Pictures Jeff Schrier | The Saginaw News

One cop in the town of Saginaw, Michigan, has a pretty sweet patrol car, thanks to a young local drug dealer that had a run in with the law. Sheriff William Federspiel confiscated the car over two years ago in January of 2010 and has been using the black Mustang GT ever since. It has, “taken from a local drug dealer” on the side of the car to spread the word to both citizens and drug dealers.

Some reactions to the car have been negative when citizens assume that such an “expensive” car was bought for the Sheriff using tax dollars. However, when they see the door sporting the phrase, “taken from a local drug dealer”, attitudes generally change. Since it has been confiscated, tax payers don’t pay for fuel, maintenance, oil, or anything else that has to do with this car.

With gas price average being $4.00 per gallon, it’s a gamble not knowing when the next jump in price will be and a balanced budget is needed each year for the Saginaw department. A drug forfeiture fund helps the Sheriff pay for the cost and is a helpful source and not having to rely on any tax money.

“The Mustang saves money. It’s a cost saver. I drove the oldest car in the fleet for the first year I was sheriff, but the people had to pay for my fuel and oil. They don’t have to pay for anything with the Mustang. Drug dealers pay for it,” Federspiel said.

Federspiel likes the car because it stands out and lets people know that he’s out and about if needed. Not only does it send a message out to the citizens, but to the drug dealers; prized possessions can and most likely will be confiscated if need be.

There was a poll where people were able to vote about the car. Out of 550 people, 54% or 299 voters said they liked him having the car being easily identifiable and sending a message that there are consequences when breaking the law, 19% said that they wouldn’t like him using it since it would also substitute as his personal vehicle (Should that matter?). The other option was, “The sheriff should consider selling the car to use the money for anti-drug enforcement,” which gained 20% of the votes.

If the GT does get the boot, it will probably be auctioned off locally or thrown on eBay like Saginaw uses to sell the other cars leaving the fleet.