Three St. Amant young adults were found dead in an Ascension Parish bayou by a member of their own family. State Trooper Bryan Lee says they believe the crash occurred early Thursday morning but was not discovered until around midnight Thursday. He says when troopers arrived they discovered a grisly scene of the vehicle split in half by a tree.
Cut 7 (09) “in half”

The victims have been identified as Thomas Jones, Austin Kiernan, and Sydney Persac.

The Senate is committed to fully funding the TOPS program without changes, according to President John Alario. A House measure would raise the GPA requirement to 2.75 but Alario expects any changes will be unsuccessful in the Senate. He says too many students rely on TOPS.
Cut 11 (10) “for us”

The full House has approved a measure that would require higher training standards for police officers. The proposal by Baton Rouge Representative Ted James would require officers to receive at least 400 hours of basic POST training before entering the field.
Cut 12 (10) “the 400 hours”

Currently, crews in New Orleans are taking down the statue of Confederate General Robert E. Lee. This is the fourth Confederate monument to be removed in the last few weeks. Mayor Mitch Landrieu is expected to speak on the topic this afternoon.

Here’s a look at commodities.