nmillerhhi
Junior Member
What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? Oklahoma
My husband was diagnosed with terminal cancer and given weeks to live. Because of normal winter layoffs, our emergency funds were almost gone. We were finishing the trial period for a loan modification. Part of our agreement was that all payments were to be made on time or foreclosure would start. We didn't have the money for the last payment as well as other bills. His son was going to loan us the money to be repaid from life insurance. It was going to take a couple of weeks for him to get the money and the bank agreed to that as long as the payment was made by the end of the month. My husband's sister found out about it. She called and told us that it would be faster for her to borrow the money from the bank for us. She said she could borrow $3000 but would like us to give her $500 of that for her personal needs. She told us she had worked this out with my stepson. She called my stepson and said she had worked all this out with us.
She called back and said the bank wanted collateral. She asked if she could use our camper as collateral. My husband told her that was fine since it was paid for. She arrived that night from Texas. The next morning, she had a list of paperwork that she said the bank was requiring on the camper so she could use it as collateral. This was the bill of sale, title, etc. I was very uncomfortable but my husband told me his sister was trying to help us out and to do it. I signed the camper over to her. She had told my stepson (and us) that as soon as he got the money that he was going to loan us, he could give it to her and pick up the camper. She threw my husband's clothes out on the ground and left with the camper and contents, including an AT&T Uverse box that I had to pay for.
My husband and I are well educated and normally know not to sign those papers. However, he was dying and I was caring for him, mostly alone, from a wheelchair. I was sleep deprived and trying to deal with financial stuff, Hospice, etc while watching my husband die. I was easy to take advantage of I guess.
When my stepson called her to find out how much money he needed to get it back, she laughed and said they had completely remodeled it and he couldn't afford it. When he expressed shock, she laughed again and just said "cool, huh? I have a camper." She hung up on him.
A friend called Adult Protective services. They investigated it and validated it as Exploitation of Vulnerable Adults. She told them she was making monthly payments but couldn't supply canceled checks or other proof. All they did was give me a document showing it was a valid charge. The police would not write a report because they said I sold it to her and collecting the money was civil matter. The District Attorney wouldn't take it because there was no police report. I couldn't find an attorney to take it because it wasn't enough money. They told me to take nit to small claims court.
I sent letters to her, her adult daughter (who accompanied her here) and her husband offering to work out a settlement if they would contact me. Her husband just got back from a deployment with the Naval Reserves. I told them that it was fraud, exploitation and remodeling the camper to disguise its appearance.
Is small claims court the best place for me to take this? I understand I may not be able to include pain and suffering. My husband cried every time she lied to him and then started refusing to take his calls. My stepson came from Texas with his kids' ATVs and sold them for a fraction of their value on Craigslist for cash to give us.
Is there any advice, words of wisdom, suggestions, etc that any of you can give me. I'm within the statute of limitations. Everything was done here in OK although she took the camper to Texas where she lives. Is this the proper court to go through?
My husband was diagnosed with terminal cancer and given weeks to live. Because of normal winter layoffs, our emergency funds were almost gone. We were finishing the trial period for a loan modification. Part of our agreement was that all payments were to be made on time or foreclosure would start. We didn't have the money for the last payment as well as other bills. His son was going to loan us the money to be repaid from life insurance. It was going to take a couple of weeks for him to get the money and the bank agreed to that as long as the payment was made by the end of the month. My husband's sister found out about it. She called and told us that it would be faster for her to borrow the money from the bank for us. She said she could borrow $3000 but would like us to give her $500 of that for her personal needs. She told us she had worked this out with my stepson. She called my stepson and said she had worked all this out with us.
She called back and said the bank wanted collateral. She asked if she could use our camper as collateral. My husband told her that was fine since it was paid for. She arrived that night from Texas. The next morning, she had a list of paperwork that she said the bank was requiring on the camper so she could use it as collateral. This was the bill of sale, title, etc. I was very uncomfortable but my husband told me his sister was trying to help us out and to do it. I signed the camper over to her. She had told my stepson (and us) that as soon as he got the money that he was going to loan us, he could give it to her and pick up the camper. She threw my husband's clothes out on the ground and left with the camper and contents, including an AT&T Uverse box that I had to pay for.
My husband and I are well educated and normally know not to sign those papers. However, he was dying and I was caring for him, mostly alone, from a wheelchair. I was sleep deprived and trying to deal with financial stuff, Hospice, etc while watching my husband die. I was easy to take advantage of I guess.
When my stepson called her to find out how much money he needed to get it back, she laughed and said they had completely remodeled it and he couldn't afford it. When he expressed shock, she laughed again and just said "cool, huh? I have a camper." She hung up on him.
A friend called Adult Protective services. They investigated it and validated it as Exploitation of Vulnerable Adults. She told them she was making monthly payments but couldn't supply canceled checks or other proof. All they did was give me a document showing it was a valid charge. The police would not write a report because they said I sold it to her and collecting the money was civil matter. The District Attorney wouldn't take it because there was no police report. I couldn't find an attorney to take it because it wasn't enough money. They told me to take nit to small claims court.
I sent letters to her, her adult daughter (who accompanied her here) and her husband offering to work out a settlement if they would contact me. Her husband just got back from a deployment with the Naval Reserves. I told them that it was fraud, exploitation and remodeling the camper to disguise its appearance.
Is small claims court the best place for me to take this? I understand I may not be able to include pain and suffering. My husband cried every time she lied to him and then started refusing to take his calls. My stepson came from Texas with his kids' ATVs and sold them for a fraction of their value on Craigslist for cash to give us.
Is there any advice, words of wisdom, suggestions, etc that any of you can give me. I'm within the statute of limitations. Everything was done here in OK although she took the camper to Texas where she lives. Is this the proper court to go through?
