Baton Rouge news

• As fall begins, here's how hot and wet summer was

  22-09-2016 22:15
  
  24 inches of rain made for fourth wettest June-August in Louisiana history
  
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• Protesters criticize Chicago mayor's plan

  22-09-2016 21:39
  
  CHICAGO - About two dozen protesters gathered outside Chicago's Malcolm X College, where Mayor Rahm Emanuel delivered a speech outlining his plans to combat the surge of violence plaguing the city this year.
   
  The demonstrators were holding up signs demanding Emanuel adopt a civilian police accountability council they want to investigate police misconduct.
   
  They say the board Emanuel is proposing is a farce because they believe it will be controlled by the mayor and does not h
  
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• FBI says it's evaluating abuse allegations against Pitt

  22-09-2016 21:28
  
  LOS ANGELES - The FBI says it's gathering information about an incident involving Brad Pitt and his family aboard a private flight last week.
      
  Spokeswoman Laura Eimiller said in a statement late Thursday that the agency is still evaluating whether to open its own investigation into allegations Pitt was abusive during the flight toward one of his six children with actress Angelina Jolie Pitt.
      
  Several media outlets, using anonymous sou
  
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• Livingston Parish Council approves changes to election day

  22-09-2016 19:58
  
  LIVINGSTON PARISH- The Livingston Parish Council approved new polling locations at a meeting Thursday night. Several of the original locations were damaged in last month's flooding. All polling locations will maintain the same hours on the  November 8th and December 10th election days.
  Early voting for the November 8th election begins on October 25th and will last until November 1st from 8:30 a.m. until 6:00 p.m. except for Sunday. Only for early voting, Voters can cast early ballots at
  
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• Supplier: No listeria in product before going to Blue Bell

  22-09-2016 17:56
  
  HOUSTON - A supplier of cookie dough that Blue Bell Creameries is blaming for possible listeria contamination of some ice cream says the product tested negative for the pathogen before being sent to the Texas-based company.In a statement Thursday, Iowa-based Aspen Hills said the "positive listeria results were obtained by Blue Bell only after our product had been in their control for almost two months."Brenham, Texas-based Blue Bell announced Wednesday it's recalling some ice cream flavors after
  
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• Smithsonian experts to teach residents how to save precious heirlooms

  22-09-2016 17:23
  
  BATON ROUGE – Preservation experts with the Smithsonian Institution will be available to help demonstrate how to save family treasures that were damaged in the historic flooding.According to a statement by FEMA, flood survivors can learn how to salvage photos, artwork, quilts and family heirlooms. The experts will demonstrate how to handle, dry and clean the objects as well as share tips on personal safety.FEMA says photos can be rinsed gently in clean water and air dried on plastic sc
  
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• Teen accused of shooting victim in head, hiding handgun

  22-09-2016 15:51
  
  BATON ROUGE – Police say a Baton Rouge teenager was arrested Thursday after they say he shot another person Sunday afternoon.According to arrest records, Baton Rouge Police officers were dispatched to Arbor Vitae Drive around 5:50 pm. Sunday in reference to a shooting inside of a home.At the scene, officer found a victim inside a bedroom suffering from a single gunshot wound to the head. Investigators were told that 17-year-old Debroderick Wallace was playing with a handgun and acciden
  
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• Tulsa police officer charged in man's death

  22-09-2016 15:49
  
  TULSA - A prosecutor in Tulsa, Oklahoma, says arrangements are being made for the surrender of a white police officer who fatally shot an unarmed black man on a city street.Tulsa County District Attorney Steve Kunzweiler filed a first-degree manslaughter charge Thursday against officer Betty Shelby, who shot and killed 40-year-old Terence Crutcher on Sept. 16. Dashcam and aerial footage of the shooting and its aftermath showed Crutcher walking away from Shelby with his arms in the air.The footag
  
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• Yahoo says hackers stole info in 500 million user accounts

  22-09-2016 15:10
  
  SAN FRANCISCO - Yahoo says the personal information in 500 million accounts was stolen in a massive security breakdown. The breach disclosed Thursday, the latest setback for the beleaguered internet company, dates back to late 2014.The stolen data includes users' names, email addresses, telephone numbers, dates of birth, hashed passwords and security questions for verifying an accountholder's identity. Yahoo is blaming the hack on a "state-sponsored actor."The stolen data includes users' names,
  
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• La attorney general cans Chinese drywall legal contracts

  22-09-2016 15:08
  
  BATON ROUGE - Louisiana's attorney general says he's canceled contracts with attorneys who represented the state in suits against Chinese drywall companies, and is auditing the contracts.Jeff Landry says he wants to know whether they helped Louisiana. He says his office will take over the work.Landry says nearly $5.6 million went to the Perkins Coie law firm. That firm had no immediate comment Thursday.A federal judge has ruled that sulfur fumes from the drywall damaged houses and other building
  
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• Drought grips southern states, parches ground, withers crops

  22-09-2016 15:05
  
  ATLANTA - Authorities say extreme drought conditions are persisting in parts of Alabama and Georgia, wilting crops and raising the specter of wildfires.Thursday's U.S. Drought Monitor, a weekly report that tracks drought conditions nationwide, showed the worst of the drought in Alabama's northeast corner, in northwest Georgia and across a swath of land mostly south and southeast of Atlanta.In northwest Georgia, hard-hit by some of region's driest conditions, the report said crops have withered.I
  
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• Few students take Louisiana's first college safety survey

  22-09-2016 15:03
  
  BATON ROUGE - Louisiana has conducted its first statewide survey of public college campuses on issues of violence and sexual assault. But so few students participated that the findings don't provide much insight into campus safety.A 2015 state law required the campus climate survey. Colleges administered it in the spring. Participation is voluntary for students.The findings were presented Thursday to the Board of Regents, which oversees the law's efforts to improve the way colleges handle sexual
  
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• Edwards aims to end contract with north La. hospital manager

  22-09-2016 14:51
  
  BATON ROUGE - Gov. John Bel Edwards is moving to oust the operator of LSU's hospitals in Shreveport and Monroe, after it refused renegotiated contract terms sought by the governor.Commissioner of Administration Jay Dardenne sent a letter to the Biomedical Research Foundation of Northwest Louisiana notifying the hospital manager the state will seek to end the contract.The governor's office released the letter Thursday. Edwards spokesman Richard Carbo says the two sides have 45 days to continue co
  
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• Livingston officials: property is sinking into Amite River

  22-09-2016 14:20
  
  FRENCH SETTLEMENT – Livingston Parish emergency officials say homes along the Amite River in the Cypress Point subdivision are sinking into the river.According to LOHSEP Director Mark Harrell, tens of homes are experiencing substantial soil erosion that is causing a safety concern and property loss.In a letter to Governor John Bel Edwards Thursday, Harrell said that concrete should be dumped into the eroded area to temporarily halt the soil erosion.“We are aware this is only
  
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• DA to discuss findings on February deputy-involved shooting death of man

  22-09-2016 14:01
  
  BATON ROUGE – The East Baton Rouge District Attorney’s office will hold a press conference to discuss the findings in the deputy involved-shooting of 48-year-old Travis Stevenson back in February.According to EBRSO at the time, Stevenson rammed sheriff’s deputy vehicles and attempted to drive his vehicle into a building, near the corner of Eddie Robinson and Terrace Avenue. Stevenson eluded to being suicidal and was going to try to jump from one of
  
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• DA says deputy-involved shooting of a man was justified

  22-09-2016 14:01
  
  BATON ROUGE – District Attorney Hillar Moore said that the deputies involved in a deadly officer involved shooting in February acted lawfully "to protect themselves and others."Moore stated that on Feb. 23 around 8:30 p.m., the East Baton Rouge Sheriff's Office responded to a call of a woman who stated that Stevenson, her ex-boyfriend, had pepper-sprayed her and her daughter and threw a beer bottle at her. He then took the woman's car and fled the scene.Deputies were able to s
  
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• Congress praised for early flood aid package, but leaders say more is needed

  22-09-2016 13:21
  
  BATON ROUGE - Governor John Bel Edwards praised Congress for its effort to secure up to $500 million for flood relief Thursday, but stressed the need for additional money to help people in flood-ravaged south Louisiana rebuild.The money is made available in a federal, short-term continuing resolution item. U.S. Senator David Vitter said the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) will distribute the money to states with disasters in 2016. Louisiana is expected to receive a major p
  
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• Charlotte protest spills onto interstate

  22-09-2016 12:18
  
  CHARLOTTE, N.C - Protesters in Charlotte who spilled onto an interstate highway are being pushed back by police officers in riot gear.
      
  After peacefully circling the city's business district for several hours, several dozen demonstrators climbed onto Interstate 277 and stood in the middle of the highway.
      
  A line of police officers with shields and face masks advanced on the protesters, and many dispersed and climbed back up embankment
  
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• Rain delays sugar cane planting as harvesting gets underway

  22-09-2016 12:17
  
  THIBODAUX - The relatively dry weather forecast this week is exactly what sugar cane farmers need.American Sugar Cane League Senior Agronomist Herman Waguespack tells The Daily Comet the planting season has been "very rough.Waguespack says the wet weather comes at a time when the harvest season is set to beginning.Farms have multiple years of crop growing at once, but most don't have the manpower or equipment to both plant and harvest at the same time.Mark Naquin who owns a farming mach
  
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• Humane Society of Louisiana animal hold to expire next week

  22-09-2016 09:49
  
  NEW ORLEANS – Humane Society of Louisiana officials are reminding pet owners that the hold for animal flood survivors will expire next week.Organization officials say that the hold period of 45 days for animal flood survivors will expire at midnight on Sept. 26. Once the hold expires the unclaimed animals will be become available for adoption.The organization created online forms on its web site where pet owners can file missing pet reports. A dedicated phone number has also been estab
  
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• Mom booked into jail after hitting child with belt at disaster shelter

  22-09-2016 09:37
  
  BATON ROUGE - Sheriff's deputies booked a mother into jail following the woman being seen hitting her child with a belt at a disaster shelter. Keaire Hatton, 21, was charged with cruelty to juveniles following the altercation. The state is also investigating the situation as possible child abuse. In addition to cruelty charges, Hatton was booked into jail on charges related to cursing and spitting at the deputy during her arrest at Celtic Studios Wednesday.The deputy who arrested Hatton wrote in
  
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• Woman arrested for causing drama at Furniture Expo

  22-09-2016 09:11
  
  BATON ROUGE - A woman is in jail for causing trouble at a furniture store on Cortana Place and stealing its truck.Breanna Dye came into Furniture Expo where her husband work and caused a disruption by throwing furniture and punching him. She also took one of the company's truck.Baton Rouge Police found Dye at apartment on the 900 block of Monet Drive and arrested her. Dye has been charged for damage to property, domestic abuse battery and vehicle burglary.Permalink| Comments
  
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• Parents convicted in infant's death

  22-09-2016 09:05
  
  NEW ROADS - The parents of a 3-month-old infant, who died from severe malnutrition and dehydration in 2014, have been convicted of second-degree murder.34-year-old Jason Lutz and 33-year-old Ashley Cogar were immediately handcuffed in court Wednesday and taken to the Pointe Coupee Parish Jail, where they'll await sentencing on Oct. 13 in the death of their son, Joseph Lutz.State District Judge Edward Gaidry convicted the couple following a three-day bench trial. The defense attorneys waived the
  
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• Police ID body found in tool box in Lafayette

  22-09-2016 08:55
  
  LAFAYETTE - Lafayette authorities have identified the victim whose body was found inside a tool box.Police said Wednesday the victim is 23-year-old Alannah L. Montalvo, of Lafayette.Investigtators say Montalvo was in a relationship with a suspect killed in an earlier shooting, 36-year-old Barrett B. Farabee II.Based on forensic evidence and statements obtained during the course of both investigations, police say Farabee is believed to be responsible for the death of Montalvo, whose body was foun
  
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• Energy company CEO: Oil and gas industry to make comeback

  22-09-2016 08:50
  
  LAFAYETTE - The president and CEO of Stone Energy Corp. in Lafayette says he's confident the oil and gas industry will bounce back.David Welch told the quarterly meeting of the Louisiana Oil & Gas Association on Wednesday that as the world population grows so will the demand for energy. Welch didn't say specifically when he expects the industry to make a comeback, however.He told the group that demand for oil will close the gap created by a current oversupply of oil. He predicted that as the
  
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• Accident closes right lane on I-10 EB at Acadian

  22-09-2016 08:07
  
  BATON ROUGE - The right lane is blocked on I-10 eastbound at Acadian due to an accident involving multiple vehicles.The delay from this incident has reached LA 1. Motorists are driving under 10 mph on the roadway.News 2's Ashley Fruge is monitoring traffic during Good Morning America. We will have updates on WBRZ.com and Twitter.Permalink| Comments
  
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• State police: 2 men die in head-on collision with school bus

  22-09-2016 07:57
  
  SHONGALOO, La. (AP) - Louisiana State Police say two men died when their car crash head-on in the Webster Parish school bus.Trooper Matt Harris said in a news release the bus driver and the 47 students that were on board the bus were not injured in Wednesday's crash.The accident happened on Louisiana Highway 2 near Shongaloo.Harris identified the victims as the car's driver, 35-year-old Freddy Bryant of Shongaloo, and his passenger, 29-year-old Gary Matlock of Plain Dealing.Harris says Bryant wa
  
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• Teen allegedly says she chatted with Anthony Weiner, but Weiner claims hoax

  22-09-2016 07:00
  
  NEW YORK - Former Congressman Anthony Weiner is facing another allegation involving with 15-year-old girl.The girl sent the Daily Mail screenshots of chats she allegedly had with Weiner. She also claims her sexting and skyping affair with the former congressman began in January.Weiner has released a statement saying:"I have repeatedly demonstrated terrible judgement about the people I have communicated with online and the things I have sent. I am filled with regret and heartbrokend for those I h
  
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• Report: Fishy spending in La. gov't, concerns about safety of eating Gulf fish

  22-09-2016 06:37
  
  BATON ROUGE - Louisiana auditors say Gulf oil spill recovery money intended for testing to ensure Louisiana fish were safe for consumers instead paid for unnecessary iPads, cameras, boats and now-missing fishing equipment.The Louisiana Legislative Auditor's Office describes the safety program as so mismanaged by the Department of Wildlife and Fisheries that it couldn't even declare if the catch was fit to eat.Energy giant BP gave Louisiana millions for the program aimed at restoring confidence i
  
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• Saints place P.J. Williams on injured reserve after head hit

  22-09-2016 04:25
  
  METAIRIE, La. - The New Orleans Saints have placed P.J. Williams on injured reserve, three days after the cornerback absorbed a hard hit to the head during Sunday's loss to the New York Giants.Williams, whose designation was posted on the NFL's transactions listings Wednesday, took a knee to the helmet in a collision with Giants tight end Larry Donnell.Williams was able to move his extremities, but was immobilized, carted off the field and taken to a hospital.On Monday, Saints coach Sean Payton
  
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• Chicago's mayor to deliver major speech on city crime

  22-09-2016 04:22
  
  CHICAGO - Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel will deliver his new, more comprehensive plan for addressing public safety in the nation's third-largest city.The agenda is expected to include more support and mentorship of youth, a key theme he's expected to address in the evening speech at a community college campus.His comments come as Chicago is seeing a spike in violent crime and dealing with fallout from the 2014 shooting death of Laquan McDonald, which prompted a U.S. Department of Justice investigat
  
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• A court fight over documents about a 12-year-old oil leak

  22-09-2016 03:58
  
  NEW ORLEANS - Environmental attorneys and an energy company are going to court over the confidentiality of documents related to an ongoing oil leak from an offshore site damaged by Hurricane Ivan in 2004.The Louisiana Environmental Action Network and others say Taylor Energy is violating a 2015 settlement agreement by fighting the release of certain documents about the leak. Environmentalists sought the documents' release under the federal Freedom of Information Act.Taylor Energy argues that the
  
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• Mylan CEO infuriates lawmakers at hearing on EpiPen costs

  22-09-2016 02:50
  
  WASHINGTON - Mylan CEO Heather Bresch infuriated lawmakers as she tried to explain steep cost increases of her company's life-saving EpiPens.Outraged Republican and Democratic lawmakers on Wednesday grilled Bresch about the emergency allergy shot's sky-high price and the profits for a company with sales in excess of $11 billion. The list price of EpiPens has grown to $608 for a two-pack, an increase of more than 500 percent since 2007.In almost four hours of questioning, the soft-spoken CEO at t
  
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