Some odd news out of Massachussetts. Legislators and law enforcement are teaming up to push legislation that would give agencies permission to seize and sell property belonging to people convicted of sexual crimes against children.
Tag: Asset Forfeiture
The Nation’s Criminals Can’t Keep Up With The Government’s Legalized Theft Programs | Techdirt
A comment to this story hit the bullseye:
In the 1980s we passed forfeiture laws to battle the largest criminals but look where we are now. If you want to know how the special powers we’re giving government to battle terrorism will end up, just look at this program.
Source: The Nation’s Criminals Can’t Keep Up With The Government’s Legalized Theft Programs | Techdirt
U.S. Government Grabbed Dotcom’s Millions “As a Last Resort” – TorrentFreak
The U.S. Government has informed the Court of Appeals that the civil forfeiture case against Megaupload and Kim Dotcom was launched as a last resort. The authorities feared that Dotcom and his colleagues would regain possession of the millions in seized assets and argue that they are properly labeled as “fugitives.”
Source: U.S. Government Grabbed Dotcom’s Millions “As a Last Resort” – TorrentFreak
Government Seizes Vehicles Worth $1 Million; Brings No Charges, Keeps The Cars | Techdirt
DEA Takes $16,000 From Train Passenger Because It Can
After scraping together enough money to produce a music video in Hollywood, 22-year-old Joseph Rivers set out last month on a train trip from Michigan to Los Angeles, hoping it was the start of something big.
Rivers changed trains at the Amtrak station in Albuquerque, New Mexico, on April 15, with bags containing his clothes, other possessions and an envelope filled with the $16,000 in cash he had raised with the help of his family, the Albuquerque Journal reports. Agents with the Drug Enforcement Administration got on after him and began looking for people who might be trafficking drugs.
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.