DETROIT — Having immunity has its benefits.
U.S. District Judge Avern Cohn of Detroit has dismissed a lawsuit by a suburban Detroit insurance company that was trying to get the government to pay up after an FBI agent smashed up a stolen $750,000, 1995 F50 Ferrari that was in government custody, the Associated Press reported.
The judge ruled that federal law grants immunity to the feds if the property is being held by law enforcement, AP reported.
The judge concluded that the wreck was “certainly unfortunate,” but the government can’t be sued in these matters, AP’s Ed White reported.
AP reported that the insurance company, Motors Insurance of Southfield, Mi., believes the FBI agent and the prosecutor in the car were taking the Ferrari for a joyride when the agent lost control in 2009 in Lexington, Ky.
AP reported that the car was stolen in Rosemont, Pa., in 2003 and eventually recovered in Kentucky.
AP reported that an email released to the insurance company showed that Assistant U.S. Attorney J. Hamilton Thompson was invited for a “short ride” before the car was moved from the impound garage.
