SFS: On The Line
The CQ Press recently released its “Most Dangerous Cities” list, and Birmingham ranked number six. Cityrating.com says murder in the metro area is five times higher than the national average. But what do these numbers really mean? How safe are Birmingham’s streets and what can be done to make them safer? On Monday, December 17, from 6:30 p.m. – 8 p.m. we explore these issues with studio guests and questions/comments from listeners.
John J. Sloan, III is currently Chairperson of the Department of Justice Sciences at UAB, where he is also an Associate Professor of Criminal Justice and Sociology. Born and raised in Detroit, he earned a B.S. and M.S. in Criminal Justice from Eastern Michigan University and a Ph.D. in Sociology from Purdue University, where he was recipient of a U.S. Department of Justice Dissertation Fellowship that funded his research on sentencing practices in Michigan. He joined the UAB faculty in 1988.
The author or co-author of over 100 scholarly articles, chapters, reports, and
professional presentations, Dr. Sloan’s research has been funded by the U.S. Department of Justice, with which he has served as a consultant and by various state and local agencies in Alabama. His most recent work (co-edited with Bonnie S. Fisher) is Campus Crime: Legal, Social, and Policy Perspectives (2nd edition), published by Charles C. Thomas.
Dr. Sloan and his wife, Tavis Hardin-Sloan, live in the Historic Loft District in Downtown Birmingham.
Earlier this year, Lydia and her fiance Greg were celebrating his birthday in Five Points when they were mugged by two men, then physically attacked by another group of men. The suspects were never caught. Feeling violated and emotionally drained, Lydia started blogging about that incident. Her blog grew into a myspace website that allows other victims of crime on Birmingham’s Southside and elsewhere in the city to document their experiences.
Irondale police deny wrongdoing in death of Alabama man, dispute family’s account
Police employed no excessive force in the events leading up to the August 2024 arrest and death of Phillip Reeder, the City of Irondale and its police department said in a joint statement late Monday.
Alabama’s new utility commission president wants to hear from ‘all sides’
Cynthia Lee Almond spent four years in the Alabama Legislature and 16 years on the Tuscaloosa City Council before being appointed president of the state’s Public Service Commission.
Alabama man’s death is ruled a homicide after police kneeled on his neck
The death of an unarmed 52-year-old man who died after an Alabama police officer kneeled on his neck was ruled a homicide by a county coroner, according to an official autopsy reviewed by The Associated Press. The finding led lawyers representing Phillip Reeder's family on Monday to compare his death to that of George Floyd in 2020.
Ghost tours bring historic places back to life across the South
Lesley Ann Hyde started the Southern Ghost Girls Tours, a group of women using spiritual investigations of historic sites as ways to preserve pieces of Birmingham’s history.
WATCH: SANEs and survivors in the South, a listening session with the Gulf States Newsroom
The Gulf States Newsroom hosted a virtual discussion of Drew Hawkins' reporting on the shortage of sexual assault nurse examiners in the region.
Greetings from New Delhi, India, where performing monkeys spark delight — and ambivalence
Far-Flung Postcards is a weekly series in which NPR's international team shares moments from their lives and work around the world.
