Couple gets back $10k from traffic cops

Couple’s Demise

According to a report by NJ.com, the New Jersey poker couple – Tonya Smith and Dimitrios Patlias – finally got their $10,500 poker winnings back.  Their winnings were taken by West Virginia State police during a traffic stop. The police gave them a runaround, but the state finally gave in and returned the money, much to the delight of the couple.

Imagine losing your entire bankroll on your way to a casino just because of a minor traffic infraction. Well, a few months ago, a couple had lost $10k poker winnings after allegedly swerving on the freeway. The cops who pulled them overtook all their cash and left them with only $2. The ironic part of the story is that their actions had a legal basis. For eons on end, civil asset forfeiture has been used by administrations from both ends of the spectrum to confiscate money/assets from wrongdoers most of whom are drug dealers.

According to Patlias, the state police did not beat around the bush and they quickly asked point blank the amount of the money the couple had on them. Initially, the couple refused to answer only for the police to ransack their vehicle. When the police failed to find any money in the car, they emptied their pockets where they took $10k from the couple as well as several casino gift cards.

Last month the couple traveled back to West Virginia to get their money back only to be met by stubborn state officers. The couple claimed that the state knowingly violated their 4th amendment. They did this right when they took Patlias and his wife. She was pregnant at the time, out of their car on a dangerous highway. To get their money back, the couple had to make several trips to several offices. They only succeeded when the media aired their predicament.

The Iowa Ordeal

In 2013, two poker players – John Newmerzhycky and William Davis also suffered the same fate. A routine traffic stop saw them lose $100k to the state of Iowa. According to the two players, they were stopped by the state police for allegedly driving through the state with out of state plates. What followed was a hotly contested lawsuit which pitied them against the state. For three years, they had to attend court sessions and pay attorney fees. They finally got back their money plus an extra $50k 3 years later in 2016.

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