54-year-old Robert Gasser has been charged with manslaughter in the shooting death of former NFL player and ex John Curtis star Joe McKnight. Jefferson Parish Sheriff Newell Normand says they waited to make an arrest, so they can talk with more independent witnesses and Normand defended the handling of the case, even though there were groups calling for Gasser’s arrest last week…
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Normand says there’s a chance the charge could be upgraded or downgraded based on further evidence.

It’s been a long day of testimony in the Will Smith shooting trial. In opening statements, Prosecutors say Cardell Hayes did not act in self-defense when he shot Smith last April. Hayes’ defense team says it was Smith who was the aggressor. The widow of Smith, Raquel, took the stand and denied claims that her husband approached Hayes’ Hummer with a handgun in his hand.

A Monroe woman is facing multiple charges after she was caught shoplifting with her children. Detective Chris Bates with Monroe Police says 33-year-old Shirley Mayes and her 9-year-old and 14-year-old were caught stealing from the Monroe Walmart…:
cut 12 (11) “total amount”
Bates says Mayes faces charges of misdemeanor shoplifting, criminal conspiracy, and three counts of contributing to child delinquency.

After safety concerns about wild horses roaming the Fort Polk army base in Vernon Parish, the first round of horses have been moved to the Dallas-Forth Worth area. Fort Polk Spokesperson Troy Darr says contact the Humane Society of North Texas for more information on the welfare of the horses.
Cut 5 (09) “and happy.”

Jefferson Parish Sheriff Newell Normand says his office is charging 54-year-old Ronald Gasser with manslaughter. He’s the man accused of killing former NFL player and John Curtis star Joe McKnight in a road rage incident last week. Normand explained the charge against Gasser…:
Cut 6 (10) “maturing”
Normand also defended the investigation into case as he says they waited to book Gasser, so they can get more witeness statements.

Commissioner of Administration Jay Dardenne says it appears the state’s budget deficit has grown to 600-million dollars, which means some of their spending proposals for next fiscal year will not please everyone….
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The House Appropriations Committee is holding three days of budget meetings to get an update on the state’s finances.

It was a day of opening statements and emotional testimony in the Will Smith murder trial. Michelle Southern reports…:
Voicer 2 (28) “I’m Michelle Southern”

This afternoon, Will Smith’s widow, Racquel, took the witness stand and pointed in the direction of Hayes as the man who killed her husband.

There are reports that President-elect Donald Trump will be in Baton Rouge on Friday afternoon. Mr. Trump will apparently visit the Bayou State to show his support for Treasurer John Kennedy in the U.S. Senate race. Trump visted Baton Rouge earlier this year and over 10-thousand people came to the event at the Baton Rouge River Center.

The Jefferson Parish Sheriff’s office charges 54-year-old Ronald Gasser with manslaughter in the shooting death of former NFL player Joe McKnight in a road rage incident last Thursday. Emelie Gunn has more…

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It was a day of opening statements and emotional testimony in the Will Smith murder trial. Michelle Southern reports…:

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Fort Polk has moved the first round of horses off their land because there are safety concerns about wild horses roaming the Vernon Parish army base. Fort Polk spokesperson Troy Darr says they sent 50 horses to the Humane Society of North Texas in the Dallas-Fort Worth area. He says they plan to rehome the remaining 650 horses in the same manner.

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Advocates have expressed concerns that the horses could be sent to kill buyers or unfit owners, and the groups have called on Fort Polk to let the horses stay on their land. But Darr says the horses aren’t safe on the Army training grounds.

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Darr says the activists’ fears were eased when they announced where the horses were going. He says anyone interested in the welfare of the horses should contact the Humane Society of North Texas.

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Fort Polk will rehome the horses in groups of 10 to 30 over the next three years or until they’re all gone.

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Jefferson Parish Sheriff Newell Normand held a press conference this morning to announce the arrest of 54-year-old Ronald Gasser, the man accused of killing former NFL player and John Curtis star Joe McKnight in a road rage incident last week. Normand explained the charge against Gasser….

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Authorities say Gasser admitted to shooting McKnight in a busy intersection last Thursday. He was questioned that day and released. Normand says his detectives took their time to with the investigation, conducting 160 interviews and working with 70 business owners to receive video footage.

CUT 7 (09)  “are marathons”

Normand says they took their time with the investigation because of different eyewitness accounts of the shooting. He defends the sheriff department’s decision for not arresting Gasser immediately, even though there were groups calling for Gasser’s arrest last Thursday….

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Commissioner of Administration Jay Dardenne paints a bleak fiscal picture to lawmakers during a budget hearing this morning at the State Capitol. Dardenne says not only does the state have to address a $313 million deficit for this fiscal year, there’s another $300 million shortfall looming. He says that means state agencies will have to cut back even more.

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Dardenne says once again higher education and healthcare are on the chopping block. He says these agencies need to be setting priorities and preparing for realistic reductions.

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Dardenne says the administration plans on presenting next year’s budget to legislators in February, and some of the proposals won’t be easy to swallow.

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A Monroe woman is facing multiple charges after she was caught shoplifting with her children. Detective Chris Bates with Monroe Police says 33-year-old Shirley Mayes and her 9-year-old and 14-year-old were caught stealing from the Monroe Walmart.

cut 12 (11) “total amount”

Bates says security footage shows Mayes encouraging her children to steal items while she checked out the rest of the things in her buggy.

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The value of the items the family tried to steal is reportedly $575. Bates says the 9-year-old child tried to flee on foot when police arrived.

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Bates says Mayes faces charges of misdemeanor shoplifting, criminal conspiracy, and three counts of contributing to child delinquency.

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54-year-old Ronald Gasser has been arrested and booked on a charge of manslaughter. Jefferson Parish authorities say Gasser has admitted to fatally shooting former NFL player and John Curtis star Joe McKnight during an apparent road rage incident at an intersection in Terrytown.

Also this morning in New Orleans, opening statements are underway in the Will Smith murder trial. Saints players Roman Harper and Jahri Evans are at the courtroom to support the family of the former Saints star.

A new television ad in the US Senate race has Governor John Bel Edwards urging voters to vote for Democrat Foster Campbell. ULM Political Science Professor Joshua Stockley says the ad is a nice gesture, but it’s unlikely Campbell can beat the favorite, Republican John Kennedy…
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The election is Saturday.

New Orleans will be featured during Dick Clark’s Rockin New Year’s Eve show as host Ryan Seacrest will toss it to the Crescent City to see how the Big Easy is celebrating the New Year. Gary Solomon with Dick Clark Productions says viewers will feel like they’re a part of the New Orleans culture…
cut 15 (10) “….Brewery drop”
Solomon says there will be musical acts performing in the French Quarter that will be shown on the show as well.

The state’s efforts to rebuild its whooping crane population got another lift as 21 more large birds were brought to south Louisiana, where they once dominated the landscape over 65 years ago. Wildlife and fisheries biologist Sara Zimorski says once these birds are released, the birds are encouraged to stay by being fed….
cut 6 (09) “…natural foods”

Only 171-thousand of the state’s 3 million registered voters cast their ballots during the early voting period. Pollster John Couvillion, with JMC Analytics, predicts turnout for the runoff to be 35-percent, at the most. He says a runoff during the holiday season has always been bad for turnout, plus this Senate race isn’t exciting voters…:
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A new survey out of Tulane reveals US Senate candidate Republican John Kennedy has a healthy lead in the race against Democrat Foster Campbell in the runoff. Brian Brox, associate professor of Political Science, says they found 59% of respondents said they would vote for Kennedy, while 40% said Campbell is their choice. He says the Republican has always been favored in Saturday’s race…:
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The election will be held this Saturday.

Senator David Vitter gave his farewell speech on the Senate floor today, as he will leave the office he’s held since January 2005. Vitter says as a Louisiana state legislator he worked to impose term limits here, as well as authoring a term limits measure for Congress. He says that’s why he’s imposing one on himself….
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It’s unclear what Senator Vitter will do once his term ends at the end of the year.

LSU running back Leonard Fournette took to Twitter today to say goodbye to Tigers fans. Fournette says he’ll enter the NFL draft following the team’s appearance in the Citrus Bowl. The New Orleans native has battled an ankle injury all season long, but still hopes to play in the bowl game.

Attorneys met with potential jurors as they look for 12 individuals who will sit on a panel to determine if 29-year-old Cardale Hayes should be found guilty of second-degree murder in the shooting death of former Saints star Will Smith.

Tulane has published an online survey that found 59-percent of the respondents are supporting Republican John Kennedy in the U.S. Senate run-off. Democrat Foster Campbell, received 40-percent. Tulane political science professor Brian Brox says the survey also found that 31-percent of the residents who voted for Hillary Clinton in the Presidential election, will not vote for Campbell in this runoff…
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171-thousand ballots were cast during the early voting period which ended last Saturday. John Couvillion, with JMC Analytics, says the early voting totals were impressive for the November election, but not so much this time…
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Polls are open this Saturday from 7 AM to 8 PM.

Officials with the Camping World Independence Bowl in Shreveport are excited about their December 26th contest that pits North Carolina State versus Vanderbilt. Bowl Spokesperson Stefan Nolet says the ACC and SEC matchup marks the second time in three seasons the two conferences have played each other in this bowl…:
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Kick off for the Independence Bowl is at 4 p.m.

This non-stop rain has many flood weary folks in the Bayou State feeling nervous, but State Climatologist Barry Keim says the wet weather will finally leave today and then we can get ready for our real dose of cold weather before the weekend arrives…:
Cut 5 (10) “and Friday”