A grand jury indicted Mike Jones, the former police chief in the troubled town of Brookside, on a felony charge of impersonating a peace officer during a traffic stop in Covington County.
The charge is a Class C felony, punishable by up to 10 years in prison. The grand jury also indicted Jones for speeding, according to court documents made public this week.
Jones’ lawyer, William White II, said that prosecutors took the case to a grand jury before Jones got the chance to tell his side of the story in court.
“That is their right,” White said in a statement to AL.com. “However, Mr. Jones has not yet been given the opportunity to present his side of the story and confront his accusers. He looks forward to that.”
In April, a sheriff’s deputy stopped Jones for driving 78 mph in a 55 zone, court records state. The deputy reported that when he approached the car, Jones held a police badge out of the driver’s window, identifying him as Brookside’s chief. The deputy let him go with a professional courtesy verbal warning.
Jones, however, resigned from the Brookside Police Department on Jan. 25, just six days after AL.com published an investigation that detailed how Brookside, a small town north of Birmingham, multiplied its police force and saw revenue from traffic stops soar in recent years.
In May, the Covington County sheriff’s office got a warrant for his arrest after the traffic stop, and Jones turned himself in.
Grand juries issue indictments when they decide that prosecutors have probable cause to believe someone committed a crime. Jones can plead guilty or not guilty at an arraignment set for Nov. 8.
Read more: Inside the remarkable fall of Alabama’s most predatory police force
During his time as Brookside’s chief, Jones increased the tiny town’s police presence exponentially.
The town hired Jones as its only full-time police officer in 2018. By the summer of 2021, Jones said the department had hired eight additional full-time officers, along with several part-time officers. The new hires brought the force up to one officer per 144 residents in the town of less than 1,300.
Under Jones’ leadership, total arrests in Brookside rose 1,109% between 2018-2020, AL.com reported. In 2020, the town received 49% of its revenue from fines and forfeitures, compared to only 10% in 2017.
AL.com’s reporting also prompted several state investigations, as well as promises of change in Brookside’s policing policies, such as reduced patrol zones and clearly marked vehicles.
A report commissioned by the town found racial disparities in which drivers received warnings rather than tickets during traffic stops.
Henry Irby, Brookside’s new chief, said the department is making improvements, including hiring a police supervisor to provide implicit bias training for the department.
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