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Two West Bank teens get long prison terms

by Paul Purpura, The Times-Picayune

Wednesday August 20, 2008, 5:50 PM

Two Harvey teens admitted to committing three armed robberies and a kidnapping in some of the West Bank's quieter neighborhoods last January and, in a hearing punctuated with fits of tears from their victims and families, were sentenced Wednesday to decades in prison.

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Man killed midday in the 6th Ward

by Brendan McCarthy, The Times-Picayune

Wednesday August 20, 2008, 5:14 PM

A 19-year-old New Orleans man was fatally shot around noon today at the intersection of Gov. Nicholls and North Roman streets in the Sixth Ward.

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1 arrested, 2 sought for robbing photographer

by Mary Sparacello, The Times-Picayune

Wednesday August 20, 2008, 4:12 PM

One man is in custody and Kenner police are looking for two female accomplices on charges of setting up and robbing a photographer.

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Mom accused of stalking students, inciting brawl

by Michelle Hunter, The Times-Picayune

Wednesday August 20, 2008, 3:56 PM

A Kenner mother was arrested after allegedly chasing down a pair of her sons' East Jefferson High School classmates in her vehicle, taking a swing at one and instigating a brawl, according to a Jefferson Parish Sheriff's Office arrest report.

Jefferson Parish Sheriff's OfficeRula Husain, 34, of Kenner, was booked with contributing to the delinquency or neglect of a child.

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Kenner man arrested for attempted murder

by Michelle Hunter, The Times-Picayune

Wednesday August 20, 2008, 3:53 PM

A Kenner man who allegedly fired at a friend after a brawl at a local nightclub was arrested Tuesday for attempted murder, authorities said.

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Bush touts federal money, residents' efforts to revive New Orleans

by Michelle Krupa, The Times-Picayune

Wednesday August 20, 2008, 3:50 PM

John McCusker /The Times-PicayunePresident Bush was greeted at Louis Armstrong International Airport by Deuce McAllister and Drew Brees.

Standing in a renovated building at Jackson Barracks, President Bush today highlighted a litany of achievements that he said demonstrate the Gulf Coast's revival nearly three years after Hurricane Katrina and praised the industriousness of residents who have shown that "hope is marching on."

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Vitter limited in using campaign money for legal costs

by The Associated Press

Wednesday August 20, 2008, 3:32 PM

A draft opinion prepared for the Federal Elections Commission says money from Sen. David Vitter's campaign committee can be used to pay some, but not all, of legal costs that arose after his name was linked to a Washington, D.C., escort service.

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President arrives in New Orleans

by The Times-Picayune

Wednesday August 20, 2008, 2:36 PM

President Bush is on the ground at Jackson Barracks in New Orleans, speaking on recovery issues, after flying in to Louis Armstrong International Airport and taking a helicopter to the Chalmette National Battlefield in St. Bernard Parish.

"I make no promises," the president said. "This isn't a chance for me to be a typical politician and make you a promise that I don't intend to keep."

Bush was joined by a host of local elected officials, including New Orleans City Council members Arnie Fielkow and Jackie Clarkson

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Defense rests in Razzoo bouncer trial

by Gwen Filosa, The Times-Picayune

Wednesday August 20, 2008, 2:13 PM

Baton Rouge - The defense team for Razzoo bouncer Clay Montz rested at 2 p.m. today, after arguing that the death of college student Levon Jones, 26, outside the Bourbon Street club in 2004, wasn't caused by the doormen who restrained him.

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New Orleans musician to speak at Democratic convention

by Coleman Warner, The Times-Picayune

Wednesday August 20, 2008, 1:08 PM

New Orleans singer Margie Perez was a bit star-struck in the summer of 2006 when an ambitious U.S. senator from Illinois, Barack Obama, dropped by the site of her home, under construction at the Musicians' Village in the Upper 9th Ward.

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Key figure in Morial era scandal sentenced to 6 months in prison

by Gordon Russell, The Times-Picayune

Wednesday August 20, 2008, 12:59 PM

SUSAN POAG/THE TIMES-PICAYUNETerry Songy, a project manager for Johnson Controls Inc., who was a central figure in a scheme to skim hundreds of thousands of dollars from an $81 million energy efficiency contract let during former Mayor Marc Morial's administration, leaves the Hale Boggs Federal Building in New Orleans Wednesday, August 20, 2008.

Terry Songy, the first major player to turn state's evidence in the biggest City Hall scandal in decades, was sentenced to six months in prison and ordered to pay $70,344 in restitution to the city and federal governments by U.S. District Judge Sarah Vance Wednesday morning.

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Second suit filed in Newcomb College battle

by John Pope, The Times-Picayune

Wednesday August 20, 2008, 12:48 PM

Another niece of Newcomb College's benefactor filed suit today to reopen the women's college that Tulane University shut two years ago as part of post-Hurricane Katrina restructuring.

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Charity Hospital can be restored, report says

by Jan Moller, The Times-Picayune

Wednesday August 20, 2008, 12:31 PM

BATON ROUGE -- The closed Charity Hospital building can be gutted and rebuilt into a state-of-the-art teaching hospital for less money and in less time than it would take the state to build a new hospital, according to a structural assessment sponsored by a historic preservation group.

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Shangri-La says it won't parade in 2009

by The Times-Picayune

Wednesday August 20, 2008, 12:22 PM

The Mystic Krewe of Shangri-La has announced that it will not parade in 2009 for economic reasons.

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Sneed collects kudos at final council meet

by The Times-Picayune

Wednesday August 20, 2008, 12:10 PM

RUSTY COSTANZA / THE TIMES-PICAYUNECouncilwoman Jennifer Sneed, holding daughter, Anna, 3, left, addressed the Jefferson Parish Council meeting in Gretna on Wednesday, August 20, 2008. Her husband, Fred Heebe, holding daughter, Sarah, 3, is on the right. Sneed is resigning her seat as a council member

Jennifer Sneed began her last meeting as a Jefferson Parish Council member this morning by accepting red roses and accolades from her six colleagues.

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Jindal to speak during prime time at GOP convention

by Bill Barrow, The Times-Picayune

Wednesday August 20, 2008, 11:45 AM

BATON ROUGE -- Gov. Bobby Jindal will speak in prime time on the third night of the Republican National Convention, the party announced today.

Danny Bourque / The Times-PicayuneGov. Bobby Jindal gets a prime-time speaking slot during the Republican National Convention next month in St. Paul, Minn.

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Jefferson Parish to negotiate with Coastal Waste for garbage contract

by The Times-Picayune

Wednesday August 20, 2008, 11:18 AM

The Jefferson Parish Council instructed President Aaron Broussard today to negotiate with Coastal Waste Services for the parish's lucrative and politically sensitive garbage collection contract.

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St. Bernard Parish to break ground on new Council on Aging building today

by The Times-Picayune

Wednesday August 20, 2008, 10:05 AM

St. Bernard Parish officials will break ground this afternoon on the reconstruction of the parish's Council on Aging building.

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Tropical Storm Fay to turn west, could re-enter Gulf

by Mark Schleifstein, The Times-Picayune

Wednesday August 20, 2008, 8:01 AM

Tropical Storm Fay was moving slowly north along the east coast of Florida this morning, but National Hurricane Center forecasters expect the storm to make a left turn and head back across the Florida panhandle over the next few days.

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Man murdered in Iberville housing development

by Ramon Antonio Vargas, The Times-Picayune

Wednesday August 20, 2008, 7:05 AM

Gunfire in the Iberville housing development took the life of a 39-year-old New Orleans man lured out of his home late Tuesday night, according to the New Orleans Police Department.

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Thunderstorms likely today and Thursday

by The Times-Picayune

Wednesday August 20, 2008, 6:27 AM

Today will be a wet one, with a 50 percent chance for thunderstorms during the day and 20 percent tonight, according to the National Weather Service.

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Early Causeway commute tripped up by breakdowns; clear now

by The Times-Picayune

Wednesday August 20, 2008, 6:24 AM

A pair of breakdowns on the southbound span of the Lake Pontchartrain Causeway provided the slightest of bumps to the start of the morning commute, but all is well now, authorities reported.

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Last major Johnson Controls defendant to be sentenced today

by Gordon Russell, The Times-Picayune

Wednesday August 20, 2008, 6:00 AM

Terry Songy, the last key player in the city's Johnson Controls scandal, is scheduled to be sentenced today at 9:30 a.m. in federal court.

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Doctor says bouncers killed student

by Gwen Filosa, The Times-Picayune

Tuesday August 19, 2008, 10:54 PM

BATON ROUGE -- Levon Jones, the Georgia college student who died after a clash with Bourbon Street bouncers on New Year's Eve 2004, was killed by the doormen who restrained him, a pathologist told a jury Tuesday.

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All robber wanted was to be a snitch

by Brendan McCarthy, The Times-Picayune

Tuesday August 19, 2008, 10:51 PM

The attempted armed robbery initially played out like countless others that take place in the city: The robber pulled a gun on some workers and demanded money.

But in the case of William Nguyen, the gun wasn't real.

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N.O. school plans receive cautious support

by Sarah Carr and Darran Simon, The Times-Picayune

Tuesday August 19, 2008, 10:03 PM

State and local school board members, who will decide the fate of a proposed $685 million overhaul of city public schools, generally supported the plan at separate meetings in New Orleans and Baton Rouge on Tuesday.

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Bucktown residents denied compensation for land seized for pumps

by Richard Rainey, The Times-Picayune

Tuesday August 19, 2008, 8:54 PM

When the crabs or shrimp or fish ran low, Kent Burgess would walk across the street to see men with names like Bubby T or Richie Mac. Their boats bobbing in the water of the 17th Street Canal, the fishers handed over loads of seafood hauled straight from Lake Pontchartrain, and Burgess returned to cook the catch in pots and pans on a 10-burner Garland stove.

John McCusker / Times-PicayunePumps at the 17th Street Canal being tested in January.

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Bush to make 13th post-Katrina visit to New Orleans Wednesday

by Jan Moller, The Times-Picayune

Tuesday August 19, 2008, 8:48 PM

BATON ROUGE -- President Bush plans to mark the upcoming three-year anniversary of Hurricane Katrina with a speech at Jackson Barracks Wednesday that will extol the progress made since he promised the federal government would stay "as long as it takes" to rebuild the Gulf Coast.

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No money available to help poor with rising energy bills

by Rebecca Mowbray, The Times-Picayune

Tuesday August 19, 2008, 8:43 PM

Faced with a $355.89 electric bill she can't afford, 73-year-old Antoinette Wenzel of Kenner called Entergy Louisiana LLC last week to register for help in the state's newly declared energy emergency.

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New law will send board back to school

by Kia Hall Hayes, The Times-Picayune

Tuesday August 19, 2008, 8:39 PM

Thanks to an amended state law requiring school board members to receive more training in education-related issues, school officials next year will be going back to the classroom.

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Extra judge is added to state 5th Circuit

by Victoria St. Martin, The Times-Picayune

Tuesday August 19, 2008, 8:37 PM

A St. John the Baptist Parish district judge has been appointed to serve as a supernumerary judge on the state 5th Circuit Court of Appeal

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New Orleans police car spins out of control, 2 officers have minor injuries

by Leslie Williams, The Times-Picayune

Tuesday August 19, 2008, 7:22 PM

A section of South Claiborne Avenue between Broadway and Lowerline streets was shut down for about an hour Tuesday while New Orleans police investigated an accident in which a police cruiser spun out of control on rain-wet South Claiborne and hit a tree.

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Jennifer Sneed resigns Jefferson Parish Council

by Richard Rainey, The Times-Picayune

Tuesday August 19, 2008, 5:28 PM

Photos by John McCusker/The Times-PicayuneJennifer Sneed cited the demands of motherhood in resigning from the Jefferson Parish Council.

When Jennifer Sneed closed on a house in New Orleans last week, she closed her political career in Jefferson Parish.

Citing the demands of motherhood, the Metairie Republican announced Tuesday she is resigning from the Parish Council so she and her husband can raise their twin daughters in their new Uptown home. Her exit comes only eight months into her second four-year term on the council.

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Slidell woman killed in I-12 crash

by The Times-Picayune

Tuesday August 19, 2008, 5:27 PM

A Slidell woman was killed in an early-morning wreck on Interstate 12 near Lacombe on Tuesday, according to State Police.

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Counterfeit bills, heroin seized in Slidell

by The Times-Picayune

Tuesday August 19, 2008, 5:16 PM

Three people were arrested after local and federal investigators discovered $14,000 in counterfeit bills and 14 grams of heroin inside an apartment in Slidell, authorities announced Tuesday.

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McCain tours offshore oil rig

by The Associated Press

Tuesday August 19, 2008, 3:53 PM

AP Photo/Mary AltafferRepublican presidential candidate John McCain, R-Ariz., talks to reporters after touring the Chevron Genesis Oil Rig Platform in the Gulf of Mexico near New Orleans today.

ABOARD THE CHEVRON GENESIS -- Republican presidential candidate John McCain visited this oil platform in the Gulf of Mexico today to call for increased offshore drilling that he says would lower the cost of food and heating homes.

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Traffic moving smoothly on the Causeway

by The Times-Picayune

Tuesday August 19, 2008, 3:40 PM

Bridge officials report no restrictions at this hour on the Lake Pontchartrain Causeway.

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Second Razzoo bouncer stands trial for manslaughter

by Gwen Filosa, The Times-Picayune

Tuesday August 19, 2008, 3:30 PM

Clay Montz, 35, of Metairie, is charged with manslaughter in the death of Jones, 26, who died after arguing with bouncers who barred his friends from Razzoo Bar & Patio over their clothing.

Baton Rouge - Levon Jones, the Georgia college student who died after a clash with Bourbon Street bouncers on New Year's Eve 2004, was killed by the doormen who restrained him, a pathologist told a jury today.

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Kenner water bills apparently won't be increased to help subsidize city garbage contract

by Mary Sparacello, The Times-Picayune

Tuesday August 19, 2008, 12:18 PM

Kenner residents likely won't have to pay more on their water bills for garbage pickup, because Kenner City Council members plan instead to subsidize the city's garbage contractor from Kenner's budget.

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