“Yeah, it creates all sorts of perverse incentives and conflicts of interest for those least able to be trusted in that scenario.”
Exactly. Some public officials look worse than Al Capone or Pretty Boy Floyd. It’s a seriously bad idea.
Justice Thomas made his observations in the case of Lisa Olivia Leonard who was stopped in the notorious speed trap town of Cleveland, Texas on April 1, 2013 for allegedly driving 71 MPH in a 65 zone. The officers on the scene took $201,100 in cash she had in a safe, alongside a bill of sale for a house. For procedural reasons, the high court turned down Leonard's appeal, but Justice Thomas is looking forward to the opportunity of revisiting the forfeiture issue.