Rep. Laura Hall, D-Huntsville, walks across the floor of the Alabama House of Representatives on Feb. 12, 2026 at the Alabama Statehouse in Montgomery, Alabama. Hall is sponsoring legislation that would give the Alabama Board of Pardons and Paroles the ability to impose sanctions other than parole revocation for certain violations of parole terms. (Brian Lyman/Alabama Reflector)
An Alabama House committee is scheduled to consider a bill Wednesday that would allow the Alabama Board of Pardons and Paroles to use sanctions other than parole revocations for certain violations of parole terms.
HB 437, sponsored by Rep. Laura Hall, D-Huntsville, gives the parole board discretion to impose sanctions based on recommendations of parole hearing officers and consider the specific circumstances that people violate their parole. It also allows the parole board to reinstate parole for people if they are charged with a crime that is later dismissed, is acquitted at trial or the sentence results in a misdemeanor or criminal violation.
“This legislation will restore some fairness in the system by giving the board greater ability to levy just and appropriate penalties, consequences, especially for minor infractions,” Hall said at a press conference last week. “Prolonging these sentences, especially if they are minor violations, doesn’t necessarily make our communities safer or improve the inmate’s chance to succeed upon release.”
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HB 437 is the companion bill to SB 254, sponsored by Sen. Sam Givhan, R-Huntsville, which was approved by the Senate Judiciary Committee on Feb. 11. The bill has yet to voted on by the full Senate.
The legislation is meant to address parole revocations against former inmates who have successfully reentered society, sometimes for decades, only to be returned to prison for a violation.
According to a December report published by Alabama Appleseed, a criminal justice reform organization, Archie Hamlett, 53, was paroled from prison in 2017 after serving 22 years on a marijuana trafficking conviction. Hamlett managed to start a business after his release, but early last year, he was pulled over by police. Needing to relieve himself because of a medical condition, deputies refused to let him retrieve a urinal from his vehicle and he urinated beside his truck. He was later charged with public lewdness that was later dismissed by the prosecutor.
Hamlett’s parole was revoked and he returned to prison to serve out a life sentence.
Alabama Appleseed estimates that about 1,200 Alabamians are on supervised release for the rest of their lives, and can lose their freedom with the slightest violation.
“Representative Hall and Senator Givhan crafted a common-sense, nonpartisan bill that solves a problem faced by the Board for long time,” said Cam Ward in a statement on Monday, director of the Alabama Bureau of Pardons and Paroles. “This bill gives the Board more flexibility and discretion for handling unique situations on a case-by-case basis.”
According to the legislation, the parole board currently has some discretion for imposing sanctions for people who violate their parole conditions. The board has less discretion for people who were originally convicted of a violent crime, a Class A felony or a sexually-based crime, who oftentimes have their paroles revoked to serve the balance of their sentences.
The bill states that the parole board will revoke parole for people who are charged with another felony offense, for having a firearm or for “absconding” the jurisdiction of the parole board. Parole can also be revoked if the parole board believes it is necessary after a misdemeanor charge, criminal violation or if the person commits other violations.
For other offenses, the parole board may order that an individual be detained for 45 days at a residential facility or a jail based on the circumstances of the individual.
If the person on parole is charged with a crime that was dismissed, acquitted at trial or was sentenced to a criminal violation, the parole board may immediately or have the person be scheduled for a hearing within 90 days.
“This bill is very straightforward, it simply gives discretion to the experts on the parole board to evaluate all the circumstances in a revocation consideration, rather than being forced to revoke people who are contributing to Alabama’s workforce and are no danger to the public,” said Carla Crowder, executive director of Alabama Appleseed, a nonprofit whose work is focused on reforming the state’s criminal justice system.
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Author: Ralph Chapoco