Though Nixon did not coin the phrase “war on drugs” until the early 1970s, strong anti drug positions were already popular with elected officials and law enforcement. The 1973 creation of the Drug Enforcement Agency was impetus for a significant increase in drug-related incarceration, though a more significant increase of drug-related incarceration occurred in the 1980s alongside the birth of private, for-profit prisons. The end of the 20th century saw the conception of a national sentiment that drugs were the biggest security concern to the American people. The budget allocated to fight the war on drugs increased to the billions, much of which was distributed to police departments to aid them in catching drug users and/or dealers. The United States’ government’s proclamation of a war on drugs and their subsequent policy reforms occurred simultaneously to a significant increase in civil asset forfeiture--likely attributed to the heightened anti-drug sentiment

Even if the main criminals of an organization are incarcerated, they will be replaced by others who would continue illegal activities, unless their financial assets are removed. Thus, civil forfeiture intends to dismantle the economic infrastructure of drug trafficking networks. Civil forfeiture considers the property as guilty, rather than the owner, and it may exist even if there is not a criminal action. Therefore, it is claimed that police agencies have chosen easy targets, such as wealthy drug users rather than major drug traffickers. Consequently, it has been particularly challenged on the basis of the Excessive Fines, Double Jeopardy, and Due Process Clauses. The use of criminal forfeiture instead of civil forfeiture and the elimination of the equitable sharing provision are considered to be the primary solutions.

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This thesis explores the influences of provincial grant programs on Canadian streetscape camera systems. Using qualitative interviews (N=32) and document analysis, the study explores the policymaking processes and outcomes of six Ontario cities that have engaged with the Civil Remedies and Proceeds of Crime grants. Grant programs have not only provided the financial support to facilitate the establishment or expansion of camera systems, but they have also encouraged particular patterns of implementation, design and operation of Canadian streetscape systems through the processes and conditions of the grant program, as well as through the encouragement of regional networking, policy learning and policy diffusion via policy tourism. While the Civil Remedies and Proceeds of Crime grants have influenced some similarities in streetscape camera systems, variation exists, particularly concerning privacy policies, due to idiosyncratic interpretation and adoption of diffused policies and an ambiguous and unclear privacy protection framework. / Graduate / 0626 / 0627 / dennymah@uvic.ca

Magister Legum - LLM (Criminal Justice and Procedure) / In the early 1990s Botswana faced rising levels of grand corruption and economic crimes in general. The laws could not cope with the high incidence of economic criminality, especially as regards the confiscation of dirty assets. At the time, the government relied solely on laws regulating the forfeiture of prohibited property and instruments of crime, given that there were no laws authorising the confiscation of proceeds of crime. The drivers of the said forfeiture laws are the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP), the Botswana Police Service (BPS) and the Botswana Unified Revenue Service (BURS). Parliament then enacted the Proceeds of Serious Crime Act No. 19 of 1990 (PSCA). The PSCA was a three-pronged tool in that it introduced the offence of money-laundering, enhanced investigative powers, and authorised conviction-based confiscation of proceeds of crime. The DPP was tasked with conducting criminal prosecutions and applying for confiscation orders. The BPS was mandated to conduct financial investigations.

This study evaluated money laundering investigation conducted at the Financial and Asset Forfeiture Investigation (FAFI) Unit of the Directorate for Priority Crime Investigation (DPCI) in Pretoria. Data were collected through semi-structured interviews conducted with financial and asset forfeiture investigators attached to the DPCI who are responsible for investigating money laundering. From the results of this study, it became apparent that participants experience a number of challenges in the investigation of money laundering. This study makes recommendations that could empower investigators at the FAFI of the DPCI with enhanced skills and knowledge to effectively investigate cases of money laundering. / Criminology and Security Science / M.A. (Criminal Justice--Forensic Investigation)