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Alabama prisoner dies after correctional officers “apply physical measures”

An inmate at the William E. Donaldson Correctional Facility in Bessemer died Saturday after correctional officers “applied physical measures” to the inmate on Friday, according to the Alabama Department of Corrections.  Steven Davis, 35, of Graysville was pronounced dead at a local hospital on Saturday, according to a press release on Monday from the Alabama … Continued
October 8, 2019

DCH Hospital System pays Russian hackers in ransomware attack

An Alabama hospital system paid hackers to regain access to patient files, according to The Tuscaloosa News, but it was unclear Saturday when the system’s three hospitals would fully reopen. A California-based cybersecurity firm believes the group of hackers who use the particular ransomware software found on DCH Health System computers work from Russia. DCH … Continued
October 5, 2019

Sentencing reform needed, advocates say, but state official says it won’t come easy or cheap

Montgomery– Alabama’s prisons are overcrowded, violent and the living conditions horrid, but the fixes aren’t going to come easy, according to the director of the state’s Sentencing Commission, speaking to the Governor’s Study Group on Criminal Justice Policy on Thursday. Alabama’s prison system is under threat of federal takeover if the state doesn’t remedy the … Continued
October 4, 2019

Assisted living facility administrator indicted for fraud and embezzlement

Thursday, a four-count information was filed in U.S. District Court charging a former Oak Landing Assisted Living Facility employee with embezzling money and assets from a former resident at Oak Landing, announced U.S. Attorney Jay E. Town, Special Agent in Charge Patrick M. Davis, United States Secret Service, Special Agent in Charge Rod Owens, Social … Continued
October 4, 2019

Alabama Rep. Rolanda Hollis arrested in Florida on domestic violence charge

Alabama Rep. Rolanda Hollis, D-Birmingham, was arrested Sunday night at a Florida hotel on a charge of domestic violence, according to a Florida newspaper and Okaloosa County Sheriff’s office online records.  Hollis was arrested at The Inn on Destin Harbor in Destin after police were called to the hotel at around 11 p.m. Sunday, according … Continued
September 25, 2019

Former state senator, attorney, pleaded guilty to stealing from clients

An attorney and former Alabama state senator pleaded guilty to two counts of theft for stealing money from clients, state Attorney General Steve Marshall’s office announced Tuesday.  Zeb Little was convicted in Franklin County Circuit Court on September 20 of two counts of felony theft of property and admitted to removing clients’ money from his … Continued
September 25, 2019

Ivey appoints Leigh Gwathney chair of Board of Pardons and Paroles

Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey announced Monday that she is appointing Leigh Gwathney to serve as chair of the Alabama Board of Pardons and Paroles. “There is no doubt Leigh Gwathney will serve the state well as chair of the Alabama Board of Pardons and Paroles,” Ivey said. “Pardons and Paroles was in need of strong … Continued
September 24, 2019