Civil Asset Forfeiture Lawyer

Having police officers come and take your property can be devastating. After all, the police are supposed to protect you, not take away your rights or property. However, when the property you own has been linked to a crime, the government has the right to take that property whether you were a part of that crime or not. For example, you may have cash–that you rightfully got–that was later identified as cash used to purchase drugs. Cash goes through hands so quickly that it is entirely plausible that an innocent person could end up with drug money. When this is the case, what can you do to get your property back? Do you have the right to get your property or is this something the police hold onto? 

Do you have the legal right to get your property? 

Yes. It is absolutely possible for you to get your property back after the police have seized it. That said, you do not simply waltz into the police station and say you had nothing to do with the crime and demand your money back. Instead, there is a process that you will need to go through. This is best done with the help of a lawyer, like a civil asset forfeiture lawyer from a law firm like Pioletti Pioletti & Nichols. 

What kind of evidence do police officers need to have? 

Understandably, you may want to know what kinds of evidence police officers need to have when it comes to taking someone else’s property. Surely, they will need evidence, right? For example, if police officers found stolen goods inside the trunk of a car, they would know that the car had something to do with the stolen goods. They could suspect that it was used as a getaway car. However, they have more solid evidence to show that the car was, at the very least, used to transport the stolen goods in some manner. 

Getting Your Property Back 

Next, it is time to figure out how to get your money back. Several things you may need to prove are: 

• You did not commit the crime in question
• You had nothing to do with the crime and were not involved 
• You are not holding onto the property for the person who was accused of the crime
• You in no way benefited from the crime in question

If the property the police officers seized was your car, you can speak with your lawyer about filing a motion to get your car back so that you can use it to go to work, school, etc. It is possible to get your car back sooner rather than later when the loss of your car would negatively impact your life (like losing your job if you can’t get to work). 

If you are interested in learning more about how you can get your property back in a civil asset forfeiture case, give your local law firm a call now.