Baton Rouge news

• Deputy arrested, accused of smuggling phones into jail

  08-12-2016 21:11
  
  GONZALES - A sheriff's deputy was fired then arrested on charges he smuggled cell phones into the jail where he worked.The Ascension Parish Sheriff's Office released information about the arrest late Thursday evening.  The deputy, Kevin Wald, was arrested earlier in the day after being terminated.  Wald was booked into the jail where he usually worked on three counts of malfeasance in office and three counts of introduction of contraband into a jail.The sheriff said ot
  
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• Troopers bust illegal casino in Iberville Parish restaurant

  08-12-2016 18:42
  
  PLAQUEMINE – State Police say one man has been arrested after a month-long investigation into an illegal gambling operation at an Iberville Parish Mexican grill.Louisiana State Police say 45-year-old Adolfo Gonzalez-Lopez was booked into the Iberville Parish jail on four counts of gabling by electronic sweepstakes device.On Nov. 4, the LSP Gaming Enforcement Division opened an investigation after receiving credible information of a computer based casino at the “La Ru
  
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• Man using stovetop for heat found dead in Ponchatoula

  08-12-2016 18:28
  
  PONCHATOULA – Fire investigators say a man trying to use his kitchen gas stove for heat died in a fire Thursday.Will Foster Jr., 66, was found dead in the kitchen of his West Street home around 9 a.m. Thursday, according to the state Fire Marshal's office.Fire investigators believe Foster turned on several burners for heat, releasing gas that accumulated and then ignited, setting his clothing on fire.Foster's brother told investigators he went to the home after Foster did not answer ph
  
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• 'Jeopardy!' contestant dies of cancer before show airs

  08-12-2016 18:08
  
  LOS ANGELES - A woman who competed on "Jeopardy!" while battling terminal colon cancer has died the week before her episode was set to air but prize money has gone to cancer research as she wished."Jeopardy!" host Alex Trebek says in a statement that Cindy Stowell died Monday.The quiz show says on its website that the Austin, Texas, woman was invited to an audition for the show in August. Before the audition, Stowell reached out to a producer to ask how long it might be before she taped her epis
  
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• Rolling Stone's Mick Jagger celebrates birth of 8th child

  08-12-2016 18:05
  
  NEW YORK - Mick Jagger's representatives say the rock legend has welcomed the birth of his eighth child.Jagger, the 73-year-old frontman of the Rolling Stones, was on hand Thursday at a New York hospital when girlfriend, Melanie Hamrick, gave birth to the couple's son. According to a statement, both parents are "delighted" and "mother and baby are doing well."Jagger already has seven children - Georgia, James, Jade, Elizabeth, Lucas, Karis and Gabriel - who range in age from their 40s to teenage
  
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• Nightclub to host 6-month memorial for shooting victims

  08-12-2016 18:02
  
  ORLANDO - An Orlando nightclub is set to host a memorial marking six months since the worst mass shooting in modern U.S. history.Pulse announced the "Remembering Our Angels" event Thursday on social media.Forty-nine people were killed and dozens more injured June 12 after gunman Omar Mateen opened fire inside the nightclub. The club will open at 1:45 a.m. Monday for candle lighting, with a moment of silence scheduled for 2:02 a.m., the time the attack began.Pulse will reopen at 5:30 p.m. Monday
  
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• A grim tally soars: More than 50,000 overdose deaths in US

  08-12-2016 18:01
  
  NEW YORK - Health officials say more than 50,000 Americans died from drug overdoses last year, the most ever.The disastrous tally has been pushed to new heights by soaring abuse of heroin and prescription painkillers, a class of drugs known as opioids. The new numbers were part of the annual tally of deaths and death rates released Thursday by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Overall, overdose deaths rose 11 percent last year, to 52,404. By comparison, the number of people who died
  
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• Gov't proposes letting airline passengers make phone calls

  08-12-2016 17:59
  
  WASHINGTON - The government is proposing that airlines be allowed to permit their passengers to make phone calls during flights using Wi-Fi despite complaints from flight attendants and others that the calls could be disruptive.The Department of Transportation's proposal leaves it up to airlines whether to allow the calls. But carriers would be required to inform passengers at the time they purchase a ticket if the calls are allowed. That would give passengers the opportunity to make other trave
  
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• Man wanted for afternoon bank robbery on Coursey Blvd

  08-12-2016 17:47
  
  BATON ROUGE – Deputies say one man is on the run after robbing a bank at gunpoint on Coursey Blvd. Thursday afternoon.According to East Baton Rouge Sheriff’s Office spokesperson Casey Hicks, the incident happened at the United Community Bank around 3:26 p.m. The armed man fled the area on foot toward the Sherwood Common Blvd with an undisclosed amount of cash.Investigators described the suspect as a man wearing a dark hooded sweatshirt and dark pants. The suspect had red clot
  
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• Property bills in EBR available soon, due January 31st

  08-12-2016 17:37
  
  BATON ROUGE - If you live in East Baton Rouge Parish, you might have noticed your property bills are late.Assessor Brian Wilson assures the bills are on their way, but they're late because about 41,000 homes had to be reassessed following the flood"We had to go in and revalue all the flooded properties," he said.In September, WBRZ followed two Baton Rouge tax assessors as they drove through flood damage neighborhoods, checking off one house at a time to confirm it had flood damage. As a result,
  
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• Man living in tent since flood braces for cold weather

  08-12-2016 17:30
  
  BATON ROUGE – One man has been living in a tent since the August flood.Rodney Guillory virtually lost everything.
  "It's hard but I'm managing it," Guillory said.With the cold weather approaching, living in a tent has not made Rodney Guillory's living situation any easier.
  "It gets cold and that little heater didn't put out that much heat and water coming in...it's just I don't know. I've never been through anything like this,"Guillory said.Guillory said that he has kept a part of his m
  
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• Suspect in 1991 and 2002 murders indicted by Iberville grand jury

  08-12-2016 17:09
  
  IBERVILLE – A grand jury indicted a man for two separate murders that occurred in 1991 and 2002 in Iberville Parish.
  Tommy Francise, 61, was indicted on two counts of second degree murder for allegedly killing Curtis "Cochise" Smith in 1991 and George Barett in 2002.In October, the Iberville Parish Sheriff's Office told WBRZ that Francise allegedly had a confrontation with Smith over stolen equipment. Deputies believe that Francise placed Smith's body in a 55-gallon barrel and sank it
  
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• Governor says tax rewrite should be fair and predictable

  08-12-2016 17:03
  
  BATON ROUGE - Gov. John Bel Edwards is looking ahead to next year's legislative session, saying the state needs to enact a tax structure that is fair, predictable and "sufficient" to pay for state services.The Democratic governor told lawmakers, business leaders and others at the Council for a Better Louisiana luncheon Thursday that Louisiana doesn't have that type of tax structure today.Tax reform is being pushed by Edwards and lawmakers for the 2017 session, but the leaders who will craft the
  
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• Information sought on stolen snowball trailer from Ascension Parish

  08-12-2016 15:50
  
  ASCENSION – The Ascension Parish Sheriff's Office is looking for a stolen snowball trailer that was reported missing earlier this week.The trailer, reported missing on Dec. 6, was located on Thais Road. Witnesses said they saw a black Chevrolet truck driving off with the trailer around 3 p.m.
  The trailer is a 2007 blue utility trailer with license plate number L666587 and the logo "Amazing Snowballs" on the side of it.
  Anyone with information on the stolen trailer is urged to contact t
  
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• Right lane reopened I-10 west past Highland Road

  08-12-2016 15:27
  
  BATON ROUGE – The right lane of I-10 West was blocked just after the Highland Road exit due to a stalled vehicle.Traffic officials say congestion from the incident passed the exit. The lane was opened reopened just after 3:45 p.m.The right lane is blocked I-10 West past Highland Road due to a stalled vehicle. Congestion is approaching Highland Road.— Baton Rouge Traffic (@BR_Traffic) December 8, 2016Plan your commute with the WBRZ Traffic Center and stay tuned to WBRZ News 2
  
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• Officials expect increased airport traffic due to Trump visit

  08-12-2016 15:14
  
  BATON ROUGE – Officials say that the Baton Rouge Metro Airport expects higher than normal traffic volumes due to President-Elect Donald Trump's visit on Friday.Travelers can expect high traffic volumes between 9 a.m. to noon and 2 p.m to 3 p.m. on Friday, Dec. 9.Airline passengers are encouraged to give themselves more time to get to the airport during the above times and should arrive at least 90 minutes before their flight departs. Signs and parking attendants will direct ev
  
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• Denham Springs Post Office reopens following August flood

  08-12-2016 15:01
  
  DENHAM SPRINGS – The Denham Springs Post Office has reopened to customers for the first time following the August flood.The post office, located at 140 Del Orleans Avenue, reopened to regular operating hours Monday, Dec. 5 and is now providing full services to customers.
  Hours of operation are as follows:Monday – Friday: 8 a.m. – 4:30 p.m.Saturday:8:30 a.m. - 12:00 p.m.Sunday: ClosedSince August, the Postal Service suspended operations at the Denham Springs Post Off
  
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• Georgia accuses US of trying to hack its election systems

  08-12-2016 14:40
  
  WASHINGTON - The U.S. state of Georgia is accusing the Homeland Security Department of apparently trying to hack its election systems.Georgia Secretary of State Brian P. Kemp said in a letter Thursday a computer traced back to the agency in Washington tried unsuccessfully to penetrate the state office's firewall one week after the presidential election.Kemp sought details, including who might have authorized the activity and whether other states might have been scanned without authorization.DHS
  
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• Former astronaut, US Sen. John Glenn of Ohio has died at 95

  08-12-2016 14:36
  
  Former astronaut and U.S. Sen. John Glenn has died in Ohio. He was 95.Glenn became a national hero in 1962 when he became the first American to orbit the Earth.Hank Wilson with the John Glenn School of Public Affairs says Glenn died Thursday afternoon at the James Cancer Hospital in Columbus.Glenn was the third U.S. astronaut in space and the first of them to get into orbit. He circled the Earth three times. The Soviet Union had put a man into orbit a year earlier in 1961.Glenn then spent 24 yea
  
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• Funeral arrangements set for ex-NFL player Joe McKnight

  08-12-2016 14:08
  
  NEW ORLEANS - Funeral arrangements have been scheduled for former NFL player Joe McKnight, who was fatally shot last week during a road rage dispute in suburban New Orleans.Visitation will be held at New Home Ministries in New Orleans at 9 a.m. Monday. Funeral services will follow at 11 a.m.McKnight, who played three seasons for the New York Jets and one with the Kansas City Chiefs, will be buried at Restlawn Cemetary in Avondale. He was 28.Ronald Gasser, the 54-year-old man accused of shooting
  
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• War of words continues between Trump and union leader

  08-12-2016 13:31
  
  WASHINGTON - The war of words is escalating between Donald Trump and a union official who suggested that Trump wasn't being truthful about the number of jobs being saved at an Indiana factory.When Trump visited Carrier's factory last week, he suggested that more than 1,100 jobs could be saved in a deal to discourage the company from closing the factory.A local steelworkers union president, Chuck Jones, then said "we could use a little more honesty" about whether more jobs would be lost.Trump yes
  
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• US official: 50,000 Islamic State killed in wars to date

  08-12-2016 13:29
  
  WASHINGTON - A senior U.S. military official for the first time says the U.S.-led coalition has killed 50,000 Islamic State militants in the last two years in Iraq and Syria.The official said it was a conservative estimate, but it's a bit more than what others have stated before. U.S. leaders have expressed reluctance to disclose specific numbers, and note that IS has been able to replace fighters rapidly, particularly early on.In August, Lt. Gen. Sean MacFarland said about 45,000 combatants hav
  
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• Pebble discontinuing smartwatches after its sale to Fitbit

  08-12-2016 13:27
  
  PALO ALTO - Pioneering smartwatch maker Pebble is no longer manufacturing or selling any of its devices after the bulk of the company was bought by Fitbit.Palo Alto, California-based Pebble says its devices will continue to work as normal for now but might lose functionality in the future.San Francisco-based Fitbit announced the deal to acquire Pebble on Wednesday. Terms weren't disclosed.Pebble's first smartwatch was launched in 2012, three years before the Apple Watch.The company had raised mo
  
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• Emerson, Lake and Palmer founder Greg Lake dies at 69

  08-12-2016 13:25
  
  LONDON - Greg Lake, the prog-rock pioneer who co-founded King Crimson and Emerson, Lake and Palmer, has died. He was 69.His manager, Stewart Young, said in a statement that Lake died Wednesday after "a long and stubborn battle with cancer."In the late 1960s, Lake founded King Crimson with guitarist Robert Fripp. The band pioneered the sprawling, ambitious genre that came to be known as progressive rock.He went on to form ELP with keyboardist Keith Emerson and drummer Carl Palmer. With Lake as vo
  
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• Zachary man charged with bank fraud for wiring $500,000

  08-12-2016 13:00
  
  BATON ROUGE – A Zachary man has been charged with bank fraud after police say he wired $500,000 from three banks.59-year-old Steven Reich was charged with two counts of wire fraud and one count of bank fraud Thursday. Police say Reich is accused of wiring $500,000 from three banks between July 2016 and September 2016.Baton Rouge Police Sergeant L’jean McKneely said the case was brought to the BRPD Financial Crimes Division by the U.S. Secret Service.The investigation is still
  
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• Suspect in Georgia officer shootings is dead

  08-12-2016 12:35
  
  AMERICUS - Police say a man suspected of shooting two Georgia police officers is dead.Phyllis Banks, a police spokeswoman in Americus, told The Associated Press on Thursday: "It's confirmed that the suspect is dead." That was after a SWAT team went into a home where authorities had received a tip that 32-year-old Minquell Lembrick was hiding.Banks declined to give further information, including whether police had shot Lembrick or merely found his body. Police planned a 1 p.m. news conference.Lem
  
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• No inspection of warehouse for at least 30 years

  08-12-2016 12:29
  
  OAKLAND - Oakland's interim building chief says code enforcement inspectors have not been inside the warehouse where 36 people died in a Friday fire for at least 30 years.Darin Ranelletti says inspectors only enter buildings when the owner seeks a construction permit or if officials receive a complaint.At the time of the fire, the department was investigating a complaint and an inspector twice visited the property in November. But records show the inspector reporting an inability to get inside.R
  
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• Witness, prosecutor clash over who was aggressor in Will Smith trial

  08-12-2016 12:26
  
  NEW ORLEANS - Anger and anguish are evident in a New Orleans courtroom as a friend of the man who killed former Saints star Will Smith continues his testimony.Kevin O'Neal repeatedly said Thursday that Smith and at least two others charged at him and Cardell Hayes when they exited Hayes' Hummer following an April 9 traffic crash.Hayes is on trial for second-degree murder.Audible sobs were heard from the row of spectators where Smith's widow sat with supporters during exchanges between O'Neal and
  
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• Defendant's pal: I tried to restrain Will Smith after crash

  08-12-2016 12:26
  
  NEW ORLEANS - A friend of the driver on trial for killing former New Orleans Saints star Will Smith told a jury he tried to restrain Smith in the heated exchange of words following an April 9 crash.Kevin O'Neal was a passenger in the Hummer driven by Cardell Hayes. The Hummer rear-ended Smith's SUV, leading to a confrontation with Smith and his friends and ending in fatal gunfire.O'Neal said: "I grabbed Mr. Smith and asked him to please chill out."O'Neal is a prosecution witness, but he's friend
  
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• Delta will upgrade free snacks in the economy-fare cabin

  08-12-2016 12:24
  
  If it's true that an army travels on its stomach, will better snacks keep passengers loyal to one airline?Delta Air Lines is rolling out new free snacks for customers in the main cabin, including brand-name yogurt bars and pretzels. Some will come in larger portions than before because, Delta has figured out, that's what customers crave.The menu move comes about a year after United Airlines brought back free snacks by offering noshes like stroopwafels - a gooey Dutch confection - and better coff
  
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• Dallas woman reunited with stolen dog in Livingston Parish

  08-12-2016 12:17
  
  LIVINGSTON- A woman was reunited with her stolen dog Thursday night. She picked up the pup in Livingston Parish, more than 400 miles away from where it went missing.
  Sharon Walker's Yorkie was yanked out of her yard in Dallas back in April. A Livingston Parish woman says she adopted the dog during a trip to Texas, not knowing the dog was stolen.
  It wasn't until the new owner attempted to get the dog microchipped that she realized "Fluffy" was already in the system. That's when Walker was notifie
  
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• Ohio House committee votes to pass 20-week abortion ban

  08-12-2016 11:40
  
  COLUMBUS - An Ohio House committee has voted to pass a bill that would ban abortions after 20 weeks.The committee voted Wednesday night to pass the ban, which now heads to the full House for consideration Thursday.That follows House approval Tuesday night of the so-called heartbeat bill, which would prohibit abortions as early as six weeks into pregnancy once a fetal heartbeat is detected. That clears the way for what would be one of the nation's most stringent abortion restrictions.Republican G
  
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• Navy's futuristic-looking USS Zumwalt arriving in homeport

  08-12-2016 11:35
  
  SAN DIEGO - The Navy's most technologically advanced destroyer is arriving at its homeport after dealing with some glitches along the way.The stealthy USS Zumwalt arrives Thursday in San Diego, where it'll begin installation of combat systems and further testing and evaluation.The ship was commissioned in October in Baltimore and encountered some hiccups on its way to California. That included losing propulsion in the Panama Canal, necessitating a tow and repairs.The 610-foot destroyer was built
  
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• Obama and Trump once traded insults, now it's phone calls

  08-12-2016 11:30
  
  WASHINGTON - An apparent rapport is brewing between President Barack Obama and President-elect Donald Trump that few, if any, saw coming.A few months ago they were trading insults. Today it's telephone calls and pleasantries.Apparently membership in one of the world's most exclusive clubs - the club of U.S. presidents - has a way of changing things.Trump talked Wednesday about letting bygones be bygones, telling NBC's "Today" show about their "really good chemistry" and how much he likes the pre
  
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• Different tones, campaign styles in Louisiana US House races

  08-12-2016 11:07
  
  BATON ROUGE - Louisiana's two remaining U.S. House races on Saturday's ballot couldn't be more strikingly different.The two GOP candidates in the tight runoff for the Acadiana-based 3rd District seat - Public Service Commissioner Scott Angelle and Clay Higgins, a former sheriff's captain dubbed the "Cajun John Wayne" - have accused each other of lying and trash-talked each other's records.By comparison, the northwest Louisiana-based 4th District race is downright gentlemanly. Republican Mike Joh
  
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• EBR disaster recovery center to become disaster loan center

  08-12-2016 09:50
  
  BATON ROUGE – The U.S. Small Business Administration is opening a disaster loan outreach center on Monday, Dec. 12 to assist flood survivors.The center will be open from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Thursday, Dec. 15.The center will be located at:St. Louis King of France Catholic Church
  2121 N. Sherwood Forest Drive
  Baton Rouge, LA 70815The disaster recovery center, located at the same address, will stop operations at 6 p.m. on Saturday, Dec. 10 and will then transition to the disas
  
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• Lafourche Parish School Board to consider sales tax increase

  08-12-2016 09:23
  
  THIBODAUX - The Lafourche Parish School Board has agreed to consider asking voters for a one-cent sales tax for teacher salaries and to authorize the use of bonds for school facility upgrades.Superintendent Jo Ann Mathews says the measure is a consideration at this point.The Daily Comet reports the board will decide whether the resolution moves forward at its Feb. 1 meeting.Voters would have to agree to a sales tax increase.In Lafourche, teachers earn an average $48,000 a year, and the starting
  
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• Woman charged with killing elderly father with boiling water

  08-12-2016 09:11
  
  JACKSON - Police say a Mississippi woman has been charged with murder after pouring boiling water over her paralyzed elderly father, who died several days later.Jackson Police Department Commander Tyree Jones said in a news release that 55-year-old Diane Coleman dumped the water on 81-year-old Earl Coleman on Sept. 3, "severely burning" him in multiple places on his body. Earl Coleman died Sept. 12.The daughter's motive was not entirely clear, but Jones said she lived with and was the primary ca
  
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• Warning prompts Southwest Airlines flight's return to Dallas

  08-12-2016 09:03
  
  DALLAS - A Southwest Airlines flight bound for Houston from Dallas turned back after a cockpit warning indicated a pressurization issue.The emergency was the second in as many days for a Houston-bound Southwest flight.A statement from the Dallas-based carrier says Flight 43 had departed Dallas Love Field with 143 passengers and five crew members aboard about 5:30 p.m. Wednesday. That's when the problem arose and the pilot determined to return to Love for a landing 45 minutes later.The Boeing 737
  
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• Trump to meet with victims of OSU attack, resume road show

  08-12-2016 07:17
  
  NEW YORK - Donald Trump is going to try to show a more sensitive side Thursday, meeting with victims of last week's Ohio State University attack, before taking his "thank you" road show to three more states that supported him in the election.Trump is taking on a grim task that President Barack Obama has faced numerous times over the last eight years: consoling the survivors after an attack of mass violence. Trump is flying to Columbus, Ohio, where Ohio State student Abdul Razak Ali Artan, 18, st
  
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• Student shot at Nevada school is critical

  08-12-2016 07:14
  
  RENO, Nev. - Authorities say a knife-wielding Nevada high school student who was threatening other students is in critical condition after a campus police officer shot him.Reno Police Chief Jason Soto confirmed at a news conference Wednesday night that a school district officer shot the 14-year-old boy after he failed to follow the officer's commands during the confrontation.Soto said when Reno officers arrived at the high school at about 11:30 a.m. Wednesday they discovered the student had been
  
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• Recount ends in Michigan after 3 days; ongoing in Wisconsin

  08-12-2016 07:06
  
  DETROIT - Michigan's recount of presidential votes is over after a judge lifted an order that forced a statewide review of millions of ballots.The recount lasted three days in more than 20 of the state's 83 counties. Some counties hadn't planned to start until later.Federal Judge Mark Goldsmith said Wednesday he must follow a decision by the Michigan appeals court, which found that Green Party candidate Jill Stein couldn't seek a recount. She got 1 percent of the state vote and presented no evid
  
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• Pakistan opens probe into deadly plane crash that killed 47

  08-12-2016 07:04
  
  ABBOTABAD, Pakistan - A Pakistani aviation spokesman says authorities have opened a probe into the plane crash in the country's northwest the previous day that killed all 47 passengers and crew.Pervez George, the spokesman for Civil Aviation Authority, says experts are in the hillside village of Saddha Batolni in the district of Abbottabad, where the small twin-propeller aircraft crashed and burst into flames.The military is using three helicopters to transport the remains of the victims from a
  
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• Authorities think escaped inmate stabbed police officer

  08-12-2016 07:02
  
  COLUMBIA, S.C. - South Carolina authorities are searching for an escaped maximum-security inmate who's suspected of stabbing a police officer.Dexter Lee of the South Carolina Department of Corrections say 47-year-old Michael Allen Williamson escaped at around 8:50 p.m. Wednesday from McCormick Correctional Institution.Later that night, Columbia police officials say a female officer responding to a shoplifting call was stabbed inside a Walmart store in Columbia, South Carolina, about 80 miles eas
  
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• Holly's Holiday Countdown: Lemon Cranberry Pound Cake

  08-12-2016 01:31
  
  A  lemon cake mix and fresh canberries pair for simple, delectable cake to make over and over during cranberry season.MAKES 16-20 SERVINGS1 (18.25-OUNCE) BOX LEMON CAKE MIX
  1 (8-OUNCE) PACKAGE REDUCED-FAT CREAM CHEESE
  2 EGGS
  1 1/3 CUPS WATER
  1 TEASPOON VANILLA EXTRACT
  2 CUPS CHOPPED CRANBERRIES
  1/2 CUP CHOPPED PECANS
  3 TABLESPOONS LEMON JUICE
  1 CUP CONFECTIONERS' SUGARPREHEAT OVEN TO 350ºF. COAT BUNDT PAN COATED WITH NONSTICK COOKING SPRAY.    IN MIXI
  
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