Citizens for A Better Byrnes Mill

What's New

Information Regarding Cameras in Patrol Cars

Just to inform the public, we feel you should know that we have received information that the police cars, when pulling people over, turn off their lights which also turns off the cameras. We feel the cameras should be rolling at all times to not only protect the officer but to protect the citizens as well. Therefore, we would like to suggest that if you see someone pulled over on the side of the road and this is the case or a car being towed while police lights are still not flashing, please give city hall a call at (636) 677-7727. When calling, ask for the city administrator, Mr. Seihie. If you are a citizen of Byrnes Mill, he can also give you the number of your alderman. The more calls they get, the more likely they are to finally wake up and realize that there is a problem.

Posted on January 13th, 2008 at 5:31 AM.

Elijah's Story: What Do They Have To Hide?

While the city of Byrnes Mill has continually insisted they have nothing to hide, while they have stood behind a police force which provokes disapproval from many in the town, while they have ignored complaint after complaint with little to no real change, wasting tax dollars as a farce to appease their constituency, and while they repeatedly emphasize the importance of their processes for citizens to express their upset, the same problems continue to occur as the town hall turns their head to a problem many would say might even have worsened. This is just one example of not only the town hall's neglect of real concerns expressed by the citizens but also of the abuse of power and the lengths they will go to, wasting your tax dollars, to hide what they have done.

On April 15th, 2007, Elijah was given two tickets by the Byrnes Mill Police--one for having an expired plate, the other for driving on an intermediate license after 1:00 am. The first issue regarding this incident is the ticket for driving on an intermediate license after 1:00 am. You will see that on the abstract of the court record regarding this ticket the time is stated as 1:00 am however on his copy of the ticket, the time say 12:10 am, showing that the cop realized his error and changed the evidence to cover his mistakes. The officer who pulled him over that night was Don Locke, son of the police chief, Ed Locke. We suggested to Elijah that he file a complaint against the officer since this is what has been determined by the aldermen as the most effective means of recourse. This, as you will see in the evidence below, also ended up as another futile effort against a city hall which only feigns concern for their citizens' welfare. Not only was this complaint deemed without warrant, but he found out also that there were no records of this by the new cameras which the city hall has decided to place in patrol cars. Why not? Because the officers can turn the camera on or off whether or not they deem it in their best interest. Again, efforts presented by city hall as those protecting the interests of citizens turn out to actually protect an already out-of-control police force. Another lie and another waste of YOUR taxpayer's dollars.

The second issue with this incident is Elijah's request for a copy of the tow ticket. Although he had his original copy of the tow ticket, the Citizens for a Better Byrnes Mill recommended that Elijah go up to city hall and request a copy of the ticket. He was denied. It is just a tow ticket and a simple request for a copy. So this raises the question: what exactly does this city hall have to hide? Not only did they deny his request, but this lead Elijah to file suit in order to obtain the copy and again resulted in a waste of your taxpayer dollars through attorney fees in order to quash the subpoena request, another document you can see below.

Finally, this past Christmas, on December 20th, 2007, Elijah was pulled over again, this time by the chief of police, Ed Lock Sr. and Dave Taylor. Elijah called Rich Ford that day as a contact for the Citizens of A Better Byrnes Mill and was forwarded to Linda Schroeder. Elijah was given a speeding ticket by Dave Taylor and claims that he was not speeding. While we do not know this to be true or false, we do know that Officer Taylor was very respectful. However, when Elijah asked to see the radar, Officer Taylor asked why. After Elijah informed him he did not believe he was speeding, the chief of police, Ed Locke, appeared and told him he did not have the right to see the radar gun and that if he wanted to, he could hire a lawyer and go to court.

Well, Elijah has taken Ed Locke's advice and with the help of Citizens for A Better Byrnes Mill, Byrnes Mill now faces another lawsuit that will waste taxpayers dollars because of the negligence and abuse of power that the city hall refuses to correct. Additionally, he has filed yet another complaint, the status of which is yet unknown. It is again that we must ask them, what do they have to hide?

Posted on January 13th, 2008 at 5:18 AM.

Photos from the Christmas Season

Below are photos from the canned goods drive. Enjoy!

Posted on January 13th, 2008 at 4:13 AM.

The Christmas Season

The Citizens for a Better Byrnes Mill would like to thank everyone who donated canned goods to our Christmas display at the Schroeder Farm. We donated two car loads of canned goods and $505.00 dollars to the Peace Pantry in Cedar Hill. We plan on making this a yearly event. Please visit the Peace Pantry and drop off canned foods all year long. These people are all volunteers and it is a blessing that we have such an opportunity like this in the community for those who are in need of help from time to time.

We would also like to thank the Lions Club for sponsoring the first annual Christmas parade. The Bonacker and the Schroeder families entered the parade and all of our members rode on the floats and handed out candy and coloring books, dressed up in costumes. We all had the best time. You could just see the joy in the all the children's faces. This was such a great event for the community and it just goes to show what can be accomplished when we work together. We as a committee know that you can buy your child the most expensive toy on the market. But in twenty years, when that child is grown up, he won't remember that to but he will remember the time his parents spent with him and his parents will remember the twinkle in his eyes as he wanted for Santa to come by in his sleigh.

God Bless Claudia, Karen, and all the volunteers who brought our fine cities of Byrnes Mill and House Springs together. Photos from the even will be posted soon so please check back.

Posted on January 12th, 2008 at 10:48 PM.

How Can You Help?

Citizens for a Better Byrnes Mill has hired civil rights attorney, Stephen M. Ryals, as legal aid for the organization. He would like every one who spoke at the town hall meeting to personally e-mail him their story. If you know of someone who has a story from their encounter with the Byrnes Mill Police, please have them e-mail to Steve as well. His e-mail is ryals@rslawstl.com.

If you are unable to e-mail, you can also send your story to our address: Citizens for a Better Byrnes Mill, PO Box 326, Cedar Hill, MO 63016.

It is especially helpful if you are someone who's vehicle has been towed by the police and Northwest Towing. We would also like to request a copy of the receipt - DO NOT SEND ORIGINALS.

If you no longer have a receipt, however, your story is still needed. We are also looking for people whose vehicles or property was searched, people who where verbally abused, the ladies that witnessed accident with the police car on Highway 30.

YOU CAN HELP US!!!!!!

Additionally, we are also looking for donations for the legal fund-anything is much appreciated. They can be sent to Citizens for a Better Byrnes Mill LLC, PO Box 326, Cedar Hill, MO 63016.

You can contact Stephen at his e-mail and additionally, you can speak with group representatives Richard Ford at 636-285-2564, Linda Schroeder at 636-274-3555, and Wayne Bonacker at 314-560-6279.

Most importantly, please pass the word about this website.

Also, we will soon be selling t-shirts and bumper stickers to raise awareness of our cause.

Posted on September 9th, 2007 at 5:45 AM.