In jolly old England, Robin Hood stole from the rich to give to the poor. In modern-day America, greedy government goons steal from the innocent to give to the corrupt under court- and legislature-sanctioned schemes called civil asset forfeiture. In fact, one year, law enforcement took more stuff from people than burglars did. Police agencies have used their ill-gotten gains to pay for illicit drugs, prostitutes, guns, armored cars, electronic surveillance gear, luxury vehicles, travel and a clown named Sparkles. This is how the American police state continues to get rich: by stealing from the citizenry. It’s a new, twisted form of guilt by association. Only it’s not the citizenry being accused of wrongdoing, just their money. What this adds up to is a paradigm in which Americans no longer have to be guilty to be stripped of their property, rights and liberties. All you have to be is in possession of something the government wants. This is what has become known as “policing for profit.” We are now ruled by a government so consumed with squeezing every last penny out of the population as to be completely unconcerned if essential freedoms are trampled in the process. Our freedoms aren’t just being trampled, however. They’re being eviscerated. At every turn, “we the people” are getting swindled, cheated, conned, robbed, raided, pickpocketed, mugged, deceived, defrauded, double-crossed and fleeced by governmental and corporate shareholders of the American police state out to make a profit at taxpayer expense. Enough is enough.
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Show Notes
Policing for Profit: The Abuse of Civil Asset Forfeiture
Law enforcement took more stuff from people than burglars did last year
DEA regularly mines Americans' travel records to seize millions in cash
Justice Thomas Defends Victims of “Policing for Profit”
Texas police shake down drivers, lawsuit claims
Illinois Traffic Stop Of Star Trek Fans Raises Concerns About Drug Searches, Police Dogs, Bad Cops
Highway robbery? Texas police seize black motorists' cash, cars
Tennessee Asset Forfeiture Bill Seeks To Abolish Abusive Police Practice
'Innocent until proven guilty' should mean what it says
Hidden cameras reveal airport workers stealing from luggage
Drug cops took a college kid’s savings and now 13 police departments want a cut
DEA Steals $16,000 In Cash From Young Black Man, Because He Must Be A Drug Dealer
How the TSA and Drug Enforcement Administration Joined Forces to Seize Cash at Airports
Drug Dealing and Legal Stealing
Feds Give Up Trying to Seize a Motel Based on Drug Offenses by a Few Guests
Police Seize Car, Drive 56,000 Miles, Sell It Without Charging Owners With a Crime
Illinois Traffic Stop Of Star Trek Fans Raises Concerns About Drug Searches, Police Dogs, Bad Cops
Asset seizures fuel police spending
Trump hosts LE at White House, pledges support for police
Jeff Sessions Loves Asset Forfeiture. Will Congress Grill Him at His Confirmation Hearing
Police Union Head Wonders Why Everybody Suddenly Wants Them to Stop Stealing People’s Stuff
Massachusetts Body of Liberties
Stealing from the Citizenry: How Government Goons Use Civil Asset Forfeiture to Rob Us Blind
Battlefield America: The War on the American People
Rutherford Institute