On Wednesday, the Alabama House Judiciary Committee voted to advance legislation that would deny parole to convicts who are facing additional charges with new serious offenses.
House Bill 131 (HB131) is sponsored by State Rep. Wes Kitchens.
“This deals with a loophole that came up in the Jimmy Spencer case,” Kitchens said. “This helps close that loophole up.”
According to the synopsis, “Under existing law, prisoners in the custody of the Department of Corrections are eligible for parole in certain circumstances. This bill would provide that a prisoner is not eligible for parole if he or she has been duly charged with a new offense that has not been disposed.”
“If you are a prisoner facing serious charges that carry penalties by more than six months and you can’t be up for parole,” Kitchens said.
The Alabama House Judiciary Committee voted to give HB131 a favorable report in a unanimous vote.
The issue that sparked this concern was that Career criminal Jimmy Spencer came up for parole even though he was then facing three charges of capital murder for the slayings of Colton Lee, Martha Reliford, and Marie Martin. Crimes he committed after the previous Parole Board granted him parole even though he was serving two life sentences. Alabama Governor Kay Ivey replaced the Board members in the wake of this and other debacles with leniency that was widely condemned as reckless. The new Parole Board denied Spencer’s parole application, but that could have ended differently with more lenient parole commissioners. The sponsor claims this legislation is designed to close that loophole in existing statutes.
The Alabama Bureau of Pardons and Paroles oversees the state’s parolees. The Parole Board hears inmates’ requests for both pardons and paroles.
HB131 could be considered by the full Alabama House of Representatives as early as Thursday.
Thursday will be day seven of the 2023 Alabama Regular Legislative Session.
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