Volume
1 Issue 3- May 2001
Bill Pryor
"This legislative session offers the opportunity of improving the criminal justice system and making our schools and neighborhoods safer."
By Bill Pryor, Attorney General of Alabama
The Legislature is in session, and discussions of constitutional reform and education funding are the rage. I have an interest in a separate subject, however. As the chief law enforcement official of Alabama, my primary concern is punishing and reducing criminal behavior. In this legislative session, my office has drafted three bills to address high priorities in fighting crime: school safety, identity theft, and methamphetamine laboratories.
Safe Schools
For the last few years, I have worked to train school and law enforcement officials and reform the juvenile crime laws to promote school safety. We have made progress in this area. The Amendments to the Juvenile Information Act in 1999 allowed law enforcement officials more access to juvenile arrest records, such as fingerprints and DNA records, so that police and sheriffs can solve the crimes committed by repeat juvenile offenders. There is a missing element, however.
To promote the safety of teachers and students, school officials need better information about potential criminal activity by their students. Last year, a joint legislative committee on school violence, chaired by Senator Ted Little (D-Auburn), held hearings around Alabama that confirmed this need. Working with Senator Little, my office drafted amendments to our juvenile information law (S.B. 219 and H.B. 372) to share with key school officials information about the arrest of students for serious crimes. This legislation, which has the bipartisan sponsorship of Senator Little and Representative Albert Morton (R-Birmingham), also provides high confidentiality requirements to prevent misuse of this information. This legislation is also supported by the Alabama Education Association.
Identity Theft
On a second front, my office is working to reduce and punish one of the fastest growing crimes in America: identity theft. This crime occurs when someone steals the valuable, personal information of a consumer, such as credit card numbers or bank account information, for fraudulent purposes. Alabama does not currently have an identity theft law. My office drafted the Consumer Identity Protection Act (S.B. 144 and H.B. 123), which has the bipartisan sponsorship of Senators Lowell Barron (D-Fyffe) and Jabo Waggoner (R-Birmingham) and Representatives Mike Hubbard (R-Auburn) and Neal Morrison (D-Cullman), to remedy this problem. This legislation creates the crime of identity theft, provides stiff penalties, and allows consumer victims of this crime a civil action and a right to correct their credit reports. This legislation is supported by business organizations, such as the Alabama Retail Association, and consumer groups, such as the American Association of Retired Persons.
Meth Labs
Finally, one of the worst problems with illegal drugs involves the growing number of clandestine laboratories for the manufacture of methamphetamine (or meth), a highly addictive and dangerous drug. In 1997, Alabama narcotics officers reported finding three meth labs, but last year reported finding nearly 300 meth labs. My office, at the request of Senator Curt Lee (R-Jasper), worked closely with various law enforcement organizations to give narcotics officers better tools and stiff penalties to combat this problem. One feature of our legislation (S.B. 523 and H.B. 761) is to create the new crime of unlawful possession of anhydrous ammonia, an explosive ingredient of meth. This legislation is sponsored by Senator Curt Lee and Representative Ron Johnson (R-Sylacauga).
This legislative session offers the opportunity of improving the criminal justice system and making our schools and neighborhoods safer. The three bills described above represent answers to important problems of criminal behavior. I urge you to contact your Senator and Representative to urge their support of these bills.
(Editors note: Voter News Network supports these legislative proposals. Each has merit and will serve Alabamians well, if passed by lawmakers.)
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