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Merrill removes Russell County registrar from office for cause

On Tuesday, July 16, Alabama Secretary of State John Merrill removed a member of the Russell County Board of Registrars for cause. The case went before an objective administrative law judge, who, after hearing the case, made a formal recommendation to the secretary of state to remove the registrar. According to Alabama law, the secretary … Continued

Brandon Moseley

July 23, 2019

Brooks says El Chapo should pay for border wall

Congressman Mo Brooks, R-Huntsville, said on Thursday that Congress should pass his bill to use the billions of seized drug cartel profits from convicted drug lord Joaquín Archivaldo Guzmán Loera, or “El Chapo,” to pay for construction of the border wall on the U.S.-Mexico border. “Drug kingpin ‘El Chapo’ was ordered to forfeit more than … Continued

Brandon Moseley

July 23, 2019

Marshall County woman receives 18-year sentence for sexual exploitation of a child

A federal judge sentenced Anna Marie Gomez, 31, of Marshall County on Wednesday for sexual exploitation of a child. The sentence was announced by U.S. Attorney Jay Town and U.S. Immigration and Custom Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations Assistant Special Agent in Charge James Hernandez. U.S. District Judge Abdul Kallon sentenced Gomez to 18 years in … Continued

Brandon Moseley

July 22, 2019

Donald Watkins Sr. hit with millions in fines in SEC fraud case

A federal judge in Georgia has ordered Alabama attorney and businessman Donald V. Watkins Sr. to pay “the Securities and Exchange Commission $5 million for defrauding former NBA star Charles Barkley and other investors out of millions of dollars,” according to a report filed by Law360. This latest legal blow accompanies Watkins’ conviction on federal fraud … Continued

Bill Britt

July 15, 2019

SPLC responds to Trump’s census press conference and executive action

On Thursday, the Southern Poverty Law Center welcomed President Donald Trump’s decision earlier that day to end his administration’s fight to include a citizenship question on the 2020 census. Trump did so at a press conference Thursday afternoon at the White House rose garden, putting an end to a 19-month battle that followed several legal … Continued

Eddie Burkhalter

July 15, 2019

State not in compliance with agreement for speedier mental evaluations for incarcerated

It’s been 16 months since a judge ordered Alabama to speed up mental evaluations and treatment for those waiting in jail to stand trial, but the state has failed to meet nearly all of the benchmarks to do so. Attorneys for the plaintiffs in the 2016 class-action civil lawsuit worry that the state isn’t capable … Continued

Eddie Burkhalter

July 11, 2019

Federal appeals court shows skepticism of Obamacare during oral arguments for Texas case

Tuesday’s federal appeals court session showed signs that the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals may plan to cut out part of the Affordable Care Act, also known as Obamacare. The panel of judges met in New Orleans to hear 90 minutes of oral arguments on the Texas v. United States lawsuit. In December, a … Continued

Gabby Dance

July 11, 2019

Richard Anderson to run for Court of Civil Appeals

Rich Anderson, an assistant attorney general for the state of Alabama, announced his candidacy for the Alabama Court of Civil Appeals, Place 2, on Wednesday. Anderson is a seasoned appellate attorney. He began his career two decades ago working for Justice Gorman Houston on the Alabama Supreme Court. Just six years later, Anderson won his … Continued

Brandon Moseley

July 11, 2019

AG Marshall is disappointed Supreme Court won’t hear Alabama ban on abortion procedure

The U.S. Supreme Court declined to hear Alabama’s appeal of a lower court decision overturning Alabama’s outlawing of abortions on Friday. Alabama Attorney General Steve Marshall released a statement to social media expressing his disappointment with the decision but said he’s optimistic that a “day of reckoning” is coming for the 1973 Roe v. Wade … Continued

Brandon Moseley

July 1, 2019

Supreme Court won’t review blocked 2016 Alabama abortion law

The U.S. Supreme Court has declined to review a lower court ruling that blocked an Alabama law restricting the procedure most commonly used during second-trimester abortions. The Alabama Unborn Child Protection from Dismemberment Act that was passed in 2016 made it a crime for physicians to perform dilation and evacuation abortions, the procedure used for … Continued

Evan Mealins

June 28, 2019