It’s only Wednesday, and already IJ is celebrating three wins this week. From a landmark achievement for IJ’s Food Freedom Initiative to an important federal appellate court victory against civil forfeiture, here are three successes our supporters have made possible in just the past two days:
- On Monday, New Jersey became the 50th and final state to allow home bakers to sell their goods for profit in response to an IJ lawsuit. Prior to this change, home bakers in the Jerz looking to bring in some extra bread faced up to $1,000 in fines for selling a single snickerdoodle. Now, whether they’ve been creating cupcakes for years or baked their first loaf during the pandemic, home cooks in every state and D.C. can safely and legally sell their baked goods to happy customers.
- That same day, IJ secured a victory at the U. S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit on behalf of Terry and Ria Platt, who are challenging the unconstitutional forfeiture of their car. In 2016, Arizona law enforcement officers seized the car from the Platts’ son, despite not charging anyone with a crime. Then, using Arizona’s “uncontested” forfeiture loophole, the government tried to keep the car without the Platts being able to challenge it. IJ was able to get Terry and Ria’s car back and helped push Arizona to partially reform its forfeiture laws. Now, thanks to this latest victory, the Platts will finally have their day in court.
- Finally, this week our introductory video “IJ Helps Ordinary People Fight Back” won “Best in Show” in the Non-Profit category of the prestigious w3 Awards for outstanding digital media, placing it in the top 1% out of thousands of entries. The short video features IJ clients speaking in their own words about what IJ’s help means to them. If you haven’t checked it out already, click below to see for yourself:
Thank you to our supporters for being a part of our fight to make America a more free and just place for all!
Scott
Scott G. Bullock
President and General Counsel
Institute for Justice