ESCONDIDO -- The city attorney's office has rejected a claim filed by a homeless Escondido man whose live-in van was impounded after an arrest in May and remained held even though drug charges against him were dismissed.

Assistant City Attorney Mark Waggoner declined to comment on why the claim was rejected, saying that the office does not comment on claims.

The city's response, sent to car owner Dashin Ansley on July 6, says only that the claim was "rejected by operation of law," which typically means that the action was automatically rejected because 45 days had lapsed since it was filed, Waggoner said.

In Ansley's case, only 25 days had passed since the claim was filed June 11, but because the decision to reject the claim had already been made, the city did not need to wait 45 days to inform him, the attorney said.

"The notice can be sent ahead if the claimant wants a quick answer," Waggoner said. Ansley had written on the claim that the case was time sensitive.

A claimant has six months from the day the claim was rejected to file a lawsuit. Ansley said he is seeking legal counsel to contest the decision and his arrest.

Ansley, an occasional day laborer, filed the claim after he was arrested May 22 by officers who said they suspected him of dealing drugs in an Escondido parking lot and confiscated a substance that they said tested positive for drugs in initial tests.

Ansley was released from jail after 16 days when the confiscated substance -- which police said appeared to be methamphetamine -- did not test positive for the drug in later tests, authorities said.

Meanwhile, the van, a 1988 Dodge Ram model that Ansley said contains everything he owns, was impounded in Escondido and stored for $25 a day.

The fee reached $1,240 this week, said Mac Rebmann, general manager of El Norte Towing.

Ansley said that since losing the van, which he called "a sense of security" and his "only hope of financial gain," he has turned to panhandling and living on the streets. He said the recent theft of some of his belongings, including clothing and a laptop, has further set him back.

Contact staff writer Sarah Wilkins at (760) 740-3524 or swilkins@nctimes.com.