LRN AM Newscall October 31

It’s Halloween and Louisiana State Police have some tips on how to make it a safe one for trick-or-treaters. Brooke Thorington has more.

Cut 1 (33) “…I’m Brooke Thorington.”

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Governor John Bel Edwards will spend this week highlighting the successes of  criminal justice reform legislation approved five years ago. Don Molino has the story…

Cut 2 (32) “…I’m Don Molino”

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Early Voting for the November 8th election ends tomorrow, and we offer a closer look at one of the 8 constitutional amendments on the ballot. Amendment 8, which affects disabled homeowners…:

Cut 3 (28) “…I’m Kevin Gallagher.”

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Trick-or-treaters will be out and about tonight, and Louisiana State Police want to remind motorists to be extra alert and they have a few tips for parents to help keep their children safe. Trooper Javier Leija says to turn on your car lights at dusk tonight, stay off your cell phone while driving and don’t drink and drive.

Cut 4 (08)  “…in front of them.”

And if you witness a reckless driver, call local authorities to prevent other trick-or-treaters from possibly being injured.

Before you take your kids around the neighborhood, Leija says to be sure they are dressed in brightly colored costumes or have them wear a glo-stick, so they are visible in the dark and put their name and address in their costume in case you are separated.

Cut 5 (07) “…the house.”

It’s against state law for sex offenders to participate in Halloween festivities that includes the handing out of candy. Leija says you can check for registered sex offenders in your neighborhood by visiting L-S-P-org…

Cut 6 (08)  “…your area.” 

Leija says to monitor your children and don’t let them eat any candy before you check to see they are individually wrapped and toss any out if they aren’t.

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The Pelican Institute for Public Policy has filed a lawsuit against the Biden Administration on behalf of Louisiana Attorney Tommy Badeaux (bad-oh) claiming student loan debt cancellation is illegal. Pelican Institute’s special counsel James Baehr…

Cut 7 (11) “…are designed.”

The Biden Administration cites the 2003 HEROES Act as its authority to cancel student loan debt, but Baehr says the HEROES Act is designed to help members of the military dealing with war or a national emergency…

Cut 8 (10)  “…public debt.”

Baehr says the Biden Administration cites the COVID pandemic as the emergency to grant student loan debt forgiveness for civilians.

And while those who would benefit from the debt forgiveness don’t want to see a lawsuit filed, Baehr says they are challenging the process the Biden Administration used to cancel the debt not the act of forgiveness itself.

Cut 9 (07)  “…follow the rules.”

He says a number of lawsuits have been filed by different people over student loan debt forgiveness on the grounds of a variety of theories.

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Governor John Bel Edwards will hold a series of events this week to mark the five-year anniversary of bipartisan criminal justice reforms becoming law. The governor’s communications director Lauren Leist says the state’s recidivism rate has fallen 26-percent in the last five years.

Cut 10 (09) “…in prison” 

The landmark legislation reduced the state’s prison population and over 100-million dollars was reinvested into crime prevention and anti-recidivism programs. Leist says today the governor will visit an organization that helps domestic violence victims and he has more events planned later this week…

Cut  11 (09)  “…re-investment”

Ten criminal justice reform bills were approved during the 2017 regular session and Leist says many of those bills went into effect five years ago on November 1st…

Cut 12 (12) “…made a difference.” 

But there are some Republican lawmakers who say the criminal justice reforms passed in 2017 were soft on crime and have led to a rise in violent crime.

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Early Voting for the November 8th election ends tomorrow, and – in addition to state and local races – voters face 8 proposed constitutional amendments to decide. Today, a look at Amendment 8. Public Affairs Research Council (PAR) President Steven Procopio says C.A. 8 would freeze the property value assessment for disabled persons. He says the state already does this for the elderly and others…:

Cut 13 (10) “…recertify every year.”

Voting YES on C.A. 8 would remove the requirement that permanently disabled homeowners recertify their income every year in order to get a property tax freeze. Their property value may rise, but their tax assessment would not. Persons 65 and older currently enjoy this exemption. Procopio says there are reasons why one may want to vote NO…:

Cut 14 (10)  “…to provide services.”

Procopio says additional tax breaks and exemptions do ad up and limit the ability of local governments to provide services. He says PAR does not recommend how one should vote, but offers information to help make that decision. He says you can always read more, in depth, on their website…:

Cut 15 (09)  “…December amendments.”

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The Saints finally put it all together on Sunday and it resulted in a 24-0 win over the Las Vegas Raiders. New Orleans running back Alvin Kamara had three touchdowns, two receiving and one rushing after urging his teammates to play with more swagger after losing to Arizona in their last game….

Cut 16 (15)  “…get that.” 

Saints Quarterback Andy Dalton, who was recently named the starter going forward, played well, 22 of 30 passes for 229 yards and two touchdowns. Head Coach Dennis Allen says after a slow start to the season, the offense has hit midseason form…

Cut 17 (14) “…off the field” 

The Saints were 7-of-12 on third down and had the ball for nearly 35 minutes.

The Black and Gold defense recorded its first shutout at home since 2012. The Raiders didn’t cross the 50-yard line until there was two minutes left in the game. The Saints defense had four sacks and Tyrann Mathieu intercepted his second pass of the season. Allen says it was a strong performance by the defense….

Cut 18 (12) “…good to see.” 

New Orleans is now 3-and-5, one game back of 4-and-4 Atlanta for first place in the NFC South. The Saints will host the Ravens next Monday night.

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Now that it’s Monday, the hype can really start for this Saturday’s LSU-Alabama game. The winner will be in the driver’s seat when it comes to winning the SEC West. Former LSU Tiger and ESPN football analyst Marcus Spears says LSU’s offense is peaking at the right time with Jayden Daniels at quarterback…

Cut 19 (14) “…have a chance”

Spears says the LSU-Alabama game has always been about which team’s playmakers play better. He says the Tigers’ skill position players need to make plays….

Cut 20 (11) “…in this game.”