Re: Seek help re 1st class mail delivery

[EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote in message
news:<[EMAIL PROTECTED]>...
> I am representing myself in a misdemeanor case. Part of the 
> charge stems from my (allegedly) failing to respond within a 
> certain time period to a notice mailed to me by first class 
> mail. Since there is no way for the state to prove when I 
> received the mail, I believe this charge is unfounded. The 
> state cites a regulation which gives three days for mail to 
> travel each way...

You don't say what state you're in, and I'm puzzled about the alleged
charge of non-response.  You say that was "part" of the charge; could
you be more specific?  Were you _already_ on notice of being charged
with a crime or a civil violation (such as a minor traffic offense),
when they allegedly sent you this first class mail piece?   The "3
day" regulation is a part of most procedural codes and means you have
that much _additional_ time to serve your written response, when some
pleading or notice is served on you by first class mail as opposed to
a more direct means.  So, if you had 14 days to respond to a paper,
you would have 17 days to mail or deliver your own answer if the paper
you are responding to was served on you by mail.  The 3-day rule
doesn't apply when the notice you get says something has to be
completed, or filed with the court, by a certain date; if so, that's
the date you have to meet.

> Can anyone cite relevent cases re first class mail delivery 
> or can anyone point me to a database where I can look up 
> such cases? 
> 
> Thanks in advance

You probably need only look as far as the printed procedural rules for
whichever court you are in, and any cases listed in the annotations.  
Due process generally requires that the _initial_ notice haling you
into court be given in a manner reasonably calculated to give actual
notice, and usually first class mail is not recognized as sufficient
to do that unless the party being served does appear and file an
answer voluntarily.   In civil cases, that means they generally need
to either give you or a family member in-hand service of the initial
summons, or that it actually be received by you by certified mail (as
shown by the green card you sign and return).

But those same procedural codes typically say that any notice _after_
that initial summons can be served by first class mail to your last
known address; it is up to you to (1) keep them posted if you move,
and (2) recognize the provenance and seriousness of any mail you get
from either the court or the opposing lawyer relating to the matter
after that, and not just toss it unopened as probable junk mail.   The
law does presume that duly postage-paid, first class mail gets
delivered to its intended recipient.   Whether the court would credit
your argument that you did not even receive the mail they said they
sent, depends on a lot of facts and circumstances you haven't
mentioned and that they would be likely to cross-examine you
vigorously about.

On the criminal-law side, unlike in civil cases, you usually _do_ have
direct, actual notice that you are being accused of a crime.  It is
called an arrest.  If they release you on bond, or on your own
recognizance, after an arrest, it is considered up to _you_ to know
when you have to appear in court, and any notices they send out,
regular mail or otherwise, are (in theory) not constitutionally
required, because once you know you're an accused, you can check with
the court yourself to find out when your court date is.   In fact it
would be highly unusual, in my experience, for you not to be _told_
directly of your first court date when you were first released on
bond, and told of subsequent court dates each time you appeared in
court for the previous one.  And if you miss one court date, you're
not supposed to just sit back blithely waiting for them to notify you
of a replacement date by first class mail; that's just a courtesy. 
They assume that if you had common sense you would be falling all over
yourself to find out what you had missed, and when your next court
date was.   So do that.

Good luck,

--
This posting is for discussion purposes, not professional advice.
Anything you post on this Newsgroup is public information.
I am not your lawyer, and you are not my client in any specific legal
matter.
For confidential professional advice, consult a lawyer in a private
communication.

Mike Jacobs
LAW OFFICE OF W. MICHAEL JACOBS
10440 Little Patuxent Pkwy #300
Columbia, MD 21044
(tel) 410-740-5685      (fax) 410-740-4300