Prairie State Wire

Illinois will need more proof before it can seize citizen's property under a bill turned into law by Gov. Bruce Rauner recently, according to a press release.

The Quad Cities' Dispatch-Argus reported that the measure reforms the law and makes it easier for those who have had their property wrongly seized to fight back. It also is intended to track and prevent forfeiture abuse.

The newspaper cited Judy Wiese, a Moline grandmother who had her 2009 Jeep Compass seized after she allowed her grandson to drive it to work. He was arrested on a revoked license.

Gov. Bruce Rauner | www.illinois.gov

Wiese enlisted the ACLU to fight for statewide reform of unfair property seizures.

“Please change this law for everyone,” Wiese said, according to the paper. “For those who have lost property, houses, cars, etc. etc., -- for those who didn’t break the law -- I feel terrible for them.”

According to a press release from Rauner's office, it was clear to many that the law had to be changed.

"This reform effort was so important and documented abuses of the law so egregious and ubiquitous they brought together such disparate groups as the American Civil Liberties Union of Illinois and the Illinois Policy Institute," the release said. "Thanks to this extraordinary collaborative effort, House Bill 303 passed a hyper-partisan Illinois General Assembly with only one 'no' vote."

The law will go into effect on Jan. 1.