7-15-15
AT A PRESS CONFERENCE YESTERDAY, THE LAFAYETTE CHAPTER OF THE N-DOUBLE-A-C-P DEMANDED THE FIRING OF A POLICE OFFICER, ACCUSED OF USING A RACIAL SLUR TO REFER TO POLICE OFFICERS AND CITIZENS. A FELLOW RETIRED POLICE OFFICER IN FEBRUARY CAME FORWARD WITH EVIDENCE OF THE RACIAL SLUR BY FELLOW OFFICER WILLIAM WHITE. HE WAS GIVEN A THIRTY DAY SUSPENSION BY THE DEPARTMENT AND POLICE CHIEF JIM CRAFT ANNOUNCED THE DEVELOPMENT OF A COMMUNITY RELATIONS COMMITTEE. NAACP CHAPTER PRESIDENT MARJA BROUSSARD SAYS THEY ARE TROUBLED BY, WHAT SHE CALLED, AN INADEQUATE RESPONSE BY THE DEPARTMENT AND CALLED FOR THE IMPLEMENTATION OF TESTING OF POLICE OFFICERS FOR RACIAL BIAS.
It was a man and a 3-year-old child who died after a crash in Jefferson Davis Parish Monday night on Interstate 10, about two miles west of Lacassine. Louisiana State Police, in a news release yesterday, said the 1998 Nissan Pathfinder apparently was eastbound when the vehicle’s rear tire deflated. The car went into the center median and rolled. Two unrestrained rear seat passengers, 36-year-old Luis Amilcar Trochez-Ramos, of New Orleans, and 3-year-old Marbella Funez, of Houston, were ejected and died as a result of their injuries.
FOUR OPELOUSAS MEN WERE ARRESTED IN CONNECTION WITH A LATE MONDAY NIGHT SHOOTING AND POLICE ARE SEARCHING FOR A FIFTH SUSPECT, 17-YEAR-OLD MARUCS CHENIER OF OPELOUSAS, WHO FLED THE AREA WHEN OFFICERS RESPONDED. SHOTS WERE FIRED INTO A HOME IN THE 700 BLOCK OF PARIS STREET THAT HAD EIGHT PEOPLE IN IT. POLICE BELIEVE THE SHOOTING WAS IN RETALIATION FOR A SHOOTING THAT OCCURRED AT AROUND 12:30 A-M MONDAY, ALSO IN THE PARIS STREET AREA. THE FOUR MEN, WHO WERE ARRESTED, HAVE BEEN CHARGED WITH ATTEMPTED SECOND DEGREE MURDER.
Tax votes that lawmakers took to balance this year’s budget may cost them the support of the state’s leading business lobbying group in the fall elections. The Louisiana Association of Business and Industry released its legislative scorecard Tuesday, grading the performance of lawmakers based on specific votes taken during the recent legislative session. Many lawmakers who previously received high scores from LABI instead got failing marks this time, mainly because they voted for tax hikes and to scale back tax breaks to plug gaps in the budget. Camille Conaway, the organization’s vice president for policy and research, says the scorecard is the main tool that LABI’s four political action committees use to determine which candidates they will endorse — and to which campaigns they’ll contribute.
AN ALABAMA DEVELOPER WILL BEGIN CONSTRUCTION ON A 60 MILLION DOLLAR RETAIL CENTER ON ST. ETTIENE ROAD IN BROUSSARD, THAT WILL INCLUDE A KOHL’S, HOBBY LOBBY, AND A GROCERY STORE, ACCORDING TO MAYOR CHARLES LANGLINAIS. THE CITY IS SPENDING UP TO 3-POINT-5 MILLION DOLLARS TO WIDEN ST. ETTIENE ROAD AND TO PUT IN ANOTHER INTERSECTING ROAD, PLUS DRAINAGE WORK. LANGLINAIS TELLS THE ADVOCATE THAT THE INVESTMENT WILL PAY OFF IN INCREASED SALES TAX COLLECTIONS. BROUSSARD HAS SEEN A MAJOR DROPOFF RECENTLY IN SALES TAX COLLECTIONS, WHICH WERE OFF BY 24 PERCENT IN MAY, COMPARED TO MAY OF LAST YEAR, AND 11-POINT-3 PERCENT IN JUNE.
LAKE CHARLES POLICE ARE INVESTIGATING A DRIVE BY SHOOTING AT AROUND 6-30 MONDAY NIGHT. THE SHOOTER, WHO WAS IN A GREEN S-U-V, FIRED SEVERAL SHOTS AT FIVE PEOPLE, WHO WERE GATHERED IN FRONT OF A RESIDENCE IN THE 17-HUNDRED BLOCK OF BROADMOOR DRIVE. DEPUTY CHIEF MARK KRAUS SAYS ONE PERSON RECEIVED A WOUND FROM A BULLET THAT GRAZED HIS ARM. HE SAYS THEY HAVE SEVERAL LEADS, BUT THERE HAVE BEEN NO ARRESTS.
A 15-YEAR-OLD BOY IS IN CRITICAL CONDITION AFTER A SINGLE CAR CRASH IN VERMILLION PARISH. JULIE DARCE HAS MORE.
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The prosecution and defense in the Seth Fontenot manslaughter case agree the sentence handed down last week is illegal. Thomas Guilbeau, the Lafayette attorney who represented Fontenot in the shooting death of Austin Rivault, filed a motion Monday asking state Judge Edward Rubin to correct the sentence. The Advertiser reports a hearing on the request is set for July 23. Rubin sentenced Fontenot to three years at hard labor plus two years of probation and suspended all jail time except 13 months.
