Bribery Trial Guilty Verdict Sends Message Through Alabama Politics
Alabama’s latest corruption trial ended Friday with guilty verdicts. A jury on convicted attorney Joel Gilbert, formerly of the firm Balch and Bingham, and David Roberson, an executive with coal company Drummond, of bribing a state lawmaker. Prosecutors say the two paid former State Representative Oliver Robinson to help fight expansion of a toxic cleanup site around north Birmingham. Drummond would have been responsible for some costs if that happened. WBHM’s Andrew Yeager discussed to the verdict with Alabama Media Group columnist John Archibald.
Interview Highlights
How he reacted to the verdict:
“It was a little astonishing, honestly, because it sends such a message really. This is the sort of thing that many looked at as business as usual sometimes. It probably wouldn’t have come to trial if Oliver Robinson hadn’t been caught up in more crimes involving tax evasion. And if a couple of people on both sides hadn’t written it down in places where this was visible, it would have gone under the radar.”
On who else deserves scrutiny following details revealed in the trail:
“A lot of people do…There was testimony that the head of the [Birmingham] NAACP, the [Jefferson County chief] deputy tax assessor had involvement on one end. Everyone who contributed to Robison’s foundation in other forms, the biggest businesses in Alabama…at least have some connection to this. That of course was used as a defense for him to say he was legitimate. What we see here is that across the state all of the powers that are involved in this sort of activity just need to be looked at.”
How this trial differed from other corruption trials:
“The focus of this trial was not the public official. The focus of this trial was the mechanism that allows that sort of bribery to continue always. And we characterized bribery as something different than we have in the past. It doesn’t have to be an envelope full of money.”
A major census test faces cutbacks — with postal workers tapped to help count
The Trump administration has shrunk the number of locations for this year's field test of the 2030 census and added plans to test replacing temporary census workers with U.S. Postal Service staff.
N.Y. Republican met with jeers over ICE tactics during town hall in swing district
Discontent over ICE enforcement tactics is spilling out into races across the country, including competitive congressional districts held by Republicans, like Rep. Mike Lawler of New York.
Meet Milo and Tina, the ‘first openly Gen Z’ Olympic mascots
The 2026 Olympics and Paralympics mascots are Milo and Tina, a pair of teenage, scarf-clad stoat siblings with big dreams. If you're wondering what a stoat is, you're in the right place.
This global health leader praises Trump’s aid plan — and gears up to beat malaria
Bill Steiger, who served in the George H.W. Bush and first Trump administrations, reflects on the past year's changes in the U.S. role — and his new job as head of Malaria No More.
Grammys 2026: 10 takeaways from a historic, chaotic night
The Grammy Awards were full of milestone wins, chaotic performances and viral moments, as well as speeches that frequently addressed this moment in American history.
Hemp and marijuana are the same species. So why all the different laws?
Farmers in the U.S. have grown cannabis since the 1600s — but policymakers are still figuring out how to regulate two famous types of Cannabis sativa. A historian calls the plant "incredibly cryptic."
