Arizona Town To Pay $8 Million to Widow of Daniel Shaver, Shot While Crawling Unarmed Toward Police

The cop who killed Shaver was fired. But he will receive a disability pension for the rest of his life because he claims he has post-traumatic stress disorder.

https://reason.com/2022/11/28/arizona-town-to-pay-8-million-to-widow-of-daniel-shaver-shot-while-crawling-unarmed-toward-police/#

Houston Prosecutors Are Keeping Cash Seized From Defendants Whose Cases Were Compromised by Police Corruption

Even in cases that hinged on the trustworthiness of demonstrably untrustworthy cops, people are still waiting to get their money back.

Harris County District Attorney Kim Ogg wants credit for investigating the blatantly corrupt behavior of Goines and other Houston narcotics officers. Meanwhile, her office, which is hardly without blame for prosecuting falsely accused defendants, is eagerly engaged in money grabs that victimize innocent people and make a mockery of justice.

https://reason.com/2022/11/04/houston-prosecutors-are-keeping-cash-seized-from-defendants-whose-cases-were-compromised-by-police-corruption/

After Supreme Court Ruling, States Grapple With How To Define an Excessive Fine

The Supreme Court’s 2018 ruling in Timbs v. Indiana revived the Excessive Fines Clause. Now state courts have to come up with tests to determine what’s excessive.

“Surely, if the Excessive Fines Clause means anything, it means that the government cannot confiscate a defendant’s entire net worth when the maximum fine set by the legislature is less than one-tenth of the value of the forfeited asset.”

https://reason.com/2022/11/04/after-supreme-court-ruling-states-grapple-with-how-to-define-an-excessive-fine/

21 Years After 9/11, TSA Still Insists on Grabbing Your Dick When You Fly

The agency misses as much as 70 percent of the fake bombs, guns, and explosives that undercover government auditors try to sneak through their security checkpoints. Surveyed passengers report a near-90 percent success rate at getting illicit substances and items through security.

https://reason.com/2022/09/11/21-years-after-9-11-tsa-still-insists-on-grabbing-your-dick-when-you-fly/

Oregon’s Drug Decriminalization Needs to Go Further

Prohibition encourages violence because illicit suppliers cannot use the legal and judicial systems to resolve disputes. Prohibition also incentivizes high potency products because traffickers can more easily conceal these from law enforcement.

https://www.cato.org/blog/oregons-drug-decriminalization-needs-go-further

It’s (Almost) Always the Feds: How the FBI Fabricates Schemes To Entrap Would-Be Radicals

The war on terror allowed the FBI to build a massive spy network and shrug off post-Watergate restrictions limiting its ability to snoop on Americans. The fear of another 9/11 overcame our memories of Hoover’s FBI wiretapping, burgling, and blackmailing of the government’s political enemies, and so the bureau could once again investigate people for who they knew and what they said.

https://reason.com/2022/09/04/its-almost-always-the-feds/