Former EBR district attorney Ossie Brown dies

Ossie Brown, who served as East Baton Rouge Parish District attorney for 12 years, died this morning. He was 82. Brown, who was raised in Baker, served as district attorney from 1972-84. After serving in the Navy during World War II, Brown earned his law degree from LSU and began working as a criminal defense attorney. While he was district attorney, Brown focused on child abuse and drug prevention programs. Brown left office in 1984 after losing a re-election bid to Bryan Bush and opened his own law practice downtown. He retired from the active practice of law in 2000. Funeral arrangements for Brown are pending, but the services will be held at Florida Boulevard Baptist Church, where he and his family were longtime members.

LSU researcher says Gustav’s effect on B.R. could be messy

A direct hit or near hit on Baton Rouge from a powerful Hurricane Gustav would not be catastrophic, though it would be a mess, says Dane Dartez, a research associate with the LSU Hurricane Center. The Capital Region, being more than 60 miles from the coast, doesn't have to worry about a storm surge, though the Mississippi River would rise because of pressure on the river from the south, while homes in low-lying areas would flood from heavy rainfall. Dartez particularly cites development along the low-elevation Maurepas Swamp region in Ascension Parish as being vulnerable to flooding. The likely scenario for the Baton Rouge region could be similar to the drenching Tropical Storm Allison delivered in 2001, but with stronger, damaging winds. Expect downed trees and power lines, and the inconvenience of being without power, possibly for several days, if Gustav strikes the Capital Region.—Steve Clark

In other Gustav news:

—Gov. Bobby Jindal has sent a letter to President Bush formally requesting a pre-landfall federal disaster declaration in advance of Gustav's possible impact on the state. The letter details what steps state officials are taking in advance of the storm, for details, click here.

—Tropical Storm Gustav surged toward renewed hurricane force today as it drove toward Jamaica. At 10 a.m., Gustav—which caused flooding that killed 23 in Haiti and the Dominican Republic, was 45 miles east of Kingston, Jamaica, moving west near 5 mph, according to the National Hurricane Center in Miami. Maximum sustained winds were near 70 mph.

—Computer models are not in agreement as to Gustav’s eventual landfall. At 10 a.m., the National Hurricane Center’s five-day forecast track had Gustav making landfall in south Louisiana between Houma and New Iberia about 8 a.m. Tuesday. Other computer models indicate a potential landfall near Dauphin Island, Ala., the mouth of the Mississippi River and the Louisiana-Mississippi state line and toward the middle and upper Texas coasts.

—LSU officials are meeting this afternoon with the Louisiana State Police to discuss how traffic contraflow could affect the Tigers’ football season opener Saturday afternoon against Appalachian State, Louisiana Gannett News reports. A contraflow order would shut down Interstate 10 from New Orleans to Baton Rouge; one could come as soon as Saturday. "It certainly would make it very difficult to have contraflow and a football game," Col. Mike Edmondson of the Louisiana State Police told the news service. To read the story, click here.

Fluhr leaving DDD; CPEX’s Goodson named replacement

Downtown Development District Assistant Executive Director Jeff Fluhr is leaving the DDD after Sept. 9 to become president of the Wichita (Kan.) Downtown Development Corporation. Fluhr had been at the DDD for 16 years. Davis Rhorer, DDD executive director, called Fluhr his "right-hand man" and "a close, personal friend." “Jeff’s knowledge, passion and enthusiasm have made him a tremendous asset to this organization," Rhorer says. Mark Goodson, a community planner at the Center for Planning Excellence, will take over as assistant executive director. At CPEX, Goodson has overseen the strategic plan for Old South Baton Rouge and has served as lead consultant to the new East Baton Rouge Redevelopment Authority.

B.R. awarded franchise as USFL plans 2010 return

Baton Rouge is one of 12 cities that will be home to a revived United States Football League team when the league returns in February 2010 after a 25-year hiatus. The yet-unnamed Baton Rouge team will play its games in BREC’s Memorial Stadium. BREC officials say nothing has been confirmed, but the organization is talking with USFL officials about the stadium.

USFL Chairman/CEO Michael Dwyer says the league wanted to put a team in Louisiana because of David Dixon, a New Orleans native who founded the league in 1982. The Boston Breakers relocated to New Orleans for the 1984 season, but moved to Portland, Ore., after just one year. "We really want to help in the rebuilding process," says Dwyer, who adds that the league wants to play its first game the Saturday before Mardi Gras.

The USFL played spring football for three seasons from 1983-85 and helped launch the careers of many pro stars, including former Saints Bobby Hebert, Sam Mills and Jim Mora. Dwyer says the USFL is "three to seven" weeks away from announcing who will own the Baton Rouge team, but says it looks like a well-known New Orleans businessman will head the team. "This is somebody, when we announce his name, you'll say 'OK, you got him,’" Dwyer says. Plans are also in the works to allow fans to buy 30% of the team in order to alleviate financial stresses. Other cities that will field USFL teams include Los Angeles, Las Vegas, San Jose, Calif., and Orlando, Fla.—Timothy Boone

Publisher: You want something to whine about, move to Swaziland

Many "regular Americans" were scheduled to speak at this week's Democratic National Convention in Denver, talking about how much they are struggling under the Bush Administration. But Business Report Publisher Rolfe McCollister says we should thank God every day we live in America instead of whining to politicians and the media. "So when you hear these ‘regular Americans’ whine at the Democratic convention, ask them if they would like to move to Swaziland. Then they would have something to whine about," he says. Also: Louisiana gets in the video game business and Olympics reflect life. Read the column here. Send comments to editors@businessreport.com.

Florida Medicaid experiment sees HMO defections

Florida's experiment with Medicaid reform appears to be running into trouble. The four biggest HMOs participating in the experiment, which involves funneling Medicaid recipients into private health plans, have announced they're dropping out of the program effective Dec. 1. The development affects Broward County, where Fort Lauderdale is located, and possibly a handful of other counties where Medicaid reform is being tried. The health plans that are dropping out provide coverage for nearly two-thirds of the enrollees in Medicaid reform pilot projects. The enrollees presumably will be absorbed by more than a dozen other HMOs still participating in the pilot. To read a Business Report article on Florida’s connection to Louisiana’s pending Medicaid reform experiment, click here.—Steve Clark

Perrilloux makes Jacksonville State debut tonight

Former LSU quarterback Ryan Perrilloux says he was stopped by police three times during his first two weeks at Jacksonville (Ala.) State. “I felt like I was being watched,” Perrilloux says in an interview with ESPN.com columnist Mark Schlabach. After he was stopped for the third time, Perrilloux was ordered to Coach Jack Crowe’s office and relinquished the keys to his Ford Excursion. His stepfather flew in from California, and Perrilloux traded his Ford for a Dodge Charger—with Alabama plates. "I'm from Alabama now. I'm not from Louisiana anymore,” says Perrilloux, a LaPlace native. Perrilloux, who was the heir apparent at quarterback this season for LSU before being dismissed by Tigers Coach Les Miles on May 2 after a series of off-field transgressions, appears on a much smaller stage tonight, making his Jacksonville State debut against Georgia Tech in Atlanta. To read Schlabach’s column, click here.

Poll: Most don't plan on watching Obama speech

Two-thirds of respondents to a Daily Report survey say they don't plan on watching U.S. Sen. Barack Obama's acceptance speech tonight. Twenty-eight percent say they will watch the Illinois senator accept the Democratic presidential nomination with a speech at Denver's Invesco Field. Six percent say they don't know if they will watch the speech or not. More than 1,500 people participated in the survey.

Today's question: Who will U.S. Sen. John McCain pick as his vice president?

News roundup: McCain to announce VP pick Friday morning … Cheerleading a dangerous activity, report says … LSU professor receives exposure because of Oprah

Is Jindal sitting by the phone? U.S. Sen. John McCain, the presumptive Republican presidential nominee, is scheduled to reveal his vice-presidential choice at 10 a.m. Friday, The New York Times reports. Speculation in recent days has centered around three men: former Gov. Mitt Romney of Massachusetts, Gov. Tim Pawlenty of Minnesota and U.S. Sen. Joe Lieberman of Connecticut. While the newspaper reports McCain has made his choice, the Arizona senator told a Pittsburgh radio station that he has yet to make a decision. Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal, who had previously been linked to the ticket as vice president, has previously stated he will remain governor. … From pom-poms to splints: Over the past 25 years, cheerleading has accounted for two-thirds of all catastrophic sports injuries experienced by young women in high school and college, according to a report from the University of North Carolina. The school's National Center for Catastrophic Sports Injury Research also found that 67 high school and 39 college cheerleaders suffered fatal, disabling or serious injuries from 1982-2007. The director of the center blamed the increase in injuries to the "gymnastic-type stunts" that cheerleaders do, warning that these activities must be taught by competent coaches. … Attention from the Queen of All Media: Rodger Kamenetz, the founding director of LSU's MFA program in creative writing, is being featured on Oprah Winfrey's satellite radio channel and Web site. Kamenetz, a certified dream therapist, recently wrote a book entitled The History of Last Night's Dream. Click here for an interview with Kamenetz.