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Articles by Pat Duggins
“No Kings” protesters to gather across Alabama ahead of the midterms
Fifteen Alabama communities are planning to stage “No Kings” protests just days ahead of the November mid-terms. Previous days including hand drawn signs, chanting, and colorful costumes. Tuscaloosa, Auburn, Athens, Selma, Mobile, Birmingham, Dadeville, Oxford, Foley, Fort Payne, and Oneonta are among the cities where protests are planned. Behind the get-out-the-vote message during today's protests, are concerns among members of the Alabama League of Women Voters.
SECs complaint with former Alabama assistant coach apparently not resolved
The Southeastern Conference says it has ongoing concerns about “a complete lack of institutional control” at LSU. The league levied the allegation In its latest federal court filing in a case that stemmed from LSU’s since-abandoned effort to field football players who had tryouts or signed contracts with NFL clubs. Former Alabama assistant coach Lane Kiffin, now head coach with the Tigers, was considered the “face” of the alleged effort.
Mobile jazz icon Fred Wesley on working with James Brown and Count Basie
Mobile jazz trombonist Fred Wesley has a long list of people he’s performed alongside. Ike and Tina Turner, Count Basie, and the “Godfather of Soul” James Brown are just a few. As a solo performer, Wesley also earned the nickname the “forefather of Funk.” The Alabama Humanities Alliance will honor this jazz icon next week.
Alabama man may return to jail after release under the First Step Act
Years after his release from prison, Patrick Dewayne Smith spends Sundays with his family in a modest brick church with a white steeple in rural Tennessee. He works two jobs. He goes to ball games to cheer for nieces and nephews he had never met. After serving 13 years for a nonviolent drug conviction, he is trying to rebuild his life. Now Smith could be sent back to prison for the rest of it.
Residents of Alabama, Florida clean up from Isaias
People in the Florida Panhandle and southern Alabama cleaned up after Hurricane Isaias swept through as the storm's remnants caused flooding in North Carolina on Sunday, while powerful Pacific Ocean waves stirred up by Rachel, a former tropical storm, battered the coast of Southern California. In western North Carolina, rivers overflowed as heavy rainfall raised the risk of flash and urban flooding, according to the National Weather Service.
Residents of Alabama and Florida still without power after landfall of Isaias
As people in the Florida Panhandle and southern Alabama cleaned up in the wake of Isaias, heavy rainfall was bringing the risk of flooding Sunday across the central Appalachians and the mid-Atlantic region as the storm's remnants moved north. Heavy rainfall could cause localized flash flooding and urban flooding across the region, with river flooding continuing in western North Carolina, according to the National Weather Service.
Questions over call by officials may muddy Georgia's narrow win over Alabama
If Georgia lands the No. 1 ranking, it should probably come with an asterisk. The second-ranked Bulldogs benefitted from what appeared to be a blown call in a 20-17 victory at No. 2 Alabama on Saturday night. Dwight Phillips Jr. ran for 120 yards, Bo Walker added 69 more and Georgia staked its claim to a top spot in the AP Top 25 poll with its first victory in Tuscaloosa since 2014.
Reports: Isaias turns into a killer storm in Alabama and Florida
Published reports say that heavy winds from Hurricane Isaias led to two fatalities in Alabama and Florida. NBC news reports that one person was killed in East Birmingham when a tree fell on a house. Another person was trapped. CBS News reports a woman in Escambia County, Florida died when a tree hit her house in the winds of Isaias. Isaias weakened quickly after making landfall on the U.S. Gulf Coast near Destin, Florida, as a Category 2 hurricane Friday evening.
Coastal Alabama and The western Florida panhandle wakes up without power after Isaias landfall
Hundreds of thousands of people in Alabama and the Florida Panhandle were without power early Saturday after Isaias crashed into the U.S. Gulf Coast as a dangerous hurricane and left flooded roads and downed trees in its wake as it moved inland. Poweroutage.us reports 300,000 in Alabama in the dark this morning, and 400,000 more in Florida. The storm made landfall Friday as a Category 2 hurricane, then quickly moved north through Alabama as its wind speeds dropped sharply.
Trump cancels his travel plans to see the Alabama/Georgia game
The Tuscaloosa Police Department and the White House Press office confirm that President Trump is cancelling his plans to fly to Tuscaloosa to see Alabama play Georgia at Bryant-Denny Stadium. The reason given are safety concerns about flying to the west central part of the state so soon after arrival of Hurricane Isaias. The National Hurricane Center is forecasting landfall around the Pensacola area overnight tonight.
Alabama and Georgia football fans face a different gameday experience
The rules for tomorrow’s high stakes Southeastern Conference game between The Crimson Tide and the Bulldogs are changing. Partly due to the possible attendance of President Trump, and definitely due to the impending arrival of Hurricane Isaias. College football games in Tuscaloosa typically see white tents blossoming on a green space at the University of Alabama known as the “quad.” That’s where tailgaters gather to party before kickoff. Except tomorrow.
Alabama, Florida, and Mississippi brace for the arrival of Hurricane Isaias
Residents boarded up windows and stacked sandbags Thursday while thousands of National Guard soldiers were deploying in anticipation of Hurricane Isaias, which packed swift winds and threatened to bring a storm surge with devastating floods to the U.S. Gulf Coast. Isaias is the first hurricane of the Atlantic season and was expected to usher in dangerous conditions in the Florida Panhandle, southern Alabama and southern Mississippi when it makes landfall late Friday.
Forecast course for Hurricane Isaias takes a jog to the east
Isaias strengthened into a Category 2 hurricane as it barreled toward a possible landfall on Alabama’s border with Florida. The approach of the storm is prompting orders for tourists to abandon beaches for safer spots inland, sending locals scurrying for gas and groceries and leading fishing crews to secure their boats before the potentially destructive storm’s arrival.
Alabama emergency manager urges residents not to use social media for updates about Hurricane Isaias.
Residents of Alabama, coastal Mississippi, and the western Florida panhandle are getting ready for rough ride from Hurricane Isaias. Forecasters are predicting landfall late Friday or early Saturday. That hit could occur anywhere from Ocean Springs in Mississippi, to Mobile and the Eastern Shore in Alabama, to the western Florida panhandle. The lower third of our state is facing the possibility of tropical storm force winds and rain. Mike Evans is manager of Mobile County Emergency Management.
Isaias gaining punch as it heads toward Mobile, the Eastern Shore, Mississippi, and Florida's panhandle
Some coastal residents of Alabama are being advised to voluntarily evacuate as Isaias surged toward the U.S. Gulf Coast on Thursday. It’s the first hurricane of the Atlantic season, prompting mandatory evacuations and school closures in parts of Florida. Isaias was forecast to intensify rapidly and bring strong winds and a life-threatening storm surge to the Florida Panhandle, southern Alabama and southern Mississippi when it makes landfall on the northern Gulf Coast late Friday or early Saturday.
APR Notebook: Joyce Vance on voting, and why she learned to build a bomb
It's hard to know where to start talking about former Alabama U.S. Attorney Joyce Vance. She's a fixture on MS Now, and she's been on PBS's Overheard with Evan Smith. The midterm elections are also just a few weeks away, and Vance is out with a new book titled "Giving Up Is Unforgivable: A Manual for Keeping a Democracy.” Bear with me; I'm just getting warmed up. 2026 is also the 30th anniversary of the Olympic Park bombing in Atlanta.
U.S. Supreme Court denies appeal from former Alabama U.S. Senate candidate Roy Moore
The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday rejected Roy Moore's push to restore an $8.2 million defamation verdict over a 2017 Senate race ad funded by a Democratic-aligned super PAC. Justices declined to hear Moore’s appeal of a lower court decision that vacated the large verdict. The outcome keeps in place the decision by the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals that erased a jury's decision that Moore had been defamed by the ad.
Why Joyce Vance learned to build a improvised explosive device
It's hard to know where to start talking about former Alabama U.S. Attorney Joyce Vance. She's a fixture on MS Now, and she's been on PBS's Overheard with Evan Smith. The midterm elections are also just a few weeks away, and Vance is out with a new book titled "Giving Up Is Unforgivable: A Manual for Keeping a Democracy.” Bear with me; I'm just getting warmed up. 2026 is also the 30th anniversary of the Olympic Park bombing in Atlanta.
Alabama routs Mississippi State, up next is Georgia
Sportswriters were predicting a tight game as Alabama faced its first ranked opponent of the 2026 season. Keelon Russell answered by passing for 285 yards and three touchdowns to go with a rushing score, and No. 7 Alabama routed 16th-ranked Mississippi State 56-23 on Saturday in a matchup of previously unbeaten teams.
President Trump says he’ll attend next Saturday’s Alabama/Georgia game
President Donald Trump told a crowd in Mobile that he’ll be at Bryant-Denny Stadium in Tuscaloosa next weekend. That's when the Crimson Tide faces Georgia in what sportswriters call one of the games to watch during the 2026 season. The heightened security that accompanies a Presidential visit is familiar territory for residents of Tuscaloosa. If Trump comes to see the upcoming Alabama game, it’ll be the fourth time.
Either Alabama or Mississippi State stands to be a one loss team after tomorrow
When Alabama visits Mississippi State, it's usually a bad day for the Bulldogs. Quarterback Kamario Taylor's dynamism and recent effectiveness in the clutch has provided Mississippi State's cowbell-ringing fans hope that perhaps Saturday will be different from every other time these teams have met since 2007. Taylor is “playing really good football for us,” Mississippi State coach Jeff Lebby said.
Tennessee, like Alabama, has back-up procedures for failed executions
Long before Christa Pike was brought into Tennessee’s execution chamber, prison leaders reviewed and approved a backup plan detailing exactly what to do if the first attempt at lethal injection failed. Alabama reportedly has its own “plan B” procedures if a lethal injection fails. But, after a series of botched executions, the state switched to nitrogen gas suffocation, although the constitutionality and acceptance of the process reportedly remains an issue.
President Trump heads to Mobile to try to shore up the GOP before the mid-terms
President Donald Trump and Vice President JD Vance both hit the campaign trail, but they headed to heavily Republican areas to shore up lagging enthusiasm in their party ahead of next month’s midterm elections. Trump’s travel to Texas and Oklahoma kicks off what the president said will be a 32-day campaign blitz leading up to November 3rd.
Alabama, other states, go to SCOTUS to fight abortion shield laws
Alabama and two other Republican states went to the U.S. Supreme Court on Wednesday to challenge abortion “shield laws” protecting providers in three Democratic states, escalating the legal conflict over pills that account for a majority of abortions. The attorneys general of Alabama, Arkansas and Louisiana contend that the laws in California, Massachusetts and New York undermine their abortion bans and their states' sovereignty.
Former Auburn staffer accused of selling school secrets to competitors
A former Auburn staffer has been arrested on charges of stealing trade secrets from the football program and sending them to competitors, according to court records. David Rudolph Jenrath, 24, turned himself in to authorities Monday and was charged with two felonies: theft of trade secrets and computer tampering. He is being held on $15,000 bond at the Lee County Jail, according to police.
Florida plans to execute killer who tried to escape to Alabama
A 77-year-old Florida man convicted of beating a woman to death with a hammer is scheduled Tuesday to become the 16th person executed this year in the nation's busiest death chamber. Authorities began searching for Curtis Wilkie Beasley after a witness reported seeing him driving what turned out to be the victim’s car.
South Carolina edge rusher suspended after punching Alabama player
Fans at Bryant-Denny Stadium may have seen some on-field fireworks during the Crimson Tide’s defeat of South Carolina. South Carolina Dylan Stewart threw a punch at Alabama tight end Josh Ford in the fourth quarter during the Tide’s forty nine to eighteen rout of the Gamecocks. Daniel Hill had just made a one yard rush to score Alabama’s next to last touchdown of night when the punch was thrown. Now, Stewart’s actions have drawn a reaction.
Alabama may quiet concerns over slow starts, following defeat of South Carolina
Keelon Russell threw for 365 yards and four touchdowns and ran for another score as No. 8 Alabama beat South Carolina 49-18 on Saturday night. Ryan Coleman-Williams caught two TD passes, and Red Morgan returned an interception for a score for the Crimson Tide. Russell completed 21 of 27 passes as Alabama answered a sluggish third quarter with two fourth-quarter touchdowns. The Gamecocks pulled within 35-18 before Alabama regained control.
TikTok to pay Alabama $100 million in legal settlement
TikTok will pay the state of Alabama at least $100 million and must implement a slew of safety features for teens in the state as part of a settlement agreement reached just before the case was set to go to trial. Alabama sued the social media company in 2025 claiming that the platform had negative effects on the mental well-being of youths.
Trump to visit Mobile during final sprint to the mid-terms
President Donald Trump vowed to campaign in 35 of the most competitive battleground districts. Instead, he will begin October by stumping in Alabama and Oklahoma, two of the most Republican states in the nation. His events are sure to draw enthusiastic crowds of fans, but his choice of destinations is a reminder of his deep unpopularity in much of the country during a campaign season he's sought to make all about himself.
Governor Ivey issues order to ease the pinch of rising diesel fuel prices
Governor Kay Ivey is ordering The Alabama Law Enforcement Agency to halt enforcement of the use of dyed diesel fuel for 120 days, which will take effect immediately. The move follows a steep hike in diesel prices in Alabama, and around the nation. The price for a gallon of diesel, in our state, is up nearly a dollar from a month ago, and almost three dollars a gallon higher compared to a year ago.
Drug, banned in Alabama, reported at scenes of two Ole Miss student deaths
Investigators continue looking into the deaths of two students at the University of Mississippi (Ole Miss.) The two died this week and multiple published reports say packages of the drug kratom was found during the separate death investigations. Authorities said it is not confirmed that the kratom, or any controlled substance contributed to either death. The powdered stimulant is against the law in Alabama, and the subject of reporting by APR news.
Family of murdered Black man wants DOJ Investigation
A grand jury determined that there wasn't evidence to warrant charges in the death of an 18-year-old Black man whose body was found after a July 4 boating trip and party on an island off the Mississippi Gulf Coast on the border with Alabama. The panel’s conclusion was swiftly questioned by his family.
Reports: SNAP benefits in Alabama to rise, but for how long?
The reported 670,000 Alabamians who receive federal help through the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP, may be getting some welcome news starting next month. Published reports say the USDA’s Food and Assistance Administration will be giving a cost-of-living increase for almost all U.S. States starting in October. The agency says a four person household, for example, will see a monthly increase of $29.
Alabama moves up in the AP and Coaches polls
Mississippi moved into the top five with its win over LSU, the Tigers stayed in the top 10, and Florida and Mississippi State cracked the rankings to give the Southeastern Conference 10 teams in The Associated Press Top 25 college football poll released Sunday. The Rebels, who held off Lane Kiffin and LSU 32-24 on Saturday night, jumped over the Tigers and three other teams to land at No. 4 for their first top-five ranking since they were No. 3 in the final poll last season.
Two weather delays and a bad first half fail to stop the Tide
Keelon Russell threw for 320 yards and three touchdowns and ran for another score as No. 10 Alabama overcame a 15-point deficit to beat Florida State 50-36 on Saturday. The Crimson Tide (3-0) struggled to run the ball early and had few answers for Florida State’s explosive plays. Once Alabama settled in, the Seminoles (1-2) struggled to slow it down. Russell completed 23 of 30 passes without an interception, and Alabama finished with 615 yards. Lotzeir Brooks caught eight passes for 101 yards.
White House announces deal with Denmark over Greenland
White House announces deal with Denmark over Greenland President Donald Trump announced Friday he has a deal with Denmark to bolster the U.S. military presence in Greenland after months of threatening to take the island by force from the NATO ally — an agreement that also keeps the Arctic territory in Denmark's hands.
Fate of reported two dozen Alabama death row inmates appears in doubt following Thursday execution
Alabama executed a man by lethal injection for a 1998 double murder, three months after a judge’s ruling blocked the state from putting him to death with nitrogen gas. Jeffrey Lee was also sentenced to death under a state policy abolished by Governor Kay Ivey in 2017. The Alabama Public Radio news team focused on the state’s “judicial override” practice, where juries could ask for life in prison for a convicted killer, but the judge could veto that decision and impose death.
Crimson Tide looks for revenge against FSU after last year's stunner
Florida State left last season’s opener against Alabama with a statement victory. The Crimson Tide left with questions about where their season was headed. The months that followed changed the outlook for both programs. No. 10 Alabama (2-0) hosts Florida State (1-1) on Saturday to wrap up the home-and-home series a year after the Seminoles’ 31-17 stunner in Tallahassee wrongly suggested where the teams were going.
Alabama set to execute inmate sentenced to death through abolished legal practice
Alabama is set to execute a man Thursday night via lethal injection, three months after a judge's ruling blocked the state from putting him to death with nitrogen gas. Jeffery Lee, 49, is scheduled to receive an injection beginning at 6 p.m. at south Alabama's William C. Holman Correctional Facility for killing two people during a 1998 pawnshop robbery in rural Dallas County.
New study: Alabama among the states hit with federal funding freezes
The Trump administration has cut or frozen up to $177 billion in federal grants since the president took office for his second term, according to a tracking tool released Wednesday by a pro-democracy nonprofit and a group of researchers and scientists. Last summer, frozen funding for schools in Alabama generated headlines. Alabama school districts were impacted after nearly $7 billion dollars in education grants were frozen back in July of 2025.
New visitor’s center marks 63rd anniversary of 16th Street Baptist Church bombing
Sixty-three years ago, dynamite planted by Ku Klux Klan members exploded through the 16th Street Baptist Church in Birmingham, Alabama, killing four girls as they prepared for Sunday services. Hundreds of people filled the church on Tuesday on the 63rd anniversary of the bombing. The Alabama Public Radio newsroom took its listeners to the day in civil rights history through the letters of one of the convicted bomber.
Alabama voters, who qualify, can use their mail-in ballots freely for the mid-terms
The Supreme Court on Monday rejected President Donald Trump's bid to restrict mail ballots for the midterm elections, capping a flurry of last-minute legal action with voting already underway. The decision allows states to continue sending out mail ballots under the same processes they’ve used for years and have accounted for nearly a third of votes cast. Alabama’s mail-in ballots for absentee voting were sent out last week.
FBI hopes tip line will lead to clues to Tuscaloosa shooting incident
The Federal Bureau of Investigation is hoping that photos taken Saturday night in Tuscaloosa will lead to clues to a shooting that left eight people injured. Similar efforts helped cracked cases like the Brown University shooting in 2025. The agency says it frequently sets up localized digital media tip lines following mass shootings to rapidly collect evidence from witnesses. This can include digital photos, cell phone videos, surveillance tapes, and dashcam footage directly to investigators.
Governor Ivey considers cancelling death sentences not covered by end of “judicial override”
A 2016 investigation by the Alabama Public Radio news team may be getting a fresh look as Governor Kay Ivey considers the fate of two dozen people sentenced to death through the state’s now abolished policy known as “judicial override.” APR focused on the policy during its national award-winning program “…and justice for all.” Months later, Ivey ended the policy where judges could overrule juries recommendations of life in prison in favor of the death penalty.
Alabama moves in the AP Top 25 following Kentucky game
The Crimson Tide saw some improvement in the AP Top 25 following a 45-17 come from behind win over Kentucky. But, it was the earthquake at the top of college football that may be remembered this week. Alabama broke the top ten. But, it’s unprecedented comeback by Texas to knock off Ohio State moved the Longhorns to No. 1 in The Associated Press Top 25 college football poll Sunday and pushed the Buckeyes out of the top five for the first time in two seasons.
Alabama overcomes a shaky first half to beat Kentucky
Keelon Russell threw for 188 yards and a touchdown to help No. 12 Alabama beat Kentucky 45-17 on Saturday in the Southeastern Conference opener for both teams. Russell overcame two interceptions in the first half as the Crimson Tide (2-0) overcame a 17-13 halftime deficit, outscoring the Wildcats (1-1) 32-0 in the second half.
Alabama, and the nation, look back on 9/11
“It’s one thing to see it dimensionally on a TV. But, when you get there, all your senses are aware of what’s going on…smell…sight…taste…feeling,” said Baldwin County Sheriff Hoss said about the 9/11 attacks, back in 2021. For the 20th anniversary of the attacks on the World Trade Center, the Pentagon, and United Airlines Flight that went down near Shanksville, Pennsylvania, the APR Newsroom asked listeners to share their memories. “This is Heather Elliott in Tuscaloosa, Alabama on nine-eleven.
No vote from the Southeastern Conference to expel LSU
Southeastern Conference leaders met by video conference on Thursday without holding a vote on LSU's membership. The SEC had threatened as part of a federal lawsuit against LSU to take such a vote earlier in the week, but decided against it after LSU finalized its football roster without including a pair of NFL signees who had been recruited back to college by first-year Tigers coach Lane Kiffin.
LSU, and former Alabama assistant coach, may face SEC punishment, despite apparent de-escalation
University presidents representing the Southeastern Conference reportedly still plan to meet today. The gathering was initially to consider possibly expelling LSU, which was considering the inclusion of two former college players who signed contracts with the NFL. Tigers head coach Lane Kiffin, who had previously worked as an assistant coach and offensive coordinator at Alabama under Nick Saban, was viewed by a key instigator of the controversy.
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