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ALERT FROM CCOPS: CONCERNED CITIZENS OPPOSED TO POLICE STATES
(subscribe and unsubscribe instructions are at end of Alert)
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
October 26, 2000
ALERT: The Looting of America
How over 200 Civil Asset Forfeiture laws enable police to
confiscate your home, bank accounts & business without trial.
by Jarret Wollstein
Revised May 1997
"A police dog scratched at your luggage, so we're confiscating
your life savings and you'll never get it back." Police stopped
49-year-old Ethel Hylton at Houston's Hobby Airport and told her
she was under arrest because a drug dog had scratched at her
luggage. Agents searched her bags and strip-searched her, but
they found no drugs. They did find $39,110 in cash, money she
had received from an insurance settlement and her life savings;
accumulated through over 20 years of work as a hotel housekeeper
and hospital janitor. Ethel Hylton completely documented where
she got the money and was never charged with a crime. But the
police kept her money anyway. Nearly four years later, she is
still trying to get her money back.
Ethel Hylton is just one of a large and growing list of
Americans - now numbering in the hundreds of thousands - who
have been victimized by civil asset forfeiture. Under civil
asset forfeiture, every-thing you own can be legally taken
away even if you are never convicted of a crime.
Suspicion of offenses which, if proven in court, might result
in a $200 fine or probation, are being used to justify seizure
of tens or even hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of
property. Totally innocent Americans are losing their cars,
homes and businesses, based on the claims of anonymous
informants that illegal transactions took place on their
property. Once property is seized, it is virtually impossible
to get it back.
Property is now being seized in every state and from every
social group. Seizures include pocket money confiscated from
public-housing residents in Florida; cars taken away from men
suspected of soliciting prostitutes in Oregon; and homes taken
away from ordinary, middle class Americans whose teenage
children are accused of selling a few joints of marijuana. No
person and no property is immune from seizure. You could be the
next victim. Here are some examples:
In Washington, D.C. police stop black men on the streets in poor
areas of the city, and "routinely confiscate small amounts of
cash and jewelry". Most confiscated property is not even recorded
by police departments. "Resident Ben Davis calls it 'robbery with
a badge'." [USA Today, 5/18/92]
In Iowa, "a woman accused of shoplifting a $25 sweater had her
$18,000 car - specially equipped for her handicapped daughter -
seized as the 'getaway vehicle'." [USA Today, 5/18/92]
Detroit drug police raided a grocery store, but failed to find
any drugs. After drug dogs reacted to three $1.00 bills in the
cash register, the police seized $4,384 from cash registers and
the store safe. According to the Pittsburgh Press, over 92% of
all cash in circulation in the U.S. now shows some drug residue.
In Monmouth, New Jersey, Dr. David Disbrow was accused of
practicing psychiatry without a license. His crime was
providing counseling services from a spare bedroom in his
mother's house. Counseling does not require a license in New
Jersey. That didn't stop police from seizing virtually
everything of value from his mother's home, totaling over
$60,000. The forfeiture squad confiscated furniture, carpets,
paintings, and even personal photographs.
Kathy and Mark Schrama were arrested just before Christmas 1990
at their home in New Jersey. Kathy was charged with taking $500
worth of UPS packages from neighbors' porches. Mark was charged
with receiving stolen goods. If found guilty, they might have
paid a small fine and received probation. The day after their
arrest, their house, cars and furniture were seized. Based upon
mere accusation, $150,000 in property was confiscated, without
trial or indictment. Police even took their clothing, eyeglasses,
and Christmas presents for their 10-year-old son.
The incentive for government agencies to expand forfeiture is
enormous. Agencies can easily seize property and they usually
keep what they take. According to the Pittsburgh Press, 80% of
seizure victims are never even charged with a crime. Law
enforcement agencies often keep the best seized cars, watches
and TVs for their "departments", and sell the rest.
How extensive are seizures in America today? The Washington Post
has reported that the U.S. Marshals Service alone had an
inventory of over $1.4 billion in seized assets, including over
30,000 cars, boats, homes and businesses. Federal and state
agencies seizing property now include the FBI, the DEA, the U.S.
Marshals Service, the Coast Guard, the IRS, local police,
highway patrol, the Department of Housing and Urban Development,
FDA, and the Bureau of Land Management. Asset forfeiture is a
growth industry. Seizures have increased from $27 million in
1986, to over $644 million in 1991 to over $2 billion today.
Civil asset forfeiture defines a new standard of justice in
America; or more precisely, a new standard of injustice. Under
civil seizure, property, not an individual is charged with an
offense. Even if you are a totally innocent owner, the
government can still confiscate your "guilty" property.
If government agents seize your property under civil asset
forfeiture, you can forget about being innocent until proven
guilty, due process of law, the right to an attorney, or even
the right to trial. All of those rights only exist if you are
charged with a criminal offense; that is, with an offense which
could result in your imprisonment. If you (or your property) are
accused of a civil offense (offenses which could not result in
your imprisonment), the Supreme Count has ruled that you have no
presumption of innocence, no right to an attorney, and no
protection from double jeopardy.
Seizure occurs when government takes away your property.
Forfeiture is when legal title is permanently transferred to the
state. To get seized property returned, you have to fight the
full resources of your state or federal government; sometimes
both! You have to prove your property's "innocence" by
documenting how you earned every cent used to pay for it. You
have to prove that neither you nor any of your family members
ever committed an illegal act involving the property.
To get a trial, you have to post a non-refundable "bond" of 10%
of the value of your property. You have to pay attorney fees -
ranging from $5,000 to over $100,000 - out of your own pocket.
Money you pay your attorney is also subject to seizure (either
before or after the trial) if the government alleges that those
funds were "tainted". And you may be forced to go through trial
after trial, because under civil seizure the Constitutional
protection against "double jeopardy" doesn't apply. Once your
property is seized, expect to spend years fighting government
agencies and expect to be impoverished by legal fees - with no
guarantee of winning - while the government keeps your car, home
and bank account.
In fact, in a recent Supreme Court decision (Bennis v. Michigan),
the Court said explicitly that innocent owners can be deprived
of their property if it's used to facilitate a crime, even
without the owner's knowledge or consent. That means you can now
lose your home or business because of the action of employees,
relatives, or guests, over whom you have absolutely no control.
Police and prosecutors have incentive to confiscate as much as
possible.
Not only do police and prosecutors have the power to seize
anything you own on the slightest pretext, they also have the
incentive. The dirty little secret of the forfeiture racket is
that police, prosecutors and judges can benefit personally by
stealing your property.
Brenda Grantland - America's leading asset forfeiture defense
attorney - gives these examples of government greed in her book
Your House Is Under Arrest:
Suffolk County, NY. District Attorney James M. Catterton drives
around in a BMW 735I that was seized from an alleged drug dealer.
He spent $3,412 from the forfeiture fund for mechanical and body
work, including $75 for pin-striping.
Warren County, NJ. The assistant chief prosecutor drives a
confiscated yellow Corvette.
Little Compton, RI. The seven member police force received $3.8
million from the federal forfeiture fund, and spent it on such
things as a new 23-foot boat with trailer, and new Pontiac
Firebirds.
But that's just the tip of the iceberg. The head of one Los
Angeles police forfeiture squad claims his group personally
pocketed over $60 million in seized property.
Why do our courts tolerate these outrageous legalized thefts?
Because they get their cut. It's completely legal for
confiscated property to be used by police, prosecutors and
judges, so long as it's for official business. In 1996, a
federal district court even ruled that police can personally
receive 25% of the value of any confiscated home, car, or
business.
Some police will kill you for your property
In Malibu, California, park police tried repeatedly to buy the
home and land of 61-year-old, retired rancher Don Scott, which
was next to national parkland. Scott refused. On the morning of
October 2, 1992, a task force of 26 LA county sheriffs, DEA
agents and other cops broke into Scott's living room. When he
heard his wife, Frances, scream, he came out of his upstairs
bedroom with a gun over his head. Police yelled at him to lower
his gun. He did, and they shot him dead.
Police claimed to be searching for marijuana which they never
found. Ventura County DA Michael Bradbury concluded that the
raid was "motivated at least in part, by a desire to seize and
forfeit the ranch for the government ... [The] search warrant
became Donald Scott's death warrant."
....
Mr. Tom Gordon (Interim Director)
Forfeiture Endangers American Rights (FEAR)
P.O. Box 15421, Washington, DC 20003
Tel: 1-888-FEAR-001
e-mail: tgordon@tmn.com Y website: http://www.fear.org
International Society for Individual Liberty
836-B Southampton Rd, #299, Benicia, CA 94510-1907
Tel: (707) 746-8796 Fax: (707) 746-8797
E-mail: 71034.2711@compuserve.com
Website: http://www.isil.org
________________________________________________________________
"It is exclusively the judicial branch of government in any
country that throws its nation into internal upheaval and
ultimate revolution."
- - Ron Branson
J.A.I.L. is an acronym for (Judicial Accountability Initiative Law)
JAIL's very informative website is found at www.jail4judges.org
JAIL proposes a unique new addition to our form of government.
JAIL is powerful! JAIL is dynamic! JAIL is America's ONLY hope!
JAIL's is spreading across America like a fast moving wildfire!
JAIL is making inroads into Congress for federal accountability!
JAIL may be supported at P.O. Box 207, N. Hollywood, CA 91603
To subscribe or be removed: add-remove-jail@mindspring.com
To send published judicial articles: USA-jail4judges@mindspring.com
To contact the author of JAIL4Judges: jail4judges@mindspring.com
All E-Groups are encouraged to sign on at jail4judges@egroups.com
"..it does not require a majority to prevail, but rather an
irate, tireless minority keen to set brush fires in people's
minds.."
- - Samuel Adams
"There are a thousand hacking at the branches of evil to one who
is striking at the root."
- - Henry David Thoreau
J.A.I.L. News Journal
October 20, 2000
________________________________________________________________
Listen to HotSeat4Judges daily on Internet Radio M-Th, 6-7 pm
P.T.
________________________________________________________________
Make your plans now to attend So. CA. JAIL's Nov. 11th (Veteran's
Day) fundraiser. RSVP $20 (or $25 at the door) to Doug Johnson,
(818) 895-1239, 8340 Columbus Ave., North Hills, CA. 91343.
Event held 11 am., American Legion Hall, 7338 Canby Ave.,
Reseda, CA. Includes food and a J.A.I.L. T-shirt.
* * * *
Forwarded FYI by the Liberty Crew
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Copyright 2000 CCOPS, Inc. Permission is granted to reproduce
this alert in full, so long as the following contact information
is included:
CCOPS: Concerned Citizens Opposed to Police States
P.O. Box 270205
Hartford, WI 53027
Phone: (262) 670-9920
Fax: (262) 670-9921
Web: http://www.ccops.org/
e-mail: webmaster@ccops.org
Hash: SHA1
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
ALERT FROM CCOPS: CONCERNED CITIZENS OPPOSED TO POLICE STATES
(subscribe and unsubscribe instructions are at end of Alert)
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
October 26, 2000
ALERT: The Looting of America
How over 200 Civil Asset Forfeiture laws enable police to
confiscate your home, bank accounts & business without trial.
by Jarret Wollstein
Revised May 1997
"A police dog scratched at your luggage, so we're confiscating
your life savings and you'll never get it back." Police stopped
49-year-old Ethel Hylton at Houston's Hobby Airport and told her
she was under arrest because a drug dog had scratched at her
luggage. Agents searched her bags and strip-searched her, but
they found no drugs. They did find $39,110 in cash, money she
had received from an insurance settlement and her life savings;
accumulated through over 20 years of work as a hotel housekeeper
and hospital janitor. Ethel Hylton completely documented where
she got the money and was never charged with a crime. But the
police kept her money anyway. Nearly four years later, she is
still trying to get her money back.
Ethel Hylton is just one of a large and growing list of
Americans - now numbering in the hundreds of thousands - who
have been victimized by civil asset forfeiture. Under civil
asset forfeiture, every-thing you own can be legally taken
away even if you are never convicted of a crime.
Suspicion of offenses which, if proven in court, might result
in a $200 fine or probation, are being used to justify seizure
of tens or even hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of
property. Totally innocent Americans are losing their cars,
homes and businesses, based on the claims of anonymous
informants that illegal transactions took place on their
property. Once property is seized, it is virtually impossible
to get it back.
Property is now being seized in every state and from every
social group. Seizures include pocket money confiscated from
public-housing residents in Florida; cars taken away from men
suspected of soliciting prostitutes in Oregon; and homes taken
away from ordinary, middle class Americans whose teenage
children are accused of selling a few joints of marijuana. No
person and no property is immune from seizure. You could be the
next victim. Here are some examples:
In Washington, D.C. police stop black men on the streets in poor
areas of the city, and "routinely confiscate small amounts of
cash and jewelry". Most confiscated property is not even recorded
by police departments. "Resident Ben Davis calls it 'robbery with
a badge'." [USA Today, 5/18/92]
In Iowa, "a woman accused of shoplifting a $25 sweater had her
$18,000 car - specially equipped for her handicapped daughter -
seized as the 'getaway vehicle'." [USA Today, 5/18/92]
Detroit drug police raided a grocery store, but failed to find
any drugs. After drug dogs reacted to three $1.00 bills in the
cash register, the police seized $4,384 from cash registers and
the store safe. According to the Pittsburgh Press, over 92% of
all cash in circulation in the U.S. now shows some drug residue.
In Monmouth, New Jersey, Dr. David Disbrow was accused of
practicing psychiatry without a license. His crime was
providing counseling services from a spare bedroom in his
mother's house. Counseling does not require a license in New
Jersey. That didn't stop police from seizing virtually
everything of value from his mother's home, totaling over
$60,000. The forfeiture squad confiscated furniture, carpets,
paintings, and even personal photographs.
Kathy and Mark Schrama were arrested just before Christmas 1990
at their home in New Jersey. Kathy was charged with taking $500
worth of UPS packages from neighbors' porches. Mark was charged
with receiving stolen goods. If found guilty, they might have
paid a small fine and received probation. The day after their
arrest, their house, cars and furniture were seized. Based upon
mere accusation, $150,000 in property was confiscated, without
trial or indictment. Police even took their clothing, eyeglasses,
and Christmas presents for their 10-year-old son.
The incentive for government agencies to expand forfeiture is
enormous. Agencies can easily seize property and they usually
keep what they take. According to the Pittsburgh Press, 80% of
seizure victims are never even charged with a crime. Law
enforcement agencies often keep the best seized cars, watches
and TVs for their "departments", and sell the rest.
How extensive are seizures in America today? The Washington Post
has reported that the U.S. Marshals Service alone had an
inventory of over $1.4 billion in seized assets, including over
30,000 cars, boats, homes and businesses. Federal and state
agencies seizing property now include the FBI, the DEA, the U.S.
Marshals Service, the Coast Guard, the IRS, local police,
highway patrol, the Department of Housing and Urban Development,
FDA, and the Bureau of Land Management. Asset forfeiture is a
growth industry. Seizures have increased from $27 million in
1986, to over $644 million in 1991 to over $2 billion today.
Civil asset forfeiture defines a new standard of justice in
America; or more precisely, a new standard of injustice. Under
civil seizure, property, not an individual is charged with an
offense. Even if you are a totally innocent owner, the
government can still confiscate your "guilty" property.
If government agents seize your property under civil asset
forfeiture, you can forget about being innocent until proven
guilty, due process of law, the right to an attorney, or even
the right to trial. All of those rights only exist if you are
charged with a criminal offense; that is, with an offense which
could result in your imprisonment. If you (or your property) are
accused of a civil offense (offenses which could not result in
your imprisonment), the Supreme Count has ruled that you have no
presumption of innocence, no right to an attorney, and no
protection from double jeopardy.
Seizure occurs when government takes away your property.
Forfeiture is when legal title is permanently transferred to the
state. To get seized property returned, you have to fight the
full resources of your state or federal government; sometimes
both! You have to prove your property's "innocence" by
documenting how you earned every cent used to pay for it. You
have to prove that neither you nor any of your family members
ever committed an illegal act involving the property.
To get a trial, you have to post a non-refundable "bond" of 10%
of the value of your property. You have to pay attorney fees -
ranging from $5,000 to over $100,000 - out of your own pocket.
Money you pay your attorney is also subject to seizure (either
before or after the trial) if the government alleges that those
funds were "tainted". And you may be forced to go through trial
after trial, because under civil seizure the Constitutional
protection against "double jeopardy" doesn't apply. Once your
property is seized, expect to spend years fighting government
agencies and expect to be impoverished by legal fees - with no
guarantee of winning - while the government keeps your car, home
and bank account.
In fact, in a recent Supreme Court decision (Bennis v. Michigan),
the Court said explicitly that innocent owners can be deprived
of their property if it's used to facilitate a crime, even
without the owner's knowledge or consent. That means you can now
lose your home or business because of the action of employees,
relatives, or guests, over whom you have absolutely no control.
Police and prosecutors have incentive to confiscate as much as
possible.
Not only do police and prosecutors have the power to seize
anything you own on the slightest pretext, they also have the
incentive. The dirty little secret of the forfeiture racket is
that police, prosecutors and judges can benefit personally by
stealing your property.
Brenda Grantland - America's leading asset forfeiture defense
attorney - gives these examples of government greed in her book
Your House Is Under Arrest:
Suffolk County, NY. District Attorney James M. Catterton drives
around in a BMW 735I that was seized from an alleged drug dealer.
He spent $3,412 from the forfeiture fund for mechanical and body
work, including $75 for pin-striping.
Warren County, NJ. The assistant chief prosecutor drives a
confiscated yellow Corvette.
Little Compton, RI. The seven member police force received $3.8
million from the federal forfeiture fund, and spent it on such
things as a new 23-foot boat with trailer, and new Pontiac
Firebirds.
But that's just the tip of the iceberg. The head of one Los
Angeles police forfeiture squad claims his group personally
pocketed over $60 million in seized property.
Why do our courts tolerate these outrageous legalized thefts?
Because they get their cut. It's completely legal for
confiscated property to be used by police, prosecutors and
judges, so long as it's for official business. In 1996, a
federal district court even ruled that police can personally
receive 25% of the value of any confiscated home, car, or
business.
Some police will kill you for your property
In Malibu, California, park police tried repeatedly to buy the
home and land of 61-year-old, retired rancher Don Scott, which
was next to national parkland. Scott refused. On the morning of
October 2, 1992, a task force of 26 LA county sheriffs, DEA
agents and other cops broke into Scott's living room. When he
heard his wife, Frances, scream, he came out of his upstairs
bedroom with a gun over his head. Police yelled at him to lower
his gun. He did, and they shot him dead.
Police claimed to be searching for marijuana which they never
found. Ventura County DA Michael Bradbury concluded that the
raid was "motivated at least in part, by a desire to seize and
forfeit the ranch for the government ... [The] search warrant
became Donald Scott's death warrant."
....
Mr. Tom Gordon (Interim Director)
Forfeiture Endangers American Rights (FEAR)
P.O. Box 15421, Washington, DC 20003
Tel: 1-888-FEAR-001
e-mail: tgordon@tmn.com Y website: http://www.fear.org
International Society for Individual Liberty
836-B Southampton Rd, #299, Benicia, CA 94510-1907
Tel: (707) 746-8796 Fax: (707) 746-8797
E-mail: 71034.2711@compuserve.com
Website: http://www.isil.org
________________________________________________________________
"It is exclusively the judicial branch of government in any
country that throws its nation into internal upheaval and
ultimate revolution."
- - Ron Branson
J.A.I.L. is an acronym for (Judicial Accountability Initiative Law)
JAIL's very informative website is found at www.jail4judges.org
JAIL proposes a unique new addition to our form of government.
JAIL is powerful! JAIL is dynamic! JAIL is America's ONLY hope!
JAIL's is spreading across America like a fast moving wildfire!
JAIL is making inroads into Congress for federal accountability!
JAIL may be supported at P.O. Box 207, N. Hollywood, CA 91603
To subscribe or be removed: add-remove-jail@mindspring.com
To send published judicial articles: USA-jail4judges@mindspring.com
To contact the author of JAIL4Judges: jail4judges@mindspring.com
All E-Groups are encouraged to sign on at jail4judges@egroups.com
"..it does not require a majority to prevail, but rather an
irate, tireless minority keen to set brush fires in people's
minds.."
- - Samuel Adams
"There are a thousand hacking at the branches of evil to one who
is striking at the root."
- - Henry David Thoreau
J.A.I.L. News Journal
October 20, 2000
________________________________________________________________
Listen to HotSeat4Judges daily on Internet Radio M-Th, 6-7 pm
P.T.
________________________________________________________________
Make your plans now to attend So. CA. JAIL's Nov. 11th (Veteran's
Day) fundraiser. RSVP $20 (or $25 at the door) to Doug Johnson,
(818) 895-1239, 8340 Columbus Ave., North Hills, CA. 91343.
Event held 11 am., American Legion Hall, 7338 Canby Ave.,
Reseda, CA. Includes food and a J.A.I.L. T-shirt.
* * * *
Forwarded FYI by the Liberty Crew
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Copyright 2000 CCOPS, Inc. Permission is granted to reproduce
this alert in full, so long as the following contact information
is included:
CCOPS: Concerned Citizens Opposed to Police States
P.O. Box 270205
Hartford, WI 53027
Phone: (262) 670-9920
Fax: (262) 670-9921
Web: http://www.ccops.org/
e-mail: webmaster@ccops.org