Authorities have arrested a 40-year-old Baton Rouge man accused of beating his 11-year-old son with a belt on April 16 after he was late getting up for school and missed the bus. East Baton Rouge Parish sheriff’s deputies booked Kumasi Sharif Mants, 15483 Patricia Dale Drive, into Parish … Continue reading →

Southern University police are investigating a claim that several men raped a student in a campus dormitory last month, a case authorities say has been complicated by a lack of evidence. The 19-year-old woman had been drinking alcohol and smoking marijuana on the night in question and does not remember being raped, Southern University Police … Continue reading →

LAFAYETTE — Nine horses died in an early morning barn fire Wednesday, Lafayette Fire Department spokesman Alton Trahan said. When firefighters arrived just after 4 a.m., smoke was venting through the roof and sides of the barn in the 2200 block of Carmel Drive, Trahan said. “An attempt … Continue reading →

ST. AMANT — Ascension Parish sheriff’s deputies are looking for a St. Amant man after a pickup he was driving was found abandoned in a ditch in eastern Mississippi, the Sheriff’s Office reported Wednesday. Kevin Ray James, 52, 13541 Diversion Canal Road, St. Amant, left his home in his mother’s truck about 4 p.m. May … Continue reading →

GONZALES — Ascension Parish sheriff’s deputies arrested a man on Wednesday accused of beating one of his dogs to death and dumping the animal’s taped-up body in an open field, the Sheriff’s Office reported. Jacob Blackwell, 25, 40341 Black Bayou Extension Road, Gonzales, was booked into Ascension Parish Prison on two counts of cruelty to … Continue reading →

A St. Amant man was arrested this week after allegedly dealing prescription pills out of a church parking lot. Narcotics detectives with the Ascension Parish Sheriff’s Office started looking into anonymous tips that drugs were being sold at a church near the Lake Martin area of St. Amant on May 16, Maj. Kevin Hanna said in a … Continue reading →

ST. FRANCISVILLE — West Feliciana Parish sheriff’s deputies arrested a Louisiana State Penitentiary security officer accused of trying to get narcotics through an Angola inmate, a spokesman for Sheriff J. Austin Daniel said Wednesday. Justin Darrel Nettles, 26, 160 Cedars Lane, Crosby, Miss., met a man he thought was a relative of the inmate, but … Continue reading →

UPDATED at 11 a.m. A pickup traveling west on Thomas Road in north Baton Rouge Wednesday morning crashed into a train that was stopped on the tracks. The driver of the 1994 Chevy truck, 52-year-old Eric Alexander, told deputies it was dark and he never saw the train, East Baton Rouge Parish Sheriff’s Office Deputy Lawrence … Continue reading →

A Baton Rouge man accused of punching a man during a bar fight who later died of his injuries surrendered to authorities Tuesday, police said. Andres Gonzalez, 27, 2225 College Drive, was to be booked on one count of second-degree murder in the death of 39-year-old … Continue reading →

DONALDSONVILLE — Ascension Parish sheriff’s deputies arrested a man accused of firing two shots at another man during an argument Tuesday afternoon on Memorial Drive in Donaldsonville, the Sheriff’s Office reported. Toran Munson, 28, 905 Pine St., Donaldsonville, was booked into Ascension Parish Prison on counts of possession of drug paraphernalia, attempted second-degree murder, possession … Continue reading →

It’s an ironclad aphorism authorities have repeated for years: Seat belts save lives. The act of buckling up, studies have shown, remains the most effective means of preventing injury and death in an automobile crash. Yet law enforcement officials are frequently reminded of the tragic consequences of noncompliance, like a rollover crash … Continue reading →

Baton Rouge police are trying to identify people who burglarized a police bait car in two separate incidents. Three men were spotted in surveillance footage burglarizing the bait car at 9 p.m. May 7 in the 1100 block of … Continue reading →

A Baton Rouge man accused of punching a man during a bar fight who later died of his injuries surrendered to authorities Tuesday, police said. Andres Gonzalez, 27, 2225 College Drive, was to be booked on one count of second-degree murder in the death of 39-year-old Raphael Domino Jr., said police Cpl. L’Jean McKneely. Continue reading →

ST. FRANCISVILLE — A tractor-trailer rig flipped on its side and lost its load of timber near the intersection of U.S. 61 and La. 10 Tuesday morning, Police Chief Scott Ford said. Ford said the driver reported that his brakes failed and caused him to lose control of the vehicle. The mishap spilled logs … Continue reading →

INDEPENDENCE — A 10-year-old girl died Monday afternoon after she was ejected from a car in a crash on La. 1054 about 3 miles north of La. 40 in Tangipahoa Parish, State Police said. An unlicensed 15-year-old girl was driving a 2004 Pontiac Grand Am north on La. 1054 with three juveniles when it … Continue reading →

The ex-boyfriend of a woman who was fatally shot earlier this month has been booked on allegations he broke into the woman’s Baton Rouge home and stole several items just weeks before her death, court records show. Carlos Jerome Thomas, 37, 2121 Highland Road, also is accused of taking Amanda Lea McCullough’s car in violation … Continue reading →

Baton Rouge police arrested a woman Monday accused of throwing a brick at her 13-year-old daughter’s back and stabbing her in the right shoulder Sunday. Linda Thomas, 57, 1067 W. 5 Central Road, Baton Rouge, was booked by with cruelty to a juvenile and aggravated battery, … Continue reading →

LAFAYETTE — A Eunice man was shot and later died after he and two others were attacked Sunday night in the small Acadia Parish community of Branch, officials said. D’Andre Goodley, 18, of Eunice, died at Acadia-St. Landry Hospital, Sheriff Wayne Melancon said in a news release. Authorities did not release … Continue reading →

LAFAYETTE — St. Martin Parish investigators are looking into a Sunday afternoon crash that killed a motorcyclist in Breaux Bridge. Jerry Levier, 28, of Arnaudville, was pronounced dead at the scene on Hilda Street in Breaux Bridge after the motorcycle he was riding crashed into a car, said Capt. Stacey Blanchard, public information officer … Continue reading →

Baton Rouge police said Monday they are searching for a man who a woman says raped her at knife point early Saturday just south of LSU’s campus. But police waited more than 48 hours to let the public know there was a rapist on the loose, releasing no information about the attack until Monday afternoon. Continue reading →

Baton Rouge police are seeking a fugitive who was involved in a bar fight this month in which a man was seriously injured and later died, authorities said Monday. Andres Gonzalez, 27, 2225 College Drive, is wanted on one count of second-degree murder, police said. Gonzalez is accused of punching Raphael Domino Jr., 39, 15438 Jester … Continue reading →

PLAQUEMINE — The Addis man accused of firing 12 shots into a crowd, hitting two people, outside a gas station late Sunday is refusing to talk to police and more arrests are possible in a fight that preceded the shootings. Shannon Dale Holmes Jr., 19, 3754 Chris Drive, Addis, surrendered to police at 5 a.m. … Continue reading →

An 11-year-old Baton Rouge boy was critically injured Sunday after he was struck by a pickup on Perkins Road, a State Police spokesman said. The boy, who has not been identified, was walking across a stretch of Perkins Road just east of Siegen Lane when he stepped into the path of a 2012 Chevrolet Silverado driven … Continue reading →

West Baton Rouge Parish sheriff’s deputies have arrested a man accused of leading Baton Rouge police on a pursuit Friday night from Government Street to West Baton Rouge, Baton Rouge police said Sunday. Deputies have Louis Northern in custody and Baton Rouge police plan to move him to Baton Rouge in the next few … Continue reading →

A 12-year-old boy accidentally shot his 8-year-old brother Saturday at a home on Old Rafe Mayer Road, sending the 8-year-old to a hospital with non-life-threatening injuries, the East Baton Rouge Sheriff’s Office reported. The 12-year-old found a .380-caliber pistol in a closet in the boys’ … Continue reading →

Companion Animal Alliance, 2680 E. Progress Road, has adoptable cats and dogs of every age and size. The center is open from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesdays, Wednesdays, Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays; and 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. Thursdays. The center is closed for adoptions on Mondays. Adoptable pets may also be found at offsite event locations found … Continue reading →

A 23-year veteran of the Lafayette Police Department died Saturday afternoon in a motorcycle crash on La. 3000 north of Interstate 10 in Iberville Parish, a State Police spokesman said. Lt. Richard “Ricky” Rees, who was off duty at the time of the wreck, served as the administrative lieutenant in the department’s Precinct 4, Trooper 1st … Continue reading →

A 12-year-old boy accidentally shot his 8-year-old brother Saturday at a home on Old Rafe Mayer Road, sending the 8-year-old to a hospital with non-life threatening injuries, the East Baton Rouge Sheriff’s Office reported. The 12-year-old found a .380-caliber pistol in a closet in the boys’ grandparents’ home in the 400 block of Old Rafe Mayer, Sheriff’s … Continue reading →

Baton Rouge police have opened a criminal investigation into claims that an instructor at Kenilworth Science and Technology Charter School has been soliciting students to send him cellphone photographs of their genitalia, according to court filings. The inquiry began May 9 after a counselor contacted the Baton Rouge Police Department and reported that Darrion Buckles … Continue reading →

They died in the line of duty, in ambushes and automobile accidents. They gave their lives serving a high-risk warrant, trying to save an undercover informant and pursuing a suspect. And on Friday, their brothers and sisters in East Baton Rouge Parish law enforcement paid tribute to their lasting service, remembering the … Continue reading →

Authorities arrested at least nine people suspected of driving while intoxicated in East Baton Rouge Parish — including Kenneth Briggs of Baton Rouge on a fourth-offense DWI — and booked them into Parish Prison between 2:30 p.m. Thursday and 2:30 p.m. Friday, booking records show. Those … Continue reading →

PRAIRIEVILLE ­— A fire that broke out late Friday morning caused an estimated $70,000 to $80,000 in damage to an Ascension Parish business but no injuries after flammable, spray-on material used to line the beds of pickup trucks caught fire. Fire Chief Mark Stewart of the Prairieville Fire Department said it took about 15 to … Continue reading →

The state Attorney General's Medicaid Fraud Control Unit has arrested three Zachary women accused of filing false Medicaid claims. The three women were arrested Wednesday with assistance from the East Baton Rouge Parish Sheriff's Office, a news release from the state Attorney General's Office says. The three worked as personal care attendants and each submitted time sheets stating they provided services for … Continue reading →

Baton Rouge Emergency Medical Services personnel Friday transported a man to a hospital with what appeared to be minor injuries after he was hit by a bulldozer or backhoe near East Boulevard and Thomas H Delpit Drive. EMS spokesman Mike Chustz said someone drove by, saw the man lying on the ground, and called 911. Chustz … Continue reading →

A two-alarm fire that broke out Thursday at the Bienville Tower Condominiums on College Drive near Corporate Boulevard is estimated to have caused more than $200,000 in damage. Baton Rouge Fire Department firefighters arrived at the condominiums at 5:39 p.m. and immediately rang a second alarm because of the threat that the fire could spread … Continue reading →

ST. AMANT — Trulena Guedry experienced something Thursday morning no mother wants to endure. She was in her home on Taylor Sheets Jr. Road in St. Amant with her four children when she discovered the living room had caught fire. She rushed the children, ages 2 to 10, out of the house, unsuccessfully attempted … Continue reading →

Authorities arrested at least six people suspected of driving while intoxicated in East Baton Rouge Parish and booked them into Parish Prison between 2:30 p.m. Wednesday and 2:30 p.m. Thursday, booking records show. Those booked and the counts against them: BR police chief applicant loses appeal

The Municipal Fire and Police Civil Service Board denied an appeal Thursday from a former Baton Rouge police officer ruled ineligible to take the police chief’s exam for not meeting the minimum qualifications. The vote followed an emotional appeal by Isabelle Gilmore, who contended the requirements were not clearly stated … Continue reading →

St. George Fire Department firefighters rescued a driver from a vehicle in Wards Creek on Thursday after the vehicle ran off Essen Lane between Margaret Ann and One Calais. The vehicle was traveling north on Essen at about 3:20 p.m. when it ran off the road and down into Wards Creek, St. George spokesman Eldon Ledoux said … Continue reading →

Days after an attacker allegedly told a man he had stopped in “the wrong neighborhood” to get gas, East Baton Rouge Parish District Attorney Hillar Moore III said he wants to “take a deep breath” before deciding whether to prosecute the case as a hate crime. Hate crime convictions in Louisiana enhance a felony sentence … Continue reading →

Eight women — including one accused of not sending her child to school all year — were arrested Tuesday in a roundup of the parents of the worst truants in East Baton Rouge Parish. The multi-agency roundup was coordinated by the Family and Youth Services Center, also known as the truancy center, and was … Continue reading →

Baton Rouge police are investigating a shooting Wednesday night on North Donmoor Avenue that left a man wounded, a police spokesman said. Police arrived in the 800 block of North Donmoor around 7 p.m. and found a 20-year-old man shot in the neck, Cpl. Tommy Stubbs … Continue reading →

A Baton Rouge man accused of banging a woman’s head against a wall several times and hitting their 1-year-old son in the face during an attack Dec. 17 has been arrested. Drago Collins, 31, 6275 Matthew Drive, was booked him into Parish Prison on Tuesday on … Continue reading →

LAFAYETTE — A teen who drowned in Moore Park this week was identified Wednesday as 17-year-old Christlyn Willis, of Lafayette. A witness who had been swimming with Willis told police the pair swam out to the middle of a Moore Park pond on Tuesday about 4 p.m. when they had trouble staying afloat, according … Continue reading →

Deputies are trying to figure out who made a possible prank call to Southeast Middle School Wednesday morning to report that a gun was on campus. Susan Nelson, head of East Baton Rouge Parish Schools communications, said every student was checked for a weapon during the lockdown but none was found. The school was then taken off … Continue reading →