SB281 Alabama 2017 Session

Summary

Primary Sponsor

Cam Ward

Republican

Session

Regular Session 2017

Title

Municipal courts, mayors and municipal court judges, mayor authorized to remit court costs imposed by municipal court judge, municipal court judges authorized to remit certain costs upon a showing of indigency, mayor's authority to commute sentences removed, municipal court judges authorized to issue arrest warrants and hold certain persons in contempt of court, Secs. 12-14-15, 12-14-31, 12-14-32 am'd.

Description

Under existing law, a mayor is authorized to remit fines, commute sentences, and pardon a person found guilty of violating a municipal ordinance but a mayor cannot reduce court costs. Additionally, a municipal court judge is authorized to issue arrest warrants and to punish contempt by imposing fines and sentences of imprisonment, or both.

This bill would authorize a mayor to remit court costs and authorize any municipal court judge to remit fines, court costs, fees, payments, and other charges in cases where the court determines that a defendant cannot afford to pay the full amount that would otherwise be required by law.

This bill would delete the authority of a mayor to commute sentences.

This bill would clarify that the authority of the municipal court judge extends to issuing warrants for the failure of a criminal defendant to appear in court and that the willful failure of a defendant to appear may be punishable by contempt, the sentence for which includes fines and imprisonment.

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Subjects

Court, Municipal