{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["https://web.archive.org/web/20141028230712/http://walberg.house.gov/news/documentsingle.aspx?DocumentID=398485", "Hillsdale: Walberg introduces legislation to reform civil asset forfeiture laws", "2014-10-28", "2014", "2014-10", "Republican", "House", "MI", "Tim Walberg", "W000798", "web.archive.org", null, null, "legacy", "HILLSDALE \u2014 Civil asset forfeiture is a practice by which the government can seize and sell a person\u2019s property without the individual ever being charged with a crime. If a person\u2019s property is suspected of being used for criminal activity, then it is subject to seizure; this\u00a0includes cash, vehicles and even homes.\nOn July 28, Rep. Tim Walberg introduced H.R. 5212 \u2013\u00a0the Civil Asset Forfeiture Reform Act \u2013 which, according to a release, seeks to restore personal property rights under the Fifth Amendment and ensure due process of law by reforming long-standing civil forfeiture policy.\nIn the release, it\u2019s reported current law allows\u00a0agencies like the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) and the\u00a0Department of Justice (DOJ)\u00a0to take property suspected to be connected with a\u00a0crime without charging, let alone convicting, the property owner of a crime.\nThe Federal Asset Forfeiture Fund collected more than $2 billion in 2013 from civil and criminal forfeitures policy.\nCases of civil asset forfeiture have occurred in Michigan.\u00a0Longtime grocer Terry Dehko, of Fraser,\u00a0had his bank accounts seized by IRS because they suspected him of being a money launderer. The charges were never filed, but Dehko had to prove his money was not used in a criminal enterprise.\nIn cases throughout the country there have been instances of law enforcement agencies seizing property and using the money for extravagant purchases.\u00a0Some police agencies have been found to\u00a0have spent\u00a0the money on outlandish items like margarita machines or vacation trips for friends of the force.\nWith more and more instances being reported on throughout the country, there has been increased\u00a0pressure on lawmakers to make a change. This has ultimately led to the pending legislation.\nIn 2012 local police agencies in Hillsdale County reported zero asset forfeiture funds. However, according to the state of Michigan, the Hillsdale County Sheriff and Hillsdale County Prosecutors reported $7,866 in forfeiture funds \u2013 that number is up $4,192 from 2011 when $3,674 was reported.\nFor comparison, Branch County reported $3,960 in 2012. That number is up $3,152 from $808 in 2011. Similarly, Lenawee county reported $3,100 in 2012 \u2013 that reporting increased $2,097 from $1,003 in 2011.\nHillsdale\u2019s northern neighbor, Jackson County, comes in much higher with $20,833 reported in 2012. That number is down $31,041 from the $51,874 reported in 2011.\n\u201cIn a country founded on principles of due process and property rights, we should not be promoting a system where an individual\u2019s property may be seized without a finding of guilt,\u201d Walberg said in his press release. \u201cReform to our civil asset forfeiture laws is necessary to ensure the federal government can no longer profit from the unjust seizure of property.\u201d\nAccording to Walberg\u2019s office in Washington D.C, the proposed legislation was introduced in direct response to several recent stories involving innocent property owners having their property seized by federal officials.\n\u00a0\u201cThis legislation provides commonsense reforms to restore the balance of power away from the government and back to protecting individual rights and due process,\" Walberg said. \"We cannot abide a system where citizens fear that law enforcement can seize, forfeit and profit from their property.\"\nWalberg was in Hillsdale last week and said the bill is gaining bipartisan support; he\u00a0said there may be enough support\u00a0by next term to get it passed. Walberg said that when a piece of legislation has both liberal and conservative media outlets supporting it, it has a very good chance of becoming law.\nOn July 27 the bill was referred to the house judiciary committee, and then on Sept. 25 the legislation was referred to the congressional subcommittee on crime, terrorism, homeland security and investigations.\nTo read the original article at the Daily News, click here.", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"]], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "primary_key_values": ["https://web.archive.org/web/20141028230712/http://walberg.house.gov/news/documentsingle.aspx?DocumentID=398485"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 1.0832571424543858, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press/blob/main/LICENSE"}