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What should my best course of action be?

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xplosiv757

Junior Member
What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? Virginia.


I was involved in an argument with a friend who was female. Her and I had past relations. After the argument I left my Blackberry Smart Phone in her car. I Immediately called my phone, of which I'm sure she heard multiple times. She waited until she was on her side of town to answer it and say she couldn't bring it back to me because she was already home and how she wouldn't bring it back. I then became very angry and sent an IM to her phone after she hung up on me and refused to answer her phone that said:

2 things.
1. I hope you have unlimited Text Messaging
2. I'm going to call the cops and say you stole it.​

And she then replied with:

You just threatened me with the cops? You left it in my car. Elana witnessed this conversation. And youre not getting it back now. Not after this crazy ****

The conversation continued in that manner until she called me again and told me she was going to take my phone to her workplace and call it on the work phone and have it on all day to use my minutes up and allow it to gather surcharges. After that phone conversation was over I reported my phone stolen to my cellphone provider and they agreed to suspend the account for 10 days.

Later on that night she then told me she was going to take it to the police station to "waste my time" after I told her what she was doing was a crime. I asked her to allow me to pick it up or for her to drop my cellphone off. The next day 2 days after the incident she said she would drop it off at my house that night saying, "have fun waiting bitch". I waited and she never showed. Two days following that 4 days after the incident she informed me she took it to a town nearly 2 hours away and dropped it off at a police department there and told me I can't file charges for Grand Larceny. She then offered to take me up there which I refused because I wasn't sure how she would act considering she took my phone 2 hours out of her way to some police department to waste my time.

How should I go about handling this? What charges should I file; or should I just file for a lawsuit? Should I cut my phone back on since it's supposedly at a Police Department to avoid a disconection fee, or should I play it safe and leave it disconected and file a lawsuit for the disconnection fee of 200 dollars when the 10 days expire?


Also note, she was aware that I could not drive up there myself. I asked that she make it available flipped flopped in between doing so and not doing so.
 


Antigone*

Senior Member
What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? Virginia.


How should I go about handling this? What charges should I file; or should I just file for a lawsuit? Should I cut my phone back on since it's supposedly at a Police Department to avoid a disconection fee, or should I play it safe and leave it disconected and file a lawsuit for the disconnection fee of 200 dollars when the 10 days expire?
You really pissed of the pope with that one - not very smart.

1 - Go pick up your phone at the police dept
2 - No charges to file, you were the idiot
3 - Go ahead and file a 22 million dollar law suit....get you booty laughed out of court if you make it that far.

sorry about the sarcasm...couldn't help it on this one :p
 

xplosiv757

Junior Member
You really pissed of the pope with that one - not very smart.

1 - Go pick up your phone at the police dept
2 - No charges to file, you were the idiot
3 - Go ahead and file a 22 million dollar law suit....get you booty laughed out of court if you make it that far.

sorry about the sarcasm...couldn't help it on this one :p
Is there really nothing I can do? Despite the fact that I left my phone in her car, she did commit a form of asportation right? She took it 2 hours to another city and dropped it off at a police department. Could I just do the same with her things that I come in possession of and not have any consequences? As far as the lawsuit was concerned that had to do with me getting a 200 dollar disconnection fee because she threatened to run up my bill.

Isn't what she did a form of larceny? She tried to deprive me of my property, she knows I don't have any ready method of transporation to go to the city where she dropped it off.

**note she lives 15 minutes away from me, she works 5 minutes away from me, she originally agreed to bring my my phone, and later decided to drop it off in another city to "waste my time"
 

Antigone*

Senior Member
Is there really nothing I can do? Despite the fact that I left my phone in her car, she did commit a form of asportation right? She took it 2 hours to another city and dropped it off at a police department. Could I just do the same with her things that I come in possession of and not have any consequences? As far as the lawsuit was concerned that had to do with me getting a 200 dollar disconnection fee because she threatened to run up my bill.

Isn't what she did a form of larceny? She tried to deprive me of my property, she knows I don't have any ready method of transporation to go to the city where she dropped it off.

**note she lives 15 minutes away from me, she works 5 minutes away from me, she originally agreed to bring my my phone, and later decided to drop it off in another city to "waste my time"
I don't understand...she is guilty of asportation of your cell phone because she took it to a police station?:confused:
 

xplosiv757

Junior Member
I don't understand...she is guilty of asportation of your cell phone because she took it to a police station?:confused:
Asportation and taking involving physical movement of the property. Larceny under common law is never applied to real property (land), or services. However, in the U.S., the Model Penal Code (MPC) states that services can be the subject of theft. Wild animals (ferae naturae) are deemed to not be the property of the owner of whatever land they are found on, so takings of wild animals are also not subject to larceny.
 

tranquility

Senior Member
OK, legal beagle, what is the INTENT portion of larceny? No, intent, no crime.

What you have here is a bailment. It is the lowest form of bailment because you forced it on her without her knowledge and she gained no benefit from it. I'd say her only duty is to use slight care against damages and to make sure she gets it back to you.

If she did all the things threatened regarding using up minutes and sending multiple text messages, you may have some damages you could sue her in small claims court because that would breach her bailment duty of slight care. (The acts would be intentional harm.) However, by turning it to the police, she did insure it would get back to you if you pick it up. It was a nasty thing to do, but it is hardly actionable.
 

xplosiv757

Junior Member
OK, legal beagle, what is the INTENT portion of larceny? No, intent, no crime.

What you have here is a bailment. It is the lowest form of bailment because you forced it on her without her knowledge and she gained no benefit from it. I'd say her only duty is to use slight care against damages and to make sure she gets it back to you.

If she did all the things threatened regarding using up minutes and sending multiple text messages, you may have some damages you could sue her in small claims court because that would breach her bailment duty of slight care. (The acts would be intentional harm.) However, by turning it to the police, she did insure it would get back to you if you pick it up. It was a nasty thing to do, but it is hardly actionable.
Would this be intent?

Her: Im taking it to the police station. Kthnxbye
Me: lmfao what why?
Her: To waste your time
 

xplosiv757

Junior Member
You would think there would be a law against temporary deprivation. I"m no legal beagle I'm just investigating all possible routes and trying to grasp an understanding.
 

tranquility

Senior Member
Would this be intent?
Nope. At the *time* of the *taking* and asportation, the person must have the intent to permanently deprive the owner thereof. Your friend, by your facts, didn't even know she had it at the time of the asportation let alone the desire to permanently deprive you of the item.

You would think there would be a law against temporary deprivation.
If a person *intentionally* interferes with your possession of an item by taking it without permission even if they intended the interference was not intended to be permanent, it could be called a trespass to chattel. You would be able to sue for damages. If it substantially interfered, it would be conversion and you could sue for the value of the item.

Neither of those intentional torts happened here. She does not have a duty to do anything to help you recover the item you left in her possession. Nothing. What you do have is what I have previously posted.
 

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