The purpose of this project is to make available to the public a process by which a report can be made of witnessing an act of Criminal Littering as defined in Alabama law 13A-7-29.
Alabama Litter Law 13A-7-29 Criminal Littering
A person commits the crime of criminal littering if he or she engages in any of the following acts:
- Knowingly deposits litter, in any manner, on public or private property or waters
- Negligently deposits glass or pointed objects on or adjacent to public waters
- Discharges sewage, oil products, or litter from a watercraft of more than 25 feet in length
Litter is defined as rubbish, refuse, waste material, garbage, dead animals, paper, glass, cans, bottles, trash, scrap metal, debris, or any foreign substance of any kind and description.
Criminal littering is a Class C misdemeanor. The minimum fine for first conviction shall be $250.00.
LMRA will work in collaboration with the individual County Sheriff’s office in counties surrounding Lake Martin. The report will be forwarded to the County Sheriff who will follow up with the appropriate legal action.
We want to educate and clean up our Lake Martin community and with your help it can be done.
$250 REWARD CRITERIA
A reward of $250 will be made to individuals who have witnessed an act of criminal littering and filed a report with the County Sheriff’s Department of Elmore, Tallapoosa or Coosa Counties and meet the following criteria:
- The report resulted in a warrant being issued by the County Sheriff charging the offender with violation of Alabama Law 13A-7-29 Criminal Littering or 32-5A-60 Highway Littering.
- This charge was followed by court action and resulted in a fine being levied for the offense.
- LMRA is made aware of the filing of the report either through the LMRA web site or form provided by LMRA.
- LMRA will maintain contact with the County Sheriff during the review process
- Witness must be willing to sign a warrant which is needed for the Sheriff to make a criminal case.
- Witness must be willing to appear in court and testify if necessary to obtain conviction.
- The offender is found guilty and fined for the offense.
- LMRA is made aware of the legal action.
When all the above criteria is met, LMRA will issue a check in the amount of $250 to the reporting witness.
FAQ’s
IF YOU SEE THIS...REPORT IT!
What will the Sheriff’s Department do with the report?
Based on the nature, severity of the report, the Sheriff will take appropriate legal action which could result in the issuance of awarrant.
Will the reporting person have to be involved for a warrant to be issued?
The witness would have to be willing to sign the warrant and possibly make an appearance in court in order to fully prosecute someone for criminal littering.
What happens if an anonymous report is made of someone throwing a beer can from a boat or automobile?
The course of action on all reports will be left up to the Sheriff's department.
What is the value of the program if the sheriff decides to take little or no action?
The real value of the “Report a Litterer” program will come from LMRA promotional efforts. As the general public becomes aware that a process is available to easily report careless and intentional littering, we will see a reduction in the amount of trash that litters our shoreline and roadsides.
Submit Information about Littering Incident Online | Print Form and Mail
