I was heavily in favor of asset forfeiture in the past, because drug dealers truly were laundering a vast amount of money by purchasing assets with money obtained by criminal means. And to me, that was grossly unfair to law abiding citizens. I agree that serious civil abuses are occurring because of the emphasis on asset forfeitures, even without a conviction, and sometimes for minor crimes. In essence, it is out of control. The asset forfeiture laws need serious revisions!
From day 1 it was a gross violation of the 4th, 5th, and 6th Amendments to the Constitution, and it only got worse over time. The surest way to take money out of the hands of drug dealers is to legalize and regulate. The market would quickly drive down prices to the point where it was no longer attractive for a criminal enterprise. This of course is hardly a radical solution, being exactly how we solved the out of control organized-crime problem during Prohibition.