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The Mangham High School Dragons are the state Class 1A baseball champions.

The Dragons won the honor by defeating Central Catholic 4-2 Saturday, making Mangham the first public school to win the state Class A championship since the Oak Grove Tigers took home the trophy in 2001. It was the sixth time in the past 10 years the Dragons have been to the state playoffs, but their first championship.

Two Rayville men were convicted of kidnapping and torture last week in Fifth District Court.

Four others are still awaiting trial in connection with “an unusually vicious crime,” Fifth District Attorney Mack Lancaster said.

The crime occurred Feb. 26-27 2012 when a series of fights escalated into kidnapping and torture.

Richland Parish Sheriff Lee Harrell announced that Keith Calvin Crnkovic and Dylan L. Jackson, both of Richland Parish, have been named as recipients of an academic scholarship from the Louisiana Sheriff’s Scholarship Program and Richland Parish Sheriff’s Department for 2012-13.

Crnkovic resides in Delhi and plans to attend Louisiana Tech University and pursue Engineering as a field of study. He is the son of the late Steven Crnkovic and Cheryl Walker.

Girls and Boys State delegates will distribute Veterans Poppies May 23-28 in Richland Parish.

The American Legion Auxiliary elected to have the Girls State and Boys State delegates begin distributing poppies on May 23 to avoid a conflict with the Memorial Day Holiday.

“This is due to many businesses closing on either Friday or Monday in observance of Memorial Day,” newly elected Auxiliary president Francine Evans said. “This is the second year it will be observed on Thursday for poppy distribution for our veterans.”

The 2013 Richland Parish Employer Forum will be held from 7:30 to 9 a.m. May 29 at the Rayville Civic Center.

The event is hosted by Northeast Louisiana Workforce Centers, Workforce Investment Boards of Region 8 and the Louisiana Workforce Commission.

The forum will bring together local elected officials, local government leaders, as well as members of the business community to discuss the variety of workforce development services offered in Richland Parish.

The Richland Parish Police Jury is giving back a $600 a month pay raise and keeping its parish manager – at least for now.

Assistant District Attorney Steve Dean said he would have to research the question of whether or not parish officials were allowed to cut their own salaries.

“There are different laws dealing with different types of political positions,” Dean said.

Jurors had voted at the end of 2012 to give themselves the raise. However, mounting pressure from citizens seemed to sour many on the idea.