Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunter's Campfire Atttorney needed - Worth County, Missouri

Hunt him down and bullywhip him.

Maybe call local police and see if he closed up shop and disappeared before spending money on an attorney. They may already have looked into other complaints. These things aren’t usually one time occurrences.

I'll guarantee the BATF will do nothing. I finally was able to get the local PD to handle my case and they did arrest and convict a maybe former forum member.

Where is the gunsmith? We may have a member who is a neighbor.

get the BATF state phone number you live in and explained to BATF person your situation, have rifle serial number,gun make and model.hopefully you have a copy of the FFL of gunsmith who you sent gun to.a purchase copy of this rifle may be helpful too. good luck,Pete53

The point of Small Claims Court is to not have to spend money on an attorney.

Criminal complaints are free. You don't need an attorney. Just file charges on them. In lots of cases, the final disposition of a criminal case includes full restitution.

i thought small claims were all civil?

to be honest I have been in this situation,local police were the best help,but still got nothing done at the end. if I was to do this again I would have got ahold of the local bike gang to take care of this problem at least then I would have got some satisfaction. this gunsmith needs to learn what ; DON`T TREAD ON ME means

I had an issue with a gun shop owner who was taking a gun from a seller and shipping it to my FFL. I emailed and called several times and either got the run around or just no answer. I finally called BATF in Anchorage. They said they couldn't really do anything but the agent gave me her email address and told me to email the guy again with a cc to her. I had a tracking number that afternoon from the shipper and gun arrived in three days. He actually called me after he shipped and tried to half way apologize by making all kinds of excuses. There's no excuse for taking a gun in and holding it for four weeks before shipping. The seller was an old guy and in and out of the hospital during this time so he couldn't help.

They are.

Civil lawsuit and criminal prosecution are two different things.

Ask OJ Simpson.

How 'bout sharing the gunsmith's name so fellow members don't get taken?

Pete,
I'm sorry, but they were no help. I had all the info, serial numbers, copies of checks, USPS receipts, Receipts for every part that I mailed and copies of correspondence. Said it was a civil matter. My help came from the Dodge City PD. I'm receiving $34.50 every month or so. I hope to live long enough to collect this beer money.

If it were I I'd make a road trip, when I got there I would stop by the local Sheriff's office and tell them my intentions of getting my gun back. Most likely they would want to accompany you to make sure no problems arose.

Then I would sue the fugging crook in small claims court for my expenses, file in your state chances are he will never show, you will never see any money from him but he will have the judgment follow him for the rest of his life.

This.

Buddy of mine has a similar issue. Filed a criminal complaint with the local PD. For some reason after the detective showed up and were able to confirm the existence of the firearm in question, things began to resolve themselves pretty quickly.

You could sue him locally in your state small claims court (long-arm jurisdiction).
Name the guy personally as well as his business as defendants.
If he doesn't appear, you can move for a default judgment.
Before filing the suit, check or have someone check your local court rules and your state's long-arm statute.

Although civil judgments can be difficult to enforce, If the guy has any resources, he may choose to pay you rather than being forced to travel to Montana in the winter or face a default judgment.
Defendants don't like judgments recorded against them as it may cloud title to real and personal property, damage credit, etc.

I'd resolve the issue first, then spill the beans on name, address, etc.

I figured it out in about 30 seconds with google.

I don't understand how you get a UPS tracking number without UPS "taking possession" of the rifle? Did you follow up with UPS? Not that they've ever made a mistake somehow...

They printed a shipping label. Doesn't mean it ever got on a truck or dropped off at a store.

In the states where I've had to resort to Small Claims Court, you have to sue the person in the county where they reside or have a business. Different states will have different laws about that.

In my experience, whoever shows up and has good documentation wins. Don't show up, and you'll definitely lose. Show up empty handed, and you'll probably lose.

It is often much easier to get a judgement than it is to collect on it.

One good thing to do is to ask the person in question to pay you something, even just $10. That acknowledges the debt and gets you their bank account numbers, which makes it a lot easier to collect.

I get UPS tracking numbers before they are picked up by UPS.

Amazing how quickly a problem can be resolved after a large ugly friend knocks on the door of the problem individual's residence. Know anybody by the name of Vito? GW

The initial step is to contact the Attorney General for the State you reside. Not knowing the Rules of Law for the State of Montana, I would only believe that one cannot file a claim in small claims court. Small claims court entails rents not received and matters related to such things not totaling more than $1000.00 (Varies according to State). You would have to file a civil claim by serving notice, then have a constable deliver the summons. The fees associated with this vary by State. Our State is a $100.00 filing fee, around $35.00 to pay a constable to deliver summons and the paperwork is time consuming.

I've practiced civil matters for many years and have litigated up to the Superior Court in our State, having been successful. However, the time is unbearable. One case I won in the lower court (District Court) and the opposition appealed to Superior Court. In the interim, the opposition had to pay my filing fees due to the fact they were unsuccessful. At the Superior Court level, it is very rare where a decision shall be overturned by a judge. In lieu of that fact, one must answer the appeal, providing an abundance of documentation to the clerks office. These are just stall tactics by the opposition (lawyer) hoping that one may die or not be present at the hearing. If the plaintiff is not present at all hearings scheduled, the matter is dismissed. This is where the defendant hopes to catch the plaintiff off guard. The time frame was approximately five years before the matter was listed on the docket for trial. At the time of judgement, the opposition (Defendant) decided to pay all my fees, and costs associated with the civil matter, rather than going to trial.

You make no mention of the money to be recovered for this must be listed in the suit one intends to bring. If the cost is $1000.00 or below, not many lawyers, if any will be willing to assist you. They are interested in money, just money and nothing else. If I were in your State, I would be more than happy to assist you in preparing a civil matter. Unless you know the Rules of Law, you cannot fathom the depths of a civil suit. We would strongly suggest you contacting the Attorney General in your State and filing a complaint.

If you wish to pursue a civil matter, you must acquire the agent in charge for the business to draw up the complaint. One acquires the Agent in Charge by contacting the Secretary of State that has their name or the entity representing the business. You must draw up the complaint with the Agent in Charge as the heading. Unless you are experienced in the area of litigation, you should not attempt to file on your own. In my opinion, I have no idea what the B.A.T.F would have to say, nor I do not believe that they could assist unless there was impropriety relating to firearms. If you need anything further, you may PM me. I've been down the road many times and I know many lawyers whom I have worked with. Truly sorry for position you are in. Remember, God sees all things and what this person has done shall return unto him many times over.

It appears as though we may have Safariman's Brother on the forum...........

Maybe in your state. It ain't that complicated in our state. I don't know how current that you are in small claims court, but the states with the smallest amount is $3000 and and ranges to $20,000.

@ butchlambert1

This is the last time I shall address this issue. My paralegal work is known to many, including the Superior Court judges in our State. I've never, not ever heard of a small claims court adhering to stipulations as you set forth. It may be possible, but the price you state seems a bit far fetched. No judge would ever consider to hear such a matter in price as you present, not ever. This is why "Small Claims" is referred to as such. My current status is at the present time, as the Rule of Law still exists. Merry Christmas.

Oregon is $10,000 or less.

20 seconds worth of Google.




P

It was my understanding in Texas if you won in small claims court you could NOT garnish wages. Is that still true ?

kwg

Not sure about wages, but you can damned sure get what they have in the bank.

Have you tried engaging the Postal Inspectors? Since you say the transaction involved shipping by USPS this might be in their jurisdiction.

At what (very well documented) point do you report the gun as stolen? Since you don't have it and the gunsmith says he does't have it then either the gunsmith stole nit or it was stolen by someone at UPS before it was scanned in.

Listen Kid!
All you have to do is a google search on small claims limits by state. I might worry about your paralegal work if you can't even do a search to back your statement.
Chuckle, chuckle, chuckle
I'll make it easy for you: https://www.rocketlawyer.com/article/small-claims-court-dollar-limits-by-state.rl

Paralegals are a dime a dozen.

To not have to use a lawyer or his paralegal is one of the perks of suing in Small Claims Court.

Synoptic, "your paralegal work" isn't known to anybody. Judges or otherwise. Any and all work you do is attached to the lawyer you work for, or you have committed the crime of practicing law without a license.

I had to file a small claim against a guy who caused a three way collision that I was involved in...at the time, the limit here was 5K....I filed everything on line and IIRC, I was able to serve the guy via certified letter....really simple schitt...

No, you can not garnish wages in Texas. Put a lien on his personal property or home.

So what happen to the OP and what’s with the wierd font on the posts?

For a person, yes. If it's a company, or corporation, you can use the judgement to seize the funds out of whatever bank account is in the company name.

Yes sir, bank account is his personal property. It don't matter if he is an individual. No garnishee.

Problem with a gunsmith? You don't say.

I filed mail fraud charges with Postal Inspection Service.

Unless it's for child support or attorney fees incurred in securing child support.




P

Did not cruise this entire thread, but from my experience if an issue crosses state lines, it becomes damned near impossible.

I live in Oregon, accepted a check for dog I was selling while standing in Idaho, from a guy that lived in Washington. It bounced. Authorities would do nothing. Legal advice was to send a certified bluffing letter to the tune of pay up within 30 days or we will pursue legal channels. I my case it worked.

Not an isolated incident... https://www.24hourcampfire.com/ubbthreads/ubbthreads.php/topics/8676211/1

Now call the county sheriff where he lives...

it happened to us few years ago while trying to transfer a rifle from Nebraska to Canada with a FLL.

the seller did not want to ship anymore but forgot to give back the money...

a little chat with the local police and DA changed my life: i got my rifle finally but the Judge didnt follow the recommendation of the local police nor the DA but i got the rifle back.

PS: they slammed his door and wreck his home with a SWAT unit (gun involved)...

try first the local police. they helped a fellow Canadian.