Don't Let Crime Fears Undermine Americans' Rights
Amid fear of rising crime, let's take a careful and deliberate approach—lest innocent people lose their rights and property.
Civil Asset Forfeiture
Goodbye, Navalny
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Prosecutor Fani Willis Touts the Value of Cash, but What About the Rest of Us?
Unfortunately, Willis’s Fulton County includes assets seized from non-prosecutors in its budget.
An Alabama Couple's Lives Were Upended by an Unconstitutional Police Raid. A Jury Awarded Them $1 Million.
Greg and Teresa Almond lost their house and livelihood over a misdemeanor drug crime. Sheriff's deputies never got a warrant to search their house.
Cops Arrested Him for a Fictitious Traffic Violation Because He Flipped Them Off
A federal judge allowed a lawsuit against the officers to proceed, finding evidence of several constitutional violations.
Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt Says Civil Asset Forfeiture 'Isn't Fair' and Calls for Reforms
"It's crazy to me that somebody can be pulled over and have their cash and truck taken for an alleged crime, get acquitted of that crime, but they still never get their property back," Stitt said.
A Police Group's Comments on Civil Asset Forfeiture Show Exactly Why It Needs Reform
"You've got to be able to demonstrate some level of legitimacy" the head of the National Sheriffs' Association says of carrying large amounts of cash.
FBI Seized $86 Million From People Not Suspected of Any Crime. A Federal Court Will Decide if That's Legal.
On Thursday, a federal appeals court will hear about the FBI's "blatant scheme to circumvent" the Fourth Amendment.
How Reason Changes Minds, Lives, and Laws by Covering Criminal Injustice
Yet another reason to donate to Reason's annual webathon!
Goodbye to Detroit's Asset Forfeiture Racket
Wayne County was seizing cars and using its less-fortunate residents as piggy banks.
Civil Forfeiture Defendants Have the Right to a Jury Trial, Says the Indiana Supreme Court
That prosecutors in the Hoosier State successfully denied people this due process is a reflection of how abusive civil forfeiture can be.
Several Justices Express Dismay at Long Delays in Returning Seized Cars to Innocent Owners
Without a prompt post-seizure hearing, people can lose their property for months or years even when they ultimately get it back.
Sex Crime Victim Denied $69,000 Settlement Because Cops Seized Her Abuser's Cash Through Civil Forfeiture
The outrageous case has led to calls from Congress to pass legislation curbing civil asset forfeiture.
Reptile Is a Gloomy Cop Thriller About Law Enforcement Self-Dealing
With subplots about bite mark evidence and asset forfeiture, it's a parade of shady cop practices.
Weed Is Legal in Illinois. Police Searched His Car Anyway.
An officer conducted the search of Prentiss Jackson's vehicle after claiming he could smell "a little bit of weed." It ultimately resulted in a lengthy prison term.
Federal Appeals Court Rules Detroit's Asset Forfeiture Violates Due Process Rights of Drivers
A federal circuit judge writes that Detroit's vehicle seizure scheme "is simply a money-making venture—one most often used to extort money from those who can least afford it."
Sixth Circuit Rules Owners of Cars Taken by Asset Forfeiture Have Constitutional Right to a Hearing Within Two Weeks of Seizure
The decision provides important protection for property rights, and features a powerful concurring opinion by prominent conservative Judge Amal Thapar.
Appeals Court Rules Woman Who Had $8,000 Seized Through Asset Forfeiture Will Get Her Day in Court
Cristal Starling lost $8,000 after she missed one of several filing deadlines to contest the seizure of her money by police. A federal appeals court says she and others like her should be given more leeway.
Police Seized Innocent People's Property and Kept It for Years. What Will the Supreme Court Do?
Civil forfeiture is a highly unaccountable practice. The justices have the opportunity to make it a bit less so.
Congress Considers Bipartisan Bill Curbing Asset Forfeiture
The FAIR Act would be a significant step forward. It just passed the House Judiciary Committee on a unanimous 26-0 vote.
Congress Considers Conditions on the Government's License To Steal
The FAIR Act includes several substantial reforms that would make it harder to take property from innocent owners through civil forfeiture.
Even After Legalization, Maryland Cops Wanted to Search People Based on the Odor of Pot. Legislators Said No.
Police have a long history of using the real or imagined smell of marijuana to justify outrageous invasions.
Congress Tries Again To Reform Civil Asset Forfeiture Abuses
Just about everybody agrees the practice is legalized theft, but cops and prosecutors oppose change.
Coverage of Alabama Town's Predatory Fines and Seizures Earns Journalists a Pulitzer
The Brookside Police Department’s shakedown of travelers became a national news story and prompted federal lawsuits.
Supreme Court Decides to Hear Important Asset Forfeiture Procedural Property Rights Case
The Court will determine whether the Due Process Clause prevents the government from using asset forfeiture to seize property and hold it for many months without a timely hearing.
The Supreme Court Will Decide Whether You Have a Right to a Prompt Hearing After Cops Seize Your Property
The Supreme Court has agreed to hear two consolidated cases by Alabama women whose cars were both seized for more than a year before courts found they were innocent owners.
New York City Brings Back Dystopian Robot Police Dogs
'Digidog is out of the pound," New York City Mayor Eric Adams declared, not ominously.
Arizona Returns $39,000 Seized From Man at Phoenix Airport Through Civil Asset Forfeiture
Police detectives accused Jerry Johnson of being a drug trafficker and seized cash he says he intended to use to buy a semitruck at auction. He was never charged with a crime.
Lawsuit: Prosecutors Filed Bogus Charges Against Detroit Man in Retaliation for Challenging Seizure of Car
The Institute for Justice says Robert Reeves' First Amendment rights were violated when prosecutors filed and refiled baseless felony charges against him after he sued to get his car back.
Sheriff's Employee Embezzled Funds in Keeping with the Spirit of Civil Asset Forfeiture
One guy with gambling debts is a news story, but a formal policy of legalized theft is a national scandal.
Cops Return Cash Seized From Afroman in Bogus Drug Raid…With $400 Missing
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These Sisters Tried To Start a Business. Police Seized Their Cash and Accused Them of Being Drug Traffickers
California police seized more than $17,000 from Vera and Apollonia Ward and accused them of laundering drug money, all without charging them with a crime. The two sisters were trying to start a dog-breeding business.
Houston Prosecutors Are Keeping Cash Seized From Defendants Whose Cases Were Compromised by Police Corruption
Even in cases that hinged on the trustworthiness of demonstrably untrustworthy cops, people are still waiting to get their money back.
After Supreme Court Ruling, States Grapple With How To Define an Excessive Fine
The Supreme Court's 2018 ruling in Timbs v. Indiana revived the Excessive Fines Clause. Now state courts have to come up with tests to determine what's excessive.
Federal Judge Decides Safe Deposit Boxes Aren't Safe From FBI
Judge Gary Klausner admits that the FBI probably hid their true motives in rifling through the contents of hundreds of safe deposit boxes, but says that's fine.
Michigan Rolls Back Reforms of Civil Asset Forfeiture
Michigan is now a more dangerous place for anyone who flies with large amounts of cash.
A Mom Let Her 7-Year-Old Play in the Park. Arizona Arrested Her and Banned Her From Working With Kids.
Sarra's name was added to the government's official list of unfit caretakers after she briefly ran an errand without her kids in tow.
Prosecutors Who Want Credit for Investigating Police Corruption Are Happy To Steal Money From Innocent People
The Harris County, Texas, District Attorney's Office oversees civil forfeitures that make a mockery of justice.
Kansas Seized $21 Million From People Over the Past Two Years. Most Were Never Convicted of a Crime
An Americans for Prosperity Foundation report found that less than a quarter of people who had property seized through asset forfeiture by Kansas police were ever convicted of a crime.
To Promote Public Safety, Michigan Authorizes Cops To Rob Travelers at Airports
The change represents a substantial reversal of civil forfeiture reforms aimed at protecting innocent property owners.
Michigan Couple Says Town Seized Their Building and Offered To Return It if They Bought Two Cars for Police
"Extortion, there's no other way to explain it," the couple's attorney says.
IRS Stole Money and Hid the Details for Years
As law enforcement agencies patrol for profit, the secrecy surrounding cash seizures must stop.
Sheriff Agrees To Stop Stealing Cannabis Cash From Armored Cars, Saying His Deputies 'Are Not Highway Robbers'
The settlement came after the Justice Department agreed to return more than $1 million in proceeds from state-licensed marijuana businesses in California.
The Feds Will Return More Than $1 Million in Marijuana Money That California Cops Stole From Armored Cars
Empyreal Logistics agreed to drop its claims against the Justice Department, but it is still suing San Bernardino County Sheriff Shannon Dicus.