Baton Rouge news

• LPSO thanks chiropractor who raised money to buy guns

  19-10-2017 21:03
  LIVINGSTON PARISH - Officials with the Livingston Parish Sheriff's Office are thanking a local doctor who raised money to buy deputies tools needed to keep themselves and others safe.LPSO shared photos from an event honoring Dr. Ron McMorris. In September, McMorris spoke with WBRZ about his dedication to helping law enforcement in his community protect themselves."They have back problems, neck problems, just like anyone else who carries heavy equipment all day," McMorris said.McMorris
  
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• Flood victims approaching deadline to move out of FEMA trailers

  19-10-2017 19:16
  BATON ROUGE - Carl Deamer, his 1-year old daughter and three other family members live in a three-bedroom FEMA housing unit in Baton Rouge."I don't want to be in this cramped up trailer forever, I'd like to get back in my house," Deamer said. "I work at night, when I come in, I basically wake everyone up because the rooms are so close," Deamer said.Deamer and his daughter were living in his mother's house before it flooded. Now, he says FEMA is pushing them to be out
  
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• LSU bans alcohol from Greek life until 2018

  19-10-2017 16:56
  BATON ROUGE – Alcohol will continue to be banned from Greek activities at LSU, the university revealed Thursday.In a letter sent to fraternities and sororities, F. King Alexander said alcohol will not be a part of the Greek culture on campus for the foreseeable future. The decision comes as the university is working to regulate organizations following the hazing death of fraternity pledge Max Gruver.Alexander said he has knowledge that sanctions are not being taken seriously.&ldqu
  
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• Deputy captures black bear on camera, warns him not to stir up trouble

  19-10-2017 16:00
  KINGS BEACH, CA- A video of a deputy's lighthearted run-in with a large black bear is making the rounds on social media.The Placer County Sheriff's Department posted the video on their Facebook page late Wednesday morning. In the video, the bear can be seen snooping around businesses in a California town north of Lake Tahoe. A deputy passing by the storefronts north captured the loiterer on camera. The deputy then shines his spotlight on the bear before giving a few w
  
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• Louisiana Medicaid contracts proposed for 2-year extension

  19-10-2017 14:50
  BATON ROUGE- Louisiana's health department wants to keep the five managed-care companies that coordinate health services for most state Medicaid patients in place for another two years.  The contract extensions are expected to cost $15 billion, financed with federal and state dollars.  Lawmakers on the joint House and Senate budget committee consider the request Friday.  The contracts have been in place since February 2015, enacted by ex-Gov
  
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• Police: Unpaid $7 Waffle House bill leads to ID theft ring

  19-10-2017 14:46
  PEARL RIVER - Louisiana police say an unpaid $7 Waffle House bill has led them to make two arrests and break a Los Angeles-based identity theft ring.  Pearl River police say investigators were told two men drove off in a U-Haul van after stiffing the restaurant Saturday. Police say patrol officers spotted the van at a hotel and a passenger ran into some woods as they approached.  A police statement Thursday says officers arrested both the driver and passenger
  
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• WBRZ unlocks vault, will air Barry Seal documentaries starting this weekend

  19-10-2017 14:42
  BATON ROUGE – The original story of Barry Seal returns to television in an unprecedented presentation by WBRZ this weekend.Uncle Sam Wants You airs from noon to 1 p.m. Sunday on WBRZ Channel 2. Uncle Sam Wants You is the original documentary about Seal, a Baton Rouge native working undercover for the CIA and also world drug leaders. The show originally aired on WBRZ in the 1980s as part of the station's watchdog investigative series now known as the WBRZ Investigative Unit.The WBRZ re
  
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• Louisiana borrowing picture improves after debt refinancing

  19-10-2017 14:40
  BATON ROUGE- Louisiana has a bit more wiggle room to borrow money next year for state-financed construction projects.  Recent debt refinancing, along with better-than-expected terms for a recent bond sale has lessened the constraints for borrowing in the upcoming budget year that begins July 1. That's the word delivered from financial analysts Thursday to the Bond Commission.  The state is limited by a debt cap, and has been hovering close to it - with the ri
  
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• Large crash scene blocks most of I-10 MS River bridge

  19-10-2017 14:28
  BATON ROUGE - Multiple vehicles are involved in a crash in the middle of the I-10 Mississippi River Bridge.As many as six vehicles - two of them 18-wheelers - could be involved, sources told WBRZ.State traffic cameras showed no traffic passing westbound, out of Baton Rouge, and few cars able to pass eastbound, coming into the city.Numerous emergency crews were dispatched.  At least two people sustained minor injuries.  Check back for updates.Click HERE for live traffic flow in
  
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• Corrections officer arrested for smuggling drugs into Assumption jail

  19-10-2017 14:22
  NAPOLEONVILLE - The Assumption Parish Sheriff's Office says one of its correctional officers has been arrested after he tried to sneak drugs into the parish jail.Sheriff Leland Falcon says 21-year-old Taris Gregory faces several drug charges after a three-week investigation led to his arrest Thursday.Gregory, a two-month correctional employee, was searched after he arrived at work Thursday morning. During a pat down and strip search, agents discovered that Gregory was in possession of&
  
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• Killer clown suspect's husband insists she's 'falsely accused' of shooting his 1st wife

  19-10-2017 14:21
  The husband of Sheila Keen Warren, who's accused of dressing up as a clown and killing his first wife nearly three decades ago, insists his second wife is "falsely accused."In an ABC News "20/20" interview husband Michael Warren said, "This is very serious and very unfair.” Marlene Warren Wellington was killed 27 years ago when a person dressed as a clown walked up to her front door in Florida and fatally shot her.There had been no arrests in the case until this fall, when po
  
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• 'Breaking Bad' actors hosting fundraiser for Puerto Rico

  19-10-2017 13:56
  ALBUQUERQUE, N.M.- Two actors from the hit series "Breaking Bad" are hosting a fundraiser for victims of Hurricane Maria in Puerto Rico.Bob Odenkirk, who played sleazy lawyer Saul Goodman, is sponsoring a benefit event in Albuquerque where the show was filmed.He'll be joined by Steven Michael Quezada, who played a federal drug enforcement agent in the same series.The October 23rd event will be held at an Albuquerque brewery and is part of a broader effort by actress Anne Heche to raise money fo
  
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• Man dressed as Pikachu arrested after jumping White House fence

  19-10-2017 13:47
  WASHINGTON - A Kentucky man dressed as the Pokemon character Pikachu is accused of trying to jump the White House fence - all in the name of making a YouTube video.  Curtis Combs of Somerset, Kentucky, was arrested Tuesday morning and charged with unlawful entry. An arrest affidavit says Combs was dressed as Pikachu and told authorities he wanted to become famous and had planned to post a video of it on YouTube.  The affidavit filed in D.C. Superior Court say
  
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• Police: No link between bodies found in 2 locations

  19-10-2017 13:44
  PINEVILLE- Authorities say there's no evidence of a link between the discoveries of three bodies in two separate locations in a central Louisiana parish.Pineville police arrested a suspect early Thursday in the stabbing death of 42-year-old Latish White, whose body was found in a road Wednesday. In a statement, police described the suspect, 29-year-old Matthew Sonnier, as a "known acquaintance" of White.About three hours after White's body was found, investigators found the burned remains of tw
  
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• 'Mass illness' sickens hundreds after jambalaya fundraiser

  19-10-2017 13:42
  COLUMBIA, Louisiana – Some 200 people are ill in this small community south of Monroe and health officials are trying to figure out what caused everyone to get sick.The situation has been described as a “mass illness” by local news. People started feeling ill Monday, authorities said.According to the Louisiana Department of Health, 49 cases of gastrointestinal illness have been confirmed, leaving 31 people hospitalized. Victims range from ages 15 to 70.Thursday, of
  
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• Restaurant owner proudly defends serving Popeye's chicken on her menu

  19-10-2017 13:30
  LONG BEACH, CA - After a Yelp reviewer slammed a southern California restaurant for passing off food from a Louisiana-based fast food chain as its own, the owner has embraced the criticism and hailed the pre-made product.Kimberly Sanchez, the owner of Sweet Dixie Kitchen in Long Beach, California, told ABC News that she proudly stands by her choice to serve fried chicken from Popeye's for the restaurant's chicken and waffles brunch dish.A Yelp user says he uncovered the fried chicken conspiracy
  
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• Truck hauling garbage flips over using roundabout

  19-10-2017 12:50
  WALKER- Officers from the Walker Police Department are working the scene of an overturned 18-wheeler truck on Walker South Road in the roundabout.The truck was carrying garbage when it crashed early Thursday morning.The roundabout is open at this time, but was closed earlier this morning as crews cleaned-up the mess. Permalink| Comments
  
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• NOAA: warmer, drier winter expected in the Baton Rouge area

  19-10-2017 12:26
  According to NOAA’s Climate Prediction Center, southeast Louisiana and southwest Mississippi can expect warmer and drier than average weather this winter. The outlook comes from the agency’s annual long-term winter forecast, which was issued on Thursday.Typical winter highs and lows for the Baton Rouge area are about 64 and 43 degrees respectively—an average of temperatures from climatological winters (December through February) since 1930 at Metro Airport. Cold sn
  
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• Woman steals wallet from elderly man, spends $2,100 at Walmart

  19-10-2017 12:19
  GONZALES- Deputies are looking for a woman who stole an elderly man's wallet, then later spent $2,100.The Ascension Parish Sheriff's Office describes the suspect as a white female.Surveillance footage shows the woman walking into Walmart in Gonzales with an unidentified male and baby. Authorities say, $2,100 was taken from the elderly man's account. If you have any information regarding the theft, please contact the Ascension Parish Sheriff's Office at (225) 621-4636
  
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• Animal Legal Defense Fund looking into death of Tony the Tiger

  19-10-2017 09:44
  GROSSE TETE- Activists are hoping to get more information about the death of a popular truck stop tiger and prohibit the owner of the truck stop from getting a replacement.The Animal Legal Defense Fund is looking into the recent death of Tony the Tiger. The organization said, they have requested a copy of his necropsy.The owner of Tiger Truck Stop in Grosse Tete, Michael Sandlin, is trying to fill Tony’s cage, but the state currently will not allow him to get a replacement. S
  
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• New Orleans company gets $333M Army contract

  19-10-2017 08:09
  NEW ORLEANS - A New Orleans company has an Army contract for nearly $333 million to make up to 255 mobile strike force vehicles - armored personnel carriers that Textron Marine and Land Systems has been making since 2012 for the Afghan national army.Textron's new contract runs through October 2024. It also covers hardware and field representative services.A brief notice Wednesday in the Pentagon's daily list of military contracts did not say where the new vehicles will be deployed.Textron said
  
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• Trump weighs in on 'fake' dossier on his alleged Russia ties

  19-10-2017 07:58
  WASHINGTON- President Donald Trump is questioning what he says is a "fake" dossier of allegations about his connections to Russia.Here's his latest tweet: "Workers of firm involved with the discredited and Fake Dossier take the 5th. Who paid for it, Russia, the FBI or the Dems (or all)?"The political research firm behind the dossier balked this week at subpoenas from the House Intelligence Committee. A lawyer for the firm questioned the legitimacy of the committee's investigation into Russian m
  
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• US unemployment claims fall to 222,000, lowest in 44 years

  19-10-2017 07:45
  WASHINGTON - The number of Americans collecting unemployment benefits fell last week to the lowest level in 44 years, another sign that most workers enjoy job security.  The Labor Department says claims for jobless aid dropped by 22,000 to 222,000, fewest since March 1973. The less volatile four-week average slid by 9,500 to 248,250, lowest since late August.  Unemployment claims are a proxy for layoffs. The low level suggests that employers are confident eno
  
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• Louisiana doctor arrested for sexual battery

  19-10-2017 07:33
  PONCHATOULA - Authorities say a family physician in Louisiana has been arrested after a patient complained about inappropriate behavior.  Louisiana Attorney General's Office spokesman Ruth Wisher tells WGNO-TV that Dr. Gregory Allen was arrested Friday on three counts of sexual battery.  News outlets report the 60-year-old physician's arrest stemmed from a complaint by a female patient. The attorney general's office investigated and found evidence to substant
  
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• Cause of early morning fire on Kentucky Street under investigation

  19-10-2017 06:55
  BATON ROUGE- A fire broke out early Thursday morning at a vacant house on Kentucky Street.At the scene, firefighters from the Baton Rouge Fire Department found fire coming form the back of the house.Authorities say, firefighters battled to bring the fire under control. Due to the blaze, the house sustained heavy fire and smoke damage.Permalink| Comments
  
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• New competency hearing for suspect in officer's death

  19-10-2017 06:38
  NEW ORLEANS- A new mental competency hearing has been set for the defendant in a New Orleans police officer's 2015 death after he brought an abrupt end to jury selection by rubbing feces on his face.The competency hearing for Travis Boys is set to begin Thursday morning.Jury selection ahead of Boys' scheduled first-degree murder trial was halted Wednesday. News outlets covering the proceedings said he pulled what appeared to be a napkin from his clothes. It contained feces, which he rubbed on h
  
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• Louisiana woman pleads guilty to stealing mail

  19-10-2017 06:33
  MONROE- A former Louisiana post office employee has pleaded guilty to stealing mail.Acting U.S. Attorney Alexander C. Van Hook announced in a news release Wednesday that 34-year-old Tanasha Turner, of Monroe, pleaded guilty to one count of theft of mail matter by a postal service employee.The plea will be final when accepted by U.S. District Judge S. Maurice Hicks Jr.After an investigation into complaints of lost mail from the Monroe Main Post Office and the Northside Station, law enforcement a
  
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• Senate Republicans cruise toward passage of budget plan

  19-10-2017 06:13
  WASHINGTON - Senate Republicans seem to be on cruise control to pass a $4 trillion budget plan that shelves GOP deficit concerns in favor of the party's drive to cut taxes.  The nonbinding budget plan would set the stage for tax legislation later this year that could pass through the Senate without fear of a filibuster by Democrats - and add $1.5 trillion to the deficit over the next 10 years.  The upcoming tax measure, always a top item on the GOP agenda thi
  
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• Court rejects double jeopardy claim for cop caught with teen

  19-10-2017 06:06
  NEW ORLEANS - Louisiana's Supreme Court says a former police officer caught in the bedroom of a teenage girl in 2014 can be convicted of malfeasance in office and attempted carnal knowledge of a juvenile - even though both convictions were related to the same incident.  The court's Wednesday ruling was aimed at clarifying the way the constitutional protection against "double jeopardy" is applied in Louisiana courts.  The case involved a former Oakdale officer
  
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