Phillip Brown affectionately named his motorcycle Elvira: Mistress of the Night – a custom-built 2000 Harley Davidson adorned with vivid flames on the black tank and fenders, an abundance of chrome, and a robust $5,000 engine.
This motorcycle has now become the focal point of a two-count federal indictment filed in November against Anson Fenton, 46, the former Police Chief of Wayne City, in the southern district of Illinois. He is accused of selling forfeited or surrendered property for his own personal gain.
In Illinois, prosecutors can initiate a criminal forfeiture process to confiscate property, assets, and proceeds. Forfeiture is a civil procedure that stands apart from any criminal case. Prosecutors must convince a judge that the property was utilized in committing a crime or was acquired with illegal earnings to take control of it.
However, according to Brown, who has not held a driver’s license since 1977 and has over 20 driving under the influence convictions, the loss of Elvira was not due to a forfeiture case. Instead, he voluntarily surrendered the motorcycle to the Wayne City Police Department under a plea deal in an aggravated DUI charge, as he faced potential prison time as a repeat offender.
“They had me in a corner. They manipulated the legal system to undermine me,” Brown expressed.
State records indicate that the title for the motorcycle was never transferred to Wayne City; rather, it was sold directly to a private individual. Federal prosecutors allege that Fenton retained the money from the sale of the motorcycle.
Fenton and his attorney did not respond to requests for comment.
Phillip Brown’s motorcycle – which he named Elvira – is shown above. Brown surrendered the bike as part of a plea agreement in an aggravated DUI case. Former Wayne City Police Chief Anson Fenton has been indicted for allegedly selling it for personal profit. (Photo provided)
The surrendered vehicles
Although the surrender of the motorcycle was legally sanctioned and ratified by a local judge, the actions federal prosecutors allege Fenton took with the property were unlawful.
Elvira is among three surrendered motorcycles noted in the indictment against Fenton. The other two include a 2022 Suzuki Hayabusa and a 2017 Harley Davidson. Illinois Secretary of State records reveal that these vehicles belonged to two other individuals from Wayne County.
According to state records, Christopher Cunningham was the listed owner of the Hayabusa. He was charged with felony aggravated fleeing and misdemeanor reckless driving in 2022 but later pleaded guilty to exceeding the speed limit by 26 to 34 mph.
As a component of his plea agreement, Cunningham consented to surrender his motorcycle to the Wayne City Police Department in March 2023. Tragically, Cunningham passed away in a motorcycle accident just six months after this agreement.
Federal prosecutors allege that Fenton bartered Cunningham’s motorcycle for a 1991 Ford Mustang. State records indicate that the motorcycle was titled in Virginia in 2023 and subsequently in Maryland.
The 2017 Harley Davidson was previously owned by Jacob Woolever, a business owner in Fairfield. He was charged in 2020 with multiple felonies, including aggravated fleeing and driving under the influence. In 2022, he entered a guilty plea for fleeing from a police officer, a misdemeanor.
Woolever also agreed to surrender his motorcycle as part of a plea deal in April 2022.
According to the indictment, Fenton sold Woolever’s motorcycle. State records reveal that it was transferred to an individual in Illinois and then later registered in Indiana.
Woolever chose not to comment on the matter.
In addition to his role as the Wayne City police chief, Fenton started working with the Wayne County Sheriff’s Office in August 2016. His current status there is uncertain, but as one of his pre-trial release conditions, he is prohibited from carrying a firearm. Sheriff Chris Otey did not respond to requests for comment.
Overall, the indictment claims that Fenton received over $10,000 in benefits from the vehicles surrendered by Cunningham, Brown, and Woolever. He is slated to stand trial for these charges in March.
A court document displays the items Phillip Brown consented to surrender as part of his plea agreement with prosecutors in an aggravated DUI case. Former Wayne City Police Chief Anson Fenton has been indicted for allegedly profiting from the sale of a motorcycle surrendered by Brown. (Wayne County court order)
‘Financial interest for prosecutors’
While prosecutors argue that Fenton’s supposed actions constitute legal violations, advocates pushing for reforms in criminal forfeiture laws assert that the statutes governing forfeiture present opportunities for exploitation.
In Illinois, the connection between the crime and the property in forfeiture cases can be tenuous, according to Ed Yohnka, spokesperson for the American Civil Liberties Union of Illinois. Prosecutors claimed that the vehicles submitted in these three cases were involved in criminal activities, yet instead of initiating a civil action to seize the vehicles, they opted to have the defendants surrender them as a part of a plea arrangement.
Kevin Kakac, the former Wayne County State’s Attorney who was in office when the three defendants finalized their agreements, responded in 2021 to written inquiries from a Capitol News Illinois reporter who was investigating forfeitures in the county, including Brown’s motorcycle, three years prior to the federal indictment.
In an email, Kakac stated that Brown surrendered the vehicles as part of a deal that resolved his criminal cases, describing it as a “bargain for exchange.” Kakac retired as state’s attorney in Wayne County in November.
Judge Michael Molt, who approved the deal, also retired in November.
Kyle Ellis, appointed to succeed Kakac, provided copies of the plea agreements demonstrating that Cunningham, Brown, and Woolever signed over their vehicles, but he did not comment on whether he would continue this practice during his time in office.
While this procedure is legal in Illinois, Yohnka expressed concerns from the ACLU’s standpoint.
“This practice establishes a financial incentive for prosecutors and law enforcement in the criminal proceedings that wouldn’t otherwise exist,” Yohnka noted.
Vehicles seized through a court order must be utilized by law enforcement for operational activities or sold to support them. Defendants have a period of 28 days to challenge a forfeiture in a criminal case.
In contrast, the disposition of surrendered vehicles is less clear. Unlike forfeited vehicles, they are not reported to the Illinois State Police, and there is no established legal process for reclaiming the property without re-opening the criminal case.
“Unlike civil forfeitures, these kinds of forfeitures don’t allow for an appeal. There is no procedure for it without overturning the entire plea agreement,” Yohnka stated.
Brown recounted his unwillingness to serve a lengthy sentence and indicated he felt coerced into accepting the deal proposed by the prosecutors. This agreement required the surrender of both his cherished Elvira and a 1997 Mercedes with merely 62,000 miles on it.
While he was seated in the Wayne County Jail, they brought him the vehicle titles to sign, Brown claimed. State records show that the Mercedes’ ownership was transferred to the Wayne County Sheriff’s Office in March 2021.
It took three years for the auction of Brown’s Mercedes to occur, which happened right after his release from prison. Brown is friends with the person who purchased it and has seen the vehicle parked in his friend’s driveway.
Elvira was passed on to a third party and subsequently sold and titled in Indiana.
Brown holds little hope of seeing the motorcycle again, although he had painted a message in orange flames on the rear fender that he wishes will one day materialize: “CU L8TER.”
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