Plane Seized Over Six-Pack of Budweiser. Seriously.
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Can the government take a $95,000 plane because a passenger used it to transport a six pack of Budweiser? The Alaska Supreme Court says yes but the U.S. Constitution says no.
Today we chat with IJ attorneys Sam Gedge and Kirby West to discuss an outrageous new case from the Last Frontier and how forfeiture interacts with excessive fines, free speech, and more.
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Alaska Pilot Asks U.S. Supreme Court to Stop State from Taking His $95,000 Airplane for Passenger’s Beer
April 3, 2012, began like any other day for Ken Jouppi, a longtime Alaskan pilot. He was ferrying a passenger and her groceries from Fairbanks to the village of Beaver. But hidden in the passenger’s…
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4th Amendment Project | Civil Forfeiture | Private Property
Detroit Civil Forfeiture
Detroit, Michigan
For decades, residents of Detroit and Wayne County, Michigan have lived under constant threat of having their cars taken away and ransomed back to them for $1,000 or more—that is, if the car is ever recovered. In 2020, two Detroiters teamed up with IJ to challenge this unconstitutional civil forfeiture program.
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