A judge has dismissed a case that was brought last January by the daughter of a deceased local doctor seeking possession of a classic car she claimed was bequeathed to her but was being held by a local mechanic in lieu of unpaid repair bills.
Tiffeny Swezey and her brother, Timothy Swezey, claimed in the suit that Vero Beach mechanic Joseph Krauss of J&J Auto Works refused to turn over her dad’s 1968 Plymouth GTX muscle car, believed to be worth more than $30,000. In the complaint, Swezey claimed her father, Dr. Terry Swezey, left the car to her and her brother in his will. Dr. Swezey died on July 20, 2024.
However, Indian River County Judge Robyn Stone ruled on Nov. 7 that the Swezey siblings “failed to establish valid ownership of the vehicle” and granted Krauss’s motion to dismiss the case.
“I’m relieved that this is over, but I’m basically in the same boat I was before, but with $20,000 in legal fees,” Krauss said. “I actually lost more money than I was owed, but I had to defend my reputation.”
When Tiffeny and Timothy Swezey applied in August 2024 to have the vehicle’s title transferred to them, they did not provide the necessary affidavits required by Florida law, rendering the title invalid, Stone wrote in the dismissal. Dr. Swezey’s will has not yet been probated, and ownership of the vehicle and a determination of who pays the repair bills will be decided in Florida Probate Court, Stone wrote.
The parties also may ask for a hearing to determine whether or not the Swezey siblings should pay for Krauss’s legal fees, the dismissal says. Krauss said his lawyer, Vero Beach attorney Eric Eber of Block & Scarpa, will decide whether or not to request a hearing.
In the meantime, the title remains in Dr. Swezey’s name. Krauss still has the Plymouth GTX, which he and the doctor were restoring together on weekends, Krauss said. The Swezey siblings had claimed that Krauss had an oral agreement with their dad in which Krauss would trade his labor for doctor visits and claimed that Krauss received thousands of dollars in medical services.
However, according to court records, Krauss denied there was such an agreement and the Swezeys failed to provide any documentation.
“It’s sad. It was never about money,” Krauss said. “We were friends. It was about spending time together as friends restoring the car together on weekends. The guy really loved cars. This was like his escape.”
The lesson to be learned from this is to “make sure your wishes and your will are clear,” he said. “If you intend to turn property over to others, do it before you die. If (Dr. Swezey) had signed the title over to his daughter before he died, this could all have been avoided.”
Attorneys for the Swezeys could not be reached for comment.
