Senator Rand Paul introduces bill to restore American’s 4th Amendment rights and end civil forfeiture
One of the most egregious laws created over the past 40 years that has morphed into pure and simple government theft, is the statute regarding Civil Forfeiture and the 'right' of the state to seize your property without you either committing a crime, or them having to follow due process under the law. In fact, civil forfeiture has become so widespread that state, local, and federal governments have illegally seized more cash and property in a year than all the combined thefts done by criminal elements in that same period. The 'purpose' for civil forfeiture was originally to aid law enforcement under the ideological 'war on drugs' by confiscating known contraband from criminals to try to destroy their operations. However, as with most laws created for a specific purpose by the government, officials at the state and federal levels have allowed this statute to expand to all perceived criminal activity, even if the individuals or businesses who have their property taken are never charged with a crime. Now on March 17, Kentucky Senator Rand Paul is trying to end this abuse of our 4th Amendment by proposing a bill that would put the onus back on the government to verify proof of criminal activity, and provide redress for victims of civil forfeiture who under the current law must attempt to prove their innocence, and that of their property. Sen. Rand Paul has long taken the lead in calling for the reform of civil asset forfeiture laws, a controversial police practice in which authorities basically steal the property of citizens without due process and little recourse. Billions have been seized from citizens by the police based on nothing more than suspicion, which many see as a direct violation of the Fifth Amendment. It’s state-sanctioned theft . “Under civil forfeiture laws, your property is guilty until you prove it innocent,” says the Institute for Justice’s Scott Bullock. On Thursday, Sen. Paul reintroduced FAIR (Fifth Amendment Integrity Restoration) Act , which specifically addresses victims of civil asset forfeiture who have not been convicted of a crime. “The federal government has made it far too easy for government agencies to take and profit from the property of those who have not been convicted of a crime,” Paul’s statement read. “The FAIR Act will protect Americans’ Fifth Amendment rights from being infringed upon by ensuring that government agencies no longer profit from taking the property of U.S. citizens without due process.” - Rare.US 40 years after the fact, the 'War on Drugs' have been a complete failure by all accounts, and has simply morphed into a means by which the government can accuse, arrest, or even seize the assets from, anyone they see fit without due process, or the assumption of innocence in a court of law. And hopefully this bill will be just the beginning to a return of the rule of Constitutional law for the American people, because sadly under the last two heads of the Judicial Department the Attorney Generals were both more than willing to steal your cash and property and give it to themselves. Kenneth Schortgen Jr is a writer for The Daily Economist , Secretsofthefed.com , Roguemoney.net , and Viral Liberty , and hosts the popular youtube podcast on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays. Ken can also be heard Wednesday afternoons giving an weekly economic report on the Angel Clark radio show .
March 19, 2017 at 07:22PM
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