Title 13A — Title 13A

(a) Every person convicted of any offense defined in this title, or defined outside this title, shall be sentenced by the court in accordance with this article, unless otherwise specifically provided by law. (b) Penal laws enacted after January 1, 1980, shall be classified for pu…

(a) The court may conduct a hearing upon the issue of whether a defendant is a repeat or habitual offender under Section 13A-5-9, according to procedures established by rule of court. (b) Section 13A-5-9 does not apply to a corporation. History: (Acts 1977, No. 607, p. 812, §1237…

Summary Sheets, Docket Sheets, Etc. (a) Certified copies of case action summary sheets, docket sheets or other records of the court are admissible for the purpose of proving prior convictions of a crime, if the prior conviction is otherwise admissible under the laws of this state…

(a) A sentence to pay a fine for a felony shall be for a definite amount, fixed by the court, within the following limitations: (1) For a Class A felony, not more than $60,000; (2) For a Class B felony, not more than $30,000; (3) For a Class C felony, not more than $15,000; (4) F…

(a) A sentence to pay a fine for a misdemeanor shall be for a definite amount, fixed by the court, within the following limitations: (1) For a Class A misdemeanor, not more than $6,000; (2) For a Class B misdemeanor, not more than $3,000; (3) For a Class C misdemeanor, not more t…

Repealed by Act 2011-680, p. 2004, §2, effective June 14, 2011. History: (Act 2003-355, p. 962, §2.)

Ethnicity, or Physical or Mental Disability. (a) The Legislature finds and declares the following: (1) It is the right of every person, regardless of race, color, religion, national origin, ethnicity, or physical or mental disability, to be secure and protected from threats of re…

(a) A person who has been found guilty of a crime, the commission of which was shown beyond a reasonable doubt to have been motivated by the victim’s actual or perceived role as an election official, shall be punished as follows: (1) On conviction of a Class A felony, the sentenc…

(a) Every person convicted of a felony shall be sentenced by the court to imprisonment for a term authorized by Sections 13A-5-6, 13A-5-9, and 13A-5-10. (b) In addition to imprisonment, every person convicted of a felony may be sentenced by the court to pay a fine authorized by S…

(a) Offenses are designated as felonies, misdemeanors or violations. (b) Felonies are classified according to the relative seriousness of the offense into four categories: (1) Class A felonies; (2) Class B felonies; (3) Class C felonies; and (4) Class D felonies. (c) Misdemeanors…

As used in this article, these terms shall be defined as follows: (1) CAPITAL OFFENSE. An offense for which a defendant shall be punished by a sentence of death or life imprisonment without parole, or in the case of a defendant who establishes that he or she was under the age of …

(a) The particular classification of each felony defined in this title, except murder under Section 13A-6-2, is expressly designated in the chapter or article defining it. Any offense defined outside this title which is declared by law to be a felony without specification of its …

2026.] AMENDED BY ACT 2026-55, EFFECTIVE OCTOBER 1, 2026. SEE ACT FOR REVISED LANGUAGE. (a) The following are capital offenses: (1) Murder by the defendant during a kidnapping in the first degree or an attempt thereof committed by the defendant. (2) Murder by the defendant during…

Subject to the provisions of Section 13A-1-9(b), the jury may find a defendant indicted for a crime defined in Section 13A-5-40(a) not guilty of the capital offense but guilty of a lesser included offense or offenses. Lesser included offenses shall be defined as provided in Secti…

A defendant who is indicted for a capital offense may plead guilty to it, but the state, only in cases where the death penalty is to be imposed, must prove the defendant’s guilt of the capital offense beyond a reasonable doubt to a jury. The guilty plea may be considered in deter…

Offenses; Sentencing. (a) In the trial of a capital offense the jury shall first hear all the admissible evidence offered on the charge or charges against the defendant. It shall then determine whether the defendant is guilty of the capital offense or offenses with which he is ch…

Age. Notwithstanding any other provision of law, if a defendant is found guilty of any non- homicide crime for which the only sentence provided by law is life imprisonment without the possibility of parole and that defendant proves by a preponderance of the evidence that he or sh…

Act 2016-360 shall apply to any person under the age of 18 years at the time an offense was committed who was sentenced to life without the possibility of parole under Section 13A-5-2, 13A-5-39, 13A-5-43, or 13A-6-2, whether the person is currently incarcerated or hereinafter con…

Participation in Sentence Hearing. (a) The selection of the jury for the trial of a capital case shall include the selection of at least two alternate jurors chosen according to procedures specified by law or court rule. (b) The separation of the jury during the pendency of the t…

Evidence; Burden of Proof; Mitigating and Aggravating Circumstances. (a) Upon conviction of a defendant for a capital offense, the trial court shall conduct a separate sentence hearing to determine whether the defendant shall be sentenced to life imprisonment without parole or to…

Sit Unless Impossible or Impracticable; Separation of Jury; Instructions to Jury; Advisory Verdicts; Vote Required; Mistrial; Waiver of Right to Advisory Verdict. (a) Unless both parties with the consent of the court waive the right to have the sentence hearing conducted before a…

Aggravating and Mitigating Circumstances; Court to Enter Written Findings. (a) After the sentence hearing has been conducted, and after the jury has returned a verdict, or after such a verdict has been waived as provided in Section 13A-5- 46(a) or Section 13A-5-46(g), the trial c…

in Capital Cases. Sections 13A-5-45, 13A-5-46, and 13A-5-47 shall apply to any defendant who is charged with capital murder after April 11, 2017, and shall not apply retroactively to any defendant who has previously been convicted of capital murder and sentenced to death prior to…

Defined. The process described in Sections 13A-5-46(e)(2), 13A-5- 46(e)(3) and Section 13A-5-47(e) of weighing the aggravating and mitigating circumstances to determine the sentence shall not be defined to mean a mere tallying of aggravating and mitigating circumstances for the p…

Aggravating circumstances shall be any of the following: (1) The capital offense was committed by a person under sentence of imprisonment. (2) The defendant was previously convicted of another capital offense or a felony involving the use or threat of violence to the person. (3) …

There shall be a presentence or postsentence investigation report completed and filed on every defendant convicted of a felony offense after March 10, 2006, and such report shall be in an electronic format. On motion of the court or written motion of either party, the court shall…

Determination. The fact that a particular capital offense as defined in Section 13A-5-40(a) necessarily includes one or more aggravating circumstances as specified in Section 13A-5-49 shall not be construed to preclude the finding and consideration of that relevant circumstance o…

Mitigating circumstances shall include, but not be limited to. the following: (1) The defendant has no significant history of prior criminal activity; (2) The capital offense was committed while the defendant was under the influence of extreme mental or emotional disturbance; (3)…

Etc. In addition to the mitigating circumstances specified in Section 13A-5-51, mitigating circumstances shall include any aspect of a defendant’s character or record and any of the circumstances of the offense that the defendant offers as a basis for a sentence of life imprisonm…

Determinations to Be Made by Court; Authority of Court Following Review. (a) In any case in which the death penalty is imposed, in addition to reviewing the case for any error involving the conviction, the Alabama Court of Criminal Appeals, subject to review by the Alabama Suprem…

(a) Rule 32.2(c) of the Alabama Rules of Criminal Procedure shall not apply to cases in which a criminal defendant is convicted of capital murder and sentenced to death, and files a petition for post-conviction relief under the grounds specified in Rule 32.1(a), (e), or (f) of th…

Each person indicted for an offense punishable under the provisions of this article who is not able to afford legal counsel must be provided with court appointed counsel having no less than five years’ prior experience in the active practice of criminal law. History: (Acts 1981, …

In all cases in which a defendant is sentenced to death, the judgment of conviction shall be subject to automatic review. The sentence of death shall be subject to review as provided in Section 13A-5-53. History: (Acts 1981, No. 81-178, §17.)

Jury Instructions. The Alabama Supreme Court shall promulgate pattern indictment forms for use in cases in which indictments charging offenses defined in Section 13A-5-40(a) are thereafter returned. The Alabama Supreme Court shall also promulgate pattern verdict forms and pattern…

(a) This article applies only to conduct occurring after 12:01 A.M. on July 1, 1981. Conduct occurring before 12:01 A.M. on July 1, 1981 shall be governed by pre- existing law. (b) Sections 13A-5-30 through 13A-5-38 are hereby repealed. All other laws or parts of laws in conflict…

This article shall be interpreted, and if necessary reinterpreted, to be constitutional. History: (Acts 1981, No. 81-178, §21.)

It is the intent of the Legislature that if the death penalty provisions of this article are declared unconstitutional and if the offensive provision or provisions cannot be reinterpreted so as to provide a constitutional death penalty, or if the death penalty is ever declared to…

(a) Sentences for felonies shall be for a definite term of imprisonment, which imprisonment includes hard labor, within the following limitations: (1) For a Class A felony, for life or not more than 99 years or less than 10 years. (2) For a Class B felony, not more than 20 years …

(a) Sentences for misdemeanors shall be a definite term of imprisonment in the county jail or to hard labor for the county, within the following limitations: (1) For a Class A misdemeanor, not more than one year. (2) For a Class B misdemeanor, not more than six months. (3) For a …

The place of imprisonment for sentences imposed in this state shall be as established elsewhere by law. History: (Acts 1977, No. 607, p. 812, §1232.)

If a defendant is participating in a court supervised evidence-based treatment program, as that term is defined in Section 12-25-32, a court ordered faith-based program, or any other court ordered rehabilitative program and is subsequently terminated from that program, the court …

2026-496) [Effective until October 1, 2026.] AMENDED BY ACT 2026-496, EFFECTIVE OCTOBER 1, 2026. SEE ACT FOR REVISED LANGUAGE. (a) In all cases when it is shown that a criminal defendant has been previously convicted of a Class A, Class B, or Class C felony and after the convicti…

Repealed by Act 2014-165, §1, effective March 13, 2014. History: (Act 2001-977, 3rd Sp. Sess., p. 941, §1; Act 2007-457, p. 945, §1.)