There’s a report from the Louisiana Inspector General’s office indicating state offices spent more than $500,000 on airplane tickets they didn’t use over 2 and a half years. Stephen Street says their report includes a set of recommendations for the Office of State Travel to ensure unused airline tickets are not wasted…:
CUT 6 (08) “to evaporate”
112 state agencies purchased 1,190 unused airplane tickets according to the numbers. Street says, in tight budget times, we have to be especially careful about this sort of waste of taxpayer money.

Louisiana State Police say a motorcyclist was killed in Zachary Sunday evening after being involved in a two vehicle crash. They say it happened on Hwy 19. According to investigators, 54-year-old Alan Carlyle of Baker was on his motorcycle when he hit a car that pulled into his path. Carlyle died at a local hospital. The driver of the car was not injured. LSP continues to investigate this crash and charges may be pending.

Authorities say a teenager is in custody in Webster Parish now after an Amber Alert was issued late Saturday night by the Mississippi Bureau of Investigations. 2-year-old and his 17-year-old mother were believed to have been abducted by the suspect according to the Simpson County Sheriff’s Office. State Police say all three were found Saturday around 11:10pm in Minden. The suspect was arrested on two counts of kidnapping and credit card fraud.

You can get an “I’m Creole and Proud license plate starting today. Lafayette Representative Vincent Pierre says the design features a black pot, a scrub board and a fleur de lis. He says the funds that are generated from the Creole plate will go to the French Immersion Program…:
CUT 9 (07) “along with the community”
He says he lead the effort to make this happen because he wanted to give more exposure to the Creole culture.

Secretary of State Tom Schedler is advising voters to study up on their November fourth ballot, because they’ve had a record number of candidates who have withdrawn from their respective races since qualifying. Schedler says 110 candidates have dropped out of their race and the printed ballot may not reflect the change in the number of candidates…:
CUT 13 (08) “withdrawn candidates”
He says says you can always go to GeauxVote-dot-com to keep yourself updated. (that’s geaux spelled the cajun way)

Fall begins tonight at officially at 9:29 pm and State Climatologist Barry Keim says temps should be normal this autumn but an El Nino could be bringing in more rain than usual…:
CUT 11 (08) “an El Nino”
He says delightful weather is now just around the corner.

A small aircraft similar to a helicopter crashed into a canal yesterday afternoon in Reserve at the St. John the Baptist Parish airport — killing the two occupants. Officials have not released the identifies of the pilot or his passenger at this time. They say the airport is closed until federal authorities determine what happened.

Starting today a brand new license plate will be available to Louisiana drivers boasting, “I’m Creole, and Proud.” Lafayette Representative Vincent Pierre says he lead the effort to make this happen because he wanted to give more exposure to the Creole culture. He says one of the plate’s features is a black pot…:
CUT 7 (09) “over to visit”
He says there’s also a scrub board and fleur de list on the plate. You can get it once OMV offices open this morning for $30 plus fees.

The Saints finally picked up their first win of the season as New Orleans defeated Minnesota 20-9. For the first time since 1991, Mississippi State beat LSU in Baton Rouge 34-29.

Autumn begins today. State Climatologist Barry Keim says fall officially starts tonight at 9:29PM and predicts normal temperatures across the state for the next three months…:
CUT 10 (09) “Gulf of Mexico”
Keim says, as we get into the fall season, fronts will start coming through and temperatures will begin to drop across the state.

The Sabine Parish Sheriff’s office says a young toddler died of asphyxiation after he was trapped in a vehicle window around his neck for an undetermined amount of time. They say the mother was driving to another location Saturday night and little 19-year-old Robert Lynch was not restrained in the back when they believe the incident took place. The child died Sunday evening and an autopsy is planned this morning according to investigators.

The Louisiana Inspector General has issued a set of recommendations for state agencies to stop wasting airline tickets. Stephen Street’s office found that between 2011 and 2013, over half a million dollars in non-refundable airline tickets were purchased by state entities, but never used. Street says his office is mandated to find and eliminate waste and this is a classic example of waste…:
CUT 4 (09) “thousands of dollars”
He says they are recommending the Office of State Travel explain why these tickets paid for by tax payers were not used.

There are pictures making their way around social media that show Senator Mary Landrieu helping a tailgater at LSU with a keg stand on Saturday. The man reportedly asked her to do the keg stand but she refused but instead decided to help him out.

August was another record breaking month in terms of employment in Louisiana. The Louisiana Workforce Commission released new job numbers Friday and non-farm employment grew by 30-thousand over the last 12 months and a record one-point-nine million people were employed in August. L-W-C sportsperson Tom Guarisco says the construction sector led the way by hiring 95-hundred workers
CUT 13 (09) “other sectors”
Guarisco says they anticipate setting more employment records in the coming months.

State Police say just before 1:30am a two vehicle fatal crash involving a tow truck happened in West Baton Rouge Parish on Hwy 190. They say 31-year-old Michael Fornea of Baton Rouge and his passenger 27-year-old Jesse Gaudin of Gonzales were killed when their car hit the back of the tow truck. Excessive speed on the part of Fornea is considered to be a factor in the crash.

With it now being 4 years since the Deepwater Horizon well was capped, several agencies continue to look at ways we can restore Louisiana’s struggling coast. Dr. Keith Ouchley is the Director of the Nature Conservancy in Louisiana. He says, for one, we really need to work on oyster reefs around the coast…:
CUT 4 (11) “important point”
He says they are implementing on-the-ground restoration projects that protect shorelines from erosion, filter water, provide habitat for fish and create jobs.

LSU will be getting a big test today as more fans than ever are expected to head to Death Valley for the 6pm contest against Mississippi State. If you’re going don’t forget they are now using contro-flow on Nicholson after the game and please arrive early to avoid bottlenecks at entrances so you don’t miss kickoff. More than 100,000 people are expected to attend the game.

A man from Donaldsonville who pleaded guilty to negligent homicide in in 1995 for a crash that killed a ten-week old child avoids prison. Stanley White got a two-year prison sentence 19 years ago, but was never given a report date. He was re-sentenced again and White’s sentence this time was two years of home incarceration. Stephen Moore is White’s attorney..:
CUT 9 (09) “not justice”
White was 19 at the time of the accident. It’s unknown why he never received a date to report to prison. The parents of the baby do not feel justice was served.

Bond has been substantially reduced for Trung Le, the man suspected of firing shots on Bourbon Street that left one person dead and several others injured in late June. Le’s bond was lowered Friday from $1.5 million to $250,000 by a judge. His attorney claims the suspect fired in self defense and prosecutors reportedly now say the bullet Le shot didn’t cause the murder but he did fire first leading to the deadly exchange.

The St. Landry Parish Sheriff’s Office is asking for the public’s help in gathering information about a murder that happened last week. Deputies found the remains of a 66-year-old woman identified as Marjorie Taylor that day and an autopsy revealed she had been killed. Crimestoppers in St. Landry is offering $2,500 for anyone with information on his incident.

Louisiana’s obesity rate is dropping for the first time in 30 years. Don Molino has that..:
CUT 2 (32) “reporting”

The state Department of Health and Hospitals has officially reported the additional death from the West Nile Virus for the 2014 season. We knew earlier this week the latest fatal case was out of LaFourche Parish bringing the total number of West Nile deaths to five. DHH said Friday the total infections this year is now 103.

With it now being 4 years since the Deepwater Horizon well was capped, several agencies continue to look at ways we can restore Louisiana’s struggling coast. Jeff Palermo reports…:
CUT 1 (30) “reporting”

Louisiana’s obesity rate is dropping for the first time in 30 years according to an annual study released by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. LeAnne Redman is an obesity researcher at LSU’s Pennington Biomedical Research Center…:
CUT 6 (12) “this happening”
We’re now No.6. But the study shows that Louisiana’s adult obesity rate is still 33.1% so Redman says we need to keep having healthy conversations so our numbers continue to improve.

The Ascension Parish Sheriff’s office says they’ve taken a 71-year-old Gonzales man into custody for allegedly threatening to kill a local judge and district attorney after the suspect lost his appeal on a DWI case in a Baton Rouge court. Apparently Paul Cleveland said he was going to murder the judge, the DA and then kill himself. He’s charged with threatening a public official.

An annual study released by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation found Louisiana is now ranked 6th in the nation, instead of first for obesity.  Obesity researcher at LSU’s Pennington Biomedical Research Center, LeAnne Redman, believes that in a state where we love food at events like tailgating and Mardi Gras, the culture is somewhat changing…

cut 7 (07) “for everybody”

Louisiana’s obesity rate is dropping for the first time in 30 years.

August was another record breaking month in terms of employment in Louisiana.  The Louisiana Workforce Commission released new job numbers today and non-farm employment grew by 30-thousand over the last 12 months and a record one-point-nine million people were employed in August.  L-W-C spokesperson Tom Guarisco…

cut 12 (10) “education services”

He says private employers added 36-thousand jobs over the year.

A Donaldsonville man who pleaded guilty in 1995 to negligent homicide in a crash that killed a ten-week old infant has avoided prison.  Stanley White originally received a two-year prison sentence, but was never given a report date.  He was re-sentenced to two years of home incarceration.  The parents of the infant say justice was not served.  But White’s attorney, Stephen Moore, says White is remorseful and he’s been a model citizen since he made a horrible mistake…

cut 10 (08) “…afterwards “

White was 19 at the time of the accident.

It’s been 4 years since the Deepwater Horizon well was capped and several agencies continue to look at ways we can restore Louisiana’s struggling coast.   Louisiana Nature Conservancy Director, Dr. Keith Ouchley, feels significant changes can be made within the next 10 years…

cut 5 (12) “along the coast”

He says this is an important time for the Gulf restoration process.

It’s been over 4 years since the Deepwater Horizon Oil disaster in the Gulf, and experts are implementing on-the-ground restoration projects that protect shorelines and fish habitats. Dr. Keith Ouchley – the Director of the Nature Conservancy in Louisiana- says we also need to work on our oyster reefs…:

CUT 4 (11) “important point”

He adds in 10 years we should be able to make significant changes.

Following their 40-day initiative, The Louisiana Office of Motor Vehicles is now on the fast track to install more than 400 credit card stations statewide with the goal to improve convenience for fee payments. In the past, OMV customers to pay with cash or schedule return visits to complete the transaction. They will continue their online services as well.

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

For the first time in 30 years, The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation obesity study, shows Louisiana’s obesity rate has dropped, moving the Bayou State from number one to number six in the nation…

CUT 6 (12) Q: “this happening”

That’s LSU Pennington Biomedical Obesity Researcher LeAnne Redman.

More good news on the Louisiana job front, as the Louisiana Workforce Commission released new job numbers today, and the August report shows record-setting employment rates, particularly in construction…

CUT 14 (08) Q: “come on line”

That’s L-W-C spokesman Tom Guarisco, who says a record one-point-nine million Louisianians were employed in August.

According to a recent report, Louisiana’s obesity rate is dropping for the first time in 30 years. Don Molino has that..:

CUT 2 (32) “reporting”

It’s being reported that the Chief of Staff for U.S. Representative Vance Mcallister has been booked on a charge of DWI. Adam Terry was arrested in Richland Parish last Friday, and McAllister says that -once Terry is able to get help and follow court instructions-he will be given a second chance.

——————————
With it now being 4 years since the Deepwater Horizon disaster, several agencies are still working on restoration. Dr. Keith Ouchley is the Director of the Nature Conservancy in Louisiana. He says this is an important time…

CUT 3 (10) “in Louisiana”

He adds we also need to work on oyster reefs.
It was another record settting month of employment growth in August for Louisiana, with private employers adding 36 thousand jobs over the year. The biggest contributor according to Louisiana Workforce Commission spokesman Tom Guarisco?…

CUT 13 (09) Q: “other sectors”

Almost 10 thousand construction jobs were added, according to the job numbers from the LWC.