• Alabama Lawsuit Says ChatGPT Urged Woman to Die for ‘Divine Prophecy’

    Alabama Lawsuit Says ChatGPT Urged Woman to Die for ‘Divine Prophecy’

    BIRMINGHAM, Ala. — The mother of a Jefferson County woman who died after walking into interstate traffic has filed a wrongful-death lawsuit alleging the artificial intelligence chatbot ChatGPT convinced her daughter that killing herself would fulfill a divine prophecy. The complaint, filed this week in Jefferson County, says 29-year-old Christian Faith Madison, an accountant and…

  • Two Blount County Corrections Officers Indicted in Inmate’s Death as Bond is Set

    Two Blount County Corrections Officers Indicted in Inmate’s Death as Bond is Set

    ONEONTA, Ala. — Two former corrections officers at the Blount County Detention Center have been charged in connection with the death of a 23-year-old inmate, a case that has drawn renewed attention after a judge set bond this week. A Blount County grand jury indicted Joseph Michael Blaine Evans, 26, of Oneonta, and Liletzy Valdez…

  • Tens of Thousands in Alabama Lose Health Coverage as ACA Subsidies Expire

    Tens of Thousands in Alabama Lose Health Coverage as ACA Subsidies Expire

    BIRMINGHAM, Ala. — More than 94,000 fewer Alabamians are enrolled in Affordable Care Act coverage compared with last year, a sharp drop that health advocates tie to the expiration of federal subsidies and rank among the steepest declines in the nation. The loss of coverage comes as the Trump administration and Republican Congress allowed the…

  • Two Assault Reports Lead to Arrest of Homewood Massage Therapist

    Two Assault Reports Lead to Arrest of Homewood Massage Therapist

    HOMEWOOD, Ala. — A former massage therapist at a Homewood day spa has been arrested and charged with two counts of first-degree sexual abuse after two women separately reported inappropriate sexual contact during massage appointments, police said. Matthew Owen Jones, 44, of Sterrett, was arrested by the Homewood Police Department and booked into the Jefferson…

  • Oxmoor Valley AI Data Center Faces Possible Full Work Stoppage After Judge’s Ruling

    Oxmoor Valley AI Data Center Faces Possible Full Work Stoppage After Judge’s Ruling

    BIRMINGHAM, Ala. — Construction at the massive Nebius AI data center in Birmingham’s Oxmoor Valley can continue for now under a judge’s order that restricts work hours, while a hearing set for Tuesday will decide whether to halt the project entirely until a lawsuit by nearby residents is resolved. Circuit Judge Javan Patton Crayton ruled…

  • No Paychecks, No Chief, No Mayor: Inside Lipscomb’s Latest Crisis

    No Paychecks, No Chief, No Mayor: Inside Lipscomb’s Latest Crisis

    BIRMINGHAM, Ala. — Lipscomb, a small city west of Birmingham, is struggling with a deepening governance crisis as Mayor Rob Sims II faces questions about his attendance and leadership while the town reels from a yearslong financial collapse tied to the loss of bingo hall revenue. Just weeks after returning to office from a two-month…