Please enjoy the latest edition of Short Circuit, a weekly feature written by a bunch of people at the Institute for Justice.
New case! In Feb. 2025, federal agents raided IJ client Mario Ayala Cruz's check cashing and money transfer business in Glendale, Ariz., seizing computers, cell phones, documents, and over $450k in cash and checks. And then … nothing. Mario, who runs the business (by the book) with his wife and adult children, has not heard anything for 20 months. No charges have been filed, and the feds are way past the 60-day deadline to either initiate civil forfeiture or return the property. Which violates the Fourth Amendment and federal law—and was extra crummy because it forced Mario to cut short his final visit with his dying father in Mexico. Click here to learn more.
New on the Short Circuit podcast: We get a Rocky Mountain high at the Tenth Circuit Bench & Bar Conference. Learn all about what makes the circuit tick from the experts we met there, including our first guest from a circuit historical society.
