Bill collector gets probation

A bill collector who got strong-armed with one of his debtors while she was at work was given a year on probation after he entered a no-contest plea to harassment charges.

The defendant, Michael Dewayne Ramsey, entered a no-contest plea before Circuit Court Judge Bart Stanley to the charge of harassment. The more serious count of assault was dismissed. He will serve his probation unsupervised and will be granted a diversion, meaning his record will be erased as long as he gets in no further trouble during his probationary period. He must also do eight hours public service work.

Ramsey got into trouble last summer for his conduct in trying to collect past due payments from Waffle House employee Rochelle Anderson.

According to Anderson, who testified in preliminary hearing against Ramsey last year, she was working in the crowded restaurant when she was approached by Ramsey, who began saying they needed to talk about the debt she owed World Finance. Anderson said she had been followed and harassed by bill collectors before concerning her debts, and admitted she did owe the finance company money.

Anderson said she had no time to talk and asked Ramsey to leave her alone but he persisted, even while she was trying to serve customers. At one point, Anderson said the collector got physical.

‘He grabbed my arm and pulled me toward the door,’ Anderson recalled during her testimony last year, noting she almost lost her job over the incident. ‘He told me I was going to talk to him about this.’

While allowed to actively try to collect debts and even collect property, collection officers are covered under the same laws as any solicitor and are subject to criminal and civil liability should they commit any crime in the process of their work.