The criminal case against resto parts supplier David Layson and Layson's Restorations has been dropped...and Layson's will get back the parts that were seized during the raid on his Washington State home, shop, and stand at the Carlisle All-Chrysler Nationals in 2008.

 Per accounts in The Sentinel (Carlisle, PA's daily paper) and the News Tribune of Tacoma, WA (the local paper in Layson's neck of the woods), the criminal case was thrown out by the court in Cumberland County, PA in mid-January.

The Sentnel quoted Layson's attorney, Matthew Gover, who said that all charges against Layson were dismissed per one of Pennsylvania’s rules of criminal procedure that allows such action if prosecutors agree. Gover added that Chrysler’s dissolution into the Chrysler Group, and a recent overturn of Pennsylvania’s trademark patent law, contributed to the agreement.

Meanwhile, Layson e-mailed this statement to the News Tribune: "Going forward, we hope these developments – when combined with a turnaround in the economy – will allow us to recall some of the loyal employees we were forced to lay off, and continue our quest to make more parts and improve our processes to better serve our customers, who along with our love of classic cars, motivate us to be the best we can be every day.”

The case began when North Middleton Township ( PA) police got a tip from Chrysler, which reported then that it had been trying to protect its brand in the case for nearly four years. The resulting raids seized inventory not only from Layson's stand at Carlisle., but also from his Lakewood, WA shop and home. Authorities (quoted by both papers) say that all those parts will be returned.

Layson had said he was within his right manufacturing and selling parts without the Chrysler pentastar, and that all the trademarked parts seized from him at Carlisle had been purchased legitimately.

(Thanks to: The News Tribune (Tacoma, WA) www.newstribune.com;  The Sentinel (Carlisle, PA) and The Sentinel Online (www.cumberlink.com)...plus thanks to Automotive News and www.autonews.com for linking to the News Tribune's story.)