FEAR-List Bulletin posted 6-14-95

The Miami Herald published an article on June 14, 1995, entitled: "Chiles Signs Cash Confiscation Bill,"  Florida Gov. Lawton Chiles this week signed into law a Florida forfeiture reform bill. According to the Herald, the new law requires the police to establish the property's involvement in crime by a preponderance of the evidence before it can be seized.

"The law came under scrutiny after Volusia County Sheriff Bob Vogel's drug squad seized about $8 million in suspected drug money between 1989 and 1992 when stopping motorists along Interstate 95. In January, a federal judge dismissed a $3.5 million civil lawsuit against Vogel by minority motorists who claimed his drug squad illegal seized large amounts of cash from them."