helped a friend get out... and having doubts...

[stormer89]

so about a week or so ago one of my friends was picked up and went to jail. one of our friends called me saying they needed bail money. so i got it out of savings and we went down to pick him up. he ended up using the money to get his car out cuz his mom or somethin paid his bail.
now it was $200 that i lent him. i gave him a month and a half to pay it back.
but i kinda need it back as soon as possible cuz me and my dad are moving out soon.
is there anyway to speed up this process and to ensure i get it back?
cuz i have a feeling i may not get it back.
i swear, i can be too nice for my own good sometimes.....................

[juliaki]

My advice...file a case in small claims court.

[Makbawehuh]

Do not give anything you cannot live without; Anything that you give, do not expect to receive back.

I'm sure there's something you could do about calling in debts, but I would say, for now, write it off as a lesson learned and don't talk to that person anymore. You wouldn't be the first person to be screwed over by a "friend".

[oracle's child]

o.k., did i miss something or didn't you say "about a week and a half ago" that you lent the money? then you gave him a month and a half to pay it back? small claims wouldn't do because the time isn't up yet. sometimes it doesn't pay to get involved, but i'm not sure if this alone would be a good reason to stop being friends (you know, it was YOUR decision to lend the money right?). i'm sorry for your troubles, and i think your heart was in the right place.

[oracle's child]

sigh. o.k.. as usual i whiz thru something and miss a detail or two. the verbal contract changed when your friend decided to get his car out with the money instead of using it for what it was originally intended. mmmm, yeah, i would take him to small claims (like juliaki said) if he didn't pay you back right away. sorry for not paying attention. i know you had good intentions. if you didn't care............ oh, wait! were you contacted by the friend on behalf of the one in jail or did the friend(the one that called) just get the idea on their own to ask you for the bail? i've seen court shows about this kind of thing and that may be a sticky issue. another thing, are you a minor? if so i don't believe minors can be held legally responsible for a verbal or written contract. that's me done. i'll send you my bill. chuckle.

[stormer89]

nope im not a minor. oh and it was a mutual friend of ours that contacted me asking about the money.
and i had him sign a piece of paper and date it saying he'd pay me back the $200.
so i dunno, i'd like to have faith that i'll get it back but... i just have that nagging feeling that i wont.

[nini]

contact a lawyer who is more capable in giving you advise on this kind of stuff.

[stormer89]

im thinkin about doin the small claims thing. i've been trying to call him to set up a time where he could drop it off where i work cuz we moved and i know he wont have the gas to get out here. he is not answaring his phone, so i sent him a myspace message and it said it was read, but he has yet to reply. i've tried having a handful of mutual friends pass on the message, to no result.
its been almost a month and i haven't seen a dime of it. and now i actually need it for rent and bills and such. urgh... anything more than at the ABSOLUTE MAX $20 to anyone anytime soon.

[oracle's child]

(sigh) i'm sorry that this happened to you stormer. i can imagine how hurt and frustrated you must feel. it's a shame when someone repays a kindness like this. i hope everything goes along speedily if/when you choose litigation.

[stormer89]

yeah i mean i always pay people back, in fact a friend just came by last night so i could pay her $20 back. its just dissapointing.
people really learn to treat others how they wanna be treated. but i guess i'll let karma deal with it in the end if everything else fails.