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The gunman responsible for a deadly rampage inside a Lafayette movie theater last summer left a journal thanking the man accused of killing 9 black people in a South Carolina church. Police on Wednesday released a copy of 59-year-old John Russell Houser’s hand-written journal, in which he described Dylann Roof as “green but good.” Police said Houser shot and killed two people and wounded nine others before fatally shooting himself inside an auditorium at The Grand 16 theater on July 23, 2015. In his 40-page journal, Houser laments the state of the U.S., calling it a “filth farm,” and he rants against the news media, national political figures, women, gays and blacks.
GROUNDBREAKING WAS HELD YESTERDAY FOR A NEW ONE-POINT-6 BILLION DOLLAR METHANOL PLANT IN LAKE CHARLES. THE PLANT BY G-2-X ENERGY OF HOUSTON WILL TAKE ABOUT THREE YEARS TO BUILD. THE C-E-O OF G-2-X TIM VAIL SAYS THERE WILL BE A 25-HUNDRED WORKERS DURING CONSTRUCTION AND, ONCE FINISHED, THE PLANT WILL REQUIRE AROUND 150 PERMANENT WORKERS. THE PLANT WILL CONVERT NATURAL GAS INTO METHANOL, WHICH WILL BE EXPORTED TO COUNTRIES ALL OVER THE WORLD.
NEW LOUISIANA GOVERNOR JOHN BEL EDWARDS TOURED DIFFERENT PARTS OF THE STATE YESTERDAY INCLUDING A TRIP TO KROTZ SPRINGS. HE CAME TO VIEW REPAIRS TO THE HESCO BASKET LEVEE, THAT WERE MADE NECESSARY BECAUSE OF THE THREAT OF POTENTIAL FLOODING. HE SPOKE TO AN AUDIENCE THAT INCLUDED ST. LANDRY PARISH PRESIDENT BILL FONTENOT AND KROTZ SPRINGS MAYOR CARROLL SNYDER. HE SAYS THE WATER LEVELS ARE NOT EXPECTED TO GET AS HIGH AS THEY THOUGHT BUT THERE ARE LESSONS TO BE LEARNED IN TERMS OF COMMUNICATION AND COOPERATION TO MAKE SURE THE STATE IS BEING AS RESPONSIVE AS NEEDED.
As a rank-and-file lawmaker, Louisiana’s new House Speaker Taylor Barras wasn’t one to seek the spotlight. The Republican from New Iberia never chaired a committee, and he wasn’t the face of high-profile debates during his first eight years in office. Barras’ election victory as House speaker this week was a surprise. His lack of history as a House leader also makes him somewhat of an unknown quantity as he takes the helm of the chamber during a deep financial crisis.
A CAREER FAIR IS BEING HELD FOR BUSINESSES OF THE NEW AMBASSADOR TOWN CENTER BEING BUILT ON KALISTE SALOOM ROAD AT AMBASSADOR CAFFERY PARKWAY. JULIE DARCE HAS THE DETAILS.
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A part-time Welsh police officer has been fired after Police Chief Marcus Crochet said he lied about working for an area security company and may have misused a take-home vehicle. Crochet tells The American Press that Patrolman Lindsey Francois did not show good moral character when he lied about working for Pinkerton Security. After a 20-minute closed-door session this week, Alderman Hugh Fruge and Alderwoman Becky Hudson made the motion to relieve Francois of his duties. All other aldermen unanimously upheld the chief’s recommendation to fire the officer.
THE TOWN OF CHURCH POINT IS PARTNERING WITH CHURCH POINT PRIMARY CARE TO HOST A HEALTH EXPO AT CITY HALL THIS SATURDAY MORNING. IT WILL TAKE PLACE AT CHURCH POINT CITY HALL FROM EIGHT A-M UNTIL NOON. SUPPORTERS OF THE EVENT FROM THE MEDICAL AND FITNESS COMMUNITY WILL BE ON HAND TO PROVIDE SCREENINGS, DEMONSTRATIONS AND INFORMATION ABOUT THE DIFFERENT RESOURCES AVAILABLE TO PROMOTE A HEALTHY LIFESTYLE. OUR LADY OF LOURDES WILL ALSO HOLD A BLOOD DRIVE TO HELP A LOCAL FAMILY THAT HAS MEDICAL EXPENSES.
Louisiana’s top school board has a new president. The state Board of Elementary and Secondary Education has eight new members on the 11-member panel. The board voted Wednesday to place the only three returning members into leadership roles. Jim Garvey, a lawyer from Metairie, was named president.
