The Acadiana Advocate 06-14-2025

Israel intensifies strikes amid Iranian retaliation

Top generals, scientists killed in Iran and nuclear sites hit, officials confirm

ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO By LEO CORREA

An explosion caused by a projectile strike illuminates the skyline in Tel Aviv Israel, early Saturday. Iran retaliated against Israel’s blistering attacks on the heart of Iran’s nuclear and military structure on Friday Iran launched scores of ballistic missiles on Israel where explosions flared in the skies over Jerusalem and Tel Aviv and shook the buildings below.

BY JON GAMBRELL, JOSEF FEDERMAN and JULIA FRANKEL Associated Press

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates

Israel launched blistering attacks on the heart of Iran’s nuclear and military structure Friday deploying warplanes and drones previously smuggled into the country to assault key facilities and kill top generals and scientists a barrage it said was necessary before its adversary got any closer to building an atomic weapon. Iran retaliated late Friday by unleashing scores of ballistic missiles on Israel, where explosions flared in the skies over Jerusalem and Tel Aviv and shook the buildings below

ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO By

A firefighter calls out to his colleagues at the scene of an explosion in a residential compound in northern Tehran, Iran, on Friday following an attack by Israel.

In a second round of attacks, sirens and explosions, possibly from Israeli interceptors, could be heard

N.O. Fair Grounds seeks to ensure horse racing season

Company failed to secure public subsidy from state legislators

BY ANTHONY McAULEY

Staff writer

The

booming in the sky over Jerusalem early Saturday. The Israeli military urged civilians, already rattled by the

earlier wave of missiles, to head to shelter

The Iranian outlet Nour News, which has close links with the paramilitary Revolutionary Guard, said a wave was being launched. Associated Press journalists in Tel Aviv could see at least two Iranian missiles hit the ground, but there was no immediate word of casualties.

“We will not allow them to escape safely from this great crime they committed,” Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said in a recorded message Friday in which he vowed revenge.

Iran’s U.N. ambassador said 78 people were killed and more than 320 wounded in Israeli attacks.

ä See ISRAEL, page 5A

Audit: La. DCFS vacancies remain high

‘High turnover, high burnout,’ former employee says

BY CLAIRE GRUNEWALD Staff writer

An audit shows that Louisiana’s child welfare staffing needs remain high despite years of criticism of the agency over employee shortages. The audit of the Louisiana Department of Children and Families Services’ Child Welfare Division said vacant staff positions have increased from 118 in fiscal year 2023 to 140 in February The area seeing the most vacancies was frontline child welfare workers. The report said DCFS “has struggled to recruit and retain qualified Child Welfare staff due to the nature and difficulty of the job, along with a low salary.” The audit said unmet staffing needs of at least 129 workers existed across the nine child welfare regions for fiscal year 2024. The Alexandria and Covington regions had the highest staffing needs, with Alexandria needing 31 workers and Covington having a shortfall of 27.

DCFS Secretary David Matlock, who was tapped to lead the department by Gov Jeff Landry in 2023, wrote to the auditor agreeing with the analysis but said it doesn’t represent the true staffing need. Matlock said the numbers don’t account for new hires who are unable to carry a full caseload or for the cases that have to be transferred due to caseworkers going on extended leave, making it take longer to complete the work.

The Child Welfare Division had 1,541 employees serving 4,400 children in foster care per month and conducting nearly 22,000 child protection investigations in fiscal year 2024, according to the audit. As of February, the staff total had decreased to 1,446.

The Child Welfare Division includes programs such as child protective

Lafayette Parish schools change provider of health insurance

Cost of claims, prescriptions had strained budgets

BY ASHLEY WHITE Staff writer

the historic racetrack for the past two decades, had asked the Louisiana State Racing Commission earlier this week to call an emergency meeting so that it could relinquish its operator’s license after the company failed to secure a public subsidy from state legislators.

Lafayette Parish school system employees and retirees will have a new third-party health insurance administrator after nearly 30 years with the same company The School Board voted at its Thursday night meeting to allow Superintendent Francis Touchet Jr to negotiate and enter into a contract with a new third-party administrator or TPA. The item passed 8-1 with board member

David LeJeune being the only no vote. The school district, which selffunds its insurance, has worked with Louisiana Blue Cross Blue Shield for more than 30 years. But in the past two years, the costs of claims and prescription prices has increased, causing the LPSS insurance fund costs to balloon, straining the budget. The district’s insurance advisory committee asked its insurance consultant, Gallagher, to request information form other TPAs about claim costs and the ability to directly contract with medical providers. The compa-

nies were asked to use 2024 claim information to estimate what the claims would have cost if processed through them instead. Louisiana Blue Cross Blue Shield, UMR by United Healthcare and Meritain Health by Aetna were compared looking at characteristics including estimated savings, network and provider disruption, whether it required premium or plan changes, and the type of network.

Touchet told board members during the meeting he would start negotiations with Meritain.

Matlock

VAHID SALEMI

Officials: 4escape ICE detention centerinN.J.

Four detainees brokethrough awall and escaped from afederalimmigration detention center in Newark, New Jersey amid reports of disorder breakingout there, according to aU.S. senatorand the Department of Homeland Security

Sen. Andy Kim, aDemocrat from New Jersey,spokeFriday outside the Delaney Halldetention center.Hesaid he was told detainees managed to break through an interior wall that ledtoanexteriorone andfrom therewereable to escape to a parking lot

More “law enforcement partners” have been brought in to find the detainees missing from DelaneyHall,accordingtoan emailed statement attributed to asenior DHS official whom the department did not identify.The statement also didn’tspecify which lawenforcement agenciesare involved.

The development comes amid President Donald Trump’s crackdown on illegal immigration and aday ahead of major protests against his policies planned across the country DHS identified the escapees as two Colombian menwho were arrested on burglaryand other counts and two Hondurans, Franklin Norberto BautistaReyesand Joel Enrique Sandoval-Lopez, who were arrested on aggravated assault and other charges. Acourt records search did not turn up attorney information for them.

Golden toilet thieves sentenced in U.K LONDON— Twoburglarswho plotted the heist of a$6.4 million golden toilet,afully-functional 18-karat piece of contemporary art that was ripped from the plumbing of an English mansion, were sentenced Friday to more than two years in aBritish prison. The satiricalcommentary on consumer culture, titled “America,” by Italian conceptual artist Maurizio Cattelan, had only been on display fora couple days when five burglars swipeditfrom Blenheim Palace —the country mansion where British wartime leader Winston Churchill was born —inSeptember 2019.The purloined potty was never recovered and was believed to have been chopped up and sold.

“This bold and brazenheist took no more than 51/2 minutes to complete,” Judge Ian Pringlesaid in Oxford Crown Court. “‘America’ has never been seen again.” James Sheen, 40, aroofer who pleadedguiltytoburglary, conspiracy and transferringcriminalproperty,was sentencedto four yearsinprison. Michael Jones, 39, who worked for Sheen and was convicted of burglary at trial, was sentenced totwo yearsand three months.

The toilet weighed just over 215pounds and was worthmore than its weight in gold. The value of the bullion at the time was $3.5 million, but it was insured formore than $6 million

S. Africa’sleader visits sites of deadly flooding CAPE TOWN, South Africa South Africa’sleader visited the region where devastating floods have left at least 78 people dead in the country’ssoutheast as searchescontinued Fridayfor a fourth dayand authorities said they expected the death toll to rise.

President Cyril Ramaphosa traveled to the town of Mthatha in Eastern Cape province, where the floods hit hardestwhenthey began early Tuesday Ramaphosa attendeda briefing by officials from the National Disaster Management Center and also visited abridge where aschool bus was washed away by flooding. Six students, the bus driverand another adult onboard were confirmeddead, while four other schoolchildren were among the missing Ramaphosa’svisit came amid questions over authorities’ responsetothe disaster,whichwas caused by an extreme weather front that broughtheavy rain, strong winds andsnow to parts of the province. Forecasters warned about the bad weather last week.

U.SMarines walk Fridayoutsideofa

ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO By DAMIAN DOVARGANES

Marinesguard L.A. federalbuilding

BY AMY TAXIN, LOLITA C. BALDOR and JAKE OFFENHARTZ Associated Press

LOS ANGELES— Marines were seen standing guard outside afederal building in Los Angeles on Friday as they started to take over some postsfrom National Guard members after protests eruptedlast week over immigration raids andPresident DonaldTrump deployed the troops to the city

Maj. Gen. Scott Sherman, the commander of Task Force 51 who is overseeing the 4,700 combined troops, said the Marines finishedtraining on civil disturbance and are starting their operations by replacing Guard troops guarding the Wilshire Federal Building, which housesseveral federaloffices.Guard soldiers can then be assigned to protect morelaw enforcement agents on raids,Sherman said.

About 200 Marines out of the 700 deployed to the protests are in the city, Shermansaid. It’sunclear if the Marineswill eventually provide securityonraids

Dozens of Marines were seen standing at the entrance to the 17-story Wilshire Federal Buildingmidday Friday.They were wearing combat gear andcarrying rifles as they mingled with Guard members, who have beenchecking IDs of people entering the parking lot

It is thesamebuilding that Democratic U.S. Sen.Alex Padilla on Thursday was forcefully removed from Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem’s news conference and handcuffed by officers as he tried to speak up about the immigration raids.

As theTrump administration targets migrantsaround the country for detainment and deportation, the raids have led to the arrests of asylum-seekers, people who overstayed their visas and migrants awaitingtheir day in immigration court.

The Marines are taking their posts a dayafter the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appealstemporarily blocked afederal judge’sorder that had directed Trump to return control of Guard troops to California, shortly after afederal judge had ruled the Guard deployment was illegal, violated the TenthAmendment, which definespower between federal andstate governments, and exceeded Trump’sstat-

utory authority.

Some 2,000 Guardtroopshavebeenin the citythis week. Hundreds have provided protection to immigration agents making arrests. Another2,000 Guard members were notifiedofdeployment earlier this week.

None of the militarytroopswill be detaining anyone, Sherman said.

“I would like to emphasize that the soldiers will not participate in law enforcement activities,” Sherman said. “Rather, they’ll be focused on protecting federal law enforcement personnel.”

Roughly500 Guard members have been used to provide securityonimmigration raids after undergoing expanded instruction,legal training and rehearsalswiththe agents doingthe enforcement beforethey go on those missions.

An 8p.m.curfew hasbeeninplace in a 1-square-mile section of downtown. The cityofLos Angeles encompasses roughly 500 square miles. Protests have ended after afew hourswitharrests this week largely for failure to disperse. On the thirdnightofthe curfew,officers with theDepartmentofHomeland Security deployed flash bangs to disperse acrowd thathad gathered near ajail, sending protesters sprinting away

As withthe past two nights, the hourslong demonstrations remained peaceful and upbeat,drawing afew hundredattendees who marched through downtown chanting, dancing and poking fun at the Trumpadministration’scharacterizationofthe cityasa“war zone.”

Theprotests began Friday after federal immigration raids arrested dozens of workers in Los Angeles. Protesters blocked amajor freeway andset cars on fireoverthe weekend, and police respondedwithtear gas,rubber bullets and flash-bang grenades.

Elsewhere, demonstrations have picked up across the U.S.,emerging in more than adozen major cities. Some have led to clashes withpolice, and hundreds have been arrested.

Demonstrations are expected over theweekend in citiesacrossthe United States, and governors are weighing what to do should Trump send troops to other statesfor immigration enforcement

AirIndiablack boxrecovered

BYSHONAL GANGULY,RAJESH ROY and AIJAZ HUSSAIN

Associated Press

AHMEDABAD,India The flight data recorder from thecrashed Air India flight was recovered Friday inwhat likely will lead to clues about the cause of theaccident that killed 241 peopleonthe plane and a numberofothersonthe ground.

The London-bound Boeing 787 struck amedical college hostel when the plane came down shortlyafter takeoff on Thursday in aresidential area of the northwesterncity of Ahmedabad.

The plane’sdigital flight data recorder, or blackbox, wasrecovered from arooftop nearthe crash site andIndia’sAircraft AccidentInvestigationBureau said thatit hadbegun its work with “full force.” The black box recovery marks an important step forward in the investigation, Civil Aviation Minister RamMohan Naidu said in asocialmediapost

The device will reveal information aboutthe engine andcontrol settings,in addition to what the voice recorder will show aboutthe cockpit conversations, Paul Fromme, amechanicalengineerwith the U.K.-basedInstitution of Mechanical Engineerssaidina statement.

“This should show quickly if there was alossofengine power or lift after takeoff and allowapreliminarydetermination of thelikelycausefor thecrash,” said Fromme, who heads the professional association’sAerospace Division.

Separately, the country’scivil aviation regulator ordered Air Indiatoconduct additional inspections of its Boeing 7878and 787-9Dreamliners equippedwith General Electric’sGEnxengines. That includeschecks of the fuel parameters,

14-year-old brother waskilled when an Air India plane crashed into aneighborhood,wails Fridayoutsidethe autopsy room at a hospitalinAhmedabad, India.

cabin air compressor, engine control system, hydraulic system and takeoff parameters, the order said.

InvestigatorsonFridaycontinued searching the site of oneofIndia’s worst aviation disasters and Prime Minister NarendraModi met with the lone surviving passenger aday after the crash.

Aviation safety consultant Jeff Guzzetti, aformer crashinvestigator for both theU.S.NationalTransportationSafety Board and Federal Aviation Administration, said investigators should be able to answer some important questions about what causedthe crashassoonasnext week as long as the flight data recorder is in good shape. Investigators likelyare looking at whether wingflapswereset correctly, whether the engine lost power,whether alarms were going offinside the cockpit and whether the plane’screw correctlyinputted information about thehot temperature outside andthe weight of thefueland passengers, Guzzetti said.

Judgeblocks Trump’selection executiveorder

BY CHRISTINA A. CASSIDY Associated Press

ATLANTA— Afederal judge on Friday blocked President DonaldTrump’sattempt to overhaul elections in the U.S., siding with agroup of Democratic state attorneys general who challenged the effort as unconstitutional.

The Republican president’sMarch 25 executive order sought to compel officials to require documentary proofofcitizenship for everyone registering to vote forfederal elections, accept only mailed ballots received by Election Dayand condition federal election grant funding on states adhering to thenew ballotdeadline.

The attorneys general hadarguedthe directive “usurps theStates’ constitutional power and seeks to amend election law by fiat.”

TheWhite House had defended the order as “standing up forfree, fair and honest elections” andcalled proof of citizenship a“commonsense” requirement.

Judge Denise J. Casper of the U.S. DistrictCourt in Massachusetts said in Friday’sorder that thestates had alikelihood of success as to their legal challenges.

“The Constitution does not grant the President any specific powers over elections,” Casper wrote.

Casper also noted that, when it comes to citizenship, “there is no dispute (nor could there be) that U.S. citizenship is required to vote in federal elections and the federal voter registration forms require attestation of citizenship.”

Casper also cited arguments made by the states that the requirements would “burden the States with significant efforts and substantial costs” to update procedures. Messages seekingaresponse from the White House andthe Department of Justice were not immediatelyreturned. Theattorneys general for California and NewYorkpraised the ruling in statements, calling Trump’sorder unconstitutional.

“Free and fair elections are thefoundation of this nation,and no president has the power to steal that right fromthe American people,” NewYork Attorney General Letitia James said. The ruling is the second legalsetback forTrump’s electionorder. Afederal judge in Washington, D.C., previously blocked parts of the directive, including the proof-of-citizenship requirement forthe federal voter registration form. The order is the culmination of Trump’slong-standing complaints about elections. After his first win in 2016, Trumpfalselyclaimed his popular vote total would have been much higher if notfor “millions of people who votedillegally.” Since 2020, Trump has made false claimsofwidespread voter fraud and manipulation of voting machines to explain his loss to Democrat Joe Biden. He hassaidhis executive order secures elections against illegal voting by noncitizens, though multiple studies and investigationsinthe states have shownthatit’srare and typically amistake.Casting aballot as anoncitizen is alreadyagainst the law and can result in fines and deportation if convicted. Also blocked in Friday’s ruling was part of the order thatsought to require states to excludeany mail-in or absentee ballotsreceivedafter Election Day.Currently,18 states andPuertoRico accept mailed ballots received after Election Day as long they are postmarked on or before that date, according to theNational Conference of State Legislatures. Oregon and Washington, which conduct their elections almost entirely by mail, fileda separate lawsuit over the ballot deadline, saying the executive order could disenfranchise voters in their states. When the lawsuitwas filed, Washington Secretary of State Steve Hobbs noted that morethan 300,000 ballots in the state arrived after Election Day in 2024.

federal building in Los Angeles.

ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO By RAFIQ MAQBOOL Kalpeshbhai Patni, whose

Ukrainerepatriates more bodies of fallen soldiers

By The Associated Press

KYIV,Ukraine Ukrainehas repatriated more bodies of fallen soldiers in line with an agreement reached during peace talksinIstanbul between Russian andUkrainiandelegations,Ukrainianofficials said Friday Ukraine’sCoordination Headquarters for the Treatment of Prisoners of Warsaid in astatement that Russia returned 1,200 bodies,and “according to theRussian side, the bodiesbelong to Ukrainian citizens, in particular military personnel.”

The repatriation of the bodies was carried out with the help of Ukraine’sArmed Forces, the country’sSecurity Service, the Interior Ministry andother government agencies. Forensic

experts will nowworktoidentify the remains, the statement said

Therepatriationofthe bodies marks one ofthe largest returns of remainssince Russia launched afull-scale invasion of Ukrainemorethanthree years ago. Earlier this week, Russia returned 1,212 bodies of Ukrainian soldiers and received 27 bodiesofits own killed troops.

The agreement to exchange prisoners of war and the bodies of fallen soldiers was the only tangible outcome of the talks in Istanbul that took place June 2.

Russia and Ukraineconducted aPOW swap on Thursday that included severely wounded and gravely ill captives, althoughthe sides didnot report thenumbers.

In addition to agreeing to exchange POWs and bodies of

Federaljudge rules MahmoudKhalil canremainjailed

BY PHILIP MARCELO Associated Press

NEWYORK Afederal judge who barred the Trump administration from deporting Palestinianactivist Mahmoud Khalil declined Friday to order his release from an immigration detention center,saying the former Columbia University student hadn’t yetproven he wasbeing held illegally

ishment for hisadvocacy on behalfofhis fellowPalestinians,”she said in a statement. “Itisunjust, it is shocking, anditisdisgraceful.”

Khalil haspreviously disputedthe notion that he omitted information on hisapplication.

The ruling is a setback for Khalil, whowas detained in March. He had appeared to be close to winning hisfreedomafter U.S. District Judge Michael Farbiarz held that the government’sinitial effort to deport him on foreign policy grounds was likely unconstitutional.

The judge had given the Trumpadministrationuntil Friday morning to appeal an order that could haveled to Khalil’srelease.

But the government filed court papers sayingitbelieved it could continue detaining Khalil based on its secondary rationale for expelling him from the U.S.— an allegation that he lied on hisgreen card application.

Farbiarz, who sits in New Jersey,wrote in his Friday ruling that Khalil’slawyers hadn’tpresented enough evidence that detention on those grounds was unlawful and suggested that Khalil’s next step could be to ask for bail from an immigration judge in Louisiana.

One of Khalil’slawyers, Amy Greer, criticized the Trump administration’slegal maneuvering as “cruel, transparent delay tactics” meant to keep herclient away from his wife and newborn son ahead of their first Father’sDay as afamily “Instead of celebrating together,heislanguishing in ICE detentionaspun-

In afiling last week,he maintainedhewas never employed by or served as an “officer” of theUnited Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees, as theadministration claims, but completed an internship approved by the university as part of his graduate studies

Khalil said he also stopped workingfor theBritish Embassy in Beirut in December 2022, when he moved to theU.S., despitethe administration’s claimsthat he hadworked in the embassy’sSyria officelonger

Earlier Friday,Khalil’s lawyers asked thejudge to order hisrelease, saying he hadsatisfied all of the court’srequirements and that thegovernment’slawyers hadmissed amorning deadline tochallenge the judge’s Wednesdayruling.

The American Civil LibertiesUnion, which is among the groups representing Khalil, also releasedavideo Friday featuring actors Mark Ruffalo, Mahershala Ali and other celebrity fathers reading aletterKhalil wrote to his newborn son from jailahead of his first Father’sDay on Sunday “One day you might ask why people are punished for standing up for Palestine,” read RageAgainstthe Machine guitarist TomMorello. “Theseare hard questions, but Ihopeour story shows you this:The world needs more courage, not less. It needs people who choosejustice over convenience.”

fallensoldiers, the two sides traded memorandums at the talksthat set outconditions foraceasefire.However, the inclusion of clauses thatboth sidessee as nonstartersmake any quick deal unlikely Despite discussionsofapotential truceinthe war,Moscow’sforces in recentdays have launchedwaves of drones and missiles at Ukraine, with a recordbombardment of almost 500 dronesonMondayand a wave of 315 drones and seven missiles overnight on Tuesday Ukraine’sair force saidFridaythatRussia fired55Shahed and decoy drones and four ballistic missiles at Ukraine overnight.The air force said air defenses neutralized43drones. There were no immediate reports of casualties or damage from theattack

N.O. manacquitted in AI robocallscase

Consultant sent callsmimicking Biden’svoice

BY HOLLYRAMER Associated Press

Apolitical consultant who sent artificial intelligencegenerated robocalls mimicking former President Joe BidentoNew Hampshire Democrats last year was acquitted Friday of voter suppression and impersonating acandidate.

Steven Kramer,56, of New Orleans, admitted orchestratinga messagesentto thousands of voters two days before thestate’s Jan. 23, 2024, presidentialprimary Recipientsheard an AI-generated voice similar to the

Democratic president’s that used his catchphrase “What abunch of malarkey” and, as prosecutors alleged, suggested thatvoting in the primary would preclude voters from casting ballotsinNovember “It’simportant that you save your votefor the November election,” voterswere told.“Your votes make a difference in November,not thisTuesday.”

Kramer,who wouldhave faced decades in prisonif convicted, testified that he wanted to send awake-up call about the potential dangersofAIwhen he paid a New Orleans magician $150 to createthe recording. He

was getting frequent calls from people using AI in campaigns, and, worried about the lack of regulations, made it his New Year’sresolution to take action.

“Thisisgoing to be my one good deed this year,” he recalled while testifying in Belknap County Superior Court.

Prosecutors arguedthe calls amounted to an attack on the integrity of the primary,whileKramer’s defense tried to direct outrage at the DemocraticNational Committeeinstead.

At Biden’srequest, the DNC dislodged NewHampshire from itstraditional early spotinthe 2024 nominating calendar,but later dropped its threat not to seat the state’snational convention delegates. Biden did not

put his name on the ballot or campaign there, but wonas awrite-in.

Kramer,who owns afirm specializing in get-out-thevote projects, argued that the primary wasa meaningless strawpollunsanctionedby theDNC, andtherefore the state’svoter suppression law didn’t apply. Thedefense also said he didn’timpersonatea candidate because the message didn’tinclude Biden’s name, and Biden wasn’ta declared candidate in the primary Jurors apparently agreed, acquitting himof11felony voter suppression charges, each punishable by up to seven years in prison. The 11 candidate impersonation charges each carried amaximum sentence of ayear in jail.

By The Associated Press

SANANTONIO— Authorities in San Antonio on Friday saidthe number of people who died in heavy storms and flooding has risen to 11 and that some remainmissing.

Rescuecrews were still searching for missingpeople following Thursday’s downpour as the flooding recedes, San Antonio FireDepartmentspokesperson Joe Arrington said. More than adozen totaled cars were found stuck and overturned in acreek after over 7inches of rainfall fell in parts of thenation’sseventh-largest city

Three of the11confirmed dead were between 28 to 55 yearsold, according to anewsrelease from the BexarCountyMedical Examiner’soffice.

San Antonio officials said thesearch for the missing was focused on thecreek

The vehicles werelikely quicklyswept offthe road by fast-rising waters and that more than 70 water rescues had been made across thecity, officials said.

“Our heartsare with the

we’velost to this week’sflash floods andthe families whocontinue searching fortheir lovedones,”Mayor Ron Nirenberg said.

ASSOCIATEDPRESS PHOTOByEVGENIy MALOLETKA

An honor guard carries the coffinofDmytro Shapovalov,a Ukrainian soldier,on Fridayduring his funeral ceremony in yosypivkavillage, Vinnytsiaregion, Ukraine.

Khalil

The switch is estimated to provide about $2.6 million in

first-year savings and continually save about $988,000 in year two and three The TPA would allow for direct contracting but cause a 4% disruption for members

“We have to move in a different direction,” Touchet said during the meeting.

“We have 10,000 lives that are on our health insurance and we feel as though Meritain will be the TPA that will provide us with savings but also provide us with opportunities to go and save money through

RACING

Continued from page 1A

The Louisville, Kentuckybased company operates its Fair Grounds slots business and 12 other off-track betting outlets under a license linked to its commitment to run a horse racing season annually from late November through the following March. The threat to pull out of the state had put this year’s season in peril and left hundreds of Fair Grounds and other horse industry workers worried about their jobs.

Churchill now appears to have backed off that threat, at least in terms of ensuring the forthcoming racing season, according to industry sources familiar with the situation.

“We are engaged in active discussions in the hopes of a favorable resolution for all stakeholders,” Tonya Abeln, a Churchill spokesperson, said via text on Friday Churchill’s chief executive, William Carstanjen, has reached a tentative agreement with Gov Jeff Landry’s administration and Louisiana racing industry officials to proceed with the upcoming Fair Grounds season, according to an of-

VACANCIES

Continued from page 1A

services, foster care, adoptions and family support services.

DCFS has been dealing with dwindling budgets for years, contributing to the staffing issues.

Staffing needs

Staff vacancies are mainly for frontline child welfare employees, specifically the entry-level positions for caseworkers. This comes after 2018, when DCFS implemented starting salaries for child welfare jobs above the normal rate in order to attract workers. Three years later, those rates were expanded to other child welfare positions, including child welfare services assistant and child welfare supervisor

direct contracting.”

Other board news

The board also voted to approve the district’s more than $800 million fiscal year 2025-26 budget. The budget includes starting salary increases for teachers and stipends for staff who take on extracurricular activities, such as coaching or sponsoring an after-school program. It approved giving school bus drivers who own and operate their own vehicles about $4,500 to compensate them for out-of-pocket insurance expenses.

Construction and capital funding also was approved for various school projects including:

ficial with direct knowledge of the talks, but who isn’t authorized to be quoted

The person couldn’t say what concession Churchill might still be trying to secure but added that “it was decided it was in everyone’s best interest not to (jeopardize) the racing season this year.”

Churchill is still determining which racing days it might apply for The 2024-25 Thoroughbred season spanned 76 live racing days from Nov 22 to March 23. Fair Grounds typically runs a separate Quarter Horse meet in late summer

Gov Landry’s office didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment Commission officials declined to comment

Lost revenue

At issue in the dispute has been millions of dollars in revenue that Churchill Downs said it would lose after the Louisiana Supreme Court ruled in March that a new type of slot machine — called Historic Horse Racing, or HHR — was illegal under the state’s constitution The court said the slots could only be reinstated if the company won voter approval in each parish where they operate.

Child welfare staff turnover rates have declined slightly by 0.6% from fiscal year 2023 to 2024. A few years ago, DCFS implemented pay incentives to address retention.

Employees who work in the Baton Rouge and Orleans regions, two areas with high caseloads and backlogs, are eligible for premium pay Those who relocate to the Baton Rouge region are eligible for an additional incentive of up to $2,500 a month.

Wendi LeMoine, director of the nonprofit Brave Heart Louisiana Children in Need, who previously worked for DCFS’ child abuse and neglect investigations, said the audit is on par with historical staff numbers.

“High turnover, high burnout makes it very hard to keep a full staff,” LeMoine said.

n $100,000 for walkway, canopy and sidewalk repairs at LeRosen Prep

n $235,000 for painting at Paul Breaux Middle

n $100,000 for restroom and locker renovations at Paul Breaux Middle

n $50,000 for cleaning and pressure washing the stadium at Lafayette High

n $290,850 for setting up the arts academy at Middlebrook Elementary The Acadiana Advocate also was officially selected as the board’s journal of record where it will publish informational items as required by law

Email Ashley White at ashley.white@theadvocate. com.

Horses and jockeys come out to the track during Thanksgiving Day at the Fair Grounds in New Orleans on Nov.

The ruling stemmed from a lawsuit brought by Louisiana truck stop operators who had seen their video poker business suffer because of the popularity of the HHR slots, which are based on real past horse races but anonymized. The HHR machines can pay jackpots as high as $100,000, while the cap on video poker is $1,000.

In the legislative session that ended Thursday, law-

makers also passed a bill that increases the number of video poker machines allowed at truck stops from 50 to 60 and at bars from three to four The bill also stipulated that the first $22 million from the additional poker slots would be used to boost purses for horse racing at Fair Grounds and the state’s other three race tracks.

Churchill CEO Carstanjen wrote in his letter to the

LeMoine said she remembers only one time during her tenure in the early 2000s when the DCFS investigations team was fully staffed, and “it didn’t last long.”

Changes in cases

The number of child welfare employees who received new investigations over the standard of 10 new

commission this week that the new legislation would further hurt Fair Grounds business as the truck stop poker slots would “cannibalize” its revenues. Churchill Downs has argued that it has invested $200 million in its Louisiana operations since it bought Fair Grounds in 2004 and has paid the lion’s share of purses, taxes and wages to support the horse industry over the years.

However, legislators pointed to the company’s record revenue and profit last year and declined to give a public subsidy at a time when Louisiana is struggling to find money for teachers and other public services.

Resolution?

The agreement between Churchill and the state, if finalized, will come as a relief to the 311 workers directly employed by Fair Grounds Race Course and Churchill’s other betting operations. It will also be welcomed by hundreds working in stables, as trainers and in other support areas for horse racing, industry officials said.

City and state lawmakers had taken action this week to make it difficult for Churchill to shut racing at Fair Grounds and develop the 145-acre property for some other purpose. The City Council passed a motion Thursday by council members Helena Moreno and Joe Giarrusso that created an “interim zoning district” that would forbid Churchill or any future owner from redeveloping the track.

New Orleans state Sen. Jimmy Harris, a Democratic member whose district covers Fair Grounds, also amended a bill that declared Fair Grounds a historic site that couldn’t be used for any purpose other than horse racing.

“It does look like things are better than they were earlier in the week and we’re hopeful,” said a senior Fair Grounds official who wasn’t authorized to speak for the company “There are 300-plus people that obtain their livelihoods at Fair Grounds, many of whom have not worked anywhere else in their lives,” the official added. “Everybody that works there wants to see Fair Grounds, a legendary institution, continue well into lives of our children and grandchildren.”

Email Anthony McAuley tmcauley@theadvocate. com

cases per month decreased by nearly 5% in the recent fiscal year

The Lake Charles region had the most employees working above that standard. This region has less turnover and more experienced staff, meaning they are assigned more cases.

Across the state, the overall number of child protection service cases decreased in recent years.

But the overall workload per staff for existing child protective services cases has increased, according to the audit. This could be due to a number of factors, such as working more on backlogged cases, staff vacancies and new hires who are unable to carry a full caseload.

Rick Wheat, president of Louisiana United Methodist Children and Family Services, said the audit continues a long history of DCFS need-

ing additional help, mainly in the form of additional state funds.

“It does contain measures of progress,” Wheat wrote in an email. “I also believe there is more unreported progress, even qualitative progress, an accumulating energy and direction.” Wheat said that while there is progress, data pointing out increased work for caseloads counterbalances it. DCFS is weighing options to improve staff retention, Matlock wrote to the auditor

“Despite ongoing challenges, DCFS remains committed to strengthening its frontline workforce. The department continues to explore strategies for effectively managing child welfare caseloads and workloads,” he said.

Email Claire Grunewald at claire.grunewald@ theadvocate.com.

STAFF FILE PHOTO By SOPHIA GERMER

STAFF PHOTO By ASHLEy WHITE

The Lafayette Parish School Board discusses entering into a contract with a new third-party

insurance administrator during its meeting on Thursday

Israel’s paramedic services said 34 people were wounded in the barrage on the Tel Aviv area, including a woman who was critically injured after being trapped under rubble. In Ramat Gan, east of Tel Aviv, an Associated Press journalist saw burned-out cars and at least three damaged houses, including one where the front was nearly entirely torn away U.S. ground-based air defense systems in the region were helping to shoot down Iranian missiles, said a U.S. official who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss the measures.

Israel’s ongoing airstrikes and intelligence operation and Iran’s retaliation raised concerns about all-out war between the countries and propelled the region, already on edge, into even greater upheaval Israel had long threatened such a strike, and successive American administrations sought to prevent it, fearing it would ignite a wider conflict across the Middle East and possibly be ineffective at destroying Iran’s dispersed and hardened nuclear program. But a confluence of developments triggered by Hamas’ Oct. 7, 2023, attack — plus the reelection of U.S President Donald Trump created the conditions that allowed Israel to finally follow through on its threats.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the U.S. was informed in advance of the attack.

On Thursday, Iran had been censured by the U.N.’s atomic watchdog for not complying with obligations meant to prevent it from developing a nuclear weapon Countries condemn attack Countries in the region condemned Israel’s attack, while leaders around the globe called for immediate deescalation from both sides

The U.N. Security Council scheduled an emergency meeting for Friday afternoon at Iran’s request. In a letter to the council, Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi called the killing of its officials and scientists “state terrorism” and affirmed his country’s right to self-defense.

Israel’s military said about 200 aircraft were involved in the initial attack on about 100 targets. Its Mossad spy agency positioned explosive drones and precision weapons inside Iran ahead of time, and used them to target Iranian air defenses and missile launchers near Tehran, according to two security officials who spoke on condition of anonymity It was not possible to independently confirm the officials’ claims.

Among the key sites Israel attacked was Iran’s main nuclear enrichment facility in Natanz, where black smoke could be seen rising into the air It also appeared to strike a second, smaller nuclear enrichment facil-

ity in Fordo, about 60 miles southeast of Tehran, according to an Iranian news outlet close to the government that reported hearing explosions nearby Israel said it struck a nuclear research facility in Isfahan, too, and said it destroyed dozens of radar installations and surface-to-air missile launchers in western Iran. Iran confirmed the strike at Isfahan.

Israel military spokesman Brig. Gen. Effie Defrin said the Natanz facility was “significantly damaged” and that the operation was “still in the beginning.”

Natanz facility destroyed

U.N. nuclear chief Rafael Grossi told the Security Council that the aboveground section of the Natanz facility was destroyed. He said all the electrical infrastructure and emergency power generators were destroyed, as well as a section of the facility where uranium was enriched up to 60%.

The main centrifuge facility underground did not appear to have been hit, but the loss of power could have damaged the infrastructure there, he said.

The first wave of strikes had given Israel “significant freedom of movement” in Iran’s skies, clearing the way for further attacks, according to an Israeli military official who spoke on condition of anonymity because

he was not authorized to discuss details of the attack with the media.

The official said Israel is prepared for an operation that could last up to two weeks, but that there was no firm timeline.

Among those killed were three of Iran’s top military leaders: one who oversaw the entire armed forces, Gen. Mohammad Bagheri; one who led the paramilitary Revolutionary Guard, Gen. Hossein Salami; and the head of the Guard’s ballistic missile program, Gen. Amir Ali Hajizadeh.

Iran confirmed all three deaths, significant blows to its governing theocracy that will complicate efforts to retaliate. Khamenei said other top military officials and scientists were also killed.

Netanyahu said the attack had been months in the making. In a video statement sent to journalists Friday, he said he ordered plans for the attack last November, soon after the killing of Hassan Nasrallah, the leader of Hezbollah in Lebanon, one of Iran’s strongest proxies. Netanyahu said the attack was planned for April but was postponed.

In its first response Friday, Iran fired more than 100 drones at Israel. Israel said the drones were being intercepted outside its airspace, and it was not immediately clear whether any got through.

Israel’s military said it called up reservists and began stationing troops throughout the country as it braced for further retaliation from Iran or Iranian proxy groups.

Trump urged Iran on Friday to reach a deal with the U.S. on its nuclear program, warning on his Truth Social platform that Israel’s at-

tacks “will only get worse.”

“Iran must make a deal, before there is nothing left, and save what was once known as the Iranian Empire,” he wrote.

On Wednesday, the U.S. pulled some American diplomats from Iraq’s capital and offered voluntary evacuations for the families of U.S. troops in the wider Middle East. On Friday, the U.S. began shifting military resources in the region, including ships, as Israel prepared for more retaliation, two U.S. officials said, speaking on condition of anonymity

Officials in Washington had cautioned Israel against an attack earlier in the week, so as not to disrupt U.S. negotiations with Iran over its nuclear enrichment program. They stressed Friday that the U.S. had not been involved in the attack, and warned against any retaliation targeting U.S interests or personnel.

Preemptive strikes

Israeli leaders cast the attack as necessary to head off an imminent threat that Iran would build nuclear bombs, though it remains unclear how close the country is to achieving that or whether Iran had actually been planning a strike Iran maintains its nuclear program is for civilian purposes only

“This is a clear and present danger to Israel’s very survival,” Netanyahu claimed as he vowed to pursue the attack for as long as necessary to “remove this threat.”

Israel is widely believed to be the only nuclear-armed state in the Middle East but has never acknowledged having such weapons.

Over the past year, Israel has been targeting Iran’s air defenses, hitting a radar system for a Russian-made air defense battery in April 2024 and surface-to-air missile sites and missile manufacturing facilities in October

On Friday Israelis rushed to supermarkets in Tel Aviv, Jerusalem and elsewhere to buy bottled water and other

supplies. But, otherwise, streets and parks were mostly deserted.

Residential areas hit For Netanyahu, the operation distracts attention from Israel’s ongoing and increasingly devastating war in Gaza, which is now over 20 months old.

There is a broad consensus in the Israeli public that Iran is a major threat, and Israel’s opposition leader, Yair Lapid, a staunch critic of Netanyahu, offered his “full support” for the mission against Iran. But if Iranian reprisals cause heavy Israeli casualties or major disruptions to daily life, public opinion could shift quickly

The Iran-backed Lebanese militant group Hezbollah issued a statement that offered condolences and condemned the attack, but did not threaten to join Iran in its retaliation. Hezbollah’s latest war with Israel which killed much of the group’s senior leadership — ended with a U.S.-brokered ceasefire in November Khamenei, the Iranian supreme leader, said in a statement that Israel “opened its wicked and bloodstained hand to a crime in our beloved country, revealing its malicious nature more than ever by striking residential centers.”

Netanyahu expressed hope the attacks would trigger the downfall of Iran’s theocracy saying his message to the Iranian people was that the fight was not with them, but with the “brutal dictatorship that has oppressed you for 46 years.” Federman and Frankel reported from Jerusalem. Associated Press writers Nasser Karimi, Amir Vahdat and Mehdi Fattahi in Tehran, Iran; Melanie Lidman and Sam Mednick in Tel Aviv Israel; Lolita C. Baldor, Tara Copp, Matthew Lee and Eric Tucker in Washington; Bassem Mroue and Abby Sewell in Beirut; Edith Lederer at the United Nations and David Rising in Bangkok contributed to this report.

ASSOCIATED

DOTD overhaul overwhelmingly passes

Bills would allow for quicker fixes of roads, bridges

BY ALYSE PFEIL Staff writer

For the last year, Gov Jeff Landry and state lawmakers have been calling for fundamental change at the Louisiana Department of Transportation and Development, demanding quicker fixes to the state’s road and bridge problems.

This week, legislators from both parties overwhelmingly approved a package of bills intended to insti-

tute their demands. Proponents call it a major step toward reforming an agency they’ve accused of being historically unresponsive and underperforming. DOTD will soon be slated to undergo a significant reorganization through a plan laid out in House Bills 528, 556 and 640, all sponsored by Rep. Ryan Bourriaque, R-Abbeville.

A spokesperson for Landry on Tuesday confirmed the governor in-

tends to sign the measures into law Legislative leaders and Landry this spring had listed overhauling DOTD as a top priority for the legislative session. But major change at the department has been more than a year in the making after Landry, just months into his administration, ordered his transportation chief to figure out how to reform the department. An analysis of DOTD by con-

sulting firm BCG stemming from that order found last year that the agency would need more than $1 billion annually to achieve major infrastructure goals and faces major challenges related to timely project delivery and talent retention.

Now, under the reform package, a new division within the department called the Office of Transformation will be in charge making the agency operate more efficiently

And a brand-new agency — completely separate from and independent of DOTD — will be created and called the Office of Louisiana High-

way Construction. That office will be required to plan, construct, maintain and fix any state roads that don’t qualify for federal funding.

There are about 4,800 miles of those smaller state routes, which include three categories of roadways: rural local, urban local and

“Minor

Early rise

Higgins seeks to drug test Congress

BY MARK BALLARD Staff writer

WASHINGTON — U.S Rep. Clay Higgins wants to screen his colleagues in the House and Senate for illegal drugs.

A Lafayette Republican, Higgins

filed a bill that would subject members of Congress to a random drug test once per term

Higgins

“Elected officials in Washington, D.C., should be subject to the same kind of random drug screenings that every blue-collar, working-class American endures,” Higgins said June 6 in a statement. If a member tests positive for an illegal substance, they would be reported to the Committee on Ethics, where subsequent action would be taken. The bill hasn’t received a House committee hearing, the first step toward a vote by the full House Higgins hasn’t reached out to Sen Bill Cassidy, who chairs the Senate Health Education Labor & Pensions committee, which would most likely consider the legislation should it clear

Legislature could get power over civil service Voters to decide on

constitutional amendment

BY ALYSE PFEIL Staff writer

The Louisiana Legislature could gain authority over which state employees get civil service protections after lawmakers approved a proposed constitutional amendment this week but voters will have the final say during an April

election.

Louisiana’s civil service system is meant to limit political patronage and retaliation and gives public-sector employees protection against being fired.

But some argue those safeguards have created a sluggish, unresponsive bureaucracy that doesn’t do a good enough job serving the public.

One of those is Sen. Jay Morris, R-West Monroe, who this year prevailed in passing Senate Bill 8. Last year he sponsored a similar measure that fell short by just two

votes. People deserve an efficient government, and the amendment would give lawmakers the flexibility they need to achieve that, Morris said this week.

“Other states have figured out that civil service reform helps the government function better,” he said. “We can’t do any civil service reform unless the constitution allows us to.”

Morris said there aren’t specific departments or positions he wants to change, but rather it’s a matter of having the power to “pick and

choose” moving forward. Senate President Cameron Henry, R-Metairie, said Louisiana’s civil system “doesn’t necessarily work for every department.” Henry said he doesn’t want state government to return to an era when elected officials took office only to fire employees and hire their friends. At the same time, he said, it shouldn’t take so long to let some employees go. But not everyone sees it that way

Lawsuit may benefit property development group Northwest La properties still feel COVID rules’ impact

BY LIZ SWAINE Staff writer

A lawsuit moving through the court system could provide relief to a property development group that claims they were impacted in 2020 by a COVID aid package A representative of Northwest Louisiana Association of Realtors said if plaintiffs win, it could lead to more lawsuits. In March 2020, the $2 trillion Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act was rolled out It included a variety of economic stimuli for individuals, small and large businesses, hospitals, and state and local governments. Included in the coronavirus aid bill was a four-month moratorium on tenant evictions from rental housing

The four months turned into 16.

On June 6, a lawsuit filed in 2021 arguing that the moratorium allowed the government to take private property for public use without just compensation won the right to proceed. Darby Development Company Inc. et al v. United States, could be worth billions to property owners.

The National Association of Realtors is a “Friend of the Court” in the lawsuit. Scott Hughes, association executive for the Northwest Louisiana Association of Realtors, says if the plaintiffs win, it likely will lead to even more lawsuits.

“Once the attorneys effectively win the case, then they go out, because it’s a class action, they go out and they seek people who could have been damaged,” Hughes said.

“The real thing might be, then you’ve established under law that this was a wrongful taking of property.”

Tammy Esponge, association executive for the Apartment Association of Louisiana and Greater New

Orleans, said Louisiana property owners suffered during the moratorium.

“I surveyed members statewide during that period, and I can tell you we were in the millions of dollars of rent loss, and I would be willing to bet that went even higher,” Esponge said. “Owners were not able to collect rent. They couldn’t evict, and people were just living there, rent free. And we had no recourse.”

During COVID, Tiffany Hyde had tenants in about 150 rental units in Shreveport, Bossier and Stonewall. She says roughly 50% of her tenants stopped paying rent Hyde says she and her husband are still trying to pick up the pieces.

“It’s not that you’re putting all of these rents into your pocket. I tell you, redoing one air-conditioning unit on a house, it may take two years before I get that money back,” she said.

SUBMITTED

PHOTO By TIFFANy HyDE

Property owner Tiffany Hyde says that a number of her tenants during COVID did not pay rent or maintain their rentals.

STAFF PHOTO By LESLIE WESTBROOK

Motorists drive through high water on East Milton Avenue following heavy early morning rain Friday in youngsville.

Manarrestedinkilling

St. Landry Parish sheriff’s deputies arrested aPort Barre man in connection with afatal shooting on Wednesday Jared E. Wells, 23,was arrested Wednesday and faces one count of second-degree murder and failure to render aid, according to aSt. Landry Parish Sheriff’s Office announcement.

On Wednesday,deputies responded to ahome at 1310 Jennings Road near Port Barre. Upon arrival, deputies found David Joachain, 54, dead from agunshot wound Deputies alleged that Wells was responsible for the killing. Within hours,Wellswas located and arrested. Wells is being held at theSt. Landry ParishJail.

Police: Store clerk shoots alleged robber

ANew Iberia store clerk shot aman attempting to rob alocal convenience storeon Tuesday,according to astatement from police. The would-be robberwas taken to alocal hospital before being airlifted to aLafayette hospital. He was listedin critical condition, according to aNew Iberia Police Department statement.

Names of individualsinvolved have not been released.

Police say they responded around 10:30 p.m. Tuesday to reports of ashooting at a convenience store in the 200 block of Center Street.

Upon arrival, police found one man suffering from a gunshot wound. Further investigation led police to learn the man allegedly attempted to rob the store with acutting instrument.

Theman walked around the counter where astruggle ensuedwiththe store clerk Duringthe struggle,the store clerk shot the man,police said.

An investigation is ongoing

Former police officer sentenced for rape

Ajudge sentenceda former Delcambre police officer to over ahalf-century in prison after he pleaded guilty to raping a5-year-old multiple times.

LAWSUIT

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makes about 6centsonthe dollar,” Esponge said. “If they’re lucky,6cents on the dollar by the timethey pay mortgages, insurance, maintenancecosts,payroll, all thosethings. Some may make less than that.”

Hyde agreed: “Wewere kind of putting our needs on the back burner because we had to cover the maintenance and stuff of everybody else.”

Realtor Hayden Wallace owned ahandfulof rental unitswhenCOVID hit. He is thankfulthat his property manager hadagood screening process in place, which meant relatively few issues.

“You know,wehad some folks that we had to work with,” Wallace said. “They got theirhours cut, they got let go, whatever.And so we went ahead and worked with them, because the ones that communicated it, the ones that communicated to us, we tried to show as much grace as we could.” He said though he madeit through relatively unscathed, it was “devastating” to others. He said he has also learned some things to prevent fallout from any future rent moratoriums.

He hasbeefed up his rental agreement nuisance clause, which allows evictions on grounds other than nonpayment of rent. He also doesn’tdolonger-term leases anymore. He currently has 90-day leases and month-tomonth leases,which means people aren’tevicted, their lease is simply up.

“If someone’sa problem, we’ve got people on avery short window of time,” Wal-

Christopher Moorehartwas sentenced to 60 years in prison by 15th Judicial District Judge Thomas Frederick, according to aKLFY report.

Moorehartpleadedguilty to twosecond-degree rape charges in February.He received 30 years for each charge. Hissentences will be served consecutively, serving each sentence in full.

Moorehartisa formerDelcambrepoliceofficer,according to KLFY.Hewas charged with raping a5-year-oldover several months.

Twoarrested in connection shooting

TwoLafayette men have beenarrested in connection with aSaturday shootingon FeuFollet Road.

Police werecalled to the 300 block around 9:30 p.m. Saturday.They found aman on the ground with agunshot wound. He wastaken to alocal hospital and is expected to recover,accordingtopolice

Investigators determined that the motive was robbery, and they were able to identify two suspects whohave since been located and arrested.

Damon Clay, 19, and Christian Darby, 19,bothofLafayette,wereeach booked with one count of attempted firstdegreemurder.

TwoBRmen accused in grocerystore arson

TwoBaton Rougemen were arrested in connection to aMay 30 fire at aJeanerette grocerystore. ChristopherWyatt, 39, faces one count of aggravated arson,and Joe Veal,24, faces one count of principal to aggravated arson, accordingto aJeanerette Police Department announcement. On May30, police responded to reportsofsuspicious activityat1723ChurchSt.

Upon reviewing camera footage, dispatchers noticed someone setting fire to AM Grocery.

Policearrived at the scene before thetwo men led police on avehiclepursuitthrough St. Mary Parish, returningto Iberia Parish.

Iberia ParishSheriff’s Officedeputies set up aroadblockand spike stripalong La. 182 to stop thevehicle. The two then fledonfootand were quicklyapprehended.

The Louisiana State Fire

lace said.

Rhalanda Jackson of Options Realty LALLC isareal estate broker and property manager innorthwest Louisiana whowas representing close to 50 properties during COVID. She sayswhen her owners didn’tget rent, she didn’tget paid

“It’smore incentive to make sure that we to helpasmuch as either resolve the arrears unfortunately,find initiate the eviction, back control of the pr she said Jackson worked tenants to trytof tance.

“Wefoundhelpw dence House, the Charities,and then, there wasthe emerge rental assistance that was initiated Parish,” Jackson said. Larger parishes some government sistance funds,but owners say many couldnot or would no and even for thosew

Marshal’sOffice is investigating the arson.

NewIberia man killed in crash

ANew Iberia man died after asingle-vehicle crash in theLoreauville area of Iberia Parish.

BarryBoullion, 58,died around 11:30 p.m. on Wednesday after troopers responded to reportsofasingle-vehicle crash on La. 3242 near the intersection of Breaux Road, according to aLouisiana State Police announcement.

Boullion traveled east on La.3242when he approached aright curve. Forreasons unknown,Boullioncrossed the center line and exited the roadwaytothe left,overturning the vehicle.

Boullion was unrestrained and sufferedfatal injuries

Toxicologysamples were obtainedfrom Boullion for analysis

An investigation is ongoing.

Speed suspected factor in deadly crash

Excessive speed contributed to afatal crashWednesdayinYoungsville,according to Louisiana State Police. Troopers with Louisiana State Police Troop Iresponded about 7a.m. Wednesday to investigate atwo-vehicle fatal crash involving amotorcycleonLa. 339 near its intersection with SimonRoad The crash claimed thelife of 42-year-old Dustin Ayoof Thibodaux.

The preliminary investigation revealed that a2013 Nissan Sentra was traveling north on La. 339. At the same time, a2025Suzuki motorcycle, driven by Ayo, was traveling southatahigh rate of speed. For reasons still under investigation, the Nissanattempted to turn left onto Simon Road and entered the path of the oncoming Suzuki, which thenstruckthe Nissan.

Ayo, whowas wearing a DOT-approved helmet, suffered fatal injuries and was pronounced dead at the scene. The driver of the Nissan, whowas properlyrestrained, suffered moderate injuries and was taken to a local hospital for treatment.

Routine toxicology sampleswerecollected and submittedfor analysis. This crash remains under investigation.

rarely equaled 100% of the rent owed.

Wallace credits local banks and relationships that came through for property owners in the lurch.

“Our local banks really stood in the gap and they showed quite abit of grace, because that law was genuinely terrible, because it al th ed like

DOTD

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homes and businesses.

The new highway office will be run by an executive director appointed by the governor and will be housed in the Division of Administration, an agency that serves as theoperating arm of state government. It’sunclear what thehighway office’sbudget will be or how many employeeswillwork there.

The transportation department is currentlyresponsible formorethan17,000 miles of roads

At DOTD, the agency’s organizationalchart will change.

Anew Office of Project Delivery will oversee both engineering and project delivery, functions that arecurrently housed in separate divisions

That office will now be required by law to “maximize to the fullest extentpossible the privatization of services.”

The Office of Transforma-

CONGRESS

Continuedfrom page1B

theHouse.

“I understand that this has been introduced,”Cassidy,R-Baton Rouge, said

POWER

Continuedfrom page1B

On the House floor,some Republican lawmakers warned against reopening thegovernment workforce to political influenceina statewith an infamous history of government corruption.

Rep. Joseph Stagni,RKenner, called Senate Bill 8“harmful” and“unnecessary” and argued the creation of merit-basedcivil service has been among Louisiana’sgreatest reforms.

“This,instead of being a step forward, will bringus back 75 years, where jobs will be given to people not based on their merit, but based on who theyknow or how much theygave,” he argued. “Weshouldn’tbeturningback the clock to those times.”

Rep. JasonDeWitt,RAlexandria, saidstate employees whodoregulatory or law enforcementwork need protection from political pressure —something he said happensmorethan people realize.

In an interviewafter the vote, DeWitt said he worked at the Department of Environmental Qualityfor three decades,and in the 1990s, his jobwas threatened over

tion will also be anew division at thedepartment, with an official directive to “implement strategies andinitiatives designed to enhance operational efficiency.”

While it doesn’tcarry the weight of law,the Legislature also passed aresolution that formalizes several priorities related to plans for DOTD moving forward.

Under HCR45, the Office of Transformation will have to recommendimprovements to project delivery, the DOTD district offices andbridge maintenance, amongotherthings, andreportthoserecommendations to the Legislature by next spring.

“Many of the items highlighted as priorities in the HCRwill be the basisfor agendas and discussions of the Transportationcommitteeinthe coming months,”

Bourriaque said last week.

He also said theOffice of Transformation will work to determine which DOTD functionsshouldbeshifted to the private sector

The lawwillnow require DOTDto“maximize third-

Tuesday. “It’s something to be debated. I’d be open to seeing statistics.Iftheysay that 10% of the congressionalpopulation is impaired, then that wouldbesomething that could sway my mind.”

Apugnaciousconserva-

fines he imposedonindustry DeWitt voted in favor of the bill, but said he asked to be part of future discussions to ensure that state employees who do regulatory work will have protection from that kind of pressure.

The measure garnered the bare minimum number of votes needed to pass the House —and only after two Democrats joinedwith Republicans to achieve the 70vote threshold and anumber of Republicans broke ranks to oppose the bill.

The Senate approvedthe measure on aparty-line vote.

Howcivil serviceworks

The Louisiana Constitution setsupastate government workforce that’sdividedbetween “classified” and “unclassified” employees.Unless specifically designated as unclassified, stateemployees are considered classified public servants with civil service protections.

Classified employees those meant to be shielded from political pressure can only be disciplined or firedfor cause, with proper documentation and after a chance to respond or take corrective action. They’re also barred from supporting political candidates or parties.

Unclassifiedemployees

party contracts” for its maintenance of the state highwaysystem, andthere will be no limitations on the agency’sability to contract with outside consultants for services.

While the planpassed by the Legislature appears to be more broad framework than detailed instruction manual, both Bourriaque, who chairs the House transportation committee, and Senate transportation committee chair Patrick Connick, R-Marrero,havesignaledthatmore concreteplans are in the works.

Connick both last week and again on the Senate floor this week calledthe legislativepackage“just thefirst step in ensuring taxpayer dollars are spent wisely and thatevery level of DOTD is performinginamanner that is responsive to the people of Louisiana.”

Bourriaque said his committee “looks forward to the continuedcollaboration with the department andkey stakeholders to improve the wayweaddress ourinfrastructure.”

tive, Higgins has been critical of Cassidy, including asocialmedia tauntthat MAGARepublicans would note if Louisiana’ssenior senator didn’tconfirm the nomination of controversial Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr

are considered at-will and can be hiredorfired at any time, and they face no restrictions on political activity

Theconstitution listsmore than adozen categories of stateemployees andofficials that are unclassified.Among them: elected officials, members of boards and commissions, and staff in the Legislature, Governor’sOffice and Attorney General’s Office.

The State Civil Service Commission,which setspolicy for the state workforce andadjudicates employment disputes, can also approve state agency requests for unclassified positions. Should voters approve the constitutionalamendment, the Legislature would be authorized to pass laws to add other employees to the unclassified service.

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

BUSINESS

BRIEFS

FROM WIRE REPORTS

Meta invests in AI firm, recruits its CEO

Meta is making a $14.3 billion investment in artificial intelligence company Scale and recruiting its CEO Alexandr Wang to join a team developing “superintelligence” at the tech giant. The deal announced Thursday reflects a push by Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg to revive AI efforts at the parent company of Facebook and Instagram as it faces tough competition from rivals such as Google and OpenAI.

Meta announced what it called a “strategic partnership and investment” with Scale late Thursday Scale said the $14.3 billion investment puts its market value at over $29 billion Scale said it will remain an independent company but the agreement will “substantially expand Scale and Meta’s commercial relationship.” Meta will hold a 49% stake in the startup Shaq to pay $1.8M to settle FTX suit

Former NBA player Shaquille O’Neal will pay $1.8 million to settle a class-action lawsuit related to the demise of cryptocurrency exchange FTX.

O’Neal and other celebrities like Tom Brady and Stephen Curry were named in the lawsuit in 2022. They had been accused of touting FTX as a reputable and trustworthy investment option via paid endorsements The proposed settlement only pertains to O’Neal.

Three years ago FTX was the third-largest cryptocurrency exchange, but it ended up with billions of dollars worth of losses and had to seek bankruptcy protection. The Bahamas-based company and its founder, Sam Bankman-Fried, came under investigation by state and federal authorities for allegedly investing depositors’ funds in ventures without their approval. Before its failure, FTX was known to use high-profile Hollywood and sports celebrities to promote its products It had the naming rights to a Formula One racing team as well as a sports arena in Miami. Its commercials featured “Seinfeld” creator Larry David, as well as Brady the former quarterback of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and New England Patriots, basketball players O’Neal and Curry, and tennis star Naomi Osaka. Bankman-Fried was sentenced to 25 years in prison in March 2024. A little more than a month after that, FTX said in a court filing that nearly all of its customers would receive the money back that they were owed.

While the proposed settlement with O’Neal had been agreed to in April, the payment amount and other terms were disclosed in a filing with the U.S. District Court, Southern District of Florida, Miami Division, earlier this week.

Shares of JBS fall in debut on NYSE

Shares of Brazilian meat giant JBS fell 3.9% in as they made their debut Friday on the New York Stock Exchange.

Trading in New York has been a long-held goal for JBS, which was founded 72 years ago and is now one of the world’s largest meat companies. Half of its annual revenue comes from the U.S., where it has more than 72,000 employees JBS is America’s top beef producer and its second-largest producer of poultry and pork.

Minority shareholders of JBS voted last month to approve the company’s plan to list its shares both in Sao Paulo and New York, casting aside opposition from environmental groups, U.S lawmakers and others who say JBS has a record of corruption, monopolistic behavior and environmental destruction JBS said a dual listing would give it broader access to investors and more competitive interest rates, which would help it finance its growth. It has also said a U.S listing would subject it to more oversight from regulators.

Consumer sentiment rises for the year

Inflation tame amid China tariff truce

BY CHRISTOPHER RUGABER AP economics writer

WASHINGTON Consumer sentiment increased in June for the first time in six months, the latest sign that Americans’ views of the economy have improved as inflation has stayed tame and the Trump administration has reached a truce in its trade fight with China.

The preliminary reading of the University of Michigan’s closely watched consumer sentiment index, released Friday, jumped 16% from 52.2 to 60.5 The large increase followed steady drops that left the preliminary number last month at the second-lowest level in the nearly 75-year history of the survey Consumer sentiment is still down 20% compared with December 2024.

“Consumers appear to have settled somewhat from the shock of the extremely high tariffs announced in April and the policy

volatility seen in the weeks that followed,” Joanne Hsu, director of the survey, said in a written statement. “However, consumers still perceive wide-ranging downside risks to the economy.”

Americans have largely taken a darker view of the economy’s future after President Donald Trump unleashed a wide-ranging trade war, imposing steep tariffs on China, the European Union, and dozens of other countries. Yet in April, Trump postponed a set of sweeping tariffs on about 60 nations and last month reached a temporary

truce with China, after both sides had sharply ratcheted up tariffs on each other

The Conference Board’s consumer confidence index, released in late May also increased after five straight declines that were linked to anxiety over tariffs.

U.S. duties remain elevated compared with historical levels, but so far they have not worsened overall inflation. Prices rose just 2.4% in May compared with a year ago, up slightly from 2.3% in April. Still, most economists expect tariffs to hit harder in the coming months.

‘This impacts every American who eats’

BY AMY TAXIN and DORANY PINEDA Associated Press

VENTURA, Calif

Large-scale immigration raids at packinghouses and fields in California are threatening businesses that supply much of the country’s food, farm bureaus say Dozens of farmworkers have been arrested recently after uniformed federal agents fanned out on farms northwest of Los Angeles in Ventura County, which is known for growing strawberries, lemons and avocados. Others are skipping work as fear in immigrant communities has deepened as President Donald Trump steps up his immigration crackdown, vowing to dramatically increase arrests and sending federal agents to detain people at Home Depot parking lots and workplaces including car washes and a garment factory It also comes as Trump sent National Guard troops and Marines to Los Angeles following protests over his immigration enforcement operations. Demonstrations have since spread to other U.S. cities.

Maureen McGuire, chief executive of Ventura County’s farm bureau, said between 25% and 45% of farmworkers have stopped showing up for work since the large-scale raids began this month.

“When our workforce is afraid, fields go unharvested, packinghouses fall behind, and market supply chains, from local grocery stores to national retailers, are affected,” she said Thursday “This impacts every American who eats.”

California’s farms produce more than a third of the country’s vegetables and more than three-quarters of its fruits and nuts. While the state’s government is dominated by Democrats, there are large Republican areas that run through farm country, and many growers throughout the state have been counting on Trump to help with key agricultural issues ranging from water to trade.

Primitiva Hernandez, executive director of 805 UndocuFund, estimates at least 43 people were detained in farm fields in Ventura and Santa Barbara counties since Monday The number is from both the Mexican consulate and the group’s own estimates from talking with family members of people detained, she said.

Elizabeth Strater, the United Farm Workers’ director of strategic campaigns, said her group received reports of immigration arrests on farms as far north as California’s Central Valley Lucas Zucker, co-executive director of the Central Coast Alliance United for a Sustainable Economy, said farmworker members reported that agents went to at least nine farms but were turned away by supervisors because they lacked a warrant.

“This is just a mass assault on a workingclass immigrant community and essentially profiling,” Zucker said. “They are not going after specific people who are really targeted. They’re just fishing.”

In response to questions about the farm arrests, Homeland Security Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin said in a statement

that the agency will follow the president’s direction and continue to seek to remove immigrants who have committed crimes.

On Thursday, Trump acknowledged growers’ concerns that his stepped-up immigration enforcement could leave them without workers they rely on to grow the country’s food. He said something would be done to address the situation, but he did not provide specifics.

“Our great Farmers and people in the Hotel and Leisure business have been stating that our very aggressive policy on immigration is taking very good, long time workers away from them, with those jobs being almost impossible to replace,” he said on his social media account, adding: “We must protect our Farmers, but get the CRIMINALS OUT OF THE USA. Changes are coming!”

The California Farm Bureau said it has not received reports of a widespread disruption to its workforce, but there are concerns among community members. Bryan Little, the bureau’s senior director of policy advocacy, said the group has long pressed for immigration reform to deal with long-running labor shortages.

“We recognize that some workers may feel uncertain right now, and we want to be very clear: California agriculture depends on and values its workforce,” Little said in a statement. “If federal immigration enforcement activities continue in this direction, it will become increasingly difficult to produce food, process it and get it onto grocery store shelves.”

BY STAN CHOE, DAVID MCHUGH and JIANG JUNZHE

Associated Press

NEW YORK Oil prices leaped, and stocks slumped Friday on worries that escalating violence following Israel’s attack on Iranian nuclear and military targets could damage the flow of crude around the world, along with the global economy The S&P 500 sank 1.1% and wiped out what had been a modest gain for the week The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 769 points, or 1.8%, and the Nasdaq composite lost 1.3%. The strongest action was in the oil market where the price of a barrel of benchmark U.S. crude

jumped 7.3% to $72.98. Brent crude, the international standard, rose 7% to $74.23 for a barrel. Iran is one of the world’s major producers of oil, though sanctions by Western countries have limited its sales. If a wider war erupts, it could slow the flow of Iran’s oil to its customers and keep the price of crude and gasoline higher for everyone worldwide. Beyond the oil coming from Iran, analysts also pointed to the potential for disruptions in the Strait of Hormuz, a relatively narrow waterway off Iran’s coast. Much of the world’s oil that’s been pulled from the ground moves through it on ships. Past attacks involving Iran and

Israel have seen prices for oil spike initially, only to fall later “once it became clear that the situation was not escalating and there was no impact on oil supply,” according to Richard Joswick, head of nearterm oil at S&P Global Commodity Insights. That has Wall Street waiting to see what will come next. U.S. stock prices dropped to their lowest points for the day after Iran launched ballistic missiles toward Israel. For now, the price of oil has jumped, but it’s still lower than it was earlier this year “This is an economic shock that nobody really needs, but it is one that seems more like a shock to sentiment

than to the fundamentals of the economy,” said Brian Jacobsen, chief economist at Annex Wealth Management. That in turn sent U.S. stocks to a loss that was notable in size but outside their top 15 for the

so far Companies that use a lot of fuel as part of their business and need their customers to feel confident

ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO By DAMIAN DOVARGANES

fruits

nuts.

OPINION

Afond farewell, fornow

In my early years, my grandmother demanded that Ibeonthe front porch when shesaw the first lightning bug. Thatwas tough because it was impossible to know when the first one would flash. Besides, everyone else said,“When the streetlights come on.” But in shortorder,I understood when it wastime to quit what Iwas doing. Over the past fewmonths,Ihave seen asymbolic lightning bug at my writing table telling me it’stime to stop whatI’m doing. So, this will be my last regular column.

For 20 years or so, Ihave written about people, places and events, many of them involving my life in old South Baton Rouge. I’ve writtenabout race, children and people in need, my family and matters that few columnists evenbother with I’ve written about unfairnessinsociety,people who played worthy roles in my life and interesting things in my daily travels.Many people have poured out their souls to me, believing Iwould tell the truth. Idid my best not to let them down.

Admittedly,noone will eversay Iwas apolished writer who could spin beautiful phrases,sowell done that readers could hear aviolin in the background. My skills would not challenge intellectuals Naw,that’snot me.Iamthe personwho used words like rocks to break awindow.Mywords are like the guy yelling to get your attention on the sidewalk.

My writing was intentionally irritating, like the little sharp rocks you feel while walking barefoot in the driveway.Orsometimes it was soothing and cool, like the otherside of the pillow

Many times, Iknew columns that delved into race relations and my feelingsabout the unfairness of the government would make someuncomfortable. Years ago, the responses wereawful. They are worse now

Sometimes words came with aprice, like angry letters and emails hoping harmtome. One telephone caller announced, “I’m going to kill you” in response to my column. Sadly,the person whoansweredthe phone that day was my 12-year-old son. There were deadanimals thrown on my front porchorinmydriveway early someSaturday mornings. There were acouple of dings on my mailbox. Through it all, Iloved writing columns about my loving “grandmother” who sacrificed everything for alittle boy she had no blood relations with.I enjoyed writing about my first neighborhood and the neighbors who saw me as their son.

Admittedly,itmakes me feel good to get stopped at the grocery store,atsporting events or at church by friends and strangers who say, “I loved your columnlast week.” Or “Pleasekeep writing. We need what you have to say.” Even the people who say,“Hey,Iread your column, but Idon’tagreewith you mostofthe time” —those folks understandthat we should be able to disagree respectfully. Thank you.

Ihave felt greatincluding my grade school and college teachers who have played such apivotal role in providing me the building blocks that developed me into something no one sawcoming.

Special kudos to the Carver Branchlibrarian who offered the first and second grade me cookies and milk because Iwould come in so often in the summer and fall asleep reading on thefloor Ihaveabit of sadnessthat there will be groups of people and events that will never be writtenabout because Iwon’tbearound to find them.

My wife, children and grandchildren will no longersee some of our loving moments memorialized in the newspaper. And that goes for my friends, too. Iknow my heart and my mind are still married and can stillproducesentences that make people wrestle with their thoughts,get angry, sador feel like celebrating. Maybe I’ll write acolumn once in a blue moon to get something off my chest. Maybe. But, for now,I’m focused on aflicker,like broken glass tossed in the air,at my desk.

Yep, that’sthose darn lightning bugs telling me it’stime to stop and go home. Love y’all and see ya later!

Email Edward Pratt, aformer newspaperman,at epratt1972@yahoo.com

Budget bill aims to limitjudicial powers to rein in Trumpofficials

Little notice has been given to a provision of the “Big, Beautiful Bill” pending before Congress which would further place theTrump administration beyond the reach of the law

The bill already passed by the House contains aprovisionthat would limit the federal judiciary’s power to enforce contempt orders for violations of itsorders enjoining the administration from activity found to be unconstitutional or otherwise illegal. The provision, as written, is to be applied retroactively so all existing federal court orders already enjoining illegal activities

Recently,this was published in Letterstothe Editor: “Tort reform has never worked to lower insurance rates: The socialist arm of the Republican Party is hard at work, attempting to take away the rights of Louisiana residents with one of their devious practices —tort reform.”

Whenever someone uses theterm “socialist,” Iamalways skeptical because it’s often used to frighten conservatives. Idisagree with the premise that tort reform will not work. Why? Well, it has never been tried as away to limit costs. It is always proposed, lots of talk, but rarely enacted in away that we could see results, if enacted at all.

Is a$100 million settlement a

of the administration would also become unenforceable if this bill is passed. This is afull-blown effort to put theTrumpadministration beyond the reach of the lawand the courts. It’s one thing for Congress itself to overlook illegalactivities of this administration,but it’squite another thing entirely for it to actively attempt to kneecap another branch of government and prevent it from doing its job. Hopefully,our senators will insistonthe removal of this provision of the bill if it is passed in any form.

BLAKE BENNETT Metairie

better solution than $5 million? Is this what drives insurance rates so high, thepotential forsettlements that can bankruptcompanies? Do frivolous lawsuits cost so much that companies must prepare to cover potential losses?

Or,are thelegal costs and payments to thosethat drive settlements higher the answer? If Iam guaranteed 50% of thesettlement, of course $100 million is abetter solution than $5 million, right?

When apersonal injury attorney writes aletter to the editor saying thesocialists are trying to push tort reform that does not work, Ibelieve we all need to be skeptical.

JOHN SFIRE NewOrleans

Voters will remember Johnson, Scalisemotives

Someone tell mewhy we elected Reps. Steve Scalise and Mike Johnson, because it couldn’tbeto promoteLouisiana and protect Louisiana families. Scalise did nothing and said nothingwhile President Donald Trump and Elon Musk gutted thefederal civil service and took hundreds of millionsofdollars in grant funds from Louisiana colleges,savaged farmers by takingfunds from food banks and cut staffing at critical federal agencies like NOAA and

FEMA, which Louisiana relies on for disaster relief. Johnson acts like Trump’spuppet while working to cut Medicaid and increase the national debt, while magically saying the bill will help thepoorest Americans by eliminating the nonexistent fraud in the federal government. Silent Steve andMagic Mike have forgotten who they were elected to represent.Throw them out in 2026.

ROBERT W. BECKER

NewOrleans

I’ve lived in southeast Louisiana my whole life, andone thing is certain: Our summers are getting hotter—and more dangerous. That’swhy the Low-IncomeHome Energy AssistanceProgramhas been alifeline for my family and tens of thousands of others. It helps struggling households keep the lights on andthe A/C running when budgets arestretchedtothe limit.

That’swhy I’m alarmed by President Donald Trump’sproposaltoeliminate LIHEAP in his 2026 budgetbeing considered by Congress right now.His administrationhas already cut the staff responsible for managing emergencyutility assistance. If the programdisappears entirely, families like mine will suffer My husband is aveteran who servedproudly.Wenow live on his fixedVeteransAffairs and Social Security benefits. Our two sons rely on internetaccess for school,and losing power means more thanjust inconvenience it’slostfood,lostlearning and increased hardship. In winter,we can lowerthe heat.But in aLouisiana summer, airconditioning isn’toptional. It saves lives.

Here in Louisiana,over 97,000 families depend on LIHEAP They’re doing their best —keeping medical devices running, keeping childrenand elders safe andtrying to avoidthe downward spiralofshut-offs and penalty fees.

There’s nothing “efficient” aboutgutting aprogram that keepsworking families safe and stable just to hand tax breaks to billionaires. LIHEAP hasmade a real difference for my family.I urge ourleaders—and our neighbors —tostand up and fight for this essentialsupport before it’s toolate.

RHONDASCHAFFER Baton Rouge

Edward Pratt

OMAHA, Neb For along time it was an unrealized romance, this thing that’sbeen going on forfour decades now between LSU baseball, this city and its crown jewel event: the College World Series.

CO NG OF E

BY KOKI RILEY Staff writer

OMAHA,Neb.— Still plotted in the backyardofthe Curiel houseinWest Covina, California, is a batting cage.

The apparatus is impossible to miss. The 55-foot-long structure sits over 75 feet of turf.

Twelve feet of netting separates the roof from its floor,and thewidth of thecage —18feet —providesplenty of room for hitters to swing away without slashing into themesh.

Eight poles drilled 31/2 feet intothe ground keep theenclosure standing.

“Thenet was super,super heavy,” LSU freshman outfielder Derek Curiel said, recalling theconstruction of the cage, “and my brother and mydad mainly did all the work becausethey wereolder.”

BY DOUG FERGUSON AP golf writer

OAKMONT,Pa. Sam Burns is abirdie machineatOakmont, alabel not manyexpected at this U.S. Open. By avoiding another sloppy finish, the former LSU golfer posteda 5-under65on Friday andset the targetfor thelatestarters, and no one could stay ahead of him. His 3under leads the tournament by one stroke over first-round leader andJ.J. Spaun and two strokes over Viktor Hovland. Those are

theonly three players to enter the weekend under par Burns hasmade 11 birdies through two rounds, joining Hovland for the mostsubpar holes through 36 holes in the three U.S. Opens at Oakmontsince it switched to apar 70 in 2007. Burns needed them to make up forThursday’srough ending,when he wasone shot out of the lead until playing his final four holes in 5-over par This wasdifferent.Hecappedoff a smoothround —justone bogey —byhol-

Legendary LSU coach Skip Bertman often has spun the tale of how he had to educate his first players about Omaha and whygoing there wasimportant. For a program that had madeall of one NCAA Tournament trip before his arrival in 1984, it wasamuch-needed teaching moment. Now? Now the team and this place seem wedded together,aperfect match like hot crawfish and cold beer,Bogart and Bacall, infield dirt and outfield grass. Though the Tigers don’tplay until Saturday night —atitanic tussle against Southeastern Conference rival Arkansas (6 p.m., ESPN)—LSU fans were out in force at the ballpark Friday checking things out. They were sizing up potential opponents forthe Tigers in case they makeittothe CWS championship series forashot at the program’s eighth national championship. There is no “in case” forLSU fans, of course. The back of one supporter’spurple T-shirt spoke forthe LSU baseball faithful everywhere: “Expect to win!” Charles Bond and his brother Brian were here with their 90-year-old father,Charles II, attending the College World Series for the first time. They said the reception LSU fans got was gratifying.

ing apar from just outside 20 feet to reach 3-under 137.

“I played really wellyesterday other than the finishing holes. So Ithink today was just kind of getting mentallyready to come out and try to put agood round together,” Burns said. “Itwas unfortunate, but there was too much good to focus on the little bit of bad.” Hovland twice holed 50-foot shots from off thegreen —a putter from thecollar on No. 10 whenhestarted his round, and

Scott Rabalais

STAFF PHOTO By HILARy SCHEINUK

fanVal Brown of NewOrleans takes a

Gras Mike’ during aCollege WorldSeries practice on Friday in Omaha, Neb

LSU left fielder Derek Curiel

10:30 a.m. IndyCar:

3

NCAA SETTLEMENT

Road ahead comes with risk, reward and warnings

BY MAURA CAREY AP sportswriter

ORLANDO, Fla. — Two days after the approval of a groundbreaking $2.8 billion antitrust settlement, thousands of athletic directors and department personnel traveled to Orlando, Florida, for the annual National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics convention

The hot topic, of course, was the influx of changes both threatening and beneficial for schools across the country According to NCAA president Charlie Baker, approval of the settlement may be the biggest change in college sports history On July 1, schools that opt in to the settlement will embark on a new era of revenue sharing, changing the game both on and off the field.

Rewards

A handful of convention attendees breathed a sigh of relief on June 6 when U.S District Judge Claudia Wilken announced her decision. It’s a quick turnaround and a period of trial and error is anticipated, but Division I athletic directors welcomed the news

“The best thing is clarity,” UCLA athletic director Martin Jarmond said The best thing about July 1 is we now have clarity on the rules of engagement, what we’re allowed to do, how we can move forward. Does it solve everything? No, it doesn’t But when you have clarity, you can operate more efficiently and effectively.”

Kentucky AD Mitch Barnhart said he was relieved to get the agreement in hand.

“We’ve been trying for so long to be part of this,” Barnhart said. “Maybe, just maybe, on July 1, we’ll sort of all know where we are on this one.”

Risks

In a settlement where high-revenue sport athletes have the most to gain, Title IX has emerged as a topic to watch.

The 75-15-5-5 formula has emerged as a popular revenue-sharing formula, meaning that schools are likely to allocate 75% of revenue-share funds to football, 15% to men’s basketball, 5% to women’s basketball and the remaining 5% dispersed to other programs. If a school spent the full $20.5 million allowed this coming year that would mean a breakdown of $15.4 million for football, $3.1 million for men’s hoops and about $1 million each for women’s basketball and everyone else.

Montoya Ho-Song, an attorney for Ackerman LLP who specializes in higher education issues, expects Title IX lawsuits to come, just like one filed this week by eight female athletes. The area has shifted again under President Donald Trump, with guidance suggesting the federal government won’t hold schools to rigid requirements to distribute proceeds equitably between men and women.

Warnings

Attorney Mit Winter, a college sports law specialist with Kennyhertz Perry, said it is paramount that athletic departments present an organized, united front.

Since the launch of name, image and likeness compensation four years ago, Winter said, he has encountered several instances where athletic departments are giving conflicting statements and numbers to current and prospective athletes. That can lead to legal headaches, too.

“You need to have a plan that everyone is on board with and that everyone knows,” Winter said. “As a school, you don’t want to have a situation where five different people are talking to an athlete about how much they’re going to pay him or her I think that needs to be much more formalized The coach, assistant coaches, GM, everybody needs to be on the same page.”

St. Bonaventure men’s basketball general manager Adrian Wojnarowski and coach Mark Schmidt know exactly what their roles are — and aren’t.

“I will never talk to a player or a parent or an agent about playing time, their role,” Wojnarowski said. “During the season, if someone is disappointed in playing time and they call, the only conversation I’m having with a family member is supporting the head coach, supporting the coaching staff.”

Edmonton Oilers defenseman Mattias Ekholm, left, and Florida Panthers left

Tkachuk go after the puck during the second period of Game 4 of the Stanley Cup Final on Thursday in Sunrise, Fla. The Oilers rallied from a 3-0 deficit to beat the Panthers 5-4 in overtime

Slipped away

Panthers build, then squander, three-goal lead vs. Oilers

BY ALANIS THAMES AP sportswriter

SUNRISE, Fla The Florida Panthers led 3-0 in Game 4 of the Stanley Cup Final against the Edmonton Oilers and then watched it all go down the drain.

Matthew Tkachuk and the stars of the reigning champion Panthers smothered the Oilers in the first period, raising the prospect of a Game 3 effort that ended with a 6-1 Panthers win. Not this time.

Edmonton responded by scoring four straight goals to take a 4-3 lead only to have the Panthers score in the final seconds of the third period to force overtime. That set the stage for Oilers star

Leon Draisaitl’s goal 11:18 into OT to give Edmonton a 5-4, series-tying victory Thursday night.

What initially looked like an easy victory that would put Florida one win away from clinching a second straight Stanley Cup championship turned into a huge collapse that has the series tied 2-2 heading back to Edmonton.

“We carried play in the first, they carried it in the second,” Tkachuk said. “Special teams were good for us in the first, special teams were good for them in the second. I think it was tighter than a 3-0 period at the start for us. And they clearly took control of play in the second. After two (periods) it’s even, and it probably should have been. So, it doesn’t matter how you how you start, you’ve got to treat it as zeros at the start of a period.”

It has been that kind of series so far — an evenly matched, back and forth heavyweight fight between two experienced, resilient teams.

The final has been so tight that three of four games have gone to overtime, marking just the eighth Stanley Cup Final — and fourth in the expansion era (since 1967-68) — to have three or more games require overtime.

Despite the loss, Florida coach Paul Maurice said he could appreciate the competitiveness.

“I think we focus on some-

“Everything

is dangerous all the time So there’s a mental intensity, a mental toughness I think both teams show that the game’s not going to be over until it is.”

times the mistakes that get made by good players at times,” Maurice said, “and you miss some of the heart and soul and the intensity of it. It’s so fast. Every board battle, everything can turn into something. Everything is dangerous all the time So there’s a mental intensity, a mental toughness I think both teams show that the game’s not going to be over until it is.”

Sam Reinhart nearly saved the collapse when he scored a tying goal in the waning seconds of regulation. His score with 19.5 seconds left was the second-latest tying goal in Stanley Cup Final history The record was set earlier in the series by Edmonton’s Corey Perry in Game 2. Florida, which got a pair of early power-play goals from Tkachuk and an evenstrength score from Anton Lundell, had never squandered a 3-0 lead in the postseason. Entering Thursday night, teams were 37-0 when leading a Stanley Cup Final game by three or more goals in the first period.

After building the threegoal lead, Tkachuk said he felt the Panthers weren’t connected. Reinhart felt they

Fowles to enter women’s Hall of Fame on Saturday

Former LSU great Sylvia Fowles will be inducted into the Women’s Basketball Hall of Fame on Saturday

The enshrinement ceremony, set to begin at 5:45 p.m. in Knoxville, Tennessee, will be the first of two such events to honor Fowles this year In September, Fowles will enter the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame alongside alltime greats such as Carmelo Anthony, Sue Bird, Dwight Howard and Maya Moore.

Fowles, a first-ballot inductee in both halls of fame, led LSU to the Final Four in all four seasons of her collegiate career She then won two titles and an MVP award across the 14 years she played in the WNBA, while also collecting four Olympic gold medals on the international stage.

Fever star Clark expected to return Saturday vs. NY INDIANAPOLIS Caitlin Clark ended practice Friday by making a halfcourt shot and winning a little bit of lunch money in the process. And with that, the Indiana Fever star is ready to play again.

Clark — barring any unforeseen setbacks is expected to be in the lineup when the Fever play host to the reigning WNBA champion New York Liberty on Saturday afternoon. She missed the last five Indiana games with a quadriceps injury Clark returned to practice this week, and her comeback game just happens to be a nationally televised one against the Liberty the reigning champs and, at 9-0, the last unbeaten team left in the league this season. New York is winning its games by an average of 19 points.

Ex-NFL star Brown facing attempted murder charge

Former NFL player Antonio Brown is facing an attempted murder charge stemming from a shooting that took place during an altercation outside an amateur boxing event in Miami, according to an arrest warrant. Brown, 36, is accused of grabbing a handgun from a security staffer and firing two shots at a man he had gotten into a fistfight with earlier The victim, Zul-Qarnain Kwame Nantambu, told investigators one of the bullets grazed his neck. The warrant does not list an attorney for Brown, an All-Pro wide receiver who last played in the NFL in 2021 for Tampa Bay but spent most of his 12-year career with Pittsburgh. Brown did not respond to messages sent to his social media accounts.

Saints opt to sign RB Akers after minicamp tryout

Cam Akers received a tryout with the Saints this week. Now, he’s landed a job.

were playing too passively

“I think we were watching the play develop,” Reinhart said, “as opposed to playing on our toes, and that’s obviously how they got back in the game.” Edmonton, boosted by second period goals from Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, Darnell Nurse and Vasily Podkolzin, became the seventh team in NHL history to overcome a three-goal deficit in the Stanley Cup Final to win.

The Oilers also seemed to get a boost of momentum after coach Kris Knoblauch decided to pull starting goaltender Stuart Skinner after he allowed three goals in the first period. The good news for the Panthers is they’ve responded well this postseason following letdowns and seem to relish the moments when the pressure is the highest. That’s what the experience of playing in their third straight Stanley Cup Final has taught the Panthers.

“The more times you go through it, the better,” Reinhart said. “It’s never going to be perfect. This time of year, we’ve been here before We’ve been through it. So it’s about recovering for Game 5.”

The Saints announced Friday they signed the veteran running back to a one-year contract Akers, 25, is coming off a season in which he spent time with the Houston Texans and Minnesota Vikings. He also began his career with the Los Angeles Rams, where he spent three-plus seasons.

Akers, after participating in the team’s mandatory minicamp, will compete for a roster spot and a role to back up starter Alvin Kamara. The 2020 second-round pick, who is from Clinton, Mississippi, has overcome several serious injuries throughout his carer — notably tearing his right Achilles in 2021 and his left Achilles in 2023.

Brewers trade RHP Civale to White Sox for Vaughn MILWAUKEE The Milwaukee Brewers traded right-hander Aaron Civale and cash to the Chicago White Sox for first baseman Andrew Vaughn.

The Brewers moved quickly after they announced they were removing Civale from their rotation. The veteran right-hander said Thursday he wanted to remain a starter even if it meant leaving Milwaukee. He was traded one day later

Civale is 1-2 with a 4.91 ERA this season Vaughn was hitting .189 with a .218 on-base percentage, five homers and 19 RBIs in 48 games with Chicago before being optioned to Triple-A on May 23. The Brewers also are sending $807,000 to the White Sox as part of the deal.

PAUL MAURICE, Panthers coach

ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO By NATHAN DENETTE

Edmonton Oilers forward Leon Draisaitl celebrates after his winning goal with Evan Bouchard, right, during the first overtime period.

ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO By LyNNE SLADKy

wing Matthew

left

Derek Curiel runs during a practice ahead of the College World Series on Thursday at Charles Schwab Field in Omaha, Neb.

Continued from page 1C

With his brother Donovyn already off playing junior-college baseball — eight years before Derek’s collegiate career would begin in Baton Rouge — the Curiel cage was constructed mainly to hone the skills of a baseballobsessed Derek. At least five days a week, for no less than two hours each day, Derek’s father, Rick, would throw batting practice to his youngest son. Their work was so frequent that they tore up the grass in the cage, prompting Rick, with the help of a friend, to implement a turf base

“The first two months, it was just our regular grass,” Rick said. “And it got torn up. It honestly became dirt because it had a nice yard. It was like an eyesore.”

All of those hours in the cage have led to Saturday night when LSU faces Arkansas to kick off its run at the 2025 College World Series (6 p.m., ESPN)

“We’re just so happy and blessed that he’s at LSU,” Rick said, “and I just can’t believe my son’s going to the College World Series.” Derek is a fixture in the LSU lineup. He’s spent the majority of this season as the leadoff hitter, entering Omaha with a team-best .473 on-base percentage, a 1.004 on-base plus slugging percentage and 19 doubles.

As the team leader in walks, his patience at the plate has earned LSU coach Jay Johnson’s full trust.

“He’s the engine of this offense,” Johnson said, “and how he plays inspires the team.”

Fine-tuning that engine required hours of practice and a routine Derek developed with his father in the cage

Before Rick would start throwing, Derek would begin each hitting session by taking swings off of a tee. Once Derek had practiced hitting the ball to the opposite field and up the middle off of the tee, they’d progress to Rick soft tossing balls to him.

“Initially, when he was younger, I would do side flips from the side, like soft toss,” Rick said “But as he started getting a little bit older, I started doing the front flips in the front with the L screen right in front of me.”

Rick would move back to 32 feet and start throwing batting practice once Derek properly had warmed up Derek would choke up on the bat and perform onehanded swings with each hand before taking two-handed swings with a weighted bat.

“I put that 55-ounce bat in his hand,” Rick said. “We’d swing that quite a bit because once he got his game bat in his hand, I wanted it to feel super light and generate some bat speed.”

Once Derek could use his regular bat, he’d take cuts for as long as he liked. Rick put up lights for the cage by the time Derek was in high school, allowing him to come home from practice and take more swings after dinner

“I would throw hundreds of pitches every night, for sure,” Rick said.

Derek’s pitcher was always his father because of his disdain for pitching machines. He’s since gotten used to hitting off the robots, but Derek always preferred seeing the ball coming out of an actual hand.

But reading spin and recognizing pitches out of the hand wasn’t something he developed overnight. Rick would throw Derek curveballs, sliders, changeups, cutters, and two-seam and four-seam fastballs to keep his son on his toes.

Rick’s best pitch was his cutter

Coastal Carolina beats Arizona in CWS opener

BY ERIC OLSON AP sportswriter

OMAHA, Neb Coastal Carolina broke open a tied game with three runs in the eighth inning, Dominick Carbone shut down a threat by Arizona in the ninth and the Chanticleers opened the College World Series with a 7-4 victory Friday.

The Chanticleers (54-11) extended their winning streak to 24 games in their first appearance in Omaha since they beat Arizona in the 2016 finals. They will play Sunday against the winner of Friday night’s game between Louisville and No. 8 national seed Oregon State.

eligibility and I’m giving it everything I’ve got for this team,” Sykes said. “I’ve got a ton of respect for my teammates and my coaches, and I think the big crowds and the loud environments are helping

We’re locked in. We’re on a crazy win streak. We’re really consistent.

“So I think that’s helped everybody, not just me.”

Schnall said Sykes, the No. 9 batter who transferred from The Citadel, was the right man at the right time in the eighth inning.

“He’s got guts,” Schnall said.

after reliever Garrett Hicks (5-1) retired the first two batters.

“I had pretty good movement on it,” Rick said. “So it was actually good for him to see that because, obviously in game situations at any level, the pitcher is not trying to just throw it straight.” Rick also would have Derek

call out each pitch he’d see come out of his hands. He’d also number some of the baseballs to have Derek tell him whether a one, a two, a three or a four had just zipped his way

“Obviously you’ve got to see the baseball,” Derek said. “So just little things like that to help you focus a little bit more have helped me.”

Taking advantage of a hanging curverball or a cutter over the plate still requires a certain level of hand-eye coordination. For Derek, it was Donovyn who played a major role in developing that skill.

With a broomstick or a plastic bat, Donovyn would have Derek swing at small, flying discs and bottle caps They’d also play lots of pingpong, and Donovyn — despite being 8 years older — never let up on his younger brother “I treated him like a teammate. I want the best for him, so I’ve always made him earn his win,” Donovyn said “So there was a streak where he was younger and I would beat him constantly.”

Derek’s pingpong skills have translated into the LSU clubhouse. He and senior catcher Luis Hernandez are the two best players on the team. LSU held a tournament during the middle of the season, and they met in the final.

“Those two are playing every single day against each other for hours,” LSU sophomore outfielder Jake Brown said. “It gets annoying because no one else can play They’re just taking up the table the whole time.”

Donovyn, who played two years of Independent League Baseball in the United Shore Professional Baseball League, offered many lessons to Derek about hitting and the game.

He told him to be patient at the plate, emphasizing how difficult it is for pitchers to throw the ball over the dish consistently He taught him the importance of relaying the pitches he sees to his teammates in the dugout, a lesson

Derek has taken to another level.

After every pitch, Derek takes one step out of the batter’s box and motions to the dugout with his hand what pitch he just saw

It’s a routine that he started.

“We can kind of tell when it’s a slider from the side, but Derek likes to do it, and sometimes it does help us,” LSU senior out-

fielder Josh Pearson said. “It’s kind of funny to watch him tell us the pitch.”

Donovyn and Rick also would relay mechanical advice to Der-

ek making sure that the knob of his bat was facing toward his back hip in his stance and that his swing starts from the ground up.

Rick tends to watch video of Derek’s swing

“I like Derek to be videotaped from the front and the back. We go over video a lot,” Rick said.

“We slow it down so Derek and I watch it, just because sometimes when you get in a bad habit, you don’t realize you have a bad habit

“So I’d have to show him on the video, just so he could see what’s going on. I would have Donovyn — and or my wife, whoever was out there — videotape him.”

Rick still works with Derek on his swing. They don’t come together as often as they did when Derek was in high school, but they have worked a few times during the season

Rick threw to Derek on the field at Alex Box Stadium earlier this season. When LSU was on the road at Oklahoma and Auburn, Rick found a cage to work with Derek.

“We did our work just to try to get him locked in again and get him right Rick said, “just so he can feel comfortable with the swing.”

But it all started in that big batting cage in West Covina. The turf grass twisting underneath their feet and the persistent pinging of Derek’s bat connecting with another one of Rick’s pitches.

“We built that cage with our hands,” Derek said LSU

“We’ve got a dugout full of hungry and humble dogs,” Coastal Carolina coach Kevin Schnall said.

Arizona (44-20), in the CWS for the first time since 2021, will play the Louisville-Oregon State loser on Sunday Coastal Carolina scored single runs in the fifth and sixth innings to forge a 4-all tie with the Wildcats and took the lead in the eighth

RABALAIS

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“The hospitality is over the top,” Charles Bond III said. “From the airport to the Uber to the hotel to the restaurants, they all say LSU fans come whether the Tigers are here or not. It gives you goosebumps.”

Charles Bond II graduated from LSU in 1960 after a stint in the military He met his wife there on a blind date outside of Tiger Stadium, where he lived in the long-shuttered dorms. Friday he was a little tuckered out but all smiles as he and his sons looked for some shaded seats for the CWS opener between Arizona and Coastal Carolina.

They’d already secured tickets for the LSU-Arkansas game. Those were going for more than $200 apiece Friday on the secondary market, more than six times the asking price for tickets to Saturday’s other game between UCLA and Murray State.

“It’s a bucket list thing for him,” Brian Bond said of his dad. “He’s always wanted to go.”

This year they’re celebrating the 75th anniversary of the College World Series’ arrival in Omaha. Like someone who moved here and found steady work as an agent for the Union Pacific Railroad or a claims adjuster for Mutual of Omaha, the CWS never left. In the name of the few right things about this crazy world, hopefully it never will.

It only seems like LSU has been coming here since 1950 as well, but the Tigers first played here in 1986. This year marks their 20th appearance.

LSU’s reputation, and its legions, have grown over the years. You don’t have to see one of the banners naming the eight participants in the CWS blanketing the ballpark here to know the

OPEN

Continued from page 1C

chipping in for eagle on the reachable par-4 17th. He also chopped up the reachable par-4 second hole for a double bogey and wound up with a 68. He was at 1-under 139. Burns and Hovland were the only two players from the morning wave to finish 36 holes under par Spaun bogeyed the 18th hole to fall a shot back of Burns. Burns is among the top putters on the PGA Tour, though he did miss a 5-foot putt to win a playoff in the Canadian Open last week and three-putted the fourth playoff hole to lose. This was more about staying in position and eliminating as much stress as possible on a course that can be relentless. All six of his birdies were inside 10 feet. His best putt might been an eagle attempt from over 100 feet on the par-5 fourth that he lagged to tap-in range. But the finish was big. He tugged his drive to the left on the tough par-4 ninth into a ditch, took a penalty drop, hit safely on the green and made it for par Burns has the low round for the week, a score that was posted three times when Oakmont last hosted the U.S. Open in 2016. There are chances out there Victor Perez of France made a hole-in-one on

Wells Skyes sliced an 0-2 pitch just inside the right-field line for a double and Caden Bodine was intentionally walked before Sebastian Alexander, who struck out in his previous three at-bats, singled in the go-ahead run. Arizona closer Tony Pluta came on and gave up Blake Barthol’s two-run double.

“This is my last year of college

ON DECK

WHO: LSU (48-15) vs.Arkansas (48-13)

WHEN: 6 p.m., Saturday

WHERE: Charles Schwab Field, Omaha, Neb

TV: ESPN

RADIO: WDGL-FM, 98.1 (Baton Rouge); WWL-AM, 870 (New Orleans); KLWB-FM 103.7 (Lafayette)

RANKINGS: LSU is No. 6 overall seed; Arkansas is No. 3

PROBABLE STARTERS: LSU — LHP Kade Anderson (10-1, 3.58 ERA); Arkansas — LHP Zach Root (8-5, 3.59 ERA)

WHAT TO WATCH FOR: LSU announced Friday night that it will start Anderson in its College World Series opener Anderson had his weakest start of the year last Saturday in Game 1 of the super regional against West Virginia, allowing six earned runs in seven innings. Root allowed just one hit in seven innings last week against Tennessee in the super regionals. Koki Riley

Tigers are in the field again. LSU announces its presence with authority Murray State, this year’s Cinderella and just the fourth No. 4 seed to survive an NCAA regional and super regional all the way to Omaha, is a special story for this year’s event. But do the Racers have a giant fiberglass version of their mascot parked a couple of blocks away from the stadium on a flatbed trailer?

That would be a no.

LSU loves Omaha. Omaha loves LSU and its legions of brash, big-spending fans right back. To the local folks, the best version of the CWS — especially since it moved to Charles Schwab Field from now demolished Rosenblatt Stadium — is when the Tigers are in the mix.

“A couple of years ago when LSU won, it finally felt like the (College) World Series had arrived downtown,” said Tom Sha-

“He’s great under tension and stress. He lives for those moments. He’s had some massive hits this postseason starting (with) the conference tournament. But I’m really proud of him because he’s really worked hard and he really bought into the Coastal way Day 1.”

The Wildcats had runners on the corners with no outs in the ninth. Carbone struck out pinch-hitter

Dom Rodriguez and then got Brendan Summerhill to hit into a gameending double play

tel, a longtime sports columnist for the Omaha World-Herald. “It took a while to get this place figured out. There were good series, but without the LSU chants and the purple and gold beads and jerseys, it never seemed like the World Series.

“When they finally won it was like, ‘OK, everything seems right here.’ ” Back in the early 2000s, the NCAA prodded Omaha for improvements to Rosenblatt Stadium. The unspoken implication was that if that didn’t happen the CWS might move, or at least rotate around the country, like the basketball Final Fours. That drove Omaha to build the current ballpark in 2011. The state-of-the-art, if sterile, 24,500seat venue replaced the quaint and beloved, but aging, Rosenblatt and cemented a contract between the city and the NCAA that runs through 2035. Despite that, Omaha is still always looking over its shoulder The question even came up Wednesday at an NCAA news conference.

“I think it would be hardpressed for another city to make this type of commitment,” said Anthony Holman, NCAA vice president for championships.

“To build a facility The College World Series is our secondhighest grossing (event), in terms of revenue, in attendance, of all our championships. And that doesn’t happen without it being in Omaha.”

In “Field of Dreams,” Kevin Costner’s character is asked whether his cornfield turned ballfield is heaven.

“No,” he replies. “It’s Iowa.” Is this heaven? No, it’s Omaha.

For LSU, and the other teams here, it’s pretty much the same thing.

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

the sixth hole in a roller-coaster round of 70 but punishment is everywhere. Jordan Spieth started at even par, went out in 40 and had to hang on to make sure he was around for the weekend. Brooks Koepka, two out of the lead after the first round, made only six pars in his round of 74. Hovland is a curious contender He has been all over the place with his swing, his expectations, his confidence. He won during the Florida swing and is making progress. Perhaps no expectations

helped him.

“For some reason, I’ve just been in a really nice mental state this week,” Hovland said. “Both my rounds have been very up and down. I feel like a couple times if it would have happened at another tournament, for example, I could have potentially lost my mind there a little bit. But I felt like I kept things together very well.” He has 10 birdies and an eagle. He also has nine bogeys and a double bogey But he’s under par at Oakmont going into the weekend, never a bad place to be.

STAFF PHOTO By HILARy SCHEINUK

LSU

fielder

AP PHOTO By CAROLyN KASTER

J.J. Spaun plays his ball on the fourth hole during the second round of the U.S Open on Friday in Oakmont, Pa.

LCA defender Green finds ‘fit’ with Cajuns

BY ERIC NARCISSE Staff writer

Luke Green of Lafayette Christian didn’t set a specific date on when he would decide where to continue his football career in college. He figured when he found the right spot, he’d know

“My original plan was to hold off a little longer,” Green said.

“Make sure that I was 100 percent on where I wanted to be. Make sure it was the right fit for me.”

On Friday Green found the fit he was looking for as the senior committed to coach Michael Desormeaux and the UL Ragin’ Cajuns’ during an official visit

“Coming in this weekend and learning more about the program, even though I’ve been here my whole life, there were still things I didn’t know about the program,” Green said. “That really is what ultimately made me

move my decision.”

Green — who recorded 88 total tackles, eight tackles for loss, four pass breakups and one forced fumble as a junior — credited the Cajuns coaching staff for building a culture that supports players on and off the field.

“It’s just like a family,” Green said. “They show real support outside of football, where it’s ‘We want to build you as men, and it’s not just for your athletic abilities.’ ” Green chose the Cajuns over Liberty Army Navy Central Arkansas, Arkansas State, Southeastern Louisiana, Lamar and Stephen F. Austin.

“I wouldn’t say I had top schools,” Green said. “It’s more so on the relationship building. I wouldn’t put anybody in like a list order, but I know out of my nine, UL stood out the most.”

The 6-foot-1, 180-pound Green, who played outside linebacker and defensive back for the Knights, was recruited by the Cajuns as a defensive back.

“I feel comfortable playing wherever they would need me to

Calvary junior pitcher excelled as a dual threat

BY ROY LANG III Staff writer

Kynzee Anderson was a dominant force in the circle for Calvary Baptist of Shreveport during the 2025 season.

She posted a dazzling 24-1 record, 1.26 ERA and 245 strikeouts in 145 innings, and she capped the season in the Division III select state championship game with an abbreviated no-hitter That resume alone would make the Georgia commitment, who can hit 68 mph on the radar gun, worthy of any postseason honor. But there was more to make the junior the LSWA Miss Softball recipient for 2025.

For the first time, Calvary Baptist coach Tiffany Wood allowed her ace to serve as a full-time hitter Consequently, Anderson described this season as “a lot more fun.”

Opponents would disagree.

Anderson posted a .466 batting average with 14 home runs and 45 RBIs.

“She’s proven she can do both,” Wood said. Anderson is the first Calvary Baptist product to capture the award. “The confidence at the plate

works into my pitching, and the confidence from my pitching works into the confidence at the plate,” the 5-foot-6 Anderson, who boasted a 1.034 slugging percentage, said.

Anderson also collected the Louisiana Gatorade Softball Player of the Year award and the Outstanding Player designation on the Class 2A all-state softball team.

Just 10 minutes before the state championship game, Wood and her staff believed Anderson would be a late scratch after her ailing back flared up.

“I was overwhelmed. I never thought it was going to happen (in the state championship game),” Anderson said.

Said Wood: “She’s been a fighter all season long.”

Motivated by a title push for late teammate Elana Franks, who died just days before the 2025 season began, Anderson not only pitched but she also didn’t allow a hit to D’Arbonne Woods.

“We did it for her,” Anderson said of Franks. “I know she’s looking down at us and she’s happy and smiling.

“I was trying to do anything I could to help the team.”

In 2025 Anderson did not let her team down.

play,” Green said. “Playing safety is where I started playing, and it’s always where my love is at. But at the end of the day, if I ever need to move to another position, then I’m not opposed to it.” Green said attending college near his hometown didn’t play much of a role in his decision.

“Close to home was never like a thing,” Green said. “If I would have felt where it was for me to be somewhere else, then I would be.

“If I needed to travel somewhere else to play football, then that is where I would’ve been. But home was never really like a factor into it, it was more so the best fit for me.”

While the recruiting process can be stressful, Green said he never felt it bearing down on him.

“It was never pressure, because it was a decision that I wanted to make,” Green said. “I didn’t want to put too much pressure, and I wanted it to come natural. And with it coming naturally, of course it was excitement on both sides.”

MISS SOFTBALL WINNERS

1996: Ashley Lewis, Central

1997: Ashleigh Ivey, Barbe

1998: Micah Barbato, Lafayette

1999: Mandy Mullins,Sacred Heart-

VP

2000: Sarah Meadors,Denham Springs

2001: Beth Provost,Teurlings Catholic

2002: Beth Provost,Teurlings Catholic

2003: Britni Bowen, Sterlington

2004: Leah Heintze, St.Amant

2005: Kellie Eubanks, St.Amant

2006: Ashley Brignac, John Curtis

2007: Ashley Brignac, John Curtis

2008: Lauren Crane,Vandebilt

2009: Lauren Wilson, Belle Chasse

2010: Christina Hamilton, Rosepine

2011: Courtney Ivey, Oak Hill

2012: Baylee Corbello, Sam Houston

2013: Baylee Corbello, Sam Houston

2014: Katie Brignac, John Curtis

2015: Tanner Wright, Sam Houston

2016: Bailey Hemphill, St.Thomas

More

2017: Emma Callie Delafield, North

DeSoto

2018: Abby Allen, Ouachita Parish

2019: Mary-Cathryn Comeaux, Brusly

2020: Season canceled

2021: Maci Bergeron, Notre Dame

2022: Corine Poncho, Notre Dame

2023: Addison Jackson, St.Amant

2024: Maddie Taylor, Sterlington

2025: Kynzee Anderson, Calvary

Baptist

UL gets Miss. St. catcher from portal

BY KEVIN FOOTE

Austria, and Francisco Cabral, Portugal, 7-6 (5), 7-6 (3). Libema Open Friday At Autotron Rosmalen Den Bosch, Netherlands

Surface: Grass Seedings in parentheses

Men’s Singles

Quarterfinals Ugo Humbert (2), France, def. Nuno Borges (7), Portugal, 6-1, 6-4. Gabriel Diallo, Canada, def. Karen Khachanov (3), Russia, 7-6 (6), 6-4. Reilly Opelka, United States, def. Daniil Medvedev (1), Russia, 7-6 (5), 7-6 (5). Zizou Bergs, Belgium, def. Mark Lajal, Estonia, 7-6 (2), 7-6 (4).

Women’s Singles Quarterfinals Ekaterina Alexandrova (2), Russia, def. Veronika Kudermetova (8), Russia, 5-7, 6-4, 6-2. Elise Mertens (3), Belgium, def. Yuan Yue China,

He joins infielder Rigoberto Hernandez from NAIA William Carey, outfielder Donovan LaSalle from Oklahoma State and left-handed pitcher Tyler Papenbrock from NAIA Huntington in the Cajuns’ transfer portal class.

Email Kevin Foote at kfoote@ theadvocate.com.

Green

STAFF FILE PHOTO By BRAD KEMP

Lafayette Christian defender Luke Green, left, tries to make a diving tackle on Lafayette Renaissance Charter wide receiver Ja’Courey Duhon at Clark Field on Oct. 11 in Lafayette.

Observethe Juneteenth holidayatlocal events

BY LAUREN CHERAMIE

Staff writer

Juneteenth commemorates the official emancipation of enslaved African Americans in Galveston Bay and across Texas —where on that date in 1865, in the aftermath of the Civil War, they were declaredfree —under the terms of the Emancipation Proclamation signed by President Abraham Lincoln in 1862.

Juneteenth is celebrated every June 19.

This year,Baton Rouge-area Juneteenth eventsbegin during the weekend leading up to theholiday and continue through June 22. If we missed one, let us know by emailingthe details to lauren. cheramie@theadvocate.com.

June 14

30th Juneteenth MusicFestival n Louisiana Square,300 Railroad Ave., Donaldsonville

TheCity of Donaldsonville, Parish of Ascension and CF In-

dustries will hostthe annual Juneteenth Music Festival 11 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. Saturday.The lineup includes the Michael Foster Project, Casa Samba, EscoSoulMusic andmore. Aceremony will take place at noon to honor the oldest African American businesses in Donaldsonville.

KidFestScotlandville n 2799 BadleyRoad, Baton Rouge

Join The Walls Project 11 a.m.

ä See JUNETEENTH, page 6C

BY KEITH SPERA Staff writer

1995, Elektra Records rolled out New Orleans alternative rock band

BetterThan Ezra’s “Deluxe.” It sold more than amillion copies, making it one of the most successful albums ever by aLouisianarock band Over the ensuing 30 years, themembersofBetter Than Ezra enduredall mannerofrock ’n’roll drama, spanningdrugs, divorce, multiple drummers, lawsuits andlost record deals. The bandnot only survivedbut is thriving.

“We’re having more fun playing musicnow than we’veeverhad,” guitarist/vocalist Kevin Griffin saidrecently.“The crowds andthe guarantees are better than we’ve ever had.”

During the2025 New Orleans Jazz &Heritage Festival, Better Than Ezra sold out the 2,200-capacity Fillmore for acelebration of the 30thanniversary of “Deluxe.” Days later,the band played to thousands of fans at the Fair Grounds’Gentilly Stage.

ComeJanuary,Ezra will sail aboard The 90s Cruise. Departing fromTampa,Florida, they’llridethe waves of ’90s nostalgia alongside TLC, Sugar Ray, En Vogue, Tonic, Smash Mouth and other MTV-era favorites.

“Better Than Ezra is agreat example of perseverance,” said Griffin, 56. “It took us seven years to get signed (to arecord deal). Nothing ever fell into our laps. We were the quintessential‘getinthe van, playfor $50 and pizza, sleep on floors.’ We worked hard, but we never quit.

“You’ll have moments where maybe you’re not as hot, or people aren’tcoming to the shows like they were. You stick around andsuddenlyit’sback We’re in this era now of ’90s love.

“So many of ourfansare in their 40s,ormaybe they’reempty nesters, and they’re coming to the shows and ä See EZRA, page 6C

Aconnection to the community has been acornerstone of Elm Grove BaptistChurch in Baton Rouge for over 100 years.

“We’ve done somethings in thelast 25 years, but certainly we didn’tset any precedent,” said theRev.Errol K. Domingue, thechurch’spastor since 2000. “This church has been known to connect

TerryRobinson

The Michael Foster Project performs during the 2024 Unity Fest, Baton Rouge’s free Juneteenth celebration at the MainLibraryat Goodwood.

STAFFPHOTO By HILARy SCHEINUK

By The Associated Press

Today is Saturday, June 14, the 165th day of 2025. There are 200 days left in the year This is Flag Day

Today in history:

On June 14, 1940, German troops entered Paris during World War II; the same day, the Nazis transported their first prisoners to the Auschwitz concentration camp in Germanoccupied Poland.

Also on this date:

In 1775, the Continental Army, forerunner of the United States Army, was created by the Second Continental Congress.

In 1777, the Second Continental Congress approved the design of the first “stars and stripes” American flag.

In 1846, a group of U.S settlers in Sonoma proclaimed the breakaway state of the California Republic, declaring independence from Mexico.

In 1943, the U.S. Supreme Court, in West Virginia State Board of Education v. Barnette, ruled 6-3 that public school students could not be forced to salute the flag of the United States or recite the Pledge of Allegiance.

In 1954, President Dwight D. Eisenhower signed a bill adding the phrase “under God” to the Pledge of Allegiance.

In 1972, the Environmental Protection Agency ordered a ban on domestic use of the pesticide DDT, to take effect at year’s end.

In 1993, President Bill Clinton announced his nomination of Judge Ruth Bader Ginsburg to serve on the U.S. Supreme Court.

Today’s birthdays: Actor Marla Gibbs is 94. U.S President Donald Trump is 79. Olympic speed skating gold medalist Eric Heiden is 67. Jazz musician Marcus Miller is 66. Singer Boy George is 64. Tennis Hall of Famer Steffi Graf is 56. Classical pianist Lang Lang is 43.

RELIGION BRIEFS FROM STAFF REPORTS

St. Joseph Cathedral to observe Solemnity

St. Joseph Cathedral, 401 Main St., Baton Rouge, will observe the Solemnity of the Most Holy Trinity during Holy Masses at 4 p.m. Saturday and 8:30 a.m. and 10:30 a.m. Sunday This central doctrine of the Catholic faith celebrates the belief in one God in three coequal persons: the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. The 10:30 a.m. Mass will be broadcast live on Catholiclife TV via Cox Channel 15, Facebook, Roku, FireTV and YouTube

All are invited to attend and live out the message of hope during the Jubilee Year of Hope. For more information, contact Cathedral Pastoral Services at (225) 3875928 or office@cathedralbr.org.

Second Baptist Church to install new pastor

Second Baptist Church, 914 N. Acadian Thruway W. Baton Rouge, will host the pastoral installation service for the Rev Samuel C. Lofton Jr at 3 p.m. Sunday, June 22. The guest speaker will be the Rev. Ricky E. Carter of Good Hope Baptist Church in Lafayette. All are welcome to attend.

St. Alma Baptist breaks ground on new facility

St. Alma Baptist Church, 3736 Rougon Road, Port Allen, will host the official groundbreaking ceremony for the St. Alma Baptist Multipurpose Center at 2 p.m.

Saturday For more information, contact

JUNETEENTH

Continued from page 5C

to 3 p.m. Saturday at Scotlandville Parkway for hands-on experiences, community storytelling and interactive play There will be fun for the whole family Reserve a spot at www.thewallsproject.org/ events-1/kidfest-scotlandville.

June 19

Campuswide celebration at Southern University

n 801 Harding Blvd., Baton Rouge

The John B. Cade Library at Southern University, in collaboration with the Southern University Museum of Art and the Leon R. Tarver II Cultural and Heritage Center, will host a campus-wide Juneteenth celebration. The day kicks off at 9 a.m. in the Leon R Tarver II Cultural and Heritage Center with an opening ceremony and keynote address. Other events include panel discussions, cultural performances, workshops and more. See the full schedule at www.subr.edu/news/southernuniversitys-john-b-cade-libraryto-host-juneteenth-celebration.

Free admission at LSU Museum of Art

n 100 Lafayette St., Baton Rouge

The LSU Museum of Art will offer free admission on June 19

Hours are 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. Currently, the museum is hosting three exhibitions:

n “In Focus: Artwork by LSU Faculty” showcases work in areas like digital technology, painting, sculpture, photography, ceramics and printmaking.

n “Art in Louisiana: Views into the Collection” features ceramics, works on paper, decorative

EZRA

Continued from page 5C

bringing their kids. I still haven’t seen three generations yet. But it’s coming.”

Born at LSU

Better Than Ezra formed on the LSU campus in March 1988. The band slogged it out in college bars and self-released a cassette called “Surprise.”

Following the 1990 suicide of guitarist Joel Rundell, the remaining trio Griffin, bassist Tom Drummond and drummer Cary Bonnecaze — wrote a fresh batch of songs.

The lyrics are “a tour of my education, of being an English major at Louisiana State University,” Griffin said. “The Killer Inside,” for example, was inspired by Jim Thompson’s 1952 novel “The Killer Inside Me.”

They recorded what became “Deluxe” in the Los Angeles apartment of producer/engineer Dan Rothchild, whose father, Paul Rothchild, produced albums for The Doors and Janis Joplin. They used half-inch analog tape and only 16 individual audio tracks.

and “Breathless.” She showcased “Breathless” during Hope For Haiti Now, a January 2010 charity telethon for earthquake victims.

“When you’re a band, you want people to like your later albums, not just the biggest album,” Griffin said. “The fact that she knew (‘Before the Robots’) was super flattering.

from Better Than Ezra started a festival, and guess who’s playing?’ “After year one, I had musicians and other people say, ‘Why aren’t you playing your own festival? That’s stupid.’ So now it is shameless self-promotion.”

‘Well, that happened’

Dr Mary W. Moss at (225) 772-0307.

Mission Program at Fairview Baptist Church

Fairview Baptist Church, 1636 Braddock St., Baton Rouge, will host its mission program at 11 a.m Sunday, June 29.

The guest speaker will be Louisiana Supreme Court Justice John M Guidry All are welcome to attend

Pentecostal Experience Revival 2025

A Pentecostal Experience Revival 2025 with speaker evangelist T. Ron Weegar will be held at 5100 Osborne Ave., Baton Rouge.

The revival begins at 7 p.m. Friday, June 20, and continues nightly at 7 p.m. through Friday June 27. Opening night will feature musical guest ensemble NHarmony of New Orleans.

The revival will conclude with a closing service at 11 a.m Saturday June 28. All are welcome to attend.

Vacation Bible School at Freeman Baptist Church

Freeman Baptist Church, 4628 La. 955, Ethel, is holding Vacation Bible School beginning each day at 6:30 p.m from June 24-26.

Age-appropriate classes will be available for all participants. The youth class will explore “God’s Laboratory,” while adults can attend workshops such as “Examining Your Walk with God” and “Understanding the Holy Spirit,” led by Dr Manuel Scott Jr of Los Angeles. All are welcome to join this learning experience.

arts, portraits and modern/contemporary art.

n “Pennington Family Foundation Education Gallery” is a year-round gallery that offers an interactive space for visitors to participate in hands-on activities and educational exhibits

n “Carved & Crafted: The Art of Letterpress” is the newest exhibit that explores the centuriesold letterpress printing process through the work of artist Jim Sherraden, artist and musician Jon Langford and Hatch Show Print, a renowned Nashvillebased letterpress atelier

June 21

Juneteenth Discovery Day at Capitol Park Museum

n 660 N. Fourth St., Baton Rouge

From10 a.m.to2 p.m.,thefamilyfriendly event will feature a community puzzle mural, Juneteenth scavenger hunt and story corner explaining Black excellence and the meaning of Juneteenth. Enjoy discounted admission.

Bella Noche’ The Reunion at Raising Cane’s River Center

n 275 S. River Road, Baton Rouge

Enjoy music from Mia X, Ghetto Twinz, Level, BBE AJ, Max Minelli, Da Jiggalators, Rude Jude and more, starting at 7 p.m. Tickets are available at arena.raisingcanesrivercenter.com.

June 22

Johmel’s House of Cuts n 4303 Airline Highway, Baton Rouge

Join the crew at Johmel’s House of Cuts from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m. for a Juneteenth celebration that includes music, food and activities for the whole family Register at eventbrite.com

“That’s almost hobbyist-level quality,” Griffin said. “But (Rothchild) was so gifted that it just has a vibe.”

They bought red velvet fabric in the garment district of East L.A. for the album’s cover art, hoping it looked “deluxe.”

The total cost to create “Deluxe” and print 2,000 CDs? Approximately $8,200.

They initially released “Deluxe” in 1993 via their own Swell Records. After it started selling, major label Elektra Records signed the band and rereleased “Deluxe” in 1995.

The first single, “Good,” was built on four guitar chords: G-major, Dmajor, E-minor and, at the end of the chord progression, C major seventh, which, says Griffin, “was how you made it a ’90s rock song.”

The formula worked “Good” exploded at modern rock radio, propelling “Deluxe” to platinum status.

“There’s a lot of love for those songs,” Griffin said of the album’s enduring appeal. “There’s something about that collection of songs that’s special.”

Taylor Swift a fan

Following the “Deluxe” tour, Bonnecaze departed acrimoniously and sued his former bandmates. The case was settled on the eve of trial.

With new drummer Travis McNabb, Better Than Erza recorded its second album at Daniel Lanois’ famed French Quarter studio, Kingsway They spent $500,000 making “Friction, Baby.” It sold barely half as many copies as “Deluxe.”

“It just goes to show,” Griffin said, that “it’s not the money you put into it. It’s about the spirit of the songs, the performance, the moment.”

After McNabb left to join country-pop hitmakers Sugarland, Ezra enlisted Michael Jerome Moore, a powerhouse drummer known for his work with James Hall’s Pleasure Club.

No subsequent album sold like “Deluxe,” but Ezra songs still turned up in popular culture. “Juicy” was used in commercials for the second season of the hit TV series Desperate Housewives.”

Taylor Swift covered two songs from the band’s 2005 album “Before the Robots,” “Our Last Night”

ELM GROVE

Continued from page 5C

community by offering a Saturday worship and complimentary breakfast.

“We’re very proud of the fact that on Saturday mornings we offer a worship service for our friends who wouldn’t otherwise come to church on Sundays,” he said.

Elm Grove isn’t alone in regularly feeding the community, Domingue said, noting that nearby True Light and St. Mary Baptist churches offer similar outreach services.

“I often say nobody in this community should go hungry,” he said.

Other Elm Grove programs center around revitalizing the community by fighting blight and the development of 13 acres into a mixed-use neighborhood off Greenwell Springs Road.

Another area of concentration is on the young people, Domingue emphasized.

“We’re still focused on our young people, given the climate that politics have set by erasing Black people’s history and so forth,” he said. “We’re still focusing on trying to provide that wellrounded education for people not just our children.”

“‘Breathless’ is track 12 — it’s the last song. It was the newest song that we recorded for that album. Often, when a song makes it under the wire, it gets put at the end (of the album) because you just don’t know how good it is. It gets buried. She found it.”

In February 2010, Better Than Ezra performed at the Saints’ postgame Super Bowl party in Miami, the result of the musicians’ longstanding friendship with general manager Mickey Loomis and nowformer coach Sean Payton.

“We got to ride on the team bus from the hotel to the stadium,” Griffin recalled. “In that bus was James Carville, the archbishop of New Orleans and Kim Kardashian and her mom, because Kim was dating (Saints running back) Reggie Bush.

“Now, it sounds like a joke.”

A Nashville Pilgrimage

Griffin sold his New Orleans house after Hurricane Katrina and settled in Los Angeles. He now lives in Franklin, Tennessee, just outside Nashville.

He excels at creating his own opportunities One reason he moved to the Nashville area was to develop his lucrative sideline as a songwriter for other artists.

His credits include Howie Day’s 2004 hit “Collide.” “Collide” first took shape at BTE’s former Lower Garden District recording studio, which is now owned by Trombone

Shorty

Griffin also co-wrote Sugarland’s 2010 smash “Stuck Like Glue,” among the most downloaded country songs of all time.

The day after Thanksgiving 2013, he went jogging in The Park at Harlinsdale in Franklin. Gazing around, he thought, “This is the most beautiful site for a festival I’ve ever seen.”

In 2015, he and two associates co-founded the Pilgrimage Music & Cultural Festival. The 2025 Pilgrimage Fest is Sept. 27-28 and features John Mayer, Kings of Leon, Turnpike Troubadours, Young the Giant, Father John Misty and Sam Fender

“What Jazz Fest taught us is you can have something that’s familyfriendly and super-cool, relevant and authentic musically,” Griffin said. “That was the DNA. We were unabashed in saying, ‘We got that idea from Jazz Fest.’” Initially, he didn’t book Better Than Ezra at Pilgrimage.

“I didn’t want to give anybody any ammunition like, ‘That guy

For about 20 years, Domingue

said Elm Grove has offered a sixweek summer internship program, providing 20 to 35 teenagers the opportunity to gain valuable experience working with local businesses.

“The good thing is the church pays for it. These people decided that’s what they wanted to do,” he said.

Elm Grove has long encouraged people to be involved in every aspect of its community and advocate for justice, Domingue said.

“This church has been known for standing up for what’s right. We’re just trying to continue that legacy now,” he said.

Domingue said his predecessor — the late Rev Joseph Roberts Williams, who pastored the church for 48 years — was known for his bold stands during the height of the civil rights movement.

Williams once provided a model voting machine to help people better understand the voting process.

“He brought in tutors that would help people with those damnable (literacy) tests they sued to make (Black people) take in order to vote,” Domingue said.

Domingue stands on the shoulders of Williams and builds on the longstanding traditions of taking on issues of justice.

“This pulpit was basically maintained by a genius,” Domingue said

Griffin went through a messy divorce from his first wife; substance abuse was a factor Sober for more than 10 years now, he married Gibson Guitar Brands executive Erica Krusen in 2022.

People magazine covered the couple’s dual ceremonies. The first was in Positano, a town on Italy’s scenic Amalfi Coast; actor Jonathan Silverman officiated.

Two weeks later, Griffin and Krusen exchanged vows again at a legally binding ceremony in Seaside, Florida.

Other relationships have also stabilized. James Arthur Payne Jr., who had contributed guitars, keyboards and backing vocals to Better Than Ezra as an auxiliary musician since 1996, is now an official band member

Taking a page from the Taylor Swift playbook, the band rerecorded many of its old songs so that the musicians, rather than a record company, own the master recordings. That pays off every time a BTE song is licensed for a movie, TV show or commercial; Griffin says he fields such inquiries at least once a week.

“The master, the actual physical recording, is the most lucrative thing for bands,” he said. “Rerecording is a smart endeavor.”

They’re still making new music too. In 2024, BTE released “Super Magjck,” the band’s first album of new material in more than a decade.

The path to the present was sometimes difficult, but Drummond, Moore, Payne and Griffin are in a good place.

As Griffin puts it, “You start in life saying, ‘That’ll never happen to me.’ And then something happens and you’re like, ‘Well, that happened.’

“Hopefully, over those years, you get some self-awareness and want to better yourself. Better Than Ezra has been this vehicle with a group of friends that I’ve gotten to experience so many of life’s ups and downs and twists and turns” with.

He doesn’t take his current good fortune for granted.

“When I’m on that stage, I always have a moment like, ‘I get to do this thing that I first wanted to do when I heard Elton John and Kiss so many years ago and picked up my dad’s classical guitar and learned how to play it.

“I’m 56 years old and I (still) get to do that and sell out the Fillmore? It’s a blessing, man. It’s the best job ever And we show no signs of stopping.”

of Williams. “Sometimes, it can be a heavy weight to carry, but thank God that we have people who see what we’re trying to accomplish and trying to build on that. That fairly sums up what we do here.” A goal is to give people the knowledge and power to stand for what’s right.

“This is what we’re up against when we talk about principalities and power and rulers of the darkness,” Domingue said. “We encourage people to participate civically and go to public meetings. We try our best to take care of people’s needs. It’s not just about the preaching. It’s about putting it into action.” Elm Grove was founded in 1925 in the home of George and Carrie Walks at 645 N. 38th St. (then known as Orange Street). The group was led by the Rev I.H. Lusk, of Mississippi. Other pastors led Elm Grove over the years, including H. O’Dell (192834), Lusk (1935), J. Cyrus (193536), Joe White (1936-38), A. L. Pitcher (1938-41 and 1944-52) and Alphonse Patterson. Williams took over in 1952 and guided the church for 48 years until his death in 2000. For more information, visit www.elmgrovebr.org

Contact Terry Robinson at terryrobinson622@gmail.com.

PHOTO By MADDIE SPINNER/GAMBIT

Lead vocalist Kevin Griffin, of New Orleans-based Better Than Ezra, performs on Jazz Fest’s Gentilly Stage in 2025.

GEMInI (May 21-June 20) Get your facts straight and study the possibilities. Aligning yourself withpeoplewho share your beliefs will help youbuild themomentumyou require to achieve your goal.

cAncER (June 21-July 22) Look in themirror and ask yourself tough questions. Youmay notplease everyoneand have to paythe price, but peace of mind will be worth its weight in gold if you do what's best for you.

LEo(July 23-Aug.22) Mixed emotionswill lead to questions. Review your dreams andconsider howequippedyou are to fulfill them.Don't quit before yougive your desires achance to growintosomethingsubstantial.

VIRGo(Aug.23-sept. 22) Youmay relish change,but impulsive action is notthe answer. Gather information andcozy up to those who can help youbroaden your knowledge andcredentials.

LIBRA (sept. 23-oct. 23) Takealittle "me time" and enjoy your space andloved ones. Conversations will be heated,but honesty can illuminate thebest way to moveforward.Alifestyle change will tempt you.

scoRPIo(oct. 24-nov. 22) Setoff on a learning expedition, andyou'll discover something youcan develop andmake useful. It's time to letgoofwhatyou cannotchange andmake room forpeople andpastimes that enhance your life.

sAGIttARIus (nov. 23-Dec. 21) You're in a betterpositionthan yourealize. Stickto thetruth. Enforce discipline andinge-

nuityathomeand when dealingwith outsideinfluences.

cAPRIcoRn (Dec. 22-Jan. 19) Know what andwho youare dealingwith before engaging in conversations. Expect to hear exaggerated versions of what's happening. Pour your timeand energy into what matters most.

AQuARIus (Jan. 20-Feb. 19) Youcan follow your heart, but youmust be ready to deal with the consequences. Achange youmakewill be advantageousifexecuted correctly.Don't give in to angeror impulse. Choose peace over discord PIscEs (Feb.20-March20) Choose aplace, group or activity that offers freedom and peace of mind while you take a break fromstressful interactions and an exhausting lifestyle. Kick back and enjoy yourself.

ARIEs (March 21-April19) Listening to others will help yousee your life and current situations more clearly.Take amomenttocollect your feelings. Be realistic regarding what youwantand expect.

tAuRus (April 20-May 20) Start heading in adirection that offers promise and positive change.Connect with people fromyourpast who can help youreflect on where youcomefrom. Sometimes, looking back can clear thepassageforward.

The horoscope, an entertainmentfeature, is not based on scientific fact. ©2025 by NEA, Inc., dist.ByAndrews 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: BEQuALs y

For better or For WorSe

SALLYForth

beetLe bAILeY

Mother GooSe And GrIMM

LAGoon

bIG nAte

Sudoku

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

Puzzle Answer

THewiZard oF id

BLondie

BaBY BLueS Hi and LoiS

By PHILLIP ALDER Bridge

Josh Billings, the pen name of Henry Wheeler Shaw, was ahumorist who died in 1885. He said, “Onehalf of the troublesinthis life canbetraced to saying yes too quickly and not saying no soon enough.”

Perhaps onehalf of the mistakes at the bridge tablecan be traced to playing too quickly andnot taking enough time to think things through.

That wouldbethe case for many players in today’s deal. Defending against four hearts, East wins the first trick with hisclubjack.Howwouldmanycontinue?

What shouldEast do?

South’s two-heart response, in asuit higher ranking than his partner’s, guaranteesatleastafive-cardsuit.(Withonly four hearts, South would usually make a negative double.)

Many defenders would win with the club jack, cash the club king, and continue with the club ace. What would happen? If South ruffs low, West overruffs and shifts to adiamond for down one. If South ruffs high, he eventually loses a heart and adiamondtofall to defeat. But aSouth who paused fora fewmoments at trick three would see theadvantage in discarding hisunavoidable diamond loser.Then the contract would make.

East should cash his diamond ace at trick three (or two) before continuing clubs.This defeats the contract.The defenders gettwo clubs, onediamond and one heart. Do not try fora trumppromotion until, if possible, you have taken all of your side-suit tricks. ©2025 by NEA, Inc.,dist. By Andrews McMeel Syndication

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

Previous answers:

word game

InstRuctIons: 1. Words mustbeoffourormoreletters. 2. Words that acquire four letters by the additionof“s,” such as “bats” or “dies,” are not allowed. 3. Additional words made by adding a“d” or an “s” may not be used. 4. Proper nouns, slang words, or vulgar or sexually explicit words are not allowed.

toDAy’s WoRD stEWARD: STOO-werd: One who actively directs affairs; manager.

Average mark36words Time limit 50 minutes Can you find46ormorewords in STEWARD?

yEstERDAy’s WoRD —unDERcut

wuzzles

loCKhorNs

marmaduKe

Bizarro

hagar the horriBle

Pearls Before swiNe

garfield

B.C.

PiCKles hidato mallard

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