All posts for Janet Raasch - 33 posts found

In most situations, your landlord is not allowed to cut off your utilities. A landlord who wants you to leave can evict you under the terms of the lease or rental agreement, but cannot cut off your utilities. In general, utilities include gas, heat, electricity, and water and sewer – anything that comes out of a pipe or outlet. Utilities often include trash collection as well. In some rental units, they include telephone, cable and high-speed Internet.   Covered by …

Today’s jails and prisons are overcrowded and expensive. To cope, court systems increasingly offer home confinement, or house arrest, as an alternative to traditional incarceration. Home confinement became much more common after the advent of the electronic monitoring bracelet in 1983. In addition, the home confinement alternative allows eligible offenders to retain or seek employment, maintain family relationships and responsibilities, and attend appropriate rehabilitation programs.   Who Is Eligible for Home Confinement? Usually, the option of home confinement is granted …

When born in a hospital, a baby is routinely given a hepatitis B shot, a vitamin K injection and an application of ointment in the eyes. In all states, a parent can refuse these treatments. It is best to use a waiver signed ahead of time and submitted to the hospital. The American Academy of Pediatrics encourages healthcare providers to seek the informed permission of the parents before providing any immunization.   Be Clear in Your Birth Plan A waiver …

Towards the end of their sentences, inmates and parolees can be sent to halfway houses. These are also called community corrections centers or residential reentry centers. Halfway houses are supposed to help prisoners reenter society by providing supervision and transitional services. Some are run by government agencies or nonprofits, but many are large operations run by private companies. Halfway-house programs are offered by federal, state and local penal systems. A person in a halfway house is still considered a prisoner. …

Alimony is money paid by one spouse to the other after a divorce. Today, it is often referred to as “spousal support.”  In most states, permanent spousal support is usually awarded only when one spouse has been economically dependent on the other spouse for most of a long marriage. Alimony laws in most states still allow for permanent awards, though former spouses can generally seek to modify the terms in court. In 2011, Massachusetts eliminated permanent alimony arrangements, and Florida …