A state judge is refusing to dismiss ethics charges against Alabama House Speaker Mike Hubbard.
Lee County Judge Jacob Walker says he will let the charges go to the jury, rejecting a defense request for a summary judgment of acquittal after prosecutors rested their case.
Defense lawyer Bill Baxley says he plans to call on former Gov. Bob Riley, who testified earlier as a prosecution witness.
Riley became a lobbyist after leaving office in 2011. He testified that Hubbard asked him for help finding a job but was careful to obey the state ethics law.
Hubbard faces 23 felony ethics charges accusing him of using his political positions to make money and seek financial favors. Hubbard has maintained his innocence.
A former NASA astronaut who flew five times on the Space Shuttle is out on bond after he was charged with murder. APR’s Pat Duggins has more…
Alabama State Troopers arrested Jim Halsell following a car crash that killed two girls.
Both victims were ejected from the other vehicle involved in the accident east of Tuscaloosa early Monday morning. Thirteen year old Jayla Parler and eleven year old Niomi James were both from the town of Brent.
Lawmen say alcohol and speed may have been factors in the fatal accident, which resulted in Halsell’s arrest.
During his career at NASA, Halsell helped pave the way for the International Space Station. He was co-pilot during a 1995 mission of Space Shuttle Atlantis that tested ways to connect the first modules of the orbiting outpost.
He also commanded the third Shuttle mission to the space station before retiring for work in the aerospace industry.
The Alabama Secretary of State is looking to boost up this state’s voting numbers.
Colbert County is holding a voter registration and ID drive to promote voting throughout the state today. To participate in an election, a resident must be registered to vote and present a valid form of ID that proves they live in the state.
Alabama Secretary of State John Merrill believes that everyone should be able to vote if they live in the state and the process is easy.
“It’ll take less than five minutes if you show up on sight and even less than that if you do it remotely. We want to make sure that if they need to have a photo ID all they have to do is show up, have the required information that they need and that will allow them to participate."
Merrill also says that with the emergence of technology, he expects to see a higher percentage of all people voting with just a click of a button.