News from around the nation.

Abundant Life Christian School shootings: Motive under investigation; Panel explores cost of fines, fees on Alabama's most vulnerable residents; USC study: More than 1.4 million children have lost family to overdose; Research shows valuable impact of getting 'back to nature' practices on PA farms. 

Transcript

The Public News Service Tuesday afternoon update, I'm Mike Clifford.

Officials are trying to figure out why a 15-year-old girl allegedly opened fire at the Christian school she attended, killing a fellow student and teacher in a heinous crime that shocked the community of Madison, Wisconsin.

That's the take from ABC News.

They report the suspect, Natalie Rupnow, who went by Samantha, died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound before officers reached Bundle Life Christian School on Monday morning.

ABC reports two students were hospitalized in critical condition with life-threatening injuries.

Another three students and a teacher suffered non-life-threatening injuries.

And Alabama's reliance on fines and fees to fund state services could turn minor incidents, such as a traffic violation, into overwhelming debt for low-income families.

To address the issue, Alabama Possible, through the Justice in Focus initiative with the Beacon Center, is working to identify solutions.

During a recent virtual panel, advocates and legal experts discussed how these financial penalties contribute to poverty and proposed strategies to ease the burden.

Montgomery County Chief Public Defender Aaliyah McKee highlighted the root of the problem, how fines and fees are assessed.

Some of the biggest, I think, troubles with the determination of fines is the failure to provide information about an individual's ability to pay.

A survey of nearly 1,000 Alabama residents found that 83 percent had to forgo essentials such as medical care, food or transportation to pay their legal costs.

Shantia Hudson reporting.

Next a new study finds more than 1.4 million kids in the U.S. have lost a family member to overdose.

This study focused on children younger than 18 as of 2019 who had lost one or more parents, siblings, grandparents, aunts or uncles or cousins to overdose.

USC Dornsife Sociology Professor Emily Smith-Greenaway is a co-author on the report.

We know drug overdose are really traumatizing deaths to undergo.

There's probably a lot of hardship leading up to the death.

Those deaths are probably very confusing for young kids to process.

Researchers found that most kids who lose family members to drug overdose are between ages 10 and 18.

I'm Suzanne Potter.

And a new study says getting back to nature and farming could help ward off the biggest impacts of climate change.

Liz Carlisle is co-author of a new study in the science journal Frontiers and says what's known as agroecological farming can create tightly connected cycles of energy, water and nutrients if farmers can get the resources they need.

If we want to have a more sustainable food system, we really need to invest in that next generation of farmers and their development of knowledge and really think of them as the most important resource in farming.

The new approach in states like Pennsylvania prioritizes a living, healthy soil and aims to replace non-renewable chemicals with practices that tap into natural ecosystems.

This is Public News Service.

Hunger doesn't retire, yet millions of older Americans are struggling to afford food.

Misconceptions and stigma often prevent eligible seniors from accessing the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, the nation's largest anti-hunger initiative.

However, with simplified application process and renewed outreach efforts, advocates are working to break down these barriers and connect seniors with the support they need.

Norm Gold with Feeding America and AARP highlights these challenges and the importance of outreach.

It's too much of a pain for them to do it.

Most seniors don't want to have to deal with it, honestly.

I'm one of them.

I'm obviously 70.

And, you know, that's just the way older people are.

They make it easy.

That's why they've got the simplified application.

That's what's made it much easier for them.

A free webinar on Wednesday aims to clear up myths and misconceptions about SNAP benefits and highlight how the program supports older adults struggling with food insecurity.

The event, titled "SNAP Food Benefit Myths, Rumors and Misconceptions," begins at 1:30 p.m. and is open to everyone who registers at events.aarp.org.

I'm Tramiel Gomes.

Meantime, Mid-Atlantic states are seeing climate change-induced sea level rise, altering what some farmers can grow.

Coastal farms are seeing more frequent and higher storm surges and leftover sea salt deposited on more cropland.

Over time, saltwater intrusion harms production of sensitive crops, and low-lying fields become unviable as most commodity crops will not tolerate flooding.

Cape May Plant Materials Center Manager Chris Miller says USDA researchers have been working to find salt-tolerant plant species useful to farmers.

Farmer wants to continue farming.

He or she is going to have to figure out ways of adapting their operation, maybe away from commodity crops and going with a conservation plant that will not only provide some ecosystem services but also potentially providing an income.

Maybe not as much income as a commodity crop, but at least providing some value-added income.

Tidal grasses can slow down encroaching floods, Brett Pivito reporting.

This story was produced for the original reporting from Lisa Held for Civil Eats.

And finally, a new national monument in the town of Newcastle in Maine will honor FDR-era Labor Secretary Frances Perkins.

The first woman to serve in a presidential cabinet, Perkins is credited with driving New Deal policies, including the 40-hour work week, the minimum wage, and Social Security.

AFL-CIO President Liz Shuler calls Perkins an unsung hero.

Who has inspired millions of women, millions of workers, and is directly responsible for so many of the rights and benefits we have as working people today across this country.

I'm Catherine Carley.

The national monument honoring her legacy will comprise roughly 60 acres of what was once her family's homestead.

This is Mike Clifford for Public News Service, member and listener supported.

Hear us on interesting radio stations, your favorite podcast platform, find our content and trust indicators at publicnewsservice.org.