A Letter from the Left
In entirety, unedited:
Dear (present or potential) Friends of Karl Sipfle:
I am a lifelong Democrat, and I consider myself a liberal. Although I usually don't support Republican candidates, I am making an exception in Karl's case, because I have known him for many years, and because I have great respect for his intelligence and character. I support him in his campaign for the State House because I believe that he has the courage to do the right thing if he is elected, regardless of the political consequences.
Many issues facing us nowadays cut across Democratic and Republican lines, and are not being addressed due to inattention or timidity on the part of lawmakers from both parties. For example, in 1995 I appeared before the United States Supreme Court as co-counsel for the innocent property owner in the Michigan v Bennis appeal. In that case, a badly fractured Court shocked the nation by ruling that innocence was no defense to a forfeiture action. (Below is my Op-Ed piece about the case in the April 11, 1996 edition of the Detroit News.) Both liberals and conservatives condemned the decision (the Free Press as well as the News attacked it in editorials), but our State Legislature has done nothing since then to stop Michigan from carrying out its ridiculous policy of "Zero Tolerance for the Innocent."
And how can this affect you? Well, if someone does something illegal in your car or boat or home without your knowledge or consent, the police and prosecutors can take it away from you, sell it, and use the money they get to increase their own salaries. Yes, this is a license to steal. Just ask the City of Detroit, who won the Bennis appeal. They are continuing to arrest and seize the vehicles of people who are never prosecuted for anything (because they are not guilty of anything). These victims of governmental oppression then have a choice of either paying around a thousand dollars to get their cars back, or paying a lawyer a lot more to fight a forfeiture proceeding. And if you think that this can't happen to you, think again. Just driving down the wrong street at the wrong time is enough. Or having a lot of cash in your wallet. After the police take it away, good luck getting it back.
Can Karl light a fire under our do-nothing State Legislature? I don't know, but I do know that he has the courage to try.
Very truly yours,
Noah Eliezer Yanich
Dear (present or potential) Friends of Karl Sipfle:
I am a lifelong Democrat, and I consider myself a liberal. Although I usually don't support Republican candidates, I am making an exception in Karl's case, because I have known him for many years, and because I have great respect for his intelligence and character. I support him in his campaign for the State House because I believe that he has the courage to do the right thing if he is elected, regardless of the political consequences.
Many issues facing us nowadays cut across Democratic and Republican lines, and are not being addressed due to inattention or timidity on the part of lawmakers from both parties. For example, in 1995 I appeared before the United States Supreme Court as co-counsel for the innocent property owner in the Michigan v Bennis appeal. In that case, a badly fractured Court shocked the nation by ruling that innocence was no defense to a forfeiture action. (Below is my Op-Ed piece about the case in the April 11, 1996 edition of the Detroit News.) Both liberals and conservatives condemned the decision (the Free Press as well as the News attacked it in editorials), but our State Legislature has done nothing since then to stop Michigan from carrying out its ridiculous policy of "Zero Tolerance for the Innocent."
And how can this affect you? Well, if someone does something illegal in your car or boat or home without your knowledge or consent, the police and prosecutors can take it away from you, sell it, and use the money they get to increase their own salaries. Yes, this is a license to steal. Just ask the City of Detroit, who won the Bennis appeal. They are continuing to arrest and seize the vehicles of people who are never prosecuted for anything (because they are not guilty of anything). These victims of governmental oppression then have a choice of either paying around a thousand dollars to get their cars back, or paying a lawyer a lot more to fight a forfeiture proceeding. And if you think that this can't happen to you, think again. Just driving down the wrong street at the wrong time is enough. Or having a lot of cash in your wallet. After the police take it away, good luck getting it back.
Can Karl light a fire under our do-nothing State Legislature? I don't know, but I do know that he has the courage to try.
Very truly yours,
Noah Eliezer Yanich
