618
Opinion of the Court
tion as to the penal consequences to the property are to be considered just the same as if they were the acts of the owner." 96 U. S., at 404. Like the guilty-property fiction, this theory of vicarious liability is premised on the idea that the owner has been negligent. Thus, in Calero-Toledo, we noted that application of forfeiture provisions "to lessors, bailors, or secured creditors who are innocent of any wrongdoing . . . may have the desirable effect of inducing them to exercise greater care in transferring possession of their property." 416 U. S., at 688.11
In sum, even though this Court has rejected the "innocence" of the owner as a common-law defense to forfeiture, it consistently has recognized that forfeiture serves, at least in part, to punish the owner. See Peisch v. Ware, 4 Cranch, at 364 ("[T]he act punishes the owner with a forfeiture of the goods"); Dobbins's Distillery, 96 U. S., at 404 ("[T]he acts of violation as to the penal consequences to the property are to be considered just the same as if they were the acts of the owner"); Goldsmith-Grant Co., 254 U. S., at 511 (" '[S]uch misfortunes are in part owing to the negligence of the owner, and therefore he is properly punished by such forfeiture' "). More recently, we have noted that forfeiture serves "punitive and deterrent purposes," Calero-Toledo, 416 U. S., at 686, and "impos[es] an economic penalty," id., at 687. We conclude, therefore, that forfeiture generally and statutory in rem forfeiture in particular historically have been understood, at least in part, as punishment.12
11 In the criminal context, we have permitted punishment in the absence of conscious wrongdoing, so long as the defendant was not " 'powerless' to prevent or correct the violation." United States v. Park, 421 U. S. 658, 673 (1975) (corporate officer strictly liable under the Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act). There is nothing inconsistent, therefore, in viewing forfeiture as punishment even though the forfeiture is occasioned by the acts of a person other than the owner.
12 The doubts that Justice Scalia, see post, at 625-627, and Justice Kennedy, see post, at 629, express with regard to the historical understanding of forfeiture as punishment appear to stem from a misunder-
Page: Index Previous 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 NextLast modified: October 4, 2007