Baton Rouge news

• Judge: Louisiana abortion law unconstitutional

  26-04-2017 21:58
  
  NEW ORLEANS - A federal judge has struck down a Louisiana law requiring doctors who perform abortions to have permission to admit patients to a nearby hospital, citing a Supreme Court decision against a similar Texas law.
      
  U.S. District Judge John deGravelles had barred the state from enforcing the law in a preliminary order, but a federal appeals court overruled him. However, the state agreed to wait on enforcement.
      
  Since then, the
  
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• Trump gives Pentagon more flexibility on Iraq, Syria troops

  26-04-2017 21:31
  
  WASHINGTON - The White House is giving the Pentagon greater flexibility to determine the number of U.S. troops in Iraq and Syria, in another move by President Donald Trump to shift greater power to his military leaders.
      
  The decision will give Defense Secretary Jim Mattis the authority to send more forces into Syria, to assist U.S.-backed Syrian troops as they move to retake Raqqa from the Islamic State group, which has used the city as a de facto capital.
  &nbs
  
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• Producer admits bilking investors with fake Broadway play

  26-04-2017 21:16
  
  NEW YORK - A Broadway producer has admitted scamming his friends and others into investing more than $165,000 in a nonexistent play about opera star Kathleen Battle supposedly starring Oscar winner Lupita Nyong'o.
      
  Roland Scahill pleaded guilty in New York on Wednesday to grand larceny and fraud charges.
      
  As part of the deal, the 42-year-old Scahill is to be sentenced to six months in jail and five years of probation. He must repay th
  
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• Neighbor, firefighters rescue pets from house fire on Parkoaks Drive

  26-04-2017 21:04
  
  BATON ROUGE - Two family pets were rescued from a house fire on Parkoaks Drive Wednesday afternoon.Crews responded to the fire in the 4800 block of Parkoaks Drive just after 6:10 p.m.. According to the Baton Rouge Fire Department, the fire originated on the home's rear porch and extended all the way to the attic before being brought under control around 6:30 p.m.BRFD says a neighbor saved a dog from the burning home. Firefighters also rescued a cat from the fire.The fire reportedly caused $65,00
  
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• BRFD: House fire started from woman smoking cigarette on couch

  26-04-2017 20:45
  
  BATON ROUGE - Firefighters put out a house fire that was started when a resident noticed a fire in her sofa.Firefighters responded to a house fire in the 1900 block of Tennessee Street around 4:45 p.m.According to Baton Rouge Fire Department officials, the fire was caused by "smoking materials that were not properly discarded."Officials said a resident told them she was smoking on the couch when she noticed that it had caught fire. She told them she tried to remove the couch, but the flames grew
  
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• Trump considers action on NAFTA ahead of 100-day mark

  26-04-2017 20:31
  WASHINGTON - President Donald Trump is considering signing a draft executive order to withdraw the U.S. from the North American Free Trade Agreement with Mexico and Canada.But it's just one of a number of options being discussed.Senior White House officials have been discussing steps that can be taken to start the process of renegotiating or withdrawing from NAFTA before the end of Trump's first 100 days in office, according to a person familiar with the president's thinking.Trump railed against
  
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• Attorney general says abolishing Pointe Coupee Police Jury is constitutional

  26-04-2017 19:22
  
  POINTE COUPEE PARISH- Attorney General Jeff Landry has released a statement saying the Pointe Coupee Home Rule Charter is not in violation of the Constitution.The charter, which was approved by voters in 2016, would change the parish's governing style and dissolve the Pointe Coupee Police Jury after the 2018 elections. This would force sitting jurors to step down a year short of their full term.The attorney general released a statement on the matter this past week."The Pointe C
  
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• 2-year-old hospitalized following crash on Hwy. 19

  26-04-2017 19:16
  
  BATON ROUGE - A 2-year-old is among those transferred to the hospital following a crash on Hwy. 19.According to Baton Rouge Police Department officials, the crash happened on Hwy. 19 near Thomas Road.BRPD officials say a 2-year-old female inside one of the vehicles was transferred to the hospital with non-life threatening injuries. Authorities say she was either unrestrained or not properly restrained.#BREAKING @BRPD investigating crash that's sent several people to the hospital. Happened at the
  
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• It's not just hurricanes: Even routine wind erodes Louisiana's coast, new study finds

  26-04-2017 18:18
  
  Researchers cite 'runaway expansion' of ponds over past 34 years
  
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• Renter claims landlord not making repairs, evicted Wednesday

  26-04-2017 17:22
  DENHAM SPRINGS - A renter was evicted from her apartment Wednesday for withholding rent from her landlord.Durante Converse tells 2 On Your Side she has good reason. There's mold growing in her apartment, in the air ducts, under the sinks and along the floorboards. After repeatedly asking her landlord to fix the issue, Converse says she didn't pay her rent."Why should the tenants have to pay if you're not keeping us in a healthy environment?" said Converse.In August, the first floor of Converse's
  
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• Report: Council on Aging board member placed on administrative leave

  26-04-2017 16:34
  BATON ROUGE – East Baton Rouge Council on Aging board member and attorney, Dorothy Jackson, has been placed on administrative leave by the Southern University Law Center, where she is an associate clinical professor for the Elder Law Clinic, according to The Business Report.According to the report, Jackson was placed on administrative leave on April 20. Jackson has been a part of a series of reports by The Investigative Unit about a lucrative will that made Tasha Clar
  
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• House lawmakers resist giving some ex-felons voting rights

  26-04-2017 16:22
  
  BATON ROUGE - Louisiana lawmakers have voiced their opposition to restoring voting rights of more than 70,000 ex-felons who are on probation or parole.A House committee Wednesday rejected one such proposal and convinced a lawmaker to delay action on a similar bill until next week while considering changes.Democratic Rep. Patricia Smith pulled her proposal from a vote after her colleagues expressed concern about giving the right back to people who have been on parole or probation for five years.R
  
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• School bus involved in crash on Gus Young Avenue

  26-04-2017 15:44
  
  BATON ROUGE - A school bus carrying students was involved in a crash on Gus Young Avenue Wednesday.The crash occurred around 3:30 p.m. in the 4000 block of Gus Young Avenue. According to authorities, the bus was carrying 14 students when it was involved in a collision with another vehicle.According to Baton Rouge Police, a vehicle traveling west crossed the center line and sideswiped the bus as it was heading east. Police say there were no reported injuries.There is currently n
  
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• Destrehan woman not guilty in student-teacher sex case

  26-04-2017 15:22
  
  DESTREHAN - A former English teacher was found not guilty of carnal knowledge of a juvenile Wednesday.According to a report from WWL-TV, Shelley Dufresne faced up to 10 years in prison after she was accused of having sexual relations with a student.The mother of the teen boy was reportedly in tears after the verdict was announced . Dufresne was also in tears as she hugged her lawyers, friends and supporters.Judge Danyelle Taylor said the case was unusual in that it was based on
  
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• Ban on corporal punishment in Louisiana schools advances

  26-04-2017 15:05
  
  BATON ROUGE - A push to ban corporal punishment in Louisiana public schools has edged forward in the state House.Republican Rep. Nancy Landry, chair of the House Education Committee, cast the tie-breaking decision Wednesday to move the bill out of committee. The 6-5 vote sends the proposal by Democratic Rep. Barbara Norton to the House floor for debate.Norton described paddling in schools as abuse that creates violent children. Other bill supporters say such disciplinary decisions should be left
  
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• Convent man pleads guilty to indecent behavior with 10-year-old

  26-04-2017 14:28
  
  CONVENT - A man pleaded guilty to having indecent behavior with a juvenile Monday after he inappropriately touched a 10-year-old in 2014.According to District Attorney Ricky Babin, 30-year-old Jermaine White of Convent was arrested in October 2014 after deputies received a report that he inappropriately touched a 10-year-old girl in his neighborhood. The victim was reportedly able to identify White due to knowing him as a neighbor.White, who has several prior convictions, was convicted in 2009&a
  
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• Police: Mandeville officer fired amid accusations of theft

  26-04-2017 14:13
  
  MANDEVILLE - A Mandeville police officer has lost his termination appeal after he was accused of stealing batteries from a Home Depot.News outlets report the Mandeville Municipal Police Employee' Civil Service Board upheld Johnny Sanders' termination on Monday.Mandeville Police Chief Gerald Sticker said in a news release that he initially fired Sanders on March 17 as his actions brought the department under disrepute.Authorities say Sanders was issued a criminal summons February 20 by the St. Ta
  
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• Trump requiring review of national monuments

  26-04-2017 13:46
  
  WASHINGTON - President Donald Trump has signed an executive order mandating the review of dozens of national monuments designated by his predecessors over the past 20 years.Trump's move could upend protections of federal lands in Utah and other states.Trump says during an appearance at the Interior Department that the order will end what he is calling an "egregious abuse of federal power" and give power back - as he puts it - "to the states and the people where it belongs."President Barack Obama
  
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• Not lovin' it: Internet mocks new McDonald's uniforms

  26-04-2017 13:26
  
  NEW YORK - McDonald's new uniforms are prompting some teasing online, with comments saying the gray-toned shirts and aprons make employees look like they're part of totalitarian regimes.Among the comparisons being made on social media to an image of the new uniforms: characters from Star Wars and The Hunger Games, and even the North Korean government. The jokes came after McDonald's Corp. had said earlier that the uniforms would start appearing in April.Photos of McDonald's employees' new unifor
  
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• Officials: I-85 repairs in Atlanta to cost up to $16.6M

  26-04-2017 12:54
  ATLANTA - State officials have announced that rebuilding the collapsed section of Interstate 85 in Atlanta will cost up to $16.6 million.The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports that the Georgia Department of Transportation has set a June 15 deadline for the completion of the new I-85 bridge, although no official timetable was announced.GDOT construction director Marc Mastronardi said at a news conference Tuesday that the federal government is expected to pay 90 percent of the costs.Mastronardi
  
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• Houma man wins $1.4M Louisiana Lotto jackpot

  26-04-2017 12:44
  
  BATON ROUGE - A Houma man is Louisiana's latest millionaire.The Louisiana Lottery, in a news release Tuesday, said 52-year-old Robert Liebkemann Jr. matched all six numbers drawn for the April 19 Louisiana Lotto game. The winning numbers were: 19, 24, 30, 32, 33 and 35.Officials say Liebkemann checked his ticket at about 4 a.m. after hearing a winner was purchased in his area and "almost had a heart attack" after finding out he had won $1,499,022.Liebkemann received $1,049,317.50 after state and
  
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• Slaughter officers removed from force following resignation mix-up

  26-04-2017 12:40
  
  SLAUGHTER - On Slaughter's special session agenda, the board presented two motions to decide if they will keep two officers on the force after submitting their resignations.But those letters never made it to the hands of the chief because, at that time, he was out of town."They all agreed to quit, so it was thought out before it actually went down," Chief Walter Scott said.However, the two officers reconsidered and took the letters back before the chief saw the letters meaning the officers did n
  
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• Unknown body unearthed by flood to be buried in new grave

  26-04-2017 12:37
  
  DENHAM SPRINGS - An unidentified body unearthed by an August flood in Louisiana will be buried in a newly marked grave.News outlets report the City Council voted Tuesday to allow the reinternment of the body in a single plot at the Denham Springs Memorial Cemetery after efforts to identify the man were unsuccessful.Mayor Gerard Landry says six to eight of the 20 caskets that floated away from their vaults couldn't be easily identified, but forensic experts were able to identify all the bodies be
  
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• Metrocouncil approves $2 million for police body cameras

  26-04-2017 12:30
  
  BATON ROUGE - Metrocouncil members approved more than $2 million to be used for police body cameras, even though the police union president wanted to use the money for something else.The union president said they were on board with officers wearing body camera. However, he said there are other projects that need funding as well."$2.25 million could greatly benefit our department in other areas," President Brian Taylor said.
  Taylor said the money could be used for new squad cars or buildings, imp
  
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• Report: 13 ULL football players bond out of jail after theft arrests

  26-04-2017 09:58
  LAFAYETTE - Thirteen University of Lafayette football players are suspended indefinitely after being arrested and charged with criminal conspiracy to commit felony theft Tuesday night, local media reports.According to KATC, surveillance video shows the 13 players went to a dorm room on April 5 and stole $2,400 worth of a student's belongings. Police say the players surrendered after warrants for their arrests were issued.The players are Matthew Barnes, Joe Dillon, Robert Hunt, Denarius Howard, J
  
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• Beyonce to fund scholarships for women at 4 colleges

  26-04-2017 08:42
  
  Beyonce is marking the anniversary of her album "Lemonade" by announcing scholarships for women to attend selected colleges.The singer announced that her Formation Scholars Award will go to one female student at each of four schools. The schools are Boston's Berklee College of Music, New York's Parsons School of Design and two historically black colleges, Howard University in Washington, D.C., and Atlanta's Spelman College.The announcement says the scholarships are aimed at encouraging and suppo
  
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• Man arrested in connection to several residential burglaries in EBR

  26-04-2017 08:09
  
  BATON ROUGE - A man has been arrested following several residential burglaries in East Baton Rouge Parish.24-year-old Kelvin White faces charges of Theft and Simple Burglary of an Inhabited Dwelling.According to the arrest report, police responded to several calls of burglaries in the Shenandoah Subdivision Tuesday. All of the residences were entered by breaking a window. A tall slim black male was spotted at the scene of one of the break ins. Residents reported several items stolen.Police also
  
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• Man accused of rape after kidnapping woman from Coursey Boulevard apartment

  26-04-2017 07:49
  
  BATON ROUGE - A man has been arrested for an alleged rape and kidnapping that happened in early November 2016.The Baton Rouge Police Department arrested 39-year-old Derrick Shelbia for felony charges of first degree rape, second degree kidnapping and sexual battery.The victim told officers she left her apartment on Coursey Boulevard around 4:30 a.m. and walked past Shelbia. She stated that she noticed he was following her. According to arrest documents, when she turned around,
  
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• Man arrested for alleged rape of 8-year-old girl

  26-04-2017 07:38
  
  BATON ROUGE - A man has been arrested for the alleged rape of an 8-year-old girl.The Baton Rouge Police Department arrested 21-year-old Missael Vasquez for charges of indecent behavior with juveniles, first degree rape and oral sexual battery.The assault occurred at an East Baton Rouge residence where the girl was left along with Vasquez. Arrest documents note that Vasquez made the girl go into a bedroom and undress from the waist down. Vasquez told the girl to lay down on the bed and then raped
  
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• Court documents: Mother had abused teen in kidnapping case

  26-04-2017 06:26
  COLUMBIA, Tenn. - Court documents show that a 15-year-old Tennessee girl who was allegedly kidnapped by her teacher had endured months of abuse by her mother.The mother is scheduled to appear in court next month to face five counts of abuse and neglect involving several of her children. She has pleaded not guilty.The girl's father filed for divorce Monday, citing the alleged abuse. The teen was found safe with her 50-year-old teacher last week at a cabin in Northern California.The teacher, Tad C
  
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• Thai woman has no anger toward Facebook after girl's murder

  26-04-2017 06:04
  
  PHUKET, Thailand - The wife of a Thai man who hanged their 11-month-old daughter on Facebook Live says her husband is the only person to blame, and she bears no anger toward the social media site or the users who shared the horrific video.The video showed the 20-year-old man killing his child and then committing suicide. It was broadcast Monday evening and made inaccessible by Facebook late Tuesday afternoon.Chiranut Trairat told The Associated Press on Wednesday that her husband had been abusiv
  
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• 10 arrested in probe of Paris attacks

  26-04-2017 06:02
  
  PARIS - The Paris prosecutors' office has announced 10 arrests in an investigation of suspected suppliers of weapons to one of three attackers who killed 17 people at Charlie Hebdo magazine and a kosher store in January 2015.The prosecutors' office says arrests started Monday, with more on Tuesday and Wednesday morning, with 10 people in custody so far.The arrests are targeting people suspected of involvement in supplying to weapons to Amedy Coulibaly. He killed four people in a hostage-taking a
  
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• Decision on Sharapova's French Open wild car set for May 16

  26-04-2017 05:59
  PARIS - Maria Sharapova will find out next month if she can compete at the French Open.French tennis federation president Bernard Giudicelli said Wednesday that the announcement will be made on Facebook on May 16 at 7 p.m. local time."The only guarantee I gave her is to call her beforehand," Guidicelli said without giving any indication on whether Sharapova will get a positive answer. "There is no reason why we should make an exception for Maria Sharapova, there is no reason why we should announ
  
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• Pedestrian struck by car on Highway 75, left wounded

  26-04-2017 05:30
  Baton Rouge Police are investigating an early morning accident, involving a pedestrain and a vehicle.The victim was hit by a car in plaquemine, while trying to cross the strret near the Exxon Mobile gas station on Highway 75 and Belleview Drive.   The driver says he didnt see the victim.Police say the driver shows no signs of impairment.Permalink| Comments
  
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