Wrongful Death Lawsuit Over 2023 Repossession Shooting Dismissed

Federal Judge Dismisses City, Officers, Repo Company, and Credit Union from Wrongful Death Lawsuit Over 2023 Repossession Shooting

Decatur, AL – March 31, 2026 – A federal judge has dismissed the majority of defendants from the high-profile wrongful death lawsuit filed by the family of Stephen “Steve” Perkins, the 39-year-old Decatur father fatally shot by police during a vehicle repossession attempt on September 29, 2023.

U.S. District Judge Corey L. Maze ruled on March 30, 2026, that claims against the City of Decatur, three non-shooting Decatur police officers, the towing company Allstar Recovery LLC, and $35B in assets Pentagon Federal Credit Union (PenFed) could not proceed. Only former Officer Mac Bailey Marquette — the sole officer who fired his weapon — remains as a defendant in the federal civil case.

The Shooting

Wrongful Death During Repossession Lawsuit Moves to Arbitration The ruling follows years of litigation stemming from a nighttime repossession that escalated into a fatal confrontation captured on neighbor surveillance video. Perkins, who was behind on payments for his white GMC Sierra pickup truck financed through PenFed, had allegedly pulled a gun on a repossessor during an earlier attempt, prompting a 911 call.

On the night of the fatal incident, Allstar Recovery agents Caleb Combs and Richie Brady returned with police standby. Video showed Perkins confronting the tow truck in his front yard, yelling for the agent to “put my truck down.” Officers, who had parked down the street and approached from cover, identified themselves and ordered Perkins to the ground before Marquette fired 18 rounds.

Perkins’ final words, according to witnesses and video, were “help.” The Allstar Recovery agent towed the truck away approximately 30 seconds after the shooting while officers attended to Perkins on the ground.

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The Lawsuit

Perkins’ widow, Catrela Perkins, filed the federal civil rights and wrongful death lawsuit in December 2023 (Case No. 5:23-cv-01685, U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Alabama) on behalf of herself, the estate, and their minor child. The original complaint named the City of Decatur, four officers (Marquette, Christopher Mukkadam, Joey Williams, and Vance Summers), PenFed, Allstar Recovery LLC, and the two repossession agents.

The suit alleged unlawful repossession practices, unfair debt collection, and excessive force that violated Perkins’ civil rights. Family attorneys argued the repossession was wrongful and that police presence escalated a civil debt matter into a deadly encounter.

In November 2024, Judge Maze had granted a motion to compel arbitration for claims against Allstar Recovery and its agents under an arbitration clause in the vehicle loan agreement, sending the matter to the Better Business Bureau of North Alabama for a determination on scope. The BBB initially questioned whether a wrongful death claim fell within its typical buyer-seller dispute resolution process. Claims against the three non-shooting officers and the city were also dismissed at various stages.

The Judgement

The March 2026 order finalizes the dismissal of the city, the non-shooting officers (Mukkadam, Williams, and Summers), Allstar Recovery, and PenFed with prejudice in most respects, citing qualified and state-agent immunity as well as pleading deficiencies. Some claims against Marquette survived partial dismissal, including certain excessive-force and wrongful-death allegations under Alabama law.

Judge Maze specifically noted that, accepting the plaintiffs’ version of events, Marquette was not entitled to qualified immunity because Perkins was not attempting to flee or posing an immediate serious threat when deadly force was used, and no warning was given before shooting.

Marquette, who was fired by the Decatur Police Department along with the other officers for policy violations, faces a separate state criminal murder charge. His criminal trial is scheduled for April. A grand jury indicted him in January 2024 after an Alabama Law Enforcement Agency investigation; the other three officers were cleared criminally.

A separate lawsuit filed by a neighbor alleging stray bullets damaged their home also named Marquette, the city, Allstar Recovery, and PenFed. The Perkins family has not issued a public statement on the latest dismissal.

Earlier in the case, family attorney Lee Merritt stated there was “no numerical amount that will do justice” and that they sought an outcome that would hold the city accountable.

The remaining claims against Marquette will now move forward in federal court. Court records are available via PACER for the Northern District of Alabama.

Source: 1819 News