John Oliver enlisted the help of Jeff Goldblum to hilariously explain one of the least-funny law enforcement practices you've never heard of in Sunday night's episode of "
Last Week Tonight."
The segment explains a disturbing and
escalating trend in law enforcement known as "civil forfeiture" - a process by which police can seize items including cash, cars and even houses from civilians who haven't been charged with a crime. Police departments are frequently allowed to keep the items and often-large quantities of cash to purchase things for the department at their discretion and leisure.
During a 2012 citizen police review board hearing, Missouri Police Chief Ken Burton said police routinely decide to seize funds "based on a need" and that there were "not really" any limitations "on the forfeiture stuff."
"We usually base it on something that would be nice to have," the chief explained in the clip pulled by Oliver. "It's kinda like pennies from heaven, you know, it gets you a toy or something that you need."
Past purchases of these "toys" have included a Zamboni (yes, the machine the resurfaces ice at a skating rink) by one Massachusetts police department and kegs of beer, margarita machines and bottles of Crown Royal by a Texas district attorney's office.Victims of "civil forfeiture" interviewed included one man carrying about $20,000 in cash to buy a car, another with over $2,000 in cash driving across the country, and the the seizure of a house belonging to the parents of a teenager arrested with $40 worth of illegal drugs.
"That is the sort of police behavior we laugh at other countries for," Oliver said. "Along with their accents and silly hats."
Those seeking to have their possessions returned must prove their property is "innocent"
after an initial presumption of guilt.Oliver then leaves it up to Goldblum to illustrate just how ridiculous that is by interrogating a pile of money.
"Rough night huh?" Goldblum says. "Well, it's about to get a lot rougher. What is $2,500 in cash doing hanging out in somebody's glove box huh? Answer me!"
..... and thieves will be thieves.
It's these pig-thieves, though, that really concern me. Law enforcement and their collective 'seizure fever' are making a laughing stock out of the constitution and our protections against unreasonable searches and seizures. The US cops look, act and sound more and more like the stereotypically corrupt Mexican police with each day that passes.
I remember when I was a kid growing up in Los Angeles in the 60's that it was much different. Cops we came in contact with were pretty decent folks, usually from the local community with strong ties to the area. There was an occasional bad apple or two, but they would usually get the boot pretty quickly.
But these were cops in predominately WHITE neighborhoods I am referring to, and I would have no first hand idea how things were in the minority community at this time (but those Watts riots sure offered a clue!)
In present day America, I believe even this racist element of police decency is gone. Today, white folks must now live in fear of law enforcement as well. Guess that 'turnabouts is fair play' idea comes to mind quickly, but equally rapidly fades when we realize that cops are now simply executing people of color they become perturbed with, and will likely do the same to the whites who fall out of line in the future. In fact, it is happening now.
In the 21st century, the privileges of skin color are fading fast, as the fascists and their militarized pig-thieves find EVERYONE they encounter now a potentially lucrative target for their larcenous ways.
Equality of oppression. Your new 'right' in America.
(Not exactly what the Founding Fathers had in mind, I suspect...... )