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A Florida man was prosecuted for money laundering. He committed suicide prior to conviction. Could his estate's assets be seized by the probate court to satisfy a pending criminal charge which include a monetary element?
Self | December 5, 2021 | Self

Posted on 12/05/2021 10:40:33 AM PST by 4Runner

Or do penalties owed the state for the commission of a crime end at the grave? Google can't (or won't) respond intelligently to this query. I've also asked an attorney, he had no answer. All I know is, the penalty for conviction for money laundering in Florida is incarceration in the state penitentiary for an extended period of time, plus the requirement that the convicted party repay to the state double the amount of money originally laundered! Thanks for any insight you all may be able to provide. (Yes, I've pledged a monthly contribution today.)


TOPICS: Miscellaneous
KEYWORDS: florida; floridaman; moneylaundering; probatelaw
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To: 4Runner

However, the fact he died does not mean his estate cannot be sued. It just means that the criminal case is not binding on the civil court. The injured parties will have to sue his estate all over again.


21 posted on 12/05/2021 12:22:54 PM PST by Brilliant
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To: 4Runner

I would think so.

The people ought to be able to get their money back.


22 posted on 12/05/2021 12:36:48 PM PST by metmom (...fixing our eyes on Jesus, the Author and Perfecter of our faith)
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To: pierrem15
Unless and until the deceased is convicted post mortem

20 years from now, when Pelosi regains her position as Speaker, she may impeach Trump again if he's dead at that point. I hope by then republicans will give her what she wants - so that she'll move on to the next (in her case much warmer) life.

23 posted on 12/05/2021 12:48:43 PM PST by Pollster1 (America is no longer in Claire Wolfe's "awkward stage")
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To: 4Runner

The question is one of who has the highest priority claim. The arresting agency may have filed a notice of forfeiture but, if not, it may be too late. What cannot be traced back to illegal activity will be part of the defendants estate and will pass to his heir(s), whether testamentary or statutory. That portion that can be traced to unlawful activity, in the absence of a forfeiture action, may be returned to identifiable victims. But, the question arises of whether the criminal court has the jurisdiction to make the disposition of the funds without adjudication of the pending criminal charge. I don’t know. I suppose the court, if it decides it can’t make distribution, could interplead the money. That’s where a civil court holds money and permits anyone with a colorable claim to come to court and argue their claim. That might include the defendants victims, heirs, the government (escheatment issue), or even the IRS. This all assumes there’s no statute addressing this scenario. Then again, I could be wrong altogether. This sounds like a law exam question!


24 posted on 12/05/2021 1:01:42 PM PST by Spok
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To: Brilliant

In other words, they won’t incarcerate his coffin?


25 posted on 12/05/2021 1:33:12 PM PST by Verginius Rufus
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To: 4Runner
CAF is really wrong and should be made illegal.

The police can and have taken cash off of people and told them that their money is suspected of being criminal and you have to go to court to prove your money is innocent.

You generally hear about it in the news when someone carrying a large amount of cash attempts to go through air port security and, even though carrying cash is not illegal and totally outside of their mandate, the TSA will call the cops who will show up and seize the cash. Perhaps they will stop doing that in the future as they have now been forced to pay court costs and damages in one case. But I would not count on it.

These are the cases you hear of.

The ones you do not hear of are the majority and they are people who are literally doing nothing wrong but carrying cash when they get hassled by the cops. The average amount of cash taken is $600.

Most people do not bother to go to court to try to get their money back because it would cost more to reclaim it then the amount taken.

26 posted on 12/05/2021 1:56:31 PM PST by Harmless Teddy Bear (add a dab of lavender in milk, leave town with an orange and pretend you're laughing with it)
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To: 4Runner

A relative?????


27 posted on 12/05/2021 2:27:44 PM PST by RetiredTexasVet (When Satan craps another demon possessed Progressive is born.)
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To: 4Runner
He committed suicide prior to conviction.

How is this even question?

No!

28 posted on 12/05/2021 4:07:16 PM PST by higgmeister ( In the Shadow of The Big Chicken)
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To: 4Runner

Great thread — shows why we’re here on FR. I’ve no particular interest in this question, but it’s fascinating to consider. Tks!


29 posted on 12/05/2021 5:06:04 PM PST by nicollo
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To: grumpygresh

“ Maybe the government can exhume his body and desecrate his corpse. That might satiate their blood lust.”

It wouldn’t be the first time.

https://www.historyandheadlines.com/january-30-1661-cromwell-executed-two-years-death/


30 posted on 12/05/2021 6:22:33 PM PST by jdsteel ("A Republic, Madam, if you can keep it." Sorry Ben, looks like we blew it.)
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To: Angelino97; 4Runner

Right. Here the State of Florida has to have filed some sort of legal claim on the decedent’s assets aka the laundered money, either separately from the criminal prosecution or as part of the criminal prosecution. If Florida had only asserted criminal jurisdiction over the defendant personally prior to his death, as opposed to his property, it has no claim on any of his property after his death.


31 posted on 12/05/2021 6:59:03 PM PST by Thud
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To: Notthemomma
Well, "wrongful death" is an entirely different matter.

If plaintiff Peter has a claim against defendant Dan for, say libel, then P must file the claim before he dies in order for P's wife Wilma to inherit a right to P's claim.

But if P is killed negligently by D, then W does have a wrongful death claim against D. But it's her claim, not one she inherited from P.

32 posted on 12/05/2021 8:04:13 PM PST by Angelino97
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To: 4Runner

Nope. Because its based on a conviction and you cannot convict a dead person.


33 posted on 12/06/2021 8:57:04 AM PST by JoeRender
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To: 4Runner
I'm not a lawyer but from what I've read, the criminal charges would be dropped and a civil action could be brought against the decedent's estate.
34 posted on 12/06/2021 9:15:29 AM PST by liberalh8ter (The only difference between flash mob 'urban yutes' and U.S. politicians is the hoodies.)
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To: Angelino97
"If plaintiff Peter has a claim against defendant Dan for, say libel, then P must file the claim before he dies in order for P's wife Wilma to inherit a right to P's claim."

No, not if the libel will hurt P's estate after his death. Then his spouse/executor/descendants have an interest in and a duty to limit that and to recover damages.

Imagine someone libeling P such that it kills his music recordings or book or movie sales/royalties, or devalues the property he/his estate owns that his estate will sell. The libel action can cause damages after the death that his estate/spouse can sue for, whether that suit was filed before his death or not. But hey, I'm not a lawyer. That's just how it seems to me from watching stuff from the outside.

35 posted on 12/11/2021 3:59:04 PM PST by Notthemomma ( )
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