Baton Rouge news

• Trump backs Obama-era defense technology unit

  10-08-2017 20:51
  CAMBRIDGE, Mass. - President Donald Trump's administration is endorsing a Barack Obama-era effort enlisting startup companies to develop solutions for the military's toughest technology challenges.
   Secretary of Defense James Mattis said Thursday he expects the Defense Innovation Unit Experimental will not only survive but "grow in its influence and its impact" under the Republican administration.
   Mattis made the comments while visiting the program's outpost in Mountain View,
  
  Read more

• Suit resolved for lawyers investigating alleged inmate abuse

  10-08-2017 19:59
  BATON ROUGE - A settlement has resolved a lawsuit that accused Louisiana prison officials of blocking attorneys from investigating allegations of inmate abuse, including claims that mentally ill prisoners were forced to bark like dogs to get food.
   A federal judge on Thursday signed off on the settlement agreement between prison officials and the Advocacy Center, a New Orleans-based nonprofit.
   The 22-page agreement spells out procedures for lawyers to interview disabled priso
  
  Read more

• Gov. John Bel Edwards assisting Mitch Landrieu on potential flooding

  10-08-2017 17:54
  
  The governor is probably look at declaring a state of emergency.
  
  Read more

• I-10 widening project into Ascension starts in early 2018

  10-08-2017 17:09
  BATON ROUGE – Construction on the next phase to widen I-10 into Ascension Parish from East Baton Rouge will begin in early 2018.DOTD announced it hired James Construction Group to do the work.Designs call for three lanes in each direction from Highland Road to La. 73.The project will take approximately two-and-a-half years to complete and includes the widening I-10 from four lanes to six lanes west of Highland Road to the LA 73 interchange, as well as the replacement of the LA 42 over
  
  Read more

• Advertisement

• Street flooding causes concerns, delays end of school Thursday

  10-08-2017 17:02
  BAKER – A scary feeling of déjà vu overcame some people in Baker Thursday afternoon as localized street flooding left streets impassable and in at least one area, nearly flooded to the top of a fire hydrant.People shared pictures of flooded streets in the Chemin Place area. The neighborhood is near the intersection of Groom and Plank.People in the southern most area of the community captured water half-way up mailboxes and nearly covering fire hydrants and yard s
  
  Read more

• Ten-mile traffic jam caused by Basin Bridge crash

  10-08-2017 16:48
  ASCENSION PARISH - Westbound I-10 closed while emergency crews responded to a crash near the Basin Bridge Thursday afternoon.DOTD traffic cameras show a crash, causing traffic between exits 121 and 115 on I-10W. There was heavy congestion on the interstate behind the location of the crash.When the highway finally opened, DOTD said the traffic jam was about ten miles. Click HERE for to track traffic conditions live. Permalink| Comments
  
  Read more

• I-10 west closed near Basin Bridge following crash

  10-08-2017 16:48
  ASCENSION PARISH - Westbound I-10 is closed while emergency crews respond to a crash near the Basin Bridge.DOTD traffic cameras show a crash, causing traffic between exits 121 and 115 on I-10W. There is heavy congestion on the interstate behind the location of the crash.Officials have not released details on the extent of the crash or the people involved.This is a developing story. Check back for updates.Permalink| Comments
  
  Read more

• Embattled Southern Law Professor wants $10,000 for drafting questionable will

  10-08-2017 16:33
  BATON ROUGE- Embattled and suspended Southern University Law Professor Dorothy Jackson wants $10,000 for her services after she drafted a will that was called into question for an elderly client at the Council on Aging.
  Those revelations were revealed in court today at a hearing over Helen Plummer's estate. As recent as last week, an email chain went out from the paralegal of a court appointed executor saying they received an invoice from Jackson.
  That email reads, "...She (Dorothy Jackson) sub
  
  Read more

• Advertisement

• State of emergency declared in New Orleans

  10-08-2017 16:16
  NEW ORLEANS - Louisiana Gov. John Bel Edwards has declared a state of emergency for New Orleans with the city's water-pumping system malfunctioning and needing repairs as more rain is in the forecast.
   The governor's office said Thursday's declaration is a precautionary measure amid concerns that the malfunctioning pumps leave New Orleans more vulnerable to flooding.
   Mayor Mitch Landrieu's office said in a news release early Thursday the city has lost service to one of its tu
  
  Read more

• Louisiana Governor shifts strategy for tackling budget gap

  10-08-2017 16:09
  BATON ROUGE - With his tax plans repeatedly blocked by House Republicans, Gov. John Bel Edwards is broadening his outreach efforts.
   He's trying to build grassroots pressure for permanently stabilizing Louisiana's budget and closing the latest looming, $1 billion-plus shortfall.
   The Democratic governor met with business leaders this week to brainstorm budget-balancing ideas. His chief financial adviser, Commissioner of Administration Jay Dardenne, is on the traveling speech c
  
  Read more

• Solar specs needed for safe viewing of eclipse

  10-08-2017 15:41
  CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - With the total solar eclipse right around the cosmic corner, eye doctors are going into nagging overdrive.
   They say mom was right: You can damage your eyes staring at the sun, even the slimmest sliver of it.
   So it's time to rustle up special eclipse eyewear to use Aug. 21, when the U.S. has its first full solar eclipse spanning coast to coast in 99 years.
   The only time it's safe to view the eclipse without protection is during the two minutes
  
  Read more

• Facebook launches new Watch section

  10-08-2017 14:45
  NEW YORK- Facebook is launching a new section dedicated to live and recorded video.It's a potential threat to Twitter, YouTube, Netflix and other services for watching video. People already watch a lot of videos on Facebook, but mostly when they scroll down their main news feed.Although there has already been a special video section, it mainly showed a random concoction of "suggested" videos. Facebook's new Watch section builds on this.The idea is to let people find videos and series they like,
  
  Read more

• Dog rescued from house fire Thursday

  10-08-2017 14:32
  BATON ROUGE – A dog was saved by firefighters during a late-morning fire Thursday.Firefighters found the dog inside the burning home in the 16000 block of Vermillion Drive in the Woodcrest area of Baton Rouge near the intersection of Florida and the Central Throughway.A WBRZ news crew at the scene captured pictures of fire trucks and other emergency vehicles all down the street.The fire department has not released information about the fire.There were no reports of injuries.**********
  
  Read more

• Multi-agency roundup results in 20 arrests in Ponchatoula

  10-08-2017 14:31
  PONCHATOULA- As the result of a multi-agency roundup named Operation Safe City Ponchatoula Police Chief Bry Layrisson announces the arrest of 20 subjects on Tuesday.Under the direction of Captain Miller and Captain McGary, officers from the Ponchatoula Police Department,as well as members of the Louisiana Probation and Parole; Tangipahoa Parish Sheriff’s Office; Hammond Police Department; Homeland Security; and Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms participated in a joint sweep of Ponchatoul
  
  Read more

• Walmart investigating "Own The School Year Like A Hero" sign displayed over gun case

  10-08-2017 13:43
  BENTONVILLE, Ark.- Walmart says it's investigating a photo that purports to show a sign reading "Own The School Year Like A Hero" displayed atop a gun-filled case in one of its stores.Walmart spokesman Charles Crowson says the photo is consistent with the interior of its stores but that the company hasn't determined which one, or even if the image is real.The photo has been making the rounds on social media, drawing comments of outrage and mentions of school shootings.Walmart says "what's seen
  
  Read more

• Brandon Dumas files suit over his Southern University firing

  10-08-2017 12:45
  BATON ROUGE – Fired Southern University official Brandon Dumas has sued the university, WBRZ has learned, alleging the board did not fire him correctly.Dumas' attorneys argue the board did not correctly fire him. Instead of making a decision and voting on a board item to fire Dumas, the board allowed the president of the university to make the sole decision, Dumas' attorneys argue in court filings obtained by the WBRZ Investigative Unit.     > READ pr
  
  Read more

• Animal Control seeks information in mutilated cats investigation

  10-08-2017 12:23
  BATON ROUGE - East Baton Rouge Animal Control investigators are taking steps to figure out who or what is behind the mysterious appearances of dismembered cats found in the Shenandoah community.Bonnie McDaniel lives in the community and discovered a black cat cut open while walking through her neighbor's back yard."But all that was remaining there was the uppermost part, it's front paws, shoulders and head the rest of that cat was gone," McDaniel said.This isn't the first cat found mutilated in
  
  Read more

• Russian foreign minister meets with Thailand officials

  10-08-2017 09:05
  BANGKOK, Thailand - Russia's foreign minister has held talks with Thailand's top officials on counterterrorism, cybersecurity and North Korea.Thursday's visit by Sergey Lavrov came just two days after U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson traveled to Bangkok. Both officials took part in meetings in the Philippines with counterparts from the 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations that focused heavily on North Korea's push to advance its nuclear weapons and missile programs.Lavrov said
  
  Read more

• Turbine fire in New Orleans may cause problems in the city

  10-08-2017 08:30
  NEW ORLEANS- Wednesday night a fire started in a turbine that provides power to most of the city.Since the pumping station has been damaged, Mayor Mitch Landrieu warns residents of possible flooding today and during the weekend."We are at risk if we have a massive rain event that comes up on us at the last minute and creates the kind of flooding that we had," Landrieu said during a 2:50 a.m. press conference. "The power we have available to us now will not be sufficient enough to pump the city
  
  Read more

• New website acts as resource for parents with developmentally challenged children

  10-08-2017 06:21
  BATON ROUGE- A new website aims to help Louisiana parents find information about available benefits and resources for children with autism and other developmental disabilities.The site, at La.ExceptionalLives.org, offers how-to guides to walk through the complicated processes for applying for benefits and services. It also has a resource directory with information on available therapy services and other programs at schools and health care providers, searchable by zip code and disability type. T
  
  Read more

• Louisiana's lottery had its third-best year ever

  10-08-2017 05:58
  BATON ROUGE- Louisiana's lottery had its third-best year ever since operations began in 1991, taking in nearly $455 million from hopeful winners in the budget year that ended in June.But revenue in the 2016-17 fiscal year still was down nearly $54 million from a year earlier.The Louisiana Lottery Corporation attributed the drop to the state economy's continued hit from the oil industry's struggles, a lower unclaimed prize pool and a sales spike last year tied to a record Powerball jackpot.Thirt
  
  Read more

Follow @BatonRougeNews_ on Twitter!