Or is it a case of the Foristell police force merely doing its job and enforcing the law? The answer to that question depends on your point of view. City officials maintain the police department is an extremely professional unit with a level of accountability higher than many other neighboring towns and cities in both Warren and St. Charles counties, in areas which flank Foristell. "I know what this department does" said Foristell Police Chief Doug Johnson, who has been with the city since 1997, "and I know how we do things here." Missouri Sen. John Griesheimer, R-Washington, refers to Foristell as an obvious speed trap which is "worse than an embarrassment to the state. "I don't know how the mayor and council allow them to continue to do that," Griesheimer said. "It is strictly a revenue generator and I will continue to do everything I can to put their sorry kiesters out of business." "That's his opinion," countered Johnson. "I disagree with him." The National Motorists Association (NMA) recently listed Foristell on its Web site as the state of Missouri's No. 1 speed trap. Griesheimer's issue with Foristell stems back to an incident in the late 1990s when his brother-in-law was driving a load of hogs through the town on Highway T. The veteran legislator said police stopped his brother-in-law and "harassed him unnecessarily," threatening at one point to jail him. "Foristell gives a black eye to every small city or town in the state," Griesheimer added. The numbers seem to support the argument that Foristell is a speed trap. The city employs seven full-time police officers in addition to Chief Johnson. It also has eight reserve officers. There are five police cruisers in the city fleet in addition to Johnson's car. That seems a staggering number of officers for a city the size of Foristell, population 350. By contrast, the city of Marthasville, with about 850 residents, employs only a police chief and one part-time officer. The city has two police cars. Records from Foristell show that in 2006, city police officers wrote more than 3,200 traffic-related tickets, generating about $285,000 in revenue for the city. Marthasville, meanwhile, issued only 144 citations during 2006 and 2007. The police chief said his office has written 59 traffic citations so far in 2008. The difference in tickets and fines collected is due, in large part by the fact that Foristell police patrol and enforce traffic laws along a portion of Interstate 70 that is inside the city limits. Marthasville, which sits along Highway 47 in southern Warren County, is miles from the interstate. Foristell officials estimate about 150,000 vehicles a day travel through the city on I-70. Griesheimer contends that Foristell is capitalizing on an unchallenged, but very lucrative, source of revenue. "That's not the way to do it, by harassing and fining people," he argued. "All they are interested in is the almighty dollar. Do you think their citizens are proud of that?" Foristell City Administrator Sandy Stokes, however, said city officials are proud of the performance of the police force and stand behind what they do. "We are out there upholding and enforcing the laws," she said, "which is what a police department is supposed to do. You can call us a speed trap if you want to, but we're going to continue to do this." Stokes said by her definition Foristell is not a speed trap. "To me, a speed trap is where you're going 55 and all of a sudden you enter the outskirts of a small town where the speed drops to 35," said Stokes. "Plus the chief of police is parked right there, waiting to catch you." She also refuted charges that speeding tickets are written in excessive numbers in Foristell. "Our officers also issue a lot of (written and verbal) warnings," she said. "And the majority of the time they don't give a driver a ticket unless that driver is doing 11 to 12 miles per hour or more over the posted limit. "We don't pull over people who go three or four miles over the limit," Stokes said, "although they are still speeding." Stokes said the police department frequently uncovers drugs in vehicles during traffic stops. City records obtained by The Record show 106 drug cases have been handled by the city of Foristell from January through the end of September this year. Those records also report 56 cases of driving while intoxicated, 131 drivers operating a vehicle with a revoked or suspended license and a total of 415 arrests. "Those arrests would not happen if the driver wasn't pulled over," said Stokes. "We are simply out there enforcing the laws." As a result, Foristell's traffic court is usually busy, with many drivers who receive tickets electing to hire an attorney to represent them. Just as busy during the day, however, is the city's traffic court for people who do not contest their tickets but merely pay a fine. "We do collect a lot of money," Stokes acknowledged. But she also said traffic court can tend to be a "daily experience for some of these people. It may be in St. Charles County or somewhere else, but they frequently see the inside of a courtroom." Griesheimer said he vehemently fought against a bill in the Legislature this year which would have increased the amount a municipality could charge for many violations, including speeding. "I held the bill up," said Griesheimer, "and when it passed, I made sure it had nothing to do with traffic fine amounts." Among his reasons for the battle was the prospect of further enhancing Foristell's ability to generate traffic fine revenue. "We don't live in a perfect world," he said. "People sometimes make mistakes and a place like Foristell obviously isn't where you want to ever make a mistake."