One of Mobile’s most famous locations, Bienville Square, is set to receive several improvements as a restoration project gets underway. Bienville Square, located in the heart of the downtown Mobile area, suffered a great deal of damage including the uprooting of several of the park’s famous oak trees when Alabama’s coastal area was struck by […]

MONTGOMERY — The Alabama House of Representatives passed several bills on Tuesday; among them were several involving criminal justice, including one that would create a Sexual Assault Survivors Bill of Rights. Other notable pieces of legislation approved by the lower chamber included the unanimous passage of “Aniah’s Law” and the passage of a bill requiring students […]

MONTGOMERY — The Alabama House of Representatives on Tuesday passed a bill that would require students in Alabama to complete kindergarten or meet certain achievement standards in order to enroll in first grade. State Rep. Pebblin Warren (D-Tuskegee) sponsored the legislation, HB208, which passed by a vote of 83-17. A fiscal note prepared for the […]

U.S. Rep. Mo Brooks (R-Huntsville) on Tuesday came out in support of a constitutional carry bill that was recently introduced in the Alabama House by State Rep. Andrew Sorrell (R-Muscle Shoals). Sorrell’s bill, HB405, would allow citizens of Alabama to carry a concealed pistol on their person without a permit. The National Rifle Association (NRA) […]

MONTGOMERY — The Alabama House of Representatives on Tuesday unanimously passed a two-bill package that would create “Aniah’s Law,” an expansion of the criminal offenses where a judge could deny a defendant bail. The legislation was sponsored by Rep. Chip Brown (R-Hollinger’s Island) and is named in honor of Aniah Blanchard, a 19-year-old Homewood resident […]

A Birmingham man pleaded guilty on Monday to murdering Birmingham Police Department Sgt. Wytasha Carter and attempting to murder two other officers during an encounter in January 2019. The defendant, Jeremy Elwin Owens, will serve three life sentences in state prison and has no chance for parole. Owens, 33, avoided the death penalty for his […]

Alabama Governor Kay Ivey announced Monday that Revive Plus, the state government’s grant program that provided aid to small businesses and other institutions, has used up all available funding. Revive Plus was created with $200 million of the federal funds sent to Alabama in the CARES Act. It allowed small businesses, non-profits and faith-based organizations […]

MONTGOMERY — Alabama’s coronavirus metrics continued to head in the right direction over the last week, with hospitalizations continuing a sharp decrease. According to BamaTracker, a site that collects government data on the virus, 951 Alabamians were in the hospital with COVID-19 on Friday. That is down from 1,258 a week ago and constitutes a […]

Governor Kay Ivey announced Thursday afternoon that the State of Alabama is offering $5,000 for information that leads to the arrest and conviction of the person(s) who killed an Alabama toddler. A Birmingham-based organization is offering an additional $5,000 for the same type of information Major Turner, age 2, lived on John Bryan Road in […]

Alabama cities Huntsville and Daphne were listed this week among the best performing cities of their size by the Milken Institute, an independent think tank. The Milken Institute’s index of cities factored in job growth, wage growth, access to broadband, housing affordability and the degree to which a city’s economy is driven by the technology […]

U.S. Rep. Barry Moore (R-Enterprise) came out in favor this week of federal legislation that would punish states which implement COVID-19 lockdown orders. Moore signed on as an original cosponsor of U.S. Rep. Bob Good’s (R-VA) The Right to Earn a Living Act, which would make state and local governments that institute lockdowns on small […]

The State of Alabama on Wednesday filed a motion seeking to dismiss a lawsuit by the Department of Justice that alleges the conditions in Alabama’s prisons for men violate the U.S. Constitution’s protections against cruel and unusual punishment. Alabama argued the conditions mentioned in the DOJ’s lawsuit, filed in December of 2020, do not meet […]

Sweet Grown Alabama, a nonprofit group dedicated to promoting products grown and made in Alabama, has received a grant to track the number of local products purchased by grocery stores in the state. Partners in data harvesting operation include Greer’s Markets in South Alabama with 17 Alabama stores; Piggly Wiggly Birmingham Group with 13 stores; […]

Alabama Secretary of State John Merrill has been announced as the co-chair of a new commission that is attempting to identify best practices in election administration and share them with state officials. The commission is being created in partnership with the Republican State Leadership Committee (RSLC), a national campaign committee dedicated to electing conservatives at […]

Auburn University announced Tuesday that its new autonomous vehicle research facility has begun operations and is set to provide valuable data for the future of automated transport. The facility will be an outpost of Auburn’s nationally known GPS and Vehicle Dynamics Laboratory (GAVLAB), a project of the university’s Samuel Ginn College of Engineering. Comprised a […]

An estimated 30 jobs are coming to Selma after a private aircraft company announced that it will lease a facility for aircraft maintenance and move some dispatch operations to Craig Field. City Jet and Turbine Worx, both controlled by businessman Ron Mays, announced Monday the plan to establish the new maintenance operation. “City Jet and […]

A teenager born in Pintlala is the first native of the Yellowhammer State to make the United States Ski Team. Dani Loeb, 19, told WSFA she began her athletic career doing gymnastics at United Gym Stars and Cheer in Montgomery. “I was really into gymnastics. I got up to pretty high levels,” Loeb told the […]

The University of Central Florida (UCF) confirmed Monday the hiring of former Auburn football coach Gus Malzahn as the Orlando-based school’s next head football coach. “I’m thrilled to be the head coach at UCF, and I’m truly looking forward to being part of Knight Nation,” said Malzahn in a release. Malzahn was let go from […]

The coronavirus news in Alabama this week was overwhelmingly positive. The vaccination system had its best week yet while hospitalizations and new COVID-19 cases continued to fall sharply. Driving the success of the week’s vaccinations were a series of drive-in clinics held in eight cities around the state, each of which exceeded expectations for efficiency. […]

The capability went live on Wednesday for citizens of Madison County, including residents of Huntsville and Madison, to text emergencies to 911. The Huntsville-Madison County 911 Center made the announcement in a release, where they emphasized that if it is at all possible, residents should call 911 instead of utilizing the new text option. Texting […]

Dr. Tony Waldrop, who has served for the last seven years as president of the University of South Alabama (USA), announced on Thursday his plans to retire after the end of the current academic year. USA said in a release that a national search will soon commence to find Waldrop’s replacement. “It has been a […]

MONTGOMERY — The Alabama House of Representatives passed on Thursday a bill designed to shield businesses, churches and other entities from frivolous coronavirus lawsuits. The legislation, SB30, originated in the Alabama Senate and now heads to Governor Kay Ivey for final approval. She has indicated in the past that she will sign the bill, which […]

MONTGOMERY — The Alabama State Senate on Wednesday passed legislation making COVID-19 stimulus checks tax-exempt and extending two key economic development programs, two packages that have been top priorities for state leaders, Those bills, which originated in the House of Representatives, now head to Governor Kay Ivey’s desk for her signature. She has indicated support […]

MONTGOMERY — An Alabama House committee on Wednesday advanced a bill designed to protect businesses and other entities from frivolous coronavirus lawsuits. The bill provides civil immunity from people who allege they caught or were exposed to COVID-19 as a result of decisions made by the relevant institutions. It has an exception to the immunity […]