LAKE CHARLES, La. (KPLC) – A new law currently in effect in Louisiana now makes panhandling illegal on most streets across the state.

While panhandling along interstates in Louisiana has been illegal, ACT 678 includes all public rights of way such as public sidewalks and roads.

“The change from the new law to the old law is when you are coming off the interstate and people are there begging you for money, that is illegal now,” Calcasieu Parish Sheriff Stitch Guillory said.

Panhandling in these prohibited areas is punishable by an up to $200 fine. Offenders will first receive a warning, then citations, and could even be arrested if they continue to disobey the new law.

“We are trying not to tie up our jail space or tie up our court system with minor petty crimes like that, but we also don’t want our panhandling to get out of hand,” Guillory said.

Parish and city ordinances also make it illegal to panhandle on private property. Guillory and the Lake Charles Police Department say drivers are welcome to report panhandlers if they are causing a distraction along the road.

The intent of the law is for the safety of the panhandler and drivers.

“It is also better for the drivers now so now they are not distracted and worried about if this guy is trying to get in my car, or ‘Who is this guy, and why is he walking up to my window?’ Eventually, our goal is to match those people who need services with people who can provide those services,” Guilloy said.

Local services and organizations that can help those who may otherwise resort to panhandling include:

Abraham’s Tent

2424 Fruge St, Lake Charles, LA 70601

(337) 721-7211

Salvation Army Church

3020 Legion St, Lake Charles, LA 70615

(337) 721-8068

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Some Louisiana oil field workers say that they are being discriminated against while doing work on the West Coast.

if you know anyone who works in the oil field, you know that they work hard and they work very long shifts. In addition to that, many work very far away from home, and sadly some now say they are being discriminated against while in their oil field uniforms.

I recently spoke to someone who works in the oil field and he told me that he’s been working on the West Coast, in California, for a few months now because the pay and opportunities with a new company are very beneficial for him and his family.

However, when I asked what he thought about being on the West Coast to work, rather than in the Gulf of Mexico, he said the travel doesn’t bother him, but the people there are not welcoming.

I asked him to explain, and he told me that those who work in the oil industry are shunned by many of the locals, along the West Coast. He said that because so many in California are in favor of the “Green Mission,” which would all but eliminate oil-based vehicles, they look down upon those there to drill.

The man I spoke to told me that one day he and others were in a ride share when the driver noticed their oil field attire, and that is when the driver of an all-electric vehicle began to chastise them for destroying the environment.

I asked how the conversation ended and the oil field worker told me that after he explained to the driver that about 99% of what he owned is petroleum-based, the driver had a bit of a different outlook on them.

Then, the same oil field worker told me that while in California for work, they could not enter a restaurant with their work attire. He explained some restaurants will not serve those who are there to drill off the West Coast.

Yes, if you are seen in certain restaurants in California with oil field clothing, you will not be waited on and will be ignored by those who work there.

Sadly, some men and women who leave their homes to make a living elsewhere are being discriminated against and it’s all because of what they do to support themselves and their family.

It became quite clear to me after my conversation with this oil field worker that some in California have put their feelings toward the environment ahead of their hospitality to others.

So, the next time you see someone who works in the oil field, thank them and be nice to them, after all, they too are just trying to make a living.

A dead body was found on Sunday morning (August 11) in the Audubon Park Lagoon in New Orleans, Louisiana.

According to New Orleans-based Fox 8 television, their reporters observed authorities retrieving the body of a man wearing a black t-shirt who was facing down in the water.

Melissa Lee, a spokesperson for the Audubon Nature Institute, which operates the park, said she was contacted about the death at around 8:30 am on Sunday by park staff.

Around 10:00 am, New Orleans police and New Orleans firefighters were working at the scene near the jogging trail at Perrier Street and Exposition Boulevard. The scene was cleared by 10:45 am.

Authorities have not released the man’s identity or age, nor have they said if identification was found on the body.

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“Currently, this incident is being investigated as an Unclassified Death. If there are any changes to this ongoing investigation, we or the coroner’s office will let you know,” NOPD PIO James Roberson told WWL Louisiana in an email.

This is a developing story and we will update when new information is released by authorities.

Sadly, nearly eight years ago, a woman’s body was pulled from the lagoon, on October 10, 2016.

Initially listed as an “unclassified death” by police, that woman was later identified as 53-year-old Sheila Freedman of Massachusetts.

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