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HB266 • 2026

Crimes and offenses; crime of reckless endangerment expanded, criminal penalties provided

Crimes and offenses; crime of reckless endangerment expanded, criminal penalties provided

Crime Firearms
Enacted

This bill passed the Legislature and reached final enactment based on the latest official action.

Sponsor
Sells
Last action
2026-04-09
Official status
Enacted
Effective date
2026-10-01

Plain English Breakdown

The official source material does not provide specific details on enforcement mechanisms or examples of covered conduct.

Expanding the Crime of Reckless Endangerment

This law changes the definition of reckless endangerment to include actions that put multiple people at risk of serious injury and increases penalties if a deadly weapon or dangerous instrument is used.

What This Bill Does

  • Changes the definition of reckless endangerment to include actions that create a substantial risk of serious physical injury to multiple individuals, making it a Class C felony.
  • Increases the penalty to a Class B felony if a deadly weapon or dangerous instrument is used during such reckless endangerment.

Who It Names or Affects

  • People who commit acts of reckless endangerment involving multiple people
  • Law enforcement and courts dealing with these crimes

Terms To Know

Class C felony
A serious crime that is punished by a prison sentence of at least two years but less than ten years.
Deadly weapon or dangerous instrument
An object used in a way that could cause death or serious injury, like a gun or knife.

Limits and Unknowns

  • The law does not specify how it will be enforced or what types of conduct are covered.
  • It is unclear how this change will affect existing cases or sentencing guidelines.

Amendments

These notes stay tied to the official amendment files and metadata from the legislature.

EJ3EX9C-1

R 1035 • Barfoot

Adopted

Plain English: EJ3EX9C-1 : 3/25/2026 : THR 1ST BARFOOT AMENDMENT TO HB266 OFFERED BY SENATOR BARFOOT Page 1 Replace line 27 on page 1 with the following: Section 1.

  • EJ3EX9C-1 : 3/25/2026 : THR 1ST BARFOOT AMENDMENT TO HB266 OFFERED BY SENATOR BARFOOT Page 1 Replace line 27 on page 1 with the following: Section 1.
  • This act shall be known and may be cited as the Amy Dicks Act.
  • Section 2.
  • Section 13A-6-24, Code of Alabama 1975, is Replace line 45 on page 2 with the following: Section 3.
  • This amendment summary is using official source text because generated interpretation was skipped for this run.

Bill History

  1. 2026-04-09 House

    Enacted

  2. 2026-04-02 House

    Delivered to Governor

  3. 2026-04-02 Senate

    Signature Requested

  4. 2026-04-01 House

    Sells Motion to Concur in and Adopt Senate Amendmet to HB266 (Yeas 99, Nays 1)

  5. 2026-04-01 Senate

    Motion to Read a Third Time and Pass as Amended - Adopted Roll Call 1036 (Yeas 34, Nays 0)

  6. 2026-04-01 Senate

    Barfoot motion to Adopt - Adopted Roll Call 1035 (Yeas 33, Nays 0)

  7. 2026-04-01 Senate

    Third Reading in Second House (Yeas 32, Nays 0)

  8. 2026-04-01 House

    Enrolled

  9. 2026-04-01 House

    Ready to Enroll

  10. 2026-04-01 Senate

    Barfoot 1st Amendment Offered

  11. 2026-03-03 Senate

    Read for the Second Time and placed on the Calendar

  12. 2026-03-03 Senate

    Reported Out of Committee Second House

  13. 2026-02-26 House

    Motion to Read a Third Time and Pass - Adopted Roll Call 620 (Yeas 84, Nays 0)

  14. 2026-02-26 House

    Third Reading in House of Origin (Yeas 88, Nays 0)

  15. 2026-02-26 Senate

    Pending Committee Action in Second House

  16. 2026-02-26 Senate

    Read for the first time and referred to the Senate Committee on Judiciary

  17. 2026-02-05 House

    Read for the Second Time and placed on the Calendar

  18. 2026-02-04 House

    Reported Out of Committee House of Origin

  19. 2026-01-15 House

    Pending Committee Action in House of Origin

  20. 2026-01-15 House

    Read for the first time and referred to the House Committee on Judiciary

Official Summary Text

This act is the Amy Dicks Act. This act amends Section 13A-6-24, Code of Alabama 1975, to provide: (1) that recklessly engaging in conduct that creates a substantial risk of serious physical injury to multiple individuals is a Class C felony; and (2) that recklessly engaging in conduct that creates a substantial risk of serious physical injury to multiple individuals while using a deadly weapon or dangerous instrument is a Class B felony.

Current Bill Text

Read the full stored bill text 
HB266 ENROLLED
Page 0
HB266
ZQPH4RK-2
By Representative Sells
RFD: Judiciary
First Read: 15-Jan-26
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HB266 Enrolled
Page 1
First Read: 15-Jan-26
Enrolled, An Act,
Relating to crimes and offenses; to amend Section
13A-6-24, Code of Alabama 1975; to further provide for the
crime of reckless endangerment; and to provide conditions for
increased criminal penalties for a violation.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF ALABAMA:
Section 1. This act shall be known and may be cited as
the Amy Dicks Act.
Section 2. Section 13A-6-24, Code of Alabama 1975, is
amended to read as follows:
"§13A-6-24
(a) A person commits the crime of reckless endangerment
if he or she does either of the following:
(1) recklessly Recklessly engages in conduct which that
creates a substantial risk of serious physical injury to
another person individual .
(2) Recklessly engages in conduct that creates a
substantial risk of serious physical injury to multiple
individuals.
(b)(1) Reckless endangerment A violation of subdivision
(a)(1) is a Class A misdemeanor.
(2)a. Except as provided in paragraph b., a violation
of subdivision (a)(2) is a Class C felony.
b. A violation of subdivision (a)(2) is a Class B
felony if the person uses a deadly weapon or dangerous
instrument in the commission of the offense. "
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HB266 Enrolled
Page 2
instrument in the commission of the offense. "
Section 3. This act shall become effective on October
1, 2026.
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HB266 Enrolled
Page 3
1, 2026.
________________________________________________
Speaker of the House of Representatives
________________________________________________
President and Presiding Officer of the Senate
House of Representatives
I hereby certify that the within Act originated in and
was passed by the House 26-Feb-26.
John Treadwell
Clerk
Senate 01-Apr-26 Amended and Passed
House 01-Apr-26 Concurred in Senate
Amendment
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