We hear the term "human trafficking" almost every day in the news. What does it really signify? It can mean either forcing someone into providing labor or sexual favors. Often it's the victim's own family members who commit these crimes. This is the case of Bobby Joe Speegle who sold his teenage daughter into sexual slavery.
Bobby Joe, one of four children, was born into a Tuscumbia family during the nation's bicentennial. That may sound like an auspicious start in life, but in reality Bobby's parents soon divorced, and he and at least one of his brothers often ran afoul of the law.
In 2012, Speegle was living in a small camper at Muscle Shoals Trailer Park on Wilson Dam Road. He was reportedly well known to his neighbors who suspected the then 36 year-old park resident of dealing in meth. When several residents heard an explosion one Saturday afternoon in early June, they immediately thought of Bobby Joe and his impromptu meth cooks.
Several calls to authorities soon brought numerous law enforcement personnel to the scene. There they found Speegle attempting to clean the soot and ammonium nitrate debris from his living quarters as a second man ran into a wooded area behind the trailer park. While the police were still taking in the scene, Bobby Joe's girlfriend arrived and soon admitted she had purchased the pseudoephedrine needed to concoct the meth. While the second man eluded officers, they did find evidence of a one-pot cook and receipts for chemicals that he had hidden in the thick vegetation.
Bobby Joe Speegle was now in a lot of trouble. Muscle Shoals authorities found that Speegle had a warrant in that city for failing to appear in municipal court. He spent the rest of the weekend in the town's small jail before being transferred to the county's facilities where he was charged with his drug crimes.
After spending five months in the Colbert County Jail, Speegle was convicted of the crime of manufacturing methamphetamine. A judge sentenced the hapless meth maven to 18 months in the state prison system, and Bobby Joe was soon on his way to Kilby Correctional Facility in Montgomery. He remained in the correctional system until December 1, 2013.
Once home, Speegle made little to no attempt to stay away from drugs, despite having a young daughter. Indeed, Speegle was destined to become a parent who brought unimaginable evil upon his child.
In November 2018, Bobby Joe Speegle was again living in Muscle Shoals, again heavily into drugs, and again broke. Then he met a 32 year-old Sheffield drug dealer who was willing to talk trade. What did this enterprising street pharmacist want in exchange for his wares? Bobby Joe's 17 year-old daughter.
Authorities say that on November 14th, Speegle provided the young teen with a drugged drink. He is alleged to have then taken her to the Sheffield home of his drug dealer. The teen's next memory is waking up to the brutal realization that she was in a strange home being raped.
After managing to escape, the teenager submitted to a sexual assault examination in a local hospital. A Sexual Assault Nurse Examiner was familiar with the custom of tattooing sex traffic victims and checked the victim specifically for this type of marking.
Black light tattoos show up when the light is projected onto the tattooed area. Below is an example of a hand tattooed with black light ink:
The SANE was shocked to find that the young teen's inner thigh had been marked with an inscription describing her as the property of the drug dealer.
Authorities now arrested Bobby Joe Speegle on charges of Promoting Prostitution and Providing False Information to Law Enforcement. Due to the nature of his crime, Speegle was initially held in the Morgan County Jail for his own safety. He ultimately pleaded guilty to the charge of Promoting Prostitution and was sentenced in March 2022 to ten years in the state prison system.
Speegle is currently in the Limestone Correctional Facility with a release date of 10/17/24, Upon his release, he will be required to register as a Sex Offender. Will he then return to the Shoals? Since Bobby Joe has both immediate and extended family in the area, it's indeed likely that he will.
The public will be watching...
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