Supreme Court bolsters right of owners against police seizures of vehicles

News

February 21, 2019 - 9:30 AM

U.S. Supreme Court

WASHINGTON —The Supreme Court on Wednesday strengthened the rights of Americans to fight police seizures of vehicles and property, ruling the Eighth Amendment’s ban on “excessive fines” applies to states and localities, not just the federal government.

Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg in her second day back from cancer surgery delivered the opinion for a unanimous court.

The ruling is a victory for Tyson Timbs, an Indiana man and a former heroin addict whose $42,000 Land Rover was seized by police after he was convicted of two drug sales that amounted to about $300.

Related
February 21, 2022
November 12, 2021
April 22, 2020
June 20, 2019