On Oct. 9, 1927, fire ripped through the business section of the small town of Lowndesboro, Ala. When the blaze was extinguished, only two stores remained in the town of 264 people. Numerous businesses, all made of wood, were a total loss; the fire is estimated to have caused $7,000 to $10,000 in damage, according to an article in The Birmingham News at the time.
Click through the gallery at the top of this story to see photos of the store’s current condition.
Today, the Lowndes County town has only 79 residents but the people who remain are determined to preserve its history. Of the two stores that survived the 1927 fire, only one is still standing – one called DeBardelaben’s survived the fire, according the an article in The Birmingham News, but was later destroyed.
The Will Stone Store, a 200-year-old store in Lowndesboro, Ala., is being restored. The town of 79 residents has a preserved historic district with plantation homes, churches and schools.Lea Ingram
The surviving store – currently called the Will Stone Store but also known as the Old Indian Trading Post, Stone-Dryer Store or the Jimmy Crum Store – was in danger of collapse until members of the Lowndesboro Landmarks Foundation stepped in to restore it. The ca.-1820 store was donated to the town of Lowndesboro in 2011 by Reg and Lila Dryer, according to an article by The Lowndes Signal.
Lea Graves Ingram, who operates the store for the foundation, said it is not open full-time but it is used for community events. “We opened for July 4th and had a few vendors there; we did a hot dog cookout, we decorated for Halloween and had trick or treaters, etc.,” Ingram said. “We plan to have other types of events in the future. ”We also sell a few items like local cookbooks, bumper stickers and T-shirts.”
The wooden store reportedly predates the town’s foundation. A historical marker at the site says Lowndesboro, because it is situated on the Alabama River, “developed from a small community of early settlers to a thriving township in the 1830s.” With nearby ports and cotton warehouses, the town drew plenty of visitors.
A story in the Birmingham News in 1927 describes the fire that destoryed Lowndesboro’s business district, leaving the Will Stone Store and one other store standing. Today, only the Stone Store remains.Birmingham News
Before long, Lowndesboro had hotels, the Lowndesboro Boys Academy, the Lowndesboro Female Institute, a horseracing track, numerous churches and a thriving business district. Until the fire, the business district “housed livery stables, six doctors, a dentist, grocery stores, two taverns (hotels), general stores, a Masonic Hall, and a post office,” mostly wooden structures located on the west side of Broad Street.
According to a 1927 article in The Birmingham News, a drug store and the post office were also a loss, although the postmistress saved the mail before fire reached it.
Lowndesboro’s historic district was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1973. It includes the Stone store, plantation homes and a C.M.E. Church topped with the cupola from Alabama’s first capitol building in Cahaba.
There is a dark chapter in Lowndesboro’s past: It was the site of the murder of civil rights worker Viola Liuzzo on March 25, 1965. The White woman was shot to death in her car following a high-speed chase by KKK members. She was transporting Black youths to demonstrations at the time. A monument was erected in Liuzzo’s memory at the site of her death on U.S. Highway 80.
If Damien McDaniel is convicted of the 18 murders with which he is charged, he would become the most prolific known killer in Alabama’s history.
If he is convicted of just two of those 18 killings, he would officially be labeled a serial killer under the FBI’s definition.
The 22-year-old Fairfield man, described in federal court records as the primary “enforcer of violence and homicides” for a Birmingham-area drug organization, may not fit the traditional idea of a serial killer.
But, according to a well-known profiler, true crime author, podcaster, public speaker and educator, that’s exactly what McDaniel is.
“He is the new prototype of the serial killer,” said author Phil Chalmers. “Most people have no idea this happening.”
“Serial killers can’t be classified like they used to be,” Chalmers said. “It’s not all Jeffrey Dahmer, Ted Bundy and John Wayne Gacy.”
“Some are lust killers. Some are angry. Some are doing it for profit,” he said. “There’s a reason why they do it and they’re all different.”
McDaniel is accused of two Birmingham mass murders in two months, as well as a string of murders that claimed the lives of a young couple expecting a baby and an on-duty firefighter.
“People think serial killers today are stabbing and strangling, and they are, but predominately they’re shooting people,” Chalmers said.
Chalmers, over the past 40 years, has interviewed hundreds of violent killers, including serial killers, school shooters, mass murderers, family annihilators, and spree killers including Charles Manson, the Son of Sam, BTK, The Hillside Strangler, The Gainesville Ripper, The Zodiac Copycat and The Smiley Face Killer.
“People think serial killers are white, and they’re not,” Chalmers said.
Efforts to reach McDaniel’s attorney to comment for this article were unsuccessful.
‘It’s over with.’
McDaniel’s alleged crime spree, according to authorities, began in July 2023 and ended in September 2024.
McDaniel and Eddie Jerry Jones, 47, are charged in Melton’s shooting death, which also injured another firefighter.
Charging documents against Jones, who was previously convicted of murder in a 1999 homicide, state Jones provided specific information to McDaniel regarding Melton’s identification and location which led to his death.
The criminal complaint says Melton was killed because he was subpoenaed to testify against Larry Denzel Rollins in a murder trial.
The “crime stemmed from, was caused by, or was related to the capacity or role of Jordan Ellis Melton as said witness,’’ the warrant states.
Rollins has not been charged with any crime in connection to Melton’s death. He was acquitted in the murder case in which Melton was scheduled to testify.
He is, however, one of six people – including McDaniel – charged with capital murder in the 2024 shooting death of Jamarcus McIntrye, who was killed during a theft of his backpack the night after the Hush mass shooting, in which McDaniel is also charged.
McIntyre’s death was the last killing for which McDaniel is accused.
Though McDaniel isn’t charged in the federal drug case, his name surfaced multiple times in court records involving the drug suspects.
On Jan. 7, 2025, McDaniel, Rollins and others had state bond hearings in Jefferson County.
In calls intercepted by law enforcement officials, records state, Jones contacted an individual and told him that he wanted to identify the detectives and that once the detectives were identified, “It’s over with.”
Following that call, safety measures were followed to protect the identity of witnesses.
‘A cooling off period’
On Feb. 25, 2025, Jones and McDaniel spoke about McDaniel’s arrests on the homicides.
They also talked about how McDaniel and Rollins were persons of interest in Melton’s homicide, “but they were not certain how McDaniel was a suspect because the firearms used in the homicide were hidden,” records state.
They discussed whether certain people were cooperating with law enforcement and discussed the evidence surrounding the mass shooting at Hush Lounge.
McDaniel stated that the police may have his DNA from that shooting, the agent wrote.
In the days leading up to the mass shooting at Trendsetters, McDaniel, records show, texted another drug conspiracy suspect for what appeared to be an order for specific calibers of firearms or ammunition.
Many of McDaniel’s alleged crimes are murder-for-hire but authorities say some were personal, such as the January 2024 shooting death of Mia Nickson, an ex-girlfriend, and the 2023 robbery and shooting death of Reginald Bryant in Pratt City.
A motive has not been publicly disclosed but Norris and McDaniel had, at one point, been friends.
“My definition of a serial killer is what the FBI’s definition is – you have to kill at least two people with a cooling off period,” Chalmers said.
“With Damien McDaniel, he does a mass shooting, he does a hit, he does a robbery-gone-bad, he does another shooting here, another shooting there,” Chalmers said.
“He’s definitely got two or more with a cooling off period. He for sure is a serial killer.”
‘Damien is Michael Myers’
Chalmers has a new book set for release this summer detailing the myths around serial killers.
“I do a lot of training, and I ask them, ‘Who are serial killers?’” Chalmers said. “They say white males in their 20s and 30s and I say if you use that profile, you’d only arrest 7 percent of serial killers today.”
According to Chalmers, 60 percent of today’s serials killers are Black, mostly male, and only 31 percent are white. Additionally, he said 42 percent of serial killers shoot their victims.
“It throws off law enforcement, it throws off investigators because they automatically think three people shot in Birmingham has to be gangs or drugs and they go, ‘next case,’” he said.
“A lot of times they never make the connection.”
Chalmers rattled off a list of recent serial killing incidents whose profiles are similar to McDaniel, including Robert Hayes, the ‘Daytona Beach Serial Killer,’ who was convicted in 2022 of killing three women and sentenced to life in prison.
“It’s a new trend and it doesn’t quite get the coverage that other serial killers get,” Chalmers said.
“Robert Hayes is called the Daytona Beach Serial Killer but yet nobody knows who he is. I think one because he’s Black and they don’t want to cover that case and two, sometimes they feel the victims aren’t important.”
“Ted Bundy, Jeffrey Dahmer, John Wayne Gacy got a little more coverage -they’re white males, their victims are white,” he said. “(The ones listed above) just don’t get the coverage, but to me, they’re just as scary and just as crazy and just as violent as the others.”
Up until recent times, Chalmers said, the FBI was pretty specific about who they counted as serial killers.
“They wouldn’t count gang members, they wouldn’t count hitmen, but they’re slowly adding those to the definition,” Chalmers said.
The FBI lists several motivations of serial killers: anger, financial gain, ideology, power/thrill, psychosis, sexually based, or criminal enterprise in which the motivation gives the offender benefits in status or monetary compensation by committing murder that is drug, gang or organized crime related.
Chalmers said he was quickly made aware of the allegations against McDaniel. He does Google searches every night and also receives tips from law enforcement officers.
In the case of McDaniel, “I got it both ways,” he said.
“He looks like an average guy,” Chalmers said, “like all serial killers do.”
Chalmers hopes to speak with McDaniel.
“If you sat down with Damien McDaniel today, your first reaction would be he seems like a nice guy,” Chalmers said.
“There’s a guy in Atlanta – Aeman Presely. He was killing homeless people,” Chalmers said. “He’s very friendly and cordial with me but in the wrong setting, in the wrong environment, Damien McDaniel is very dangerous, Damien is Michael Myers.”
“I’m sure he’s had some issues with his father, or no father, or a bad father,” he said. “The breakdown of family is usually the case.”
Ny’Quan Cordae Lollar and Damien McDaniel in a Youtube documentary.Screengrab
McDaniel’s father, 43-year-old Damien Laron McDaniel Jr., is in federal prison in Kentucky. He was sentenced to 26 years in 2013 for trafficking cocaine and being a felon in possession of a firearm.
The older McDaniel was described in news reports as a former leader of the Bloods gang in the Fairfield area.
When McDaniel III was 5 years old, his father was charged with the fatal 2007 shooting death of 23-year-old Cedric Burch in Fairfield two months after McDaniel Jr. and others allegedly poured gasoline on Burch and set him on fire.
At the time of that homicide, McDaniel Jr. was out on bond for shooting Burch’s brother and had already served at least part of a 10-year sentence for possessing cocaine.
The case was nol prossed, and Damien McDaniel Jr. never went to trial for the slaying.
His son was a few months shy of his 12th birthday when McDaniel Jr. received the 26 year sentence. Damien McDaniel Jr. is scheduled to be released in 2037, according to the federal prison system.
Chalmers said he grew up with a violent alcoholic father.
“I know exactly what it’s like growing up in dysfunction,” he said. “It’s probably why I can relate to the guys, and I’ve to so many – Charles Manson, David Berkowitz, BTK.”
“The most shocking thing is they all seem normal. You meet them at a bar, and you’d say, ‘That’s a nice guy,’” he said.
“That’s what I see. I’ve been face to face with a lot of big-name people and I’ve been face to face with a lot of people nobody knows, and they all seem very cordial and very friendly,” he said. “And I would expect that out of (McDaniel).”
It’s been nearly 40 years since Cornelius Bennett had a front-row seat for one of the greatest plays — and games — in Iron Bowl history.
Bennett was a junior and an All-America linebacker at Alabama in 1985, when the Crimson Tide beat Auburn 25-23 at Birmingham’s Legion Field in one of the greatest games in the history of the rivalry. The lead changed four times in the fourth quarter before Alabama’s Van Tiffin nailed a 52-yard field goal as time expired, a play known simply as “The Kick.”
“Oh wow, I didn’t know it’s been that long,” Bennett said during an appearance earlier this month at annual banquet for the Senior Bowl Hall of Fame, into which he was inducted in 1993. “I remember we won; that was the most important thing. The rivalry, the times, Coach (Paul) Bryant’s death and Coach (Ray) Perkins coming in with my (recruiting) class and trying to duplicate the success of Coach Bryant.
“We did our best, beating Auburn twice. I’ll take that, especially when they had that No. 34 guy over there.”
“That No. 34 guy” is of course Bo Jackson, who like Bennett hailed from the Birmingham area and also went 2-2 in four Iron Bowls. A year ahead of Bennett in school, Jackson led Auburn to wins over Alabama in 1982 and 1983 before the Crimson Tide won in 1984 and 1985.
Bennett — a star at Ensley High School — was a freshman in 1983, and also lost to Auburn as a senior in 1986. He faced Jackson three times, with the Tigers star hitting the Crimson Tide for 256 yards and two touchdowns in 1983, 118 yards and a touchdown in 1984 and 142 yards and two more scores in 1985.
“He’s everything that you could ever think of as a running back, as a person,” Bennett said. “He was the total package, man.
“I kind of thought they underutilized him. Bo was a good pass catcher out the backfield. I think if they had had that dimension back then, wow. He really would have been unstoppable.”
Bennett, of course, was a fantastic player in his own right, totaling 38 tackles in his four Iron Bowls. He was also a three-time first-team All-American — one of just two in program history along with fellow linebacker Woodrow Lowe (1973-75) — and won the Lombardi Award as the country’s top defensive player as a senior in 1986, when he was SEC Player of the Year and recorded his iconic sack of Notre Dame quarterback Steve Beuerlein in a 28-6 victory.
For Bennett’s final two seasons at Alabama he formed a dynamic duo with the late Derrick Thomas, who also went on to become one of the Crimson Tide’s all-time greats. Thomas was a first-team All-American and won the Butkus Award in 1988, when he recorded an astounding 27 sacks and 39 tackles for loss.
“I tell the story all the time, the one thing that sticks out the most about Derrick is Derrick’s tardiness,” Bennett said. “Derrick had to do a lot of extra running when we were in school together. Coach (Sylvester) Croom would make Derrick do extras because Derrick was constantly tardy.
“But that didn’t take away anything from the football field. … You just dealt with it. Because what he gave you on the football field was everything he had.”
Thomas, who died in 2000 after being paralyzed in an automobile accident, went on to become a Pro Football Hall of Famer with the NFL’s Kansas City Chiefs. Both Thomas and Bennett are both members of the College Football Hall of Fame, but Bennett has not yet been honored despite a sterling NFL career.
In 14 seasons with the Buffalo Bills, Atlanta Falcons and Indianapolis Colts, Bennett was a five-time Pro Bowler and three-time first-team All-Pro. He played in five Super Bowls and was named to the NFL’s All-Decade team for the 1990s.
Bennett is nearing the end of his candidacy on the regular ballot for the Pro Football Hall of Fame, but could still be elected as a “seniors” candidate in future years. Asked about his chances of being one day in enshrined in Canton, he said “I’ll never give up hope.”
“I can’t change the system,” Bennett said. “I don’t lose any sleep over it. Do I deserve to be in there? Most definitely. I’ve never shied away from that comment. I didn’t have 100 sacks, but you look at everything else I did on the football field and all the success I helped my team have.
“I was, to me, one of the most unselfish guys to ever play the game of football. I sacrificed positions, moving around so we could succeed. And that wasn’t by design. That’s who God made me out to be. And I’d do it all over again.”
Bennett has spent the last several years living in south Florida with his wife Kimberly, with whom he has three grown children. He also has four grandchildren, whom he says refer to him as “P-paw.”
Bennett’s son, Kivon, earned a bit of notoriety a few years ago, when he signed with one of Alabama’s bitterest rivals. Kivon Bennett — who now plays for the Jacksonville Sharks of the Indoor Football League — signed out of high school in 2017 with Tennessee, spending four years with the Volunteers before finishing his career at Arkansas State in 2022.
The elder Bennett said he never gave a second thought his son wearing the colors of an arch-rival.
“It was great, because it wasn’t my time,” Bennett said. “It was his time. I enjoyed watching him play, and I still do. … He’s still living out his dream. And I’m a proud father, sitting up in the stands watching him. And I try to go to every game just like I did when he was playing college football.
“My time, it’s gone. It’s his time. I watch him shine.”
Dear Eric: We are retired grandparents to 7-year-old twins who live close by. We are delighted to help with kiddo chauffeuring, grocery shopping or anything else needed by two very hard-working parents.
Today after dropping off groceries, my wife noted that the refrigerator, in her opinion, had an unpleasant odor and was very quick to share her opinion with my son-in-law. She is also rather critical of many of his habits. And her opinions are not without merit. But my mother always said, “less said, better mended.”
When I say to my wife, “too much mother-in-law,” I catch hell.
I think something has to be said to mend this or should I just go back to my corner?
– Too Many Opinions
Dear Opinions: It’s a shame we can’t get rich off of people adding their two cents. But since no bank will accept opinions as currency, some change is warranted here.
Your son-in-law has to manage his relationship with you and your wife, so if he’s feeling chafed by her opinions, he’s got to learn how to say something. You’ve told your wife what you think. Now it’s fine to back off.
However, if you feel something needs to be mended in the larger relationship, it’s fine to talk it through with both members of the couple but loop your wife in first. This way it doesn’t seem to her like you’re talking behind her back.
It’s perfectly reasonable to say, “I’m uncomfortable with the way our relationship is playing out with our son-in-law. I’m going to talk to both of them about ways that they can feel better supported. You can come along if you want, but this is just for listening and for learning.” Sometimes we just need to be heard and understood. And, who knows – maybe they don’t notice the comments and just appreciate your help.
Send questions to R. Eric Thomas at [email protected] or P.O. Box 22474, Philadelphia, PA 19110. Follow him on Instagram and sign up for his weekly newsletter at rericthomas.com.
Two more restaurants are coming to Clift Farm north of Madison.
And a retail center is being built in Jones Valley.
They are among construction projects issued permits in the Huntsville area since April 29. Overall, 386 permits totaling $105 million have been issued in Madison, Morgan and Limestone counties, according to Southern Exposure Information.
Huntsville issued 175 permits totaling $48.4 million. Madison County issued 127 totaling $35.3 million. Athens issued 47 totaling $11.8 million. Madison issued 16 permits totaling $5.3 million. Decatur issued 18 permits totaling $4.1 million and Priceville issued three totaling $374,000.
Twelve projects in the area exceeded $1 million.
That includes the $2.8 million, 8,141 square-foot building that will house Grimaldi’s Pizzeria and Melt at 461 John Henry Way in Clift Farm. Neither restaurant is a stranger to the area. Grimaldi’s has a location in Jones Valley. Melt, which specializes in classic comfort food of burgers and sandwiches, has a location in downtown Huntsville. The Clift Farm franchise will be the fourth in Alabama.
Breland Companies President Joey Ceci said both restaurants are expected to open in the first quarter of 2026. Breland is the Clift Farm developer.
The two restaurants will be near Capriotti’s Sandwich Shop and the recently opened Chuck’s Fish. Ground was also broken this month on Cooper’s Hawk Winery and Restaurant off U.S. 72 in the development.
Jones Valley retail center
A permit was also issued for Lendon Corner – a retail center – at 2600 Carl T. Jones Drive in Jones Valley in Huntsville. Consolidated Construction is the builder for the $5.4 million building.
The center, at 15,000 square feet, is expected to open in 2026. The boutique Sweet Pineapple is listed as the anchor tenant with space available for retail, dining, and service-oriented businesses at the heavily traveled intersection of Lendon and Carl T. Jones.
Other projects
A $9.7 million building at 3414 Ninth Ave. SW in Huntsville is the most expensive project. The building is for Jesse Stutts, Inc., an electrical contractor. A building permit was issued to company president Jimmy Wall. Limestone Building Group is the contractor for the project.
A permit for a $4.1 million alteration was issued to Blue Origin for its facility at 1100 Explorer Blvd. NW in Huntsville. Delta Concrete & Industrial Contracting is listed as the builder for the rocket engine manufacturing facility.
A permit was also issued for a $3.4 million, 2,694 square-foot addition for Flint River Baptist Church at 12945 U.S. 231-431 North. Stutts Corporation, Inc., is the contractor for the project.
The Robins & Morton Group is working on a $1.4 million project at Huntsville International Airport. It is the contractor for several projects at the airport, including improvements to the terminal, concourse, parking deck and rental lots.
Winter Homes of Madison is building a $1 million, 3,745 square-foot home at 20574 Jeremiah Lane in Athens.
Davidson Homes was the top home builder. It was issued 42 permits totaling $8.9 million. DR Horton was issued 50 permits totaling $7.3 million. Elmington Residential was issued 27 permits totaling $6.3 million. And Lennar Homes was issued 27 permits totaling $6.2 million.
DEAR ABBY: My husband and I have been married 33 years, but the last 10 years have been extremely difficult. His attitude and selfishness during that time led me to strongly resent him.
He’s now telling me he has changed and things will be different, that I am important to him and he will consider my thoughts, feelings, wants and needs going forward. The problem I’m having is, he didn’t decide this until I finally had enough and moved out.
How do I decide what is best for me? I love him, and at his core he is a good person, but sometimes I feel like there’s too much water under the bridge. — JUST NOT SURE IN ILLINOIS
DEAR JUST NOT SURE: For a leopard to change his spots takes effort. It doesn’t happen overnight. Do not go back to your husband before the two of you have had counseling with a licensed marriage and family therapist for one year.
If, after that, he has proven that he’s capable of change, you can decide then whether there has been too much water under the bridge or you feel safe living with him again.
Dear Abby is written by Abigail Van Buren, also known as Jeanne Phillips, and was founded by her mother, Pauline Phillips. Contact Dear Abby at www.DearAbby.com or P.O. Box 69440, Los Angeles, CA 90069.
McIver, D-10th Dist., was charged with assaulting, impeding and interfering with law enforcement on May 9 at Delaney Hall, interim U.S. Attorney for New Jersey Alina Habba said.
“Today my office has charged Congresswoman McIver with violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 111(a)(1) for assaulting, impeding and interfering with law enforcement,” Habba, the state’s top federal prosecutor, said in a statement.
“That conduct cannot be overlooked by the chief federal law enforcement official for the State of New Jersey and it is my Constitutional obligation to ensure our federal law enforcement is protected when executing their duties.”
McIver called the charges filed by Habba, an appointee and former lawyer for President Donald Trump, “purely political.”
“Earlier this month, I joined my colleagues to inspect the treatment of ICE detainees at Delaney Hall in my district,” McIver said in a statement. “We were fulfilling our lawful oversight responsibilities, as members of Congress have done many times before, and our visit should have been peaceful and short.
“Instead, ICE agents created an unnecessary and unsafe confrontation when they chose to arrest Mayor Baraka. The charges against me are purely political—they mischaracterize and distort my actions, and are meant to criminalize and deter legislative oversight.”
“After extensive consideration, we have agreed to dismiss Mayor Baraka’s misdemeanor charge of trespass for the sake of moving forward,” Habba said.
McIver, along with fellow Democratic New Jersey U.S. Reps. Rob Menendez and Bonnie Watson Coleman, went to Delaney Hall on May 9 for an oversight visit and a scuffle with law enforcement took place as Baraka was arrested at the site.
In a statement released late Monday night, Baraka said he was aware of the charges McIver was facing.
“Congresswoman McIver is a daughter of Newark, past Newark Council President, a former student of mine, and a dear friend,” Baraka said. “I want to be clear: I stand with LaMonica, and I fully expect her to be vindicated.”
Baraka also said he was glad the case against him was dismissed.
“I have had strong relationships with prior U.S. Attorneys, and I plan to speak with the current U.S. Attorney about issues on which we can cooperate,” he said. “As to Delaney Hall, I will continue to advocate for the humane treatment of detainees, and I will continue to press the facility to ensure that it is compliant with City of Newark codes and regulations.
Habba said in her statement Monday night that she invited Baraka to tour Delaney Hall.
“The government has nothing to hide at this facility, and I will personally accompany the mayor so he can see that firsthand,” Habba said.
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security in Trump’s administration alleges that the lawmakers “stormed” Delaney Hall and assaulted officers.
All three Congress members and Baraka have refuted those claims, with Baraka releasing video that showed a guard at the facility allowing him beyond the gate. The Congress members said they also were permitted past the gate prior to Baraka arriving.
Ice agents surround U.S. Rep LaMonica McIver (red jacket), U.S. Rep Bonnie Coleman (tan jacket) , and Newark Mayor Ras Baraka outside Delaney Hall in Newark on Friday, May 9, 2025.Michael Dempsey | For NJ Advance
The situation escalated, they contend, when Baraka exited the gates after being asked to leave. Four minutes later, guards came out to arrest him, according to body camera video. It was then that the Congress members and an aide encircled the mayor.
Video shows a chaotic scene in which Baraka was restrained, then dragged back through the security gates and handcuffed while McIver and Menendez jostle with the crowd and guards and move beyond the gates with the mayor.
“They made this a violent scene that we were unfortunately all a part of,” Menendez said during an interview on CNN last weekend. “And it’s something that should really shock all Americans.”
U.S. Reps. Rob Menendez (left) LaMonica McIver (center) and Bonnie Watson Coleman (right) exit Delaney Hall in Newark on Friday, May 9, 2025.Michael Dempsey | For NJ Advance
Earlier that day, the mayor came to Delaney Hall, as he had two other days that week and again last week, to serve ICE with violation notices from the city of Newark. The notices allege the Geo Group, which is contracted by ICE to operate the 1,000-bed facility, was refusing city officials entry to the facility and improperly padlocking the front gate.
He returned in the afternoon when the Congress members were already beyond the gate, waiting to be let in to the center for an oversight tour. None of the videos released by the federal government or city officials shows the moment the Congress members arrived or were admitted in.
In the videos, ICE security guards can be seen telling Baraka that the Congress members “are different” and can be allowed in, but he’s told to leave, which he does to a round of applause from protestors.
Minutes later, the agents return in an attempt to arrest Baraka. During the scuffle, McIver and some of the guards can be seen pushing each other. Once beyond the gates, McIver accuses one of the guards of assaulting her and another officer attempts to break up the verbal dispute.
Since then, the Department of Homeland Security and the elected officials from New Jersey have sparred over the portrayal of the events.
The department said two members of Congress “stormed the gate and broke into the detention facility” and called it “a bizarre political stunt.”
McIver denied the department’s accusation that she body-slammed an agent.
“I honestly do not know how to bodyslam anyone,” McIver said. “There’s no video that supports me bodyslamming anyone.”“
U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, a member of Trump‘s cabinet, said she wants the three Democratic members of Congress to be formally admonished by the House of Representatives and relieved of their committee assignments.
Rep. Earl L. “Buddy” Carter, R-Ga., has introduced a resolution to strip them of their committee assignments.
Late Monday night, joint Democratic House leadership, including House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries, said the criminal charge against McIver is “extreme, morally bankrupt and lacks any basis in law or fact.”
Menendez, D-8th Dist., called the charges “unprecedented and politicized.”
Quarterback Jalen Hurts and running back Josh Jacobs played their first seasons at Alabama in 2016. While Hurts had been a coveted recruit as a dual-threat QB, Jacobs didn’t know he’d be joining the Crimson Tide until National Signing Day.
As an early enrollee, Hurt hosted Jacobs’ visit to Tuscaloosa on the final recruiting weekend. During Jacobs’ recent appearance on the “Bussin’ with the Boys” podcast, the hosts wanted to know if Hurts had the same demeanor then that he displays now as the unflappable captain and Super Bowl MVP of the Philadelphia Eagles.
“He’s always been like that,” Jacobs said. “He’s funnier and goofier than people think. Like, he don’t act like it in the media, but in the locker room, he’s a guy. But he’s always been like how he is.”
“Constantly just putting out amazing quotes?” host Taylor Lewan asked about Hurts.
“He got them quotes from (Alabama coach Nick) Saban,” Jacobs said to laughter. “Obviously, he’s got some of his own things, too, and his dad was a coach, so he’s been being trained this way his whole life.
“But Saban, he’s the first that I’ve ever seen have a quote for everything in life, literally, and to have it all throughout the building. Like, he got a saying for literally everything. I’m not even playing.
“But Saban, he’s just one of those dudes that he’s just so different — the way that he thinks, the way that he prepares, the way that he goes about his business on a day-to-day basis. I’ve never seen somebody in my life where everything is so structured and calculated. Like, if I eat at 3 o’clock, he’s eating at 3 o’clock every day, and if he eats at 3:02, somebody’s getting cussed out. He was just different, bro. But that’s what made me understand why he’s so special and why he is who he is, because he does things nobody else would do, for real.”
Saban coached Alabama from the 2007 through the 2023 seasons. Jacobs said Saban had the right message when the running back finally came to the attention of the Crimson Tide and a few other major college football programs late in the recruiting process.
Jacobs said he split the last recruiting weekend between Missouri and Alabama, and the Tigers helped convince him the Tide was the way to go if he got an offer from Alabama.
“I’m going to tell you the main, main, main reason why I signed with Alabama,” Jacobs said. “When I went to Mizzou, and they found out I was only going to stay for partial of the time to take half the time to go (to Alabama) because it was the last recruiting weekend because I was so late to be able go there, they made a whole PowerPoint of how Bama is this and how I wasn’t going to play there, like how my chances of playing there were very slim.
“And then when I went to Bama and I talked to Saban, we never even talked about football. He just talked to me. He was like, ‘This is how I can help you become a better man. This is how I can grow you as a man.’ And that sold me. That was enough for me, because like I said, at that time I’m not too much really thinking about football because I’m like that’s not really a real reality for me. So I’m like, ‘I want to be good, I want to play, but I want to go to school.’
“So when he did that, I was like, ‘Yeah, he’s going to be the person that will really teach me and help me grow up and develop me.’ That’s why I ended up choosing them.”
In the NFL, Jacobs has been a four-time 1,000-yard rusher, three-time Pro Bowler and one-time All-Pro. But at Alabama, Jacobs started three games in three seasons.
Hurts was the SEC Offensive Player of the Year as a freshman in 2016 and paced the Crimson Tide to back-to-back appearances in the CFP national-championship game. After being displaced from the starting lineup by Tua Tagovailoa in 2018, Hurts transferred to Oklahoma and finished as the runner-up for the 2019 Heisman Trophy.
In the 2020 NFL Draft, Jacobs was the 24th selection and Hurts the 53rd pick.
FOR MORE OF AL.COM’S COVERAGE OF THE NFL, GO TO OUR NFL PAGE
Mark Inabinett is a sports reporter for Alabama Media Group. Follow him on X at @AMarkG1.
Today’s podcast includes a chat with retiring features reporter Bob Carlton:
Politics can’t wait
In Alabama, it’s officially the Election 2026 season, at least by one important criteria.
That criteria being — reports AL.com’s Mike Cason — that candidates were able to begin raising campaign money on Monday. Yesterday was exactly one year before next year’s primary election.
The big offices are up for the taking: governor, lieutenant governor, attorney general, secretary of state and all 140 seats in the Alabama Legislature. Plus one of Alabama’s United States Senate seats.
That Senate seat currently belongs to Tommy Tuberville. He has indicated that he might pass over a re-election campaign for a run at the governor’s mansion.
If he does decide to run for governor, he’ll leave a big, politically attractive seat to fill. Current Alabama Attorney General Steve Marshall said on Alabama Public Television’s Capitol Journal that he might be interested if it opens up. Marshall has made a splash in his support of President Trump and has joined other Republican state attorneys general on several national issues.
Already in the race is Democrat Kyle Sweetser, the longtime Republican who voted for Trump twice before turning on him and speaking at the Democratic National Convention.
If Tuberville leaves his Senate seat we might also hear announcements from former Alabama Secretary of State John Merrill and former Alabama Department of Veterans Affairs Commissioner Kent Davis.
At governor, Kay Ivey is term-limited out. Lt. Gov. Will Ainsworth is term-limited in his office as well, and he’s seemingly had an eye on Ivey’s job at least dating back to his announcement in 2022 that he wouldn’t try to primary Ivey if she ran for re-election.
Already bidding to replace Ainsworth as lieutenant governor are current Secretary of State Wes Allen and Opelika pastor Dean Odle.
If you’re into political battles, in the event Merrill has interest in lieutenant governor we could see a scrap between the past two secretaries of state who are both conservative but apparently not personal allies.
FBI and Alabama
You may have heard FBI Director Kash Patel talk about moving FBI workforce out of D.C. during an interview on Fox News Channel over the weekend.
And if you were able to refocus after hearing Patel say that Jeffrey Epstein actually killed himself in prison, then a big takeaway was Patel’s calling Huntsville’s Redstone Arsenal “one of the crown jewels of the FBI” and that some of the 1,500 workers shipping out of D.C. will be shipping into Alabama. But he also said they are moving agents and intel folks into higher-crime spots across the U.S.
AL.com’s William Thornton reports that an FBI spokesperson clarified that this doesn’t affect plans already laid out for Redstone. Patel had already ordered the transfer of 500 workers from D.C. to Redstone this calendar year, a number the spokesperson said is still accurate. Patel said earlier this month that 1,400 FBI employees may be heading to Redstone over the next three years.
On Fox, Patel called the Huntsville base “essentially headquarters too, for lack of a better word.”
Attention, weather-radio listeners
Some stormy weather could work through the state this afternoon and evening, reports AL.com’s Leigh Morgan. As of this recording, the farther north you are, the more chance you have for severe weather — although thunderstorms will be possible for most of the state.
There’s another variable for some folks in the coverage area of the National Weather Service in Birmingham, which stretches from counties such as Marion, Winston and Cherokee in the north to Marengo, Lowndes, Pike and Barbour in the south.
If you live in that big swath of central Alabama and rely on a NOAA Weather Radio transmitter for updates, you need to find a backup. It will be off the air and broadcasting a recorded message as the weather service undergoes a software upgrade.
Affected radio transmitters are in Winfield, Oneonta, Birmingham, Anniston, Tuscaloosa, Demopolis, Selma, Montgomery, Auburn and Texasville.
Watches, warnings and advisories won’t be affected by the work, and forecast products and weather watches are good to go. It’s just the Weather Radio transmitters that are going offline.
During this time you are encouraged to use good weather apps, local EMA and TV and Internet alerts. And if you know somebody who lives where the polygon pops up, it doesn’t hurt to give them a call.
The work is expected to finish up on Wednesday in time for you to hear it warn you about “clear skies and high near 85.”
Quoting
“So when you go and you want to become a new FBI agent, we send you to Quantico. When you’re in the job for a couple of years and you need advanced training, you go to Huntsville.”
This year, 26 of the 37 arrests involved charges of possession of a controlled substance. One person was charged with possession of marijuana and six with public intoxication.
More Alabama News
Born on This Date
In 1940, soul singer, songwriter and piano player Shorty Long of Birmingham. He co-wrote “Devil with the Blue Dress On” and died at 29 in a boating accident.
On Tuesday at 3:22 a.m. the National Weather Service released a rip current statement valid from 7 a.m. until Wednesday 7 a.m. for Mobile and Baldwin counties.
The weather service says, “Dangerous rip currents expected.”
“Rip currents can sweep even the best swimmers away from shore into deeper water,” explains the weather service. “If caught in a rip current, relax and float. Don’t swim against the current. If able, swim in a direction following the shoreline. If unable to escape, face the shore and call or wave for help.”
What to do if you get caught in a rip current?
Rip currents, those swift-moving channels of water flowing away from the shore at surf beaches, can pose a serious threat to beachgoers. These currents vary in speed and can swiftly become perilous for anyone venturing into the surf. Even strong swimmers can find themselves overpowered by the force of a rip current. It’s essential to know how to respond if you’re caught in one. Here’s what you need to do, based on guidance from the weather service:
Stay calm – they won’t drag you under:
Your first rule of thumb: Keep a clear head. Rip currents won’t pull you beneath the water’s surface. Panic is your enemy; it depletes precious energy needed for your survival.
Go with the flow, but not toward the beach:
Trying to swim directly toward the beach when caught in a rip current is futile and exhausting. The current is too strong. Instead, swim parallel to the shore and away from the rip current’s grip.
Signal for help if necessary:
If you feel you can’t reach shore, relax, face the shore, and call or wave for help.
Seek lifeguarded beaches:
Whenever possible, opt for beaches with lifeguards. Their watchful eyes and swift response can make all the difference in a water emergency.
Never swim alone on unguarded beaches:
If you decide to swim at beaches without lifeguards, establish a cardinal rule: never go solo. Always bring a companion, and ensure they have a cell phone to call 911 if needed.
With these insights into rip currents and how to react, you can enhance your safety when enjoying the beach. Stay informed, stay vigilant, and prioritize your well-being while relishing the surf.
Advance Local Weather Alerts is a service provided by United Robots, which uses machine learning to compile the latest data from the National Weather Service.
