Alabama Police Continue to Make Kratom Arrests at Florida Border

Alabama police continue to arrest people for kratom near the Florida-Alabama border, using questionable tactics and applying extreme charges and penalties according to Alabama's draconian drug laws.

On March 15, 2025, Atmore police arrested a 42 year old man charging him with possession of a controlled substance for carrying kratom. The man was arrested on highway AL-21, that crosses over the border to become FL-97 in Florida.

In April 2023, Flomaton, AL police stopped Shaina Brown just 200 feet from an unmarked Florida border. They charged her with drug trafficking for just 250 grams of kratom. She was jailed on a $1 million bond in the Escambria County Jail. This was a far higher bond than people in the same jail charged with murder and child abuse.

Kratom advocates raised thousands of dollars for Brown and secured a lawyer for her, who was able to lower the bond and ultimately release her. But not before she spent 9 months in the jail.

During this time, kratom advocates including an ex police officer openly questioned whether Alabama police were illegally conducting surveillance of businesses in Florida who sold kratom, then monitoring customers who would come back into Alabama.

In Alabama, kratom was officially classified as a Schedule I controlled substance in 2016. This decision was made through Senate Bill 226, which added the active compounds in kratom—mitragynine and 7-hydroxymitragynine, which they inaccurately called "hydroxymitragynine" in the law as it is written—to the list of substances considered to have a high potential for abuse and no accepted medical use.

Alabama's drug laws are often considered draconian, with severe penalties for drug-related offenses. The state classifies controlled substances into five schedules, with Schedule I drugs (like heroin and LSD) being deemed the most dangerous and carrying the harshest penalties. Even possession of small amounts of certain drugs (over 250 grams) can lead to felony charges, and carrying a mandatory minimum of 10 years in prison.

Alabama also enforces the Habitual Felony Offender Act, which imposes harsher penalties on repeat offenders. Critics argue that these laws disproportionately affect marginalized communities and contribute to prison overcrowding.

Alabama's prison and jail system has faced significant challenges over the years, including overcrowding, understaffing, and unsafe conditions. The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) has issued multiple reports highlighting these issues, stating that the conditions violate the Eighth Amendment's prohibition on cruel and unusual punishment.

Overcrowding is a major concern, with some facilities operating at occupancy rates exceeding 300% of their intended capacity. This has led to increased violence, including prisoner-on-prisoner assaults and excessive use of force by corrections officers. Additionally, understaffing has left prisons unable to maintain order or provide adequate protection for inmates.

The DOJ has also documented unsanitary living conditions and systemic mismanagement within the Alabama Department of Corrections.

Kratom consumers should understand that kratom is considered as illegal as heroin in Alabama, and carrying amounts of this tea that are considered small to consumers could lead to years in prison.