Republican State Senator and 6th District Congressional candidate Dan Claitor’s mother has passed away from injuries sustained in an automobile accident. State Trooper Jared Sandifer says the crash happened Saturday on Airline Highway near Prairieville. He says 80-year-old Nancy Claitor switched lanes in her Ford Explorer to make a legal U-turn in front of a pickup truck pulling a trailer…:
CUT 12 (11) “pulling that trailer”
Mrs. Claitor was transported to a local hospital where she succumbed to her injuries late last night.

The Attorney General’s office says the former mayor of Sorrento is booked with 40 counts of possession of child pornography. They say the Ascension Parish Sheriff’s office went to the home of Wilson Longanecker Jr. and reportedly removed items. In addition to the child pornography charges, Longanecker was booked for obstruction of justice.

A man from Boyce faces sevearl charges after he was caught driving his lawnmower on a state highway while intoxicated. Rapides Parish Sheriff’s office spokesman Major Mark Wood says Ralph Carroll was trying to elude officers before they found him at his house. He says the deputy noticed a strong odor of alcohol…:
CUT 10 (12) “he was drunk”
Carroll is charged with third offense DWI, operating an unsafe vehicle and having no driver’s license on his person.

On a sports note, there are reports out of Nashville that former LSU Tiger Zach Mettenger will start at quarterback this Sunday for the Titans who face JJ Watt and the Houston Texans.

Two-point-nine million people are registered to vote in the November fourth election. There’s about 93-thousand more voters who are registered as “no party” than six years ago when Senator Mary Landrieu defeated republican John Kennedy. Political Analyst Elliot Stonecipher says these voters are an “X” factor going into the election…:
CUT 6 (10) “wait and see”
The Secretary of State’s office reports an increase of seven-thousand black registered voters prior to the October sixth deadline.

The East Feliciana Parish Sheriff’s office says a groom is dead after he was stabbed by his brother at his wedding. They say Joseph Matthews of Wilson is accused of using the wedding cake knife to stab his brother, 30-year-old Brandon Davis of Clinton, once in the chest after some sort of dispute. Wilson is charged with second degree murder.

The Rapides Parish Sheriff’s office says a man is under arrest for DWI number three after cops caught him driving drunk on his lawnmower. Major Mark Wood says one of the deputies spotted 67-year-old Ralph Carroll riding a red lawnmower on state Highway 121 attempting to elude deputies by driving into the woods…:
CUT 9 (10) “odor of alcohol”
Wood says Carroll has been warning several times about riding his lawnmower on the roads but he refuses to comply with the law. He faces several charges including third offense DWI.

The 108th State Fair of Louisiana gets underway today in Shreveport. The fair runs through November 9th, while being closed on Mondays and Tuesdays. General Manager Chris Giordano says the weather forecast is great this year’s fair…:
CUT 3 (07) “and games”
For more information go to statefairoflouisiana-dot-com.

There are many parts of the state that haven’t seen rain over the last several days and State Climatologist Barry Keim says it will likely remain dry in Louisiana at least until November…:
CUT 13 (11) “on the average”
He says our lawns and gardens aren’t going to be happy about this but the sugarcane farmers are loving the dry weather as it’s harvest time.

The Rapides Parish Sheriff’s office says a 67-year-old man from Boyce is booked on 3rd offense DWI after cops believe he was driving drunk on his lawnmower. They say Ralph Rufus Carroll was traveling in the middle of the highway and tried to dodge an officer by driving his lawnmower into the woods. Carroll was apprehended at his home and arrested for driving under the influence for the third time.

The Secretary of State’s Office is reporting that nearly 36 thousand people registered to vote in the November 4th election since August 1st. That puts the total voter roll at 2.9 million and Secretary of State Tom Schedler says voter turnout could be as high as 50 percent. Early voting is underway through Tuesday excluding Sunday.

If you’re flying for the Holidays it’s going to be pricey. Jeff Palermo has that…:
CUT 3 (30) “reporting”

Louisiana will see a partial solar eclipse today. Michelle Southern reports…

cut 2 (29) “reporting”

The East Feliciana Parish Sheriff’s Office has arrested a man accused to stabbing his cousin to death at a party following the suspect’s wedding. Authorities say Joseph Matthews IV of Wilson got married Saturday and got into a dispute with Brandon Davis of Clinton, Mississippi while Matthews was cutting the wedding cake. It is reported that Matthews stabbed Davis with the knife he used to cut the cake. Matthews is charged with second degree murder.

A National Retail Federation survey shows more than two-thirds of Americans will buy Halloween costumes this year. NRF Senior Director of Media Relations, Kathy Grannis, says popular kid’s costumes will be Disney Frozen characters, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, and super heroes, while adults will keep it more traditional…

Cut 6 (11) “Halloween, as well”

The survey says the average person will spend over $77 for Halloween.

It’s been several days since many parts of the state have seen rain. State Climatologist Barry Keim says farmers are probably loving it since the sugarcane harvest is ongoing. But he says most parts of the state are actually ahead of schedule in terms of year-to-date rainfall…

cut 15 (13) ” big deal yet”

Keim says it will likely remain dry in Louisiana until at least November.

A recent survey by the National Retail Federation shows a record number of Americans will buy Halloween costumes this year. Scott Carwile reports…

cut 1 (30) “reporting”

A State Trooper saved the life of a 73-year-old Deridder man while investigating a minor two vehicle crash in Beauregard Parish. Derwood Causey suffered a heart attack as Trooper First Class Ronnie Picou was working the accident. Picou administered CPR to Causey for 8 minutes before being relieved by medical personnel. Causey was transported to a Lake Charles hospital and at last report is expected to recover.

Planning to fly for the Holidays this year? Well, expect to dig deeper in your pocket for that airline ticket. Thanksgiving flights are up 17 percent from last year and Christmas flights have gone up 2 percent, according to Expedia-dot-com. Travel expert Dale Irvin says, if you want to save, that it’s usually cheaper to travel on the exact Holiday…

cut 12 (13) “into the following week”

Irvin says over 20 million people are expected to fly from now through December.

We’ll get to see a partial solar eclipse today. Louisiana Tech Astronomer Lee Sawyer says the partial eclipse will still be going on even after the sun sets in Louisiana around 6:30…

cut 9 (11) “as it goes down”

He says the maximum point of eclipse should be just before 6PM.

If you’re planning to jump on a plane to visit friends or family this Holiday season, prepare to pay more for your ticket. According to Expedia.com, Thanksgiving flights are up 17 percent from last year and Christmas flights have gone up 2 percent. Travel expert Dale Irvin says if you want to travel by air cheap you should book a flight with an “uber-discount airline”…:

cut 11 (12) “small one”

Discount airlines Frontier, Jet Blue and Spirit fly out of New Orleans and there’s one called Allegiant Airlines in Shreveport.

A recent survey by the National Retail Federation shows more than two-thirds of Americans will buy Halloween costumes this year. NRF Senior Director of Media Relations, Kathy Grannis, says people are spending money on more than just costumes and candy…

cut 5 (09) “trick-or-treating”

She says Americans will spend a total of $7.4 billion this Halloween.

It’s been several days since many parts of the state have seen rain. State Climatologist Barry Keim says, on average, Louisiana gets a rainfall event every four days. He says even though it is unusual to go this long without seeing rain, we do have some significant dry days in history…

cut 14 (12) “sraight day stretch”

Keim says it will likely remain dry in Louisiana at least until November.

Louisiana will get to view a partial solar eclipse today as the new moon will obscure part of the sun. Louisiana Tech Astronomer Lee Sawyer says this is happening a few weeks after the total eclipse of the moon. He says the very best way to view today’s partial eclipse is at an observing party or at a science museum but you should NOT look at the sun directly…

cut 8 (07) “pinhole camera”

Sawyer says we should be able to see the maximum point of eclipse before the sun goes down today at around 6PM.

If you’re planning to fly for the Holidays this year prepare to go a little deeper into your wallet. According to Expedia.com, Thanksgiving flights are up 17 percent from last year and Christmas flights have gone up 2 percent. Travel expert Dale Irvin says airlines are finding it’s more profitable to fly less with more people….

cut 10 (09) “sitting out there”

Irvin says over 20 million people are expected to fly from now through December.

There are many parts of the state that haven’t seen rain over the last several days and State Climatologist Barry Keim says it will likely remain dry in Louisiana at least until November…

cut 13 (11) “on the average”

Keim says on the upside, the sugarcane harvest is going on right now and the farmers are probably loving the dry conditions.

A recent survey by the National Retail Federation shows a record number of Americans will buy Halloween costumes this year. NRF Senior Director of Media Relations, Kathy Grannis, says Halloween has become much more than a child’s holiday. She says adults are really getting into Halloween…

cut 4 (10) “of Halloween”

The survey says the average person will spend $77.52 for the holiday.

A partial solar eclipse will take place today as the new moon will obscure part of the sun. The partial solar eclipse will be visible starting at 6PM.