Exotic dancer wins attorney fees in fight for return of $1M seized in traffic stop
An exotic dancer should be paid $39,000 in attorney fees in her fight for the return of more than $1 million seized in a traffic stop, a Nebraska federal judge has ruled.
U.S. District Judge Joseph Bataillon granted the fee request on Monday, report the Lincoln Journal Star and the Associated Press. Bataillon ordered the government in July to return the seized cash, found bundled in dryer sheets and sealed in plastic bags.
Tasha Mishra had testified she earned the money while working more than a dozen years as an exotic dancer. She offered proof that she claimed the earnings on her tax returns and she had an agreement to invest the money in a New Jersey nightclub.
Mishra’s California-based lawyer billed at $500 an hour. Bataillon said the hourly fee was higher than the going rate for Nebraska lawyers, but the California lawyer was was justified because the case included some California legal issues.
