Alabama Police Applaud New Law Targeting Metal Thefts

Police across Alabama say a new state law making it tougher to sell stolen scrap metal is sorely needed.

Gov. Robert Bentley signed the new law last week. It requires sellers of scrap metal to be photographed, provide a copy of their ID and identifying information for their vehicles. That information goes into a statewide database for at least a year.

Sgt. Johnathan Clifton of the Opelika police says his city has had a similar local ordinance since 2007 and it’s proven valuable to catching copper thieves.

The Birmingham News reports Dothan police receive up to 75 cases of metal theft per month. Sgt. Rachel David says solving them relies solely on what records scrap yards buying the metal keep from sellers.