0:00:04.205,0:00:05.110
John Oliver: The police.

0:00:05.373,0:00:06.341
They protect us.

0:00:06.609,0:00:07.509
They serve us.

0:00:07.839,0:00:09.347
And they provide us with an endless source

0:00:09.347,0:00:10.912
of T.V show one-liners.

0:00:11.602,0:00:13.922
Clip1: Rock, paper, scissors, gun.

0:00:13.922,0:00:15.509
Clip2: Well, I'm no Serena Williams,

0:00:15.509,0:00:16.818
but I know one thing;

0:00:16.818,0:00:17.885
it's all in the wrist.

0:00:18.019,0:00:19.721
Clip3 (Officer): Who'd want to cut your penis off?

0:00:20.690,0:00:21.788
Suspect: Take a number.

0:00:21.931,0:00:22.856
John Oliver: Okay. [laughing]

0:00:23.024,0:00:24.725
Now, you laugh but admit it.

0:00:24.864,0:00:26.327
You want to watch the rest of that episode

0:00:26.349,0:00:27.385
right now.

0:00:27.399,0:00:27.962
[laughing]

0:00:27.964,0:00:28.534
Now look.

0:00:29.004,0:00:31.081
Public trust in the police is one of the

0:00:31.089,0:00:33.759
most vital elements in a civilized society

0:00:33.759,0:00:35.559
but for many Americans, that trust has

0:00:35.559,0:00:37.398
been undermined by a procedure called

0:00:37.398,0:00:38.945
civil forfeiture.

0:00:39.043,0:00:40.478
Now, I know it sounds like a

0:00:40.478,0:00:42.646
Gweneth Paltrow euphemism for divorce,

0:00:42.646,0:00:45.779
but incredibly its actually even worse

0:00:45.779,0:00:46.692
than that.

0:00:47.148,0:00:48.582
Ezekiel Edwards: Civil Asset forfeiture is

0:00:48.582,0:00:51.937
really a mechanism by which the state and

0:00:51.949,0:00:54.755
federal government can seize people's

0:00:54.755,0:00:57.556
property without having to convict them of

0:00:57.556,0:00:58.386
a crime.

0:00:58.386,0:01:00.786
Most people can't afford to hire a lawyer

0:01:00.786,0:01:01.708
to challenge it.

0:01:01.718,0:01:03.729
It's really legalized robbery by law

0:01:03.729,0:01:04.646
enforcement.

0:01:04.739,0:01:05.712
John Oliver: Think about it.

0:01:05.780,0:01:07.526
That is a tough crime to report to

0:01:07.602,0:01:08.086
the police.

0:01:08.435,0:01:10.510
Give me a description of what the guy

0:01:10.510,0:01:11.001
looked like.

0:01:11.001,0:01:12.958
Well, to be honest, he looked a lot like

0:01:12.958,0:01:14.590
the guy currently asking me what the

0:01:14.590,0:01:16.183
guy looked like. [laughing]

0:01:16.183,0:01:17.529
And if you think this sounds bad,

0:01:17.575,0:01:19.728
just wait until you see how it looks.

0:01:19.913,0:01:21.843
Because the Washington Post recently

0:01:21.843,0:01:23.753
published a major investigation featuring

0:01:23.753,0:01:25.753
stories like that of this man who was

0:01:25.774,0:01:28.224
driving from Michigan to San Francisco with

0:01:28.224,0:01:30.779
$2,400 in cash that his dad had lent him

0:01:30.779,0:01:33.427
to start a new job when he was pulled over

0:01:33.427,0:01:34.395
in Nevada.

0:01:34.676,0:01:36.320
Matt Lee: I gave him my license and

0:01:36.320,0:01:38.544
registration, and then as he was looking

0:01:38.544,0:01:40.203
at that information, he asked me how much

0:01:40.203,0:01:41.269
money I was traveling with.

0:01:41.269,0:01:42.235
Narrator: Lee told him about the money

0:01:42.235,0:01:43.748
that his Dad give him which he kept in the

0:01:43.748,0:01:44.106
trunk.

0:01:44.304,0:01:46.240
Matt Lee: He told me to turn on my air

0:01:46.240,0:01:49.329
vents on high and roll up my windows

0:01:49.329,0:01:51.679
and get out of the car because he was

0:01:51.679,0:01:53.118
going to run a canine around it.

0:01:53.118,0:01:55.075
Narrator: Dove didn't find drugs, but he

0:01:55.075,0:01:56.666
did find the $2400.

0:01:56.666,0:01:57.985
Matt Lee: He said, "Now, I am going to

0:01:57.985,0:01:59.829
keep the money because I have concluded

0:01:59.829,0:02:01.503
through my investigation here that you are

0:02:01.503,0:02:03.672
traveling from Michigan to California to

0:02:03.672,0:02:05.059
purchase drugs.

0:02:05.506,0:02:06.255
John Oliver: Wow.

0:02:06.255,0:02:08.499
There is so much wrong there,

0:02:08.499,0:02:10.734
including the fact that any policeman

0:02:10.734,0:02:12.678
who genuinely believes that you need

0:02:12.678,0:02:15.042
to travel from Michigan to California to

0:02:15.042,0:02:17.606
purchase drugs needs to be introduced

0:02:17.606,0:02:20.675
to the concept of the University of Wisconsin Madison.

0:02:20.675,0:02:21.400
[laughing]

0:02:21.400,0:02:22.091
Okay.

0:02:22.576,0:02:23.210
It’s right there.

0:02:23.757,0:02:26.427
And the problem is, stories like that

0:02:26.427,0:02:28.315
are surprisingly common.

0:02:28.315,0:02:31.285
In fact, since 9/11 under just one program

0:02:31.285,0:02:33.955
police have taken $2.5 billion in the

0:02:33.955,0:02:37.146
course of over 61,000 seizures of cash

0:02:37.146,0:02:38.805
alone from people who,

0:02:38.805,0:02:40.614
and this is the mind-blowing part,

0:02:40.614,0:02:43.115
were not charged with a crime.

0:02:43.115,0:02:45.787
That is the sort of police behavior that

0:02:45.787,0:02:47.702
we laugh at other countries for,

0:02:47.702,0:02:49.898
along with their accents and silly hats.

0:02:49.898,0:02:50.972
[laughing]

0:02:50.972,0:02:53.016
The way Civil Forfeiture generally works

0:02:53.016,0:02:55.193
is if the police believe they have a

0:02:55.193,0:02:57.327
preponderance of the evidence that

0:02:57.327,0:02:58.445
suggests your property was

0:02:58.445,0:03:00.282
or could be used in a crime,

0:03:00.282,0:03:01.633
they may confiscate it.

0:03:01.633,0:03:03.264
And it gets even weirder.

0:03:03.264,0:03:05.326
Sarah Stillman: Many folks are unfamiliar

0:03:05.326,0:03:07.488
with the idea of Civil Forfeiture which is

0:03:07.488,0:03:10.256
actually a case brought against,

0:03:10.256,0:03:11.838
directly against, a piece of property

0:03:11.838,0:03:13.360
where you don’t need to be proven guilty

0:03:13.360,0:03:15.210
of a crime for your goods to

0:03:15.210,0:03:16.096
be taken away. [br][br]

0:03:16.096,0:03:18.466
John Oliver: Exactly, you don’t need to

0:03:18.466,0:03:20.134
be charged with a crime because

0:03:20.134,0:03:21.872
it’s not you that’s on trial,

0:03:21.872,0:03:23.036
it’s your stuff.

0:03:23.036,0:03:25.359
That’s why these cases have historically

0:03:25.359,0:03:27.424
had eye-catching names such as,

0:03:27.424,0:03:28.859
and all of these are real,

0:03:28.859,0:03:31.600
“United States v. Eight Thousand Eight Hundred

0:03:31.600,0:03:33.451
and Fifty Dollars in United States Currency”

0:03:33.451,0:03:33.882
[laughing]

0:03:33.882,0:03:36.150
“United States v. An Article Consisting

0:03:36.150,0:03:38.352
of 50,000 Cardboard Boxes More or Less,

0:03:38.352,0:03:41.241
Each Containing One Pair of Clacker Balls”

0:03:41.241,0:03:44.559
and “United States v. Approximately

0:03:44.559,0:03:48.111
64,695 Pounds of Shark Fins”

0:03:48.111,0:03:51.265
which must have been an amazing court case.

0:03:51.265,0:03:53.001
And do you see those shark fins

0:03:53.001,0:03:54.318
in the room right now?

0:03:54.318,0:03:56.946
Yes, there they are, there they are!

0:03:56.946,0:03:59.374
[laughing] Let the record show that

0:03:59.374,0:04:02.083
the witness has pointed at roughly 65,000

0:04:02.083,0:04:04.546
pounds of shark fins. Guilty, guilty!

0:04:05.576,0:04:07.734
And it’s also worth noting that your

0:04:07.734,0:04:09.644
possessions generally have fewer

0:04:09.664,0:04:12.174
protections under the law than you do.

0:04:12.519,0:04:13.687
Scott Bullock: Under Civil Forfeiture

0:04:13.687,0:04:17.248
laws your property is guilty until

0:04:17.248,0:04:19.444
you prove it innocent.

0:04:19.800,0:04:22.264
John Oliver: How can that be possible?

0:04:22.264,0:04:23.767
[laughing] At this point, I’m surprised

0:04:23.767,0:04:25.187
that objects don’t have their own

0:04:25.187,0:04:26.522
civil rights leader.

0:04:26.522,0:04:28.221
Like Martin Scooter King,

0:04:28.221,0:04:31.298
or Harvey Carton of Milk. [laughing]

0:04:31.398,0:04:35.088
Now, to be fair, civil forfeiture laws

0:04:35.088,0:04:37.358
have had some positive consequences.

0:04:37.358,0:04:39.138
They’ve crippled powerful drug-trafficking

0:04:39.138,0:04:41.088
organizations, thwarted criminals,

0:04:41.088,0:04:42.698
and returned billions of dollars

0:04:42.702,0:04:45.482
to victims. The problem is, that many

0:04:45.482,0:04:47.292
police departments are allowed to keep

0:04:47.292,0:04:49.862
most or all of the money they seize.

0:04:49.862,0:04:52.712
Knowing that starts to make you wonder

0:04:52.712,0:04:54.662
about the motivations of these

0:04:54.662,0:04:55.992
kinds of questions:

0:04:56.132,0:04:57.462
Clip: “Is there any large amounts of cash

0:04:57.462,0:04:58.252
in the vehicle?”

0:04:58.259,0:04:59.489
“Are there any large sums of money

0:04:59.501,0:05:01.741
over $5,000 in cash in the vehicle?”

0:05:01.741,0:05:02.841
“How much money you got?”

0:05:02.841,0:05:05.011
“Any large amounts of US currency in there?

0:05:05.011,0:05:06.141
John Oliver: I’ll take whatever cash

0:05:06.141,0:05:07.161
you got in there and ah

0:05:07.161,0:05:08.921
is that a slurpee in the cup holder?

0:05:08.921,0:05:10.487
What flavor? [laughing] Grape?

0:05:10.487,0:05:12.477
Nevermind. You know what? I will take it.

0:05:12.479,0:05:14.809
I’ll take it. The question,

0:05:14.809,0:05:16.929
do you have cash in the vehicle is

0:05:16.929,0:05:19.369
surprisingly common in traffic stops.

0:05:19.369,0:05:21.089
The police are prepared to overcome

0:05:21.090,0:05:23.280
any language barrier to ask it.

0:05:23.820,0:05:25.170
Clip: “tenny mucho mucho dinero

0:05:25.170,0:05:26.620
in su trucky-trailer” [laughing]

0:05:28.303,0:05:30.383
John Oliver: Let’s be clear, he just said

0:05:30.407,0:05:34.407
“tenny mucho mucho dinero in su trucky-trailer”

0:05:35.467,0:05:37.897
which sounds like an alien's first

0:05:37.897,0:05:39.677
attempt to communicate with humans after

0:05:39.687,0:05:41.868
crash landing in a Taco Bell.

0:05:41.868,0:05:43.198
[laughing]

0:05:43.198,0:05:46.058
In fact, let’s all just pause for a

0:05:46.058,0:05:48.288
moment to enjoy that sentence

0:05:48.288,0:05:50.968
because every single word of it is funny.

0:05:50.968,0:05:54.158
First, tenny, pronounced incorrectly.

0:05:54.158,0:05:56.558
Mucho, one of the few words he knows

0:05:56.559,0:05:59.249
in Spanish. Mucho, repeated word.

0:05:59.265,0:06:01.595
Deniro, a famed actor.

0:06:02.365,0:06:04.305
In, a rapid shift to English.

0:06:04.305,0:06:06.855
Su, rapid shift back to Spanish.

0:06:06.866,0:06:11.406
Trucky-trailer, trucky-trailer. [laughing]

0:06:11.406,0:06:15.236
Now It’s magnificent. That is magnificent.

0:06:15.242,0:06:16.922
It’s a work of art. [applause]

0:06:16.922,0:06:19.622
Now this happened in Tennessee,

0:06:19.622,0:06:22.052
a state where local law enforcement

0:06:22.054,0:06:23.804
authorities are allowed to keep as much

0:06:23.804,0:06:26.774
as 100% of the proceeds from

0:06:26.786,0:06:27.906
civil forfeitures.

0:06:27.914,0:06:29.554
A local news investigation found

0:06:29.554,0:06:31.324
multiple troubling cases of people

0:06:31.328,0:06:33.468
having money seized such as George Rebee

0:06:33.468,0:06:36.148
who had $20,000 seized after he was

0:06:36.148,0:06:37.098
stopped for speeding.

0:06:37.098,0:06:38.778
The police officer argued it was drug

0:06:38.778,0:06:40.598
money despite the fact that Rebee

0:06:40.600,0:06:42.720
had a pretty good explanation.

0:06:42.737,0:06:44.717
George Rebee: I told him that I had active

0:06:44.717,0:06:46.197
bids on eBay, that I was trying to buy

0:06:46.206,0:06:47.636
a vehicle and they just

0:06:47.642,0:06:48.382
didn’t want to hear it.

0:06:48.382,0:06:50.092
Narrator: In fact, Rebee had proof on

0:06:50.092,0:06:51.772
his computer, but the (?) officer

0:06:51.772,0:06:54.642
drew up a damning affidavit citing his own

0:06:54.648,0:06:56.478
training that common people do not

0:06:56.478,0:06:58.988
carry this much US Currency.

0:06:58.988,0:07:01.168
Clip: “...and did he tell you that

0:07:01.168,0:07:02.238
he was trying to buy a car?”

0:07:02.238,0:07:03.118
Officer: “He did.”

0:07:03.804,0:07:05.354
Reporter: “But you did not include that

0:07:05.359,0:07:06.329
in your report.”

0:07:10.392,0:07:12.162
[laughing] Officer: “If it’s not in there,

0:07:12.164,0:07:13.064
I didn’t put it in there”.

0:07:13.071,0:07:14.821
“So why would you leave that out?"

0:07:18.155,0:07:19.265
Officer: “I don’t know”.[br]

0:07:20.595,0:07:21.405
[br]John Oliver: What do you mean

0:07:21.405,0:07:23.425
you don’t know? I’d expect a better

0:07:23.425,0:07:25.215
answer from a police officer than

0:07:25.215,0:07:26.885
a four-year-old who just spilled grape

0:07:26.885,0:07:28.205
juice on the couch.

0:07:28.975,0:07:30.175
What happened to your drink?

0:07:30.175,0:07:32.105
I don’t know. I don’t know.

0:07:33.085,0:07:35.085
If it’s not in my glass, it’s not in my glass.

0:07:35.085,0:07:38.195
I don’t know. I don’t know. [laughing, applause]

0:07:38.195,0:07:40.545
And look, it’s not always just a

0:07:40.545,0:07:41.515
roadside stop.

0:07:41.515,0:07:43.875
In 2008 police raided the

0:07:43.875,0:07:45.885
Contemporary Art Institute of Detroit

0:07:45.885,0:07:48.615
during it’s “funk night” because it didn’t

0:07:48.615,0:07:51.375
have a liquor license seizing 44 cars

0:07:51.375,0:07:52.645
under the argument that

0:07:52.645,0:07:55.025
“simply driving vehicles to the location

0:07:55.025,0:07:57.315
of an unlawful sale of alcohol was

0:07:57.315,0:07:58.695
sufficient to seize a car”

0:07:58.695,0:08:01.015
which means you may as well seize

0:08:01.015,0:08:04.035
any car driven by any teenager on prom

0:08:04.035,0:08:06.045
night because they are all going

0:08:06.045,0:08:08.785
Chad’s place. Chad’s got the hook up.

0:08:09.730,0:08:11.630
We actually managed to get the security

0:08:11.630,0:08:13.980
video of that Detroit raid and you can

0:08:13.980,0:08:16.460
see the police burst in and arrest people

0:08:16.460,0:08:19.360
with the disco lights still swirling in

0:08:19.360,0:08:21.410
the single funkiest shake-down

0:08:21.410,0:08:24.000
in human history. [laughing]

0:08:24.000,0:08:26.070
They each had to pay $900 to get their

0:08:26.074,0:08:27.674
cars out of the impound with the

0:08:27.678,0:08:29.848
exception of the one person who’s car

0:08:29.848,0:08:31.908
was actually stolen from the lot to

0:08:31.908,0:08:33.228
which it had been towed,

0:08:33.228,0:08:34.968
which seems like the sort of thing

0:08:34.968,0:08:36.638
the police should be investigating if they

0:08:36.650,0:08:38.040
weren’t too busy raiding art

0:08:38.040,0:08:39.930
gallery funk nights.

0:08:39.954,0:08:42.664
And at this point, you may be thinking,

0:08:42.664,0:08:44.704
well sure the police departments are

0:08:44.704,0:08:46.704
getting a lot of money from seizing stuff,

0:08:46.704,0:08:48.284
but I’m sure there are limitations on how

0:08:48.299,0:08:49.209
they can spend it.

0:08:49.209,0:08:53.419
Well, allow me to take you to a 2012

0:08:53.419,0:08:55.289
Columbia Missouri Citizen Police

0:08:55.289,0:08:56.429
Review Board hearing.

0:08:56.435,0:08:58.945
Clip: How do you decide forfeiture funds?

0:08:58.945,0:08:59.655
Police Chief Ken Burton: “You know,

0:08:59.655,0:09:01.295
it’s usually based on a need.

0:09:01.308,0:09:03.298
Um Well, I take that back.

0:09:03.305,0:09:04.795
Review Board: “I would imagine you sign

0:09:04.795,0:09:05.365
off on...”

0:09:05.468,0:09:06.798
Ken Burton: “Yeah, there are some

0:09:06.798,0:09:07.568
limitations on it.

0:09:07.580,0:09:10.330
You know, it’s um actually there’s not

0:09:10.330,0:09:11.770
really on the forfeiture stuff.”

0:09:12.356,0:09:13.636
John Oliver: Actually, there’s basically

0:09:13.636,0:09:14.846
no limitations at all.

0:09:14.854,0:09:16.374
Come to think of it, there’s well,

0:09:16.374,0:09:18.214
we’re essentially Gods. We're gods.

0:09:18.214,0:09:20.284
We’re like the anti-Spiderman,

0:09:20.284,0:09:21.964
great power no responsibility. [laughing]

0:09:21.964,0:09:23.924
I can’t believe this hasn’t come up before.

0:09:24.204,0:09:26.824
And look his honesty was not over.

0:09:28.014,0:09:29.554
Ken Burton: We just usually base it on

0:09:29.554,0:09:31.354
something that would be nice to have,

0:09:31.354,0:09:34.474
that we can’t get in the budget for instance.

0:09:36.004,0:09:38.694
Though, yeah, we try not to use it for things

0:09:38.694,0:09:41.554
that we need to depend on because we need

0:09:41.554,0:09:43.034
to go ahead and have those purchased.

0:09:43.034,0:09:44.454
But, it’s kind of like pennies

0:09:44.454,0:09:46.514
from heaven ya know, it gets you a toy

0:09:46.517,0:09:48.217
or something that you need is the way

0:09:48.217,0:09:49.447
that we typically look at it.

0:09:50.205,0:09:51.485
John Oliver: That’s right. That’s right.

0:09:51.492,0:09:54.492
They buy toys with "pennies from heaven."

0:09:54.492,0:09:56.092
Well, they should know those pennies

0:09:56.094,0:09:57.284
may not be falling from

0:09:57.299,0:09:59.189
heaven so much as from the pockets of

0:09:59.199,0:10:00.849
the people they are holding upside down

0:10:00.849,0:10:03.559
and shaking. And in terms of what kinds

0:10:03.559,0:10:05.169
of toys police departments buy,

0:10:05.171,0:10:06.111
that really depends.

0:10:06.111,0:10:07.871
For instance, in Massachusetts,

0:10:07.876,0:10:10.366
one DA’s office used forfeiture money to

0:10:10.379,0:10:13.809
buy their own Zamboni even though,

0:10:13.817,0:10:16.087
all this is noted, “we could not determine

0:10:16.087,0:10:18.317
where this machine was located or the

0:10:18.317,0:10:20.207
law-enforcement purpose it serves.”

0:10:20.207,0:10:22.327
Although that last one is obvious.

0:10:22.327,0:10:23.017
Just think about it.

0:10:23.020,0:10:25.520
If you are robbing a bank and the police

0:10:25.520,0:10:29.220
pull up in a Zamboni, you’re going to give

0:10:29.220,0:10:31.780
yourself up just out of sheer curiosity.

0:10:31.780,0:10:33.831
[laughing]

0:10:33.841,0:10:37.381
And in Texas, one DA’s office had an

0:10:37.381,0:10:39.241
even more imaginative idea,

0:10:39.241,0:10:41.191
and I’ll let a concerned citizen at a

0:10:41.191,0:10:43.491
a public hearing tell you all about it.

0:10:43.491,0:10:45.231
Clip: With or without a law degree,

0:10:45.231,0:10:47.701
everyone here knows that purchases of

0:10:47.701,0:10:50.471
kegs of beer, margarita machines,

0:10:50.471,0:10:52.671
and bottles of Crown Royal for office

0:10:52.671,0:10:55.181
parties, as was done in Montgomery County

0:10:55.189,0:10:57.519
don’t qualify as expenses

0:10:57.526,0:10:59.176
for official purposes. [br][br]

0:10:59.866,0:11:00.426
John Oliver: That’s true.

0:11:00.426,0:11:03.666
In Texas they bought a margarita machine.

0:11:03.946,0:11:06.376
They were literally using this money as

0:11:06.376,0:11:09.516
their own personal slush fund. [laughing]

0:11:09.516,0:11:13.516
It’s perfect, the analogy is perfect.

0:11:14.516,0:11:15.456
And look, look.

0:11:15.456,0:11:18.196
If the police need money for equipment,

0:11:18.196,0:11:20.866
we should clearly be giving it to them.

0:11:20.866,0:11:22.606
And if they need money for margarita

0:11:22.606,0:11:24.516
machines, they should be (Bleep) paying

0:11:24.520,0:11:25.930
for that themselves. [laughing]

0:11:25.953,0:11:28.143
But, these civil forfeiture laws have

0:11:28.169,0:11:30.349
warped law enforcement priorities and

0:11:30.358,0:11:32.868
perception and nowhere is that more

0:11:32.895,0:11:34.895
clear than Philadelphia.

0:11:35.194,0:11:36.674
Video Clip, CNN: Philadelphia officials

0:11:36.674,0:11:38.914
over a 10 year period have seized more

0:11:38.914,0:11:42.294
than 1,000 houses, about 3,300 vehicles,

0:11:42.302,0:11:46.132
and $44 million in cash in civil forfeitures.

0:11:46.137,0:11:47.407
John Oliver: Holy shit.

0:11:48.158,0:11:49.888
Usually when someone describes something

0:11:49.909,0:11:52.539
taking 3,000 vehicles and 1,000 houses,

0:11:52.539,0:11:54.959
they're talking about a (bleep) hurricane.

0:11:55.113,0:11:57.193
Now, one of those houses belongs to the

0:11:57.193,0:11:59.133
Sourovelis family and the reason for that

0:11:59.151,0:12:02.241
seizure seems a little harsh from the outside.

0:12:02.571,0:12:03.691
Clip, CNN: Police arrested their

0:12:03.694,0:12:06.364
22-year-old son Yianni on drug charges,

0:12:06.364,0:12:09.064
$40 worth of heroine, and claimed he was

0:12:09.064,0:12:10.684
selling drugs out of the home.

0:12:10.696,0:12:12.886
Police and prosecutors came armed with a

0:12:12.899,0:12:14.689
law suit against the house itself.

0:12:14.781,0:12:16.691
John Oliver: Exactly, because remember

0:12:16.705,0:12:19.865
The parents aren’t on trial, the house is,

0:12:19.874,0:12:21.714
which is clearly ridiculous.

0:12:21.714,0:12:24.034
The only drug-containing house that needs

0:12:24.045,0:12:25.935
a law suit against it is this one.

0:12:25.946,0:12:27.066
[laughing] You’re on the edge.

0:12:27.078,0:12:28.628
You’re on the edge, House.

0:12:28.628,0:12:29.508
You’re this close.

0:12:29.508,0:12:30.508
You’re this close to loosing your job.

0:12:30.508,0:12:32.847
[laughing and applause]

0:12:32.847,0:12:35.307
You’re good, dammit. You're good, House.

0:12:36.401,0:12:38.111
But you're close, House. You're close.

0:12:38.111,0:12:40.151
You're good but you're so close.

0:12:40.847,0:12:42.387
But you're so good, House.

0:12:43.927,0:12:45.957
And once their house was seized,

0:12:45.965,0:12:48.245
the Sourovelis’ got to experience the

0:12:48.269,0:12:50.129
final problem with civil forfeiture.

0:12:50.137,0:12:52.897
Recourse can be incredibly difficult.[br][br]

0:12:52.906,0:12:55.136
Clip, CNN: Here in Philadelphia if you

0:12:55.143,0:12:57.163
have your property taken, you can come

0:12:57.163,0:13:00.353
here to city hall and go to courtroom 478

0:13:00.353,0:13:02.733
and try to get it back. The problem is,

0:13:02.756,0:13:05.096
the people that are taking the belongings

0:13:05.096,0:13:07.606
are also the ones calling the shots

0:13:07.606,0:13:08.936
inside the courtroom.

0:13:09.436,0:13:12.486
The Sourovelis’ showed up to courtroom 478

0:13:12.486,0:13:14.746
ready to plead their case to a judge.

0:13:14.746,0:13:17.066
Instead, they say they faced a prosecutor

0:13:17.066,0:13:18.416
from the DA’s office.[br]

0:13:19.071,0:13:19.891
John Oliver: That’s right.

0:13:19.900,0:13:22.430
Their first step in challenging the police

0:13:22.430,0:13:24.500
seizing their property was in a courtroom

0:13:24.500,0:13:26.400
without a judge hearing their case.

0:13:26.406,0:13:28.936
How can you even still call that a

0:13:28.947,0:13:31.127
courtroom? If you take all of the doctors

0:13:31.127,0:13:32.957
out of a hospital and replace them with

0:13:32.957,0:13:35.077
otters, that’s no longer a hospital.

0:13:35.085,0:13:37.035
[laughing] It's better. It’s much better,

0:13:37.035,0:13:39.675
but it’s not a hospital. I love it,

0:13:39.687,0:13:41.047
but it’s not a hospital.

0:13:41.638,0:13:43.578
In fact, recourse is so difficult that

0:13:43.590,0:13:45.360
most people who have lost stuff to

0:13:45.360,0:13:47.370
civil forfeiture, just choose to walk away

0:13:47.370,0:13:48.710
rather than fight.

0:13:48.725,0:13:51.295
So at this point it should seem obvious

0:13:51.303,0:13:53.643
that the bad may be starting to outweigh

0:13:53.655,0:13:55.405
the good with civil forfeiture laws.

0:13:55.407,0:13:56.917
So we’ve really got two choices.

0:13:56.917,0:13:59.157
We can take a hard look at reforming them

0:13:59.170,0:14:02.540
or at the very least we need to reform our

0:14:02.540,0:14:05.240
network cop dramas to make them a lot more

0:14:05.240,0:14:07.760
representative of what is actually happening.

0:14:07.760,0:14:08.450
[laughing]

0:14:08.450,0:14:10.730
Clip: Narrator: Coming soon. Law & Order.

0:14:10.730,0:14:12.810
Civil Asset Forfeiture Unit.

0:14:16.079,0:14:19.359
Get ready to go inside the thrilling world

0:14:19.371,0:14:20.781
of civil forfeiture.

0:14:20.796,0:14:22.656
Knock knock. Freeze, police!

0:14:22.660,0:14:24.260
Hands on the ground; get off the sofa.

0:14:24.260,0:14:25.790
Keep ‘em where we can see ‘em.

0:14:25.797,0:14:27.107
You’re under arrest.

0:14:27.107,0:14:29.017
Man: What for? You guys got nothing on me.

0:14:29.017,0:14:31.857
Not you, the sofa.

0:14:32.926,0:14:35.786
Narrator: Coming this fall, a procedural

0:14:35.786,0:14:37.726
about law enforcement’s shadiest procedure.

0:14:41.184,0:14:42.854
Officer: Rough night huh?

0:14:43.754,0:14:45.984
Ah, well it’s about to get a lot rougher.

0:14:46.947,0:14:49.867
What’s $2,500 in cash doing hanging out

0:14:49.867,0:14:53.867
in somebody’s glove box huh? Answer me!

0:14:54.963,0:14:57.293
Narrator: These cops are determined and

0:14:57.297,0:14:59.977
they won’t stop until they get everything.

0:14:59.977,0:15:02.967
Every...last...thing.

0:15:03.289,0:15:04.279
Officer: You’re dirty right?

0:15:04.279,0:15:05.849
Drug deal, guns, what is it?

0:15:05.849,0:15:07.649
I can’t help you if you don’t talk to me!

0:15:09.169,0:15:10.289
I’m gonna beat the shit out of ya.

0:15:11.009,0:15:13.129
Officer: Detective Bovatchi, Civil Forfeiture Unit

0:15:13.139,0:15:14.669
Narrator: Brace yourself for heart

0:15:14.669,0:15:16.039
pounding take downs.

0:15:16.052,0:15:16.982
Officer: Resisting arrest?

0:15:17.964,0:15:20.094
Send in back up! Send in back up!

0:15:20.094,0:15:21.764
Narrator: The defendants are inanimate,

0:15:21.764,0:15:24.514
but the drama is anything but. [br][br]

0:15:24.527,0:15:25.417
Officer: Frisk ‘em.

0:15:29.437,0:15:31.267
Officer: There is a pile of silver dollars next

0:15:31.267,0:15:33.117
door that says you did it.

0:15:34.947,0:15:38.127
You will lose, and I will win.

0:15:50.514,0:15:52.204
Officer: Stay on the streets too long,

0:15:52.204,0:15:55.114
the city leaves a bad taste in your mouth.

0:15:57.002,0:16:00.072
Officer: Hey, I know what’ll get it out.

0:16:03.082,0:16:18.562
[laughing, applause]

0:16:18.562,0:16:19.362
Narrator: Law & Order.

0:16:19.379,0:16:21.579
Civil Asset Forfeiture Unit.

0:16:22.054,0:16:23.244
Officer: I’m going to crumple you up

0:16:23.244,0:16:26.299
until you look like a cat’s asshole.

0:16:26.299,0:16:28.959
[applause]