Libertarian Party of Montgomery County
Promoting liberty throughout the Greater Dayton area and the Miami Valley
Institute for Justice Class Action Lawsuit Challenging “Take Now, Explain Never” Forfeitures Will Continue
The FBI’s forfeiture notices violate the Fifth Amendment, which requires the government to provide specific factual and legal reasons for forfeiture.
Crevola does not operate a home-based business. The people who visit are guests, not customers, and no money changes hands.
The city doesn’t care. It says the code allows people to use their property only for a list of predefined activities. There is no room for innovation.
https://reason.com/2023/07/08/zoning-police-criminalize-kindness-in-oregon/
The Supreme Court ruled that home equity theft qualifies as a taking, and that state law is not the sole source for the definition of property rights. The ruling is imprecise on some points, but still sets an important and valuable precedent.
Maine’s policy is a step in the right direction, but as with laws that legalize drug possession but not production or sale, removing criminal penalties from only one side of the market is a minor step that can be worse than no legalization at all.
https://www.cato.org/blog/maine-legalizes-sale-prostitution-services
As with all black markets, consumers will be less sure about the purity and quality of the products they buy or whether they contain deadly compounds. This will make vaping more hazardous.
https://www.cato.org/blog/new-underground-market-e-cigarettes-will-soon-begin-flourishing-australia
In April, the Aldine Independent School District voted to authorize the use of eminent domain to seize the home and surrounding acre of land currently owned and occupied by 79-year-old Travis Upchurch, reported the Houston Chronicle in July.
Most people would be hard‐pressed to define the “American Dream” without some reference to economic freedom. From Benjamin Franklin’s dozens of inventions (bifocals! A flexible catheter!), to self‐made man Frederick Douglass, to serial inventor Joy Mangano’s miracle mop, Americans believe that with a good idea and enough hard work, anyone can enjoy economic success—no matter the circumstances of their birth.
https://www.cato.org/blog/calling-papers-beyond-fourteenth-amendment-protecting-right-earn-living
Under civil asset forfeiture laws, police can seize property suspected of being connected to criminal activity, even if the owner is not charged with a crime. Law enforcement says civil asset forfeiture is a vital tool for disrupting drug trafficking and other organized crime by targeting illicit revenue.
However, civil liberties groups like the Institute for Justice say police often target innocent owners or petty offenders—not cartel lords—and force them to bear the cost of challenging the seizure in court.
Why are policymakers spoiling for a change to make the constitution more difficult to amend? Likely because their opinions are out of step with the voters.
Despite Ohioans’ good judgment, today’s legislative supermajority – already drunk on power – seeks to amass more power by stripping voters of their most potent tool for holding lawmakers accountable.