The folks at Reason TV take on the U.S. Department of Justice in this video about the lucrative civil forfeiture law. Last year DOJ hauled in $4.2 billion by seizing property.
Imagine getting pulled over while on a family vacation and having small-town cops accuse you and your family of being drug couriers. Then imagine hearing that you have two options: Fork over your cash and continue on your vacation or face felony charges for money laundering and child endangerment, in which case you go to jail and your kids get handed over to foster care. That’s what happened to Ron Henderson and Jennifer Boatright while traveling through Tenaha, Texas, a town that regards piracy as just another way to raise revenue.
Hmm. Imagine what DOJ could do on I-95.
