Sheldon Richman on Civil Asset Forfeiture and Why the IRS is the Worst
For some time now we've lived with the scourge of civil asset forfeiture, under which the police can seize a person's property on the mere suspicion it was used in a crime and without having to charge the owner with an offense. Since the authorities have no burden to prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt, the burden of proving innocence falls on the hapless citizen who wishes to recover his property. Amazingly, people describe as free a society that features this outrage. Now it comes to light, writes Sheldon Richman, that the Internal Revenue Service does something similar.
