SB243 Alabama 2011 Session

Updated Feb 27, 2026

Notable

Summary

Primary Sponsor: Hank Sanders
Democrat
Session: Regular Session 2011
Title: Definition of Moral Turpitude Act, established, crimes which disqualify citizens from voting provided, Sec. 17-3-30.1 added
Summary: SB243 creates a Definition of Moral Turpitude Act that lists specific felonies deemed to involve moral turpitude and would disqualify Alabama citizens from voting.
What This Bill Does
It adds a new Section 17-3-30.1 to define what counts as a 'felony involving moral turpitude' for voting. It provides a comprehensive list of offenses that would disqualify a person from voting, covering crimes such as murder, various sex offenses, assault, burglary, robbery, theft, forgery, treason, and related obscenity offenses. The goal is to align disenfranchisement with the Alabama Constitution and prevent wrongful exclusion of eligible voters.

Who It Affects
Citizens with felony convictions: their right to vote would depend on whether their conviction is for one of the listed offenses deemed to involve moral turpitude.
Election officials and voter registrars: they would use the defined list to determine when a conviction results in voting disqualification.

Key Provisions
Establishes the Definition of Moral Turpitude Act and adds Section 17-3-30.1 to Chapter 3, Title 17 of the Code of Alabama 1975 to define disqualifying offenses.
Provides a detailed list of offenses that constitute a felony involving moral turpitude, including murder, various forms of assault, robbery, burglary, theft, forgery, treason, and offenses related to obscene material or sexual crimes.

AI-generated summary using openai/gpt-5-nano on Feb 25, 2026. May contain errors — refer to the official bill text for accuracy.
Subjects: Moral Turpitude