4-3-15
74 YEAR OLD DEMPSEY C. RION, OF REEVES DIED YESTERDAY AFTER LOOSING CONTROL OF HIS MOTORCYCLE. SGT. JAMES ANDERSON, A SPOKESMAN WITH THE STATE POLICE SAID THAT AT AROUND 12:41 YESTERDAY AFTERNOON, RION WAS DRIVING HIS ’96 HONDA GOLD WING 3 WHEELED MOTORCYCLE NORTH ON BEL FIRE TOWER ROAD, A COUPLE OF MILES NORTH OF HWY 190, WHERE HE LOST CONTROL ON A CURVE, GOING INTO A DITCH, CAUSING HIS MOTORCYCLE TO OVERTURN AND HIT A FENCE. RION WAS WEARING A HELMET, BUT WAS PRONOUNCED DEAD AT THE SCENE.
A PRISIONER SERVING TIME IN THE VERNON PARISH JAIL HAS BEEN ARRESTED FOR THREE ARMED ROBBERIES OF CONVENIENCE STORES FROM JANUARY TO MARCH. JOSEPH PARKER, 35 OF DEQUINCY, WHO WAS SERVING TIME FOR AN UNRELATED CHARGE IN VERNON PARISH, WAS LINKED TO THE TWO ARMED ROBBERIES IN DERIDDER AND A THIRD IN SINGER THROUGH DNA EVIDENCE FOUND FROM ONE OF THE ROBBERIES. PARKER WAS BOOKED INTO THE BEAUREGARD PARISH JAIL ON THREE COUNTS OF ARMED ROBBERY.
(AP) Authorities say a Rapides Parish sheriff’s deputy fatally shot a man after he had pointed a gun at deputies and had refused to drop the weapon. In a news release received by The Town Talk, the unidentified man was pronounced dead at the scene yesterday morning. Deputies were called to a Pineville home because a man had threatened someone else in the house with a firearm before threatening to harm himself. The news release says after an hour of talking with the man, he exited a room and pointed a handgun at deputies. After being told to drop the weapon, a deputy fired and hit the man in the upper chest. The sheriff’s office says the shooting remains under investigation.
TV-10 reports plans to make a section of Bertrand Drive near the university athletic complex friendlier to pedestrians and bicyclists is in line to receive federal funds. Lafayette Consolidated Government was recently informed that its Bertrand Drive Streetscape project was approved for inclusion in the state’s Transportation Alternatives Program for 2014-2016. The TAP program is funded through the federal government to improve walking and bicycling facilities. Bertrand Drive between Johnston Street and North College Drive “has the potential of being transformed in the next couple of decades,” said Kevin Blanchard, public works director, Lafayette Consolidated Government. “The drawback to new development there is that the road itself is not pedestrian friendly at all.” In May 2014, Blanchard brought the Build a Better Block initiative to Bertrand Drive, transforming it for one day into a two-lane walkable, bikable roadway where traffic slowed considerably. That vision should become a reality in 4-5 years. The project is expected to cost about $582,000. LCG’s contribution will be about $116,000 and the federal share is about $465,600.
FOUR FRATERNITY HOUSES ON THE UL CAMPUS WERE SHUT DOWN BY THE LAFAYETTE FIRE DEPARTMENT. JULIE DARCE HAS MORE.
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(AP) Three people will be interviewed on April 22 for the Lafayette Parish superintendent position. The Advertiser reports the Lafayette Parish School Board will choose the three applicants at a special meeting April 9. So far, 12 people have submitted applications for the job. However, school board President Tommy Angelle estimated that up to five applicants do not have a superintendent certification. Board Attorney Bob Hammonds said that certification is not required by state law, but the board can make it a requirement. The interviews will happen in public session. Burnell LeJeune has served as interim superintendent since November, taking office shortly after the board terminated Pat Cooper’s contract. LeJeune will retire this summer and has not applied for the permanent position.
(AP) The number of Louisiana public high school graduates entering college rose 6 percent last year, the state’s education superintendent said Thursday According to education department data, 22,972 high school graduates across the state’s public school districts enrolled in college in 2014, an increase of 1,228 students from a year earlier. Students from low-income families accounted for half that growth. The department said that the number is an “all-time high” for Louisiana and that the figure grew 16 percent since 2011. Superintendent John White credited increased education expectations, improved standards and a greater focus on courses that can provide college credit. “Record-breaking numbers of Louisiana high school graduates enrolling in post-secondary education is cause for real celebration across the state,” LSU System President F. King Alexander said in a statement. Public school districts with at least 70 percent of their high school graduates entering college in 2014 included: Lincoln Parish, West Feliciana Parish, Central Community Schools, Bossier Parish, Ascension Parish and Zachary Community Schools. The Orleans Parish schools run outside of the state-takeover district also reached that benchmark.
(AP) Louisiana will borrow $335 million next month to replenish its construction project fund and keep the money from running dry in June. The State Bond Commission agreed to the borrowing plan Thursday without objection. The bond sale will keep work humming on state-financed construction projects through February. But questions linger about whether Louisiana will face a cash crunch in early 2016, because of borrowing limits tied to the state debt ceiling. Treasurer John Kennedy says the next governor, to be elected this fall, won’t have enough money to pay for all the projects approved by Gov. Bobby Jindal’s administration. Jindal’s chief financial adviser, Kristy Nichols, says Louisiana has the borrowing capacity to stay on track with construction work as long as it continues to tightly manage the projects and spending.
