WBRZ - Baton Rouge

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• Tougher drunken driving threshold recommended

  May 14, 2013 12:03 PM

  WASHINGTON - Federal accident investigators recommended Tuesday that states cut their threshold for drunken driving by nearly half, matching a standard that has substantially reduced highway deaths in other countries. The National Transportation Safety Board said states should shrink the standard from the current .08 blood alcohol content to .05... more »

• Hearing continued in vehicular homicide case

  April 4, 2013 10:28 AM

  BATON ROUGE - Attorneys continued a hearing today for the man accused of killing a cyclist last year while driving drunk. Police said Joseph Branch had a blood alcohol content nearly four times the legal limit when he struck Nathan Crowson and Daniel Morris on Perkins Rd. back in... more »

• Accused drunk driver case heads back to court

  April 4, 2013 8:01 AM

  BATON ROUGE - The case against the man accused of killing a cyclist last year returns to court today. Police say Joseph Branch had a blood alcohol content nearly four times the legal limit when he struck Nathan Crowson and Daniel Morris on Perkins Rd. back in January 2012.... more »

• Gerald faces sentencing for drunk driving deaths

  March 12, 2013 7:26 AM

  CLINTON - The man who police say was more than twice the legal limit when he crashed into another car head-on, killing seven people, will learn his fate today in an East Feliciana Parish courtroom. Brett Gerald pleaded guilty in December to seven counts of vehicular homicide, after originally... more »

• Crash leads to arrest for Denham Springs man

  February 25, 2013 9:47 AM

  BAYOU VISTA - Deputies in St. Mary Parish arrested an accused drunk driver Sunday, after responding to a traffic accident. Authorities say 51-year-old Sameul Horseley rear-ended a vehicle while sitting at a light along Hwy. 90 near Southeast Blvd. Deputies later discovered an ice chest with an open... more »

• Covington man arrested for second DWI

  February 15, 2013 9:11 AM

  GARDEN CITY, La. - Authorities in St. Mary Parish say a Covington man faces second offense DWI charges, after a deputy found him intoxicated in his vehicle. Sheriff Mark Hebert says the deputy spotted 56-year-old James Bourgeois sitting in a parking lot along Hwy. 182 just after midnight Friday.... more »

• Naked drunk driving means probation for Travis

  January 31, 2013 7:29 PM

  Country singer Randy Travis pleaded guilty to drunk driving in a case from last summer where he was found naked after he crashed in Texas. He got two years of probation, fined $2,000 and must spend time in an alcohol treatment center. He could have gotten a year in jail... more »

• LSP: Truck driver in pileup may have been impaired

  January 29, 2013 10:58 AM

  GEISMAR - State Police arrested a truck driver they suspect to have been impaired when they were involved in a multi-vehicle wreck this morning in Ascension Parish. Troopers reopened La. 30 in Geismar after a six-vehicle pileup at 6:30 a.m. closed it for several hours. State Police said two... more »

• Some in Ireland have tonic for drunk drivers

  January 24, 2013 7:54 PM

  Drunk farmers may get a reprieve when it comes to driving home in their cars or on their tractors after a few pints at the pub. Councilmen in Kerry, southwest Ireland proposed the government create a permit to allow isolated farmers to drive drunk without fear of being busted. Backers... more »

• Man surrenders in Lafayette fatal crash

  January 24, 2013 6:44 AM

  LAFAYETTE - Lafayette police say a 23-year-old man suspected of driving drunk and causing a collision that killed a 2-year-old last week has surrendered to authorities. Jamuse Broussard, of Lafayette, has been booked Tuesday with vehicular homicide in the Jan. 16 crash in which Kylan Jackson was severely injured.... more »

• Man charged in crash that killed 5 kids, 1 adult

  January 1, 2013 8:41 AM

  PHILADELPHIA, Miss. - Neshoba County Sheriff Tommy Waddell says a man has been charged with six felony counts of DUI manslaughter after the weekend crash of a sport utility vehicle that killed his five children and one adult in the vehicle. Waddell told The Associated Press by telephone that... more »

• NTSB recommends ignition locks for all DWI offenders Play Video

  December 11, 2012 6:05 PM

  BATON ROUGE - The National Transportation Safety Board recommends all states require ignition interlock devices for convicted drunk drivers, including first time offenders. In the last three years, over 1,500 first time offenders in East Baton Rouge have been stopped for drunk driving. The offense is an automatic misdemeanor,... more »

• Wrong-way driving crashes claim hundreds of lives

  December 11, 2012 10:29 AM

  WASHINGTON - A federal study says about 360 people a year are killed in wrong-way driving crashes on high-speed highways, a majority of which involve alcohol. The National Transportation Safety Board was meeting Tuesday to review the study and consider recommendations on countermeasures to prevent such collisions. One... more »

• Gerald pleads guilty to vehicular homicide

  December 10, 2012 9:51 AM

  CLINTON - Brett Gerald pleaded guilty to seven counts of vehicular homicide Monday morning. Gerald's sentence will be determined on March 12. A pre-sentence investigation and report is being conducted. He faces a minimum of five years for each count. No reduction in charges or plea bargain... more »

• BRPD plan two sobriety checkpoints this week

  December 5, 2012 6:24 PM

  BATON ROUGE - Police said they plan to conduct two sobriety checkpoints in the city limits of Baton Rouge later this week. The first is scheduled for Thursday night, and the second this Saturday night. The specific time and locations will not be announced in advance. This... more »

• Addiction counselor charged with murder in DUI

  November 27, 2012 12:51 PM

  TORRANCE, Calif. - Los Angeles County prosecutors have filed murder and drunken-driving charges against a substance abuse counselor who allegedly struck a pedestrian and drove for more than two miles with the dying victim on the hood of her car. Fifty-one-year-old Sherri Wilkins is expected to be arraigned sometime Tuesday... more »

• Concern over accused drunk driver trial Play Video

  November 9, 2012 9:01 PM

  EAST FELICIANA PARISH - There's fear from a family that a man accused of killing seven people in a drunk driving crash could get a lesser sentence. The Gaines family says Brett Gerald could ask for a plea deal. Police say Gerald was nearly two times the legal limit... more »

• State Police: Driver in deadly crash was drunk

  October 4, 2012 1:26 PM

  PRAIRIEVILLE - Louisiana State Police say a Gonzales man was driving drunk when he triggered a deadly crash in Prairieville last week. Ashton Claiborne, 29, was arrested Wednesday after test results showed he was drunk at the time of the crash. It happened Friday morning on Highway 73... more »

• Atlanta running back celebrates a bit too much

  September 18, 2012 10:50 AM

  ATLANTA - Atlanta Falcons running back Michael Turner was jailed on charges of drunken driving and speeding early this morning, just hours after he scored a touchdown in the team's win over the Denver Broncos. Turner was booked into the Gwinnett County jail in metro Atlanta just after 5... more »

• Teens learn dangers of drinking and driving Play Video

  September 15, 2012 6:07 PM

  BATON ROUGE - Area teens learned first hand about the dangers of drinking and driving and texting behind the wheel at "Celebrate My Drive," an annual event sponsored by State Farm and observed around the country. Sponsors celebrate a big milestone in a teens life - getting a drivers... more »

• Attorneys ask for "black box" from Gerald's truck

  September 11, 2012 10:34 AM

  BATON ROUGE - The man accused of killing seven people in a drunk-driving crash appeared in court today. Brett Gerald's attorneys asked that information from a "black box" recorder in Gerald's truck be turned over to them. State Police investigators testified that no reliable data was able to be... more »

• 14-year-old boy arrested for drunked driving in SD

  August 20, 2012 12:46 PM

  MITCHELL, S.D. - South Dakota police say a 14-year-old boy who was driving drunk has been arrested, along with his father, who sat intoxicated in the passenger seat. The Daily Republic reported Saturday that the boy and his 49-year-old father were arrested shortly after midnight Aug. 5 on Interstate 90... more »

• Local councilman arrested for DWI

  July 23, 2012 10:07 AM

  DENHAM SPRINGS- Authorities arrested Denham Springs City Councilman Christopher Davis Sunday morning in suspicion of driving while intoxicated. Investigators said Davis was in an accident near La. 16 and Amite Church Road and drove away from the scene. Davis was booked into Livingston Parish Jail on one count... more »

• Concert held for family lost in crash Play Video

  June 7, 2012 10:15 PM

  BATON ROUGE - Five from one family dead, a sixth also killed last week. Last night, a church in Baton Rouge was filled with people paying tribute to them. The standing room only crowd was filled with friends that Reverend John Gaines never even knew he had. ... more »

• 15-year-old dies, one critical in Slaughter crash that killed 5 others

  June 1, 2012 10:37 AM

  BATON ROUGE - A 15-year-old died Friday night after sustaining injuries in a crash in Slaughter that left five others dead. His 13-year-old brother remains in critical condition, according to the victims family. State Police said the man accused causing the crash in East Feliciana Parish had a blood... more »

• California family wakes to find Lexus in their pool

  May 15, 2012 12:28 PM

  LA PUENTE, Calif. - The Diaz family awoke to find a Lexus at the bottom of their swimming pool. The Southern California family tells the San Gabriel Valley Tribune that drivers navigating the tricky intersection next to their house in La Puente have hit their cinderblock wall before, but early... more »

• Ind. man arrested with 4 kids strapped to car hood

  May 8, 2012 12:24 PM

  FORT WAYNE, Ind. - Police in northeast Indiana say a man who drove three blocks with four children strapped to the hood of his car has been arrested on a drunken driving charge. Fort Wayne police spokesman John Chambers says a witness called police Monday evening after seeing a man... more »

• A man and his monkey pulled over in Florida

  May 4, 2012 12:34 PM

  LARGO, Fla. - A Florida man is charged with felony drunken driving and wildlife violations after police discovered a small monkey in his truck. Largo Police say Eugene Carl Kotelman was speeding when they stopped him Thursday. He was driving on a suspended license and had been previously charged numerous... more »

• Police plan sobriety checkpoint somewhere in BR tonight

  April 5, 2012 11:39 AM

  BATON ROUGE - The Baton Rouge Police Department announced today that officers plan to conduct a sobriety checkpoint tonight, weather permitting. Officers plan to set up the checkpoint somewhere within the city limits of Baton Rouge. The specific time and the locations of the sobriety checkpoints are never... more »

• Gosserand plea deal accepted by victim's family Play Video

  March 13, 2012 10:37 PM

  POINTE COUPEE - In Pointe Coupee Parish, a deal has been struck, that will likely end a high profile drunk driving case. Victoria Gosserand pleaded no contest to killing Terry Parker in a crash 2 years ago. The "no contest" plea means Victoria Gosserand accepts responsibility for the... more »

• Sobriety checkpoint

  February 29, 2012 3:43 PM

  BATON ROUGE - Baton Rouge Police will conduct a sobriety checkpoint tonight within the city limits. Police have not disclosed the location, nor the time of the checkpoint. Sobriety checkpoints are ongoing by Baton Rouge Police in order to curtail drug driving. more »

• 200 people arrested for impaired driving during Mardi Gras

  February 22, 2012 11:31 AM

  BATON ROUGE- Nearly 200 people were arrested over the Mardi Gras holiday by troopers for impaired driving. The arrests happened during DWI patrols and checkpoints across the state. Troopers from Louisiana State Police Troop L will conduct a DWI Checkpoint in Tangipahoa Parish on Thursday, Feb. 23 around... more »

• "What is Drunk?"

  January 27, 2012 10:17 PM

  BATON ROUGE-- Joey Branch's blood alcohol content when he hit two bikers and killed one of them was a .307, according to Baton Rouge Police. That's nearly four times the legal limit. It's what the East Baton Rouge Sheriff's Office "drunk goggles" show kids too-- just how tough it... more »

• Mom fights against drunk driving after losing son

  November 16, 2011 5:22 PM

  DENHAM SPRINGS- Mothers Against Drunk Driving says alcohol-related deaths are down 25% percent in Louisiana. News2 spoke to a mom who's on a crusade to bring that number even lower after losing her son. Lisa Allen says it's surreal to see her son and daughter in-law on a... more »

• Indy 500 winner Al Unser, Jr arrested in NM for DWI

  September 29, 2011 12:25 PM

  ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. - Retired American race car driver and two-time Indianapolis 500 winner Al Unser Jr. has been arrested on drunken driving and reckless driving charges in New Mexico. KRQE-TV reports that the 49-year-old was arrested Thursday morning in Albuquerque, where he lives. Authorities say Unser was drag... more »

• Pa. man gets 2 DUI arrests in 1 night

  September 21, 2011 12:30 PM

  WASHINGTON, Pa. - Police have charged a man in western Pennsylvania with driving drunk twice in the same night - the second time about 15 minutes after they released him into the custody of a friend. Online court records don't list an attorney for 58-year-old Robert Brodnick, of Washington,... more »

• Actress to Rehab

  August 19, 2011 7:33 PM

  An actress in the latest "Planet of the Apes" movie was ordered to rehab by a judge in Los Angeles. Estella Warren has to serve four months in a residential rehab facility after she entered a no contest plea in a drunk driving case on Friday. Warren was arrested earlier... more »

• Idaho daughter and mother get DUIs an hour apart

  July 19, 2011 12:22 PM

  IDAHO FALLS, Idaho - Idaho authorities say a mother and daughter were arrested for drunken driving within an hour of each other - the mother when she went to pick up her daughter's dog. The Post Register reports a sheriff's officer stopped 28-year-old Alisha Gardner at 10:56 p.m. Saturday... more »

• Lawyer enters no contest plea in Lohan theft

  May 11, 2011 12:39 PM

  LOS ANGELES - Lindsay Lohan's attorney has entered a no contest plea on behalf of the actress in a case involving a stolen necklace. Lohan did not appear in court for Wednesday's hearing in Los Angeles. Superior Court Judge Stephanie Sautner accepted the plea to misdemeanor grand theft... more »

• LSP: Drunk driver injures trooper in I-10 crash

  May 10, 2011 6:39 PM

  BATON ROUGE - A state trooper was hurt when a drunk driver crashed into his vehicle on the interstate in West Baton Rouge Parish, according to Louisiana State Police. Trooper Russell Graham said 48-year-old Joseph Harris of Rosedale was arrested Monday night after crashing into an LSP unit driven... more »

• DWI checkpoint results In five DWI arrests

  March 31, 2011 11:03 AM

  BATON ROUGE - Police arrested five people and checked 159 vehicles during a sobriety checkpoint overnight in Baton Rouge. Cpl. L'Jean McKneely said officers conducted the checkpoint on the 2800 block of Brightside Drive, south of the LSU campus. He said of the vehicles checked, 17 field sobriety... more »

• LSP confident in breath test machines for DWI cases despite questions in PA

  March 23, 2011 10:48 PM

  BATON ROUGE- More than 1,000 drunk drivers are back on the streets of Philadelphia because of a mistake. Now authorities in Louisiana are making sure it will not happen here. In Philadelphia, cases got thrown-out because the Breathalyzer machines were improperly calibrated. The machines need to be set to... more »

• Hornets' G Jarret Jack arrested, charged with DUI

  February 21, 2011 12:37 PM

  SNELLVILLE, Ga. - Police in an Atlanta suburb say New Orleans Hornets' backup point guard Jarrett Jack has been arrested and charged with drunken driving. Snellville Police Chief Roy Whitehead said in an e-mail Monday the 27-year-old former Georgia Tech star was pulled over early Sunday by an officer... more »

• Star witness in drunk driving case will likely testify at trial

  January 24, 2011 3:46 PM

  NEW ROADS - The star witness in a drunk driving case in Pointe Coupee Parish will likely testify at the trial. News 2 has learned New Roads Police Officer Brandon Spillman is back from military duty in Iraq. Last year, Spillman taped testimony before he headed overseas. In that... more »

• 90 agencies step up anti-drunk driving effort

  December 22, 2010 10:41 AM

  BATON ROUGE- Nearly 90 law enforcement agencies across the state are participating in a national campaign to keep drunken drivers off the roads during the Christmas and New Year's holidays. Louisiana Highway Safety Commission spokeswoman Jamie Ainsworth said in a news release that people with 87 state law enforcement... more »

• DWI checkpoints planned for tonight, weekend

  December 16, 2010 2:35 PM

  BATON ROUGE- Local authorities are conducting DWI checkpoints this week to curb impaired driving during the holidays. Baton Rouge Police are holding sobriety checkpoints tonight somewhere within the city limits. The Livingston Parish Sheriff's Office will set up its sobriety checkpoints sometime beginning Saturday night at 9:00 and... more »

• Blood to be split for drunk driving trial

  November 29, 2010 4:14 PM

  NEW ROADS-- A vial of blood that could send an accused drunk driver to jail for killing another woman will be split in half. Right now, prosecutors have 10 milliliters of blood taken from Victoria Gosserand the night they say she hit and killed 23-year-old Terri Parker and badly... more »

• Attorneys compromise over Gosserand blood sample

  November 29, 2010 12:12 PM

  NEW ROADS - Attorneys in the Victoria Gosserand vehicular homicide case have reached a compromise over the accused's blood sample. Prosecutors say that sample shows Gosserand's blood was nearly four times the legal limit the night she crashed her vehicle into another car, killing 23-year-old Terri Parker and badly... more »

• Quebedeaux changes plea; says he's guilty as charged

  November 8, 2010 5:48 PM

  BATON ROUGE - A man who originally pleaded not guilty to hitting and killing three people in a 2009 drunken driving accident has changed his mind. Derek Quebedeaux pleaded guilty Monday morning to all charges against him and said he takes responsibility for the crash. During the 20-minute hearing, Quebedeaux... more »

• Police: Drunk man drives drunk woman to jail

  October 1, 2010 1:06 PM

  Friends don't let friends drive drunk. But what if the friend is drunk, too? Police in suburban Detroit say a man faces drunk driving charges after he drove an intoxicated woman to the police station. Donald Chamberlain has pleaded not guilty. Police say Chamberlain drove his... more »

• Lindsay Lohan ordered back to jail

  September 24, 2010 11:18 AM

  Actress Lindsay Lohan is headed back to jail after a failed drug test. Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Elden S. Fox ordered the starlet jailed during a court hearing Friday. Her next court appearance was set for Oct. 22. Fox did not set bail and Lohan will... more »

• Plea agreement could be reached in drunk driving case

  September 22, 2010 5:51 PM

  A plea agreement could be reached surrounding a drunk driving case in Hammond. Derek Quebedeaux is accused of plowing into a group of people last year. Three people died, and two more were severely injured. He didn't have anything to say as he walked into court Wednesday. Attorneys... more »

• Watchdog group seeks Senate probe of Vitter

  September 22, 2010 12:56 PM

  A government watchdog group in Washington is seeking a Senate ethics committee investigation of Louisiana Sen. David Vitter. Complaints from Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington center on Vitter's former aide, Brent Furer. Furer was arrested for an alleged knife attack on a girlfriend in 2008 and... more »

• La. man gets 5 years for DUIs

  July 29, 2010 7:59 AM

  A 48-year-old Louisiana man with 17 prior DUI arrests has been sentenced to five years without parole for felony drunken driving. Jimmy D. Graves Jr. of Gonzales was arrested May 11, 2009, for driving with a blood-alcohol content level twice 0.08 percent legal limit. more »

• UGA athletic director charged with DUI

  July 1, 2010 1:10 PM

  Authorities say University of Georgia athletic director Damon Evans has been arrested and charged with drunken driving. Georgia State Patrol spokesman Gordy Wright said that Evans was arrested late Wednesday night after his 2009 BMW was pulled over by a state trooper in north Atlanta. Wright said Evans... more »

• D.A.R.E. officer involved in drunk driving accident

  June 22, 2010 11:56 AM

  A D.A.R.E. officer's vehicle was hit head on by a man who is charged with drunk driving. The accident happened last night around 10 p.m. as the officer was driving north on Joor Road. Police reports say Jacob L. Rester, 29, crossed the center line and hit the deputy... more »

• Fatal crash kills two in Ascension Parish

  June 3, 2010 5:13 PM

  Update: Two people are dead after a fatal crash in Ascension Parish. Louisiana State Police says 73-year-old Remy Schexnayder, Livingston, and his female passenger died after their Nissan pickup was struck by 30-year-old William R. Helmke, Central. Helmke was traveling west in a GMC pickup on LA 431, east of... more »

• Two charged in car crash, including a police officer

  April 23, 2010 10:28 AM

  A police officer in Shreveport is accused of DWI after a car crash. Police say Kevin Duck, 32, was driving his personal truck when a car, driven by Carolyn Blake, hit his truck Monday. Authorities say Blake was at fault. Blake was also charged in the crash. Authorities say... more »

• Witness: Accused drunk driver combative after crash

  March 11, 2010 3:49 PM

  A New Roads police officer who witnessed a crash in Pointe Coupee Parish testified on tape Thursday morning about what he saw unfold. He will deploy for Iraq in the next few days. Officer Brandon Spillman told a packed courtroom 23-year-old Victoria Gosserand was extremely combative and uncooperative after... more »

• District attorney to remain on drunk driving case

  January 21, 2010 10:48 AM

  The district attorney for Pointe Coupee Parish will not recuse himself from a drunk driving case despite knowing the suspect's family well. Terri Parker's family filed a formal request last week to have Ricky Ward removed from the case. Parker died last month after investigators say a car she was... more »

• Family wants justice in drunk driving case

  November 18, 2009 10:26 PM

  Darlene Bankston is convinced the woman who killed her cousin should be in jail. Bankston is the cousin of Chad Roberts, who was killed in a car accident in 2003. Roberts and Eric Posey were killed after being hit by Rebecca Meier, who was driving drunk. Rebecca Meier served... more »

• Goggles teach Southern students about drunk driving dangers

  October 14, 2009 4:46 PM

  Students at Southern University participated in Alcohol Awareness Week by trying out a pair of goggles that simulate what a drunk driver sees when their Blood Alcohol Content is above .10. On Thursday, the school will hold a "mock-tail" competition, where students will compete to make the best tasting... more »

• New Drunk Driving Law

  August 31, 2009 3:12 PM

  Drivers who refuse to submit to a breathalyzer test when they are stopped on suspicion of drunken driving face stiffer penalties for the refusal starting Tuesday. Louisiana lawmakers approved changes to the law earlier this year, in a move backed by Gov. Bobby Jindal. Under the new law, a suspect... more »