Baton Rouge news

• BRPD searching for suspect in Ritterman Ave. shooting

  05-01-2017 21:04
  
  BATON ROUGE - Baton Rouge Police are looking for a man they say could have played a part in a December shooting on Ritterman Avenue.BRPD officials say 34-year-old Richard Johnson is wanted in connection to the death of Juan Montgomery.Police say 2 black male suspects entered Montgomery's home in the 4800 block of Ritterman Ave. around 9:30 a.m. on December 11, and shot him multiple times. Montgomery died at the scene.Another man, 32-year-old Carl Smith, was arrested almost a week after the shoot
  
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• Toyota stock dip after Trump tweet on planned Mexico plant

  05-01-2017 20:50
  
  TOKYO - Toyota Motor Corp. stock is skidding in Tokyo trading after President-elect Donald Trump said on Twitter that the Japanese automaker faces a "big border tax" if it goes ahead with plans on a new Mexico plant.
      
  Toyota shares fell 2 percent in Friday morning trading.
      
  Toyota in Japan had no further comments beyond what it released in the U.S., which did not directly address Trump's tweet but stressed that Toyota has been in the
  
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• Police: Man with gun shot dead by officers in Tennessee

  05-01-2017 20:29
  
  MONTEAGLE, Tenn. - Investigators say a man with a gun may have fired at officers before he was shot and killed in Tennessee.
      
  Tennessee Bureau of Investigation spokesman Josh DeVine says the shooting occurred Thursday afternoon after a man called 911 saying he was in the woods in Franklin County with a gun.
      
  DeVine says six officers tried negotiation but the situation escalated. TBI is working to verify that the man fired at the offic
  
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• New Year's Day chase leads Walker Police to drug arrest

  05-01-2017 19:28
  
  WALKER - Walker Police have arrested a man on multiple charges after a traffic stop turned into a chase.Officers say 32-year-old Joshua Harbin of Independence was driving a green Dodge pickup when they attempted to pull him over for failing to use a turn signal turning onto Brian Park Drive from Walker South Road.Harbin turned into a parking lot and stopped, according to police. They say he then sped out of the lot onto Brian Park Drive, after which the officer called for back-up and followed hi
  
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• 'Routine' jobs in U.S. are disappearing, hurting middle class: report

  05-01-2017 18:46
  
  Many workers have taken lower-paying, low-skill jobs or dropped out of labor force
  
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• Man found dead after Donaldsonville apartment fire

  05-01-2017 18:17
  
  DONALDSONVILLE – Investigators are still trying to determine how a Donaldsonville man died after his body was found Thursday morning after an apartment fire.State Fire Marshal investigators were summoned to the 1500 block of St. Patrick Street after crews found 68-year-old Isaac Landry in the kitchen area of his public housing unit.Firefighters have not determined the official cause of the fire, but say it originated in the kitchen.Chief Deputy Brant Thompson said a neighbor, who was r
  
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• Local disabled child's picture stolen, circulating Facebook

  05-01-2017 17:42
  
  AMITE - We see Facebook posts every day encouraging users to "like" "share" or "comment." Most of the time the posts are harmless. Other times they are scams.When Katie Corken was scrolling through her Facebook timeline, she discovered a photo of her son circulating without her permission. The stolen photo had thousands of "likes" with the caption "Nobdy cared to pray for Farnando. Can he even get 1 like, amen and share.""At first, when I saw it, I laughed to myself," Corken said. "I was like: '
  
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• Mom arrested for disciplining kids officially cleared of charges

  05-01-2017 16:20
  
  BATON ROUGE- Schaquana Spears, a mom who stole the hearts of the community and nation, is thanking those who stood behind her after she was arrested for disciplining her kids last year. She is officially clear of any cruelty charges she received following the incident in June of 2016.Spears whipped her kids with a belt after she caught them breaking into a neighbor's house. Spears was taken to jail for cruelty. Her arrest set off a firestorm around the nation with people calling in to support he
  
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• North Carolina man accused of raping woman at BR area hotel

  05-01-2017 16:06
  
  BATON ROUGE – Deputies say a North Carolina man was arrested after they say he raped a woman twice at a Baton Rouge area hotel in November.Arrest records say Millard Purvis Anderson was charged with second-degree rape Thursday for an incident that happened on Nov. 4, 2016.According to East Baton Rouge Sheriff’s Office detectives, the victim said she and a friend had agreed to have drinks with four unknown men. Around 10:30 p.m., the two women picked up the men at a local rest
  
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• Suspect arrested for fatal November shooting on Jade Avenue

  05-01-2017 15:51
  BATON ROUGE – The East Baton Rouge Sheriff's Office arrested a man on Thursday who was wanted for a fatal shooting on Jade Avenue in November. Clarence Eugene Parker, 22-year-old, was arrested for the second degree murder of 32-year-old Eric Jones.
  The shooting occurred on Nov. 19 in the 1600 block of Jade Avenue around 10:30 p.m. According to the sheriff's office, when deputies arrived they saw Jones lying unresponsive on the ground in between two buildings suffering from a g
  
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• Front doors of capitol still closed due to failing facade

  05-01-2017 15:48
  
  BATON ROUGE – The State Capitol's front doors will remain closed will into the summer since work to repair falling masonry above won't start until after lawmakers end their annual meeting in June.WBRZ's political reporter, Mark Armstrong, tweeted Thursday the front steps and entrance remain closed months after concerns over possible injuries from falling stone prompted the state to close the front of the building. Sources said the closure will last until repairs are complete. Repairs w
  
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• Walker files lawsuit against state; blames I-12 expansion for flooding

  05-01-2017 15:17
  
  WALKER – The city of Walker filed a class action lawsuit against the state, the Louisiana Department of Transportation and Development and its contractors on Thursday afternoon, citing that the expansion of I-12 contributed to the severe flooding in the area during the August flood. Attorney Josh Palmintier of deGravelles, Palmintier of Baton Rouge, said that the lawsuit "gives people hope, following damages to their homes and property in the August, 2016 flood."The lawsuit st
  
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• Severed arm found in canal along I-10 east near LaPlace

  05-01-2017 13:43
  
  LAPLACE – The St. John the Baptist Parish Sheriff's Office is investigating the discovery of a severed arm found near the Reserve Canal along I-10 east near LaPlace. Deputies were called to the waterway on Dec. 29 around 8:30 a.m. after receiving a report from a fisherman who found the arm in the water. Deputies searched for additional body parts, however none were found.
  The arm was sent to the Louisiana State Police Crime Lab for examination. According to the sheriff's offic
  
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• Deputies searching for suspect who stole truck on Highway 73

  05-01-2017 13:16
  
  ASCENSION – The Ascension Parish Sheriff's Office is looking for a man who stole a 2004 Ford F-450 truck on Highway 73. The truck was stolen from Waste Pro, located on Highway 73 in Geismar, on Dec. 11 around 1 a.m. The truck was found later on Camp Drive missing a large Lincoln welding machine that was mounted to the bed of the truck.
  Video surveillance shows the man, wearing a hood, driving the truck. Anyone with information on the identity of the man is urged to co
  
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• Edwards administration defends flood response

  05-01-2017 12:11
  
  BATON ROUGE- Governor Edwards' Administration pushed back against criticism Thursday that it's too slow in responding to the August flood. Friday Edwards will present the state's first disaster relief program 147 days after the storm."Only twenty of the days have been in the control of the state," said Edwards spokesperson Julie Payer.Congress approved almost half-a-billion dollars for the state program in September, 48 days after the flood waters rose. However, federal regulations tied
  
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• Kentucky principal admits stealing porn from student phones

  05-01-2017 11:49
  
  LOUISVILLE- Investigators say a fired Kentucky high school principal has admitted to seizing students' phones so that he could steal pornographic images from them.News outlets report that 36-year-old former LaRue County High School principal Stephen Kyle Goodlett was indicted Wednesday in Louisville on federal charges of possessing and transporting child pornography.Goodlett pleaded not guilty last month to 63 state felony child porn charges.He was fired after his arrest in October. Court docume
  
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• Drivers prepare for winter weather conditions across state

  05-01-2017 11:47
  
  ST. FRANCISVILLE - Residents in four parishes and two Mississippi counties are preparing for freezing conditions while under a winter weather advisory.In East and West Feliciana Parishes, road crews are getting ready for wet roads and freezing temperatures. Black ice could be a big problem for drivers."Can you imagine?" resident Ernestine James said. "People don't know how to drive when it's dry, so can you imagine ice? We are going to be running over each other, all in the ditch and everything.
  
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• Deputies investigating deadly double shooting in Paincourtville

  05-01-2017 11:37
  
  PAINCOURTVILLE – Deputies in Assumption Parish say one person is dead and another injured after a shooting at a home in Paincourtville Thursday morning.Sheriff Leland Falcon said the incident happened around 12:03 a.m.  at a home on Greenbriar Street off LA 308.Falcon said deputies found two victims suffering gunshot wounds outside the home. Nehemiah Jones, 28, was transported to Assumption Community Hospital where he was pronounced dead.Deputies have not released the second v
  
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• Broome meets with police, community leaders ahead of Alton Sterling case conclusion

  05-01-2017 11:01
  
  BATON ROUGE – On her first day in office, Mayor-President Sharon Weston Broome called a meeting on Wednesday ahead of the Department of Justice's decision on the shooting death of Alton Sterling.At the meeting, community leaders and law enforcement officials discussed police and community relations. Broome said and has reiterated that a top priority for her administration is to rebuild the trust between police officers and the community."The meeting and conversation yesterday was insig
  
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• Man accused of crashing van into lake with landlord inside

  05-01-2017 09:17
  
  METAIRIE - Authorities say a New Orleans man waited hours before telling authorities he crashed a minivan into a lake with his landlord inside.News outlets report 25-year-old Miguel McCarty faces vehicular homicide and other charges in 52-year-old Regina Williams' death.Williams' body was found inside the van Monday.Detectives believe she died after McCarty drove her vehicle into Lake Pontchartrain early Sunday.Arrest documents say McCarty didn't disclose the crash until Williams' family questio
  
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• Official says Obama has intel report on hacking

  05-01-2017 09:11
  
  WASHINGTON- U.S. intelligence officials have delivered the classified report on Russian and other foreign meddling in American elections to the White House.A U.S. official said Thursday that President Barack Obama has received the report. President-elect Donald Trump is to be briefed on the report on Friday.The official was not authorized to publicly discuss the issue and spoke on condition of anonymity.Director of National Intelligence told Congress that an unclassified version of the report is
  
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• Tourism director on leave after adult video mistakenly sent

  05-01-2017 09:02
  
  BATON ROUGE- A Louisiana tourism official has been placed on paid administrative leave after inadvertently sharing an adult video on her employer's Instagram account while on business in Baton Rouge.The half-hour video with nudity went live on the Webster Parish Convention and Visitors Bureau's Instagram account Dec. 19 and sent notifications to followers.Board President Jerry Madden tells The Minden Press-Herald that placing Convention and Visitors Bureau Executive Director Lynn Dorsey
  
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• U.S. businesses add a modest 153,000 jobs in December

  05-01-2017 08:52
  
  WASHINGTON - U.S. companies reported a modest gain of 153,000 jobs last month, all in service industries such as retail and health care, according to a private survey.Payroll provider ADP says hotels and restaurants added 18,000 jobs in December, while higher-paying professional services, such as engineering, added 24,000. Manufacturers lost 9,000 jobs and construction firms shed 2,000.Businesses added 215,000 jobs in November, the strongest showing since June.The report points to ongoing, if mo
  
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• Somber department store holiday season casts pall over 2017

  05-01-2017 08:49
  
  NEW YORK - A cheerless holiday season is rolling over into the new year for department stores, with bad news from Macy's and Kohl's dragging down the entire sector.Both reported falling sales at established stores during the crucial holiday season late Wednesday and shares are under heavy pressure in early trading Thursday.Macy's Inc., Kohl's Corp., J.C. Penney Co., Target Corp., Sears Holdings Corp. and others are all attempting to navigate a new retail landscape in which the magnetic north is
  
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• Winter storm watches issued as wintry mix threatens South

  05-01-2017 08:44
  
  ATLANTA - Winter storm watches cover parts of Georgia, Alabama and the Carolinas ahead of a storm system that threatens to bring a wintry mix of rain, sleet and snow to the South.Forecasters say the storm system expected to move into the region on Friday could slicken streets and highways from Texas all the way east to the Carolinas.Even parts of the deep South - including Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama - are bracing for sleet or snow.Snow also is also possible in Atlanta, where snow and ice
  
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• Police: Race not motive behind video attack

  05-01-2017 08:42
  
  CHICAGO - Chicago police say they don't believe a man who was beaten in an assault broadcast live on Facebook was targeted because he was white.Police spokesman Anthony Guglielmi said Thursday morning that charges are expected soon against four black suspects. Guglielmi says the suspects made "terrible racist statements" during the attack, but that investigators believe the victim was targeted because he has special needs, not because of his race.Guglielmi says it's possible the suspects were tr
  
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• 4 charged in videotaped beating of man in Chicago

  05-01-2017 08:42
  
  CHICAGO - Prosecutors have filed hate crime and aggravated kidnapping charges against four black suspects accused of beating and taunting a white man during an attack streamed live on Facebook.Cook County prosecutors on Thursday announced charges against three 18-year-olds - Jordan Hill of Carpentersville, Brittany Covington of Chicago and Tesfaye Cooper of Chicago - and 24-year-old Tanishia Covington of Chicago.Prosecutors say the four are also charged with aggravated unlawful restraint and agg
  
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• Official says the circle is closing on the gunman

  05-01-2017 08:40
  ISTANBUL (AP) - Turkey's deputy prime minister (Veysi Kaynak) says authorities are close to catching the gunman who killed 39 people at an Istanbul nightclub.He told A Haber news channel in an interview today that "the circle is closing in" on the gunman who vanished after the attack.The deputy premier says authorities believe he is still inside Turkey, although they have not completely ruled out the possibility that he may have escaped.He says the man is believed to be from China's Muslim Uighu
  
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• No pollution reported from Gulf platform fire

  05-01-2017 08:28
  
  NEW ORLEANS - A Coast Guard officer says there are no reports of any pollution so far after a fire broke out on an oil platform in the Gulf of Mexico off the coast of Louisiana.Chief Petty Officer Third Class Travis Magee tells The Associated Press the fire was suppressed, but not extinguished Thursday morning.Magee says there are still no reports of any injuries.Coast Guard officials say the fire was reported around 2:30 a.m. Thursday on the oil platform about 80 miles south of Grand Isle, Loui
  
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• Top US intelligence officials to testify on Russian hacking

  05-01-2017 08:26
  
  WASHINGTON - Senior U.S. intelligence officials head to Capitol Hill today to answer questions about Russia's alleged meddling in the presidential election to help Donald Trump win.National intelligence director James Clapper and National Security Agency chief Michael Rogers are among those slated to appear before the Armed Services Committee.Intelligence officials will also be briefing President Barack Obama on the hacking report he ordered last month.President-elect Donald Trump will be briefe
  
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• Photos show crews extinguish fire on oil platform in Gulf of Mexico

  05-01-2017 06:02
  
  NEW ORLEANS - The Coast Guard has reported that a fire on an oil production platform near Grand Isle has been extinguished.The fire was reported extinguished on Thursday around 6:15 a.m. The Coast Guard Sector New Orleans was notified of a fire on a Renaissance Offshore LLC oil production platform at 2:30 a.m., 80 miles south of Grand Isle in the Gulf of Mexico. There were four people on the platform at the time of the fire. All four people were evacuated into the water and were recover
  
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• Fire out on oil platform in Gulf of Mexico

  05-01-2017 06:02
  
  NEW ORLEANS - The Coast Guard has reported that a fire on an oil production platform near Grand Isle has been extinguished.The fire was reported extinguished on Thursday around 6:15 a.m. The Coast Guard Sector New Orleans was notified of a fire on a Renaissance Offshore LLC oil production platform at 2:30 a.m., 80 miles south of Grand Isle in the Gulf of Mexico. There were four people on the platform at the time of the fire. All four people were evacuated into the water and were recover
  
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• Fire burns on oil platform in Gulf of Mexico

  05-01-2017 06:02
  
  NEW ORLEANS - The Coast Guard says it's responding to a fire on an oil platform in the Gulf of Mexico off the coast of Louisiana.A Coast Guard news release says the fire was reported around 2:30 a.m. Thursday on an oil platform about 80 miles south of Grand Isle, Louisiana.The Coast Guard says four people aboard the platform evacuated and were rescued by a supply vessel. No injuries have been reported.Four vessels are fighting the fire and the cause is under investigation.An oil platform explode
  
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