The Brookside Police Department, located in Brookside, Alabama is a law enforcement agency that has been granted specific police powers in Jefferson County. We dont have a law that says if you dont have ID, you go to jail, he said. In 2020, she had explained her case this way to the AGs office: The person threatened me with an arrest if I did not take down my Facebook pictures and posts of their police officers, stop sending emails to the local politicians, as well as others, and show them (Brookside police) that I understand law enforcement practices.. It went from towing 50 vehicles in 2018 to 789 in 2020 - each carrying fines. she added. Cars were towed for failure to show insurance, for not having a drivers license, and lawsuits now claim officers frequently ignored insurance paperwork as an excuse to tow cars. Mayor Mike Bryan late Wednesday said there was no conspiracy, The Town has just been made aware of this amended lawsuit, Bryan told AL.com. I think it could be more.. JURISDICTION AND VENUE 3. Michelle Jones made an official complaint to the Alabama Attorney's General's office three years ago, arguing that Brookside police stopped her out of jurisdiction, issued a bogus citation and . And hes like, We cant tell you unless you give me your phone number. I said I dont wanna give you my phone number. And he said, Well, Im not gonna tell you unless you give it to me.. Because people overwhelmed by debt have been shown to turn to crime to pay their fines an argument can be made that this kind of policing creates crime, Crowder said. Brookside Mayor Mike Bryan is a former councilman who took over as acting mayor when McCondichie became ill. Bryan said he knew Jones made Bibles available in the jail, but said he had never heard of anyone being held because they did not accept Jesus. II. 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. By Tristan Ruppert. Law-abiding citizens should not fall prey to a renegade police department that is accountable to no one.. It has had a continued practice of stopping and ticketing scores of vehicles daily, doing so without probable cause or reasonable suspicion of wrongdoing.. Garbage bags filled with used adult diapers, soiled puppy pads and empty oatmeal packets had been regularly dumped along the main road through the tiny town just north of Birmingham. Find Brookside residential property records including property owners, sales & transfer history, deeds & titles, property taxes, valuations, land, zoning records & more. 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. He was charged with 31 counts of criminal littering, and town Judge Wooten had fined him $14,268. Click on a feature to learn more. 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). A department of nine officers in a 1,253-person town is far larger than average. Ive seen it, DA Carr said. Brookside Police Department Contact Information. Wayne Jett, the owner of Jetts Towing, referred questions to his lawyer, Jay Tidwell. Name Brookside Police Department Address 208 Main Street Brookside, Alabama, 35036 Phone 205-674-9275 Fax 205-674-9547 It raised police officers hourly pay to $18, established a police reserve program and rescinded tax collection from areas of police jurisdiction outside the town limits which applies mainly to people in nearby Mt. 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. Johnson, though it is unclear if Brookside had a Detective Johnson. 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. They opted for a more aggressive approach, and found just the man for the job: Mike Jones. Across the country, the average size of a force is one officer for every 588 residents, according to a Governing Magazine study that examined federal statistics. Informacin detallada del sitio web y la empresa: mathiasministry.com, +911647262626, +911647262627, +911647262628, +12129900243, +12129900485 Mathias Ministry - Latest news, updates and information about the Mathias' To report a criminal tax violation,please call (251) 344-4737, To report non-filers, please emailtaxpolicy@revenue.alabama.gov. The courtroom and the parking lot are packed with people. He promised benefits and a place to land for police who had left other agencies but hoped to keep their law enforcement certification current. It frightened her, and led to more trouble. Thats a 1,478% increase, with 1.7 tows for every household in town. Will Ainsworth requested a state audit, and amid calls for state and federal investigations. Attempts to reach Savelle failed. And I didnt realize that until some time had passed.. John Minyard told his story at a Brookside town hall meeting. By last summer, he said in a deposition, Brookside had hired eight additional full-time officers and several part-timers. Advertisement. Jones still has some supporters in town. He and members of the town council complained of slow response times from the county, and of drug infestations in and around the area. The Town of Brookside, Alabama, is a municipal corporation organized under the laws of the State of Alabama ("the State"), and subject to suit. Brookside hired Hudgens as a dispatcher in August of 2019. Jones reimagined the police department as a sort of drug task force on the corridor between Birmingham and Memphis and he was creative. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure youre on an official government site. Multiple drivers say Jetts Towing Co. showed up on the side of the road at the same time as police stops. Community Rules apply to all content you upload or otherwise submit to this site. But its a common charge in Brookside. 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. 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. Address, Phone Number, and Fax Number for Brookside Police Department, a Police Department, at Main Street, Brookside AL. Another, the second-leading ticket-giver between 2018 and 2020, according to records filed in a lawsuit against the town, had been ticketed eight times by other agencies for speeding, four times for driving with no seat belt, twice for driving without insurance, twice for driving without a visible tag, and once this one years ago for driving on a suspended license. We were working under a man who used fear as a tactic to make us do what he wanted us to do, said Brandon McDonald, the first dispatcher hired after Jones arrived. I think its one of those situations that could possibly bring in the feds with some oversight, he said. An official website of the Alabama State government. The towns administrative expenditures rose 40% and overall spending jumped 112%, from $553,000 in 2018 to $1.2 million in 2020. Most of the vehicles Brookside Police drive are unmarked, and tinted. If you have a witness with you, theyre gonna issue you a warning., I felt that basically, that this was a way for them to make money to fund their city off the backs of citizens from other areas. Instead, the arresting officer was listed as Agent JS, while the assisting officer was Agent AR.. A 2019 report in Governing magazine found that fines and forfeitures account for more than 10 percent of general fund revenues for nearly 600 jurisdictions throughout the country, and in jurisdictions where fines accounted for more than 20 percent, the local median household income was less than $40,000. Vincent Witt and his sister, Tareya, Chief Jones tried to intimidate her in a social media message, Police in this tiny Alabama town suck drivers into legal black hole, Pastor, sister say rogue Alabama police force sought revenge, This Alabama county fastens ankle monitors on hundreds who arent convicted of crimes, Life on an ankle monitor in Alabama: $10 a day and inevitable imperfections, Buy newspaper front pages, posters and more. He said response times were long because Brookside often had to rely on the Jefferson County Sheriffs department for service. Brookside police made 4.4 arrests in 2020 for every household. BROOKSIDE, Ala. After a tumultuous few weeks for the city of Brookside, including the resignation of police Chief Mike Jones, more allegations were brought to light against the city's police department on Thursday. The material on this site may not be reproduced, distributed, transmitted, cached or otherwise used, except with the prior written permission of Advance Local. If the bill passes, someone could end up in jail or pay thousands in fines for moving a jurisdiction sign. Community Rules apply to all content you upload or otherwise submit to this site. They told me they dont give blankets, she said. But lawyers and law enforcement officers across central Alabama have raised questions about things in Brookside they say they have never otherwise come across. Walker told the judge he will fight the charge. She remembered being pulled over five years before. Brumlow pleaded not guilty, and had to go to court over and over again as the case was postponed. Attempts to reach Jones have been unsuccessful since January. A Peace Officer sworn in the State of Alabama can enforce the law anywhere in the State of Alabama, he wrote in an email. Police Trap, she posted in June of 2019. Government websites often end in .gov or .mil. A police department in Brookside, Alabama, is facing allegations of policing for profit and defamation lawsuits after residents say they've received bogus charges. We said we couldnt see it from 50 feet away.. By Josh Gauntt. 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. She set out to challenge it. But on Wednesday morning, she said, she got a call from the Alabama Attorney Generals investigator who had worked the case after her complaint was filed in 2019. Community Rules apply to all content you upload or otherwise submit to this site. Dawson was struck by the testimony, and the sheer number of people who packed the Brookside court with similar charges. But in 2018 it began building a police empire, hiring more and more officers to blanket its six miles of roads and mile-and-a-half jurisdiction on Interstate 22. This is at the corner of Roberta Road and Mulberry Road, which is far away from their city limits.. (WBRC) The city now announcing several steps to reform the police department. Savelle became a lieutenant in Brookside. Lord, after all this time you heard me. I know that.. Brookside, just north of Birmingham, already faces at least 10 lawsuits about its policing. But Brookside revenues from fines and forfeitures soared after that, and the towns law-enforcement goals and its reputation changed. But Jones wanted his force to show force. Monday afternoon former Birmingham Police Officer Montague Minnifield became at least the eighth person to sue Brookside over its police and court systems. He quickly built a roster of officers, some with questionable pasts that made them more loyal, adding new staff every quarter until the force eventually topped out at 13, not counting reserves. 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. The town of 1,253 just north of Birmingham reported just 55 serious crimes to the state in the entire eight year period between 2011 and 2018 - none of them homicide or rape. Mayor Bryan announced he had pulled police officers from Interstate 22 as the Alabama Peace Officers Standards and Training Commission and the Alabama Department of Examiners of Public Accounts swooped in for audits. Jefferson County District Attorney Danny Carr asked judges to drop 69 felony drug charges that originated in Brookside, along with 22 associated misdemeanors, saying he did not want to be associated with a rogue police force.. All rights reserved (About Us). The law, according to Hudgens, was what Mike Jones said it was. A court worker told her she would have to plead guilty or go to driving school. We are not safer because of it.. The problem for those alleging misconduct is that officers may be immune from lawsuits if their actions are found to be a part of their official duties, Dawson said. 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. Brookside officers have been accused in lawsuits of fabricating charges, using racist language and making up laws to stack counts on passersby. Hed been stopped for rolling the stop sign, which he disputes, and speeding, which he also disputes. 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 . He described how Jones hoped to turn the neighboring community center one of the few amenities for the townspeople into a police building and jail. brookside, alabama police jurisdiction map. When he got to court Dec. 2, he saw scores of people just like him lining up to stand before Judge Jim Wooten, complaining of penny-ante crimes and harassment by officers. 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 caller identified himself as a Det. Though Alabama has dozens of towns that treat drivers like ATMs, the new laws were mainly prompted by a multi-part investigation by AL.com into Brookside, a town with fewer than 1,300 residents . McDonald recalled the way Jones ordered staffers not to adjust the temperature in the towns jail cells, so it would remain cold all the time. Minnifield says he was a passenger in car stopped for driving with an improper tag, and that he was detained, among other things. At least two others were in arrears on child support, and another had been charged with harassment, though the charges were dropped. 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. 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.. We will be reviewing the details of the allegations with the Towns legal counsel. Fines and forfeitures made up 49 percent of the town revenue, and most of it went right back to the police and courts. One man said residents don't want just resignations, they want people going to jail. She has watched and documented stops there. Baggett and the officers went back to look at the tag light, and it worked. The AGs office this week would not confirm or deny to AL.com the existence of any case involving Brookside. Another Brookside cop ran from the rear of the building, where he had positioned himself to prevent her escape. And it broke her heart, it broke my heart.. Seven Brookside police officers have resigned since details of the towns aggressive policing strategy gained national attention in January. Police put her in a patrol car and searched her vehicle for drugs.