Posted on 05/09/2015 11:23:41 AM PDT by Forgotten Amendments
Rivers said the agents questioned passengers at random, asking for their destination and reason for travel. When one of the agents got to Rivers, who was the only black person in his car, according to witnesses, the agent took the interrogation further, asking to search his bags. Rivers complied. The agent found the cash -- still in a bank envelope -- and decided to seize it on suspicion that it may be tied to narcotics. River pleaded with the agents, explaining his situation and even putting his mother on the phone to verify the story.
No luck.
“These officers took everything that I had worked so hard to save and even money that was given to me by family that believed in me,” Rivers told the Journal. “I told (the DEA agents) I had no money and no means to survive in Los Angeles if they took my money. They informed me that it was my responsibility to figure out how I was going to do that.”
(Excerpt) Read more at huffingtonpost.com ...
There is not enough information on this.
In other news, the sun rose in the East this morning.
Lesson#1. When LEO asks to search you, say no,
let ‘em get an F’ing warrant.
That said: I feel for the kid, as it sounds like a total rip off.
The thug should be glad they didn’t shoot him.
Just posting a link to another source that’s not HP:
http://www.abqjournal.com/580107/news/dea-agents-seize-16000-from-aspiring-music-video-producer.html
Why would they shoot him?
'Nahh, we'll just get the dog out here and have him sniff around, then we don't need a warrant.' And I guarantee that the dog will absolutely indicate there's something in the possessions, which would then result in the search and the confiscation.
So I guess the real lesson number one: Your cash can be stolen by LEO as well as crooks. When it is taken, you have little recourse and maybe with a lot of expense, you might get part of it back.
I am skeptical about this story. 16,000 in cash is legal in my book but why were they pulled over?
I’ve been “pulled” over 3 times in the last 3 years.
I suspect race has nothing to do with it. The DEA would have seized the cash regardless of race.
No one was “pulled over.” He was on an Amtrak train, and a DEA agent boarded and started asking people questions.
“I suspect race has nothing to do with it. The DEA would have seized the cash regardless of race.”
That’s true. Civil asset forfeiture is one of the DEA’s favorite scams, and the only color they see is green.
I misunderstood the word “Car” to be a motor car.
If they were tracking someone then there is much more to the story.
Would you be better off with a money order, made out to yourself?
How do you know he is a thug? Do you know him personally?
Government is out of control. Don’t blame Whitey for this.
The DEA isn't authorized to seize money under Article 1, Section 8 of the Constitution.
What else do you want? They are out of their jurisdiction, regardless of what lies get told.
/johnny
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.