Governor John Bel Edwards weighs in on the Saints national anthem protests and what impact it has on the subsidies the state provides to the NFL Franchise. Jeff Palermo has more…:
Cut 2 (30) “I’m Jeff Palermo”

Governor John Bel Edwards organized a statewide donation drive to help survivors of Hurricane Maria in Puerto Rico.  The specific items needed are baby items including bottles, nipples, baby wipes, non-perishable baby formula, diapers and feminine care products.  For a list of donation sites go to:  Gov-DOT-Louisiana-DOT-Gov-SLASH-PuertoRico  

17-year-old Vincent Cummings has been arrested in connection to the death of an 8-month-old girl in Baton Rouge. Sgt. Don Coppola says Cummings admitted to police that 8-month-old Katelyn Carter was acting strange so he picked the child up and squeezed her extremely hard…:

Cut 7 (11) “the floor”
He is charged with second degree murder and cruelty to a juvenile.

Shreveport Police are looking for answers in the case of an 82-year-old woman who was found stabbed to death at her home. Sgt. Marcus Hines says witnesses in the neighborhood report an African American man and woman doing yard work for Kathleen Cates earlier in the day before she was killed…:

Cut 15 (10) “headway”
Anyone with information on this case is urged to contact police.

Governor John Bel Edwards says the anthem protests that took place last weekend involving several Saints players will not impact the state’s current contract with the NFL franchise. Which means the team will continue to receive state subsidies, but Edwards says there are more effective ways to protest than not standing during the national anthem….
cut 10 (08) “…more successful”

LSU Punter Zach Van Rosenberg had a chance to play baseball for the Tigers in 2009, but elected to sign a professional baseball contract. Von Rosenberg is back and chasing another dream…
cut 18 (14) “…from baseball”
Von Rosenberg averaged 45 yards in his two punts last Saturday.

Louisiana Tech enters this Saturday’s game versus South Alabama with a 2-2 record. In the one point loss to the Gameocks, the Bulldogs had just 80 yards of rushing. Head coach Skip Holtz says he wants to see a better ground game this Saturday….
cut 20 (17) “…of the ball”
Louisiana Tech is listed as a two touchdown favorite.

ULM is an 11-point favorite to beat Colastal Carolina this Saturday as the Warhawks look to go 2-0 in the Sun Belt Conference. The Warhawks will honor the 1987 national champion Northeast Louisiana University team during the game.

Tough start for former LSU pitcher Kevin Gausman last night. The Orioles right hander was on the losing end of a 10-1 defeat to the Pirates.

The St. Bernard Parish Sheriff’s Office says 56 year old Mark Owens used an ax to kill his ex-wife, 48 year old Kimberly Owens. Chief Deputy John Doran says the grizzly incident happened in the victim’s front yard as she was leaving for work…:
CUT 12 (10) “surprised her”
Mark Owens turned himself in and will be charged with murder. The victim’s mother witnessed the incident and called 9-1-1.
Lt. Governor Billy Nungesser says although he’s on an official trip in Europe to promote Louisiana tourism, he’s decided to not attend the Saints Sunday game at Wembley Stadium. This is due to some Saints players failing to stand for the national anthem. Nungesser says he’s worked with people who have lost loved ones in war…:
Cut 5 (11) “great country we live in”
Nungesser says he won’t support anyone who disrespects the national anthem.
A 17-year-old has been arrested in connection to the death of an 8-month-old in Baton Rouge. BRPD Sgt. Don (CUH-POLE-UH) Coppola says they responded to a call reporting an unresponsive baby. He says they learned the child was left in the care of the mother’s boyfriend, Vincent Cummings…:
Cut 6 (06) “…force trauma”
Cummings is charged with second degree murder and cruelty to a juvenile.
Shreveport Police are investigating the stabbing death of an 82-year-old woman in her home. Sgt. Marcus Hines says the Violent Crimes Unit is working to solve who killed Kathleen Cates. He says the victim’s car was stolen after her death…:

Cut 14 (12) “…the country”
Hines says witnesses report an African American man and woman doing yard work for Cates earlier in the day.

The St. Bernard Parish Sheriff’s Office says Mark Owens murdered his ex wife, Kimberly Owens this morning with an ax in her front yard. Chief Deputy John Doran says two 911 calls came in — one from a neighbor, and the other from the victim’s mother who was also there…:

Cut 13 (09) “attack yes”
Mark Owens has turned himself in and will be charged with murder.
A handful of Saints players did not stand during national anthem before the team’s last game and the Tom Benson organization says the athletes have a right to express their feelings. But Lt. Governor Billy Nungesser says a demonstration like this is completely disrespectful to the country. He says football players have a following far greater than most people.
Cut 4 (10) “….any American.”

Governor John Bel Edwards weighs in on the New Orleans Saints national anthem protests that has stirred public controversy. He commented on what impact the protests has on the subsidies that the state provides to the NFL Franchise.
Voicer 2 (30) “…I’m Jeff Palermo”

Lake Charles Police have charged a former Angola prison inmate with the fatal shooting of a 10-year-old child and his 17 year old brother who was also injured in the shooting incident. Authorities arrested 50-year-old Felton Thompson in New Orleans overnight. He served 24 years in Angola for armed robbery. A motive for last weekend’s shooting is not known.

Lt. Governor Billy Nungesser says he will not support anyone who disrespects the national anthem, including the Saints. Michelle Southern reports…
Voicer 1 (30) “I’m Michelle Southern”

Saints Coach Sean Payton was asked on his regular Wednesday conference call if more players will sit in protest during the American national anthem this Sunday. Payton replied by saying there are some things you can’t control. The head coach added that one thing they can control is playing a good game against the Dolphins in London.

Now that Senate GOP leaders have decided not to vote on a bill that would repeal Obamacare, Louisiana’s Junior Senator John Kennedy says it’s time for Congress to focus on tax reform. He says cutting taxes is the only thing that will get the economy moving again…:
Cut 10 (10) “our economy”
He says his goal is to implement tax cuts, both for middle class Americans and for businesses, by November.

US Representative Ralph Abraham has called for a meeting with farmers and ag leaders to discuss the 2018 Farm Bill. Abraham says he’s optimistic significant changes will be made under the guidance of new Agriculture Scretary Sonny Perdue…
cut 6 (10) “….a dollar”
The meeting will take place at 8:30 AM at Rayville High School.

Five teens are facing several charges after they were allegedly caught on video damaging Christmas trees on a farm in St. Tammany Parish. Michael Farrar has the story…

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Now that the Senate has decided not to vote on the healthcare bill, US Senator John Kennedy says it’s time to focus on tax reform. Jeff Palermo reports…:

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A state lawmaker wants a legislative hearing to discuss state funding for the New Orleans Saints after multiple players refused to stand for the national anthem. Emelie Gunn has more…

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5^th District Congressman Ralph Abraham will hold a listening session on Friday morning at Rayville High School to receive input from farmers and ag leaders on what they want included in the 2018 Farm Bill. Abraham wants to know what is working and what could be improved.

Cut 4  (10) “right”

The Farm Bill is the primary legislation that sets the agriculture and food policy for the country. Abraham says cotton was left out of the mix in this current Farm Bill and that industry has suffered major hits because of it.

Cut 5  (10)  “jump over”

State Agriculture Commissioner Mike Strain and the Louisiana Farm Bureau President Ronnie Anderson will attend the listening session. Abraham says it’s likely that cotton will be represented again under this new legislation. He says he’s optimistic significant changes will be made under the guidance of new Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue.

Cut 6 (10) “a dollar”

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Five teenagers are accussed of damaging over 50 Christmas trees at the Shady Pond Farm in St. Tammany Parish. Owner Clarke Gernon says 10 trees were destroyed during Labor Day weekend and the perpetrators came back last weekend, but this time the state forestry department set up motion-detection cameras and the vandalism was caught on video

Cut 7 (09)  “flexible pole”

Gernon says three of the suspects are from Pearl River, one from Lacombe and another from Mississippi. Investigators say the suspects said they were bored and smoking marijuana when they decided to wrestle the trees. Gernon says the teens caused six-thousand dollars worth of damage by snapping each tree’s base

Cut 8 (09) “doing this”

Four of the teens face criminal damage to property, which is a felony. Gernon says his Shady Pond Farm has been vandalized about 20 times over the years and hopes this will put a stop to the mutilation of his trees

Cut 9 (08)  “animal abuse”

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Now that Senate GOP leaders have decided not to vote on a bill that would repeal Obamacare, Louisiana’s Junior Senator John Kennedy says it’s time for Congress to focus on tax reform. He says cutting taxes is the only thing that will get the economy moving again…:

Cut 10 (10)  “our economy”

Kennedy says citizens are taxed on just about every single thing they do, and over-regulation is strangling the economy. He says his goal is to implement tax cuts, both for middle class Americans and for businesses, by November…:

Cut 11 (08) “economy roar”

Kennedy says those who disagree with him feel like the more money you throw at government, the better it will be able to take care of people. He says people need to be able to take care of themselves…:

Cut 12 (09) “we throw at it”

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Another lawmaker has voiced her disapproval of multiple Saints players refusing to stand for the national anthem. Denham Springs Representative Valarie Hodges wants to examine the team’s agreement with Louisiana that contains state subsidies. She’s called for a discussion to take place during next month’s legislative budget meeting. Hodges supports the players’ right to protest…

Cut 13 (10) “right place”

Hodges says the American flag is not a political symbol for NFL players to use to protest. She says it’s un-American to see players kneel, some with their fists in the air.

Cut 14 (10) “these players”

Hodges says all of the naming rights of the Mercedes Benz Superdome and the funds from concessions go to the Saints, not to the state. She says the NFL’s rules state that the players are required to stand and respect the flag.

Cut 15 (10) “non-patriotism”

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LSU’s new punter is not the average student-athlete. Zach Von Rosenberg is 27-years-old. He joined the football team as a walk-on in 2016 after spending six years in the Pittsburgh Pirates minor league system. Von Rosenberg was a standout pitcher at Zachary High, but never made it to the majors. Now he’s trying to help LSU football win and be a good teammate

Cut 16  (12)  “doing my job”

Von Rosenberg replaced Josh Growden this past week as the Australian struggled. Von Rosenberg punted twice for a solid 45-yard average. He admits he was nervous for his first punt in the home opener

Cut 17 (20)  “special moment” 

Rosenberg had a chance to play baseball at LSU in 2009, but elected to sign a professional baseball contract. But his pro career fizzled out and now he’s chasing another dream…

Cut 18 (14) “from baseball” 

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After a tough loss at South Carolina last Saturday, Louisiana Tech returns home to host South Alabama. The Jaguars are 1-3 and just fired their offensive coordinator, as they rank 109th in total offense. But don’t tell Bulldogs Head Coach Skip Holtz that the Jags are not a good football team…

Cut 19 (14)   year ago“

Louisiana Tech enters the game with a 2-2 record. In the one point loss to the Gameocks, the Bulldogs had just 80 yards of rushing. Holtz says he wants to see a better ground game this Saturday….

cut 20 (17)  “the ball” 

The East Baton Rouge Parish Sheriff’s Office says a man has been arrested for allegedly running over and killing his brother with his vehicle early this morning. Jeff Palermo reports…:

Voicer 2 (31) “…I’m Jeff Palermo

The push back continues over the decision by ten Saints players not to stand for the national anthem prior to Sunday’s game against Carolina. Lt. Governor Billy Nungesser told two media outlets he’s boycotting the team. Nungesser says not standing for the anthem is un-American and offensive to the military.

The latest effort to repeal and replace the Affordable Healthcare Act pushed by Senator Bill Cassidy is over for now as the votes are not there in the U.S Senate. However, Cassidy says on a bi-partisan level, lawmakers believe Obamacare is not doing well, so he’s not giving up…

Cut 16 (09) “….federal government.”
Cassidy’s bill would have given block grant health care funding to states for them to decide how to use it.

It’s been a month since Hurricane Harvey made landfall in Texas, and gas prices are slowly starting to go down after about 28% of refining capacity was knocked out because of the storm. Patrick DeHaan, senior petroleum analyst at GasBuddy, says with the switch-over to winter-blend gasoline, demand beginning to slow and Gulf Coast refineries coming back, consumers can expect to see much lower prices at the pump next month…:

Cut 7 (06) “today”

There will be no vote in the U.S. Senate on Bill Cassidy’s bill to scrap the Affordable Healthcare Act.  Cassidy says the bill did not have the support to pass, so the vote has been postponed.  But Cassidy says too many families pay too much for coverage through Obama-care.

Cut 15        (11)  “…afford.”

Authorities found a body underneath a truck early this morning.  Now, Stephen Herbert is charged with DWI and negligent homicide in the death of his brother Kirk Hebert.  EBR Sheriff spokesperson Casey Hicks says Stephen Hebert admitted that he and his brother had been drinking.   She says that beyond that, the suspect did not remember much.

Cut 14         (09)  “…his vehicle.”

Lafayette Police say an Oklahoma man broke into a woman’s home, sexually assaulted her and forced her to withdraw money from an ATM. Corporal Karl Ratcliff says 22-year-old Devon Bell had only been in the area for a few days…

cut 5 (09) “…relatives here”
The victim alerted police after the suspect fled from her vehicle.

A Bienville Parish jury decided an Arcadia council member was guilty of stealing public money. Louisiana Inspector General Stephen Street said that found Patricia Hampton took payments for water bills when she was the town’s clerk for personal use. Street says it is important to hold these individuals accountable…

cut 11 (11) “…to steal”
Hampton faces up to 10 years in prison.