Shreveport Representative Barbara Norton’s bill that would provide equal pay for women is set for a hearing today in the House Labor Committee. Scott Carwile reports…

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The House Criminal Justice Committee advanced the so-called revenge porn bill Tuesday without objection. Michelle Southern reports..:

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The East Baton Rouge Parish Sheriff’s office says they’ve arrested a teacher from Christian Life Academy for allegedly having sex with a student two years ago. Jeff Palermo reports…:

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Shreveport Representative Barbara Norton’s bill that that would provide equal pay for women gets a hearing today in the House Labor Committee. Norton says this bill is necessary since the number of single parent households are on the rise. She says this measure would help these women provide for their families…

cut 4  (11) “families have”

Some critics of Norton’s legislation say that this measure would duplicate existing federal law. Norton says laws regarding equal pay for women may be on the books, but they are not being enforced…

Cut 5  (09)  “at a dollar”

Norton filed similar legislation last year that failed to pass. According to recent Census data, Louisiana women are paid about two-thirds of what men are paid, the largest gender pay gap in the nation. Norton says she’ll fight for as long as it takes to ensure equal pay for women in Louisiana…

Cut 6 (07)  “the right thing”

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The House Criminal Justice Committee advanced the so-called revenge porn bill Tuesday without objection. The legislation by Kenner Representative Julie Stokes would make it illegal for someone 17 and older to share a sexual picture of a person without their consent, usually online. She says the measure would make it a crime to cause someone harm or emotional distress in this manner…:

CUT 7 (09)  “the image”

HB 489 now heads to the full House for further consideration. Stokes says there are already laws about this for minors but she thinks something needs to be put in place for young adults…:

Cut 8  (14)  “without consent” 

The offense would be punishable up to a $10,000 fine and/or two years in prison. Stokes says because technology has enabled most young adults to have phones on them with cameras all the time, this form of harassment has become a common problem…:

Cut 9 (08)  “prolific”

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The East Baton Rouge Parish Sheriff’s office says they’ve arrested a teacher from Christian Life Academy for allegedly having sex with a student two years ago. Spokeswoman Casey Rayborn Hicks says they received the complaint from the mother of the victim…:

Cut 10 (10) “at her residence”

Hicks says when they brought 27-year-old Amber Anderson in for questioning, she admitted to the relationship and was booked with felony carnal knowledge of a juvenile. She says the mother did not know what the teacher was doing with her son at the time…:

cut 11 (10) “just recently”

Hicks says it’s always a shame when they have to work crimes that involve juveniles…:

cut 12 (06)   “and responsibility”

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Smoking is no longer permitted in bars, casinos and most public places in New Orleans as the Big Easy’s new smoke free ordinance went into effect at midnight. Founding Dean of the LSU Health New Orleans School of Public Health, Doctor Elizabeth Fontham (FON-them), says it should have a positive effect on tourism

Cut 13 (07)  “of the smoking”

Doctor Fontham led the largest and most comprehensive study that looked at women, who never smoked, but had lung cancer. She says the study found that long-term exposure to secondhand cigarette smoke could increase a women’s risk of lung cancer as high as 86-percent

Cut 14 (06) “the risk became”

Fontham is a Crowley native and she’s pleased to see the Lafayette city-parish council will consider an ordinance on May fifth to ban smoking in bars and clubs there

Cut 15  (10)  “will greatly benefit”

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The Saints 2015 schedule is out and New Orleans will open the season at Arizona on September 13th and then host Tampa on September 20th in the Mercedes-Benz Superdome. NFL analyst Mike Detillier says the schedule gets really tough when New Orleans hosts Dallas in a Sunday night game on October 4th…

Cut 16  (20)  “season long”

The Saints will play three primetime games this year, they’ve played more in previous seasons. But Detillier says that’s still a good number considering the team went 7 and 9 last year…

Cut 17 (06)  “the past”

Detillier says the final month of the season shapes up well for the Saints. They have home games against the Lions and Jaguars and visit Tampa and finish the season at Atlanta. He says that should allow New Orleans to make a strong playoff push…

Cut 18 (13) ” ten wins”‘

We’re into week two of the legislative session and nothing has emerged from lawmakers on how to address the one-point-six billion dollar budget deficit. Eric Gill reports…

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Blue Bell Ice Cream has recalled every single one of its products everywhere on continued threats of a Listeria Bacteria. Michelle Southern reports…:

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Walker Police says a man accused of raping a woman at knifepoint at a Livingston Parish laundromat has been arrested. Captain John Sharp says the incident occurred late Sunday night. He says the victim was approached by the suspect asking if she had any spare change…

CUT 3 (10)  “the rape occurred”

He says when the victim told the suspect she had no spare change, he produced a knife and forced the victim into a bathroom where he raped her and stole money from her purse. Sharp says the laundromat has a good surveillance system and authorities were able to review the surveillance video quickly…

CUT 4 (06)  “of Walker”

40-year-old Lionel Myles of Walker was arrested and charged with aggravated rape, aggravated assault, battery, and armed robbery. Sharp says crimes like this are rare in Walker, so when it occurs, they take it very seriously…

CUT 5 (07)  “is owed that”

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We’re into week two of the legislative session and nothing has emerged from lawmakers on how to address the one-point-six billion dollar budget deficit. Jeremy Alford, publisher of la-politics-dot-com, says a key bill to remove the inventory tax credit was shelved, because there’s not enough votes to get it passed out of Senate Revenue and Fiscal Affairs….

CUT 6 (08)  “square one”

Alford says what makes this challenging for the legislature is Jindal’s revenue neutrality policy which they have to follow…

CUT 7 (11) “in savings”

Legislators believe if they repeal the inventory tax credit, they could offset the expected $500 million in tax savings with the same amount in tax increases. Alford says, with eight weeks left in the legislative session, no one really knows what to expect…

CUT 8 (06)  “play out”

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The reward for information about those responsible for the gruesome beheading of a goat, which was recorded with a cell phone, is now $14,000. Louisiana SPCA spokesperson Destinie Hammond says their members are disgusted by the video showing a group of young men cutting off the animal’s head with a machete type sword…:

CUT 9 (09)  “offer donations”

Hammond says the graphic video shows the culprits standing in a circle around a plastic swimming pool with a string tied around the goat’s neck before one of them beheads the animal…:

cut 10 (10) “very horrific”

Hammond says they got the video from a New Orleans University police officer, but they aren’t sure where the incident actually took place. She says if your tip leads to the arrest and conviction of those involved, the money will be paid out and you will be kept anonymous…:

cut 11 (06)  “or Crimestoppers”

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Blue Bell Ice Cream has recalled every single one of its products everywhere on continued threats of a Listeria Bacteria. Authorities now believe there are 10 listeria illnesses linked to the ice cream over the last 5 years. State Epidemiologist Dr. Raoult Ratard says once the CDC put two and two together with these sicknesses, the company has to act..:

cut 12 (08)  “physicians know”

DHH says there have been no recorded illnesses of listeria infections in Louisiana so far. Ratard says if you have any Blue Bell ice cream in your fridge, throw it away and do not eat it. He says the people most at risk of getting an infection caused by listeria are those with low immune systems…:

cut 13 (05)  “very wrong”

The Blue Bell recall includes all of its ice cream, frozen yogurt, sherbet and other frozen treats. Ratard says listeria causes infections which start with high fever and if you think Blue Bell ice cream has made you sick, seek medical attention right away…:

cut 14 (10) “get sick”

Today marks the fifth anniversary of the Deepwater Horizon explosion and a documentary filmmaker says the event and aftermath still affect people who were involved. Eric Gill reports…

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According to Gasbuddy.com, the price of gasoline in Louisiana is up 6 cents over last week. Michelle Southern reports…:

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Today marks the fifth anniversary of the Deepwater Horizon explosion and a documentary filmmaker says the event and aftermath still affect the people who were involved. Margaret Brown, director and producer of the documentary “The Great Invisible”, says it was difficult to hear stories from workers on the rig who are still suffering from nightmares and PTSD…

CUT 3 (08)  “to listen to”

But she says these stories are important for people to hear. “The Great Invisible” airs tonight at 9:30 on LPB. Brown says her documentary explores how this disaster has affected more than just the oil industry…

CUT 4 (07)  “are impacted”

Brown, a native of Mobile, AL, says seeing the impact the oil spill had on the Gulf Coast was both fascinating and sometimes really sad. She traveled to small towns and cities to explore the lasting legacy of the disaster on the Gulf Coast region. Brown feels more should be done to prevent another disaster like this…

CUT 5 (07)  “should know”

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Gas prices have been steadily increasing over the past week. According to Gasbuddy.com the current statewide average for a gallon of regular is $2.23. Senior Petroleum Analyst Gregg Laskoski says what we’re paying at the pump today is 6 cents higher in Louisiana than this time last week..:

CUT 6 (10)  “and change”

Laskoski says the good news is that prices today are about $1.24 less than what we were paying a year ago. He says part of the reason for the increase this week in crude oil prices is an overreaction by traders to data that came out from the Department of Energy showing a bump in inventory…:

CUT 7 (10) “this year”

Laskoski believes over the next few months there will be more downward pressure on the market than upward pressure. He says if that happens the price at the pump would start going down again, if not in the next few weeks at least by late May, early June as we get into peak summer driving season…:

CUT 8 (09)  “declining prices”

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US Senator David Vitter announces that he has raised over $5.2 million in his bid to become Louisiana’s next governor. More than $1.1 million dollars was raised in the first quarter of 2015 and the campaign reports it has $4.2 million in cash on hand. ULM Political Science Professor Joshua Stockley says Vitter is off to a good start…

CUT 9 (12)  “15 million”

Vitter held a commanding lead among announced gubernatorial candidates in fundraising at the end of 2014 with $4.1 million raised. Stockley says Vitter has an edge over the other candidates because he’s been able to establish relationships with interest groups across the nation over the last 10 years as a US Senator…

cut 10 (10) “to Louisiana”

A political action committee that’s been set up to help Vitter has another 3.5 million dollars in cash on hand. With about six months before the election, Stockley says it is possible for Jay Dardenne, Scott Angelle, and John Bel Edwards can catch up to Vitter’s fundraising efforts. He says the other candidates need to distinguish themselves from Vitter and use their differences to impress local groups…

cut 11 (10)  “Washington, DC”

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A bill that would taper off the transfer of money from the state’s road and bridge fund to state police clears the House appropriations committee. The measure would limit the of dollars going to LSP from the Transportation Trust Fund to $40 million starting in July, then $25 million next year and $10 million in future years. Lafayette Representative Terry Landry is the bill’s author…:

cut 12 (12)  “for other needs”

Landry, a former state police commander, says he would never do anything which would adversely impact that agency, but robbing Peter to pay Paul is not a good way to do business…:

cut 13 (09)  “$12 billon dollars behind”

The proposal now heads to the House floor for further consideration. Landry says right now the state diverts about $65 million a year from the Transportation Trust Fund to state police. He says citizens are demanding improved travel conditions in Louisiana…:

cut 14 (11) “Transportation Trust Fund”

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