Posted on 07/23/2014 9:10:13 AM PDT by Ken H
Back in 84 I got a ticket in Arkansas for “walking on the right of way of a public thoroughfare.” There is no such ordinance. The ticket had none of the little boxes checked and was written on the lines provided for “other” charges. I was then deposited in a holding cell in a neighborhood substaton in Little Rock for three days. Then when I was brought to the front I was told I could go, there weren’t any charges.
Does anyone now doubt that traffic fines have absolutely nothing to do with ‘safety’ and everything to do with filling the city’s/town’s coffers?
Anyone who lives in or near Houston knows about “The Meadows” speed-trap.
How much weed did the drug dog find?
You make a very good point
"Dutton had no drugs..."
I’ve been wondering the same lately and initially attributed the high-volume of stories of police problems in Texas to the size of the state vs others. That may be part of it but I think the other factor is that a lot of Texas prisons are run by private for profit corporations, which may sound good in theory but is anything but. There was one Texas town about 10 years ago where the police were in cahoots with the private prison to keep the prison full so they could get as much state/fed funding (profit) as possible. They were locking up innocent citizens (mainly ‘poor’ people w/o the wherewithal to pay for a good atty), accusing them of (planted) drug possession.
I think that is the same with most states, except where you have thousands of miles of suburbs, Boston to Washington. Once out, country people are generally conservative. Iowa is weird.
I wished all the “folks” we have coming here from California, the NE, and Mexico thought the same, we would be a better place if they stayed out.
A private prison getting fed funding. OK.
The whole cash forfeiture scheme without conviction is unconstitutional. I’m surprised courts have gone along with it.
Respectfully, this was a case of poor journalism, unfortunately, the taxpayers will pay the tab.
A better accounting from amarillo.com:
By Jim McBride
The city of Estelline is reviewing its police procedures after Hall County authorities reached a $77,500 legal settlement with an Azle woman who alleged officers illegally seized more than $29,000 from her pickup and kept $1,400 of her cash.
Good, we do not need anymore morons around here, especially yankees or wets.
Taxpayers taking it in the shorts again for incompetent government employees again.
...all video tapes related to the arrest and the deposit of the money were “not saved.”
They were saved to hard drive but it somehow crashed then destroyed and cant be located.
One thing that pizzes me off about this story is that a 64 YO is called “elderly”. WTH.
And before anyone jumps on you for saying this perhaps it's a fine time to remind everyone that if you know about a felony and you lie about it when asked then you're now complicit as an accessory after the fact. Meaning that when the Blue Wall of Silence comes into play then everyone of the cops playing that game is guilty of a crime.
And that's a crime they'd prosecute everyone else for if they could.
Sounds like a speed trap town here in Florida called Waldo, Town limits 35mph, then jumps to 55, then back to 35. I drive through 34 all the way and haven’t spent a dime in that town.
Of course they do. Someone has to pay for all of that teak and mahogany paneling.
and that should be illegal
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