Alabama Pardon and Parole: Eligibility, Hearing, and Revocation

Alabama pardon and parole eligibility runs on two separate tracks with different clocks. To be considered for a pardon, you generally must have completed at least three years on permanent parole, or your full sentence if it was shorter than three years. To be considered for parole, you must reach the initial consideration date the Bureau calculates from your sentence length under Alabama Code Section 15-22-28. Both processes are handled by the Alabama Bureau of Pardons and Paroles and end with a vote by board members appointed by the governor and confirmed by the Alabama Senate.

Who Qualifies for a Pardon

A pardon restores civil rights lost to a felony conviction, including the right to vote, hold public office, and in some cases possess firearms. It does not erase the conviction from your record.

The waiting period is set by Alabama Code Section 15-22-36: you cannot receive a pardon unless you have successfully completed at least three years on permanent parole. If your original sentence was less than three years, you have to wait until the sentence fully expires instead.¹ The three-year clock runs during parole, not after you finish it. That distinction trips people up regularly.

One narrow exception exists. A pardon based on innocence can be granted at any time if the board votes unanimously, the applicant provides clear proof of innocence, and the original trial judge or district attorney submits written approval. If the original judge is deceased or no longer serving, a circuit judge in the same circuit can provide the approval.¹

Meeting the waiting period only gets you in the door. The board weighs the severity of the offense, disciplinary record during incarceration and parole, participation in rehabilitation and education programs, employment history, character references, and whether all financial obligations like restitution and court fees have been paid. Violent crimes, particularly homicide and aggravated assault, face a higher bar. Victims and their families can submit statements, and the board gives that input real weight in violent cases.²

Who Qualifies for Parole

Parole in Alabama is not a reward for good behavior. Statute is explicit: the board can only grant parole if it believes there is a “reasonable probability” the person will live at liberty without breaking the law and that release would not threaten public welfare.²

The Bureau calculates each prisoner’s initial parole consideration date using schedules in Alabama Code Section 15-22-28(e). The date depends on sentence length and whether the prisoner earns good-time deductions under the Alabama Correctional Incentive Time Act. For sentences of five years or less, the prisoner goes on the current docket right away. For sentences over five years up to ten years, initial consideration is scheduled approximately 18 months before the minimum release date. Longer sentences follow progressively longer schedules.³

A “set date” is not a guarantee of a hearing in that exact month. It means the file will be processed once the prisoner reaches eligibility, and the Bureau tries to schedule as close to that date as possible.⁴

Once a case reaches the board, several factors drive the decision:

Institutional behavior, including disciplinary infractions and completion of education, vocational, or rehabilitation programs.
Offense severity, with violent crimes typically requiring more of the sentence served before consideration.
Statements from victims, victims’ families, prosecutors, and law enforcement.
Risk assessments, psychological evaluations, and recommendations from correctional staff.

The board must clearly state its reasons for granting or denying parole and provide those reasons to the prisoner, the victim, the Department of Corrections, or any other interested party upon written request.²

Medical Parole

Alabama’s medical parole provision, enacted in 2017 under Section 15-22-43, creates a separate docket for prisoners who meet certain health criteria. They must still be otherwise eligible for initial parole consideration and not barred by statute.

Three categories qualify: geriatric, permanently incapacitated, or terminally ill. Prisoners may also qualify if they spent more than 30 days in a prison infirmary in the prior calendar year, received costly and frequent medical treatment outside a Department of Corrections facility in the previous 12 months, or have a life-threatening illness with death expected within 12 months.⁴

The Bureau does not employ its own doctors. Medical determinations are made by physicians employed by the Department of Corrections, who then send lists of potential candidates to the Bureau for docketing. The process starts on the corrections side, not with an application from the prisoner or their family.

Voting Rights Without a Pardon

A full pardon is not the only way to get voting rights back in Alabama, and for many people it is not the fastest. A separate process under Section 15-22-36.1 lets you apply for a Certificate of Eligibility to Register to Vote. If your conviction involved a “crime of moral turpitude” but is not on the list of permanently disqualifying offenses, you can apply for this certificate without waiting three years for pardon eligibility.⁵

Three conditions apply: no pending felony charges, all fines, court costs, fees, and restitution ordered at sentencing paid in full, and either full completion of your sentence (including probation or parole) or an existing pardon. Post-conviction fees that were not part of the original sentencing order do not count against you.

You can apply through your local probation and parole office or the Bureau’s main office in Montgomery. After submission the Bureau has a 30-day investigation window followed by a 14-day response window, so a decision typically comes back within about 45 days.

How to Apply

To apply for a pardon, complete both the Pardon Application form and the Waiver of Liability and Authority for Release of Information form. Both are on the Bureau’s website. Submit by mail to the Alabama Bureau of Pardons and Paroles, P.O. Box 302405, Montgomery, AL 36130-2405, or by email to pardons@paroles.alabama.gov.⁶ Include character references, proof of steady employment, community involvement, and documentation that all financial obligations from the conviction have been met. Incomplete applications cause delays.

For parole, an incarcerated person or their representative can submit an application for early parole consideration to the Bureau once per year. The form is on the Bureau’s website and can be sent to paroles@paroles.alabama.gov. Early consideration applications do not override the statutory eligibility schedules but may prompt an earlier review than the original docketing.

Once either application is received, the Bureau conducts a background investigation covering court records, interviews with correctional officers and probation officials, and verification that fines, restitution, and court costs have been paid. Alabama law then requires the Bureau to notify the victim, certain officials in the jurisdiction where the conviction occurred, and the applicant when the case is placed on the docket.⁶

What Happens at the Board Hearing

Parole and pardon hearings are open to the public and held each week on Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday (unless otherwise noted) at the Bureau’s headquarters at 301 South Ripley Street in Montgomery.⁷ Victims, law enforcement, and other interested parties may attend.

The applicant or their attorney can present arguments and call supporting witnesses. Family members, employers, clergy, or community figures can testify. The board reviews its investigative reports, disciplinary records, psychological evaluations, and risk assessments alongside any victim statements. After hearing from all parties, the board goes into executive session, then votes. A majority is required to approve, and the decision is announced at the conclusion of the hearing.⁷

Life on Parole

If the board grants parole, it specifies the conditions of release in writing and gives the parolee a copy. Violating those conditions can result in arrest and reimprisonment.⁸ Standard conditions include:

Following the parole officer’s instructions and cooperating with supervision.
No leaving the state without board consent.
Avoiding people or places the board considers harmful.
Submitting to behavioral treatment, substance abuse treatment, GPS monitoring, or other requirements the board or parole officer deems necessary.
No possession of a firearm in violation of federal law or Alabama Code Section 13A-11-72.

There is also a monthly supervision fee. The standard fee is $40 per month. For those on intensive supervision, the fee is based on 10 percent of gross income, capped at $90 per month.⁹ Falling behind on these fees can create problems with your parole officer, so build them into your budget from day one.

The Limits of a Pardon

A pardon restores civil rights but does not automatically clear your criminal record. Convictions still appear on background checks unless separate legal action is taken. Employment and housing challenges can persist. Professional licensing boards may still weigh the underlying offense, especially where dishonesty is involved.

Firearm rights after a pardon are more complicated than most people expect. Under Alabama law, restoring firearm rights requires specific board approval. Federal law then adds a second layer: under 18 U.S.C. Section 922(g)(1), anyone convicted of a crime punishable by more than one year in prison is prohibited from possessing firearms.¹⁰ Section 921(a)(20) recognizes an exception where a state has restored civil rights, but federal courts require that the state made an individualized judgment that the person should be excepted from the firearms ban. A general restoration may not be enough.¹¹ A pardon that explicitly restores firearm rights generally satisfies this standard, but the interplay is an area where legal counsel is worth the cost.

A state pardon also does not erase a conviction for federal employment suitability or security clearance purposes. Federal guidelines state that a pardon does not nullify the underlying conduct unless the pardon was granted on the basis of innocence. Investigators still examine the nature and seriousness of the conduct, how recently it occurred, the applicant’s age at the time, and evidence of rehabilitation.¹² A pardon helps as a mitigating factor but does not guarantee suitability.

International travel is another area to plan for. Even after a pardon, Canada may consider you “criminally inadmissible” based on the original conviction. Overcoming that requires Individual Rehabilitation with Canadian immigration authorities, available only after at least five years have passed since the end of the criminal sentence including probation, and processing can take over a year.¹³ Other countries handle U.S. pardons differently.

One more practical point: getting a pardon does not automatically update your record in the FBI’s national criminal database. If your FBI record does not reflect the pardon, you have to contact the original arresting agency, the court, or the correctional agency to initiate the correction. Only state or federal agencies authorized by the FBI can update entries in the Interstate Identification Index.¹⁴ Checking your own record after a pardon prevents headaches with employers, landlords, and licensing agencies later.

Violations and Revocation

If a parole officer has reason to believe a parolee violated conditions and that the public would be endangered or the parolee might flee, the officer can issue an arrest warrant and have the parolee held in the county jail.¹⁵ The officer must coordinate with a regional hearing officer to schedule a parole court within 72 hours of the arrest.

Under Alabama Code Section 15-22-32, a revocation hearing must occur within 20 business days after the Department of Corrections receives notice that the parolee is in custody. If no hearing happens in that window, the parolee must be released back to supervision. At the hearing, the parole court decides whether sufficient evidence supports the violation charges.¹⁶ The burden of proof is lower than at a criminal trial, so conduct that would not support a criminal conviction can still end parole.

If the parole court finds sufficient evidence, it can recommend revocation or reinstatement to the full board. The board then decides whether to revoke parole (sending the person back to prison to serve the remainder of the sentence), impose stricter supervision, or reinstate parole with a warning.

Pardons can also be revoked under limited circumstances. If the pardon was obtained through fraudulent information, the board can rescind it. If the board specifically restored firearm rights as part of a pardon and the recipient is later convicted of a new felony, that restoration is automatically revoked. Challenging a revocation generally requires judicial review based on procedural errors, and the avenues for appeal are narrow.

1
Alabama Legislature. Alabama Code 15-22-36 – Authority to Grant Pardons
2
Alabama Legislature. Alabama Code 15-22-26 – Standards for Release of Prisoners on Parole
3
Alabama Legislature. Alabama Code 15-22-28 – Investigation for Parole; Parole Consideration Date
4
Alabama Bureau of Pardons and Paroles. FAQs – Paroles
5
Alabama Legislature. Alabama Code 15-22-36.1 – Certificate of Eligibility to Register to Vote
6
Alabama Bureau of Pardons and Paroles. Instructions for Applying for a Pardon
7
Alabama Bureau of Pardons and Paroles. General Hearing Information
8
Alabama Legislature. Alabama Code 15-22-29 – Conditions of Parole; Adoption of Rules Concerning Conditions
9
Alabama Bureau of Pardons and Paroles. Supervision Fees
10
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 USC 922 – Unlawful Acts
11
United States Department of Justice Archives. Criminal Resource Manual 1435 – Post-Conviction Restoration of Civil Rights
12
CDSE. Suitability Factors
13
Government of Canada. Overcome Criminal Convictions
14
eCFR. 28 CFR Part 20 – Criminal Justice Information Systems
15
Legal Information Institute. Alabama Administrative Code r. 640-X-9-.03 – Parole Revocation
16
Alabama Legislature. Alabama Code 15-22-32 – Parole Court; Hearing