Steven Greenhut: Wildfire Case Ignites Troubling Federal Misconduct Allegations

Liberals often complain about
the greed of profit-seeking corporations, while conservatives
likewise complain about abuses by government officials. Both sides
might take notice of something that seems to epitomize the worst of
both worlds — government agencies that use their power to bolster
their own budgets. An eye-popping example – filled
with allegations of fraud, corruption, and official
misconduct – is unfolding in a northern California legal case
involving state and federal efforts to secure a massive financial
settlement from the state’s largest land owner, Sierra Pacific
Industries. Steven Greenhut writes that the Moonlight Fire case
isn’t a rare instance where agencies use their power to secure
large payments that then benefit government agencies. Local, state
and federal officials routinely rely on the proceeds
from civil-forfeiture cases to balance their budgets.

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