A wary council hears city's pitch to help retain cops

A wary council hears city's pitch to beef up NOPD's ranks as budget hearings get underway

Police funding kicks off budget hearings: The city has held the first of several budget hearings, and first up is public safety. As Matt Sledge reports, the city council heard the administration's pitch Tuesday that hiring bonuses, pay raises and fully funded health insurance is necessary to stem the exodus of officers from the NOPD.

Problems at the juvenile jail: A new report from the inspector general finds that the man in charge of New Orleans’ juvenile jail for more than three years rarely showed up for work, and foisted his sickly dog on the facility shortly before he resigned. Matt Sledge has the details.

Church split: St. Timothy in Mandeville, one of the largest United Methodist Church congregations in Louisiana, has voted to leave the denomination as controversy over whether the church should ordain gay clergy and perform same-sex marriages roils nation's second-largest Protestant denomination. Sara Pagones has the story.

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