Everybodys got a story, he said. The suit also names 23 current and former officers as individual defendants. (Photographerlondon / Dreamstime.com) Brookside, Alabama, has a population of less than 1,500 people. This is at the corner of Roberta Road and Mulberry Road, which is far away from their city limits.. Find local businesses, view maps and get driving directions in Google Maps. Fines and forfeitures seizures of cars during traffic stops, among other things doubled from 2018 to 2019. Bill Dawson, a lawyer in Birmingham, said he's had about two dozen people contact him with allegations, but for years, many have been too reluctant to complain. Military vehicles used by the Brookside Police Dept. James Sebestain Bo Savelle III (Photo courtesy of Hoover Police). Lacey Shelton experienced that when she was jailed last year on charges she disputes. They seek damages against the individual police officers for wrongful fines, forfeitures, and arrests, including mental anguish damages., In trying to establish a conspiracy, the complaint contends that the town of Brookside, its court and its officers, exist to extract the payment of unlawful fines from the people.. Brookside, just north of Birmingham, already faces at least 10 lawsuits about its policing. If you drove too long in the left lane, you became an offender, though lawyers have argued the crime police often cited was not on the books. Dawson also represents Victoria Brumlow, a young woman who like hundreds more was stopped on I-22 and ticketed for driving on the left lane of the interstate. Officers crammed evidence like those trash bags wherever space could be found, according to a state audit released this month. Jones is not alone in complaining about Brookside. By Josh Gauntt. The Town of Brookside released this statement: To investigate and address the issues raised by the recent news accounts of our Police Department, on Wednesday, January 26, 2022, the Town of Brookside requested the Alabama Peace Officers' Standards and Training Commission (APOSTC) perform a compliance audit of the Brookside Police Department . The law is the law.. A Peace Officer sworn in the State of Alabama can enforce the law anywhere in the State of Alabama, he wrote in an email. It has one retail store, the Dollar General, and three septic tank services. Attempts to reach Savelle failed. Jones blamed the lawsuits on ambulance-chasing attorneys.. Such a thing would absolutely be inappropriate, he said. The complaint seeks to establish four classes of people who were stopped and extorted by the town of Brookside, Jetts Towing Co. or the officers. I wouldnt be surprised if they opened up an investigation. The town also expanded its towing operations, going from 50 vehicles in 2018 to 789 in 2020. She paid the $160 ticket and began to make her case through emails to public officials, complaints, a television interview and elsewhere. However, an initial review of the complaint reveals that any allegations of conspiracy are false and without merit and the Town vehemently denies such allegations.. But Jones sold Brookside a vision of how to turn a sleepy department into an intimidating and lucrative force. Officers appeared to approach drivers with the presumption that they were guilty of something, many drivers would later say. The officer had identified himself only by an agent number. Thats 49% of the small towns skyrocketing revenue. I think it could be more.. Ramon Perez came to court last month ready to fight the tickets hed been handed by Brookside police, including one for rolling through a stop sign and another for driving 48 mph in a 40 zone. 2022 Police Jurisdiction Annexations, Deannexations and Ordinances, Ords. He instituted a no pleas from Brookside rule, and asked his workers to flag for scrutiny every case out of that town. He agreed to represent his niece in her traffic case. Alabama Attorney General Steve Marshall, the states top law enforcement officer, has declined to comment on Brookside, but others have acted. Ive never seen a possession case split like that, he said. 2. The town has also grown its police force in size and now has one officer for every 144 residents. Brookside officers have been accused in lawsuits of fabricating charges, using racist language and making up laws to stack counts on passersby. Neither the mayor nor chief would talk about pending litigation, but both said they have reviewed the cases involved, including bodycam footage, and said they found no wrongdoing on the citys part. YouTubes privacy policy is available here and YouTubes terms of service is available here. Top editors give you the stories you want . Its unheard of.. (Joe Songer for al.com).Joe Songer. I saw him and we looked eye to eye, the Chelsea business owner said. All rights reserved (About Us). Locality Locality Code Boundaries Map Notice & Ordinance Item 30 Day Notice Posted ALDOR Posted Abbeville 9356 Adamsville 9130 Addison 9309 Akron 9668 Alabaster 9413 Albertville 9397 Alexander City 9358 Ord. But when she did, the unmarked SUV pulled into the street, crossed the center line and sped toward her car, blue lights flashing. JURISDICTION AND VENUE 3. He looked closer and noticed troublesome code words that offered vague excuses such as driver acted nervous to justify questionable stops. "This city is a ticking, ticking time bomb waiting to explode," state Rep. Juandalynn Givan, who has called for other town officials to resign, told . It showed that total arrests custodial, misdemeanor and felony rose 1,109% from 2018 to 2020. He was very ugly from the start.. Fines . The material on this site may not be reproduced, distributed, transmitted, cached or otherwise used, except with the prior written permission of Advance Local. BROOKSIDE, Ala. (WBRC) - House Representative Juandalynn Givan is now asking city leaders in Brookside to disband the police department. In an email to her May 29, 2019, Mike Jones defended the stop, and the ability to ticket outside of Brookside. He saw so many people trying to park in the grassy field outside the municipal building that police had to direct traffic. Town leaders did not question. Use of and/or registration on any portion of this site constitutes acceptance of our User Agreement, Privacy Policy and Cookie Statement, and Your Privacy Choices and Rights (each updated 1/26/2023). In court she pleaded down to driving without a state license less serious than driving while suspended and ultimately got her license back. By Tristan Ruppert. Traffic tickets increased more than 600 percent in a single year, arrests almost 450 percent. CountyOffice.org does not provide consumer reports and is not a consumer reporting agency as defined by the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA). This is shocking, said Crowder. The town required drivers to pay $175 in restitution to receive a release form nothing but a piece of paper to take to Jetts to reclaim their car. Sandra Jo Harris, a 52-year-old grandmother, claims in a lawsuit she pulled off I-22 at Cherry Avenue on Jan. 8, 2020, as she often did when she went to visit her daughter. Which is exactly what the town is banking on, according to those who have watched Brookside grow into one of Alabamas biggest, most troublesome traffic traps. And the only way theyd be able to get out of jail is if they accepted Christ. Brookside has two drug-sniffing dogs one named K9 Cash to search the cars of stopped motorists. Mayor Bryan dismissed the complaints of those who must appear in court. The courtroom and the parking lot are packed with people. Arrests on Brookside warrants went from zero to 243 in the span of two years, according to statistics Chief Jones presented to the council. Town officials ignored signs of trouble because they were so infatuated with the influx of money that they had blinders on, she said. He lent his car to a friend, who was pulled over and arrested for drug possession. People are angry and more than frustrated with the Brookside police department. 2023 Advance Local Media LLC. Scott Shackford | 1.19.2022 1:20 PM. She pulled to the side of the road as the SUV pulled behind her, and a wrecker simultaneously parked nearby. In a two-year period between 2018 and 2020 Brookside revenues from fines and forfeitures soared more than 640 percent and now make up half the citys total income. Free Honea Path Property Records Search. It puts all cities, towns, and crossroads on full notice that such behavior is unacceptable. They tell, with consistency, of specious tickets and arrests, of retaliation by a police department and by a chief who challenged those who questioned him as he sought to build an empire on the backs of drivers. But a year at Brookside is a pretty long time.. Cookie Settings/Do Not Sell My Personal Information. Several reporting requirements for municipalities were . It claims those involved violated the Racketeer Influenced Corrupt Organizations Act (RICO) and the Hobbs Act which makes it illegal to obstruct interstate commerce by robbery or extortion. It wiped out half her income. Vincent Witt and his sister, Tareya, who said the small police department fabricated charges against them and listed them as fugitives because Witt complained about an officers racist remark. The Town of Brookside participates in the affairs through a pattern of racketeering activity, it says. Many drivers said they have long feared driving in Brookside, afraid of being unjustly pulled over, and the treatment they would receive if they were. Use of and/or registration on any portion of this site constitutes acceptance of our User Agreement, Privacy Policy and Cookie Statement, and Your Privacy Choices and Rights (each updated 1/26/2023). Residents like Price and her neighbor Bobbie Pickle bristled when Jones began walking through backyards and into carports, posting big orange stickers on cars or boats without current tags, telling people their property would be towed. Over 200 people packed into the new Jefferson County Sheriffs Office Training Facility building to voice their complaints about aggressive policing by the Brookside Police Dept. She wore a tank top and was denied a long-sleeved shirt. The town of Brookside, Alabama holds municipal court once a month. But Brookside revenues from fines and forfeitures soared after that, and the towns law-enforcement goals and its reputation changed. Chana Hodges handles billing at a mom-and-pop medical supply store in nearby Fultondale, Ala. She recounts a day in 2020 when her boss walked to the cubicle and told her a police officer was looking for her. reported to the state very little serious crime one robbery and no murders. Katie Baggett moved to Brookside in December 2020. The material on this site may not be reproduced, distributed, transmitted, cached or otherwise used, except with the prior written permission of Advance Local. Published: Mar. He said hed like to see even more growth in revenue from fines and forfeitures. NEW! Dawson argued in a lawsuit against Brookside and Chief Jones that Brookside has continuously used the false left lane violation as a reason to stop and detain hundreds of motorists.