People's Court Blog - 9 12 2012 - Wednesday

Michelle / Josue And The Haunted House

Michelle and Josue are suing their landlord for $3750.00. This is for rent and security deposit they want back. Their landlord is counterclaiming for $15,000. The landlord is represented in court by David. Michelle, and Josue rented a home and moved in on March 1st. Immediately they started experiencing paranormal activity. Items in their closet started falling off the shelves, they heard voices, and they were becoming afraid to be in the house. One evening they called a friend to come over and they conducted a cleansing ritual. It was after this that the friend experienced bruise marks on her legs. During the cleansing activity the cross she was wearing turned over. She could not figure out how this happened. Michelle and Josue were so afraid to be in the house, they moved to the local Holiday Inn. It seems this house was built in an area in New Jersey known as Devil's Woods and they believed it was haunted. They even contacted the media and they ran a story about the house on a local news station. During the filming, voices in the house were recorded. Michelle also has video of a communication picked up on the computer.

Michelle and Josue told the landlord they believed the house was haunted and they had moved out. They wanted their rent and security deposit back. At first, he agreed. He told them he understood. Then he changed his mind and he was holding them to the contract. They were not moving back, they were really afraid to be in the house. David explains the countersuit of $15,000 is for potential losses. Since the story about the house was on the news, the house has not been rented. He asked the Judge to reserve judgement until the actual damages could be determined. The Judge dismisses the case without prejudice, this way he can refile in the future. The Judge asks that if that happens that he and the owner spend a weekend in the house.

Michelle and Josue are not able to recover on their lawsuit. They actually have to pay the landlord additional money because of the terms of their contract. The Judge explains that to find in their favor would be to rule that the house is haunted and they had the right to breach the contract. They believe the house is haunted and the Judge respects their belief. Unfortunately, the proof they provided is not evidence of ghosts, it is evidence of their belief that there are ghosts.

This is such an interesting case. This family truly was frightened to be in this house. They felt that something supernatural was occurring. I can appreciate their fear and concern. They did the right thing to move out and protect themselves. There is a cost to their decision, they had to abide by the contract they signed.

Natasha And Her Aunt

Natasha is suing her Aunt Liz for $3,000.00. This is for the cost of items left in her aunt's apartment. When Natasha needed a place to live, her aunt's apartment was available. Aunt Liz was incarcerated for drug charges. Natasha and her daughter moved to the apartment. After 2 months, Liz was released from jail and Natasha moved out. When Natasha left she did not take her belongings with her. She says she was being nice because Liz did not have any furniture. Liz said the agreement was that Natasha was going take her belongings out and help transport Liz's furniture from another location.

Natasha did not do this and Liz refused to give her back any of the belongings. Then Natasha rented an apartment in Liz's complex. She was demanding her belongings back. Liz returned some of the items but not everything. Liz was holding the furniture hostage. Liz admits she would not return everything because Natasha would not help her move. This close relationship has been destroyed over the cost of a rental truck.

These two women live down the hall from each other and do not speak anymore. How sad that a close relationship can be ruined over something so trivial. On the lawsuit, Natasha is awarded $850.00, not $3,000.00. She did not have any receipts or proof as to the value of her belongings. Liz admitted she was not returning her belongings and even threw some of the things away. What a shame that they are not getting along, especially when they live so close to one another.

Please share your thoughts in the comments. Thank you for joining me.

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People's Court Blog - 9 6 2012 - Thursday

Michelle And The Rented Room

Michelle is suing Ron for $2917.74. Ron rented a room in his house to Michelle that he advertised on Craigslist. She rented it sight unseen. When she arrived to move in, it was late and she was exhausted. She met Ron and a woman. The next night he had a different woman over. The next night another woman. This made Michelle feel very uncomfortable. Then she noticed Ron had moved her basket of dirty laundry from the laundry room to the kitchen. This really bothered her. Why was it such a big deal? Michelle says the thought of Ron touching her things made her feel uncomfortable. If she thinks that made her feel uncomfortable, now she finds out that Ron had surveillance cameras in the house. Wow, this is really surprising and strange. Ron explains that he had other roommates that he had to watch over. I wondered what Michelle would have done if she knew about the cameras when she lived there! Michelle decided to move out and told Ron. She moved out within the week that she told him. In doing this, she did not give him proper notice. Michelle is not entitled to get her rent money back. Part of the money she is suing for is the security deposit. After she moved out, Ron did not send her an itemized notification of why he was keeping the security deposit. It is a law for a landlord to notify the tenant about the security deposit. Because Ron did not do this, Michelle gets double the security deposit. That is the only money that Michelle can recover in this case. The home was not uninhabitable because Ron had different women sleep over and moved Michelle's dirty laundry. If Ron would have sent the proper notification, Michelle would not have recovered any of her money. Michelle needs to find her own apartment and not be a roommate to anyone. She does not seem flexible to someone else's lifestyle. What do you think?

Octavia And Free Storage

Octavia is suing Henry for $1971.98. This is for two television sets that were stolen from Henry's house. Octavia was going to rent a house from Henry. The first house she looked at would not fit her bedroom furniture. Henry had another house that would be available soon that would be work for Octavia. She agreed to this rental if the house passed a Section 8 inspection. There were corrections that Henry had to make and this was taking time. Octavia asked Henry if she could store her belongings in the house while she waited. She said she could not afford to put the furniture in storage. Henry agreed to let Octavia store her belongings at the house. He let her use one of the bedrooms and the garage. Henry had Robert staying at the house while the work was being done. Robert said he was there for several months and then his friend, Brian, stayed there. One night Brian called and said someone broke in the house. He did not know if anything was stolen. Henry was notified and the police were called.

When Henry found out about the break-in, he called Octavia. Henry had been asking Octavia to move her things out for months. Initially, he set a date of September 1st. Octavia was not able to get her things removed by that date. The break-in was on October 26th. If Octavia had removed everything when Henry had asked, her televisions would not have been stolen. Why would Henry be responsible for the cost of the television sets? There are numerous text messages between Henry and Octavia. Henry kept asking her to remove the items and Octavia kept stalling. The Judge rules that Henry is not responsible for the cost of the television sets. If Octavia had such expensive items, she should have sold something to pay for a storage unit. It is a shame that Octavia would want Henry to pay for the televisions sets. It is her fault that they were in the house at the time of the break-in. Henry was being nice letting her keep her things at the house. He offered her free storage. Henry says in the future, he will get a written agreement when he does something nice for someone. I am glad this incident did not cause Henry to become cynical. It seems like a genuinely nice guy. What do you think?

Allan And The Damaged Bumper

Allan is suing David for $2113.00. Allan's car was damaged when he was parked in front of the Veteran's Hospital. He saw a car parked behind him and compared the damage on both vehicles. The damage matched. Allan took pictures of the damage to his car and the damage to the other car. The other car belonged to David. Allan says he waited for the owner of the other car to come out. of the Veteran's Hospital. When David got in his car, Allan approached him and told him about the damage to his car. David denies hitting Allan's car. David is 89 years old and has been driving for a very long time. He tells the Judge that he drove a school bus for 3 years when they first came out. Wow! That is amazing! David admits he was in a small car accident several weeks earlier and that is why there is damage to his bumper. This damage is in a different area on his car from the damage caused by hitting Allan's car. The pictures show that these two cars definitely collided. David maintains that he did not hit Allan's car. He says there was no witnesses, and wonders how he can be held responsible. The Judge explains to David that the damage on his car matches up to the damage to Allan's car. David is found responsible to pay for the repairs to Allan's car. Hopefully, David will retake the driver's test to assure himself and everyone else that he is fit to drive. It is true that as we get older our reflexes get slower. The Judge tells a personal story about her own father and driving. Her dad is also 89 years old and she is very concerned about his driving. He recently took the driver's test again and passed! No one is going to question his driving ability! This is what David needs to do and all drivers as they get older. There does come a time when elderly drivers need to stop getting behind the wheel. What do yo think?

Please share your thoughts in the comments. Thank you for joining me.

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