Tennessee Lawmakers Pledge To Scrutinize Police Seizures Of Cash, Cars And Other Property

Tennessee lawmakers are demanding more information from law enforcement about asset seizures.

The House voted unanimously Thursday to receive regular reports on how often police are taking property from suspects before trial.

Like many states, Tennessee lets law enforcement seize cash, automobiles and other property they believe have been used to commit a crime. It’s then up to the property owner to prove those seized assets weren’t used illegally — even when courts determine no crime was committed.

House Bill 2176
would require the Department of Safety to report to the legislature each year the number of seizure cases opened, the number that also involved arrests, any types of property seized and how much cash was confiscated.

The measure comes amid heightened scrutiny of asset seizure laws. Police departments across the country have been
accused of abusing such laws, with some using the assets as a major source of revenue.

Critics have complained of lax oversight by judges and ethnic profiling. They’ve also said seizure laws have been written unfairly, with people whose assets were taken being forced to pay lawyers to reclaim their property — even when police declined to bring any charges.

A
2014 investigation by WTVF-TV in Nashville raised questions about asset seizure practices along Interstate 40.

Tennessee law enforcement agencies have to
jump through more hoops than police in other parts of the country, says state Rep. Mike Carter, an Ooltewah Republican and former judge. But he still supports more reporting.

“So the beauty of this bill is it’ll tell us, do we actually have a problem. Then we can come back and correct that,” he says.

Now that the reporting requirement has passed the House, it needs approval from the state Senate. That chamber is scheduled to vote on the requirement on Monday.