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Holder limits seized-asset sharing process that split billions with local, state police
Washington Post ^ | 16 Jan 2015 | Robert O'Harrow Jr., Sari Horwitz and Steven Rich

Posted on 01/16/2015 2:07:39 PM PST by oblomov

Attorney General Eric H. Holder Jr. on Friday barred local and state police from using federal law to seize cash, cars and other property without proving that a crime occurred.

Holder’s action represents the most sweeping check on police power to confiscate personal property since the seizures began three decades ago as part of the war on drugs.

Since 2008, thousands of local and state police agencies have made more than 55,000 seizures of cash and property worth $3 billion under a civil asset forfeiture program at the Justice Department called Equitable Sharing.

The program has enabled local and state police to make seizures and then have them “adopted” by federal agencies, which share in the proceeds. The program allowed police departments and drug task forces to keep up to 80 percent of the proceeds of the adopted seizures, with the rest going to federal agencies.

“With this new policy, effective immediately, the Justice Department is taking an important step to prohibit federal agency adoptions of state and local seizures, except for public safety reasons,” Holder said in a statement.

Holder’s decision allows some limited exceptions, including illegal firearms, ammunition, explosives and property associated with child pornography, a small fraction of the total. This would eliminate virtually all cash and vehicle seizures made by local and state police from the program.

While police can continue to make seizures under their own state laws, the federal program was easy to use and required most of the proceeds from the seizures to go to local and state police departments. Many states require seized proceeds to go into the general fund.

(Excerpt) Read more at washingtonpost.com ...


TOPICS: Breaking News; Constitution/Conservatism; Crime/Corruption; News/Current Events
KEYWORDS: assetforfeiture; ericholder; forfeiture; holder; liberty; whatshisfrnick; wod
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To: aMorePerfectUnion

“Why isn’t the republican oligarchy doing anything??”

Republicans apparently agreed with this. That shows the priority individual liberty has in the mind of a typical republican.

For-profit policing is a travesty.


41 posted on 01/17/2015 4:10:38 AM PST by RFEngineer
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To: DannyTN

He did it for the wrong reasons.


42 posted on 01/17/2015 4:29:41 AM PST by driftdiver (I could eat it raw, but why do that when I have a fire.)
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To: driftdiver
"He did it for the wrong reasons."

This. He sure didn't do it because of his love for the Constitution.

43 posted on 01/17/2015 6:36:22 AM PST by HangThemHigh (Entropy's not what it used to be.)
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To: El Cid
I'm thinking there is more involved. I.e., Eric Holder bans local police from seizing assets so the Federal Gestapo can get first dibs.

Even if that is the case, the local PDs will likely be less willing to want to work with the Feds b/c of this.

44 posted on 01/17/2015 6:59:02 AM PST by Future Snake Eater (CrossFit.com)
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To: oblomov
" This would eliminate virtually all cash and vehicle seizures made by local and state police from the program."

Not that I'm defending this practice by any means, but if they didn't seize the vehicles or cash up front, what are the odds that after the trial they will get them?

Just to throw this idea out there - Let the cops and prosecutors keep doing what they are doing now, but if the person is found not guilty the county will have to pay them back double the cash value of what was seized PLUS 10% interest per month.

Put some skin for the locals in the game and see how fast the practice cleans itself up. Only a open and shut case would then be seized, and not like now as a revenue base.

45 posted on 01/17/2015 7:26:01 AM PST by Abathar (Proudly posting without reading the article carefully since 2004)
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To: Abathar

blind squirrel,broken clock etc etc

this is an absolutely horrible law and needed to go away long ago


46 posted on 01/17/2015 7:40:09 AM PST by jneesy (rough seas make skillful sailors)
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To: oblomov
Attorney General Eric H. Holder Jr. on Friday barred local and state police from using federal law to seize cash, cars and other property without proving that a crime occurred.

I think a big, fat pig just flew past my window. I agree with something Eric Holder has done, wow.

47 posted on 01/17/2015 7:43:18 AM PST by RegulatorCountry
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To: oblomov

With holder involved, there’s a taqiyya aspect in there somewhere.


48 posted on 01/17/2015 7:47:08 AM PST by onedoug
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To: jneesy

Holder’s clock is set on military time for me, he’s only right just once a day not twice like most people.

It will be up to the courts to settle this completely though, but he is within his power to do this at least and not stepping outside it again.


49 posted on 01/17/2015 7:55:00 AM PST by Abathar (Proudly posting without reading the article carefully since 2004)
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To: oblomov
Attorney General Eric H. Holder Jr. on Friday barred local and state police from using federal law to seize cash, cars and other property without proving that a crime occurred.

Blind squirrel finds nut! I'm sure this doesn't indicate he's suddenly discovered respect for the civil rights of his superiors, but I'll take it.

50 posted on 01/17/2015 8:11:14 AM PST by Still Thinking (Freedom is NOT a loophole!)
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To: Abathar

Change that from “found not guilty” to “not found guilty” and you’d be onto something. A lot of these cases never even go to a criminal trial; the asses seizure is the whole story. So you can’t let the tie (no trial, no verdict) go to the bad guys, make them actually get a conviction (with a separate finding with it’s own rules of evidence that the seized goods/money were related in some significant way to the crime, and then they can keep them). Otherwise, not just interest as you stated, but a PENALTY, so they’re actually out of pocket so there’s a disincentive. If the goods were money, they might have been earning interest, so making them pay interest might not put them out of pocket.


51 posted on 01/17/2015 8:22:01 AM PST by Still Thinking (Freedom is NOT a loophole!)
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To: El Cid

maybe so but I didn’t read it that way. States can’t use federal law to seize certain assets. They can still seize cars carrying drugs under state laws.


52 posted on 01/17/2015 8:49:26 AM PST by plain talk
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To: oblomov

Yes, that is a surprise.


53 posted on 01/17/2015 10:11:15 AM PST by daniel1212 (Come to the Lord Jesus as a contrite damned+destitute sinner, trust Him to save you, then live 4 Him)
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To: Secret Agent Man

Aha! Thanks for the explanation.

On first reading, I couldn’t believe that I actually agreed with something Holder did. I knew there had to be some nefarious reason for it.


54 posted on 01/17/2015 10:50:12 AM PST by generally (Don't be stupid. We have politicians for that.)
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To: Caipirabob
Wow, broken clock effect in action! Given the odds the past 6 years, it’s about time he got one right.

They also started taping FBI interrogations. That was a long overdue positive step. And they pay lip service to dealing with police militarization.

55 posted on 01/17/2015 1:35:40 PM PST by Forgotten Amendments (Peace On Earth! Purity of Essence! McCain/Ripper 2016)
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To: Ken H
You want republicans to defend asset seizure???

Alas, they probably will.

56 posted on 01/17/2015 1:39:08 PM PST by Forgotten Amendments (Peace On Earth! Purity of Essence! McCain/Ripper 2016)
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To: SargeK

I’m fairly certain the SC has ruled on this and said it was OK.


57 posted on 01/17/2015 11:32:11 PM PST by Dave W
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To: aMorePerfectUnion

For once, Holder is doing the right thing. No one, including you can defend asset seizure. I think you probably don’t understand the issue and automatically assume Holder did the wrong thing.


58 posted on 01/17/2015 11:34:18 PM PST by Dave W
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To: SargeK; Secret Agent Man; no-to-illegals; All

This is basically saying that one is guilty until proven innocent. I know personally of several nasty related situations. One person in DC had a mother dying of a long term illness. They signed something for Medicare to get treatment. After they died Medicare said they owed $600,000 for the mother’s treatment and would seize the house toward the payment. The person signing the papers either had no understanding or did not see anything about having such a responsibility. DC has a “one month Vacant Property law” which says if you leave your property vacant for one month you have to register it as a Vacant Property. If you do that they immediately hit you with a tax bill SIX times the regular tax bill. There are exemptions, but it is a real pain to have to prove your property is not vacant if someone, a neighbor or real estate person is after the property, reports it to the tax authority. One person I know, a lawyer yet, registered their renovation property and were hit with a 3 year back taxes at 6 times, plus penalty and interest of more than $100,000. They lost their dream house. Another person was reported by someone because they were not spending “enough” time in their home of many years and was hit by 3 years back taxes and penalty and interest and were not entitled to their elderly exemption. To appeal the case to the Superior Court, they must first pay the very large tax bill, which if they win the city might take as much as two years to refund.

There are many laws of this type throughout the country, and they especially seem to target the elderly and sick and need to be fought wherever they exist before YOU become the next victim. Real Estate lawyers have been known to use such laws to get property.


59 posted on 01/18/2015 12:24:08 AM PST by gleeaikin
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To: FreeReign; All

The article says that around 2/3rd of the actions are taken locally without Fed involvement.

The Post found that local and state police routinely pulled over drivers for minor traffic infractions, pressed them to agree to warrantless searches and seized large amounts of cash without evidence of wrongdoing. The law allows such seizures and forces the owners to prove their property was legally acquired in order to get it back.

Police spent the seizure proceeds with little oversight, in some cases buying luxury cars, high-powered weapons and military-grade gear such as armored cars, according to an analysis of Justice Department data obtained through Freedom of Information Act requests.


60 posted on 01/18/2015 12:27:15 AM PST by gleeaikin
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