Baton Rouge news

• WBRZ Crawfish Index: boiled price per pound plateau at $3.98

  23-03-2017 21:39
  
  BATON ROUGE – The price for a pound of boiled crawfish remained flat this week, keeping the same average price from last week.According to the WBRZ Crawfish Price Index, the average price will still remain just under the $4 mark. All 10 locations surveyed kept their prices at the same level as last week. One location cited strong demand during Lent as the reason why their price had plateaued. The store tells WBRZ that customers can expect even better deals in the coming weeks.
  
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• Mobile home badly damaged in Lansdowne Road fire

  23-03-2017 20:56
  
  BATON ROUGE - A mobile home was badly destroyed by a fire on Lansdowne Road.Sources say the fire occurred around 7:00 p.m. at the Brentwood Estates Mobile Home Community in the 9400 block of Lansdowne Road near Hooper Road.No injuries were reported. People on scene say the fire was quickly extinguished.Permalink| Comments
  
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• Crews respond to house fire on Spanish Town Road

  23-03-2017 20:43
  
  BATON ROUGE - Crews are on the scene of a working house fire on Spanish Town Road.BRFD confirms the fire occurred in the 1800 block of Spanish Town Road near North 18th Street around 8:00 p.m.Residents in surrounding neighborhoods miles away reported being able to see a glow in the sky near the area of the flames.Details are limited at this time. No injuries have been reported.This is a developing story. Check back for updates.Permalink| Comments
  
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• Arson to blame for Spanish Town Road fire

  23-03-2017 20:43
  
  BATON ROUGE - BRFD officials say arson is to blame for a fire at a vacant home on Spanish Town Road.Crews responded to the fire in the 1800 block of Spanish Town Road near North 18th Street around 8:00 p.m.Firefighters say they arrived on scene to find the home engulfed in flames.The fire was brought under control, but the house was considered to be a total loss, according to investigators.Residents in surrounding neighborhoods miles away reported being able to see a glow in the sky near the are
  
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• UN condemns North Korea tests which contribute to nukes

  23-03-2017 20:31
  
  UNITED NATIONS - The Security Council is strongly condemning North Korea's latest ballistic missile launch and engine test as "grave" violations of U.N. sanctions that contribute to development of its nuclear weapons delivery systems.
      
  The council said in a statement Thursday that the launch and test "increase tension in the region and beyond as well as the risk of a regional arms race."
      
  Wednesday's missile launch ended in failure bu
  
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• White House tells House GOP, 'Let's vote'

  23-03-2017 19:43
  
  WASHINGTON - President Donald Trump wants the House to vote on the health care bill, and Republicans say a vote will occur Friday.
      
  White House officials had a simple message to a divided House Republican caucus on the bill: "Let's vote."
      
  Republicans emerging from the closed-door meeting Thursday said they will vote Friday afternoon even though leadership is still trying to secure the votes.
      
  Senior Whi
  
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• Judge: Young boy can testify at trial in baby sister's death

  23-03-2017 19:23
  
  BATON ROUGE - A judge in Baton Rouge says he will allow a young boy whose infant sister was beaten to death in 2013 to testify at the murder trial of their mother's boyfriend.
      
  District Judge Richard Anderson on Thursday denied a request by a defense attorney for Larry Leflore to exclude the boy as a trial witness. Attorney Caitlin Graham argued the boy, who was 6 when his sister was slain, would not be a reliable witness.
      
  Leflore is
  
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• Tax break for owners of flood-damaged homes in Ascension

  23-03-2017 18:47
  
  ASCENSION – Homeowners in Ascension still impacted by the August flood could be in for a tax break this year.The break could be welcomed by homeowners like Richard Prince, who operates a small business that customizes in 18-wheelers. The business is located on the property where he lives.However, a concrete slab is all that remains on his property following the flood. It was the second time that his home flooded and he says that he is not going to rebuild."I don't see taking a chance o
  
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• Students, colleagues of deputy's widow pay their respects

  23-03-2017 17:48
  
  WALKER – The procession for a fallen East Baton Rouge Parish deputy passed the elementary school his widow teaches at.Lt. Shawn Anderson was laid to rest on Thursday afternoon and about 500 students and teachers lined the highway outside of Levi Milton Elementary as his processional passed. Anderson's wife, Becky, has taught at the school for years.Her students and colleagues showed their support by waving flags and holding signs. "Today at the school was very sad but the chil
  
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• Crews respond to house fire on Montrachet Drive

  23-03-2017 17:20
  
  BATON ROUGE – Firefighters responded to a house fire in the 10000 block of Montrachet Drive on Thursday afternoon.According to the St. George Fire Department, the fire was an accidental cooking fire. Firefighters were able to contain the fire to the kitchen.There are no reported injuries.The fire department says that the house received minor water damage.Permalink| Comments
  
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• License revoked at Mandeville day care after child wandered into traffic

  23-03-2017 17:03
  
  MANDEVILLE - The Louisiana Department of Education revoked the license of an early learning center in St. Tammany Parish after a child wandered into traffic.According to the department, Kidzone Preschool on Highway 59 in Mandeville was inspected on Mar. 17 after receiving a complaint from a driver that he was forced to slam on his brakes to avoid hitting a three-year-old running in the street. The child was three blocks away from the preschool facility.The driver stopped, picked up the
  
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• Rep. Cedric Richmond, colleagues call for assistance appeal for tornado survivors

  23-03-2017 16:29
  
  Congressman Cedric Richmond and members of the Louisiana Congressional Delegation have joined in on the appeal by Governor John Bel Edwards calling for additional disaster assistance for tornado survivors. Governor Edwards requested assistance for Orleans, Livingston, Ascension and St. James parishes following tornadoes that struck the area in February. However, FEMA denied that assistance.In a letter sent to President Donald Trump, Richmond stated that the government has a responsibili
  
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• Hammond school to close Friday due to Norovirus outbreak

  23-03-2017 15:15
  
  HAMMOND- Hammond Westside Montessori School will be closed on Friday, March 24 due to students developing symptoms of the Norovirus.According to school officials, more than 300 students were not in class on Thursday due to the virus. Entire classes have been missing class since last Friday. Superintendent of the Tangipahoa Parish School System, Mark Kolwe, announced the closure on Thursday afternoon.The Norovirus is commonly known as the winter vomiting bug. School officials say the clo
  
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• Man wanted for using fraudulent credit cards in Denham Springs

  23-03-2017 14:07
  
  DENHAM SPRINGS – The Denham Springs Police Department is requesting the public's assistance in identifying a man wanted for using fraudulent credit cards.According to the police department, the suspect used several fraudulent credit cards to purchase $3,000 worth of retail merchandise.Anyone with any information on the identity of the suspect is urged to contact Detective  Leblanc at The Denham Springs Police Department at 225-665-5106.Permalink| Comments
  
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• Sentencing delayed for retired Saints star's killer

  23-03-2017 13:53
  
  NEW ORLEANS - Sentencing for the man who fatally shot former New Orleans Saints star Will Smith has been delayed.Cardell Hayes was scheduled for sentencing on Monday. However, state District Judge Camille Buras granted a defense attorneys' request for more time Thursday.No new date was set. A status hearing was scheduled for March 30.Smith was killed in a traffic confrontation in New Orleans last April. The 29-year-old Hayes claimed self-defense but a jury convicted him of manslaughter, and atte
  
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• US to recommend approval of Keystone XL pipeline

  23-03-2017 13:43
  
  WASHINGTON - Senior U.S. officials say the State Department will recommend approval of the Keystone XL pipeline, clearing the way for the White House to formally approve it.Two officials say Undersecretary of State for Political Affairs Tom Shannon will issue the recommendation Friday. A 60-day deadline to complete a Trump administration review is set to expire next Monday.The pipeline requires a presidential permit. The officials say the White House would announce the permit's issuance after th
  
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• Man accused of home improvement fraud after paid $40,000

  23-03-2017 13:16
  
  BATON ROUGE – A man has been arrested after police say that he failed to complete home repairs that he was paid more than $40,000 to do.The Baton Rouge Police Department arrested 29-year-old Patrick McGee on charges of home improvement fraud, felony theft and misapplication of payment.A woman hired McGee, of Perpetual Business, LLC, to do work on her home following the August flood. The woman stated that she signed a contract with McGee in October and paid him a total of $49,5000 with
  
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• Livingston Parish council votes 'yes' on gun range ordinance

  23-03-2017 11:49
  
  LIVINGSTON - Livingston Parish Council voted unanimously for a new outdoor shooting range regulations.After listening to concerned residents, the council spent time researching other gun range facility to see how they could better construct their ordinance."We noticed that the one we had, was old outdated, and it really didn't cover up to date requirements for shooting ranges," Councilman John Wascom said.The new ordinance, which was unanimously approved by the council, now includes specifics on
  
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• Police identify UK attacker as Khalid Masood

  23-03-2017 11:38
  
  LONDON - British police have identified the person responsible for the terror attack near Parliament as 52-year-old Khalid Masood.The police say in a statement Thursday that Masood was born in southeastern England and was most recently living in the West Midlands, in central England.Police say Masood, who had a number of aliases, wasn't the subject of any current investigation and that "there was no prior intelligence about his intent to mount a terrorist attack."He had been arrested previously
  
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• Man rescued after trapped at water treatment plant

  23-03-2017 09:41
  
  BATON ROUGE – Firefighters responded to a call of a man trapped in a confined space Thursday morning in Baton Rouge.According to the Baton Rouge Fire Department, the incident was reported after 9:30 a.m. Thursday at the North Baton Rouge Wastewater Treatment plant near the intersection of Woodpecker at Ave M. The man was in a ten-foot confinement space and could not climb back up the ladder due to weakness, according to the fire department. Sources say the man is awak
  
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• Firefighters responding to person trapped at water treatment plant

  23-03-2017 09:41
  
  BATON ROUGE – Firefighters responded to a call of a man trapped in a confined space Thursday morning in Baton Rouge.According to the Baton Rouge Fire Department, the incident was reported after 9:30 a.m. Thursday at the Baton Rouge Wastewater Treatement plant near the intersection of Woodpecker at Ave M.Sources say the man is awake, alert and stable. This is a developing story. Stay tuned to WBRZ News 2 online and on Facebook and Twitter for updates as new information becomes
  
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• Report: one killed in multi-car crash on Lake Pontchartrain Causeway

  23-03-2017 09:07
  
  NEW ORLEANS – The Lake Pontchartrain Causeway was closed for three hours Thursday morning as crews worked to clear a deadly multi-car crash.According to WWLTV, Causeway Police say the crash happened around 2:30 a.m. Investigators an allegedly intoxicated driver was involved in the crash. One person was killed.Reporters at the scene say the crash caused about 100 feet of railing to be damaged. The bridge has now reopened.The U.S. Coast Guard was seen using sonar equipment to search the
  
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• Pedestrian struck by vehicle on Airline Highway

  23-03-2017 08:53
  
  BATON ROUGE – Police say a man was taken to the hospital after he was struck by a car on Airline Highway.According to Baton Rouge Police, the crash happened around 8 a.m. Thursday in the 7000 block of Airline Highway.One man was transported to the hospital with what appears to be non-life-threatening injuries.Permalink| Comments
  
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• Mississippi town finds itself in Twilight Zone: Have its laws vanished?

  23-03-2017 08:49
  
  BAY ST. LOUIS - City leaders in Bay St. Louis are searching for the community's zoning laws, which appear to have vanished into a dimension as vast as space and as timeless as infinity: The Twilight Zone.The Sun Herald reports that a lawyer told city council members this week that Bay St. Louis zoning laws don't legally exist.Bay St. Louis attorney Stephen Benvenutti said the city's comprehensive zoning ordinance was never published, as required by law, when it was adopted by the previous City C
  
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• Trump defends wiretapping claims

  23-03-2017 08:36
  
  WASHINGTON - President Donald Trump is defending his explosive claims that his predecessor wiretapped his New York skyscraper.In an interview with Time Magazine, Trump says "wiretapping was in quotes. What I'm talking about is surveillance."Trump noted that the chairman of the House intelligence committee said Wednesday that communications of Trump and his transition team may have been scooped up by American intelligence officials monitoring other targets.There is no evidence that Trump Tower wa
  
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• S.C. Ex-guard shot in attack via inmate's cellphone to testify

  23-03-2017 08:32
  
  COLUMBIA - An ex-South Carolina corrections officer who was nearly killed in a shooting orchestrated by an inmate using an illegal cellphone wants federal authorities to help ensure nothing like it happens again.Robert Johnson is expected to testify Thursday before the Federal Communications Commission about preventing inmate access to cellphones.Johnson was an anti-contraband officer at one of South Carolina's most violent prisons in 2010 when he was shot six times outside his home. Police say
  
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• Louisiana lawmaker promises to fix marriage law

  23-03-2017 08:20
  
  NEW ORLEANS - A federal judge has cleared the way for a foreign-born U.S. citizen to get a marriage license in Louisiana, despite a law that took effect last year requiring him to have a birth certificate.U.S. District Judge Ivan Lemelle blocked the law Wednesday.Viet Anh Vo and Heather Pham had planned to marry last year. But Vo couldn't get a license because he had no birth certificate.The 32-year-old Vo was born in an Indonesian refugee camp after his parents fled Vietnam.The law was aimed at
  
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• Todd Fisher says mom Debbie Reynolds set him up for death

  23-03-2017 07:00
  
  LOS ANGELES - Todd Fisher says his mother, Debbie Reynolds, set him up "for her leaving the planet" the day his sister and Reynolds' daughter, Carrie Fisher, died in December.The 84-year-old Reynolds suffered a stroke and died one day after her 60-year-old daughter died following a heart attack. Todd Fisher tells Entertainment Tonight that his mother told him she wanted "to go be with Carrie" before she died.Fisher says he's "really OK" with his mother's death, but "not so OK" with his sister's.
  
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• Debbie Reynolds' son says she prepared him for her death

  23-03-2017 07:00
  
  LOS ANGELES - Todd Fisher says his mother, Debbie Reynolds, set him up "for her leaving the planet" the day his sister and Reynolds' daughter, Carrie Fisher, died in December.The 84-year-old Reynolds suffered a stroke and died one day after her 60-year-old daughter died following a heart attack. Todd Fisher tells Entertainment Tonight that his mother told him she wanted "to go be with Carrie" before she died.Fisher says he's "really OK" with his mother's death, but "not so OK" with his sister's.
  
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• Police officer, 3 others killed in Wisconsin

  23-03-2017 03:35
  
  WESTON, Wis. - Police in northern Wisconsin say an officer and three other people were killed in what apparently began as a domestic dispute at a bank.Everest Metro Police Chief Wally Sparks said the slain officer was from his department. Sparks did not release the officer's name. The names of the other three dead also were not released.Sparks said a suspect was in custody.The violence in the small town of Rothschild began shortly after noon on Wednesday, after police were summoned to what they
  
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• UK police raid property linked to London attack

  23-03-2017 03:31
  
  LONDON-British armed police have carried out a raid on a property in the central city of Birmingham, after an attacker killed four people before being fatally shot by police within Parliament's grounds.Police refused to say if the raid was linked to the rampage in the heart of Britain's seat of power. But British media including the Press Association on Thursday quoted an unnamed witness saying that the operation was linked to the attack that also injured around 40 people.A knife-wielding man dr
  
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