Baton Rouge news

• Where in Louisiana is personal income on the rise?

  06-12-2016 22:38
  
  Metro areas, especially Shreveport-Bossier City and Lake Charles, see faster growth than rural regions
  
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• LSU Lakes resident threatens to shoot burglars

  06-12-2016 21:31
  
  BATON ROUGE- Walking down the clean and quite streets of the Hillsdale neighborhood, one might not expect to see the sign sticking out of Pat Anderson's front lawn."Robbed again for the fourth time. Unless you want to meet my gun, don't make it a fifth," is the ominous warning printed on the small sign.Anderson, a scrap dealer, said his threat is no joke."Do I want to? No," he said. "But at the same time, what do you do?"Anderson was first burglarized three years ago. A masked man scaled his eig
  
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• Trump officially announces Pentagon pick Mattis

  06-12-2016 20:27
  
  WASHINGTON - President-elect Donald Trump is officially announcing he will nominate retired Marine Gen. James Mattis to be his Defense Secretary, bringing his pick onstage in North Carolina.Mattis briefly addressed the crowd in Fayetteville, thanking Trump for the nomination.Fayetteville is the latest stop in Trump's "thank you" tour to salute his supporters. The venue is near several major military bases, including Fort Bragg.Trump is also repeating his vow to reinforce the nation's military, b
  
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• Researchers show off medical drones for disasters, shootings

  06-12-2016 20:22
  
  RAYMOND, Miss. - Researchers say they hope small helicopter drones can bring medical care to areas after severe weather or mass shootings. They showed off models Tuesday at John Bell Williams Airport in Raymond.A partnership between William Carey University's College of Osteopathic Medicine and the Hinds Community College drone program is developing what's called the Health Integrated Rescue Operation. The partners are working with the U.S. Department of Homeland Security.Dr. Itala Subbarao says
  
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• Man convicted in 2007 Times Square hotel killing

  06-12-2016 19:48
  
  NEW YORK - It took nearly a decade for a murder case over a prostitute's death in a shabby Times Square hotel to go to trial. But it took only about two hours for jurors to convict the accused man.Jurors in Clarence Dean's case began deliberating late Tuesday afternoon. The Manhattan district attorney's office says the jury delivered a guilty verdict Tuesday evening.The convicted sex offender admitted choking Kristine Yitref but denied killing her. He said he blacked out while defending himself
  
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• Widow testifies Will Smith wasn't aggressor

  06-12-2016 19:46
  
  NEW ORLEANS - The second day of the Will Smith shooting death trial has ended after dramatic testimony from the widow of the retired New Orleans Saints star.Racquel Smith insisted that her husband was not the aggressor in an April 9 confrontation with 29-year-oild Cardell Hayes, who faces a second-degree murder charge in Smith's death.Hayes also faces an attempted second-degree murder charge because Racquel Smith was shot in the legs that night."I didn't do anything for you to shoot me," Racquel
  
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• Pizza restaurant reopens after fake news assault

  06-12-2016 19:43
  
  WASHINGTON - A pizza restaurant in Washington has reopened two days after a man stormed in with a rifle in what police say was an attempt to investigate a fake news story.WTTG-TV reports owner James Alefantis spoke to reporters outside Comet Ping Pong on Tuesday evening, saying he's "overwhelmed and incredibly touched by the support of our community."Alefantis also thanked his staff. "My employees are an incredible group of young people and they inspire me every day," he says. "These are people
  
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• Mexico rescues 15 children in Cabo San Lucas resort

  06-12-2016 19:40
  
  MEXICO CITY - Mexican prosecutors say they have rescued 15 children who were forced to work as vendors or beggars in the Baja California resort of Cabo San Lucas.The youngsters were allegedly posted outside bars and restaurants late at night, where they begged tourists for money or offered trinkets for sale.The Attorney General's Office said in a statement Tuesday that it arrested nine women who exploited the children and made money off them. It was unclear if the women were related to the child
  
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• Small tornado caused damage in Ascension Monday

  06-12-2016 17:52
  
  GONZALES - A small tornado was responsible for damage in Ascension Parish during some severe weather Monday.An EF1 knocked down trees and power lines along a 3.5 mile path, the National Weather Service revealed Tuesday. The path and damage were confirmed after a team from the NWS toured the area. The tornado, which had about 90 mph winds, occurred at 11:47 Monday morning.Damage was noticed to be about 30-yards wide.The only smaller twister is an EF0. Most tornadoes that happen are either an EF0
  
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• Teacher impacted by flood gets surprise shopping spree

  06-12-2016 17:42
  
  ASCENSION – One teacher was rewarded a surprise shopping spree after her home was flooded for a second time following the August flood.Jennifer LeBlanc, a third grade teacher at Lakeside Primary School in Ascension Parish, says that the classroom and her students are her escape from the struggles of recovering from the flood.However, she had no idea what surprise the school had for her – a shopping spree from Tanger Outlets and supplies to restock her home."I don't e
  
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• Home in two flood zones caught in loan limbo

  06-12-2016 17:31
  
  BATON ROUGE - A flood victim says she was pre-approved for an Small Business Administration loan, but now is being told by SBA she's in a flood zone.The back and forth has gone on since October. Jo Ann Gaudin called 2 On Your Side for help."It's crazy," said Gaudin.She's lived in her Baton Rouge home for 22 years and she's paid off her mortgage. Gaudin says she got 18 inches of water in August and began the process to rebuild and applied for an SBA loan.Gaudin says she was pre-approved for $108,
  
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• Communities impacted by March flooding may receive lost revenue assistance loans

  06-12-2016 17:14
  
  BATON ROUGE – Local governments that were impacted by severe weather in the spring may now be eligible for federal loans if they have revenue shortfalls.FEMA's Community Disaster Loan Program may provide loans of up to $5 million to eligible applicants who lost more than five percent of their revenue due to the March flooding.The program may provide lost revenue to the following local government entities in Louisiana:- city and parish governments- school districts- fire and law enforce
  
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• Dylann Roof's lawyers want delay after officer's mistrial

  06-12-2016 16:00
  
  COLUMBIA, S.C. - Lawyers for Dylann Roof want to delay picking a jury in his federal death penalty trial because of the publicity surrounding the mistrial in a former police officer's case.Roof's lawyers filed the request Tuesday. Jury selection is expected to start Wednesday in Charleston, where a mistrial was declared earlier this week for former North Charleston police officer Michael Slager.Roof's attorneys say if U.S. District Judge Richard Gergel goes forward, he at least needs to question
  
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• 19-year-old arrested following foot chase in Donaldsonville

  06-12-2016 15:54
  
  DONALDSONVILLE – The Ascension Parish Sheriff's Office arrested a 19-year-old that attempted to flee deputies following a traffic stop on Monday in Donaldsonville.APSO arrested 19-year-old Travis Jones on charges of two counts of illegal possession of stolen guns, three counts of illegal carrying of weapons, possession of marijuana, possession of cocaine and flight from an officer.A traffic stop was attempted, but Jones led deputies on a short foot chase on Pine Street. Deputies were a
  
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• Airplane was more nuisance than emergency Tuesday

  06-12-2016 14:24
  
  BATON ROUGE – A small snafu was more nuisance than emergency at the airport Tuesday afternoon.A corporate jet ran into the grass while taxiing after landing at the airport shortly after lunch. The jet turned too sharply and ran off the runway, an airport spokesperson said.As with any emergency at the airport, authorities are called and prepared for the worst type of airline emergency. The swift response was quickly downgraded and emergency personnel were called off.There were no injuri
  
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• Florida woman in half-marathon lost for 12 hours, then found

  06-12-2016 13:53
  
  NORTH PORT - A Florida woman who became lost during a half-marathon trail run was found past nightfall after wandering around a 25,000-acre park for nearly 12 hours.The Sarasota Times-Herald reports Melissa Kitcher was in good spirits after being found Sunday evening. She says she made a wrong turn more than three miles into the 13.1-mile run.Race director Thierry Rouillard says he had no idea Kitcher was still on the trail until her husband called late Sunday afternoon, hours after the Trail Ho
  
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• Girl, 9, swims to safety after mother killed in crash

  06-12-2016 13:38
  
  MANCHESTER, Ky. - Authorities say a 9-year-old Kentucky girl was able to swim to safety after the car she was in plunged into a creek, killing her mother.Kentucky State Police trooper Lloyd Cochran said in a news release that Mylee Murphy was in the vehicle with her mother, 34-year-old Chasity Murphy of Manchester, when the woman lost control of her car Monday in Clay County. The vehicle traveled over an embankment before overturning in Big Creek.Cochran says Mylee Murphy escaped from the vehicl
  
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• New budget hearings open, with $600M gap lingering this year

  06-12-2016 13:27
  
  BATON ROUGE - Lawmakers are getting an early jump on budget negotiations for the upcoming state financial year, but with a warning they have as much as a $600 million hole to close in this year's spending plan first.Commissioner of Administration Jay Dardenne, the governor's chief budget adviser, reminded the House Appropriations Committee that lawmakers have yet to deal with a $313 million deficit.He also said he's expecting another $300 million or more could be added to the total when Louisian
  
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• Trump says cancel Air Force One contract

  06-12-2016 13:15
  
  WASHINGTON - Donald Trump wants the government's contract for a new Air Force One canceled.The president-elect tweeted that the contract with Boeing for a new presidential plane is costing $4 billion.He later told reporters at Trump Tower that the manufacturer is "doing a little bit of a number" and the cost is "ridiculous."Trump added that, "We want Boeing to make a lot of money, but not that much money."The government has contracted with Boeing to build two or more new planes that would go int
  
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• Mistakenly sold lottery ticket earns couple $1 million

  06-12-2016 12:32
  
  LAKEWOOD, N.J. - A mistakenly sold lottery ticket has earned a New Jersey couple $1 million.State lottery officials say 70-year-old Dante Castillo usually picks his own numbers. But when the Manchester man bought some tickets for last Thursday's Cash4Life jackpot at a convenience store in Lakewood, the clerk accidentally sold him a ticket with computer-generated numbers.That ticket proved to be the winner, matching the five main numbers drawn but not the cash ball number.Castillo and his wife ha
  
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• Gonzales celebrates tree lighting despite vandalism

  06-12-2016 11:37
  
  GONZALES- Less than 48 hours after it was vandalized, the City of Gonzales celebrated its annual tree lighting Tuesday evening.Someone tore down Christmas ornaments and damaged the ladies restroom located at Jambalaya Park on East Cornview Street. City workers spent Monday morning putting everything back in place. Barney Arceneaux, the mayor of Gonzales, praised workers for their quick work."Our workers did a wonderful job getting everything back together on the Christmas tree, and ever
  
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• Death toll in quake rises to 25 in 1 district

  06-12-2016 11:05
  
  JAKARTA, Indonesia - The chief of the district nearest the epicenter of a shallow 6.4-magnitude earthquake that struck Indonesia's Aceh province early Wednesday says 25 people have been killed in that district alone.Pidie Jaya district chief Aiyub Abbas also says hundreds of people in the district have been injured and dozens of buildings collapsed.Abbas says there is an urgent need for excavation equipment to move heavy debris and emergency supplies.Permalink| Comments
  
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• Georgia executes man who killed father-in-law

  06-12-2016 11:03
  
  ATLANTA - Georgia has executed its ninth inmate this year, putting to death a man convicted of killing his father-in-law more than a quarter century ago.Authorities say 50-year-old William Sallie was pronounced dead at 10:05 p.m. Tuesday after a lethal injection. Sallie was convicted of murder in the March 1990 shooting death of John Lee Moore in rural south Georgia.Prosecutors say Sallie went to his in-laws' home, where his estranged wife and their 2-year-old son were staying, and shot Moore an
  
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• 7 dead in latest China mine blast; 60 miners killed in week

  06-12-2016 11:00
  
  BEIJING - A gas explosion in central China has killed seven coal miners and left four more missing in the latest deadly accident to strike China's mining industry.A statement from the local propaganda department said rescuers were still trying to reach people trapped underground after the Monday night blast in Hubei province.Rescue workers are pumping air into the mine shaft to aid the rescue effort.It was the third major mining accident in one week, causing a total of 60 deaths.China is the wor
  
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• Justices uphold Katrina fraud verdict against State Farm

  06-12-2016 09:41
  WASHINGTON - A unanimous Supreme Court has upheld a jury verdict that State Farm Fire and Casualty Co. committed fraud against the federal government after 2005's Hurricane Katrina.The justices on Tuesday rejected claims by State Farm that the whistleblower case against the insurer should have been dismissed because its existence was leaked while it was supposed to be secret.Justice Anthony Kennedy wrote for the court in upholding an appellate ruling that there is no requirement in federal law t
  
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• Public school report cards under renewed scrutiny by panel

  06-12-2016 09:13
  
  BATON ROUGE - An influential state panel is spending time wrestling with how to change public school report cards, including the all-important issue of rewarding annual academic gains.The effort is part of the state's plan to revamp public school policies to comply with a 2015 federal law called the Every Student Succeeds Act.The Advocate reports the topic was debated Monday by the Louisiana Accountability Commission, which advises the state Board of Elementary and Secondary Education.Under curr
  
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• Trending story that Clinton won just 57 counties is untrue

  06-12-2016 08:59
  NEW YORK - A trending story that claims Hillary Clinton won a total of 57 counties in the presidential election is untrue.The Associated Press finds that Clinton won 487 counties nationwide, compared with 2,626 for President-elect Donald Trump.The story appeared on several viral content sites that cater to some of Trump's supporters.It also falsely claimed that Clinton outpaced Trump by more than 2 million votes in the five counties that comprise New York City, which the story said accounted for
  
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• Opening statements expected in trial over Saints star death

  06-12-2016 08:51
  
  NEW ORLEANS - After a jury selection process that lasted well into the night, opening statements are expected in the trial of the man charged with murder after he shot retired New Orleans Saints star Will Smith.Cardell Hayes faces life in prison if convicted on a second-degree murder charge. He's also charged with attempted second-degree murder because Smith's wife Racquel was wounded by gunfire.The shots rang out during an argument that followed an April 9 traffic crash.Twelve jurors and four a
  
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• WATCH LIVE: Man who shot ex-NFL player charged with manslaughter

  06-12-2016 08:46
  
  WATCH LIVE: Jefferson Parish Sheriff Newell Normand discusses the case.HARVEY, La. - The man who fatally shot ex-NFL player Joe McKnight has been arrested and jailed on a charge of manslaughter.Jail records show 54-year-old Ronald Gasser was arrested late Monday.Jefferson Parish Sheriff Newell Normand has called a news conference for 10 a.m. Tuesday to discuss the case.Gasser was released last week without charges pending further investigation of McKnight's death.Normand said Thursday's
  
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• Shooter of ex-NFL player charged with manslaughter

  06-12-2016 08:46
  
  WATCH: Jefferson Parish Sheriff Newell Normand discusses the case.HARVEY, La. - The man who fatally shot ex-NFL player Joe McKnight has been arrested and jailed on a charge of manslaughter.Jail records show 54-year-old Ronald Gasser was arrested late Monday. Jefferson Parish Sheriff Newell Normand called a news conference for 10 a.m. Tuesday to discuss the case.Normand said that manslaughter was the charge the sheriff's office felt "most appropriately fits at this time."&nb
  
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• Man who shot ex-NFL player charged with manslaughter

  06-12-2016 08:46
  
  HARVEY, La. - The man who fatally shot ex-NFL player Joe McKnight has been arrested and jailed on a charge of manslaughter.Jail records show 54-year-old Ronald Gasser was arrested late Monday.Jefferson Parish Sheriff Newell Normand has called a news conference for 10 a.m. Tuesday to discuss the case.Gasser was released last week without charges pending further investigation of McKnight's death.Normand said Thursday's shooting was the result of an apparent road-rage incident.When deputies arrived
  
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• Beyonce, Adele nominated for top 3 Grammy Awards

  06-12-2016 08:40
  
  NEW YORK - Beyonce and Adele are competing in the top three categories at the Grammy Awards.The Recording Academy announced Tuesday that Beyonce's "Lemonade" and Adele's "25" are nominated for album of the year, along with Drake's "Views," Justin Bieber's "Purpose" and Sturgill Simpson's "A Sailor's Guide to Earth."For song of the year, Beyonce's "Formation" and Adele's "Hello" will battle Lukas Graham's "7 Years," Mike Posner's "I Took a Pill In Ibiza" and Bieber's "Love Yourself," co-written w
  
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• Police identify 4 in unruly Penn State victory mob

  06-12-2016 08:37
  
  STATE COLLEGE, Pa. - Police say they've identified four people who will eventually face charges as State College officers investigate property damage and possible rioting following Penn State's Big 10 Championship win.Police say the four identified through surveillance video from Saturday night so far include three students and a 39-year-old man.Police used pepper spray and mounted officers in riot gear to disburse what they called an "unlawful disturbance" following No. 5 Penn State's 38-31 win
  
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• Rio2016, Election2016, PokemonGo top global Twitter trends

  06-12-2016 08:34
  
  The Rio Olympics, the American presidential election and Pokemon Go were the top global trends on Twitter in 2016.The social media site says Rio2016 was the most tweeted-about topic around the world, followed by Election2016 and PokemonGo. Euro2016, Oscars, Brexit, Trump and BlackLivesMatter also made the top 10.A Spanish gamer known as elrubius originated the year's most popular tweet: It reads "Limonada" (lemonade) and was re-tweeted more than 1.3 million times. One Direction's Harry Styles ha
  
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• NYC mayor blames Trump, hate speech for rise in hate crimes

  06-12-2016 08:32
  
  NEW YORK - Mayor Bill de Blasio says he believes president-elect Donald Trump is to blame for an increase in reported New York City hate crime incidents.The Democratic mayor made the comments at a news conference Monday.The topics included weekend threats made against an off-duty Muslim New York Police Department officer while she was with her teenage son in Brooklyn.De Blasio spoke out against the attack on Officer Aml Elsokary (ah-MEHL' el-soh-KAHR'-ee) and said Trump used hate speech during h
  
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• Special-needs Texas teens found in 'deplorable' conditions

  06-12-2016 08:31
  
  RICHMOND, Texas - A sheriff says seven special-needs teenagers aged 13 to 16 years old have been removed from "deplorable" conditions at a Houston-area home where they were locked for long periods in a closet.Fort Bend County Sheriff Troy Nehls said in a statement Monday that the malnourished teens were found Nov. 23. They were kept in a single room that smelled of human waste and had been struck with a wooden paddle. Nehls didn't describe the nature of the youths' special needs except to say on
  
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• Ohio firefighter shot, wounded while on scene of house fire

  06-12-2016 07:11
  
  YOUNGSTOWN, Ohio- An Ohio firefighter has been shot and wounded while on the scene of a house fire.It happened late Monday night in Youngstown, about 75 miles southeast of Cleveland.Police tell WKBN-TV that the firefighter was responding to a house fire in the city at the time of the shooting.Police have not released the name or condition of the firefighter.No arrests have been made.The investigation is ongoing.Permalink| Comments
  
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• Syrian government: Aleppo truce must include rebel pullout

  06-12-2016 07:03
  
  DAMASCUS, Syria - The Syrian government says it rejects any cease-fire for embattled Aleppo unless it includes the departure of all rebels from the eastern part of the city.Syria's Foreign Ministry says in a statement carried on the state SANA news agency on Tuesday that the government won't allow the rebels a chance to "regroup and repeat their crimes" in the divided city.The statement comes a day after Russia and China blocked a draft resolution at the U.N. Security Council demanding a seven-d
  
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• New Jersey state trooper dies of injuries after crash

  06-12-2016 06:56
  MILLVILLE, N.J. - A New Jersey state trooper who was injured in a head-on crash has died.The crash happened Monday night in Millville.State police say a man traveling southbound on a New Jersey highway crossed the grass median, entered the northbound lanes and crashed into the state trooper's vehicle.Trooper Frankie Williams was responding to a call at the time of the collision.State police say the unidentified man was pronounced dead at the scene. The 31-year-old Williams was flown to a hospita
  
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• Victim's goodbye messages, vigil

  06-12-2016 06:55
  
  An official says several of the people who died in an Oakland warehouse fire texted goodbye messages to their families.Alameda County sheriff's spokesman Sgt. Ray Kelly told reporters Monday some of the victims texted relatives, "I'm going to die," and "I love you."Kelly says rescue crews have found bodies of people "protecting each other, holding each other."Hundreds of people holding candles honored those who died in the fire at a vigil Monday night in Oakland's Lake Merritt.Those in the crowd
  
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