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Attorney General Eric H. Holder Jr. on Friday barred local and state police from using federal law to seize cash, cars and other property without warrants or criminal charges.
Holder’s action represents the most sweeping check on police power to confiscate personal property since the seizures began three decades ago as part of the war on drugs.
This is big. It should be good news for everyone, not just drug dealers and money launders. Too many innocent people have lost everything because they've been accused wrongly or gotten caught in the stupid drug war going on around them. How would you like it if your entire family farm and your machinery was seized and sold, because someone was growing pot on your land and you didn't even know it or them? It's happened. Read the article, there's a guy in there who was carrying start up cash for a restaurant, he was stopped, cops thought it was suspicious and took his cash. It took him a year and a bunch of lawyer fees to get it back. By then, he had lost his restaurant. It's fucked up that cops can do that when there are no charges of a suspected crime and no warrants.
The next step is to make property seizure of those convicted in real crimes illegal, unless they can prove the property was purchased with illegally gained money. There's just too much room for bullshit in that law. Like, someone's entire family farming operation shouldn't be shut down because they shared the cost of a quarter million dollar combine with you, and it was in your name. Now, the whole family operation is done, because they can't harvest. All because one son decided to grow some bud, on his share of the land. And they still have to make the payments on the damn combine. It's all bullshit. I don't care what you're charged with, they should have no right to take property. They should only have the right to take what was actually found as evidence in a crime.
Police forces are opposed to the new law. I'll bet they are. I'll just bet they are. It's been a free for all up until now, with the majority of proceeds from all the seizure sales going straight to the cops. And let's be real here, a lot of the seized belongings never make it to auctions and we all know it.
5 comments:
"using federal law to seize..."
Does that mean they can still use state laws to seize property without a warrant or criminal charge?
Used to teach a lot of cops. They loved to seize expensive cars. They got to use them for stake outs and so on. Made them feel so cool.
The Sheriff here used to get to keep all proceeds from land and property seizure sales. That's why the job was so sought after. They don't do that anymore. The cash goes to the county now. Not to the Sheriff, to make him rich. Think Sheriff of Nottingham. Same thing. Gets to steal your things and sell it for cash and banks that! This is not new. This has always been the imbalance of powers in this country and others. If this works, then good. I hate Eric Holder, he should be in prison. But on his way out, if he feels like helping out some people, and it works for the good and not the bad. Then i appreciate that. But Fuck Holder. He is a criminal.
Rox
Agreed!
Ooops, agreed that cops should not be able to confiscate property!
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