Police Departments Going After Cash Like Banks & IRS
Farmer’s savings among police seizures that paid for Montana K-9 unit
Alison Noon
Trib.com
May 31, 2015
Lorenzo Ayala saved more than $16,000 to buy tractor parts while on a road trip to Montana to visit a woman he met online, but he ended up unwittingly contributing it to the state’s first K-9 unit.
Ayala forfeited his wad of cash after a state trooper became suspicious that the California farmer’s generous amount of cologne, cluttered car and disputed criminal history were signs of drug trafficking.
Ayala, of Palo Alto, was never charged with a crime — but Montana kept his money.
This year, Montana became the fourth state to overhaul what activists call “policing for profit.” Beginning July 1, officers must store suspects’ assets, such as the cash Ayala had in his trunk, until the owner is convicted of a crime involving that property.
“The police ought to have to prove something before they take your stuff away,” Chris Young, one of Ayala’s attorneys, said. “And now they do.”
The Rest…HERE
