CA Supreme Court Says No More Vehicle Seizures for Drug, Prostitution Offenses
The California Supreme Court ruled in July that local government entities can no longer seize the vehicle of a person who has been arrested on suspicion of hiring a prostitute or buying drugs. The local ordinances that authorized such vehicle seizures were implemented in efforts to deter drug sales and prostitution, but they don’t seem to have done the trick — they simply provided an unusually harsh penalty for often victimless crimes.
These vehicle-forfeiture ordinances started popping up after Oakland put one in place in 1998. Since then, Riverside, San Bernardino, Los Angeles, San Diego, and several other cities started their own similar ordinances. In many cases, the forfeiture of the vehicle is a far worse penalty than the underlying offense — for example, individuals caught trying to buy a small amount of marijuana could have their vehicle seized even though the state penalty for the drug bust is a mere $100 ticket.
The Supreme Court decision, in O’Connell v. City of Stockton, pointed out that the punishments for drug and prostitution offenses “are matters of statewide concern that our Legislature has comprehensively addressed… leaving no room for further regulations at the local level.” We agree. The vehicle seizures seemed to be mostly a way for cities to make thousands of dollars at the expense of arrestees, who had to pay “impound fees” up to $2,000 a pop to get their vehicles back from the local police.
Fortunately, local law enforcement agencies appear to be willing to go along with the new ruling. John Lovell, counsel for the California Police Chiefs Association, acknowledged that “Forfeiture no longer appears to be an option.” We’re glad to hear it.
If you’ve had a vehicle forfeiture problem, contact Grech and Firetag to discuss your rights.
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