THE
STOP
COURTESY OF TERRANCE HUFF
THE FORFEITURE CORRIDOR
Asset forfeiture is the process by which
law enforcement agencies can take possession of property suspected of being tied to illegal activity. Under these
laws, the property itself is presumed to
be guilty of criminal activity. Once the
property has been seized, it’s up to the
owner to prove he obtained the property legitimately.
In about 80 percent of civil asset
forfeiture cases, the property owner is
nevercharged with a crime. And in Illi-
HUFFINGTON
10.21.12
Huff is shown here traversing the vast regions of space. His
ship has never been pulled over.
nois—like many states—the law enforcement agency that makes the seizure gets
to keep the cash or the proceeds of the
forfeiture auction, where the property is
auctioned off. (In Illinois, the prosecutor’s office gets 10-12 percent.)
Critics say civil asset forfeiture is rife
with improper incentives, and violates
the Fifth Amendment’s protection against
seizure of property without due process
of law. Police can seize a car, cash, even a
home on the flimsiest of evidence.
Madison County, Ill., where Huff was