Illinois earns a D- for its civil forfeiture laws.
Standard of Proof
Low bar to forfeit in most cases: In general, prosecutors’ standard is preponderance of the evidence. If a related criminal case results in acquittal or non-indictment, the standard is clear and convincing evidence. Forfeiture is not permitted for currency under $500 in drug cases and under $100 in all other cases.
Innocent Owner Burden
Poor protections for the innocent: Third-party owners must prove their own innocence to recover seized property at pretrial hearings.
Financial Incentive
Large profit incentive: 90% of forfeiture proceeds go to law enforcement.
The letter grade reflects Illinois’ forfeiture laws as of May 7, 2025. 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.
Note: Prosecutors need only meet their standard of proof—and owners can only prove their innocence—if owners make it to a judicial hearing. See flow chart.
Recent Reforms
Recommendations
What happens after personal property is seized in Illinois?*
Under Illinois law, prosecutors’, owners’, and court deadlines leading to a judicial hearing add up to 350 days, but the wait may be longer as the deadline for the hearing can be extended. While you wait, the government has your property, but innocent owners can try to get it back by requesting a pretrial hearing, and vehicle owners can try to get their vehicle back while the case continues by requesting a hardship hearing.
*This process is only for property worth $150,000 or less.
**This hearing can be held in conjunction with pretrial proceedings in a related criminal matter.
For research methods and limitations, see “How We Documented Civil Forfeiture Processes From Seizure to Hearing.”
State and Federal Forfeiture Proceeds, 2000–2023
At least $1.2 billion in state and federal forfeiture revenue
| Year | Illinois Forfeiture Revenues | Dept. of Justice Equitable Sharing Proceeds | Treasury Equitable Sharing Proceeds | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | $16,134,076 | $9,754,782 | $4,723,000 | $30,611,858 |
| 2001 | $18,610,350 | $8,386,258 | $3,513,000 | $30,509,608 |
| 2002 | $16,937,249 | $6,618,603 | $1,322,000 | $24,877,852 |
| 2003 | $12,728,189 | $7,284,801 | $1,511,000 | $21,523,990 |
| 2004 | $15,888,673 | $8,529,033 | $2,620,000 | $27,037,706 |
| 2005 | $21,466,730 | $8,004,118 | $999,000 | $30,469,848 |
| 2006 | $27,188,794 | $12,102,313 | $2,408,000 | $41,699,107 |
| 2007 | $20,151,788 | $13,460,269 | $873,000 | $34,485,057 |
| 2008 | $17,070,220 | $13,761,071 | $3,622,000 | $34,453,291 |
| 2009 | $20,161,006 | $13,838,679 | $5,112,000 | $39,111,685 |
| 2010 | $64,388,300 | $21,585,139 | $7,249,000 | $93,222,439 |
| 2011 | $32,834,479 | $16,586,155 | $2,406,000 | $51,826,634 |
| 2012 | $64,657,826 | $25,793,168 | $3,245,000 | $93,695,994 |
| 2013 | $54,373,537 | $20,912,725 | $1,537,000 | $76,823,262 |
| 2014 | $55,050,790 | $16,143,203 | $5,128,000 | $76,321,993 |
| 2015 | $55,166,423 | $19,364,854 | $3,772,000 | $78,303,277 |
| 2016 | $48,407,550 | $12,584,194 | $2,174,000 | $63,165,744 |
| 2017 | $39,221,031 | $20,288,523 | $5,268,000 | $64,777,554 |
| 2018 | $38,125,066 | $21,498,057 | $6,864,000 | $66,487,123 |
| 2019 | $19,822,464 | $16,047,774 | $7,408,000 | $43,278,238 |
| 2020 | $16,917,519 | $8,469,048 | $5,367,000 | $30,753,567 |
| 2021 | $65,882,193 | $5,257,987 | $6,201,000 | $77,341,180 |
| 2022 | $17,683,366 | $12,303,609 | $5,989,000 | $35,975,975 |
| 2023 | $16,218,702 | $20,800,913 | $3,347,000 | $40,366,615 |
| Totals | $775,086,321 | $339,375,276 | $92,658,000 | $1,207,119,597 |
All revenue figures include both civil and criminal forfeitures. Revenues are not adjusted for inflation.
Federal Equitable Sharing
Illinois does not prevent state and local law enforcement agencies from using the federal equitable sharing program to circumvent state forfeiture law. Since 2000, Illinois agencies have generated more than $432 million in equitable sharing proceeds from the departments of Justice and the Treasury. And on average from 2019 to 2023, more than 267 Illinois agencies, or an estimated one-third of all law enforcement agencies in the state, were certified for the program.
Forfeitures Under Illinois Law: Key Facts
Median Value
$1,031
From 2019 to 2023, half of Illinois’ currency forfeitures were worth less than $1,031.
Property Types
From 2019 to 2023, more than three-quarters of Illinois’ forfeitures were of currency.
Proceeding Types
UNKNOWN
Illinois does not report whether forfeitures are processed under civil or criminal forfeiture law.
Additional Findings
UNKNOWN
Agencies report only limited information about seized and forfeited property, resulting in limited transparency into forfeiture activity in the state.
Forfeiture Transparency and Accountability Report Card
Tracking Seized Property
CStatewide Forfeiture Reports
APenalties for Failure to File a Report
DAccounting for Forfeiture Fund Spending
CAccessibility of Forfeiture Records
AFinancial Audits of Forfeiture Accounts
AFor full transparency and accountability grades, visit ij.org/TransparencyReportCards.
Data Notes
Statewide forfeiture reports with property-level data were obtained via public records requests to the Illinois State Police. Revenues for 2019–2023 represent the value of forfeited property based on the fiscal year in which it was seized, while those for 2010–2018 represent the value of property forfeited in a fiscal year. Earlier years are based on calendar year and use a slightly different methodology that may result in small differences over time. Equitable sharing data are from DOJ’s and Treasury’s annual forfeiture reports. Due to differences in reporting and accounting practices, figures may not match aggregate numbers produced by the state or cover the same 12-month period as the federal data. The number of certified agencies was computed using the approved Equitable Sharing Agreement and Certification requests submitted by police, sheriff, and other local law enforcement agencies. The percentage of certified agencies was computed using that number and the total number of agencies reported in the 2018 Census of State and Local Law Enforcement Agencies.
Legal Sources
Standard of proof: In general, preponderance of the evidence. The standard of proof increases to clear and convincing evidence in certain situations where a related criminal case results in acquittal or non-indictment. Forfeiture is unavailable for currency under $500 related to drug possession offenses and under $100 for all other offenses.
725 Ill. Comp. Stat. 150/9(G), (G-5), (G-10); 720 Ill. Comp. Stat. 570/505(d).
Innocent owner burden: Owner. At pretrial innocent owner hearings, the owner bears the burden of proof. However, if the forfeiture action goes to trial, the government must prove the owner’s culpability or negligence, which is not a crime.
725 Ill. Comp. Stat. 150/9.1, 150/9(G).
Financial incentive: 90%.
725 Ill. Comp. Stat. 150/13.2.
Process: 725 Ill. Comp. Stat. 150/1 et seq. (forfeiture procedure); 735 Ill. Comp. Stat. 5/2-1301 (default judgment).