This afternoon, Pennsylvania state Rep. Jim Cox (R-Sinking Spring) introduced HB 508, a bill that would offer protections for innocent property owners and restore due process in the Commonwealth. FreedomWorks strongly supports HB 508 and its companion bill in the Senate, SB 869, which was introduced earlier in June.

Ten years ago today, the United States Supreme Court fundamentally changed the meaning and purpose of the Takings Clause of the Fifth Amendment, which allows for the use of eminent domain for “public use,” such as a road. But in a 5 to 4 decision, the Court ruled that eminent domain could be used to take property from a private citizen for purposes other than a public use.

The California House Public Safety Committee is expected to hold a hearing on July 14 to debate proposed civil asset forfeiture reforms that offer substantive protections for innocent property owners.

With members of the Senate Judiciary Committee, under the watchful eye of Chairman Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa), working on long overdue sentencing reforms, a group of 130 former federal prosecutors, judges, and other law enforcement officials sent a letter urging action on the Smarter Sentencing Act.

In May, Gov. Rick Snyder rolled out his priorities to create a smart justice system in Michigan by proposing a series of reforms that have been successful in other states. Georgia and Texas, for instance, have seen significant savings through innovative justice reforms while crime and repeat offender rates dropped.

The House Judiciary Committee announced the formation of a criminal justice reform initiative that will examine various pieces of legislation that would address issues including over-criminalization, sentencing reform, and prison reform.

During a recent a recent discussion with Oklahoma journalists, Gov. Mary Fallin indicated that reforms were necessary to the Sooner State's awful civil asset forfeiture laws. How far she is willing to go remains to be seen.

Mark Weller and his court-appointed attorney, Brad Hansen, pleaded for leniency from U.S. District Court Judge Mark Bennett, who was at the center of a Washington Post story over the weekend on federal sentencing laws. Unfortunately, even though Weller had a story and family history that urged sentencing restraint, Judge Bennett's sentence was mandated by big government in Washington.