King County audit: paper records and unclear notices limit transparency of civil asset forfeiture program

The King County Auditor27s Office told the Government Accountability and Oversight Committee on Feb. 11 that since 2017 the Sheriff27s Office has seized roughly $9 million in cash and dozens of vehicles and houses under civil asset forfeiture authority, and that the office27s paper-centric record keeping prevents reliable, timely oversight.

Auditor Brooke Leary and audit manager Peter Hynexis presented the report to the committee and said the audit found no evidence that deputies were seizing property outside the documented process. But they said the combination of voluminous paper casefiles and incomplete or inconsistent electronic logs makes it difficult to determine totals, track case status, or assess how often seizures are contested or resolved.

The report noted about 275 forfeiture cases between 2017 and 2023 and estimated total cash seized at roughly $9,400,000, but said gaps make a precise total uncertain and put a likely range between about $9 million and $9.8 million. The auditors estimated about 120 cars seized (43 returned, 26 forfeited, 51 with no status in electronic logs) and 41 houses flagged as seized, although only one house case had a recorded resolution in the electronic logs. The auditors estimated about 40% of seized cash in closed cases was returned to owners and 60% deemed forfeited; approximately $3 million in cash remained pending resolution.

"Increased transparency would improve accountability," Peter Hynexis told the committee. The auditors recommended 10 improvements, including: - Ensure electronic logs are accurate, complete and reconciled between the Asset Forfeiture Unit and the budget/accounting unit; - Track whether forfeiture cases are associated with criminal charges and the outcomes of those criminal cases; - Record and track claims and claim outcomes in the electronic system; and - Revise the seizure-notice form to use plain language, correct the statement about burden of proof, and translate the form into commonly used languages.

Auditors described a specific financial reconciliation concern: prior to the audit, some withdrawals for open cases were recorded only on paper. When compared to bank records this made the account appear short by roughly $1.5 million; after a manual review the discrepancy was reduced to less than $250,000. The auditors recommended continued monthly reconciliation of the electronic log to the bank balance and that all withdrawals be recorded electronically.

The audit team also found the standard seizure notice is available only in English and contains text rated at a 12th-grade reading level. The report said about 15% of persons with a recorded race/ethnicity might have limited English proficiency; the Sheriff27s Office updated policy in September 2024 to prioritize translation of vital documents and scheduled the seizure notice to be translated into the county27s seven most commonly used languages in the first quarter of 2025.

Auditors recommended the Sheriff27s Office consider sending contested claims to the independent hearing examiner to reduce any appearance of a conflict of interest; auditors said interviewees recalled few if any hearings decided by a hearing examiner or judge in the last five years and that most cases were settled prior to hearing.

Sheriff27s Office chief of staff Jeffrey Thomas acknowledged the opportunities the auditors identified and said the office already maintains information in individual case files and sees the need to improve electronic systems for program evaluation and monitoring. "We do track information... a lot of times that information is in individual paper files," he told the committee, and said the office appreciated the audit27s collaboration and recommendations on language access and notice clarity.

The auditors also noted that, under state law, civil forfeiture is a civil proceeding against property and that seized property may be retained or auctioned; statutory distribution rules mean the seizing agency keeps a portion of proceeds after state and contract-city shares are paid. The report says from 2018 to 2023 the Sheriff27s Office recorded roughly $2.4 million in forfeiture revenue, with $1.8 million paid to city contract partners and about $500,000 to the state. The Sheriff27s Office mostly spent its share on overtime, an accounting position, vehicle-storage leases and legal advice, the auditors said.

The full audit, including the 10 recommendations and the executive27s responses, is posted on the King County Auditor27s Office website, the auditors said.