II Discussion Title 21, U.S.C. 853, sets forth the procedure by which third parties seeking to recover an alleged interest in forfeited property may obtain judicial resolution of their claim. Any person, other than the defendant, asserting a legal interest in property which has been ordered forfeited to the United States pursuant to thissection may . . . The hearing shall be held before the court alone, without a jury. . . . The government contests the appeal, asserting that the district court correctly held Appellants to be general creditors without a legal interest in the seized funds. We do not believe that this omission is significant given the context of the paragraph.
Dollars are fungible.
As holders of checks, as opposed to security interests, petitioners are unable to assert rights to a particular asset or specific funds. Because petitioners lack an identifiable legal interest in the assets seized by the United States, they are general creditors who lack standing to contest the Order of Forfeiture.