JACKSON, Miss. (AP) - Property seizures by police in Jackson, Mississippi, haven’t been reported as required by law.
The Clarion Ledger reports the department has seized at least $208,000 and four cars since July 2017, and none of those seizures were uploaded to the state’s forfeiture website. The website was created by a 2017 law to increase transparency surrounding civil asset forfeiture, which is when authorities seize property believed to be connected to a crime.
Police say the Hinds County District Attorney’s Office is tasked with uploading the information to the website. District Attorney Robert Shuler Smith says his office is complying with the law, but didn’t say why the information was missing from the online database.
Agencies that don’t report seizure data may be disqualified from state and federal grants.
___
Information from: The Clarion Ledger, http://www.clarionledger.com
Please read our comment policy before commenting.