Asset forfeiture laws can be pretty heinous. Not only are they “guilty until proven innocent”, they are also frequently “guilty even after being proven innocent”. i.e. you don’t necessarily get your stuff back just because you don’t get convicted. Or even charged.
agree. My point is that the cop was just doing what he was told to do. If he is told to crack down on illegal street vendors and ticket them and seize their profits, but doesn’t do it the cop could get in trouble with his bosses.
In any case, it would be real easy for this vendor not to have this problem: go get the proper papers to operate a hot dog stand.