Reversed and remanded. I concur with the court's opinion. Since early statehood, Minnesota has embraced the fundamental principle that the criminal laws generally are to be enforced by local law enforcement officials. Minnesota does not have a state constabulary. The county sheriff is elected locally, as are the mayors and members of municipal councils that control the local police.
Problems occur when persons or agencies in the law enforcement system act outside normal channels.
Even now, as I write, the Jeep Cherokee apparently remains in limbo, purportedly beyond the reach of state officials and purportedly immune from appellant's efforts to recover possession of it. Appellant did the only thing she could do to obtain the return of her Jeep Cherokee, that is, seek a judicial determination of the validity of the forfeiture. I have no quarrel with the legal forfeiture of private vehicles used to convey illicit drugs. But there is another side to that coin. Those who would undertake legal forfeiture must understand that our laws apply both to what is done and to how it is done .