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- "(why they were traveling with that much cash wasn't mentioned)" You can read or watch their story here[0,1]. They're not shy about what happened to them—the

- "(why they were traveling with that much cash wasn't mentioned)" You can read or watch their story here[0,1]. They're not shy about what happened to them—they sued the US government to get everything back (with the pro bono assistance of the nonprofit IJ). [0] https://ij.org/press-release/pittsburgh-retiree-sues-federal-government-to-get-his-life-savings-back/ https://ij.org/press-release/pittsburgh-retiree-sues-federal... ("Pittsburgh Retiree Sues Federal Government to Get His Life Savings Back" (2020)) [1] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hsre7I0UUJA https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hsre7I0UUJA (" DEA & TSA Take $82,000 Life Savings From Pittsburgh Retiree") - "Terry, 79, is a retired railroad engineer born and raised in Pittsburgh. For many years, he followed his parents’ habit of hiding money in the basement of their home. When Terry moved out of his family home and into a smaller apartment, he became uncomfortable with keeping a large amount of cash. Last summer, when his daughter Rebecca was home for a family event, Terry asked her to take the money and open a new joint bank account that he could use to pay for dental work and to fix his truck, among other needs..."

plagiarist 2y ago
In a functioning justice system the government might be able to place a temporary hold on the money, but would need to promptly return it when declining to press charges or on an acquittal. Literal theft.
- bsimpson 2y ago
  It's called Civil Asset Forfeiture (gov euphemism for said literal theft). I believe John Oliver did a piece on it when he first joined HBO.
- Zak 2y ago
  A temporary hold like that only seems just to me in a case where someone had been charged with a crime and the money is alleged too be evidence or proceeds of that crime. Civil forfeiture is a way for the government to enforce criminal laws with a lower standard of proof and fewer protections for the accused. That's a bad thing.
- ch4s3 2y ago
  A functioning justice system in a free country has no legitimate reason to seize property without any prior suspicion of wrongdoing and an order from a court.
  - sangnoir 2y ago
    > any prior suspicion of wrongdoing That's still an incredibly low bar: the DEA agent may "smell marijuana on the person" or get a "hit" from a K9
    - immibis 2y ago
      why not say canine?
      - shiroiushi 2y ago
        A "canine" is any kind of dog. A "K9" is a very specific type of dog used in US law enforcement, specially trained to act as if it smelled something when it sees a special signal from its handler.
      - sangnoir 2y ago
        The same reason I said "DEA agent" and not "an adult of working age" - the specificity of the role matters. I used a metonym for the animal as the police departments that work with dogs are called "K9 units"
    - ch4s3 2y ago
      This has always felt incredibly thin to me and shouldn’t in my opinion constitute probable cause. It’s essentially a dousing rod with four legs.
      - plagiarist 2y ago
        "Dousing rod" is a nearly perfect description except it doesn't quite convey the deliberate violation of civil liberties. https://www.npr.org/2017/11/20/563889510/preventing-police-bias-when-handling-dogs-that-bite https://www.npr.org/2017/11/20/563889510/preventing-police-b...

plagiarist 2y ago

In a functioning justice system the government might be able to place a temporary hold on the money, but would need to promptly return it when declining to press charges or on an acquittal. Literal theft.

bsimpson 2y ago
It's called Civil Asset Forfeiture (gov euphemism for said literal theft). I believe John Oliver did a piece on it when he first joined HBO.
Zak 2y ago
A temporary hold like that only seems just to me in a case where someone had been charged with a crime and the money is alleged too be evidence or proceeds of that crime. Civil forfeiture is a way for the government to enforce criminal laws with a lower standard of proof and fewer protections for the accused. That's a bad thing.
ch4s3 2y ago
A functioning justice system in a free country has no legitimate reason to seize property without any prior suspicion of wrongdoing and an order from a court.
- sangnoir 2y ago
  > any prior suspicion of wrongdoing That's still an incredibly low bar: the DEA agent may "smell marijuana on the person" or get a "hit" from a K9
  - immibis 2y ago
    why not say canine?
    - shiroiushi 2y ago
      A "canine" is any kind of dog. A "K9" is a very specific type of dog used in US law enforcement, specially trained to act as if it smelled something when it sees a special signal from its handler.
    - sangnoir 2y ago
      The same reason I said "DEA agent" and not "an adult of working age" - the specificity of the role matters. I used a metonym for the animal as the police departments that work with dogs are called "K9 units"
  - ch4s3 2y ago
    This has always felt incredibly thin to me and shouldn’t in my opinion constitute probable cause. It’s essentially a dousing rod with four legs.
    - plagiarist 2y ago
      "Dousing rod" is a nearly perfect description except it doesn't quite convey the deliberate violation of civil liberties. https://www.npr.org/2017/11/20/563889510/preventing-police-bias-when-handling-dogs-that-bite https://www.npr.org/2017/11/20/563889510/preventing-police-b...