Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
All right, joining us now former law enforcement officer Scott
(00:02):
Morrows here and now attorney and not real happy about
what's going to be happening in October. Is Chris Brown?
Quite the controversial rapper for former very popular, But this
is the guy that I remember the five shots in
a San Jose concert in twenty fifteen, and was sued
for attacking concert goers in twenty twenty four, has been
(00:27):
arrested number of times, probation revoked, used to beat up
Rihanna all the time. And now Birmingham thought it'd be
a good idea to bring him to town. And I
would imagine they'll probably be a pretty big turnout at
Protective Stadium in October when he shows up. But I
mean a place holds forty what forty five forty seven
thousand people?
Speaker 2 (00:46):
Good morning JT morn Why Chris Brown? Come on, Birmingham,
you can do better. You have Garth Brooks and then
the first person you bring back to Protective Stadium is
Chris Brown. I'm waiting for It's going to be like
New Year's Eve with the shootings. And I've ruffled the
feathers of my colleagues, my Birmingham friends. I don't think
they're staffed appropriately. I don't think it's a good idea
(01:08):
to bring a controversial rap artist to protective stadium when
you're looking forward to that whole area being safe for
the amphitheater, and you bring in Chris Brown. And while
I don't want shootings, we don't want you know, we
want it to be as safe as can be.
Speaker 3 (01:24):
But it's going to be outside.
Speaker 2 (01:25):
They're going to have big screens, they're going to be
people in the surrounding areas.
Speaker 3 (01:30):
It's just an invitation for crime.
Speaker 1 (01:32):
Well, and Birmingham is certainly facing some controversy about the
situation with crime and the murder rate last year, and
the Mayor's been under fire. The police chief the last
one resigned and moved on, wanted out, couldn't do his job.
Mayor wouldn't let him be the cop he needed to be,
or let his staff be the cops they need to
(01:54):
be to really fight crime. We've talked about you got
to have the will to do it, and there's just
not the will.
Speaker 3 (01:59):
To that's right, Jay Tea. And it really hasn't changed.
You know.
Speaker 2 (02:01):
They made interim chief Michael Pickett the permanent chief. He
doesn't have an understanding of reasonable suspicion and probable cause.
He's been the Mayor's security detail and he rose through
the ranks in that way. I just don't have confidence
in the upper level leadership of the police department, including
(02:22):
the mayor, to provide safety to the citizens that attend
these events. And you know, while uptown is doing great,
and there's been some good events at Protective Stadium, why
bring in Chris Brown? I just you know, call in somebody,
tell us that it's going.
Speaker 3 (02:40):
To be safe at the Chris Brown concert.
Speaker 1 (02:43):
Sure our phones are open A two of five four
three nine nine three seven two four three nine nine
three seven two good idea to bring in controversial acts
like this. And they're building the new Amphitheater, trying to
make that a big splash, and I can't wait for
some of the great shows that are going to be
there like that. But once again, do you really want
to say up a table for the potential of something
(03:03):
going that wrong? And I'm not saying it will, but
you know the reality is Birmingham's a kind of a
hotbed right now for crime, and I don't think the
worms turned. I've invited the Mayor on numerous times. He
used to come in here all the time. Rick Journey
was his uh you know, I guess uh. Public Information
Officers p IO handles his events. And it seems that
(03:25):
mayor is always busy and can't find time to come
in here, and he used to come in here all
the time.
Speaker 2 (03:29):
But I do have breaking news. There is an announcement
they will be selling bulletproof vests at the concession stand
for the Brown Stop. I mean, I don't mean to
make fun, but it's that serious. You know, you want
to go there, you better be you know, be protected
and the worst and hopeful the best, right. You better
be aware of your surround is all I could say.
Speaker 3 (03:49):
Well, yeah, I don't. I don't know that.
Speaker 1 (03:52):
It's just been a lot of controversy around Chris Brown
and he always seems to bring you know, cloud of
you know, trouble.
Speaker 2 (03:59):
It just doesn't make sense to invite that type of
act in when.
Speaker 1 (04:02):
You're trying to change the perception of your city and
improve that's the criminal situation. Scott Morrow is in the
studio where U's here, former law enforcement and a lawyer,
defense attorney. And also I'm just finding out, well, you
learn something new every day. Also a prosecutor in Morris.
You're a prosecutor as well. Yeah, you know, we have
some of these side gigs JT.
Speaker 2 (04:22):
Where we do we prosecute or to judge and I
live up in Gardendale and it's just helping the community
do in prosecution.
Speaker 3 (04:29):
Okay.
Speaker 2 (04:30):
We have court once a month and we just prosecute
the cases that the police and Marris bring to us
and treat people fair and make them hold them accountable
for what they do.
Speaker 3 (04:40):
You know. Good?
Speaker 1 (04:41):
All right, Well, let's talk about what's going on in
Tearrand here. What a tangled when we weave the mayor,
the chief and an activist. All right, let's start with
the mayor. What started all of the problems there and
what's going on now?
Speaker 2 (04:52):
Mayor put the chief on administrative leave. Wendell Major. The
mayor instructed a couple of his officers, want to s
sergeant another I think another sergeant to go into.
Speaker 3 (05:03):
The chief's office. It was on video, it was also audio.
Speaker 1 (05:08):
Why did he instruct them to go into the office
and did they break in or just walk in?
Speaker 2 (05:12):
They broke in, it was locked. They shouldn't have gone
in there. But at the behest of the mayor, they
went in and the mayor wanted them to gather whatever
they could find on Wendell Major to disparage Wendell Major. Well,
that has been done a while ago. But a local activist, Winborne,
put it on Facebook as just a criticism of the mayor.
(05:34):
He didn't name anybody, He just said, look at what
has happened at the behest of the mayor.
Speaker 3 (05:38):
You know, it's electioncies.
Speaker 1 (05:40):
In most cities, the mayor is the police chief's boss.
The chief serves at the pleasure of the mayor, at
least in Hoover, Birmingham. Is that the case in Terrence.
Speaker 3 (05:51):
It's not the case in Tarrant.
Speaker 2 (05:52):
The police chief serves at the behest of the city
council in conjunction.
Speaker 3 (05:57):
With the mayor to do policy.
Speaker 2 (06:00):
But generally police chiefs have autonomy because they shouldn't mingle
with the administrative people.
Speaker 1 (06:05):
Okay, So the activist calls out the mayor for doing
this what happened.
Speaker 3 (06:10):
Puts it on Facebook.
Speaker 2 (06:11):
The sergeant that had just been terminated recently went to
the Jefferson County Sheriff's Department, did a report. The report
and the officers indicate that it was a civil matter.
But he went to the Jefferson County magistrate and got
a criminal warrant for defamation, which is highly unusual and unlikely.
Speaker 3 (06:35):
We were kind of.
Speaker 1 (06:35):
Shocked while the time of saying, look, the mayor told
me to do this, he's like the city leader. So
I went in there and did it, and now I'm
being dragged through the mud.
Speaker 3 (06:43):
Was his point.
Speaker 2 (06:44):
That was his point is that Winborne should not have
put on him that he broke into anything. But he
never did state it was this particular individual. The individual
goes to the magistrate and somehow the magistrate gives him
this warrant. We have to turn The activist turned himself
in and subsequently I called and we tried to get
(07:06):
involved with the case. I did a notice of appearance
case number. But then the DA they emailed me and
said the case was dismissed, that the facts do not
show a crime was committed. Which so it's right as
we sit here today, everything's okay, except people should be
afraid that you can go to a magistrate and get
a criminal warrant on defamation, which is unusual.
Speaker 1 (07:29):
That's a civil matter, okay, Normally that's a lawsuit that's
handled in civil court.
Speaker 3 (07:34):
Now criminal court, but you can go to jail for it.
Speaker 2 (07:37):
And hopefully because of this incident we had, Joseph Bryant
had some great articles on at JT and people will
now know. You know, you don't go to it's not
a criminal matter defamation, it's a civil.
Speaker 1 (07:49):
Well, now all this is out there that the mayor
apparently doesn't like the police chiefs. The police chief still
there is the out or.
Speaker 2 (07:56):
We Wendell Major has survived the attacks of the may
The mayor is losing credibility every day.
Speaker 3 (08:03):
As you know.
Speaker 2 (08:03):
He's gone out to Lipscomb, and now there's a bunch
of controversy in Lipscomb because Mayor Newton is now the
city attorney for the city of Lipscomb, Alabama. There's a
bunch of controversy out there. But I think the trant
is moving forward. There's an election season going on. I
think things are going to improve. Where does the council
stand on all this? The council supports the police chief
(08:28):
and all the employees of the city, and they're trying
to gain their feet and do the right thing and.
Speaker 3 (08:34):
Follow the law.
Speaker 2 (08:36):
They've got some great attorneys representing them with the council
has an attorney. The city has an attorney. I'm involved
with the employees. So I think the council is finally
realizing the power that they have to control their city
and set the policy and demand that the mayor.
Speaker 3 (08:52):
Followed the policy.
Speaker 1 (08:52):
When's the election August so they could just vote him out?
Speaker 2 (08:56):
Well they could, or who knows what's going to happen
JJ politics these days?
Speaker 1 (09:01):
Question Mark sounds like a podcast to me.
Speaker 3 (09:04):
Yeah, I know, let's do it.
Speaker 1 (09:05):
Well, let's keep in touch on this one and let
us know what happens. If there's anything that changes between
now and August, we'll get you back in and see
what's happening.
Speaker 3 (09:14):
Yeah.
Speaker 2 (09:14):
Follow Joseph Bryan on ail dot com. He's really got
all the news on this topic. All right, Very good
Scott tomorrow. Good to see you brother, Thank you, JT.
Always a pleasure. Happy Easter, Yes, sir, you too,
All right, joining us now former law enforcement officer Scott
(00:02):
Morrows here and now attorney and not real happy about
what's going to be happening in October. Is Chris Brown?
Quite the controversial rapper for former very popular, But this
is the guy that I remember the five shots in
a San Jose concert in twenty fifteen, and was sued
for attacking concert goers in twenty twenty four, has been
(00:27):
arrested number of times, probation revoked, used to beat up
Rihanna all the time. And now Birmingham thought it'd be
a good idea to bring him to town. And I
would imagine they'll probably be a pretty big turnout at
Protective Stadium in October when he shows up. But I
mean a place holds forty what forty five forty seven
thousand people?
Speaker 2 (00:46):
Good morning JT morn Why Chris Brown? Come on, Birmingham,
you can do better. You have Garth Brooks and then
the first person you bring back to Protective Stadium is
Chris Brown. I'm waiting for It's going to be like
New Year's Eve with the shootings. And I've ruffled the
feathers of my colleagues, my Birmingham friends. I don't think
they're staffed appropriately. I don't think it's a good idea
(01:08):
to bring a controversial rap artist to protective stadium when
you're looking forward to that whole area being safe for
the amphitheater, and you bring in Chris Brown. And while
I don't want shootings, we don't want you know, we
want it to be as safe as can be.
Speaker 3 (01:24):
But it's going to be outside.
Speaker 2 (01:25):
They're going to have big screens, they're going to be
people in the surrounding areas.
Speaker 3 (01:30):
It's just an invitation for crime.
Speaker 1 (01:32):
Well, and Birmingham is certainly facing some controversy about the
situation with crime and the murder rate last year, and
the Mayor's been under fire. The police chief the last
one resigned and moved on, wanted out, couldn't do his job.
Mayor wouldn't let him be the cop he needed to be,
or let his staff be the cops they need to
(01:54):
be to really fight crime. We've talked about you got
to have the will to do it, and there's just
not the will.
Speaker 3 (01:59):
To that's right, Jay Tea. And it really hasn't changed.
You know.
Speaker 2 (02:01):
They made interim chief Michael Pickett the permanent chief. He
doesn't have an understanding of reasonable suspicion and probable cause.
He's been the Mayor's security detail and he rose through
the ranks in that way. I just don't have confidence
in the upper level leadership of the police department, including
(02:22):
the mayor, to provide safety to the citizens that attend
these events. And you know, while uptown is doing great,
and there's been some good events at Protective Stadium, why
bring in Chris Brown? I just you know, call in somebody,
tell us that it's going.
Speaker 3 (02:40):
To be safe at the Chris Brown concert.
Speaker 1 (02:43):
Sure our phones are open A two of five four
three nine nine three seven two four three nine nine
three seven two good idea to bring in controversial acts
like this. And they're building the new Amphitheater, trying to
make that a big splash, and I can't wait for
some of the great shows that are going to be
there like that. But once again, do you really want
to say up a table for the potential of something
(03:03):
going that wrong? And I'm not saying it will, but
you know the reality is Birmingham's a kind of a
hotbed right now for crime, and I don't think the
worms turned. I've invited the Mayor on numerous times. He
used to come in here all the time. Rick Journey
was his uh you know, I guess uh. Public Information
Officers p IO handles his events. And it seems that
(03:25):
mayor is always busy and can't find time to come
in here, and he used to come in here all
the time.
Speaker 2 (03:29):
But I do have breaking news. There is an announcement
they will be selling bulletproof vests at the concession stand
for the Brown Stop. I mean, I don't mean to
make fun, but it's that serious. You know, you want
to go there, you better be you know, be protected
and the worst and hopeful the best, right. You better
be aware of your surround is all I could say.
Speaker 3 (03:49):
Well, yeah, I don't. I don't know that.
Speaker 1 (03:52):
It's just been a lot of controversy around Chris Brown
and he always seems to bring you know, cloud of
you know, trouble.
Speaker 2 (03:59):
It just doesn't make sense to invite that type of
act in when.
Speaker 1 (04:02):
You're trying to change the perception of your city and
improve that's the criminal situation. Scott Morrow is in the
studio where U's here, former law enforcement and a lawyer,
defense attorney. And also I'm just finding out, well, you
learn something new every day. Also a prosecutor in Morris.
You're a prosecutor as well. Yeah, you know, we have
some of these side gigs JT.
Speaker 2 (04:22):
Where we do we prosecute or to judge and I
live up in Gardendale and it's just helping the community
do in prosecution.
Speaker 3 (04:29):
Okay.
Speaker 2 (04:30):
We have court once a month and we just prosecute
the cases that the police and Marris bring to us
and treat people fair and make them hold them accountable
for what they do.
Speaker 3 (04:40):
You know. Good?
Speaker 1 (04:41):
All right, Well, let's talk about what's going on in
Tearrand here. What a tangled when we weave the mayor,
the chief and an activist. All right, let's start with
the mayor. What started all of the problems there and
what's going on now?
Speaker 2 (04:52):
Mayor put the chief on administrative leave. Wendell Major. The
mayor instructed a couple of his officers, want to s
sergeant another I think another sergeant to go into.
Speaker 3 (05:03):
The chief's office. It was on video, it was also audio.
Speaker 1 (05:08):
Why did he instruct them to go into the office
and did they break in or just walk in?
Speaker 2 (05:12):
They broke in, it was locked. They shouldn't have gone
in there. But at the behest of the mayor, they
went in and the mayor wanted them to gather whatever
they could find on Wendell Major to disparage Wendell Major. Well,
that has been done a while ago. But a local activist, Winborne,
put it on Facebook as just a criticism of the mayor.
(05:34):
He didn't name anybody, He just said, look at what
has happened at the behest of the mayor.
Speaker 3 (05:38):
You know, it's electioncies.
Speaker 1 (05:40):
In most cities, the mayor is the police chief's boss.
The chief serves at the pleasure of the mayor, at
least in Hoover, Birmingham. Is that the case in Terrence.
Speaker 3 (05:51):
It's not the case in Tarrant.
Speaker 2 (05:52):
The police chief serves at the behest of the city
council in conjunction.
Speaker 3 (05:57):
With the mayor to do policy.
Speaker 2 (06:00):
But generally police chiefs have autonomy because they shouldn't mingle
with the administrative people.
Speaker 1 (06:05):
Okay, So the activist calls out the mayor for doing
this what happened.
Speaker 3 (06:10):
Puts it on Facebook.
Speaker 2 (06:11):
The sergeant that had just been terminated recently went to
the Jefferson County Sheriff's Department, did a report. The report
and the officers indicate that it was a civil matter.
But he went to the Jefferson County magistrate and got
a criminal warrant for defamation, which is highly unusual and unlikely.
Speaker 3 (06:35):
We were kind of.
Speaker 1 (06:35):
Shocked while the time of saying, look, the mayor told
me to do this, he's like the city leader. So
I went in there and did it, and now I'm
being dragged through the mud.
Speaker 3 (06:43):
Was his point.
Speaker 2 (06:44):
That was his point is that Winborne should not have
put on him that he broke into anything. But he
never did state it was this particular individual. The individual
goes to the magistrate and somehow the magistrate gives him
this warrant. We have to turn The activist turned himself
in and subsequently I called and we tried to get
(07:06):
involved with the case. I did a notice of appearance
case number. But then the DA they emailed me and
said the case was dismissed, that the facts do not
show a crime was committed. Which so it's right as
we sit here today, everything's okay, except people should be
afraid that you can go to a magistrate and get
a criminal warrant on defamation, which is unusual.
Speaker 1 (07:29):
That's a civil matter, okay, Normally that's a lawsuit that's
handled in civil court.
Speaker 3 (07:34):
Now criminal court, but you can go to jail for it.
Speaker 2 (07:37):
And hopefully because of this incident we had, Joseph Bryant
had some great articles on at JT and people will
now know. You know, you don't go to it's not
a criminal matter defamation, it's a civil.
Speaker 1 (07:49):
Well, now all this is out there that the mayor
apparently doesn't like the police chiefs. The police chief still
there is the out or.
Speaker 2 (07:56):
We Wendell Major has survived the attacks of the may
The mayor is losing credibility every day.
Speaker 3 (08:03):
As you know.
Speaker 2 (08:03):
He's gone out to Lipscomb, and now there's a bunch
of controversy in Lipscomb because Mayor Newton is now the
city attorney for the city of Lipscomb, Alabama. There's a
bunch of controversy out there. But I think the trant
is moving forward. There's an election season going on. I
think things are going to improve. Where does the council
stand on all this? The council supports the police chief
(08:28):
and all the employees of the city, and they're trying
to gain their feet and do the right thing and.
Speaker 3 (08:34):
Follow the law.
Speaker 2 (08:36):
They've got some great attorneys representing them with the council
has an attorney. The city has an attorney. I'm involved
with the employees. So I think the council is finally
realizing the power that they have to control their city
and set the policy and demand that the mayor.
Speaker 3 (08:52):
Followed the policy.
Speaker 1 (08:52):
When's the election August so they could just vote him out?
Speaker 2 (08:56):
Well they could, or who knows what's going to happen
JJ politics these days?
Speaker 1 (09:01):
Question Mark sounds like a podcast to me.
Speaker 3 (09:04):
Yeah, I know, let's do it.
Speaker 1 (09:05):
Well, let's keep in touch on this one and let
us know what happens. If there's anything that changes between
now and August, we'll get you back in and see
what's happening.
Speaker 3 (09:14):
Yeah.
Speaker 2 (09:14):
Follow Joseph Bryan on ail dot com. He's really got
all the news on this topic. All right, Very good
Scott tomorrow. Good to see you brother, Thank you, JT.
Always a pleasure. Happy Easter, Yes, sir, you too,
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