Will Wade’s name has surfaced again in the college basketball corruption case as evidence emerges of the LSU basketball coach allegedly offering 300,000 dollars in an effort to recruit Naz Reid. Matt Doyle has the story.
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A proposal to partially roll back Governor Edwards’ changes to a program that issues substantial property tax cuts to big business narrowly gets through a House committee. Matt Doyle has more.
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An outbreak of Hepatitis A results in the first reported death from the virus in Louisiana. Who’s most at risk for contracting the liver infection? Kevin Barnhart has the story.
Cut 3 (31) “I’m Kevin Barnhart”
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The Louisiana Department of Health is asking residents to be on the lookout for the penny sized “kissing bug”, whose bite can carry the rare, but nasty Chagas disease. LDH vector-borne diseases epidemiologist Julius Tonzel says the Triatomine bugs are known to break into poorly maintained houses, and feast on unsuspecting sleepers.
The alert was triggered by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention which confirmed a case of the disease in Delaware.
The best way to keep the bugs out is to fix any holes in your home that lead to the outside, and Tonzel says you can identify the disease carrying “kissing bug” by it’s long, thin legs, and earthy brown or black outside with red stripes…
There’s only been 13 confirmed cases of Chargas Disease in the state’s history and none since 2017.
Chagas symptoms can take weeks to appear, and can feel very much like the flu initially. Tonzel says after that, it could be quite some time before the long term effects are felt, but they could ultimately be fatal.
In it’s history, the disease has been documented in 11 parishes, as far north as Caddo, and as far south as Terrebonne.
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A recording that claims LSU basketball coach Will Wade allegedly offered 300,000 dollars in an effort to recruit LSU forward Naz Reid was featured Monday at a federal trial on NCAA corruption. Tiger Rag assistant editor Tyler Nunez says it’s another recruiting allegation against the 36-year-old coach.
The video aired in court is former Arizona assistant Book Richardson, who was reportedly caught on tape saying Wade offered him a job to help with the recruiting of Reid, and quoted Wade as saying “There’s a deal in place, I got 300,000 for him.” Richardson allegedly responded saying “Give me half, and I’ll make sure the kid goes there”.
After being reinstated, Wade agreed to a provision in his contract that would give LSU cause to fire him if he was found in violation of a level one or two NCAA violation. Nunez says this fits the bill, if the allegation is true…
Reid was instrumental in helping LSU win an SEC regular season title and a trip to the Sweet 16. Nunez says along with potentially ending Will Wade’s time at LSU, the ongoing trial could reveal just how much illegal money is flowing into basketball recruiting.
LSU responded, saying “We are continuing to monitor the situation, and will refrain from commenting until further notice.”
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A bill that would partially roll back the Governor’s changes to the Industrial Tax Exemption Program advanced to the House floor. The change would take the ability to grant the often substantial local property tax breaks to businesses away from local boards, like school boards.
Baton Rouge Representative Rick Edmonds says it’s scaring away business.
Companies use ITEP to request hundreds of thousands, and even millions in tax breaks from the state.
Governor Edwards opposes reversing the changes he made to the program last year. Edwards’ Executive Council, Matthew Block, says every other state allows local level authorities to make decisions about issuing local tax breaks…
The changes created a controversy in Baton Rouge when the local school board denied Exxon a several hundred thousand dollar ITEP request under the new rules.
The change would see the parish president, sheriff, and school board president in charge of accepting or rejecting ITEP requests. Opponents would prefer keeping the authority at the city/town, and not parish level, but Edmonds says that should be local enough.
Before Edwards’ changes, the decision to issue the tax break was made by a state level board.
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A Hepatitis A outbreak results in the first death reported from the virus in the state. The highly contagious liver infection primarily spreads through close contact. Assistant State Health Officer Dr. Joe Kanter says in Louisiana the cases recorded since January 2018 sees the biggest impact in two main risk categories.
Cut 13 (09) “…those two categories.”
Kanter adds the virus spreads rapidly when people are in close quarters in such settings as homeless shelters or jails.
About two-thirds of those diagnosed with Hepatitis A are having to be hospitalized in this most recent outbreak, which Kanter says is higher than normal. Many people who have it end up doing fine, but some end up having worsened liver damage or even liver failure. Kanter says at first someone may experience vague symptoms such as fever, fatigue, and loss of appetite.
Cut 14 (09) “…of the eyes.”
For those that are high risk, Kanter says there is action that can be taken to reduce the chance of contracting the virus.
Cut 15 (07) “…an initial vaccine.”
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LSU ranks in the middle of the pack in the Southeastern Conference for team batting average. But Coach Paul Mainieri is hoping freshman Gavin Dugas can provide a spark. He missed about two months with a hamate injury, but delivered a big two-run single in Sunday’s win over Alabama
In Sunday’s win over the Crimson Tide, Landon Marceaux struck out nine in 5.1 innings pitched for the victory. Mainieri liked how the freshman from Destrehan battled back from shaky start
Mainieri also likes what he’s seeing from catcher Saul Garza, who hit his second home run of the season on Sunday