1 HB56
2 215932-1
3 By Representative England
4 RFD: Judiciary
5 First Read: 11-JAN-22
6 PFD: 01/06/2022
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1 215932-1:n:12/21/2021:CNB/bm LSA2021-2576
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8 SYNOPSIS: Under the existing habitual felony offender
9 act, enhanced penalties are established for felony
10 criminal defendants who have been previously
11 convicted of one or more felony offenses.
12 This bill would repeal the Habitual Felony
13 Offender Act.
14 This bill would provide for resentencing for
15 defendants whose sentences were based on the
16 Habitual Felony Offender Act.
17 This bill would also make nonsubstantive,
18 technical revisions to update the existing code
19 language to current style.
20 Amendment 621 of the Constitution of Alabama
21 of 1901, as amended by Amendment 890, now appearing
22 as Section 111.05 of the Official Recompilation of
23 the Constitution of Alabama of 1901, prohibits a
24 general law whose purpose or effect would be to
25 require a new or increased expenditure of local
26 funds from becoming effective with regard to a
27 local governmental entity without enactment by a
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1 2/3 vote unless: it comes within one of a number of
2 specified exceptions; it is approved by the
3 affected entity; or the Legislature appropriates
4 funds, or provides a local source of revenue, to
5 the entity for the purpose.
6 The purpose or effect of this bill would be
7 to require a new or increased expenditure of local
8 funds within the meaning of the amendment. However,
9 the bill does not require approval of a local
10 governmental entity or enactment by a 2/3 vote to
11 become effective because it comes within one of the
12 specified exceptions contained in the amendment.
13
14 A BILL
15 TO BE ENTITLED
16 AN ACT
17
18 Relating sentencing; to amend Sections 13A-5-6,
19 13A-5-13, 13A-11-241, 13A-12-231, 13A-12-233, 14-9-44,
20 32-5A-154, and 32-5A-191, Code of Alabama 1975; to revise
21 sentencing standards in certain circumstances; to repeal
22 Sections 13A-5-9 and 13A-5-10, Code of Alabama 1975, relating
23 to the Habitual Felony Offender Act; to add Section 13A-5-14
24 to the Code of Alabama 1975, to provide for resentencing for
25 defendants whose sentences were based on the Habitual Felony
26 Offender Act; to make nonsubstantive, technical revisions to
27 update the existing code language to current style; and in
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1 connection therewith would have as its purpose or effect the
2 requirement of a new or increased expenditure of local funds
3 within the meaning of Amendment 621 of the Constitution of
4 Alabama of 1901, as amended by Amendment 890, now appearing as
5 Section 111.05 of the Official Recompilation of the
6 Constitution of Alabama of 1901.
7 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF ALABAMA:
8 Section 1. Sections 13A-5-6, 13A-5-13, 13A-11-241,
9 13A-12-231, 13A-12-233, 14-9-44, and 32-5A-154, Code of
10 Alabama 1975, are amended to read as follows:
11 "13A-5-6.
12 "(a) Sentences for felonies shall be for a definite
13 term of imprisonment, which imprisonment includes hard labor,
14 within the following limitations:
15 "(1) For a Class A felony, for life or not more than
16 99 years or less than 10 years.
17 "(2) For a Class B felony, not more than 20 years or
18 less than 2 years.
19 "(3) For a Class C felony, not more than 10 years or
20 less than 1 year and 1 day and must be in accordance with
21 subsection (b) of Section 15-18-8 unless sentencing is
22 pursuant to Section 13A-5-9 or the offense is a sex offense
23 pursuant to Section 15-20A-5.
24 "(4) For a Class D felony, not more than 5 years or
25 less than 1 year and 1 day and must be in accordance with
26 subsection (b) of Section 15-18-8.
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1 "(5) For a Class A felony in which a firearm or
2 deadly weapon was used or attempted to be used in the
3 commission of the felony, or a Class A felony sex offense
4 involving a child as defined in Section 15-20A-4, not less
5 than 20 years.
6 "(6) For a Class B or C felony in which a firearm or
7 deadly weapon was used or attempted to be used in the
8 commission of the felony, or a Class B felony sex offense
9 involving a child as defined in Section 15-20A-4, not less
10 than 10 years.
11 "(b) The actual time of release within the
12 limitations established by subsection (a) shall be determined
13 under procedures established elsewhere by law.
14 "(c) In addition to any other penalties heretofore
15 or hereafter provided by law, in all cases where an offender
16 is designated as a sexually violent predator pursuant to
17 Section 15-20A-19, or where an offender is convicted of a
18 Class A felony sex offense involving a child as defined in
19 Section 15-20A-4, and is sentenced to a county jail or the
20 Alabama Department of Corrections, the sentencing judge shall
21 impose an additional penalty of not less than 10 years of
22 post-release supervision to be served upon the defendant's
23 release from incarceration.
24 "(d) In addition to any other penalties heretofore
25 or hereafter provided by law, in all cases where an offender
26 is convicted of a sex offense pursuant to Section 13A-6-61,
27 13A-6-63, or 13A-6-65.1, when the defendant was 21 years of
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1 age or older and the victim was six years of age or less at
2 the time the offense was committed, the defendant shall be
3 sentenced to life imprisonment without the possibility of
4 parole.
5 "13A-5-13.
6 "(a) The Legislature finds and declares the
7 following:
8 "(1) It is the right of every person, regardless of
9 race, color, religion, national origin, ethnicity, or physical
10 or mental disability, to be secure and protected from threats
11 of reasonable fear, intimidation, harassment, and physical
12 harm caused by activities of groups and individuals.
13 "(2) It is not the intent, by enactment of this
14 section, to interfere with the exercise of rights protected by
15 the Constitution of the State of Alabama or the United States.
16 "(3) The intentional advocacy of unlawful acts by
17 groups or individuals against other persons or groups and
18 bodily injury or death to persons is not constitutionally
19 protected when violence or civil disorder is imminent, and
20 poses a threat to public order and safety, and such the
21 conduct should be subjected to criminal sanctions.
22 "(b) The purpose of this section is to impose
23 additional penalties where it is shown that a perpetrator
24 committing the underlying offense was motivated by the
25 victim's actual or perceived race, color, religion, national
26 origin, ethnicity, or physical or mental disability.
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1 "(c) A person who has been found guilty of a crime,
2 the commission of which was shown beyond a reasonable doubt to
3 have been motivated by the victim's actual or perceived race,
4 color, religion, national origin, ethnicity, or physical or
5 mental disability, shall be punished as follows:
6 "(1) Felonies:
7 "(1) For a. On conviction of a Class A felony that
8 was found to have been motivated by the victim's actual or
9 perceived race, color, religion, national origin, ethnicity,
10 or physical or mental disability, the sentence shall not be
11 less than 15 years.
12 "(2) For b. On conviction of a Class B felony that
13 was found to have been motivated by the victim's actual or
14 perceived race, color, religion, national origin, ethnicity,
15 or physical or mental disability, the sentence shall not be
16 less than 10 years.
17 "(3) For c. On conviction of a Class C felony that
18 was found to have been motivated by the victim's actual or
19 perceived race, color, religion, national origin, ethnicity,
20 or physical or mental disability, the sentence shall not be
21 less than two years.
22 "(4) For d. On conviction of a Class D felony that
23 was found to have been motivated by the victim's actual or
24 perceived race, color, religion, national origin, ethnicity,
25 or physical or mental disability, the sentence shall not be
26 less than 18 months.
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1 "e. For purposes of this subdivision, a criminal
2 defendant who has been previously convicted of any felony and
3 receives an enhanced sentence pursuant to this section is also
4 subject to enhanced punishment under the Alabama Habitual
5 Felony Offender Act, Section 13A-5-9.
6 "(2) Misdemeanors:
7 "(5) For On conviction of a misdemeanor which was
8 found beyond a reasonable doubt to have been motivated by the
9 victim's actual or perceived race, color, religion, national
10 origin, ethnicity, or physical or mental disability, the
11 defendant shall be sentenced for a Class A misdemeanor, except
12 that the defendant shall be sentenced to a minimum of three
13 months.
14 "13A-11-241.
15 "(a) A person commits the crime of cruelty to a dog
16 or cat in the first degree if he or she intentionally tortures
17 any dog or cat or skins a domestic dog or cat or offers for
18 sale or exchange or offers to buy or exchange the fur, hide,
19 or pelt of a domestic dog or cat. Cruelty to a dog or cat in
20 the first degree is a Class C felony. A conviction for a
21 felony pursuant to this section shall not be considered a
22 felony for purposes of the Habitual Felony Offender Act,
23 Sections 13A-5-9 to 13A-5-10.1, inclusive.
24 "(b) A person commits the crime of cruelty to a dog
25 or cat in the second degree if he or she, in a cruel manner,
26 overloads, overdrives, deprives of necessary sustenance or
27 shelter, unnecessarily or cruelly beats, injuries injures,
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1 mutilates, or causes the same to be done. Cruelty to a dog or
2 cat in the second degree is a Class A misdemeanor.
3 "13A-12-231.
4 "Except as authorized in Chapter 2, of Title 20:
5 "(1) Any person who knowingly sells, manufactures,
6 delivers, or brings into this state, or who is knowingly in
7 actual or constructive possession of, in excess of one kilo or
8 2.2 pounds of any part of the plant of the genus Cannabis,
9 whether growing or not, the seeds thereof, the resin extracted
10 from any part of the plant, and every compound, manufacture,
11 salt, derivative, mixture, or preparation of the plant, its
12 seeds, or resin including the completely defoliated mature
13 stalks of the plant, fiber produced from the stalks, oil, or
14 cake, or the completely sterilized samples of seeds of the
15 plant which are incapable of germination is guilty of a
16 felony, which felony shall be known as "trafficking in
17 cannabis." Nothing in this subdivision shall apply to samples
18 of tetrahydrocannabinols including, but not limited to, all
19 synthetic or naturally produced samples of
20 tetrahydrocannabinols which contain more than 15 percent by
21 weight of tetrahydrocannabinols and which do not contain plant
22 material exhibiting the external morphological features of the
23 plant cannabis. If the quantity of cannabis involved:
24 "a. Is in excess of one kilo or 2.2 pounds, but less
25 than 100 pounds, the person shall be sentenced to a mandatory
26 minimum term of imprisonment of three calendar years and to
27 pay a fine of twenty-five thousand dollars ($25,000).
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1 "b. Is 100 pounds or more, but less than 500 pounds,
2 the person shall be sentenced to a mandatory minimum term of
3 imprisonment of five calendar years and to pay a fine of fifty
4 thousand dollars ($50,000).
5 "c. Is 500 pounds or more, but less than 1,000
6 pounds, the person shall be sentenced to a mandatory minimum
7 term of imprisonment of 15 calendar years and to pay a fine of
8 two hundred thousand dollars ($200,000).
9 "d. Is 1,000 pounds or more, the person shall be
10 sentenced to a mandatory term of imprisonment of life.
11 "(2) Any person who knowingly sells, manufactures,
12 delivers, or brings into this state, or who is knowingly in
13 actual or constructive possession of, 28 grams or more of
14 cocaine or of any mixture containing cocaine, described in
15 Section 20-2-25(1), is guilty of a felony, which felony shall
16 be known as "trafficking in cocaine." If the quantity
17 involved:
18 "a. Is 28 grams or more, but less than 500 grams,
19 the person shall be sentenced to a mandatory minimum term of
20 imprisonment of three calendar years and to pay a fine of
21 fifty thousand dollars ($50,000).
22 "b. Is 500 grams or more, but less than one kilo,
23 the person shall be sentenced to a mandatory minimum term of
24 imprisonment of five calendar years and to pay a fine of one
25 hundred thousand dollars ($100,000).
26 "c. Is one kilo, but less than 10 kilos, then the
27 person shall be sentenced to a mandatory minimum term of
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1 imprisonment of 15 calendar years and to pay a fine of two
2 hundred fifty thousand dollars ($250,000).
3 "d. Is 10 kilos or more, the person shall be
4 sentenced to a mandatory term of imprisonment of life.
5 "(3) Any person, except as otherwise authorized by
6 law, who knowingly sells, manufactures, delivers, or brings
7 into this state, or who is knowingly in actual or constructive
8 possession of, four grams or more of any morphine, opium, or
9 any salt, isomer, or salt of an isomer thereof, including
10 heroin, as described in Section 20-2-23(b)(2) or Section
11 20-2-25(1)a., or four grams or more of any mixture containing
12 any such substance, or any mixture containing Fentanyl or any
13 synthetic controlled substance Fentanyl analogue, as described
14 in Sections 20-2-23 and 20-2-25, is guilty of a felony, which
15 felony shall be known as "trafficking in illegal drugs." If
16 the quantity involved:
17 "a. Is four grams or more, but less than 14 grams,
18 the person shall be sentenced to a mandatory minimum term of
19 imprisonment of three calendar years and to pay a fine of
20 fifty thousand dollars ($50,000).
21 "b. Is 14 grams or more, but less than 28 grams, the
22 person shall be sentenced to a mandatory minimum term of
23 imprisonment of 10 calendar years and to pay a fine of one
24 hundred thousand dollars ($100,000).
25 "c. Is 28 grams or more, but less than 56 grams, the
26 person shall be sentenced to a mandatory minimum term of
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1 imprisonment of 25 calendar years and to pay a fine of five
2 hundred thousand dollars ($500,000).
3 "d. Is 56 grams or more, the person shall be
4 sentenced to a mandatory term of imprisonment of life.
5 "(4) Any person who knowingly sells, manufactures,
6 delivers, or brings into this state, or who is knowingly in
7 actual or constructive possession of 1,000 or more pills or
8 capsules of methaqualone, as described in Section 20-2-1, et
9 seq., is guilty of a felony, which felony shall be known as
10 "trafficking in illegal drugs." If the quantity involved:
11 "a. Is 1,000 pills or capsules, but less than 5,000
12 pills or capsules, the person shall be sentenced to a
13 mandatory minimum term of imprisonment of three calendar years
14 and pay a fine of fifty thousand dollars ($50,000).
15 "b. Is 5,000 capsules or more, but less than 25,000
16 capsules, that person shall be imprisoned to a mandatory
17 minimum term of imprisonment of 10 calendar years and pay a
18 fine of one hundred thousand dollars ($100,000).
19 "c. Is 25,000 pills or more, but less than 100,000
20 pills or capsules, the person shall be sentenced to a
21 mandatory minimum term of imprisonment of 25 calendar years
22 and pay a fine of five hundred thousand dollars ($500,000).
23 "d. Is 100,000 capsules or more, the person shall be
24 sentenced to a mandatory term of imprisonment of life.
25 "(5) Any person who knowingly sells, manufactures,
26 delivers, or brings into this state, or who is knowingly in
27 actual or constructive possession of 500 or more pills or
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1 capsules of hydromorphone as is described in Section 20-2-1,
2 et seq., is guilty of a felony which shall be known as
3 "trafficking in illegal drugs." If the quantity involved:
4 "a. Is 500 pills or capsules or more but less than
5 1,000 pills or capsules, the person shall be sentenced to a
6 mandatory term of imprisonment of three calendar years and to
7 pay a f