Members Detox Posted January 29, 2008 Members Share Posted January 29, 2008 My sister went to France last week to attend the funeral of her friend's son. She is bipolar and has a tendency to spend money she hasn't got, when she doesn't take her medication. We got word from her friends that she obtained a rental car, and later didn't have the funds to pay for it. She was jailed, but her friends paid the bill for the car and got her out. That's when they decided to call us. We are sending them a check. Unfortunately, she has other friends throughout Europe who we don't know, and has taken off to "visit" some of them. We're pretty sure she will pull another one of these stunts before long, and land in the slam again. My question is, if she gets busted again, will she likely be deported back to New York, or have to stay in prison in Europe? BTW, make with the wisecracks if you must, but this situation is no joke to me. TIA Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Goofball Jones Posted January 29, 2008 Members Share Posted January 29, 2008 No wisecracks from me. I would contact Jazz Ad and ask him as he lives in France. I'm sure he'll see this post and give his input. Is there any way to get her back to the US? Or to contact the people she went to visit to see if they can help you find her? At least to get a contact number? Has she left France? It's frustrating I'm sure. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members bholder Posted January 29, 2008 Members Share Posted January 29, 2008 Sigh, that's sad. Sorry, I can't help. And now I feel too guilty to use the wisecrack I had planned. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Mytola Posted January 29, 2008 Members Share Posted January 29, 2008 It really depends on the country, I guess. Here in Norway, I am sure she would have been put on a plane to the US pretty quick. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members dDigitalPimp Posted January 29, 2008 Members Share Posted January 29, 2008 man that sucks. i have no idea about the questions you are asking but i hope everything turns out ok for your sister. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members y-o-y Posted January 29, 2008 Members Share Posted January 29, 2008 I have a bipolar cousin who has done basically the same thing, just not outside of the US. He spent a couple of months driving around the country visiting family members, leaving a trail of debt, bad checks and damaged relationships in his wake. He was never locked up, so that was good. I think each country is going to have different policies on extradition and deportation. So long as she is not wanted in the US for a serious crime, and she doesn't commit any serious crimes abroad, I doubt she will be deported or extradited. If you have contact information for any of her European friends that she might visit, do whatever you can to give them a heads up... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members bholder Posted January 29, 2008 Members Share Posted January 29, 2008 ...He was never locked up, so that was good.... Well, good for him, but I imagine the people he affected would not all agree. Tough thing to deal with, had some of that in my family, there's not all that much you can do for them until they decide to get help and/or change. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Detox Posted January 29, 2008 Author Members Share Posted January 29, 2008 Is there any way to get her back to the US? Or to contact the people she went to visit to see if they can help you find her? At least to get a contact number? Has she left France? The main problem is that we don't know where she is, or where she's headed. Her friends couldn't tell us either. They don't know who her other friends are. Second problem, most likely she won't be easy to track down. She has a master's degree in the French language, and speaks fluent Spanish, German and Italian. She's lived and gone to university in Europe. And she dresses to blend in with the crowd wherever she goes. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members cdb Posted January 29, 2008 Members Share Posted January 29, 2008 The main problem is that we don't know where she is, or where she's headed. Her friends couldn't tell us either. They don't know who her other friends are.Second problem, most likely she won't be easy to track down. She has a master's degree in the French language, and speaks fluent Spanish, German and Italian. She's lived and gone to university in Europe. And she dresses to blend in with the crowd wherever she goes. Try contacting US Embassies in the various countries to determine local laws and deportation/extradition proceedings. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members nakedzen Posted January 30, 2008 Members Share Posted January 30, 2008 Just hope she won't travel very far east. Countries like Poland, Czhech Republic or even Hungary are quite a lot more harsh than say, Italy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members georgestrings Posted January 30, 2008 Members Share Posted January 30, 2008 No jokes coming from here - I wish you the best of luck on this... - georgestrings Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members bikehorn Posted January 30, 2008 Members Share Posted January 30, 2008 I hope your sister comes back safely Can a missing persons report be filed in France from here? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CMS Author Craig Vecchione Posted January 30, 2008 CMS Author Share Posted January 30, 2008 Do these countries keep a record of where a passport was held, say at a hotel? Perhaps contacting the US Embassy in France will get you some info on whether this is a way to track her down. Or perhaps find out how to file a missing persons report over there. Having authorities actively looking for her may be a tiny bit better than just hoping she turns up somehow. Good luck and hopefully she'll be okay. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Super Bass Posted January 30, 2008 Members Share Posted January 30, 2008 No jokes coming from here - I wish you the best of luck on this... - georgestrings Same here, I hope your sister gets home safely. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Rippin' Robin Posted January 30, 2008 Members Share Posted January 30, 2008 My sister went to France last week to attend the funeral of her friend's son. She is bipolar and has a tendency to spend money she hasn't got, when she doesn't take her medication.We got word from her friends that she obtained a rental car, and later didn't have the funds to pay for it. She was jailed, but her friends paid the bill for the car and got her out. That's when they decided to call us. We are sending them a check.Unfortunately, she has other friends throughout Europe who we don't know, and has taken off to "visit" some of them. We're pretty sure she will pull another one of these stunts before long, and land in the slam again. My question is, if she gets busted again, will she likely be deported back to New York, or have to stay in prison in Europe?BTW, make with the wisecracks if you must, but this situation is no joke to me.TIA It really depends on what country she is in. Most Western European countries she'll probably be detained for a bit, and then get sent back. Eastern European countries... Who knows. I wouldn't want to be in a Romanian slammer, that's for sure. Let me know if I can help. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members NeonVomit Posted January 30, 2008 Members Share Posted January 30, 2008 Definately depends on the country. Each one is a different case in such matters. Over here she'd be handed over to the embassy almost immediately, which would be asked to return her home for pretty much anything except serious crimes. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members REMUS Posted January 30, 2008 Members Share Posted January 30, 2008 It would seem reasonable that she'd be deported, but it really depends on the country as others have mentioned. Hope you get it all sorted out quickly dude Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Jazz Ad Posted January 30, 2008 Members Share Posted January 30, 2008 There are 2 types of emprisonments in France, preventive and punitive.Peventive is when you're either waiting for a judgment or go for a very short time, such as when you're drunk or are caught stealing, going around without ID, stuff like that. It's a measure of public protection and must be done in France without exception. As Neonvomit said, in most European countries if they can't get the info they need and realize she's a US citizen, they will call the Embassy for them to take care of it.If she was to be condemned, international conventions between Europe and USA would allow her to spend her time in USA.I'd warn the embassies about the situation so they can easily track back to you if they ever hear about her. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members J. Posted January 30, 2008 Members Share Posted January 30, 2008 Well, at least she's only running up bills she can't pay. That's not a good thing of course, but it's not like she's over there murdering people. Of course, she probably learned the hard way that unlike in the US, you can be put in jail for unpaid bills in some European countries. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Detox Posted January 30, 2008 Author Members Share Posted January 30, 2008 Thanks to all for your info, offers of help and well wishes. I just found out that my sister turned up at her friends' home in Marseilles. One of them is a doctor, and saw right away that she is having troubles. He convinced her to return home immediately. She had been planning to visit Capetown after Marseilles. Good news for now, but we'll have to deal with her shenanigans again when she gets back home to NYC. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members tom_s252 Posted January 30, 2008 Members Share Posted January 30, 2008 Glad to hear that it's not as bad as you feared. It must be difficult to track someone who is acting of their own free will (actually, on second thoughts, I'm quite glad about that most of the time). Very glad she didn't head for South Africa, as that's one place not renowned for its fair, balanced or lenient justice/penal system. Tough situation, hope it works out ok. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members NeonVomit Posted January 30, 2008 Members Share Posted January 30, 2008 There are 2 types of emprisonments in France, preventive and punitive. Peventive is when you're either waiting for a judgment or go for a very short time, such as when you're drunk or are caught stealing, going around without ID, stuff like that. You get put in custody for not having an ID in France? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members J. Posted January 30, 2008 Members Share Posted January 30, 2008 Just hope she won't travel very far east. Countries like Poland, Czhech Republic or even Hungary are quite a lot more harsh than say, Italy. I'm guessing Italy doesn't have a very harsh penal system. There was a college kid from the Twin Cities who went over to Italy for something school-related. He and a female friend (also American) met some Italian broad who invited the two of them over to her house. Well, they're sitting at a table outside in the yard when the Italian broad's father comes out and starts yelling at the American kids. I don't know where the broad went during this because she obviously could've intervened (being bilingual and all) but the old man was telling the American kids to get off his property. Since they didn't understand Italian, they just stood their perplexed. The old guy pulled a knife and stabbed the young male student, killing him. The old man was tried and convicted of something, but the thing that sticks in my head was that he was only going to do a couple of years. Pretty easy sentence for what could've been 2nd degree murder here in the states. Anyway, the kid's dad is loaded so it was a reasonably big news story here. If I was the dead kid's dad, I'd hire someone to go over to Italy and bump the old man off when he got out of prison. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members bikehorn Posted January 30, 2008 Members Share Posted January 30, 2008 Anyway, the kid's dad is loaded so it was a reasonably big news story here. If I was the dead kid's dad, I'd hire someone to go over to Italy and bump the old man off when he got out of prison. Corruption is rampant in Italy. It wouldn't surprise me if this guy, being loaded, bought his way out of a long sentence. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Jazz Ad Posted February 3, 2008 Members Share Posted February 3, 2008 You get put in custody for not having an ID in France? Legally yes. You must be able to show ID anywhere, anytime. In real life it isn't applied so tightly but if you cumulate the lack of ID with something else you may very well end in custody. "Something else" may be getting caught in a brawl, driving a car that isn't yours, being drunk on the streets or, unfortunately, looking stranger or darker skinned than the norm. Illegal immigrants get chased a lot these days. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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