Current:Home > MarketsCommittee advances bill to let Alabama inmates speak at parole hearings-InfoLens
Committee advances bill to let Alabama inmates speak at parole hearings
View Date:2024-12-23 15:39:41
MONTGOMERY, Ala. (AP) — A legislative committee on Thursday advanced a bill to allow state inmates, for the first time, to speak by phone or video conference at their parole hearings.
The House Judiciary Committee approved the bill after adding an amendment to give victims and law enforcement officials the option to also participate by electronic means instead of driving to Montgomery for the parole hearing.
The bill, which was approved in the Senate without a dissenting vote, now moves to the Alabama House of Representatives to be considered in the final three days of the legislative session.
Alabama is one of two states that do not allow inmates to speak at parole hearings.
“SB 312 gives the incarcerated inmate the ability to participate in the hearing and more importantly, it gives the Parole Board another opportunity or an opportunity to question that inmate,” Republican Sen. Will Barfoot, the bill sponsor, said.
The approval came after earlier disagreements over a proposal that would have weakened the bill by letting the Parole Board decide whether inmates could participate.
Wanda Miller, executive director of VOCAL, a victims advocacy group, said her organization opposes the bill because it believes the current system is adequate. Miller said victim advocacy groups had suggested the amendment to allow victims and law enforcement officials to also speak by phone or video conference.
Barfoot said that will make it easier for victims and law enforcement officials to participate in hearings instead of “driving sometimes three hours to sit through a 10- or 15-minute hearing.”
If approved, the measure would become effective on Oct. 1.
veryGood! (629)
Related
- 2025 NFL Draft order: Updated first round picks after Week 10 games
- Army said Maine shooter should not have gun, requested welfare check
- Prosecutor takes aim at Sam Bankman-Fried’s credibility at trial of FTX founder
- Drivers in Argentina wait in long lines to fill up the tanks as presidential election looms
- Utah AD Mark Harlan rips officials following loss to BYU, claims game was 'stolen from us'
- Kate Hudson Reflects on Conversations With Late Matthew Perry About Trials and Tribulations of Love
- Family asks DOJ to investigate March death of Dexter Wade in Mississippi
- Police investigating death of US ice hockey player from skate blade cut in English game
- Get well, Pop. The Spurs are in great hands until your return
- Actor Robert De Niro tells a jury in a lawsuit by his ex-assistant: ‘This is all nonsense’
Ranking
- New 'Yellowstone' is here: Season 5 Part 2 premiere date, time, where to watch
- Federal judge blocks California law banning gun shows at county fairs
- Judge temporarily blocks federal officials from removing razor wire set up by Texas to deter border crossings
- Are attention spans getting shorter (and does it matter)?
- Judge recuses himself in Arizona fake elector case after urging response to attacks on Kamala Harris
- Battle for control of Virginia Legislature may hinge on a state senate race with independent streak
- Police: Man arrested after throwing pipe bombs at San Francisco police car during pursuit
- Nevada man charged with threatening U.S. senator in antisemitic messages
Recommendation
-
Amtrak service disrupted after fire near tracks in New York City
-
Revisit Zoë Kravitz and Channing Tatum's Magical Road to Engagement
-
Happy National Cat Day! Watch our fave videos of felines paw-printing in people's hearts
-
Seager stars with 2-run HR, stellar defense to lead Rangers over D-backs 3-1 in World Series Game 3
-
Rep. Michael McCaul of Texas says he was detained in airport over being ‘disoriented’
-
Stellantis, UAW reach tentative deal on new contract, sources say
-
Bill to increase transparency of Pennsylvania’s universities passes House
-
'Love Island Games' Season 1: Release date, cast and trailer for new Peacock show