By Heather Gann | hgann@al.com
The Alabama Supreme Court on Friday affirmed the dismissal of a lawsuit by the city of Birmingham against Jefferson County Sheriff Mark Pettway, upholding that the Jefferson County Jail is not legally required to accept city inmates without a valid warrant.
The dispute began in Feb. 2024 when Birmingham Mayor Randall Woodfin filed a complaint claiming Pettway was obligated to house city arrestees in the county jail.
That claim followed the termination of a memorandum of understanding between the city and the county to temporarily house city inmates, according to a recent news release from the sheriff’s office.
The agreement ended after both sides could not reach terms on compensation and operational responsibilities, it says.
Although the Supreme Court found that Jefferson County Circuit Court’s reasoning for dismissing the city’s complaint was procedurally incorrect, the decision was valid because there is no state law that requires the sheriff to accept city arrestees without a warrant, according to court documents.
The court concluded that arrestees detained by the city for violations of state law can remain in the city jail until a magistrate issues a warrant.
“This decision affirms what we’ve maintained from the beginning, that the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office operates under the rule of law, not political pressure,” Pettway said in the release.
“We have always been willing to work with the City of Birmingham, but any agreement must be fair to Jefferson County taxpayers and follow proper legal standards.”
“My priority is to keep our facilities secure and our operations transparent, so that every resident of Jefferson County knows we’re doing things the right way,” he continued.
Representatives for Woodfin said he was unavailable for comment Sunday afternoon.
