FORFEITURE LAW AIMS TO PUNISH MISDEMEANORS

Troy-- County Legislature will vote on bill that would allow police to
seize property from those arrested on lesser charges

A local law that would allow police to seize cash and other property from
people arrested on misdemeanor charges goes before the Rensselaer County
Legislature for a scheduled vote on Tuesday.

District Attorney Kenneth Bruno, who proposed the law, said he envisions
using it as an additional tool to fight neighborhood drug trafficking and
other "quality of life'' crimes such as gambling and prostitution, which
frequently involve misdemeanor charges.

If passed, Rensselaer County would become only the third county in the
state to have a misdemeanor forfeiture law. Columbia and Nassau counties
now have them, according to Bruno. He said he based his version on the
Columbia County law, which allows authorities to confiscate proceeds of a
crime, such as cash paid for drugs, or the "instrumentality of a crime,''
perhaps a van used in a string of burglaries or a car used to deliver
drugs. A conviction is required for permanent forfeiture.

Bruno first proposed the law, which would enlarge upon the state's current
forfeiture law allowing seizure of assets in felony arrests, early this
year. But the idea initially drew strong reservations from some legislators
who felt it could open the door to violations of constitutional search and
seizure provisions.

Bruno said he has since modified the law to address those concerns, setting
up Tuesday's vote on the amended proposal.

Legal advisers to the Legislature say Bruno's adjustments have addressed
most concerns, though Thomas Kenney, counsel to the Democratic minority,
said some members remain uncomfortable with some aspects of the law.

"One possible problem is that someone who is not charged with a crime or
connected with a crime could lose their property,'' Kenney said. He used
the example of a parent whose teenage child is arrested on misdemeanor
marijuana possession charges while driving the parent's car. Under the new
law, it would be possible for the parent's car to be seized, Kenney said.

"It is a situation like that that I know concerns at least some members of
our caucus,'' Kenney said.

David Gruenberg, counsel to the Republican majority, said he believes such
concerns are addressed either by Bruno's modifications or by the practical
limitations any prosecutor would face.

For example, Bruno has dropped driving while intoxicated and
violation-level crimes from the proposal. "Losing a car worth $20,000 would
be disproportionate to an offense where you were fined $300 and your
license was suspended for 90 days,'' Gruenberg said.

And he said it is unlikely that a prosecutor would fight to prove, as
required for seizure, that parents knew their teenager was using drugs in
the family car or that a wife knew her husband was soliciting prostitutes
in her car. "I just think there are political limits on what you can do
because you have to be fair,'' Gruenberg said.

Columbia County District Attorney Beth Cozzolino said a district attorney's
discretion is key to carrying out the law. In her county, most seizures
under the year-old law have involved $20 to $100 sums of cash carried by
people arrested for possessing small amounts of drugs, she said.

If a car or other "instrumentality'' does not belong to the person
arrested, there has to be strong proof that the owner was aware it was
being used for crime, she said, and "we also have to determine whether or
not there is any connection between the crime and the money found on the
defendant.''

So far, the Rensselaer County law has drawn support from both sides of the
political aisle.

Minority Leader Robert Mirch, D-Troy, said the plan "fits like a glove''
with efforts already under way to attack "quality of life'' crimes in Troy.
"Those who come here to ply their illicit wares need to be put on notice
that the good guys have a powerful new weapon,'' Mirch said in a written
statement.

Legislator Tom Walsh, R-Brunswick, said most of his reservations were
addressed with the removal of DWI and violation-level crimes and with
safeguards against abuse. "I would not want to see anybody not connected
with a crime have their property taken and then have to fight to get it
back,'' he said.

Checked-by: Pat Dolan