Nevada discusses Anti-Money Laundering Plan
On February 5, a plan aimed at allowing no-warrant seizures of funds on prepaid debit cards was defended by Nevada cyber-sleuths. It was approved as it can be a way to track down terrorists and major drug-dealers. However, it was criticized by opponents for being clearly unconstitutional.
The plan entitled SB82 was pushed by Jim Earl, executive director of the Nevada Technological Crime Advisory Board, on behalf of Attorney General Catherine Cortez Masto.
The anti-money laundering plan was opposed by the American Civil Liberties Union of Nevada and public defenders from Reno and Las Vegas. They claimed that this plan violates the US Constitution’s 4th Amendment protections against unreasonable search and seizure.
According to Jim Earl, in case a prepaid card that was linked to criminals, SB82 allows police to freeze the funds on the card account for up to 10 days. The card will be frozen until a warrant is received from a judge. In certain cases, it allows to seize the funds without a warrant.