Alabama
What to know about the Alabama man granted clemency two days before his execution
MONTGOMERY, Ala. (AP) — Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey on Tuesday granted clemency to a man on death row who was scheduled to be executed Thursday even though he did not personally kill anyone.
Ivey commuted Charles “Sonny” Burton’s death sentence to life in prison without the possibility of parole. Burton, 75, was convicted of capital murder for the shooting death of Doug Battle during a 1991 robbery. Another man, Derrick DeBruce, shot Battle after Burton had left the building.
The 1991 murder and legal proceedings
The shooting occurred Aug. 16, 1991, during a robbery at an AutoZone auto parts store in Talladega. Doug Battle, a 34-year-old Army veteran and father of four, was shot and killed after entering the store during the robbery.
Before they went inside, Burton said if anyone caused trouble in the store that he would “take care of it,” according to testimony.
As the robbery was ending, Battle entered the store. He threw his wallet down, got onto the floor and exchanged words with DeBruce. LaJuan McCants, who was 16 at the time, testified that Burton and others had left the store before DeBruce shot Battle in the back.
A jury convicted DeBruce and Burton of capital murder and both were sentenced to death. During closing arguments, a prosecutor argued Burton was “just as guilty as Derrick DeBruce, because he’s there to aid and assist him.” Prosecutors pointed to the statement about handling trouble as evidence that Burton was the robbery leader. Burton’s attorneys have disputed that he was the leader.
DeBruce had his death sentence overturned on appeal after a court agreed that he had ineffective counsel. DeBruce was resentenced to life imprisonment and later died in prison.
Ivey’s reasons for granting clemency
Ivey said she “cannot proceed in good conscience with the execution of Mr. Burton” when the triggerman had his sentence reduced to life imprisonment.
“I believe it would be unjust for one participant in this crime to be executed while the participant who pulled the trigger was not,” Ivey said in a statement. “To be clear, Mr. Burton will not be eligible for parole and will rightfully spend the remainder of his life behind bars for his role in the robbery that led to the murder of Doug Battle. He will now receive the same punishment as the triggerman.”
It is only the second time the Republican governor, who has presided over 25 executions, has granted clemency to a person on death row.
“The murder of Doug Battle was a senseless and tragic crime, and this decision does not diminish the profound loss felt by the Battle family. I pray that they may find peace and closure,” Ivey said.
A mix of praise and criticism
The governor’s decision drew a mix of praise and criticism.
Alabama Attorney General Steve Marshall said he was “deeply disappointed” in the action and said he believes Burton’s execution should have gone forward. Marshall said Burton organized the armed robbery that led to Battle’s death. He said “longstanding Alabama law recognizes accomplice liability, as has every judge that has touched this case over three decades.”
“There has never been any doubt that Sonny Burton has Douglas Battle’s blood on his hands,” Marshall said.
Alice Marie Johnson, whom President Donald Trump had tapped last year as his “pardon czar,” praised Ivey. She said the governor “showed what courageous and common sense leadership looks like.”
“By commuting the death sentence of Charles “Sonny” Burton, she ensured that justice — not technicalities — guides the most serious decision a state can make,” Johnson wrote on social media.
Other Republican governors have granted clemency where there were concerns the person scheduled to be executed was the less culpable defendant. Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt last year commuted the sentence of Tremane Wood to life, matching the sentence of his brother who confessed to the murder.
What happens next
Burton will be moved off of Alabama’s death row, where he has been imprisoned since 1992. However, it is unclear when that will happen. A spokesperson for the Alabama Department of Corrections did not immediately return an email seeking comment.
Burton will spend the rest of his life in prison since he doesn’t have the possibility of parole.
Alabama
Alabama Department of Transportation worker speaks of heat exhaustion experience during week of dangerously high temperatures
TUSCALOOSA, Ala. (WBRC) – A WBRC On Your Side Safety Check during First Alert Weather Days as we are working to help keep you safe in this heat.
Doctors say when it’s hot like this, it’s dangerous and can even be deadly.
The heat is really on in Alabama, and it’s the kind of heat that cares not one bit who you are, what you do for a living, or where you’re from. Jerrell Bowden learned that the hard way.
“It felt really weird.. Like my whole body went like.. Kind of stopped,” said Jerrell Bowden, who works for the Alabama Department of Transportation (ALDOT).
Bowden remembers it all too well, a case of heat exhaustion. It happened four years ago on the job during a period of stifling heat. Bowden, who works in ALDOT’s transportation and technology division, often works on the traffic signal team that replaces bulbs or new signage.
“My whole body just kind of sit down. I literally could not walk up four steps. I had to sit down and stop and one of the aides out there said ‘You don’t look good. Let me get you some water’,” said Bowden.
Within 15 minutes, Bowden says he began to feel like himself again.
UAB emergency physician Dr. Jeron Raper says this is the very thing he warns people about when the temperatures rise matched with suffocating humidity.
“Folks, think of heat exhaustion and heat exposure. It’s really a broad spectrum of disease. You can have heat stroke, which is really on the far end, and those are really sick patients that have evidence of changes in their mental status.. they’re confused, they may not be behaving normally,” said Dr. Raper.
It never got to that dangerous level for Bowden, but it scared him enough that he no longer short-changes the weather or pretends he can handle it. Bowden admitted he made a potentially deadly mistake on that job site four years ago.
“Next thing I knew.. Everything was locking up. What do I do with this,” said Bowden.
Today, Bowden has seen the light. He says part of his daily intake is water and a Squincher Squeenze for hydration.
“Yes, sir we have plenty of Gatorade and plenty of water,” said Bowden.
Bowden was among the lucky ones. According to Dr. Raper, anywhere from 700 to 1,500 die every year in the country from heat-related illnesses.
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Alabama
Potential for Severe Storms Through Early Evening – Alabama Emergency Management Agency (EMA)
By Jim Stefkovich, Meteorologist, Alabama Emergency Management Agency
CLANTON –Thursday, 12:00 pm, July 2, 2026
Similar to yesterday, models indicate widely scattered to scattered thunderstorms developing mainly across the northern half of the state this afternoon and continuing into the early evening hours. Especially near and north of I-20, clusters of strong-to-severe thunderstorms are possible, with damaging wind gusts of 50-65 mph, hail, and torrential rain. There is no tornado threat. All precipitation will end across the state sometime between 9 pm and 12 am.
Hot and humid conditions will continue through at least next Tuesday, with highs in the 90s and lows only reaching the middle 70s. Heat index values could reach 110-114 in a few spots in northern Alabama, with 100-110 across the rest of the state today. From Friday through the holiday weekend, afternoon heat index values will generally range from 100 to 107. The Heat Advisories will likely be extended into the weekend for northern and central Alabama.
Drink plenty of fluids, stay in an air-conditioned room, stay out of the sun, and check up on relatives and neighbors. Children and pets should NEVER be left unattended in vehicles under any circumstances.
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Isolated to scattered showers and thunderstorms are again forecast during the afternoons and evenings across the northern half of the state both Friday and Saturday, with scattered thunderstorms statewide from Sunday through at least next Tuesday. A few storms each day could produce wind gusts from 40-60 mph and frequent lightning.
Since this is a holiday weekend with a lot of outdoor activity, make sure you remain weather aware. If you hear thunder, you are most likely within range of being struck by lightning. Don’t become a statistic! When thunder roars, go indoors.
Watch this Greater Cincinnati casino sink off the Alabama coast
The Argosy VI sunk July 1, becoming part of Alabama’s artificial reef.
One of Greater Cincinnati’s first riverboat casinos sunk off the Alabama coast July 1.
Argosy VI was a four-level, 408-foot-long riverboat casino that operated in Lawrenceburg, Indiana, until 2009. The boat once held the title of the “world’s largest riverboat casino,” holding up to 4,407 people and over 1,700 slot machines.
The boat is now part of Alabama’s artificial reef system off the state’s Gulf Coast. The Alabama Department of Conservation and Natural Resources previously sunk a retired 271-foot coastal freighter in 2013 and a 250-foot former research vessel in 2018.
Watch the boat sink here:
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