Alabama News

Hugh Freeze’s golf game — and its frequency — has become a talking point around the SEC of late, and quarterback Jackson Arnold was asked to weigh in on Tuesday.

Arnold was in Atlanta as part of the Tigers’ contingent at SEC Media Days, and made an appearance on SEC This Morning on the SEC Network. Asked about Freeze and golf, he said it’s a story that has gained what he views as unnecessary traction.

“Coach loves to play golf, but at the end of the day, you’ve got to have something outside of football to go to and kind of get away,” said Arnold, who transferred to Auburn from Oklahoma prior to spring practice. “I feel like if Auburn was 8-4 or 9-3 last year, we wouldn’t be having this conversation right now. It’s just because we didn’t win enough ball games last year.

“Maybe recruiting is a little shaky right this second if you want to go and blame that. I bet you Coach Freeze was playing golf just as much last year and he was in this year.”

Auburn is coming off three straight losing seasons — two under Freeze — which has led to some criticism of the frequency with which Freeze was on the golf course during the month of June, the height of recruiting season. The coach defended himself during a podcast appearance last week, saying “I never missed a camp day or a recruiting day.”

Ole Miss coach Lane Kiffin appeared to troll Freeze last week and again Monday at SEC Media Days when he “congratulated” the Auburn coach on his golf and fishing success. Kiffin denied any ill intent behind his social media posts and comments, but it’s difficult to tell if he was being sincere.

Arnold was also asked Tuesday if he plays golf and he said he does “if I have the time.” The game can be a great outlet from the “grind” of football, he said.

“I enjoy playing it,” Arnold said. “It’s a great time to be with your buddies in the summer. You’re grinding, you’re working out with the guys. You get your football in, and after that I go home and I decompress, whether that’s playing golf or watching TV or cooking or doing whatever.

“You’ve got to have an outlet outside of football and Coach Freeze goes out and plays golf with his wife. I don’t think it’s an issue at all. I think people are kind of blowing it out of proportion.”

Alabama U.S. Sen. Tommy Tuberville waved away an ongoing debate among supporters of the Trump Administration over releasing information related to the case of billionaire financier Jeffrey Epstein and his alleged clients, saying “we won’t get involved.”

Speaking to 1819 News Monday, Tuberville said, “We’ve got a lot more problems than that.”

Attempts to contact Tuberville’s office for comment were not immediately successful.

The imbroglio over Epstein, who died in 2019, has roiled the Trump Justice Department since a July 6 joint memo with the FBI saying that there was no Epstein “client list,” inflaming segments of the MAGA movement.

This was followed by reports that Deputy FBI Director Dan Bongino is considering resigning from his post over disagreement with how Attorney General Pam Bondi handled the memo.

President Trump tried to quell the controversy with a Truth Social post urging patience with Bondi and telling supporters to “not waste Time and Energy on Jeffrey Epstein.”

Tuberville instead said Trump’s supporters should seize the initiative on other legislative goals.

“That’s been talked about so much that’s kind of made it a huge issue and it is to a lot of people because, you know, child predators and all those things,” Tuberville said.

“Hopefully, eventually this will all be worked out but we won’t get involved in it. We’ve got so much to do with those bills coming up. We’ve only got three-and-a-half years.”

Tuberville was not alone. Several GOP senators asked in recent days about the Epstein case have steered clear.

“I’ll leave that up to DOJ and to the FBI. I think that’s in their purview. I think the president’s expressed his views on it and so I’ll just leave it at that,” Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-S.D.) told The Hill.

Academy Sports is slashing prices on the ultra-popular Stanley 40-ounce FlowState Quencher Tumbler, giving shoppers a rare chance to grab the viral “Stanley Cup” for less.

With this online deal, Academy Sports customers can purchase the Stanley 40 oz Adventure Quencher H2.0 FlowState Tumbler in select colors for $27 instead of the normal list price of $45, a 40% savings overall. Originally, there were plenty of sale styles to choose from, but many of the discounted Stanley Cups have already sold out.

RELATED: Yeti launches largest Rambler water jug yet with new 1-gallon size

The Stanley 40oz Quencher Tumbler is designed for versatility, making it suitable for camping, travel and everyday hydration. The Stanley tumbler notably features its signature FlowState rotating lid With a straw opening, a wide drinking opening and a full-cover top, users can easily switch between different drinking styles based on their activity and preference.

All features included in the Stanley 40oz Quencher Tumbler are as follows:

• Recycled stainless steel construction helps you live sustainably
• Double-wall vacuum insulation maintains ice for up to 30 hours
• FlowState rotating lid features a straw opening, a drinking opening, and a full-cover top
• Designed to fit in most standard cupholders
• BPA-free and dishwasher safe

“Take your favorite beverages on the go with a Stanley 40oz Adventure Quencher H2.0 FlowState Tumbler. This durable stainless steel tumbler is made with 90% recycled materials to support a sustainable lifestyle. Double-walled vacuum insulation keeps beverages cold for hours, while a rotating FlowState™ lid lets you adapt your sipping style‚” Academy Sports’ product details state.

Those interested in this Stanley cup deal can check out the full listing on Academy Sports website.

Despite injuries and rotations in the first half of the season, cornerback became a position of strength for Auburn in 2024.

Kayin Lee and Jay Crawford eventually became the two players to hold down starting spots on the boundary, and both were solid. Lee locked down his place in the starting lineup by Week 1, while Crawford’s emergence came during the season.

Injuries to Keionte Scott and Champ Anthony forced Crawford, a freshman at the time, into action, and he was up to the task. Of players who played in five games or more, Crawford finished with the second highest coverage grade on the team, according to Pro Football Focus, and the second-highest catch percentage allowed in the SEC.

Despite the solid seasons from both players, Auburn was active in the transfer portal at that position. The Tigers signed Raion Strader from Miami (OH) and Rayshawn Pleasant from Tulane, two-starting caliber players.

When asked why Auburn was so aggressive in adding to a position of strength, head coach Hugh Freeze said he wanted to create competition.

“We need competition, particularly at places like corner where you need four guys that can play,” Freeze said. “We believe in them, they are good players. But I’m glad we got two other good ones behind them too.”

At Tulane, Pleasant finished with 35 tackles, three pass deflections and one interception in 2024. He was also named to the Walter Camp Preseason All-America Second Team as a kick returner after averaging 34.5 yards per return last season.

Strader finished with 53 tackles, 17 pass deflections and two interceptions at Miami (OH) last season and was the 2024 MAC cornerback of the year.

Freeze mentioned that Pleasant and Strader bring length and quick twitch ability, along with experience, something Auburn is lacking at corner behind Lee and Crawford.

More than anything else, Freeze believes bringing in the two experienced transfers can bring the best out of Lee and Crawford and kill any entitlement or complacency that could come with being handed a starting job.

“If we truly want to get Auburn back to where it has to be, there has to be a level where every single kid buys into the standard all the time,” Freeze said. “And this is not a deal where some entitlement because I played well last year at times, or I got a certain NIL deal or revenue sharing deal that I’m entitled to something now.”

Auburn will begin fall camp ahead of the 2025 season on July 29. The Tigers will open the campaign exactly one month later against Baylor on Aug. 29.

Peter Rauterkus covers Auburn sports for AL.com. You can follow him on X at @peter_rauterkus or email him at [email protected]m

The National Hurricane Center thinks a tropical depression could form in the Gulf in a few days.

Forecasters continued to track an area of low pressure that was in the western Atlantic Ocean just east of the Florida peninsula on Tuesday.

It is expected to move westward, across the Sunshine State, and into the Gulf by Wednesday.

The hurricane center said conditions in the Gulf will be favorable for the system to organize, and it could become a tropical depression as it continues to track to the west or west-northwest this week.

The hurricane center has raised the probability of a depression forming to 40 percent, an increase from 30 percent on Monday.

A system has to have a defined center of circulation and sustained winds of at least 40 mph to be classified as a tropical storm and get a name.

The next name on the 2025 Atlantic storm list is Dexter.

Weather watchers aren’t expecting this system to intensify into a hurricane, but it could bring a lot of rain to parts of Florida and the northern Gulf Coast, including Alabama.

WHAT CAN ALABAMA EXPECT?

The National Weather Service in Mobile continued to keep a close eye on the system on Tuesday and said it could potentially bring 2 to 4 inches of rain to parts of south Alabama.

Here is the current rainfall outlook through Friday for parts of south Alabama:

“There is still a lot of uncertainty regarding whether or not this develops into a tropical depression and regarding the eventual track of the system” the weather service said in its Tuesday morning forecast discussion.

“One potential scenario is that the system moves into the Gulf and remains near the coastline with less time to develop. Another scenario is that this system moves a little further out into the Gulf with more time to develop. Regardless of development, we will get drenched with heavy rain (especially across the southern portion of the area), which may lead to flooding issues if storms repeatedly move over the same locations.”

The weather service is forecasting a low rip current risk today, but it will increase to moderate on Wednesday and high (the highest level) on Thursday and Friday. That means swimming the Gulf will be hazardous.

Here is the rip current forecast for Alabama and northwest Florida coastal areas:

Zappos just slashed the price of the super-cushioned ASICS Gel-Excite 11 running shoe, and it’s the lowest price we’ve ever seen these popular sneakers sell for.

With this online deal, you can snag the men’s or women’s ASICS Gel-Excite 11 running shoe for $74 instead of its original list price of $90. The men’s shoe comes in three colors while the women’s sneaker comes in five styles, all of which are available at the same discount.

ASICS men’s Gel-Excite 11

$90 $74.95

The ASICS men’s Gel-Excite 11 running shoe is on sale at Zappos.com while supplies last.

$74.95 at Zappos

RELATED: Brooks softest running shoe is now on sale for a limited time

The ASICS Gel-Excite 11 is designed for comfort and performance. It features a breathable jacquard mesh upper to enhance airflow and keep feet cool. Its midsole incorporates FF BLAST PLUS and AMPLIFOAM PLUS cushioning technologies for lightweight impact absorption and a responsive ride. Meanwhile, the Rearfoot PureGEL technology provides added cushioning during heel landings for even more comfort.

“Run on cloud nine wearing ASICS Gel-excite 11. Engineered with a breathable jacquard mesh upper for enhanced airflow, this runner feels as fresh as it looks,” Zappos’ product details state.

“The dual cushioning power of FF BLAST™ PLUS and AMPLIFOAM™ PLUS offers ultra-light, ultra-soft impact absorption with a springy, responsive ride. Rearfoot PureGEL® technology adds extra smoothness for heel landings, delivering a luxuriously cushioned feel from the first step to the finish line. A synthetic rubber outsole offers reliable traction, while the lace-up closure ensures a secure fit.”

Those interested in this deal can checkout the men’s ASICS Gel-excite 11 here and women’s ASICS Gel-excite 11 here.

Four men have been arrested in the weekend shootout at a Woodlawn High School reunion picnic.

The shooting happened shortly after 7 p.m. Saturday in back parking lot of the school in the 5600 block of First Avenue, seriously injuring an innocent bystander and damaging multiple cars.

Those charged with first-degree assault are Camron Hinton, 22, Freddy Hurst III, 22, D’Andre Watkins, 27, and Stefon Todd, 28.

The were booked into the Jefferson County Jail on $30,000 bond each.

Police responded to the school after the city’s Shot Spotter gunfire detection picked up one incident of three shots fired, and then a second burst with 10 shots fired.

Officers arrived to find about seven vehicles damaged by the gunfire.

A young woman then showed up a short time later at UAB Hospital with gunshot injuries. She told staff she was shot at Woodlawn High School.

The school has had reunion activities all week, culminating Saturday with a picnic and other festivities at the school.

Fitzgerald said two groups of people who were in attendance at the function got into an argument. The argument was between one person from each group.

Officers and investigators quickly developed potential suspects. Within hours, Fitzgerald said, Special Enforcement Teams officers initiated a felony traffic stop at the Arkadelphia Road/I-59N entrance ramp.

The four suspects were detained with an assortment of firearms, Fitzgerald said.

All four were booked into the Birmingham City Jail on a 48-hour hold until warrants were signed on Monday.

“The swift arrest of these four individuals should send a clear message that shooting innocent people, in our community, will not be tolerated,” said Birmingham Police Chief Michael Pickett.

“I urge community members to speak up and share any addition video evidence of the shooting, to ensure those responsible are held fully accountable.”

“Thank God a life was not taken,” Pickett said. “However, we want to make sure these shooters remain behind bars, so that they don’t have the opportunity to take an innocent life.”

Anyone with information is asked to call investigators at 205-254-1764 or Crime Stoppers at 205-254-7777.

An Alabama legislator wants to expand the number of circumstances that can allow the death penalty to be imposed.

Rep. Matt Simpson, R-Daphne, has prefiled HB 20 for the 2026 session, which would make it a capital offense to murder a person while “knowingly creat(ing) a great risk of death to multiple persons.”

“There are some instances that I feel we should be able to go after the maximum punishment, and increase that punishment to the death penalty, in cases that they have committed these offenses in a public place and in a public manner,” Simpson said in an interview Monday.

More from Alabama Reflector

Alabama statute outlines 21 circumstances that enhance the penalty to allow the state to charge someone with capital punishment, such as murdering a person who is less than 14 years old or committing the offense in the presence of someone younger than 14 years old, or killing someone while in commission of a robbery or kidnapping. Murdering a law enforcement officer could also enhance a murder charge to a capital offense.

“It is murder that can be moved to capital murder if it falls under one of those enhancements,” Simpson said. “This bill creates the enhancement for causing danger to multiple people.”

Simpson said he believes the bill would serve as a warning that committing the gravest crimes can come with the harshest punishments.

“I think that capital murder will send a message to the community that we are no longer taking this,” Simpson said. “We have seen an increase in public shootings, a significant increase of this in public areas.”

Carla Crowder, executive director of Alabama Appleseed, a criminal justice reform group, said in a statement that evidence showed that “certainty of arrest and conviction is the greatest deterrent to crime, not length of sentence or level of punishment.” Some civil rights groups have said that capital punishment does not deter crime. Crowder said investments in mental health care and violence prevention would work to cut crime in the state.

“Common sense tells us that someone who’s enraged enough to shoot into a crowd of people is probably not going to check the Code of Alabama to determine whether they’d be subject to death or just life in prison before pulling the trigger,” the statement said.

Simpson also introduced legislation in the spring during the 2025 session that would have also expanded eligibility for the death penalty for those who sexually assault minors. The bill, which did not pass, would have joined Alabama with Florida and Tennessee as the states to pass such laws.

“I am optimistic, I am going to file that bill again and hopefully get it a little further,” Simpson said. “There are a lot of good bills that died in the Senate this year due to timing, and I will see how things play out. Sometimes it takes multiple years for a bill to pass.”

Someone in Brookside deleted the police department’s emails, according to attorneys for a group of drivers suing the town over allegations of ticketing for profit.

It’s unclear exactly who deleted the account, said attorney Jaba Tsitsuashvili. But, regardless, the drivers are asking a federal judge to hold Brookside responsible for it.

“There’s a lot of finger-pointing and cross-recriminations here, but I think what it boils down to is that Brookside is responsible for this email deletion,” said Tsitsuashvili of the Institute for Justice, a libertarian nonprofit based in Virginia. “We’re confident that the judge will understand that the town deleted four years worth of police policy emails after the town had already been sued several times for its police policies.”

The nonprofit is suing Brookside, a town of about 1,300 people north of Birmingham, on behalf of four drivers. They allege the town exploited them by arresting, ticketing them and towing their cars to buoy the police department’s funds, the lawsuit says.

Reporting by AL.com in January of 2022 found that Brookside’s finances were buoyed by tickets and aggressive policing. Revenues from fines and forfeitures soared more than 640% between 2018-2020 and came to account for more than half of the town’s income.

Mike Jones, the police chief who orchestrated the department’s expansion and crackdown on drivers, resigned almost immediately after the first story published. And in April of 2022, the Institute for Justice filed the class-action lawsuit, one of at least a dozen brought against the town and its police.

In a court filing earlier this month, attorneys for the drivers said that Brookside blamed Jones for deleting the email account. But Jones testified in May that he hadn’t deleted emails, according to court records.

“The e-mail system went dark when litigation concerning the police department’s policies was already ongoing—including, almost certainly, this case,” the July 7 filing reads. “The mayor, the interim police chief, and the current chief all knew. Yet no one did anything to try to preserve or recover anything.”

Brookside has not responded to the filing. Warren Kinney, an attorney representing Brookside, declined to comment for this article.

Attorneys for the drivers allege that the town could have attempted to recover the email account system through Google for up to two years after it went dark, according to court records.

“Instead, they let the clock tick and quietly switched to a different e-mail system altogether,” the July 7 filing reads. “The town made those decisions knowing full well that it was already facing ‘numerous lawsuits and civil claims’ concerning its police department.”

In response to the lawsuit, Brookside has asked the judge to dismiss the case. The town denies the allegations, and says police had a right to tow the drivers’ vehicles.

“Each and every action taken was done so in good faith belief that the same was legal and lawful at the time so taken,” the town said in an April 2023 filing.

The attorneys for the drivers requested the emails in discovery in July 2023. It wasn’t until late 2024 when Brookside said that the email system had been deleted, according to court records.

The drivers are asking U.S. Magistrate Judge Staci Cornelius to enter an order “presuming the deleted police department emails were unfavorable to Brookside” as a sanction. They asked that that sanction establish that Brookside’s spikes in citations and towing were part of an intentional policy to fund the town’s growing police department and that those policies were communicated to every officer via their email accounts, according to court records.

“The police-department e-mail system was used extensively — and daily — for internal communications during the whole of Chief Jones’s four-year tenure,” the July 7 filing reads. “What few e-mails have been salvaged are (charitably speaking) unfavorable to the town.”

The lawsuit seeks damages, repayment of fees with interest, return of property and a declaration that the town had an unconstitutional policy to increase revenue, according to the complaint.

Meanwhile, attorneys for the drivers and the town are currently in settlement talks. Those discussions started on Tuesday, and Judge Cornelius scheduled the mediation to continue on July 31, according to the court docket.

Tsitsuashvili added that the details of the mediation process are confidential, but any settlement deal that comes out of it would be public.

“This wholesale deletion of Brookside Police Department email accounts is indicative of the way we’ve seen the town behave in the course of this litigation,” he said.