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Panel presses civil forfeiture reforms: higher burdens, transparency and limits on federal bypass
Summary
Advocates, bar groups and legal services urged the committee to raise evidentiary standards, improve reporting and close an 'equitable sharing' loophole so state reforms are not circumvented by federal forfeiture procedures.
Multiple panels representing civil-rights groups, the Boston Bar Association, the Institute for Justice, district attorneys and criminal-justice advocates testified on competing civil asset forfeiture bills and urged reforms to increase transparency and due process.
Common themes included raising the burden of proof for civil forfeiture, improving public reporting on seizures and proceeds, restricting how seized funds are spent, and closing federal “equitable sharing” practices that can be used to bypass state law. "We report, we send reports to the legislature," said a sitting district…
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