live free or die? must be just a joke

[94extreme]

Police property: It’s finders keepers in NH

 

 

The state Supreme Court ruled on Tuesday that the government can keep and destroy more than 500 CDs taken from Michael Cohen, owner of Pitchfork Records in Concord, in 2003 even though the state failed to prove that a single disk was illegal.

 

Cohen was arrested for attempting to sell bootleg recordings. But the police case collapsed when it turned out that most of the recordings were made legally. Police dropped six of the seven charges, and Cohen went to trial on one charge. He beat it after the judge concluded that the recording was legal.

 

However, the police refused to return Cohen’s CDs. In the state Supreme Court’s Tuesday ruling, Chief Justice John Broderick, writing for the majority, reasoned so poorly that it appeared as if he’d made up his mind ahead of time.

 

Dissenting, Justice Linda Dalianis wrote, perceptively, that “the majority does not explain how statutes prohibiting the production, publication, or sale of certain works render possession of such works unlawful.”

 

Further, Dalianis concluded that “the state’s failure to establish in any way that the seized property constitutes contraband” made it impossible to justify keeping Cohen’s property.

 

Indeed, the majority’s reasoning is chilling. The majority concedes that no crime or illegal act was proven, but allows the confiscation anyway by concluding that a crime might have been committed. The majority used words such as “apparently,” “likely” and “would have” to describe the alleged illegal activity.

 

It should go without saying that speculation by a few judges that a crime might have been committed is a frightening basis for taking someone’s property.

 

Earlier this year, Nashua police confiscated video recordings of two officers being rude to a citizen at his own home. Though police dropped all charges against Michael Gannon and admitted they could not prove the recordings were illegal, they still kept the tapes.

 

If someone is found with cocaine or any other item clearly illegal to possess, confiscation is easily justified. But the illegality of these items was never proven, and mere possession was not itself illegal.

 

If the government can seize and keep a citizen’s property by simply asserting that it is contraband, even when the assertion is unsupported by the facts, then we have entered into dangerous territory.

 

http://unionleader.com/article.aspx?headli...b9-caec6bbbb979

[88VTpathy]

Hooray for the Union leader, that's the area's gossip papper , they like to dig up dirt on everyone and everything, mainly cause we have nothing else to do in the area.

 

That's still B.S. that all the cd's are being destroyed without any real evidence. I love the local smokies, as bored as we all are, and no matter what we doing they still manage to go outa their way to be well, use your imagination and instert a couple of explatives here.

[Precise1]

Yep, there have been a few cases like that recently (that were exposed, that is) wherein the judge basically said "No, we aren't giving it back because I SAID SO !!" (actually more like "because you can't make us NEENER NEENER !!!") even though you have been found totally innocent of the charges. One case involved more that $100k cash... I wonder who got a cut of that ?

Only one thing to do at that point. Burn their friggin house down !! When they ask why, just say "Because I can, NEENER NEENER !!".

It's a sad time when the judicial system backs a police state...

 

B

[94extreme]

Yep, there have been a few cases like that recently (that were exposed, that is) wherein the judge basically said "No, we aren't giving it back because I SAID SO !!" (actually more like "because you can't make us NEENER NEENER !!!") even though you have been found totally innocent of the charges. One case involved more that $100k cash... I wonder who got a cut of that ?

Only one thing to do at that point. Burn their friggin house down !! When they ask why, just say "Because I can, NEENER NEENER !!".

It's a sad time when the judicial system backs a police state...

 

B

yeah, the cash confiscation was/is definitely just as scary. i don't like either one.

[Slick]

i don't have anything to confiscate.. but they're more than willing to try.

that's just wrong. the man should get his stuff back.. whatever next.. taking someone's house because you THINK it's being used for a whore house?

[94extreme]

for those who missed it, here is the confiscated $125K story. it ain't real pretty either.

[fordsho90]

This happens all of the time along Interstate 10 in Louisiana where people are "pulled over for speeding" or other "infractions". Then are supject to illegal search and seizures and then have to PROVE that whatever has been confiscated isnt illegal. Then if they want to fight it they have to come back to Louisiana and try to win, and if by off chance that you do win they tax you pretty hard on the confiscated items, so that in the long run it will COST U more then what it is worth to get it back; nice scam huh? Dateline did a piece on this a number of years ago. here is a link to the related story tourist alert louisiana