Sen. April Weaver Needs to Brush up on her Topic/Rep. Ed Oliver Needs to Go

 

April Weaver is a State Senator from Alabaster. Like many others, Ms. Weaver has jumped on the "Good Time" band wagon. This past week, her opinion on the state's correctional incentive time law was featured in several state political publications.

That law is currently in such a state of flux that the end result may be a deep six of the law altogether. Our problem with Ms. Weaver is that she didn't care enough to check her facts. She claims the name of the program was changed at some point from Correctional Incentive Time to Good Time. No, it wasn't. We're guessing most state lawmakers can't pronounce words of more than two syllables and simply use the latter term instead.

Weaver also claims that the program begins upon day one of incarceration. In truth, it begins on day 31. While it's a small error, it proves the State Senator simply decided to write something without checking her facts.

That leads to State Representative Ed Oliver from Dadeville. He recently took it upon himself to claim thefts of supplies at a VA home in his district. He then took it a step farther and implied nurses had been euthanizing patients. We sincerely hope the nurses working at the Bill Nichols Home in Alexander City are suing him for whatever paltry life savings he may have accumulated.

Our state deserves better. If we don't demand improvement in our representatives, we're not going to get it.

Contact Your Leaders? You'll Get "No Response"

 

Our friend Mark White of local broadcasting fame has recently been focusing on a former Montgomery police officer currently incarcerated in the death of a citizen who ran from law enforcement. We don't know if this LEO received justice or not. What we do know is that when Mark contacted several state leaders over a possible commutation of the sentence, he received no response.

We've blogged on this before. Our personal experience and the experience of many who write here has been abysmal when it comes to receiving any acknowledgement of communications to local leaders. Due to the current Florence City Council, there has been improvement in that area.

Why would the governor of a state not remit at least a perfunctory reply to a citizen? Why would local county commission members turn a deaf ear to citizens who sought improvements in facilities?

If you have attempted to contact local and state leaders, but received absolutely no response, send us the details. We will publish your accounts and keep a registry of those those who thumb their noses at the citizens who elected them.

Three Upcoming Trials in February?

 

Three legal proceedings of local and state interest had been scheduled for February. Where do they stand now on dockets?

First is that of Richard Kevin Hester. Hester is accused of the Capital Murder of John Thomas Call. His Colbert County trial was originally set for August of last year, but was postponed until February of 2023. Will Call's family finally see a trial in his shooting death or will there be still another delay?

Second is a February 2nd Lauderdale court proceeding for Kelly D. Crotts, the Central community businessman accused of sexual crimes involving three underage boys. Crotts' last court appearance was in October 2022 when he was denied permission to live out of state in Mississippi. Crotts' alleged victims are eager to put these legal proceedings behind them. Let's hope the system sees no delays in his trial.

Third of interest lies to the south in Autauga County where former state representative Will Dismukes is accused of First Degree Theft from a former employer. Dismukes is of interest to all citizens of Alabama due to his former roles as an employee and later paid shill for ALFA. He was indicted 20 months ago and was scheduled for trial in January. Dismukes' attorneys managed to secure a month's delay, and the ALFA wonder boy should finally see a resolution to his case in February.

None of this is set in stone; we'll update the status of these three trials if more information becomes available.

Reader Accuses Bill Jordan of Skate Park Neglect

 

At one time, the City of Florence bragged that its skate park was of the same caliber as parks in much larger cities. Now a reader is accusing Park & Recreation director Bill Jordan (son of council president Dick Jordan) of total neglect of the facility.

From a reader:

The Florence skate park just off Chisholm Rd. is about 20 to 25 years old. Since it was built it has had no upkeep. The park is open seven days a week and sees a lot of use from skateboarders, rollerbladers, and young kids on moto-cross bikes. Things are literally falling apart and Bill Jordan has not answered requests for maintenance let alone any new equipment. We'll be complaining to the Florence City council about this neglect in an upcoming meeting. Please join us.

Obviously a park this old needs regular maintenance. Let's hope Mr. Jordan puts this facility at the top of the list to upgrade. We don't want to see any of these skateboarders on city streets. What say you, Mr. Jordan?

Now Steve Marshall Wants to Prosecute Rape Victims

 

The last published polls indicate 65% of Alabama citizens believe induced abortion should be available to women who become pregnant as the result of rape. Unfortunately, the state's legislature is not currently allowing that option for these victims.

Now Attorney General Steve Marshall has carried it even farther. If you've been keeping up, you know that the federal government has stated it's legal to send abortion drugs through the mail. Marshall has now shot back that any woman who takes such drugs received via the mail will be criminally charged. 

In case any have doubts about Marshall's policy, the U.S. government will sue the state, and Alabama (that's us tax-paying citizens) will be required to shell out thousands of dollars to defend an unwinnable lawsuit. Oh, and in case you're also wondering about this, Marshall has not yet officially charged those state industries revealed to be using under-aged labor. He certainly cares about children, doesn't he?

Do You Ever Wonder Why Steve Marshall's Wife Killed Herself?

No, the FPD Isn't "After Him"

 

Someone sent us a link to a statement made by one of our regular bad boys. In this post, the frequent flyer claims the Florence Police Department is "after him." He also mentions another blog that has posted articles on his numerous arrests.

Did we say numerous? Since February 2018, this local bad boy has had at least 23 separate arrests. That's not counting charges - just arrests. Does anyone the right side of the law actually think the police have it in for this offender? Does anyone think these arrests have been the fault of anyone but the offender himself?

Sure, there may be a few dishonest law enforcement officers out there, but most are simply doing their duty in protecting Florence and Lauderdale County. That includes county judges who have also issued warrants for this man. 

Before you blame the police for this man's troubles, take a look at the charges against him. That goes for a few others who claim that they're totally innocent and merely the victim of a vendetta or envy. 

Florence police officers do their job...and for that we're very grateful. 

Is Time up for Dr. Von Braun in Huntsville?

 

Wernher von Braun died over 45 years ago. Each year that passes brings more information concerning his Nazi past. Needless to say that's problematic; he was obviously a terribly flawed genius whose early allegiance was to whomever would help him achieve his goals. That never stopped the City of Huntsville from honoring the onetime SS member with accolades at every turn.

You may not read it in the Huntsville Times, but the news outlet Forward has reported that a bust of the rocket scientist was removed some time ago from the Space and Rocket Center Museum. Even more recently, a non-political Von Braun quote was taken down from the walls of the museum. 

Alabama Museum Removes Quote

Honors to former Nazis are not rare; Forward has reported over 1,500 such monuments, etc., worldwide. The most interesting aspect of this mini-purge is the lack of news coverage. It hasn't been that long since the removal of a Confederate memorial made front page news, but this? Zilch in Madison County. Surely Kyle Whitmire or Josh Moon has something to say about these events?

Note: You have to pay to read Forward. If you're looking for a completely free source of news on events not often covered in this state, try the JTA.