Baton Rouge news

• In Alton Sterling shooting, Baton Rouge police officers won't face federal charges: reports

  02-05-2017 23:26
  
  Justice Department decision concludes long federal investigation
  
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• Police officers shot in Chicago Tuesday night

  02-05-2017 21:57
  
  CHICAGO - Two Chicago Police officers were shot in an area known as the "Back of Yards" Tuesday night.The shooting happened southwest of downtown. WLS TV reported the two officers were shot during an encounter and taken to a hospital in serious condition.More specific information was not released.  ***************Follow the publisher of this post on Twitter: @treyschmaltzPermalink| Comments
  
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• Man in deputies' slaying arrested for parole violations

  02-05-2017 21:39
  
  BASTROP - A Louisiana man with ties to the "sovereign citizen" movement, a radical anti-government group, and who was on parole in connection with the 2012 ambush slaying of two St. John the Baptist Parish sheriff's deputies, has been jailed in Morehouse Parish for parole violations.The Bastrop Daily Enterprise reports Derrick D. Smith, of Bastrop, was arrested Saturday after an alert notified authorities that his home monitoring device had been tampered with.Smith served nearly five ye
  
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• Victim shot, dropped off at BRPD

  02-05-2017 21:03
  
  BATON ROUGE - Authorities are investigating after one person was reportedly shot and then brought to the Baton Rouge Police Department Tuesday.The incident was reported around 8:40 p.m.. Sources say one victim was dropped off at the police department on Plank Road after sustaining a gunshot wound at a different location. Specifics about the victim's condition are not known at this time.This is a developing story. We will update it with more information as it becomes av
  
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• Alton Sterling, how he was killed and Baton Rouge's awful summer of 2016

  02-05-2017 21:03
  
  Angst of past 10 months grows more tense as city awaits U.S. Justice Department report
  
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• Writer Deborah Cotton, shot at a New Orleans parade, dies

  02-05-2017 20:33
  
  NEW ORLEANS - Writer and cultural advocate Deborah "Big Red" Cotton, who was among nearly 20 people wounded during a 2013 Mother's Day parade in New Orleans, has died.Linda Usdin, a friend of Cotton's, confirmed Cotton died Tuesday at University Medical Center of complications from the shooting. She was 52.Cotton lost a kidney and gall bladder, half of her stomach and portions of her intestines and pancreas from one of the bullets sprayed as the Original Big 7 Social Aid and Pleasure Club was le
  
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• Edwards administration: House budget damaging to services

  02-05-2017 20:10
  
  BATON ROUGE - Gov. John Bel Edwards' administration is trashing House Republicans' version of next year's budget, saying it would cause widespread damage to health services and child welfare programs.In a Tuesday briefing, Edwards' cabinet officials outlined a litany of criticisms against the proposal that emerged from the House Appropriations Committee. They said it would keep some Medicaid recipients from getting medications, shutter psychiatric treatment beds, force furloughs of nonviolent in
  
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• 3-day red snapper season for anglers in Gulf's waters

  02-05-2017 19:55
  
  NEW ORLEANS - The federal government says private recreational anglers went way over last year's quota for red snapper so they will have only three days to fish federal waters this year.Red snapper is one of the Gulf of Mexico's most popular sport and table fish. Charter boat captains will have a 49-day season.Red snapper have been a contentious issue for years in both state and federal waters. Federal seasons have decreased while states have extended their seasons. Authorities say 80 percent of
  
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• Residents want shuttered Jack in the Box gone

  02-05-2017 17:37
  
  BATON ROUGE - A closed Jack in the Box at the corner of Coursey Blvd. and Stumberg Lane have some people upset over the big mess that's been sitting vacant for years.The grass is overgrown, the building's boarded up and the doors are locked. That building has that familiar Jack in the Box red color and shape with signs that no longer hold the logo.The corner of the city-parish, once a thriving spot with a drive-thru for burgers and fries is now an area for people to dump trash and park their tru
  
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• INVESTIGATIVE UNIT: Officer quits after documenting partner sleeping on the job

  02-05-2017 17:36
  
  NEW ROADS- A New Roads Police Officer resigned citing safety concerns after she claims she went to higher ups a number of times after she kept catching her partner asleep on the clock.
  Crystal Duckworth resigned last week after she said she met with her Captain, Chief and others about the sleeping problem of another New Roads Officer.A picture taken by Duckworth shows her partner, Tavis Dixon, in a deep sleep inside his City of New Roads Police unit. According to Duckworth, it's one of many time
  
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• House GOP leader wants to shape college free speech policies

  02-05-2017 15:57
  
  BATON ROUGE - A Louisiana House GOP leader says he's so worried about university decisions to jettison appearances from controversial speakers that he wants to enact a new free speech law for his state's campuses.Rep. Lance Harris cited Berkeley's canceling of conservative commentator Ann Coulter's on-campus speech as one example why he's proposed to enact a "policy on free expression" for Louisiana colleges.The measure would require colleges to adopt a statement saying they strive for free expr
  
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• Report: Causeway Bridge toll increases

  02-05-2017 15:06
  
  NEW ORLEANS - Starting Saturday, May 6, crossing the Causeway Bridge from the northbound side to the southbound side will cost you $5.According to a report from WWL-TV, the total is up $2 from the previous $3 charge. If you use a toll tag, your charge is now $3 per trip, which is up $1. Tolls are only collected traveling from the northshore.The increase comes as Causeway officials plan to fund what they call 'critical safety improvements' on the bridge, including safety bays and improved railing
  
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• Former officer who shot Walter Scott pleads guilty, faces prison

  02-05-2017 15:06
  
  CHARLESTON - Fired North Charleston Police officer Michael Slager has pleaded guilty to violating the civil rights of an unarmed black motorist he shot in the back. The death of Walter Scott was seen worldwide after a bystander recorded it on his cellphone.Slager likely faces prison under the terms of his plea deal with prosecutors.He spoke little on Tuesday, except to quietly answer the judge's questions.Several of Scott's relatives sat on the front row in the courtroom gallery as the
  
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• Slidell Police: Babysitter arrested for drunk driving crash; children injured

  02-05-2017 14:43
  
  SLIDELL – A woman was arrested after police say she got into a drunk driving crash while children she was babysitting were in the car with her.The Slidell Police Department arrested Brenda Brown for DWI with Child Endangerment, two counts of vehicular negligent injuring, two counts of no child restraint and driving with a suspended driver's license.According to Slidell Police, officers responded to a crash at the intersection of Highway 190 West and Pine Street on Monday around 11:15 a
  
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• Mississippi funeral home accused of refusing to cremate gay man

  02-05-2017 14:41
  
  NEW ORLEANS - A lawsuit accuses a south Mississippi funeral home of going back on an agreement to cremate an 86-year-old man after he died and owners learned he was gay.According to the Mississippi state court lawsuit , Picayune Funeral Home said paperwork would be handled after Robert Huskey's death. It alleges that after his nephew in Colorado faxed a form showing John Zawadski as Huskey's husband, the nursing home where Huskey died was told the funeral home did not "deal wit
  
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• BRPD: Man wanted for punching victim unconscious at gas station

  02-05-2017 13:05
  
  BATON ROUGE – Baton Rouge Police detectives are trying to identify a man who allegedly punched a person unconscious in a gas station.The incident occurred on April 14 at the Chevron in the 9000 block of Florida Boulevard.Detectives believe that the man punched the 37-year-old victim in the head after a brief conversation between the two. According to police, the victim immediately lost consciousness and fell to the ground.The victim was taken to an area hospital with severe head trauma
  
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• Rep: 'We don't have a definitive time period' for Sterling announcement

  02-05-2017 13:02
  
  BATON ROUGE – A Louisiana representative who suggested a Tuesday announcement date for a Department of Justice statement on the Alton Sterling shooting now says he is unsure.In a Tuesday video Twitter town hall with the Congressional Black Caucus, Rep. Cedric Richmond (D – House District 2) said he believes the announcement from the DOJ could come anytime in the next two weeks.“We don’t have a definitive time period,” Richmond responded
  
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• LSP: 16-year-old driver killed after crashing into cow on LA 363

  02-05-2017 13:00
  
  ST. LANDRY PARISH - Police say a teenage girl was killed after she crashed into a cow on LA 363 Monday night.According to Louisiana State Police, 16-year-old Adrian Johnson was involved in the crash on Highway 363 around 9 p.m.Police say Johnson was traveling south on the highway when her vehicle struck a cow standing in the southbound lane. After striking the cow, Johnson traveled across the northbound lane and into a ditch before striking a culvert.Johnson was not wearing a seatbelt at the tim
  
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• Out-of-town reporters try to show Baton Rouge 'on edge'

  02-05-2017 12:45
  
  BATON ROUGE – For the fourth time in less than a year, this usually unassuming city along the Mississippi has the attention of the nation.National news outlets and media from New Orleans are zeroing in on the atmosphere here, as speculation continues on when the Justice Department will release its findings into the death of Alton Sterling at the hands of local police. Sterling was shot and killed by two Baton Rouge Police officers in July. The shooting spawned civil unrest and precipit
  
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• Schools, library comment on plans following Sterling reports

  02-05-2017 12:38
  
  BATON ROUGE – Groups gathered at least two locations Tuesday upon hearing reports the federal government will not charge two Baton Rouge Police officers with the shooting death of Alton Sterling last year.The decision was not confirmed by the Department of Justice, which has been handling the inquiry into Sterling's death, but was released by sources – leaks inside the department – to Washington, D.C., area news outlets Tuesday.  Read more HERE.City officia
  
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• Mo-dad hosting workshops, customers upset about rate increase

  02-05-2017 12:12
  
  DENHAM SPRINGS - Upset residents met with a local sewer company that's reportedly raised its rates again.Mo-Dad Utilities held a workshop meeting at the Immaculate Conception Catholic Church Parish Hall on Tuesday evening. There, residents got the opportunity to learn more on why their rates are increasing.The Public Service Commission unanimously voted for the rate increase for Mo-Dad Utilities back in March. And residents, like Asad Mohamad, are not pleased with the additional rate."It's just
  
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• Plan would shift $190M in flood aid from homeowners to canal

  02-05-2017 09:31
  
  BATON ROUGE - Lawmakers in the state House are proposing to divert $190 million in Louisiana's congressional disaster recovery money to a flood protection project. The move would strip some aid earmarked for homeowners struggling to recover after last year's flooding.The House Appropriations Committee added language to next year's budget proposal to allocate the dollars to the Comite River Diversion Canal. The years-old project is aimed at lessening flood risks in parts of East Baton Rouge and L
  
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• Trump: US needs September 'shutdown' to fix Senate 'mess'

  02-05-2017 08:46
  
  WASHINGTON - President Donald Trump says the nation "needs a good 'shutdown' in September" to fix a "mess" in the Senate.The president says on Twitter that the country needs to "either elect more Republican Senators in 2018 or change the rules now to 51 (percent)," suggesting more rules changes ahead in the Senate.Senate Republicans recently triggered the "nuclear option" to eliminate the 60-vote filibuster threshold for Supreme Court Justice Neil Gorsuch. That change allowed the Senate to hold
  
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• BTR airport wants to detour busy Plank Road

  02-05-2017 08:35
  
  BATON ROUGE - There's part of Plank Road that's just a few hundred feet from the end of an airport runway and the Baton Rouge airport says it's just not safe. The company wants to detour the busy road.Ralph Hennessy, interim director for the Baton Rouge airport, says part of Plank Road is in what FAA calls the “runway protection zone.”“We want to prevent an aircraft from ending up on Plank Road. There was an incident back in the 70’s where that actually di
  
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• Authorities: Man accused of selling stolen laptop to deputy

  02-05-2017 08:09
  
  PONCHATOULA - A man has been arrested in Louisiana after authorities say he tried to sell a stolen laptop to a uniformed deputy at a gas station.News outlets report Tangipahoa Parish Sheriff's Office spokeswoman Dawn Panepinto said in news release that 24-year-old Shawn Landry was arrested Sunday at a Murphy gas station in Ponchatoula. He was charged with multiple offenses including burglary and auto theft.Panepinto says Landry approached a deputy, who was fueling his marked car, and offered to
  
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• United CEO faces questions as Congress examines air travel

  02-05-2017 06:58
  
  WASHINGTON - United Airlines CEO Oscar Munoz will be the star witness as Congress examines customer service by U.S. airlines and how air travel can be improved.The hearing by the House Transportation Committee comes amid worldwide outrage sparked when a passenger was dragged off a United flight after refusing to give up his seat to a crew member. The April 9 incident ignited a debate about poor service and a lack of customer-friendly policies on U.S. airlines.Transportation Committee Chairman Bi
  
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• Jimmy Kimmel tearfully recounts newborn son's heart surgery

  02-05-2017 06:56
  
  LOS ANGELES - Jimmy Kimmel says his newborn son is home and doing great after open-heart surgery.A tearful Kimmel turned his show's monologue Monday into an emotional recounting of the crisis with what Kimmel called a "happy ending."William John Kimmel, nicknamed Billy, was born 10 days ago with a heart defect. It was discovered just hours after Molly Kimmel gave birth to the couple's second child.Kimmel said a sonogram revealed his son had a hole in the wall separating the two sides of his hear
  
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• Repeal or spare? Pressure is on moderates over health care

  02-05-2017 06:53
  
  HAMILTON TOWNSHIP - Moderate House Republicans face heavy pressure from both sides on the question of whether to scrap Democrat Barack Obama's health care law.How do their voters feel? That's not simple.In interviews in the members' districts, Associated Press reporters found constituents deeply divided over the Affordable Care Act.In Rep. Mike Coffman's district in the Denver suburbs, Meridene Walsh says she's frustrated that Republicans haven't been able to undo the measure known as Obamacare.
  
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• Police: Motive unclear for University of Texas stabbings

  02-05-2017 06:50
  
  AUSTIN - Police still aren't sure what prompted a University of Texas student to go on a stabbing rampage on the Austin campus, killing one person and seriously wounding three others.The 21-year-old suspect, identified as Kendrex J. White, surrendered to police.University police Chief David Carter said it would be "premature" to discuss the suspect's motive and "what was going through his mind."He said the stabbings occurred within a one-block area as the attacker "calmly walked around the plaza
  
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• Overcoming Opioids: When pills are a hospital's last resort

  02-05-2017 06:48
  
  BALTIMORE - The U.S. opioid crisis is forcing hospitals to begin rolling out non-addictive alternatives to treatments that have long been the mainstay for the severe pain of trauma and surgery.There are no one-size-fits-all replacements. But some hospitals seek to make opioids more of a last resort, so they don't save patients' lives or limbs only to have them fall under the grip of addiction.Options range from mixing medications that attack pain in different ways to procedures that bathe certai
  
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• 2 science research vessels to dock for tours in Baton Rouge

  02-05-2017 06:44
  
  BATON ROUGE - Two of Louisiana's largest scientific research vessels will dock in Baton Rouge this month for tours.The state Board of Regents says the three-day "Meet the Fleet" event will also include interactive displays about marine science.The Pelican, which is fitted out for offshore studies, and the Acadiana, designed for research in shallow bays and rivers, will be at the City Dock from May 19-21.Both belong to the Louisiana Universities Marine Consortium, known as LUMCON.The organization
  
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• Trump schedules another phone call with Russia's Putin

  02-05-2017 06:03
  
  WASHINGTON - President Donald Trump has scheduled another phone call with Russian President Vladimir Putin.The White House did not immediately respond to questions Monday about the expected topics of the conversation.But the bloody civil war in Syria and Putin's continued backing of Syrian President Bashar Assad loom large.Trump and Putin have spoken several times since Trump's election, including last month following an attack in St. Petersburg, which Trump condemned.Trump said last month that
  
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• Dozens arrested as May Day marches turn violent in Northwest

  02-05-2017 06:01
  
  PORTLAND, Ore. - May Day protests turned violent in the Pacific Northwest as demonstrators in Portland, Oregon, threw smoke bombs and Molotov cocktails at police while elsewhere thousands of people peacefully marched against President Donald Trump's immigration and labor policies.From New England to the Midwest to the West Coast people chanted and picketed against Trump along with the traditional May Day labor rallies.In Portland, Oregon, police shut down a protest they said had become a riot an
  
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• Tentative writers deal will be for 3 years

  02-05-2017 05:57
  
  The Writers Guild of America says the tentative deal reached early Tuesday will cover its television and film writers for three years if ratified by its members.The guild released a one-sentence statement confirming the deal and its length. There were no details on the terms of the agreement, or how it addressed compensation and health care issues that had been the major sticking points of this contract's negotiations.The deal's announcement came more than 90 minutes after the previous contract
  
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