An Alabama woman will not get a new trial for a murder in Mississippi. That state’s supreme court denied a re-trial for Rebecca Jones. The Lauderdale County woman was sentenced to life in prison in 2013 for the murder of her mother. Jones argued in court documents that her mother was shot during a struggle over a gun. Prosecutors say there was no evidence that’s the way it happened. The Mississippi high court ruled seven to two against Jones.
Alabama’s community colleges are being encouraged to help women over the age of fifty re-enter the workforce. The group AARP is offering grants in six states to encourage schools to offer classes to help these women get jobs. There’s a webinar today to help interested schools sign up for the grants. Jamie Harding is the Associate State Director of Communications for the state of Alabama. She believes that this program can have a big impact on women and on Alabama in general… “So anytime we can bring economic opportunity to women and their families’, it’s good for the whole community. Obvious having folks working and filling jobs that are available, these are opportunities for people to actually and for employers as well to find skill workers.”A number of Alabama community colleges have already signed on. The deadline for joining up is December tenth.
The Alabama Crimson Tide face the Mississippi State Bulldogs tomorrow in Tuscaloosa. The game could be a tough test for Alabama, and a money maker for some local fans. APR student reporter Jordan Ikner has more...
Residents along thirteenth street in Tuscaloosa will soon turn their front yards into parking lots for fans eager to see the Alabama/Mississippi State game. I spoke to Morgan Koranda prior to the Texas A & M game last month. She says the twenty cars she fits on her lawn means a lot of money, depending on who Alabama is playing that week… “…The amount of money definitely depends on which game it is. A major game like the Texas A & M game could go for $40 or $50 a car. But something like Florida Atlantic would go for only $30 or possibily $20.” Mississippi State goes into tomorrow’s game ranked at number one, which could mean a big payday for Koranda. For APR news, I’m Jordan Ikner in Tuscaloosa.
Jordan Ikner is part of a University of Alabama journalism class being mentored by the APR news team.
More cold weather is on the way tonight and overnight broke records across the state. The National Weather Service says the temperature dropped to twenty three degrees in Birmingham early Friday. That's one degree colder than the old record set in 1986. Also, forecasters say cities including Anniston and Tuscaloosa had record low maximum temperatures on Thursday with highs during the day was in the low forties. Mobile came within an inch of breaking its cold record. The low there was twenty nine, just a degree shy of the coldest daily reading for that date. Rain is in the forecast for Sunday and Monday, then another shot of cold air.
