Thank You, Governor Martinez!
A few hours ago, Governor Susana Martinez of New Mexico signed groundbreaking legislation to strengthen the protection of individual rights in her state. The bill, H.B. 560, requires a criminal…
Florida, Maryland are the latest states looking to protect property through civil asset forfeiture reform
The tsunami of state-level civil asset forfeiture reforms continues to build as the Florida and Maryland legislatures are considering bills that would take small steps toward protecting innocent people’s property…
Why won’t Virginia’s top Republican stand with principled conservatives like Rand Paul and Mike Lee?
While some Republicans on the national level — such as Rand Paul and Mike Lee — are working diligently to reform the nation’s civil asset forfeiture laws, Virginia Senate Majority…
Unlikely alliance in Virginia could lead to strong reforms to protect property
Members of the Virginia General Assembly will have a second chance to limit civil asset forfeiture when they reconvene in Richmond on Wednesday, April 15, rekindling a "weird alliance"…
Barack Obama signs new executive order that could put innocent Americans’ property at risk
The steps the administration had taken to rein abuse of civil asset forfeiture were undermined on Wednesday when President Barack Obama signed an executive order that ignores Fifth Amendment protections…
The window to protect private property in New Mexico is rapidly closing
It has been nearly two weeks since the New Mexico Legislature unanimously passed a strong, bipartisan bill to protect private property from overzealous law enforcement by banning civil asset…
More Progress on Asset Forfeiture
Outgoing Attorney General Eric Holder apparently wants to leave behind a legacy of something other than corruption and scandal. In a recent memorandum, he’s making an effort to rein in…
Texas Republican legislator introduces bill to ban civil asset forfeiture
Texas has been a national leader on justice reform, passing and implementing landmark programs that have led to significant cost-savings for taxpayers, lower crime, and decreased repeat offender rates.
New Mexico’s governor eerily silent on civil asset forfeiture reform bill
Last weekend, in the final hours of its session for the year, the New Mexico Legislature unanimously passed a sweeping bill, HB 560, that effectively bans the practice of…
Civil Forfeiture Reform: States Have Led, More Need to Follow
Under civil asset forfeiture, the government can take someone’s property without convicting them of a crime. The law has its basis in British admiralty law and makes little sense in…