Hanceville, Alabama – Hanceville city leaders voted February 12 to dissolve the city’s police department and abolish the municipal court, describing the action as a procedural step toward rebuilding after the department had already been effectively shut down for about a year.
The decision followed a series of ordinances approved by the Hanceville City Council. Mayor Noland Bradford, who was appointed that night, said the city’s goal is to make the dissolution legally clean so evidence, records, and department property can be transferred or reassigned as the city works toward a restart.
According to The Cullman Times, the council approved ordinances to abolish the municipal court, dissolve the Hanceville Police Department, and reassign police vehicles. City officials said the move was largely procedural because the department had not been operating since late February 2025, when remaining employees were placed on administrative leave and policing functions were turned over to the Cullman County Sheriff’s Office.
City leaders said dissolving the department does not prevent Hanceville from rebuilding it later. Bradford told council members the city needed to formally unwind the department’s structure to transfer items and correct administrative issues, then restart with new policies and oversight.
The department’s collapse traces back to a state investigation and grand jury findings that described widespread misconduct. In 2025, Hanceville’s police chief, multiple officers, and the spouse of an officer were indicted on felony charges related to evidence handling and other misconduct, and the entire department was placed on leave while the county sheriff’s office assumed law enforcement responsibilities.
The grand jury scrutiny followed the death of a city dispatcher who was found dead at work from an overdose, with investigators later describing serious failures in evidence security and chain of custody, according to reporting and court-related summaries.
Operationally, residents have already been relying on the Cullman County Sheriff’s Office for law enforcement coverage since February 2025, after the city announced the transition and routed calls accordingly.
