Asset Forfeiture: "Guilty" until proved "Innocent" 
Takes this grandmother 3 years to prove her innocence, but she lost business, assets, reputation

from http://www.libertyinitiatives.org/harm.shtml#

Judith Roderick, a grandmother and tax consultant, returned from her vacation on a November day in 1997. She was met at SeaTac airport by 3 police officers who placed her under arrest. After her luggage was searched she was taken to the Thurston County Jail, where she was booked, fingerprinted, and incarcerated. The warrant asserted that she was guilty of money laundering, by which the drug warriors meant she was guilty of accepting a $3500 commission from someone they suspected of drug crimes.

However, they carefully ignored the fact her $3500 commission was for the purchase of a $3000 legal-financial trust kit plus $500 for her actual services for helping to fill-out the legal-financial forms for a client that sought to create a trust of his 42-acre site.

Authorities maintained the land trust was invalid and moved to seize the property under Washington’s asset forfeiture laws. They maintained that the site was used by her client for rock concerts and was “probably” used by her client for drug sales during the concerts. The drug warriors didn’t stop with attempting to seize the client’s land. Roderick’s 26 year-old niece and terrified 4 and 7 year old great-nephews were held at gunpoint while the officers searched her home and vehicles. They seized computers, other equipment, records and other assets of Roderick’s small business as well as two motorcycles that were not hers, but were on the property. And they froze her bank account making it nearly impossible for her to hire an attorney.

The charges against Roderick were based upon information supplied by a paid confidential drug task force informant (a four time convicted felon), who shares on a percentage basis with the task force in the sale of seized property. He had ingratiated himself with Roderick’s client, become a trustee of the client and was instrumental in the transfer of the property into the trust.

That was 1997. In late February 2001, Judith Roderick sued Thurston County and its drug task force in federal court. She was represented by Hugh McGavick and Shawn Newman, two very able Olympia attorneys fiercely opposed to the injustices built into civil asset forfeiture laws. They were incensed by the actions of the drug enforcement task force. As a result of the efforts of McGavick and Newman, all charges against Roderick were eventually dismissed. But that didn’t mean she got her property back. Under Washington law, the authorities can keep seized property even when the underlying charges that “justified” the seizure in the first place are dismissed.

Co-counsel Shawn Newman explained, “We have a Kafkaesque situation in which the government can take your property without a conviction. The government and their paid informants are like bounty hunters who share a percentage of the proceeds.” In this case after three years of enormous effort and expense McGavick and Newman were able to win back her property and a $100,000 judgment for damages. Her loss of business, damage to her reputation and emotional distress were not recovered with that award, but it was better than her client received. He was offered a choice: plead guilty to drug sales and receive a 9 month sentence and you may keep half of the value of your $800,000 property when the county sells it, or, you can fight the drug charge in criminal court and you may win, but in that case all of your property will be forfeited.

It happened to an innocent Oregon resident

I always believed in "Innocent Until Proven Guilty" until three years ago, when the government seized my life savings.

My name is Harry Detwiler. I am 62 years old. I was a special education teacher at Ashland High School for 25 years. I was Oregon's Special Education Teacher of the Year in 1972, and was named Ashland's Man of the Year twice.

My problems began in 1997 shortly after my son and I sold a former rental property. The new owner was arrested for growing marijuana. During the arrest, police found my name on some of the man's paperwork.

So they drove to my house 25 miles away to see what I knew. I was not home, but they entered anyway. They found the keys to my safe and took $35,000, my life savings. When I returned home I thought I had been robbed. Police soon arrived and told me they had taken my money under civil forfeiture laws. They said I should have known the man who bought my home was growing marijuana.

For three years, I have fought unsuccessfully to get my money back.

I was never charged with a crime. I was never convicted of a crime.

The prosecutor was quoted in the newspaper admitting there was no evidence against me. Still they refuse to give my money back. Even after I produced business receipts showing where the $35,000 came from.

In America, people are supposed to be innocent until proven guilty.

But that's not how asset forfeiture laws work.

Check out Liberty Initiatives - working to get rid of Asset Forfeiture Laws through the "Innocent Property Owners Protection Initiative.

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