al.com
Alabama mother fears daughter with life-threatening disease was denied food before dying in jail
- Title
- Alabama mother fears daughter with life-threatening disease was denied food before dying in jail
- Runtime
- 2:57
- Date posted
- 13 hours ago
- Description
- Brittney Grier, 37, suffered from a rare, diabetes-like genetic condition that causes dangerously low blood sugar, and died in the Chilton County jail after being there for three weeks. Her mother, Cindy Jones was worried her daughter wasn’t being allowed to eat enough to manage her condition.
When Grier’s mother first spoke to AL.com a couple of weeks after her daughter’s death, it had not been reported in the press. Jones feared her daughter’s death would be ignored, that it would pass into oblivion without scrutiny. Or justice. But Jones is left with a lot of questions about what happened to her daughter.
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- Massive bird swarms show up on radar: Learn about roost rings
- Runtime
- 0:47
- Date posted
- 3 days ago
- Description
- Roost rings, circular echoes that appear on weather radars around sunrise or sunset, appeared in northern Alabama on July 30, 2026.
Roost rings occur when large groups of birds, bats or insects leave a roosting location simultaneously. The expanding flock creates a circular ring of radar echoes.
The ring grows bigger as time goes on, and becomes less distinct as the birds spread out to feed in separate areas.
Purple Martins create the strongest and most common roost rings in the Southeast.
- Title
- Prichard council clashes over proposed data center
- Runtime
- 1:14
- Date posted
- 5 days ago
- Description
- With debate over data centers spreading through city halls and county government offices across Alabama, the City of Prichard is weighing a possible moratorium with a twist: the promise of economic investment from a proposed $93 million development comes as the city grapples with significant operational challenges.
Moments before the council voted to hold an Aug. 13 public hearing on a proposed 480-day moratorium on data centers, or on regulations governing the developments, council attorney Moshae Donald said she had learned that an official application for a project had been submitted to the city.
- Title
- Watch the little sister of Will Roberts give emotional eulogy
- Runtime
- 4:49
- Date posted
- 5 days ago
- Description
- Will Roberts was first diagnosed with osteosarcoma in January 2025. The teen passed away on Thursday, July 23, while being treated at Rady Children’s Hospital in San Diego. His body was returned home on Wednesday, July 29.
“Will is finally ringing his forever cancer free bell as he entered the gates of Heaven,” Brittney Roberts, Will’s mother, wrote in the Facebook post announcing his passing.
Roberts inspired national support in April after a Facebook plea he shared, asking for help getting access to a specific cancer drug, drew a response from lawmakers and Dr. Mehmet Oz, the administrator of The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services.
On Wednesday, July 29, Gov. Kay Ivey issued a proclamation designating Aug. 1, 2026, as Will Roberts Day in Alabama.
#localnews #alabama #cancer #eulogy #teenager
- Title
- Remembering the life of Will Roberts
- Runtime
- 0:51
- Date posted
- 6 days ago
- Description
- Will Roberts got attention nationwide as an advocate for better access to childhood cancer treatments. At 15 years old, the Ralph, Alabama native passed away on July 23 after a battle with bone cancer.
On Friday, July 31, Sipsey Valley Middle School – the school Roberts was attending when he first received his diagnosis 18 months ago – held a vigil to honor his life. Tuscaloosa County community members came together for a night of prayer, music and worship.
Today, Aug. 1, has officially been declared Will Roberts Day by Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey. His public visitation and funeral service are also taking place on Saturday.
“Alabama is remembering Will as a brave young man whose courage inspired us all,” Ivey said in a news release.
- Title
- What's wrong with Birmingham's traffic lights?
- Runtime
- 1:51
- Date posted
- 6 days ago
- Description
- I love Birmingham. But if I spend one more day sitting at one of the city’s 700 red lights that seem completely out of sync, I might lose my mind. So I set out to find out what's really going on with the city's traffic signal system and the millions of dollars being planned to improve it. What’s the deal?
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- Newly implemented Alabama law forces teens getting into trouble at school to wait for drive
- Runtime
- 0:57
- Date posted
- 7 days ago
- Description
- Alabama students face a new deterrent for school discipline problems starting this week as Taylor’s Law connects classroom behavior to the ability to get behind the wheel.
The measure, which goes into effect Aug. 1, establishes a point-based system that delays driving privileges for students aged 13 and older at public and private secondary schools throughout the state, according to its text.
Each point accumulated through disciplinary actions on school property pushes back a student’s eligibility to apply for a learner’s permit or driver’s license by one week.
- Title
- Lowndes County residents share concerns over local 800-acre data center
- Runtime
- 1:07
- Date posted
- 7 days ago
- Description
- Rep. Terri Sewell and Rep. Shomari Figures held a town hall at Beulah Primitive Baptist Church in Hope Hull, Ala. on Thursday discussing a variety of issues, including AI data centers.
Residents filled the church last night with concerns about the mass construction of such data centers; primarily, Project Red Clay. This is an 800-acre campus plotted in Lowndes County that will be right next to residential areas.
“I have sponsored a bill called the AI National Moratorium Act,” Rep. Sewell said. “That bill will put a temporary pause on what’s going on across the nation … because we need national, federal guidelines and guardrails in place before we continue to go [on].”
Hyperscale data centers are a growing concern for many rural folks because not only are these the areas where facilities tend have room to be constructed, but the centers’ impacts on water quality, land fertility, wildlife preservation, human health and more are at stak...
- Title
- Alabama sets new execution date for Jeffery Lee after nitrogen execution was banned Mobile Vide
- Runtime
- 0:48
- Date posted
- 7 days ago
- Description
- After a federal court prevented Alabama from executing a death row inmate with nitrogen gas, the state has set a new date for his execution using a different method.
In a letter to ADOC Commissioner Greg Lovelace Thursday, Gov. Kay Ivey ordered that the execution of Jeffery Lee be carried out within a thirty-hour time frame between 12 a.m. Sept. 17 and 6 a.m. Sept. 18.
- Title
- UFL shuts down Birmingham Stallions franchise #ufl #alabama
- Runtime
- 1:01
- Date posted
- 8 days ago
- Description
- After five seasons — the longest stint of professional spring football in the city’s history — the UFL announced that it’s ceasing operations in Birmingham.
Public officials said the league blames its decision on the optics of the Stallion crowds being dwarfed inside the 47,000-seat Protective Stadium.
The median capacity for venues in the league’s eight cities in the most recent seasons was 21,250.
“They said the stadium didn’t provide the atmosphere they were seeking and did not fit in their business model,” said Jimmie Stephens, chair of the Jefferson County Commission.
The Stallions won three successive titles in 2022, 2023 (USFL) and 2024 (UFL) — before firing head coach Skip Holtz and replacing him with former Alabama quarterback A.J. McCarron.
The Stallions went 4-6 this season and missed the playoffs for the first time.
The announcement isn’t a complete surprise, given recent socia...
- Title
- It’s 7 o’clock on the dot, where’s Usher?
- Runtime
- 1:15
- Date posted
- 9 days ago
- Description
- Before Usher and Chris Brown took the stage for the first night of their Birmingham tour stop at Protective Stadium, we asked some of his Alabama fans one very important question...it's 7 o'clock on the dot, where is Usher?
#alabama #music #concertseason #livemusic #birminghamalabama
- Title
- Jones takes aim at Tuberville, lays out his vision for Alabama
- Runtime
- 2:48
- Date posted
- 10 days ago
- Description
- During a speech in Birmingham, Democratic nominee for Alabama governor Doug Jones discussed several issues he says will shape Alabama's future. He shared his views on Medicaid expansion, creating a state lottery, IVF protections and his opponent Sen. Tommy Tuberville.
Photos and videos by Will McLelland/AL.com
- Title
- Doug Jones warns Alabama could become a 'dumping ground' for AI data centers
- Runtime
- 0:54
- Date posted
- 10 days ago
- Description
- Speaking Monday in Birmingham, Doug Jones, the Democratic nominee for governor, argued that his opponent Sen. Tommy Tuberville is prioritizing powerful interests over everyday Alabamians while backing rapid expansion of AI data centers across the state.
"In 2026, we're witnessing perhaps the greatest example of what is wrong with state government in Alabama and how big money works in our state," Jones said.
"I'm talking about the current high speed, no holds barred effort to make Alabama a dumping ground for big AI data centers for rich billionaires."
Tuberville has expressed his support for data center development in Alabama, calling concerns about their impact as "bull crap."
Read more with the link here: https://www.al.com/news/2026/07/doug-jones-says-tuberville-will-turn-alabama-into-data-center-dumping-ground-for-billionaires.html
Reporting by Ruth Serven Smith
Video by Will McLelland
- Title
- Trump uses speech to attack CNN’s Kaitlan Collins, compares to Dylan Mulvaney
- Runtime
- 0:48
- Date posted
- 13 days ago
- Description
- President Donald Trump once again criticized CNN Chief White House Correspondent Kaitlan Collins in his remarks at the White House Correspondents Association dinner in Washington on Friday, July 24, 2026.
Collins, an Alabama native, was congratulated by Trump for winning the 2026 WHCA award for broadcast for her coverage of Trump’s 2025 meeting with the president of Ukraine, but then called it “fake.”
Trump said she shouldn’t have won the award, and then continued to say that she never smiles. He also mentioned she signed “a major new sponsorship,” but that it was Dylan Mulvaney on Budweiser cans, not her.
Trump’s comparison of Collins to Mulvaney, a transgender influencer who endorsed Budweiser in 2023, garnered defense of Collins and other reporters Trump mentioned.
“We stand by our journalists and the integrity and fair-mindedness with which the CNN team reports the news,” CNN CEO Mark Thompson said in a statement...
- Title
- Tuberville announces team to ‘clean up’ Alabama government, find waste
- Runtime
- 0:42
- Date posted
- 13 days ago
- Description
- U.S. Sen. Tommy Tuberville is assembling a “Golden Action Team” to cut waste and duplication in the state government if he is elected governor of Alabama.
The team includes people with experience in prison healthcare and the energy and cannabis industries, according to the announcement from his campaign.
Tuberville said the team will look at prisons, public safety, transportation, healthcare, education, energy and economic development.
Tuberville’s campaign also listed education and job development as priorities for his administration.
Tuberville picked people who, he noted, are not lobbyists or elected officials, but are people with experience in law, business and some of Alabama’s major industries.
Reporting by Ruth Serven Smith
Read more at AL.com
- Title
- 2 Alabama candidates call for halt to new data centers: 'Let's put a pause on this'
- Runtime
- 1:05
- Date posted
- 13 days ago
- Description
- As more local governments in Alabama rush to restrict new data centers, Democrats running for the state’s top two elected offices are calling for a statewide ban – at least temporarily.
“That has become such a lightning rod issue,” Jones said in a recent call with Ensler. “It’s just time the state took some action and said let’s put a pause on this. We need to put a moratorium on any building, any new permits, anything like that right now so we can put some guardrails up.”
At least seven cities are enforcing those temporary bans: Leeds, Fort Payne, Homewood, Cullman, Springville, Chelsea and Fairfield. Birmingham’s initial pause expired once the city added restrictions to the industry in its zoning policy. Other cities, including Columbiana, Hoover and Athens have changed their zoning to address data centers without pausing development.
#alabama #datacenters #tuberville #dougjones
- Title
- USS Mobile Bay Sunk During Pacific Naval Exercise
- Runtime
- 0:14
- Date posted
- 13 days ago
- Description
- Title
- Flora-Bama co-owner Pat McClellan has died
- Runtime
- 0:49
- Date posted
- 14 days ago
- Description
- Operators of Flora-Bama Lounge, Package & Oyster Bar announced Friday via social media that Pat McClellan had “passed away peacefully in his sleep Wednesday evening.”
Joe Gilchrist, who died in 2022, took over the Flora-Bama in 1978 and soon began turning the out-of-the-way roadhouse into a showcase and a haven for singer-songwriters. McClellan joined him as co-owner in the mid-1980s and became instrumental in the growth of signature events such as the Frank Brown International Songwriters Festival, the Interstate Mullet Toss and a New Year’s Day Polar Bear Dip.
The Flora-Bama said that details on a celebration of McClellan’s life will be announced later.
#alabama #florabama #beach
- Title
- Police chief arrested as grand jury calls for Prichard PD to be ‘abolished’ and rebuilt
- Runtime
- 1:49
- Date posted
- 15 days ago
- Description
- Prichard’s police chief has been arrested amid a widening corruption investigation, and a special grand jury has issued a recommendation that the city’s police force be “abolished” and rebuilt.
The latest developments, revealed July 22 by Mobile County District Attorney Keith Blackwood, came five weeks after the arrest of officer Emanuel Dotch triggered a takeover of Prichard policing by the Mobile County Sheriff’s Office.
Blackwood said the Prichard PD had been afflicted by “a cultural rot.” He and Mobile County Sheriff Paul Burch made clear that the investigation into the department was still in its early stages.
Read more on AL.com
#localnews #alabama #lawenforcement #policeofficer #arrest
- Title
- 'Ringing his forever cancer free bell': Teen whose cancer battle drew national support dies
- Runtime
- 0:54
- Date posted
- 15 days ago
- Description
- The family of Will Roberts announced via Facebook that the 15-year-old passed away while being treated at Rady Children’s Hospital in San Diego. Roberts, of Ralph, Ala., was diagnosed with stage four bone cancer in 2025.
In April, the teen drew national attention when he posted a plea to his mother’s Facebook page asking for help finding a specific cancer drug they were hopeful could help him. Ultimately, he was able to receive it after his story reached lawmakers and Dr. Mehmet Oz, the administrator of The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services.
“Will is finally ringing his forever cancer free bell as he entered the gates of Heaven,” Brittney Roberts, Will’s mother, wrote in the Facebook post.“
Since being diagnosed with osteosarcoma in January 2025, Roberts had undergone chemotherapy treatments, rotationplasty surgery and more, but the cancer continued to spread throughout his body.
Roberts shared in the post that Wi...
- Title
- Jefferson County sheriff, brother say gambling rumors are political attacks on Democrats
- Runtime
- 8:19
- Date posted
- 16 days ago
- Description
- Jefferson County Sheriff Mark Pettway and his brother, Bruce Pettway, make guest appearances on the Gary Richardson Morning Show on WJLD 104.1 on Monday, July 20, 2026.
They both say lingering gambling rumors about them are partisan efforts to harm Democrats.
- Title
- Port of Mobile gets new collapsible shipping containers to help with supply chain
- Runtime
- 0:47
- Date posted
- 16 days ago
- Description
- Title
- Axolotl exhibit opens at Birmingham Zoo
- Runtime
- 0:34
- Date posted
- 16 days ago
- Description
- A new exhibit just opened at the Birmingham Zoo featuring one of the world’s most unique creatures.
The public can now come see axolotls at the zoo, which are critically endangered amphibians native to ancient waterways in Mexico. Spending their entire lives underwater, many recognize axolotls by their feathery gills and ability to regenerate limbs and organs – even including parts of its brain.
The exhibit, which opened on Wednesday, was made possible through support from Zoo donor Ann Katholi, who has a passion for wildlife conservation.
- Title
- What are the highest-paying graduate degrees in Alabama?
- Runtime
- 0:31
- Date posted
- 16 days ago
- Description
- The Postsecondary Education & Economics and Research Center analyzed 121 majors and salary data from the Texas Education Research Center to uncover which specific degrees pay off the most.
After graduation, here are the top highest earning graduate degrees.
Reporting by Williesha Morris
Read more at AL.com
- Title
- What's Inside the NDA behind Alabama's largest data center development?
- Runtime
- 1:56
- Date posted
- 17 days ago
- Description
- Under threat of being sued, the city of Bessemer has released the non-disclosure agreement that its elected mayor signed with the developer of a massive and controversial $14.5 billion data center. Bessemer officials and the developer have been tight-lipped about Project Marvel.
QTS Data Centers, a Virginia-based data center company, will operate Project Marvel. The campus will have 18 buildings spanning 4.5 million square feet, and will use up to 130,000 gallons of municipal water per day, per its new agreement with the Warrior River Water Authority. Alabama Power will supply its electricity needs: 1,200 megawatts of power.
- Title
- A Midwesterner and vegan try a meat-and-three for the first time
- Runtime
- 1:53
- Date posted
- 19 days ago
- Description
- We sent a vegan and a Midwesterner to Niki's West for the first time. Hijinks ensued and experiences were gained.
- Title
- Data center protest marches through Birmingham
- Runtime
- 1:14
- Date posted
- 20 days ago
- Description
- Humans First, a grassroots movement seeking democratic oversight over the future of AI, held a protest in Birmingham on Saturday. Individuals met in Railroad Park before marching through parts of downtown.
This protest comes in the wake of "Project Marvel," a $14.5 billion data center planned to be constructed in Bessemer.
🎥 Eric Kiekeben/AL.com
- Title
- Alabama-based financial institution investigating cyberattack
- Runtime
- 0:41
- Date posted
- 20 days ago
- Description
- River Bank and Trust says a June 16 cyberattack is still being investigated and officials are working to find out whether any personal information may have been compromised. #alabama #bank #cyberattack
- Title
- Student loan borrowers SAVE Plan ended These are your new payment options, deadline to choose
- Runtime
- 0:48
- Date posted
- 20 days ago
- Description
- After years of scrutiny, the Trump administration has finally ended the SAVE Plan for student loan borrowers. Starting in July, loan servicers began sending out notices telling SAVE borrowers they have 90 days to pick a new plan.
According to the Department of Education, that timeline varies from person to person — depending on when that notice comes through. The Department added that anyone who wants to switch early “may contact their servicer at any time to enroll in a lawful repayment plan.”
The new payment plan options are:
- Repayment Assistance Plan (RAP): A new income-driven plan launched July 1, with monthly payments set at 1% to 10% of income depending on earnings.
- Income-Based Repayment (IBR): An existing income-driven plan that survives under the new law, with payments based on income and family size, and forgiveness after 20 or 25 years.
- Standard Repayment Plan: A fixed monthly payment for 10 years, ...
- Title
- Jack Daniel's barrel-making plant in Alabama to close, costing more than 70 jobs
- Runtime
- 0:32
- Date posted
- 20 days ago
- Description
- Alabama’s Jack Daniel’s whiskey-making plant will shut down by September, according to a notice filed with the state.
Alabama Cooperage in Trinity announced the closure scheduled for Sept. 14 in a notice posted online this week. More than 70 workers will lose their jobs in the closure.
- Title
- Two officers accused of excessive force in death of Alabama man reach settlement with family
- Runtime
- 0:57
- Date posted
- 21 days ago
- Description
- Police video documented Michael Broady’s encounter with law enforcement. It began with a conversation and ended with his limp body being taken to the hospital, where he was later pronounced dead.
In their lawsuit against several officers in rural west Alabama, Broady’s family alleges that Broady’s drug-confused call to police for help in August 2021 resulted in a violent police encounter that took his life.
#alabama #police #lawsuit #excessiveforce
- Title
- ChatGPT convinced Alabama woman she had to die to fulfill a prophecy, lawsuit alleges
- Runtime
- 1:00
- Date posted
- 21 days ago
- Description
- Christian Faith Madison died June 9, 2025, after stepping into traffic on Interstate 22 in Jefferson County. Her death was initially reported as a pedestrian fatality. Now, her death is at the center of a lawsuit accusing ChatGPT of encouraging harmful beliefs. A wrongful death product liability lawsuit has been filed on behalf of Madison’s young son against OpenAI and CEO Sam Altman. #alabama #chatgpt #ai
- Title
- Testosterone replacement therapy option coming to U.S. troops
- Runtime
- 0:58
- Date posted
- 21 days ago
- Description
- Soldiers 30 years and older in the U.S. military will be screened yearly for testosterone deficiency as part of their periodic health assessment, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth announced July 15 in a social media video.
Hegseth said it is about ensuring troops have “the right testosterone levels” for optimized performance, resilience and long-term health.
Service members under 30 can choose to be tested, and anyone deemed deficient can opt for testosterone replacement therapy.
According to Mayo Clinic, male hormone testosterone is important in the development and maintenance of typical masculine physical characteristics.
The health establishment said that the benefits of testosterone therapy for age-related testosterone decline are not clear, and can come with some side effects.
The announcement did not include when the screening will begin.
The Pentagon declined to provide additional information when asked whet...
- Title
- Trump says New York’s data center rule could be ‘cash cow’ for Alabama
- Runtime
- 0:42
- Date posted
- 21 days ago
- Description
- President Donald Trump suggested that Alabama and other states will benefit from New York’s decision to block data center development.
In a July 15 post, Trump said data centers were “money machines” and that companies were looking to move out of New York to “Alabama, Florida, Texas, Arizona, and many other states.”
“Both the taxes and the jobs amount to LIQUID GOLD!” he posted on Truth Social.
On July 14, New York passed a one-year moratorium on data center construction. It is the first state in the country to take the step, though about 15 states have considered legislation to do so.
Alabama has not considered a statewide freeze, though multiple local cities have halted development.
Alabama has dozens of projects in process, including efforts in in Bessemer, Birmingham, Hayneville and Montgomery. The state is wrestling with developments and deciding how to regulate both the infrastructure itself and potent...
- Title
- United Airlines argues a window seat doesn't have to include a window
- Runtime
- 1:24
- Date posted
- 22 days ago
- Description
- Have you ever booked a window seat on a flight just to be met with…a blank wall?
A federal judge denied United Airlines’ motion to dismiss a lawsuit filed by passengers who paid for a window seat but didn’t actually get a window. The class actions were filed last August against United and Delta Air Lines when passengers on Boeing 737, Boeing 757 and Airbus A321 planes were seated next to walls. The passengers, per the report, said the carriers “failed to clearly disclose the missing windows during the booking process.” #united #delta #airlines #windowseat
- Title
- Alabama universities lose more than 1,000 international students
- Runtime
- 2:03
- Date posted
- 22 days ago
- Description
- International student enrollment at Alabama public colleges is at its lowest rate since COVID, according to statewide data.
Alabama four-year public colleges’ international student enrollment dropped by 1,024 students last year, according to Alabama Commission on Higher Education data. There were 7,397 students who are not U.S. residents at Alabama colleges in 2025.
Decreases reflect a national trend in declining international student enrollment due to President Donald Trump’s travel ban, immigration crackdown and his administration’s delays and denials of thousands of student visas. #alabama #immigration #uab #ua #auburn
- Title
- Tommy Tuberville promotes data centers, says opposition is boosted by China
- Runtime
- 0:51
- Date posted
- 23 days ago
- Description
- Sen. Tommy Tuberville says China may be helping fuel opposition to data centers and urges U.S data center infrastructure in order to stay competitive.
Tuberville, who is running for governor of Alabama, spoke at a gathering of Alabama sheriffs and law enforcement officials. He said data center projects will help local communities and boost tax revenue.
Tuberville pushed back on arguments against data centers, contending that fears about environmental damage and excessive noise are not valid reasons to block construction.
Tuberville said the Alabama projects will bring in tax revenue. Large data centers are under construction in Bessemer, Birmingham, Hayneville, Montgomery and elsewhere.
His opponent in the governor’s race, former U.S. Sen. Doug Jones, does not support unrestricted data center development.
The Alabama Public Service Commission is considering new rules to make sure that increased power needs are not passe...
- Title
- Island restored by oil spill funds after nearly vanishing from rising sea level
- Runtime
- 1:01
- Date posted
- 25 days ago
- Description
- Grand Batture Island is a historic barrier island in the north Mississippi Sound that stretches from Mississippi over into Grand Bay in Alabama. It's one of many barrier islands that dot the Mississippi and Alabama coasts.
Over time, the island has eroded due to a lack of sediment replenishment, wave energy from boats or storms and other threats. In 1850, the island was five miles long. Today, the seaward side is about 1/5 that length. The Grand Batture Island Habitat Restoration Project is acting to preserve the land.
Mississippi and Alabama were able to secure around $63.6 million: $55 million from RESTORE Act funds (collected following the 2010 Deepwater Horizon oil spill), $6.7 million from the Gulf Environmental Benefit Fund and $1.95 million in savings from another project. The state of Mississippi will place material in front of and on the island to restore the island to its historic footprint.
The states hope to increase protection to th...
- Title
- Nearly 16,000 Alabama homes don’t have air conditioning, new data shows
- Runtime
- 0:43
- Date posted
- 26 days ago
- Description
- According to newly released data from the U.S. Census Bureau’s Local Air Conditioning estimates, nearly 16,000 occupied homes in Alabama don’t have any form of air conditioning. That figure is especially drastic after extreme heat warnings swept the state.
Across the United States, 93% of households have some form of air conditioning, while 7% do not. Alabama ranks higher than the national rate and most of the state's households do have air conditioning: 99.2%.
Only three states had a higher percentage than Alabama: Delaware, Florida and Oklahoma, all of which saw 99.5% of households with air conditioning, per the census estimates.
The counties in Alabama with the lower rates of air conditioning are mostly clustered in the northeastern part of the state. Jackson County has the highest share of homes without air conditioning at 2.4%, or 506 households.
Shelby, Houston and Coffee counties have the highest rates of households in the ...
- Title
- ‘He’s in hell’': AL community praying for release of 18 year old ICE detainee
- Runtime
- 1:00
- Date posted
- 27 days ago
- Description
- Last year, Elder Chavez-Carranza was a junior in high school living in Albertville. But ever since a traffic stop in December, he's been in ICE detention and his family, friends, and others in the north Alabama community have been working to get him released.
AL.com spoke to Chavez-Carranza by video with help from another detainee acting as an interpreter. He said he was driving 52mph in a 45mph zone when an officer stopped him. The officer asked for his identification and where he was from.
Chavez-Carranza said he attempted to show ICE agents that he was granted special immigrant juvenile status in September under President Trump’s administration. But he said they ignored his documentation.
Special immigrant juvenile status is an immigration classification created by Congress to provide protection to children who were, “abused, neglected or abandoned,” by a parent.
Chavez-Carranza said his parents abandoned him when he was a ba...
- Title
- 148 unprocessed sexual assault kits discovered in Alabama police department
- Runtime
- 0:42
- Date posted
- 28 days ago
- Description
- The Mobile County Sheriff’s Office recovered 148 sexual assault kits that sat unprocessed at the Prichard Police Department.
Investigators found 247 sexual assault kits in evidence storage. Only 99 were sent to the Alabama Department of Forensic Sciences. The remaining 148 were never submitted.
The discovery came while the Mobile County Sheriff's Office was inventorying police evidence after taking over law enforcement operations in Prichard. The remaining 148 kits were turned over to the FBI.
Since June 16, 2026, the Mobile County Sheriff’s Office has been handling law enforcement operations in Prichard after a Prichard officer was arrested for corruption.
“This is about accountability and ensuring every victim’s case receives the attention it deserves,” Mobile County Sheriff Paul Burch said.
Reporting by Patrick Darrington
Read more at AL.com
- Title
- AL judge dismisses Tuberville residency challenge, setting up state Supreme Court case
- Runtime
- 0:48
- Date posted
- 28 days ago
- Description
- Montgomery Circuit Court Judge Brooke Reid has dismissed a court challenge to Tommy Tuberville’s candidacy for governor, saying she doesn’t have jurisdiction over the issue.
Reid wrote in her order that she had “wrestled” with the question of whether state law allows courts to weigh in on the question of whether Tuberville continues as the Republican nominee.
Barry Ragsdale, attorney for the plaintiffs, said he plans to appeal the case to the Alabama Supreme Court.
“The public, and voters in particular, need to ask themselves why Senator Tuberville is so afraid of having this case proceed in court,” Ragsdale said July 9.
“We are confident that, if given a fair opportunity to present that evidence in court, we could easily establish that Tuberville is lying about where he lives and is ineligible to serve as Governor,” Ragsdale said.
Plaintiffs argued that he should not be on the ballot because they say he h...
- Title
- $3.2 billion: The I-10 Mobile River Bridge and Bayway project's newest price tag
- Runtime
- 1:28
- Date posted
- 29 days ago
- Description
- The newest version of the Interstate 10 Mobile River Bridge and Bayway project is now a $3.2 billion effort. Phase one includes constructing a new bridge and restriping the existing 7.5-mile Bayway to three lanes in each direction.
Phase two does not yet have a cost estimate but involves demolishing the existing Bayways and replacing it with a new interstate structure.
This version of the project follows rising construction costs over the past five years, slowed progress and raised concerns among local officials about when groundbreaking would occur.
The massive project, among the most expensive in Alabama’s history, will also require motorists to pay slightly higher tolls than those approved by local officials five years ago.
The total cost of both phases combined remains unclear, though phase one alone is nearly as expensive as the $3.5 billion estimate placed on the full project several years ago.
According to the pr...
- Title
- New artist run quilt studio opening in Gee’s Bend is ‘an authentic Alabama cultural experience’
- Runtime
- 0:53
- Date posted
- 30 days ago
- Description
- Visitors to Gee’s Bend will now have a new way to sample the sights and sounds of the area’s world-renowned artists.
Willie Quill’s Quilt Studio & Pantry will open July 18, from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. in Boykin as the first artist-run studio in Gee’s Bend.
The shop is owned by Gee’s Bend quilter Emma Pettway and her husband, Melvin Pettway Sr. It's named for Melvin's father, Willie Quill Pettway, a farmer, ferry operator, civil rights advocate and community leader.
Most of Gee’s Bend's residents are direct descendants of enslaved people who worked the cotton plantation established in 1816 by Joseph Gee. After the Civil War, many stayed on as tenant farmers and sharecroppers.
In 1962, Congress built a dam and lock on the Alabama River at Miller’s Ferry, which forced most residents to give up farming and pushed some to cultural traditions like quilt making. The abstract patterns and styles were passed down through generations.<...
- Title
- Expectant moms could lose a a key option for childbirth in Alabama
- Runtime
- 2:33
- Date posted
- 30 days ago
- Description
- Alabama Birth Center co-founders Dr. Yashica Robinson and clinic manager Elisabeth Nussel warn that birthing centers in Alabama could be forced to shut down as the state supreme court recently declined to hear a lawsuit challenging health department regulations for the centers. Back in 2023, birthing centers in Alabama sued the state Department of Public Health, arguing its rules for the centers are so burdensome that they won’t be able to operate at all.
A judge in Montgomery ruled that birth centers should not be subject to as many regulations as hospitals. But earlier this year, the Alabama Court of Civil Appeals unanimously ruled in favor of the Alabama Department of Public Health. Because the Alabama Supreme Court declined to hear the case, the appeals court ruling stands. #alabama #birth #pregnancy #maternalmortality
- Title
- Snake captured with bare hands at Alabama gas station
- Runtime
- 0:57
- Date posted
- 1 month ago
- Description
- Jacksonville's Chris Proper captured a snake at Norton's Express Mart gas station on Highway 9 in Piedmont, AL. This particular snake is known as a rat snake or a chicken snake. Proper said he catches the snakes and then lets them go free somewhere in the wild.
- Title
- Security video shows Alabama father fleeing after teen allegedly stabbed him and his wife
- Runtime
- 0:49
- Date posted
- 1 month ago
- Description
- A 17-year-old in Daphne has been charged with the murder and attempted murder of his parents in a brutal stabbing attack on July 5, 2026.
The mother, Samantha Baker, 37, died while the father, Lance Baker, 46, was left in critical condition, according to the Baldwin County Sheriff’s Office.
The family’s next door neighbor, Shawn Scurry, said there was no indication that the teen would allegedly commit such an act.
Scurry said her home security cameras showed Lance shouting “help me” at about 8:35 p.m. The attack took place over the next five to seven minutes.
The teenager reportedly called police and confessed to the stabbings leading to his arrest at the home at about 9 p.m.
A $1 million bond has reportedly been set for the teen, whose name has not been released. He is being charged as an adult.
Reporting by Patrick Darrington
- Title
- Birmingham Juvenile Fireworks Arrest
- Runtime
- 0:57
- Date posted
- 1 month ago
- Description
- A 13-year-old boy was arrested in Birmingham after police say he ignited and threw fireworks at police officers.
- Title
- Alabama island offers camping, fishing and a Tim Burton ghost town for as little as $5
- Runtime
- 0:45
- Date posted
- 1 month ago
- Description
- Jackson Lake Island in Millbrook, near Montgomery, is an Alabama gem where visitors enjoy fishing, picnicking or camping at a scenic lake.
Privately owned by Lynn Bright, a retired judge, and her husband Bobby, a former mayor and congressman, the island features director Tim Burton’s abandoned “Big Fish” (2003) film set, Spectre.
The Spectre film set was built 24 years ago. Though some of the buildings accidentally burned years ago, the facades of a church and several quaint homes remain.
Families can also look for the herd of goats that trim the grass at Spectre or throw shoes across a line strung between fake trees built by Burton.
The entry fee for day use (sunrise to sunset) is $5 for adults, $3 for children 2-10 and free for kids under 2. Overnight camping is $15 for adults and $5 for children under 10 per night.
Reporting by Kelly Kazek
Read more at AL.com
- Title
- Why a popular Alabama sunflower field is taking a year off this summer
- Runtime
- 0:42
- Date posted
- 1 month ago
- Description
- The Sunflower Field in Autaugaville, one of Alabama’s most popular summer spots, is hitting pause this year. The field won’t be open in 2026.
The sunflower field draws huge seasonal crowds and is a staple outing each summer for photo-ops and family gatherings. Excessive rain created tough growing conditions for the sunflowers this year.
Owner Todd Sheridan and his family said the weather made it difficult to maintain the quality visitors expect. Instead of a subpar season, they chose to take a pause.
The decision allows the land to recover and prepare for a better bloom in the future. It’s a reset for long-term success.
This is the first year since the sunfllower field started in 2014 that Sheridan and his family have taken a break. Visitors will be happy to know the family plans to plant again in 2027.
Reporting by Amber Sutton
Read more at AL.com
