AFTER MINNESOTA RETIREE Geraldine Tyler fell $2,300 behind on her property taxes, Hennepin County seized her condo, sold it, and kept every penny to satisfy her debt. A case that the U.S. Supreme Court is considering asks whether this particular strain of government theft is constitutional.
In 2010, Tyler, then in her early 80s and now 94, moved out of her Minneapolis condo, which she owned, and relocated to an apartment in a safer neighborhood. She struggled to cover both her rent and the property taxes on her condo, accruing $2,300 in back taxes and another $13,000 in penalties, interest, and late fees.
