The Department of Justice is urging a federal judge to allow a lawsuit to proceed against the embattled Alabama town of Brookside.
The Department of Justice is urging a federal judge to allow a lawsuit to proceed against the embattled Alabama town of Brookside, arguing there is evidence that town officials profited from hefty police fines and rising criminal cases.
Carla C. Ward, an assistant U.S. Attorney for the northern district of Alabama, in the brief said that the federal government has an interest in protecting the public’s constitutional rights and enforcing federal laws regarding the collection of unlawful fines and fees.AL.com published an investigation
“If, as alleged, Brookside’s police officers and town attorney are dependent on revenues from fines, fees, and forfeitures, Plaintiffs have stated a claim that these officials are impermissibly conflicted when they enforce the code violations and vehicle forfeitures that raise those funds,” Ward wrote. “Courts have found Fourteenth Amendment violations in similar, but less extreme, circumstances.”
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