The Conservative Cave
Current Events => General Discussion => Topic started by: Ptarmigan on March 18, 2023, 01:46:17 PM
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The FBI took her life savings. Now she’s fighting to help others get theirs back.
https://www.foxnews.com/us/fbi-took-life-savings-now-fighting-help-others-get-back
Linda Martin thought she was being responsible by putting her nest egg in a safe deposit box where she wouldn’t be tempted to touch it.
She never imagined the FBI would seize her life savings.
"They didn't tell us why they took our money. They haven't told us anything as far as what we did wrong," Martin, 58, told Fox News. "We haven't done anything wrong. We work and we saved our money because we were trying to save and buy a house."
Two years later, Martin still doesn’t know why her money was taken or if she’ll ever get it back.
Very disturbing.
She also said that to her knowledge, no one who had their assets taken have been charged with or even suspect of any crime. Rather, the FBI had been investigating U.S. Private Vaults, which shut down following the raid and pleaded guilty to conspiracy to launder drug money.
"Unfortunately, this is legal," Institute for Justice attorney Bob Belden told Fox News. "Civil forfeiture is a process in the United States where law enforcement can take property from people who have never been charged with a crime."
Last week, Martin and Institute for Justice filed a putative nationwide class action lawsuit seeking to help anyone who has had property taken by a government agency in the last six years and received a deficient forfeiture notice.
The government can seize assets from people not suspected or charged with any crime.
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1930 Tariff Act allows law enforcement to seize property without due process -- only probable cause.
Stunning. :mental:
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These kind and of stories just piss me off. Civil Forfeiture needs to be ended.
Personally, my kind of safety deposit box involves a shovel and a coffee can.