ALABAMA DEPT. OF PUBLIC SAFETY
October 28, 2004

This Alabama Dept. of Public Safety badge, probably made by Blackinton, shows up quite often at badge shows and on the collector auction websites. They show up as badges and as hat emblems.

This badge design was never issued by the department, although quite a few of members of the Alabama DPS have ordered this design as an “officer’s second” badge. This badge is a stock, standard die, and anyone with connections to a uniform company or police supply house could easily obtain one of these. The badge is seen both in the shell and solid back design, with the shell back being the most common.

During the years when Alabama issued a badge very close to this one in design, the issue badge had a copper seal. Copper seals were hard to come by for the repro makers, so they went to the full color state seal, as is shown.

Alabama badges of this design should be considered as reproductions. They should be valued for time and material only, making the badge worth somewhere between $35 and $45 dollars.

Our publication tells the secrets of telling a "department issue" badge from a fake or a reproduction. Should you encounter a badge that you have questions about, do send us a copy of the photos, front and back. This will
help us in our efforts of telling other collectors what is out on the market these days. Should you encounter a state patrol badge and have questions about it, send us a photo of the badge, back and front, and let us give you an opinion. Remember, it is your input that alerts us to the fakes and reproductions that are out there. Support this site by telling us of questionable badges. Our BADGE GUIDE will assist you in collecting only valid badges, and will advise on a bracket price for each state. 

ALABAMA DEPT. PUBLIC SAFETY
STATE TROOPER
July 16, 2004

There are several Alabama fake and reproduction badges on the collectors market these days, but so far, since going to the new custom die Blackinton badge, we have seen no repros of the current issue. There are, however, several different fakes and reproductions of the older badge.

Pictured in this report is the Orber Alabama. Under the guidelines and terms of the BADGE GUIDE, since this badge is really not all that close to the older Alabama DPS badge die, it doesn’t even rank as a “reproduction”. The value of this badge would be related only to the time and materials used to make it, and that would be very little. To a serious collector who is looking for the older Alabama Department of Public Safety “department issue” badge for his collection, I would term it as worthless.

The BADGE GUIDE offers pictures of the older Alabama DPS badges as well as the new, current issues. The older copper seal Alabama DPS badge is becoming quite collectible, as are the current issues. But, if you are a serious collector, don’t even pause to look at something like this for your collection.