Baton Rouge news

• Elayn Hunt cadet arrested on sexual battery charges

  09-02-2018 20:38
  ST. GABRIEL - Detectives have arrested a former Elayn Hunt Correctional Center cadet, accusing her of inappropriately touching an offender, the Department of Corrections told WBRZ.32-year-old Krystal Binder, of Walker, allegedly touched one offender, and another offender inappropriately touched her while on duty at the prison Thursday night, according to officials. Binder was charged with sexual battery.Officials said security cameras caught the alleged incident, and Binder admitted to the crim
  
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• Southern University announces Saturday classes to make up for winter weather cancellations

  09-02-2018 19:32
  BATON ROUGE - Southern University has announced make-up days to compensate for classes canceled earlier this year due to icy conditions.The university says it will have make-up class days on both Feb. 24 and Mar. 17. The days will make up for classes canceled on Jan. 16 and 17 respectively.Courses will be held at the same time and place where they would normally occur unless the instructor tells students otherwise.Students who have unavoidable conflicts on these Saturdays are urged to contact t
  
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• Natural flu remedies in high demand

  09-02-2018 18:55
  BATON ROUGE - With increased chances of getting the flu this year, people are turning to a more natural way of staying healthy. It’s called elderberry syrup. Medical Centers have linked it to both preventing and treating the flu.Those who make is say it takes up to an hour to make. Once it’s ready, they encourage people to take a teaspoon or tablespoon per day. If someone already has the flu, take it four times a day. But the problem is that it’s not easy to get yo
  
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• Residents, councilwoman fighting local landfill

  09-02-2018 18:50
  BATON ROUGE - Joyce Taylor says a landfill near her home is making her sick.She lives about half a mile away from the Ronaldson Field Landfill, near the Baton Rouge Zoo."The odor is so bad, that it will wake you up at night."Taylor now uses a respirator after developing breathing problems. Her neighbor, Robert Harding, is also sick of the smell."When it rains, we can't even open up our doors around here," Harding said.Metro councilperson Chauna Banks filed a complaint with the Louisiana Departm
  
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• Report: Woman convicted of manslaughter in elderly mother's death

  09-02-2018 16:34
  BATON ROUGE - A 56-year-old woman has been convicted in connection with the death of her mother, who was found malnourished and ridden with bedsores more than three years ago.According to the Advocate, Joleslie Looney was convicted of manslaughter Friday for the death of her 82-year-old mother, Bessie Looney.Bessie was found dead in her wheelchair back in 2014. Investigators said the Looneys' home was in filthy condition, and Bessie had signs of malnourishment as well as bed sores across much o
  
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• Person possibly struck, killed by vehicle in Ascension Parish

  09-02-2018 16:17
  SORRENTO - State police are investigating reports of a person that appears to have been struck and killed in Ascension Parish Friday afternoon.Police were called to Airline Highway near the I-10 overpass in Sorrento around 4 p.m. Authorities say a body was discovered at the scene.According to police, it appears the person was struck by a vehicle.The incident is still under investigation.Permalink| Comments
  
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• Louisiana attorney general files suit over widening waterway

  09-02-2018 15:40
  NEW ORLEANS - Louisiana's attorney general has filed a lawsuit against the United States, saying a federal waterway has expanded well beyond boundaries set in a 1920s agreement.
   Friday's federal lawsuit says the Intracoastal Waterway encroaches on state land in Vermilion Parish.
   Attorney General Jeff Landry and Rep. Garret Graves say in a news release the lawsuit seeks to hold the Army Corps of Engineers accountable for the waterway's part in coastal erosion and saltwater in
  
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• Governor announces special session to address state's budget

  09-02-2018 14:49
  BATON ROUGE - Governor John Bel Edwards has called a special legislative session to address the more than $1 billion fiscal cliff facing Louisiana.The 17-day special session will begin February 19 and must end no later than March 7.According to a spokesperson from the governor's office, the call includes 17 items that have been discusses as part of his ongoing negotiations with legislative leadership over recent weeks."This special session will give us the opportunity to make reforms that we al
  
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• Simple sketch helps police ID market theft suspect

  09-02-2018 14:41
  LANCASTER, Pa. (AP) - Police say an extremely simple sketch helped investigators identify a suspect in a theft from a Pennsylvania farmers market.  Lancaster police say the suspect pretended to be an employee before stealing an undisclosed amount in cash from a stand inside Central Market last month.  A witness provided the minimalist black-and-white drawing to officers. Police say while the sketch was cartoonish, it helped remind an investigator of a potenti
  
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• Students visit with area law enforcement, deliver handwritten letters

  09-02-2018 14:13
  CONVINGTON- Students from Northlake Christian School had the chance to visit with officers from the Covington Police Department Friday.According to a post from CPD, Officer Geroge Tourneau gave the kids a tour of the facility.Before leaving, the students gave officers gifts and personalized, handwritten cards.Permalink| Comments
  
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• WATCH: Man goes to extreme lengths to avoid catching the flu

  09-02-2018 13:53
  NEW ORLEANS- It's been a busy flu season and one New Orleans is not taking any chances when it comes to the highly contagious illness.A video posted Augusta Stewart, who's been sick with the flu, shows her stopping by her brother's home to pick up her clothes. Stewart was sitting in her car, waiting for her brother, when he came out covered head-to-toe in clothing to avoid getting sick. The brother, Maurice, even wore oven mitts, a face mask and was equipped with a broom so he could ke
  
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• Suit claims religion promoted in Louisiana school district

  09-02-2018 13:41
  NEW ORLEANS (AP) - For the second time in as many months, a north Louisiana public school district is accused in a federal lawsuit of promoting Christianity in violation of the Constitution.  This time the defendants are the Bossier Parish School Board and the Bossier schools superintendent. A federal lawsuit filed Wednesday by four parents says officials throughout the Bossier system coerce students into religious practices in class, at athletic contests and other events. Exa
  
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• Harlem Globetrotters visit sick children at Our Lady of the Lake

  09-02-2018 13:40
  BATON ROUGE - Young patients at Our Lady of the Lake Hospital got a special surprise Thursday.Harlem Globetrotters Zeus McClurkin went from room to room at OLOL Thursday afternoon and showed off his signature ball-handling skills. It was all part of the Globetrotters' hospital outreach program, 'Smile Patrol', which aims to bring joy to children who can't make it to their games.The Globetrotters will make an appearance at the Raising Cane's River Center on Friday, Feb. 16.Permalink| Comments
  
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• 'I'm sorry': Mom gives birth, abandons baby in airport bathroom with note

  09-02-2018 13:27
  TUCSON, Ariz. — Authorities have released photos and video of a woman who may have left a newborn infant at Tucson International Airport last month.Tucson Airport Authority officials say investigators still are trying to identify the woman, who may be the baby boy’s mother.An airport employee found the child Jan. 14 abandoned in a restroom near the rental car counters.Authorities say the infant was lying on a changing table, and had been cleaned and wrapped up after
  
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• Stranger accused of spanking man's son in Georgia store

  09-02-2018 13:24
  NEWNAN, Ga. (AP) - Police say a stranger spanked a man's 2-year-old son at a grocery store in Georgia when the toddler kept asking his dad for a candy bar.  A Newnan police report says 62-year-old Juan Martinez was arrested Tuesday night. Police say Martinez smelled like alcohol and slurred his speech.  The 2-year-old's father, James Morris, tells The Newnan Times-Herald his son was asking him for a candy bar in the store's checkout line when Martinez slapped
  
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• Woman throws tantrum after police bust her with $200 worth of stolen groceries

  09-02-2018 13:12
  THIBODAUX- Authorities have arrested a woman they say stole over $200 worth of groceries from an area store.Police say 30-year-old Kacie Zeringue scanned $221.65 worth of items at a grocery store in the 200 block of North Canal Boulevard. Zeringue scanned her EBT card and was declined. A few items were void, bringing the total down to $203.25.Zeringue told the cashier she had another card in her vehicle. At that point, the cashier offered to cover the $3.25 difference. While t
  
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• Police: 2 stabbed, officer assaulted during Eagles' parade

  09-02-2018 13:11
  PHILADELPHIA (AP) - Philadelphia officials say two people were stabbed, an officer was assaulted and four police vehicles sustained minor damage during the Eagles' Super Bowl parade.  Philadelphia Police Department Commissioner Richard Ross on Friday said there was some "small hiccups," including two arrests, in a relatively peaceful celebration Thursday of the Eagles' first Super Bowl title. He says both stabbing victims survived and that the two arrests were for assaults.&am
  
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• Possible threat prompts security at area middle school Friday

  09-02-2018 12:38
  PRAIRIEVILLE – There was a heightened security presence at Prairieville Middle School Friday morning over concerns of a possible threat made by a student.Authorities would only confirm there was security at the school but did not provide additional information.In a note to parents, administrators said they were “notified about a potential threat to the school. The individual who made the threat is under appropriate supervision.” In the message, school officials sai
  
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• Police: Man on pole said he chewed grass to avoid shock

  09-02-2018 12:24
    MONROE, La. (AP) - A Louisiana man has been arrested after police responding to a call about a suspicious man climbing a pole in his underwear found suspected drugs in his wallet.  The News-Star of Monroe cites a Monroe Police Department affidavit that says police arrived on scene Wednesday and found 23-year-old Ballard Layton Rose on a pole pulling on electrical equipment. It says Rose told police he was chewing grass to avoid being electrocuted and could
  
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• Will he or won't he? Edwards' tax session decision expected

  09-02-2018 12:17
  BATON ROUGE, La. (AP) - Louisiana lawmakers should know soon if they are returning to the state Capitol after the Mardi Gras holiday to debate replacing $1 billion in expiring taxes, to avoid deep budget cuts.  Gov. John Bel Edwards set Friday as the deadline in negotiations with lawmakers over whether Louisiana will have a special session later this month on taxes.  The Democratic governor said he needs to call the session by Friday so lawmakers have enough
  
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• Baton Rouge moving homeless out of downtown

  09-02-2018 12:15
  BATON ROUGE- Homelessness has been a perpetual issue for much of the city's history. Advocates say new people end up on the street all the time.An estimated 80 percent of people who go homeless in Baton Rouge get placed in permanent housing within six months, according to homelessness advocates.Helping the remaining population is more challenging. They often have mental health or drug addiction issues.A new coalition of advocates organized by Mayor Sharon Weston Broome now has funding to focus
  
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• Spanish Town Parade fans prepare to party, even in the rain

  09-02-2018 12:00
  BATON ROUGE - Possibilities of showers Saturday are leading people in Spanish Town to prepare early before the parade rolls.Officials with the Krewe of Spanish Town say "rain or shine" has been their policy since the parade began 38 years ago, and this weekend will be no exception."We've got people that come in from Houston, Chicago, from Florida, Tampa, to ride every year," said rider Gil Leachman. He said this year, he's praying to the parade gods, hoping for a clear ride, even though the for
  
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• Mississippi couple arrested for Slidell motel armed robbery

  09-02-2018 11:55
  SLIDELL- Deputies arrested a Mississippi couple Thursday evening in connection with an armed robbery that occurred at a Slidell-area motel.According to a release, shortly after midnight, a male suspect entered the office of the Olivia Inn on Yaupon Drive in Slidell with a black cloth partially covering his face. The man, identified as Emell McGinnis, had what appeared to be a firearm sticking out of his jacket pocket and demanded the clerk give him the money.After obtaining an undisclosed amoun
  
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• 83-year-old Gonzales grandmother wins the jackpot

  09-02-2018 09:53
  BATON ROUGE – An 83-year-old grandmother won a Louisiana Lottery jackpot of $525,000, the state lottery office revealed Friday.Josephine Prendergast of Gonzales had the sole winning ticket for the January 20th Lotto jackpot.“I was reading the numbers and checking them each off thinking ‘that’s not right!’ They were in the right order and everything,” she said Friday.Her quick-pick ticket matched all six numbers – 02-
  
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• Ascension Parish couple's cruise ship nightmare highlighted in report about ship medical care

  09-02-2018 09:45
  GEISMAR – An Ascension Parish couple's honeymoon turned into a medical nightmare and was highlighted by a television report in New Orleans questioning the healthcare aboard cruise ships.“It’s just unfortunate,” Brant Aymond said of he and his new wife's Thanksgiving trip after their marriage last year. Aymond was injured when he hit a coral reef while paddle boarding in Honduras.Aymond and his wife were vacationing on the Norwegian Pearl, a 2,400 passenge
  
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• Ascension couple arrested on child cruelty charges

  09-02-2018 09:30
  PRAIRIEVILLE – A 19-year-old woman and her 27-year-old boyfriend were arrested on cruelty to juveniles charges after a two-year-old was hospitalized in critical condition at an area hospital.Sheriff's deputies identified the father as Jude Barrient and the woman, who they described as his girlfriend, as Rikki Dyson. Deputies said Thursday, the hospital reported the child was brought to the emergency room with severe bruising.Deputies said Barrient's other child, a four-year-old, was a
  
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• LIVE TRAFFIC UPDATES: Friday

  09-02-2018 06:16
  BATON ROUGE - News 2's Ashley Fruge’ has you covered with live updates for your Tuesday morning commute.Beat the traffic every time using WBRZ's advanced traffic tracking technology. Click here to go to our traffic center. DOTD:Tweets by WBRZtrafficPermalink| Comments
  
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