Ralph Chapoco

Ralph Chapoco

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Ralph Chapoco is a senior reporter for the Alabama Reflector. Prior to that, he was the political watchdog reporter for Florida Today, covering local politicians and the impact their policies have on the community. He began as an education reporter for a year and half for the Rio Grande Sun in New Mexico and the North Platte Telegraph in North Platte, Nebraska. Afterward, he spent more than three years at the Washington County Daily News as the local political journalist.

Alabama Public Library Service staff, board at odds over new compliance employee
Alabama

Alabama Public Library Service staff, board at odds over new compliance employee

Aug 21, 2026
Ralph Chapoco
Alabama Public Library Service staff Thursday advised members of the APLS board to not fill a position created to assist libraries with compliance with controversial administrative code changes over the last two years. Pennie Broussard, who works in the human...
SPLC seeks jury pool expansion ahead of criminal trial
Alabama

SPLC seeks jury pool expansion ahead of criminal trial

Aug 19, 2026
Ralph Chapoco
Attorneys for the Southern Poverty Law Center Wednesday filed a motion asking a federal court to take steps during jury selection to protect a trial of the organization from bias. The motion requests that the court consider expanding the pool...
Report: Children in the Black Belt see worse health, education outcomes
Alabama

Report: Children in the Black Belt see worse health, education outcomes

Aug 19, 2026
Ralph Chapoco
Children raised in the Black Belt continue to see worse health and education outcomes than the state as a whole, University of Alabama researchers said at a press briefing on Monday. In the 24 counties that stretch across the southern...
Alabama Department of Corrections signs contract with ICE
Alabama

Alabama Department of Corrections signs contract with ICE

Aug 17, 2026
Ralph Chapoco
The Alabama Department of Corrections signed an agreement in July with Immigration and Customs Enforcement to assist the federal agency to identify and process immigrants with pending or active criminal charges. According to an ICE spreadsheet updated last week on...
Rural, impoverished areas of Alabama lack access to attorneys
Alabama

Rural, impoverished areas of Alabama lack access to attorneys

Aug 17, 2026
Ralph Chapoco
Key points According to a nonprofit, almost two-thirds of counties in Alabama are legal deserts, defined as having less than one attorney per 1,000 people. The shortages are particularly acute in impoverished areas and minority communities, limiting access to legal...
Alabama carries out first execution of 2026
Alabama

Alabama carries out first execution of 2026

Aug 13, 2026
Ralph Chapoco
The state of Alabama Thursday executed Jeremy Williams, 41, for his role in the sexual assault and murder of a 5-year-old girl in 2021. Williams, who waived his appeals, was executed by lethal injection. “I want to thank God for...
U.S. Department of Justice files new charges against Southern Poverty Law Center
Alabama

U.S. Department of Justice files new charges against Southern Poverty Law Center

Aug 13, 2026
Ralph Chapoco
The U.S. Department of Justice Tuesday filed a superseding indictment in its prosecution of the Southern Poverty Law Center in April. The updated criminal complaint increased the number of charges filed against the SPLC from 11 to 14 and included...
Alabama plans to carry out first execution of 2026
Alabama

Alabama plans to carry out first execution of 2026

Aug 13, 2026
Ralph Chapoco
The state of Alabama plans to conduct its first execution of 2026 on Thursday, putting to death a man convicted of capital murder for the murder and sexual assault of a 5-year-old girl in Russell County in December 2021. Jeremy...
Federal judge denies Southern Poverty Law Center’s motion to dismiss criminal charges
Alabama

Federal judge denies Southern Poverty Law Center’s motion to dismiss criminal charges

Aug 11, 2026
Ralph Chapoco
A federal court judge Friday denied a motion from the Southern Poverty Law Center to dismiss criminal charges filed by the U.S. Department of Justice over a program that paid informants to gather intelligence on extremist groups. U.S. District Judge...
Alabama Department of Corrections could pay private attorney additional $38 million
Alabama

Alabama Department of Corrections could pay private attorney additional $38 million

Aug 07, 2026
Ralph Chapoco
A state representative Thursday blocked two contracts between the Alabama Department of Corrections and a private attorney that would pay the attorney an additional $33 million, saying ADOC needed to provide answers on how it plans to resolve lawsuits in...
Voting Rights Act commemoration comes with warnings after Supreme Court rulings
Alabama

Voting Rights Act commemoration comes with warnings after Supreme Court rulings

Aug 06, 2026
Ralph Chapoco
The Southern Poverty Law Center Thursday commemorated the 61st anniversary of the Voting Rights Act amid ongoing attacks on the landmark legislation. Speakers at the event celebrated the impact of the law, which reversed decades of disenfranchisement across the South...
Alabama Ethics Commission commissioners want closer look at ‘revolving door’ issue
Alabama

Alabama Ethics Commission commissioners want closer look at ‘revolving door’ issue

Aug 06, 2026
Ralph Chapoco
The Alabama Ethics Commission Wednesday delayed consideration of an advisory opinion that said the state’s ethics laws do not prevent a former state agency worker from establishing a business with clients seeking to contract with the same state agency. Several...