Category Archives: Alabama

Alabama governor commutes sentence of prisoner on death row

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Toforest Johnson’s death penalty reduced to life in prison without parole over doubts about his conviction

Toforest Johnson, an Alabama death row inmate, will no longer face execution after the state’s Republican governor commuted his sentence amid increasing doubts about his conviction.

Kay Ivey, the Alabama governor, commuted Johnson’s sentence to life in prison without parole in the 1995 murder of William Hardy, a Jefferson county deputy sheriff. Johnson has long maintained he is innocent, and several former public officials, as well the local district attorney, have argued he should receive a new trial.

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US winter is likely to be wetter and warmer, forecasters say, with more snow in the south

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El Niño will likely shift weather patterns to bring more rain, but much snow still isn’t forecast for the northern sates

Winter in the United States looks like it will generally be wetter and warmer, but not necessarily snowier, according to the federal government’s seasonal outlook and other meteorologists’ forecasts. You can thank or blame El Niño.

El Niño is likely to shift weather patterns to bring more moisture, but with it higher temperatures. That should help erase persistent western drought, but it is unlikely to make northern snow-lovers happy, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (Noaa) said on Thursday.

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Thousands without power in Florida and Alabama as Isaias moves north

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At least four deaths linked to storm amid warnings of flash flooding that could stretch into Appalachians

As what was left of Hurricane Isaias moved north on Sunday, bringing moderate to heavy rainfall across the central Appalachians and the mid-Atlantic region, nearly 396,000 customers across the Florida Panhandle and southern Alabama remained without power.

Heavy rainfall associated with the storm could bring isolated flash flooding and strong wind gusts and remain a threat across the south-eastern US, especially near the southern Appalachians, according to the National Weather Service (NWS). That could bring scattered power outages and downed trees and power lines. Life-threatening surf and rip current conditions were expected to continue along the Gulf and south-eastern Atlantic coasts.

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Key things to know about Hurricane Isaias as millions under evacuation orders

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The hurricane is first in the Atlantic in what has turned into a very late season. Here’s what forecasters are saying about where Isaias will hit and how hard

Hurricane Isaias, which made landfall on the US Gulf coast Friday night, was forecast to bring a dangerous storm surge, significant rainfall, flooding and strong winds across the US Gulf coast this weekend. Millions of people across several states, including Florida, Georgia and Alabama, were under evacuation orders as officials prepared for the storm. All three states issued states of emergency.

The hurricane, the first in the Atlantic in what has turned into a very late 2026 season, made landfall as a category 2 storm, with sustained winds of 105 mph.

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Hurricane Isaias barrels toward Gulf coast as category 3 storm

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States of emergency declared in Alabama, Florida and Mississippi, where residents prepare for ‘long-duration power outages’

Isaias strengthened into a category 3 hurricane on Friday morning as it barreled toward the US Gulf coast, where states of emergency have been declared in Alabama, Florida and Mississippi.

The hurricane, the first in the Atlantic in what has turned into a very late 2026 season, is expected to cause a “life-threatening storm surge”, officials said. Isaias is forecast to make landfall on Friday night, somewhere along the Alabama-Florida line with surging seas up to 7ft (2.1 meters) and waves as high as 30ft (9.1 meters).

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TikTok to pay Alabama $100m and limit teenage use in first state settlement

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Trial had been set for Monday over claims by Alabama that TikTok misled parents about tools meant to shield children from harmful content

TikTok has agreed to pay Alabama at least $100m and enact time limits and other restrictions for teenage users, avoiding a trial with a settlement that was modelled on Instagram-owner Meta’s recent agreement with US states.

Alabama described it as a “first-in-the-nation settlement” with a state in the sweeping litigation over social media’s affect on teen wellbeing.

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Three men executed on same day in US for the first time in 15 years

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Rare scheduling in Oklahoma, Tennessee and Alabama underlines the renewed appetite in US for state killings

Carlos Cuesta-Rodriguez was put to death by the state of Oklahoma, in the first of three executions scheduled for Thursday in a rare triple procedure that underlines the renewed appetite in the US for state killings.

Just one hour later, Darrell Hines was put to death by the state of Tennessee, and at 6pm local time in Alabama, that state executed Jeremy Williams.

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Tropical Storm Bertha expected to weaken as it moves toward US

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Storm warnings stretch from Florida to Louisiana as Bertha brings heavy rain, flooding risk and possible tornadoes

Tropical Storm Bertha strengthened in the Gulf of Mexico on Tuesday but was expected to weaken this week as it chugs closer to the US, potentially bringing coastal flooding and heavy rain from the Florida Panhandle to Louisiana.

Those areas along the northern Gulf coast were under a tropical storm warning through Wednesday and could see rain and flooding into Thursday morning, the Miami-based National Hurricane Center said. New Orleans also was under a tropical storm warning.

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US man dies while discarding body of girlfriend he fatally strangled, officials say

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Police found man, who died of a heart attack, next to his girlfriend by abandoned vehicle in wooded area of Alabama

A man recently died in Alabama from a heart attack while trying to discard his girlfriend’s body after fatally strangling her, according to authorities.

At the center of the unusually macabre case was Daniel Robbins, 44, and Jessica Folds, 47.

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Protesters seek to stop plan to cull hundreds of geese in Alabama

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Homeowners association in Madison incites protests and calls for humane solutions after voting to kill geese

A homeowners association in Madison, Alabama, has incited protests and calls for humane wildlife management solutions after voting to kill off hundreds of local geese.

Dozens of people gathered in the city’s Edgewater neighborhood to protest against the non-unanimous plan by the homeowners association (HOA) there to euthanize the Canada geese at Lady Ann Lake by fatally gassing them in a chamber. They called for more humane alternatives such as using horns to scare off the geese or relocating the birds.

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Supreme court approves Alabama map that erases majority-Black district

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Court decision that represents win for Republicans comes after lengthy battle over state’s congressional map

Alabama can use a redrawn congressional map that eliminates one of the state’s two majority-Black districts in this year’s midterm elections, the US supreme court ruled in a 6-3 decision on Tuesday, another major blow to Black voters and a win for Republicans.

The court’s emergency ruling is the most consequential decision it had issued since its landmark ruling in late April that struck down a critical provision of the Voting Rights Act. In that case, Louisiana v Callais, the court’s majority made it nearly impossible to win Voting Rights Act claims, saying that plaintiffs had to prove intentional discrimination. But on 26 May, a three-judge panel said the map Alabama wants to use for this year’s midterm was enacted with discriminatory intent.

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Federal court blocks new Republican-friendly voting map in Alabama

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Panel of three judges says congressional map was drawn to intentionally discriminate against Black voters

Alabama cannot use a new Republican-friendly map in this year’s midterm elections because it was drawn to intentionally discriminate against Black voters, a panel of three federal judges ruled on Tuesday.

The decision blocks Alabama from using a congressional map lawmakers passed in 2023 but never went into effect because the same court found it was drawn with intent to discriminate. Alabama was eventually ordered to adopt a map with two majority-Black districts that both elected Democrats. After the US supreme court gutted a major provision of the Voting Rights Act in a case called Louisiana v Callais in April, Alabama took the extraordinary step of moving its imminent congressional primary and sought to use the 2023 congressional map this year.

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Six US states hold primaries as Trump urges Kentucky voters to oust Massie

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Republican critic of president faces challenge from Ed Gallrein, while Georgia and Pennsylvania hold key contests

The biggest day of primaries yet arrives Tuesday, with voters in Kentucky, Pennsylvania, Georgia, Alabama, Oregon and Idaho, heading to the polls to select candidates ahead of November’s midterm elections.

While many primaries will be resolved with little drama, some have shaped up to be among the most contentious elections of the year so far, serving as gauges of Donald Trump’s control of Republicans, and the direction Democratic voters are looking to steer their party as they seek to retake control of Congress.

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Southern Poverty Law Center pleads not guilty in federal fraud case

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Prosecutors allege SPLC funneled over $3m to sources in extremist groups but legal experts say case is weak

The Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC) pleaded not guilty on Thursday to charges related to allegations the organization committed fraud and conspired to money launder.

The 11-count indictment filed last month accuses the civil rights organization of committing fraud in connection to a program in which it paid informants to monitor rightwing extremist groups. The program no longer exists. The investigation is being handled by the US attorney for the middle district of Alabama, which includes Montgomery, the state capital.

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Alabama student reportedly fell to his death in Barcelona waters by accident

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Autopsy reveals James ‘Jimmy’ Gracey’s injuries consistent with repeatedly hitting breakwater’s rocks, Spanish media report

A University of Alabama student who was found dead in Barcelona after going missing while vacationing evidently fell into the sea by accident in view of surveillance cameras – and an autopsy revealed injuries on his body that were consistent with having repeatedly struck a breakwater’s rocks.

Such details about James “Jimmy” Gracey surfaced in the Spanish media as a spokesperson for police in Barcelona told the Associated Press that “all signs point” to the 20-year-old’s death as having been inadvertent.

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Alabama priest leaves clergy after woman alleges ‘private companionship’ beginning when she was 17

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Robert Sullivan’s self-imposed removal comes after accusations he provided financial support in exchange for arrangement which included sex

A longtime Roman Catholic priest in Alabama has voluntarily left the clergy after a woman alleged to his superiors that he provided her financial support in exchange for “private companionship” including sex beginning when she was 17.

Robert Sullivan’s self-imposed removal from the priesthood – known as laicization – was announced Wednesday, the day before the US holiday of Thanksgiving, in a public statement from Birmingham, Alabama, by Bishop Steven Raica.

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UAB football player faces attempted murder charge after allegedly stabbing teammates

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  • Incident happened hours before Saturday’s game

  • Two players in stable condition in local hospital

A University of Alabama at Birmingham football player allegedly stabbed two teammates on Saturday morning, hours before the team’s game against the University of South Florida, the university said in a statement.

“UAB’s top priority remains the safety and well-being of all of our students,” the statement said. “Given patient privacy and the ongoing investigation, we have no further comment at this time.”

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Man deported to Laos despite US court order blocking his removal, attorneys say

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District judge told Ice to keep Alabama man in US while he showed what judge called ‘substantial claim’ to citizenship

Immigration officials have deported a father living in Alabama to Laos despite a federal court order blocking his removal from the US on the grounds he has a claim to citizenship, the man’s attorneys said on Tuesday.

US district judge Shelly Dick last week ordered US Immigration and Customs Enforcement to keep Chanthila “Shawn” Souvannarath, 44, in the United States while he presented what the judge called his “substantial claim of US citizenship”, court records show. He was born in a refugee camp in Thailand but was granted lawful permanent residence in the US before his first birthday, according to court filings.

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US citizen sues after twice being detained by immigration agents

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US-born Leo Garcia Venegas says ‘I just want to work in peace’ after agents in Alabama said his ID card was fake

An Alabama construction worker and US citizen who says he was detained twice by immigration agents within just a few weeks has filed a lawsuit in federal court demanding an end to Trump administration workplace raids targeting industries with large immigrant workforces.

The class-action lawsuit, filed on Tuesday by Leo Garcia Venegas, a concrete worker, demands an end to what the firm calls “unconstitutional and illegal immigration enforcement tactics”.

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Alabama child dies after being left in hot car while in state custody

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Police investigate death of Ke’Torrius Starkes Jr, three, who was left inside car by contractor for state human resources

An investigation has been triggered after a three-year-old boy died after being left in a hot car by a contractor for the state human resources department in Alabama.

Ke’Torrius Starkes Jr, who was in foster care, had been picked up in the late morning on Tuesday by the worker after a supervised visit with his father, the New York Times reported. He was supposed to be transported to a daycare program by a worker for the department, which oversees child protection other social services.

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