Civil forfeiture has become a significant government intrusion in recent years. While it remains a viable instrument for federal agents enforcing customs laws and fighting international crime, misguided policies and misaligned incentives foster abuses and raise grave constitutional concerns.
Each year, federal and state forfeiture programs allow law enforcement to seize more than $3 billion in cash and property from thousands of people – often without ever charging them with a crime. There are also serious questions as to whether civil courts using lower burdens of proof are the appropriate means to enforce government anti-crime policies.
Civil forfeiture further jeopardizes the relationship between police and their communities when vulnerable residents who cannot afford to challenge small-value seizures are targeted. There are also questionable benefits when financially-stressed departments prioritize revenue-generating forfeitures over arrests, drug interdiction, and crime-fighting.
CEI is addressing these issues through its new Forfeiture Reform Initiative: engaging federal and state policymakers to implement much-needed reforms and educating the public about their constitutional rights to stop improper seizures in the first place.
No person should have to fear for their property while engaged in lawful activities or lose it without ever being convicted of a crime.
Featured Posts
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Sunshine in Wyoming’s civil forfeiture
Transparency in civil forfeiture took a small step forward last week when the Wyoming Liberty Group published its latest report. One difficulty in writing about…
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Charlotte-area police departments are rolling in forfeiture funds
I’ve always loved William Blake’s poem “Auguries of Innocence,” which begins by asking the reader “To see a World in a Grain of Sand.”…
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Free the Economy podcast: Protecting your property rights with Betsy Sanz
In this week’s episode we cover slow-moving infrastructure projects, the impact of the conservative boycott of Bud Light, good and…
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Defending 4th Amendment Privacy Protections for Digital Property
People have property rights in data about themselves that is allocated by contract between them and their service providers.
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For the Sake of Financial Privacy, IRS Subpoena of Coinbase Should Go
Our brief in United States v. Coinbase might have a lot to say about what the future of financial privacy looks like.
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Amend Clean Water Act, Restore Private Property Rights
It is past time for the U.S. Congress to revisit the Clean Water Act.
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Emoluments Clause Does Not Ban Sales to Foreigners
The Constitution is not hostile to the free market or international trade. Indeed, many…
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Gates Foundation Should Credit Market Reforms for Poverty Reduction
The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation should give greater credit to the proven economic reforms that have spurred development throughout the world.
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Susette Kelo Eminent Domain Battle Hits Big Screen in ‘Little Pink House’
The film Little Pink House, a dramatization of Connecticut homeowner Susette Kelo’s fight against eminent domain abuse, had its world premiere last night at the…