Pubdate: Mon, 27 Jul 1998 Date: 07/27/1998 Source: San Francisco Examiner (CA) Author: Linc Madison Website: http://www.examiner.com/ I am astonished that it is necessary for the American Civil Liberties Union to file a lawsuit against the blatantly unconstitutional Oakland ordinance that provides for civil forfeiture of vehicles involved in the alleged commission of alleged crimes - if the alleged crimes involve drugs or prostitution ( "Oakland sued over car seizures," July 22). The language of the Fifth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution is clear and unmistakable: "No person shall . . . be deprived of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law." There is nothing in that wording that provides an exception for civil forfeiture distinct from criminal law. The very purpose of the Bill of Rights is to make it more difficult for the government to use this sort of heavy-handed tactic with no legal checks and balances. That a deputy district attorney can argue that due process is not required in all cases is truly frightening. Andy Cuellar has said that the government can seize any property of yours it pleases, based merely on the suspicion that you may have committed a crime. All civil forfeiture laws that allow for the seizure of property from a person who has not been convicted of a crime are unconstitutional on their face. I know the U.S. Supreme Court has ruled otherwise, but the court's Orwellian doublespeak logic is simply wrong. Linc Madison San Francisco