Institute for Justice
Indiana
March 2010
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Scott G. Bullock
President and General Counsel
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State Law Evasion Grade | Final Grade |
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Indiana
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Forfeiture Law |
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Indiana has some of the better civil forfeiture laws in the country, at least with regard to the profit incentive. Unfortunately, to forfeit your property, the government only needs to show that it was more likely than not that your property was related to a crime and thus is forfeitable—the legal standard of preponderance of the evidence, lower than the beyond a reasonable doubt standard required for a criminal conviction. But law enforcement in Indiana does not receive any of the funds gained through civil forfeiture, which keeps the focus of law enforcement on preventing crime rather than raising funds. After deducting law enforcement costs for the prosecution of civil forfeitures, all forfeiture revenue is sent either to the general fund of the state or the state’s education fund. Indiana does participate in equitable sharing with the federal government, averaging more than $2.6 million per year in the 2000s.
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