Attorney General Stein suing Charlotte-based towing company for racial discrimination

CHARLOTTE (QUEEN CITY NEWS) — Attorney General Josh Stein is suing Charlotte-based A1 Towing Solutions, Inc. and its owner David Jewel Satterfield for allegedly racially targeting customers and illegally booting and towing their vehicles.

Satterfield and A1 towing allegedly towed and booted trucks delivering goods during the pandemic and then forced drivers to pay large amounts to get the boots taken off and the vehicles released.

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“This defendant hasn’t just been breaking the law and harming North Carolinians – he’s done so by purposefully targeting Black people,” Attorney General Stein said. “It’s both wrong and illegal, and I’m asking the court to stop him from engaging in this predatory and discriminatory conduct and give full financial relief to his victims.”

AG Stein’s office says of the 14 complaints it received, 11 were submitted by African Americans.

The N.C. Department of Justice’s Consumer Protection Division found that Satterfield was targeting African Americans by using a process called “reverse redlining,” in which certain communities receive less favorable treatment.

AG Stein is also adding another Satterfield-owned company, Automobile Recovery & Parking Enforcement, Inc., to the complaint and is seeking injunctive relief, restitution, civil penalties and attorney fees and investigative costs.

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