Alabama News

The race to replace two-term Attorney General Steve Marshall is shaping up as an expensive one, based on reports filed by the campaigns on Wednesday.

First-time candidate Katherine Robertson, Marshall’s chief counsel since 2017, raised $1.25 million since announcing her campaign three weeks ago.

Former Alabama Supreme Court Justice Jay Mitchell raised about $650,000 in June.

Both candidates reported $1.2 million balances in their campaign accounts.

Blount County District Attorney Pamela Casey raised $41,140 in June and reported a campaign balance of $66,871.

All three are candidates for the Republican nomination to replace Marshall, who is running for the U.S. Senate.

Robertson’s contributions included $1 million from First Principles Action LLC, a nonprofit organization in Nashville.

First Principles Action was founded by Peter Bisbee, former executive director of the Republican Attorneys General Association (RAGA), according to Bisbee’s Linked-In profile.

In the 2018 attorney general race, a large contribution from the RAGA’s political action committee caused controversy for Marshall.

Marshall’s opponents claimed the $735,000 donation violated Alabama’s campaign finance law because the RAGA PAC had received money from other PACs, and Alabama’s law prohibits PAC-to-PAC transfers, which make it hard to know the original source of the money.

Marshall said at the time the law did not apply to federal PACs, like the RAGA PAC.

The Alabama Ethics Commission voted 3-2 against a probable cause finding in a complaint filed by former Attorney General Troy King, Marshall’s Republican opponent that year.

Marshall won the race and was reelected in 2022. Robertson has been his top assistant throughout his time as AG.

Besides the $1 million from First Principles Action, Robertson received more than 60 other donations in June, mostly from individuals in Alabama.

“I see this early support as affirmation of all that we have accomplished over the last eight-and-a-half years to make our state safer and our country freer,” Robertson said in a press release.

“With a great team behind me, I am ready to carry this early momentum all the way to the finish line next year.”

Mitchell reported a balance of $1.26 million, which includes $638,538 he transferred from his previous campaign when he was reelected to the Supreme Court last year.

“This early support is humbling and energizing,” Mitchell said in a press release. “It tells me that Alabamians are ready for a conservative fighter who will stand with President Trump and keep Alabama families safe.”

Casey, elected Blount County district attorney in 2010 and reelected twice, reported about 80 contributions totaling $41,140 in June.

Multiple officers were injured during a lengthy chase that spanned two Alabama counties Wednesday afternoon.

The ordeal began shortly before 5 p.m. when Pelham police officers were in pursuit of a stolen vehicle and its driver, who is said to be well-known to law enforcement, on Interstate 65.

The chase traveled into Calera, where Chief David Hyche said the fleeing suspect struck an Alabama State Trooper who was on foot putting out spike strips.

The trooper went airborne, Hyche said, and possibly sustained a broken ankle.

The trooper was rushed to UAB Hospital in Birmingham via police escort. Pelham police said his injuries are not life-threatening.

Multiple law enforcement agencies – including Calera, Pelham, Alabaster and state troopers – continued the pursuit, which traveled into Chilton County.

The suspect, who has not been identified, then turned back toward Shelby County.

The chase ended at Exit 234 -the airport exit – when lawmen were able to get the suspect vehicle stopped in front of Jack’s in Calera.

When Calera officers tried to take him into custody, Hyche said, one of his officers was bitten and another officer was possibly stabbed with a syringe.

Both Calera officers were taken to Shelby Baptist Medical Center for treatment.

The suspect was also taken to the same hospital.

While there, authorities said, the suspect punched a Pelham police officer in the face. A Calera detective intervened to subdue the suspect and also sustained injuries.

“This was a melee,” Hyche said of the entire incident.

Hyche said his police have twice previously been involved in chases with the same suspect.

This story will be updated as more information becomes available.

The parents of an Aliceville teen fatally shot by police returned to Homewood Wednesday to get answers from the Alabama Law Enforcement Agency and city officials.

Jabari Peoples’ mother, Vivian Sterling, and father, William Peoples, said they won’t rest until they know what happened to the 18-year-old and why.

“We’re broken,” said William Peoples. “We’ve got a hole that can’t be filled, never will be filled.”

“Ask me how we feel? Ask us how we’re doing? We’ll never be doing good,” he said. “We’ll never be whole again.”

The two were accompanied by other family members and Black Lives Matter activists who “occupied” Homewood City Hall seeking to speak with Mayor Alex Wyatt, who is not seeking re-election.

Instead, they met with the city manager in a conference room where they also took a phone call from a lawyer for ALEA, said BLM leader Eric Hall.

The conversation got heated at times, and Williams Peoples eventually left the room, saying he was tired of hearing the same excuses over and over.

Hall said they were not pleased with telephone conversation and will continue to demand release of the footage and the officer’s identity.

“(ALEA’s attorney’s) response was he shared a statement with the attorney and talked about the disclosure law, which was the law recently passed, that shares that ALEA does not have to provide the family with the video they are demanding to see,” Hall said.

“Of course we’re not pleased with that.”

‘It wasn’t nothing Jabari did’

Peoples, a 2024 graduate of Aliceville High School where he was a standout athlete, was shot June 23 in Homewood Soccer Park.

Homewood police say a veteran officer, who has not been publicly identified, approached the vehicle to investigate because of a recent increase in criminal activity in and around the city’s athletic complexes.

The officer, police say, smelled marijuana and ordered Peoples and his female friend out of the vehicle.

The encounter ended with Peoples resisting, breaking away from the officer as he tried to handcuff him, and grabbing a gun from the driver’s side door pocket, police say.

The officer fired on Peoples, who was pronounced dead a short time later at UAB Hospital.

Peoples’ family and their attorney, Leroy Maxwell, disagree with that narrative, saying that Peoples wasn’t armed and didn’t resist.

“When my (other) son came running saying Jabari was shot, I started making calls. When I found he was shot by the police, immediately I knew it wasn’t nothing Jabari did,” Vivian Sterling said. “I knew it was on the police because I knew my son.”

“We talked to them about it, that’s said to say, but we taught them this,” Sterling said. “I know he wouldn’t have resisted. He would never have resisted for no sack of weed. I knew that was a lie.”

Maxwell on Monday said Peoples was shot once in the back and is demanding ALEA release any footage of the shooting.

ALEA said releasing the footage would hinder the ongoing investigation.

“ALEA reviews requests for disclosure on a case-by-case basis,” ALEA spokeswoman Amanda Wasden said Wednesday.

“If ALEA receives a disclosure request in an investigation that is no longer active, the agency will review the request and respond as required by Alabama Code section 36-21-213.”

‘The family deserves the truth’

Maxwell on Wednesday filed a petition in Jefferson County Circuit Court seeking to have Homewood city officials release the video.

The petition, Maxwell said, seeks to preserve critical evidence and identify parties as the family considers a potential wrongful death and civil rights lawsuit.

It requires the court to compel Homewood to disclose body cam footage, incident reports, use-of-force documentation and the names of all officers involved.

“We don’t know what’s on the video, good or bad, but it needs to be seen,” Maxwell said. “The family deserves the truth. And the community deserves accountability.”

‘We will continue to escalate’

Black Lives Matter representatives have conducted numerous protests this week at Homewood City Hall and ALEA’s office on Summit Parkway. Activists say more are planned.

“We are engaged in active protests at this point,” Hall said. “We will continue to be engaged in active protests until we get the answers that we want from those who are in a position of power.”

“This has only intensified. We don’t negotiate with terrorists,” Hall said.

“At this point we have no choice but to engage in active boycotting in the city of Homewood.”

“We are asking everybody to not spend one dime in the city of Homewood,” he said. “If they can’t value our lives…then they don’t deserve our dollars.”

“If they continue to ignore us,” Hall said. “We will continue to escalate.”

Hall said the family wants to the full, unedited video. He said he knows multiple city, county, state, and police officials have viewed it.

“It’s unfair that the family doesn’t know what happened to their loved one,” Hall said.

“This family don’t deserve the run around, the neglect, and the lack of empathy that those who are in position of power,” Hall said. “No city official in Homewood has stepped up.”

Homewood City Councilman Carlos Aleman released this statement Wednesday on Facebook:

“As a father and as a member of the Homewood City Council, I cannot stop thinking about what I would need if my own son died in an incident involving law enforcement. I would want to know the truth. I would want to see what happened. I would need to see the body camera footage.

“I have not seen the video. I am not part of the investigation. But I do know that both Jabari Peoples’ family and the City of Homewood have requested that ALEA (the Alabama Law Enforcement Agency) release the footage to the family, and those requests have been denied. That is heartbreaking.

“The video should be shown to the family. As a parent, I would want the dignity of being able to see for myself how and when my child died.

“There are two matters at hand: the ongoing investigation being conducted by ALEA. Second—and just as important—is the matter of transparency. Families deserve clarity. They deserve answers. They deserve more than silence.”

Asked if viewing the footage would be hard, Sterling said, “It wouldn’t be hard because I want to know what happened to my son. What was hard was going down there seeing my son laying there cold in the funeral home. That’s what’s hard.”

The family and activists said the race of the officer does not matter to them.

“We already know City of Homewood has a history of racial and discriminatory practices,” Hall said. “We know based off witness statements, the harmful words and how Jabari was treated when he was aggressed by the police officer.”

“I want that police officer to understand this family knows the words that were said to their child,” Hall said. “This family knows how you disrespected him, this family knows you referenced and called him a “boy.”

Peoples would have turned 19 on Thursday. His family has planned a party in his honor at Aliceville City Park.

“I’m not able to be with my son on his birthday and he had made plans,” William Peoples said. “He was special.”

As Detroit compiled a franchise record 15 regular-season victories in 2024, the Lions defense yielded 342 points, the seventh-fewest in the NFL last season.

Preparing for his third NFL season with Detroit, safety Brian Branch thinks the Lions will be even tougher to score against in 2025.

“I feel like we’re better than last year,” Branch told Rainer Sabin of the Detroit Free Press. “We’re hungry, and I feel that’s going to separate us. Our chemistry is on a whole ’nother level. …

“We went through the ups and downs. We fought together in tough games. We have been in a game where it depended on us to win, so it just makes everybody buy in. Once you have a group that has bought in and has gone through trials and tribulations, we feel invincible.”

READ RAINER SABIN’S “WHY BRIAN BRANCH, DETROIT LIONS DEFENSE FEEL ‘INVINCIBLE’ AFTER INJURY-PLAGUED 2024”

The Detroit defense was not invincible in the Lions’ most recent game. In the second round of the NFC playoffs on Jan. 18, the Washington Commanders piled up 481 yards in a 45-31 victory on Detroit’s home field.

In that game, the Lions lined up without five of their defensive starters from Game 1 of the 2024 season, with defensive tackles Alim McNeill and Kyle Peko, defensive end Aidan Hutchinson, linebacker Derrick Barnes and cornerback Carlton Davis sidelined by injuries. And that doesn’t count linebacker Alex Anzalone, who made it back from a broken forearm to play in the postseason.

“Last year, injuries, they were kind of against us,” Branch said. “This year, everybody’s healthy that is coming back. And we’re just hungry. We’ve still got the same mission and the same goals. We’re trying to get that Super Bowl.”

Branch joined the Lions from Alabama in the second round of the 2023 NFL Draft. After spending most of his rookie season as Detroit’s slot corner, Branch moved to safety in 2024 and earned Pro Bowl recognition as he recorded 109 tackles, four interceptions, one sack, eight tackles for loss, 16 passes defensed and one forced fumble.

The Lions will return from their summer break when Detroit’s rookies report for training camp on July 16, with the veterans coming in on July 19. The Lions play the Los Angeles Chargers in the Hall of Fame Game on July 31 to open their four-game preseason schedule. Detroit will kick off the regular season on Sept. 7 against the Green Bay Packers.

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.

A familiar face will return to lead Oneonta’s baseball program.

The school announced on Wednesday that Brandon Moore will return as Oneonta’s head baseball coach, marking his second stint with the program.

He compiled a 144-58 record during his seven-season stint with Oneonta that lasted until 2022, leading the program to a Class 4A state championship series appearance in 2021.

According to a release, 11 players signed college scholarships at Oneonta under Moore.

In 2022, Moore joined the coaching staff at UAB under head coach Casey Dunn, where he spent three seasons. He spent last season as an assistant overseeing the team’s defense.

The Blazers had four players recognized on the All-AAC baseball team last season, including outfielder Logan Braunschweig who was a finalist for the 2025 ABCA/Rawlings Gold Glove team with a .974 fielding percentage; he also ranked sixth among all Division I players in outs above average (9.0).

Before his coaching career, he was a four-year starter on Auburn’s baseball team from 1991-94, helping lead the program to a 1994 College World Series appearance and garnering All-SEC honors at shortstop.

He was drafted by the Chicago White Sox in the 17th round of the 1994 MLB Draft, reaching Triple-A before becoming an instructor; he served as an instructor with the Chicago White Sox, Pittsburgh Pirates and Kansas City Royals organizations.

A Springville native, he is the father of former Auburn infielder Brody Moore, who helped lead the Tigers to a College World Series appearance in 2022.

The shortstop was later drafted by the St. Louis Cardinals in the 17th round of the 2022 MLB Draft and is currently with the Triple-A Memphis Redbirds.

His younger son Braden signed to play baseball at Snead State Community College after his time at Oneonta. He was a Class 4A all-state pick as a senior in 2022.

Savannah police reported via social media on Wednesday afternoon that there were “several victims” in a shooting at the Oglethorpe Mall.

“There is not an active threat at this time,” Savannah PD posted shortly before 6 p.m.

According to WSAV News 3, Savannah Police Chief Lenny Gunther said that two young adults and one juvenile were shot.

Officers responded to the mall shortly before 5:45 p.m. and have since cleared the mall, according to the Savannah Fire Department.

Citizens are advised to continue avoiding the area as emergency personnel respond.

Two teenagers died after being struck by a car early Wednesday morning in south Alabama.

According to the Alabama Law Enforcement Agency, the two killed, aged 15 and 16, were walking in the road when they were hit by a 2018 Dodge Journey.

Both teens were pronounced dead at the scene.

The vehicle was driven by a 36-year-old Mobile woman.

According to Fox10 News, the 16 year old was identified by family as TyKerriya Overstreet.

Takea Simmons, Overstreet’s aunt, said the family is looking for answers as to how the teen’s were hit and criticized the lack of information provided by law enforcement.

“They were walking to the store in this vibrant neighborhood. No caution lights. No stop signs. No nothing. Some kind of way they were struck by a vehicle, two women struck by one vehicle,” Simmons said.

“We gonna say we got the call at 6 a.m. Not by an investigation. Not by an investigator. Not by no lieutenant.”

The accident occurred at about 1:20 a.m. Airport Boulevard near Trailwood Boulevard in Mobile County, ALEA said.

ALEA’s Highway Patrol Division will continue to investigate the matter.

FBI agents allegedly “harassed” an Iranian man detained by ICE in Alabama to keep his wife from talking to reporters, according to his attorney.

Michael Shabani told AL.com that two FBI agents visited his client, Ribvar Karimi, and said that Karimi’s wife, Morgan Karimi, should stop talking to the media.

“The agents who went there told my client, ‘It’s best that your wife .. not go around and talk to the media, she is not looking after your best interest,’” Shabani said.

“You call her and tell her it’s best not to go around and do what she’s doing in the media,’” Shabani said the agents told Ribvar.

AL.com contacted the FBI’s National Press Office for comment but have not received a response.

Karimi was detained by ICE on June 22 in Locust Fork and initially placed in custody at the Etowah County Detention Center.

He was moved to Pickens County Jail last week, according to Shabani. The ICE Detainee Locator does not provide a facility for Ribvar’s current whereabouts.

Shabani said that unlike other ICE detainees Ribvar is not being moved to the ICE processing center in Louisiana.

Ribvar served as a sniper in the Iranian Army from 2018 to 2021. However, Morgan has said his military service is being “exaggerated” and her husband is not a terrorist and has never harmed an American.

Shabani, also from Iran, stated that Ribvar’s military service was compulsory not by choice.

Shabani emphasized that Ribvar is Kurdish, an ethnic group within Iran that has historically opposed the country‘s government.

The Department of Homeland Security, however, has routinely referenced Ribvar’s military past in Iran while saying he was eligible to be deported due to not completing a procedural step to become a citizen.

Despite entering legally and getting married in the 90 day window Morgan and Ribvar did not file an adjustment of status.

Morgan told Newsweek she intended to but health complications with her pregnancy derailed those plans.

However, Shabani said there is no deadline to file an adjustment of status.

Theodore coach Steve Mask believes 4-star linebacker Jaden “JJ” Bush may be one of the best kept secrets in the South.

The news on Bush is out now, however.

The 6-foot-3, 210-pound senior committed to Arkansas on Wednesday night. LSU, Missouri and Cincinnati were his other finalists.

“I think he has a chance to be a great SEC player,” Mask said. “I’ve said that for two years. He’s so versatile. He can play in the box, outside the box, high safety. He’s the prototypical SEC athlete and a good kid to boot.”

Bush has steadily moved up the recruiting rankings in recent weeks. The website 247sports has him currently ranked as the No. 13 senior recruit in the state, ahead of Georgia linebacker commit Shadarius Toodle. The On3 Industry Rankings have him at No. 15.

Mask expects Bush to be a “Will” linebacker or nickel back at the next level.

“He reminds me a lot of the way Alabama used (former St. Paul’s star) Mark Barron,” Mask said. “He can play down in the box some, play on the edge some. JJ has a ways to go to reach that level yet, but he has the skill set to do it.”

Bush did a lot of different things for the Bobcats as a junior. He finished with 30 solo tackles, 39 assists, 22 tackles for a loss, 6 sacks and an interception. He also ran for 344 yards and 6 TDs on offense.

Theodore opponents in 2025 will see a lot of him.

“He’ll play about five positions for us,” Mask said. “Quarterback, running back, kick returner, safety, outside linebacker. However we can get him on the field, he will be on the field.

“He has such an instinct for making plays at the right time. He just always shows up. He’s always right in the middle of everything.”

In other in-state recruiting news:

COMMITMENTS

Fort Payne 6-1, 185-pound senior kicker/punter Hayden Chambers committed to Mississippi State.

Ranked a 5-star kicker (No. 6 in the nation) and 4.5-star punter (No. 23 in the nation), Chambers also had an offer from Auburn.

Enterprise 6-1, 216-pound LB Walker Turner committed to Samford over offers from North Alabama, Chattanooga, Western Carolina, Mercer and more.

Turner was selected ASWA Class 7A first team all-state in both football and as an infielder in baseball.

Greene County RB Ronald Wilder announced his commitment to Troy.

A 6-1, 205-pound 3-star recruit, Wilder also had offers from UAB, Appalachian State, Air Force, Liberty and more.

OFFERS

Oak Mountain 6-2, 180-pound 4-star recruit Jayden Aparicio-Bailey added to his list with an offer from Purdue.

The DB also has offers from most of the SEC, including Alabama and Auburn along with Michigan, Clemson, Oregon and USC among the others.

In basketball …

Oxford guard Jaylen Alexander picked up an offer from the University of San Diego. The 6-foot-2 point guard was also recently re-offered by Lennie Acuff’s staff at Samford.

Hazel Green’s Madison Eddings announced a Division I offer from Jackson State. The 6-foot-4 center also earned an offer from Wallace State.

Hoover’s Jackson Sheffield announced an offer from Tennessee on Wednesday. The 6-foot-9 center and Class 7A state champion also holds offers from Mississippi State, Virginia Tech, UAB, South Florida, Loyola and Memphis.

Staff writers Thomas Ashworth and Dennis Victory contributed to this report.

Mexico plays against Honduras in the Concacaf Gold Cup Semifinals tonight. The matchup will begin at 9 p.m. CT on FS1. Fans can watch this soccer game for free online by using the free trials offered by DirecTV and Fubo TV. Alternatively, Sling offers a first-month discount to new users.

Mexico has remained undefeated at the Concacaf Gold Cup this year, and they are coming off a 2-0 win against Saudi Arabia.

During the victory, Alexis Vega led the Mexico offense with one goal. He has scored one goal and accrued one assist at the tournament, so he will look to continue his offensive success this evening.

Honduras ended the group stage with back-to-back wins, and they were able to win their quarterfinal match via penalty kicks on Saturday. The team is coming off a close victory against Panama, so Honduras will look to continue their win streak this evening.

In order to win this game, the Honduras squad will need to rely on their star player Carlos Pineda. He currently leads the Honduras offense with two assists at the tournament.

Fans can watch the Concacaf Gold Cup Semifinals for free online by using the free trials offered by DirecTV and Fubo TV. Alternatively, Sling offers a first-month discount to new users.