Sarit and Espaillat v. U.S. DEA Admin. ( 1993 )


Menu:
  • USCA1 Opinion









    March 10, 1993 UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS
    FOR THE FIRST CIRCUIT

    ____________

    No. 92-2001
    JORGE SARIT AND DENNIE ESPAILLAT,

    Plaintiffs, Appellees,

    v.

    U.S. DRUG ENFORCEMENT ADMINISTRATION, ET AL.,

    Defendants, Appellants.


    ____________


    ERRATA SHEET


    The opinion of this court issued on February 23, 1993, is

    amended as follows:

    Page 8, line 6 from the bottom: "statue" should read

    "statute".






































    February 23, 1993

    UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS

    FOR THE FIRST CIRCUIT

    ____________________



    No. 92-2001



    JORGE SARIT AND DENNIE ESPAILLAT,



    Plaintiffs, Appellants,



    v.



    U.S. DRUG ENFORCEMENT ADMINISTRATION, ET AL.,



    Defendants, Appellees.





    ____________________



    APPEAL FROM THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT



    FOR THE DISTRICT OF RHODE ISLAND





    [Hon. Raymond J. Pettine, Senior U.S. District Judge]
    __________________________




















    ____________________



    Before



    Torruella, Circuit Judge,
    _____________

    Bownes, Senior Circuit Judge,
    ____________________

    Cyr, Circuit Judge.
    _____________



    ____________________



    David N. Cicilline for appellants.
    __________________

    Rachel V. Lee, Trial Attorney, Civil Division, United States
    ______________

    Department of Justice, with whom Stuart M. Gerson, Assistant Attorney
    ________________

    General, United States Department of Justice, Helene M. Goldberg,
    ___________________

    Director, Torts Branch, Civil Division, United States Department of

    Justice, Michael P. Iannotti, Assistant United States Attorney for the
    ___________________

    District of Rhode Island and Lincoln C. Almond, United States Attorney
    _________________

    for the District of Rhode Island were on brief, for appellees.



    ____________________



    February 23, 1993

    ____________________

























    BOWNES, Senior Circuit Judge. This case involves
    ____________________

    plaintiffs-appellants' attempts to recover $41,448.00 in U.S.

    currency, which was seized by the United States Drug

    Enforcement Administration ("DEA") and has now been

    forfeited. In their civil action under 28 U.S.C. 1331

    against the DEA and its agents, plaintiffs appeal two rulings

    by the district court. First, plaintiffs challenge the

    court's grant of partial summary judgment for the defendants

    upon its finding that plaintiffs had received

    constitutionally adequate notice of the administrative

    forfeiture proceeding. Second, plaintiffs challenge the

    court's dismissal of the case on the basis that, once it

    granted partial summary judgment on the Fifth Amendment

    notice claim, it no longer had jurisdiction to hear

    plaintiffs' Fourth Amendment claim. We affirm the decision

    of the district court.



    I.
    I.

    Background
    Background
    __________

    The procedural background of this case is important

    and we rehearse it in detail, proceeding chronologically.

    On July 28, 1989, DEA agents seized $41,448.00 from the

    plaintiffs' then-residence located at 114 Alvin Street in

    Providence, Rhode Island. The attendant search was conducted

    without a warrant. On August 21, 1989, plaintiffs' counsel















    filed a motion pursuant to Fed. R. Crim. P. 41(e),1 seeking

    return of the currency. On September 1, Assistant U.S.

    Attorney Michael Iannotti objected to this motion and filed a

    memorandum of law which has played a focal role in the

    arguments before this court. In that memorandum, he informed

    plaintiffs and the district court that the currency was being

    held for administrative forfeiture pursuant to Title 21

    U.S.C. 881(d) and Title 19 U.S.C. 1607. The memorandum

    provided the seizure number that had been assigned to the

    currency. The memorandum also stated that "a notice [would]

    be sent to all those who may have an interest in the

    currency," and that "publication [would] commence within the

    next two months." The Assistant U.S. Attorney averred that

    the assignment of a seizure number would permit the

    plaintiffs "at any time, without waiting for the DEA to take
    ___________

    any further action, to file a claim and cost bond with the

    DEA thus causing the DEA to refer the matter to the U.S.

    Attorney for the initiation of judicial forfeiture

    proceedings" (emphasis in original).




    ____________________

    1 Fed. R. Crim. P. 41(e), Motion for Return of Property,
    provides in pertinent part:

    A person aggrieved by an unlawful search and
    seizure or by the deprivation of property may move
    the district court for the district in which the
    property was seized for the return of the property
    on the ground that such person is entitled to
    lawful possession of the property.

    -5-















    On or about September 19, the DEA sent notice of

    the administrative forfeiture proceeding by certified mail to

    114 Alvin Street, where the currency had been seized. The

    notice contained required information, not included in the

    memorandum, concerning procedures to be followed, deadlines

    to be met, and the right of a petitioner to proceed in forma
    __ _____

    pauperis in lieu of the posting of a cost bond. This notice
    ________

    was subsequently returned to the DEA "unclaimed." The DEA

    made no further attempts to notify the plaintiffs or their

    counsel of the pending forfeiture other than by publication.



    On September 21, following a conference with the

    court pursuant to the 41(e) motion, plaintiffs sent a letter

    to the DEA advising it of their intention to file a claim

    under the Federal Tort Claims Act. The first publication

    notice, marking the beginning of the twenty-day period after

    which plaintiffs' right to file a claim and to post a cost

    bond would expire, appeared in the newspaper USA Today, on
    __________

    September 27. On October 13, the district court denied the

    plaintiffs' 41(e) motion on equitable grounds, deferring to

    the administrative forfeiture proceedings. The plaintiffs'

    right to file a claim with the DEA expired on October 17. On

    November 2, the administrative forfeiture was decreed and

    entered.





    -6-















    On November 8, the plaintiffs, having procured

    money to post a cost bond, filed a formal claim with the DEA.

    Plaintiffs also moved for reconsideration of their 41(e)

    motion. On December 21, defendants objected to the motion

    for reconsideration and included, in their accompanying

    memorandum, the information that the currency had already

    been administratively forfeited. The court denied

    plaintiffs' motion as moot because the forfeiture had been

    completed. After learning that their property had been

    forfeited, plaintiffs filed a motion to vacate the forfeiture

    on December 29, which motion was dismissed by the court for

    lack of jurisdiction. Underscoring its awareness that

    plaintiffs had been trying to resolve this matter for several

    months, the court advised plaintiffs in its order that the

    proper method for collateral attack was a civil rights action

    under Title 28 U.S.C. 1331.

    Thereafter, plaintiffs filed a civil rights action

    against the DEA and its agents alleging violations of their

    rights under the Fifth Amendment, claiming insufficient

    notice of the administrative proceeding, and under the Fourth

    Amendment, claiming that the currency was seized in the

    course of a warrantless, non-consensual search. The

    district court initially denied defendants' motions to

    dismiss and for summary judgment, finding that the plaintiffs

    had stated a valid cause of action under 28 U.S.C. 1331, by



    -7-















    pleading violations of the Fourth and Fifth Amendments, and

    that sovereign immunity was waived under the Administrative

    Procedures Act, 5 U.S.C. 701 et seq. The court found
    __ ___

    summary judgment inappropriate because of a dispute regarding

    consent in the Fourth Amendment claim, and the need for more

    evidence on the issue of adequate notice underlying the Fifth

    Amendment claim.

    Both parties later filed motions for partial

    summary judgment on the issue of the adequacy of notice. The

    district court, on July 15, 1991, granted partial summary

    judgment for the defendants on the notice issue, finding it

    constitutionally sufficient that the government had sent

    notice to the address from which the currency had been

    seized. The court buttressed its conclusion with the fact

    that plaintiffs had received the Assistant U.S. Attorney's

    September 1 memorandum putting them on notice that a

    forfeiture proceeding would ensue.

    Trial on the Fourth Amendment issue began on March

    11. The defendants moved to dismiss the case for lack of

    jurisdiction. The plaintiffs moved for reconsideration of

    the court's grant of partial summary judgment on the notice

    issue. Upon deciding not to alter its grant of summary

    judgment, the court dismissed the case for lack of

    jurisdiction finding that, because the notice issue had been

    resolved against plaintiffs, they thereby lost the waiver of



    -8-















    sovereign immunity that had allowed the court to entertain

    the case in the first instance.













    II.
    II.

    Discussion
    Discussion
    __________

    A. Notice/Due Process
    A. Notice/Due Process
    __________________

    We begin by addressing plaintiffs' claim that

    defendants failed adequately to notify them of the

    administrative forfeiture proceeding. Because the district

    court granted defendants' motion for summary judgment on this

    issue, our review is plenary, and we construe all factual

    inferences in favor of plaintiffs. See Damaris Rivera-Ruiz
    ___ ___________________

    v. Leonardo Gonzalez-Rivera, No. 92-1558, slip. op. at 2 (1st
    ________________________

    Cir. Jan. 5, 1993) (citing E.H. Ashley & Co. v. Wells Fargo
    __________________ ___________

    Alarm Servs., 907 F.2d 1274, 1277 (1st Cir. 1990)).
    ____________

    Notice of impending forfeiture proceedings involving

    seizures valued at $500,000 or less is governed by Title 19

    U.S.C. 1607, which provides in pertinent part:

    [T]he appropriate customs officer shall cause a
    notice of the seizure of such articles and the
    intention to forfeit and sell or otherwise dispose
    of the same according to law to be published for at


    -9-















    least three successive weeks in such manner as the
    Secretary of the Treasury may direct. Written
    notice of seizure together with information on the
    applicable procedures shall be sent to each party
    who appears to have an interest in the seized
    article.

    The regulations interpreting the publication requirement

    provide for publication in "a newspaper of general

    circulation in the judicial district in which the processing

    for forfeiture is brought." 21 C.F.R. 1316.75(a) (1992).

    The publication notice must do the following:

    (1) Describe the property seized and show the motor
    and serial numbers, if any; (2) state the time,
    cause, and place of seizure; and (3) state that any
    person desiring to claim the property may, within
    20 days from the date of first publication of the
    notice, file with the custodian or DEA Asset
    Forfeiture Section a claim to the property and a
    bond with satisfactory sureties in the sum of
    $5,000 or ten percent of the value of the claimed
    property whichever is lower, but not less than
    $250.

    21 C.F.R. 1316.75(b) (1992).

    There is no dispute that defendants sent notice

    with all required information to plaintiffs' last known

    address, the address from which the currency was seized.

    There is also no dispute that defendants issued proper notice

    by publication. Thus, defendants met the requirements of the

    statute.

    Plaintiffs contend that defendants failed to

    satisfy the notice requirements of the Due Process Clause of

    the Fifth Amendment. Relying upon the Supreme Court's

    opinion in Mullane v. Central Hanover Bank & Trust Co., 339
    _______ _________________________________


    -10-















    U.S. 306, 314 (1950), plaintiffs argue that the notice in

    this case was not "reasonably calculated, under all the

    circumstances, to apprise interested parties of the pendency

    of the action and afford them an opportunity to present their

    objections." Plaintiffs do not facially challenge the notice

    provisions in the statute, but draw our attention to special

    "circumstances" affecting the question of whether the DEA's

    notice was so "reasonably calculated." See id.
    ___ ___

    It is plaintiffs' position that the DEA was fully

    aware of their interest in the seized currency, given their

    pursuit of their 41(e) motion, and their letter to the DEA

    informing the DEA that they intended to take action under the

    FTCA. Plaintiffs point out that the DEA also was aware of

    their representation by counsel and of their counsel's

    identity and address.2 Once the DEA received an indication

    that the notice had been returned "unclaimed," plaintiffs

    assert, it would have been simple to ascertain from counsel

    their current address, as would it have been to notify their

    counsel directly of the pending forfeiture. Cf. Robinson v.
    __ ________

    Hanrahan, 409 U.S. 38, 40 (1972) (per curiam) (citing Mullane
    ________ _______

    for the proposition that notice by publication was

    insufficient where plaintiffs' names and addresses were known

    or "easily ascertainable").



    ____________________

    2 Plaintiffs treat the government, the U.S. Attorney for
    Rhode Island and the DEA in Washington, as a single entity.

    -11-















    We find that the DEA acted reasonably on the

    information it had when notice was sent by mailing notice to

    the address from which the property was seized. We need

    determine only whether the DEA's duty changed in the light of

    its subsequent discovery that the mailed notice had been

    ineffective. Given plaintiffs' vigorous (although tardy)

    pursuit of their claim, the fact that the government had been

    involved in ongoing court action on the very issue of the

    seizure of plaintiffs' currency, the government's awareness

    of plaintiffs' representation by counsel, and the frowned

    upon treatment of forfeitures, the call is a close one. See
    ___

    generally United States v. One 1936 Model Ford V-8 Deluxe
    _________ ______________ ________________________________

    Coach, 307 U.S. 219, 226 (1939) ("Forfeitures are not
    _____

    favored; they should be enforced only when within both letter

    and spirit of the law."). Nevertheless, Mullane counsels us
    _______

    to consider all of the circumstances, and we find in this
    ___

    case other pertinent factors, including the government's

    memorandum and the conduct of plaintiffs' counsel, which

    compel us to uphold the finding of the district court. For

    the reasons that follow, we hold that defendants met the

    minimum threshold requirements of due process.



    1. Mullane and its Progeny
    1. Mullane and its Progeny
    _______________________

    We note at the onset that while Mullane clearly
    _______

    contemplates inquiry into the "peculiarities" and the



    -12-















    "practicalities" of a given case, it has not generally been

    interpreted to require a party to make additional attempts

    beyond notice that is legally satisfactory at the time it is

    sent. See Mullane, 339 U.S. at 314-15. The Court has read
    ___ _______

    an implicit bad faith standard into the notice inquiry,

    overturning notice even where formal procedures were followed

    if the notifying party knew or had reason to know that notice

    would be ineffective. See, e.g., Robinson v. Hanrahan, 409
    ___ ____ ________ ________

    U.S. 37 (1972) (per curiam) (in forfeiture action, notice

    mailed to interested party's home address was inadequate

    where government knew party was incarcerated awaiting trial,

    and where party remained in custody throughout forfeiture

    proceedings and did not receive notice until his release);

    Covey v. Town of Somers, 351 U.S. 141 (1956) (in foreclosure
    _____ ______________

    action, notice by publication, mailing and posting was
    ___

    inadequate where individual involved was known by the town to

    be mentally disabled and under the protection of a guardian).

    Knowledge of the likely effectiveness of the notice is

    measured from the moment at which the notice was sent.

    Virtually all of the cases relied upon by

    plaintiffs share the feature--missing from this case--that

    the government knew at the time the notice was sent that the

    notice was likely to be ineffective.3 See Fisher v.
    ___ ______


    ____________________

    3 Only in one case cited by plaintiffs did the court
    require the DEA, absent any evidence of bad faith, to make
    additional attempts to notify the defendant when notice was

    -13-















    Stutman, Nos. 85-3133-MA, 85-4307-MA, 1987 U.S. Dist. LEXIS
    _______

    10682, at *6-7 (D. Mass. Nov. 6, 1987)(DEA sent notice of

    forfeiture to invalid address when they had correct address

    in their possession); Gutt v. United States, 641 F. Supp.
    ____ ______________

    603, 606 (W.D. Va. 1986) (DEA mailed notice to Gutt's hotel

    with knowledge that he no longer resided there and failed to

    apprise attorney who specifically had requested to be

    informed in writing); Cepulonis v. United States, 543 F.
    _________ ______________

    Supp. 451, 452 (E.D.N.Y. 1982) (DEA sent notice to party's

    home address when party was incarcerated); cf. Vance v.
    ___ _____

    United States, 676 F.2d 183, 187 (5th Cir. 1982) (notice by
    _____________

    publication inadequate where government knew business

    claimant was engaged in and claimant's address); Jaekel v.
    ______

    United States, 304 F. Supp. 993, 999 (S.D.N.Y. 1969)
    ______________

    (government could not rest on publication notice where it

    knew claimant's name and address).

    Thus, courts are reluctant under Mullane to extend
    _______

    a notifying party's duty beyond initial satisfactory notice.

    Only exceptional circumstances would compel us to so extend

    the DEA's duty, absent indication that it knew or should have

    known that the notice would be ineffective.


    ____________________

    returned unclaimed. See Montgomery v. Scott, 802 F. Supp.
    ___ __________ _____
    930 (W.D.N.Y. 1992). Interestingly, the court relied upon
    the fact that the plaintiff was being prosecuted in a
    criminal action and that the DEA could have reached him
    through that vehicle. Unlike the case before us, in
    Montgomery, the claimant had no actual notice whatsoever of
    __________
    the pendency of the forfeiture proceeding.

    -14-















    2. Circumstances Affecting the Adequacy of the Notice
    2. Circumstances Affecting the Adequacy of the Notice
    __________________________________________________

    Rather than uncovering exceptional circumstances

    compelling us to find that the government had a duty over and

    above reasonable and technical satisfaction of the statutory

    requirements, we find that the damage done by the ineffective

    notice could and ought to have been stemmed by plaintiffs'

    counsel. The Assistant U.S. Attorney's memorandum to the

    district court objecting to plaintiffs' Rule 41(e) motion put

    counsel on notice that a forfeiture proceeding would ensue.

    Even though, as counsel for plaintiffs argued, the memorandum

    did not specify an exact time of publication, and thus

    counsel lacked a precise indication of the date from which

    the twenty-day period would run, he certainly had sufficient

    general notice of the risk that the property would be

    forfeited within the coming months if action were not

    taken.4 The statute covering forfeitures (cited in the

    memorandum) and the regulations interpreting it, were

    available to counsel. The regulations plainly explain the

    consequence of forfeiture in twenty days. Counsel had only

    to look to these sources.





    ____________________

    4 The Assistant U.S. Attorney's memorandum was filed on
    September 1, 1989. The DEA could have published notice,
    thereby beginning the twenty-day period during which
    plaintiffs could challenge the forfeiture, any time after
    that date. Plaintiffs' did not file a formal claim with the
    DEA until November 8, more than two months later.

    -15-















    We also do not credit plaintiffs' argument that the

    Assistant U.S. Attorney's reference to the plaintiffs'

    ability to initiate action "at any time," caused confusion,

    in effect sanctioning plaintiffs' delay. Although the

    memorandum might well have confused plaintiffs had it gone to

    them directly, it ought not to have confused their counsel.

    Counsel is charged with knowledge of the law, and that

    knowledge is imputed to plaintiffs. Moreover, in the context

    in which the phrase appeared, we do not find that the

    statement, "at any time," was deliberately misleading. The

    statement was part of the government's argument that the

    court should decline to exercise its equitable powers under

    Rule 41(e), because of the availability of the at-law remedy

    provided by the forfeiture statute and regulations. The

    argument pointed out the plaintiffs' ability to move under

    Rule 41(e) more quickly than the government could process an

    administrative forfeiture. The U.S. Attorney was making the

    point that no undue delay would be caused plaintiffs, who

    could go ahead and challenge the administrative proceeding

    without waiting, should the court decide to defer to that

    proceeding.

    In addition to putting counsel on notice of the

    forfeiture, the memorandum contained a seizure number, which

    counsel could have used to ascertain the status of the

    action, and to obtain from the DEA the anticipated date of



    -16-















    publication notice. Although the duty of providing notice

    lies plainly with the government, once the plaintiffs and

    their counsel were aware that notice of the forfeiture would

    be sent in the ensuing two months, they could have notified

    the DEA of their own change of address--they were in the

    better position as far as that information was concerned.

    Plaintiffs' explanation for their delay in posting

    the cost bond and thereby challenging the forfeiture was

    their difficulty in coming up with the funds to do so. It is

    unfortunate that plaintiffs did not receive the notice mailed

    by the DEA which plainly explains the right of a poor and

    needy claimant to proceed in forma pauperis in lieu of
    __ _____ ________

    posting the cost bond. Once again, however, plaintiffs were

    represented by counsel; counsel is charged with knowledge of

    his clients' rights to proceed in forma pauperis, and
    __ _____ ________

    counsel's knowledge is imputed to his clients.

    We are not entirely unsympathetic to plaintiffs'

    argument that the circumstances affecting notice were altered

    by the government's ongoing involvement with plaintiffs in

    litigation over the return of the seized property and by

    plaintiffs' persistent pursuit of their rights. No doubt the

    government could have ascertained from plaintiffs' attorney

    their current address. We are also troubled by the DEA's

    choice of publication notice in USA Today, which we do not
    _________

    consider a particularly effective notice vehicle for



    -17-















    Providence, Rhode Island. The regulations, however, require

    only a publication "of general circulation in the judicial

    district in which the . . . forfeiture is brought," and we

    find no violation of due process in this regard. 21 C.F.R.

    1316.75(a). The government's conduct simply did not rise to

    a violation of the due process clause of the Fifth Amendment.





    B. Dismissal for Lack of Jurisdiction
    B. Dismissal for Lack of Jurisdiction
    __________________________________

    We next review the district court's dismissal of

    the case on the basis that it lost jurisdiction to hear the

    remaining Fourth Amendment claim once the notice issue was

    resolved against plaintiffs. This issue poses a pure

    question of law. Therefore, our standard of review is

    plenary. See Liberty Mutual Ins. Co. v. Commercial Union
    ___ ________________________ _________________

    Ins. Co., 978 F.2d 750, 757 (1st Cir. 1992).
    ________

    Because the plaintiffs' Fourth Amendment claim is

    directed at the DEA, an agency of the United States, this

    issue involves the United States' waiver of its sovereign

    immunity. Only an express waiver of sovereign immunity will

    give a court jurisdiction to hear a claim against the United

    States. Lehman v. Nakshian, 453 U.S. 156, 161 (1981). The
    ______ ________

    Administrative Procedures Act, 5 U.S.C. 702, provides such







    -18-















    a waiver for certain forms of equitable relief.5 That

    waiver is, however, limited by APA, 5 U.S.C. 701.

    Specifically relevant to this case is 701(a)(1), which

    limits waiver where "statutes preclude judicial review." The

    issue presented is whether the forfeiture statute and the

    regulations implementing it, by providing an avenue for

    judicial relief, constitute a statute precluding review

    within the meaning of 701(a)(1).

    The district court originally obtained jurisdiction

    over this case due to plaintiffs' claim that constitutionally

    deficient notice prevented them, in the first instance, from

    meeting the deadlines necessary to pursue judicial relief as

    provided by the forfeiture statute and regulations. Whereas

    most challenges to forfeiture would be foreclosed by a


    ____________________

    5 Administrative Procedures Act, 5 U.S.C. 702, provides
    in pertinent part:

    A person suffering legal wrong because of agency
    action, or adversely affected or aggrieved by
    agency action within the meaning of a relevant
    statute, is entitled to judicial review thereof.
    An action in a court of the United States seeking
    relief other than money damages and stating a claim
    that an agency or an officer or employee thereof
    acted or failed to act in an official capacity or
    under color of legal authority shall not be
    dismissed nor relief therein be denied on the
    ground that it is against the United States . . .
    Nothing herein (1) affects other limitations on
    judicial review or the power or duty of the court
    to dismiss any action or deny relief on any other
    appropriate legal or equitable ground; or (2)
    confers authority to grant relief if any other
    statute that grants consent to suit expressly or
    impliedly forbids the relief which is sought.

    -19-















    plaintiffs' failure to utilize the mechanism for obtaining

    judicial relief provided in the forfeiture statute and

    regulations, courts have entertained challenges to the

    adequacy of notice, reasoning that the mechanism is not

    available to a plaintiff who is not properly notified of the

    pending forfeiture. See, e.g., Marshall Leasing, Inc. v.
    ___ ____ _______________________

    United States, 893 F.2d 1096, 1102-03 (9th Cir. 1990); Willis
    _____________ ______

    v. United States, 787 F.2d 1089, 1092-93 (7th Cir. 1986).
    _____________

    Once the district court found, as have we, that

    notice was constitutionally sufficient, it further determined

    that 701(a)(1) applied to deny the court jurisdiction over

    the remainder of the case. The court found that plaintiffs

    had had the means available under the forfeiture statute to

    take the case to a judicial forum, and that they had failed

    to do so. See Sarit v. Drug Enforcement Admin., 796 F. Supp.
    ___ _____ _______________________

    55, 59 (D.R.I. 1992) ("The forfeiture statute ``clearly makes

    available to a claimant invoking the remedy an appropriate

    forum in which to test the legality of the contested

    seizure.'" (citation omitted)). Concluding that the

    forfeiture statute was a "statute" which "preclude[d] review"

    under 701(a)(1), because the statutory scheme provided an

    avenue for judicial relief, the district court dismissed the

    case.

    The Supreme Court has held that in assessing

    whether Congress intends to preclude judicial review, the



    -20-















    intention need not be found in the express language of the

    statute, but should be determined from the structure of the

    statutory scheme and from its objectives. See Block v.
    ___ _____

    Community Nutrition Inst., 467 U.S. 340, 345 (1984). The
    __________________________

    district court correctly interpreted 701(a)(1) to find that

    the forfeiture statute precluded judicial review in this

    case.

    Plaintiffs ask us to extend the exception for

    constitutionally deficient notice to hear the merits of their

    Fifth Amendment claim. It is their position that, even if

    the notice was constitutionally adequate, it still was not
    ________

    effective. In practical terms, plaintiffs claim, they had no
    _________

    knowledge of the deadlines for filing a cost bond. Absent a

    legal defect in the notice, however, we cannot correct any

    residual ineffectiveness if such there be, by extending

    jurisdiction where Congress has spoken otherwise. Once

    again, we are sympathetic with plaintiffs' frustrated

    attempts to obtain a hearing on the merits. We are, however,

    bound by the rule of law and the adversary process. We

    cannot come in, deus ex machina, and save a claim where
    ____ __________

    notice is constitutionally sufficient and any failures in its

    effectiveness should have been corrected by plaintiffs'

    counsel.



    C. Equitable Jurisdiction
    C. Equitable Jurisdiction
    ______________________



    -21-















    Plaintiffs' final request is that we reach their

    Fourth Amendment claim by invoking our powers of equitable

    jurisdiction. The government, in its brief, argued that the

    issue was not raised below. At oral argument, attorney for

    plaintiffs claimed that the issue had been briefed for the

    district court. We find, however, no evidence in the record

    that this issue had been raised before the district court.

    We are, therefore, precluded from entertaining it on appeal.

    See United States v. Curzi, 867 F.2d 36, 44 (1st Cir. 1989);
    ___ _____________ _____

    Johnston v. Holiday Inns, Inc., 595 F.2d 890, 894 (1st Cir.
    ________ ___________________

    1979).



    The decision of the district court is affirmed.
    affirmed
    ________



























    -22-