MONTGOMERY, Ala. — Today, the Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC) released a new report detailing the racial disparities within Alabama’s civil asset forfeiture process. The report, Ending Business as Usual: The Need for Alabama Civil Asset Forfeiture Data Transparency, highlights the damaging impact the procedure has on Alabamians and specifically highlights evidence of racial harm in Jefferson County. The SPLC demands full data transparency as an accountability method to show the far-reaching effects civil asset forfeiture has on communities and inform equitable policy solutions.
“Alabama’s civil asset forfeiture process ties up Alabamians, particularly Alabamians of color, in legal webs, draining their assets and leaving them with little recourse,” said Delvin Davis, senior policy analyst, Southern Poverty Law Center. “The civil asset forfeiture process has a devastating impact on lives. For example, if a person’s car is seized, that person can’t work, pick up their child from school and can’t do everyday tasks without finding a new form of transportation. The policy creates a snowball effect that deprives people of their livelihoods while local cities and towns enrich their budgets.”
Our report calls for more data transparency in order to fully contextualize how the policy impacts and targets Black and brown communities. Data currently available to the public only scratches the surface of the overarching problem.
Some key findings include:
- In the fiscal year 2023, $4.6 million (49.6 percent of the total amount of cash seized) has been forfeited to the state, but only $96,338 (1.0 percent) was awarded back to defendants.
- Cash seizures in Alabama have decreased by 17.5 percent from fiscal year 2021 to fiscal year 2023. However, judicial circuits with significant Black populations saw an increase of cash seizures by 42.6 percent during the same period.
- In Jefferson County, residents in majority-Black neighborhoods were more likely to experience a civil asset forfeiture in fiscal year 2023.
“While the numbers available paint a dire picture, there is hope. Leaders from both political parties in Alabama are calling for an evaluation of the policy. However, that would require disaggregated data on civil asset forfeitures to be made publicly accessible. It is up to us to hold our state accountable and push back against a policy that harms more than helps,” concluded Davis.
Read the full report here.
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About the Southern Poverty Law Center
he Southern Poverty Law Center is a catalyst for racial justice in the South and beyond, working in partnership with communities to dismantle white supremacy, strengthen intersectional movements, and advance the human rights of all people. For more information, visit www.splcenter.org.