Baton Rouge news

• Incident near Fort Polk prompts apartment complex evacuation

  12-04-2017 21:04
  
  NEW LLANO - Local, state and federal law enforcement officers are investigating an incident that has prompted the evacuation of an apartment complex near a Louisiana Army post.The Vernon Parish Sheriff's Office said in a Facebook post Wednesday that it is working with Fort Polk officials and the FBI regarding an unspecified incident in the parish.Residents of the Mona Lisa Apartments in New Llano and the immediate surrounding area were evacuated as a precaution, the statement says. New Llano is
  
  Read more

• NY appeals court judge found dead on Hudson River shore

  12-04-2017 20:08
  
  NEW YORK - An appeals court judge who was the first African-American woman appointed to New York's highest court has been found dead on the shore of the Hudson River off Manhattan.Police say the body of 65-year-old Sheila Abdus-Salaam was discovered just before 2 p.m. Wednesday along the river's shore near Harlem, one day after being reported missing.Police say her body showed no obvious signs of trauma. The medical examiner is to determine the exact cause of death.Abdus-Salaam was appointed to
  
  Read more

• No rehearing in suit alleging oil industry coastal damage

  12-04-2017 20:01
  
  NEW ORLEANS - It's another defeat for a Louisiana flood board's effort to make oil and gas companies pay for damage to coastal wetlands that help protect New Orleans from hurricanes.The 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals refused to revive the case Wednesday.The suit by the Southeast Louisiana Flood Protection Authority-East sought to hold close to 90 companies accountable for billions of dollars' worth of damage blamed on coastal drilling activity.Environmentalists hailed the suit as a means of h
  
  Read more

• Water company won't bend to homeowner's demands

  12-04-2017 17:30
  
  BATON ROUGE - Nearly a year after a water main break, a Baton Rouge homeowner says he's still waiting for the Baton Rouge Water Company to repair his driveway.Years ago, Gary Bishop stained and veined the driveway himself. The water main goes under the driveway and a section needed to be ripped apart to make the repair. The water company filled in the area with limestone and it's been that way since May, 2016."They put the limestone in and they left and that's the last that I've seen of
  
  Read more

• Advertisement

• Louisiana power company donation 'completes' Civil War battlefield

  12-04-2017 17:22
  
  Donation preserves land where Battle of Mansfield took place.
  
  Read more

• Civil War battlefield completed with Louisiana power company's donation

  12-04-2017 17:22
  
  Cleco hands over 14 1/2 acres where Battle of Mansfield took place
  
  Read more

• Lights go out, shouting; Things heated when city talks about Council on Aging tax

  12-04-2017 17:20
  
  BATON ROUGE – The Metro Council delayed approving city ordinances associated with a property tax to fund the EBR Council on Aging Wednesday evening.JUST NOW: @GaryChambersJr told metro council "holding up the decision of the people is a disgrace to democracy" @WBRZ pic.twitter.com/WOBG1NhTJg— Brett Buffington (@BrettBuffington) April 12, 2017Now in a new twist... the lights in the new council chambers have gone completely crazy... someone shouted "it's a sign from God" @WBRZ
  
  Read more

• Prosecutor asks pharmacies to watch for Tennessee kidnapping suspect

  12-04-2017 16:43
  
  COLUMBIA, Tenn. - A prosecutor is asking pharmacy employees to be on the lookout for a 50-year-old Tennessee teacher who disappeared last month with a student.District Attorney Brent Cooper tells news outlets Tad Cummins takes medicine to control his blood pressure and likely will need a refill.Cummins and 15-year-old Elizabeth Thomas were reported missing on March 13.The last confirmed sighting of the pair was two days later at an Oklahoma City Wal-Mart. Police have issued an Amber alert for Th
  
  Read more

• Advertisement

• BRPD: Suspects wanted for stealing more than 120 cartons of cigarettes from Circle K

  12-04-2017 16:09
  
  BATON ROUGE – BRPD detectives are attempting to identify individuals who are accused of robbing a Circle K gas station on South Sherwood Forest Boulevard.The incident occurred on Wednesday around 12:30 p.m. when the individuals entered the store, threatened the workers and took more than 120 cartons of cigarettes.According to BRPD, the suspects then fled the scene in a black 4-runner vehicle with black rims and a missing bumper.Anyone with information on the identify of the suspects is
  
  Read more

• Trump says NATO 'no longer obsolete'

  12-04-2017 15:21
  
  WASHINGTON - President Donald Trump has done an about-face on NATO, the military alliance he once dismissed as ineffective.Trump says at a White House news conference with NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg.As a candidate, Trump said the 28-member organization had outlived its usefulness. Since taking office, he has expressed support for NATO but has reinforced his view that European members must meet a 2014 agreement for member countries to boost defense spending to 2 percent of GDP within
  
  Read more

• After years of cuts, Louisiana colleges threatened with more

  12-04-2017 14:58
  
  BATON ROUGE - Louisiana's public colleges have been hammered by budget cuts over nearly a decade, and they're staring down the threat of another round of slashing.Higher education leaders pleaded their case for funding Wednesday before state lawmakers on a House budget committee.University officials received no suggestions more dollars would be heading their way in the budget year that begins July 1. And they received no assurances their campuses would be protected from further reductions after
  
  Read more

• Police: contractor arrested again for failing to complete work

  12-04-2017 14:42
  
  BATON ROUGE - Authorities have once again arrested a man for contractor fraud after the say he failed to complete work that was paid for.The victim says she paid 48-year-old Andrew Darian over $1,000 to complete construction work on her rental property in January. The victim say she repeatedly tried to contact Darian after more than a month passed without the work being completed.After several attempts, the victim finally spoke to Darian on Mar. 7. Darian allegedly told the vic
  
  Read more

• 700K at fest started to get locals back to French Quarter

  12-04-2017 14:42
  
  NEW ORLEANS - French Quarter Festival organizers say the free music festival, created 33 years ago to bring locals back to the historic neighborhood, brought in more than 700,000 locals and tourists from Thursday through Sunday.French Quarter Festivals Inc. says two new stages brought the total to 23 and helped spread out the record crowd.The French Quarter was the first area settled in New Orleans by the French, who founded the site in 1718. It covers about two-thirds of a square mile (1.7 squa
  
  Read more

• John Wilkes Booth statue removed from Lincoln library and museum

  12-04-2017 14:34
  
  SPRINGFIELD - A statue of John Wilkes Booth has been removed from outside of the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum in the Illinois capital of Springfield.Spokesman Christopher Wills told the Springfield State Journal-Register that the statue of Lincoln's assassin had stood in the plaza outside the museum and library since it opened in 2005. He says officials "felt any potential glorification, even if unintentional, was not acceptable."Wills says the museum's executive director, Ala
  
  Read more

• Boxes of foam tomahawks drop and Atlanta traffic gets a chop

  12-04-2017 14:28
  
  ATLANTA - After an interstate highway bridge collapse had already dealt a tomahawk chop to Atlanta traffic, some toy tomahawks have clogged up the roadway.Authorities say a load of Atlanta Braves foam tomahawks fell from a truck shortly before noon Wednesday, delaying traffic on a freeway near the team's new stadium.The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports the toy tomahawks caused delays in the south lanes of Interstate 75 in Cobb County.Georgia Department of Transportation officials say the box
  
  Read more

• Burger King's Whopper gets negative definitions in ad stunt

  12-04-2017 14:26
  
  NEW YORK - Burger King's latest ad stunt is resulting in some less-than-flattering descriptions of its Whopper sandwich.The hamburger chain unveiled a 15-second ad Wednesday designed to trigger smart speaker devices into reciting the definition of a Whopper, pulled from the website Wikipedia. But the website can be edited by users, and the definition had been changed to insert "cyanide" as an ingredient in one version. Another user later changed the definition to say the Whopper is "the worst ha
  
  Read more

• Trump says health care before tax reform

  12-04-2017 14:19
  
  WASHINGTON - President Donald Trump is saying he may reshuffle some of his major domestic priorities.After Republican leaders pulled their health care bill back from a House vote last month, Trump signaled that he was ready to move on to tax overhaul and other issues.But on Wednesday, Trump said on Fox Business Network that he'd rather move health care first. That's despite an ongoing impasse between GOP hardliners and moderates."I have to do health care first," said Trump. "I want to do it firs
  
  Read more

• Actress says BR has 'best pizza in the world'; Shop says it doesn't exist

  12-04-2017 14:17
  
  BATON ROUGE – Academy award-winning actress Helen Mirren proclaimed that a Baton Rouge pizza shop has the best pizza "in the world."The English actress answered 21 random questions for BuzzFeed UK. The questions ranged from "What advice would you give to your 16-year-old self?" to her favorite curse word or drunk food.One question was "what is your favorite pizza topping?" Her reply: the clam pizza at Fleur de Lis Pizza located on Government Street. "There's
  
  Read more

• Uber's PR head resigns amid tumultuous time for company

  12-04-2017 14:15
  
  NEW YORK - Uber says its head of communications has decided to leave the ride-hailing company.In a memo to employees, CEO Travis Kalanick called Rachel Whetstone a "force of nature" who was "was way ahead of the game when it came to many of the changes we needed to make as a company."Uber is facing accusations of sexism and sexual harassment in the workplace, as well as troubles for Kalanick after a video surfaced showing him berating a driver. The company is hiring a chief operating officer to
  
  Read more

• Ancestry.com helps family of dead boy find man posing as him

  12-04-2017 14:06
  
  PITTSBURGH - Federal prosecutors say Ancestry.com helped the family of a baby who died in Texas in 1972 discover that a Pennsylvania man had assumed the child's identity.Forty-four-year-old Jon Vincent was arrested in Lansdale, near Philadelphia, on Monday. Prosecutors say Vincent stole Nathan Laskoski's identity after escaping from a Texas halfway house to start another life.Prosecutors say he first obtained a Social Security card as Laskoski in 1996.Federal prosecutors say he's also lived in M
  
  Read more

• Acadia Parish Sheriff offers cash rewards to stop crawfish thefts

  12-04-2017 13:40
  
  ACADIA PARISH – Deputies in Acadia Parish are offering a cash reward to help stop crawfish thefts in the area, local media reports.According to KLFY, farmers across Acadia Parish have made complaints of individuals stealing crawfish from fields and traps at night.Deputies say several people have been arrested this season for crawfish theft but more people are still committing the crimes.Anyone with information regarding people involved in crawfish thefts in Acadia Parish are asked to c
  
  Read more

• Driver in Endymion parade crash pleads not guilty

  12-04-2017 13:31
  
  NEW ORLEANS – A man accused of crashing his vehicle into a crowd of people at a New Orleans Mardi Gras parade pleaded not guilty to criminal charges on Wednesday, WWL reports.Neilson Rizzuto, 25, is facing 14 counts of first-degree vehicular negligent injuring, 12 counts of vehicular negligent injuring and one count of hit and run driving causing serious injury or death.The crash happened during the Endymion parade on Feb. 25 and injured more than 20 parade-goers. Rizzuto's blood alcoh
  
  Read more

• IPSO: Mother turns in son for attempted murder

  12-04-2017 13:20
  
  NEW IBERIA - A woman has turned in her own son after authorities announced he was wanted for attempted murder Wednesday.Deputies say 17-year-old Reginald Peters Jr. reportedly shot a 31-year-old victim during a fight on South Hopkins Street Monday. Investigators believe Peters pulled out a handgun and shot the victim once before running away from the scene.According to the Iberia Parish Sheriff's Office, Peters was turned in to the Bureau of Investigations by his mother Wednesd
  
  Read more

• Deputies seeking suspect for attempted murder in Iberia Parish

  12-04-2017 13:20
  
  NEW IBERIA - Deputies are seeking a man wanted for attempted murder after he shot a man in the leg during a fight Monday.According to the Iberia Parish Sheriff's Office, 17-year-old Reginald Peters Jr. reportedly shot the 31-year-old victim during a fight on South Hopkins Street Monday. Investigators believe Peters pulled out the handgun and shot the victim once before running away from the scene.Deputies say Peters is a 5'7" black male and weighs about 150 lbs. He is wanted for attempt
  
  Read more

• Officials: Overnight release at plant was 'minor,' no off-site impact

  12-04-2017 13:07
  
  GEISMAR – There was a release of a substance from a plant on the Ascension-Iberville Parish line overnight, though authorities said there has been no off-site impact.As of this post, it's not clear what was released or what happened but Ascension Parish emergency officials said the release happened at the Honeywell facility off La. 30. WBRZ viewers reported emergency sirens sounded early Wednesday morning, though emergency officials said no public sirens were activated.Rick Webre, the
  
  Read more

• Comedian Charlie Murphy, brother of Eddie, dies at 57

  12-04-2017 13:05
  
  NEW YORK - Charlie Murphy, older brother of Eddie Murphy and a comedy stand-up and performer in his own right, has died.Murphy died Wednesday in New York of leukemia, according to his representative, Domenick Nati. Murphy was 57.He was perhaps best-known for his appearances on "Chappelle's Show" on Comedy Central. He collaborated with writing his brother's starring films "Norbert" and "Vampire in Brooklyn." He voiced roles in animated TV series, including "The Boondocks".Murphy's feature films i
  
  Read more

• Ben Carson gets stuck in elevator on Miami housing tour

  12-04-2017 12:57
  
  MIAMI - The Miami leg of U.S. Housing and Development Secretary Ben Carson's national listening tour started with a glitch.Carson got briefly stuck in an elevator after a visit Wednesday to the rooftop of the Courtside Family Apartments, a complex co-developed by former Miami Heat star Alonzo Mourning and his non-profit AM Affordable Housing.The Miami Herald reports that Mourning arrived a few minutes late, so Carson and Miami-Dade County Public Housing Director Michael Liu began the tour withou
  
  Read more

• Arrests up in Biloxi as spring break attendance nearly doubles

  12-04-2017 12:51
  
  BILOXI - This year's record attendance of Biloxi Black Beach Weekend has yielded a small uptick in arrests and citations.The Sun Herald reports more than 60,000 attended the gathering held from April 7 to April 9, up from 35,000 last year. Biloxi police arrested 46 people, including nine on felony charges, issued 196 citations and towed 67 vehicles. In 2016, police arrested nine people, issued 131 citations and towed 31 vehicles.The Harrison County Sheriff's Department has jurisdiction over the
  
  Read more

• New Roads approves $60,000 for juvenile criminal system

  12-04-2017 12:49
  
  NEW ROADS- The city council approved money to improve the juvenile criminal system in New Roads.
  Council members unanimously approved $60,000 for things like housing and rehabilitation.
  Residents in two subdivisions became frustrated with the lack of punishment for juveniles who were committing a spree of car burglaries earlier this year.“Two of the main problems that juveniles have  is that there is no money, and there's no facility to put them in says, councilman Ki
  
  Read more

• Nancy Kerrigan discusses pain of 6 miscarriages in 8 years

  12-04-2017 12:41
  
  LOS ANGELES - Nancy Kerrigan is opening up about her personal struggles after having six miscarriages in an eight-year span.The Olympic figure skating star emotionally revealed the miscarriages to her dance partner during Tuesday's episode of "Dancing with the Stars." In an interview on ABC's "Good Morning America" that aired Wednesday, Kerrigan called the miscarriages "devastating" and said they were hard on her marriage to husband Jerry Solomon.She says the miscarriages happened after the birt
  
  Read more

• Police: man used pizza box to rob woman on Wilshire Drive

  12-04-2017 09:53
  
  BATON ROUGE – Police say a man used a pizza box to rob a woman on Wilshire Drive in Baton Rouge Tuesday.John Ryan Oneil Sr. was charged with first-degree robbery, aggravated flight from an officer and resisting and officer. He was booked into the East Baton Rouge Parish Prison Tuesday.According to the affidavit of probable cause, the victim told Baton Rouge Police that a white sedan drove to her home and the driver approached her and her daughter Tuesday. He then shoved a pizz
  
  Read more

• Man wanted for armed robbery, simple burglary

  12-04-2017 08:09
  
  GONZALES – Police in Gonzales are looking for a man wanted for armed robbery robbery and simple burglary.Police say Devontia Thompson, AKA “Jelly Roll” is believed to be in the Baton Rouge or Ascension Parish areas. He is wanted for two separate incidents in the Gonzales area.Anyone with information on Thompson’s whereabouts are asked to contact the Gonzales Police Department at 225-647-9572.Permalink| Comments
  
  Read more

• La. safety officials: distracted driving 'dangerous epidemic'

  12-04-2017 08:00
  
  BATON ROUGE – State highway safety officials say distracted driving has become a “dangerous epidemic” in Louisiana.The Louisiana Highway Safety Commission says April is National Distracted Driving Awareness Month and is reminding drivers to keep their eyes and attention on the road."We all see it every day, people looking at their phones insteadof the traffic in front of them, and it is a very real cause for concern," said Dr. Katara Williams, LHSC Executive Directo
  
  Read more

• Trump says US not going to get involved in Syria

  12-04-2017 07:14
  
  WASHINGTON - President Donald Trump says the U.S. is not going to get involved in Syria but that he had to act because of chemical attacks there.His comments, aired Wednesday on Fox Business News, come less than a week after Trump ordered a retaliatory strike on Syria based on U.S. evidence that Syrian President Bashar Assad attacked civilians with chemical weapons.Trump said, "when I saw that, I said we have to do something."But he also appeared to rule out deeper involvement, saying: "Are we g
  
  Read more

• United pledges to review policies on removal of passengers

  12-04-2017 07:07
  
  CHICAGO - The CEO of United Airlines' parent company is pledging to review policies after a passenger was dragged off a full fight in Chicago.In his most contrite apology yet, Oscar Munoz said Tuesday that no one should be mistreated that way. He described the removal by airport police as "truly horrific."Munoz also said the company would reassess policies for seeking volunteers to give up their seats, for handling oversold flights and for partnering with airport authorities.Meanwhile, details e
  
  Read more

• Kansas outcome a warning to GOP as Georgia contest nears

  12-04-2017 07:06
  
  WICHITA - Republicans have pulled out a victory in Kansas in the first of four U.S. House special elections to replace GOP congressmen named to top jobs in President Donald Trump's administration, but the next contest for a seat in Georgia could be tougher.The margin of victory Tuesday for Republican Ron Estes in the Kansas 4th District special election slid to only seven percentage points from a 31-point margin in November, when incumbent Mike Pompeo was running before he was appointed Trump's
  
  Read more

• Harry Connick Jr. to sing national anthem at Kentucky Derby

  12-04-2017 07:02
  
  LOUISVILLE - Grammy and Emmy award-winning entertainer Harry Connick Jr. will sing the national anthem at the Kentucky Derby next month.The jazzman, actor and former "American Idol" judge will perform the anthem in the Derby Winner's Circle at Churchill Downs on May 6. His performance before more than 160,000 fans will be broadcast live as part of NBC's coverage of the 143rd running of the Derby.Connick has performed the anthem at the Super Bowl and World Series but says it will be his first tim
  
  Read more

• $10 million bequest to bolster Southeastern's scholarships

  12-04-2017 06:53
  
  HAMMOND - Officials at Southeastern Louisiana University say it's the largest single donation in the Hammond-based institution's 92-year history: a $10 million bequest from a 1953 graduate.Southeastern says in a Tuesday news release that Seth Ryan was a 1953 business graduate who died last month. He left a significant portion of his estate to the Southeastern Foundation in the name of his wife, Thelma Ryan.The university says Ryan's bequest will become part of the Southeastern Louisiana Universi
  
  Read more

• Mississippi police department denies taking Lil Boosie's jewelry

  12-04-2017 06:46
  
  BILOXI - A Mississippi police department denies that officers took a rapper's jewelry.Boosie Badazz - formerly known as Lil Boosie - says in a Tuesday video that Biloxi police seized a bag of jewelry on Sunday when they arrested five members of his entourage for assault.Biloxi Police Lt. Christopher De Back says police found no jewelry. City spokesman Vincent Creel says Biloxi didn't learn of the claim until the video.Trouble began when a store security guard squirted pepper spray toward Boosie
  
  Read more

• As Tillerson visits Moscow, Trump calls Assad an 'animal'

  12-04-2017 05:32
  
  MOSCOW - President Donald Trump says Russian President Vladimir Putin is backing an "evil person" in Syria.Trump says Syrian President Bashar Assad is "an animal." He tells Fox Business Network that Putin's support for Assad is "very bad for Russia." Trump says it's also "very bad for mankind."Trump is increasing pressure on Russian President Vladimir Putin to abandon Assad just as U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson is visiting Moscow. Tillerson has a meeting set later Wednesday in Moscow wit
  
  Read more

• Refuge wildfire grows near Georgia-Florida line

  12-04-2017 05:30
  
  Authorities say a wildfire sparked by lightning in the Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge has continued to spread, burning through more than 9 square miles (23 square kilometers) of swamp and forestland near the Georgia-Florida state line.Susan Heisey, supervisory ranger for the south Georgia refuge, said Tuesday that more firefighters are being added to a team of more than 100 trying to contain the blaze to public land.Heisey said the fire began in the southern portion of the Okefenokee refuge
  
  Read more

Follow @BatonRougeNews_ on Twitter!