Florida Federal Criminal Defense Attorney focusing on the defense of white collar crimes.

Asset Forfeiture

Florida Federal Criminal Defense Attorney, David J. Joffe focuses on criminal defense of persons accused of white collar crimes. David J. Joffe has personally handled over 300 Federal cases. Call today for a confidential consultation.

Asset forfeiture is the government’s confiscation of funds or property used to fund criminal activity, mostly illegal drug trafficking. There are two types of forfeiture cases: criminal and civil. Almost all forfeiture cases practiced today are civil. The same two statutes apply to both civil and criminal asset forfeiture proceedings—18 U.S.C. § 982 and 21 U.S.C. § 881.

Most of these cases occur under federal law and no criminal charges or convictions are required in civil forfeiture proceedings. The federal government sues the property in question and the property owners are third parties. These proceedings have more lenient burdens of proof than criminal prosecutions—property owners must prove that their property was not used in criminal activity by a preponderance of the evidence (a level of proof that persuades a judge or jury that, given the evidence, the plaintiff has more likely than not proved their property was not used for criminal activity).

The Department of Justice established the National Assets Seizure and Forfeiture Fund in 1985 and realized $27 million from drug-related forfeitures that year. Many states followed suit by establishing their own civil forfeiture programs. Cities and other municipal governments have cooperated in forfeiture actions under both federal and state drug laws. They have used such laws on their own to deal with local concerns ranging from unsafe housing to prostitution, and now for the problem of drunk driving.

If you or someone you know has been served with an asset forfeiture warrant and you have questions about the options that may be available, contact an experienced criminal defense attorney at Joffe & Joffe.

Experience Counts!

Federal Criminal Defense Lawyer, David J. Joffe has personally handled over 300 federal criminal cases, in areas such as white collar crime, SEC violations, tax crimes, asset forfeiture, fraud, drug possession, drug trafficking, conspiracy, racketeering (RICO cases), money laundering, theft, extradition, and public corruption. Miami criminal defense lawyer, David J. Joffe, and his experienced staff are fully equipped to defend you in any serious state or federal criminal case.

Representative case results include:
• Ex-banker not charged with theft of goods through interstate commerce
• Miami criminal defense lawyer, David J. Joffe successfully reduces sentence of Colombian crew men on freighter with two tons of cocaine
• Broward man charged with battery on law enforcement officer found Not Guilty
• Bank manager enters pre-trial diversion program in federal bank fraud case
• Client in Port Everglades drug conspiracy found Not Guilty by jury
• Bank fraud restitution lowered from $300,000 to $1800
• Drug Charges dismissed for possession of marijuana
• Conspiracy charge dropped; sentence reduced from 15 years to 24 months
• 70 Year Old Individual charged with conspiracy released with time served
• Felony charge reduced to misdemeanor for Police Office
• Money Laundering and Fraud charges dropped
• read more about these results...