Governor Edwards signs into law a bill that means the TOPS scholarship is no longer guaranteed to cover the full cost of a student’s tuition, starting in the fall of 2017. Executive Director of the Taylor Foundation, Dr. James Callier (*Kye-yay*), says tuition increases have hurt the scholarship program:
CUT 6 (06) “increases”
The bill locks in the amount of a TOPS scholarship at next year’s rate, and the award will not automatically increase, even if tuition costs go up. Supporters say this will help make TOPS more affordable and thus more sustainable for the future.

State Police say a teenager from Marksville died this morning following a crash with a school bus in Avoyelles Parish. Investigators determined 19-year-old Joshua Frank lost control of his vehicle and collided with the school bus that was going in the opposite direction. There were no children on the bus at the time, but troopers say Frank wasn’t buckled up and he died at the scene.

An attack on a member of law enforcement, firefighters or EMS would be considered a hate crime under a measure headed to the Senate floor. Alexandria Representative Lance Harris says the hate crime law currently covers violence against people because of their race, gender, religion, age, disability or nationality — and this bill expands that…:
cut 15 (07) “EMS”
There was no objection in the Senate committee.

A juvenile who allegedly beat up a 61-year-old female because she refused to perform oral sex on him is charged with simple battery of the infirmed, according to the Thibodaux Police Department. They say the suspect was identified by a witness who tried to stop the attack, and he was subsequently booked into the Juvenile Detention Center on the charge.