To the OP, yeah, talk to an employment lawyer in your state, even if it costs you money.
The funny story I know concerned a company where I was employed for a while. Their head guy had this cute habit of misrepresenting your job while recruiting, and not leveling with you, until you'd relocated, and bought a house. My predecessor was hired to be a Sales Manager, and was made to sign a non-compete.
After a year or so, the Manager had his fill of the boss's lies & erratic micromanagement. He sneaked into the personnel office, which wasn't locked, found his personnel file - which also wasn't locked - and pocketed the company's only copy of the non-compete. Then went to work for a competitor. When threatened with a lawsuit, he replied, "what non-compete?"
The same boss pulled the same stunt with me, but I was able to bail out into a different industry.
On the flip side of the coin, I also know of a case where a Sales Manager at a large company took the contacts list, and started a shadow company competing with them, while still employed. His scam was well planned and complex, but he eventually was caught. He was fired, and threatened with criminal prosecution if he ever tried to compete with them again. He signed a non-compete, then immediately tried to get on with a competitor, and lied about not having a non-compete. The previous employer found out, presented all the evidence to the new company, who immediately fired him to avoid a legal mess.
I know of (alleged) cases of industrial espionage, where someone pretends to quit one company, goes to work for a competitor, acquires customer lists, pricing, and technical information, and then goes back to work for the first company. That's not right, and non-competes are not unreasonable IMO.
