That wasn't your question.
Your question was
Emphasis on "can" and "attempt."
A "yes" is the only possible answer to that question.
If your credit report showed only the inquiry and not that you were denied the account then the creditor would have good cause to levy the account and any charges incurred by the creditor would likely be enforceable against you.
No.
Once somebody gets a judgment against they can get information about you in any legal manner and hassle you till the cows come home or you pay the debt.
I doubt that any experienced creditor would waste time trying a debtor's examination by mail because the vast majority of people the creditors go after are ducking the debt and ducking any kind of collection effort so the creditor relies on the court to put the debtor in the hot seat.

