delusional girl in my group home stole my cell phone, and agreed to pay it off in monthly increments

[sea_turtle04]

Jurisdiction

Texas

need: legal contract help....

Hello, I am writing about a stolen cell phone. I am living in a group home. there is a girl here who stole my cell phone on feb 3rd, (off of my bed right next to my pillow within a 15 minute time window) which was proven by the phone records, and the calls made. then she moved from the group home due to not paying her rent, and now she is back. she just admitted (feb 17) to stealing my phone. and agreed to monthly payments on paying back the amount. i need to write a legally binding contract.

1) is the fact that she is delusional and requiring medication enough to make the contract null and void? i read that being of sound mind is required for a written contract to be considered active and legal. since she is not of sound mind what should i do? can or should i still write the contract...?

2) is the emotional value of the phone considered, legally, for things such as lost text messages, which were very important to me, and missing #'s and pictures, as well as the time living without the phone? (1 month of time because she can not pay anything until march she has already stated, and she stole it feb 03)
can these factors be considered in the contract, the price i ask for the phone..

 

[adjusterjack]

Your written contract with a low life thief won't be worth the paper its written on. If you think she will pay you, contract or no contract, than you are the one who is delusional.

 

[mightymoose]

Don't waste your time.
If anyone, you could direct your issue to her parents, conservators, or whoever is responsible for her. If there is no one responsible, you really have no options.
If you ask for anything beyond the value of the phone you likely won't be taken seriously.
Some companies offer insurance for lost/stolen phones. Any chance you are covered by your cell provider?

 

[Highwayman]

What did she do with the phone, i.e. where is it now?

 

[sea_turtle04]

she said she was 'delusional' and 'off her meds'.. and she doesnt remember what she did with it. i was and am pretty sure she just threw it away. all the calls placed were between the 3rd and the 5th of february.. by the 5th it was probably out of battery, and she had no use for it.

she does have a smartphone with a 'wifi phone' or 'phone app', but with no cell service on it. on saturday night she went to detox club in north houston she told me this before hand (where there is probably no wifi) and that is when most of the calls took place, in the middle of the night saturday after the 3rd (friday when it was stolen) .. sunday the 5th is the last day there was calls. and she came back to the group home sunday before noon, the last call placed was sunday morning. she might have left it as whoevers house she spent the night at, but that is just speculation. my guess is that she trashed it, when it ran out of battery. but this is just a guess too.

i dont know what to do...

 

[Highwayman]

Get another phone and move on. There is no way to get your phone back and expecting her to pay you anything requires a big stretch of the imagination.

 

[leslie82]

need: legal contract help....

Hello, I am writing about a stolen cell phone. I am living in a group home. there is a girl here who stole my cell phone on feb 3rd, (off of my bed right next to my pillow within a 15 minute time window) which was proven by the phone records, and the calls made. then she moved from the group home due to not paying her rent, and now she is back. she just admitted (feb 17) to stealing my phone. and agreed to monthly payments on paying back the amount. i need to write a legally binding contract.

1) is the fact that she is delusional and requiring medication enough to make the contract null and void? i read that being of sound mind is required for a written contract to be considered active and legal. since she is not of sound mind what should i do? can or should i still write the contract...?

2) is the emotional value of the phone considered, legally, for things such as lost text messages, which were very important to me, and missing #'s and pictures, as well as the time living without the phone? (1 month of time because she can not pay anything until march she has already stated, and she stole it feb 03)
can these factors be considered in the contract, the price i ask for the phone..

Emotional value of a phone because of text messages? LOL! Really? You should back up any texts or pictures that are of "emotional value" from now on.

"Time living without the phone." What the hell? You know you can live without a phone right? People have done it for thousands upon thousands of years. You don't "need" a phone to survive.

Get a new phone and make sure you keep better track of it. Probably shouldn't have things of value in a group home anyway.