The Lafayette man convicted in the 2013 death of 15-year-old Austin Rivault and the injuring of two other teens is scheduled to be sentenced this morning. Scott Carwile reports.
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Minden Republican Congressman John Fleming says he had a strong second quarter in terms of fundraising. Jeff Palermo has more…
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Candidates are gearing up for this fall’s election season as there are many seats open in both the Senate and House due to term limits. Jeff Palermo has the story…
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The Lafayette man convicted in the 2013 death of 15-year-old Austin Rivault is scheduled to be sentenced this morning. 21-year-old Seth Fontenot was found guilty of one count of manslaughter, avoiding a life sentence had he been convicted as charged of first degree murder. He still faces up to 40-years, but legal analyst Tim Meche doesn’t think Fontenot will get the maximum…:
In the incident where Fontenot contends he was shooting at what he thought were people breaking into his truck, he also injured two other teenagers. The defense attorney said his client never denied shooting the teens, but claims he was aiming at the truck, not the people in the vehicle. Meche says the punishment is all up to Judge Edward Rubin..:
Rivault lived down the street from Fontenot and was a freshman at St. Thomas More Catholic School when he was killed. There was a pre-sentence investigation where lawyers give the judge letters and interviews from people those representing victims and also those who know the convicted individual…:
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Louisiana hunters are now allowed to carry any firearm of their choice during bow hunting season. In the past, hunters were only allowed to carry a 22 caliber pistol loaded with rat shot that could only kill small pests. Port Allen Senator Rick Ward says he believes this law will be beneficial to keeping hunters safe from more aggressive animals…
Some opponents of the law say this law gives hunters the freedom to use a gun to hunt game during bow hunting season. Ward says those who want to use their gun for hunting during bow season will do so regardless, but the Department of Wildlife and Fisheries can easily detect the illegal activity…
Senator Ward says although there were concerns initially about the bill, the responses have been positive now that it has been signed into law…
Cut 9 (05) “no negative feedback”
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A former Iberville Parish teacher has been indicted on 37 criminal counts as a result of accusations he had sex with his former students. Keavin Keith, who recently was named teacher of the year at MSA-West Academy, is free on bond. A teacher, who wishes to stay anonymous, that formerly worked with Keith commented to LRN on his indictment….
The teacher, who worked with Keith, says she heard rumors around Plaquemine that one of the victim’s mother was aware of the situation long before it was ever reported to police.
A paternity test conducted by the State Police Crime Lab determined that Keith fathered a child with one of his victims. She says she worked with him for many years and would’ve never expected Keith to do anything like this.
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There’s a lot of attention on the fall statewide elections, but there’s also plenty of political activity involving legislative races. On the Senate side, nine seats open, seven because of term limits. And on the House side, there’s at least 19 open seats, 14 are the result of term limits. Political analyst and pollster John Courville says the jockeying for these open seats is well underway, even though qualifying for these races are two months away…
Cut 13 (05) “wasting their time”
Courville says many candidates use this time to speak one-on-one with residents and fundraise. He says there is a varying degree of ways candidates may choose to campaign and how much money they may need to run…
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Courville says some candidates, especially those who are seeking political office for the first time, have mailed flyers to residents letting voters know who they are and that kind of traditional campaigning should pick up…