Sam Amico
Martha Menefield, 82, failed to pay her bill for trash collection. So she got arrested. As an aside, the bill totaled $77. Yes, that was it. Some people don’t pay child support which amounts to tens of thousands of dollars and don’t get arrested. Yet, Menefield was handcuffed for 77 bucks.
Videos by Rare
The arrest occurred in Valley, Alabama, after the bill was sent to collection and Menefield failed to show up for a court date to handle it, the police chief said. So police had no choice but to follow the letter of the law and arrest her.
“I’m just happy my grandkids weren’t here to see that,” Ms. Menefield said tearfully, via CBS42. “That would have upset them. I was so ashamed. And it’s been bothering me.”
Martha Menefield Locked Up for Not Paying $77 Trash Bill
Menefield has lived in the same house for 30 years. She said she thought the bill had been paid, and that she never receive a letter to appear in court. Such notices are sometimes sent via certified mail, in which the recipient is required to sign to prove they saw it. This one reportedly was not certified.
Following the arrest, Menefield was placed in a small holding cell.
“I was in a little cage-like thing at the police station,” she said. “And I said ‘Y’all put me in this cage? You ought to be ashamed of yourself.’”
Again, the police defended themselves in a Facebook post.
“According to the Environmental Services Ms. Menefield has had her trash services suspended three times in the past two years for non-payment and records indicate that there have been over twenty-two incidents of suspensions and revocation of services since 2006,” the post read.
“While our officers can use their discretionary judgment on certain matters, the enforcement of an arrest warrant issued by the court and signed by a magistrate, is not one of them. Ms. Menefield was treated respectfully by our officers in the performance of their duties and was released on a bond as prescribed by the violation.”
