Baton Rouge news

• Attorney General Jeff Landry to face pressure to step aside in Alton Sterling case

  14-07-2016 23:57
  
  Some are worried politics could get in the way.
  
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• 3 Louisiana statewide elected officials attending GOP convention

  14-07-2016 23:50
  
  Three of Louisiana's Republican statewide elected officials will travel to Cleveland next week for the Republican National Convention. Secretary of State Tom Schedler, Attorney General Jeff Landry and Treasurer John Kennedy are planning to attend the party's summer convention and...
  
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• State Police, EBRSO, others to work security at Sterling funeral

  14-07-2016 21:22
  
  Baton Rouge - Thousands are expected to attend a funeral for Alton Sterling on Southern University's campus Friday morning. News 2 learned new information about the security plan for the large event.The basketball court inside F.G. Clark Activity Center has been converted into a place where people will pay their final respects to Sterling, who was shot and killed by police in Baton Rouge last week.The State Fire Marshal's Office checked the building today for safe exits, while Louisiana State Po
  
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• Religious leaders respond to Alton Sterling shooting

  14-07-2016 19:15
  
  BATON ROUGE – The scene of the deadly shooting of Alton Sterling that shook the nation was a scene of prayer and unity on Thursday. Religious leaders were at the Triple S convenience store where Sterling was killed by police on July 5.They were determined to tackle an issue they say is haunting the community and the nation."Well we're killing ourselves," Elizabeth Eaton, of the Evangelical Lutheran Church, said."When a black man's life is taken, we need to feel that in the white commun
  
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• BRAC addresses Baton Rouge race problem

  14-07-2016 18:40
  
  Baton Rouge- Business leaders in the capital city said Baton Rouge has a race problem. "The business community acknowledges a racial divide in our city," said Ann Trappey, chairwoman of the Baton Rouge Area Chamber.BRAC held a press conference Wednesday in response to the Alton Sterling shooting that took place July 5th. The organization called for two things:-Awareness of racial disparities by residents-Reform of government institutions to close the racial gapThose re
  
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• Col. Mike Edmonson calls for retraining of law enforcement nationwide

  14-07-2016 17:48
  
  BATON ROUGE- Following the death of Alton Sterling, questions have been swirling about training for law enforcement.State Police Colonel Mike Edmonson and Governor John Bel Edwards met with President Obama yesterday, and that topic came up. Edmonson told reporters he believes police officers nationwide need to be retrained. Diversity and de-escalating situations are among the training protocols that Edmonson wants to see officers educated on."We can do a better job with training," Edmon
  
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• Les Miles comments on turmoil in Baton Rouge

  14-07-2016 17:25
  
  HOOVER -  Speaking from Southeastern Conference Media Day Thursday, LSU football coach Les Miles addressed the recent turmoil in Baton Rouge in the aftermath of the Alton Sterling shooting.Miles told members of the media that he has held two small meetings with leadership of his team and “brushed the surface of the issues.” Miles said he wanted to listen as his entire staff met, not as coaches or staff, but as people.Last Tuesday, the police involve
  
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• Truck driven into crowd, at least 80 reported dead in attack in France

  14-07-2016 17:06
  
  NICE, France - French officials say 84 people are dead after a truck drove into a large crowd in the town of Nice during Bastille Day celebrations.Witnesses say that after running over people, the driver got out of the truck and started shooting bystanders. The unidentified suspect was killed in a shootout with police."We heard these sounds pop..pop..pop...pop, I don't know how man," Eric Drattell told CNN. "And then we saw people jumping from the promenade anglais to the corrugated metal roof."
  
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• At least 60 dead after truck plows into crowd in Nice

  14-07-2016 17:06
  
  NICE, France - The president of the Nice region says at least 60 people are dead after a truck drove into a large crowd during Bastille Day celebrations, officials said. The city is currently on lockdown.The driver has been killed, a local official told French media outlets.An eyewitness said that he saw a truck driver slam a vehicle into a crowd of revelers in the French resort city of Nice and then emerge shooting, killing many.
      
  Wassim Bouhlel, a Nice n
  
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• 2 'Pokemon Go' players plunge off Calif. cliff

  14-07-2016 15:48
  
  NEW YORK - Authorities say two men who were playing "Pokemon Go" fell off an ocean bluff in Southern California.Encinitas firefighters say the men climbed through a fence Wednesday afternoon while playing the digital-monster cellphone game.One man fell about 50 feet down the side of the unstable bluff and the other fell about 90 feet to the beach.They were taken to a hospital with moderate injuries.Permalink| Comments
  
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• 3 La. statewide elected officials attending GOP convention

  14-07-2016 15:11
  
  BATON ROUGE - Three of Louisiana's Republican statewide elected officials will travel to Cleveland next week for the Republican National Convention.Secretary of State Tom Schedler, Attorney General Jeff Landry and Treasurer John Kennedy are planning to attend the party's summer convention and events organized for the Louisiana delegation.None is among the state's official delegates to the convention, which will select the party's nominee for president.Schedler is expected to be there most of the
  
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• More than 1,000 without power in EBR Parish

  14-07-2016 14:53
  
  BATON ROUGE - Thunderstorms accompanied by numerous lightning strikes caused power outages in Baton Rouge and the surrounding areas on Thursday afternoon.By 1:30 p.m., Entergy's outage map was showing more than 1,300 customers were in the dark. The only other parish in the surrounding area with significant outages was Livingston where more than 100 outages were reported.A scan of Twitter indicated that there were numerous outages on LSU’s campus.Numerous power outages reported on campu
  
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• 1 dead, 1 seriously injured after lightning strike

  14-07-2016 14:36
  
  BATON ROUGE - Sources say one of two men injured during a lightning strike earlier on Thursday afternoon has died.Officials said the men were seeking shelter under a tree at the Spires of Sherwood apartment complex on Old Hammond Highway during a fast-moving and lightning-filled thunderstorm when the tree was struck.Both men were injured, but the older of the two would later die at an area hospital.The younger man was seriously injured, according to police.Permalink| Comments
  
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• Man sentenced to 4 years in prison for dealing heroin pills

  14-07-2016 14:08
  
  BATON ROUGE - Federal prosecutors say a Baton Rouge man has been sentenced to nearly four years behind bars after he was convicted of dealing heroin.31-year-old Brandon Kornbacher, also known as “Meeko,” will serve 46 months in prison followed by three years of supervised release. In December 2015, Kornbacher pleaded guilty to possession with intent to distribute heroin after Baton Rouge Police discovered 554 pills of heroin in the man’s vehicle during a traffic sto
  
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• Ryan: Pence would be a good, conservative VP

  14-07-2016 13:34
  
  WASHINGTON - House Speaker Paul Ryan says Indiana Gov. Mike Pence would be a good pick for Donald Trump's vice president.Ryan says it's no secret he's a big fan of Pence's and holds him in very high regard.Ryan tells reporters Thursday: "I hope that he picks a good movement conservative. Clearly Mike is one of those."The Wisconsin Republican says he doesn't know what Trump will do, and "I hope he makes a good pick and clearly that would be a good one."Trump's vice presidential announcement is ex
  
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• Mike Pence accepts Donald Trump's offer for Vice President spot

  14-07-2016 13:34
  
  WASHINGTON - Donald Trump asked Mike Pence to be his running mate and the Indiana governor accepted, a source with direct knowledge tells ABC News.Pence is believed to be on a plane to New York City right now, ahead of Trump's scheduled announcement of his pick tomorrow morning.Trump said that the official announcement will come Friday at 11:00 a.m. in New York City.It became clear that Trump was warming to the prospect of selecting Pence in recent days, since he spent time with him in
  
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• Kia owners report least number of problems in first 90 days of ownership

  14-07-2016 13:33
  
  South Korean automaker Kia has topped a J.D. Power 2016 car quality survey ranking.It’s the first time in the 27 years of the study that a non-premium brand has topped the list. The automaker was ranked second last year.Kia customers surveyed reported an initial quality score of 83 PP100.The study records problems experienced by vehicle owners during the first 90 days of ownership. Initial quality is determined by the number of problems experienced per 100 vehicles (PP100). Lower score
  
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• Edwards heads to Iowa for meeting of nation's governors

  14-07-2016 13:30
  
  BATON ROUGE - Gov. John Bel Edwards is spending the next few days in Iowa, to meet with fellow governors from around the country.The Democrat, in office since January, headed to Des Moines on Thursday for the National Governors Association summer meeting.According to the meeting agenda, discussions are scheduled on trade, agriculture, renewable energy, opioid addiction, attracting foreign investment and computer science and technology education for children. Scheduled speakers include U.S. Agric
  
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• Firefighters put out blaze at Shell Compressor Station near Paincourtville

  14-07-2016 13:26
  
  PAINTCOURTVILLE - Sheriff’s deputies in Assumption Parish say firefighters put out a fire at the Shell Compressor Station north of LA 70.Firefighters from Pierre Part, Paincourtville and Napoleonville responded to the scene. A State Police hazmat crew also turned up at the station to aid in putting out the fire.No injuries were reported in connection with the fire. It remains under investigation.No evacuations were declared in connection with the incident, but some roads in the area we
  
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• Fire at the Shell Compressor Station, north of LA-70

  14-07-2016 13:26
  
  PAINCOURTVILLE – Authorities are responding to an ongoing fire at the Shell Compressor Station north of LA-70.The Pierre Part, Paincourtville and Napoleonville Fire Department are on the scene in addition to the Assumption Parish Sheriff’s Office.OEP and the Louisiana State Police Haz-Mat crew are also en route.There are no reported injuries and the source of the fire has not been determined at the time of this post. There are currently no evacuations in place.LA- 70 is close
  
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• Internet swirls with warnings, debunking of nation-wide protest

  14-07-2016 13:09
  
  BATON ROUGE - Mixed reports of potentially violent protests around the country and suggestions that the local police computers had been hacked sparked warnings from federal officials.The Department of Defense warned its employees about protests planned for Friday night and a military base outside St. Louis even posted a warning on Facebook Thursday. The post reported protests over shootings of African Americans in Baton Rouge and Minnesota along with the shooting deaths of police in Dallas spawn
  
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• Hammond PD looks to ID persons of interest in double murder

  14-07-2016 13:09
  
  HAMMOND - Police are looking to identify a pair of subjects in connection with the double murder of an aunt and nephew in Hammond earlier this week.The bodies of 65-year-old Beverly Thompson and 39-year-old Toreo Thompson were found on Monday morning inside and outside of a residence in the 1400 block of Hoover Street. Both were dead from apparent gunshot wounds.Police said the victims were related as aunt and nephew.Detectives are now looking to identify several persons of interest based on ima
  
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• 'Game of Thrones' earns a leading 22 Emmy Award nominations

  14-07-2016 12:50
  
  LOS ANGELES - Power-and-blood fantasy saga "Game of Thrones" ruled the Emmy nominations Thursday with a leading 23 bids, including best drama, while a real-life epic of murder and celebrity, "The People v. O.J. Simpson," was close behind with 22 nods."Game of Thrones" gets the chance to win its second top Emmy, while "Veep," last year's top comedy winner, also will get another shot at holding office.Breakthrough nominations include a best comedy series nod for sophomore "black-ish," which brough
  
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• Consumer Reports says Tesla should drop Autopilot name

  14-07-2016 12:50
  
  DETROIT - Consumer Reports magazine is calling on electric car maker Tesla Motors to change the name of its Autopilot semi-autonomous driving system and to disconnect the automatic steering feature after a fatal crash in Florida.The magazine says in a statement that calling the system Autopilot promotes a dangerous assumption that Teslas can drive themselves. It also says the automatic steering should be disconnected until it's updated to make sure a driver's hands stay on the steering wheel at
  
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• US officials cite potential for violence at GOP convention

  14-07-2016 12:21
  
  WASHINGTON - Senior U.S. national security officials say they are worried about the potential for violence at the Republican National Convention to be held in Cleveland next week.During congressional testimony Thursday, Homeland Security Secretary Jeh (jay) Johnson said he's concerned that demonstrations outside the convention hall may get out of hand.Johnson says he will be inspecting the security around the convention hall during a visit Friday. He says he says similar concerns about the Democ
  
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• Cameron Sterling addresses President at town hall on race

  14-07-2016 12:14
  
  WASHINGTON, D.C. - The 15-year-old son of a man who was shot and killed by police in Baton Rouge last week attended a town hall hosted by ABC and addressed the president directly."I ask that you keep all of these families and my family safe," Cameron Sterling told President Obama at the beginning of the meeting. "And the people and the rest of the good police officers safe from bad people and bad police officers, and I ask for your help to unite all the races of this world."The death of Sterling
  
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• Opelousas Governor's Mansion destroyed by morning fire

  14-07-2016 12:00
  
  OPELOUSAS - A fire destroyed the oldest governor’s mansion in Louisiana early Thursday morning.
  The Old Governor’s Mansion in Opelousas is considered a total loss after the building was ravaged by flames with firefighters responding to scene at around 1 a.m.The house served as the home of the governor during the Civil War when Union troops occupied Baton Rouge. Renovations to restore the mansion had started last November, according to KATC-TV.No injuries were reported in conn
  
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• Arson destroys Civil War governor's mansion

  14-07-2016 12:00
  
  OPELOUSAS - The Louisiana State Fire Marshal's Office says arson destroyed an antebellum plantation house that served as the governor's mansion for nine months during the Civil War - and damaged a museum less than a mile away.Chief Deputy Brant Thompson says the Old Governor's Mansion in Opelousas burned to the ground.But he says the fire at the Louisiana Orphan Train Museum apparently burned out fairly quickly. He says museum workers found fire damage when they arrived for work Thursday morning
  
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• Ginsburg regrets 'ill-advised' criticism of Trump

  14-07-2016 09:19
  
  WASHINGTON - Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg says she regrets her "ill-advised" public criticism of Donald Trump.Ginsburg says in a statement issued by the court on Thursday that judges should avoid commenting on a candidate for public office. She promises to be more circumspect in the future.Ginsburg told The Associated Press last week that she did not want to think about the prospect of Trump winning the presidency. She escalated her criticism in subsequent media interviews.She herse
  
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• Emails asked firefighters to stop feeding gators near Disney

  14-07-2016 08:54
  
  LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. - Firefighters at Walt Disney World were warned to stop feeding alligators at one of the resort's fire stations two months before an alligator killed a toddler.According to emails obtained by Orlando Sentinel, Reedy Creek Emergency Services admonished firefighters for feeding at least one of two alligators at a station less than a half-mile from Seven Seas Lagoon where 2-year-old son Lane Graves of Omaha, Nebraska, was killed after being pulled into the water by a gator.Fe
  
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• Formosan termite infestations growing in Baton Rouge

  14-07-2016 08:23
  
  BATON ROUGE - Long seen as a New Orleans problem, Formosan termites have become a new reality in Baton Rouge.
  A long-time termite researcher at the LSU Agricultural Center says increasing numbers of the insect are now being found in Louisiana's capital city.
  Gregg Henderson, who has documented the Formosan termite infestation through trap counts in New Orleans, started looking for them closer to home in 2009.
  In May and June of that year, the total number of winged Formosan termites caught in li
  
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• Pulitzer Prize winner to deliver LSU's commencement address

  14-07-2016 08:19
  
  BATON ROUGE- Pulitzer Prize winner Amy Brittain will deliver the keynote address at LSU's summer commencement ceremony in August.Brittain, a graduate of LSU and Washington Post investigative reporter, will address graduates at 9 a.m. Friday, Aug. 5, in the Pete Maravich Assembly Center.Brittain, a Shreveport native, was part of the newspaper's staff that recently was recognized with a Pulitzer Prize for investigative journalism. LSU President F. King Alexander says her success in her field demon
  
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• Hwy 1 closed due to head-on collision; 1 dead

  14-07-2016 07:01
  
  BATON ROUGE - One person is dead after a head-on collision resulting a closure on Highway 1 Thursday morning according to State Police.The highway has been closed in both directions at Laurel Ridge Road between White Castle and Donaldsonville since 6:30 a.m. Traffic is being diverted to River Road. There is some congestion in the area.Accident:LA 1 is closed in both directions at Laurel Ridge Rd (btw White Castle and Donaldsonville)Traffic diverted onto River Road— WBRZ Traffi
  
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• All lanes opened on Hwy 1 after fatal wreck

  14-07-2016 07:01
  
  BATON ROUGE - Two people are dead after a head-on collision resulted a closure on Highway 1 Thursday morning according to State Police.The highway is now open in both directions at Laurel Ridge Road between White Castle and Donaldsonville. LA-1 was closed for nearly three hours.Accident:LA 1 is closed in both directions at Laurel Ridge Rd (btw White Castle and Donaldsonville)Traffic diverted onto River Road— WBRZ Traffic (@WBRZtraffic) July 14, 2016This is a developing story, and a New
  
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• 2 dead, 1 arrested after head-on crash in Ascension Parish

  14-07-2016 07:01
  
  DONALDSONVILLE - State Police say two people are dead and another person was arrested after a deadly head-on crash on LA 1 in Ascension Parish Thursday morning.According to Louisiana State Police, the crash happened after 6 a.m. north of LA 405. Police say 17-year-old Stormy Hunnicutt from Prairieville and 32-year-old Ashley Stevenson of Donaldsonville were killed.Police arrested 21-year-old Brennan Simoneaux from St. Amant.Investigators believe Simoneaux was traveling north of LA 1 in
  
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• Dogs kill 2 monkeys, injure a third at Baton Rouge Zoo

  14-07-2016 03:32
  
  Domestic dogs broke into the Baton Rouge Zoo and killed two spot-nosed guenon monkeys and severely injured a third.
  
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• Louisiana ACLU sues Baton Rouge police over mistreatment of protesters

  14-07-2016 00:04
  
  "This exercise of constitutional rights has been met with a military-grade assault." - ACLU
  
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