St. Tammany Firefighters say four people were killed in an overnight house fire in Slidell’s Eden Isles subdivision. The fire was first reported around 1:30 in the morning and extinguished around 6 AM. An investigation into a cause is underway.

One of the first bills filed for the 2022 regular session is one pertaining to homeowners’ associations. Brooke Thorington has more.
Cut 2 (34) “…I’m Brooke Thorington.”

It will be warm today, but a big change is coming as a strong cold front will begin to move through the state tonight, dropping our temperatures significantly…
cut 11 (10) “…pretty chilly day”
Keim says there’s a chance for freezing rain Thursday into Friday morning for south Louisiana.

Governor John Bel Edwards has announced a task force on statewide litter abatement and beautification. Edwards says the 26-member task force will make recommendations to the governor by July of this year, but he says Louisiana residents also have the power to reduce the amount of garbage that ends up in waterways, storm drains, and streets…
cut 5 (13) “…call home”

Get ready for another blast of cold, wintery weather. State Climatologist Barry Keim says today starts off mild, with sunshine and temperatures reaching into the 60’s and lower 70’s, but then…:
Cut 10 (12) “…at least a possibility.”
And the National Weather Service says a wintry mix is possible Thursday night to Friday morning for south Louisiana.

Americans can request four free at-home COVID-19 tests through the website COVIDtests-dot-gov. The White House says the tests will typically ship within seven to 12 days through the U-S Postal Service. LSU Health New Orleans Chair of Genetics Doctor Lucio Miele says you should not test for the sake of testing…
cut 15 (08) “….is critical”

Governor John Bel Edwards says Louisiana has reached a sobering milestone as the state health department reports one-million COVID cases since the pandemic started. Over 15-thousand Louisianians have died from the illness.

On another front, the governor wants to give litter the boot…
cut 1 (30) “….I’m David Grubb”

And today at 2:00 the governor takes your questions with his monthly Ask the Governor call-in show. You can hear it at louisianaradionetwork.com

The family of a Slidell woman, believed to have been decapitated in New Orleans, demands the suspect in the crime be denied bail. Julia Dardar’s dismembered body was found in a freezer at the home of local artist Benjamin Beale. He’s has been charged in her death. Julia’s estranged husband Micah Dardar this morning…:

CUT 09(06)      “…demented and demonic.”

Beal’s bond HAS been set, at $1.4-million. He is still in jail.

The National Weather Service says there’s the possibility of a wintry mix later this week. A strong cold front arrives overnight; bringing the potential for strong storms late Wednesday in north Louisiana. Meteorologist Kevin Owens says behind the front is very cold air and once the temperature gets close to the freezing mark, freezing rain is possible…:

CUT 12(11)      “…more information.”

Owens says tomorrow will start off as a mild day and then some of the coldest weather of the winter will arrive.

Physicians advise, if you are experiencing COVID symptoms, to assume you have the virus and stay home. It might not be COVID but Dr. Lucio Miele, Chair of the Department of Genetics at LSU Health New Orleans says the PCR test is more accurate, but it takes several days to receive results. He says having both speed and sensitivity is a difficult combination in a test…:

CUT 04(08)      “…not possible.”

You can get a FREE package of four at-home COVID tests by going online to “covidtests.gov”

The state Health Department reports just over 29-thousand new case of coronavirus; the majority of them are the Omicron variant. Almost 2200 are in hospitals right now. Of those, about 73-percent have not been fully vaccinated.

The Jefferson Parish Sheriff’s Office is investigating a double murder in Metairie. JPSO spokesman Glen Boyd says the male victims were shot to death. They were found by a friend Monday night. An investigation is underway.

Democratic U.S. Senate candidate Gary Chambers, who is challenging Republican John Kennedy, releases a campaign ad that shows him smoking marijuana. Chambers says the goal of the ad is to destigmatize the drug and support legalization and decriminalization…:

CUT 06  (12)        “…just like me.”

Advocate reporter Tyler Bridges, who covers Senate races, says he’s never seen or heard of a candidate openly smoking weed in a campaign ad. Chambers is joined in challenging Kennedy by Bunkie Democrat Luke Mixon.

A 14-year-old girl in Franklin is under arrest; accused of making a bomb threat to the town’s junior and senior high schools. Police says the girl – whose name is withheld because she is a minor – faces charges of terrorizing and communicating false information of a planned bombing on a school.

Louisiana has surpassed one-million positive cases of COVID since the pandemic began in 2020. A little over 15-thousand have died during that time.

The estranged husband of a Slidell woman, whose dismembered body was found at a home in New Orleans’ 9^th Ward, is demanding the suspect be held without bond. Julia Dardar’s husband Micah says his wife suffered from addiction and mental health issues, and he knew she was hanging around suspect Benjamin Beale…:

CUT 11  (11)        “…too little, too late.”

Beale faces murder and obstruction of justice charges. Micah Dardar wants Beale denied bond, because he considers him a flight risk.

A private school in Clinton, in East Feliciana Parish, is under fire for changing Martin Luther King Day to “Great American Heroes Day” on its school calendar. After a spate of complaints and MANY negative social media posts, the Silliman Institute says it will ”review the manner in which we celebrate this day at our next Board of Directors’ Meeting, and are prepared to make necessary changes as we move forward.”

The estranged husband of a Slidell woman who was dismembered and her body stuffed in a freezer is calling on the justice system to hold the accused killer without bail. More from Jeff Palermo…:

CUT 02(27)      “…Jeff Palermo.”

Faced with a severe shortage of substitute teachers, Caddo Parish schools are asking parents to step and take on that role. The lack of available instructors is caused largely by the COVID pandemic, but also by a general shortage of available help. Caddo parents who want to help are urged to contact the school system.

A Baton Rouge Fire Department arson investigator shot a naked, unarmed man who was trying to break into his FDBR vehicle – which had a gun inside. The investigator says, if not for the gun inside, he’d not have used force to stop the man. Why the man was trying to get into the vehicle … and why he was nude … are matters for the investigation.

Physicians say, if you are experiencing COVID symptoms to assume you have the virus and stay home. It might not be COVID but Dr. Lucio Miele (MEE-lay), with LSU Health New Orleans, says if you test negative with a home test, you’re not out of the woods just yet…:

CUT 03(12)      “…a bad idea.”

Miele says the PCR test is more accurate, but it takes several days to receive results. To order a package of four at-home tests, go online to “COVIDtests.gov.”

A St. Martin Parish man faces murder charges after LEO’s find a dead man and dog inside a burning building. Details are scarce at this time, but we do know that the suspect, Randall Romero of St. Martinville, is charged with 2^nd-degree murder, unlawful disposal of human remains, cruelty to animals and more.

“COVIDtests.gov” , the website to order your free at-home coronavirus tests, is now live. Brooke Thorington has more on the reliability of home tests…:

CUT 01(34)      “….Thorington.”

The family of a Slidell mother believed to have been decapitated in New Orleans is demanding that the man suspected of killing her be held without bail. A dismembered body, believed to Julia Dardar’s, was found in a freezer on local artist Benjamin Beale’s property. He’s has been charged in her death. Julia’s estranged husband Micah Dardar says Beale’s parents have the ability to bond him out, and that is a problem…:

CUT 10(12)      “…can’t get out of this.”

U.S. Senate candidate Gary Chambers, of Baton Rouge, releases a campaign ad showing him smoking pot. He says he wants to destigmatize the herb, as a non-violent offense that is clogging up court dockets and taking needed jail space. Reporter Tyler Bridges covers the Senate race for the Advocate newspaper. He says, if nothing else, the Chambers ad is unique…:

CUT 08(10)      “…in Louisiana.”