Louisiana news briefs

DHH: 5 horses reported
with encephalitis
BATON ROUGE (AP) — State health and agriculture officials say five horses in Louisiana have been reported with confirmed cases of Eastern Equine Encephalitis.
The disease, which can affect humans too, is transmitted by the bite of an infected mosquito. As of Friday, the Department of Health and Hospitals says there have been no reported human cases of EEE virus in Louisiana this year.
Agriculture Secretary Mike Strain has in the past urged horse owners to keep their animals vaccinated. At a minimum, he says horse owners should vaccinate against tetanus, EEE, Western equine encephalitis, West Nile virus and rabies.
Owners with horses displaying symptoms that include lack of coordination, walking in circles and facial twitching should contact their veterinarians.

Contractor gets cut in Nagin-related sentence
NEW ORLEANS (AP) — A federal judge has shaved more than 12 years from the sentence of a contractor convicted of corruption in a case that also ensnared former New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin.
Mark St. Pierre has been serving a 17½-year sentence in the federal case. In an order made public Friday, U.S. District Judge Eldon Fallon reduced that sentence to five years.
Fallon said in the order that prosecutors moved to have the sentence cut. They credited St. Pierre with giving valuable assistance in the conviction of another person. It was not clear from the order if that person was Nagin.
Nagin begins a 10-year prison sentence on today at a federal lockup in Texarkana, Texas. He was recently granted a public defender to pursue his appeal.
St. Pierre was convicted in 2011. Fallon’s order says he will get credit for the nearly three years of time he already has served.
“The government indicates that after sentencing, Mr. St. Pierre rendered substantial assistance in the government’s investigation and prosecution of another person,” Fallon said.
The order, dated Sept. 3, was made public after another key figure in the scandal, Greg Meffert, drew a 30-month sentence. Meffert, the city’s technology chief under Nagin, could have been sentenced to eight years but was granted leniency for his help in convicting Nagin, St. Pierre and others.
Meffert admitted to accepting about $860,000 in bribes from St. Pierre, whose technology firms collected millions from the city.

Terrebonne buying
site for athletic fields
HOUMA (AP) — The Terrebonne Parish School Board plans to spend $1.4 million to buy 40 acres next to South Terrebonne High School.
Board officials said the property will be used for athletic fields and perhaps other functions. No timetable has been set for construction.
“This is very valuable and select property,” schools Superintendent Philip Martin said.
The site just northeast of the school would cost $35,000 per acre.
The board plans to pay for the property using $1.5 million left over from the $10 million H.L. Bourgeois Freshman Center project completed in 2013. That project was paid for with revenue from a 1-cent sales tax.
H.L. Bourgeois and Ellender high schools each have acreage next to their sites to permit possible expansion, Martin told School Board members.
“South Terrebonne has its athletic fields in its front yard, but there’s no other place for it to be,” he said. “This will allow for an immediate impact for the school, but the land adjacent to our high school provides many possibilities for future expansion as needed by the school district.”
The property became available earlier this year, Martin said.
Along with the athletic facilities, the school has discussed allotting space for facilities for the school’s marching band.

Lock to close
while damage inspected
LAROSE (AP) — Officials in Lafourche Parish say the Leon Theriot Lock on Bayou Lafourche in Larose will close to all traffic Tuesday morning while underwater damage to the gates is inspected.
The closing will begin at 8 a.m. The lock is expected to reopen by 6 p.m.
The lock usually opens at 2 a.m., 6 a.m., 9 a.m., 1 p.m., 6 p.m. and 10 p.m.

Lafayette school budget
ends with $6.5M surplus
LAFAYETTE (AP) — The Lafayette Parish School System realized a $6.5 million surplus in the fiscal year that ended June 30.
Superintendent Pat Cooper said the surplus offers another option to help offset a more than $20 million shortfall that also could end the current budget battles.
The School Board will meet Thursday for a public hearing on the proposed 2014-15 budget, followed by a board meeting for its final adoption.
This year’s budget review of the $268 million general fund began in May with a $23.5 million shortfall. The board cut about $9 million in expenses. However, the budget Cooper has now made restores the funding the board had cut.

St. James council delays youth center price cut
CONVENT (AP) — The future of the property that once housed the St. James Parish Youth Detention Center is at stake as officials attempt to sale the empty building and its land or demolishing the building for a new purpose.
The St. James Parish Council has tabled until its Nov. 5 meeting a motion to reduce the property’s sale price by 50 percent of its market value.
The two-month delay should allow Parish President Timmy Roussel to inquire about contracting with a commercial real estate company to sell the property outright or promote the property in a regional real estate database.
Officials have not received any bids on the property since April, when it was first offered for sale at $2.5 million.

Inmate escapes from Lafourche Parish jail
THIBODAUX (AP) — Lafourche Parish sheriff’s deputies are searching for an inmate who escaped from the parish jail.
Sheriff Craig Webre says 26-year-old Jason Dempster escaped Sunday evening and is believed to still be in the Thibodaux area.
Webre says Dempster was serving a 90-day sentence due to failure to pay over $5,000 in child support.
Dempster was also being held as a fugitive of Assumption Parish where he was wanted on a contempt of court charge for failure to appear for traffic violations.

Baton Rouge council
meets on attorney’s removal
BATON ROUGE (AP) — The East Baton Rouge Metro Council can move forward as planned with a hearing this week to vote on removing Parish Attorney Mary Roper as the city-parish’s chief lawyer.
State District Judge Mike Caldwell said Friday the council has provided Roper with notice of its intent to remove her from her post, grounds for removal and what he called a “name-clearing” hearing set for Wednesday.
Caldwell said the actions taken so far by the council are authorized by law.
Roper, who has served as parish attorney since 2008, said she is eager to her side of the story at Wednesday’s hearing.
Council members have expressed its intention to remove Roper, stating it has lost confidence in her ability to run the Parish Attorney’s Office.

Inmate escapes from Lafourche Parish jail
THIBODAUX (AP) — Lafourche Parish sheriff’s deputies are searching for an inmate who escaped from the parish jail.
Sheriff Craig Webre says 26-year-old Jason Dempster escaped Sunday evening and is believed to still be in the Thibodaux area.
Webre says Dempster was serving a 90-day sentence due to failure to pay over $5,000 in child support.
Dempster was also being held as a fugitive of Assumption Parish where he was wanted on a contempt of court charge for failure to appear for traffic violations.