BAY CITY, Mich.–The Department of Justice has filed a federal lawsuit against a credit union here after it repossessed the vehicle of an enlisted man in the Army who was away on military training at the time.
According to the DoJ, COPOCO Community Credit Union allegedly repossessed a vehicle from Army Pfc. Christian Carriveau without first obtaining a court order. In doing so, said the DoJ, which filed suit in the U.S. Court for Eastern District of Michigan, COPOCO allegedly violated the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act, which offers civil protections for active duty military members, including prohibiting car repossession without obtaining a court order if the servicemember made a payment on the vehicle before joining the military.
“COPOCO Community Credit Union’s alleged misconduct in repossessing vehicles without the required court order is both wrong and illegal,” said Principal Deputy Associate Attorney General Bill Baer in a statement. “The Justice Department continues to ensure that we are doing all we can to protect and assist servicemembers, veterans and their families from unlawful conduct by creditors.”
The DoJ complaint states that Carriveau and his wife, Alyssa, purchased the vehicle in 2014 and obtained financing from COPOCO. Carriveau reportedly later moved his family to Washington State and joined the Army, beginning his active duty service in January 2015.
The complaint states that Carriveau’s wife contacted COPOCO to let the CU know that her husband had enlisted and that, due to Army pay schedules, their car payment would be late. The complaint said that the Carriveaus fell behind on payments, but had begun to catch up by September, 2015.
On Oct. 5, COPOCO repossessed Carriveau’s car and the car seat of his two-year-old daughter from his home in Lacey, Wash., while he was away for military training, according to the DoJ.