Earlier this week, the Supreme Court decided to hear Culley v. Attorney General of Alabama, a case consolidating two claims against the Alabama authorities that raise the issue of whether the government can use asset forfeiture to seize property and hold it for many months without giving the owners the opportunity to contest the seizure in a hearing. The case raises important constitutional property rights issues that affect thousands of people across the country. Such practices impose a major burden on affected property owners, and are a flagrant violation of the Due Process Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment, which bars states from depriving "depriving "any person of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law."
