Gary Marbut replied to the thread of messages I sent out over FEAR-List recently about the resurgence in the use of drug sniffing dogs to obtain probable cause to seize money from interstate travellers.  His very insightful response is attached below.
By the way, last time I heard, Gary Marbut had filed to run for the state legislature in Montana. From my experience Gary would be an excellent legislator.  He drafted the Montana forfeiture reform bill. It didn't pass, but it surely will be reintroduced if he gets elected.

Gary Marbut/MSSA/TOS wrote:

Brenda,

If drug-sniffing dogs are such reliable expert witnesses, if police agencies are so desperate for cash, and if most money is tainted with drug residue, why aren't the police taking their dogs into banks, and forfeiting the contents of bank vaults, maybe entire banks?

The answer, of course, is that they would run afoul of the power structure and lose their privilege to forfeit.  The flip-side of that coin is that they deliberately pick on people who are relatively powerless.

I agree!

Brenda Grantland
President, Forfeiture Endangers American Rights Inc.
http://www.fear.org



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