Posted on 08/25/2007 12:32:37 PM PDT by microgood
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. — A trucker has sued the Drug Enforcement Administration, seeking to get back nearly $24,000 seized by DEA agents earlier this month at a weigh station on U.S. 54 in New Mexico north of El Paso, Texas.
Anastasio Prieto of El Paso gave a state police officer at the weigh station permission to search the truck to see if it contained "needles or cash in excess of $10,000," according to the American Civil Liberties Union, which filed the federal lawsuit Thursday.
Prieto told the officer he didn't have any needles but did have $23,700.
Officers took the money and turned it over to the DEA. DEA agents photographed and fingerprinted Prieto over his objections, then released him without charging him with anything.
Border Patrol agents searched his truck with drug-sniffing dogs, but found no evidence of illegal substances, the ACLU said.
The lawsuit alleges the defendants violated Prieto's right to be free of unlawful search and seizure by taking his money without probable cause and by fingerprinting and photographing him.
"Mere possession of approximately $23,700 does not establish probable cause for a search or seizure," the lawsuit said.
It said Prieto pulled into the weigh station about 10:30 a.m. Aug. 8 and was let go about 4 p.m.
DEA agents told Prieto he would receive a notice of federal proceedings to permanently forfeit the money within 30 days and that to get it back, he'd have to prove it was his and did not come from illegal drug sales.
They told him the process probably would take a year, the ACLU said.
The ACLU's New Mexico executive director, Peter Simonson, said Prieto needs his money now to pay bills and maintain his truck. The lawsuit said Prieto does not like banks and customarily carries his savings as cash.
"The government took Mr. Prieto's money as surely as if he had been robbed on a street corner at night," Simonson said. "In fact, being robbed might have been better. At least then the police would have treated him as the victim of a crime instead of as a perpetrator."
The DEA did not immediately respond Friday to a request for comment from The Associated Press.
Peter Olson, a spokesman for the Department of Public Safety, which oversees state police, said he could not comment on pending litigation.
The lawsuit names DEA Administrator Karen P. Tandy, DEA task force officer Gary T. Apodaca, DEA agent Joseph Montoya and three state police officers identified only as John or Jane Doe.
Where did it say he was crossing the border? Did I miss that? The article said he was from El Paso.
He was in New Mexico. The weigh station is at mile marker 349, Nara Visa, that’s 56 miles North of the border, and still 5 miles SW of re-entering Texas.
That’s also the freight and truck route to Ft Bliss off of I-10 and loop 375. It’s also a straight shot to/from Tucumcari and I-40.He could have just picked up or dropped off there
He could have just been doing his job, trying to make a living. If he was an illegal, they would have taken his truck, and held him for a hearing.
Many Mexicans don’t use banks. And many truckers carry cash in case of breakdowns, especially when running through rural/desolate areas. If you blow your motor, and I suspect he was in an older truck, it’ll cost upwards of 15k to have it rebuilt.
There is NO LAW against carrying cash, in any amounts, in this Country. Had it been me, I would have driven to a safe distance away, and called every TV station, radio station, newspaper, and the f’n FBI, before I left without my money. LOL
And the moral of this story is you NEVER give a cop permission to search your car, your truck, your house, or your person.
NEVER!
“I would have driven to a safe distance away, and called every TV station, radio station, newspaper, and the f’n FBI, before I left without my money”
Did you ever see the old movie, “Three Days of the Condor”? The last line of the move when the protagonist, standing in front of the newspaper offices threatens to tell the press. The bad guy government insider says, “What if they don’t print it?”
I fear that most people don’t care what happens to someone else.
“When they came for the Gypsies, I didn’t complain for I was not a Gypsy. When they came for the Jews, i didn’t complain for I was not a Jew . . . .”
The recent case in (I think) Minnesota of a woman sexually assulted while some 20 people watched and did nothing. On video tape.
I wish I didn’t feel that way but sometimes it gets depressing.
Another Clinonista misdeed that’s being blamed on Bush. It was a bad law when the RATS ran it through in the early 90’s and it’s still a bad law.
The DEA might be evil, but I stick by my assertion that the guy is probably guilty of something because the ACLU is siding with him. If he were a law abiding citizen, the ACLU would not give a damn about the fact that the government stole his money.
Were they lying when they represented Rush Limbaugh during his recent difficulties?
Driving around domesticly with over $10,000 seems to be reasonable cause for search,........... that was elfmans statement, not mine.
It is hard to beleive that we’ve stupidly gone along in the name of the “evil weed”.
Try taking $10K out of your bank acct. or try making a deposit of $10K cash. It’ll give you a shiver.
Was on Fed jury once on a meth case, heck the DEA was dirtier than the guilty perps!
It depends if the search is for contraband or for office safety. A firm refusal with legal citations will deter most cops unless they really think there is something there. Also locked bags changes things, even under Carroll.
I was stopped twice in the last 60 days by LEOs while on a long distance motorcycle trip. I was not ticketed either time. Each time they asked to search my hard bags. Each time I refused saying they were locked and they did not press it.
A lot of its situational. In one case the LEO wanted to know what I was doing in his town, the other he did not know the law about headlight modulators. I was polite but firm. I also was on touring bike with stock mufflers, was well attired and was profesional. They could reasonably have looked in my tank bag, but they chose not to.
Actually, it's PERFECTLY constitutional, at least according to rulings by the courts, something that really pisses me off.
Here's how it works... They don't actually charge you with a crime, so your constitutional rights are not being violated. However, they DO "arrest" or detain your property. But since your property isn't human, it doesn't have any rights! That's how it works. Voila! Your property is gone. Of course, you can then try to get it back, in court. And the government will do everything possible to make it as drawn out, time consuming, and expensive as possible for you to get it back. In many cases, it will cost more to get it back than the original amount stolen.
Mark
“And the government will do everything possible to make it as drawn out, time consuming, and expensive as possible for you to get it back. In many cases, it will cost more to get it back than the original amount stolen.”
You mean that they handle it just about the same way as Castro would.
Sometimes I wonder if the American system of Government has deteriorated so much that it’s no longer worth preserving.
Right. Some cops are bullies, but most don’t want to push civilians around too much unless they have a hunch you’re causing trouble. Also, they know that the deeper they dig on a warrantless, non-consensual search, the greater the odds that anything they find will be tossed out. Is it really worth pushing the envelope to search an innocent person? In general, no.
Of course the attitudes change drastically from city, to state, to federal level.
I have to side with the ACLU on this one, too. In my fair city, (and many others, too), cruising around looking for prostitutes is grounds for law enforcement to seize one’s vehicle. I am against prostitution, but I think that kind of law is wrong.
But it's certainly not cause for a seizure without due process. If a government thinks I have too much money, let it file charges and try to get a court of law to prove this.
“try making a deposit of $10K cash. It’ll give you a shiver.”
Not really. We did last year, cashed a loan check at one bank, drove to our bank and deposited the cash. It was kinda neat.
The truck was taking its money south of the border?
There is probably a lot more to the story.
I would bet not. There are a small but steady stream of honest, mostly small business people, who get burned by asset seizure. Law enforcement will point to thier track record, which is pretty damn good actually, but those who care out our rights will point to the admitedly few ruined lives.
Our system is supposed to err on the side of innocense. Asset seziure turns that on its head.
There are *code words* that tell a cop you know what his real limits are. Also there are other things that will either alert him or calm him. I have lots of the latter.
In both cases I was a fish out of water and they were checking up, I don’t really mind since it was well intentioned and was not a large delay. In the latter case the LEO had never seen a headlight modulator on a motorcycle. After we discussed it, I left him a copy of the Federal rules.
One can assert ones rights without being an asshat...something the young take a long time to learn.
“Anastasio Prieto of El Paso gave a state police officer at the weigh station permission to search the truck to see if it contained “needles or cash in excess of $10,000,” according to the American Civil Liberties Union, which filed the federal lawsuit Thursday.”
“Prieto told the officer he didn’t have any needles but did have $23,700.”
He actually did declare he had this much $ b/4 the search.
Is Prieto a Hispanic name or an Italian name?
http://www.alternet.org/story/11340/ info on carrying cash and a 10% reward.
At this point I am with the trucker.
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