Over two hundred state troopers around Louisiana are being deployed to New Orleans for Carnival 2020. This is an uptick from last year as crowds are expected to be bigger. Trooper Monroe Dillon says many of the troopers will be positioned in the metro area and the French Quarter.
Cut 13 (09) “…keep them safe.”
Dillon says to get the latest information on parades, use route-wise-dot-nola-dot-gov.

Governor John Bel Edwards proposes spending one-billion dollars a year over the next four years on important coastal restoration projects. Restore the Mississippi River Delta Director Steve Cochran says that money would fund proposed sediment diversions that will redirect river sediment into the wetlands…
cut 12 (11) “…pulses”

The coronavirus virus is expected to be in St. Tammany Parish within the next three weeks for study at the Tulane Primate Research Center. Matt Doyle has more…
Cut 1 (30) “I’m Matt Doyle”

The mumps outbreak on and around the LSU campus has grown to 16 people. The 16 people infected reportedly had the mumps vaccine before getting the illness.

The NFL Owners have agreed to the terms of a new collective bargainning agreement between the league and its players association. The players and their representatives will meet on a conference call tomorrow to discuss the proposed C-B-A and potentially finalize a new agreement. The players would see more revenues, but they might not go along with a 17-game regular season schedule, which the owners are seeking. Also, the playoff format would change, instead of 12 teams making the playoffs, it would go to 14, with only the team with the best record receiving a first round bye.

After a long layoff the Pelicans returned to the practice court today. Tomorrow New Orleans will visit the Portland Trail Blazers to begin a three-game west coast trip that also includes games versus the Warriors and Lakers. New Orleans is 5.5 games back from Memphis, who occupies the final playoff spot in the West. There are 27 games left in the season.

Georgia upset 13th ranked Auburn in SEC basketball action. That means, LSU, Auburn and Florida are tied for second place in the league, two games back of first place Kentucky. The Tigers are at South Carolina on Saturday.

Nicholls won its fourth straight game last night as the Colonels beat Northwestern State 73-69 in Natchitoches. Warith Alatishe had a double-double 16 points and 10 rebounds. McNeese’s losing streak has reached five in a row as the Cowboys fell to U-I-W 65-59.

Tulane snapped its nine-game losing streak by beating SMU 80-72 and ULM defeated Arkansas State 66-52. The Warhawks are 4-and-12 in the Sun Belt.

In college baseball, LSU made a bunch of mistakes and lost to Nicholls four to two. The Tigers made two errors in the field, walked eight hitters, hit three others and only had five hits. Tyler Theriot gave up one run in 5.1 innings in his best pitching performance in his Nicholls career.

58-year-old Geraldine Carmouche has been identified as the woman who was struck and killed by a moving float at the Nyx Parade in New Orleans last night. Police are calling it a horrible accident.

Lafourche Parish Sheriff Craig Webre says a school traffic guard was struck and killed by a vehicle while directing traffic on Highway 20 near Chackbay Elementary School this morning. He’s been identified as Larry Boudreaux, an Army Veteran.

Lottery contributions to the state treasury see a downturn due to a lack of big jackpots from multi-state games. Kevin Barnhart has the story.
Cut 1 (31) “…I’m Kevin Barnhart”
Summerfield High School Principal Brian Biggs is in the Claiborne Parish jail after being arrested this morning at his home for multiple sex crimes. State Police Trooper Brent Hardy says bond for the 54-year-old is set at $1 million after being booked on a slew of charges.
Cut 12 (13) “… behavior with juveniles.”
Hardy says the investigation began after authorities heard from concerned parents who accused Biggs of acting inappropriately with their child on the internet.

The Board of Regents has revised its minimum admission standards policy in reaction to LSU’s new holistic admission approach which has resulted in more students being accepted to the state’s flagship university…
cut 7 (11) “…policy”
That’s Higher Education Commissioner Kim Hunter Reed who says the tougher admissions standards now call for campuses to be penalized.

58-year-old Geraldine Carmouche was killed last night at a New Orleans parade after reportedly trying to pass between two floats, tripping, and being run over. The incident has sparked some calls for new safety regulations, but New Orleans Councilwoman Kristian Palmer says it’s just not feasible.
Cut 9 (08) “…would take″
The last time a person was killed by a float at a New Orleans parade was 2008 as Endymion was entering the Superdome.

The lack of huge Powerball and Mega Millions jackpots means fewer dollars are going towards education. That’s according to Louisiana Lottery spokesperson Kim Chopin who says it’s been a while since a multi-state lottery has produced a jackpot over 400-million dollars. She says at least scratch-off ticket sales are up nearly four-percent…
cut 5 (12) “…really well”

The Board of Regents has approved a new policy that could result in financial penalties for universities that do not comply with minimum admissions requirements for incoming students. Higher Ed Commissioner Kim Hunter Reed says a school will be flagged for review if they allow too many students in, who do not meet requirements like minimum GPA, or ACT.
Cut 6 (12) “consider”
Reed says her staff worked on strengthening the policy for admission standards in response to LSU’s new holistic admission approach.

A float in last night’s Nyx Parade in New Orleans hit and killed a woman on Magazine Street. Witnesses say the woman stepped in between the front float and back float of a tandem float, was struck by the second float and died.

Lafourche Parish Sheriff Craig Webre says a school traffic guard has died after being struck by a vehicle in the northern area of the parish. State Police is investigating.

On his monthly call-in radio show Ask the Governor, Governor Edwards addressed the controversy over his decision not to include a specific teacher pay raise in his budget, saying he is confident teachers will ultimately receive another raise next year. Edwards hopes teachers will see a raise from the additional 39-million dollars he proposes for K-through-12 public schools.
Cut 10 (12) “…a pay raise.”
The Humane Society of Louisiana is offering a $500 reward for information leading to the arrest of a person who threw a dog food bag containing eight puppies from a bridge into Bayou Portage in St. Martin Parish on Sunday. Humane Society of Louisiana executive director Jeff Dorson says a nearby fisherman saw the man toss what appeared to be litter into the water…
cut 7 (12) “…in the sack.”
Dorson says the person behind the tossing could face up to eight felony counts, one for each pup.

The Louisiana Lottery says the lack of massive Powerball and Mega Million jackpots recently has resulted in fewer dollars for education. Lottery spokesperson Kim Chopin says from July to December they transferred about $42-million dollars to the state treasury.
Cut 3 (09) “…of last year.”
Chopin says many people will not buy lottery tickets until the jackpots hit 400-million dollars plus.

In New Orleans, mourners are placing flowers at the spot where a woman lost her life last night when a float in the Nyk parade ran over her. A preliminary report from the NOPD says the woman might have been reaching for beads. The Orleans Parish coroner has yet to release the victim’s name.

Teacher unions are upset Governor John Bel Edwards did not include a line item in his budget proposal that would direct the state legislature to give teachers a pay raise for a second consecutive year. On his monthly Ask the Governor Show, Edwards says his budget includes 39-million dollars for public schools and he’s hoping school systems will use some of that money to pay teachers more. Edwards also says he wanted to invest more into education, but the Revenue Estimating Conference has yet to approve an official revenue number for the upcoming budget.
Cut 12 (11) “… like.”

The Louisiana Department of Environmental Quality has added its first electric car to its vehicle fleet. Brooke Thorington has more.
Cut 1 (30) “I’m Brooke Thorington”

The Humane Society of Louisiana is asking for the public’s help in finding the person responsible for throwing a dog food bag that contained eight puppies into Bayou Portage from a bridge in St. Martin Parish. Jeff Dorson says the pups will be up for adoption from the Every Paw Animal Rescue in Evangeline Parish.
cut 9 (110 “…available for adoption.

National Federation of Independent Business state director Dawn Starns says the number one issue facing small businesses, quality of labor. Starns says many of their members find it difficult to find workers who are committed to the job…
cut 8 (10) “….face”
Starns says the N-F-I-B would like to see Louisiana do more to provide workplace skills and technology training for students who do not plan to attend college.

A new report shows over 22,000 texters in Louisiana have reached out to the Crisis Text Line since it launched in August 2013. Crisis Text Line spokesperson Ashley Womble says counselors have prevented 465 individuals from committing suicide…
Cut 4 (08) “…within 24 hours.”
To reach the Crisis Text Line, text the word “Home” to 741-741.

In central Mississippi, hundreds of homes are flooded because of the Pearl River, which flows into Washington and St. Tammany Parishes in Louisiana. The Pearl is expected to crest at 19 feet near Slidell on Sunday and Deputy Director of the Governor’s Office of Homeland Secretary and Emergency Preparedness Casey Tingle says they are monitoring the situation closely…
cut 12 (11) “…be ready”
The river crests for both Bogalusa and the town of Pearl River are expected to be their highest levels since 2016.

Dozens of Mardi Gras parades will take place this weekend and the F-B-I is encouraging to parents to download their child ID app which allows you to build a profile of your child if he or she gets lost in the large crowds. FBI New Orleans spokesperson Craig Betbeze says the app also has information on what to do if your child is lost…
cut 14 (08) “….missing”
The app is available through app stores for both Android and Iphones.

LSU basketball lost for the fourth time in the last five games as 10th ranked Kentucky defeated the Tigers 79-76 in the PMAC last night. The Wildcats made just two three-pointers in the first half, but hit seven 3s in the second half and they shot 74-percent from the field. Tigers Coach Will Wade says he keeps seeing the same mistakes over and over again…
cut 30 (11) “….options”
LSU is on the road for the next two games, at South Carolina Saturday and Florida next Wednesday.

Saul Garza had three hits, including his second home run of the season and drove in four runs as the 11th ranked LSU baseball team defeated Southern eight to three.

Also last night, Louisiana Tech improved to 4-0 with a 7-4 win over McNeese. And the Ragin Cajuns won its first game, beating Southeastern Louisiana nine to six.

Saints Quarterback Drew Brees is coming back for a 20th season. The 41-year-old will need a new contract, but the future Hall of Famer’s decision likely means the end of Teddy Bridgewater’s time in the NFL. The versatile Taysom Hill who has expressed a desire to be a franchise quarterback, says he’s happy Brees is returning. Hill said on ESPN reporter Adam Schefter’s podcast that he would love to play with Drew again.

Because a new turf and drainage system is going in at Tiger Stadium, LSU will play its spring game on April 19th at Southern University’s Mumford Stadium. LSU Executive Deputy Athletic Director Verge Ausberry says to play the Spring Game at Southern, LSU had to get permission from the SEC…
cut 17 (14) “…thing to do”
Spring practice for LSU begins March 7th.