The trial begins in the case of Arthur Moore, the Natchez man accused of killing local folk artist James Henry Williams in January 2019. Moore was arrested two months later following a manhunt that included U.S. Marshals as well as local law enforcement. He was originally set to go to trial in June, but the case was continued to this week because one of the investigators scheduled to testify couldn’t appear in court then because of health reasons.
Author: Imported Author 1980807
-
LSP Employee Placed on Administrative Leave Pending Misconduct Investigation
Baton Rouge, LA – Following a complaint of an alleged incident involving a Louisiana State University student, an LSP employee was placed on administrative leave last week with all law enforcement property recovered pending the conclusion of the administrative investigation. The complaint involves allegations of a misconduct incident that took place while the employee was working in conjunction with Louisiana State University. The investigation remains active and no further information is available at this time. As the investigation progresses, further information will be made available to the public.
“Upon learning of the allegations, our agency took immediate action to begin the investigatory process and ensure that both the complainant and our employee were notified of the steps being taken,” stated Colonel Lamar Davis, Louisiana State Police Superintendent. “As the investigation progresses, we will ensure all circumstances of the alleged incident are investigated thoroughly and fairly while remaining committed to our citizens and agency personnel with transparency and professionalism.”
Contact information:
Captain Nick Manale
Louisiana State Police
Public Affairs Section
Office: (225) 925-6202
Nick.Manale@la.gov
www.lsp.org -
Mississippi State Fair set to open
Commissioner of Agriculture and Commerce Andy Gipson will officially open the gates to the 162nd Mississippi State Fair with a ceremonial ribbon cutting at 5:00 p.m. at Gate 1 located at the intersection of Jefferson and Amite Streets in Jackson. The Mississippi State Fair runs through Sunday, October 17, with a gate admission price of $5.00 per person and parking fee of $5.00 per car. Children aged 6 and under get in free. There’s also free admission every weekday from 11:00 a.m. until 1:00 p.m., excluding this coming Monday.
-
GOHSEP launches program to help those in need of immediate shelter from Ida to get trailers ASAP
Baton Rouge / louisianaradionetwork.com
In an effort to get those still without shelter in some of the hardest-hit areas of Hurricane Ida, the Governor’s Office of Homeland Security and Emergency Preparedness is working in conjunction with FEMA to speed up the process. GOHSEP Deputy Director Casey Tingle says they hope to have trailers installed as soon as this weekend“Since the policy came out a little over a week ago, the state has been working quickly to be able to implement this,” said Tingle.
To register from the program, you can call 1-844-268-0310 but Tingle says the best way is the register online at IdaShelterling LA.com
“Certainly, understand that there may be a lot of interests in this but we’re really trying to gear it towards those who really are in need of safe housing today,” said Tingle.
Tingle says FEMA is still working on their program of direct housing that includes travel trailers, mobile homes, and certain types of leases.
“And it’s really just sort of an extension of that sheltering activity which is why we think it made sense for the state to kind of step in and be the one to implement it,” said Tingle.
The state program is funded through the FEMA Public Assistance Program which means they will cover 90-percent of the costs.
For a list of immediate shelters, you can call 211 or visit GetAGamePlan.org.
GOHSEP launches program to help those in need of immediate shelter from Ida to get trailers ASAP
-
National Night Out on the bluff in Natchez
Preparations are underway for the local observance of National Night Out on the bluff in Natchez. That’ll be tomorrow evening from 6 to 9, featuring free food and family entertainment including the Natchez High band and a local choir, plus the Matt Willis Trio and Vick Allen. The event is sponsored by the Natchez Police Department and is designed to both build community and strengthen networks against crime. National Night Out is observed the first Tuesday of August in most of the country, although large sections of the south hold off til October to beat the heat.
-
BESE members critical of new quarantine policy
Baton Rouge / louisianaradionetwork.com
Board of Elementary and Secondary Education President Sandy Holloway calls Superintendent of Education Cade Brumley’s plan to allow parents to decide if their child should stay home if there was a possible COVID exposure, abrupt and inconsistent with what health officials recommend. Fellow BESE member Kira Orange Jones agrees.
“This is a rogue, irresponsible action that really didn’t give many constituents the opportunity to weigh in on something as important as this,’ said Jones.
Brumley’s directive states that school systems have a choice of whether or not they implement parental choice when dealing with possible virus exposure and quarantining kids. His concern is the huge number of kids missing school and classroom interaction with classmates.
Jones, who represents District 2 on the Board of Elementary & Secondary Education says Brumley should have run his idea past BESE first.
“Many BESE members haven’t had the opportunity to even understand the policy or its implications,’ said Jones.
Some school systems are implementing this new parent choice option, while others are not changing their quarantine rules, which means students will have still have to quarantine after they have close contact with a person who is COVID positive.
Jones says she’d like to talk with state health officials and medical experts about Brumley’s policy.
“Really assess the ways in which it does or doesn’t fly in the face of what we know is in the best interest of keeping students and school communities safe,” said Brumley.
-
The MS Supreme Court upholds a 9-year sentence for an Adams County man
The Mississippi Supreme Court upholds a 9-year sentence for an Adams County man convicted of dogfighting. Tommie Queen was convicted on three of the nine felonious dogfighting charges he faced in late 2019. He was sentenced to the maxiumum penalty at the time, three years on each of the charges. Queen’s attorney had appealed, arguing the ASPCA investigator who was presented as an expert on animal cruelty and dogfighting shouldn’t have been allowed to testify and that there wasn’t enough evidence to support the conviction. The Supreme Court disagreed.
-
Approval Of Sports Betting In Louisiana Delayed By Hurricane Ida
Baton Rouge / louisianaradionetwork.com Sports betting in Louisiana is still on hold for now after an expected mid-September launch. Gaming Control Board Chairman Ronnie Johns says upwards of 14 days were lost in getting applications approved as troopers assigned to the State Police Gaming Division were deployed to assist with Hurricane Ida recovery efforts.
Johns says things are getting back on track for the Sports Book operations that will involve nearly two dozen applicants initially. “The big 20 is the 15 riverboat licenses, big Harrah’s land-based in New Orleans, and then the four race tracks,” said Johns.
Johns says he’ll act as quickly as possible to act on each application recommended for approval by the gaming division but won’t commit on a date when sports betting will get underway in the state. Johns says the Gaming Division is “working overtime to get these applications approved and get them over to me as chairman for me to give final approval to.
Approval Of Sports Betting In Louisiana Delayed By Hurricane Ida
-
Report: Saints and Pelicans to be sold after Gayle Benson passes away
Baton Rouge / louisianaradionetwork.com
Many have wondered what will happen to the New Orleans Saints and the Pelicans once Gayle Benson passes away. She has no heirs.
Well, Jeff Duncan of the Advocate/Times-Picayune and Lee Zurik of Fox 8 TV in New Orleans have combined their reporting skills to report the Saints and Pelicans will be sold after owner Benson passes away.
The proceeds from the sale, which will be in the billions, will go to local charities. The 74-year-old Benson has been running the franchises since March 2018 following the death of her husband, Tom Benson.
Team executives also say the plan is to make sure the Saints stay in New Orleans after the sale is completed.
Here’s the report.
-
Governor John Bel Edwards extends the state’s indoor mask mandate until October 27th
Baton Rouge / louisianaradionetwork.com Governor John Bel Edwards has extended Louisiana’s indoor mask mandate for another four weeks until October 27th. Edwards says the states’ overall COVID-19 outlook is improving, but baseline numbers are still too high.
“Every community in the state of Louisiana continues to have a high amount of COVID and they are in an elevated risk category as a result of that,” said Edwards.
The governor is encouraged the number of new cases and COVID hospitalizations have fallen below 1,000 from a high of 3,000. But he says the state’s level of COVID is 2.5 times what the CDC considers high.
He says the state’s mask mandate includes K-through-12 schools and college campuses.
“The CDC has put out information that shows schools without masking requirements are 3.5 times more likely to have a COVID-19 outbreak than schools where children and staff are masked,” said Edwards.
Governor John Bel Edwards extends the state’s indoor mask mandate until October 27th