harrassing letter recieved full of libel/slander/deformation

[kato 08]

I recieved a terrible letter in the mail,the envelope is a goverment envelope from PA
but postmarked out of GA with stamps,accusing me,my wife and siblings of
crimes,wrong doing,taking bribes,etc.(of course none is true) I know who sent it by the postmark and hand writing on the envelope,but does not state
where it comes from and who sent it..no name...any suggestions....cease and decesist letter?....any help will be appreciated...

 

[Proserpina]

I recieved a terrible letter in the mail,the envelope is a goverment envelope from PA
but postmarked out of GA with stamps,accusing me,my wife and siblings of
crimes,wrong doing,taking bribes,etc.(of course none is true) I know who sent it by the postmark and hand writing on the envelope,but does not state
where it comes from and who sent it..no name...any suggestions....cease and decesist letter?....any help will be appreciated...

First I'd like to thank you for starting your own thread


Now, unfortunately without having proof of who sent it, it's going to be difficult to actually react without accusing THEM of doing something they might not have done.

It's a catch 22.

Please stand by though - I'm sure quincy (who is the defamation guru and quite marvelous with these things) will be along to see if you have any cause of action.

 

[quincy]

A defamation guru, huh?

Well, I am not sure any advice I can offer here will be all that marvelous. I am a bit puzzled by few things, things which may or may not make a difference to what recourse, if any, is available.

For one thing, kato, I am not sure what you mean by a "government envelope." It is unclear from the information you provided whether others beside yourself received similar letters. You also do not mention how the information in the letter was presented (as a legal notice, a threat?).

If this letter was sent to you by a single individual and you were the only one who received a letter with false accusations, and you know that you, your wife and your siblings committed no crimes, then there has been no actionable defamation. No one's reputation has been injured.

You do not mention if any threats were made in the letter (threats of physical injury or threats to expose the false accusations to others or threats of legal action). If there is only the one letter sent to only you by seemingly only one person, and there are no threats contained in the letter, then it would not be harassment, which generally requires repeated acts.

Based strictly on what you have posted here, I do not see that you have any legal action you can consider - especially since there is no clear proof of who sent the letter anyway, only your suspicions as to who sent it based on a postmark.

If you want to show the letter to your local police, you could always do that, not that they will, or can, do much about it - unless there is more to your story than what you have indicated here.

 

[kato 08]

thanks for the reply, the envelope is an offical business government envelopemaking it seem like it is coming from a government agency in PA..meanwhile the postmark is from GA, wondering if the post office inspector general can track it down,can be mail fraud, the letter contains damaging info to reputation, but all untrue

 

[quincy]

Your recent post does not clear up much for me, kato.

Are you a Pennsylvania resident?

Most government envelopes I am familiar with have a "clear window" through which the name and the address of the government agency are displayed, and the name and address of the agency are, therefore, also printed on the enclosed letter or a cover paper.

Does the letter you received have the government agency information printed on it? Have you contacted the agency from which the letter was purportedly sent?

Can you also provide answers the other questions I asked (the form the letter takes, whether threats were made and if so what kind, if anyone else received the letter)?

And can you tell me why you think you are in receipt of such a letter in the first place?

Thanks.

(you know kato, it may be easier for you to simply have an attorney in your area take a look at the letter - after a review of the actual letter and all of the facts surrounding your receipt of it, the attorney can advise you on what actions you can or should take)

 

[kato 08]

thank you very much Quincy, I will be consulting a attorney...I have recieved a letter in the past from this person which is believed to have some sort of mental problem,there is more to it, wondering if I can send cease and desist letter,this person did admit to sending it to someone else.

 

[quincy]

Because you say that there is "more to it," and because you have not provided enough information here to determine if sending a cease and desist notice is the most appropriate response to the letter you received, I think consulting wih an attorney in your area is a wise move. The attorney can look at the letter and go over all of the facts and can advise you accordingly.

I wish you good luck, kato.

 

[kato 08]

thank you Quincy...my mailman also advised me to put a complaint in with the postal inspection.

 

[dlw99]

I recieved a terrible letter in the mail,the envelope is a goverment envelope from PA
but postmarked out of GA with stamps,accusing me,my wife and siblings of
crimes,wrong doing,taking bribes,etc.(of course none is true) I know who sent it by the postmark and hand writing on the envelope,but does not state
where it comes from and who sent it..no name...any suggestions....cease and decesist letter?....any help will be appreciated...

An anonymous letter that is full of lies but not threats?

You could pay a lawyer to look at it, or you could throw it in the trash can where it belongs.

If you get a threatening letter, call the cops.

 

[quincy]

You're welcome, kato.

As an additional note: I am not sure the letter is something that the postal inspector needs to see, however the Pennsylvania governmental agency, under whose guise the letter was sent, may be interested in taking a look at the envelope.

Once again, good luck.

 

[kato 08]

I was thinking of contacting that agency in PA and inform them this is what I got in one of your offical business envelopes with a out of state postmark.
Why do you think it would be a bad idea to contact postal inspection?
thanks again.....

 

[quincy]

I am not sure what a postal inspector will do with it. But, hey, if you want to show the letter, it won't hurt to do so.

You can discuss all of your options with the attorney you see.

 

[kato 08]

according to my mailman they can track down it's origins by barcodes and such. He showed me one on the back of the envelope that you can hardly see
showing places it been,plus this person is trying to say it came from some govt. agency...I'll consult my lawyer before I do anything...thank you again Quincy....

 

[dlw99]

according to my mailman they can track down it's origins by barcodes and such. He showed me one on the back of the envelope that you can hardly see
showing places it been,plus this person is trying to say it came from some govt. agency...I'll consult my lawyer before I do anything...thank you again Quincy....

What do you hope to gain after paying a lawyer and tracking down the origin of the letter?

As someone who has been the subject of all sorts of harassment and libel, your problem sounds very small to me, and certainly not worth all the effort and expense you seem prepared to go through. Is there more to this story?

 

[quincy]

dlw, kato already said there is more to his story - and he can go over this "more" with the attorney he plans to contact.

Just because you may find his problem "small" in comparison to the "bullying" behavior of your neighbor kids really means nothing. To kato, his problem is far bigger and more important to him than any of your problems.

I find your discounting of his concerns sort of disturbing and of no real help.