Some help for my dad

[autumnsunburst]

They wrote it off like since he was living there then he basically gave him access to all his stuff.

Well I sent a couple lawyers a copy of what I posted here orginally. Hopefully we can get something moving soon.

 

[quincy]

They wrote it off like since he was living there then he basically gave him access to all his stuff.

Well I sent a couple lawyers a copy of what I posted here orginally. Hopefully we can get something moving soon.

I hope you can also.

Remember that this is your father's legal issue so the attorneys you contact may not respond to you. They will want to speak to your father.

Good luck.

 

[autumnsunburst]

sucks because my dad can't hear too good and won't talk on the phone unless someone else is there

 

[LdiJ]

I am surprised by the police reaction. Identity theft and theft of items and vandalism are all crimes, even when civil action is another, additional remedy. Perhaps the father did not describe his situation as clearly to the police as Autumnsunburst did here.

Quincy, I had an experience or two with the police that sounds a lot like what happened in this thread. Someone was moving out of my house and stealing my property and I called the police. The officer who came told me that they could not assume that the property in question was mine and that they couldn't help me.

Another time someone actually into my home (many years prior) and the police actually caught them because they were stupid enough to try to come back for a second load. They tried to claim that they were moving out of my home with their stuff and the police almost let them go. When I insisted that they were strangers the police rethought the issue and asked them a couple of questions (the name of my cat for example) that they should have known if they had lived there. So they did end up arrested.

 

[Taxing Matters]

sucks because my dad can't hear too good and won't talk on the phone unless someone else is there

You might want to see if you can get your dad in to see an audiologist for his hearing loss. There is the potential to help him hear better. Even if his hearing loss cannot be reversed medically or through surgery he might still find his hearing greatly improved with hearing aids. I know a lot of people resist the idea of hearing aids because they are afraid to admit they have a hearing problem, or they are afraid of what the hearing aids will look like to others, or whatever.

Modern hearing aids are pretty small and not very noticeable at all; indeed some models can basically be hidden almost entirely in the ear canal. And really, they ought to be thought of the same way as glasses. They do the same thing for the ears that glasses do for the eyes: they help restore your ability to use your senses like you should. A lot of people use them; you probably have met or seen people who have them and didn't even notice it. It's not uncommon for people to lose some hearing as they age, as the result of being in loud environments, or, as in my case, because of an illness. Hearing aids are also very sophisticated in that they are programmed by the audiologist to boost the frequencies that are needed based on the hearing tests. They can also be programmed to filter out background noise, etc in different settings, swapping modes based on the environment the person is in.

I have had a mild hearing loss for many years and resisted doing anything about it because I thought I was getting along just fine. I could hear ok in most situations, but some settings were more difficult, like noisy restaurants and even in court. So I recently tried some hearing aids since in my state they must give patients a 45 day free trial period to check them out. I was shocked at all the sounds I'd been missing for years. While I could get along fine without hearing some of them, it's definitely made many situations more enjoyable and easier. A bonus is that my hearing aids are blue tooth enabled and as a result I can use them just like my cell phone ear phones to take calls, listen to music, or whatever.

Good hearing aids are not cheap. But in my state they have a fund to help those who can't afford them. Your dad's state might have something similar if he needs help paying for them. It's worth asking about at least to see what the options are. A hearing aid might really make a huge difference in his life. Studies show that people with hearing problems tend to become more withdrawn and lonely over time because they avoid situations in which they struggle to hear well. He's already avoiding talking on the phone because of the hearing loss, and might be avoiding a lot of other contact with people too. And that really reduces the enjoyment of life.

 

[quincy]

sucks because my dad can't hear too good and won't talk on the phone unless someone else is there

You can set up in-person appointments with attorneys for your father, and you can accompany your father to these appointments. Your father can give the attorneys permission to discuss his legal concerns with you at that time.

Your father will need to meet with an attorney in person anyway. He can best choose an attorney by meeting with several initially and winnowing down the field through a question and answer session, evaluating the attorneys by how they respond to his questions and concerns and by how comfortable your father feels with the attorney.

Good luck.

 

[autumnsunburst]

Man we tried tried tried to get him hearing aids, it was nearly all we did for a few months but we couldn't get a single pair that he liked, everything would just fall out without him realizing it and were getting lost/broken. It's so annoying we gave up because it was making it so I couldn't work at all and was eating up too much gas and time. We went through about a dozen different styles even had them molded to him, they were over 8grand I think but we just ended up returning them all.

 

[autumnsunburst]

The first lawyer that emailed me back told me I need to start with the prosecutor because of the crimes? Now i need to figure who/what that his and how.

This is their website?

Do I just email them like what I posted in the first post of this message? Maybe neglecting to post the police's uninterest for now? If we have to go down there we have to schedule way in advance because people have to take off of work and this place is a hour and a half from me an hour from my dads. Go figure he lives in the actual corner of his county, pretty much the farthest you can live from the county capital whatever it's called.

 

[PayrollHRGuy]

The first lawyer that emailed me back told me I need to start with the prosecutor because of the crimes? Now i need to figure who/what that his and how.

What County in Indiana does your father live in?

 

[quincy]

The first lawyer that emailed me back told me I need to start with the prosecutor because of the crimes? Now i need to figure who/what that his and how.

You are getting confusing responses from both the police and the attorney. A criminal action does not preclude a civil action.

Again, have your father file a police complaint for theft, identity theft, and vandalism. Contact more attorneys about filing a civil action.

 

[autumnsunburst]

Is filing a police report going to be trying to get the same police that were uninterested before to be interested now?

The website says this, "To report criminal activity, contact your local police or sheriff's department first. They can determine if a report of criminal activity needs attention. If this is an emergency, call 911. " which doesn't make me feel very hopeful since they were uninterested when it was actually happening and now it's been months.

I am very confused, I was never taught anything about dealing with law or government and always just kept myself clean and too myself so I've never had to do anything related to anything like this before.

 

[Zigner]

If the folks at the desk won't take the report, ask to speak to a supervisor. If the supervisor won't take the report, ask to speak to his/her supervisor, etc.

 

[autumnsunburst]

I am going to do the thing you said about the insurance since I don't think anybody thought to file a claim with the insurance. Will they want a police report as well though?

 

[quincy]

I am going to do the thing you said about the insurance since I don't think anybody thought to file a claim with the insurance. Will they want a police report as well though?

An official police report will be helpful for insurance purposes and for the civil action and for the identity theft report to the credit reporting agencies (TransUnion, Equifax, Experian).

I agree with Zigner. Pester the police if necessary to get a crime report entered. The police potentially could choose to not investigate the crimes but they should not refuse to accept the complaint.

 

[not2cleverRed]

Is filing a police report going to be trying to get the same police that were uninterested before to be interested now?

The website says this, "To report criminal activity, contact your local police or sheriff's department first. They can determine if a report of criminal activity needs attention. If this is an emergency, call 911. " which doesn't make me feel very hopeful since they were uninterested when it was actually happening and now it's been months.

I am very confused, I was never taught anything about dealing with law or government and always just kept myself clean and too myself so I've never had to do anything related to anything like this before.

Not quite.

Go to the front desk at the police dept. and ask for directions on filing a report. They may do nothing with it, but it will be on file, and documents that you have raised this concern.

By the way, if your father does not have a will, he should consider getting one written. Worst comes to worse, your sister's portion can be reduced by the amount of the damages, since she's already taken her inheritance early.