No More Circle Js

[Terrierman]

I've left 3 messages on that number, and never got a call back. That number used to ring a few times, then go to voicemail. Not any more.

Certified mail, return receipt requested would be my next step. And then one from an attorney.

[Larry Murphy]

Anyone know a cheap or reasonably priced lawyer???? Or is there such a thing????

[fishinwrench]

Did you have a contract/lease agreement with them ? If not then a lawyer is only gonna take your money without helping your cause.

[Gavin]

Might call the local police and see if they are willing to help you retrieve your property.

[fishinwrench]

Larry, is your situation such that you don't have funds available to have the trailer relocated ?

If so I would kinda force them to buy it from you. I mean if they are keeping you out of it but aren't accepting payment for the lot rent then it seems they need to settle up with you. Not sure how the sheriff would side, but they either need to allow you to reconnect utilities or they need to buy you out.

[ruthead]

Anything new on this? Every time we drove by earlier this year I would look up where our trailer used to be and be thankful we got out before this happened.

[Larry Murphy]

Update on Circle J, now the Bennett Springs Campground....

We have a friend that lives in Lebanon, and they drove by the campground and found some activity. I've been calling the old Circle J phone number off and on for months, and a month ago someone answered the phone. She told me that they opened on April 1 (kind of), and are ready for business. She also told me that they had been trying to contact me, and that I owed 3 months back rent plus money to set-up electrical service again. Oddly enough, there's a 6' wide FOR SALE sign on the west side of the trailer with my phone number on it. Guess that's too subtle. I sent them a check, and thought we were good to go. Not so much!

Got a call a couple weeks later, after the 3-month rent check was cashed, and she told me "hold on, the trailer is ours....not yours....it was seized by the IRS last year, and now we own the trailer and not you". Went on to say that a certified letter was being sent to me stating that they own the trailer, and we will be refunded our rent money. As of 7/7, no letter or check has been received.

I called the IRS agent that handled the forclosure and re-sale, and she told me that all of this was false. She told me that ONLY the items owned by the Johnstons at the time of the foreclosure could be sold to Mr. Gibson. Anything titled in your name was NOT a part of the auction.

I've had multiple conversations with the woman in the office, and it's clear that she doesn't even know which trailer is ours. The trailer to our south was owned by the Johnstons, so my guess is that they are talking about the wrong unit. After multiple calls, all she says is "you'll need to take this up with Mr. Gibson" and "I've asked Mr. Gibson to call you several times". He's never called. I found his number on the Internet (he owns TriState Lumber in Arbela, MO), but all I get is voicemail or no answer whatsoever.

This is an absolute cluster flub! My dad passed away from cancer in November of 2014, and in one of his last discussions with me he said "I guess we're going to lose our fishing trailer". I told him no, it will just take time for things to sort out, but maybe he was right after all.

I'm concerned that these boneheads are going to move the trailer, sell the contents, or both, and I have no way of stopping them. The IRS agent told me that they wouldn't get involved, it was our issue to handle. I don't see hiring a lawyer, that will cost more than the trailer and contents are worth (there are no moral victories when it comes to our legal system).

Ideas? Suggestions? I got nothing....

[Flysmallie]

You either roll over and give up or you fight for it. If it was me I would go get it. Who is going to stop you?

[ness]

I'd check with the authorities first and get their read on it. Wouldn't be surprised if they are hard to get on your side though -- they're not necessarily mediators.

Then I'd get hold of an attorney and have them explain your legal options to you and craft an appropriate demand to this Gibson guy. I would think a competent lawyer could be found for $100 to $150 an hour, and could get the ball rolling in an hour or two. Make sure he knows the law before you engage them. It's no fun paying a lawyer to learn the law, which they just love to do. It's also no fun to pay a lawyer to sit there and gab on your dime. I know these things are no fun because I just did both.

[Terrierman]

I would not hire a lawyer to let me pick up a trailer that I owned and had a title on. I would just go and get it and take it home or to some other campground. Don't take a gun but do ask a deputy to accompany you. Take your title with you too, then there won't be any question about who owns what.

BTW, what is it with so many people thinking that a gun is going to help settle a disagreement anyway? At the ramp, on the water, over a trailer, give me a break. None of that crap short of someone threatening YOUR life is gun worthy. And even then I like to think I'm smart enough to avoid those situations. 63 years old, USMC veteran so definitely not an anti gunner person at all and never felt the need to pull a gun on anybody yet. Honestly if gives me the creeps when someone suggests it for something that isn't anything like a real threat situation. Think people, think. With your head.