The Advocate 06-10-2025

Senate adds $1.2B in projects to budget

otherinitiatives

St.George school legislation advances

Measureonverge of beingsenttovoters

BY CHARLESLUSSIER Staff writer

Legislation that would create a school district that matches the city of St. George is poised to become law after the second bill in a two-bill package cleared the Louisiana House on Monday The final decision on whether St. George gets its own school district likely now rests with the voters of LouisianaatanApril 18 statewide referendum. The proposed constitutional amendment would need to pass statewide as wellasinEast Baton Rouge Parish.

Allthat’sleftbeforeitheadsto voters is forthe Senate,which alreadyapprovedboth bills,toconcur with House changes by Thursday,the last day of the session.

Senate Bill 25, aproposed constitutional amendment, passed the House on Monday by a70-23 margin, with 12 membersabsent. That’sexactly two-thirds of the elected members of the House, the bare minimum neededfor aconstitutional amendment.

The bill passed along party lines, with aRepublicansupermajority voting yesand Democrats either voting no or being absent forthe vote.

BY MEGHAN FRIEDMANN Staff writer

The Louisiana Senate on Monday added $1.2 billion in one-timespendingto thestate government’sbudget for the coming fiscalyear, allocating moneyto roads and bridges, economic development incentives to attract businesses, and improvements to collegecampuses, among other new initiatives. That money comesfromthe Revenue Stabilization Trust Fund, asavings account that consistsofextra corporate andseverance taxcollections. It holds

$3.9 billion, according to Senate President Cameron Henry,R-Metairie.

“What we’re doingtoday changes the overall budget climate in ourstate in terms of workforce investment,economicdevelopmentadvancementand infrastructure improvements. It sets the stage forabettertomorrow,”Henrysaid in astatement.

Drawing $1.2 billionfrom the fund appeared to be thebiggest change the Senate madetothe budget as it passed aflurry of amendments on theflooron Monday.The legislative session is scheduledtoend Thursday

The budget package, which consists of multiple bills,now returns to the House forapproval. If theHouse does notsign off on the amendments, the Legislature may need to extend the session.

Henry saidhehopes theHouse concurs with theamendments,adding that the twochambers worked in conjunction in recent days.

TheSenateamendmentsset aside$709 million for theLouisiana Transportation Infrastructure Fund, which pays forimprovements to roads, bridgesand similar

ä See BUDGET, page 4A

Monday’sHouse vote was acontrast to 2012 and2013 when the House floor wasthe graveyard for similar,thoughunsuccessful, proposals to create aforerunner to St. George, what wastobecalledthe SoutheastBaton Rouge Community School System Since then the city of St. George has becomea reality,the culmination of abitter,decadelong incorporation effort. Leaders of the new city have returnedtothe Legislature to complete what they consideredunfinishedbusiness from 2012 and 2013.

Rep. Barbara Freiberg, R-Baton

ä See ST.GEORGE, page 5A

Unsealed documentsrevealabuse by former BR-areapriest

He hasbeenaccused of sexual misconduct dating to 1970s

BY MATT BRUCE Staff writer

School leaders at Catholic High in Baton Rouge noticed adisturb-

ing pattern with adiocesan priest on theteachingstaff in early 1993.

It was ared flag thatprompted a meeting between school officials andahigh-ranking clergyman from theBaton Rouge diocese, accordingtodocuments recently unsealedincourt

Evenafterbeing warned twice that “he was socializing too much with students” at the all-boys

school, the Rev.Daniel Lemoine continued to spend time alone with them, said areport sent to the bishop of the Baton Rouge diocese following the meeting.

Onestudent’s parentscomplained to Catholic High leaders in December1992that Lemoine took theirson to Our Lady of the Mercy Church, where the priest lived at the time, and made the boy

wait in the rectory alone while he showered and changed his clothes.

Whenschool administrators confronted Lemoine about his tendency to fraternize with ninth and 10thgraders, he acknowledged how it couldraise suspicions and cause “false impressions,” the report said.But the priest deniedany sexual misconduct with students.

Still, school officials terminated

Lemoine’scontract, said the report, part of an ongoing lawsuit against Lemoine and the diocese.

While the newly unsealed records include no sexual misconduct accusations against Lemoine at Catholic High, they do reveal he hasfaced at least seven allegations of abuse elsewhere —some

STAFF PHOTO By MICHAEL JOHNSON

Kyiv: Moscow launches biggest drone attack

KYIV Ukraine Russia launched almost 500 drones at Ukraine in the biggest overnight drone bombardment of the three-year war, the Ukrainian air force said Monday, as the Kremlin presses its summer offensive amid direct peace talks that have yet to deliver progress on stopping the fighting.

Despite the difficulties in reaching a ceasefire, Russia and Ukraine swapped another batch of prisoners of war Monday

In addition to the 479 drones, 20 missiles of various types were fired at different parts of Ukraine from Sunday to Monday, according to the air force, which said the barrage targeted mainly central and western areas.

Ukraine’s air force said its air defenses intercepted and destroyed 277 drones and 19 missiles, claiming only 10 drones or missiles hit their targets

Officials said one person was injured. It was not possible to independently verify the claims. A recent escalation in aerial attacks has coincided with a renewed Russian battlefield push along eastern and northeastern parts of the roughly 620-mile front line.

Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said late Sunday that in some of those areas, “the situation is very difficult.” He provided no details.

6 killed in plane crash off San Diego coast

A small plane crashed off the San Diego coast shortly after takeoff, killing all six people on board the Federal Aviation Administration said Monday

The twin-engine Cessna 414 crashed at around 12:30 p.m. Sunday, the FAA said. The plane was returning to Phoenix one day after flying out from Arizona, according to the flight tracking website Flightaware.com

The Coast Guard said searchers found a debris field later Sunday about 3 miles off the coast of Point Loma, a San Diego neighborhood that juts into the Pacific U.S. Coast Guard officials The water in the search area is about 200 feet deep. Although the FAA said all six people on board the plane were killed authorities haven’t identified them.

The FAA said the plane is owned by vitamin and nutritional supplement maker Optimal Health Systems. But the company based in Pima, Arizona, said in a statement that it sold the plane to a group of private individuals in 2023, meaning the FAA database could be out of date. However, the company’s founder, Doug Grant, said in the statement that, “We personally know several of the passengers onboard and our sincerest condolences are offered to those affected by the tragedy, all of whom are incredible members of our small community.”

Complaints signal split jury at Weinstein’s retrial

NEW YORK The jury foreperson in Harvey Weinstein‘s sex crimes retrial complained Monday that some jurors were prodding others to change their minds, talking about the former studio boss’ past and going beyond the charges as they deliberate.

“I feel like they are attacking, talking together, fight together I don’t like it,” the foreperson said, according to a transcript of his closed-door conversation with Judge Curtis Farber and the prosecution and defense teams.

The foreperson said he believed the jury was tasked only with considering “what happened at the time, in the moment” of the crimes alleged by the prosecution, but others “are pushing people, talking about his past.”

“I feel it is not fair taking the decision about the past,” the foreperson said. He didn’t specify what parts of Weinstein’s past came up.

After hearing from the juror, defense lawyer Arthur Aidala implored Farber to declare a mistrial, calling it a “tainted,” “rogue” and “runaway” jury Prosecutor Matthew Colangelo argued that the juror’s concerns didn’t warrant a mistrial, noting that some aspects of Weinstein’s past were allowed into evidence Farber denied the mistrial request but reminded jurors to weigh only evidence presented during the trial.

Trump to send more Guard troops to L.A.

700 Marines also deployed; Calif sues over use of National Guard to respond to ICE raid protests

BY LOLITA C. BALDOR, TARA COPP, JASON DEAREN and TIM SULLIVAN

Associated Press

LOS ANGELES — President Donald Trump authorized on Monday the deployment of an additional 2,000 National Guard members to help respond to protests in Los Angeles over immigration raids, according to U.S. officials.

The order would put them on active duty One official warned, however that the order was just signed and it could take a day or two to get troops moving.

The officials spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss troop movements.

Gov Gavin Newsom called the move reckless and “disrespectful to our troops” in a post on the social platform X

“This isn’t about public safety It’s about stroking a dangerous President’s ego,” Newsom said.

The Pentagon also deployed about 700 Marines to Los Angeles on Monday to help National Guard members respond to protests over immigration raids, officials said, as California sued Trump over his use of the Guard troops and demonstrators took to the city’s streets for a fourth day

The Marines are being deployed from their base at Twentynine Palms in the Southern California desert to protect federal property and personnel, including federal immigration agents, U.S. Northern

Command said in a statement

Los Angeles Police Chief Jim McDonnell said in a statement Monday afternoon he was confident in the police department’s ability to handle large-scale demonstrations and that the Marines’ arrival without coordinating with the police department presented a “significant logistical and operational challenge” for them.

California Attorney General Rob Bonta announced the lawsuit over the use of National Guard troops by telling reporters that Trump had trampled” the state’s sovereignty.

“We don’t take lightly to the president abusing his authority and unlawfully mobilizing California National Guard troops,” Bonta said He sought a court order declaring Trump’s use of the Guard unlawful and asking for a restraining order to halt the deployment

The arrival of the National Guard followed two days of protests that began Friday in downtown Los Angeles after federal immigration authorities arrested

Gaza-bound aid boat arrives in Israel after seizure

BY YESICA FISCH and TIA GOLDENBERG Associated Press

JERUSALEM A Gazabound aid boat carrying Greta Thunberg and other activists arrived at an Israeli port Monday after Israeli forces stopped and detained them — enforcing a long-standing blockade of the Palestinian territory that has been tightened during the Israel-Hamas war.

The boat, accompanied by Israel’s navy, arrived in Ashdod in the evening, according to Israel’s Foreign Ministry It published a photo on social media of Thunberg after disembarking.

The 12 activists were undergoing medical checks to ensure they are in good health, the ministry said. They were expected to be held at a detention facility in Ramle before being deported, according to Adalah, a legal rights group representing them.

The activists had set out to protest Israel’s military campaign in Gaza, which is among the deadliest and most destructive since World War II, and its restrictions on the entry of humanitarian aid. Both have put the territory of around 2 million Palestinians at risk of famine.

The Freedom Flotilla Coalition, which organized the voyage said the activists were “kidnapped by Israeli forces” while trying to deliver desperately needed aid.

“The ship was unlawfully boarded, its unarmed civilian crew abducted and its lifesaving cargo including baby formula, food and medical supplies — confiscated,” it said in a statement.

It said the ship was seized in international waters about 120 miles from Gaza, and Adalah asserted that Israel had “no legal authority” to take it over Israel’s Foreign Minis-

try portrayed the voyage as a public relations stunt, saying on social media that “the ‘selfie yacht’ of the ‘celebrities’ is safely making its way to the shores of Israel.”

It said the activists would return to their home countries and the aid would be sent to Gaza through established channels. It circulated footage of what appeared to be Israeli military personnel handing out sandwiches and water to the activists, who were wearing life vests.

Israeli officials said the flotilla carried what amounted to less than a truckload of aid.

“This wasn’t humanitarian aid. It’s Instagram activism,” Israeli government spokesperson David Mencer said. “Meanwhile, Israel has delivered over 1,200 truckloads in the last two weeks. So who’s really feeding Gaza and who’s really feeding their own ego? Greta was not bringing aid, she was bringing herself.”

After its 2½-month total blockade aimed at pressuring Hamas Israel started allowing some basic aid into Gaza last month, but humanitarian workers and experts have warned of famine unless the blockade is lifted and Israel ends its military offensive. About 600 trucks of aid entered daily during the ceasefire that Israel ended in March.

more than 40 people that day across the city

The smell of smoke hung in the air downtown Monday, one day after crowds blocked a major freeway and set self-driving cars on fire as police responded with tear gas, rubber bullets and flash-bang grenades.

The law enforcement presence was heavy, with police cars from neighboring cities blocking the street in front of the federal detention facility that was a focus of the protests.

The clashes unfolded over just a few square blocks in an immense city of some 4 million people, most of whom went about their normal business on peaceful streets.

On Monday, thousands flooded the streets around City Hall for a union rally ahead of a hearing for arrested labor leader David Huerta, who was freed a few hours later on a $50,000 bond. Huerta’s arrest on Friday while protesting immigration raids has become a rallying cry for people angry over the ad-

ministration’s crackdown. He is the president of the Service Employees International Union California, which represents thousands of the state’s janitors, security officers and other workers.

Early protests Monday had a calm and even joyful atmosphere at times, with people dancing to live music and buoyed by Huerta’s release.

Protesters linked hands outside the downtown federal detention center where Huerta was being held, and at times sang in front of a line of police officers, who unsuccessfully asked people to move off the road and onto the sidewalk. Religious leaders joined the protesters, working with organizers at times to deescalate moments of tension.

Chanting against a line of National Guard troops with Homeland Security officers behind them surrounding the federal buildings ramped up in the afternoon as people yelled, “Free them all!” and “National Guard go away.”

Bonta accused Trump of fanning protesters’ anger with his announcement of the deployment, saying he set off Sunday’s clashes with law enforcement in downtown Los Angeles. “This was not inevitable,” he said.

Trump said Monday that the city would have been “completely obliterated” if he had not deployed the Guard.

Later, at a White House event, he added that state leaders “were afraid to do anything.”

Other protests were taking shape Monday afternoon across L.A. County, as confirmed reports of federal immigration agents in the cities of Whittier and Huntington Park south of Los Angeles spurred anger from activists. More protests were scheduled for cities across the country

RFK Jr. ousts entire CDC vaccine advisory committee

BY LAURA UNGAR and AMANDA SEITZ Associated Press

Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr on Monday removed every member of a scientific committee that advises the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on how to use vaccines and pledged to repla ce them with his own picks.

Major physicians groups criticized the move to oust all 17 members of the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices.

Kennedy, who was one of the nation’s leading anti-vaccine activists before becoming the nation’s top health official, has not said who he would appoint to the panel, but said it would convene in just two weeks in Atlanta.

Although it’s typically not viewed as a partisan board, the Biden administration had installed the entire committee.

“Without removing the current members, the current Trump administration would not have been able to appoint a majority of new members until 2028,” Kennedy wrote. “A clean sweep is needed to re-establish public confidence in vaccine science.”

Kennedy, in a Wall Street Journal opinion piece, said the committee members had too many conflicts of interest. Committee members routinely disclose any possible conflicts at the start of public meetings.

Dr Georges Benjamin, executive director of the American Public Health Association, called Kennedy’s mass ouster “a coup.”

“It’s not how democracies work. It’s not good for the health of the nation,” Benjamin told The Associated Press.

Benjamin said the move raises real concerns about whether future commit-

tee members will be viewed as impartial. He added that Kennedy is going against what he told lawmakers and the public, and the public health association plans to watch Kennedy “like a hawk.”

“He is breaking a promise,” Benjamin said. “He said he wasn’t going to do this.”

Dr Bruce A. Scott, president of the American Medical Association, called the

committee a trusted source of science- and data-driven advice and said Kennedy’s move, coupled with declining vaccination rates across the country, will help drive an increase in vaccine-preventable diseases.

“Today’s action to remove the 17 sitting members of ACIP undermines that trust and upends a transparent process that has saved countless lives,” Scott said in a statement.

theadvocate.com/eedition

ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO By JAE HONG

Protesters clasp hands Monday in front of a line of California National Guard troops at a federal building in downtown Los Angeles.

ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO

Activists of the Freedom Flotilla Coalition board the Madleen boat on June 1 ahead of setting sail for Gaza from Catania, Italy

Some report extra scrutiny as Trump’s travel ban starts

BY GISELA SALOMON Associated Press

MIAMI President Donald Trump’s new ban on travel to the U.S. by citizens from a dozen countries took effect Monday with relative calm, as some travelers with valid visas reported extra scrutiny at American airports before being allowed entry. The ban targeting mainly African and Middle Eastern countries kicked in amid rising tension over the president’s escalating campaign of immigration enforcement. But it arrived with no immediate signs of the chaos that unfolded at airports across the U.S. during Trump’s first travel ban in 2017.

Vincenta Aguilar said she was anxious Monday as she and her husband, both Guatemalan citizens, were subjected to three different interviews by U.S. officials after arriving at Miami International Airport and showing tourist visas the couple received last week

ela who are outside the U.S. and don’t hold a valid visa.

The new ban does not revoke visas previously issued to people from countries on the list, according to guidance issued Friday to all U.S. diplomatic missions. However, unless an applicant meets narrow criteria for an exemption to the ban, his or her application will be rejected starting Monday

Travelers with previously issued visas should still be able to enter the U.S even after the ban takes effect.

end visiting family in Cuba.

“They did not ask me anything,” Hernandez said. “I only showed my residency card.”

During Trump’s first term, a hastily written executive order ordering the denial of entry to citizens of mainly Muslim countries created chaos at numerous airports and other ports of entry, prompting successful legal challenges and major revisions to the policy

Many immigration experts say the new ban is more carefully crafted and appears designed to beat court challenges that hampered the first by focusing on the visa application process.

“They asked us where we work, how many children we have, if we have had any problems with the law how we are going to afford the cost of this travel, how many days we will stay here,” said Aguilar, who along with her husband was visiting their son for the first time since he left Guatemala 22 years ago. She said they were released about an hour after their flight landed greeting their waiting family members in Florida with tears of relief. Guatemala is not among the countries included in the new ban or flagged for extra travel restrictions.

Trump signed last week applies to citizens of Afghanistan, Myanmar, Chad, the Republic of Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Haiti, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan and Yemen. It also imposes heightened restrictions on people from Burundi, Cuba, Laos, Sierra Leone, Togo, Turkmenistan and Venezu-

Narayana Lamy, a Haitian citizen who works for his home country’s government, said he was told to wait after showing his passport and tourist visa Monday at the Miami airport while a U.S. official confirmed by phone that he was allowed into the country to visit family members.

The new proclamation that

Palestinians: Israel, its allies fire on crowd near aid site, killing 14

BY WAFAA SHURAFA and SAMY MAGDY Associated Press

KHAN YOUNIS, Gaza Strip Israeli forces and allied local gunmen fired toward a crowd heading to an Israeliand U.S.-supported food distribution center in the Gaza Strip early Monday, Palestinians said. Gaza’s Health Ministry and local hospitals said 14 people were killed.

The gunmen appeared to be allied with Israel’s military, operating in close proximity to troops and retreating into an Israeli military zone in the southern city of Rafah after the crowd hurled stones at them, witnesses said.

The Israeli military did not immediately respond to a request for comment Israel recently acknowledged supporting local armed groups opposed to Hamas.

It was the latest in a series of shootings that have killed at least 127 people and wounded hundreds since the rollout of a new food distribution system last month, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry Israel and the United States say the new system is designed to circumvent Hamas, but it has been rejected by the U.N. and major aid groups.

Experts have warned that Israel’s blockade and ongoing military campaign have put Gaza at risk of famine. Gaza’s roughly 2 million Palestinians almost completely rely on international aid because nearly all food production capabilities have been destroyed.

Palestinians say Israeli forces have repeatedly fired toward crowds heading to the food centers. Previously, Israel’s military has said it fired warning shots at people who approached its forces near the centers, which are

in military zones off limits to independent media.

The Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, the private contractor running the sites, says there has been no violence in or around the centers themselves. But GHF repeatedly warns would-be food recipients that stepping off the road designated by the military for people to reach the centers represents “a great danger.” It paused delivery at its three distribution sites last week to discuss with the military about improving safety on the routes. GHF closed the Rafah site on Monday due to the “chaos of the crowds,” according to a Facebook site associated with the group. A GHF spokesperson did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Heba Joda, who was in the crowd, said gunfire broke out at a roundabout where previous shootings have occurred, around a kilometer (half a mile) from the aid site. She said the shots came from the “dangerous zone” where Israeli troops and their allies are stationed.

She said she saw men from a local militia led by Yasser

Abu Shabab trying to organize the crowds into lines on the road. When people pushed forward, the gunmen opened fire. People then hurled stones, forcing the gunmen to withdraw toward the Israeli positions, she said.

The Abu Shabab group, which calls itself the Popular Forces, says it is guarding the surroundings of the GHF centers in southern Gaza. GHF has said it does not work with the Abu Shabab group. Aid workers say it has a long history of looting U.N. aid trucks.

Hussein Shamimi, who was in the crowd, said his 14-yearold cousin was among those killed.

“There was an ambush the Israelis from one side and Abu Shabab from another,” he said.

Mohamed Kabaga said he saw masked men firing toward the crowds after trying to organize them. “They fired at us directly,” he said while being treated at Nasser Hospital, in the nearby city of Khan Younis. He had been shot in the neck, as were three other people seen by an Associated Press journalist there.

Luis Hernandez, a Cuban citizen and green card holder who has lived in the U.S. for three years, said he had no problems returning Monday to Miami after a week-

Trump said this time that some countries had “deficient” screening for passports and other public documents or have historically refused to take back their own citizens. He relied extensively on an annual Homeland Security report of people who remain in the U.S. after their visas expired.

Blast at U.S. air base in Japan injures 4 Japanese soldiers

BY MARI YAMAGUCHI Associated Press

TOKYO An explosion at a storage site for unexploded ordnance at a U.S. military base on Japan’s southern island of Okinawa injured four Japanese soldiers, though the injuries are not life-threatening, officials said Monday

The four soldiers suffered finger injuries while working at a facility that belongs to Okinawa prefecture and temporarily stores unexploded ordnance, mostly from wartime and found on the island, local officials said. One of the harshest battles of World War II was

fought on Okinawa.

Prefectural officials said the injuries were not lifethreatening, but no other details were immediately known.

The U.S. Air Force said in a statement that the explosion occurred at the facility managed by the Okinawa prefectural government at Kadena Air Base’s munitions storage area. It said no U.S. servicemembers were involved in the incident.

The Self Defense Force’s joint staff said one of the devices suddenly exploded when the soldiers were inspecting it at the facility

The blast occurred when the soldiers were trying to remove rust, NHK television reported. The SDF said they are trying to confirm what caused the accident.

Monday’s accident was believed to be the first ever since the 1974 launch of the Japanese army’s unexploded ordnance disposal unit. Hundreds of tons of unexploded wartime bombs, many of them dropped by the U.S. military remain buried around Japan and are sometimes dug up at construction sites and elsewhere. Many of them are still found on Okinawa, where about 1,856 tons of unexploded U.S. bombs are believed to remain.

ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO By ABDEL KAREEM HANA

Palestinians carry bags containing food and humanitarian aid packages delivered by the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, a U.S.-backed organization, on Monday in Rafah, southern Gaza Strip.

ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO By REBECCA BLACKWELL

Luis Hernandez, 33, right, who traveled to Cuba for the weekend, arrives Monday at Miami International Airport in Miami.

Work begins on Calcasieu LNG export terminal

BY BLAKE PATERSON Staff writer

Construction has begun in southwest Louisiana on what could be the nation’s largest export terminal for liquefied natural gas, after federal regulators gave the controversial project the go-ahead last month.

Venture Global, the Virginiabased company behind the project, said in a statement last week that it had started site work at Calcasieu Pass 2, or CP2. The mega-project, which is expected to cost around $28 billion to build, would be Ven-

ture Global’s second export terminal in Cameron Parish and third in Louisiana. The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission in May authorized Venture Global to begin construction of CP2 and its 91-mile, CP Express pipeline — which will carry natural gas from east Texas and southwest Louisiana to the export terminal — after the agency’s staff determined in an updated environmental review that the projects wouldn’t significantly impact air quality

LNG exports from the U.S. have skyrocketed over the past decade,

growing from around 16 billion cubic feet in 2014 to nearly 4.3 trillion cubic feet in 2024, according to the Energy Information Administration.

Louisiana has emerged as a major player in the growing industry, and is now home to four of the nation’s eight export terminals. Venture Global also owns the Plaquemines LNG terminal, about 20 miles south of New Orleans.

LNG has been billed as an important bridge fuel that burns cleaner than coal, helping developing nations transition away from the dirtiest sources of electricity as

the world moves toward renewable energy

But LNG is also an important source of greenhouse gas emissions, and some question if the trade-off in pollution and major tax breaks amounts to a good investment for the state.

In March, the U.S Department of Energy granted Venture Global’s CP2 conditional approval to export LNG to countries that don’t have free trade agreements with the United States.

The authorization was the fifth LNG-related approval from the federal government since Presi-

dent Donald Trump took office in January promising to fast-track permitting.

The Biden administration had paused export permits for LNG plants in part to study the facilities’ impact on global warming.

CP2 is planning to begin exporting LNG in 2027. It’s expected to employ around 400 direct, permanent workers and approximately 7,500 construction workers, the company said.

Venture Global has proposed adding a third facility named CP3 further north up the Calcasieu River, closer to Lake Charles.

Continued from page 1A

Rouge, who served for six years on the East Baton Rouge Parish School Board, voted yes, but she said she tried for years to find a way to avert the breakup

“I had some great ideas, I thought,” Freiberg said. “It was a failure of leadership on my part perhaps, but we could never come together.”

Freiberg said the 2019 vote to create the city of St. George should be respected and that voters should now have the chance to vote on a companion school district.

“It’s been a very, very difficult, tough road, but I think we are at the place where we need to take this to the voters,” she said Supporters say the proposed

PRIEST

Continued from page 1A

uncovered by his own admission — dating back to the 1970s. It’s unclear from the records whether some of those allegations covered the same incidents. He has not been charged criminally Lemoine was among the 45 clergy members deemed credibly accused of sexual abuse on a 2019 list released by the diocese. The list noted “several” allegations against Lemoine, but no exact number

Almost five years passed between his first admission of molesting a teen and a decree from the diocese that he cease being a priest.

In late 1994, not quite two years after losing his teaching job, Lemoine confessed to a church official to having had sex with three boys, two of them under 16 years old, the records show He was suspended and ordered by church officials into therapy before being allowed to resume limited duties about a year later, largely in a hospital ministry Ultimately, after being suspended again amid more allegations of past abuse, he was stripped of all duties as a priest in 1999, the records show The documents, which detail the accusations against Lemoine and the church’s response, were made public after a judge unsealed confidential diocese records as part of the lawsuit.

The plaintiff is a Denham Springs man who sued last year under the state’s “Lookback Window” law, which gave people sexually abused as minors a three-year window in 2021 to file lawsuits that otherwise would’ve been time-barred in court

The man alleges Lemoine sexually abused him from 1984 to 1986 when he was an altar boy at Immaculate Conception Church in Baton Rouge The diocese also is a defendant in the lawsuit, which alleges church leaders should’ve known Lemoine was a risk and breached their duty of care

A diocese spokesperson declined to comment on the newly released documents, citing the ongoing litigation Lemoine has denied the allegations made in the lawsuit Catholic High officials said in a statement that they are not aware of any allegations of abuse against Lemoine related to his time as a teacher there, where he worked parttime over two school years.

“We hold all those affected by abuse in our prayers and remain committed to supporting their journey toward solace, peace, and justice,” they said. The diocese had filed

new school district is an overdue answer to the poor quality of many Baton Rouge public schools Opponents argue a St. George school district would exacerbate racial segregation in the parish, reduce the quality of education for poorer children in the Baton Rouge public schools left behind and encourage more breakaway school districts in the future.

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

The House changed the legislation so that St. George would absorb a greater share of an estimated $60 million in legacy costs, most of it connected with medical care of retirees.

East Baton Rouge Parish School

much of its information related to the case under seal, citing the sensitive nature of the allegations and the anonymity of the plaintiff. State District Judge Ronald Johnson ordered the filings to be unsealed, with the plaintiff’s full name blacked out in the publicly available court documents, after a hearing behind closed doors on May 19.

“We believe it was important to unseal the records filed by the Diocese of Baton Rouge to support the public purpose of the revival window in educating the public about the prevalence and harm of child sexual abuse to prevent future abuse,” the plaintiff’s lead attorney Julien Lamothe, said in a statement last week. “Unsealing the records supports that public purpose.”

Lemoine served over 25 years in the ministry in Baton Rouge, Port Allen, White Castle, Denham Springs and Pierre Part. He spent two of those years teaching religion courses at Catholic High.

The Rev John Carville, administrator of the Baton Rouge diocese, wrote a report in April 1993 to thenBishop Alfred Hughes about Lemoine, who had by then already been removed from the school.

“I am concerned because this has been a pattern throughout his 13 years of priesthood,” Carville reported. “Despite warnings from pastors and myself he has shown no willingness to examine his behavior As he grows older, this behavior becomes more suspect.”

In his report to the bishop, Carville noted that Brother Francis David, the school’s principal, said there had been no sexual allegations against Lemoine when they dismissed him as a teacher But Carville added that Lemoine’s “compulsion to socialize with adolescents was a danger signal.”

David recommended Lemoine undergo therapy for his behavior Both he and Vice Principal Greg Brandao “felt that Lemoine’s purpose in teaching was to satisfy his own social needs rather than to truly benefit the students,” Carville stated. After his dismissal as a teacher, Lemoine remained a chaplain at Baton Rouge Regional Medical Center and was transferred to live at the St. Aloysius Parish rectory in Baton Rouge. He was evaluated for psychotherapeutic treatment and began seeing a psychologist, according to Lemoine’s “delicts reservata,” the comprehensive report done years later by the Catholic church that outlined his infractions.

Then, in October 1994, Lemoine confessed to a diocesan official that he began grooming a 12-year-old boy

Board leaders, however, say the amendments don’t go far enough in that respect and have maintained their opposition to the legislation “as written,” as per a board resolution approved May 19.

The revisions call for St. George to cover legacy costs but only for school employees who retired at some time in the past from the six public schools that the new district would inherit. School leaders have been pressing St. George to pay for 16% of the district’s current unfunded health insurance liability for current and future retirees — that’s the city’s share of the almost 40,000 students enrolled now in East Baton Rouge schools.

The other St. George bill, Senate Bill 234, the enabling legislation, passed the House Wednesday, with 60 yes votes. SB25 needed at least 10 more votes than its companion bill received, and it got them.

in 1976 and had a “sexual relationship” with the child until age 15, a case summary included in that report says. Lemoine further admitted to molesting a 13-year-old boy at St Joseph the Worker Church in Pierre Part, where he had been a pastor from 1985 to 1990, the report said He also said he had sex with a teen while a seminarian in Labadieville, the report said though it’s not clear in the records whether the youth was 16 or 17. Lemoine claimed that the teen was the “aggressor,” the report states.

It was not clear if church leaders at the time reported Lemoine’s confessions to law enforcement, but the correspondence between diocese officials indicated the statute of limitations for prosecution in each incident had expired.

When one of the teens’ parents threatened to sue, the church settled with the family for an undisclosed amount in November 1995, according to the report.

In January 1995, Hughes placed Lemoine on administrative leave and sent him to St. Luke’s Institute in Maryland for inpatient treatment for ephebophilia a sexual attraction to people in their mid- to late teens.

After completing the program, Lemoine returned to Baton Rouge and was reinstated as a priest in 1996 on a restricted status, assigned to hospital ministries, church records show He was allowed to be a chaplain “with the strict understanding that there could be no further social or recreational contact on his part with adolescent boys,” states one of the unsealed church reports.

Lemoine ministered to the sick, led World Day prayers at Our Lady of the Lake and was licensed to officiate a wedding in late 1998, church records show Then, two new allegations surfaced in the spring of 1999.

One of the victims alleged “improprieties” by Lemoine in 1982, when he was 16 or 17 The other victim claimed Lemoine committed sex acts with him while they took trips together to New Orleans and Florida in 1991 and 1992. The boy was 14 or 15 or at the time, church reports state. Also in 1999, a lawsuit later settled by the diocese — was filed against Lemoine alleging sexual abuse, though neither he nor the victim were ever publicly named.

That same year, Hughes removed Lemoine from all priestly duties, kicked him out of the Our Lady of Mercy rectory and directed him to “embrace a lay lifestyle in every way possible,” church records show

“It’s time for us to move us forward in this city, time to move forward in this parish,” said Rep. Paula Davis, R-Baton Rouge, who handled the bill for lead author Sen. Rick Edmonds, R-St. George.

Monday’s vote split the local Baton Rouge delegation.

Rep Terry Landry, D-Baton Rouge, urged lawmakers to delay so the different sides can keep striving to iron out their differences.

“We need time for emotions to calm down somewhat,” Landry said. “Let’s let the dust settle.”

Rep. Denise Marcelle, D-Baton Rouge, said St. George hasn’t done enough to lay out its plans for a new school district.

“The citizens of St. George who voted for the separation still have the audacity to think they have the privilege of going to the finest schools in East Baton Rouge Parish and that’s the magnet schools,” Jordan said. “And that’s not just right.”

Freiberg, however, argued that after an initial grandfather period for current students such magnet school enrollment would have to be agreed to in the future by both districts.

“You need to have a plan,” Marcelle said. “You need to have a budget.” As he did last week, Rep. Edmond Jordan, D-Brusly objected to the St. George city map, which is much different from the St. George boundaries first proposed in 2013, saying it excludes Black, Hispanic and low-income voters. Jordan also objected again to the legislation’s extensive crossdistrict enrollment, including in magnet schools. The bill has language that would seem to allow cross-district enrollment in perpetuity to popular schools like Baton Rouge Magnet High.

Two more reports were made, in 2007 and 2019 Lamothe, the attorney, said those two reports were made by the same man.

In April 2007, a 41-yearold man told his pastor that Lemoine tried to molest him at St. Joseph Parish in Pierre Part around 1978, when he was 13, records show That man reported to his pastor that when in eighth grade, he was molested by Lemoine. The victim said it happened during a retreat at St. Joseph the Worker

Church shortly after Lemoine was ordained as a priest in 1979. He said the priest fondled him as he was sitting alone reflecting.

The man said he tried to report it to a catechism teacher immediately afterward and days later told his godfather, but both “reacted negatively” to him and he suppressed the memory, his pastor reported to diocese officials. When his daughter asked to become an altar server in 2006, it re-triggered the experience

and gave the man months of anxiety and depression, the pastor reported. In a letter to the diocese, the man’s pastor told church leaders the experience caused the victim “anger and rage over the years, not just for what happened, but because he told what happened twice and nobody believed him.”

Last year’s lawsuit listed Lemoine as a Tangipahoa Parish resident. Neither he nor his attorney could be reached for comment.

BRIEFS

FROM WIRE REPORTS

Amazon to spend $20B on Penn. data centers

HARRISBURG, Pa. — Amazon says it will spend $20 billion on two data center complexes in Pennsylvania, including one it is building alongside a nuclear power plant that has drawn federal scrutiny over its arrangement to essentially plug right into the power plant.

Kevin Miller, of Amazon’s cloud computing subsidiary, Amazon Web Services, told The Associated Press on Monday that the company will build another data center complex just north of Philadelphia. The data centers are designed to meet growing demand for artificial intelligence products.

Amazon has recently committed to big data center projects in Mississippi, Indiana, Ohio and North Carolina as it expands to compete with other tech giants

Stocks stay quiet as trade talks begin NEW YORK U.S. stocks drifted through a quiet Monday as the world’s two largest economies began talks on trade that could help avoid a recession.

The S&P 500 edged up by 0.1% and is within 2.3% of its record, which was set in February The Dow Jones Industrial Average slipped by 1 point, which is well below 0.1%, and the Nasdaq composite added 0.3%.

Officials from the United States and China met in London to talk about a range of different disputes that are separating them. The hope is that they can eventually reach a deal that will lower each’s punishing level of tariffs against the other, which are currently on pause, so that the flow of everything from tiny tech gadgets to enormous machinery can continue.

Hopes that President Donald Trump will lower his tariffs after reaching such trade deals with countries around the world have been among the main reasons the S&P 500 has rallied so furiously since dropping roughly 20% from its record two months ago. It’s back above where it was when Trump shocked financial markets in April with his wide-ranging tariff announcement on what he called “Liberation Day.”

This may be the shortest selloff following a shock of heightened volatility on record, according to Parag Thatte, Binky Chadha and other strategists at Deutsche Bank Typically, stocks take around two months to bottom following a spike in volatility and then another four to five months to recover their losses.

Tesla downgraded amid feud fallout

Tesla Inc. received a pair of downgrades on Monday, with analysts warning that Elon Musk’s electric vehicle company is facing a highly uncertain outlook, especially on the political front. The stock fell 1.1% in premarket trading, suggesting it will extend its pronounced year-to-date decline. Shares are down about 27% in 2025, making it the weakest performer of the so-called Magnificent Seven stocks. Tesla shares had rallied in the wake of President Donald Trump’s reelection, but peaked in December

Much of the stock’s recent decline has followed a highprofile blowup between Musk and Trump While Musk subsequently suggested he was open to making amends, the tension especially given Musk’s connection to the administration — is seen as a significant question mark overhanging the shares.

“Looking ahead, we are concerned that the war of words between President Trump and Elon Musk, along with expiration of EV credits, could further weaken demand for new Teslas,” wrote analysts at Argus Research, who downgraded the stock to hold from buy The feud, they added, is emblematic of how the stock appears to be currently trading on nonfundamentals events.” This view was echoed by Baird, which cut the stock to neutral from outperform

THEADVOCATE.COM/news/business

Warner Bros. Discovery to split

Two companies will divide cable, streaming services

BY MICHELLE CHAPMAN AP business writer

NEW YORK Warner Bros. Discovery will calve off cable operations from its streaming service, creating two independent companies as the number of people “cutting the cord” brings with it a sustained upheaval in the entertainment industry

HBO, and HBO Max, as well as Warner Bros. Television Warner Bros. Motion Picture Group, DC Studios, will become part of the

streaming and studios company

Warner Bros. said Monday

The cable company will include CNN, TNT Sports in the U.S., and Discovery, top free-to-air channels across Europe, and digital products such as the Discovery+ streaming service and Bleacher Report.

Shares jumped 11% at the opening bell.

Warner Bros Discovery CEO David Zaslav will serve as CEO of the company for what is called Streaming & Studios. Gunnar Wiedenfels, chief financial officer of Warner Bros. Discovery, will be CEO of the cable-focused entity, for now known as Global Networks.

“By operating as two distinct and

optimized companies in the future we are empowering these iconic brands with the sharper focus and strategic flexibility they need to compete most effectively in today’s evolving media landscape,” Zaslav said in a statement.

Just days ago Warner Bros. Discovery shareholders in a vote that was symbolic as it’s nonbinding, rejected the 2024 pay packages of some executives, including Zaslav, who will make more than $51 million.

Warner Bros. Discovery said in December that it was implementing a restructuring plan in which Warner Bros. Discovery would become the parent company for two operating divisions, Global Linear Networks and Streaming & Stu-

dios That was seen as a preview of the separation announced Monday

Warner Bros. Discovery was created just three years ago when AT&T spun off WarnerMedia and it was merged with Discovery Communications in a $43 billion deal.

The cable industry has been under assault for years from streaming services like Disney, Netflix, Amazon and Warner Bros. own HBO Max. The industry is also being pressured by internet plans offered by mobile phone companies. Comcast, which is of nearly equal size to Charter, spun off many of its cable television networks in November seeing so many customers swap out their cable TV subscriptions for streaming platforms.

Apple unveils software redesign

Tech company reeling from AI missteps, upheaval, Trump’s trade war

BY MICHAEL LIEDTKE AP technology writer

CUPERTINO Calif. After stumbling out of the starting gate in Big Tech’s pivotal race to capitalize on artificial intelligence, Apple tried to regain its footing Monday during an annual developers conference that focused mostly on incremental advances and cosmetic changes in its technology

The presummer rite, which attracted thousands of developers from nearly 60 countries to Apple’s Silicon Valley headquarters, was more subdued than the feverish anticipation that surrounded the event during the previous two years.

Apple highlighted plans for more AI tools designed to simplify people’s lives and make its products even more intuitive while also providing an early glimpse at the biggest redesign of its iPhone software in a decade. In doing so, Apple executives refrained from issuing bold promises of breakthroughs that punctuated recent conferences.

In 2023, Apple unveiled a mixed-reality headset that has been little more than a niche product, and last year WWDC trumpeted its first major foray into the AI craze with an array of new features highlighted by the promise of a smarter and more versatile version of its virtual assistant, Siri — a goal that has hasn’t been achieved yet.

Apple had intended the planned Siri upgrade to herald its long-awaited attempt to become a major player in the AI craze after getting a late start in a phenomenon that so far has been largely led by OpenAI, Google, Microsoft and an array of cutting-edge startups.

“This work needed more time to reach our high-quality bar,” Craig Federighi, Apple’s top software executive, said Monday at the outset of the conference. The company didn’t estimate when its upgraded Siri would be completed.

“The silence surrounding Siri was deafening,” said Forrester Research analyst Dipanjan Chatterjee said. “No amount of text corrections or cute emojis can fill the yawning void of an intuitive, interactive AI experience that we know Siri will be capable of when ready. We just don’t know when that will happen The end of the Siri runway is coming up fast, and Apple needs to lift off.”

The showcase unfolded amid nagging questions about whether Apple has lost some of the mystique and innovative drive that turned it into a tech trendsetter during its nearly 50-year history

Instead of making a big splash as it did

U.S.,

China

Trump had phone call with Xi Thursday

BY JILL LAWLESS Associated Press

LONDON High-level delegations from the United States and China met in London on Monday to try and shore up a fragile truce in a trade dispute that has roiled the global economy, A Chinese delegation led by Vice Premier He Lifeng held talks with U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and Trade Representative Jamieson Greer at Lancaster House, an ornate 200-year-old man-

with the Vision Pro headset and its AI suite, Apple took a mostly low-key approach that emphasized its effort to spruce up the look of its software while also unveiling a new hub for its video games and new features like a “Workout Buddy” to help track physical fitness on its smartwatch.

Apple executives promised will make its software more compatible with the increasingly sophisticated computer chips that have been powering its products while also making it easier to toggle between the iPhone, iPad, and Mac.

“Our product experience has become even more seamless and enjoyable,” Apple CEO Tim Cook told the crowd as the 90-minute showcase wrapped up.

IDC analyst Francisco Jeronimo said Apple seemed to be largely using Monday’s conference to demonstrate the company still has blueprint for success in AI, even if it’s clearly going to take longer to realize the vision that was presented a year ago.

“This year’s event was not about disruptive innovation, but rather careful calibration, platform refinement and developer enablement — positioning itself for future moves rather than unveiling game-changing technologies,” Jeronimo said.

Besides redesigning its software. Apple will switch to a method that automakers have used to telegraph their latest car models by linking them to the year after they first arrive at dealerships. That means the next version of the iPhone operating system due out this autumn will be known as iOS 26 instead of iOS 19 — as it would be under the previous naming approach that has been

used since the device’s 2007 debut.

The iOS 26 upgrade is expected to be released in September around the same time Apple traditionally rolls out the next iPhone models.

In an early sign that AI wasn’t going to be a focal point of this year’s conference, Apple opened the proceedings with a short video clip featuring Federighi speeding around a track in a Formula 1 race car Although it was meant to promote the June 27 release of the Apple film, “F1” starring Brad Pitt, the segment could also be viewed as an unintentional analogy to the company’s attempt to catch up to the rest of the pack in AI technology

While some of the new AI tricks compatible with the latest iPhones began rolling out late last year as part of free software updates, Apple still hasn’t been able to soup up Siri in the ways that it touted at last year’s conference. The delays became so glaring that a chastened Apple retreated from promoting Siri in its AI marketing campaigns earlier this year

While Apple has been struggling to make AI that meets its standards, the gap separating it from other tech powerhouses is widening. Google keeps packing more AI into its Pixel smartphone lineup while introducing more of the technology into its search engine to dramatically change the way it works. Samsung, Apple’s biggest smartphone rival, is also leaning heavily into AI. Meanwhile, ChatGPT recently struck a deal that will bring former Apple design guru Jony Ive into the fold to work on a new device expected to compete against the iPhone.

are holding trade talks in London

sion near Buckingham Palace. Wang Wentao, China’s commerce minister, also was part of Beijing’s delegation.

The talks, which may continue Tuesday, follow negotiations in Geneva last month that brought a temporary respite in the trade war

The two countries announced May 12 they had agreed to a 90-day suspension of most of the 100%plus tariffs they had imposed on each other in an escalating trade war that had sparked fears of recession.

The U.S. and China are the world’s biggest and second-biggest economies. Chinese trade data shows that exports to the United States fell 35% in May from a year earlier

Since the Geneva talks, the U.S. and China have exchanged angry words over advanced semiconductors that power artificial intelligence, visas for Chinese students at American universities and “ rare earth ” minerals that are vital to carmakers and other industries. President Donald Trump spoke at length with Chinese leader Xi Jinping by phone last Thursday in an attempt to put relations back on track. Trump announced on social media the following day that the trade talks would resume in London.

Rare earths were expected to be a focus of the talks. The Chinese government started requiring producers to obtain a license to export seven rare earth elements in April.

Resulting shortages sent automakers worldwide into a tizzy As stockpiles ran down, some worried they would have to halt production. Beijing indicated Saturday that it is addressing the concerns, which have come from European companies as well as U.S. firms. Kevin Hassett, a U.S. economic adviser told CNBC on Monday that he expected a short meeting with “a big, strong handshake” on rare earths. The U.K. government says it is providing the venue and logistics but is not involved in the talks, though British Treasury chief Rachel Reeves met with both Bessent and He on Sunday, and U.K. Business Secretary Jonathan Reynolds was due to meet Wang.

ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO By JEFF CHIU

Apple CEO Tim Cook greets thousands of attendees at the Apple headquarters in Cupertino, Calif., on Monday

Ivermectin bill heads to Landry’s desk for signing

Legislation would allow pharmacy sales without prescription

BY EMILY WOODRUFF Staff writer

A bill that will allow ivermectin sales in pharmacies without a prescription is headed to Gov Jeff Landry’s desk for signature after the Senate on Monday concurred with amendments added by the House.

The bill, Senate Bill 19, authorizes pharmacies to sell ivermectin, an anti-parasitic drug that has gained in popularity since the COVID-19 pandemic, to adults 18 and older under a standing order issued by the Louisiana Department of Health. A prescription from an individual’s doctor is not necessary

The legislation was sponsored by Sen. Mike Fesi, a Republican from Houma, who described it in previous committee meetings as a matter of medical freedom.

Surgeon General Dr Ralph Abraham also spoke in favor of the measure during several committee hearings

“Ivermectin has been shown to have some quite impressive antiviral qualities, and that’s why some of us, including myself, started using it during the COVID epidemic,” Abraham said at a committee meeting in May

However the use of the drug to treat or prevent COVID-19 has been discredited by medical experts, clinical trials and regulatory agencies, who say there is no reliable evidence to support these claims and that using the ivermectin outside of its approved uses could be dangerous.

In humans, ivermectin tablets are approved by the federal Food and Drug Administration to treat two conditions caused by parasitic worms, while some topical forms are approved to treat parasites like lice, and for rosacea, a skin condition that causes redness For animals, ivermectin is sold in paste and liquid forms at feed and supply stores, where it is used to treat heartworm disease and internal parasites such as roundworms, lung-

worms and gastrointestinal worms, as well as external parasites like mites, lice and certain types of mange.

The FDA has not authorized or approved ivermectin for preventing or treating COVID-19 in humans or animals. Clinical trial data has not demonstrated that ivermectin is effective against coronavirus in humans, according to the agency’s website. The FDA warns that large amounts of ivermectin can be dangerous, and even human-sized doses of ivermectin can interact with other medications, including blood thinners. Overdoses can cause nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, low blood pressure, allergic reactions, dizziness, balance problems, seizures, coma and death.

Interest in ivermectin surged again early this year after actor Mel Gibson said on “The Joe Rogan Experience” podcast that he knew people whose cancer had been cured by the drug. Google search trends in Louisiana showed a 200% increase in February compared to a few months earlier Louisiana oncologists and other medical experts opposed the bill, citing con-

cerns about misuse and the possibility that patients might forgo proven treatments. New Orleans oncologist Dr Jon Mizrahi said he and his colleagues have seen patients who took ivermectin and experienced liver damage, which delayed their standard treatment or may have exacerbated treatment. Interactions between cancer drugs and ivermectin have not been studied.

“We don’t know if it might negatively interact with our treatments,” Mizrahi said. “We could see strange interactions or decreased efficacy or decreased safety.”

In a House Health and Welfare Committee meeting in May, Abraham said he could recall some patients taking large doses who developed problems. He said they resolved once the patients were advised to take smaller doses.

“They were almost bathing in this stuff,” Abraham said.

“And we did pick up some elevated liver enzymes from those particular patients.”

Abraham said pharmacy access would help reduce any stigma and encourage patients to inform their doctors if they use the drug so it can be monitored.

Under the new law the Louisiana Department of Health will set standard procedures for pharmacists, which include using a risk screening tool and providing patients with information on the drug’s risks and proper administration. Pharmacists may charge an administrative fee for these services in addition to the drug’s cost. They are also granted immunity from civil liability or disciplinary action if they act in good faith and without gross negligence or willful misconduct. Health insurers will not be required to cover ivermectin dispensed under these provisions. SB19 passed 28-8 in the Senate on April 30. The bill was amended in the House, then approved 67-26 on June 3. The Senate concurred with the amendment 31-4 on Monday Louisiana joins other Republican-led states such as Idaho, Arkansas and Tennessee in allowing over-thecounter sales of ivermectin West Virginia and South Carolina are considering similar bills. The law will take effect immediately upon signature by Landry, who is expected to sign it.

Push to change La. primary elections doesn’t materialize

Rumors swirled that Senate would seek to help Cassidy

BY TYLER BRIDGES Staff writer

The State Capitol was abuzz with talk over the weekend that the Louisiana Senate could try to make a last-minute change to a campaign law to help U.S Sen. Bill Cassidy R-Baton Rouge win reelection next year The idea was to eliminate the second primary under the closed primary system in federal elections that will begin next year With the change, a candidate could win the primary outright with a plurality and would not have to get over 50% of the vote. Political analysts believe

that Cassidy could run first in the primary with a multicandidate field that would split the conservative vote but would have trouble defeating another Republican head-to-head in the second primary. Two legislators said Cassidy called to discuss the matter with them. In the end, the Senate made no such attempt Sunday, but the behind-thescenes discussions provided more evidence of the intense interest in whether Cassidy can overcome Republican opponents next year to win a third term. The talk about the possible change began after Sen Caleb Kleinpeter, R-Port Allen,

asked three weeks ago during a committee hearing on House Bill 592 whether the state could save money by eliminating the second primary The answer: about $3 million per election.

Rep. Beau Beaullieu, RNew Iberia, the sponsor of HB592, expressed his opposition to the idea that day and repeated that opposition in an interview Sunday Beaullieu said eliminating the second primary would have “collateral impacts” on the new election system. He said he received numerous phone calls over the weekend from other legislators about the idea.

Rep. Julie Emerson, RCarencro, and the sponsor of the legislation that passed last year to move to the closed primary, said in an interview that she is “100% opposed to the

change.”

Kleinpeter said in an interview that he had no interest in pushing the amendment. He is handling Beaullieu’s bill in the Senate. Kleinpeter said Cassidy didn’t call him. Word that Kleinpeter might be pushing the change prompted a lobbying effort by Republican women, including Gena Gore, the party’s national committee person.

“I don’t think it benefits the Republican Party,” Gore said Sunday “Let’s give Republicans the chance to elect the person that the majority

feels is the best representative.”

Also expressing opposition to a possible change was Treasurer John Fleming, who is the main announced opponent of Cassidy at this point. Other Republicans could jump into the race before the qualifying period takes place in January

Cassidy declined to comment Sunday on the possible change.

Cassidy suddenly lost considerable support among Republicans when he voted in 2021 to convict Donald Trump of trying to incite a

riot at the Capitol on Jan. 6 that year when he was president.

Cassidy has been working hard to make amends, speaking to groups throughout the state, raising millions of dollars, supporting controversial Cabinet nominees, winning the support of prominent Republican donors and trumpeting his visits to the White House for meetings with Trump.

“There was very good conversation with President Trump about the One Big Beautiful Bill,” Cassidy said in a statement Wednesday

BY ASHRAF KHALIL Associated Press

WASHINGTON As the nation’s capital cleans up from the culmination of World Pride this past weekend, focus now shifts to a very different massive event — Saturday’s military parade to honor the 250th birthday of the Army and the 79th birthday of President Donald Trump.

“We’re preparing for an enormous turnout,” said Matt McCool of the Secret Service’s Washington Field office, who said more than 18 miles of “anti-scale fencing” would be erected and

“multiple drones” would be in the air The entire District of Columbia is normally a no-fly zone for drones. Army officials have estimated around 200,000 attendees for the evening military parade, and McCool said he was prepared for “hundreds of thousands” of people.

“We have a ton of magnetometers,” he said. “If a million people show up, then we’re going to have some lines.”

A total of 175 magnetometers would be used at security checkpoints controlling access to the daytime birthday festival and the night-

time parade Metropolitan Police Department chief Pamela Smith predicted “major impacts to traffic” and advised attendees to arrive early and consider forgoing cars for the Metro.

“This is a significant event with a large footprint,” she said. “We’re relying on the public to be an extra set of ears and eyes for us.”

The military parade has been designated a National Special Security Event — similar to a presidential inauguration or state funeral. That status is reserved for events that draw large crowds and potential mass protests.

MIKE STEWART

Landry’s desk.

We are hosting aSpecial Eventduring the month of March! During this event, we will be offering these FREE services:

•FREE Hearing Consultations

•FREE Video Otoscope Exam: Hearinglossorjust earwax?

•FREE Clean &Check on currenthearing aids

•FREE Baseline Audiogram Assessment

•FREE Familiar Voice Test

•FREE Demo of Audibel’s latest hearing technology!

AreYou or Anyone YouKnow Experiencing the Following?

1. Asking people to speak up or repeat themselves?

2. Turning theTVuploud tounderstandwhat is being said?

3. Ringing or noises in your ears?

Audibelis NOW Offering...

•Hearingaids at NO COST to those who qualify!•

• That’s Right. No Co-Pay!NoExamFee! No AdjustmentFee! If youhavethiscard, youmay qualifyfor free hearing aids! Call today to verifyyour benefits

JanRisher

LOUISIANA AT LARGE

Plaquemine lock site saved by locals who seeits value

Ellie Hebert insists credit for restoring Plaquemine’sold lockhouse belongs to others —especially the Friends of the Lock,the local group that worked for years to save the 114-year-oldstructure.

Newcouncil memberplans suit

Kenney claims Banksplanted item in office

BY PATRICK SLOAN-TURNER Staff writer

East Baton Rouge Parish Metro Council member Anthony Kenneyintends to takecivil action against the last person to hold his seat, Chauna Banks.

Aletterfrom attorney Bryan D. Fisher,who represents Ken-

ney, accuses

Banks of breaking the law by entering Kenney’s City Hall office to plant an item andtakephotos to post on social media. Kenney took office in Januaryand representsDistrict 2onthe council.

In theletter,which Fisher sent to Banks on Kenney’sbehalfon Friday,Kenney demands she remove the posts from social media while he and Fisher prepare to takelegal action.

“Weare investigating and act-

ing to initiate criminal and civil actions arising from your unlawful entry into his office,”Fisher wrote. “I will be direct;you have broken criminal laws and breached civil obligationsinyour actions.” Fisher saidthe matter hasbeen referred to both state Attorney General LizMurrilland East BatonRouge Parish District Attorney Hillar Moore forcriminal investigation and prosecution. Murrill’soffice declinedto

comment. Moore said Monday morning thathis officehas yet to receive anything on behalf of Kenney On May 28, Banks posted photostoher Facebook page during aMetroCouncil meeting —images that quickly circulated among council members. The post showeda condomwrapper next to adocument bearing Kenney’sname, whichappeared to be partially pulled from abackpack. Fisher and Kenneydeclined to commentbeyondtheir letter

Last week, Imet Hebert and Dan Mooney,president of Friends of the Lock,for abehind-thescenes look at the lockhouse and to learn more about the locks and how the structure was saved.

Hebert

Mooney

Mooney has a lifelong connection to the locks, and he likes to point to the area’s cultural roots.

“Oh, some fellow by thename of Longfellow wrote apoem about this woman whose name was Evangeline,” he said. “Legendarily,she used thisbayou to get to the interior of Louisiana.” Mooney grew up astone’sthrow from the lockhouse and, as akid, may have been known to ride his bicycle across the lock gates on occasion, much to the lockmaster’s ire. For Hebert, the restoration was personal.

The white-tiledDutch Revival Plaquemine Lockhouse, completed in 1909, has been restored and opens as amuseum at 9a.m. Friday.

Once the lock stopped operating in 1961, what to do with thelockhouse became the breakfast-table conversation of her childhood Her family owned the local newspaper.Her father recognized the lockhouse’svalue and launched a public fight to save it.

“My parents, my fatherin particular,and later my mother, worked to save this buildingfrom being destroyed by the state transportation departmentwho wanted to put in afour-lane highway,” Hebert said. Back in the 1960s and ’70s, people in Plaquemine werehungry for progress.

Dow Chemical was coming,and traffic tie-ups had already begun. Residents wanted more andbetter roads.

“I was in school at the time,and Iremember getting hammered by schoolmates,” Hebertsaid.

“Their parents had talked about it, Iguess, at the dinner table and they were angry.”

The plan? Tear downthe lockhouse, level what was left of the locks and fill in much of Bayou Plaquemine.

“They were going to fill the whole damn thing in,” Hebert said. “Noneofthis wouldbehere today.The bayou wouldn’t.The waterfront park wouldn’t.This lockhouse wouldn’t.” Today,the lockhouse bears her father’sname: the Gary J. HebertMemorial Lockhouse —a tribute to his dedication. Beside the plaque of her father on the white-tiled walls hangs one of her

ä See AT LARGE, page 2B

Thegrass is greener

Victim’s family speaks at sentencing

BY MATT BRUCE Staff writer

Angelina Antoinette Forrest’s daughter let out asorrowful wailfor her late mother inside aBaton Rouge courtroom Monday morning

Thelittlegirl, standing next to her grandmother,cried as thedrunken driverresponsible for her mother’s death sat feet away,dabbing tearsfrom her

own eyes. Forrest, 27, was killed in June 2023 when acar shewas riding in spun out of control and went airborne. Keimaya Aites, the woman driving the car,had a blood alcohol levelof0.246% at the time —more than three times the legal limit for driving.

On Monday,DistrictJudge Louise HinesMyers sentenced Aites to 15 years in prisonduring ahearinginside the 19th JudicialDistrict Courthouse.

“I alwaystell my granddaughter,‘Your mommy is your guardian angel in heaven,”Forrest’s Womangets15years

See DWI, page 2B

CRIME BLOTTER staff reports

Detectives with the Ascension Parish Sheriff’sOffice have arrested a19-year-old from Gonzales in the fatal drive-by shooting early Sunday morning on Interstate 10. Jakiryn Johnson was taken into custody by the sheriff’s ViolentCrimes Unit on Monday afternoon. He faces charges including firstdegree murder,three counts of attempted first-degree murder, illegal use of weapons, assault by drive-by shooting andag-

gravated damage to property Accordingtoinvestigators, Johnson is accused of opening fire on avehicle traveling west on I-10inAscensionParish about2 a.m. Sunday. The attack resultedinthe deathof DantrellGibbs,20, of Donaldsonville. Twoother occupants of thevehicle were wounded in the shooting. The victims managed to exit the interstate and weretaken to ahospital fortreatment. Gibbs ultimatelysuccumbed to his injuries Monday morning.

STAFF PHOTO By HILARy SCHEINUK

PROVIDED PHOTO

Kenney Banks

BLOTTER, page

ä See KENNEY, page 2B

St.Tammany sheriff: Toddlerleft inside hotcar for9hours dies

BY BOBWARREN Staff writer

AHammond-area man has been booked on second-degree murder in connection with the deathof his daughter,who died after being left inside ahot car for more than nine hours Sunday,according to the St. Tammany Parish Sheriff’s Office. Joseph Boatman, 32,was arrested and booked into the St. Tammany ParishCorrectional Center after investigators said his 21-month-old daughter died after being buckled inside acar outside aMadisonville-area residence for hours. Boatman’sbail was set at $750,000, according to the Sheriff’s Office.

The St. Tammany Parish Coroner’sOffice identified the toddler as Ansleigh Boatman.

St.Tammany Parish sheriff’s deputies were called to theresidence shortly beforenoonSunday after afamily member found the girl unresponsiveinside the vehicle.

The Sheriff’s Office said Boatman had buckled the child into

her car seat insidethe vehicle after picking herupata family member’sresidence shortly after 2:30 a.m. Sunday.ASheriff’s Office spokesperson, Lt. Suzanne Carboni, said Boatman had been at work in St. Tammany and thathis daughterwas stayingatthe father andstepmother’shouse in the Fox Branch Estates subdivision.

After putting the girl in her car seat,Boatmanwentbackinside the residence but never returned to the vehicle. Detectives also learned that before Boatman arriving to pickuphis daughter,he had consumed multiple alcoholic beverages, theSheriff’s Office said.

TheNational WeatherService did not have Sundaytemperature readings for Madisonville, but said it was 90 degrees in Hammond at 11 a.m., with aheat index of 100-104degrees.Slidell hit 89 at the same time, with aheat index of 98-100, according to theweather service. Mandeville was also at 89 degrees.

Aspokesperson forthe St. Tammany Parish Coroner’s Office said

Irishfamilyaddsauthenticity to locallyshot‘Sinners’

BY JOANNA BROWN Staff writer

When Hollywood came calling, Tony Davoren almost didn’tanswer the phone. Around this time last year, Davoren and his wife, Sheila, were getting readyfor their usual summerwork:teaching Irish dance camps. The Louisiana-based couple travel the country leading workshops in Irish dance, culture and folklore, combining their backgrounds in dance and music— her as afirst-generation Irish-American who toured with “Riverdance” and him as an Irish musician who has recorded with Sting, The Chieftains and Sinead O’Connor

That’swhy Hollywood called.An agent was asking if Davoren would be interested in speaking with Swedish composer Ludwig Göransson, famousfor his work on such projects as “Oppenheimer,” “Creed”and “Black Panther.”

That’sabig name and big films, representingapotential major opportunity —but Davoren thought he couldn’t take the call. He explained that it was their busy time of year but the agent convinced him to hear Göransson out.

“They asked if Iwas familiar with the Scottish folk song ‘Will Ye Go, Lassie, Go?’ and the Irish song ‘Rocky Road to Dublin,’”said Davoren. “Tosay I’m familiar with those two songs is an understatement. I’ve knownand loved and cherished them all my life.”

When Davoren was achild, he hung out with his father’sband, The Rocky Road, and spenttimeinhis dad’sfolk club in Coventry,England —also named The Rocky Road. His mother’sfavorite song was “Go, Lassie, Go,” which is also known by the name “WildMountain Thyme.”

Today,the Davoren family song is “Rocky RoadtoDublin”— so the Irish folk tune is very much at the heart of their work sharing Celtic culture with the world.

Hollywood treatment

“Rocky Road to Dublin” plays a pivotal role in the film “Sinners,” from “Creed” and “BlackPanther” director Ryan Coogler.Now one of the top-grossing films of 2025, the movie is set in the Mississippi Delta in the 1930s, and starsMichael B. Jordan with English-Irishactor Jack O’Connell. O’Connell plays Remmick, a1,200-year-old vampire who grew up in Ireland before the Norman invasion.

According to aVulture magazine piece titled “Weneed to talk about the Irish-dancing vampires in ‘Sinners,’”the song is amajor part of one of the movie’smost important scenes —oh, and there’salso Jordan, Hailee Steinfeld, O’Connell and others performing authenticIrish step dancing. They pulleditoff, thanks to the Davoren family team. Just acouple

BLOTTER

Continued from page1B

Ex-city contractor gets 86 months in child porncase

Aformer Baton Rouge city contractorwas sentencedto86 months in federal prison on Monday after being convicted of dis-

Monday thatanautopsy had been performed on Ansleigh, but that CoronerChristopherTapewon’t release acause of death or manner of deathuntil thetoxicology resultsare in hand.

“This is adevastating loss that no family ever wantstoface,” St. TammanySheriff Randy Smith said. “Whenachild is left in avehicle, especiallyona daywhen theheat index climbs over 100 degrees,the outcome can turn deadly in amatter of minutes. This case involved compromised judgment and the result was heartbreaking.

The National Safety Council says on average, 37 children under the age of 15 die each year after being left in vehicles.Some newer vehicles have sensors that alert drivers to check their back seats when the ignition is turned off.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration saysa child’sbody temperature can rise three to five times faster than an adult’s, and the situation can quickly become dangerous.

Staff writer Willie Swettcontributed reporting tothis story

DWI

Continuedfrom page1B

PROVIDED PHOTO By TONy DAVOREN

Tony Davoren,right,and ‘Sinners’ star JackO’Connell on set after filming the ‘Rocky Road’scene

of weeks after taking the Göransson call, Davoren and his wife and daughter,dancer Roisin, had signed nondisclosure agreements and were busy on set in New Orleans. Their job was to ensure that allthings Irish —song, dance, accent —were accurately portrayed in the film

“I’ve seen so many movies get Irish or Cajun or Louisiana stuff wrong,” Davoren said. “This movie had every aspect covered, from Delta blues to Irish songs —even an expert on twins. They would call andtext me about individual words, simple thingslike ‘would this word have been used around this time.’ Theyeven had me record the Lord’s Prayer in an Irish accent for Jack to learn

“The thing Ilearned the most is, you can never go into too much detail on aproject you’re trying to get right.”

Davoren opened up hisRolodex, bringing Louisiana Creole musicianslikeJeffery Broussard on board for recordingand scene work.

He madescratch recordings of the songs so the actors could learn them properly,played the Irish bouzouki andhanddrumfor the soundtrack and even recruited a“hodgepodge of aCelticchoir”fromaroundthe country of people who could sing, or be trained to sing, in an Irish accent Sheila and Roisin Davoren took over thedance training. According to Tony Davoren, “Jack (O’Connell) is seriously talented. His dad is from Ireland, he spent summers there, he grew up learning Irish dance.My wife and daughter came up with a simplechoreography,but he showed up to rehearsal with high-level Irish dance moves. It wowed the socks off them.”

He also found out that Coogler himself is ahuge fanofIrish folk tunes.

“He hadelite knowledge of Irish music,” saidTony Davoren.“He said that he and his kids love singing alongtoIrish songs.Watching himwork, when we putthe Rocky Road scenetogether forthe first time —Ryanwas moving hiscameraman around, explaining the shots he wanted, like adance within thedance.The vision he had for the scene was phenomenal; Iwas blown away.”

tributing child pornography Blake Joseph Steiner,37, of Baton Rouge, was arrested in May 2024 after allegedly trading child pornography with undercover agents through Kik,a mobilemessaging app.

The agentswereposing as individuals who ran agroup chat dedicated to circulatingchild porn Steiner also admitted to undercover agents that he ran his own

AmyWold, ex-Advocate reporter whocovered area’s 2016 flooding, dies

BY ELLYNCOUVILLION Staff writer

Wold

Amy Wold, aformer environmental reporter with The Advocate, who later worked with statewide natural resources organizations, died on May 29. Wold, anative of the Pacific Northwest, joinedThe Advocate in 2000 as environmental reporter and spent the next 16 years reporting on Louisianaand BatonRougearea environmental issues.

“Amy was passionate about the environment and had adeep understanding of all the issues that went along with covering it,” said Fred Kalmbach, The Advocate’s managing editor.“She always reported her stories in an evenhanded way. More than that,she was akindperson anda great colleague.”

In the summer of 2016, she helpedcover the Baton Rouge area’sdevastating floods.

Wold wentontojoin The Water InstituteinBaton Rouge,anonprofit research institution, in 2017

as director of communications. “Amy wasaninspiringwoman,” saidAlyssa Dausman,the Water Institute’ssenior vice president and chief scientist. “She taught me and so many howtocommunicate well and work with journalists to support coastal restoration grounded in science.”

In 2021, while at the Institute, Wold received the Coastal Stewardship Awardfromthe Coalition to RestoreCoastalLouisiana for herwork as achampion of the coast.

In 2024, Wold joined the Louisiana WildlifeFederation, based in Baton Rouge, as policy director

The nonprofit works to preserve the state’snatural resources.

“Somanypeople in the coastal restoration, environmental and research communitiesknew Amy and appreciated her intellect, kindness andprofessionalism,” the federation said in astatement. “She made alasting impact on addressing andunderstanding the challenges of natural resources management in Louisiana.”

Staff writer David Mitchell contributed to this article.

Email Ellyn Couvillion at ecouvillion@theadvocate.com.

mother, Angela Lee Arnold, told thejudge. “‘She watches over you. Your mommy is in your heart andinyourmind. She still lovesyou very much.’”

Aites had originally been charged with vehicular homicide in the crash,whichoccurred in the 6800 block of PlankRoad.She could have been sent to prisonfor 30 years if she hadbeen convicted of that charge.

On April 28,Aites pleaded guilty to aless severe count of negligent homicide along with two countsoffirst-degree vehicular injuring. Myers ordered the woman to serve five years on each of thechargesaspart of the plea deal shereached with prosecutors

According to arrest affidavits included in court records, Aites was driving a2007 Pontiac G6 northboundonPlankRoad.When the car struck acurb, Aites overcorrected toward thesouthbound lanesand strucka raised center median. That senther vehicleairborne andshe landedonthe hood of aChevy 1500 truck that was traveling in the oppositedirection, policesaid Thatcollisioncausedthe truck to run into aToyota Camry in the outside lane with Aites’car still on thehood Forrest was partially ejected from thePontiac and died at the scene. Her daughterwas 8at time,according to Arnold, who said Forrest worked at Baton Rouge General Hospital and had dreams of becominga real estate agent. As Arnold talked about theloss, thechild becameovercome andstarted weeping in her grandmother’sarms. “I missmy mommy,” she sobbed.

“Thisshould’venever, ever happened to my daughter.I was supposed to diefirst,” Arnold said. “A parent isn’tsupposed to bury their child; achild’ssupposedtobury their parents.”

Aitessufferedsevereinjuries in the crash.She was rushed to Our Lady of the Lake Regional Medical Center to be treated along with the two other drivers involved.Aites’ daughterwas alsoinjured. When theaccident happened, shewas in the back seat unrestrained and had to be taken to the hospital for moderate injuriestoher face, police said.

Investigators saidtests showed Aites had cocaineand marijuana in hersystem.

“This hurts my wholefamily,for adrunk driver to kill my daughter,”Arnold said. “And know Iwill never ever forgive you in life for drinking and getting behind the wheel of acar.I wish it would’ve been thedrunk driverthatdied, andnot my daughterAngelina.”

Email MattBruce at matt bruce@theadvocate.com.

child pornography group online andhad previously inappropriately touched minors.

Steinerwas investigated by the U.S. DepartmentofHomeland Securityand the State Police. His case was prosecuted by the AssistantU.S. Attorney Jene C. Clayton.

KENNEY

Continued from page1B

to Banks, which accuses her of “planting” the item and searching Kenney’spersonal belongings. Bankssaid the photos were taken on thefloor of Kenney’sofficeinCityHall. In arecentpost, Banks said she was “escorted” to the office by aCity Hall staffer and denied disturbing any of Kenney’sproperty.

HerMay 28 post cameshortly after acity-parish auditwas released in Mayquestioning the managementaDistrict 2community center while Banks wasin office. The auditorssaidthe communitycenter lacked financial controls and that $30,000 worth of items were missing from the

AT LARGE

Continued from page1B

mother,Joyce S. Hebert, who served as president of Friends of the Lock and continued the work her husband began.

By thenumbers

The building, completed in 1909, is part of the Plaquemine Lock State Historic Site and sparkles in its white-tiled glory

The lockhouse reopens as amuseum at 9a.m. Friday,explaining how the lock —anengineering marvel built between 1895 and 1909 —connected the everchanging Mississippi River with Bayou Plaquemine.

“You have to remember back in the late 1800s when this work was happening to build the lock, it was really considered an engineering marvel,” Hebert said.

The lock operated 24 hours aday for 52 years, linking the Mississippi River,the Atchafalaya and southwest Louisiana. The lock’schamber was51feet high, 55 feet wide, 395 feet long and had the capacity to hold morethan 8million gallons of water.Its floor wasbetween 7 and 11 feet thick.

Colorized photos on display in thenew museum show workers driving 8,803 wooden pilings to support the lock, alongside graphics andavideo that explain how the system worked.

“Yes, 8,803 of these piles, 30 feet deep, set on 3-foot centersduring the construction,” Mooney said.

From catch-alltocohesive

Over time, the lockhouse be-

U.S.DistrictJudge BrianA Jackson also sentenced Steiner to servefive yearsofsupervised release after imprisonment, and ordered him to complete sex offender treatment andregisterasa sex offender following his release At the time of his arrest, a spokesperson for former East Baton RougeParishMayor-President Sharon WestonBroome said that Steiner was not acity-parish employee but an employee of South Central Planning and Development Commission, acontractor of the city-parish.

facility when Kenney took over in January

The Baton Rouge Police Department has since opened a criminalinvestigation intothe missing items

As of Monday afternoon, Banks had yet to remove the post in question but shared the letter sent by Kenney’s attorney in a post Saturday andquestioned the council person’smental health andpoked fun at his clothing. Banks declined to comment furtheronthe matter “Wewill hold you accountable foryour unlawfulconduct, which Iobserveisnot your first foray into this dirty area frequented by losers of political races,” Fisher wrote to Banks.

Email Patrick Sloan-Turner at patrick.sloan-turner@ theadvocate.com.

came acluttered community historical catch-all. People brought in old things. The displays lacked aclear narrative. The restoration aimed to create acohesive, compelling exhibit that truly tells the story of the lock —from my perspective, it achieved its goal. Someofthe preservation work wasn’tglamorous. Dirt near the banks of the Mighty Mississippi moves and can cause cracks in buildings —even those built to withstand the elements like the Dutch Revival-style lockhouse building.

“I think this literally is the crown jewel of the city,” Hebert said. “Wehave the mostbeautifulhistoric district here. We have our national award-winning waterfront park —and we have the Mississippi River levee right here where people can go sit on benches and look out on the river.”

The lockhouse is perched at the top of all of that, right across the street from St. John Church, which Hebert describes as “one of the mostbeautiful churches in south Louisiana, if not in the whole state.”

More than acentury after the Plaquemine Lock opened its gates to boats navigating the uncertain waters between bayou and river, the lockhouse opens its doors again —this time, to the stories that built atown, and the people whorefused to let them sink.

Email Jan Risheratjan.risher@ theadvocate.com.

Unofficial notification, keep your tickets

Sadden, Melvin

St.John theEvangelistCatholic Church in Plaquemineat2 p.m

Sweet,Rosalie Immaculate ConceptionCatholic Church in Denham Springs at noon.

Obituaries

Alexander, Judith Chiasson'Judy'

Judith “Judy” Chiasson Alexanderpassedawayon Saturday,June 7, 2025,at theage 83, at herhomein Denham Springs. Shewas anativeofPortAllen and resident of Denham Springs. Judy wasa home‐maker. Visitation will be at Holy Family Catholic Church,474 NJefferson Av‐enue,PortAllen,onFriday, June 13th, 8:30 a.m. until Mass of ChristianBurialat 10:30 a.m.,celebratedby Rev. Jerry Martin.Crema‐tion will follow andburial of herashes will be at a laterdateinSt. John the BaptistCatholicChurch Cemetery in Brusly.Judyis survived by herchildren, Lynn Alexanderand wife Denise,Polly Nations, Christie Robertsand hus‐band Ricky; nine grandchil‐dren,Jacob andEmily Alexander, CoreyEvans andwifeTaylor, Mandi Tyler, Brittany Williams, HalieAlexander,Thomas Alexanderand wife Christy, CourtlandRoberts, Dina Garnandand husband George;ninegreat-grand‐children,NoelleEvans Kelsie Hatcherand hus‐band Brady, KaylynnTyler Karlee Tyler, Mackenzie Williams,Elias Alexander, Elizaand Lily Garnand, Zoey Jones; sister,Barbara Jean Munson.Judywas preceded in deathbyher husband,Leonard Joseph AlexanderJr.;parents,Am‐broseand MaeThibodeaux Chiasson; 5brothersand 4 sisters. Judy enjoyedbowl‐ingand playingCanasta andPokenowithfriends Shewas also an avid LSU fan.Inlieuof flowers, memorial donationsmay be made to American HeartAssociation or the American Cancer Society. Please sharememoriesat www.wilbertservices.com

Beverly,Barbara Blackwell

Barbara GailBlackwell Beverly Shepeacefullypassed away at Methodist Hospital Sugarland at 2:00p.m Monday, June 2, 2025. She wasa resident of Sugarland, Texas and former resident of Baton Rouge andnative of Covington, Louisiana. She was 80 years old. She is survived by ason, JeffreyofSugarland,Texas;a daughter and son-in-law, Shannon Willisand Van Stringer of Missouri City, Texas; and granddaughter, Natalie Caroline Willis of Dallas, Texas.Preceded in death by herhusband,P.Quincy "Bud" Beverly;father, MorganEverett Blackwell and mother, Dorothy Keating Blackwell. Inurnment will take place at Pinecrest Memorial Gardens in Covington, Louisiana.

Darnell "Darnie" Erwin, beloved wife, mother, and mawmaw, passed away peacefullyonJune 7, 2025 at the age of 73 at her home. She was akind, loving and generouswomen. Throughout her life Darnell was known for the loveof the Smokey Mountains and herstrength and unwaveringsupport to her family. She was adevoted wife to Don H. Erwin for 56 years, a nurturing mother to her children, Donna and Dean, and aloving mawmaw to

her grandchildren, Katelynn, Colby, and Abby.She is survivedbyher husband, DonH.Erwin;daughter and son-in-law, Donna and Paul McLin;son, Dean Erwin; and grandchildren, Katelynn, Colby and fiancé, Kylie,and Abby; two brothers, Mike Cotton Sr. and Ronnie Cotton. Also,there aremany other family members and dear friends. Shewas metinheavenby her father, S ECotton; mother, Hazel Cotton; and brother, Rusty.Whata gloriousreunion. Visitation willbeheld at SealeFuneral Home, Denham Springs, Wednesday,June 11, from 10 a.m. to 12 p.m. AprocessionwillleadtoNew Bethlehem Baptist Churchwith service starting at 12:30 p.m., led by Rev. Tim Pruitt. Burial willfollow in New Bethlehem Baptist Cemetery. Pallbearers willbe Paul McLin,Ross Moland, KrisSibley, BrandonRuff, Michael CottonJr, and Jacob Cotton. Honorarypallbearers will be ColbyErwin and KatelynMcLin.Please share your condolences at www.sealefuneral.com.

Jonnie Lu Kleinpeter passedawaypeacefully on Friday, June 6, 2025, at the age of 80. Sheliveda beautiful,faithfilledlife, and was loved by allwho knew her. Sheprayed the Rosary dailyand wasgracious in allthatshe did. Shewas known forher willingnesstohost many a dinnerfor friends and parties for alloccasions. Those who knewher well wereamusedand enamored by her love of all thingsmonkey!One of the true highlights was her time spent in NewOrleans especiallyMardiGrasseason. Shewas atrue reveler,yet so graceful in everything she did. Shetruly was aBeautiful Ladyinside and she willbemissed Shewas preceded in death by her parents, Johnnyand Lucille DeArmond; and her sister, JoyceMcIntire. She is survived by her loving family members, many dear friends, and her exceptional care givers.At herrequest,a visitation willbeheld at Resthaven Funeral Home, 11817 Jefferson Hwy. BatonRouge, LA 70816, on Friday, June 13, 2025, from 1:30 p.m. until Memorial Service at 2:30 p.m. Entombment will follow at ResthavenGardens of Memory. In lieuofflowers, please considermaking adonation to the Alzheimer's Association. Family and friends may signthe online guestbook or leave apersonal note to the family at www.resthav enbatonrouge.com

Landry, Terry LeBlanc

TerryLeBlanc Landry, age66, anative and resident of Donaldsonville, Louisiana passed awayon Saturday, June 7, 2025. She enjoyedplayingweekly card games, Mardi Gras parades, cooking, going to the casino, concerts and attending church. She especially cherished spending loving moments with her family and friends. She is survived by her loving husband of 46 years, Randy Landry;son, JonathanLandry(Trisha); daughter, Jill Broussard (Heath); two granddaughters, Emily Broussardand Olivia Landry; along with a host of nieces and nephews. She waspreceded indeath by her parents, Johnand Marie LeBlanc. The family wouldliketo give aspecial thanks to Pinnacle Hospice for their care and compassion. A visitation willbeheld on Wednesday,June 11, 2025 from 6:00 pm until 9:00 pm at Ourso Funeral Homein Donaldsonville.Then to continueonThursday, June 12, 2025from9:00 am until the Mass of Christian Burial for 11:00amatAscension of OurLord CatholicChurch. Interment to follow at St. Jules

Church Mausoleum in Belle Rose. Father Tomi Thomas willofficiate.

Martha MildredSlieNo‐sacka, of Gramercy,La. and St.James Parish,passed away on June 7, 2025, in BatonRouge,La. Shewas thebeloved mother of eightchildrenand their spouses, 27 grandchildren, and34great grandchil‐dren,leaving alegacyof compassion,spiritual prac‐tice,community participa‐tion andservice to others

Shewas born February 22, 1931, in NewOrleans,at‐tended Holy Angels High School,and married StephenAnthony Nosacka in 1950. They movedto Gramercy,La. in 1957, where Stephenwas em‐ployed at Colonial Sugars refinery.She waswell knowninthe community throughbothher work throughSacredHeart Catholic Church andher 20 yearsofservice at theU.S Post Office in Gramercy La.Marthawas alifelong, practicing Catholic with particular interestintheol‐ogy andMaristtraditions (i.e.the pursuitofacade‐micexcellence, theher‐itageofCatholiceduca‐tion,and thespiritofthe SocietyofMary);and she wasopentoand respectful of otherspiritual tradi‐tions. Sheenjoyed travel andadventure andespe‐cially lovedthe Christmas Evebonfiresonthe leveein St.James Parish.Martha wasrenownedfor her fine French cookingand baking Up until herlater life,she cooked forand hosted most familygatherings. Shewas trulythe "glue" that held herlarge family together.She wasa loving mother andmoral com‐pass forher eightchildren andtheir spouses: Cather‐ine, Susan(Catherine), Steven (Cindy), Thomas (Lauren),Mark(April), James(Alicia), John (Bar‐bara), andDavid (Cather‐ine).She hada calm,nur‐turing steadfastnessthat guided herchildrenasthey explored theirpaths and raised theirfamilies.Her giftstoher children,grand‐children,and greatgrand‐children arepresent in our hearts andwillcontinue to shapeour lives. Relatives andfriends areinvited to attend theVisitationand FuneralService on June 12 2025. Visitation will be held from 9:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m.,at Rose Lynn Funeral Home,1870 Cabanose Ave. Lutcher, LA 70071. TheFu‐neralMasswillbegin at 12:00p.m.atSacredHeart Church,616 E. Main St Gramercy,LA70052. Inter‐ment will follow immedi‐atelyafter at St.Joseph Cemetery,2130Rectory St Paulina, LA 70763.

Enteredintoeternal rest on June 4, 2025 at theage of 93. Visitation Thursday, June 12, 2025, Greater New Guide Baptist Church, 3445 Fairfields Avenue,Baton Rouge, LA 10:00 am until religious serviceat12:00 pm. Pastor MarkThomas officiating.Interment LouisianaNational Cemetery,Zachary, LA.Funeral Service Entrusted to Hall Davis and Son. www.halldavisandson.com

EthelRobson Taylor: A Life Well-Lived

EthelRobson Taylorwas awoman of remarkable stature and reputation. Her journey beganwhen she was born in thefamily home outsideEvergreen, LA,and continued throughout her working career and beyond. From her timeas an operator forBellTelephone, and throughout her life,she forged many meaningful connections. Those who knew her will remember her as someone who lovedlife,learning, her family,people, and especially children.

After graduating at the topofher high school class at Evergreen High School, Ethel worked diligently to putherself through college.She started at LSUA and continued to LSU, where she earned her Bachelor's,Master's and 30+ hoursbeyond. Her teaching career spanned Avoyellesand Rapides parishes, and she spent nearly 40 years in theEast Baton Rouge Parish School System. The community greatlybenefitedfromher contributions to education, charity, and theenrichment of the livesofmany children and adults.

Ethel's love forchildren was evident in her relationships with her son, William Walker, stepdaughter CarrieAyers, and her grandchildren: Katherine and Sarah Walker, and ChristopherAyers.She enjoyed riding horses, RVing, traveling, reading,and pampering her pets,Angel and Abby.Asa member of "The Rambling Readers, her activitieswere often noted in theSociety Section of thenewspaper. She was also an active memberofThetaSigma Phi, a Social Service Sorority, and served as thepresident of theStateGuidance CounselorsAssociation.

Evenafter retiring,Ethel continued to share her expertise in theeducational field by evaluating teachers and principals for the East Baton RougeParish School System and the StateofLouisiana. Her knowledgeand engaging personality made her a sought-after tablemate at St.James Place, where she spent thelast four years of her life

Ethelwas adevout Christianwho found comfort and serenityinreading scriptures and devotionals, and listening to Gospel music. Despite mobilityissues, she appreciated watching Joyce Mayer on television. Herdevotionto theLordshaped her intoa personloved and respected by many.

Ethelwas preceded in death by her husband of 44 years, Raymond Taylor, and her olderbrother Marvin "Tee" Robson.She is survivedbyher son, William Walker of Columbia, SC; stepdaughterCarrieAyers of Baytown, TX; granddaughters Katherine (Ames, IA)and Sarah (Columbia,SC) Walker; grandsonChristopher AyersofBaytown, TX; and her younger sister Betty Daigrepont of Louisville, KY. Like her husband, Ray, Etheldonatedher body to theLSU Medical School for research, continuing to help studentseveninher passing ACelebrationofLifewill be held at St. James Place, 333 LeeDr.,Baton Rouge, LA,at10am on Thursday, June 12th, 2025. Allare invitedtoattend.Inlieuof flowers,Ethelrequested that everyone spend time with lovedones and/ordonate to acharitable cause close to their hearts. Please letusknowwhat youchose to do by dropping alinetoher sonat 3606 Greenleaf Rd., Columbia, SC 29206. May God blessall of you, and please knowthat youhelpedmakeEthel's life fullerand happier

Torres,Kimberly Kimberly,a native and resident of Maringouin LA, peacefully departedthis world on Saturday,June 7,2025. She was avalued employeewithLHACfor over 24 years. Kimberly's passionwas spending time with her family,friends, and planning spontaneous vacation trips,and also included cooking and having sleepovers with her grandchildren. Kimberly is survivedbyher daughter Hannah Canezaro Creppel and soninlaw DonWesley CreppelJr.;Stepson Mark AllenCanezaro Jr.; and wife Chloe Canezaro;sister Suzette Morgan; brother-in -law Todd Morgan; broth-

ers, DonTorresJr;Adam Torres;sister-in-law, KristinTorres; stepmother PeggyTorres; stepfather KennethMontgomery. And hergreatest joy, her grandchildren, Luke Creppel, Hunter Canezaro, Hayden Creppel,and Anna Rose Canezaro andnumerousnieces andnephews. Sheisproceededindeath by herparents, Donald Ray Torres and Nina Montgomery;stepson Jonathan Canezaro, andloved one Mark AllenCanezaro Sr Visitation willbeheld on Tuesday, June 11th from 5:00 PM to 9:00 PM at Niland'sFuneral Home in Livonia, LA. Asecondvisitationwill take place at ImmaculateHeart of Mary Catholic Church in MaringouinonWednesday, June 12 beginningat9:30 AM followed by mass of Christian Burial at 11:00, followed by entombment

Villarrubia, Jeannette Marie

Jeannette MarieVillar‐rubiapassedawaypeace‐fully,Saturday, May31, 2025, surrounded by her loving family. Jeannette wasbornonApril 4, 1942, in NewOrlean, Louisiana, where sheresided until HurricaneKatrina,2005, re‐locatedher to Baton Rouge, LA.She lovedher newhomeand quickly adaptedtonew friends andher neighborhood.She enjoyedgardening,deco‐rating,and discovering whatBaton Rougehad to offer. Jeannette waspre‐cededindeath by herpar‐ents,Freda Fabreand Wil‐frid J. Villarrubia, whom sheloved dearly,her brother, WilfridA.Villarru‐bia, andbrother in law, Joseph J. Lafranca,Jr. She is survived by herloving sister,Ninette Villarrubia Lafranca,sisterinlaw, Eleonore D. Villarrubia, 9 devotedniecesand nephews, 21 greatnieces and nephews, 11 great greatniecesand nephews, andanother on theway,all to cherishher memory Jeannette graduatedfrom St.James Majorelemen‐tary,St. Mary’s Dominican High School (summa cum laude),and Loyola Univer‐sity (summa cumlaude), receivinga B.B.A. Degree from Loyola University Jeannette taught secretar‐ialcourses at Loyola for7 years. Shethenmoved to thebusinesssector work‐ingatBellSouth andretir‐ingin1988 after 22 yearsof service. Followingretire‐ment,Jeannette served as coordinatorfor 10 yearsfor the“Making Strides AgainstBreastCancer Walk”sponsored by the American Cancer Society. TheFamilyisgratefulfor Jeannette’s twonieces, Dr AnnLafranca Handyand KathrynLafranca Rao, who living closeby, offered much immediate loving care andassistance, and forher nephew,StevenVil‐larrubia,who visitedand transportedher frequently Family andFriends arein‐vitedtoattendthe Funeral Services to be held at,on Saturday,June 14, 2025, at 12 noon with Visitation at 10:30 A.M. until theMassof ChristianBurial. Interment at St.Louis No.3 Cemetery In Lieu of flowers, Prayers andMasseswelcome

Whitney, ClaudiaFreitas

Faith, Family, Friends, andFreePlay

ClaudiaWhitneywas a "one of akind" ladythat lovedasfiercelyasyou wouldexpect from someonebornonValentine's Day. Shewas a37year employee of St.Theresa of Avila School andloved all her"kids" that came throughthe school. An avidreader with awicked sense of humor, she instilledinher children a love of reading andanappreciation for quickwit. Shetook special delightin hernumerous niecesand nephews. Claudia enjoyed crocheting.She shared her talentbycrocheting afghans and holiday mementos for friends and family. Shecrocheted prayer cardsfor theNational Shrine of Blessed Francis Xavier Seelos. She wasknown for handing out American Flag crossesto everyVeteranshe met. She enjoyed spendingtime with herhusband, family, andfriends.She especially lovedregulartrips to the casino, always on the prowlfor thenextbig jackpot. Claudiawas devoted to theRosary, saying prayersfor herever-expandingprayerlist. She prayed for anyone who asked for herprayers,no matter whotheywereor whethershe knew them or not. Shepassed away on Friday, June 6, 2025, at home surroundedbyher family. Sheissurvived by herhusband, CharlesWhitneySr.;2 sons, Cy Whitney (PartnerJohnnyChisholm) of Gulf Breeze, Fl.,and Charles WhitneyJr. of New Orleans, La.; sister,Ann Holmes;brothers, Al Freitas and John "Speedy" Freitas. Shewas preceded in death by herparents, Manuel and Rose Webre Freitas; sister,MariaVicknair; brothers, Manuel Freitas, andJoseph Freitas Sr.; father-in-law andmotherin-law,Cornelius Sr and Gertrude Whitney. Visitation for Claudia willbe held on Wednesday, June 11, 2025 at St.Mark Catholic Church 42021 Hwy 621 Gonzales, La, from 9am untilMass of Christian Burial at 11am. She willbe laidtorest at Serenity Oaks Memorial ParkHwy 73 Prairieville, La, following Mass. Arosary will begin at 9am. Claudiaalways made it apoint to visit sick familyand friends andreceived that same kindness at theend of herlife. The familywishestoextend theirgratitude to all the familyand friends who called, visited, and offered comfortduring ourmother's sickness. Special thanks to goddaughter AngelleGuillotand niece MackenzieFreitas for assistingwith care in our mother'sfinal days. In lieu of flowersthe familyask that adonation be made in Claudia's nametoone of thefollowing: St.Jude Children's ResearchHospital, NationalShrine of Blessed Francis Xavier Seelos, or Padre PioFoundation of America.

When youneed thenews. Wherever youreadthe news

Nosacka, Martha MildredSlie

Kleinpeter, Jonnie Lu

Ross, Vivian Lee

Torres, Kimberly

Erwin, Darnell 'Darnie'

Taylor,EthelRobson

OUR VIEWS

Getready, Omaha,LSU baseball fans coming for annual rite

In the seventh inning Sunday,when Chris Stanfield smacked abouncer throughthe right side of adrawn-in West Virginia Mountaineer infield, most Tiger fans knew LSU’sbaseball team, which has won seven national titles since 1991,was headed backtothe place affectionatelyknown as Geauxmaha for another NCAA College World Series.

Late May/early June baseball has become something of aritual in south Louisianainrecent years. And despite boilingtemps thatfans endured on Saturday for game one of the Super Regional series against West Virginia andthe three rain delays that preceded Sunday night’s series clincher,fans clad in purple andgold packed Alex Box Stadium in thisyear’s celebration of that rite.

The 12-5 win Sunday night followed a16-9 triumph theday before, andsetsupa showdown in the first round of the CollegeWorld Serieswith Arkansas, the only remaining SEC team in the tournament. Butbefore we turn ourattention to the Hogs, we can take amomentto celebrate this step in the processand look forward to some time spent in Nebraska.

Many Tiger fans have been to Omahasomany timesthatit’slikea secondhome, an annual pilgrimage to the spiritual home of collegebaseball. Thoughthe games have moved acrosstown to Charles Schwab Fieldfrom theold Rosenblatt Stadium, the spirits of LSU greats past: Ben McDonald, Todd Walker,Eddy Furniss and, of course Warren Morris, still seem to linger. And the folks of Omahahavegreeted theLSU faithful with open arms. The two groups have struck up what might seem like an unexpected love affair.Who can forget twoyears ago, when the first LSU team under coach JayJohnson made it to the season’sfinal tournament, andTigerfans not only dominated, butobliterated an annual Jell-O shot contest at alocalbar?

College baseball has exploded in popularity over the last several years, andLSU is fortunate to be one of the true blue bloodsinthe sport Not surprisingly,many other SEC teams have also fielded national championship winners, and other teams in Louisiana havealso been strong.

The diamond successofLSU, Tulane,Louisiana Tech, UL-Lafayetteand others in recent yearsisa credittoour state. We would be remiss if we did not mention theLSU-Shreveport Pilots, NAIA national championsthisyearwho completed the incredible feat of going undefeated in 59 games. 59! This is all worth celebrating. College baseball hasnot been immune to thenew dynamicsat play in the NCAA, and LSU is no exception. But still some home-growntalent, like JoshPearson, asenior outfielder from West Monroe, andKade Anderson, the Tigers’ ace who hails fromMadisonville, anchor the squad. As the tournament getsunderway Friday, we wish luck to the team and safe travelstothe fans following them to Nebraska. Maythe good timesrolland the balls fly out of the park.

LETTERSTOTHE EDITOR ARE WELCOME. HERE AREOUR

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

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

TO SEND US A LETTER, SCANHERE

Irecently learned that former Baton Rouge Mayor Kip Holden passed away Holden was atour de force as far as an accomplishments go in thegreater Baton Rouge community.Hewill never be forgotten by those who knew him. What afabulous person who was truly aman for the people. For example, his tirelesswork ethic, leadership and intellectual abilities during the Hurricane Katrina episode define theman. He was truly abeacon. Working with agencies like Capital Area United Way

Pleaselet people know that the “big beautiful bill” in theU.S. Senatehas provisions to weaken federal courts’ ability and authority to enforce contemptofcourt if government officials violateorders by thejudge. It’s in Section 70302 of this legislative bill —buried well enough that there is not enough attention on this. This is what President Donald Trump

during this crisis proved to be vital and life-saving. This quote from Hyman Rickover whosits on Mt. Olympus sumsitup, “Weshouldvalue the facultyofknowing what we ought to do and having thewill to do it. Knowing is easy; it is thedoing that is difficult. The critical issue is not what we know,but what we do with what we know.”

Go to the head of the class, Kip. Rest in peace, friend.

RICK SPECIALE Ogunquit, Maine

wants. He doesn’twant the federal judges gettinginhis way and telling him that something is unconstitutional; thus, prohibiting himfrom doing what he wants.

If this part passes, there will be nothing to stop him from doing illegal things.

JOEL THIBODEAUX Baton Rouge

With Trump’sorder,futuresoldierswon’t appreciate history

What has happened to my country?

Orders from President Donald Trump have dictated that the military academies immediately purge books from their libraries of anything that smacks of the Holocaust. Do his MAGA supporters, alaDavid Duke, deny thewelldocumented history,ofthe enslavement and murder of over six million men women and children? Does Trumpwant us to forget that the reason America was once admired, when America was “great,”was largely because we and our allies defeated the Nazis, those responsible for history’sgreatest evil?

Already, theNaval Academy has stripped off almost 400 of its library books, including those which tout the role of African AmericansinWorld War II. Does Trumpfear that our officer corps will learn about the courage they displayed in overcoming segregation and contributing mightily to winning

thewar? Will the Navajo Code Talkers, whose language bewildered the Japanese and saved thousands of American lives, be targeted because they fall into theDEI bucket as well?

As avolunteer at our outstanding National WWII Museum, Iamsaddened to think thatseveral major exhibits of ours, including an honest, moving gallery on the Holocaust, now conflict with the Trump agenda. Our sobering display on the internment of Japanese Americans is another.Then too there is our African American exhibit, “Fighting for the Right to Fight.” One millionserved under segregation. Must we pretend thatthis did not happen?

My hope is that our museum stands as acitadel against this Orwellian upheaval of our history,one which ironically has itsorigins in ourown government. BRIAN ALTOBELLO NewOrleans

Cost of deathpenalty should be deciding factor

Inote the continued letters regarding the death penaltydebate. For many years, Iwas ambivalent, weighing the urge for retributive justice vs. therare but horrifying thought of executing an innocent person. However,years ago, Ilearned afact that made the choice of life without parole over the deathpenalty simple. That fact is that it costs the taxpayers

moreinlegal and administrative costs to finally executea convicted murderer than the cost of life imprisonment. Additionally,some of the moreunhinged with delusions of martyrdom (think TimothyMcVeigh) might actually prefer apublic execution and lifeinprison would be amore condign punishment. DALE MORRIS Destrehan

The SupremeCourt will have an important decision in regards to the TenCommandments in Louisiana public schools.

The U.S. Constitution’sFirst Amendment prohibits the governmentfrom establishing areligion or favoring one religion over another.” Isubmit that the Ten Commandments are not areligion, which is prohibited by the Constitution. The Commandments set out core principles of behavior forindividuals and society,conduct which has been adopted by religions forthousands of years. Even the Quran adopts manyof the core principles of the 10 Commandments. Idonot know of any religion, per se, that believes the Commandments are areligion. They merely enumerate acode of conduct.

All religions have their own dogma, interpretations, rules, etc. It is that which designates them as religions, not the TenCommandments. It should be emphasized that the TenCommandments are not the essence of, but an integral part of, the history of Western civilization lasting over 3,000 years. They have shaped moral and legal foundations with prohibitions on core crimes; lawsagainst murder,theft and perjury are found in every legal code. Additionally,the Commandments protect the rights of private property and give us a civil understanding of ownership, as wellasrespect forparents. Remember the Sabbath day has influenced the creation of Sabbatarian laws.

Without the TenCommandments, we would have no Magna Carta, no Constitution of the United States or numerous other codes, including the French “Rights of Man.” They provide a moral framework with Godand fellow human beings. They provide aguide to individual conduct, fostering virtues of integrity and respect. They also are the sin qua non of social order by encouraging actions of trust and cooperation. Without them,wewould be savages.

ROGERJ.LEBLANC

Baton Rouge

St.Georgebudgetis balanced,but

It must be easy to balancea budget when somebody else is paying some of the bills

Just ask the CityofSt. George.

There, leaders of Louisiana’s newest city —the fifth largest in thestate —passed abudgetlast week that projected $58 million in revenue for next year with only$44 millioninspending most of that going to private contractors who will provide cityservices

The budget, Mayor Dustin Yates argued, is transparentand lean, akey goal of city leaderswho werefrustrated by the city-parish’ssprawling bureaucracy Voters already feel “taxed to death,”he said. But here’sthe rub. St. George’sbudget is drawn largely from revenue provided by a2%sales tax originally approved parishwide. The revenue from that tax flowed into the city-parish general fund, where it is then used to pay forthings that Louisiana’sconstitution requires parishes to fund, such as thedistrict attorney,coroner and thejail, among other things. But last year,St. George votersapproved ameasure thatwill take the revenue from the 2% collected in St. George and use it to fund their city. Those collections are projected to bring in that $58 million. None of that $58millionisgoing to those three law-enforcement services. Municipalities, unlike parishes, are not required to provide funding for the district attorney,the coroner and the jail. But they will stillget theservices Could you imagine if District Attorney Hillar Moore declined to prosecuteany defendants for crimes in St. George?Or if Sheriff Sid Gautreaux (who,itmust be said, willcollect about $2 4million from St. George in return forpatrol-

ling), refused to put them in jail?OrifCoroner Beau Clark decided he wouldn’tdoautopsies on St. George residents?

None of those will happen, of course.

City leaders in St. George are not chartingsome new,stingy path.The other municipalities in East Baton Rouge —Baker Zachary and Central —also don’t budgetanything for those offices. St Georgeisjust following their lead.

Thisposition is ashift for St.George.

City leaders have said in thepast that they planned to devotesome money to theconstitutional offices. Moore said at onepointhewas told $6.6 million would come to his office.

“There is no other municipality that putmoney out of the general fund budgettoward constitutional offices,” Yates toldWBRZ-TV

“This isn’taSt. George problem,” Yates continued.It’sa “parish problem,” he said. In other words, why should St. George payfor these services when other cities in the parish are not?

Yates hasapoint. Buthe’sonly partially right aboutwhere theproblem lies. It’snot theparish, it’s thestate constitution.

That document, adopted in 1974, provides aByzantinefunding formula for certain local offices and facilities like those mentioned above. In mostcases, parishes are required to provide significantfunding, despite having little to no control over how they operate.

Forinstance, parishes must provide the jail, but sheriffs operateit. Andthe latter often collect revenue derived from the jail for thingslike state or federal inmates.

Fordistrict attorneys, the state pro-

Putinan open book that

vides somepay for prosecutors, but parishes provide facilities, equipment and funds for other staffing needs.

This labyrinthine situation helps drive voter confusion and fatigue. And it shows at the polls.

Moore is apopular DA, but when he asked voters for a4-mill tax earlier this year,they rejected it soundly.Voters in St.Tammany —sometimes called St. Slammanyfor its devotion to lock ‘em up policies —have denied ahandful of attempts to dedicated funding for courts, judges and the district attorney AndinNew Orleans, atax crucial to thejail’soperation squeaked over the line by just two votes out of more than 25,000 cast.

Voterseverywhere want streetsfree from potholes and criminals. The current situation often leaves parish leaders having to choose between the two.

Perhaps St.George could become a model for other large unincorporated areas. Why shouldn’tMetairie, which is not its own city,take its share of the local tax, devote it to fixing potholes and thelike, and leave the bill for criminal justice with the parish? Or Moss Bluff, a big unincorporated suburb in Calcasieu Parish?Orlarge tracts of suburban St. TammanyParish?

This problem is one of thestrongest arguments for revisiting our half-century-old constitution. Louisiana voters want efficient, effective services funded in atransparent way.Inother words, we want more bang for our buck.

The constitution —and theway it has evolved through years and scores of amendments —does the opposite. We can thank St. George for helping to makethat clear

Faimon A. RobertsIII can be reached at froberts@theadvocate.com.

Recently,20,000 peoplewere evacuated from the center of the Germancity of Colognebecause of atimely reminder from the past: three unexploded bombs dropped on the pulverizedcity during World WarII. Athousand milestothe east, reverberationsfrom explosions in Ukraine are part of Europe’s present. And of its foreseeable future, in part becauseof past misjudgments. Consider 1994.That was three yearsafterthe disintegration of the Soviet Union. And five years after U.S. political scientist Francis Fukuyama’s influential essay argued that humanity’sideological evolutionhad culminated in “the end of history”: the exhaustion of all social systems hitherto considered plausible alternativesto open, liberal societies.

In 1994, Ukraine surrendered the Soviet-era nuclear weapons it possessed, receiving in exchange U.S., British, French, Russian and Chinese security guarantees. Twenty years later, Russia seized Crimea. And began supporting insurrections aimed at dismembering Ukraine.

Dmytro Kuleba, Ukraine’sministerof foreign affairs from 2020 to 2024,writinginForeign Affairs, says, “The stark reality is that neither Russia norUkraine has much of an incentivetostopthe fighting.” What Vladimir Putin calls “the root causes of the conflict” are really one cause: Ukraine’sexistence as asovereign nation. Although there is no excuse for it, thereisa reason for the failureofU.S. leaderstounderstand Putin. He isan open book who has been reading himself to the world since long before he published his 2021 essay “On the Historical Unity of Russiansand Ukrainians.”This farragoofethnic mysticisms and history seen through apseudo-theologicallens is Putin’s“Mein Kampf.” Hisresentments andrevenge aspirations areall there. But are largely ignored or disbelieved by the West’sstatesmen and publics who complacentlybelieve that the end of historymeant the end of toxic nonsense such as this: Putin believes Russia is a“civilizationstate” with cultural-cum-religious significance, rights and responsibilities that justify the erasure of other nations Which is why the Economist correctly

says thatfor Putin “war has become an ideology.”

What Johns Hopkins University’s HalBrands describes as Putin’s“quasigenocidal barbarities” are committed in the name of atotalizing, uncompromisable objective:the political and cultural extinctionofUkraine. Russia haskidnapped, forthe purpose of “Russification,” uncountable thousands of Ukrainian children. Their return is, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy says, Kyiv’s“number one” priorityinnegotiations. Tryexplaining thattoSteve Witkoff. This real estate developer,Donald Trump’sdesignated war-ender,says he andPutin have developed a“friendship.” Witkoff echoes JimmyCarter’s Secretary of State Cyrus Vance saying that Sovietleader Leonid Brezhnevshares similar“dreams and aspirations” Witkoff wonders, “Whywould [Russia] want to absorbUkraine?” Putin explained in his 2021 essay, which shows that peace is impossible. In 1991,Crimea, like therestof Ukraine, voted for independence. In 2018,the first Trump administration’s Crimea Declaration said “the United Statesreaffirmsaspolicy its refusal to recognize the Kremlin’sclaimsofsovereigntyoverterritory seizedbyforce in contravention of international law.” Trump’sState Department said this wouldbeU.S. policy “until Ukraine’s territorial integrityisrestored.” In 2022, then-Sen. Marco Rubio sponsoredabill that would have forbidden U.S. acknowledgment of Russian sovereigntyover

seizedUkrainian territory. Recently, however,the elastic Trump breezily said Crimea was “lost years ago.” The end of history has not yet reached Europe. Writing in Foreign Affairs, TheodoreBunzel and Elina Ribakova recall aprophecy from Jean Monnet,a founder of the European Union: “Europe will be forged in crises, and will be the sum of the solutions adopted for thosecrises.” Unintended beneficial consequencesof Putin’scatastrophic blunder in Ukraine include NATO’senlargement (Finland and Sweden), revitalization of the U.S. defense industrial base and renewed seriousness about Europe’sself-defense In a1951 lettertoa friend, an American contemporaryofMonnet said that the challenge then was “howtoinspire Europe to produce for itself thosearmed forces that, in thelong run, mustprovide the only means by which Europe canbe defended.” So wrote someone with firsthand experience of European dangers, Dwight D. Eisenhower Today,Dalibor Rohacofthe American Enterprise Institute writes: “The good news is thatweknow for afact, basedon the experience of the pastthree years, thateven arelatively small and poor country suchasUkraine —never mind the top-shelf militaries of Poland or Finland —can stopRussia in its tracks, withwhat has been modestU.S. and international support.” This reality has escapedthe notice of “realists”who think Ukraine is flimsy.

Email George Will at georgewill@washpost.com.

Whatdoyou do aboutJoni Ernst? The Republican senatorfrom Iowa is being mocked by liberal media andbeyondfor her snarky response to aquestion about cuts in Medicaid: “Weall are going to die.” Thatclumsy remark has been skewered for its insensitivity,but its greater significance liesinthe bigger issue. Ernst answers to Donald Trump and no one else She is notalone in this. Bowing down to Trump’sdemands and caving in to MAGA threatshaveturnedseveral Republicans against the people who votedfor them. ElonMusk hascalledTrump’stax-andspending bill a“disgusting abomination,” thus freeing more Republicans to express their doubts. Some House members now express regrets aboutvoting forit. Their excuse is thatthey didn’tquite read it. Think aboutthat. Theyregard not doing their jobaslesspolitically damaging than owning up to their vote. More thanone in five Iowans receive Medicaidbenefits. Rural hospitals will be especially hard hit by the cuts, but so will othermedical centers serving large Medicaidpopulations. Evenbeforethe Republican House votedtochop over $700 billion from the program, 28 Iowa hospitals were at risk of closing, according to Becker’s HospitalReview.

As the Senate considered the nominationofPeteHegseth for Defense secretary,Ernst was riding high as oneofthe holdouts. Ahandful of other Senate Republicanswouldn’tgoalong, giving Ernst the powertoditchacandidate known for sexualassault, drunkenness andabuse of corporate funds. Worse,Hegseth hadlittle experiencerelevanttoheading the department taskedwith defending Americafrom foreign attack.Hewas just apretty boyon FoxNews.

Acombat veteran, Ernst made some impassioned objections to the appointment. But when the MAGA brigade threatened herreelection with aprimary challenge, she forgot allabout national security She explained her decision to cave as follows: “I will be supporting President Trump’spickfor secretary of defense, Pete Hegseth.”Inotherwords, she was doing it for Trump.

American soldiers risk their lives for the country.Ernst was one. But then she changedshape into apoliticianwho wouldn’tevenrisk reelection, thatis, ajob for the country In her servicetoTrump, she turned out to be notverygood at politics either.Ernst’s attempted recoveryfromher unfortunate “we areall going to die” comment wasa not-very-clevervideoonInstagram, foolishly stagedina cemetery.Screwing her face up in alook of pain, she apologized for anymisunderstanding. Thenshe made a failed stabathumor,saying, “I’m really,really gladthatIdid nothave to bring up the subject of the ToothFairy as well.”

She furtherinsulted the audience by stating, “I made an incorrect assumption that everyone in the auditorium understood that, yes, we areall going to perish from this Earth.” Thatalso divertedattention from the issue at hand. The voters weren’t demanding immortality,just medical care thatwould enable them to live longer, healthier lives. If she really wanted fuller recovery from some awkward moments, Ernst could have looked straight at the camera and said, “You know? I’m going to vote against abill thatwould deprive so many of my constituents of the most basic health care.”And if she wanted to nail down her conservative bona fides, she should have added, “I’m also notvoting fortax cuts that blow up federal deficits by trillions.” Chances areexcellent that she will vote for whatever Trump wants. That’sthe real problemwith JoniErnst. It’snot astray comment. It’sstraying fromher duty to her constituents andthe country

Froma Harrop on X, @FromaHarrop. Email her at fharrop@gmail.com

Faimon Roberts

George Will

Froma Harrop

KREMLIN POOL PHOTO

Russian President Vladimir Putin chairs acabinet meetingvia videoconference at Novo-Ogaryovo state residence outside of Moscow, Russia,onJune 4.

BY MARIEFAZIO Staffwriter

It’salmost official

After sailing through the House and Senate, abill that would make the University of New Orleans part of the LSU system is headed to Gov.Jeff Landry’sdesk to be signed into law

Pending approval from the university’saccreditation agency,Senate Bill 202 would shift UNOtothe oversight of the LSU system, a move supporters say could breathe new life into the struggling university, bolster its enrollment and help eliminate its deficit. The bill by Sen. Jimmy Harris, D-New Orleans, passed the state HouseofRepresentatives 95-1 on Mondayfollowing a36-0 passage in the Senate last month.

UNO has been in the University of Louisiana system since2011, one of eight institutions overseen by that governing body

“Today’spassage of legislation approving the University of New Orleans’transition to the LSU System marks the beginning of an important newchapter in our institution’s history,” UNOPresident Kathy Johnson wrote in aletter to faculty and staff on Monday

Sheaddedthat the shift, whichisbacked theBoard of Regents, Landry and the state Legislature, “reflects ashared commitment to securing UNO’slong-term financial health and elevating its impact as aresearchdriven, student-centered public university.”

TheLSU andULsystems did not immediately respond to requests for comment. Back to previous oversight

If the move proceeds, UNO will become the ninth LSU site —besides the flagship in BatonRouge, there are campuses in Alexandria,Eunice and Shreveport, along with an agriculture center, biomedical research center andamedical school in New Orleans.

It would mark areturn to an earlier governancemod-

UNOset to join LSUsystem

el.LSU oversaw UNOfrom its founding until 2011, when it shifted to the UL system amidtensions between UNO officialsand LSU system leadership.

In theyears since, UNO has struggledtorecruit and retainstudents. Enrollment peakedataround 17,000 students before HurricaneKatrina, but fell to about 6,000 studentslastfall. Theenrollment decline has contributed to adeficit that officials say could beashighas$30 million.

The bill aims to reverse UNO’sfortunes bychanneling the LSU name and resources toboost enrollment.

John Walters, LSU’svice president of external affairs, told the Senate Education Committee lastmonththat enrollment at LSU’s campuses has grown to recordlevels and the same could happen at UNO. Increased enrollment wouldbring the school more revenue.

“UNO’senrollment has fallen abit, and we’re going to do everything in our power to make surethat enrollment grows back up,” he said Themove is expected to costa total of $81 million over five years, according to estimates LSUgavethe Legislature,intended to help UNO pay off its debt, cover transitioncosts andpay for some deferred maintenance.

Thebillwillprovide UNO $20 millionnextfiscal year, and Harris said at aSenate Education Committee hearing last week that additional funding maybeavailable through othersources. The Senate on Mondaypassed abill that includes an additional $3 million fordeferred maintenance atUNO,pending approval by the House. Under thebill, UNO’sassets,funds,obligations,liabilities, programs and functions will be transferredto LSU, pending approval from theSouthern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges, the accreditingagency that oversees UNO

Atransition team made up of legislatorsand “stakeholders from theNew Orleans

area” must submit atransition plan to the Board of Regents and theHouse and Senate by next April. Some people —including UL Board of Supervisors memberJulie Stokes —have raisedconcerns aboutthe speed of the process.

Many questions stillremain abouthow this shiftwill impact students, faculty and operations at UNO. Harris said the discussions arestill ongoing aboutwhether UNO would retain its name, blue andsilvercolorsand the privateer mascot —orassume LSU’spurple and gold and tiger mascot.

Supportfor themove

For more than ayear,UNO has taken steps to address its budget deficit,including layoffs and furloughs, closing dilapidated buildings, andinstituting hiring andspending freezes

Theuniversity’s strife caught the attention of SenatePresident CameronHenry andHouse SpeakerPhillip DeVillier,who in February penneda letter to the Board of Regents requesting the board study shifting it back to the oversightofLSU.

The Board of Regentshas unanimously recommended the shift, and LSUleadership hassaidatvariouslegislative hearingsthat the system supports taking on UNO. Walters, with LSU, hinted at apotential partnership between UNO and the LSU Health Sciences Center in downtown New Orleans.

With Landry likely to sign the bill into lawwhenit reaches his desk, the only remaining step is approval by the accrediting agency “We’re working on the governing structure and themanagementof(UNO), but the valueofthe institution mustbecontinued to be lifted,” KimHunter Reed, the state commissioner of highereducation, saidata Senate Education Committee hearing last week. “It is doing goodworkfor students; it

Alcaraz, Sinner take rivalrytoWimbledon

BY HOWARD FENDRICH AP tennis writer

The takeaways from CarlosAlcaraz’sfifth-set tiebreakervictory over Jannik Sinner in theriveting and record-breaking French Open men’sfinal were multiple andsignificant.

Let’sstart with this:Anyone worried about how men’stennis would survive in thepost-Big Three era can resteasy.Alcaraz andSinner produced 5 1/2 hours of evidence Sunday thatthe game is in good hands —and that their rivalry willbe, and perhaps already is, atranscendent one. Take it from no less an authority than Roger Federer.The retired ownerof20Grand Slam titles, and rival of Rafael Nadal (22 majors) and Novak Djokovic (24), begana post on socialmedia by declaring, “3 winners in Paris today,” then listed Alcaraz, Sinner and“the beautiful game of tennis. What a match!”

Sinner,Alcaraz couldrenew rivalry

This was the 12th Alcaraz-Sinner meeting,the first in amajor final.

“Hopefully not the last time,” Alcaraz said. “Every time that we face each other,weraise our level to the top.”

It would be shocking if there weren’tmany more of these to come—perhaps as soon as at Wimbledon, whereplaybegins on June 30 andNo. 2-rankedAlcaraz is the two-time defending champion.

His comeback against No. 1 Sinner from two sets down, then three championshippoints down, to win 4-6, 6-7 (4), 6-4, 7-6 (3), 7-6 (10-2) was unprecedented at Roland-Garros. It wasunforgettable. Alcaraz’s coach, Juan CarlosFerrero,described his guy’sbesttrait this way:“His strengthis(to) keep believing all the time, until thelast ball is gone.”

Alcarazhas 5Grand Slam titles

Alcaraz’sfive Grand Slam titles at 22 —that’sthe age at which Nadal, BjornBorg andPete Samprasalsogot to five; no one’sdone it younger —show how special he is. So doesthe Spaniard’s5-0 record in major finals, acareer start surpassed amongmen only by Federer’s7-0.

Sinner is pretty good,too. Tuesday marks afull year that he has been ranked No. 1. He hasreached the finals of hislast eight tournaments, arun last accomplished by Djokovic adecadeago. He has won three majors. He haswon 47 of hislast 50 matches. Notably,all three of those

lossescame against— yes, you guessedit—Alcaraz. That hearkens back to thedayswhen Federer would beat everyone other than Nadal Sinner had claimed 31 Slam sets in arow right up until themoment he was up 2-0 against Alcaraz.

What was unmistakable to anyone watching in-person at Court Philippe-Chatrier or following along from afar on TV is that Alcaraz vs. Sinner is amust-see. “The level,” Alcaraz said, “was insane.”

Alcaraz, Sinner dominating Sinner’stake?

“I’mhappy to be part of this,” the23-year-old Italian said. “Would be even more happy if I would have the big trophy.”

As with anygreatrivalry think Evert vs. Navratilova or Borg vs. McEnroe or Federer vs. Nadal, no first namesneeded —Alcaraz vs. Sinner provides a clash of excellence and astudy in contrasts.

Alcaraz displays emotion, pumping his fists,pointing to an ear to askfor more noise, yelling “Vamos!” Sinnerisrather contained. Sinner’s long limbsget himto nearly everyball.Alcaraz’s motor reaches speeds no one can equal.

Sinner’s ball-striking is pure. Alcaraz’sdropshots arelegendary

Both hammer groundstrokes that leaveopponents exasperatedand spectators gasping. Both can improve. Sinner has never won amatch that lasted four hours. Alcaraz loses focus on occasion.

Both are eager to improve. When Sinner returnedfroma three-monthdoping banlast month, he introduced anew, angledreturn stance. Alcaraz tweaked hisserveand backhand technique. Who knows what heights each can reach? They split the past six Slam trophies, and eight of the past 11.

Federerpredicted bigchampions Federer saw this coming. During an interviewwithThe AssociatedPressinDecember 2019, Federerpredicted someone would win major after major the way he,Nadal andDjokovic did. Just didn’tknow there would be a Big Twodoing it.

“It’sgoing to happen, inevitably,” Federer said. “And it’salmost not going to be that hard, maybe .becausethe players will have seen what we did. And they didn’tsee just one guy doing it, once every 30 years. They sawlikethreeguys doingit, in theshortest period of time Players are going to believe more.”

Niners embraceurgency afterdisappointing 2024 season

BY JOSH DUBOW AP pro football writer

SANTACLARA, Calif.— The vibes were off from the start of last season for the San Francisco 49ers. Contractdisputes provided a cloud over the team throughout the spring and summer;the SuperBowlhangover anda third straight shortoffseasonsapped some energy; and alack of roster turnover led to some staleness around the Niners

Those factors andabevy of injuries turned aSuper Bowlcontender into a6-11 also-ran, leading coach Kyle Shanahan to deliver ablunt message at the end of the season about what needed to change in 2025.

“I felt guys weren’tready to come back,” Shanahan said about the 2024 season. “I understood that. But Itold them howIwon’t really understand it this year Not that that was right or wrong, but Icouldn’t comprehend it. We’re off five weeks earlier.We all know how disappointed we are and alot of us have played alot of football here. But we’re going to have ateam that doesn’t know what we’ve done in the past or how you guys have earned a lot of stuff, we needtoshow them.” As the 49ers begin their final week of the offseason program on Monday,the change has been palpable.

Theteam was abletoresolve its major contract questionsearly in the offseason by reaching extensions with quarterback Brock Purdy,linebacker Fred Warner and tight end George Kittle without any drama or acrimony

The attendance forthe voluntary offseason program was high with most of the key playerson hand to helpteach therookies and other newcomersthe standard for how the 49ers operate. Star left tackle TrentWilliams was one of the fewnotable players not on hand forthe first week of on-field practices but was back in town last week. Shanahan stressed theimpor-

tance of showing up in Apriland theplayerslistened, leading to the successful spring. Shanahan saidhedidn’thave to make any requests after the season-ending meeting andthe players said there was no need for agroup discussion about making sure everyone was bought in for this season. “I didn’t thinkwehad to do all that,” Warner said. “Kyle made a point of that at the end of last season when he said howimportant it was to be back for this phase because of how last season went, and we knew what we were getting ourselvesintowithawhole new group, alot of young players. We all made the decision on our

Saints OL Ramczyk officiallyretires from NFL

It hasbeen nearly two years since Ryan Ramczyk sawafootball field forthe NewOrleans Saints,and the teamnow hasmade his long-expected retirement from football official.

Ramczyk, who was one of the mostimportantplayers of the Saints’ ballyhooed 2017 NFLdraft class, was placed on the reserve/ retired list Monday afternoon. He is thesecond notableSaintsplayer to officially retire this month, joining quarterback Derek Carr Though this newsbecame official Monday, it haslongbeen in the works. Ramczyk was effectively retiredlastyear,whenhespent virtually the entire season away from the team. By delaying the announcementfor ayear,Ramczyk gave New Orleans significant salary-cap flexibility

JaguarsmakeCooke highest-paid punter

Jacksonville’sLogan Cooke is now the NFL’s highest-paid punter Cookesigneda four-year, $16 million contract extensionwith the Jaguars, according to aperson familiar with the negotiations.

Asecond-team All-Pro selection in 2024, Cooke was entering the finalyear of his second deal with theteam. He had been scheduled to make $3 millionin2025 and now willget araise after making his first Pro Bowllast year

The Jaguars draftedCooke in the seventh round from Mississippi State in 2018, andhe’sthe team’s longest-tenured player.Cooke, whowillturn30nextmonth,establishedcareer-highs with agross putting averageof49.4 yards and anet average of 44.8 yards last season.

Cavaliers guard Garland has surgeryonbig toe

Cavaliers guardDarius Garland had surgery Monday on the injured left big toe that hampered him during Cleveland’splayoff run.

The Cavaliers said theprocedure was performed by Dr.NicholasStrasseratVanderbilt University Medical Center in Nashville, Tennessee.

The All-Star guardmissed the final two games of the regular season and four games during the playoffs with the injury,which wasdescribed as asprain.

“Definitely wasn’tmyself.Itwas prettyuncomfortable but tryingto do everything to win the game. It was frustrating because Iwasn’t 100 percent,” Garland said after the Cavaliers lost to the Indiana Pacers in five gamesinthe Eastern Conference semifinals.

Boisson up 296 spots; Sinner stays No. 1man

own to be back here.”

Theurgency thatmay have been lackingattimes in 2024is back this offseason as the Niners want to avoid any sort of repeat of last year’sdisappointment.

San Francisco hadlost in the NFC title games following the 2021 and 2022 seasons and then felljust short in the Super Bowl in the 2023 season, losing the title gameinovertime to the Kansas City Chiefs.

Those deep runs led to reduced time off with someplayers choosing rest over rushing back to be on hand for theentireoffseason program

That was notthe casethis spring as theteam plans to incorporate severalnew startersonboth sides of the ball following aroster purge in March.

“When your season ends and you’re not making the playoffs, your desire to be back in the building and to getthat taste out of your mouth, Ithink is expedited,” Kittle said. “Guys want to be back for it. When you’re playing in the middle of February, you kind of need an extra month. That’s why alot of guys don’t show up to phase two or stuff like that.But there is an importance of phase one, the team building stuff. Kyle wanted us to be back. Ithink guys were going to be here regardless just because theywere ready to go back and play football.

Lois Boisson,the revelation of the French Open, has rocketed 296 places up theWTA rankings after her fairy-tale run at Roland-Garros. The Frenchwoman, who was 361st before making it to the semifinals at theclay-court GrandSlamlastweek, jumpedto65thinthe latest edition of the rankings published Monday Coco Gauff defeated Boisson in the semifinals en route to her first French Open title.There was no change at thetop of therankings, with Aryna Sabalenka leading the pack ahead of Gauff and her fellow American Jessica Pegula. After retaining his title on Sundayinthe longest ever finalat Roland-Garros against top-ranked Jannik Sinner, Carlos Alcaraz remained second in the men’sATP rankings behind his Italian rival.

Braves loserookie RHP to Tommy John surgery

A.J. Smith-Shawver underwent Tommy John surgery and will miss the rest of the season forthe slumping Atlanta Braves.

Smith-Shawver had reconstructive surgery on the ulnarcollateral ligament in his right elbow,knocking the rookie right-hander out for therest of this season andlikely the start of next season.Keith Meister performed the procedure in Arlington, Texas.

“Itwas acomplete Tommy John, and now he starts the long road of the rehab,” manager Brian Snitker said. “Everything wentwell.” Braves officials already had announced May30thatSmithShawver had atorn UCL. SmithShawver,22, hadgone 3-2witha 3.86 ERA in nine starts this season. He had struck out 42 batters in 441/3 innings.

ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO By AURELIEN MORISSARD

Spain’sCarlos Alcaraz, right, hugs Italy’sJannik Sinnerafter winning the French Open at Roland-Garrosstadium on SundayinParis.

ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO By JEFF CHIU

San Francisco49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan speaks at anews conference after practice on May29inSanta Clara, Calif.

‘Sick’ Schauffele revels in U.S. Open challenge

BY DOUG FERGUSON AP golf writer

OAKMONT, Pa Xander Schauffele wrapped up nine holes on the most punishing U.S. Open course and was smiling.

This was on a Monday, only a practice round at Oakmont. But the image illustrates why Schauffele rarely seems to suffer at the major reputed to be the toughest test in golf. He has finished out of the top 10 only once in his eight previous U.S. Open appearances. His highest score is a 75 in the third round at Brookline in 2022. He tied for 14th that week.

“Maybe I’m just sick and enjoy the challenge,” Schauffele said with another smile. “Something about it playing really hard. I think a good attitude goes a long way It’s obviously easier said than done, hard to keep a good attitude through the entire stretch of 72 holes, practice rounds as well. I don’t know I think they’re a lot of fun.” The attitude will be tested at Oakmont, the course with rough that looks like a cabbage and greens so fast it can feel like putting in a bathtub.

Schauffele still hasn’t figured out the winning part of it, at least not at the U.S. Open. Despite his top 10s, he has yet to seriously challenge in the final hour

This year presents a different test for the 31-year-old Californian, who broke through last year in the biggest events by winning the PGA Championship and the British Open.

SAINTS

Continued from page 1C

addition this offseason. With Mathieu not in attendance for the previous stretch third-year safety Jordan Howden largely had worked with Reid. And we’ll get a glimpse at the team’s defensive line rotation. The voluntary workouts, for instance, featured a lot of defensive lineman Jonah Williams. Will he see the same workload now that the others are back?

Rattler the front-runner?

The starting quarterback competition won’t be decided in June, but through the voluntary portion of the offseason, Spencer Rattler appeared to have a leg up on rookie Tyler Shough. Is it his job to lose?

He is still trying to find his groove after missing two months with a rib injury that significantly slowed the start of his season.

“I felt like I was playing at a pretty high level. Then I got hurt,” he said. “My expectations of what I knew I could do to where I was were different. And accepting that was tough. I think that was sort of the biggest wake-up call for me coming back.”

So a U.S. Open at Oakmont — fun, he calls it might be a good measure of where he is.

Most of the 156 players, and even a few alternates, made their way out to the course on a relatively dry day that should stay that way at least until the weekend.

Justin Thomas was among those who came to Oakmont a few weeks ago to get in some serious study, knowing practice rounds can be the biggest grind because they take so long. Everyone is trying to figure out what to do from the rough, where to miss, how to avoid mistakes.

Dustin Johnson played nine holes, his first time back at Oakmont since he won his first major nine years ago. He played the final seven holes not knowing if the USGA was going to penalize him for his golf ball moving on the fifth green That’s some serious mental toughness.

There have been a few changes, including even fewer trees.

“The course is just as hard as I remember, if not harder,” Johnson said.

The USGA likes to test every part of the game, and that includes the mental side of it. Jack Nick-

laus, a four-time U.S. Open champion, said he used to listen to players complain in the days leading up to the Open and figure he could rule them out.

“I hope it psyches a lot of players out,” Thomas said. “I understand this place is hard. I don’t need to read articles, or I don’t need to hear horror stories. I’ve played it. I know it’s difficult. I also have faith that if I go play well and I’m driving the ball well and I’m hitting my irons like I know I can, I’m going to have a lot of birdie opportunities.”

Thomas also mentioned the need to have a good attitude. The definition is different for each player For him, it’s being committed over every shot on every hole and accepting the outcome.

“I think once I start secondguessing myself or not trusting my instincts is kind of where I get myself in trouble,” Thomas said. “Then when I do that, I naturally am pretty pissed off if it doesn’t work out. It wasn’t because of the shot, it was more from the lack of commitment. That’s where it starts for me generally.”

With Schauffele, it can be hard to tell when he loses his cool Tiger Woods, who won the U.S. Open three times, was among the best at putting any anger behind him before he settled over his next shot.

“I think I look pretty level-headed when I play, but internally I might be absolutely just thrashing myself,” Schauffele said. “I think truly having a good attitude is just sort of accepting what happened and allowing yourself to be pretty much at zero to hit the next shot.”

Don’t count out Winston taking snaps for Giants

PAT LEONARD New york Daily News (TNS)

NEWYORK Jameis Winston seems like the forgotten man in the Giants’ quarterback rotation, with Russell Wilson being handed the starting job and rookie Jaxson Dart being groomed as the future of the franchise.

But Winston is not forgotten when they take the field, even on limited reps.

Last Thursday was a perfect example: Wilson‘s first series with the starters was underwhelming. Dart, stepping in as that day’s second QB with mostly backups, found rough sledding, too.

Then Winston entered as QB3 with some of the starting skill players and immediately chucked a deep touchdown pass up the left seam to Darius Slayton.

Slayton was being guarded by a young backup corner named Nic Jones. Still, this was an appropriate depiction of what the team’s quarterback situation has looked like in practice so far this spring.

Wilson is the clapping huddle leader of the first-team offense who throws the occasional nice deep ball but has struggled with consistency and middle of the field throws. Dart is the rookie drinking

through a firehose while trying to learn Brian Daboll’s offense and apply it in his first series of NFL practices. Sometimes the arrow is pointing up, especially due to his mobility; sometimes it looks like he will need some time. Winston, meanwhile, is the bigplay hunter The veteran who likes to let it rip. Sometimes it gets him in trouble. Sometimes it leads to six points. But if chasing explosive plays is what Daboll and the Giants are after, it’s hard to understand how Winston won’t receive an early call in the bullpen if he remains on the team come the fall.

These Giants need to score at a high clip, something they have never done under Daboll.

A lot of the offseason narratives are about how great the 2025 Giants defense should be given all the talent added to that side of the ball.

But the focus needs to be on whether the offense will score and win games for the team, not rely on avoiding turnovers and punting until the defense forces a takeaway of their own.

So far this spring, with Wilson at quarterback, the first-team defense has looked like a much better unit than the offense.

Packers release Alexander after injuries limited the two-time Pro Bowl CB

BY STEVE MEGARGEE AP sportswriter

Jaire Alexander has been released by the Green Bay Packers, ending a seven-year run in which he emerged as one of the NFL’s top cornerbacks before injuries limited his availability

The Packers announced the move Monday, a day before they open their mandatory minicamp. The decision is expected to clear about $17 million in cap space.

“In his seven seasons with the Packers, Jaire established himself as one of the premier players in the NFL at one of the game’s most challenging positions,” Packers general manager Brian Gutekunst said in a statement.

“His contributions to our organization were felt on the field, in the locker room and in our community and he will be missed We appreciate all he gave, and we wish him all the best moving forward.”

Alexander’s future with the Packers had been the subject of much speculation throughout the offseason because of his hefty contract and recent injury history

Alexander who has 12 interceptions, had two years remaining on the four-year, $84 million contract extension he signed in May 2022.

The 28-year-old Alexander has spent his entire career with the Packers, who selected him out of Louisville with the 18th overall pick in the 2018 draft. Alexander made Pro Bowls in 2020 and 2022, but he has played in only 34 of the Packers’ 68 regular-season games over the past four years. Alexander missed two early season games last season with injuries

to his quadriceps and groin He then missed a Nov 3 loss to Detroit with a knee injury, returned to play 10 snaps in the Packers’ next game against Chicago and then was out for the rest of the season.

His unavailability for much of the past few seasons has the Packers believing they can move forward without the player who had remained their best cornerback when healthy Green Bay’s cornerback room also has lost 2021 first-round pick Eric Stokes, who had his own injury issues with the Packers before signing with the Las Vegas Raiders in March. The Packers return Keisean Nixon, a two-time All-Pro kickoff returner who has become more of a factor on defense the past couple of seasons while Alexander has struggled with injuries. Carrington Valentine, a 2023 seventh-round pick, has started 19 games over the past two seasons. The Packers also added former Raiders cornerback Nate Hobbs in free agency and drafted Micah Robinson out of Tulane in the seventh round. Alexander was so effective early in his career that the Packers signed him to that big contract with a $30 million signing bonus even after a shoulder injury had limited him to four regular-season games in 2021. Alexander had returned for the Packers’ NFC divisional playoff loss to San Francisco during that 2021 season. But the injuries kept coming. He started 16 games and had a career-high five interceptions in 2022, but played just seven regular-season games each of the past two years. Alexander has remained effective in pass coverage when available.

“For Spencer’s situation, anytime you get a chance to play there’s always value and lessons in that,” Moore said “No matter the circumstance, I thought he handled himself well last year competing and navigating potentially a few that were a little bit of challenging situations. And then for any guy in general, your second offseason is always a huge jump.”

Rookie roles

The nine draft selec-

Rattler has not only received most of the firstteam reps in practices open to reporters but he also appears much more decisive in his throws. That, in some ways, is to be expected: Shough is going against an NFL defense for the first time; when Rattler was in the same position a year ago he also looked hesitant. At the very least, mandatory minicamp will give coaches the chance to evaluate Rattler with a (mostly) healthy supporting cast a luxury he didn’t receive last season.

tions make for the Saints’ biggest rookie class since 2015. Even if Shough doesn’t start right away, there are good opportunities elsewhere for this class to carve out a role.

Danny Stutsman, a fourth-round linebacker, popped during OTAs (organized team activities) as he filled in with the starting defense during the few weeks that Demario Davis wasn’t present.

Devin Neal, a sixth-round running back, received ample work with the firstteam offense with Alvin Kamara absent. Even with Kamara’s expected return, the Saints have an open competition for the spot behind him.

Defensive lineman Vernon Broughton, picked in the third round, has been used in a variety of spots so far Will he see extended playing time because of it?

And of course, first-round tackle Kelvin Banks is in a prime position to win a

starting job from the jump. Injury updates

Though attendance this week is mandatory, there will be a few players sidelined with injuries.

Jake Haener has missed most of OTAs with an oblique injury, and he told reporters that he expects to return in training camp For now, the Saints’ threeman quarterback battle remains two.

Tight ends Taysom Hill and Foster Moreau are both recovering from serious knee injuries, while offensive lineman Nick Saldiveri was sidelined last week reportedly with a calf injury In positive news, rookie cornerback Quincy Riley may see an increased workload after returning for individual drills last week. He is recovering from an unspecified surgery

Email Matthew Paras at matt.paras@theadvocate. com

ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO By SUE OGROCKI

Xander Schauffele gestures after his putt on the ninth green during the third round of the Memorial golf tournament on May 31 in Dublin, Ohio.

STAFF

PHOTO By BRETT DUKE

Saints running back Devin Neal, left, runs a drill with quarterback Spencer Rattler during organized team activities on Thursday at the team’s indoor practice facility

BertmancelebratesLSU’s latest CWStripinperson

BY SCOTT RABALAIS Staff writer

Skip Bertman has been through alot since he retired fromcoaching. The loss of his beloved wife of 63 years, Sandy Bertman, in March. The loss of his home to a fire about 20 yearsago.

Recently,Bertmanhad afallat arestaurant thatleft himwith a fracture in his hip. But that was not keeping him off the field Sunday night at Alex Box Stadium —the field named after him as he helped celebrate the LSU baseball team’s20th trip to the College World Series with a12-5 super regional victory over West Virginia.

“I’m very,very proud,” Bertman said, wearing a“CHAMPS” capgiven to LSU players and coaches as the victory celebration swirled around him. “Jay (Johnson, LSU’scurrent coach) is terrific. His staff is terrific. But

“I’m very, veryproud. Jay(Johnson, LSU’scurrent coach) is terrific. His staffisterrific. Buttonight, the crowd wasterrific, they made adifference.”

SKIP BERTMAN,formerLSU coach

tonight, the crowd was terrific, theymade adifference.”

Bertman particularly was impressed by thestanding ovation given to LSU senior Josh Pearson for his last home at-bat in the ninth inning.Pearson is theonly player who has been with Johnson his entire four years at LSU.

“That can’t happen anywhere else but here,” Bertman said.

The founderof the LSUbaseball dynasty, Bertmancoached the Tigers from 1984-2001. He ledthe program from irrelevance to national prominence, including the program’sfirst trip to theCollege World Series in 1986.

LSU made atotal of 11 trips to Omaha under Bertman, winning

five CWS championships from 1991-2000. He went 870-330-3, acareer winning percentage of .724, including an 89-29 record (.754) in theNCAA Tournament that is thehighest by any coach ever

Soon after retiring from coachingin2001, Bertman served as the LSU athletic director from 200108. Bertman,who turned 87 in May, moves with awalkernow.But he saidhestill intends on making the trek to Omahaatsomepoint during theCollege WorldSeries.

For more LSU sports updates, sign up for our newsletter at theadvocate.com/lsunewsletter

LSU pitcher ChaseShoreswatches his teammates rush the field after throwingthe

Rougesuper

RABALAIS

Continued from page1C

winner-take-all regional final before rallying to win 10-6.

In two super regional victories over West Virginia, the Tigers didn’tlose and didn’treally come close, winning16-9 and 12-5. It marked the first time in 17 super regionalappearances that LSU scored in double digits in two games.

“I know our fans like doubledigit runs almost as much as their coach does,” LSUcoach Jay Johnson said with aself-satisfied grin. The Mountaineers werea game bunch of birds, roughing up the Tigers’ vaunted dynamic pitching duo of Kade Anderson on Saturday and Anthony Eyanson on Sunday.But in the end,the West Virginians were their own undoing.

The Tigers scored those 28 combined runs on just 18 total hits.

Theyscored 16 runs Saturday on eighthits —the fewest hits resulting in that many runs in NCAAsuper regional history, per ESPN —and had 12 runs on 10 hits Sunday.Makingupthe difference? TheTigers reached or advanced on base atotal of 30 other times on West Virginia walks (17), hit batters (nine) and errors(four).

The Tigers showed discipline at the plate, allowing the Mountaineers to do themselves in free base after free base. When LSU did weave in ahome run here or adouble there, the result was devastating. Alandslide that brought the Mountaineers down.

“It would be agame that you

Continued from page1C

it’sscoring 10.2 runs per night.

Across the regionaland super regional, Steven Milam and Derek Curiel combined to go 18 of 41 (.439) with 18 RBIs. Even Jared Jones, ajunior slugger who fell into agrisly hitting slump in the regional, hit 4for 8against West Virginia.

“I think just for me goingup there with aclear mind and taking it one pitch at atime,” Jones said “I think Iget pitched differently a lotmorethanmostguysand just goingout there andunderstandingI’ve got to be patient in thebox

would want to put on atape and show future teams, like, ‘This is how we play offensive baseball at LSU,’ ”Johnson said.

TheTigers will practice at home Tuesday and be off to Omaha on Wednesday in advance of their CWS opener against Arkansas. LSU will have to be at its best at taking advantage of any free passes against theRazorbacks, along with the Tigersone of the two most talented teams going to Omaha thisyear.Just oneofthem will be saddled with an opening loss after Saturday’s 6p.m. game in the double-elimination tournament.

LSU took two of three from Ar-

andtake my walks. When pitchersmakemistakes, do damage on them.

“Today Iwas really trying to be really relaxedand move the offense and get guys on base, get some momentum in ourdugout.

LSU’s first opponent in Omahais Arkansas, oneofthe topoffensive teamsinthe country. TheRazorbacks lead theSEC in batting average (.313), on-basepercentage (.422) andscoring (8.7 runs per game). They’ve alsocrankedmore than 120 home runs, more than all but four otherDivision Iteams have thisyear LSU mayneed astrong offensive showing to get past Arkansas. Thegood news for the Tigers

Season starting to getaway from Braves

BY NOAH TRISTER AP baseball writer

One seven-gamelosing streak was manageable for Atlanta —a possible fluke at thestart of the season But now the Braves have dropped seven in arow again, and it’stime to wonder whether this will simply be alost season for one of the game’sstar-studded teams. Sunday’s 4-3defeat at San Francisco dropped Atlanta to 10 games under.500 and91/2 games behind the National League’s final playoff spot. TheBraves haven’tmissedthe postseason since 2017 —and it’stoo early to count them outthis year —but they can’tafford to have much moregowrong. Atlanta started the season 0-7, then spent about six weeks clawing its way back to .500. All that work hasbeen undone afterthe Braves dropped another seven straight this past week.The last five of those defeats were by onerun, including aghastly collapse at homeagainst Arizona on Thursday in which the Diamondbacks scored seven runs in the ninthtowin 11-10.

Afterthat, Atlanta called up reliever Craig Kimbrel from the minors —the franchise saves leader returned to the Braves for the first time since they traded him beforethe 2015 season. He pitched once, then was designated for assignment.

Atlanta overcameinjuries to Ronald Acuña and Spencer Strider to make the playoffs ayear ago. Those twoare back now,but while Acuña is hitting well, Strider has lost all fiveofhis starts on themound. TheBraves are also oneofonlythree teamsinbaseball with more blown saves (12) than saves (10).

There are some reasons for Atlanta to keep hope alive. A big problem so far has been the team’s9-19recordinonerun games, which suggests the Braves don’tneed to improve muchtoturn things around. Theyactually have apositive rundifferential on theseason But the NL East may alreadybe out of reach, with Atlanta trailing the first-place New York Mets by 14 games. Right now the Braves are in fourth,asclose to last-place Miami as theyare to third-place Washington.

Line of theweek

Seattle’sGeorge Kirby struck out 14 and allowed just two hits in seven innings in a3-2 win over the Los Angeles Angels on Sunday.That snapped afivegame skidfor theMariners, who could use amore effective Kirby The right-handeris1-3 with a6.53 ERA in four starts after missing the start of the season because of shoulderissues. Perhaps this performance was asign that he’srighting the ship. Comeback of theweek

This is obviously the Diamondbacks, who according to Baseball Savant faced awin probability of 0.1% after their leadoffhitter in the ninth struck out. Lourdes Gurriel hit asolo homer,Alek Thomas added atwo-run shot andKatel Marteproducedan RBI single before thesecond out of the inning. Then Ildemaro Vargashit an RBIsingle,and Eugenio Suárez’stwo-run double put Arizona ahead.

Five otherteams have come back to win after trailing by six this year,but none of those sixrundeficits were later than the seventh inning.

kansas at The Box amonth ago, but it may need to beat theHogs two more times to get to theCWS championship series. Celebrating is nice for now for theTigers, but they know there is much workto be done. As ever,going to Omaha is just another step on thejourney to theultimategoal: LSU’s eighth national championship.

“Allthe hardwork, the grind, thesweat and tears paid off in abig way,” LSU first baseman Jared Jones saidbefore adding, “We’re not done yet.”

For more LSU sports updates, sign up for our newsletter at theadvocate.com/lsunewsletter

is that their hitters have found a groove. That’sfromthe top of the order down to Stanfield,who gave Johnson the exact hit he was looking for at perhaps the mostimportant moment of themost important game of LSU’sseason —sofar

“I just had agood feeling,”Johnson said, “like,hehas hit these kind of guys well, and Ifelt like he was focused, and he’staken great atbats for several games in arow.Regional, super regional,and Ithink that was huge.”

Email Reed Darcey at reed darcey@theadvocate.com. Formore LSUsports updates, sign up for our newsletter at theadvocate.com/lsunewsletter

LSU shortstopStevenMilam thanks fans behind home plate after defeatingWest Virginia in the super regional on SundayatAlex Box Stadium.

STAFF PHOTOSByMICHAEL JOHNSON

final striketoend Baton

regional against West Virginia onSundayatAlex Box Stadium.

STAFFPHOTO By MICHAEL JOHNSON Former LSU coachSkipBertman, left,talks on the fieldafter LSU’swin over West Virginiatoclinchthe super regional and atriptothe College WorldSeries on Sunday at Alex Box Stadium.

Title game MVPs top 3A all-state teams

BY JAKE MARTIN Written for LSWA

Two title game MVPs collected Outstanding Player honors for the Louisiana Sports Writers Association’s Class 3A all-state teams Doyle’s Kylee Savant and Miller Sheets of Sterlington were named the softball and baseball teams outstanding players In softball, Savant garnered the accolade after hitting .434 with a .598 on-base percentage. The Houston signee recorded 14 homers, 12 doubles and 60 RBIs. She also stole 15 bases during Doyle’s state championship year Savant hit a grand slam in a semifinal victory over No. 1 Kaplan and knocked in three runs in Doyle’s 4-3 victory over Jena in the nonselect Division III final.

The first year of best-of-three state championship series for certain classifications in baseball allowed Sheets ample opportunities to show why he’s one of the top prospects in the state. In a winner-take-all Game 3 against Erath, Sheets broke a 1-1 tie with a two-run single, propelling his team to a 5-3 win in the nonselect Division III state championship.

The Baylor commitment boasted a .435 average with three homers, 23 doubles and 57 RBIs. He only struck out four times this year. He is the son of former St. Amant High star and Major League Baseball pitcher Ben Sheets.

Doyle’s Kyle Wieck and Erath’s Jeremy Picard collected Class 3A coach of the year honors Wieck led his team past last year’s state champion Sterlington in the quarterfinals before upsetting No. 1 Kaplan, 13-3, and earning an opportunity to play for a state title. Doyle defeated Jena 4-3 to earn the school’s first state

No

OUTSTANDING PLAYER: Miller Sheets, Sterlington

COACH OF THE YEAR: Jeremy Picard, Erath Honorable Mention Landon Bernadou, Patterson; Konnor Boudreaux, St. Louis Catholic; Brennan Broussard Erath; Luke Brister, South Beauregard; Landon Bernadou, Patterson; Liam Cazenave, St James; Landen Derouen, Erath; Jeremy Gibson, Patrick Taylor; Kadin Grimmett, Buckeye; Maddox Hebert, Jennings; Jed Henry, South Beauregard; Chance Joubert, Lake Charles College Prep; Caden Kossum, Vidalia; Jayce Lantier, Iota; Justin Lartigue, Lake Charles College Prep; Kash Martin, Westlake; Karter Meaux, Kaplan; Trace Moreau St.

Catholic; Cayden Mursch, Jena; Ty Poole, De La Salle; Sebastian Rideaux, Acadiana Renaissance; Grayden Ross, Westlake; Mason Sanders, Buckeye; Riley

Iota;

Parish; Lucas Surcouf, Haynes; Joe Sutherlin, Caldwell Parish; Zeke

Williams, Vidalia; Christian Wold, South Beauregard. Softball

McLin

COACH OF THE YEAR: Kyle Wieck, Doyle

Kylee Savant, Doyle

Honorable Mention Aila Brassieur, St. Louis; Addi Daigle, South Beauregard; Alyson Fletcher, Doyle; Addyson

Hebert, Kaplan; Rylee Ryan, Buckeye; Camryn Jackson, South Beauregard; Melanie Pomar, De La Salle; Kylie Price, Jennings; Aubrianne Redditt, South Beauregard; Rosalee Richey, Buckeye; Sadie St. Pe, Buckeye; Jalayah Slaughter, Parkview Baptist; Charli Sonnier, Iota, Emma Venable, Jennings; Evie West, Sterlington; Kumarigrace Nadar, Berwick; Shiya Steib, St. James.

championship in softball since 2018.

Making school history helped Picard to take the top coaching honor in baseball. Erath’s coach was unsuccessful in wrestling a

state title away from Sterlington this season, but his Bobcats made the school’s first appearance in the state finals in baseball. Erath finished with a 26-13 record.

Finals moment too big so far for

BY TIM REYNOLDS

The moment is clearly not too big for Shai Gilgeous-Alexander

These are his first NBA Finals. It’s hard to remember that sometimes. The Oklahoma City Thunder star — and NBA MVP — just had a pair of debut finals games like nobody in league history, with a combined 72 points in his first two appearances in the title series. That’s a record. The previous mark for someone in his first two finals games: 71 by Philadelphia’s Allen Iverson in 2001.

“I’m being myself,” Gilgeous-Alexander said. “I don’t think I tried to reinvent the wheel or step up to the plate with a different mindset. Just try to attack the game the right way I think I’ve done a pretty good job of that so far.” His next attack chance isn’t until Wednesday night, when the series — the Thunder and Indiana Pacers are now tied at a game apiece — shifts to Indianapolis for Game 3. He had 38 points in the Game

Gilgeous-Alexander

ä Oklahoma City at Indiana, 7:30 P.M.WEDNESDAy ABC

1 loss to the Pacers, 34 points in Sunday’s Game 2 win. GilgeousAlexander has more points in the first two games than any other two players in the series — not just Thunder players, any two players — do combined. Thunder coach Mark Daigneault isn’t taking the greatness of the MVP for granted He’s just come to expect it by now

“Yeah, unsurprising at this point,” Daigneault said. “It’s just kind of what he does. He just continues to progress and improve and rise to every occasion that he puts himself in and that we put ourselves in. I thought his floor game (in Game 2) was really, really in a great rhythm. I thought everyone played better individually, and I thought we played better collectively I think that was a by-product.”

He had eight assists in Game 2, making him the 17th player in NBA history to have that many points and that many assists in a

Pelicans GM leaves post to join Hawks

Graham was part of organization for 15 seasons

BY ROD WALKER Staff writer

finals game; it has now happened a total of 34 times in the title series. But it wasn’t just having assists It was the type of assists that were key. Of Gilgeous-Alexander’s eight on Sunday, six of them set up 3-pointers. Those eight assists were turned into 22 points in all.

“He’s MVP for a reason,” Pacers center Myles Turner said. “He’s going to get off, and I think that we accepted that. It’s a matter of slowing him down and limiting the role players.”

Only seven players in finals history — Jerry West (94 in 1969), LeBron James (83 in 2015 and 80 in 2018), Shaquille O’Neal (83 in 2000, 76 in 2002 and 72 in 2001), John Havlicek (80 in 1969), Michael Jordan (78 in 1992 and 73 in 1993), Cliff Hagan (73 in 1961) and now Gilgeous-Alexander have scored 72 or more points in the first two games of a title series.

“Shai, you can mark down 34 points before they even get on the plane for the next game,” Pacers coach Rick Carlisle said. “The guy’s going to score. We’ve got to find ways to make it as tough as possible on him.”

they selected center Yves Missi from Baylor Many expected the 21st overall pick to be more of a project, but Missi ended up as a second-team pick on the NBA AllRookie team.

Joe Dumars, hired in April as executive vice president of basketball operations to replace Griffin, said in an interview last week that Graham would remain as general manager That now changes with Graham heading to Atlanta.

A longtime member of the New Orleans Pelicans is leaving. Pelicans general manager Bryson Graham is finalizing a deal to become senior vice president of basketball operations for the Atlanta Hawks, a source confirmed. ESPN was the first to report. Graham spent 15 seasons with the Pelicans, starting as an intern in 2010 when he was hired by Dell Demps Some of his early duties included things such as making coffee runs for the staff.

“I try to still have that same mentality,” Graham said in an interview last year “There is nothing too small for me to do. The people that work here, everybody is busting their butt and working towards the same goal. Whatever needs to be done, let’s get it done.”

That mentality led to Graham’s ascension. His first promotion took him from intern to video coordinator Eventually, he became an assistant general manager and last year was promoted to general manager by David Griffin, the Pelicans executive vice president of basketball operations at the time. Griffin was fired in April after the Pelicans finished the season 21-61.

Graham’s main role was helping the Pelicans find talent in the draft. Last year the Pelicans got one of the steals of the draft when

The responsibility of finding talent now belongs to Troy Weaver. Dumars’ first hire was making Weaver his senior vice president of basketball operations.

Weaver served as an adviser with the Washington Wizards this season. Prior to that, he spent four seasons as general manager of the Detroit Pistons.

“Troy has a unique skillset,” Dumars said in an interview last week “His ability to identify talent in this league is elite. You look at the Detroit team in the playoffs, those were predominantly guys that Troy drafted. Not only that, but Troy was in Oklahoma City when they had Harden and Durant and Westbrook and those guys. So he has a long track record of being able to identify players at an elite level.”

Although Dumars and Weaver both worked with the Pistons, their time in Detroit didn’t overlap.

“Hiring Troy was an easy decision for me,” Dumars said ”Troy and I go way back. We have known each other forever, but we had never worked together before. This was a great opportunity for us to work together for the first time.”

With Graham’s departure, the top three executives from last season (Griffin, Graham and Swin Cash) are no longer with the team. Email Rod Walker at rwalker@ theadvocate.com.

Oklahoma City Thunder forward Jalen Williams, right, defends against Indiana Pacers guard Tyrese Haliburton during the first half of Game 2 of the NBA Finals on Sunday in Oklahoma City

Pacers need to find way to get in the paint more

BY TIM REYNOLDS AP basketball writer

INDIANAPOLIS The Indiana Pacers simply couldn’t wait to get home early Monday

There’s a slew of possible reasons for that. Maybe they just wanted to get out of Oklahoma City with their split of the first two games in the NBA Finals. Maybe they couldn’t wait to see what finals fever will look like in Indianapolis after a 25-year wait to get back to the title round. Or maybe they just wanted to get back to work. It’s probably a little of everything — especially the last part. Yes, the Pacers are tied with the Thunder 1-1 after two games of the NBA Finals. For the lower-seeded team, that’s huge; the Pacers took home-court advantage away by winning Game 1. But they know that if they don’t take care of business at home, starting with Game 3 on Wednesday night, it’ll be advantage Thunder again, just like that.

“We’re going to have to be a lot better on Wednesday,” Pacers coach Rick Carlisle said. That might sound like coaching hyperbole, but really, it isn’t. The Pacers have yet to have anyone score 20 points in a game in these finals. They’ve led for a total — a total! — of 1 minute, 54 seconds in this series, or just under 2% of the time. (That’s a major improvement over the 0.0001% that they led Game 1 for, in a winning effort, somehow.) In Game 2, the the Pacers didn’t score a point in the paint in the first quarter

Points in the paint isn’t a stat that tends to jump off the page. It’s possible that a lot of people didn’t even notice. But consider this: Before Sunday night, more than nine years

had passed since the Pacers didn’t manage a single paint point in the first quarter of a game.

“We have to do a better job of getting to the paint,” Pacers guard Tyrese Haliburton said. “It’s a lot easier said than done. Our offense is built from the inside-out, and we have to do a better job getting downhill. They collapse and make plays from there. I thought we could improve a lot there. But yeah, man, they are flying around. They have got great point-of-attack defenders and great rim protectors.”

For a team that has now won 81 of its 100 games this season (not counting the NBA Cup final loss, since that doesn’t figure into any records), the Thunder somehow tend to get overlooked for its defense. Oklahoma City handcuffed the Pacers in the first two games, daring Indiana to take 3-pointers and barely giving up anything easy around the rim.

It starts with bothering Haliburton, which the Thunder has managed to do for the majority of the first two games.

“Most of the guys I guard have the ball most of the time,” said Thunder forward Luguentz Dort, who has drawn the assignment on Haliburton for much of the first two games. “My main thing is to stay in front of him and make everything tough. He’s a great player He is going to make some tough shots and great reads, so I just have to stay in front of him.” No team gave up fewer paint points in the regular season than the Thunder It truly is a clash of styles; the Pacers are averaging 46 paint points in

STAFF FILE PHOTO By MICHAEL JOHNSON

Doyle catcher Kylee Savant drives the ball against Jena in the fifth inning of the Division III nonselect championship this season at Frasch Park in Sulphur

Graham

Find your thrill with easy-to-grow andin-season blueberries

School is out, and summer is near.Here’ssomething else to celebrate: Blueberries —those refreshing, deeply hued orbs of sweetness —are now ripening on bushes across Louisiana.

Blueberries are among the easiest fruit crops to grow

These deciduous shrubs provide aesthetic value and attract pollinators and birds, too. And they can even be grown in containers.

If you want to add blueberries to your home landscape, you’ll

find agood selection at garden centers this time of year.Just remember that, if you want to plant them in the ground, it’s best to wait until fall or winter to reduce stress on the plants. There are lots of different kinds of blueberries out there. How do you decide what to buy?

LSU AGCENTERPHOTO By OLIVIA McCLURE

Rabbiteye blueberries are commonly growninLouisiana.

First things first: Make sure you get more than one plant, ideally of two to three varieties. Blueberries need crosspollination for maximum fruit production. Having multiple varieties encourages betterquality berries and abigger harvest.

Second, you’ll need to decide between rabbiteye and Southern highbush blueberries.

Rabbiteye blueberries (Vaccinium virgatum or V. ashei), which are native to the southeastern United States, are most common in Louisiana. These plants tend to be long-lived and disease-resistant, and they usually produce fruit between May and July.Before berries ripen, they are pink, reminiscent of the eyes of albino rabbits.

Southern highbush blueberries, on the other hand, ripen as early as April and are widely used in commercial production in other states.They’re crosses between native Southern blueberries and Northern highbush blueberries (Vacciniumcorymbosum),which are grown in places like New Jersey and Michigan.

Highbush blueberrieshave that name because the plants grow taller than lowbush blueberries (Vaccinium angustifolium), which are found in Canada and New England Southern highbush blueberries aren’tfor everyone. In fact, LSU AgCenter horticulture agent Mary Helen Ferguson generally steers home gardeners awayfrom them.

“I don’ttypically recommend peoplegrowthem unlessthey really want the early-ripening varieties and they know what they’re getting into,” she said.

To understand what Ferguson means, it’simportantto talk about the concept of chill hours.

Most fruit crops —blueberries included —need to be exposed to acertain number of hours of cold temperatures to ensureproductivity. Different blueberry species and even individualvarieties have different chilling requirements, makingitcrucialfor growers to choose plants that will work well in their local climate.

Good nature

From goat yoga to cowtherapy,connect with animalsatthese BatonRouge-areafarms

BY SERENA PUANG Staff writer

The tragedy of selling the family farmisaplotline so common that it’s become atrope. Afamily farm is loved, carefully tended to and passed down, but thenext generation doesn’twant to or can’tbe farmers. But selling the family farm isn’tthe only option anymore Maybe arebrand is in order, which is what Sarah Allen did when she inherited her family’sfarm in Livingston.

When Allen’sgrandparents passed away,their farm was passed down to herfather and then eventually to her. When she moved to the house on the property,she did not want tobeafarmer.She had just welcomed twinstothe world.

Butafter living in hergrandparents’old house and figuring out the daily routine, Allen andher husband started to acceptfarm life. They got chickens and started gardening. Today,she and her familyoperate OldRusty Gate Farm in Livingston on that same property. They provide goat yoga, soap making classes and other events.

Raising animals is hard work and involves alot more than what people see on social media. Plus, there are aspects of it that are decidedly not aesthetic:animals give birth, have bowel movements andpass away.But in recent years, whether it’stojustify ahobby or to carry on

Co-ownersJoe Foster,left, and Manning Bergeron pose for

afamilytradition, people are creating wellness experiences on farms around Baton Rouge.

Goat yoga

Allen’sdaughter,Rose Allen, 15, has worked on the farm since the beginning. She assistswithsoapmaking classes and helps participants interact with thegoats during goat yoga. She thinks of lifeon the farm as alifestyle that she’s sharing withothers.

“Thisissomethingpeoplelove, and it’snot something that’sfake. It’snot something that we’ve propped and made it look acertain

way,” Rose Allensaid. “It’sjust how we live.”

The family startedoffering goat yoga almost adecade ago as afundraiser fortheir church. Therewas so muchinterest that they had to turn people away.Inthe spring and fall, Old Rusty Gate Farm still offers classes and aimstohost goat yoga every six to seven weeks. During the classes, instructor KristieCraig tells people to make peace withthe ideathatone of them will be pooped or peed on in the course of the 30-minute class (it

BY SERENA PUANG Staff writer

“I

The short term wasgreat, Bergeron said, but after running the numbers, they realizedthat HouseBrewwouldn’thavebeen able to survive past another year or so. The margins forcoffee are really thin, Bergeron explained, andthe business was only makingenough money to keep itself afloat if no unexpected expenses like broken equipment or utility bills increased.

PHOTOSByMOLLy BAHLINGER

Goat yoga washeld May24atthe Old Rusty Gate Farm in Livingston

SarahAllen is the owner of Old Rusty Gate Farm,where she hosts goat yoga,parties and soap-making classes

Vinegareasily rids kitchenofodors

Dear Heloise: Another easier tip to get rid of kitchen cooking odors is to put out acup of vinegar after cooking foods whose odors hang around. It does the trick overnight!

If we leave on an extended vacation, I’ll put a larger bowl of vinegar on the counter,and it keeps my house from smelling stale upon my return. It’s natural, and Ifound that it’samore effective alternative to essential oils and the furnace filter hack. (I’ve used both of those methods.) —Darlene Barth, inFlorida

Usinglongerspoons

such as applesauce and thelike.

—B.O.B., in Connecticut

Strawcleaning

Hints from Heloise

Dear Heloise: Reachinginto deeper jars with aregular teaspoon or tablespoons that have shorter handles can be messyand inefficient. I’ve had better luck using an iced tea spoon with its longer handle. Ican get to the bottom of ajar and scrape the sides without getting stuff all over my fingers. I’m thinking of things

By The Associated Press

Today is Tuesday,June 10,the 161st day of 2025. There are 204 days left in the year

Todayinhistory:

On June 10, 2018, the rover Opportunitysent its lastmessage from the surface of Mars. Originally expected to serve a three-month mission, Opportunity functioned for over 14 years, traveling over 28 miles across Mars and unveilingcritical discoveries about the planet’s geology

Also on this date: In 1692, the first execution resulting from the Salem witchtrials in Massachusetts tookplace as Bridget Bishop was hanged.

In 1854, the U.S. Naval Academy held its first graduation ceremony In 1940, Italian dictator Benito Mussolini declared war on France and Great Britain, formally entering Italy into World WarII.

In 1963, President John F. Kennedy signed into law the Equal Pay Act of 1963, aimed at eliminating wage disparities based on gender In 1967, six days of warinthe Mideastinvolving Israel, Syria, Egypt,Jordan andIraq ended as Israel and Syria accepteda United Nations-mediated ceasefire.

In 1977, James Earl Ray, the convicted assassin of civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr., escaped from Brushy Mountain State Penitentiary in Tennessee with six others. He was recaptured three days later

DRIVE-THRU

Continued from page1D

“If we make $100 aday,” Bergeron said. “I might make Idon’t know $5?” With expenses like rent, added inflation and the impending slow summer season impactingthe bottom line, it wasn’tsustainable. Co-ownersJoe Foster and Bergeron bought the trailer a month and ahalf ago, planning to take it on the road, but after making the decision to close the Florida Street location, they decided to pivot.

The new location, which opened June 3, is atrailer in the parking lot of Oxbow Rum Distillery at 760 St.PhilipSt. Bergeron and Foster plan to run the location themselves from9 a.m. to 2p.m. every day but Sunday (Oxbow is closed on Sundays as well) The pair have been making do with their savings, butthey’re hoping that with the trailerand less overhead expenses, theycan start paying themselves andshift to abusiness model that will also pay their bills.

“Wetook arisk withthis because we’re young,”said Bergeron. “Weknow how tosafely invest, we’ve been doing that for years. How do we maybetake theriskier route?What can we do to maybe speedthatprocess of investing. So that’swhere this came in.”

With atrailer, House Brew can move as needed for festivals and events downtown such as Night Market BTR or 225fest.

The goal is to provide Baton Rouge withahomegrown and ethical quick-service coffeeop-

Dear Heloise: Iclean straws by puttingsoap on pipe cleaners and inserting them into thestraws. Then Iwash the pipe cleaners and recycle them. If you have alargestraw,simply twist two pipe cleaners together —Janet Culbertson, in Spokane,Washington Hair creamrinse

Dear Heloise: I’vebeen using hair cream rinse instead of shaving cream for years. Iget alarge bottle of theleastexpensive brand Ican find.It smells great andsoftensthe hair on my legs so that the razor glides easily with no nicks. Abottle lasts for a really long time, andInolonger endupwith itchy skin from the drying effectsofshaving cream —Sandy O.,via email Email heloise@heloise.com.

In 1978, racehorse Affirmed, ridden by Steve Cauthen, won the 110th Belmont Stakes to claim the11th Triple Crown. Alydar,ridden by Jorge Velasquez,finisheda close second in each of theTriple Crown races.

In 1991, 11-year-old Jaycee Dugard of Meyers, California, was abducted byPhillip andNancy Garrido; Dugard was held by the couple for 18 years before she was found by authorities.

In 2009, James von Brunn, an 88-year-old White supremacist, opened fire in theU.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington,D.C killing security guard Stephen T. Johns. (Von Brunn diedataNorth Carolina hospital in January2010 while awaiting trial.)

In 2020, protesters pulled down acentury-old statue of Confederate President Jefferson Davis in Richmond,Virginia, the former capital of the Confederacy

Today’sbirthdays: Political commentator Jeff Greenfield is 82. Actor FrankieFaison is 76. FootballHall of Famer Dan Fouts is 74.Former Sen.JohnEdwards, D-N.C., is 72. Actor Gina Gershon is 63. Actor-model ElizabethHurleyis60. Comedian Bill Burr is 57. Alphabet CEO Sundar Pichai is 53. R&B singer Faith Evans is 52. Actor Hugh Dancy is 50. Countrymusician LeeBrice is 46. Actor Leelee Sobieskiis42. Olympic figure skating gold medalist Tara Lipinskiis43. Model KateUpton is 33. Former first daughter Sasha Obama is 24.

tion to respond to the needs of downtown commuters. After abouta week,the ownersplanto facilitate adrive-thru option.

“You can rock with the AC in your car and be totally comfortable for thetwo or three minutes it takes us to makeyourorder,” Foster said.

Walk-ups arealsowelcome.

House Brew’snew location will still have afullmenu of drink offerings —but now,thanks to Oxbow,they’remaking drinks with reverse osmosiswater,which Foster said amplifies the qualities of theespresso. Thewater purification process removes contaminants likesalts, minerals and other dissolved solids to create highly purified water

“The citrus flavor you naturally getfromour Colombian beans? I got alittle more of that. The kind of caramel-y chocolatey undertones that youget?I gotalittle bitmore of that,” he said.

Their other pop-up vendors (Mid-City Bakery and Lona Rai’sKitchen andBakery) will be restocked at the new location soon, so they’ll still have aregularrotationofamazing pastries, cinnamonrolls and croissants. HouseBrewwillalsoexpand its breakfast options, offering bagels with cream cheese and breakfast sandwiches. There’sstill muchtodo—the trailer doesn’thave functioning airconditioningyet —but both owners areexcitedfor the changes comingsoon.Bergeron said they are investingnow to ensure that they’reable to show up and keep HouseBrewrunning for the long term.

Email Serena Puang at serena. puang@theadvocate.com.

NATURE

Continuedfrom page1D

happens every time).

Participants should know that goat yoga is more like playing with goatswhile stretching. Thereare no headstands or superdifficult moves.Instead, there are opportunitiestopet and/or hold goats and take photos with them after class. They also have apot belly pig, cow and some chickensroaming around the propertythat mayor may not join in on thefun.

At M&M Farm in Prairieville, Rachel McGuerty,owner of BlueLotus Yoga, partners with the Prairieville farm to teach goat yoga as well. McGuerty started offeringgoat yoga last year andhosts classesoncea month.McGuerty said she had to modify herclassessubstantially to accommodate the goats.

“You have to stay alittle more aware of your surroundings in the goat yoga because the goats frolic and jumpand get thezoomies,” she said. “It isn’tayoga whereyou can just lay there withyour eyes closed because agoat might jump on you.”

Goats are friendly,but they’re still animals.McGuerty has had agoat pee on her mat,and multiple goats have triedtodrink out of her water cuporeat herhair. Butit’sfun,she said, and nature is avitamin in it of itself. She finds that the goats draw in alot of beginners, and shetries to make the practice accessible for them.The classes are great options forcelebrations, datesorjust trying something new,she said.

Plus,after yoga is over,people have theoption to bottle-feed the baby goats.

Fluffy cowtherapy

Bre Boyette, aphotographer who lives in Walker,ownsHighland cows and offersfluffy cow therapy and/or photo sessions. She’s always wanted miniature fluffy Highland cows as pets, and after herhouse was built three years ago, there was enough land to make the purchase. She bought thecows under the condition from her husband, Cameron, that shefigure outhow to pay themoff. Highland cows can cost anywherefromthousands to tens

BLUEBERRIES

Continuedfrom page1D

“If avariety requires too few chilling hours, it’slikely to flower too early and have those flowers killed by alate freeze,” Ferguson said. “If it requires too many chilling hours, it won’tcrop consistently.”

Because mostSouthern highbush blueberries need fewer chill hours, they begin setting flowers and fruit sooner.That’s fine and dandy —unless alate freeze entersthe forecast

“The flowers or the fruit will get killed by alate freeze,” Ferguson said. “They alsotendtobemore finicky in terms of soil requirements.They need good drainage, high organic matter andsoil pH within the appropriate range. And they tend to be moresusceptible to diseases.”

Still, she added, Southern highbush varieties yield high-quality fruit. Andthe prospect of an earlier crop of berries can be importantfor commercial producers, who sometimes plant both Southern highbushand rabbiteye blueberries to lengthen their season. Southern highbushblueberries also may be afitfor some home gardens.

“If you’re along the coast or in New Orleanswhere you don’tget alot of chilling, you may wantto

of thousands of dollars. The ones Bre boughtwere $5,000 each.

So she bought one three years agoand started hostingphoto sessions. Every year since, she’sgottenanother cow. Thecows, she said, paythemselves offwithin the month. In 2022, shestarted a TikTok to document life withthe cows. Her account exploded. Herpage nowhas over 730,000 followers andover33millionlikes. Herfollowers fell in love with the threecows, whoeachhavedistinct personalities, andstarted messaging to askifthey could meet the cows. Thus, fluffy cow therapy was born: it’sanexperience where people can brush, pet, cuddle, take photos with and feed the cows. She tells people stories, answers questions, and people can also just watch thecows interact.

She wouldn’tconsiderher residence afarm,even though those whovisit typically do.There are a lotofanimals on the property,but the only farm animals are the three cows: Dumplin, Wafflesand Nugget.

“It feels like we’re outinthe country,but we’re like 15 minutes from town,” she said.

Offcamera, she takes care of the uglier side of having animals: trimming nails,vaccinations and cleaning up poop in the pasture. There’s

moretohaving animals than what people see on TikTok.

“You show their cute personalities, but they are animals. They are livestock, andthey do have attitudes sometimes,” she said. “There aretimesyou go outthere,and they don’twant to be messed with. They’ll let you know real quick.”

But mostdays, thisisn’t aproblem. Boyette has astrong bond with her cows, and she never makes themdoanything theydon’t want to do.

“They get excited anytimethey see me comeout there with the big wagon,”she said. “Theyknow they’re about to get pampered and spoiled and fed.”

n Old Rusty Gate Farm, 12802 FloridaBlvd., Livingston.Check their Facebook pagefor eventinformation.

n M&MFarm, 16042La. 929in Prairieville has goatyoga once a month but not on aset schedule. Check their Facebook pagefor more information.

n Cuddly Cow Therapy is $100/ hour for up to four people or $150 fora group of five to six. For more information check out https://book usesession.com/s/_8GMc8JmLv Email SerenaPuangatserena. puang@theadvocate.com.

look at growing Southern highbush varieties in pots,” Ferguson said. Butfor mostfolks, rabbiteye blueberries are theway to go. Ferguson is evaluating 31 blueberry varieties —both rabbiteye and Southern highbush —atthe AgCenter HammondResearch Station. “I wanted to look at how someof thevarieties that werenot commonly planted in Louisiana performed here,” she said. “There’s alot of new blueberry varieties that have been released in the last 20 or 30 years, and alot of the va-

rieties that we’ve grownare ones that have been around foralong time.”

Last year,the top producers in Ferguson’sstudy werelargely old standards: Tifblue, Ochlockonee, Brightwell, Premier and Austin, all of which are rabbiteye varieties. “All of those yielded over 10 pounds per plant on average,” Ferguson said.

Youcan learn moreabout growing blueberries and find publications specific to rabbiteye and Southern highbush production at www.LSUAgCenter.com.

LSU AGCENTER PHOTOByOLIVIA McCLURE Southernhighbush blueberries require fewerchilling hours than rabbiteye blueberries.

PROVIDED PHOTOByBRE BOyETTE

Highland cows are featured in Bre Boyette’s fluffy cowtherapy.

PROVIDED PHOTO

Rachel McGuerty poses with agoat on M&M Farm

GEMInI (May 21-June 20) Use your gifts to build wealth and enhance your reputation. Be aware of who is on your team and who is there to observe and interfere. A change of space, direction and associates will broaden your vision.

cAncER (June 21-July 22) Honesty and integrity will prevent trouble. align yourself with people who share your values. An unexpected change will disrupt your plans or cost you if you are too abrupt.

LEo (July 23-Aug. 22) Use your skills, time and energy to help a meaningful cause. Focus on what's important to you. Know what you want to achieve and make it happen Don't let others slow you down.

VIRGo (Aug. 23-sept. 22) Refuse to let life's little dramas cause you to lose sight of what's important. Travel or attending events will lead to interesting encounters and connections.

LIBRA (sept. 23-oct. 23) Promising too much will backfire. Make suggestions, ask for help and do your part, and you'll make inroads and allies. Offer only what's tangible. Exaggeration and empty promises will be damaging.

scoRPIo (oct. 24-nov. 22) Put your energy into educating yourself in areas that will enhance your earning, investing and financial maintenance. Personal growth is in the stars. Seek out a capable partner for a business venture

sAGIttARIus (nov. 23-Dec. 21) Let go of the past. Pay attention to domestic matters and personal relationships. Look for

opportunities, and change your routine and how you handle responsibilities.

cAPRIcoRn (Dec. 22-Jan. 19) Misleading information is apparent. Your goal is to maintain integrity without prematurely divulging incriminating information. Proceed with caution precision and attention to detail.

AQuARIus (Jan. 20-Feb. 19) If you act hastily or out of anxiety, it will cost you. Discipline and hard work will pay off. Take a deep breath and a backseat while the show unfolds; you'll find it easier to control the outcome.

PIscEs (Feb. 20-March 20) Situations will escalate if you are aggressive or unpredictable. Be open to suggestions and patient with those who don't share your beliefs. Refuse to let emotional interference cloud your vision. ARIEs (March 21-April 19) Keep situations, thoughts and feelings in perspective Wait for things to unravel before you act. Pay attention to your responsibilities and stick to a budget regardless of what someone else suggests.

tAuRus (April 20-May 20) Contain your emotions and actions to avoid controversy. Take care of financial and medical issues by paying attention to detail and researching your options thoroughly. Don't let a last-minute change unsettle you.

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: t EQuALs F

CeLebrItY CIpher

For better or For WorSe

peAnUtS

FrAnK And erneSt

SALLY Forth

beetLe bAILeY

Mother GooSe And GrIMM SherMAn’S LAGoon

bIG nAte

Sudoku

InstructIons: Sudoku is anumber-placing puzzle based on a9x9 grid with several given numbers. Theobject is to place the numbers 1to9 in the empty squares so that each row, each column and each 3x3 box contains the same number only once. Thedifficulty level of theSudoku increases from Monday to Sunday.

Yesterday’s Puzzle Answer

nea CroSSwordS La TimeS CroSSword

THewiZard oF id

BLondie

BaBY BLueS

Hi and LoiS CurTiS

Yesterday’s Puzzle Answer

By PHILLIP ALDER

Robert Bresson, a French film director, said, “Cinema, radio, television magazines are a school of inattention: People look without seeing, listen without hearing.”

Some bridge players are guilty of listening without hearing to the auction. Every bid and most passes supply some information for the attentive player. In today’s deal, look at only the West hand and the auction. What would you lead against four hearts?

The auction followed a normal path North’s jump to four hearts showed game-goingvalueswiththree-cardheart support. South was close to a slam-try (imagine North’s having ace-third of spades), but chose to pass.

If you use two-over-one game-forcing, North would rebid three hearts. Then the auction might continue four clubs — fourdiamonds(bothcontrol-bids)—four hearts - pass. Yes, here five diamonds makes, but do not make a habit of playing in five of a minor when four of a major is a favorite to succeed. (A defender having acefourth of hearts and being able to give his partner a heart ruff in five diamonds is much more likely than a 4-0 diamond break and a defender gaining two diamond ruffs in four hearts.)

West should lead a diamond. Since diamonds have been bid and supported, it is

By Andrews McMeel Syndication

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

Previous answers:

word game

InstRuctIons: 1. Words must be of four or more letters. 2. Words

toDAy’s WoRD — KEELson: KEL-sen: A longitudinal structure fastened to the keel of a ship to strengthen its framework.

Average mark 14 words Time limit 20 minutes

Can you find 19 or more words in KEELSON?

yEstERDAy’s WoRD — EGoIstIc

egis egoist gest gestic gist goes iciest sect site stogie stoic togs cite cities coset cost cote

today’s thought “But he answered and said, It is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds out of the mouth of God.” Matthew 4:4

wuzzles

loCKhorNs

marmaduKe

Bizarro

hagar the horriBle

Pearls Before swiNe

garfield

B.C.

PiCKles

hidato

mallard