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A family in Illinois filed a lawsuit against Volkswagen, alleging the company refused to provide location data for their vehicle stolen from their driveway — with their terrified 2-year-old son inside — until they renewed their subscription for $150. (Photos provided by attorney.)
An Illinois family alleges Volkswagen refused to provide location data for their vehicle stolen from their driveway — with their terrified 2-year-old son inside — until they renewed their subscription for $150, a new lawsuit said.
Taylor Shepherd’s son was taken on Feb. 23 at 3:35 p.m. outside the family’s home in Libertyville, north of Chicago. Mom had just taken in her 7-year-old and was about to get her toddler out of her 2021 Volkswagen Atlas SUV when two men pulled up behind her car, beat her and knocked her down, then stole her vehicle with her baby inside and ran her over during the getaway, leaving her with tire marks and broken bones. She was four months pregnant at the time.
Despite her injuries, she immediately called 911, and deputies and an ambulance were dispatched to her home.
In a desperate search for the endangered toddler, a deputy contacted Volkswagen and Verizon Connect and requested GPS tracking data for Shepherd’s SUV.
Despite the deputy’s explanation of the “exigent circumstances” in this case, the car company rep refused to provide the location data because the free trial period for the service had expired and would not reveal the location until $150 had been paid.
The situation was life or death, the deputy reiterated.
But the Volkswagen representative refused, saying he could do nothing until the subscription fee was paid.
“This was company policy, and there were no exceptions,” court documents said.
By 4:25 p.m., the deputy paid the money with the family’s credit card. The location was given, and the SUV was found at 4:46 p.m.
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The boy was found safe, about 15 to 20 minutes away, on the side of a road near a parking lot of a business, but the needless 40-minute delay put the boy and the family through extreme emotional distress.
Shepherd thought she would never see her son again.
“I didn’t even think that would be an issue, that VW would refuse to tell us where our son was, especially when it’s kidnappers and every second matters,” she told ABC Chicago affiliate WLS-TV.
Lawyer Gerald Bekkerman told Law&Crime that the case shocks the conscience. The boy, who is getting counseling, has nightmares and fear of strangers, he said.
“This scenario got so out of hand that it did lead to a horrible situation,” he said. “I wouldn’t wish these 30-40 minutes on any parent, not knowing if you would ever see your abducted child again.”
“As a result of putting profits over people, Volkswagen caused unnecessary and irreparable harm to an innocent family,” he added. “This never should have happened.”
The lawsuit filed on Monday in Cook County names Volkswagen of America Inc. and Verizon Connect. It seeks over $50,000 for negligence and intentional infliction of emotional distress. It alleges the company obstructed an active law enforcement investigation, violated its policies and procedures regarding emergency law enforcement requests, and failed to report the emergency up the supervisory chain of command.
Media representatives for Volkswagen and Verizon did not immediately respond to requests for comment from Law&Crime. But in a YouTube video, Volkswagen issued a statement about the case, calling it a “serious breach of the process” and a “process failure,” and announced it would offer complimentary five-year subscriptions for the tracking service.
Following the carjacking, Christopher Covelli, deputy chief of the Lake County Sheriff’s Office, said most auto manufacturers willingly provide GPS tracking and location data so long as law enforcement affirms the request is “exigent in nature,” which was affirmed in this case, court documents said.
Covelli told Law&Crime that there haven’t yet been arrests, but detectives are very close to being able to seek warrants for the suspected offenders involved.
