Governor supports bill to protect police in use of force cases
ALABAMA — A new proposal in the Alabama Legislature to expand legal protections for police officers has been hailed by Governor Ivey.
She said in her 'State of the State' speech Tuesday, the proposed bill would allow officers to do their jobs 'without fear of Monday morning quarterbacking in the courts.'
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The 'Back the Blue Legal Protection Act' was introduced Wednesday.
The bill would change Alabama law related to an officer's use of force, including deadly force.It has been introduced by Alabama Rep. Rex Reynolds, who is a former Huntsville police chief.
Reynolds told News 19 today the measure is aimed at providing additional support and protection for law enforcement officers. He said if officers go outside their duties and violate their department's policies and procedures while using force, they can be prosecuted.
But Reynolds says changing the law will provide support for officers in the course of their duties. The bill's language changes the use of force law from 'which he reasonably believes to be necessary' — to — 'the use of force is justified if it is within the officer's authority and discretion and doesn't violate civil rights for excessive force …'
Reynolds said the new measure could help protect officers from prosecution.
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'We've got to continue to support our law enforcement,' he said. 'If you look across the nation there are a lot of examples of where maybe community reaction caused someone to prosecute or arrest a law enforcement in the commission of his duties, and later to find out they're not guilty. But you're ruining that life.'
In recent years two murder cases involving North Alabama law enforcement officers has drawn widespread attention. Huntsville police officer William Darby in 2018, and Decatur police officer Mac Marquette in 2024, were charged with murder in separate on-duty shootings. Reynolds told News 19 he would not comment on individual cases or compare them, but he did discuss how the proposal could affect similar cases in the future.
'Going forward, if this bill's passed it's very clear in the law as to when they can and cannot be prosecuted, both civilly and criminally,' Reynolds said.' So I think it's a good update of a law, that again, has been on the books for almost 50 years. And provides some clear directions so there's clear standards to look at when a local DA or otherwise are looking at prosecuting a police officer for actions that fall within the scope of his duties.'
The bill would also provide an automatic stay for an officer charged in a use of force case. The stay would give the officer time to try and establish they acted within their discretion and authority.
Reynolds said he believes the law will provide clarity, saying the first time he read the bill, he felt like it provided clear language to let that officer know where he falls, based on his actions.
The message to the public?
'We're standing behind our law enforcement,' Reynolds said. 'We're taking very serious their actions, we know when they go outside the policies and procedures of that agency or department, and this clears it up.'
Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
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