Bruce’s Poor Man Survival Bulletin
A Digest of Urban Survival Resources
For Independent Minded People!
ISSN 2161-5543
In
This Issue:
1. Nuts n Bolts of Small Claims Court
2. DIY Amp your bike, DIY Wilderness
Kit
3. Importance of Off-Grid energy
4. The US Police are becoming more
like the Stasi
"The
difference between a politician and a pickpocket
is that the pickpocket doesn't get indignant
when you tell him to keep his hands to himself."
-- Joseph Sobran
Nuts n Bolts
of Using a Small Claims Court
Do you have a customer who refuses to pay you for the
repairs you made to her car? Or maybe your former landlord won't return your
security deposit? These are just a couple of examples of the types of claims or
disputes that are handled by the Michigan small claims courts.
And, now that you're ready to file a small claims lawsuit,
you need to know the mechanics of what to do and how to do it. In general, you
have to have to who you're suing, have the right paperwork, and file the suit
in the right court.
Where to File
You file a small claims case with the clerk of the
appropriate district court. In Michigan, there are nearly 100
districts, with each covering at least one township, city, or county. You have
to file your suit in the city or county where the:
·
Incident, transaction, or dispute
took place. For example, in the city or county where the car accident happened,
or where the real property is located if you're suing to recover a security
deposit
·
Person or business you are suing is
located. If you are suing more than one person or business, you can file in the
district court where any of the persons live, or where any of the businesses
operate
If you don't file the lawsuit in the right district, the
defendant can ask the court to move the case to the proper district, or even
ask that the case be dismissed. This can slow things down for you. So, if
you're unsure about where to file your suit, contact the clerk's office for
your area for some help.
Affidavit and Claim
Lawsuits begin when the plaintiff, the person who's suing,
files a "complaint." In the Michigan small claims courts, there's a
special form called the "Affidavit and Claim." You can get a copy of
this form from the court clerk, or you can get it online, along with detailed instructions to
help you fill-out the form. If you need additional help, the clerk can give you
some assistance, but don't expect legal advice about your suit.
When filling out the form, you need to give information
about case in a clear and simple may. Print neatly and just give the facts
about your claim. If the clerk or judge can't read the Affidavit, your case may
be dismissed and you'll have to start over again. You need quite a bit of
information to complete the form, such as:
·
Your name, address, and a telephone
number where you can be contacted during the day
·
The name and address of the party
you're suing (called the "defendant"), and whether the defendant is
an individual, corporation, partnership, or sole proprietorship
·
The amount of money you want the
defendant to pay
·
Reasons why the defendant owes you
money
·
Whether an individual defendant is at
least 18 years old. If he's not, then you need to sue his parents
·
Whether an individual defendant is
mentally competent. If she's not, you can't sue her
·
Whether an individual defendant is an
active member of the US military. If she is, then the case can't go forward
until the court appoints an attorney to represent her
In Michigan small claims court, a defendant may be sued in
any name used by the defendant in:
·
Advertisement or sign
·
Invoice or contract
·
Any other communication or document
published, displayed, or issued to the public in the course of the defendant's
business
You need to sign the Affidavit and Claim either in front
of the court clerk when or in front of a notary public. Also, you need to fill-out
a separate Affidavit and Claim for each defendant. And, you have to have the
right number of copies of each Affidavit and Claim. In most instances, you'll
need four copies (one for you, one for the defendant, and two for the court).
The court clerk can tell you how many copies you need.
Filing Fees
You have to pay the clerk a filing fee. The fee is $25 if
your claim is $600 or less; $45 for claims over $600 but less than $1,750; and
$65 for claims over $1,750. These fees can change at any time, so be sure to
ask the district court clerk about them. Also, you'll only be charged one
filing fee if you're suing more than one defendant.
Generally, if you win your case, the small claims court
will order the defendant to pay your filing fee (called "court costs").
This will be in addition to any other money or "damages" the court
awards you on your claim.
Service of Process
"Service of process" is when one party gives the
other party notice that he's being sued. Generally, this is done by making sure
that the defendant gets a copy of your Affidavit and Claim. You can't deliver
or "serve" the Affidavit. You can either let the court clerk arrange
for it to be served by a court bailiff or by certified mail. Both methods have
a fee that has to be paid when you file suit. Check with the clerk for the fee
amount because they change often and vary from court to court.
If you're the defendant and you think the plaintiff owes
you money, you can file a written counterclaim against the plaintiff
with the clerk. You have to serve the plaintiff with a copy by first-class
mail.
After you file, you and the defendant will be notified of
the trial date by mail.
Defendant's Options
Once you've filed suit, the defendant can do any number of
things, such as:
·
Settle the claim, that is, simply agree that he owes you money and
pays you. If you agree to a settlement, you can either voluntarily dismiss your
case or get a court judgment (or decision) stating how much the
defendant owes you. If you want an enforceable judgment -- meaning one that the
court can later help you collect on -- the settlement agreement must be in
writing and you have to file a copy of it with the clerk
·
Answer the suit. This is where the defendant shows up at trial and
defends himself, or, before trial, gives the court a written and signed letter
that explains why you shouldn't win the case
·
Object to your suit and have it moved out of small claims to the
regular district court (this is called removal). Here, more stringent court rules
apply, and both parties are allowed to have attorneys represent them in court
·
Default. If the defendant doesn't show up for trial (or
"defaults"), you automatically win, so long as he was properly served
with notice and you can show the magistrate that your claim against defendant
was valid
·
Counterclaim, or file a claim against you
PM’s
Roundup of Useful Resources…
AMP
Your Ride – DIY Bike-Mounted USB Hub
The cost is about $25 and it is of moderate difficulty
in creating this DIY project. If you
enjoy biking you can use it to charge USB devices during long commutes.
For full instructions on building a USB bike charger,
go to:
Popsci.com/usbbike
DIY fanny pack wilderness kits…
Are you a stay-at-home mom (or dad)? Hoping to kick start
an entrepreneurial dream? Starting a home-based business is a great way to do
this. In fact, 52 percent of U.S. companies operate as home businesses. Here
are some business ideas and considerations for stay-at-home moms.
Backpacker Snack…
Homemade
pick me up: Mix together raisins, salted
peanuts, dried apples, shredded coconut and wheat germ and roughly shred mix in
a blender or food processor. Amounts and
proportions depend on your personal taste.
Next,
melt enough chocolate in a double boiler to stir the mix into. When well combined, pour into a buttered cake
pan to about a one inch depth. When
cool, cut into two-inch squares and wrap each one in aluminum foil or clear
wrap.
Add raw apple cider vinegar
to your diet. A teaspoon to your
drinking water or fruit juice will relieve stress during hot hikes.
The
Nanny State-We
love our government
Oregon Man
Acquitted After Arrest For Stripping Before TSA . . . TSA Responds By Bringing
Its Own Charge
Transportation Security
Agency (TSA) set out to create a crime never approved by Congress: the crime of
making a joke in an airport about security issues. The TSA has long appeared to
chaff at the notion of an agency dependent on Congress or the public for its
authority. That appears the message being sent to John E. Brennan. You may
recall Brennan from a story last year when he stripped in the Portland
International Airport in protest of increasing invasive TSA security measures.
He was cleared by a judge who found his stripping was a form of protest. However, the TSA was clearly miffed by decision of the
judge, so Brennan has pulled into the administrative abyss by TSA with an
agency charge. It appears that if the law will not punish a citizen, TSA will.
NSA
Internet Spying Guide Made Public
This book of NSA search advice was created to help
employees use Google to find valuable information online. At more than 600
pages long, it is filled with plenty of Google hacks, although so far I can't
find anything that PCMag editors haven't been recommending for years. To be
fair, the document was originally created in 2007 and a lot has changed. Still,
there are a lot of neat details here.
The
Parting Thought:
US Police becoming like the STASI
The Palm Beach, Florida police
program is the first of its kind in America. The Community Partners Against
Terrorism (CPAT) initiative sprang out of the half-billion dollars dropped into
Urban Area Security grants by the Department of Homeland Security. CPAT's
founder Sheriff Ric Bradshaw explains the purpose of the new
police hot line that solicits anonymous
tips: “We want people to call us if the guy down the street says he hates the
government, hates the mayor, and he’s gonna shoot him. What does it hurt to
have somebody knock on a door and ask, ‘Hey, is everything OK?’” Bradshaw wants
to know who mutters against “the system” and who hangs a “Don't Tread on Me”
banner on a bedroom wall. A video on his website urges local citizens to report
on suspicious activity such as the photographing of a bridge.
The impact of
being able to turn in your neighbor for their opinions or other peaceful
behavior is well documented. It is a power that encourages the worst within
human nature and rewards those people who lie and betray all trust. A network
of citizen-informers not only creates the Stasi or Nazi state but also the
Stasi or Nazi human being.
In his
remarkable book, The
Gestapo and German Society: Enforcing Racial Policy 1933-45
(Oxford, 1990), historian Robert Gellately presents a riveting window into the
three-way collaboration between the totalitarianism, a complicit citizenry, and
state persecution of 'the other'.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y3efCsV3yl0
Militarization
of local police continues – and you pay for it
The federal government, through
programs established within the Pentagon and various agencies like the Department
of Homeland Security, are either donating, funding or otherwise providing a sizeable portion of this
military-grade gear to local police who are then employing it for use more
frequently to carry out routine police duties.
"We want the police to keep up with the latest technology. That's
critical," American Civil Liberties Union Senior Counsel Kara
Dansky said, reported the Contra Costa Times. "But policing should
be about protection, not combat."
Learn more: http://www.naturalnews.com/040254_police_militarization_Department_of_Homeland_Security_state.html#ixzz2SmstXkjO
“Until the next revolution”, the Poor Man
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is designed to open the door to business ownership for our veterans by 1)
developing your skills in the many steps and activities associated with
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The Poor Man has gotten involved with setting up this
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A Shallow
Planet Production
