Marcia Tenenbaum’s 1990 Lincoln Town Car was returned to her before the Hamilton County Sheriff’s Office was ordered to seize it again.The Hamilton County District Attorney’s Office will review a case in which Sheriff Jim Hammond reportedly released a vehicle seized during a drug arrest without the state’s permission.
The Tennessee Bureau of Investigation submitted its investigative files to the district attorney’s office this week for review.
A 1990 Lincoln Town Car was seized on April 13 after a Hamilton County Sheriff’s Office deputy arrested the son of the car’s owner, Marcia Tenenbaum. The car, along with marijuana and money, was confiscated during a traffic stop for an expired tag.
Tenenbaum said the sheriff authorized the release of the car to her after she called him within a few days of her son’s arrest.
An order has to be issued by the state’s Department of Safety and Homeland Security before a seized vehicle can be returned to an owner. The owner has to go through an appeal process to get their vehicle returned, which typically takes months.