Carmen Ortiz's Very Bad, Awful Month
Civil forfeiture is one of
the truly odious products of the war on certain kind of drugs, wide open for
corruption and for prosecutorial flexing. If it is allowed to exist at all, the
whole system should be re-examined and placed under strict regulation and
oversight. Russ Caswell got lucky. He had good lawyers. If nothing else, the
whole thing should be a reason to examine the powers we so willingly cede to our
prosecutors in order to keep us "safe" from the many vague threats that the
government finds so helpful.
Triumphant motel owner slams Carmen
Ortiz:
In a written decision after a November trial, U.S.
Magistrate Judge Judith Gail Dein dismissed the government’s forfeiture action,
ruling yesterday that Caswell, “who was trying to eke out an income from a
business located in a drug-infested area that posed great risks to the safety of
him and his family,” took all reasonable steps to prevent crime.
“The
Government’s resolution of the crime problem should not be to simply take his
Property,” Dein said in her decision.
The innkeeper’s complaint follows the
suicide of hacker Aaron Swartz, who faced up to 35 years in prison and $1
million in fines. Swartz’s family, lawyers and legal commentators have called
for Ortiz’s ouster and new guidelines for federal attorneys, saying the Swartz
case was a prosecutorial abuse.
Not exactly the impression Ms.
Ortiz might be hoping for in the media or before the voters.
“It’s
a case that should not have been filed in the first place,” said Scott Bullock
of the Virginia-based Institute for Justice, who worked on Caswell’s case. “This
is one of the most aggressive uses of civil forfeiture laws. It’s a power that’s
too easily abused, and this case epitomizes what an aggressive U.S. attorney can
do to a small-business owner with that law.”
Not exactly sure that
sort of behavior should fit with one of the hundred or so most powerful people
in the world.
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