Birthday shooting case

The youngest of the suspects in April’s mass shooting at a Dadeville birthday party, a 15-year-old, will be tried as an adult, reports AL.com’s Carol Robinson.

The 15-year-old is one of six suspects, who range in age from 15 to 20. They’re all charged with four counts of reckless murder, 24 counts of first-degree assault for penetrating gunshot wounds on victims as young as 14, and one count of third-degree assault for a superficial gunshot wound.

Next up is an Aniah’s law hearing over whether the suspects will be held without bond. Then the case will go to the grand jury.

Cue Miami Vice opening theme

If you’ve seen any flamingos in your neighborhood lately, it’s probably one of two things: Either your neighbor has outstanding taste in lawn art, or you’ve seen some actual flamingos that rode in on Hurricane Idalia.

AL.com’s William Thornton reports that the big birds have been seen in Hale County, Alabama. NPR has reported sightings as far north as Ohio.

If you haven’t seen the opening credits for Miami Vice, then you ought to watch Miami Vice. If you have seen the opening credits for Miami Vice, then you know there are flamingos in South Florida.

But these Hurricane Idalia birds are believed to have actually come from Mexico. They may have been on the Yucatan Peninsula or perhaps flying between there and Cuba as the cyclone was spinning up from the Caribbean.

Bill talked to Alabama Audubon’s Andrew Lydeard, who said if you see a flamingo give it plenty of room, a hundred yards or more. He said they’re obviously out of their habitat so if you see them moving away from you or stopping whatever they were doing, you’re too close.

You can get as close as you want to the lawn-art versions, however.

Fancy thriftin’

We may not have a Rodeo Drive, but a shopper did pick up a $6,000 Galia Lahav wedding dress at a Birmingham Goodwill store recently, reports AL.com’s William Thornton.

Emmali Ousterhoudt said she paid 25 bucks for the dress, not realizing yet what she had.

She told her story in a Tiktok video that now has millions of views. She said she won’t be selling the dress and that she might even one day wear it for its intended purpose. She’s not currently engaged.

Goodwill VP of marketing Kathy Taylor said: “Every item at Goodwill carries a story waiting to be discovered, and these stories wouldn’t be possible without our gracious donors.”

Which is true. And a story I want to hear is the one about the former (or almost) bride who dropped off her $6,000 Galia Lahav wedding dress at the Goodwill on Green Springs Highway.

Quoting

“We’re at the point that I wish the Democratic Party was a stronger minority because it would make the majority better.”

Former state legislator Mike Ball, who has endorsed a Democrat for his former seat. An independent himself, Ball explained that “I joined the party of Reagan and I left the party of Trump.”

More Alabama news

Born on this date

In 1949, guitarist Ed King, who wasn’t born in Alabama and didn’t play for an Alabama band. But he was the California guy who joined the Florida band Lynyrd Skynyrd and created that iconic lick that opens the song “Sweet Home Alabama.”

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