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Author Topic: Civil forfeiture expanded  (Read 18432 times)

littleman

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Re: Civil forfeiture expanded
« Reply #15 on: September 20, 2016, 06:34:39 PM »
Dark.  I see most of the problem as choose-your-outrage.  You are concern with civil liberty, my neighbor is worried about BLM, Ergo thinks climate change should be top priority.  Meanwhile, most of the power in the world is just obsessed with next quarter's profit.
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littleman

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Re: Civil forfeiture expanded
« Reply #16 on: September 30, 2016, 07:31:18 AM »
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/california-civil-asset-forfeiture_us_57c46bf4e4b0cdfc5ac8686f

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Existing California law had limited this process, requiring authorities in most state cases to convict a defendant before proceeding with civil asset forfeiture. But California cops were able to circumvent state law thanks to a federal program known as equitable sharing. By collaborating with federal authorities, state agencies made their seizures subject to more lenient federal statutes, while also giving themselves a larger portion of the resulting funds. This practice brought hundreds of millions of dollars in revenue to California law enforcement between 2000 and 2013.

The new law, SB 443, closes this loophole. Beginning Jan. 1, 2017, police departments in California will be largely prohibited from transferring seized property to federal agencies in order to sidestep state conviction requirements. The legislation forbids the transfer of property, like vehicles and homes, and specifically raises the threshold on cash seizures, requiring the government to obtain a conviction before permanently confiscating any amount under $40,000. (The previous cap was $25,000.) For larger cash seizures, authorities must provide “clear and convincing” evidence of a connection to criminal activity before taking the money for good.
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rcjordan

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Re: Civil forfeiture expanded
« Reply #17 on: October 04, 2016, 12:04:51 PM »
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rcjordan

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Re: Civil forfeiture expanded
« Reply #18 on: October 19, 2016, 03:33:56 PM »
Worth a quick scan. This story runs roughly parallel with a few past cases here is the southeast that I happened to notice.

http://www.chicagoreader.com/chicago/police-department-civil-forfeiture-investigation/Content?oid=23728922
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littleman

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Re: Civil forfeiture expanded
« Reply #19 on: November 03, 2016, 08:02:50 PM »
http://missoulian.com/news/state-and-regional/high-court-rules-for-jury-trials-in-civil-forfeiture-cases/article_fa77c462-7427-5167-8f35-34145db3bf77.html

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The Montana Supreme Court says citizens have a right to trial by jury before the state can take private property in civil forfeiture cases, a ruling that bolsters a law that state legislators passed last year to limit police seizures.

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rcjordan

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Re: Civil forfeiture expanded
« Reply #20 on: January 10, 2017, 05:46:16 PM »
Michigan Repeals Bond Requirement for Civil Forfeiture Cases

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“In my many years as an attorney, I have seen the process of civil asset forfeiture spiral out of control,” said Rep. Peter Lucido
http://ij.org/michigan-law-repeals-bond-requirement-civil-forfeiture-cases/
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littleman

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Re: Civil forfeiture expanded
« Reply #21 on: July 12, 2017, 04:11:28 AM »
Connecticut Just Banned Civil Forfeiture Without A Criminal Conviction

https://www.forbes.com/sites/instituteforjustice/2017/07/11/connecticut-just-banned-civil-forfeiture-without-a-criminal-conviction/#52cb98c52e7a

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Connecticut Gov. Dannel Malloy signed HB 7146 on Monday, which curbs the state’s civil forfeiture laws. Not only did the bill earn endorsements from the Yankee Institute for the Public Policy and the state chapter of the ACLU, HB 7146 even passed both the House and the Senate without a single no vote.

Under the new law, in order to permanently confiscate property with civil forfeiture, the property must be first seized in connection to either a lawful arrest or a lawful search that results in an arrest. If prosecutors do not secure a guilty verdict, a plea bargain or a dismissal from finishing a pretrial diversion program, the government must return the property to its rightful owner. With the stroke of a pen, Connecticut now becomes the 14th state to require a criminal conviction for most or all forfeiture cases.

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rcjordan

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Re: Civil forfeiture expanded
« Reply #22 on: July 18, 2017, 01:57:58 PM »
Attorney General Jeff Sessions on Monday said he'd be issuing a new directive this week aimed at increasing police seizures of cash and property.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/wonk/wp/2017/07/17/jeff-sessions-wants-police-to-take-more-cash-from-american-citizens/
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Brad

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Re: Civil forfeiture expanded
« Reply #23 on: July 18, 2017, 10:22:40 PM »
Jeff Sessions couldn't find his way out of a paper bag, with a compass and a map.
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Travoli

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Re: Civil forfeiture expanded
« Reply #24 on: July 18, 2017, 10:24:35 PM »
This is pretty worrisome.
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rcjordan

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Re: Civil forfeiture expanded
« Reply #25 on: July 18, 2017, 10:37:41 PM »
>worrisome

Yeah. As it turned out, I couldn't get an ATM-only card on the checking account *BUT* I'm told there is an option to get one limited to 3 withdrawals per month on the savings account.  While that's an inconvenience, I think I'm going to have to live with it.  Because interest on accounts and CDs is practically non-existent, I keep fairly large sums in checking. I'd be ripe for some Texas trooper to claim I was a drug lord.
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littleman

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Re: Civil forfeiture expanded
« Reply #26 on: July 18, 2017, 10:51:41 PM »
Hopefully Sessions is out of office soon.
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ergophobe

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Re: Civil forfeiture expanded
« Reply #27 on: July 19, 2017, 03:44:36 PM »
Quote from: littleman on July 18, 2017, 10:51:41 PM
Hopefully Sessions is out of office soon.

I think Bannon will have to go first. It's harder to get rid of an AG anyway, but also as long as Bannon has influence (does he still? never hear anything), Sessions is safe. If Sessions goes, expect to see Bannon go next and vice versa.
 - http://thehill.com/blogs/ballot-box/presidential-races/325838-bannon-encouraged-sessions-to-run-for-president-before
 - https://www.nytimes.com/2017/02/28/magazine/jeff-sessions-stephen-bannon-justice-department.html
 
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rcjordan

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Re: Civil forfeiture expanded
« Reply #28 on: July 19, 2017, 03:50:21 PM »
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rcjordan

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Re: Civil forfeiture expanded
« Reply #29 on: July 22, 2017, 09:06:40 PM »
Apparently, the feds provide a loophole to any police department that wishes to grab assets regardless of their state's law.

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Civil forfeiture is illegal in North Carolina, but a federal loophole thwarts the state’s citizen protections.

Under an “equitable sharing program,” states can partner with the federal government in forfeiture cases. Since state laws don’t apply under the program, North Carolina law enforcers are free to seize property and assets as they see fit.

Eighty percent of all property or money taken are funneled back to state and local law enforcers. The remaining 20 percent is collected by the U.S. Department of Justice, which has now stashed away $4 billion in seized assets. Congress can’t touch the money, which belongs to USDOJ.

https://www.carolinajournal.com/news-article/u-s-steps-up-use-of-civil-asset-forfeiture-which-is-illegal-in-n-c/
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