DOJ has decided to tighten the 2nd Amendment a bit

Started by JustKari, September 13, 2012, 06:15:33 PM

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JustKari

The DOJ has given the ATF broader rules in the seizure of firearms.
http://m.washingtontimes.com/news/2012/sep/6/atfs-latest-gun-grab/

QuoteThe Obama administration is making it easier for bureaucrats to take away guns without offering the accused any realistic due process. In a final rule published last week, the Justice Department granted the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) authority to "seize and administratively forfeit property involved in controlled-substance abuses." That means government can grab firearms and other property from someone who has never been convicted or even charged with any crime.

It's a dangerous extension of the civil-forfeiture doctrine, a surreal legal fiction in which the seized property —not a person —is put on trial. This allows prosecutors to dispense with pesky constitutional rights, which conveniently don't apply to inanimate objects. In this looking-glass world, the owner is effectively guilty until proved innocent and has the burden of proving otherwise. Anyone falsely accused will never see his property again unless he succeeds in an expensive uphill legal battle.