The Advocate 06-05-2025

Lawmakers OK purchase of new voting system

BY ALYSE PFEIL Staff writer

Louisiana may finally be on track to replace its decades-old voting machines, after years of controversies over how to do so.

The Louisiana Legislature gave the Secretary of State’s Office the green light to use a new bidding process to pick a company that will replace the more than 10,000 machines that officials say are increasingly difficult to keep functioning.

“Our machines are 35 years old, it’s impossible to find parts, and they don’t produce an auditable paper record for each vote cast,” Secretary of State Nancy Landry told lawmakers on the Senate and Governmental Affairs Committee last month.

But the Public Affairs Research Council of Louisiana says forgoing a public bidding process could lead to less transparency

“We just want to make sure that there will be something available for the public to see at the end of this process to understand why the Secretary of State’s Office chose the vendor that it chose,” said PAR Research Director Melinda Deslatte.

House passes one St. George school bill

Second measure on constitutional amendment still awaiting action

BY CHARLES LUSSIER Staff writer

One of the two bills that would create a school district to match the city of St. George cleared the Louisiana House on Wednesday after the authors addressed concerns of a key Baton Rouge lawmaker, particularly over legacy costs associated with the breakaway Other Baton Rouge lawmakers, however, still oppose the proposed new school district, objecting to ongoing cross-district enrollment between St. George and the East Baton Rouge Parish school system, as well as the racial impact of the way the lines for the new city were drawn.

“To put it bluntly, we’re in a dire situation, and we need a new voting system soon,” she said. Under House Bill 577, the office, which runs elections, will be authorized to purchase a new voting system using a bidding process called “invitation to negotiate” rather than a standard public bid process for state contracts.

Weather

BY KASEY BUBNASH Staff writer

After losing hundreds of employees to budget cuts and layoffs implemented by the Trump administration’s Department of Government Efficiency, the National Weather Service announced plans Tuesday to hire 126 workers to permanent positions while transferring existing employees to

The new process will hopefully allow the state to speed up how quickly it purchases a new voting system, Landry said.

“We’re not entirely certain yet if that information will be publicly available,” she added. “But we’re hopeful because the Secretary of State’s Office has indicated that they expect this to be a transparent process.”

The full Senate on Monday passed the measure on a 37-1 vote after the House earlier this month approved it without a single objection. The legislation now

ä See VOTING, page 4A

BY

MARK BALLARD Staff writer

The House voted 61-24 in favor of Senate Bill 234, the St. George school enabling legislation; it needed a simple majority to pass. Twenty state representatives were absent. That bill now returns to the state Senate for concurrence in House amendments. A second St. George school bill, Senate Bill 25, a proposed constitutional amendment, awaits action on the House floor It requires a two-thirds majority to pass. That’s 70 votes if all members of the House are present. If it clears the House, it too will have to return to the Senate for a final vote. The legislative session ends June 12. If both bills pass the Legislature, the final decision on whether St. George gets its own school district would rest with the voters of Louisiana. A statewide referendum is planned for April 18, 2026 there’s a chance it gets pushed back to November 2026. The proposed constitutional amendment needs to pass statewide as well as in the entirety of East Baton Rouge Parish.

If successful, the new school district would begin operating in July 2027. It would be the fifth public school district in East Baton Rouge Parish, following the lead of Baker

ä See ST GEORGE, page 4A

WASHINGTON — Louisiana Republicans rallied around House leadership Wednesday as some Republicans said they regretted their vote on the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, and Elon Musk called for throwing out GOP representatives for those votes. Musk, who ended his role over the weekend as President Donald Trump’s point man to

shrink the federal government, said the bill would add to the nation’s $36.2 trillion debt.

“This massive, outrageous, pork-filled Congressional spending bill is a disgusting abomination,” Musk posted Tuesday on X, the social media app he owns. On Wednesday, Musk doubled down, writing on X: “Call your Senator, Call your Congressman, Bankrupting America is

ä See SPENDING, page 4A

STAFF FILE PHOTO By HILARy SCHEINUK

ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO By

SCOTT

Majority Leader Steve Scalise, R-Jefferson, makes a point as Speaker of the House Mike Johnson, R-Benton, listens during a news conference on President Donald Trump’s bill of tax breaks and spending cuts at the Capitol in Washington on Wednesday

S.F.-area leaders blast

plan to rename Milk ship

SAN FRANCISCO Leaders in San Francisco are blasting the Trump administration for stripping the name of gay rights activist Harvey Milk from a U.S. naval ship, and especially during Pride Month, when people gather to celebrate the LGBTQ+ community

Milk is a revered figure in San Francisco history, a former city supervisor and gay rights advocate who was fatally shot along with Mayor George Moscone in 1978 by disgruntled former supervisor Dan White.

He served for four years in the Navy during the Korean War, before he was forced out for being gay Milk later moved to San Francisco, where he became one of the first out gay politicians in the world with his election to the Board of Supervisors in 1977.

Cleve Jones, a close friend and LGBTQ+ activist, dismissed the renaming as an attempt by the Trump administration to distract the American public from far more serious concerns, including the ongoing war in Gaza and looming cuts to Medicaid and Social Security

“Yes, this is cruel and petty and stupid, and yes, it’s an insult to my community,” Jones said.

“I would be willing to wager a considerable sum that American families sitting around that proverbial kitchen table this evening are not going to be talking about how much safer they feel now that Harvey’s name is going to be taken off that ship.”

The Pentagon has not confirmed news of the renaming, a highly rare move, but unnamed officials say the change was laid out in an internal memo. A new name has not yet been selected for the USNS Harvey Milk

Measles vaccination rates fall after pandemic

Childhood vaccination rates against measles fell in the years after the COVID-19 pandemic in nearly 80% of the more than 2,000 U.S. counties with available data including in states that are battling outbreaks this year.

A Johns Hopkins University study, published in JAMA this week, illustrates where more vulnerable communities are located. The results mirror trends established at state and national levels: Routine childhood vaccination rates are dropping.

“When you look at the state level or national level you really don’t see those drastic drops. Those are there. They’re real and they’re really problematic,” said Lauren Gardner, an expert in infectious disease modeling at Johns Hopkins University who is the paper’s senior author.

Most of the measles cases in the U.S. this year — 1,088 nationally as of Friday — are in unvaccinated people It has been spreading among communities due to international and domestic travel. Three people have died from measles during this year’s outbreaks, and 2025 is inching closer to becoming the worst for measles in more than three decades.

Measles was eliminated in the U.S. in 2000, and the vaccine is safe and highly effective. Public schools nationwide require two doses of the measles, mumps and rubella vaccine before kindergarten, but the number of children with nonmedical exemptions from those requirements hit an all-time high in the 2023-24 school year Health experts say community-level vaccination needs to be at 95% or higher to prevent outbreaks.

The Johns Hopkins study looked at 2,066 counties across 33 states, comparing kindergarten vaccination rates averaged over school years from 201720 to averages from 2022-24. Where kindergarten data wasn’t available, the researchers used a comparable rate.

CORRECTION

A story on Wednesday incorrectly said that only state Rep. Joseph Orgeron, R-Golden Meadow, opposed Senate Bill 244 on Tuesday in the House Natural Resources and Environment Committee. State Rep Jerome “Zee” Zeringue, R-Houma, also opposed the bill. The Advocate | The Times-Picayune regrets the error

U.S. vetoes U.N.’s Gaza resolution

Call for ceasefire wasn’t linked to release of hostages

BY EDITH M. LEDERER Associated Press

UNITED NATIONS The United States on Wednesday vetoed a U.N. Security Council resolution demanding an immediate and permanent ceasefire in Gaza because it was not linked to the release of hostages.

The resolution before the U.N.’s most powerful body also did not condemn Hamas’ deadly attack in Israel on Oct 7, 2023, which ignited the war, or say the militant group must disarm and withdraw from Gaza — two other U.S. demands.

The 14 other members of the 15-nation council voted in favor of the resolution, which described the humanitarian situation in Gaza as “catastrophic” and called on Israel to lift all restrictions on the

delivery of aid to the 2.1 million Palestinians in the territory

Acting U.S. Ambassador Dorothy Shea, speaking to the council immediately before the vote, said the resolution would undermine the security of Israel, a close U.S. ally, and diplomatic efforts to reach a ceasefire “that reflects the realities on the ground,” while emboldening Hamas.

The Palestinian U.N. Ambassador Riyad Mansour has said that supporters plan to go to the 193-member U.N. General Assembly next week with a similar resolution focused on the dire humanitarian situation in Gaza. There are no vetoes in the General Assembly Unlike in the Security Council, its resolutions are not legally binding, but instead are seen as a measure of world opinion.

Pakistan’s Ambassador Asim Iftikhar Ahmad condemned the U.S. veto: “It will be remembered as a complicity, a green light for continued annihilation A moment where the entire world was expecting action But yet again, this

council was blocked and prevented by one member from carrying out its responsibility.”

The U.S. vetoed the last Security Council resolution on Gaza in November, under the Biden administration, also because the ceasefire demand was not directly linked to the immediate and unconditional release of all hostages. Similarly, the current resolution demands those taken by Hamas and other groups be released, but it does not make it a condition for a truce.

President Donald Trump’s administration has tried to ramp up its efforts to broker peace in Gaza after 20 months of war However, Hamas has sought amendments to a U.S. proposal that special envoy Steve Witkoff has called “totally unacceptable.”

The vote followed a decision by an Israeli and U.S.-backed foundation to pause food delivery at its three distribution sites in the Gaza Strip after health officials said dozens of Palestinians were killed in a series of shootings near the sites this week. Israel and the United

Judge halts deportation of attack suspect’s family

BY COLLEEN SLEVIN, JESSE BEDAYN and REBECCA SANTANA Associated Press

BOULDER, Colo. A federal judge on Wednesday ordered the government to immediately halt deportation proceedings against the family of a man charged in the firebombing attack in Boulder, Colorado, to ensure the protection of the family’s constitutional rights.

U.S. District Judge Gordon P. Gallagher granted a request from the wife and five children of Mohamed Sabry Soliman, who are Egyptian, to block their deportation

U.S. immigration officials took the family into custody Tuesday.

“The court finds that deportation without process could work irreparable harm and an order must issue without notice due to the urgency this situation presents,” Gallagher wrote.

Soliman, 45, has been charged with a federal hate crime and state counts of attempted murder in the attack in downtown Boulder on Sunday Witnesses say he threw two Molotov cocktails at a group demonstrating for the release of Israeli hostages in Gaza, and he confessed to the attack in custody His family members have not been charged.

Federal authorities have said Soliman has been living in the U.S. illegally, and U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security

Kristi Noem said earlier Wednesday that the family was being processed for removal. It’s rare that a criminal suspect’s family members are detained and threatened with deportation.

Eric Lee, one of the attorney’s representing the family, said efforts to deport them should not happen in a democracy

“The punishment of a 4-year-old child for something their parent allegedly did, who also has a presumption of innocence, is something that should outrage Americans regardless of their citizenship status,” he said.

Defendant’s family investigated

Soliman’s wife, Hayam El Gamal, a 17-year-old daughter, two minor sons and two minor daughters all are Egyptian citizens, according to El Gamal’s lawsuit. They were being held at an immigration detention center in Texas, Lee said.

“We are investigating to what extent his family knew about this heinous attack, if they had knowledge of it, or if

they provided support to it,” Noem said in a statement.

Noem also said federal authorities would immediately crack down on people who overstay their visas, following the Boulder attack.

Soliman told authorities that no one, including his family, knew about his planned attack, according to court documents. El Gamal said she was “shocked” to learn her husband had been arrested in the attack, according to her lawsuit Victims increase to 15 people, dog

Earlier Wednesday, authorities raised the number of people injured in the attack from 12 to 15, plus a dog.

Boulder County officials said in a news release that the victims include eight women and seven men ranging in age from 25 to 88. Details about how the victims were impacted would be explained in criminal charges set to be filed Thursday, according to Boulder County District Attorney’s office spokesperson Shannon Carbone.

Soliman had planned to kill all of the roughly 20 participants in Sunday’s demonstration at the popular Pearl Street pedestrian mall, but he threw just two of his 18 Molotov cocktails while yelling “Free Palestine,” police said. Soliman didn’t carry out his full plan “because he got scared and had never hurt anyone before,” police wrote in an affidavit.

According to an FBI affidavit, Soliman told police he was driven by a desire “to kill all Zionist people” — a reference to the movement to establish and protect a Jewish state in Israel Authorities said he expressed no remorse about the attack. The family’s immigration status

Before moving to Colorado Springs three years ago, Soliman spent 17 years in Kuwait, according to court documents.

Soliman arrived in the U.S. in August 2022 on a tourist visa that expired in February 2023, Department of Homeland Security Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin said in a post on X. She said Soliman filed for asylum in September 2022 and was granted a work authorization in March 2023, but that has also expired. Soliman’s wife was born in Saudi Arabia and is an Egyptian national, according to her lawsuit. She is a network engineer and has a pending EB-2 visa, which is available to professionals with advanced degrees, the suit said. She and her children all are listed as dependents on Soliman’s asylum application.

States say they supported the establishment of the new aid system to prevent Hamas from stealing aid previously distributed by the U.N.

The United Nations has rejected the new system, saying it doesn’t address Gaza’s mounting hunger crisis, allows Israel to use aid as a weapon and doesn’t comply with the humanitarian principles of neutrality, impartiality and independence. The U.N. says its distribution system throughout Gaza worked very well during the March ceasefire and is carefully monitored.

The resolution demanded the restoration of all essential humanitarian services in line with humanitarian principles, international humanitarian law and U.N. Security Council resolutions.

“The world is watching, day after day, horrifying scenes of Palestinians being shot, wounded or killed in Gaza while simply trying to eat,” U.N. humanitarian chief Tom Fletcher said in a statement Wednesday He called for a flood of aid to be let in and for the world body to be the one delivering it.

Man charged with supplying chemicals to IVF clinic bomber

By The Associated Press

LOS ANGELES Federal authorities arrested a man they say collaborated with the bomber of a fertility clinic in May, alleging that he supplied chemicals used to make explosives and traveled to California to experiment with them in the bomber’s garage months before the attack.

The two men connected in fringe online forums over their shared beliefs against human procreation, authorities told reporters Wednesday The blast gutted the fertility clinic in Palm Springs and shattered the windows of nearby buildings, with officials calling the attack terrorism and possibly the largest bomb scene ever in Southern California. The clinic was closed, and no embryos were damaged.

Guy Edward Bartkus of California, the bomber, died in the May 17 explosion. Authorities arrested collaborator Daniel Park, 32, of Washington state

on Tuesday after he was extradited from Poland, where he fled to four days after the attack. Park spent years stocking up on ammonium nitrate, a chemical that can be used to make explosives, before shipping it to Bartkus and later visiting him in Twentynine Palms, California He stayed for about two weeks earlier this year and the two conducted bomb-making experiments in the detached garage of Bartkus’ family home, said Akil Davis, the FBI’s assistant director in charge. Park, 32, was taken into custody at New York’s John F Kennedy Airport, U.S. Attorney Bill Essayli told reporters. He appeared in federal court Wednesday in Brooklyn and, through his lawyer, waived his right to a detention hearing in New York. Judge Cheryl Pollak ordered him to remain detained, saying he posed a serious risk. He will be sent to California.

Obituaries:

Soliman

ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO By DAVID ZALUBOWSKI

A visitor offers a tribute after leaving a bouquet of flowers at a makeshift memorial for victims of an attack outside

Analysis:Tax bill will add$2.4T to deficit

CBOalsosays

10.9 millionwould lose health insurance

BY LISA MASCARO AP congressional correspondent

WASHINGTON— President Donald Trump’sbig bill in Congress would unleash trillions in tax cuts and slash spending, but alsospike deficits by $2.4 trillion overthe decade and leave some 10.9 million more people without health insurance, raising the political stakesfor the GOP’ssignature domesticpriority Republican leadersinCongress, determined to musclethe sweeping package forward, had little to say after the analysis released Wednesday by thenonpartisan CongressionalBudget Office GOP senators were headingfor an afternoon meeting with Trump at the White House.

But Democrats laboring to halt the march of Trump’sOne Big Beautiful Bill Act piled on withrelentless opposition.

“In the words of Elon Musk,this bill is a‘disgusting abomination,’ said Rep. Brendan BoyleofPennsylvania, the top Democratonthe HouseBudget Committee,reviving the billionaire former Trump aide’scriticism of the package.

The analysis comes at acrucial moment as Trump is pushing Congress, whereRepublicans have majority control, to send the final prod-

uct to his desk to become law by the Fourth of July.The House passed the bill last month by asingle vote, but it’snow sloggingthrough the Senate, where Republicanswanta numberofsignificant changes Andthe politicsare only intensifying

After Musk blindsided Congress with his all-out assaultagainst the bill this week,HouseSpeaker Mike Johnsonrushed to do damage control.

TheGOP speaker saidhecalled Musk to discussthe criticism leveled late Tuesday,but hadnot heard back. Muskhas threatened to use his politicalapparatustogoafter Republicans in themidterm elections.“Ihope he comes around,” Johnson,R-Benton, toldreporters.

Hourslater,Musk, whosebusiness interests could be impacted by green energy rollbacks in the bill, implored voterstocall their representatives and senators: “Bankrupting America is NOT ok!” he wrote on social media, “KILL the BILL.”

Taxbreaks, cuts to health care

The work of theCBO, which for decades has servedasthe official scorekeeper of legislationin Congress, is closely watched by lawmakers and others seeking to understand the budgetary impacts of the sprawling 1,000-plus-page package.

Along with $3.75 trilliontoextend the 2017 taxbreaksand add the new ones Trump campaigned

on, including no taxes on tips, it found that thepackagewould reduce federal spending outlays by nearly $1.3trillion, largely through proposedreductions to Medicaid and rollbacks of green energy initiatives.

Some 7.8 millionpeople would no longer have healthinsurance withchanges to Medicaid, including 5.2 million from the proposed newwork requirements on those able-bodied adultsuptoage 65, withsome exceptions, according to theanalysis.

As part of those Medicaid changes,1.4 million people whoare in the United States without legal statusinstate-funded health programs wouldnolongerhavecoverage. Also, some 400,000 would lose coverage from the termination of amedical provider taxthat key Republicans, including Sen. Josh Hawley of Missouri, wanttokeep in place to ensure ruralhospitals can keep paying their bills.

Republicans argue that their proposals are intended tostrengthen Medicaidand other programs by rooting out waste, fraud and abuse. They want thefederal funding to go to thosewho mostneed health care andother services, often citing women and children.

But Senate Democratic Leader ChuckSchumer said those claims are bogus andare simply part of long-running GOPefforts to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act, or Obamacare, as most states have expanded Medicaid to serve

morepeople under the program

“They just want to strangle he alth care,” Schumer said. Additionally,the CBOhad previously estimated that nearly 4million fewer people would have food st am ps eac h monthdue to the legislation’sproposed changes to theSupplementalNutrition Assistance Program, known as SNAP Somewould see their benefits reduced by about $15 by 2034, the CBO has said.

Republicanscriticize theCBO

Ahead of the CBO’srelease, the WhiteHouse and Republican leaders criticized the budget office in a preemptive campaign designed to sowdoubt in its findings.

Senate Majority Leader John Thune said the CBO was “flat wrong” because it underestimated thepotentialrevenue growth from Trump’s first round of taxbreaks in 2017. The CBO last year said receipts were$1.5 trillion, or 5.6% greater than predicted, in large part because of the“burstofhigh inflation” during theCOVID-19 pandemic in 2021.

White House BudgetDirector Russ Vought said when you adjust for “current policy,” which means notcounting some $4.5 trillionin existing taxbreaks that are simply being extended for the next

decade, the overall package actually doesn’tpile onto thedeficit. He argued that the spending cuts alone, in fact, help reduce deficits by $1.4 trillion over the decade. But Democrats and even some Republicanscallthat“current policy” accounting moveagimmick, but it’sthe approach Senate Republicans intend to use during their consideration of the packagetotry to show it does notadd to the nation’sdeficits. Vought argued that the CBO is the one using a“gimmick” by tallying the costs of continuing those tax breaks that would otherwise expire.

“Russ is right,” Johnsonposted on social media. “Our One Big Beautiful Bill will REDUCE the deficitWHILEdelivering on the mandate given to us by the American people. Let’sget it done!”

White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt has also suggested that the CBO’semployees are biased, even though certainbudget office workers face strict ethical rules—including restrictions on campaign donations and political activity —toensure objectivity and impartiality

Now in its50th year,the CBO wasestablishedbylaw after Congress sought to assert its control, as outlined in the Constitution, over the budget process.

Itscurrent director,Phillip Swagel, aformer Treasury official in Republican President George W. Bush’sadministration, was reappointed to afour-year term in 2023.

TrumpsaysPutin told himRussiawillrespond to Ukrainianattack

designed to stall for time,

BY HANNA ARHIROVA and MICHELLE L. PRICE Associated Press

WASHINGTON U.S. Presi-

post,did notsay howhereacted to Putin’spromise to respond to Ukraine’sattack, but his postshowed none of thefrustration that Trump has expressed with his Russian counterpartinrecent weeksoverhis prolonging of thewar

newed hiscallfor direct talks with Putin to break thestalemate over thewar whichhas draggedonfor nearly 31/2 years.

delay sanctions andconvincethe United States that Russiaisengagedindialogue.

progress on ending the war. They agreed only to swap thousands of their dead and seriously woundedtroops.

dent DonaldTrumpsaidthat Russian President Vladimir Putin told him “very strongly” in aphone call Wednesday that he will respond to Ukraine’sweekend drone attack on Russian airfields as thedeadlock over the war drags on and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy dismisses Russia’ s ceasefi re proposal. The U.S. president said in asocial media post that his lengthy call with Putin “was agood conversation, but not aconversation that will lead to immediate Peace.” It’sthe first time Trump has weighed in on Ukraine’sdaringattack inside Russia.The U.S. did not have advancenotice of theoperation,according to the White House, apoint Trump emphasized during the call with Putin, according to aPutin’sforeign affairs adviser The U.S. has led arecent diplomatic push to stop the full-scale invasion, which began on Feb. 24, 2022. Trump, in his social media

Yuri Ushakov,Putin’s foreignaffairs adviser,saidat abriefing that the twoleaders characterized thecall as “positiveand quite productive,” and reaffirmed their readiness to stay in touch.

Zelenskyy latersaidina post on social media: “Many have spoken with Russia at various levels.But none of these talkshave brought areliable peace,oreven stopped thewar.Unfortunately,Putin feels impunity.”

TheUkrainian leader urged more pressure to be put onRussia andsaidthat Putin’s plannedresponse “means,thatwith everynew strike, with every delay of diplomacy, Russia is giving the finger to the entireworld to allthose who stillhesitate to increasepressureonit.”

Trump repeatedly promised to end thewar quickly, and even saidhewouldaccomplish itbefore he was sworn in. But he lost patience with Putin in recent weeks, publicly pleading with him to stopfighting and even said late last month that the Russianleader “has gone absolutely CRAZY.” Trump, however,has not committedtobacking abipartisan pushtosanction Putin

Zelenskyybrushes offplan

The Ukrainian leader earlierWednesday dismissed Russia’s ceasefire plan as “an ultimatum” and re-

Putin, however, showed no willingness to meet with Zelenskyy,expressing anger Wednesday about what he said wereUkraine’s recent “terrorist acts” on Russian rail linesinthe Kursk and Bryansk regions on the countries’ border

“How can any such (summit) meetings be conducted in such circumstances? What shall we talk about?” Putin asked in avideocall with top Russian officials. Putinaccused Ukraine of seeking atruce only to replenishits stockpilesof Western arms, recruit more soldiers and prepare new attackslike those in Kursk and Bryansk.

Russia and Ukraine exchanged memorandums setting out their conditions for aceasefire fordiscussion at Monday’sdirect peace talks between delegations in Istanbul. Zelenskyy had previously challenged Putin to meet himinTurkey, but Putin stayed away Russia and Ukraine have established redlines that make aquick deal unlikely, despite aU.S.-ledinternational diplomatic push to stop the fighting. The Kremlin’sIstanbulproposalcontained alist of demands that Kyiv andits Western allies see as nonstarters.

Zelenskyy saidthatthe secondround of talks in Istanbul was no different from the first meetingonMay 16. Zelenskyy described thelatestnegotiationsinIstanbul as “a political performance” and “artificial diplomacy”

Zelenskyy said he wantsa ceasefire with Russia before apossiblesummitmeeting with Putin, possibly also includingTrump, in an effort to remove obstaclestoa peace settlement.

More detailsabout attack Asecondround of peace talks on Mondaybetween Russian andUkrainiandelegations in Istanbul lasted just over an hour and made no

Also,anew prisoner exchange with Russia could take place over the weekend, Zelenskyy said.

Ukraine’s Security Service gave more details Wednesdayabout its spectacular weekend drone strike on Russian air bases, which it claimeddestroyedordamaged 41 Russian aircraft, including strategic bombers.

The agency released more footageshowing drones swooping under and over

parked aircraft and featuring some planesburning. It also claimed the planes struck included A-50,Tu-95, Tu-22, Tu-160, An-12, and Il-78aircraft, adding that thedroneshad highly automated capabilities and were partly piloted by an operator and partly by using artificial intelligence which flew the drone along aplanned route in the event it lost signal. The drones werenot fully autonomous and a“humanis still choosing what target to hit,” said Caitlin Lee, adrone warfare expert at RAND, a think thank.

BY NICHOLAS RICCARDI and LINDSAYWHITEHURST Associated Press

WASHINGTON Afederal judge ruled on Wednesday that theTrump administration must give more than 100 migrants sent to anotorious prison in El Salvador achance to challenge their deportations.

U.S. District Court Chief Judge James Boasberg said that people who were sentto the prison in March under an 18th-century wartime law haven’tbeen able to formally contest the removals or allegations that they are members of the Venezuelan gang Tren de Aragua. He ordered the administration to worktoward givingthema way to file those challenges. The judge wrote that “significant evidence” has surfaced indicating that many of the migrants imprisoned

in El Salvador are notconnected to thegang“and thus languishinaforeign prison on flimsy,even frivolous,accusations.” Boasberg gavethe administration one week tocome up with amanner in which the “at least 137” people can make those claims, even while they’reformally in the custody of El Salvador It’sthe latestmilestone in the legalsaga over the fate of deportees imprisoned at El Salvador’snotoriousTerrorism Confinement Center After Trump invokedthe AlienEnemies Act of 1798 in March and prepared to fly planeloadsofaccused gang members to El Salvador andout ofthe jurisdictionofU.S. courts, Boasberg ordered them to turnthe planesaround. This demand was ignored. Boasberg has found probably cause that theadministration commit-

ted contemptofcourt after the flight landed.

The U.S. Supreme Court later ruled that anyone targeted under the AEAhas the right to appeal to ajudge to contest their designation as an enemy of the state. Boasberg, in his latest, ruling wrotethat he was simply applying that principle to those who’d been removed.

Boasberg said theadministration “plainly deprived” the immigrantsofachance to challenge their removals before they were put on flights. Therefore, he says the government must handlethe migrants casesnow as if they“would havebeen if theGovernment had not providedconstitutionally inadequate process.”

Trump has repeatedly said it’d be impossible to protect thecountry from dangerous immigrants if eachone has his or her day in court

Schumer

Trump

Putin

Zelenskyy

Continued from page 1A

goes to the governor’s desk for signature.

Landry hopes to have a contract for the new voting system finalized by the end of 2025 and begin a “phased-in implementation” of the new system in 2026, said Secretary of State’s Office spokesperson Joel Watson. Under legislation passed in 2021, the Secretary of State’s Office must first certify that any voting machines to be considered in the procurement process comply with standards set out in state law Bidding can then begin after certification.

Under the invitation to negoti-

SPENDING

Continued from page 1A

NOT ok! KILL the BILL.”

“In November next year, we fire all politicians who betrayed the American people,” Musk wrote.

Some took that as the billionaire’s threat to GOP House members who backed the instrument which includes much of Trump’s domestic agenda That includes more money for border security and tax breaks, paid for partially with deep cuts in Medicaid and food stamps

“With all due respect, my friend Elon is terribly wrong about the one big, beautiful bill,” said House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-Benton, who added that he had tried talking with Musk after the criticisms were published

“I called Elon last night and he didn’t answer, but I hope to talk to him today,” Johnson told reporters Wednesday “I hope he comes around.”

Musk had been head of what Trump called the Department of Government Efficiency, or DOGE, which fired nearly 60,000 federal employees, offered early retirements to 76,000 more and targeted another 149,000 for layoffs in the future The federal government had about 2.1 million employees nationwide.

With narrow majorities in the House and Senate, Johnson and Majority Leader Steve Scalise, the two LSU alumni who lead the lower chamber relied on the reconciliation process to stuff Trump’s campaign promises into a single bill and thereby win passage without Demo-

ST. GEORGE

Continued from page 1A

ate procedure in HB577, the state invites vendors to submit competitive sealed responses as a starting point for negotiations. It is then empowered to select which vendors it wants to continue negotiations with

In contrast, with a standard request for proposal, the state first defines detailed parameters of the product or service it needs and then solicits bids to meet those specs.

Bill sponsor Rep. Daryl Deshotel, R-Marksville, said invitation to negotiate gives the secretary of state the chance “to discuss with vendors their ability to provide needed and expected services,” and it gives the state more bargaining power in negotiations before making an award.

Deshotel told lawmakers on the

Senate committee the concept is designed for large IT procurement. He sponsored legislation last year that added the new bidding process to the list of procurement methods authorized under state law

“Invitation to negotiation is a public bid process,” Landry said. “It’s just more flexible. It allows you to exchange more information than (a request for proposals) does.”

The legislation also sets out an expedited timeline for any legal contest or appeal that arises related to the eventual voting system contract award.

“We can’t afford for that litigation to take years,” Landry told lawmakers last month.

Previous efforts to replace the voting system have stumbled at

multiple junctures in the face of bid-rigging allegations.

And in 2021, amid false claims of widespread voter fraud during the 2020 presidential election, state lawmakers added additional requirements to Louisiana’s voting system procurement effort.

Those included the creation of a Voting System Commission and a Voting System Proposal Evaluation Committee, the latter of which is required to “investigate and publicly test the voting systems” that are part of the bidding process and recommend a selection to the secretary of state.

“This bill does nothing to remove public input or transparency in the procurement process,” Landry said of this year’s House Bill 577.

Deslatte said PAR recognizes the challenges Landry faces in light

of previous litigation over voting system contracts, and the organization plans to monitor the current effort.

“This contract is going to be worth a lot of money,” she said, adding that any replacement voting system is “crucial to making sure election functions in this state.”

Sen. Blake Miguez, R-New Iberia, a member of the Senate and Governmental Affairs Committee, pressed Landry for more than a half-hour, asking the secretary of state to promise that the Legislature would have “full oversight” of the entire process.

“It’s extremely important to the public,” Miguez said.

Email Alyse Pfeil at alyse.pfeil@ theadvocate.com.

cratic involvement. The bill would, over the next decade, add $2.4 trillion to the government’s debt and leave 10.9 million people without health insurance, according to the Congressional Budget Office analysis released Wednesday morning. The legislation cuts spending by $1.3 trillion but revenue would fall by $3.7 trillion, posited CBO, the arm of Congress tasked with estimating financial impacts of bills under congressional consideration In the face of growing disenchantment among some Republicans as the legislation begins its review in the U.S. Senate, Johnson, and Scalise, R-Jefferson,

avoided veiled threats but defended the legislation.

Both said the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, whose shorthand now is OBBBA, would jump-start the economy leading to more government revenues and lower taxes.

Scalise criticized the CBO, arguing that the nonpartisan agency miscalculates the amount of economic growth that will come from lower taxes, lower spending, and reduced regulations.

“When this bill is passed and signed into law, hopefully by July Fourth, when the Senate does their work, you’re going to see economic growth in this country like we haven’t seen in generations, meaning more pay in

the pockets of workers. And you’re going to see more Treasury money coming in because of the growth in the American economy,” Scalise told reporters Wednesday

The other Republicans in Louisiana’s delegation also stuck by the bill.

“This is us trying to get the economy back on track,”

Rep. Julia Letlow, R-Start, told Brian Haldane on Talk 107.3 FM in Baton Rouge Wednesday morning “It is my hope that we will all stick together.” Lafayette Rep. Clay Higgins, R-Lafayette, was less forgiving.

Though he initially opposed the instrument, Higgins backed the bill after

meeting with other archconservatives in the White House less than 18 hours before the floor vote.

Higgins focused on GOP senators, like Sen. Rand Paul, R-Kentucky, who have raised similar concerns as Musk.

He wrote on X that wayward Senate Republicans are “lost in their wealth, suffering through the cocktail parties and fundraisers.”

He continued: “We are watching. FAFO.”

That’s a reference to military slang for “f*** around, find out.”

After two all-night sessions, during which the terms of the bill constantly changed as Johnson and

Scalise pursued “yes” votes, House Republicans advanced the 1,037-page bill by a single vote shortly after the sun rose May 22. They then boarded planes for a week off — only for some to find constituents questioning this or that provision tucked in the wording by House leadership in order to persuade enough Republicans to back the measure. For instance, MAGA firebrand Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Georgia, admitted she voted yes without having read the bill. A provision took away state authority to regulate artificial intelligence, which she said would have caused her to vote no.

“Full transparency, I did not know about this section,” Greene wrote on X, adding the provision violates states’ rights “This needs to be stripped out in the Senate. When the OBBB(A) comes back to the House for approval after Senate changes, I will not vote for it with this in it.” New Orleans Rep. Troy Carter was unsympathetic.

“I just have one thing to say — read the damn bill next time,” said Carter, a Democrat who voted against the legislation. “I wholeheartedly agree with Elon Musk that Trump’s bogus bill is a ‘disgusting abomination.’”

“They wanted to rush it through and even their own members didn’t know what was in it, and now they’re having second thoughts,” said Rep. Cleo Fields, a Baton Rouge Democrat who voted against OBBBA and remains against it. “I would hope the Senate would go through it methodically and break it up into as many bills as they desire and then the House can deal with each bill.”

Central and Zachary, which broke away in 2003 and 2007.

Rep. Barbara Freiberg, R-Baton Rouge and former parish School Board president, came out in favor of SB234 after she said she worked for “hundreds of hours” on amendments with lead author Sen. Rick Edmonds, R-St. George, and co-author Rep. Emily Chenevert, R-Baton Rouge. Freiberg sought to have St.

George absorb a greater share of an estimated $60 million in legacy costs, most of it connected with medical care of retirees.

Now the two sides have to start meeting within 60 days of the law taking effect to hash out a settlement of all assets and liabilities, including retiree health care costs.

Also the revised bill sunsets proposed cross-district enrollment, including in magnet schools; that enrollment ends when children finish at their current schools.

The original version would have allowed cross-district magnet en-

rollment in perpetuity

“I know we worked very, very hard, and I think we have covered all the variables,” Freiberg said. Freiberg said she has also worked closely with parish school leaders to improve the legislation.

The parish School Board on May 19 approved a resolution opposing the two St. George bills “as written.” Rep. Edmond Jordan, D-Baton Rouge, however, objected to the still lengthy cross-district enrollment “That could take 13 years.”

He noted that’s not how Baker, Central and Zachary schools were

organized.

“Why would that be on the table when I thought the whole purpose of setting up the St. George school system was because the East Baton Rouge school system was running so poorly?” Jordan asked.

“It’s like they want their cake and to eat it too.”

Jordan also objected to the St. George city map, which is much different than the St George boundaries first proposed in 2013.

“They drew the lines in a way that diluted Black voter participation,” Jordan said.

Chenevert said the legislation honors the wishes of the residents of St. George when they voted in 2019 to create their own city She also said the legislation sets up a sensible way for the new St George school district and East Baton Rouge Parish to work out their differences.

“We all want what’s better for parents. We all want what’s better for students,” Chenevert said “We may not all agree on how to get there.”

Email Charles Lussier at clussier@theadvocate.com.

ASSOCIATED PRESS FILE PHOTO By BEN CURTIS

Rep. Clay Higgins, R-Lafayette, right, supports the spending bill passed by the House and said in a post on X that wayward Senate Republicans are ‘lost in their wealth, suffering through the cocktail parties and fundraisers.

House panel OKs mental health screening bill

Some concerned about privacy in schools

BY ELYSE CARMOSINO Staff writer

Louisiana public schools will be able to give annual mental health screenings to students in grades K-12 with their parents’ consent under a bill advancing through the state Legislature, despite privacy concerns from some conservative lawmakers.

Under Senate Bill 121 by Sen. Larry Selders, D-Baton Rouge, schools must conduct the evaluations every fall. Students whose parents or guardians do not consent will not be screened except in limited circumstances, and schools will be required to destroy the collected data within 30 days after the parent or guardian has

been notified.

Lawmakers on the House Education Committee revised the bill Tuesday to make the screenings optional rather than mandatory

The committee voted 10-1 to send the amended bill to the House floor for final consideration.

The proposal comes amid rising concerns about students’ mental health following yearslong school closures and social isolation brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Selders, who said the bill is not expected to create new costs for the state, argued that it will give schools another way to identify students who are struggling and get them help.

“They can connect these minors and their parents to resources that are available,” he said, adding that the law says schools will not be legally liable for the results of the

screenings.

Another bill introduced this session would require public schools to give all students in grades 3-8, with parental consent, yearly mental health assessments administered by a licensed mental health provider That proposal is slated to be reviewed by the Senate Health and Welfare Committee on Wednesday The bill that advanced Tuesday says the screening results will be kept confidential, except that parents will be notified if a “potential mental health condition” is spotted.

But Rep. Beryl Amedee, R-Gray, said she was worried the bill gives schools too much authority over students’ sensitive health data

The bill prohibits schools from making decisions, including about academic opportunities or discipline, based on the results. But Amedee said it could still have un-

intended consequences.

“Once you see something, you can’t unsee it,” she said, adding that the results could “affect the relationship between the student and the school.”

Selders countered that the screeners would play a crucial role in getting some kids the help they need.

“I think the problem is access to care,” he said, adding that “parents can use these results to get resources.”

Rep. Josh Carlson, R-Lafayette, expressed similar concern over schools collecting student data, but Amedee was the only lawmaker to vote against Selders’ bill.

Lawmakers approved some amendments, including one that prohibits schools from collecting metadata, which refers to basic information like how many students have been screened. An amend-

ment that would have required schools to give parents the option to review their child’s screener results was shot down in an 8-5 vote. Mental health care in schools has become a partisan issue as some conservative critics have raised concerns about government overreach and have claimed that some school programs focused on mental health or social-emotional learning promote liberal ideas. Last month, the Trump administration canceled $1 billion in grants for student mental health that were authorized with bipartisan support in 2022. A spokesperson for the U.S. Department of Education told The New York Times that the grants were canceled because some programs focused on hiring diverse mental health staffers. Email Elyse Carmosino at ecarmosino@theadvocate.com.

some of the neediest offices in the U.S., which records show include at least one in Louisiana. The move comes after the administration made sweeping cuts to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, leaving nearly half the weather service’s 122 local field offices with vacancy rates of more than 20% by early April according to data collected by The Associated Press Some offices were so short-staffed they were forced to cut down on weather balloon launches and overnight staffing, leading meteorologists and researchers across the county to voice concerns about the nation’s weather forecasting capabilities, particularly during natural disasters and the current hurricane season, which is expected to bring above-average activity.

Weather service spokesperson Erica Grow Cei said the eligible positions include jobs that were “deemed critical to fulfill the NWS’s mission of saving lives, protecting property and enhancing the national economy ” But she did not specify what positions would be filled or where they were

located Grow Cei said advertisements for the open jobs will be posted soon.

The weather service is also in the process of issuing reassignment opportunity notices and short-term temporary duty assignments to fill vacant positions at offices across the country with “the greatest needs,” Grow Cei said. Both enable current employees to voluntarily transfer to lateral positions in offices across the U.S. without a formal hiring process

The new hires are allowed under an exemption to President Donald Trump’s governmentwide hiring freeze, and was granted to “stabilize front-line operations,” she said.

Louisiana State Climatologist Jay Grymes said the new hires represent only about a fifth of the positions lost, and the process could take weeks or months. He also said the Trump administration’s cuts go

“beyond people,” including reductions in climate research and satellite system funding.

“Not all climate research is fossil-fuel focused,” he said. “Longrange tropical outlooks like preseason forecasts, for example, are largely climate modeling efforts, not solely meteorology. And satellites? They are our eyes and ears for the atmosphere.”

Tom Fahy, the legislative director for the union that represents weather service employees, said the agency lost about 600 employees to the cuts, including roughly 100 probationary employees who were terminated, 300 who retired early and another 200 who resigned after accepting buyout deals.

The weather service is now looking to hire meteorologists, physical scientists and the electronic technicians who take care of weather radars and other sensitive equipment, Fahy said.

While it’s unclear where it will place its new permanent hires and which former employees will be eligible, Fahy said he expects they’ll go to the most severely understaffed weather forecasting offices. Those include offices in Sacramento and Hanford, California; Cheyenne, Wyoming; Goodland, Kansas; Jackson, Kentucky; and Fairbanks, Alaska; some of which have halted overnight operations, Fahy said.

“These six offices are the most critical in the country,” he said.

A handful of other offices across the U.S. face serious shortages as well, including in Lake Charles, where Fahy said staffing is among the most severely stretched in Louisiana.. As of Wednesday Fahy said seven of 24 total positions were vacant in Lake Charles, a city that is no stranger to major natural disasters.

At least four longtime meteorologists, each with more than 30 years of weather forecasting experience, retired from the Lake Charles office in April, including meteorologist in charge Roger Erickson. Fahy said Lake Charles also lost one other meteorologist, a technician and a managerial electronics position. Stephen Carboni, now the acting meteorologist in charge, did not

respond to an email requesting comment.

Reassignment opportunity notifications for three positions in the Lake Charles office closed on May 27, according to records provided by Mike Buchanan, lead meteorologist in charge of the National Weather Service New Orleans. Fahy said that means those positions two lead meteorologists and a meteorologist in charge — will likely soon be staffed, though he called the transfers a “temporary solution” to aid struggling offices. Several reassignment notifications also closed in offices across the U.S., including in Texas, Arkansas, Florida and Georgia.

The New Orleans office, however, was largely spared from cuts Buchanan said Tuesday that staffing at his office had not changed since he arrived in December, with 25 of 27 jobs filled.

While Buchanan said all of New Orleans’ 14 weather forecasting positions are filled, it is down a science and operations officer and an administrative support assistant.

The National Hurricane Center, which tracks the Atlantic hurricanes that so often reach the Gulf Coast, was also largely unscathed by broader cuts to NOAA, according to The Associated Press.

Hiring freeze threatens inflation data

WASHINGTON — The Labor Department has cut back on the inflation data it collects because of the Trump administration’s government hiring freeze, raising concerns among economists about the quality of the inflation figures just as they are being closely watched for the impact of tariffs.

The department’s Bureau of Labor Statistics, which produces the monthly consumer price index, the most closely watched inflation measure, said Wednesday that it is “reducing sample in areas across the country” and added that it stopped collecting price data entirely in April in Lincoln, Nebraska, and Provo, Utah. It also said it has stopped collecting data this month in Buffalo, New York

In an email that the BLS sent to economists, viewed by The Associated Press, the agency said that it “temporarily reduced the number of outlets and quotes it attempted to collect due to a staffing shortage” in April The reduced data collection “will be kept in place until the hiring freeze is lifted.”

President Donald Trump froze federal hiring on his first day in office and extended the freeze in April until late July, suggesting future inflation reports will also involve less data collection.

Reddit sues AI company Anthropic

Social media platform Reddit has sued the artificial intelligence company Anthropic, alleging that it is illegally “scraping” the comments of Reddit users to train its chatbot Claude. Reddit claims that Anthropic has used automated bots to access Reddit’s content despite being asked not to do so, and “intentionally trained on the personal data of Reddit users without ever requesting their consent.”

Anthropic didn’t immediately return a request for comment Wednesday Reddit filed the lawsuit Wednesday in California Superior Court in San Francisco, where both companies are based.

“AI companies should not be allowed to scrape information and content from people without clear limitations on how they can use that data,” said Ben Lee, Reddit’s chief legal officer, in a statement Wednesday

U.S. and Europe trade negotiations continue PARIS Europe and the United States say progress has been made but there were no breakthroughs during a meeting in Paris to negotiate a settlement of a tense tariff spat with global economic ramifications.

European Union top trade negotiator Maroš Šef ovi met Wednesday with U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer on the sidelines of a meeting of the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development.

Šef ovi said in a post on X that the sides are “advancing in the right direction at pace” and staying in close contact. Brussels and Washington, though, are unlikely to reach a substantive trade agreement in Paris. The issues dividing them are too difficult to resolve quickly

Amazon plans $10B data center in N.C. HAMLET, N.C. Amazon is expanding its cloud computing infrastructure and artificial intelligence activities into a rural North Carolina county The company said Wednesday it intends to invest $10 billion toward building a campus in Richmond County This will bring a shot in the arm to a region where textile and apparel jobs dried up a generation ago. Amazon said its investment should create at least 500 jobs and support thousands more through construction and data center supply chain providers. Gov Josh Stein says the investment is one of the largest in state history

Wall Street’s big rally stalls

Reports on economy are potentially discouraging

BY STAN CHOE AP business writer

NEW YORK Wall Street’s big recent rally lost some momentum on Wednesday following a pair of potentially discouraging reports on the economy

The S&P 500 finished the day virtually unchanged and remained 2.8% below its all-time high. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 91 points, or 0.2%, and the Nasdaq composite added 0.3%.

The action was stronger in the bond market, where Treasury

yields tumbled following the weaker-than-expected economic updates.

One said that activity contracted for U.S. retailers, finance companies and other businesses in the services industries last month, when economists were expecting to see growth. Businesses told the Institute for Supply Management in its survey that all the uncertainty created by tariffs is making it difficult for them to forecast and plan.

A second report from ADP suggested U.S. employers outside of the government hired far fewer workers last month than economists expected That could bode ill for Friday’s more comprehensive jobs report coming from the U.S. Labor Department, which is one of Wall Street’s most antici-

pated data releases each month.

So far, the U.S. job market has remained remarkably resilient despite years of high inflation and now the threat of President Donald Trump’s high tariffs. But weakness there could undermine the rest of the economy

To be sure, ADP’s report historically has not been a perfect predictor of what the U.S. Labor Department’s report will say

“Whether this report is accurate or not, traders and investors will read today’s number as a dark result for trading today,” according to Carl Weinberg, chief economist at High Frequency Economics. “This may be the tip of an iceberg, but it also could be a false start.”

“‘Too Late’ Powell must now LOWER THE RATE,” Trump said on his Truth Social platform. “He is unbelievable!!!”

The Fed has yet to cut interest rates this year after slashing them through the end of 2024. Part of the reason for the pause is that the Fed wants to see how much Trump’s tariffs will hurt the economy and raise inflation. While lower interest rates could boost the economy, they could also give inflation more fuel.

Following the reports, traders built up bets that the Federal Reserve will need to cut interest rates later this year in order to prop up the economy, which in turn caused the fall for Treasury yields. The weaker-than-expected ADP report also pushed Trump to call on Fed Chair Jerome Powell to deliver cuts to rates more quickly

Steel and aluminum tariffs start

Move to hammer businesses from automakers to home builders

BY WYATTE GRANTHAM-PHILIPS AP business writer

NEW YORK U.S President Donald Trump hiked nearly all of his tariffs on steel and aluminum imports to a punishing 50% on Wednesday in a move that’s set to hammer businesses from automakers to home builders, and likely push up prices for consumers even further

Economists warn that such heightened levies could significantly squeeze the wallets of both companies and shoppers alike. But Trump argues that his latest import taxes are necessary to protect U.S. industries.

The 50% tariffs went into effect just after the clock struck midnight on Wednesday The two metals had previously faced 25% tariffs worldwide since mid-March, when Trump’s order to remove steel exemptions and raise aluminum’s levy from his previously imposed 2018 import taxes went into effect.

Steel and aluminum from the U.K. is the exception British imports of these metals are still levied at 25%, per a proclamation issued by Trump on Tuesday afternoon, which pointed to a recent trade deal reached between the two countries.

Trump says it’s all about protecting U.S. industries. He reiterated that argument on Friday, when he first announced the 50% tariff on imported steel during a visit with steelworkers in Pennsylvania, where he also discussed a “planned partnership” between U.S Steel and Japan’s Nippon Steel.

In his speech at U.S. Steel’s Mon Valley Works–Irvin Plant in suburban Pittsburgh, Trump said the tariff hike would “further secure the steel industry in the U.S.” Shortly after, he took the same tone when sharing plans to also raise tariffs on imported aluminum

Industry response

While some analysts have credited the tariffs Trump imposed during his first term with strengthening domestic production of steel and aluminum, many others have warned that stark new levies can make it difficult for the industry to adjust.

Some organizations representing metal

workers also note that tariffs aren’t the only solution needed to boost U.S. manufacturing.

“While tariffs, used strategically, serve as a valuable tool in balancing the scales, it’s essential that we also pursue wider reforms of our global trading system,” David McCall, international president of the United Steelworkers union said in a statement, noting that work must be done “in collaboration with trusted allies” like Canada — the top exporter of steel and aluminum to the U.S. — to help “contain the bad actors.” Matt Meenan, vice president of external affairs at the Aluminum Association, added that the trade group “appreciates President Trump’s continued focus on strengthening the U.S. aluminum industry,” but that “tariffs alone will not increase U.S. primary aluminum production.”

“We also need consistent, predictable trade and tariff policy to plan for current and future investment,” Meenan said.

Meanwhile, the American Primary Aluminum Association, which advocates for stronger trade enforcement applauded Trump’s latest tariff increase on foreign aluminum.

“For decades, subsidized foreign producers have hollowed out domestic aluminum manufacturing,” APAA President Mark Duffy said in a statement, calling Trump a “strong leader who is fighting to rebuild domestic manufacturing and protect thousands of American aluminum jobs.”

Impacted products

Steel and aluminum are used in a range of products like washing machines, consumer electronics and cars. Much of the auto industry relies on a global supply chain. And even if you aren’t in the market to buy a new vehicle, repairs could involve parts that use imports of either metal, driving up overall maintenance and ownership costs. In the grocery aisle, steel and aluminum are ubiquitous in the packaging for many foods, including canned tuna, soup and nuts. Experts warn that hiking import taxes on these materials could led to higher grocery prices overall, further straining consumers’ wallets.

The aluminum and metal tariffs also carry wider implications for construction and transportation as a whole, as many key building parts and materials are made with these metals. Economists further warn of spillover impacts. Even if a product isn’t directly packaged in steel or aluminum, there could be higher costs to build the shelf it’s sold on, for example, or truck used to transport it to the store. And all of that could trickle down to the consumer down the road. If foreign competition becomes “priced out” due to these new tariffs, U.S. steel and aluminum producers may also find room to raise their own prices. As a result, even companies that don’t buy these foreign metals could end up paying more.

Acquisition of Baton Rouge’s H&E Equipment completed

Herc Rentals finalizes

$4.97B purchase

BY TIMOTHY BOONE Staff writer

Herc Rentals has completed its nearly $5 billion acquisition of Baton Rouge-based H&E Equipment Services. The deal was finalized Monday, and H&E was delisted from the Nasdaq Exchange Under the agreement announced in February, H&E stockholders received $78.75 for each share and 0.1287 shares of Herc Rentals stock. Shares of Herc

opened at $124.35 Monday morning. The company also took on $1.5 billion of H&E’s debt. Florida-based Herc has 440 locations in the U.S. and Canada. The company has 16 locations in south Louisiana Company officials said H&E will keep a presence in Baton Rouge, but decisions on the specific operations and local employment levels will be made over time H&E, founded in 1961, is the fifth-largest rental equipment company in the U.S., with more than 160 branches in 31 states. Its rental fleet is valued at $2.9 billion.

While both companies have a strong concentration of locations in the South, Herc has a major presence in New England, the upper Midwest and Pacific Northwest. H&E has a heavy concentration in Montana, Wyoming, Colorado, Utah and Idaho. H&E is a general rental business,while Herc specializes in products for areas such as power generation, pump, HVAC and floor care. In recent years, H&E has taken aggressive measures, selling off its crane business in 2021 and its earthmoving distributorships in 2022 to concentrate on equipment rental. H&E also

bought up smaller equipment companies in the Midwest and West.

Analysts say the larger an equipment rental company is, the better its chances are of getting new equipment from manufacturers and the better price it pays. Herc was started about 60 years ago and has a rental fleet valued at just over $7 billion. By acquiring H&E, Herc said it will strengthen its position as the third-largest rental company in North America.

Email Timothy Boone at tboone@theadvocate.com.

ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO By JULIA DEMAREE NIKHINSON

President Donald Trump talks to workers as he tours U.S Steel Corporation’s Mon Valley Works-Irvin plant on May 30 in West Mifflin, Pa.

Trump announces travel ban on a dozen countries

BY CHRIS MEGERIAN and FARNOUSH AMIRI Associated Press

WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump is resurrecting the travel ban policy from his first term, signing a proclamation Wednesday night preventing people from a dozen countries from entering the United States

The countries include Afghanistan, Burma, Chad, Republic of the Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Haiti, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan and Yemen.

In addition to the ban, which takes effect at 12:01 a.m. ET Monday there will be heightened restrictions on visitors from Burundi, Cuba, Laos, Sierra Leone, Togo, Turkmenistan and Venezuela.

“I must act to protect the national security and national interest of the United States

and its people,” Trump said in his proclamation.

The list results from a Jan 20 executive order Trump issued requiring the departments of State and Homeland Security and the Director of National Intelligence to compile a report on “hostile attitudes” toward the U.S. and whether entry from certain countries represented a national security risk.

During his first term, Trump issued an executive order in January 2017 banning travel to the U.S. by citizens of seven predominantly Muslim countries — Iraq, Syria, Iran, Sudan, Libya, Somalia and Yemen.

It was one of the most chaotic and confusing moments of his young presidency Travelers from those nations were either barred from getting on their flights to the U.S or detained at U.S. airports after they landed.

They included students and faculty as well as businesspeople, tourists and people visiting friends and family

The order, often referred to as the “Muslim ban” or the “travel ban,” was retooled amid legal challenges, until a version was upheld by the Supreme Court in 2018.

The ban affected various categories of travelers and immigrants from Iran, Somalia, Yemen, Syria and Libya, plus North Koreans and some Venezuelan government officials and their families.

Trump and others have defended the initial ban on national security grounds, arguing it was aimed at protecting the country and not founded on anti-Muslim bias. However, the president had called for an explicit ban on Muslims during his first campaign for the White House.

Trump orders investigation of Biden’s use of an autopen

BY MATT BROWN and CHRIS MEGERIAN Associated Press

WASHINGTON President Donald Trump on Wednesday ordered his administration to investigate former President Joe Biden’s use of an autopen to sign pardons and other documents, increasing the pressure on his predecessor as House Republicans also requested interviews with members of Biden’s inner circle. An autopen is a mechanical device that is used to replicate a person’s authentic signature, and presidents have used them for decades. However, Trump has frequently suggested that some of Biden’s actions are invalid because his aides were usurping presidential authority to cover up what Trump claims is Biden’s cognitive decline

“This conspiracy marks one of the most dangerous and concerning scandals in American history,” Trump wrote in a memo. “The American public was purposefully shielded from discovering who wielded the executive power, all while Biden’s signature was deployed across thousands of documents to effect radical policy shifts.”

Trump directed Attorney General Pam Bondi and White House Counsel David Warrington to handle the investigation

Meanwhile, House Oversight Chairman James Comer of Kentucky a Republican, requested transcribed interviews with five Biden aides, alleging they had participated in a “cover-up” that amounted to “one of the greatest scandals in our nation’s history.”

“These five former senior advisors were eyewitnesses

to President Biden’s condition and operations within the Biden White House,” Comer said in a statement. “They must appear before the House Oversight Committee and provide truthful answers about President Biden’s cognitive state and who was calling the shots.”

Interviews were requested with White House senior advisers Mike Donilon and Anita Dunn, former White House chief of staff Ron Klain, former deputy chief of staff Bruce Reed and Steve Ricchetti, a former counselor to the president.

Comer reiterated his call for Biden’s physician, Kevin O’Connor, and former senior White House aides Annie Tomasini, Anthony Bernal, Ashley Williams and Neera Tanden to appear before the committee. He warned subpoenas would be issued this week if they refuse to sched-

ule voluntary interviews.

“I think that people will start coming in the next two weeks,” Comer told reporters. He added that the committee would release a report with its findings, “and we’ll release the transcribed interviews, so it’ll be very transparent.”

Democrats have dismissed the effort as a distraction.

“Chairman Comer had his big shot in the last Congress to impeach Joe Biden and it was, of course, a spectacular flop,” said Rep. Jamie Raskin, the Maryland Democrat who served as the ranking member on the oversight committee in the previous Congress.

“And now he’s just living off of a spent dream. It’s over And he should give up the whole thing.”

Republicans on the committee are eager to pursue the investigation.

“The American people

didn’t elect a bureaucracy to run the country,” said Rep. Brandon Gill, a freshman Republican from Texas.

“I think that the American people deserve to know the truth and they want to know the truth of what happened.”

The Republican inquiry so far has focused on the final executive actions of Biden’s administration, which included the issuing of new federal rules and presidential pardons that they claim may be invalid.

Comer cited the book

“Original Sin” by CNN’s Jake Tapper and Axios’ Alex Thompson, which details concerns and debates inside the White House and Democratic Party over Biden’s mental state and age.

In the book, Tapper and Thompson wrote, “Five people were running the country, and Joe Biden was at best a senior member of

the board.”

Biden and members of his family have vigorously denied the book’s claims.

“This book is political fairy smut for the permanent, professional chattering class,” said Naomi Biden, the former president’s granddaughter Biden withdrew from the presidential race last summer after a debate against Trump in which he appeared to lose his train of thought multiple times, muttered inaudible answers and misnamed different government programs. The disastrous debate performance pushed questions about his age and mental acuity to the forefront, ultimately leading Biden to withdraw from the presidential race. He was replaced on the ticket by Kamala Harris, who lost the election to Trump.

BY BEN FINLEY Associated Press

A federal judge on Wednesday ordered the unsealing of several court documents in the lawsuit over Kilmar Abrego Garcia’s deportation, rejecting the Trump administration’s arguments that it would risk national security U.S. District Judge Paula Xinis in Maryland issued her order after media organizations, including The

Associated Press, argued the public has a right to access court records under the First Amendment. Filings unsealed so far offer little information that’s new or unknown publicly Xinis described one document as “relatively boilerplate.” It was a request by the Trump administration to temporarily halt discovery an early phase of a lawsuit where parties share evidence

“It does not disclose any

potentially privileged or otherwise sensitive information for which a compelling government interest outweighs the right to access,” Xinis wrote. Xinis noted that some documents were public before the court was asked to seal them the next day Those filings contained a back-andforth between Abrego Garcia’s attorneys and the U.S. government over efforts to return him from El Salvador Trump administration

Trump moves to block foreigners from coming to Harvard University

BY COLLIN BINKLEY Associated Press

WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump is moving to block nearly all foreign students from entering the country to attend Harvard University, his latest attempt to choke the Ivy League school from an international pipeline that accounts for a quarter of the student body

In an executive order signed Wednesday, Trump declared that it would jeopardize national security to allow Harvard to continue hosting foreign students on its campus in Cambridge, Massachusetts

“I have determined that the entry of the class of foreign nationals described above is detrimental to the interests of the United States because, in my judgment, Harvard’s

conduct has rendered it an unsuitable destination for foreign students and researchers,” Trump wrote in the order It’s a further escalation in the White House’s fight with the nation’s oldest and wealthiest university A federal court in Boston blocked the Department of Homeland Security from barring international students at Harvard last week. Trump’s order invokes a different legal authority. It stems from Harvard’s refusal to submit to a series of demands made by the federal government. It has escalated recently after the Department of Homeland Security said Harvard refused to provide records related to misconduct by foreign students Harvard says it has complied with the request, but the government said the school’s response was insufficient.

lawyers often objected to answering questions, arguing that they involve state secrets, sensitive diplomatic negotiations and other protected information. Wednesday’s ruling was

unrelated to the Trump administration pending invocation of the state secrets privilege, a legal doctrine often used in military cases. The administration has argued that releasing infor-

mation about the Abrego Garcia matter in open court — or even to the judge in private – could jeopardize national security Xinis is yet to rule on the state secrets claim.

ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO By ALEX BRANDON President Donald Trump speaks on the South Lawn of the White House in Washington on Wednesday.

Canadian wildfires’ smoke hangs over Midwest

BY PATRICK WHITTLE and STEVE KARNOWSKI Associated Press

PORTLAND, Maine Smoke from Canadian wildfires worsened air quality in the eastern U.S. on Wednesday as several Midwestern states battled conditions deemed unhealthy by the federal government

The fires have forced thousands of Canadians to flee their homes and sent smoke as far as Europe.

In the U.S., smoke lingered on the skylines of cities from Kansas City to Minneapolis, and a swath of the region had unhealthy air quality Wednesday, according to an Environmental Protection Agency map.

In Stoughton, Wisconsin, Nature’s Garden Preschool was keeping its kids indoors Wednesday due to the bad air quality which interferes with the daily routine, said assistant teacher Bailey Pollard. The smoke looked like a coming storm, he said.

The 16 or 17 kids ages 12 weeks to 5 years old would typically be outdoors running or playing with water, balls and slides, but were instead inside doing crafts with PlayDoh or coloring The situation was unfortunate because kids need to be outside and have fresh air and free play, Pollard said.

quality concern, and officials advised sensitive people to consider reducing outdoor activity

to take extra breaks during strenuous activity outdoors.

Conditions at ground level are in the red

“It’s something where we’ve got to take precaution for the kids,” he said. “Nobody wants to stay inside all day.”

In Michigan’s Upper Peninsula, authorities advised people shut windows at night, avoid strenuous activity outside and watch for breathing issues.

Parts of Maine, Vermont, New Hampshire and New York had areas of moderate air

Unhealthy conditions persist

The Minnesota Pollution Control Agency issued an alert for almost the entire state into Wednesday, but the Twin Cities area got the region’s worst of it Tuesday

Children’s Minnesota, a network of pediatric clinics and hospitals in the Twin Cities area, has seen a “modest increase” increase this week in patients with symptoms that doctors attributee to polluted air Dr Chase Shutak said.

Their symptoms have included breathing problems, including asthma and other upper respiratory issues, said Shutak, who stays in close touch with other pediatricians in his role as medical director of the Minneapolis primary care clinic at Children’s.

The Iowa Department of Natural Resources warned that air quality in a band from the state’s southwest corner to the northeast could fall into the unhealthy category through Thursday morning.

The agency recommended that people — especially those with heart and lung disease avoid long or intense activities and

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s AirNow map showed a swath of red for “unhealthy” conditions across Wisconsin and northern Iowa. The Air Quality Index was around 160 in many parts of the upper Midwest, indicating poor conditions.

The Air Quality Index , or AQI, measures how clean or polluted the air is, indicating which health effects might be experienced within a few hours or days after breathing polluted air It is based on ground-level ozone, particle pollution, carbon monoxide, sulfur dioxide and nitrogen dioxide. Particulates are the main issue from the fires.

The index ranges from green, indicating satisfactory air quality that poses little or no risk, to maroon, which is considered hazardous. That level comes with health warnings of emergency conditions, which are more likely to affect everyone.

There were areas of reduced air quality all over the U.S. on Wednesday, with numerous advisories about moderate air quality concerns as far from the fires as Kansas and Georgia.

BY AMANDA SEITZ Associated Press

WASHINGTON A Texas hospital that repeatedly sent a woman who was bleeding and in pain home without ending her nonviable, lifethreatening pregnancy violated the law, according to a newly released federal investigation

Thurman had hoped the federal government’s investigation, which issued a report in April after concluding its inquiry last year, would send a clear message that ectopic pregnancies must be treated by hospitals in Texas, which has one of the nation’s strictest abortion bans.

periencing medical emergencies. It directed hospitals — even ones in states with severe restrictions — to provide abortions in those emergency cases. If hospitals did not comply, they would be in violation of a federal law and risk losing some federal funds.

The government’s findings which have not been previously reported, were a small victory for 36-year-old Kyleigh Thurman, who ultimately lost part of her reproductive system after being discharged without any help from her hometown emergency room for her dangerous ectopic pregnancy

But a new policy the Trump administration announced on Tuesday has thrown into doubt the federal government’s oversight of hospitals that deny women emergency abortions, even when they are at risk for serious infection, organ loss or severe hemorrhaging

“I didn’t want anyone else to have to go through this,” Thurman said in an interview with The Associated Press from her Texas home this week. “I put a lot of the responsibility on the state of Texas and policy makers and the legislators that set this chain of events off.”

Uncertainty regarding access

Women around the country have been denied emergency abortions for their life-threatening pregnancies after states swiftly enacted abortion restrictions in response to a 2022 ruling from the U.S. Supreme Court, which includes three appointees of President Donald Trump.

The guidance issued by the Biden administration in 2022 was an effort to preserve access to emergency abortions for extreme cases in which women were ex-

The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, the federal agency responsible for enforcing the law and inspecting hospitals, announced on Tuesday it would revoke the Biden-era guidance around emergency abortions CMS administrator Dr Mehmet Oz said in a social media post on Wednesday that the revocation of the policy would not prevent pregnant women from getting treatment in medical emergencies.

“The Biden Administration created confusion, but EMTALA is clear and the law has not changed: women will receive care for miscarriage, ectopic pregnancy, and medical emergencies in all fifty states — this has not and will never change in the Trump Administration,” Oz wrote, using the acronyms for the Emergency Medical Treatment and Labor Act.

The law, which remains intact and requires doctors to provide stabilizing treatment, was one of the few ways that Thurman was able to hold the emergency room accountable after she didn’t receive any help from staff at Ascension Seton Williamson in Round Rock, Texas, in February 2023, a few months after Texas enacted its strict abortion ban.

Ectopic pregnancy left untreated

Emergency room staff observed that Thurman’s hormone levels had dropped, a pregnancy was not visible in her uterus and a structure was blocking her fallopian tube — all telltale signs of an ectopic pregnancy, when a fetus implants outside of the uterus and has no room to grow If left untreated, ectopic pregnancies can rupture, causing organ damage, hemorrhage or even death.

Thurman, however, was sent home and given a pamphlet on miscarriage for her first pregnancy She returned three days later, still bleeding, and was given an injected drug intended to end the pregnancy, but it was too late.

Days later, she showed up again at the emergency room, bleeding out because the fertilized egg growing on Thurman’s fallopian tube ruptured it. She underwent an emergency surgery that removed part of her reproductive system.

CMS launched its investigation of how Ascension Seton Williamson handled Thurman’s case late last year shortly after she filed a complaint. Investigators concluded the hospital failed to give her a proper medical screening exam, including an evaluation with an OB-GYN. The hospital violated EMTALA, which requires emergency rooms to provide stabilizing treatment to all patients. Thurman was “at risk for deterioration of her health and well-being as a result of an untreated medical condition,” the investigation said in its report, which was publicly released last month.

Ascension, a vast hospital system that has facilities across multiple states, did not respond to questions about Thurman’s case, saying only that it is “is committed to providing high-quality care to all who seek our services.”

Thurman

ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO By SCOTT MCFETRIDGE

The Iowa State Capitol in Des Moines, Iowa, is seen through smoky skies Wednesday due to wildfires in Canada.

Subdivision regulations tightened

Police Jury narrows ordinance on residential construction

BY JAMES MINTON Contributing writer

After months of delays, the East Feliciana Parish Police Jury has imposed tighter regulations on residential subdivision development.

At a meeting Monday, jurors did not vote on lifting a moratorium on new residential subdivisions, but jury

President Louis Kent said the vote effectively canceled the moratorium.

The subdivision ordinance amend-

ments came from the Planning and Zoning Commission with a proposal to require a minimum of 2 acres for most subdivision lots, but the jury voted 5-3 to change the requirement to a 2-acre density in a subdivision.

Jurors Kyle Fleniken, Jason McCray, Richard Oliveaux, Keith Mills and Chrissie O’Quin supported the 2-acre density requirement, while

Kristen Chasteen, Dexter Armstead and Michael Cheatham dissented and Kent did not vote.

Planning and Zoning Commission

Chair Josh O’Quin said the density model would allow a 10-acre tract to be divided into no more than five lots, with the smallest being the minimum size required by state health regulations for sewage disposal. A strict 2-acre minimum would

months of delay,

ALL BELL AND GOOD

Sean Chaffee, a member of Bethel Baptist Worship Center in Morganza, grinds off old paint in preparation for repainting the church’s bell tower on Tuesday Chaffee and his family spend some of their free time volunteering to help maintain the small church in the Mississippi River village. Located in Pointe Coupee Parish, Morganza is known for landmarks such as the Morganza Spillway and for scenes from the film ‘Easy Rider,’ which featured Peter Fonda, Dennis Hopper, Jack Nicholson and a performance by Buddy Guy filmed at the now-closed Melancon’s Café.

Five men arrested in fatal April Baton Rouge shooting

BY ELLYN COUVILLION

writer

said.

Four of the men arrested Tuesday were already in the parish jail on unrelated counts when they were rebooked on counts

related to the case, the Sheriff’s Office said. The shooting happened shortly after 6 p.m. April 30 at an apartment complex in the 16000 block of South Harrell’s Ferry Road. Deputies responding to the scene found a man, later identified as David Turley III, 25, who had been shot in the torso. Turley was transported to a hospital, where he died of his injuries. A witness, who was walking

with Turley when the shooting happened, told detectives they were approached by three armed, unknown men, who asked Turley to swap guns with them, arrest records say When Turley said no, a struggle broke out as one of the suspects tried to take away his gun.

“During this struggle, one of the suspects shot the victim, who fell to the ground,” the arrest records say “As the victim was on

the ground, the shooter took the victim’s pistol.” A fourth and fifth suspect helped hide the three men in their home, providing the suspects with different clothes, as well as a vehicle for them to flee in, the affidavit said.

Three of the suspects — Amorian Floyd, 25; Jayshon Smith, 21, and Marlon Ross, 19 — were

See SHOOTING, page 2B

Suspect arrested in shooting death, kidnapping

Man took ex-girlfriend after killing her boyfriend, police say

BY QUINN COFFMAN Staff writer

A man was shot to death outside his David Drive residence on Monday afternoon, then his girlfriend was kidnapped. On Tuesday, Baton Rouge police arrested her ex-boyfriend as a suspect in both crimes.

Officers responding to a call about a shooting at a residence in the 10000 block of David Drive around 5:30 p.m. Monday found the body of James Harrell, 44. Homicide detectives learned that Harrell and his girlfriend had been followed by the girlfriend’s previous partner, according to a release from the Baton Rouge Police Department. Through investigation, detectives identified Andre Franklin, 42, as the suspect. Franklin had been following the couple in his car on the day of Harrell’s killing, police said. He stopped alongside Harrell’s vehicle at a stoplight, where an argument ensued, police said

BY ELLYN COUVILLION Staff writer

Resolution adopted to call a special election to fill the seat Duplechein

Longtime Ascension Parish School Board member Scott Duplechein submitted his resignation this week and will leave his position on Friday, the school district announced Wednesday Duplechein has been on the board since 2014, and his departure prompted the School Board to seek applications for an interim board member The board has adopted a resolution to call a special election on Oct. 11 to fill the District 2 seat for the remainder of the term, which runs through December 2026. In the meantime, according to

See MEMBER, page 2B

STAFF PHOTO By DAVID GRUNFELD

STAFF FILE PHOTO By HILARy SCHEINUK

After

the East Feliciana Parish Police Jury has imposed tighter regulations on residential subdivision development.

EAST FELICIANA PARISH

IbervilleParishtohostJuneteenthcelebration

Second annual eventwilltake placeonJune19

BY HALEY MILLER Staff writer

Iberville Parish will host itssecondJuneteenthcelebration to pay tributeto Black American history, commemorate theemancipation of enslavedpeople in 1865 and promote freedom for their descendants.

“I think the parish doing it is awonderfulthing and signal for unity in the parish itself,” said the Rev.Clyde McNell Sr., who will be honored during the event.

The federal holiday marks the historic moment in June 1865 when Union troops arrivedinTexas, the westernmost state to secede from the United States and join the Confederacy,to

enforce theEmancipation Proclamation and free over 250,000 enslaved Black Americans.

Thecelebration is also known as FreedomDay,Jubilee Day and Independence Day

“Wenever forget the history,” McNellsaid. “Wekeep that in mind, but wecelebrate more.”

The program will begin at 2p.m. June 19 at the Carl F. Grant Civic Centerin Plaquemine. Doors open at 1p.m

Iberville celebrated the holidayfor thefirst time in 2024 when Parish President Chris Daigle, then in his first year in office, “saw an opportunity to highlight and bring to the forefront theimportance of theJuneteenth Holiday and begin honoring our residents of Iberville Parish,” parish

ChiefAdministrative Officer Dwayne Boudreaux wrote in an email to The Advocate. Daigle said the purposeofthe parish event is to both acknowledge the reality of what Black enslaved people endured and advocate for unityinIberville.

“Wefelt it our dutytopropel Iberville Parish into the forefront of unity,historical truth andtogetherness by honoring those in our community who work tirelessly for freedom,justice, high achievement and equality dayinand dayout,” he wrote in an email. “That is the true meaning of freedom in actiontoour administration.”

Theevent will honorfour contributors to thespiritof freedom in Iberville Parish: McNell,18th JudicialDistrict Judge Alvin Batiste Jr.,

former East Iberville High School Principal Melvin Craige and longtime community volunteer Veronica Hill.Theywillrepresent, respectively,freedom through religion, freedom through justice, freedom through education and freedom through community McNell is apastor at New Light Baptist Church, Pilgrim Rest Baptist Church and St. Peter Baptist Church in Iberville. He is alsothe president of theIberville ParishMinisters Conference.Tohim,freedom through religion encapsulates the faith that many enslaved people drew strength from and organized around, he said.

“I think about how they hung on to that faithto get through the enslavement, through thestruggle, through the fight to still be free after literally being set free,”McNell said. “It took

faith. It took stories from the Bible, from Exodus, Moses delivering the children of Israelout of Egypt. We’re seeing others who were Mosesofthis dayand time, the Harriet Tubman, the Frederick Douglass, the Sojourner Truth.”

For Craige, who is being recognized forfreedom through education,observance of Juneteenth means spreading knowledge about theholiday’s historyinaddition to celebrating, he said.

“A big part of that forme is that knowledge is power,” Craige said. “Itgoes back to the fact that alot of those people in Galveston,Texas, were notaware that they had been freed.”

Iberville’s eventwill conclude with local music performances.

Email HaleyMillerat haley.miller@theadvocate. com.

Police:Scooter driver shot at couple in Kenner

BY MICHELLEHUNTER Staff writer

Ascooter driverisfacing an attempted murder charge after authorities sayheopened fire on a driver who honked at him on aKenner roadway

An 89-year-oldman suffered twogunshot wounds to his arm while his passenger,a78-year-old woman, hadcutsfrom shattered glass, according to Kenner Deputy Police Chief Mark McCormick.

The shooting occurred about 9:30 p.m. May 23 in the 300 block of West Esplanade Avenue in Ken-

ner.A witness told police that aman later identified as Jarred Ambrose, 28, was driving amotorized scooter westbound on West Esplanade when avehicle behind himbegan honking its horn, according to authorities

Ambrose got off the scooter and walked over the driver’sside window of the vehicle, police said. Ambrose exchanged words with thevehicle’sdriver, the 89-year-old victim. He then pulled outa gun and fired eight shots at the car, according to authorities The victims drove to the nearby emergencyroom

of Ochsner Medical Center Kenner.Ambrose was gone by the timeofficers were dispatched to the scene. But authorities did collect eight spent casings from a9 mm gunnear the intersection of Loyola Driveand West Esplanade Avenue, police said.

Officers identifiedAmbrose as the suspect from the road rage shooting three days later when they were called to investigate a report of gunfire at his West Loyola Drive residence, according to McCormick.

Arelativecalled for police during the early morning hoursofMay 26 after

Ambrose fired agun inside the house,authoritiessaid. Ambrose told the officers he firedbecause he thought someone was breaking into the residence.

Police noticed that Ambrosefit thedescription of theroad rage shooter and had agun that was the same caliberasthe weapon from that incident, accordingtoMcCormick Ambrose admitted to the West Esplanade Avenue shooting, but toldpolice he feltthreatened after thevehicle rear-endedhis scooter andknocked him off, according to McCormick.

“Wedon’thave any indi-

cation that that crash actually occurred,” McCormick said of theAmbrose-described fender bender Ambrosewas arrested andbooked with attempted second-degree murder,aggravated assault with a firearm, two counts of illegal use of aweapon, possession of marijuana andpossessionofdrug paraphernalia. He was being held Wednesdayatthe JeffersonParish Correctional in Gretna. Bail wasset $361,500.

Email Michelle Hunter at mhunter@theadvocate. com.

deputy’s death

Bennett, Sandra Berean Ministries,508 N. River Road, DenhamSprings at 4:00pm Falcon Johnson, Mary WilbertFuneralHome, Plaquemine at 12pm

Gouvier,William Agile Brewingat3pm Hastings,Mildred Greenoaks Memorial Park,9595 FloridaBoulevard, at 10 a.m. Henry, Joseph OursoFuneralHomeinGonzales LAat 7:00 p.m Hunt,Evelyn ResthavenFuneralHomeat11am. Major, Joyce Immaculate ConceptionCatholic Church Hall in Lakeland, La at 11am O'QuinnSr.,A.W VictoryTempleofGreensburg, 14425 LAHwy 3, Greensburg, LAat 10am. Ricard, Charles Hall'sCelebrationCenter, 9348 Scenic Highway,at11a.m Spitale,Vincent MaterDolorosaCatholic Church at 11:00a.m Toliver Jr., Steve Greater NewGuide BaptistChurch at 11am Viavattine, Faith Broadmoor UnitedMethodist Church at 3pm

Obituaries Barton, Thelma Elaine

BY WILLIE SWETT Staff writer

ASt. Tammany Parish jury indicted three teenagers from Slidell in the death of asheriff’s deputy who was killed during ahigh-speed police chase in March. Sgt. Grant Candies, 37, was struck and killed while putting down aspike strip on an Interstate 10 on-ramp near the Oak Harbor exit in Slidell as he tried to stop the speeding vehicle on March 23. The grand jury indicted the vehicle’sdriver,Adrian Waughtal, 17, and one of the passengers, Mason Paul

SHOOTING

Continued from page1B

each booked on counts of first-degree murder and armed robbery.Two of them, Floyd and Smith

MEMBER

Continued from page1B

state law,the board must appoint an interim member within 20 days to serve until the October election, the school district saidin its announcement.

District officials expect to make the new appoint-

REGULATIONS

Continued frompage1B

require the smallest lot in the subdivision to be at least 2acres in size. Some jurors, including Armstead, favored lowering theminimum to 1acre.

O’Quin said the amendments now establish three types of subdivisions: n Simple subdivisions, with five or fewer lots and a minimum of 100 feet of road frontage foreach lot. n Larger subdivisions

Eugene Fischer, 17,with charges of second-degree murder, northshoreDistrict AttorneyCollinSims’office said in anews release. Michael Lanier,18, another of the passengers, was indicted with manslaughter TheSt. Tammany Sheriff’s Office said deputieshad tried to stop the vehicle near Slidell after seeingitbeing operated carelessly, but the vehiclespedoff,initiating apursuit that went into the Slidell city limits and eventually out onto I-10. The vehicle continued across theTwin Spans bridge into New Orleans,where it wasstopped

were alreadyinEast Baton RougeParish Prison on unrelated counts,arrest recordssaid

Ross was taken into custody by the sheriff’s SWAT teamathis home Tuesday night

Booked on counts of ac-

ment at theboard’snext regular meeting on June 17. Interested residents who live in District 2and would like to apply are asked to send aresume by email to board@apsb.org or deliver it in person to theSchool Board’soffice at 1100 Webster St. in Donaldsonville. Requirementsfor applicantsare:

that would require road construction and other improvements n Family partitions, which are considered variances. To be eligible for dividingland among family members, the tract must have been owned for threeyears before it can be considered. Duringapublic hearing, George Turner,ofEthel, who frequentlyspeaksonhousing issues,criticized the proposal, saying it had “nothing for theworkforce people.” The amendments also allow thedevelopmentof five or fewer lots accessible by a

after striking an NOPD patrol unit

“It’sjust senseless,”said St.Tammany Parish Sheriff Randy Smith in an interview shortly after Candies’ death. The April funeral for Candies, who was aU.S.Marine Corps veteran and theson of alongtime captain in the St. Charles ParishSheriff’s Office, drew hundreds of law enforcement officers. There were five people in thevehicle, the Sheriff’s Office said.Whenthe three teenagers were arrested, they were initially booked with first-degree murder,in addition to other charges.

cessory after the fact for first-degree murder and accessory after the fact for armed robbery wereAntonioFloyd,21, andAnthony Floyd, 23. Both men were already in Parish Prison on unrelated counts, when they were rebooked.

n Must be at last 18 years old.

n Must have ahigh school diploma or equivalent

n Must havelived in Louisianafor thepast two years.

n Musthave lived for the pastyear in the school system’sDistrict 2.

n Have neverbeen convicted of acrime listed in state law RS 15:587.1.

private servitude, butsix or more would requireaformal subdivisionproposalwith paved roads.

TUESDAY,JUNE 3, 2025

PICK 3: 9-2-1

PICK 4: 8-0-5-6

PICK 5: 1-6-6-1-6

MEGA MILLIONS: 16-24-29-36-45

MEGA BALL: 13 Unofficial notification, keep your tickets.

Seventeen-year-olds in Louisiana aretreated as adults in the criminal justice system,undera state law adopted last year In the news release Wednesday afternoon, Sims’ officesaid Louisianastate law allows for thedeath penalty for the murder of apolice officer.However, Sims’ office said, theSupreme Court has ruled the EighthAmendment forbids the deathpenaltyfor offenders who were under18atthe time of thehomicide.

In addition to theseconddegreemurdercharge, Waughtal,the driver,was

SUSPECT

Continuedfrom page1B

When Harrell and his girlfriend arrived at Harrell’s residence, they againwere metbyFranklin. Franklin exited the vehicle with a firearm,confronted Harrell, then shot and killed him. He then chased bothhis ex-girlfriend and Harrell’s son after shooting at them, according to the release. He managed to catch the woman, striking her several times andforcing her into hisvehicleatgunpoint, police said.Franklin fled the scene withher in the vehicle, but later released her, police said.

also indicted with aggravated assault witha motor vehicle upona peace officer, aggravated flight from an officer,aggravated obstruction of ahighway,obstruction of justice by tampering with evidence and conspiracy to distribute marijuana.

Fischer was indicted on aggravated flight from an officer,aggravated obstruction of ahighway,obstruction of justice by tampering with evidence and conspiracy to distribute marijuana. Lanier was also indicted for obstruction of justice by tampering with evidence and conspiracy to distribute marijuana.

The woman fled to the Baker PoliceDepartment andreported theincident

The events were corroborated with several witness statements andCCTVfootage, accordingtothe Police Departmentrelease.

On Tuesday,Franklin was arrested by PoliceDepartmentdetectives assisted by U.S. marshals. He wasbooked into the East BatonRouge Parish Prison on acount of first-degree murder,two counts of attempted first-degree murder,second-degree kidnapping andfor being afelon in possession of a firearm

Email Quinn Coffman at quinn.coffman@ theadvocate.com.

ThelmaElaine Barton wasbornDecember 11, 1962 in Clinton, LA to the lateClarenceBarton Sr andthe lateDoraTurner Barton.OnSundayMay 11, 2025 shedeparted this life at herresidenceinBaton Rouge,LA. She was employed at Winn-Dixiefor 24 years. Thelma leaves to cherish hermemories; her siblings, VelmaBarton Ingram of Baton Rouge,LA; Barbara Barton Lattimore (William) of Ventress, LA, Gladys Barton of Sacramento, CA; Clara Barton CarpenterofLos Angeles, CA; Sister in love Evelyn W. Barton of Jackson,LA; ClarenceBarton Jr.ofClinton,LA& JohnnyBarton Sr of Baton Rouge,LA. Host of nieces, nephewsand cousins. Preceded in death by herparents Clarence Barton Sr.& Dora Turner Barton,three brothers ClaudisBarton,Frank Barton,& LeoBarton,two sisters Emma B. Clay& Gloria Barton.Maternal& paternalgrandparents. Memorial servicesheldat11:00 am Sat.June7,2025 at Mt Hope Missionary Baptist Church 9654 Hwy 10 Ethel, LA 70730 Blanchard, Jason Paul 'Bean'

Jason "Bean"Paul Blanchard,age 49, anative and residentofDonaldsonville Louisiana passed away on Sunday, June 1, 2025. He wasa longtime and dedicatedemployee of PSC Groupfor the past 27 years as an Operations Manager. Jason assumed theresponsibility of caring for his siblingsatanearly age. He wasalways willingtogive histimeand ahelping hand to anyone in need.Jason's greatest passion was beingactiveinall of his kids'functions.Hewas theircoach,biggest fan andnumberone supporter in all of their activities. He thoroughly enjoyed supportingtheminall endeavors- from coaching them andtheir teams to attendingall events that involved them,including all their school functions and sportingevents. He wasalways willing to lend ahand whenever needed,spendingcountless hoursvolunteeringand cooking for theirteams. He wasextremelyproud of his son Rodney, nowcoaching high school footballand baseballatRiverside Academy. Hispride andjoy washis family, and he was especially fond of his granddaughter Claire,as he referred to heras"Boog -a-loo." Jason was an avid LSU, NewOrleans Saints, and AtlantaBraves fan.He is survivedbyhis loving wife, Hope Blanchard; daughter, Amber Landry (Luke); son,RodneyBlan-

McNell

chard; granddaughter, Claire Landry; two sisters, Dawn Landry (Roland) and Kim Blanchard; two brothers, Gavin Blanchard and Joshua Blanchard (Amanda); sisters-in-law, Lisa Falcon (Brian) and Regina Landry; brothers-in-law, Mitchell Landry (Louise) andMark Landry; motherin-law, Jacqueline Breaux; along with ahost of nieces, nephews, aunts, uncles, cousins, friends, and coworkers. He willbe deeply missed by all who loved him. He was preceded in death by his parents, Rodney and Sybil Blanchard; paternal grandparents, Adiole and Mandy Blanchard; maternal grandparents, Johnny Booty, JP and Rosemary Martin; father-in-law, Philip Breaux; mother-inlaw, Diane Breaux; brotherin-law, Brian Landry; and his good friend, Lloyd Delatte. The pallbearers will be Gavin Blanchard, JoshuaBlanchard, Mike Medine, Jody Dugas, Glenn Daigle, and Jamie Landry. Visitation willbeheld on Saturday,June 7th, 2025 at 9:00am-noon, with afuneral mass following at noon at Ascension of our Lord Catholic Church in Donaldsonville, LA. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made in Jason's honor to the American Heart Association or St. Jude's Children's Hospital.

Dorothy Jean Boudinot, anative of Osyka, MS and resident of Baton Rouge, LA passed away on May 26, 2025, at her home at the age of 91. Afuneral service will be held at Istrouma Baptist Church in Baton Rouge on June 9, 2025, with visitation beginning at 10am until service at 11am. Burial to follow at Resthaven Gardens of Memory in Baton Rouge, LA. Please go to www.chu rchfuneralservices.com/ ob itu ar ies /d oro th yboudinot to view fullobituary.

Demetrius Brunner who was affectionately called "Big D" passed away Friday, May 16, 2025, peacefully in his sleep in San Diego, CA. He was born June 4, 1953, in Cook County, Illinois and raised in Algiers, LA on Teche Street. Demetrius graduated from L.B. Landry HighSchool in 1972 and for over 30 years led asuccessful career in the Sheet Metal industry. Cherishing the wonderful memories of his life and carrying on his family's legacy are his children, Darius Sr (Dana) Brown, Dejuana Brunner, and Tamara (Dawan) Johnson; six grandchildren Diamond, Dejeanne, Jayron, Darius Jr., Demiere and Kylie; three great-grandchildren, Joziah, Demi, and Jailani; one sister, Alberta Washington, uncle, James Brown, ahost of nieces, nephews, other family members and friends Demetrius was preceded in death by his parents Dorothy Jean Brunner and James Pierre; brother James Rush; sisters Debbie P. Flemings and Constance Andrews. Funeral arrangements were entrusted to Bravo Family Mortuary, San Diego, CA with aprivate burial on May 22, 2025. Family and friends are invited to "celebrate his life" on Saturday, June 7, 2025 12pm-2pm at the House of Memories,1933 Stumpf Blvd. Gretna, LA 70056

Carpenter, John David 'Johnny'

With heavy hearts,we announce the passing of our father,John "Johnny" DavidCarpenter,who passed awayonMay 29, 2025, at the age of 78, after alengthy battlewith Parkinson'sDisease. Born on April 3, 1947,inWinnsboro, Louisiana, Johnny liveda full life marked by strength, quiet wisdom, and unwavering love for his family. He showed up for those he lovedwith patience, guidance,and a gentle sense of humorthat made everything feelokay. Johnny is survived by his wife, Susie Carpenter;his daughters, Amy Carpenter, Rachel Farmer andher husbandBart andtheir three daughters: Addie, Grace, and Harper; hisson, Russ Carpenterand his wifeSommer; hisbrother, Jack Carpenter and his wifeBeau; his beloved dog Buddy, and manymore cherished friends and familymembers.Heispreceded indeath by his parents, Jackand LucilleCarpenter. Johnny earned aBachelor of Science in Accounting from Louisiana Tech University and aJuris Doctorate degreefromthe LSU Law Center. He began his legal careerinprivate practice before transitioning to publicservice, first working for the Louisiana District Attorneys Association and the Louisiana Department of Justice. He then moved and spent most of his career working for the Louisiana House of Representatives and for the Division of Administration underGovernor Bobby Jindal. In 2009, he retired from state service to serve under EastBaton Rouge ParishMayor-President KipHolden. He later returnedtostate government as the Legislative Fiscal Officer, aroleheheld foreight years until hisretirement in 2020. Johnny was adevoted public servant who believed deeply in the democratic process. Throughout his career,he made lasting contributions to Louisiana's legislative and budgetary processes, leaving behind alegacy of integrity,dedication, and meaningful impact on the state. Beyondprofessional accomplishments, Johnny's greatest treasurewas his family,especially his grandchildren, with whom he lovedspoiling and spending his time. In his younger years, Johnnywas passionate aboutwater skiingonLakeBruin and coachedhis children's baseball,basketball, and soccer teams, instillingin them alove for sports and teamwork. Alifelong lover of music, Johnny enjoyed allgenresand was an accomplishedtrumpetplayer,sharing his talent with those around him. He enjoyed summerbeachvacationsand good, longroad trips. Back in his day, you couldfindhim boating and fishing on Bay St. Louis with close friends, Lynne and Lionel Hotstream Johnny always cheered for the LSU Tigers and loved going to the gameswith his family and friends. Honorary Pallbearers include BartFarmer, Bobo Henry,John AllenSentell, Lionel Hotstream,Keith Bond, Jim Bond, Morgan McMahan, Byron Henry, Chris Henry, Glenn Riley, and Rick Crump, whose friendship and support havemeant so much to our family.Inlieuofflowers, his family suggests acharitable contribution to the Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson's Research (www.give.michaeljfox.org ). Avisitation will take place Friday, June 6th, from 10:00 AM to 12:00PM at RabenhorstFuneral Home,825 Government Street.

Comeaux, Jr., D.D.S.

Dr. Clifford Comeaux, Jr. passed away suddenlyon theafternoon of June 2, 2025. He was bornonJanuary 10, 1944. He was anative of Baton Rouge and long-timeresident of Oscar, LA.Hewas agraduate of CatholicHighSchool in BatonRouge,Southeastern Louisiana Universityand LoyolaUniversity Dental School, practicing dentistry in BatonRougeand Livonia, Louisiana for 56 years. He was alifelong avid outdoorsman who lovedtofish and hunt with many dear friends. He is survivedbyhis son, Cliff Comeaux, III, daughter Elisa Clare Babin and husband Brandon, grandchildren Brynne Babin Guidroz and husband Sam, and Braden Babin. He is also survivedbysistersNeila Comeaux Eckler,Deanie Comeaux Bahan, Ann Comeaux Legleuand husband Thomas, along with numerous nieces and nephews. He was preceded in deathbywife,Natalie ThibautComeaux, parents Dr. CliffordComeaux, Sr. and Elisa LeBlanc Comeaux, brotherWalter Comeaux II,and nephew Stephen Eckler.Pallbearers will be Braden Babin, Brandon Babin, Sam Guidroz,MajorThibaut, Don Ristroph, and Thomas Legleu. Visitation willbe Saturday, June 7at8:00 to 10:00 at ImmaculateConception CatholicChurch in Lakeland,LAwiththe Mass of Christian Burial to follow at 10:00 with Reverend AmritRaj,IMS.Internment at Chenal Cemetery. In lieu of flowers,pleaseconsider adonation to Catholic School of PointeCoupee, 405 Louisiana St., New Roads, LA 70760, or ImmaculateConceptionCatholic Church, 12369 LA-416, Lakeland, LA 70752.

Cooper, Donald Ray 'Donnie'

RonnieLee Davisde‐partedthislifeonSatur‐day,May 24, 2025, at his residence in Plaquemine, LA. He was49, anativeof Labadieville, LA.Visitation onThursday,June 5, 2025 atWilliamsand Southall FuneralHomefrom2:00pm to4:00pm. Visitation to continue on Friday,June 6, 2025, from 9:00am to reli‐gious services at 11:00am Intermentprivate ArrangementsbyWilliams & Southall FuneralHome, 5414 Hwy1,Napoleonville, LA70390. (985) 369-7231. To signthe guestbook or offercondolences,visit our website at www.william sandsouthallfuneralhome. com. Davis andSon. www.halldavisandson.com

We celebrate thelifeof DorisMay Gray, born June 8, 1932, in NewOrleans whopassed peacefullyon May23, 2025. Adevoted mother, grandmother, and friend, Doriswas known for herwarmth, kindness, and familylove. She workedfor the CityParish of Baton Rouge in thesign engineeringshopDepartment andfound joyin cooking, watching Gunsmoke and football, and spendingtimewith loved ones. Sheisprecededin death by herhusband ClarenceSr.,her children Pamela Mayor, Jacqueline Lacour,Kevin Gray, and ConnieBrown,grandchildren,grandchildrenTonya, Terrill andin-laws. Allwho knew andloved herwill cherish Doris's memory forever.

AC McQuirterSr. en‐tered into eternalrest Baton RougeGeneral Med‐icalCenter-Bluebonnet on May 31, 2025. He wasa na‐tiveofWoodville, Missis‐sippi;a trustedformerem‐ployeeofWasherHillLip‐scomb Canbaniss; andwas a lovedand respectedre‐tired employee of Baton Rouge GeneralHealthSys‐tems. ViewingatMiller& DaughterMortuaryonFri‐day,June 6, 2025 from 4-6 pm; viewingresumes at First PentecostalofWake‐fieldChurch on Saturday, June 7, 2025 at 10:00 am until CelebrationofLife Service at 11:00 am;inter‐mentatFirst Pentecostal ofWilsonChurch Ceme‐tery. Survivorsinclude his lovingand devotedwife, Barbara McQuirter; sons Roosevelt,AC, Jr., Clifton, John, Jonathan,Ricardo and Richard; host of grand, great,and great-great grandchildren;other rela‐tives andfriends

James Rene DeLaune of Zachary, Louisiana, known to his family and his many friends as Rene, passed away on June 2nd,2025 aftera shortillness. Rene was born on January19, 1947 in Lake Charles, Louisiana and livedfor many years in Pineville,Louisiana. He graduated with an MSW from LSU, and followed LSUsportspassionately forthe rest of his life.He retired after working for theState of Louisiana and ProgressivePHP forover 40 years as asocial worker specializing in mental healthcare. In his retirement,hefocusedoncaring forand supporting his family members, chosen family,and friends, and enjoying his love of live blues music. Rene also spent many years feeding his lovedones with foodthat he grew in his home garden. He was an expert cookwho madesure to pass on his delicious gumbo recipetohis children and grandchildren. He was predeceased by hisparents, J. Burton and IvaDeLaune,his wife AndraDeLaune,and his wife Mona DeLaune

He is survivedbyhis twochildren, Joanna DeLaune and Jonathan "Zack" DeLaune, daughter-inlawJennifer, grandchildren Linus and Wylie, and ahost of otherfamily members and friends.

Special thanks to his daughters by marriage Julie Rundelland Cristy Dugas and his many grandchildrenand greatgrandchildrenwho he loveddearly, dear friends Calli Theriotand Joe Phillips,and to his extended "family" at Sidelines Grill in Zachary. Amemorial service will be held Saturday, June 7at 2PMatMilldaleBaptist Church, 11950 MilldaleRd, in Zachary, LA

Enteredintoeternal on May25, 2025 at theage of 60. Survivedbyhis 5sisters, Lisa, Carmenand Bridget Lawson, Felicia Kitchings andAleshia Snearl; 4brothers, Kevin andByron Lawson, Jacques andEddieSnearl. Preceded in death by his parents, Dorisand Herbert Lawson, Jr.; 2brothers, HerbertLawson,III and KeithD.Lawson.Visitation Friday, June 6, 2025, Hall Davis andSon of Port Allen, 1160 Louisiana Avenue,PortAllen,LA., 4:00 pm to 6:00 pm. Visitation continues, Saturday, June 7, 2025, 12:00 pm untilreligiousservice at 1:00 pm. Entombment Heavenly Gates Cemetery of Baton Rouge,Baton Rouge,LA. Funeral Service Entrusted to Hall Davis andSon. www.halldavisandson.com

BeverlyAnn Porche Mougeot, July 2, 1955 -May 28, 2025. "I havefoughtthe good fight, Ihave finished my course, Ihave kept the faith, henceforth,there is laidupfor me acrownof righteousness, whichthe Lord, therighteousJudge, shall give me at that day, andnot to me only,but unto all of them also that love hisappearing." 2Timothy 4:7-8

DonaldRay Cooper, known to friendsand family as Donnie,passed away on June 1, 2025, in St Amant, Louisiana. He was born on November 12, 1955, in Pasco, Washington. Donnie was self-employed for many years in theflooring business, followedbya successfulcareerasa millwright/planner with Turner Industries.Heenjoyed hunting,fishing,and being outdoors; however, nothing meantmoretohim than thetime he gotto spend with his grandchildren,Lincoln, Tucker, Piper, and Lydia. Donnie was kind in allthe ways that mattered. He was genuinely nice, quietly generous, and always thinking of others. Being around himmadelifefeelbetter. Donnieissurvived by his loving spouse, Wendy Cooper, of 47 years, and his twodaughters, Amy CooperConstant(Willis) and SandyCooperWendt (Jesse). He is also survived by hisbrother Richard Cooper(Mary Ann), sister Charline "Cheenie" Templet (Terry), and sister Mary Gail Kazan, as well as brother-in-law John Ronkartz(Nancy), sister-in -law Karen Ronkartz, and numerous nieces and nephews. He is preceded in deathbyhis parents, Georgeand Mary Cooper; brotherRonald Morgan Cooper; and brother-in-law Aykut Kazan. He also joins hismother- and father-inlaw, J.W. and Effie Ronkartz, and his sisterand brother-in-law, Shelia and Ed Hughes, in eternal rest. Visitation for Donnie will be held on June 6, 2025, from 9:30 a.m. to 11:30 a.m.,followedbya memorial servicestartingat 11:30 a.m.,both taking place at NewRiverBaptist Church in St. Amant, Louisiana. The church is located at 45270 LA-429, St Amant,LA70774. Donnie willberemembered forhis warm spirit and thelove he shared with his family He willbegreatlymissed by allwho knew him. In lieu of flowers,donations can be madetoTunnels to Towers Foundation (http://www.twt.org)orSt. JudeChildren's Research Hospital (http://www.stjude.org)in his hono

Ourbeloved motherlost herbattle withcancerafter acourageous fight. She wasa kind, loving,and givingperson wholoved takingcareofthe elderly. She lovedspendingtimewith herchildren, grandchildren,and family. She loved cooking for large crowds on special occasions. Sheissurvivedbyher daughterPaula Jarreau (Joseph Roy"Joey" Jarreau,Jr.); grandchildren Dylanand Nolan Jarreau; step children, RachelLitton (KennethLitton), Karen Mougeot, David Mougeot (Tammy Mougeot); numerousstepgrandchildren; siblings, Barbara (Gilbert), Brenda (Jimmy), Peggy, Jeff (Darlene) Randy;special sister-in-law, Kimberly Porche;and numerous nieces andnephews. Sheisprecededindeath by hersons, Travis Paul Mougeot and Little Larry Bonaventure; grandson Joshua Phillip Mougeot; parents, Mary Agnes Buecheand Wilford Porche,Sr.;Wickliff Bueche; brother, Wilford Porche (Boogie);and nephew,Shane Thefamilywould like to thank Pointe CoupeeHospital Staff andPointe Coupee Hospice fortheir care given to Beverly. Therewill be aprivate memorial service at alater date. Beverlywill be sadly missed by all that knew andloved her.

Willie "Joe" Franklin peacefully entered eternal rest on Monday, May 26, 2025, at theage of 90. He was along-time resident of BatonRouge,LA. Family and friends of 'Joe" are invitedtoattend theFuneral Services on Friday, June 6, 2025, at Hall'sCelebration Center, 9348 Scenic Highway, BatonRouge,LAat 2:00 pm. Entrusted to Hall

Joyce Yvonne Guidroz Major, anative andresident of Ventress, La, passedawayonJune2, 2025 at the age of 88. Joyce wasa graduate of Rougon High School andthenwent on to attendLouisiana State University whereshe wouldalso work as asecretaryfor aperiodoftime. Joyce wasdevoted to her faithand was amember of Immaculate Conception Catholic Church.Joyce is survived by hernephews, Charles St.Romain, Gerald St.Romain, andDaryl Olinde;and aniece, Carolyn Aguillard; andnumerousgreat and great-great nieces, nephewsand loved ones. Sheispreceded in death by herparents, Eva andPierreGuidroz;former husband, Allan Major; brother, J.P.Guidroz;sisters, OdileSt. Romain, MercedesOlinde,Jeanette Olinde,Iris Bueche, anda sister whopassed far too soon, Rose Guidroz;and nephew,JohnM.OlindeJr. Pallbearers will be Charles St.Romain, Daryl Olinde, JoeMajor, Jason St.Romain, Brian Olinde,and Todd Aguillard.Visiting at Immaculate Conception Catholic Church Hall in Lakeland, La on Friday, June 6, 2025 from 9:00 am until10:50 am. The Mass of Christian burial willfollow in thechurch at 11:00 am. Theentombment will followinChenalMausoleum.

Lois Spillman Nettles, ourbeloved matriarch whose life spanned96remarkable years, passed away peacefullyonMay 30, 2025, at Williamsburg Senior Living.BornonMay 15, 1929, in Baton Rouge Lois lived aliferichinlove, kindness and unwavering positivity, leaving alegacy that will be cherished for

Davis, RonnieLee

Gray, Doris Mae 'Mutt'

DeLaune, JamesRene

Lawson,Gerald David

Mougeot, Beverly

Boudinot, Dorothy Jean

Brunner,Demetrius 'Big D'

Major, Joyce YvonneGuidroz

Nettles,Lois Spillman

Franklin, Willie 'Joe'

Comeaux Jr., Clifford Charles

CliffordCharles

OUR VIEWS

On D-Day, we remember heroes;WWII museum honors them everyday

Editor’sNote: Thiseditorial, slightly revised, is published annuallyasatribute to D-Day Whenthe United Statesput itsyoungmen ashoreonD-Day 81 years agoFriday,theywere not alone.

Although Americans remember Omaha Beach, where our troops saw some of the bloodiest fighting and suffered many casualties, young men from at least adozen other countries fought and died on other beaches —all in the common cause of freedom.

By late spring 1944, after years of combat and human sacrifice, the tide had begun to turn against Adolf Hitler’sGermany.Evenasthe risks of the D-Day invasion weighedheavily on Gen. Dwight Eisenhower, whodrafted —just in case —a statement of responsibility forfailure, victory in Europe was finally in sight. Yet, many more died before it finally came.

The hammer blows landed against theReich on D-Day comprised history’slargest amphibious operation. The UnitedStates,Great Britain and Canada provided most of thetroops, but they were joined by forces from every Allied nationthathad suffered duringthe war: Australia,Belgium, Czechoslovakia, Denmark, France, Greece, the Netherlands,New Zealand, Norway andPoland.

Theirheroiccampaign is memorializedat the National WWII MuseuminNew Orleans, which this year marks its25th anniversary.Now asprawling campus that has welcomedmore than 10 million visitors since it opened in 2000 it began life as the National D-Day Museum, dedicated to telling the stories of those whoanswered history’scall thatstormyJune morning so far fromhome.

Louisiana is honored to host those whopass through its doors, especially themembersof our country’sGreatest Generation who served. Today,asalways, agratefulnation honors their struggles and sacrifices.

We also remember the dramatic innovations that sprang from America’sarsenals of democracy, particularly Louisiana’sshallow-draft Higgins boats, which madepossiblethe D-Day landings and those in the Pacific.

Perhaps the most enduringoutcome of World WarII, one embodied in theplanning andexecution of D-Day,isAmerica’srole as aworld leader.The late University of New Orleanshistorian Stephen Ambrose, who conceived the World WarIIMuseum, said that thedefining quality of Americans is our sense of optimism.It’swhat enables us to lead withhope, strength and adetermination to meet any challenge. Those qualities may seem sadlylackingtoday.But by commemoratingsacrifice made by thousands of young men whopiled outofboats and onto beaches in service of agreater cause, we honor their heroism andremind ourselves of the courage that freedom demands. Now, just like then, we must not forget that challenges far from our borders can have profoundeffects here at home. As it did on D-Day,meetingthose challenges willrequirethe best fromall of us.

LETTERSTOTHE

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

On June 6, we honor thebravery of those soldiers who stormed ashore at Normandy,France, on that day 81 years ago. D-Day led tothe defeat of fascism in Europe.

We must learn the lesson of rising authoritarian tendencies that threaten to renew fascism in our times.The Trumpadministration, by itsactions, moves away from democracy and toward afascist model of governing.

The precursors of fascism in Europe were theintentionally hateful rhetoric and targeting of “enemies of thestate.” We see today something eerily similar.Inthe 1930s and 1940s, thetargets of vitriol, violence and official policy were Jews; today,the targetsare immigrants, unjustly smeared withabroad brush as violent criminals and gang members. In prewar Germany,vocal dissenters in the press were vilified, intimidated and sometimes their offices wereransacked by mobsegged on by theruling party. Trumpand allies have embarked on asimilar path, calling mainstream media (with whom they disagree) “enemies of the people” and threatening to revoke the licenses of media organizations.

The mostserious authoritarian step

Local governmentsare where democracy comes tolife —closest to thepeople, most responsive to their daily needs and essential to thestrength of our nation —but our budgetsare being stretched thin. Election administration is acore responsibilityoflocal government, just like public safety or infrastructure, yet it’s too often overlooked. As the cost of running secure, reliable electionsrises, federal support hasn’t kept pace. Federal election funding has declined in recent years, down from the roughly $400 million allocated during President Donald Trump’s first term in fiscal years 2018 and 2020. His return to office brings renewed focus. In just the first month,Congress passed acontinuing resolution that included $15 million in election infrastructure grants, and Trumpsigned an executive order calling for modernization of our voting systems. Butwithout consistent, long-term funding, we risk slipping back into thesame cycle of underinvestment

towardfascism is the dismantling of therule of law.In1933, Adolf Hitler was elected chancellor,and he moved swiftly to consolidate power by declaring his authority where it didn’t exist. Likewise, Trump seeks to concentrate power in his hands by defying court orders that he doesn’tlike. He has usurped powers delegated to theCongress. He answered, “I don’t know” when asked if he is bound by theU.S. Constitution. Hitler brought themilitary under his control. He marched troops into Austria; he started World WarII by invading Polandin1939. Trump has declared that the U.S. will take control of Greenland, by force if necessary.Hehas threatened to seize control of the Panama Canal. Trumpisnot Hitler.But as we remember D-Day andthe struggle to banish Nazism we must confront the reality that Trump’sauthoritarian nature and actions are leading us towardfascism. Askyourself, do the president’s actions more closely resemble thefascist Third Reich or 249 years of U.S. democracy?

TONY SWITZER

U.S. Navy 1968 to 1972 Metairie

and vulnerability.

Elections are foundational to our democracy.Local leaders should never be forced to choose between securing our elections and maintaining essential operations or infrastructure. Unfunded mandates put communities in an impossible position, weakening the very system we’re elected to protect We need to treat elections as anational priority.Consistent federal investmentensures every community, large or small, can carry out safeand secure elections. Local governments are doing everything possible with limited resources. Now,it’stimefor Washington tomeet us halfway. Congress must committolongterm, stable election funding so that all Americans, no matter where they live, can trust that their vote is protected and counted. Ourelection system should be strong, resilient and worthy of public trust, not subject to budget shortfalls.

FRIDAY ELLIS

mayorofMonroe, small business owner

Where is the outcry about the tariffs on the United States? Right now,isthe outcry aimed only at those imposed by the U.S.? That President Donald Trump challenging foreign countries with tariffs is making people get on their proverbial “soap boxes” amazes me No one is protesting the fact that the United States has been paying these countries for decades. Until now,we the people have been paying for the tariffs on the United States allowed by former presidents. None, until Trump, fought back and turned the tables by charging tariffs on other countries. Let’scompare the effects on store prices. Iwould like an economist to present the effects if foreign tariffs were to be removed. What would be the price of our imports? Or another example, whatdoes shoplifting do to the cost of goods? I’ll bet it’saclose call.

KERRIE SLATON NewOrleans

Will Sutton’scolumnonour new pope with Creole heritage was fantastic. He quoted Jari Honora, who does research in NewOrleans on the family history of the Creoles of Louisiana. He stated that there are both Black and White Creoles. He is right. Our family is from Pointe Coupee Parish, and my grandparents and great-grandparents all spoke fluent Creole French. All White folks. So God bless our Creole Pope. As the late, great Michael Jackson said, “don’tmatter if you Black or White.”

DANNY HOGAN Pointe Coupee Parish

UNOcrucial to WWII Museum’s success

Most everyoneknows that the National WWII Museum is one of New Orleans’ crown jewels. Its official opening 25 years ago as theNational D-Day Museum attracted Hollywood celebrities, prominent electedofficials, marching bands and some 10,000 veterans —including many who landed in Normandy on June 6, 1944.

few chapters of hisjust-released book, “Preserving the Legacy: Creating the National WWII Museum” (LSU Press).

Today,the museum ranks among the most visited commemorative institutions in the country.

From its modest beginnings as the backyard brainchild of historians Stephen Ambrose and Gordon“Nick Mueller,the WWII Museum continues to honor the valor and memoryofthe menand women who saved America and the world from tyranny

This week, along with commemoratingthe D-Day invasion, the museum also celebratesits 25th anniversary The museum’sstaff, leadership and supporters deserve every bit of praise that comes their way.

But Iwonder how many folks recall the museum’s first major supporter, whose decade-long contributions in kind and in cash nurtured the institution when it was little more than apipedream for Ambrose and Mueller.Withoutthat supporter’shelp,the museum would neverhave been built.

Thatsupporter was Ambroseand Mueller’semployer—the University of New Orleans.

“Stephen had the idea and the national celebrity status,” Mueller told me in arecent email.“I was hissidekick on the organizational side, but neither of us could have succeeded without UNO’ssupport for more than 10 years. No UNO, no museum.”

That’snoexaggeration,Mueller said. He detailedall of it in the first

GATOR RIDE!

From the time the two friends and colleagues— both tenured UNOhistoryprofessors first hatched the ideaofcreating asmallexhibition center in UNO’sResearch Park in 1990 until the museum’sgrand openingdowntown on June 6, 2000, UNO served as headquarters andquartermaster forthe fledgling project. It was an all-hands-on-deck affair. From then-Chancellor Gregory O’Brien to graduate assistants and secretaries, UNO provided every level of staffing, office space, fiscal responsibility and fundraising know-how

The ideaofsiting themuseum in the UNO ResearchPark was Ambrose’s. It made sense at thetime. Thepark abutted the sand beach that served as the test-landingsite for Andrew Jackson Higgins’ famousD-Day landing boats, whichwere built in New Orleans.

“That was one of several compelling reasons for putting the museum on UNO’scampus,” Mueller said. “Itwas afree site with historic importance. Eventually,wewere fortunate to acquire abuilding downtown.”

In theearly to mid-1990s, Ambrose’s fameskyrocketed.A military historian whowas also Dwight Eisenhower’sofficial biographer,hefoundedthe Eisenhower Center at UNO to collect and serve as the repository for hundreds of oral histories of D-Day veterans. Those oral histories inspired Ambrose’sbestsellingbooks, among them “Band of Brothers” and “D-Day.”

His fame opened doors that few academics get to walk through. He befriended director StevenSpielberg and

Louisiana’shot weather activitiesare in full swing,but what in theworld is THIS? Howdid this guyget into this predicament andwhat is he yelling? youtell me. Be witty,funny, crazy,absurd or snarky —just tryto keep it clean.There’s no limit on the numberofentries. The winning punchline will be lettered into the word balloonand runonMondayinour print editions andonline.Inaddition,the winnerwillreceiveasigned print of the cartoon alongwitha cool winner’sT-shirt!

Some honorable mentions will alsobelisted. To enter,email entries tocartooncontest@theadvocate.com.

DON’T FORGET! All entriesmust include your name, home addressand phone number. Cellnumbers are best Thedeadline for all entries is midnight on Thursday. Have fun with

Ican hardly think of President Donald Trump and Africa withoutalso remembering his global insulttounderdeveloped nations.

In a2018 Oval Office meeting, you may recall, he grumbled aloud about why this country would accept more immigrants from “shitholes” in Haiti and Africa rather than places like say,Norway With that in mind, Ididn’t have asunny outlook about the prospect of his firstmeeting last month with South Africa’sPresident Cyril Ramaphosa. Ianticipated anattempt at televised humiliation much like the spectacle Trump sprang on Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in February The meeting was called ostensibly to smooth strained relations betweenthe two countries, but Trump usedittoadvance his White genocide agenda Trump contends that White South African farmers are being murdered in aracially motivated genocide, and that the South African government has permitted itself to seize theirland.He has amplified these falseclaims since as long ago as 2018, when he seemed to have picked them up from FoxNews host Tucker Carlson. They were the basis of his dismissal earlier this year of South Africa’s ambassador to the U.S. —who’d had the temerity to point out the racist overtones of Trump’sallegations —and of his executive order to cut off aid to South Africa He also used them as ajustification to grant 59 White South Africans refugee status to the United Stateswhile he continuestovilify,arrest and remove immigrants who came herefromother countries. The Oval Office meeting with Rama-

actor TomHanks, NBC anchor Tom Brokaw,and then-U.S.Rep.Bob Livingston, who parlayed hischairmanship of the House Appropriations Committee into a$4million grant for the museum— amajor fundraisingcoup.

That money,however,could only be used for capital expenses, notfor operatingcosts.

Thereagain, UNO stepped up, serving as fiscal agent for the grant and home base for the museumboard.Ambrose, who served as the foundingCEO of the museum, donatedhis services —and $750,000. At times, he even paid the salaries of early staffers, Mueller said.

Local business leaders who served on the institution’searly boardsofdirectors likewiseworked tirelessly and contributed heavily to the effort. But private fundraisingwas an enormous challenge in the early days —which made UNO’scontributionsofstaff, research,facilities and money so crucial to keeping the project alive.

“Success hasmanyparents,” Mueller said. “The effort hadmany supporters locally,statewideand in Washington, but we couldn’thavekept the project alive for the first 10 years without UNO. That story is barely knownorappreciated.”

Today, 35 yearsand $420 million after Mueller and Ambrose first envisioned aD-Day tribute, the National WWII Museum ranks among UNO’s greatest, if least heralded,legacies.

It’spasttime to recognizethat UNO, likethe museum, is one of New Orleans’crown jewels.

Clancy DuBos, a1976 UNO History graduate, is aretired political columnist for Gambitand The TimesPicayune |The Advocate.

phosa had barely begun when Trump ordered thelights dimmed to play purporteddocumentaryfootage he described, in his special Trumpian way, as like “no one has seen before.”

“Executed,”Trumpsaid gravely.“These are all White farmers that arebeing buried.”

“People are fleeing South Africa for their own safety,” Trump said amid aseries of accusations “Their land is being confiscated, and in many cases, they’re being killed.” There is no denying thatSouth Africa hasa persistent violent crimeproblem. Yet, while data available on thecountry’sviolent crime indicatethat farmers of allracialgroups aredisturbingly vulnerable to theft and violence, theydo notclearly support race as afactor In responsetothe images shown, he said thathe would like to find out what the location was. It will surprise no one thatthe grisliest images used in Trump’svisual aids were not indeed from South Africa. Theywere Reutersimages from the Democratic Republic of Congo, the newsservice confirmed. Specifically, they came from thecityofGoma, where an insurgencyhas been raging, andthey werepublished in February

We knowthisnow,becausesomeinstitutions in this country still care about the facts, evenifour president and his powerful political movement do not. In themoment of the spectacle, Ramaphosa couldhardly refute the images. But he kept hiscool. He had comewith aplan. Perhaps most effectively,Ramaphosaallowed otherstospeakfor him. He had brought impressive company.His delegation fromSouthAfrica included luxury goods tycoon Johann Rupert and champion golfers Ernie Els and Retief Goos-

en. Both complimented Ramaphosa’s leadership, perhaps more persuasively, to Trump’sgolf-loving heart, thanany other South African could have. Most of SouthAfrica’smedia appear to be praising Ramaphosa for remaining calm, patient and polite, although some saythey wish he had hit back harder. But Ramaphosa, by reputation, is no pushover.Once aprotegeofNelson Mandela, he was akey negotiator in the talks thatended nearly five decades of racial segregation known as apartheid in 1994.

When I first went to South Africa on assignment in 1976, the summerwhen riots broke out in Soweto, the Black township outside Johannesburg, little did Iknow that it would markthe beginning of the last round for apartheidand White-minority rule.

Icertainly would not have imagined thata future president of the United States would amplify the racistbacklash against the post-apartheid South African state —anentity, it should be said, that stands out in history for its restraint and humanity in addressing and rectifying the shocking, brutal injustices of the racistregimeitreplaced Now the next chapter in SouthAfrica’shistory is being written by anew generation withremarkably high hopes. They don’tneed outsiderstochurn up moreracial animosity based on false pretenses. They have enough real problems to tackle —inmultiracial coalitions,one hopes.

Meanwhile, our president is solidifying his image as aglobal leader of White identity politics. He and his movement may deny it, but his message is as clear as abell.

Email Clarence Page at clarence47page@gmail.com

The Republican Party wasindesperate straits in the weeks following the 2012 presidential election. There were several reasons.

One, its losing nominee, Mitt Romney,was a poor candidate whom asignificant part of the GOP base, and an even moresignificant part of the overall electorate, did not want.

Two, its opponent, President Barack Obama, appeared to have found the secret to assembling apermanent winning coalition. And three, Republican leaders worried, sometimes publicly and sometimes privately,that the party was on the wrong side of somekey issues, especially immigration.

Just four years later,with Donald Trump’sout-of-the-blue 2016 victory,everything changed. Republicans had astrong candidate. The Obamacoalition was crumbling. And the GOP, under Trump, began to change positions on someimportant issues.

Four years after that, even though Trumplost to Joe Biden, someofthe trends that favored Republicans continued. And then came 2024, when the weakening of the Democratic Party accelerated under Biden and then KamalaHarris, and Trump wonahistoric comeback victory

Anew report showsthis extraordinary change —from Republican despair in 2012 to triumph in 2024. It is not told from aGOP perspective; the report is by the progressive Democratic data-crunching firm Catalist, which sought to understand Democratic losses. But whatever the perspective, the analysts examined voter file information, precinct-level data, voting history, polls and other numbers to come up with the most comprehensive picture yet of whovoted how in 2024.

What is particularly valuable is that Catalist then put the 2024 information in the context of data from the 2012, 2016 and 2020 presidential elections. That way,wecan see which direction each party wasmoving with individual groups of voters. Spoiler alert —it’safeel-good story for Republicans.

The trends are striking. Just go through the Obamacoalition —especially Black, Hispanic and young voters. In 2012, when Obamawas on the ticket, 96% of Black voters voted forthe Democratic candidate. In 2016, the first year Trumpwas on the ticket, Black Democratic support ticked downward to 93%. Then it fell to 89% in 2020, and then to 85% in 2024. Among Black men,support forthe Democratic candidate fell to 79%. Support levels wereeven lower among young Black voters. The trend looked alittle different but was still impressive among Hispanic voters. In 2012, 68% of Hispanic voters chose the Democratic candidate. In 2016, that number actually went up to 70%. But then it fell to 63% in 2020 and 54% in 2024. That’squite adrop. And again, the levels were even lower among young Hispanic voters.

The movewas similar among Asian voters 74% Democratic in 2012, 70% in 2016, 65% in 2020 and 61% in 2024.

Among young voters, the Catalist report included data only from 2020 and 2024, but among voters aged 18 to 29, support forthe Democratic candidate fell from 61% to 55% in that time. Remember,the Catalist analysts are progressive Democrats. They focused their report on the Democratic Party’sdecline from 2012 to 2024. But those Democratic losses wereRepublican gains. After Romney’s2012 defeat, the Republican National Committee commissioned an “autopsy” —a report on what wentwrong and how to fixit. Read today,the document’splaintive tone is striking. “Public perception of the party is at record lows,” it said. “Young voters are increasingly rolling their eyes at what the party represents, and many minorities wrongly think that Republicans do not like them or wantthem in the country.”

The official GOPprescription wastojoin with Democrats on the issue of immigration. “Weneed to campaign among Hispanic, Black, Asian, and gay Americans and demonstrate we care about them,too,” the report continued. “Wemust embrace and champion comprehensive immigration reform. If we do not, our party’sappeal will continue to shrink to its core constituencies only.”

Trumpled the party to winmore votes from Black voters, from Hispanic voters, Asian voters, young voters and voters whorarely,ifever,voted. And he did it while emphatically rejecting comprehensive immigration reform, which the 2012 GOPleaders believed would be their salvation. Trumprejected someother cherished Republican orthodoxies, too.

Most importantly,though, Trumpsucceeded among Republicans and then nationally by being astrong leader.Itissafe to say he is aunique individual, both as aleader and as aman. There’s no telling whether GOPgains will last beyond Trump’stimeinoffice. But formore than adecade, Trumphas been building aRepublican coalition that accomplished things the earlier GOP leaders thought impossible.

Byron York is on X, @Bryon York.

Clarence Page

Byron York

Clancy DuBos

generations to come. Lois's life wasa testament to thepower of love and family. As the proud matriarch of five generations, shededicated herself to nurturing her family, which she considered her greatestachievement. In her career, she shared her devotion to helping others as the medical receptionist and office manager for Drs. Holden and Baquet for 30 years until she retired. Her happy place, affectionately known as "The Camp," was the heart of countless family gatherings and celebrations over the span of 55 years. It was there that Lois fostered bonds that would endure through generations, leaving alegacy of love and cherished memories all the way to her great, great grandchildren. She was aguiding light to hergranddaughters, whom she helped raise into strong, resilient women. Known affectionately as MawMaw, Lois was aconstant source of encouragement, always offering kind words and an unwavering belief that the glass was perpetually half full. Her compassion and ability to love deeply touched everyone who had the privilege of knowing her. Lois was precededin death by her husband, E. C "Slim" Nettles, her son, Steve Nettles, and her parents, Lydia Gautreau Spillmanand John Joseph Spillman. She is survived by her daughter, Pamela Nettles Browning, her granddaughters Cristy Heck (Wallace), Nicki Stewart (Rob), Dara Vandever (Jimmy), Amy Duncan (Mickey), Andrea Nettles Burns, as well as 14 great grandchildren, and 8great great grandchildren. Funeral services to honor and celebrate Lois's life will be held at Greenoaks Funeral Homeand Memorial Park, located at 9595 Florida Blvd, BatonRouge on Friday, June 6th. Visitation will begin at 10:00 am, followed by aservice in the chapel at 11:00 am. Interment will take place in the Arbourimmediatelyfollowing the service. Pallbearers will be her great grandsons, Orrin Fontenot, Tyler Fontenot, Ethan Charlson, Owen Charlson, Chase Christiansen, and nephew, Michael LaFleur. As we bid farewelltoLois, our family extends deep gratitude to her caretakers, Audrey, Pat and Jan-

DEATHS continued from ice. We take comfort in the words of Proverbs 31:28:"Herchildrenriseup and call herblessed."

Though she may be gone from our sight, her love remains with us woven into everymemory,every lesson, every gentle word Heaven rejoicesaswe grieve, forithas gained a soul as kind as hers.

Richardson,MarcieA

Marcie A. Richardson entered into eternalrestat Central GuestHouse on June 1, 2025. Shewas ana‐tive of Roseland,Louisiana Viewing at Miller &Daugh‐ter Mortuary on Saturday June 7, 2025 at 8:00 am until CelebrationofLife Service at 10:00am; inter‐mentat Southern Memor‐ial Gardens. Survivorsin‐clude hermother, Josephine Richardson; chil‐dren, Alisha Johnson(Tom), Zachary,Louisiana and Derrick Anderson,Denham Springs,Louisiana;grand‐children, Dailon, Daisia and Ty'LiyahAnderson; sib‐lings,Jimmy Richardson (Joyce),Roseland; Joseph Lionell (Cathy)Richardson and LoutaviaHarrison, all ofBaton Rougeand Hilllary (Noel) Richardson, Lewisville, Texas; otherrel‐ativesand friends; pre‐ceded in deathbyher fa‐ther, Alonzo Richardson

Russell,Rita B.

Rita B. Russellpassed away on Wednesday, June 4, 2025, at theage of 90. She wasbornMarch 22, 1935, in Tickfaw, Louisiana to Carlo Bonuraand Sarah Cocharro Bonura. She was agraduateofIstrouma HighSchool. At theage of 19, Rita beganher decades long careerasa hairdresser -retiring at 80 years young!

She wasprecededin death by her parents; her belovedhusband of 67 years, Edward R. Russell; their daughter, Lisa Diane Russell; her sisterLinda Carruth; and her brother CarloBonura.

Rita is survivedbyher devoted sonDonald R. Russelland his wife Karen Calamia Russell;her belovedgrandchildren Lauren Russell Ladnerand her husband Todd,and Sam Russell; and her great -grandchildren Lincoln Ladner and Quinn Ladner. She is also survivedbyher sisterMary B. Parrino and her brother RayBonura; as well as numerous other loving family and friends.

The family wouldliketo acknowledge herlongtime caregiver, Claudette Ashworth,owner of Little Bits Home Care and theirdedicated staff.

Rita was aparishioner at St.JeanVianney Catholic Church. She was an avid bowler, and she and Edward enjoyed countless vacationsincluding atrip to Italy!In thelast few years, her passion forbirdwatching flourished and was embracedbyher family neighborsand caregiverswhich oftenresultedinnumerous trips aweekfor birdseedtofillher many birdfeeders, and ahuge populationofaviary companions visiting her home daily!

Relatives and friends are invitedtoattend aFu-

neral Mass at 11:30 a.m. on Friday, June 6, 2025, at St. Jean Vianney Catholic Church, 16166 South HarrellsFerry Road in Baton Rouge. AVisitation will be held at Resthaven Funeral Home,11817 Jefferson Highway, on Thursday, June 5, 2025, from 6:00 p.m. until 8:00 p.m., and on Friday, June 6, 2025, at the church beginning at 10:00 a.m. Interment willfollow at Resthaven Gardens of Memory.

Honoring Rita as pallbearersare RobKlemm, Brent Orillion, Todd Ladner, Dennis Parrino, Sam Russell,and Bruce Holden. Forthose so desiring, massesare preferred in honorofRitaB.Russell.

Family and friends may signthe online guestbook or leave apersonal note to thefamily at www.resthav enbatonrouge.com

RoyDavid Smith, belovedhusband, father, grandfather, and cherished friend, passed away on June 1, 2025, at theage of 84. Aresident of Baton Rouge, Louisiana, Roy was born on February 26, 1941, in McComb, Mississippi,to thelate Olar Earl and Pearl Burch Smith.Roy honorably served in theUnited

States Navy andlater enjoyed asuccessful career as an insurance agent. A man of diverse interests, he foundjoy in golf, bowling, andflying planes, and he wasa devotedfan of theLSU Tigers, passionately cheering for the team duringboth footballand baseballseasons. Hislove for music wasevident duringhis time as adrummajoratBaton Rouge High, reflectinghis vibrantspirit andleadership. Royisprecededindeathbyhis parents, Olar andPearlSmith; sister,VeraScott, andhis brothers, L.D.Smith, Earl Smith, andHarold Smith. He is survived by his belovedwife of 39 years, Soledad M. Smith; his daughters, Kimberly Mitchell (Dave), and Kelly Simpson (Dean); as well as four cherishedgrandchildren,Savannah Simpson, LandonSimpson, Mason Mitchell, and ElliotSimpson.Relatives and friends are invited to attenda FuneralService at Resthaven Funeral Home, 11817 Jefferson HighwayinBaton Rouge on Saturday, June 7, 2025, at 2:30 p.m. AVisitation will be held at thefuneralhomebeginning at 12:30 p.m. In lieu of flowers, the familykindly requests that donations be made in Roy's name to St Jude Children'sHospital or theWounded Warriors Foundation,honoringhis compassionatespirit and dedication to helpingothers. Familyand friends

may sign theonline guestbook or leave apersonal note to thefamilyat www.resthavenbatonroug e.com

VelmaSpearsWesley, a native of Amite County, MS,and aresident of Baton Rouge,LA, wasbornon August 11, 1925. She passedawaypeacefullyat theage of 99 on Sunday, May25, 2025. Visitation will be held Friday, June 6, 2025, 5:00-7:00 p.m. at Wilson-Wooddale Funeral Home, 1553 Wooddale Blvd., Baton Rouge,LA, 70806. ViewingSaturday, June 7, 2025 at Mt. Calvary Baptist Church,9471 Hwy 422, Norwood, LA, 70761, 9:00 a.m. to religiousservice to begin at 11:00 a.m. Burial in church cemetery.

Wesley, Velma Spears

Smith,Roy David

BY KOKI RILEY Staff writer

in thesuperregionals after West Virginia punched its ticket by winning three games in theTucson regional. But Gage Jumpcouldn’tkeep the Tar Heelsatbay in theninth,giving up the game-tying run that sentthe do-or-die contest into extra innings before LSU lost in the 10th inning.

The Tigers’ season came to an end while West Virginia traveled to Chapel Hill and lost twice to the TarHeels. This season, LSU made sure to set a date with the Mountaineers.

The Tigers cameback from a5-1 deficit in the second inning of Monday’sdoor-die seventh game of the Baton Rouge regional, taking down LittleRock 10-6 to advance to the superregionals. West Virginia wonall three of its games at the Clemson regionaltopunch its ticket to Baton Rouge on Sunday Game One of this weekend’ssuper regional is set for 1p.m.Saturday on ESPN, with Game Twocoming the next day at 5p.m.onESPN2.

Here’s what LSUfansneed to know about West Virginia, the Big 12 regularseason champion.

Overallresume

This year’s LSUbaseball team has been ahard onetopin down all season.

The Tigers haven’tlooked as dominant as the 2023 team, and at times, they’ve appeared pretty darned vulnerable. Their offense is prone to fallinginto the deep freeze at times, and the pitching staff —beyond two stellar starters and one amazing freshman phenom —has found the big out occasionally elusive.

And yet, here LSU is, preparing to host asuper regional against West Virginia, with the same record (46-15) as the 2023 Tigers had at this pointontheir march to the program’sseventh College World Series title. Even thoughthere

BY RODWALKER Staff writer

Zion Williamson has spent the past six seasons as the face of the New Orleans Pelicans. That rolewillcontinuefor the forward whose time in New Orleans has been filled with plenty of ups and downs.

have been question marks throughout the season, the Tigers are pegged as one of thetop two remaining teams to win it all along with Arkansas.

So howdowesize up LSUahead of its 13th super regional at home and 17th overall? Here’sa look at the good and badofwhere theTigers stand:

Joe Dumars, hired in April as the Pelicans executive vice president of basketball operations, spoke about the plans for Williamsoninaninterviewwith The Times-Picayune on Wednesday.

“I’ve hadreally good conversations withZion,” Dumars said. “We’ve had lunch. Dinner Watched playoff games together We’ve done it all. I’vehad some real honest conversations with him. Some real direct and honest conversations

Pitching,PartI:Good

Kade Anderson and Anthony Eyanson have been thestoryfor LSU all season long. They are arguably the best 1-2 starting duo in thecountry,and they makeLSU theonly team with twopitchers in the top-10 nationally in strikeouts and strikeouts per nine innings. Add Casan Evans, one of thenation’sbest freshman pitchers, and teamshave a three-armed monster withwhich to contend.

Those three allowed justone total earned run in 221/3 innings of work

ä See RABALAIS, page 4C

West Virginia enters withthe No.26 RPI,a44-14 record and three wins over Kentucky (twice) and Clemson in its regional. But its success in Clemson was viewed as asurprise to some given how it struggled at the Big 12 Tournament andduring theend of theregularseason

TheMountaineers lost five of theirlast six games in conference play,losing aseries to Kansas State on theroadbefore getting swept by Kansasathome to end the regular season. West Virginia held thetop seed in theBig 12 Tournament, but its run wasshort lived as it beat No. 8Cincinnati but lost to No. 4Arizona in the semifinals.

The regular season still was amassive success, even if the Mountaineers had one of the easier strength of schedules (No. 93, per RPI)inthe country.They earnedfoursweeps in conferenceplay, have a24-5record on theroad andown eight Quad 1wins.

Hitting

West Virginia isn’tbuilt forthe long ball, but it wasone of thebest teams in the Big 12 at getting on base and putting balls in play

“We’re going togoforward with Zion. He’sgoing to continue to be afocal point here as we go forward.”

Dumars andWilliamson also spent time together in Chicago in Maywhenthe two of them represented thePelicansatthe draft lottery.

“I senthim to the lotteryfor a reason,” Dumars said. “I want

himtostart focusing on theresponsibilitiesofbeing the best player here and the focal point. There are some responsibilities that come with that. Go represent your organization.”

Dumars’ plan to continue building thefranchise around Williamson was revealed less than aweekafter alawsuitwas

ä See PELICANS, page 3C

The Mountaineers were third in the conference in batting average, fourth in doubles and fourth in on-base percentage during Big 12 play.They also finished in the bottom half of the league in strikeouts.

Home runs are not astrong suit. They wereninthinthe conference with31 home runs and have only one hitter with double-digit homers this season. The man whoholds that distinction is senior Kyle West. The left fielder has 10 homers, a.347 batting average and ateambest 1.107 on-base plus slugging percentage. Surrounding West is adeep lineup

See PREVIEW, page 4C

If you’re afan of the New Orleans Pelicans, you should pay attention to these NBA Finals even if manybasketball fans will ignore it. This someday could be yourPelicans playing for the Larry O’Brien trophy Yeah, Iknow that’shard to fathom when the team you cheer for has made it to the second round of the playoffsjust twice since pro hoops returned to New Orleans in 2002. It’seven harder to imagine when you’re asmall-market team often overshadowed by those headline-grabbing media

darlingsinplaces such as Los Angeles, New York or Boston. Butthis year’s NBA Finals between the Oklahoma City Thunder and IndianaPacers should give you alittle hope.

It’sarare all-small-market Finals matchup that hasn’tbeen seen in more than five decades.

You’d have to go allthe way backto1971 when theMilwaukeeBucks played the Baltimore Bullets to find an NBAFinals where neither team wasfrom a city in atop-20 TV market. Viewer ratingsofthis series almost certainly will be low.But

you can expect the level of play to be high between two teams that three years ago were as bad as the Pelicans were this season. (My prediction, by the way,isOKC in five games.)

OneJune, perhaps an NBA Finals will be played in the Smoothie King Center That’sthe goal for Joe Dumars, hired in April as the Pelicans executive vice president of basketball operation.

“The teams you see in the Finals now,that was aprocess,” Dumars said. “None of that was overnight. That was aprocess. Indeed it was. Three short seasons ago, the Thunder won just 24 games. The Indiana Pacersdidn’tdo much better that season, winning 25 games. Three years later,they are bothfour wins awayfrom an NBA title. Credit theexecutives of the Pacersand Thunder fortheir ability to quickly flip their rostersand put theright pieces in place. They did it with quality coaches. They did it through thedraft.They did it via trades. Andthey did it by signing talented players in free agency despiteplaying in small markets. Dumars doesn’tplan to let building aroster in one of the NBA’s smallest markets stop him,either “In

ä See WALKER, page 3C

Dumars

Rod Walker

2p.m.

11

3p.m. N.y.Mets at L.A. Dodgers MLBN

6p.m. Cleveland at N.y.yankees MLBN

7:30

9a.m.

2p.m. Spain vs.France FS1

5:30 p.m. U.S. vs.Austin RicFCESPNU TENNIS

10:30 a.m.French Open TNT WNBA

6:30 p.m.New york at Washington PRIME 9p.m.Golden State at Phoenix PRIME

3:30 p.m. S. Potrero vs. Certified Lions ESPNU 4:30 p.m.Red Dragons vs.CONCACAF ESPNU WOMEN’S SOCCER 11 a.m. Solo FC vs.SpeedyTurtlesESPNU

Pacers,Thunder to decide champ

BY TIM REYNOLDS AP basketball writer

OKLAHOMACITY In these NBA Finals, ateamisfourwinsaway from getting the lastlaugh.

Ask anyone on the Oklahoma City Thunder and IndianaPacers if they’re still fueled by doubters, and the answer is probably going to be an immediate “yes.” Thunder star and NBA MVP Shai GilgeousAlexander went 11th in hisdraft. Pacers star TyreseHaliburton went 12th in his. Both sideshave undrafted players in theirrotation.

Here they are: The NBA Finals, which start Thursday night in Oklahoma City.The Thunder have, by far,the NBA’s bestrecord this season. The Pacers have the league’s second-best recordsince Jan. 1, includingplayoffs. And both teams have rolledthrough the postseason, going 12-4 in the first three rounds.

“I’ll continue to tellyou guys in certain momentsthatitdoesn’t matter what people say,but it matters —and Ienjoy it,” Haliburton said. “I think the greats try to find externalmotivationasmuch as they can andthat’ssomething that’salways worked for me.”

It’snot like more motivationis needed. Notfor the next couple of weeks, anyway.Indianaischasing its first NBA title. Oklahoma City —technically —isalso seekingits first; the franchise won achampionship when it played in Seattle in 1979. These are teams that combined to win 49 games just three seasons ago, and now they’re the last two standing.

“Staying true to who we are is the reason why we’re here,” Gilgeous-Alexander said. “We’d be doing ourselvesadisservice if we changed or tried to be something we’re not once we got here. We’ve had success doing so. If wewant to keep having success, we have to be who we are. It’sorganic. It’snothing we have to think about or force. It’sjust who we are, no matterthe moment.”

The Thunder are enormous favorites in the series, according to BetMGM Sportsbook, andunderstandably so.

They’re 80-18 includingthe regular season and postseason, plus went 29-1 in the regular season against the Eastern Conference

Offensive

BY MICHAEL MAROT

AP sportswriter

ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO By NATE BILLINGS

Oklahoma CityThunder forward Jalen Williams handles the ballduring the second half of Game 5against the Minnesota Timberwolves on May28inOklahoma City.

ä Pacers at Thunder 7:30P.M.THURSDAy,ABC

and have more double-digit wins 61 andcounting—than any team in any season in NBA history

“We’ve got alot of workcut out forus,”Pacerscoach RickCarlisle said. “A lot of our guyshavebeen through alot of situations where they’ve been underdogs in the past It’ssimply going to come down to us being able to play our game at the best possible level. We’re going to need totake care of the ball becausethese guys turn people over at an historic rate,and we’regoing to have to make some shots.”

TheThunder want no part of hearing this series willbeeasy.

Theway Indiana —a No.4 seed in the East —got through Giannis Antetokounmpo and Milwaukee in Round 1, atop-seeded Cleveland team in Round 2and New York in Round 3and neverfaced an eliminationgame hascapturedOkla-

homa City’sfull attention.

“Theirattack is very simple. The theoretical waytostopitissimple,” Thundercoach Mark Daigneault

said. “Inreality it’sverydifficult to do, as you can seefromthe way that they’ve really hadtheir way witheverybody They pump a99 mphfastball at you. Youcan prepare all you want forthat.When you’reinthe batter’sbox, it’sdifferent when it’stime to hit it.”

YoungThunder

TheThunder arethe youngest team to make the NBAFinals in 48 years, according to data provided by the league. With an average age of about 25 years and seven months, they’re theyoungest finalist since Portland in 1977. That said, hearing about it is getting, well, old.

“Young or not, when youcan learnfromwhatever situation you’rethrown in, that makes you better,” Thunderguard Jalen Williams said. “I think that’swhy we’rehereinthis moment.”

Busy OKC

There will be aGame1inOklahoma City on Thursdaynight anda Game 2onThursdaynight as well. At Paycom Center,there’sGame

1ofthe NBA Finals. And Devon Park,about a15-minute drive away from the Thunder home floor,will playhost to Game 2of the Women’sCollege World Series betweenTexas and Texas Tech that same night. If the softball facility —which will be the site of games at the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics —is filled, thatmeans about 32,000 people will be watching championship games in Oklahoma City on Thursday Past finals

Thereare four playersonthese teams withpreviousNBA Finals experience. Indiana’sPascal Siakam averaged 19.8 points in six games with Toronto, helping the Raptors win the title in 2019. Oklahoma City’s Alex Caruso averaged 6.3 points in six games with the Los Angeles Lakers, helping them past Miami in the bubble finals of 2020.

Indiana’sThomas Bryant got in onegameofDenver’s 2023 finals win over Miami, and the Pacers’ Aaron Nesmithplayedfor Boston in theCeltics’ loss to Golden State in the 2022 finals.

juggernautslooktotighten defense

INDIANAPOLIS The Indiana Pacers and Oklahoma City Thunder have two of the NBA’s best offenses. But this year’stitlehopes may swing on the other facet: Who has the better defense? While both teams made major improvements from lastseason’s respective rosters in the conference finalsand conference semifinals, Pacers coach Rick Carlisle, who led Dallas on its only title run in 2010-11 knows justhow difficult the challenge can be, especially against Oklahoma City

“Their depth of great defenders is staggering,” he said before listing names.“Shai(GilgeousAlexander) is agreat scorer,but he’salso agreat competitor.You’ve got Jalen Williams, you’ve got (Lu) Dort, you’ve got (Alex)Caruso, and abunch of other guys. People talk about (Aaron) Wiggins, CasonWallace and all these guys are great competitors. And then they’ve got the rim protection to go along with it.” That combination helped the Thunder win aleague-high 68 regular-season games while earning the top seed in the Western Conference for the second straight year. Apparently,itwas just awarmup. During the franchise’s first Finals run since 2012, the Thunder’sscoring defense has been even stingier —allowing just 106.3 points per game compared with 107.6 over the first 82 games —while yielding fewer than 100 points in half of their 12 postseason wins.

While Indiana has not matched those numbers, they eliminated three teams —New York, Cleveland and Milwaukee —that each averaged more than 115points

ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO By MICHAEL CONROy

Indiana Pacerscenter Myles Turner defends against Newyork Knicks center Karl-Anthony Townsduring the second half of Game 6inthe EasternConference finals in Indianapolis on Saturday.

during the regular season.In16 playoff games, theyheld those three teams below their averages 11 times Naturally,Thunder coachMark Daigneault hasbeen taking notes.

“If you look at this playoff run, you’ll see how challenging they are for their opponents, andthe way they defend contributesto their team identity.It’snot justoffense,” he said. “Their defensive philosophy is very much aligned with their offensive philosophy,so it createsa certain air to thegame whenyou play against them. It is difficult to play against,asyou can see from the way that they’ve really run through the Eastern Conference to gethere.”

Their rosters were constructed in similarfashions,too. Both teams are young, rely on deep benches to wear down oppo-

nents late and feast on turnovers. TheThunderaverage apostseason best 21.3 pointsper game off turnoverswhile thePacersare second at 18.5. Butwithsomuch focus on the high-scoring, up-tempo offenses, it’seasy to overlook their defenses or worse —see it as aglaring weakness.

Ayear ago, Indiana gave up 120.2 points per gameinthe regularseason.This year that number dropped to 115.1, and in the postseason it’s down to 113.3. What changed? Indiana’stop threedefenders —Aaron Nesmith, AndrewNembhard andMylesTurner—are all relatively healthy now Nesmithmissed 21/2 months with asprained left ankle beforereturning in Januaryand working his way back intogame shape. He

Phillies RHP Nola to skip throwing due to soreness

Injured Philliesright-hander

Aaron Nolawill not throw ascheduled live batting session Thursday because of mild soreness on his right side, manager Rob Thomson said Wednesday Last week, Nola said his return from the injuredlist with a sprainedright ankle wasprogressing more slowly than expected and that he probably needed to makea minor league rehabilitation start. Nola is 1-7 with a6.16 ERA in nine starts. No date has been set forhim to throw next.

The Phillies put Nolaonthe 15day injured list on May 16 to avoid another injury cropping up while he was favoring the ankle. The 31-year-old veteran allowed 12 hits, nine runs and three homers —all career highs —ina14-7 loss on May 14 against St. Louis.

Reds placeace Greene on 15-day injuredlist

The Cincinnati Reds placed ace pitcher Hunter Greene on the 15-day injured list on Wednesday with aright groin strain. Greenemadethreestarts sincea 15-day stint on the injured list last month because of agroin strain he suffered May 7during astart in Atlanta.

In Tuesday night’s4-2 win over the Brewers, Greene threw 85 pitches before leaving the game after five innings when he felt discomfort in his groin.

An MRIwas scheduledfor Wednesday morning, but manager Terry Francona said there was no need to waitfor the results.

Greene —who made his first AllStar appearance last season —is 4-3witha 2.72 ERAin11startsthis year

NBA works on plan for U.S. versus world All-Star Game

The NBAisworking on aplan to turn next season’s All-Star Game into aU.S vs.-world competition, a person with knowledge of the situation said Wednesday It remains unclear howthe formatwill work, said the person, who spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because the league has not made any final determinations. Speaking to Fox Sports1earlier Wednesday, NBA CommissionerAdam Silver was asked if U.S. vs. the world is possible.

Silver addressed the idea on March 27 as wellatthe league’s most recentboard of governors meeting, when he revealed that the NBA wasscrapping the AllStar mini-tournament format that was used this season.

Suns hire Cavaliers assistant Ott as coach

sprained his right ankle in Game 3ofthe conference finals against the New York Knicks butplayedin each of the final three games.

Nembhard also missed nearlya monthearly this season with tendinitis in his left knee, and Turner, Indiana’srim protector,has overcome an assortment of nagging injuries.

But Indiana also changed its forcus after getting swept by Bostonin2024.

“Lastyear, allthatwas being said was we couldn’twin because we didn’tguard anybody andall we do is try to outscore people,” twotime All-Star Tyrese Haliburton said. “We’ve takensucha big step on thedefensiveend as agroup, and Ithink the step we madeon that end of the floor is why we’re here.We’vegot our work cut out for us (in this series).”

Neither Carlisle nor Daigneault would disclose their defensive assignmentsentering Game 1though there’sagood chance Nembhard and Nesmith will somehow find themselves pitted against Gilgeous-Alexander,the league MVP and Williams. On the flip side,Oklahoma City may deploy its twoall-NBA defenders, Williams and Dort, against the combination of Haliburton and Nembhard.

Butregardless of the assignments, this is amatchup of wills most believe will determine the next NBA champion.

“Alltests are fun, and we get to do it on the biggest stage any of us have ever played on,” Williams said. “Soit’llbeavery fun challenge. Like Isaid, that’sareally good team. Obviously, they’re in the finals forareason. Nobody just waltzes intothe finals.Soit’ll be our ultimate test.”

ThePhoenix Suns hiredCleveland Cavaliers assistant Jordan Ott as their head coach, opting for a young, emerging leader to rebuild afranchise that has regressed over the past fewseasons, aperson familiarwith the search told The Associated Press on Wednesday Ott will be the team’sfourth head coach in four seasons and replaces Mike Budenholzer,who was fired following amiserable 36-46 season that ended without atrip to the playoffs despite the high-priced trio of Devin Booker,Kevin Durant and Bradley Beal. The 40-year-old Ott hasworked for theAtlanta Hawks, Brooklyn Nets, LosAngelesLakers and the Cavaliers. He also worked as a video coordinator under TomIzzo at Michigan State.

McIlroy explainsdecision to duckmedia at PGA

Rory McIlroy explained his decisionnot to speak to the media during last month’sPGA Championship, saying Wednesday he wasannoyed that newshad leaked about his driver failing to pass inspection before the tournament.

McIlroy said the results of equipmenttests are supposed to be confidential and noted thatScottie Scheffler’s driverhad also failed before thechampionship, but that wasnot reported until afterward. Scheffler revealed after he won the PGAfor his third major title thathehad been forced to use a backup driver.McIlroy arrived at the PGA as the most celebrated player after his triumph at the Masters. Instead of taking avictory lap at Quail Hollow,acourse where he has won four times, McIlroy refused comment and press.

SuperSonics fans feel no allegiance to Thunder

BY ANDREW DESTIN AP sports writer

SEATTLE It’s logical to think someone like Danny Ball is a fair representation of Seattle these days.

Ball, a hoops fan who runs an Instagram account called “Iconic Sonics,” is pulling for the Indiana Pacers over the Oklahoma City Thunder in the NBA Finals.

There are no deep ties between Seattle and Indianapolis. The Seahawks play the Colts this December, so the cities will be foes that weekend. Caitlin Clark and the Indiana Fever probably won’t be warmly welcomed when they visit the Emerald City later this month to play the Seattle Storm. But right now, Seattle may as well be an Indy suburb.

Seattle fans lost their NBA franchise, the SuperSonics, in 2008 when it was stolen from them and rebranded in Oklahoma City For the scornful, that means one thing: Go Pacers.

“I’d love to see the Pacers pull it off in six games,” Ball said.

The NBA Finals begin Thursday night. For some in Seattle, it’ll be a heaping helping of fresh salt on the wounds that opened when the Sonics were taken away And people like Ball who was born in Seattle and heard stories of Sonics legends Shawn Kemp and Gary Payton from his father, aren’t ex-

basketball market, is that we are very focused on it. We don’t take those fans for granted. We’re thankful that the interest has remained over all these years.”

Any mention of expansion sends fans into a tizzy. Steve Ballmer, the owner of the Los Angeles Clippers, spoke to the crowd before a preseason game in Seattle his hometown — in 2023, and made a thinly veiled reference to how fans need to remind the league’s New York office how much the city loves the game

“All night long, it better be loud enough in this building to hear us all the way back in New York, if you get me,” Ballmer told the crowd. “Let’s make sure we’re loud tonight.”

And then came the Ballmer bellow: “Go Seattle,” he screamed.

reminded that residents of the city aren’t happy that the NBA hasn’t returned yet.

“Count me among them,” Harrell said.

A very real void has been left in the SuperSonics’ absence. The NHL’s Seattle Kraken entering the fold has helped, as has the success of the WNBA’s Seattle Storm, both of whom play at Climate Pledge Arena, which sits on the site of the SuperSonics’ former home

That same arena received a significant remodel ahead of the Kraken arriving, which could make it suitable for NBA games. That would ultimately be up to the association to decide one day, but Ball hopes it would be the Sonics’ former home in the Queen Anne neighborhood they get to triumphantly return to one day

actly rooting for Oklahoma City right now

The Thunder are heavy favorites to beat the Pacers. Should they pull it off, the Thunder would claim their first NBA title in Oklahoma City, but technically their second as a franchise after Seattle won the title in 1979.

It’s no secret the city wants the league to come back. Expansion is on the NBA’s to-do list, and it’s likely that talks — the first of many, many steps in this process could start in earnest

with interested cities in the next few months. Commissioner Adam Silver, however, hasn’t fully committed to adding new teams.

“The issue I would not have anticipated at the time I sort of began talking about the timeline is how much unknown there is about local media right now,” Silver said earlier this year “Having said that, though, I would just say again to our many fans in Seattle, and I hear from them often, and the legacy of the Sonics is still very strong and it’s a fantastic

Knicks search for new coach after years of stability under Thibodeau

BY BRIAN MAHONEY AP basketball writer

NEW YORK Tom Thibodeau’s firing brought back some of the confusion and chaos the New York Knicks had seemingly left behind

After an era of stability and more success than they had enjoyed in a quarter of a century, the Knicks opened a coaching search few could have predicted when they fired Thibodeau on Tuesday

“When I first saw it, I thought it was one of those fake AI things. No way There’s no way possible,” Indiana Pacers coach Rick Carlisle said.

Coaching searches weren’t unusual in New York for much of the 2000s, but the Knicks weren’t winning then. This time, they had just reached the Eastern Conference finals for the first time in 25 years before losing to Carlisle’s team, and were an early favorite to do it again next year So changing course brought swift and strong reaction from a fan base that seemed satisfied.

Who decided Thibodeau had to go? And why?

“That seemed like an unfortunate call that the boss made, certainly for him,” tennis Hall of Famer John McEnroe, a Knicks fan, said while calling the French Open quarterfinals for TNT But which boss?

Direct answers may not come Knicks leadership, from owner James Dolan to team president Leon Rose, doesn’t do interviews with the reporters who cover the team. So the only hint may have come in the team’s statement an-

“When I first saw it, I thought it was one of those fake AI things. No way There’s no way possible.”

RICK CARLISLE Indiana Pacers coach, on Thibodeau firing

nouncing the firing, in which Rose said the organization was “singularly focused on winning a championship for our fans.”

That means the view was that Thibodeau was good enough to get the Knicks close but not all the way

Rose was friends with Thibodeau long before hiring him in 2020 and giving him a threeyear contract extension last summer So immediate speculation was that Dolan, who at times has been viewed as meddlesome and unpopular with his team’s fans, must have ordered the ouster

But a person with knowledge of the decision, speaking to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because details were to remain private, said Rose made the call with Dolan’s approval.

Rose conducted a thorough search five years ago, even though Thibodeau had been viewed as a favorite because of his relationship both to Rose and the organization as an assistant to Jeff Van Gundy in the late 1990s and early 2000s.

Van Gundy has returned to coaching as an assistant with the Clippers, if the Knicks wanted to gauge interest in a reunion. Michael Malone, who led Denver to the 2023 NBA title, is another

former Knicks assistant who is available, as is Johnnie Bryant, who was beaten out Wednesday by Jordan Ott for Phoenix’s head coaching position.

Rick Pitino, Dan Hurley and John Calipari are all big names with ties to the New York area if Rose wanted to go the college route, and the retired Jay Wright coached current Knicks players Jalen Brunson, Josh Hart and Mikal Bridges on national championship teams at Villanova. Brunson’s father, Rick, was an assistant on Thibodeau’s staff, if Rose wanted to promote the team captain’s father The Knicks had 12 different coaches between the time Van Gundy resigned early in the 200102 season and Thibodeau’s hiring, and they won just one playoff series. Thibodeau won four in the last three seasons. McEnroe thought that earned Thibodeau another year a common reaction to his firing. The Knicks decided otherwise, sending Rose into a search with much higher consequences than last time.

Back then, on the heels of seven straight losing seasons, he just needed a coach who could win some games. Now he needs one who can deliver a championship. “I mean, I’m not really in that situation, but the thing I can say is Thibs did a lot for New York,” said Thunder center Isaiah Hartenstein, who played in New York last season. “He did a lot just building that culture over there. So I think I have a lot of respect for him.”

It’s something Seattle takes seriously, as Mayor Bruce Harrell learned earlier this year in his address to the city

“Right now, at this moment, I have an announcement to make,” Harrell said, reaching into the lectern where he was standing and pulling out a basketball, spinning it in his hands as he displayed it to the crowd — which began roaring.

“Ah, I’m just kidding.”

The crowd wasn’t amused. Harrell later was interviewed by Seattle’s KOMO News and apologized for the attempt at humor, getting

WALKER

Continued from page 1C

I’ve never really tried to make a distinction between small market and big market,” Dumars said. “Here’s why: It truly is about the environment and culture you build in your city and in your building. It really doesn’t matter where you play There are some big cities where the culture has been bad and guys don’t want to play there. And there are small markets where the culture is incredible and guys want to play there.” So for Dumars, the first step is building the culture. He plans to do that with Zion Williamson as the cornerstone.

“A lot of Sonics fans that I know I’m sure never got over the wounds of what happened here 17 years ago with them leaving (for) Oklahoma City,” SuperSonics fan Eric Phan said. “All of the Sonics fanbase (is) rooting for the Indiana Pacers.” Seattle seemed to have a chance at getting a team back in 2013 when the Maloof family put the Sacramento Kings up for sale. But investor Chris Hansen’s bid to relocate the team to Seattle was rejected by the NBA’s Board of Governors.

So how does Dumars plan to do that in New Orleans?

“By doing things first class,” he said. “Taking care of the players. Taking care of their families. The way you do business. The way you travel. Everything. People have to feel good about coming into the building.

“That’s what culture is. You want players to say ‘I want to go and play there because I heard they treat you great.’ When you win and they treat you great, those are the things that attract guys.”

Can it happen in a city like New Orleans?

These NBA Finals at least give the faithful some hope.

Email Rod Walker at rwalker@ theadvocate.com.

“It’s really about what you build that’s going to attract people,” Dumars said. “You have to build something that players want to come to, irrespective of what city you’re in.”

on March 11.

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filed against Williamson in Los Angeles accusing him of rape and assault in 2020. Dumars wouldn’t speak about the lawsuit.

“I’ve been advised not to venture into any of his legal issues,” he said.

Pelicans owner Gayle Benson spoke about the lawsuit Wednesday

“You know, lawsuits are lawsuits,” Benson said “You really can’t you don’t know I mean people can sue you for anything. There’s no reason. You can be innocent or not. It’s just something that people do, unfortunately.” Williamson’s time in New Orleans has been plagued by injuries. He’s been named to the All-Star Game twice, but has played in just 214 games in his six seasons. He averaged 24.6 points, 7.2 rebounds and a careerbest 5.3 assists in the 30 games he played this season.

“We’ve had some real direct conversations with him about that,” Dumars said. “Expectations. Accountability That’s our

plan going forward with Zion.” Dumars also spoke about his decision to keep Willie Green as head coach. Green will return after going 21-61 during a season in which the team was decimated by injuries. The 21 wins tied for second fewest in franchise history Green is 148-180 in his four seasons, including a 49-win season two years ago. He led the Pelicans to the playoffs in two of his four seasons. Dumars spent much of his first few weeks on the job talking to people in the building to help with his assessment of the coaching staff and players.

“It’s hard for me to come in here and say, ‘Here’s how I assessed Willie last year,’ “, Dumars said “I wasn’t here. All I can do is move forward and guide and create and lead and put expectations on what we need to do here to be successful. And only then can I judge Willie or anyone else.

“I was pleased with what I heard. I’m looking forward to going forward and working with Willie and to push us to success. You’ve got to set the bar And that’s what we’re going to do.” Email Rod Walker at rwalker@ theadvocate.com.

STAFF FILE PHOTO By DAVID GRUNFELD Pelicans forward Zion Williamson is introduced at the Smoothie King Center

ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO By ELAINE THOMPSON

Stacks of Seattle SuperSonics caps are displayed in a shop on May 15, 2013, in Seattle.

ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO By FRANK FRANKLIN II

New york Knicks head coach Tom Thibodeau talks with players during a break in play against the Indiana Pacers during the first quarter of Game 5 of the NBA Eastern Conference final on May 29 in New york.

THE VARSITYZONE

LHSCAgets Barberasits newdirector

Former Franklintonstarsucceeds Held, firstwoman to hold post

BY ROBIN FAMBROUGH Staff writer

In 19 years of working as ateacher and coach, beinganassistant coach was the job Jessica Barber loved the most.

The former Franklinton High School basketball star sees hernew role asdirector of the Louisiana High School Coaches Associationasavariationon thattheme. The LHSAA announced Barber’shiring on Wednesday Barber is the first woman to hold the LHSCAposition and succeeds Eric Held, who accepted ajob as LSUfootball’sdirector ofalumni relationsand high schooloutreach duringthe spring.

“Forme, this is the opportunity to beanassistant coach for over 400 schoolsand allthe LHSAA sports,” Barber said. “I think my personality and ability to build relationships will make this afun transition forme.

“I know I’m the first femaleand thatcomes with its own excitement and challenges. Now,I am notthe typeofperson who is going to make that such abig deal. Ifeellike Ican sitinaroom and hold conversations with football coaches. Ialso know when it’s time to listen.”

The 42-year-old Barber has spent thepastsix years as acollege assistant women’sbasketball coach, first at UL-Monroe and most recently during two years at Southern Miss. She servedasrecruiting coordinator for both schools and did graduatestudies in sports administration/sports managementatthose universities.

“When Ithink about being able to work for an association that provided me an opportunity to play in astate championship game and to coach in Marsh Madnesses …it’ssurreal,”she said.

“Beingable to work in an administrativeroleand still be part of athletics …this is adreamjob …it really is.”

Barber also had coaching stints at Loyola-New Orleans and Nicholls State. As ahigh school girlsbasketball coachatEdna Karr from2011-17, Barber won more than 120 games. She won four district titles and led the Cougars to LHSAA state tourney berths in 2015 and 2016

As aplayer,Barber was partofFranklinton’s1998 staterunner-up squad and was the LHSCAAll-Star

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during the regional. That’s a combined ERA of 0.40. And in the SEC tourney and the regional, Eyanson has given LSUquality relief work as well, earning savesagainst Texas A&Mand Little Rock. The trio gives LSU areal chance to end the super regional in two games.

Pitching,PartII: Bad

LSU’sother pitchers in the regional —Zac Cowan, DJ Primeaux, Mavrick Rizy,Jaden Noot, Chase Shores,Jacob Mayers, Cooper Williams and William Schmidt —were areal mixed bag. Primeaux andRizy preserved the 7-0 shutout Friday against Little Rock. Primeaux, Mayers and Schmidt preserved a12-0 shutout against Dallas Baptist on Saturday But aside from Williams in the loss to Little Rock on Sunday,there were some rocky performances. All told, those eight pitchers gave up acombined 14 earned runs in 122/3 innings. That’sanERA of 9.44. The upside for LSU is all have provided the Tigers with quality outings throughout the season, especially Cowan, though he has struggled as of late. But if LSU is forced to aGame 3 in the super regional,whom the Tigers will turn to is abig question. Beyond that, they’re likely to need athird starter to

emerge in the CWS.

PROVIDED PHOTO

LHSCA director Jessica Barber,42, spentthe past six years as acollegebasketball assistant coach and recruiting coordinator.

“For me, this is the opportunity to be an assistant coach for over 400 schools andall the LHSAA sports. Ithink my personality and ability to buildrelationships will makethis afun transition for me.”

JESSICA BARBER, LHSCA director

gameMVP in 2001. She went on to playatthe University of Mobile, whereshe was the Gulf Coast Athletic Conference Freshman of the Year

LHSCA officersand board membersinterviewed four candidates for the director’s post lastweek at the LHSAA office in Baton Rouge, one daybeforethe LHSAAexecutive committee held itsannual summer meeting.

“Eric Held leaves some big shoes to fill becausehe took the job of the director of theLHSCA to another level,” LHSCApresident Christopher Kovatch said “Theposition is definitelya job that requires someonewho is aproper fit.

“By thetime that we had finished her interview,I was 100% convinced that Jessica is that person. Between her high school and college experience, she has had to work with people in all walks of life. She hasproven to be successful in each venue.”

Email Robin Fambrough at rfambrough@ theadvocate.com

Fielding:Good

HittingofFrey, Hernandez: Good

Moving EtanFrey from fifth to second in the lineup for Monday’sregional final proved to be amaster stroke by Jay Johnson. Frey went 4for 4witha home run and abases-clearing double, another double and two walks.Luis Hernandez, who actually moveddown in the order from seventh to eighth, clouted twomassively important home runs.

Also important inthe regional was the revived hitting of shortstop Steven Milam, who even though he went 0for 5Monday had some hard-hit balls.

HittingofJones:Bad

It feels harsh to say the hitting of aplayerwhose last at-bat was ahome run is bad, but Jones has had arocky six weeks since his moonshot home run to beat Tennessee on April 25.His batting average overall has dipped from .363 that night to .323, and like many juniors in his situation, he appears to be pressing with the MLB draft drawing near Allthat said, perhaps the home run that gave the Tigers some much-needed insurance in the ninthMonday will flip the on switch for Jones, who without question is atalented player.Itwill be intriguing in the super regional to see where Johnson putsJones in the lineup.

The LSU defensehas been pretty airtight all year.After regionals,the Tigersrank ninth nationally witha.982 fielding percentage. LSU committed only one error in four regional games,albeit acostly one. Second baseman Daniel Dickinson made afaulty short toss toward Milam, theshortstop whowas covering secondbase, that was partofLittleRock’s five-run secondonMonday That said, theinfield defense has been exceptionally good. Tiger infielders and catchers have committed just four errors in thepast 14 games.

Intangibles: Good

The way LSU lost Sunday 10-4 to Little Rock and fell behind 5-1 in the secondinning Monday was not impressive. The way theTigersdid not panic and came back to winthe regional was Former LSU pitcher Doug Thompson, now partofthe LSU radio broadcastteam, saidon Charles Hanagriff’s podcastafter theregional that he always believed theTigerswould find away to come back and win Monday againstthe Trojans. Youcan question whyLSU struggled againstsuch an outmatched opponent at home, but you can’tquestion theTigers’ resolve. The latter will serve them wellinthe super regional and in Omahashould LSU advance.

Written for theLSWA

Like father,like son? That was abig story in the LHSAA’s Class Bbaseball ranks as freshman Gavin Holtled his father’sPitkin High School team to astate title. Meanwhile, LSU signee Cali Deal led Quitman to another ClassBsoftballtitle.The two players lead the LSWA’sClass B all-state squads. Holt batted .410 with 27 RBIs and 34 runs to help lead the Tigers

for hisfather, coach J.C. Holt. By earning Outstanding Player honors, Gavin Holt joins his father as winner of the LSWA’stop award. J.C. Holt, aformer Oak Hill star,was an MVP in high school and wentontoplaybaseball at LSU. J.C.HoltalsoclaimedCoach of the Year to complete afamily double play. Top-seeded Pitkin beat Family Community in the

Deal compileda9-4 record in the circle with 143 strikeouts to lead thesoftballsquad. She batted .378 with 24 RBIs fora Quitman squad that won the state title. Dodson coach Josh Foshee was selected Coach of the Year

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thatincludes six hitters with an OPS above.800. Junior designatedhitterSam Whiteleads the Mountaineers in batting average(.352);senior right fielder Jace Rinehart has the most doubles with 21; and sophomore thirdbaseman Armani Guzman, who recently has stepped into astarting role, went4 for5 with 3RBIs in West Virginia’ssuper regional-clinching win over Kentucky on Sunday.

Pitching

Therotationhas fluctuatedaround fifth-year senior and left-handed starter Griffin Kirn. Theveteran has a3.13ERA in 16 starts, but the Mountaineers have only oneother pitcher who hasmadeatleast 10 starts in junior right-hander Gavin VanKempen.

KirnisWest Virginia’sace. He allowed just one earnedrun in 71/3 innings lastweekend against Kentucky andhasn’t surrendered morethan fourearned runs in astart this year He has 100 strikeouts in 95 innings andhas walked only 29 batters.

Besides Kirn, the Mountaineers started graduate senior right-hander Jack KartsonasonSaturday against Clemson and turned to junior righthanderRobby Porco in their rematch with KentuckyonSunday.

Kartsonas surrendered twoearned runs in 51/3 innings last week.He worked his way into the rotation in mid-April and has thrownthe ball well eversince.Hehas 76 strikeouts a2.94 ERA and only 16 walks in 641/3 innings.

Porco’sstartagainstthe Wildcats wasonly his fourth of the season.He failed to escape the second inning Sunday as he surrendered three earned runs on anight where the Mountaineers allowed 10 earned runs andusedeight pitchers, including Kirn, to close out a13-12 win.

The weakness of the West Virginia pitching staff is the bullpen. As evidenced by Sunday’swild victory,the Mountaineers lack depth andtop optionsinrelief.

Seniorright-handerReeseBassinger has been the Mountaineers’ go-to arm out of the bullpen. He leads the team in appearances and pitched in every game of the regional, owning a4.28ERA this year with five saves and43strikeouts in 61 innings.

After Bassinger,West Virginia hasonly tworelievers withanERA underfourwho have made more than one appearance this year.Its relievers also don’tgenerate many swings and misses besides sophomore right-hander Chase Meyer He has62punchoutsin44innings Defense

The Mountaineersare arelatively well-roundedclub, but theirbiggest red flag is on defense.

West Virginiacommitted nine errors in the Clemson regional, including five Sunday. It finishedseventh in the Big 12 with a.975 fielding percentage, anumber that pales in comparisontoLSU’s .982 fielding percentage.

The Tigers have committed 38 errors thisseason. West Virginia has booted theball65times.

Collegesoftballbrings playfulcheerstodugout

BY CLIFF BRUNT AP sportswriter

OKLAHOMA CITY Women’scollege softball games offera constant soundtrack of playersloudly cheering their teammates from the dugouts.

The sport is ultra-competitive, yetfor decades, softballplayers have broughta light-hearted nature to dugouts and thevibeof the games, complete with cheers, chants, dances and props. Some creations are elaborate and some are simple, butsomething interesting is almost always happening.

The sport’ssurge in popularity in recent years hasdrawn more attentiontothe antics.

The vibrant traditionwill be on display again on Wednesday, when Texas plays Texas Tech in Game 1 of the best-of-three championship series at Oklahoma City’sDevon Park.

“I think energy is justahuge part of this game and just in women’ssports in general,” Texasstar ReeseAtwoodsaid. “Weshowa lot of passion, and Ithink it shows our heart and love for the game. And Ithink it brings justlikethe team togetherasone instead of being all about yourself.” Beneath the light-heartedness is aserious purpose—supporting teammates, regardlessofcircumstances.

“Coach Z(Texasassistant coach Kristen Zaleski) says you re either doing athing or supporting athing, and Ithink that puts it really well,” Texas ace Teagan Ka-

vansaid.

The source of ideas for dugout supportcomes from avariety of places. Some chants arebased on songs —Arizona State tweaked alinefrom Juvenile’s2003 song, “Slow Motion.”

“Ooh, Ilike it like that,she’s working thatbat, Idon’t know how to act!”

Others chantsand cheersare plays on names or jerseynumbers.

It’sanever-changing art form.

“Every single year,weget new cheers because newfreshmen comein, our transfers come in and they havenew cheers,” Connecticut catcher Grace Jenkins said during the Big East tournament.

“But we just keep it loud andenergized.Weknowthatenergy wins these typesofgames,and when we can gain the momentum in the dugout, we can also contribute that to the field as well.”

Oklahoma’sNelly McEnroeMarinassaidsome chants follow players from their younger days The Sooners don’thavedesignated people to createthem

“A lotofthe cheers we do are ones thatwe’ve been doing since travel ball,” she said. “Anybody can come up withacheer at any timeand we’ll just bring it out on thespot, but we just like to have fun with it and kind of make things up as we go.”

Oklahoma hasbeenone of the most animated teams in recent years on their run of four straight national titles from2021 to 2024.

TheSooners say there’splenty of room forcreativity.

“I feel like sometimes it’ll just be like, if someone’sscreaming something, we’ll repeat it, but just —we’re just playing the game,” Oklahoma’s Abigale Dayton said. “So if something comes tomind, that’swhat happens.”

Jenkins said the constant noise is not adistraction. The players have gotten used to it and wouldn’t know what todowithout it.

“It actually helps,” shesaid. “I think when the dugout’sloud, especially when I’muptobat, it keeps me in the zone.”

Atwood,a first-teamNational Fastpitch CoachesAssociation All-American, said thecheering helps players keep theirminds in theproperplace. She said it makesiteasier to bounceback if thingsaren’tworking.

“I thinkifyou’re cheering for everyone else, it makes you a little less focused on yourself and focus on the team,” she said.

“This team —wehave seen when we don’thavethe energy, we don’t play as well. And something coach (Mike) White harps on all the time is bringing full energy,which includes all the cheers and communication.”

In theend, players say it’s about having fun and making the gamea better experience.

“The energyhelps the game, keepsthe energy,brings alot of momentum and passion andsupport for each other,” Texasoutfielder Kayden Henrysaid. “The gamedoesn’tknow who is supposed to win,but when you have that energy at that point, anybody can take over.”

Atwood’s hitonwalkattempt

BY TIM WILLERT The Associated Press

OKLAHOMA CITY Reese Atwood

hit ago-ahead, two-run single for Texas when Texas Tech ace NiJaree Canadywas trying to walk her intentionally in the sixth inning, and the Longhorns beat the Red Raiders 2-1 in Game 1ofthe Women’sCollege World Series finals on Wednesday night Teagan Kavan pitched athreehitterfor Texas (54-11), which can secure its first national title with avictory in Game 2onThursday night. Texas Tech (53-12) would have to win two straighttoclaim its first championship in its first WCWS appearance.

Canady allowed four hits and struck out seven, butshe has lost four of five career starts against Texas, with two of those defeats forthe Red Raiders this season and two for her previous school, Stanford.

TexasutilityplayerKaydee Bennett throws to first during the Women’s CollegeWorld Series finals against Texas Tech in Oklahoma Cityon Wednesday.

Canady struck out the firsttwo batters in the sixth but ran into trouble when Kayden Henry singled to left and stole second. Mia Scott reached on an infield single, moving Henrytothird,and Scott took second without athrow With first base open and a3-0 count on Atwood, TexasTech catcher Victoria Valdez stood up to set atarget well out of the zone for Canady,but the pitch camein letter-high and Atwood hit ahard grounder through the left side TexasTech scored in the fifthinning with the help of an obstruction call. Pinch-hitter Logan Halleman reached on a fielding error andAtwoodthrew her outtrying to steal second. Texas Tech challengedthe call, and umpires ruled thatshortstopLeighanne Goode hadobstructedHalleman’spath to thebag. Mihya Davis singled to rightcenter to driveinHalleman. Kavan hasnot allowed an earned runinfour WCWS appearances. Over 24 innings, she has allowed 12 hits and struck out 15. Shegot 10 groundouts on Wednesday night The Red Raiders threatened in the first, loading the bases withnoouts. Canady,who leads Texas Tech with11homers, hit a grounder to third to start a5-2-3 double play,and AlexaLangeliers grounded out tothe pitcher toend theinning.

Gauff bouncesback to beat Keys,facing Boissoninsemis

BY HOWARD FENDRICH AP tennis writer

PARIS Coco Gauff kept doublefaulting. She kept missing plenty of other strokes. She kept losing games in bunches. Andall the while,she would let outa sigh or bow her head or look generally uncomfortable. What the 21-year-old Gauff neverdid Wednesdayduring a tense and topsy-turvy French Open quarterfinal against another American woman with aGrand Slam title, Madison Keys, was give up hope or go away.And, in acontest filled with plenty of mistakes, it was Gauff whoemerged to grab eight of the last nine games for a 6-7 (6), 6-4, 6-1victory over Keys and athird trip to the semifinals at Roland-Garros.

“I have hadthatinmefrom a young age,” said the No. 2-seeded Gauff, who won the 2023 U.S. Open as ateenager and was theFrench Open runner-up the year before.

“When times becomemore difficult, knowing that Ican dig deep in those tough moments.” Where didthat come from?

“Just alove to win, the will to win. It’s notsomething that’s taught or anything. It’s just Ihave always had that in me, and not just in tennis but in everything. I’m avery competitive person,” she said. “My philosophy is if Ican just leaveitall outthere,thenthe loss will hurt alot less than regrets of maybe not giving it your all.”

Gauff needed to overcame10 double-faults —threeinthe opening tiebreaker alone— andthe first setshe’sdroppedinthe tournament,aswellasdealwiththe big-hitting Keys, the No. 7seed, who entered withan11-match GrandSlam winning streak after her title at the Australian Open in January They combined for101 unforced errors and just 40 winners across more than two hours under a closed roof at Court Philippe-Chatrier on adrizzly,chilly day

Nearly half of the games —14of 29 —featured breaks of serve. But from 4-all in the second set, Gauff held four times in arow while pulling away She made two unforced errors in thelast set, including just one double-fault.

Afterfalling behind 4-1 at the

start, andtwice being asingle point fromtrailing 5-1, Gauff switchedtoaracket with adifferent tension in the strings to see if that would help.

“Maybe it did, and maybe it didn’t. I’d like to think that it helped alittlebit,” shesaid. “Sometimes that stuff could just be mental. Maybe you’re thinking, ‘Oh, I changed my racket, I’mgoing to play better,and you start doing it. Idon’tknow.”

She’llplayThursdayfor aberth in another majorfinal,facing 361st-rankedFrench wild-card entry Loïs Boisson, who is on one of the moststunning runs in tennis history.Boisson beat No.6Mirra Andreeva 7-6 (6), 6-3 in the quarterfinals to follow up her upset of No. 3Jessica Pegula in the fourth round.

Boisson, 22, is the first woman to reach the semifinals in her Grand Slam debut since 1989, when Monica Seles and Jennifer Capriati both did it at the French Open. Acrowd that offeredsupport to Gauff againstKeysvia shouts of “Allez, Coco!” was raucous as can be behind Boisson, rattling the 18-yearold Andreeva. The other women’ssemifinal is quite amatchup: three-time defending champion Iga Swiatek vs. No. 1-ranked Aryna Sabalenka. They advanced with quarterfinal victories Tuesday It was Swiatek who stopped Gauff at Roland-Garros in the semifinals last year and in the final three years ago.

“I have alot more work left to do,” said Gauff, who raised her arms overhead thenspread them wide apart after the last point against Keys, “but I’mgoing to savor this one today.”

Repeatedly,Gauff scrambled this way or thattoget herracket on ashot from Keys and send it back, often leading to amiss.

“The court being alittle bit slower,coupledwiththe fact thatshe coversthe court so well, just put alittle bit of pressure on me to go alittle bit more for my shots and maybe press alittlebit too much, too soon,” said Keys, who occasionally admonishedherself with aslap on her right leg.

“There were alot of points where Ifelt like, playing someone else,” Keys said,“Iwould have wonthe point.”

Djokovic beatsZverev, will face Sinner next

BY HOWARD FENDRICH AP tennis writer

PARIS— Acrucial moment arrived more than 21/2 hours into Novak Djokovic’s4-6, 6-3, 6-2, 6-4 French Openquarterfinal victory over Alexander Zverev.Itwas the fourth set, and Djokovic led, but Zverev was in possession of abreak point anda chancetoget back into Wednesday’smatch.

They engaged in a41-stroke exchange, thelongest of abuggy and breezy night, and Djokovic came out on top, smacking aforehand winner. He stayed in place afterward, breathing heavily,with hands on hips, scanning the standingovation fromthousands of Court Philippe-Chatrier spectators. He soon held serve for a4-2 lead in that set and was back on track.

Djokovic might be 38 now.He might have slogged through a pair of three-match losing skids this season and slid to No. 6inthe rankings. Whathasn’tchanged is Djokovic’sdetermination or his ability to be his best on big stages —and nowhe’stwo wins from arecord 25th Grand Slam title. Djokovic proved toomuch for No.3seed Zverev,aman who’sa decadeyounger and was last year’s runner-up at Roland-Garros, and set up asemifinal against No. 1JannikSinner

Djokovic is pleased to show himself, and others, he’sstill got it.

“I still push myself on adaily basisatthisage because of these kind of matches and thesekind of experiences,” Djokovic said. “It’sa proven kindoftestament to myself that Ican —and to others that Ican —still play on the highest level.”

Earlier Wednesday,Sinner continuedhis overpowering run through the bracket by dismissing Alexander Bublik 6-1, 7-5, 6-0. Sinnernot only hasn’tdropped aset so

far,but he has ceded atotal of only 36 games through five matches So Friday will bring atantalizing showdown between someone many considerthe topplayerintennis history,Djokovic, and someone who is at the top of the men’sgame at the moment, Sinner. They are tied 4-4 head-to-head; Sinner won the lastthree matchups

“He has shown now,inthe last period, that he is back,” Sinner said. Djokovic has 24 major titles,and Sinner has won 3ofthe past 5. No one has spent moreweeks at No. 1inthe rankings than Djokovic. No one has won more major championships or reached more major semifinals than his total that nowstands at 51 after becoming the second-oldestman to get that farinParis.Healsojustclaimed his 100th career tournament title, a week before the French Open.

“I just hope that Iwill be able to physically keep up with Sinner in fewdays’ time,” Djokovic said “It’s abig challenge for me.” Sinner,23, has wonthree of the past five GrandSlamtitles. That includes lastyear’sU.S. Openand this year’sAustralian Open.

“He’splaying fast. He’s playing smart,” Bublik said. “He’sinanother dimension withall theaspects of the game.”

Also an aptdescriptionfor Djokovic, who repeatedly used drop shots to great effect against Zverev As forSinner,noone other than Carlos Alcaraz has been able to beat him in his last48matches,a stretch thatdates to last August. Sinner is 46-2 in that span, with bothdefeatscoming against the French Open’sdefending champion.

And as it happens, No. 2Alcaraz is stillaround. He will meet No.8 Lorenzo MusettiinFriday’sother semifinal.

AP PHOTO By KyLE PHILLIPS

ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO By VERA NIEUWENHUIS

Tennessee players cheer in the dugout during agameagainst Oklahoma on SaturdayinOklahoma City

Mustard, rhubarb saucethe perfect pairingto pork chops

BY BETH DOOLEY

Rhubarb isn’tjust for pie. It also makes aclassic fruit and mustard sauce for pork (it works nicely on chicken and lamb, too) that helps keep themeat moist once it’scooked so it can be prepared ahead andheld until folksare ready to eat Pork chopsare cut out of thesame basic part of the pig: the loin, which runs along the pig’sback from shouldertobutt. Depending on where the chops are cut, they’ll haveslightly different cooking qualities. My favoritefor pan-roasting is therib chop, sliced from theblade end. The higher fat content makes these chops flavorful and easy to sear.You wantthem to be thick— at least 11/4 inch thick, because anythinner and they tend to dry out.It’salways a good idea to salt the meat andlet it rest before cooking. Salt draws juices upto the meat’ssurface, and it’s then reabsorbed through cooking. This concentrates flavors while retainingmoisture, yielding ajuicer,tastier chop. Of course, the best-tasting chops rely on good pork —like themeat of heritage pigs, which are bred for flavor instead of low-fat content. When raised free-rangeand allowed to moveaboutin the fresh air,the animals’ muscle structures develop naturally. Andbecause their diet is varied, the meat tastes rich and complex.

SUMMER SENSATIONS

1pineapple (peeled,cored and cut into cubes)

3cups watermelon (cubed and seeded)

2cups fresh strawberries (sliced)

2cups fresh blueberries

Staff report

Adozen chefs from across thestate will represent theirareas in the18thannual Louisiana SeafoodCook-Off on Friday, June 27. For the first time, the competition will take place at The Harbor Center in Slidell.

Chefs competing in the cook-off are: n Kaleb Scott, executive chef, University Club of BatonRouge n Farrell Harrison, executive chef, Plates Restaurant &Bar,New Orleans

n Jared Heider,chef de cuisine, JuniorsonHarrison, New Orleans

n Joseph Fontenot, executive chef, Creole Bagelry &Café, Slidell

n Michael Kelley, executivechef,Gallagher’sGrill, Covington Adozen area chefsset to compete

hen Iwas asmallchild,mydad prepared agrapefruit for me by cutting it in halfand carefully cutting each segment of fruitso that it would be easy to eat with aspoon.

4kiwis (peeled and sliced)

2cups red or green seedless grapes(sliced in half)

2ripe mangoes (peeled, pitted and cut into bite-sized pieces)

To balance the tart taste, he would drizzle honey over the top. This act of love and care stayed with me, so I passed it on by cutting hundreds of grapefruits for my kids beforethey went to school. Segmenting grapefruit early in themorning is not on the top of my list of fun things to do, but taking care of yourself andothers by preparing fresh fruit feels like time well spent.

Recently, Ihad aconversation with one of my cousins about making fruitsalad. He explained that chopping up abig bowl of colorful fruitisasvisually appealing as it is nutritious, and the entire process provides amental boost. When you take time to select ripeproduce and make yourself avibrant bowl of fruit, it is an act of self-care.

NOTE: Any ripe seasonal fruitcan be added or substituted.

Citrus-Honey Dressing

1lemon (juiced and zested)

¼cup fresh mint leaves(finely chopped)

1tablespoon honey

1. In alarge bowl, combine the pineapple cubes, watermelon cubes, sliced strawberries, blueberries, sliced kiwis, sliced grapes and sliced mango. Note: If you have other fruit that mayneed to be eaten, add it to this salad. Peaches would be agreat addition!

2. For thedressing: In a small bowl,add thelemon juice, lemonzest, mint and honey. Whiskthe honey into thecitrusherb sauce untilit is well combined. Pour the dressing over the fruit salad.

The Minnesota Star Tribune (TNS)

PHOTO By LIZ FAUL

Liz Faul ä See SALADS, page 2D

Keepingthingsdry on thebandofbras

Dear Heloise: Likeanumber of my friendswho are largebreasted, we have adaily problemyear-round of sweating onto theband of our bras. Abouta year ago, Iused one of my 12-by8-inch disposable moist washcloths. Ilet it dry out, then folded it lengthwise so that it fitsnuggly under the bottom of my breasts. It absorbed all the moisture. At the end of the day, Igently rinse it out with water, and it dries overnight. Thesewashcloths last forever.Ihave used the same one since the beginning. It keeps me totally dry,and the band of the bra is also dry at the end of the day. —J.K., in Dayton, Ohio Wood shavings forcompost

P.S. Iknow aboutcockroaches

Today is Thursday,June 5, the 156th day of 2025. There are 209 days left in theyear

TODAYINHISTORY

attack by its Arab neighbors, launched aseries of airfield strikes that destroyed nearly the entire Egyptian air force.

Dear Heloise: Regarding theletter from Vera, S. in Albuquerque, New Mexico, adding wood shavings or sawdusttocompost is fine as long as the woodis not chemically treated. Also, a great resource for answering any questions you have about gardening and plant careisyour agricultural extension service. Everystate provides this service, and each county has agents you can contact by phone or email. —Carol G., in New Orleans Cockroachabatement

Dear Heloise: Your readers with cockroach challenges should research the use of bay leaves as aroach repellent. Additionally,covering shower and sink drains, especially at night, can help keep cockroaches out. They are drawn to drains due to moisture, food sources, and the shelter they provide.

PAIRING

Continued from page1D

The key to pan-roasting chops is to watch the temperature of your skillet. Start high to sear both sides of the chop until they’re

Pan-Roasted Pork Chops in Mustardy Rhubarb Sauce

Serves4.Recipe is from Beth Dooley. This simplesavory rhubarb sauce is equally good on chicken and lamb. Store any extrainacovered container in the refrigerator.Besure to salt thepork and let it cometoroom temperature before it hits the pan for tastier,juicier results.

FOR THE MUSTARDYRHUBARB SAUCE:

1tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil

1largeshallot, chopped ½poundrhubarb,fresh or frozen, thawed and chopped ½cup orangejuice

1tablespoon honey

1tablespoon whole grain mustard

1tablespoonwhite wine vinegar Salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

FOR THE PORK CHOPS:

4bone-in rib chops, each 1¼ inch thick and about ¾pound Coarse salt

Freshly ground black pepper

3tablespoons olive oil

1. To prepare the sauce: Film askillet or deep saucepan with

COOK-OFF

Continued from page1D

n Trenton Oliphant, executive chef/owner,BenteauxCajunAsian Fusion, Hammond

n Jaylen Cherry,headchef, The Depeaux, Independence

n Alexis Indest, executive chef, Whiskey and Vine, Lafayette

n Karlos Knott, executivechef, Cajun Saucer at BayouTeche Brewery,Arnaudville

n Willie Gaspard Jr., executive chef, CypressBayou Casino& Hotel,Charenton

n Chase Raley,chefdecuisine, Parish Restaurantand Bar,Monroe n Blake Jackson, executive chef/owner,Heron Seafood/Mae &Co., Shreveport. The cook-off is being held in conjunction with 8th Annual Tammany Taste of Summer,running Aug. 1-31, as St. TammanyParish restaurants serve up exclusive dining deals showcasing the region’srich culinary scene. An added treat for cook-offat-

because Ispent my first 24 years in Louisiana and now lots of years in Arizona. When we sailed across the SouthPacificon our sailboat, we did everything possibletoavoid an infestation of cockroaches on our boat. This meant we couldn’t bring cardboard boxes onboard. Roaches like to lay their eggs in the folded cardboard. They also like to lay eggsbeneath labels on canned goods. Itry not to bring cardboard boxes inside my home —J.Gannon, in Tucson,Arizona

Recyclingshreddedpaper

Dear Heloise: In reference to the response that shredded paper cannot berecycled,itdepends on themunicipalityorcompany that provides therecycling service. Ican recycle shredded paper as long as it is securely placedina clear plastic bag and put in the recycle bin. Check with your recycling provider Linda Graeper,Caledonia,Wisconsin

Wiping dishes

Dear Heloise: My son laughs at me forbeing so cheap. Isave slightly used papertowels and usethem to wipe dishes and potsbefore Iput them in the dishwasher.I have been married over 50 years andhad adishwasher since my first yearofmarriage.Itrolled across the floorand hooked up at thesink. I’ve only had to buy two more in all this time. Ilove readingyour hintsand have read them for many years. —Brenda Thompson,Texarkana,Arkansas

Send ahint to heloise@heloise. com.

dark brown. Then place the skilletinthe oven to finish things off. Pork is done when it reaches 145 Fonameat thermometer Letthe chops rest afew minutestoretain their juices and then serve with acrisp green salad andcrusty bread tosop up all thesauce.

theoil and set over medium heat. Add the shallotand cook untilit becomes transparent, about 1to 2minutes

2. Add the rhubarb and orange juice andcook until the rhubarb softens and the sauce thickens, about 5to8minutes. Stir in the honey,mustard and vinegar,then season with salt and pepper. Taste andadjustthe seasonings. Set aside.

3. To prepare thepork: Preheat the oven to350 F. Generously seasonthe pork with the saltand pepper on all sides.Allow to rest for 10 minutes at room temperature.

4. Film askillet with the oil and set over medium-high heat.When the oilripples, add the pork and sear until well-browned, about 3 to 4minutes per side

5. Transfer to theoven and cook until the meat registersabout 140 Fonanoven thermometer,about 10 to 15 minutes.

6. Removethe pork chops from oven.Add therhubarb sauceto the panand thoroughlycoatthe pork chops. Return to theoven and continue cookinguntilthe meat reaches 145 F, another 5to 10 minutes. Remove and allow thepork chops to rest for about 5minutes beforeserving with plentyofsauce.

tendees is the 15 participating Tammany TasteofSummer restaurants that will offer apreview of themonthlong culinary celebration

Thewinnerofthe Louisiana Seafood Cook-Off will represent thestate at theGreat American Seafood Cook-Off on Saturday, Aug. 2, at the Ernest M. Morial Convention Center in New Orleans. The contest is held in conjunction withthe Louisiana RestaurantAssociation Expo andfeatures chefs from around the country cooking for thetitle of “KingorQueen of American Seafood.” Ticketsare on salenow for$65 each. To purchase your ticket online, head to Visit the Northshore’sTammany Taste of Summerwebpage. One ticket provides admission to the Louisiana Seafood Cook-Offand theTammany Taste of Summer event. Follow the Louisiana Seafood Promotion and Marketing Board on Facebook and Instagram to keep up withall LouisianaSeafood Cook-offevents via the official hashtag —#LASCO25.

Todayinhistory: On June 5, 1968, U.S. Sen. Robert F. Kennedy was shot and mortally wounded after claiming victoryinCalifornia’sDemocratic presidential primary at the Ambassador Hotel in Los Angeles; assassin Sirhan Bishara Sirhan was arrested at the scene.

Also on this date:

In 1794, Congress passed the Neutrality Act, which prohibited Americansfrom takingpart in any military action against a country that was at peace with theUnited States.

In 1950, theU.S. Supreme Court, in Henderson v. United States, struck down racially segregated railroad dining cars traveling across state lines.

In 1967, theSix-Day Warbegan as Israel, anticipating apossible

In 1975, Egypt reopened the Suez Canaltointernational shipping, eightyears after it was closed as aresult of the 1967 SixDay Warwith Israel.

In 1976, 11 people werekilled when the Teton Dam in Idaho failed, releasing 80 billion gallons of water

In 1981, the Centers for Disease Control reported that five menin Los Angeles had comedown with a rare kind of pneumonia; they were the first recognized cases of what later became known as AIDS.

In 2002, 14-year-old Elizabeth Smart was abducted from her Salt Lake Cityhome. (Smart was found and rescued by police in aSalt Lake Citysuburb in March 2003.)

In 2004, Ronald Reagan, the 40th president of the United

States, died in Los Angeles at age 93 after along struggle with Alzheimer’sdisease. In 2016, Novak Djokovic became the first man in nearly a half-century to winfour consecutive major championships, finally earning an elusive French Open title with awin over Andy Murray to complete acareer Grand Slam Today’sbirthdays: Broadcast journalist Bill Moyers is 91. USA Track &Field Hall of Famer John Carlos is 80. Musician-artist Laurie Anderson is 78. Author Ken Follett is 76. Finance author Suze Orman is 74. Musician Kenny G is 69. Actor-comedian Jeff Garlin is 63. Author Rick Riordan is 61. Actor Ron Livingston is 58. Singer Brian McKnight is 56. Actor Mark Wahlberg is 54. Actor Liza Weil is 48. Actor-comedian Nick Kroll is 47. Rock musician Pete Wentz (Fall Out Boy) is 46. Singeractor Troye Sivan is 30.

FarroSalad with Tomatoes and Herbs Serves 6. Recipe adapted from Giada De Laurentiis.

4cups of water

2cups of farro

2teaspoons salt, plus more to taste

1(12-ounce) container of cherry tomatoes (I used amix of colors)

1small sweet onion chopped finely(If the onion is large, use half of the onion)

¼cup finelychopped fresh Italian parsley

½cup fresh basil

1largegarlic clove, minced

3tablespoons balsamic vinegar

½cup extra-virgin olive oil

Freshly ground black pepper

1. In amedium saucepan,combine water and farro. Add 2teaspoons of salt.Bring to aboil over medium heat Reduce theheat to low heat, cover and simmer until thefarro is tender,about 30 minutes. Drainthe farrowellina colander,thentransferthe farrotoa serving bowl and let it cool.

2. While the farro is simmering, chop the tomatoes,onions and herbs. Add the finely choppedtomatoes, onions and herbs to thebowl of farro. Toss to combine.

3. In amedium bowl, whisk together the chopped garlic,vinegar, salt, pepper and olive oil. Whiskuntil thebalsamicdressingisemulsified.Add the vinaigrette to the farrosalad,tossto coat.

4. This salad is versatile, easyand delicious. It can be madeinadvance, and refrigerated overnight. Justremembertobring it to room temperature before serving.

SALADS

Continuedfrom page1D

So now,instead of dreading all the peeling, seeding and cubing of fruits, Iturn on my favorite music and enjoy the process of preparing abig bowl of fruit salad for myself and my family.Recently,Imade afruit saladtobring to afriend’s partyand Iadded alemon mint dressing to drizzle over the fresh fruit medley

Another summer salad that is worth the time and effort in the kitchen is farro, tomatoand fresh herb salad. Istarted makingit years ago. My inspiration was the Food Networkseries “Everyday Italian” with Giada De Laurentiis. Iwas anew mom years before the days of social media and TikTok food trends, so Idiscovered new cooking ideas from popular shows on cable television. Iwould watch celebrity chefs like De Laurentiis, Ina Garten, Alton Brown and Bobby Flay cook andexplain manyof thedishes that we still eat around

Bean and Bell Pepper Salad

Serves 6-8. Recipe provided by Jessica Lopez.

3cans black eyed peas (drainedand rinsed)

1red bell pepper(seeded and diced)

1orangebell pepper(seeded and diced)

1yellow bell pepper(seeded and diced)

1yellow onion(finely chopped)

4celerystalks (diced)

Dressing:

½cup olive oil(or canola oil)

½cup lime juice

1-2 jalapeño peppers (seeded and cut)

2garliccloves

1cup of fresh cilantro leaves

2tablespoonshoney Salt and peppertotaste

1. In alarge bowl, add the drained and rinsed beans. Then add the chopped bell peppers, onion and celery to the beans and stir together

2. To make the dressing: In the bowlofafood processor or blender,pour the olive oil, lime juice, seeded and cut up jalapeño pepper,garlic cloves,fresh cilantro andhoney then blend it together until it is asmooth sauce. Stir in salt and pepper to taste.

3. Pour the dressing over the bean saladand mix it to cover thebeansand vegetables. This saladtastes great served chilled.

Tomato SaladwithPistachio Pesto

Makes 4-6servings.

4largeripe tomatoes (thinly sliced)

8small mozzarella balls (slicedin half)

¼cup arugula leaves

1 8 cup pistachios (shelled)

Pistachio Pesto dressing:

½cup arugula leaves

1cup fresh basil leaves

¼cup pistachios(shelled)

1garlicclove

½cup olive oil(add more forthinner consistency)

¼cup gratedParmesan cheese

½teaspoon salt

½teaspoon pepper

our family table. Butitwas De Laurentiis who taught me how to cook farro. As a registered dietitian, Ilove learning about new whole grains. Farro is ahigh-protein, high-fiber grain. Butwhat is best about it is the tasty nutty taste that blends so well with tomatoes, fresh herbs and abrightbalsamic vinaigrette. De Laurentiis’recipe asks you to seed the tomatoes. Over the years, Ihave learned to cut corners by

1. On alarge plate or platter, layer thinly sliced tomatoes, arugula, mozzarellaballs and pistachios.

2. In the bowlofa food processor,place arugula leaves, basil leaves, pistachios, garlic and pulse together while slowly adding the olive oil until it forms ablended pesto sauce. Then stirinthe grated Parmesan, salt and pepper

3. Drizzle the pesto dressing over the tomato salad.

using cherry tomatoes andcutting them in half, simply adding them to thecooked bowl of farro seedsand all. Ialsosubstitute alot of fresh basilfor thechives, whichare harder to find in thegrocery store. Tomatoes and basil makeany dish taste like summer.You cannot go wrong with any variation on asimple fresh tomato and basil salad, but try adding another layer of flavor by making apistachio pesto to drizzle over summer tomatoes, mozzarella and arugula —itissogood!

Beans are agreat source of protein to add to asalad. This bean salad is madewith black eyed peas, but it would work well with avariety of beans. Ilove how the three colors of bell peppers add flavor and bright colors. The spice level can be controlled by adding or subtracting jalapeño peppers. All of these summer salads are well worth the timespent in the kitchen. Savor someculinary selfcare with these bright, refreshing, colorful salads, or makea little extra to share with friends at asummer barbecue.

Hints from Heloise

PHOTO By LIZ FAUL

Bean and Bell Pepper Salad

PHOTO By LIZ FAUL

Tomato Salad with Pistachio Pesto

GEMInI (May 21-June 20) You'll get a different perspective if you are open to suggestions. You have plenty to gain through social activity, networking and expanding your circle of friends

cAncER (June 21-July 22) Take a timeout, rethink your strategy and sit tight until you feel confident that any changes you want to enforce will fall into place. Refuse to let anyone pressure you into acting in haste.

LEo (July 23-Aug. 22) Open a few doors, and opportunity will appear You are a leader, so take your place at the forefront and begin your ascent. It's time to inject something new and exciting into your life.

VIRGo (Aug. 23-sept. 22) Stop look, listen and evaluate. You may be anxious to get started, put things behind you and move on to something different, but when warning signs appear, you should heed them

LIBRA (sept. 23-oct. 23) An open mind and heart will carry you forward. Attend events and do your part, and you'll feel good and connect with people who have as much to offer as you.

scoRPIo (oct. 24-nov. 22) Change is up to you, but before you mess with matters, consider your motives and the extended effects. Rethink your strategy and change anything that has the potential to compromise or alienate you.

sAGIttARIus (nov. 23-Dec 21) Call on the people with the best qualifications for your pursuit. Fighting for your rights

WonderWord

and making upgrades will improve your life.

cAPRIcoRn (Dec. 22-Jan. 19) Push your agenda boldly, and you'll draw the attention of people who can help you get favorable results. Use facts and intelligence to avoid opposition and setbacks

AQuARIus (Jan. 20-Feb. 19) You are on the right track and time is of the essence. Control is necessary to avoid disruptions, so put yourself, your plans and your future first. Networking and sharing your vision will pay off handsomely.

PIscEs (Feb. 20-March 20) Stick to basics, simplify situations and don't believe everything you hear Do your due diligence and speak up if you disagree. Empty promises will tempt you. ARIEs (March 21-April 19) Dig in, and don't stop until you finish what you start. Speak up, get answers and be the one to make a difference. Drive and determination are your ticket to success. Live in the moment.

tAuRus (April 20-May 20) Your desire for change will help you achieve your goals. Share your thoughts, promote your ideas and separate yourself from the crowd. Put your ideas and theory to the test, and you'll gain ground.

The horoscope, an entertainment feature, is not based on scientific fact. © 2025 by NEA, Inc., dist

By Andrews McMeel Syndication

Celebrity Cipher cryptograms are created from quotations by famous people, past and present. Each letter in the cipher stands for another.

toDAy's cLuE: R EQuALs u

FAMILY CIrCUS

CeLebrItY CIpher

For better or For WorSe

SALLY Forth

beetLe bAILeY

Mother GooSe And GrIMM

Sudoku

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

BaBY BLueS

Bridge

By PHILLIPALDER

Jules Renard,a Frenchauthor, said,

“The only man who is reallyfree is the one who can turn down an invitation to dinner without giving any excuse.”

Thisweekwearestudyingresponder’s rebids. Look at theauction andSouth’s hand. Can Northhave fourhearts for his sequence? What should South rebid?

North cannot have four hearts;ifhe did, he would have rebid two hearts (the major),nottwodiamonds(theminor).So, as there cannot be a4-4 heart fit, South shouldrebidtwono-trump.Thisisgameinvitational,indicatingsome10-12points and at least one stopper in the unbid suit, hearts. (If you usetwo-over-one gameforcing,youwouldrespondoneno-trump forcing, then rebidtwo no-trump over two diamonds.)

AfterNorth raisestothree no-trump, West leadsthe spadeking. How should South plan the play? What adirty trick by West, leading a spade instead of aheart!Southhas six toptricks:onespade,fourheartsandone diamond.Ifthediamondfinesseisworking, there will be no problems. But if it loses, declarer will need aclub trick. South shouldduck thefirst trick and take the second spade,tofind out the break. Then he should overtake one of

dummy’shearthonorsascheaplyaspossibleandrunthediamondjack.Eastwins with his king and shiftstoalow club. What shoulddeclarer do? If West has theclubace, the contract hasnochance. So South should put up his king, hoping for the best. If it wins, he can claim. ©2025 by NEA, Inc.,dist. By Andrews McMeel Syndication

Each Wuzzleisa word riddle whichcreates adisguised word, phrase, name, place, saying etc. Forexample: NOONGOOD =GOOD AFTERNOON

Previous answers:

word game

InstRuctIons: 1. Words must be of four or more letters.2.Words that acquire four letters by the addition of “s,” such as “bats” or “dies,” are not allowed. 3. Additional words made by adding a“d” or an “s” may not be used. 4. Proper nouns, slang words, or vulgar or sexually explicit words are not allowed.

toDAy’s WoRD cHAuFFEuR: sho-FER:Aperson employed to drive amotor vehicle.

Average mark 21 words

Timelimit 30 minutes

Can you find 26 or more words in CHAUFFEUR?

yEstERDAy’s WoRD —EtHnIcIty

entity etch ethic ethnic tech tent tenth then they thin thine

tine tint tiny tithe hint nice nicety niche inch incite itch itchy cent chin chine chit cite city

This is God’s promisetoAbraham the father of the Jewish people. We do well to remember it. G.E. Dean

marmaduKe

Bizarro

hagar the horriBle

Pearls Before swiNe

garfield

B.C.

PiCKles

hidato

mallard fillmore

MINUTES CITY COUNCIL MEETING CITYOFBAKER PARISH OF EAST BATON ROUGE STATEOFLOUISIANA COUNCIL CHAMBERS

3325 GROOM ROAD, BAKER, LOUISIANA 70714 www.youtube.com/@bakerforward May 27, 2025 -6:00 p.m.

The City Council of the City of Baker,Louisiana, met in regular session on May 27, 2025, with the following members in attendance at the meeting: MAYOR Darnell Waites

COUNCIL MEMBERS Rochelle Dunn Cedric Murphy Dr.Charles Vincent Robert Young ABSENT Desiree Collins

CALL TO ORDER –Mayor Waites presided.

The invocation was given by Council Member Murphy

The Pledge of Allegiance was led by Mayor Waites.

DISPOSITION OF THE MINUTES OF PREVIOUS MEETING

The motion was made by Council Member Vincent, seconded by Council Member Young to approve the minutes of the meeting held on May 13, 2025. YEAS: Dunn, Murphy,Vincent, Young NAYS: None ABSENT:Collins

ABSTAIN: None The motion passed with avote of 4-0.

The motion was made by Council Member Young, seconded by Council Member Murphy to move “1. Adopt Ordinance 2025-5, an ordinance to rename the Baker Fire Station in honor of James E. “Goose” Carroll (Mayor) (Introduced 5/13/2025)” under Public Meeting up on the agenda so that it follows Planning and Zoning Matters.

YEAS: Dunn, Murphy,Vincent, Young NAYS: None

ABSENT:Collins

ABSTAIN: None The motion passed with avote of 4-0.

RECOGNITIONS

PLANNING AND ZONING MATTERS

1. Adopt Ordinance 2025-5, an ordinance to rename the Baker Fire Station in honor of James E. “Goose” Carroll (Mayor) (Introduced 5/13/2025)

The motion was made by Council Member Vincent, seconded by Council Member Young to adopt Ordinance 2025-5.

YEAS: Dunn, Murphy,Vincent, Young NAYS: None

ABSENT:Collins

ABSTAIN: None The motion passed with avote of 4-0.

The motion was made by Council Member Murphy,seconded by Council Member Young to add item “4. Resolution acknowledging that the mayor will execute acontract for legal counsel” to the agenda under Resolutions and Proclamations.

YEAS: Dunn, Murphy,Vincent, Young

NAYS: None

ABSENT:Collins

ABSTAIN: None

The motion passed with avote of 4-0.

RESOLUTIONSAND PROCLAMATIONS

1. Proclamation declaring May 2025 Brain Cancer Awareness Month in theCity of Baker (Vincent) City Attorney Fabreread the proclamation.

The motion wasmade by Council Member Vincent, seconded by Council Member Murphy to accept the proclamation.

YEAS: Dunn, Murphy,Vincent, Young

NAYS: None

ABSENT:Collins

ABSTAIN: None The motion passed with avote of 4-0.

2. Proclamation declaring May 2025 National Women’sHealth Month in the City of Baker (Vincent) City Attorney Fabreread the proclamation.

The motion was made by Council Member Vincent, seconded by Council Members Dunn/Murphy to accept the proclamation.

YEAS: Dunn, Murphy,Vincent, Young NAYS: None

ABSENT:Collins

ABSTAIN: None The motion passed with avote of 4-0.

3. Proclamation declaring June 19, 2025, Juneteenth in the City of Baker (Vincent) The motion was made by Council Member Vincent, seconded by Council Member Murphy to accept the proclamation.

YEAS: Dunn, Murphy,Vincent, Young NAYS: None

ABSENT:Collins

ABSTAIN: None The motion passed with avote of 4-0.

4. Resolution acknowledging that the mayor will execute acontract for legal counsel The mayor read the resolution.

The motion was made by Council Member Murphy,seconded by Council Member Dunn to adopt the resolution.

Discussion regarding the resolution and the need for additional legal counsel was held.

Vote was called for

YEAS: Dunn, Murphy,Vincent, Young NAYS: None

ABSENT:Collins

ABSTAIN: None The motion passed with a vote of 4-0.

NEW BUSINESS

1. Personnel Matter -Council to consider whether under the Baker Charter Article IV Sec 4-06, the City Attorney,subsequent to being appointed years prior,can continue to serve after changing his voter registration in September of 2024 (Mayor) The mayor stated because of the lawsuit they had to null and void everything they did at the meeting on March 3, 2025. He said that has been done. He stated now they have to go back into Executive Session and let the council deliberate.

The motion was made by Council Member Murphy,seconded

councilreached

from the Louisiana Department of Justice also said this is acharter rule, not amalfeasance nor law issue, and it is something for the mayor and city counciltodecide.

The motion was made by CouncilMember Dunn, seconded by Council Member Vincent to accept the recommendation of the council.

Dr. Toni Jackson, 931 Husband, asked the city council if they had conducted an investigation. CouncilMember Dunn replied in the affirmative, saying yes, they did.

Vote was called for YEAS: Dunn, Murphy,Vincent, Young NAYS:None

ABSENT: Collins

ABSTAIN: None

The motion passed with avote of 4-0.

2. Schedulework session to discuss Ordinance 2025-6, regulations regarding automobile repair work and oil changes in residential and subdivision areas and to provide for other matters regarding to the same (Mayor)

The motion was made by CouncilMember Murphy,seconded by Council Member Vincent to schedulea work session to discuss Ordinance 2025-6, regulations regarding automobile repair work and oil changes in residential and subdivision areas and to provide for other matters regarding to the same on Tuesday,June 3, 2025, at 3:30 p.m.

YEAS: Dunn, Murphy,Vincent, Young

NAYS:None

ABSENT: Collins

ABSTAIN: None

The motion passed with avote of 4-0.

3. Introduce Ordinance 2025-7, an ordinance to adopt the operating budget of general fund revenues and expenditures City of Baker Louisiana, fiscal year ending June 30, 2026 (Mayor)

The motion was made by CouncilMember Murphy,seconded by Council

Member Dunn to introduce Ordinance 2025-7.

YEAS: Dunn, Murphy,Vincent, Young NAYS:None

ABSENT: Collins

ABSTAIN: None

The motion passed with avote of 4-0.

4. Introduce Ordinance 2025-8, an ordinance to adopt the operating budget of special revenue funds revenues and expenditures City of Baker,Louisiana, fiscal year ending June 30, 2026 (Mayor)

The motion was made by CouncilMember Vincent, seconded by Council

Member Young to introduce Ordinance 2025-8.

YEAS: Dunn, Murphy,Vincent, Young

NAYS:None

ABSENT: Collins

ABSTAIN: None

The motion passed with avote of 4-0.

5. Introduce Ordinance 2025-9, an ordinance to adopt the capital budget and capital program of governmental funds City of Baker,Louisiana, fiscal year ending June 30, 2026 (Mayor)

The motion was made by CouncilMember Dunn, seconded by Council

Member Young to introduce Ordinance 2025-9.

YEAS: Dunn, Murphy,Vincent, Young NAYS:None

ABSENT: Collins

ABSTAIN: None

The motion passed with avote of 4-0.

6. Introduce Ordinance 2025-10, an ordinance to adopt the budget of utility fund revenues, expenditures and capital improvements City of Baker,Louisiana, fiscal year ending June 30, 2026 (Mayor)

The motion was made by CouncilMember Murphy,seconded by Council

Member Vincent to introduce Ordinance 2025-10.

YEAS: Dunn, Murphy,Vincent, Young NAYS: None

ABSENT: Collins

ABSTAIN: None

The motion passed with avote of 4-0.

7. Introduce Ordinance 2025-11, an ordinance to adopt the budget of cemetery fund revenues, expenditures and capital improvements City of Baker,Louisiana, fiscal year ending June 30, 2026 (Mayor)

The motion was made by CouncilMember Vincent, seconded by Council

Members Dunn/Murphy to introduce Ordinance 2025-11.

YEAS: Dunn, Murphy,Vincent, Young NAYS:None

ABSENT: Collins

ABSTAIN: None

The motion passed with avote of 4-0.

8. Introduce Ordinance 2025-12, an ordinance to adopt the budget of sewer revenue fund revenues, expenditures and capital improvements City of Baker,Louisiana, fiscal year ending June 30, 2026 (Mayor)

The motion was made by CouncilMember Murphy,seconded by Council

Member Young to introduce Ordinance 2025-12.

YEAS: Dunn, Murphy,Vincent, Young NAYS:None

ABSENT: Collins

ABSTAIN: None

The motion passed with avote of 4-0.

PUBLIC MEETING

1. Adopt Ordinance 2025-5, an ordinance to rename the Baker Fire Station in honor of James E. “Goose” Carroll (Mayor) (Introduced 5/13/2025) This item was previouslyaddressed.

ANNOUNCEMENTS/COMMENTS

1. District 2announcements(Dunn)

CouncilMember Dunn announced the Fish &Fun Day will be held on Saturday,August 9, 2025, at the park on North Magnolia. She asked that anyone interested in being involved in the event contact her after the meeting.

2. District 1announcements(Vincent)

CouncilMember Vincent said he is glad that the mayor and Mr.Davis plan to discuss the appearance of Main Street. He announced thatLMA will host awebinar on hurricane season on Wednesday,June 4, 2025, at 10:00 a.m.

CouncilMember Dunn thanked the mayor for helping to bring Charlie’s Place, acenter for those suffering from Alzheimer’s, to Baker ADMINISTRATIVE MATTERS The mayor advised everyone to begin preparing for hurricane season.

The mayor said they areworking on the water leak in Baker Heights. He said the water lines areold, thus the continuing push by the city to improve infrastructure.

The mayor stated Waste Proiscurrently working with one truck and the city will meet with them and work to find aresolution to garbage disposal/ pickup issues. He said that debris/trash removal may be sub-contracted out. The mayor asked that residents not put wood into garbage cans, saying they arefor garbage in bags only APPOINTMENTS TO BOARDS AND COMMISSIONS CONDEMNATIONS

REPORTS ON BOARDS AND COMMISSIONS

Planning and Zoning Commission

Willie Sanders, 6206 Molino, asked that the city address

at 6204 Molino. Neighbors report that the grass is over eight inches tall and the house is deplorable.

William Davis, 13314 London, expressed his concerns regarding the parking lot and landscaping at Greenwood Shopping Center on Main Street. He asked that the responsible party be held accountableand perform the

of

Murphy read the council’sstatement. He stated the council held that the city attorney owes no money to the city.Hestated the city attorney is licensed and practicing law and is fulfilling the duties andisthereforeeligible to receive pay for his services rendered. Council Member Murphy stated the

outlined in the city charter,including but not

athorough review for charter violations as well as aformal investigation. Discussion followed. John Champagne, 3535

asked

pictures of the

the wall in the council chambers. The mayor stated the pictures areatthe museum. Mr.Champagne stated he would like to see them returnedto the council chambers.

ADJOURN The motion wasmade by Council Member Vincent, seconded by Council Member Dunn to adjourn. YEAS: Dunn, Murphy, Vincent, Young NAYS: None

ABSENT:Collins

ABSTAIN: None The motion passed with avote of 4-0.

CITY OF BAKER

PARISHOFEASTBATON ROUGE

STATEOFLOUISIANA I, Angela Canady Wall, certify that IamClerk of the Council for the City of Baker,Louisiana, and that the above and foregoing is acopy of the minutes of aregular meeting of the Council for the City of Baker, Louisiana held on May 27, 2025.

Angela Canady Wall, LCMC Clerk of Council MINUTES BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS HILLCRESTMEMORIAL GARDENS CITY OF BAKER PARISHOFEASTBATON ROUGE STATEOFLOUISIANA 3325 GROOM ROAD BAKER, LA 70714 May 27, 2025

The City Council of the City of Baker,Louisiana, sitting as the Board of Commissioners for Hillcrest Memorial Gardens, met in regular session on May 27, 2025, with the following members in attendance at the meeting: COMMISSIONERS Rochelle Dunn Cedric Murphy Dr.Charles Vincent Darnell Waites Robert Young ABSENT Desiree Collins

CALL TO ORDER –Commissioner Waites presided. DISPOSITION OF MINUTES OF PREVIOUS MEETING The meeting was called to order and the motion was made by Commissioner Waites, seconded by Commissioner Murphy to approve the minutes of the meeting held on May 13,

None The motion passed by avote of 5-0.

CITY OF BAKER PARISHOFEASTBATON ROUGE STATEOFLOUISIANA

I, Angela Canady Wall, certify that IamClerk of the Council for the City of Baker,Louisiana, and that the above and foregoing is acopy of the minutes of aregularmeeting of the Board of Commissioners for the Hillcrest Memorial Gardens held on May 27, 2025.

Angela Canady Wall, LCMC Clerk of Council

MINUTES BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS BAKER CONSOLIDATED UTILITIES SYSTEM CITY OF BAKER PARISHOFEASTBATON ROUGE STATEOFLOUISIANA 3325 GROOM ROAD BAKER, LA 70714 May 27, 2025

The City Council of the City of Baker, Louisiana, sitting as the Board of Commissioners for the Baker Consolidated Utilities System, met in regular session on May 27, 2025, with the following members attending: COMMISSIONERS Rochelle Dunn Cedric Murphy Dr.Charles Vincent Darnell Waites Robert Young

ABSENT Desiree Collins

CALL TO ORDER –Commissioner Waites presided.

DISPOSITION OF MINUTES OF PREVIOUS MEETING

The meeting was called to order and the motion was made by Commissioner Waites, seconded by Commissioners Dunn/Murphy/ Vincent to approve the minutes of the meeting held on May 13, 2025.

YEAS: Dunn, Murphy, Vincent, Waites, Young NAYS: None

ABSENT:Collins ABSTAIN: None

The motion passed by avote of 5-0.

PUBLIC NOTICE NEW BUSINESS

OTHER NECESSARY BUSINESS

1. Monthly Business Report

2. Other Reports 3. Items Requiring Action

ADJOURN Therewas no other business to come beforethe commission.The motion wasmade by Commissioner Waites, seconded by Commissioner Dunn to adjourn.

YEAS: Dunn, Murphy, Vincent, Waites, Young NAYS: None

ABSENT:Collins ABSTAIN: None

The motion passed by avote of 5-0.

CITY OF BAKER PARISHOFEASTBATON ROUGE STATEOFLOUISIANA

I, Angela Canady Wall, certify that IamClerk of the Council for the City of Baker,Louisiana, and that the above and foregoing is acopy of the minutes of aregularmeeting of the BoardofCommissioners of the Baker Consolidated Utility System held on May 27, 2025.

Angela Canady Wall, LCMC Clerk of Council

17, 2025 uponthe applicationof LOUISIANARIVER MAR‐KET, LLC

Commissionerwillcon‐sider

to the

of

order uponthe applicationof LOUISIANARIVER MAR‐KET,LLC to constructand operate intrastate nat‐uralgas pipelinefacili‐tiesinIberiaParish, State of Louisiana, and interconnectwithBridge‐lineHoldings, LP andEn‐LinkLIG,LLC in the ParishofIberia, Stateof Louisiana,pursuantto La. R.S. 30:555(C) & 30:555(H) andLAC 43:XI.505 &LAC 43:XI.509. Acopyofthe application ison file with theOffice ofConservationand may beexaminedduringnor‐mal businesshours Comments andviews regarding theapplication shouldbedirectedin written form to be re‐ceivednot laterthan5:00 o'clock p.m.,June 16 2025. Oral comments will bereceivedatthe hear‐ing butshouldbebrief and notcover theentire matters containedinthe written comments.Ifac‐commodations arere‐

quired under theAmeri‐canswithDisabilities Act,pleasecontact the PipelineDivisionat(225) 342-5505 within tenwork‐ing days of thehearing date.

nityand TechnicalCol‐legeSystemdoesnot discriminateonthe basisofrace, color, na‐tionalorigin, gender,dis‐ability,age,veteran sta‐tus,orgenetic informationinits pro‐grams andactivities. 142009-may22-29-jun5-3t $393.73

NOTICE OF SUCCESSION SALE OF IMMOVABLE PROPERTY A petition to sell immov‐ablepropertyatprivate salefor TwoHundred Sixty-Fiveand 00/100 ($265,000.00) Dollars, cash, hasbeen filedin the succession of Frank Wallace Basso probate number115,812, 19thJu‐dicialDistrictEastBaton Rouge parish,Louisiana The immovableisde‐scribed to wit: That certainlot or parcel ofground,together with all thebuildings andim‐provementsthereon,and all of therights, ways privileges, servitudes appurtenances andad‐vantagesthereon be‐longing or anywiseap‐pertaining, situated in the Parish of EAST BATON ROUGE,State of Louisiana,inthatsubdi‐visionknown as BILT‐MORESUBDIVISION FOURTHFILING, and being designated on the official plan of said sub‐division, on file andof recordinthe office of the Clerk andRecorderof saidParishand State, as LOT NUMBER ONEHUN‐DREDSIXTY ONE(161) saidsubdivision,saidlot havingsuchmeasure‐ments anddimensions and beingsubject to suchservitudesas shown on said subdivi‐sionmap.Havinga mu‐nicipal addressof: 15946 REGENTAVENUE, GREEN‐WELL SPRINGS, LA,70739 Notice is nowgiven to all parties to whomitmay concern,including the heirs andcreditors of decedent, andofthises‐tate, that they be or‐dered to make anyoppo‐sitionwhich they may havetosuchapplication, atany time,prior to the issuance of theorder or judgmentauthorizing approving andhomolo‐gatingthe administra‐tor’s applicationand that suchorder or judgment may be issued after the expirationofseven days fromthe date of thelast publication of such no‐tice,all in accordance

LOUISIANA SUIT NO.49860 BY VIRTUE OF AWRITOF SEIZURE ANDSALETO ME, DIRECTED BY THE HONORABLE THEEIGH‐TEENTH JUDICIAL DIS‐TRICT COURT, FORTHE PARISHOFWESTBATON

A.M THEFOLLOWING DE‐SCRIBEDPROPERTY: 2021 FLEETWOOD 28 X56 MOBILEHOMEBEARING SERIALNUMBERS FLE240TX2045919AAND FLE240TX2045919B MUNICIPALADDRESS