Michigan's Wayne County (Detroit) seized more than 2,600 vehicles between 2017 and 2019 and raked in more than $1.2 million in asset forfeiture revenues, according to public records obtained by the Mackinac Center for Public Policy, a free market Michigan think tank.
Of those seizures, 473 were not accompanied by a criminal conviction, and in 438 of those cases, no one was even charged with a crime.
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the 6th Circuit, agreeing with a lower U.S. district court, found that Wayne County "violated that Constitution when it seized plaintiffs' personal vehicles—which were vital to their transportation and livelihoods—with no timely process to contest the seizure."
Under civil asset forfeiture laws, police can seize property suspected of being connected to criminal activity, even if the owner is not charged with a crime.
Wayne County had a particularly aggressive vehicle forfeiture program targeting illicit marijuana, prostitution, drag racing, and other public disorder and nuisance offenses. It typically offered to settle cases and return cars for $900, plus towing and storage fees. (An example of such a forfeiture notice can be seen here.) The alternative was waiting months for the WCPO to file a motion for forfeiture in court, without one's car.
After reviewing the plaintiffs' cases, the panel of 6th Circuit judges could only agree that a perverse profit incentive, not crime fighting, was driving Wayne County's asset forfeiture program. "The county seized the vehicles in order to obtain proceeds from fees," the court wrote.
Of those seizures, 473 were not accompanied by a criminal conviction, and in 438 of those cases, no one was even charged with a crime.
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the 6th Circuit, agreeing with a lower U.S. district court, found that Wayne County "violated that Constitution when it seized plaintiffs' personal vehicles—which were vital to their transportation and livelihoods—with no timely process to contest the seizure."
Under civil asset forfeiture laws, police can seize property suspected of being connected to criminal activity, even if the owner is not charged with a crime.
Wayne County had a particularly aggressive vehicle forfeiture program targeting illicit marijuana, prostitution, drag racing, and other public disorder and nuisance offenses. It typically offered to settle cases and return cars for $900, plus towing and storage fees. (An example of such a forfeiture notice can be seen here.) The alternative was waiting months for the WCPO to file a motion for forfeiture in court, without one's car.
After reviewing the plaintiffs' cases, the panel of 6th Circuit judges could only agree that a perverse profit incentive, not crime fighting, was driving Wayne County's asset forfeiture program. "The county seized the vehicles in order to obtain proceeds from fees," the court wrote.
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