Baton Rouge news

• Councilman Aaron Lawler will not be seeking re-election to Ascension Parish Council

  17-05-2023 21:54
  
  ASCENSION PARISH - Councilman Aaron Lawler has decided to finish out his term on the Ascension Parish Council and not seek re-election. Lawler posted on social media on Wednesday that he hopes to still serve the parish by working with the Ascension Parks Foundation, a recently formed non-profit to improve recreation. In January 2021, Lawler was caught in the middle of controversy regarding decisions about Ascension Parish drainage. WBRZ reported that Lawler wanted to spend $2.
  
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• Man booked in LSU rape investigation arrested for similar charges in another parish

  17-05-2023 17:56
  
  BATON ROUGE - A man was arrested Monday on two counts of rape; one happening in Galliano and the other on LSU's campus. According to the Lafourche Parish Sheriff's Office, 19-year-old Izak Barnett of Galliano was accused of raping a girl at a party after she drank alcohol and fell asleep. The victim said she woke up to Barnett covering her mouth as he assaulted her. While the rape happened in December, deputies say the investigation began on March 29. While looking into the al
  
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• Bills targeting fentanyl dealers sail through the legislature amid deadly epidemic

  17-05-2023 16:42
  
  BATON ROUGE- Two bills that aim to criminalize those dealing fentanyl are sailing through the legislature and, if passed, would create stiffer penalties for those caught selling the deadly poison."When you look at the impact it has on our citizens right now, it's so deadly and serious," State Representative John Stefanski said. "If you're 18 to 45 right now, you are most likely to die and that should scare everybody right now. I think we need to be going after the fentanyl epidemic with the lev
  
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• Online threat made against East Ascension High prompts police investigation

  17-05-2023 16:35
  
  GONZALES - Administrators said they found no sign of any real danger after investigating a threat made against East Ascension High. In the statement sent to parents Tuesday, school leaders said that the Gonzales Police Department had also been called in to investigate the threat made on social media. The person responsible has reportedly been identified, and the campus is not facing any immediate danger, according to the school.Read the following statement from the principal below.&
  
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• USS Kidd museum director could play key role in uncovering new revelations from Titanic's wreckage

  17-05-2023 16:34
  
  BATON ROUGE - Docked on the banks of the Mississippi River is the USS Kidd, and the man in charge of the WWII-era destroyer's museum, Parks Stephenson, has a new task at hand."I know that we're going to be looking at this model, to see how it draws together all of the information we have gathered since the wreck was first discovered in 1985," Stephenson said.Stephenson will help analyze a new 3D scan of the Titanic wreck site."This is not your usual oh you haven't seen the Titanic like this bef
  
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• Pair of teenage escapees back in custody after breaking out of juvenile jail in St. Martinville

  17-05-2023 15:49
  
  ST. MARTINVILLE - Two teenagers are back in custody after the pair escaped a juvenile detention facility in St. Martinville. The Office of Juvenile Justice announced the escape on Wednesday. Officials said the escapees were a 16-year-old male and 17-year-old male, both from Calcasieu Parish. The pair escaped the grounds shortly after 12:30 on Wednesday. The Office of Juvenile Justice said Thursday evening that both teens were back in custody.Permalink| Comments
  
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• House approves free menstrual products in schools

  17-05-2023 15:13
  
  BATON ROUGE–The House passed a bill 79-17 Wednesday that would provide free menstrual products to students in public schools.House Bill 117 would require public schools to provide free tampons and pads in easily accessible locations. Charter schools are exempt from the bill. The funding for the products would come from the state’s general fund. Schools may provide the products in bathrooms, offices or other locations. The first year of funding also would include providing di
  
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• Deputies arrest woman who drove 12-year-old girl to Central home where she was gunned down

  17-05-2023 14:56
  
  CENTRAL - A woman who allegedly picked up a 12-year-old girl and drove her to a home where the child was shot to death Saturday is now facing charges in the girl's killing. WBRZ learned Wednesday that Gentrea Haley, 33, was taken into custody for her role in 12-year-old Cedrica Lee's death. She was booked on charges of contributing to the delinquency of juveniles, disturbing the peace, stalking and criminal trespass. Arrest documents said Haley had picked up three girls Saturd
  
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• Louisiana expands homeowner assistance eligibility for those impacted by 2020-2021 storms

  17-05-2023 14:54
  
  BATON ROUGE - Governor John Bel Edwards announced Wednesday that Louisiana is expanding access to state assistance for those who sustained damage from major storms from 2020 through 2021.The adjustment to the Restore Louisiana program means lowering the damage threshold for eligibility from $5,000 to $3,000. The maximum insurance payout has also been doubled from $25,000 to $50,000. The federally funded program will help cover repair costs for those affected by Hurricanes Laura, Delta
  
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• New Orleans Saints finalize preseason schedule

  17-05-2023 14:21
  
  NEW ORLEANS - The New Orleans Saints today finalized and announced their preseason schedule for the 2023 season.The Saints will open the preseason with the Kansas City Chiefs at home on Sunday, August 13 at noon in the Superdome.The Saints will then head west and face the Los Angeles Chargers at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, Calif. on Sunday Aug. 20 at 6:05 p.m..New Orleans will wrap up the preseason at home as they will host the Houston Texans on Sunday Aug. 27 at 7 p.m..2023 NEW ORLEANS
  
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• LSU provides update on plan to improve lighting around campus

  17-05-2023 14:05
  
  BATON ROUGE - LSU provided an update on its plan to improve lighting on campus over the last five years and years to come. The update released Wednesday by the Executive Vice President of Finance and Administration Kimberly Lewis outlined the three phases of the lighting improvements as well as side projects contributing to the plan. The first phase of the project was completed in February 2022. Lighting was improved in the parking lot across from Patrick F. Taylor Hall and in
  
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• Month after settling lawsuit, CATS says ousted exec is not a drug user

  17-05-2023 14:04
  
  BATON ROUGE - Despite firing one of its top administrators after a leaked drug test showed he tested positive for meth, the Baton Rouge bus system says it does not believe he is a "user of illicit or illegal drugs." The statement came almost a month to the day that the CATS bus system reached a settlement with John Cutrone in a lawsuit filed after his firing last year. The CATS board ousted Cutrone and CEO Bill Deville amid a flurry of WBRZ reports on the problems at the agency.&nb
  
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• St. Gabriel police officer formally charged with murdering man at estranged wife's home

  17-05-2023 12:59
  
  DENHAM SPRINGS - A police officer accused of driving to his estranged wife's home in Livingston Parish and shooting a man there has been formally charged in the killing. On Tuesday, a grand jury indicted Andre Redditt, 27, on a charge of second-degree murder. Redditt was arrested March 1, hours after the shooting in Denham Springs. Investigators believe Redditt showed up at his wife's home uninvited and shot 26-year-old Dylan Martin multiple times. Parish officials to
  
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• Emergency roadwork shuts down I-10 West near Siegen Lane Wednesday morning

  17-05-2023 12:05
  
  BATON ROUGE - A DOTD crew shut down westbound traffic on I-10 near Siegen Lane for what appeared to be emergency roadwork late Wednesday morning. The interstate was first shut down between Siegen and Bluebonnet Boulevard around 9:45 a.m. The road has since reopened. Video showed all three westbound lanes blocked by DOTD trucks as workers seemingly filled holes in the road. It was unclear what triggered the sudden repair work. This is a developing story.&n
  
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• Pennington, LSU Health Sciences participating in largest precision nutrition research effort

  17-05-2023 09:42
  
  BATON ROUGE - The National Institutes of Health is now enrolling participants in a landmark initiative to advance nutrition research. Nutrition for Precision Health, powered by the All of Us Research Program, or NPH, is working with 14 sites across the United States – including Pennington Biomedical Research Center and LSU Health Sciences New Orleans in Louisiana – to engage 10,000 participants from dive
  
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• California man allegedly joins video call with East Baton Rouge children, exposes himself

  17-05-2023 09:34
  
  BATON ROUGE - Deputies arrested a man who was allegedly recorded masturbating on a group video call with multiple juveniles. Arrest documents read that a 12-year-old boy was on a video call with a group of his friends when the man, later identified as 57-year-old Timothy Asmus, joined the call and "immediately" was fully naked with his genitals exposed. The boy's mother recorded the exposure and showed it to authorities. The East Baton Rouge Sheriff's Office traced the man's u
  
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• Donaldsonville chicken joint shuttering doors after 51 years, owners cite health issues

  17-05-2023 07:42
  
  DONALDSONVILLE - Chef's Chicken, a popular restaurant in Ascension Parish, is closing down after half a century of service. "The Mistretta family would like to thank our patrons and staff for their support through these 51 years of service," the restaurant's Facebook page read. "Chef's Chicken will be closing its doors at the end of the business day Sunday, May 28, 2023."The owners said they were closing the restaurant due to health issues and that they would be retiring. Comm
  
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• Donaldsonville chicken joint shuttering after 51 years; owners cite health issues

  17-05-2023 07:42
  
  DONALDSONVILLE - Chef's Chicken, a popular restaurant in Ascension Parish, is closing down after half a century of service. "The Mistretta family would like to thank our patrons and staff for their support through these 51 years of service," the restaurant's Facebook page read. "Chef's Chicken will be closing its doors at the end of the business day Sunday, May 28, 2023."The owners said they were closing the restaurant due to health issues and that they would be retiring. Comm
  
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• 3 Louisiana judges who chipped away abortion rights to hear federal abortion pill appeal

  17-05-2023 05:48
  
  NEW ORLEANS (AP) — Three conservative appeals court judges, each with a history of supporting restrictions on abortion, will hear arguments Wednesday on whether a widely used abortion drug should remain available.The case involves a regulatory issue — whether the Food and Drug Administration’s approval of mifepristone, and subsequent actions making it easier to obtain, must be rolled back. The appellate hearing follows an April ruling by a federal judge in Texas, w
  
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• Deputies searching for men who failed to register as sex offenders

  17-05-2023 05:26
  
  TANGIPAHOA PARISH - Deputies are asking for the public's assistance in locating two men who have failed to register as sex offenders. According to the Tangipahoa Parish Sheriff's Office, any person who has committed sexual violence against a minor or an adult is required to register as a sex offender within three days of their release from prison. Mark Spears, 57, and Robert Scott, 47, are both wanted for failing to register. The TPSO asks that anyone with information about Sp
  
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• TEAM 2 TRAFFIC: Wednesday Commute

  17-05-2023 05:21
  
  FOLLOW OUR TWITTER FOR LIVE TRAFFIC UPDATES DAILY: Tweets by wbrztrafficPermalink| Comments
  
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