TRANSCRIPT
You’re listening to Red River Radio News.
Good morning, I’m Jeff Ferrell.
********
INTRO:
A new state prosecutor has been appointed to take over the criminal investigation into Camp Mystic.
That change comes 15 months after catastrophic flash flooding claimed the lives of 28 people, including 25 children, 2 camp counselors and the camp director.
Texas Public Radio’s Jerry Clayton reports:
SOT:
“The owners of Camp Mystic are under investigation for manslaughter, negligence, and other criminal charges associated with the July 2025 flooding that killed 25 campers and 2 counselors. Kerr County District Attorney Lucy Wilke rescued herself from the case earlier this month ... citing personal connections with the owners. The Express-News reports a judge appointed Hill Country-area District Attorney, Tonya Spaeth Ahlschwede, to lead the case. No criminal charges have yet been filed.”
<**** NEW STORY ****>
INTRO:
In Louisiana, a new report says increasing access to child care could unlock billions of dollars in economic growth for the state. Heather Cope with the Louisiana Policy Institute for Children, says there are more than 250-thousand children under the age of five in Louisiana.And without adequate access to child care, cope says mothers have no choice but to stay out of the workforce:
SOT:
“They’re at home managing child care because either they can’t afford care at all, or any care that is available to them is not enough that they can then enter the workforce entirely.”
TAG:
Cope says increasing access to early childhood education could allow almost 30,000 parents to re-enter the workforce, leading to $3.2-billion in additional Earnings.
<**** NEW STORY ****>
INTRO:
Louisiana Treasurer John Fleming wants an increase in the state’s homestead exemption, pointing to recent property tax changes in other states as examples.
Fleming says the current 75-hundred-dollar exemption, last adjusted in 1980, is now worth less than half that amount, roughly 35-hundred dollars to homeowners, all thanks to inflation:
SOT:
“Taxes on your property, especially your home, have been going up, aggressively. And that’s the problem with inflation because inflation is a hidden tax.”
TAG:
In recent years, state lawmakers have filed legislation to raise Louisiana’s homestead exemption.
But business groups and policy organizations have opposed the idea.
They’ve argued that the tax break takes away vital revenue for local services.
Fleming says he’ll work with state and local officials to develop a reasonable proposal.
<**** NEW STORY ****>
INTRO:
Arkansas attorney general Tim Griffin announced that the state is joining several others in filing lawsuits against OpenAI.
AP correspondent Lisa Dwyer has more:
SOT:
“Eight states are suing the artificial intelligence giant OpenAI, saying the company’s popular chatbot violated consumer protection laws by hurting children and deceiving adults. In a lawsuit filed Wednesday Iowa says the company’s chatbot model ChatGPT is giving dangerous medical advice, encouraging paranoia and coaching people to hurt others or commit suicide. OpenAI says it has built-in safety protections aimed to check ChatGPT for children and that it would continue to do so. Other states suing are Arizona, Arkansas, Idaho, Kansas, Montana, Nebraska and West Virginia. I’m Lisa Dwyer.”
TAG:
Attorney General Tim Griffin says Arkansas’ lawsuit contends OpenAI knows that children and teenagers regularly use ChatGPT, yet it collects their personal information without meaningful age verification. OpenAI has repeatedly denied such claims.
<**** FORECAST ****>
The National Weather Service in Shreveport:
- Issued a Red Flag Warning for today due to gusty winds, low humidity and tinder box conditions from extended drought.
- Mostly sunny, with a high near 71 degrees.
- For the weekend:sunny skies both days. Saturday’s high dips even lower, near 68, as it begins to feel a bit more like fall.
then 73 Sunday and 77 by Monday. - A strong cold front will usher in very dry air today as relative humidity plummets between 25 to 35 percent, with winds gusting out of the north up to 30+ mph at times. As a result, a Red Flag Warning is in effect with the threat of rapid start and spread of wildfires.
*******END*******
