-
Alabama Executes Gregory Hunt by Nitrogen Gas, Highlighting State’s Outlier Status on Death Penalty
ATMORE, Ala. — Alabama executed Gregory Hunt by nitrogen gas Tuesday evening for the 1988 beating death of Karen Lane, marking the state’s continued reliance on capital punishment as much of the nation moves away from the practice. Hunt, 65, was pronounced dead at 6:26 p.m. at a south Alabama prison, in the nation’s sixth…
-
Alabama Slips to 43rd in National Child Well-Being Rankings as Poverty, Health Gaps Worsen
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. — Alabama has fallen to 43rd in the nation for child well-being, according to the 2025 KIDS COUNT Data Book, marking a sharp decline from last year’s 39th place finish and underscoring deepening challenges for the state’s youngest residents. The annual report, released by the Annie E. Casey Foundation, paints a troubling picture:…
-
Walker County Sheriff Arrested After Indictment for Hiring Unqualified Officers
JASPER, Ala. — Walker County Sheriff Nick Smith was arrested Monday morning after a grand jury indicted him on six misdemeanor charges for hiring law enforcement officers who were not properly certified, according to court documents filed June 9, 2025. The indictment, handed down May 30, alleges Smith knowingly employed individuals—including school resource officers, deputies,…
-
Demopolis Times Closure Marks Another Chapter in Alabama’s Newspaper Decline
DEMOPOLIS, Ala. — The Demopolis Times, a fixture in west Alabama since 1887, published its final edition this June, joining a growing list of Alabama newspapers lost to shifting economics and digital disruption. The closure comes on the heels of a statewide trend. In 2023, The Birmingham News, The Huntsville Times, and Mobile’s Press-Register—three of…
-
The Gopher’s Journey: Clarence Moore at Moundville
In the spring of 1905, a most peculiar sight appeared on Alabama’s Black Warrior River—a white steamboat called the Gopher, outfitted like a floating laboratory and carrying one Clarence Bloomfield Moore, a wealthy Philadelphia gentleman with an uncommon passion for ancient Indian mounds. Moore had made his fortune in the family paper business, but he’d…
-
ICE Detains Dozens of Immigrants During Routine Check-Ins in Birmingham, Gadsden
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. — U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement detained dozens of immigrants during routine check-ins in Birmingham and Gadsden this week, prompting alarm among local advocacy groups and immigrant families. Community organizations and legal advocates say that individuals who had previously been allowed to remain free pending further hearings were unexpectedly taken into custody. The…
Established in 1997