The massive flooding the state experienced in March has caused up to 15 million dollars in damages to the agriculture industry. Emelie Gunn has more…
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Two bills that attempt to resolve the TOPS funding problems were approved by the Senate Education Committee today. Michelle Southern has more…
CUT 2 (29) “I’m Michelle Southern”
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A Natchez man is now in custody after fatally shooting his estranged wife and another man multiple times in their Vidalia home while the woman’s two children slept nearby. Vidalia Assistant Police Chief Bruce Wiley says witnesses saw the suspected gunman fleeing the home in the early morning hours on Wednesday…
Wiley says 35-year-old Curt Thornton was arrested after a Mississippi police officer pulled Thorton over for riding his motorcycle without a helmet. He says the two children, both under 10 years old, did not hear the gunshot. He says the female child called 911 at 7 a.m. when she found her mom and another man dead.
Wiley says Curt Thornton and his estranged wife Angela Thornton were reportedly having problems, so Thornton allegedly shot her and 36-year-old Ken Tibbs.
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The House has approved a bill that would extend the waiting period to get an abortion from 24 to 72 hours. West Monroe Representative Frank Hoffman says five other states have similar waiting periods. He says this waiting period gives women facing crisis pregnancies time to look at their options without an impending deadline.
No one spoke out in opposition to the proposal. Hoffman says the waiting period does not apply to women who live more than 150 miles from the nearest abortion clinic. He says women have a lot to consider when making this decision.
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The bill now heads to the Senate.
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The director of the famous LSU Golden Band from Tigerland has been placed on paid administrative leave, and his lawyer says it’s the result of a witch hunt. Attorney Jill Craft says her client, Roy King, has been there 18 years and is well liked by his students. She says this action truly came out of the blue…:
Craft says there was a move by the School of Music’s Administration, to try to get some of the athletic funds that go toward the Tiger Band, for things that have nothing to do with the band. She says King came forward to try to stop that from happening, then suddenly was placed on leave pending results of an investigation…:
In a statement, LSU said this is not as a result of any alleged dispute between King and the School of Music, and the university plans not to comment further. Craft says it is not clear exactly what the probe hopes to uncover, and there is a huge problem with placing someone irresponsibly on paid administrative leave.:
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The massive March flooding across the state has cost the agriculture industry up to 15 million dollars. That’s according to LSU AgCenter economist Kurt Guidry, who says corn was impacted the most, as about 40-thousand acres were covered in water and some fields are still underwater.
Guidry says about 3 to 4 million dollars in corn was lost and it’ll cost farmers about 150 dollars per acre to replant. He says another commodity that was affected by the flooding was wheat.
Guidry says in the southern part of the state, strawberry production was impacted. He says hundreds of cattle died after their pastures were flooded.
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The Senate Education Committee approves two bills that addresses the funding issues surrounding the TOPS scholarship program. One of the measures would cap the amount students currently receive and it would not go any higher if even tuition increases. Mandeville Senator Jack Donahue says his legislation basically puts a cap on the amount a student receives…
Governor John Bel Edwards supports this legislation, because TOPS is facing major funding problems in light of a 750-million dollar budget deficit. West Monroe Senator Mike Walsworth opposed this bill last year, but he’s heard from plenty of students in his district who are worried about the future of TOPS….
The other TOPS funding bill heading to the Senate floor is a bill by Jennings Senator Blade Morrish and it would reduce the amount each TOPS recipient receives, if the state doesn’t have enough money to fund TOPS at its current level…
Both of these bills head to the Senate floor for more discussion.