John Carroll

After a blowout pilot season, high school girls flag football could be an official sport in Alabama

Two teams will take the field in downtown Birmingham Wednesday for the girls flag football high school state championship.

Bill Would Allow Birmingham Church to Have its Own Police Force

A bill in the Alabama legislature would let a church in suburban Birmingham do something that appears unprecedented. It would allow this church to have its own police force. Critics say the bill isn’t constitutional and vow a legal showdown.

Roy Moore Trial Ends; Fate of State Chief Justice Unknown

Suspended Alabama Chief Justice Roy Moore was on trial himself today in Montgomery. He’s accused of ordering probate judges not to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples after the U.S. Supreme Court legalized gay marriage.

Alabama Supreme Court Causes Marriage License Confusion

In an order released Monday, the Alabama Supreme Court is inviting parties to submit briefs "addressing the effects of the Supreme Court's decision" in Obergefell v. Hodges. John Carroll, former U.S. Magistrate Judge and Samford law professor, says the order gives probate judges some temporary power. "It meant that the probate judges don't have to issue the licenses [to same-sex couples] ," he says, "but they can if they want to."