FBI seizes Ferrari, takes joy ride, crashes and then refuses to pay

[kpete]

FBI seizes Ferrari, takes joy ride, crashes and then refuses to pay

FBI agent Fred Kingston it was a sweet assignment. The FBI had seized a rare 1995 Ferrari F50 — one of only 50 such cars in the United States. Kingston was instructed to move the car from the FBI garage and so Kingston reportedly called Assistant US Attorney J. Hamilton Thompson to come along for the ride. The agent ended up crashing the car — causing $750,000 but now the Justice Department insists that it is not liable for the damage.

..................

The owner is now suing the government for $750,000 in damages to the vehicle.

Thompson insists that “Just a few seconds after we left the parking lot, we went around a curve and the rear of the car began sliding” and ended up hitting a tree. The question, however, is why an agent would take along a friend to transport a $750,000 vehicle rather than arrange for a tow. If this were a $1 million painting, would they just mail it?

The DOJ further refuses to release any documents on the crash — using government privileges to conceal evidence of its own alleged negligence. It is a pretty sweet deal for agents. You can first invite friends for a spin in a rare car, then crash the car and then use government immunities and privileges to bar others from reviewing the evidence.

http://rt.com/usa/news/fbi-ferrari-joy-ride/

[kenny blankenship]

1. Yes, the back end of the car, all by itself-inexplicably-just started to come around and pass me by

at the same time, I found the car had my right foot pinned all the way down on the gas pedal, and a loud screaming noise filled my ears. It was the strangest thing.

[Javaman]

2. It's excuses for not owning up to their fuck ups are getting down right Soviet.

"using government privileges to conceal evidence"

[rucky]

3. Beuller?

[DirkGently]

4. The perks of the New Age of Unlimited Government Secrecy.

[AngryAmish]

5. Jerks

Just what a collection of jerks.

[Dawson Leery]

6. Overpaid, over-privileged.

[intaglio]

7. Ar we sure this agent's name was not Bueller? n/t

[hootinholler]

8. And I thought they taught FBI agents how to drive

Stoopud fucking agent.

Cracked up an F50, jesus h christ on a trailer hitch.

-Hoot

[gratuitous]

9. It's been a few years now

But I worked for an attorney who had a case against a federal agent (if memory serves, it was an ATF agent). Our client was stopped at a road construction area, waiting for the flagger to wave him through. Federal agent, speeding, plows into the back of our client's car. They tried the same "privilege" and "national security" arguments before we finally prevailed through federal court discovery rules in finding out that the agent had been reading a file on the passenger seat, and hadn't noticed that he'd entered a construction zone, much less that traffic in front of him had been stopped by the flagger. We prevailed at summary judgment once we'd pried the facts loose, but it took an ungodly amount of time.

[ohnoyoudidnt]

10. At least it's the insurance companies loss and not the owner's.

It's still wrong, though.