Baton Rouge news

• In shootout that killed 2 Southern students, suspect free on bond

  13-04-2016 23:56
  
  Investigators awaiting results of ballistic analysis to determine who's responsible for killing them
  
  Read more

• Les Miles sends Kobe Bryant LSU jersey for sendoff gift

  13-04-2016 22:38
  
  Bryant playing final game of 20-year career Wednesday.
  
  Read more

• 'We respect our fellow citizens': Edwards issues LGBT protection order

  13-04-2016 18:43
  
  Gov. John Bel Edwards has issued an executive order that protects state workers and state contractors from being fired, discriminated or harassed based on their gender identity as well as their sexual orientation.
  
  Read more

• Metro Council kills smoking ban proposal

  13-04-2016 18:15
  
  BATON ROUGE – The Baton Rouge Metro Council killed a proposal that would have banned smoking in all businesses, including bars and casinos.Smoking ban fails. pic.twitter.com/qiXjg0jauI— Brittany Weiss WBRZ (@MsBWeiss) April 13, 2016Robert Jenkins enjoys trying his luck at a local casinos, smoking and having a drink at the slots.But if a proposal passes through the Baton Rouge Metro Council, that good time could come to an end.The ordinance is designed to include a ba
  
  Read more

• Advertisement

• House refuses REAL ID licenses, supports separate ID cards

  13-04-2016 17:38
  
  BATON ROUGE - House lawmakers have refused to allow Louisiana to issue driver's licenses that comply with the federal REAL ID law. But they did agree to let people pay for a special state-issued identification card compliant with the federal act.The House-approved proposal contrasts with the approach backed by the Senate.Senators voted two weeks ago to let drivers choose whether they want a REAL ID-compliant license or not.The competing bill passed Wednesday by the House would continue the ban o
  
  Read more

• La. Senate backs cost containment for TOPS tuition program

  13-04-2016 17:01
  
  BATON ROUGE - A proposal to restrict the growth of Louisiana's TOPS free college tuition program has sailed through the Senate.The measure by Sen. Jack Donahue, a Mandeville Republican, would lock in the TOPS payment rate at next year's tuition level, unless lawmakers vote to raise payments.That could cost students more if tuition grows larger but lawmakers don't boost TOPS payments.Senators voted 36-0 Wednesday for the bill without debate. The Legislature passed the same measure last year, but
  
  Read more

• Livingston Parish gravel pit regulations tighten

  13-04-2016 16:27
  
  WATSON- After two long years of going over regulations for gravel pits, the Livingston Parish Council is expected to move forward with its latest set of rules Thursday.The proposed gravel pit next to the Oak Hills subdivision in Watson has caused a stir among residents. The issue first came to light in 2014 when Southern Aggregates, a gravel mining company, announced plans to dig a pit behind the subdivision off Highway 16.
  The announcement sparked outrage from residents who argued the gravel pi
  
  Read more

• Tulane fraternity builds pro-Trump wall around house

  13-04-2016 16:20
  
  NEW ORLEANS- A Tulane University fraternity constructed a wall of sandbags last Thursday with pro- Donald Trump statements spray painted.The fraternity, Kappa Alpha Order chapter, built the wall in front of its house.“Make America Great Again” and “Trump” were seen spray painted in red across the sandbags.The fraternity said it was only meant as a joke, however the act has caused a stir among students.According to a statement the chapter sent to USA Today
  
  Read more

• Advertisement

• Will Smith's father says he forgives shooter

  13-04-2016 15:38
  
  NEW ORLEANS - The father of former New Orleans Saints defensive end Will Smith says he forgives the man accused of shooting his son to death.Will Smith Sr. also told WTVD in Durham, North Carolina, he isn't interested in a trial for 28-year-old Cardell Hayes, who is charged with second-degree murder. The elder Smith says the Lord will do to him what he's going to do, adding that nothing that happens in the court system will bring his son back.When reached by The Associated Pres
  
  Read more

• Visitation for Will Smith at Saints practice facility Friday

  13-04-2016 15:34
  
  NEW ORLEANS- The New Orleans Saints and the family of Will Smith will host a public visitation on Friday for guests wanting to pay their respects to the former Saints player.The visitation will be on Friday, Apr. 15 from 2 p.m. to 7 p.m. at the Saints’ indoor practice facility at 5800 Airline Highway in Metairie. Traditional and virtual guest books will be available for those wishing to pay their respects, as well as prayer cards.
  Those wanting to make a contribution to honor
  
  Read more

• Country artists condemn LGBT laws, but labels silent

  13-04-2016 15:20
  
  NASHVILLE - Several country music artists and songwriters have condemned proposed laws critics say discriminate against LGBT people. But anyone looking for reaction from the record labels and production companies on Nashville's Music Row has heard only the sound of silence.New laws in North Carolina and Mississippi have drawn the ire of businesses and celebrities alike, with Bruce Springsteen and Bryan Adams canceling shows in those states.The debate shows a divide between the creative class of
  
  Read more

• Paul Ryan is not running for president, or passing a budget

  13-04-2016 15:12
  
  WASHINGTON - House Speaker Paul Ryan's national stature is such that he had to call a news conference to deny he wants to be president. Back on Capitol Hill, he's about to blow through a statutory deadline to pass an annual budget, a major embarrassment for him and House Republicans.Under the government's arcane budget law, the House is supposed to produce a budget by Friday. But a tea party revolt over Ryan's embrace of last year's bipartisan deal with President Barack Obama to increase spendin
  
  Read more

• LSU softball heads to Southeastern Wednesday

  13-04-2016 15:10
  
  BATON ROUGE- The LSU softball team will head to Southeastern Wednesday to begin a four-game stretch on the road.The Lady Tigers will take on the Southeastern Lady Lions at 6 p.m. at North Oak Park in Hammond.The Tigers go into the game from looking to come back from a tough stretch over the weekend as the team lost all three games of their SEC series to Kentucky over the weekend.The losses dropped the team’s record to 29-12 for the year and 5-10 within the Southeastern Conference.The t
  
  Read more

• Coroner says Will Smith shot 8 times

  13-04-2016 14:58
  
  A official statement from Orleans Parish Coroner Jeffrey Rouse was released Wednesday about the Saturday night shooting that killed former NFL Saints player Will Smith. The statement is as follows:“On Saturday, April 9th, William Smith suffered multiple gunshot wounds and expired at the scene of the shooting. The Orleans Parish Coroner’s Office was informed of his death, and the Coroner, the Chief Investigator, and the on-call Death Investigator attended the scene.A forensic
  
  Read more

• Kobe Bryant says farewell after 20 years with the LA Lakers

  13-04-2016 14:39
  
  LOS ANGELES - Kobe Bryant ends his celebrated NBA career when the Lakers host Utah tonight.
      
  He bows out as the only player in NBA history to spend a 20-year career with the same team. The 37-year-old will walk off the court in front of devoted fans in the building where he hung five championship banners.
      
  Unfortunately, his farewell season hasn't been up to Bryant's standards. The Lakers enter the game with a 16-65 mark.
   &a
  
  Read more

• Police searching for car burglary suspect

  13-04-2016 14:11
  
  BATON ROUGE - Police are looking for a man who they say is responsible for stealing from a vehicle on Tremont Drive in March.According to Baton Rouge Police, the vehicle burglary happened on the 2300 block of Tremont Drive on March 28 around 1 p.m.Police say the man stole a credit card from the vehicle and then charged $50 in merchandise from a Pep Boys location on Airline Highway. A second transaction for $250 was declined at a nearby Albertson’s.Anyone with information is asked to co
  
  Read more

• Will LSU's spring game be an offensive fireworks show?

  13-04-2016 14:00
  
  The Tigers close out spring Saturday in Tiger Stadium at 3 p.m.
  
  Read more

• Funeral for Hokie Gajan on Friday

  13-04-2016 13:57
  
  MADISONVILLE- Funeral arrangements for the longtime New Orleans Saints broadcaster, Hokie Gajan, will be held Friday.Visitation starts at 10 a.m. on Friday at St. Anselm Catholic Church at 306 St. Mary Street in Madisonville.Eulogies will be at 2:30 p.m. and the funeral mass will begin at 3 p.m.Gajan died on Monday night at 56-years-old. He was diagnosed with a rare form of cancer in November called liposarcoma. Gajan was placed on intensive care as his condition deteriorated.
  Gajan was a former
  
  Read more

• Edwards issues protections for gay employees, marriages

  13-04-2016 13:51
  
  BATON ROUGE- Gov. John Bel Edwards signed an executive order protecting gay employees  and marriages.The order provides employment protections for state employees and employees of state contractors on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, political affiliation, disability, or age.
  The executive order also prohibits discrimination in services provided by state agencies, and recognizes an exemption for churches and religious organiz
  
  Read more

• Countering Jindal's order, Edwards issues protections for gay employees, marriages

  13-04-2016 13:51
  
  BATON ROUGE- Gov. John Bel Edwards signed an executive order protecting gay employees  and marriages.The order provides employment protections for state employees and employees of state contractors on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, political affiliation, disability, or age.
  The executive order also prohibits discrimination in services provided by state agencies, and recognizes an exemption for churches and religious organiz
  
  Read more

• Bills to allow permit-less conceal carry stalls in committee

  13-04-2016 13:45
  
  BATON ROUGE - An effort to let Louisiana gun owners carry concealed firearms without a permit has been rejected by a House committee.Rep. Barry Ivey, a Baton Rouge Republican, met unanimous disapproval Wednesday with no discussion from the House criminal justice panel, stalling his proposals.His primary proposal pushed for a state constitutional amendment to legalize "constitutional carry." Ivey says the amendment would align Louisiana with 10 other states with similar laws.The panel also stalle
  
  Read more

• Raw milk sales bill narrowly gains traction in La. Senate

  13-04-2016 13:43
  
  BATON ROUGE - The Louisiana Senate will debate whether the state should lift its ban on sales of unpasteurized - or "raw" - milk.After two years of rejecting the bill, a reorganized Senate Health and Welfare Committee voted 3-2 to advance to the full Senate for consideration a proposal allowing sales of raw milk from farmers to the public.Supporters of Sen. Eric LaFleur's proposal said people should get to decide what they drink. Sierra Majors, who has a small dairy farm, says Louisiana is one o
  
  Read more

• Edwards: State gets $1.6 million disaster grant

  13-04-2016 13:40
  
  BATON ROUGE - Gov. John Bel Edwards says the U.S. Department of Labor has awarded Louisiana a $1,699,317 million disaster assistance grant.The grant will help provide temporary jobs in the 21 Louisiana parishes devastated by the recent storms and flooding.Edwards, in a news release Tuesday, said the Disaster Dislocated Worker Grant Funding awarded to the Louisiana Workforce Commission will provide 161 temporary jobs for clean-up and recovery efforts. The grant runs through March 12, 2017.The awa
  
  Read more

• LSU offensive depth chart, spring game 2016

  13-04-2016 13:30
  
  Tigers missing some starters for Saturday's spring game.
  
  Read more

• WATCH LIVE - Attorney: Will Smith did not brandish gun

  13-04-2016 13:13
  
  NEW ORLEANS - An attorney for the family of Will Smith says the former New Orleans Saints star did not brandish a gun or have it on him before he was shot to death.Peter Thompson, an attorney for the Smith family, gave an account of the shooting Wednesday based on his interviews with witnesses. He says Smith had a license to carry a concealed weapon but never threatened the man who shot him, Cardell Hayes, with the pistol.Police said Tuesday that they found a 9 mm pistol in Smith's car after he
  
  Read more

• Attorney: Will Smith did not brandish gun

  13-04-2016 13:13
  
  NEW ORLEANS - An attorney for the family of Will Smith says the former New Orleans Saints star did not brandish a gun or have it on him before he was shot to death.Peter Thompson, an attorney for the Smith family, gave an account of the shooting Wednesday based on his interviews with witnesses. He says Smith had a license to carry a concealed weapon but never threatened the man who shot him, Cardell Hayes, with the pistol.Police said Tuesday that they found a 9 mm pistol in Smith's car after he
  
  Read more

• LSU baseball to face Grambling after loss against McNeese

  13-04-2016 12:53
  
  BATON ROUGE- LSU baseball will face Grambling State University Wednesday night, following a loss to McNeese Tuesday night.The Tigers fell to a 7-0 loss and dropped to 21-11 on the season. Following the defeat, LSU coach Paul Mainieri said that the team is looking forward to the Wednesday night game.“The McNeese coach obviously had his team well prepared, and our team didn’t match their intensity, and that’s my responsibility,” he said. 
  &
  
  Read more

• Traffic clear after soggy morning commute

  13-04-2016 12:32
  
  BATON ROUGE – Congestion cleared around 10 a.m. Wednesday after traffic officials warned that weather would bring heavier delays.DOTD officials sent out a notification around 8 a.m. warning drivers to expect heavier than normal delays due to inclement weather. Those delays were compounded after separate accidents blocked lanes on I-10 West near College Drive and closed an entrance ramp on North 22nd Street.The accident on near College Drive back up traffic to Essen Lane on I-10 West.Co
  
  Read more

• Ascension man wanted for not registering as sex offender

  13-04-2016 12:29
  
  ASCENSION- The Ascension Parish Sheriff’s Office issued an arrest warrant for 37-year-old Wade Pardue who failed to register as a sex offender.According to Lt. Col. Bobby Webre, Pardue was convicted of carnal knowledge of a juvenile in August 1999 and was place on probation in Apr. 2004.He was also convicted of failure to register twice, once in Jan. 2011 and again in May 2011.He was released from prison in February 2015.Pardue is 5‘9 in height and weighs 179 pounds. He has b
  
  Read more

• 1 of 3 suspects arrested for March murder in Prairieville

  13-04-2016 12:13
  
  ASCENSION- One of the three suspects wanted in the Mar. 24 murder of Dwayne Stephens on Lee Stevens Road was arrested late Tuesday night.
  Authorities received a tip from the public that led to the location of the suspect.Baton Rouge Police located 17-year-old Caleb Carter at Magnolia Trace apartments in Baton Rouge.Ascension Parish detectives arrived on the scene and Carter was later booked into the East Baton Rouge jail and then to the Ascension Parish Jail.He was charged with first-degree murd
  
  Read more

• WATCH: Exclusive interview with gator kayakers

  13-04-2016 09:53
  
  BATON ROUGE- The dad and daughter that came close to a scaly friend stopped by to talk to 2une In’s John Pastorek Wednesday morning to talk about their surprise while kayaking in St. Martinville.A video of the dad and daughter has gone viral after the two came extremely close to an alligator while kayaking.Lance Burgos and his daughter Evan went on a camping and fishing trip with another father-daughter duo.Burgos, the girls and his friend went fishing and out jug lines in the water, b
  
  Read more

• Senators agree to boost fines on texting while driving

  13-04-2016 08:57
  
  BATON ROUGE- Louisiana's state senators want to toughen penalties for disobeying state laws that ban texting or posting to social media sites while driving and that restrict cell phone use for young drivers.
      
  Violators under current law face a traffic fine of up to $175 for the first offense and up to $500 for second and subsequent violations.
      
  A bill by Sen. Yvonne Dorsey Colomb, a Baton Rouge Democrat, would boost those fines to up
  
  Read more

• Officials to urge lawmakers to maintain preschool funding

  13-04-2016 08:40
  
  BATON ROUGE- Orleans Parish District Attorney Leon Cannizzaro, Grambling Chief of Police Tommy Clark, Jr. and City of Port Allen Chief of Police Esdron Brown are set to hold a press conference urging state policy makers to maintain preschool funding.Cannizzaro and Brown will be representing nearly 100 Louisiana police chiefs, sheriffs, and prosecutors at the event to encourage law makers to not cut funding for the state’s three early education programs in order to protect public safety
  
  Read more

• Metro Council to vote on smoking ban Wednesday

  13-04-2016 08:10
  
  BATON ROUGE- The Metro Council is set to discuss a proposal that would ban smoking in all business around the capital city.  The idea was pitched by Smoke Free Baton Rouge, an anti-smoking campaign. It started out as a plan to ban smoking in bars and casinos around Baton Rouge, but before long the group suggested expanding that to all businesses in town.
  Smoke Free Baton Rouge said the ban was proposed in an effort to protect people from second-hand smoke.
  The ban would include cigarett
  
  Read more

• March against violence to be held at Southern

  13-04-2016 07:52
  
  BATON ROUGE - Southern University students and community members will march against violence on campus Wednesday.The march will begin at 11 a.m. and start from the campus circle to the Student Union.This march comes after Southern students, Annette January and Lashuntae Benton, were shot and killed at an apartment complex near LSU.The women were caught in a crossfire between Ernest Felton and another man, who was also shot and is still recovering from his injuries. The result for the ballistics
  
  Read more

• Lawmakers to discuss expanding medical marijuana regulation

  13-04-2016 07:12
  
  BATON ROUGE - Louisiana legislators will discuss expanding regulations of medical marijuana for more patients on Wednesday.Some lawmakers are seeking to expand the regulations to include epilepsy patients. Last year, state lawmakers legalized cannabis oil, a form of medical marijuana. This medicine has very low level of THC, a marijuana component that gets people high. However, the current law only allows the drug to be prescribed for a handful of conditions, not including epilepsy.Kati
  
  Read more

• April 13, 2016 Morning News Pop

  13-04-2016 06:50
  
  Here are today's top stories:LSU President warns current students they could lose TOPS under governor's proposed cuts Community comes together at vigil for fallen students WATCH: Big gator surprises father, daughter on fishing trip; Video goes viral Heavy rain on Wednesday morning, showers continue beyond Updates all day, every day:FACEBOOK | TWITTERPermalink| Comments
  
  Read more

• ESPN Gameday coming to LSU vs. Wisconsin opener, report says

  13-04-2016 05:40
  
  First college game at Lambeau Field in 33 years.
  
  Read more

• Verizon workers go on strike amid contract dispute

  13-04-2016 05:18
  
  NEW YORK - Tens of thousands of Verizon landline and cable workers on the East Coast have walked off the job after working without a contract since August.The strike Wednesday morning involves about 39,000 members of the Communications Workers of America and the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers in nine eastern states and Washington, D.C.The unions say they're striking because Verizon wants to freeze pensions, make layoffs easier and rely more on contract workers.The telecom giant
  
  Read more

• More than 760,000 attend 2016 French Quarter Festival

  13-04-2016 04:35
  
  NEW ORLEANS- More than 760,000 people attended French Quarter Fest 2016, setting another attendance record.
      
  The last record was in 2014, with 733,000 attendees. Last year, attendance dropped to 386,000, which festival organizers blamed on rain.
      
  This year's festival, held April 7-10, saw high temperatures around the mid-70s, and there were plenty of strong breezes.
      
  The 33rd annual free festival, presen
  
  Read more

• Leonard Fournette Q&A: Leadership is 'biggest thing I'm working on'

  13-04-2016 03:18
  
  LSU running back Leonard Fournette talks about spring practice.
  
  Read more

• Heavily amended equal pay bill that John Bel Edwards wants passes Senate

  13-04-2016 02:30
  
  The legislation was significantly changed on the Senate floor to address worries from the business community.
  
  Read more

Follow @BatonRougeNews_ on Twitter!