Louisiana

A 7-year-old boy with cerebral palsy and other disabilities including not being able to speak was decapitated, and his biological father has confessed to the killing, police in Thibodaux, Louisiana, said Monday.

Since Hurricane Katrina, Ruby Melton's 9th Ward enclave has welcomed a new species of neighbor: clucking, crowing, prancing chickens that dart across streets and nest in the trees.

The B in BP may no longer mean British, but tell that to New Orleans. The city is using a $5m cheque from the company to launch what might be seen as only a slightly tongue-in-cheek anti-British campaign, aimed at luring tourists who might be discouraged by the approaching oil spill.

Real estate sales in Louisiana are expected to get a boost this year from the federal first-time homebuyers credit and, quite possibly, the Saints' Super Bowl win, according to the Louisiana Realtors group.

A hero of conservatives who bruised the liberal group ACORN by posing as a pimp on hidden camera is now accused in an attempt to tamper with phone lines at Democratic U.S. Sen. Mary Landrieu's office inside a federal building.