Bennis v. Michigan
United States Supreme Court
516 U.S. 442 (1996)
Mr. Bennis was arrested for engaging in a sexual act with a prostitute in a car he co-owned with his wife, Mrs. Bennis (defendant). Michigan (plaintiff) sued to have the car declared a public nuisance and forfeited under state law. Mrs. Bennis argued she had no knowledge of her husband's conduct in the car and that forfeiting her ownership interest without any wrongdoing on her part was an unconstitutional taking. The trial court and Michigan Supreme Court ruled for the state, and Mrs. Bennis appealed.
Whether a state's forfeiture of an innocent co-owner's interest in property used by another for an unlawful purpose, without any knowledge or fault on the innocent owner's part, violates the Takings Clause.