Timbs v. Indiana (2019)
From Federalism in America
Timbs v. Indiana, a unanimous U.S. Supreme Court decision, declared that the “excessive fines” provision of the Eighth Amendment is applicable to the states, not just the federal government, thus incorporating this Eighth Amendment protection into the Fourteenth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution. The case involved Indiana’s seizure under civil-forfeiture proceedings of Mr. Timbs’s $42,000 Land Rover, which he was driving when he was arrested and later convicted for selling $225 of illegal drugs. Among other penalties, he was fined $1,200. When Indiana refused to return his vehicle, Mr. Timbs filed suit, arguing that the state’s keeping of his vehicle was an excessive fine.
John Kincaid
Last updated: March 2019