In 2024, Birmingham experienced its deadliest recorded year, with a total 151 homicides on record, breaking the previous high of 148 in 1933. Across Jefferson County, there were a total of 194 homicides. Now, funds are being directed towards reducing the number of homicides.
According to a press release from the Alabama Department of Economic and Community Affairs, Gov. Kay Ivey announced two grants awarded to Birmingham and Jefferson County respectively through Project Safe Neighborhoods, a federal program that works to use research and data analysis to reduce violent crime.
According to the Project Safe Neighborhoods page on the Department of Justice’s website, “the Department expressly underscores that the fundamental goal of this work is to reduce violent crime in the places we call home, not to increase the number of arrests or prosecutions as if they were ends in themselves.”
The city of Birmingham has been awarded $100,000 which police officials say will go towards updating equipment to improve communication and management of case files.
The Jefferson County Commission has been awarded $137,242, which it says will be used to purchase the necessary equipment to become part of the National Integrated Ballistic Information Network. The NIBIN is the national network for capturing and comparing ballistic evidence, which “enables investigators to match ballistics evidence with other cases across the nation.”
This year, homicides have seen a considerable drop in Birmingham compared to the same point last year. As of early April, a total of 21 homicides were reported in Birmingham, which is 14 less than the number that occurred at the same time in 2024.
In an interview with ABC 33/40, Birmingham Police Chief Michael Pickett credited this to new initiatives announced by the department on Feb. 10, which includes specialized enforcement teams, cracking down on illegal firearms and increased community engagement.
Alabama top stories in brief
Statue erected commemorating civil rights attorney Fred Gray
- A statue honoring Fred Gray, a key figure in the Civil Rights Movement, was unveiled outside the Alabama State Bar Association on April 24.
- Gray, who is 94 years old and still practicing law, spoke at the unveiling ceremony in downtown Montgomery.
- Gray acted as a legal representative for several members of the Civil Rights Movement, including Martin Luther King Jr., Rosa Parks and John Lewis. Additionally, Gray represented the participants of the Selma-to-Montgomery march.
State House approves proposed $10B education budget
- A package of bills, most sponsored by Sen. Arthur Orr, R-Madison, was unanimously passed by the house on April 24.
- SB112, which will allocate $9.9 billion to several public, private and higher education trust funds, was included.
- Also included were SB111 and SB305, which provide a combined budget of $433 million that will be spread among schools with high populations of students that live in poverty or speak English as a second language in order to support both students and faculty with resources and programs.
- The majority of the bills will go back to the Senate to approve the changes made to them by the House. SB305 goes to Gov. Kay Ivey to be signed into law.
Bill to make Juneteenth state holiday passed by House
- The Alabama House of Representatives passed HB165, which was sponsored by Rep. Rick Rehm, R-Dothan, and would officially declare Juneteenth a state holiday.
- An amendment was made to the bill before its passing so that it would come into effect on June 1, allowing state employees to take advantage of it this year.
- Gov. Kay Ivey has used her authority to declare Juneteenth a state holiday each year since it was recognized as a federal holiday in 2021.
- Some Black members of the House expressed frustration that after years of efforts on their part, a bill to make Juneteenth a state holiday was progressing without strings attached only when it was brought forward by a white Republican.
- A bill brought forward last year that never made it to the Senate would have allowed state employees to pick between Juneteenth and Jefferson Davis’s birthday.
Committee approves bill to delay incarceration for pregnant women
- A House committee approved HB138, sponsored by Rep. Rolanda Hollis, D-Birmingham, to allow women to take a pregnancy test and, if pregnant, be placed on supervised probation until after giving birth.
- The bill would require that pregnant women be allowed bail unless they were deemed a threat to themselves or their community.
- This pre-incarceration term could last up until 12 weeks after they give birth, at which point they would be required to surrender themselves or face an additional Class A misdemeanor.
Hyundai begins shifting production to Alabama in response to tariffs
- As a result of automotive tariffs put in place by the Trump administration, Hyundai has begun shifting production of some of its Tucson SUV’s from a plant in Mexico to its Montgomery Plant.
- Likewise, the company will also shift production of cars intended for export to Canada from the U.S. to be produced in Mexico instead.
New bill passes committee despite heavy protest from midwives
- SB87 initially had the support of the Alabama Midwife Alliance, but lost support following amendments to the bill that leaders in the Alabama midwife profession described as “hostile language.”
- Originally, SB87 would have allowed midwives the ability to administer the heel stick, hearing screening and Critical Congenital Heart Disease screening portions of newborn exams, but amendments to the bill have reduced those to just the heel stick.
- In addition to reducing the tests that midwives would be allowed to perform, the amendments specifically prohibit them from performing care not provided for under state law and from interpreting any screening results.
- National midwife standards require midwives to be trained to provide care for newborns and mothers during the first six weeks of pregnancy.
- Leaders in the American Academy of Pediatrics Alabama and Alabama Hospital Association supported the amendments made to the bill.
- During a public hearing, Linda Lee, AAPA executive director read a letter from Dr. Nola Jean Ernest who wrote that “Lay midwives attending home births do not have the equivalent training or clinical experience as pediatricians or neonatologists.”
Announcements
- We’ve officially launched the Alabama Spotlight, our new multimedia project focusing on people, places and things unique to Alabama. You can listen to the first episode about our trip to Spectre, an abandoned movie set from the film “Big Fish” on Spotify.
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