Briefs
Sen. Bill Cassidy encourages Louisianians to wear masks and keep their distance
U.S. Senator Bill Cassidy posted a COVID-19 update on his campaign website Friday that calls for Louisianians to wear masks to help slow down the spread of the novel coronavirus and decrease the number of people getting sick. Cassidy is a gastroenterologist who worked and taught at the charity hospital in Baton Rouge and co-founded […]
Louisiana COVID-19 Health Equity Task Force to hold public meeting Friday
A task force established by Gov. John Bel Edwards to help address the racial disparities apparent in Louisiana’s COVID-19 death toll will hold a meeting that the public can watch online at 2 p.m. Friday afternoon. The Louisiana COVID-19 Health Equity Task Force has submitted a report to Edwards that makes recommendations on how to […]
Two Louisiana law school clinics join ACLU of Louisiana’s effort to curb racist policing
In Episode 2 of the Louisiana Illuminator podcast, Kenneth Polite, former U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Louisiana, talks to host Julie O’Donoghue about the decision made by Morgan Lewis law firm, where Polite is a partner, to join with 17 other firms and the ACLU of Louisiana to help people file lawsuits related […]
Office of Motor Vehicles locations closed after employee tests positive for COVID-19
Louisiana Office of Motor Vehicles locations in Alexandria, Lafayette, Monroe and Shreveport were added to a list of previously closed locations Monday after an OMV employee tested positive for COVID-19. Karen St. Germain, commissioner of the Louisiana OMV said in a news release that the employee in question was serving in an administrative role and, […]
Texas Gov. Gregg Abbott requires residents to wear masks in public
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott ordered residents of the state to wear masks in public Thursday, July 2. Abbott’s order takes effect Friday, July 3, at noon, and repeat offenders risk being fined $250. “Wearing a face covering in public is proven to be one of the most effective ways we have to slow the spread […]
Baton Rouge the latest Louisiana jurisdiction to require face masks
Baton Rouge Mayor-President Sharon Weston Broome announced on Twitter Wednesday afternoon her plan to sign an executive order mandating face coverings for people inside businesses. Broome follows New Orleans Mayor LaToya Cantrell and Jefferson Parish President Cynthia Lee Sheng who have already issued mask mandates for their jurisdictions, . “COVID-19 presents a clear and present […]
Caddo Parish grand jury accuses 8 Shreveport police officers of using excessive force
A week after the Louisiana Legislature agreed to study police abuse in Louisiana, a grand jury in Caddo Parish handed up indictments against eight Shreveport police officers who booked two men on drug and weapons charges and running from the police Jan. 24. Caddo Parish District Attorney James E. Stewart said in a Tuesday press […]
State superintendent and health director to discuss re-opening schools
Louisiana State Superintendent of Education Cade Brumley and Department of Health Secretary Courtney Phillips will participate in a public discussion 6 p.m. Thursday about the state’s plans, guidelines and guidance related to the reopening of K-12 schools. In response to a question at his Monday afternoon news conference, Gov. John Bel Edwards said, “It is our […]
Board of Commerce and Industry considers millions in property tax exemptions Wednesday
Louisiana’s Board of Commerce and Industry meets Wednesday, June 24, for the third of six regular meetings it has scheduled for 2020. The 24-member board will be considering tax exemption requests worth millions of dollars annually from various industries across the state. Some of the industries appearing before the commerce board will be seeking exemptions […]
Rise St. James marks Juneteenth with a court victory and prayer
After a St. James Parish judge ruled last week that an environmental justice group could hold an hour-long Juneteenth prayer service on land where they say enslaved Black people are buried, Formosa Plastics asked the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeal in Gretna to keep the group off the land. The Taiwan-based company has acquired state […]