Civil seizures fuel hundreds of millions in police spending

Civil seizures fuel hundreds of millions in police spending

Police agencies nationwide have used hundreds of millions of dollars taken from Americans under federal civil forfeitures laws in recent years to buy guns, armored cars and electronic surveillance gear. They have spent millions more on a wide range of other items, including luxury cars, night-vision scopes and lapel pins. One department used the money to hire a clown named Sparkles. A Washington Post investigation found that thousands of localities provide few details of their spending in reports to the Justice Department.

Read more