A federal judge has dismissed a civil lawsuit against Maine towing companies, municipalities, police departments and state agencies that claimed they conspired to illegally seize vehicles and sell them.
The lawsuit was brought by Jennifer Coates, Michael Christopher King and Jennifer Hunt, who alleged their cars were seized by police after baseless traffic stops, and in one case a minor crash, in Washington, Hancock and Penobscot counties. In court documents, they described how the titles to their cars were transferred to the towing companies without their consent and sold at auction.
Their attorney, Scott Fenstermaker, filed the lawsuit in U.S. District Court on Feb. 9.
A month later, Fenstermaker’s license to practice law was suspended after he was charged with trespassing at Therriens Used Cars Towing & Recycling in Addison, one of the companies his clients said was involved in the conspiracy. His license is under review by the Maine Supreme Judicial Court in a case that the Portland Press Herald reports is still active.
With Fenstermaker unable to represent the pending lawsuit, the court gave the plaintiffs until July 21 to find a new attorney or represent themselves.
In his Aug. 8 dismissal order, U.S. District Judge Jon Levy, said the plaintiffs were warned that their case would be dismissed but “have not responded to the show-cause order or otherwise appeared.” For that reason, he wrote, “dismissal is warranted.”
Defendants in the case included the Maine secretary of state, Maine Bureau of Motor Vehicles, Washington County government and sheriff, Therriens Used Cars Towing & Recycling, Donald Therrien, Vivian Therrien, the city of Ellsworth, Ellsworth Police Department, Hancock County government and sheriff, Dave’s Auto Repair & Towing, Inc., the town of Dexter and its police department, and All Time Towing & Automotive.
The plaintiffs, Coates, King and Hunt, are identified in court documents as being from Washington, Penobscot and Waldo counties, respectively.
A federal judge has dismissed a civil lawsuit against several towing companies, law enforcement and state agencies alleging they were all part of a multicounty scheme to illegally seize and sell vehicles.
Scott Fenstermaker filed the complaint in U.S. District Court in February on behalf of three plaintiffs, all of whom, Fenstermaker said, had their cars taken by law enforcement officers following traffic stops and a minor crash.
But Fenstermaker was suspended from practicing law in Maine a month later and the judge overseeing the federal case gave the plaintiffs – Jennifer Coates, Michael King and Jennifer Hunt – a July 21 deadline to say whether they wanted to find a new attorney or represent themselves.
“Because the plaintiffs have not appeared or otherwise responded since the initial filing of their complaint in February 2023, and because they failed to comply with the court’s order, dismissal is warranted,” U.S. District Judge Jon Levy wrote in his order on Tuesday.
A clerk for the Maine Supreme Judicial Court, which is considering whether Fenstermaker can resume practicing law, confirmed the case is still active. Fenstermaker did not respond to a message seeking his reaction to the dismissal or an update on his suspension.
Fenstermaker’s license was suspended after he was charged with trespassing at Therriens Used Cars Towing & Recycling, one of the companies he alleged was involved in the conspiracy.
The plaintiffs also did not respond to emails Wednesday asking about the complaint’s dismissal.
The lawsuit named as defendants the Maine Bureau of Motor Vehicles, the Maine secretary of state, the Washington and Hancock county sheriff’s departments, the Ellsworth and Dexter police departments, Therriens Used Cars Towing & Recycling and its owners, Dave’s Auto Repair & Towing, and All Time Towing & Automotive, alleging that they violated the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act, a federal statute.
In each case, it claimed that law enforcement used the private towing companies to remove the plaintiffs’ cars following infractions and crashes, and gave the plaintiffs various reasons why they couldn’t get their cars back.
The complaint then alleged that the towing companies were taking advantage of the BMV’s title transfer law to get ownership of the vehicles and sell them.
Secretary of State Shenna Bellows said in a written statement on Wednesday that she was pleased with the dismissal.
“We appreciate the court’s dismissal of this case,” Bellows said. “The Bureau of Motor Vehicles stands by the integrity of our excellent customer service to the people of Maine.”
Peter Marchesi, an attorney representing the Washington and Hancock county sheriff’s departments, said in an email Wednesday that Levy’s decision was appropriate.
“This piece of litigation was one of the most ill-advised and ill-conceived that I have seen in over 30 years of practicing law,” Marchesi wrote. “It is appropriate that the court saw fit to dismiss it at a very early stage, even though the dismissal was largely on procedural grounds. The sheriff’s offices may now continue their good work in service of the public without further distraction from this frivolous filing.”
Kasia Park, who represented the police departments in Ellsworth and Dexter, said her clients were “prepared to vigorously defend against all of the plaintiffs’ claims and we are therefore pleased with the dismissal.”
Therriens did not respond to calls Wednesday seeking a reaction to the dismissal.