The Advocate 04-30-2025 by The Advocate

‘Tell That Angel ILove Her,’ on ‘American Idol’ earlier this month.

PROVIDED PHOTO By

‘TALK OF THE TOWN’

John Foster’s hometown elated as ‘AmericanIdol’contestantadvances

BY HALEY MILLER Staff writer

John Foster maynot be in town,but hisface is everywhere.

In the “American Idol” contestant’s hometown of Addis, on thewest bank of the Mississippi River,signs of support dotthe drive along La.1.They are just one manifestation of the pride and excitement felt byWest Baton Rouge Parish as the 18-year-old country artist many watched grow up continues to advance in the national singing competitiononABC that started in 2002.

“John Foster Benoit,” one reads, usingthe full name ofthe singer by which the locals know him, “from Addis to Idol!” The LSU freshman made the cut for Idol’sTop 10 Monday night, after performing RandyTravis’ “I Told YouSo” with theold-country twangand Southern manner that have distinguished his performances on the show.He dedicated thesongtoCarrie Underwood and, as he sang the ﬁnallines he tipped his hat to the American Idol

Asign supporting ‘AmericanIdol’ contestant and Addis nativeJohn Foster hangs outside Emma’sGarden in Port Allen on Tuesday.

veteran and now judge.

“He’ssuch agreat representation of West Baton Rouge Parish,” said Christy Fabre, whotaughtthe singer in middle school typing class and has

hung banners outsideher husband’s garden shop telling passersbytovote for “Cutie-Patootie” John Foster

ä See ‘IDOL’, page 4A

Fundingfor DOTD employee paycould be in limbo

BY ALYSE PFEIL Staff writer

As part of aplan to overhaul the Louisiana Department of Transportationand Development, state lawmakersare consideringa major change to how the state pays forthe salaries of DOTD employees. Legislators saythe move would freeupmoney for spending on road and bridge construction —but they haven’tyet decided on an alternative way to fund the paychecks of roughly 4,300 state workers. Sincethe 1990s, lawmakers have used money from the Transportation TrustFund,which gets money from the state gas tax, to pay for DOTD employee salaries and beneﬁts.

Woodside Energy has madeafinal investment decision to build a$17.5 billion liquefied natural gas production and export facility in CalcasieuParish, which stateofficialssaidisthe largest foreign investment in Louisiana history Constructionofthe Louisiana LNGfacility has been underway

Agency continuesto believeBourbon Street suspectacted alone

BY SAM KARLIN and MISSY WILKINSON Staff writers

The FBI said Tuesday that it continues to believe that the man who rammeda truck into revelers on Bourbon Street on NewYear’sDay acted alone, despite new reports that Iraqi ofﬁcials arrested an alleged ISIS memberoverseas for allegedly inciting the attack.

Butasinﬂation and labor costs have risen, money received from the gas tax hasn’tkept up, andpersonnelcosts have eaten up abigger share of thefund, whichwas designed to pay for construction and maintenance of Louisiana highways and bridges.

That’swhy Rep. RyanBourriaque, R-Abbeville, who chairs theHouse transportation committee, is sponsoring legislationthat would bar lawmakers from using thefundto pay DOTD salaries and beneﬁts.

Legislatureconsidering changeinspending ä See DOTD, page 4A

“The FBI’sinvestigation into theNew Year’sDay terrorist attack in New Orleans remains active and ongoing,” the agency said in astatement. “While we continue to work with our law enforcement partners, both in the U.S. and internationally,based on theinformationtodate, we continue to believe that Shamsud Din-Jabbaracted alone in carrying out the attack on Bourbon Street.” Al Arabiya News,aSaudi state-owned international Arabic news channel, reported over the weekend that Iraqi authoritiesarrested asuspect “for inciting the January 2025 truck attack in the United States.”

ä See ATTACKER, page 6A

STAFF PHOTO By HALEyMILLER

Addis teen John Foster sings his original song

BYTIMOTHY BOONE Business editor

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-

At

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.”

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

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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.

Jonathan Matessino President, Bank of

Continued from page 1A

“His charm, his personality, his well-mannered politeness, it’s contagious,” Fabre said. “And I hope he inspires more kids to be the Southern gentleman that he is.” Foster stood out as a polite and highly successful student, Fabre said. She remembered him even as a middle schooler listening to country icons like George Jones, George Strait, Conway Twitty and Elvis Presley

She also suspected he was going to be “somebody special” one day, she said.

“I can remember thinking John Foster’s going to be, like, governor of Louisiana,” Fabre said “I just knew God had some kind of big plan for him because he just had that drive.”

Many people in the small towns of Addis, Brusly and Port Allen, as well as Baton Rouge at large, feel connected to Foster and proud of how he is honoring his roots on the show

Earlier in April, he sang the original song “Tell That Angel I Love Her” in a tribute to his friend Maggie Dunn who, along with Caroline Gill, was killed in 2022 when an Ad-

DOTD

Continued from page 1A

The problem is longstanding, Bourriaque said earlier this month, referencing a 2016 report from former Gov John Bel Edwards’ gubernatorial transition committee that recommended changing how money in the Transportation Trust Fund is used.

“While the public expects these dollars to pay for transportation infrastructure, in actuality these dollars primarily are paying for personnel, personnelrelated benefits,” as well as operating expenses and maintenance, the 2016 report says.

Bourriaque said the aim of prohibiting the use of the Transportation Trust Fund for DOTD employee salaries and benefits is to ensure those funds go toward construction projects.

But it’s unclear where lawmakers would ﬁnd an alternative source of funding to cover DOTD employee salaries and benefits — roughly $438 million. Under the plan, the prohibition wouldn’t take effect until July 1, 2026.

Bourriaque said that would give state lawmakers a year to devise an alternative way to fund DOTD employee pay But ofﬁcial state revenue projections show the Legislature is facing shortfalls in the coming budget years.

dis police ofﬁcer ran a red light during a high-speed chase.

“I’m telling you, it just brings a tear to you,” Addis Mayor David Toups said. “You’re beaming with pride. Not only is he just from here, he’s like family as well.”

Foster is also deeply involved in the community, those who know him said. He volunteered, ran a Bible club at Brusly High School and played music at St. John the Baptist Catholic Church.

The Rev Arun John, of St. John the Baptist Catholic Church, described Foster as humble and passionate about his faith.

“One thing that amazes me is in spite of having so many talents, he’s very humble,” John said. “He never takes pride in his talents.”

Brusly High School

Principal Walt Lemoine said Foster is an inspiration for the students at his former high school, where he was named co-valedictorian last year “Kids can (see) that’s real life, I can follow my dreams,” Lemoine said “They see one of theirs doing it. It’s deﬁnitely been the talk of the town, that’s for sure.”

Email Haley Miller at haley.miller@ theadvocate.com

But he said he is “encouraged” by conversations he’s had with lawmakers on “the path forward.”

The proposed change in how the state pays for DOTD employees is part of a larger plan to restructure Louisiana’s transportation department. While the reform effort is being championed by Bourriaque through a package of four bills in the current legislative session many lawmakers have said they are fed up with the slow pace of construction and maintenance of Louisiana’s roads and other infrastructure

An alternative plan?

A fiscal analysis of the plan prepared by the Legislature’s nonpartisan staff assumes that the $438 million in employee salaries and benefits currently funded by the Transportation Trust Fund would be offset using money from the state’s general fund.

But the latest state revenue projections anticipate a projected $194 million deﬁcit in the state general fund for the upcoming fiscal year, followed by projected deﬁcits in subsequent years of $86 million, $571 million and $668 million.

Asked about 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 through this issue” and allows “for a more detailed review between now April 2026.”

House budget Chair Jack McFarland, R-Jonesboro,

Transportation Secretary Joe Donahue said the fact that an alternative means of funding employee salaries and benefits “has not yet been identiﬁed” is “unnerving.”

said he is not worried about the prospect of needing to find an alternative source 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 said that, instead of moving funds from the state general fund to the capital outlay budget — a practice he’s seen every year since he joined the Legislature in 2016 money in the state general fund would instead go toward DOTD employee salaries and beneﬁts.

The Transportation Trust Fund can then be used “for roads and bridges, for true transportation costs,” he said.

At the same time, McFarland also acknowledged that unknowns remain about any new funding arrangement, given that the DOTD reorganization plan as a whole is still being put together

‘Privatization of services’

Part of the DOTD overhaul would direct department leadership to “maximize to the fullest extent possible the privatization 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 shift to utilizing third-party contracts rather than employees, which would lead to a signiﬁcant reduction in costs for personal services.”

“Any such decrease will depend on the number and

type of employees eliminated and is indeterminable at this time,” the analysis says.

Asked which DOTD functions would be shifted to third-party contractors, Bourriaque said in an email that “efficiencies will be identified over time” by the new Office of Transformation, a proposed department within DOTD that would be tasked with increasing efficiency and with implementing the Legislature’s reform measures.

The Office of Transformation would also draw

“significant input” from the leadership and staff in DOTD’s nine regional ofﬁces, he said.

He added that there is still a year to work with DOTD leadership and state lawmakers “to determine which positions can be eliminated, including some current, vacant positions.”

State Rep. Jerome Zeringue, R-Houma, a member of the House budget committee, said he is supportive of the move toward outsourcing more DOTD functions, including engineering work.

“I think that’s an effective way to advance and maybe provide some cost savings by advancing some of these projects quicker,” he said. McFarland said he was unsure of the extent to which the department reorganization effort aims to increase privatization of DOTD functions but expects to have that discussion when the plan comes up for debate on the House ﬂoor in the coming days. Email Alyse Pfeil at alyse.pfeil@theadvocate. com.

STAFF PHOTO By HALEy MILLER

A banner in support of John Foster reading, ‘We are #AddisProud of you,’ hangs outside Addis Town Hall on Tuesday.

and otherspraywith the family of LaTasha Polk on Jan. 4atBourbon and Canal streets in NewOrleansduringamemorial for 14 people killed in a terror attack on Newyear’sDay

They cited Iraq’sSupreme Judicial Council as thesourceofthe information about the arrest, and said it came after arequest from Washington to help with the investigation.

Accordingtoanews release from the National Center for International Judicial Cooperation of Iraq, The First Karkh Investigation Court investigated, identiﬁed andarrested the suspect in Iraq as amember of ISIS’sExternal Operations Ofﬁce.

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

About aweek afterthe attack,ISIS touted the incident in its newsletter, saying it inspired the assailant through online propaganda. Thegroup stopped short of claiming itdirectly coordinatedwithJabbar,but instead emphasized its propaganda network that apparently inﬂuenced him.

Newsofthe arrestoverseascaught 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 bulletinstates.

Jabbar rammed arented pickup down Bourbon Street in the early hours of NewYear’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 wouldbe lone wolf attackers on how to carry out mass casualty events. ISIShas increasingly turned to English-language online publications to inspiresuch attacks since its caliphate was decimated.

Jabbar’s attack closely followed theterror group’s playbook, promotedinEnglish language magazines andonlinecontentcirculated globally.One such magazine released an issueas recently as last September that made specific calls for lone-actor attacks. The group has specifically called for attacks using vehicles at largegatherings and celebrations. Louisiana AttorneyGeneral Liz Murrilllaudedthe FBI on Tuesday forits continued work to “ensure we get answers andjustice for the victims of this horrific tragedy.”

House MajorityLeader Steve Scalise, R-Jefferson, said he would continue to prayfor everyone impacted bythe attack.

“There mustbezerotolerance for terrorism in our country,” hesaid in astatement Staff writer Jonah Meadows contributed tothis report

Thedevelopment has expansion capacity that will allowittoproduce27.6 million tons of LNG annually

Four LNG terminals are currently operating in Louisiana, and Venture Global is nearinga finalinvestment decision on Calcasieu Pass 2, its second Cameron Parish facility Louisiana LNG has had a longhistory. Houston-based Tellurian first discussed building the facility, which was then calledDriftwood LNG, in 2016. In 2018, it won acontroversial tax concession worth up to $2 billion over its ﬁrst decade, which was then thelargest industrial tax break in Louisiana’s history

The project was approved by federalregulators during the ﬁrst Trump Administration andreceiveda longterm export license. But disruptions caused by the COVID-19 pandemic,alack of financing and lengthy equipmentdeliverytimelines delayed construction.

Woodside is an Australian company with operationsacrossNorth and South America, Africa and Australia. The company shippedits firstcargo of LNG from Australia to Japan in 1989. It acquired Driftwood LNGlastyearwhen it purchased Tellurianfor $900 million. Earlier this month, it solda40% stakeinLouisiana LNG to the infrastructure investment ﬁrm

Stonespeak for $5.7billion, amove thatreduced the amount of capital it would have to comeupwith to complete the plant and made a“material step” towardthe finalinvestment decision. Stonespeak’scontributions will be used to support75% of thecapital expenditures at the plant through 2026.

DanielKalms, executive vicepresident andinternational chief operating officer for Woodside, said global LNG demand has increased by 60% over the pastdecade and is expected to growanother 50% over thenext 10 years.

About 500 people are already working at theLoui-

TOWN OF ST.FRANCISVILLE PUBLIC HEARING NOTICE

NOTICE IS HEREBYGIVEN thatthe Mayorand BoardofAldermen of theTownof St.Francisville will hold aPUBLIC HEARING/ MEETINGonJune 10, 2025, at 5:30 p.m. at 11936 Ferdinand St Town Hall meeting room,St. Francisville,Louisiana to adopt the following:

ORDINANCE2025- 3and ORDINANCE 2025-4

Notice is herebygiven pursuanttoArticle 7, Section 23(C) of the Louisiana Constitution and R.S. 47:1705(B) thatapublic hearing of TheTownofStFrancisville in West Feliciana Parish will be held at its regularmeetingplace Town Hall Meeting Room, locatedat 11936 Ferdinand St., St Francisville,LAonTuesday,June 10, 2025 at 5:30 p.m. to consider levying additional or increased millage rateswithout further voterapproval or adopting the adjusted millage ratesafter reassessmentand rolling forwardtorates nottoexceed theprior year’s maximum. Theestimatedamount of tax revenues to be collectedinthe next year forGeneral Alimonyfromthe increased millage is $201,889.95 and the amountofincrease in taxes attributable to the millage increase is $17,112.24.

siana LNG site, Kalms said. Pilings have been driven in theground, concretehas been pouredand dirthas been moved

“One of theadvantages of this project is that alot of early work has been done,” he said. “It’sperfectly poisedtotakeoff nowwith this final investment decision.”

Theproject is a“gamechanger”for Woodside that will positionthe company as aglobal LNG leader,CEO Meg O’Neill said in astatement. The location will allow thecompanytosellLNG to clients in Europeand Asia, which givesitoptions in casethe Russia-Ukraine war ends and Russiannaturalgas is once againallowed to be sold in Europe, she toldThe Wall Street Journal.

Greg Upton, executive director of the LSUCenter for Energy Studies, said the global demand for Gulf Coast LNG is being driven by the low priceofnatural gasinLouisianaand Texas,

compared to the cost in Europe and Asia.LNG costs just under $3 per million British thermal units at the Henry Hub, whichruns through Erath, but $11.68 at themainEuropean transfer facility in the Netherlands and$11.90 at theEast Asia transfer point, according to ﬁgures from the U.S. Energy Information Administration.

The Russianinvasionof Ukraine jump-started some LNG projects that were going nowhere.

“Countriesaroundthe world are willing to pay apremium forlong-term natural gas contracts,” Uptonsaid.

Currently,13% of the natural gas being produced in theU.S.isexportedasLNG Upton said there is no theoretical ceiling on how much supply could be exported, as long as customers arewilling to pay the high costs of liquiﬁcationand shipping.

“That shows how much the globalmarketvalues thatnaturalgas,” he said.

Louisiana Bucket Brigade

SWLA Program Coordinator Lori Cooke wasless enthusiastic aboutLouisiana LNG. “There (are) so many (LNG facilities) trying to getinonthe ground ﬂoor, but they’re already too late,” Cooke said. “There’s so many of them, and they’refranticallytrying to startshipping LNG, so they can, you know,kind of capitalize on this boom,but there’salready aglut.” Cookementioned that the newfacilitywill also bring problemswith erosion and dredging, as wellascontinued pollution to the area.

“We’ve sacriﬁced enough of ourhealth andour family’shealth andour ancestors’ health with those dangerous chemicals that are going into the air,and (this newfacility) is just going to addtothat,” Cookesaid.

Staff writer Courtney Pedersen contributed to this report. Email TimothyBooneattboone@ theadvocate.com.

ThePublic is invited to attend In accordance with the American with DisabilitiesAct,ifyou need special assistance, please contactStacyOrr at (225) 635-3688. StacyOrr,TownClerk Town of St.Francisville P. O. Box400 (225) 635-3688

Jabbar

Proposed kratom banadvancestoSenate

Committee hears intensetestimony from family,users

BYMEGHAN

FRIEDMANN Staff writer

Akratom ban is one step closer to becoming areality in Louisiana after the Senate’sJudiciary CCommittee approved abillto criminalize the substance on Tuesday Senate Bill 154bystate Sen.Jay Morris,R-West Monroe, who chairs that committee, now advances to the full Senate for consideration.

If it passes the Senate, it would still needHouseapproval before heading to Gov.Jeff Landry’sdesk.

But SB154 has competition. In the House, House Bill 253 by state Rep.Chad Boyer,R-Breaux Bridge, seeks to regulate kratom

The two different sides —those who would ban kratom versus those who would regulate it —pleadedtheir cases during Tuesday’scommittee hearing on SB154.

Supporters of the ban,including some law enforcement and medical doctors, described theherbal substance as athreattopublic safety.Family members testiﬁed about how their loved ones struggled with kratom addiction.

Meanwhile, some scientists testiﬁed that the substance has too much promise to treat opioid addiction to be banned outright. Kratom users said the products helped them self-treat chronic pain and mental illness, andthatitchanged 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 and ought to be taken off store shelves. Thoseproductscontain far higher levels of the compound 7-hydroxymi-

tragyninethan those found in pure,driedkratom leaf Kratom comes from atree native to southeast Asia, where its leaves have been used for medicinal purposes forhundreds of years. Still, in some southeast Asian countries, kratom use isillegal At lowdosages, kratom typically acts as astimulant; at higher ones, it can have opioid-like effects.

Kratom is not approved for medical use bythe U.S Food& Drug Administration, which warnsagainst theuse of kratom as amedical treatment because it has notyet evaluated its safety andeffectiveness.

Morrisamendedhis bill to lessen ﬁnes for kratom possession andcap theﬁne for kratom distribution.

If the bill passes, possession of less than 20 grams of kratom wouldcarry a$100 ﬁne. Those in possession of more than 20 grams would face up to 6months in a parish jail or aﬁne of up to $1,000.

Those convicted of distributingkratomwould 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 painted theﬁghtover theban as afight between awealthy kratomindustry and those who simplywish to protect public health Efforts to ban kratom in other states are “being met with aggressivelobbying and lots of money because nowthere’s alot of money in this project, probably in the billions,” Morris said

Followingthose remarks, PeteCroughan, deputy secretary of theLouisianaDepartment of Health, testiﬁed to the abusepotentialofkratom products

Amedical doctor who treats substance use disorder

at the Acadiana AreaHuman Services District,Croughan said he sees “more patients with kratom addiction than withcrack 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.

“He has lostmultiple 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 nottopass akratom ban because, they said, the substance can change lives for good.

One man told senatorskratomhad successfully treated his depression; another,that he used kratom to get off suboxone, amedical treatment for opioid dependency

In an interview,Wednesday ForestBear,who also testiﬁed before thecommittee, said she suffers from Scheuermann’sdisease, a spinaldisorder that “causes excruciating pain.”

CourtpausestransfertoVermont in studentimmigration detentioncase

By The Associated Press

Afederal appeals court has paused ajudge’sorder to bring aTurkish Tufts University student from aLouisiana immigration detention center back to New England this week so it can consider an emergency motion filed by the government.

The U.S. 2nd Circuit Court of Appeals, based in New York, ruled Monday that athree-judge panel would hear arguments on May 6in the case of Rumeysa Ozturk. She’sbeen detained for ﬁve weeks as of Tuesday

Adistrict court judge in Vermont had earlier ordered that the 30-year-old doctoral student be brought to the state by Thursday for hearings to determinewhether

shewas illegallydetained Ozturk’slawyerssay her detention violatesher constitutionalrights,including free speech and due process.

The U.S. Justice Department, which is appealing that ruling, said that an immigration courtinLouisiana has jurisdictionoverher case. Congress limited federalcourt jurisdiction over immigration matters, government lawyers wrote. Yetthe Vermont judge’sorder “defies those limitsatevery turn in away that irreparably harms the government.”

Ozturk’slawyersopposed the emergency motion. “In practice, that temporary pause could last many months,” they said in anews release. Immigration officials surrounded Ozturk as

But kratom saved her life, she said:Beforeshe began using it, she couldn’tget out of bedinthe morning; now, she barely needs her wheelchair

Jack Henningfield, vice president for research and health policy at Pinney Associates, apharmaceutical consulting ﬁrm, and an adjunct professoratJohns Hopkins University,calledkratom “a lifelineaway from opioids for alot of people.”

Kirsten Smith, an assistant professor of psychiatry and behavioral sciences at Johns Hopkins University, said she is conducting two clinical trials wheresubjectstake kratom and has yet to seean adverse event.

Still othersargued that banning kratom will drive it underground and create a black market

MacHaddow, senior fellow on Public Policy with the

she walkedalong astreetina Bostonsuburb March 25 and drove her to NewHampshire and Vermont beforeputting heronaplane to adetention center in Basile,Louisiana.

Ozturk was one of four students who wrote an op-ed in thecampus newspaper,The TuftsDaily,lastyear criticizing the university’sresponse to student activists demanding that Tufts“acknowledge thePalestinian genocide,” disclose its investments and divest from companies with tiestoIsrael.

ADepartment of HomelandSecurity spokesperson said in March, without providing evidence, that investigations found that Ozturk engaged in activities in support of Hamas, aU.S.-designated terrorist group.

American Kratom Association, which opposes the ban, blamed “adulterated” kratom products —orsynthetic products withhigh levels of 7-hydroxymitragynine —as the“badactors” that threatened public health.

“Wewantstrictregulations on kratom to avoid these bad actors being in the marketplace.”

Boyer’sbill, HB253, takes aim at such products. It also

requireskratomproducts to be registeredwiththe Louisiana DepartmentofHealth andsets strictlabeling standards.

HB253 must win the approvalofthe House Appropriations Committeebefore the full House can vote on it. Email Meghan Friedmann at meghan.friedmann@ theadvocate.com.

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BY WILL WEISSERT, JOEY CAPPELLETTI and SEUNG MIN KIM Associated Press

WARREN, Mich. President Donald Trump on Tuesday celebrated the 100th day of his second term —yet spent much of his rally markingit in campaign mode,ﬁxated on past grudges and grievances.

He repeatedly mocked hisDemocratic predecessor,Joe Biden, attacking his mental acuity and even how he appears in abathing suit. He againutteredthe liethat he won the 2020 presidential election. And he attacked polling andnewscoverage not favorable to him.

And Trump again and again returned to immigration, his signature issue,atthe rally that marked his largestpolitical event since returning to the White House —boasting about his administration’s “massdeportation” efforts that have sent arrests for illegal crossings along the U.S.Mexico border plummeting.

“Removingthe invadersis not just acampaign pledge,” Trump said in his 90-minute speech. “It’smysolemn duty as commander-in-chief Ihave an obligation to save our country.”

“We’re here tonight inthe heartland of our nation to celebrate themost successful ﬁrst 100 days of any administration in the history of our country,” Trump said, standing before large electronic screens reading “100 Day of Greatness.”Helater added: “We’ve just gotten started. Youhaven’t even seen anything yet.”

HisRepublican administration’sstrict immigration policies have pushed the boundaries ofthe judiciary, and its protectionist import taxes imposed on America’s trade partnershavealso sought to reordera global economy that the U.S. built in the decades after World WarII.

Trump has also championed sweeping expansionism,refusingtoruleout military interventionin Greenland and Panama, suggestingthat American developers could helpconvert the war-torn Gaza Strip into aRiviera-like resort and even suggestingannexation of Canada.Meanwhile, government-slashingefforts led by billionaire adviser Elon Musk have shaken Washington to its core.

“After alifetime of unelected bureaucrats stealing your paychecks, attacking your values and trampling your freedoms, we are stopping theirgravy train, endingtheir power trip and telling thousands of corrupt, incompetent and unnecessary deepstate bureaucrats, ‘You’re ﬁred!’” Trump said. Yetonly about4 in 10 Americansapprove of how

He paused his remarks to play avideo of migrants who Trump asserts aregang members arriving at anotorious prison in El Salvador, with rallygoerscheering as images of deportees having their heads shaved were played. And while Michigan has seen unemployment rise since Trump reclaimed the White House, Trump used his speech to defend his administration’ssteep tariffs on cars and autoparts —hours after the White Houseannounced it was softening those.

Automakers

Trumpishandling the presidency,and his ratings on the economy andtrade are lower than that. Additionally,46% of U.S. adults approve of Trump’simmigration policies,with abouthalf of Americans saying he has “gone toofar”when it comes to deporting immigrantsliving in the countryillegally Just 33% of Americans, meanwhile, have afavorable view of Musk, theTesla CEO andthe world’srichest person, andabout half believe theadministration has gone too far in working to pare back the governmentworkforce.

“The bottom linefor the ﬁrst hundred days is, lots of damage being done to the fundamentals of our government,” saidMax Stier,founding president and CEO of the Partnership for Public Service, anonproﬁt dedicated to better government Typically,presidents use the 100-day mark to launch multiple rallies. ButTrump is doing only the Michigan stop.

offeredsome relief on Trump’s25% tariffs

BY JOSH BOAK and ALEXA ST.JOHN Associated Press

WASHINGTON President Donald Trumpwillsignan executiveorder Tuesday to relax some of his 25% tariffs on autos and auto parts, the White Housesaid, asigniﬁcant reversal as the import taxes threatenedtohurt domestic manufacturers.

Automakers and independent analyseshave indicated that the tariffscould raise prices, reduce sales and make U.S. production less competitive worldwide White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said at a Tuesday brieﬁng that Trump would sign the order later in the day but declined to provide details on the order Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, who joined Leavitt at the White House brieﬁng, said the goal was to enable automakers to create more domestic manufacturing jobs.

“PresidentTrump hashad meetings with both domestic and foreign auto producers, and he’scommitted to bringing back auto production to

the U.S.,” Bessentsaid. “So we want to give the automakers apathtodothat, quickly, efficiently and create as many jobs as possible.”

The administration will offer automakers that ﬁnish their vehiclesdomesticallya 15% rebate this year,offsettingthe costofthe tariffs. That rebate would be 10% the second year,giving the automakers some time to relocateproductionofparts outside the country to the United States, aseniorCommerce Department official said on acall withreporters to preview the executive order. The rebates would be available to domestic and foreigncompanieswith auto plants in the U.S.

The Commerce Department ofﬁcial saidautomakers told Trumpthatthe additional time would enable them to ramp up theconstruction of newfactories, after automakers warned thatitwould take time for them to shifttheir supply chains. The ofﬁcial said automakers wouldover the next month announce additional shifts for workers, newhires andplans for new

facilities.

Stellantis Chairman John Elkann saidinastatement thatthe company appreciates the president’stariff relief measures

“While we furtherassess theimpact of thetariff policies on our North American operations, we look forward to ourcontinuedcollaborationwith the U.S. Administrationtostrengthena competitive Americanauto industry andstimulate exports,”hesaid.

General Motors CEOMary Barra said theautomaker is grateful forTrump’s support of the industry,and shenoted the company looks forwardtoconversations with the president andworking with the administration.

“Webelievethe President’sleadershipishelping level theplaying field forcompanies likeGMand allowing us to invest even more in the U.S. economy, Barra said in astatement.

JimFarley, presidentand CEO of FordMotor Company,stressed that his company does more thanits peers to manufacturedomestically

tion Day on Jan. 20.

The exceptions have been ﬂying most weekends to golf in Florida or attend sporting events, including theSuper Bowl andthe Daytona500. The limited travel to see supporters is amajor departure from his first term,when Trump held aseries of rallies before celebrating 100 days in ofﬁce with aPennsylvania speech in 2017.

Michiganwas oneofthe battleground states Trump flipped in 2024from the Democraticcolumn. Butit’s also been deeply affected by his tariffs, including on new importedcarsand auto parts.

urged the White House to scrap plansfor tariffson imported auto parts, warning that doing so would raise prices on cars and could trigger “layoffs and bankruptcy.” That seemingly would make the state an odd choice for Trump to hail his accomplishments.

Administration officials sayTrumpisathis mosteffective when staying at the WhiteHouse, having meetings and speaking to reporters nearly every day.Indeed, thespeech in Macomb County was oneofthe few large political crowds he’s

Automaker Stellantis halted production at plants in Canada andMexicoafter Trumpannounced a25% tariff on imported vehicles, temporarily laying off900 U.S. employees. Industry groups have separately

Luis Guevara, of Grosse Pointe Farms, Michigan, said outsideTrump’s rally that he’s “cautiously optimistic” aboutTrump’sfirst 100 days in office but noted that change can be hard. “Wedon’tlook at our 401(k) or our portfolio on a daily,weekly,monthly basis or even year to year.Ithink the market is very skittish,” Guevara said. “Now is certainly notthe time to mimic the market and be skittish.I think we have to hold tight. It’sgoing to be arough ride. Change is difficult for alot of people.”

ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO By ALEX BRANDON

PresidentDonald Trumpspeaks on his first 100 days at Macomb County Community CollegeSportsExpo Center on TuesdayinWarren, Mich.

ASSOCIATED

Indian paramilitarysoldierspatrol as theyguard at abusy market in Srinagar,Indian-controlled Kashmir,onTuesday.

Authoritiesclose resortsinKashmir

followingdeadlyattack

BY AIJAZ HUSSAIN and SHEIKH SAALIQ Associated Press

SRINAGAR, India Authorities in Indian-controlled Kashmir have temporarily closed more than half of the tourist resorts in thescenic Himalayan region after last week’sdeadly attack on tourists raised tensions between India and Pakistan and led to an intensifyingsecurity crackdown in Kashmir

At least two police ofﬁcers and three administrative ofﬁcials, who spoke on condition of anonymity in keeping with departmental policy, saidTuesday that the decision to shut 48 of the 87 government-authorized resorts was aprecautionary safety measure. They didnot specify for how long theseplaces would be out of boundsfor visitors.

The decision comes a week after gunmen killed26 people,mostofthemIndian tourists, near the resort town of Pahalgam.

The massacre set off titfor-tat diplomatic measures between India and Pakistan that included cancellation of visas and arecall of diplomats. New Delhi also suspended acrucial water sharingtreatywithIslamabad and ordered its bordershut with Pakistan. In response, Pakistan has closed itsairspace to Indian airlines Indiaaccuses Pakistan India has described the massacre as a“terrorattack” and accused Pakistan of backing it. Pakistan has denied any connection to the attack, and it was claimed by apreviouslyunknownmilitant group calling itself the Kashmir Resistance.

Some tourists who survived the massacre have toldIndian mediathat the gunmen singled out Hindu men and shot them from close range. The dead includeda Nepalese citizen and alocal Muslim pony ride operator. The region is splitbetween India and Pakistan and claimed by both in its entirety.New Delhi describesall militancy in Indian-controlled Kashmir as Pakistan-backed terrorism. Pakistan denies this, and many MuslimKashmiris consider the militants to be part of ahome-grown freedom struggle.

Tensions spike

As tensions escalate, cross-border firingbe-

tween soldiers of Indiaand Pakistan has also increased alongthe Line of Control, the de facto frontier that separates Kashmiri territory between the two rivals.OnTuesday,the Indianarmyinastatement said it had respondedto “unprovoked” smallarms ﬁre from multiplePakistan armyposts for aﬁfth consecutive night. There was no comment fromPakistan, and theincidents could not be independently verified. In the past,each sidehas accused the otherofstarting border skirmishes in the Himalayan region.

The U.S. StateDepartment called for deescalationand said that Secretary of StateMarco Rubio would be speaking soon to theIndian and Pakistani foreign ministers.

Pakistanitroops shot down asmall Indianspy drone that ﬂew hundreds of meters into Pakistani-controlled Kashmir, three Pakistani security ofﬁcials told The Associated Press on Tuesday,speaking on condition of anonymityasthey weren’t allowed to speak to themedia. The drone was shot down on Monday in the border town of Bhimber, theysaid.

BY TODD RICHMOND Associated Press

JUNEAU,Wis.— Ajudge on Monday ordereda former Wisconsin prison warden implicated in an inmate’sdeath to pay a$500 ﬁne to resolve thecase after concluding he hasnocriminal record and didn’trealize his guards weren’tfollowing policy Prosecutors charged former Waupun Correctional InstitutionWarden Randall Hepp and multiple members of his staff in June 2024 in the deathsofinmates Cameron Williamsand Donald Maier Heppwas charged with felony misconduct in connection with Maier’sdeath, acount punishable by up to three-and-a-half years in prison and $10,000 in ﬁnes. Maierdiedofdehydration and malnutrition in solitary confinementinFebruary 2024 after guards turned off the water in his cell, accordingtoacriminalcomplaint. Investigators said Hepp failed to ensurehis staff followed policy

Dodge CountyDistrict

Attorney Andrea Will reduced the charge Monday to amisdemeanor count of violatinglaws governing a state or county institution in exchange for Hepp’s no contest plea. The new charge is punishable by up to 30 days in jail and a$500 ﬁne. Will told Judge Martin Devries shereduced the charge because Hepp was well respected within the state DepartmentofCorrectionsand didn’t know guards weren’tfollowing policy

“Wehave to make adecisionabout where to spend ourresources andwhere to extend our resources andit’snot an easy thing to charge people in leadership of an institution,” Will later told reporters. DeVries ordered Hepp

to pay the $500 ﬁne and court costsbut didn’tsentence him to jail. The judgecited his servicerecord, hislack of a criminalrecord andhis “subparemployees”who failed to follow policy.The judge called Hepp’sprosecution “symbolic.”

Hepp’sattorney,Michael Steinle, told the judgeHepp was “extremely remorseful” and while amisdemeanor conviction might notmean muchtoalot of people it does to him.Hepp saidhe understood thepleabargain and waived hisright to a trial. He and Steinle left the courthouse withoutspeaking to reporters.

A‘slap on thewrist’

Maier’smother,Jeanette Maier,calledHepp’ssen-

tence a“slap on the wrist” andsaidher son had been treated worse than acaged animal.

“Nothing can bring my sonback but Ilike to think we as asociety would at leastlearnsomething from this tragedy so it never happens to someone else’s son,” Maier said in astatement.

Warden’s staffcharged

Eight members of Hepp’s staff were chargedinJune with abuse or misconduct in the deaths of Williams or Maier.

Onlinecourt records show charges were dismissed against oneofthem this month and another pleaded guilty in Septembertoareduced count of

misdemeanor violating laws governing apenal institution and was assessed a$250 ﬁne. The remaining cases arepending. Williams diedofa stroke while in solitary confinement at Waupun in October2023. His body wasnot discovered for at least 12 hours. According to court documents, Williams told an inmateadvocate three days before he diedthatheneeded to go to ahospitalbut no action wastaken. He had fallen in theshowertwo days earlierand crawled back to his cell. Aday before, he had collapsed on the way back to his cell but neither fall wasdocumented.Noone checked on him the night he died.

PRESS PHOTO

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Lawmakerskillcarboncapture bill

Proposal wouldhaveprovidedlocal vote on projects

propertyrights concerns.

BY DAVID J. MITCHELL Staff writer

Astate House panel Tuesday rejected abill to let parish ofﬁcialsor voters decide whether controversial carbon-captureprojects can be built in their communities. But the panel did give thefeelings of local ofﬁcials extra weight in the permitting processthrough the state Department of Energy and Natural Resources. That bill was seen by some legislatorsasa compromise to meet demands to let residents weighinonthe rush to bring thetechnology to Louisiana.

St.George runoff candidates raise concerns

Councilmeeting called on shortnotice

BY PATRICK SLOAN-TURNER Staff writer

Twocandidates in Saturday’s runoff election for St. George City Council are questioningthe abrupt scheduling of a Monday evening special council meeting,citing concernsabout transparency and fair participation. At-large candidate Shaunn Wyche andDistrict 4candidate DavidMadaffari arebothasking why notice of the meeting was not shared with the public online until St. George shared aFacebook post Monday morning, hours before the meeting start.

”Even if the law wasfollowed, the spirit of openness was lost,” Wyche

Carbon captureand sequestration technology permanently stores carbon dioxidefrom industrial processes deep underground to cutgreenhouseemissions but hassparked environmental and

Both bills faced objections from trade associations forthe oiland gasindustry,the chemical industryand other business and economic development groups fearful that moreregulatoryuncertainty couldsteer the billions of dollars in industrial projects counting on carbon capture away from Louisiana. They argue thetechnology could

makeLouisiana an economic leader —and the two bills and others considered Tuesday by theHouse Committee on Natural Resources and the Environment risked killing that opportunity

“Theseproposals are decidedly anti-industry andwould cripple Louisiana’sability to deliver on these historicprojects or compete forfuture ones,” said David Cresson, thenew president and CEO of theLouisiana Chemical Association

The bill that passed,Senate Bill

73 by Sen. Mike Reese, R-Leesville, would require the state conservation commissioner to give “substantial consideration to local government comments” on carbon injection well permits. The language is borrowed from the state’s coastal use permitting process. Reese said that if the state ofﬁce denied acarbon-capture permit based at least in part on objections by local officials, the decision would be on stronger footing to

An inmategoes ﬂying after being knocked outofhis chair from behind by abullasthe inmate beside him stays seated in an effort to winthe game of ‘Convict Poker’duringthe Angola Prison Rodeo on Sunday.The game starts with fourinmates sitting at the table before the bull is released and thelast one sitting wins.

ABOVE: An inmate in an inﬂatable bubble goes ﬂying after beingstruckbyabull.

LEFT: A74-year-old inmate lies on asled while beingdragged by ahorse as he holds apitcher of Kool-Aid upright duringthe ‘ChariotRace.’ The inmate who spills the leastamount of liquidwins.

St.James School Boardsuedinspecial educationcase

Pre-Kstudent was denied services, suit says

BY CHRISTOPHERCARTWRIGHT Staff writer

The St. James Parish School Board has been accused of violatingfederal law by denying special education services to achild. Alawsuit, ﬁled April 17, alleges

the school system disenrolled a prekindergarten student who has adisability shortly after determining thestudent was eligible to receive special education in the district. The lawsuit claims thedistrict’s actions violated the U.S. Individuals withDisabilities Education Improvement Actand asection of the Americans with Disabilities Act. Brought by thechild’slegal guardian, ShirahHerbert, and written by attorney Kimona Ho-

gan, the suit also appealsdecisions made by an administrative lawjudge whoruled thechild didn’tlive within the parish. It claims the judge’sdecision denied theplaintiff, Herbert, afull andfairhearing under federal disability law Sarah Forsythe, aspokesperson for the School Board, said via email that the board and district can’tcomment pending ongoing legal proceedings. Filedinthe New Orleans-based

Eastern DistrictofLouisiana, the lawsuit states Herbert submitted 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 both details in the packet. According to aJanuary

Wyche

Madaffari

STAFFPHOTOSByJAVIER GALLEGOS

See CARBON,

Oil leak spills at least 9,492 gallons

Cleanup underway in Plaquemines Parish marsh

BY DAVID J MITCHELL Staff writer

Contractors on Tuesday worked to try to control an 82-year-old oil well that is leaking into the marshes of southern Plaquemines Parish as response workers set up absorbent booms and deployed other measures to try to contain the spill, according to the U.S. Coast Guard

Around 150 response workers had recovered 9,492 gallons of oily liquids, or approximately 226 barrels, leaked from the well into Garden Island Bay near the mouth of the Mississippi River Coast Guard ofﬁcials said in an update Tuesday afternoon.

There have been no reports or observations of affected wildlife, the Coast Guard said.

The leak of oil and gas from the Spectrum OpCo LLC’s Garden Island Bay production facility was reported to the Coast Guard in New Orleans at 4 p.m Saturday An overflight by an

CARBON

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withstand a legal challenge

“That is defensible action that agency has taken, so I think it is an important tool. That tool has worked in the coastal permitting process. There have been multiple permits just in the last couple years that have been denied in the coastal permitting process under this provision,” Reese told the committee.

While the bill, already passed by the Senate, would require state regulators to consider input from local ofﬁcials, they could reject it when making their permitting decisions.

Reese’s bill passed without committee opposition. It was a prelude to a lengthy discussion on the local-option bill, House Bill 4 by Rep. Chuck Owen, R-

BLOTTER

Continued from page 1B

Police ID woman killed by driver

St. Gabriel police have identiﬁed the woman killed in a fatal crash early Sunday

Katina Perck Leggion, 51, of St. Amant, was the passenger on a motorcycle that stalled on La. 30 at about 12 a.m. Sunday Shortly after, she was struck by a pickup and died on the scene. The driver of the truck, Sean Obrien Alteri, 51, of Gonzales, remained at the scene and showed signs of impairment, prompting of-

SCHOOL

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aora Chukudebelu, Herbert

included a notarized statement saying she and her child lived with the care provider in St. James Parish. Hogan writes in the lawsuit that the packet was missing the child’s Social Security card, but the chief of schools approved the child’s enrollment that month, despite the disclosed living arrangement Once school began, staff allegedly raised concerns about the student’s developmental and academic progress and initiated an evaluation to determine if the child qualified for special education, the complaint states. On Oct. 22, the district determined the student qualified for special education and scheduled a meeting for Nov 7 to develop an Individualized Education Program, according to the lawsuit.

air crew from the Louisiana Oil Spill Coordinator’s Office later confirmed the leak Coast Guard officials have not described the size of the leak and said that crews have not determined the flow rate of the leak or how much oily liquid has escaped from the well so far The cause of the leak remains under investigation

Spectrum OpCo officials have not responded to a request for comment since Monday The company has been deemed the responsible party and has formed a uniﬁed command with the Coast Guard and state Oil Spill Coordinator’s Ofﬁce to manage the response

The company has hired response and other contractors under a state and federally approved plan.

Since the discovery of the leak, the Coast Guard has restricted ﬂights for up to 2,000 feet high within 2 miles of the leaking well as response workers operated 10 skimmers and deployed a variety of recovery storage equipment

Workers had also put out 7,800 feet of 18-inch-thick containment boom and 382 bales of absorbent boom, aimed at preventing oil from

Rosepine, that went on for roughly ﬁve hours That bill would have mandated one of two local-option procedures — police juries could either decide themselves whether to approve carbon capture in their parish or put the issue before voters in an election. The marathon discussion drew commenters from southwest Louisiana, including members of the Coushatta Tribe people who live in the industrial corridor between Baton Rouge and New Orleans, business and industry groups and state ofﬁcials.

Proponents of the localoption bill were a crosssection of groups who generally opposed carbon capture, both traditional environmental and community activists but also residents and officials from southwestern Louisiana who said they normally favored the oil and gas industry but

ﬁcers to contact Louisiana State Police, according to St Gabriel Police Chief Kevin Ambeau.

After failing ﬁeld sobriety tests, Alteri was taken to the St. Gabriel Police Department, where a Breathalyzer test recorded a blood alcohol concentration above the legal limit, Ambeau said in a statement. Alteri was booked into the Iberville Parish Jail.

Cyclist dies following crash in Baton Rouge

A 60-year-old man riding his bicycle on Jones Creek Road on Sunday night in Baton Rouge was struck by a vehicle and later died. An initial investigation into the death of Michael

Required by federal law, an IEP is developed for every public school child who needs special education.

But according to the complaint, the district “unilaterally disenrolled” the student effective Nov 4 without prior notice or an opportunity for Herbert to appeal. The complaint states that the timing of the school’s decision to disenroll the child suggests that ofﬁcials used the child’s residency status as a pretext to avoid its obligation to develop an IEP It also claims that other parents and guardians with similar residency documentation were not subject to disenrollment.

In late November Hogan ﬁled motions with the Louisiana Department of Education, which were forwarded to the Louisiana Division of Administrative Law, according to the complaint.

Chukudebelu dismissed the case in January, ruling that the minor’s residence is at Herbert’s in St. John the

PROVIDED PHOTO By U.S COAST GUARD

An aerial image taken from an overflight on Monday shows marshland affected by a leaking oil well near Garden Island Bay in southern Plaquemines Parish. The Coast Guard has implemented a safety zone in the area and crews have installed containment and absorbent boom to contain the oily liquids leaking from the Spectrum OpCo well that was drilled 82 years ago. The well was shut in 2015.

contaminating nearby islands, Coast Guard ofﬁcials said Tuesday Spectrum OpCo, a Delaware-based company with New York state ownership,

didn’t see carbon capture as part of it.

Many argued that the people should have the final say on the technology, which some cast as a threat to their property rights and others saw as a continuation of Louisiana’s traditionally poor treatment of the environment when big dollars are at stake.

“This allows for the people, who are most important in this country and in this state, to have a say,” said James Hiatt, a Lake Charles-area environmental activist who formerly worked for an oil reﬁnery

Owen’s bill failed in a 6-10 vote.

Opponents on the committee had questions about how the bill would be applied to projects that have injection wells in one parish but would send underground carbon dioxide plumes into multiple parishes.

Blake Canﬁeld, executive

Sterling found that he was seated next to his bicycle in the southbound lane of Jones Creek Road when the crash happened, according to the East Baton Rouge Parish Sheriff’s Ofﬁce.

“The driver of the vehicle has since been located and stated that he believed that he hit a bicycle in the road,” said Casey Rayborn Hicks, Sheriff’s Ofﬁce spokesperson.

The crash happened at 11 p.m. in the 5300 block of Jones Creek Road, near Market Street. EMS responded to the scene and took a critically injured Sterling to the hospital, where he later died from his injuries, an EMS spokesperson said.

Hicks said investigators

Baptist Parish. The April lawsuit argues Chukudebelu didn’t follow IDEA’s requirements, which state students must remain in their current education placement during certain administrative and judicial proceedings. A hearing on a motion for preliminary injunction is set for May 19, according to the case docket.

Email Christopher Cartwright at christopher cartwright@theadvocate. com.

LOTTERY MONDAY,APRIL 28, 2025

PICK 3: 1-1-8

PICK 4: 7-1-0-5

PICK 5: 4-1-5-8-7

POWERBALL: 26-43-5156-60 (24)

RUNOFF

Continued from page 1B

wrote in a post on Facebook on Tuesday “This was a moment for St. George to show what transparent, community-centered government looks like — and we missed it.”

Madaffari shared similar concerns in a video posted to Facebook on Monday and alleged that leaders were not being held accountable for not giving the public ample chance to participate.

”We commented on it, a lot of us were talking on the actual St. George page where they posted this meeting, but they went ahead and had the meeting anyway,” he said. Both candidates initially questioned whether state law or St. George code was violated.

fectively approving a longawaited intergovernmental agreement between East Baton Rouge Parish and St George that was approved by Metro Council last week. The agreement spells out the amount of sales tax revenue collected since April 2024 that the city-parish government will remit to the new city’s government.

Wyche, the only Democrat running for ofﬁce in St. George, is battling Republican Jim Talbot for an at-large seat on the City Council. Yates, a Republican, has endorsed Talbot along with Patty Cook, the Republican interim council member facing off with Independent candidate Madaffari in District 4.

is one of two companies with active wells in the Garden Island Bay ﬁeld according to state business and oil and gas records. The company’s management is in Houston.

counsel for the state natural resources department, said that as written, the bill would have only blocked projects if police jurors or voters voted against a project in the parish where a carbon injection well is drilled.

Owen pointed out that his bill wouldn’t have blocked carbon capture it would simply give local officials and residents a say in their community and chance for industry proponents of carbon capture to make their case directly to them.

After the bill’s defeat, Owen said he hoped to win over the oil and gas industry by promising to help them with the impact of coastal lawsuits that have forced them “to prostitute” themselves for the dollars behind carbon capture.

David J. Mitchell can be reached at dmitchell@ theadvocate.com.

learned that the victim suffered from seizures and had not been home in several days. The coroner will determine the cause of death, Hicks added.

Man arrested on 730 counts of child porn

A Sorrento man was arrested Monday on 730 counts of pornography involving juveniles younger than 13, State Police said.

The investigation into Matthew Corkern 35, began in December 2024, when the State Police Special Victims Unit received a tip about the sexual exploitation of minors.

With the assistance of other law enforcement agencies, including the FBI

But Mayor Dustin Yates said Tuesday he spoke with Wyche about his concerns and told the candidate that officials posted a physical notice outside of the meeting location on Thursday last week, as required. This also satisﬁes the 48-hour requirement spelled out by local ordinance. Additionally, the meeting notice was made available on St. George’s ofﬁcial website last week, too.

“You know how social media is,” the mayor said, noting that information accurate or not — often spreads quickly on platforms like Facebook and can get blown out of proportion.

The mayor said he and other city officials take transparency concerns seriously and there was no intent behind the late post to Facebook.

“We want the public at our council meetings. We like there to be healthy debate. We like there to be healthy conversation,” Yates said.

However in a video posted Tuesday afternoon, Wyche still questioned why the meeting wasn’t posted on social media as usual and raised concerns about the 4 p.m. start time — an hour earlier than normal.

“Legally they were compliant in posting this meeting, the only concerns I have is do you consider this transparent?” Wyche said on social media. “Why the break in protocol?”

At the meeting, the council adopted three ordinances ef-

and the Ascension Parish Sheriff’s Office, Corkern was identiﬁed as the holder of the social media account involved, State Police said in a news release.

On April 25, Corkern was booked into the Ascension Parish jail on 62 counts of pornography involving juveniles under the age of 13, after State Police executed a search warrant at his home in Sorrento.

Further investigation uncovered more images on another one of Corkern’s cellular devices, State Police said.

Corkern was booked on Monday with an additional 730 counts of pornography involving juveniles younger than 13, the agency said.

Like others, Cook was appointed to her current council seat last year by Gov Jeff Landry but is the only candidate running to keep a seat whose race went to a runoff. After months of waiting for tax dollars to come through and fund the city, St. George will soon have ample funding, Yates said, which will help fund essential services that do things like post meeting notices, agendas and minutes.

”As those dollars transition over we’ll actually be able to have people that will focus on communications,” Yates said.

“We’ve put $0 toward that because we haven’t had the money But now, once the money starts coming in, we’ll have a more robust platform that can better engage our citizenry in that regard.”

Email Patrick SloanTurner at patrick.sloanturner@theadvocate.com.

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 longthat can last because of uncertainty aroundPresident Donald Trump’strade war

TheS&P 500 climbed to extend its winning streak to a sixth day. The DowJones IndustrialAverage and the Nasdaq composite also rose.

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

Sherwin-Williams rose4.8% for another 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 beveragegiant reportedbetter-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 Sierra1500s, Yukons and Yukon XLs between model years 2021 and 2024

According to recall documents published by theNational Highway Traffic Safety Administration, these vehicles shareagas engine that may have connecting rod or crankshaft component problems, due to supplier manufacturing or quality issues. This can lead to enginedamage, andpotentially 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,dealers will inspect affected vehicles —and repairorreplacethe engine if necessary with newer components, freeofcharge. Dealers notifications began last week, withowner lettersset tobe 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 just3% have the defect.

Job openings fall to 7.2 million in March

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

U.S. employers posted 7.2 million vacancies in March, down from 7.5 million in February and 8.1 million in March2024, the LaborDepartment reported Tuesday.Itwas the fewest number of openings since September and below the 7.5 million that economists had forecast. But the department’sJob Openings andLabor Turnover Summaryalsoshowed that the number of Americans quitting their jobs —asign of conﬁdence in theeconomy —rose modestly.And layoffs fell to the lowest level since June.

Openings remain high by historical standards but have fallen steadily since peakingat12.1 million in March 2022, when the economy was still bouncing back from COVID-19. The American job markethas 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.

BUSINESS

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’ con-

ﬁdence 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 Board said 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 signalsa recession 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. Containers of productsleft stranded overseas.No roadmap for what comes next

TheTrump administration raised tariffs on goodsfrom Chinato145% in early April. Since then, small businessowners who depend onimports from China to survive have become increasingly desperate as theyeye dwindling inventory and skyrocketing invoices

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

JeremyRice co-ownsHouse, ahome-décor shop in Lexington, Kentucky,thatspecializes in artificial flower arrangements for the home.About 90%ofthe 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 madeinChina.

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 higherqualitysilk 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 inventory to last two to three months.

“After that, Idon’tknow what we’re going to do,” he said. Rice is concerned that the trade war will wipe out abunchofmom-and-pop stores, similar to what happenedinthe Great Recession and the pandemic.

“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 more than 50% by the second half of 2026.

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

to do,” he said.

Lisa McDonald, ownerofTeaHaus, 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 worriesthere is alimit to what they’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. McDonaldimports loose-leaf tea fromChina, India, Kenya, Sri Lanka and other countries.

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Obituaries

Bordelon, Mary P.

Mary Palazzolo Bordelon, aresident of Prairieville, La passed away on Saturday, April 26, 2025, at the age of 75. She was preceded in death by her loving parents, Bernard Philip, and Providence Pusateri Palazzolo. Her loving husband is Keith Bordelon. Her devoted daughter is Jennifer Nielsen Mixon. Her attentive sister is Susan Palazzolo Cloninger. She graduated from St. Joseph Academy in New Orleans in 1967 in the top third of her class In earlier years, she attended LSU in Baton Rouge, LSU in New Orleans, Touro Infirmary Schoolof Nursing and Audubon Commercial College. Her uncompleted nursing school together with a year of Secretarial Curriculum at Audubon Commercial College allowed her to get the job at the LSU Healthcare Network. Mary's life became meaningful when Jennifer was born in 1973. Although Mary suffered with abipolar disorder, she was able to work for 21 years (19771999) and retire from LSU Healthcare Network in New Orleans. She suffered kidney failure fromtaking lithium for 20 years for her bipolar and hence retired early. While working at the medical center, she worked for the LSU Clinics Billing Office, The LSU Eye Center, LSU Orthopedics Department, LSU Schoolof Nursing Baccalaureate Program Senior faculty (4 years), and for many years (13) the Neurology Department. After her retirement, she obtained an associate's degree in computer information systems in 2005 from Núñez Community College with the hope of returning to work with new skills. She found the age bias was unforgiving. She relocated from Chalmette, La to Prairieville, La because of Hurricane Katrina in 2005, where she and her husband lost everything with water even into the attic. They were able to purchase abeautiful new home there in Prairieville, La. She was an active volunteer at Woman's Hospital for 10 years. She was active in St. John the Evangelist Altar Society. She enjoyed goingout to eat and to the movies with Keith and just staying home with him by her side. She

enjoyedgetting together with herdaughter Jennifer and predeceased son-inlaw, Harold, hersister Sue and brother-in-lawGary and their children and their grandchild,with brother-in-law, Louieand sister-in-law Mariaand their childrenand grandchildren.She enjoyedgoingto12step meetings and out to lunch with friends. She hasa host of first cousins, Judy,Jan, Sandra,Diane,Raymond, and Debbie that she loved together with theirchildren and grandchildren. Sheenjoyed moderntechnology,digital photography,Facebookand educational gameslike Trivia Crack, Wheel of Fortune, Crosswords,DesignHome, Word Scapes and Jeopardy. Shewas afraidof getting Alzheimer's and kepther mind active in this way. Shewished she did not have to leave allofyou and wanted to thank you for allyour love.

Visitationwillbeheldon Wednesday,April 30, 2025, from 5pmto8 pm at Ourso Funeral Home, 13533Airline Hwy, Gonzales, La. Visitation willresumeon Thursday, May1,2025,at St. John the Evangelist CatholicChurch, 15208LA73, Prairieville, La.from 9:30 am until Mass of ChristianBurialat11am. Marywillbelaidtorestin Serenity Oaks Memorial Park

The family would like to thankthe doctors, nurses and staffatOur Lady of the Lake Regional Medical Center,SageRehab, Center Point, andThe Carpenter House Baton Rouge Hospice for their excellent care.InLieu of flowers donations can be made to Louisiana OrganProcurementAssociationhttps://g ive.lopa.org/checkout/7130 or to St. John the EvangelistCatholic Church, Prairieville, La. Address above

Buratt, BonnieHodgeson

Bonnie Hodgeson Buratt passedawayonTuesday April 29, 2025 at theage of 89. Sheissurvivedbyher husband of 71 years, Leycester Porter Buratt; two daughters, Bonita Big‐nar (Chip) andMelinda Bu‐ratt; sonNathanBuratt (Belinda);granddaughter, Brigette Spohrer(John); three grandsons, Jason Bignar, KaseyKrch (Kat‐rina),and Kyle Krch; three great-granddaughters, Alyssa andAlainaSpohrer, and Kaylee Krch;one sis‐ter,Betty Gayle; three step-grandchildren, Jerina Jeremy, andJayson; and numerousstepgreatgrandchildren.She was precededindeath by a daughterand soninlaw Gingerand KenKrch; par‐ents, Adeleand Bernie Hodgeson; twobrother, BernieLee andCarroll Ray Hodgeson; andtwo sisters, Gerry Templetand Kathy Jackson.A specialthanks goesout to Jazz andRosey, theParcStaff andvolun‐

teers, andHospice of Baton Rouge.

UrsulaMiller

Escude,

Ursula MillerEscude', age 86, entered eternal life on Saturday, April 26, 2025 at HessmerNursing Home. Those left to cherish her memory are her children: Stephanie Escude Brochard (Chad)of Mansura, David Robert Escude' (Caroline) of Baton Rouge, Stephen Charles Escude'(Amilyn) of SanAntonio,Texas, and Wayne ChristopherEscude'(Tina), of Wichita, Kansas; 5 grandchildren, Christina Escude'Thornton (Robb Reech), TheresaEscude' Robert (Jacques), Haley Marie Escude', Julien Michael Brochard and Zachary Robert Brochard; 6great-grandchildren: William Thornton, Hannah Thornton, Elise Robert, Lucy Robert,Landry Robert, and Jacques M. Robert.

Shewas preceded in death by her son, Michael JudeEscude'; husband, Robert Escude'; parents, Leighton Davis Miller, Sr. & TheresaVan Gossen Miller; and brother, Leighton DavisMiller, Jr Ursulawas unitedin marriage to Robert Escude' in 1960, apartnershipthat flourished in love and mutual support. Ursula dedicated much of her career to service, first as asecretary and bookkeeperatSt. Paul's CatholicChurch in Mansura for many years and later at St. John's Cathedral School in Shreveport.Her nurturing spirit was evident in her role as ateacherfor twoyear-old at ElisabethRenzi Child Development in Shreveport.Returning to Mansura after her husband's retirement, she served as asocial service designeeatRio SolNursing Home and lent her talents as asubstituteteacher in AvoyellesParish Schools. Adevout member of St Paul Catholic Church, Ursula was heavilyinvolvedin church activities, notably as president and treasurer of St.Paul's LadiesAltar Society and as amember of theSt. Paul Kaycee Auxiliary, where she also served as president.Her dedication to her faith went hand-in-hand with her passionfor community service; she was an active participant in theMansura Chamber of Commerce and served one term as an alderwoman forthe Town of Mansura.

Ursula'slegacy will continue throughher loved ones; she was aproud mother (Mama), aloving grandmother (Maw Maw), and atreasuredgreatgrandmother.Spending time withher family and pets year-round and especiallyduring holidays brought herthe most joy. She lookedforward to "Pocking"Easter eggsand celebrating Mother's Day weekend with family and friends at theCochonDe Lait. She had hervery own "pig"collectioninside and outside her home. She lovedtocookand made sure everyone was taken care of beforeshe sat

down. She lovedtolisten to music and sing and dance, especially to Elvis and Christmas carols. She lovedthe outdoors; sitting on herporch swing,watching thebirds and playing with her dogsa favorite past time. After her move to thenursing home, she madesure thebirdfeeder outside her window was always full.She willbe dearly missed by allwho had theprivilegeofknowing her.

Relatives and friends are invitedtoattend a Mass of Christian burial at 11:00am on Friday, May 2, 2025, at St Paul theApostle Catholic Church in Mansura with Fr. Blake Deshautelleofficiating.Burial willfollow at theSt. Paul Catholic Cemetery. Visitation is from8:00am until 10:45am on Friday, May 2, 2025, at Escude'Funeral Home in Mansura. Rosary prayer willberecited at 10:00am.

Those honored to serve as pallbearers: Chad Brochard,Julien Brochard, Zachary Brochard,Jacques Robert, Robb Reech, and William Thornton. In lieu of flowers,the family requests that memorial donations be madetothe St.Paul Altar Society, P.O. Box130 Mansura, LA 71350.

Aspecial thankyoutoall those that cared forour sweetangel at theHessmer Nursing Home,she lovedyou like family Funeral arrangements havebeenentrusted to Escude'FuneralHome.

In loving memory of a mother, daughter, sister, aunt,cousin, and friend. Youwere trulyanangel on Earth. Nowthat youtake youfinalrest,wecelebrate your name and legacyfor therest of our lives. We holdyou in our heartsuntil we can holdyou in heaven.

-The ones youloved most

Kathrine Lurline Martin Hilbun, age 94, passed away peacefully on April 25, 2025, in BatonRouge, Louisiana. Lurline was born on August 4, 1930, in Hazlehurst, Mississippi, to James Henry Martin and KatieEliza Pickering Martin, both educators. She graduated from Mississippi Collegein1951 with a degree in Sociology,shortly after marrying thelove of herlife,JoelP.Hilbunof Soso, Mississippi. Together, they dedicated their livestoChristianministry. Lurline actively participated with Joel in thelife of ministry togetheratseven pastorates in Alabama, Louisiana and Mississippi. In additiontoher ministry involvement,Lurline taught elementaryschool in Gueydan and Baton Rouge and laterworked for

theLouisiana Employment Security Office untilher retirement.A devotedwife, mother, grandmother, and great-grandmother,Lurline exemplifieda life of Christian service.She served in numerouschurch roles, including pianist, Bible teacher,Vacation Bible School director, and missionsleader withorganizationssuchasSunbeams, Girls in Action,Royal Ambassadors, and theWoman'sMissionary Union (WMU). Sheled andencouraged local Korean and Vietnamese congregations in establishingWMU programs. Lurlinecommitted herlifetoChrist at theage of 12 and remained adedicated student of theBible throughout herlife. She wasknown for herunwavering prayer ministry, beginningeachday at 5:00 a.m. in prayer andscripture study, faithfully lifting up herfamily, church members, missionaries, andnational leaders. She is survived by herbeloved husband of 74 years, Rev. Joel P. HilbunofBaton Rouge;their son Joel D. Hilbun(Henrietta)ofScott, Louisiana; daughters Kaye Smith (Al)ofCentral, Louisiana, and JoyMohr (Jeff) of Bush,Louisiana; grandchildrenDavid, Michael (Lauren)and KevinHilbun; Stephanie Rojas (Ely), MichelleCallender,Katie Smith,Lindsey Liles (Shane); David, Jonathan, Benjamin, and Bayli Mohr;great-grandchildrenTaylor Callender andAlexander Martel;Will Catton;Nora, Clara, and Myra Liles; sistersEva Maye Baxter andRita Faye Williams; along with numerousnieces and nephews. Pallbearers will be hergrandchildren. Visitation will be held Thursday, May1,2025, beginning at 8:30 a.m. at Greenoaks Funeral Home, with the service to follow at 10:00 a.m., officiated by Pastor Nguyen TrongVinh.Intermentwill follow at Greenoaks Memorial Park. In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to theWoman's Missionary Union(WMU) or Vietnamese Hope Baptist Church in Baton Rouge Thefamilyextendstheir sincere appreciationtothe congregation of Vietnamese Hope Baptist Church,friends, and extended familyfor their prayersand support as Lurline'shealthdeclined. Thefamilyalso thanks Hospice of BR andnumerouscaregiversfor their compassionateand dedicated care

Andrew Mark Jackson, a nativeofConvent,LA, passedawayonApril 15, 2025, at hishomeinDon‐aldsonville,LA, at theage of74. Visitation on Wednesday,April 30, 2025, atWilliams& Southall Fu‐neral Home in Napoleonville,LA, from 2:00pm to4:00pm. Visitation on Thursday,May 1,

Jones, Lewis Daniel'Danny'

LewisDaniel Jones III affectionately knownas "Danny", 69, of Baton Rouge,LApassed away on February 23rd,2025 at his home in Baton Rouge Dannywas born in Natchitoches, LA on November 3rd,1955, to parents LewisDaniel "Sonny" Jones Jr.and Yvonne MarcelinJones. After the Jones familyrelocated to Baton Rouge,Danny attended SouthernUniversity LaboratorySchool and Southern University where he wasa member of the basketballand baseball teams, andthe marching band.

DannyJones is survived by histwo children, Caitlin Jones and LewisGregory Jones;his sistersCarla Jones andShawnZachery; hisnieces andnephew Chrystyle Jones, Daryle KennedyEdwards and Jordan Mitchell,and grandchildLogan Jones. He is preceded in death by his parents, LewisJones Jr andYvonneMarcelin Jones, andbrother Gregory JamesJones.

Carrie MaeBreaux

Junot, born January29, 1934, passedawayatthe Crossing in BatonRouge on Monday, April28, 2025, at the ageof91. Shewas a nativeofPierrePartand residentofPortAllen. Car‐rie wasa homemakerwho was happiest whenher homewas ﬁlledwithher children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren. VisitationwillbeatHoly FamilyCatholicChurch in PortAllenonFriday, May 2nd,from8:30a.m.until MassofChristian Burial at 10a.m celebrated by Rev. Jerry Martin.Burialwillfol‐low in GraceMemorial ParkinPlaquemine. Carrie issurvivedbytwo daugh‐ters, Donna Canova and husband Matt, Mona Bass and husbandBruce,all of PortAllen;6 grandchildren, BradBassand wife Annie Claire, Nicole Fair andhus‐bandEric, Amanda King and husbandChad, Brian Bassand wife Megan, BrandonBassand ﬁancée

Francis, DebbyLynn

Junot, CarrieMae Breaux

Hilbun, Lurline Martin

Jackson, Andrew Mark

PaulaMiller,MattCanova Jr. and ﬁancéeCamille Manuel; 13 greatgrandchil‐dren, Aubree Bass, Gracie Bass, BennettBass, Easton Fair, CohenFair, Caiden King, AdrianaKing, Cameron King,CaseKing, Allie King,Bradlee Bass, BlytheBassand Blake Bass; anda brother, Aubrey“Butch” Breaux Carriewas preceded in death by herhusband of 62 years,Francis “Padner” PaulJunot; parents, Neuvilleand Louise Giroir Breaux; sister,Beulah BreauxLaJaunie. Pallbear‐ers will be Brad Bass, Brian Bass, BrandonBass, Matt CanovaJr.,EricFairand CaidenKing.Carriewas a parishioner at Holy Family Catholic Church anda for‐mer member of the Catholic Daughtersof Americas. In herearlier years,she enjoyedbeing a memberofthe Modernairs Dance Club,Pokeno, and the RedHat Club.She en‐joyed herFridayMorning Breakfast Club,gathering ather home each year for the Port AllenMardi Gras Parade, andher tripstothe DollarStore andWalmart The familywould like to extenda very special thankstoRussell and Peggy Daigle.Inlieuof ﬂowers, memorial dona‐tions maybemadetoHoly FamilySchool.Please share memories at www wilbertservices.com

Jo Ann "Jody" Landry passed away peacefully at theage of 84 on Friday, April 25, 2025, surrounded by her family. She was a loving and devoted wife, mother, grandmother, and great-grandmother. Jody was born in New Roads, Louisiana, and moved to Baton Rouge at ayoung age. She attended St. Gerard Majella Catholic School and graduated from Redemptorist HighSchoolin 1958. Jody completed two years of college at Louisiana State University. She was employedat Exxon Federal Credit Union for over 20 years, where she began as ateller and retired as the Chief Executive Officer. Beyond her noteworthy career, Jody was alongtime parishioner of St.Patrick Catholic Church. Her devotion to her faith was also reflected in her outreach to the community as the Co-director of the Associates with the School Sistersof Notre Dame, where she dedicated herself to spreading the "good news" of Jesus Christ. She embodied the Corporal Works of Mercy in every aspect of her life. In 2011, Jody was inducted into the Redemptorist High School Hall of Fame, which represented her professional accomplishments and wellas her dedication to Christian service to the Catholic church, the School Sisters of Notre Dame, and her community. Her favorite pastimes included praying, helping others, cooking, and spending time with her family. Jody was precededindeath by her beloved husband of 33 years, Leroy J. Landry; her

parents, Leo and Christine Goudeau; her brother, Leo Dale Goudeau; her sister-in -law, Betty Goudeau; her great-grandson, William Bailey III; and her stepdaughter, DebraLandry Diez. She is survived by her twochildren, Cherie CampagnaBailey and her spouse, Bill,and Lynn Gregory Campagna Jr.and his spouse,MaryBeth; five grandchildren, BillBailey, ChristopherBailey, Madeline Bailey,Ryan Campagna, and Caroline Campagna;and four greatgrandchildren, Harper Bailey, BrooksBailey, Flora Bailey,and Daphne Campagna.She is also survived by Leroy'schildren and grandchildren, whom she consideredher own, Roy Landry and his spouse, LaDonna, and ToddLandry and his spouse, Shannon; hersevengrandchildren, Jacob Diezand hisspouse, Jessica, Amanda Diezand her spouse,Elvis, Josh Landry and his spouse, Sylvia,Christina Landry, Taylor Landryand his spouse, Caroline,Derek Landry, and Karlyn Landry; and hertwelve greatgrandchildren, Rebecca Diez, Landry Diez, Debra Grace Stewart, Ella Stewart, Blake Stewart, Sophia Landry, Isabelle Landry, Brayden Gutierrez, Gage Gutierrez,Drake Gutierrez, JuliaLandry,and Priscilla Landry. The familyrequests that visiting hours be observed on Saturday, May3,2025,atSt. Patrick CatholicChurch, 12424 Brogdon Lane,Baton Rouge, Louisiana,from9:00 a.m. until the Mass of Christian Burialat11:00 a.m., celebrated byFather Michael Miceli. Pallbearers include Bill Bailey,Christopher Bailey, Ryan Campagna,JacobDiez,Josh Landry, Taylor Landry,and Derek Landry. The interment willtakeplace at Resthaven Gardensof MemoryCemetery. Inlieu of flowers, please donate to the School Sistersof Notre Dame or the Louisiana Hemophilia Foundation.

Manley,James'Jim'

James "Jim" Murphy Manley completedhis earthly journey early Sunday morning, April 27, 2025, at the ageof82, after a brief battle with cancer. His soul mate of over 19 years, Jeanne Wallace, was by his side. Jim was born in New Albany, MSonOctober 26, 1942, to M. T. "Tifford" Manley and Jennie SueSpeck Manley. He graduatedfrom Baton Rouge High School in 1960, enlisted in the United States Air Force from1963 to 1967. He then attended LSU,completing aBachelor of Science in 1972 and a Master of Education in 1976.Jim spent over 30 years employedbyEast Baton Rouge ParishSchool System before retiring with his last position serving as aHuman Resources Supervisor.Jim is amember of Parkview Baptist Church. Jimissurvivedby his companion of 19 years, Jeanne Wallace; grandson, NicholasJamesManley

(Jeanne); sister-in-law, SheilaWilie;nephew, Michael Gill;and several cousins.Inadditionto these survivors, Jim experienced very special friendships with agroup of "guys" who were like a "band of brothers" -sharing extraordinary friendships of 50-60 plusyears. He was preceded in death by hisparents; hiswife of 40 years, MaryAnn; two sons, Mark and Wesley; daughter, Laurie; and asister, Susan Gill. Relatives and friends are invitedto attend theGravesideService at 11:00 a.m. on Thursday, May 1, 2025, at Resthaven Gardens of Memory, 11817 Jefferson Highway in Baton Rouge. Serviceswillbeled by Bro Wayne Austin. Honorary Pallbearers willbeBob Cooper, BobHedrick, Jeffrey Hedrick, Joel Hedrick, Ronnie Hedrick, Darral Istre,Tony Lightfoot,John Searles, Ed Storey. Memorialscan be madeto ParkviewBaptist Church or to CancerServicesofBatonRouge.Special thanks forthe exceptional care providedJim in his last days by LifeSource Hospice -especiallybyour special team members Kerri,Johnnitha, Chaplain Linda, Shameka. Family and friends may signthe online guestbook or leave apersonal notetothe familyatwww.resthavenbaton rouge.com

Entered into eternal rest on April23, 2025 at theage of 70. He was aLab Analyst,for WestlakeCorporation, retiredwith40years of service. Survivedbyhis wife, Carol TillmanMaracalin; daughter,Taylor MichelleMaracalin; sisters, Barbara M. Diggs and KarlaM.Jordan; brothers, Frank Maracalin Jr.and Julius Maracalin. Preceded in death by his parents, Frank Sr. and Gladys K. Maracalin; Jacqueline M. Williams and Jonathan Maracalin. Visitation Friday, May 2, 2025, Mount Zion InnerCity, 24400 EleanorDrive, Plaquemine, LA 4:00 pm to 7:00 pm. Visitation continues, Saturday, May 3, 2025, 9:00 am until religious service at 11:00 am. Reverend Ricardo Handyofficiating.Entombment Heavenly Gates Cemetery of BatonRouge, Baton Rouge,LA. Funeral Service EntrustedtoHall Davis and Son. www.halldavisandson.com

CarlieMay Nesom Sheffieldpassed away on April21st,2025 in Ocean Springs, Mississippi. She was born July8th,1939 in Pine Grove,Louisiana and was 85 years of age. She is survivedbytwo daughters, Joy Dominand husband KeithDominofOcean Springs, Mississippiand Regina Ochomogo of Livingston, Louisiana, three grandchildrenChristopher Cain of Imperial,California, Karissa DominStanley of Fair Banks, Alaska, and KyleDominofLouisville, Kentucky, one greatgranddaughter Taylor Odell, and great-grandson Memphis Stanley. In lieu of flowers,donations can be madetoHarrell Cemetery fund and can be mailedto 49677 Hwy 16, Denham Springs, Louisiana 70706. Visitation willbeheldat SealeFuneral Home in DenhamSprings, Louisiana on Wednesday, May 7th from9:00am to 10:30am with afuneral service starting at 10:30am. Burial willfollow at Harrell Cemetery

Marie Rivere, born on January2,1958, in Vacherie, LA,passed away on April23, 2025, at theage of 67. Visitation willbeat Holy RosaryCatholic Church, 44450 Highway 429, Saint Amant, LA 70774, on Friday, May 2, 2025 from 9:00 am until Mass of ChristianBurial at 11:00 am. Burial to follow at HopeHavenGardens of Memory, Hwy 30

WrotenJr., Alvin

Belovedhusband, father,and grandfather Alvin Wroten Jr., 85, of Baker, LA was calledtobe with theLordonSunday, April 27, 2025. He was born in Liberty,MSNovember 9, 1939 .Heissurvived by sonsRay Wroten wife Laura, LeeWrotenwife MeLissa and daughterTammy MerritthusbandPaul; grandchildrenHunter Wroten andTristan Merritt, BrittanyStewart husband Bobby, great-children RomanMerritt, Berkleigh and Brynleigh Stewart; brothers, Louis Freeman, LeoFreeman,and Jeff Needham; sistersJoyce Adams, Peggy Merchant, PollySpringand Kay Williams. He is preceded in death by hiswife of 62 years, Ina

"Marie"Wroten, mother Laura Freeman;Rachel Marcantel; brother, Pete Freeman,sister Coonie Cainand grandson Eddie Merritt

Pallbearers will be his grandsons, Hunter Wroten andTristan Merritt, son-inlaw,Paul Merritt, brothers, StevieAdams andLouis Freemenand nephewDanny Adams. Afuneral service will be held in hishonor on Thursday, May, 1, 2025. Visitation will be from11am -1 pm at Seale Funeral Home, 1720 SRange Ave Denham Springs, with funeral ser-

Nesom Sheffield, Carlie May

Landry, Jo Ann G.

Rivere, ReginaMarie

Regina

Maracalin, Tyrone Micheal

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

Facilities realignment will make schoolsbetter

We commend the East Baton Rouge Parish School System for taking courageous and necessary steps toward long-overdue facilities realignment. For too long, our community has shouldered theburden of an outdated and inefﬁcient school infrastructure —one that has failed to meet the needs of our studentsand neighborhoods. This approved plan offers a chance to correct that, to align our physical school footprint withavision of excellence. At theheart of this effort is amoral urgency: our students. The Baton Rouge Area Foundation’srecent OpportunityData Project brieﬁng on K-12 education made plain what many of us have long known —students trapped in underperforming schools face steeper odds, higher dropout rates,and diminished life chances. These aren’tjust educational failures; they are failures of community,ofopportunity, and our shared promise to ensure the next generation is better off than us.

This momentisabout morethan buildings. It’s about signaling —to families,tobusinesses, to thenext

In theface of nationwide contentioustown hall meetings by members of Congress, and the subsequent call of Republican leadership for their memberstonot hold such meetings, U.S. Rep.Cleo Fields, D-Baton Rouge, held atown hall meetinginBaton Rouge on March 20 that was well attended, civil and very informative. That in itself is newsworthy

Awide range of concerned citizens told Fieldsand all in attendance moving stories of the effects of the current administration’ssweeping cuts on their jobs, their lives and those they serve. Right here in Louisiana. These were personal and local stories that have notbeen well covered in the media to date. Nor was this meeting covered by The Advocate.

Then, as noted in an AP article that ran in The Advocate, anationwide Hands Off! protest on April 5drew large crowds who oppose the Donald Trump(and Elon Musk) administration’s actions and congressional acquiescence. Well-attended (surpassing expectations) Hands Off! protests

generation —that Baton Rouge is serious about becoming aplace where all children are given the tools to thrive. This lays thegroundwork for reinvestmentincommunities too often overlooked, creating fertile ground for civic, economicand human renewal while opening space foreconomic growth.

School buildings no longer utilized for education carry potential for transformation —spaces that can breathe new life intotheir surroundings through thoughtful redevelopment

Ultimately,webelieve that excellent education —that supports children from cradle to career—isthe bedrock of athriving community

It is how we cultivate and retain talent and build aBaton Rouge that reﬂectsthe best of who we are and what we will become.

We offer our full support to our school leaders. This is what investing in the future looks like.

CHRISMEYER president &CEO,BRAF LORI MELANCON president &CEO,BRAC

were held in conjunction with this event in several cities here in Louisiana. In Baton Rouge, hundreds of affected citizens, dissatisfied with the current state of affairs, gathered at theCapitol to hear noted speakers and to give voice to their personal stories of the damage being caused by the Trump/Musk chaos. Signs attested to themany issues spurring alarm, anger and protest, including immigration;the stifling of courts, universities and the free press; financial insecurity; cutstoprograms andbenefits affecting seniors, veterans, educators, students, farmers, health care, foreign relations and more. It was anewsworthy gathering, and yet another opportunity missed as there was no local coverage of this event in The Advocate in the print or online edition. Ifear that your readers are missing thefull picture, an importantpart of theunfolding current events here at home.

BARBARA DAVIDSON

Baton Rouge

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?

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

With the legislativesession under way, here’saroundup of commentary on some of the major issues lawmakers are focused on, as well as someofthe bills youare tracking.

HB 519

Firstdonoharmbegins by followingahealthy diet

dollars.

ProtectLa. residents from distracted drivers

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. Louisiana is no exception 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.

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 haveaskull and crossbones on the label. Take the bread additive azodicarbonamideasanexample

If you thought that sounded like something youshould noteat, you wouldberight It breaks down into urethane (yes, like the paint), aknown carcinogen, andisbannedin 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 an obligation to protect themfrom toxic substances in the cafeteria. Second is alabeling requirement forfoodscontainingthe substances in the schoollunch banportion, plus afew more, knowntohaveaquestionable safety proﬁle, that arebanned in other countries

It directsmanufacturers to placea labelonany food or drink containing these chemicalsthatclearlyalerts the consumer to the fact that it contains something that is bannedinother countries Last, but certainly not least, is aprovisiontoreform the SNAP foodstamp program. This program is federally sponsored andprovides food assistance to familieswith an income below 130% of the federalpoverty line.This wouldbeabout $31,200 net yearly income for afamily of four. In ourinﬂationary economic environment, every penny counts when it comes to food and obtaining the maximum caloriesfor minimum

SB 218

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

SB2

Fluoridation is keytoahealthy smile

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 committed a 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 voicesofBlack people. Unableto keep Black peopleoff juries under the Constitution, Louisiana established the 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 Advocatein 2018, 40% of trialconvictions werebynonunanimous juries. When the person was Black, thatnumber increased to 43%.

State Sen. Royce Duplessis’ bill correctsthis 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

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

Passing SB218 is not just about correcting alegal error. It is about reaffirming our commitment to the ideals 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.

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. 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

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’s really happening with our state’smedical marijuana program— andwhy House Bill627 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.Notransparency 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 chancetoparticipate. 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

SUMMERS Port Allen

KeyLSU players will be missed

Ranking theseven whodecided to transfer

BY TOYLOYBROWN III Staff writer

TheLSU men’sbasketball roster which is still being constructed, is mostly aclean slate. The returners are junior Jalen Reed and freshman Robert Miller.While coach Matt McMahon is happy with the five transfer additions thus far,are there players he wish would have stayed?

The Advocate ranked the seven LSU departures in order of how much the Tigers will miss each player

1. VyctoriusMiller Miller had the most potentialto become astar among the players who left the team.

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

The obvious scoringtalent ﬂashedmost often duringnonconference play,when he picked opponents apart as amid-range bucketgetter and transition scorer Miller’sissues arrived during Southeastern Conference play when his lack of strength and inexperience came to light. His mistakes also were common for skinny scorers adapting to college. Miller,20, chose Oklahoma State and is agood bet to average 15 points per game next season

2. CoreyChest

The 6-8, 220-pound forward was as explosive of an athlete as there wasathis position in the SEC. Chest, aredshirt freshman, posted highlight-reel dunks andblocks throughout the season. His athletic prowess waspaired with an elite motorthat translated mostly through his reboundingability.

The New Orleans native averaged 6.6 rebounds in 20.1 minutes.

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

Chest is belowMiller because of his high turnover rate (18.6%), bad defensive habits and inabilityto shoot outside of 5feet. The20-yearold shot 44.9% from the free-throw line and attempted zero 3-pointers.

TheTigers will be reminded of Chest’sgifts when theyface his new team, Ole Miss, next season

3. Curtis Givens

Givenswas oneofthe least efﬁcient rotation players in the SEC.

The6-3, 185-pound freshman averaged 4.8 points on 26.9% from theﬁeldand 1.6 assists in 18.2 minutes per game. Of the 72 players who attemptedatleast 70 3-pointers in the conference, he shot the

ä See LSU, page 7C

LYINGINWAIT

BY KOKI RILEY Staff writer

One week ago, LSU gotembarrassed.

A13-3 defeat at the hands of NorthwesternState at home constitutesassuch. Despite losing just one nonconference game heading into that night, LSUhit batters, handed outfree bases and had only sevenhits in its loss to the Demons.

That nightmay have been at the forefrontofLSU’s mind heading intoTuesday’s matchup atAlex Box Stadium with Southeastern Louisiana, apotentialNCAA Tournament team.The Tigers were locked in from the start, scoring four runs in the first inning in its 15-2 win in seven innings over thetop team in the Southland Conference.

Freshman Derek Curiel, juniorDaniel Dickinson and senior Josh Pearson all ﬁnished

BY LUKE JOHNSON Staffwriter

with multiple hits.LSU went 7 for 18 with runners on base and was able to advance runners 13

times on 24 opportunities. Curiel and junior Jared Jones led off the ﬁrst inning with con-

secutive solohome runs, with Curiel’sblast coming on the ﬁrst pitch of theinning. Pearson followed up thehomerswitha two-run single that gave the Tigers a4-0 lead.

Aftergoing2 for2 with two walksonTuesday,Curielis6 for 6with two homers, two doubles, two singles and three walks sincehis 43-game on-base streak came to an end Saturday. LSUscored arun in the secondinning to take a5-0 lead before adding ﬁvemoreinthe fourth to take a10-2 lead. In that frame, Dickinson and senior Michael Braswellboth hit two-run singles while sophomore JakeBrown drove in a run on asacriﬁce bunt.

Freshman right-handerWilliamSchmidt earned his sixth startofthe year Tuesday. He went 31/3 innings while striking out seven batters andallowing

The ﬁrst NFL draft of theKellen Moore era is in the books, as the Saintsselected nine players and addressed nine positions with those players. We won’treally know until this fall —and in theyears that follow —how this initial class of theMoore era will pan out, but we can address some of thequestions about the draft nowthat it’sbeen assembled. NewOrleans went safe (or as close as that gets) on the ﬁrst day,took some big swings on the second day and looked for value to close thingsout. Let’s sort back through all three days

Theage question

Countmeasone whoisskeptical about Tyler Shough’sage really mattering in the grand scheme of things. Yes, he’sone of the oldest prospects in the class. Shough will turn 26 amonthinto his rookie season, and if he plays this year he will be oneofthe oldest rookiequarterbacks since the AFL-NFL merger.Only former pro baseball players (29-year-olds Brandon Weeden andChris Weinke) and former BYU quarterbacks who previously served areligious mission (Taysom Hill, 27, and John Beck, 26) wereolder 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’sprime age is generally at the tail end of the region Shough is in now But it’snot like Shough’sage will prevent him from playing afull career.The age conversation is different forquarterbacks than it is forother positions.

Aaron Rodgers was25when he took over as the Green Bay Packers starting quarterback in 2008. Kirk Cousins and Russell Wilson were24during their 2012 rookie seasons. Those three players have combined to play morethan 600 NFLregular-season games. Age didn’tseem to be an issue last year for Jayden 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 madeabout Shough being in the same recruiting class as Trevor Lawrence, Daniels and Nixwereinthe class right after them. Quarterbacks last. Just in the past 10 seasons, eight players have thrownfor more than 4,000 yards in aseason after their 35th birthday.Last year,four quarterbacks started at least half of their team’sgames at 36 or older So

STAFF FILE PHOTO By HILARySCHEINUK

LSU forward CoreyChest, aNew Orleans native, transferred to Ole Miss.

LSU first basemanJared Jones followedDerek Curiel’s first-inning solo homer with one of his ownTuesday night.

STAFF PHOTOSByHILARy SCHEINUK

LSUleft fielder Derek Curiel celebrates after hitting aleadoff homerun against SoutheasternLouisiana on Tuesday night at Alex Box Stadium. One week after beingembarrassed at homeagainst NorthwesternState, the Tigers rolledtoamercy-rule winagainst the Lions.

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

2p.m.Inter

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

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.

Rodriguez, Frostnew to Big12, notschools

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

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.

Pacers eliminateBucks from playoffs

BY MICHAELMAROT AP sportswriter

INDIANAPOLIS Tyrese Halibur-

ton and the Indiana Pacers stole one from the Milwaukee Buckson Tuesday night.

Indiana forced two turnovers in the ﬁnal 29 seconds of overtime, and Haliburton blew past Giannis Antetokounmpo for the go-ahead layup with 1.3 secondsleft to give the Pacers a119-118 victory anda 4-1 series win.

The Pacers closed the game with an 8-0 run over the final 40 seconds of OT to eliminate the Bucksinthe first roundfor thesecondstraight season. They will face top-seeded Cleveland in the Eastern Conference semifinals.

Haliburton had 26 points and 10 assists as he improved to 9-0 in home playoff games. This chippy playoff series ended ﬁttingly with ashoving match between the teams at midcourt.

Two-time MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo triedtowillthe shorthanded Bucks to victory,ﬁnishing with 30 points, 20 rebounds and 13 assists, and GaryTrent Jr.made eight 3-pointers and scored 33 points for Milwaukee.

But Trent was also theculprit in thetwo turnovers late in OT Hisinbound pass was stolen by Andrew Nembhard Jr., leading to athree-pointplay by Haliburton.

And then, with theBucks leading by one and justneeding to maintain possession and get tothe freethrow line, thePacers pressured theball,forcing Milwaukeeto scramble. Trent couldn’tcontrol an errant pass andlost the ball out of boundswith 10.8 seconds left

After Haliburton converted the go-ahead shot, allMilwaukeecould manage was anearlyfull-court heave by Trent that had no chance.

Myles Turner had 21 pointsand nine rebounds while Aaron Nesmithadded 19 pointsand 12 rebounds for the Pacers. Nembhard

SanAntonio’s Castle wins rookie of theyear

BY TIM REYNOLDS AP basketball writer

Stephon Castle made no secret about it: He wanted to be rookie of the year And he got it done —bya wide margin.

The San Antonio Spurs now have back-to-back winners of the award, with Victor Wembanyama last year and Castle this season Castle was the fifth rookie in Spurs history to score more than 1,000 points. It was one-sided in the voting. Castle got 92 first-place votes, easily topping runnerup Zaccharie Risacher of the Atlanta Hawks and thirdplace finisherJaylen Wells of the Memphis Grizzlies.

Risacher got five firstplace votes, Wells gotthe other three.

“Coming in with all the conﬁdence that Ihad in myself as aplayer,thatwas definitely agoal of mine from Day1,” Castle said on TNT, whichbroadcastthe unveiling of the results. “I’m just happy Iwas able to execute it.” Castle’swin markedthe second time in more than a half-century that one franchise went back-to-back with the top-rookie honor. Minnesota’sAndrew Wiggins (now of Miami) and Karl-Anthony Towns (now of New York) were voted rookies of the year in 2015 and 2016, respectively Wembanyama, on social media, paid tribute to Castle’saccomplishment. “Hustle, heart &just pure talent

…all yearlong,you showed why you deserved this title !! So proud of you,” Wembanyama postedonX shortly after theresults were revealed

The last instance of ateam going back-toback before that: 1973 and 1974, when Bob McAdooand Ernie DiGregorio pulledit off for theBuffalo Braves.

“I get so excited watching him play,” said ChrisPaul, Castle’sbackcourt matethis season in San Antonio.

“Theﬁrst thing that Iwant to see in ateammate or anybody is howcompetitive they are. That’ll take you further than talentany day. And Isaw immediately was that he was competitive. I was like, ‘OK, cool. This is goingtobeeasy.

Castle led all rookies this season in points (1,190)and steals (74). Risacher ﬁnished strong, winning Eastern Conference rookie of the monthfor both February and March

Wells ledall rookies in gamesstarted (74) and 3-pointers made(138, matching the totalposted by Washington’sBub Carrington) Risacher —who hails from France, like Wembanyama —was looking togive the NBA the ﬁrst instance of international players winning theaward in consecutive years since Australia’s BenSimmons andSlove-

nia’s Luka Doncicin2018 and 2019.

Wells was bidding to be Memphis’ first rookie of the year since Ja Morant in 2020. The rookie of the year award was voted on by a global panel of 100writers and broadcasters who cover theleague and cast ballots shortlyafter the endofthe regular season. Washington’sAlex Sarr was fourthinthe voting, followed by Memphis’ Zach Edey in fifth andMiami’s Kel’el Ware in sixth. Philadelphia’sJaredMcCain— whowas off to agreat start before getting hurt —and Chicago’sMatas Buzelis ﬁnished tied for seventh in the voting.

The other awardsthat were part of that voting process and have already hadtheir results unveiled: Cleveland’s Evan Mobley winning defensive player of theyear, NewYork’sJalen Brunson winning clutch player of theyear, andBoston’s Payton Pritchard winning sixthman of the year On Wednesday,the most improved player —Cade Cunningham of Detroit, Dyson Daniels of Atlanta, or IvicaZubacofthe Los Angeles Clippers —will be announced, also at 6p.m. on TNT

Other awardsannounced by theleague since theend of the regular season:Golden State’sStephen Curry the Twyman-Stokesteammate of the year award and Warriors teammate Draymond Green won thehustleaward

madea3-pointer to start Indiana’s closing run and ﬁnished with 15 points.

In an effort to avoid athird straight first-round exit,Bucks coach DocRivers pluggedguards AJ Green and Kevin Porter Jr.and forward Bobby Portis Jr.into the starting lineup. TheBucks were missing 10-timeAll-Star Damian Lillard, whotore hisleftAchilles tendon in Game 4onSunday night. DETROIT 106, NEWYORK103: In New York,CadeCunninghamhad 24 points, eight reboundsand eight assists, and the Detroit Pistons stayedalive in their first postseason appearance since 2019 by beating theNew York Knickson Tuesdaynight in Game 5oftheir ﬁrst-roundseries.

Ausar Thompson added 22 points and Tobias Harris had 17 for the Pistons, who will have achance to even things up Thursday night at home in Game 6. If they win that, the deciding game would be back at Madison Square Garden on Saturday Detroit, though, has lost an NBA record-tyingninestraighthome games since 2008.

But thePistonsseem comfortable in NewYork, where theywere 2-0 in the regular season and now 2-1inthis series, including their Game 2victory that snapped their 15-game postseason losing streak, thelongest in NBAhistory

OG Anunoby scored 19 points forthe Knicks, who were trying to reach the Eastern Conference semifinals for the third straight season. Karl-Anthony Towns and MikalBridgeseach had17, but Jalen Brunson had his worst game of the postseason with 16 points on 4-for-16 shooting.

The game was tiedat95before Jalen Duren made consecutive baskets andCunninghamscored forasix-point lead.

The Pistons got agood break when Brunson and Josh Hart both left the game with injuries with 2:57 remaining and play wenton for awhile without astoppage when they wereready to return. By the timethey could, there were only 27 seconds left.

The Knicks cutitto104-103 on Anunoby’s3-pointer with 5.7 seconds remaining before Cunninghammadeapairfromthe line with 5.4 to play forthe final margin. Brunson had scored 30 or more points in every gameofthe series andwas averaging33.3 through four gamesbeforenot even getting halfwaythere Tuesday,when theKnicks were trying to win a seriesontheir home floor forthe first time since the 1999 Eastern Conference finals. Now they will try to do it in Detroit, where they wonGames 3and 4. Duren finished with nine points, 14 rebounds and six assists.

TIGERS

Continuedfrom page1C

four hits and two earned runs.

He was dominant through the ﬁrst two frames, at onepoint striking out ﬁveconsecutive batters before allowing asolo homerun to lead off thethird inning.

Schmidt also surrendered arun-scoring double in thefourthbeforeexiting forredshirt sophomoreleft-hander DJ Primeaux withone out.Primeaux got agroundout and astrikeout to strand the runner in scoring position before recording the ﬁrst two outs of the ﬁfth inning.

Redshirtsophomore right-hander Jaden Noot replaced Primeaux and got three strikeoutsin11/3 no-hit innings before

RileyatKoki.Riley@ theadvocate.com.

AP PHOTO By MICHAEL CONROy

Indiana Pacersteammates Aaron Nesmith, left, Pascal Siakam, center, and Myles Turner celebrate the team’swin in overtime on Tuesday in Indianapolis.

NFL DRAFT

one Pro Bowl.

Continued frompage1C

WhyOLatNo. 9?

New Orleans had alot of directions it could have taken with its first pick, but it landed on Texas offensive lineman Kelvin Banks. Here are some numbers to consider.For clarity’s sake, 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-teamAll-Pro nod, and52(37.4%) have made at least one Pro Bowl. Breaking it down even further,11ofthe 41 offensive linemen selected in the top 10 since2000 have earned first-team All-Pro (26.8%) and 18 (43.9%) have made at least one Pro Bowl. 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-Pro nod and 64 (8.1%) have made at least

While it is possible toﬁnd high-level offensive line play on Days 2and 3ofthe draft —and the Saints have done it several times,with players such as Terron Armstead and Erik McCoy —the numbers prove it is alot harder That is somewhat true for alot of positions, but the numbers are not asdrastic as they are upfront.At wide receiver,for instance, 10 of the105 ﬁrst-round picks since 2000 made All-Pro (9.5%) versus 23ofthe 636 receivers taken on Days 2 and3(3.6%).

The Saints had ahole on their offensive line, and they madethe best possible bettoﬁll it.

Day3 value

TheSaints haveanentire staff devotedtoscouting collegefootball players, andlike every other team they assemble their own setofdraft rankings— sometimesreferred to as a “board.” New Orleanshas its own, and it may vary drastically fromanother team’s set of rankings—or from those putout by mediamembers.

Still, it was alittle jarring to see some of the Saints picks compared to theprojectionsmadebysome in the media.

Banks, for instance, was

rated 26th and 27th, respectively,byThe Athletic and NFL Media. Texas DT Vernon Broughton, whom the Saintsselected 71st overall and considered in the second round, did not even crack NFL Media’stop 150 as aprospect All fourofNew Orleans’ Day 1and 2picks ranked lower on these lists than their ultimate draft position

But, at least in terms of those media rankings, the Saintsrallied on Day 3.

The Athletic had both linebacker Danny Stutsman (87) and cornerback Quincy Riley (94) as top-100 prospects, and the Saintsgot them with picks 112 and 131, respectively.Running back Devin Neal, whom the Saintsselected 184th overall, was ranked as high as No. 49 by Yahoo. The Athletic also had defensive end Fadil Diggs, theSaints’ last pick of the draft at No. 254, as atop-160 player

Nobody will remember therankings afew years from now when we see how these careers play out, but it certainly wouldn’thurt aSaints team that desperately needs some young impact players to hit on a couple of Day 3picks.

Email Luke Johnson at ljohnson@theadvocate.com.

SAINTS PLAN TO RELEASE QB DINUCCI

Afterthe Saints drafted Tyler Shough overthe weekend, the team made achangeatquarterback to account forthe selection

Arizona 1. (16) Walter Nolen, DT,Ole Miss.

2. (47) Will Johnson, CB, Michigan.

3. (78) Jordan Burch,DE, Oregon.

4. (115) Cody Simon, LB,OhioState. 5. (174) Denzel Burke, CB, Ohio State.

6. (211) Hayden Conner, G, Texas.

7. (225) Kitan Crawford, S, Nevada.

Atlanta

1. (15) Jalon Walker, LB,Georgia.

1. (26) James Pearce Jr. DE,Tennessee.

3. (96) XavierWatts,S,NotreDame.

4. (118) Billy Bowman Jr., S, Oklahoma.

7. (218) JackNelson, OT,Wisconsin Baltimore

1. (27) Malaki Starks, S, Georgia.

2. (59) MikeGreen, DE, Marshall.

3. (91) Emery Jones Jr., G, LSU.

4. (129) TeddyeBuchanan, LB California.

5. (141) Carson Vinson, OT,Alabama A&M.

6. (178) Bilhal Kone, CB, Western Michigan.

6. (186) TylerLoop, K, Arizona.

6. (203) LaJohntayWester, WR, Colorado.

6. (210) Aeneas Peebles,DT, Virginia Tech

6. (212) Robert Longerbeam, CB, Rutgers.

7. (243) Garrett Dellinger, G, LSU. Buffalo

1. (30) MaxwellHairston, CB, Kentucky

2. (41) T.J. Sanders,DT, South Carolina.

3. (72) Landon Jackson, DE, Arkansas

4. (109) Deone Walker, DT,Kentucky

5. (170) Jordan Hancock, CB, Ohio State.

5. (173) JacksonHawes,TE, Georgia Tech

6. (177) Dorian Strong, CB, Virginia Tech

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

7. (240) Kaden Prather, WR,Maryland. Carolina

1. (8)TetairoaMcMillan, WR,Arizona.

2. (51) Nick Scourton, DE, TexasA&M.

3. (77) Princely Umanmielen, DE, Ole Miss.

4. (114) Trevor Etienne, RB, Georgia.

4. (122) Lathan Ransom, S, Ohio State.

5. (140) Cam Jackson, DT,Florida.

5. (163) Mitchell Evans,TE, Notre Dame.

6. (208) JimmyHorn Jr., WR,Colorado. Chicago

The Saints informed quarterback Ben DiNucci that theyplantorelease him, DiNucci wrote on X. DiNucci, 28, had been with the Saints since late last season when he joined the practice squad. The Saints’quarterback room nowconsists of DerekCarr, Shough, Spencer Rattler and Jake Haener.Carr’sstatus for 2025 is still unknown as he deals with ashoulder injury

DiNucci entered the NFL in 2020 when he was drafted in the seventh round out of James Madison by Dallas. He appeared in three games forthe DallasCowboys MatthewParas

Browns contributedtotwo rarities SAINTS

Clevelandﬁrst team to drafttwo

QBsinﬁrstﬁve rounds since2012

BY JOSH DUBOW AP pro football writer

Shedeur Sanders’ slide down the NFL draft was the dominant story of the weekend with one of college football’smost high-profile players lasting until the fifth round The fact Sanders was taken by the Browns two rounds after they drafted another quarterback in Dillon Gabriel madethe entire situation even more rare. The Browns were thefirst team to draft two quarterbacks in the first fiverounds of the NFL draft since Washington did it in 2012, when the team traded up to take Robert Griffin III with the second-overall pick and then draftedKirk Cousins in the fourth round. There are only ahandful of other times in the common draft era beginning in 1967 that ateam picked two quarterbacks that high in the draft. Green Bay drafted Anthony Dilweg in the third round andJeffGrahaminthe fourth in 1989. The Packers traded Graham to Washington later in the draft, andhe never playeda game in the NFL despite spending time with several teams. Dilweg started seven games in 1990. The Colts double-dipped at quarterback in 1982,taking Art Schlichter fourth overall

and Mike Pagel in the fourth round. Schlichter played only 13 games because of gamblingproblems, while Pagel had along career, mostly as abackup.

The HoustonOilersalso diditin1971, taking Dan Pastorini in the first round and Lynn Dickey in the third. Both had longcareers as starters in theNFL. Therewere two other timesithappened,but one of those QBs quickly shifted positionsto receiveronce joiningthe NFL.

The Jets took Kellen Clemens in the second round and Brad Smith inthe fourth in 2006. Clemens spent 12seasons in the NFL, mostly as abackup, while Smith had asuccessful career as areceiver,returner and occasionalWildcat quarterback.

The Raiderstook quarterbacks with their first two picks in 1968, but first-rounder Eldrige Dickey moved to receiver after hisfirsttraining camp and had only five catches inhis career. Secondrounder Ken Stabler wenton to become the 1974 AP NFL MVP and had aHall of Fame career as aquarterback.

Tradingup

Trading up foratop-two pick in the NFL draft isn’t thatuncommon, with it happening ﬁvetimes in thelast 13 drafts before this season. Doing it foranonquarterback is rare.

The deal made by Jacksonville with Cleveland tomove up from No. 5toNo. 2totake TravisHunter marked the first time since 1997 that a team traded up that high to draft anonquarterback.

It happenedtwice in 1997, with the Raiders trading up to No. 2that year before the Rams jumped them two weekslater to trade for the No.1 pick. The Ramstook Hall of Fame offensive tackle Orlando Pace andthe Raiders drafted defensivetackle Darrell Russell.

There hadn’tbeen areceiver taken in the top two since Calvin Johnson went second to Detroit in 2007, and no defensive back had been taken that high since safety Eric Turner went second to Cleveland in 1991. Hunter could end up playing both positions.

There were 12 other instances in the commondraft era starting in 1967 when a team traded up for atop-two pick and draftedanonquarterback.

Pace was one of four Hall of Famers acquiredthatway with the other threeall being running backs: Eric Dickerson (1983), Earl Campbell (1978) and Tony Dorsett (1977).

Some of theother trades weren’tassuccessful, like Cincinnati movinguptotake running back Ki-Jana Carter ﬁrst in 1995, the Jets trading up for receiver LamJones in 1980, and theVikings moving up forrunning back Clint Jones in 1967.

Ohio State, SECrule

With the SEC setting arecord with 79 players drafted andOhio Statehaving14of the 71 draft picks in the Big Ten, the twomostprominent college football conferences dominated draft weekend.

Thanks to the ﬁrst year of expansionthatsentTexas

andOklahomatothe SEC— along with USC, UCLA, Oregon and Washingtonjoining theBig Ten— thoseconferences accounted for 58% of all draft picks.

Throw in the 42 picks for theACC and 31 forthe Big 12,and thefourpowerconferences had nearly87% of all draft picks thisyear, along with sixmore from Notre Dame.

TheGroup of Five had just 18 players draftedasmany playerswho began their careers at that level have moved up to power conferences. There were only eight players chosen from nonFBS teams.

This marked the87th straight draft withaplayer from Michigan being taken. USCalso has had aplayer taken in every draftsince 1939, tying the Wolverines for the longest active streak. Position breakdown

There was an even split of offensive anddefensive players picked in the draft with 126 players from each side of the ball —not including the two-way player Hunter

The other four players taken were specialists, including arare long snapper drafted with Julian Ashby getting taken by New England with the 252ndpick.

The defensive line led the way with 58 players taken, according to Sportradar,followed by 47 exclusive defensivebacks and 41 offensive linemen. There were30receivers drafted in addition to Hunter,along with 25 running backs, 21 linebackers, 16 tight ends and 14 quarterbacks.

1. (10) Colston Loveland, TE,Michigan.

2. (39) Luther Burden III, WR,Missouri

2. (56) Ozzy Trapilo,OT, Boston College.

2. (62) Shemar Turner, DT,Texas A&M.

4. (132) Ruben Hyppolite II, LB, Maryland.

5. (169) ZahFrazier, CB, Texas-San Antonio.

6. (195) Luke Newman, G, Michigan State.

7. (233) Kyle Monangai, RB, Rutgers. Cincinnati

1. (17) Shemar Stewart, DE, Texas A&M.

2. (49) Demetrius Knight Jr., LB,South Carolina.

3. (81) Dylan Fairchild,G,Georgia.

4. (119) Barrett Carter, LB,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 State.

3. (67) Harold FanninJr., TE,Bowling Green.

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

4. (126) Dylan Sampson, RB, Tennessee.

5. (144) Shedeur Sanders,QB, Colorado. Dallas

1. (12) TylerBooker, G, Alabama.

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

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

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

5. (152) Shemar James, LB,Florida.

6. (204) Ajani Cornelius, OT,Oregon.

7. (217) JayToia, DT,UCLA.

7. (239) PhilMafah, RB, Clemson.

7. (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) QueRobinson, DE, Alabama.

6. (216) JeremyCrawshaw, p, Florida.

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

1. (28) Tyleik Williams, DT,OhioState.

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) SavionWilliams, WR,TCU

4. (124) BarrynSorrell, DE, Texas.

5. (159) Collin Oliver, LB,Oklahoma State.

6. (198) Warren Brinson, DT,Georgia.

7. (237) Micah Robinson, DB, Tulane.

7. (250) John Williams, G, Cincinnati. Houston

2. (34) Jayden Higgins, WR, Iowa State.

2. (48) Aireontae Ersery,OT, Minnesota.

3. (79) Jaylin Noel, WR,IowaState.

3. (97) Jaylin Smith, CB, Southern Cal.

4. (116) Woody Marks, RB, Southern Cal.

6. (187) JaylenReed, S, Penn State.

6. (197) Graham Mertz, QB, Florida.

7. (224) Kyonte Hamilton, DT,Rutgers

7. (255) Luke Lachey,TE, Iowa Indianapolis

1. (14) TylerWarren, TE,Penn State.

2. (45) JT Tuimoloau, DE, Ohio State.

3. (80) Justin Walley, CB, Minnesota.

4. (127) Jalen Travis, OT,IowaState.

5. (151) DJ Giddens, RB, Kansas State.

6. (189) Riley Leonard, QB, Notre Dame.

6. (190) TimSmith, DT,Alabama.

7. (232) HunterWohler, S, Wisconsin Jacksonville

1. (2)Travis Hunter, WR/DB,Colorado.

3. (88) Caleb Ransaw, CB, Tulane.

3. (89) Wyatt Milum, G, W. Virginia.

4. (104) Bhayshul Tuten, RB, Virginia Tech

4. (107) JackKiser, LB,NotreDame.

6. (194) Jalen McLeod, LB,Auburn.

6. (200) Rayuan Lane III, S, Navy

7. (221) Jonah Monheim, c, Southern Cal.

7. (236) LeQuint Allen, RB, Syracuse Kansas City

1. (32) Josh Simmons,OT, Ohio State.

2. (63) Omarr Norman-Lott, DT,Tennessee.

3. (66) Ashton Gillotte, DE,Louisville

3. (85) NohlWilliams, CB, California.

4. (133) Jalen Royals, WR,Utah State.

5. (156) Jeffrey Bassa,LB, Oregon.

7. (228) BrashardSmith, RB,

1. (6)Ashton

ASSOCIATED PRESS FILE

PHOTOByMICHAEL CONROy

Kansas running back DevinNeal catches apass duringthe NFLscouting combine on March1 in Indianapolis. The Saints drafted Neal inthe sixth round.

THEVARSITYZONE

Harrisaimstosprint past expectations

West Feliciana star setfor regional meet

BY ROBIN FAMBROUGH Staff writer

An opposing coach asked West Feliciana girls track and field coach Hatem Bachar whether he had areplacement forTristen Harris waiting in the wings. Bachar smiled and said, “Maybe in 30 years or so.”

With that said, Bachar is down to his ﬁnal two meets with Harris, aSouth Carolina signee who set an LHSAA composite record in the long jump ayear agoand also ranks among Louisiana’stop sprinters.

Up next is theClass 4A,Region 2 meet set for Wednesday at Brusly High. Field events start at 1p.m., followed by running eventsat 5:45 p.m. Though Harris is astar attraction, the host Panthers should attract attention of their ownafter sweeping girls/boys District 6-4A titles aweek ago. Both Harris and Bachar agree this season has been different. With coaches from Nike and South Carolina offering guidance since the indoor seasonbegan, Bachar hastaken astepbackin some ways the year after Harris’ career took off in amatterof weeks.

She leaped 20 feet, 111/2 inches at St. Amant to end the 2024 regular season. Because therewas no wind gauge, that mark was not recognized as astate record. A few weeks later,Harris jumped a wind legal 20-103/4 at the LHSAA Class 4A outdoor meet at LSU.

Harris also won the 100-and 200-meter races that day,cement-

on May4 at LSU’sBernie Moore Stadium

ing her elite status.Atriptothe

Nike Junior Nationals followed.

Next came LHSAA Division Iindoor titles in February in thelong jump and 60 meters. Aleap of 20-5 at the Nike Indoor Nationals set the stagefor theoutdoor season.

Harris hasmore legal 20-foot jumps thanany girl in Louisiana history.Like all competitors, she dreamsofdoingmore.

“This year has been different,” shesaid.“My best jump so far wasatthe Nike Indoor meet. Even though Ilike the 100 meters, I’m really pleased with my best 200 time …23.87 seconds is really good.”

When askedabout herpostseasongoals, Harris hedges her bets just abit.

“I’dliketopop onebig one (jump) before my high school career ends,” Harris said. “Helping my team do well is very impor-

PREP REPORT

tant, too.”

In addition to her 200 time, Harris’ best outdoor 100 time of 11.67 seconds happened at Zachary’s Bronco Relays. As he watches Harris, Bachar knows lofty expectations can be consuming. More than anything else, the West Felicianacoach wants his senior star to focus on what liesahead,rather than allowingpastsuccesstobecomea burden.

“She hasbeen closetosome really big jumps this spring,” Bachar said.

“Inone meet,she wasmore than afoot behind theboard and jumped 19-7. Not every meet is going to be that kind of meet. The focustomorrow is to qualify for state. Then move on.”

Email RobinFambrough at rfambrough@theadvocate.com

No. 12 East Iberville at No. 5Oakdale, 5p.m. Wednesday Select quarterﬁnals

DivisionI No. 8John Curtis at No.1 Catholic,Thursday, 5p.m., Friday, 5p.m., Saturday, 1p.m. DivisionIII No. 9Dunham at No. 1Parkview Baptist, Thursday, 6p.m., Friday, 6p.m., Saturday, 1p.m. No. 6EpiscopalatNo. 3Pope John Paul II, Thursday, 5p.m., Friday, 5p.m., Saturday, noon No. 7Calvary Baptist at No. 2University Friday, 6p.m., Saturday, noon, Saturday, 2p.m. Girls golf

Denham Springs at No. 1LiveOak No.

SulphuratNo. 5Benton

9NorthVermilion at No. 1Brusly No. 5IowaatNo. 4West Ouachita Division III No. 9FrenchSettlementatNo. 1Sterlington No. 5Kaplan at No. 4Westlake Regionals Division IV

Division II, Region 2 at Santa MariaGolf Course Team Scores: 1. AcademyOfThe Sacred Heart, 154. 2. Episcopal, 156. 3. Ursuline Academy, 192. 4. St. John Of Plaquemine, 195. Individual Medalists: 1. SophiaMacias, Episcopal, 70. 2. Jade Neves, Academyof Sacred Heart, 72. 3. Ashley Biehl, Ursuline Academy, 75. 4. Madeline Rudolph, AcademyofSacred Heart, 82.5.Grace Gunn, AcademyofSacred Heart, 84. 6. Saige Berthelot, St. John Of Plaquemine, 85.7.Kaylie Hui, Newman, 86. 7. Marcella Rabalais, Episcopal, 86. 9. Bayleigh Waldrep, Ascension Christian, 93. 10. Malaina Burke, Christ Episcopal, 99

NOTEBOOK

BY ROBIN FAMBROUGH Staff writer

Best team ever?

JonathanHoward wants to debate that pointafter hisSt. Joseph’s Academy tennis team dominated the Division Igirls ﬁeld at theLHSAA’s tennistournamentthat concluded Tuesday in Monroe.

“I thoughtitwas avalid argument lastyear whenwewon,” Howard said. “And Ithink it’s even morevalid this year.Wescored 211/2 points, and I’m not sure there are many ways you could score morethan that. We had thetop two doubles teamsand we had thesingleschampionship. Our othersinglesplayer advanced to thesemiﬁnals. Someof the matches were tough. We were able to dominate team wise.”

St.Joseph’s(211/2)finishedwell aheadofrunner-up Barbewith eight points. Dominican and Mount Carmel each had six points. It is the ﬁfth straight girls title for the Redstickers andsecondwith Howard as their head coach.

Ella Mancuso defeated Mandeville’s Ciara Sergi 6-4, 7-5 in an intensesingles ﬁnal. Mancuso ﬁnished the season 17-0. In the allRedstickersdoublesfinalLaura

Caroline Holliday and Cameron Raines beat Adeline Hedges and Ryland Stafford 7-6, 7-5. “Just like last year,weprepared for this by playing some tough outof-state teams,” Howard said. “We were prepared foreverything we

saw at this tournament.

Episcopal, St.Johnadvance

With medalist Sophia Macias leading the way, the Episcopal girls golf team placed second at the DivisionII, Region2girls golf tournament held Tuesday at the Santa Maria Golf Course. Macias, aTulane signee, shot a 2-under-par 70 to finish two strokes aheadofAcademyofSacred Heart’sJane Neves. Sacred Heart edged the Knights forthe team title by twostrokes, 154-156. St. John, led by sixth-place finisher Saige Berthelot, finished at 195, ascore that was good enough to secure the final team qualifying spot. Berthelot carded an 85. Parkview,GlenOaksexcel ParkviewBaptist won the girls team title, whileGlenOakswas the boys runner-up at the Class 3A, RegionIItrack meet Monday at McNeese, The Eaglesscored 107 points, finishing ahead of St.Louis Catholic (891/2)and Lake Charles College Prep (71). LCCP won the boys title with 124 points, ahead of Glen Oak (79) and Parkview (721/2). Distances runners LucyCramer and Aiden Monistere swept the girls/boys distance events the 800-,1,600 and3,200 to lead Parkview Catron Hargrove was the 400 and 200 meters champion to set the pace for GlenOaks.

TRACKAND FIELD

Class3ARegion 2 Boys Team scores: 1. LakeCharles College Prep, 124. 2. GlenOaks, 79. 3. Parkview Baptist, 72.5. 4. Erath, 50. 5. University, 37. 6. Port Allen, 36. 7. St. Louis, 34. 8. MadisonPrep, 32. Javelin: 1. LeDerrienBurns,Port Allen, 162-0. 2. Jacob Marcantel, South Beauregard, 157-2. 3. Gordon Rush, U-High, 152-3. High jump: 1. Javien Matthews,LakeCharles College Prep, 6-2. 2. JimmyLewis, Collegiate Baton Rouge, 6-0. 2. JordanDugas, LCCP,6-0 Shot put: 1. Colton Guillory,St. Louis, 47-1.25. 2. Victors Hollins, MadisonPrep, 45-3.75. 3. Darius Mack, MadisonPrep, 43-5.50. Long jump: 1. DeandreDunn, Glen Oaks, 232.00. 2. Gerald Watson, Jennings, 21-10.50. 3. William Plaster, LCCP,21-9. Pole vault: 1. Lucas Owens, AcadianaRenaissanceAcademy, 14-0. 2. ConnorToups,Erath, 11-0. 2. Luke Caraway, St.Louis, 11-0. Discus: 1. Kevin Small, Kaplan, 160-5. 2. Lamar Brown, U-High, 145-7. 3. Noah Royer, South Beauregard, 137-9. Triple jump: 1. CameronBrazzle, LCCP,45-7.25. 2. BraylenWhite, LCCP,45-3. 3. DeandreDunn, Glen Oaks, 44-9. 4x800 relay: 1. Parkview,8:22.22. 2. Glen Oaks, 8:23.74. 3. Acadiana Renaissance, 8:24.86. 100: 1. Ayden Carter, LCCP,10.62. 2. Braylon Moore, Abbeville, 10.66. 3. BrennanGibson Port Allen, 10.70. 110 hurdles: 1. Sean Herrington, Erath, 14.70. 2. Jamarcus Young, Glen Oaks, 15.40. 3. Kalen Antoine, LCCP,15.46. 4x200 relay: 1. LCCP,1:28.27. 2. Glen Oaks, 1:30.01. 3. Parkview,1:30.76. 1,600 meters: 1. AidenMonistere, Parkview 4:26.84. 2. Max Tsolakis, U-High, 4:27.47. 3. Andrew Watts, Parkview,4:27.91. 4x100 relay: 1. LCCP,42.57. 2. U-High, 43.47. 3. Parkview,43.65. 400: 1. Catron Hargrove,Glen Oaks, 48.95. 2. Careion Franklin, LCCP,49.60. 3. Kaleb West Port Allen, 50.12. 300 hurdles: 1. Kalen Antoine, LCCP,40.04. 2. Damone Scott, LCCP,40.61. 3. Sean Herrington Erath, 40.98. 800: 1. Aiden Monistere, Parkview,1:58.18. 2. Reed Boudreaux, Parkview,1:58.98. 3. Cameron Soirez, Erath, 2:00.43. 200: 1. CatronHargrove, Glen Oaks, 21.75. 2. Brennan Gibson, Port Allen, 21.76. 3. Braylon Moore, Abbeville, 22.05. 3,200: 1. Aiden Monistere, Parkview,10:26.12. 2. Deacon Stantz, St.Louis, 10:28.66. 3. Reed Boudreaux, Parkview,10:36.19. 4x400 relay: 1. Glen Oaks, 3:23.10. 2. LCCP

3:25.03. 3. Port Allen, 3:27.10. Girls Team scores: 1. Parkview Baptist, 107. 2. St Louis, 89.5. 3. Lake CharlesCollegePrep, 71. 4. University, 65. 5. AcadianaRenaissance Charter, 53. 6. MadisonPrep, 48. 7. Kaplan,46. 4x800: 1. Parkview,10:00.11. 2. Kaplan,10:02.34. 3. St.Louis, 10:09.78. 100 hurdles: 1. Makayla Miller, MadisonPrep, 15.25. 2. Na’Ryah McCallister, LCCP,15.85. 3. Annie Garrison, U-High,15.98. 100: 1. Cabrina Scarlett, South Beauregard, 12.08. 2. Akia Jackson,LCCP,12.20. 3. Lyric Walker, MadisonPrep, 12.21. 4x200: 1. St.Louis, 1:40.65. 2. LCCP,1:41.95. 3. Madison Prep,1:43.06. 1600: 1. Lucy Cramer,Parkview,5:28.25. 2. Molly Cramer,Parkview,5:29.21. 3. Cate Williamson, U-High, 5:34.39. 4x100: 1. LCCP,48.62. 2. St.Louis, 48.95. 3. Port Allen, 49.76. 400: 1. HannahBoullion,St. Louis, 56.42. 2. Kennedy Aldridge,U-High, 57.49. 3. Halee Jackson, St.Louis, 57.77. 300 hurdles: 1. DynastyWilfred, Madison Prep 43.96. 2. Macey Theriot, Parkview,45.53. 3. AnnieGarrison, U-High, 46.89. 800: 1. Lucy Cramer,Parkview,2:17.44. 2. GeorgiaTheriot, Parkview,2:18.13. 3. Alexa Tarin-Carlon, Erath, 2:20.76. 200: 1. HannahBoullion,St. Louis, 24.93. 2. JernyStevens,LCCP,25.23. 3. Lyric Walker, Madison Prep,25.43. 3200: 1. Lucy Cramer,Parkview,12:01.43. 2. Molly Cramer,Parkview,12:02.04. 3. Caroline Cain,U-High, 12:05.46. 4x400: 1. St.Louis, 3:55.28. 2. LCCP,3:57.15. 3. U-High, 3:58.25. Javelin: 1. Sophia Runnels, Westlake, 112-11. 2. Chloe Painter, Kaplan, 100-1. 3. Madison McManus,Kaplan, 99-03. Discus: 1. AddysonHebert, Kaplan, 112-01.50. 2. Ashton Lasseigne,AcadianaRenaissance Charter, 105-07. 3. Naomi Wyble,Erath, 105-07. Shotput: 1. AshtonLasseigne, Acadiana Renaissance, 32-6. 2. Vada Fontenot,South Beauregard, 31-9. 3. Addyson Hebert, Kaplan, 31-7.50. Triple jump: 1. Cali Cain,U-High, 37-4. 2. Treasure Matthews,AcadianaRenaissance Charter, 35-3.50. 3.

STAFF FILEPHOTO By MICHAEL JOHNSON

West Feliciana’sTristen Harris celebrates after winning the Class 4A 200-meter dash at the LHSAA state track and field meet

Hopeshighfor WingswithBueckers

BY STEPHENHAWKINS AP sportswriter

ARLINGTON, Texas Paige Bueckers raised the expectations and excitement level for the Dallas Wings and their fans many months before she was even drafted by the WNBA team. It started with the viralvideo of new Wings general manager Curt Miller’sreaction when the franchise won the draft lottery for the No.1overall pick only days after he was hired.

“I absolutely lost my mind. We knew what that meant at that moment,” the GM says even now

That was in November,when Bueckers was only three games into the three-time AP All-American’sﬁnal seasonatUConn, which ended with the Huskies’12th national championship and coach Geno Auriemma’ssixth No.1 overall pick in the WNBA draft

Within days after the draftlottery —five months before the April 14 draft, and six months before the May 16 season opener the Wings had sold out their season ticket allotment.

Theteamalsohas an expanded regional TV broadcast deal to reach 6.2million homes, and will move into arenovated arena in downtown Dallas next season.

Bueckers is generating the same kind of buzz around the Wings that Caitlin Clark did as the No. 1overall pick for the Indiana Fever last year,when they made the playoffs for the ﬁrst time in eight years. Clark was the WNBA Rookie of the Year,and was The Associated

PaigeBueckersofthe

Press 2024 Female Athlete of the Year “She’sgoing toimpact us, and she just impacts winning,” Miller saidofBueckers, referringtoher as ahumblesuperstar ArikeOgunbowale, the fifth overallpick by theWings in 2019, was the All-Star GameMVP last season and second in the WNBA with 22.2 points agame. She is also oneofonly threereturning players with Dallas coming off a9-31 season andmissing the playoffs for the ﬁrst time since 2020.

4. DaimionCollins

lowest percentage at 24.6%, according to BarTorvik. The point guard wasn’tprepared for the role LSU needed him to play,despitestarting 12 games. The 20-year-old is someone LSU wanted to keep based on the opportunity he had to playthrough his mistakes.

Givens’ size, youth and four-star pedigree are why LSU was willing to be patient withhis development.

Losing a22-year-old player with college eligibilityafter his best season is normally notideal.Collins,aredshirt junior,averaged 8.0 points,4.3 reboundsand 1.6 blocks in 20.4 minutes LSU will miss his veteran presence andhis elite vertical abilityat6-9, 200pounds. Theformer ﬁve-star recruit who is headingto South Florida is below Givens becauseofhis strugglesonthe defensive boards. Of the 31 SEC players who are at least 6-8 and had aminutes

The Wings didacquire DiJonai Carrington from Connecticutina multiteamtrade aftershe earned the league’sMost Improved Player Award last season. They also signed seven-year veteran and 2019 WNBA champion Myisha Hines-Allen in free agency

“There’s alot of new, there’sgoing to be anew facility, new arena, new GM, newcoachingstaff mostly an entirenew team,” Bueckerssaid. “So just to build from where we are now,continue to build forthe future. Dallas is asports city,soyou feel thelove

percentage of 35%, Collinshad the worst defensive rebounding rate (12.3%), accordingtoBarTorvik. Replacing him with morereliable glass cleaners out of the portal should play off for LSU.

5. Mike Williams

The6-3 sophomoreplayedin24 games and averaged 4.0 pointsand shot31.3% fromthe ﬁeld in 11.2 minutes. Williams had his rolesignificantly reduced from his freshman season when he started 22 games while scoring 7.2 points in 19.5

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already and thesupport andthe excitement.”

Bueckers and the Wings’ other fourdraft picks were introduced last week before the start of trainingcamp in apacked lobby at Dallas City Hall that included the mayor.The rally-like event was held only acouple of blocks from thehistoric downtown arena being fully renovated for the team, part of a15-year agreement the Dallas City Council approved last year to facilitate the team’smove to its namesakecity Still, Bueckers isn’tgetting caught up in what everyone else expectsfrom her as the No. 1overall pick.

“The best thing Idid last year wasbuild my approach to the gameand my ability to not care about expectations, and not set any expectations, because then youset aceiling of what youcan accomplish or whatyou want to look like,” she said.

Adjustingtothe WNBA?

Miller knows Bueckers, like every newWNBA player, will have to makeplenty of adjustments as aﬁrst-time pro, such as new rules andadifferent speed and physicality to thegame.

“Caitlin was oneofthe outliers that theadjustment was quicker for her,” Miller said. “There’ll be an adjustment, there’llbeaspotlight on her.But she’shandled so much of that throughouther young career already.”

Bueckers has plenty of people to turn to who have been where she is now

minutes. While willing to be ahigh-volume 3-point shooter,hefailedto providemuchvalue when he didn’t make3s.

6. Noah Boyde Boyde was a7-foot, 245-pound juniorwho played ﬁvegames and 12 total minutes. Coming to LSU from McCook Community College in Nebraska appeared to be too big of aleap as he was unable to earn minuteson ateam starving for frontcourt help after Reed’sseason-ending injury on Dec. 3.

“I mostly talk to alot of the UConn alums, and just being apart of that network,” she said. “And they’ve been through every single thing that you can imagine with everybody who’sbeen through there. So leaning on them alot andobviously just embracing your own journey.”

Bigdeals forWings

The Wings in February announced their new television carrier in Dallas-Fort Worth market would be the same as the NBA’s DallasMavericks, and since the draft said that networkhas expanded to 12 markets in Texas. Wings CEO and managing partner Greg Bibb said that is the largest footprint forWNBAlocal broadcasts in league history

Bibb said the Wings also finalized the largest sponsorship agreement in organization history,with financial service provider Albert becoming their official jersey patch partner in what he called an eightfigure deal over the next five years. Bueckers vs.Caitlin

Amonth before Bueckers was drafted, the Wings announced their June 27 game against Clark and the Fever would be at the 20,000-seat American Airlines Center, the home of the NBA’s Mavericks.

Clark playedinthe FinalFour with Iowa in that building two yearsago.Whenthe Feverreturn to North Texas on August 1, that gameisstill set forthe Wings’ normal 6,251-seat homearena on the UT-Arlington campus.

Boyde, now with Western Kentucky,was unlikely to improve enough to earn signiﬁcant minutes in 2025-26 at LSU.

7. Tyrell Ward

As ajunior,Ward never played during the2024-25 season, stepping away from the program because of mental health reasons before the ﬁrst game. He wasn’texpected to return to theteam andhas sincetransferred to Virginia Commonwealth. The 6-6 wing averaged 9.1 points in 21.8 minutes per gameasasophomore.

especially theservicespeople over 50 oftenneed.

Consider these national average costs of treatment. $222 fora checkup .$190 for afilling. $1,213 fora crown.3 Unexpected bills likethis can be arealburden especially if you’re on afixed income.

Ask about the

ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO JULIO CORTEZ

Dallas Wings, whowas selected No. 1overall in theWNBAdraft, speaks during anewsconference on April 23 in Dallas.

Lauren Cheramie BONVIVANT

Bon vi·vant /noun/ asociable personwho has cultivatedand reﬁned tastes, especially with respect to food and drink

Newfood,drinksonthe block

Try“The Mastiharita” at Zorba’sBistro,5713 Essen Lane, Baton Rouge, where tequila meets Greek mastiha, lemon, lime and ahint of basil.

Try‘The Mastiharita’ at Zorba’s Bistro, 5713 EssenLane, Baton Rouge, where tequila meets Greek mastiha, lemon, limeand ahint of basil.

Enjoy happy hour at ZeeZee’s, 2943 Perkins Road, Baton Rouge, 4p.m. to 7p.m. every weekday with half-off select appetizers, glasses of house wine and draft beer Plan nowfor Mother’s Day Jazz brunch:11a.m. to 3p.m Sunday,May 11, at 1717 Kitchen +Cocktails insideThe Queen, 1717 River Park Blvd., Baton Rouge

Celebrate mom with afestive brunch experience, featuring a prix ﬁxe menu, live jazz by The Dominic Bazile Trio and bottomless mimosas. The menu includes chicken and biscuit sliders,steak and eggs, aloaded grits bowl, churrobread pudding and more. Ticketsare $45 perperson. Reservations are recommended.

In theknow

Do you love the idea of a muffuletta but hate olives?

Anthony’sItalian Deli,5575 Government St., Baton Rouge, hasa solution. Trythe “Italian Deli Special,” made with the same meats and cheese as amuffuletta but without the olives. Music and Mudbugs:2 p.m. to 6p.m. Sunday at The Robert A. BoganBaton Rouge Fire Museum, 427 Laurel St., Baton Rouge The museum is hosting afundraiser in celebration of InternationalFireﬁghters Daywith acrawﬁsh boil, beer tasting and music. Moneyraised will support the restoration efforts of the museum. Garrett Reason and Seth Lecoqwill provide entertainment. Tickets are $40 per person, available for purchase at eventbrite.com.

Wine andspirits

Tantalizing Tequilas:6 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. Friday at Martin’s, 6463 Moss Side Lane, Baton Rouge Taste four additive-free tequilas and two mezcal from three distilleries in Mexico: Alma del Jaguar,Pasote and Madre. Mexican appetizers will be passed during the tasting.The lineup includes Alma del Jaguar Blanco Tequila, Alma del Jaguar ReposadoTequila, Pasote Tequila Reposado, Pasote Tequila Anejo, Madre mezcal Espadin and Madre mezcal Ensamble.

TACOS DEL CARTEL

10155 Perkins Rowe

l 11 a.m. to 9p.m Monday, Wednesday, Thursday andSunday; 11 a.m. to 11 p.m Tuesday, Friday andSaturday

BY SERENA PUANG| Staff writer

Tacos del Cartel fans no longer have to journey to New Orleanstoenjoy their favorite tacos. As of April 18, there’sone in Baton Rouge.

The elevated Mexican restaurant knownfor its stunning design and handcrafted cocktails opens at 10155 PerkinsRowe, replacing Habaneros, which closed last month. The expansion was guided by culinary director Atzin Santos, knownfor hiswork at Limosneros, aMichelin Guide-recognized restaurantinMexico City

He said therecipes they serve at Tacos del Cartel come from his family

STAFFPHOTOSByJAVIER GALLEGOS

Rouge.

Continued from page1D

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 beenmaking my way through Baton Rouge’scafes and brunch menus. Louie’sCafe camehighly recommended by many,and I was excited to try the eggsBenedict (the eggs werepoached perfectly). But what blew me away was their hash browns. Ilove apotato in any form, but these hash browns might bethe best I’ve had. They come cubed withonions and Cajun seasoning. It’sasimple dish, butitstole 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.

—Serena Puang, features writer Caesar salad with crispychicken

n The Flats, 427Jefferson St., Lafayette

Ican only refer to this Caesar

BONVIVANT

Continued from page1D

Tickets are $40 per person, available for purchaseatmartinwine.com.

Derbywith The Colonel:3 p.m. Saturday at The Colonel’sClub, 2857 Perkins Road, Baton Rouge Enjoy mint juleps and derbyinspired bites at The Colonel’s Club to view the 151stRun for the Roses. The menu includes deviled eggs, Kentucky bourbon

salad from The Flats, aburger restaurant in downtown Lafayette, as outstanding.Surprising, even,thanks to the generous complementoffurikake ﬂakes, citrus, cured duck egg yolk and shaved Parmesan that coat this salad— all dressed with the restaurant’shouse-made misoCaesar dressing.

Allofthat would have satisﬁed me on its own, but the additionofcrispy chicken elevates this salad to the levelofan unforgettable meal. Customers also have the option to add shrimp, which Ican’twait to try next time.

—JoannaBrown, staff writer

boudinbites,porkbelly and pimentocheese tea sandwiches, Kentuckyhot brown sliders, Southern tomato piebites, smoked hotcrab eggrolls and sweet tea-brined fried chicken sliders. Afterthe derby,Rusty Yates will be onthe piano. Tickets are $35 per person, available for purchase at opentable.com

If youhave an upcoming food event or akitchen question, email lauren.cheramie@ theadvocate.com.Cheers!

Learning to swim is anecessity

Dear Heloise: Sharon’sletter was about the importance of teaching one’schildren to swim well and to practice excellent water safety in general. 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. Our combined experiences convinced us that one can never be lax around water

Hints from Heloise

Our14-year-old daughter pulled avisiting 3-year-old out of our pool as his parentsvisited with other adults about 20 feet away This type of “accident”often hap-

pens when lots of people, including adults, are close by.Learning to swim is not achoice but anecessity! —Cindy,inSt. 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 swimoreven dog-paddle.” Learning to swim has saved manylives, and it’s never too early to learn. —Heloise Laundering a fitted sheet

Dear Heloise: Isaw an ad fora device to hold the corners of aﬁtted sheet together while it’sbeing laundered. It prevents clothing

from getting caught inside the sheet. The next timeI did laundry,I thought about holding the corners of the sheets together and realized that alarge rubber band would workjust ﬁne. Inow take the four corners of the ﬁtted sheet, hold them together,then use the rubber band to bind them together.I wash the sheets and dry them with the rubber band on. It works great, and Inolonger have dampclothes wrapped up in the sheet as it comes out of the dryer —A Reader, via email Sendahinttoheloise@heloise com.

CulinaryDirector Atzin

Baton Rouge.

TACOS

Continuedfrom page1D

Santos is excited toshare his tradition and food withBaton Rouge. He recommends first-time restaurantvisitorstry theMexican Caviar Gordita ($55), Barbacoa de Short Rib ($52), tuna tostada ($18) and/or the green ceviche ($26).

Themenuisdivided into sections:starters, raw and sushi bar, soup and salad, signature tacos, lostradicionales, mainsand sides, buta lotofthe menu itemscome with tortillas for people to eat like tacos, regardless if they’re listed as tacos. Portions formaincourses are designed to be big, so customers are encouragedtoshare them between two people.

There are also afew vegetarian options on the menu.

The cocktail menu highlights several mezcal andtequila options, curated by Reinaldo Verdu, which also includes amocktail of the day After amonth,the Baton Rouge restaurant will serve brunchon theweekend with menu items like French toast, acai bowls, huevos rancheros, steak andeggs and breakfast tacos. This is consistent with the other location, but depending on demand, they may expand brunch for Perkins Rowe.

Tacos del Cartel started in Metairiein2020 and opened alocation in New Orleans.The original location at 2901 David Drive, Metairie,closedtemporarily fora

major renovation,but they plan to reopen in May. Theyare also working to expand to West Palm Beach, Florida. According to co-owner/founder Vilexis Cruz, the restaurants are fairly similar from onelocation to the next, but the interiors are slightly different to match the vibes of the area. She describedthe vibes of Perkins Rowe as “sweet.”

The walls inside the restaurant have been repainted pastel pink, andmacramé decorations line the walls. The decor choices reﬂect theowner’sheritage andpay homage to theother locations and

Louisiana as awhole.Each menu lights up like magic whenﬂipped open. “I always traveled to Baton Rouge forbusiness. Isee so much potential in this area,” said Danny Cruz, co-founder of Veho Hospitality Group and one of the owners of the restaurant. The expansion into Baton Rouge was partially motivated by the fact that it’sthe capital city of the state. He wants to prove thatTacos del Cartel can makeithere, too.

Email SerenaPuang at serena. puang@theadvocate.com.

STAFF PHOTO By JOANNA BROWN

ACaesar salad with crispy chickenfrom The Flats in Lafayette

STAFF PHOTO By SERENA PUANG

HashbrownsatLouie’sCafe

STAFFPHOTO By JAVIER GALLEGOS

Santos poses for apicture at the Tree of Lifeinthe outdoor patioatTacos DelCartel in

STAFFPHOTO By SERENA PUANG Barbacoa de ShortRib is on the menu at Tacosdel Cartel.

Mom’swaningsight

eclipses milestone

Dear Harriette: My momis such ahard worker! She has an incredible story that includes learning English as her second language, going to college, struggling to ﬁnd work, going back to college while pregnant to pursue amore promising path, graduating and providing for me and my siblings for as long as Ican remember.She is now on her way to retirement, and it feels long overdue She can barely contain her excitement!

By The Associated Press

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

Todayinhistory:

Harriette Cole SENSE AND SENSITIVITy

Recently,mymom received some bad news regarding her vision, which is deteriorating. Her doctors conﬁrmed that her condition can be asymptomatic. Her mood as of late has totally shifted. Idon’twant this well-deserved restand reclaiming of her own life to be overshadowed by health issues, but Idon’t know what to do to lift her spirits. Itry to be present with her for important appointments, and Iresearch remedies. Is thereanything else Ican do to get her positivity back on track?

Supermom

Dear Supermom: Life has a way of throwing curveballs

into the schedulethatwe create for ourselves. Just as your mother is on the brink of ahuge pivot in her life, she has toface ahealthchallenge Yes, it seems unfair, but it is real. Be there for your mom. Assure her that whatever happens,you and the family will rally to support her.She can still look forward to retirement, but now there is more on herplate to handlethan she thought. Thank goodness she will be abletoretirebeforea health setback could make it impossible for her to work.Help her to see the blessings in each moment. Just bepresentfor her Dear Harriette: Aclose friend of minewasn’t going to be able to make rentthis month. She was stressed and didn’t know what to do,soIhelped her outand loaned herthe money.I didn’twanther to risk gettingevictedorfalling further behind. Now that afew weekshavepassed, I’m startingtofeel uneasy She hasn’t broughtuppayingmeback,and Ihaven’t asked because Idon’t want to make her feel uncomfortable. Iknow she’s still

trying to get back on her feet ﬁnancially.Atthe same time, I’m not sure when or whether Ishould expect the money to come back. If she couldn’tafford rent before, Idon’tsee how she’ll suddenly have extra cash to repay me on top of her other expenses. Ididn’tset clear terms when Igave her the money,which Inow realize might’ve been amistake. Ivalue our friendship, but Ican’tafford to give away money withoutsome sort of plan. How do Iapproach this without damaging our relationship or making her feel like I’m putting pressure on her during ahard time? —Payback Dear Payback: It’s unrealistic to expect your money back soon. Yes, you should have established apayment plan before, but here you are. Askyour friend when and how she intends torepay this debt, but know that it will not likely be in the near future. Youneed to be OK with that. Youchose to lend her the money without making aplan. It might even be best to consider the loan agift to her and alesson learned for you.

Send questions to askharriette@ harriettecole.com.

Smug honeymooners inadvertentlyhog booze

Dear Miss Manners: My wife and Ihad an amazing and intimate honeymoon in the Leeward Islands. In the spirit of the occasion, we booked first-class tickets for our flights. During boarding for the return leg, the flight attendant asked if we would like anything to drink. We requested Champagne to commemorate aperfect week spent together The attendant stated that they only had enough Champagne for us each to order aglass, and that there wouldn’tbeany more for the flight. We took this to mean that each passenger on this flight could only order Champagne once, so our reply to the flight attendant was, “That’sfine, we’ll take it now,thank you!”

getChampagne butus, would it havebeen poor mannerstotakethe last of it? Certainly that is thecase in asocial setting,but is it still the case on a commercial ﬂight?

what relaxed when someone volunteers that they (or their family) are clergy?

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

Judith Martin MISS MANNERS

Gentle reader: The rule you refer to is asocial rule, as distinct from abusiness rule. And ameal at arestaurant—and, by extension, ameal on an airplane, even in ﬁrst class— is a commercial transaction.

Youwould,therefore, defer to another couple you were traveling with,but not to thepeople afew rows back, whomyou have never met. In your case, you did no wrong —although it seems worth mentioning that the ﬂightattendant blaming youfor thelack of Champagne washardly ﬁrst-classtreatment.

For instance, I’d never ask someone Ijust met about their denomination, or where they attend religious services.But most innocuous follow-up questionsabout aclergy member’scalling would reveal that information, even if indirectly Iobviously don’twant to start spiritual debates in social settings, but Ialso wouldn’twant someone to feel like they made aconversation awkward when they only stated the same information about themselves as everyone else had.

Gentlereader: Youare presupposing that everyone has long since forgotten the rules againstdiscussing one’sprofession in social settings. Maybe.

However,after she served us the Champagne, thecouple behind us asked her for some —towhich the flight attendant replied that we had finished the Champagne for the entire flight! In the moment, we had misunderstood her,but it got me thinking: If we’d known no one else would

Andwhile Miss Manners realizes youwere probably borrowing adjectivesfrom theresort’sbrochurewhen youdescribed yourhoneymoon as “amazing” and “intimate,” she thinks that next time, you might just leave it at “amazing.”

Dear Miss Manners: Are the rules about discussingreligioninsocial settings some-

Miss Manners agrees that it would be unkind to treat clergy as pariahs in conversation as soon as they mention what they do. Andshe will overlook the rule about discussing professions in themoment —ifwecan at least agree not to compare salaries while doing so.

Send questions to Miss Manners at her website, www.missmanners.com.

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.

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

GEMINI (May 21-June 20) 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 towardpersonal prosperity.

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

LEO(July 23-Aug. 22) Raise thebar instead of lowering expectations. Travel to places that make you think or that physically challenge you, and you'll gain insight into what's possible.

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 you allow someone's complaints or demands to interfere.

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

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

attitude will help you build enthusiasm and complete what you set out to do. A networking event will offer aplatform to market yourself.

SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 23-Dec. 21) Gear up and be ready for positive change. An opportunity is apparent, but it's up to you to dig in and make things happen. Physical andintellectual gains will raise your profile.

CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan.19) Adiversion will help point yourmindinapositive direction. Revisit your plans and committofollow through with your intentions. Pursue something that gets you moving.

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

PISCES (Feb. 20-March 20) Take time to crunch the numbers and sort out hidden costs, and set arealistic budget. Prioritize personalgain, independence and taking care of yourself.

ARIES (March 21-April 19) Step into the spotlight.Keep the momentum flowing and your sights on your goal. Dedicate time to honing your skills, budgeting for your plans and letting others know how you feel.

By Andrews McMeel Syndication

CelebrityCipher cryptograms are created from quotationsbyfamous people, past and present. Each letterinthe cipherstands for another TODAy'SCLUE:L EQUALS U

CeLebrItY CIpher

For better or For WorSe

SALLYForth

beetLe bAILeY

Mother GooSe And GrIMM

SherMAn’S LAGoon

bIG

Sudoku

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

Yesterday’sPuzzle Answer

THewiZard oF id

BLondie

BaBY BLueS Hi and LoiS

BY PHILLIP ALDER Bridge

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-trumpcontract. West leads the club 10. What should South do?

Iamstill an ardent supporter of oldfashioned responses to atwo-club opening. By giving an immediate positive response (twono-trumptoshow abalanced hand with eight or more points), the opener knows it’s aslam deal. If responder starts with two diamonds, opener will be worried that his partner has no useful cards.

North’sfour-club rebid is Gerber, asking for aces. (This convention should be employed onlyifpartner’s last bid was one no-trump or two no-trump.)

South has nine top tricks: twospades, three hearts andfour clubs. Obviously, he must establishdummy’s diamond suit.Ifthe missing cardsare splitting 2-2 or 3-1, that will be easy; but what if a defender has all four diamonds?

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 take thetrick and play another club.

Declarer runs that to his hand and leads

wuzzles

adiamond, capturing West’s nine with dummy’sjack. Southreturns to hishand with aspade, takes adiamond finesse, and claims.

Note that if declarer wins the first trick in his hand and plays 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 mustbeoffour or moreletters. 2. Words that acquire four letters by the addition of “s,” such as “bats” or “dies,”are not allowed. 3. Additional words made by adding a“d” or an “s” may not be used. 4. Proper nouns, slang words, or vulgar or sexually explicit words are not allowed.

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

Average mark 27 words

Time limit40minutes

Can you find 36 or more words in MELODEON?

YEstERDAY’s WoRD —oRAcLE

marmaduKe

Bizarro

hagar the horriBle

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(4)Ordinance

(3)PlanningCommission and Zoning Commission Matters forPublicHear‐ing on April22, 2025

(1)Ordinance to amend the Uniﬁed Development Coderelativetothe con‐struction andoperation ofgroup homesand to provide forrelated mat‐ters.

(4)New Business (Items for Public Hearingand Action)

Business:

1.CalltoOrder:Mayor Yates called themeeting toorder at 5:00 p.m.

2. NewBusiness(For PublicHearing andAc‐tion)

(1)MotionbyCouncil MemberHeck, Seconded byCouncil Member Monachello to approve results of localelection declaredbyMayor Yates. AYES:Cook,Heck, Him‐mel,Edmonds, Monachello

NAYS:NoneABSENT: None Themeetingadjourned at5:01p.m MinutesofRegular Meet‐ingofthe Mayorand CouncilMembers of the City of St.George, State of Louisiana, held on Tuesday, April8,2025 at 5:01pmatthe St.GeorgeCityHall, 14100 AirlineHwy,St. George,LA70817

(1) PreliminaryBusiness: 1. Call to Order: Mayor Yates called themeeting toorder at 5:01 p.m. Mayor Yatesled theas‐semblyinthe Pledge of Allegiance

2. Roll Call: Present: CouncilMember Monachello,Council MemberCook,Council MemberHeck, Council MemberHimmel, Council MemberEdmonds Absent:None

3. Approval of Minutes: MotionbyCouncil Mem‐ber Himmel,secondedby Council Member Cook to approvethe minutesof the March25, 2025 Coun‐cil Meeting.

AYES:Cook,Heck, Him‐mel,Edmonds Monachello

NAYS:NoneABSENT: None

4. Presentation by IBTS Program Director Scot Byrdon ﬁnancials Thefollowing speakers commented:Mayor Yates (2) Introduction of Ordi‐nances/Resolutionsfor PublicHearing on April 22, 2025

(1)Ordinance to amend the 2024-2025 Fiscal Year Budget. (2)Ordinance to amend Title 9, Chapter4,and enact Title10relativeto the permitting,regulat‐ing,and operatingre‐quirementsfor special eventsand to providefor related matters (3)Ordinance to enact Title 12, Chapter6 rela‐tivetothe removalof deadordiseasedtrees and to providefor re‐latedmatters

(1)MotionbyCouncil MemberHeck, seconded byCouncil Member Him‐mel to approveT-25-02 Outdoor Kitchens: Amend Title7 Uniﬁed De‐velopment Code to make outdoor kitchens aper‐mittedaccessory use and to providefor re‐lated matters Public commentwas openedwiththe follow‐ing speakers:Justin Dupuy AYES:Cook,Heck, Him‐mel,Edmonds, Monachello

NAYS:NoneABSENT: None

(2)MotionbyCouncil MemberMonachello secondedbyCouncil MemberHecktoapprove ordinance to establish the bond amount forthe cityclerk andcitytax collector andtoprovide for relatedmatters Public commentwas openedwiththe follow‐ing speakers:Sheri Mor‐ris

AYES:Cook,Heck, Him‐mel,Edmonds Monachello

NAYS:NoneABSENT: None

(3)MotionbyCouncil MemberHimmel, sec‐onded by CouncilMem‐ber Heck to defercon‐demnation of blighted propertylocated at 4333 Rue De BelleMaison#2 for 60 days Public commentopened withthe followingspeak‐ers:P.Taheri, Council MemberHimmel, Council MemberHeck, Council MemberMonachello

AYES:Cook,Heck, Him‐mel,Edmonds Monachello

NAYS:NoneABSENT: None

(4)MotionbyCouncil MemberHeck, seconded byCouncil Member Monachello to approve IBTS proposal to expand existingcontracttoin‐clude code enforcement, subject to appropriation bythe city council. Public commentopened withthe followingspeak‐ers:MaryStewart,Mayor Yates,Chris Nkadi, Coun‐cil Member Heck AYES:Cook,Himmel, Ed‐monds,Monachello Heck

NAYS:ABSENT: None

St.GeorgeFireDepart‐mentrepresentative, Meg Kling, announced small business owner’s meetingset forWednes‐day,April 16that6pm Themeetingadjourned at5:33pm Meetingminutes ap‐provedon

NOTICE Department of Energy andNatural Resources Ofﬁce of Conservation Injection& Mining Division ExxonMobilLow Carbon SolutionsOnshore Wildcat– So LA Lafayette District Field, St Landry Parish Pursuant to LAC43:XIX. Chapter47etseq ExxonMobilLow Carbon Solutions Onshorelo‐cated at 22777 Spring‐woodsVillage Parkway Spring, Texas77389 has requested expeditedpro‐cessing of Permit Appli‐cationNo. 45964 for a Class Vstratigraphic test welllocated in Wildcat –SoLALafayette District Field in St.LandryParish. The expeditedreview process does notshorten any existing time delays forpublicnotice, com‐mentperiod, hearing, or inany wayshorten or im‐pinge upon thepublic participation process. In accordance with the

PUBLIC NOTICE NOTICE theLa. Dept. of Energyand NaturalRe‐sources,Office of Coastal Management (OCM) hasreceivedthe following application(s) for aCoastal UsePermit (CUP) in accordance with the Stateand Local Coastal ResourcesMan‐agement Actof1978, as amended,(La.R.S 49:214.21-214.41),and the rules andregulations of the CoastalResources Program.Applications for theproposedwork may be inspectedat617 North 3rdStreet,Room 1078, BatonRouge,LAor onthe OCMweb page at: http://dnr.louisiana.gov/ index.cfm?md=pagebui lder&tmp=home& pid=591. Copies maybe obtained upon payment ofcostofcopying.Writ‐ten comments,including suggestions formodifi‐cationsorobjectionsto the proposed work and stating thereasons thereof,are beingso‐licited from thepublic. Commentsmustbere‐ceivedwithin25daysof the date of publicationof thisnotice. Comments shouldbeuploadedto our electronic record,but may be mailed or emailedtothe desig‐nated OCMReviewer. All commentsmustcontain the appropriateapplica‐tionnumberand the commenter's full name and contactinformation Any person mayrequest, inwriting,withinthe comment period speci‐fied in this notice,that a State or Federalpublic hearing be held to con‐sider this application. Re‐questsfor public hear‐ingsshall state, with par‐ticularity, thereasons for holding apublichearing and must containthe nameand contactinfor‐mationofthe requester. Below arethe referenced application(s): *****OCM; P. O. Box 44487, BatonRouge,LA 70804-4487; Phone: (225) 342-4766; Email: bryan. alleman2@la.gov;OCM Reviewer: BryanAlle‐man;CUP NUMBER: P20250270 Name:Twin ParishPortCommission c/o Primeaux,Touchet & Associates,L.L.C.P.O BOX 579 Abbeville, LA 70511 Attn:Brian PrimeauxLocation: Iberia Parish,LA; Lat.:2956-11.5N,Long.:-91-5846.1W;Section 5T13S R5E;10404 Twin Port RoadDelcambre,70528 Description:Portim‐provementsincluding bulkhead, rip-rapbank stabilization,mainte‐nance dredging,crane pad,and twofabrication buildings,which will re‐quire approx.21,250 cy of excavationand 23,570 cy of fill.* OCM; P. O.Box 44487, Baton Rouge,LA70804-4487; Phone:(225) 342- 4766; Email:bryan.alleman2@ la.gov; OCMReviewer: Bryan Alleman; CUP NUMBER:P20250277 Name:SouthernOil Of

PUBLIC NOTICE IN THEMATTEROF THESUCCESSIONOF ARCHIE PEAAND LOUISE PEA PROBATENO. 2022 0030481 21STJUDICIALDISTRICT COURT PARISH OF TANGIPAHOA NOTICE OF APPLICATION EXCHANGE IMMIOVALE PROPERTY AT PRIVATE SALE WHEREASthe Adminis‐tratorofthe abovecap‐tionedestatehas made application to thecourt for theexchangeofthe immovableproperty hereinafter described, to wit: 5.69 Acreslocated at 27028 Reid Road,Loranger,

SheriYoung Blake Tassin, Mike Chustz,Chris Kershaw Town Attorney:Thomas Acosta, Jr Absent:None Upon MayorRhodesre‐quest amotiontoadd Consider Employee HealthInsurance Op‐tions”tothe agenda underFinance Commit‐tee, wasmadebyCouncil MemberKershaw;sec‐onded by CouncilMem‐ber Chustz.Mayor Rhodesopenedthe floor for public comment. Hearing no comments a rollcallvotewas had withthe followingre‐sults: Yeas:Daigle, Young Tassin, Chustz,Kershaw Nays:None Absent:None Recognitions &Commen‐dations: MayorRhodesintro‐duced Mr.Butch Brown‐ing,withWBR Fire De‐partment, andinvited him to speak. Mr.Brown‐ing gave abrief update onactivitieswhich in‐cludedthe accomplish‐mentofaclass 3 fire rat‐ing andthe department’s EMS System Amotiontoapprovethe minutes of theTown’s regular meetingofMarch 10, 2025, wasmadeby Council Member Chustz; secondedbyCouncil Member Young.Mayor Rhodesopenedthe floor for public comment. Hearing no comments the motion passedwith a unanimous vote Public WorksCommittee: MayorRhodesreadthe PublicWorks Report for the monthofMarch,pre‐pared by Public Works SupervisorShane Sar‐radet.There were 5.6 inchesofrainfallinthe month;0 SCADAalarms atthe Wastewater Lift Stations; 1Out of compli‐ancetestresultonour Sewer TreatmentFacility; culvertswereinstalled at 424 BourgeoisStreet;re‐pairedsinkholebySt. MarySt. turnaround;3 new street signsare in‐stalled duetofalling limbs;changed lights to LED at police station; Bezet ditchgrading has begun; fencewas in‐stalled at S. LaBauvesta‐tion. WastePro