BATON ROUGE, La. (AP) The death of a newly elected U.S. representative from Louisiana of complications related to COVID-19 stunned the state s political circles Wednesday and became the latest brutal reminder of how dangerous the coronavirus can be.
Luke Letlow, who was only 41 and had no known underlying health conditions, died Tuesday night at Ochsner-LSU Health Shreveport days before he was scheduled to be sworn into office, according to his spokesman Andrew Bautsch. Bautsch asked for privacy for Letlow s family “during this difficult and unexpected time.”
Republican U.S. Sen. Bill Cassidy, a doctor who tested positive for the coronavirus earlier this year and has since recovered, seemed almost at a loss for words in a Twitter video he posted Tuesday night about Letlow s death, stopping at one point before saying: “It just, just, just, just brings home COVID can kill. For most folks it doesn’t, but it truly can. So, as you remember Luke, his widow, his children in
Louisiana Virus Rules Dispute Returned to Lower Court
The Louisiana Supreme Court on Dec. 21 sent a legal feud between Gov. John Bel Edwards and House Republicans over coronavirus restrictions back to district court, saying the judge ruled too quickly that the state law the GOP used to try to nullify the restrictions was unconstitutional.
The justices wrote in their opinion that Baton Rouge Judge William Morvant should have held a full hearing on other issues raised in the lawsuit over the Democratic governor’s statewide mask mandate, business restrictions and crowd size limits aimed at combating the spread of COVID-19.
Paul Braun / WRKF
Gov. John Bel Edwards is extending his modified Phase 2 coronavirus restrictions through the holidays and into the new year.
The restrictions, which were set to expire Wednesday, will remain in effect through Jan. 13. They include a statewide mask mandate, limit most businesses to 50 percent occupancy, prohibit bars from serving people indoors, and impose 25 percent occupancy limits on wedding venues and high school sports stadiums. Churches are limited to 75 percent occupancy.
Edwards said many of the state’s coronavirus metrics have plateaued at a “very high level.” The governor said he was encouraged to see the state’s “percent positivity” over the last seven days decrease from 10.2 percent to 9.3 percent below the 10 percent benchmark recommended by public health officials.
Court dispute continues over Louisiana COVID regulations
Melinda Deslatte
Associated Press
BATON ROUGE The Louisiana Supreme Court has sent a legal feud between Gov. John Bel Edwards and House Republicans over coronavirus restrictions back to district court, saying the judge ruled too quickly that the state law the GOP used to try to nullify the restrictions was unconstitutional.
The justices wrote in their opinion Monday that Baton Rouge Judge William Morvant should have held a full hearing on other issues raised in the lawsuit over the Democratic governor s statewide mask mandate, business restrictions and crowd size limits aimed at combating the spread of COVID-19.
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