spot_imgspot_img

Florida law enforcement seized $26M annually through civil forfeiture

(The Center Square) — Over the past five years, law enforcement agencies in Florida have seized an average of $26 million in assets through civil asset forfeiture, which allows the seizure of property even if the owner hasn’t been convicted of a crime.

Under civil asset forfeiture, prosecutors use a lower evidentiary standard in court to prove that property used in the commission of a crime or was from the proceeds of the crime.

According to Florida law, every law enforcement agency in the state must submit an annual report to the Department of Law Enforcement on the agency’s seized or forfeited property under the Florida Contraband Forfeiture Act, detailing all receipts and expenditures.

The statute also states that the DLE must submit its own report to the Office of Program Policy Analysis and Government Accountability, including a list of law enforcement agencies that fail to comply. Law enforcement agencies are also barred from factoring future seizures into their budgets.

The last report submitted by the Office of the Inspector General in June 2022 showed that over fiscal 2020-21, $27 million in direct forfeitures had been received by law enforcement agencies.

Records for previous years show a similar pattern, with fiscal 2019-20 having over $24 million in revenue from direct forfeiture, while fiscal 2018-19 revenue sat at $26.7 million in direct forfeiture and interest payments.

Past reports also show that during fiscal 2017-18, law enforcement agencies received a whopping $275 million in revenue from direct forfeitures, interest payments, and other agencies. Most of that was from state seizures and not local agencies.

Justin Pearson, the Managing Attorney of the Institute for Justice’s Florida Office told The Center Square that civil forfeiture should not exist and reforms have been undermined by the “equitable sharing loophole.”

“The way the equitable sharing loophole works is that in states that have passed reforms, the federal DOJ tells state and local police to ignore those reforms, keep doing things the same way, but then give the forfeitures to the feds to file in federal court instead of state court,” Pearson said, adding that the process is called “adoption.”

Pearson noted that by filing the forfeiture in federal court — circumventing state protections — state and local police are paid out 80% of the forfeited assets, while the feds keep the remaining 20%.

“The feds call this division of money ‘equitable sharing.’ Sadly, the overwhelming majority of these proceeds come from people who have not even been accused of a crime, let alone convicted of anything,” Pearson said, pointing out that there are two ways to close the loophole.

“Some states have closed it by requiring all equitable sharing proceeds to go into a general fund instead of to the departments who seized the money or property,” Pearson said, noting that the other way to close the loophole would be for Congress to pass HR 1525. “This removes the perverse incentive to steal innocent people’s stuff.”

The Fifth Amendment Integrity Restoration Act would end the equitable sharing program and require seizure proceeds to go to the U.S. Treasury Department. Also, property owners would have to be informed by the government of their intent to forfeit the property within seven days after the owner’s identity was confirmed.

DON’T MISS OUT

Be the first to know about the latest news, giveaways, events, and updates from The Black Chronicle!

We don’t spam! Read our privacy policy for more info.

spot_imgspot_img
spot_img

Hot this week

African and Caribbean Nations Call for Reparations for Slave Trade, Propose Global Fund

Nations across Africa and the Caribbean, deeply impacted by...

Health care company agrees to pay $22.5 million to settle claims of over billing

A health care company agreed to pay nearly $22.5...

Sports betting expert offers advice on paying taxes for gambling winnings

(The Center Square) – Tax season is underway, and...

Entertainment district benefits don’t outweigh the cost, economists say

(The Center Square) — Weeks later, after more details...

Business association ‘disappointed’ by WA L&I’s proposed workers comp rate hike

(The Center Square) – The Association of Washington Business...

Wauwatosa Schools asks taxpayers for additional $124.4M in referendums

(The Center Square) – The Wauwatosa School District is...

Op-Ed: Understanding the wireless tax burden and its impact on consumers

As the demand for wireless services continues to grow,...

Lawmakers want postal service to address safety and security risks

(The Center Square) – A group of bipartisan members...

North Carolina attorney general sues TikTok, ByteDance

(The Center Square) – TikTok, popular short-form social media...

Election 2024: Four candidates running to represent U.S. House 10

(The Center Square) – Four candidates are seeking to...

Database: More than 13,000 gender reassignment procedures on minors between 2019-23

(The Center Square) – Sex reassignment procedures and surgeries...

Louisiana think tank says ‘a flat tax is not the answer’

(The Center Square) − Invest in Louisiana has issued...

Convicted ex-ComEd leader to visit Italy before sentencing

(The Center Square) – More than a year after...

More like this
Related

Wauwatosa Schools asks taxpayers for additional $124.4M in referendums

(The Center Square) – The Wauwatosa School District is...

Op-Ed: Understanding the wireless tax burden and its impact on consumers

As the demand for wireless services continues to grow,...

Lawmakers want postal service to address safety and security risks

(The Center Square) – A group of bipartisan members...

North Carolina attorney general sues TikTok, ByteDance

(The Center Square) – TikTok, popular short-form social media...