Extreme Dimensions
07-10-2017, 04:06 PM
Denton resident perseveres through civil dispute over beloved car
https://dentonrc.imgix.net/1499293385-DRC_7-5_Kerry_Kerr_1JW.JPG
Denton resident Kerry Kerr wanted to do something nice for herself after her husband died in November 2013.
The 64-year-old's 1993 Nissan 240SX, which had been her primary form of transportation for more than a decade, was sitting in storage at an auto repair shop in Sanger since 2008. The engine had been flooded. So she decided to buy a new motor and fix it up — part of what would have been a labor of love, she said.
"I just really love the car," she said.
After waiting more than three years for the engine that was never installed, Kerr finally got her car back Tuesday morning. Now, the local mechanic who was supposed to install it, Michael Pecora, owes her the $5,000 she paid in 2013, according to court records.
Kerr was awarded the money and the car in small claims court in November, and Pecora ordered a tow truck to deliver the car to Kerr's house Tuesday morning. Kerr said she's glad to finally start approaching a resolution, but she'd still like her money back.
Kerr, a maintenance support clerk at the U.S. Post Office in Denton, said "Five thousand dollars is a lot of money to me."
Pecora, who left the car untouched at his Denton home for more than three years, said he's willing to give her the money when he gets the chance. He said he's been financially bogged down by medical bills stemming from a colon cancer diagnosis.
"I'll do whatever it takes to make it right for her, but she's going to have to give me some time," Pecora said.
He knew Kerr through her late husband, Robert, who had been paying to store the car at Pecora's auto repair shop in Sanger since 2008. Pecora's wife, Kay Taylor-Pecora, also knew her because Kerr had been her son's Cub Scout leader.
The debacle over the car started when Pecora's shop was sold out from under him in the summer of 2013. As the owner of Mike's Mustang Service, Pecora said he'd been given notice to move out of the property within 60 days. So, after Kerr's husband died in November, Pecora said he moved some of the cars on the lot, including Kerr's Nissan, to his home on Lakeview Lane in far east Denton.
At the time, Kerr said she paid Pecora $1,000 for the cost of moving the car and an additional $4,000 for a new motor. But Pecora said he couldn't install the engine without a legitimate shop because he "didn't want to take work home with him."
"I got the motor. It's in the storage unit in Sanger. I bought everything for it. I just don't have the place to do it," said Pecora, who never purchased a new building and now works in the body shop at Bill Utter Ford. "I was going to make [the car] pretty for her."
Pecora cited the lack of space, an ongoing divorce and his cancer diagnosis as reasons for not installing the engine and keeping the car. He and Kay Taylor-Pecora claim Kerr didn't reach out to them about the car before she sued them in February 2016. But Kerr said she asked about the car in several notes and Christmas cards.
When she didn't hear back, Kerr called police and filed a lawsuit against Pecora in Judge Joe Holland's Justice of the Peace Precinct 1. Pecora said he never showed up for the hearing in November, when Holland issued a default judgment in Kerr's favor. Court records show Holland awarded Kerr the car and $5,116.
Pecora said he'd lost the hearing notice he received in the mail.
"I didn't know what date it was," he said.
Kerr may still have to wade through formalities in civil court before she can get the money. Denton County Precinct 1 Constable Johnny Hammons said she needs a writ of possession or writ of execution, both of which cost up to $150, to enforce the judgment.
The writ is an order from the court that gives a constable the authority to levy property, he said.
"It can be very complicated for people who don't deal with this on a daily basis," Hammons said. "So many times people will sue someone in civil court and they get a judgment, and they think that's the end of it."
Kerr said she was pleased to find her beloved car in her driveway Tuesday morning without having to obtain a writ. She said she's prepared to dish out another $150 if it means she gets closer to her money.
"This [civil] process is such a hassle that the large majority of people would just drop it," she said. "But I'm sort of pissed off, to be quite frank, that they would do that, not return the car or return my calls or anything."
JULIAN GILL can be reached at 940-566-6882.
FEATURED PHOTO: Denton resident Kerry Kerr stands next to her 1993 Nissan 240SX at her home. Kerr finally got her car back on Wednesday after waiting more than three years for a new engine that was never installed. Now the local auto repair man who was supposed to install it, Mike Pecora, still owes her the $5,000 she paid for the new engine.
https://dentonrc.imgix.net/1499293385-DRC_7-5_Kerry_Kerr_1JW.JPG
Denton resident Kerry Kerr wanted to do something nice for herself after her husband died in November 2013.
The 64-year-old's 1993 Nissan 240SX, which had been her primary form of transportation for more than a decade, was sitting in storage at an auto repair shop in Sanger since 2008. The engine had been flooded. So she decided to buy a new motor and fix it up — part of what would have been a labor of love, she said.
"I just really love the car," she said.
After waiting more than three years for the engine that was never installed, Kerr finally got her car back Tuesday morning. Now, the local mechanic who was supposed to install it, Michael Pecora, owes her the $5,000 she paid in 2013, according to court records.
Kerr was awarded the money and the car in small claims court in November, and Pecora ordered a tow truck to deliver the car to Kerr's house Tuesday morning. Kerr said she's glad to finally start approaching a resolution, but she'd still like her money back.
Kerr, a maintenance support clerk at the U.S. Post Office in Denton, said "Five thousand dollars is a lot of money to me."
Pecora, who left the car untouched at his Denton home for more than three years, said he's willing to give her the money when he gets the chance. He said he's been financially bogged down by medical bills stemming from a colon cancer diagnosis.
"I'll do whatever it takes to make it right for her, but she's going to have to give me some time," Pecora said.
He knew Kerr through her late husband, Robert, who had been paying to store the car at Pecora's auto repair shop in Sanger since 2008. Pecora's wife, Kay Taylor-Pecora, also knew her because Kerr had been her son's Cub Scout leader.
The debacle over the car started when Pecora's shop was sold out from under him in the summer of 2013. As the owner of Mike's Mustang Service, Pecora said he'd been given notice to move out of the property within 60 days. So, after Kerr's husband died in November, Pecora said he moved some of the cars on the lot, including Kerr's Nissan, to his home on Lakeview Lane in far east Denton.
At the time, Kerr said she paid Pecora $1,000 for the cost of moving the car and an additional $4,000 for a new motor. But Pecora said he couldn't install the engine without a legitimate shop because he "didn't want to take work home with him."
"I got the motor. It's in the storage unit in Sanger. I bought everything for it. I just don't have the place to do it," said Pecora, who never purchased a new building and now works in the body shop at Bill Utter Ford. "I was going to make [the car] pretty for her."
Pecora cited the lack of space, an ongoing divorce and his cancer diagnosis as reasons for not installing the engine and keeping the car. He and Kay Taylor-Pecora claim Kerr didn't reach out to them about the car before she sued them in February 2016. But Kerr said she asked about the car in several notes and Christmas cards.
When she didn't hear back, Kerr called police and filed a lawsuit against Pecora in Judge Joe Holland's Justice of the Peace Precinct 1. Pecora said he never showed up for the hearing in November, when Holland issued a default judgment in Kerr's favor. Court records show Holland awarded Kerr the car and $5,116.
Pecora said he'd lost the hearing notice he received in the mail.
"I didn't know what date it was," he said.
Kerr may still have to wade through formalities in civil court before she can get the money. Denton County Precinct 1 Constable Johnny Hammons said she needs a writ of possession or writ of execution, both of which cost up to $150, to enforce the judgment.
The writ is an order from the court that gives a constable the authority to levy property, he said.
"It can be very complicated for people who don't deal with this on a daily basis," Hammons said. "So many times people will sue someone in civil court and they get a judgment, and they think that's the end of it."
Kerr said she was pleased to find her beloved car in her driveway Tuesday morning without having to obtain a writ. She said she's prepared to dish out another $150 if it means she gets closer to her money.
"This [civil] process is such a hassle that the large majority of people would just drop it," she said. "But I'm sort of pissed off, to be quite frank, that they would do that, not return the car or return my calls or anything."
JULIAN GILL can be reached at 940-566-6882.
FEATURED PHOTO: Denton resident Kerry Kerr stands next to her 1993 Nissan 240SX at her home. Kerr finally got her car back on Wednesday after waiting more than three years for a new engine that was never installed. Now the local auto repair man who was supposed to install it, Mike Pecora, still owes her the $5,000 she paid for the new engine.