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Civil Asset Forfeiture Revisited

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Civil Asset Forfeiture Revisited

Michael Greenberg of the Institute for Justice breaks down the egregious FBI raid on Americans' private vaults

Bob Zadek
Jan 19, 2023
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“The government's dragnet search of innocent peoples' private security boxes is the most outrageous Fourth Amendment abuse that the Institute for Justice has ever seen.”

– Robert Frommer, Institute for Justice Senior Attorney

Just when you think you’ve seen it all, the FBI goes and does something so egregious that it shocks even long-time Institute for Justice attorneys.

If you’ve been following the issue of civil asset forfeiture, you may remember the case of Timbs v. Indiana*, in which the Supreme Court unanimously overturned a decision by Indiana’s state Supreme Court, finding that the state’s seizure of a $42,000 Land Rover violated the 8th amendment’s “excessive fines and fees” clause.

Law enforcement departments across the country have been colluding with federal law enforcement to effectively “police for profit,” with civil asset forfeiture being their primary tool. Under this practice, a person need not be found guilty for their property to be taken. Tyson Timbs, the defendant in that case, had the help of the IJ to fight through the long legal battle that he ultimately won. Many innocent victims of forfeiture laws simply throw up their hands and accept defeat.

Follow IJ on Twitter

Mike Greenberg is an attorney at the Institute for Justice who will join me Sunday (1/22) to discuss a new case in which the FBI blatantly violated the terms of their warrant in seizing over $80 million in assets from the private vaults kept by a safe deposit company. A majority of the assets and precious family heirlooms have now been restored to their rightful owners – but only after a fight.

Listen Live, Sunday, 1/22, at 8am PT/11am ET

Greenberg was part of the IJ’s legal team that fought on behalf of Paul and Jennifer Snitko, whose belongings were wrongly seized and photographed by FBI agents in March of 2021 without probable cause.

Doesn’t the Constitution say something about that?

“The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by Oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized. “

– The Fourth Amendment to the Constitution

Seems pretty clear cut to me.

Greenberg and I will discuss the facts of the case before delivering a verdict.

What will the consequences be for the FBI this time?

Listen Live, 8am PT

Tune in to the show of #ideasnotattitude to find out.

Can’t listen live? Get the podcast with detailed show notes/transcripts + book summary

Links:


  • IJ Uncovers Conspiracy by Federal Cops in California   - Institute for Justice

  • Institute for Justice (@IJ) / Twitter

  • The Rise of Civil Forfeiture | The New Yorker

  • * Awaiting the Verdict in Timbs v. Indiana

ICYMI – Is Environmentalism a Religious Movement?


Mike Munger recently returned to the show to revive the argument against the Broken Window Fallacy. Today, environmentalists have taken sophistry to a new level of religious observance of the destruction of wealth to appease Mother Earth.

Twitter avatar for @rzadek
Bob Zadek @rzadek
What happens when religious views dictate policy? • Germany burns 3x more fuel in order to reduce nuclear waste. • Trucks belch carbon dioxide while waiting to drop off worthless recycling • Rare minerals used up to replace old cars. Read or listen: bobzadek.substack.com/p/is-environme…
4:58 PM ∙ Jan 16, 2023

Listen or read here:

Essential Liberty
Is Environmentalism a Religious Movement?
Listen now (53 min) | Mike Munger (@mungowitz) is a prolific writer and Professor of Political Science, Economics, and Public Policy at Duke University, as well as a Senior Fellow of the American Institute for Economic Research – AIER. His latest article for AIER, “Green Energy is the Modern Broken Window…
Listen now
5 months ago · 3 likes · Bob Zadek

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