Alabama lawmakers considering more legislation at expense of crime victims
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Eye on Politics
Paul DeMarco
This past week was National Crime Victims’ Rights Week. Those who have been crime victims and their families were honored at a vigil in Montgomery at the Alabama Attorney General’s Office, as well as other sites around the state. Unfortunately, around the corner, the Alabama Senate had just passed legislation that was not in the best interest of crime victims.
The bill (SB 312) would change the dynamics of parole board hearings by creating a right for inmates to participate and be heard and seen in parole hearings by video. Right now inmates are interviewed by institutional parole officers and have the right to have an attorney and others to advocate in person at hearings for their release.
All of this has been done to ensure that inmates have their positions heard, without compelling victims to face or have to hear those inmates convicted of their crimes against them or have to correct misstatements or allegations made by those inmates.
It is both physically and emotionally difficult for a crime victim to have to attend a parole board hearing to plead with the board not to release a convicted felon who has not served their full sentence. It is hard enough for victims to face those who perpetuated their crimes during trial to get a conviction, but now the victims will have to fight to have these felons serve their sentences in prison since many criminals receive significant reductions in sentences because of the state’s lack of truth in sentencing.
Knowing that the inmate will now be able to testify at the hearing will make some crime victims reluctant to attend these important hearings, and it puts the interests of inmates first. Of course, we hear about a shortage of prison guards, and now more time and effort will have to be spent to accommodate the logistics of the requirements of this new bill were it to become law.
While legislators move to give inmates more input at their parole hearings, it is done at the expense of crime victims and public safety.
Alabama citizens are looking to their lawmakers to keep them safe, not pass new laws so violent felons can argue their way back on the streets. And while this bill would give a new right to inmates, crime victims, prosecutors and law enforcement make much sacrifice of time and expense traveling to Montgomery to ensure that the parole board has a complete record of the reason behind the conviction and sentence of these inmates.
This bill and a slew of other proposed legislation before the Alabama Legislature are all part of an effort to effectuate change to get more inmates released by the parole board. All of this despite 80 percent of those in Alabama prisons there because of violent crimes.
Because of reforms to paroles passed in 2019 and the leadership of Board Chair Leigh Gwathney, each case has been considered relying on the facts of that case alone. Thus, crime victims and public safety are again paramount as opposed to the problems with prior boards.
Crime victims are rightly upset by this newest legislation that could pass in the waning days of this session.
It was a shame the Senate passed the bill, but hopefully the Alabama House of Representatives will not support this bill and do right for those who were just remembered this past week for what they have suffered as crime victims.
Paul DeMarco is a former member of the Alabama House of Representatives, chair of the Judiciary Committee and can be found on X, formerly Twitter, at @Paul_DeMarco.