Alabama
Glock switches, BSC’s buyer, Trump’s food: Down in Alabama
As Hurricane Helene takes aim at Florida,certain to bring effects into Alabama as well, let’s sink into some more certain news.
Also, if you’re a fan of comic cons or pro wrestling, you definitely want to check out today’s podcast episode.
Today’s report follows.
Ike
Momentum for a state ban
A Democrat’s bill to ban so-called Glock switches on the state level may see growing support among Republicans during the next legislative session, according to an AL.com report.
A Glock switch is a device that allows a semi-automatic pistol to perform like a fully automatic weapon, with a machine-gun spray of rounds being fired with a single trigger pull. At least one was used in last weekend’s Birmingham mass shooting that killed four people and wounded 17 others.
The bill is being sponsored by Alabama state Rep. Phillip Ensler, a Montgomery Democrat, for the third time. Earlier this year it passed the House of Representatives but never got a vote in the Senate.
Next year odds seem good for the bill once again in the House. Key Republicans with law-enforcement backgrounds have signed on as co-sponsors.
In the Senate, Rules Committee Chair Jabo Waggoner, a Vestavia Hills Republican, said he’s ready to support a ban. Eight Republicans had confirmed to AL.com they’re behind it.
Some are more hesitant. Sen. Chris Elliott, a Josephine Republican, pointed out that Glock switches are already illegal, banned by federal law.
Supporters of the bill counter that, currently, if an officer finds you in possession of the device he or she has to turn the case over to the feds, who then decide whether or not they want to prosecute. With this bill, district attorneys in Alabama can go ahead and prosecute.
The legislation makes possession of the device a Class C felony that can get you 1 to 10 years in prison.
Campus purchase
The former institution of higher learning Birmingham-Southern College has a deal to sell its campus in Birmingham. The buyer, reports AL.com’s Hannah Denham, is another Birmingham school, Miles College.
How much are they paying and what are they going to ultimately do with the campus? We don’t know yet. But $16.5 million will come off the top to settle a debt with ServisFirst.
The two campuses are only six miles apart. Miles said both boards of trustees voted unanimously on the deal.
Stimpson’s tenure
Mobile’s longtime mayor won’t seek re-election in 2025, reports AL.com’s Patrick Darrington.
Sandy Stimpson was first elected mayor back in 2013, the year of the Kick Six, and he is currently serving out his third four-year term.
During that time, thanks to some annexations, Mobile grew to become the second most populous city in the state, leaping over Montgomery and Birmingham and looking up only to Huntsville.
Lunch with Trump
For a guy who has a diamonds-and-gold front door on his three-floor Central Park apartment, former president Donald Trump is anything butostentatious about his road food.
You may recall when the Clemson football team visited the White House in 2019 to celebrate a national championship (doesn’t Clemson winning the national title seem more distant than that?). That was during a government shutdown, so President Trump popped for fast food.
That wasn’t a billionaire being cheap. It was a billionaire in his culinary wheelhouse.
AL.com’s Carol Robinson reports that during Trump’s visit to this Saturday’s Alabama-Georgia game at Bryant-Denny Stadium, he put in the food-request for himself and his guests. On the order? Two McDonald’s Filet-O-Fish sandwiches with cheese, stadium hotdogs, Domino’s pizza and Diet Coke.
He ought to ditch Mar-a-Lago and move to Dothan. The access to fast food on Ross Clark Circle blows away all that frou-frou Palm Beach dining.
U.S. Sens. Katie Britt and Tommy Tuberville are supposed to join the GOP presidential nominee at the ballgame.
Quoting
“It’s not scary that they’re here. It’s scary that there are so many unknowns.”
Alabama state Sen. Keith Kelly, who joined other state lawmakers in another public meeting in Sylacauga regarding Haitian migrants.
More Alabama News
Born on This Date
In 1899, composer William L. Dawson of Anniston.
In 1917, jazz trumpet player Nelson “Cadillac” Williams of Montgomery.
In 1932, astronaut Clifton Williams of Mobile.
On the podcast
Guest Joe Crowe is gonna tell us all about Alabama Comic Con and the local rasslin’ scene.
You can find “Down in Alabama” wherever you get your podcasts, including these places:
Alabama
3 Alabama players who helped their draft stock at 2026 NFL combine
Each player had a pivotal role on the Crimson Tide in 2025.
Alabama had a multitude of former players who performed at an elite level at the NFL combine this past weekend.
Former Alabama star quarterback Ty Simpson was among those who put his talents on full display in Indianapolis, as Simpson continues to emerge as a top quarterback prospect available in April’s draft.
Numerous Crimson Tide stars on both sides of the football were able to have an excellent showing at the combine as well, with each playmaker a vital component to the Tide’s success in 2025.
Here are three Alabama players who helped their draft stock rise at the NFL combine.
Ty Simpson, Quarterback
Simpson is widely regarded as the best quarterback prospect available outside of Indiana’s Fernando Mendoza. The talented redshirt junior put on an absolute show at the NFL combine, as Simpson delivered multiple perfect throws and put his talents on full display throughout Saturday’s events.
The former Alabama star is a candidate to potentially shine day one in his campaign in the NFL, as Simpson’s draft stock continues to rise prior to April.
Jam Miller, Running Back
Miller is an extremely fast and athletic running back, despite struggling in the Tide’s backfield last season. The star running back recorded an impressive 4.43u 40-yard dash time, as Miller could very easily shine in the NFL next season with consistent playing time.
Miller was nothing short of elite throughout his entire performance at the combine in Indianapolis, as the former Tide running back continues to rise in a multitude of draft rankings around the football world.
Kadyn Proctor, Offensive Tackle
Proctor played a crucial role on Alabama’s offensive line last season. The star lineman reportedly slimmed down prior to the NFL combine, as Proctor displayed elite speed and athleticism throughout Sunday’s combine in Indianapolis.
Proctor is widely expected to be a mid-to-late first round selection in April, as the talented lineman’s efforts during the combine could quickly begin to work in Proctor’s favor during next month’s draft.
The 2026 NFL draft will take place in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania starting on April 23, as each Crimson Tide star will look to shine throughout their rookie campaign in the NFL.
Contact/Follow us @RollTideWire on X (formerly Twitter) and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Alabama news, notes and opinion.
Alabama
Husband, 19, fatally shot wife, 24, himself at Alabama hospital moments after welcoming their first child
A husband fatally shot his wife before turning the gun on himself at an Alabama hospital just moments after they welcomed their first child on Sunday.
Kynath Terry Jr., 19, gunned down 24-year-old Precious Johnson before fatally shooting himself inside the Baptist Health Brookwood Hospital around 9:30 p.m. Sunday night, WTVM 13 reported.
Johnson delivered a healthy baby just before she was murdered. It’s not immediately clear if the baby was present during the shooting, but police said that Terry and Johnson were the only ones injured.
Terry’s mother told the outlet that the couple were having some marital issues leading up to Johnson’s due date, but nothing that made her fear her son would become violent.
She told the outlet that Terry completed Army National Guard training before tying the knot with Johnson.
She noted that Johnson didn’t want Terry’s side of the family at the hospital for her child’s birth, but it’s unclear if anyone from the mother-to-be’s own family was there.
The hospital was plunged into a lockdown “out of an abundance of caution” while police investigated reports of a shooting. It wasn’t lifted until hours later when they determined there was “no active threat to patients, team members or the public,” the outlet reported.
The Homewood Police Department described the tragedy as “an apparent murder-suicide and is domestic in nature.”
Danne Howard, the president of the Alabama Hospital Association, told the outlet that the chilling attack “was an isolated incident” unlike anything she’d encountered during her three decades working in the state.
Howard said, in the wake of the tragedy, the Baptist Health Brookwood Hospital would undergo a security overhaul implementing “lessons learned” from a mandated after-action report.
Just three months ago, in a town six miles outside of Homewood, a beloved sports reporter was fatally shot by her husband before taking his own life. Their 3-year-old son, who was unharmed, led his grandfather to his parents’ bodies.
Alabama
Air Force base security tightens, AL reacts after attacks in Iran
Hegseth on Iran: ‘This is not Iraq. This is not endless.’
Secretary of War Pete Hegseth said operations on Iran won’t be “endless” like Iraq.
The United States and Israel-led attacks on Iran are having an impact in Central Alabama.
The military actions that began Saturday targets the military forces of Iran and the nation’s ability to build nuclear weapons.
In Montgomery, Maxwell Air Force Base and Gunter Annex have stepped up security so that all entry points will have a 100 percent ID check, the bases said on social media. The Trusted Traveler Program is suspended, which allowed Department of Defense identification holders to vouch for passengers.
Visitors without base access will have to go through the visitor center to get a pass.
Central Alabama residents react to the Iran attacks
For Travis Jackson of Montgomery, the attacks bring back memories, bad memories. He served one tour in Iraq from 2007-2008 with the U.S. Army. He attained the rank of sergeant before leaving the service and has worked the last 10 years as a community activist and diversity, equality and inclusion coordinator.
“I had a flashback of being overseas again,” he said when he first heard news of the attack. “The first thing I thought of was corporate greed. Of yet again seeing what has transpired throughout the years of any war overseas.”
He feels the attacks are a mistake.
“It’s going to be detrimental to the economy, notably with the increase in oil prices,” he said.
Removing the current regime in Iran and establishing a more western friendly country could improve hopes for a more stable Middle East, said Amy Stephens of Elmore County.
“I don’t know if there will ever be peace there,” Stephens said. “But Iran has been the causing trouble over there for almost 50 years.”
Ray Roberts of Prattville served in Operation Desert Shield/Storm in 1990 and 1991 after Iraq invaded Kuwait. He served in an ordinance company with the Alabama Army National Guard. He was a sergeant when he left the service and now works as a draftsman at a Montgomery manufacturing plant.
“It wasn’t a surprise,” Roberts said of the attacks. “President Trump had said they were coming. When he says something like that, he means it. I am glad we are working with Israel so it’s not just the United States. I wonder if Europe and some of the other Gulf nations will join the attacks.”
Contact Montgomery Advertiser reporter Marty Roney at mroney@gannett.com. To support his work, please subscribe to the Montgomery Advertiser.
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