I'm not real fond of forfeiture clauses in laws. It tends to turn law enforcement into the appearance of being mercenaries, able to reap the "rewards" of the booty they can confiscate in the performance of their duties. In a perfect world, this would be no problem, since we ALL want to see the bad guys caught and punished, but it certainly raises the possibility of abuses and corruption. The picture becomes blurred when the definition of "bad guy" just might include YOU.
And it certainly does twist the Fourth Amendment quite a bit in order to put that foot into the shoe....
Quote:
Amendment IV
The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized.
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Who decides what is "reasonable"? Is an arbitrarily chosen speed limit really grounds to forcibly take someone's personal property from them (you will have to go to court and WIN in order to get it BACK), then auction it off to use the proceeds towards the enforcement agency that made the arrest? Will promotions then be made (further monetary incentive) based on the officers who were able to bring in the most loot, er confiscations? Is putting a monetary incentive towards law enforcement in this manner really a good idea? Do we really want to turn law enforcement into a financial incentive based business? Would anyone REALLY want to live in an area where a substantial portion of the law enforcement budget is paid for mostly by goods confiscated from the population?
Hell, if you are going 35 mph over the speed limit and find a cop on your tail, are YOU going to pull over knowing you will be going to jail and your vehicle will be forcibly taken from you? Yeah, high speed chases will be the rule rather than the exception. The cost of voluntarily surrendering will be WAY too high. Getting a hefty ticket and fine is one thing, but if the stakes are too high, the rules of engagement will change.
IMHO, of course.