Confederate monument vandalized in Alabama

A Confederate monument outside a county courthouse in Huntsville, Ala., was found vandalized Wednesday.

According to a local ABC affiliate, the monument outside the Madison County Courthouse was vandalized overnight and appeared to have red paint splattered across the statue’s lower base.

#Breaking The Confederate Monument at the Madison County Courthouse has been vandalized. The statue has been a source of contention in recent months igniting weekly protests pic.twitter.com/tCOIRREriE

— Ashley Carter WAAY 31 (@AshleyWAAY31) August 5, 2020

Law enforcement were reportedly investigating the scene on Wednesday.

The memorial was erected in 1905 by a Confederate heritage group. An inscription at the base of the monument said it was dedicated to Confederate dead.

City and county officials have passed resolutions to have the rebel statue moved to a city cemetery, but it has remained outside the courthouse.

According to a state law passed in 2017 to protect Confederate memorials, the measure charges a $25,000 fine for moving or altering any monuments.

A progressive group has said it is willing to pay the fine to have the statue moved, according to local reports.

A symbolic check for $25,000 from the Tennessee Valley Progressive Alliance to pay the fine to remove the monument of a displayed outside Madison County Courthouse in Huntsville. The monument was defaced overnight last night. pic.twitter.com/6XgGNJkRpf

— Paul Gattis (@paul_gattis) August 5, 2020

Some residents have reiterated calls for the statue to be removed in the months following the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis police custody.

Other areas of the state, including at the University of Alabama, have succeeded in removing Confederate plaques and iconography this summer, WBMA reported.