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Baltimore Washington International Airport Cash Seizure Lawyer

Baltimore Washington International Airport Cash Seizure Lawyer

You’re going through security at BWI. TSA agent opens your carry-on, finds $8,500 in cash, asks where it came from. You explain – selling your car, family loan, business receipts, savings you’re taking to buy equipment. The agent calls a supervisor. Then CBP shows up. They photograph the bills, make you fill out paperwork, hand you a receipt. No arrest. No charges. Just a phone number and your cash is gone. Three weeks later you get a federal forfeiture notice: you have 35 days to file a claim or the government keeps your money permanently. You thought carrying cash was legal. It is – but that doesn’t stop federal authorities from seizing it at BWI and forcing you to prove it’s legitimate in federal court.

Thanks for visiting Spodek Law Group – a second-generation law firm managed by Todd Spodek. We’ve represented clients challenging cash seizures at airports including BWI for over 15 years, recovering hundreds of thousands of dollars seized without criminal charges. This article tells you exactly what happens when CBP or TSA seizes cash at Baltimore-Washington International, why the 35-day deadline matters, and what constitutional defenses work in federal forfeiture proceedings. When government agents take your property based on suspicion alone and force you to prove your innocence to get it back, the Fourth Amendment isn’t optional – it’s the only thing standing between civil forfeiture and outright theft.

Why Cash Gets Seized

TSA screens domestic travelers; CBP handles international. When TSA finds cash – usually $5,000+ – they call CBP. CBP has authority under 31 U.S.C. § 5332 to seize currency they believe is connected to criminal activity. No arrest required. No charges. Just “probable cause” the money relates to illegal activity.

What creates probable cause? Cash amount. Travel patterns. Your answers. CBP asks where the money came from, where you’re taking it, why you’re traveling with cash. Truthful answers get used against you. “I withdrew it from my bank” – why not wire transfer? “It’s for a car purchase” – where’s the bill of sale? Nervous behavior. Inconsistent explanations. Lack of documentation. These become “indicators” in the seizure report.

No federal law prohibits domestic cash travel. You don’t have to report currency on domestic flights. CBP’s authority comes from border search exception – but they apply it at domestic checkpoints through TSA. Fourth Amendment prohibits unreasonable searches. Is taking $8,000 based solely on amount “reasonable”? Federal courts split. That’s why aggressive defense matters.

35-Day Deadline

After seizure, you get a receipt. Weeks later – sometimes 30-45 days later – you receive a notice from DEA or CBP: “Notice of Seizure and Intent to Forfeit.” This triggers 18 U.S.C. § 983, the federal civil forfeiture statute. You have 35 days from the date on the letter to file a verified claim. Not 35 days from when you receive it – 35 days from the postmark. Miss this deadline and your cash is gone. Permanently. No appeal. No reconsideration. Default forfeiture.

The verified claim must: (1) identify the property; (2) state your interest; (3) be signed under penalty of perjury; (4) be sent certified mail to the address on the notice. File incorrectly and government treats it as no claim filed. People lose money not because they can’t prove legitimate source, but because they miss procedural requirements.

After you file the claim, government has 90 days to either return the money or file a civil forfeiture complaint in federal court. If they file, you’re in U.S. District Court for the District of Maryland – federal litigation. If they don’t file within 90 days, they must return the cash. But that 90-day clock doesn’t start until you file a proper verified claim. So the 35-day deadline is actually the most critical moment: it determines whether you’re in federal court fighting for your property or out of options entirely.

Burden Shifting

Civil forfeiture flips criminal law burdens. Government files complaint alleging your cash is proceeds from or intended for illegal activity. Their burden: probable cause. Not beyond reasonable doubt – probable cause. Same standard for search warrants. Once they meet it, burden shifts to you: prove by preponderance of evidence the cash came from a legitimate source and wasn’t intended for illegal use. That’s the “innocent owner” defense.

What does probable cause look like? Cash amount. Manner of packaging (bundled, vacuum-sealed). Travel itinerary. Inconsistent statements. Prior arrests. Bank records showing large withdrawals. These create a narrative: suspicious cash. That meets probable cause. Then you overcome it with proof.

Your proof: bank withdrawal records, employment records, business invoices, bill of sale, tax returns, witness affidavits. Documentation you didn’t bring to the airport because you didn’t know you’d need it. Government knows this. They seize knowing travelers don’t carry paperwork. That asymmetry – they take immediately, you prove later – is why forfeiture generates millions annually without criminal charges.

The constitutional critique: burden shifting violates due process. Government takes property based on suspicion, then makes you prove a negative. If prosecutors filed criminal charges for the alleged conduct underlying forfeiture, they’d need proof beyond reasonable doubt and you’d have presumption of innocence. Civil forfeiture bypasses that. It’s not “punishment” – it’s “civil remedial action.” That legal fiction allows government to sidestep constitutional protections that apply in criminal cases. When the difference between keeping your money and losing it depends on paperwork you didn’t know to bring, presumption of innocence becomes presumption of guilt unless you prove otherwise.

Fourth Amendment: Warrantless seizure based solely on amount exceeds reasonable suspicion. Carrying cash isn’t illegal. If government’s only basis is “large amount plus nervousness,” that’s fishing. Raising this forces government to articulate specific facts. Due process: Burden shifting after minimal probable cause violates Fifth Amendment. Criminal cases require proof beyond reasonable doubt. Civil forfeiture makes you prove innocence after government shows suspicion. Eighth Amendment: If cash amount is disproportionate to alleged offense, forfeiture violates Excessive Fines Clause. Seizing $10,000 based on vague “money laundering” suspicion with no underlying criminal conduct? Courts have found that excessive. Insufficient evidence: Challenge the seizure report. Were you actually nervous? Did your explanations conflict? Force government to prove allegations with testimony, not hearsay. Sometimes the CBP agent can’t remember details. Sometimes notes contradict the report. These gaps collapse the case.

After you file and government files the complaint, you’re in discovery. Government subpoenas bank records, employment history, tax returns. You depose the CBP agent. 6-12 months. Then motion practice: government moves for summary judgment. You oppose. If you survive, trial – 2-3 days. Verdict: government keeps the cash or you get it back.

Most cases settle. Government returns 50-80% in exchange for dropping the claim. Why? Litigation costs. Risk. Bad publicity. If your documentation is strong, government faces risk. They’d rather settle than risk the seizure being ruled unconstitutional. Settlement isn’t ideal – you’re paying to get your own money back – but it’s faster than trial.

Attorney fees: $15,000-$30,000 through settlement; more for trial. Under 18 U.S.C. § 983(f), if you prevail and government’s position wasn’t justified, you can recover fees. But that requires winning at trial. Most victims can’t advance $30,000 hoping to recover fees. That economic barrier plus the 35-day deadline is why people default.

At Spodek Law Group, we’ve represented clients challenging BWI cash seizures ranging from $5,000 to $50,000. Our approach: file the verified claim immediately, demand the seizure report and agent notes, challenge probable cause at every stage, and force government to prove their suspicion with evidence rather than assumptions. Todd Spodek has litigated federal forfeiture cases in the District of Maryland, including cases where CBP seized cash based entirely on amount and travel patterns without any underlying criminal investigation. When government takes property based on suspicion and forces you to prove innocence to get it back, constitutional protections aren’t technicalities – they’re the difference between recovering your money and losing it permanently.

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