14:30 LRN Newscast October 18th

A Louisiana man is suing the state over a law that prevents him from getting married because he doesn’t have a birth certificate. Michelle Southern has more…
Cut 2 (30) “I’m Michelle Southern”

A Monroe television station is reporting that the principal and a teacher at Caldwell Parish High School have been suspended and placed on administrative leave. The sheriff’s office has been investigating complaints that students were stripped searched as school officials looked a missing 42 dollars.

Attorney General Jeff Landry is glad a state district judge ruled in his favor in a lawsuit that was filed by Governor John Bel Edwards. The judge says Landry does not have to sign off on state contracts that contain wording that protects LGBT individualists. Landry says he’s following the will of the legislature, because they have never passed a law that protects this group of citizens…
cut 4 (08) “…objecting to’
The governor’s office says Edwards is exploring other legal options.

In the third district Congressional race, Republican Scott Angelle has raised more money than the entire field combined. UL Lafayette Political Science Professor says it’s been Angelle’s race to lose from the beginning…
cut 12 (08) “…and money”
Early voting for this race and others on the November 8th ballot begins a week from today.

11:40 LRN Sportscast October 18th

LSU expects star running back Leonard Fournette to play this Saturday against Ole Miss. Last year, the Rebels beat the Tigers 38-17. Coach Ed Orgeron says he has not forgotten that humbling loss in Oxford…
cut 17 (21) “….fix this week”
Orgeron is not happy with how the team played last week in the first half against Ole Miss.

ULM Redshirt freshman Will Collins will start at quarterback this Saturday for the Warhawks against New Mexico. Coach Matt Viator likes how the team rallied around Collins, who replaced the injured Garrett Smith….
cut 30 (06) “…the game’
Collins threw two touchdown passes in the win against Texas State.

Louisiana Tech running back Jaqwis Dancy will miss the rest of the season, because he has cancer. Dancy is scheduled to begin treatment this week at St. Jude’s Research Hospital in Memphis as he’s been diagnosed with stage 3 Hodgkin’s lymphoma. Bulldogs Coach Skip Holtz says they’ll wear a special decal on their helmet in honor of Dancy…
cut 20 (21) “…love em”
Hodgkin’s lymphoma is a treatable cancer.

A 14-year-old boy fighting a liver disease was made an honorary Saint today during an appearance on Good Morning America. Jarrius Robertson is a big fan of the Saints and Coach Sean Payton personally invited Jarrius and his Dad to travel with the team to Sunday’s game at Kansas City.

10:30 LRN Newscast October 18th

A statewide poll on the presidential race here in Louisiana finds Republican Donald Trump’s lead over Democrat Hillary Clinton has shrunk. The JMC Analytics Survey had Trump with a 15-percentage point lead in July and now it’s seven. Pollster John Couvillon says the groping allegations against the billionaire affected this survey….
cut 11 (10) “….allegations”

Tonight is a televised US Senate debate on Louisiana Public Broadcasting. ULM Political Science Professor Joshua Stockley says it’s likely only one democrat will make the run-off, so expect Democrats Foster Campbell and Caroline Fayard to attack each other…
cut 9 (11) “….each other”
The debate begins at 7 PM.

A Baton Rouge judge has ruled in favor of Attorney General Jeff Landry for his refusal to sign state contracts that protect against LGBT discrimination, in spite of an executive order signed by Governor John Bel Edwards. Political analyst Clancy Dubos…:
Cut 13 (10) “any contract”
The Governor’s Office says they are reviewing other legal options.

The finance website Value Penguin ranks I-10 and I-20 as the fourth and eighth most dangerous highways in the country respectively. Research analyst Craig Casazza says the purpose of the report is to raise awareness about the dangerous conditions along these highways…
cut 6 (08) “….policy changes”
The report found that Louisiana has the third most fatal stretch of I-10, with a fatality rate of nearly 55 deadly accidents per 100 miles.

18:30 Newscast October 17,2016

A state judge in Baton Rouge has ruled against Governor John Bel Edwards and his attempt to get Attorney General Jeff Landry to sign off on state contracts that contain language to protect against LGBT discrimination in the workplace. Judge Don Johnson threw the case out and the governor’s legal team is reportedly looking at their options now.

Louisiana’s high school graduation rate has hit a new high, as has the overall US rate. Michelle Southern reports on today’s numbers released by the White House….
voicer 2 (30) “…I’m Michelle Southern”

 

A survey from the American Farm Bureau finds food prices at the grocery store are down from last year. Steak prices are down 11-percent and chicken breast costs have dropped 16-percent. Louisiana Farm Bureau specialist Neil Melancon says there was a spike meat prices a few years ago, because demand outweighed supply, but that supply has been rebuilt.
Cut 4 (08) “are now”

Prices for eggs have plummeted a whopping 51-percent, and whole milk is down 10-percent.

Chairman of the Public Service Commission and former Congressman Clyde Holloway of Forrest Hill has passed away at the age of 72. Chairman of the Louisiana Republican Party Roger Villere says Holloway was one of the founders of the conservative movement in the state…:
Cut 8 (10) “state well”

Holloway was on the PSC from 2009 and served in the US House from 1987-93.

16:45 LRN Sportscast October 17th

The LSU Tigers showed they can be an explosive offense in their 45-10 win over Southern Miss on Saturday. The Tigers had scoring plays of 61, 63 and 80 yards. Coach Ed Orgeron says it was nice to see Quarterback Danny Etling hit on some deep balls…
cut 28 (11) “…stiffer opponents”
This Saturday, the Tigers host 23rd ranked Ole Miss. Orgeron was the head coach of the Rebels from 2005-2007. In 2006, Orgeron nearly led Ole Miss to an upset win over LSU. The Tigers ended up pulling it out, beating the Rebels 23-20 in overtime. Orgeron talked about that game today…
cut 30 (16) “…a battle”

The Saints spent today reviewing the game tape of Sunday’s 41-38 victory over Carolina. Quarterback Drew Brees threw for 465 yards and four touchdowns. His 15th career 400 yard passing game. It was a good game for cornerback BW Webb, who had three pass break-ups, but Brian Dixon was flagged for three pass interference penalties. New Orleans can climb back to the .500 mark at 3-3 with a win this Sunday at Kansas City.

ULM Quarterback Garrett Smith is done of the season after tearing his ACL in the win over Texas State. Redshirt freshman Will Collins will take his place. He threw two touchdowns in Saturday’s homecoming win.

Louisiana Tech running back Jaqwis Dancy will also miss the rest of the 2016 season as he’s been diagnosed with cancer. Coach Skip Holtz says the sophomore has been diagnosed with Stage 3 Hodgkin’s Lymphoma. Dancy complained about lymph node while rehabbing an ankle injury and tests came back positive earlier this month.

LRN PM Newscall October 17th

PSC Chairman and former Congressman Clyde Holloway of Forrest Hill has passed away at 72. Emelie Gunn has more…

CUT 1 (30) “I’m Emelie Gunn”

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Louisiana’s high school graduation rate has hit a new high, as has the overall US rate. Michelle Southern reports on today’s numbers released by the White House.

Cut 2 (30) “I’m Michelle Southern”

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Food prices at the grocery store are down 13-percent from last year. That’s based on a survey from the American Farm Bureau. Louisiana Farm Bureau specialist Neil Melancon says the quarterly survey looks at prices of sixteen different food items and the numbers look much better than they did this time last year.

Cut 3 (08) “year ago”

Steak prices are down 11-percent, while chicken breasts are down 16-pecent and bacon decreased by 3-percent. Melancon says there was a spike in meat prices a few years ago, because the demand outweighed the supply of livestock, but the like livestock supply has been rebuilt.

cut 4  (08) “are now”

Prices for eggs have plummeted a whopping 51-percent, and whole milk is down 10-percent. Melancon expects the next survey, which will be conducted before Thanksgiving, will continue to show lower prices at the grocery store..

Cut 5  (09)  “out there”

Melancon says of the 16 items on the survey, only three increased in price- bagged salad by 16-percent, apples by 10-percent, and potatoes by 3-percent.

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Chairman of the Public Service Commission and former Congressman Clyde Holloway of Forrest Hill has passed away at the age of 72. Former state representative and close friend of Holloway, Woody Jenkins, says Holloway was the type of man who took the initiative and didn’t wait for someone else to tell him what needed to be done.

Cut 6 (10) “mobilize people”

A cause of death was not given. Jenkins says Holloway was an honest man with traditional conservative principles. He says Holloway fought hard to help his hometown of Forrest Hill and wasn’t afraid to run for any political office.

CUT 7 (09)  “the effort”

Holloway served as one of five members of the PSC since 2009, and served in the US House of Representatives from 1987-1993. Louisiana Republican Party Chairman Roger Villere says Holloway was one of the founders of the conservative movement in the state.

Cut 8 (10) “state well”

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A new survey released by JMC Analytics finds democratic Public Service Commissioner Foster Campbell tops the poll, coming in at over 23-percent. Pollster John Couvillon says democratic voters are rallying behind Campbell. He says fellow Democrat Caroline Fayard polls at 9-percent, so Campbell’s message seems to be getting out to minority voters.

Cut 9 (07)  “governor”

Couvillon says it looks like it’s now a fight for the second spot in the runoff with Republicans John Kennedy, John Fleming, and Charles Boustany all on each other’s heels. He says right now Kennedy is leading Fleming by one point, but Fleming is well positioned to make the runoff.

Cut 10 (10) “tight race”

The poll was commissioned by the Fleming campaign. Couvillon says Campbell is essentially a lock for the runoff. But he says we can be expect to see a big ramp up in ads from the three major republican candidates.

cut 11 (07) “etcetera”

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The US graduation rate is at an all time high, and so is Louisiana’s. According to a report released by the White House, the Bayou State’s graduation rate for 2014-2015 is 77.5 percent, compared to 74.6 percent the prior year. Louisiana Superintendent of Education John White…:

cut 12 (09) “future for life”

The overall US graduation rate went up to 83- percent. White says years ago Louisiana committed that graduating from high school would be a part of our state’s high school rating system…:

Cut 13 (08) “to make sure it happens”

The numbers from Washington show Asian Americans had a 90.2 percent graduation rate, whites were 88-percent and African Americans at 75-percent. White says Louisiana also has unfortunate gaps between low income students and their peers. He says Louisiana outpaces the nation in terms of improvement, but there is still a long way to go…:

cut 14 (10) “here at home in Louisiana”

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11:40 LRN Sportscast October 17th

Quarterback Drew Brees threw for 465 yards and four touchdowns as the Saints defeated the Carolina Panthers 41-38. Brandin Cooks had 7 catches for 173 yards and one long touchdown. But the 52-yard field goal by rookie kicker Wil Lutz was the difference. Coach Sean Payton is very high on the 22-year-old.
cut 20 (18) “…mental toughness”
The Saints are now 2-and-3 and they’ll visit Kansas City this Sunday. The Chiefs easily defeated the Raiders 26-10 yesterday.

Haughton native Dak Prescott continues to impress. Prescott threw for three touchdowns in the Cowboys 30-16 win over Green Bay.

The LSU Tigers got off to a slow start against Southern Miss, but eventually got it rolling in a 45-10 blowout win over the Golden Eagles. Running back Derrius Guice had 162 yards rushing and two touchdowns. Quarterback Danny Etling threw for 3 touchdowns and 276 yards. Etling talked about what Coach Orgeron said at halftime…
cut 17 (10) “…pretty nice”
Etling threw two long touchdown passes, one to DJ Chark and the other to Malachi Dupre. And there’s a report that Leonard Fournette is expected to return to action for Saturday’s game against Ole Miss.

There are reports out of Monroe that Warhawks quarterback Garrett Smith will miss the rest of the season with a knee injury. Smith was hurt in the win over Texas State. His back-up, Will Collins, came off the bench and threw two touchdown passes.

10:30 LRN Newscast October 17th

Governor John Bel Edwards and AG Jeff Landry are in court today after the governor sued Landry for blocking protections for members of the LGBT community. Emelie Gunn has more…
CUT 1 (31) “I’m Emelie Gunn”

Current Chairman of the Public Service Commission and former Congressman Clyde Holloway has passed away at the age of 72. A cause of death was not given. Holloway was elected to the PSC in 2009 and the longtime conservative was elected to the U.S. Representatives in 1987 and served until 1993.

Louisiana ranks second in the country for accidental shootings involving minors. The state’s rate is more than three times the national average. East Baton Rouge District Attorney Hillar Moore says it’s important to note that prosecutors can’t charge parents for criminal negligence for allowing their kids to get a hold of a gun…
cut 12 (07) “…had it”

The Public Affairs Research Council says there’s three constitutional amendments on the November 8 ballot that will have an impact on state policy. Amendment Five creates the Revenue Stabilization Trust Fund and it would place mineral and corporate tax revenues into a pot of money to be used when tax revenues are down. PAR President Robert Travis Scott…
cut 15 (12) “for it”
For more information on the constitutional amendments, go to PAR’s website.

LRN AM Newscall October 17th

Governor John Bel Edwards and AG Jeff Landry are in court today after the governor sued Landry for blocking protections for members of the LGBT community. Emelie Gunn has more…

CUT 1 (31) “I’m Emelie Gunn”

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Just weeks after flood victims rolled out of what was a shelter at Celtic Studios in Baton Rouge, camera crews could be rolling in. Halen Doughty has more…

Cut 2 (30) “I’m Halen Doughty”

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New data from the Associated Press and USA Today shows Louisiana has the second highest rate of accidental shootings involving minors. Jeff Palermo has more…

Cut 3 (30) “I’m Jeff Palermo”

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Governor John Bel Edwards and Attorney General Jeff Landry are in court today after the governor sued the AG for blocking state legal contracts that had wording to protect members of the LGBT community from workplace discrimination. Jeremy Alford of Lapoltics.com says it’s very unusual to see statewide elected officials sue another…

cut 4  (10) “laws””

Alford says the Governor is making moves by executive order and expects we’ll continue to see these trends throughout the remainder of his term. He says this could be a tough case for the judge to decide.

Cut 5  (09)  “coming term”

Alford says this feud between Governor Edwards and AG Landry has really been going on since the day the two were sworn into office and expects it will continue…

Cut 6 (10) “2019”

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Lights, camera, action! Those words haven’t been spoken at Celtic Studios in Baton Rouge in over a year, but that could change soon, as Louisiana’s film industry is starting to show signs of life. Executive Director Patrick Mulhearn says calls are starting to come in from companies who want to film in Louisiana. He says it’s encouraging to see a light at the end of the tunnel.

CUT 7 (09)  “very soon”

Louisiana’s film industry has seen a downturn because of a 2015 law that placed a capped on the state’s film tax credit program. But Mulhearn believes film companies now have a better understanding of the credits available. He hopes next year, lawmakers will switch the program from a back end cap to a front end cap.

Cut 8 (10) “business here”

Mulhearn says he met with two different productions on the same day, and he hasn’t done that in over a year. He says it looks like things are looking up for Louisiana’s film industry.

Cut 9 (08)  “than later”

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Louisiana ranks second in the nation for accidental shootings involving minors, nearly three times more than the national average. That’s according to new data from the Associated Press and USA today. East Baton Rouge District Attorney Hillar Moore says what we don’t know is how kids are getting their hands on these weapons.

Cut 10 (09) “like that”

Alaska was the only state to top Louisiana on the list. The report found Baton Rouge had more accidental shootings than any other city in the Deep South. Moore says often times parents know or suspect that their child has a gun, but they don’t do anything about it.

cut 11 (10) “frustrating part”

The district attorney says there is no state law on the books to make parents responsible for accidental shootings involving children. Moore says that’s why prosecutors can’t charge parents for criminal negligence in allowing these kids to get ahold of a gun.

cut 12 (07) “had it”

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Voters will have a lot to consider on November 8th. In addition to the federal elections and local races, six constitutional amendments are on the ballot. The Public Affairs Research Council published a guide that explains the proposals to voters. PAR president Robert Travis Scott says three of the amendments will have a big impact on state policy, and one will affect college tuition.

Cut 13 (11) “vote”

Scott says amendment number three would change the state’s corporate tax income structure. He says Louisiana has an upper rate of 8-percent for corporate income taxes, which is relatively high compared to other states in the region. But he says companies are able to take a lot of deductions and exemptions.

cut 14 (11) “for corporations”

Scott says amendment five would create a new state fund, similar to the rainy day fund. He says the Revenue Stabilization Trust Fund would trim tax revenue off the top of mineral and corporate taxes during times when they are good, and put that money back to save for when the cycle goes back down.

Cut 15 (12) “for it”

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LSU and Southern Miss were tied at ten at halftime on Saturday night in Death Valley, but the Tigers erupted for four 3rd quarter touchdowns and defeated the Golden Eagles 45-10.  Running back Derrius Guice’s 61 yard touchdown early in the third quarter started a very good second half for the Tigers…

Cut 16  (13)  “second half”

Guice finished with 162 yards rushing and two touchdowns. Danny Etling threw for 3 touchdowns and 276 yards. Etling talked about what Coach Orgeron said at halftime…

Cut 17 (10) “pretty nice”

Etling threw two long touchdown passes in the game, one to DJ Chark and the other to Malachi Dupre. Orgeron liked that LSU was able to hit on a few deep balls…

Cut 18 (11) “stiffer opponents”

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The Saints have a winning streak. New Orleans raced out to a 21-0 lead over the defending NFC championship Carolina Panthers and had to hold for a 41-38 victory. The Saints led by two touchdowns at halftime and Carolina tied it with three touchdowns in the 4th quarter. But rookie Will Lutz kicked a 52-yard field goal with 11 seconds left for the win. Coach Sean Payton on their second consecutive victory

Cut 19 (11)   “do that”

Quarterback Drew Brees threw for 465 yards and four touchdowns, he was also intercepted once. Brandin Cooks had 7 catches for 173 yards and one touchdown. But the 52-yard field goal by Lutz was the difference. Payton is very high on the 22-year-old.

cut 20 (18) ” mental toughness”

16:30 LRN Newscast October 14th

At the second meeting of the Restore Louisiana Task Force, Congressman Garret Graves urges members to move quickly as more federal aid is coming. Don Molino has more…
Cut 2 (30) “I’m Don Molino”

The Louisiana Department of Health has been able to confirm 30 cases of the West Nile Virus that’s four more cases than what the state agency reported towards the end of September. Seventeen cases are the more serious form of the disease that can impact your brain and nervous system. Last year, there were 56 cases of West Nile.

Officials announce plans to dispose volatile explosives at Camp Minden in Webster Parish that led to a bunker exploding in September. Department of Environmental Quality Secretary Chuck Brown says there are three bunkers that contain Clean Burning Ignitor, which is becoming more unstable. He says on Monday they will open the doors of one of the bunkers and let the fire out.
cut 3 (12) “…taking off”
Brown says if it goes well Monday, they’ll burn the other two bunkers later this month.

A 14-year-old and 12-year-old have been arrested for damaging grave sites at a cemetery in Independence. The Tangipahoa Parish Sheriff’s office says the juveniles also dumped seven urns contiaining human ashes. Vincent Spitale, president of the Colonial Cemetery Association, says family members of those whose graves were damaged came to see the destruction…
cut 14 (07) “….this time”
The juvenile offenders are facing multiple charges.