> Civil asset forfeiture was created to seize the assets of drug cartels where the believed owner of the property in possession is in another country and has a modest army preventing extradition to stand trial.
No, it wasn't. In the early US (which imported the legal concept from British maritime law) it was first used as a means to assure collection of customs duties. It expanded during prohibition, but even then was deployed primarily against domestic bootleggers, not kingpins residing in a foreign country with protection against extradition.
No, it wasn't. In the early US (which imported the legal concept from British maritime law) it was first used as a means to assure collection of customs duties. It expanded during prohibition, but even then was deployed primarily against domestic bootleggers, not kingpins residing in a foreign country with protection against extradition.