Unintended effects of the Alabama HB 56 immigration law on crime: A preliminary analysis

• We evaluate the consequence of Alabama HB 56 on crime.
• We use a synthetic control approach to constructing a counterfactual Alabama.
• Alabama HB 56 increased in violent crime rates, but had no significant impact on property crime rates.

The Alabama HB 56 act passed in 2011 is the strictest anti-illegal immigration bill in the United States. Using the synthetic control method to create a counterfactual Alabama, this paper provides suggestive evidence that Alabama HB 56 led to an increase in violent crime rates, but had no significant impact on property crime rates.