Louisiana has some of the harshest marijuana possession penalties in the country, but two bills are moving through the legislature that seek to reduce prison times for repeat offenders. Similar efforts to reduce possession penalties failed in the past, but New Orleans Senator JP Morrell says this year, the Louisiana Sheriff’s Association and the Louisiana District Attorney Association do not oppose the legislation:
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The House has also approved a bill that reduces pot penalties.

The Jeff Davis Parish Sheriff’s office says two men from Lafayette died while swimming in Lake Arthur park Monday afternoon. They say 23-year-old DeKeithan Dugas and 24-year-old Keylon Lambert were racing each other the water when they went under. Authorities recovered the bodies after a near 4 hour search. The incident is under investigation.

There are thousands of power outages throughout the state after a strong line of thunderstorms moved through overnight. Most Louisianians slept right through it but the National Weather Service did confirm a tornado touched down in Kenner. Strong winds downed multiple trees and power lines — there are no reported injuries at this time.

The state Department of Transportation continues to gather feedback from motorists on how I-10 through the Baton Rouge area should be improved. Eric Gill reports…:
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