Pope Francis will be laid to rest tomorrow. Colleen Crain reports.
Cut 1 (34) “…I’m Colleen Crain.”
_____________________________________________
LSU will open a new instructional site in Baton Rouge for its top-ranked Bachelor of Science in Nursing program to help address Louisiana’s critical nursing shortage. Sean Richardson has more.
Cut 2 (33) “…I’m Sean Richardson.”
____________________________________________
Louisiana sends off one offensive tackle and welcomes another at the NFL Draft. Andrew Greenstein reports.
Cut 3 (35) “…I’m Andrew Greenstein.”
______________________________________________________
About 200-thousand people are expected at the Vatican tomorrow for the funeral of Pope Francis. The pontiff died of a stroke Easter Monday at the age of 88 – just hours after he made Easter Sunday appearances. The funeral service will be held at Saint Peter’s Square, and he will be buried in the Basilica of Saint Mary Major in Rome. Bishop Michael Duca of the Diocese of Baton Rouge got to meet Pope Francis in 2019 and says the pontiff was genuine.
Cut 4 (08) “…our questions directly.”
Bishop Duca says Pope Francis continued the work of his two immediate predecessors, popes John Paul the Second and Benedict the 16th.
Pope Francis’ funeral will begin nine days of mourning. And Duca says after that, work will begin on selecting a new pope.
Pope Francis served since 2013 following the resignation of Pope Benedict the 16th.
______________________________________________________
In fall 2025, LSU will open a new instructional site in Baton Rouge for its top-ranked Bachelor of Science in Nursing program to help address Louisiana’s critical nursing shortage. LSU School of Nursing Associate Dean Jennifer Manning says the expansion allows pre-nursing students in Baton Rouge to complete their degrees locally, a highly requested option.
Manning says students will receive the same rigorous curriculum as at LSU Health New Orleans, combining in-person and synchronous distance learning, with clinical training through Woman’s Hospital and Our Lady of the Lake.
Cut 8 (10) “…Baton Rouge area hospitals.”
Enrollment will start at 30 students and grow to 90. The first class is set to graduate in May 2028. Manning says the addition of the Baton Rouge campus will keep more students in Louisiana instead of applying to other SEC schools in other states.
Cut 9 (11) “…remain in the state.”
_____________________________________________________
The House Criminal Justice Committee votes to advance a bill that would repeal the state statute that allows for financially compensating people who served time in prison for crimes that they did not commit. Current state law allows up to 40-thousand dollars per year of incarceration for compensation. Attorney General Liz Murrill testified in support of the bill, saying that the burden to compensate wrongfully-convicted people should be at the local level and not the state level.
Cut 10 (07) “…attorney in Orleans.”
The bill is controversial; the vote in the committee was 7-to-4. Meredith Angelson testified against it, saying most wrongfully convicted people aren’t being fully compensated right now as it is.
Kenner Republican Debbie Villio proposed the bill to strike the current law, arguing that exonerees can still seek relief through the federal courts. Jarvis Ballard, who served 23 years of a life prison sentence for a sex crime that he did not commit, says that avenue would not have been an option in his instance.
Cut 12 (11) “…make any sense.”
________________________________________________________
Will Campbell has become the second LSU offensive lineman ever to be taken in the first round of the NFL Draft. And as nearly all prognosticators predicted, he was selected 4th overall by the New England Patriots. After he was selected, Campbell said he’s excited to be playing for a franchise that has won six Super Bowls and is ready to help them return to their winning ways.
Cut 13 (14) “…I’m just excited.”
Campbell says he’s looking forward to play with second-year quarterback – and fellow first round pick – Drake Maye.
Cut 14 (13) “…special season coming.”
Campbell says ever since Patriots Executive Vice President of Player Personnel Eliot Wolf came to one of his practices, he knew he wanted to play in Foxborough.
Cut 15 (14) “…to meet everybody.”
________________________________________________________
The Saints chose to bolster their offensive line with the 9th overall pick in the NFL Draft by taking tackle Kelvin Banks Jr. from Texas. Banks was a unanimous All-American and won the Outland and Lombardi trophies last season while blocking for Quinn Ewers and Arch Manning for the Longhorns. Banks says he remembers playing in the Superdome in the 2024 Sugar Bowl, especially the electrifying atmosphere that the building yields.
Cut 16 (11) “…from either side.”
Banks says he’s looking forward to playing for another rookie – rookie head coach Kellen Moore.
Cut 17 (14) “…team win games.”
Some draft experts had the Saints taking Colorado quarterback Shedeur Sanders. They may have another chance to get him today – he was not taken in the first round.
__________________________________________________________
The most anticipated series of the season has arrived for the LSU baseball team as the 7th ranked Tigers host the 6th ranked Tennessee Volunteers in a matchup of the last two College World Series championship teams. Coach Jay Johnson says the Vols have an extremely talented team again this year…
LSU enter the series on a two game losing streak as they lost in the final game of the Alabama series and suffered an ugly 13-3 defeat to instate foe Northwestern State. Johnson hopes his team will learn from the last two games…
LSU will start Kade Anderson on the mound tonight and Anthony Eyanson will start on Saturday. Sunday’s starter is to be announced. Tigers left hander Connor Ware is a possibility, he started the final game of the Alabama series. Ware was asked about the LSU-Tennessee rivalry…