Cite as: 518 U. S. 267 (1996)
Opinion of the Court
ure proceedings under the customs laws are in rem, see 19 U. S. C. § 1602 et seq., it is clear that Congress intended that a forfeiture under § 881 or § 981, like the forfeiture reviewed in 89 Firearms, would be a proceeding in rem. Congress specifically structured these forfeitures to be impersonal by targeting the property itself. "In contrast to the in personam nature of criminal actions, actions in rem have traditionally been viewed as civil proceedings, with jurisdiction dependent upon seizure of a physical object." 89 Firearms, supra, at 363, citing Calero-Toledo, 416 U. S., at 684.
Other procedural mechanisms governing forfeitures under §§ 881 and 981 also indicate that Congress intended such proceedings to be civil. Forfeitures under either statute are governed by 19 U. S. C. § 1607, which provides that actual notice of the impending forfeiture is unnecessary when the Government cannot identify any party with an interest in the seized article, and by § 1609, which provides that seized property is subject to forfeiture through a summary administrative procedure if no party files a claim to the property. And 19 U. S. C. § 1615, which governs the burden of proof in forfeiture proceedings under §§ 881 and 981, provides that once the Government has shown probable cause that the property is subject to forfeiture, then "the burden of proof shall lie upon [the] claimant." In sum, "[b]y creating such distinctly civil procedures for forfeitures under [§§ 881 and 981], Congress has 'indicate[d] clearly that it intended a civil, not a criminal sanction.' " 89 Firearms, supra, at 363, quoting Helvering v. Mitchell, 303 U. S. 391, 402 (1938).3
3 Justice Stevens mischaracterizes our holding. We do not hold that in rem civil forfeiture is per se exempt from the scope of the Double Jeopardy Clause. See post, at 300-305. Similarly, we do not rest our conclusion in these cases upon the long-recognized fiction that a forfeiture in rem punishes only malfeasant property rather than a particular person. See post, at 313-316. That a forfeiture is designated as civil by Congress and proceeds in rem establishes a presumption that it is not subject to double jeopardy. See, e. g., 89 Firearms, 465 U. S., at 363. Nevertheless, where the "clearest proof" indicates that an in rem civil forfeiture is "so
289
Page: Index Previous 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 NextLast modified: October 4, 2007