Nearly eight percent of students in the Central School system opted-out during Monday’s first day of statewide PARCC testing. 1% of students in the public school system statewide didn’t participate. Central School Superintendent Michael Faulk says he’s concerned that his school system will be judged with no consideration to the percentage of opt-outs…:
CUT 7 (10) “school district”
Jackson had an opt-out rate of 13-percent, followed by 12-percent for Calcasieu then Central at 8 percent.

State Police have made four arrests of people accused of being involved in a prescription drug scheme at Jackson Parish Hospital and other crimes. Sgt. James Anderson says former employees 51-year-old Vickie Booker and 48-year-old Elizabeth Cheatwood, both of Jonesboro, have been booked in connection to the payroll fraud…:
CUT 4 (06) “insurance fraud”
He says the other arrests stem from people allegedly getting prescription drugs with no prescription and all four arrests were connected.

The Humane Society of Louisiana is finding out new information about a viral photo from a gas station in Slidell that appears to be a man leaving his dog and driving off. The picture is from a concerned citizens cell phone and shows a dog chasing a truck. Humane Society Director Jeff Dorson says they’ve been told that this man is picked up for work from the gas station and the dog follows…:
CUT 12 (12) “killed yet”
He says the agency believes it has located the owner and plans to “educate him” and cite him for “dog at large.”

The LSU men’s basketball is off for Pittsburgh where they’ll play eighth-seeded North Carolina State in the NCAA Tournament on Thursday. Louisiana Tech will host Central Michigan in the N-I-T tonight.

Nearly eight percent of students in the Central School system opted-out during Monday’s first day of statewide PARCC testing. Eric Gill has more…:
CUT 1 (30) “reporting”

A Napoleonville man has died following a crash that occurred during an early morning police chase in Assumption Parish. The car driven by 21-year-old Darrell Thomas led officers on a high-speed chase with speeds exceeding 100 miles per hour. The man ended up crashing and later dying from his injuries according to cops.

The city of DeQuincy has been targeted by a fake news site again this time saying that the town has legalized polygamy. Mayor Lawrence Henagan is brushing this off saying it’s the same guy who has been writing the phony columns…:
CUT 10 (12) “with handguns”
He says another article claims they’ve been attacked by gay zombies and provided handguns to all students in there. Henagan says the free publicity for the city is nice but he wishes the writer would move on.

Millionaire Robert Durst will spend at least six more days in New Orleans before his extradition to California to face murder charges. The 71-year-old heir had a hearing today.

Calcasieu, Jackson and Central School systems led the state in the percentage of opt-outs during the first day of PARCC testing. In Jackson it was 13% non participation, then 12% in Calcasieu and 8% in Central. – Central School Superintendent Micahel Faulk says 153 students there didn’t test…:
CUT 6 (07) “Central Intermediate”
Statewide about 1% of students didn’t take the test associated with Common Core according to education officials.

A State Police investigation into criminal activity at Jackson Parish Hospital has lead to the arrest of four people, three of which were employees. Sgt. James Anderson says investigators discovered different forms of criminal activity going on at the hospital…:
CUT 3 (09) “at the hospital”
He says the scheme involved passing out prescription drugs to people without a prescription.

The Mayor of DeQuincy says he’s not concerned about a fake news site once again targeting the city with an article claiming they’ve passed some ridiculous law. This time “The News Examiner” says polygamy is now legal in DeQuincy. Mayor Lawrence Henagan says if anyone truly reads these articles you would easily be able to tell that they aren’t real…:
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Henagan says on one hand it’s free publicity for the town, but on the other hand this is getting old and he wishes the writer would find someone else to pick on.

For the first time in program history, the LSU softball team and baseball teams are the No. 1 teams in the nation. Both are back in action tonight as the men take on Southern and the women play Louisiana Tech.

Concerns that there would be a large number of students who parents would “opt them out” of taking the PARCC exams seemed to be unfounded according to State Superintendent of Education John White. He says early findings show almost all students participated in the test associated with Common Core on the first day…:
CUT 10 (13) “in the test”
He says half of the 1% of non-participants were in Calcasieu Parish.

State Police say a man from Napoleonville is dead after crashing during a high-speed chase with sheriff’s deputies along Bayou Lafourche early this morning. Assumption Parish Sheriff’s deputies tried to pull over 21-year-old Darrell Thomas for speeding but the man did not stop and began exceeding 100 miles per hour at times. The man eventually crashed, was not wearing his seatbelt and later died at a hospital in Thibodaux.

Jury selection begins today in Lafayette in the first-degree murder trial of Seth Fontenot, accused of a 2013 shooting that killed a 15-year old and injured two others. Scott Carwile reports…:
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A 3-year-old child has died after being hit by a car in Alexandria according to cops. They say it appears to be a tragic accident but the investigation into the incident is continuing. The driver of the vehicle is identified and is cooperating in the investigation. At this time no charges are filed.

Education Superintendent John White says after the first day of PARCC testing, preliminary findings show about 99% of students participated. He says there are four school systems where he would call the non-participants rate moderate to significant: Calcasieu, Jackson, Red River, and Central. White says he has invited the Superintendents in these systems to meet with him face to face…

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He says more than 320,000 students took the test associated with Common Core.

Jury selection begins today in Lafayette in the first-degree murder trial of Seth Fontenot, accused of a 2013 shooting that killed 15-year old Austin Rivault and injured two others. Legal analyst Tim Meche believes this this case will result in either a manslaughter or a second-degree murder conviction…

cut 6 (06) “explained to me”

Fontenot claims he fired to scare the teens, who he thought were breaking into his truck, not to hurt them.

Shreveport Representative Barbra Norton has filed a bill for the upcoming legislative session that would make it illegal to supply a child 12 or under with an Uzi sub-machine gun. Michelle Southern reports…

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The Lafayette school bus driver being investigated for drunk driving after a crash with children aboard last week has resigned from his job. Four children suffered minor injuries when the bus driven by 50-year-old John Bernard ran into a ditch. Bernard claimed he was avoiding an oncoming vehicle, but investigators were able to determine that was not true. Bernard was cited with careless operation of a vehicle and blood alcohol test results are pending. Bernard’s resignation was effective Monday.

State Superintendent of Education John White says after the first day of PARCC testing, concerns that there would be widespread non-participation did not bear out. Michelle Southern reports…

cut 3 (30) “reporting”

The Alexandria Police Department says a 3-year-old child was struck and killed by a car last night. Officials say, at this time, the incident looks to be an accident. The driver of the vehicle is cooperating with authorities. No charges have been filed as the investigation is ongoing. The identity of the 3-year-old has not been released.

A bill has filed for the upcoming legislative session by Shreveport Representative Barbra Norton that would make it illegal to supply a child 12 or under with an Uzi sub-machine gun. Norton says people are accidentally shot all the time and she feels that the risk for a tragedy is greatly increased when a Uzi is in the hands of a child…

cut 9 (12) “hold it steady”

The legislative session begins April 13.

If you commute between Alexandria and Pineville and take the O.K. Allen Bridge, you will be redirected to begin utilizing the the Curtis-Coleman Memorial Bridge starting this morning at 10. Deidra Druilhet with the state Department of Transportation says only the northbound span of the new bridge has been built and it will be used for two-way traffic while the O.K. Allen Bridge is torn down…

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State Superintendent of Education John White says about 99-percent of students took part in the first day of PARCC testing. He says of the about 1% who did not participate, Calcasieu Parish — which makes up about 4% of the student population in the state, had roughly 50% of the non-participants…

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He says there are three other school systems where he would call the percentage of non-participants moderate to significant and those are Jackson, Red River and Central.

In Lafayette, jury selection begins in the first-degree murder trial of Seth Fontenot, accused of a 2013 shooting that killed 15-year old Austin Rivault and injured two others. Legal analyst Tim Meche says Fontenot appears to be going after a manslaughter verdict. He feels that Fontenot will testify that, because his truck had been broken into several times prior, it caused him to act in a heat of passion…

cut 5 (09) “his actions”

A bill by Shreveport Representative Barbra Norton would make it illegal to supply a child 12 or under with an Uzi sub-machine gun. Norton says she realizes that some parents want to teach their children how to shoot guns for hunting or for general safety reasons, but she sees no reason for kids to ever have a machine gun…

cut 8 (10) “could go anywhere”

She says kids are not big enough to handle such a large weapon in a safe manner.

Motorists who commute between Alexandria and Pineville and take the O.K. Allen Bridge will be redirected to begin utilizing the the Curtis-Coleman Memorial Bridge starting this morning at 10am. Deidra Druilhet with the state Department of Transportation says during the shift they will also be closing exit 71B to all southbound traffic…

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Druilhet says traffic delays should be expected while the shift is implemented.

State Superintendent of Education John White says after the first day of PARCC testing, concerns that there would be widespread non-participation did not bear out. He says preliminary findings show more than 320,000 students took the test associated Common Core which is about 99% participation…

cut 10 (13) “in the test”

He says 50% of non-participants were in Calcasieu Parish.

Shreveport Representative Barbra Norton has filed a bill for the upcoming legislative session that would make it illegal to supply a child 12 or under with an Uzi sub-machine gun. She says kids are not big enough to handle such a large weapon in a safe manner…

cut 7 (11) “concern about that”

She feels that the risk for a tragedy is greatly increased when a Uzi is in the hands of a child.

Jury selection begins today in Lafayette in the first-degree murder trial of Seth Fontenot, accused of a 2013 shooting that killed 15-year old Austin Rivault and injured two others. Fontenot claims he fired to scare the teens, who he thought were breaking into his truck, not to hurt them. Legal analyst Tim Meche says this will be a tough case for Fontenot…

cut 4 (10) “the consequences”

He says Fontenot appears to be going after a manslaughter verdict. With a manslaughter conviction, Fontenot could face up to 40 years in prison.