"nor excessive fines imposed..." - 8th Amendment
So what happens when a young man sells four grams of heroin to an undercover cop? Obviously, he gets busted, does a year on house arrest, and pays a fine. Then he decided to get his life back together and heads out to find a new job.
But... The cops weren't done.
They used civil forfeiture laws to seize his car, valued at $40,000. Don't read too much into that value, there is a valid reason that he had the money to buy it in the first place. He sued, and the lower State Court held that he should get his car back. After all, it was only 4 ounces of heroin, and he had paid the fine the Court had imposed...
The Law Enforcement agencies appealed it to the State Supreme Court...
