Central Transport, LLC v. Atlas Towing, Inc.

884 F. Supp. 2d 207, 2012 WL 3135404, 2012 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 107587
CourtDistrict Court, E.D. Pennsylvania
DecidedAugust 1, 2012
DocketCivil Action No. 11-7602
StatusPublished
Cited by10 cases

This text of 884 F. Supp. 2d 207 (Central Transport, LLC v. Atlas Towing, Inc.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, E.D. Pennsylvania primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Central Transport, LLC v. Atlas Towing, Inc., 884 F. Supp. 2d 207, 2012 WL 3135404, 2012 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 107587 (E.D. Pa. 2012).

Opinion

MEMORANDUM

DALZELL, District Judge.

This suit arises from an accident between a van and a tractor-trailer plaintiff GLS Leasco, Inc. (“GLS”) owned and leased to plaintiff Central Transport, LLC (“Central”). In the aftermath of the accident — which tragically claimed one life and caused serious injuries to several people, see Kevin Amerman, “Man, 54, guilty in fatal crash”, The Morning Call (Allentown), Oct. 7, 2011, at A8 — police officers allegedly instructed defendant Atlas Towing, Inc. (“Atlas”) to tow and impound plaintiffs’ tractor-trailer, along with its cargo, for use as evidence in the criminal prosecution of the van’s driver.

That prosecution has at last concluded and plaintiffs seek to recover their tractor trailer and cargo from Atlas. Plaintiffs allege that Atlas refuses to turn over the property until they pay storage and towing fees.

Plaintiffs assert six claims against defendants: (1) conversion; (2) intentional interference with contractual relations and interstate commerce; (3) replevin; (4) punitive damages; (5) civil liability stemming from violations of the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act (“RICO”), 18 U.S.C. §§ 1961, et seq.; and (6) injunctive relief under RICO.

Defendants Atlas and Robert N. Wot-ring (“Wotring”) have moved to dismiss all of plaintiffs’ claims. Upon examination of defendants’ motion to dismiss and plain[211]*211tiffs’ response in opposition thereto, we conclude that only two of plaintiffs’ claims — for conversion and replevin — survive defendants’ motion to dismiss. Because the amount in controversy exceeds $75,000 and the parties are diverse, we retain jurisdiction over this case pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1332 despite the dismissal of plaintiffs’ federal cause of action and will instruct defendants promptly to answer the surviving allegations of the complaint.

I. Factual Background

In considering a motion to dismiss for failure to state a claim under Fed.R.Civ.P. 12(b)(6), we must “ ‘accept all factual allegations in the complaint as true and give the pleader the benefit of all reasonable inferences that can be fairly drawn therefrom.’” Ordonez v. Yost, 289 Fed.Appx. 553, 554 (3d Cir.2008) (quoting Kost v. Kozakiewicz, 1 F.3d 176, 183 (3d Cir. 1993)). We may “ ‘consider only allegations in the complaint, exhibits attached to the complaint, matters of public record, and documents that form the basis of a claim,’ ” Brown v. Daniels, 128 Fed.Appx. 910, 913 (3d Cir.2005) (quoting Lum v. Bank of America, 361 F.3d 217, 222 n. 3 (3d Cir.2004)), where a document forms the basis of a claim if it is “integral to or explicitly relied upon in the complaint.” In re Burlington Coat Factory Sec. Litig., 114 F.3d 1410, 1426 (3d Cir.1997) (emphasis and internal quotation marks omitted). As our Court of Appeals has explained, this means that we may “consider an undisputedly authentic document that a defendant attaches as an exhibit to a motion to dismiss if the plaintiffs claims are based on the document.” Pension Benefit Guar. Corp. v. White Consol. Indus., Inc., 998 F.2d 1192, 1196 (3d Cir.1993). Because plaintiffs’ complaint relies in part on certain documents, we will review both the allegations of the complaint and the features of those documents that are material to defendants’ motion to dismiss.

According to plaintiffs, Central and GLS are Indiana corporations with their principal places of business in Warren, Michigan. Atlas is a Pennsylvania corporation with its principal place of business in Whitehall, Pennsylvania. Pis.’ Compl. ¶¶ 1-3. Plaintiffs allege that Wotring is an adult “domiciled in Lehigh County, Pennsylvania, who has acted at all times relevant hereto both individually for his own profit and as president and/or owner of Defendant Atlas.” Id. ¶ 4.

Plaintiffs aver that Central is engaged in the business of transporting “goods, cargo, wares, freight, and/or other merchandise” as a common motor carrier in interstate commerce, and that GLS owns and leases a tractor, dolly, and two trailers (collectively, the “vehicle”) to Central. Id. ¶¶ 7-8. Defendants are engaged in the business of vehicle towing, accident cleanup, and accident recovery services, and allegedly own, maintain, and control a place of business where vehicles that have been involved in accidents — including plaintiffs’ vehicle, along with its cargo — are stored. Id. ¶¶ 9-10. Plaintiffs state that on various dates before July 17, 2010, multiple customers entered into agreements with Central whereby Central was to transport and deliver certain cargo “as an interstate motor carrier in interstate commerce,” id. ¶ 11. They note that pursuant to the applicable bills of lading “Central was to carry and deliver the goods with reasonable dispatch and within a reasonable time to its customers.” Id. ¶ 12 (citing Ex. A to Pis.’ Compl.). Plaintiffs claim that this cargo is worth more than $148,000. Id. ¶ 21.

On July 17, 2010, plaintiffs’ vehicle was involved in an accident in Allentown, Pennsylvania, id. ¶ 13, with a van driven by James Augustus York (“York”). Immedi[212]*212ately after the accident the Pennsylvania State Police allegedly called defendants to the scene to provide towing and recovery services. Id. ¶ 14. Atlas took this call and, “at the direction of Pennsylvania State Police,” removed plaintiffs’ vehicle and its cargo to its own facility for the Commonwealth’s use as evidence in York’s criminal prosecution. Id. ¶ 15. According to plaintiffs, the Commonwealth, through the office of the District Attorney of Le-high County, now “stands ready to release the vehicle and cargo to Plaintiffs,” but defendants refuse to release the vehicle or cargo until plaintiffs have paid defendants’ towing and storage bill, id. ¶¶ 17-18, which amounted to $77,085.00 on October 24, 2011, see Ex. B to Pis.’ Compl., but which defendants were willing to reduce to $64,385.00 as of December 7, 2011. See Ex. D to Pis.’ Compl.

Plaintiffs further allege that defendants “now threaten to dispose of the vehicle without consent of the Plaintiffs,” id. ¶ 19, citing a December 7, 2011 letter from defendants’ attorney in which he explained that “[i]n the event your client does not agree [to settle defendants’ bill], please be advised that within the next 15 days, my client will move to have the tractor, trailers and equipment classified by the Pennsylvania state [sic] Police as abandoned and we will proceed to sale for collection of the towing and storage charges.” Ex. D to Pis.’ Compl.

Finally, plaintiffs aver that

Defendants Atlas and Wotring, actively engaged in the towing business at all times relevant to this civil action, have known throughout this dispute that there is no statute or other law that imposes liability upon the Plaintiff,1

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Bluebook (online)
884 F. Supp. 2d 207, 2012 WL 3135404, 2012 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 107587, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/central-transport-llc-v-atlas-towing-inc-paed-2012.