A close-up of police lights. The Justice Information Commission says about 15% of law enforcement agencies in the state have not reported crime statistics, and are planning to summon them to the commission for questioning. (Getty)
The Alabama Justice Information Commission said Thursday that dozens of jurisdictions in the state have not yet reported incidents of crime, and plan to pressure local law enforcement agencies for the numbers.
Members of the Alabama Justice Information Commission Thursday voted to summon police departments, sheriffs’ offices and other law enforcement agencies before the commission to explain why they have not electronically submitted their monthly crime data to the Alabama Law Enforcement Agency, at the risk losing access to a criminal justice information database used to review the information of people they detain as part of their operations.
“You all told us we need to do something to start reminding agencies that they have to report crime to us, so we came up with a letter,” said Maury Mitchell, the state crime information director. “Here is the letter that says, ‘You have not reported to us. You need to start reporting.’”
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The formal process to try and compel agencies to comply with the crime reporting requirements comes after the Criminal Justice Information Services Division of ALEA sent out notices to 114 law enforcement jurisdictions throughout the state who did not report their crime figures for at least one of the months in 2025.
A message was left with the Alabama Sheriffs Association seeking comment.
Since the notices were sent, 35 jurisdictions submitted their numbers and another 11 are attempting to submit the information to ALEA. That leaves 68 that have yet to submit their crime numbers to fully comply with the rule, representing about 15% of law enforcement agencies in the state.
The lack of reporting has made it difficult to determine the scope and geography of criminal activity in Alabama, according to the commission. In the summer, the commission directed staff to begin reviewing the logs to look for agencies that did not submit crime data and offer suggestions for gaining compliance. In response, staff developed a letter and sent them to the jurisdictions.
One example was the Columbiana Police Department in Shelby County, which the commission said had not reported their monthly statistics for June, July or August.
“Your agency must comply with the rule or appear before the Alabama Justice Commission in January to show cause for failing to submit as required,” the letter states.
A message was left with the Columbiana Police Department seeking comment.
The letters hinted at consequences for noncompliance, but staff had not obtained an official authorization from the commission that outlined potential consequences. The meeting Thursday formally authorized the process for securing compliance.
Moving forward, agencies that continue to have missing information will be asked to appear before the commission to explain the situation. And those who do not appear will then lose access to the Law Enforcement Tactical System, the database they use to get background information for people they detain.
Agencies may lose their eligibility to receive federal dollars through grants that are administered by the Alabama Department of Community and Economic Affairs.
“To be fair, there are seven regions in the state,” Mitchell said. “We started with ‘A’, then went to ‘B’ and then ‘C’. Each of these folks represent a different region. The last two regions, they just got their notices in the last three days. They have not had a lot of time.”
The commission used a similar tactic for the law enforcement agencies that use LETS, a system that law enforcement to determine the histories and backgrounds of those at traffic stops, such as any outstanding warrants. The commission increased oversight of agencies using LETS that failed privacy protection audits.
The increased pressure comes as the Criminal Justice Information Service division plans to update its administrative rules to compel timelier criminal data reporting.
The rules for reporting crime were established in the 1980s, but Mitchell said that agencies are not following the rules and that the process is outdated. The law states that law enforcement agencies must collect information on reported crimes. The process would ideally start when people first reach out to law enforcement.
“In this case, police are no longer doing that,” Mitchell said. “They are waiting until they send an officer out to the alleged crime scene and then fill this out. The law says, ‘No, it is when somebody reported a crime to a law enforcement agency.’ It has to be documented and notated.The followup is completing the rest of the report.”
Mitchell also said it was not an issue in the past, but that some agencies will take months to report a criminal incident. Members of the commission also authorized the creation of a subcommittee that will recruit law enforcement agencies to review the matter further.
