Q: I am my father’s medical power of attorney. His girlfriend is trying to take him to get medical treatment without me being present or notified. What can I do and what should I do? (Penn Hills, PA)
A: If you have a Medical Power of Attorney which is fully complaint with the law, and you are the named Agent, you have authority to handle his medical needs and no one else. As mentioned, you need to get a copy of this document to his doctors, the hospital and all his medical providers.
Q: I was at a party and some people were being quite loud and campus police were checking in and had eventually entered the home. They shut down what was going on and lined everyone up before exiting the home warning people not to flee out of the rear of the house. Checking people’s bags for alcohol in which they had to throw out if they did possess it and asking them for ID which they verbalized names over a body cam. Now, if no one was arrested could there still be future ramifications? (Pittsburgh, PA)
A: For summary offenses, citations can be issued at the scene, or by mail. The police can also charge misdemeanors without physically arresting someone. They can take the information and mail a summons to the person. You will likely receive a citation in the mail and a hearing date. Do not plead guilty. Underage drinking under section 6308 of the PA Crimes Code is a summary offense, which if you are convicted of, will stay on your record for 5 years before you can pay to have it expunged. Additionally, it carries a driver’s license suspension which will come in the mail from PennDOT, weeks later. Many District Justices offer a first-time offender’s program which will allow you to avoid a conviction, but it is not always offered unfortunately. Make sure the address the police have is a good one. If you do not receive mail at the address you gave them, miss the hearing and are convicted, you are out of luck. Hire an attorney if you can.
Q: What exactly can they do? Wise to attend the magisterial hearing sans defense? It is an unsecured debt. I have no viable defense I’m aware of. The magistrate may have mercy as she knows me. The attorney for Discover is from NY. (Pittsburgh, PA)
A: Once an award is obtained from the District Justice, it can easily be turned in to a judgment. Once it is a judgment it acts as a lien on all real estate you own. It is possible that the company will go further and execute on personal property (cars, namely) or real estate (your home). Often there are defenses to these credit card law suits. I would review the paperwork with an attorney. The attorney from New York will likely have local counsel represent the company.
Q: I got pulled over the other night, I had just left work and before even asking me for my license and insurance he told me to get out of the car. They then searched my car for 45 minutes without my permission and without asking me. They then claim to find money with drug residue on it and are now trying to give me a paraphernalia charge. I’m afraid that if I plead not guilty they’re going to figure out a way of proving there is drug residue on the money. Therefore. I don’t want to be charged with possession because I did not plead guilty to the paraphernalia. (Pittsburgh, PA)
A: I would need to know more and therefore advise you to hire an attorney to review the complaint and get more details on the facts. It sounds like you are charged with summary offenses now, but you are wondering if a potential misdemeanor for paraphernalia or possession may be filed? It is possible. The Commonwealth can amend the charges almost at any time before an adjudication occurs. If you are found guilty of the summaries and they later attempt to charge you with the misdemeanors, and the new charges arise from the same event, you may have a double jeopardy argument under PA Rules of Criminal Procedure 109 and 110. However, if you have no criminal record, you may not want to plead to these summaries as they will stay on your record for 5 years until you can expunge them. There are a few issues here for which I think you need counsel.
Q: I missed a probation appointment and haven’t contacted my probation officer. She called and said to contact her today or she is putting a warrant out for me! (Pittsburgh, PA)
A: Hmmmmm. That is a tough one. The choice is to call your PO and not go to jail, or ignore her and have a warrant issued, which will land you in jail at some unsuspecting future time. If it is not too late already, call your PO and apologize and think of a damn good excuse for not calling her back. If you call and she says, tough, I already requested a warrant, you have two options. You can turn yourself in and expect to sit awhile in the Allegheny Iron Hilton. Or, you can hire an attorney to prepare a petition to lift detainer which puts a good spin on your screw-up and walk you into the probation judge’s court room. It may or may not keep you out of jail, there is no guarantee.
Q: I had a one-year lease for which the contract states I must give 60-days’ notice if I intend not to renew. I thought I needed to give 30 days-notice. I purchased a home and informed my landlord I was not renewing. I gave him over 30-days-notice and he won’t release me, says I must pay the full years rent. Do I have any options? (Swissvale, PA)
A: If it was written in the lease, you agreed to it and therefore are bound to give 60 days-notice. However, with your notice, although only 30 days or so, the land lord has a duty to mitigate by finding another tenant and preparing the apartment to rent. He has a strict legal duty to find another tenant as soon as reasonably possible. He just can’t sit back and expect to collect the balance of the lease contract. I would continue to move. Demand a return of your deposit in writing by certified mail stating your new address. He will settle with you or sue you. If you go to court, he will not likely get a judgment of the balance of the rent.
Q: I went to my sentencing on August 29th n the judge refused to take my guilty plea. What happens next? (Pittsburgh, PA)
A: You need to ask your attorney. He or she will know. A judge has the discretion to accept or reject a plea bargain. A judge normally rejects a plea bargain because it is too lenient (easy) on the defendant but can also reject because it is too harsh on the defendant (very seldom). My guess is the judge thought your plea deal was too lenient. Your options now are for your attorney to negotiate a different plea bargain, or, choose to go to trial and ask the judge to recuse himself and have the case transferred to another judge.
Q: I got a gift for my birthday which was a lottery ticket and don’t know if I can cash it. (South Park, PA)
A: The lottery is legalized gambling, the operative word being “legalized”. Unless the terms and conditions of your probation prohibit going to Casino’s or buying scratch cards, you should be OK.
Q: I was in a neighboring county enjoying myself at the annual fair grounds. Apparently, I unknowingly ingested synthetic cannabis, but I don’t remember even having it or smoking it. The police report only states that I ingested it. Not that it was found on my person. Also, it states that I was found passed out and when I awoke I was handcuffed for being combative. I was taken to the hospital. No charges were filed. I was dehydrated, and they gave me sodium chloride to give my body fluids and a sedative called Ativan. When they gave me papers it said that I overdosed accidentally on the summary from the hospital. (Sewickley, PA)
A: Sounds like a good time. Maybe, maybe not. If you were cited or charged with a crime or non-traffic offense, it is more likely. I would look at your probation papers to see what your conditions are. In many counties, the probation office gives you a document which specifies your conditions. If one of the conditions is that you must report any new arrest or citation, then you run the risk by not doing so. Your conditions probably state that you must refrain from using drugs or alcohol but do not require you to report such use. My guess is that your PO should not know of it unless the officer who handled your hospital trip, runs your record, sees your prior case, knows you are on probation and calls your PO. It happens. Not to lecture you, but you could have died from whatever you ingested or have been seriously injured. Hopefully you will learn from this experience.
Q: My Grandmother passed in 2016. She utilized Medicaid for the last few years of life, including staying in a constant-care rehabilitation facility and hospitalizations for a stroke. After her death, an estate was opened. We reported to the state an estate value of $9,000. In May 2018, a distant cousin passed, and the remainder of their estate was disbursed to his next of kin. A check for $80,000 was made out to the estate of Grandmother. In June 2018, the state attempted to recover Medicaid expenses – $230,000 worth. They requested a full payment of the value of the estate, which was reported as $9,000. This was paid. In that payment, the state mentions that they could attempt to recover additional money into the estate. Can the state now – 2 years after death – come for the additional inheritance that was disbursed in May 2018? Or is that money safe to disburse from the estate to the living next of kin? (Upper St. Clair, PA)
A: It is true Medicaid can recover funds payable to an estate after the estate closes, or which are discovered later for whatever reason. I find it strange that there was an asset payable to your grandmother after she passed. If your grandmother died in 2016, it would seem to me that any inheritance from a distant cousin who dies in 2018, would “lapse” under PA probate law. Meaning, generally, a dead person cannot inherit money. Their inheritance is deemed to lapse or be void upon their death. In that case, their inheritance passes to an alternate beneficiary named in the will, or an alternate beneficiary under PA intestate law if there is no will. However, I understand in fact the payment to the estate was made. I would be careful here and have an attorney examine the payment from the asset to see if it can possibly fit into