N.J. Turnpike Authority Immune From Suit for Towing (Correct)

The New Jersey Turnpike Authority is immune from civil rights claims brought by a subprime auto finance company that held a lien on a car the authority had towed, a federal court in New Jersey ruled Monday.

Western Funding Inc.'s due process claims under the Civil Rights Act of 1871 fail because the NJTA is immune from suit under the 11th Amendment as an arm of the state, the U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey said.

The authority’s status under New Jersey law “weighs substantially in favor of immunity, as the legislature deemed NJTA an ‘essential governmental ...