A class-action lawsuit alleges that a sheriff in Iowa created a devious scheme to take money from people accused of crimes and keep it for his department.

According to the lawsuit, before they could get out of jail, people were forced to sign a document agreeing to pay for the cost of their own incarceration.

But instead of only spending that money on the jail, the sheriff diverted 40% of the money to fund his own office.

–including a state of the art shooting range, laser tag for employee parties, and rented cotton candy machines

IJ is challenging a similar scheme in Brookside, Alabama where the small town police department has cashed in on similar self-funding by ticketing and towing drivers.

There the police force for a town of just 1,300 people, bought a tank,  shiny new SUVs, and military style uniforms, all on the backs of residents and people passing by on the interstate.

But using the justice system to enrich law enforcement is unconstitutional. That’s true in Brookside and it’s true in Iowa.  

That’s why IJ has filed a brief supporting the challenge to the sheriff’s money making scheme.  

IJ can’t take on every case, but we can offer our support to worthy efforts to protect rights and move the law in the right direction.

Only the government could spend 20 years creating a national ID that no one wanted and that apparently doesn't even work as a national ID.

But that's what the federal government has accomplished with the REAL ID, which the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) now considers unreliable, even though getting one requires providing proof of citizenship or lawful status in the country.

In a December 11 court filing, Philip Lavoie, the acting assistant special agent in charge of DHS' Mobile, Alabama, office, stated that, "REAL ID can be unreliable to confirm U.S. citizenship."

The Florida Supreme Court declined to hear the case of Lantana resident Sandy Martinez, who was challenging the sky-high fines for minor infractions issued to her by the city. The $165,000 that Sandy owes is a result of daily fines the city assessed for harmless property code violations. Most of this amount—more than $100,000—is a result of the way Sandy’s family parked their cars on their own property. Sandy was represented by the Institute for Justice (IJ), a nonprofit law firm that defends property rights nationwide.

“Six-figure fines for parking on your own property are shocking. The Florida Constitution’s Excessive Fines Clause was designed to stop precisely this sort of abuse—to prevent people from being fined into poverty for trivial violations,” said IJ Senior Attorney Ari Bargil. “The court’s refusal to hear Sandy’s case and clarify the constitution’s protections from run-away government fines is a disservice to all Floridians.”

Thousands of U.S. cities now use automated license plate reader (ALPR) cameras.

These cameras don’t just check a plate when there’s a crime or violation — they indiscriminately photograph every car that passes by, often capturing date, time, and precise GPS location, and store that information indefinitely.

The result: enormous databases tracking the real-time and historic movements of innocent people, with little oversight, transparency, or accountability.

👉 Learn more about the fight against warrantless and unregulated license-plate surveillance at PlatePrivacy.com.

Today's photo: Oostelijke Handelskade - quay | IJ (1901).

[EN] The IJ, viewed towards the west. Ships moored at Oostelijke Handelskade.

[NL] Het IJ Gezien naar het westen. Schepen aan de Oostelijke Handelskade.

Via https://020apps.nl/olie/random/ #Amsterdam #JacobOlie #OostelijkeHandelskade #IJ #sailingShip #steamship

IJ client Alek Schott was pulled over in Texas for allegedly “crossing the fog line,” then interrogated for 30 minutes before a dog supposedly alerted and a deputy ransacked his truck without a warrant. No drugs were found.

Since then, we have learned that Alek's stop had nothing to do with traffic: the deputy was part of a “criminal interdiction” unit created to roam highways and use traffic stops as an excuse to search cars.

George Retes, Jr. is a native Californian who enlisted in the Army while a young man, serving his country in Iraq. Wanting to see his kids grow up, he was honorably discharged and got a job as a security contractor in Ventura County, California.

In July 2025, George was on his way to his job site at a state-legal cannabis farm. As he approached the farm, he saw cars parked along the road and people standing around. Eventually he came to a line of immigration agents blocking the road.

He exited his car and asked the agents if he could get by so he could get to his job, but they refused to let him pass. He moved his car to let a group of armored cars and buses pass, but soon after officers deployed tear gas all around his car.

Officers approached his car, giving contradictory orders. In a moment, George’s window broke from agents constantly pushing on it. He was pepper-sprayed and dragged out of the car. George allowed the agents to apprehend him, relying on his Army training to remain calm. One agent put his knee on George’s neck. The other agent put his knee on George’s back. Once they tied George’s hands behind his back, the agents took George into custody, beginning an ordeal that would last for more than 72 hours.

George was held first on the farm, where he was separated from other detainees who were not citizens. He was then taken to a navy base, where the agents took his fingerprints, and his DNA. George was then moved to a detention center in Los Angeles. For the first day, he was not allowed to shower despite hurting from the pepper spray and tear gas covering his body. That first night he spent in absolute agony. He felt on fire.

The next morning, after a psychological exam, he was placed on suicide watch and held in isolation. Despite his repeated requests, George was not allowed to contact an attorney. When he was finally released, the government pressed no criminal charges and never told him why he had been detained. He missed his daughter’s third birthday celebration.

Now George has teamed up with the Institute for Justice and taken steps to sue the federal government under the Federal Tort Claims Act.

Today's photo: Buiksloterweg | IJ (1902).

[EN] The ferry from Buiksloterweg to De Ruijterkade. This Tolhuis ferry started operating in 1897.

[NL] Het pontje van de Buiksloterweg naar de De Ruijterkade. De Tolhuispont voer voor het eerst in 1897.

Via https://020apps.nl/olie/random/ #Amsterdam #JacobOlie #Buiksloterweg #IJ #CentralStation #ferry

Today's photo: De Ruijterkade - east | IJ (1898).

[EN] Ships moored at De Ruijterkade near Oostertoegang. The building on the left, 'De Zeevaart', built in 1884, is still there.

[NL] Schepen liggen aan de De Ruijterkade bij de Oostertoegang. Het gebouw links, 'De Zeevaart', staat er nog altijd. Het werd gebouwd in 1884.

Via https://020apps.nl/olie/random/ #Amsterdam #JacobOlie #DeRuijterkade #IJ #ChurchOfSaintNicholas #railwayViaduct

So, “IJ” is a diphthong — capitalised together therefore, and can have its own #unicode digraph — but the equivalence with “Y” existed until 1804 and has been deprecated since.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/IJ_(digraph)

#unicode #dutch #language #IJ #Y

George Retes, a U.S. citizen and Iraq War veteran, was detained by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and other federal agencies for three days and three nights.

George was never charged with a crime.

Now, he has taken steps to sue the U.S. government under the Federal Tort Claims Act (FTCA) for his unconstitutional detention—by submitting claims to the federal agencies involved.

George is represented by the Institute for Justice (IJ), a nonprofit public interest law firm that recently won an FTCA case at the U.S. Supreme Court.

Today's photo: Oostelijke Handelskade - quay | IJ (1895).

[EN] On the right, on Oostelijke Handelskade: warehouse Wilhelmina (1892) and warehouse Australië (1895). The ship was probably a Rumanian navy ship.

[NL] Rechts pakhuizen op de Oostelijke Handelskade: pakhuis Wilhelmina (1892) en pakhuis Australië (1895). Het schip was vermoedelijk een Roemeens marineschip.

Via https://020apps.nl/olie/random/ #Amsterdam #JacobOlie #OostelijkeHandelskade #IJ #sailingShip #rowingBoat

In 2012, Alaska bush pilot Ken Jouppi was preparing for a routine flight when troopers found beer hidden in his passenger’s luggage. The alcohol was banned in the destination village—but Ken didn’t know it was there. He was charged with a misdemeanor and convicted.

But the state wasn’t done with him yet.

The State of Alaska then spent thirteen years trying to take his $95,000 airplane—all over a six-pack of Budweiser. In 2024, the Alaska Supreme Court ruled the state could do just that.

Now, Ken and the Institute for Justice are asking the U.S. Supreme Court to step in and say enough is enough.

#amsterdam #IJ#noordzeekanaal #nightsky

Learn more at #^https://www.ij.org/pia

From the archive.
Fireworks written into the night using long exposure and intentional camera movement. Sail 2025 still echoing over the IJ. Which frame pulls you in?

#Fireworks #LongExposure #LightTrails #ICM #AbstractPhotography #NightPhotography #Amsterdam #IJ #Sail2025 #Harbor #EventPhotography #CanonR5MarkII #Photography #AMIR2000NLPhotography

Jennifer Heath Box was arrested on Christmas Eve 2022 after stepping off a cruise ship in Broward County. Deputies ignored obvious differences between her and the actual suspect — including age, height, eye color, and even social security number — and threw her in jail for three days.

Recently, a federal judge ruled that her lawsuit can move forward, and the officers are not protected by qualified immunity.