A man who reportedly raped a woman with a weapon pointed in her back 13 years ago in Baton Rouge has been arrested, according to an arrest warrant. Glen Sparks, 49, 1630 Prison Road, Cottonport was booked with aggravated rape Tuesday by Baton Rouge Police, parish jail records show. Sparks is currently … Continue Reading →

Updated at 10:15 a.m. – Interstate 12 has opened at O'Neal Lane eastbound but remains closed westbound at Juban Road due to an 18-wheeler crash near O'Neal Lane earlier this morning, according to the state Department of Transportation and Development. I-12 westbound is expected to be closed until noon, according to a text alert from State Police. … Continue Reading →

More than four months after a major O’Neal Lane road widening project was to have been completed, contractor Hilliard Barber found himself on the side of the road near the intersection of Firewood Avenue one day recently. He was staring into an 8-foot deep pit and he did not like what he … Continue Reading →

Former state Rep. Noble Ellington landed a $150,000 a year job as the No. 2 official at the state Department of Insurance. Commissioner of Insurance Jim Donelon said Tuesday that Ellington — a veteran legislator who did not seek re-election last fall — joined his staff as chief deputy last week. “We … Continue Reading →

For more than 40 years, the French government has recruited teachers to come to Louisiana and try to preserve the special connection this state has to French language and culture. A small delegation of French education officials in Louisiana this week is, among other things, looking at ways Louisiana can return the … Continue Reading →

The expedited exit of John Dilworth as superintendent of the East Baton Rouge Parish school system adds yet another element of uncertainty concerning the direction of the school system. Dilworth recently announced he plans to leave his post Feb. 24 because of health problems, which he did not detail. Dilworth previously had … Continue Reading →

One of Gov. Bobby Jindal’s top aides will enter a pre-trial program for DWI offenders rather than stand trial for drunken driving, his spokesman said late Tuesday. Commissioner of Administration Paul Rainwater’s spokesman, Michael DiResto, said Rainwater is entering the program following his December arrest. Baton Rouge City Court Prosecutor Lisa Freeman … Continue Reading →

An attorney for indicted former St. Gabriel Mayor George L. Grace Sr. and the prosecution’s principal undercover witness sparred for a second day before a jury Tuesday in Baton Rouge federal court. The friction produced a bitter argument over the witness’ interference in a plan by Grace to obtain housing construction tax … Continue Reading →

DONALDSONVILLE — The Ascension Parish Council ratified on Tuesday a slate of candidates to fill the parish Planning and Zoning Commission amid continuing criticism. In December, the outgoing Parish Council cleaned out the commission, removing all nine commissioners and shrinking the body’s size to seven members amid public controversy. Council Chairman Chris … Continue Reading →

DENHAM SPRINGS — Livingston Parish Sheriff-elect Jason Ard told a civic group Tuesday night he will try to save the parish money during his transition into office. Ard said he won’t repaint patrol cars, which are recognizable to the public. He said that would be an “unnecessary expense,” as would changing the … Continue Reading →

John Dilworth’s surprise announcement Friday that he is leaving as East Baton Rouge Parish school superintendent three months early because of “health concerns” has scrambled further an already scrambled search for his replacement. The School Board has scheduled a special meeting at 6 p.m. Wednesday. The meeting could prove as contentious as … Continue Reading →

LAFAYETTE — Law enforcement agencies across the state are gearing up for a DWI crackdown over the Mardi Gras season, the Louisiana Highway Safety Commission, local law enforcement agencies and Mothers Against Drunk Driving announced Tuesday. “Typically, in Louisiana, Mardi Gras is one of the deadliest seasons,” LHSC Executive Director John LeBlanc … Continue Reading →

CLINTON e_SEmD A Clinton man avoided a possible prison term Tuesday by entering a “no contest” plea to a reduced charge in the 2010 shooting of East Feliciana Parish Sheriff Talmadge Bunch’s son. Joshua Rogers, 27, of 7613 Plank Road, entered the plea to attempted second-degree battery shortly before his trial on … Continue Reading →

State Superintendent of Education John White on Tuesday proposed major changes in how public schools and students are evaluated, including a new focus on about 230,000 students performing below grade level. The state would make the changes if the U.S. Department of Education agrees to reduce some of its requirements under a … Continue Reading →

Although the five-parish Baton Rouge area faces a new and stricter federal ozone standard this year, there should not be any major additional changes to what it will take to meet the new goal, parish officials were told Tuesday. During the first of several meetings that the Louisiana Department of Environmental Quality … Continue Reading →

GONZALES — Ascension Parish government sales tax collections ended the fiscal year between 5.9 percent and 6.3 percent ahead of last year, a parish sales tax report says. From the parish’s three dedicated sales tax funds combined, the parish collected a total of $34.7 million in 2011, the report says. That’s $1.98 … Continue Reading →

Louisiana Citizens Property Insurance Corp. plans to hold a special board meeting Friday to discuss settling a $100 million-plus judgment the insurer incurred for taking too long to begin handling claims for hurricanes Katrina and Rita, Insurance Commissioner Jim Donelon said Tuesday. Plaintiff attorneys have offered to settle the case, Donelon said, … Continue Reading →

Louisiana’s health chief Bruce Greenstein on Tuesday blasted LSU for “irresponsible” cuts to its hospital operations and lack of planning to offset their impact. Greenstein also said LSU overspending — not Gov. Bobby Jindal’s midyear budget cuts — is responsible for the reductions. “They got their budget and a whole lot more … Continue Reading →

The Metro Airport could be a storage spot for Coca-Cola products. The Airport Commission agreed Tuesday to enter into a six-month lease with the soft-drink maker to use part of the airport’s cargo facility as storage for Coca-Cola products. The Baton Rouge Coca-Cola Bottling Co. will rent the space for $12,500 a … Continue Reading →

The Downtown Development District will ask the Legislature for permission to seek an increase in its millage rate from the current 10 mills to up to 15 mills. But the head of the DDD said Tuesday its board has not yet decided how much it will ask voters to approve. The potential … Continue Reading →

OPELOUSAS — A state judge ruled Tuesday that Eunice police officers did possess enough probable cause to arrest Warren “Boo Boo” Gautreaux in the January 2006 slayings of an elderly Eunice couple. Judge James A. Doherty issued his ruling late Tuesday after listening to about six hours of testimony in 27th Judicial … Continue Reading →

East Baton Rouge Parish prosecutors told a judge Tuesday they are extremely frustrated with how slowly the post-conviction appeals of condemned killers Allen “Lil Boo’’ Robertson Jr. and Shedran Williams are moving. Robertson, now 44, was convicted and sentenced to death in 1995 in the New Year’s Day 1991 stabbing deaths of … Continue Reading →

Fred G. Benton Jr., a former city-parish bond attorney who helped bring the USS Kidd to Baton Rouge and create the Port Hudson State Historic Site, died early Tuesday morning after battling Parkinson’s disease for 14 years. He was 87. “He was a true titan of a man, and noble,” said his … Continue Reading →

State lawyers have recovered $25.2 million from five pharmaceutical companies sued over alleged inflation of Medicaid program drug costs, Louisiana Attorney General Buddy Caldwell’s office said Tuesday. The settlements are part of major litigation involving more than 100 companies accused of improperly reporting drug price information in order to increase reimbursements paid … Continue Reading →

CLINTON — The East Feliciana Police Jury adopted a new parishwide flood zone map Monday that goes into effect April 3. Jury Administrative Supervisor Joe Rouchon said during a public hearing that the map replaces the preliminary map that became effective July 31, 2009, for East Feliciana Parish’s participation in the national … Continue Reading →