Ala. Code § 13A-6-43

Kidnapping in the First Degree. (Amended by Act 2026-375)

Known as the Protecting Alabama’s Elders Act

The act spans §§ 13A-6-1 to 13A-6-96 (103 sections).

Applied in 3 court decisions — leading case State v. White (2012)

Most recently applied in United States v. Flores-Granados (April 2015)

(Acts 1977, No. 607, p. 812, §2210.)

How often courts cite this section

citing decisions per year

Court decisions citing this, by year. The dip in the last several years is a data-coverage gap, not a real trend — our corpus holds fewer opinions from the most recent years, so recent citations are undercounted.

AMENDED BY ACT 2026-375, EFFECTIVE OCTOBER 1, 2026. SEE ACT FOR REVISED LANGUAGE.

(a) A person commits the crime of kidnapping in the first degree if he abducts another person with intent to

(1) Hold him for ransom or reward; or

(2) Use him as a shield or hostage; or

(3) Accomplish or aid the commission of any felony or flight therefrom; or

(4) Inflict physical injury upon him, or to violate or abuse him sexually; or

(5) Terrorize him or a third person; or

(6) Interfere with the performance of any governmental or political function.

(b) A person does not commit the crime of kidnapping in the first degree if he voluntarily releases the victim alive, and not suffering from serious physical injury, in a safe place prior to apprehension. The burden of injecting the issue of voluntary safe release is on the defendant, but this does not shift the burden of proof. This subsection does not apply to a prosecution for or preclude a conviction of kidnapping in the second degree or any other crime.

Official source: Alabama Legislature (ALISON). Reproduced from public-domain Alabama statutes; confirm against the official source for the current text. Not legal advice.