Restoring America

Conservative values, National renewal

Can police simply take your car and never pay?

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Governments violate the Constitution when they seize and try to keep property without a timely hearing. The Supreme Court said so on May 9. But Michigan retiree Gerald Ostipow has a different problem.

He and his late wife had a hearing and won their case — eight years ago. But the Saginaw County Sheriff’s Department in Michigan refuses to return their stuff. The agency did not even wait for final resolution before claiming the couple’s nearly restored 1965 Chevrolet Nova. In fact, the agency drove the vehicle for 56,000 miles, then sold it and spent the cash while the case was still open. 

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