Alabama’s prison systems are at 168% capacity, according to a recent report.

The Alabama Department of Corrections reported 20,361 inmates housed in state correctional facilities as of September 2023, according to its monthly report. Its capacity for in-house inmates is listed at 12,115.

However, a recent report from the ACLU of Alabama indicates that instead of finding solutions to prison reform, state lawmakers have continued to pass laws that would increase prison populations.

The ACLU’s 2023 Statehouse to Prison Pipeline Report released Dec. 6, notes that of 876 bills introduced by Alabama lawmakers this year, 141 of them, or 16%, were identified as bills that fuel the prison pipeline.

The report is in its third year. In 2021, the ACLU identified 11% of bills as those that fuel the prison pipeline and 17% of bills in 2022.

ACLU of Alabama adopted the phrase “Statehouse to Prison Pipeline,” from the ACLU of Ohio. The phrase is used to describe the policies that are proposed and/or enacted in Alabama’s legislature that “address social problems exclusively through the criminal punishment system,” according to ACLU.

“In 2023, bills demanded longer sentencing for people while making it increasingly difficult for those who served their time to be released from prison,” the report states.

Among the passed bills is Senate Bill 43, which adds factors for classifying gang members and increases penalties for gangs or “criminal enterprise” activities. Juveniles 16 years of age or older can be tried as an adult for gang-related criminal activity, under the new law.

The bill states that a gang member can be identified by a combination of factors including that the person associated with one or more known gang members, adopted the style of dress of a gang member; adopted the style of dress of a gang; or was seen with a known gang member four or more times.

Versions of the bill were debated along party lines during the 2023 legislative session.

“When you’re saying style of dress, like all of these things are problematic because you’re talking about fashion,” said Democrat Rep. Ontario Tillman of District 56 representing Jefferson County. “You’re talking about a kid who may want to wear something of those colors. and we’re going to potentially lock up a 16-year-old kid, a 17-year-old kid, because law enforcement believe that he is a gang member, he associates with a gang member.”

District 51 Rep. Allen Treadaway, a Republican also representing Jefferson County, sponsored the House version of SB 43.

“Unfortunately, there are people out here that are hell-bent on killing people, and I’ve seen it firsthand,” the retired Birmingham Police Department Assistant Police Chief said during a hearing for the bill. “We’re seeing them in gang initiation where they have to commit serious crimes. … This is a serious approach to that type of behavior, and if we don’t address it, I’m afraid that crime is just going to keep going up.”

The ACLU report suggests that under the new law, fraternities and sororities have all the signs of a gang, including style of dress, hand signs and other common identifiers.

Among the most constricting prison population-related bills signed into law is SB 1, which increases the amount of time a prisoner must spend in a certain classification before he or she can move up in classification for good behavior.

The new “good time” law doubles the minimum amount of time an inmate remains in Class II and Class III from six months to 12 months, and three months to six months, respectively. It also increases the minimum a Class IV inmate stays in the classification from 30 days to three months before being eligible for Class III.

The bill comes after a deputy was shot and killed in 2022 by a suspect who had been erroneously released from prison on only a good behavior incentive despite an extensive criminal history while in jail.

“This bill will diminish hope for those incarcerated in prisons plagued by violence, overcrowding and a severe shortage of correctional officers,” the ACLU report states.

A related bill, HB 131, prevents individuals charged with multiple offenses that carry a term exceeding 12 months, from being considered for parole until the charge(s) have been resolved.

HB 24 allows police officers to arrest someone for loitering or seeking help along public roadways without first asking the person to leave.

While supporters of the bill said the measure was needed for improved public safety, ACLU argued that the First Amendment protects charitable solicitation and begging, and that the bill multiplies “already existing barriers for people experiencing homelessness and limits free speech.”

Other bills, such as HB 209, would have made it a felony for absentee ballot applications or absentee ballots to be distributed, ordered, requested, collected, completed, obtained or delivered by a person other than relative of the voter, someone who lives with the voter or who was appointed by an election official.

Sen. Garland Gudger of District 4 has pre-filed a similar bill ahead of the 2024 legislative session.

The Statehouse to Prison Pipeline Report also highlights some of the positive bills — mostly filed by Democrats — filed that sought to reduce the strain on Alabama’s prison system and positively impact communities.

HB 14 would have required a jury to be unanimous when providing an advisory verdict to a judge for a death sentence. Under current law, jurors in a capital murder case can advise a death sentence in a vote of 10 of 12 jurors. Alabama and Florida are the only states that don’t require a unanimous jury for a death sentence.

Another proposal, HB 16, would have provided oversight to the Alabama Board of Pardon and Paroles, which has been criticized in recent years for its low parole rates. The proposal would create a council that is tasked with reviewing the board’s guidelines for release, adopting new guidelines as necessary, and updating the ADOC’ classification system.

The sponsor of the bill, Democrat Rep. Chris England, has pre-filed a similar version of that bill, HB 30, for the 2024 legislative session.

“This bill would require the Board of Pardons and Paroles to use parole release guidelines created by the Criminal Justice Policy Development Council in its parole decisions,” the proposed bill summary states.

The ACLU stated that instead of prison reform within the ADOC, which has been sued by the U.S. Department of Justice for alleged inhumane and unsafe conditions, the state is continuing to invest more tax dollars into prisons. As an example, the state is currently in the process of building a nearly $1 billion, 4,000-bed men’s prison in Elmore County.

“Our public schools are underfunded. Quality healthcare is unaffordable and inaccessible for most parts of the state. Public utilities and public transit are dilapidated or non-existent.,” ACLU of Alabama stated. “If we continue down the path of prioritizing punishment over people, Alabama’s communities will suffer.”