Louisiana Senator John Kennedy concluded an emotional day of testimony on Capitol Hill with this question to Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh…
cut 14 (09) “…as to me”
Earlier in the day, California psychology professor, Doctor Christine Blasey Ford told Senators she is 100-percent certain Kavanaugh sexually assaulted her in high school. A vote on Kavanaugh’s confirmation is expected today and the Republican members on that committee, like Kennedy, are expected to vote for his confirmation.

LSU men’s basketball coach Will Wade says his team is devasted over the news that junior forward Wayde Sims was killed overnight across the street from the Southern University Football Stadium. Baton Rouge Police have not released many details on the fatal shooting. They are asking for the public’s help in finding the gunman. Sims was just 20 years-old and three-time state champion at University High in Baton Rouge.

A CDC report finds Louisiana leads the country for the rate of congenital syphilis among newborns and nationwide the number of infants born with syphilis has more than doubled during the last four years. Assistant state health officer. Doctor Joseph Kanter, says the data emphasizes the need that all women should receive early prenatal care and that includes syphilis testing….
cut 9 (12) “….into that category”
The CDC says only one in three women who gave birth to a baby with syphilis in 2016 got tested during pregnancy.

LSU will unveil a statue of the late Dr. Billy Cannon, the school’s only Heisman Trophy Winner at a ceremony tonight. Daughter of the LSU football legend, Bunnie Cannon, says the family is looking forward to the unveiling.
Cut 4 (08) “…feel about it.”
Cannon passed away in May.

The US Senate Judiciary Committee is expected to vote today on whether Brett Kavanaugh should be confirmed as the next justice on the U-S Supreme Court. The panel, which includes Louisiana Senator John Kennedy, heard emotional testimony yesterday from Kavanaugh’s accuser, Christine Ford, who claims the judge sexually assaulted her in high school. Kennedy closed out yesterday’s hearing with these thoughts…
cut 13 (13) “…could have been avoided”
Political experts anticipate the Judiciary committee will vote to confirm Kavanaugh, setting up a vote by the full senate next week.

20-year-old Wayde Sims, a forward on the LSU basketball team, was killed last night in a fatal shooting near the Southern University campus. Baton Rouge Police say the shooting happened at around 12:25 in the morning, across the street from Southern’s football stadium. Authorities are searching for suspects.

According to Louisiana Lawsuit Abuse Watch, there’s been a 36-percent increase in the filing of disability-access complaints in Louisiana from 2011 to 2016. Executive Director Lana Venable says many of these are frivolous lawsuits directed at small businesses….
cut 10 (09) “….in many cases”
Venable says they are advising businesses to take steps to protect themselves from lawsuits of this nature.

The CDC has released a new report that shows the rate of babies born with congenital syphilis has been on the rise throughout the United States. When compared to other states, Louisiana ranks at the very top. Administrator and Medical Director with the Louisiana Department of Health Dr. Joseph Kanter…
Cut 7 (10) “…last year as well.”
Baton Rouge and the Shreveport areas have especially high rates.

A State Police Trooper used deadly force during a traffic stop in downtown Hammond. Matt Doyle has more.
Cut 1 (30) “I’m Matt Doyle”

Senator Bill Cassidy has chimed in on the testimony of Christine Ford, saying in a tweet:

“This morning there was still no corroborating evidence or witnesses to any of the allegations against Judge Kavanaugh. That is still the case. And if it remains the case after today, the Senate should vote to #ConfirmKavanaugh without delay.”

Disney Cruise Line announced they will start sailing out of the Port of New Orleans in 2020 during Mardi Gras season. The 27-hundred passenger Disney Wonder is scheduled for six different Caribbean and Bahamian cruises from February 7th to March 6th.  Port of New Orleans CEO Brandy Christian says there is a reason why Disney chose to set sail from New Orleans during Mardi Gras…

Cut 14 (11) “…to New Orleans.”

Four Louisiana State Police Troopers are recovering from injuries after a juvenile attempted to evade and flee from them in a police pursuit on LA Highway 1 that saw speeds in excess of 100 miles per hour. LSP spokesperson Scott Moreau says it all started with a traffic stop on 18 year old Torie Lewis of Alexandria.  When Lewis stepped out of the vehicle, that’s when the action began.

Cut 6 (12) “…seat and fled.”

State Police say one of their Troopers used deadly force on a suspect in Hammond just before 1 AM this morning. Authorities identify the deceased suspect as 23-year-old Coltin Brennan Leblanc of Loranger. A witness grabbing a late night snack at a local restaurant says after being pulled over during what appeared to be a routine traffic stop, LeBlanc sped away after exchanging words with the officer…

Cut 4 (08) “…started firing”

Authorities say Leblanc later died at North Oaks Hospital.

Four Louisiana State Police Troopers are recovering from injuries after a juvenile attempted to evade and flee from them in a police pursuit on LA Highway 1 that saw speeds in excess of 100 miles per hour. LSP spokesperson Scott Moreau says the second driver is facing the heftiest charges of the three.

Cut 7 (10) “…up to the judge.”

All three subjects were arrested.

The Fifth US Circuit Court of Appeals has upheld a Louisiana Law that would require doctors at abortion clinics to have admitting privileges at a local hospital. A similar law was struck down last year by the Supreme Court. Center for Reproductive Rights Senior Council TJ Tu says across the nation abortion doctors can run into serious roadblocks when trying to obtain admitting privileges, and Louisiana is no different.

Cut 11 (10)“…stop providing.”

But Solicitor General Liz Murrill says the clinics did a poor job proving requiring admitting privileges would be an undue burden for operation. She says there were contradictory statements about how difficult it is to actually obtain the privileges in the state.

Cut 12 (09)   “…hospital” 

Admitting privileges for abortion doctors would allow them to admit a patient to a local hospital if they had a medical emergency during a procedure.

A federal appeals court has ruled in favor of a Louisiana law that would require abortion doctors to obtain admitting privileges at a local hospital before they can take on patients. I’m Jeff Palermo.

Cut 2 (33) “I’m Jeff Palermo”  

Warrants were put out for sixteen former inmates and five former Washington Parish Sheriff’s Deputies related to incidents at the Washington Parish jail involving the rape of one inmate and the beating of another. The sixteen have been booked into the parish jail.

State Police say one of their Troopers used deadly force on a suspect in Hammond just before 1 AM this morning. Authorities identify the deceased suspect as 23-year-old Coltin Brennan Leblanc of Loranger. L-S-P says one of their troopers pulled LeBlanc’s vehicle over in the downtown area. A Hammond resident who witnessed the event while at a late night restaurant says it started as a normal traffic stop.

Cut 3 (11) “…took off.” 

That’s when the witness says the car drove away, with the officer on it, a few seconds later shots were fired.

Disney Cruise Line announced they will start sailing out of the Port of New Orleans in 2020 during Mardi Gras season.  Port of New Orleans CEO Brandy Christian says they are thrilled with Disney’s decision

Cut 13 (08) “…for all of us.”

A State Police Trooper used deadly force during a traffic stop in downtown Hammond. Matt Doyle has more.
Cut 1 (30) “I’m Matt Doyle”

A shooting inside a Dollar General store in Iberia Parish has left one man in critical condition in a Lafayette hospital and another in the custody on the parish jail.  Investigators arrested 23-year-old Joel Saenz, who ran into the store and shot the victim in the head during a physical altercation between the suspect’s brother and the victim.  The suspect left the store and was later arrested at his home.

Four Louisiana State Police Troopers are recovering from injuriesafter a juvenile attempted to evade and flee from them in a police pursuit that saw speeds in excess of 100 miles per hour. LSP spokesperson Scott Moreau says the level of danger in the situation could have seen things end much worse.
Cut 8 (08) “…have to happen.”

The Fifth US Circuit Court of Appeals has upheld a Louisiana Law that would require doctors at abortion clinics to have admitting privileges at a local hospital. A law that included some similar language in Texas was shot down by the Supreme Court. Center for Reproductive Rights Senior Council TJ Tu says it’s a decision that fly’s in the face of the Supreme Courts previous decisions, and could make access to abortion in the Bayou State difficult to obtain.

Cut 10 (10) “…the state.”

State Police say one of their Troopers used deadly force on a suspect in Hammond just before 1 AM this morning. Police say the man was pulled over in the downtown area during a traffic stop, and ended after the officer, riding the suspects’ vehicle, fired the fatal shots. A Hammond resident who witnessed the event while at a late night restaurant says after the dramatic incident, the officer and a bystander rushed to the vehicle to attempt to assist the driver.

Cut 5 (10)  “…ambulance over.” 

Four Louisiana State Police Troopers are recovering from injuries after a juvenile attempted to evade and flee from them in a police pursuit on LA Highway 1 that saw speeds in excess of 100 miles per hour. LSP spokesperson Scott Moreau says it all started with a traffic stop on 18 year old Torie Lewis of Alexandria.  When Lewis stepped out of the vehicle, the second driver took the wheel and took off, and now he’s facing the heftiest charges.
Cut 6 (12) “…seat and fled.”

The Fifth US Circuit Court of Appeals has upheld a Louisiana Law that would require doctors at abortion clinics to have admitting privileges at a local hospital. A law that included some similar language in Texas was shot down by the Supreme Court. Solicitor General Liz Murrill says Louisiana’s attempt at the law was more focused, and as a result, cleared the court challenge.

cut 9 (08) “…very gratifying.”

But Center for Reproductive Rights Senior Council TJ Tu says it’s a decision that fly’s in the face of the Supreme Courts previous decisions, and could make access to abortion in the Bayou State difficult to obtain.

Here’s your commodities…

State Police say one of their Troopers used deadly force on a suspect in Hammond just before 1 AM this morning. Police say the man was pulled over in the downtown area during a traffic stop, and ended after the officer, riding the suspects’ vehicle, fired the fatal shots. A Hammond resident who witnessed the event while at a late night restaurant says it started as a normal traffic stop.

Cut 3 (11) “…took off.” 

The witness says the Trooper was on the vehicle as it sped away.

Four Louisiana State Police Troopers are recovering from injuries after a juvenile attempted to evade and flee from them in a police pursuit on LA Highway 1 that saw speeds in excess of 100 miles per hour. LSP spokesperson Scott Moreau says it all started with a traffic stop on 18 year old Torie Lewis of Alexandria.

Cut 6 (12) “…seat and fled.”

A new poll for the Secretary of State’s special election in November is out, with Democrat Renee Free in the lead, followed by Republicans Julie Stokes and Rick Edmonds. Pollster John Couvillion says despite being the Interim Secretary, Kyle Ardoin is lagging in the low single digits.

Cut 11, 9 seconds, catch up

The poll, by JMC Analytics, was commissioned by candidate Rick Edmonds, and showed nearly 50 percent of respondents still undecided in a race where candidates are reportedly have difficulty fundraising.

The Carolina panthers are signing for LSU standout and safety Eric Reid. Reid was one of the early adopters of a national anthem protest alongside Collin Kaepernick during his time with the 49ers, who decided not to resign the veteran after his contract ended. Reid believes his protests were responsible for his difficulty in finding a new team to play for.

State Police say one of their Troopers used deadly force before one A-M this morning in Hammond. L-S-P says it occurred during a traffic stop. This Hammond resident witnessed and heard the gunshots while at a late-night downtown Hammond restaurant. He says it appeared the suspect tried to take off…
cut 4 (08) “…he started firing”
State Police says the suspect died a local hospital. The Trooper was not injured.

A federal appeals court has ruled that a Louisiana law requiring abortion doctors to have admitting privileges at nearby hospitals is constitutional. A Pro-choice group filed a lawsuit against the 2014 law claiming it would make it difficult if not impossible for a women to get an abortion in this state. But one of the appellate judges said there’s no evidence that any Louisiana clinic would close because of this law.

A Pineville man has been arrested after an alleged sexual assault as well as trying to entice the victim not to report it by pretending to be a cop…
Cut 2 (31) ”I’m Kevin Barnhart”

In the House, U-S Representative Ralph Abraham gave a touching speech honoring Wes Wesselhoft of Ruston, who flew bombers during the Vietnman War. He’s now legally blind because of Agent Orange exposure…
cut 6 (07) “….be forgotten”
Wesselhoft and his family also lived through a German internment camp during World War II.

The Senate Judiciary committee is hearing from Brett Kavanaugh and Christine Blasey Ford, who accuses the Supreme Court nominee of sexually assaulting her during a high school party in the 1980s. Local political analyst Bernie Pinsonat says it’s a smart move on behalf of the committee to have a female prosecutor ask the difficult questions…
cut 14 (11) “…Republicans then”
Senator John Kennedy sits on the Judiciary Committee and says he’ll be listening very carefully.

Shots rang out just before 1 AM in downtown Hammond as State Police say one of their troopers had to use their weapon on a suspect during a traffic stop. The man died at a local hospital, while the trooper was not injured. No other details are available at this time.

And Four Troopers were injured yesterday in Alexandria during a high speeds chase involving a juvenile driver.

US Representative Ralph Abraham honors a Vietnam Vet from Ruston on the House Floor. Connor Ferrill has more…
voicer 1 (29) “….I’m Connor Ferrill”

A poll on the November 6th special election for Secretary of State shows Democrat Renee Fontenot Free leading a large field of candidates. The survey was paid for by Republican candidate Rick Edmonds, which shows Edmonds and fellow GOP state legislator Julie Stokes in a tie for second. Interim Secretary of State Kyle Ardoin is in the single digits.