6-5-15
Police in Lafayette say a woman is charged with second-degree murder after a man was going through storage-unit boxes he had bought at auction and found the body of a long-dead baby. A police news release says 57-year-old Rebecca Landry of Lafayette was arrested Thursday, shortly after the body was found. The Advocate reports that an affidavit for Landry’s arrest says she told police she gave birth in her apartment in 2001 and did not seek medical help. The sworn statement says no one knew she had given birth and the infant “stopped breathing suddenly” days later.
A 36-YEAR-OLD MAN FROM ROSEPINE WAS KILLED WHEN HE WAS HIT BY A TRAIN IN DERIDDER AT ABOUT 2-30 YESTERDAY MORNING. BEAUREGARD PARISH SHERIFF RICKEY MOSES SAYS THE ENGINEER REPORTED SEEING ELIJAH SILVERS SITTING ON THE TRAIN TRACKS BUT HE WAS UNABLE TO STOP IN TIME. MOSES SAYS THEY ARE NOT SURE WHY THE SILVERS NEVER MOVED AND HAVE TAKEN TOXICOLOGY SAMPLES TO SEE IF THERE’S ANYTHING THAT IMPAIRED HIM MENTALLY. MOSES ADVISES RESIDENTS NOT TO WALK ALONG TRAIN TRACKS BUT, IF YOU DO, LIMIT DISTRACTIONS, SUCH AS HEADPHONES.
Authorities say one person has died in a house fire near Opelousas. The Advertiser reports flames erupted Thursday night at a single-story brick house. 57-year-old Curtis Melvin Isles was found dead inside the home. Chief Ray Mendenhall says two firefighters from St. Landry Parish Fire Department District 3 sustained injuries from the hot, heavy smoke, but were able to walk away.
Senators have rejected a plan approved by House lawmakers that would have Gov. Bobby Jindal’s office paying his security detail costs for his extensive out-of-state travel. The House proposed transferring $2.5 million from Jindal’s office next year to the state police to cover the price tag of state troopers traveling with the Republican governor. The Senate Finance Committee, however, stripped that plan from the budget proposal Thursday. Jindal has steadily increased his national travel as he readies for a likely 2016 presidential campaign he’s expected to announce this month.
A LAFAYETTE MAN HAS BEEN ARRESTED FOR ALLEGEDLY SETTING A FIRE AT THE HIMBOLA APARTMENTS ON MARTIN LUTHER KING DRIVE IN LAFAYETTE. 28-YEAR-OLD JOHNATHON RAY TEZENO HAD BEEN BANNED FROM THE PREMISES AND INVESTIGATORS BELIEVE HE SET THE FIRE IN THE ADMINISTRATION BUILDING AS RETALIATION. HE HAS BEEN CHARGED WITH SIMPLE ARSON AND HIS BOND WAS SET AT 100 THOUSAND DOLLARS. INVESTIGATORS ARE STILL TRYING TO DETERMINE IF ANYONE HELPED TEZENO SET THE FIRE.
A WAREHOUSE IN LAKE CHARLES CAUGHT FIRE. THE LAKE CHARLES FIRE DEPARTMENT REPORTS THAT THERE WERE NO PEOPLE IN THE BUILDING AT THE TIME OF THE FIRE. THE WAREHOUSE, LOCATED AT THE CORNER OF KIRKMAN AND SYCAMORE STREETS, WAS A STORAGE UNIT FOR HOMSI’S RESTAURANT. THE OWNERS OF THE RESTAURANT TELL KPLC TV THAT THEIR BUSINESS OPERATIONS HAVE NOT BEEN AFFECTED, THOUGH THEY WILL HAVE TO RESTOCK ITEMS NEEDED FOR EVENTS SCHEDULED AT THE RESTAURANT.
AUTHORITIES IN ACADIA PARISH ARE TRYING TO DETERMINE WHAT CAUSED A CROPDUSTER TO CRASH INTO A CRAWFISH POND. JULIE DARCE HAS MORE.
VOICER C :23
The Louisiana House and Senate have both agreed to lift a ban that keeps state wildlife officials from enforcing federal laws that require shrimp nets to include escape hatches for sea turtles. A 36-0 vote Thursday from the Senate moved the proposal — sponsored by Rep. Dorothy Sue Hill, a Democrat from Dry Creek — one step from final legislative passage. Supporters of the bill say some big-box retailers have boycotted Louisiana shrimp because they object to the law being on the books and raised concerns about the state’s handling of protections for endangered sea turtles. Sen. Norby Chabert, a Houma Republican who handled the bill in the Senate, described the measure as “doing all we can for our fishermen.”
