Grand larceny thwarted
Don't miss a heartwarming story about how some big-time thieves around Oregon are being forced to pay back what they've stolen, now that their syndicate was busted. The thieves in question are the county governments, and the cop who shut them down was a unanimous U.S. Supreme Court.
We wrote about the case when it was still pending, and the state attorney general was shamelessly urging the High Court to send the victims packing. The thievery in question was the counties' practice of confiscating a taxpayer's property for delinquent property taxes, selling it, and keeping the entire proceeds of the sale, even when they far exceeded the tax debt.
Now that the Supremes have declared that practice illegal, the counties are reluctantly giving back the difference between what they collected and what they were rightfully owed. But of course, not before they pile on the interest and penalties that increase the amount they get to keep. Then they will go back to wondering why so many people hate the gubmint.
It gets worse.
ReplyDelete‘Courts, profit and the monetization of America's justice system’
https://www.wbur.org/onpoint/2023/03/07/courts-profit-and-the-monetization-of-americas-justice-system
Daniel Hatcher: "Unfortunately, most people don't have full awareness of how the systems are operating and how low-income individuals and children in particular are pulled into the systems. So, you know, juveniles can be pulled in, and youth can be pulled into the system, both through allegations of abuse or neglect. Most of the cases in the child welfare system come from neglect allegations which are a direct result of poverty, where you have a struggling parent doing her best. You know, to try to struggle with barrier after barrier of poverty that's trying to keep the family together.
"And then the child who is facing difficult situations, as can often be referred to the juvenile justice side of things through delinquency proceedings. Often it can even come from the school that is supposed to be educating the child, will instead make a referral. And there's been, you know, multiple heartbreaking, unfortunate reports written about the school to prison pipeline. So youth, you know, pulled into the system are not there by choice. And then we learn that not only are they being harmed by these systems, they're being monetized. The harm is being monetized."
That's quite a stretch.
DeleteBut won't they owe the aggrieved property owner interest on the remainder above taxes and "reasonable" fees?
ReplyDeleteI assume the class action lawyers will fight for whatever the victims are entitled to. And the county bureaucrats will fight back, with the moral support of the lame duck AG.
Delete"But of course, not before they pile on the interest and penalties that increase the amount they get to keep."
ReplyDeleteNext they need top shut down excessive interest and penalties.
Too bad the amount is only millions instead of billions for their thievery.