SB27 Summary

• Amends Alabama Code Section 13A-5-13 to impose additional penalties for arson, burglary, and criminal mischief of any degree when committed against religious property due to its religious character.

• Defines religious property as churches, religious cemeteries, places of religious worship, and fixtures or religious objects contained within such places.

• Subjects offenders to existing hate crime penalties under subsection (c), ranging from minimum 15-year sentences for Class A felonies to 3-month minimums for Class A misdemeanors based on crime severity.

• Applies to all three degrees of arson (first, second, and third degree), all three degrees of burglary (first, second, and third degree), and all three degrees of criminal mischief (first, second, and third degree).

• Becomes effective on the first day of the third month following passage and approval by the Governor.