Republican Alabama Attorney General candidate Katherine Robertson said on Thursday "her immediate priority" as Alabama's chief law enforcement officer will be passage of legislation that allows for state intervention if the Montgomery Police Department (MPD) fails to maintain minimum staffing requirements.
The minimum staffing bill sponsored by State Sen. Will Barfoot (R-Pike Road) passed the Senate and was on the House calendar on the session's final day, but it died when the House voted to adjourn "sine die" before considering the measure.
"Alabama's capital city should be a proud reflection of our state, but anyone who watches the news or reads the headlines can tell you that Montgomery today is in crisis," Robertson said. "Just last week, Mayor Steven Reed fought loudly against a bill mandating minimum staffing levels in the Montgomery Police Department, and hours after that legislation died, the city experienced eight shootings and four murders in one weekend."
During the 2026 regular legislative session, Barfoot proposed legislation requiring the MPD to meet a minimum staffing standard of 380 officers within five years or face possible intervention by the Alabama Law Enforcement Agency (ALEA), which would include appointment of a chief administrative law enforcement officer for the city and supplementing MPD staff with ALEA officers, sheriff's deputies, or other LEOs.
"The brave Montgomery police officers patrolling the streets are doing their very best with what they have, but the complete lack of leadership from the mayor's office has left their ranks depleted," Robertson said. "Too many lifelong residents of Montgomery have told me they fear leaving their homes at night, and none of them even consider attending community events, fairs, or festivals because they worry gunfire will erupt."
She noted that an October mass shooting at a community event outside the Renaissance Montgomery Hotel & Spa in downtown Montgomery left two dead and 12 injured from gunshot wounds.
"The crime and lawlessness that the mayor allows to exist in Montgomery has even made it more difficult to recruit bright, talented, young lawyers to the Attorney General's Office because few of them want to move and raise families there," Robertson said. "I refuse to surrender our capital city to the criminal elements that roam its streets and will back any measure that gives Montgomery police officers the help, resources, and support they need."
Barfoot, who has publicly endorsed Robertson for attorney general, said he appreciates the support and commitment that she has offered to his legislation.
"The need for this minimum staffing legislation is going to become even more critical between now and the next legislative session, not less, and I know that as attorney general, Katherine will be patrolling the committee rooms, corridors, and chambers of the Alabama State House pushing for its passage," Barfoot said. "Katherine is a fighter, she's not afraid, and she's ready on day one to step in and do what the attorney general of this state needs to be doing, and that's protecting the citizens of Alabama."
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