Posted on 09/03/2025 7:56:50 AM PDT by where's_the_Outrage?
An Alaska man is petitioning the Supreme Court to consider whether the government's seizure of his $95,000 plane for transporting an illicit six-pack of beer is an excessive fine under the Eighth Amendment.
The Institute for Justice, a public interest law firm, filed a petition for writ of certiorari today on behalf of Ken Jouppi, an 82-year-old Alaskan bush pilot, asking the Supreme Court to rule on whether states should consider the gravity of a defendant's specific offense, rather than an abstract view of the general crime.
Jouppi was convicted of a misdemeanor in 2012 when state troopers searched his plane before takeoff and discovered that a passenger was attempting to bring several cases of beer to a "dry" village where alcohol is prohibited. (Jouppi was only culpable for a single six-pack of Budweiser that troopers said was in plain sight.)
But the state wasn't through with Jouppi. For the past 13 years, prosecutors have sought to seize his Cessna U206D through asset forfeiture, a process which allows police and prosecutors to seize property connected to criminal activity.
The Institute for Justice says the case of Jouppi's Cessna is a perfect example of why the Eighth Amendment exists.
"The Excessive Fines Clause of the constitution was built for cases like this," Sam Gedge, a senior attorney at the Institute for Justice, said in a press release. "As government agencies increasingly exploit fines and forfeitures to pad their budgets, it's vital that the Supreme Court make clear that the Excessive Fines Clause is a meaningful check on government overreach."
(Excerpt) Read more at msn.com ...
1. I've known dry counties and they prohibit the sale of alcohol, not the private import. It is Constitutional for a village to prohibit the possession of an otherwise legal substance?
2. What probably cause did the troopers have to search the plane? And prior to takeoff?
3. The Alaska Supreme Court found the fine not excessive, amazing. Would he have been charged if he were flying the beer into Anchorage?
4. It states"state troopers searched his plane before takeoff and discovered that a passenger was attempting to bring several cases of beer to a "dry" village", was the plane in an alcohol allowable area when searched? Almost like he was charged based on intent.
How is “attempting” a crime? Yes the pilot has a flight plan but he could have drank the beer before landing, changed flight plans in route, or decide to not fly there at all.
Never talk to the police. I’m sure he did and hung himself.
I wonder if the “dry village” has the same status as indians in CONUS. They can write their own laws which then have to be enforced by civilian authorities.
As usual, not enough info in the article.
It’s my understanding that any ingestion of alcohol by Inuit people can likely cause them to succomb to lifelong alcoholism. (no personal experience, but that’s what I learned in college) soooo, I can understand, if this guy was making a practice of smuggling in alcohol to the natives being a might harsh on him, but I think this has a hella more to do with the profit motive behind asset forfeiture!
A dry village or county is an ordinance not a law I don’t think. This civil asset forfeiture has to stop now.
Big case, really. It goes to the heart of government confiscations.
Do you think they shot all of the St. Bernhards in Alaska, or are they still used to deliver emergency booze? ;-D
He could have shared the beer with the passengers.
Another question, if Atlanta declares itself a dry city, then no alcohol can be transferred into Atlanta either by plane, truck, or car and any that do can be seized?
Snowman and the Bandit could do it.
proof/evidence of your “understanding” ?
In my experience, “dry” means you can’t sell it, but you can have it and drink it.
This is bizarre.
Of course, there was a liquor store about 20 feet across the county line, any way one went.
Asset forfeiture is just government stealing private property.
It was Inuition. Segovia is very Inuitive.
Some Dry counties don’t allow you to bring it into that county for personal use.
A friend of mine was fined $2500 for having beer in a ‘dry county’ in Alabama.............
“ How is “attempting” a crime?”
If someone took a shot at you with a hunting rifle and missed, did that someone commit a crime?
Minnesota retains a Prohibition era attitude in its liquor laws which benefits no one except big distributors. A few years ago a local tavern brought a keg of Spotted Cow beer from Wisconsin to serve customers. Due to Minnesota’s archaic liquor laws Spotted Cow is not legally available in the state. The import of a single keg cost the state less than $20 in avoided liquor tax, yet state regulators came in like gang busters and temporarily shut the tavern down and pulled their state liquor license causing the owners to go bankrupt.
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