BP faces a 13-point-seven billion dollar penalty as a federal trial begins today that will determine exactly how much money the oil company will dish out in Clean Water Act fines. Associate Director of the Tulane Energy Institute, Eric Smith, says environmentalists hope the fine is 13-billion, because most of the money will go towards Gulf Coast restoration…
cut 8 (10) “….particular source”
BP is arguing for a lower fine. In court documents, the company already says its costs associated with the oil spill have reached 42-billion.

The Louisiana Supreme Court has refused to hear convicted killer Brandon Scott Lavergne’s request for a new trial. Lavergne pleaded guility to first-degree murder in August 2012 in the death of UL Lafayette student Mickey Shunick.

With election day about nine months away, the four major announced candidates are starting to speak out about why they should be Louisiana’s next governor. Republican Lt. Governor Jay Dardenne says there are many major issues facing the state and he has a history of bringing people together to solve problems…
cut 13 (06) “…withstanding’
The other candidates are Democrat John Bel Edwards and Republicans Scott Angelle and David Vitter.

Former Saint and ALS advocate Steve Gleason will be Senator Vitter’s special guest tonight at President Obama’s State of the Union Address. Eric Gill reports…
cut 1 (28) “…reporting”

A federal judge in New Orleans hears arguments today over how large the fine should be against BP for its role in the 2010 Gulf oil spill. The fine could be as much as 13-billion dollars. BP is expected to argue for a lower penalty. Associate director of the Tulane Energy Institute, Eric Smith, says the judge will consider several factors in this complex case…
cut 9 (08) “….we’ve ever seen”
Testimony is expected to last three weeks.

Today federal and state governments begin accepting 2014 tax returns. Mark Eldredge, with Society of Louisiana Certified Public Accountants, says if you purchased health insurance through the federal marketplace, get your returns to a licensed preparer soon, because even tax pros are trying to get up to speed on the new rules…
cut 12 (07) “….this year”

Former Saints player Steve Gleason is Senator David Vitter’s guest tonight for President Obama’s State of the Union Address. Gleason, who is battling A-L-S, will also get to meet with Health and Human Services Secretary Sylvia Burwell to discuss bringing more attention to the disease. Vitter says Gleason is excited for this opportunity…
cut 6 (10) “….because of that”

Governor Bobby Jindal is in the middle of some controversy during his trip to Europe. During a speech to the Henry Jackson Society, Jindal said there are communities in Europe that enforce Islamic law, instead of that country’s legislation. But British political leaders and American media outlets have issued a statements that say Muslin “no-go zones” do not exist in Europe.

A CBS News poll of one-thousand Americans finds that 14-percent of Republicans want Governor Bobby Jindal to run for President. Jeff Palermo has more…
cut 2 (30) “reporting”

Roadwork begins tonight on a $1 million project to modify exit ramps on I-10 in Lafayette. Department of Transportation spokesperson Deidra Druilhet says these improvements will help with the flow of traffic through the Ambassador Caffery exits…
cut 4 (05) “achieve there”
The project is expected to last until March.

Authorities had to close the I-210 bridge in Lake Charles due to a bomb threat this morning. State Police Sgt. James Anderson says they received a call about a car on fire on the Calcasieu River bridge, but found no car on fire and the person with the car said he had a bomb. Anderson says the investigation is ongoing, but they aren’t ruling out that this is all a hoax. He says their intelligence section is looking into the suspect’s background…
cut 8 (04) “are pending”
The bridge was cleared and all traffic diverted as a precaution. The bridge is now re-opened.

A two-vehicle accident in Natchitoches Parish on Sunday afternoon left three people dead and four others injured, according to State Police. Moreau says the cars of 41-year-old Stacey Lachney of Pineville and 31-year-old Jennifer Tell of Montgomery pretty much collided head on…
cut 10 (09) “dead, as well”
Lachney was also killed. Moreau says Lachney crossed the center line of US 70.

A CBS news poll of one-thousand Americans nationwide found that only 14-percent of Republicans would like to see Governor Bobby Jindal run for President. U-L Lafayette Political Science Professor Pearson Cross says it appears Jindal is suffering from name recognition and he could help boost that if he gets invited to some Republican Presidential debates…
cut 14 (08) “…have a chance”
A decision on if Jindal will run for President is expected soon.

Three people were killed in a two-vehicle wreck in Natchitoches Parish on Sunday afternoon. State Police Trooper Scott Moreau says 41-year-old Stacy Lachney of Pineville was on US Highway 71 when her vehicle crossed the centerline and collided with another car….
cut 11 (05) “…center line”
Lachney was pronounced dead. The other two fatal victims were from Montgomery in Grant Parish.

The Department of Transportation says work will begin tonight on a $1 million project to modify exit ramps on I-10 in Lafayette. Spokesperson Deidra Druilhet says crews will be working on the east and westbound exit ramps at Ambassador Caffery…
cut 3 (06) “capacity there”
She says these improvements will help with the flow of traffic through the area. The project is expected to be completed in March.

The I-210 bridge was shut down for several hours in Lake Charles this morning due to a bomb threat. State Police Sergeant James Anderson says it all started with a call about a car fire on the bridge…
cut 6 (06) “…he had a bomb”
The bridge was cleared and all traffic diverted as a precaution. The suspect is in custody and charges are pending. No bomb was ever found.

State Police say a two-vehicle accident in Natchitoches Parish on Sunday afternoon left three people dead and four others injured. Eric Gill has more…
cut 1 (30) “…reporting”

A C-B-S news poll of one-thousand Americans finds that only 14-percent of Republicans would like to see Governor Jindal run for President. U-L Lafayette Political Science Professor Pearson Cross says Jindal has some time to make up some ground on the republican front-runners, but time is running short…
cut 13 (08) “…voter ID awareness”
An official announcement from Jindal on a Presidential candidacy is expected soon.

Interstate 210 in Lake Charles was closed for several hours this morning because of a bomb threat. State Police Sergeant James Anderson says a person on the side of the road claimed to have a bomb inside his vehicle. Anderson says the bridge was cleared and all traffic diverated as a precuation….
cut 7 (09) “…as well”
Anderson says the man who claimed to have a bomb was taken into custody.

The state department of transportation begins work today on improving the Ambassador Caffery exit on I-10 in Lafayette. The one-million dollar project is expected to be completed in March. D-O-T-D spokesperson Deidra Durilhet says the initial restriping of the existing lanes will take place at night, after that work will take place during daytime hours.
cut 5 (11) “…very minimal”

A CBS News poll of one-thousand Americans finds that 14-percent of Republicans want Governor Bobby Jindal to run for President. Jeff Palermo has more…

cut 2 (30) “reporting”

Roadwork begins tonight on a $1 million project to modify exit ramps on I-10 in Lafayette. Department of Transportation spokesperson Deidra Druilhet says these improvements will help with the flow of traffic through the Ambassador Caffery exits…

cut 4 (05) “achieve there”

The project is expected to last until March.

Authorities had to close the I-210 bridge in Lake Charles due to a bomb threat this morning. State Police Sgt. James Anderson says they received a call about a car on fire on the Calcasieu River bridge, but found no car on fire and the person with the car said he had a bomb. Anderson says the investigation is ongoing, but they aren’t ruling out that this is all a hoax. He says their intelligence section is looking into the suspect’s background…

cut 8 (04) “are pending”

The bridge was cleared and all traffic diverted as a precaution. The bridge is now re-opened.

A two-vehicle accident in Natchitoches Parish on Sunday afternoon left three people dead and four others injured, according to State Police. Moreau says the cars of 41-year-old Stacey Lachney of Pineville and 31-year-old Jennifer Tell of Montgomery pretty much collided head on…

cut 10 (09) “dead, as well”

Lachney was also killed. Moreau says Lachney crossed the center line of US 70.

A CBS News poll of one one-thousand Americans nationwide found 14-percent of Republicans would like to see Governor Bobby Jindal run for President, while 20-percent said they do not want to see him run. U-L Lafayette Political Science Professor Pearson Cross says the survey shows that Jindal needs to improve his name recognition…

cut 12 (08) “Marco Rubio”

Former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney is the republican getting the most support based on this poll, as 59-percent of respondents said they would like to see Romney run again.

Authorities had to close the I-210 bridge in Lake Charles due to a bomb threat this morning. State Police Sgt. James Anderson says they received a call about a car on fire on the Calcasieu River bridge…

cut 6 (06) “he had a bomb”

The bridge was cleared and all traffic diverted as a precaution. The suspect is in custody and charges are pending.

State Police say a two-vehicle accident in Natchitoches Parish on Sunday afternoon left three people dead and four others injured. Master Trooper Scott Moreau says seat belts were used, but impairment is unknown. He says a vehicle driven by 41-year-old Stacey Lachney of Pineville crossed the center line of US 70 and collided with a vehicle driven by 31-year-old Jennifer Tell of Montgomery…

cut 9 (09) “moderate injuries”

Tell was also killed, along with a passenger in her car identified as Brian West. Anderson says three juvenile passengers in Tell’s car received minor to serious injuries in the crash.

The Department of Transportation says work will begin tonight on a $1 million project to modify exit ramps on I-10 in Lafayette. Spokesperson Deidra Druilhet says crews will be working on the east and westbound exit ramps at Ambassador Caffery…

cut 3 (06) “capacity there”

She says these improvements will help with the flow of traffic through the area. The project is expected to be completed in March.

Today is Martin Luther King Jr. Day. It’s a day which marks the birthday of the chief spokesman for the civil rights movement which is actually January 15th. Dr. Faye Williams of Alexandria currently serves as the Chair of the National Congress of Black Women and says today is a day of service…

cut 6 (09) “servant of the people”

The holiday is observed the third Monday of January each year.

New Orleans Congressman Cedric Richmond is concerned that airfare prices have not gone down despite the significant decline in fuel costs. He expressed his concerns in a letter to Nicholas Calio, President and CEO of Airlines for America. Richmond says the fact that airline ticket prices haven’t gone down doesn’t make any sense to him…

cut 3 (09) “fuel costs”

In a written statement, Airlines for America says air travel remains one of the best consumer bargains in America.

The Louisiana Department of Education has named Gibson Elementary School in Terrebonne Parish and Claiborne Fundamental Elementary School in Shreveport as this year’s National Title I Distinguished Schools. Gibson principal Sharon Henry says they get the honor for having made the most progress in closing the achievement gap with historically non-performing students…

cut 12 (11) “by 10%”

The program recognizes two schools from each state.

A Baton Rouge lawmaker is concerned about a department of education report that shows more than 61-thousand public school students received an out of school suspension last academic year as a result disciplinary action. Senator Sharon Weston Broome believes that’s too high

cut 9 (10) “infractions”

That number is about nine-percent of the state’s public school students.

New Orleans Congressman Cedric Richmond sent a letter to Airlines for America expressing concern that airfare prices have not gone down despite the significant decline in fuel costs. Scott Carwile reports…

cut 1 (31) “reporting”

State Police say a single vehicle accident in Beauregard Parish has left a DeRidder man dead. They say, for unknown reasons, a truck driven by 69-year-old Donald Rollins ran off the road and struck a tree. Rollins was transported to a local hospital for what was believed to be minor injuries. However, authorities were later notified that Rollins succumbed to internal injuries he suffered as a result of the crash. Rollins was properly restrained at the time of the crash. The investigation is ongoing.

Claiborne Fundamental Elementary School in Shreveport and Gibson Elementary School in Terrebonne Parish are this year’s National Title I Distinguished Schools. Claiborne Principal Ellen Hall says the Title I part of the award means that they serve children who have been identified as having financial need, but that level of income for their parents does not put a ceiling on their ability to learn…

cut 15 (10) “can not be done”

Hall says the secret to their success revolves around everybody having high expectations and believing that it can be done.

A department of education report that shows more than 61-thousand public school students received an out of school suspension last academic year as a result disciplinary action. Baton Rouge senator Sharon Weston Broome is concerned that sending a misbehaving student home, will not correct their behavior in the future, and that issue needs to be discussed more…

cut 11 (10) “need to exercise”

That number is about nine-percent of the state’s public school students.

New Orleans Congressman Cedric Richmond is concerned that airfare prices have not gone down despite the drop in fuel costs. Richmond says it only seems fair that with the cost of fuel dropping rapidly, that some of those savings be passed on to consumers…

cut 4 (09) “to American families”

Richmond wants an explanation of what exactly makes up the price of an airline ticket.

It’s Martin Luther King Jr. Day, which marks the birthday of the chief spokesman for the civil rights movement. King is credited with helping advance civil rights and was assassinated in 1968. Dr. Faye Williams of Alexandria currently serves as the Chair of the National Congress of Black Women and she says a lot has changed since then…

cut 7 (11) “will live on”

King’s 17 minute long speech at the March on Washington in 1963, which became known as I Have A Dream, is regarded as one of the finest speeches in the history of American oratory.

The Louisiana Department of Education has tapped Gibson Elementary School in Terrebonne Parish and Claiborne Fundamental Elementary School in Shreveport as this year’s National Title I Distinguished Schools. Gibson principal Sharon Henry says the secret to such success is working together to do what’s right for kids…

cut 13 (07) “be successful”

Henry says 89% of her students are considered economically disadvantaged and the academic progress they have made is remarkable.

Baton Rouge state Senator Sharon Weston Broome is concerned about a department of education report showing more than 61-thousand public school students received an out of school suspension last academic year as a result disciplinary action. Broome says she’s meeting with school officials in an attempt to find out if sending a disruptive or troubled child home is the best punishment…

cut 10 (10) “minor infractions”

The report says out of school suspensions and expulsions were the result of fights, willful disobedience, disrespect of teachers, or the use of drugs on campus.