Focus on New Laws: Changes to Criminal Forfeiture Provisions

The 2012 Legislature made several changes to criminal forfeiture provisions, including sales of contraband weapons, revising provisions in DWI, and more.
(Published Aug 8, 2012)

The 2012 Legislature made several changes to criminal forfeiture provisions, including sales of contraband weapons, revising provisions in DWI, off-highway vehicle (OHV), and drive-by shooting forfeiture laws to provide uniformity with similar changes made in 2010.

Chapter 127 (SF 1371) changed Minnesota Statutes, section 609.5316 to say law enforcement agencies may not only destroy or use summarily forfeited weapons, but may also sell the weapons in a commercially reasonable manner to a properly licensed dealer. The proceeds of the weapon sale are dictated by law. This became effective on Aug. 1.

Chapter 128 (SF 1240) made several more changes to criminal forfeiture, including the following:

  • When an off-highway vehicle is seized, the officer must now provide a receipt to the person found in possession of the vehicle; in the absence of any person, the officer must leave a receipt in the place where the vehicle was found, if reasonably possible.
  • Previously optional, officers now have an obligation to secure seized property and prevent waste.
  • A vehicle owner could previously regain possession of a vehicle pending forfeiture by providing some security or bond equal to the value, but the law enforcement agency could refuse this. Now law enforcement agencies cannot veto this. This change doesn’t apply to vehicles held for investigatory purposes.
  • Prior to entry of a court order disposing with a forfeiture action, any person with an interest in the forfeited property may file with the prosecuting authority a petition for remission or mitigation. The prosecuting authority may remit or mitigate the forfeiture under reasonable terms if the authority finds the forfeiture was incurred without willful negligence or any intention by petitioner to break the law, or if other extenuating circumstances justify it.
  • Forfeiture notices for OHV and DWI forfeited vehicles must be sent within 60 days, though a court can extend this to 90 days upon good cause shown. The prescribed language of the forfeiture notice was changed substantially; it no longer needs to be provided in any language other than English, and it doubles the time for a claimant to file a demand for judicial determination from 30 to 60 days.
  • If the claimant files demand for judicial determination, the determination must be held at the earliest practicable date, and no later than 180 days from the date of demand. At the same time, the determination cannot precede any related criminal action.
  • Forfeited vehicles or articles related to controlled substance forfeitures may not be sold to any enforcement agency employees, the prosecuting authority, or relatives of either.
  • A forfeiture notice must be provided by the enforcement agency to the prosecuting authority, who must then certify the property may be disposed of.

The law includes a few other technical changes to definitions and notices.

All changes in Chapter 128 appear effective Aug. 1, 2012. While most changes apply to seizures initiated on that day or after, in some instances, the change applies to property in possession as of Aug. 1 or after.

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