No Fine Billing Notice From Wichita Falls Public Library

Yesterday's mail brought me something totally wackydoodle, totally fitting this wackydoodle era we seem to be trying to live through, as good-naturedly as we can manage to muster.

Last week I returned five books to the Wichita Falls Public Library.

Which is the entity from whom I received the aforementioned wackydoodle-ness.

The letter contained a 'Fine Billing Notice". 

But there was nothing "fine" about the notice.

Of the five books I returned, the library is claiming two of them were somehow damaged to a sum of $54.00

$34.00 for 23 1/2 Lies: Thrillers by James Patterson
$20.00 for Hanging Woman Creek by Louis L'Amour

I have checked out hundreds of books over the years of residing in Wichita Falls. Without ever, to my knowledge, inflicting any damage on any book.

But, somehow I supposedly managed to seriously damage two books, of five, recently returned.

Makes zero sense.

The only 'damage' I have noted in books I have checked out is sometimes previous borrowers have written something in the margins. Or made a mark, as if, maybe to make note of where they have ceased reading for the moment.

How can any agency of any sort send out any sort of "Fine Billing Notice" without making note of what the alleged damage consists of?

That and the fact that the mailed "Fine Billing Notice" makes no note of by what means one is expected to pay this fine. There is no return envelope, no info at all regarding the means by which one is supposed to pay this fine. Where to send it, to whom to send it. Nothing.

Is sending a billing notice of this sort even legal?

It'd be like getting a letter from the police informing that you are being fined $54.00 for two breaking the speed limit offenses. With no detailing of where or when these alleged speeding offenses allegedly happened.

I really do not want to turn this over to my lawyer. But, I clearly feel I am being seriously wronged here.

And that this is taking up my time to deal with this. Maybe I should send a bill to the library, charging my regular hourly rate. 

One thing for sure, methinks my days of being a patron of the Wichita Falls Public Library are over. It's time to find some new reading material sources....