The Eighth Amendment’s protection against excessive fines has been incorporated to the states via the 14th Amendment, the Supreme Court of the United States has unanimously ruled in deciding an Indiana civil forfeiture case that posed the question.
Indiana Lawyer’s top story of 2018 began inside an Indianapolis bar in the cool early-morning hours of Thursday, March 15. Attorney General Curtis Hill had had a few drinks. A few too many, several witnesses would later claim.
Marion resident Tyson Timbs never expected to be the face of civil forfeiture reform at the United States Supreme Court. Several times during his five-year legal battle, Timbs wanted to throw in the towel. Sometimes, all he wanted was to put his past trouble with the law behind him. But he also said he wanted to fight against what he views as widespread unjust civil forfeiture practices.
WASHINGTON — The grandeur and history of the United States Supreme Court stood in stark contrast to the small-town Indiana roots of a potentially landmark civil forfeiture case federal justices heard Wednesday.
An Indiana case that could decide whether the Eighth Amendment protection against excessive fines applies to the states will be heard at the United States Supreme Court on Wednesday.
Contrary readings of Article 8, Section 2 of the Indiana Constitution and its implication on Indiana’s civil forfeiture statute were at issue Thursday when the Indiana Supreme Court heard oral arguments in a case brought by the Virginia-based Institute for Justice.
Justices to hear oral argument on civil forfeiture case, two othersThe Indiana Supreme Court will hear oral argument in three cases on Thursday, including a case dealing with the distribution of civil forfeiture proceeds.
The Indiana Court of Appeals has upheld the admission of evidence found during the warrantless search of a convicted drug felon’s vehicle, finding the search did not violate the man’s state constitutional rights.
The nation’s highest court will hear an Indiana civil forfeiture case next month that could determine whether the Eighth Amendment’s protections against excessive fines can be applied on the state level.
Indiana’s civil forfeiture framework has received ample attention from the state legislative and judicial branches in recent years, but now, the nation’s highest court will weigh in on a case that could have implications in Indiana and nationwide.
A case challenging the constitutionality of Indiana’s civil forfeiture laws is heading to the Indiana Supreme Court, just as a separate Indiana civil forfeiture case will be heard next term by the United States Supreme Court.
A lawsuit challenging Indiana’s civil forfeiture procedures will be heard by the United States Supreme Court after the justices granted a writ of certiorari to a case that a national legal organization says will have significant implications on Eighth Amendment protections nationwide.
The Institute for Justice is asking the Indiana Supreme Court to grant immediate review to a case challenging Indiana’s civil forfeiture policy, arguing the practice of diverting forfeiture proceeds away from the Common School Fund is unconstitutional and encourages “policing for profit.”
A bill to reform many aspects of Indiana’s civil forfeiture proceedings is headed to Gov. Eric Holcomb after receiving unanimous support on final passage from the House of Representatives on Monday. The legislation increases due process protections in such cases.
The Indiana Senate has approved a bill that would reform many aspects of Indiana’s civil forfeiture framework, a move local attorneys who practice such cases say is a step in the right direction. However, concerns remain about whether the legislation provides criminal defendants sufficient due process.
A bill that would overhaul Indiana’s civil forfeiture framework has passed the Indiana Senate. The legislation is in response to a federal court ruling that struck down part of Indiana’s civil forfeiture statute as unconstitutional.
A long-discussed civil forfeiture reform bill has cleared its first hurdle in the Indiana statehouse. The Senate Judiciary Committee on Wednesday passed Senate Bill 99, which tightens due process procedures when prosecutors seek to confiscate property allegedly connected with crimes.
The state of Indiana can move forward with its plan to seize a Land Rover worth more than $40,000 from a convicted heroin dealer after the Indiana Supreme Court ruled the Eighth Amendment’s Excessive Fines Clause does not bar the state from making such a forfeiture.
A preliminary draft of proposed legislation that would revamp Indiana’s civil forfeiture law has been endorsed by members of a summer study committee, but not without concerns raised by lawmakers.
After a federal judge ruled part of Indiana’s civil forfeiture framework unconstitutional, state lawmakers are now reviewing proposed legislation to bring that framework in compliance with federal mandates and prosecutors’ suggestions.