President and General Counsel
Grades |
State Law Evasion Grade | Final Grade |
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New Jersey
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Forfeiture Law![]() |
New Jersey civil forfeiture laws offer scant protection to property owners. The government only needs to show by a preponderance of the evidence that the seized property is related to criminal activity. Once shown, the owner bears the burden of proving that the property was not forfeitable, making him guilty until proven innocent. The property owner must show that he was not aware of the criminal activity, was not involved with the criminal activity and took all reasonable steps to prevent the criminal activity. Law enforcement keeps 100 percent of the funds forfeited, creating an incentive to pursue forfeiture over other law enforcement efforts. Moreover, New Jersey officials are not required to track and report forfeitures and proceeds.A New Jersey Superior Court judge ruled that the forfeiture regime violated constitutional due process because of the profit incentive imbedded in it.[1] Unfortunately, the appellate division overruled the district judge and reinstated the incentive provision.[2]
1 See: Bullock, S. (2003). Court seizes the day: New Jersey civil forfeiture laws declared unconstitutional. Retrieved September 25, 2009, from http://www.ij.org/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=1425&Itemid=194. 2 State v. One 1990 Ford Thunderbird, 852 A.2d 1114 (2004). |
Forfeitures as Reported to LEMAS (Drug-related only)![]() |
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Equitable Sharing Proceeds from the Assets Forfeiture Fund (AFF) ![]() |
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Freedom of Information Data![]() |
No Data Available; Not Required to Collect
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Arlington, Va.—It’s called policing for profit and it’s happening all across America. And New Jersey has some of the worst laws in the nation for encouraging this abuse. Under a practice called “civil forfeiture,” police and prosecutors’ offices seize private property—often without ever charging the owners with a crime, much less convicting them of one—then…
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Last modified: January 1, 2020