Alabama
Maternal mortality, The Voice, drone arrest: Down in Alabama
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Saving moms
The folks at the Alabama Department of Health are looking for more insight into maternal mortality in the state, and they’re hoping that’s what they’ll get by taking an autopsy program statewide, reports AL.com’s Amy Yurkanin.
The program provides cost-free autopsies on women who died during pregnancy or within a year after giving birth. It’s been in place since December in Baldwin, Jefferson, Madison, Marshall, Mobile, Montgomery, Shelby and Walker counties.
Alabama has one of the nation’s highest maternal mortality rates. AL.com’s Anna Claire Vollers did reporting back in 2019 that showed there were issues with the state’s tracking of expectant or new mothers who had died. The state then put a half million dollars into investigating the high mortality rate.
Also, a maternal mortality review committee found that 15 of the 24 pregnancy-related deaths in Alabama in 2018 and 2019 were preventable. Infections, heart problems and hemorrhage accounted for the highest number of deaths.
However, the ADPH says that autopsies are performed on only about half the pregnant and new-mom deaths. Enter this free-autopsy program, which is now being rolled out statewide over the coming months. Complete autopsies will be done at UAB and the University of South Alabama.
An Alabama Voice
Alabamians are having a big week on reality television.
Yesterday we had the story of a 12-year-old who won Gordon Ramsey’s MasterChef Junior competition.
Then, last night, Asher HaVon became the first Alabama native to win a season on NBC’s The Voice, reports AL.com’s Mary Colurso.
His win in the finals wasn’t a shock. The soul singer, who’s originally from Selma, has been a frontrunner this season and was strongly championed by his team coach, Reba McEntire.
A recording contract comes along with the title.
Flying violations
You can’t say that the Hangout Festival environment isn’t keeping up with the latest trends in illegal activity.
Firing one up in the Port-a-Potty is archaic. AL.com’s Warren Kulo reports that a man was arrested at this year’s event after his drone buzzed a police drone, Gulf Shores Det. Carl Wittstruck said, “like in Top Gun.”
Police say the man launched on the first two days of Hangout. They figured out where it came from after the first day, so they were ready for it on the second day.
There are federal laws regulating drones, but local rules can be spotty. Gulf Shores prohibits them from being flown over public beaches without a permit from the city and the Federal Aviation Administration. If you break that one, you could face up to a $500 fine and six months in jail.
Katie Britt to talk child care, and you’re invited
If you’ve tried to put a kid in day care lately, you know how tough it can be to find a spot, then be able to afford it. It’s barely even a joke anymore when people say you really need to put a child on a waiting list before he or she is born.
Policy wrangling on the issue is something that you might see play out over the coming months. So I wanted to let y’all know about a virtual event co-hosted by AL.com’s Alabama Education Lab that’ll feature U.S. Senators Katie Britt of Alabama and Patty Murray of Washington. Our Trisha Powell Crain will be one of the moderators, and it’ll be at 2:30 p.m. Alabama time today. You can see it on AL.com’s Facebook page or YouTube Channel.
If you follow this Facebook event, you’ll get an alert when they go live.
Quoting
“The practice of filing lawsuits and requests for stay of execution at the last minute where the facts were known well in advance is ineffective, unworkable, and must stop.”
Chief U.S. District Judge Emily Marks of Montgomery, in a decision rejecting a request to stay Jamie Ray Mills’ scheduled May 30 execution.
By the Numbers
That’s how many days in jail you can get just for being a spectator for illegal exhibition driving or street racing in Birmingham, according to a new ordinance.
More Alabama News
Born on This Date
In 1914, the late jazz pianist Sun Ra of Birmingham.
In 1959, humorist, author and speaker Andy Andrews of Birmingham and Dothan.
The podcast
Veteran food reporter Bob Carlton is on the show to talk about food in Alabama.
You can find “Down in Alabama” wherever you get your podcasts, including these places:
Alabama softball dominated all the way in its win to advance to its first SEC Tournament championship in five years.
The No. 2-seeded Crimson Tide (49-6) didn’t trail once in its 9-1 run-rule win over No. 3 seed Florida (48-10) on Friday, May 8. Alabama first opened tournament play with a 7-1 win over No. 7 Arkansas (42-11, 15-10) on Thursday.
Here are our three biggest takeaways from the Crimson Tide’s win over the Gators.
Alabama softball offense is starting to click at the right time
Alabama did not have to wait until the middle innings to find its offense this time.
Freshman Ambrey Taylor opened the scoring with a leadoff solo home run in the bottom of the second inning. It was Taylor’s 11th home run of the season and her second in as many days after also going deep against Arkansas in the quarterfinals.
Alabama continued to build from there. With the bases loaded and two outs in the bottom of the second, Ana Roman singled to right field to bring in another run. Marlie Giles followed with a two-run single, pushing Alabama ahead 4-0 before the inning ended.
Jena Young doubled to drive in two more runs, with one coming across on a fielding error, at the bottom of the third. Alexis Pupillo followed with an RBI single to stretch Alabama’s lead to 6-1 by the end of the inning.
Pupillo shot an RBI-double off the wall and Audrey Vandagriff doubled to score another, extending Alabama’s lead to 8-1, threatening run-rule territory with two outs in the bottom of the fifth inning, securing the run rule with an RBI single by Taylor.
After needing a later-than-preferred power surge to pull away from Arkansas, Alabama’s lineup looked more comfortable early against Florida. The Crimson Tide finished with nine runs on 13 hits.
Vic Moten handles early pressure in first SEC Tournament appearance
Vic Moten’s first SEC Tournament appearance did not start easily, but the freshman pitcher kept Florida from taking advantage of the new kid on the block.
Moten walked two batters in the first inning but answered by striking out three straight Gators to keep the game scoreless heading into the bottom half.
Her pitch count climbed quickly. Moten threw more than 30 pitches in each of the first two innings and more than 20 in the third, reaching 87 pitches after just three. But after battling through traffic early, she settled in with a seven-pitch 1-2-3 fourth inning.
Alabama’s lead gave Moten margin for error, but Florida’s offense still had enough firepower to threaten a comeback. Moten ended the complete-game effort striking out four and one run on three hits with seven walks. Not bad for the freshman’s first postseason appearance.
Alabama moves one win away from SEC Tournament history
Alabama’s win over Florida moved the Crimson Tide one step closer to separating itself in SEC Softball Tournament history.
Both No. 2 Alabama and No. 3 Florida entered Friday tied with six SEC Softball Tournament championships apiece. With the semifinal win, Alabama will now have a chance to become the first program in conference history to win a seventh SEC Tournament title.
The Crimson Tide had won only two of its last seven meetings against the Gators entering Friday, including a loss to Florida in the 2024 Women’s College World Series. This was the first postseason meeting between the two programs since then.
Alabama had not reached the SEC Tournament championship game since 2021, when it won the tournament title.
When does Alabama softball play again?
After beating No. 7 Arkansas and No. 3 Florida on back-to-back days, the Crimson Tide will face the winner of No. 4 Texas vs. No. 9 Georgia in the SEC Softball Tournament championship game at 4 p.m. CT on Saturday, May 9.
Amelia Hurley covers high school and college sports for The Tuscaloosa News and USA TODAY Network. You can find her on X at ameliahurley_ or reach her at ahurley@usatodayco.com.
Does that animal have rabies? Here are signs and symptoms to look for
Rabies is an infectious disease that affects the central nervous system in mammals. Here’s what to look for in pets.
The Republic
State health officials are urging people to keep their pets vaccinated for rabies after a fox in Elmore County and a raccoon in Lee County tested positive for the virus.
On May 1, the raccoon was spotted acting strangely near Auburn, and the fox emerged from a wooded area and attacked a person in Tallassee, according to the Alabama Department of Public Health. The person has sought medical treatment.
“Rabies is not seasonal, and we continue to see cases year-round, but late spring is a time when activity peaks, particularly in wildlife,” said Dr. Dee Jones, state veterinarian for the ADPH, “The primary risk of rabies from wildlife is our pets, and keeping them up to date on rabies vaccine is critical.”
Alabama state law requires that dogs, cats and ferrets 12 weeks of age and older be current with rabies vaccination. In addition to vaccination, area residents are advised to take the following precautions to avoid possible exposure to rabies:
- Do not leave uneaten pet food or scraps near your residence.
- Do not allow pets to run loose; confine them within a fenced-in area or with a leash.
- Do not illegally feed or keep wildlife as pets.
- Do not go near wildlife or domestic animals that are acting in a strange or unusual manner.
- Caution children not to go near any stray or wild animal, regardless of its behavior.
Contact Montgomery Advertiser reporter Marty Roney at mroney@gannett.com. To support his work, please subscribe to the Montgomery Advertiser.
U.S. Rep. Robert Aderholt (R-Haleyville) says Alabama is on the cusp of delivering a sixth Republican congressional seat, and with it, potentially the U.S. House majority itself.
“Getting one seat in November, this November, we don’t have to wait two years, could decide the majority for the Republicans,” Aderholt said today on “The Rightside” in partnership with Yellowhammer News, hosted by Allison Sinclair and Amie Beth Shaver.
“So that’s very appealing,” he added.
Aderholt predicted a return to the congressional map drawn and approved by the Alabama Legislature in 2023, before the federal courts stepped in and forced a redraw.
If the U.S. Supreme Court lifts the injunction barring Alabama from altering its congressional map before 2030, the state would go back to the one approved by the Legislature and signed into law by the governor that year.
The 2023 map essentially creates six Republican districts and one Democratic district.
The Alabama Legislature passed both chambers’ redistricting bills Wednesday as the special session continues in Montgomery.
Aderholt referenced the “Livingston map,” the Legislature’s 2023-approved plan in namesake of State Sen. Steve Livingston (R-Scottsboro), arguing it was consistent with the Supreme Court’s recent direction that race cannot be the predominant factor in drawing district lines.
“It would not put a second minority district, per se, but it would give opportunities for everybody in the state of Alabama to have equal opportunity to be elected to Congress, whether they’re black or whether white,” Aderholt said.
Some have called for state lawmakers to a map that would make all seven districts Republican-leaning, but Aderholt explained the issues with going down that route.
“There are some proposals out there to try to do a what is called a true 7-0 map where there’s no chance that a Democrat could be elected in any of the congressional districts…and there is some down there that are afraid that if you do away with that one, in addition to doing away with the new district that was drawn where Shomari Figures is that, that would be an overreach, and the court would put everything on hold, and we couldn’t do we couldn’t even get the additional seat until the court order, a different court order came through, and who knows when that would be.”
Yaffee is a contributing writer to Yellowhammer News and hosts “The Yaffee Program” weekdays 9-11 a.m. on WVNN. You can follow him on X @Yaffee
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