Birmingham Mayor Randall Woodfin on Monday circled the wagons at Boutwell Auditorium calling for the Alabama Legislature to pass a ban on Glock switches, the device that law enforcement officers say can turn a pistol into the firepower equivalent of a machine gun.
“We are laser-focused on making sure we can keep our public safe,” Woodfin said.
Birmingham ended 2024 with 152 homicides, the highest number of killings in the city ever, breaking the record of 148 set in 1933.
“While the federal government has banned such devices, we want to make it clear as a unified front that passage at the state level is equally critical,” Woodfin said. “Establishing a statewide ban removes a gap, which gives the law enforcement you see standing here more tools to keep these devices off our streets.”
Woodfin was joined Monday by six state legislators: State Sen. Rodger Smitherman, Sen. Merika Coleman and Sen. Linda Coleman-Madison, Rep. Kelvin Datcher, Rep. Neil Rafferty and Rep. Travis Hendrix, who is also a Birmingham police officer.
“It’s huge, if we get this passed,” interim Birmingham Police Chief Michael Pickett said. “We’ve seen an influx of Glock switches in our community. Since I’ve taken this role, we’ve taken 32 Glock switches off our streets.”
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Jefferson County Sheriff Mark Pettway and his command staff joined Woodfin, Pickett and LaTonya Tate, chair of the public safety committee for Birmingham City Council.
“I have seen families torn apart by gun violence,” Pettway said. The Glock switches heighten an already dangerous situation for the public and law enforcement, he said.
“Machine gun conversion devices have no place in a civilized society,” said Jefferson County District Attorney Danny Carr. “Make sure there are real consequences if someone is caught with them.”
Woodfin has previously called on Alabama legislators to ban gun conversion devices such as Glock switches, especially after a Sept. 21 mass shooting at the Hush Lounge in Birmingham’s Five Points South entertainment district that killed four and left 17 injured. In December, Birmingham approved a list of legislative priorities for 2025, with a Glock switch ban at the top of the legislative wish list.
Gov. Kay Ivey signaled her support for the Glock switch ban last week as part of a proposed “Safe Alabama Act,” a package of bills to support police and crack down on felons who commit gun crimes, which she touted in her State of the State address last week as the legislative session opened.
“We will crack down on inner city violence by enhancing penalties for dangerous felons with guns,” Ivey said in her address. “We will expand Aniah’s law, boost our successful Metro Area Crime Suppression Unit, ban Glock switches, and we will enhance supervision of high-risk juveniles. Working together, we will create a safer Alabama.”
In October, Birmingham approved Woodfin’s $15.8 million plan for recruiting and retaining police officers.
Woodfin had proposed the plan Oct. 1 in the aftermath of the Sept. 21 mass shooting at Hush Lounge at Five Points South that left four dead and 17 injured. Birmingham Police FOP President Deangelo Hall said he supported the plan.
The plan calls for increasing the signing bonus for new officers to $10,000 and establishing a quarterly retention bonus of $2,500 for officers who have been in the department for two or more years.
The recruitment and retention plan prioritizes patrol officers to strengthen police coverage in Birmingham neighborhoods.
The plan includes funding for more patrol cars to provide a take-home patrol car program.
The Birmingham Crime Commission, launched several months ago to address the city’s homicide crisis – specifically gun-related murders – completed an initial report that calls for a multi-faceted crime-fighting strategy focusing on both immediate and long-term solutions. It was released Jan. 6.
