DEA Steals $16,000 In Cash From Young Black Man, Because He Must Be A Drug Dealer

[We Keep Receipts 9,238]

http://www.msn.com/en-ca/news/world/dea-steals-dollar16000-in-cash-from-young-black-man-because-he-must-be-a-drug-dealer/ar-BBjn6Ii

After scraping together enough money to produce a music video in Hollywood, 22-year-old Joseph Rivers set out last month on a train trip from Michigan to Los Angeles, hoping it was the start of something big.

Before he made it to California, however, Rivers fell victim to a legal form of government highway robbery.

Rivers changed trains at the Amtrak station in Albuquerque, New Mexico, on April 15, with bags containing his clothes, other possessions and an envelope filled with the $16,000 in cash he had raised with the help of his family, the Albuquerque Journal reports. Agents with the Drug Enforcement Administration got on after him and began looking for people who might be trafficking drugs.

Rivers said the agents questioned passengers at random, asking for their destination and reason for travel. When one of the agents got to Rivers, who was the only black person in his car, according to witnesses, the agent took the interrogation further, asking to search his bags. Rivers complied. The agent found the cash -- still in a bank envelope -- and decided to seize it on suspicion that it may be tied to narcotics. River pleaded with the agents, explaining his situation and even putting his mother on the phone to verify the story.

No luck.

“These officers took everything that I had worked so hard to save and even money that was given to me by family that believed in me,” Rivers told the Journal. “I told (the DEA agents) I had no money and no means to survive in Los Angeles if they took my money. They informed me that it was my responsibility to figure out how I was going to do that.”

Rivers, who has since returned to Michigan, fell victim to civil asset forfeiture, a legal tool that has been criticized as a violation of due process and a contradiction of the idea that criminal defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty. Asset forfeiture allows police to seize property they suspect is related to criminal activity, without even charging its owner with a crime. The charges are filed against the property itself -- including cash, jewelry, cars and houses -- which can then be sold, with part of the proceeds flowing back to the department that made the seizure.

“We don’t have to prove that the person is guilty,” Sean Waite, the agent in charge at the DEA's Albuquerque's office, told the Journal. “It’s that the money is presumed to be guilty.”
The burden of proof lies with those whose property is taken, who often are forced to wage costly court battles to prove they came by their possessions legally.

[decocker 7,198]

related article. amtrak doesn't seem safe for carrying cash.

Last year, the Associated Press reported that the DEA “paid an Amtrak secretary $854,460 over nearly 20 years to obtain confidential information about train passengers, which the DEA could have lawfully obtained for free through a law enforcement network.” (This was reportedly done so that the DEA could avoid sharing seized assets with Amtrak police, which hints at how lucrative such seizures are.)

Around the same time, the ACLU filed a Freedom of Information Act request after getting reports about Amtrak passengers having their rights violated. “This type of targeting constitutes a significant invasion of personal privacy,” an attorney wrote in the accompanying memo. “It suggests that Amtrak is sharing the travel-related data of thousands of its passengers who have engaged in no wrongdoing.”

http://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2015/05/how-the-dea-harasses-amtrak-passengers/393230/

[We Keep Receipts 9,238]

related article. amtrak doesn't seem safe for carrying cash.

http://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2015/05/how-the-dea-harasses-amtrak-passengers/393230/

If memory serves correctly, you touched upon this subject a while back...

[spookyturtle 9,465]

Well, there is a 33% chance he is a drug dealer.

[decocker 7,198]

Well, there is a 33% chance he is a drug dealer.

don't you think that he should at least be charged with a crime in order to take his money?

[decocker 7,198]

If memory serves correctly, you touched upon this subject a while back...

yeah, its crazy to me that this goes on.

[We Keep Receipts 9,238]

yeah, its crazy to me that this goes on.

Of course it does. But once again, they know who to target.

That's the sad thing about this. He was in a bad situation no matter what choice he made. If he didn't consent, they would have been other consequences.

Edited May 20, 2015 by Stay Woke

[Mr. Big Dog 10,747]

don't you think that he should at least be charged with a crime in order to take his money?

Presumption of innocence is only given to old white fellas. You just never learn, do you?

[decocker 7,198]

the guy in the article i posted was only out 60 bucks, but he wasn't even allowed to be present for the search (that he never consented to..).

and then amtrak is just helping them rob their customers..crazy.

[spookyturtle 9,465]

don't you think that he should at least be charged with a crime in order to take his money?

No. When you're black, you're guilty until proven innocent.

[The Nature Boy 4,224]

http://www.msn.com/en-ca/news/world/dea-steals-dollar16000-in-cash-from-young-black-man-because-he-must-be-a-drug-dealer/ar-BBjn6Ii

After scraping together enough money to produce a music video in Hollywood, 22-year-old Joseph Rivers set out last month on a train trip from Michigan to Los Angeles, hoping it was the start of something big.

Before he made it to California, however, Rivers fell victim to a legal form of government highway robbery.

Rivers changed trains at the Amtrak station in Albuquerque, New Mexico, on April 15, with bags containing his clothes, other possessions and an envelope filled with the $16,000 in cash he had raised with the help of his family, the Albuquerque Journal reports. Agents with the Drug Enforcement Administration got on after him and began looking for people who might be trafficking drugs.

Rivers said the agents questioned passengers at random, asking for their destination and reason for travel. When one of the agents got to Rivers, who was the only black person in his car, according to witnesses, the agent took the interrogation further, asking to search his bags. Rivers complied. The agent found the cash -- still in a bank envelope -- and decided to seize it on suspicion that it may be tied to narcotics. River pleaded with the agents, explaining his situation and even putting his mother on the phone to verify the story.

No luck.

These officers took everything that I had worked so hard to save and even money that was given to me by family that believed in me, Rivers told the Journal. I told (the DEA agents) I had no money and no means to survive in Los Angeles if they took my money. They informed me that it was my responsibility to figure out how I was going to do that.

Rivers, who has since returned to Michigan, fell victim to civil asset forfeiture, a legal tool that has been criticized as a violation of due process and a contradiction of the idea that criminal defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty. Asset forfeiture allows police to seize property they suspect is related to criminal activity, without even charging its owner with a crime. The charges are filed against the property itself -- including cash, jewelry, cars and houses -- which can then be sold, with part of the proceeds flowing back to the department that made the seizure.

We dont have to prove that the person is guilty, Sean Waite, the agent in charge at the DEA's Albuquerque's office, told the Journal. Its that the money is presumed to be guilty.

The burden of proof lies with those whose property is taken, who often are forced to wage costly court battles to prove they came by their possessions legally.

If it really happened just like this I will protest with you

[We Keep Receipts 9,238]

If it really happened just like this I will protest with you

Why is it hard to believe?

[Pooky 3,343]

Civil forfeiture ... where the cash or property seized is "the guilty party".

It isn't bad enough that Amtrak are suspected of colluding with Federal agencies to facilitate this practice. Now we are heading toward banks disclosing to Law Enforcement Agencies any cash withdrawals over $5,000. Because everyone knows that using cash means you have something to hide.

[TBoneTX 43,020]

the agents questioned passengers at random, asking for their destination and reason for travel. When one of the agents got to Rivers, who was the only black person in his car, according to witnesses, the agent took the interrogation further, asking to search his bags. Rivers complied.

Attorney after attorney has said, "Never ever consent to any search." If the agent had the right to search, he would have done so without the need to ask permission. The poor kid did it to himself by consenting ("complying"). There are also ways to deflect questions about destinations and reasons for travel, which no U.S. citizen need answer.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yqMjMPlXzdA

http://www.aclu.org/files/kyr/kyr_english.pdf

Edited May 20, 2015 by TBoneTX

[Trumplestiltskin 5,791]

don't you think that he should at least be charged with a crime in order to take his money?

Well you would think so, otherwise a person might conclude that carrying cash on a train is an illegal act. I'd be interested to know how that works.