House Speaker Looks At Rules Governing Drug Forfeitures

The Speaker of the Missouri House wants to change how law enforcement handles drug forfeitures. Speaker Jim Kreider of Nixa is the sponsor of a measure that redefines seizure, which he says has been abused to allow local and state law enforcement agencies to go through the federal government, and that allows them to hold onto some of the forfeitures. Kreider says the distribution favors those located along drug routes and deprives some of the state’s schools of what belongs to them. Kreider’s bill would see money from drug forfeitures go directly to education. The House has approved the measure and sent it to the Senate.