by Stephen Klein Wyoming's reform of civil asset forfeiture, which passed unanimously in the 2016 Budget Session, went into effect on July 1. Already, the reform has lived up to its name, which is illustrated by comparing two cash seizure cases—one that began before the reform, and one after. Asset forfeiture is a process by which law enforcement s...

by Wyoming Liberty Staff James Madison warned us in Federalist #10 of the violence "a number citizens who are united and actuated by some common impulse of passion, or of interest, adversed to the rights of other citizens" can do to liberty. 3,368 voters in Casper just illustrated his point by neglecting to perform their civic duty to stand up for ...

by Stephen Klein On Wednesday the Joint Judiciary Committee of the Wyoming Legislature voted to adopt a committee bill to reform civil asset forfeiture under the Wyoming Controlled Substances Act ("WCSA"). The law as it exists today allows Wyoming police to seize and the state to keep ("forfeit") property that they suspect is related to the drug tr...

by Wyoming Liberty Staff Core property rights principles can help resolve Casper's ongoing debate about smoking in bars better than some one-size-fits-all regulatory regime. The right to exclude others can empower individual bar owners to sort out how much or little smoking occurs in bars across Casper. Therefore, Casper does not need a citywide ba...

by Stephen Klein In the 2015 Wyoming Legislative Session, Senate File 14, or Senate Enrolled Act 1 (SEA 1), would have overhauled Wyoming's drug forfeiture laws to require a felony conviction before alleged drug property (cash, cars, firearms and the like) could be permanently taken by the state. The bill passed the Wyoming Legislature with an init...

by Stephen Klein CHEYENNE – The Wyoming House of Representatives passed Senate File 14 today with a vote of 54-6, which follows the Senate's passing vote of 26-3 (1 excused) on January 23. The bill would amend the Wyoming Controlled Substances Act to end the practice of civil forfeiture by requiring an individual to be convicted of a drug felony be...

In October, comedian John Oliver discussed the practice of civil asset forfeiture on his HBO program "Last Week Tonight." His bit closed with a parody of the show "Law & Order," featuring a police detective interrogating a pile of money and another running in dramatic slow motion with a seized toaster. Unfortunately, in real life civil forfeitu...

LARAMIE – The Joint Judiciary Committee of the Wyoming Legislature voted to sponsor a bill that would substantially amend the Wyoming Controlled Substances Act today, by a vote of 12-1 (1 excused). The bill would eliminate the practice of "civil forfeiture" in Wyoming, which allows police to seize, and the attorney general to permanently deprive ow...

Last week, at the meeting of the Joint Judiciary Committee of the Wyoming Legislature in Newcastle, I testified in favor of two bills that, if passed, will reform the practice of civil forfeiture in Wyoming. Both bills would bolster due process and property rights that are currently at risk under the Wyoming Controlled Substances Act. Wyoming polic...

NEWCASTLE, WY – Wyoming Liberty Group staff attorney Steve Klein testified before the Joint Judiciary Interim Committee of the Wyoming Legislature today regarding two committee bill drafts that would substantially change the practice of civil forfeiture in Wyoming. "The Wyoming Controlled Substances Act currently allows police officers to seize pro...