NACDL

Board Adopts Resolutions On Asset Forfeiture And Judicial Elections

By Patrick Veasy  

NACDL’s Board of Directors adopted resolutions on asset forfeiture and judicial elections during its spring quarterly meeting on May 20, 2011, in Washington, D.C.

The first resolution adopted model legislation to advocate for reforms to states’ asset forfeiture laws — the power of police to seize property on mere suspicion of a crime or without a conviction and, in most states, keep some or all of the proceeds for their own use. NACDL and the Institute for Justice drafted the model legislation, which replaces civil forfeiture with criminal forfeiture and addresses the core issue of asset forfeiture abuse: the perverse financial incentive. Further, the legislation would redirect the proceeds of seized assets away from the law enforcement unit making the arrest.

The second resolution, highlighting NACDL’s recognition of the importance of maintaining an independent judiciary, “notes the increasing prevale