Asset Seizure: What Sex Workers and Medical Escort Clients Need to Know

When asset seizure, the legal process where authorities take property or money believed to be connected to illegal activity. Also known as civil forfeiture, it often targets people without criminal charges—especially those in informal or stigmatized work like sex work or private medical transport. It doesn’t always mean you broke the law. Sometimes, it just means you had cash, a car, or a bank account that looked suspicious to someone in uniform.

Sex workers are especially vulnerable. Even in places where their work is legal, police can seize cash from a single transaction, freeze a PayPal account because of "suspicious activity," or take a car used for client pickups—no trial, no conviction, no apology. civil remedies, legal actions like protective orders or tort claims that let individuals seek justice outside the criminal system are often the only path back. Meanwhile, families relying on medical escort services, professional transport for patients needing help getting to appointments or recovering at home can lose their vehicles or savings if an officer mistakes a routine trip for illegal activity. These aren’t edge cases. They’re everyday risks.

Asset seizure doesn’t care if you’re a single mom driving an elderly client to dialysis, or a sex worker saving up for rent after a long week. It only cares if there’s money moving, and if you can’t prove it’s clean. That’s why documentation matters—bank records, appointment logs, client receipts, encrypted check-in logs. These aren’t just safety tools. They’re your defense. And when police take your car or your savings, you don’t need to wait for a criminal case to end. You can fight back in civil court. You can demand proof. You can ask for your property back. Many don’t, because they’re scared, or they think the system’s rigged. It is. But it’s not unbeatable.

What you’ll find below aren’t theoretical guides. These are real stories and practical steps from people who’ve been through it. How to protect your money before a raid. How to write a demand letter after your account is frozen. How to find legal aid that won’t judge you. How to tell the difference between a legitimate seizure and a scam. This isn’t about avoiding the law. It’s about knowing it—so you don’t lose everything because someone misunderstood your job.