The last of Angola three has been released from prison. 69-year-old Albert Woodfox walked out of the East Feliciana Parish Jail as a free man for the first time in more than 42 years. Woodfox was an inmate back in 1972 when he and two others were accused of stabbing a prison guard to death. They became known as the Angola 3. Woodfox withdrew his previous “not guilty” pleas and pleaded “no contest” to manslaughter & aggravated burglary. The judge allowed his immediate release due to time served.

Harper Lee, author of the Pulitzer Prize-winning novel “To Kill A Mockingbird,” has died at the age of 89. Halen Doughty reports…:
CUT 2 (20) “I’m Halen Doughty”

The ACLU of Louisiana has responded to the latest Crime Stoppers video by St. Landry Parish’s Captain Clay Higgins that now has over 15 million views.
Higgins is looking for wanted members of the Gremlins Gang and says they each have a $2500 bounty on their head. ACLU of Louisiana Executive Director Marjorie Esman…:
CUT 3 (06) “summary execution”
Esman feels like all this does is exacerbate the problem of a public who feels cops are the bad guys.

In another blow to Saints and Pelicans owner Tom Benson, his estranged daughter has taken over their family’s estate in Texas. This was under a settlement agreement approved by a judge. Benson cut his heirs out of his will when the feud began, and a settlement on the lawsuit over the ownership of the sports franchises in New Orleans is scheduled for a hearing next week. Renee Benson argues that her father is not competent to handle his affairs.

Harper Lee, author of the Pulitzer Prize-winning novel “To Kill A Mockingbird,” has died at the age of 89. Head of Special Collections at LSU Jessica Lacher Feldman says Lee’s death is the end of an era. There has been speculation as to whether Lee wrote any more books that were not published. Feldman says her death may bring more writings to light.

CUT 8 (08) “she’s written”

A new poll from Invest in a Healthy Louisiana and Public Opinion Strategies finds increasing the tobacco tax is favored by seven out of 10 voters. The Invest in a Healthy Louisiana Coaltion is advocating a $1.25 per pack increase in the tobacco tax. So far, only a 22-cent increase has been discussed by the legislature. Pollster Glen Bolger says the poll asked people about three different tax levels and found no statistical difference between the options.

cut 10 (09)  “73 percent”

The ACLU of Louisiana responds to the latest rather aggressive Crime Stoppers viral video by St. Landry Parish’s Captain Clay Higgins looking for wanted Gremlins Gang members. Emelie Gunn reports..:

CUT 1 (28)  “I’m Emelie Gunn”

The last member of the Angola three was released from prison today. Albert Woodfox plead no contest to the manslaughter and aggravated burglary charges he’s facing in the death of a 1972 prison guard. Woodfox has spent most of his prison life in solitary confinement. Attorney General Jeff Landry says they will NOT seek to try Woodfox for a third time.

We are closing in on the first week of the special legislative session and we are still waiting for our first significant piece of legislation to make it out of the House Ways and Means Committee. The panel has heard testimony all week on various proposals to increase taxes on cigarettes, alcohol, personal income, businesses and there’s a bill to raise the state sales tax by a penny.

There’s still a divide between Democratic Governor John Bel Edwards and republican lawmakers. Edwards is seeking to raise taxes as way to fill a budget deficit that’s anywhere between 850-to-950 million dollars. But republicans are pushing for more cuts to the current budget, before they look at raising taxes.

The budget must be balanced by June 30th and the special session is set to end by March 9th. The House is expected to keep working over the weekend. Governor John Bel Edwards is attending the National Governors Assocation meeting in Washington DC and he’ll return to Baton Rouge on Monday.

cut 15 (11) “…no future”

Dozens of students were on the steps of the state capitol today protesting proposed cuts to higher education. Peter Jenkns, who graduated from LSU and Nicholls, says it’s important that the students’ voices are heard….

cut 14 (10) “…..come out”

Higher Ed Commissioner Joseph Rallo says under the best case scenario, public colleges would receive a 70-million dollar cut this fiscal year.

Invest in a Healthy Lousiaina releases a poll today that shows strong support among Louisiana voters for an increase in the state’s cigarette tax  to address the state’s huge budget shortfall. Pollster Glen Bolger says the poll asked people about three different tax levels and there’s strong support all the way around…

cut 10 (09) “….73-percent”

At this point, lawmakers have only talked about raising the tax on a pack of cigarettes by 22-cents.

Dozens of students marched to the state capitol in efforts to protest the proposed cuts to higher education to offset the massive budget deficit. A graduate of Nicholls State University and LSU, Peter Jenkins, attended the Save our Schools rally to make legislators pay attention and stop these drastic measures. He says students are calling for three different things…

cut 13 (10)  “budget cuts”

Students chanted at the steps of the Capitol in efforts to prevent future cuts to higher education.

A new poll from Invest in a Healthy Louisiana and Public Opinion Strategies finds increasing the tobacco tax is favored by seven out of 10 voters. Pollster Glen Bolger says the survey polled 500 likely Louisiana voters and many people are opposed to hikes in the state’s income, sales or property taxes, but favor an increase to the state’s tobacco tax…

CUT 9 (07)  “strongly favor”

The Invest in a Healthy Louisiana Coaltion is advocating a $1.25 per pack increase in the tobacco tax. So far, only a 22-cent increase has been discussed by the legislature.

Harper Lee, author of the Pulitzer Prize-winning novel “To Kill A Mockingbird,” has died at the age of 89. Head of Special Collections at LSU Jessica Lacher Feldman says Lee’s death is the end of an era. Feldman says Lee’s first novel was influential because Lee wrote about race and gender issues in a very real, but idealized, way.

CUT 7 (07) “the century”

There has been speculation as to whether Lee wrote any more books that were not published. Feldman says her death may bring more writings to light.

The ACLU of Louisiana has responded to the latest Crime Stoppers video by St. Landry Parish’s Captain Clay Higgins that’s gone ridiculously viral. Higgins is looking for wanted members of the Gremlins Gang and says they each have a $2500 bounty on their head. ACLU of Louisiana Executive Director Marjorie Esman feels like all this does is exacerbate the problem of a public who feels cops are the bad guys….:

CUT 4 (09)  “what police officers do”

The ACLU of Louisiana has responded to the latest Crime Stoppers viral video by St. Landry Parish’s Captain Clay Higgins. Higgins is looking for wanted members of the Gremlins Gang. He says they each have a $2500 bounty on their head. ACLU of Louisiana Executive Director Marjorie Esman has a problem with that…:

CUT 3 (06)  “summary execution”
Higgins video had nearly 14 million views in just two days

Harper Lee, author of the Pulitzer Prize-winning novel “To Kill A Mockingbird,” has died at the age of 89. Head of Special Collections at LSU Jessica Lacher Feldman says Lee’s death is the end of an era. Feldman worked at the University of Alabama, where Lee spoke to students once a year. Feldman was Lee’s handler when she visited and says Lee’s novel resonated deeply with many people.

CUT 6 (10) “the world”

Funeral services for Lee have not been announced.

A new poll from Invest in a Healthy Louisiana and Public Opinion Strategies finds increasing the tobacco tax is favored by seven out of 10 voters. The Invest in a Healthy Louisiana Coalition is advocating a $1.25 per pack increase in the tobacco tax. So far, only a 22-cent increase has been discussed by the legislature. Pollster Glen Bolger says the increase is popular across party lines…

Cut 11 (11) “percent support”

Increasing the cigarette tax by $1.25 would raise more than $200 million a year for Louisiana.

Dozens of students marched to the state capitol in efforts to protest the proposed cuts to higher education to offset the massive budget deficit. A graduate of Nicholls State University and LSU, Peter Jenkins, attended the Save our Schools rally to make legislators pay attention and stop these drastic measures…

cut 12 (08) “focusing on”

Jenkins says they want the legislators to do what they need to do to save higher education.

cut 15 (11) “…no future”
Dozens of students were on the steps of the state capitol today expressing their opposition to proposed cuts to higher education. One of the organizers, Peter Jenkns, who graduated from LSU and Nicholls, says it’s important that the students’ voices are heard….
cut 14 (10) “…..come out”
Higher Education Commissioner Joseph Rallo says under the best case scenario, public colleges would receive a 70-million dollar cut this fiscal year.

Invest in a Healthy Lousiaina released a poll today that shows strong support among Louisiana voters for an increase in the state’s cigarette tax as a way to address the state’s huge budget shortfall. Pollster Glen Bolger says the poll asked people about three different tax levels and found no statistical difference between the options…
cut 10 (09) “….73-percent”
At this point lawmakers have only talked about raising the tax on a pack of cigarettes by 22-cents.

The last member of the Angola three was released from prison today. Albert Woodfox plead no contest to the manslaughter and aggravated burglary charges he’s facing in the death of a 1972 prison guard. Woodfox has spent most of his prison life in solitary confinement. Attorney General Jeff Landry says they will NOT seek to try Woodfox for a third time.

Harper Lee, author of the Pultizer Prize-winning novel “To Kill a Mockingbird” has died at the age of 89. Halen Doughty reports…
voicer 2 (31) “….I’m Halen Doughty”

Harper Lee, author of the Pulitzer Prize-winning novel “To Kill A Mockingbird,” has died at the age of 89. Head of Special Collections at LSU Jessica Lacher Feldman says Lee’s death is the end of an era. Feldman was the Director of Special Collections at the University of Alabama, where Lee would speak to students once a year. There has been speculation as to whether Lee wrote any more books that were not published. Feldman says her death may bring more writings to light.

CUT 8 (08) “she’s written”

Funeral services for Lee have not yet been announced.

Albert Woodfox, the last remaining member of the Angola 3, plead no contest to manslaughter for the 1972 killing of a prison guard, which is expected to pave the way for his release this afternoon. Woodfox entered the plea at the West Feliciana parish courthouse. He has spent the last four decades in solitary confinement for killing prison guard Brent Miller, but his conviction was recently tossed out. The Attorney General’s office plans to try him again, which led to today’s plea of no contest.

A new poll from Invest in a Healthy Louisiana and Public Opinion Strategies finds increasing the tobacco tax is favored by voters including smokers in all demographics. Pollster Glen Bolger says the survey finds out of 500 likely Louisiana voters many people want to raise tobacco taxes by a significant amount. He says intensity matters in polling….

CUT 9 (07)  “strongly favor”

Increasing the cigarette tax by $1.25 would raise more than $200 million a year for Louisiana. 

The ACLU of Louisiana issued a statement in response to the latest Crime Stoppers video by St. Landry Parish’s Captain Clay Higgins that’s gone viral. Higgins is looking for wanted members of the Gremlins Gang and says they each have a $2500 bounty on their head. ACLU of Louisiana Executive Director Marjorie Esman says Higgins also shouldn’t be calling these suspects “heathens” which is a religious term that implies he knows something about their beliefs…:

CUT 5 (10)  “they’re committing crimes”

“To Kill A Mockingbird” novelist Harper Lee has died at the age of 89. LSU Professor Jessica Lacher Feldman was Lee’s handler when she visited and spoke at the University of Alabama. She says Lee’s first novel was influential because Lee wrote about race and gender issues in a very real, but idealized, way…:
CUT 7 (07) “the century”
Feldman says Lee’s recently released book “Go Set A Watchman,” broke many publishers records.

Early voting begins Saturday for the March 5th Presidential Primary in Louisiana. Secretary of State Tom Schedler says registered Republicans and Democrats can only vote in their respective parties. He says local elections are taking place…:
CUT 14 (11) “this is it”
You can early vote through next Saturday.

The ACLU of Louisiana issued a statement in response to the latest Crime Stoppers viral video by St. Landry Parish’s Captain Clay Higgins looking for wanted Gremlins Gang members. Emelie Gunn reports..:
CUT 1 (28) “I’m Emelie Gunn”

One of the men suspected of killing an Angola prison guard decades ago pleaded no contest to lesser charges today and was ordered to be released from prison. 69-year-old Albert Woodfox is the last of the Angola Three still incarcerated.

Harper Lee, author of the Pulitzer Prize-winning novel “To Kill A Mockingbird,” has died at the age of 89. Head of Special Collections at LSU Jessica Lacher Feldman says Lee’s death is the end of an era. Feldman was the Director of Special Collections at the University of Alabama, where Lee would speak to students once a year. She says Lee’s novel resonated deeply with many people…:
CUT 6 (10) “the world”
Funeral services for Lee have not yet been announced.

The ACLU of Louisiana issued a statement in response to the latest rather aggressive Crime Stoppers viral video by St. Landry Parish’s Captain Clay Higgins looking for wanted Gremlines Gang members. Executive Director Marjorie Esman says this aggravates the problem of a public who feels cops are the bad guys…:
CUT 4 (09) “what police officers do”

Apple is fighting the federal government over hacking into iPhones and the ruling could impact a murder case in Baton Rouge. Halen Doughty has the story…:
Cut 2 (30) “I’m Halen Doughty”

State Police urged the public to be on the lookout for a toddler and her father. Troopers issued a Level II Endangered/Missing Child Media Advisory on behalf of the East Baton Rouge Parish Sheriff’s Office for 22-month-old Desiree Mayfield of Baton Rouge. She was last seen Thursday afternoon with her father 23 year old Donoven Bessie. Authorities said the child is believed to be in danger.

The ACLU of Louisiana issued a statement in response to the latest Crime Stoppers video by St. Landry Parish’s Captain Clay Higgins that’s gone ridiculously viral. Higgins is looking for wanted members of the Gremlins Gang and says they each have a $2500 bounty on their head. ACLU of Louisiana Executive Director Marjorie Esman has a problem with that…:
CUT 1 (06) “summary execution”
Esman feels all this video does is exacerbate the problem of a public perception that cops are the bad guys.

Early voting begins tomorrow for Louisiana’s Presidential Preference Primary which will be held on March 5th. Secretary of State Tom Schedler says only registered Republicans and Democrats will be able to vote in their respective primaries…:
Cut 13 (06) “that primary”
Early voting runs through next Saturday, but polls are closed Sunday.

Apple is fighting the federal government over accessing iPhones and the ruling could have implications on murder case in Baton Rouge. 29-year-old Brittney Mills was shot and killed last year and investigators believe her locked phone could provide information which would help solve her murder. East Baton Rouge District Attorney Hillar Moore says trying to get into a phone to solve a crime is not different than asking for a residential search warrant…:
CUT 9 (07) “doesn’t work”
Apple says they plan to fight this all the way to protect customers’ privacy.

Sweet story out of Kenner. Fire officials tell WWL-TV that a 5-year-old girl who learned about fire safety in school last year was able to save her blind grandmother from a burning home. They say Cloe wood heard the fire alarm and jumped out of bed to get her grandmother and guide her out of the house. Th actions may have saved both their lives, Kenner Fire Chief John Hellmers told WWL.