Will I lose my house?

Q: We built an in-law apartment onto our home with proceeds from the sale of their home. If they need to be moved into a nursing home before five (5) years have passed, will they or us need to come up with the full amount of money generated from the sale of their house, necessitating the sale of our home to recoup the $53,000 spent on their apartment, before Medicaid will pay the rest of the expenses? Or does Medicaid accept/require the remaining monies only? (Pittsburgh, PA)

A: You need to consult with an attorney who is versed in Medicaid regulations. Generally, the idea is that any transfer of wealth, without fair consideration (like gifts) within five years of the Medicaid application, can render the Medicaid applicant ineligible for Medicaid funding to the extent of the value of the transfer. It is not the nursing home that triggers the 5-year look back but the Medicaid application. If you are saying that they liquidated their home, to pay for an addition to your home so they can live in it under your care, I am not sure the entire value of the addition is a gift as they are receiving consideration in the form of housing and care. An attorney can also advise you on a caretaker contract which may help you shelter some of the in-law’s estate.

What is Lewd and Lascivious conduct?

Q: My partner and I were caught by a police officer being intimate inside my partners car at an outdoor park that was closed at night. The officer took my partners name and drivers number, and just my name. We are both 18. I am just wondering what will or could happen. The officer did state that he knows it’s a different day and age and we are being kids. However, it is concerning that he still took down information. (Pittsburgh, PA)

A:  I am not sure exactly what you mean by “intimate”. If your actions involved having sex in a public park, even if closed, you could be cited with Open Lewdness, which reads as follows:
§ 5901. Open lewdness.
“A person commits a misdemeanor of the third degree if he does any lewd act which he knows is likely to be observed by others who would be affronted or alarmed”.
If what you were doing was not that offensive and the officer wants to cut you a break, he may not file charges. He may have taken names and information for a record in the event police locate you there in the future. If the officer will file, you are considered at adult at age 18, and therefore may receive a summons for court. If you do, take it to a lawyer. The lawyer will know what options are available to you.

If a minor’s case gets tossed in district court can they still charge in juvenile court?

Q: My 17-year-old son pulled over 12:46am for having a break light out. Cop said he didn’t have insurance, but I did, it’s my car, His mom I just bought it 10 days prior and just didn’t get around to dropping old and adding new car with our insurance agent. They searched car found small amount weed, a bong, papers and e-cigarette devices. Now, I get 2 fines for district court no brake lights no insurance, but it’s addressed to the defendant with my first name and my son’s last name. The cop wrote it this way on the ticket, so I am fighting the ticket. If they drop these tickets can it go to juvenile court? Since the district dropped I don’t understand why 2 different courts are charging with the same offenses. (Duquesne, PA)

A: Your question is a bit confusing. It really depends on who is charged in each action. If you are charged on the Motor Vehicle traffic summaries, and your son is subsequently charged in juvenile court for the reefer, then that is permissible under the rules. However, if your son is charged with Motor Vehicle summaries, enters a plea of guilty, or is found guilty or not guilty, an adjudication occurs. The police cannot then charge him again for drug offenses arising out of the same set of facts. There are Rules 109 and 110 of the PA Rules of Criminal Procedure that address this. It is basically a double jeopardy situation. I would consult with a lawyer for a precise answer as I am not looking at your charges and am not sure I have all the facts

Can a person with a revoked license buy a car?

Q: My dad is elderly and is an ex-alcoholic with a revoked license (habitual offender). He wants to buy a van, so I can drive him to the store and appointments and frankly, take him to and from the bar. Can he buy a van from a private seller and register it and get insurance? I would just have him write me a check and buy in my name, but I don’t want my relatives to act like he is gifting me money. We just want to buy like a $1500 van.

A: If you have a valid driver’s license, current insurance, and the car will be registered to you, I don’t think your father is breaking any law that I am aware of merely by writing the check. If he not only wants to pay for it, but also register the vehicle and obtain insurance in his name, I believe he can. He just cannot drive, obviously.

Company owes me wages as an independent contractor

Q: I was an independent contractor working for a shipping company, we had a pending damage claim from a customer for $2400. The owner of the company told me that he would take care of it, then arrange a payment plan. But without notification he took $50 a week for a month from my check. Then on Dec 29 after telling the owner of the company that I was looking for other employment, he deposited a check into my account then withdrew all of it out, again without any communication or notification. How would I seek restitution for this issue?

A: You might have some luck by filing with the PA Department of Labor and Industry Wage Collection Bureau in Pittsburgh. If they have jurisdiction over your case, they will go after the employer at no cost to you. They went after my client, a subcontractor, for not paying a dry wall person.

Is verbal agreement with my grandmother legal?

Q: My grandmother has been saying for years she wanted me to have her house. She even gave me the deed. Years later my grandmother has dementia and my aunt is her guardian on a Power of Attorney. I am still in possession of the deed physically but nothing has been transferred to my name. I would like to proceed in doing the transfer but don’t know where to begin (before my money hungry family comes after it. (East McKeesport, PA)

A: I would review the documents and all information with an attorney. The way you present this, it looks to me as if there was no deed signed by grandmother to you. The fact that you are holding the old deed with her name as owner (grantee) does not help you at all. If she is incompetent to sign legal documents at present, she cannot sign a deed to you. Ask your aunt if she will sign a deed to you through the POA.

Can I file for divorce in Pittsburgh and not owe my wife anything?

Q: I was married 5/20/17 in WA to a woman who was living at home and not employed. She contributed nothing to the marriage, although her mother assisted her with moving costs to Pittsburgh. I just started a surgical residency. On 9/5/17 she disappeared when I was at work and went back to WA with her mother, back to exact same situation she was prior to marriage. I attempted over next month to reconcile, and she has remained unreconcilable. She did not work during the 3 months she lived with me. I bought a house with no down payment, only in my name. My bank account is only in my name. I only have 6k in my checking. Is there a way to file for divorce where I would not have to give her anything – like sign a document where we each don’t owe the other anything? She would spend more fighting. (Pittsburgh, PA)

A: There is more information needed to adequately respond and I suggest you consult with a Pittsburgh divorce attorney. Working in your favor is the short marriage (7 months) and not much in assets because you are both just starting out. This does not mean she cannot obtain an award of spousal support from you. She has the duty to work and if she doesn’t the court can impute wages to her at least at a minimum wage level. The short length of the marriage will bode well for you regarding alimony and division of property. However, if it is possible to get her to agree to a simple no-fault divorce, you can get out of this easily. You can offer to pay for it all and have your attorney send her all the paperwork to sign and return. A simple divorce like this is not expensive. Both of you would waive any claim to the other’s property and waive support and alimony. This is commonly done with couples in your situation.

My first case-retail theft, what could I face?

Q: I worked at Best Buy and stole some goods over the course of 2 months. They found $600 dollars-worth of goods and I told them there was more. They came to a dollar amount of $2500 in restitution that I must pay in installments over a course of one year. I was also charged with retail theft, it is my first offense. The police officer that took me in told me I would qualify for a ARD program. He also told me he put down $600 as the dollar value on the police statement. I guess he forgot about the 2500 in restitution, but Best Buy won’t forget that. I am very afraid, I had only positive intentions when I stole, it was to help pay for bills and mortgage for my mother, my father has been unemployed for years and money is extremely tight. I made a terrible mistake and I’m paying the price for it. (Pittsburgh, PA)

A: This happens to me in theft cases all the time. My client tells me it was a lower amount than what the victim is demanding. If the victim and prosecution are offering a way out of this without having a record, like ARD, you have no choice. Unless of course, you have a really good defense. My approach to these cases, is to have the charges dismissed for full restitution at the preliminary hearing. This gives my client the opportunity to use ARD in the future in case they screw up again, as it is offered only once. If the victim and prosecution will not offer dismissal for restitution deal, then you have no choice but to go with ARD. The benefit for you is that you can question the restitution amount once the ARD offer is prepared and offered to you. In Allegheny County, the ARD paralegal, will call the victim and confirm how they arrived at their damages. Maybe the victim will adjust the amount. If not, you will have to eat the $2500 to get the benefit of ARD (no conviction/no record).

What should I do?

Q: I met a girl on a dating service called tagged then one night out of the blue she contacted me so we texted for a few days and then one particular night she started getting all raunchy talking about sex we ended up sexting then I got a call from her suppose it parents saying that she was a minor and they were going to go to the police supposedly she was making a sex video for me on her mother’s laptop now the guy wants me to buy them a new laptop for $1,700 or he will go to the police she was sending me pictures of her privates and I sent her pictures of mine I know it was a bad mistake I’m not trying to have my life ruined over this and Lord knows it will never happen again now I’m worried and don’t know what to do. (Baldwin Borough, PA)

A: Sounds like they are scammers. If they were legitimate, you would be hearing from the police or the Attorney General and the father wouldn’t be implicating himself in bribery to cover up child exploitation.

Can police lie to get you to come into the station?

Q: The police left a number for me to call and said they wanted to congratulate me for something and give me a gift. When I got there, they handcuffed me to a chair, processed me and gave me charges. (Pittsburgh, PA)

A: Much to the chagrin of unsuspecting Defendants out there, the police can use a degree of trickery to arrest, as long as that trickery does not violate due process and fairness. For example, they cannot use trickery to the extent that it causes someone who is not predisposed or inclined to commit a crime, to commit one. Your situation, yes, it is legal, unfortunately. Take your papers to an attorney. Perhaps you will have a defense and enjoy the last laugh.