Over the past three years, Melisa Ingram, a 50-year-old Detroit resident, has had her 2017 Ford Fusion seized twice by the Wayne County Sheriffβs Office. The officers claimed that Ingramβs ex-boyfriend, who had her car at the time of the seizures, was involved in illegal activity.
Under Michiganβs civil asset forfeiture law, the police could seize and sell the car if they suspected it was involved in a crimeβeven though Ingram hadnβt been arrested for, let alone convicted of, anything at all.
βThey told me they observed him doing something with a prostitute and I explained to them that it wasnβt me driving the car,β Ingram toldΒ Stateline. βAll I wanted was my car because I had no way to get home from work. It was just a case of bad luck.β
Ingram, a supervisor at Blue Cross Blue Shield,Β paid more than $1,300, including towing and fees, to get her car back in January 2019, according toΒ The Detroit News. After the…
