NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – Hemp dominated some of the discussion before the House Civil Law and Procedure Committee on Monday.

Rep. Laurie Schlegel, a Republican from Jefferson Parish, is the author of HB 36, which adds consumable hemp to the Louisiana Drug Dealer Liability Act.

“This bill simply clarifies that this ACT applies to those who choose to operate outside the narrow legal pathway we’ve carved out for consumable hemp,” Schlegel said.

She told the committee that someone selling hemp in another state could not simply start selling it in Louisiana.

“This has nothing to do with possession, this has to do with the selling of products. You can’t sell products that are approved in Texas and whatnot, those don’t fit our regulations,” said Schlegel. “So, if you’re selling products that are outside of the regulations that we all put into place last year then yes you could do a civil remedy if somebody was harmed by that.”

Her bill is also designed to protect anyone under the age of 21.

“It also creates civil liability for anyone who sells these products to minors. We know THC is especially dangerous for kids and teens,” Schlegel stated.

Dr. Joseph Jones, a forensic toxicologist at the North Louisiana Crime Lab, bolstered her statements.

“Cannabis exposure during this time, it alters your emotional regulation and increases the risk for anxiety, depression, impulsivity and ultimately psychosis later in life. These effects are not speculative, they’re not poorly researched, in fact, medical textbooks have been written about this,” said Jones.

Schlegel emphasized that legal hemp products will remain available.

“We’re not banning legal, regulated hemp. We made a narrow exception for products that follow the rules, but when someone steps out of that framework, they’re selling a dangerous drug and should be treated that way,” she said.

However, there was pushback from Blaine Jennings, who said he is a former licensed hemp grower in Louisiana.

“Obviously, the industry does not want minors using these products,” he said.

Jennings argued that laws already exist to protect minors from hemp sales.

“If this is about protecting children, I believe there’s plenty of rules in place that prevent us from selling, there’s plenty of fines that have been implemented where if you’re selling to a minor, you know, you will get penalized. The ATC could pull licenses from shop owners, if they’re selling to minors,” Jennings said.

The bill advanced out of the committee without objection.

See a spelling or grammar error in our story? Click Here to report it. Please include the headline.

Subscribe to the Fox 8 YouTube channel.

Copyright 2025 WVUE. All rights reserved.

(Also read: Astrologer arrested in Myanmar after his TikTok video predicting earthquake sparks panic)

Disputing the police report

Following the tragic accident, the Louisiana State Police issued a statement, stating that Preston was improperly restrained in his car seat, while the two front-seat passengers were wearing seatbelts. However, Preston’s grandfather, Glen Norris, has disputed this claim. Speaking to Nola.com from Lakeview Hospital, where Katelynn and Jaelan are recovering, Norris explained that the child was properly secured in his car seat.

“The driver and front passenger, who were both properly restrained, sustained serious injuries and were transported to a local hospital. Preston, who was seated in the rear, but improperly restrained in a child safety seat, also sustained serious injuries and was transported to the hospital, where he later succumbed to his injuries,” the Louisiana State Police said in its statement on Facebook.

In a phone interview and on Facebook, Preston’s grandfather clarified that the family was on their way home from a doctor’s appointment when the accident occurred, and their daughter Paisley was not in the vehicle at the time.

He said that Preston was properly restrained, disputing the police report.

A heartbreaking farewell

Preston’s family shared the devastating news with their followers on social media, where they had previously documented their everyday life. In an emotional video posted on Katelynn Ordone’s account, described as “Just an Ordone-ary Family,” two of their loved ones expressed the depth of their grief.

“This is the hardest post we could possibly make, finding words is still so hard,” the message began. “We hope that you can help our family in any way possible in this hard time. It still feels so unreal… All your prayers, love, and support is needed and appreciated. Thank you. #OkayBabyForever.”

They went on to explain the details of the accident, revealing that the family’s truck veered off the interstate and struck a tree. “Katelynn, Jaelan, and Preston were involved in an accident. Paisley was at school and was not in the vehicle,” they shared. “We don’t know all the details yet, but unfortunately Preston didn’t make it.”

Watch the clip here:

Injuries and recovery

The loved ones continued, describing the extent of Katelynn and Jaelan’s injuries. “Katelynn has multiple broken bones and a severe concussion. She walked for the first time today. Jaelan had to have emergency surgery on one of his legs, with rods and pins now in place. They’re both at different hospitals.”

They also reflected on Preston’s impact, saying, “Preston had made a huge impact on all of you guys. He made people smile and laugh. In heaven right now, if there’s mud, he’s probably jumping and dancing in it.”

(Also read: TikTok being sold to Elon Musk? MrBeast joins the bid: ‘Okay, fine, I’ll buy it’)

5

By Drew Parsley, Louisiana Tech Associate Director Strategic Communications; featured photo by Josh McDaniel 

 RUSTON — Louisiana Tech (26-16, 11-5 CUSA) evened the weekend series with a 10-3 win over the Dallas Baptist Patriots (29-13, 12-5 CUSA) on Saturday at the Love Shack.
 
Saturday’s win marked the third time this year the Bulldogs picked up back-to-back games scoring double-digit runs and improve to an 11-1 record when scoring at least 10.
 
The Bulldog defense proved to be effective early in the opening frame after allowing a leadoff walk. Following a pop out to second, DBU hit a fly ball deep to the left center gap where a dashing Zeb Ruddell made a catch running into the wall. The sophomore left fielder gathered himself and fired the ball to Michael Ballard, who beat the returning runner with a throw to Trey Hawsey at first for the 7-4-3 double play to end the inning.

Sebastian Mexico stepped up to the plate in the home half to lead off for Tech for the first time this year. The designated hitter took the first strike before belting a long line drive over the right field wall to give the ‘Dogs an early 1-0 advantage.

Tech and DBU were deadlocked for the second and third innings before the Patriots would take their first lead of the afternoon in the fourth. A walk and a double put runners on second and third before a two-run knock past a diving second baseman put DBU out front.
 
The ‘Dogs answered back with three runs in the bottom half, all coming with two outs. After a pair of swinging strikeouts started the frame, Colton Coates drew a walk followed by Cade Patterson ripping a liner straight to the DBU second baseman over 100 miles per hour. The ball hit the ground just short of the fielder and took a hop over his head into the outfield, allowing Coates to advance to third.
 
Garrison Berkley ripped a base hit to the shortstop for an RBI knock and to tie the game before Matt Houston drove in a run after the DBU shortstop misplayed a liner to his glove. The next at-bat, Will Safford gave the ‘Dogs a two-run advantage with a base hit through the right side on the first pitch he saw.
 
Tech and DBU exchanged runs in the fifth after the Patriots tightened the score to a one-run deficit with an RBI knock before the Bulldogs loaded the bases on back-to-back singles and a hit by pitch. Coates then drew a walk to score a run and give Tech back its two-run lead.
 
The game was blown open when the ‘Dogs doubled their score in the sixth inning with a five-spot. Safford and Mexico led off with walks to put two runners on before Safford swiped his 12th stolen base of the year to put runners on the corners with no outs. Ballard poked a base hit to right to score the Bulldog shortstop and keep a runner in scoring position.
 
Follwing DBU making a pitching change, Hawsey stepped up to the plate and swung at a high fastball before crushing a hanging breaking ball over 440 feet to right field and put the ‘Dogs up by six with no outs in the frame. Cade Patterson then provided the insurance with a solo shot to right center and give the ‘Dogs a 10-3 lead going into the final third of the game.

Luke Nichols finished out the game for Tech after entering for starter Brooks Roberson in the top of the sixth with one out. The senior southpaw dealt a very efficient final 3 2/3 of the game, allowing no runs on just two hits with a pair of strikeouts and the final five batters for DBU being retired in order.
 
Brooks Roberson improves to a 5-1 record on the year after tossing 5 1/3 innings, allowing three runs on five hits, five walks and four strikeouts.

Hawsey and Ruddell are now tied for the team lead in homers with seven apiece, with Hawsey also becoming the second Bulldog this year to homer in three-straight games (Sebastian Mexico – Apr. 2 vs. UL-Lafayette, Apr. 4 & 5 vs. FIU). Mexico drove in his team-leading 33rd RBI and also currently leads Tech with a .331 average.
 
The rubber game is set for 1 p.m. CT on Sunday, April 27 at the Love Shack.
 
Head Coach Lane Burroughs after Saturday’s win:
“What a response after last night. Tough loss, the way we lost. That was the challenge to the team today—come out and respond. This game isn’t fair, and life isn’t fair. I thought we competed our tails off last night and came up on the bad end of it. Credit to DBU, they’ve got a great ball club. We showed up to the ballpark today with energy and they were ready to play. That’s what your concern as a head coach is—after a game like last night, how is your team going to show up? I thought our guys were great today. Obviously, not only winning the ball game but winning it going away. We needed a great start. Their bullpen was depleted, our bullpen was depleted after last night. Brooks gave us a tremendous start. I thought the matchup with him against DBU would be good because of his changeup and his slider. They’re physical and big and they take big swings, they try to drive the ball out of the park, and they do a lot. So, I thought the match up was good and he gave us all he could. He had a couple of long inning layoffs—we were scoring runs so that’s a good thing. Luke Nichols came in and he was Luke Nichols of old. It was what we expect out of him, and he was fantastic. I thought Zeb Ruddell’s play in the first inning in left field—you never know when the game is going to hang into balance, and there you go. Their best hitter [at the plate] and Zeb makes a great play. If that ball is down, they score a run and he’s probably at third and they’re in business. A huge play—not only the catch but to double the guy off [at first] set the tone of the game. Then Mexico got us going with the leadoff homer, and obviously Hawsey got into another one and Patterson had a big one. Just a huge effort by our guys. I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention Matt Houston, he called a great game. He called most of the pitches today and he was outstanding. We set ourselves up to win a series tomorrow, a big series.”