KINGWOOD – A lawsuit alleging the Terra Alta Police Department wrongfully seized a couple’s property without cause and refused to return it has been confidentially settled.
A letter was filed in Preston Circuit Court on July 13 by the defendants’ counsel, Timothy L. Mayo, stating that a settlement had been reached.
“I intend to start preparing the necessary settlement documents and will see that a final dismissal order is submitted to you for approval as soon as practical,” Mayo wrote in the letter.
Mayo requested that the hearing, which was scheduled for July 14, be canceled since a settlement had been reached and the hearing was no longer needed. He also requested that several motions he had filed be withdrawn and the court’s scheduling conference be canceled.
The settlement is confidential, but the plaintiffs’ attorney, Lisa R. Hyre, told The Dominion Post that the couple’s property had been returned.
The lawsuit was filed in March against Terra Alta Police Department and Chief R.A. DeLauder. William H. Cogley and his wife, Cynthia Cogley, were asking the police to return a U-Haul trailer load of items seized from their home through a search warrant executed last October.
The police were looking for stolen property and drugs, according to the warrant. The Cogleys were never charged with any theft or drug charges.
The police department also seized two guns and William Cogley was charged as a felon in possession of firearms. He accepted a plea agreement and received a $100 fine.
Preston Circuit Court case number: 17-C-35