Allgood, 021285 MSAGO, 19850212

• Case Date: February 12, 1985
• Court: Mississippi

Hon. Forrest Allgood No. 19850212 Mississippi Attorney General Opinions February 12, 1985          Hon. Forrest Allgood          Assistant District Attorney          Sixteenth Circuit Court District          Post Office Box 891          Starkville, Mississippi 39759          Dear Mr. Allgood:          Attorney General Edwin Lloyd Pittman has received your opinion request and has assigned it to me for research and reply, your letter stating:

“Recently the Columbus Lowndes Narcotics Unit confiscated a considerable sum of money pursuant to an investigation which culminated in the conviction of one Gary Lynn Hall for the possession of approximately ten thousand methaqualone tablets. This conviction has been affirmed by the Mississippi Supreme Court. “Pursuant to the forfeiture statute, a petition to forfeit these sums as being the fruits of drugs sales and traffic was filed. Subsequently, a default judgment was taken and no appeal has been taken therefrom within the allotted time for such. “Upon order of this Court, the sums confiscated were placed on deposit pending the outcome of this litigation. Together with interest accrued, this sum now totals some Sixty-Four Thousand ($64, 000.00) Dollars. “The question now arises as to what disposition should be made of these funds. The Columbus Lowndes Narcotics Unit is not a separate entity as such; but rather is a cooperative effort between the City of Columbus and Lowndes County. Part of the offices and equipment are furnished by the City and part by the County. The Commander of the unit is responsible to both the Chief of Police and the Sheriff. The question arises as to whether these funds should be given to the unit, the City, the County, or some combination of the three. The forfeiture statute does not appear to be clear in this regard, particularly to the

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