Louisiana

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Louisiana Police Kill Gunman in Office Shooting Rampage

Two victims dead, three wounded

(Newser) - A retired Louisiana city maintenance worker went on a rampage in an Alexandria law office early today and opened fire on five people before police arrived and shot him dead. The gunman killed two people and wounded the others, one seriously. Police had closed down much of downtown in an...

50K Rally to Support 'Jena Six'
50K Rally to Support 'Jena Six'

50K Rally to Support 'Jena Six'

Huge crowds arrive in tiny town to protest trial of black students

(Newser) - Busload after busload of civil rights marchers alighted in Jena, La., today to support the “Jena Six,” a group of black students charged with felonies after a 2006 fight with a white classmate. An estimated 50,000 mostly-black protesters easily outnumbered the mostly-white population of the town, where...

Jena Braces for Thousands of Protesters

Locals resent activists, fear violence; tiny LA town will shut down

(Newser) - Tiny Jena, LA, is bracing for the tens of thousands of activists expected to descend on the town of 3,000 today to protest the handling of six black high school students charged with attempted murder for beating a white classmate in December. Led by the Rev. Al Sharpton, protesters...

Humberto Hits Texas Coast
Humberto Hits Texas Coast

Humberto Hits Texas Coast

Slow storm will bring more water to drenched region

(Newser) - Humberto, newly-christened as a Category 1 hurricane, made landfall in southeastern Texas early this morning, bringing 85mph winds and as much as a foot of rain to already sodden areas in Texas and Louisiana, CNN reports. Galveston was drenched, with streets flooded and power lines down.

Twin Tropical Depressions Form
Twin Tropical Depressions Form

Twin Tropical Depressions Form

Systems could grow into tropical storms

(Newser) - Twin tropical depressions sprouted today in the Gulf of Mexico and the Atlantic, the Miami Herald reports, and both could become tropical storms by day’s end. Forecasters expect the Gulf system to spiral toward Texas and Louisiana, bringing 10 to 15 inches of rain to the already soggy states....

Nursing Home Owners Acquitted in Katrina Deaths

Jury finds couple innocent of negligent homicide after 35 patients drowned

(Newser) - The owners of a Louisiana nursing home were acquitted of negligent homicide and cruelty yesterday in the deaths of 35 patients who drowned in the wake of Hurricane Katrina. The charges were based on the couple's failure to evacuate the home as the storm approached; the defense argued that the...

Republican Poised to Take Louisiana
Republican Poised to Take
Louisiana

Republican Poised to Take Louisiana

Review catches up with Jindal, likely first post-Katrina governor

(Newser) - A rare flash of hope for Republicans might be the man preparing to take over the nation’s biggest disaster area, the National Review writes. Bobby Jindal is running 35% ahead of any comer to be Louisiana’s first governor elected after Katrina. Jindal might seem a peculiar pick, but,...

Crime Rocks New Orleans
Crime Rocks New Orleans

Crime Rocks New Orleans

Two years after Katrina, criminals flood city

(Newser) - Only two-thirds of the population of New Orleans has returned since Hurricane Katrina destroyed large parts of the city two years ago—but crime has returned full force. The murder rate in the Big Easy is rocketing, crime is a constant fear among citizens and many are arming themselves for...

Fattest States in America
Fattest States in America

Fattest States in America

(Newser) - The Trust for America's Health has come out with its fourth annual report on obesity.  And the losers are:
  1. Mississippi
  2. West Virginia
  3. Alabama

Letting It All Hang Out? Bill Would Put It All Back In

Atlanta proposal calls saggy pants "major concern;" ACLU claims "racial profiling"

(Newser) - Young men will want to hike up their sagging pants, and women cover up bra straps and exposed thongs if Atlanta’s City Council adopts a proposal to amend the city’s indecency laws, the Journal-Constitution reports. The measure, which would fine violators for exposing boxer shorts, thongs and bras,...

No Ifs, Ands, or Butts: Town Outlaws Saggy Pants

If your underwear shows, you'll pay for it

(Newser) - A Louisiana town has taken a stand against saggy pants: starting tomorrow, anyone whose underwear shows will be hit with fines or jail time. And those who want to argue will just have to zip it. "Pull ‘em up or pay up," warned the police chief of...

New Orleans Pol Admits Taking Bribes

Councilman collected $20K for contract in city plagued by problems

(Newser) - As if New Orleans didn't have enough to contend with, a city councilman yesterday pleaded guilty to accepting $20,000 in bribes and resigned. Oliver Thomas confessed he collected the money from a restaurateur seeking to keep a lucrative city contract. He also demanded the businessman hire a friend of...

Katrina Tax Breaks Pay for Luxury Condos

Incentives for rebuilding are buying $1M units in Tuscaloosa, 200 miles from coast

(Newser) - Investors are using federal tax breaks designed to stimulate rebuilding after Hurricane Katrina to buy luxury condos being built near the University of Alabama’s football stadium, 200 miles from the coast, the AP reports. The Tuscaloosa developments, where units go for up to $1 million, are flourishing while much...

La. Senator Caught Dialing DC Madam
La. Senator Caught Dialing DC Madam

La. Senator Caught Dialing DC Madam

Republican apologizes for "very serious sin" after escort-service revelation

(Newser) - Louisiana Republican Senator David Vitter atoned yesterday for a "very serious sin in my past," after his telephone number turned up on the scandal-soaked call logs of Deborah Jeane Palfrey. The so-called DC Madam was forced to denude the records of her million-dollar escort service last week.

Bottoms Up! La. Town Gets Down and Dirty

Ban on saggy pants hits fashion plates below the belt

(Newser) - In Delcambre, La., showing your skivvies is about to come with criminal consequences, thanks to a new ordinance that prohibits residents from wearing low-hanging pants. Saggy-trousered offenders may be fined $500 and risk 6 months in jail. “They’re better off taking the pants off and just wearing a...

Jefferson Pleads Not Guilty
Jefferson Pleads Not Guilty

Jefferson Pleads Not Guilty

Congressman answers federal corruption charges with pledge to 'fight my heart out'

(Newser) - In his first public appearance since being indicted Monday, Rep. William Jefferson pleaded not guilty in federal court in this morning. The Louisiana Democrat, facing a laundry list of charges including bribery, racketeering, and obstruction of justice, then held a press conference in which he reeled off his family's achievements...

House Moves to Expel Accused Congressman

Louisiana Democrat charged with bribery, extortion

(Newser) - Pressure mounted on William Jefferson to resign from the House yesterday as leaders of both parties piled on in the wake of his indictment on corruption, racketeering and bribery charges. Republicans moved to initiate proceedings to have the Louisiana Democrat, expelled—which, Dems noted, they did not do when GOP...

Jefferson Hit With Corruption Charges

La. Congressman faces 16-count federal indictment, 235 years

(Newser) - Federal officials indicted Rep. William Jefferson today, charging him with bribery, racketeering, money-laundering, and other misdeeds that could carry a sentence of up to 235 years. The Louisiana Democrat, the target of a lengthy investigation into business deals in Africa, has maintained his innocence, even after investigators found $90,000...

New Fad in New Orleans: Guns
New Fad in New Orleans: Guns

New Fad in New Orleans: Guns

Citizens arm themselves against crime wave

(Newser) - Violent crime is storming post-Katrina New Orleans with almost the force of the 2005 hurricane, Time reports. The city has America's highest murder rate, and weapons sales are skyrocketing as citizens take to arming themselves.  "They're not gun aficionados," a gun shop owner says of the recent...

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