Protecting Yourself

Just like typical parents that have the means we got our son a car when he was 16 as soon as he could drive. Gives him the freedom to have a job, play sports, date and get his drugs. As his abuse began to get worse I began thinking about the liability for myself and others.

It would be irresponsible of me to allow him to operate a vehicle. I know he is an addict and uses. My name is on the title and insurance. I confiscated the vehicle. I do not want him injuring himself or someone else because of his addiction. I don't want someone else taking everything we have worked for all our life because we did not want to upset him taking away his truck.

Drug addicts will steal to feed their habit. My experience is that he stole from those closest to him because he knew we wouldn't press charges. No one was exempt, mom, dad, sister, granny, grandpa, cousins, aunts, uncles and neighbors.

A safe holds all of our extra keys. Our extra checkbooks are kept at my office in my desk drawer. Mom locks her purse in the trunk of her car at night and sleeps with her key under her pillow. No more change jar on the dresser. I'm sure people get tired of me counting exact change at the register just to get rid of the jingle and weight. We regularly check online bank statements just to make sure he hasn't got one of mom's checks, which he does frequently.

My turn to vent. Our local Walmart is like an ATM not requiring a PIN number. Our son often took checks he stole from us and his sister there. He would buy something, write a check, they do not check ID, run it through the machine, immediate debit of your checking account, he takes the merchandise to customer service counter and they refund him cash. I requested from Walmart at the local store and there corporate office to never accept a check with our name, they told me that was not possible. NOT POSSIBLE for a retailer that has the most advanced computer system in the world. They told me the problem I describe was not their problem. As far as I am concerned, my opinion is, when they know this is a problem, and they admitted they knew what happens, then they are complicit in the drug trade when they take no actions to change their policies of not checking ID on every check transaction. When he would use his sister's checks it only had her name on the check, I would think to anyone it would be obvious a male writing a check that only has a females name, something must be fishy.