Lawmakers pre-file bill that would allow Attorney General or Governor to appoint interim police chief under certain conditions in municipalities
Violent crime has been on the rise in Montgomery and in some other cities across Alabama. Now two state lawmakers have written a bill that would authorize the Attorney General or the Governor to appoint an interim police chief in troubled municipalities. Representative Reed Ingram is one of the sponsors who has pre-filed a bill that would allow the state to intervene if a city’s crime gets above a certain percentage. Other requirements that would have to be met include the police force employing 30 percent fewer officers than in the preceding ten years. Ingram says this would be similar to what happens when a school system is failing and the state takes over.
The interim police chief would be considered an officer of the state and not be subject to the authority of the mayor, city council, or other official of the municipality. “This would be a tool that the cities could use. It’s not something that’s punishing the cities. This is an opportunity for us to be able to help them to be able to manage their police department when they can’t find the right kind of people. So, what this would do, is we would step in, we would bring some people from ALEA or have the opportunity for a sheriff to step in if that’s what would work for that municipality and we would manage it and help them manage it along with the mayor,” said Ingram. The state legislature has adjourned this year, and the next legislative session where this bill could possibly come up would be in 2025.
