How Much Private Property is the Government Stealing in Your State?
by Bob Ewing
You’ve probably heard about eminent domain abuse. That’s where the government takes your land and hands it over to another private party….one that is more politically connected.
But you may not have heard about civil forfeiture. And yet, today, it could very well be the most egregious abuse of private property rights in America.
We all know that one of the many beautiful things about the United States is that citizens are innocent until proven guilty. But civil forfeiture turns that fundamental principle on its head.
This sounds bizarre, but with civil forfeiture, your property is guilty until you prove it innocent.
Consider the case of Margaret Davis.
As a 77-year-old woman living alone with multiple medical problems, Margaret left her Pennsylvania home unlocked so her neighbors could regularly check on her. One day while the police were chasing alleged drug dealers through her neighborhood, they all ran through Margaret’s house. The dealers dropped some of their stash on Margaret’s floor, in plain sight.
Instead of apologizing to Margaret for the traumatic experience, the government seized her house.
Under civil forfeiture laws, Margaret’s property—her house—was guilty until she could prove it innocent to get it back. And that’s not all. As it turns out, most state and federal laws allow the government to keep the property they take through civil forfeiture. So authorities have a big incentive to pursue property over justice.







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