Prosperity During the Depression
Phenix City's location, on the banks of the Chattahoochee River and the Georgia-Alabama state line, made it a safe haven for criminals. During Prohibition, Phenix City provided a major source of illegal liquor for residents of prosperous Columbus, Georgia, just across the river. Phenix City's gamblers, prostitutes and drug dealers enticed soldiers training at nearby Ft. Benning.

The Heros
Sunday school teacher Hugh Bentley avoided the rough side of Phenix City, like many others in town. While attending a business convention in Chicago, he discovered that his hometown's seamy reputation preceded him. Bentley felt the heat of an intense shame overtake him and returned home to form the Russell Betterment Association (RBA) with the guidance of attorney Albert Patterson. Risking their families, businesses and their own lives, the members of the RBA met in secret and fought to free their town of vice.

The Price
In 1954, Albert Patterson ran for attorney general on the platform "a man against crime." The night Patterson won the election an assassin took his life. Weeks passed and locals thought the investigation stalled. As tempers rose, the National Guard marched in arresting hundreds of people under Martial Rule.

The Film Project
50 years later, Phenix City Confidential is look back at a story that is as relevant today as it was in 1954.