July 24, 2013 12:53PM 

# Oklahoma D.A. Hires Private Firm To Assist In Forfeitures 

By [Walter Olson](https://www.cato.org/people/walter-olson) 

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Outrage of the moment: Oklahoma District Attorney Jason Hicks hired a private firm to assist in stopping motorists on the interstate and grabbing their belongings for forfeiture. Under the deal, he would pay the firm a share of assets seized on a sliding scale from 10 to 25 percent. Trampling of due process ensued–as, I think, should have been predicted–including the seizure of money found in a vehicle after a drug-sniffing dog alerted, even though no drugs were found. I’ve got more details at [Overlawyered](http://overlawyered.com/2013/07/whats-scarier-asset-forfeiture-operations/).

##### Related Tags 

[Constitutional Law](https://www.cato.org/constitutional-law), [Robert A. Levy Center for Constitutional Studies](https://www.cato.org/robert-levy-center-constitutional-studies) 

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