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Yahoo
06-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Alabama Senate commitee OKs bill requiring parental notification for kids' traffic citations
Yahoo is using AI to generate takeaways from this article. This means the info may not always match what's in the article. Reporting mistakes helps us improve the experience. Yahoo is using AI to generate takeaways from this article. This means the info may not always match what's in the article. Reporting mistakes helps us improve the experience. Yahoo is using AI to generate takeaways from this article. This means the info may not always match what's in the article. Reporting mistakes helps us improve the experience. Generate Key Takeaways A police stop. A bill awaiting a vote in the Alabama Senate would require law enforcement agencies issuing citations to those under the age of 19 to contact their emergency contact about the citation. (Heather Freinkel via Getty Images) The Senate Judiciary Committee Wednesday approved legislation requiring officers to notify parents about citations issued to their minor children when their children are issued a citation. HB 285, sponsored by Rep. Jamie Kiel, R-Russellville, would require any law enforcement agency issuing citations to those under the age of 19 to make a 'reasonable effort to notify the driver's emergency contact, if available.' The bill says the contact could be a single phone call, text message, or letter sent by U.S. mail. 'You may know this, or you may not, but your child could be driving your vehicle, using your gas, your insurance, you are liable for that child, but if that child were to get a ticket, you may never know about it,' Kiel told members of the committee during the meeting. SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX The House of Representatives approved the bill on March 23. There are three days left in the 2025 legislative session. Several amendments were proposed for that section of the code to lessen the burden on law enforcement when they issue the citation. First, a single phone call was enough to be considered a 'reasonable attempt.' Language was inserted into the bill that permitted text messages and sending a letter by U.S. mail. The legislation excludes citations for illegally parking the vehicle. April Vafeas, whose son was killed in a collision in June 2022 after not wearing his seatbelt, told the committee that the bill was important to her. 'After he died, I found three traffic citations for not wearing his seatbelt,' she said. 'They were all in our hometown and I had no idea. I am the kind of person who thinks that a seatbelt is important.' Several members on the committee continued to express concerns about how much additional time that it would take law enforcement to comply with the provisions in the legislation because of the volume of citations they regularly issue. 'We keep putting guidelines, and we keep putting everything on law enforcement, I have got to vote against this just from being out there and writing tickets and knowing what is going on,' Sen. Lance Bell, R-Pell City, who has experience working as a law enforcement officer. 'There is just no way. How do you find out the driver's emergency contact? Things of that nature.' Some senators on the committee suggested placing information on a website that parents can access to determine whether their children receive a citation. The committee approved the legislation with the understanding that they will continue to update the bill as it moves into the Senate chamber. SUPPORT: YOU MAKE OUR WORK POSSIBLE
Yahoo
22-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Alabama bill would allow law enforcement to demand people remove medical masks in public
Rep. Jamie Kiel, R-Russellville, speaks to a colleague on the floor of the Alabama House of Representatives on Feb. 8, 2024 in Montgomery, Alabama. The House Public Safety and Homeland Security Committee approved his bill that allows law enforcement to demand that people remove their masks while in public. (Brian Lyman/Alabama Reflector) The House Public Safety and Homeland Security Committee Wednesday approved a bill that gives law enforcement the power to demand that people remove their medical face masks in public so that they can be identified. HB 559, sponsored by Rep. Jamie Kiel, R-Russellville, allows people to wear a health care mask while in public without being charged with loitering, but allows law enforcement to demand that people show them a note from their medical provider to not spread an infection during a protest. It also allows law enforcement to demand that people remove their masks so that they can be identified. 'If there is not a reason to wear the mask in a public place, this also deals with universities, then there needs to be an excuse for wearing that mask,' Kiel said to members of the committee. 'Instead of just wearing a mask in a place where there may be, like a parade for instance, it is not a masquerade mask, then this would allow law enforcement to request to remove the mask unless they have a medical reason.' SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX According to the bill, Alabama statute states that people can be charged with loitering if they remain in a public place to panhandle, gamble and to solicit prostitution, and if they remain in a transportation facility for commercial purposes. They can also be charged with loitering if they wear a mask while in a public space or stay on the grounds of the university or college after they are told to leave by officials with the school and who are not connected with the university in some way. People can be charged with a violation if they are charged with loitering for the first time, but they may be charged with a Class C misdemeanor, punishable by up to three months in jail and a $500 fine. The legislation Kiel filed exempts people from getting charged with loitering during times they are wearing a mask while in public, such as a protest or a parade, but they must demonstrate to law enforcement that they have legitimate medical reason. 'If I want to wear my mask for safety procedures, I have to get a doctor's order just for me to stand out (there), or just for the three of us gathering together,' said Tashina Morris, D-Montgomery. Republicans on the committee allows law enforcement to identify people who stay in a public place, such as a protest on school grounds for example, in case any incidents occur, and that university and college officials agree with the measure. 'The only thing we are trying to do is when we are having a situation on campuses where we have some folks who are coming to protest,' said Porter Bannister, vice chancellor for state affairs with the University of Alabama system. 'They may or may not be students. They are telling our police officers, 'No, I will not take off my mask' when we ask them for identification. That is all we are trying to do.' SUPPORT: YOU MAKE OUR WORK POSSIBLE
