Brookside

Court fees can pile up. An effort to make a more effective system stalls after Trump administration cuts

Court fines and fees are meant to hold people accountable. But for many, they lead to debt, arrest, and a cycle that’s hard to break. A project that started in Birmingham aimed to make the system better. But recently, the Trump Administration cancelled an effort to expand the research.

Brookside under pressure after report finds police aggressively ticketed motorists

An investigation led by Alabama Media Group columnist John Archibald found the small Jefferson County town of Brookside targeted drivers to rack up fines and fees.