Warren E. Hanvey v. W. D. Blankenship, H. E. Thompson

In this action under 42 U.S.C. § 1983, Warren Hanvey seeks return of the $750 that prison officials confiscated from him as contraband following its discovery in his possession during a routine prison shakedown. Because prison regulations explicitly prohibit unauthorized possession of any United States currency, prison officials, having found Hanvey guilty of the violation, placed the $750 in the Inmate Canteen Fund. The district court held that this forfeiture did not violate Hanvey’s constitutional right not to be deprived of property without due process. We affirm.

When statutory authority…