Posted on 08/12/2009 6:05:45 PM PDT by LukeL
I was involved in a very minor fender bender on 94 West in Milwaukee on Friday. The responding officer took down my driver's license information (even though I was a passenger) and statement (the other car drove off and I gave a partial plate)
Today I get 7 mailings from 6 different law firms about my accident, my friend who was the driver received 8 mailings. As the Milwaukee Sheriff's Department is the only entity that knows about it, they must have sold my information to the law firms in the area. Can they do this? I also gave my number and today got a text message about getting a new car. What else can I expect? Is there anything I can do?
Naturally, that's a perversion of the idea of "public record," but we live in perverse times.
I don’t know about Wisconsin, but police reports are public records in most places. No sale needed. The media always look at those.
Interesting.
I wouldn’t blame the police. I suspect this would come from higher up as a means of funding police. Probably an automatic system.
The police didn’t “sell it”, it’s public data and lawyers subscribe to a service that gets that data and sells it to the lawyers.
Down here you would have made the local paper.
That is outrageous. You should do something. In fact, I’m gonna have my friend the attorney contact you.
JUST SAY NO!!!!
The thing was there was no police report at all, the officer was eager to take down my driver’s license information. I never signed anything. If I knew why she wanted my info I would have refused.
Up here they only print the names of those convicted of crimes, otherwise any crime, accident, or incident just gives age, race, and sex
If the police are called to the scene of an accident, they are required by law to file a report about it. Whether or not you signed anything is irrelevant. That report is public information. Local newspapers and law offices usually monitor daily police reports. That’s how reporters find breaking news. It’s how ambulance chasers find people who might be interested in filing lawsuits.
You can go to the PD and request a copy of any police report that you want whether or not it had anything to do with you.
The police didn’t sell your information.
Good God, before you post something like this maybe you should check your facts. EVERY single accident is PUBLIC knowledge and usually is printed in your local newspaper!!!! When you have a close relative die, you will receive mailings and emails. I am assuming that you did not have your email address on your driver’s license and did not give it to the officer.
FWIW,,,As a retired police officer, most accident reports are public records. The responding officer took you name and address from you drivers license and listed it in the report since you were a passenger in the vehicle. The use of the drivers license is just an easier way to fill out the report. This actually protects you in the long run. If you weren’t listed on the report as a passenger and developed medical problems later in the day or week, the insurance company wouldn’t be liable to pay your medical expenses. Further since you were also a “witness” to the accident and it appears it was a hit and run, you’d have little credibility in a criminal or civil case against the other driver since there would be no record of your having been at the scene.
Lastly, if it is any consolation to you, my 18 year old daughter was killed in an auto accident and I received a mailing from an attorney within 3 days of her death. To add insult to injury the firm sent another letter a week letter with a news clipping from a local paper describing my daughter’s accident with the notation “in case you didn’t see this” I called the attorney and told him in no uncertain terms that if I received another letter from their firm, I’d file charges with the state bar association and call a local investigative reporter (Detroit media) and hold a press conference outside their office.
Lawyers are for the most part decent people but there are some real scumbags out there that give the profession a bad name.
No scandal - you can get circuit court and municipal citation information free and easy in Milwaukee - you can search both via internet. Google “Wisconsin circuit court access” for one ... You can also get property records and inspection/residential enforcement records from “Milwaukee DNS.” And it goes on and on... public records easily accessible, no one in Milwaukee is selling.
Did you ask why she needed your license info?
I know accidents are public knowledge but no paper or news agency in my area releases the name of those involved unless they die or are criminally at fault. I didn’t assume on police reports (I have written out some in the past) anyone could get your name and address and personal history. When my father passed away 2 years ago we received nothing in the mail at all, and FWIW some billing agencies still refuse to accept the fact that he died and they are out of luck with getting their money.
I don’t know what state you are in, but get an attorney, preferably a poorer one, to advise you on how to proceed on debts. I had a situation like this once. The “ivy tower” attorneys don’t always know how to play dirty. Feel free to private mail me if questions.
parsy, who fights by the WWWF rules
My mother fell down and broke her hip back in March. Somewhere in the mail that piled up while she was in the hospital was a letter from some outfit looking to see if she wanted to sue anyone. Obviously they had some data mining software going thru ambulance reports.
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