EDITORIAL: State’s asset forfeiture law needs makeover

One of the great travesties of modern policing is law enforcement’s ability to lawfully steal the property of individuals without making an arrest or even writing a citation.

Asset forfeiture laws in Nevada and other states turn constitutional rights upside down. Americans are supposed to enjoy the presumption of innocence, but authorities can take money and material possessions if they suspect the assets were obtained or used in the commission of a crime. And to get the stuff back, whether it’s cash, a computer, a car or a house, individuals must prove their property was obtained lawfully. Victims don’t just forfeit their assets — they forfeit due process.

Gov. Brian Sandoval and the Nevada Legislature have an opportunity to take the lead in a growing national movement to end abuses carried out under these statutes. The Review-Journal’s 16th of 25 policy recommendations in 25 days: reforming Nevada’s asset forfeiture law.

These laws cry out for rewriting because they give law enforcement agencies a troubling incentive to abuse their authority: Police can use the assets to bolster their department budgets. Profiled traffic stops become a pretext for bogus searches that lack probable cause, because officers want new gear.

Last year, the Humboldt County Sheriff’s Department made national news by shaking down Interstate 80 travelers without so much as writing them a ticket. Two out-of-state motorists were pulled over and had thousands of dollars in cash seized. They were threatened with arrest if they did not sign “receipts” that documented the takings.

The drivers had to sue in federal court to get their money back.

Abuses in other jurisdictions have been far worse. Police have threatened to take children and turn them over to protective services if parents refused to give up their property. If you were given the choice of keeping your money or your freedom, which would you choose?

It’s astounding that such laws have not been overturned by courts. They cry out for several reforms that shift the burden of proof back to the state. First, governments should be required to prove, with actual evidence, that assets were obtained or used in the commission of a crime before being allowed to seize property. Second, governments must obtain a conviction to keep any assets seized. And third, seized revenues should go into county or state general funds, not police budgets. Police must be stripped of the incentive to take property in the first place.

The Legislature must end the asset forfeiture racket and restore citizens’ rights.