http://www.al.com/news/index.ssf/2017/10...ult-widget

Never go there.

Yeah that sounds crooked as ****...

That's civil forfeiture taken to to the most extreme of abuses. To satisfy the plaintiffs in this case, I think they will have to:

• Sell every bit of gov't owned property/assets to pay the plaintiffs
• Completely eliminate the city gov't and change the area to a township that is patrolled by the county sheriffs
• Wipe this place off the face of the map.
  

After all that is done, justice will be served.

This is a great lesson on the lengths people in gov't will go to in order to ensure that they remain relevant AND "needed". And of course, to enrich yourselves. This is why vigilance against gov't abuse is needed.

I can't tell you how many times I've watched my P's and Q's driving thru Wilmer on my way to Mobile heading to RJT to play golf......hell, we got pulled over once with a carload of 5 (we were all around 20 yrs old).....we're all white, and all have our sacks of weed.....and just got finished toking....took the ticket and mosey'd on....

just shy of ol' Snuffy Smiths country store was the least kept speed trap secret....

there's no questioning that old south rural centers still have their issues....

however, who the **** carries $1750.00 in their pocket on a daily basis.....it'd be different if he'd just left the bank cashing his paycheck.....that'd be a better posit from your perspective.....

you and me both know 'why' this happened....he's lucky he wasn't transporting.....

Imagine what they'd do to you if you were caught driving while black

Holy crap that's screwed up. Just as a general PSA, don't ever speed through small towns in south Alabama. Those jacklegs are notorious for their speed traps.

(10-30-2017 12:20 PM)EverRespect Wrote:  Imagine what they'd do to you if you were caught driving while black

wouldn't argue that point.....

we simply got pulled over based on age and it was a Tues......profiling of a different kind....

back in '85 (when the blue laws were still in effect), we had to drive 40 mi. north to the free state of jones to buy beer......I get pulled over with a roach in the ashtray.....mhp officer calls in local back-up....

I'm sitting in the back seat for the req'd time frame when he says, "son, here's the deal....if you blow clean I'm gonna let the three of yaz go.....however, if you don't, I'm draggin' all your arses in"

we mosey'd on.....I have zero clue how I blew and passed 'that one'......

those days were too much fun....

there's no way in hades I would risk any of that if I was that age today......

(10-30-2017 12:22 PM)ArmyBlazer Wrote:  Holy crap that's screwed up. Just as a general PSA, don't ever speed through small towns in south Alabama. Those jacklegs are notorious for their speed traps.

I have been lucky. Although never went through that town I have many, after you exit in Montgomery and then take 331 down to the Gulf.

If I ever became insane enough – and had my past sufficiently fumigated enough – to run for office, two major planks of my platform would be eliminating civil asset forfeiture and no-knock” raids.

(10-30-2017 12:22 PM)ArmyBlazer Wrote:  Holy crap that's screwed up. Just as a general PSA, don't ever speed through small towns in south Alabama. Those jacklegs are notorious for their speed traps.

It's not just an Alabama thing, it's just about every small town out there. The politicians see the police department as a revenue tool and issue the orders. What happens is they hire the outcasts and rejects from elsewhere who can;t get a job in a legitimate department and new people off the street looking to get their foot in the door in law enforcement so you typically aren't looking at the best and the brightest. There's towns in SC that when I am doing a delivery for work that I go out of my way to avoid.

The department I served as a reserve with was different in that the Chief was a former high ranking officer in a large Sheriff's Dept in the state. He had moved into the town after retirement because of his wife's job and there was a rash of break-ins. A few of the town councilmen approached him about starting a small dept and he initially refused. After a while he agreed to it but under the stipulation that the PD was not going to be considered a revenue generating arm of the town.....there would be no quotas, no mandatory fines, no "municipal violations" etc. He also required that the municipal judge be someone with judicial experience so they hired an associate magistrate from one of the larger towns in the region. He also required that every vehicle have a dash cam even if it meant not buying as many vehicles as originally planned.

I know when I was there we wrote far more warnings than tickets and it was stressed that nobody was being evaluated by sheer numbers alone. My Chief has retired again but as far as I know they are still operating the same way.

(10-30-2017 12:48 PM)Kaplony Wrote:  It's not just an Alabama thing, it's just about every small town out there. The politicians see the police department as a revenue tool and issue the orders. What happens is they hire the outcasts and rejects from elsewhere who can't get a job in a legitimate department and new people off the street looking to get their foot in the door in law enforcement so you typically aren't looking at the best and the brightest.

Sadly, this is the PD in my town.

I got a warning ticket driving home from closing on my mortgage. I officially had lived in the town for two hours and but hadn't even walked in the front door yet.

(10-30-2017 01:03 PM)Lord Stanley Wrote:  

(10-30-2017 12:48 PM)Kaplony Wrote:  It's not just an Alabama thing, it's just about every small town out there. The politicians see the police department as a revenue tool and issue the orders. What happens is they hire the outcasts and rejects from elsewhere who can't get a job in a legitimate department and new people off the street looking to get their foot in the door in law enforcement so you typically aren't looking at the best and the brightest.

Sadly, this is the PD in my town.

I got a warning ticket driving home from closing on my mortgage. I officially had lived in the town for two hours and but hadn't even walked in the front door yet.

LOL


One time while on a wildfire deployment in Florida we were staged at this little podunk town hall/police dept/fire dept complex. The "chief" of this two officer town (his only subordinate was a "major" LOL) came walking in wearing more medals and ribbons on his chest than a South American dictator and a Air Force style uniform cap with gold braid and scrambled eggs on the bill. I asked one of the local FD guys if he was dressed up for a press briefing or something and they said "No. That's his duty uniform." Made a note right then to never drive through that town if I was ever down that way again and told my guys to not even spit on the sidewalk while we were there.

(10-30-2017 01:11 PM)Kaplony Wrote:  

(10-30-2017 01:03 PM)Lord Stanley Wrote:  

(10-30-2017 12:48 PM)Kaplony Wrote:  It's not just an Alabama thing, it's just about every small town out there. The politicians see the police department as a revenue tool and issue the orders. What happens is they hire the outcasts and rejects from elsewhere who can't get a job in a legitimate department and new people off the street looking to get their foot in the door in law enforcement so you typically aren't looking at the best and the brightest.

Sadly, this is the PD in my town.

I got a warning ticket driving home from closing on my mortgage. I officially had lived in the town for two hours and but hadn't even walked in the front door yet.

LOL


One time while on a wildfire deployment in Florida we were staged at this little podunk town hall/police dept/fire dept complex. The "chief" of this two officer town (his only subordinate was a "major" LOL) came walking in wearing more medals and ribbons on his chest than a South American dictator and a Air Force style uniform cap with gold braid and scrambled eggs on the bill. I asked one of the local FD guys if he was dressed up for a press briefing or something and they said "No. That's his duty uniform." Made a note right then to never drive through that town if I was ever down that way again and told my guys to not even spit on the sidewalk while we were there.

ain't nothing better than those outdated redneck laws.....

(10-30-2017 12:20 PM)stinkfist Wrote:  I can't tell you how many times I've watched my P's and Q's driving thru Wilmer on my way to Mobile heading to RJT to play golf......hell, we got pulled over once with a carload of 5 (we were all around 20 yrs old).....we're all white, and all have our sacks of weed.....and just got finished toking....took the ticket and mosey'd on....

just shy of ol' Snuffy Smiths country store was the least kept speed trap secret....

there's no questioning that old south rural centers still have their issues....

however, who the **** carries $1750.00 in their pocket on a daily basis.....it'd be different if he'd just left the bank cashing his paycheck.....that'd be a better posit from your perspective.....

you and me both know 'why' this happened....he's lucky he wasn't transporting.....

It shouldn't matter. As long as it's legally my money, I should not be able to be "mugged" by the police just because I had a couple grand on me. IRL, I wouldn't do that; however, people should be allowed to carry that cash without being hassled over it.

going on I-40 between the NC/TN line and Asheville was always full of cops pulling people over. Wasn't this crazy though

(10-30-2017 02:04 PM)miko33 Wrote:  

(10-30-2017 12:20 PM)stinkfist Wrote:  I can't tell you how many times I've watched my P's and Q's driving thru Wilmer on my way to Mobile heading to RJT to play golf......hell, we got pulled over once with a carload of 5 (we were all around 20 yrs old).....we're all white, and all have our sacks of weed.....and just got finished toking....took the ticket and mosey'd on....

just shy of ol' Snuffy Smiths country store was the least kept speed trap secret....

there's no questioning that old south rural centers still have their issues....

however, who the **** carries $1750.00 in their pocket on a daily basis.....it'd be different if he'd just left the bank cashing his paycheck.....that'd be a better posit from your perspective.....

you and me both know 'why' this happened....he's lucky he wasn't transporting.....

It shouldn't matter. As long as it's legally my money, I should not be able to be "mugged" by the police just because I had a couple grand on me. IRL, I wouldn't do that; however, people should be allowed to carry that cash without being hassled over it.

that wasn't the point.....the point was they were most likely known to law enforcement as drug dealers.....

you have to know I'm 100% against seizure laws at this point.....however, that doesn't matter......change the ******* law or enter at your own risk.....that was the point...

(10-30-2017 12:38 PM)SuperFlyBCat Wrote:  

(10-30-2017 12:22 PM)ArmyBlazer Wrote:  Holy crap that's screwed up. Just as a general PSA, don't ever speed through small towns in south Alabama. Those jacklegs are notorious for their speed traps.

I have been lucky. Although never went through that town I have many, after you exit in Montgomery and then take 331 down to the Gulf.

Insert joke about two Alabama alum state troopers pulling people over in Opp because they can't spell Andalusia.