The race for Insurance Commissioner was decided yesterday after one of the two candidates dropped out of the race. Republican Tim Temple is now commissioner-elect.  Governor John Bel Edwards who says he personally knows Temple, congratulated him on his monthly call-in radio show

Cut 9 (06)  “…good job.”

Temple ran for commissioner in 2019 against incumbent Jim Donelon. After qualifying just last week, Democrat Rich Weaver of Prairieville withdrew from the race.

The National Hurricane Center says there’s the possibility of some tropical activity in the Gulf of Mexico next week. Louisiana Radio Network meteorologist John Wetherbee says the low-pressure area has yet to develop, but a tropical wave coming out of the Bahamas could show signs of developing by the beginning of next week…

Cut 11 (12)  “…getting underway.” 

Nextstar Media which owns several TV stations in Louisiana has paid for a poll on the governor’s race that shows Attorney General Jeff Landry with a commanding lead in the governor’s race. Jeff Palermo has more…

Cut 1 (31)  “…I’m Jeff Palermo” 

LSU will continue practice today, but will not be open to the media until Saturday’s inters quad scrimmage in Tiger Stadium. Head coach Brian Kelly announced on Wednesday that the scrimmage would take place on Saturday, but no exact time frame on when the scrimmage will be has been unveiled. One of the players that is expected to be on the field is returning wide receiver Malik Nabors. Nabors was the only 1,000 yard receiver last year for the Tigers and caught an SEC leading 72 receptions. Kelly says the only thing holding him back is a lack of focus and not physical talent.

Cut 18 (19) “…special things.”

The Tigers round out the top 5 in the coach’s and the AP poll and will be taking on No. 8 Florida State in 17 days. Included in the AP top 5 as well was Alabama at No. 4 and Georgia at No.1

The Saints and the Chargers are participating in a joint practice in California today ahead of their preseason matchup on Sunday night. Coach Dennis Allen says how he feels about getting the time to play with Chargers.

Cut 19 (10) “…those guys.”

The game is scheduled for Sunday Aug. 20 at 6:05 pm central time, and the Saints won their previous matchup in the preseason against the Chiefs 26-24.

The New Orleans Pelicans and the rest of the National Basketball Association are getting their schedules today at 2 pm central time. This schedule will include the full season schedules for all 30 teams. They did get their in-season tournament schedule, but the tournament will only count for the first two weeks of the year out of the full season. So far, the Pelicans have announced they will play Houston on the road, Dallas and Denver at home, and the Clippers in Los Angeles. When the 2023 season schedule is announced, we will bring you an update on the biggest games at the 4:45 pm sportscast.

A poll paid for by Nexstar Media shows Attorney General Jeff Landry with a big lead over his opponents in the governor’s race. Emerson College Polling surveyed likely voters earlier this week and 40-percent of the respondents support Landry.   Political Analyst Bernie Pinsonat says this poll shows Landry receiving 50-percent of the vote on October 14th is possible

Cut 6 (11) “…cake walk” 

If Landry receives at least 50-percent of the vote in the primary, he can win the race without the need of a run-off.

Discount supermarket chain Aldi is buying 400 Winn-Dixie and Harvey Supermarkets in the south from Southeastern Grocers in a cash deal. LSU Economist Jim Richardson believes for now they will probably keep the familiar red-and-white Winn-Dixie branding.

Cut 4 (10) “…of time.”

Aldi will open a store in Central on August 31 and three stores in Baton Rouge and Marrero are under construction.

On his monthly call-in radio show Governor Edwards briefly discussed the Pardon Board’s scheduling hearings to review clemency applications from 20 different death row inmates. Brooke Thorington has more…

Cut 1 (33)  “….I’m Brooke Thorington.”

Republican Tim Temple will be Lousiaina’s next insurance commissioner. Temple’s lone challenger on the October 14th ballot, Rich Weaver, has dropped out of the race. Temple has spent 20 years in the insurance business and will replace the retiring Jim Donelon in January.

Governor Edwards discussed the upcoming clemency hearings for 20 death row inmates on his monthly radio show. He says only after the Pardon Board makes their recommendation will he decide to grant or not. He says the board has to make difficult decisions, and several factors are considered in clemency applications…

Cut 6 (10)  “…public safety.”

Supermarket giant Aldi is set to purchase nearly 400 Winn-Dixie and Harvey’s Supermarket from Southeastern Grocers in a cash deal set to close in the first half of 2024. LSU Economist Jim Richardson says the deal is part of the company’s long-term plan to expand.

Cut 3 (11) “…the package.”

LSU Demographer Tim Slack says from 2020 to 2022 three in four Louisiana parishes saw more deaths than births. Some of the parishes where deaths outnumber births by more than ten percent, Webster, Morehouse, Winn, Franklin, LaSalle, Iberville and Pointe Coupee. Slack says it’s a significant problem…

Cut 9 (11)  “…so forth.”

He says the state’s overall population declined by 67,000 during that time period…

One more day of slightly lower temps and humidity and then it’s back to the excessive heat. Rain chances will stay low through the weekend, worsening the drought problem. State Climatologist Barry Keim says it’s so dire that for the last 30 days in northwest Louisiana, they’ve only had about a half inch of rain or 15-percent of their normal rainfall amount…

Cut 10 (10) “…normal rainfall.”

Three in four Louisiana parishes have seen more deaths than births between 2020 and 2022. Teiko Foxx has more…
Cut 2 (32) “…I’m Teiko Foxx.”

A poll paid for by Nexstar Media shows Attorney General Jeff Landry with a big lead over his opponents in the governor’s race. 40-percent of the respondents support Landry, 22-percent support Democrat Shawn Wilson. The rest of the candidates are in the single digits. 17-percent of voters are undecided.

KATC-TV in Lafayette is reporting the hot and dry conditions are causing problems for rice farmers. Associate LSU AgCenter rice economist Michael Deliberto says rice requires a certain amount of moisture in order to grow abundtantly. State Climatologist Barry Keim says the dry weather is also impacting the cattle industry….
cut 11 (11) “….go out there”
Keim says the state could see some rain from a potential tropical disturbance that could form in the Gulf of Mexico early next week.

72-year-old Hamid Ghassemi, a used car dealer in Lafayette and Baton Rouge, will spend the rest of his life in prison after he was found guilty of paying three men to kill his wife in 2015. Ghassemi was upset with the one-million dollar divorce settlement he had to pay her. East Baton Rouge District Attorney Hillar Moore says it’s been a painful eight years for the son…
cut 14 (11) “…relationship with”
Despite the first-degree murder conviction, Moore is not seeking the death penalty.

Republican Tim Temple will be Lousiaina’s next insurance commissioner. Temple’s lone challenger on the October 14th ballot, Rich Weaver, has dropped out of the race. Temple has spent 20 years in the insurance business and will replace the retiring Jim Donelon in January.

On his monthly call-in radio show, Governor Edwards discussed the Louisiana Pardon Board’s decision to schedule hearings to review clemency applications from 20 different death row inmates.
Cut 1 (33) “….I’m Brooke Thorington.”

Recent research from LSU Demographer Tim Slack found that three in four Louisiana parishes saw more deaths than births from 2020 to 2022. Slack says overall the state’s population declined by 67,000 during that time period…
Cut 7 (13) “…on balance.”
Some of the parishes where deaths outnumber births by more than ten-percent…Webster, Morehouse, Winn, Franklin, LaSalle, Iberville and Pointe Coupee.

72-year-old Hamid Ghassemi, an ex-car dealer in Baton Rouge and Lafayette, faces life in prison after a jury found him guilty of first-degree murder after he hired three men to kill his ex-wife in 2015 so he would not have to pay her a one million dollar divorce settlement. East Baton Rouge District Attorney Hillar Moore says a proper verdict was rendered
Cut 13 (09) “…his life.”
Ghassemi paid ten-thousand dollars the three men to kill his wife, who was found dead in a wooded area from a gunshot wound in the spring of 2016.

In his monthly call in radio show, Governor John Bel Edwards didn’t add much to the news last week that the Louisiana Pardon Board has scheduled to hear some of the clemency applications from the 56 death row inmates looking to have their death sentences commuted to life in prison without the possibility of parole. The hearings begin in October and Edwards says it usually takes a week or two after it goes before the board, before he receives them…
cut 5 (06) “….a decision”
Edwards opposes the death penalty and there’s a push for death row inmates to have their sentences commuted before he leaves office in January.

Wildfires continue to plague Sabine and Grant parishes and State Climatologist Barry Keim says there is no significant chance for rain the rest of this week…
cut 12 (03) “…rain bad”
There’s the possibility of tropical development in the Gulf of Mexico early next week, which could bring us some rain.

Several schools from Bossier City to Baton Rouge to Houma and New Orleans received bomb threats yesterday. Several schools were placed on lockdown and in Baton Rouge, Police Chief Murphy Paul, says they sent bomb squads and K-9 units to these schools searching for possible explosives…
cut 23 (09) “…appropriate”
The investigation continues.

A used car dealer in Baton Rouge and Lafayette has been found guilty of first degree murder for hiring three men to kill his ex-wife in April of 2015. 72-year-old Hamid Ghassemi will be formally sentenced to life in prison in September. East Baton Rouge District Attorney Hillar Moore…
cut 15 (10) “….outstanding job”

On his monthly radio call-in show, Governor Edwards discussed the clemency applications from death row inmates that will be reviewed by the Louisiana Pardon Board. The board originally rejected to hear the 56 cases on the grounds, they weren’t filed within a year of their final appeal being denied, but Edwards directed the panel to do so anyway. So far 20 of the cases have been scheduled for review.
Cut 4 (08) “…to comment.”
Hearing dates have been set between October 13th and November 27th.

Research from LSU demographer Tim Slack finds that three in four Louisiana parishes saw more deaths than births between 2020 and 2022. Slack says the state had the fifth-highest overall death rate during that time period, with only 414 more births than deaths…
cut 8 (11) “…overdose epidemic”

A second consecutive morning with lower humidity, but a lack of rainfall is presenting problems. Brooke Thorington has more.
Cut 3 (31) “…I’m Brooke Thorington.”

The National Hurricane Center says there’s a low chance of a tropical wave developing in the central or western Gulf of Mexico early next week.

Delhi Police confirm a shooting near the high school this afternoon.  Adam Holland with our affiliate KWCL he says a 9-1-1 call was received about a fight on campus and when authorities arrived faculty had already broken up the altercation. While escorting the students off campus shots were heard near the school Holland says the high school and nearby schools were put on lockdown.

Cut 29 suspect. :06

And law enforcement in multiple cities are dealing with bomb threats and potential violence at Louisiana high schools. In Baton Rouge, Baton Rouge High School and two nearby private schools were put on lockdown after a bomb threat was called in to a suicide hotline. BRPD Chief Murphy Paul says officers found no devices, but he’s aware of similar threats elsewhere in the state.:

CUT 14  (08)        “…in Denham.”

Following the first day of hearings over juvenile inmate being housed at Angola, advocates voiced their frustrations with the Office of Juvenile Justice at a press conference Tuesday. Lead counsel, David Utter with the Fair Fight Initiative says they want to know if the state is treating juveniles with deliberate indifference.

Cut 3 (12) “…into a cell.”

After multiple escapes from juvenile facilities, the decision to move some inmates to Angola was made and more than a dozen teens have been housed there for the last 10 months.

Winning by default is still winning. Louisiana has a new insurance commissioner-elect, after one of the two men running for that office dropped out of the race. That leaves DeRidder Republican Tim Temple elected by default. Temple will be sworn into office next January.

Head Coach Brian Kelly spoke to the media on Wednesday and gave updates on the team and what the rest of practices will look like moving forward. Before he spoke more on the Tigers, he addressed the situation on former 5-star transfer cornerback Denver Harris.

Cut 28 (12) “…this week.

Kelly says that the team plans on having an organized scrimmage on Saturday in Tiger Stadium and he goes over what that will look like.

Cut 29 (16) “…that we’ll get.

Not much else is known about when the scrimmage will be besides the fact that it is on Saturday, but if you have any questions go TigerRag.com and listen to the latest episode of the Tiger Rag Audibles podcast.

The Saints played their first preseason game last week and had many new faces take the field for the team, but there was one more that still has not played in the black and gold. Linebacker Jaylon Smith signed with New Orleans a few days before they played the Chiefs in preseason week 1, but only planned on playing in an emergency situation. Smith says that he has switched teams quickly before, and learning the defense should not take long.

Cut 26 (12) “…it won’t take long.”

Rookie wide receiver A.T. Perry was also a new face on the field and had one of the best performances for the team in his first game. Perry caught six passes for 70 yards and a touchdown and says how he was able to settle in and still play at a high level.

Cut 27 (12) “…most importantly

The Saints will take on the Chargers in Los Angeles for preseason week 2 on Sunday, Aug. 20 at 6:05 pm CT.