OFFICIALS DEALING WITH MASS RELEASE OF PRISON INMATES

Notices of inmates who are up for parole or who have already been released
have started flowing into the offices of local law enforcement officials.

Colbert County Sheriff Ronnie May is not particularly happy about it.

"It's not fair to the people of this county," May said.

His office is receiving 25-35 notices each month, he said.

"I got six hearing notices this morning," May said Wednesday. "I've noticed
a drastic increase in the number of parole notices and parole hearings
we're receiving."

It was not entirely unexpected.

The mass exodus of inmates from state facilities was announced after the
defeat of Gov. Bob Riley's tax and accountability package as a means of
reducing the prison population.

Colbert County District Attorney Gary Alverson said his office has been
flooded with the notices.

"Most of the ones we're receiving are drug charges," Alverson said.

He said the board of pardons and paroles considers drug offenses
"victimless crimes."

"It's really not," Alverson said.

He said drug dealers will sell to people who will sometimes do anything to
get money to buy more drugs. Some commit criminal acts while under the
influence of drugs. Drunken driving is another crime the board of pardons
and paroles considers victimless, Alverson said.

"Any crime they have where there is not a victim's family that is going to
be upset, they're going to get those people out of prison as rapidly as
possible," Alverson said.

"They've got to reduce the prison population, so they're going to parole
them," Alverson said. "It makes little difference what we say."

Alverson said he received a notice that an inmate sentenced to 15 years in
prison is up for parole after serving about nine months.

That doesn't sit well with May, who said he dealt with a similar situation
in the late 1970s.

"I can honestly say that when they did that, I spent most of my time
re-arresting folks that had been released," May said.

May said he is already getting information that some released inmates have
returned to criminal activity.

"All we can do is watch them again," he said.

Lauderdale County District Attorney Billy Jackson is experiencing the same
flood of notices.

"Within the last week, we've gotten about 15 notices of parole," Jackson said.

"There's going to be a lot of people coming back home."

He said in some cases, the notices inform him that the inmate has already
been released.

"It can't help but have an impact," said Florence Police Chief Rick Singleton.

"These are folks, who have in the past, demonstrated a willingness to
commit crimes to support themselves.

"If they get back here and can't find a job, they're probably going to
resort to what they know, and that's crime."

Like May, Singleton said the police department will have to be more
vigilant and be even more dependent on the community to report criminal
activity.

Alverson said some of the worst repeat offenders are those who have
committed property crimes such as burglary and theft.

He also noted that the state has never had a comprehensive program designed
to help inmates when they are released.

"There have been objections to some of the efforts to try and train and
educate people while they're in the prison system," Alverson said.