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Deadline Looms for Filing Claim on Property Seized in Philadelphia Using Civil Asset Forfeiture

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dollar-499481_1920-300x212People who lost money, cars, and homes to Philadephia’s civil asset forfeiture statutes are entitled to reimbursement if they file a claim by December 6.

The city settled a class action lawsuit last year and agreed to reform its civil forfeiture program—the legal practice that allows law enforcement agencies to seize cash, vehicles, and property that is suspected of being connected to a crime, sometimes without even charging or convicting the property owner for a crime.

Law enforcement in Philly purportedly used asset forfeiture to seize thousands of vehicles and homes as well as millions of dollars in cash from criminal cases. Civil rights advocates have long held that such seizures, which often occur before a conviction, violate the rights of property owners.

Under the proposed settlement, officials agreed to set up a $3 million fund to compensate the estimated 35,000 victims of the city’s overzealous use of asset forfeiture, but so far, only about 1,200 have filed claims.

“We’d love to get that number up because everyone who was a victim of this Draconian system is entitled to get up to the full value of what they lost,” said attorney Darpana Sheth of the Institute of Justice.

Everyone who files a claim, even if they were convicted, will received $90 in recognition that the way the city used civil asset forfeiture violated their constitutional rights. Victims were mailed a claim form, but they can also file a claim online.

Officials have also agreed to institute some changes, including increasing judicial oversight of future seizures and placing limits on the seizure of cash and property. Police can no longer seize assets for simple drug possession charges. In cases where narcotics involvement warrants enough suspicion, police can’t make seizures of any amount less than $250.

The historic settlement resolved a 2014 lawsuit brought by the nonprofit advocacy group Institute for Justice. Representatives of the group said district attorney offices use the proceeds from seized property as a revenue stream, which incentivized law enforcement to seize a criminal suspect’s property.

In the decade before the lawsuit was filed in 2014, prosecutors Philadelphia reportedly confiscated more than 3,000 vehicles, 1,200 homes, and around $50 million in cash. How the proceeds of these seizures was used is a mystery. Police chiefs and district attorneys freely admit to using the funds, but rarely provide details on how exactly it is spent.

While the practice has largely stopped in Philadelphia because of the lawsuit, reports indicate that it has quietly ramped up in other parts of Pennsylvania, particularly in Berks County.

South Florida Civil Asset Forfeiture Attorney

If your lawful property has been seized, then you should hire an attorney. Contact us to set up a free initial consultation and work with one of Florida’s most experienced civil forfeiture defense attorneys.

Source: 10.29.19 Deadline looming to file claim on property seized by Philadelphia police.pdf

Pennsylvania Police Went on Civil Asset Forfeiture “Shopping Spree” According to Judge

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philadelphia-1740685_1920-300x241On March 23, 2016, police arrested Christopher “Bmore” Hawkins, age 46, of Spring Garden Township, Pennsylvania on drug charges. Hawkins was caught attempting to sell heroin to two informants. As part of his plea bargain, Hawkins pleaded guilty to several charges including “possession with intent to deliver heroin” in order to receive a prison sentence between four and eight years.

During a search of his house, law enforcement officials seized several items. These included televisions, a 1996 Dodge Neon, and a 2004 Mercedes-Benz CLK. Police were able to take possession of Hawkins’ property using a procedure known as civil asset forfeiture. This is where police are allowed to seize a person’s property or assets if they are suspected of being involved in a crime.

I recently reported on the heavy-handed use of civil asset forfeiture in Pennsylvania and, in particular, in the city of Philadelphia. In one case, police tried to seize Norys Hernandez’ home when her nephew was found to be dealing drugs on the property. While Hernandez did, eventually, get her property back, it took several years for the case to be settled.

Civil asset forfeiture disproportionately affects low-income communities. Since asset forfeiture is a civil and not a criminal process, there is no right to counsel. Innocent owners have to pay for a lawyer to retrieve their property—something which is beyond the means of many.

While there have been recent attempts to reform asset forfeiture in the state, there are still few protections for property owners. Also, up to 100% of the proceeds from forfeitures go to law enforcement to fund their programs. This has led to accusations of “policing for profit,” i.e., that the police are incentivized to seize property.

A York County judge last week agreed. While he agreeingHawkins was a criminal, Judge Craig Trebilcock criticized the York County Drug Task Force’s actions. There was no evidence linking the items seized from Hawkins’ home to criminal activity, wrote Trebilcock. The police, rather, went on “shopping spree, for the benefit of their budget, based solely on the property’s value.”

Trebilcock stressed that Hawkins’ was not an isolated case. “It is important to note, however, that overzealous forfeiture actions by the Drug Task Force in the time frame of this case have not been isolated in nature,” he wrote. Looking at other seizures, the judge noted that officer of the Drug Task force “disproportionately seized” game consoles and big-screen televisions in people’s homes.

Responding to Trebilcock’s opinion, District Attorney Dave Sunday said reforms to civil asset forfeiture are a key priority for him. “When I make changes to things or I adapt processes and procedures, it is not an indictment on past practices,” he said. “We constantly strive to become better at everything we do.”

Among the changes Sunday has implemented, civil forfeiture cases are now screened by Senior Deputy Prosecutor John Hamme. Hamme—who reports directly to Sunday—helps provide oversight and can answer law enforcement’s questions. If property is deemed to have been taken outside of what Hamme feels are appropriate parameters, it is automatically returned to the owner.

Sunday has also persuaded county commissioners to pay for two more detectives to be assigned to the Drug Task Force in order to alleviate the idea that the task force is funded by forfeitures. Finally, Sunday has stopped law enforcement from compelling people from agreeing to asset forfeiture as part of extending a plea arrangement.

Sunday stresses his changes are not designed to eliminate civil asset forfeiture in York County. “We cannot swing this pendulum so far that we forget why we’re doing this in the first place. We can adapt based on best practices,” he said. “But at the same time, we will continue to seize money and seize assets from drug dealers.”

Civil Asset Forfeiture Attorney

If your lawful property has been seized, then you should hire a lawyer. Contact us to set up a free initial consultation and work with one of Florida’s most experienced civil forfeiture defense attorneys.

Source

2019-03-26 York County Judge Criticizes Drug Task Force Seizures, DA Reforming

Philadelphia’s Problems With Civil Asset Forfeiture Run Deep

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philadelphia-224464_1920-300x200If anyone knows how unjust civil asset forfeiture can be, it’s Philadelphia resident, Norys Hernandez. Law enforcement attempted to seize the house she owned with her sister even though she had done nothing wrong. The authorities attempted to take her home after her nephew was arrested for dealing drugs on the property. It took years, but Norys eventually got her house back. She was part of a class-action lawsuit that was settled for $3 million last year.

Civil asset forfeiture is the legal process where police may take someone’s property if it is suspected of being involved in a crime. A criminal conviction is not required in most states. In fact, of the four plaintiffs named in the class-action lawsuit who had their houses seized, none were accused of having committed a crime. In three cases, the houses were seized because a relative had been caught selling drugs in the house.

In 2018, Philadelphia reformed its civil asset forfeiture procedures. This change was fêted by many as an end to the heavy-handed use of civil forfeiture in the city. While these reforms should reduce the worst excesses of civil asset forfeiture in Philadelphia, it will not eliminate the practice altogether. Law enforcement may also be able to partner with the fed in their “equitable sharing” plan in order to avoid the city’s restrictions altogether.

Describing the city’s former approach, City Councilwoman Maria Quiñones-Sánchez said, “We tried to confiscate and arrest our way out of the drug problem.”

The seizures of people’s homes were heavily centered on Latino and black districts of the city. In fact, more than two-fifths of all seized properties came from only four ZIP codes all of which had high rates of poverty and had a majority Latino or black population. On one block in Waterloo Street between 2011 and 2015, law enforcement attempted to take ownership of almost a quarter of the houses.

The large number of seizures in such a small area has negatively impacted those communities. “Forfeiture is a perfect example of what the city’s strategy was,” said Quiñones-Sánchez. “It was a lot of people reacting to the drug issue, but no one thinking about how to actually stabilize the properties.”

Once they had seized the properties, law enforcement would then auction them off. However, there was no plan for how to use these sales to improve the neighborhoods affected by drug crime. Between 1993 and 2018, the Philadelphia DA auctioned off more than 1,600 properties. Many of these were sold to investors or absentee landlords who had either no motivation or interest in improving the houses they bought, leading to further deterioration in the neighborhood.

Often police would seize the same house several times. After being auctioned, these houses found themselves being used for criminal activity time and again.

Many houses were left to decay while they are in legal limbo, leading to further problems in the affected communities. “It was in poor condition. It had been abandoned for a long time,” said Andrew Bowers of the house next to his which the DA attempted to seize in 2004 and has been vacant ever since. “It would need a total rehab job to make it livable again.”

While people such as Norys Hernandez have been able to keep their property, the scars of law enforcement’s use of civil asset forfeiture in Philadelphia will live with the city for a long time.

Civil Asset Forfeiture Attorney

If your lawful property has been seized, then you should hire a lawyer. Contact us to set up a free initial consultation and work with one of Florida’s most experienced civil forfeiture defense attorneys.

Source

2018-12-10 Inside the Philadelphia DA’s Side Hustle—Selling Seized Homes to Speculators and Cops

Significant Reforms to Civil Asset Forfeiture in Philadelphia

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agreement-business-businessmen-886465-300x200In 2014, Philadelphia police seized the home of Chris and Markela Sourovelis after their son was arrested for selling drugs worth $40 outside on their property. The police used a process known as civil asset forfeiture to take the property. This is a legal procedure where law enforcement can take someone’s property or cash if it is suspected of being involved in a crime. They can do so without a criminal conviction or even filing criminal charges.

According to the Institute for Justice (IJ), the use of civil asset forfeiture in Philadelphia has gone “unchecked” for years. Until recently, all funds from civil asset forfeiture seizures went directly Philadelphia’s law enforcement.

Between 2012-17, the District Attorney’s Office and the Philadelphia Police Department spent over $7 million from these funds. More than 18 percent of the DA’s annual budget came from civil forfeitures. There was little oversight on these funds: they were used to pay for submachine guns, a website, and even parking tickets.

When Chris and Markela discovered they were not alone, they joined a class-action lawsuit against the city filed by IJ. The suit claimed that the DA’s Office, the City, and the First Judicial District violated due process during seizures.

On Tuesday, the prosecution and law enforcement came to a consent decree agreement—that is, a resolution where there is no admission of guilt or liability—which announced significant changes to the application of civil asset forfeiture in Philadelphia.

Under the settlement, funds from civil forfeitures will no longer go to the Philadelphia PD. Instead, the money will be given to nonprofits. If an arrest is simply for possession of drugs, police may seize the illegal drugs but no property. Law enforcement will now provide a receipt of seized property; the receipt will also contain instruction on how to get the property back. An individual may soon file for the immediate return of property if it affects his or her livelihood—for example, if the person works as an Uber driver and his or her vehicle is seized. A simplified legal process will be put in place, and the process will now be under the control of judges rather than the prosecutors.

Philadelphia’s District Attorney, Larry Krasner, spoke approvingly of the agreement. “This settlement agreement was a long time coming and something our city needs… We will focus on cases where there is a conviction and, thanks to the settlement, residents now have additional protections and a clear process to retake possession of their property.”

“The settlement is going to make civil forfeiture a lot harder to pursue,” said Darpana Sheth of the IJ. “They have a higher standard of proof. They have to show the property owner knew about or consented to the illegal activity.”

In order for the agreement to go into effect, it needs to be approved by Judge Eduardo Robreno. A $3 million fund will be available for people who had property seized to receive compensation. Individuals not convicted of a crime will receive 100 percent of the value of their property. First-time offenders and low-level offenders will receive 75 percent of the value.

“This is a good resolution because it reforms a system that, left unchecked, can prey upon the most vulnerable. People who, in many instances, have no understanding of their rights and no one to fight for them,” said Mayor Jim Kenney. “In short, this settlement makes Philadelphia a more just city.”

Civil Asset Forfeiture Attorney

If your lawful property has been seized, then you should hire a lawyer. Contact us to set up a free initial consultation and work with one of Florida’s most experienced civil forfeiture defense attorneys.

Sources

2018-09-19 Civil asset forfeiture reform – Don’t Expect Philly DA and Police to Stop Seizing Money Anytime Soon

2018-09-18 Philly Civil Forfeiture Suit Settled, Program Changes Coming