Arkansas
Arkansas earns a D- for its civil forfeiture laws.
Higher bar to forfeit in limited cases: Weak conviction provision falls short of criminal forfeiture (see “The Problem with ‘Conviction Requirements’”). It does not require conviction of the owner, only of the “person from whom the property was seized,” and the court can waive the provision if the person does not contest the forfeiture or has agreed to help investigators in exchange for immunity. Once the conviction provision is satisfied, property must be linked to the crime by preponderance of the evidence.
Poor protections for the innocent: Third-party owners must prove their own innocence to recover seized property.
Large profit incentive: 100% of forfeiture proceeds go to law enforcement (up to a maximum of $250,000 from a single forfeiture, 80% to police and prosecutors and 20% to the state Crime Lab Equipment Fund; any amount above $250,000 goes to the Special State Assets Forfeiture Fund, a non- law enforcement fund).
The letter grade reflects the state's forfeiture laws as of December 2020. When we become aware of relevant reforms, we are updating the standard of proof, innocent owner burden and financial incentive language above, but we are not updating the letter grade.
Recent Reforms
- (2019) SB 308: Created weak conviction provision.
Recommendations
- End civil forfeiture
- Direct all forfeiture proceeds to a non-law enforcement fund
- Strengthen protections for innocent third-party owners
- Close the equitable sharing loophole
- Strengthen transparency and accountability requirements
Value of State Seizures and Federal Forfeiture Revenues, 2000–2019
Between 2000 and 2018, Arkansas law enforcement agencies seized more than $107 million under state law, although the final amount forfeited is unknown. Between 2000 and 2019, they also generated more than $47 million in forfeiture proceeds from federal equitable sharing. Arkansas ranks 22nd for its participation in the Department of Justice’s equitable sharing program. The state does not prevent state and local agencies from using equitable sharing to circumvent state forfeiture law.
At least $47 million in federal forfeiture revenue
2000–2019
| Year | Arkansas Seizures | Dept. of Justice Equitable Sharing Proceeds | Treasury Equitable Sharing Proceeds | Total Equitable Sharing Proceeds |
$0 ↦
$4,406,266
|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | $5,544,742 | $540,568 | $30,000 | $570,568 | |
| 2001 | $3,494,483 | $911,267 | $4,000 | $915,267 | |
| 2002 | $2,805,948 | $773,525 | $605,000 | $1,378,525 | |
| 2003 | $3,816,823 | $477,238 | $116,000 | $593,238 | |
| 2004 | $4,299,354 | $2,377,787 | $0 | $2,377,787 | |
| 2005 | $7,003,838 | $957,776 | $0 | $957,776 | |
| 2006 | $5,556,583 | $4,406,266 | $0 | $4,406,266 | |
| 2007 | $4,301,003 | $1,792,272 | $182,000 | $1,974,272 | |
| 2008 | $5,160,602 | $2,581,575 | $45,000 | $2,626,575 | |
| 2009 | $5,363,060 | $2,705,290 | $61,000 | $2,766,290 | |
| 2010 | $6,299,710 | $1,465,470 | $455,000 | $1,920,470 | |
| 2011 | $8,386,096 | $2,819,593 | $484,000 | $3,303,593 | |
| 2012 | $3,653,473 | $2,980,660 | $532,000 | $3,512,660 | |
| 2013 | $8,701,307 | $1,521,767 | $640,000 | $2,161,767 | |
| 2014 | $10,772,643 | $3,977,058 | $343,000 | $4,320,058 | |
| 2015 | $6,923,146 | $3,347,213 | $150,000 | $3,497,213 | |
| 2016 | $4,323,012 | $3,147,826 | $100,000 | $3,247,826 | |
| 2017 | $5,721,448 | $2,266,743 | $336,000 | $2,602,743 | |
| 2018 | $5,311,110 | $2,813,297 | $127,000 | $2,940,297 | |
| 2019 | Unavailable | $1,065,385 | $567,000 | $1,632,385 | |
| Totals | $42,928,576 | $4,777,000 | $47,705,576 |
State
Department of Justice
Treasury
|
Arkansas Forfeiture Transparency and Accountability Report Card
| C- | Tracking Seized Property |
|---|---|
| F | Accounting for Forfeiture Fund Spending |
| B | Statewide Forfeiture Reports |
| C | Accessibility of Forfeiture Records |
|---|---|
| B * | Penalties for Failure to File a Report |
| A | Financial Audits of Forfeiture Accounts |
For full transparency and accountability grades, visit www.ij.org/TransparencyReportCards.
Forfeitures Under Arkansas Law: Key Facts
Median Value
UnknownArkansas does not report property- level data necessary to calculate median forfeiture value.
Property Types
UnknownArkansas does not report the types of property forfeited.
Civil vs. Criminal
UNKNOWNArkansas does not report whether forfeitures are processed under civil or criminal forfeiture law.
Expenditures
UNKNOWNArkansas does not report how forfeiture funds are spent.
Data Notes
Calendar-year data representing seizures conducted under the Uniform Controlled Substances Act were obtained via public records requests to the Arkansas Drug Director. Equitable sharing data are from DOJ’s and Treasury’s annual forfeiture reports.
Legal Sources
Standard of proof: Weak conviction provision does not require conviction of an owner, but only of the “person from whom the property [was] seized, ” and a court can waive the provision if the person fails to contest forfeiture or if the person is granted immunity in exchange for helping investigators. After the conviction provision is satisfied, prosecutors must show that the property is subject to forfeiture by a preponderance of the evidence.
Ark. Code Ann. §§ 5-64-505(m)(1), (m)(2)(E), (g)(5)(B)(i).
Innocent owner burden: Owner.
Ark. Code Ann. §§ 5-64-505(a)(4)(B), (a)(6)(B), (a)(8)(A).
Financial incentive: 100% (80% to police and prosecutors, 20% to the state Crime Lab Equipment Fund) up to a maximum of $250,000 from a single forfeiture. Any amount above $250,000 goes to the Special State Assets Forfeiture Fund, a non-law enforcement fund.
Ark. Code Ann. § 5-64-505(h)–(i); see also Ark. Op. Att’y. Gen. No. 99-282 (Feb. 24, 2000).