News for Thursday 122012

By Dave Graichen

A 25-year-old Deridder man allegedly  stabbed  his  nephew to death. The Beauregard Parish Sheriff's office arrested John Hatfield  in the murder of 4-year-old Tanner Bailey. Sheriff Ricky Moses says the stabbing occurred at the child's grandparents’ home. Hatfield facing a 1st degree murder charge.

Rapides Parish Sheriff’s Office detectives arrested a Tioga High School teacher Wednesday for an alleged relationship with a student at the school. 27 year old Michelle Cooksey of Pineville was booked into the Rapides Parish Detention Center on two counts of carnal knowledge of a juvenile. Her bond was set at $10,000. The investigation is ongoing.

Lee Rubin and Jules R. Green were sworn in as new Alexandria City Council members Tuesday, followed by the election of Chuck Fowler as council president and Mitzi LaSalle as vice president for 2013. Former District 3 Councilman Jerry W. Jones Jr. and at-large Councilman Roosevelt Johnson were recognized for their service and  presented plaques.  Mayor Jacques Roy congratulated the new council members and said he looked forward to working with them.

Good news for holiday travelers. The price of gasoline is continuing to  fall,  just  in  time for Christmas visits.  At last report, the nationwide average price  of  a  gallon of regular was $3.22 and the average price across Louisiana was  $3.05,  although  you can find a lot  of  gas  stations  selling  their  product for less than  three dollars  a gallon. Increased supplies and  lower  demand  are  being cited as the reason for falling gas prices.

Total personal income in Louisiana grew at the same rate as the United States average during the third quarter, according to a report released Wednesday. Total personal income in the state was $182.4 billion during the third quarter, an increase of 0.5 percent from the second quarter. That matches the 0.5 percent growth nationwide in total personal income, which is the income earned by individuals from all sources.

An internal audit by the state Alcohol and Tobacco Control has found agents  using  state issued cell phones for their personal use while they were on state  time.   ATC  Commissioner  Troy  Hebert says the audit--which only covered the month of October--showed  some  agents using thousands of minutes.  He says this type of abuse will not  be tolerated. He   says  the  agents  in  question  could  be  suspended  or  even terminated.

President Barack Obama has asked his administration to propose gun  control laws, but a legislator in Shreveport has her own ideas about  action that can be taken in Louisiana. Representative Barbara Norton  says she'd like to see a law on the books that would require gun owners  to keep their guns secure at all times.  Norton says the proposed legislation would also include language that  states if a gun owner has not properly secured their gun, they could  face civil liabilities if it was stolen and involved in a crime.

Where to Retire magazine lists Ruston as one of the top retirement  destinations in the country. The publication says Ruston is an  undiscovered haven for retirement.

A new report says Louisiana scored a six out of ten on key indicators of  public health preparedness. The bayou state is one of 35 states that  scored a six or lower. Trust for America's Health and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation compiled the report. Louisiana received negative marks for not having a  nurse license compact with other states, failing to increase public  health funding and not vaccinating enough toddlers against whooping cough.

100 chimpanzees will  be  retiring from their "work" at a University of Louisiana biomedical research  center  in  New Iberia, and moving next  year  to Chimp Haven -- a sanctuary in Keithville  which  will offer the primates  are  more  natural environment in which to live. Michael Budkie is Director of Stop Animal Exploitation now says this is great news. Budkie  says  these  animals have made  important  contributions  to improve health, but the  need  for chimp research is reduced because of new technologies.

USA Today  reports  LSU  head football coach Les Miles is very popular on Twitter. In fact,  the  Old  War School coach  is  the  most  followed  college  football  coach  with  over 87-thousand  followers.   The  second most popular is Brian Kelly at Notre  Dame  with  almost six thousand  followers.   Nick  Saban  at

Alabama is third.

For the second straight year, L-S-U is ranked number four in Forbes'  magazine list of most valuable college football teams.  According to Forbes' report, L-S-U is worth 102-million-dollars, a six  percent increase from last year's list. The Tigers are the highest  ranked S-E-C school and only trail national powerhouses Texas, Michigan  and Notre Dame. Also listed in the Forbes' report is a list of college football's most  powerful coaches and L-S-U's Les Miles is ranked number nine.

The Hornets attempt to change their  nickname  continues   to   move forward.   The   NBA   has   reportedly  filed  for trademark of the nickname Pelicans. But other  nicknames  the  league   is seeking  a trademark  for,   include   Rougaroo,  Mosquitoes,  Swamp  Dogs  and Bullsharks.