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Peabody Award Winner 2017

Kentucky Center for Investigative Reporting (https://kycir.org/series/seized-asset-forfeiture-in-kentucky/)

  • About KyCIR
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    • Browse all our projects
    • LMPD Police Shootings
    • Breonna Taylor
    • Search Warrants In Louisville
    • COVID and the Unemployment Insurance Crisis
    • Prosecution Declined
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    • Seized: Asset Forfeiture in Kentucky
    • Fatal Flaws: How Kentucky Is Failing Its Workers
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Seized: Asset Forfeiture in Kentucky

asset forfeiture

Accused of extortion, Louisville’s top prosecutor drops charges – but keeps cash

By Jacob Ryan | February 22, 2022

Two years after seizing $380,000 from a St. Matthews man and using indictments his family as leverage to keep it, prosecutors dismissed charges – and kept most of the cash.

Top Story

A Prosecutor’s Offer: Give Up $380K And Family Won’t Go To Jail

By Jacob Ryan | March 9, 2020

The day before the deal was offered to Patrick Card, prosecutors also indicted his wife, mother and father on trafficking and complicity charges. 

asset forfeiture

Bill To Strengthen Asset Forfeiture Reporting, Penalties Advances In Ky. Legislature

By Jacob Ryan | February 19, 2020

A bill that would penalize law enforcement agencies that fail to report how much cash and property they seize through asset forfeiture is moving through the state legislature.

Under Pressure, More Kentucky Agencies Report Asset Forfeiture Seizures

By Jacob Ryan | February 11, 2020

Amid growing scrutiny of Kentucky law enforcement’s use of asset forfeiture, more than twice as many agencies disclosed last year how much cash and property they seized than they did two years prior. 

2020

Police Must Detail Seizures Or Lose Training Money Under Proposed Bill

By Jacob Ryan | January 15, 2020

A bill filed this week in the General Assembly would require law enforcement agencies to disclose more details about cash and property seized through asset forfeiture or be subjected to financial penalties. Rep. Reginald Meeks, a Louisville Democrat, is sponsoring the measure, which would beef up existing reporting requirements. Agencies that don’t comply would lose $4,000 reimbursements from a state fund for individual officers who complete continued training. Law enforcement agencies are already required to file annual reports detailing how much cash and property they seize, but not all do. State data analyzed by the Kentucky Center for Investigative Reporting found just 11 percent of law enforcement agencies submitted required reports each year between fiscal years 2013-2017.

asset forfeiture

Conviction Or Not, Seized Cash Is ‘Cost of Doing Business’ In Louisville

By Jacob Ryan | September 23, 2019

Money seized through asset forfeiture provides leverage in resolving drug trafficking cases and has become an ingrained aspect of the justice system in Louisville, our investigation found.

Top Story

Drones, Guns And Light Bills: How Kentucky Police Spend Seized Cash

By Jacob Ryan | March 4, 2019

Kentucky law says seized money must be used for direct law enforcement purposes. A KyCIR review of $3.7 million in spending records shows agencies take varied interpretations of that law.

Top Story

Seized: Few Kentucky Police Agencies Report What They Take Through Asset Forfeiture

By Jacob Ryan | November 29, 2018

In Kentucky, 11 percent of police agencies report how much suspected drug money they seize every year. How much nearly 300 other agencies take is unclear.

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