Alabama Police Department Scandal Leads To 60 Cases Being Thrown Out

Police officer in uniform standing on city street

A small Alabama police department’s corruption scandal has resulted in nearly 60 felony cases being thrown out, with officials now calling for the department to be completely abolished.

Key Takeaways

Nearly 60 felony cases are being dismissed after a grand jury uncovered widespread corruption in the Hanceville, Alabama police department.
Four officers and the police chief were indicted on charges related to evidence mishandling.
An audit revealed that almost 40% of evidence bags and a third of firearms were undocumented or missing.
The grand jury made the extraordinary recommendation that the entire police department be abolished.
Hanceville’s mayor has already placed the department on leave and announced plans to disband and rebuild it.

Evidence Tampering Compromises Justice

A grand jury investigation has uncovered what it described as a “rampant culture of corruption” within the Hanceville Police Department, leading to the dismissal of 58 felony cases. The small department, serving a town of approximately 3,200 residents located 45 miles north of Birmingham, now faces complete dissolution after investigators found systemic evidence mishandling that has compromised dozens of criminal prosecutions. The scandal has resulted in indictments against four officers and the police chief on charges specifically related to evidence tampering and mismanagement.

Cullman County District Attorney Champ Crocker has confirmed that most of the compromised cases involved drug-related offenses, with relatively few concerning crimes with direct victims. However, Crocker emphasized that even one case compromised by police misconduct “is too many.” The extent of the corruption was so severe that the grand jury took the extraordinary step of recommending the department be “immediately abolished” rather than reformed, marking a rare instance of a judicial body calling for the complete dismantling of a law enforcement agency.

The Cullman County District Attorney says a grand jury has determined that 58 cases investigated by the Hanceville Police Department cannot be prosecuted.https://t.co/xCJr3IPZCU

— WDHN (@WDHN) May 8, 2025

Audit Reveals Shocking Disregard for Evidence Protocols

The full extent of the department’s failures came to light through a meticulous audit conducted by the Alabama State Bureau of Investigations. Their findings paint a disturbing picture of evidence mismanagement that made proper prosecution impossible in dozens of cases. According to the audit, nearly 40% of evidence bags contained no documentation regarding their contents or chain of custody. Additionally, one-third of firearms seized as evidence were completely undocumented, with some evidence reportedly missing entirely from storage.

These systemic failures mean that prosecutors can no longer rely on the evidence collected by Hanceville officers, as they cannot prove that items were properly collected, stored, or maintained. Without reliable evidence, the district attorney’s office has no choice but to dismiss these cases, potentially allowing individuals who committed crimes to escape prosecution through no fault of the justice system beyond the police department’s failures.

Town Takes Action to Restore Trust

Hanceville Mayor Jimmy Sawyer has already taken decisive steps in response to the corruption allegations, placing the entire police department on leave when the investigation’s findings first became apparent. Following the grand jury’s official recommendation, Sawyer announced plans to disband the current department entirely and rebuild it from the ground up. The Hanceville municipal government has not yet issued formal comments about the grand jury findings or provided specific details about how policing will be handled during this transition period.

The case highlights growing concerns about evidence handling practices in small police departments, which often lack the resources, training, or oversight present in larger agencies. While the Hanceville case represents an extreme example, it serves as a sobering reminder of how corruption within law enforcement can undermine the entire criminal justice system and erode public trust. As the town works to rebuild its police force, officials will need to implement rigorous new protocols and accountability measures to ensure similar failures cannot occur in the future.