Rand Paul Introduces Bill To Abolish “Nonjudicial” Civil Forfeiture

Amid the surge of interest in police reform following the killing of George Floyd, Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY) reintroduced the Fifth Amendment Integrity Restoration (FAIR) Act last week, which would enact a sweeping overhaul of federal civil forfeiture laws. Among its many critical reforms, the FAIR Act (S. 4074) would redress many of the problems with civil forfeiture and abolish its most abusive form. 

Under “nonjudicial” or “administrative” civil forfeiture, not only can the federal government confiscate property without filing criminal charges, owners can permanently lose their property without a judge ever hearing their case. Instead of impartial judicial review, the fate of a seized property is decided by the seizing agency itself. Worse, agencies have a direct financial incentive to forfeit property: Under federal law, they can keep up to 100% of the forfeiture proceeds.