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• Fire Danger Across Portions of Louisiana

  March 7, 2013 8:48 AM

  State agriculture officials are warning that dry weather in southwest Louisiana is increasing the danger of wildfires. Calcasieu, Vernon, Allen, Jeff Davis and Acadia parishes are classes as in "very high" danger. Authorities say a "medium" danger exists in Beauregard Parish. Authorities explain conditions favor quick spreading of any fire... more »

• Bike ride honors Calcasieu fatal accident victim

  July 16, 2012 11:13 AM

  MOSS BLUFF, La. (AP) - Calcasieu Parish bicycle riders gathered for a memorial ride after a weekend accident killed a Moss Bluff physician. Calcasieu Parish Sheriff's officials say Dr. Mario Beltran, was riding his bicycle early Saturday when a pickup truck struck him from behind. Charges against the driver were... more »

• Calcasieu Board Says No to Charter Transportation

  July 11, 2012 10:29 AM

  The Calcasieu Parish School Board has denied a request to provide transportation to two charter schools for the 2012-2013 school year. The Lake Charles Charter Academy Foundation has requested a partnership involving Lake Charles Charter Academy, Southwest Louisiana Charter Academy, and the district regarding transportation. The foundation says the law... more »

• DWI checkpoint in Calcasieu Parish

  May 24, 2012 11:42 AM

  In an effort to combat impaired driving in our area, Louisiana State Police Troop D with the assistance of the Calcasieu Parish Sheriff's Office plans to conduct a DWI checkpoint on Thursday, May 24, 2012, from approximately 8:00 p.m. to 2:00 a.m. at an undisclosed location in Calcasieu Parish. Our... more »

• FEMA awards $3.6M for Calcasieu, Iberville

  March 30, 2012 9:40 AM

  NEW ORLEANS (AP) - Calcasieu and Iberville parishes are getting $3.6 million from the Federal Emergency Management Agency to help protect the two parishes from hurricanes. U.S. Sen. Mary Landrieu says Iberville is getting $2.2 million to upgrade sewer and wastewater systems to better handle flooding. The money will be... more »

• Tornado Watch for Today 01/25/12

  January 25, 2012 9:34 AM

  Severe weather is heade our way, and we are currently under a Tornado Watch for the following Louisiana parishes: ACADIA, ALLEN, AVOYELLES, BEAUREGARD, BIENVILLE, CALCASIEU, CALDWELL, CAMERON, DE SOTO, EVANGELINE, GRANT, JACKSON, JEFFERSON DAVIS, LAFAYETTE, LA SALLE, NATCHITOCHES, OUACHITA, RAPIDES, RED RIVER, SABINE,... more »

• Engineer: Calcasieu roads in good shape

  January 5, 2012 9:23 AM

  LAKE CHARLES, La. (AP) - Calcasieu Parish has about $20.7 million set aside in this year's budget for road improvement projects - a near $10 million drop from last year - which one parish official attributes to the good condition of the roadways and the lack of a multi-million dollar... more »

• Calcasieu 1st-time home buyers get shot at break

  June 20, 2011 8:50 AM

  LAKE CHARLES, La. (AP) - The State Bond Commission has approved the allocation of $20 million for a program to aid Calcasieu first-time home buyers. Tim Castle, president of the Calcasieu Parish Public Trust Authority, said the money will be issued through the parish mortgage credit certificate program and will... more »

• Calcasieu officials approve coyote strategy

  November 24, 2010 10:22 AM

  LAKE CHARLES, La. (AP) - Calcasieu Parish police jurors have agreed to pay for a pilot plan to deal with the growing coyote problem in the area. The Public Works Committee voted 9-3 Tuesday to hire a contract trapper, fund an education program and buy traps. Its members plan to... more »

• Calcasieu assessor pleads not guilty

  November 23, 2010 11:14 AM

  LAKE CHARLES, La. (AP) - Calcasieu Parish Tax Assessor Richard Cole will face jury trial May 16 on two felony counts of malfeasance. Cole pleaded not guilty Monday in state district court. He was not present for the arraignment proceedings. His plea was entered in writing by Cole's lawyer, Walt... more »

• Burn Ban in Calcasieu Parish Extended

  October 28, 2010 2:23 PM

  Notice of Outdoor Burning Restrictions Extended due to Existing Drought Conditions October 28, 2010 - The Calcasieu Parish Office of Emergency Preparedness and Homeland Security has extended the outdoor burn ban for an additional 30 days. Current drought conditions potentially threaten the health and safety of Calcasieu Parish... more »

• School attendance up in Calcasieu Parish

  October 19, 2010 9:50 AM

  LAKE CHARLES, La. (AP) - The attendance rate for the first six weeks is up at every school in Calcasieu Parish, compared with the same period last year. Keith LeLeux, director of child welfare and attendance, says that the increase can be directly attributed to the new state attendance requirements.... more »

• Sulphur Woman Dies in Interstate 10 Crash

  October 15, 2010 8:39 AM

  SULPHUR, LA - Last night, at 7:42 p.m., troopers with Louisiana State Police Troop D responded to a single vehicle crash on Interstate 10 west of Sulphur that claimed the life of a Sulphur woman. According to investigating troopers, a 2003 Cadillac driven by 59-year-old Sandra H. Hudnall of... more »

• FBI Offering Reward in Brutal Rape and Murder

  October 14, 2010 11:35 AM

  The F. B. I. is offering up to $20,000 for information leading to the arrest of Jose Manuel Garcia Guevara. Guevara, 22, is a suspect in the February 2008 murder of Wanda Barton in her mobile home in the Jessie James Mobile Home Park in Lake Charles being investigated by... more »

• Calcasieu Parish judge Pulled From Murder Case

  October 4, 2010 12:16 PM

  LAKE CHARLES, La. (AP) - A Calcasieu Parish judge has been pulled from a murder case because of what another judge called the "untenable discord" between him and prosecutors in the case. Judge Robert Wyatt rejected prosecutors' allegations that Judge Wilford Carter could not be fair or impartial about 33-year-old... more »

• Details Released Today on Quadruple Murder

  September 30, 2010 1:09 PM

  A preliminary hearing was held in state district court Thursday for Lee Roy Williams Jr. He's charged with four counts of first degree murder. Today, we learned more about the killings. The four bodies were found on Labor Day September 6 at a home off Highway 14 in Calcasieu Parish.... more »

• Material Witness to a Quadruple Killing Expected in Calcasieu Parish Court

  September 14, 2010 12:00 PM

  LAKE CHARLES, La. (AP) - The man held on $5 million bond as a material witness to a quadruple killing wasn't expected in Calcasieu Parish court for a hearing about his right to an attorney. Calcasieu District Attorney John DeRosier says 52-year-old Lee Roy Williams Jr. also had a similar... more »

• Quadruple Homicide Suspect Update

  September 13, 2010 4:58 PM

  The suspect being held for a quadruple murder in Lake Charles has two court appearances Tuesday. Lee Roy Williams Junior, is currently being held in the Calcasieu Correctional Center on five million dollars bond. Williams was captured Thursday in Baton Rouge after a standoff with police. He's accused of trying... more »

• Tax Proposition Talk in Calcasieu Parish

  September 1, 2010 5:39 PM

  Representatives from the Calcasieu Parish Police Jury and officials representing other public agencies affected by the Courthouse and Jail Maintenance Tax will discuss the Police Jury propositions on the October 2 nd ballot, Tuesday, September 7 th , at 10am, in Courtroom A, located on the 3 rd floor... more »

• Update: Iowa School No Longer on Lockdown

  August 26, 2010 1:29 PM

  The lockdown at J.I. Watson Elementary/Middle and modified lockdown at Iowa high was lifted at approximately 12:15 pm. The suspect still has not been caught. ------------------------- The lockdown of the school was voluntary. It all started with a domestic dispute between a male and a female. The male fled on... more »

• Calcasieu Teachers to Get Salary Increase

  July 14, 2010 8:52 AM

  LAKE CHARLES, La. (AP) - Despite a projected decrease in sales tax revenues, Calcasieu Parish teachers can expect a salary step increase for the upcoming school year. The $1.3 million general fund revision is the result of better-than-expected sales tax revenues in April and May. The board unanimously approved the... more »

• Welsh Officer Arrested

  April 15, 2010 7:29 PM

  A Welsh Police Officer is in custody after turning hiself in to Calcasieu Sheriff Deputies Wednesday night. 24 year old Eric Williams is charged with indecent behavior with a child and trafficking in children for sexual purposes. Williams's last known address is in Orange, Texas. That's where the trafficking... more »

• Update: Child Abuse Allegations

  March 10, 2010 4:42 PM

  3:30 update: KATC spoke with neighbors of Jaime Day who have mixed feelings about the arrest. Most we talked to say they were shocked to hear the news, one to the point of not being able to sleep because she was so distressed. They had no indication of any... more »

• Captive 9-Year-Old Boy Found Weighing 38 Pounds

  March 9, 2010 6:43 PM

  On February 19 the Calcasieu Parish Sheriff's Office received a complaint from a woman living in Moss Bluff concerning the welfare of a nine year old child. When questioned by a deputy, the complainant advised him the child was very thin and possibly being forced to stay in his bedroom.... more »

• School locked down as officer searched for suspect

  February 18, 2010 10:00 AM

  CPSS officials are now reporting that the suspect has been apprehended by law enforcement and Henry Heights Elementary has been reopened. ################## Officials from the Calcasieu Parish School System have reported that local law enforcement has called for a lock-down at Henry Heights Elementary School in Lake Charles.... more »

• Calcasieu deputy arrested on sex charges

  November 4, 2009 12:05 PM

  LAKE CHARLES, La. (AP) - Authorities say a Calcasieu Parish sheriff's deputy was fired after his arrest on rape and other sex charges. Sheriff Tony Mancuso said in a news release that a woman reportedly contacted the sheriff's office on Oct. 30 and said her juvenile daughter was having sex... more »

• Corps puts about $11 M in stimulus money into La

  October 15, 2009 7:24 AM

  NEW ORLEANS (AP) - The Army Corps of Engineers is spending about $11 million in stimulus money on dikes along the Calcasieu River, navigation floodgates in Lafourche Parish and on the Morganza to the Gulf levee project. The corps says $9.3 million is being spent on repairing foreshore dikes on... more »

• Body of Texas Woman found in Jeff Davis Parish

  October 8, 2009 12:32 PM

  UPDATE: Authorities have identified the victim whose body was found in Jeff Davis Parish as 33-year-old Stefanie McKenzie. She is from Houston, Texas. It is believed that her body had been at that location for at least 24 hours. ************************** KATC has learned that as of yesterday afternoon... more »

• Opelousas Child Drowns Over Weekend

  September 21, 2009 9:07 AM

  VINTON, La. (AP) - Authorities say 12-year-old boy from Opelousas apparently drowned in Vinton over the weekend. Witnesses told Vinton police that Joseph Staton disappeared from a party Saturday and was found floating in swimming pool. Staton was pronounced dead at West Calcasieu Cameron Hospital. Calcasieu Parish Coroner's Office lead... more »