Baton Rouge news

• New St. Amant High wing complete, while flood repairs continue in other areas

  14-12-2016 21:59
  
  ST. AMANT - For the first time, St. Amant High School freshman are walking the halls of a brand new school. But their first day is coming six months late."The coming of the freshman academy is a really big event," St. Amant High Principal Mia Edwards said, "that St. Amant High School is getting a new facility, so we've really been looking forward to it. So, for that to have been taken away when school started, I'm really excited that they are going to be here to experience some of that."The new
  
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• Decision to block property developments in Ascension reversed

  14-12-2016 21:22
  
  GONZALES - Developers went head-to-head with Ascension Parish officials to reverse a decision to deny two subdivision proposals. Today, that decision was reversed.Only two board members remained at the hearing, since a third resigned last night. In October, they decided to block one development that would build at least 30 new homes, and another that would build 60 more in Geismar. Antoinette Ferchaud was among those against the properties."I'm lucky enough it's a horse show driveway, and I don'
  
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• Baton Rouge Community College gets new chancellor

  14-12-2016 20:22
  
  BATON ROUGE - The Louisiana Community and Technical College System's board of supervisors has picked a new chancellor for Baton Rouge Community College.
      
  The board unanimously selected Larissa Littleton-Steib for the position on Wednesday. Her appointment takes effect on Jan. 2.
      
  Littleton-Steib, a Louisiana native, currently serves as vice chancellor for workforce development and technical education at Delgado Community College in Ne
  
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• Special election for treasurer to be scheduled for October

  14-12-2016 20:07
  
  BATON ROUGE- The special election to choose Louisiana's next state treasurer will be held in October.
      
  Republican John Kennedy won last week's runoff election for the U.S. Senate and will be sworn into office Jan. 3. His resignation will trigger the need for a special election to replace him as treasurer.
      
  Kennedy didn't file his resignation paperwork by the Wednesday deadline Gov. John Bel Edwards' office says was needed to put the s
  
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• Governor's office says head of wildlife agency out, agency headed in different direction

  14-12-2016 17:41
  
  BATON ROUGE – It appears the state is in need of a new head of its wildlife agency.Just after 5 o'clock, Congressman Garret Graves office released a statement thanking Charlie Melancon for serving as the Secretary of the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries. It was an odd email from a federal authority since Melancon is appointed and by and serves under the state's governor – who as of the congressman's email – had not released information about Melancon l
  
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• Officials break ground on Istrouma High School renovation

  14-12-2016 17:29
  
  BATON ROUGE – The East Baton Rouge School System held a ground breaking ceremony for the new Istrouma High School in North Baton Rouge.The school was closed by the state two years ago, but will reopen next year following an eight-month, $21 million renovation."It is very exciting to get a school back in North Baton Rouge, a high school in 70805," Superintendent Warren Drake said.Parents, like Pearl Porter, are also excited about the project since all four of her children graduated from
  
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• Fugitive charged for attempted carjacking on Government Street

  14-12-2016 16:38
  
  BATON ROUGE – A fugitive wanted by the East Baton Rouge Sheriff's Office for attempted robbery has been arrested for attempted carjacking on Government Street.Deondrick Bowser, 26, was arrested on charges of attempted carjacking and resisting an officer. A fugitive warrant was issued previously by EBRSO for Bowen for attempted robbery.A man told officers that Bowser attempted to enter his vehicle while it was stopped at the intersection of Government Street and the northbound I-110 exi
  
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• Man accused of raping minor more than 10 years ago

  14-12-2016 16:37
  
  BATON ROUGE –  Police say a Baton Rouge man has been charged with rape for sexually abusing a minor more than 10 years ago.William Seaverson Jr., 40, was charged with one felony count of first-degree rape Wednesday afternoon.According to arrest documents, a female victim contacted Baton Rouge Police and said she had been sexually abused by Seaverson 10 years ago.The victim told investigators that she was 9-years-old when the abuse started. She said that Seaverson inap
  
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• Yahoo says hackers stole information from over 1 billion accounts

  14-12-2016 16:15
  
  NEW YORK - Yahoo says it believes hackers stole data from more than one billion user accounts in August 2013.The Sunnyvale, California, company says it's a different breach from the one it disclosed in September, when it said 500 million accounts were exposed. That new hack revelation raises questions about whether Verizon will try to change the terms of its $4.8 billion proposed acquisition of Yahoo.Yahoo says the information stolen may include names, email addresses, phone numbers, birthdates
  
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• Rehab hospital to update Deputy Tullier's recovery Thursday

  14-12-2016 15:46
  
  HOUSTON - Healthcare experts with knowledge of the rehabilitation of injured sheriff's deputy Nick Tullier will discuss Tullier's condition and recovery Thursday.Deputy Tullier remains hospitalized following the officer ambush in July. WBRZ.com was first to report Tullier was moved from a hospital in Baton Rouge to Texas in November. The move to Houston's TIRR Memorial Hermann is a good move - family members first told WBRZ earlier a move to a rehabilitation hospital wouldn't happen until the pr
  
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• Arrest in 1987 Lake Charles cold case bludgeoning

  14-12-2016 15:44
  
  LAKE CHARLES- Lake Charles Police Chief Donald Dixon says officers investigating a 29-year-old bludgeoning death have arrested a man who was accused of the killing in 1987 but then released.Dixon didn't say what evidence led to Wednesday's arrest of 53-year-old Harry James Richard, whose bond was set at $1.1 million. Nor did he say whether the evidence was related to the exhumation in July of the remains of 75-year-old Noah Breaux.Dixon said Richard wants an attorney before talking to investigat
  
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• Few free items still available for people who lost things in flood

  14-12-2016 15:30
  
  BATON ROUGE – Organizers of a free store established to provide clothing and household items for people who lost items during the flood still has things available and is offering a “clearance” for anyone impacted by the flood.Unlike previous times the store was open, no one has to register. Organizers ask people bring their flood documentation to the store and can pick from the items that are left.The store is located in the Cortana Mall.The store will be open until
  
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• Newspaper: terminally ill child dying in Santa's arms can't be verified

  14-12-2016 15:01
  
  KNOXVILLE – The report of a terminally ill child dying in the arms of a Tennessee Santa Claus can not be verified, a newspaper in Knoxville now says.Earlier this week, The News Sentinel published the story of Eric Schmitt-Matzen's, a Knoxville Santa Claus, who said a terminally ill five-year-old boy died in his arms after he gave the boy a present in an unnamed hospital. The newspaper was approached with the information of the story and then contacted Schmitt-Matzen.During the initial
  
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• Two injured after car strikes tree on West Brookstown Drive

  14-12-2016 14:58
  
  BATON ROUGE - Two people were injured after a car struck a tree on West Brookstown Drive in Baton Rouge Wednesday afternoon, sources tell WBRZ.The single car crash happened near the intersection of Evangeline Street and West Brookstown Drive. First responders tell WBRZ's Brett Buffington that two people were transferred to a local hospital. One person was ejected from the vehicle when the car hit the tree.Two people just taken to the hospital after this crash on W. Brookstown. One person was eje
  
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• 1 small delivery for a man, 1 giant leap for Amazon, drones

  14-12-2016 14:48
  
  ATLANTA - Drone delivery has begun.On Dec. 7, a bag of popcorn, along with an Amazon Fire TV stick, left a Cambridge warehouse in the U.K. and 13 minutes later, both were accepted by an Amazon customer, one of two who had agreed to be part of the test program.A video posted by Amazon shows a fully autonomous drone, no humans involved, taking off from the warehouse and flying over fields to deposit the package just outside the customer's home.Amazon, with drones, aims to make deliveries in 30 min
  
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• Teacher disciplined: Told students to write 'fun' slave song

  14-12-2016 14:36
  
  ELLICOTT CITY - A Maryland high school teacher has been disciplined after encouraging students to "have fun" writing a slave song for an assignment as part of a lesson on abolitionist Frederick Douglass.Howard County Superintendent Renee Foose tells The Baltimore Sunthat she put the Mount Hebron High School English teacher on leave for four days last week after learning of the incident.Principal Andrew Cockley wrote in an email to parents Dec. 7 that the assignment was linked to a lesson on the
  
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• Trucks parking in lot illegally, owners want them gone

  14-12-2016 14:28
  
  BATON ROUGE - A property up for sale at Florida Blvd and Sherwood Forest Blvd has become a parking lot for trucks, abandoned cars and debris.Neighbors say they are tired of looking at the trucks that park there all hours of the day."You can count anywhere between 12 to 15 trucks that are parked over there," said Clementine Turner.There's a reason why Turner put up a fence in her backyard. Her property backs up to the property and she can see the trucks from her house. She tells 2 On Your Side sh
  
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• Man wanted for strangulation charges in Livingston Parish

  14-12-2016 14:22
  
  LIVINGSTON – Deputies in Livingston Parish are searching for a man wanted for strangulation and battery charges.According to Sheriff Jason Ard, 36-year-old Eric Paul McNiel is wanted for aggravated battery, second-degree battery and two counts of domestic abuse battery by strangulation.Ard described McNeil as approximately 5’10” tall and weighing 240 pounds. He is bald and has brown eyes.Investigators believe McNeil is traveling in a 2011 white Ford Ranger pickup tr
  
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• Bleak picture of repeated budget cuts from LSU president

  14-12-2016 14:17
  
  BATON ROUGE - LSU System President F. King Alexander gave lawmakers a bleak picture about the years of state budget cuts. He says faculty and students are getting poached by out-of-state colleges and per-student spending on the main campus has fallen to among the lowest of its peers.Alexander's comments Wednesday to the House Appropriations Committee came ahead of another round of expected cuts to higher education. The LSU leader said it will be the 16th cut in nine years.At LSU's main campus, A
  
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• Woman sought for cashing stolen $1,400 check

  14-12-2016 13:58
  
  BATON ROUGE – The East Baton Rouge Sheriff's Office is searching for a woman who cashed a check that was stolen from a vehicle burglary.The sheriff's office responded to the Regions Bank in the 8700 block of Siegen Lane on Dec. 12 in reference to a woman who cashed a stolen $1,400 check. The woman also attempted to cash another check.According to the sheriff's office, the woman used checks that were stolen from a vehicle burglary that was committed in another parish. She also
  
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• New York boy buried in snow while playing with friend dies

  14-12-2016 13:14
  
  GREENWICH - Police say a 13-year-old New York boy who was playing in a snow mound with a friend has died after they were buried in snow dumped by a public works crew.Greenwich-Cambridge Police Chief George Bell says the boys were playing in a large snow mound created by the Department of Public Works crews clearing streets Tuesday. Bell says the boys had burrowed into the back of the mound when a truck dumped more snow, burying both boys.Bell says a K-9 found one boy's sled after they were repor
  
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• Suspect wanted for shooting at Circle K on Plank Road

  14-12-2016 13:07
  
  BATON ROUGE – Baton Rouge Police detectives are attempting to identify a suspect accused of shooting a man in the Circle K parking lot on Plank Road.The shooting occurred on Dec. 4 around 2:15 a.m. when the suspect followed a man out of the Circle K and began firing at him. The 32-year-old man was struck in the back and transported to a local hospital with not life-threatening injuries.According to BRPD, there are no known motives at this time.Anyone with information regarding the iden
  
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• DWI checkpoint to be conducted in BR on Thursday

  14-12-2016 12:47
  
  BATON ROUGE – The Baton Rouge Police Department, the East Baton Rouge Sheriff's Office and Louisiana State Police will conduct a joint sobriety checkpoint on Thursday, Dec. 15.The checkpoint will take place inside the Baton Rouge city limits and will continue into early Friday, Dec. 16. The exact location of the checkpoint will not be released in advance.Officers will be screening drivers entering the checkpoint for signs of impairment and will also enforce any other visible violations
  
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• New Sonic coming to downtown Baton Rouge; neighbors are not happy

  14-12-2016 11:58
  
  BATON ROUGE- A local franchise will open a small drive-thru Sonic restaurant just three blocks from McDonald's at 10th Street and Government. The site is currently a green space that seems like a perfect location except to the people who will live next to it."This corner is one of the busiest that we have at the entrance to downtown and our neighborhood," said Jeff Kuehny president of the Beauregard Town Association. "This is a major thruway to get on the I-10 ramp."Kuehny is a
  
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• Zipcar pilot program launched in downtown BR

  14-12-2016 11:53
  
  BATON ROUGE – City leaders and representatives launched the Zipcar pilot program on Wednesday morning in downtown Baton Rouge.Zipcar, a car-sharing service, allows members to reserve cars on-demand 24/7. Members can reserve a car by the hour or by the day for up to seven days. Reservations for Zipcars can be made by using the app or going online. Once a member is approved, they will be able to unlock any Zipcar with a provided Zipcard.Zipcar covers gas, insurance and
  
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• Intel office promises more info on election hack

  14-12-2016 11:42
  
  WASHINGTON - The agency that oversees U.S. intelligence says it will release more information to the public about Russia's attempts to influence the election once a review ordered by President Barack Obama is complete - but not before.
      
  The Office of the Director of National Intelligence is responding to reports that the U.S. intelligence community is conflicted about whether Russian hacking was intended to help Donald Trump.
      
  Obama h
  
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• Pokemon, Olympics, election among 2016's top Google searches

  14-12-2016 11:36
  
  MOUNTAIN VIEW - "Pokemon Go," the Olympics and the presidential election are among Google's top trending searches of 2016.Powerball tops the list. The multi-state lottery handed out a record $1.6 billion prize in January and a $429 million payout in June.Also in the top 10 are musical icons David Bowie and Prince, who died in January and April, respectively, and Hurricane Matthew, which barreled through the Caribbean and made landfall in the U.S. in October.Brad Pitt is Google's top trending act
  
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• Nearly $1 million to help fund July overtime costs for BR law enforcement

  14-12-2016 11:36
  
  BATON ROUGE – The city is set to receive a sizable reimbursement for overtime costs associated with the need for extra law enforcement related to protests of the shooting death of Alton Sterling and the manpower needs following a deadly ambush of officers on Airline Highway this summer.At a Metro Council meeting Wednesday, the governing body of the city-parish is expected to rubber-stamp accepting $929,000 from the Louisiana Commission on Law Enforcement's emergency fund. The nearly $1
  
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• Cosby hearing adjourns, no decision on accusers

  14-12-2016 11:36
  
  NORRISTOWN, Pa. - A Pennsylvania judge says he'll take some time before deciding whether to allow more than a dozen women who accuse Bill Cosby of sexually assaulting them to testify at his trial next year.
      
  Montgomery County Judge Steven O'Neill heard arguments Wednesday from Cosby's lawyers, who say the 79-year-old comedian's accusers should be barred from taking the witness stand.
      
  Cosby is charged with sexually assaulting a woman
  
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• Separated conjoined twins meet for first time since surgery

  14-12-2016 11:33
  
  PALO ALTO, Calif. - The conjoined California twins that were separated last week following a 17-hour marathon surgery have been reunited for the first time since the operation.
      
  Eva and Erika Sandoval have been recovering in separate beds in the same room, but they could not see each other well. On Monday, their parents and intensive care team carefully carried Erika and placed her in Eva's bed to say hello, officials at Lucile Packard Children's Hospital Stanford
  
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• Uber self-driving cars hit the streets of San Francisco

  14-12-2016 11:29
  
  SAN FRANCISCO - Uber says that passengers in San Francisco can now use its app to summon a ride in a car that can drive itself.While Wednesday's launch may set the tech-steeped city abuzz, it could also antagonize California regulators, who require permits for testing self-driving prototypes in public.Uber interprets the rules differently, arguing it doesn't need a permit because a human still needs to be behind the wheel, monitoring the technology and ready to seize control.The move into Uber's
  
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• Ringling picks 1st female ringmaster in 146-year history

  14-12-2016 11:29
  
  ELLENTON, Fla. - The Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey circus has its first female ringmaster.
      
  Feld Entertainment Inc. is the parent company of the Florida-based circus. The company said in a statement Wednesday that Kristen Michelle Wilson will be the first-ever female ringmaster in its 146-year history.
      
  Wilson starts her new role next month and her first performance will be in her hometown of Orlando, Florida, during "Circus
  
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• Fed expected to raise rates for first time in a year

  14-12-2016 11:28
  
  WASHINGTON - The Federal Reserve is expected to raise its key interest rate for the first time in a year when its policy meeting ends Wednesday.The move would lift the rate by a quarter point to a range between 0.5 percent and 0.75 percent, likely nudging up the cost of some consumer and business loans. The Fed last increased rates in December a year ago, when it hiked its benchmark rate from a record low set at the depths of the 2008 financial crisis.Attention Wednesday will revolve around what
  
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• Colorado district allows teachers to carry guns

  14-12-2016 11:24
  
  DENVER - A rural Colorado school district has decided to allow its teachers and other school staff to carry guns on campus to protect students.
      
  The Hanover School District 28 board voted 3-2 Wednesday night to allow school employees to volunteer to be armed on the job after undergoing training.
      
  The district's two schools are about 30 miles southeast of Colorado Springs, and it takes law enforcement an average of 20 minutes to get th
  
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• Attorney says he will appeal verdicts in Will Smith case

  14-12-2016 11:03
  
  NEW ORLEANS - The attorney for the man convicted of manslaughter in the shooting of retired Saints player Will Smith says they'll definitely appeal.
      
  Cardell Hayes' defense lawyer, John Fuller, told NOLA.com/The Times-Picayune that he will "map out" the appeal this week.
      
  Hayes was found guilty of manslaughter for killing Smith and attempted manslaughter for shooting his wife, Racquel Smith. The jury's 10-2 verdict in the murder trial
  
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• Family asks GoFundMe aid, says mentally ill son beat mom

  14-12-2016 09:56
  
  BOSSIER CITY - A northwest Louisiana woman is asking for help with her mother's medical expenses, saying her mentally ill brother "brutally attacked" their parents.Bossier City police say $1.1 million bond has been set for 37-year-old John Byrd, who was arrested on charges of attempted murder of 67-year-old Katherine Byrd, known as Kay.Police say her husband, 68-year-old Thomas Byrd suffered minor injuries in the attack Dec. 5.KTBS-TV reports that Annie Byrd Hartman has created a GoFundMe accoun
  
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• 19-year-old dies after car crash on I-59 near Slidell

  14-12-2016 09:43
  
  SLIDELL – A single-car crash claimed the life of a 19-year-old on Monday on I-59.The crash occurred on around 3 p.m. on I-59 just north of I-10 in Slidell when Denise Phillips was driving a Kia Optima northbound in the right lane. For reasons still under investigation, Phillips lost control of her car, causing it to exit the road to the right. After exiting the road, the car crashed into a tree and overturned, ejecting Phillips from the car.Phillips was not wearing a seat belt at the t
  
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• Cosby is back in court for 2nd day of hearing

  14-12-2016 09:25
  
  NORRISTOWN - Bill Cosby is back in court for a second day of a crucial pretrial hearing in his Pennsylvania sexual assault case.The 79-year-old entertainer returned to court Wednesday. He is facing charges from a 2004 encounter with a woman at his suburban Philadelphia home.Prosecutors are asking a judge to permit testimony from 13 other women who also accuse Cosby of sexual assault. Prosecutors want to show that Cosby had a history of drugging and molesting women.Cosby's lawyers say the women s
  
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• Joe McKnight's family meets with DA

  14-12-2016 09:19
  
  GRETNA - An attorney for the family of slain former NFL running back Joe McKnight says the player's family has met with prosecutors to discuss next steps in the legal case against his accused shooter.Attorney George Tucker tells The New Orleans Advocate that McKnight's mother, his sister and the mother of his child met with the district attorney Tuesday.McKnight was shot and killed Dec. 1 after a road rage accident. The man authorities say shot McKnight, Ronald Gasser, was arrested days
  
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• WATCH LIVE: Matt Canada accepts LSU's offensive coordinator job

  14-12-2016 07:35
  
  WATCH LIVE HERE on Facebook and HERE on WBRZ.comBATON ROUGE - Wednesday morning, LSU announced that Matt Canada will be the new offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach for the Tigers."O" Canada!@Coach_EdOrgeron and the Tigers welcome Matt Canada as Offensive Coordinator!
  Details: https://t.co/8OMmN2EHNY#AllForLSU pic.twitter.com/ZUAdf5kkjy— LSU Football (@LSUfootball) December 14, 2016Tiger Family please help welcome our new OC @CoachMCanada! His ability to adapt
  
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• Matt Canada accepts LSU's offensive coordinator job

  14-12-2016 07:35
  
  BATON ROUGE - Wednesday morning, LSU announced that Matt Canada will be the new offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach for the Tigers."O" Canada!@Coach_EdOrgeron and the Tigers welcome Matt Canada as Offensive Coordinator!
  Details: https://t.co/8OMmN2EHNY#AllForLSU pic.twitter.com/ZUAdf5kkjy— LSU Football (@LSUfootball) December 14, 2016Canada was the offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach at the University of Pittsburgh for the 2016 season. Previously, he was the offensive
  
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• Trump rewards Michigan party chair with national role

  14-12-2016 07:22
  
  DES MOINES, Iowa - President-elect Donald Trump wants Michigan Republican Party Chairwoman Ronna Romney McDaniel to be national party chairwoman.The choice of McDaniel to serve as Republican National Committee chairwoman was confirmed last night by a person familiar with Trump's decision.Republicans carried Michigan for the first time in 28 years.Permalink| Comments
  
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• Accident on I-10 WB near LA 73

  14-12-2016 07:11
  
  PRAIRIEVILLE - Commuters may want to take an alternate route Wednesday there is an accident on I-10 WB just beyond LA 73.This incident has caused heavy delays to LA 30 to Gonzales.News 2's Ashley Fruge is monitoring the roadways during Good Morning America. We will have updates on WBRZ.com and Twitter.Permalink| Comments
  
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• US military Osprey crash-lands off Okinawa, no fatalities

  14-12-2016 07:01
  
  TOKYO  - U.S. military Ospery aircraft has crash-landed off Japan's southern island of Okinawa, but its five crewmembers were safely rescued.The U.S. Marine Corps. said Wednesday that an MV-22 Osprey, tilt-rotor aircraft landed in shallow water off Okinawa's east coast late Tuesday. They said in a statement the crewmembers were airlifted to a Navy hospital at the Kadena Air Base for treatment. Japanese defense officials said two of them sustained injuries that were not life-threatening.
  
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• Officer shoots, kills gunman near Baltimore campus

  14-12-2016 06:58
  
  BALTIMORE - Authorities say a police officer at Coppin State University in Baltimore shot and killed a man who had just fired at a moving car near the campus.Baltimore police spokesman T.J. Smith says the suspected shooter was pronounced dead on the scene Tuesday evening.Smith says that around 6:20 p.m., two cars approached from a nearby mall on a street near the campus. A uniformed campus officer was driving an unmarked car on the same street.The police spokesman says one of the cars stopped an
  
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• Rebels fear resumed Aleppo bombing will 'kill us all'

  14-12-2016 06:57
  
  BEIRUT - Syrian activists say fighter jets have resumed bombing raids over remaining rebel areas in eastern Aleppo, despite yesterday's declaration of a cease-fire.One media activist says aircraft are bombing the rebel-held district of Ansari "as if there's no such thing as a 'cease-fire' or 'evacuation of civilians'."He says the bombing is a de facto announcement that "they are going to kill us all."Meanwhile, EU foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini is appealing to the Syrian government and
  
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• Trump selects Rick Perry as energy secretary

  14-12-2016 06:55
  
  WASHINGTON - President-elect Donald Trump has announced his selection of former campaign rival Rick Perry to be the country's next secretary of energy.In a statement early today, Trump said that Perry, a former governor of Texas, had led his state through "a sustained period of economic growth and prosperity" by developing its energy resources and infrastructure.Trump says in his statement that his administration "is going to make sure we take advantage of our huge natural resource deposits to m
  
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• Former Gov. Edwin Edwards hospitalized, recovering from pneumonia

  14-12-2016 00:00
  
  Relatives hope he can return home by weekend
  
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