The vehicle had just been repossessed by the auto manufacturer’s credit affiliate. The Phelps made 24 consecutive monthly installment payments on the car, but fell two months behind. Lynda had put a check in the mail two days earlier, but her source of transportation was now gone.

Also missing in action were an empty fishtank, clothes, a child safety seat, loan papers and other personal effects left in the vehicle when it was commandeered. The family had to visit the repo company to get these possessions back.

Lynda said she called the credit company the day after the car was taken, but it took her a week to hear back from them. They said she could get her car back if she paid the $14,000 balance left in payments before it was sold in a week’s time.

Lynda’s husband, Master Sgt. David Phelps, an active-duty Army reservist working in the office of the Chief of Chaplains at the Pentagon, bought the car for his wife two years ago.

Lynda said she knew of the Service members Civil Relief Act, Congressional legislation that dates back to before World War II, that protects service members and their families from being taken advantage of in financial transactions. The act prevents foreclosures during deployments, allows leases to be broken when service personnel get orders and requires written notification before a vehicle can be repossessed. She said she cited the law to the company, but they did not back down.

Lynda’s next step was to make an appointment with the office of the MDW Staff Judge Advocate. She explained the problem to Chief of Legal Services, John Mitcham, who made a call to the company on her behalf, also invoking the Service members Civil Relief Act. The company was unsympathetic.

Mitcham then contacted Elizabeth Singer, director, U.S. attorneys’ for Housing Programs in the Department of Justice, under whose purview the act falls. It was Thursday, May 17, four days before the car was slated to be sold. Singer, Mitcham and Linda Phelps discussed their options in a conference call.

Singer wasn’t scheduled to be at work Friday. Nevertheless, she worked the issue from home, appealing to Honda by phone with the weight of the Justice Department behind her.

The car was returned to the Phelps’ home Saturday and the couple received an apology from Honda. Mitcham also ensured the couple got a rebate on the payment they made for the two weeks plus when the car was not in their possession.

A relatively amicable ending. Mitcham said the Department of Justice determined the company acted swiftly and appropriately after admitting its mistake and Justice would take no further action.

David praised Singer’s powers of persuasion.

‘‘She’s amazing. I was really impressed,” he said. ‘‘She was at home on her day off and was still trying to help us.”

David said the Civic is a good car and he doesn’t hold the auto manufacturer responsible for the ordeal, just its credit arm. If he got another Honda he said he would find alternative financing.

‘‘It doesn’t have to be a difficult situation” when military members find themselves in a jam, said David. ‘‘Just stop by the [Legal Services] office and see what they can do for you.”

By way of advice, Lynda said to stay up on your paperwork and ‘‘know the law and what’s out there for you [remedy-wise].”

Mitcham said many service members are unaware of laws that protect them. He said Legal Services provides an opportunity for military personnel to help themselves and talk to an attorney.

‘‘I always tell [service members] in Start Right briefings that we can save them some money and keep them out of trouble.”