Before that stop was over, the officers had seized $100,000, which the men said was money to play poker. The troopers also called ahead to California authorities, who raided the men’s homes and ultimately indicted one of them, John Newmerzhycky, on a charge of illegal possession of drug paraphernalia.
If this sounds unusual and way out of the ordinary, it isn’t. The seizure is just one of thousands of highway stops that state and local authorities call “interdictions:” Roadside stops aimed at catching drug dealers or even terrorists, but which can also result in cash seizures alone with no criminal charges attached.
It’s called Civil Asset Forfeiture, and it was started in the early 1980s by the Justice Department. It has since migrated to thousands of state and local jurisdictions nationwide. The program, when it originated, was meant to target and take money authorities believed was connected to crimes.
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“With this new policy, effective immediately, the Justice Department is taking an important step to prohibit federal agency adoptions of state and local seizures, except for public safety reasons,” said Attorney General Eric Holder.
Critics like the Institute for Justice, however, say that doesn’t mean the elimination of the practice. The institute’s president, Scott Bullock predicted it will continue in most states around the country.
