Iberia Parish Sheriff’s deputies say they solved a murder case that dates back to 1994 involving a newborn child that died outside of a car wash in Jeanerette. Jeff Palermo has the story…
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New U-S Census numbers show Louisiana’s poverty rate has dropped from second to third in the nation. Kevin Barnhart has more…
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Twenty-five years after a newborn baby was found dead in Jeanerette, Iberia Parish Sheriff deputies arrested a 50-year-old woman in the death of Baby Jane Doe. Major Wendell Raborn says DNA from the infant matched a family member of Sonia Charles and follow up police work led to deputies getting a DNA sample from Charles
Cut 3 (09) “…Sonia Charles.”
Charles was booked into the Iberia Jail for First Degree Murder. Raborn says thanks to DNA evidence they believe Charles placed her newborn child in a 55-gallon drum outside of a car wash in January of 1994.
Cut 4 (09) “…what it is.”
The coroner’s office says the baby lived for several hours before passing away from hypothermia. Raborn says Detective Scott Hotard who originally worked on the case in 1994, reopened the homicide investigation after new leads were developed
Cut 5 (09) “…gratifying”
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Census Bureau numbers show Louisiana’s poverty rate dropped from 19.7 percent in 2017 to 18.6 percent last year.
That’s dropped Louisiana from the 2nd most impoverished state in the nation to the 3rd. Louisiana Budget Project Executive Director Jan Moller says it’s a great improvement, but we have a long way to go.
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In 2018 poverty was defined as a single person making under 13,064 dollars a year or less, and a four-person household making 25,701 dollars a year or less.
The child poverty rate in the state declined nearly two points from 28 percent to 26.2 percent, and Moller says the poverty rate for African American children saw a four-point decline.
Cut 7 (11) “unnacceptable”
That decline has resulted in about 22,000 fewer African American children in poverty.
The report does not give an explanation for why the rate has declined, but Moller has a theory. He says it’s the result of the state economy seeing noticeable growth during that period.
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Louisiana is one of seven states under a federally declared fishing disaster, which makes state anglers and businesses eligible to request assistance from a 165 million dollar Congressionally approved fund.
LDWF Biologist Administrator Jason Froeba says the state was included due to the devastating impact of the Bonnet Carre’s prolonged opening resulting from record high Mississippi River levels.
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Mississippi and Alabama were the only other southern states to receive the declaration.
Congress approved NOAA for the management of the funds. Froeba says they plan on working closely with the agency to help out struggling anglers.
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We don’t know how much the state will receive yet, but Froeba says it’s safe to say anglers have lost a lot of money from the Spillway’s opening. How that’s effected the state’s larger economy is unclear.
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The US drought monitor currently lists five percent of the state in severe drought and 13-percent in moderate drought. State Climatologist Barry Keim says northwest Louisiana has seen the least amount of rain.
Cut 12 (13) “…3.5 inches”
Keim says there is very little rain in the forecast for the next week.
Cut 13 (11) “…these maximum temperatures.”
Keim says hopefully a cold front will bring in more fall-like temps and some rain, but not too much at once.
Cut 14 (10) “…what we need.”