Below are some laws affecting Firefighters and other First Responders in the State of Alabama. For reference only.
POLICE POWERS
Section 32-5A-4
Obedience to police officers and firemen.
No person shall willfully fail or refuse to comply with any lawful order or direction of any police officer or fireman invested by law with authority to direct, control or regulate traffic.
No vehicle shall be driven over any unprotected hose of a fire department when laid down on any street, private road or driveway to be used at any fire or alarm of fire, without the consent of the fire department official or police officer in command.
Persons deemed assistants to Fire Marshal; duties, obligations, etc., thereof generally.
The chief of the fire department, the chief of police or marshal of every incorporated city or town in which a fire department is established, the mayor of each incorporated town in which no fire department exists and the sheriffs of the several counties of the state shall be, by virtue of such offices so held by them, assistants to the Fire Marshal, subject to the duties and obligations imposed by this article and subject to the direction of the Fire Marshal in the execution of the provisions of this article.
(Acts 1919, No. 701, p. 1013, § 4; Code 1923, §958; Code 1940, T. 55, §33.)
Police powers of Fire Marshal, deputies and assistants.
The Fire Marshal and his duly appointed deputies and assistants shall have full, general powers of peace officers in this state and may exercise such powers anywhere within the state.
(Acts 1919, No. 701, p. 1013; Code 1923, §954; Code 1940, T. 55, §30; Acts 1975, No. 1158, p. 2281, §1.)
Powers and duties of Fire Marshal, deputies and assistants generally.
The Fire Marshal and his duly appointed deputies and assistants shall have the specific duty of enforcing the laws, regulations and ordinances of the state and the provisions of this article throughout the state in matters relating to:
(1) Prevention of fires;
(2) Storage, sale and use of combustibles and explosives;
(3) Installation and maintenance of automatic and other fire alarm systems and fire extinguishing equipment;
(4) Construction, maintenance and regulation of fire escapes;
(5) The means and adequacy of exits in case of fire from factories, asylums, hospitals, churches, schools, halls, theaters, amphitheaters and all other places in which numbers of persons live, work or congregate from time to time for any purpose or purposes;
(6) Suppression of arson, and the investigation of the cause, origin and circumstance of fires.
The Fire Marshal, his deputies and assistants shall have such other powers and perform such other duties as set forth in other sections of this article and as may be conferred and imposed upon them from time to time by the laws of this state.
(Acts 1919, No. 701, p. 1013, §2; Code 1923, §954; Code 1940, T. 55, §30; Acts 1975, No. 1158, p. 2281, §1.)
Investigation and reporting of fires by assistants generally.
The assistants to the Fire Marshal provided for in Section 36-19-3 shall investigate the cause, origin and circumstance of every fire occurring in any municipality or place in this state by which property has been destroyed or damaged, to determine, so far as it is possible, whether the fire was the result of carelessness or design. Such investigation shall be begun immediately upon the occurrence of the fire by the assistant in whose territory such fire has occurred; and, if it appears to the officer making the investigation that such fire is of suspicious origin, the Fire Marshal shall be immediately notified of such fact.
(Acts 1919, No. 701, p. 1013, §5; Code 1923, §959; Code 1940, T. 55, §34.)
Every fire occurring in the state shall be reported in writing to the Fire Marshal within 10 days after the occurrence of the same by the officer designated in Section 36-19-3 in whose jurisdiction such fire has occurred. Such report shall be in the form prescribed by the Fire Marshal and shall contain a statement of all facts relating to the cause and origin of such fire that can be ascertained, the extent of damages thereof, the amount of insurance on such property, if any, and such other information as may be required.
(Acts 1919, No. 701, p. 1013, §5; Code 1923, §960; Code 1940, T. 55, §35.)
Appointment of deputy inspectors; powers and compensation thereof generally; deputy inspectors to be commissioned.
The Fire Marshal may, in addition to the provisions of Section 36-19-3, appoint any person or persons who may be known to him as being competent and skilled in making such inspections of buildings and their contents as deputy inspectors in this department. Such deputy inspectors shall have all the powers of other deputies and assistants to enter any building or premises to make inspection of such buildings and their contents and to report such inspections in writing to the office of the Fire Marshal where they find faulty or hazardous conditions. Such deputy inspector shall be duly commissioned and shall serve without compensation.
(Acts 1919, No. 701, p. 1013, §17; Code 1923, §983; Code 1940, T. 55, §56.)
Regulation of fire drills and doors and exits in schools, factories, hospitals, etc.
The Fire Marshal, his deputies and assistants shall require officials and teachers of public and private schools and educational institutions to have at least one fire drill each month and to have all doors and exits at such schools and educational institutions open out and that all such doors and exits shall be unlocked during school hours and that the doors and exits of factories, asylums, hospitals, churches, halls, theatres, amphitheatres and other places in which numbers of persons live, work or congregate from time to time, for any purpose or purposes, shall open out.
(Acts 1919, No. 701, p. 1013, §13; Code 1923, §981; Code 1940, T. 55, §55.)
Failure of person or corporation to comply with provisions of chapter as to requirements of Fire Marshal.
Any person or persons or corporation failing to comply with the provisions of this article as to the requirements of the Fire Marshal shall be guilty of a misdemeanor and, upon conviction, shall be fined not less than $10.00 nor more than $50.00 for each violation thereof.
(Acts 1919, No. 701, p. 1013, §7; Code 1923, §4053; Code 1940, T. 55, §58.)
Violations; good Samaritan provisions; scope of privilege; control of emergency scene; penalties.
(a) It shall be a Class A misdemeanor for any person, firm, company, corporation, organization, facility, or agency to do any of the following:
(1) Deliberately hinder, obstruct, or interfere with an officer, inspector, or duly authorized agent of the board while in the performance of official duties.
(2) Deliberately hinder, obstruct, or interfere with any physician, licensed nurse, licensed EMSP, or emergency personnel exempt from licensure under the provisions of this article while that person is providing emergency care to a third person or while that person is assisting at the scene of an emergency, directing traffic at the scene of an emergency, or managing or helping to manage the scene of an emergency.
(3) Violate subsection (c) or (d) of this section.
(4) Offer, provide, or perform, without a license or certificate to do so, an emergency medical service or other function which, under the provisions of this article or the rules adopted pursuant thereto, may not be performed without a license or certificate issued by the Board of Health. No person shall be subject to criminal liability pursuant to this section in the event he or she renders first aid or emergency care at the scene of an injury caused by a motor vehicle crash or by some other incident, or at the scene of a mass casualty or disaster if:
a. The first aid or emergency care is rendered gratuitously and in good faith; and
b. The first aid or emergency care is not rendered in the course of a business, program, or system which regularly engages in the provision of emergency medical care.
(b) Nothing in this section shall be construed to repeal, abridge, or modify Section 6-5-332 or any other good Samaritan statute.
(c) No person shall regularly engage in providing emergency medical care at the scene of emergencies unless he or she is licensed as EMSP as defined in this article, or unless he or she is exempted from licensure pursuant to the provisions of this article. Notwithstanding the foregoing, nothing in this article shall be construed to prohibit any physician or nurse licensed in Alabama from performing any act within his or her scope of practice. No person shall hold himself or herself out to be EMSP, unless he or she is licensed as such as defined in this chapter. EMSP licensed in other jurisdictions may identify themselves as holding such licensure.
(d) The board shall by rule establish the scope of privilege for each level of EMSP licensure. No person shall exceed the scope of privilege granted to his or her level of licensure.
(e) Control of an emergency scene may be taken by EMSP if the personnel arrive at the scene of an emergency prior to the arrival of law enforcement personnel, and if managing the emergency scene will not interfere with other emergency medical care duties. Emergency scene control shall include the authority to direct traffic. A driver of a motor vehicle entering an emergency scene or entering a roadway adjacent to an emergency scene shall use caution, shall maintain proper control of the motor vehicle, and shall obey the directions of law enforcement personnel and emergency personnel at the scene. Any person violating this subsection shall be guilty of a violation.
(f) The board may, following the contested case provisions of the Administrative Procedure Act, suspend or revoke the license or certificate of EMSP at any level, or a provider service, or it may refuse to grant a license or certificate to any person or entity at any time that any of the following is determined with respect to the holder or applicant:
(1) Does not meet or no longer meets the prescribed qualifications.
(2) Is guilty of misconduct as defined by the board's rules or otherwise commits a violation of this act or any rules promulgated thereunder.
(3) Has failed to maintain the required level of continuing education units or any equivalent therefor defined in the board's rules.
(4) Has provided care to a patient or patients under his or her care which falls short of the standard of care which ordinarily would be expected to be provided by similarly situated EMSP in Alabama, and has thereby jeopardized the life, health, or safety of a patient or patients.
(5) Has sexually or physically abused a patient under his or her care.
(6) Has submitted a license or test application, a report of continuing education requirements, a run report, a patient care record, EMSP student record, clinical rotation record, intent to train form, self-study document, fluid and drug application, physician medication order form, or any other document which is material to the duties and qualifications of EMSP or those of a student in an EMSP training program and which is fraudulent or knowingly false in any respect.
(7) Has committed fraud in the performance of his or her duties or in connection with any matter related to emergency medical services.
(8) Has been convicted of a crime involving moral turpitude, or a crime in which the victim is an EMSP provider service or an EMS patient, unless the board determines that the fact of the conviction would not likely interfere with the performance of EMS duties.
(9) Has performed any act requiring licensure or certification under state EMS statutes, without possession of the requisite licensure or certification.
(10) Has performed any act which exceeds the scope of license or privilege granted to the holder.
(Acts 1971, No. 1590, p. 2717, §5; Acts 1995, No. 95-276, p. 488, §1; Act 2010-584, p. 1304, §1.)