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The U.S. government is under fire for seizing assets worth $100 million from citizens without reason. Due process and individual rights have been raised due to this controversial action. Through court challenges, the affected citizens are seeking transparency and justice.
Institute for Justice Challenges FBI’s Unexplained Asset Seizures
Institute for Justice is suing to stop the forfeiture proceedings and to protect the rights of people whose assets were seized by the FBI without explanation.
A Los Angeles couple is at the center of a case where the FBI seized $40,200 of their life savings without explaining why. Many wonder why the FBI took their cash and belongings from a Beverly Hills storage company in March 2021.
Apparently, the FBI took their money without proving any wrongdoing or illegal activity. According to their lawyer, Bob Belden, the FBI’s actions are unethical and violate the Martins’ rights as US citizens.
The government shouldn’t get to take your property if it can’t tell you what you did wrong.
Using civil forfeiture, the government decides for itself whether to take and try to keep property, even when it doesn’t suspect the owners of any crime. Then, the FBI sends copy-and-paste forfeiture notices that fail to tell owners anything about why it is trying to take their property. That’s not only wrong; it’s unconstitutional.
FBI Faces Legal Action Over Unjustified Asset Seizures
The FBI seized over $100 million in cash, gold, jewelry, and other valuable items from hundreds of people during its Beverly Hills operation, according to the Institute for Justice.
The government won’t explain what the couple did despite sending blanket notices that “indirectly refer to hundreds of federal crimes.”
Those who received forfeiture notices from the FBI have filed a lawsuit in the Columbia District Court to stop the administrative proceedings. In the lawsuit, all parties ask the court to intervene and halt the process.
According to Linda, she and her husband haven’t been charged with anything and haven’t seen their money since.
The FBI took my savings nearly two years ago but has never told me why. It’s been a confusing and frustrating process from the day my money was taken. No one should have to go through this.
Federal law enforcement agencies get money from civil and criminal forfeiture, says Rob Frommer, a senior attorney at the Institute for Justice. These forfeiture practices generate a lot of money for the authorities.
Thousands of times yearly, people receive paltry notices that say the government wants to forfeit their property because it might be wrapped up in one of the hundreds of federal crimes.
Linda’s plight highlights the ugly truth that federal forfeiture incentivizes agents to seize as much as possible, even without any reason to think that a crime was committed. The FBI’s ‘policing for profit’ deliberately leaves property owners in the dark to keep them from fighting back.
According to the Institute, another client involved in the safety deposit seizure got a weak forfeiture notice. A judge ruled that the FBI’s actions violated due process and the Fifth Amendment, which protects against self-incrimination.
The judge ordered them to return the safety deposit box. As a result of the ruling, other agencies will have to prove probable cause and conduct seizures legally.
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