A lawyer for the family of Sandra Bland, a black Chicago-area woman who died in a Texas jail after a contentious traffic stop last summer, says a $1.9 million settlement has been reached in the family’s wrongful death lawsuit. Attorney Cannon Lambert tells Houston television station KTRK the settlement includes a provision that the Waller County Jail have a 24-hour…
Governor Robert Bentley on Thursday announced that Commissioner N. Gunter Guy, Jr., of Alabama’s Department of Conservation and Natural Resources has been named Chairman of the Trustee Council for the Deepwater Horizon (DWH) oil spill. The Trustee Council is guided by a yearly rotating State Chair and Federal Vice-Chair selected from the Council membership. Commissioner Guy began his tenure as…
Alabama lawmakers have decided how to spend the state’s settlement money from the 2010 oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. State senators on Wednesday voted 22-8 for a compromise plan to use the money for a mixture of paying debts, funding Medicaid and building roads in coastal Alabama. The bill now moves to Gov. Robert Bentley for his signature….
Volkswagen has reached a tentative deal with its U.S. dealers to compensate them for losses they said they suffered as a result of the company’s emissions cheating scandal, attorneys for the carmaker and dealers told a federal judge Thursday. The value of the settlement with the roughly 650 dealers was not disclosed, although Volkswagen said in a statement later that…
State senators will debate a division of Alabama’s oil spill settlement funds that could help fill an $85 million hole in the state’s Medicaid budget. The Alabama Senate is expected to take up the bill Wednesday. The debate could get contentious as senators have squabbled over how much should help Medicaid and how much should go for road projects in…
The EPA and a cement company with facilities in Alabama have agreed to settle environmental complaints about air and water pollution at the plant in Demopolis and other locations. “The cement sector is a significant source of air pollution posing real health risks to the communities where they reside, including vulnerable communities across the U.S. who deserve better air quality…
The family of a Florida woman who became a quadriplegic after the deployment of an air bag in her car has reached an out-of-court settlement with the air bag’s manufacturer. Ted Leopold is an attorney for Patricia Mincey’s family. He says the settlement with Takata Corp. was reached Friday, shortly before a pretrial hearing was to be scheduled to determine…
On March 8, 2014, Emerson Crayton Jr., a 21-year old black male, was shot and killed in the early morning hours outside of Huddle House in Alexander City by an Alexander City police officer. Suit was filed in the federal court in Montgomery by the administrator of his Estate, Ms. Kolea Burns, and mother of his only child, a two-year…
A House budget committee has delayed action on a bill to use part of the state’s BP oil spill money for road projects. Committee members voted Wednesday to carry over the proposed constitutional amendment. The bill would have steered the largest share of projects to coastal counties. Proponents say that would help the region hit hardest and pay for needed…
Florida State University says it’s settling a lawsuit with a woman who said she was raped by former star quarterback and Alabama native Jameis Winston. FSU President John Thrasher announced terms Monday. Thrasher says FSU will pay Erica Kinsman $250,000 and her attorneys $700,000. The settlement also includes a five-year commitment from FSU to sexual assault awareness, prevention and training programs, according…
