Warning for Canadians travelling in the US - The shakedown

Just heard about this -- Is this even legal ?

Something to be watchful of -- particularly in a Ferrari.


American shakedown: Police won't charge you, but they'll grab your money - World - CBC News


ANALYSIS - American shakedown: Police won't charge you, but they'll grab your money
U.S. police are operating a co-ordinated scheme to seize as much of the public’s cash as they can


By Neil Macdonald, CBC News Posted: Sep 11, 2014 5:00 AM ET Last Updated: Sep 11, 2014 5:00 AM ET





On its official website, the Canadian government informs its citizens that “there is no limit to the amount of money that you may legally take into or out of the United States.” Nonetheless, it adds, banking in the U.S. can be difficult for non-residents, so Canadians shouldn’t carry large amounts of cash.

That last bit is excellent advice, but for an entirely different reason than the one Ottawa cites.

There’s a shakedown going on in the U.S., and the perps are in uniform.

Across America, law enforcement officers — from federal agents to state troopers right down to sheriffs in one-street backwaters — are operating a vast, co-ordinated scheme to grab as much of the public’s cash as they can; “hand over fist,” to use the words of one police trainer.

Roadside seizure

It usually starts on the road somewhere. An officer pulls you over for some minor infraction — changing lanes without proper signalling, following the car ahead too closely, straddling lanes. The offence is irrelevant.

Then the police officer wants to chat, asking questions about where you’re going, or where you came from, and why. He’ll peer into your car, then perhaps ask permission to search it, citing the need for vigilance against terrorist weaponry or drugs.

What he’s really looking for, though, is money.

'Authorities claim it’s legal, but some prosecutors and judges have called it what it is: abuse. In any case, it’s a nasty American reality.'
And if you were foolish (or intimidated) enough to have consented to the search, and you’re carrying any significant amount of cash, you are now likely to lose it.

The officer will probably produce a waiver, saying that if you just sign over the money then the whole matter will just disappear, and you’ll be able to go on your way.

Refuse to sign it, and he may take the cash anyway, proclaiming it the probable proceeds of drugs or some other crime.

Either way, you almost certainly won’t be charged with anything; the objective is to take your money, not burden the system.

You’ll have the right to seek its return in court, but of course that will mean big lawyer’s fees, and legally documenting exactly where the money came from. You will need to prove you are not a drug dealer or a terrorist.

It might take a year or two. And several trips back to the jurisdiction where you were pulled over. Sorry.

In places like Tijuana, police don’t make any pretense about this sort of thing. Here in the U.S., though, it’s dressed up in terms like “interdiction and forfeiture,” or “the equitable sharing program.”

Authorities claim it’s legal, but some prosecutors and judges have called it what it is: abuse.

In any case, it’s a nasty American reality.

Powers and justifications

Seizing suspected drug money has been legal here for decades, but after 9/11 police acquired a whole new set of powers and justifications. And they set about using them for profit.

'The Washington Post this week reported that in the past 13 years, there have been 61,998 cash seizures on roadways and elsewhere without use of search warrants. The total haul: $2.5 billion.'
The Washington Post this week reported that in the past 13 years, there have been 61,998 cash seizures on roadways and elsewhere without use of search warrants.

The total haul: $2.5 billion, divided pretty much equally between the U.S. government and state and local authorities (hence the Kafkaesque “equitable sharing” euphemism).

Half of the seizures, according to the Post, were below $8,800. Only a sixth of those who had money taken from them pursued its return.

Some, no doubt, were indeed drug dealers or money launderers and just walked away from the money. Others just couldn’t spare the expense and time of going to court.

Of those who did, though, nearly half got their money back, a statistic that fairly screams about the legitimacy of the seizures.

So does another fact: In many cases, authorities offer half the money back – money they’d claimed was proceeds of crime. And when they do issue a cheque, they almost always insist their victim sign a legal release promising never to sue.

It would also appear police like to target minorities, who tend to be cooperative and less likely to hire a lawyer.

Civil rights advocates have documented all sorts of outright legal theft:

The (minority) businessman from Georgia who was relieved of $75,000 he’d raised from relatives to buy a restaurant in Louisiana.
The (minority) church leaders who were carrying nearly $30,000 from their Baltimore parishioners to carry out church activities in North Carolina and El Salvador.
The young college grad with no criminal record on his way to a job interview out West who was relieved of $2,500 lent to him by his dad for the trip.
News outlets here have reported many such abuses over the years. But the Washington Post’s latest investigation exposes money-grabbing as big business.

It involves a nationwide network of enforcement agencies (except in the few states that have banned it) that operates with the help of a vast private intelligence service called “Black Asphalt” (police forces pay an enrolment fee of $19.95). The network uses consultants and trainers who either charge fees or operate on contingency, keeping a percentage of cash seized by their police pupils.

Police forces use the money to finance their departmental budgets, sometimes spending it on luxury vehicles, first-class tickets to conferences, and lavish quarters. They regard the money as rightfully theirs. One prosecutor used seized cash to defend herself against a lawsuit brought by people whose cash she seized.

It’s just human nature, really.

Give police the legal ability to take someone’s money, and to claim it’s in the national interest, and then tell them they can keep a nice chunk of it, and what other result could there be?

Travel advice

So, for any law-abiding Canadian thinking about an American road trip, here’s some non-official advice:

Avoid long chats if you’re pulled over. Answer questions politely and concisely, then persistently ask if you are free to go.

Don’t leave litter on the vehicle floor, especially energy drink cans.

Don’t use air or breath fresheners; they could be interpreted as an attempt to mask the smell of drugs.

Don’t be too talkative. Don’t be too quiet. Try not to wear expensive designer clothes. Don’t have tinted windows.

And for heaven’s sake, don’t consent to a search if you are carrying a big roll of legitimate cash.

As the Canadian government notes, there is no law against carrying it here or any legal limit on how much you can carry. But if you’re on an American roadway with a full wallet, in the eyes of thousands of cash-hungry cops you’re a rolling ATM.

 

Good. We need as much money as we can get to support Obamacare. After all, the Canadian model was used to sell it to the voters.

 

You guys can't even copy right.

 

Does anyone know what our rights are if one was to get pulled over down there ?

And as a Canadian do we have less rights there in a " being pulled over" situation ?


Do we have the right to decline consent to a search ? I mean I'm not carrying anything illegal it drinking driving etc, or carrying anything illegal in my vehicle - so as an innocent person can you just say no to a search and not be carted off to jail because you said no ?

Might be helpful to know what we could and should do in that type of situation.

 

You can refuse the car search but they will call a dog in and it will smell the outside of your car. If it alerts on the car they don't need consent to search.

 

What if you bought groceries and the dog barks at the beef jerky in your trunk? Are you f'd at that point ?

 

I do not know where they got that from....but... crossing the border (either way) with $10K or more without declaring it will get you in hot water... I may be mistaken, but I believe it is the law. Even here in Canada taking anywhere close to $10K in cash to the bank will also raise questions and possibly a phone call to the RCMP to investigate the source and destination of the funds. The majority of legitimate businesses rarely need to have so much cash on hand and so because of this any large sums of cash create suspicion.

Personally, I travel with some cash, but rely on credit and debit cards... if I need more $$$ I can also contact my bank and have funds wire transferred to me promptly.

Cheers,

Sam

 

I think what they are saying is that you could legally carry any amount of money to the us provided you declare that you are doing so at the border.

I had heard of a friend of a friend who wanted to buy a 993 in the states privately and the seller was suspicious of international transfers and money orders, so he brought cash to finalize the deal, declaring it at the border. The customs folks asked for some info about where the car was etc, and he showed them a bank stmt showing he'd removed the money from his account - and there was no problem.

But of course - he didn't get pulled over on the way...

Other than something like that I wouldn't recommend carrying that much cash either

But what about a going on vacation with less than 10 or even 5k - a lot of Canadians buy us cash at better rates saving 5-10% on quoted exchange rates or 2-3-5% ? on credit card exchange fees, + a lot of us merchants offer better deals for cash.

Even losing less than 10k randomly would suck.

 

Your car will be gone over fully. You will probably be in cuffs. And if they don't find anything you'll be let go. If you have anything they want to seize they will and you'll have to go to court to get it back if you can prove it isn't bought with proceeds of crime.

 

True.

 

10 k is the magic number. Deposits over 10k in cash automatically get reported. And you can enter into the us with under 10k me not have to declare it. Also you can enter back into canada with under 10k and not declare it. But none of that has anything to do with us police forces seizing cash from people without charging them. Any amount of cash can be seized by law enforcement and you will have to prove where it came from or you won't get it back. Could be a few hundred dollars really if you are carrying it in an unusual manner. Such as in multiple pockets.

 

I read something on the BBC that $4.6 billion had been confiscated by the police in 2012 - it is a very profitable industry for the 17,000 odd law enforcement agencies in the U.S.

Oh, here we go:BBC News - The growing outcry over police confiscation

It is also illegal to cross the Canadian border without declaring $10k Canadian. A few years ago one fellow had all his cash lifted because the exchange rate had moved, and now his U.S. cash was just over the $10k Canadian limit.

The whole reason is a bad joke, when you think about it. The argument that lots of cash is an indication of drug activity actually means that cash is regarded as drug paraphernalia, and thus the government is in the business of manufacturing the self-same drug paraphernalia! Furthermore, it is illegal for the citizens of the state to do commerce using anything other than government issue drug paraphernalia for their trade!
Hang on a second here…. That can't be true!!???

Mind you, don't worry about being singled out as a Canadian. The incarceration rate in Canada is something like 117 per 100,000, in the U.S. it is 754 per 100,000, so being worked over by the system is more the norm for a citizen in the U.S.

I recommend reading The Rise of the Warrior Cop, which touches on the subject.

 

You can't cross the border into Canada with a new pair of socks without declaring it let along $10K.

 

They can make the dog give the signal they want it's a dog. Never if it will be jumping all over your cars paint and what not.

 

Let John Oliver Explain How Cops Can Take Anything From Anyone

 

They have signs at the U.S border that says you must declare amounts over $10K. You are also required to report at Canadian customs if you are taking more then $10K out of the country. I have a place in the U.S, so also have banks there. I just wire my U.S accounts if I need more then $1k cash.

I live in Vancouver and bought a car in Kelowna. I needed to go into the states first, had almost $10k, so decided to declare it in case they searched. The U.S. customs agents, well they became dicks about the cash. All kinds of questions, etc. One mentioned if they found one penny more in my car they'd seize it and the cash. Anyway, I avoid bringing large sums of cash into the U.S. now.

 

"what is the dog", lol.

The police dogs ARE TRAINED to bark and jump around the car they are called to "inspect". I've never heard of a police dog NOT barking after being called in.

 

They are trained usually to sit when they "find" drugs, etc. The thing that so far hasn't been blown in court, is the regular general purpose patrol dog can seldom be trained in everything, narcotics detection, etc. They usually only do two things well and that's track people and apprehend them. It would be a one in a million dog that can do these things and narcotics searches as well. But if the dog false alerts and finds nothing, no harm, no foul. If it finds drugs, good dog. Long way of saying, dogs are B.S. probable cause for a search.

 

I had a US Border Patrol dog brought out to sniff my 348 a few years back, during a 15 minute 'interview'. no barking, and I was able to go on my way.

 

Customs dogs are usually trained solely for detection purposes. So they are not hyper, etc. A police dog, well its trained to be loud and hyper. Police want the bad guys to hear the dog and give up. The dog is also excited its going to play human fetch.

Dog fan here!

 

That's funny and enlightening at the same time.

Kind of scary when you think of how prevalent it is.

Thanks for posting.

 

Really makes you think twice about carrying large sums of cash. Even in Canada civil forfeiture is a serious reality most have no idea is happening. If you cant prove where it came from its gone.

 

A lot of Chicken Little here.

The $10k travel rule does not apply to gold or diamonds btw. At YYZ, there are several businesses which convert cash to stones for transport to circumvent the rule.

Yes, you can carry as much cash as you want as long as you declare it.

I can see a problem if you are in some backwater and can't explain to the stopping officer why you are carrying $100k in small bills covered in white dust.

 

No chicken little. The issue isnt us customs taking your cash. Its any us police you have contact with while in the us. If you have a large sum of currency they will most likely seize it even if you have a legitimate reason for having it. They do this because they get to keep any unclaimed currency after a periond of time. And all us police forces do it. And they can take your property just as easy as your cash. So no hiding your money in stones isnt a viable way to keep them from being seized. And yes they do count the same as currency when you cross. If you dont declaire it they will be gone when us customs finds them. So please dont downplay the seriousness of whats being discussed. Wads of cash while in side the us will cause you nothing but headaches. So dont carry large sums.

 

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