Traslavina

MEMORANDUM ***

Petitioner seeks return of his airplane. His claim accrued no later than October 1991, when he could reasonably have been expected to inquire about the plane, which would have alerted him to the forfeiture. See United States v. Kubrick, 444 U.S. 111, 120-21 , 100 S.Ct. 352 , 62 L.Ed.2d 259 (1979) (applying the common law rule for statutes of limitations). Because petitioner did not seek return of his plane until June 1998, his claim is barred. See 28 U.S.C. § 2401 (a).

*471 Petitioner also challenges the district court’s imposition of a fine without first determining his ability to pay. Since defendant committed his crime before November 1,1987, U.S.S.G. § 5E1.2(a), which precludes imposition of a fine “where the defendant establishes that he is unable to pay and is not likely to become able to pay any fine,” does not apply. See United States v. Rewald, 835 F.2d 215, 216 (9th Cir.1987). Prior law did not contain a similar requirement.

As a matter of equal protection, however, “[i]f, under the sentence imposed, the defendant, because of [his] financial inability to pay a fine, will be imprisoned longer than someone who had the ability to pay the fine, then the…