Louisiana news briefs

Health department encourages people to get a flu shot
BATON ROUGE (AP) — Lt. Gov. Jay Dardenne and state health officials received their annual flu shots, as part of efforts to remind the public to take measures to “Fight the Flu.”
Dardenne, Health and Hospitals Secretary Kathy Kliebert and Public Health Assistant Secretary J.T. Lane were vaccinated Wednesday at a Baton Rouge health unit.
The health department estimates between 450,000 and 900,000 Louisiana residents become infected with the flu each year. Louisiana is one of six states around the country that already is reporting widespread flu activity this season.
Health officials say while everyone should get a vaccine, it is critical for high-risk groups like young children, the elderly, health care workers and pregnant women. Information on where to get vaccinated is available at www.fighttheflu.la.gov .

2 students accused
of battery on teachers
DARROW (AP) — Authorities say two male students at the Ascension Parish Alternative School in Darrow have been arrested in separate incidents of battery on staff members at the school.
Sheriff Jeff Wiley said a 16-year-old student got into an argument with a male administrator at the school Wednesday over a violation of school policy and kicked and punched the administrator.
The student was booked with battery on a teacher.
In a separate incident, Wiley says 19-year-old Tyrone Pitts got into an argument over another issue of policy with a teacher.
Wiley said the argument escalated and Pitts rushed the teacher and began to punch him.
Pitts also was booked with battery of a teacher.

Case against judge stands
NEW ORLEANS (AP) — A state appeals court panel has refused to dismiss the criminal indictment against departing Orleans Parish Juvenile Court Judge Yolanda King for allegedly lying about living in New Orleans when she qualified last year to run for the seat.
The decision was dated Monday, two days after local attorney Desiree Cook-Calvin won a runoff to replace King on the bench.
The ruling clears the way for state Attorney General Buddy Caldwell’s office to move forward with the criminal case against King.
King was indicted in March on a felony charge of filing a false public document and a misdemeanor election code violation, accused of claiming a New Orleans address when she actually lived at a house she owns in Slidell.

Gretna bans garage
sales on weekdays
GRETNA (AP) — Gretna residents who want to have a garage or estate sale will have to do it on a weekend.
The Gretna City Council unanimously passed an ordinance Wednesday that restricts the days people can sell personal items from their homes.
The council acted after receiving complaints about people having garage sales that lasted as long as a week.
The changes were criticized by two residents who complained that not everyone has Saturday and Sunday off and that people often need to hold garage sales quickly because of emergencies.
City Attorney Mark Morgan said that while not everyone will agree with the change, the consensus among officials is that the weekend is the safest time to hold garage sales.

State warns of reported phone ‘rebate’ scam
BATON ROUGE — The Louisiana Department of Children and Family Services is warning the public of a potential scam that has been reported in the Lafayette area involving phony offers for discount store rebate cards.
The con artists aim to trick people into providing credit card information.
A news release from the department Wednesday said the reported scam starts with a phone call that tells listeners that they have won a Walmart rebate card that can be picked up from their local “Food Stamp Office.”
The caller then asks for credit card information and tells people they will be billed $1.95 to receive the rebate card.
The Department of Children and Family Services stressed that it does not participate in giveaways and never asks for credit card information from clients.

20 years for pair of robberies
NEW ORLEANS (AP) — A federal judge in New Orleans has sentenced a man to 20 years in prison for a pair of 2011 robberies that netted more than $130,000 — including cash that records say was literally “laundered.”
The sentence was handed down Wednesday for 35-year-old Brian Keith “Beano” Hayes.
Much of the cash from the second robbery, of a Capital One branch in Metairie, was stained with red dye from a bank security pack. According to court records, the robbers tried to clean it up in a washing machine, which only turned the cash pink.
Hayes later admitted enlisting help from several men to take the money to a casino, where they inserted it in slot machines and change kiosks to get some un-stained cash.

Man rescued from raft
NEW ORLEANS (AP) — The Coast Guard says it has rescued a man from a life raft 30 miles south of Southwest Pass.
Wednesday’s rescue came after a crewmember aboard a vessel reported hearing a Mayday call from the sailing vessel “Amsheet.”
The vessel reported that it was taking on water after striking an object and that the owner was in a life raft.
Lt. Jay Kircher, a Coast Guard pilot, said in a news release that the survivor was prepared with proper clothing, a life preserver, life raft, radio and a GPS tracker. A Coast Guard helicopter hoisted the man from the raft and took him to Coast Guard Air Station New Orleans around 7 a.m.

Mayor to run for Lt. Gov.
BATON ROUGE (AP) — Baton Rouge Mayor Kip Holden says he is running to be Louisiana’s next lieutenant governor, joining three other contenders vying for the open seat in 2015.
Holden, a Democrat, announced his campaign Wednesday. He described an economic turnaround in Baton Rouge during his tenure and said he would repeat that success on a state level.
Holden is the fourth candidate to announce plans to run for the state’s second highest office, which is in charge of overseeing the Department of Culture, Recreation and Tourism.
Three Republicans have said they will seek the position: Opelousas state Sen. Elbert Guillory, Plaquemines Parish President Billy Nungesser and Jefferson Parish President John Young.
The field is crowded because Lt. Gov. Jay Dardenne is running for governor next year.