If so, if you really believe that, then you are just as bone-headed, reactionary and narrow-minded as the cretins who perpetrate this kind of outrage and those who defend it.

Sorry, this is not a Republican v. Democrat, as some have suggested; and it’s not a red state v. blue state, nor a flaky, dusty little town v. big city issue or anything of the sort; it happens because of a certain law-enforcement cohort and philosophy that holds that we ALL are suspects (I refer you to the excellent post above) and it permeates this *whole* country. Do you really need to be reminded of the numerous cases of police misconduct that have been in the news in recent years from California and New York?

Think unjustified asset forfeiture is a Texas thing? Spend an hour or so browsing http://www.fear.org.

In the Tenaha case, it’s just more drug warrior tactics of the sort employed in Lousiana about 10-12 years ago, which many above the age of 15 may remember. (Iit’s amazing what a blind eye the American people will turn to such abuses when law enforcement plays the drug card.)

They basically get around what would otherwise be 4th & 5th Amendment issues by making the seizures a civil matter *against the seized property* rather than criminal, and oops, whatdya know, your property has no Bill of Rights protection against being sued by the government.

Defenders of this practice (like on the Chicago Tribune’s comment section) say, “well, if they weren’t guilty of something, they could and should hire a lawyer and sue for retrieval their money and goods. . . ., etc. ” (Kind of like the argument that you shouldn’t object to being searched it you’ve nothing to hide.) Never mind, of course, that a lot of these folks haven’t the resources to sue law enforcement institutions that have standing legal reps (Like DAs) or
are already intimidated by the system, are intimidated by the threats of the
cops, or have learned there’s no percentage in fighting city hall,
especially where you’re a stranger; never mind that, if innocent, no-one
should be *required* to hire an attorney to retrieve their property and
never mind that they’d have little left of their confiscated cash if they
did.

What do you expect, it’s Texas, after all?

Power corrupts, John. Wherever you are.

Stay out of Tenaha… or let you be the next victim of police corruption.

On the surface it sounds like a great example of the police force being trained with blinders on.
A method of police training that leads to megalomaniacal ego’s in uniform.
An US vs. THEM mentality instead of a “to protect and serve” ideal.
It’s the difference between those who choose to think and feel and those who simply choose to follow with “programmed” thinking and feeling.
One is service for the greater good and the other is servitude (to mostly themselves.)

Unfortunately, it looks like some Tenaha police officers prefer to serve themselves and their own personal interests instead of looking out for those they serve.

This demonstrates an incredible lack of leadership from the top down.
This is probably why a flat denial was posted instead of a honest internal review.
A flat denial implies that Tenaha police officers are apparently immune to corruption.

Its never good to start any relationship with a lie.

August 6, I think 2007, around 9:30 pm, my wife and I were driving in Mississippi, headed to Hattiesburg to spend the night. We passed a cop car, apparently searching a rental truck. A few miles down the road here came a cop car, at a high rate of speed, hovered behind us while checking our plates, then pulled us over.

He walked up to the back of our Toyota mini-van and gave a mighty tug on the hatch, obviously trying to open it.

Then, he came to the side door, and gave some story that I might not have pulled over when passing the parked cop car. Wrong, But, then told us he just wanted us to know about the new law. I am from Texas, and to not pull over or slow down by a cop car is a serious offense.

I did not understand until I called my son. He also experienced a false probable cause stop a couple hours earlier while crossing Arkansas. We were meeting at his house in VA the next day.

Then, I realized that cop almost certainly was going to find drugs in my car and steal it if he had gotten that door open.

This is happening all over the US. I have talked to young people in McAllen who get stopped for totally false things.

But, don’t blame the cops nor the mayor. The judiciary are the folks who took a law which was supposed to confiscate property from those who made it illegally, only when they were convicted. The judiciary said this was a civil matter, thus there need be no proof beyond a reasonable doubt.

And, when they pull shenanigans, it is the judiciary which makes them go through a $30,000 trial when they steal a $5,000 car or cash instead of following the Constitution and summarily ordering the assets returned..

Edit: Yep. Link.