Baton Rouge news

• Lawmakers begin process of overhauling state's construction budget

  09-05-2016 23:34
  
  House Ways and Means Chairman Neil Abramson, D-New Orleans, warned lawmakers their constituents may not like the initial list of priorities.
  
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• It's Trump's world and Bobby Jindal ranked 'biggest loser' among the Republican presidential defeated

  09-05-2016 20:44
  
  Donald Trump, the experts told us, was that say-anything, crazy uncle bit player added to the cast to provide some comic relief from all the gravitas of this Aaron Sorkin-esque drama. America -- at least red America -- didn't want "The West Wing." It wanted "Veep."
  
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• Louisiana House committee votes to strengthen attorney general, weakening governor's powers

  09-05-2016 20:12
  
  No proposal has ever been made to break away budget authority from the governor -- until now.
  
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• Lawmakers propose to cut other agencies to fund TOPS

  09-05-2016 19:04
  
  BATON ROUGE-The House Appropriations Committee proposed a plan to cut hospitals to fully fund the tuition program for college students. Representative Cameron Henry is the author of the plan."It's a nice relief for them and it's a nice relief for parents and it's a position we need to be in as a state," Henry said.Henry is responsible for putting forth a counter offer to Governor John Bel Edwards budget cuts. His plan wouldn't just cut funds to hospital, it was also cut the Office of the Inspect
  
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• Court records show police pursuing leads in puzzling collegiate double murder

  09-05-2016 18:33
  
  BATON ROUGE - Arrest warrants have been filed in unrelated drug charges after marijuana was found when police searched an apartment in the investigation into the shooting deaths of two Southern University students recently.The arrest warrants were filed with the clerk of court's office for two people who live at The Cottages off Ben Hur. Police confirmed to the WBRZ Investigative Unit, the apartment was searched because the brother of someone involved in the shooting lives there and detectives a
  
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• Walker roundabout construction begins Monday

  09-05-2016 18:10
  
  WALKER- Construction for the addition of a roundabout on the I-12 ramp in Walker started on Monday.
  The Department of Transportation and Development believes that adding the roundabout will make traffic safer and faster. The work started on Monday on a quarter-mile stretch of LA 447.Audry Gonzales, a Walker resident, said that he used to commute to LSU every day during the week, however the commute has gotten worse."I used to make it to work in 35 minutes, now its an hour and a half so Im glad I
  
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• La. troopers killed in the line of duty

  09-05-2016 16:57
  
  BATON ROUGE - Tuesday, State Police will add two names to a memorial of State Troopers who have been killed in the line of duty.Twenty-eight troopers have died while serving the people of Louisiana since the department formed in 1922.  Tuesday, the names of Steven J. Vincent and Frank Brown, Jr., will be added to a memorial at the State Police Headquarters. The ceremony is at 6:30 p.m. Tuesday. Information was collected from State Police Memorial data published on the
  
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• Impaired driver arrested after striking and killing man in car crash

  09-05-2016 16:57
  
  PLAQUEMINE- A fatal crash in Iberville Parish resulted in the death of a man from Plaquemine and the arrest of an impaired driver.Louisiana State Police responded to a fatal crash on LA 1 in Iberville Parish on Sunday night around 8 p.m. where they found 31-year-old Joseph Tatney of Plaquemine traveling southbound on LA 1 in a Dodge Ram.
  At the same time, 51-year-old John Williams was walking across the southbound lanes when he was struck by Tatney’s truck.Williams was then hit by a se
  
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• Mother demands answers after 12-year-old daughter is raped near Garden District

  09-05-2016 16:43
  
  BATON ROUGE- Two days after a suspect was arrested for allegedly raping a woman in the Garden District, a mother in the area is demanding answers about her 12-year-old daughter's case from about six weeks ago.We're not identifying the mom or listing where she lives to protect her child. Tonight, she wants to know how cases are prioritized, since the Baton Rouge Police Department is still waiting on results from the State Police Crime Lab about the DNA sample in that case."I would like them to wo
  
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• Police catch man stealing from cars at auto shop

  09-05-2016 16:25
  
  PONCHATOULA - Police arrested a man after they say they caught him burglarizing vehicles at a car shop in Ponchatoula.A passerby called police after they saw the man burglarizing the cars, our news partner Action News 17 reports. When officers arrived, they found Bradley Sharp, 22, still inside one of the cars. Investigators determined he had also entered three other vehicles on the property.Sharp was arrested and charged with 4 counts of vehicle burglary. He was booked into the Tangipahoa Paris
  
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• Domestic dispute involving tattoo gun and movie night leads to arrest

  09-05-2016 15:46
  
  THIBODAUX - Police say they arrested a man on multiple charges after officers were called to the scene of a domestic disturbance involving family movie night and a tattoo gun.30-year-old James Haydel, of Raceland, was booked on charges of domestic abuse battery with child endangerment, second-degree sexual battery and resisting an officer. He also had a contempt of court warrant out for his arrest for non-support which carries an automatic 90-day sentence or a $4,690 fine.Police said they were c
  
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• Prairieville mother arrested after 2-year-old ingests crystal meth

  09-05-2016 15:22
  
  GONZALES - Police detectives in Gonzales say they arrested the mother of a 2-year-old after the child ingested crystal meth when left unattended.21-year-old Tyler Dauzat, of Prairieville, was arrested and charged with one count of negligent injuring, one count of cruelty to juveniles, one count of illegal use of CDS in the presence of a juvenile and one count of improper supervision of a minor.Police said Dauzat arrived with her child at St. Elizabeth hospital with the child exhibiting
  
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• Mother arrested after unattended 2-year-old ingests crystal meth

  09-05-2016 15:22
  
  GONZALES - Police detectives in Gonzales say they arrested the mother of a 2-year-old after the child ingested crystal meth when left unattended.21-year-old Tyler Dauzat, of Prairieville, was arrested and charged with one count of negligent injuring, one count of cruelty to juveniles, one count of illegal use of CDS in the presence of a juvenile and one count of improper supervision of a minor.Police said Dauzat arrived with her child at St. Elizabeth hospital with the child exhibiting
  
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• Louisiana hunters can wear 'blaze pink' under new law

  09-05-2016 15:12
  
  Act 7 allows people to wear "blaze pink" in addition to "hunter orange" during the open gun hunting season.
  
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• Mexico judge says 'El Chapo' extradition may proceed

  09-05-2016 14:55
  
  MEXICO CITY - A Mexican judge says the extradition of drug lord Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman can move ahead, but the country's foreign ministry must still approve it and the defense can appeal.
  The federal Judiciary Council said Monday the judge had agreed that the legal requirements laid out in the extradition treaty between the two countries had been met. The judge was not named.
  The council oversees Mexico's federal judges and tribunals.
  The ministry has 20 days to decide whether to approve Guzm
  
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• Good Samaritan alerts family that house was on fire

  09-05-2016 14:34
  
  NATALBANY-  A family is safe after a Good Samaritan alerted them that their home was on fire on LA 1064 West on Sunday morning.Natalbany Volunteer Fire responded to the fire around 9:30 a.m. Sunday morning where three people were inside of the home.
  The three inside were able to escape without injury after a person passing by stopped to alert them that the home was on fire.Officials said that the family was very lucky since there were no working smoke detectors in the home.It is not cer
  
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• Gov. John Bel Edwards doesn't foresee using veto much

  09-05-2016 14:28
  
  The governor has concerns about some legislation that's still alive, but he believed those concerns would be addressed before the bills ever hit his desk.
  
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• Deputies involved in fatal shooting return to active duty

  09-05-2016 14:26
  
  ST. MARTINVILLE - Two sheriff's deputies have returned to active duty now that local prosecutors have ruled out criminal charges against them over the fatal shooting of a mentally ill man last year.Major Ginny Higgins of the St. Martin Parish Sheriff's Office says the deputies returned to duty Monday. Sgt. Pittard Chapman and Deputy Dylan Laneaux were placed on paid administrative leave after the Dec. 21 shooting.Assistant District Attorney Chester Cedars, the chief prosecutor in St. Martin Pari
  
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• BRPD: Fatal crash on N. 22nd Street under investigation

  09-05-2016 13:59
  
  BATON ROUGE- Baton Rouge Police are investigating a fatal Monday morning crash that took place in the 2200 block of North 22nd Street.The initial investigation revealed that a Dodge truck was traveling north on N. 22nd Street in the outside lane when, for unknown reasons, the truck made a U-turn in the middle of the road.The truck was then struck by a Chevrolet truck that was traveling north in the inside lane of the street.The 28-year-old driver of the Doge truck died at the scene as a result o
  
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• North Carolina governor files lawsuit over LGBT rights law

  09-05-2016 13:55
  
  RALEIGH, N.C. - North Carolina Gov. Pat McCrory's administration sued the federal government Monday in a fight for a state law that requires transgender people to use the public restroom matching the sex on their birth certificate.The lawsuit seeks to keep in place the law, which the U.S. Justice Department said last week violated the civil rights of transgender people against sex discrimination on the job and in education. U.S. Attorney General Loretta Lynch was scheduled to describe the launch
  
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• Suspect wanted in New Iberia murder turns himself in

  09-05-2016 13:50
  
  NEW IBERIA - Detectives have reported that a man wanted in connection with a New Iberia murder over the weekend turned himself in to authorities Monday.The Iberia Parish Sheriff’s Office issued a warrant for the arrest of 23-year-old Alex Arceneaux Jr. following the incident that happened just after midnight Sunday morning.Deputies identified the murder victim as a 37-year-old man.Arceneaux was taken into custody without incident, and now faces a second-degree murder charge. T
  
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• BR has lowest gas prices in the country

  09-05-2016 13:33
  
  CAMARILLO, Calif - The average price of gasoline has jumped by 9 cents over the past two weeks to $2.27 a gallon for regular grade.
      
  Industry analyst Trilby Lundberg said Sunday that the hike is mostly due to crude oil prices edging up. The price at the pump has risen 50 cents over the past 12 weeks.
      
  In the Lower 48, the highest average price of regular gasoline was $2.83 per gallon in San Francisco. The lowest was $1.92 in Baton Rou
  
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• New Orleans police investigate shooting death of Tulane graduate

  09-05-2016 13:22
  
  NEW ORLEANS - New Orleans police are investigating the shooting death of a 25-year-old Tulane graduate.
      
  Thomas Rolfes was in New Orleans to find a venue for his wedding next year to his fiancé, Elizabeth Fried.
      
  Police said in a news release a man's body was found early Saturday morning intersection of South Claiborne Avenue and Amelia Street. Police said the victim had been shot in the chest and died at the scene.
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• Report, dashcam video detail suspect's death in February officer-involved shooting

  09-05-2016 13:19
  
  BATON ROUGE- Baton Rouge District Attorney Hillar Moore announced that a press conference will be held on Monday afternoon to discuss the findings in the death of an alleged shooter that exchanged gun fire with police in February.Calvin Smith, 22, was involved in a shooting that took place in the 5600 block of Fairfields Avenue in February where two BRPD officers were struck.Police said that the shooting took place after they responded to a damage to property complaint on Melrose East. A source
  
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• Findings on suspect's death from February officer-involved shooting to be revealed

  09-05-2016 13:19
  
  BATON ROUGE- Baton Rouge District Attorney Hillar Moore announced that a press conference will be held on Monday afternoon to discuss the findings in the death of an alleged shooter that exchanged gun fire with police in February.Calvin Smith, 22, was involved in a shooting that took place in the 5600 block of Fairfields Avenue in February where two BRPD officers were struck.Police said that the shooting took place after they responded to a damage to property complaint on Melrose East. A source
  
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• House budget protects TOPS by cutting others

  09-05-2016 13:18
  BATON ROUGE- Lawmakers in the Louisiana House are proposing to fully fund the TOPS free college tuition program by cutting across other state agencies.
      
  The House Appropriations Committee on Monday reworked the budget proposal for the financial year that begins July 1.
      
  The recommendations - approved in an 18-4 vote - are the first indication of House leaders' approach to closing a $600 million budget gap.
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• State Police to honor heroes at awards ceremony on Tuesday

  09-05-2016 13:07
  
  BATON ROUGE- Louisiana State Police will hold an awards ceremony to honor law enforcement as well as civilian heroes from across the state on Tuesday.The annual awards ceremony will honor State Troopers, civilians, and public safety personnel for their efforts, accomplishments and heroic actions over the past year.The ceremony will be held on Tuesday at 1:30 p.m. at the Louisiana State Police Training Academy Auditorium. Permalink| Comments
  
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• Uber, Lyft suspend service in Austin over background checks

  09-05-2016 12:58
  
  AUSTIN, Texas - Uber and Lyft have suspended ride-hailing service in Austin after voters decided against overturning city requirements that include fingerprint-based background checks for their drivers.The Austin American-Statesman reports that the two companies suspended service Monday morning. Nearly 56 percent of voters rejected a proposition Saturday that would have repealed rules the Austin City Council approved in December.Under the rules, drivers must undergo fingerprint-based background
  
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• Florida man kills brother over cheeseburger

  09-05-2016 12:55
  
  ST. CLOUD, Fla. - Police in Florida say a man killed his brother after an argument over a cheeseburger escalated.Authorities said the incident happened following Cinco de Mayo festivals in St. Cloud.St. Cloud Police said 25-year-old Benjamin Middendorf reported he was being bullied by his older brother, Nicholas Middendorf, over a cheeseburger. When they both went for the cheeseburger, investigators said the younger brother shot and killed his older brother."You know, it is Mother's Day weekend
  
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• LISTEN: 911 call prior to deadly officer-involved shooting

  09-05-2016 12:40
  
  BATON ROUGE - At a press conference Monday, Baton Rouge District Attorney Hillar Moore addressed a deadly officer-involved shooting on Fairfield Avenue in February and released body cam and dash cam video from the officers who were shot.His office also released 911 tapes detailing why officers were called to the scene in the first place. You can listen to the call here."His name is Calvin Smith," a woman tells the 911 dispatcher. "My daughter has a what do you call it on him?....A restraining or
  
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• Possible gas leak at BR charter school results in voluntary evacuation

  09-05-2016 09:32
  
  BATON ROUGE - A charter school in North Baton Rouge was evacuated by firefighters after a gas leak was reported Monday morning.A voluntary evacuation was put into place by BRFD after a gas odor was said to be lingering at Inspire Charter Academy, located off N Foster Drive near Hollywood Street.Firefighters have yet to determine the cause, but check back with this story for updates.Permalink| Comments
  
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• Gator thought to be dead takes chomp out of man's thumb

  09-05-2016 08:24
  
  ORLANDO, Fla. - Authorities say a Florida man was bitten by an alligator after he mistook it for dead.
  Orlando television station WESH reported Sunday that 41-year-old Bryan Rohm was bitten on the thumb and taken to Orlando Regional Medical Center for treatment.
  The Lake County Sheriff's Office says Rohm and his son were on a boat Saturday and had a permit to hunt alligators. They shot an alligator twice with a specialized firearm known as a "bang stick" and thought it was dead. But the
  
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• Iberia Parish considers new regulations on mobile home parks

  09-05-2016 08:21
  
  NEW IBERIA - Iberia Parish is considering halting all new mobile home parks in the parish while researching how best to regulate the developments.
  The council on Wednesday is set to decide whether to allow its legal adviser three months to craft an ordinance specifically regulating mobile home parks.
  During that window, there would be a moratorium on new mobile home park developments.
  Parish legal adviser Andy Shealy says mobile home parks create "unique planning and zoning issues" and wanted to
  
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• May 9, 2016 Morning News Pop

  09-05-2016 06:46
  
  Here are today's top stories:Garden District rape suspect has extensive criminal pastHouse leaders unveil their budget cut proposals MondayMother welcomes baby boy on Mother's DayNew week, new patternUpdates all day, every day:FACEBOOK | TWITTERPermalink| Comments
  
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• House leaders unveil their budget cut proposals Monday

  09-05-2016 05:37
  
  BATON ROUGE, La. - After weeks of hearings and behind-the-scenes negotiations, lawmakers in the Louisiana House are releasing their proposal to close a $600 million gap in next year's budget.Gov. John Bel Edwards offered his recommendations in April, proposing deep cuts to the TOPS free college tuition program, safety net hospitals for the poor, colleges and public schools in the financial year that begins July 1.The House Appropriations Committee unveils its reworked version Monday.Republican H
  
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• Friend of Md. shooting spree suspect says he was unaware of his troubles

  09-05-2016 03:32
  
  "He was a very quiet person, very soft-spoken," Gary Cochran said of Eulalio Tordil.
  
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• Sculpture of Hitler kneeling sells for $17.2 million at Christie's auction

  09-05-2016 02:31
  
  "Him," Cattelan's controversial sculpture of Hitler, appears as a small child kneeling in prayer when approached from the rear. But from the front, the viewer comes face-to-face with the unmistakable likeness of Hitler.
  
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