AG Steve Marshall applauds bill that corrects fatal flaw in parole statute
On Thursday, Alabama Governor Kay Ivey signed legislation to prevent criminals facing serious pending charges from getting out on parole. House Bill 131 (HB131) was sponsored by State Representative Wes Kitchens (R-Guntersville) and carried in the Senate by State Sen. Sam Givhan (R-Huntsville). Alabama Attorney General Steve Marshall applauded the signing of HB131 to correct a fatal flaw in Alabama’s parole system. HB131 was proposed after the infamous Jimmy O’Neal Spencer case exposed a statutory loophole that allowed a prisoner with pending charges to still be considered for parole before those charges were properly resolved. “Throughout the session, this legislature has prioritized the correction of deficiencies within our criminal justice system,” said Attorney General Marshall. “HB131 closes an important loophole to ensure that no offender be released on parole while new charges are pending. This is a public safety issue, but it also spares crime victims of having to show up and relive their experiences at parole hearings that are unnecessary.” In August 2022, Jimmy O’Neal Spencer – who was serving two life sentences and was awaiting trial on three capital-murder charges – was given a parole hearing. The parole board at the time denied Spencer’s parole, but Marshall said that this peculiar loophole in our parole system needed to be closed. 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, you can’t be up for parole,” Kitchens said. Spencer, a lifetime career criminal, 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. An angry Gov. Ivey replaced the Board members in the wake of this and other debacles for their leniency that was widely condemned as far too reckless. The new Parole Board denied Spencer’s parole application, but that could have ended differently with much more lenient parole commissioners. The signing of this legislation has closed that loophole in existing statute. 2023 has been a good legislative session for Marshall. He said that as the Chief Law Enforcement Officer of Alabama, he has led on three public safety initiatives this legislative session, including the Deputy Brad Johnson Act and SB143, creating sentencing enhancements for members of criminal enterprises, including gangs. Each bill has been met with overwhelming bipartisan support. The legislature has also imposed stiffer penalties on exhibition driving, organized retail theft, and deadly fentanyl traffickers. The state is in the process of building two new mega prisons in Elmore and Escambia Counties. Marshall is serving his second elected term as attorney general following his landslide re-election last year. Tuesday is the final day of the 2023 Alabama Regular Legislative Session. To connect with the author of this story or to comment, email brandonmreporter@gmail.com.
House committee gives favorable report to bill to deny parole to felons
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. To connect with the author of this story or to comment, email brandonmreporter@gmail.com.
State to pay $1M for murders that lead to parole board overhaul
The state of Alabama will pay $1 million to three slaying victims’ families who contend that the man accused of killing them had wrongly been paroled, the state attorney general said Friday. The families of Colton Lee, Marie Martin and Martha Reliford allege that the Alabama Board of Pardons and Paroles should not have paroled Jimmy O’Neal Spencer and failed to properly supervise him once he was released. “No amount of money is enough to compensate these families for their losses,” Tommy James, the families’ lawyer, said in an interview. “I think going forward, now that this part is behind them, they can focus on the criminal trial of Spencer where obviously they’re hoping and praying for swift and severe justice.” The $1 million settlement is the maximum damages allowed under state law and will be divided among the three families. James said the current ceiling on compensation is a “shame” and the law should change to better protect victims. Spencer is accused of killing all three in Guntersville in July 2018. As WHNT reported, investigators say Martin was looking after her great-grandson, 7-year-old Colton Lee, at her home when she was strangled and stabbed. Colton was killed by blunt force trauma. Reliford, Martin’s neighbor, had been hit in the head with the back flat part of a hatchet and stabbed days earlier, investigators say. Spencer has been charged with capital murder in their deaths. Court records show his next appearance will be in September. A trial date hasn’t been set. Alabama Attorney Gen. Steve Marshall described Spencer as a “career criminal” in a news release Friday. Spencer initially entered prison in the 1980s, convicted and imprisoned for numerous serious property and violent crimes. He successfully escaped prison several times. On two separate occasions, Spencer was sentenced to life imprisonment. Despite his record, Spencer was granted parole in November 2017 and released the following January, Marshall said. He was supposed to remain in a Birmingham homeless shelter for six months but left after only three weeks. Marshall said Spencer traveled to Guntersville, where he had several run-ins with law enforcement, including resisting arrest, illegal possession of a firearm and possession of drug paraphernalia, though his parole was not revoked. Gov. Kay Ivey placed a 75-day moratorium on early paroles in October partially in response to the charges against Spencer. She also replaced the chair of the board of pardons and paroles and ordered the agency to produce a detailed, corrective action plan. Legislation working its way through the state legislature would give the governor the power to appoint the director of the parole board, as well as put into place sentence minimums that inmates must serve before becoming eligible for parole. If passed, inmates convicted of murder, rape or certain other crimes could not be considered for parole before they have served 85% of their sentence, or 15 years, whichever is less, according to the legislation. The proposal has received support from both Marshall and Ivey. “I am angry, certainly at Jimmy O’Neal Spencer, but I am also angry that a process designed to protect the public from deviant criminals like Spencer utterly failed them, as well as little Colton,” said Marshall, who recused himself from settlement negotiations because he knew two of the victims. This story has corrected the lawyer’s surname to James, not Jones. See Alabama Today’s previous articles on parole board. Lawmakers tackle Alabama parole board challenges, sentence minimums and Amid murders, many questions Kay Ivey makes parole board changes for more information. Republished with permission of the Associated Press.
