Monday, December 05, 2011

Mobile Home Dealer Charged w/ Theft Now Faces Civil Suit Alleging She Never Delivered Clear Title To Would-Be Homebuyers Now Facing Foreclosure

In Rio Grande Valley, Texas, KGBT-TV Channel 4 reports:
  • Some 43 customers of La Feria’s Park Girl Mobile Homes are asking a local court to step in and protect them from foreclosure.


  • Texas RioGrande Legal Aid (TRLA)(1) filed a lawsuit on behalf of the the customers, who are concerned about their mobile home purchases. The Park Girl owner Jo Leigh Ares remains in custody in the Cameron County Jail under $1.2 million dollars for multiple theft charges.


  • Many of the clients claim that they never received their home, were never given the title to the property or even provided with property that carried previous debts, including taxes and mortgage liens.


  • The customers are asking the court to prevent the collection of future payments, foreclosure, and the shutting off of utilities until their legal concerns are addressed. “These families came to us unclear and afraid of how this controversy would affect them,” said TRLA attorney Raul Noriega. “The legal issues go beyond holding people accountable for their actions. There are legal protections available for the victims too.”

Source: 'Park Girl' customers file lawsuit to protect against foreclosure.

For the lawsuit, see Reyes, et al. v. Ares, et al.

(1) Texas RioGrande Legal Aid (TRLA) is a non-profit organization that provides free legal services to low-income residents in sixty-eight counties of Southwest Texas, and represents migrant and seasonal farm workers throughout the state of Texas and six southern states: Kentucky, Tennessee, Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana and Arkansas. In addition, TRLA operates public defender programs in several Southwest Texas counties, representing the poor who are accused of felonies, misdemeanors and juvenile crimes.