• Judge Tosses Birmingham Suit Over Water Board Takeover

    Judge Tosses Birmingham Suit Over Water Board Takeover

    BIRMINGHAM, Ala. — A federal judge has dismissed Birmingham’s lawsuit seeking to undo the state-led restructuring of the Birmingham Water Works Board into Central Alabama Water, closing the latest major legal challenge to the 2025 law that stripped the city of majority control over Alabama’s largest water utility. U.S. District Judge Anna M. Manasco dismissed…

  • Mobile Man Accused of Chainsaw Killings Is Removed From Court After Remark

    Mobile Man Accused of Chainsaw Killings Is Removed From Court After Remark

    MOBILE, Ala. — A 47-year-old Mobile man accused of decapitating his grandmother and aunt with a chainsaw was removed from his initial court appearance Tuesday after making a remark as a judge appointed him a public defender. Thomas Henry Steele is charged with two counts of capital murder in the deaths of Dora Boone, 85,…

  • Birmingham Zoo Welcomes Young Male Giraffe From Dallas Zoo

    Birmingham Zoo Welcomes Young Male Giraffe From Dallas Zoo

    BIRMINGHAM, Ala. — The Birmingham Zoo has added a young male giraffe to its herd, less than a year and a half after the death of its longtime breeding male. Onduli, a 1-year-old giraffe calf, arrived from the Dallas Zoo last week and was formally introduced to visitors Oct. 12 at the zoo’s Kiwanis Giraffe…

  • 9 Girls Back in Custody After Facility Escapes

    9 Girls Back in Custody After Facility Escapes

    OWENS CROSS ROADS, Ala. — All nine teenage girls who escaped from a residential treatment facility in Owens Cross Roads over the weekend have been recovered and returned to the custody of the Alabama Department of Human Resources, according to Owens Cross Roads police and local reports. Police said the girls left Pathway of Madison…

  • Ivey Uses Girls in Sports Day to Reinforce Alabama’s Anti-Transgender Message

    Ivey Uses Girls in Sports Day to Reinforce Alabama’s Anti-Transgender Message

    MONTGOMERY, Ala. — Gov. Kay Ivey’s designation of Oct. 10 as Alabama Girls in Sports Day paired a celebration of female athletes with a message rejecting transgender identities, reinforcing her administration’s restrictions on transgender participation in school and college sports. The Republican governor announced the proclamation Oct. 5, choosing a date her office explicitly linked…

  • Jefferson County Offers Free Hazardous Waste Drop-Off as Illegal Dumping Carries Heavy Costs

    Jefferson County Offers Free Hazardous Waste Drop-Off as Illegal Dumping Carries Heavy Costs

    BIRMINGHAM, Ala. — Jefferson County residents can dispose of old paint, pesticides, gasoline, batteries and other hard-to-discard household materials for free Oct. 17, offering an alternative to improper disposal in a county that says it spends millions of dollars annually cleaning up litter and illegal roadside dumps. The household hazardous waste collection will run from…