Lawsuit: Credit Union Illegally Repossessed Cars Belonging To Active Military

DETROIT (WWJ) - A lawsuit has been filed against a nationwide credit union -- accusing it of illegally repossessing the vehicles of active U.S. military members.

The suit was filed by the U.S. Attorney's office in Eastern Michigan and it alleges that COPOCO Credit Union violated the "Service Members Relief Act" by repossessing protected servicemembers' vehicles without obtaining the necessary court orders.

According to the complaint SCRA protects the rights of servicemembers on active duty by suspending or modifying certain civil obligations and COPOCO's  vehicle repossession procedures did not include any process to determine customers' military status.

One example highlighted in the complaint centers around U.S. Army Private First Class Christian Carriveau's car, which contained a car seat for his daughter, allegedly illegally repossessed by COPOCO right out of his driveway. His wife, Alyssa, initially thought that the car had been stolen, but subsequently learned that it had been repossessed. Carriveau was at military training at the time and his wife was stranded without the car.

U.S. Attorney Barbara McQuade says everyone "owes it" to all service members to vigorously enforce the laws to protect them while they are serving their country.