Democratic Alabama state Senators Rodger Smitherman, D-Birmingham; and Bobby Singleton, D-Greensboro, on the Senate floor during the final day of the 2025 spring session on Wednesday, May 14, 2025, inside the Statehouse in Montgomery, Ala.John Sharp
A bill to expand Alabama law on legal immunity for police officers passed in the final half-hour of the annual legislative session on Wednesday night.
HB202 by Rep. Rex Reynolds, a former Huntsville police chief, is a priority for Gov. Kay Ivey and Republican leaders in the House of Representatives.
The bill would rewrite Alabama’s law on police immunity from criminal prosecutions and from civil lawsuits.
Lawmakers have hashed out the bill in public hearings and when the House passed the bill after a three-hour debate in March. It has undergone changes.
But Republicans and Democrats remained on opposite sides.
On Wednesday night, the Republican majority in the Senate voted to end the debate on the bill shortly after 10 p.m., more than an hour into the discussion.
The Senate passed it by a vote of 25-6. That sent it back to the House.
At about 11:35 p.m., the House passed the bill 73-28.
That sends it to Ivey, who can sign it into law.
Reynolds and other supporters of the legislation say the legal protections are needed at a time when cities are struggling to hire and retain cops because of concerns that they will be accused of wrongdoing for split-second decisions that sometimes involve life and death.
Democrats have opposed the bill saying it will make it harder to hold police accountable.
Sen. Lance Bell, R-St. Clair County, handled the bill Wednesday night on the Senate floor.
Bell introduced a new version of the bill Wednesday night.
Bell, an attorney and former deputy sheriff, said the bill would clarify the law on immunity and would reduce frivolous lawsuits.
Bell said it would not protect police who act outside the scope of their jobs.
“To me this is about protecting them while they’re protecting us,” Bell said.
Alabama State Sen. Lance Bell, R-Pell City, speaks on the Alabama Senate floor during the final day of the 2025 legislative session on Wednesday, May 14, 2025, in the Statehouse in Montgomery, Ala.John Sharp
Sen. Rodger Smitherman, D-Birmingham, repeated assertions he made in committee, calling the bill “a license to kill Black people.”
Smitherman is an attorney who taught constitutional law for 25 years.
Smitherman said Black people are at risk of bad decisions by police who are scared or actions by cops who are racist.
“We as a people don’t get the benefit of the doubt at all,” Smitherman said.
Turning to his Black Senate colleagues to help make his point, Smitherman urged them to be cautious driving home after the Senate adjourns.
“Be careful, because you’re going to be DWB. Driving while Black,“ Smitherman said.
Smitherman repeated a story he has told before on the Senate floor, describing when he was stopped by a police officer in Montgomery even though he was driving below the speed limit.
The senator said the officer approached his car with his hand on his gun and gave him conflicting instructions, telling him to hold out his hands while also asking him to pull out his driver license.
Smitherman said the story was an example of how Black people can be at risk if they are not cautious during their encounters with police.
Alabama State Sen. Rodger Smitherman, D-Birmingham, speaks on the floor of the Senate during the final day of the spring 2025 legislative session on Wednesday, May 14, 2025, at the Statehouse in Montgomery, Ala.John Sharp
Sen. Robert Stewart, D-Selma, questioned the need for the bill and said it would erode public trust.
Stewart brought up the scandal in the Hanceville Police Department.
A grand jury indicted a former police chief and several officers and said the department should be abolished because of a “culture of corruption.”
Stewart said he supports police.
“But to have power unchecked, that is unacceptable in a democracy,” Stewart said.
Alabama State Sen. Merika Coleman, D-Birmingham, speaks on the floor of the Alabama State Senate on Wednesday, May 14, 2025, at the Statehouse in Montgomery, Ala.John Sharp
Democratic Sens. Kirk Hatcher of Montgomery and Merika Coleman of Pleasant Grover also spoke in opposition to the bill.
NORMAN, Oklahoma — The stage was set for Oklahoma. Heck, the Sooners earned the right to set it. This was supposed to be the ushering in of a new era of postseason football for the No. 8 team in the country that had won 10 games in what was one of the toughest schedules this year.
No. 9 Alabama was even one of those teams that Oklahoma beat on its way to earning this spot. And Saturday night, all was going well for the Sooners. It was going so well, in fact, that after the first quarter, some Oklahoma fans might’ve peeked at flights and hotel rates for the Rose Bowl from inside Memorial Stadium.
And then the Alabama Crimson Tide curled and rolled the Sooners, 34-24, and are headed to Pasadena. After opening with 17 unanswered points, Oklahoma collapsed under the weight of that wave, becoming the only team in College Football Playoff history to blow a 17-point lead. And now, the Sooners have done it twice — before Saturday, in 2018 against Georgia.
[Best Teams in the College Football Playoff Era: Creating the Ultimate 12-team CFP]
Here are my takeaways from Alabama’s College Football Playoff first-round victory against Oklahoma on Saturday:
NORMAN, OKLAHOMA: Zabien Brown #2 of the Alabama Crimson Tide stiff-arms John Mateer #10 of the Oklahoma Sooners during the second quarter during the 2025 College Football Playoff first-round game on December 19, 2025. (Photo by Brian Bahr/Getty Images)
Crimson Tide quarterback Ty Simpson is an avid reader and listener of college football news. Following the largest comeback win in Alabama postseason history, Simpson took a moment to facetiously thank media members for choosing Oklahoma to win on Saturday night.
“I guess we can thank you guys for that,” an emboldened Simpson said. “You guys kind of wrote us off in a sort of way. So I appreciate that.”
After building a three-score lead, the Sooners watched the Crimson Tide recover a fumbled punt, pick off Oklahoma quarterback John Mateer and return it 50 yards to the end zone — all before their First Team All-American kicker Tate Sandell missed not one but two field goals in the final minutes to solidify the worst collapse in College Football Playoff history.
Meanwhile, the Alabama Crimson Tide will prepare to take on No. 1 Indiana in the Rose Bowl for the CFP quarterfinal game. This team that punches back and played its best football with its back against the wall is one that the Hoosiers must prepare for on New Year’s Day.
[College Football Playoff Predictions: First-Round Winners to The National Champion]
NORMAN, OKLAHOMA: John Mateer #10 of the Oklahoma Sooners is hit by Deontae Lawson #0 of the Alabama Crimson Tide during the first quarter during the College Football Playoff first-round game on December 19, 2025. (Photo by Brian Bahr/Getty Images)
The Crimson Tide began down — just like they did against Georgia in the SEC championship game. But the last three quarters of Saturday’s game demonstrated Alabama to be just who it says it is: the kind of team that can open with a loss to a bad Florida State and also be the first team in six years to walk into Sanford Stadium in Athens, Georgia, and come out with a win.
DeBoer’s task now is to find a way to make certain that the team that showed up at Georgia earlier this season and at Oklahoma in the first round is the same one against the Hoosiers. Linebacker Deontae Lawson said that’s his job too. But Bama’s best trait isn’t one that shows itself until it’s in a fight for its life.
“Man, I just think we’re a resilient team,” Lawson said. “And even though we were down 17-0, we didn’t really look at the scoreboard. Coach DeBoer always says, ‘Keep playing the game. The game will come back to you.’ … We just keep fighting.”
NORMAN, OKLAHOMA: Head coach Brent Venables of the Oklahoma Sooners speaks to an official during the fourth quarter against the Alabama Crimson Tide on December 19, 2025. (Photo by Brian Bahr/Getty Images)
Let’s look at the bigger ones:
These are blunders. Errors that aren’t forced but self-inflicted. It’s difficult to win any game with those kinds of mistakes on your drive chart. It’s nearly impossible in a game of this magnitude, against a team as talented and as resilient as the Crimson Tide.
NORMAN, OKLAHOMA: Keon Keeley #31 of the Alabama Crimson Tide celebrates after defeating the Oklahoma Sooners in the College Football Playoff first-round game. (Photo by Stacy Revere/Getty Images)
Oklahoma usually plays 50 Cent’s “Many Men” before the start of the fourth quarter. In an attempt to make a statement for its first CFP game at Owen Field, the Sooners brought the rapper himself out onto the field to perform the song for fans in a Hard to Kill Hoodie.
“I didn’t know it was live,” DeBoer said.
“I didn’t know who 50 Cent was,” Simpson said, “but I know that song.”
“We play that song at practice on Fridays,” Lawson said.
RJ Young is a national college football writer and analyst for FOX Sports. Follow him @RJ_Young.
Hello college football fans, and welcome to The Athletic’s live coverage of the 2025 College Football Playoff!
Yes, after a 2025 season full of an incredible amount of twists, turns, controversy and pure chaos, the second edition of the 12-team College Football Playoff gets underway tonight. Our opening matchup is a battle of blue-bloods whose first meeting this season contributed to that chaos, as No. 9 Alabama takes on No. 8 Oklahoma in Norman.
Follow along for live pregame build-up and the latest news, play-by-play updates and real-time analysis from The Athletic’s college football staff!
The College Football Playoff gets underway Friday night as Alabama heads to Norman to take on Oklahoma. But to ESPN’s Michael Wilbon, there’s even more at stake for Crimson Tide coach Kalen DeBoer.
DeBoer’s name has been the subject of rumors throughout the offseason in the coaching carousel. Most recently, he received questions about the opening at Michigan following Sherrone Moore’s firing for cause, though he made it clear he intends to be at Alabama in 2026.
However, Wilbon didn’t sound as convinced. He predicted Alabama would not only lose to Oklahoma on Friday night, but DeBoer would also be on a flight to Ann Arbor to take the Michigan job afterward.
“Let me tell you about … two schools that could be in the coaching carousel after [Friday night],” Wilbon said Thursday on Pardon The Interruption. “Because when Alabama loses to Oklahoma – let me say it again, when Alabama loses to Oklahoma – the coach of Alabama, half the people in the state will want to run him out. And he’ll be on the carousel – oh, wait, that’s a G5 being flown to Ann Arbor, Mich., where he has said, ‘Oh, no. I ain’t got no interest in that.’ He’ll have interest [Friday night].
“And then, Alabama will be in the coaching carousel because they’ll be looking for a coach. … The Alabama coach is going to have a job-on-the-line situation in 24 hours and then, headed to Michigan once he loses. And then, Alabama’s looking. Then, what are you going to say?”
During a press conference this week ahead of the College Football Playoff opener, Kalen DeBoer was directly asked if he intended to be Alabama’s head coach next season. He responded, “Yes.”
Earlier in that press conference, DeBoer received a question about the rumors surrounding him. He again spoke highly of his tenure at Alabama so far and made it clear he’s happy in Tuscaloosa.
“A lot of the same things I said before, a couple weeks ago, when asked really the same question, just feel completely supported,” DeBoer said. “My family loves living here. Just all the things that we continue to build on, love the progress. Haven’t talked with anyone, no plans of talking with anyone. So just, I think that’s a lot of what I said a couple weeks ago, and continues to be the same thing.
“Feel strong about it. And our guys, if there’s been any distraction, I haven’t seen it, haven’t felt it. I’m really proud of the way they’ve handled whatever noise is out there. And again, we probably all season long, have dealt with enough noise to where it wouldn’t surprise me on how they handle this.”
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