HB524 Alabama 2025 Session

Summary

Primary Sponsor

Phillip EnslerRepresentative

Democrat

Session

2025 Regular Session

Title

Pardons and Paroles; juvenile offenders serving life without parole; parole authorized following satisfaction of certain conditions

Summary

HB524 would let juveniles who were under 18 at the time of their offense and sentenced to life without parole become eligible for parole after 10 years.

What This Bill Does

If enacted, HB524 would change Alabama law to allow parole eligibility after 10 years for juvenile offenders serving life without parole. The Board of Pardons and Paroles would investigate prisoners using a validated risk and needs assessment and decide by majority vote whether to grant parole, with cooperation from the Department of Corrections. It also sets initial parole consideration dates and creates different schedules depending on the offense and sentence type, including a 10 year trigger for juvenile life without parole cases and a rule for Class A felonies based on 85% of the sentence or 15 years. There are safeguards such as a notice and objection process involving the Governor and Attorney General, rules about eligibility when facing new charges, and requirements about record keeping and programs before parole.

Who It Affects

• Juvenile offenders who committed offenses under the age of 18 and are currently serving life without parole; they would become eligible for parole after completing 10 years.
• The state agencies involved in parole decisions (Board of Pardons and Paroles and the Department of Corrections) and the Governor/Attorney General; they would manage risk assessments, scheduling, notice and objections, and oversight of parole decisions.

Key Provisions

• Amends Section 15-22-28 to make juvenile offenders under 18 at the time of the offense eligible for parole after 10 years.
• Board of Pardons and Paroles must investigate prisoners using a validated risk and needs assessment and conduct periodic reinvestigations with cooperation from the Department of Corrections.
• Parole requires a majority vote by the Board and includes restrictions on parole for state employment, with exceptions.
• Initial parole consideration dates are set by schedule, with juveniles serving life without parole eligible after 10 years, and Class A felonies having initial dates after 85% of the sentence or 15 years, whichever is less.
• For all other prisoners, initial parole dates are set after one-third of the sentence or 10 years, whichever is less; if there are consecutive sentences, dates must reflect separate time served.
• The Board may deviate from initial or reconsideration dates only in limited circumstances and such decisions are subject to review by the deputy Attorney General.
• The Board must adopt rules to determine whether a prisoner is more likely than not to be granted parole, including requirements such as minimum incarceration, participation in programs, no recent disciplinary issues, and a validated risk assessment showing medium or low risk.
• There is a 30-day written notice to the Governor and Attorney General before any parole consideration date, with a 14-day window to object; inadequate notice or objections can reverse a parole decision.
• A prisoner charged with a new offense punishable by more than 12 months cannot be considered for parole until the charge is disposed, and the Department of Corrections must notify the prisoner of new charges.
• The act becomes effective October 1, 2025.

AI-generated summary using openai/gpt-5-nano on Feb 22, 2026. May contain errors — refer to the official bill text for accuracy.

Subjects

Criminal Procedure