August 14 Morning Newscast
August 14, 2012, Morning Newscast
The Birmingham school board must accept the authority of state officials who took over the system in June. That includes a directive NOT to fire superintendent, Craig Witherspoon. Jefferson County Circuit Judge Houston Brown (photo above) ruled yesterday that school board President Edward Maddox and his allies must stop interfering in a state takeover of the school system and keep Craig Witherspoon as city superintendent during that time. The Birmingham News reports that in his ruling, Judge Brown wrote that Maddox’s micromanagement has put the district’s accreditation in peril and could have led to a funding loss that would have shut down the school system if the state had not intervened. Brown ruled the June 26 state takeover was valid under the Alabama Constitution and state law and that the Birmingham board’s vote on July 17 to fire Witherspoon after a 60-day leave violated board policy, the superintendent’s contract and a state directive.
Brown also ruled that Maddox and his supporters “failed to cooperate and collaborate in good faith” with state intervention officials..
MONTGOMERY, Ala. (AP) — The Alabama Democratic Party will hold a hearing Friday in Birmingham on disqualifying Harry Lyon as the party’s nominee for chief justice.
Lyon says Party Chairman Mark Kennedy ordered the hearing for him to show why he shouldn’t be disqualified. Kennedy’s order says Lyon has violated party bylaws, including one that says people are entitled to honest and ethical government. Lyon said he expects to be kicked off the November ballot because party officials want to name someone else to take on the Republican nominee, Roy Moore. He said the party never expected Moore to win the Republican nomination against two opponents, and now the party wants to change candidates. Friday’s hearing does not involve a complaint from a Huntsville voter about Lyon not filing campaign finance reports on time.
MONTGOMERY, Ala. (AP) — A prominent business group, the Business Council of Alabama, has voted to support approval of a proposed constitutional amendment that will be on the ballot Sept. 18. The amendment would permit the removal of nearly $146 million a year for three years from a state trust fund for use in balancing the state General Fund budget. BCA President William Canary said Alabama is in a “predicament because of a sustained, ongoing failure of leadership,” but imminent hardship will occur if the constitutional amendment is not approved. Canary said BCA would like to see the Legislature pass a bill requiring the money to be repaid in the future to the Alabama Trust Fund.
Alabama Black Belt’s sewer crisis a tougher fix for residents in manufactured homes
Poor sanitation has long plagued residents in Alabama’s Black Belt. For people with manufactured houses, finding a solution has been more challenging.
In Birmingham, Black men’s groups work to save young men from the cycle of gun violence
As the city inches closer to its homicide record, community members are trying to address a sense of fatalism and lack of opportunity felt by some young men.
Former Brazilian president indicted over alleged coup plot
Brazil's former President Jair Bolsonaro and several others have been charged with attempting to overthrow incoming government of President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva in 2022.
SEC Chair Gary Gensler, who took aim at crypto industry, to step down in January
Gensler said he would step down on Jan. 20, when Donald Trump will inaugurated as the next president. Gensler took big enforcement actions against the crypto industry.
Russia launched an experimental ballistic missile at Ukraine, the U.S. says
Ukraine raised alarm suggesting Russia may have used an intercontinental ballistic missile to hit the city of Dnipro, but the U.S. National Security Council does not believe it was an ICBM.
Former Rep. Matt Gaetz withdraws as Trump’s attorney general nominee
Allegations of sex trafficking and drug use had stirred controversy over Matt Gaetz's nomination as attorney general.
