Posted on 04/08/2006 6:18:33 AM PDT by CrawDaddyCA
Talk about taking a bite out of crime.
Government lawyers tried to confiscate the gold tooth caps known as "grills" from the mouths of two men facing drug charges, saying the dental work qualified as seizable assets. They had them in a vehicle headed to a dental clinic by the time defense attorneys persuaded a judge to halt the procedure.
"I've been doing this for over 30 years and I have never heard of anything like this," said Richard J. Troberman, a past president of the Washington Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers. "It sounds like Nazi Germany when they were removing the gold teeth from the bodies, but at least then they waited until they were dead."
Prosecutors had a warrant to seize the gold dental work, according to documents and lawyers involved in the case. But they eventually abandoned the effort, saying they mistakenly thought the grills were removable.
The customized tooth caps, popularized by rappers such as Nelly, are made of precious metals and jewels and can cost thousands of dollars for a full set. Some can be snapped onto the teeth, while others are permanently bonded to the teeth.
Flenard T. Neal Jr. and Donald Jamar Lewis both have permanently bonded grills, their lawyers said.
Neal and Lewis, both charged with several drug and weapon violations, were taken Tuesday from the Federal Detention Center to the U.S. marshal's office, where they were told the government had a warrant to seize the grills. They called their lawyers as they were about to be taken to a dentist, said Miriam Schwartz, Neal's public defender.
A permanent stay of the seizure order was issued that day by U.S. Magistrate J. Kelley Arnold, court documents show.
"Asset forfeiture is a fairly routine procedure, and our attorneys were under the impression that these snapped out like a retainer," said Emily Langlie, a spokeswoman for the U.S. attorney's office in Seattle.
Taking a bite out of crime.
Nazis.
Is it safe?
Jeez,even the Nazis waited until their victims were dead before stealing the gold out of their mouths.
By his logic, childbirth would equal "torture" at Abu Grabe
These guys were only suspects. They should have waited until they were convicted.
but they just killed the people, like the chinese harvesting organs.
They'll come out in prison easy enough.
These little ba$$tards have them taken out in jail and prison and use them for drugs and power.
"Smile for me daddy, I wanna see yore grill! You wanna see muh whut??? I wanna see yore grill!!!"
(for those of you who do not currently have teenage chilruns, those are lyrics to a current, fingernails-on-chalkboard, "song".)
Flenard? C'mon, folks. Stop making up names.
LOL!
Uh, Dean, the Nazis didn't "wait until their victims died." They killed them.
Of course that's what I meant.They were dead before they stole the gold out of their mouths because they killed them.Why would you think that I meant anything else?
These things aren't dental work for health, they are jewelry.
They would have been doing them a favor. Having gold teeth makes you look like an idiot.
These guys should be thrilled they didn't have some artful tattoos!
It would be a civil rights violation if the most stupid in our society were forced to wear these things. They're just identifying themselves.
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