Brookside Alabama $1.5 Million Policing-for-Profit Settlement, Who Qualifies, Claim Deadline and How to File

Brookside, Alabama’s $1.5 million settlement over its alleged ticketing and towing practices has received preliminary court approval, but eligible drivers cannot yet use a fixed calendar deadline to file a claim.

U.S. District Judge Anna M. Manasco preliminarily approved the settlement on September 30, 2026 in Brittany Coleman, et al. v. The Town of Brookside, Alabama, et al., Case No. 2:22-cv-00423-AMM, in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Alabama, Southern Division. The court also preliminarily certified two settlement classes and approved the claim-form and notice process.

The settlement provides $1,000,000 for people whose vehicles were towed on orders of Brookside police after traffic stops and $500,000 for people charged in Brookside Municipal Court after traffic stops, covering March 1, 2018 through August 1, 2022. A person can potentially qualify for both funds.

The claim deadline will be 120 days after the claims administrator, Angeion, sends the initial class notices. The court ordered notices sent within 75 days of September 30, 2026. As of October 2, 2026, the actual notice date is not established, so no calendar deadline can be stated yet.

Brookside Alabama Settlement: Quick Facts

Detail	Official information
Settlement amount	$1,500,000.00
Towing Class fund	$1,000,000.00
Charging Class fund	$500,000.00
Case	Brittany Coleman, et al. v. The Town of Brookside, Alabama, et al.
Case number	2:22-cv-00423-AMM
Court	U.S. District Court, Northern District of Alabama, Southern Division
Judge	Anna M. Manasco
Class period	March 1, 2018 – August 1, 2022
Towing Class	People who paid to release vehicles ordered towed by Brookside police after traffic stops
Charging Class	People charged in Brookside Municipal Court after a traffic stop
Claims administrator	Angeion
Claim deadline	120 days after initial class notices are sent
Opt-out and objection deadlines	Also 120 days after initial notices are sent
Status	Preliminary approval granted
Final approval motion due	June 30, 2027
Final approval hearing	August 12, 2027, 9:00 a.m.
Claim form	Court-approved form, by mail and through the settlement website

Who Qualifies for the Towing Class?

People who, between March 1, 2018 and August 1, 2022, paid fees to the Town of Brookside, Jett’s Towing, Rich’s Towing or another towing company or service to get a vehicle released after Brookside police ordered it towed following a traffic stop. The court estimated about 1,700 members.

The Towing Class fund is divided by the number of verified towing incidents, so a person who paid to release more than one vehicle may be able to receive more than one share.

Who Qualifies for the Charging Class?

People who, between March 1, 2018 and August 1, 2022, were charged with an offense in Brookside Municipal Court following a Brookside police traffic stop. The court estimated about 5,500 members. The $500,000 fund is divided pro rata among valid, bona fide claimants.

You can claim from both funds if you qualify for both.

How Much Could You Receive?

No single payment is guaranteed. The preliminary approval order estimates, depending on participation:

• Towing Class: about $588.23 to $2,352.94 each
• Charging Class: about $90.90 to $363.63 each

These are estimates, not promises. Actual amounts depend on the number of valid claims.

What Is the Claim Deadline?

The court has not set a fixed calendar date. Class members have 120 days from the date Angeion sends the initial notices to submit claims, request exclusion or object.

The notices must go out within 75 days of September 30, 2026, which is no later than about December 14, 2026. If notices went out on that last possible day, 120 days would land around April 13, 2027, but the real deadline could be earlier if Angeion sends notices sooner. Do not treat April 13, 2027 as official unless it is confirmed in the notice.

Late Claims

The settlement allows a limited grace period: during the first 30 days of the 42-day period after the 120-day deadline, a late claim may be accepted if the parties and administrator can confirm you are a bona fide class member without delaying the claims spreadsheets. This is not guaranteed, and later claims are invalid. File by the official deadline.

How to File a Claim

The settlement includes a court-approved Claim Form that can be submitted by mail or through a settlement website run by Angeion. As of October 2, 2026, the court record does not show the website is already accepting claims. Wait for the official notice and use only the website it identifies, not third-party sites.

A valid Claim Form includes:

• first and last name and date of birth;
• at least one valid mailing address, phone number or email address;
• whether you are claiming for the Towing Class, Charging Class or both;
• class-specific details; and
• a statement under penalty of perjury that the information is true and correct.

Towing Claims

You will be asked, based on your recollection, for details such as the number of qualifying tows, the month and year of each, the vehicle make and model, the driver and registered owner, whether you paid Brookside, Jett’s Towing or both, and whether someone else paid. The administrator can check Brookside and Jett’s Towing records. If it asks for proof, receipts, checks, credit-card records and bank statements can help.

Charging Claims

You will be asked for the month and year you were charged in Brookside Municipal Court after a Brookside police traffic stop. A copy of a court record is not required with the initial form, and the administrator may use Brookside’s records to verify claims.

What to Gather Now

• Towing or impound records
• Brookside payment receipts and Jett’s Towing receipts
• Bank or credit-card records showing payment
• Vehicle registration information
• Approximate dates of each tow or municipal court charge

You do not need to send anything to AllAboutLawyer.

Opting Out and Objecting

• Opt out: Requests must be mailed to the Claims Administrator (not just submitted online) within 120 days after the initial notices. If you opt out, you receive no settlement money and are not bound by the settlement orders. Consider legal advice first.
• Object: The objection period is also 120 days after initial notice. An objector must first submit a valid claim, then file a written objection with the Clerk of Court and serve counsel, explaining the factual and legal grounds.

If you do nothing, you remain bound by the settlement if it becomes final but you will not receive a payment.

Is the Settlement Final?

No. The September 30 order is a preliminary approval. Judge Manasco preliminarily certified the classes under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 23(b)(2) (injunctive relief) and 23(b)(3) (monetary relief) and approved the notice plan and claim form. The parties must file their final approval motion by June 30, 2027, and the final hearing is August 12, 2027, 9:00 a.m. at the Hugo L. Black United States Courthouse in Birmingham, Alabama.

After the Settlement Effective Date, Brookside must deposit the fund within 7 days (less specified administration payments), and valid claimants should be sent checks within 30 days. No payments have been made as of October 2, 2026.

What Did the Lawsuit Allege?

The plaintiffs alleged that Brookside increased its policing, ticketing, towing and municipal-court activity after 2018 to generate revenue, in violation of the Fourteenth Amendment’s Due Process Clause. The court’s order describes Brookside as a town of about 1,300 people and recounts allegations that fines and forfeitures revenue rose from $82,467 in 2018 to $610,307 in 2020. These were allegations and evidence presented in the litigation, not proven findings from a trial.

Long-Term Changes the Settlement Requires

If the settlement takes effect, the town must:

• permanently repeal provisions requiring people to pay money to recover vehicles ordered towed or impounded by Brookside;
• limit revenue it keeps from law enforcement and code enforcement to 0% for five years, no more than 1% for the next 10 years and no more than 2.5% for the following 15 years, a 30-year obligation; and
• stop routine police patrols on Interstate 22 for 10 years, except for emergencies.

Other Relief for People Affected

The settlement also calls for canceling qualifying outstanding towing-related debts and qualifying outstanding Municipal Court fines, fees and costs from the relevant period. The court’s order also describes dismissal with prejudice of pending municipal-court prosecutions and opportunities to request pardons of past municipal-court convictions, subject to the settlement terms.

The Town’s Acknowledgment

As part of the settlement, Brookside must tell class members that its 2018 aggressive-policing policy prioritized generating revenue, increased stops, tows and citations, and raised serious Fourteenth Amendment Due Process concerns. The language says town leadership apologizes and that the policy was discontinued. This is negotiated settlement language, not a verdict.

Are Settlement Payments Taxable?

General background only. The settlement documents reviewed do not address tax treatment.

Reimbursement of fines and fees you paid is often treated differently from other income, but tax treatment can depend on your circumstances. Consider consulting a tax professional.

Key Dates

Date	Event
March 1, 2018	Start of class period
August 1, 2022	End of class period
April 4, 2022	Coleman v. Brookside filed
September 30, 2026	Preliminary approval granted
Within 75 days of Sept. 30, 2026	Angeion must send initial class notice
120 days after initial notice	Claim, opt-out and objection deadline
June 30, 2027	Final approval motion due
August 12, 2027, 9:00 a.m.	Final approval hearing
7 days after Settlement Effective Date	Brookside deposits the settlement fund
30 days after Settlement Effective Date	Checks sent to valid claimants

Frequently Asked Questions

Is the Brookside settlement finally approved?

No. It received preliminary approval on September 30, 2026. Final approval is set for August 12, 2027.

How much is the settlement?

$1,500,000: $1,000,000 for the Towing Class and $500,000 for the Charging Class.

Who qualifies?

People who paid to release a vehicle towed on Brookside police orders after a traffic stop (Towing Class) or were charged in Brookside Municipal Court after a Brookside police traffic stop (Charging Class), between March 1, 2018 and August 1, 2022.

What is the claim deadline?

120 days after Angeion sends the initial notices. There is no calendar date yet.

When will notices go out?

Within 75 days of September 30, 2026, which is by about December 14, 2026 at the latest.

How much will I get?

The court’s preliminary estimates are about $588.23 to $2,352.94 for Towing Class members and $90.90 to $363.63 for Charging Class members, depending on participation. These are not guaranteed.

Can I claim from both funds?

Yes, if you qualify for both.

Who is the administrator?

Angeion.

Can I opt out or object?

Yes. Exclusion requests must be mailed to the administrator within 120 days of notice. Objections follow the same 120-day period under the settlement procedure.

Is money being paid yet?

No. Payment follows final approval and the Settlement Effective Date.

What happens if I do nothing?

You remain bound if the settlement becomes final but you will not receive a monetary payment.

Bottom Line

The $1.5 million Brookside settlement has preliminary court approval but is not yet final. If you paid to release a vehicle towed by Brookside police after a traffic stop, or were charged in Brookside Municipal Court after a traffic stop, between March 1, 2018 and August 1, 2022, you may qualify, possibly for both funds. The claim deadline is 120 days after Angeion sends notice, with no calendar date available yet. Final approval is set for August 12, 2027. We will update this article when Angeion publishes the notice date and settlement website.

For other government civil-rights settlements we have covered, see City Of Fairfield Civil Rights $1.2M Class Action Settlement and Smith County $1.5M Jail Detention Class Action Settlement.

Disclaimer: This article is for informational purposes only and is not legal advice. AllAboutLawyer.com is not a law firm. Settlement terms, deadlines and procedures can change. Rely on the official court-approved notice and administrator materials when filing a claim, opting out or objecting.

Sources

1. U.S. District Court, N.D. Ala., Preliminary Approval Order (Sept. 30, 2026), Coleman v. Town of Brookside, No. 2:22-cv-00423-AMM
2. Settlement Agreement, Coleman v. Town of Brookside, No. 2:22-cv-00423-AMM
3. Institute for Justice, “Federal Court Grants Preliminary Approval to Settlement in Brookside, Alabama Policing-for-Profit Lawsuit”: https://ij.org/press-release/federal-court-grants-preliminary-approval-to-settlement-in-brookside-alabama-policing-for-profit-lawsuit/