Reforming Property Forfeiture Laws to... [Mackinac Center for Public Policy]

Home Search Site Map About Us Contribute

Universal Tuition Tax Credits are the best way to advance school choice Is the Michigan Education Association helping or hurting schools and students? Seven Principles of Sound Public Policy Six Habits of Fiscally Responsible School Districts Michigan Privatization Report Transforming Michigan’s economy Michigan Education Report Great Myths of the Great Depression The high cost of remedial education With Clear Eyes, Sincere Hearts and Open Minds: A Second Look at Public Education in America

Posted: Jul. 1, 1998

Reforming Property Forfeiture Laws to Protect Citizens’ Rights

Download PDF of the entire publication

The Framers of the United States Constitution understood that freedom depends upon the vigorous protection of private property rights and that this protection was therefore the most sacred obligation of government. However, despite Fifth and Fourteenth Amendment guarantees, recent years have witnessed a massive expansion of a legal practice known as "asset forfeiture," which allows government to violate the very property rights it is charged with protecting. Hundreds of asset forfeiture laws-many of them intended to stop illegal drug trafficking-give state and federal law enforcement agents the power to seize property even without proof of the owners' guilt in a criminal trial because, in many cases, the government considers the property itself to be the criminal. This study recommends nine reforms that will help guarantee that Michigan citizens enjoy the benefits of private property rights, limited government, and individual liberty, and remain protected from unjustified and arbitrary seizure of their personal possessions.