BIRMINGHAM, Ala. The Justice Department is urging a federal judge to let a class-action lawsuit go forward against an Alabama town accused of policing for profit with excessive fines and aggressive enforcement of local laws. (Photographerlondon / Dreamstime.com) Brookside, Alabama, has a population of less than 1,500 people. Subscribe to our WBRC newsletter and receive the latest local news and weather straight to your email. He waved it around the restaurant, in front of customers and staff. By 2020 Brookside made more misdemeanor arrests than it has residents. When Jones was hired as chief in 2018, he was the only full-time police officer, he said in sworn testimony for a lawsuit filed against him and the city. In January of 2014 Savelle was arrested in Shelby County a county south of Birmingham that includes Helena on charges of public intoxication, possession of marijuana and possession of drug paraphernalia, court records show. Eventually she was given an inhaler and treated by paramedics. Brookside, Alabama, a former mining community of about 1,250 with a median household income less than $40,000, has no traffic lights and only a handful of two-lane roads, yet it raked in so. Periodic review of bodycam video can be used to monitor and investigate possible profiling or other alleged misconduct. The growth has come with trouble to match. The conclusion reads: We conclude our report by recommending that new Brookside Police Department leadership adopt specific policies aimed at targeting its law enforcement efforts in more strategic ways. Fewer than 100 of its residents graduated college. She is unsure if he called the man. Savelle made $15.82 an hour, and all others made less. The complaint seeks return of property and damages. YouTubes privacy policy is available here and YouTubes terms of service is available here. He wanted to speak to someone who could take his badge.. But my behavior was right. You may not use this site for the purposes of furnishing consumer reports about search subjects or for any use prohibited by the FCRA. She was not speeding, or breaking the law, she argued in the suit. Mr. Bryan, as un-involved as he sounds, is as culpable as the others.. He said people have stories about their cars getting towed and being left on the side of the road, then being charged by both the town and the impound company to get their vehicles back, on top of daily storage fees. Former Brookside Police Chief Mike Jones, in a photo taken by WAAO News' Blaine Wilson, after turning himself in. The town also expanded its towing operations, going from 50 vehicles in 2018 to 789 in 2020. Yet Savelle was right-hand man to then-Brookside Chief Mike Jones, and since Jones was out of town during the arrest, Savelle served as acting chief when Hoover police approached him at Dave & Busters. She had an asthma attack and a panic attack, but when she knocked on the door to alert a guard, a jailer said if she continued to knock she would be charged with attempting to escape. AL.com found court records that detail a string of financial troubles for Jones, as state and federal lawsuits reveal employees, lawyers, creditors and others who claim Jones company, Event Operations Group, did not pay them or failed to live up to obligations. But Brookside revenues from fines and forfeitures soared after that, and the towns law-enforcement goals and its reputation changed. The material on this site may not be reproduced, distributed, transmitted, cached or otherwise used, except with the prior written permission of Advance Local. Jones could not be reached for comment Friday. The release said the town has no further comment on Jones's resignation since it involves a "personnel matter." If you had more officers and more productivity youd have more, Jones said. In an email to her May 29, 2019, Mike Jones defended the stop, and the ability to ticket outside of Brookside. Please keep your posts factual and post links to reliable sources. This is at the corner of Roberta Road and Mulberry Road, which is far away from their city limits.. 2023 Advance Local Media LLC. And 99% of them are lying.. 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. 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.. He was released after posting $20,000 bail. "It's the wild, Wild West, and they created their own wild, Wild West.". I cant stand them., In a statement today, Turman said In this case, we had a young deputy that was trying to be respectful to a supposed veteran officer and gave him a break. Brookside, Ala., may only have 10 kilometres of roads, one store and a volunteer fire department, but its police force has an armoured truck; two police dogs; nine unmarked vehicles, seven. There is no trust," Representative Juandalynn Givan said. All rights reserved (About Us). Jones says she was polite to the officer, but was convinced the ticket was unfounded and given outside the Brookside police jurisdiction. 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. The accounts told to AL.com detail harassment and intimidation. But Jones was not the Chief at Brookside when he held himself out to be, using deception to disrespect that young deputy. 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. YouTubes privacy policy is available here and YouTubes terms of service is available here. Jones testified his officers wear gray uniforms with no Brookside insignias. One of those visions: increasing officer pay to $18 per hour with better benefits in order . Savelle was in the program for up-and-coming police officers in Helena, while Mike Jones was a patrol officer there, he said. According to AL.com's investigation, Jones, who was hired in 2018, built a police department of 10 or more full-time and part-time officers to patrol Brookside's 6 miles of roads and 1 mile jurisdiction along Interstate 22, a corridor between Birmingham and Memphis, Tennessee. Tiny Brooksides style of policing under Jones has become known nationally in recent weeks. Brookside police made 4.4 arrests in 2020 for every household. We will be reviewing the details of the allegations with the Towns legal counsel. We encourage Brookside to form more partnerships with local, state and federal authorities to fully take back the town. Officials from the examiners office were believed to visit Brookside last week. I dont condone it, but you know, Im not the chief out there.. Jones was the highest earning officer before his resignation, at $16 an hour, not counting overtime. 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. ABC 33/40s Cynthia Gould reported at the time. 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. Suggest Listing The affidavit says Jones told the Covington deputy he was the chief in Brookside, a town a couple hundred miles north, just past Birmingham. Some of the charges Savelle has faced predate his hiring at Brookside. This is shocking, said Crowder. The Jefferson County Sheriff's Office is the police department that serves the area, where Mike Hale is the sheriff. 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. Police must direct traffic before the 1 p.m. court session starts. Outside the jail this morning, the lawyer told Blaine Wilson of WAAO News in Andalusia that Jones is innocent and he will prove it in court. 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. State agencies have since launched audits and investigations of police there, and officials such as Alabama Lt. Gov. 2023 Advance Local Media LLC. Sorry for the typo, the mayor wrote. Community Rules apply to all content you upload or otherwise submit to this site. (Joe Songer for AL.com).Joe Songer. Because the Town is launching the independent inquiry, the February 3 and 10 monthly court sessions are postponed until a date to be determined. 2023 Advance Local Media LLC. But not in the courtroom. 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. Franklin said she believes the only reason she wasnt arrested was because she works for Jefferson County. APOST oversees police certification in Alabama. They've also been accused of using racist language in a community that is majority white, but also has a Black population of nearly 25 percent and a small but growing Latino population. "Brookside will continue to cooperate with all appropriate authorities to ensure that a full investigation of these issues are completed," he said. Brandon McDonald, another former dispatcher the first hired by Brookside after Chief Jones took over in 2018 and created the position said Jones had a long association with Savelle. 43 Brookside should consider such a policy. Read more stories from our Banking on Crime series: Updated 10/10/22 to say the woman accosted at Dave & Busters did wish to press charges. Brookside until recently was known for its quirky Russian food festival and the states only onion-domed Russian Orthodox Church. 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.. Hoover police arrested Savelle for public intoxication and two counts of harassment that night, saying he was intoxicated to the point of being a danger to himself and to others. The woman told police she did wish to press charges. Community Rules apply to all content you upload or otherwise submit to this site. He said he also represented a woman who was stopped in 2019 for driving in the left lane of I-22, which was not technically a crime, and accused police of using a "false left-lane violation" to ensnare motorists. Police Chief Mike Jones has since resigned, Lt. Gov. He said response times were long because Brookside often had to rely on the Jefferson County Sheriffs department for service. The goals should include elevating professionalism at each level of law enforcement and civilian oversight. The material on this site may not be reproduced, distributed, transmitted, cached or otherwise used, except with the prior written permission of Advance Local. The town now faces 13 lawsuits. Officer Deshawn Mark Cook, who worked in Brookside as recently as Thursday, was arrested Friday on charges of first degree rape stemming from 2021. Cookie Settings/Do Not Sell My Personal Information. The Town of Brookside participates in the affairs through a pattern of racketeering activity, it says. Many of the complaints regarding how police enforced traffic stops centered around officers pulling people over outside their jurisdiction and even police jurisdiction signs posted beyond city limits. (Joe Songer for AL.com).Joe Songer. Covington County's affidavit for a warrant to arrest former Brookside police chief Mike Jones. The complaint seeks to establish four separate sub classes: Lawyers for the plaintiffs want, among other things, all fines and convictions voided and seized property returned. After I told him that I would not, he reported that they have two warrants for my arrest. Brookside Police Department Contact Information Address, Phone Number, and Fax Number for Brookside Police Department, a Police Department, at Main Street, Brookside AL. One, by Sen. Arthur Orr, R-Decatur would force cities to make the amount of fines and fees they collect public. They often say they had no idea why they were pulled over while passing near Brookside on Interstate 22. Time after time they say they were pulled over by multiple officers in multiple vehicles for minor charges such as expired tag or following too closely, that they were searched, towed, and forced to pay large fines for violations many say they did not commit. During his time as a council member, Mike Bryan voted for and helped to pass ordinances strengthening the Brookside Police Department in addition to passing city budgets with revenues increasing over 600%, she said. On the other end was a caller IDd as coming from the Brookside Town Hall, she said. Tuesday February 1, 2022. Then this month the Brookside department posted on Facebook that it had hired six more officers in an effort to expand our dedication and commitment to provide superior community service & protection.. Instead, the arresting officer was listed as Agent JS, while the assisting officer was Agent AR.. Brookside's police chief resigned in January 2022 following accusations of aggressive policing. He swore hed seen the cop from a distance and was careful as he braked. Brookside has two drug-sniffing dogs one named K9 Cash to search the cars of stopped motorists. Please keep it more-or-less civil. It is the second time in four days a former Brookside police officer has been jailed. She agrees that there was selective enforcement. "Brookside is a continuation of that story almost 10 years later. In fact the woman her name is redacted in the report told police she turned around and hit him after Savelle snuck up behind her and grabbed her buttocks.. The police wont do anything, Savelle is quoted in the report as saying. Brookside police made 4.4 arrests in 2020 for every household. County Office is not affiliated with any government agency. In addition, she said, counting on fines and fees collected from people in lower income and marginalized communities only serves to punish them further. Video above: Federal class action lawsuit filed against Town of Brookside, police officers Advertisement When the deputy approached the car, he reported that the driver of the vehicle was holding a police badge out of the drivers window, according to the affidavit filed by the county to obtain a warrant for Jones. State agents last week began an inquiry and audit into the Brookside Police Department to find out whether it and its officers complied with state laws and regulations, according to a statement from Chief R. Alan Benefield, executive secretary of the Alabama Peace Officers Standards and Training Commission. Perez is angry at his treatment. He had a net worth of $55,000 and a monthly income of $2,244, according to federal records. 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. she added. called for the second town hall meeting this week. The deputy described a Brookside badge with a chief indicator at the bottom. All rights reserved. Netta Womack tells her story about Brookside police at a town hall Tuesday February 1, 2022. Jones is not alone in complaining about Brookside. Unsure what was happening, Harris dialed 911. Neither the police nor the town have responded to questions since the original story ran. After learning of those statements, Rep. Givan again said the three need to resign. 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. (Joe Songer for AL.com).Joe Songer. Jones and Bryan said neither the town nor the police department relies on the revenue officers bring in. Jetts Towing owner Wayne Jett could not be reached for comment on Wednesday. Total town income more than doubled from 2018 to 2020 from $582,000 to more than $1.2 million as fines and forfeitures rose 640%. "Ferguson made us realize it wasn't just Ferguson," said Priya Sarathy Jones, the national campaign director at the Fines and Fees Justice Center,which advocates for fees to be eliminated in the justice system and fines to be equitably enforced. The officer said We have had people stop and record us, she said, like it explained his actions.. For most of the past decade it saw little crimeonly 55 . Former Brookside Police Chief Mike Jones was arrested May 2, 2022 in Covington County, Ala., charged with impersonating a police officer. The citizens of this state and those traveling through this state should enjoy the opportunity to freely access our roadways, he said. Savelle was second in command at Brookside, which came under fire two weeks ago when an AL.com story revealed a department so intent on ticketing and criminalizing motorists that by 2020 it came to draw half the towns revenue from fines and forfeitures. But an officer grabbed the phone and threw it to the ground, breaking it, the lawsuit says. Cookie Settings/Do Not Sell My Personal Information. In 2018, reporters for ABC 33/40 said they asked the former mayor of Brookside about Jones financial problems when he was hired. Mike Jones actually knew Bo when Bo was a kid in Explorers, McDonald said. 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. Second, the town would likely benefit from a relationship with a research organization to provide annual information on the existence of any red flags detected in statistical trends and patterns. 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. 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. 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