Once the government has actually seized your property,
there's many defenses that you can use.
Number one are going to be procedural grounds.
Congress and our State legislatures
have put into place certain procedures
that the government must follow in order
to properly forfeit property that has been
seized from private citizens.
Now, there is a difference between a seizure
and a forfeiture.
The seizure is related to the actual taking of the property.
But it doesn't go to show whether or not
the government can keep it.
So the forfeiture is a process of which the government proves
that not only did they lawfully seize something,
that they're lawfully entitled to keep that seized property.
That's where we come in.
Congress has put in procedures to make sure
that your rights aren't being violated,
both in the seizure and the forfeiture.
The government must follow specific procedures,
including filings of complaints and notice requirements.
If they fail to do these things, then the person
that they actually seized the property from
has a grounds to get the property back.
An experienced asset forfeiture attorney
will be able to look at the facts
and challenge the procedures in which the authorities have
actually seized and are attempting
to forfeit your property.
In addition to those procedural grounds,
you're going to have various defenses that you can use.
These offenses include the innocent owner defense.
This defense rests upon the premise
that you had no idea that your property was being
used for illegal activities.
Or as a recipient of these funds,
you didn't realize they were coming from illicit sources.
For instance, what if you are a property owner.
You own a house, you rent it out to some people
that you think are trustworthy.
And a few months down the line, a federal agency
comes in and knocks the door down,
and seizes the property because it's being
used to manufacture drugs.
Now you as the owner of this home
had no idea that it'd be used for this specific purpose.
So we can come in and fight the government using
the innocent owner defense, and get this property returned back
to you.
Another way to challenge an asset forfeiture action
is to defeat the underlying criminal charge.
For example, if you're charged with embezzlement,
if we can show in court that you did not
embezzle any of the funds, then the government
has no right to seize any funds or property
that they consider related to that embezzlement charge.
That's why it's so important to hire an attorney who is well
versed in both the criminal and the civil aspect
of these forfeitures.
There's a possibility that you can
defeat underlying criminal charges
but still lose your property under the civil forfeiture
statutes and laws.
Here at the Shouse Law Group, not only
are we criminal defense attorneys,
but we are also experienced asset forfeiture attorneys
that can handle both aspects of the case at the same time.
Call us today for a free consultation,
and we'll see what we can do to not only fight the underlying
charges, but to get your property back.