Opinion ID: 1882296
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 7

Heading: civil forfeiture v. criminal forfeiture

Text: Edwards argues that under the Seizure and Controlled Dangerous Substances Property Forfeiture Act of 1989, Revised Statutes 40:2601 through 40:2622, which gave rise to the contraband-drug exception in the constitution, property subject to seizure and forfeiture is limited to contraband per se or derivative contraband related to violations involving controlled substances. Thus, he argues that in order to seize and sell his automobile, the State must show that the forfeiture falls under the contraband-drug exception. The State argues that its forfeiture power in a civil proceeding is not limited to drug-related offenses. The State asserts that the provisions set forth by Edwards are separate and distinct from the sentencing provisions of Revised Statute 14:98(D). Civil forfeiture is the process by which governments seize property without compensating its owner, based on its connection with the commission of crime. See Leonard Levy, A License to Steal: The Forfeiture of Property ix (1996). There is no prerequisite that a crime be proved before property is subject to confiscation. See Kirk W. Munroe, Surviving the Solution: The Extraterritorial Reach of the United States, 14 Dick. J. Int'l L. 505, 515 (1996) (Where this is a civil forfeiture action, the U.S. government need not bring criminal charges, either before or after the forfeiture. [It can seize] assets without ever bringing a criminal charge against anyone involved with the asset.). In fact, the government not only has no duty to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that a crime was committed, it also has no duty to prove a crime by clear and convincing evidence or even by a preponderance of the evidence. The government must only prove that there was probable cause to believe that the property was used in connection with a crime. This burden of proof is made possible by the legal fiction that the property itself is guilty. See U.S. v. Ursery, 518 U.S. 267, 116 S.Ct. 2135, 135 L.Ed.2d 549 (1996); State v. Giles, 29,695 (La.App. 2nd Cir. 6/18/97), 697 So.2d 699 citing this court's opinion in State v. Johnson, 94-0595 (La.1/16/96), 667 So.2d 510. In contrast to civil forfeiture laws, criminal forfeitures are premised on a punitive theory, whereby forfeiture serves the important penal interests associated with the criminal process. See United States v. Kravitz, 738 F.2d 102, 106 (3d Cir.1984), cert. denied, 470 U.S. 1052, 105 S.Ct. 1752, 84 L.Ed.2d 816 (1985). As the Fifth Circuit observed in upholding a substantial criminal forfeiture: property forfeited under RICO need not be guilty. U.S. v. Cauble, 706 F.2d at 1350 (5th Cir. 1983). Rather, the scope of criminal forfeiture is measured by the penal objectives of the legislature. See U.S. v. U.S. Coin & Currency, 401 U.S. 715, 91 S.Ct. 1041, 28 L.Ed.2d 434 (1971); One 1958 Plymouth Sedan v. Com. of Pennsylvania, 380 U.S. 693, 85 S.Ct. 1246, 14 L.Ed.2d 170 (1965); Boyd v. U.S., 116 U.S. 616, 6 S.Ct. 524, 29 L.Ed. 746 (1886); State v. Billiot, 254 La. 988, 229 So.2d 72 (1969); Cornman v. Conway, 178 La. 357, 151 So. 620 (1933). Thus, in many respects, criminal forfeiture is broader in scope than civil forfeiture because law enforcement can reach property that was legitimately acquired or lawfully used. Just as civil and criminal forfeitures have distinct legal purposes, the procedures used to perfect each type of forfeiture are dramatically different. The most obvious difference, of course, is that criminal forfeitures are considered a part of a criminal prosecution and thus are subject to criminal procedural rules, whereas civil forfeitures are prosecuted in independent civil actions directly against the offending property. Civil forfeitures are considered in rem proceedings, and a court must take possession of property through an act of seizure by the government before it can assert in rem jurisdiction. The seizure of the property, either actual or constructive, confers in rem jurisdiction upon the court. See, e.g., United States v. James Daniel Good Real Property, 510 U.S. 43, 114 S.Ct. 492, 503, 126 L.Ed.2d 490 (1993); State v. Mart, 96-1584 (La.App. 1 Cir. 6/20/97); 697 So.2d 1055; State v. Baynes, 96-0292 (La.App. 4 Cir. 7/31/96); 678 So.2d 959, 962 n. 2. The typical civil forfeiture action begins with a seizure of property and is followed by the filing of a forfeiture complaint and the prosecution of the government's claim. In many senses, the raison d'etre of civil forfeitures lies in their reduction of the government's burden for a successful prosecution. See also David B. Smith, Prosecution and Defense of Forfeiture Cases (1994). Criminal forfeitures, on the other hand, are in personam actions against a criminal defendant. Thus, the only prerequisite to court jurisdiction is obtaining jurisdiction over the person of the defendant. The burden of proof in a criminal forfeiture case is allocated to the government. As such, a criminal conviction is a necessary predicate for any criminal forfeiture. See, e.g., La. R.S. 14:54.4 (Arson and use of explosives); La. R.S. 14:102.6 (Seizure and destruction or disposition of dogs and equipment used in dog-fighting); La. R.S. 14:230 (Money laundering; transactions involving proceeds of criminal activity); La. R.S. 15:1405.2 (Forfeiture of firearms, ammunition, and dangerous weapons by criminal street gangs). Applying these precepts to the DWI forfeiture statute, La. R.S. 14:98(D), we conclude that this statute is a criminal forfeiture conducted under a criminal proceeding and penalty, not a civil proceeding. The automobile in question was forfeited upon Edward's conviction of third offense DWI by means of a criminal statutory sentencing provision as a reasonable exercise of police power in accordance with the first paragraph of Article I, Section 4, as opposed to a civil forfeiture of drug related contraband as specified in paragraph 3. Accordingly, we find that each forfeiture proceeding is separate and distinct, and each is incorporated in Article I, Section 4 of the Louisiana Constitution. Furthermore, the third paragraph of Article I, Section 4 specifically provides that contraband drugs and property associated with the sale, procurement, and distribution of contraband drugs are to be disposed of by civil proceedings. Thus, contraband drug forfeitures are specifically limited to a civil proceeding [emphasis added]. As noted by the court of appeal, this case does not involve drug-contraband. State v. Edwards, 99-0885 (La.App. 1st Cir. 2/18/00), 752 So.2d 395, reh'g. den. (La.App. 1st Cir. 3/30/00) (Parro, J., dissenting). Paragraph 3 is not implicated in the case at bar. We find that other items deemed contraband can be forfeited through a criminal forfeiture proceeding as well.