Russ Caswell is the former owner of the Motel Caswell in Tewksbury, Mass., a property that had been in the Caswell family since the 1950s. In 2009, Russ, who bought the hotel from his father in 1984, and his wife, Pat, found themselves the latest victims of civil forfeiture when the federal government attempted to seize their motel. Russ and Pat were never accused of a crime, much less convicted of one. Russ and IJ waged a four-year legal battle against this outrageous breach of property rights and won a decisive victory in January 2013. Thanks to the Caswells’ persistence and courage, civil forfeiture is attracting attention nationwide and their story is encouraging other innocent property owners to fight back. In 2014, Russ was finally able to retire and sold the Motel Caswell, on his terms, to another father and son team.