This town in rural WV is along a heavily traveled highway (Rt 270) which is the only route between Interstate 79 and State Route 19 for several miles. A one mile stretch of the highway runs directly through the small town of less than 900 residents -yet West Milford has a full time police chief and two part time officers-thanks to federal grants. The "Chief" has a full-time civillian ‘daytime’ job and can ‘rarely be found’ in his office or on duty. The part timers are from the nearby larger city of Clarksburg WV Police Department and these cops ‘moonlight’. They operate out of "unmarked" jeeps and sedans. The actual city or business area comprises only one block…and contains a convenience store/gas station and a branch bank – yet the town council has annexed the entire mile and posted a 25mph limit it’s entire length. It is patrolled from 9am -12am…daily. City residents who break the law are given a pass, but those residing outside the city limits or out of state are given maximum fines. Some people have been ticketed for one to two miles over the speed limit. As you enter the town from the East and cross a bridge , unless you looked closely at a jumble of signs before crossing you wouldn’t know the bridge is within the city limits the cops sit at the western end of the bridge with a radar gun, look for cars or a silver jeep parked at the other end. They get you going West out of town there too, as people assume they are out of town and begin to speed up. As you travel on through the town and you pass a convenience store on your left, look for cars or a silver jeep near the branch bank on your right. Going East this location gives the cops a three block look at oncoming traffic. Once you pass the bank going West, most people wrongly assume they are "out of the town limits" and increase their speed. The cops also sometimes hide at the West end of a storage rental building on a side street near the end of the three block straightaway. Continuing West the road has several curves and looks not like a town, but a rural highway so again people speed up and it passes by a White church and cemetery on your right and another storage facility on your left. Look for cars or a silver jeep parked in these locations. There is a 90 degree turn and steep descent off of Rt 270 to it junction with Rt 19. There is a Stop sign located on Rt 270…in a ‘blind spot’…you cannot look back to your South while behind the stop sign…so most people pull through the sign to the edge of Rt 19 to look back before entering the highway. West Milford Cops give those who do tickets for running a stop sign.

If you see a car or a silver jeep, occupied, sitting on any of several side streets or alleyways – assume it’s a West Milford Cop. IF they pull you over don’t complain, keep your mouth shut – they will retaliate against those who ‘run their mouth’ – and have been known to search vehicles, removing everything in the car and leaving it on the ground for the driver to pick up, or to use threatening gestures and other intimidation tactics.

The town also has a reputation of being one of easiest places in the entire state to buy and sell drugs including heroin…but those activities are ignored while town cops operate radar guns. Why? The "Speed Trap" provides the town with a large portion of its annual revenue.