I wasn't positive whether to put this in this forum, or the auto one, since it pertains to both, however since I wasn't the one driving and it's a court decision I'll put it here.
A couple weeks ago one of my friends and I brought a skating rail that we made to a public parking garage in our town. We had been skating on it for about a half hour when a man came around the corner and hit the rail with his car, resulting in a scratch on the bumper (see images below). The man called the police, who came and took my friend and I to the police station, and charged us both with disorderly conduct (New York penal section 240.20, subdivision 7). They claimed that this charge was simply to make sure that we paid the man for the damage to his car, and that he could drop the charges after he received his money. Since this time, the man has been calling both my friend and I with updates. He told us that we owed him a combine $700 in damages. $550 for the car and $150 for the rental which he will need for three days while this is in the shop. He claims he has copies of the estimate he got from the dealership, which I haven't seen because we've only discussed this over the phone.
This is where I stand, not sure where to go from here. Our court date is January 10th. He said he would drop the charges if we payed him before then, but have no way to assure that. We asked him to get a second estimate, and he refuses to cooperate because his first is from a "reputable dealer". I also don't believe we should have to pay for the rental car, since his current car is clearly in a drivable state. I don't think I should pay anything before he gets the work done, since he could easily just take the money and not get the repairs. The rail was positioned in a place where his car had ample room to go around it on either side, had he seen it in time. I can prove because I have the incident on video, something I haven't mentioned to him or shown anyone else. Would I be able to use this in court? I'm not sure if it wold help or hurt my case more. I'm also not getting a lawyer, because that would most likely cost more than the damages. He has an attorney, and claims that if we lose in court we would have to pay his legal fees as well. I don't really know how any of this works, so I would love some help ASAP so I can make my decision and get this over with.
Thanks for any help!
Pictures of the damage:
http://img245.imageshack.us/img245/9650/gedc1157lu2.jpg
http://img217.imageshack.us/img217/9748/gedc1158tr7.jpg
A couple weeks ago one of my friends and I brought a skating rail that we made to a public parking garage in our town. We had been skating on it for about a half hour when a man came around the corner and hit the rail with his car, resulting in a scratch on the bumper (see images below). The man called the police, who came and took my friend and I to the police station, and charged us both with disorderly conduct (New York penal section 240.20, subdivision 7). They claimed that this charge was simply to make sure that we paid the man for the damage to his car, and that he could drop the charges after he received his money. Since this time, the man has been calling both my friend and I with updates. He told us that we owed him a combine $700 in damages. $550 for the car and $150 for the rental which he will need for three days while this is in the shop. He claims he has copies of the estimate he got from the dealership, which I haven't seen because we've only discussed this over the phone.
This is where I stand, not sure where to go from here. Our court date is January 10th. He said he would drop the charges if we payed him before then, but have no way to assure that. We asked him to get a second estimate, and he refuses to cooperate because his first is from a "reputable dealer". I also don't believe we should have to pay for the rental car, since his current car is clearly in a drivable state. I don't think I should pay anything before he gets the work done, since he could easily just take the money and not get the repairs. The rail was positioned in a place where his car had ample room to go around it on either side, had he seen it in time. I can prove because I have the incident on video, something I haven't mentioned to him or shown anyone else. Would I be able to use this in court? I'm not sure if it wold help or hurt my case more. I'm also not getting a lawyer, because that would most likely cost more than the damages. He has an attorney, and claims that if we lose in court we would have to pay his legal fees as well. I don't really know how any of this works, so I would love some help ASAP so I can make my decision and get this over with.
Thanks for any help!
Pictures of the damage:
http://img245.imageshack.us/img245/9650/gedc1157lu2.jpg
http://img217.imageshack.us/img217/9748/gedc1158tr7.jpg
