| BY CHAD CALDER | Staff writer |
Good morning and thank you for joining us. Here are some of our top headlines. Debt bomb: Just over half of downtown New Orleans' 15 largest skyscrapers have mortgages that will soon need to be refinanced, a $400 million "time bomb" of debt that could reshape how the buildings are used. Tony McAuley has the story. Insurance changes take shape: A package of bills that would allow insurers to drop policyholders, raise rates more easily and have more time to pay claims after a storm has been proposed at the Louisiana legislature. Sam Karlin and James Finn have this report on a possible compromise between lawyers and insurance companies, as well as Gov. Jeff Landry's break with the industry on key legal issues. Tomato, tomahto: An attorney for former Saints wide receiver Michael Thomas said Wednesday that charges stemming from a November altercation with a contractor outside Thomas' home had been dismissed by the prosecutor "due to lack of evidence." Not so fast, the Kenner Police Department and city attorney countered: Thomas' attorney had agreed his client would enter a pretrial diversion program and charges have not been dropped. Michelle Hunter sorts things out here. Check out all the latest news, sports and entertainment coverage from The Times-Picayune. Chad | 