A group of policymakers and law enforcement officials in Jefferson County on Monday called for bipartisan support in Montgomery to pass public safety measures, chiefly a state ban on firearm conversion devices, often called Glock switches.

“They do not belong in our communities or neighborhoods. They pose a direct threat to both our citizens and to the brave law enforcement officers who risk their lives daily,” Jefferson County Sheriff Mark Pettway said during a press conference at Boutwell Auditorium.

Conversion devices offer an easy and cheap way to convert a semi-automatic handgun to a fully automatic weapon. Such switches have been used in several recent homicides in Jefferson County, including a mass shooting at Five Points South in September that killed four and injured 17.

Michael Pickett, the interim Birmingham police chief, said his department has taken between 30 and 40 conversion devices off city streets.

The devices are banned by federal law, but the officials gathered at Boutwell Monday said state legislation is needed to effectively combat the challenge.

“We want to make it clear as a unified front that passage at the state level from our state legislators is equally critical … . Establishing a statewide ban removes a gap, which gives local law enforcement standing here more tools, if you would, to get these devices off our streets,” Birmingham Mayor Randall Woodfin said.

The chances of such a ban seem better than many would expect in the traditionally pro-gun Alabama Legislature. In fact, Gov. Kay Ivey in her State of the State address called for a law to make possession of conversion devices or their parts to be a Class C Felony.

Travis Hendrix represents Alabama’s House District 55, which includes several neighborhoods in Birmingham’s Southside. Hendrix is also a police officer in Birmingham. He said that, in addition to the ban on conversion devices, several measures recently called for by the governor would be a significant help to law enforcement throughout the state.

One of those is the Inner City Gun Violence Act. This bill would prohibit persons with any prior felony conviction from possessing a gun unless they have had their gun rights restored by pardon. It also would expand Aniah’s Law to allow judges to deny bail to persons forbidden from possessing guns who then are found carrying them and those charged with shooting into an occupied dwelling.

The act also would increase the penalty for shooting into an occupied dwelling, vehicle or other designated space from a Class B felony to a Class A felony. It also would require the Board of Pardons and Paroles to revoke parole, or a court to revoke probation, when a parolee or probationer has been convicted of unlawful firearm possession.

Hendrix also spoke in support of the Juvenile Accountability and Monitoring Act. This bill would clarify that the state can provide electronic monitoring services to children released by a juvenile court pending disposition of their case. It would also repeal the 72-hour limitation on confinement of juvenile status offenders who have violated a valid court order.

“It doesn’t matter who you are, or where you are at,” Hendrix said, “everybody here wants to feel safe, and I think as we continue to work together, we can take a step forward to make Alabama a safe state once again.”