<story><title>Holder limits seized-asset sharing process that split billions with police</title><url>http://www.washingtonpost.com/investigations/holder-ends-seized-asset-sharing-process-that-split-billions-with-local-state-police/2015/01/16/0e7ca058-99d4-11e4-bcfb-059ec7a93ddc_story.html</url></story><parent_chain><item><author>knodi123</author><text>&amp;gt; I really don&amp;#x27;t understand how this practice persisted for so long next when we have the right to due process.&lt;p&gt;Can someone clarify for me-  I read the article, and it SEEMS to be saying &amp;quot;the feds will no longer be participating in this process, which will of course still be carried out by state and city police&amp;quot;.  It&amp;#x27;s more about where seized money gets allocated, than about limiting the actual seizures.&lt;p&gt;Is that right?</text></item><item><author>clavalle</author><text>Good.&lt;p&gt;I really don&amp;#x27;t understand how this practice persisted for so long next when we have the right to due process.&lt;p&gt;For people who think it only happened to drug dealers who were difficult to prosecute; it happened to my elderly parents.&lt;p&gt;My grandfather died suddenly in Georgia and we were the closest family at the time.  My parents packed up their car in a hurry and started from Texas down I-10.  In Mississippi they ran into a drunk driving checkpoint.  They, being elderly conservative Republican business owners driving a luxury sedan that never conceived that the police would not be on their side, consented to a search of their car.  The police found an antique revolver (my dad is an avid collector) locked in its case in the trunk.  That plus the $800 he had in his wallet as travel money was enough to get them thrown in jail for the weekend and their property seized as suspected drug dealers.&lt;p&gt;$8000 in local lawyer fees later they got their car back but the antique gun had &amp;#x27;gone missing&amp;#x27; along with the cash.  Their lawyer said they were lucky to get the car back.</text></item></parent_chain><comment><author>tw04</author><text>Under federal rules, the departments got to keep the forfeitures.  IE: the cop who pulled you over could literally pocket the cash.  0 oversight.&lt;p&gt;Under State rules, in almost all states, the money goes into the general fund.  And there is due process to actually seize the asset.  We&amp;#x27;re essentially removing the incentive from the police officers to pull people over.  It does them no good to take your stuff if it just goes into one big pot that they&amp;#x27;ll never see again.</text></comment>
<story><title>Holder limits seized-asset sharing process that split billions with police</title><url>http://www.washingtonpost.com/investigations/holder-ends-seized-asset-sharing-process-that-split-billions-with-local-state-police/2015/01/16/0e7ca058-99d4-11e4-bcfb-059ec7a93ddc_story.html</url></story><parent_chain><item><author>knodi123</author><text>&amp;gt; I really don&amp;#x27;t understand how this practice persisted for so long next when we have the right to due process.&lt;p&gt;Can someone clarify for me-  I read the article, and it SEEMS to be saying &amp;quot;the feds will no longer be participating in this process, which will of course still be carried out by state and city police&amp;quot;.  It&amp;#x27;s more about where seized money gets allocated, than about limiting the actual seizures.&lt;p&gt;Is that right?</text></item><item><author>clavalle</author><text>Good.&lt;p&gt;I really don&amp;#x27;t understand how this practice persisted for so long next when we have the right to due process.&lt;p&gt;For people who think it only happened to drug dealers who were difficult to prosecute; it happened to my elderly parents.&lt;p&gt;My grandfather died suddenly in Georgia and we were the closest family at the time.  My parents packed up their car in a hurry and started from Texas down I-10.  In Mississippi they ran into a drunk driving checkpoint.  They, being elderly conservative Republican business owners driving a luxury sedan that never conceived that the police would not be on their side, consented to a search of their car.  The police found an antique revolver (my dad is an avid collector) locked in its case in the trunk.  That plus the $800 he had in his wallet as travel money was enough to get them thrown in jail for the weekend and their property seized as suspected drug dealers.&lt;p&gt;$8000 in local lawyer fees later they got their car back but the antique gun had &amp;#x27;gone missing&amp;#x27; along with the cash.  Their lawyer said they were lucky to get the car back.</text></item></parent_chain><comment><author>ensignavenger</author><text>The Missouri Sate constitution requires that any proceeds from seizures go to an education fund.  In Missouri, not a penny should go to the local cops.  Unfortunately, local cops would frequently violate the state&amp;#x27;s constitution by turning over the seizures to the feds, who would then keep a percent and give the rest back to the local cops.  Of course, the local cops should have turned it over to education, as that is clearly what the state constitution requires, but they would routinely violate the constitution and keep the proceeds for themselves.</text></comment>