“Laws are no longer made by a rational process of public discussion; they are made by a process of blackmail and intimidation, and they are executed in the same manner.” - H.L. Mencken
Let’s not mince words.
Jeff Sessions, the nation’s top law enforcement official, would not recognize the Constitution if he ran right smack into it.
Whether the head of the Trump Administration’s Justice Department enjoys being the architect of a police state or is just painfully, criminally clueless, Sessions has done a great job thus far of sidestepping the Constitution at every turn.
Most recently, under the guise of “fighting crime,” Sessions gave police the green light to rob, pilfer, steal, thieve, swipe, purloin, filch and liberate American taxpayers of even more of their hard-earned valuables (especially if it happens to be significant amounts of cash) using any means, fair or foul.
In this case, the foul method favored by Sessions & Co. is civil asset forfeiture, which allows police and prosecutors to “seize your car or other property, sell it and use the proceeds to fund agency budgets—all without so much as charging you with a crime.”
Under a federal equitable sharing program, police turn asset forfeiture cases over to federal agents who process seizures and then return 80% of the proceeds to the police. (In Michigan, police actually get to keep up to 100% of forfeited property.)
This incentive-driven excuse for stealing from the citizenry is more accurately referred to as “policing for profit” or “theft by cop.”
Despite the fact that 80 percent of these asset forfeiture cases result in no charge against the property owner, challenging these “takings” in court can cost the owner more than the value of the confiscated property itself. As a result, most property owners either give up the fight or chalk the confiscation up to government corruption, leaving the police and other government officials to reap the benefits.
And boy, do they reap the benefits.
More
DelMarVa's Premier Source for News, Opinion, Analysis, and Human Interest Contact Publisher Joe Albero at alberobutzo@wmconnect.com or 410-430-5349
The US Government is a criminal enterprise.
ReplyDeleteSimple as that.
If a thug robs you, you call the police. But if the police rob you, who you gonna call?
ReplyDeleteGhost Busters !!!!
DeleteThanks, 5:32, it had to be said, LOL!
ReplyDeleteIt is nothing but highway robbery by men with badges and the authority to kill you for not "complying" with them, as in giving them your cash (charges? we don need no stinkin' charges!). You are not allowed to carry very much cash (THEY decide how much is too much, and their bar is pretty low) anymore without risking having someone paid to PROTECT you actually be the one who ROBS YOU of it....packing heat in case you don't like it.
ReplyDeleteIf you have the time and money (and if you're lucky -- you'll need some of that for sure), you MAY get it back, but often don't.
The Attorney General thinks it is not only okay by him, but he wants to put the hammer down. The Attorney General of the USA. Sworn to uphold the Constitution, but, apparently doesn't know the whole thing.
Keep cheering. You're next.