By Matt Agorist
For decades now, federal government and their cohorts in law enforcement have been carrying out theft of the citizenry on a massive scale. We’re not talking about taxes, but an insidious power known as Civil Asset Forfeiture (CAF).
The 1980s-era laws were designed to drain resources from powerful criminal organizations, but CAF has become a tool for law enforcement agencies across the U.S. to steal money and property from countless innocent people.
No criminal charge is required for this confiscation, resulting in easy inflows of cash for law enforcement departments and the proliferation of abuse. This phenomenon is known as “policing for profit.”
In the last 25 years, the amount of “profit” stolen through CAF has skyrocketted.
According to the US Department of Justice, the value of asset forfeiture revoceries by US authorities from 1989-2010 was $12,667,612,066, increasing on average 19.5% per year.
In 2008, law enforcement took over $1.5 billion from the American public. While this number seems incredibly large, just a few years later, in 2014, that number tripled to nearly $4.5 billion.
When we examine these numbers, and their nearly exponential growth curve, it appears that police in America are getting really good at separating the citizen from their property — not just really good, criminally good.
To put this number into perspective, according to the FBI, victims of burglary offenses suffered an estimated $3.9 billion in property losses in 2014.
That means that law enforcement in America has stolen $600,000,000 more from Americans that actual criminal burglars.
When police surpass the criminal accomplishments of those they claim to protect you from, there is a serious problem.
The good news is that Americans are waking up to this Orwellian notion of police robbing the citizens, and they are taking a stand.
Even police officers are taking a stand against CAF. In an exclusive interview in September, the Free Thought Project talked officer Stephen Mills, chief of police at the Apache, Oklahoma police department. Mills became an outspoken advocate against CAF, after he became a victim of it.
The idea of thieving cops has also united organizations on opposite ends of the political spectrum. In October, the ACLU and the Koch Brothers came together to stop the inherent police theft in America.
While the police keep grabbing your property, it is important to remain vigilant. Only through a lesser ignorance and the spreading of information will we overcome this blatant tyranny. Please share this article with your friends and family to wake them up to the criminal reality that is – civil asset forfeiture.
Matt Agorist writes for TheFreeThoughtProject.com
I believe Ted Cruz has introduced a bill to rein in this criminal conduct but I’ve no idea how far it’s gotten. Add it to the growing list of items that the new and hopefully conservative President will correct once sworn in.
Dream on…NO ONE becomes POTUS without a very serious collar so they can be collared if they get any ‘bright ideas’ of their own…how can anyone believe there is a difference between the two into it up to their lower eyeballs in lobbyist cash parties?
Kinda like trying to deduce the difference between me taking your money and me taking your money…ey?
England had Robin Hood…America has Robbin’ the Hood.
Police pensions are the real crime. I would bet the cops take 10 times more from the community than the robbers.
Governments are the worst mass murderers. Why wouldn’t governments be the worst thieves?
cops are the thugs of the elites – extracting as much from the common horde as possible.
self rule – self govern
I’m going to stop reading the news. I finally cracked my jaw this time when it hit the floor.
No wonder wealthy American citizens “hide” money in overseas foreign bank accounts. There is so much outright theft going on down at City Hall and the local Police Department. For many years I have not really trusted either one of our political parties. For whatever reason, we, the American people have elected some very dubious and highly untrustworthy candidates into high public-office. During each election we hopefully put into public-office some person that we think we can trust. Regretfully many of our hopes and inspirations are quickly reduced to complete dismay as another politician’s career completely collapse’s. I think when it comes to “private money” and personal bank-accounts, a person needs to keep it in a place that the politician’s cannot get access to. Otherwise their “sticky” little fingers will quickly ” clean out” your private-source of self-support !
Anything or money seized should NOT benefit the police in any manner. ! Schools, reduce national debt or whatever. Not the police.
And my daughter wonders why I drink.
The question is why wasn’t this used to take Tyson foods and Swift poultry plants during immigration raids. Or Wall Street bankers cars and mentions. That is the kind of crime this law was ment for.
The criminals are in blue.