Louisiana Headlines

NEW ORLEANS (AP) - Flood protection officials in southeastern

Louisiana are keeping a wary eye on the Mississippi River, thanks

to heavy rains in the midwest and melting winter snows. The river

is expected to crest at 16.5 feet at New Orleans by April 9th. That

would be high enough to have emergency officials on guard against

potential river levee problems.

METAIRIE, La. (AP) - A report of a damaged guard rail led

Jefferson Parish authorities to a canal and the body of a

Dallas-area man in his submerged SUV. Officials say 44-year-old

John Paul Delatte of Mansfield had been missing since Mardi Gras.

NEW ORLEANS (AP) - The New Orleans City Council has passed a new

ordinance in an effort to put blighted properties back into

commerce more efficiently and provide stricter building code

enforcement. The ordinance includes fines of as much as $500 a day

for failure to fix eyesores. In addition to passing a 58-page

amendment to the city code, the council passed an ordinance giving

itself a more prominent role in seizing blighted properties and

moving them through to sheriff's sales.

JENNINGS, La. (AP) - A grand jury will decide whether a veteran

Jennings police officer should be charged with obstruction of

justice, malfeasance in office and sexual misconduct. Jefferson

Davis Parish District Attorney Michael Cassidy says he will call a

grand jury on April 16th to hear several cases involving Sergeant

Jesse Ewing.

NEW ORLEANS (AP) - According to a regulatory filing, the head of

power provider Entergy Corporation received compensation valued at

9.3 million dollars during 2007. J. Wayne Leonard, chief executive

and board chairman, received a base salary of 1.2 million dollars

-- a four percent increase from 1.19 million in 2006. That's

according to a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

As in 2006, Leonard was not paid a bonus.

(Copyright 2008 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)