Former Director and Daughter Charged in Theft from Poverty Agency
Federal prosecutors say the former head of a poverty agency in Jefferson County and her daughter have agreed to plead guilty in a nearly $500,000 theft.
Authorities say 63-year-old Ruth Gayle Cunningham has agreed to repay $492,195 to the Jefferson County Committee for Economic Opportunity, where she was director for more than 20 years before quitting in March. JCCEO is a community action agency that administers programs including Head Start, for low-income and disadvantaged residents.
Her 31-year-old daughter, Kelli E. Caufield, agreed to repay $253,499 to the agency.
Prosecutors said Friday the women have agreed to plead guilty to stealing money from a government program that receives federal assistance.
Authorities say Caufield prepared false invoices that her mother submitted to the agency to get money she wasn’t due.
Two men from are charged in a mortgage fraud scheme that led to the fraud being uncovered.
Birmingham is 3rd worst in the Southeast for ozone pollution, new report says
The American Lung Association's "State of the Air" report shows some metro areas in the Gulf States continue to have poor air quality.
Why haven’t Kansas and Alabama — among other holdouts — expanded access to Medicaid?
Only 10 states have not joined the federal program that expands Medicaid to people who are still in the "coverage gap" for health care
Once praised, settlement to help sickened BP oil spill workers leaves most with nearly nothing
Thousands of ordinary people who helped clean up after the 2010 BP oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico say they got sick. A court settlement was supposed to help compensate them, but it hasn’t turned out as expected.
Q&A: How harm reduction can help mitigate the opioid crisis
Maia Szalavitz discusses harm reduction's effectiveness against drug addiction, how punitive policies can hurt people who need pain medication and more.
The Gulf States Newsroom is hiring a Community Engagement Producer
The Gulf States Newsroom is seeking a curious, creative and collaborative professional to work with our regional team to build up engaged journalism efforts.
Gambling bills face uncertain future in the Alabama legislature
This year looked to be different for lottery and gambling legislation, which has fallen short for years in the Alabama legislature. But this week, with only a handful of meeting days left, competing House and Senate proposals were sent to a conference committee to work out differences.
