Voters will not have a chance to see the US Senate runoff candidates debate. Don Molino explains why…
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The Baton Rouge city council has approved a $100-thousand settlement with the protestors who were arrested after Alton Sterling’s death. Jeff Palermo has more…
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It doesn’t look like voters will get a chance to hear the U.S. Senate candidates debate again before the December 10th runoff. They could not agree on a date and conditions for the debate. LSU political communications Professor Martin Johnson says it’s disappointing the public won’t have a chance to hear Republican John Kennedy and Democrat Foster Campbell discuss their platforms.
A major sticking point was whether the debate should be televised in front of a live audience, as Kennedy did not want an audience, while Campbell did. Johnson says it’s unclear if either candidate will benefit from not having a debate.
Johnson says this race will come down in large part to party lines, so he doesn’t think the debate would have changed many voters’ minds, but frontrunners tend to think not debating benefits them. He says that’s why Kennedy has run his campaign like an incumbent…
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Baton Rouge has settled with protestors who were arrested during protests that erupted after the death of Alton Sterling. The $100-thousand settlement will award $230 to each of the 92 plaintiffs with the rest of the money going towards legal fees. Louisiana ACLU Executive Director Marjorie Esman says they’re pleased, because the protestors’ constitutional rights were violated by police.
The City of Baton Rouge, Louisiana State Police, the East Baton Rouge Sheriff’s Office, and the District Attorney’s Office will each foot $25-thousand dollar bill. Esman says this suit wasn’t about compensation, it was about making sure people have the right to protest.
Baton Rouge City Council member John Delgado was the only council member to speak out against the suit, and he was furious about the council’s decision to settle. He says settling this frivolous suit is a terrible precedent.
Delgado says this will open the door for more litigation from activists. He says he’s also worried this payment will encourage bad behavior from future protestors.
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State Police’s Click It or Ticket Campaign is in effect for the Thanksgiving holiday weekend. Trooper Melissa Matey says law enforcement will look for drivers who are not properly buckled and children who are not correctly restrained. She says the seat-belt provides many different protections.
Over the Thanksgiving holiday last year, more than 200 injuries in car crashes were reported in the state and 10 people were killed. Matey says the single most important thing a seat-belt does is make sure a person stays in the vehicle.
cut 11 (11) “properly buckled”
Matey says motorists can visit 511.la.org for traffic updates. She says LSP will also be on the lookout for drunk drivers over the holiday weekend.
cut 12 (10) “impaired drivers”
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The Office of Motor Vehicles will resume accepting some cash payments beginning December 5. OMV Commissioner Karen St. Germain says they will only accept small amounts of cash, for things like driver’s licenses and vehicle registrations.
St. Germain says the OMV originally decided not to accept cash payments because it was a burden on employees if they came up short at the end of the day.
Several legislators did not like the “no cash” policy as they complained not everyone carries credit or debit cards. St. Germain says by only accepting cash payments for things like license renewals, they’re reducing the risk of employees pocketing the money.
Cut 15 (09) “different transactions”
Legislative audits in 2014 and 2015 found 280-thousand dollars in stolen or misappropriated funds from the OMV and five workers were arrested.