Legislation that would result in cameras to catch speeders on the I-10 Atachalfalya Basin Bridge between Baton Rouge and Lafayette continues to cruise through the legislative process. Jeff Palermo has the story…

Cut 1 (31) “…I’m Jeff Palermo.”

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There’s new leadership at the State Fire Marshal’s Office and he brings decades of experience with him. Brooke Thorington has more.

Cut 2 (34) …I’m Brooke Thorington.”  

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A single-car crash in Washington Parish claims two lives. Trooper William Huggins says the driver 31-year-old Pamela Brown and 16-year-old Jaquan Brown of Kentwood were both killed when a Hyundai veered off the road shortly after 11 pm Saturday.

Cut 3 (09) “….two trees.”

Huggins says both were pronounced dead on the scene. In addition to the two victims, who were wearing their seatbelts, three juveniles in the back seat of the car were not restrained.

Cut 4  (05) “…hospitals.”

Huggins says this crash is one of the few exceptions in regards to seatbelt usage. He says statistically you are more likely to survive a crash if you are properly restrained.

Cut 5  (10) “…standpoint.”

Huggins says impairment is suspected in the crash and toxicology samples were collected.

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The House Transportation Committee voted today for Senate-approved legislation that would result in the installation of speed cameras on the I-10 Atchafalaya Basin Bridge. Transportation Secretary Shawn Wilson says the cameras will track vehicles as they go over the 18-mile bridge and if they get across in less than 18 minutes the driver was likely speeding

Cut 6  (04) “…60-mile per hour limit.” 

Senate President Page Cortez says the goal of his legislation is not to generate revenue from speeding ticket fines, but to make the bridge safer, which has seen injury-related crashes double over the last decade…

Cut 7 (08) “…going 80.” 

Supporters of the legislation say cameras would be a better way to catch speeders than actual police officers because the narrow shoulders on the bridge make it unsafe for officers. Rosepine Representative Charles Owen agrees…

Cut 8 (10) “…crazy bridge” 

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Former Saints quarterback Drew Brees was let go from his contract with NBC Sports after just one season in the broadcast booth, setting off a storm of speculation about his future with Brees even alluding to a possible return to football. Coach Dennis Allen doesn’t see a reason to take talk of a comeback seriously.

Cut 9 (07) “…that regard.”

Brees was asked about a return to the Saints during last season as the team fought to make the playoffs but declined. Dennis Allen seems to be looking towards the future rather than hoping for a boost from the franchise’s greatest signal-caller.

Cut 10 (10) ” …for sure.” 

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A new era at the State Fire Marshal’s Office is underway as Chief Dan Wallis takes the helm and former Chief Butch Browning becomes the next executive director of the National Association of State Fire Marshals. Wallis says while it’s an exciting time it’s also bittersweet to say goodbye to his friend Browning of more than thirty years.

Cut 11 (11)  “…forward.” 

Wallis, who served as Zachery Fire Chief for 28 years has been with the State Fire Marshal’s Office since 2008. He’s served as Browning’s righthand man, and he says he plans to expand on the values already set by his predecessor.

Cut 12 (10) “…fifty years.”  

One of the first challenges Wallis plans to address is the growing decline of first responders and how to retain them once they’ve entered the profession.

Cut 13 (12) “…safety family.”

The state Supreme Court has ruled in favor of a Baton Rouge pastor who refused to comply with Governor Edwards’ COVID lockdown. Kevin Gallagher has more…:

Cut 1 (33) “…I’m Kevin Gallagher.”

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As we return to a pre-COVID routine, Governor Edwards says they continue to monitor case counts and positivity rates. Brooke Thorington has more

Cut 2 (29) “…I’m Brooke Thorington.” 

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Another former LSU Tiger is coming home as Jarvis Landry agrees to a one-year deal with the Saints. David Grubb has more…

Cut 3 (33) “…I’m David Grubb.” 

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The Louisiana Supreme Court has ruled in favor of a Baton Rouge area pastor who refused to stop church services during the governor’s COVID lockdown. Pastor Tony Spell, of the Life Tabernacle Church in Central was arrested for flouting stay-at-home orders. Loyola Law Professor Dane Ciolino on the High Court’s decision…:

Cut 4 (11)  “…religious institutions.”

Spell was arrested in 2020 for violating the Governor’s emergency order limiting gatherings to no more than 50 people. At that time, he said anywhere up a thousand persons might attend services at his church. Ciolino says, despite rulings from lower courts, the state Supreme Court Justice’s opinions were 5-to-2 in Spell’s favor…:

Cut 5 (09) “…different from churches.”

Does the ruling mean the Governor’s future emergency orders might lack the strength of enforcement? Ciolino says he doesn’t think so…as along as things are dealt with evenly and fairly going forward. Does the ruling mean Pastor Spell can now sue the Governor and/or the state for damages?

Cut 6 (13)  “…First Amendment rights.”

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As we return to somewhat of a pre-COVID lifestyle Governor John Bel Edwards says there’s been a slight bump in daily case counts. On Friday the state reported 730 new cases. Edwards says the positivity rate is also increasing.

Cut 7 (06) “…seven-percent.”

Edwards acknowledges that daily case counts can be somewhat misleading because of the availability of home tests that aren’t included in those counts. He says most likely case counts are higher. However, the good news is the number of hospitalization have not increased significantly

Cut 8 (12)  “…several weeks.”

Edwards says they are also keeping a watchful eye on cases as festival season and large gatherings return. And as in previous surges, it’s expected that case counts will increase along with the high temperatures.

Cut 9 (10)  “…things happen.”

Edwards says while the vast majority of residents have either had COVID or have been vaccinated those protections do wane over time and to stay up to date on your booster shots.

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The Senate Finance Committee approved a proposed budget for next fiscal year that does not match Governor John Bel Edwards’ wish list. Edwards has asked the Senate to give teachers a two-thousand dollar pay raise, but House Appropriations Chairman Jerome Zeringue, the author of the budget bill says a 15-hundred dollar raise is more appropriate…

Cut 10 (10) “…Southern average.”

The governor is also looking for 500-million dollars for a new Mississippi River Bridge in Baton Rouge. The Senate is proposing to allocate 300-million dollars for a new bridge. There’s also 200-million for I-49 south and 200-million to replace the I-10 Lake Charles bridge.

Senate President Page Cortez says a lot of one-time money investments will go toward higher education needs

Cut  11 (09)  “…expansion”  

The Senate Finance Committee heard from a couple of members of the public who wanted eight million dollars appropriated to install cameras in special ed classrooms…

Cut 12 (11) “…the bill” 

White says the money for cameras in special education classrooms is contained in a supplemental funding bill. The Senate plans to vote Thursday on the spending bills.

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There will be a changing of the guard, or more accurately, a changing of the chiefs this morning as Butch Browning, the state’s longest-serving fire marshal, hands the baton to Daniel Wallis after 14 years of leadership. Here’s spokesperson Ashley Rodrigue…

Cut 13 (11) “…state for decades.”

Wallis has been Browning’s right hand throughout his term, and Rodrigue says the two share a similar vision that will continue the growth and development that the agency has seen over the years.

Cut 14 (11)  “…provide them.”

Browning moves on to the position of executive director of the National Association of State Fire Marshalls. Rodrigue says Browning is excited about the new challenge and opportunity to improve safety on a national scale, as well as the future of the agency he leaves behind.

Cut 15 (13)  “…national impact.”

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Last season, the New Orleans Saints had one of the worst wide receiving corps in the NFL. Not a single wideout caught 50 passes or topped 700 yards, something that hadn’t happened since the 80s. This season they may have one of the best, with All-Pro Michael Thomas expected back at full strength, the addition of first-rounder Chris Olave, and now the signing of five-time Pro Bowler and former LSU star Jarvis Landry…

Cut 16 (20)  “…running game”

Landry made the Pro-Bowl each year between 2015 and 2019 with the Dolphins and Browns,  averaging 96 receptions and over 1000 yards per season during that span. Injuries have slowed him the last two years, but NOLA-dot-com’s Rod Walker says a healthy Landry brings plenty to the table

Cut 17 (12) “ …wants to do.” 

Perhaps no one is happier about the signing of Landry than quarterback Jameis Winston. The Saints have given him a much better arsenal to work with this season than he had last year.

Cut 18 (12) “ …for success” 

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A tough weekend for the LSU baseball team as the Ole Miss Rebels swept the Tigers, dropping their RPI from 16 to 37. The disastrous weekend puts LSU on the bubble for hosting a regional. Coach Jay Johnson says staying away from the big inning was a problem against the Rebels and LSU pitching allowed eight home runs…

Cut 19 (24) _“…to throw” 

Johnson surprised everyone in the ballpark on Sunday when he allowed starting pitching Samuel Dutton to throw to one hitter, Justin Bench, who hit a double. Dutton was removed and Jacob Hasty pitched the next four innings. Johnson explained his game plan to reporters afterward…

Cut 20 (21) “ …curveball.” 

A bill that would have charged a woman with murder if she had an abortion was pulled by its author after it was amended to remove criminal charges. The amendment also removed language that would have criminalized in-vitro fertilization. Brooke Thorington has more

Cut 1 (43) “…I’m Brooke Thorington.”

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A Biden administration decision on oil and gas lease sales is receiving harsh criticism from the petroleum industry. David Grubb has more…

Cut 2 (40) …I’m David Grubb.”  

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Thursday’s debate on Oil City Representative Danny McCormick’s bill to charge a woman who has an abortion with murder is met with questions of fallout from the issue among the Republican Party in Louisiana. LaPolitic’s dot-com publisher Jeremy Alford says it was republicans who amended the legislation and pointed out the bill could also punish those who use in-vitro fertilization, and that the bill in its original form is unconstitutional.

Cut 3 (10) “….those amendments.”

The amendment passed on a 65 to 26 vote with 14 votes absent. McCormick then pulled the bill from the calendar because the amendment changed the original intent of the bill to criminalize the procedure.

Alford says even with the leak of a possible overturn of Roe v Wade the original bill is considered unconstitutional.

Cut 4  (08) “…race at all.”

Alford says the original bill that would have saddled abortion participants with murder charges will most likely not return for this legislative session since the bill’s criminalization element was removed from the legislation.

Cut 5  (09) “..politically have not.”

In addition to being questioned by members of his own party about the constitutionality of the bill, Republicans also reminded McCormick Louisiana already has some of the most restrictive abortion laws on the books that would go into effect if Roe V Wade is overturned. Alford was asked if McCormick’s bill is symbolic of a fringe Republican party in Louisiana.

Cut 6  (08) “…that amendment.” 

If the bill in its original form passed it was poised to be one of the most aggressive new restrictions on reproductive rights in the country.

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The U-S Department of the Interior is canceling oil and gas lease sales scheduled in the Gulf and Alaskan coast due to what it says is a lack of industry interest in drilling near Alaska and conflicting court rulings that have made drilling in the Gulf more complicated. While environmental groups laud the decision Louisiana Oil & Gas President Mike Moncla say’s it’s disastrous for the state.

Cut 7 (09) “…good for Louisiana.” 

Moncla says that the Biden Administration is failing to respond in a time of crisis, with gas prices reaching a record four dollars and forty cents per gallon and consumer prices up 8.3 percent last month from a year ago.

Cut 8 (09) “…would do that.” 

Though new leases won’t have an impact on current gas prices, since it will take years for them to produce oil, Moncla says that the President’s strategy doesn’t prepare the country to become more “green”, address the current fuel needs of Americans, or take into consideration the wide range of businesses that will be impacted.

Cut 9 (11) “…of our product.”

The administration has scheduled onshore lease sales in eight states for next month but has limited the amount of available land and raised royalty rates.

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Child drownings are on the rise in Louisiana. Regional medical director Martha Whyte says there were 24 drownings in 2020, a 60 percent jump from 2019, and preliminary data from LDH indicates 25 drowning deaths last year. There have also been several drownings around the state in recent weeks.

Cut 10 (11) ” …safe around water.” 

Whyte warns that drowning isn’t just confined to large bodies of water. For infants and toddlers, there are dangers inside the home as well that adults have to look out for.

Cut 11 (11)  “…alone in it.” 

LDH says there are a number of precautions to prevent drowning, and encourages people to take swim lessons and learn CPR.  And, in a state where boating and fishing are a way of life Whyte says life jackets are essential.

Cut 12 (10) “…at all times.”  

As part of their efforts, LDH has set up Pool-Safely-dot-gov, which has a wide range of water safety resources.

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Sunday night should present Louisianans with an ideal view of the lunar eclipse. LSU Astronomy Professor Jeffrey Clayton says the earth will travel between the sun and the moon, and the earth’s shadow should be visible beginning at 9:30 and last a few hours.

Cut 13 (10) “…very red.”

In earlier times a lunar eclipse, and a red one at that, was thought to be symbolic of an omen but Clayton says both solar and lunar eclipses can be forecasted thus removing the folklore often associated with extraordinary celestial events.

Cut 14 (12)  “…as the Babylonians.”

Clayton says it’s a unique occurrence and he highly recommends making plans to stay up a bit later than usual Sunday night. He says as long as you are in a dark location with few clouds you should be able to enjoy the show and you won’t even need a telescope.

Cut 15 (06) “…awesome sight.”