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Lawrence County crash kills mother and 2 children, injures 2

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Lawrence County crash kills mother and 2 children, injures 2


Lawrence County crash kills mother and 2 children, injures 2

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TEACH OTHERS THESE SAME SKILLS. IT’S A BEAUTIFUL DAY OUT AT REGIONS FIELD, THE SKIES ARE BLUE. IT LOOKS LIKE THERE ARE SOME PEOPLE OUT THERE ON THE FIELD, AND JUST A GREAT DAY TO SOAK UP THE SUN 84 DEGREES RIGHT NOW IN BIRMINGHAM AND ACROSS THE MAP. WE ARE IN THE MID TO LOW 80S FROM 84 IN WINFIELD JASPER ALABASTER. SAME THING IN PELL CITY AND ANNISTON. THE WARMEST SPOT ON THE MAP 85 THE COOLER SPOT IN THE MAP UP IN COLEMAN AT 82 AND 82 DEGREES UP THERE IN ALBERTVILLE TOO. RADAR IS DRY. HAS BEEN FOR THE PAST 6 TO 7 DAYS, AND THE REST OF THIS EVENING WILL REMAIN DRY. WILL DROP TO THE 80S LOW 80S BY 7:00, MID 70S BY 9:00, AND THEN OVERNIGHT WILL DROP TO THE 60S AND WILL WAKE UP TOMORROW MORNING IN THE MID TO UPPER 50S. SO MAYBE A LITTLE BIT CHILLY FOR SOME, BUT OTHERWISE WARM AND WARMER THAN WE SHOULD BE FOR THIS TIME OF YEAR, NOT ONLY IN THE MORNING, BUT IN THE AFTERNOON. TOMORROW TOO. WE’RE BACK IN THE MID 80S, SIMILAR TO WHAT WE WERE TODAY, WITH JUST A LITTLE BIT MORE HUMIDITY. NOW WE HAVE NOT SEEN THAT MUCH RAINFALL SO FAR THIS ENTIRE MONTH. THIS IS MONTH TO DATE. AS YOU CAN SEE, TODAY IS THE 12TH. WE HAVE UP TO 11. AND ANYWHERE YOU SEE THAT ORANGE COLOR, THAT’S WHERE WE’VE SEEN NO RAIN. THE BEST RAINFALL WE GOT WAS LAST WEEKEND, MAINLY ON SATURDAY WITH JUST A LITTLE BIT MORE EARLY SUNDAY MORNING. NOW THIS IS JUST FOR BIRMINGHAM AND IT REPRESENTS A DROUGHT. AND THAT’S NOT JUST THE CASE FOR BIRMINGHAM. IT’S THE CASE FOR MOST OF ALABAMA. THIS RED AND THE DARK RED COLORS REPRESENT ANYWHERE BETWEEN ONE AND UP TO THREE, IF NOT FOUR INCHES OF A 30 DAY RAINFALL DEFICIT, MEANING WE NEED MORE RAIN THAN WE’VE GOTTEN IN THE PAST 30 DAYS. AND THAT LACK OF RAIN PULLING A LOT OF MOISTURE OUT OF THE GROUND DUE TO THAT DROUGHT IS WHY THERE’S A RED FLAG WARNING IN PLACE FOR BOTH NORTH AND PARTS OF CENTRAL ALABAMA. FROM FLORENCE ALL THE WAY DOWN LINEVILLE CLAY COUNTY, TALLADEGA. SHELBY. JEFFERSON. JEFFERSON WALKER ALL THE WAY UP TO MARION COUNTY’S. JUST MEANS THAT THERE IS A HIGHER FIRE DANGER. SO DON’T BE BURNING ANYTHING OUTSIDE TODAY, EVEN THE NEXT SEVERAL DAYS, BECAUSE FIRE RISK IS HIGH AS THE DROUGHT CONTINUES. HERE’S A FORECAST MODEL SHOWING WHERE WE COULD SEE THE MOST RAINFALL OVER THE NEXT SEVEN DAYS. AND AS YOU CAN SEE, ALABAMA, GEORGIA, FLORIDA, NOT MUCH. NORTHWEST ALABAMA COULD SEE A TRACE OF SHOWERS AS THESE TINY ISOLATED SHOWERS POP UP MONDAY EVENING ACROSS MARION FRANKLIN LAUDERDALE COUNTY BUT EVEN THAT CLEARS OUT AS EARLY AS 10 P.M. MONDAY NIGHT. AND OVERALL, IT’S NOT A WHOLE LOT. BUT HERE’S THAT SEVEN DAY FORECAST. HIGH STICK AROUND IN THE 80S AS HIGH AS 89 FRIDAY AFTERNOON. A FEW CHANCES FOR ISOLATED SHOWERS THURSDAY THAT RETURNS SATURDAY A

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Lawrence County crash kills mother and 2 children, injures 2

Updated: 7:42 PM CDT Apr 12, 2026

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Video above: Weather forecastThree people died and two were injured, including children, in a northern Alabama car crash Saturday, according to our news partner WAFF.The Lawrence County coroner told WAFF that a vehicle driven by Ashley Hagood, 33, was hit on the side by a truck near Highway 157 and Highway 24 in Moulton.Hagood and her four children — Bryant Ballew, 13; twins Bryleigh and Brynleigh Pledger, 7; and Bentley Pledger, 10 — were inside the car at the time of the crash. Ballew and Bryleigh died at the scene, while Hagood was taken to a hospital, where she later died.Bentley and Brynleigh were taken to a hospital in Birmingham. According to WAFF, Bentley was taken off a ventilator Sunday afternoon. Brynleigh is recovering from surgery and dealing with brain swelling and bleeding, which doctors anticipated and hope the surgery will alleviate. Brynleigh also reportedly suffered seizures Saturday night.The crash remains under investigation, according to WAFF.

Video above: Weather forecast

Three people died and two were injured, including children, in a northern Alabama car crash Saturday, according to our news partner WAFF.

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The Lawrence County coroner told WAFF that a vehicle driven by Ashley Hagood, 33, was hit on the side by a truck near Highway 157 and Highway 24 in Moulton.

Hagood and her four children — Bryant Ballew, 13; twins Bryleigh and Brynleigh Pledger, 7; and Bentley Pledger, 10 — were inside the car at the time of the crash. Ballew and Bryleigh died at the scene, while Hagood was taken to a hospital, where she later died.

Bentley and Brynleigh were taken to a hospital in Birmingham. According to WAFF, Bentley was taken off a ventilator Sunday afternoon. Brynleigh is recovering from surgery and dealing with brain swelling and bleeding, which doctors anticipated and hope the surgery will alleviate. Brynleigh also reportedly suffered seizures Saturday night.

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The crash remains under investigation, according to WAFF.



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Alabama

Gov. Kay Ivey sets execution date for Jeremy Williams

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Gov. Kay Ivey sets execution date for Jeremy Williams


Governor Kay Ivey on Thursday set an execution date for death row inmate Jeremy Williams, who was convicted in the 2021 kidnapping, rape and murder of 5-year-old Kamarie Holland in Phenix City.

Williams is scheduled to be executed by the state’s three-drug lethal injection during a 30-hour window beginning at 12 a.m. August 13 and ending at 6 a.m. August 14. The execution date comes after the Alabama Supreme Court granted a request from Attorney General Steve Marshall’s office on June 16, authorizing the state to carry out the sentence.

In a letter to Alabama Department of Corrections Commissioner Greg Lovelace, Ivey said the Supreme Court’s June 16 order serves as the official death warrant for Williams.

“By law, I am required to specify the time frame for carrying out the sentence of death,” Ivey said. “Accordingly, I hereby order that Jeremy Lee Williams’s sentence of death be carried out within a time frame beginning on August 13, 2026, at 12:00 a.m. and ending on August 14, 2026, at 6:00 a.m.”

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Ivey noted that she retains the authority to commute the sentence before the execution takes place.

Williams, 34, was convicted in April 2024 on four counts of capital murder stemming from Holland’s death. Prosecutors charged him with capital murder during a kidnapping, capital murder during a rape, capital murder during first-degree sodomy and capital murder of a child younger than 14.

Authorities said Holland disappeared from her family’s home in Phenix City on December 13, 2021. Her body was discovered two days later inside an abandoned house less than a mile away. An autopsy determined that she had been sexually assaulted and strangled.

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In addition to the death sentence, Williams received several other prison terms. He was sentenced to life imprisonment for human trafficking and for knowingly producing recordings depicting the sexual abuse of a child. He also received another life sentence for a separate sexual abuse conviction, along with a 20-year sentence for conspiracy to commit human trafficking and a 10-year sentence for abuse of a corpse.

Unlike most death row inmates, Williams sought to speed up the execution process. During a hearing, he told the court that he accepted responsibility for his actions and wanted the sentence carried out.

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In 2025, Williams dismissed his attorneys and informed the court that he wished to waive any remaining appeals and proceed with his execution. Russell County Circuit Court Judge David Johnson determined that Williams was competent to make that decision and allowed him to forgo further legal challenges.

Under Alabama law, capital convictions automatically receive appellate review. The Alabama Court of Criminal Appeals subsequently affirmed Williams’ conviction and death sentence in March.

After that review concluded, the Alabama Attorney General’s Office petitioned the Alabama Supreme Court in May to authorize an execution date. The court granted the request earlier this week, clearing the way for Ivey to schedule the execution.

If carried out as scheduled, Williams’ execution would occur nearly five years after Holland’s death and a little more than two years after he was sentenced to death.

Williams’ execution would be Alabama’s first by lethal injection since April 2025. The state’s three most recent executions were carried out using nitrogen hypoxia, which Alabama began using in 2024.

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Kids take center stage at Alabama Shakespeare Festival summer camp

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Kids take center stage at Alabama Shakespeare Festival summer camp


MONTGOMERY, Ala. (WSFA) – You don’t find too many camps where you learn how to slap someone. But this summer, you will in Montgomery. It’s one of many kids camps put on by the Alabama Shakespeare Festival.

“We have our Camp Shakespeare Junior which is our half day for the littles, kindergarten through 3rd grade,” said Cameron Williams, the ASF director of education. “We have Big Kid Shakespeare camp and everyone is learning all about ‘Much Ado About Nothing’.”

They learn about on stage combat, different acting techniques, and also how to be creative and think on their feet.

Kids take center stage at the Alabama Shakespeare Festival’s kids camp and their learning more than just theater here.(WSFA)

“I think theater skills are life skills. So, what makes this camp special is we’re doing more than just boosting literacy and doing theater things. We’re doing life skills, learning what it means to be team players, about discipline, and working with people who may have different personalities than you.”

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Different kids have different talents. And even if your child isn’t up for a lead role in the next play, this place can leave a lasting impact.

Kids take center stage at the Alabama Shakespeare Festival's kids camp and their learning more...
Kids take center stage at the Alabama Shakespeare Festival’s kids camp and their learning more than just theater here.(WSFA)

“If you’re looking for a place where your kid can come out of their shell, to learn how to speak in front of a group, and develop some confidence, this is the place to be.”

It’s a place that’s a real treasure in Montgomery, and its mining some young gems, who one day, could be on the big stage themselves. There are still more ASF camps going on this summer for pre-teens and even adults.

Not reading this story on the WSFA News App? Get news alerts FASTER and FREE in the Apple App Store and the Google Play Store!

Copyright 2026 WSFA. All rights reserved.



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Alabama Defense Contractor Agrees to $507K Settlement Over Cybersecurity Allegations

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Alabama Defense Contractor Agrees to 7K Settlement Over Cybersecurity Allegations


Huntsville-based defense contractor LOGZONE Inc. has agreed to pay $507,144 to resolve allegations that it failed to comply with cybersecurity requirements in contracts with the U.S. Department of the Navy, according to the U.S. Department of Justice.

The settlement resolves claims brought under the False Claims Act alleging that LOGZONE knowingly submitted claims for payment while not meeting certain cybersecurity standards required under two Navy contracts.

Federal officials alleged that between May 2021 and March 2025, LOGZONE did not implement specific cybersecurity controls outlined in National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) Special Publication 800-171. The standards are designed to protect sensitive defense information handled by government contractors.

According to the Justice Department, the deficiencies were identified during an assessment conducted by the Defense Contract Management Agency (DCMA). The evaluation resulted in LOGZONE receiving a score of -170 on a scale ranging from -203 to 110, indicating significant gaps in compliance with required security controls.

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The government alleged that the missing cybersecurity measures could have increased the risk of unauthorized access to sensitive information or the exploitation of company systems.

The settlement does not include a determination of liability. As part of the agreement, LOGZONE will pay $507,144 to resolve the allegations.

Federal officials said the enforcement action reflects ongoing efforts to ensure government contractors comply with cybersecurity obligations tied to federal contracts, particularly those involving sensitive defense information.

The investigation and settlement involved the Justice Department’s Civil Division, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Alabama, the Department of the Navy, the Defense Contract Management Agency, the Naval Criminal Investigative Service, and the Department of the Army Criminal Investigation Division.

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Additional details regarding corrective actions taken by the company were not immediately available.



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