GENEVA The lead U.S negotiator in trade talks with China cheered “a great deal of productivity” in resolving differences between the world’s two leading economic powers, after officials wrapped two days of bargaining in Switzerland following President Donald Trump imposing steep tariffs and Beijing retaliating.
U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said Sunday there was “substantial progress” in the weekend sessions but offered scant information on exactly what negotiations entailed. He said more details would come at a briefing Monday
U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer suggested that an agreement had been reached but provided no details. He and Bessent briefly addressed reporters once talks had wrapped at the stately villa that serves as the residence of the Swiss ambassador to the United Nations in Geneva, but did not take questions.
“It’s important to understand how quickly we were able to come to agreement, which reflects that perhaps the differences were not so large as far as maybe thought,” Greer said. But he also stressed that a top Trump priority means closing the U.S. trade deficit with China, which came to a record $263 billion last year
“We’re confident that the deal we struck with our Chinese partners will help us to resolve, work towards resolving that national emergency,” Greer said.
White House fires top copyright official
WASHINGTON The Trump administration has fired the nation’s top copyright official , Shira Perlmutter, days after abruptly terminating the head of the Library of Congress, which oversees the U.S. Copyright Office.
The office said in a statement Sunday that Perlmutter received an email from the White House a day earlier with the notification that “your position as the Register of Copyrights and Director at the U.S. Copyright Office is terminated effective immediately.”
On Thursday, President Donald Trump fired Librarian of Congress Carla Hayden, the first woman and the first African American to be librarian of Congress, as part of the administration’s ongoing purge of government officials perceived to oppose the president and his agenda.
Hayden named Perlmutter to lead the Copyright Office in October 2020. Perlmutter’s office recently released a report examining whether artificial intelligence companies can use copyrighted materials to “train” their AI systems The report, the third part of a lengthy AI study, follows a review that began in 2023 with opinions from thousands of people including AI developers, actors and country singers.
Afrikaners with refugee status depart for U.S.
CAPE TOWN, South Africa A group of 49 White South Africans departed their homeland Sunday for the United States on a private charter plane having been offered refugee status by the Trump administration under a new program announced in February The group, which included families and small children, was due to arrive at Dulles International Airport outside Washington on Monday morning local time, according to Collen Msibi, a spokesperson for South Africa’s transport ministry They are the first Afrikaners — a White minority group in South Africa — to be relocated after President Donald Trump issued an executive order on Feb. 7 accusing South Africa’s Black-led government of racial discrimination against them and announcing a program to offer them relocation to America. The South African government said it is “completely false” that Afrikaners are being persecuted. The Trump administration has fast-tracked their applications while pausing other refugee programs, halting arrivals from Afghanistan, Iraq, most of subSaharan Africa and other countries in a move being challenged in court.
ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO By MSTySLAV CHERNOV
Zelenskyy hopes for ceasefire with Russia
Ukrainian leader challenges Putin to meet him in Turkey
BY SAMYA KULLAB AND DASHA LITVINOVA
Associated Press
KYIV, Ukraine Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Sunday challenged Russia’s President Vladimir Putin to meet him personally in Turkey on Thursday, the latest move in a weekendlong exchange of proposals from both sides on the next steps in the U.S.led peace effort.
Zelenskyy said that he still hopes for a ceasefire with Russia starting Monday, and that he will “be waiting for Putin” in Turkey “personally” after U.S President Donald Trump insisted Ukraine accept Russia’s latest offer — to hold direct talks in Turkey on Thursday Ukraine, along with European allies, had demanded Russia accept an unconditional 30-day ceasefire starting Monday before holding talks, but Moscow effectively rejected the proposal and called for direct negotiations instead.
ing: “HAVE THE MEETING, NOW!!!”
French President Emmanuel Macron, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz and Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk met with Zelenskyy in Kyiv on Saturday and issued a coordinated call for a 30-day truce starting Monday The plan has received backing from both the European Union and Trump.
The leaders pledged tougher sanctions on Russia if Putin did not accept the proposal.
It was not clear if Zelenskyy was conditioning his presence in Turkey on the Monday ceasefire holding, and there was no immediate comment from the Kremlin on whether Putin would go. In 2022, the war’s early months, Zelenskyy repeatedly called for a personal meeting with the Russian president but was rebuffed, and eventually enacted a decree declaring that holding negotiations with Putin had become impossible.
“We await a full and lasting ceasefire, starting from tomorrow, to provide the necessary basis for diplomacy There is no point in prolonging the killings And I will be waiting for Putin in (Turkey) on Thursday Personally I hope that this time the Russians will not look for excuses,” Zelenskyy wrote on X on Sunday
Trump said in a social media post earlier Sunday that Ukraine should agree to Putin’s peace talks proposal “IMMEDIATELY.”
“At least they will be able to determine whether or not a deal is possible, and if it is not, European leaders, and the U.S., will know where everything stands, and can proceed accordingly!” Trump wrote, add-
Putin in remarks to the media overnight effectively rejected the offer and proposed restarting direct talks with Ukraine in Istanbul on Thursday instead “without preconditions.” He did not specify whether the talks on Thursday would involve Zelenskyy and himself personally He said a ceasefire might be agreed on during the negotiations — but stressed that the Kremlin needs a truce that would lead to a “lasting peace” instead of one that would allow Ukraine to rearm and mobilize more men into its armed forces.
Zelenskyy said on X on Sunday morning that it was a “positive sign that the Russians have finally begun to consider ending the war,” but insisted on a ceasefire first Putin and Zelenskyy have only met once — in 2019. After repeated unsuccessful calls for a personal meeting with the Russian leader early on in the war and following the Kremlin’s decision in September 2022 to illegally annex four regions of Ukraine, Zelenskyy enacted a decree declaring that holding negotiations with Putin had become impossible.
Macron said Sunday that Putin’s offer of direct negotiations with Ukraine is “a first step, but not enough,” signaling continued Western skepticism toward Moscow’s intentions.
“An unconditional ceasefire is not preceded by negotiations,” Macron told reporters at the Polish-Ukrainian border, according to French media, adding that Putin is “looking for a way out, but he still wants to buy time.”
Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov, in comments aired by Russian state TV on Sunday, called Putin’s proposal “very serious,” aimed at eliminating “the root causes of the conflict,” and said it “confirms a real intention to find a peaceful solution.”
Qatar says no final decision made on gifting Trump jet
Plane could be used as temporary Air Force One
BY ZEKE MILLER and WILL WEISSERT Associated Press
WASHINGTON President Donald Trump reportedly is ready to accept a luxury Boeing 747-8 jumbo jet as a gift from the ruling family of Qatar during his trip to the Middle East this coming week, and U.S. officials say it could be converted into a potential presidential aircraft
The Qatari government acknowledged discussions between the two countries about “the possible transfer” of a plane to be used temporarily as Trump’s Air Force One, but denied that the jet “is being gifted” or that a final had been decision made.
ABC News reported that Trump will use the aircraft at his presidential plane until shortly before he leaves office in January 2029, when ownership will be transferred to the foundation overseeing his yet-to-bebuilt presidential library
The gift was expected to be announced when Trump visits Qatar, according to ABC’s report, as part of a trip that also includes stops in Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, the first extended foreign travel of his second term.
But hours after the news, Ali Al-Ansari, Qatar’s media attaché, in a statement said, “Reports that a jet is being gifted by Qatar
to the United States government during the upcoming visit of President Trump are inaccurate.”
“The possible transfer of an aircraft for temporary use as Air Force One is currently under consideration between Qatar’s Ministry of Defense and the US Department of Defense,” the statement said. “But the matter remains under review by the respective legal departments, and no decision has been made.”
Meanwhile, administration officials, anticipating questions about the president accepting such a large gift from a foreign government, have prepared an analysis arguing that doing so would be legal, according to ABC.
The Constitution’s Emoluments Clause bars anyone holding government office from accepting any present, emolument, office or title from any “King, Prince, or foreign State,” without congressional consent.
One expert on government ethics, Kathleen Clark of the Washington University School of Law in St. Louis, accused Trump of being “committed to exploiting the federal government’s power, not on behalf of policy goals but for amassing personal wealth.”
“This is outrageous,” Clark said “Trump believes he will get away this.” Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer poked fun at Trump’s “America first” political slogan.
Hamas: Last living U.S. hostage in Gaza will be freed
Move a part of truce efforts
BY WAFAA SHURAFA and SAMY MAGDY Associated Press
DEIR AL-BALAH, Gaza Strip
Hamas said Sunday that the last living American hostage in Gaza, Edan Alexander, will be released as part of efforts to establish a ceasefire, reopen crossings into the Israeli-blockaded territory and resume the delivery of aid. Two Hamas officials told The Associated Press they expect the release in the next 48 hours.
The announcement of the first hostage release since Israel shattered a ceasefire in March comes shortly before U.S. President Donald Trump visits the Middle East this week It highlighted the willingness of Israel’s closest ally to inject momentum into ceasefire talks for the 19-month war as desperation grows among hostages’ families and Gaza’s over 2 million people under the new Israeli blockade.
Alexander is an Israeli-
American soldier who grew up in New Jersey He was abducted from his base during the Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas-led attack that ignited the war in Gaza.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office said the U.S. informed it of Hamas’ intent to release Alexander “without compensation or conditions” and that the step is expected to lead to negotiations on a truce. Netanyahu’s government was angered by U.S. direct talks with Hamas earlier this year which led to a Hamas offer to release Alexander and the bodies of four other hostages if Israel recommitted to a stalled ceasefire deal Days later however, Israel resumed the war Khalil al-Hayyah, a Hamas leader in Gaza, said the group has been in contact with the U.S. administration over the past few days.
Al-Hayyah said in a statement Hamas is ready to “immediately start intensive negotiations” to reach a final deal for a long-term truce.
Strikes in Pakistan killed 100 militants, India says
By The Associated Press
ISLAMABAD India’s military strikes into Pakistancontrolled Kashmir and Pakistan earlier this week killed more than 100 militants including prominent leaders, the head of India’s military operations claimed Sunday Lt Gen Rajiv Ghai, the director general of military operations, said India’s armed forces struck nine militant infrastructure and training facilities, including sites of the Lashkar-e-Taiba group that India blames for carrying out major militant strikes in India and the disputed region of Kashmir
“We achieved total surprise,” Ghai said at a news conference in New Delhi, adding Pakistan’s response was “erratic and rattled.” The two countries agreed to a truce a day earlier after talks to defuse their most serious military confrontation in decades The two armies exchanged gunfire, artillery strikes, missiles and drones that killed dozens of people. As part of the ceasefire, the nuclear-armed neighbors agreed to immediately stop all military action on land, in the air and at sea. On Sunday, Pakistan’s military said it did not ask for ceasefire, as claimed by India, but rather it was India that had sought the ceasefire.
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From left British Prime Minister Keir Starmer Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy French President Emmanuel Macron, Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk and German Chancellor Friedrich Merz make a call to U.S. President Donald Trump on Saturday from Kyiv, Ukraine.
Pope LeoXIV givesblessingonMother’sDay
Pontiffcalls forpeace in Ukraineand Gaza in symbolic message
BY NICOLE WINFIELD and GIOVANNA DELL’ORTO Associated Press
VATICAN CITY PopeLeo XIV called for agenuine and just peace in Ukraine and an immediate ceasefire in Gaza, in his firstSunday noon blessing as pontiff that featured some symbolic gestures suggesting amessage of unity in a polarized Catholic Church “I,too, addressthe world’s great powers by repeating the ever-present call ‘never again war,’” Leosaid from the loggia of St. Peter’sBasilica to an estimated 100,000 people below
It was the first time that Leo had returned to the loggia since he first appeared to the world on Thursday evening following his remarkable electionaspope, the first from the United States. Then, too,hedelivered amessage of peace.
Leo was picking up the papal tradition of offering aSunday blessing at noon, butwith some twists. Whereas his predecessors delivered the greetingfrom the studio window of the Apostolic Palace, off to the side of the piazza, Leo went to the very center of the square and the heart of the church.
Part of that was logistics:He didn’thave access to thepapal
INSURANCE
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will likely survivea committee hearing and advanceto the Senate floor.Hesaid, however,hecouldn’tpredict what would happen next.
Meanwhile, ahigh-profile House bill strongly backed by Gov.Jeff Landry faces significant opposition from numerous Republican senators. They agree with Insurance Commissioner Tim Temple —and nearly amajority of House Republicans —that the measure would allow him and his successors to reject any rate increases arbitrarily,which they add woulddiscourage companies from operating in Louisiana.
apartmentsinthe palace untillater Sunday, when they were unsealed for the first time since Pope Francis’ death.
Leo also offered anovelty by singing the Regina Caeli prayer,a Latin prayersaid during theEaster season which recentpopes would usually just recite and harked back to the old Latin Mass of thepast.
Traditionalistsand conservatives, many of whom felt alienated by Pope Francis’ reforms and loose liturgical style, have been lookingfor gestures andsubstance fromLeo in hopes he will workto heal thedivisions that grew in the church. Some have expressedcautious optimism at the very least with areturn to atraditional style that Leo exhibited on Thursday night,when he emergedfor the first time wearing theformal red cape of the papacy that Francis had eschewed.
He followed up on Saturday by wearing the brocaded papalstole during avisit to aMariansanctuary south of Rome. There, he knelt in reverence at the altar and greeted the crowd surrounded by priests in long cassocks usually favored by conservatives.
Aldo Maria Valli, aconservative Italian journalist who writes apopular blog, said he appreciated these gestures and urged traditionalists togive Leoachance, saying he liked alot of what he has seen so far.“Don’tshootLeo,” he wrote.
On Sunday Leo wore thesimple white cassock of thepapacy and
“A lotofsenatorshave told me unsolicited that they are for it,” said the bill’s sponsor Sen. Royce Duplessis, D-New Orleans.
He pointed to arecent news report that saidofthe campaign money Temple raised during the15months after his election in 2023,nearly 75% came from insurance industry sources.
Landry has told senators in recent days privatelythat he wants them to pass House Bill 148 unchanged when it is heard in the Senate Insurance Committee on Wednesday
Showing the political stakes, he has said publicly that he will call the Legislature into a special session to reconsider it if they don’tpass it before the regular session endsina month.
Temple told reporters
Thursday that if the billpasses the Legislature, Landry will call anews conference and pin the highrates on the insurance commissioner
“This is ablame TimTemple bill,” Temple said, noting that the governor has acknowledged twice in interviews that he wants to put the onus on him.
Politicalmachinations
Adding to the political maneuvering, abill that would switch the insurancecommissioner from an elected position to an appointed one is suddenly showing life. The measure, Senate Bill 214, will be heard by the Senate and Governmental Affairs CommitteeonWednesday
“Tim Templeisnot just cozy with the industry,”Duplessis said. “He has afullblown love affair.”
Templerejects that accusation, saying, “Ifwewant to drive premiums down, we have to drivelosses down.”
Adding afurther politicalcomplication: Ashadowy group is attacking Temple with awebsite andaBaton Rouge billboard
Temple said he believesthat comments made to him by Tony Clayton, the districtattorney for Iberville West Baton Rouge and Pointe Coupeeparishes, indicate thathe is behindthe group. Clayton, who also handles cases as atrial attorney,said he did tell Temple he would opposehis reelection but added hewould swear on a stack of Biblesthat he is not involvedinthe attacks.
“If he could proveI was behind it,Iwould buy hima cigar and atwo-piece, dark meat chicken dinnerfrom Popeyes,” Clayton said. Enough Is Enough
Another group, called Enough Is Enough, is attacking pro-industrysenatorswithtextmessages that paint them as industry lackeys. LobbyistMary-Patricia Wray andbusiness owner Lee Mallet, whoincorporated Enough Is Enough, have said they aren’t involved in the recent attack and have resigned from the group to reflect that. Who is behind it now is not clear The insurance industry and
Robert Prevosthad notminced words in assigning blame to Moscow.According to aclip of aTV interviewonthe Peruvian show “Weekly Expression,” circulating in Italian media Sunday,Prevost said it was an “imperialist invasion in whichRussia wants to conquer territory forreasonsofpower givenUkraine’sstrategic location.”
In his remarks Sunday, Leoalso called for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza, andfor humanitarian relief to be provided to the “exhausted civilian population and all hostagesbefreed.”
Leo alsonoted that Sunday was Mother’sDay in many countries andwished all mothers, “including those in heaven” aHappy Mother’s Day
this historic occasion.
“Words cannotexpress my admiration and gratitude to God,” said the Rev.Dominic Nguyen, who led the Vietnamese American group. He saidhehoped the pope would be happy to see the Stars and Stripes but also Peruvian flags and all other countries, showing theuniversality of the church.
hadreverted back to wearing his silver pectoral cross. He hadworn amore ornate onethatcontains the relics of St. Augustine andhis mother, St. Monica, on Thursday nightthat hadbeen giventohim by his Augustinianreligiousorder Leoquoted Pope Francisindenouncing thenumber of conflicts ravaging the globe today,sayingit was a“third world war in pieces.”
“I carry in my heart the sufferings of thebeloved Ukrainian people,” he said.“Leteverything possible be done to achieve genuine,justand lasting peaceassoon as possible.”
As abishopinChiclayo,Peru, at the start of Russia’s2022 full-scale invasion of Ukraine,then-Bishop
Thecrowd,filled with marching bands in town for aspecial Jubilee weekend, erupted in cheers and musicasthe bells of St. Peter’sBasilica tolled.
Angela Gentile of Bari arrived in thesquare three hours early to be in place. Nonplussedthat cardinals had elected yet another non-Italian pope,she saidshe washappy Leo came to the central balconyofthe basilica, so the crowdcould see him face-to-face. “What’sgoodfor the Holy Spirit works for me,” she said. “I have trust.”
Morethan50pilgrims from Houston, Texas, were in thesquare, too, waving threelarge American flags. They were in Rome on apreplannedHoly Year pilgrimage and said they wereproud to be part of
Also Sunday, Leo celebrated a private Massnear thetomb of St Peter and prayed at the tombs of severalpastpopes in the grottoes underneaththe basilica. Vatican Media filmed him praying before amix of progressive and traditionminded popes: Pope Paul VI,who closed out the modernizing reforms of the 1960s Second Vatican Council, and PopesPius XII and Benedict XVI, on the more conservative end of the spectrum.
He celebrated the intimate Mass withthe head of hisAugustinian order and his brother,John, in the pews. In his homily,herecalled that Sundaywas also theday that theCatholic Church celebrates religious vocations, and noted that the issue of declining vocations had been raised by cardinals in their pre-conclave discussions before his election.
Leo said priests can encourage more vocations by offering agood example, “living thejoy of theGospel, not discouraging others, but rather looking forways to encourage young people to hear the voice of the Lord and to followitand to serve in the church.”
theLouisianaAssociation of Business andIndustry battle the triallawyers virtually every year at theCapitolover whether to make it harderfor people injuredinaccidents or those owning storm-damaged homes or businesses —tosue and win big payouts.
The perennialfight has emerged as thetop political story in this year’ssession One reason is steadily rising car insurancerates —which are among the highest in the country.Another is the fallout from prominent personal injurylawyerGordonMcKernan flying five legislative leadersonhis plane to meet with Landry andseveral other triallawyers at afancy Texashunting clubjust before thelegislative session began.
Landryhas said the focus on car insuranceresults from the success of his administration and the Republicancontrolled Legislature in addressing public concernson propertyinsurance, crime, taxes and education during their first year in office.
“The governor continues to work through numerous pieces of legislationthatwork to lower the cost of insurance for the people of Louisiana,” said Kate Kelly,aspokesperson.
JudiciaryA Committee
Action on the car insurance bills will gettheir first hearing in the Senate on Tuesday before the Judiciary ACommittee.
That will put thefocus on Sen. GregMiller,R-Norco, the committee chair,a 62-year-old business attorney Thecommittee derailed virtually allofthe car insurancebills it heard last year That has made Miller and Henry a verbaltargetofconservative talkradio host Moon Griffon He calls both men “tools” of the trial lawyers and said theymay try to pass do-nothing legislation andclaim it will reduce rates.
“Wedon’twant watered-
down insurance reform,” Griffon recently said on his program.
WhileRepublicansholda 28-11 advantage in the Senate, Henry organized the Judiciary ACommittee to give it four Republicans and three Democrats. Milleristypically the deciding vote.
“Wewant to pass legislation that will actually help people,” Miller said. “I don’t wanttohavea situation where we put something on the governor’s desk that he doesn’twant. We’renot here just for show.”
Millersaidheislikelyto oppose,and thus kill, House Bill 435 by Rep.Peter Egan, R-Covington, which would puta $5 million caponhow much an injuredperson could receive in pain-and-suffering damages.Louisianahas no cap today
ButHenry said he expects Miller’scommittee to approve measures sought by industry thatwould require plaintiffs to showthat their
injurieswerecausedbythe accident(HouseBill450), limit payouts to injured drivers who don’thave car insurance (House Bill 434), reduce payments fora portionof medical costs (House Bill 519 or Senate Bill 231) andlimit payouts for those who bear a majority of the fault for an accident (House Bill 431).
“I would like to see the committee pass abill on each subject matter so we can look at themcollectively and make sure asectioninone bill doesn’t affect asection in another bill that would require the governor to veto them,” Henry said. “Members have to focusonwhat will lower insurance rates, but also when someonegets hurt in awreck or someone’shouse is blown down by ahurricane, the insurance company has aresponsibilitytopay itsshare.” If the Senate does amend the various pro-industry bills to limit theirimpact, the House members who passed the originalversions would
have to decide whether to accept those changes or deem them unacceptablehalf-measures. The rate-setting bill that Landry badly wantsand Temple fervently opposes is now sponsored by Rep. Jeff Wiley, R-Gonzales,after it had been part of adifferent bill authored by another House member Reflecting what’s at stake, Henryconvened meetingsin his office on Wednesday and Thursday with Republican members of theSenate Insurance Committee to discuss how to handle the bill. Sen. Kirk Talbot, R-River Ridge, chairs the panel “I will makesure there are adequate safeguards in place before Iwould vote for thebill,”saidone committee member, Sen. Franklin Foil, R-Baton Rouge. “I do not want to have asituation where the insurancecommissioner would be making arbitrary decisions on rate decreases.”
Families canalsouse the stipends to pay for arange of education services. But more than athirdofparishes, including Winn, have no locally based serviceproviders participating in LA GATOR, according to an analysis of the nearly 360 vendors that have signed up so far Aspokespersonfor the Louisiana Departmentof Education said many of the servicesavailable through the program, such as online courses andtutoring,are available statewide.
“The LA GATOR Scholarship Program gives parents the opportunity to customize their child’seducation —especially in areas where traditionalpublic or nonpublic options may be limited,” spokesperson TedBeasley said in astatement.
Thelimited localoptions are reflected in the program’sapplication numbers: Only 11% of eligible students who applied live in rural parishes, according to the analysis. In Winn Parish, not asingle family applied.
Tha t’sc omp lica t ed Landry’sefforts to secure nearly$94 millioninstate money for the program nextfiscal year —abudget request likely to come up Monday at ameeting of the House Appropriations Committee. Some rural Republicans are wary of spending that much on aprogram that will benefit few of their constituents while giving urban and suburban families atuition break.
“In my district, those opportunitiesjustdon’t exist,” said Rep. Jack McFarland, R-Jonesboro, whose district includes Winn Parish and who,asHouse Appropriations chair,plays abig role in deciding how to allocate state money McFarland said he’d rather see more funding for publicschools,whichanchor many rural communities but operate on shoestring budgets. “They haven’thad an increase in years,” he said.
Proponents say rural families willbenefitfrom the education products and services they can purchase through LA GATOR,including laptops and support for students with disabilities
“The uses of the GATOR scholarship are so plentiful and diverse,” said Erin Bendily,senior vice president at the Pelican Institute for Public Policy,anadvocacy group that has championed the program.
Families are only eligible for thegrants if they enroll their children in private school or educate them at leastpartially from home, which isn’tpossible forsome working parents. And while most services are online and accessible anywhere, there are fewer in-person options in ruralareas —which,as families found during the coronaviruspandemic, work better for many students than remote learning.
Bendily predicted that as morefamilies learn about the new program,anarray of education providers frompublic schools offer-
campus afterthe Winn Parish School Board shuttered Atlanta’sonly public school due to budgetconstraints. But because the academyis registered as ahomeschool program, parentscannot useLAGATOR grants to payfor tuition, theschool told families.
“Itwon’thelpusatall, said Sheree Russell, whose 9-year-old grandson attends the school. Most familieschooseto enroll their children in one of theparish’s fivepublic schools. They mightnot be agood fit for some students, like McCardie’sgrandson, but they work well for others.
The Winn Parish school system —where nearly 75% of the roughly 1,700 students areeconomically disadvantaged —earned a“B” rating last year,and its “A”rated Calvin High School was one of the state’smost improved. They also admit allstudents and provide transportation and specialeducationservices,noneof which private schools must do.
Yetwith limited local tax revenue, worsened by apaper mill’srecentclosure, the district relies heavily on state funding that has barely budgedfor years. The district can’tafford to replace aging Winnfield Primary, which McCardie’sgrandson attends, and it adopted afour-day school week to compensate forteachers’ stagnant pay
ing alacarte courses to “microschools” servingjust a fewstudents—will openor expandtomeetthe demand.
“This is atrue marketplace,” she said, “that we know will grow over time.”
Withoutschoolchoices
Winnfield, anearly 175-year-old timber town with about 4,000 residents, is known for being the birthplace of former Gov.Huey
in theprogram. Twothat have —St. Mary’sCatholic School, 34 miles away in Natchitoches, and Cedar Creek School, 50 miles north in Ruston—don’tprovide transportation to and from Winnfield.
“Here in Winn Parish, we don’thaveany choice,” said Joe Lynn Browning, whohas served on the local School Boardfor over 40 years.
Criticssay LA GATOR will leavepublicschools with even fewer resources. In small ruraldistricts, losing even afew extra students to private or home education would make it even harder to afford building upgrades or higherpay.And as state funding for private educationexpands, the likelihood of increased aid for public education shrinks.
Amber Cox, aSchool Board member whose son is in the fourth grade at Winnfield Primary,said she supports the goal of giving parents more school choices. Yetshe also wants the state to invest more in public schoolslike the oneher son attends.
“They’re excelling now andtheir resources areso limited,” she said. “Just imagine what it could be if they had more.”
An opportunityfor options
Fornow,rural families have fewer school options —but thatcould change.
Most of the schools charge tuition and fees, and about athird getstate funding through private-education grant programs, according to anationalsurvey. Schmidley’sschool signed up to participate in LA GATOR, and Microschool Americaregistered as a vendor. Fueled by thatfunding,she predicts acoming boom in homegrown schools acrossthe state “I thinkyou aregoing to see anew wave,”she said. “It’snot goingtobemeasured in years —it’sgoing to be measured in minutes.” Louisiana already has seen an explosion in small unregulatedschools, often formed to serve one or more homeschoolfamilies. In October,non-stateapproved schools served nearly 34,000 students more than double theirenrollment five years earlier By law,schools participating in LA GATOR must be state approved. But the state Education Department says unapproved schools can join the program as “service providers” and offer “up to the full-time education of participating students.” Overtime, many more unapprovedschools —which any adult can establish —could register as serviceproviders andreceive state funding. Publicschools also can getinonthe actionbysigning up as vendors. At least one school district, Caddo Parish, already has done so, and the rural Grant Parish school system is planning to as well, said SuperintendentErinStokes. The districtexpectstooffer individual courses and electives— like band class, welding or computer science —that students could payfor with LA GATOR funds.
Stokes said she’sexcited to serve more families in Grant Parish, which, like neighboring Winn,has no private schools participating in LA GATOR. But she also worries about the consequences of more studentsmoving to private or unapproved schools that aren’tsubject to the same accountability measures, like teacher evaluations and state-issued letter grades, as public schools.
Long andhomeofthe Winnfield Tigers (“In the forest above the bayou where the Tigersplay,” goes the high school’salma mater). But, even if families had applied to LA GATOR, they wouldn’t find much of what advocates call “school choice.”
Oneofthe closest private schools —Gracepoint Christian Academy,23 miles awayinJonesboro didn’tsign up to participate
Parents can use LA GATOR to cover the cost of educating their kids at home —ifthey meet certain conditions. They can’tregister with the state as homeschoolers (homeschool groups lobbiedagainst inclusion in the program to avoid the regulations), but theycan provide “home education”iftheyagree to administer annual tests and submit to audits.
Down the road from Winnfield,inthe tiny village of Atlanta,agroup called Magnolia Bend Academy offersin-personclasses for homeschooled students.
The group, which has severallocations, opened the
Traci Schmidley,a parent and educator who lives in rural Red River Parish, started homeschoolingher friends’and neighbors’ children alongside her own more than adecade ago. Eventually,she andher husband built aclassroom building on their property and formed afaith-based school, Country Day Montessori, that nowenrolls about65students.
In 2020, Schmidleyfounded Microschool America to help other people establish “microschools,” afastgrowing sector of small, usually unaccredited private schools that often serve homeschooled students and children with special needs.
“I’m not saying we’re perfect by anymeans,”she said. But the state oversight “forces us to do better everysingle year —and that’s agood thing. Many private schoolsencouraged their families to apply for LA GATOR, but back in Winnfield,noone told McCardieabout it She missedthe deadline, so she’ll have to wait until applicationsopenfor the202627 school year.Bythen, maybe there will be more options in her area. If not, she’s considered renting an apartmentina parish with private schools.
She won’tstop, she said, until she finds the right school for hergrandson.
“I would fight to the end of the earth for Jah’Derrick,” she said.
EmailPatrick Wall at patrick.wall@ theadvocate.com.
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“The further back you move, you have people walking and fishing — things like that,” Acosta said “Even further back, it’s passive. It’s just meant to enjoy nature. It’s not meant for vehicles or a lot of activities. It’s a really quiet space where you can hear and see and feel nature.”
That’s not to say that this back stretch — accessible via walking paths and a pedestrian bridge that crosses over a relatively young bottomland hardwood forest — isn’t being actively managed. New groves of trees have been planted to provide shade and privacy shields for nearby homes and Acosta said that the back 50 acres will be partially used to enhance the park’s nature-based solutions for storm water
“Our stormwater pond is entirely fed from stormwater run-
PLANTATION
Continued from page 1A
But the shelves were still empty
“Are these active outlets?” Rogers asked Blokker leaning behind what was once the counter “Because I was thinking that one of the things I’d like to do here is have a way for people to listen to the oral histories, like on a kiosk or something.” Rogers, who has led Whitney since 2014, had planned to open this store to the public this year She spearheaded its restoration, collected oral histories about it and focused her doctoral dissertation on it.
But other buildings beckon, too The vast tract has hundreds of acres that need mowing and 20 buildings “in various stages of repair and disrepair.” It employs 28 staff members, most of them focused on visitors
“I’m running a $5 million organization on $3 million,” Rogers said last week.
The Trump administration has made that job harder, Rogers said, echoing the uncertainty many nonprofits have felt in recent months. Since March, when President Donald Trump issued an executive order criticizing institutions trying to “rewrite our Nation’s history, replacing objective facts with a distorted narrative driven by ideology rather than truth,” Whitney Plantation and other institutions that center the stories of Black people have wondered whether funding they’ve long counted on will continue.
For Rogers, soon after Trump’s order came notices from the Institute of Museum of Library Services that two grants totaling almost $350,000, awarded through a program supporting African American museums, had been rescinded. In a letter to grantees, the federal agency’s acting director Keith Sonderling wrote that the grant “is no longer consistent with the agency’s priorities and no longer serves the interest of the United States.”
Two days after the cancellation letter, she received another email in the middle of the night, saying that funds already requested would be completed. Rogers is also pushing to wrap up a third federal grant ahead of schedule, this one from the National Park Service. Still, the uncertainty coming from Washington has made her job
off from the neighborhoods,” said Acosta. “And then that water is used to irrigate 90% of the park, except for a few of the beds that are tied to Johnston Street city water ”
“We’re not stopping the next 2016 flood We don’t make that big of an impact, but when all of the storm water from streets is coming through our park, it’s getting filtered, it’s getting slowed down, and it’s seeping into green space, instead of going straight to the coulee or the Vermilion, which we’re really proud of.”
Moncus Park’s history provides plenty of inspiration for its current urban conservation efforts.
According to Acosta, the Johnston Street property sits at a geographic intersection where hardwood forest and coastal prairie landscapes once met. Less than 1% of Louisiana’s original coastal prairie habitat remains, once estimated to cover about 2.5 million acres.
at the Whitney that much harder. Grant funding that she once assumed would be paid out as promised is now in doubt. She figures that other grants are no longer worth applying for, given directives aimed at halting funding for diversity initiatives. There’s also unease from international travelers, who make up 20% of the site’s visitors.
“Part of me is just so mad that these funds, appropriated by Congress, are in question for so many people and are being taken outright from so many people,” Rogers said
At the same time, she said, the museum’s mission to tell the truth about the nation’s history to center the lives of the enslaved, rather than the enslavers — feels even more vital.
‘People were hungry for this’
By the time they reached the stately, 230-year-old “Big House,” the two dozen people on a recent morning’s tour of Whitney understood the museum’s focus.
“There is no furniture upstairs,” historical interpreter Najia Harry told the group as they stood below
“We took it out. What we realized is that a lot of guests were coming to this house and they became more enamored. ...”
One guest guffawed, shaking his head.
“Yeah, if you can believe it, they became more enamored with the antebellum era,” she continued, “asking more questions about the owner’s furniture, instead of the enslaved people.”
Soon after Whitney Plantation
welcomed its first visitors in late 2014, The New York Times declared it “the first slavery museum in America.” Its arrival came four months after a police officer shot Michael Brown in Ferguson, Missouri. The National Museum of African American History and Culture hadn’t opened yet. The International African American Museum in Charleston, South Carolina, didn’t yet exist
“People were hungry for this, and also, didn’t know how to react to the whole thing,” said Rogers, 42, who opened the place alongside John Cummings, the former trial lawyer who bought what was once an indigo, rice and sugar cane plantation and invested $10 million to restore it.
Now a nonprofit, the organization is “uncomfortably reliant” on visitors, as Rogers put it, with about 86% of revenue in fiscal year 2024 coming from ticket sales and the gift shop.
Most of the museum’s expenses go to people and maintenance, leaving little for activities or exhibits like the one she’s envisioning for the store That’s where federal funding helps An Institute of Museum and Library Services grant paid for the site’s first Juneteenth festival. A $243,000 grant from that agency, one of the two canceled and then restored, is paying for the creation of an exhibition about enslaved people who resisted and self-emancipated before and during the Civil War.
The nonprofit’s most “solid” funder is the Louisiana Endowment for the Humanities, which itself relies upon funds from the National Endowment for the Humanities,
Right now, about 2 acres of the park are being used to show off a native prairie landscape. Acosta said that bringing more prairie back to central Lafayette is a longterm goal that will take several years to achieve.
“There’s an initiative throughout the nation to restore some of these prairie ecosystems, because it’s wonderful, wonderful soil,” she said. “Our dream was always to fill that back field with native prairie, but maintenance is so difficult.
“We’re surrounded by a city of grass that is not native to this area.
Bermuda grass is beautiful, awesome, looks like a carpet. But it is incredibly aggressive and takes over an area quickly Usually, about the third year is when you can keep that native prairie alive and it maintains itself getting past that second year, we really have to fight off invasives,” she added.
Long before the city of Vermilionville was established, this section of modern-day Lafayette
would have supported bison, native peoples and eventually Acadian settlers who began populating the banks of the river That history gave way to a booming city that massively transformed the area’s native ecology Moncus Park isn’t necessarily taking it all the way back — it is envisioning a path forward that merges sustainable land management and urban living.
“So much can happen with as much space as we have. We’re all about diversity here, which is really just about increasing the punch of our ecology This is all just three years old now,” Acosta said, her arm sweeping across the expanse of new trees, native plants, ponds and even terraformed rolling hills spread across the park.
“We forget that we’re pretty young. It’s amazing to think about what all this will look like in another 20, 30, 50 years.”
Email Joanna Brown at joanna. brown@theadvocate.com.
another Trump target. It was LEH that responded after Hurricane Ida damaged every building on site, Rogers said. LEH paid for plywood and dehumidifiers and tarps. They knew “what we were dealing with here in Louisiana, and that might look very different than in Kansas or California,” Rogers said. In April, the LEH got word that the NEH was canceling $600,000 of its funding, leading the Louisiana agency to nix one major grant program. It honored grants already awarded, including one for $15,000 to the Whitney Plantation But the fate of future years of funding are unclear Federal money that flows through state agencies are “truly democratizing dollars that can reach every part of the state,” said director Miranda Restovic. Most foundations and donors, in contrast, focus their dollars on cities. And competition for such dollars just got tougher, Rogers said. “I don’t know where we’re going to look for grants, to be honest. I have no clue.”
Protecting the physical site is expensive, taxing and important, she said, partly because the space itself tells the story Being on the plantation each day has changed Rogers’ own understanding of slavery, she said.
Walking among the sugar cane, the plants towering over her, “I felt the vastness in a different way.”
‘I’m not willing to back down’
Rogers is in a better position than some nonprofits. She got most of the grant money that was expected this year, and supporters have responded to concerns about cuts. In less than a week in April, the Whitney Plantation raised more than $39,000 Still, there are worries on the horizon. She had planned to apply for a $750,000 grant from the National Park Service for renovations and repairs to the “Big House.”
But applying for a grant takes time, and recent news had given her pause. In February news outlets reported that the National Science Foundation was flagging grant applications with terms related to diversity, equity and inclusion. That same month, the National Park Service removed an 11-mile stretch of the Mississippi River, which included the Whitney Plantation, from consideration for a National Historic Landmark designation, at the request of state officials. In theory, to get the park service grant, Rogers could have written a narrative that downplayed Whitney’s focus on enslaved Black people, focusing instead on the White people who lived in the grand house, she said. But that would have betrayed the place’s mission.
“What I would want to focus on is preserving the craftsmanship of the enslaved African builders,” she said. “I’m not willing to back down on that.”
The whitewashing of history is “a tale as old as time,” said Katherine Bush Felton, board member of the Whitney Plantation and a descendant of Wallace’s settlement of Black landowners. Many textbooks and museums have told a narrow or untrue version of history, “and I think as an African American, I’m fully aware of that.”
Institutions such as Whitney Plantation play “a crucial role in conveying historical truths — the good, the bad and the painful,” she continued. “And not just because we don’t want to repeat history, but because there is strength in understanding history.”
That strength is what Harry sees when she looks at a memorial sculpted by artist Woodrow Nash, her tour’s last stop. Last week, visitors followed her along a gravel path and around a wall of roses to find dozens of heads mounted on steel rods.
Before telling the story behind the piece, honoring the men killed in 1811 after staging the biggest armed slave revolt in U.S. history, Harry noted that many people hadn’t ever heard that history, “including me.”
“I lived here my entire life,” said Harry, a 24-year-old college student studying criminal justice, “and I did not learn about this revolt until I came to work here. So I’m going to tell you what I’ve learned.”
She named the men, described their bravery and detailed their deaths.
As she spoke, she turned the head of one sculpture, then another, until they were all facing forward.
STAFF PHOTOS By LESLIE WESTBROOK
A cyclist rides through Moncus Park in Lafayette on April 30.
STAFF PHOTO By By JENNA ROSS
Whitney Plantation executive director Ashley Rogers, left, discusses work in and around the historic plantation store with John Blokker director of historic preservation and facilities.
Purple martins roost in a grouping of bird houses April 14 at Moncus Park.
STAFF PHOTO By SOPHIA GERMER
Metal figures by artist Woodrow Nash sit on the structure that enslaved people lived in at the Whitney Plantation in Wallace on April 30.
Lafayette GOP accused of improper reports
Officials say campaign finance filings late and incorrect
BY CLAIRE TAYLOR Staff writer
The Lafayette Republican Parish Executive Committee and its top leaders are in trouble with the state ethics administration for allegedly filing late and incorrect campaign finance reports in 2023.
The Louisiana Ethics Administration assessed $12,000 in late
Graduation dates, times set for colleges, high schools
Most will be held at Cajundome through the next week
BY ASHLEY WHITE Staff writer
It’s almost time to celebrate high school and college graduates in Lafayette Parish.
Most graduations will be held at the Cajundome. Anyone attending ceremonies will need to adhere to a clear-bag policy Parking will be at Cajun Field.
Here are the graduation times and dates for Lafayette Parish: Lafayette Parish school system
n Early College Academy, 2 p.m. Thursday at the Cajundome
n Carencro High, 4 p.m. May 19 at the Cajundome
n Southside High, 6:30 p.m May 19 at the Cajundome
n David Thibodaux STEM Magnet Academy, 4 p.m. May 20 at the Cajundome
n Acadiana High, 6:30 p.m. May 20 at the Cajundome
n Comeaux High, 1 p.m. May 21 at the Cajundome
n Northside High, 3:30 p.m May 21 at the Cajundome
n Lafayette High, 6 p .m. May 21 at the Cajundome Lafayette Parish private high schools
n Teurlings Catholic High, 6 p.m. Monday at the Cajundome
n St. Thomas More Catholic High, 6 p.m. Tuesday at the Cajundome
n Ascension Episcopal School of Acadiana, 6 p.m. Thursday at the Cajundome
n Episcopal School of Acadiana, 9 a.m. May 31 University of Louisiana at Lafayette
n Doctoral hooding, Thursday at the Cajundome Convention Center
n College of Engineering, 9 a.m. Friday at the Cajundome
n College of Arts, 9 a.m Friday at the Cajundome
n College of Liberal Arts, 1 p.m. Friday at the Cajundome
n University College, 1 p.m. Friday at the Cajundome Convention Center
n Ray P Authement College of Sciences, 9 a.m Saturday at the Cajundome
n College of Education and Human Development 9 a.m. Saturday at the Cajundome Convention Center
n B.I. Moody III College of Business Administration, 1 p.m. Saturday at the Cajundome
n LHC Group-Myers School of Nursing, 1 p.m. Saturday at the Cajundome Convention Center South Louisiana Community College
n 10 a.m. Thursday at the Cajundome
Did we miss your graduation ceremony? Email ashley.white@ theadvocate.com with details to have it included.
fees against the executive committee, Chair Tim Breaux and Treasurer Charles Buckels.
The problems center on reports required by state finance laws to be filed for contributions and expenses during the last quarter of 2023, including money spent on behalf of candidate Josh Guillory, the Lafayette Parish mayorpresident who was defeated by Monique Boulet in November 2023.
Guillory, Boulet and the third candidate in the mayor-president’s race, Jan Swift, all were registered Republican.
Four campaign finance reports are the subject of the fines. Two allegedly were filed late and two allegedly were improperly filed.
Breaux said the committee filed everything on time.
“That’s a bogus claim from
a disgruntled ex-committee member,” he said “Anybody can make a complaint. A disgruntled ex-committee member fabricated information to them.”
The executive committee is asking the state ethics board to consider waiving the fees A hearing is scheduled for June 6.
Breaux called the meeting an inquiry investigation for clarifi-
cation and felt certain meeting with the ethics commission will clear up the problems.
The Republican executive committee, Breaux said, has a political action committee account which is the only account subject to state campaign reporting rules. The committee’s regular operating account is not required by law to file reports, he said.
Email Claire Taylor at ctaylor@ theadvocate.com.
SO MUCH TO SEE
ABOVE: Shoppers browse the selection for crafts as Second Sunday ArtWalk is held in downtown Lafayette. The free monthly event showcases the work of local artists and musicians.
RIGHT: Shoppers browse pieces of sterling silver jewelry
Ascension Episcopal School gets interim leader
BY ASHLEY WHITE Staff writer
demic year Sarah Davenport, who has spent the past four years as the head of Ascension’s upper school, will move into the interim role for the 2025-26 school year “Her experience, vision, and connection to our community make her the right person to
STAFF PHOTOS By BRAD BOWIE
YOUR VIEWS
THE INSURANCE CRISIS
Innovative loan programs couldmake fortified roofs more widespread
We need afaster way to reduce owner costs related to insurance for storm damage to roofs and subsequent water damage. The fortified roof program is abrilliant start, butIfear that it is too slow.Agrowing number of homes retrofitted and builtwith fortified roofs may keep some insurers from leaving, but will atrickle entice others to enter thestate, providingneeded competition?
Iamnoinsurance expert, but it seems like alarger mass of improved homes might be asignificant accelerator.Competition might even contribute to reductions in cost for owners witholder roofs. Iknow that many states had, and may continue to have, loans to help residents achieve higher energy efficiency,saving them money in the longrun. These programs may be amodel to drive faster adoption of fortified roofs. Rather than loans for energy efficiency improvements (HVAC, insulation, water heaters),Louisiana could apply it to tougher roofs. Energy efficiency loan paymentsare taken on utility bills, but our marginal roof cost paymentswould go on insurance bills. The added monthly cost on theinsurance bill would never be more than the amountofthe marginal cost reduction resulting fromthe cost of the improved roof. Sure, the homeowner will see none or little of the savings for a fewyears, but the roof will last longer than the payments(or the program is not of any benefitand should not be used). The interest rate could be reducedfor people with low incomes. The loans would be secured by the value of the home, so there is little risk to theloan source, and it should cost much less than grants. Details like transfer of the paymentsat thetime of ahome sale can bedecided and worked out.
PETERKULAKOSKY Jefferson
Don’texpectinsurance reform when triallawyers have governor’s ear
Extraordinary times call for extraordinary measures,and the2025 legislative session is oneofthose times. The insurance crisis in our state is not apartisan fight; it’s an existential crisis. The insurance costsare astronomicalinLouisiana, if you can get it at all. Thepoliticians and attorneys can’tbeallowed to let their personal interests outweigh thegood of constituents, fellow citizens and policyholdersany longer U.S.Sen.Alan Simpson famously said, “Politics is acontact sport.” In astatewhere football and politics elicit passionatereactions from the citizens, it would help if the spectators knew the rules of the game. In Louisiana, there are no rules, and hence winning elections and strengthening one’sposition becomes theprimary objective of those in power.That needs to end.
The most recent incident to illustratethis was Gov.Jeff Landry and others taking aleisurely hunting trip in Texas to meet withtwo of themost powerful plaintiffs’ attorneys in thestate. The reason: to discuss “insurance
reform.”
Who wasn’tonthis trip?Tim Temple, the insurance commissioner of Louisiana.
Temple ran on reform and came into office with aclear mandate: toget insurance rates down. To thetrial attorneys, electing Tim was akin to allowing afox into ahenhouse, and they’ve tried at every step to dull his teeth
This session may give Louisiana achance to implement reforms that would benefit individuals, businesses and others whomay choose to relocate here.
Nothing profound will happen with insurance rates or improving the business climate until we address tortreformhead-on. We will continue to fall further behindour Southern peers as the politicians and attorneysget wealthier.Isthere acorrelation between our litigious culture, insurance costs and Louisiana’sslower growth? Not if you ask trial attorneys.
JEREMY ROBICHEAUX owner,Coastal Louisiana Insurance
Whynot try ideasto lowerauto insurance ratesthat work in other states?
The Legislature is focused on the wrong aspectsoflowering insurance premiums.
If lawmakers truly wish to reducethe rates, they should overhaul the insurance system completely
Theyshould look at Massachusetts’ low-cost no-fault insurance, instead of blaming the lawyers for allthe ills of the insurance dilemma.Implementing ano-fault systemwould eliminate many of the minor claims fromthe courts. The individual’spolicy would take careofmost claims directly.There would still exist a right to sue for the more serious claims.
Blaming the lawyers for high ratesisridiculous. Lawyers don’t make the accidents; drivers do. Isee drivers in my town run red lights everytime the traffic signalturns red. Isee them texting while driving. Isee them talking on the phone with the phone placed next to their ear.Isee drivers on Interstate 12 reach speedsof90-plus milesper hour Youwonderwhy accidents can be deadly
Foryears, the Legislature has resistedoutlawing texting or talking on the phone.
Keytoreducing auto
ratesisreducing
crashes, so don’tblame thelawyers
I’m apersonal injury lawyer with 30-plus years of practice. Iamalso aconservative. My experiences give me aunique perspectiveonlowering auto insurance rates in Louisiana.
It’stimefor adifferent path.
My solution is against my self-interest, but wouldactually help thepublic: fewer car accidents. If we accomplish this, the lawyer ads will diminish greatly.Fewer car accidents means we will stop the absolute carnageofour citizens on our roads. People are killed,maimed, injured and their lives are disrupted for weeks, months, years or a lifetime.
School shootings, theFrench Quarter terror attack, plane-helicopter collisions, etc., mayget theheadlines, but thesheer volume andlikelihood of any of us getting hurt or injured occur in all too common car accidents. Insurance rates would go down because insurance companies would not be paying as many claims or large settlements. According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, Louisianaranks fifth in accidents andfatalities per miles driven and
per capita. There was acrash with injuries every 15 minutes here, and an average of 900 deaths per year,between 2021 and 2023. So, how do we achieve fewer car accidents? Basically,quit giving out driver’slicenses like candy at Halloween and implement 10 common-sense fixes:
1. Stricter driver licensing.
2. Re-licensing every few years.
3. Hands-free cellphones only
4. Three-strike warning patrols. (Drivers given two warnings and aticket on the third offense for certain infractions).
5. Lower speed limits.
6. More red-light cameras and electronic speed ticketing.
7. Taxincentives for cars with anti-collision equipment.
8. Increases in mass transit and reductions in the regulations on Uber-like services, which will lead to more options.
9. Improvements in roads and lighting.
10. Public awareness campaigns.
EERICGUIRARD personal injurylawyer Baton Rouge
Public should know more aboutwho’s making money
Theyhaveresistedfunding the State Policetoenforce traffic laws. Theyhaveresisted funding lawenforcementthroughout the state to enforce traffic laws. Whathas been proposed in this legislative session will notbring ratesdown.
These elected representativessimply want to go back to their constituents andgive them afeel-good story with no real substantive change.Ofcourse, Idoubt thatIwill ever see a change in my lifetime.
Full disclosure, Ihavebeen a lawyerfor over 40 yearsinthis state
CHARLESM.RAYMOND Mandeville
The state Legislature should pass abill and thegovernor sign it into state law that stipulatesthe following:(1) Anylawyer or law firm that files an auto accident lawsuit in anycourt in Louisiana shall report to the Louisiana commissioner of insurance within 10 daysoffiling the names of the plaintiff, the plaintiff’s attorney and the sued insurance companyaswell as the dollar amount sought andthe parish where the accident occurred; (2) Upon settlement of thelawsuit, be it a court judgment or asettlement out of court, either the plaintiff or plaintiff’s attorney shall report to theLouisiana commissioner of insurance the full terms of the judgment or settlement; and (3) The Louisiana commissioner of insurance shall publish monthly in thenewspaper of record in Louisiana alist of theautoaccident lawsuits settled in the prior month
LETTERSTOTHE EDITOR AREWELCOME.HEREARE OUR GUIDELINES: Letters are published identifying nameand the writer’scity of residence.The Advocate |The Times-Picayune require astreet address and phone number forverification 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 SENDUS ALETTER, SCAN HERE
LAWRENCE H. IVERSON III Metairie
STAFF FILEPHOTO By CHRIS GRANGER
Acar involved in awreck on Interstate 10 near Michoud Boulevard is hauled away in 2023.
WINNER: Jim Crigler,Baton Rouge
POTHOLELIFEGUARD
We received 628 entries in this week’s Cartoon Caption Contest.We had several on missing cars, and abunch on deeper potholesdownthe street. Our winner took home thetop prize with his punchlineabout howlong it actually takes to getthesecraters filled.Terrificmix in this bunch! As always, when we have duplicate entries,and we always do, we pick the earliestsentin. Great job! —Walt
CHARLES SMITH, ST.ROSE: “I remember having great times swimming in there when Iwas akid.”
ELAINE SHUBERT,SLIDELL: “Remember to look both ways before diving into the water!”
BONNIE F. LOSEE, LAFAYETTE: “The neighborhood amenitiesare improving.”
LLOYDL.KELLER JR., NEW ORLEANS:
“Kids, good news!!! Thewaterslide will be installed next week.
CATHERINE HOLCOMB,MORGAN CITY:
“I’m in chargeofthe carpool today!!!”
HANK WELTY (AGE 7), NEW ORLEANS:
“Look out for the pothole monster!”
DAVIS C. HOTARD,BATON ROUGE:
“you’re lucky I’m here! With the number of potholes we have,there’s not enough lifeguards to go around!”
JOHN RYAN, GREENVILLE,S.C.: “How convenient! Theseneighborhood swimming holes are all over the city!”
BILLYDOUGLASS,BATON ROUGE:
“Watch out for alligators!!”
MARIANO HINOJOSA, BATONROUGE: “Lifeguards are cheaper than pothole repairs.
STUART CLARK, LAFAYETTE: “It’sagood thing y’all have astack of abandoned cars to stand on.”
SAM JOHNSON, ZACHARY: “Don’tworry guys …the voters will neverpass atax to fixour swimming hole!!!”
RALPH STEPHENS,BATON ROUGE: “Give it aweekortwo and youcan swim laps in it.
STEVE QUARTANO,BATON ROUGE: “If you find an ’87 Chevy down there,it belongs tome.
D. SABRIO, METAIRIE: “Now,y’all know whytheynameditCanal Street back in theday!”
RICHARD LOCHREN, NEW ORLEANS: “In today’seconomy, this sure beats the price of summercamp.”
DIANNA MOLL, COVINGTON: “Enjoy now kids.ADULTswimisin10minutes!”
ROBERT SWANTON, NEWORLEANS: “Heyfellas, just think after next year’s blizzard, you’ll be able to go ice skating too.”
HARPER VICIDOMINA-MILLS (AGE 10), METAIRIE: “The concrete people will be here soon so wrap it up quickly.
DAVIDM.PRADOS,METAIRIE: “When life givesyou potholes,makeswimming pools.”
TERRYMcCARTHY,COVINGTON: “I getit, you’re smilingbecause your crawfish trap is full.”
SAM PERNICI, BATONROUGE: “Kids,be careful in the deep end!”
CHARLOTTE HUMPHRIES,HAMMOND: “I hear there’s one over on Perkins that has adivingboard.
PEG USNER, MANDEVILLE: “Good work! By the end of summer,you will graduate to the big ‘pool’ justoff Esplanade.
JACOBDILEO,GONZALES: “Theroads are gone,but at least the potholes are fluoride-free.”
PHILLIP T. GRIFFIN, NEWORLEANS: “If this catches on, we will neverhave enough lifeguards.”
JIMMIE PAPIA, METAIRIE: “Wedon’t have to worryabout overcrowding; we have adozen of these in everyblock.”
RUSSELL R. BARCELONA,BATON
ROUGE: “I told youI had aroad trip planned this summer.
RORY STEEN,DENVER,COLO.: “Marco! Pothole!”
Louisiana is facing amental health crisis. Nearly 715,000 adults in our state live with a mental health condition, and 179,000 of them experience serious mental illness. An estimated 44,000 teens between 12 and 17 are struggling with depression. Approximately 3.4 million Louisianans live in areas without enough mental health professionals to meet the growing demand.
As Louisiana debates the reduction or removal of red-light and speed enforcement cameras, we must consider the real consequences of such adecision. These cameras are not about punishingdrivers —they are about saving lives.
Iteach defensive driving courses as an instructor at the Metropolitan Safety Council and see firsthand the vital role these cameras play in keeping our roads safe. While Iagreewe need common-sense safeguards in place to prevent misuse, the evidence proving the benefits of these devicesisoverwhelming anddeserves serious attention.
Nationally,the numbers tell asimilar story.In2022,over 1,100 people were killed andmore than 100,000 were injured in crashes involving red-light running. Half of those killed weren’t the offenders —they were pedestrians, cyclistsand innocent drivers.
So, what do red-light and speed cameras actually do? They deter speeding, change driver behaviorand build safer communities. Speeding isn’t just atraffic violation —it’sadeadly threat on our roads. In 2023 alone, Louisianasaw more than 143,200crashes, including 147 pedestrian fatalities and 344injuries Speeding and running red lights are considered aggressive driving.Aggressive driving, one of thetop causes of crashes, contributes significantly to thesestatistics
Traffic safety cameras work to reduce these dangerous actions,ultimately lowering crash rates and saving lives.
Research shows that cities with red-light cameras experience 21% fewer fatal crashes at red lights and 14% fewer fatal crashes at signalized intersections. In contrast, cities that removed their cameras saw a 30%increase in deadly red-light crashes. Another keyadvantage is the increased safety they provide for police officers. Automated enforcement reduces the need for police to make high-risk traffic stops. This technology not onlyprotects law enforcement but also shieldsdrivers and pedestrians from potential harm during routine pullovers.
Critics oftenargue that local governmentsonlyhave traffic cameras to generate revenue. That argument ignores their primary purpose: changing driver behaviortoprevent recklessdriving. In Louisiana, nearly 85% of nonpedestrian fatal crashes involve factors like alcohol, distraction or aggressive driving. Nationwide, 89% of people say they
see speeding weekly and 67% witness red-light running at least once amonth. These are not rare occurrences. Cameras act as aconsistent deterrent, holding drivers accountable and encouraging safer habits behind the wheel. When drivers know they’ll be ticketed for speeding or running red lights, they are morelikely to drive responsibly,leading to fewer crashes.
Traffic cameras also protect vulnerable bystanders. In school zones, they slow down traffic where children cross thestreet. In communities, they ensure safer roads for pedestrians and cyclists. In work zones, they enforce traffic compliance and protect workers on the job.These benefitsgobeyond reducing speeding —they makeour communities safer for everyone.
In astate likeLouisiana, where traffic fatalities continue to rise, removing a proven system that saves lives would be adangerous setback. These cameras are lifesaving tools.
For thesafety of every driver,pedestrian,child and police officer,itiscrucial that Louisiana continues to support and utilize speed and red-light cameras on our roads.
Lives depend on it
Beth Inbau is president and CEO of the Metropolitan Safety Council of the New Orleans Area, Inc.
It’s clear that we need real solutions. One of the mostpromising answers? Certified Community Behavioral Health Clinics. CCBHCs, established by Congress in 2014, are designed to provide awide range of mental health and substance use services. At CrescentCare in New Orleans and Start Community Health Center in Houma, we operate two of Louisiana’ssix CCBHCs, offering care to everyone in our community —nomatter their diagnosis, insurance status or ability to pay.Grant funding has allowed us to expand our teams, partner with local organizations and provide 24/7 crisis response. The impact of CCBHCs is undeniable. Michael came to us after losing his job due to substance misuse. For years, he had tried to numbthe pain of unaddressed trauma. At CrescentCare, he began not only substance use treatment but also the deep work of addressing the trauma driving his addiction.
Today,Michael is in recovery and flourishing. He has returned to full-timework, built astrong support network in the local recovery community and is creating afuture full of possibility At Start Corporation,another LouisianaCCBHC, Elizabeth was ayoung pregnant woman who struggled with trauma, behavioral health issues andsubstance use. Through Start’scoordinated care model,she was connected to substance use programs, case management and parent education services. She secured stable housing and gave birth to ahealthy baby boy.Today,both Elizabeth and her son are thriving. These stories are whywedothis work. But without sustainable funding, we risk leaving morepeople behind. Thousands of Louisianans still lack access to this kind of care. And the grant funding we rely on isn’tapermanent solution. There are two mainways CCBHCs are funded across the country.In20states, clinics access a flexible Medicaid payment rate that reimburses them forthe full costs of care. This system enables expanded access to care and provides stable, long-term funding. For example, some clinics in rural areas have used these funds to purchase mobile health units, bringing care directly to people whomight otherwise go without. Louisiana isn’tthere yet. Right now,our CCBHCs depend on federal grants that only last a fewyears at atimeand don’tfully cover the cost of care. This uncertainty makes it hard to plan ahead or launch critical new programs. But we are making progress. The state recently received a$1million federal planning grant that could help us access this flexible payment rate in the future. That is great news, but that process could take years.
Thankfully,Congress has achance to fix this. Bipartisan legislation introduced last Congress —the Ensuring Excellence in Mental Health Act —would give Louisiana’sCCBHCs access to the samestable funding as those in other states. It would also help moreclinics in Louisiana achieve CCBHC status, making it easier for them to meet the growing demand forcare. We encourage our congressional delegation to support similar legislation in this new Congress. We also encourage our representatives in Washington to resist drastic cuts to Medicaid, which, together with the Children’sHealth Insurance Program,covers over 1.6 million people in Louisiana. Medicaid is the largest funder of substance use and mental health services. Significant cuts to the program jeopardize the great work of CCBHCs and other community health centers.
CCBHCs have proved their value. They deliver high-quality,accessible care, often to people whohave nowhere else to turn. Expanding this model is not just apolicy decision; it’salifeline forthousands of Louisianans.
It’s timefor our congressional delegation to take action. Ensuring reintroduction and passage of the Ensuring Excellence Act this year will guarantee that CCBHCs can keep changing lives —one person, one family,and one community at atime.
Let’sgive Louisiana the same chance as other states to build afuture where everyone has access to the care they need. Our communities deserve nothing less.
CaseyGuidry is CEO at Start Corporation, aCCBHC basedinHouma.AliceRiener is CEO of CrescentCare, aCCBHC basedinNew Orleans.
Beth Inbau GUEST COLUMNIST
Alice Riener GUEST COLUMNIST
Casey Guidry GUEST COLUMNIST
Competence questionsdelay WBRtrial
Chargesinclude
BY HALEY MILLER Staff writer
The 18th Judicial District Court in West Baton Rouge Parish postponed action on acase involving the kidnapping, rape and creation of child pornography of a 12-year-old girl at aPort Allen motel in July 2023. The co-defendants in the case,a St.James manand Baton Rouge woman, await adetermination of mental competence.
Jonathan White and Eriana Smith, the victim’s cousin, were charged with first-degree rape of avictim under 13 years old, pornography involving juveniles and aggravated kidnapping of achild.Both pleadednot guilty.They will appear in court together in August if deemed mentally competent.
The alleged kidnapping, sexual assault and creation of child pornography occurredbetweenJuly 21 and July 23,2023,according to theaffidavitfrom theWest Baton Rouge Parish Sheriff’s Office.
Smith, then 19, and her cousin were walking on Eden Street in Baton Rouge
when White allegedly approachedthemand asked if they wantedtohave a “threesome,”the affidavit said. Smithand White had texted about the plan before he pickedthemup, theaffidavitsaid
Authorities say the 35-year-oldWhite then drove themtoaMotel 6off Interstate10inPort Allen, where, according to theaffidavit, he had sex with the 12-year-old girl.Smith is accused of videotaping the rape on acellphone.
Authorities learned of the incident after they responded toa disturbance at the home ofWhite and the mother of hischild,whichthey said was allegedly started by Smith sharingthe video of therape.
Asanity commission report on White fromlast year added that themother of his child was also thesisterof thevictim.
The victim told adetective that Whitehad sex with her and confirmed it washer in thevideo, the affidavit said.
Questionslinger
Attorneys forbothdefendantshave arguedtheir clients are incapableofcooperatingintheir owndefense.
Separate from apleaofinsanity,the question of competency involves the defendant’sabilitytounderstand
the legalproceedings and refers to theirpresent state of mind, as opposedtotheir state of mind at thetimethe crime was committed. The accused must be deemed mentally competent to stand trial.
Thecourt appointed asanity commission to evaluate White.Ina June 2024 report, thecommission said White had gone mute after expressing delusions that his food had been poisoned. In an interviewwiththe commission, he refused to make eye contact, “would not, or could not, answer questions” and was “essentially motionless,” thereport said.
The commission noted that White likely hada reasonable legal understanding of his situation at the time of his arrest because he asked for alawyer before answering questionsfrom law enforcement.
“It is possible that he has had asignificant mental status change sincethen. It is also possible that his current condition reflects an elective decision on his part,thatis, that he is choosing not to answer questions andrefusingtoeat because of hisconcerns aboutbeing prosecuted.Itisalso possible that he hashad some sort of mental breakdown whereheisina psychotic state and is not answering andnot eatingproperlybe-
causeofthis mental condition,” the report said.
“Given the limited information thatwehave, it is impossible to knowfor certain which of these is theactual case.”
He was admitted to the EasternLouisiana MentalHealthSystem in July 2024. Astatusupdate from November 2024 said he remained nonverbal andwill continue to be observed untilcompetencyisdetermined.
Smith’sattorneyalso filed amotion foramental incompetence hearing, arguing “it is evident that the defendant struggles to articulate what transpired” andthat she believedher actions justified.
The state responded that it is unlikely Smith will be able to proveincapacity because she andthe victim bothsaid in interviews that theydiscussedplans to be picked up by White. That suggestsanawareness of future events, the state said in the motion filing.
In addition, Smith expressedremorse forher actions, another indication of competency,the state argued.
“I knew Ishould have told hernoand notlet her come with me,” Smith said in an interviewacquiredin discovery, according to the motion filing.
BelleChasseBridgetolls delayedagain
Weather repeatedlypushes back startdate
BY LARA NICHOLSON Staff writer
The Belle ChasseBridge has yet to launch its tolling system nearly two months after it first opened to traf-
fic.
State officials have delayed the onset of tolls at least 12 times,withthe latest postponement announced Friday
Plenary Infrastructure
Belle Chasse, the private developer that constructed the $170 million bridge in partnership with the state, cannot start charging fees until the project passes inspections required by the state Department of Transportation and Development said agency spokesperson Daniel Gitlin.
But because of frequent inclement weather,contractors have had to repeatedly pause work on the finishing touches necessary to collect tolls, causing thestart date to become a“moving target.”
“The delayshave nothing to do with bridge structure or safety or tolling equipment,” said Angela Noote, aPlenary spokesperson.
“It’slikewhenyou builda house, you have apunch list of minor details. Even though they shouldn’ttake that long, when youthrow in weather delays, it has a domino effect.”
The most recent launch date was set for 12:01 a.m. Saturday before thunderstorms forced apause on work. There is no new start date for tolls, though work on Engineers Road is expected to be completed Wednesday
The setbacks on tolling come in addition to the roughlyyearlongdelay it took for the bridge itself to open, leaving commuters and businesses reliant on the bridge wary about how the new fees will impact their wallets.
Meanwhile, Plenary continues to rack up $10,000 in fines for each day tolling does not start.Total fines were estimated to reach$3.5 million by the end of March, DOTD SecretaryJoe Donahue told lawmakers in November
“They keep pushing the date back, so obviously it’s not going good,” said state Sen. Patrick Connick, RMarrero, who represents part of Plaquemines Parish. “They needtoget theiract together,and get the thing builtproperly for their con-
opened to trafficMarch 17 but its
still has not been launched.
tract.”
Once tolling starts, Plaquemines Parish residentswho havesigned up with GeauxPass, the state’s electronic tolling system, will be charged a25-cent fee for using the bridge. Nonresidents with GeauxPass will pay $1.13,and any driver without GeauxPass will be charged $2.26.
Users can be charged additional fees forlicense platelookups, invoice mailing, violation notices or credit card transactions.
Many delays
The state Legislature approvedthe new bridge in 2019, marking the first public-private partnership in the state for amajor infrastructure project Thefour-lane bridge crossesthe Intracoastal Waterway southeast of New Orleans and provides aconvenientroute to and from PlaqueminesParish, including Venture Global’s Plaquemines LNG plant in Port Sulphur.Itreplaces avertical-lift bridgebuilt in 1967 andused by northbound travelers, anda tunnel for southbound travelers that opened in 1955. Under the agreement, the bridge wouldbepaid for using $100 million in federal funds, while Plenary would foot almostall of the remainingbill.
In exchange, the developer collects toll revenuefrom motorists over the course of its 30-year contract, which couldrange from $630 millionto$726 million, accordingtoa2023 audit from the Louisiana LegislativeAuditor Plenary broke ground on the bridgein2021 and had acompletion deadline of April 2024. Throughout that period,drivers dealtwith heavy traffic brought on by
construction and intermit-
tentroad closures
It took an additional11 monthsfor the bridge to actually open, as contractors were forced to rebuild already-constructed embankmentsand approaches under anew design after discoveringthe ground beneaththe structure was sinking faster than anticipated.
The new bridge officially opened to traffic March17. Drivers were allowed to crossthe bridge for free until tollingcommenced, whichwas originally slated for April 16.
Then thedelays began.
‘Theygot araw deal’
Nootesaid that sporadic weather has delayedthe developer from completing minorjobsrequiredbythe DOTD in order to begin tolling and end the daily fines, like striping theroad, completing signage or conductingwork on nearby drainage ditches.
She said one day of rain could potentially cause severaldays’worth of delays, depending on the work.
“If there’s aweather event that delays apart of theproject, even on asunny day we have to deal withweather
issuesfrom days before,” Noote said.
DOTD will collect thefines againstPlenary,and the Joint Legislative Committee on Transportation will have final approval on how that moneyisspent.Rep.Jacob Braud, R-Belle Chasse, sponsored alaw last year that requires themoney be used to benefit Plaquemines Parish, which could include lowering toll rates.
“They (residents) arehappy to have anew bridge, but nothappy they have to pay for it,” Connick said. “They gota rawdeal.We’re going to do what we can to mitigate the contract that was agreed on withouttheir signature years ago.”
Email LaraNicholson at lnicholson@theadvocate. com.
ICEagentsmake arrestsatcourthouse
Administration upends policies on ‘sensitive’ areas
BY JAMES FINN Staff writer
Plainclothes Immigration andCustoms Enforcement agents entered aJeffersonParish municipal court building in Metairie last week anddetained three people, according to immigrant advocates and aJefferson Parish official.
The two agents waited in the lobby of the First Parish Court building in Metairie on Thursday morning, according to Rachel Taber,a memberofmigrant advocacy group Union Migrante, whose members research and confirm reports of ICE activity through eyewitness accounts. At around 12:30 p.m.,the agentsdetained awoman and two men who hadbeen in court to enter guiltypleas for driving while intoxicated, Taber said.
The judicialadministrator for the First Parish Court, Donald Finger, told WWL Louisiana that ICE agents had entered the courthouse and “detained afew people,” the station reported Friday.Finger told WWL that he was not aware the agents would be conducting enforcement operations there before the arrests occurred.
Finger’sofficedid not immediatelyrespond to a phonemessage from The Times-Picayune.
The arrests appear to mark an escalation of President Donald Trump’s sweeping second-term immigration agenda.Federal agency policieslong deemed courthouses, schoolsand otherpublic spaces off-limitsfor immigration agents conducting enforcement operations —astandard Trump has sought to upend since taking office.
Additional details about those detained on Thursdaywere notimmediately available. WWL reported that the identities of the detainees matched those of people who hadbeen in court forappearances related to DWI charges.
Trump issued an executive order in January roll-
ing back amandate against immigration enforcement agents targetingschools, churches and other “sensitive” areas. ICE agents were givena directive around thattime to performenforcementoperations within courthouses,too, in another break fromagencypolicy, according to amemoobtained and published by ABC News. “ICE officers or agents may conduct civilimmigration enforcement actions in or near courthouses when they have credible information that leads them to believe the targeted alien(s) is or will be present at aspecific location, and where such actionisnot precluded by laws imposed by the jurisdiction in which the enforcement action will take place,” the memo said. The arrests in Louisiana last week were not the first inside acourthouse since Trumptook office. Federal immigration agentsinrecent weeks took multiple defendantsintocustody at the courthouse complex in Milwaukee County,Wisconsin.
TheDepartment of Homeland Security,ICE’s umbrella agency,issued a news release this week touting arrests of at least seven migrants at courthouses across the country “The ability of lawenforcementtomakearrests of criminalillegal aliens in courthouses is common sense,” Assistant DHS Secretary Tricia McLaughlin said in the preparedstatement.
Arresting migrants inside courthouses, she said, conserves law enforcement resources because agents “already know wherea target will be.” Agents can also approach immigrants within courthouses with the knowledge they are unarmed, McLaughlin said. An ICE spokesperson did not immediately respond to arequest forcommenton Thursday’sarrests.
Taber, theUnionMigrante advocate, said the arrests risk deterring migrants from participating in court proceedings.
“How manyvictimswill now be afraid to approach this courthouse to testify againstsomeone who wronged them,knowing that ICE hasunrestricted access to its halls?” she said.
STAFF PHOTO By DAVIDGRUNFELD
The newbridgeinBelle Chasse
tolling system
SPORTS
WAYISPAVED
Carr’s retirement openspathfor Shough to startin2025
Tyler Shough’sroad to becoming a startingquarterback has all of sudden become alot smoother than theNew Orleans’street he recently encountered.
Thelatter road busted the tires on his truck whenhehit oneofthose notorious New Orleanspotholes.
But the other road— theone thatmay lead himtotakingthe first snap forthe Saints this season— hasone less obstacle now that Derek Carr announced his retirement Saturday morning Carr’sreturn this season alreadywas questionable after thenews in Aprilthat he was dealing with ashoulder injury Now that Carr surprisingly has calledit quits, Shough moves closer to thefront of the line to grab thekeys tothe Kellen Moore offense. Opportunitysometimes knocks fast in the NFL, andfor Shough
since Drew Breesretired
Eagles roughup Cajuns’ pitchers again
BY KEVIN FOOTE Staff writer
ä Arkansas State at UL, 6P.M.THURSDAy,ESPN+
Things were looking up for the UL Ragin’ Cajuns when they scored five runs in the second inning during the third gameoftheir Sun Belt road series against Southern Mississippi. But just like the entire weekend, the UL pitching staff just couldn’tget the Eagles hitters out, suffering asweep after a9-6 loss to Southern Miss on Sunday at Pete Taylor Parkin Hattiesburg, Mississippi.
The Cajuns dropped to 25-27 overall and 15-12 in Sun Belt play,while the No 21-rankedEaglesimproved to 38-13 and 21-6. UL will finish the regular season with athree-game series startingat 6p.m. Thursday againstArkansas State at Russo Park.
Rod Walker
it comes just 15 days after the Saints drafted him in thesecond round.
This was thethird straight year the Saints drafted aquarterback after selectingJake Haener in thefourth round two yearsago and Spencer Rattler in the fifth round last year.That trio will battle in training camp for the starting job with thehopes of bringing some stability to aposition that hasn’thad any
“Wewill be very patient with it and make sure allthese guys get to compete at areally high level,” Moore saidSaturdayafter theteam’srookie minicamp Whichever quarterback wins the job, this feelslike aclean slate for the Saints.For the first time since2006, theSaints will start aseason with both a new head coach and anew quarterback. That season —the arrival of Sean Paytonand Brees —turned out to be aspecial one. It set thegroundwork forall theexpectations that have surrounded theorganization ever since. While Moore says there will be acompetition, you have to thinkShough is the
Arkansas salvages series finaleagainst LSU
BY KOKI RILEY Staff writer
LSU’shopes of earning atopeight seed in the NCAA Tournamentwere in good shapeheading into Sunday
The Tigers were No. 7in the RPI and KPI —anotherresultsbased rating systemused by the selection committee —and tied for second with Arkansas in the Southeastern Conference standings. Taking Friday and Saturday’sgames over the Razorbacks had done wonders for their resume.
In other words, LSU was playing with house money in its series finale Sunday at Alex Box Stadium.
ä LSU at SouthCarolina, 6P.M.THURSDAy,SECN
LSU took an early lead but couldn’t finishoff thesweep, losing7-4 to Arkansasafter allowingtwo runs in the ninthinning of aone-run game LSUthreatenedtotie thescore in the eighth inning, driving in a run ona groundout from junior Chris Stanfieldwithone out.But with arunner onsecond,freshmanDerek Curielgroundedout to second base to end the threat. Junior Conner Ware started theninth inning but walked the first batter before exiting for
BY RODWALKER Staff writer
The last time theNew Orleans Pelicans made achange at executive vice president of basketballoperations, theywon the lottery
David Griffin, in his first month on the jobin2019, won the lottery and usedthe No. 1overall pick to select apromisingstar from Duke: Zion Williamson. Will history repeat itself for Joe Dumars, who is now in charge after replacing thefired Griffin in April? The answertothatwill be revealed Monday night in Chicago at the NBA draft lottery The Pelicans hope Williamson will be agood luck charm. Williamson, the face of the franchise,will represent the Peli-
ä NBA Draft Lottery, 6P.M. MONDAy,ESPN
cansonstage at Mondaynight’s lottery Thewinnerofthe lottery almostcertainly will use the No.1 pick to select CooperFlagg,the 18-year-old Duke superstar who willenter theleague with lofty expectations and plenty of hype. Winning thelottery would be a rare victory for an organization that struggled finding wins in a season marred by injuries. ThePelicansfinished 21-61, thesecond-worst record in franchise history.Itwas the fourthworst record in the NBA. That fourth-worstrecordmeans the Pelicanshave a12.5% chance of
Conor Higgs, whofinished 3for 3, started the five-run frame with asingle and scored on asacrificeflyfrom Jose Torres. OwenGaltwas hit by apitch andBlaine Lucas singledahead of Drew Markle’stwo-run single. Caleb Stelly added atwo-run single.
The Eagles responded with two runs in both thesecond andthird innings, then three in the fourth to take the lead forgood.
Joey Urban homeredand OzziePratt hit an RBI double in the second for the Eagles. Matthew Russo’stwo-run home run gotSouthern Miss within 5-4 an inning later In the fourth, Tucker Stockham and Nick Monistere both homered for Southern Miss.
The Cajuns added arun in the fifth on aTorressacrificefly, but that was allthe scoring UL could muster
The Eagles added runs on aPratt sacrifice fly and aRusso RBI single. UL starter JR Tollett lasted only two innings, yielding tworunsonfourthis, no walks and one strikeout. Dylan Theut hasbeenstruggling and SouthernMissoffered no relief.Hesurrendered five runs on five hits, no walks andone strikeoutin12/3 innings. Riley Marcotte also gave up two runs on two hits with no walks and one strikeout for the Cajuns.
Kros Sivley(5-1) wasthe winning pitcher forthe Eagles, allowing one run on two hitsin22/3 reliefinnings with no walks and two strikeouts. Landen Payne got his fourth save after three shutout innings withtwo hits and five strikeouts.
Email KevinFoote at kfoote@ theadvocate.com.
STAFF PHOTO By DAVID GRUNFELD
Saints quarterback Tyler Shough takes asnap during rookie minicamp at the Saints’ indoor practice facilityonAirline Drivein Metairie on Saturday
STAFF PHOTO By BRAD KEMP
catcher Jose Torres collected two
during
STAFF PHOTO By MICHAEL JOHNSON
Arkansas center fielder Justin Thomas slides safely past LSUcatcher Luis Hernandez to score arun in the third inningonSundayatAlex
Catholic-NIrallies in Game 3for win
BY MIKE COPPAGE
Contributing writer
There is no placelike home, especially for the Catholic High of New Iberia baseball team, which rallied to win Game 3ofits Division III select semifinal series against Dunham.
The No. 4-seeded Panthers (2411) split the first two gameson Saturday at UL before sending retiring coach David Jordan out as awinner in his final home game on Sunday
“Regardless of what happens in Sulphur,Ithanked the players for allowing me to leave here on top,” said Jordan, whose Panthers will face second-seeded University High (27-9) in athree-game championship series at McMurry Park. In Game 1onSaturday morning, LSU-Eunice recruit Lane Fenske pitched aperfectgame in a6-0 victory over the ninth-seeded Tigers (21-21). Fenske, who needed only 76 pitches to complete the task, went to afull count on two hitters, one anine-pitch at-bat that
ended in astrikeout.
“Incredible,” Jordan said. “You don’tsee that at thislevel against agood hitting team.Togoupthere and throw aperfect game —itstill hasn’treally sunkinyet what he accomplished.”
Fenske, who bats secondinthe lineup, hadahit andanRBI. Right fielder Joseph Trappeyhad two hits and two RBIswith adouble. Freshmanshortstop and leadoff hitter Maddox Nacol doubled twice, drove in arun, scored twice and preserved Fenske’sperfect game with some nice defense.
“My eight-hole hitter (Trappey) had probably four doubles andsix hits in theseries,”Jordan said.
“The nine-hole (Gavin Roy) gota huge hittoput us up in thefirst inning. We know we can control pitchingand defense. That’s what we reallyfocus on, but we have enoughgoodhitters that they are going to come around eventually.”
After droppingGame 2bya score of 7-4, the Panthers were scheduled to play the rubber match at Acadiana Renaissance
Charter Academy,but thegrounds crew was able to get thePanthers field ready forwhatturnedout to be aslugfest.
“Of course,playing at homewith ourcrowd andour fansupport,we just felt really good,” Jordan said. “It was alittle tough when we fell behind 4-0, but we answered with afive-spot in thesecond.”
The Panthers had to come-frombehind twice in the 10-8 win in Game3,scoring five runs in both the second and fourth innings. Izaac Andre,JDHidalgo, Nacol, Fenske and Morris each hit adouble. Hidalgo, who finished with three hits, put CHSNIahead by arun withhis two-run double in the fourth. The senior stole third base and scored on athrow that got away “If they know they can get to a certain point or get off base acertain distance with their lead, some of ourguyshavethe greenlightto run,” Jordan said. “J.D. did thaton his own. Dunham, which usedfive pitchers in Game 3with none throwing
morethan 1 2/3 innings, brought in Game 2starter GavinBlanton as areliever.The left-hander threw only an inning in Game 2, with the Tigers going to the bullpen up 5-0 with no outs andthe basesloaded in the second. “Wefelt good whenweleft the park (Saturday) that we had Jace Ruskoski, Luke Hewitt,Owen Morrisand afew other guys,” Jordan said. “Wefelt good about our bullpen. That could be astrength.” Ruskoski, Hewitt andMorris pitched in Game 3. Morris, who scored two runs, hadn’tpitched sinceMarch. The junior threw twoscoreless innings, striking out three, walking one and allowing no hits. He struck out two Tigerswiththe bases loaded to end thesixth.
“I knewcominginitwas going to be allhands on deck,” saidMorris, the starting second baseman. “InGame3,you have to throweverybody.IknewI had achanceofgetting my name called. Iwas happy.I’vebeen waiting for it.”
VermilionCatholicturns tables on AESinquarterfinals
BY NEAL MCCLELLAND
Contrbuting writer
Going intoSaturday’sDivision IV select quarterfinal, Ascension Episcopal had beatenVermilion Catholic three of thefour times the two district rivals played this season. Butthankstothe effortsofa freshman and asenior,Vermilion Catholic won the gamethat mattered most. Freshman Cole Albert scattered three runs over seven inningsand senior Bryce Lege provided the muscle in the form of atwo-run homer as the Eagles advanced to the Division IV select state semifinals with a6-3 winover theBlue Gators at Sellers Field.the Blue Gators at Sellers Field.
“Hats off to them,” VC coach Ben Harrington said. “That is an excellent program that we played today.They are well-coached, and we knew that it was going to be a dogfight out there today.” Harrington said there were two ways to look at how well the teams know each other
“That’sagood thing about playing someone youknow well,” Harrington said. “You really don’t havetoscout them because you
win over Ascension Episcopal on Saturday
knoweverything aboutthem.The badthing is that they know everything about youaswell.” VC’sroad to the win startedwith Albert on themound.
The freshman wasn’tnervous aboutthe situation
“All Ihad todowas have confidence out there,” Albert said.
“Have confidence andlet my team
do thework behind me.
“I have to trustthem, andthey have to trust me. It’s notaoneman team outthere. It’s me, them and the dugout.”
Usinghis offspeed pitchesearly andhis fast ball later,Albert only raninto trouble once, in the fourth inning when Ascension Episcopal scored three runs to take a3-2 lead
LSU softballtohostNCAA Tournament’sBRregional
TheLSU softballteamwill makeits 26th NCAA Tournament appearance and host the Baton Rouge Regional on Friday-Sunday as the No. 10 overall seed for the second consecutive season.
TheBaton Rouge Regional features Nebraska as the No. 2seed, BigEastTournament champion UConn as the No. 3seed, and SouthlandConference champion Southeastern Louisiana as thefourth seed. The Tigers will take on Southeastern at 4:30 p.m. Friday on SEC Network. LSU enters the tournament with a41-14 record.
Dating to the 2015 season, LSU is hosting an NCAA Tournament regional for the ninth time over the past 10 years, excluding2020, whichhad no tournament because of COVID-19. It will be the 16th timeLSU has hostedaregional. LSU holds a6531 record in the NCAA Tournamentregional round.
Yankees pitcher Stroman sufferssetbackwithknee
NewYork Yankees pitcher MarcusStroman hada setback as he tries to return from aleft knee injury that has sidelined him forthe last month.
Manager Aaron Boone said Stromanstill had “discomfort” in his knee after throwing alive batting practice session in Tampa,Florida, on Fridayand will be reevaluated before the team figures out the next step in his rehabilitation process.
Stroman hasn’tpitched since allowing five runs in two-thirds of an inning againstthe San Francisco Giants on April 11. He was placed on the 15-day injured list the next day with what Boone hoped at the time would be ashort-term absence. He was 0-1 with an 11.57 ERA in three starts.
Bogey-freespreeleads ThitikultoLPGA victory
Jeeno Thitikul of Thailand turned back apair of challenges Sundayand played bogey-free over thefinal27holes at Liberty National,closing with a3-under 69 forafour-shot victory over Celine Boutierinthe Mizuho Americas Open.
Thitikul won for the first time this year andthe fifthtimeinher LPGATour career
Nelly Korda is still trying to win for the first time this year.She was within oneshotofThitikul until driving into the hazard on the par-4 ninth hole and taking bogey.Itwas adownward spiral from there, as Kordaplayedthe back nine with twobogeys and no birdies.
Boutier shot 72 to finish second, followed by Carlota Ciganda (70) and Andrea Lee (72).
Zverev, Gauff among winnersatItalian Open
ROME Reigning champion Alexander Zverev advanced at the Italian Open on Sunday by beating Lithuanian qualifier Vilius Gaubas in straight sets. The No. 2-ranked Zverevwon 6-4, 6-0 in the third-round match in Romeand will play France’sArthur Fils next. Fils beat Stefanos Tsitsipas 2-6, 6-4, 6-2.
That was quickly erased with a four-run fifth inning fromthe Eagles led by Lege’shome run.
“That was theback-breaker in the game,” Harrington said. “That was the turning point in the game.”
Lege saidheknewitwas going out the park as soon as he hit it.
“It was amiddle, outside pitch,” he said. “And Iwas able to turn on it. My eyes got real big when Isaw thepitch, and Iknew when Ihit it (was homerun).”
Staked to afour-run lead,Albert, who said he only needsa one-run lead to feel comfortable on the mound, calmly gotthe remaining outs to seal the win.
“He’s6-foot-4 andbroad shouldered,” Harrington said. “He can handle the pressure, and he showed it today.”
With the win, VermilionCatholic advances to the semifinals for the first time sincethe late 1990’s Thelasttimethe Eagles were in thesemifinals was 2016 whenthey lost to Oak Grove.
“Westayed focused all year to gettothis point,” Lege said. “We know we have achance to do something special this year and we are going to stayfocusedon that final prize.”
CarlosAlcaraz overcame Laslo Djere7-6 (2), 6-2and will next face Karen Khachanov In the women’sdraw,top-ranked Aryna Sabalenka fought back from aset down against Sofia Kenin to advance.
Kenin, the No. 31-seeded American,won thefirst set 6-3, butSabalenka powered back to take the next twosets by the samescore.
Derby-winning jockey punished for whipping Jockey Junior Alvarado has been finedand suspended for whipping Sovereignty too many times duringhis KentuckyDerby-winning ride on May 3atChurchill Downs.
The Horseracing Integrity and Safety AuthorityonFriday orderedAlvarado to paya $62,000 fine and suspended him for two Kentucky racing days, May29and May 30.
Ahearing with racing stewards was heldThursday,and Alvarado was found to have used his crop on Sovereignty eight times during the race, according to HISA documents. Alvarado has10daystoappeal, andBloodHorse reported that his agent, Mike Sellitto, said he is appealing.
PHOTO By LEEBALL
Vermilion Catholic playerJackson Trahan scores arun during the Eagles’
STAFFPHOTO By ROBIN MAy
Catholic High-NI’sIssac Andre hauls in apop flyduring the Panthers’ semifinals series win over Dunham
Thunderdeliversin clutch againstNuggets
BY ARNIE STAPLETON AP sports writer
DENVER
ShaiGilgeous-Alexander scored 25 points and the Oklahoma City Thunderfinally outplayed Denver in crunch time, beating theNuggets 92-87 on Sunday to knot their second-round series at 2-2.
The Thunder trailed 69-63after three quarters and fell behind by eight when Peyton Watsonstarted thefourth quarter by swishing ahook shot. But Oklahoma City used an 11-0 runfueled by reserves Cason Wallace, who had a pair of 3-pointers, and Aaron Wiggins,who addedanother, to take control.
Wallace’ssecond 3-pointer put Oklahoma City aheadfor good at 75-73.
The Nuggets had outlasted the youngest team in the NBA with wins in Games 1and 3,crediting their playoff experience and championship pedigree. And they looked poised to put the top-seeded team in the West on the cusp of elimination when Aaron Gordon’s turnaround jumper made it 73-66. This time, however,itwas the Thunder who came up big down the stretch and the Nuggets who fumbled away the chance to put OKC in a3-1 hole.
Game 5isTuesday night back in
ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO By DAVIDZALUBOWSKI
OklahomaCityThunder guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander,right, looks to pass theball as DenverNuggets guard Jamal Murray,left, defends in the firsthalf of Game4onSunday in Denver.
OklahomaCity,where the Thunder had a43-pointblowout of the Nuggets in Game 2. Nikola Jokic led Denver with27 points and13rebounds.Christian Braun and Jamal Murray each had 17 points and Gordon scored 15. Michael Porter Jr.scored just three pointsafter scoring 15 Fridaynight Wiggins and Wallace each added 11 points, and Alex Caruso and Jalen Williams each scored 10. Williams was 2for 13 from the floor after scoring32inGame 3.
Theteams played aphysical overtime game Friday night, not leavingBallArena until theearly morning hours on Saturday.And the earlyMother’sDay start 1:30 p.m. local time —led to some tired legs and aton of errant shots.
Bothteamswent3 for22from deep in the first half andtheyslumbered through acombined 25-point first quarter,which tied an NBA playoff record for fewest pointsin theopening quarter Oklahoma Citywas ahead 42-36 at the half.
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favorite. Moore saw enough in Shoughtouse ahigh second-round pick on him. He got hisguy,just like Payton gothis 19 years ago. Shough will turn26inSeptember,just ayear younger than a then-27-year-old Brees was when he came to rescue New Orleans. Nobodyknew how good Brees would be, much like nobody knows how goodShough will be. Time will tell.
Shough’sarm talent was evident in Saturday’spractice when he completed his first seven passes beforefinally throwing an incompletion. Manyof those throwswere darts. But it’s way too early to read anything intoit.
This was just in 7-on-7 drills competing against rookies. No pads. No tackling. No pass rush. And no high stakes. The real competition comes in training camp when guys such as Chase Young and Demario Davis are runningtoward Shough while Rattler and Haener are looking over his shoulder tryingtowin the same job. Even in limited work Saturday,Moore liked what he saw in Shough.
“For these quarterbacks, alot of times really what you care
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winning the lottery Monday night. The three teams that finished with worst records than the Pelicans (the Utah Jazz, Washington Wizards and Charlotte Hornets) have a14% chance of the pingpong balls falling in their favor.The Pelicans have a48.1% chance of finishingsomewhere in the top four Thelowest theycan fall is eighth There’sonly a2.2% chance of that happening.
about is how they command the huddle and command the whole operation,” Moore said. “New system, new language and all those things associated with it. Tylerhas hopped in and done a good job of coming in hereand taking control of it.”
When addressing the media after practice, Shough was just as poised andpolished.
“The biggest thing Iwant to continue todoisplay free,” Shough said. “A lot of things you can’tcontrol. But youcan control your preparation, your attitude and your effort. That’sone thing I’m going to do.”
Moore informed Shough about Carr’sretirement right before Saturday’spractice.
“Whoever is on the roster,I’ve got to continue to grow and get betterand do my besttoelevate the quarterback room,” Shough said. “I was going to come in regardless, him being hereornot, and continue togrow.”
Last week, Shough organized a throwing session at Tulane with teammates such as tight end JuwanJohnson and receiver Bub Means.
His teammates have noticed the maturity already
“He has aleadership mentality, and he’sgoing about it in aprofessional way,” said running back Devin Neal, the Saints’ sixthround draft pick.
Shough is just two weeks on the
Dumars,inhis introductory news conference in April, discussedthe type of players heislooking for.He emphasizedthat it’snot just about talent.
“We’ll put atremendous amount of emphasis on the personand not just the talent you cansee with your own eyes,” Dumars said. “… What’sthisguy made of? Does this guyreally want to be great? Is he going to comehere and be apart of theculture?Ishegoing to buy in?
Thoseare thethings for me,whether it’s in thedraft or freeagency or trade.” ThePelicans are looking to win
Colorado fires managerBlack a dayafter 21-0 loss
BY PATGRAHAM AP sports writer
DENVER The Colorado Rockies have fired Bud Black, the winningestmanager in franchise history,after a7-33 start that’s oneofthe worst in MajorLeague Baseball history Coloradopromoted third base coach Warren Schaeffer to be theinterim manager, the team announced Sunday after a9-3 win over San Diego. That victory wasn’t enough to save Black’s job after the Rockies lost 21-0 to thePadres on Saturday night. They also fired bench coach Mike Redmond. Hitting coach Clint Hurdle takes over as interim bench coach.
TheRockieshavethe worst 40game start since the 1988 BaltimoreOrioles, whowere 6-34.
job andheknows there’salong way to go. He’slearning his new job andlearning anew city that is readytoembrace him if he wins thejob.
He’seaten charbroiled oysters and fleur-de-lis shrimp from Drago’s. He’salready felt just how brutal the south Louisiana humiditycan be. (Trust me, Tyler Youain’tseen nothing yet.) And he’sreceived advice about the city from former punter Thomas Morstead,whoseNo. 6jersey Shough will don.
Andohyeah, he’salready had his official “welcome to New Orleans”moment.
“I feel like I’m already engrained in New Orleans because I’ve already popped atireina pothole,” Shough said.
Potholes and humidity aside, he’sseen the positives,too. He’s already got afeel for justwhat the Saints mean around here.
“I resonate withitcompletely,” Shough said. “That’s kinda what I want to play withisthat passion.”
That passion will win fans over if Shough can win games. But before he wins games, he first hastowin the starting job.
AfterCarr’sretirement,heisone stepcloser
“I’ve gotsomuch work to do,” Shough said. “I’m arookie coming in, and I’ve got to earnmykeep.”
Email Rod Walkeratrwalker@ theadvocate.com.
the lottery for the third time in franchisehistory. In addition to winning it in 2019 and drafting Williamson, they also got thefirst overall pick in 2012 and selected Anthony Davis. Despitehaving the No. 1overall pick twice over the past 13 seasons, thefranchise hasreached theplayoffs only four times during that span. Only the2017-18 squad that swept Portland in the first round of the playoffs advanced to the second round.
Email RodWalker at rwalker@ theadvocate.com.
“Our playsofar this season, especially coming off the last two seasons, has been unacceptable. Our fans deserve better, and we are capable of better,” said Rockies owner,chairman andCEO DickMonfort in a statement. “While we allshare responsibility in how this season has played out, these changes are necessary.Wewill use the remainderof2025 to improve where we can on the field and to evaluate allareas of our operation so we can properly turn the page intothe next chapter of Rockies Baseball.” Coloradowas 19 1/2 games outoffirst place in the NL West before Sunday’swin. The Rockies have been outscored by 128 runs so farthis season. The only team since 1900 with aworse run differential through40games was the2023 Oakland Athletics (-144). The seventh manager in team history,Black initially found success with Colorado when he
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freshman right-hander William Schmidt, whowalked twomore batters to load the bases. Freshman right-handerMavrickRizy then entered the game.
Rizy surrendered two runs on abases-loaded walk and asingle that gaveArkansas a7-4 lead Redshirt junior right-hander GrantFontenot followedRizy by getting two outs to end the inning. LSU put thetying run at the plate with one out in the ninth after juniorDanielDickinson singled and junior Ethan Frey walked.But freshmanpinchhitter Cade Arrambide struck out, andseniorLuis Hernandez linedout to shortstop to endthe ballgame. Sunday wasfreshman righthander CasanEvans’ third start of the season. After tossing a scoreless first two innings, he allowed four earned runs on five hitsinthird. He struggled putting away hitters with twostrikes, allowing asacrifice fly,arun-scoring double and atwo-run single on two-strike counts in the third. Evans surrenderedseven hits and three walks in 32/3 innings. Redshirtjuniorright-hander Chase Shores replaced Evans in the fourth and got astrikeout to escape ajam with runners on first and second. Shoresthensurrendered arun in the fifth that stretched the Arkansas lead to 5-3. The big right-handerfrom Texas settled in nicely after that,
led the Rockies to back-to-back playoffappearances in 2017 and ’18. They haven’tfinishedwith awinning record since and are coming off twostraight 100-loss seasons. Colorado hasa .353 winning percentage since 2023. Black’scontract was set to expire following the season. He signed aone-year extension in October Black was544-689 in nine seasons while wearing the purple pinstripes. He surpassedHurdle last season for the team record in both games managed and wins. The easy-going demeanor of Black seemed to be agood fit for aRockies team relying heavily on youth. Thelineup featuresa nucleus of Gold Glove winners Ezequiel Tovar and Brenton Doyle, alongwiththe recent call-up of highly touted outfielder Zac Veen, whohas since been sent back down. On the mound, they’ve promoted prized pitcher Chase Dollander,the ninth overall draftpick in 2023. But little has gone right for Black andthe Rockies. Theyallowed 10 or more runs in four straight games, culminating in thefootball-like 21-0 scoreSaturday Ateam owned by Monfort and run by general manager Bill Schmidt didn’tmake any splash movestobolster aspiraling club. Their payroll this season is listed at $125.7 million and is 20th in theleague,according to Spotrac, asite that tracks payroll. One reason for the Rockies’ freefallhas been the health of slugger Kris Bryant, who’s struggled to stay on the field after signing a$182 million, sevenyear contract ahead of the 2022 season. He’scurrently on the injured list with lumbar degenerative disk disease.
retiring sixofthe next seven batters he faced in two scoreless innings. He finishedSunday’s game with four strikeouts and twohits allowed in 31/3 innings. Freshman left-hander Cooper Williams replaced Shoresinthe seventh and got astrikeout before surrendering awalk and forcing aflyout. The call on ball four against Williams upsetLSU coach Jay Johnsonenough thatheargued and was ejected. It was the second time Johnson had been dismissed from agamethisyear andthe fourth time it’shappened in the last twoseasons. Williamswas lifted for junior right-hander Jacob Mayers, who struck out Arkansas sluggerWehiwaAloy to end the inning. LSU got off to astrong start at theplate, scoring threeruns in the first twoinnings. Hernandez and sophomore Steven Milam hit solo homeruns in the second inning to give the Tigers a2-0 lead before Hernandez hit arunscoring single in the third. The Tigers were quietafter that. Stanfield wasthe lone man to reach base from innings four through six. LSU also stranded a runner in scoring position in the seventh before adding arun in the eighth.
The top of the order especially struggled. Curiel and junior Jared Jonescombinedtogo0 for9 with six strikeouts.
TheTigers next willfaceSouth Carolina in their final SEC series of theyear beginning on Thursday.First pitch from Columbia, South Carolina, is set for6p.m. Email Koki RileyatKoki. Riley@theadvocate.com.
STAFF PHOTO By DAVIDGRUNFELD
Saints quarterback Tyler Shough and other players gather after rookie minicamp at the indoor practice facilityon Airline DriveinMetairie on Saturday.
PHOTOByDAVID ZALUBOWSK
Colorado Rockies manager Bud Blackwaits forrelief pitcher Jake Bird to takethe mound after removing starting pitcher Chase Dollander against the Atlanta BravesonApril30inDenver.
Stress canplayfactorinnew back pain
Dear Doctors: My lower back went into spasm as Iwas washing the dishes. Ifigured it was frombending over,but my mom insists it’s from being so stressed out. (My family is dealing with severe smoke damage in our house from the recent fires in Los Angeles.) Can stress really cause back pain?
Dear reader: Let’sstart withback pain, which is one of the most common physical complaints here in the UnitedStates. The data shows that close to 60%of adults 18 and over willhave experienced back pain in the past three months. The prevalence of back pain is due, in large part, to the complex and yet delicate structures that make up thespine Together they form asingle,slender column that is tasked with multiple —and often conflicting —functions.
By The Associated Press
Today is Monday,May 12, the 132nd day of 2025. There are 233 days left in the year.
Todayinhistory
On May 12, 2008, adevastating 7.9 magnitude earthquake in China’sSichuan provinceleft morethan 87,000 people dead or missing
On this date:
In 1846, the pioneers of the Donner Party left Independence, Missouri, on the Oregon Trail,beginning their ill-fated attempt to migrate to California.
In 1932, the body of Charles Lindbergh Jr., the 20-month-old kidnapped son of Charles and Anne Lindbergh, was found in a wooded area near Hopewell, New Jersey
In 1975, members of the new Khmer Rouge-led Cambodian government seized an American merchant ship,the SS Mayaguez, in international waters, sparking athreeday battle that resulted in the deaths of 41 Americans. In 1982, in Fatima, Portugal, security guards overpowered aSpanish priest armed with abayonet who attacked Pope John Paul II.
Today’sbirthdays: Hockey Hall of Famer Johnny Bucyk is 90. Musician Steve Winwood is 77. Actor Gabriel Byrne is 75. Singer Billy Squier is 75. Basketball Hall of Fame coach George Karl is 74. Country musician Kix Brooks is 70. Actor Ving Rhames is 66. Actor-filmmaker Emilio Estevez is 63. Chef/TV personality Carla Hall is 61. Actor Stephen Baldwin is 59. Skateboarder Tony Hawk is 57. Actor Kim Fields is 56. Actor Rhea Seehorn is 53. Actor Malin Akerman is 47. Actor Jason Biggs is 47.
ALZHEIMER’S
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Acupuncture is atherapy commonly used to treat Parkinson’sdisease in China and other countries. The basic principle is that by stimulatingpoints alongthe body’smeridians, or energy pathways, the treatment can relieve pain, among other positive benefits. In the U.S., individuals with the disease often report that acupuncture helps alleviate such issues as fatigue and poor sleep. Research in acupuncture in animals has shown that this type of therapy can be neuroprotective, meaning that it slows the degeneration of nerve cells that lead to Parkinson’sdisease; however,this research has not been replicated in humans. Individuals with Parkinson’sdisease should always check with their physician first before engaging in any form of integrated therapies.
Dana Territo is an Alzheimer’sadvocate and author of “What My Grandchildren Taught Me About Alzheimer’sDisease.” She hosts “The Memory Whisperer.” Email her at thememorywhisperer@ gmail.com.
Thespine must be strong enoughtosupport theupper body, andyet supple enough to allow for awide range of movement. This includes extension, flexion androtation.The components of the spinemustbelight enough so they don’ttax the muscles, yet solid enough to protect the spinal cord andrelated nerves. Add in variablessuchasaperson’s weight, height, general health, age, physical fitness, activity level, medical conditions and genetics, andit’ssmall wonder that virtually everyonewill experience some form of back pain during their lifetime. Regarding the pain in your lower back,also known as the lumbar region, youand yourmother may bothbecorrect. Lumbar pain can be triggered by physical activity andcan also beinfluenced or even
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thickness and health of the hull.
The welders have used threemethodstorepair theKidd’shull, and it is ready for paint.
Newpaint,camouflage
One of thelasttasks to be completedwhile in dry dockispainting the ship’s hull abright red.Inthe past,anti-fouling paint was used on most ships to deter barnacle life, but there aren’tany barnacles in the freshwater of the Mississippi. The antifouling paint turned atannish brown color from silt, chemicals and freshwater, so the hull on the Kidd will get anew coat of paint that is made to withstand freshwater and sunshine.
“The Kiddisthe only museum ship in the world that floats half the year and is completely outofthe water and sitting on her keel blocks the other half of the year,” said ParksStephenson, the executive director of the museum. The rest of the shiphas anew paintjob as well.
TheKidd is nowpainted in agrey and black color scheme known as Measure 32/10 D, or dazzle camouflage, which was used from December 1943 to January 1945.
NesSmith saysthe camouflagechanged during WWII,and the sharp dazzle camouflagewas used to confuse enemy gunners and torpedo operators about the ship’sspeed, direction and type
“Our new director,Parks Stephenson, really wanted to showsomething new to Baton Rouge,and so he decided to gowith her1944 camouflage, even though sheisset up in 1945configuration,” saidNesSmith.
“So we all hashed it out and everything, and we agreed to an education cycle.”
The USS Kidd museum will educate on afive-year rotation cycle. Every five years,the ship willbe painted adifferent cam-
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in East Asia —people were swinging into ascreenand watching the golf ball fly through asimulated range. He compared the experience to an arcade or abowling alley; it’shybrid indoor entertainment with food and drinks.
Aftersome initialsuccess, Whitman and his partners wanted to grow the venue into anational brand, but when the pandemic hit, they had to pivot. They decidedtofollowinthe footsteps of local success stories suchas RaisingCane’sand WalkOn’sSportsBistreaux and think regionally.Shortly afterthe BatonRougelocationopens,they’ll open another location in Broussard.
Whitman is excitedto expand to the capital city, just under 3miles from LSU. He’shoping to partner with athletic programs at the college.
Dr.Elizabeth Ko
Dr.Eve Glazier
ASK THE DOCTORS
aggravated by stress. When you’re washing dishes, you are tilting forward at the waist and repeatedly reaching and lifting. The twisting, pulling and pushing motionsofthe task can strain themuscles and connective tissues that support the lower back. The tilted posture can also adversely affect the five intervertebral discs of the lumbar region, which act as cushions
ouflage,and the team will educate on thebenefits of thatpattern. In five years, the ship will return to a 1943 camouflage, which is alldarkblue. By 2035, she should be back in measure 22 again, the cool grey and light blue of 1945.Paintingthe Kidd is ajob that can be done in the cradle, so shewillnot have to be moved every five years.
In addition, the pirate will be back on thesmokestack of theKidd, but it will be acutout thatis bolted to the stack
Cradle upgrade
Thecradle that heldthe shipfor 42 years in the Mississippi River was in bad shape. NesSmith says that the neoprene on the mooring collars usedinthe 1980s deteriorated, which created ajarring effect every time the ship sits back down intothe cradle, whichhappens often as the rivermoves the ship up and down.
Even afew inchescan make adifference with a ship this size.
Twolayersofnew,modern materialpadswill replace the neoprene pads, andnew stainless steel boltswill attach thepads instead of therusted ones.
“The next generation won’thave to worry about that,” NesSmith said, “and this newmaterial will maintain its elasticity for alot longer than the neoprenedid.So, we’llgoa longerperiod of time before we have to maintenance thecradle.”
Alucky rudder accident
TheKidd’srudderwas critical for maneuverability during World WarII, but its agood thing it’snolonger needed. When leaving the cradle, the ruddergot stuck due to low water levels, and workers had to cut four feet off therudder
After looking at blueprintsfrom other Fletcher destroyers,NesSmithand Stephensonnoticed that therudder was aCold War modification in order to increasethe ship’s turning radius
NesSmith said that, in
Pricing for the simulators fluctuates depending on the day of the week and time of day,but regardless of theday,it’sa flat rate per hour
“Wealways say,the more thatplay,the less you pay,” Whitman said. Like at abowling alley, food and drink areseparate. Patrons can visit for just play,justfood or both.
Whitman’s personalfavoriteonthe menu is theclassic cheeseburger.Aswith other locations,Loft18 planstoserve wine and cocktails, not just beer
He said that acrowd favoriteamong women is the Sexy Lexi margarita, which is made with Patron Reposado anda housemade prickly pear syrup.
“This is notjust aguy’s place,”hesaid. “Thisis everybody’splace —from young to old, whatever demographic.”
Email Serena Puang at serena.puang@ theadvocate.com. Follow her on Instagram @dear yall.
between thevertebrae. Any misalignment can result in pain or even injury
Stress can also play arole. Research has already established that being under stress can influence sleep, mood,mental health, blood sugar control,cortisol secretion and weight. It is now understood that prolonged stress can make people moresusceptible to back injury and back pain. The rigors of sustained or chronic stress can set off aphysiological response in the body.It can lead to muscle tension, easily triggered muscle spasmsand an increased sensitivity to pain, all of which canincrease the risk of aback injury In new incidents of localized lumbar pain, the symptomsmay last just afew days or take several weeks to resolve. Treatment
the 1950s,the Navy added about atwo-foot section all theway up on theback of therudder to lengthen it and thenthey added about a two foot section on thebottom to deepen therudder Cutting four feet off the rudder,bylucky accident, was more in linewith1945 measurements. Instead of reattaching the rudder, the museum team decided to adapt the rudder to its August1945 regulations Quarters restoration
As apart of resetting the ship to its 1945 configuration, themuseum team had thedumbwaiter, asmall freight elevator to move foodtothe officers’ quarters, and fire control equipment removed. DuringWorld WarII, that section of the shipbelongedto theBlack American sailors who were stewards to the officers. The ship was segregateduntil theKorean War, andthissmall space was were theyslept —made to accommodate about 12 bunks and three lockers. After removing the dumbwaiter and firecon-
often includes the use of nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory medications, or NSAIDs,tomanage pain. Heat therapy,with aheating pad or awarm water bath, can ease muscle spasmsand bring additional circulation to the area.
As you resumeyour normal activities, pay special attention to posture and alignment. If pain persists or growsworse, check in with your health care provider They may recommendprescription medications forpain and inflammation, and may suggest physical therapy
Sendyour questions to askthedoctors@mednet.ucla edu, or write: Ask theDoctors, c/oUCLA HealthSciences Media Relations, 10880 Wilshire Blvd.,Suite1450, Los Angeles CA, 90024.
trol equipment,the stewards’ berth is readytohave bunks back in place. In hisresearchonthe Kidd’s stewards, NesSmith found records of 21 to 22 Black American stewards from 1943-1946. Although segregatedwithin the ship, when sailors were calledtobattle stations, they fought side by side
The USS Kidd Veterans Memorial& Museum is working with the Baton Rouge African American Museum to erect aplaque aboutthe historyofthis sectionofthe ship. Another interior restoration is happening on the seconddeck’s starboard mess passageway,where the construction crew removed sonar amplifiers from the Cold Warera They will be replaced with a12-man mess table and either two bunks or hammocks. The museum works closely with other destroyer“sister ships” when it comes to adding or removing period-accurate equipment.
Fantaildeckreplacement
Throughout theyears,
the museum crew could notfigure outwhy the deck on the fantail kept rusting. APennsylvania volunteer named Ed Zajkowski discovered the reason on old blueprints —galvanized steel
“It’sunknown whygalvanized was used in 1943 in the original construction,” NesSmith said. “We’re checking with oursister Fletcher-class destroyers that still survive to see if theywerebuilt with it also, or if it was perhaps aonetime substitution in the shipyard during wartime. Remember,‘Get them out. Getthemfighting.Win the war!’ was the mindsetback then. None of these ships were ever intended to survive 82 years.”
While in dry dock, the crew has replaced the galvanized steel with regular 3/8inchsteel, so the Kidd will continue to survive “Every museum ship is one disaster away from going away,which is whywe have to be very diligent,” said NesSmith.
Email Joy Holdenatjoy holden@theadvocate.com.
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. Thedifficulty level of the Sudoku increases fromMonday to Sunday.
