US Supreme Court to hear Alaska plane forfeiture case over Excessive Fines Clause

Published Jul 21, 04:49 PM UTC

The U.S. Supreme Court has agreed to hear Jouppi v. Alaska, a case concerning the Excessive Fines Clause of the Eighth Amendment. In 2012, Alaska authorities seized Ken Jouppi's airplane, valued at approximately $95,000, after he transported a passenger carrying up to 72 cans of beer to a dry village where alcohol importation is banned. Jouppi was fined $1,500 and sentenced to three days in jail for the crime. The Alaska Supreme Court upheld the forfeiture, ruling that courts must defer to the legislature's determination that even a small amount of alcohol justifies such a penalty. The article argues the forfeiture is grossly disproportionate to the offense, criticizes judicial deference to legislative power on property rights, and questions the rationale linking alcohol prohibition to crime reduction. The case follows the Court's 2019 Timbs v. Indiana ruling that incorporated the Excessive Fines Clause against states but left the definition of 'excessive' unclear.