10-4-18
A JURY HAS FOUND LAFAYETTE CITY MARSHAL BRIAN POPE GUILTY ON FOUR OF SEVEN MALFEASANCE AND PERJURY CHARGES. EACH OF THE CHARGES CARRY A MAXIMUM FIVE YEAR SENTENCE. HE WAS FOUND GUILTY OF MALFEASANCE FOR PAYING A LAWYER WITH OFFICE FUNDS TO GET COURT RECORDS OF SHERIFF MARK GARBER’S DIVORCE UNSEALED WHEN GARBER WAS RUNNING FOR SHERIFF. HE WAS ALSO FOUND GUILTY OF USING PUBLIC FUNDS TO HIRE A DEFENSE ATTORNEY FOR HIS EMPLOYEES AND TO APPEAL A CONTEMPT OF COURT CONVICTION.
A PITKIN MAN BROKE INTO AND STOLE ITEMS IN ORDER TO BUY AN EIGHTH BALL OF METH, THEN BURNED THE HOME TO THE GROUND WHILE WEARING THE HOMEOWNER’S CLOTHES. THAT’S ACCORDING TO THE ALLEN PARISH SHERIFF’S OFFICE, WHICH FOUND 31-YEAR-OLD NATHAN DEAN MARTIN SITTING IN THE HOMEOWNER’S VEHICLE IN A NEARBY FIELD. THE HOMEOWNER WAS AWAY ON A HUNTING TRIP WHEN THE FIRE HAPPENED EARLY TUESDAY MORNING. A NEIGHBOR CALLED 9-1-1 AFTER HEARING AN EXPLOSION AT THE HOUSE AND WHEN INVESTIGATORS ARRIVED, ONLY THE ROOF OF THE HOUSE REMAINED.
AN EMBEZZLEMENT COMPLAINT FROM A BREAUX BRIDGE BUSINESS ENDED IN THE ARREST OF THREE PEOPLE. MEANWHILE AUTHORITIES ARE LOOKING FOR ONE OTHER PERSON. JEFF HORCHAK HAS MORE.
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A Louisiana congressman says the trade disputes with China are hurting the state’s soybean farmers at a time when rain during harvest season has also hit them badly. U.S. Rep. Ralph Abraham is asking the federal government for help. Abraham says many soybean shipments are coming down the Mississippi River instead of going to the West Coast, filling storage silos and leaving little space for Louisiana’s big but damaged crop. Soybeans were a big target of tariffs imposed by China in response to those imposed by the Trump administration.
President Donald Trump has tapped a Lafayette man to lead the U.S. Marshal Service. Donald Washington, a former U.S. attorney for the Western District of Louisiana, has been nominated for the Marshal Service director’s job. Louisiana’s two U.S. senators, Republicans Bill Cassidy and John Kennedy, praised the pick in a joint statement Wednesday. The U.S. Senate must confirm Washington before he can take the job.
BUFFI’S PO-BOY SHOP IN THE SOUTH PLAZA ON L-A 14 IN LAKE CHARLES WAS BURGLARIZED EARLY TUESDAY MORNING. IT WAS THE THIRD TIME OVERALL THAT THE SHOP HAS BEEN BURGLARIZED AND THE FOURTH BURGLARY IN THE PAST TWO WEEKS IN THE BUSINESS PLAZA. GENERAL MANAGER KADDIE LEJEUNE TELLS KPLC TV THEY ARE NOT GOING TO LET THIS INCIDENT GET THEM DOWN, AND THEY WILL CONTINUE PUSHING. LAKE CHARLES POLICE SAY THE INVESTIGATION IS IN THE EARLY STAGES AND ARE ASKING ANYONE WITH INFORMATION TO COME FORWARD.
PLAISANCE ELEMENTARY SCHOOL IN OPELOUSAS IS CLOSED TODAY DUE TO A RUPTURED PIPE. AS OF LAST NIGHT, THE PIPE HAD NOT BEEN LOCATED OR REPAIRED. OFFICIALS SAY THEY WILL CONTINUE TO MONITOR THE SITUATION AND INFORM THE PUBLIC OF ANY CHANGES. THE STAFF OF THE SCHOOL IS REQUIRED TO REPORT TO WORK TODAY.
Legislation headed to President Donald Trump’s desk could help thousands of Louisiana flood victims. The U.S. Senate gave final passage Wednesday to a package of federal disaster policy changes, included in a bill authorizing spending for federal aviation programs. Federal policies have kept thousands of victims of the 2016 Louisiana floods from being able to access a federally-financed homeowner grant program because they already received Small Business Administration loans. Republican U.S. Sen. Bill Cassidy says the bill will eliminate those restrictions so homeowners with flood damage who received SBA loans can get grants through the Restore Louisiana program.
