10 secluded beaches from Coastal Living magazine

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. — Looking for a beautiful beach without the crowds? Coastal Living magazine recommends 10 secluded beach destinations in its June issue.

Alabama man arrested for trying to pass a fake $100 bill at McDonald’s

MADISON, Ala. — Police have arrested a man for trying to pass a fake $100 bill at McDonald’s, leading to a find of $16,000 more in counterfeit C-notes. Police said the man was arrested Monday after an employee at McDonald’s reported someone trying to pass a counterfeit $100 bill. A preliminary investigation led police to find $6,200 in counterfeit $100s in his possession.

AP Interview: Former NASA head casts critical eye on Obama team’s slowdown on new space plan

HUNTSVILLE, Ala. — Michael Griffin has moved from the administrator’s suite atop NASA headquarters in Washington to the small, bare office of a new engineering professor at the University of Alabama in Huntsville.

Ala. killer who taunted victim’s mom on Internet with grisly postings from prison is executed

ATMORE, Ala. — An Alabama death row inmate who taunted his victim’s mother with grisly, graphic drawings and writings on the Internet has been executed.

Clerks beware: Hotels in 4 states hit by costly prank calls; Authorities say felonies possible

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. — The calls have all been similar pranks: A frantic man urges hotel desk workers or guests to set off a fire sprinkler, sound an alarm or bust windows. It’s always the same: Do it now!

Alabama governor says state won’t shelter as many out-of-state evacuees from hurricanes

MONTGOMERY, Ala. — Alabama has a message for its neighbors: Don’t count on us next time you need shelter from a storm. And it’s not because Louisiana evacuees made a mess last time they came.

Alabama thieves steal ATM with backhoe, but plan backfires after ATM falls off flatbed trailer

PHENIX CITY, Ala. — Ripping an ATM from its concrete base isn’t easy. Losing it seems even harder. Thieves at an Alabama bank managed to do both. Phenix City Police Chief Ray Smith said the thieves used a stolen backhoe, a pickup truck and a flatbed trailer to pull off the job at a Wachovia branch in the eastern Alabama city early Monday.

Costs cited as Ala. decides to pull inmates from private prison where 2 escaped

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. — Alabama will remove its 250 inmates from a privately run prison where two convicts escaped last month and were only recaptured after a shootout with police in North Dakota.

Ala. officials: Tons of TVA coal ash, about 35,000 railcars’ worth, coming to state landfill

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. — The nation’s largest public utility plans to dispose of millions of tons of coal ash from a massive spill in Tennessee into a giant landfill in one of Alabama’s poorest counties, state environmental officials said Friday.

Muster up! Golden Age Games give aging veterans a chance to compete, share memories

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. — William Trumbly was in combat almost from the moment he hit the ground on Normandy Beach in 1944 shortly after D-Day until he was wounded at the Battle of the Bulge. When the first shots were fired in his direction, he sought divine intervention.

Alabama’s ‘Ten Commandments’ judge, Roy Moore, running for governor again as Republican

MONTGOMERY, Ala. — An Alabama judge known for refusing to move a granite monument of the Ten Commandments from the lobby of the state’s judicial building is again running for governor, with his message Monday going beyond his longstanding call for the government to acknowledge God.

10 Commandments judge’s Web site says he’s running for Ala. governor again in 2010 elections

MONTGOMERY, Ala. — Alabama’s Ten Commandments judge is running for governor again.

NTSB: 2 pilots in air collision over Alabama college campus planned the aerial stunts

DECATUR, Ala. — A report says two pilots whose experimental planes collided in the air over a college campus in Decatur, Ala., killing one of them, had planned to perform aerial stunts while spectators took photos.

Drummond Company, Ala.-based coal firm, denies allegations in suit regarding Colombia violence

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. — An Alabama-based coal company on Friday denied claims made in a lawsuit that it funded a paramilitary group allegedly responsible for dozens of killings in Colombia, where the firm operates a large mine and railroad.

Alabama golfers hit back-to-back aces after both balls stop behind hole and spin back

MUSCLE SHOALS, Ala. — Pierre Fournier and Ken Osborne hit back-to-back holes in one — just not necessarily in that order. Playing in the same five-person group, Fournier teed off first, but his ball landed some eight feet past the hole, rolled back to the cup and didn’t go in until after Osborne’s had gone in. The two Muscle Shoals golfers managed that bizarre feat at Cypress Lakes Golf and Country Club recently on the 112-yard par 3 12th hole.

‘Old South’ fraternity again facing complaints over Confederate flags, uniforms on campus

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. — A white fraternity that traces its roots to the Civil War and Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee is again facing complaints over its antebellum-themed events.

Ala. Army officer accused in $2.8M bribery scheme with Georgia firm supplying Iraq, Kuwait

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. — An Alabama Army major and his wife are accused of taking $2.8 million in bribes from a Georgia contractor who received about $21 million for delivering bottled water and building fences in Kuwait and Iraq.

Businesses, homes damaged by storms across the South; officials keep close eye on flooding

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. — More than 100 homes and businesses were damaged in the South by strong winds, heavy rains and golf ball-sized hail Wednesday, and with more rain in the forecast, officials increased the flow of water through dams to ease swollen rivers, including the Mississippi.

More than 100 homes, businesses damaged in South by strong winds, heavy rains and hail

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. — More than 100 homes and businesses were damaged in the South by strong winds, heavy rains and golf ball-sized hail Wednesday, and with more rain in the forecast, officials increased the flow of water through dams to ease swollen rivers, including the Mississippi.

Southern storms hit Alabama for 2nd day; possible tornado traps family in mobile home

TUSKEGEE, Ala. — A day after heavy wind, rain and hail damaged homes across the South, torrential rains and possible tornadoes hit central Alabama on Thursday, flooding roads and briefly trapping a family when a tree fell on their mobile home.

Southern storms hit Alabama for 2nd day; possible tornado traps family in mobile home

MONTGOMERY, Ala. — A day after heavy wind, rain and hail damaged homes across the South, torrential rains and possible tornadoes hit central Alabama on Thursday, flooding roads and briefly trapping a family when a tree fell on their mobile home.

Storm crossing the South, bringing possible tornadoes, damaging homes; flood threats raised

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. — A storm front with severe weather settled across the South on Wednesday with heavy rains, a possible tornado in Alabama and damage to about 100 homes throughout the region.

New storm front crosses South, brings possible tornadoes, damage; flood threats raised

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. — A storm front with severe weather is settling on the South, bringing heavy rains and a possible tornado in Alabama.

From Alabama to New York, swine flu prompts cancellations and rescheduling of sports events

MONTGOMERY, Ala. — The swine flu outbreak has forced the cancellation or postponement of sporting events across the country, affecting everything from prep contests in Texas and Alabama to a college baseball road trip in Delaware.

Alabama man sleeps with a 40-caliber pistol and accidentally shoots himself in the shoulder

NORTHPORT, Ala. — A 24-year-old man likely will rethink his habit of sleeping with a gun after police said his 40-caliber pistol discharged and hit him in the shoulder on Wednesday. A police detective said the wound was not life threatening.

Judge hands down death sentence for Ala. who threw 4 kids from a bridge

MOBILE, Ala. — A judge has sentenced an Alabama man to death for killing four young children by tossing them from a bridge.

Swine flu fears prompt Ala. officials to cancel all high school sports events

MONTGOMERY, Ala. — The Alabama High School Athletic Association has canceled all athletic events because of concerns about swine flu.

Injured NASCAR fan released from hospital after reconstructive jaw surgery

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. — A teenager who was injured during Talladega’s NASCAR race has been released from the hospital.

Driver whose crash led to restrictor plates at Talladega believes risk is part of attraction

TALLADEGA, Ala. — Bobby Allison left Talladega Superspeedway before Carl Edwards’ car hurled into the safety fence and showered the stands with debris.

Ala. officers chase, kill man they say murdered 3, wounded 1 at spot where truck killed son

FAIRHOPE, Ala. — A man who blamed his estranged wife for their 4-year-old son’s death in a traffic accident shot her and killed three people she’d been staying with, then died in a gunbattle with police, authorities said Monday.