HB774 Alabama 2012 Session

Summary

Primary Sponsor

Barry Mask

Republican

Session

Regular Session 2012

Title

Driving or operating a vehicle as defined (including vessels) under the influence of alcohol or drugs, criminal negligent homicide or assault in the first degree amended to include, Secs. 13A-6-4, 13A-6-20 am'd.

Summary

HB774 expands criminal negligent homicide and first-degree assault penalties to cover operators of any vehicle under the influence, not just motor vehicles.

What This Bill Does

It broadens the types of vehicles covered to include boats and other propelled devices. Criminal negligent homicide would apply when the death is caused by an operator of any vehicle who is unlawfully driving or operating under the influence; the general rule remains that CNH is a Class A misdemeanor, except when the death is caused by a motor vehicle operator under DUI, in which case CNH becomes a Class C felony. It also extends first-degree assault to cases where serious physical injury is caused by an operator of any vehicle under the influence, with that offense remaining a Class B felony.

Who It Affects

• Operators of any vehicle (including boats and other vessels) who are under the influence; they could be charged with criminally negligent homicide if someone dies, or with first-degree assault if they seriously injure someone.
• Victims and families involved in crashes or incidents, and law enforcement/prosecutors who charge and try these cases; the scope of charges could extend to non-motor-vehicle contexts.

Key Provisions

• Amends 13A-6-4: criminally negligent homicide is generally a Class A misdemeanor, but if caused by the operator of a motor vehicle under the influence, it becomes a Class C felony; bill expands the trigger to the operator of any vehicle under the influence for CNH, while preserving the motor-vehicle DUI exception.
• Amends 13A-6-20: assault in the first degree is defined to apply when serious physical injury is caused while driving or operating any vehicle under the influence; offense remains a Class B felony.
• Effective date: the act becomes law on the first day of the third month after passage.

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

Subjects

Crimes and Offenses