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Huntsville City Schools change discipline policy

Source: MGN Online

HUNTSVILLE, AL (WAFF)-

Huntsville City Schools are trying to go from "zero tolerance" to something more thoughtful for dealing with fights in school.

Thursday night the school board approved a policy to let school administrators consider who was actually at fault in a fight and discipline students accordingly.

In the past the rule has been that any student involved in fights would be suspended, even those who might  have been defending themselves.

But school leaders said they trust their administrators to make that call.

Vice President of the Huntsville City School Board, David Blair, said the change wasn't triggered by any particular incident. 

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Kitchen Cops: 2 low performers

Two low performers in Kitchen Cops Report.

HUNTSVILLE, AL (WAFF)-

A Taqueria Los Tres Riales mobile food stand in Huntsville scored a 78. The health inspector reports raw beef held eleven degrees above the temperature required to prevent bacterial growth in cold-holding foods.

The inspector said no workers manning the food truck had passed the food safety course.

An 84 for Off the Eaten Path, which does business at the Voodoo Lounge in Huntsville. The inspector reports discovering sewage dumped in the trash dumpster, their only critical violation. They'll need to score at least an 85 next time to get off the Kitchen Cops low performers list.

An 85 is exactly the score for Restaurante El Azteca in Huntsville, rising five points during their reinspection.

The Shinsegae Oriental Restaurant in Huntsville gets off of the low performers list too, rising ten points during their reinspection, scoring a 90.

Emergency crews respond to I-565 wreck

An SUV flipped on I-565 near Jordan Lane.

HUNTSVILLE, AL (WAFF)-

An SUV flipped in a crash
on an I-565 off ramp.

Huntsville police said the
SUV and another car collided near Jordan Lane just after midnight Friday.

HEMSI responded to the
scene but no injuries were reported.

Officers said alcohol may have played a role.

Copyright 2013 WAFF. All rights reserved.

U.S. airports: What fare is fair?

The Bureau of Transportation puts Huntsville International at the top of the list out of 100 airports with the highest average fare at $544.

HUNTSVILLE, AL (WAFF)- For years, North Alabama travelers have hit the roads just to fly out of either Nashville or Birmingham to escape typically higher ticket prices at Huntsville International Airport - an airport that has once again hit number one on the list for high fares.

WAFF investigated who is behind the controls on fares.

Huntsville International Airport Deputy Director Butch Roberts wanted to clear up a few misconceptions.

"The airlines control 100 percent of what is charged in Huntsville or any other state in the United States," said Roberts.

The airport does not operate with any help from our tax dollars. They are supported solely by the people who use it through parking fees, concessions, rentals and what they charge airlines to use the airport, which is called a cost per passenger charge. For Huntsville, that's $10.28 - the only thing the airport CAN control.

Madison Co. considers change in superintendent selection process

Madison County School Board

MADISON COUNTY, AL (WAFF)- Madison
County school system is considering changing how it chooses its superintendent.

The Madison
County School Board discussed going from an elected superintendent to an
appointed one.

Board
president, Mary Stowe, said they may ask the state superintendent for
permission to make the change, if it's allowed under the Accountability Act.

Stowe said
they want to do what's best for the system.

"We
just feel like with the school system as large as ours that we need to be able
to have the best person possible with the highest qualifications to run our system,"
she said.

Stowe said the board is
considering having a public meeting on the issue to get input from the
community.

Copyright 2013 WAFF.
All rights reserved.

FBI report shows major jump in violent crimes reported in Huntsville

HUNTSVILLE, AL (WAFF)- New FBI crime statistics show a big surge in violent crimes reported in Huntsville in 2012.

Police officials said the numbers don't tell the whole story, that there are several factors that have led to an increase in reported violent crimes from 2011 to 2012, and a bigger increase when comparing 2010 to 2012.

The FBI's Uniform Crime Reporting statistics show about a 12 percent increase in violent crimes reported from 2011 to 2012, with 178 more in all.

Huntsville Police Deputy Chief Sherry Jackson said a big part of that is because more people in the Hispanic community reported crimes than in 2011 when they were more fearful of being deported because of the state's immigration legislation that passed that year. Jackson said the department has worked for years to establish trust in the Latino community.

Redstone confirms chaff cause of radar reflectivity

Fiberglass chaff found on Zierdt Road (Source: UAH)

HUNTSVILLE, AL (WAFF)- The Redstone Arsenal
confirmed chaff is what caused an unusual radar pattern on Tuesday.

Arsenal officials
identified the material as RR-188, something commonly used.

They say it was dropped
from an aircraft but lingered in the air longer than normal.

The arsenal said there are no known
environmental effects of RR-188.

Copyright 2013 WAFF. All rights reserved.