Why hasn't Moonshiners star Tim Smith been arrested? Is the show real?

Why hasn’t Moonshiners star Tim Smith been arrested? Is the show real?

Dec, 30, 2011 | AUTHOR: Asa Hawks; | Related : Moonshiners, Tim Smith

With Moonshiners, Discovery Channel has yet another huge reality show hit on its hands. In the spirit of such gritty profession series as Deadliest Catch, Axe Men, and Ice Road Truckers, Moonshiners adds an extra spicy ingredient to the recipe: illegality.

The big star of the show is moonshiner Tim Smith of Climax, Virginia, who walks viewers through the complex and stressful process of finding a location, building a still, and brewing moonshine – all while looking over his shoulder for the police and Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control agents (like Moonshiners co-star, agent Jesse Tate).

Virginia Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control has made a statement to the Associated Press that states that a crime is not taking place on the show because it is a dramatization, and no illegal liquor is being produced.

“If illegal activity was actually taking place, the Virginia ABC Bureau of Law Enforcement would have taken action.”

^ Tim Smith (center), son JT (left) and pal Tickle

Tim Smith reveals a lot about his identity on the show, including the fact that he is Chief of the Climax Volunteer Fire Department, which seems to beg the question, why hasn’t Tim Smith been arrested? And is he actually making moonshine?

Though the question has yet to be answered definitively (thanks in large part I believe to the cast members’ contracts with Discovery Channel) there have been a couple interviews that seem to shed a little light on the subject.

The first interview was conducted by local ABC affiliate WSET reporter Heather Rosenbaum (More like Heather Rosenbomm nom nomm!) (She’s mighty fine) who spoke with both Tim Smith and Jesse Tate in addition to the show’s executive producer, Matthew Ostrom:

(Video may take a couple minutes to load)

UPDATE - It appears that WSET has deleted the clip

The revealing part of the interview is with Tate, who states quite clearly, “Nobody in the whole series was actually making any liquor, we wouldn’t allow that. If we knew somebody was making liquor they would have been in the next episode in handcuffs.”

That seems to answer the question, but Tim Smith did a phone interview with BourbonBlog.com‘s Tom Fischer that seems to hint that cameras did actually catch some outlaw moonshine brewin’:

Bourbon Blog: A lot of people have been asking us, they’ve been coming to our web site and they’ve been saying, “Is this really for real? Is this – are these people really moonshining? How are they doing this without getting arrested?” Is one of the questions that they’re asking.

[Tim chuckles]

Bourbon Blog: Now is that something you can answer?

Tim Smith: That’d be something I couldn’t answer.

[both laugh loudly]

Tim Smith: With the laws in Virginia, and I’m pretty sure around anywhere else, you must be witnessed and physical samples of the product you’re producing has to be taken and analyzed – and all of this has to go to a court of law, and then that arresting officer has to testify in a court of law that he did that.

Bourbon Blog: Right

Tim Smith: So how are you going to arrest me for moonshinin’ that I did five years ago? Moonshiners take a lot of precautions. And I would say professional moonshiners, you know? Professional moonshiners take a lot of precautions.

Bourbon Blog: But now people know who you are.

Tim Smith: Yeah, now I’m jumpin’ the fence. Now I’ve become, um, retired, OK? [chuckles] What I did yesterday doesn’t mean I’m going to do it tomorrow.

Either way, it sounds as though Tim Smith is retired from the illegal moonshining business. It also sounds as though Tim has a tight grasp on the law and my guess is that he worked with Discovery Channel producers (and their legal team) to bend the law as far as they could without breaking it. Now, whether that means Tim never actually made alcohol on camera or not, or he skirted arrest because law officers never saw anything in person, or Tim somehow managed to record all the footage five years ago and is exempt from arrest due to some sort of statute of limitations – that’s still unclear.

One thing that isn’t unclear is the fact that Tim Smith is a wonderfully charismatic guy with a really sharp head on his shoulders (which might be hard to pick up on for those who look down on his thick Southern/hillbilly accent) and that adds up to some seriously entertaining television! Where else are you going to see a one-lane bridge shotgun showdown?!? As a matter of fact, Moonshiners led all original cable programming Wednesday night with over 2.6 million viewers!

It should be interesting to see what Tim and Discovery Channel have planned for their sophomore season given that Tim has “retired.” I know I’ll be tuned it to whatever they come up with.

Moonshiners airs on Discovery Channel Wednesday nights at 10PM e/p.

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katie

I was wondering if you could fine anything about Tim’s assitant Tickle. I tune in to see him almost as much as Tim.
MissMakin

I like Tickle, he was s little bit tipsy during the 1st show, just some good ole boys!!!
http://discovery MS.Mousie

Love the show. I know reality doesn’t mean that. But it is a good show. I am sure they went into talks before all this started. I hope Tim can go legal. He’s not a bad looking man either.Good like Tim and Tickle.
- http://www.facebook.com/rick.killian.33 Rick Killian
  
  tickle is my favorite. not bad looking at all
Dennis

I know they’re just boiling water out there. I hope Tim really plans to go legal with moonshining, even though it’s all probably fake for entertainment value. It sure beats the stupid Dog the “bounty hunter” nonsense…
Dr. at Large

Tim needs to see a dermatologist about the cyst on his back. It can be removed in an hour but left unchecked it will continue to get larger. Over time it’s going to cause him some problems.
Tommy

There are a lot of smart folks in North Carolina and Virginia. Just because we talk slowly, don’t mean we think slowly! (grin)
- Jeremy
  
  Yeah, In Louisiana the show Swamp People trying to make us look stupid to America. Most are not, the only ones that talk and act that way, are the ones who in fact live by traditions. People are so stereotypical about where a persons from and how they act. Not all people in Louisiana talk and do as they do.
whitney

I <3 this show so much =) I cant get enough!
Beth

I love this show. Can;t wait for Wed nite to see the last show of the season. Loved it!
http://starcasm.net Harold

Love the show and i could watch it 24 hrs. aday
Patrick

Tim is the man. I hope the tradition continues. It’d be one less lost art of our great forefathers.

“If a law is unjust, a man is not only right to disobey it, he is obligated to do so.”
-Thomas Jefferson
Owner of a still and a hemp plantation. You’ve heard of him I’m sure.
- http://yahoo nathan
  
  George washington also owned a still
  - PatThe Rat
    
    George Washington was the first moonshiner!
    - Lieutenant Dan
      
      Moonshining was happening from the first settlers. Washington is not the first to shine, but he IS the reason it is illegal to distill any amount without paying taxes as a licensed distillery.
Patrick

also, TimSmithMoonshine.com tells his story
Kenneth

Dis is how we make the moonshine!
shiner

The footage from the show is a couple years old. At this point, if I’m is retired the law probably can’t due anything about his previous acts due to lack of evidence and maybe a statute of limitations. Also, not much is actually shown in the series. Its not a step by step manual on how to make shine. Did they ever really make any mash? Was it shine or water being poured into jugs? By leaving out some steps and not going into vast detail is the way to get the point across, make a show, and at the same time leave no pure evidence. Nothing they show on the series could have been used because they don’t show all steps and if you don’t have all the steps showing the production then was there ever really production? I’m not saying they didn’t make it but I also can’t say they did. It sure is tasty though.
LeadCrayon

You know, last I checked making moonshine is actually legal. There are several distilleries in this area that produce moonshine, and it’s regulated and sold just like any other spirit. The illegal part is the tax evasion.
- David
  
  No. It is illegal to make it. You can not make a small batch for your own personal use. Like you can beer or wine. The ATF is very clear on this law.
Fill

They seemed to discretely skip the most time consuming aspect of making ‘shine… fermentation! At best, it takes at least a week and that’s with a ‘turbo’ yeast.
- Lieutenant Dan
  
  Just use champagne yeast. It is very quick and lives through some of the highest alcohol content. It’s what I use to make apple jack, which is technically legal since there is no still, just a freezer.
- Chico
  
  They say on the show that the corn is left to ferment. They don’t say how long because that is part of the process not mentioned, so no one can duplicate what they are doing. Do you want them to include hours and hours of footage of corn fermenting?
moonshine fan

Maybe hes just making ethanol. Totally legal to make with a permit as fuel.
caleb

Moonshine doesn’t need to ferment ass hat!
- youAreWrong
  
  you are wrong. Any alcohol uses yeast to ferment a sugar source which then produces alcohol. With whiskey, the alcohol is then extracted through the process of distillation.
- Ben from Atlanta
  
  I believe you are thinking of aging. Moonshine doesn’t need *aging*, but to produce alcohol of any kind – be it in wine, beer, whisky, rum, vodka or motor fuel you must use a fermentation process to turn the sugars into alcohol.
  
  Following up on “YouAreWrong” – you would be more correct to say that with *spirits* (not just whisky) alcohol (and flavors and some water) are separated using distillation after sufficient fermentation (mashing).
- Beergoggles
  
  RE:
  ———————
  ” caleb says:
  January 9, 2012 at 1:44 am
  Moonshine doesn’t need to ferment ass hat!”
  ———————
  Good luck trying to make it without fermenting the wash first. After distilling You’ll end up with water in your bottles and a sugary sludge in the mashtun.
  And zero alcohol!
  In your own words: ” ass hat! ”
  
  Perhaps you were taken in by the episode where they add extra sugar two hours before a pickup to boost the alcohol content. Not possible! Basic chemistry!
  This proves that although entertaining, the show is simply a made up docu drama.
paul

well i dont see anyone else out there being the fire chief so no one should be talking about tim in a bad way we should cheer him on cause he is out there helping the community. what he does on his on time is his business. you saw on the show that he left during the process of getting the still site set up to go to a fire call. so obviously we can see that he has his priorties right. i think its good that he has the balls to go legit and i would invest in it with him
Dill Doe

@Patrick – That quote has been incorrectly attributed to Jefferson. There is no source of evidence that shows he ever said or wrote that.
Better luck next time.
- Kinsey
  
  Except he did actually say it. It’s a paraphrase from the declaration of independence. Fifth sentence. Better luck next time.
Bob

Is it just me or does Tim look like the long lost twin brother of Spartacus actor Craig Parker?
glockstr

It is a shame that when you pay off the government you can do “illegal” things yet when you fail to give the tribute your an outlaw.
YakeeHanky

The shear fact that this garbage is on the discovery channel disgusts me.
- ava
  
  Go watch Honey Boo Boo. I’d rather watch Moonshiners.
Just a thought

I don’t know why moon shining is against the law. It is a heritage that is passed down from generation to generation. The narrator keeps saying “does not pay taxes.” Do you realize how many people work under the table. moon shining is just like that. I don’t know how it can be rationalized that a police officer killed someone because they made alcohol. How is making alcohol against any commandment except that it is a man made law which is not the same.
- Damn Yankee
  
  Moonshine made incorrectly causes death.
- meh
  
  Poor comparison. Working under the table is also illegal. With you on the rest though.
- Chico
  
  It’s illegal because the government can’t tax it if it’s made in secret. It’s the same reason marijuana is illegal. Anyone can grow and sell it. Prescription meds harm more people than moonshine and marijuana, but if it can be taxed, then it is legal. It’s not about public safety, but about revenue.
http://twitter.com/hardtohandle hardtohandle

Tim’s inherited a lot of equipment, but if he were running anything other than water through his systems, they’d have arrested him long ago. It’s all for tv.
E Messer

The holier than thou that thinks they should be jailed needs to clean out their own closet. People lie,steal,and commit adultery all the time and look at someone like Tim and act better than him. It’s B.S. If you don’t like it don’t watch it!
Twins Alert

Tim looks like Jeremy Renner. Compare their photos. Its crazy similar.
stacks

the law doesnt event collect revenue enough to pay their salaries with all this nonsense so whats the sense
Stacks

it’s a total set up. The law allows Tim to produce to dramatize the show but there is no secret pick up guy or guys. The law picks it up even if its water and who know whether or not its water. The law knows Tim is Cheif of Fire Dept. and that car he drives would stand out like a sore thumb. Just another show playing on the stupid public. Ill still watch it though cause Tickle being drunk all the time is quite amusing
Alabama Girl

so because someone has a southern accent they aren’t ….”sharp” ?
Levi

Dang Yankees…
- Melanie
  
  Oh now…don’t take what YakeeHanky says to heart. He/she can’t even spell Yankee lmao!
Dumb hillbillies…

There is no way the show is legit. Those clowns have been digging under that stage for 2 years on public property… Not only that, but they have this stuff on film. That is more than probably cause and evidence to arrest and prosecute them all…
- PatThe Rat
  
  How is videotape going to prove he was making moonshine and not just boiling a pot of water? Just like if you are smoking something on video – how could anyone prove you were smoking tobacco or marijuana? It’s simply not possible to differentiate – thus, no way to prosecute.
  - Lieutenant Dan
    
    Google “Plum Hollow Festival”
    Go the the official page
    Look at images from the 2010 festival. One of the stage in particular.
    
    There is nothing under that stage, and it is a different stage than the one depicted on the show.
    
    Either they are faking at least that part or they are digging under the “old stage” from the 70′s when the festival started.
- Richard
  
  KInd of agree. I’m of southern blood and nobody I know is as foolish as these characters make themselves out to be. It’s like the real Mafia. You don’t know who the real ones are because they are too smart an covert to let anyone know. Anonymous is safe in the underworld. Notoriety means doom.
Moonshiner kicker

Yeh typical “Redneck”. Moonshining is a covert secret thing like making crack. But Tim thinks I know to stay off the radar ill make a tv show, show people were I live work and who my friends and family are, the show people how to break the law and make Moonshine!!!! Go figure, talk about thick as pig shit. Poor tickles moonshined his brains away. He must be close to becoming the village idiot. lol
Great Show I Love It !!!!!
Paul

My understanding is that it’s illegal to even possess a still in West VA? So, perhaps it doesn’t even take place there?
NYCBeacher

I love the show, real or not. Plus Tickle’s cute !!
Roman

Don’t worry my fellow country men from NC and Louisiana, I am from Minnesota where they think we all hail from Fargo and are basically frozen hicks, but to a point those very attributes give us identity. People think that they are so different until finally they realize we are all the same.
alreltney

The whole cable channel is full of shit and total lies. It should be banned by the FCC or full disclaimers released that this is all scripted and fake and no one is breaking the law. What is happening once again is the NO LIFE AMERICAN PUBLIC are making a bunch of nobody’s wealthy and popular for doing nothing but acting. This country is full of pathetic no life sons of bitches that have nothing better to do than watch actors pull wool over their no life eyes. This goes for every one of the so called reality shows. What a country. How to milk the ignorant public out of money is what they should put on there.
- Gotchaunderstand
  
  Damn you go
  - Gotcha understand
    
    No offense I have worked my ass off paid a shit load of taxes. N now I need a little help but no I don’t have 10 kids. N I get no help. I amiable been just able to give Don’t understand
- intolerantofignorance
  
  Ya, because we never make anybody else wealthy or popular for doing nothing but acting. I’d watch Tickle before Tom Cruise any day. As for the, “NO LIFE AMERICAN PUBLIC,” you’re the one posting about a show you don’t even like. Idiot.
Gotchaundersatand

Hello anyone new
Gotchaundersatand

Hello
http://twitter.com/4life2is0good Wayne Earls

I thought just having a still in possession was illegal..
- Lieutenant Dan
  
  Nope. It is illegal to have a still and fermenting mash in the same spot, but not to simply own a still. Same reason you can go buy growlights and hydroponic solution legally.
Tennessee

He hasn’t been arrested because of the laws that apply to moonshiner arrests. He has to be caught by police doing it, then the shine has to be tested and confirmed. The arresting officer has to testify in court. If these three things don’t exist there can be no arrest no matter what you see on video.
fromgeorgiaandproud

Looking down on someone because they have a southern accent is about as effective as trying to look down on a skyscraper from ground level.

You’re dillusional, thankfully the only people who seem to have a problem with southern accents live on the internet. I wonder why we never meet any of these guys face to face?
Al

When Jim Tom spits the shine in the fire and flails up as if it where gas, well that is alcohol my friends.
- Lieutenant Dan
  
  Ever heard of pouring legal liquor into another container? Not the best evidence that it wasn’t faked.
Chico

He hasn’t been arrested because Virginia authorities haven’t caught him. They’re just saying that he isn’t really making moonshine and that it’s a dramatization so they won’t look incompetent for not catching him.
Chico

That’s just PR so they won’t look incompetent for not finding anyone in the act of making moonshine and arresting them for it.
http://www.facebook.com/ty.dahmer Ty Dahmer

I keep watching the show because I live not too far away in VA and I’m trying to figure out where I might be able to pick up some of Tim’s “water”.
http://twitter.com/JackThomasAZ Jack Thomas

He hasn’t been arrested because the VABC are a bunch of idiots. Why are these morons carrying guns? The “agents” should be stocking shelves and beer cooler at the local ABC store.
Richard Lemasters

God Bless and protect all of our Patriotic Moonshiners. And to Hell with all federal revenuers where ever and whoever they may be. We need to hang a few of them back in the swamps and deep woods they got no business sticking their greedy over reachin’ noses into. Let then go stic their noses into the Mexican Drug Cartels, the illegals crossing our souther borders and illiicit human trafficking rather than the customs and practices of original American Traditions. Screw the Communist Democrats and hang ‘em all!
Waffle247

This show is so fake! It says it in the blurb! Dramatization does not mean documentary, it means it is all staged to depict the subject matter. If any of this was real the producers of the TV show, all the people involved and Discovery Channel would be under investigation by the police and the police officers on film would be suspended pending investigation.