From around the nation:

• In the Indianapolis Star, Heather Gillers and Tim Evans have an excellent piece on the practice of Indiana prosecutors hiring private counsel (sometimes themselves) to litigate civil forfeiture cases in court on a contingency basis.
• In Missouri, the Missouri State Highway Patrol, DEA, Dept. of Homeland Security, the IRS, and other federal agencies raid the grounds of Camp Zoe, a popular festival ground in southeast Missouri. They then file a civil forfeiture motion to seize all 352 acres from the owner, Jimmy Tebeau, without filing criminal charges. I am cited in the Riverfront Times article.
• The feds seize $5.5 million from a plane at a Kansas airport.
• US Attorney in Ohio collected $14+ million in forfeitures in fiscal year 2009.
• After facing a firestorm of criticism surrounding the use of SWAT raids, abuse of asset forfeiture funds, and other heavy-handed enforcement tactics, the National Oceanic & Atmospheric Administration is seeking comment on proposed reforms. Comments are due Dec. 20th.