A 67-page report released today by the Birmingham Crime Commission paints a stark analysis of the city’s violent crime crisis and provides a suggested blueprint toward making “Birmingham the safest city in America.” The city’s homicide rate, seven times higher than the national average, broke a 91-year record in 2024.
The detailed report called for sweeping reforms and collaboration to combat violent crime in Birmingham – but made a narrow appeal to the Alabama Legislature.
Page 27 of the report calls on the Alabama Legislature to enact laws restricting concealed carry without a permit, banning firearm conversion devices, and making it a Class A Felony to shoot into occupied dwellings. Birmingham Mayor Randall Woodfin has been adamant about similar demands.
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According to the report:
“There is a need for state law reform that supports the efforts of CVI and encourages rehabilitation of offenders so that they become productive citizens.
- Implement tougher gun laws for Jefferson County only (e.g., restrict carrying a concealed weapon without a license and prevent brandishing of weapons in public).
- Implement state laws that ban possession of firearm conversion devices.
- Currently several bills have been identified for support by the City for the upcoming legislative session. These include:
- Conversion Device Prohibition: Adopt federal conversion device (commonly known as Glock Switch) prohibition as state law. The bill would prohibit individuals from possessing any part of combination of parts designed or intended to convert a firearm into a machine gun.
- Unlawful to Shoot into Occupied Dwellings and/or Vehicles: Makes it a Class A felony to discharge a firearm, explosives, or other weapon that discharges a dangerous projectile into an occupied dwelling, building, automobile, truck, watercraft, etc.
- State Sovereign Immunity Equivalent for Municipal Law Enforcement and Fire Personnel: This would allow for municipal fire and law enforcement personnel to have the same sort of absolute sovereign immunity that similarly situated state law enforcement personnel currently enjoy.”
The report lays bare Birmingham’s struggles with far broader issues:
- Chronic underfunding and staffing shortages in the Birmingham Police Department (BPD), operating at just 73% strength with 233 vacancies.
- Socioeconomic conditions like poverty, unemployment, and lack of educational opportunities, which the report itself identifies as root causes of crime.
- Fragmented public safety coordination and siloed efforts among city departments, compounded by limited resources and support.
The report comprehensively details the city’s current landscape as it relates to a violent crime epidemic that shook nationwide headlines in September following a mass shooting that left 4 dead and over a dozen injured.
The report calls for immediate interventions paired with long-term reforms to tackle the city’s pervasive violent crime, particularly gun violence, after months of collaboration among community leaders, law enforcement, and public safety experts.
According to the report, immediate interventions include implementing focused deterrence strategies to target high-risk individuals, expanding hospital-based violence intervention programs to prevent retaliation, and deploying hotspot policing to address high-crime areas through increased enforcement and environmental improvements.
RELATED: Birmingham marks most homicides since 1933, breaking grim 91-year record
Law enforcement reforms focus on addressing staffing shortages by recruiting qualified officers, offering retention incentives, and modernizing operations with advanced technologies such as real-time crime analytics and updated investigative tools.
The Birmingham City Council is expected to review the report in the coming weeks, with initial pilot programs anticipated to roll out later this spring.
Grayson Everett is the state and political editor for Yellowhammer News. You can follow him on X @Grayson270.
