HB656 Alabama 2012 Session

Updated Feb 27, 2026

Notable

Summary

Primary Sponsor: Bill Poole
Republican
Session: Regular Session 2012
Title: Northport, pretrial diversion program, city authorized to establish
Summary: HB656 lets the City of Northport create a discretionary pretrial diversion program with rules, fees, and court-backed processes.
What This Bill Does
The City of Northport may establish and run a pretrial diversion program under city control, including hiring staff and contracting for services. It defines terms like application fee, offender, and supervision, and sets who is eligible or ineligible to join. If an offender is admitted, they sign a written agreement with conditions and the court keeps jurisdiction until completion; successful completion can lead to dismissal or disposition of the case, while failure can lead to standard punishment and payment of fees. Fees collected go to city funds with some required allocations, and waivers or reductions are possible for indigent applicants.

Who It Affects
Offenders charged with crimes within the City of Northport who may apply to participate in the program and must meet eligibility requirements or face ineligibility for certain offenses.
The City of Northport and its related agencies (city attorney, law enforcement, and the court) which administer, supervise, fund, and adjudicate the program and its terms.

Key Provisions
Section 1: The City of Northport may establish a discretionary pretrial diversion program under city control and may contract for related services.
Section 2: Defines terms such as APPLICATION FEE, OFFENDER, PRETRIAL DIVERSION PROGRAM, SUPERVISION FEE, and specifies what constitutes a SERIOUS PHYSICAL INJURY.
Section 3: An offender may apply to be admitted into the program.
Section 4: Admittance is at the sole discretion of the city attorney; certain offenses (e.g., violence against law enforcement, eluding police, certain DUI with injury, public official related offenses) and CDL holders are ineligible.
Section 5: The city attorney may consider various factors (likelihood of justice served, safety, likelihood of future crime, rehabilitation potential, restitution needs) when approving admission; standards can be waived for special circumstances.
Section 6: The city attorney may require information and evaluations (financial, educational, medical, psychological) at the offender's expense, with consent to obtain records as needed.
Section 7: Before participation, there is a written agreement outlining conditions, including waivers of speedy and jury trials, tolling of time limits, restitution, and detailed program conditions; additional conditions may be added (treatment, education, employment, abstinence, etc.).
Section 8: An application fee is charged (misdemeanors/DUI: $1,000; traffic not including DUI: $500; violations: $100) and may be waived or reduced for indigence; fees go to the city with minimum allocations to law enforcement technology/training and the Indigent Treatment Fund.
Section 9: Application fees are collected by the Northport Municipal Court and disbursed per Section 8 allocations.
Section 10: Upon acceptance, the offender pleads guilty and the court retains jurisdiction; the court may delay punishment until program completion; if completed, the court issues a disposition; if terminated, standard punishment is imposed; costs and fees remain due.
Section 11: Violations or breaches can lead to modification, termination, or new terms; violations may be waived for good cause.
Section 12: The city or its providers are not liable for the offender's conduct during participation.
Section 13: Provisions are severable in case one part is invalid.
Section 14: The act takes effect immediately after passage and approval.
Overall: The act becomes law immediately after approval and provides a framework for Northport to run a tailored pretrial diversion program with financial and procedural specifics.

AI-generated summary using openai/gpt-5-nano on Feb 24, 2026. May contain errors — refer to the official bill text for accuracy.
Subjects: Tuscaloosa County