An ethical dilemma? (2 Viewers)

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate
links, including eBay, Amazon, Skimlinks, and others.

Sooooo... Being the owner of the Cruiser discussed and displayed in this thread (and the companion thread "how not to restore an FJ40"), I have a strong desire to talk with an attorney in the Benton, Washington area familiar with Lemon laws, civil fraud, etc. Jim Chenoweth has done a fabulous job of restoring the engine that the seller assured me had already been done--and there is much more to be done, all involving things on the vehicle I was assured, in writing, had been done at the time of my purchase. My purchase was to have been of a fully restored Cruiser--clearly it was not.

Being in Ohio, I am not acquainted with attorneys in Washington state qualified to pursue a civil case involving such blatant misrepresentation--as I'd like money back so Jim C can continue restoring this rig the right way. Contrary to the seller's suggestion that Jim C should just work for free, I believe a decent, honest, hard-working janitor like Jim deserves to get paid for his work, as he says, "cleaning up other people's sh*t".

Any and all suggestions/ recommendations welcome.
 
bulldoglover said:
Sooooo... Being the owner of the Cruiser discussed and displayed in this thread (and the companion thread "how not to restore an FJ40"), I have a strong desire to talk with an attorney in the Benton, Washington area familiar with Lemon laws, civil fraud, etc. Jim Chenoweth has done a fabulous job of restoring the engine that the seller assured me had already been done--and there is much more to be done, all involving things on the vehicle I was assured, in writing, had been done at the time of my purchase. My purchase was to have been of a fully restored Cruiser--clearly it was not.

Being in Ohio, I am not acquainted with attorneys in Washington state qualified to pursue a civil case involving such blatant misrepresentation--as I'd like money back so Jim C can continue restoring this rig the right way. Contrary to the seller's suggestion that Jim C should just work for free, I believe a decent, honest, hard-working janitor like Jim deserves to get paid for his work, as he says, "cleaning up other people's sh*t".

Any and all suggestions/ recommendations welcome.
Click to expand...

Be glad that you are in Ohio because you have access to one of the best cruiser shops around.

It is a tough road to travel if you pursue legal action:

1) you will never recoup more than 65% of your out of pocket expense here because any attorney you hire, assuming they are well qualified, will take the other 35%.
2) even if you win, this Brett Young fellow may be unable to pay.
3) his insurance, if he has any, probably does not cover his fraudulent behavior.
4) these things take FOREVER.
5) he is clearly practiced at navigating WA state law (or skirting, finding loopholes, etc.)
6) you are new to the game of getting screwed by Unscrupulous malefactors.

One thing going for you if you do get a lawyer is that he plead guilty in federal court to a crime related to defrauding eBay customers. The burden of proof in criminal cases is much harder to meet than the equivalent civil charge. E.g. O.J. Was acquitted of murder but was convicted of wrongful death in a civil litigation by one of his victims families.

You should call a WA lawyer (or three) and have a conversation. Be sure to mention his federal conviction.

It sound like this guy leads a crappy life. You could take some satisfaction from that or you could feel sorry for him. Or both.
Good luck. Hope you get the tuck back from mr. Chenoweth soon. I bet you will be happy when you do.
 
if the sale was conducted by long distance and the seller knew you resided elsewhere then your local state court may have jurisdiction, especially if you took delivery in your home state. it would likely be much cheaper for you to sue locally and then register the judgment in washington state.

so go talk to a local attorney. bring the communications by which you agreed on a sale, and your sale and delivery documents.
 
HoffLarr said:
Just found this truck again in another thread on the forum. Up for auction again in Texas.

https://forum.ih8mud.com/tx-lone-star-land-cruisers-austin-chapter/724219-block-saturday.html

Also appears that the Troopie he talks about in the Ebay acution is also for sale at the same Texas auction.
Click to expand...

I started that thread, and will be in Houston for the auction on Saturday. Not interested in either of Brett's vehicles, but he states on his FB page that he'll be in attendance, so if I see him, I'll chat him up. I, like almost everyone else on this thread, don't have a dog in this particular hunt, so I'm not about to get involved in any way, shape, or form. The photos on his FB page of the Troop build look pretty nice, and that's what I'm interested in talking about.

Tune into the Velocity channel on Saturday, if you want to see his vehicles go across the block.
 
The FJ45 Pickup sold for $46K. The FJ45 Troop sold for $42K. The Griswold wagon didn't sell, with a high bid of $35K.
 
Wow ... People who pay those prices won't end up on MUD, unfortunately...
 
My next fun vehicle will be a 66-67 Nova, but that's not going to happen until I get a bigger garage, or convince the wife to park her car in the driveway. In other words, no time soon... :(
 
JMDaniel,

Did you get t chance to talk to Bret at the auction. Curious to find out what type of guy he is after all of the discussion about him.

And...he took quite a beating on the troopie if he put over $130,000 into it.
 
I did not. It's kinda hard to see where he had that much money in the Troop, but that's just my opinion. The pics of the build on his FB page show a pretty nice rebuild, but that's a crapload of money.
 
JD how was you chat with Mr Young?
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

S
Beware: Anthony Slate aka chtvolks
Replies
15
Views
1K
Stick
S
S
lrowe_csp is a liar and scammer selling damaged items don't buy
Replies
0
Views
456
str8nm
S
peskywombats
Anyone done business with cruiser parts dealer on IG, goes by: John_Brad and Carl_Valley98?
Replies
3
Views
983
OzarkAngler
OzarkAngler
Valgrind
Any experience with Avalon Auto in Atlanta?
Replies
6
Views
2K
flipnidaho
F

Users who are viewing this thread

Total: 3 (members: 0, guests: 3)

Share this page

Back
Top Bottom