In the 2015 University of New Orleans Louisiana Gubernatorial Runoff survey, polls show Republican Billy Nungesser in a 10 point lead over Democrat Kip Holden in the Lt. Governor’s race. Ed Chervenak, director of the UNO Survey Research Center, says, unlike the governor’s race, the Lt. Governor’s election is running on race and partisanship..:
CUT 6 (09) “partisanship”
The poll of 600 likely voters was conducted between November 2nd-8th. Early voting for the runoff ends tomorrow and the Secretary of State’s Office is urging people to take advantage as November 21st is the weekend before Thanksgiving and it’s a busy time for many.

LaPolitics.com is reporting that the state Ethics Administration says, in 2015, a record number of new political action committees have formed. They say 281 PACs are registered this year up from 233 10 years ago and the number of new PACs, currently at 58, is up from 33 a decade ago.

Lawyers for Saints and Pelicans owner Tom Benson and his estranged heirs have agreed to mediation over Benson’s lawsuit to remove them as future owners of the teams. Legal analyst Tim Meche believes this is a sign that Judge Jane Triche Milazzo indicated to Benson’s lawyers that they would not win the case during trial…:
CUT 3 (10) “with them”
Benson’s lawsuit seeks to take back stock in the team from his heirs and force them out as non-voting owners of the teams.

The Lafourche Parish Sheriff’s Office says deputies have responded to a call of a man who is armed and has barricaded himself on a boat that’s docked along the Intracoastal Canal. Apparently the man was trespassing on the vessel and deputies are trying to negotiate with him for a peaceful surrender. We’ll have more on this as it develops.

Today and tomorrow are the last days to get out and early vote for the runoff election. Emelie Gunn has more…:
CUT 1 (31) “I’m Emelie Gunn”

The father of the 6-year-old little boy who died in a shower of gunfire allegedly by Marksville cops has reportedly been released from the hospital for injuries he sustained in the incident. The report indicates the lawyer of Chris Few said his client had been discharged. About 100 members of the central Louisiana town gathered Thursday night to remember young Jeremy Mardis during a candlelight vigil.

Crawfish are starting to pop up around coastal parishes in Louisiana. Marine extension agent with the LSU Ag Center Alan Matherne says the farmers have flooded their ponds which causes the older crawfish from last season to pop up. He says they are big and juicy, but there’s not a lot out there right now as January through March is typically when the harvest is at its peak…:
CUT 9 (10) “available”
He says catches are up compared to the start of last season thanks to the mild weather.

New Orleans Saints and Pelicans owner Tom Benson and representatives for his former heirs have agreed to mediation about the lawsuit to take back stock in the teams since he pulled their rights to inherit them. The suit is scheduled for trial next June.

A new report by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention finds Louisiana’s obesity rate at 35 percent, but Department of Health and Hospitals Assistant Secretary of Public Health JT Lane says they’d like to see it lower. He says by implementing “Well Spots,” in over one-thousand businesses statewide, they’re making a conscious effort to help people live healthier lives…

cut 12 (09) “over time”

The obesity rate for women in the state is 36-percent and for men it’s 33-percent.

Early voting ends tomorrow and Secretary of State Tom Schedler urges everyone to go out and cast your ballot. Schedler says the number of early voters in the runoff is outpacing what we saw in the primary…

cut 6 (10) “voting cycle”

He says 90% of people who have early voted for the runoff election, also voted in the October 24th primary.

It looks like Republican gubernatorial candidate David Vitter is bringing some star power to his campaign. His latest campaign commercial features “Duck Dynasty” star Willie Robertson and continues Vitter’s theme of redemption from his prostitution scandal. It shows both men dressed in camouflage standing in front of a hunting vehicle. In the spot, Robertson says, “I know he’s made some mistakes, but who hasn’t?”

Ready for mudbugs? Crawfish are already starting to pop up in stores across some coastal parishes in Louisiana. Michelle Southern reports…:

cut 2 (27) “I’m Michelle Southern”

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention finds the country’s obesity rate has climbed to almost 38-percent, up from 32-percent ten years ago. Jeff Palermo looks at what’s happening in Louisiana….

cut 3 (30) “I’m Jeff Palermo”

New Orleans Police have arrested the pastor of a Marrero church on several counts of inappropriate sexual behavior with children. They say three people allege they were sexually abused by 56-year-old Reverend Dr. Sherman Smith, pastor of the Second Highway Baptist Church, more than 10 years ago. Smith faces multiple charges, including aggravated rape of a victim younger than 13 and sexual battery.

State Police Superintendent Col. Mike Edmonson says District Judge William Bennett remains adamant about the gag order in place in regards to information about last week’s fatal shooting by two Marksville deputy marshals. Edmonson says although he can’t provide more details on the case, he told the Jim Engster show that the investigation remains active…

cut 15 (10) “we go forward”

Six-year-old Jeremy Mardis was killed in the shooting and his father, 25-year-old Christopher Few was severely wounded.

Crawfish are beginning to pop up in stores across some coastal parishes in Louisiana. LSU Ag Center marine extension agent Alan Matherne says the crawfish that are coming up now are mostly from last season and the quality of the mudbugs is good…

cut 8 (06) “this point”

Matherne says there’s not a lot of crawfish available right now.

A gag order remains in place keeping authorities from releasing information to the public about last week’s fatal shooting by two Marksville deputy marshals. Six-year-old Jeremy Mardis was killed in the shooting and his 25-year-old father, Christopher Few, was severely wounded. An attorney for Few says police body camera footage shows Few with his hands up, but State Police Superintendent Col. Mike Edmonson says only a select group of people have seen the video….

cut 14 (10) “that’s it”

Ready for mudbugs? Crawfish are already popping up in stores across some coastal parishes in Louisiana. Marine extension agent with the LSU Ag Center Alan Matherne says the reason the crawfish season tends to start around this time of year is because the farmers flood their ponds…

cut 7 (10) “out of the ground”

Matherne says the quality of crawfish so far is good.

With early voting ending tomorrow, Secretary of State Tom Schedler encourages everyone to go out and exercise your right to vote. Total voter turnout in October was 39-percent and Schedler says we could possibly have an anomaly where the general election receives a better turnout than the primary…

cut 5 (05) “in October”

Schedler says voters are more engaged now that this a smaller ballot, especially with the governor’s race down to just two candidates.

A Centers for Disease Control and Prevention report finds the nation’s obesity rate has climbed to almost 38-percent, that’s up 6-percent from ten years ago. Department of Health and Hospitals Assistant Secretary of Public Health JT Lane says in Louisiana the obesity rate for women is 36-percent and 33-percent for men. He says there is an even greater disparity between white and black adults…

cut 11 (07) “concerns me”

Lane says D-H-H is working hard to reduce these disparities in the state.

A gag order remains in place when it comes to information authorities can release to the public about last week’s fatal shooting by two Marksville deputy marshals. State Police Superintendent Col. Mike Edmonson visited with District Judge William Bennett and Edmsonson says the judge is adamant that no evidence can be released….

cut 13 (07) “jeopardize it”

Six-year-old Jeremy Mardis was killed in the shooting and his 25-year-old father, Christopher Few was severely wounded, but has reportedly been released from the hospital.

Early voting ends tomorrow and Secretary of State Tom Schedler urges everyone to go out and exercise your right to vote. Schedler says it’s important to early vote, because November 21st is the weekend before Thanksgiving, which will be a busy time for many.

cut 4 (10) “early voting”

Schedler says the number of early voters is outpacing what we saw in the primary.

A new report by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention finds the nation’s obesity rate has climbed to almost 38-percent, which is up from 32-percent ten years ago. Department of Health and Hospitals Assistant Secretary of Public Health JT Lane says Louisiana’s obesity rate is at 35 percent and although they’d like to see it lower, we’re heading in the right direction.

cut 10 (09) “welcome sign”

The C-D-C found the obesity rate for women in the country is now higher than men.

It looks like it will be a nice weekend weather-wise for Louisiana. No rain is expected until Sunday night and temperatures will be much cooler. Expect highs in the 60s and lows in the 40s all weekend.

K-A-L-B TV is reporting the father of the six-year-old who was killed in an officer involved shooting last week in Marksville has been released from the hospital. Chris Few was said to be critically injured by gunfire that ended the life of Jeremy Mardis. Two city marshal deputies are the accused shooters and one of them is in the process of trying to bond out.

A telephone poll of 600 likely voters conducted by the University of New Orleans found that Democrat John Bel Edwards has a 22-percent lead over Republican David Vitter in the governor’s race. UNO survey research center director, Doctor Ed Chervenak, says the unpopularity of Governor Bobby Jindal seems to be spilling over into the governor’s race…
cut 11 (10) “…for some change”
Jindal had a 70-percent disapproval rating in the poll.

A new study finds drinking champagne can help prevent Alzheimer’s and dementia. Emelie Gunn has more…..
cut 2 (31) “…reporting”

And some seafood shops will be selling crawfish this weekend. Alan Matherne, with the LSU AgCenter, says farmers have recently flooded their ponds and the crawfish they caught are holdovers from last year’s season, so they have good size to them, but they will be a little pricey.

Two new polls on the governor’s race show Democrat John Bel Edwards leading Republican David Vitter with 10 days to go before the election. Eric Gill reports…:
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According to fundraising totals released Thursday, Edwards has received $4.5 million in contributions since the primary while Vitter raised $2.6 million during the same time.

And there’s a buzz over the internet over the latest Vitter ad which features he and West Monroe reality star Willie Robertson of Duck Dynasty.

One of the suspect’s in the case of the murder of 6-year-old Jeremy Mardis and the injuring of his dad, Chris Few, could be bonding out tomorrow or Monday instead of today. That’s according to Avoyelles Parish Sheriff Doug Anderson who says the father of 23-year-old Norris Greenhouse Jr., who is an attorney, was preparing a million dollar property bond to get his released, but there is a paperwork holdup. He says there are conditions of the bond…:
CUT 5 (07) “his residence”
The technical issue is reportedly due to a state law banning attorneys from bonding out defendants. Greenhouse Jr.’s dad is an assistant DA in Avoyelles Parish.

The Thibodaux Police Department says a woman who has been convicted on theft charges five times is under arrest again this time for allegedly stealing crayons and ink pens. Since 36-year-old Janell Davis of Franklin has been convicted 5 times for theft of goods within the past 10 years, the theft of the crayons is a felony.

The University of New Orleans released a poll on the 2015 Gubernatorial race and found that Democrat John Bel Edwards is 22 points ahead of Republican David Vitter among likely voters. The same survey also found Governor Bobby Jindal with a 70-percent disapproval rating. UNO Survey Research Center Director Dr. Ed Chervenak believes this is turning out to be a driving force in this election…:
cut 12 (07) “John Bel Edwards”

Meanwhile Vitter has released a new campaign ad featuring a well known reality TV star from Louisiana…:
CUT 1 (15) “earn Redemption”
Early voting for the November 21st runoff ends Saturday.

Raise your glass to this news, Drinking champagne could help prevent Alzheimer’s and dementia according to a study out of Reading University. Dr. Jeff Keller with LSU’s Pennington Biomedical Research Center says any consumption of alcohol needs to be done carefully, but it’s very clear that in moderation champagne can be good for your cognitive functioning…:
CUT 15 (08) “and champagne”
The Alzheimer’s Society says that while the results were interesting, a lot more research needed to be done.

More people are showing up to early vote for next Saturday’s runoff than they did for the primary over the first three days. That’s according to the Secretary of State’s Office and pollster John Couvillon of JMC Analytics says enthusiasm is ramping up…:
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He predicts there will be a 45-50% overall turnout.

A new poll on the governor’s race published by The Advocate shows Democrat John Bel Edwards’ double-digit lead over Republican David Vitter slipping a bit. According to the survey, conducted by Market Research Insight, Edwards beats Vitter, 52 to 38 percent, if roughly 26-percent of African-Americans vote in the election. ULM Political Science Professor Joshua Stockley says this could signify some backlash over Edwards’ negative “prostitutes over patriots” ad…:
cut 10 (10) “changed that”
Early voting for the November 21st runoff ends Saturday.

Gas prices in Louisiana continued to creep up Thursday as the statewide average is about to reach the $2.00 mark for a gallon of regular. Petroleum analysts say the creep up is the result of volatility in oil prices at the end of October. As of this morning, Louisiana gas prices are still among the lowest five states in the nation.

The Avoyelles Parish Sheriff’s Office says one of the Marksville officers involved in the shooting death of a 6-year-old boy won’t be bonding out Thursday because of a technical issue. Sheriff Doug Anderson says when 23-year-old Norris Greenhouse Jr. bonds out, he’ll be transferred…:
CUT 4 (08) “from our jail”
Greenhouse Jr.’s dad, who is a lawyer, was attempting to secure a million dollar property bond to get his son released, but it’s believed the hold up is due to a state law which bans attorneys from bonding out defendants. The other officer accused, Derrick Stafford, is also being held on a million dollars bond.

Republican gubernatorial candidate David Vitter is out with a new ad which features he and Willie Robertson of the Duck Dynasty clan. In the commercial, Robertson says he knows Vitter has made some mistakes but adds, “Who hasn’t? — and he’s just concerned about our state.