Last year an inmate died in the Houston County Jail due to medical issues — but some new tech for the Houston County Sheriff’s Office could help prevent that happening again.
That tech comes in the form of sensors from 4Sight Labs worn around the wrist or ankle that allow jail staff to monitor inmates’ health vitals using a cell phone with an app installed.
Sheriff Donald Valenza paid for the sensors from his funds. The 15 sensors the jail now has billed about $50,000, aside from upkeep costs.
They’re not easily destroyed, and the wristband is lockable with a 300-pound resistance, said Captain David Asbill.
The county jail typically has six to eight inmates on suicide watch on any given day, but the sensors can help people with health issues or those recovering from drug or alcohol withdrawals.
Staff can watch for pulse spikes or temperature fluctuations and can go check on the inmate if anything looks off.
Shelby County has been using the sensors for under two years, and they’ve been able to save three lives.
Some certified nursing assistants have stepped in on nights to supply medical care, but these sensors will allow for much quicker action.
“You could check on an inmate right now, then two minutes later, you could have a medical emergency,” Asbill said. “This monitor will let us know immediately.”
Art in Public Places announced a new mural will be coming to Dothan celebrating the Press Thornton Future Masters Golf Tournament.
Muralist Wes Hardin will pain the mural on the side of the BLP building at the corner or Main Street and Cherokee Avenue — along the route to the Dothan County Club, where the tournament is held every year.
“We’re overjoyed to launch Art in Public Places’ first mural in partnership with a long-standing community event that continues to bring people together from around the world,” said Holly Meyers, Executive Director of APP. “This mural reflects our goal of creating meaningful public art in places where people already live, work, and move through every day.”
Gov. Kay Ivey signed a bill authorizing the state ABC Board to tax, regulate and restrict the sales of consumable products containing marijuana THC, derived from hemp.
The move comes amid strong public pressure to veto the bill.
HB445’s sponsor, Rep. Andy Whitt (R – Harvest) said it will regulate products widely available in specialty shops, convenience stores and online.
Retailers will need to get a license from the ABC Board to sell products containing THC, with access limited to stores for people 21 and older. Grocery stores over a certain square footage will be able to sell seltzers, but those products will be kept behind the counter in the same manner as cigarettes.
Smokable and vaporized hemp products will be banned. Gummies and drinks are still legal, but they’re now capped at 10 milligrams for individual products and 40 milligrams per package.
It’s unclear if the bill would ban CBD products.
The Alabama Policy Institute said the bill effectively legalizes recreation marijuana, but the bill’s detractors say the bill will cost people their jobs and entire businesses and that the bill will make it harder for people with pain, anxiety or sleep troubles to have access to the products they need.
Employees at the Cedar Springs Containerboard mill in Georgia were told today that Georgia-Pacific plans to permanently close the operation later this year. Most positions will be eliminated by August 1, 2025. All jobs at the Cedar Springs mill will eventually be impacted.
Various factors influenced this difficult decision. Ultimately, we do not believe that the mill can competitively serve our customers in the long term. This decision has nothing to do with the quality of work of Georgia-Pacific’s employees at the Cedar Springs mill.
Approximately 535 jobs will be impacted by this closure. Production will continue for a limited time as the site works to fulfill customer commitments.
Georgia-Pacific’s focus in the coming weeks and months is to continue to safely operate while supporting our employees during the transition.
Georgia-Pacific is committed to treating all Cedar Springs employees with dignity and respect and will work with them to provide access to local support agencies and job placement resources, including available opportunities within Georgia-Pacific or other Koch companies.
DALE COUNTY: HEY DALE COUNTY … you do not need to call Alexander … it is time to CALL BOB …
For the past five weeks the air conditioning has been out in the Dale County Courthouse. The third floor where the Circuit Clerk’s Office is located and people are sentenced to prison in Circuit Court … and when receiving a prison sentence you do not want the Judge hot before he announced sentence!!!
Temperatures have soared to about 91 degrees.
The Circuit Clerk’s Office attended the Dale County Commission meeting this morning. The last thing you ever want is a lot of women MAD AT YOU.
They have been awaiting parts from China.
Maybe Ozark Attorney Will Matthews’ son working in the Trump administration can get the president to use his new plane to ship those parts.
There was discussion to move the Clerk’s Office out of the Dale County Courthouse to a rental building. That will take a lot of work and trips for AOC to Dale County to connect all of the electronics. In addition still a lot of running because three Judges have air. Those three will still have court in the courthouse.
Under former Dale County Commission Chairman Mark Blankenship the courthouse was renovated. Guess they did not do anything with the air conditioner.
