Alabama Criminal Records

Alabama Criminal Records are official papers and information on crimes for which a person was arrested, prosecuted, accused, pleaded, convicted, or punished. It lists acquitted or dismissed offenses.

Are criminal records public in Alabama? Under Alabama's Open Records Law, anybody can view criminal records. The legislation discloses all government papers to the public to avoid corruption and concealment. These criminal records include prior arrests, convictions, mugshots, and other crime-related information.

The Alabama Criminal Justice Information Center (also called ACJIC) maintains and manages the Alabama criminal data repository. This repository integrates numerous agencies' criminal history identification, arrest, court disposition, detention, and supervision data.

How far back do criminal records go in Alabama? By default, a statewide search includes seven years of criminal record history. Still, individuals can pick from 10, 20, or 30 years when submitting their inquiry, assuming state law does not prevent such time lengths.

From county to county within Alabama, criminal court records may include varying amounts of information. However, most of the criminal records in the state may include the following:

• The offender's complete name (first, middle, and last name)
• Birth date
• Physical attributes like height, race, eye color, and hair color
• Crime(s) committed and laws infringed
• Unpaid charges
• Dismissed or acquitted charges

Most of the crimes committed in Alabama are the following:

Criminal Driving Violations

Some Alabama traffic crimes are spread throughout the code because they need to be under more than one chapter. However, most are in Title 32 - Motor Vehicles and Traffic. In Article 9, serious driving crimes include:

• Reckless driving
• Abandonment of the site of an accident or hit and run
• Attempting to elude law enforcement
• Driving under license suspension
• Homicide by vehicle

The most common criminal driving violations include:

• Speeding
• Driving Under the Influence (DUI)

Felonies

In Alabama, a felony is a serious crime with longer prison terms than a misdemeanor. There are classes A, B, C, and D, with Class A being the most punishable and Class D being the least. Here's how Alabama categorizes felonies:

• Class A: these are the most violent crimes and are punishable by a minimum of ten years in prison, up to ninety-nine years, or life in prison. Fines might be as high as $60,000.00. Class A felonies often entail acts of violence or conduct that endangers another individual. It includes murder and 1st-degree kidnapping, rape, burglary, robbery, and arson.
• Class B: Under this Class, felonies could get you two to twenty years in prison. Fines can go as high as $30,000. Class B felonies include manslaughter, the illegal sale of drugs, 2nd-degree assault, domestic violence, rape, burglary, and 1st-degree property theft.
• Class C: these offenses carry a minimum one-year-and-one-day jail penalty and up to ten years. Fines can reach up to $15,000.00. Class C felonies include interference with custody, sexual abuse, illegal drug possession, theft of services, 3rd-degree extortion, bribery, 1st-degree marijuana possession, and firearms charges.
• Class D: For class D offenses, the maximum punishment for imprisonment is five years, and the minimum is one year and one day. The maximum fine is $7,500.

In Alabama, the worst punishment is either death or life imprisonment without the chance of getting out.

Misdemeanors

Misdemeanors in Alabama are far less severe offenses with lower penalties and shorter sentences than felonies. There are just three classifications, as opposed to four for felonies. Class A offenses carry a maximum punishment of one year in prison and a fine reaching up to $6000.

Most Alabama misdemeanor records include:

• Theft
• Shoplifting
• Assault (Class A)
• Disorderly conduct
• Indecent exposure
• Open house party

In Alabama, speeding and driving under the influence (DUI) are also misdemeanors.

Sexual Offenses

Under the criminal code, chapter 6 of the 2016 Code of Alabama, most records of sexual offenses in Alabama fall under:

• Rape (1st and 2nd degree)
• Sodomy (1st and 2nd degree)
• Sexual misconduct
• Sexual torture
• Sexual abuse (1st and 2nd degree)
• Indecent exposure
• Enticing a child to enter the vehicle, house, etc., for immoral purposes
• Sexual abuse of a child less than 12 years old
• Lack of consent
• The sexual act between a foster parent and a foster child

Alabama's expungement procedure allows you to remove old arrests or convictions from your record. You can file for expungement if you're proven not guilty.

You need your official criminal record and specific court papers to start the expungement in Alabama. An attorney can collect all the documents and prepare the paperwork, giving you the best possibility of expungement success.

Remember that different offenses have different waiting periods. If proven guilty of a misdemeanor, you must wait two years and have no more convictions. Meanwhile, felonies have a five-year delay.

In Alabama, most inmate records include personal, criminal, and medical history, conduct, and activities while in detention. In contrast, jail records contain information such as sentence date, commitment order for confinement, place of confinement, sentence expiration date, and previous convictions.

Where can you find inmates in Alabama? One of the best resources for this record is the Alabama Department of Corrections. It has a searchable online inmate database that offers mugshots, past convictions, good moral days, sentences, parole status, and minimum release date.

Also, if you are curious about checking Alabama parole status, the database has that too. The parole status of the individual you're looking for will appear on their profile.

An Alabama arrest record is a report prepared by law enforcement following arrest, imprisonment, or interrogation in a criminal investigation, criminal complaint, or criminal activity. Many criminal cases and records in Alabama begin with an arrest.

Although an arrest does not necessarily lead to a criminal charge in Alabama, arrest records may still be available to the public until the individual meets the expungement standards and successfully expunges the arrest records.

Alabama arrest records frequently include the suspect's crime, charges, name, address, physical description, fingerprint, and subsequent actions, such as appearing in court. Even if they're innocent, Alabama arrestees get mugshots.

An arrest is only possible with an Alabama arrest warrant. In Alabama, a court or magistrate issues active warrants when law enforcement officials or a complaint can prove reasonable cause under oath that the specified individual has committed a crime.

How to find arrest warrants in Alabama? Calling the local police station is the most straightforward approach to determine whether you or someone else has an arrest warrant. You can also use the DEA Fugitive Search tool and the U.S. Marshal's Warrant Information System for online resources. You can visit the county sheriff's websites if you want active local warrants.

The Alabama Law Enforcement Agency (ALEA) is a law enforcement agency that you can rely on to find official Alabama Criminal Records. It has a criminal record check service via application through the mail.

For public background check, you must fill out the ALEA Application and send it to Review Alabama Criminal History Record Information (CHRI). The applicant must give fingerprints, a copy of their current photo ID, the AL CHRI application, and pay at the office.

It also has the Alabama Background Check System (ABC). It is a secure site that lets qualifying employers see the most up-to-date and complete Alabama criminal records for current and potential employees.

Federal law forbids employers from inquiring about past arrests. However, there is no state legislation in Alabama prohibiting employers from asking about prior convictions, regardless of how long ago they were committed.

If you are an employee, you can rightfully get a copy of any background check information received by prospective employers about you.

Additionally, you can use third-party websites to find public Alabama criminal records online, which can be faster. These non-government portals have user-friendly tools that enable extensive searches. Record searchers can search for single or several documents using these tools. However, users must supply sufficient information, such as:

• The record's subject
• Requester's address
• Case number (if known)
• Document or person's location
• The registrant's current address

Government agencies do not fund external websites. Consequently, record availability and search results might vary.