Forfeiture Increasingly a Cash Cow for Police Departments

Stand and deliver

Law enforcement agencies across the country are increasingly using forfeiture laws to seize cash and assets from suspected criminals and also some people with little connection to crime.

The 30-man police force in Bal Harbour, Fla., recently came under fire from the Justice Department for how it used millions of dollars in forfeiture proceeds from drug investigations. The town has had to return some $1.2 million and may have to repay more.