Alabama House Speaker Nathaniel Ledbetter, R-Rainsville, said Thursday a bill package designed to address crime in the state will be among the first matters addressed in the coming 2025 legislative session.
Speaking at a Montgomery Area Chamber of Commerce event, Ledbetter said the package of bills would “come out pretty quick” into the session, which begins Feb. 4, and that it would include measures to increase law enforcement hiring and retention and potentially expand crime suppression group programs throughout the state, among other things.
“The police officers have been beat to death; it’s time we started backing them and quit dogging them, and I think you’ll see from the state’s standpoint this year,” Ledbetter said to applause. “We’ll come out with a strong package that shows that we appreciate what they do for us.”
Shortage of police officers
A number of Alabama’s larger cities are currently experiencing a shortage of police officers; Birmingham is more than 220 officers short as of last October, and Montgomery, around 200 officers. Coupled with rising instances of gun violence in some of the state’s metro areas, particularly Birmingham, calls to recruit more law enforcement have increased in recent years.
One measure state leaders have taken to address rising gun violence and short-staffed police departments is the creation of the Metro Area Crime Suppression Unit in Montgomery, a coalition of federal, state and local law enforcement officers. Making the unit permanent, and potentially expanding it to other cities, was another potential inclusion in the legislative package, Ledbetter said.
“That task force has done such a good job, I think we’re going to make it permanent, and not only will it be permanent here (in Montgomery), we can use it in Birmingham, Mobile, Huntsville, wherever,” he said. “We’ll have a group of (Alabama Law Enforcement Agency) officers that that’s their job.”
Ledbetter said that since its establishment in June of 2024, the Crime Suppression Unit in Montgomery has made nearly 1,900 contacts, during which they have recovered more than 35 stolen vehicles and made around 500 drug charges.
Ledbetter also floated the idea of banning trigger activators, also known as Glock switches, which are weapon modifications that allow a semi-automatic firearm to fire at rates similar to that of a fully automatic weapon. Rep. Phillip Ensler, D-Montgomery, sponsored a bill banning Glock switches last year that passed through the House but failed to make it through the Senate.
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EDITOR’S NOTE — This story was written by Alexander Willis and originally published by Alabama Daily News. It is reprinted with permission.
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