Author Archives: Jeff Palermo

04.27.16
by

14:30 LRN Newscast April 27

A state Senate Committee approves a bill to extend the waiting period for an abortion from 24 to 72 hours. Michelle Southern has more…
voicer 1 (26) “…I’m Michelle Southern”

The House Criminal Justice Committee shot down a proposal to require movie theaters to install metal dectectors. Prairieville Representative Tony Bacala voted against it…
cut 8 (07) “….do anything”
Last summer a gunman walked into a Lafayette movie theater and killed two people and injured several more.

The FBI is once again investigating the disappearance of a two-year-old boy from his East Feliciana Parish home 15 years ago. Billboards featuring what Wesley Morgan might look like today are popping up . Former WAFB reporter Avery Davidson covered Wesley’s disapearance 15 years ago…
cut 14 (08) “….Wesley Dale”
The FBI is offering up to a 10-thousand dollar reward for information that leads to Wesley’s location.

Louisiana Humane Society Executive Director Jeff Dorson says they have evidence that a dog was beaten and then burned in a fire pit at New Orleans City Park. . He says they are also asking the public to keep the memory of the City Park Dog in their hearts….
cut 5 (07) “…short life”
Dorson says they’ve issued a city-wide animal abuse alert, as they look those responsible.

04.27.16
by

LRN PM Newscall April 27

The Senate Health and Welfare Committee approved a bill to extend the waiting period for an abortion from 24 to 72 hours. Michelle Southern has more…

CUT 1 (26)  “I’m Michelle Southern”

================

The FBI is reopening the 15-year-old case of a little boy who went missing from his front porch in Clinton. Emelie Gunn has more…

CUT 2 (26)  “I’m Emelie Gunn”

===================

A horrifying display of animal abuse is breaking hearts across the state. A small dog was brutally beaten and thrown into a fire in New Orleans’ City Park. That’s according to Jeff Dorson, Executive Director of the Louisiana Humane Society, who says this is one of the most tragic cases of abuse he’s ever seen. He says the dog was beaten around the head, the muzzle and the jaw.

CUT 3 (11)  “the pit”

The unnamed dog is being affectionately referred to as the City Park Dog. Dorson says they are still trying to find the people responsible for this gruesome crime, because they are clearly dangerous.

CUT 4 (06)  “of time”

Dorson says the Humane Society is asking people to be vigilant for signs of animal abuse. He says the society has issued the first ever city-wide animal abuse alert in the hopes of bringing those responsible to justice. Until then, he’s asking the public to keep the memory of the City Park Dog in their hearts.

CUT 5 (07)  “short life”

====================================================

A bill that would require movie theaters to use metal detectors was defeated in a House committee today. Prairieville Rep. Tony Bacala says this legislation creates a false sense of security. He says if someone wants to shoot up a movie theater, the first person to be killed is the 18-year-old minimum wage worker manning the metal detector.

CUT 6 (10) “to react”

Author of the legislation, Shreveport Rep. Barbara Norton, says this bill is about protecting the lives of our loved ones. She was upset that many of her colleagues voted against the measure.

CUT 7 (07) “our children”

The vote was 6-5 against the legislation. Bacala says the people who would work these metal detectors are not trained law enforcement officers and probably work the concession stand the day before.

CUT 8 (07) “do anything”

===================================================

A bill to extend the waiting period for getting an abortion to 72 hours has been approved by the Senate Health and Welfare Committee. Sancha Smith, the State Director for Concerned Women for America, spoke in favor of the measure and sharing her experience getting an abortion at 16-years-old.

CUT 9 (11) “better decision”

Smith says women need more time to consider all of their options, before making this decision.

cut 10 (07) “a life”

Angela Adkins with the Louisiana Organization for Women opposes the bill. She shared stories of women who died or suffered complications from illegal abortions and attempts to self-abort, because of restrictions to abortions.

Cut 11 (09) “more desperate”

Amy Irvin of the New Orleans Abortion Fund also spoke in opposition. She says although the waiting period is currently 24 hours, women can take as much time as they need after the consultation before having the procedure.

cut 12 (09) “the clinic”

The measure passed on a five to two vote and heads to the Senate floor.

===================================================

The FBI is reopening the case of a 2-year-old that went missing in Clinton 15 years ago. Avery Davidson is a former WAFB reporter who covered Wesley Morgan’s disappearance in 2001. Davidson says the child was playing on the front porch when his mother went inside and came back outside to find the little boy was gone. He says there was a huge search after his disappearance…

Cut 13 (10)  “he was”

Davidson spoke with Sheriff Bunch a few years ago and Bunch still believes the mother had something to do with the boy’s disappearance even though nothing ever turned up during the investigation. He says there must be a reason the FBI has reopened the case and released an age progression picture of Wesley Morgan.

cut 14 (08)  “Wesley Dale”

The FBI is offering up to a $10,000 reward for information that leads to Morgan’s location. Davidson says everyone is eager to find out what happened to Wesley Dale Morgan…

cut 15 (10) “15 years” 

===================================================

04.27.16
by

11:40 LRN Sportscast April 27

The only college football player from Louisiana that’s expected to be selected in tomorrow night’s first round of the NFL draft is former Bulldogs star Vernon Butler. Butler was a standout player on Louisiana Tech’s defensive line the last two seasons as he recorded over 100 tackles, nearly two dozen tackles for a loss and four sacks. NFL draft analyst Mike Detillier believes Butler will go late in the first round. Butler says he’s anxious to find out who he’ll play for…
cut 18 (08) “…get better”
Butler says he’s had individual work outs for Carolina, Tennessee, Tampa Bay, Buffalo and Seattle.

Saints General Manager Mickey Loomis spoke with reporters and denied an NFL Network report that said the Black and Gold tried to move up to get the number one pick so they can select a quarterback.

For the second time this season, Tulane starting pitcher JP France handcuffed LSU hitters and for the second time this year the Green Wave defeated the Tigers. France allowed one run on six hits and struck out six in 7.1 as the Greenies upended LSU four to one.

Elsewhere…Southern Miss scored five runs in the fifth inning and defeated UL Lafayette seven to two, Northwestern State rallied from a six-run deficit to beat Mississippi Valley 10-7. Stephen F Austin knocked off ULM 6-2. Louisiana Tech outscored McNeese 9-7. Sean Ullrich drove in three runs, including the game winner. And Alcorn defeated Grambling 11-8.

The first round of the Zurich Classic of New Orleans tees off tomorrow at the TPC Louisiana in suburban New Orleans. There are five former LSU Tigers in the field, two of the them are in the same threesome. Smylie Kaufman and David Toms will be joined by Charley Hoffman. when they tee off at 12:40 tomorrow.

04.27.16
by

10:30 Newscast April 27

The House Criminal Justice Committee is hearing legislation this morning that would require movie theathers to install metal detectors. Last summer a gunman walked into a Lafayette movie theater and killed two people and injured nine. Shreveport Representative Barbara Norton says nothing changes until you put something in place….
cut 5 (10) “….an effort”

A national report says Louisiana is not ready to handle a major health crisis. State Department of Health and Hospitals spokesperson Bob Johannessen says the report is a bit misleading. He says for instance, Louisiana gets penalized for using state agencies to man emergency shelters, while other states hire private contractors….
cut 9 (10) “….of work”

State Police have arrested an Amite man after he allegedly struck a bicyclist near Hammond and then fled the scene. The man on the bicycle ended up dying. Trooper Dustin Dwight says 32-year-old Brandon Fowler was taken into custody yesterday afternoon and he says Fowler’s Chevy pick-up has damage on the passenger side as the head light is busted out…
cut 16 (11) “…a bicycle”
The victim is 30-years-old and from Hammond.

State Police have issued a Level II Endangered Missing Child Advisory seeking 12-year-old Jalon Bradley who they say was taken from Mamou High School by his non-custodial mother and is believed to be in imminent danger. The woman is 34-year-old Elaine Freeman, a black female possibly driving a white SUV.

A severe thunderstorm watch is up until 3 PM for much of the southern half of the state and parishes along the Mississippi delta.

04.26.16
by

16:45 LRN Sportscast April 26

The NFL Network reports the Saints talked about trading some of their draft picks to acquire the number one overall pick, so they can select a quarterback. Mike Triplett with ESPN says those discussions never occurred, but the team is interested in drafting a QB as 37-year-old Drew Brees is entering the final year of his contract.

LSU and Tulane renew its rivalry on the baseball diamond when the two ranked teams meet at sold-out Turchin Stadium. The Green Wave is looking to sweep the season series as Tulane beat the Tigers 7-1 earlier this season at Alex Box Stadium.

UL Lafayette announced that it has added Houston to this year’s schedule. The Cajuns will travel down I-10 to play the Cougars on May 11th at 5 PM. Tonight, the Cajuns have another tough road midweek game as they visit Southern Miss.

Elsewhere tonight….ULM is at Stephen F Austin, Grambling hosts Alcorn and Northwestern State begins a two-game series against Mississippi Valley State.

Richie Riley was introduced as the new men’s basketball coach at Nicholls. The 33-year-old is the 11th head coach in Colonel men’s basketball hsitory. Riley was an assistant at Clemson the last two seasons. He’s also served as an assistant at UAB, Eastern Kentucky and Coastal Carolina. Riley played his college basketball at Eastern Kentucky.

The Pelicans television ratings on Fox Sports New Orleans dropped 32-percent from the previous season. That’s the fifth biggest drop in the league according to reasearch done by the Sports Business Journal. After making the playoffs in the 2014-15 season, New Orleans finished 22 games under five-hundred last season.

In the NBA playoffs…the Clippers have announced former Hornet Chris Paul is out indefinitely after undergoing surgery to fix his broken hand. Paul’s teammate Blake Griffin is out for the playoffs with an injured left quad.

Former Louisiana Tech star, Paul Millsap, and the Atlanta Hawks face the Boston Celtics tonight. That series is tied at two games a piece.

04.26.16
by

15:30 LRN Newscast April 26

A pro-voucher group is attacking John Bel Edwards in a new TV ad as they are criticizing the first year governor for cutting six million dollars from the state’s voucher program. Louisiana Federation for Children president Ann Duplessiss says 71-hundred students receive vouchers, but not all of them will get one next year, if the governor has his way….
cut 13 (09) “….school year’
Governor Edwards says the ad is blatantly false.

There’s a handful of bills in this session that attempt to regulate drone use. Baton Rouge Senator Dan Claitor has a couple of measures, one of them will make it illegal to fly a drone over someone’s property without their permission…
cut 5 (08) “…the government”
So far, the drone regulation bills have received very little opposition.

Legislation is moving to the Senate floor that deals with police body camera video. New Orleans Senator JP Morrell says it causes a lot of financial strain on police departments to save these body cam videos for three years, which is required by law…
cut 16 (07) “….really comprehend”
The legislation also addresses what video connected to a crime should be available to the public

An Alexandria teen is facing several charges including terrorizing after he allegedy made threats on social media about a potential incident that would occur at Alexanderia Senior High’s prom. Rapides Parish Sheriff’s office spokesperson, Lt. Tommy Carnline…
cut 6 (10) “….of justice”
The prom was Saturday night and the teen is held on a 21-thousand dollar bond.

04.26.16
by

14:30 LRN Newscast April 26

An ad airs today from the Louisiana Federation for Children, a pro-voucher group that shows parents of voucher students saying Governor Edwards lied to them by cutting the budget for taxpayer funded vouchers. Michelle Southern has more…
voicer 2 (26) “…I’m Michelle Southern”

The National Weather Service says it’s possible areas north of Interstate 10 will see a few severe storms tomorrow. There’s the potential for large hail, damaging winds and an isolated tornado from storms that will move through Texas today.

Houston-based Union Tank Car has infomed the Louisiana Workforce Commission that it will lay off about 224 employees in June. CEO of the Central Louisiana Economic Development Alliance, Jim Clinton, says they’ll try to assist employees anyway they can….
cut 11 (11) “…possibly do”
Union Tank car says they’ll continue to employ about 350 people.

A Senate committee has approved legislation that deals with police body camera footage and how much of it can be made available to the public. Lake Charles Senator Ronnie Johns says there needs to be some privacy safeguards but…
cut 15 (11) “…real transparency”
The legislation requires a court order for video that my violate a “reasonable expectation of privacy.”

04.26.16
by

11:40 LRN Sportscast April 26

The NFL Network’s Ian Rapaport reports the Saints discussed making a trade so they can get the number one pick and select a quarterback. But the trade was worth too many draft picks. However, Rapaport says the Saints are still looking to move up, as they are interested in selecting Memphis quarterback Paxton Lynch. Lynch’s agent, Leigh Steinberg, was on WWL Radio last night and said the Saints are one of the team’s interested in Lynch.

Saints quarterback Drew Brees is entering the final year of his contract. Brees appeared on the Dan Patrick show and said contract negotiations are ongoing and still plans on retiring as a Saint.

Former LSU quarterback JaMarcus Russell tells Sports Illustrated he would play for free if given another chance at the NFL. Russell hasn’t played in the NFL since 2009. The former number one pick says he still has the fire to play. He says he can start as a water boy and move his way on to the scout team.

In college baseball tonight…eighth ranked LSU is at 20th ranked Tulane. The game is a sell out as the Green Wave are looking for their first series sweep over the Tigers since 2007. Tulane beat the Tigers 7-1 earlier this season.

Elsewhere…the Ragin Cajuns are at 14th ranked Southern Miss. UL Lafayette is 27-13 and their RPI is 12. The Golden Eagles are 29-12 on the year. UNO visits Southern. The Privateers have won six in a row. Northwestern State faces Mississippi Valley State for the start of a two-game series. Grambling hosts Alcorn State and ULM visits Stephen F Austin. The Warhawks have lost four in a row.

Legislation that attempted to force changes with the LHSAA’s split playoff format was defeated in the House on a vote of 34 in favor and 51 opposed. River Ridge Representative Kirk Talbot is the author of the measure and says it isn’t right that the playoffs are split between public and private schools…
cut 15 (05) “…that hunt”

04.26.16
by

10:30 LRN Newscast April 26

The number of state food inspectors could be reduced, if lawmakers go along with the governor’s proposed budget that calls for an 11-percent reduction in inspectors. Department of Health and Hospitals spokesperson Bob Johannessen says they’re letting legislators know about the risks associated with cutting 16 sanitarians, plus food retailers welcome the inspections…
cut 6 (09) “….in general”

The statewide average price of gasoline is up to $1.93. That’s according to gas-buddy-dot-com. That’s a nickel increase over the last week and Gas Buddy’s Gregg Laskoski says the price at the pump will likely continue to increase for at least another month….
cut 9 (05) “….or June”
Laskoski says greater demand is helping to drive gas prices up.

Investigators from Iberville Parish are in Humble, Texas today, the hometown of the female found dead by fishermen under the I-10 bridge at Whiskey Bay. Iberville Sheriff Brett Stassi says at this time they have very few leads in 28-year-old Elizebeth Ferrell’s death…
cut 12 (09) “…quick recovery”
Stassi says an autopsy found that Ferrell was strangled to death and she had blunt force trauma to the head.

Houma Police announce the arrest of two men who stole several sacks of crawfish worth 250-dollars from a gas station. Police Chief Dana Coleman says surveillance video spotted 45-year-old Richard Buck and 34-year-old Joshua Robichaux taking the mudbugs.

The Shreveport-Bossier City area is under a slight risk for severe weather today. The severe weather risk spreads across much of Louisiana for tomorrow.

 

 

 

04.25.16
by

16:45 LRN Sportscast April 25

The LSU baseball team avoided a sweep to Mississippi State by beating the Bulldogs 11 to 8. Jake Fraley was one of the Tigers’ hitting stars, as he collected three hits, including an RBI triple. Fraley says it was a big win for the Tigers…
cut 19 (09) “….it into Tulane”
Tomorrow’s game against Tulane, begins a four-game road trip for the Tigers, who are ranked 11th in the latest D1 poll. The Green Wave, who swept UCF over the weekend, is ranked 22nd.

Elsewhere in college baseball, Louisiana Tech took two of three from Old Dominion. The Bulldogs host McNeese State tomorrow. The Cowboys are coming off a seven to six win over Southeastern Louisiana. But the Lions are still in first place in the Southland with a 15-3 league record. S-L-U is not in action again until Friday when they host Houston Baptist.

The Saints made a couple of roster moves today. They’ve released safety Vinnie Sunseri and defensive end Tavaris Barnes. Sunseri spent all of 2015 on injured reserve after he was drafted out of Alabama in 2014. Barnes appeared in a dozen games last year and registered just five tackles. With the release of Sunseri. That means only one player is still left from the 2014 draft class and that’s wide receiver Brandin Cooks.

Louisiana Tech football recruit, David Beasley, has been charged with first-degree battery and aggravated robbery following a weekend shooting in Pine Bluff, Arkansas. Bulldog athletic officials have not commented on the incident.

Nicholls State will hold a press conference tomorrow to introduce their new men’s basketball coach. His name is Richie Riley, who spent the last two seasons as an assistant at Clemson. Riley also coached at UAB, Eastern Kentucky and Coastal Carolina.