Pet return in small claims case

New Jersey

Hi,

My ex-roomate owes me money AND refuses to give me my two cats.
I filed a small claims case for the money AND my cats, but i was just informed that i cannot sure for the return of my cats in small claims.
Is this true?
If so, how can i get my cats back? She has already taken them and fled the state but i know where she is at to serve her papers.

I need to know which division to file in.
Also, if i mentioned my cats on my current small claims case, can i still file suit against her for my cats??
If no, can i drop the current case and then re-file the claim for my money in small claims and for my cats someplace else, or can she not be tried for the same thing??
PLEASE HELP ME!! Everyone i speak to tells me something different and i have no idea where to turn
Best regards,
EKETAY

scorpiet said:

New Jersey

Hi,

My ex-roomate owes me money AND refuses to give me my two cats.
I filed a small claims case for the money AND my cats, but i was just informed that i cannot sure for the return of my cats in small claims.
Is this true?
If so, how can i get my cats back? She has already taken them and fled the state but i know where she is at to serve her papers.

I need to know which division to file in.
Also, if i mentioned my cats on my current small claims case, can i still file suit against her for my cats??
If no, can i drop the current case and then re-file the claim for my money in small claims and for my cats someplace else, or can she not be tried for the same thing??
PLEASE HELP ME!! Everyone i speak to tells me something different and i have no idea where to turn
Best regards,
EKETAY

Click to expand...

How did your room mate GET your cats? Steal them?

you can most certainly file for the value of the cats. I think cats are going for about $6.

She has already taken them and fled the state

Click to expand...

You will have to sue her in the state she is now residing.

dear Racer,

I'm not particulary interest in the monetary value of my cats, but want them returned to me. She got the cats becuase my cats were living there with me. When i moved out, i took most of my things, but had to come back for the cats because i didn't have any cages to transport them to my new residence. When i went back to the apartment to pick up my remaining belongings and cats, she refused to give them back to me. Since that time, she has left the state to dodge other cases against her

I spoke to someone in the state she currently resides in and they said all i need is a judgement from my jurisdiction and they can quarentine them for me.
Have you ever heard of this?

Thanks,
Erin

scorpiet said:

dear Racer,

I'm not particulary interest in the monetary value of my cats, but want them returned to me. She got the cats becuase my cats were living there with me. When i moved out, i took most of my things, but had to come back for the cats because i didn't have any cages to transport them to my new residence. When i went back to the apartment to pick up my remaining belongings and cats, she refused to give them back to me. Since that time, she has left the state to dodge other cases against her

I spoke to someone in the state she currently resides in and they said all i need is a judgement from my jurisdiction and they can quarentine them for me.
Have you ever heard of this?

Thanks,
Erin

Click to expand...

how long were the cats there Erin, and did she agree to care for them?

the cats were there for about 6 months. The reason why they were there that long was because she told me she needed them at that point and "couldn't live without them".
This would not have mattered but three days before i moved out she attemped suicide. I didn't know how true her claims were and didn't want to have ANY involvement as to a reason why she would hurt herself.

I am assuming she has cared for them as she still has them, but the agreement was that she would return them to me when she felt better. She said that she knew they were mine and that i could come over and see them whenever i wanted while she still "needed" them. When i called to visit them, she decided she didn't want to speak to me anymore and that she was not giving them back.

I tried for months to get her to return them and every response i got (if she replied at all) was insulting and irrevelant to what i called about. When i said i was going to go to the house and pick them up she got extremely aggressive and nasty so I didn't pursue it because she has an assault charge on her record and i wasn't about to escalate matters.

I called the local police and they said i had to file a claim because the particular town we resided in is governed by the state police and not a municipality.
I then called the State police said they couldn't do anything without a judgement and to file a claim, which is what i did.
They day she got the letter she moved out of state. She has only been out of state for about 1 week now.