North Carolina Gambling Forfeitures Profit Sheriff Without Charge
Forfeitures involving supposed illegal gambling are racking up big profits for police forces across the US, raising questions of the impropriety of justice as a business proposition. The latest case, involving the New Hanover, North Carolina, Sheriff's Office, led to a cash payoff for law enforcement of about $115,000, and no criminal charges were ever filed.Authorities say the cash and a 2007 Chrysler were seized as suspected property in a video poker investigation. A judge awarded the cash and car to the sheriff's office in February 2008, only to have the case resurface this year when an inquiry revealed the owner of the property never was charged with any crime.
Federal authorities have made several big-name deals recently with overseas online gambling operators, accepting huge amounts of cash in return for arrangements not to prosecute. Some legal experts say allowing government to profit from using its overwhelming ability to investigate and prosecute may affect fairness and impartiality in the judicial system.
New Hanover officials are dealing with claims from another gambling seizure that police took far more money than they say in the raids. Search warrants from illegal gambling cases mysteriously do not specify amounts of cash recovered by officers.
Current Sheriff Ed McMahon, who was not in office at the time of the unusual cases, is promising to make sure all ethical procedures are by the book from here on.
“The professionalism and accountability of this office must be reflected in each and every investigation,” McMahon told the StarNews in a written statement.
