How to find people and serve them

[vonnegutfan]

What is the name of your state?PA
I have several questions. I was in a car accident where a women did about $1500 worth of damage to my car. She had no insurance. I have a police report, and I also showed up for court since she was charged in the accident. She didn't show up for court, however, and was charged. I have her full name, address, phone #, estimates of damage, etc. However, she doesn't answer her phone and she moved. How do I find her and serve her? I have no idea what to do next. I have to serve her in her district, but I keep getting redirected from district to district, and nobody seems to know where to find her.

Second, I was having work done to my car in York, Pa, by a guy I knew pretty well. His motor blew up in his car, and i helped him pay for a new one. He owes me $1200 and I had him write up a contract to pay me back. He never finished my car, and actually moved out of his house in york, leaving my car there. I recovered my car, but he moved to somewhere in the Baltimore/Towson, MD area, and disappeared. I have his father's name and phone number in Baltimore, but he won't cooperate with me or the police (his son has warrants in PA now).

I have NO idea what to do. This is VERY frustrating. If anyone can give me some help, it would be GREATLY appreciated.

 

[peaceisgood]

Good question...

Couldn't you just go to the Magistrate's office & just see what happens if you only have a name?

 

[vonnegutfan]

I'm not sure how much information they will give you at the magistrate (or how much they even have).
How easy is it to track someone? I would imagine it has to be pretty easy if they're employed (legitimately), or if they write checks or use credit cards, or are on a lease etc. I know that's not how the world works, and this isn't a movie, but I wish you could do that. I wish you could just go to the police and be like "This person stole my money. Please find him, and serve him."
It's starting to aggravate me that the government/police don't really care at all whether you get ripped off. They won't solve crimes, they won't assist you in any way, but when it comes to not paying a five-dollar parking ticket, they'll throw you in jail. The system is so completely wrong it's beginning to be unbearable.

 

[stephenk]

"It's starting to aggravate me that the government/police don't really care at all whether you get ripped off. They won't solve crimes, they won't assist you in any way, but when it comes to not paying a five-dollar parking ticket, they'll throw you in jail. The system is so completely wrong it's beginning to be unbearable"

The "government" is not set up to do your work for you, especially on small claims cases. hire an investigator to find the people you are looking for. The cost of the investigator can be included in your cases. contact the post office and ask if there is a forwarding address for the people. contact the dmv and see if they have a new address for their driver licenses.

The fact that someone owes you money is not a "crime" that the police are going to assign a detective to investigate and arrest someone on your behalf. It is a civil dispute not a criminal matter.

 

[cplara]

New Mexico

I am having the same problem, I certified a demand letter hoping its the right address but per PO the letter was refused... What next ?

 

[vonnegutfan]

stephenk, all I'm saying is that the police don't really care at all, and they should. They are here to serve the public and more often than not, they give you the old "sorry about your luck". I had a woman wreck into me, total my car, and walk away without the police doing anything. She gets a couple hundred dollar fine at the most. I lose my car. If she doesn't pay her fine, or doesn't show up to court for it, they will post a warrant. If she doesn't fix my car or give me the money to fix it, then, well, tough luck for me. What's even worse is that I'm prepared to go through all the court's crap, and pursue the money that I'll never see, and I still can't get anyone to help me serve her.
Just because "police don't handle small claims" doesn't mean that they shouldn't, or that they can't be more helpful. Also, the whole line about how busy police are, and how they've got all this crime to fight is complete bull and I think we all know this by know. They spend 99% of their time and energy on traffic tickets and DUIs. It's a huge money-making scheme that's just about as bad as insurance companies. Wait, insurance companies supply a lot of breathalyzers to police. Oh, and you can also be found "partially at fault" in a "preventable" accident. BLAH BLAH BLAH

I'm sorry if i sound bitter, but I got robbed this weekend and the police once again said "sorry". This is no joke. They want leads from me, other than that they say there is nothing they can do.