The Advocate's Top Headlines

with Jennifer Wadsworth | Assistant metro editor

Good morning, and welcome back to your morning news roundup. Lots to report today.

Don't be a drag

Penalties for drag racing are about to get a lot tougher in East Baton Rouge. Under new rules that take effect in exactly a month from now, judges can issue $500 for first offenses and $1,000 for any beyond that. 

Our City Hall reporter Paul Cobler covered the meeting where Metro Council passed the ordinance, which he explains in more detail in this story.  

Benefits cut

Some 150,000 Louisianans lost unemployment benefits after lawmakers cut them off weeks before their federal expiration date. The move comes just as the state faces a massive surge in coronavirus cases, a new wave of closures and economic uncertainty. It's no wonder the decision prompted a legal challenge, which Blake Paterson breaks down in this report. 

'We cannot sustain this'

Recent COVID deaths in Baton Rouge have skewed younger and Whiter compared to the early days of the pandemic. Sources who spoke to reporter Elyse Carmosino talked about some possible reasons for the shift, which you can read about here. 

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