Third party advertisements support hosting, listing verification, updates, and site maintenance. We dont care about tickets, Jones said. He built the department from a one-man operation to a ticket-hungry department with 10 blacked-out vehicles, two drug-sniffing dogs and a riot control vehicle. The AGs office this week would not confirm or deny to AL.com the existence of any case involving Brookside. I clearly did not run the stop sign as I had just seen them sitting on top of I-22 overpass. Its my understanding that a guy can go out there and I mean, he can fall into a black hole, Jefferson County District Attorney Danny Carr said of drivers getting entangled financially. Hudgens, who lives in Brookside, said she is concerned for her town. He built the department from a one-man operation to a ticket-hungry department with 10 blacked-out vehicles, two drug-sniffing dogs and a riot control vehicle. Do you understand what you are charged with? the judge asked on that first Thursday in December. The police in the city of Brookside basically created their own policing system and for years have been able to get away with it and as the report says they endangered the lives of citizens and they should be held accountable for it, Givan said. What I noticed the pattern to be among us is this: If you are in the car by yourself, youre gonna get a ticket, she said. Sarathy Jones said the issues in Brookside should be a warning for towns and small cities to examine their revenue sources and ensure their local governments aren't turning to law enforcement as moneymaking arms. Subscribe to our WBRC newsletter and receive the latest local news and weather straight to your email. Traffic tickets, and criminalizing those who passed through, became the citys leading industry. That document budgeted $646,620 to the police this year. It was nearing dusk, and as she drove into the neighborhood she didnt think much about the unmarked black SUV with tinted windows on the side of the road. Community Rules apply to all content you upload or otherwise submit to this site. And 99% of them are lying.. All rights reserved (About Us). As more tickets brought in more money, the town began to spend much more. 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. EOG was set up to provide security services for athletic events and other gatherings. All rights reserved (About Us). Find 12 external resources related to Brookside Police Department. Drivers, both in responding to the stories and in a town hall held last week to address police and court concerns, have complained of bullying, intimidation, detention, retribution, threats, racial profiling, and charges made up of whole cloth to stack fines on drivers, among other things. Thats a 1,478% increase, with 1.7 tows for every household in town. Community Rules apply to all content you upload or otherwise submit to this site. 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). The officer said We have had people stop and record us, she said, like it explained his actions.. Another town hall is scheduled for Thursday at 6 pm at Birminghams Carver High School. Unsure what was happening, Harris dialed 911. Read also: Brookside police patrolled social media, threatening town critics. But it's also prevalent across the country. Officer Deshawn Mark Cook, who worked in Brookside as recently as Thursday, was arrested Friday on charges of first degree rape stemming from 2021. Perez is angry at his treatment. She fought it instead. On July 10th, 2019, 16 days after she paid her ticket, her phone rang. Michelle Jones, of Forestdale, has fought the Brookside police department for three years. (Joe Songer for AL.com).Joe Songer. So it was a bit of a moral outrage because I had sat in court three times now and it was no longer a mistake., This was an intentional policy of the city and my niece just happened to get caught up in it and happened to challenge it. In a sworn deposition in the civil suit Jeff Brumlow said he went to court three times before the case was ultimately dropped, and saw many people hed guess 25 to 30% of all defendants charged with the dubious left lane violation. Mayor Bryan dismissed the complaints of those who must appear in court. A Hoover officer wrote that Savelle had his Brookside badge and a gun in his pocket, though he initially lied about being armed when asked by officers.. Lt. Gov. Police stops soared between 2018 and 2020. See also: Savelle among those sued by preacher who claimed Brookside revenge. Brookside, Alabama - a poor town, 70% white, 21% black with a small but growing Hispanic population and a median income "well below the state average" has made national news because of the Brookside Police Department (BPD). story of how the tiny town turned to aggressive ticketing to build a ballooning police force that came to provide half the towns revenue. He was cited for driving with a suspended license a matter he thought hed cleared up but he doesnt blame Brookside for that. Most of the time people get stopped, theyre going to get a ticket. Ultimately another officer took Perez to his friends house to retrieve her ID, he said. I feel like they cant claim innocence in this situation., They saw dollar signs, she said of the mayors and the council. It went from towing 50 vehicles in 2018 to 789 in 2020 each carrying fines. It is what happened after the stop that is most concerning to him. I should have brought a lawyer, but right now my time is not there, he said. Eventually she was given an inhaler and treated by paramedics. The primary function of the Police Department is deterring crime, stopping crimes in progress, investigating crimes, and serving as first responders for emergencies and situations that threaten public safety. Jones was stopped on April 12 by a Covington County deputy after being clocked driving 78 mph in a 55 zone on Alabama 55 south. I dont condone it, but you know, Im not the chief out there.. The police departments Facebook page it claims more than a million visitors became a vehicle for public shaming with embarrassing mugshots and derision for those who owe fines and fees Turn yourself in. In the second town hall meeting hosted by Rep. Juandalynn Givan and Jefferson County Sheriff Mark Pettway, attendees addressed more concerns with the city's police. 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. Third, police leadership and individual officers would likely benefit from training focused not only on racial profiling, but also on overall traffic enforcement strategy. Allan Armstrong, one of a group of lawyers who filed the complaint, said Brookside violated basic American rights. The courtroom and the parking lot are packed with people. Community Rules apply to all content you upload or otherwise submit to this site. WBRC FOX6 News has reached out to the Town of Brookside leaders for a response to the special report, and we will update this story when we receive a response. The resignations include former chief Mike Jones, who built the tiny towns department from a one-man agency in 2018 to one that, according to data the town provided to AL.com in response to a public records request, included 13 full time officers and two reserves. Former Brookside Police Chief Mike Jones was arrested May 2, 2022 in Covington County, Ala., charged with impersonating a police officer. By 2020 Brookside made more misdemeanor arrests than it has residents. She is unsure if he called the man. Leadership at every level of government is required to make our cities and towns safer. He was also ticketed for improper signal, though he cant even fathom how that might have occurred. He has not commented since. All rights reserved (About Us). Ainsworth called for a financial audit by the Alabama Department of Examiners of Public Accounts and vowed the state would investigate Brookside and towns like it. Scott Shackford | 1.19.2022 1:20 PM. He said the case remains active and under investigation, and he is trying to determine if the Chevy Tahoe that Jones was driving once belonged to the town of Brookside. You know, weve had a lot of issues with Brookside.. 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). YouTubes privacy policy is available here and YouTubes terms of service is available here. She turned on her lights, according to her lawsuit, because of the approaching darkness. Copyright 2022 WBRC. 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). Brookside officials this afternoon said in a statement that the Tahoe is registered in Jones name and does not belong to Brookside. Mr. Bryan, as un-involved as he sounds, is as culpable as the others.. Officers, dressed completely in dark, unmarked uniforms approached her, and one accused her of flickering her lights to warn others of their presence, her suit alleges. The news outlet found that Jones positioned officers to stop motorists so aggressively that income from traffic fines and forfeitures rose 640 percent from 2018 to 2020, from about $82,000 to more than $610,000. In December the mayor provided AL.com a budget document, based on previous years audits. However, Jones resigned or was let go from Brooksides police department on Jan. 25, soon after reports of the small towns aggressive policing drew the attention of state lawmakers and local officials. His phone is not accepting calls and he did not return emails to an address listed as belonging to him. All rights reserved (About Us). It may cost some money to go through that process, he said. He seems to want to push the blame off on everybody else when he and (former mayor) Roger McCondichie both appointed Mike Jones knowing about his past. Stephanie Franklin, a Jefferson County employee, told AL.com she was a passenger in a car stopped last year for an expired tag. It is the second time in four days a former Brookside police officer has been jailed. She called for the second town hall meeting this week.. Givan and Jefferson County Sheriff Mark Pettway held the first town hall, in which 200 people gathered and 31 told stories of harassment and abuse. Suggest Listing The officers, though many, were not well paid. Former Brookside Police Chief Mike Jones, in a photo taken by WAAO News' Blaine Wilson, after turning himself in. Brookside police made 4.4 arrests in 2020 for every household. The towns own investigator said police under Jones sought out those who they believed could not put up a fight poor people in particular, and those who had previous run-ins with the law. Brookside is a poster child for policing for profit, said Carla Crowder, the director of Alabama Appleseed Center for Law & Justice, a nonprofit devoted to justice and equity. Dedicated to documenting the apparent corruption of the Town and Police of Brookside, Alabama. AL.com also sought connection through Brookside officials. She argued that she only drove in the left lane to pass other vehicles, and her ticket on May 26, 2019 came five months before Alabamas Anti-Road Rage Act, a law making it illegal to drive in the left lane of an interstate for more than a mile and a half, went into effect. Brookside officers have been accused in lawsuits of fabricating charges, using racist language and making up laws to stack counts on passersby. It was something that I should not have been stopped for, Brumlow said in sworn testimony. Will Ainsworth requested a state audit, and amid calls for state and federal investigations. The Brookside Police Department, located in Brookside, Alabama is a law enforcement agency that has been granted specific police powers in Jefferson County. Jones again as Mayor Bryan nodded said the goal of the department is only to help people. Jones resigned January 25th, six days after AL.com published a story outlining Brookside policing and a court system that collected 49 percent of the towns 2020 revenue from fines and forfeitures, a practice lambasted by residents, drivers, top law enforcement officials and lawmakers on both sides of the aisle. At least eight officers, including Jones, have resigned or been let go since. The conclusion reads: She paid the $160 ticket and began to make her case through emails to public officials, complaints, a television interview and elsewhere. Jones is not alone in complaining about Brookside. YouTubes privacy policy is available here and YouTubes terms of service is available here. Brookside Police Department Contact Information Address, Phone Number, and Fax Number for Brookside Police Department, a Police Department, at Main Street, Brookside AL. But an officer grabbed the phone and threw it to the ground, breaking it, the lawsuit says. The courtroom and the parking lot are packed with people. And its not an idle threat. The interim chief and Town leaders announced reforms within the police department in February 2022. City officials have said they cannot comment on personnel issues, though they did provide, as part of the records request, a breakdown of officer pay. 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. Lawyers for eight people who say they were wronged by Brookside police on Wednesday filed an amended complaint in Alabama, arguing the town, the towing company it used to seize vehicles, and 23 current and former police officers conspired to take money and property from drivers. Neither the police nor the town have responded to questions since the original story ran. 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