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Ginnifer Hency of St. Clair County testifies before a House Judiciary Committee on May 26, 2015.

(House TV)

Update: Michigan House approves civil asset forfeiture reform, reporting package

LANSING, MI -- Ginnifer Hency's vibrator was not an accessory to an alleged crime that a judge says did not occur.

But Hency, who has multiple sclerosis and is registered to legally use and grow medical marijuana for other patients, says members of a drug task force confiscated her sex toy when they raided her family home last year and charged her with intent to possess and deliver pot.

A judge assigned to the criminal case determined that a crime did not occur, exonerating Hency pending any appeal by prosecutors, but her personal property remains in lock up.

"They have had my stuff for 10 months," Hency told Michigan lawmakers last week during a hearing on the state's civil asset forfeiture laws. "My ladders, my iPads, my children's iPads, my children's phones, my medicine for my patients. Why a ladder? Why my vibrator? I don't know either? Why TVs?"

St. Clair County Sheriff Tim Donnellon has denied that the drug task force confiscated Hency's vibrator when it raided her home near Port Huron and seized other property, but her testimony has garnered national media attention.

The story has been picked up by the likes of Forbes and Washington Post TV.

Michigan lawmakers are considering a package of bills to reform the state's civil asset forfeiture laws, which allow law enforcement agencies to confiscate property linked to an alleged crime regardless of whether the accused is convicted.

Critics say civil asset forfeiture invites abuse, and Hency, in her testimony, questioned why the drug task force confiscated her personal possessions rather than the lights and ballasts she was using to grow medical marijuana in accordance with state law.

"That is what forfeiture laws are made for, is to stop growing drugs," she said. They left that stuff, but they took the stuff that doesn't grow drugs, supposedly. I did not get bound over by the judge in St. Clair County, but they still have my stuff."

While criminal cases are adjudicated in criminal court, forfeiture cases go through civil court, where the burden of proof is often lower.

Bills before the Michigan Judiciary Committee would raise the evidentiary standard in civil forfeiture cases -- including nuisance claims that do not involve drugs -- from a preponderance of evidence to clear and convincing evidence that the property was used in the commission of a crime.

Other proposals in the package would increase asset forfeiture reporting requirements for law enforcement agencies and prohibit police from seizing a car that was used by someone purchasing 1 ounce or less of marijuana.

The reform push is supported by a variety of groups and lawmakers that do not always see eye-to-eye on other issues, including the Mackinac Center for Public Policy and the American Civil Liberties Union of Michigan.

"I think it speaks to the power of this argument," state Rep. Jeff Irwin, D-Ann Arbor, said during a recent forum hosted by the Mackinac Center, "the power of the confluence of philosophies you're getting from people on both sides of the political spectrum coming together saying, 'This isn't right. We have to fix this.'"

Michigan scored a D-minus in a 2010 review of civil asset forfeiture laws conducted by the libertarian Institute for Justice.

"The real issue is the state of Michigan, like all but nine other states, has decided to let law enforcement supplement its budget with forfeiture proceeds," Lee McGrath, legislative counsel for the institute, said at the Mackinac Center forum.

Michigan police agencies reported $24.3 million in civil asset forfeitures from drug cases in 2013, according to the Michigan State Police. Eight percent of agencies did not file a report with the state, however, and federally-shared forfeitures are not subject to existing state statute.

"Michigan's asset forfeiture program saves taxpayer money and deprives drug criminals of cash and property obtained through illegal activity," MSP Director Kristie Etue told lawmakers in a July report.

A number of states have reformed forfeiture laws in recent years, with New Mexico taking an aggressive step to prohibit any civil asset forfeiture without a conviction. U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder also announced new federal limits in March.

Jonathan Oosting is a Capitol reporter for MLive Media Group. Email him, find him on Facebook or follow him on Twitter.