CASTLEBERRY, ALABAMA
THE BIRMINGHAM NEWS recently investigated the tiny town of Brookside, Alabama, a place “with no traffic lights and one retail store [that] collected $487 in fines and forfeitures for every man, woman and child.” Income from fines and forfeitures comprised a whopping 49 percent of the town’s budget. Lawsuits allege that Brookside police officers made-up charges to soak vehicle owners for thousands of dollars in fines.
Lt. Gov. Will Ainsworth is asking for an official state audit of the town and its police force. That doesn’t bode well for Brookside officials, in light of some recent history and similar stories across the country from decades past.
In 2017, the News reported that Castleberry, Alabama, with a population of about 500, was generating revenue through what amounted to highway robbery. More than a dozen lawsuits claimed that Castleberry officers illegally arrested and searched motorists, seizing their cash and cars without filing charges or even paperwork. In the ensuing scandal, Castleberry trimmed its police force down to just two part-time police officers.
Speed-trap towns—that is, small towns that raise revenue through unreasonably aggressive and sometimes illegal traffic enforcement—are a scam nearly as old as the automobile itself.
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