Baton Rouge news

• Pence says gunman, Air Force at fault in tragedy

  08-11-2017 19:22
  SUTHERLAND SPRINGS, Texas - Vice President Mike Pence is blaming the Air Force bureaucracy in addition to the gunman for a massacre at a South Texas church that left more than two dozen dead.  Pence spoke at a news conference Wednesday afternoon outside the First Baptist Church of Sutherland Springs, where the shootings happened.  He said the gunman lied on his background check application when buying the weapons. He also cited the man's history of mental ill
  
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• Police: Man kills woman after she rejects marriage proposal

  08-11-2017 18:39
  KEMPTON, Pa. - Authorities say a Pennsylvania man strangled a woman and then broke her neck, poked her eyes out and beat her with a hatchet after she rejected his marriage proposal.  Thirty-four-year-old Christopher R. Tucker is charged with criminal homicide, first- and third-degree murder and aggravated assault in the death of 19-year-old Tara Serino last week. Police say he wrapped her body in a rug inside his Berks County home before fleeing to Illinois, where he was taken
  
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• Man charged in southwest Mississippi dogfighting operation

  08-11-2017 18:16
  NATCHEZ, Miss. - A Mississippi man is facing charges after authorities said they found a dogfighting operation on land he owns.  Tommie Queen is charged with aggravated animal cruelty and possession of a stolen vehicle. Maj. Jerry Brown of the Adams County Sheriff's Department said Queen turned himself in Wednesday and was being held in the county jail.  Bond was not immediately set, and Brown said he did not know whether Queen is represented by an attorney.&
  
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• Address mix-up at root of problem for sinkhole repair delays

  08-11-2017 17:49
  BATON ROUGE - A sinkhole has slowly been swallowing up a rental property for years and the property owner is tired of watching his money pit grow bigger and bigger.When Jesse Hayes talks about his property he sounds defeated."The whole foundation is sinking," he said. "It's gone, it's gone completely from under there."The foundation of his rental house is not only sinking, it's detached from the original structure. Hayes says the hole it's sinking into is about eight feet deep.He bought the Bat
  
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• Police seeking missing Mississippi teen

  08-11-2017 16:23
  MISSISSIPPI- Police are seeking the whereabouts of a teen who went missing Wednesday morning.According to the McComb Police Department, 15-year-old Janiah Moore was last seen on Nov. 8th around 12 a.m. when she fled her mother's residence.Police describe Moore as an African American female. She is 5'5", around 175 pounds.Anyone with information regarding this missing person is urged to call McComb Police at 601-684-3213.Permalink| Comments
  
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• WATCH: Scalise challenges fellow congressman to scooter race in US capitol

  08-11-2017 15:59
  WASHINGTON- Representative Steve Scalise lightheartedly challenged Congressman Sam Johnson to a scooter race in our nation's capitol building Wednesday.The Whip posted the video to his Twitter account on Wednesday.I challenged @SamsPressShop to a scooter race.
  Here's what happened next. pic.twitter.com/qcK2fZhRuu— Rep. Steve Scalise (@SteveScalise) November 8, 2017The two are seen in the video racing around the U.S. Capitol Rotunda on scooters. Johnson chose to wear a helmet,
  
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• Several people injured in New Orleans hotel fire

  08-11-2017 15:11
  NEW ORLEANS- New Orleans fire officials say three people have been injured in a hotel fire.  Fire department spokesman Edwin Holmes told news outlets that firefighters responded to a blaze at the Tirc Hotel on Monday around 11:50 p.m. When they arrived, they saw heavy smoke billowing from the second-floor windows of the two-story, 30-room hotel.  Firefighters conducted a door-to-door search and found one man in the building. Holmes says he was taken to a hosp
  
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• Company seeks to give free caskets for church shooting victims

  08-11-2017 14:31
  SUTHERLAND SPRINGS, Texas - The owner of a small Texas company that designs caskets is offering to provide a coffin to each of the families of the more than two-dozen people killed in last weekend's church shooting.  Trey Ganem, owner of Trey Ganem Designs in Edna, personalizes caskets at a cost of about $3,500. He wants to provide a custom-made one to each family free of charge.  He says Sunday's shooting at First Baptist Church in Sutherland Springs was unf
  
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• Former LSU star Alex Bregman honored by New Mexico governor

  08-11-2017 14:20
  SANTA FE, N.M.- New Mexico Gov. Susana Martinez has proclaimed Nov. 9th as a day to honor two Houston Astros from New Mexico who helped the Astros win its first World Series.Martinez said Wednesday that Astros third baseman Alex Bregman and pitcher Ken Giles made significant contributions to the Houston Astros' 2017 World Series Championship-winning season and deserved to be recognized.Bregman attended Albuquerque Academy in Albuquerque, New Mexico. He later played baseball at LSU before the As
  
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• Finalists for next BRPD chief to be discussed Thursday

  08-11-2017 13:58
  BATON ROUGE — A committee is meeting Thursday night to give their recommendations to Mayor-President Sharon Weston Broome as to who should be the next Baton Rouge chief of police.The committee's first public meeting will be held in the Metro Council Chambers in City Hall at 6 p.m. Thursday in order to reccomend finalists for the city's position of police chief. The committee consists of city and parish officials officials as well as other c
  
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• Man charged with DUI after showing up to vote on the wrong day

  08-11-2017 13:55
  PENNSYLVANIA- Police in Pennsylvania say they've arrested a man who showed up to an elementary school intoxicated and hoping to vote - on the wrong day.Authorities charged 34-year-old Douglas Shuttlesworth with a DUI after they found him at a school in Harrisburg on Monday.Police say Shuttlesworth appeared intoxicated and they later found out he drove to the school thinking it was Election Day.A woman who identified herself over the phone as Shuttlesworth's mother says her son mistakenly though
  
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• Lucrative ticket-writing program suspended in five area parishes

  08-11-2017 13:39
  BATON ROUGE – A ticket-writing agreement between local agencies and State Police has been suspended amid a State Police-led criminal investigation regarding possible payroll fraud in another area of Louisiana.In Iberville, West Feliciana, East Feliciana and Livingston parishes, State Police are hired to help deter traffic violators by writing tickets. Local agencies pay the overtime and mileage on State Police vehicles. Local agencies collect the fines.Troop L is also involve
  
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• New app tells you if McDonald's ice cream machine is broken

  08-11-2017 13:31
  We've all been there. Most of us know the disappointment of pulling up to the McDonald's drive-thru and hearing those six devastating words."Our ice cream machine is broken."Well, someone has finally heard your cries for help and is trying to do something about it.After years of customers complaining online that the fast food giant’s soft-serve machines are out of service much too frequently, there is now an app that aims to tell you whether or not you’ll&a
  
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• Two officers shot in Georgia; suspect found dead

  08-11-2017 12:36
  CLAYTON COUNTY, Ga.- Two Forest Park police officers were shot by a suspect while responding to a reckless driving call.The shooting took place in Clayton County, Georgia near Forest Park Middle School. The school was placed on level one lockdown.WSB-TV reports that the suspect's body, identified as Jacob Bailey, was found behind a home near the scene of the shooting on Mitchell Street.Both officers' injuries appeared to be non-life threatening. One was shot
  
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• Mother charged with murder after son left in hot car

  08-11-2017 12:33
  ATLANTA - Police say a woman whose son died after she left him inside a car for three hours in Georgia has been charged with murder.  Fulton County Police told news outlets Tuesday night that 25-year-old Lillian Stone was given the extra charge in the death of her 3-year-old son. She was originally charged with first-degree cruelty to children after her arrest on Oct. 31.  Cpl. Maureen Smith told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution that police received a call fr
  
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• Woman arrested after falsely accusing NFL referee of domestic abuse

  08-11-2017 12:02
  THIBODAUX - The Lafourche Parish Sheriff's Office arrested a woman Tuesday after she falsely accused a man of domestic abuse.On June 29, 2017 Sandra Brooks, 49, filed a report alleging she was physically abused by Carl Johnson Sr., 57, and included an audio recording of an encounter with Johnson in February of 2017. Brooks also filed a similar report with Johnson's employer, the National Football League. Johnson is an NFL referee and a former vice president of officiating.&
  
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• Books-A-Million to close Towne Center location

  08-11-2017 11:56
  BATON ROUGE - A large retailer in the Towne Center shopping center will shut down soon, leaving a large occupancy open.According to the Baton Rouge Business Report, Books-A-Million in Towne Center is scheduled to close in early 2018, but the reason as to why it's closing is still unknown.Brian Mooney spends time in the store scouting out the best audiobooks and hates to see the store succumb to this."Well I'm sad to see that this store is going out of business, we've come here for years&nbs
  
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• Baton Rouge man wanted for murder in Lake Charles arrested

  08-11-2017 11:32
  LAKE CHARLES - State Police credits teamwork between themselves and the Lake Charles Police Department in the arrest of a Baton Rouge man wanted for murder.Troopers from LSP Troop I said LCPD responded to a shooting Wednesday after 1 p.m. 38-year-old Ernest Samuel Miller was found with numerous gunshot wounds. He was transported to a hospital where he later died.Detectives later named 34-year-old Joey Julian as a suspect, according to troopers. They said Julian fled the scene in a local residen
  
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• Inmate faces additional charges after trying to disarm officers

  08-11-2017 11:17
  MORGAN CITY- Patrol and correction officers responded to the Morgan City Jail in regards to a combative inmate.The inmate was identified as 26-year-old David Turner.Authorities said during the encounter Turner allegedly struck patrol and correction officers and tried to disarm two officers of their tasers. Turner was eventually subdued and placed in a holding cell.He was booked on additional charges. Turner's new charges include resisting an officer, battery of a correctional officer, battery o
  
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• Driver in custody after chase on Airline Highway

  08-11-2017 11:04
  BATON ROUGE - One person was placed into custody after failing to stop for deputies attempting to make a traffic stop.An East Baton Rouge Sheriff's Office spokesperson said the chase ended at a car dealership on Sherwood Forrest Blvd. just after 8 p.m.Officials said deputies received information about an armed robbery at a car wash on Airline Highway which occurred around 7:30 p.m. Shortly after, deputies spotted a vehicle matching the description of one used by the person accused in the robber
  
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• Dozens evacuated, two hurt after oil platform fire in Gulf of Mexico

  08-11-2017 09:13
  CYPREMORT POINT, Louisiana - Some forty people were evacuated from an oil and gas platform about 100 miles south of Vermilion Bay early Wednesday morning.Two people were injured in the situation, which has been reported as a fire on the platform.  The blaze was reported at about 2 a.m. on the Shell Enchilada Platform.The platform is working south of Vermilion Bay - a centrally located bay about 45 miles south of Lafayette.As of sunrise, the fire was out, the Coast Guard said.&
  
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• Man wanted for attempted murder after beating 6-month-old

  08-11-2017 09:04
  NEW ORLEANS- Officers from the New Orleans Police Department are looking for a man wanted for attempted first-degree murder after he allegedly beat a six-month old boy.Police are searching for 27-year-old Kyron V. Espadron.WWL-TV reports the incident occurred Sept. 12 in the 6800 block of Parc Brittany Boulevard. Authorities said the beating caused the child severe internal injures over the span of several months.On Sept. 21, Espadron was initially a
  
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• 'That's how people like you get shot': teacher suspended for allegedly threatening student

  08-11-2017 08:41
  A public school teacher in Georgia has been placed on administrative leave after he allegedly threatened a student late last month.A video taken from the classroom of the Rockdale Career Academy in Conyers shows the teacher telling a student not to "screw" with him, or he will "get in big-a-- trouble."ABC News reports that the teacher said, "Don't smile at me, man, OK? That's how people like you get shot." The teacher, who is white, told the student, who is black. "I got a bet. I bet by the tim
  
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• 'That's how people like you get shot': Georgia teacher suspended for allegedly threatening student

  08-11-2017 08:41
  A public school teacher in Georgia has been placed on administrative leave after he allegedly threatened a student late last month.A video taken from the classroom of the Rockdale Career Academy in Conyers shows the teacher telling a student not to "screw" with him, or he will "get in big-a-- trouble."ABC News reports that the teacher said, "Don't smile at me, man, OK? That's how people like you get shot." The teacher, who is white, told the student, who is black. "I got a bet. I bet by the tim
  
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• Transgender woman makes history in Virginia House seat win

  08-11-2017 08:18
  RICHMOND, Va.- A former journalist has unseated one of Virginia's most socially conservative lawmakers to become the first openly transgender member of the House of Delegates.Democrat Danica Roem, an experienced newspaper reporter, beat Republican incumbent Bob Marshall in Tuesday's election. The race was one of this year's most high profile, drawing national and international attention to the northern Virginia district near the nation's capital.Marshall has served in the House since 1992 and h
  
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• Lawyers argue against Texas immigration law

  08-11-2017 08:07
  NEW ORLEANS- Lawyers for numerous Texas municipalities and immigration advocacy groups have told a federal appeals court that a state law cracking down on so-called sanctuary cities puts an illegal burden on local law enforcement agencies.The 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals heard arguments Tuesday on whether it should block the law enacted by the Texas Legislature in the spring.It requires local law enforcement agencies to honor federal immigration requests to detain people in local jails for
  
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• Man arrested for first-degree rape of a child 10 years ago

  08-11-2017 07:49
  LAFOURCHE PARISH- Authorities arrested a man they say raped a child under the age of 10 a decade ago.Deputies from the Lafourche Parish Sheriff's Office arrested 66-year-old Michael Lirette Sr. on Tuesday.Lirette Sr. is charged with first-degree rape stemming from an incident involving a juvenile which occurred approximately 10 years ago.Detectives began investigating the incident in October 2017 when a teenage female victim came forward.Through their investigation, detectives learned
  
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• Man arrested for allegedly robbing cell phone store at gunpoint

  08-11-2017 06:56
  BATON ROUGE - Officers from the Baton Rouge Police Department arrested a man they say robbed a cell phone store with a gun. The incident took place on Nov. 4 at a Boost Mobile store located at 4592 South Sherwood Forest Boulevard.The suspect was identified as 45-year-old Freddie Ogden. Authorities say Ogden entered the Boost Mobile store, brandishing a black firearm and fled with $200 in cash. Video surveillance of the incident showed Ogden enter the store from the main entran
  
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• Man illegally pulled from vehicle by team of security guards

  08-11-2017 06:34
  BATON ROUGE - A man said he was pulled from his truck and illegally detained by a group in tactical gear.According to the affidavit, the victim said he was sitting in his truck in the parking lot of a bar in the 1000 block of Bob Pettit Boulevard on October 13.  After a few minutes, several men came up to the vehicle and pulled him out. One of the suspects was identified as 25-year-old Devin Scarborough. Authorities said Scarborough and his security team approached th
  
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• Man arrested for burglarizing father's home, holding another victim at knifepoint

  08-11-2017 06:14
  BATON ROUGE - Authorities arrested a man they say burglarized his father's home and held another person at knifepoint.On Sept. 5, deputies from the East Baton Rouge Sheriff's Office responded to a residence in the 2000 block of Anderson Road in Zachary. The homeowner said his residence was burglarized while he was on vacation.The man told authorities that his 12 gauge shotgun and 1996 Honda Accord were missing. Authorities said the suspect entered and exited the house through a bathroom window.
  
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• Grab the umbrella, layers to add

  08-11-2017 05:52
  A cold front will move into the region on Wednesday. Cooler air will arrive in by Thursday morning.THE FORECAST:Today and Tonight: A cold front will move very slowly across the WBRZ Weather Forecast Area on Wednesday, causing rather gloomy conditions. Skies will be overcast with scattered showers. High temperatures will struggle to reach 70 degrees early and northerly winds of 5-10mph will cause thermometers to fall later in the day.Grab the umbrella and believe it or not, you may want to take
  
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• TRAFFIC MESS: lane blocked on I-10 westbound causes heavy delay

  08-11-2017 05:09
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