Drug suspect must pay $175 to get back $171 seized by police

Published September 08, 2016

A man who was arrested on drug charges with $171 in his pocket has been told he'll have to pay a $175 filing fee to try to get the money back.

NJ.com reports (http://bit.ly/2c1lNog ) the Hudson County prosecutor's office included Jermaine Mitchell in a civil action against 21 defendants charged with similar crimes to go after the money through civil forfeiture.

But the American Civil Liberties Union says the only thing most of those people have in common is that prosecutors are going after their money. The ACLU is representing Mitchell and says the defendants aren't all part of a common scheme.

A judge ruled the case could move forward. But the ACLU appealed Thursday.

Prosecutors have said Mitchell's money was either obtained criminally or would have been used criminally.

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Information from: NJ Advance Media.

URL

https://www.foxnews.com/us/drug-suspect-must-pay-175-to-get-back-171-seized-by-police