Seized Assets Helping Cover Sheriff’s Department Expenses
The Fayette County Sheriff’s Office presented its 2024 asset forfeiture audit to the Fayette County Commissioners Court last Thursday, Feb. 27.
Chapter 59 of the Texas Code of Criminal Procedure authorizes law enforcement to seize assets from people charged with criminal offenses if those assets are used in the commission of certain crimes. Those assets could be cash, firearms, vehicles or even real estate. Law enforcement must then file an affidavit describing the assets and the probable cause for them to be seized. The district court reviews the affidavit. If the court determines there was probable cause to seize the assets, the prosecutor can sue the defendants in civil court for forfeiture of the seized property.
According to the audit, the Sheriff’s forfeiture fund started the year with $249,328.14. The Sheriff’s Office transferred $392,673.14 in seized funds to the forfeiture account throughout the year. The fund also gained $63,921.89 through the sale of forfeited property such as automobiles.
The Sheriff’s Office spent $392,250.45 out of the forfeiture fund last year on authorized expenses.
That left an ending balance of $313,672.72.
Civil liberty advocates have criticized Texas’ asset forfeiture system for lack of due process. Defendants have no right to an attorney in the asset forfeiture proceedings since they take place in civil court. Law enforcement, on the other hand, consider it a valuable tool for fighting and deterring crime. A classic example often cited is police seizing a drug dealer’s sports car and then using it in undercover stings or converting it into a patrol car. The forfeiture fund also helps to offset the taxpayer’s burden of funding law enforcement.
For example, last year the Sheriff’s Office used the forfeiture fund to spend on the following:
• $232,648.84 on vehicles,
• $10,716.06 on computers,
• $6,205.40 on software,
• $13,360.34 on maintenance costs,
• $41,425.52 on uniforms,
• $6,195.78 on K-9 related expenses,
• $5,479.41 on cameras,
• $34,919.47 in supplies,
• $14,925.63 on training and
• $827 on towing fees.
The County has a separate forfeiture fund for the Fayette County Narcotics Unit. That fund started out the year in the red, with a negative balance of $123,048.79. It brought in $37,060 in revenue from the sale of forfeited property. The Narcotics Unit spent $1,325.12 on phone and internet fees. The fund ended a year with a negative balance of $87,313.92.
County Auditor Cindy Havelka said a large forfeiture from a recent court case should put the Narcotics Unit account back into the black for this year.