It's
not a complete restriction, but it sounds like it will significantly
limit such practices as seizing cash and non-weapon assets, and placing
the proceeds in police department coffers, to spend on humvees and
stingrays and whatever. I wonder what induced the benighted Justice
Department to take such an apparently enlightened step? Many states have
their own forfeiture programs, but most of them place the proceeds in
the state general funds, not in the hands of the police departments,
unlike the Federal law.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Local and state police can’t use federal law to seize assets anymore
Civil forfeiture has fueled billions for cops to spend on surveillance and more.
by Megan Geuss - Jan 16 2015
Local and state police can’t use federal law to seize assets anymore
Civil forfeiture has fueled billions for cops to spend on surveillance and more.
by Megan Geuss - Jan 16 2015
Attorney General Eric Holder announced Friday
that the Department of Justice would be putting a stop to local and
state police participation in a federal asset seizure program called
“Equitable Sharing.”
The program has allowed local and state police
to seize assets—usually cash and vehicles—without evidence of a crime.
If the former owner of the seized property fails to make a case for the
return of his or her property, the local and state police were allowed
to keep up to 80 percent of the assets, with the remaining portion
returning to federal agencies.
"This is a significant advancement to reform a
practice that is a clear violation of due process that is often used to
disproportionately target communities of color," Laura Murph, the
American Civil Liberties Union's Washington legislative office director
told Ars in a statement.
The Electronic Frontier Foundation also did its
own research into how much of the federal asset forfeiture funds were
going back into surveillance and wiretapping, finding that California
spent $13.6 million on spying.
“Holder’s announcement could have a significant
impact on how law enforcement agencies fund electronic surveillance,”
Dave Maas, an EFF spokesman, told Ars. “However, it’s important to
remember that the next administration’s attorney general could easily
reverse this policy decision. Further, many states also have their own
asset forfeiture programs, so a whole second layer of funding remains on
the state level.”
The Washington Post reports that since 2008,
local and state police departments have seized approximately $3 billion
in assets from 55,000 seizures around the country. In an earlier article
published by the paper, government documents detailed that police
departments spent their share of that money on “Humvees, automatic
weapons, gas grenades, night-vision scopes and sniper gear,” and
“electronic surveillance equipment” as well as less high-tech items like
coffee makers, “challenge coin” medallions, and clown appearances (“to
improve community relations”).
~~~~~ CONTINUE AT: ~~~~~
http://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2015/01/local-and-state-police-cant-use-federal-law-to-seize-assets-anymore/
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