Former Car Dealer, Michael Holley, sentanced to 2 years in prison

[XDCX]

News reports indicate that Michael Holley, owner of a Chevrolet and KIA dealership in Lakeland, FL, was sentenced to two years in prison and 43 years on probation. For the full news report - click here (http://www.theledger.com/article/20100409/NEWS/4095049/-1/RSS22?p=1&tc=pg&tc=ar)

The sentence stems from a grand theft conviction which resulted from unpaid trade liens on customer vehicles.

The probation period of 43 years was established so Holley could make payments of $333/month to pay restitution of $166,850.

I think it's interesting that Florida is prosecuting dealers who close their businesses with unpaid trade liens when other states seem to treat this as a civil matter.

[zohpy]

Used to do a lot of dealer trades with those stores. Got to know quite a few people who worked at them and felt horrible when the stores shut down. I know the Chevy store was sold to another group and a lot of the previous employees were able to get their jobs back.

I didn't realize Michael Holley had been prosecuted and I'm glad that Florida seems to be the trailblazer on this front.

[XDCX]

I didn't realize Michael Holley had been prosecuted and I'm glad that Florida seems to be the trailblazer on this front.

It will be interesting to see if other states follow Florida's lead. I'm not aware of too many situations where dealers are facing prison terms for failing to pay trade liens.

I am aware of a dealer in Northern California who was recently jailed and faces charges but that case seems to be motivated by the allegation that he didn't remit sales tax.

As a final thought, I wonder if it makes a difference who the victim was when prosecutors decide whether to file charges? Would a dealer who was SOT with his bank be less likely to be charged than another dealer who didn't pay-off trade liens?