The Acadiana Advocate 04-30-2025 by The Advocate

Holy Rosary site eyed for Lafayette library

FBI pushes back on reports of Iraq arrest

Agency continues to believe Bourbon Street attacker acted alone

BY SAM KARLIN and MISSY WILKINSON Staff writers

The FBI said Tuesday that it continues to believe that the man who rammed a truck into revelers on Bourbon Street on New Year’s Day acted alone, despite new reports that Iraqi ofﬁcials arrested an alleged ISIS member overseas for allegedly inciting the attack.

“The FBI’s investigation into the New Year’s Day terrorist attack in New Orleans remains active and ongoing,” the agency said in a statement. “While we continue to work with our law enforcement partners, both in the U.S. and internationally, based on the information to date, we continue to believe that Shamsud Din-Jabbar acted alone in carrying out the attack on Bourbon Street.” Al Arabiya News, a Saudi state-owned international Arabic news channel, reported over the weekend that Iraqi authorities arrested a suspect “for inciting the January 2025 truck attack in the United States.” They cited Iraq’s Supreme Judicial Council as the source of the information about the arrest, and said it came after a request from Washington to help with the investigation.

ä See ATTACKER, page 4A

BY CLAIRE TAYLOR Staff writer

The proposed Northeast Regional Library in Lafayette could be built at a different site.

Lafayette Parish Mayor-President Monique Boulet announced Tuesday the parish signed a letter of intent last week and is drawing up a lease with Society of the Holy Family, a nonproﬁt religious organization based in New Orleans which owns the site of the former historic Black girls’ school, Holy Rosary Institute.

The deal, which still needs approval by the Lafayette Parish Council, would include leasing about 4 acres near the corner of Louisiana Avenue and Carmel Drive for $1 a year for 99 years on which to build the library.

The move comes about three years after the library board rejected a proposal to lease 5 acres of land from Holy Rosary Redevelopment for $1 a year for 30 years because the request for proposals

BY TIMOTHY BOONE Business editor

Woodside Energy has made a ﬁnal investment decision to

STAFF PHOTOS By LESLIE WESTBROOK

U.S. AG meets with scientists studying drugs

WASHINGTON A key player in the U.S. government’s battle to combat the ﬂow of deadly fentanyl is a team at a little-known research lab in northern Virginia that’s working to analyze seized narcotics and gather intelligence to find ways to stop the supply

Attorney General Pam Bondi traveled to the Drug Enforcement Administration lab on Tuesday to meet with chemists who are tasked with identifying the ever-evolving tactics employed by cartels to manufacture drugs ﬂowing across the southern border

“We are trying to reverse engineer what the cartels are doing at any given time,” senior DEA research chemist David Guthrie told Bondi. “Whenever something new shows up, it’s our job to ﬁgure out how that got in there Did they change the recipe? Are they using a new compound?”

Bondi donned a blue DEA lab coat as she toured the facility in an effort to put a spotlight on a key Trump administration priority to combat the illicit ﬂow of fentanyl that’s blamed for tens of thousands of overdose deaths every year

The chemists showed Bondi the ease with which cartels are able to produce fentanyl, and detailed how their team is working to identify new compounds to help law enforcement keep illicit drugs off the street.

“That’s how easy it is to kill Americans,” Bondi said after watching blue pills shoot out of a pill press seized by investigators that’s capable of producing 15,000 pills an hour

China: 22 killed, 3 injured in restaurant fire TAIPEI, Taiwan Chinese authorities say 22 people have been killed and 3 injured in a ﬁre at restaurant in the northern city of Liaoyang.

No word was given on the cause of the ﬁre, which broke out shortly after noon, but images from the scene showed huge ﬂames spurting from the windows and doors of the twoor three-story building State broadcaster CCTV said the restaurant’s manager had been placed in police custody as part of the investigation.

A slightly longer report released several hours later through the provincial radio and television bureau said the ﬁre had been extinguished and the search for survivors ended. As is usual in China, no additional information was given about the possible cause of the ﬁre. However, a long list of responding regional politicians from the governor down — was provided, along with a pledge to get to the bottom of the disaster and severely punish those responsible.

A total of 22 firetrucks and 85 firefighters were dispatched to put out the flames, the reports said. Industrial accidents occur frequently in China, usually due to staff ignoring safety features due to a lack of training or pressure from their superiors.

Autopsy: Hackman’s wife died of hantavirus

SANTA FE, N.M. Betsy Arakawa, the concert pianist who was married to actor Gene Hackman, died from hantavirus pulmonary syndrome, according to an autopsy report released Tuesday that said that her lungs were heavy and congested.

Arakawa, 65 had ﬂuid accumulation in her chest and mild hardening of the vessels that supplied blood to the heart and body, according to the autopsy reports Hantavirus is a rare but potentially fatal disease spread by infected rodent droppings.

Arakawa tested negative for COVID-19 and the flu and showed no signs of trauma, the autopsy report said. Her carbon monoxide levels were within normal range, and she tested positive for caffeine and negative for alcohol and intoxicating drugs.

Arakawa’s autopsy and toxicology reports were released two days after similar documents on Hackman’s death were made public, confirming his main cause of death was heart disease.

Canada’s Liberals celebrate victory

BY ROB GILLIES Associated Press

TORONTO As Canada’s Liberals celebrated election victory in a stunning turn of fortune, vote counting resumed Tuesday to determine whether Prime Minister Mark Carney’s party gains an outright majority or needs help in Parliament from a smaller party Carney’s rival, populist Conservative leader Pierre Poilievre, was in the lead until U.S. President Donald Trump took aim at Canada with a trade war and threats to annex it as the 51st state. Poilievre not only lost his bid for prime minister Monday but was voted out of the Parliament seat that he held for 20 years.

That capped a swift decline in fortunes for the firebrand Poilievre, who a few months ago appeared to be a shoo-in to become Canada’s next prime minister and shepherd the Conservatives back into power for the ﬁrst time in a decade.

Poilievre, a career politician, campaigned with Trump-like bravado, taking a page from the “America First” president by adopting the slogan “Canada First.” But his similarities to Trump may have ultimately cost him and his party

The Liberals were projected to win more of Parliament’s 343 seats than the Conservatives It was not immediately clear if they would win an outright majority — at least 172 seats — or would need to rely on a smaller party to pass legislation.

The vote-counting agency Elections Canada said the counting of special ballots cast by voters who are away from their districts during the election — has resumed. When the counting was paused early Tuesday, the Liberals were leading or elected in 168 seats, four short of a ma-

jority Elections Canada estimated that uncounted votes could affect the result in about a dozen districts.

In a victory speech, Carney stressed unity in the face of Washington’s threats. He said the mutually beneﬁcial relationship Canada and the U.S. had shared since World War II was gone.

“We are over the shock of the American betrayal, but we should never forget the lessons,” he said.

“As I’ve been warning for months, America wants our land, our resources, our water, our country,” Carney added. “These are not idle threats President Trump is trying to break us so America can own us. That will never ever happen. But we also must recognize the reality that our world has fundamentally changed.”

In a statement issued Tuesday White House spokesperson Anna Kelly said the Canadian election “does not affect President Trump’s plan to make Canada America’s cherished 51st state.”

Poilievre hoped to make the election a referendum on former Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, whose popularity declined toward the end of his decade in power as food and housing prices rose

But Trump attacked, Trudeau resigned and Carney, a two-time central banker, became the Liberal Party’s leader and prime minister

In a concession speech before the race call on his own seat, Poilievre vowed to keep ﬁghting for Canadians.

“We are cognizant of the fact that we didn’t get over the finish line yet,” Poilievre said. “We know that change is needed, but change is hard to come by It takes time. It takes work. And that’s why we have to learn the lessons of tonight.”

At least 10 dead in Syria after

sectarian clashes in Damascus

BY OMAR SANADIKI Associated Press

DAMASCUS, Syria — At least 10 people were killed on Tuesday after clashes broke out in a suburb of the Syrian capital between local gunmen belonging to the minority Druze sect and pro-government ﬁghters, a war monitor and an activist group said Syrian Druze gunmen have clashed in recent weeks with government security forces and progovernment gunmen in the southern Damascus suburb of Jaramana.

Late Tuesday, government representatives and Jaramana dignitaries reached an agreement to end the ﬁghting, compensate victims’ families and work on bringing perpetrators to justice, according to a copy of the deal circulated in Jaramana and seen by The Associated Press.

It was not immediately clear if the truce will hold for a long time as similar deals in the past collapsed afterward.

The latest round of ﬁghting broke out around midnight Monday after an audio clip circulated on social media of a man criticizing Islam’s Prophet Muhammad.

The audio was attributed to a Druze cleric. But cleric Marwan Kiwan said in a video posted on social media that he was not responsible for the au-

Hegseth boasts about ending ‘woke’ program on women, security

BY TARA COPP and FARNOUSH AMIRI Associated Press

WASHINGTON Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth boasted on social media Tuesday that he had dismantled a program supporting women on security teams — and may not have realized the program he tried to break was not a “woke” Biden-era initiative but instead a celebrated program signed into law by his boss, President Donald Trump.

Hegseth in a post on X called the “Women, Peace & Security” program at the Department of Defense “a UNITED NATIONS program pushed by feminists and left-wing activists. Politicians fawn over it; troops HATE it.”

It was, in fact, bipartisan legislation that Trump signed into law in 2017 that recognized the role women have in achieving security objectives, especially in situations overseas where their male counterparts may not for cultural reasons be able to question or would not for religious reasons have direct access to women Trump’s own Cabinet ofﬁcials supported the program when it was working its way through the legislative process.

This month, Gen. Dan Caine, the new Joint Chiefs Chairman, told Congress that the program had helped troops in battle.

“When we would go out into the ﬁeld after concluding an assault, we would have female members who would speak with those women and children who were on the objective and they would help us to understand the human terrain in a new and novel way,” Caine said during his April conﬁrmation hearing. Trump met and became endeared to Caine when he was serving in Iraq, which was part of the reason Trump nominated him to the chairmanship.

Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, who at the time represented South Dakota in the House, wrote the House version

of the 2017 Women, Peace and Security Act alongside Democratic Rep. Jan Schakowsky of Illinois. And as recently as this month, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who as a senator cosponsored the Senate version of the bill, said that it was “the ﬁrst law passed by any country in the world focused on protecting women and promoting their participation in society.”

That proposal stemmed from a U.N. resolution unanimously endorsed by the Security Council, the most powerful U.N. body, in October 2000, aimed at including women in peacebuilding efforts, as women and girls have historically borne the brunt of global conﬂict.

“It’s no secret that women remain, largely on the periphery of formal peace processes and decision making, which is not good for the cause of peace,” U.N. spokesperson Stephane Dujarric said in response to Hegseth’s comments Tuesday Dujarric added that “one of the real-life impacts of the Women Peace and Security program has been the increasing number of women peacekeepers who serve in U.N. missions, which has had a very clear, measurable and positive impact on the protection of civilians in conflict zones.” Hegseth’s tweet drew immediate fire from Senate Democrats who are continuing to question Hegseth’s qualifications for the job amid the continuing fallout from his use of the commercial app Signal to share sensitive military operations on an unsecured channel with other officials, his wife and brother “Hegseth has absolutely no idea what he’s doing,” said New Hampshire Democrat Sen. Jeanne Shaheen. “That tweet contains some glaring inaccuracies that are far beneath the standard we should expect from the Department of Defense,” Democratic Sen. Tim Kaine of Virginia said as he read the tweet aloud during a Congressional hearing Tuesday

CustomerService: HELP@THEADVOCATE.COMor337-234-0800

News Tips /Stories: NEWSTIPS@THEADVOCATE.COM

Obituaries: 337-504-7804 •Mon-Fri9-5; Weekends 12-5

Advertising Sales: 337-234-0174• Mon-Fri8-5

Classiﬁed Advertising: 337-234-0174•Mon-Fri8-5

Subscribe: theadvocate.com/subscribe E-Edition: theadvocate.com/eedition

Archives: theadvocate.newsbank.com

dio, which angered many Sunni Muslims.

“I categorically deny that the audio was made by me,” Kiwan said. “I did not say that, and whoever made it is an evil man who wants to incite strife between components of the Syrian people.”

The Interior Ministry said in a statement it was investigating the audio clip, adding that its initial probe showed the cleric was not responsible. The ministry urged people to abide by the law and not to act in a way that undermines security

The Druze religious leadership in Jaramana condemned the audio but blasted the “unjustified armed attack” on the suburb. It urged the state to publicly clarify what hap-

pened.

“Why does this keep happening every now and then? It’s as if there’s no state or government in charge. They need to establish security checkpoints, especially in areas where there are tensions,” said Jaramana resident Abu Tarek Zaaour

The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said at least 10 people were killed, four of them attackers and six Jaramana residents The activist media collective Suwayda24 said 11 people were killed and 12 were wounded.

Rayan Maarouf, editorin-chief of Suwayda24, said gunmen were holding the attacker’s bodies and talks are on the way to hand them over

THE CANADIAN PRESS PHOTO By JUSTIN TANG

Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney arrives on stage at his campaign headquarters after the Liberal Party won the Canadian election in Ottawa on Tuesday.

ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO By OMAR SANADIKI

Druze boys holding their sect religious flags stand next to Druze gunmen, a day after clashes between members of the minority Druze sect and pro-government fighters left at least four people dead in the southern suburb of Jaramana, Damascus, Syria, on Tuesday.

LIBRARY

from page 1A

That property would be used for something else or sold if the Holy Rosary deal goes through, Boulet said at a news conference Tuesday Most of the decisions about whether and where to build the library in a socioeconomically largely Black area of the city have been made by the Lafayette Public Library Board of Control with concurrence from the Parish Council.

Boulet got involved in March after the library board indeﬁnitely delayed a decision on the size of the new library then voted to endorse the largest of three options at 20,500 square feet. Boulet told the board it is an advisory panel, but its approval is not needed to build the library That, she said, is when discussions were resurrected about building the library on the Holy Rosary property

The Holy Rosary property the

parish is looking at leasing is next to Holy Family Apartments on Louisiana Avenue The site, Boulet said, is within walking distance to Domingue Recreation Center, Clark Field, the Jessie Taylor Center and Dr Raphael Baranco Elementary School. Building a public library at the site will help to address poverty and education in the neighborhood, Boulet said The average household income in the area, she said, is $30,000.

history

“We’ve addressed obstacles and moved things out of the way, and we’ll continue to do it, as long as you keep investing in Louisiana,” he told Woodside officials during the event in the courtyard of the Pentagon Barracks in Baton Rouge. The development has expansion capacity that will allow it to produce 27.6 million tons of LNG annually Four LNG terminals are currently operating in Louisiana, and Venture Global is nearing a final investment decision on Calcasieu Pass 2, its second Cameron Parish facility Louisiana LNG has had a long history Houston-based Tellurian first discussed building the facility, which was then called Driftwood LNG, in 2016. In 2018, it won a controversial tax concession worth up to $2 billion over its first decade, which was then the largest industrial tax break in Louisiana’s

The project was approved by federal regulators during the first Trump Administration and received a long-term export license. But disruptions caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, a lack of ﬁnancing and lengthy equipment delivery timelines delayed construction

Woodside is an Australian company with operations across North and South America, Africa and Australia The company shipped its ﬁrst cargo of LNG from Australia to Japan in 1989. It acquired Driftwood LNG last year when it purchased Tellurian for $900 million. Earlier this month, it sold a 40% stake in Louisiana LNG to the infrastructure investment firm Stonespeak for $5.7 billion, a move that reduced the amount of capital it would have to come up with to complete the plant and made a “material step” toward the ﬁnal investment decision. Stonespeak’s contributions will be used to support 75% of the capital expenditures at the plant through 2026.

The former City-Parish Coun-

cil, led by then City-Parish council member Kenneth Boudreaux, set aside $8 million to build the library Library Director Danny Gillane said he expects to request another $7 million from the library’s fund balance be transferred to the capital budget for the library construction. Changing the site of the proposed library, he said, should not affect the construction timeline. Architectural design has not begun. Construction is expected to begin in the spring of 2026 with opening expected in late 2027. The Library Board hired 720 Design Consultants, of Dallas, to survey the community, conduct a town hall meeting and interview stakeholders about what they want the library to look like and what services they want in it. Boulet said Tuesday that the outcome of that work should ﬁt well with the Holy Rosary site.

Email Claire Taylor at ctaylor@ theadvocate.com.

Daniel Kalms executive vice president and international chief operating officer for Woodside, said global LNG demand has increased by 60% over the past decade and is expected to grow another 50% over the next 10 years.

About 500 people are already working at the Louisiana LNG site, Kalms said. Pilings have been driven in the ground, concrete has been poured and dirt has been moved.

“One of the advantages of this project is that a lot of early work has been done,” he said. “It’s perfectly poised to take off now with this ﬁnal investment decision.”

The project is a “game-changer” for Woodside that will position the company as a global LNG leader, CEO Meg O’Neill said in a statement. The location will allow the company to sell LNG to clients in Europe and Asia, which gives it options in case the Russia-Ukraine war ends and Russian natural gas is once again allowed to be sold in Europe, she told The Wall Street Journal.

Greg Upton, executive direc-

ATTACKER

Continued from page 1A

According to a news release from the National Center for International Judicial Cooperation of Iraq, The First Karkh Investigation Court investigated, identiﬁed and arrested the suspect in Iraq as a member of ISIS’s External Operations Ofﬁce.

The outlet reported that the unnamed suspect is “a member of the external operations ofﬁce of the Daesh terrorist organization” the Arabic acronym for the Islamic State group known ISIS. Authorities said the suspect will be prosecuted in Iraq under the country’s anti-terrorism laws.

News of the arrest overseas caught the FBI off guard, according to an internal bulletin obtained by The Times-Picayune | The Advocate. The Arabic news article about the arrest was not “distributed by anyone from the FBI New Orleans Division, nor was anyone made aware of that information,” the bulletin states.

Jabbar rammed a rented pickup down Bourbon Street in the early hours of New Year’s, killing 14 and injuring dozens before he was shot and killed by police.

Jabbar appeared to be radicalized by ISIS online publications, which for years have guided would-be lone wolf attackers on how to carry out mass casualty events. ISIS has increasingly

turned to English-language online publications to inspire such attacks since its caliphate was decimated.

About a week after the attack, ISIS touted the incident in its newsletter, saying it inspired the assailant through online propaganda. The group stopped short of claiming it directly coordinated with Jabbar, but instead emphasized its propaganda network that apparently inﬂuenced him.

Jabbar’s attack closely followed the terror group’s playbook, promoted in English language magazines and online content circulated globally One such magazine released an issue as recently as last September that made speciﬁc calls for lone-actor attacks. The group has speciﬁcally called for attacks using vehicles at large gatherings and celebrations.

Louisiana Attorney General Liz Murrill lauded the FBI on Tuesday for its continued work to “ensure we get answers and justice for the victims of this horriﬁc tragedy.” House Majority Leader Steve Scalise, R-Jefferson, said he would continue to pray for everyone impacted by the attack.

“There must be zero tolerance for terrorism in our country,” he said in a statement.

Staff writer Jonah Meadows contributed to this report.

tor of the LSU Center for Energy Studies, said the global demand for Gulf Coast LNG is being driven by the low price of natural gas in Louisiana and Texas, compared to the cost in Europe and Asia. LNG costs just under $3 per million British thermal units at the Henry Hub, which runs through Erath, but $11.68 at the main European transfer facility in the Netherlands and $11.90 at the East Asia transfer point, according to ﬁgures from the U.S. Energy Information Administration.

The Russian invasion of Ukraine jump-started some LNG projects that were going nowhere.

“Countries around the world are willing to pay a premium for longterm natural gas contracts,” Upton said.

Currently, 13% of the natural gas being produced in the U.S. is exported as LNG. Upton said there is no theoretical ceiling on how much supply could be exported, as long as customers are willing to pay the high costs of liquiﬁcation and shipping.

“That shows how much the glob-

al market values that natural gas,” he said.

Louisiana Bucket Brigade SWLA Program Coordinator Lori Cooke was less enthusiastic about Louisiana LNG.

“There (are) so many (LNG facilities) trying to get in on the ground ﬂoor, but they’re already too late,” Cooke said. “There’s so many of them, and they’re frantically trying to start shipping LNG, so they can, you know, kind of capitalize on this boom, but there’s already a glut.”

Cooke mentioned that the new facility will also bring problems with erosion and dredging, as well as continued pollution to the area.

“We’ve sacriﬁced enough of our health and our family’s health and our ancestors’ health with those dangerous chemicals that are going into the air and (this new facility) is just going to add to that,” Cooke said.

Staff writer Courtney Pedersen contributed to this report. Email Timothy Boone at tboone@ theadvocate.com.

STAFF PHOTO By LESLIE WESTBROOK

State Sen. Gerald Boudreaux, from left; Dustin Cravins, president of the Holy Rosary Redevelopment Board; and Lafayette Parish Mayor-President Monique Boulet talk Tuesday following a news conference at City Hall in Lafayette. Officials announced a plan to build the Northeast Regional branch of the Lafayette Public Library on Louisiana Avenue near the Holy Rosary Institute building

STAFF FILE PHOTO By SCOTT THRELKELD

Clergy members and others pray with the family of LaTasha Polk on Jan. 4 at Bourbon and Canal streets in New Orleans during a memorial for 14 people killed in a terror attack on New year’s Day.

Proposed kratom banadvancestoSenate

BY MEGHAN FRIEDMANN Staff writer

Akratom ban is one step closer to becoming areality in Louisiana after the Senate’sJudiciary CCommittee approved abilltocriminalize the substance on Tuesday Senate Bill 154 by state Sen. Jay Morris, R-West Monroe, who chairs that committee, now advances to the full Senate for consideration. If it passes theSenate, it would still need House approval beforeheadingtoGov.Jeff Landry’sdesk.

But SB154 has competition.

In the House, House Bill 253 by state Rep. Chad Boyer,RBreaux Bridge, seeks to regulate kratom.

The two different sides those who wouldban kratom versus those who wouldregulate it —pleaded their cases during Tuesday’s committee hearing on SB154.

Supporters of the ban, including some law enforcement and medical doctors, described the herbal substance as athreattopublic safety.Family members testiﬁedabout howtheir loved ones struggled withkratom addiction.

Meanwhile, some scientists testified that the substance has too much promise to treat opioid addiction to be banned outright. Kratomusers said theproducts helped them self-treat chronic pain and mental illness, and that it changed lives.

Still, they supported regulation, arguing that the true abuse potential lies in synthetic products derived from

kratom, and that those products are driving public health problems andought to be takenoff store shelves.Those products containfar higher levels of the compound 7-hydroxymitragynine than those found in pure, driedkratom leaf.

Kratom comes from atree native to southeastAsia, where its leaves have been used for medicinal purposes for hundreds of years. Still,in some southeastAsian countries, kratom use is illegal At low dosages, kratom typically acts as astimulant; at higher ones, it can have opioid-like effects. Kratom is not approved for medical use by the U.S. Food &Drug Administration, which warns againstthe use of kratom as amedical treatment because it has not yet evaluated its safety and effectiveness.

Morris amended hisbillto lessen fines for kratom possession andcap the fine for kratom distribution.Ifthe bill passes, possession of less than 20 grams of kratom wouldcarrya $100 fine. Those in possession of more than20grams would face up to 6months in aparish jail or afine of up to $1,000. Those convicted of distributing kratom would face between 1and 5years in prison or afine of up to $50,000.

‘Untolddamage’

In hisopening remarks, Morris, sponsor of the bill to ban kratom,said the substance has caused “untold damage to families andindividuals.”

He paintedthe ﬁght over theban as afight between awealthy kratom industry andthose whosimplywish to protect public health.

Efforts to ban kratom in other states are “being met with aggressive lobbying andlotsofmoney because now there’s alot of money in this project,probably in the billions,” Morris said.

Following those remarks, Pete Croughan, deputy secretary of theLouisiana DepartmentofHealth,testiﬁedtothe abusepotential of kratom products. Amedical doctor whotreats substance use disorder at the Acadiana Area Human Services District, Croughansaidhesees “more patientswithkratom addiction thanwith crack addiction.”

Many of thosepatients were in recovery from opioid addiction when they encounteredkratom anditset them back, he said.

“The quote Ihear over and over again is,‘Ican’tbelieve this is legal,’”Croughansaid in an interview following the committeemeeting.

Still, he acknowledged that his patientsare all using some type of synthetic kratom products; none areusing only pureleaf products, he said.

Also during thecommittee hearing, two parentstestified abouthow kratomhad harmed their children.

Melanie Jonessaid her son, 29, became addicted to kratom after he useditto try to self-treat anxiety and depression. He has been to rehab11times, she said.

“Hehas lost multiple jobs because he could not maintain his focus or manage his symptoms,”she said. “Kratomhas stolenyearsofmy son’slife.”

Throughtears,David Lubrano told of howhis son, DavidLubrano Jr., also struggled with kratom addiction.

“Withdrawal from this drug is horrible, so horrible that rather thansufferthe effectsofwithdrawing from thisdrug, ourson chose to end his life,” Lubrano said.

‘A lifeline’

Other attendees begged senators not to pass akratom banbecause,theysaid, the substance can change lives for good.

Oneman told senatorskratom hadsuccessfully treated his depression; another,that he used kratom to get off suboxone, amedicaltreatment for opioid dependency

In an interview, Wednesday ForestBear,who also testiﬁed before the committee, said she suffers from Scheuermann’sdisease, aspinal disorderthat“causes excruciating pain.”

But kratom saved her life, she said: Before she began using it,she couldn’tget outof bedinthe morning; now, she barelyneeds her wheelchair.

Jack Henningfield, vice president for research and health policy at Pinney Associates, apharmaceutical consulting ﬁrm, and an adjunct professor at Johns Hopkins University,called kratom “a lifeline away from opioids for alot of people.”

Kirsten Smith, an assistant professor of psychiatryand behavioralsciences at Johns Hopkins University,said she is conducting twoclinical trials where subjects take kratom andhas yettosee an adverse event.

Still others argued that banning kratom will drive it underground andcreate ablack market.

Mac Haddow,senior fellow on Public Policy with the American Kratom Association, which opposes the ban, blamed“adulterated”kratom products —orsynthetic products with high levels of 7-hydroxymitragynine —asthe “bad actors” that threatened public health.

“Wewant strict regulations on kratom to avoid these bad actors being in the marketplace.”

Boyer’sbill, HB253, takes aim at such products. It also requires kratom products to be registered with the Louisiana Department of Health and sets strictlabeling standards.

HB253 must win the approval of the House Appropriations Committee before thefull House can vote on it

BY WILL WEISSERT and JOEY CAPPELLETTI Associated Press

WARREN, Mich. President

Donald Trump is holding a rallyinMichiganonTuesday to mark the ﬁrst 100 days of hissecond term, staging his largestpoliticalevent since returning to the White House in astate that has been especially rocked by his steep trade tariffs and combative attitudetoward Canada.

Even before he left Washington, the White House announced that it planned to ease auto tariffs, amove that could be especially resonate in astate that is home to severalmajor automakers.

Trump is making an afternoon visit to SelfridgeAir NationalGuard Base alongside Democratic Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer. He’sgiving aspeech to thousandsofsupportersat Macomb Community College, north of Detroit, allowing him to revel in leading a sprint to upend government and social, political and foreign policy norms. His Republican administration’sstrict immigration polices have sent arrests for illegal crossings along the U.S.-Mexico border plummet-

ing, and government-slashing efforts led by billionaire adviser Elon Musk have shaken Washington to its core. Its protectionist import taxes imposed on America’strade partners have also sought to reorder aglobal economy thatthe U.S. built in the decades after World WarII.

Trump hasalso championed sweepingexpansionism, refusing to rule out military intervention inGreenland and Panama, suggesting that American developerscould help convertthe war-torn GazaStrip into aRiviera-like resort and even suggesting annexation of Canada.

“I run thecountryand the world,” Trump told TheAtlantic magazine in an interview.Hetold Time of hisﬁrst 100 days, “I think that what I’m doing is exactly what I’ve campaigned on.”

Butonly about 4in10Americans approve of howTrump is handling the presidency, andhis ratings on the economy and tradeare lower than that. Additionally,46% of U.S. adultsapproveofTrump’simmigrationpolicies, with about half ofAmericans saying he has “gone too far” when it comes to deportingimmigrantslivinginthe country illegally

Just33% of Americans meanwhile, have afavorable view of Musk, theTesla CEO and world’srichest person, and about half believe the administration has gone too far in working to pare back the government workforce.

“The bottomline for the ﬁrst hundred days is, lotsof damagebeingdone to the fundamentalsofour government,” said Max Stier,founding president and CEO of the Partnership for Public Service, anonproﬁt dedicated to better government.

Michigan was oneofthe battleground states Trump ﬂippedfrom the Democratic column.But it’s also been deeply affected by his tariffs, including on new imported cars and autoparts.

Michigan’sunemploymentrate has risen for three straight months,including jumping 1.3% from March to reach 5.5%,according to state data. That’samong the highest in thenation, far exceeding the national average of 4.2%.

AutomakerStellantis haltedproduction at plants in Canada and Mexico after Trump announced a25% tariff on importedvehicles, temporarily layingoff 900 U.S. employees

Drone logisticscompany comestoLafayette

ing adeal.

Blueflitetotakespace in OpportunityMachine downtown

BY ADAM DAIGLE

Acadiana business editor

Acompanyspecializingindrone logisticsthat willwork withmedical and emergency response companies to deliver time-sensitive supplies plans to openanofﬁce in Lafayette.

La. DOTD employee salaries in limbo

Legislature considering change in spending

BY ALYSE PFEIL Staff writer

As part of aplan to overhaul the Louisiana Department of Transportation and Development, state lawmakers are considering amajor change to how the state pays for the salaries of DOTD employees. Legislators say the move would free up money for spending on road andbridgeconstruction —but they haven’tyet decided on an alternativeway to fundthe paychecks of roughly 4,300 state workers.

Since the 1990s, lawmakers have used money fromthe Transportation Trust Fund, which gets money from the state gas tax, to pay for DOTD employeesalaries and beneﬁts.

But as inﬂation and labor costs have risen, moneyreceivedfrom the gas tax hasn’tkept up, and personnel costs have eaten up a bigger share of the fund, which was designed to pay for construction and maintenance of Louisiana highways and bridges.

That’swhy Rep. Ryan Bourriaque, R-Abbeville, whochairs the House transportation committee,issponsoring legislation that would bar lawmakers from using the fund to pay DOTD salaries and beneﬁts.

The problem is long-standing, Bourriaque said earlier this month, referencing a2016 reportfrom former Gov. John Bel Edwards’ gubernatorial transition committee that recommended changing howmoney in theTransportation Trust Fund is used.

“While the public expects these dollars to pay for transportation infrastructure, in actualitythese dollars primarilyare paying for personnel, personnel-related beneﬁts,” as well as operating expenses and maintenance, the 2016report says. Bourriaque said the aim of prohibiting the use of the Transportation Trust Fund for DOTD employee salaries andbeneﬁts is toensure

The company isbeingbacked by a $250,000 investmentfrom Ochsner Louisiana InnovationFund, a$10 million fund established by Ochsner Health, in partnership with Louisiana Economic Development via the

Blueﬂite will set up shop in the OpportunityMachine downtown andbecome partofthe region’s health care and technology ecosystem, connecting with the local tech and aerospace technologyexperts, officialswiththe Lafayette EconomicDevelopment Authority announced Friday.

State Small Business Credit Initiative to support early-stage health companies in Louisiana

The moveispart of abroader growth trajectoryfor Blueflite, which is headquartered outsideof Detroit, and local leaderssay additional and increasingly strong partnershipswill follow as it scales fromits base of support in Louisiana

“We’reexcited about this invest-

ment, which positions Blueﬂiteto transform medical logistics,” Blueﬂite CEO Frank Noppelsaid.“Our drone technology delivers critical supplies like blood and medications withunmatched speed, precision andreliability, improving health care delivery and saving lives.” The company’sexpansion to Lafayette came after an initialmeeting with LEDA at an autonomous systems and robotics tradeshow LEDA’s business recruitment team reengaged with the company along with OchsnerVentures before land-

Bluefliteestablished apartnership with AcadianAmbulance in 2023 forthe drone-basedsystem to offer delivery of blood productsand medicaltoolstocrash victims and emergency responders.

“Blueflite’sadvanced logistics technology will strengthenand contribute to the ongoing growth of our local innovation ecosystem,” LEDA President and CEO Mandi Mitchell said. “Wefully embrace

CRAWFISH CRAZy

ABOVE: Mark Bernard, presidentof theBreauxBridge Crawfish Festival Association,carries awoodencrawfish sign as he and others setupfor the BreauxBridge Crawfish Festival andcarnival TuesdayatParcHardy in BreauxBridge.The midway and carnival opensWednesdaynight,and theCrawfishFestival opensFriday

LEFT: Aworkersetsupthe Scrambler carnival ride in preparation forthe festival

Murder conviction upheld in toddler’sdeath

BY ASHLEYWHITE Staff writer

ALouisianaappeals court upheld the second-degree murderconviction of aman found guilty of killing a22-month-old Lafayette toddler

The3rd Circuit Court of Appeals released itsunanimous opinion last week afﬁrming theguiltyverdict of Christopher Ledet Jr ALafayette Parish jury unanimously convicted Ledet on Dec. 13

aftersix daysofevidence presentationand testimony.Second-degree murder carries alifesentence in Louisiana.

Ledet was found guilty in the death of Kaceston Freeman, the 22-month-oldchild of histhen-girlfriend,Quintya Freeman. Kaceston died from blunt force trauma to the head and body on July21, 2022.

Ledetappealedhis conviction, claiming therewas not enough evidence presented at trial to prove

beyond areasonable doubtthathe was guilty Third Circuit CourtofAppeals Judge GaryOrtegowrote in the published opinionthatitfound no errors but didnote that thesentencing minutes anduniform commitment order required correction to indicate that Ledet must serve his sentence at hard labor

Ortegowrote that the state’scase was “straight forward.” Kaceston’s injuries, whichwere the result of

child abuse,coincided with the times Ledet had sole custody of the child,hewrote.

The opinion also pointed to Ledet’sinternet search history from the night before Kaceston died and said the research “infers that (Ledet) knew Kaceston was grievously injured,which suggests thatheinﬂictedthe injury”ordid notattempttoget medical attention

STAFFPHOTOSByLESLIE WESTBROOK

Sentence in murder conspiracy upheld

BY CLAIRE TAYLOR Staff writer

An appeals court has af-

ﬁrmedthe 25-year sentence of aman convicted of conspiracy to commit seconddegree murder in the 2018 death of Lafayette boxer Brandon Broussard.

CarlosToby, 44, of Texas, allegedly fought with Broussard over awoman in aLafayette nightclub two weeks before the fatal shooting. He was accused of enlisting his brother, Shavis Toby,47, of New Iberia, in the revenge killing of Broussard.

ALafayette Parish jury in July 2021 convicted Carlos Toby on the conspiracy charge but not on acharge of second-degree murder

In April 2022, he was sentenced to 25 years in jail and orderedtopay Broussard’s family $16,987 forhospital expenses.

Shavis Toby was convicted of second-degree murder and conspiracy to commit second-degree murder.He was sentenced to life in prison.

Carlos Toby appealed his conviction and sentence to the 3rd Circuit Court of Appeal, alleging five assignments of error by the Lafayette court. The appeal court found merit in the ﬁrst

CONVICTION

Continued from page1B

for the boy Andi Lex, 15th Judicial Assistant District Attorney leadprosecutor during the trial, said the appellate court looked closely at all parts of the case “I am so happy for Kaceston’sfamily that the justice they got from the trial jury will remaininplace,” Lex said in astatement. Ledet will have the opportu-

assignment of error Carlos Toby alleged, holding the evidence presented during the trial wasnot sufﬁcient for theconviction

Theappeal court atthe time did not address the other alleged assignments of error

The stateSupreme Court looked atthe appealcourt decisionand reversedit, reinstating Carlos Toby’sconviction andsendingthe case back to the appeal court to consider the other four assignments of error he alleged.

On April 23, theappeal court ruled there is no merit to the other alleged assignmentsoferror

Thecourt ruled that:

n The25-year sentence is withinthe statutoryrange of amaximum of 30 years for conspiracy to commit second-degree murder;

n The judge did not err in allowing apolice captain to testify as an expert on cellphone mapping;

n Carlos Toby failedto show how the judge’s denial of hisrequests to severhis trial from hisbrother’s trial resulted in unfairness and prejudice by the jury;

n Thetrial court judge did noterr in failing to order a mistrialover confusionwith the jury’spollingslips.

nity to appealthe 3rd Circuit’s decision to the Louisiana SupremeCourt

Duringthe trial,prosecutors presented evidence and testimonytojurors, including audio of Ledet’scall to 911 and testimony from first responders, doctors whoprovidedmedical care to Kaceston,Freeman and hermother,Latoya Wilson Tinsley Ledet’sdefense team argued that the state did not fully examine other suspects and acomplete investigation was not conducted.

DOTD

Continuedfrom page1B

thosefunds go toward construction projects. Butit’s unclear where lawmakers would findanalternative sourceoffunding to cover DOTD employee salaries andbeneﬁts —roughly$438 million Under the plan, theprohibitionwouldn’ttakeeffect until July 1, 2026.

Bourriaque said that would give state lawmakers ayeartodeviseanalternative way to fund DOTD employee pay. Butofﬁcial state revenue projections show theLegislature is facing shortfalls in the coming budget years.

Transportation Secretary Joe Donahue said thefact thatanalternative means of fundingemployee salaries andbenefits “has not yet been identiﬁed” is “unnerving.”

Buthesaid he is “encouraged” by conversationshe’s had with lawmakers on “the pathforward.”

Theproposed change in how the state pays for DOTD employees is part of alarger plan to restructure Louisiana’stransportation department. While thereform effort is being championed by Bourriaque through apackage of four bills in the current legislativesession, manylawmakers have said theyare fed up with the slow pace of construction and maintenance of Louisiana’sroads and other infrastructure.

DRONE

Continuedfrom page1B

pioneering technology companies in Lafayette and we’re especially excited about Blueﬂite as their business model crosses multiple of our target industrysectors —logistics, aviation andaerospace, technology and health care.”

An alternativeplan?

Afiscal analysis of the plan preparedbythe Legislature’snonpartisan staff assumes that the $438 million in employee salaries and benefitscurrently funded by theTransportation TrustFundwould be offset usingmoney from thestate’sgeneral fund.

But the latest state revenue projectionsanticipate aprojected $194 million deficit in the state general fund for theupcoming fiscal year,followed by projected deficitsinsubsequent years of $86 million, $571 million and $668 million.

Askedabout the possibility of ﬁnding an alternative funding source in the face of projected state budget deficits,Bourriaque said his plan gives lawmakers “a year to work throughthis issue” and allows “for amore detailed review between now April 2026.”

House budget Chair Jack McFarland, R-Jonesboro, said he is not worried about the prospect of needing to find an alternativesource of funding for DOTD employee pay

He said he believes it can be accomplished through a “swap” of funding sources that involves the state’s capital outlay budget.

McFarland saidthat, instead of moving funds from the state general fund to the capital outlay budget —apractice he’sseen every year since he joined the Legislature in 2016 —money in the state general fund would instead go toward

DOTD employee salaries and beneﬁts.

TheTransportation Trust Fund can then be used “for roads and bridges, fortrue transportation costs,” he said.

At the same time, McFarland also acknowledged that unknowns remain about anynew funding arrangement, giventhatthe DOTD reorganization plan as awhole is still being put together

Privatization

Part of the DOTD overhaulwoulddirect departmentleadership to “maximize to the fullest extent possible theprivatization of services and functions” within the ofﬁce that handles project planning and delivery

The ﬁscal analysis of the plan says it anticipates “the department will shifttoutilizing third-partycontracts rather than employees, which would lead to asigniﬁcant reduction in costs forpersonal services.”

“Any suchdecreasewill depend on the number and type of employees eliminated andisindeterminable at this time,” the analysis says. Asked which DOTD functions would be shiftedto third-party contractors, Bourriaque said in an email that “efficiencies will be identified over time” by the newOfficeofTransformation, aproposed department within DOTD that would be tasked with increasing efficiency and withimplementing the Legislature’s reform measures. The Office of

Transformation would also draw“significantinput” from theleadershipand staff in DOTD’snine regional ofﬁces, he said. He added that there is stilla year to workwith DOTD leadership and state lawmakers “to determine which positions can be eliminated, including some current, vacant positions.”

State Rep. Jerome Zeringue, R-Houma, amember of the House budget committee, said he is supportive of the movetoward outsourcing moreDOTD functions, including engineering work.

“I think that’saneffective way to advance and maybe provide somecost savings by advancing someofthese projects quicker,” he said.

McFarland said he was unsure of the extent to which the department reorganizationeffortaims to increase privatization of DOTD functions but expects to have that discussionwhenthe plancomes up for debate on the House ﬂoor in the coming days. Email Alyse Pfeil at alyse pfeil@theadvocate.com.

St.James School Boardsued in specialeducation case

Pre-Kstudent was denied services, suit says

BY CHRISTOPHER CARTWRIGHT Staff writer

The St. JamesParish School Boardhas been accused of violating federal law by denying special education services to achild

Alawsuit, ﬁled April 17, alleges the school system disenrolled aprekindergarten student who has a disability shortly after determining the student was eligible to receive special education in the district The lawsuitclaims the district’sactions violated the U.S. Individualswith Disabilities Education Improvement Act and asection of theAmericans with Disabilities Act.

Brought by the child’slegal guardian, Shirah Herbert, and written by attorney Kimona Hogan,the suit also appeals decisions madebyanadministrative law judge who ruled the child didn’tlive within the parish. It claims the judge’sdecision denied the plaintiff, Herbert, a full and fair hearing under federal disability law

Sarah Forsythe, a spokesperson for the School Board,saidvia email that the board and district can’tcomment pending ongoing legal proceedings.

Filed in the New Orleansbased Eastern District of Louisiana, the lawsuit states Herbertsubmitted an enrollment packet to Cypress Grove Montessori Academy in August 2024. Herbert lives in St. John the Baptist Parish, while the child has acare arrangement in St. James Parish, and the document

states Herbert disclosed bothdetails in thepacket. According to aJanuary decision by Administrative Law Judge Adaora Chukudebelu, Herbert included anotarized statement saying she and her child lived with the care provider in St. James Parish.

Hogan writesinthe lawsuit that the packetwas missing the child’sSocial Security card, but the chief of schools approved the child’senrollment that month, despitethe disclosedliving arrangement

Once school began, staff allegedly raised concerns about the student’sdevelopmental andacademic progressand initiatedan evaluation to determine if thechild qualiﬁed for special education, thecomplaintstates

On Oct. 22, the district determinedthe student qualiﬁed for special education andscheduled ameetingfor Nov.7todevelop an IndividualizedEducation Program, according to the lawsuit. Required by federal law, an IEPis developed for every publicschool child who needs special education

Butaccording to the complaint, thedistrict “unilaterally disenrolled” the student effective Nov 4without priornotice or an opportunityfor Herberttoappeal.

Thecomplaint states that the timing of the school’s decisiontodisenroll the child suggeststhat officialsused the child’s residency status as apretext to avoidits obligation to develop an IEP.Italso claims thatotherparents andguardians with similar residencydocumentation were notsubject to disenrollment. In late November,Ho-

ganﬁled motions with the LouisianaDepartment of Education,which were forwarded to the Louisiana Division of Administrative Law, according to the complaint. Chukudebelu dismissed the case in January,ruling thatthe minor’sresidenceisatHerbert’sinSt.

John the Baptist Parish

TheApril lawsuit argues Chukudebelu didn’tfollow IDEA’s requirements which statestudents must remain in their current education placementduring certain administrativeand judicial proceedings

Ahearing on amotion forpreliminary injunction is setfor May 19,according to the case docket.

Email Christopher Cartwright at christopher cartwright@theadvocate. com.

AMass of Christian Burial willbecelebrated on Friday, May 2, 2025 at 3pm in theCathedral of St.John theEvangelistinLafayette, LA.Jerome "Jerry" Anthony Romero,age 74, passed away peacefullyon Wednesday, April 23, 2025 at Hospice of Acadiana's CalcuttaHouse surrounded by his threechildren and family.The family requests that visitation be observed on Friday, May 2, 2025 from 1:00pm until time of services.Interment will be held in theSt. John Cemeteryimmediately following theFuneralMass at 3pmand willbeofficiated by Father Chester

Arceneauxand Deacon Kirk Duplantis. Jerry's legacylives on through hisloving three children; daughter, Shannon Romero Cox and herhusband, Stuart, of San Marcos, TX; son, Mathew Romeroand his wife, Jennifer,ofYoungsville, LA; anddaughter, Bryce RomeroGeorg andher husband, Derek, of Austin, TX. He was aproud and loving grandfather to seven grandchildren; Klein Bresinger, Reid Bresinger, BronsonRomero,Carleigh Romero, Owen Romero, PresleyGeorg, andJetson Georg. He will be deeply missed by hisbrother,Dr. Robert Romero; sister-inlaw Carolyn Romero, anda host of cherished nieces andnephews. Jerrywas preceded in death by his parents, John Harry Romero, Sr.and Mildred Chargois Romero; his brothers, Captain John Harry Romero, Jr., USAF andDr. Russell Charles Romero; his sister-in-law Carrie RomeroDurand; brother-in-law,Frank Durand, andnephew, John Harry Romero, III AdevoutCatholic,he foundsolace andstrength in daily church visits, daily prayers, and servedwith

humility as an usheratOur Lady of MercyCatholic Church in Baton Rouge,LA. Much of Jerry's character andaccomplishments were shapedbyhis upbringing andthe strong work ethic instilledinhim whileworkingalongside hisfamilyatthe Romero and Montgomery Dry Cleaningbusiness in Lafayette. TheRomero family wouldliketoextend their heartfelt gratitude to the staff at Maisonde Lafayette, especially the caretakers on hall 300. Sincerethanks also to the dedicated doctors, nurses, and aides at OurLady of Lourdes Hospital andthe entire team at Hospiceof Acadiana's Calcutta House. Your kindnessand care will neverbeforgotten. In lieu of flowers, the familykindly asks that memorial donations be made to Hospiceof Acadiana, OurLady of MercyofBaton Rouge,LA. or theCathedral of St.John theEvangelist of Lafayette, LA. View the obituaryand guestbook online at www.Cremation SocietyAcadiana.com

Romero, Jerome Anthony'Jerry'

OUR VIEWS

Stop makingLa. acollaboratorin deportation withoutdue process

Louisiana is becoming aﬂashpointinthe ﬁght over the federal government’s efforts to conduct mass deportation of immigrants in the country illegally

The state is home to several facilitieswhere immigrants are brought after being detained PresidentDonald Trump andhis administration began the crackdown witha focus on college campuses, targeting studentswho ledprotests supporting Palestinians during the warinGaza. And in some cases, those studentshave ended up far from their homes in places like Jena and Basile

Studentactivists Mahmoud Khalil from Columbia Universityin New York,Rümeysa Öztürk from Tufts University in Bostonand Alireza Doroudi from theUniversity of Alabama in Tuscaloosawere all brought to rural Louisiana detention facilities. Thegovernment says it is ﬁghting antisemitism on campusand the students pose athreat to U.S.foreign policy. Whether or not that argumentwill be upheld by the courts, there seems to be aclear pattern of using our state to separateimmigrants from their legal and support networksasthey pursue their cases. And if that were not troubling enough, it’sbecoming apparent that not only noncitizensare imperiled by these immigration enforcement actions.

A2-year-old who was born in Baton Rouge was sent to Honduras along withher mother and11-year-oldsister,who hadactive immigration orders against them, after aroutinecheckin.Ofﬁcials with Immigration andCustoms Enforcement say the mother requestedthe daughter leave with her.But U.S. District Judge Terry A. Doughty, aTrump appointee, said the child was deported without “any meaningful process.”Her father and immigrationlawyers say government ofﬁcials would notreleasethe child to acustodian, evenafter beingtoldshe was aU.S. citizen.

In another Louisiana family,a 4-year-old and a7-year-oldwithU.S. citizenship were sent to Honduras with their mother,who washereillegally.The 4-year-old has cancer and is now separated from his doctors. When askedabout the cases, Secretary of State MarcoRubiosaid the children could return to theUnited Stateswith a parent or other relative who is acitizen. But we have to ask, why the hastetosend them outof the country in the ﬁrst place? It’s notasifthey posed such athreat that removal wasnecessary before courts could review thecase

It’shard not to wonder now if Louisianaresidentsfaceincreased risk of beingensnaredin ICE actions simply because of our proximity to detention centers. Data show thenumberofimmigration cases have skyrocketed in ourfederal courts.

It’salso hard not to wonder if some sawour state’spoor recordoncriminal justice anddecided it would be the ideal provingground for how to conductmass deportation withoutdue process. Our courts and ourstate cannot continue to turn ablind eye to actions thatgo against theUnited States Constitution. The world is watching.

LETTERSTOTHE EDITOR ARE

WELCOME. HERE AREOUR

GUIDELINES: Letters are published identifying name, occupation and/or title and the writer’scity of residence

TheAdvocate |The Times-Picayune require astreet address andphone number for verification purposes, but that information is not published. Letters are not to exceed 300 words. Letters to the Editor,The Advocate, P.O. Box 588, Baton Rouge, LA 70821-0588, or email letters@ theadvocate.com.

TO SEND US A LETTER, SCANHERE

YOUR VIEWS

Wind powerasenergy source isn’tall it’s crackeduptobe

The April 21 front-page article concerning wind power developers was silent about the problemsassociated with this source of electricity.The article mentions the partial use of wind power for Amazon’stwo data centers in Mississippi. Well, in north Louisiana, Entergy is to build three natural gas-fired power plants(2,260 megawatts combined) to supply electricityfor Meta’s$10 billion AI datacenter.Afacility such as this cannot operate on the intermittentpower supplied by wind or solar Additionally,itisestimated that wind turbines kill about 1million birds ayear.Turbine operators are allowed to kill bald eagles. If any of us killed abald eagle, we would probably end up in jail andpay alarge fine. A French court recently ordered awind farm to cease operation for ayear for killing agolden eagle, probably the first instance of awind farm being

Ourcountry is facing aserious moral crisis. We have allowed the executive branch to adopt authoritarian, morally contemptible policies toward our immigrant brothers and sisters which are both unconstitutional and cruel. They undermine therule of law and any claim America has to be a “Christian nation.”

Since when does theUnited States of America deport people to Salvadoran prisons such as CECOT,notorious for its egregious human rights abuses, and pay $6 for the privilege? We now live in an America where our country’stop cabinet ofﬁcials visit these prisons for aphotoop, as Department of Homeland Security Kristi Noem disgracefully did, posing in front of 50-plus men stuffed into cages like animals.

This abhorrent policy and conduct is justiﬁed by lies and broad, unproven

held accountable for wildlifekilling. Also, windturbine noise can affect humans, primarily causing annoyance and sleep disturbance, with some studies suggesting it can exacerbate hearing loss.

The article quotes Jenny Netherton, of the Southeastern Wind Coalition, as saying that wind energy “isn’tatthe whims of ﬂuctuating fuel prices like gas-ﬁred plants.”

Talk about hypocrisy! Few things are more whimsical than the wind. For abouttwo days in January,calm weather caused wind power to generate less than 1% of the UK’selectricity supply,sothey needed gas-ﬁred plantstoﬁll in the gap. That’sthe big problem withintermittents like wind and solar: Fossil fuels must be available to back them up, batteries are not up to thejob.

PIERRE FAURE Covington

matchChristian values

accusations of immigrants being “criminals,” terrorists and gang members, which study after study shows are false. In fact, the vast majority of immigrants, including those deported, are law-abiding, tax-paying, productivemembersofsociety,who care for our elderly,tend our disabled, pick our crops, work in our meat packaging plants and build our roofsand houses.

Oursociety must not adopt the playbook of dictators whomalign the other,asHitler did with the Jews, and allow our fears to dehumanize other people. During this Easter season, those of us who call ourselves Christian must stand up to reject these and other human rights abuses of an increasingly rogue and corrupt administration. America is better than this.

JANE HILL Slidell

With today’snonstop media coverage, it’seasy to get lost in all the political noise. But all Louisiana families should be concerned that critical funding for the Medicaid program is on the chopping block. More than one in three individuals in our state depend on this funding for their health and well-being.

Congress is considering billions of dollars in cuts that have the potential of shifting costs from Washington to states like ours. With Louisiana ranking fourth-lowest in median income, Louisiana’staxpayers could not replace this federal support, leaving painful cuts to health care beneﬁts or other services as Louisiana’sonly alternative. Doctors, hospitals and other health care providers will face tough choices about the services they can provide and the job opportunities they can offer.Additionally,cutting ﬁnancial support for rural hospitals will further reduce access for vulnerable families and communities.

Because Louisianians cannot afford deep cuts to health care funding, please ask Congress to reject reductions to the Medicaid program and protect the physical, mental and economic health of our state.

PAUL A. SALLES Louisiana Hospital Association President &CEO

As achild, columnist Cal Thomas naively believed his uncle’sboogeymanstory to keep him out of the cellar.Asanoctogenarian, Thomas naively believes Fox’sBret Baier’s show that Elon Musk and DOGE are surgically pruning “do nothing” federal agencies and workers.

What surgeon would eliminate USAID entirely so that after the Myanmar earthquake, China would be lauded while America was absent? Who will Myanmar turn to for trade and in regional conﬂicts?

By depicting PopeFrancis’ passing with outstretched, loving hands of the poor,the neglected, the desperate, the needy,the marginalized and the vulnerable, Walt Handelsman reminds us that, for Pope Francis, faith, worship and service all come down to this simple commandment of our Lord:

“Truly Itell you. Whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you didfor me.” (Mt. 25:40). Pope Francis not only preached this service of love, he lived it to his dying day

GERALD J. MURPHY NewOrleans Handelsman

What Veterans Affairs reformer writes aletter to all, yes all, employees from janitors to nurses, requesting they “resign and their jobs cannot be guaranteed.” What amorale booster! The “buzz saw” Musk then ﬁres every worker,nomatter skill or job performance, who has not earned civil service protection. Unfortunately,the boogeyman may be real this time around.

JIM HOBDEN Metairie

IN FOCUS| LOUISIANALEGISLATURE COMMENTARY

SB14

Firstdonoharmbegins by followingahealthy diet

The Make America Healthy Again movement has gained signiﬁcant attention throughout the nation, and many of the top initiatives highlighted have found their way into state legislatures this session. Louisianaisnoexception and state Sen. Patrick McMath has, via Senate Bill 14, proposed asigniﬁcant cleanup of our food supply,especially focused on kids.

Backed by the popular support of the MAHA Moms, this bill has three major parts that are worth examining separately for their merits. First is aban of several “ultra-processed” foods in school meals.

HB 519

ProtectLa. residents from distracted drivers

Dr.Ralph Abraham GUEST COLUMNIST

In this case, the term ultra-processed is defined as products that contain any one of 13 specifically referenced compounds. Of these, the first seven are artificial dyes,like red dye No. 40, derived from petroleum byproducts that serve asingular role to make food more visually appealing. We should all be asking ourselves why we ever allowed this stuff to find its way into our food in the first place

Several of these synthetic dyes are associated with various harms, ranging from ADHD to allergies and tumors. Most of the other compounds on the list sound like they should have askull and crossbones on the label. Take the bread additive azodicarbonamide as an example.

If you thought thatsounded like something you should noteat, you would beright. It breaks down into urethane (yes, like the paint), aknown carcinogen, and is banned in just about every country but the U.S. In the case of school lunches, the child hasnochoice in the matter. They eatwhatthey are provided, and we have anobligation to protect themfrom toxic substances in the cafeteria. Second is alabeling requirement for foodscontainingthe substancesinthe schoollunch banportion, plus afew more, knowntohave aquestionable safety proﬁle, that are banned in other countries. It directsmanufacturers to placea label on any food or drink containing these chemicalsthatclearly alerts the consumer to the factthat it contains something that is bannedinother countries Last,but certainlynot least, is aprovisiontoreform the SNAP foodstamp program This program is federally sponsored andprovides food assistancetofamilieswith an income below130% of the federal poverty line. This would beabout $31,200 net yearly income for afamily of four. In our inﬂationary economic environment, every penny counts whenitcomes to food and obtaining the maximum calories forminimum

SB 218

dollars. Historically,the cheapest foods happen to alsobethe least healthy in many cases, condemning thosedependent on the program to poor health. Soft drinks containing very high sugar or sugarsubstitutesare amajor contributor to the chronic diseases that plague our healthsystem like obesityand diabetes, especially in children. This bill directsthe Department of Children and Family Services to seek awaiver from the federal government allowing Louisiana to prohibit the use of SNAP to purchase soft drinks. Ultimately,the federal government should go astepfurther and incentivize healthier alternatives for SNAP beneﬁciaries, but this bill represents amajor step in the right directionthatcan be accomplished at the state level.

The old saying goes: “You arewhat you eat.” We should keep this literal and obvious truth in mind when we think about how to turn thetide on chronic disease in our nation. Let us begin by protecting thechildren who are too young to choose for themselves and providing better information for adults who can. SB14 will accomplish bothgoals and move Louisiana to theforefront of the movementtoMake America Healthy Again.

Dr.Ralph L. Abraham is LouisianaSurgeon General.

Bringjustice to stateresidents convictedbynonunanimousjuries

Eight years ago, Anquan Boldin and Ico-founded the Players Coalition with avision rooted in fairness: That our justice system should work for everyone, that every child deserves achance no matter their ZIP code and that punishment should never eclipse humanity Over the years, we’ve stood with communities, lawmakers and fellow citizens to push for reforms that reflected these core beliefs —fueled by the conviction that our country could, and should, do better But the last few years have reminded us of adifficult truth: Progress is never linear,and it is always contested. We now find ourselves in a moment where long-standing civil rights victories are being questioned, rewritten or quietly rolled back. Whetherit’s debating the legacy of Jackie Robinsonorundermining hard-fought legal protections, the signal is clear that we are being asked to forget. But we won’t.

Lastyear,Senate Bill 98 —aproposal to ban holding aphone while driving —failed in the Louisiana House. It was adisappointing result, driven largely by misinformation. One legislator told me she voted against it because her constituents mistakenly believed it would ban all phone use in cars. Another opposed it over concerns about proﬁling —anargument far removed from the bill’strue intent. The reality is simple: Distracted driving is killing people. FaceTiming, textingand recording videos while behind thewheel puts everyoneatrisk.

Lastyear,while testifying in support of the bill, Imet Suzanne Salter.Her daughter,Nicole, waskilled in 2014 in asuspected texting-and-driving crash. Despite clear evidence, the driver faced no signiﬁcant charges. Nicole’s story is one of many that show the tragic human toll of inaction.

As amotorcyclist, I’ve had close

calls with distracted drivers. But on Nov.5,2023, my lifechanged. Iwas hit and thrown off my motorcycle on the Mississippi River Bridge by ahitand-run driver —likely distracted by their phone. While Ican’tprove that was the cause, it ﬁts apattern seen too often on our roads.

Louisiana is among the top five states fordistracted driving deaths, according to the National Transportation Safety Board. That’snothing to be proud of. We need to join the 30 other states with hands-free driving laws. This year,lawmakers have another opportunity to act. House Bill 519, filed forthe 2025 session, would finally makehands-free driving the law in Louisiana. It deserves broad support. No law can prevent every distraction, but this one would save lives. It’s timetodowhat’sright forpublic safety

ANTHONY SUMMERS Port Allen

Fluoridation is keytoahealthy smile

Since 1945, fluoridation of public drinking water has been successful in reducing tooth decay and improving the oral health of both children and adults. In some places in the United States, like Denver,fluoride is already naturally present in thewater.Asfar back as 1901, dentists noticed low levels of dental decay in places like Colorado Springs, leading researchers in 1945 in Grand Rapids, Michigan, to monitorover 15 years the tooth decay in children after the fluoridation of their water supply.The rate of cavities in Grand Rapids children born after fluoride was added to the water dropped morethan 60%. This scientifically discovered connection that fluoride prevents toothdecay allowedcavities and poor oral healthtobeapreventable disease for the first time.

Malcolm Jenkins GUEST COLUMNIST

This moment demands more than memory —it demands vigilance. It demands that we meet cynicism with clarity,and that we hold the line, not just for those who’ve been historically marginalized, but for the integrity of our democracy.That’swhy I’m writing today,tourge support for Senate Bill218 —a bill that calls us to uphold one of the most basic principles of justice: that every person deserves afair trial decided by the full agreement of their peers. In 2018, Ijoined the fight for the passage of Amendment 2, which abolished non-unanimous juries in Louisiana. Before Louisianians overwhelmingly banned it, the state maintained aJim Crow-era lawthatallowed nonunanimous juries to convict people of felonycrimes. In almost everyother part of the country,12peoplehad to find proof beyond a reasonable doubt that someone committeda serious crime before they could go to prison. Louisiana was one of two exceptions.Even if two people hadadoubt, ajury couldstill find someone guilty Louisiana enactedthis law with the solepurpose of making it easier to send people to prison and to silencethe voices of Black people. Unable to keepBlack people offjuries underthe Constitution, Louisianaestablishedthe nonunanimous jury rule in 1898 That way,a mostly White jury could still convict, even if afew peoplehad doubts. Over time,despite progress in other areas, it persisted, eroding trust in our legalsystem and making our communities less safe by undermining the very principle ofequaljustice underthe law.

perpetuatethe very injustice we sought to eradicate. It creates atwo-tiered systemand lets our ﬂawed past infect our current reality And it disproportionately harms Black people, like so much of our legal system. In areview of about six years of cases conducted by The New Orleans Advocate in 2018, 40% of trialconvictions werebynonunanimous juries. When the person was Black, thatnumber increased to 43%.

Twolegislators, Mike Fesi, R-Houma, and PatrickMcMath, R-Covington, aresponsoring Senate Bill 2, which would eliminate the fluoridation of our water.Why do these senators want to remove the fluoridation from the water in Louisiana? Fesisays fluoridation can “lower the IQ of children and cause a number of other health problems, such as Alzheimer’sdisease.” Their claims aresimply false. Does fluoride in water at the current levellower children’sIQ scores?No. Meta-analyses of the scientific literature have found that fluoridationofwater at or lower than the level recommended by the World Health Organization shows no reduction in

IQ levels in children. Arecent U.S. government report from the National Toxicology Program did find, however, that fluoride in drinking water at twice the recommended level is linked with lower IQ in children by 2to5points. The key is keeping fluoride at asafe level, as we do in the UnitedStates. Since 2015, health officials have recommended afluoridation level of 0.7mg/ liter of water,far lower than whatis reported as detrimental in the NTP report. The same NTP report found no evidence that fluoride exposure had adverse effects on adult cognition. As acompromise, can’twejust get our fluoride from toothpaste and take it out of the drinking water? Notexactly.There are two types of fluoride: topical fluoride, like what is found in toothpastes and mouth rinses, and systemic fluoride, found in our drinking water and some foods, like raisins. There is concern that some people, like children and pregnant women, maybe getting more fluoride than they need when they get from the public water supply and also use it in tooth cleaning products.

For children, however,itiscrucial for them to get that systemic fluoride while their teeth are developing. Our children in Louisiana have asignificant reduction in suffering from tooth decay because there is fluoride in the drinking water.Let’skeep it that way ERICKA SEIDEMANN doctoral student in public health Tulane University

Sevenyearsago,wevoted to eliminate thatlaw.But we left the job unﬁnished. Our vote in 2018 offerednorelief to those previously convicted by nonunanimous verdicts. Hundreds of men and women, convicted under this nowunconstitutionalpractice, remain incarcerated, their fates sealed by asystemLouisianians have declared unjust To deny retroactivejustice to those convicted underthis discriminatory practiceisto

State Sen. Royce Duplessis’ bill corrects this injustice and offersa pathway for individuals convicted by nonunanimous juries to finally receive anew trial. Prosecutors will be able to retry the cases (or offer aplea bargain) if they believe theyhave the evidence to prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt to aunanimous jury as our Constitution demands. Some people might complain that this requires toomany resources.But we cannot take shortcutsinour legal system. That’s how injustices occur,how innocent people go or stay in prison and how racism is allowed to fester Passing SB218 is not just about correcting alegal error. It is about reaffirming our commitment to theideals of equalityand fairness that lie at the heart of our justicesystem. It is about restoring faith and demonstrating that in Louisiana, we believe in true justicefor all, not just some Let us finishthe workwe startedin2018 and finally right thesepastwrongs. The timetoact is now MalcolmJenkins is aformer New Orleans Saint.

Louisianadoesn’t

need marijuana legalization underfalse pretenses

I’m writing as aconcerned Louisiana resident and advocate for ethical, patient-centered health care to shed light on what’sreally happening with our state’smedical marijuana program— and why House Bill 627 should alarm everycitizen.

State Rep. Candace Newell’sHB 627 proposes to legalize recreational marijuana through alimited “pilot program.”

But this programwould be exclusive to the 10 existing medical marijuana dispensary license holders. No new businessesallowed. No equity program. No public vote. No transparency This is not legalization —it’samonopoly in plain sight Good Day Farmand other corporate dispensaries stand to beneﬁt from a locked system that freezes out small business owners, local entrepreneurs and minority-owned startups who never get afair chance to participate. Louisiana lawmakers are, in essence, choosing afew corporations over free market competition and public interest. Worse,the current medical program is already teetering on unethical.

Dispensaries now offer “free” evaluations, paying providers per patient they “approve” —apractice many believe resembles akickback scheme. Patients are bombarded with misleading ads like “NO DOCTOR NEEDED” and “FREE CARDS,” while the state’s registry system now prevents physicians from tracking what their patients are using. This is no longer amedical program. It’sarecreational system hiding under amedical label —and HB 627 would make it ofﬁcial, without any of the regulation or fairness real legalization would require Iurge your newsroom to investigate:

n Who is proﬁting from this?

n Why are physicians being pushed out of the system?

n How is this continuing without oversight?

The people of Louisiana deserve transparency,fairness and atruly medical program —or, if we are to move toward recreational marijuana, one built with proper regulation, public input and equal opportunity KAYLA KING Carville HB 627

SB2

Many Americansare fortunate to havedental coverage fortheir entire working life, through employer-provided benefits.Whenthose benefits end with retirement, paying dental bills out-of-pocket can come as a shock, leading people to putoff or even go without care. Simply put —without dentalinsurance, there may be an importantgap in your healthcare coverage.

When you’re comparingplans ...

 Shop forcoveragewithnoannual maximum on cash benefits. Some planshaveannual maximums of $1,000.

Ask

Cajuns’ path to success is clear

When you’re the reigningSun Belt regular-season champions and have been to three consecutive NCAA regionals, expectations can cloud things. As coach Matt Deggs looks back on the league schedule, the frustrating part is how close the Ragin’Cajuns were to competing for another conference championship.

There’sjust been too many losses like Sunday’sfrustrating 4-3 decision against Georgia Southern.

“If you go back and look at our conference schedule…I think 17-4 is an easy possibility just with scoring acouple more runs (onSundays),”hesaid. “I’m not asking for 10, just ﬁve or six,and we’re sitting thereat15, 16, 17 wins pretty easy,but we’re not.”

The Cajuns (22-24, 12-9 Sun Belt) have scored no more than three runs in four of the past five series finales. They scored 27 runs in the first two Sundays of the Sun Belt schedule.

“Wewere rolling,” Deggs said. “It’sjust amatter of ﬁnishing atbats. Youhave to be able to execute at this level. It’sOKifteams arebetter than you, but they can’t be better than you at executing.”

Butasflawed as the Cajuns have been through 46 games, there’sstill apretty clearpathto success. UL is in sole possession of fourth place and hoping to fight offArkansasState (22-21, 11-10) and Appalachian State (21-22, 11-10) over the final nine league games.

The pitching plan is set without alot of bigdecisions to makeeach weekend, and there’splentyof reason to believe it could work Notonly are the starters established but so are the relievers. There have been better teams that were still scrambling at this time of the season to ﬁgure out pitching options.

There’salso some recentreasons to project upgrades forTate Hess (5-2, 6.02 ERA) and Blake McGehee (3-4, 7.39).

“The pitching has certainly improvedbecausewe’ve said all right, OK, these are theguys we’re going to pitch,” Deggssaid

The picture is similar on thedefensive side. After shufﬂing lineups all season long, the staff has settled on nine, and the result has been an improved defense after that area was shaky early on “In my professional opinion with what I’ve seen for 46 games, that’sour best lineup,” Deggs said. “That’s whatI’ve seen.I’m riding it, sticking with it. You’ll seeguys have opportunities here and there, but we’ve got to ride that thing as far as we can get it andhope that we continue to play pretty good baseball.”

It’samixture of newcomers such as Drew Markle at second base,shortstopOwen Galt and

ä See FOOTE, page 3C

Siftingthrough N.O.’s picks

BY LUKE JOHNSON Staff writer

Theﬁrst NFL draft of the Kellen Moore era is in thebooks, as the Saints selected nine players andaddressed nine positions with those players. We won’treally know until this fall —and in the years that follow —how this initial class of the Moore era will pan out, but we can address some of the questionsabout the draft now thatit’sbeen assembled.

New Orleans went safe (or as close as that gets) onthe ﬁrst day,took some big swings on the second day and looked for valuetoclose things out. Let’ssort back through all three days.

Theage question

Count me asone who is skeptical about Tyler Shough’sage really mattering in the grand schemeofthings.

Yes, he’sone of theoldest prospects in theclass. Shough will turn 26 amonthinto hisrookie season, and if he plays this year he will be one of theoldest rookie quarterbackssince the AFL-NFL merger.Only

BY TOYLOYBROWN III Staff writer

TheLSU men’sbasketball roster,which is still being constructed, is mostly aclean slate.

Thereturners arejuniorJalen Reed andfreshman Robert Miller. While coach MattMcMahon is happy with the five transfer additions thus far, are there players he wish would have stayed?

TheAdvocateranked the seven LSU departures in order of how muchthe Tigers will miss each player.

1. VyctoriusMiller

Miller had themost potential to become astar among the players who left theteam.

The 6-foot-5, 185-pound freshmanguard is apromising threelevel scorer with silky ball-handling. He averaged 8.9 points on 44.7%field-goal shooting in 19 minutes pergame.

Theobviousscoring talent flashed most often during nonconference play,when he picked opponents apart as amid-range

vent him from playing afull career.The age conversation is different forquarterbacks than it is forother positions.

1. (9) Kelvin Banks, OT,Texas.

2. (40) Tyler Shough, QB,Louisville.

3. (71) Vernon Broughton, DT,Texas.

3. (93) Jonas Sanker,S,Virginia

4. (112) DannyStutsman, LB,Oklahoma.

4. (131) QuincyRiley, CB,Louisville.

6. (184) Devin Neal,RB, Kansas.

Aaron Rodgers was 25 when he took over as the Green Bay Packers starting quarterback in 2008. Kirk Cousins and Russell Wilson were 24 during their 2012 rookie seasons. Those three players have combined to play morethan 600 NFL regular-season games.

7. (248) Moliki Matavao,TE, UCLA.

7. (254) Fadil Diggs, DE, Syracuse.

former pro baseball players (29-year-olds Brandon Weeden and Chris Weinke) and former BYU quarterbacks who previously served areligious mission (Taysom Hill, 27, and John Beck,26) were older than Shough will be in Week 1.

Andyes, his age does matter.Shough is further along in his physical development than every other quarterback in this class, meaning what the Saints get now from him physically is not likely to get much better.While there’snotrue hard line, an athlete’sprimeage is generally at thetail endofthe region Shough is in now.

Butit’snot like Shough’sage willpre-

Age didn’tseem to be an issue last year forJayden Daniels (who turned 24 midseason) or Bo Nix(whoturned 25 right before the Super Bowl), both of whom seemed to beneﬁt from their lengthy college experience while transitioning to the pro game. And while alot has been made about Shough being in the samerecruiting class as Trevor Lawrence, Daniels and Nixwereinthe class right after them. Quarterbacks last. Just in the past 10 seasons, eight players have thrownfor morethan 4,000 yards in aseason after their 35th birthday.Last year,four quarterbacks started at least half of their team’s games at 36 or older

So Shough’sage matters to an extent,

bucket-getter and transition scorer Miller’s issues arrivedduring Southeastern Conference play when his lack of strength and inexperience cametolight. His mistakes also were common for skinny scorers adapting tocollege. Miller,20, chose Oklahoma State

andisagood bet to average 15 pointsper gamenext season.

2. CoreyChest

The 6-8, 220-pound forward was as explosive of an athlete as there wasathis position in the SEC. Chest, aredshirtfreshman postedhighlight-reel dunks and

blocks throughout the season. His athletic prowess was paired with an elite motor that translated mostly through his rebounding ability.The NewOrleansnative averaged 6.6 rebounds in 20.1 minutes.

Of players who played at least 20 games, he was one of six in the SEC to have at least a21% defensive rebound rate and 13% offensive rebound rate, according to BarTorvik.

Chest is belowMillerbecause of his high turnover rate (18.6%), bad defensive habits and inabilitytoshoot outsideof5feet. The 20-year-old shot 44.9% fromthe free-throw line and attempted zero 3-pointers. TheTigers willberemindedof Chest’sgifts when theyfacehis new team,Ole Miss, next season.

3. Curtis Givens

Givens wasone of the least efﬁcient rotation players in theSEC.

The 6-3, 185-pound freshman averaged 4.8 points on 26.9% from theﬁeldand 1.6 assistsin 18.2 minutesper game.Ofthe 72 players who attempted at least 70 3-pointers in the conference, he shotthe lowest percentage at 24.6%, according to BarTorvik. The point guard wasn’tprepared for the role LSU needed

ASSOCIATEDPRESS FILEPHOTO By MATTHEW HINTON

TexasTech quarterback Tyler Shoughthrows nexttoformer NFL quarterback Eli Manning,left, at the Manning Passing Academy at Nicholls StateinThibodaux on June 24, 2022.The Saints took Shoughwith the 40th overall pick in the NFLdraft on Friday.

STAFF PHOTO By BRAD KEMP

First baseman Lukeyuhasz has been one of theCajuns’ most consistent hitters this season.

Kevin Foote

STAFF PHOTO By MICHAEL JOHNSON LSU forward CoreyChest grabs arebound against Vanderbilt guard Devin McGlockton on Jan. 4inthe PMAC. Chest, aNew Orleansnative transferred to Ole Miss.

1p.m. Detroit at Houston MLBN

5:35

6p.m. KennesawSt. at Georgia SECN

COLLEGE SOFTBALL

5p.m. Liberty at Virginia ACCN

7p.m. Clemson at GeorgiaTechACCN GOLF

2p.m. PGA: Final RoundGolf

6p.m.

6:30

8:30

2p.m.Inter

6p.m.CFMontrealatToronto

7p.m.Vancouver

2p.m.Chelsea

More QB battlesremaininBig Ten

BY ERIC OLSON AP collegefootball writer

Eleven Big Tenteams have settled on their starting quarterbacks. The other seven, including defending national champion Ohio State, will carry competitionsinto preseason practice. Illinois’ Luke Altmyer,Michigan State’sAidanChiles, Nebraska’s Dylan Raiola, Penn State’sDrew Allar,Rutgers’ Athan Kaliakmanis, Southern California’sJayden Maiava and Washington’sDemond Williams Jr.are returning starters Indiana, Iowa, UCLA and Wisconsin brought in transfers who will go into the fall as No. 1s the Hoosiers’FernandoMendoza (California), the Hawkeyes’ Mark Gronowski (South Dakota State), the Bruins’ Nico Iamaleava (Tennessee) andthe Badgers’Billy Edwards Jr.(Maryland).

Julian Sayin appears to have an edge over Lincoln Kienholz at Ohio State, where coach Ryan Day is waiting until August to name his starter Sayin, adual-threat rated as afive-star prospect out of high school, has been the presumed 2025 starter since he left Alabama when Nick Saban announced his retirement in January 2024.

Dante Moore is favoredto beat out Austin Novosad for the Oregon job. Moore was afive-star who transferred from UCLA after the 2023 season and played 29 snaps over ﬁve gameslast year. Novosad played atotal of 16 snaps over three games.

Heralded freshman Bryce Underwood has the inside track at Michigan against Mikey Keene and Jadyn Davis. Keene, who started 23 games at FresnoState thepasttwo years, missed the spring game because of injury TheWolverines hope to have more of avertical passing game with new offensive coordinator

Rodriguez,

BY STEPHEN HAWKINS

AP sportswriter

Rich Rodriguez and ScottFrost are new to the Big 12 Conference, butnot to theschools that have welcomed them back.

Rodriguez at West Virginia and FrostatUCF arethe only new coaches in the 16-team Big12, andnow have been through their ﬁrst spring since getting back to their old schools.

West Virginia has gone through 13 seasonsinthe Big 12, but were still in the Big East when Rodriguez led the Mountaineers to three consecutive 11-win seasons from 2005-07 before his departure for Michigan.

Frost was the coach for UCF’s undefeated season out ofthe American Athletic Conference in 2017, when the Knights declared themselves national champions before he left for Nebraska.

Things did feel different for Frost than his ﬁrstspring with the Knights in 2016, when they were coming offan0-12 season.

“Our ﬁrst scrimmage out here in the spring, Iwas discouraged coming off that ﬁeld. .Wedidn’t do anything good, or at least it felt that way,”Frost said, recalling 2016 before turning to this spring. “We’re doing some good things. There’sjust alevel of speed and precision to execution that has to happen on every single play to make it work, and we’re not there yet.”

The Knights were 10-15intheir first two Big 12 seasons under Gus Malzahn, the former national champion who left UCF after fourseasons to become offensive coordinator at Florida State. The back-to-back losing records to open their Big 12 era followed a school-record six winning seasons in arow,which began with the 13-0 season after Frost’s6-7 debut. Thesecond stintfor Rodriguez at West Virginia comes 18 years after hisﬁrstone ended. He will have to make wholesale changes in the name, image and likeness era —along with the transfer

Chip Lindsey.Nostarter has been named at Minnesota, but it would be asurprise if it weren’tDrake Lindseyfollowingthe transfer of Zach Pyron two weeks ago. Max Shikenjanski and Dylan Wittke also are in themix Northwestern has athree-man race between SMU transfer PrestonStone andholdovers Jack Lausch and Ryan Boe. Malachi Singleton looked like theguy at Purdue until Ryan Browne, who started twogames last season, transferredback aftergoing through spring practice at North Carolina. Singleton, Browne and WashingtonState

transfer EvansChuba will competefor the job. Freshman Malik Washington appearstobethe front-runner at Maryland, whereUCLA transfer Justyn Martin also is competing. Odom’s odyssey

Barry Odom takes the momentumofleading UNLVtoits best back-to-back seasons in its Division Ihistory into hisnew job at Purdue,which was 5-19 overall and 3-15 in Big Tenplay in two years under Ryan Walters. Odomhas signed44players outofthe transfer portal to help replace the 56 who left.Leading

rusherDevin Mockobee and defensive lineman Jamarius Dinkins are theonly returning starters. Walters, ﬁred on Dec.1,isnow defensive coordinatoratWashington. Purdue visits the Huskies on Nov.15.

Portal prizes Oregon broughtinthe topranked group of transfers in the Big Ten, according to 247Sports. Amongthe incoming players were OL Isaiah World (Nevada), SDillon Thieneman (Purdue) and OL Emmanuel Pregnon (USC). UCLA landed the No.1transfer in Iamaleava.

Frostnew to Big12, notschools

portal and pending roster limits —ifthe Mountaineers aregoing to competefor aBig 12 title. The offense lost itsentire line and topthree receivers. Four receivers return who combined for 524 yards last season. Big12backs in theNFL draft

Allﬁve Big12running backs who averaged at least 100 yards pergame last season were selected in last week’sNFL draft. Only twoofthe top 10 rushers from last season are still in the league: Baylor’sBryson Washington (1,028 yards, 12 touchdowns) and BYU’s LJ Martin (723 yards, 7TDs). West Virginia’soffense could revolve around running back Jahiem White, who had 845 yards

rushing and averaged 6.5 yards per carry last season in atwoback system for theMountaineers. Dylan Edwards, nowajunior at Kansas State, averaged 7.4 yards on his 74 carries last year behind drafted JD Giddens. Carson Hansen had 13 rushing TDs for Iowa State, the most for any Big 12 returning back.

All-everything running back CamSkatteboisgonefrom reigning Big12champion Arizona State, which just added Kanye Udoh from the transfer portal after he ranfor 1,117 yards and10 TDs lastseason for Army Some signal callers

Thereare alot of experienced quarterbacksinthe Big12, but it

Sacramento State hires

Shaq as avoluntaryGM

Hall of Famer Shaquille O’Neal has agreed to becomethe general manager of the men’sbasketball program at Sacramento State under new coach Mike Bibby

Aperson familiar with the situation said Monday that O’Neal will take the voluntary job forthe program that his son, Shaqir,recently joinedasa player. The person spoke on condition of anonymity because the school hadn’tmade an announcement.

Bibby,the former NBAstar for the Sacramento Kings, washired as head coach forthe Hornets last month as the school tries to raise its proﬁle in collegiate athletics. One of thefirst additions Bibby madewas signing Shaqir O’Neal as atransfer from Florida A&M NowBibby has O’Neal’sfather involved in the program

Tight end Kittleagrees to extension with 49ers

George Kittle agreed to afouryear contract extension with the SanFrancisco49ersthatwill make him the highest-paid tight end in NFLhistory

Kittle announced the deal on the “Bussin’ With The Boys” podcast on Tuesday,saying the extension was worth$76.4 million over four years with $35 million guaranteed at signing. The deal keeps Kittle under contract through the 2029 season.

The 49ers confirmed the deal with the only remaining member of the originaldraft classunder coach KyleShanahan andgeneral manager John Lynch.

The $19.1 million averageannual value of the extensiontopsthe previous record fora tight end of $19 million set earlier this offseason.

San Franciscopicks up offensive tackle Humphries

The San Francisco 49ers added needed depth to their offensive line,agreeing to acontract on Tuesday with veteran free agent tackle D.J. Humphries.

was atumultuous spring at that position for Oklahoma State. Maealiuaki Smith and Garrett Rangel,the only Oklahoma State quarterbacks withsignificant experience, entered the transfer portal.Thatleft the Cowboys with Zane Flores and Hauss Hejny Flores played only sparingly last season. Hejny,aredshirt freshman, is atransfer fromTCU. Colorado hastoreplace quarterback Shedeur Sanders, and has atwo-QB race between Liberty transfer Kaidon Salter and Julian Lewis,the highly touted five-star recruitwho enrolled early to go through spring drills. The Buffaloesplantoﬁnd alittle more balancebetweenthe run and the pass morethis season, which is why coach Deion Sanders hired Hall of FamerMarshall Faulkasthe running backscoach Among the Big12returners is SamLeavitt, who passedfor 2,885 yard and 24 TDs to help Arizona State win the Big 12 after transferring from Michigan State. SawyerRobertson is back at Baylor after his 3,071 yards and 28 TDs, one more passing score thanTCU’sJosh Hoover (3,949 yards)and TexasTech’sBehren Morton (3,335 yards).

DifferentdirectionsinUtah

BYU, coming off a5-7 debut in the Big 12 in 2023, was arguably the biggest surprise team in the league lastseason,rising as high as No. 6inthe CFP rankings in November before ﬁnishing 11-2 with an Alamo Bowl victory over Colorado.BYU has tons of returning experience on both sides of the ball. But the Cougars also face questions alongthe defensive line wheretheygraduated every starter from last season. Utah collapsed in itsBig 12 debut last year,going frompreseason title favoritestoasevengame losing streak. The Utes brought in formerNew Mexico offensive coordinator Jason Beck to overhaul an offense that ranked near the bottom of the Big 12 in virtually every major statistical category last season.

Humphries’ agents announced the signing on social media, saying Humphries was healthy aftermissing most of last season recovering from atorn ACLsuffered late in the 2023 season with Arizona. The 49ers were in need of depth at tackle after losing Jaylon Moore in free agency last month to Kansas City.They didn’tdraft atackle last weekend and had no provenbackup on the rosterbehind star left tackle Trent Williams and right tackle Colton McKivitz. Williams missed seven games with injurieslastseason andhasn’t played afull season since 2013.

Packerssign former Giants linebacker Simmons

Linebacker IsaiahSimmons the No. 8overall pick in the 2020 draft, signed with the Green Bay Packers on Tuesday Simmons had been with the New York Giants forthe past two years after spending his ﬁrst three seasons with the Arizona Cardinals, whodrafted himout of Clemson.

The 26-year-old Simmons has made 42 starts, but only ﬁve of themcame over the past two seasons.

He appeared in 17 games and madeone start forthe Giants last season while playing on 16.5% of their defensive snaps and nearly one-thirdoftheir specialteams plays.

Simmonshas 81/2 sacks, ﬁve interceptions and two pick-sixes.

Kings are finalizing adeal to keep Christie

The Sacramento Kings are closinginonadeal withDoug Christie to keep him as coach following an interim stint that ended with a loss in the Play-In Tournament. Aperson familiar with the deal told TheAssociated Presson Tuesdaythatthe Kings areﬁnalizing amultiyear contract with Christie Christie took over the Kings afterMike Brown was ﬁred in late December and posted a27-24 recordinhis interim stint. Sacramento made it into the Play-In Tournament as theninth seed butlostits home game to Dallas.

General managerMonteMcNair and the team “mutually parted ways”immediatelyfollowing that game andScottPerry was hiredashis replacement.

ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO By BENJAMIN POWELL

West Virginia coachRich Rodriguez speaks duringa news conference on Dec. 13 in Morgantown,W.Va.

ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO By RICHARD W. RODRIGUEZ

Ohio Staterunning back Willtrell Hartson, left, greets quarterback Lincoln Kienholz before the Cotton Bowl against MissourionDec. 29, 2023. Kienholz is competing for the QB job for the Buckeyes in 2025.

Jordan Hancock,CB, Ohio

(173) JacksonHawes, TE, Georgia

6. (177) Dorian Strong, CB, Virginia

6. (206) Chase Lundt, OT,UConn.

(240) Kaden Prather, WR,

4. (108) Dont’eThornton Jr., WR, Tennessee.

4. (135) TonkaHemingway,DT, South Carolina.

6. (180) JJ Pegues, DT,Ole Miss.

6. (213) TommyMellott, WR, Montana State.

6. (215) Cam Miller, QB,North Dakota State.

7. (222) Cody Lindenberg, LB,Minnesota.

L.A. Chargers

1. (22) Omarion Hampton, RB,North Carolina.

2. (55) TreHarris, WR, Ole Miss.

3. (86) Jamaree Caldwell, DT,Oregon.

4. (125) Kyle Kennard, DE,South Carolina.

5. (158) KeAndreLambert-Smith, WR, Auburn.

5. (165) Oronde Gadsden II, TE, Syracuse.

6. (199) Branson Taylor, OT,Pittsburgh.

6. (214) R.J. Mickens, S, Clemson.

7. (256) TrikwezeBridges, CB Florida.

L.A. Rams

2. (46) Terrance Ferguson, TE Oregon.

3. (90) Josaiah Stewart, DE, Michigan.

4. (117) Jarquez Hunter, RB,Auburn.

5. (148) Ty Hamilton, DT,Ohio State.

5. (172) Chris Paul Jr., LB, Ole Miss.

7. (242) Konata Mumpﬁeld, WR Pittsburgh. Miami

1. (13) Kenneth Grant, DT,Michigan.

2. (37) Jonah Savaiinaea, G, Arizona

5. (143) Jordan Phillips, DT,Maryland.

5. (150) Jason Marshall Jr., CB, Florida.

5. (155) Dante Trader Jr., S, Maryland.

6. (179) Ollie Gordon II, RB,Oklahoma State.

7. (231) Quinn Ewers, QB,Texas.

7. (253) Zeek Biggers, DT,Georgia Tech. Minnesota

1. (24) DonovanJackson, G, Ohio State.

3. (102) TaiFelton, WR, Maryland.

5. (139) Tyrion Ingram-Dawkins, DT Georgia.

6. (201) Kobe King, LB,Penn State

6. (202) Gavin Bartholomew,TE, Pittsburgh. New England

1. (4) Will Campbell, OT,LSU

2. (38) TreVeyon Henderson, RB, Ohio State.

3. (69) Kyle Williams, WR, Washington State.

3. (95) Jared Wilson, c, Georgia.

4. (106) Craig Woodson, S, California.

4. (137) Joshua Farmer, DT,Florida State.

5. (146) Bradyn Swinson, DE, LSU

6. (182) Andres Borregales, K, Miami.

7. (220) Marcus Bryant, OT,Missouri.

7. (251) JulianAshby, LS,Vanderbilt.

(132) Ruben Hyppolite II, LB,

(169) ZahFrazier, CB, Texas-San

(195) LukeNewman, G, Michigan

(233) Kyle Monangai,

Clemson.

5. (153) Jalen RiverS,G,Miami.

6. (193) Tahj BrookS,RB, TexasTech. Cleveland

1. (5) Mason Graham, DT,Michigan.

2. (33) Carson Schwesinger,LB, UCLA.

2. (36) Quinshon Judkins, RB, Ohio

Fannin Jr., TE, Bowling

3. (94) Dillon Gabriel, QB, Oregon.

4. (126) Dylan Sampson, RB, Tennessee. 5. (144) Shedeur Sanders, QB, Colorado. Dallas

1. (12) Tyler Booker, G, Alabama.

2. (44) DonovanEzeiruaku, DE, Boston College.

3. (76) ShavonRevel Jr., CB, East Carolina.

5. (149) Jaydon Blue, RB, Texas.

(247) TommyAkingbesote, DT Maryland. Denver

1. (20) Jahdae Barron, CB, Texas.

2. (60) RJ Harvey,RB, UCF 3. (74) PatBryant, WR, Illinois.

3. (101) Sai’vion Jones, DE, LSU

4. (134) Que Robinson, DE, Alabama.

6. (216) JeremyCrawshaw, p, Florida.

7. (241) Caleb Lohner, TE, Utah. Detroit

1. (28) Tyleik Williams, DT,Ohio State.

2. (57) Tate Ratledge, G, Georgia 3. (70) Isaac TeSlaa, WR, Arkansas. 5. (171) Miles Frazier,G,LSU 6. (196) Ahmed Hassanein, DE,Boise State. 7. (230) Dan Jackson, S, Georgia

7. (244)Dominic Lovett, WR, Georgia. Green Bay

1. (23) Matthew Golden, WR, Texas. 2. (54) AnthonyBelton, OT,NCState. 3. (87) Savion Williams, WR, TCU. 4. (124)

7. (257) KobeeMinor, CB, Memphis. New Orleans

1. (9) Kelvin Banks Jr., OT,Texas.

2. (40) Tyler Shough, QB,Louisville.

3. (71) Vernon Broughton, DT,Texas.

3. (93) Jonas Sanker, S, Virginia.

4. (112) DannyStutsman, LB, Oklahoma.

4. (131) Quincy Riley,CB, Louisville

6. (184) Devin Neal, RB,Kansas.

7. (248) Moliki Matavao, TE, UCLA.

7. (254) FadilDiggs, DE, Syracuse. N.Y. Giants

1. (3) Abdul Carter, DE, Penn State.

1. (25) Jaxson Dart, QB, Ole Miss.

3. (65) Darius Alexander, DT,Toledo.

4. (105) Cam Skattebo, RB,Arizona State.

5. (154) Marcus Mbow,G,Purdue

7. (219) Thomas Fidone II, TE Nebraska.

7. (246) Korie Black, CB,Oklahoma State. N.Y. Jets

1. (7) Armand Membou, OT,Missouri.

2. (42) Mason Taylor, TE, LSU

3. (73) Azareye’h ThomaS,CB, FloridaState.

4. (110) Arian Smith, WR,Georgia.

4. (130) Malachi Moore, S, Alabama.

5. (162) Francisco Mauigoa, LB, Miami.

5. (176) Tyler Baron, DE, Miami. Philadelphia

1. (31) Jihaad Campbell, LB,Alabama.

2. (64) Andrew Mukuba, S, Texas.

4. (111) Ty Robinson, DT,Nebraska.

5. (145) Mac McWilliams,CB, UCF

5. (161) Smael Mondon Jr., LB, Georgia.

5. (168) Drew Kendall, c, Boston College.

6. (181) Kyle McCord, QB,Syracuse.

6. (191) Myles Hinton, OT,Michigan.

6. (207) Cameron Williams, OT Texas.

6. (209) Antwaun Powell-Ryland, DE Virginia Tech. Pittsburgh

1. (21) Derrick Harmon, DT,Oregon.

2. (83) Kaleb Johnson, RB,Iowa.

4. (123) Jack Sawyer, DE, Ohio State.

5. (164) YahyaBlack, DT,Iowa.

6. (185) Will Howard,QB, Ohio State.

7. (226) Carson Bruener, LB, Washington.

7. (229) Donte Kent, CB, Central Michigan. San Francisco

1. (11) Mykel Williams, DE, Georgia.

2. (43) Alfred CollinS,DT, Texas.

3. (75) Nick Martin, LB,Oklahoma State.

3. (100) Upton Stout, CB,Western Kentucky.

4. (113) CJ West, DT,Indiana.

4. (138) Jordan WatkinS,WR, Ole Miss.

5. (147) Jordan James, RB,Oregon.

5. (160) MarquesSigle, S, Kansas State.

7. (227) Kurtis Rourke,QB, Indiana

7. (249) Connor Colby,G,Iowa.

7. (252) Junior Bergen, WR, Montana. Seattle

1. (18) Grey Zabel, G, North Dakota State.

2. (35) Nick Emmanwori, S, South Carolina.

2. (50) Elijah Arroyo,TE, Miami.

3. (92) Jalen Milroe, QB,Alabama.

5. (142) Rylie Mills, DT,NotreDame.

5. (166) Tory Horton, WR,Colorado State.

5. (175) RobbieOuzts, TE,Alabama.

6. (192) Bryce Cabeldue, G, Kansas.

7. (223) Damien Martinez, RB,Miami.

7. (234) Mason Richman, OT,Iowa.

7. (238) Ricky White III, WR,UNLV. TampaBay

1. (19) EmekaEgbuka, WR, Ohio State.

2. (53) Benjamin Morrison, CB,Notre Dame.

3. (84) Jacob Parrish, CB,Kansas State.

4. (121) David Walker, DE, Central Arkansas.

5. (157) Elijah Roberts, DE, SMU

7. (235) TezJohnson, WR, Oregon. Tennessee

1. (1) Cam Ward,QB, Miami.

2. (52) OluwafemiOladejo, DE, UCLA.

3. (82) Kevin Winston Jr., S, Penn State.

4. (103) ChimereDike, WR, Florida.

4. (120) Gunnar Helm, TE, Texas.

4. (136) Elic Ayomanor,WR, Stanford.

5. (167) Jackson Slater, G,Sacramento State.

6. (183) Marcus Harris, CB,Cal.

6. (188) Kalel Mullings, RB,Michigan. Washington

1. (29) Josh Conerly Jr., OT,Oregon.

2. (61) Trey Amos, CB,Ole Miss.

4. (128) Jaylin Lane, WR, Virginia Tech.

SAINTS

Continuedfrom page1C

but theonly important thingiswhether he is any good. If he is, and he is able to get past theinjuries that kept him in college for so long, there is nothing stopping him from enjoying a 10-12-year career

WhyOLatNo. 9?

Banks

New Orleanshad alot of directions it could have taken with its ﬁrst pick, but it landed on Texas offensive lineman Kelvin Banks. Here are somenumbers to consider.For clarity’ssake, these numbers do not include undrafted free agents.

Since 2000, 139 offensive linemen have been drafted in the first round. Of those, 25 (18%) have earned at least one first-team All-Pro nod, and 52 (37.4%) have madeatleast one ProBowl. Breaking it down even further,11ofthe 41 offensive linemen selected in the top 10 since 2000 have earned first-team All-Pro(26.8%) and 18 (43.9%) have made at least one ProBowl. In that same span, 790 offensive linemen have been drafted in Rounds 2-7. Of those, 20 (2.5%) have earned at least one firstteam All-Pronod and 64 (8.1%) have made at least one Pro Bowl. While it is possible to find high-level offensive line play on Days 2and 3of thedraft —and theSaints have done it several times, with players such as Terron Armstead and Erik McCoy —the numbers prove it is a lot harder That is somewhat true for alot of positions, but the numbers are not as drastic as they are upfront. At wide receiver,for instance, 10 of the 105 first-round picks since 2000 made All-Pro (9.5%) versus 23 of the 636 receivers taken on Days 2 and 3(3.6%). The Saints had ahole on

LSU

Continuedfrom page1C

him to play,despite starting 12 games. The 20-year-old is someone LSU wanted to keep basedonthe opportunity he had to play through his mistakes Givens’size, youthand four-star pedigree are why LSU was willing to be patientwith his development

4. DaimionCollins

Losinga22-year-old player with college eligibility after his best season is normally not ideal. Collins, aredshirt junior,averaged8.0 points, 4.3 rebounds and 1.6 blocks

FOOTE

Continuedfrom page1C

Carson Hepworth in center with veterans such as Conor Higgs, Luke Yuhasz, Lee Amedee andJose Torres.

After an injury moved Markle to second base and away from shortstop in favor of Galt, Yuhasz has settled at his new position of ﬁrst base.

“That lineup for whatever reason, because there’s sometalented players not playing right now,gives us our best chance to win,” Deggs said.

On theoffensive side of theplate, the prognosis is a bit moreiffy

“Someofitisbaseball, yes, it is, but you’ve got to keep swinging and you’ve got to be tough-minded and you’ve got to grind at-bats,” Deggs said.

If thepitching and defense remain strong, it doesn’ttake much of an imagination to put together amagical weekend.

Butthe steady parts of the club must remain steady and the hittinghas to get hot when it matters most.

defensiveback QuincyRileyruns adrill at the NFLscouting combine on Feb.28 in Indianapolis. The Saints drafted Rileywith one of their twofourth-round

Afterthe Saints drafted Tyler Shough over the weekend, the team made achangeat quarterback to account for the selection.

The Saints informed quarterback Ben DiNucci that theyplantorelease him, DiNucci wrote on X.

their offensive line, and they made the best possible bet to ﬁll it

Day3value

The Saints have an entire staff devoted toscouting college football players, and like every other team they assemble their own set of draft rankings sometimes referred to as a “board.”New Orleanshas its own, and it may vary drastically from another team’sset of rankings —or from those put out by media members. Still, it was alittle jarring to see some of the Saints picks compared to theprojections made by some in the

in 20.4 minutes.

LSU will misshis veteran presence and his elitevertical abilityat6-9, 200pounds

The former ﬁve-star recruit who is heading to South Florida is belowGivens because of his struggles on the defensive boards.

Of the 31 SECplayers who areatleast6-8 and had aminutes percentage of 35%, Collinshad the worst defensive rebounding rate (12.3%),according to BarTorvik.

Replacing himwithmore reliable glass cleaners out of the portal should play off for LSU.

5. Mike Williams

The 6-3 sophomore played in 24 games and averaged 4.0

“I’m adreamer,man,” Deggs said. “I know if we can get in that tournament —not in the play-in game,

DiNucci, 28, had been with the Saints since late last season when he joinedthe practice squad.

The Saints’ quarterback room nowconsists of Derek Carr,Shough, Spencer Rattlerand Jake Haener Carr’s status for2025 is still unknown as he deals with a shoulderinjury. DiNucci enteredthe NFL in 2020 when he wasdrafted in the seventh round out of James Madison by Dallas. He appearedinthreegames forthe Dallas Cowboys MatthewParas

media. Banks, for instance, was rated 26thand 27th, respectively,byThe Athletic and NFL Media. Texas DT Vernon Broughton, whom the Saints selected 71st overall and considered in the second round, did not even crack NFL Media’stop 150 as aprospect.All four of New Orleans’ Day 1and 2 picks ranked lower on these lists thantheir ultimate draft position. But, at least in termsof those media rankings, the Saints rallied on Day 3.

The Athletic had both linebacker Danny Stutsman (87) and cornerback Quincy Riley (94) as top-100 prospects, and the Saints got

points andshot31.3% from the ﬁeld in 11.2minutes.

Williams had hisrole significantly reduced from his freshmanseason when he started 22 games while scoring7.2 pointsin19.5 minutes.

While willing to be ahighvolume 3-point shooter,he failedtoprovide much value when he didn’tmake 3s.

6. Noah Boyde Boyde was a7-foot, 245-pound junior who played ﬁve games and 12 total minutes.

Coming to LSUfrom McCook Community College in Nebraska appeared to be too big of aleap as he was unable to earn minutesona

in the tournament —wecan winit. “I know we can. We’re capable of playing good for

them with picks 112 and 131, respectively.Running back Devin Neal, whom the Saints selected 184th overall, wasranked as high as No. 49 by Yahoo. The Athletic also had defensive end Fadil Diggs, the Saints’ last pick of the draftatNo. 254, as atop-160 player Nobody will remember the rankings afew years from now when we see how these careers play out, but it certainly wouldn’thurt aSaints team that desperately needs someyoung impact players to hit on a couple of Day 3picks. Email Luke Johnson at ljohnson@theadvocate.com.

team starving forfrontcourt help after Reed’sseasonending injury on Dec. 3. Boyde, now with Western Kentucky,was unlikely to improve enough to earn signiﬁcant minutesin2025-26 at LSU.

7. Tyrell Ward

As ajunior, Ward never playedduring the 2024-25 season, stepping away from theprogram because of mental health reasonsbefore the ﬁrst game. He wasn’texpected to return to the team and has since transferred to Virginia Commonwealth. The 6-6 wing averaged 9.1 points in 21.8 minutesper game as a sophomore.

“I’m not guaranteeing

I’mjust saying we’re

pable of it.”

ASSOCIATEDPRESS POTO By GEORGE WALKER IV Louisville

picks

Moore, Abbeville, 10.65; .3 Brennan Gibson, Port Allen, 10.70. 200: 1. Catron Hargrove,Glen Oak, 21.75; 2. Brennan Gibson, Port Allen, 21.76; 3. BraylonMoore, Abbeville, 22.05. 400: 1. Catron Hargrove, Glen Oaks, 48.94; 2. Careion Franklin, Lake Charles Prep, 49.60;3.KalebWest, Port Allen, 50.11. 800: 1. Aiden Monistere, Parkview Baptist, 1:58.18; 2. Reed Boudreaux, Parkview Baptist, 1:58.97;3.Cameron Soirez, Erath, 2:00.42. 1,600: 1. Aiden Monistere, Parkview Baptist, 4:26.84; 2. Max Tsolakis, University,4:27.47; 3. Andrew Watts, Parkview Baptist, 4:27.91 3,200: 1. Aiden Monistere, Parkview Baptist, 10:26.11; 2. Deacon Stantz, St. Louis, 10:28.65; 3. Reed Boudreaux, 10:36.19. 110 hurdles: 1. Sean Herrington, Erath, 14.69; 2. JamarcusYoung, Glen Oaks, 15.40; 3. Kalen Antoine, Lake Charles Prep, 15.45. 300 hurdles: 1. Kalen Antoine, Lake Charles Prep, 40.04; 2. Damone Scott, LakeCharles Prep,40.61; 3. Sean Herrington, Erath, 40.98. RELAYS 4x100: 1. LakeCharles Prep42.57; 2. University High 43.47; 3. Parkview Baptist 43.65. 4x200: 1. LakeCharles Prep1:28.26; 2. Glen Oaks 1:30.00; 3. Parkview Baptist 1:30.75. 4x400: 1. GlenOaks 3:23.10; 2. Lake Charles Prep3:25.03; 3. Port Allen 3:27.10 4x800: 1. Parkview Baptist 8:22.22; 2. Glen Oaks 8:23.74; 3. Acadiana Renaissance 8:24.86. FIELD EVENTS High jump: 1. Jaiven Matthews, Lake Charles Prep, 6-2; 2. JimmyLewis, Collegiate-BR, 6-0; 3. JordanDugas, LakeCharles Prep,6-0. Long jump: 1. DeandreDunn, Glen Oaks, 23-2; 2. Gerald Watson, Jennings, 21-10.5; 3. William Plaster, LakeCharles Prep, 21-9. Triple jump: 1. CameronBrazzie, LakeCharles Prep, 45-7.25; 2. Braylen White, LakeCharles Prep, 45-3; 3. DeandreDunn, Glan Oaks, 44-9. Pole vault: 1. Lucas Owens, Acadiana Renaissance, 14-0; 2. Connor Toups, Erath, 11-0;3.LukeCaraway St. Louis, 11-0. Discus: 1. Kevin Small, Kaplan, 160-5; 2. Lamar Brown, University,145-7; 3. Noah Royer, South Beauregard, 137-9. Javelin: 1. LaDerrien Burns, Port Allen, 162-0; 2. Jacob Marcantel, South Beauregard, 157-2; 3. GordonRush, University,152-3. Shot put: 1. Colton Guillory,St. Louis, 47-1.25;2.Victor Hollins, Madison Prep, 45-3.75; 3. Darius Mack,Madison Prep, 43-5.5. Girls RUNNING EVENTS 100: 1. Cebrina Scarlett, SouthBeauregard, 12.07; 2. Akia Jackson, Lake Charles

SCOREBOARD

Cramer, Parkview,

PREP REPORT

5:28.24; 2. Molly Cramer, Parkview, 5:29.20; 3. Cate Williamson, University,5:34.39. 3200: 1. Lucy Cramer, Parkview 12:01.43; 2. Molly Cramer, Parkview 12:03.03; 3. Caroline Cain, University 12;05.46. 100H: 1. Makayla Miller, Madison Prep, 15.24; 2. Na’Ryah McAllister, LakeCharlesPrep, 15.85; 3. Annie Garrison,University,15.97. 300H: 1. Dynasty Wilfred, Madison Prep, 43.95; 2. Macey Theriot, Parkview,45.52; 3. Annie Garrison, University,46.88. RELAYS 4x100: 1. LakeCharlesPrep48.62, 2. St. Louis 48.95,3.Port Alleen 49.76 4x200: 1. St. Louis 1:40.65, 2. ,Lake Charles Prep 1:41.94, 3. Madison Prep 1:43.05. 4x400: 1. St. Louis 3:55.27, 2. Lake Charles Prep 3:57.14, 3. University 3:58.25. 4x800: 1. Parkview Baptist 10:00.11, 2. Kaplan 10:02.34, 3. St. Louis 10:09.77. FIELD EVENTS High jump: 1. Ella Butler, St. Louis, 5-0; 2. Monet Temple, University,5-0; 3. Semaj Malveaux, LakeCharles Prep, 5-0. Long jump: 1. Jana Thymes, Parkview,18-9.5; 2. Auri Ray, Madison Prep, 16-7.25; 3. RobbyPalmer, Glen Oaks, 16-5. Triple jump: 1. Cali Cain,University 37-4; 2. TreasureMatthews,Acadiana Renaissance, 35-3.5; 3. Annie Garrison, University,34-5. Pole vault: 1. RachelOwens,Acadiana Renaissance, 10-0; 2. Ansley Bernhard, Parkview,9-0; 3. Mary Grace White, Erath, 7-6. Discus: 1. Addyson Hebert, Kaplan, 112-1.5; 2. Ashton Lasseigne, Acadiana Renaissance, 105-7; 3. Naomi Wyble, Erath,105-7. Javelin: 1. Sophia Runnels, Westlake, 112-11; 2. Chloe Painter, Kaplan, 100-1; 3. MadisonMcManus, Kaplan, 99-3. Shot put: 1. Ashton Lasseigne, Acadiana Renaissance, 32-6; 2. Vada Fontenot, South Beauregard, 31-9; 3. Addyson Hebert, Kaplan, 31-7.5. Region 2, Class 1A

Date: Wednesday. Place: Basile High. Teams: Ascension Episcopal, Basile, Berchmans, Catholic-PC, Centerville, Central Catholic, Covenant Christian, Elton, Grand Lake, Gueydan, Hamilton Christian, Hanson,Highland Baptist, JS Clark, Jeanerette Merryville, North Central, Oberlin, Opelousas Catholic,SacredHeartVP,St. Edmund, Vermilion Catholic, Westminster, Westminster-Lafayette. Region 1, Class 5A

Date: Wednesday. Place: Northwestern State, Natchitoches.

Startingtimes: 1 p.m. ﬁeld; 3p.m.

running. Teams: Acadiana, Airline, Alexandria, Barbe, Benton, Byrd, Captain Shreve, Carencro,Evangel, Haughton, Huntington, Lafayette High, Natchitoches Central, Neville, New Iberia, Ouachita Parish, Parkway Pineville, Ruston, Sam Houston, Southside, Sulphur, West Monroe. Region 2, Class 4A

Date: Wednesday. Plate: Brusly High

Startingtimes: 1 p.m. ﬁeld; 5:45 p.m.

running.

Teams: Beau Chene, Belaire, Breaux Bridge, Broadmoor, Brusly,Cecilia, Comeaux, David Thibodaux, Istrouma, Livonia, Lutcher, McKinley, North Vermilion, Northside, Opelousas, Plaquemine, Rayne, St. Michael, St. Thomas More, Tara,Teurlings, West Feliciana, Westgate.

Soft

Publishers see surging interest in U.S. Constitution

BY HILLEL ITALIE AP national writer

NEW YORK When Random

House Publisher Andrew Ward met recently with staff editors to discuss potential book projects, conversation inevitably turned to current events.

“It seemed obvious that we needed to look back to the country’s core documents,” Ward said. “And that we wanted to get them out quickly.”

On Wednesday, Random House announced that it would publish a hardcover book in July combining the Declaration of Independence and the U.S. Constitution, followed in November by a hardcover edition of the Federalist Papers. Both books include introductions by Pulitzer Prize-winning historian Jon Meacham, who has written biographies of Thomas Jefferson and Andrew Jackson among others

The Random House volumes, released through its Modern Library imprint, will join a proliﬁc market that has surged in recent months. According to Circana, which tracks around 85% of the print retail market, editions of the Declaration of Independence, the Federalist Papers and the U.S. Constitution are selling at their fastest pace since Circana began compiling numbers in 2004.

Around 162,000 combined copies have sold through mid-April, compared to 58,000 during the same time period the year before and around 33,000 in 2023. Sales were around 92,000 in the early months of Trump’s first term, in 2017, more than double the pace of 2016.

AP FILE PHOTO MATT ROURKE

A 1776 broadside printing of the Declaration of Independence is displayed at the Museum of the American Revolution in Philadelphia in 2019.

Brenna Connor, a book industry analyst for Circana, said the jump “is likely in response to the recent change of administration” and cited increased interest in other books about democracy and government, among them Timothy Snyder’s “On Tyranny” and the Michael Lewis-edited “Who Is Government?” a collection of essays about civil servants by Dave Eggers, Geraldine Brooks, Sarah Vowell and others.

“This pursual of political understanding is playing out in a few different areas,” Connor added.

Meacham, during a recent phone interview with The Associated Press, said that the founders had sought to make sense of a revolutionary era whether breaking with England or debating how to form a federal government with enough power to rule effectively, without giving it the kind of monarchical authority that enraged the colonies. Reading the Declaration and other texts, he believes, can give today’s public a similar sense of mission and guiding principles.

“It is a tumultuous moment to put it kindly,” Meacham said “One way to address the chaos of the present time, what Saint Paul would call the ‘tribulations’

BRINGING THE HEAT

Lafayette to dive into the world of bourbon and barbecue with Derby Day event

BY JOANNA BROWN Staff writer

For the past six years, Smoke and Barrel has celebrated the tastes, sounds and spirits of southwest Louisiana — and Texas — with a bourbon-fueled extravaganza in the heart of downtown Lake Charles.

This Saturday, Smoke and Barrel is coming to Lafayette for the ﬁrst time. For the Acadiana event, attendees are invited out to Russo Park at the University of Louisiana at Lafayette for a Kentucky Derby watch party — with plenty of tasty perks.

The official Smoke and Barrel tasting glass, handed out at the gate, gives ticket holders access to dozens of bourbon, whiskey, scotch and barbecue vendors expected at this weekend’s event, described by founder Adam Fontenot as a “fun way to raise money and have a good time.”

This Lafayette Derby decadence is all for a good cause. The event originated in 2018, when Lake Charles friends Fontenot and Nathaniel Allured conceived of Smoke and Barrel as a way to combine their backgrounds in the hospitality

and spirits industries while beneﬁting local nonproﬁts, including the United Way of Southwest Louisiana. Proceeds from Smoke and Barrel Lafayette will support Big Brothers Big Sisters of Acadiana.

“It’s a fun and exciting way to make a difference,” said Saige Mestayer director of marketing for Smoke and Barrel. “It’s been a bigger impact than we originally thought it could be. Since 2018, we’ve donated over $200,000.”

Mestayer says that the team hopes to accomplish the same in Lafayette for Big Brothers Big Sisters.

The Lake Charles spectacle sees thousands of people mingling in their best boots, 10-gallon hats and cocktail attire as live music and dancing form the backdrop to tasting, sipping and chatting with dozens of curated whiskey and barbecue producers. One of the top-rated barbecue vendors hitting Smoke and Barrel Lafayette this weekend will be Blood Bros BBQ from Houston,

ä See CONSTITUTION, page 6C ä See SMOKE, page 6C

PROVIDED PHOTOS FROM SMOKE AND BARREL

Smoke and Barrel, an event celebrating fine bourbons and barbecue, started in Lake Charles in 2018. Smoke and Barrel’s inaugural Lafayette event will take place on Saturday at the University of Louisiana at Lafayette’s Tigue Moore Field at Russo Park. Proceeds from the event will benefit Big Brothers Big Sisters of Acadiana.

The official Smoke and Barrel tasting glass, handed out at the gate, gives ticket holders access to dozens of bourbon, whiskey scotch and barbecue vendors expected at this weekend’s event.

SMOKE

Continued from page5C

Texas. Last year,they were awardeda BibGourmand designation in the ﬁrst Texas Michelin Guidefor theirfusion-style barbecue merging Chinese, Korean and Vietnameseﬂavors.

Other Lafayette-based vendors will be Johnson’s Boucaniere, Peace Love and Smoke and Sage’sSmoke-

houseBBQ. When it comes to spirits, the event is bourbon-centric. Localdistilleries like JT Meleck will be on hand, alongsideregional and national distillers —but beer,wine,champagne and other beverages will also be available for those who want to toast to theDerby winner with adifferentbeverage. Tickets for Smokeand Barrel Lafayetteare $125 and can bepurchased on the Smoke and Barrel website

The event will takeplace from 5p.m. to 9p.m. SaturdayatTigue MooreField at UL-Lafayette’sRusso Park. Attendees receiveunlimited bourbon and barbecue samples, complementary mint juleps and acommemorativetastingglass —and Derby Day attire is encouraged,according to Smoke and Barrel organizers.

Email Joanna Brown at joanna.brown@ theadvocate.com.

HashbrownsatLouie’sCafe

BEST

Continued from page5C

satisfying and enough to have leftovers.

—Lauren Cheramie, features coordinator Hash browns n Louie’s Cafe, 3322 LakeSt., Baton Rouge

As abrunch enthusiast, I’ve been making my way through Baton Rouge’s cafes and brunch menus.

Louie’sCafe came highly recommended by many, and Iwas excited to try the eggs Benedict (the eggs were poached perfectly).

But what blew me away was their hash browns. Ilove apotato in any form, but these hash browns might be the best I’ve had. They come cubed with onions and Cajun sea-

CONSTITUTION

Continued from page5C

of the present time, is to reengage with the essential texts that are about creating asystem that is still worth defending.”

soning. It’sasimple dish, but it stole the show.I’d make aspecial stop back at Louie’sjust to eat these hash browns again. Maybe next time, I’ll splurge on some toppings.

—SerenaPuang, features writer Caesar salad with crispychicken n The Flats,427 Jefferson St., Lafayette

Ican only refer to this Caesar salad from The Flats,aburger restaurant in downtown Lafayette, as outstanding.Surprising, even,thanks to the generouscomplementoffurikake ﬂakes, citrus, cured duck egg yolk andshaved Parmesan that coat this salad —all dressedwiththe restaurant’shouse-made miso-Caesar dressing.

Allofthat would have satisﬁed me on its own,

Learning to swim is anecessity

Dear Heloise: Sharon’sletter was about the importance of teaching one’s children to swim well and to practice excellent water safetyingeneral. My husband and Iwere not only good swimmers but worked as lifeguards as teens. We chose not to install our backyardpool until each of our four kids was water-safe. Ourcombined experiences convinced us that one can never be lax around water Our14-year-old daughter pulled avisiting 3-year-old out of our pool as his parents visited with other adults about20feet away.This type of “accident”often happens when lotsofpeople, including adults, are close by.Learning to swimisnot achoice

By The Associated Press

Today is Wednesday,

STAFF PHOTO By JOANNA BROWN ACaesar salad with crispy chicken from The Flats in Lafayette

but theaddition of crispy chicken elevates this salad to thelevel of an unforgettable meal. Customers also have theoption to add shrimp,which Ican’twait to try next time.

—Joanna

Brown, staff writer

The Modern Library books will have many competitors. The 18th century documents allare in thepublic domain, can be read for free online and anyone can publish them According to Circana, popular editions have been released by Skyhorse, Penguin, Barnes &Noble and others. “Wegenerally see increased salesofeditionsof the Declaration of Independenceand the Constitution every electioncycle,but particularly this year,” said ShannonDeVito, Barnes & Noble’s senior director of book strategy.“This could be because next year marks the250th anniversaryof the Declaration of Independence,” she said, “or thefast and furious current political conversations and policy changes.”

but anecessity! —Cindy,in St.Louis Cindy,assummer approaches Icannot stress this enough. I’ve received too many“if only” letter from parents whosay,“If only I’dtaught them to swim or even dogpaddle.” Learning to swim has saved many lives, and it’snever too early to learn. —Heloise Laundering a fitted sheet

Dear Heloise: Isaw an ad foradevice to hold the corners of aﬁtted sheet together while it’sbeing laundered. It prevents clothing from getting caught inside the sheet.

The next time Idid laundry,Ithought about holding the corners of the sheetstogether and realizedthata large rub-

berbandwould work just ﬁne.Inow take the four corners of the ﬁtted sheet, hold themtogether,then use the rubberbandto bind themtogether.Iwash the sheetsand dry them with the rubberbandon. It works great, and Ino longer have dampclothes wrapped up in the sheet as it comes out of the dryer AReader, via email

Save some money

Dear Heloise: To save money,use abar of soap or liquid soap instead of canned shaving cream. It’s better forthe environment, too. Ed, in Dallas Ed, there is something else you can use to shave with, and it is plain ol’ olive oil! It moisturizes the skin!

—Heloise

Send ahinttoheloise@ heloise.com.

April 30, the 120th day of 2025. There are 245 days left in the year

Todayinhistory:

On April 30, 1975, the Vietnam Warended as the SouthVietnamese capital of Saigon fell to Communist forces.

On this date:

In 1789, George Washington took theoath of ofﬁce at Federal Hall in New York as the ﬁrst president of the United States.

In 1803, theUnited States completed its purchase of the828,000-square-mile LouisianaTerritory from France for 60 million francs, theequivalent of about $15 million; the acquisition roughly doubled thesize of the United States.

In 1900, engineer John Luther “Casey” Jones of theIllinois Central Rail-

road died in atrain wreck near Vaughan, Mississippi, staying at the controls to slow his passenger train before it struck astalled train near an approaching station; Jones was the only fatality of the accident.

In 1973, as the Watergate scandal deepened, President Richard Nixon announced the resignations of top aides H.R. Haldeman and John Ehrlichman, Attorney General Richard G. Kleindienst and White House counsel John Dean (though Deanwas actually ﬁred by Nixon).

In 1993, top-ranked women’stennis player Monica Seles wasstabbed in the back during amatch in Hamburg, Germany, by aman whodescribed himself as afan of secondranked German player StefﬁGraf.(The man was convicted of causing grievous bodily injury,but was given only a2-year sus-

pended sentence.)

In 1993, the European Organizationfor Nuclear Research (CERN) announced thatthe World Wide Web, whichwas inventedatCERN four yearsearlierbyTim Berners-Lee, was free foranyonetouse,and released its sourcecodetothe public domain.

Today’sbirthdays: UN Secretary-General António Guterres is 76. Filmmaker Jane Campion is 71. Filmmaker Lars von Trier is 69. Basketball Hall of Famer Isiah Thomas is 64. Actor Johnny Galecki is 50. Actor Sam Heughan is 45. Actor Kunal Nayyar is 44. Rapper Lloyd Banks is 43. Actor Kirsten Dunst is 43. Basketball Hall of Famer Seimone Augustus is 41. Actor GalGadot is 40. Actor Dianna Agron is 39. Actor Ana de Armas is 37. Rapper-producer Travis Scott is 34.

STAFF PHOTO By SERENA PUANG

PROVIDED PHOTO FROM SMOKE AND BARREL

The inaugural Smokeand Barrel,anevent celebrating fine bourbons and barbecue that startedinLakeCharles in 2018, will takeplace on Saturdayatthe University of Louisiana at Lafayette’sTigue Moore Field at Russo Park

TAURUS (April 20-May 20) Deal with whatever stands in your way.Sticking to your schedule and flying under the radar will keep outside influences at bay, giving you full reintocomplete whatever mission you pursue.

GEMINI (May 21-June20) Precious"me time" will help you chill while putting things in perspective. Taking on the world's weight will lead to nothing good. Put your energy toward personal prosperity.

CANCER (June 21-July 22) Listen and observe, but avoid choices based on fear of failing to pleaseothersorgain acceptance. Discipline is necessary Focus on committingtowhat's best for you.

LEO (July 23-Aug. 22) Raise the bar instead of loweringexpectations. Travel to places that make you thinkorthat physically challengeyou, and you'll gain insight into what'spossible.

VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22) Conflicts will arise over jointventures or shared expenses. Aprofessional change or promotion requires your attention. You'll miss an opportunity if youallow someone's complaints or demands to interfere.

LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 23) Keep an open mind, learn allyou can and channel your energy into lifestyle changes. Forming apartnershiporworking with someone trying to reach similargoals will enhance your life

SCORPIO (Oct. 24-Nov. 22) Challenge yourself physically.A competitive

attitude willhelp you build enthusiasm andcomplete what you set out to do. A networking eventwill offer aplatform to market yourself.

SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 23-Dec. 21) Gear up and be ready for positive change. An opportunityisapparent, but it's up to you to dig in and make thingshappen. Physical andintellectual gains will raise yourprofile.

CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19) Adiversion will help point your mindinapositive direction. Revisityour plans and commit to follow through with your intentions. Pursue something that gets you moving.

AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 19) Set time aside for midweek socializing, afitness extravaganza or family outings. An investment opportunity or lowering your overhead will helpreduce stress.

PISCES (Feb. 20-March 20) Take time to crunch thenumbers and sort out hidden costs, and set arealistic budget. Prioritize personal gain, independence andtaking care of yourself.

ARIES (March 21-April 19) Step into the spotlight. Keep the momentumflowing andyoursights on your goal.Dedicate time to honing yourskills, budgeting for your plans and letting others know howyou feel.

Andrews McMeel Syndication

Celebrity Cipher cryptograms arecreated from quotations by famouspeople, past and present. Each letter in the cipherstands for another.

CLUE:L EQUALS U

TODAy'S

CeLebrItY CIpher

For better or For WorSe

SALLYForth

beetLe bAILeY

Mother GooSe And GrIMM

Sudoku

InstructIons: Sudoku is anumber-placing puzzle based on a9x9 gridwith several given numbers. The object is to place thenumbers 1to9inthe empty squares so that each row, each column and each 3x3 box containsthe same number only once. The difficulty level of theSudoku increases from Monday to Sunday.

Yesterday’s Puzzle Answer

THewiZard oF id

BLondie

BaBY BLueS

Hi and LoiS

BY PHILLIP ALDER

Douglas Horton was aProtestant ministerandacademicwhosaid,“Goodideas are adime adozen; bad ones are free.”

Let’s see if you have apenny’s worth in this six-no-trump contract. West leads theclub 10. WhatshouldSouth do?

Iamstill an ardent supporter of oldfashioned responses to atwo-club opening. By giving an immediate positive response (two no-trump to showa balanced hand with eight or more points), theopener knowsit’s aslam deal.If responder starts with two diamonds, opener willbeworried that hispartner hasnouseful cards.

North’s four-club rebid is Gerber, askingfor aces. (This convention shouldbe employedonly if partner’s lastbid was one no-trump or two no-trump.)

South has nine top tricks: two spades, threehearts andfourclubs. Obviously, he must establish dummy’s diamond suit.Ifthe missing cardsare splitting 2-2or3-1, that will be easy; but what if a defender has all fourdiamonds?

If it is East, declarer has no chance. ButifitisWest, South can survive if he is careful with his entries. He should take the first trick on the board and lead the diamond king. West might as well takethe trickand playanotherclub.

Declarer runs that to his hand and leads adiamond, capturing West’s nine with dummy’sjack. Southreturns to hishand with aspade, takes adiamondfinesse, and claims.

Note that if declarer wins the first trickinhis hand andplays adiamond to the jack, he can no longer make the contract.

Each Wuzzle is aword riddle which creates adisguised word, phrase, name, place, saying, etc. For example: NOON GOOD =GOOD AFTERNOON

Previousanswers:

word game

InstRuctIons: 1. Words must be of four or more letters. 2. Words that acquire four letters by the addition of “s,”suchas“bats” or “dies,”are notallowed. 3. Additional words made by adding a“d” or an “s” may notbeused. 4. Proper nouns, slang words, or vulgar or sexually explicit words are notallowed.

toDAY’s WoRD MELoDEon: meh-LO-dee-en: Asmall reed organ.

Averagemark 27 words

Time limit 40 minutes

Can youfind36ormorewords in MELODEON?

YEstERDAY’sWoRD— oRAcLE

Fearing the Lord has greatbenefits. Thank youLord. G.E. Dean

loCKhorNs

marmaduKe

Bizarro

hagar the horriBle

Pearls Before swiNe

garfield

B.C.

PiCKles

hidato

mallard fillmore

Wall Street continues rise amid profits

U.S. stocks rose againTuesday as stronger-than-expected profits kept piling higher for companies, thoughCEOs said they’re unsure how long that can last because of uncertainty aroundPresident Donald Trump’strade war

TheS&P 500 climbed to extend itswinning streaktoa sixth day. The Dow JonesIndustrial Average andthe Nasdaq composite also rose.

Honeywell International helped lead themarket with again of 5.4% after reporting stronger proﬁt and revenue for the latest quarter than analysts expected. Perhaps even more importantlyfor investors, it also raised its forecast for profit over the full year

Sherwin-Williams rose 4.8% foranother one of the market’s bigger gains after the paint and coatingscompany likewise reported abetter-than-expected proﬁt.

Coca-Cola overcame an early drop to rise 0.8%. The beverage giantreportedbetter-thanexpected earnings in the ﬁrst quarter and said the impact of tariffs on its business are likely to be “manageable.”

GM recalls nearly 600,000 cars

General Motors is recalling nearly 600,000 vehicles across itsCadillac, Chevroletand GMC brands in the U.S. duetopotential manufacturingdefects that can cause engine failure

The recall covers certain Cadillac Escalades and Escalade ESVs; Chevrolet Silverado 1500s, Suburbans and Tahoes; as well as GMC Sierra 1500s, Yukons and Yukon XLs between model years 2021 and 2024. According to recall documentspublished by theNational Highway Traffic Safety Administration, these vehicles shareagas engine that may have connecting rod or crankshaftcomponent problems, due to supplier manufacturing or quality issues. This can lead to enginedamage,and potentially failure, while driving —increasing crash risks.

Prior to failure, NHSTAdocuments warn, impacted drivers may be alerted of these issues through loud knocking or banging noises, the check engine light turning on and/orother driving performance issues, such as reduced propulsion.

As aremedy,dealerswill inspectaffected vehicles —and repair or replacethe engine if necessary with newer components, free of charge. Dealers notificationsbegan last week, with ownerletters set to be mailed out June 9.

In all, about 597,630 vehicles are covered by the recall,per a notice dated Thursday.But the company estimates that just 3% have the defect.

Job openings fall to 7.2 million in March

Jobopenings in the United States fell in MarchasPresident Donald Trump’strade wars clouded the economic outlook.

U.S. employers posted 7.2 millionvacancies in March, down from7.5 million in February and 8.1 million in March2024, the LaborDepartment reported Tuesday.Itwas the fewest number of openings since September andbelow the7.5 million that economists had forecast. But the department’s Job Openings and Labor Turnover Summaryalsoshowed that the numberofAmericans quitting their jobs —asign of conﬁdence in theeconomy —rose modestly.And layoffs fell to thelowest level since June.

Openings remain high by historical standards but have fallen steadily since peaking at 12.1 million in March 2022, when the economy was still bouncing back from COVID-19 The American job market has proven remarkably resilient. Companies, nonproﬁts andgovernment agencies continued to hire in the face of high interest rates engineered by the Federal Reserve to combat aresurgence of inﬂation.

Consumer confidenceplummets

pect hiring to slow in the coming months, nearly matching the level reached in April 2009, when the economywas mired in theGreat Recession.

go down.”

BY CHRISTOPHER RUGABER AP economics writer

WASHINGTON Americans’ conﬁdence in the economy slumped for the ﬁfth straight month to the lowest level since theonsetofthe COVID-19 pandemic as anxiety over the impact of tariffs takesa heavy toll.

TheConference Boardsaid Tuesday that its consumer conﬁdence index fell 7.9points in Aprilto86, its lowest reading sinceMay 2020. Nearly one-third of consumers ex-

Thefiguresreflect arapidly souring mood amongAmericans, most of whom expect prices to rise because of thewidespread tariffs imposed by President Donald Trump. About half of Americans are also worried about the potential for arecession, according to a survey by TheAssociatedPressNORC Center

“Rattled consumers spend less than confident consumers,” said CarlWeinberg, chief economist at High Frequency Economics, in an email. “Ifconﬁdence sags and consumers retrench, growth will

Ameasure of Americans’ shortterm expectations for their income, business conditions and the jobmarket plunged 12.5 pointsto 54.4, the lowest level in morethan 13 years.The reading is well below 80, which typically signalsarecession ahead.

How this gloomy mood translates into spending, hiring, and growth will become clearer in thecoming days and weeks. On Wednesday,the government will reportonU.S.economic growth duringthe ﬁrst three months of the year,and economists are expectinga sharp slowdown as Americans pulled back on spending after astrongwinterholiday shopping season.

And on Friday,the Labor Departmentwillrelease itslatest report on hiring and the unemployment rate. Overall, economists expect it should still show steady job gains, though some forecast it could report sharply reduced hiring. More Americans are also now worried that the economy could tipintoa recession, with theproportion of consumers expecting adownturn in the next 12 months reaching atwo-year high. Fewer consumers said theywere planning to buy ahome or car in the next six months. Sales of previously occupied U.S. homes slowed last month in alackluster start to the spring homebuying season as elevated mortgage rates and rising prices discouraged those looking.

BY MAE ANDERSON AP business writer

NEWYORK— Major orders canceled. Containersofproducts left stranded overseas.No roadmap for whatcomes next.

TheTrump administration raised tariffs on goodsfrom China to 145% in early April. Since then, small businessowners who depend onimports from China tosurvive have become increasingly desperate as theyeye dwindling inventory and skyrocketing invoices.

President Donald Trump seemed to back down somewhat last week when he said he expected thetariffs to come down “substantially.” That helpedset offarally in thestock market. But forsmallbusinessesthat operateonrazor-thin margins, the back and forth is causing massive upheaval. Some say they couldbejust months from going out of business altogether

JeremyRice co-ownsHouse, ahome-décor shop in Lexington,Kentucky,thatspecializes in artificial flower arrangementsfor the home.About 90% of the flowers his business

BY MICHELLECHAPMAN AP business writer

UPS is looking to slash about 20,000 jobs and close more than 70 facilitiesasitdrastically reduces theamountofAmazon shipments it handles.

The package delivery company said Tuesday thatitanticipates making the job cutsthis year.It anticipates closing73leased and owned buildings by theend of

uses are made in China.

Rice uses dozens of vendors. The largest are absorbing some of thecost of the tariffs andpassing on therest. One vendor is raisingpricesby20% andanother 25%. ButRice is expecting smaller vendors to increase prices by much higher percentages.

Houseoffersmid-range artiﬁcialﬂowers. Alarge hydrangea head will retail for$10 to $16, for example.

China is theonly place that manufacturers higher qualitysilk ﬂowers. It would take a vendor yearstoopena factory in adifferent country or move production somewhere else, Rice said.

Rice ordered his holiday décor early this year.But even after stocking up ahead of the tariffs, he only hasenough everydayﬂoral inventorytolast two to three months.

“After that, Idon’t know what we’re going to do,”hesaid.

Rice is concerned that thetrade war will wipe out abunchofmom-and-pop stores, similar to what happenedinthe Great Recession and thepandemic.

“There’s nowheretoturn, there’snothing

June. UPS said that it is still reviewing its network andmay identify more buildings to be shuttered

“The actionsweare taking to reconﬁgureour network and reduce costacrossour business could not be timelier,” CEO Carol Tomé said in astatementonTuesday.“The macro environment may be uncertain, but with ouractions, we will emerge as an even stronger, more nimble UPS.”

In January,UPS announced that it hadreached adeal with Amazon, its biggest customer, to lower its volume by morethan 50% by the second half of 2026.

During UPS’ fourth-quarter earnings conference call in Janu-

to do,” he said.

Lisa McDonald, owner of TeaHaus, located in Ann Arbor,home to theUniversity of Michigan, said the tariffﬁght has “basically just put abig pit in my stomach.”

Americans drank about 86 billion servings of tea in 2024, according to the TeaAssociation of the U.S.A.. Almostall of that is imported since tea isn’tgrowninthe U.S. at scale, due to factorsranging fromclimate to cost.

McDonald imports loose-leaf tea from China, India, Kenya, Sri Lanka and other countries. She says her customer base is “from alloverthe U.S. andthe world.” But she worries there is alimit to whatthey’ll spend. Her premium teas can cost up to $33 fora50-gram bag.

McDonald understands Trump’srationale forwanting to use tariffs to spur U.S. manufacturing but says it doesn’tapply to the tea industry

“Wecan’tgrow tea in the U.S. to the extent that we need. We can’tjust ﬂip the industry and‘make teagreat again’ in America. It just can’thappen,” she said.

ary,Tomé said that the company had partnered with Amazon for almost 30 years and that when its contract came up thisyear,UPS decided to reassess the relationship.

“Amazon is our largest customer butit’snot our most proﬁtable customer,” Tomé said at the time. “Its margin is very dilutive to the U.S. domesticbusiness.”

Tomé said thatUPS considered various options and determined thatthe volume reduction was the bestalternative. The company employs about 490,000 workers, according to FactSet. United Parcel Service Inc. also reported its ﬁrst-quarter ﬁnancial

results on Tuesday. The Atlantabasedcompanyearned $1.19billion, or $1.40 per share, in the quarter ended March 31. Stripping out certain items, earnings were$1.49 per share. That’s better than the $1.44 per share that analysts polled by Zacks Investment Research were calling for Revenue totaled $21.55 billion, beating Wall Street’sestimateof $21.06 billion. UPS said it wasn’tproviding anyupdatestoits previously announced full-year outlook, given current macroeconomic uncertainty.The company previously saiditexpected 2025 revenueof approximately $89 billion.

ASSOCIATEDPRESS PHOTOByPAULSANCyA

Owner Lisa McDonald packages loose leaf tea orders at the TeaHaus in AnnArbor, Mich.McDonald importsloose-leaf tea fromChina, India, Kenya, Sri Lanka and other countries.