House Democrats express concerns with police immunity legislation

Alabama House Democrats have concerns with a bill aimed at extending immunity for law enforcement officials.

HB 202, sponsored by Rep. Rex Reynolds, R-Huntsville, would redefine misconduct by police from acting “willfully, maliciously, fraudulently, in bad faith, beyond his or her authority, or under a mistaken interpretation of the law,” to one that would apply only if they are acting well outside of their authority, such as when they behave recklessly or violating a person’s constitutional rights.

It also provides additional legal proceedings to determine if the alleged misconduct is well outside the scope of the law enforcement officer’s authority before considering the allegation itself.

As part of a preview of a press conference scheduled for Wednesday, a Monday press release from the caucus said it “strongly support(s) law enforcement” and cited efforts to provide proper funding to police departments and maintain concealed carry permit requirements.

“While we highly respect our law enforcement community, we also believe that being a police officer doesn’t mean one has a license to exceed their authority with impunity,” the statement said.

Reynolds introduced the legislation even as lawsuits or claims of misconduct against police are rare, and as corrections officers have pleaded guilty for engaging in conduct that has led to people’s deaths in county jails.

“It is about creating an environment in Alabama that our law enforcement wants to join the profession, wants to stay in the profession, and that we support them,” Reynolds said in an interview Monday. “We have a 50-year-old law in the books, and we need to update that law.”

He added that the legislation would explicitly define how police immunity should be applied in face of misconduct allegations, while it also states the situations when law enforcement behaves beyond the scope of their duties.

“I think the clarifications are much needed,” Reynolds said of the legislation he introduced. “As I said, there is just as much verbiage in the bill related to fact if an officer acts outside the scope of his duties, and so I think it is a very fair piece of legislation.”

The House Judiciary Committee is scheduled to consider the bill on Wednesday afternoon.