Category Archives: civil asset forfeiture

Civil Asset Forfeiture. Law Enforcement Impacted by Property Rights.

How civil asset forfeiture can impact law enforcement:

  • Patrols may be altered to focus on routes that move cash, and not on routes that move illegal goods.
  • Citizens won’t challenge the seizure of small amounts of cash or old cars creating a revenue source of $4.5 billion in 2014, nationwide

Governing | Civil Forfeiture Laws Pit Police Versus Everybody Else

TREND. INTERIM. Civil Asset Forfeiture Passes in the Midwest. The key intel:

Which state reformed civil asset forefeoture laws? Ohio

Does the OH legisltion require conviction for forfieture? No, it permits forfeiture if criminal charges can be filed against the person.

Do local governments have access to the proceeds at the time of forfeiture? No, the assets are put in escrow until conviction

Ohio HB 347

Americans for Tax Reform | ATR Congratulates Ohio for Passing Civil Asset Forfeiture Reform

 

INTERIM. Texas Tops in Asset Forfeiture.

Audrey Redford, a doctoral fellow with the Free Market Institute at Texas Tech University, makes these points about asset forefeiture in Texas:

  • Texas is #1 in civil asset forefeiture according to the Institute for Justice
  • Average annual total of seized assets:  $41.6 million
  • $540.7 million siezed in the last decade
  • It will get worse. last week DOJ announced it was resuming its Equitable Sharing Program, a civil asset forefeiture sharing program

How are asset forefeiture proceeds…

INTERIM. Asset Forfeiture Bill from the Golden State.

Americans for Tax Reform & the ACLU Support California’s SB 443 that protects against abuses of the asset forfeiture system.

What protection is California adding before property can be taken via civil asset forefeiture?

  • Requires a conviction before before local agencies can collect any proceeds from federal equitable sharing funds.
     

Americans for Tax Reform | Americans for Tax Reform Endorses California’s Property Rights Bill
10th Amendment Center | End the Status Quo on Asset…

INTERIM. Civil Asset Forfeiture Reform Passed a Legislature. The Informed Intel You Need: 5 Talking Points + Bill Text

  • Limit asset seizure to instances when a person is arrested
  • Pro-consumer
  • Pro-private property rights
  • Necessary safeguards in place to protect innocent property owners
  • Require probable cause be shown within 10 days following every seizure

Capital Soup | Civil Asset Forfeiture Reform Passes Legislature Unanimously

Florida SB 1044

INTERIM Trend: Civil Asset Forfeiture. 3 Lessons from 1 State's Ban on Asset Forfeiture.

What’s civil asset forfeiture? According to supporters of the ban, people do not have to be convicted or even charged to lose their property when suspected of a civil offense

What state has experience with restricting civil asset forefeiture? New Mexico

What can we learn from New Mexico?

  • Apply reforms to civil, criminal, and municipal offenses
  • Whether police can finance departments through asset forefeiture
  • Wether the government has to bear the burden of proof for civil asset…

INTERIM Civil Asset Forfeiture Yields $1M per year for 1 City. How 1 City Lost its Revenue & Ignored Reform Laws.

Civil Asset Forfeiture generates more than $1 million in revenue per year for The City of Albuquerque.

Is this $1 Million tied to convicted criminals? No. There were no criminal convictions for any of the affected property owners.

What does Albuquerque use the funding for? It pays the salaries of the people seizing the property. 

How did the program in Albuquerque go awry? A city attorney publicly referred to asset forefeiture as a ““gold mine” and property seized through civil…

INTERIM Private property Rights. Civil Asset Forfeiture. 100 Editorials. Texas Legislative Reference Library.

What’s happening? The Texas Legislative Reference Library circulated Civil Asset Reform Information.

What group is putting out the civil asset reform information? Institute for Justice.

What’s the information say? over 100 editorials nation wide are calling for civil asset forfeiture reform.

Why does this matter? Interim Charges call for reviewing civil asset laws. TPPF has been calling for civil asset reform for a couple years.

Why is this a Texas issue? Local governmental entities…

2015 House Interim Charges. Property Rights. Spans 6 Committees.

Eminent Domain

Private Property Rights | Asset Forfeiture | Annexation | Special Districts

THE HOUSE INTERIM CHARGES

  • Business & Industry: whether property owner associations restrict property rights
  • Criminal Jurisprudence: civil asset forfeiture & data reporting
  • Culture, Recreation & Tourism: protecting private property rights on the San Marcos River
  • Defense & Veterans Affairs: private property rights, seller disclosures & military bases.
  • Land & Resource Management: beach erosion…