Louisiana news briefs

East Baton Rouge Parish retail spending increases
BATON ROUGE (AP) — Consumer and business spending in East Baton Rouge Parish rose by 4.1 percent in October, continuing a nine-month streak of sales activity outstripping 2013 figures.
Sales tax collection figures released Tuesday by the city-parish Finance Department show businesses and consumers spent $693.7 million in October. That compares with nearly $666.7 million in spending in October 2013.
The figures do not include vehicle sales, which are generally examined separately when looking at spending as an economic indicator.
Spending, excluding vehicles, within the Baton Rouge city limits was up 9.6 percent in October to nearly $389.9 million. But spending outside the city limits of Baton Rouge was down nearly 2.1 percent in October to $303.8 million.

Port Allen man accused of trying to hire hit man
PORT ALLEN (AP) — Authorities say a 37-year-old Port Allen man who sought to hire a hit man to kill a Pointe Coupee couple over a soured business deal is behind bars after the would-be hit man went to police and turned informant.
Tommy Joe Gioele was booked into West Baton Rouge Parish Jail Tuesday on two counts of solicitation of murder for his alleged attempt to have Manuel A. Persica and his wife Camellia killed inside their Pointe Coupee home.
Court records show Gioele and Persica have been locked in a bitter business feud dating back to a 2008 lawsuit filed by Gioele.
Gioele is being held on a $750,000 bond.

Woman killed, man wounded in Terrytown shooting
TERRYTOWN (AP) — Jefferson Parish deputies are investigating a deadly shooting in Terrytown.
Col. John Fortunato said officers were called to the 2100 block of Esplanade Place shortly after 10:30 p.m. Tuesday after receiving reports of multiple gunshots. About 10 minutes later, he says deputies received a report of a wounded man walking into a convenience store.
Fortunato says 20-year-old Charles Gumms was found lying on the floor inside of the store suffering from multiple gunshot wounds. Fortunato says Gumms is listed in critical condition.
He says investigators checked a vehicle in the parking lot and discovered an unidentified woman lying on the rear floorboard suffering from multiple gunshot wounds. He says she was pronounced dead on the scene.
Fortunato says deputies have no motive or suspects in the shooting.

North Lafourche levee plan upsets property owners
LAROSE (AP) — A levee proposal by the North Lafourche Levee District is receiving flak from landowners who aren’t pleased with updated plans, causing the project to stall.
A section of the Lockport to Larose levee project, south of Louisiana Highway 1 near the Valentine bridge toward the T-Bois bridge in Larose, has been redesigned. And its anticipated width has upset some of the affected landowners who would have to sign over their right of way to the rear of their property to the levee district.
The area is susceptible to flooding due to the condition of the existing levee.
Dwayne Bourgeois, North Lafourche Levee District director, said the area will have some protection once the Morganza-to-the-Gulf levee project is completed, but that could take upwards of 20 years.

Mississippi man cited
for drowning deer
BATON ROUGE (AP) — A Mississippi man has been cited for allegedly drowning a deer in the Mississippi River in Concordia Parish.
Sgt. Trey Mason, of the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries’ Enforcement Division, says 40-year-old David Hayes, of Natchez, Mississippi, was cited for not possessing non-resident basic hunting and big game hunting licenses, failing to comply with deer tagging requirements, hunting from a moving vessel and taking deer from a vessel while the deer was swimming.
A witness saw Hayes approach the deer in the river, wrap a rope around its antlers and drown the deer. Mason questioned Hayes, who admitted to drowning the 8-point buck.
The violations carry fines up to $500 and 90 days in jail. Hayes also could be ordered to pay $2,033 in restitution to replace the deer.

Teen arrested for LaPlace drive-by shooting
EDGARD (AP) — A 16-year-old Reserve boy has been arrested in connection with a LaPlace drive-by shooting.
The St. John the Baptist Parish Sheriff’s Office says authorities arrested him at school on Monday at 1:05 p.m. Additional arrests are possible.
Investigators accused the teen of firing from a sport-utility vehicle at three boys, ages 14, 15 and 16 on Delta Road last Friday.
No one was injured. Authorities say they don’t have a motive for the shooting.
The suspect’s name was not released because of his age. The Sheriff’s Office did not say Tuesday what evidence connects him to the shooting. He was booked with illegal use of a weapon and assault by drive-by shooting. He is being held at the Assumption Parish Juvenile Detention Center.

Opelousas to protest Brown, Garner deaths Thursday
OPELOUSAS (AP) — St. Landry Parish Sheriff Bobby Guidroz will speak at a rally against grand jury decisions in Missouri and New York not to indict officers in the deaths of two black men.
Guidroz said he shares the horror many feel about the death in Staten Island, New York, of Eric Garner, whom he called “the individual who suffocated to death.”. Garner died in a chokehold, repeating, “I can’t breathe.”
The Thursday evening rally in downtown Opelousas is being organized by activist and newly-elected alderman Tyrone Glover, who operates community radio station KOCZ-FM.
“We’re not going to tear down anything. We’re not going to burn anything. We’re not going to block any streets,” Glover said.
Guidroz and Glover have been friends for years and agree that law enforcement responded the wrong way in Garner’s death and that of Michael Brown, who was shot in Ferguson, Missouri, the newspaper reported.

With Senate race behind him, Rob Maness starts new PAC
BATON ROUGE (AP) — Rob Maness, a Republican who ran an unsuccessful, tea party-backed campaign for the U.S. Senate earlier this year, isn’t leaving politics.
Maness, who came in third in the November primary, announced Tuesday he is starting a political action committee called GatorPAC to recruit and support conservative candidates and proposals.
The name is a play on Maness’ campaign ads that compared Washington to a swamp and career politicians to alligators. Maness was a political newcomer when he launched his Senate campaign and surprised many with his fundraising ability and upstart effort.
U.S. Sen. David Vitter will headline a fundraising event for the PAC next year. Maness also has support for the effort from Republican Bill Cassidy, who defeated Democrat incumbent Mary Landrieu earlier this month to win the Senate seat.

Gonzales man accused of possessing child porn
GONZALES (AP) — Authorities have arrested a Gonzales man on 31 counts of possessing pornography involving juveniles.
Attorney General Buddy Caldwell said 55-year-old Everett Carter was arrested Dec. 11 after a joint investigation of the state Attorney General’s Office, Ascension Parish Sheriff’s Office, Homeland Security Investigations and the FBI.
Carter was booked into the Ascension Parish Jail in Donaldsonville on a count of producing, distributing, possessing or possessing with the intent to distribute pornography involving juveniles.
If convicted, Carter faces up to 20 years in prison for each count of child pornography.
It was unclear whether Carter has an attorney.