Seizures for Forfeiture in Marion County, FL
The Marion County Sheriff’s Office seizes property for forfeiture. That property might include U.S. Currency, cryptocurrency (like Bitcoin), vehicles, vessels, aircraft, and other valuable property. Seizures might occur with or without a search warrant at a home, business, or during a traffic stop at the roadside. For cryptocurrency, law enforcement agencies serve seizure warrants on trading platforms like Binance, Coinbase, or MEXC Global.
After the seizure of property, the Marion County Sheriff’s Office must comply with Section §932.703(3)(a) Florida Statutes. That provision requires that the sheriff’s office provide written notice to any potential claimant, including an owner, lien holder, bailee, or person in possession.
That one-page piece of paper called the “notice of seizure” explains the claimant’s right to request an adversarial preliminary hearing (APH), which must be sent by U.S. certified (return receipt requested) and should also be sent via email with a read receipt. You only have fifteen (15) calendar days to send the request. You should also serve the agency via email.
At the APH, the judge must consider testimony and other evidence to determine whether probable cause exists to believe the property was used in violation of the Florida Contraband Forfeiture Act.
If you received a “notice of seizure” giving you the right to request an adversarial preliminary hearing (APH) within fifteen (15) days, contact an experienced attorney. Demanding the APH within that fifteen (15) day deadline is often the best way to get the property back quickly. Not demanding the APH often makes it harder to get the property back or results in longer delays.
Even if you missed the 15 day deadline to demand the APH or the 30 day deadline to appeal the preliminary order finding probable cause, your attorney might still help you get your property back by filing an answer to the complaint for forfeiture. After being served with the complaint, you only have 20 days to file the answer. If you wait too long, the agency will file a motion for default.
You might be able to undo the motion for default if you were not properly served with notice of the complaint or other due process violations occurred. The best course of action is to NOT miss a deadline. The system is set up to cause you to miss a deadline or file an inadequate pleading.
Attorney for Seizure by the Marion County Sheriff’s Office
If your U.S. Currency, Bitcoin, other cryptocurrency, jewelry, vehicle, vessel, or aircraft was seized for forfeiture by the Marion County Sheriff’s Office or the Ocala Police Department, contact an experienced civil asset forfeiture lawyer at Sammis Law Firm.
We represent the owner, lien holder, purchaser for value, seller for value, bailee, or person in possession at the time of the seizure. We can help you file a demand for an adversarial preliminary hearing (APH) or file an answer to the complaint for forfeiture.
Act quickly. Strict deadlines apply, and those deadlines are unforgiving. Contact us to speak to an attorney today.
Call 813-250-0500.
Cryptocurrency Forfeitures by a Detective in Marion County, FL
In cryptocurrency cases, the judge issues a search warrant to a training platform like Binance, Coinbase, or MEXC Global to seize the assets in the account. Using those search warrants, the Marion County Sheriff’s Office seizes cryptocurrency from overseas accounts when the assets belong to foreign nationals.
The lead agent in these investigations is Detective Richard R. Truman III, who claims to have 100 hours of training. He became “certified through Token Resource Management as a Crypto Investigator and Crypto Compliance Specialist,” which requires paying $1,100 and watching 12 hours of online training videos plus the time to complete the final assessment.
Detective Truman works with the Florida Department of Law Enforcement, the Statewide Prosecutor’s Office, and the Florida Attorney General’s Office to seize cryptocurrency. The use of seizure warrants to seize cryptocurrency is a new phenomenon because most crypto seizures are conducted by federal agencies.
The attorneys at Sammis Law Firm are experienced in filing requests for Adversarial Preliminary Hearings (APH) and answers to complaints for forfeiture.
Notice of Seizure from Marion County Sheriff’s Office
The Marion County Sheriff’s Office must make a diligent effort to notify the person entitled to notice of the seizure. Notice provided by certified mail must be mailed within five (5) working days after the seizure and must state that any person entitled to notice may request an adversarial preliminary hearing within fifteen (15) days after receiving such notice.
When a postseizure adversarial preliminary hearing (APH) is desired, the Claimant should make a request in writing and send the request by certified mail, return receipt requested, to the seizing agency. Your attorney will save a copy of that request for an APH and proof of when it was served.
After the seizing agency receives the claimant’s demand for an adversarial preliminary hearing, the seizing agency must set and notice the hearing to be held within ten (10) business days of receiving the request or as soon as practicable.
The attorney for the agency will often contact the Claimant seeking an extension of time for the ten (10) day hearing, although we rarely agree to such an extension. If the hearing is not set within that ten (10) business day deadline, then you can appeal any order from the court finding probable cause.
If the court finds the agency filed its application within the ten (10) day deadline and that probable cause existed, the seized contraband will remain under the control of MCSO pending further order of the court. If the court finds no probable cause, the Court must award the Claimant up to $2,000 to cover their reasonable attorney fees.
Complaint for Forfeiture Files in Marion County, FL
Sheriff Billy Woods, in his official capacity as the Sheriff of Marion County, Florida, might file a complaint for forfeiture under the Florida Contraband Forfeiture Act, Sections §932.701-704, Florida Statutes.
Complaints for forfeiture in Marion County FL, are filed in the Fifth Judicial Circuit. Each case is assigned a case number by the clerk’s office. The agency assigns an internal MCSO case number.
The complaint will allege that the Court has subject matter jurisdiction under Section §934.704(2) Florida Statutes, in rem jurisdiction over the Contraband, and that venue lies in Marion County under §47.011 Florida Statutes.
After being served with the complaint for forfeiture, any potential claimant only has twenty (20) days to file an answer to the complaint, assert all affirmative defenses, and demand a jury trial. In Florida, the Claimant is entitled to a jury trial.
For this reason, the agency often wants to settle these cases by returning the property if it has reason to believe it might lose the case at trial or as a result of pre-trial motions.
The Marion County Sheriff’s Office maintains a Legal Services Division, which includes the General Counsel, Marissa Duquette, and at least one Assistant General Counsel. These attorneys represent Sheriff Billy Woods in court proceedings, including the adversarial preliminary hearing and other matters involving civil asset forfeitures. The Legal Executive Assistant helps the attorneys in these cases.
The attorneys in the Legal Services Division issue legal updates and provide training to the deputies and detectives. They review agency policies and procedures. They help review and draft search warrants, seizure warrants, and arrest warrants.
The legal services division does not provide legal advice to members of the public. If you require legal advice, contact an experienced criminal defense attorney at Sammis Law Firm.
Seizures for Forfeiture by Police Departments in Marion County, FL
In addition to the sheriff’s office, three local police departments in Marion County confiscate property for civil asset forfeiture, including:
- the Ocala Police Department;
- the Belleview Police Department; and
- the Dunnellon Police Department.
For example, a recent seizure by the Ocala Police Department provided:
IN THE CIRCUIT COURT OF THE FIFTH JUDICIAL CIRCUIT, IN AND FOR MARION COUNTY, FLORIDAIN RE: FORFEITURE $___ in U. S. CurrencyCase Number: 2024-CA-______TO: [name and address of the potential claimant]YOU ARE HEREBY NOTIFIED that a forfeiture action has been filed against the above described currency by the City of Ocala, Ocala Police Department. You are required to file an answer and any written defenses with the Clerk of the Court and to serve a copy of the answer and defenses on or before January 16, 2025, on Kristi Van Vleet, Assistant General Counsel, City of Ocala, Ocala Police Department, 110 SE Watula Ave, Ocala, FL 34471. Failure to file your answer and defenses will result a default being entered against you.WITNESSED by hand and the Seal of the Court on this 2nd day of December 2024.Gregory C. Harrell,Clerk of Court.
In February 2022, the FDLE Office of Inspector General (OIG) notified the office of the Chief Financial Officer at the Department of Financial Services (DFS) of twenty-three law enforcement agencies that failed to submit an annual report by the deadline required by Florida Statute Section 932.7062, F.S. One of those agencies that were delinquent in sending in the report was the Dunnellon Police Department, located in Marion County, FL.
If your U.S. Currency, cryptocurrency, Bitcoin, vehicle, vessel, or aircraft was seized by a law enforcement agency in Marion County, FL, contact an experienced criminal defense attorney at the Sammis Law Firm. We can help you fight any criminal accusation or civil asset forfeiture case.
Don’t face the judge alone.
Call 813-250-0500.
This article was last updated on Friday, December 6, 2024.
