06:30 LRN Newscast March 11

A frantic search is underway for four missing soldiers from a Hammond, Louisiana-based National Guard unit. They were on a helicopter, along with seven marines, performing a training exercise in the Florida panhandle last night when officials say there chopper crashed. Rescue crews found debris at around two o’ clock this morning, but no soldiers.

We’re learning more about the deputy US Marshal who was fatally shot yesterday. He’s been identified as 27-year-old Josie Wells, a Mississippi native, who attended Jackson State and joined the U-S Marshal Service in 2011. Authorities say Wells was fatally shot by Jamie Croom, who was wanted for a double muder that occurred last month in Pointe Coupee Parish.

Democratic state Representative and gubernatorial candidate John Bel Edwards receives an endorsement from the Louisiana AFL-CIO. Scott Carwile has more…
cut 1 (29) “…reporting”

The Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries have cited two men for allegedly changing freshness dates on seafood packages by almost three years. LDWF spokesman Adam Einck says during a routine inspection of a wholesale seafood facility in New Orleans, they found two men changing packaging on frozen mahi-mahi filets which originally had a freshness date of September 2013…
cut 7 (09) “…2016”
Einck says the two men cited face hefty fines and possible jail time.

And all of southeast Louisiana remains under a flash flood watch until Friday afternoon.

LRN Newscast 17:30 March 10

The Saints have made a shocking trade as they’ve reportedly sent Pro Bowl tight end Jimmy Graham and a fourth round pick to Seattle in exchange for a first round pick and center Max Ungar. Saints radio color analyst Hokie Gajan’s reaction to the blockbuster deal…
cut 30 (11) “…I guess’
Graham signed a four-year, 40-million dollar contract last year.

Flash flood watches are posted across much of the southern half of the state, including Alexandria, Lafayette Houma and over to Slidell. Mike Shields, with the National Weather service, says these areas could receive repeat showers and thunderstorms with heavy rainfall, throughout the course of this weather event…
cut 5 (06) “….low lying ares”
He says some isolated areas could receive up to eight inches.

According to a new General Social Survey, 32-percent of Americans either own a firearm or live in a household with guns, but a local dealer says that could be misleading. Eric Gill has more…
cut 2 (28) “…reporting”

Triumph Campaigns has polled this year’s governor’s race, and found that Republican US Senator David Vitter leading Democratic Amite Representative John Bel Edwards by just two percentage points. In the Lt. Governor’s race, Democratic Baton Rouge Mayor Kip Holden leads the field In the Attorney General’s race, incumbent Republican Buddy Caldwell and Democratic Alexandria Mayor Jacques Roy are tied.

LRN Sportscast 16:45 March 10

It may go down as one of the biggest trades in franchise history. The Saints have reportedly sent Pro-Bowl tight end Jimmy Graham and a fourth round pick to Seattle for Seahawks center Max Unger and a first round pick in this year’s NFL draft. Reports of the trade started coming out around three o’ clock just as the NFL free agency period began.

NFL analyst Mike Detillier says the Saints have three areas on their football roster that need to improve and offensive line is one of those….
cut 18 (11) “….free agency”
Unger is considered one of the best centers in the NFL, even though he’s coming off a season where he missed ten games because of injuries.

In other Saints news…running back Reggie Bush is consdering a possible return to the Saints and cornerback Keenan Lewis wants the remaining three years of his contract guaranteed or else he wants to be cut.

The Pelicans are at Brooklyn tonight. A win for New Orleans and they move into a tie with Oklahoma City for the final playoff spot in the Western Conference. Tyreke Evans will not play tonight for the Pels, after injuring his ankle in last night’s win over the Bucks.

LSU’s Jarell Martin and Jordan Mickey have been named first team All-SEC players. Mickey is also on the All-SEC defensive team.

ULM’s Keith Richard has been named Sun Belt Coach of the Year. The Warhawks finished third in the league this year.

The Ragin Cajuns head into the Sun Belt Tournament on a six-game winning streak. They’ll play on Friday against either U-T Arlington or Texas State. The Cajuns won the tourney last year and Coach Bob Marlin believes his team can do it again, based on how they are playing….
cut 20 (13) “….of the year”

11:40 LRN Sportscast March 10

NFL teams can begin signing free agents this afternoon and football analyst Mike Detillier says the Saints biggest needs are at cornerback and and offensive line. Detillier says the team also needs to revamp their linebacking corps as well. He says the Saints don’t have a lot of money to spend, because of the salary cap, but that won’t stop them from getting the players they need…
cut 17 (08) “….free agency”
The Saints have freed up some money releasing veteran linebacker Curtis Lofton and re-working Junior Galette’s deal.

Anthony Davis played like an MVP last night as he scored 43 points and hit several big shots down the stretch to lead the Pelicans to a 114 to 103 victory over the Milwaukee Bucks. Davis also had 10 rebounds for his 34th double-double of the season. New Orleans is at Brookyln tonight.

Jordan Mickey and Jarrell Martin have been named first team All SEC as selected by the league’s coaches. Martin is averaging close to 17 points per a game, while Mickey is averaging 16 points a contest. Mickey has also been named to the all-sec defensive team.

U-L-M’s Keith Richard has been named the coach of the year in the Sun Belt…
cut 30 (12) “….to the tournament”
The Warhawks will play either South Alabama or Arkansas Little Rock in the Sun Belt Tournament on Friday.

Also, U-L-M’s Tylor Ongwae and UL Lafayette’s Shawn Long have been named to the first team Sun Belt All Conference squad.

And Louisiana Tech’s Kenneth Smith and Michale Kyser have been named to the Conference USA All-Defensive team.

The Boys top tournament gets underway today in Lake Charles. Tonight it’s the Class Five-A semifinals.

LRN Sportscast 16:45

The roster purge continued for the Saints today as the team has cut linebacker Curtis Lofton. The move is expected to free up four-million dollars in salary cap space. The 28-year Lofton had 144 tackles last season, fourth most in the NFL. New Orleans had to move Lofton, because they need to get under the NFL’s salary cap by tomorrow afternoon.

Spring football is underway for LSU and it’s an opportunity for new defensive coordinator Kevin Steele to install his defense. Coach Les Miles says the Tigers “D” will look familiar to fans…
cut 18 (15) “….carry over”
It doesn’t look like defensive tackle Travonte Valentine will be involved in Kevin Steel’s defense. Miles says Valentine is not a guy they are counting on at this point. NOLA-dot-com reports Valentine is dealing with personal issues.

The Pelicans will continue their playoff push tonight against the Milwaukee Bucks. New Orleans is coming off a win over Memphis on Saturday and Anthony Davis has been playing at a high level in the three games he’s played since returning from a shoulder injury, during that stretch he’s averaged 30 points and 12 rebounds a game. Tip-off is at 7 PM.

LSU’s Keith Hornsby has been named a co-Louisiana Sports Writers Association’s Men’s Basketball Player of the Week. Hornsby hit the game winning three-pointer against Arkansas on Saturday to help the Tigers get the four seed in the SEC Tournament.

The other winner is Southeastern Louisiana guard Cedric Jenkins, who had 39 points in a loss to UNO last week. S-L-U has lost five in a row, but they are still in the Southland Tournament. The Lions are an eight seeed and they’ll face McNeese State at five P-M on Wednesday in Katy, Texas.

And in college baseball…LSU is ranked number one by Baseball America. The Tigers are coming off a weekend in which they beat Houston, Baylor and Nebraska at a tournament in Houston.

PM LRN Newscall for March 9

A state audit looking at the “Road Home” program finds that $939 million was given out to homeowners who did not comply with the rules. Eric Gill reports…

CUT 1 (31) “reporting”

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Central Casting Louisiana is looking for people with oil rig, merchant marine, and Coast Guard experience to work on the upcoming feature film, “Deepwater Horizon”. Eric Gill has more…

CUT 2 (28) “reporting”

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A state audit looking at the “Road Home” program finds that $939 million was given out to homeowners who did not comply with the rules of the program. Legislative Auditor Daryl Purpera says recipients had certain requirements and deadlines to meet…

CUT 3 (11)  “supposed to get”

“Road Home” was set up following Hurricanes Katrina and Rita to help homeowners repair and reoccupy their homes. Purpera says it’s possible the federal government will ask the state to return the money that was not used appropriately, but he says the feds also understand the complexity of the program…

CUT 4 (09)  “the very beginning”

Purpera the $939 million in noncompliant funds s just the tip of the iceberg…

CUT 5 (10)  “costs out there”

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Central Casting Louisiana is looking for people with oil rig, merchant marine, and Coast Guard experience to work on the upcoming feature film, “Deepwater Horizon”. Director of Casting, Adam Hochfeld (HOCK-feld), says this movie is based on the 2010 Deepwater Horizon explosion…

CUT 6 (11)  “in that tragedy”

He says the movie will tell the story of the rig workers on the platform when the explosion took place and the rescue of them. Those interested can e-mail their information, including work experience, to deepwater-at-centralcasting-dot-com. Hochfeld says they’re looking for people with various experience working on a rig…

CUT 7 (09)  “story of it”

The film will star Mark Wahlberg. The movie will be shot in New Orleans and production is expected to begin in May. Hochfeld says these are paying roles and there are some additional perks, as well…

CUT 8 (10)  “A-list celebrities”

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Lt. Governor Jay Dardenne says swimming pools at four north Louisiana state parks will be closed this summer because they don’t have enough money to open them. Dardenne oversees the office of state parks and says mid year budget cuts have caused the office to make significant reductions in spending…:

CUT 9 (08)  “for this summer”

Dardenne says these closures do not impact the wave pool at Bayou Segnette (Sin-yet) State Park in Westwego and beach swimming will still be available. He says if the closures affect people who made reservations expecting to have a pool, they will be taking cancellations…:

cut 10 (07) “impacted”

(Swimming pools at Chemin-A-Haut, Lake Bistineau, Lake D’Arbonne and North Toledo Bend state parks will not open for summer 2015.) Dardenne says it’s too early to say if the pools will open back up for summer 2016 because that will depend on the next fiscal year’s budget which begins July 1…:

cut 11 (09)  “do that”

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Trilby Lundberg, which monitors gas prices across the country, says Baton Rouge has the lowest national average gas price in the country at $2.16. Gas-buddy-dot-com’s Gregg Laskoski  says Louisiana’s statewide average of $2.24, ranks in the top ten for lowest gas prices in the nation

cut 12 (07)  “state taxes”

The lowest statewide average in the country is Wyoming and South Carolina at $2.14 a gallon. Laskoski says gas prices have been rising since the start of February and he expects that trend to continue…

cut 13 (05)  “week or two”

Laskoski says Louisiana has the seventh lowest statewide average in the country, just behind Alabama and Mississippi….

cut 14 (10)  “in the nation”

11:40 LRN Sportscast March 9

The LSU Tigers won all three of its baseball games in Houston this past weekend and they are now ranked number one by Baseball America. The Tigers completed the weekend sweep with a four to two win over Nebraska. Conner Hale drove in two runs and Jake Godfrey pitched seven strong innings for his third win on the season. LSU is now ranked fourth in both the D-1 baseball-dot-com poll and Perfect Game.

The Ragin Cajuns are off to a 3-and-0 start in the Sun Belt as U-L Lafayette swept Troy. The Cajuns beat the Trojans ten to five yesterday as senior first baseman Greg Davis drove in five runs.

Northwestern State is 3-and-0 in Southland play. The Demons took three from Lamar, while Southeastern Louisiana, McNeese and Nicholls took two out of three from their repsective opponents.

In college basketball…Louisiana Tech’s Speedy Smith was named to the Conference USA First Team for a second straight year.

Over the weekend, the Saints signed running back Mark Ingram to a four-year, 16-million dollar contract. Ingram will reportedly receive seven-point-six million in guaranteed money and a 3-point-six million dollar signing bonus and the cap hit for this year is one-point-nine million dollars.

Spring football is underway for the LSU Tigers. Coach Les Miles says quarterbacks Brandon Harris and Anthony Jennings have matured since the end of the 2014 season…
cut 17 (19) “….those things”
LSU’s next practice is tomorrow.

Tonight the Pelicans are at Milwaukee. New Orleans is one game back of Oklahoma City for the final playoff spot in the Western Conference.

LRN AM Newscall Monday March 9th ##sports cuts have been added##

With the beginning of Daylight Saving Time over the weekend, everyone lost an hour of sleep. But State Police says that’s no excuse to drive fatigued. Eric Gill reports…

CUT 1 (28) “reporting”

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Lafayette has been named as one of the top 20 hardest working cities in the US by the personal finance site badcredit-dot-org. Michelle Southern reports…

Cut 2 (30) “reporting”

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A Baton Rouge lawmaker will file a bill for the upcoming legislative session that seeks to let citizens vote on whether or not marijuana should be legal in Louisiana for recreational use. Michelle Southern reports…:

Cut 3 (32) “reporting”

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With the beginning of Daylight Saving Time over the weekend, everyone lost an hour of sleep. But State Police says that’s no excuse to drive fatigued. Sgt. Nick Manale says they often see accidents that were caused by sleepy drivers, so it’s imperative to be sharp behind the wheel…

cut 4  (08)  “roadway, there”

Manale says if you do feel yourself becoming fatigued while driving, there are some things you can do to help yourself…

Cut 5  (06)  “do something”

Manale suggests pulling over and getting a breath of fresh air, stepping out of the car, or getting something to drink as ways you can revive yourself if you begin to feel fatigued behind the wheel. Manale says sleepy driving can be as dangerous as impaired or distracted driving…

Cut 6 (10)  “avoiding crashes”

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A Louisiana physician is working on a way to perfect a permanent solution to sleep apnea. The condition, which causes people to not get enough air while they are sleeping, affects more than three million people in the US. Dr. G. E. Ghali, an oral surgeon and instructor with LSU Health Shreveport, says apnea patients are often given CPAP masks to ensure oxygen flow but the problem there is compliance…:

CUT 7 (08)  “necessarily fit”

Ghali says since CPAP masks aren’t perfect, some people choose surgery that removes excess tissue down the throat and at the base of the tongue. He says they’ve come up with a treatment for that which uses the daVinci Robot inside a person’s mouth…:(Ghali says if you are interested in learning more about the procedure, call 318-675-6101.)

Cut 8  (11)  “in the pallet” 

Ghali says recovery from the surgery can take several weeks, but many patients report that after a month or two they are feeling better, sleeping better and sleeping in bed with their spouse again. He says they’ve had a 90% success rate in the surgery permanently opening up airways of sleep apnea patients…:

Cut 9 (04)  “a mask, comfortably”

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Lafayette has been named as one of the top 20 hardest working cities in the US by the personal finance site badcredit-dot-org. Editor Steven Richmond says about 350 cities were ranked on four separate categories for this report…

Cut 10 (08) “making the list”

Richmond says they looked at percentage of population over age 16 in the workforce, average commute times, percentage of households with children, and average number of hours worked each week to compile their list. He says Lafayette scored high in the number of people in the workforce…

cut 11 (09) “in Lafayette”

Richmond says they used data from the US Census Bureau and the Bureau of Labor Statistics. He says says this list represents some of the busiest, hardest working, and most workaholic populations in the US…

cut 12 (11)  “they put in”

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A Baton Rouge lawmaker will file a bill for the upcoming legislative session that seeks to let citizens vote on whether or not marijuana should be legal in Louisiana for recreational use. Representative Dalton Honore is also bringing back his medical marijuana bill which failed last year. He says people should be able to vote on the recreational pot law…:

Cut 13 (09)  “with the legislators”

Recreational marijuana for adult use is legal in Oregon, Washington D.C., Colorado, Alaska and Washington. Honore says he hopes other lawmakers will get on board with letting people decide whether or not marijuana for recreational use should be legal…:

Cut 14 (08) “people vote for it”

The legislative session begins April 13th. Honore says regardless of how lawmakers feel about the recreational use of marijuana, they should at least allow the issue to be put on a ballot…:

Cut 15  (08)  “in 2016”

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Spring football is underway for the LSU Tigers. A point of emphasis is the passing game. The Tigers ranked 114th in the country in pass offense last year and Coach Les Miles says they will throw it a lot this spring

Cut 16  (11)  “will be fun”

Anthony Jennings and Brandon Harris will once again battle to be the starting quarterback. It’s the second spring practice for Harris, while Jennings is looking to be the starter for a second consecutive year. Miles says both Q-Bs have matured since last year

Cut 17 (19)  “those things”

Spring practice gives new LSU defensive coordinator Kevin Steele a chance to install his defense. Miles says the Tigers ‘D” should look to familiar to fans

Cut 18 (15) “carry over’

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LRN Newscast 17:30 March 5

The yo-yoing of the temperatures makes us more susceptible to sickness according to experts. But James Diaz, the Program Director of Occupational Health Sciences at LSU Health New Orleans, says there are things you can do to protect yourself…:
CUT 12 (09) “last fall”
Diaz says immune systems can weaken when temperatures swing from hot to cold.

No more elephants at the Ringling Brothers and Barnum and Bailey Circus. The company announces the phase out of the act by 2018. Humane Society of Louisiana Executive Director Jeff Dorson says it’s about time as negative reinforcement is often used to train these elephants…:
CUT 14 (07) “public’s wishes”
Horses, dogs, tigers and other animals will continue to be used in the shows.

The Terrebonne Parish Sheriff’s office says a mother in Houma dragged her daughter around by her hair, made her drink hot sauce and whipped her with a belt for punishment. Captain Dawn Foret says they got a call from a local junior high where the 13-year-old victim attended school…:
CUT 5 (10) “from her mother”
Detectives confirmed the child had severe bruising on many areas of her body. The mother, 33-year-old Gricelda Mejia (Gra-Sil-Da, Ma-Hee-A) was arrested for one count of cruelty to a juvenile.

The Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries has cited a New Iberia man for allegedly killing a Louisiana Black bear in St. Mary Parish. Agents say 52-year-old Richard Picard Junior was hog hunting and Picard claims he mistakenly identified the black bear as a wild hog. Picard faces hundreds of dollars in fines and possible jail time as well.

LRN sportscast 16:45 March 5

Many Saints fans are sad over the news the Black and Gold have released Pierre Thomas, who ends his career in New Orleans as the team’s fourth leading rusher. NFL analyst Mike Detillier says the fans love him and he’s very active with the community and quick to speak to the media, but this is about winning games…
cut 15 (13) “…paying you”
By releasing the 30-year-old Thomas, the Saints save nearly two-million dollars against the salary cap.

The team has also reportedly restructered free safety Jairus Byrd’s contract by converting his roster bonus to a signing bonus. The move reportedly saves New Orleans another five-million dollars, but the team still has another 16-million dollars in salary cap money to shed by March 10th.

There are some big college basketball games in the state of Louisiana tonight. In Monroe, the Warhawks host Georgia State. Both teams are involved in a three-way tie for first place in the Sun Belt. ULM Coach Keith Richard likes the challenge in front of his team by playing the Panthers…
cut 18 (13) “….doing this”
A few miles away from Monroe, Louisiana Tech hosts Southern Miss. A Bulldogs win and they’ll win the Conference USA title outright. In Lafayette, the Ragin Cajuns have won four in a row as they host Arkansas Little Rock tonight. Coach Bob Marlin credits improved play on defense…
cut 19 (13) “…NCAA Tournament (2x)