Modesto has paid $120,000 to a woman and her two adult daughters to settle a lawsuit they
filed against the city after police officers entered their home without a warrant, refused to leave when
asked and threatened to arrest the woman.

Police were summoned to the family’s home by a tow truck driver who was trying to repossess the
woman’s car, according to a lawsuit filed in federal court in Fresno.The car was parked in the garage and the woman disputed the tow truck driver’s right to take it. The driver  did not have a court order for the car, according to the lawsuit, but the officers helped him remove it  despite protests from the three woman.

The lawsuit says the officers violated the civil rights of Rosa Letona and her daughters Natalie Letona and Rosemary Banuelos to be free of having police enter and search their home without a warrant and denied Rosa Letona of her due process rights by helping the tow truck driver remove the car without court permission.

The repossession appears to have violated the repossession company’s policies. The lawsuit says the tow truck driver works for DigitalDog Auto Recovery. DigitalDog’s website states the police “may not advance or hinder repossessions” without a court order. “Justice was served in this case,” said Livermore attorney Sanjay S. Schmidt, who represented Letona and her two daughters. City Attorney Susana Alcala Wood provided this statement by email:

“The City chose to settle the subject civil actions after conducting a cost/benefit analysis of pursuing
further litigation in each case.

“The City did not admit any fault or wrongdoing on the part of any defendant in either action, and each
settlement was the settlement of a disputed claim.”

The lawsuit was filed in May in federal court. The city did not file a response in which it could challenge the claims made against the officers. Court records show a response was not filed because attorneys for the city and the women expected to reach a settlement.

Letona will receive $70,000 and her two daughters $25,000 each, according to city records. They will have to pay attorney fees from their settlements.
The lawsuit names officers Brian Ferguson, Benjamin Kroutil, Jonathan Griffith and Ben Brandvold and Sgt. Daniel Key as defendants.

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http://www.modbee.com/2013/04/17/2674148/modesto-pays-120k-fine-to-settle.html