Calendaring Offenses Involving Seized Motor Vehicles

Law enforcement has authority to seize a person’s motor vehicle in several circumstances. Motor vehicles may be seized as evidence of a crime or for containing evidence of a crime, or as a consequence of being charged with certain offenses, including specified drug offenses, larcenies, and motor vehicle offenses. For some individuals charged with impaired driving or felony speeding to elude arrest, their vehicles may be seized and are subject to forfeiture pursuant to G.S. 20-28.3. In these cases, subsection (m) requires expedited scheduling and imposes additional requirements before the case can be continued. This post examines when subsection (m) applies, what it requires, and what may happen if it’s not followed.

Motor vehicle seizures.  Broadly speaking, there are two justifications for seizing motor vehicles in criminal cases. One is where the vehicle itself is evidence of a crime or it contains evidence of a crime. This authority stems from G.S. 15-11.1, permitting law-enforcement to seize and keep property which may be useful or necessary as evidence in a criminal trial. The other is where the vehicle is used as an instrumentality of certain offenses. The list of offenses that subject a vehicle to seizure and forfeiture includes felony larceny/armed robbery (G.S. 14-86.1), alcoholic beverage violations (G.S. 18B-504), prearranged speed competitions (G.S. 20-141.3), street takeovers (G.S. 20-141.10), felony drug violations (G.S. 90-112), wildlife and marine fisheries violations (G.S. 113-137), and impaired driving/felony speeding to elude arrest (G.S. 20-28.2). The calendaring provisions in G.S. 20-28.3(m) only apply to vehicles seized and subject to forfeiture pursuant to G.S. 20-28.2.