A Sacramento, California, car-repair shop is being sued by an inmate at Solano state prison for $15,000 in damages for the lost use of his transmission.

Michael Witkin, who will be an inmate at the state prison at least until 2026, filed a lawsuit against PTS Extreme Transmissions for failure to return a transmission Witkin dropped off for repair at least three years ago.

“It’s been very frustrating and costly,” said Bruce Toelle Jr., owner of PTS Extreme Transmissions, who has been dealing with the lawsuit since January 2012. He said Witkin dropped off his transmission for repair years ago, then never came to pick it up. Toelle viewed the transmission as abandoned property.

Toelle regards the case as a simple statute-of-limitations issue and can’t understand why it has dragged through the courts for 18 months, running up his legal expenses.  According to news sources, inmates’ court fees are typically paid for by California taxpayers.

“If I win, I have no recourse,” said Toelle. “These guys can keep filing and filing, whether it’s legitimate or not. Meanwhile, people are having trouble getting their cases heard because these types of cases are tying up the courts. The burden is on the taxpayer.”

Witkin appears to be expanding his complaint. In a recent filing, he accuses prison officials of violating his constitutional rights to “unfettered court access.”

—Source: utsandiego.com