SF14 is a bill that would prohibit law enforcement from
seizing private property unless they are charged and convicted with a
felony. The Heritage Foundation’s web site defines civil asset forfeiture
in this way: “Civil asset forfeiture is a legal tool that allows law
enforcement officials to seize property that they assert has been involved in
certain criminal activity. In fact, the owner of the property doesn’t even need
to be guilty of a crime:…….. This means that police can seize your car, home,
money or valuables without ever having to charge you with a crime.”
Under existing statutes, law
enforcement in Wyoming is currently allowed to and does seize private property
if they allege it is even “intended” for use in certain crimes. Once the
property is seized individuals must hire an attorney and argue in court to get
their own property back. Often it is so expensive and burdensome to go
through the court procedure that individuals simply forfeit their property.
In a state like Wyoming which
places a high value on individual freedom and property rights, citizens would
think that elected officials would be quick to support a bill that does away
with the government taking of private property. Not so, both the
Governor’s office and the Attorney General argued for the continued practice of
seizing private property with no filing of criminal charges. The Attorney
General argued that this is a powerful tool to use a deterrent to crime.
The taking of private property from citizens when there is insufficient
evidence that a crime has been committed makes the protections of the Bill of
Rights meaningless and the Wyoming Legislature should insure that private
property rights are protected by passing SF14.
Linda Burt
Executive Director
ACLU of Wyoming
(As originally published in the Casper Star Tribune)
