What Government Plans to Do With Hoyt’s Car

Not only does LaMarr Hoyt, the San Diego Padres pitcher, face from 60 days to one year in jail and possible expulsion from major league baseball after pleading guilty Thursday to drug charges, but he’ll be without his wheels.

Hoyt’s car, a 1986 Porsche 944 seized after the pitcher tried to cross the U.S.-Mexican border with an assortment of pills, is now the property of the U.S. Government.

According to Al Rappoport, San Diego district director of the Customs Service, exotic sports cars such as Hoyt’s are generally sold to the highest bidder at an auction or used by undercover agents in the Drug Enforcement Administration and other intelligence agencies.

The fate of Hoyt’s car is not unusual, Rappoport said, noting that federal law allows the government to take permanent possession of automobiles seized by agents during drug busts. Many are sold at auction, the money going into the federal Treasury. Others are put into service by the government.

“I know one thing, we won’t be using it here to ferry our inspectors around town,” Rappoport said.

Hoyt agreed to forfeit the car, which currently resides in a San Diego-area impound yard, as part of his plea bargain with federal prosecutors.