Conduct of Civil Process Server, Need Some Help.

[mikegideon]

so you mean to tell me that is someone comes to your door unannounced, you have no idea who they are, and they starting pounding on your door, and cursing and threatening to kick the door in that you're not going to be in fear for your safety or that of your family?

If he was just knocking on the door persistently, no I would not be in fear for my safety. When the threat of kicking the door in and the abusive foul language enters the situation has changed from peaceful to hostile.

... and you mean to tell me that if you're in fear for your safety, you're going to open the door? Good luck with your tactics, man. Understand also, that I would want to do the same thing. I just wouldn't.

Edited August 13, 2011 by mikegideon

[DaveTN]

this thing is getting way off topic, and we're talking about shoulda, coulda, woulda, instead of the real issue here.

are there standards for process servers to follow or not? Guidelines? regulations? ethics?

I find it hard to believe that any profession of a legal nature, that someone is allowed to just act in this manner, and would like to know what can be done legally and from a professional standpoint (as in his superiors, or the state, or the city).

Then you have three choices and three choices only. Here they are…

1. You contact an attorney and you see what type of civil or possibly even criminal action you can bring against this guy.

2. You go to the Police Department and you talk with the Shift Commander (or someone he delegates) of the shift this happened on. You don’t call him on the phone, and when you talk to him you use the same respect you would want him to show you. You ask him what can be done, and you listen to what he says.

3. You can go to the DA’s office and do the same with them.

Number 1 will be expensive, from what you said that’s not an option. I doubt the DA will do anything. Number 2 is your best bet to make anything happen, but you can’t force them to act if they don’t feel it is justified.

Well you do have a fourth choice. You can forget about it and help your parents handle the mess they are in now. They took care of you all your life; it’s time for you to step up.

[Guest WyattEarp]

It’s not “someone†it’s a process server. You know that and you don’t want to answer the door because you don’t want your Mother to be served papers.

If you are in fear; you don’t open the door. If he kicks the door in; shoot him.

until the point the police showed up, we had no idea it was a process server, because the man was unidentified and was becoming abusive and making threats.

second point noted.

YOU took the discussion into that area, Mr. Earp. We're just trying to keep you out of the hoosegow in the future.

- OS

I appreciate that, nice to learn a valuable lesson before it reaches that status. yes I did, but im getting it back on track now.

[Guest WyattEarp]

Then you have three choices and three choices only. Here they are…

1. You contact an attorney and you see what type of civil or possibly even criminal action you can bring against this guy.

2. You go to the Police Department and you talk with the Shift Commander (or someone he delegates) of the shift this happened on. You don’t call him on the phone, and when you talk to him you use the same respect you would want him to show you. You ask him what can be done, and you listen to what he says.

3. You can go to the DA’s office and do the same with them.

Number 1 will be expensive, from what you said that’s not an option. I doubt the DA will do anything. Number 2 is your best bet to make anything happen, but you can’t force them to act if they don’t feel it is justified.

Well you do have a fourth choice. You can forget about it and help your parents handle the mess they are in now. They took care of you all your life; it’s time for you to step up.

thanks. Dad will be talking to the LT at SHPD on monday in person. I'll let him know about talking to the DA, sounds like a good idea.

4.) I'm in no position to help them financially. I'm in college and doing well enough to pay my bills and living expenses, but if I were in a position to help, it would not have reached the level it's at, because I would have gladly loaned them the money to keep these people off their backs.

It's truly sad that companies and people act this way over money. If my parents had it, they would pay it, but they don't have the money. So all that's gonna happen is they go to court, and my dad will tell them he can't pay anything, or at the most agree to $5 a month.

[quietguy]

so you mean to tell me that is someone comes to your door unannounced, you have no idea who they are, and they starting pounding on your door, and cursing and threatening to kick the door in that you're not going to be in fear for your safety or that of your family?

If he was just knocking on the door persistently, no I would not be in fear for my safety. When the threat of kicking the door in and the abusive foul language enters the situation has changed from peaceful to hostile

The Process Server is guilty to using very poor judgement, but not much else (maybe disturbing the peace). Should he have acted in a reasonable manner, sure. Should he have announced himself and his intentions, sure.

Unless he threatened you or your mother with bodily harm, you don't have a right to threaten him with harm. Threatening to kick in a door kick in a door isn't a threat against you. Had he said teeth instead of door, it would be a whole different scenario.

[Murgatroy]

I was served once.

I had no idea I had a bill that was behind. When my daughter was born five years ago, my wife took her to a doctor for her afterbirth wellness check-up. We had medical insurance, but for some reason unbeknownst to me, my wife didn't use our insurance. When the bill came in the mail she didn't say anything and it got thrown to the wayside.

Fast forward four years, and I get a phone call from a process server. He tells me the general gist of what it going on. I ask him some simple questions to verify his claim, make a phone call, then call him back. I had him meet me at a neutral place. I then called the collection agency that sent him, and went in and paid my bill before court.

A $75 bill turned into a $600 headache.

And I won't bore you with the tale of the conversation I had with my wife after that.

I have had rough jobs, customer service when I was younger was pretty bad, anyone that has been in that industry understands what I mean. I tend to be pretty easy going. I understand that someone has a job to do, and as such, I don't try to give them hassle when they are doing it. That is from a process server, to a police officer pulling me over for a burnt out tail light.

With age and wisdom comes maturity.

I agree with a good portion of what Dolomite Supafly said earlier, if you take care of your bills, things like this doesn't happen. I don't know the whole story, and I won't cast stones, as I myself have been in tight places.

However, I have to say that for an individual of thirty one years old, according to your profile, you handled, and continue to handle the situation in a very immature manner. Allowing someone to beat on your door for nearly an hour, without asking who or why he was there? I just can not accept that you and your mother were cowering in fear upstairs in a closet whilst a stranger beat on your door for that long screaming.

Even if you didn't want your mother to be served, all you had to do was answer the door, discover who and why was there, and explain that you are not your father or mother, and ask the gentleman to leave. That would have been the proper procedure.

If lacking the intestinal fortitude to do that, you did the next best thing, calling the police.

I am not trying to be judgmental, and I am sorry if I come off cross, but I just see so much fail in this tale that it embarrasses me to read it.

[DaveTN]

Dad will be talking to the LT at SHPD on monday in person.

Let us know what happens.

Is this the guy? I've seen this guy around and he's kinda shady.

[Guest WyattEarp]

Let us know what happens.

Is this the guy? I've seen this guy around and he's kinda shady.

no, this guy was white, about 6'1, 180-200#, short redish brown hair combed strait forward, kinda redneckish lookin', button up shirt and khaki pants. drove a Black F-150 extended cab. it wasn't til the cops came that I could see who he was or looked like.

[Guest WyattEarp]

However, I have to say that for an individual of thirty one years old, according to your profile, you handled, and continue to handle the situation in a very immature manner. Allowing someone to beat on your door for nearly an hour, without asking who or why he was there? I just can not accept that you and your mother were cowering in fear upstairs in a closet whilst a stranger beat on your door for that long screaming.

Even if you didn't want your mother to be served, all you had to do was answer the door, discover who and why was there, and explain that you are not your father or mother, and ask the gentleman to leave. That would have been the proper procedure.

If lacking the intestinal fortitude to do that, you did the next best thing, calling the police.

I am not trying to be judgmental, and I am sorry if I come off cross, but I just see so much fail in this tale that it embarrasses me to read it.

Not my house, and my mother asked that I not answer the door. We weren't "cowering", but given the circumstances at the aggressive nature of the guy on the front porch, the obscenities and the threat to kick in the door I believe we handled the situation correctly.

But I didn't realize you had a ****ing out of body experience and were hovering over the house watching all of this happen.

[Dolomite`s Breezy]

No doubt the server acted like a douche.And I can understand your parents being scared..What the server did wrong is not identifying himself right off the bat.He did , like a lot of debt collectors, act like they will hurt you if you don`t do this or that..

That`s a common tactic among people like that. Legaly ,I don`t think you have a leg to stand on.. no where in the books says he has to act like a gentleman to serve papers to people..Don`t waste your time, money, or resources on this.. because you will get nowhere.

[MacGyver]

The OP has asked that this thread be closed. While I generally don't like to close threads like this one, it doesn't seen like anything particularly new is going to be said that hasn't already. If someone wants to debate the serving process, debt collection or anything else, start a thread in the general off-topic section.

As most here have pointed out, it doesn't really matter how big of a fool someone makes out of themself on your front porch. If you're behind closed doors, so long as they stay outside you're likely going to be the one in trouble if you escalate the situation.

When you strap on a weapon, you immediately either become an asset to society or a liability. Likewise, your actions represent all of us. While I'd like to think that one day that won't be the case, as it stands today if one permit holder/gun owner does something stupid, we all get painted with the brush that colors them.