GM Throws a Curve Ball in Ignition Switch Trial

General Motors Co. has diverted attention from its defective ignition switch by asserting the first plaintiff to reach a jury trial over the issue committed check fraud in a home purchase that soured.

Robert Scheuer claims the switch turned off the airbags in his 2003 Saturn Ion when the car ran off a road in May 2014 and hit a tree. He says the crash left him with neck and back injuries. GM insists the impact was too mild to trigger the airbags, and it asserts Scheuer’s injuries predated the accident.

Scheuer’s car was among 2.6 million vehicles GM had recalled three months earlier to replace such switches, which can be jogged out of the “run” position by a sharp bump. It isn’t clear whether his car had been repaired.

Bloomberg News reports that GM presented U.S. District Court Judge Jesse Furman with evidence that Scheuer doctored a check for $430.72 to look like it was worth $441,430.72 as part of a deal to buy a home in Oklahoma. He and his wife were evicted four months later after failing to produce the cash required for the sale.

GM says its evidence, which has not been presented to the jury, shows Scheuer misled the court, jury and his own counsel.