FEARbies -
After reading the actual opinion of the NJ court of appeals in NJ v.
1990 Ford Thunderbird, and comparing it with the NJ prosecutor's press
release, I was appalled with the misleading propaganda. The prosecutor
claims "government has a legitimate interest not only in separating
criminals from their ill-gotten gains, but in using the profits of
crime to fund law enforcement activities." A little later he states
"The forfeiture law has served the public by taking the profit out of
crime." His ill-gotten gains motif is repeated again and again in the
press release: "The corporate officer who fraudulently inflates stock
prices and cashes in is not entitled to the ill-gotten gains. The thief
cannot keep the stolen money." Then of course he has to throw in a
little terrorism: "And the terrorist who uses a bank account to fund
terrorist activities must lose access to the tool used to fund the
terrorism."
What case was he talking about? Certainly not this one. There was no
allegation whatsoever that the 1990 Ford Thunderbird was purchased with
proceeds of crime or ill-gotten gains. It was a kid's mother's car,
which the kid used in some marijuana sales, as the court opinion shows:
This proceeding arose on June 22, 1999, when the Cumberland
County Prosecutor filed a verified civil action complaint in rem
on behalf of the State of New Jersey, seeking forfeiture of the motor
vehicle. See N.J.S.A.
2C:64-3. The complaint alleges that the vehicle had been
confiscated following its use by Rexford McCaffrey in connection with a
series of marijuana sales; that it was registered to Carol McCaffrey,
his mother.
Seizure of the proceeds of crime from convicted criminals or the
seizure of the assets of a terrorist organization which were intended
for use to fund future terrorism is a far cry from the seizure of a
mother's car because her teenager sold some marijuana.
I tried forwarding the opinion itself to FEAR-List, but it did not come
through for some reason. Here's a link to the opinion on the Rutgers
website.
<http://lawlibrary.rutgers.edu/courts/appellate/a3879-02.opn.html>
Brenda