Section 1225.10  Purpose

 

The purpose of this Part is to provide requirements and procedures for the seizure and forfeiture of property under the Drug Asset Forfeiture Procedure Act (P.A. 86-1382, effective September 10, 1990).

 

Section 1225.20  Definitions

 

Unless specified otherwise, all terms shall have the meaning set forth in the Cannabis Control Act (Ill. Rev. Stat. 1989, ch. 56½, par. 701 et seq.), and the Illinois Controlled Substances Act (Ill. Rev. Stat. 1989, ch. 56½, pars. 1100 et seq.).  For purpose of this Part, the following additional definitions apply:

 

"Act" means the Drug Asset Forfeiture Procedure Act (P.A. 86-1382, effective September 10, 1990).

 

"Cannabis Control Act" means the Illinois Cannabis Control Act (Ill. Rev. Stat. 1989, ch. 56½, pars. 701 et seq.) as amended by P.A. 86-1382, effective September 10, 1990.

 

"Conveyance" means any vehicle, aircraft, or vessel.

 

"Director" means the Director of the Department of State Police or the designee of the Director of the Department of State Police.

 

"Illinois Controlled Substances Act" means the Illinois Controlled Substances Act (Ill. Rev. Stat. 1989, ch. 56½, pars. 1100 et seq.) as amended by P.A. 86-1382, effective September 10, 1990.

 

"Notice/Inventory Form" means a form (or a copy of the form) supplied by the Department of State Police to be used to provide notice of seizure to the Director.

 

"Seized property" means any property, money, or other asset seized for the purpose of forfeiture under the Act.

 

"Seizing agency" means the agency primarily responsible for a particular seizure.

 

Section 1225.30  Seizure Notice

 

a)         Any seizing agency that seizes property for the purpose of forfeiture under the Act shall, within 35 days of the seizure, provide notice of the seizure to the Director.

 

b)         Notice shall be provided by mailing a completed Notice/Inventory Form, together with the agency's reports relating to the seizure, to the address indicated on the form.

 

c)         The completed Notice/Inventory Form shall include, but is not limited to, the following information:

 

1)         The date, address or location, and county of the seizure;

 

2)         The name (including unit description), address, contact person, and telephone number of the seizing agency;

 

3)         The name and address of the person from whom the property was seized;

 

4)         The description of the property seized:

 

A)        For conveyances, the description shall include the year, make, model, vehicle identification number, storage location, and fair market value;

 

B)        For other personal property, the description shall include a narrative description, serial numbers (and any other identifying numbers, such as model numbers), storage location, and fair market value;

 

C)        For real property, the description shall include the address, the legal description, and fair market value;

 

5)         The name and address of the registered owner of any conveyance seized;

 

6)         The names and addresses of all lien holders with respect to any property seized;

 

7)         The names of any other agencies involved in the case.

 

d)         Filing the Notice/Inventory Form with the Director shall satisfy the notice-of-seizure requirements found at Section 12(d) of the Cannabis Control Act and Section 505(d) of the Illinois Controlled Substances Act.

 

e)         Information provided to the Director by the seizing agency shall be kept confidential to the extent allowable by law unless permission to disclose is given by the seizing agency. However, general statistical information relating to forfeitures may be released by the Director at any time.

 

Section 1225.40  Disposition of Seized Property Before Forfeiture

 

a)         Unless an alternative arrangement as defined in Section 12(d)(1) through (6) of the Cannabis Control Act (Ill. Rev. Stat. 1989, ch. 56½, pars. 701 et seq.) and Section 505(d)(1) through (6) of the Illinois Controlled Substances Act (Ill. Rev. Stat. 1989, ch. 56½, pars. 1100 et seq.) is ordered in writing by the Director, seized property shall be kept in the possession of the seizing agency until forfeiture proceedings are completed.

 

b)         The agency in possession of seized property shall take whatever action is necessary to ensure the seized property is secured and maintained in such a way so as not to be reduced in value. This provision applies to both real property and personal property. If seized property is returned based on the determination that the property was not forfeitable, the agency in possession of property shall be financially responsible for any reduction in value due to negligence, waste, or destruction of the property.

 

c)         Seized property that is evidence in a criminal proceeding shall be kept by the seizing agency in the same manner other evidence is maintained by that agency.

 

d)         The Director shall be notified in writing any time seized property is disposed of by means other than forfeiture.

 

Section 1225.50  Disposition of Seized Property After Forfeiture

 

a)         Property forfeited under the Act shall be sold by the Director except in the following circumstances:

 

1)         Law requires the property to be destroyed; or

 

2)         The property is harmful to the public; or

 

3)         The seizing agency or the prosecutor responsible for the forfeiture requests in writing that the Director return the property to the agency or prosecutor; and

 

A)        The returned property would be used for the enforcement of laws relating to cannabis or controlled substances; and

 

B)        The Director finds that return of the property to the agency or prosecutor would be more effective in the enforcement of laws relating to cannabis and controlled substances than would the distribution of proceeds of the sale of the property; and

 

C)        If more than one agency participated in the seizure, the Director may require agreement among the participating agencies that return of the property to a particular agency or prosecutor is appropriate.

 

b)         Real property may be returned to a seizing agency to be used for the enforcement of laws relating to cannabis and controlled substances. (See Section 121(g) of the Cannabis Control Act (Ill. Rev. Stat. 1989, ch. 56½, pars. 701 et seq.) and Section 505(a) of the Illinois Controlled Substances Act (Ill. Rev. Stat. 1989, ch. 56½, pars. 1101 et seq.)). The agency in possession of forfeited real property shall maintain all records related to the use and possession of the property. These records shall be available for inspection by the Director on request.

 

c)         In the event real property returned to a seizing agency is sold by the seizing agency, the proceeds of that sale shall be returned to the Director for distribution in accordance with this Part. Forfeited real property shall not be sold for less than fair market value.

 

d)         All money forfeited and the net proceeds of the sale of forfeited property, after reasonable expenses relating to the maintenance and sale of the property have been deducted, shall be distributed by the Director in the percentages indicated at Section 12(g) of the Cannabis Control Act and Section 505(g) of the Illinois Controlled Substances Act.

 

e)         In the event more than one agency participated in the law enforcement effort resulting in the forfeiture, the distribution among the agencies shall bear a reasonable relationship to the degree of participation by each agency. In making this determination, the Director shall consider:

 

1)         The extent to which each agency contributed information that led to the seizure, and the resources expended by each agency to develop that information;

 

2)         The extent to which each agency contributed unique or specialized assistance to the law enforcement effort resulting in the forfeiture;

 

3)         The extent to which each agency located and identified particular assets eligible for seizure and forfeiture;

 

4)         The extent to which each agency contributed general agency resources for the investigation, seizure, and forfeiture process.