer:
 And please, if you choose to do so, try to make sure (how I don't know) that this wasn't one of the emails that was spoofed.

Anyway, why are you checking on your employees like this?

I don't really want to give you advice because this is shitty behavior on your part, but if you say "you are fired because you used the AM website" you'd better be pretty damn sure that the information you have is accurate, otherwise you could be opening yourself up to a world of hurt (which you may well deserve).

To fire an at will employee you don't need "cause". But it sounds to me as if you wish to stop them getting unemployment benefits and I doubt you will be successful.Answer #2: The term "for cause" is irrelevant here. No it would not be illegal to fire them but they would almost certainly qualify for unemployment.Answer #3: Unless you have evidence they used the AM account at work, you really don't have cause as far as I can tell.  They will probably get unemployment.  Answer #4: Sure, you can fire them.  I wouldn't say it is "with cause," but you don't need a reason to fire them.  You can fire them for any reason, or no reason whatsoever.

Absent a union or employment contract, you can fire them for any reason, except for illegal reasons.  Illegal reasons include membership in a protected class.Answer #5: Plot twist - OP runs a marriage counseling business


Title: Chalking tires to enforce traffic laws? (IA)

Question:
Does anybody have useful information on this? I’m trying to gather up facts and sources so I can send a courteous letter in hopes of creating change.

A bit of a backstory - just skip this paragraph if you want to get to the relevant question: So I work two jobs. For my day job, my wife and I both work at the same place. I’m only there part time as my night job is full-time, but she’s there full time. The building with our office is downtown and offers limited parking. There’s one, very small lot that has 24-hour parking, and all of the rest of the public lots within a quarter mile or so only offer a maximum of 4 hours of parking. Our office building is about a block away from the city police department which enforces the parking laws, and our tires get chalked pretty much every fair-weather day. We regularly get parking tickets, especially on days that we have lunch meetings and don’t have time to go arbitrarily move our car to one of the *many* other open parking spaces in the same lot in order to renew our 4 hour time limit (or just wipe the chalk off, tbh). We work 8-9 hour days. I think it’s ridiculous that simply moving your vehicle over one spot in a parking lot that’s never over half-full, is somehow better than just leaving your car in the same spot for the whole day, but that’s likely aside from the point.

My main point is that the officer(s) pretty much solely use tire-chalking as their method of knowing when to write parking tickets. It’s a serious issue, and it happens to most cars, every (fair weather) day. We’ve gotten multiple tickets, and I’m sure many more people get many, many more tickets. With as many as we’ve gotten, I can’t imagine the amount of people affected by it.

So I’m thinking about writing a letter to the police department (or city?), but I would like more information to include in the letter. I’m familiar with  [a relatively recent case out of Michigan,](https://www.npr.org/2019/04/23/716248823/court-says-using-chalk-on-tires-for-parking-enforcement-violates-constitution) where the court ruled that marking tires was a violation of the Fourth Amendment of the United States Constitution, and therefore not a legal way of enforcing parking laws.

Are there any other relevant cases or information that you people know of, to give me more information to include with a letter? Perhaps anything relevant to my own state that this occurs in, IA?

I’m not looking to file suit or start a legal battle right now. I just want to see if I can influence meaningful change with a courteous letter to the powers that be. Any help in this is much appreciated!

Answer:
 Writing a letter to the police department to ask them not to enforce parking laws doesn't really sound like it will be a productive course of action.

You could try contacting your rep in the city/town council or whatever government is responsible for the parking laws in the first place, to suggest that they be changed to allow for all day employee parking or that they otherwise adopt better parking management policies. The purpose of 4 hour limits is not supposed to be arbitrary, but rather to provide the municipal amenity of (free?) convenient parking for visitors to shops, restaurants, offices, etc... while preventing workers from taking up those spaces all day long (as daily parking is considered to be your/your employer's responsibility and may not come for free). It's likely not entirely arbitrary: the tickets are because they adopted a policy explicitly intended to tell you not to park in that lot all day, and they presumably don't want you moving one spot over or rubbing the chalk off either (though they may tolerate it).

Now it might be that case that this is all pointless because there's so much parking available that there's no rational reason for the rules (either always, or just now because more people are still working from home perhaps). So you, and perhaps other local businesses as a group, could suggest to the council that these policies be changed to suit the conditions if that's the case. Or they may believe the rules are serving their purpose (if everyone parked in the lots all day long as you did, perhaps there wouldn't be enough parking for visitors) and expect you to pay to park elsewhere, take transit if available, or otherwise find another solution.


Title: Needing to change medications at the job, how do I best protect myself?

Question:
I work as a cashier at a large chain store.  I am (well, will be) eligible for FMLA.  I need to change some psychiatric medications while on the job.  The trouble is my reaction to medications is *extremely* unpredictable.  A new med could have no effect.  It could help.  It could make me a crying mess.  It could make me too tired to function.  It could make me suicidal and need to be hospitalized.  I could become extremely irritable and snappy.  All of these reactions have happened before - apparently I'm one of a small class of people who tend to react abnormally to medications.

General practice with psychiatric meds is to keep on for 2-3 weeks to see if side effects wear off.  Given this timeframe I can't take FMLA leave every time I start a new med, although I may be able to take some if a reaction is particularly bad.  But I would like to keep working as much as possible.

Edit: In MD

How do I best protect myself and my employment while I make these changes?

Answer: You're entitled to 12 weeks a year. How often do you need to switch meds?