worth-Roberts has beenkicked off the bench,with the Louisiana Supreme Court taking theextraordinarilyrarestepina misconduct case that centered on allegations that she had ahabit of lying, including about her pastmilitary service.
Foxworth-Roberts is the first judge in 16 years that the state’s high court has removed from office. Members of theLouisiana Judiciary Commission re co mme nd ed that the Supreme Court strip herof hertitle after they said she lied about hermilitary service, an insurance claim for roughly $40,000 and more. The Louisiana Supreme Court released its decision Thursday that ordered her removal from judicial office, finding thejudge had not demonstrated accountability “in any meaningful sense.” The vote was 4-3.
misconduct
“Although reluctanttoremove an officialelected by the people from the bench, thiscourt finds that thelack of candor in the campaign, in the reporting of the burglary incident, and throughout thisinvestigation demonstrates removal from office is the only appropriate sanction to ensurethe trust and integrity of the system of justicewhichis, itself, of fundamental importanceinthe systemofgovernment,”wrote Chief Justice John Weimer in the court’s majority opinion.
strict obligation of judges to be truthfulinthe faceofaninvestigationbythe Commission,” the ruling added.
Foxworth-Roberts couldnot immediately be reached for comment on Thursday. In pasttestimony,she pleadedtostayonthe bench and said she loved her work as ajudge.
“The opinionwas very closewith astrongdissentfavoring asubstantially reduced penalty,” said herattorney, Steve Irving, in a
“Any lesser discipline would undermine the entire judicial discipline process and diminish the
Gov.Jeff Landry’sadministration detailed amajor shift in Louisiana’sstrategy for addressing coastal protection and restoration on Wednesday,proposing aslate of projects for thenextfiscal year that move definitively awayfrom the large-scale river diversions long seenaslinchpins in thestate’s plans.
The draft project budgetfor the state’sCoastal Protection andRestoration Authority for fiscal2027, which begins in July,amounts to $1.27 billion, asignificantdrop from the currentyear.But that drop is largely because the state has canceled the controversial Mid-Barataria andMid-Breton sediment diversion projectswhile preparing alternatives to take their place.
The state’scoastalleadership made clear thatit intends to prioritize other types of projects,particularly large-scale“landbridges” built with dredged sedimentinthe Terrebonne, Barataria andBreton basins. Barrier islandrestorations will also be part of thestrategy
The hope is that much of that work could be paid for with funding related to the 2010 BPDeepwater Horizon oil spill, using funds that had been designated for the diversions.But much work remains aheadtoevaluate the plans and gain approval from trustees overseeing the BP funds.
“Wehave more funds available for all these projects…these land bridges, barrier islands, etc., and we’re going to be movingforward expeditiously,”saidCPRAChair Gordon Dove.
The CPRA under Landryhas faced scrutinyover thechanges and concerns thatthe state’s 50-year coastal master plan,
ä See COASTAL, page 6A
BY SAM KARLIN Staff writer
One of Louisiana’s biggest propertyinsurers sent apromising signal this week, saying declining reinsurance costs are allowing the company to cut homeowners insurance premiums by an averageof 7.5%.
The decisionbySureChoice, the second-largest home insurer in the state, is one sign of improvement in ayearslonginsurancecrisis that has stretched Louisiana homeowners’ budgets.
But the newsisnot all positive.
The rate cut comes just eight monthsafter SureChoice increased rates by 12.5% on its 73,000 home insurance policyholders. Both the increase and morerecent decrease also applied to 17,000 dwelling policyholders.
Andoverall, theaveragepolicyholder in Louisiana is still being hit with rate hikes. Through November,insurers have collectively raised homeowners’ rates by another 4.9% in Louisiana,the latest in astringof escalating rates year over year State Farm, the state’slargest home insurer,filedfor anearly 10% rate hike on its 300,000 home insurancepolicyholders in September.Thatratehike wasthe result of the firm’s hurricane modeling, “which projects higher future losses in Louisiana,” the Louisiana Department of Insurance said in a statement Thursday The data shows that while rates are no longer rising by double digits, Louisiana remains stuck in a pattern of high homeowners insurance costs,drivenbyworsening
STAFF FILEPHOTO By SOPHIA GERMER
The NewOrleans skyline rises abovemarshlandsinChalmette. Louisiana is shifting its strategyfor coastal protection and wetlands restoration.
FoxworthRoberts
BRIEFS FROM WIRE REPORTS
Trump signs order to halt state AI regulations
President Donald Trump signed an executive order Thursday aimed at blocking states from crafting their own regulations for artificial intelligence, saying the burgeoning industry is at risk of being stifled by a patchwork of onerous rules while in a battle with Chinese competitors for supremacy Members of Congress from both parties, as well as civil liberties and consumer rights groups, have pushed for more regulations on AI, saying there is not enough oversight for the powerful technology But Trump told reporters in the Oval Office that “there’s only going to be one winner” as nations race to dominate artificial intelligence, and China’s central government gives its companies a single place to go for government approvals.
“We have the big investment coming, but if they had to get 50 different approvals from 50 different states, you can forget it because it’s impossible to do,” Trump said.
The executive order directs the attorney general to create a new task force to challenge state laws, and directs the Commerce Department to draw up a list of problematic regulations.
It also threatens to restrict funding from a broadband deployment program and other grant programs to states with AI laws.
David Sacks, a venture capitalist with extensive AI investments who is leading Trump’s policies on cryptocurrency and artificial intelligence, said the Trump administration would only push back on “the most onerous examples of state regulation” but would not oppose “kid safety” measures.
M23 offensive in Congo kills over 400
GOMA, Congo More than 400 civilians have been killed since the Rwanda-backed M23 armed group escalated its offensive in the South Kivu province in eastern Congo, regional officials said, adding that Rwandan special forces were in the strategic city of Uvira.
“More than 413 civilians (have been) killed by bullets, grenades and bombs, including many women, children and young people” in localities between Uvira and Bukavu, the regional capital, the South Kivu government spokesperson said in a statement late Wednesday
M23’s latest offensive comes despite a U.S.-mediated peace agreement signed last week by the Congolese and Rwandan presidents in Washington. The accord didn’t include the rebel group, which is negotiating separately with Congo and agreed earlier this year to a ceasefire that both sides accuse the other of violating. However, it obliges Rwanda to halt support for armed groups and work to end hostilities.
U.N. Secretary-General António Guterres called for the “immediate and unconditional cessation of hostilities.”
MyPillow founder to run for Minn. governor
SHAKOPEE, Minn. Mike Lindell, the fervent supporter of President Donald Trump known to TV viewers as the “MyPillow Guy,” officially entered the race for Minnesota governor Thursday in hopes of winning the Republican nomination to challenge Democratic Gov Tim Walz in 2026. Lindell made the announcement at a news conference at his MyPillow factory in the Minneapolis suburb of Shakopee that he streamed live on his Lindell TV conservative news platform. He said his political opponents had tried to shut him and his company down because of his support for Trump’s claim that the 2020 election was stolen from him.
“Well, it didn’t work. I’m still standing. MyPillow is still standing,” Lindell said. “And now I want you to know that I will stand for you as governor of the state of Minnesota.” Lindell later told reporters that he told Trump back in August he was considering running for governor But he declined to predict whether he will get the president’s endorsement.
Senate rejects extending ACA subsidies
Health care costs set to rise for millions
BY MARY CLARE JALONICK Associated Press
WASHINGTON — The Senate on Thursday rejected legislation to extend Affordable Care Act tax credits, essentially guaranteeing that millions of Americans will see a steep rise in costs at the beginning of the year.
As Republicans and Democrats have failed to find compromise, senators voted on two partisan bills instead that they knew would fail the Democratic bill to extend the subsidies, and a Republican alternative that would have created new health savings accounts.
It was an unceremonious end to a monthslong effort by Democrats to prevent the COVID-19-era subsidies from expiring on Jan 1, including a 43-day government shutdown that they forced over the issue.
Ahead of the votes, Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer of New York, warned Republicans that if they did not vote to extend the tax credits, “there won’t be another chance to act,” before premiums rise for many people who buy insurance off the ACA marketplaces.
“Let’s avert a disaster,” Schumer said. “The American people are watching.”
Republicans and Democrats never engaged in meaningful or high-level negotiations on a solution, even after a small group of centrist Democrats struck a deal with Republicans last month to end the shutdown in exchange for a vote. Most Democratic lawmakers opposed the move as many Republicans made clear that they wanted the tax credits to expire.
The deal raised hopes for a compromise on health care. But that quickly faded with a lack of any real bipartisan talks.
“We failed,” said Alaska Sen. Lisa Murkowski, one of four Republi-
cans who voted for the Democratic bill, after the vote. “We’ve got to do better We can’t just say ‘happy holidays, brace for next year.’”
A Republican alternative
The dueling Senate votes were the latest political messaging exercise in a Congress that has operated almost entirely on partisan terms, as Republicans pushed through a massive tax and spending cuts bill this summer using budget maneuvers that eliminated the need for Democratic votes In September Republicans tweaked Senate rules to push past a Democratic blockade of all of Trump’s nominees.
On health care, Republicans similarly negotiated among themselves without Democrats. The health savings accounts in the GOP bill that they eventually settled on would give money directly to consumers instead of to insurance companies, an idea that has been echoed by President Donald Trump.
Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., said ahead of the vote that the Democrats’ simple extension of the subsidies is “an attempt to disguise the real impact of Obamacare’s spiraling health care costs.”
But Democrats immediately rejected the GOP plan, saying that the accounts wouldn’t be enough to cover costs for most consumers.
The Senate voted 51-48 not to move forward on the Democratic bill, with four Republicans Maine Sen. Susan Collins, Missouri Sen. Josh Hawley and Alaska Sens. Murkowski and Dan Sullivan voting with Democrats. The legislation needed 60 votes to proceed, as did the Republican bill, which was also blocked on a 51-48 vote.
An intractable issue
The votes were the latest failed salvo in the debate over the Affordable Care Act, former President Barack Obama’s signature law that Democrats passed along party lines in 2010 to expand access to insurance coverage. Republicans have tried unsuccessfully since then to repeal or overhaul the law, arguing that health care is still too expensive. But they have struggled to find an alternative. In the meantime, Democrats have made the policy a central political issue in several elections, betting that the millions of people who buy health care on
the government marketplaces want to keep their coverage.
“When people’s monthly payments spike next year, they’ll know it was Republicans that made it happen,” Schumer said in November while making clear that Democrats would not seek a compromise. Even if they view it as a political win, the failed votes are a loss for Democrats who demanded an extension of the benefits during the shutdown — and for the millions of people facing premium increases on Jan. 1.
Maine Sen Angus King, an independent who caucuses with Democrats, said the group tried to negotiate with Republicans after the shutdown ended. But, he said, the talks became unproductive when Republicans demanded language adding new limits for abortion coverage that were a “red line” for Democrats. He said Republicans were going to “own these increases.” House to try again
Republicans have used the looming expiration of the subsidies to renew their long-standing criticisms of the ACA, also called Obamacare, and to try, once more, to agree on what should be done.
In the House, Speaker Mike Johnson, R-Benton, has promised a vote next week on some type of health care legislation. Republicans weighed different options in a conference meeting on Wednesday, with no apparent consensus.
Murkowski and other Senate Republicans who want to extend the subsidies expressed hope that the House could find a way to do it. GOP leaders were considering bills that would not extend the tax credits, but some Republicans have launched long shot efforts to try to go around Johnson and force a vote.
“Hopefully some ideas emerge” before the new year, said Republican Sen. Thom Tillis, of North Carolina, who has been pushing his colleagues for a short-term extension.
Abrego Garcia freed from federal detention
Man had previously been mistakenly deported
BY TRAVIS LOLLER, JOHN SEEWER and MARC LEVY Associated Press
PHILIPSBURG, Pa. — Kilmar Abrego Garcia was freed from immigration detention on a judge’s order Thursday while he fights to stay in the U.S., handing a major victory to the immigrant whose wrongful deportation to a notorious prison in El Salvador made him a flashpoint of the Trump administration’s
immigration crackdown.
U.S. District Judge Paula Xinis in Maryland ordered Immigration and Customs Enforcement to let Abrego Garcia go immediately, writing that federal authorities had detained him again after his return to the United States without any legal basis.
Abrego Garcia’s attorney’s office confirmed he was released just before 5 p.m., the deadline the judge gave the government for an update on Abrego Garcia’s release.
His attorney, Simon Sandoval-Moshenberg, earlier told The Associated Press that Abrego Garcia plans
Republicans in Indiana reject Trump’s House redistricting push
BY ISABELLA VOLMERT and OBED LAMY Associated Press
INDIANAPOLIS Indiana’s Republican-led
Senate decisively rejected a redrawn congressional map Thursday that would have favored their party, defying months of pressure from President Donald Trump and delivering a stark setback to the White House ahead of next year’s midterm elections. The vote was overwhelmingly against the proposed redistricting, with more Republicans opposing than supporting the measure, signaling the limits of Trump’s influence even in one of the country’s most conservative states.
Trump has been urging Republicans nationwide to redraw their congressional maps in an unusual campaign to help the party maintain its thin majority in the House of Representatives. Although Texas, Missouri, Ohio and North Carolina went along, Indiana did not despite cajoling and insults from the president and the possibility of primary challenges.
“The federal government should not dictate by threat or other means what should happen in our states,” said Spencer Deery, one of the Republican senators
to return to Maryland, where he has an American wife and child and where he has lived for years after originally immigrating to the U.S. illegally as a teenager Abrego Garcia had been held at Moshannon Valley Processing Center about 115 miles northeast of Pittsburgh. Sandoval-Moshenberg said he’s not sure what comes next, but he’s prepared to defend his client against further deportation efforts.
“The government still has plenty of tools in their toolbox, plenty of tricks up their sleeve,” SandovalMoshenberg said, adding
Indianapolis.
who voted no on Thursday
When the proposal failed, cheers could be heard inside the chamber as well as shouts of “thank you!” The debate had been shadowed by the possibility of violence, and some lawmakers have received threats.
The proposed map was designed to give Republicans control of all nine of Indiana’s congressional seats, up from the seven they currently hold. It would have effectively erased Indiana’s two Democrat-held districts by splitting Indianapolis among four districts that extend into rural areas, reshaping U.S. Rep. André Carson’s safe district in the city It would’ve also eliminated the northwest Indiana district held by U.S. Rep. Frank Mrvan. District boundaries are usually adjusted once a decade after a new census. But Trump has described redistricting as an existential issue for the party as Democrats push to regain power in Washington.
he fully expects the government to again take steps to deport his client. “We’re going to be there to fight to make sure there is a fair trial.”
The Department of Homeland Security sharply criticized the judge’s decision and vowed to appeal, calling the ruling “naked judicial activism” by a judge appointed during the Obama administration.
“This order lacks any valid legal basis, and we will continue to fight this tooth and nail in the courts,” said Tricia McLaughlin, the department’s assistant secretary Sandoval-Moshenberg, said the judge made it clear that the government can’t detain someone indefinitely without legal authority and that his client “has endured more than anyone should ever have to.”
Abrego Garcia
ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO By MICHAEL CONROy Indiana Lt. Gov. Micah Beckwith announces the results of a vote to redistrict the state’s congressional map on Thursday at the Statehouse in
ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO By J SCOTT APPLEWHITE
Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., joined at left by Sen. John Barrasso, R-Wyo., speaks to reporters Tuesday after a closed-door meeting with fellow Republicans at the Capitol in Washington.
Noem linksoil tanker seizuretoantidrugefforts
BY MEG KINNARD
Associated Press
Homeland Security Secre-
taryKristiNoem on Thursday linked the seizure of an oil tanker off the coast of Venezuela tothe Trump administration’scounterdrug efforts in Latin America as tensions escalate with the government of President Nicolás Maduro. Noem’sassertion, which came during her testimony to the House Homeland Security Committee, provided the Republican administration’s most thorough assessment so far of why it took control of the vessel on Wednesday Incredibly unusual, the use of U.S. forces to seize amerchant ship wasasharp escalation in the administration’s pressure campaign on Maduro, who has been charged with narco-terrorism in the United States.
she said had been kept from entering the U.S. as aresult.
Asked Thursday whether U.S.operations in the region were about drugs or oil, White House press secretary Karoline Leavittalso gave a bifurcated answer,saying the administrationwas “focused on doing many things in the Western Hemisphere.” She noted that such seizures could continue,arguing that the commodities beingtransported were used to fund the illegal drug trade.
“We’re not going to stand by andwatch sanctioned vesselssail the seas with black market oil, the proceeds of which will fuel narco-terrorism of rogue and illegitimate regimes around theworld,” she said.
earlier at the White House that the tanker “was seized fora very good reason.”
Asked what would happen to the oil aboard the tanker, Trump said, “Well, we keep it, Iguess.”
TheU.S.has builtupthe largest military presence in theregionindecades and launcheda series of deadly strikes on alleged drugsmuggling boatsinthe Caribbean Sea and the eastern Pacific Ocean, acampaign thatisfacing growing scru-
tiny from Congress. Trump, who hassaidland attacks are coming soon but has not offered more details, has broadly justified the movesasnecessary to stem the flowoffentanyl andother illegal drugs into the U.S. Venezuela’sgovernment said in astatement that the tankerseizure “constitutes a blatant theft and an act of international piracy.” Maduro has insistedthe real purpose oftheU.S.militaryoperations is to force himfrom office.
Trump officials added to it Thursday by imposing sanctions on three of Maduro’s nephews. The Venezuelan leader discussed therising tensionswithRussian President Vladimir Putin on Thursday. TheKremlin said in astatement that Putin reaffirmed hissupport for Maduro’s policy of “protecting national interestsand sovereignty in the face of growing externalpressure.”
BY ALANNA DURKIN RICHER and MICHAEL KUNZELMAN Associated Press
ALEXANDRIA, Va.— Agrand jury declined for asecond time in aweek to re-indict New York Attorney General Letitia JamesonThursday in anothermajor blow to the Justice Department’sefforts to prosecute the president’spolitical opponents.
Askedtodelineatethe U.S. Coast Guard’srole in the
tanker seizure, Noem called it “a successful operation directed by the president to ensure thatwe’repushing back on aregimethat is systematically covering and flooding our country with deadly drugs and killing our next generation of Americans.” Noem went on to lay out the“lethal doses of cocaine”
The Justice Department had obtained awarrant for the vesselbecause it had been known for “carrying black market, sanctioned oil,” Leavitt said, adding that “the United Statesdoes intend to getthe oil” that was onboardthe tanker Trump told reportersaday
James
The repeated failures amounted to astunning rebuke of prosecutors’ bid to resurrect acriminalcase President Donald Trump pressured them to bring, and hinted at agrowing public leeriness of the administration’sretribution campaign. Agrand jury rejection is
an unusualcircumstancein any case, but is especially stinging fora JusticeDepartment that has beensteadfast in its determination to seek revenge against Trump foes likeJames andformer FBIDirector James Comey. On separate occasions, citizens have heardthe government’sevidence against James and have come away underwhelmed, unwilling to rubber-stamp what prosecutors have attemptedtoportray as aclear-cut criminal case Ajudge threw out the original indictments against Jamesand Comey in November, rulingthat the prosecutor who presented to the grand jury,Lindsey Halligan, was illegally appointed U.S.
attorneyfor the EasternDistrictofVirginia.
The Justice Department asked agrand jury in Alexandria, Virginia,toreturnan indictmentThursday after a different grand jury in Norfolk last week refused to do so. The failure to secure an indictment wasconfirmed by two people familiarwith the matter whowere not authorizedtopublicly discuss the case andspoke on the conditionofanonymity. It was notimmediately clear Thursdaywhether prosecutors would tryfor a third time to seek anew indictment. Oneofthe people familiar with thematter said prosecutors were still evaluating next stepsand stood behind the charges Alawyer for James, who has denied any wrongdoing,
saidthe “unprecedented rejection makes even clearer thatthis case should never have seen thelight of day.”
“This case already has been astain on this Department’sreputation and raises troubling questions about its integrity,”defense attorney Abbe Lowell said in astatement. “Any further attempt to revive thesediscredited chargeswould be amockery of our system of justice.”
James, aDemocrat who infuriated Trump after his first term with alawsuit alleging that he built his business empire on lies about his wealth,was initially charged with bank fraud and making false statements to afinancial institutioninconnection with ahome purchase in 2020.
ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO By MARK SCHIEFELBEIN Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem raises her arm Thursdaybefore the House Committee on Homeland SecurityonCapitol Hill in Washington.
statement Thursday.“Judge Foxworth-Robertsacknowledgedthat she should have done abetter job of supervising her campaign material and discipline was expected.Wenote that the claim of insurance fraud which was the original anonymous complaint wasfound not true. There has not been adecision on any further legal steps.”
The high court also ordered Foxworth-Roberts to pay nearly $9,500 to reimburse the cost of the investigation.
Along with Weimer,those voting in favor of stripping Foxworth-Roberts of her title were Justices Cade Cole, Jay McCallum andWill Crain, who was recently appointed to the federal bench. Dissenting were Justices Piper Griffin, John Michael Guidry and Jeff Hughes.
Griffin and Guidry each wrote in separate dissents that Foxworth-Roberts should have beensuspended for the remainder of her term, which would allow voters to determine her future at the polls. Foxworth-Roberts would have been up for reelection next year
“With an upcoming election around the corner next year,they have the right to judge forthemselves whether she willeverwear arobe again,” Guidry wrote. “I will not disenfranchise our votersand deprive them of that opportunity to be the judge.”
But Weimer disagreed, writing in the majority opinion that the court could not make apolitical decision, and saying “let the people decide” would allow the high court to relinquish its role.
“Those who continuously engageinfalsehoodssimply should not sit in judgment of others,” his opinion said Voters elected FoxworthRoberts to thebench in 2020.But theJudiciary Commission’sOffice of Special Counsel, which investigates judges, said voters
nevergot atrue picture of whoFoxworth-Roberts was becauseofmistruths on the campaign trail Among them: Adsfor Foxworth-Roberts saidshe was aveteran of Desert Storm, though she was just 16 duringthe conflict.Her ads also said she had risen to the rank of Army captain. The special counsel struggledto getahold of her military records to confirm the details of her serviceand told the JudiciaryCommissionthat Foxworth-Roberts wouldnot authorizetheirrelease.
Once the special counsel got Foxworth-Roberts’ military records,theyshowed sheneverbecame acaptain and that she was honorably discharged in 2010 “asa result of beingtwicenonselected for promotion to the rank of captain,” according to the Judiciary Commission.
Foxworth-Roberts admitted at various points in the investigation that shehad notrisen to the rank of captain, butshe also argued that she played acontributingrole in Desert Storm because she worked with Gulf Warveterans at theWalter Reed Medical Center in the early 1990s.
Foxworth-Roberts leaned on her military experience in her campaign ads, wearingmilitary attire in someof them andsaying in one video that she was “no stranger to being on thefront lines dur-
ing thecall of duty.” She later acknowledged that she hasnever deployedoverseas or served in combat.
The special counsel also questionedaninsurance claimFoxworth-Roberts filedwhenshe wascampaigning in 2020 that said an estimated $40,000 in jewelry and other goods were stolen from hercar.Policebody camera footage showed Foxworth-Robertspointingtoher driveway at her home and saying the theft happened when her car was “like this.”
But Foxworth-Roberts reported to her insurance companythatthe break-in happened miles away,while she was outcampaigning in Baton Rouge’sSherwood Forestneighborhood.
Sheinitially told theOfficeofSpecial Counselthat she did not submit an insurance claim after thebreakin, only later acknowledging that she filedone with
USAA. The items she reportedstolen to policealso did not match up withwhat she reported to the insurance company, according to Judiciary Commission documents She told policethatthieves stole aYves St. Laurent purse,aRolex watch, a MacBook,one Gucci shoe and more. Butshe later filed ahomeowners’insurance claimfor her engagement ring as well,withthe company paying her roughly $24,000 in total.
TheSupreme Court’sruling Thursday saidthe nature of Foxworth-Roberts’ misconduct is problematic because“it callsintoquestion her honestyand integrity— minimum qualifications the public expects from every judge.”
The last judge kickedoff the bench by the Louisiana SupremeCourt was former JeffersonParishDistrict Judge Joan Benge in 2009 Benge was removed after the FBIopened acorruption investigation into the
courthouse called “Wrinkled Robe,” though they did not charge her criminally Though Benge was the most recentjudge to face being disrobed, the high court did not cite her case in theirdiscussion of Foxworth. Instead, they turned to a2002caseinvolving former Orleans District Judge Sharon Hunter, whowas removed from thebench over “failure to administercompetently” hercourt section and lack of cooperation with an appeals court.
In Foxworth-Roberts’ case, the justices were clear that their decision was not basedonher courtroom rulings or howshe administeredher docket.But at each stageofthe Judiciary Commission investigation, her behavior drew scrutiny from judges who found it troubling.
Last year,retired Jefferson Parish Judge Melvin Zeno —who servedasa hearing officer forher case —cameaway with the conclusion that Foxworth-Rob-
erts had “little, if any credibility” and cited manyfalse and misleading statements andflagrant attempts to hide the truth. The full Judiciary Commission then voted earlier this year to recommend Foxworth-Roberts’ removal from the bench, describing heras“dishonest andmisleading.”
The final decision on disciplining Louisiana judges lies with thestate Supreme Court itself
During oral arguments before the high court in October, some justices questioned why Foxworth-Roberts kept doubling down on past responses and continued to defend herself McCallum highlighted that issue in aconcurring opinion Thursday “Rather than takeresponsibility for her conduct, (Foxworth-Roberts) has persisted withtortured explanations and excuses,” he wrote. “Therefore, her conducthas done little, if anything, to show remorse or contrition.”
Echols electedHouse Republican caucus chair
He hadsupport of governor forthe position
BY TYLER BRIDGES Staff writer
Gov.Jeff Landry won an inside-the-State-Capitol victoryThursdaywhen Republicans in the Louisiana House of Representatives elected his favored candidate to be their next caucus chair
State Rep. Michael Echols, of Monroe, notched39votes to 33 for Rep. John Illg of Metairie. The election roiled the 73-member House Republican delegation because it pitted two of their members against each other in an election with high stakes
INSURER
Continued from page1A
natural disastersfrom climate change, inflation and supply chain shocks during the COVID pandemic.
Insurance Commissioner TimTemple, aRepublican former insurance executive who tookoffice in 2024, hasushered in aseries of changes that he says will create more competition and drive down costs. Those include backingnew laws to make it easier for insurers to raise rates and droppolicyholders.
“Addressing the affordabilityofhomeowners insurance in Louisiana will require continued commitment to improving the insurance marketplace,aswellas aserious focus on strengthening the resilienceofour homes and communities,” Temple said in astatement Thursday.“The Louisiana Fortify Homes Program is foundational to this effort, as is supporting the Coastal Protection and Restoration Authority’smitigation efforts and embracing stronger —and better-enforced —building codes.”
Louisiana has seen rate hikes moderate from highs in 2023 and 2024. For instance, the 4.9% rate increase this year would be the smallest increase since 2020,before thecrisisbegan,when rates edged up 1.9%.
Still, many homeowners arestruggling to pay premiums that have doubled or tripled, andhaven’tcome down significantly since.
It’snot clear to what extent new insurance companiesare writing policies in southLouisiana. Temple said in arecent interview that several have gone through the regulatory process to do businesshere, butthathis department doesn’ttrack how many policies they write.
But he said he’sconfident the recent changes will improve rates among existing insurers.
“The reform efforts aren’t solely based on just bringing
internally Echolshad pledged to put agreater focus on communicating the message— and
legislative victories —of House Republicans. Thursday’svote would normally attract little notice out-
side of the StateCapitol. But Landry raised the temperature by telling House Republicans that he wanted them to elect Echols as the caucus chair —who organizes Republican strategy meetings during the legislative session, with thegovernor and his aides frequently attending to push his priorities. Governors have frequentlysoughttoget their preferred candidatenamed speaker or Senate president, butnonebeforeLandryhad pushed for theselection of a caucus chair Echols’ election marks a reversal from when John Bel Edwards, aDemocrat, was governor,and Republicans championed the idea of the Legislature being independent of the governor Illg has voted with Landry nearly all of the time during
newcompaniesin,”Temple said. “Where you’re going to have the biggestimpactthe quickest is with the existing market.”
AndreaneciaMorris, head of the nonprofitHousingNOLA, said the continued rise in home insurancerates shows thestate has not done enough to stem the crisis. She saidthe SureChoicerate cutwill give somepeople some “breathing room,” but that too many people are still struggling to paytheir premiums
Morris has pushedfor the state to mandatethat insurersoffer certainlevels of discounts forhomeowners with fortifiedroofs,and Temple recently saidhis officeisexploring adding such amandate.
“Everyone agrees on the solutions,”Morrissaid. “It’s fortified roofs. We’renot doingthat fast enough. We’re notdoing that to scale.”
The costofhome insurance in Louisianadepends in large partonreinsurance, a global, loosely regulated industry that actsasaninsurance backstop for insurance companies.
In other words, Louisiana
homeownerspay higher costs not only because of hurricanes here, butbecause of increasingly destructive wildfiresinCalifornia, stormsinFlorida and tornadoes in theMidwest.
Louisianainsurers rely more heavily on reinsurance than the average insurance company, making price hikesmore acutely felt here And reinsurancecostsspiraledfor years, from 2017 to 2024, according to the trade publication Artemis, which tracks reinsurance costs.
But this year,reinsurance costs declinedby6.7%.The dropwas largely theresult of huge price hikes,which attracted aflood of capital into the market andaffected supply
SureChoice’srate decrease was “primarily driven by areduction in reinsurance costs,” theInsurance Departmentsaid in astatement.
In thelongterm,many insuranceexperts believe costs will continue to rise as climate change brings increasingly destructive naturaldisasters. Louisiana is among severalstates encouraging the building
the governor’stwo years in office and never saw Landry as an enemy But numerous House members said Landry backed Echolsbecause Illg took astand against the governor’sbiggest priorityduring the2025 legislative session, ameasure thatgaveInsurance Commissioner TimTemple more powertoreject insurance rate increases. The bill would allowLandry to
blameTemple if insurance rates continue to rise. Before the vote, whichwas by asecret ballot, Illg expressed puzzlement with the governor’sopposition to him since he has been asteadfast supporter Echols is replacing state Rep. Mark Wright of Covington,who is running for aseat on thePublic ServiceCommission that Eric Skrmettaisvacating because of term limits.
of stronger roofs to better withstand hurricanes.
STAFF FILEPHOTO By MICHAEL JOHNSON
State Rep. Michael Echols, R-Monroe, will serve as Republican caucus chair after his electiononThursday
STAFF FILEPHOTO By DAVIDGRUNFELD
Anew roof is installed on Cohn Street in NewOrleans as partofthe Louisiana Fortify Homes Program.
widelylauded for its scientific approach, would be diluted. Dove has defended the change in focus, saying projects using dredged sediment build land more quickly and predictably
Coastal advocacy groups and scientists that long pushed for the diversions saw them as mimicking how south Louisiana was built in the first place, using the natural flow of sediment from the MississippiRiverina way that works with nature. Theyalso pointout that land-building projects erode like the rest of the coast, while diversions could continuetofunction decades into the future.
The diversions, however, were strongly opposed by the commercial fishing industry and their parish governments due to the dramatic changes the influx of fresh water and sediment would bring to those areas.
Landry also criticized the escalating cost of the $3 billion Mid-Barataria project
More than $600 million had already beenspent on Mid-Barataria alone, with the project having broken ground in 2023. The state is hoping to recoupsome of those dollars through interest in remaining BP funds. While relatively minimal funding is set aside for the large-scale land bridge projects in the new spending plan, that amount would grow substantially if BP dollars are approvedfor them.
CPRA Executive Director Michael Hare said focusing on land bridges and barrier islands brings the state’s “flood fight to the coastline.”
“We’re going back and reevaluating alignments that were in previous master plans andfinding opportunities to create those acres of marshright nowand get those benefits in place,” said Hare.
The state is also planning to take afresh look at whether aproject to restore the East Timbalier barrier islandinLafourcheParish could be revived. The island was effectively abandoned after millions were spent seeking to restore it to no avail due to alist of complicating factors.
While the diversions have been removed from the upcoming spending plan, many other projects long in the works remain. Of the 130 active projects,bigger examples include:
n Another $105 million set aside for the Morganza to the Gulf levee project. The 98-mile network to protect Lafourcheand Terrebonne parishes hasa totalprice tag of some $4.9 billion.
n Afurther $39.2 million for the West Shore Lake Pontchartrain levee project for parts of St. Charles, St. John the Baptist and St. James parishes. The total price for that project is $3.4 billion.
n Some $50.3 million for restoration of the disappearing Chandeleur Islands, with the total cost expected to be $383 million.
n $17.3 million for aprojectunderway that reintroduces Mississippi River water into Bayou Lafourche. The total cost is expectedto be $230 million.
Coastal advocacy groups that had pressed for the diversions expressedvarying comments on the plan.The Restore the Mississippi River Delta Coalition, which has been outspokeninits criticism of the cancellations, urged the public to examine and weigh in on the state’s strategy
“Weare still reviewing the details of this year’s annual plan to ensure that investments align with the coastal master plan, that the program maintains astrong balance of restoration and protection and that oil spill funds are both fully utilized and directed toward activities that address the devastating injuries Louisiana sustained from the Deepwater Horizon oil spill,” it said “Welook forward to celebrating the parts of this plan that meritpraise,and we remain committed to holding this administration accountable if it strays away from the coastal master plan or undermines public trust.” The Coalition to Restore
Coastal Louisiana, the state’s oldestorganizationcommitted to addressing landloss, said it “is excited to see an ambitious road map, with afocus on delivering projects from the coastal master plan.”
“There is impactful work coming soon to our entire coast,from the massive marsh and hydrologic restoration projects in thesouth-
west tothe long-awaited MRGO ecosystem restoration in the southeast,” said James Karst, theorganization’s communications director
The full plan can be found on the CPRA’s website. Public comments will be accepted until Feb. 17, while aseries of public meetings will also be held as follows: n Jan. 6at5:30p.m., Coast-
al Center at Nicholls University, 426Ardoyne Drive, Thibodaux n Jan.8at5:30 p.m., Joseph S. Yenni Building, Second Floor Council Chambers, 1221 Elmwood Park Blvd.,Jefferson n Jan. 12 at 5:30 p.m.,LSU AgCenter, 1105 W. Port St., Abbeville n Jan. 15 virtualwebinar at 1p.m. The annualplanisnot an agency budget, but instead aspending outline for projects. Funding comes froma variety of state and federal sources, as wellasoil spill proceeds. The CPRA’s board andthe state Legislature must approve the plan. BP spill money has providedthe state withbillions in cashfor restorationprojects, but that money is due to expire at theend of 2031 Projectsinthe works with money alreadydisbursed will continue beyond that, butitwillleave thestate with ahuge budgethole to fill as it seekstokeep up with its devastating land loss crisisand intensifying hurricanes.
• An all-volunteergroup that shares thegiftofChristmas joywith theneediestchildreninEastBaton RougeSchools
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son, Kate Kelly,said Thursday that Nungesser was showing undueconcernfor criminals here illegally
BY SOPHIE KASAKOVE Staff writer
Showcasing rifts between Republicans on an issue that has roiled Louisiana, Gov.Jeff Landry’soffice on Thursday scolded Lt. Gov Billy Nungesser for criticizing Border Patrol’sweek-old immigration enforcement operation in the state,calling his comments “disappointing” and accusing him of prioritizing foreignborn criminals over the state’s citizens.
“It is disappointing thathe would seek to give individuals whoenter our country illegally and thencommit crimes greater rights than American citizens,” said Kelly.“When an American citizen commits acrime, they are heldaccountable under thelaw and face jail time —the same standard should apply to everyone.”
Kelly did not address Nungesser’sconcern about the impact thesweeps are having on immigrants with legal status.
Nungesser said Wednesday that the sweeps were hurting the economy, that agents have stoked fear in people legally allowed to be here, and that he has received numerous calls from business owners who are having trouble convincing workers to clock in.
Thestatement putNungesser,aRepublican, at odds with Landry and other local Republican leaders on akey yet controversial portionof President Donald Trump’s agenda. Trump won 60% of the vote in the state last year
“They said, ‘We’re getting rid of the criminals,’”said Nungesser,who is secondin-command to Landry and leads the state’s tourism efforts, on Wednesday.“These people, alot of them have played by the rules and have awork visa and now are fearful.”
ButLandry’sspokesper-
Border Patrol agents launchedtheir operation in theNew Orleansarea last week, seeking to arrest 5,000peoplelocally.Anactual number hasbeenhard to quantify,asthe agency has thus far only releasedsnapshotsofsomearrests. Late Thursday,however,the Department of HomelandSecurity said thatfederal agents have detained250 people since theinitiative began in Louisiana eight days ago
Theoperation has expanded to the Baton Rouge area, where at least three people were arrested earlier this week, according to eyewitnesses. In comparison, when agents operated in force in Charlotte, North Carolina, for five days, 425 people were detained, according to theDepartmentofHomeland Security
There have been numerous local reportsthat U.S. citizens and peoplewith valid permits have been taken in for questioning andlater released. One of thebusinessownerswho contacted Nungesser,Scott MorseofBelleChassebased construction firm Morse Homes Inc.,said hissubcontractorDarwing Padilla was followed home by immigration agents on Wednesday Padilla ran into his house
andspoke with agents from inside. They eventually left after Padilla and his wife, Leslie,a U.S.citizen, told them that Padilla has avalid work permit. ButagentsreturnedtoPadilla’shouseon Thursday,the couple said, andposted anotice on the door requesting that Padilla appear foraninterviewwith adeportation officer on Friday
Morse said Padilla and other legally permitted employees have been staying homefrom work, out of fear of getting picked up by immigration agents.
“It’sway beyond what I expected,” said Morse.“I expected them to go after criminals. …We’re in atoxic environment where there’s no questionbeing askeduntil after.”
Alongtime registered Republican, Morse added that hisparty hasbecometoo extreme on immigration issues.
“I didvote for Trump. I didn’tvote for this,” said Morse.
Though local Democrats including New Orleans Mayor-elect Helena Moreno,U.S. Rep.Troy Carter, D-New Orleans, and others have urgedBorderPatrol to be more transparent about who it arrests and
to prove arrests are not beingmadeunfairly,area Republicans have largely been silent or supportive of theeffort, save Nungesserand morerecently, Jefferson Parish Council
memberat-largeJennifer VanVrancken.
Nungesser also said Wednesday that he has tried formonths, unsuccessfully, to geta meeting with Landry to discuss immigration en-
forcement and other issues.
Landry’sspokesperson on Thursday dismissed that claim. “The lieutenantgovernor hasthe governor’scellphone —heismore than welcome to call or text him,”said Kelly.“The governor has received no calls from him requesting ameeting.”
Asked forcomment Thursday on the governor’s response,Nungesserreiterated his earlier comments and said Landry has notresponded to his office’smeeting requests. He saidhebelieves law enforcementshould target criminals, but not put people with legal permits at risk. “They are not sure what to do,” Nungessersaid in atext message, speaking about immigrants here legally.“Need someone to give someinformation that if they have (a) work permit, you are okay.”
Nungesser
Zelenskyy: Negotiatorswrestling with Russiandemands
Discussions continue at U.S.-led peace talks
BY ILLIA NOVIKOV and SUSIE BLANN Associated Press
KYIV,Ukraine Ukrainian
President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Thursday that negotiators are wrestling with the question of territorial possession in U.S.-led peace talks on ending the war with Russia, including the future of Ukraine’s eastern Donetsk region and the Russian-occupiedZaporizhzhia nuclear power plant, one of the world’s10biggest atomic plants.
Zelenskyy revealed details of the ongoing discussions before he headed into urgent talks with leaders and officials from about 30 countries that support Kyiv’sefforts to obtain fair termsin any settlement to haltnearly four years of fighting.
In Washington, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said President Donald Trump’sspecial envoy,Steve Witkoff, continued to be in discussions with both
sides. Shesaidthat“if there is areal chance of signing a peaceagreement,” then the U.S. couldsend arepresentative to the talks as soon as this weekend.
ButLeavitt added thatit’s “still up in the airwhether we believe real peace canbe achieved.”
Trump long boasted about beingabletosolve Russia’s war in Ukraineinaday,but in recent monthshas complainedbitterlyabout alack of progress. Leavitt echoed that during herbriefing with reporters on Thursday, saying the president is “extremely frustrated with both sides of this war.” She said the administrationhad spent 30-plus hours just in recent weeks meeting with officials from Russia and Ukraine as well as Europe,and that Trump is “sick of meetings just forthe sake of meeting.”
“Hedoesn’t wantany more talk,” Leavitt said. “Hewants action ”
Ukraine has submitted a 20-point plan to the U.S., with each point possibly accompanied by aseparatedocument detailing the settlement terms.
“Weare grateful that the U.S. is working with us and trying to takeabalanced
aRussian army brigade commander,onThursday at the Kremlin in Moscow.
position,” Zelenskyy told reporters in theUkrainian capital Kyiv.“But at this moment it is still difficult to say what thefinaldocuments will look like.”
Russia hasinrecent months made adetermined push to gain control of all partsofDonetsk and neighboring Luhansk,which together make up Ukraine’s valuable Donbasindustrial region.
Ukraine doesn’taccept the surrender of Donbas, Zelenskyy said, saying that both sidesremaining wherethey currently stand along the line of contact would be “a fair outcome.”
American negotiators have
put forward thepossibility of a“free economiczone” in the Donbas, with theRussians terming it a“demilitarized zone,”according to Zelenskyy Russianofficials have not publicly disclosed their proposals.
ing from the Donetsk region, with the compromise being that Russian forces do not enter that territory,Zelenskyy said.
ButhesaidthatifUkraine must withdraw its forces,the Russians should also withdraw by thesame distance. There are many unanswered questions, including who wouldoversee theDonbas, he added.
The Russians want to retain control of the Zaporizhzhia plant in southern Ukraine, which is notcurrently operating, but Ukraine opposes that.
TheAmericans havesuggested ajoint format to manage the plant, and negotiators are discussing howthat might work, Zelenskyy said.
The leaders of Germany, Britainand France were amongthose taking part in the meeting of Ukraine’s allies, dubbed the Coalition of the Willing, via video link.
Zelenskyy indicated the
By The Associated Press
tocurrency mogul Do Kwon was sentenced Thursday to 15 years in prison aftera $40 billion crash revealed his crypto ecosystem to be afraud. Victims said the 34-year-old financial technology whiz weaponized their trust to convince them that the investment —secretly propped up by cash infusions —was safe.
Kwon, aStanford graduate knownbysome as “thecryptocurrency king,” apologized
after listening as victims one in court and others by telephone —described the scam’stoll: wiping out nest eggs, depleting charities and wrecking lives. One told thejudge in aletter thathe contemplated suicide after his fatherlosthis retirement moneyinthe scheme U.S. District Judge Paul A. Engelmayer said at a daylong sentencing hearing in Manhattan federal court that the government’srecommendationof12yearsin prisonwas “unreasonably lenient”and thatthe defense’s
request for fiveyears was
“utterly unthinkable and wildly unreasonable.” Kwon faced amaximum sentence of 25 years in prison.
“Your offense caused real people to lose$40 billion in real money,not some paper loss,” Engelmayer told Kwon, who sat at the defense table in ayellow jail suit. The judge called it “a fraudonanepic, generational scale” andsaid Kwon hadan“almost mystical hold” on investors and caused incalculable “human wreckage.”
talks were hastilyarranged as Kyiv officials scramble to avoidgetting boxed in by U.S. President Donald Trump, who has disparaged theUkrainian leader, painted European leaders as weak, and set astrategy of improving Washington’srelationship with Moscow In the faceofTrump’sdemands for aswift settlement, European governmentsare trying to help steer the peace negotiations because they say theirown securityisat stake.
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said Thursday that he, British Prime Minister Keir Starmerand French President EmmanuelMacron suggested to Trump thattheyfinalize the peace proposals together with U.S. officialsoverthe weekend. Theremay also be talksin Berlin early next week, with or without Americanofficials, he said.
ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO By GAVRIIL GRIGOROV
RussianPresidentVladimir Putin, left, holds acall with military leaders on the Ukraine battlefield situation together withDenis Pirogov,right,
Winter stormripsthrough Gaza
in some places. Dirt roads turned to mud. Pilesofgarbageand sewagecascaded like waterfalls
by unhindered humanitarian aid,including medical support and proper shelter.”
BY WAFAA SHURAFA, BASSEM MROUE and JULIA FRANKEL Associated Press
DEIR AL-BALAH, Gaza Strip
Rains drenched Gaza’stent camps and dropping temperatures chilled Palestinians huddlinginside them
Thursday as winterstorm Byron descended on the warbattered territory,showing how two months of aceasefire have failed to sufficiently address the spiraling humanitarian crisis there.
Families found their possessions and food supplies soaked inside their tents.
Children’ssandaled feet disappeared under opaque brownwater that flooded the camps, running knee deep
“Wehave been drowned. Idon’thave clothes to wear and we have no mattresses left,” said Um Salman Abu Qenas, adisplaced mother in aKhan Younis tent camp.
Shesaidthather family couldn’tsleep the night before,becauseofthe waterin the tent.
Aid groupssay not enough sheltermaterialsare getting into Gaza during the truce.
Figures recently released by Israel’smilitary suggest it hasn’tmet the ceasefire stipulationofallowing 600 trucks of aid into Gaza aday,though Israel disputes thatfinding.
“Cold, overcrowded, and unsanitaryenvironments heighten the risk of illness and infection,” the U.N. agency for Palestinian refugees, UNRWA,saidonX.“This sufferingcould beprevented
Sabreen Qudeeh, also in the Khan Younis camp,ina squalid area known as Muwasi,saidthather family woke up to rain leaking from their tent’sceiling and water from the street soaking their mattresses.
“Mylittle daughterswere screaming,” she said.
Ahmad Abu Taha, also living in thecamp, saidthere wasn’tatentthatescaped theflooding.“Conditions are very bad, we have oldpeople, displaced, andsickpeople inside this camp,” he said.
Floods in south-central Israel trapped morethan a dozen people in their cars, according to Hebrew media. Israel’s rescue services, MDA,said that two young girls were slightly injured when atreefell on their school.
The contrasting scenes
Tens of thousandsordered to flee flooding in PacificNorthwest
BY CEDAR ATTANASIO and CLAIRE RUSH Associated Press
MOUNT VERNON, Wash. Surging floodwaters turned farmland into vast pools, washed out bridges and stranded people Thursday,with evacuation orders issued for tens of thousands of Washington state residents and authorities hoping leveesprevent far worse damage.
“The flooding levelswe’re looking at are potentially historic in nature, so we just want to emphasize how serious the situation is,” Gov. Bob Ferguson said at anews briefing Thursday,one day after declaring astatewide emergency
About 78,000 residents of amajor agricultural region north of Seattle were or-
dered to evacuate the Skagit River’sfloodplain,officials said Along the river in Mount Vernon, teams knocked on doors in low-lyingareas Thursdaytoinform themof evacuation notices,city authoritiessaid Further north near the U.S.-Canada border,Sumas, Nooksackand Eversonwere evacuated afterbeing inundated by floodwaters, while theborder crossing at Sumas was closed, according to Whatcom County.Sumas Mayor Bruce Bosch said much of the city has been “devastated”bythe high watersjustfouryears after a similarflood.
“I am deeplysorry that ourcommunity is facing this hardshipagain,but Iamrelieved that most residents
evacuated when advised,” he said in an online statement.
Over10,000 customers in Washington were without electricitylateThursday afternoon, according to PowerOutage.us. Dozens of roads were inundated or washed outacross thestate, some of which had no detour or estimated timefor reopening.
Amountainoussection of U.S. 2was closed due to rocks,treesand mud, while alarge section of state Route 410 was closed becauseof water covering the roadway, according to the state transportation department.
Heavy rain andflooding washed outatleast three bridges in themountains of northwestern Montana, where an emergency shelteropened in achurch in the small town of Libby
withGazamade clear how profoundly theIsrael-Hamas warhad damaged theterritory,destroying the majority of homes. Gaza’spopulation of around 2million is almost entirely displaced, andmost peopleliveinvast tent camps stretching along the coast, or setupamongthe shells of damaged buildings withoutadequate flooding infrastructure and with cesspits dug near tents as toilets.
At leastthree buildings in Gaza City already damaged by Israelibombardment during the war partially collapsed under the rain, Palestinian CivilDefensesaid. It warned people not to stay inside damaged buildings, saying they too could fall down on topofthem.
The agency also said that sincethe storm began, they have received more than 2,500 distress calls from people across Gaza whosetents and shelters weredamaged.
With buckets and mops, Palestinians laboriously scooped water out of their tents.
Aid groups say that Israel isn’tallowing enough aidinto Gaza to begin rebuilding the territory after years of war Underthe agreement, Israel agreed to comply with aid stipulationsfromanearlier January truce, whichspecifiedthatitallow600 trucks of aideach dayintoGaza, It
maintains it’sdoing so, but The Associated Press found that some of its own figures call that into question. The January truce also specified that Israellet in anumberofcaravans and tents. No caravans have yet entered Gazaduring the ceasefire,saidTania
BY ALYSE PFEIL
CRIME BLOTTER staff reports
and possession of a firearm by a convicted felon, police said in a news release. The shooting happened about 1:30 a.m. June 22 in the 3500 block of Choctaw Drive, when gunfire erupted in a crowd of people, killing Prenesha Third arrest made in shooting of woman
Judge declares defendant competent for trial
State may seek death penalty in officer’s death
BY MATT BRUCE Staff writer
Three doctors have agreed that Gad Ezekiel Black, the man indicted in the killing of Baton Rouge police Sgt. Caleb Eisworth, is fit to stand trial. And a Baton Rouge judge declared him competent to proceed Thursday morning during a hearing inside the 19th Judicial District Courthouse. State prosecutors said they likely will pursue the death penalty against Black. The 41-yearold Baton Rouge man faces a first-degree murder charge. He is accused of intentionally ramming his pickup into Eisworth’s
motorcycle late on the morning of June 16. Eisworth was a decorated officer who spent 23 years on the police force and joined the department’s motorcycle patrol unit in 2008. He was heading to a work-related escort assignment when a driver, later determined to be Black, plowed into him with his pickup on Joor Road near Prescott Lane, East Baton Rouge sheriff’s officials said. Investiga-
tors said Black followed Eisworth for a short distance before striking him intentionally because he was in law enforcement. Eisworth was critically wounded and spent eight grueling weeks in a hospital before he died from his injuries Aug. 10. Sheriff Sid Gautreaux described the fatal hit-and-run as a “hate-driven” targeted attack.
BY CHRISTOPHER CARTWRIGHT Staff writer
A Donaldsonville resident has filed a federal lawsuit after the City Council unanimously adopted an ordinance that
Tuesday, Hamilton said Donaldsonville is “deliberately violating the First Amendment rights of its residents by criminalizing the act of recording public meetings.”
“The recording ordinance conceals the business of government by discouraging residents from recording and reporting on official acts,” he said. “The ordinance is egregiously unconstitutional, and the city should be ashamed of passing it in the first place.”
Council Chairman Charles Brown Sr the brother of Clem Brown, declined to comment on the lawsuit but said the ordinance was passed because Daigle’s phone had been ringing during meetings.
“As a consequence, we designated a place in the
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District Attorney Hillar
Moore said his office would likely present the matter to a grand jury as a death penalty case.
During Thursday’s hearing, Assistant District Attorney Dana Cummings reiterated that stance telling Chief District Judge Donald Johnson she intends to meet with Eisworth’s loved ones again before possibly filing a formal death penalty notice with the court
“But I think it’s very likely this will be a capital case,” Cummings said. It was Black’s first court
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Wagner, 24. Police Chief Thomas Morse said the shooting escalated from a fistfight among a group of women in a parking lot near the afterhours club, The Big Blue House.
Previously, Scott Strickland, 18, was booked into the East Baton Rouge Parish Prison and faces charges of first-degree murder and illegal use of a weapon as well as six counts of attempted first-degree murder, according to an affidavit for his arrest.
A 15-year-old boy was also arrested after the shooting and placed in the Baton Rouge Juvenile Center He faces a count of principal to first-degree murder and six counts of principal to attempted first-degree murder, according to police.
Police: Man accused of sex video blackmail
A 23-year-old Baton Rouge man was arrested, accused of using smart glasses to film a sexual encounter in an LSU dorm room and then using the footage to extort
back. It wasn’t political or anything else,” he said “We can’t have people coming in and trying to take videos while we’re trying to do a meeting.”
Council Vice Chair Michael Sullivan Sr said he could not comment on the lawsuit, and Mayor Leroy Sullivan declined to comment after Tuesday’s council meeting
Alleged retaliation
The lawsuit alleges that the council passed the ordinance as retaliation for Daigle filming part of an incident in May when Clem Brown allegedly threatened former mayoral candidate Glenn Price.
“As the two men left the meeting room, Councilman Brown shouted, ‘Let’s go behind the levee,’ and ‘I’ll put a bullet in your head,’ to Price,” the lawsuit states.
“Ms. Daigle, who attended the May 19 Council meet-
appearance since he was indicted Oct. 30 for firstdegree murder, a charge elevated after Eisworth died.
Black was arraigned Thursday and pleaded not guilty to the murder count
His attorneys said they are sifting through a voluminous amount of evidence provided by state prosecutors in discovery Johnson scheduled an April 18 motions hearing as the next court date.
Black was diagnosed with mental illness and committed to a mental institution in the past according to testimony in his prior hearings. His legal representatives have indicated he wasn’t taking his prescribed mental health medications around
an LSU student. Despite successfully netting $250 in blackmail money from the student Jauan Wright, 23, also sent nude footage of the victim to the victim’s mother, police said. Wright was booked into the East Baton Rouge Parish Prison on Dec. 5 on a count each of video voyeurism and extortion.
The victim told police that he met Wright on social media and invited him to his dorm on Sept. 28 for a casual hookup. But the following day, Wright began messaging the student, saying that Wright’s smart glasses had been recording while the two had sex. The student contacted the LSU Police Department In the messages, Wright also threatened to post the footage, according to an affidavit for his arrest from LSU police.
At this point, Wright did not request any compensation from the victim in exchange for not posting the video online, police said. However, weeks later, on Nov 23, the victim contacted LSU police again to report that Wright had sent a nude video of the victim to the victim’s mother The student also reported
ing, recorded the altercation with her iPhone While she was filming, Councilman Michael Sullivan physically pushed her hand and repeatedly told her ‘don’t film that.’”
Clem Brown declined to comment on the incident in June. Asked at that time if his brother said he wanted to fight Price behind the levee, Charles Brown said he was “not going to say he didn’t.”
Daigle, who has regularly recorded meetings since 2019 and lost to Clem Brown by 19 votes in the 2024 election, didn’t immediately release her recording. The council introduced the ordinance a week after the incident, and she publicly posted the video on Facebook the day before the ordinance vote.
Four days after Daigle posted the video, the council called a special meeting to discuss removing her and another person from the
the time of the fatal collision with Eisworth.
Cummings told the judge Black’s attorneys will likely raise their client’s sanity at the time of the attack as a possible defense issue at some point in the case. She petitioned the judge to remove New Orleans psychiatrist Sarah Deland from the panel of doctors appointed to evaluate Black moving forward in the case.
Black’s attorneys said it was a moot issue, because Deland agreed with Baton Rouge clinical psychologist Brandon Romano and New Orleans psychiatrist Jose Artecona that Black is mentally fit for trial at the time. “This is not moot, because when a sanity commission
that he had been extorted by Wright for $250.
Wright’s bail was set at $15,000, and he was required to sign an order of protection as part of his release. He is scheduled to have a bail review with Commissioner Kina Kimble on April 13.
Man accused of rape of a child arrested
A Louisiana man wanted by the West Baton Rouge Parish Sheriff’s Office on a count of first-degree rape of a child was arrested Tuesday in Denver, officials said. James Connolly, 43, is also wanted by the Livingston Parish Sheriff’s Office on a count of aggravated crimes against nature.
The West Baton Rouge Sheriff’s Office obtained the warrant for Connolly’s arrest in August, but then learned he fled the state, the U.S. Marshals Service said in a news release.
The Sheriff’s Office requested assistance from the U.S. Marshals Service in Baton Rouge, and the service began investigating leads as to Connolly’s whereabouts.
“On Monday, freshly obtained information about Connolly being in the Denver metro area was relayed
board of adjustments.
“These adverse actions were wholly motivated by punishing Ms. Daigle for engaging in constitutionally protected activity,” the lawsuit states. “Because of Defendant’s actions, Ms. Daigle’s speech has been chilled in fact. She is fearful of and refrains from engaging in protected speech, out of fear of government punishment or further retaliatory action.”
The council tabled the matter at the meeting without giving a reason and hasn’t addressed it or the incident involving Clem Brown. According to the lawsuit, Daigle hasn’t received any information about her potential removal since June.
“On August 22, 2025, Ms. Daigle’s counsel sent a letter on her behalf to Mayor Sullivan and members of the City Council, asking for clarification as to why Ms
is appointed, routinely what happens down the road, the next step is they evaluate the defendant’s sanity at the time of the offense,” Cummings argued “So the fact that this doctor should be disqualified is very relevant. She should not be appointed to evaluate any defendants’ sanity at the time of the offense in a capital case.”
Michael Fiser, a courtappointed attorney from the Baton Rouge Capital Conflict Office, objected to Deland being removed.
According to motions filed in the court record, prosecutors allege the doctor is “known throughout the state as an opponent of the death penalty.”
Prosecutors cited a case
to members of the U.S. Marshals Colorado Violent Offender Task Force,” the U.S. Marshals Service said. Tuesday morning, U.S. marshals, assisted by law enforcement from a number of different Colorado agencies, arrested Connolly as he arrived at his place of work.
In an online post, West Baton Rouge Sheriff Jeff Bergeron thanked all of the agencies involved.
“Their efforts ensured this fugitive is now in custody and awaiting extradition to Louisiana,” Bergeron said.
Southern clears fraternity of hazing
Southern University’s chapter of the Alpha Phi Alpha fraternity was cleared of any wrongdoing in a hazing investigation that has had the Greek Life organization under censure for months.
Findings from the investigation showed that collegeaged women, who were contestants in the fraternity’s Miss Black and Gold pageant, were made to do jumping jacks and other exercises.
The fraternity was informed Dec. 3 that the
Daigle’s removal from the Board was proposed,” the lawsuit added. “Defendant City never acknowledged the letter.”
Enforcement of laws
The lawsuit asks the court to find the ordinance in violation of the First Amendment, arguing the ordinance is vague and over broad.
It points to the terms “interfere with,” “distract,” and “otherwise degrade decorum” as vague, wherein an average person would be unable to know what kind of speech is allowed under the ordinance. The lawsuit also targets part of the ordinance that bans the publication of recordings edited in a “form which misrepresents the manner in which the meeting was conducted or the events that occurred during the meeting.”
“The publication of such recordings is protected by the First Amendment,
involving Shon Miller Sr who was convicted of killing his infant son, estranged wife, mother-in-law and another woman in October 1999. Deland, who evaluated Miller, indicated in that case that she doesn’t “particularly like the death penalty,” the state’s motion argued.
But Fiser countered that Deland has never shown bias in Black’s murder case and she has the qualifications to remain on the appointed sanity commission.
“An expert’s personal views about punishment do not render her unqualified to conduct a mental health evaluation, which turns on clinical assessment, not personal preferences,” the attorney wrote in his op-
cease-and-desist order against it, which limited students’ ability to meet in person or wear fraternity gear, had been lifted. The censure began in October after allegations of hazing involving Alpha Phi Alpha were made to the university
The national Alpha Phi Alpha fraternity weighed in, too, saying that if the hazing allegations were true that individual students could expect to be booted from the fraternity or possibly have the entire chapter shuttered.
An investigation was opened by the Office of Student conduct, and preliminary findings were given to the state’s Board of Regents in late November
The investigation showed that between Oct. 6 and 8, female contestants in the fraternity’s pageant were instructed to meet off campus and wear all black.
The chapter’s adviser was not aware of these meetings and did not approve them.
Contestants were made to perform jumping jacks and other physical exercises for extended periods, according to the report. They were also instructed to recite multiple texts, including a poem.
even if the recordings are edited,” the suit said.
“The speech limitations in the Recording Ordinance sweep a substantial amount of protected speech within the Ordinance’s ambit.” It also asks the court to find the city in violation of Louisiana Open Meetings Laws, pointing to the city’s lack of posting meeting minutes for board, committee and some council meetings. The complaint states the city has failed to post agendas and minutes for any standing or special committee, board, or commission since April 2020. The city has also failed to post council minutes since June 30, according to the lawsuit and the Donaldsonville website Officials in violation of the Louisiana Open Meetings Laws face fines of up to $500 per violation, and the lawsuit asks the court to enforce such penalties.
position filing. “The commission’s task is to evaluate mental condition, not to advocate sentencing outcomes.”
Johnson reserved the right for both sides to make their claims, but determined the issue of Deland’s appointment could be addressed at a later time if an issue arises.
“If you all are going to require the court to make a formal ruling, I will do that,” the judge told attorneys.
“You will not be in a state of flux without knowing which direction we’re going to go. But right now I don’t think it’s necessary to rule on her expertise at this juncture.” Email Matt Bruce at matt. bruce@theadvocate.com.
At the time, Southern University Board Chair Tony Clayton said the reported hazing did not concern him. “Hazing complaints need to be legitimate. I’m not concerned that students were asked to do sidesteps,” Clayton told The Advocate on Nov 21.
“The investigation conducted by the Office of Student Conduct found that the chapter did not violate the Student Code of Conduct, University hazing policies, or Greek Life protocols,” a Southern spokesperson said in an email confirming that the investigation had concluded.
BUSINESS
Epic Piping to expand
Livingston facility
Epic Piping said it will upgrade its Livingston manufacturing facility, creating 76 direct jobs.
The new jobs will have an average salary of $58,377 and Louisiana Economic Development projects 136 indirect jobs as a result of the expansion. Epic Piping will retain 370 employees.
The $25 million expansion will create a large-diameter production line and update the material-handling systems to boost efficiency, positioning the company to support the state’s energy and data center industries, according to LED. Construction will start this month and finish in early 2027.
Epic Piping is a portfolio company of Bernhard Capital Partners Their corporate headquarters are in Baton Rouge with a distribution office in Houston. Epic operates facilities and distribution hubs in Livingston; Lake Providence; Baton Rouge; San Marcos, Texas; and Abu Dhabi.
Epic has worked on oil, renewable fuel, manufacturing and clean energy projects across Louisiana, Texas, Alabama, Wisconsin and overseas in Oman. In 2019, the company invested in a $40 million expansion that increased its manufacturing footprint by 30% across all facilities and relocated its corporate headquarters.
It will use the LED FastStart program, a workforce development service, $900,000 from the Economic Development Award Program, reimbursable grants from the HighImpact Jobs Program and the Industrial Tax Exemption Program to support the expansion.
U.S. jobless benefit applications increase
WASHINGTON The number of Americans applying for unemployment benefits jumped last week, but remains in the same historically healthy range of the past few years despite growing concern over the health of the labor market.
U.S jobless claim applications for the week ending Dec. 6 climbed by 44,000 to 236,000 from the previous week’s 192,000, the Labor Department reported Thursday. That’s more than analysts’ forecast of 213,000 new applications.
Despite what on the surface appears to be a historically healthy job market, the Federal Reserve trimmed its benchmark lending rate by a quarter-point on Wednesday, its third straight cut For now, the U.S. job market appears stuck in a “low-hire, low-fire” state that has kept the unemployment rate historically low
Average U.S. long-term mortgage rate at 6.22%
The average rate on a 30-year U.S. mortgage edged higher this week, though it remains relatively near its low point so far this year The uptick brings the average long-term mortgage rate to 6.22% from 6.19% last week, mortgage buyer Freddie Mac said Thursday A year ago, the rate averaged 6.6%
Borrowing costs on 15-year fixed-rate mortgages, popular with homeowners refinancing their home loans, also rose this week. The rate averaged 5.54%, up from 5.44% last week. A year ago, it averaged 5.84%, Freddie Mac said Mortgage rates are influenced by several factors, from the Federal Reserve’s interest rate policy decisions to bond market investors’ expectations for the economy and inflation. They generally follow the trajectory of the 10-year Treasury yield, which lenders use as a guide to pricing home loans. The Fed doesn’t set mortgage rates, so even when it cuts its short-term rates that doesn’t necessarily mean rates on home loans will necessarily decline.
Disney invests $1B in OpenAI
Deal to bring characters like Mickey Mouse to Sora AI video tool
BY KELVIN CHAN AP business writer
Disney is investing $1 billion in OpenAI and will bring characters such as Mickey Mouse, Cinderella and Luke Skywalker to the AI company’s Sora video generation tool, in a licensing deal that the two companies announced on Thursday At the same time, Disney went after Google, demanding the tech company stop exploiting its copyrighted characters to train its AI systems.
The OpenAI agreement makes the Walt Disney Co. the first major content licensing partner for Sora, which uses generative artificial in-
telligence to create short videos.
Under the three-year licensing deal, fans will be able to use Sora to generate and share videos based on more than 200 Disney, Marvel, Pixar and “Star Wars” characters.
AI video generators like Sora have wowed with their ability to quickly create realistic clips based merely on text prompts. But a flood of such videos on social media, including clips depicting celebrities and deceased public figures, has raised worries about “AI slop” crowding out human-created work alongside concerns about misinformation, deepfakes and copyright.
Disney and OpenAI said they are committed to responsible use of AI that protects the safety of users and the rights of creators.
“This agreement shows how AI companies and creative leaders can work together responsibly to promote innovation that benefits society, respect the importance of creativity, and help works reach vast new audiences,” OpenAI CEO
Sam Altman said. Disney CEO Robert Iger said the deal will “extend the reach of our storytelling through generative AI, while respecting and protecting creators and their works.”
As part of the deal, some usergenerated Sora videos will be made available on the Disney+ streaming service.
Disney will also become a “major customer” of OpenAI and use its technology to build new products, tools, and services. It will also roll out ChatGPT for employees.
Children’s advocates, however criticized the move. Josh Golin, executive director of Fairplay, said Disney’s decision to partner with OpenAI “is a betrayal of countless children around the world who adore Mickey Mouse, ‘Frozen,’ and ‘Toy Story.’ OpenAI claims children are prohibited from using Sora, yet here they are luring young kids to their platform using some of their favorite characters.” Disney, he added, is “aiding and
abetting OpenAI’s efforts to addict young children to its unsafe platform and products.”
Also Thursday, Disney sent Google a cease and desist letter, demanding that the tech company stop using Disney content without permission to feed and train its AI models, including its Veo video generator and Imagen and Nano Banana image generators. It has previously issued similar cease and desist letters to Meta and Character.AI and has filed litigation with NBCUniversal and Warner Bros. Discovery against AI image generator Midjourney and AI company Minimax.
Disney accused Google of “infringing Disney’s copyrights on a massive scale,” according to a copy of the letter dated Wednesday seen by The Associated Press. The letter included examples that it says Google’s AI systems easily generated, such as characters from “Star Wars,” “The Simpsons,” “Deadpool” and “The Lion King.”
Markets hit record high
Success despite worries of an AI bubble
BY STAN CHOE AP busines writer
NEW YORK Wall Street set records on Thursday, even as a sell-off for Oracle and worries about a potential bubble in artificial-intelligence technology weighed on the market. The S&P 500 inched up 0.2% and eked past its prior all-time closing high, which was set in October The Dow Jones Industrial leaped 646 points, or 1.3%, to top its own record set last month. The Nasdaq composite lagged behind and slipped 0.3% because of the weakness for AI stocks.
It’s the latest return to records for the market following what had appeared to be a debilitating set of worries. Some of the most recent included concerns about what the Federal Reserve will do with interest rates and whether all the dollars flowing into AI chips and data centers will produce profits and productivity as prolific as proponents are promising.
Such worries sent Wall Street last month to some of its worst and scariest days since its sell-off during April, but it then got several boosts that helped it regain its footing. Key among them was a continuing parade of companies saying they’re making bigger profits than analysts expected. Stock prices tend to track with corporate profits over the long term.
The Fed also on Wednesday cut its main interest rate for the third time this year and indicated another cut may be ahead in 2026. Wall Street loves lower interest rates because they can boost the economy and send prices for investments higher even if they potentially make inflation worse.
The Fed’s chair, Jerome Powell, did hint that interest rates may be on hold for a while. But he helped soothe nerves when his comments appeared less harsh than some investors expected in shutting off the possibility of more cuts in 2026.
Easier interest rates can give the biggest benefits to the smallest companies, which are more likely to be losing money and often need to borrow to grow The Russell 2000 index of the smallest U.S. stocks jumped 1.2% to help lead the market.
Banks and other companies whose profits are closely tied to the strength of the economy also rallied. Gains of 2.5% for Goldman Sachs and 6.1% for Visa were the strongest forces
Trader William Lawrence works on the floor of the New york
Wall Street set records even as a sell-off for Oracle and worries about a potential bubble in artificial-intelligence technology weighed on the market.
pushing the Dow higher
The Walt Disney Co. added 2.4% after OpenAI said the entertainment giant is investing $1 billion in it.
Eli Lilly rose 1.6% after announcing encouraging results from a clinical trial for adult patients who are obese or overweight and have knee osteoarthritis, without diabetes. Planet Labs PBC soared 35% after the provider of satellite images used by governments and businesses reported stronger results for the latest quarter than analysts expected.
But a return to records for the U.S. stock market does not mean all worries are gone.
Oracle dropped 10.8% and had briefly been on track earlier in the day for its worst loss since 2001, when the dot-com bubble was still deflating.
Doubts remain about whether all the spending that Oracle is doing on AI technology will be worth it. Analysts said they were surprised after Oracle laid out on late Wednesday how much it will spend on investments this fiscal year, and questions continue about how the company will pay for it.
Such doubts are weighing on the AI industry broadly, even as many billions of dollars continue to flow in.
Nvidia, the chip company that’s become
the poster child of the AI boom and is raking in close to $20 billion each month, fell 1.5% Thursday It was the heaviest weight on the S&P 500 because of its massive size.
Also on the losing end of Wall Street was Oxford Industries. The company behind Tommy Bahama and Lilly Pulitzer dropped 21.2% after highlighting how its customers have been seeking out deals and are “highly value-driven.”
CEO Tom Chubb said the start of the holiday shopping season has been weaker than the company expected, and it cut its forecast for revenue for the full year
Lower- and middle-income households are feeling the squeeze of high prices following years of high inflation, along with a slowing job market. That means a roughly 25% chance of a recession, according to Barry Bannister, chief equity strategist at Stifel.
Even all the spending underway for AI chips is “not enough to offset a consumer pull-back,” he said, and the U.S. stock market still broadly looks expensive relative to history
All told, the S&P 500 rose 14.32 points to 6,901.00. The Dow Jones Industrial Average jumped 646.26 to 48,704.01, and the Nasdaq composite slipped 60.30 to 23,593.86.
The LSU Board of Supervisors on Thursday voted to establish a School of Construction and a bachelor’s degree in artificial intelligence, both in the College of Engineering. The new programs, contingent on approval by the Board of Regents, align with broad efforts to orient LSU toward industry and expand public-private partnerships. The expanded academic offer-
ings, approved unanimously by the supervisors, will have limited fiscal impact, according to summaries presented Thursday. The bachelor of science degree in artificial intelligence aims to employ two nontenure-track instructors and use existing classroom space and resources. The School of Construction will offer current construction degrees, including construction management, but no new academic programs. The move is primarily a name change, elevating the Department of Construction Management “to reflect the program’s significant growth, strong student demand, robust employer interest, excellent placement outcomes, and high
levels of student engagement in experiential learning and industrysponsored activities,” a request to the board said.
College leaders are exploring adding degrees in digital construction and modular manufacturing to the new school, according to a spokesperson for LSU. The bachelor’s degree in AI will also emphasize work-based learning and industry partnerships, according to the request submitted to the board. It will build upon an existing capstone course in AI and industry, which held a showcase Monday night for alumni and Baton Rouge-area employers. The course has previously partnered with companies such as Entergy, BASF, Our
Lady of the Lake and The Advocate
The request referenced the Amazon fulfillment center in Shreveport and Meta’s plans for a $10 billion data center in Richland Parish as evidence of the demand for AI talent in Louisiana.
“Energy, petrochemical, health care, defense and logistics employers in the state are actively integrating AI for predictive analytics, optimization, autonomy, and digital transformation,” the summary for the board said. “LSU’s proposed degree directly addresses this need by producing graduates with the technical depth, ethical grounding and hands-on experience required to build and deploy reliable AI systems at scale.”
ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO By RICHARD DREW
Stock Exchange on Thursday.
Eagles andNicks lead N.O. Jazz Fest
RodStewart, TeddySwims, Lainey Wilson andLorde to play
BY KEITHSPERA Staff writer
The placement of names on the 2026 New Orleans Jazz &Heritage Festival talent announcement isn’t random.
Where aname appears on that top-down list is often negotiatedbetweenthe marquee acts’ representatives and the festival.
The firstthree, and thus mostprominent, names on the 2026 announcement— officially unveiled Thursday after adraft version leakedthe previous day are classic rock Jazz Fest veterans: the Eagles,Stevie Nicks andRod Stewart
The fourth name hails from adifferent generation of arenarock, buthas also previously playedthe Fair Grounds: Kings of Leon.
After Kings of Leon, the Jazz Fest lineuplist pivots to fresh faces,including a tattooed one.
Teddy Swims, the Georgia native with afondness for upper body ink, first earned afollowing via YouTube videos of cover songs; he slipseasilyfrom R&Bto soul to country to rock. His own“Lose Control”catapulted him to international stardom.
Lainey Wilson is one of the biggest new names in contemporary country music. In November,the native of Franklin Parish’stiny Baskin hosted the Country Music Association Awards telecast and won Entertainer of the Year
More Jazz Fest first-timers turn up on the poster’s second line. They include Tyler Childers, the throwback country/bluegrass singer from Kentucky,and Raye, the British pop songwriter turned hitmakerin her own right. They’re slatedtojoin Lorde, David Byrne, TPain, the BlackKeys, Nas, Widespread Panic, Earth Wind &Fire, Jason Isbell and the 400 Unit,Tedeschi Trucks Band, St. Vincent, Alabama Shakes, Herbie Hancock and Ziggy Marley at the Fair Grounds, alongside Jon Batiste, The Revivalists, Trombone Shorty &Orleans Avenue,Irma
The
will performatthe
ASSOCIATED
Thomasand the hundreds of other Louisianaactsthat give JazzFestits distinct personality
All-in ticket pricing
The festival’s two fourday 2026 weekends are April 23-26 and April 30May3
Thefirst weekendfeatures Nicks, Stewart, Kings of Leon,Lorde, Batiste, Childers, Byrne, Raye, Nas, SeanPaul,Isbell and the 400 Unit,St. Vincent, Thomas, The Isley Brothers, The Revivalists,Carlos Vives and BlindBoys of Alabama, among many others. Stars of thesecond weekend include theEagles, Wilson,Swims, The Black Keys, T-Pain, Widespread Panic, Earth, Wind &Fire, Tedeschi Trucks Band, TromboneShorty &Orleans Avenue, Alabama Shakes, Herbie Hancock, Ziggy Marley,Lake Street Dive, Mavis Staples, Dianne Reeves, BigFreedia, LittleFeat andGalactic featuring Jelly Joseph. Jazz Fest typicallyrolls out its roster in mid-January. Butthisyear, staffers at QuintDavis’ Festival Productions Inc.-New Orleans and AEG Presents were able to confirm the approximately 650 acts
thedata,” he added. “Sales tax is coming in alittle stronger.Spending is cominginstrong.”
soonerthanusual.
Releasing the lineup in December allows more time to market thefestival and gives fans achance to buy tickets as Christmas presents.
Four-day weekend ticket packages go on sale at 10 a.m. Friday via nojazzfest.com, which redirects buyers to axs.com.
In past years, ticket prices on the JazzFestwebsite did not include additional fees and taxes added at checkout. This year,the prices on Jazz Fest’sticketingpageare “all-in,” including fees.
Once again, Louisiana residents getadiscount. The all-in price for Louisianaresidents for afour-day general admission pass is $319. The pricefor nonresidents is $399. Single-daytickets arenot yetonsale, andlikely won’t be until the day-by-day schedule is announced in early2026.
Bignameacts
Jamaica is the 2026 spotlight country at the festival. Programming at theCulturalExchange Pavilion andelsewhere throughout the grounds will showcasethe music and culture of Jamaica.
The official 2026 Jazz Fest poster,byartist Paul Rogers, is titled “Streetcar Ramble.” It depicts Louis Armstrong riding at the front of the St.Charles Avenue streetcar with Troy “Trombone Shorty” Andrews, Jon Batiste and theTreme BrassBand’s “Uncle” Lionel Batiste and Benny Jones. The mix of big name acts on the 2026 roster adhere to the general blueprint thefestival has followed for years: two or three arena-sized classicrock acts, acouple of youngerrock bands, at least onemajor country star,acouple of pop artists and rappers and asampling of veteran R&B bands.
SinceSeptember 2024, the Eagles have locked into aleisurely residency at Sphere,the sensory-immersive Las Vegas venue. They’vetypically performed four times amonth at Sphere.The band’sfinal run of 2026Sphere shows concludes on March 28, freeingthemuptolandat the Fair Grounds amonth later.Theypreviously played Jazz Fest in 2012.
Nicks first performed at the festival with Fleetwood Mac in 2013. She was booked as asoloartist at the 2020 and 2021 Jazz Fests, both of which were canceled by COVID. She then drew one of the largest crowds of the 2022 festival, which was herfirst performance after the pandemic
Former Talking Heads frontman Byrne delivered awell-received,innovative set at the 2018 Jazz Fest and is back again this year Stewart,another veteran of the 2018 JazzFest, has embarked on what he says will be his finaltour.
Kentucky-born Childers, who filled the Smoothie King Center in April with his country/bluegrass hybrid, seems like anatural fit for JazzFest. Both R&B legends Earth Wind &Fire andjam band Widespread Panic have made numerous appearances at Jazz Fest over the decades.
Lorde, the pop singer from New Zealand, played the Gentilly Stage on a grayday in 2017. Go to nojazzfest.com for more details.
Email KeithSpera at kspera@theadvocate.com.
Clouatre, Linda WilbertFuneralHomeinPlaquemine at 11am
Endom,Franklin St.AloysiusCatholic Church at 10am.
Thomas,Dorothy Greater NewHope BaptistChurch at 10am.
Young Bates, Birdean Mt.ZionInner City,24400 Eleanor DriveinPlaquemine,at8:30a.m
Obituaries
Bowden, Dan Latham
Brittany WeberCampanella (Michael) and Madeline Meek, grandson Braeden Meek; great-granddaughterBlake Campanella and great-grandson Eli Campanella. Pallbearersare AndrewSprague, Justin Sprague,Edward Jones, PatrickMeek, Braeden Meek, andMichael Campanella. Danwas preceded in death by hisfather Waymon Sims Bowden, Jr.and motherDorothyLatham Bowden.Inlieuofflowers thefamilyasks that donationsbemade to National KidneyFoundation. Family and friends are invited to attenda funeral service at Greenoaks Funeral Home, 9595 Florida Blvd., Baton Rouge,LA70815 on Saturday December 13th, 2025, at 11:00 AM.Visitationwill be from10:00 AM untilservice time.Burial will follow in Greenoaks Memorial Park.
To replace the lost revenue from those income tax cuts, lawmakers raised the sales tax by ahalf-cent to 5%. The income tax base from wages and some businesses “is stronger than expected,” said Greg Albrecht, an economist for the Legislature.
“You can definitely see the increase in the sales tax in
Manfred Dix, another state economist, noted that last year’stax system overhaul means Louisiana is “basically switching from an incometaxation to aconsumption taxation.” As aresult, individual incometax collectionsare slowly decreasing,while sales tax collections are higher, he said. “The tax changes are
working as intended,”Dix said.
He also highlighted the fact that,even though individual income taxcollectionsare down, those revenues are strongerthanhe hadpreviously expected Albrecht said that Louisiana’semployment picture is strongand, for themost part, hasreturned to prepandemiclevels, though laborforce participationis slightly lower than before COVID hit.
He also saidthe state is
expected to see an average annual growth in income andwages of about4%.
“That’swhatIsee as basically what’sgonna support us,”Albrechtsaidof thewage outlook. “Aslong as we have that reasonable level of growth, that keeps us growing, that keeps our revenue coming in.
Buthecautionedthat if theU.S.economy starts to tank, Louisiana’seconomy will too.
“It’sreally allabout the U.S.economy,” he said.
DanLatham Bowden,70, went to be with theLord on December 10, 2025. Dan wasthe middle childof three, born October5,1955, in Ferriday, Louisiana. He ledalifethat wascentered around the love for his family, afirmly anchored faithand hislifelongwork ethic. Danwas a1978 graduate of Louisiana State University with aBachelor of Sciencedegree in accounting.After college, he became thecomptroller of Holsum Bakery in Baton Rouge,goingontoserve as theAccountingSupervisor for theUniversity of NewOrleans.After this position, he switchedcareers andwentintoInformation Technology. As aselftaughtITand computer expert,hebegan this phase of hislifeworkingasthe IT Liaison Officer for the Louisiana Department of Education then Manager of IT at Cox Communications wherehedesignedthe systems for streaming video. He eventuallywent backtoworkfor thestate at theLouisiana State Employees RetirementSystem, LASERS, whereheretiredasthe Director of Information Technology. During histenureat LASERS, he was involved with thePublicRetirement Information System Management,PRISM, organization whereheservedtwo terms as president. In Dan'searly years, he wasa loving uncletonephews AndrewSprague andJustin Sprague andnieceHolly Sprague Jones. Later in life, Danmet hissoulmate Karen Donaldson,and they went on to build alifetogether centered around faithand family. Aman of deep faith, Danwas baptizedata young age, he wasa member of Istrouma Baptist Church andmarried at VictoryHarvest Bible Fellowship. He hosted manyhomeBible studieswhichreflected his devotion to spiritual growth andlove of his fellow man Outside of work and church,Dan foundpeace
Transitionedtohis heavenly home on Saturday, December 6, 2025 at the age of 72. Visitation on Saturday, December 13, 2025, 10:00 AM untilReligiousService at 11:00 AM A. Wesley Funeral Home, 10810 Ventress Drive, Maringouin, LA 70757, Shepherdess JaniceGrahamCarter-Dunbar of JehovahJirehMinistry, Baton Rouge,LA, Officiating.Interment in Sweet Home Baptist Church Cemetery, Maringouin, LA 70757.
Aresident of Maringouin, LA passed away peacefullyonSaturday, December 6, 2025 at the age of 58. Visitation on Saturday, December 13, 2025, 10:00 A.M.untilReligiousService at 11:00 A.M., Greater Bethany Baptist Church,248 Valverda Road, Maringouin, LA 70757. Pastor C.A.Robinson, officiating. IntermentinFalse River Station Cemetery Blanks, LA.
LaineyWilson will perform at the NewOrleans Jazz & HeritageFestival.
STAFF FILE PHOTO By SOPHIA GERMER
Stevie Nicks will appear at the NewOrleans Jazz & Heritage Festival.
STAFF FILE PHOTO By SCOTT THRELKELD
Eagles
2026 NewOrleans Jazz& Heritage Festival.
Carter, Clyde 'Unc'
Dotson, Harry Joe
Moses Maurice Evans, Jr., born December 5, 1963, in Baton Rouge, LA, was the firstborn of the late Moses Evans, Sr. and Sarah Snowden Evans Stampley. He passed on December2, 2025. Alifelong resident of Alsen, he was baptized early in life by Rev. Albert Anderson Sr. and was a former member of Winding Chapel Baptist Church. A 1981 graduate of Baker High School, Moses excelled in sports and played saxophone in the marching band. After college, he followed his father into law enforcement, serving with the Baton Rouge Police Department in several roles, primarily uniform patrol After retiring, he becamea Civil Notary and was twice elected Justice of the Peace for Ward 2, District 3. He also served with Magnolia Peace Officers, Redstick Kiwanis, the NAACP, and the Alsen Fire Department. Hispassions for photography and videography helped preserveextensive oral histories of the Evans and Snowden families. Moses is survived by his stepfather, James A. Stampley, Sr.; children Sarah Renee Evans, Moses Mandela Evans III, and Elijah Helm; sister Caroline (Dr. Spyrie) Mays; brother Marvin (Sharon) Evans; nephews Callum and Cohen Mays, and Matthew and Mark Evans; and numerous relatives. He was preceded in death by his parents. The family extends special thanks to EBRCOA, the Alsen Fire Department, the EBR Sheriff's Department, andthe EBRP Coroner's Office.A memorial service will be announced at alater date.
Avisitation will be held at 10:00 AM on 2025-12-13 at West Jerusalem Missionary Baptist Church, 3590 Jerusalem Road in Liberty, MS. Afuneral service will be held at 11:00 AM on 2025-12
grandfather,uncle, and honored as the "father of gravitational physics at LSU", Bill was born September5,1933, in Lawrence,Kansas,toF.C Hamilton andBernraine (Winegar) Hamilton.
In the Depressionthe family movedtoLos Angeles wherehis father found work with Douglas Aircraft. At age14, Bill was awarded an academic scholarship to Middlesex School in Concord,Massachusetts, an opportunity he later credited with shaping much of his life
Bill attended Stanford University on aNaval ROTC scholarship, wherehemet his futurewife, Mary Helen Kelson, and formed many lifelong friendships.Bill graduated in 1955and in 1956 he and Mary Helen married. They spent their honeymoon driving to Hutchinson, Kansas,for multi-engine flight training.Bill servedthreeyears flyingP2V Neptune aircraft with PatrolSquadron11.
Uponcompleting his service,Bill and Mary Helen returned to Stanford forgraduate school and started their family. Vacationsoftentook them to a family cabininthe Sierras near Mineral King. Bill earned his PhD in Physics in 1963and remained at Stanford as an NSF Postdoctoral Fellowand assistant professor untiljoining theLSU faculty in 1970.
At LSU, Bill builta worldclass research program, taughtand mentored students at alllevels, and—with Mary Helen raised theirfamilyin Baton Rouge. An avid runner,hewas wellknown for his noon runs on the levee in allseasons.
In 2016, Bill was inducted into the LSU College of Science Hall of Distinction. He was honored for"seminal contributions to lowtemperature experimental physics", noting thathis pioneering work helped attract the LaserInterferometric GravitationalWave Observatory (LIGO) to Louisiana and thathis leadership in cryogenic detectordevelopment and theALLEGRO gravitational wave bar detector placed LSU at the forefront of gravitational research.He servedonthe Faculty Senate Executive Committee, chaired the Graduate Council, and was associate dean of AcademicServices. Bill was aFellowof the American Physical Society
Bill and MaryHelen were avid world travelers, often joined by MaryHelen's brotherRichard and his wifeLynn, including on many Stanford Travel programs. They especially loved tripstothe Galápagos Islands, Antarctica, Africa, and walking tours in Europe, sharing and passing down that love of exploration. They madeita priority to spendholidays with their children wherever they lived and took greatjoy intheirgrandchildren. They delighted in hosting familyfor Mardi Gras,including memorable ridesinthe Spanish Town parade.
Bill is survivedbyhis childrenEric (Mary),Chris (Susan), and Ann (Jeremy); his grandchildren Jeff (Mati), Laura (Andrew), Jennifer (Adam), Melissa, David, and Emma; two great-grandchildren;and numerous nieces, nephews, and their families.
Aservice in celebration
of Bill'slife willbeheldat University United Methodist Church on January 10that11am.
nephews, relativesand
friends. Services Entrusted to HallDavis and SonFuneral Services.
Holiday, Janie Moore
It is with profound sorrowthat we announce the passing of Ms. Janie Moore Holiday who departedthis earthly life on the1st of December, in theyear of our Lord 2025, at thedistinguishedage of 95. Apublic viewing shall be held in her honoronSaturday,the 13thofDecember,from 9:00 AM to 11:00 AM at Star of Bethlehem Baptist Church, 6274 Scenic Highway, BatonRouge, LA.The celebration of life services shall follow at 11:00 AM Her earthly remains shall be laid to rest at Winnfield Memorial Park. The distinguished& solemnarrangementshavebeenentrusted to thecare of Winnfield Funeral Home of Baton Rouge &C.D.Slaughter, FDIC.
Ernest L. Jones entered theworld on April 04, 1931, in Lakeland, Louisiana to theunionofthe late Reverend Cenas, Sr,and Julia Moore Jones. Ernest departed forhis eternal rest on Monday, December 1, 2025, at Our LadyofLake HospitalinBaton Rouge, Louisiana. Visitation will be held on Saturday, December 13, 2025, from 9 a.m. to 11 a.m.,followedby acelebration of life at Shiloh Missionary Baptist Church, 185 Eddie Robinson, Baton Rouge, LA, with Rev. MaryMoss, St. Alma Baptist Church, Officiant. He marriedthe love of his life,Myrtle Williams, on January16, 1955. Ernest recognized theneedfor theLordinhis life and accepted Jesus Christ as his personal Savior. He was baptized at Saint Alma Baptist Church and remained afaithful member. Ernest careerwas in construction and general laborer. He became amemberofLocal #1177 of the Laborers' International UnionofNorth America and served as aworker dispatcher.Hewas instrumental and instructor of theSouth Central Labor Training Fund in Livonia, LA.Heleaves to cherish his memory: three sisters; Carolyn Jones, Florida (Eugene) Collins, Thelma Jones; one brother, Cenas (Jacqueline) Jones; sistersin-law,Thelma J. Jones, Olevia Griffin,Charlene Porche, BettyWilliams, Mary Swayze, Margaret Richardson,Donna Lee Borland, Gilda Williams; and brother-in-law Isadore (Annette) Williams ;and numerous nieces,
Jerome Levy, Sr of BatonRouge,Louisiana, passed away peacefully on December2,2025. Jerome was aretired AirForce Veteran, proudly giving 22 years of service. Survived by his five children, his first wife, his two brothers and twosisters; and ahost of grandchildren, great grandchildren, nieces, nephews, cousins,and friends. He is preceded in death by his belovedwife of 50 years, Lottie S. Levy, and many other loved ones. Visitation Friday, December 12, 2025, Hall's Celebration Center, 9348 Scenic Highway, Baton Rouge, LA 11:00 am until religious service at 12:00 pm. Interment Louisiana NationalCemetery. Funeral ServicesEntrustedtoHall Davis and Son. www.halldavisandson.com
Howard L. Lewis, Sr. entered intoeternal rest on Thursday, November 20, 2025, at theage of 53. He is survivedbyhis loving wife, Natasha Lewis, and his children Howard,Michael, Juanita, and Joshua Lewis; his parents Howard (Clara) Butler and Gwendolyn Morgan; as well as ahost of family members and
friends. Members of Faith of Hope M. B. C., employeesofBrown's Dairy, RoofingProducts, CocaCola Bottling Company, RenalAssociatesofBaton Rouge,and all familyand friends are invited to attend theFamilyand Friends Fellowship on Friday, December 12, 2025, from 5:00-7:00pm at Faith of Hope M. B. C., 314 Oxley Street,Kenner,LA70062. Afuneral service will be held on Saturday, December 13, 2025. Visitation is from 9:0010:00am, followed by the service at 10:00am at SweetHome Christian Center,434 Jackson Street, Kenner,LA70062, with Pastor John Brown officiating. Intermentwill take place at Jefferson Memorial Garden,St. Rose, LA. Funeral servicesentrustedtoRichardson Funeral Home of Jefferson, RiverRidge, LA.www.richa rdsonfuneralhomeofjeffers on.com
she brought into thelives of others andthe deep love she shared so freely.
In herpassing,Christine continuedher legacyof generosity by giving the gift of life through organ donation.Her spirit lives on in thelives she touched —and in the ones she saved.
Shewill be forever loved andneverforgotten
Jeredean V. Wilson, was anative of Norwood, La. passedawayonMonday, December 1, 2025. On Saturday, December 13, 2025, viewingat10:00 am and religiousservicesat12:00 noon, Mt.Calvary Baptist Church,Norwood, La. Arrangement entrusted to Richardson Funeral Home of Clinton,La. 225-683-5222 Sutton Fjeldsjo,Christine Sue
Christine Sue Sutton Fjeldsjo, 49, of Baton Rouge,Louisiana, passed away on November 21, 2025.
Christine wasa devoted mothertoher daughters, Rileyand Rowan, andher love forthemwas thecenterofher world. Knownfor hercompassionate heart andwarm sense of humor, she broughtcomfort, laughter, andkindnessto everyonearoundher
Sheissurvivedbyher husband, Leif;her siblings, ChuckSuttonand Cindy Murphy; anda large extended familyofnieces, nephews, and many dear friends. Christinewill be remembered for thejoy
Levy Sr., Jerome
Wilson, Jeredean Veals
Jones, Ernest L.
LewisSr.,HowardL
Fontenot, Marcus D.
OPINION
Oiland gassuits threaten economic bright spot
Back in 1978, Iwrote an article for the Atlantic Monthly with the headline, “I Have Seen the Future, and It’s Houston.”New Orleans, where Ilived, was stagnating with little hope of economic revival —and so was the state of Louisiana. Businesses and people were moving to Houston and points east and west. Since Iwrote that article, New Orleans has lost 200,000 residents while Houston hasgained 850,000. Louisiana’spopulationhas risen by 300,000, whileTexas is up more than 17 million
trina— and on bigawards secured by triallawyersfrom compliant state courts, the latest being $411 millionfor an injurytoa refinery worker.This is no way to boostaneconomy But the most outrageous casestarget energy producers —yes,the same companies that comprise the one bright spot in the state’s economy
Imoved away manyyears ago, and Istill love Louisiana. But its economy,which once thrived on diversified manufacturing, is dominated by asingleindustry,oil and gas. Meanwhile, the state hasalso grown to rely on the federalgovernment —which aloneprovided $76billion, or about $150,000per New Orleanian, in the wake of Ka-
The suits contend that the energy business is responsible for land loss and erosionover more than 80 years. In April,the first of the cases reached ajury verdictin PlaqueminesParishwithajudgment againstChevron of $745 million. The decision, reported The Associated Press, “could set aprecedent leaving other oil and gasfirmsonthe hook for billions of dollars in damages.”
Chevrondidn’tdeny that land eroded but said that nothing it did was illegal. The regulation in question went into effect in 1980 and
did not apply tooil and gas activity before then, Chevron argued. The energy companies saythe U.S. government directed them to produce petroleum at practically any costtohelp win World WarII.
The U.S. Supreme Court will decide soon whether these cases belong in federal court (asthe companies contend) or state court, wherejudgesare chosen in partisanelections and, naturally,are subject to political pressures.
Backing the producers in an amicus brief is theU.S. government itself, which stated that thecompanies were acting under afederal order and so areentitled to seek a federal forum for thesesuitsfor their wartime activities.
Gov.Jeff Landry, aRepublican, has embraced the lawsuits, which run directly counter to Donald Trump’senergy goals. Landry has earned the ire of such vocal allies of the president as Laura Loomer, who wrote on Xthat thegovernor is “blatantly contradicting [his] professed support for President
Trump’sAmerica First energy dominance agenda.”
In 2016, Landry,who was then the state’s attorney general, intervened in legal actions by three southern parishes against BP, Chevron and Shell. He even outsourced the AG office’sprosecutorialauthority to John Carmouche, aprominent Louisiana trial lawyer.Since then, the suits have multiplied with the governor fully on board.
The real losers are the people of Louisiana. Landry and his friends in parish governments and local law firms are creating ahostile climatethatwill discourage the state’s remaining private-sector growth engine frommaking new investments.
“Empirical analysis demonstratesthatlitigation risk costs Louisiana $44 millionto$113 million annually,reduces offshore drilling activity and eliminates thousands of jobs,” concluded the Pelican Institute forPublic Policy, anonprofit Louisiana think tank.
It’sthe wrong message to send to all businesses, not just oil and gas. “What we’re essentially saying is, ‘Comeonin, invest in Louisiana, and then in about 20 years or so, we’re going to sue the hell out of you,’”said Marc Ehrhardt, executive director of the Grow Louisiana Coalition.
When he took office, Landry said he wantedto“create abetter prospective business climate.” He’s doing the opposite. The future doesn’thave to be Houston, but it should be aLouisiana whose economyoffers its citizens the chance for better lives. That won’thappen if the state keeps trying to shake down its No.1 industry for billions of dollars.
James K. Glassman is aformer U.S. undersecretary of state for public diplomacy andpublic Affairsand aseniorfellowin economics at theAmerican Enterprise Institute. He was a co-founderin1972 of theNew Orleans weekly Figaro.
Oil covers rocks along the Moon Walk Riverfront Park on the Mississippi River in New Orleans in 2019.
Rebuildthe coastwith locallysourced materials
Stop denyingmilitary families autism care
Raising achild with autism can be challenging under the best of circumstances.But formilitary families, that labor of love can be even more difficult
More than 20,000 children of active-duty military service membershave been diagnosed withautism. Yetfor years, thehealth plan for these families, TRICARE, has refused to cover one of the most effective treatments for autismspectrum disorder as abasic benefit atherapy known as applied behavior analysis, or ABA. Families andclinicians have long been mystified, even outraged, by themilitary’sstance on this issue. Last month, the prestigious National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine joined their ranks.
ABA services.
Yetmore than adecade after the program launched, the Department of Defense continues to insist that ABA falls short of the evidence standards required forcoverage under TRICARE.
This claim flies in the face of years of established scientific research —and now the new report from the National Academies.
Nearly four years ago, Congress tasked the independent committee of experts behind the new study with evaluating TRICARE’sABA demonstration. They concluded that “ABA fits DOD’sCriteria forReliable Evidence of Proven Medical Effectiveness.”
Louisiana’scoast is one of America’smostimportant and most threatened assets. It shields millions from devastatingstorms, sustains a stunningly diverse ecosystem and supports thousandsoffamilies whose livelihoodsdepend on it. But each year,more of it erodes away Thankfully,many of our state agencies, local companies and resilience experts are actively working to restore andprotect our coastdaily.Yet,a significant portion of the funding for coastal restorationinLouisiana todaygoes toward purchasing out-of-state rock.Thisapproach comes at great expense with little to no benefittoour state economy.Fortunately,there’s amoresustainableand locally beneficial alternative path ahead Louisiana-based companiesare working continuously to develop new technologiesand processes to protect existingland andbuild newland more effectively.Every day, these companies, including someinthe Bayou Region, develop and deliver locally made, naturebased solutionsthatnot only effectively combat erosion and storm damagebut also cost farless than traditional rock methods —all while contributing to Louisiana’seconomy Clearly,using in-state resources andlocal companies supporting local jobs is an economic win-win-win.Thisapproach torestoration and resilience is Louisiana’sopportunity to transform our coastal land loss problem into apowerfulengineofeconomicprosperity Louisiana has adistinctadvantage whenit comes to addressing coastal issues, built from skills and experience we’ve developedover time. We know the best path to resiliencebecausewelive it every day
Our engineers, marine contractors and fabricators already lead the nation in expertise. Investing in locally sourced, Louisiana-built solutions can create jobsfor talented, hardworkingLouisianians, keep dollars circulating in our coastal parishes and unleash awave of innovation that moves our stateand our economy forward.
Louisiana can be aglobal leader in coastal resilience technology and expertise —ifwe choose to be.
Other states and countries are faced withthe same challenges we have been dealing with for decades.Louisiana can show them the way
Ourinnovators areready to deploy their expertise on coastal restoration in every parish across south Louisiana, manufacturing more efficient, comparable materials throughout. Large-scale deployment could create morelocal jobs and enable organizations and communities of all sizes to protect morelinear feet of coastline with technology that’scost-effective, high-performance and drives local economies.
This is the real magic.
To create aflywheel where smarter,homegrowntechniques protect more coastline more effectively,freeing up resources for even greater long-term solutions. Then, exportingour expertise to other vulnerable regions throughout thenation and the world, cementing us asleaders in coastal resilience and restoration technology solutions.
Ourcoast may be at risk, but our capacityto rise to the challenge has never been greater With thebacking of our state leadership, Louisiana can show thenation our coastal expertise. We have all the brain power; we just need the tools to apply it.
Evan Boudreaux is director of economic development, policyand government affairs for St. Mary Parish.
In anew 310-page report, the National Academies concluded that ABA is amedically necessary therapy that should be offered to all children of military members who need it.The report went so farasto say,“Scientific evidence indicates that ABA is an appropriate intervention to support health outcomes for autistic individuals.”
It’stime for the Department of Defense to acknowledge this obvious truth and give military families theessential medical support they deserve.
ABA uses scientifically based insights and techniques to promote positive behavior —and discourage problematic behavior —inchildren with autism. The medical and scientific communities have acknowledged its benefits foryears. Arecent reviewofthe scientific literature in thejournal Research in AutismSpectrumDisorders concluded that “ABA programsare moderately tohighly effective bringing significant benefits forchildren with ASD.”
As far back as 1999, the U.S. DepartmentofHealth and Human Services recognized ABA as the gold standard in autism care.
The Department of Defense, however,has been unconvinced. It was only in 2014 that TRICARE began offering ABA to families as part of a “demonstration program”aimed at studying thetherapy’seffectiveness.
That demonstration is still up and running —and currently provides about 16,000 military families with
The report goes on to recommend, in no uncertain terms, that “The Defense Health Agency should discontinue the Comprehensive Autism Care Demonstration (ACD)and authorize coverage of applied behavior analysis (ABA) as aBasic benefit under the TRICARE program.”
But it doesn’tstop there. The committee also finds that the DOD’s demonstration program has needlessly obstructed access to ABA for military families. And it implores the Defense Health Agency to “take steps to ensure that administrative processes do not impede access to care.”
In short, this expert panel has corroborated what autism advocates and military families have knownfor years. The DODhas deliberately restricted access to medically necessary care formilitary-connected children. And it has inflicted enormous harm on service members and their families in doing so.
Active-duty armed services members sacrifice every day forthe safety and security of our nation. Denying necessary medical care to these Americans —aswell as to their children —isshameful. It shouldn’thave taken an expert report to point out this fact. But now that the NASEM has madeplain the military’snegligence, the DepartmentofDefense should waste little timeincorrecting its mistake —and making ABA abasic health benefit foractive-duty military families. HannaRue is chiefclinical officer at LEARN Behavioral and aboard certifiedbehavioranalyst.
ISSUE OF THE WEEK IMMIGRATION SWEEPS IN LOUISIANA
Over the last weeks, agentswith theU.S.Border Patrol have establishedthemselves in the NewOrleans area, detainingpeople suspected of being in thecountry unlawfully.These sweeps have drawn heatedreactions in NewOrleans, as in other cities.Whilemanyhaveprotested Border Patrol’spresence and decried their methods, othershavewelcomedfederal agents as neededenforcers of the law. Hereare twoperspectives.
‘Catahoula
Crunch’isjust fixing yearsofbad policies
While Mayor-elect HelenaMorenoand the City Councilclutch pearls over masked federal agents and demand“transparency” during Operation Catahoula Crunch, the rest of us are wondering where thisoutrage was when violent criminals were terrorizingNew Orleans.
Because right now,the only thing being “crunched” is the absurd notion that removingillegalaliens with criminal records is somehow the real problem in a city that was just named the most dangerous city in America by WalletHub with a$222 million budget deficit that no one saw coming.
more in public services than it pays in taxes —overwhelmingly in education and medical care. That’smoney that doesn’tgotofix potholes, retain police officers or repair the Hard Rock sitefive years later
Area immigrationsweeps threaten core U.S. values
We are living through adefining mo-
Let’sget the facts straight. The Department of Homeland Security launched Operation Catahoula Crunch specifically to target criminal illegalaliens who were previously arrested, released andallowed to roam free. Despite the sob story youhave been fed,these are people withrap sheets Forthose of us who have worked in the criminal justice system in NewOrleans,the scripted cries for transparency by Moreno arefalling on deafears. Wherewas the demand fortransparency when our district attorney andjudgeswere releasing violent criminals who murdered our citizens and our tourists? Manyofthose offenders had multiple prior arrests at the timetheycommitted murder and therewas neverone single newsconference.
And yes, crime in New Orleansisdown in 2025 —but let’snot pretend the city is suddenly Mayberry.Orleans Parish still has one of the highest homiciderates of most large metropolitan cities in America.There were 4separate shootings just on Saturday. We are on pace for roughly 140-150 murders this year,triple the national average and higher than cities twice our size.
Now let’stalk about money —because nothing exposes hypocrisy faster thanfollowing the tax dollars.
Louisiana is home to roughly 97,000100,000 illegal immigrants. TheFederation for American Immigration Reform calculates thenet cost of illegal immigrationnationally between $150-$200 billion annually That’saround $1,212 for every legalAmericantaxpayer every single year
In New Orleans specifically,thatburden falls hardest on acity already drowning in a$1.5 billion pension, insurance andinfrastructure deficit. According to FAIR,every illegalhousehold with U.S.-born children consumes an average of $30,000-$55,000
When an illegal alien works off the books in construction or hospitality industries that dominateNew Orleans —they often pay zero federal income tax and little to no Social Securityor Medicare. Yetthey still drive on our roads, send their kids to our schools andshow up at our emergency rooms —without insurance.
The citizens who play by therules get stuck with the tab. Property taxes go up. Sales taxes go up. Fees go up. Services get cut.All so politicianscan virtue-signal about“humanity” while ignoring the humanity of theworking class.
HelenaMoreno’sfive demands toImmigration and Customs Enforcement read like kindergarten classroom rules: Uncover your face,give daily updates, promise due process (they already have it), don’tscare people, pretty please be nice. Here’sacounter-demand from the taxpayers footing the bill: Howabout you demand that judges stop releasing murderers? How aboutyou figure out how you missed a$222 million budget deficit after reviewing the budget for thepast 8years? Howabout you stop holding news conferences flanked by recycled politicians to incite violence?
Operation Catahoula Crunch isn’t“causing harm”toNew Orleans. It’srepairing harm caused by decades of local leaders who care more about national media praise thanthe safety of their own constituents.
To every U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement and Department of Homeland Security agent walking the streetsof New Orleans right now: Thank you. Thank youfor doing your job despitethe endless dramatized coverage of our media, the caravans of carstailing you through thestreets, blastingair horns and whistles, screaming at you,filming you. Thank you for removing criminals and easingthe crushing tax burden on citizens. Thankyou for ignoring theloud minority that is fueled by media hysterics. Thank you forrefusing to back down. Thank you for doing your job. That’ssomething we aren’t usedtoinNew Orleans.
Laura Canizzaro Rodrigue is aformer Orleans Parishprosecutor and founder of the Bayou Mama Bears, an advocacy group.
mentinthe American story —one that forces us to ask not just whogets to come to this country,but whoweare once they do. Immigration is not peripheral to our politics; it sits at the core of our national identity
SouthLouisiana —always amelting pot —has seen this clearly.After Hurricane Katrina, as we faced the long, painful rebuilding of our communities. It was often immigrant workers —many undocumented —who cleared rubble, repaired homes and revived neighborhoods. They believed in thepromiseofAmerica and helped rebuild New Orleans.
Venezuela and Haiti with protected status, Afghan allies whohelped U.S. forces —are being swept up in broad enforcement dragnets. It’s shock and awe, designed to sow fear rather than deliver safety
President Ronald Reagan understood this promise. In his farewell address, he described America as a“shining city on ahill” with doors “open to anyone with thewill and the heart to get here.” He reminded us that America is defined not by bloodline or birthplace but by belief —infreedom,opportunity and one another.Itisuniquely American to believe that where you’re born should not define what you can become.
Today,that promise is under threat.
Instead of seeing immigrants as neighbors, teammates and future Americans, President Donald Trump, TomHoman and Stephen Miller hope we see them as scapegoats. Immigration enforcement has becomeatheater of cruelty,playing out not just in Washington or alongthe southernborder,but in parks, schools, farms and neighborhoods across the country —including here in Louisiana.
As we speak, Border Patrol agents are descending on our city, creating fear and chaos. Unlike police, they operate under alower threshold than “probable cause,” meaning they can stop people based on vague suspicion.
In practice, that means stopping people for looking Latino. As we’ve seen already across the country,even native-born citizens can get swept up.
Earlier this year,Donna Kashanian, an Iranian immigrant who fled the revolution over 50 years ago andbuilt alifein New Orleans, was abruptly taken her from her home and locked in aholding facility in rural Louisiana.
Her story is not unique. Across the country,immigrantswho pose no threat to public safety—warehouse workers on visas, day laborers,migrants from
There is adangerous agenda at play: dividing America by turning “outsiders” into enemies. It’s a politics of “othering” that undermines the principle at the heart of our Great Seal and our democracy: EPluribus Unum —out of many, one. And Ifear this is only the beginning. Earlier this year,Congress allocated $170 billion formilitarized massdeportations. This makes ICE’s budget bigger than every military budget in the world except the U.S. and China. The operation underway today is just the beginning. The good newsisthe public is turning. Americans are tough, not cruel. They wantanimmigration system that is legal, fair and controlled. Most agree that it begins with strong border enforcement—nonation can exist without borders —and clear rules that determine whocomes and whodoesn’t. Americans also agree that people whocommit serious crimes should be deported.
Bishop Mark Seitz of El Paso put it plainly: “These are signs that we are losing the story of whoweare as acountry.” He’sright. The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops criticized Trump’s“indiscriminate deportation campaign” and noted they are “praying foranend to the dehumanizing rhetoric and violence.” Pope Leo has backed them up. Istand with them
This is not just apolicy crisis —it’sa crisis of identity and morality.Are we still anation that values human dignity? Anation of immigrants striving toward amore perfect union? Anation that believes in “out of many, one?” As America approaches its 250th birthday,wemust answer the samequestion generations before us have faced: Who do we want to be? In south Louisiana, we know better.Let’sensure the answer honors our past and builds on the uniquely American promise of abetter future forall of us.
Mitch Landrieuisa former mayor of NewOrleans and lieutenant governor of Louisiana.
Laura Canizzaro Rodrigue GUEST COLUMNIST
Mitch Landrieu GUEST COLUMNIST
STAFFPHOTO By CHRIS GRANGER
U.S. Border Patrolagents gatheroutside of their vehicles as U.S. Customsand Border Protection ChiefGregoryBovino, right center,travels through Metairie and Kenner for the ‘Catahoula Crunch’ sweepsonDec. 3
Cornersecured
BY LUKE JOHNSON Staff writer
Call it proximity bias if you want, but Alontae Taylor hada boldprediction ready when asked about the recent performance of his New Orleans Saints teammates Kool-Aid McKinstry and Quincy Riley
“Those are going to be, Ithink, the best duo in the league next season,” Taylor said. Best in the league is atad ambitious,but the point remains: The future feels very bright for the Saints’ young outside corner tandem.
McKinstryis23years oldand Rileyis 24. Both have had moments this season where teams havetaken advantageof their inexperience, but as the season has progressed, both arecontributing in big ways to asuddenly stingy defense.
Going into Sunday’s game againstthe CarolinaPanthers, the Saints have the No. 6passdefense,and they’vebeen getting better as theseasonprogresses.Since Week 10, when they beat Carolina onthe road, New Orleans ranks No.5inthe NFL in opponent passer rating (69.0) and No. 1 in passing yards allowed per game (134.5)
Thecorners aren’tresponsible forall of that, but they are of course acritical piece of it.
Take McKinstry,the 2024 second-round draft pick who took over as astartermidway through last season. He’smade his share of plays on theball, logging teambest numbers in interceptions (three) andpasses defended(10), but it’s been hisphysicality and intelligencethathave shown up lately. He made twoofthe biggest defensive playsinthe Nov.30game against Miami.
Therewas hisinterception of TuaTagovailoa, aplayhemadebecause of his athleticism but also his ability to process and recognize the play that wascoming. Andthen, lateinthe game, he chased down running back Ollie Gordon from the backside of the play to drop him for aloss on fourth down andgive New Orleansa
ä See CORNER, page 4C
LSU’sSEC schedule made for popcorn in 2026
BY NOAH TRISTER
sportswriter
BY TOYLOY BROWNIII Staff writer
Southern football has entered a new era. The Jaguars named Marshall Faulk their 22nd head coach tasking the ProFootball Hall of Famer from New Orleans with rebuilding ateam that finished 2-10 this season.
To understand whether Faulk’s appointmentisa positive move by Southern, The Advocatespoke to three experienced media professionalswho have coveredHBCU sports. When all threewereasked broadly what theythought of Faulk’shiring, they all wanted to withhold judgmentineither direction. This is because of Faulk’s limited coaching experience.
ASuper Bowl champion in 1999 with the then-St. Louis Rams hadone coaching job previously, whichwas as therunning backs coach for a3-9 Colorado team this season under Deion Sanders.
BJ Jones has covered HBCU sportssince 2017 and is one of the founders of themediaplatform HBCU Nightly. He also hoststhe “HBCUNightly” podcast and is oneofthe hosts of the“X’s&O’s Podcast” on HBCU GO. He said that with “celebrity hires,”which are former standout players who getcollege jobs, it’swise to have
Scott Rabalais
Idon’tknow how manygames Lane Kiffinisgoing to wininhis first season at LSU. There is alot of roster workto do and acoaching stafftofinish before we can have any idea about that. For certain, though, Kiffin’spresence at LSU will deliver the drama. Especially when it comes to the Tigers’ 2026 road schedule. The Southeastern Conference released the dates fornext season’s games Thursday night with great fanfare on the SEC Network. There are alot of rivalries and big games to anticipate, but the dates of LSU’s games at Ole Miss and Tennessee were among the biggest, boldest headlines. That’sbecause Kiffinjust leftOle Miss forLSU acouple of weeks ago, and he leftTennessee back in 2009 after one season in Knoxville to coach Southern California. Sept. 19 is the date forLSU’s SEC opener at Ole Miss, while Nov. 14 is when the Tigers’ face their test at Tennessee. Those are going to be redletter days in both locales. In fact, these could well be the two mostanticipated road games in LSU football history,atleast this farout. Nothing probably eclipses No.1LSU at No.2Alabamain2011 and 2019, but we didn’tknow how massive those games would be when the schedules were first released. In the case of LSU-Ole Miss and LSUTennessee, we know now The last timeKiffin coached in Knoxville, leading Ole Miss to a31-26 win there in 2021, fans threw golf balls and mustard bottles in his direction. Volunteers fans wholiterally rioted in their fury over Kiffinleaving their program after just one season to go to USCnever have forgotten his pitstop in Knoxville. It’s unlikely he will have slipped their memorybynext November As forOle Miss, well, Kiffinhas becomepublic enemy No. 1inOxford after leaving the Rebels on the College Football Playoffaltar late last month to take the LSU job. He’sbeen pilloried farbeyond Mississippi forhis move, but now the schedule forces him to
ä See RABALAIS, page 6C
approach. “I always wait to see what the assistants look like, coordinators, position coaches, because that’s thesuccess of thecoach, particularly afirst-timeheadcoach,”said Jones, whoalsoplayedatSouth-
PHOTO By APRIL BUFFINGTON
ASSOCIATED PRESS FILE PHOTO By NAM HUH
Saints cornerback Quincy Riley, center,celebrates his interception withteammates against the ChicagoBears on Oct. 19 in Chicago.
STAFF PHOTO By DAVID GRUNFELD
Saintscornerback Kool-Aid McKinstry celebratesa tackle against the Arizona Cardinals during agameatthe CaesarsSuperdome on Sept. 7.
ASSOCIATED PRESS FILE PHOTO By GAILBURTON
quarterback BlakeHorvath throws apass duringa game against
Michigan coach Moore’s fall swift
BY LARRY LAGE AP sportswriter
ANN ARBOR, Mich. — Sherrone
Moore’s rise was stirring, a rugged lineman at Oklahoma who climbed the ranks to lead Michigan, the winningest program in college football, and a rare Black head coach at the top of the sport.
“If you work your tail off, dreams can come true,” Moore said when he was hired nearly two years ago His downfall has been stunning The 39-year-old Moore was fired and arrested in a matter of hours Wednesday, and remained jailed a day lafter ahead of an arraignment scheduled for Friday as police investigate an alleged assault. His firing was related to what the school called an inappropriate relationship with a staff member
Moore has been through a lot in his career, especially with the Wolverines. From being a late-bloomer on the field to a top coach in the sport, Moore’s journey has been at times inspiring while peppered with scandal.
More on Moore
Moore is married with three young daughters. He is from Derby, Kansas, and didn’t start playing football until his junior year of high school. Moore played for Butler County Community College in Kansas and was an offensive lineman for coach Bob Stoops at Oklahoma during the 2006 and 2007 seasons.
Climbing the ladder
Moore’s coaching career began as a graduate assistant at Louisville in 2009 before moving on in 2014 to Central Michigan, where he caught then-Michigan coach Jim Harbaugh’s attention. Harbaugh hired him in 2018 as tight ends coach for the Wolverines.
Moore was promoted to offensive line coach and co-offensive coordinator in 2021, when the Wolverines bounced back from a 2-4, pandemic-shortened season and began a three-year run of excellence that culminated in the school’s first national title in 26 years. He was well-liked by players, who appreciated how often he smiled and engaged them in con-
versations about football and life.
“He is a dynamic, fierce and competitive individual who gets the best out of the players he mentors,” athletic director Warde Manuel said when he hired Moore.
“The players love playing for him and being with him in the building every day.”
Big break
Moore made the most of his first opportunity to lead the Wolverines, going 4-0, including a win over rival Ohio State, during the 2023 national championship season while Harbaugh served two suspensions for rules violations.
That helped to put him in a position to be promoted when Harbaugh returned to the NFL to lead the Los Angeles Chargers in January 2024.
“The only person I would want to do the job,” Harbaugh wrote in a text message that month. “I have 100% conviction that he will make us all very proud!!!”
Players on the team at the time, including former running back
“If anybody deserves
him,” Edwards said then.
Previous trouble
Moore was punished twice by the NCAA for rules violations. He was suspended for two games this year as part of self-imposed sanctions for NCAA violations related to the school’s high-profile signstealing scandal. The NCAA added a third game to the suspension, which would have kept Moore off the sideline for next season’s opener against Western Michigan. Moore previously deleted an entire 52-message text thread with former Michigan staffer Connor Stalions, who was at the center of the team’s sign-stealing operation.
The texts were later recovered and shared with the NCAA. Moore also served a one-game suspension in 2023 due to recruiting infractions.
Short stint
His debut season in 2024 got off
to a rough start before rallying to win the last three games, including against the second-ranked Buckeyes and 11th-ranked Alabama in a bowl, to finish 8-5 overall and 5-4 in conference. His biggest win might have been landing heralded quarterback Bryce Underwood, one of the top recruits in the country Moore led the Wolverines to a 9-3 record this year including a 7-2 mark in the Big Ten. They finished the regular season ranked No. 18 in the AP Top 25 with a Citrus Bowl bid against No. 14 Texas on Dec. 31. The program’s four-game winning streak against archival and defending national champion Ohio State came to an end.
Lost wages Moore signed a five-year contract with a starting base salary of $5.5 million last year According to the terms of his deal, the university will not have to buy out the remaining years of his contract because he was fired for cause.
Mets makeover prompts anger from fans
BY MIKE FITZPATRICK
AP
baseball writer
NEW YORK Brandon Nimmo
went first. Then it was Edwin Díaz and Pete Alonso on back-to-back days at baseball’s winter meetings.
Three fan favorites headed out the door in 2 ½ weeks a powerful gut punch to angry New York Mets fans wondering what on earth the front office is thinking. As the club embarks on a major makeover, suffice to say owner Steve Cohen and president of baseball operations David Stearns are not the most popular couple in Queens right now
“I’m very optimistic about where our offseason is headed,” Stearns said Tuesday in Florida, before news of Alonso’s signing with Baltimore. “We certainly have work to do, but there are many good players out there. I’m confident we’ll like where our team is once we get to opening day.” What a difference a year makes, though. Cohen and Stearns were the toast of the town last December, beating out the crosstown New York Yankees for prized free agent Juan Soto with a record $765 million contract.
That came on the heels of an unanticipated thrill ride to the 2024 National League Championship Series, after Stearns scored big with several unheralded acquisitions during his first year in charge: Sean Manaea Luis Severino, Jose Iglesias and Tyrone Taylor Surely with Cohen’s bankroll and Stearns’ brain, the Mets were poised to take a large bite out of the Big Apple for years to come.
Yankees, be damned. Dodgers, on notice. Phillies, fuhgeddaboudit!
But as their top rivals continued to flourish this year the Mets finished 83-79 and missed the playoffs. Baseball’s second-biggest spenders, at $429 million in payroll and projected luxury tax, went 38-55 in a stunning collapse after building the best record in the majors (45-24) through June 12.
The day after the season ended, Stearns took the blame for failing at the trade deadline and Cohen apologized to fans on social media. The coaching staff under manager Carlos Mendoza was soon overhauled.
Many figured Cohen, one of the wealthiest owners in sports, would quickly reach into his robust wallet this winter — at least to keep Díaz and Alonso from leaving in free agency But that hasn’t really happened
“Steve gives us everything we need,” Stearns said this week.
“We have a lot of resources. No team has unending resources.”
After the Mets signed two-time All-Star reliever Devin Williams to a $51 million, three-year contract, Díaz agreed to a $69 million, three-year deal with the World Series champion Los Angeles Dodgers, subject to a successful physical.
Media reports indicated New York was outbid by only about $3 million for Díaz, who arrived in 2019 and ranks third in franchise history with 144 saves.
Then on Wednesday, news broke that Alonso agreed to a $155 million, five-year contract with Baltimore, a person with knowledge of the negotiations told The Associated Press. The person spoke to
the AP on condition of anonymity because the deal was pending a physical
The person said the Mets expressed interest in again retaining the slugging first baseman, which they did last offseason, but decided to wait and see what happened between Alonso and other teams rather than press a pursuit themselves.
“I’m flabbergasted,” Mets broadcast analyst and former pitcher Ron Darling said on MLB Network.
“Maybe they get in the Kyle Tucker race now, for a legit bat in the outfield. But it’s just, these last two days have to really be hard on Mets fans.”
All this after Nimmo, the ebullient outfielder who was the longest-tenured player on the team, waived the no-trade provision in his contract last month and accepted a deal to Texas for Gold Glove second baseman Marcus Semien.
“That’s three unbelievably great players, beloved by the fan base, have proven that they can pitch or play in New York. That’s not an easy thing, right?” Darling said. “And now, all gone.”
Alonso and Nimmo combined for 63 homers and 218 RBIs last season.
“They’ve now paid Soto ($765) million to walk 150 times next year,” Darling said. Stearns grew up in Manhattan rooting for the Mets, and Cohen was a fervent fan even before buying the club five years ago. But they’ve shown little sentimentality when it comes to valuing core players, and Stearns said after trading Nimmo that “running back the exact same group wasn’t the right thing to do.”
Steelers’ Watt has been hospitalized for lung issue
PITTSBURGH Steelers All-Pro outside linebacker T.J. Watt remained in a Pittsburgh hospital on Thursday afternoon as he continued to be evaluated for a lung issue. His availability for Monday night’s game against the Miami Dolphins is in question. According to Steelers coach Mike Tomlin, Watt experienced discomfort at the team’s practice facility on Wednesday, went to the hospital and remained there overnight for further medical evaluation. After the Steelers practiced without Watt on Thursday Tomlin indicated that Watt was still hospitalized. Watt has not missed a game since Week 8 of the 2022 season, a stretch of 56 consecutive games.
If he cannot play against the Dolphins, Watt will be replaced by Nick Herbig.
Bengals DE Hendrickson placed on injured reserve
CINCINNATI Trey Hendrickson was placed on injured reserve by the Cincinnati Bengals on Thursday, ending his season.
The All-Pro defensive end will undergo core muscle surgery He has missed six games this season, including the last five, due to a hip/ pelvis injury
The move to injured reserve finishes a frustrating season for Hendrickson, who led the NFL with 17 ½ sacks last season. He is in the final year of a restructured contract worth $29 million after holding out during training camp. In seven games this year, Hendrickson had 16 tackles and four sacks.
Hendrickson is not expected to be back with the Bengals next season as he becomes a free agent.
Grizzlies center Edey out with ankle injury
MEMPHIS, Tenn Zach Edey is expected to miss at least a month due to the latest ankle injury for the Memphis Grizzlies center
The Grizzlies said Thursday that Edey had been diagnosed with a stress reaction in his left ankle. The team said he would be evaluated again in about four weeks after a period of rest and rehabilitation and that a full recovery was expected.
Edey had surgery on his left ankle last June, after he was voted to the All-Rookie first team. He missed the first 13 games of this season while recovering before making his season debut Nov 15 and playing in the last 11. He missed 12 games early in his rookie season because of a sprained left ankle.
Indiana QB Mendoza is AP player of the year
Reports of clubhouse tension emerged in recent weeks, though Mendoza challenged that notion.
Alonso holds the franchise record with 264 home runs. He and Nimmo join a notable list of homegrown Mets stalwarts who eventually went elsewhere — from Tug McGraw, Tom Seaver, Jerry Koosman and Jon Matlack to Darryl Strawberry, Dwight Gooden, José Reyes and Jacob deGrom.
David Wright remains one of the few star position players to spend his entire career in blue and orange. The pressure on Stearns, a small-market success in Milwaukee, now increases exponentially to plug several big holes and rebuild a contender Third baseman Mark Vientos could shift to first as Alonso’s replacement, but New York’s particular plans are unclear And the more quality players who leave, the harder it becomes to convince free agents the Mets are currently equipped to win. These things are certain: Defense and baserunning are priorities for Stearns.
He seems very reluctant to give players in their 30s contracts longer than three years. And he believes in putting youth on the field, seeking roster flexibility and space at positions that will provide playing opportunities for the promising hitters in a highly rated farm system such as Carson Benge, Jett Williams and Ryan Clifford.
“Our resources that we have here are an enormous advantage,” Stearns said. “And as long as we allocate those resources intelligently they’re going to continue to be an enormous advantage.”
Fernando Mendoza was named Associated Press player of the year on Thursday after leading unbeaten and top-ranked Indiana to its first Big Ten championship since 1967 and the No. 1 seed in the College Football Playoff.
The redshirt junior quarterback was the overwhelming choice over fellow Heisman Trophy finalists Diego Pavia of Vanderbilt, Jeremiah Love of Notre Dame and Julian Sayin of Ohio State. Mendoza received 32 of 51 first-place votes from a nationwide panel of media members who cover college football. Pavia got nine to lead the rest of the group, which also included Jacob Rodriguez of Texas Tech. Mendoza is in his first year at Indiana after transferring from California.
Braves, reliever Suarez reach 3-year contract
ATLANTA Two-time All-Star reliever Robert Suarez and the Atlanta Braves agreed Thursday to a $45 million, three-year contract. He gets a $13 million salary in 2026 and $16 million in each of the following two seasons.
Suarez will donate 1% of his salary to the Atlanta Braves Foundation.
The 34-year-old was 4-6 with 40 saves and a 2.97 ERA this year and has 76 saves over the past two season.
He is 22-13 with a 2.91 ERA and 77 saves in four major league seasons, all with San Diego. He didn’t make his MLB debut until he was 31 years old, but he has had an ERA under 3.00 in three of four seasons. Left-hander Ryan Rolison was designated for assignment.
ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO By AL GOLDIS
Michigan coach Sherrone Moore walks off the field following a game on Aug. 30 in Ann Arbor Mich
Donovan Edwards, privately lobbied Manuel to hire Moore.
it, it’s
No denying Dunham
QB Haven sensational as Tigers double up Calvary Baptist
BY JACKSON REYES Staff writer
Dunham would not be denied again after falling in the state championship game last year
Tigers star quarterback Elijah Haven picked the Calvary Baptist defense apart, throwing for 271 yards and three touchdowns
He finished 21-of-29 passing and had one interception. Haven also ran for 136 yards and two touchdowns on 27 carries as he was named the game’s outstanding player
Dunham (13-1) defeated Calvary Baptist 34-17 to win the Division III select state title Thursday night in the Caesars Superdome. The title marks Dunham’s first state football championship since 2004.
Calvary Baptist (12-2) scored quickly after Dunham went threeand-out to open the game. Luke Miller returned the Tigers’ punt 40 yards to the Dunham 22 to set up the Cavaliers. On the ensuing play, Hudson Price tossed it to Braylon Huglon on a jet sweep. He sprinted down the right sideline toward the end zone to make it 7-0.
Dunham answered with 20 consecutive points. Haven completed four passes on the ensuing drive for 48 yards and tied the game on a 13-yard scamper on a quarterback draw He later capped off an eight-play, 74-yard drive with a 2-yard touchdown run, bowling over a defender in the process.
Calvary Baptist passed midfield to open the second quarter Price looked for a receiver while evading the Dunham defenders. He heaved a ball deep to a receiver, but Tigers linebacker Trevor Haman jumped in front and picked off the pass. Dunham paid the turnover off with a 17-play, 83-yard touchdown drive, which included three
third-down conversions and one fourth-down conversion. The final third-down conversion came from the Cavaliers’ 7. Haven threaded a pass to Will Dantin to make it 20-7.
Calvary Baptist later faced a fourth and 12 from its own 40. The Cavaliers lined up to punt then Miller took the snap and found Will Merry streaking wide open down the field for a 41-yard gain to the Dunham 19.
The Cavaliers failed to capitalize on the play after missing a 31-yard field goal. Haven threw a late intercep-
tion in the second quarter, and Price made up for his initial field goal miss by drilling a 37-yarder to make it 20-10 at the half. After a Dunham defensive stop to start the second half, Haven connected with receiver Jarvis Washington on a short pass. Washington shook a tackler off of him, then took off for a 77-yard touchdown on the first play of the drive to make it 27-10. Price answered on the next drive’s first play with a deep shot to Huglon for a 55-yard pass to the Dunham
1. Price ran to the left sideline and into the end zone on the next play to make it a 10-point game again Haven capped off an 11-play, 65yard drive with a 20-yard touchdown to Washington, who was left open and strolled into the end zone to make it 34-17.
Calvary Baptist failed to get past midfield on its next two drives.
Dunham ate up 9:21 of the clock in the fourth quarter Dunham’s Eliot Trahan recovered a fumble after a sack to put the icing on the cake for the Tigers.
Ascension Catholic’s ‘fight’ not enough
Bulldogs’ rally falls short as Riverside wins state title
BY JACKSON REYES Staff writer
Ascension Catholic’s hopes hung in the balance late in the Division IV select state title game against Riverside Academy The Bulldogs trailed 28-7 in the third quarter but stormed back to cut the deficit to just a touchdown. The Ascension Catholic defense forced a Rebels’ fourth down from the Bulldogs’ 18. After a false start, Riverside attempted a 40-yard field goal Ascension Catholic tried to ice the kicker with a timeout, but William Rauch’s kick slowly wobbled its way through the middle of the uprights to make it 31-21 with just 2:05 left in the game.
Ascension Catholic (11-3) failed to score again and fell 31-21 to Riverside in the Division IV select state championship game on Thursday in the Caesars Superdome.
“It was never a question in my mind,” Bulldogs coach Taylor James said, “that this team was going to fight. Ultimately,
we made some mistakes early in the game that cost some big plays.”
Senior running back Trevin Simon ran for 150 yards and one touchdown in the loss. His record-setting season ends with 3,915 yards rushing and 58 touchdowns, both new state records.
The Bulldogs struck first on the opening drive after Simon bulldozed his way up the middle to rip off a 41-yard touchdown run on the seventh play of the game.
Riverside (12-1) responded with 28 straight points before the fourth quarter began On the Rebels’ first drive, receiver Christopher Becnel lined up in the wildcat formation and tossed a touchdown pass to a wide-open Jayden Obiekwe to tie the game 7-7 with 7:25 left in the first quarter
Early in the second quarter, Riverside took over at its own 35, and the Rebels pieced together a 10-play drive Quarterback
Brock Bourgeois connected with a wide-open Kenric Johnson for a 29-yard gain to set up Obiekwe’s 2-yard touchdown run to make it 14-7 midway through the second quarter
The Rebels took a 21-7 lead four plays into the third after Bourgeois rolled out and found Becnel streaking down the field for a 37-yard touchdown.
After a three-and-out from the Bulldogs, Riverside needed just four plays to score again. Bourgeois found Johnson deep down the left sideline for a 42-yard touchdown to go up 28-7 midway through the third.
Ascension Catholic ended the run of 28 straight Rebels’ points with a 14-play, 81-yard drive that took just under five minutes. Simon carried the ball nine times for 41 yards on the drive. Joshua Barber barreled through for a 1-yard touchdown to make it 28-14 late in the third.
The Rebels drove down the field but faced a fourth and 1 from the Bulldogs’ 12. Bourgeois was stuffed by the Ascension Catholic defense to give the Bulldogs possession.
After the turnover, Ascension Catholic scored on a 10-play, 88yard drive. Quarterback Gregory Fernandez slipped through a tackle for a 19-yard run. He later took off for a 40-yard gain to set his side up inside the 5. He kept it for a 3-yard touchdown to make it 28-21 with 6:13 left in the game.
“We got behind 28-7, and then it was kind of we clicked it on,” James said. “I never once had a question whether they were going to fight back.”
The Bulldogs’ comeback fell short after falling behind 31-21 late.
STAFF PHOTO By By JILL PICKETT
Poole returns as Pels snap 7-game skid
Contributing writer
Trey Murphy scored 24 points, five teammates also scored in double figures, and the New Orleans Pelicans ended a seven-game losing streak by defeating the Portland Trail Blazers 143-120 on Thursday night in the Smoothie King Center Bryce McGowens tied a careerhigh by scoring 23 points; Jordan Poole returned from an 18-game absence because of a quad strain to score 22; Jeremiah Fears had 19; Derik Queen added 17; and Saddiq Bey put in 15. Forward Herb Jones was ejected with one second left in the second quarter after getting two technical fouls.
The Pelicans (4-22) will visit the Chicago Bulls on Sunday Shaedon Sharpe had 21; Sidy Cis-
soko scored 20; Jerami Grant and Deni Avdija added 16; Toumani Camara scored 15; and Rayan Rupert had 14 to lead the Blazers (9-15), who beat the Pelicans 125-117 on Nov 12 in the Smoothie King Center. Grant made a 3-pointer to start the second-half scoring and to give the Blazers a 71-70 lead. That was the first of eight lead changes in the period, the last coming when Bey made two free throws to give the Pelicans a 92-91 lead. They held a 105-97 lead at the end of the third quarter
The Blazers scored the first four points of the fourth quarter, but New Orleans scored the next eight points to open up a 113-101 lead. The Pelicans then pulled away, outscoring Portland 73-52 in the second half.
The Pelicans, who lost to the visiting San Antonio Spurs 135-132 on Monday, had two full practices between games for the first time since interim coach James Borrego replaced Willie Green on Nov 15.
Borrego focused on defense in those practices after New Orleans allowed an average of 36.4 points in its last five first quarters, which Borrego called “unacceptable.”
The Pelicans showed marginal improvement early on, then shut down the Blazers in the second half.
They already had a 14-6 lead when Poole entered the game with 7:08 remaining in the first quarter He went on to match Murphy’s eight first-quarter points, and New Orleans had a 39-30 lead at the end of the period.
McGowens’ 3-pointer started the second-quarter scoring and gave
CB Taylor’s eyes light up vs. Panthers
BY MATTHEW PARAS Staff writer
Bryce Young historically has struggled against the New Orleans Saints. But one player, in particular, seems to really bother the Carolina Panthers quarterback.
Enter Alontae Taylor “I think I just prepare the right way,” the Saints cornerback said, referring to his success over Carolina and not Young directly “I feel very comfortable knowing their receivers. I feel very comfortable with knowing their scheme, knowing their formations. And (I’m) just very confident in our defensive calls.”
Notebook BY LES EAST
Taylor’s best games in his fouryear career largely have come against the Panthers, and he’ll try to match that Sunday when the Saints host Carolina. Since 2022, the 27-year-old has recorded 29 tackles, six tackles for loss, three sacks and an interception when facing Carolina. He has especially bothered Young, who has a 75.1 passer rating when targeting Taylor on 23-of-35 passing for 174 yards, one touchdown and an interception, according to Pro
Football Focus.
While that’s higher than Young’s overall passing rating against New Orleans (61.1 in five games), Taylor has come up huge in critical moments. His fourth-quarter interception in last month’s meeting, for instance, set up a game-clinching touchdown for New Orleans. He had another pivotal stop on third and 1.
Taylor also notably had three sacks on Young in last year’s season-opening win over the Panthers.
Young is 1-4 against New Orleans since he was drafted first overall in 2023
“There’s some intangibles with that, where sometimes you just play well against a team and you feel it go the right way,” defensive coordinator Brandon Staley said.
You’re one game away from feeling humbled in this league — I know that as well. All of us. You’ve just got to take that for what it’s worth.
“But Alontae, when he’s played at his best is when he keeps it simple, when he plays his game, when he stays within himself because then the quality really shows up to everybody.”
Reid returns
Justin Reid has returned to practice.
The New Orleans Saints safety participated in Thursday’s session on a limited basis after missing last week’s game because of a knee injury Reid sat out Wednesday’s session but was spotted off to the side working with trainers an indication his return was near If Reid returns for Sunday’s game against the Panthers, the Saints would regain their starting safety New Orleans used a tandem of Jordan Howden and Terrell Burgess to make up for Reid’s absence, while rookie Jonas Sanker started on the other side.
Elsewhere, the Saints were again without running back Alvin Kamara (knee) and tackle Asim Richards (ankle).
The Saints also saw tackle Taliese Fuaga (ankle) practice for a second straight day Running back Devin Neal (abdomen) was limited, while defensive end Chris Rumph (wrist) was upgraded to full.
Old man Rivers
Philip Rivers has been the talk of the NFL this week, so much so that Saints coach Kellen Moore brought him up unprompted during a news conference when asked
about Tyler Shough being an older quarterback prospect.
“Phillip Rivers is potentially playing at 44, so I think Tyler is going to be OK,” Moore said with a laugh.
Yes, the Indianapolis Colts signed the 44-year-old Rivers to the practice squad this week after losing starter Daniel Jones to a season-ending Achilles injury over the weekend despite Rivers having last played five years ago. Despite the absence, Rivers is likely in line to start Sunday’s game against the Seattle Seahawks as backup Riley Leonard is also dealing with a knee injury
Moore said he thought it was “really cool” to see Rivers attempt a comeback.
A former quarterback, Moore was also asked whether he thought he could have come out of retirement five years in like Rivers.
The first-year coach, who was a Heisman finalist at Boise State and a backup in the NFL from 201217, joked he had gained about 30 pounds.
“(I’d) throw a lot of check downs,” Moore said.
Email Matthew Paras at matt. paras@theadvocate.com
Wilson wins AP Female Athlete of the Year
BY DOUG FEINBERG
AP basketball writer
A’ja Wilson stood atop the WNBA again in 2025, winning an unprecedented fourth MVP as her Las Vegas Aces earned a third championship in four seasons.
For that, she earned The Associated Press Female Athlete of the Year on Wednesday for the first time in her career. It’s the second consecutive year a basketball player won the award after Caitlin Clark was honored in 2024.
“It’s an honor when you think about the group of women who have won before,” Wilson said in a phone interview “Just to have my name be a part of it, I’m blessed.” Wilson is only the fifth basketball player to be honored as the Female Athlete of the Year since it was first presented in 1931, joining Sheryl Swoopes (1993), Rebecca Lobo (1995) Candace Parker (2008, 2021) and Clark.
A group of 47 sports journalists from the AP and its members voted. Wilson received 17 votes, tennis star Aryna Sabalenka was second with nine and Paige Bueckers was third with five.
“The things she’s done on the court have never been done. To me, she’s in a category all her own,” Aces coach Becky Hammon said of Wilson. “People always ask who’s on your Mount Rushmore? I’m saying she’s on Everest there’s nobody up there with her.” Shohei Ohtani won the AP Male Athlete of the Year on Tuesday for the fourth time.
Hammon has been impressed with everything about Wilson in her four years coaching in Las Vegas.
“Her relatability, her being down to earth makes her a great superstar,” Hammon said. “Her skill set is unmatched, but she’s also the easiest player to coach. To have that mixture of humility, grace and skill, there’s a reason why she’s doing things that have never been done.”
This season was different for Wilson and the Aces, who had cruised to their previous two titles as a heavy favorite. This year with a month to go, the Aces were
sitting at .500 and were in danger of missing the playoffs after coming off a record 53-point loss against Minnesota Wilson rallied her team to wins in the final 16 regular-season games to secure the No 2 seed, and Las Vegas went on to win the championship.
“This season I found myself through the adversity and mud we went through,” she said.
Despite her numbers being on par with her unanimous MVP season the year before Wilson heard the chatter that she wasn’t playing as well and that she wasn’t the front-runner to repeat as the league’s top player
The 29-year-old used that as fuel on the court. She led the
league with 23.4 points and 2.3 blocks per game. “The way they talk about us, the way they talk about me, I’m ready for that, I’m ready for the noise,” Wilson said. “It’s always going to be something. If we sit here and try to please everybody, we’re going to go insane. I’m just going to continue to prove why I’m one of the greatest and why my team is part of a dynamic dynasty.”
Wilson raised her game even further in the playoffs helping the Aces survive decisive winner-take-all games in the quarterfinals and semifinals. She then helped Las Vegas sweep Phoenix in the WNBA Finals, hitting the winning shot in Game 3
“It’s fair to say the expectations for her are so sky high now, she’ll be compared to a degree to the unanimous MVP she was the year before,” ESPN analyst Rebecca Lobo said. “Even though she wasn’t unanimous MVP this year, the journey she had this season was different and she was playing the best basketball of her career in the playoffs.”
“Every year, you wonder how she’ll get better, and she always does.”
Wilson became the first player in either the WNBA or NBA to win the MVP, Defensive Player of the Year, Finals MVP and lead the league in scoring in the same season.
Wilson broke a tie with Swoopes, Lisa Leslie and Lauren Jackson, who all won the WNBA MVP three times. She plans to have another relaxing offseason as she won’t play overseas or in Unrivaled, the domestic 3-on-3 league.
Wilson became a free agent at the end of the season and could be in for a significant raise as the league and players union negotiate a new collective bargaining agreement, but she is widely expected to return to the Aces.
She’s already crossed one thing off her bucket list, meeting her idol Beyonce at the Formula 1 race in Las Vegas last month.
“It was super cool, Beyonce is someone that I’ve always wanted to meet because I just admired her work,” Wilson said.
The Aces great is that way herself for so many She launched a shoe and clothing line with Nike. Her shoe sold out minutes after it went on sale
“It’s amazing, something that I think about every day when I look around and see people just wearing my shoe. Every day it’s a gentle reminder that you know it’s a special moment that we’re living in and I’m so grateful when I look back on it.”
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chance at a go-ahead drive.
“Just a great trigger play by him,” Saints defensive coordinator Brandon Staley said. “. You saw his instincts on display, and his play recognition, which are a couple of his top qualities. “
Then last week against Tampa Bay, McKinstry contributed another fourth-down stop when he drove hard on a pass to Chris Godwin on the sideline. The Buccaneers receiver essentially had secured a catch that would have moved the chains, but McKinstry arrived with violence and jarred the ball free.
It hasn’t been a perfect season for McKinstry by any stretch. The Rams went after him with star receivers Puka Nacua and Davante Adams, both of whom beat him for scores. The one explosive they’ve given up recently came with McKinstry trailing Falcons receiver Darnell Mooney on a 49yard touchdown.
But the highs have been notable, too. McKinstry earned NFC Defensive Player of the Week honors earlier this season after picking off Giants rookie Jaxson Dart twice.
“It’s really hard to play coverage in the NFL No one should ever take that for granted but that’s the job that we signed up for,” Saints cornerbacks coach Grady Brown said. “There have been games where he’s played really well. There have been games where it felt like he played bad, and he really didn’t — he played maybe average on one play But that’s the nature of our position.”
To Brown, the important thing is that when McKinstry has been beaten, he’s often still been in position to make a play
“We can build on that,” Brown said.
On the other side is Riley, a fourth-round pick in this year’s draft. He emerged in the scouting process this year for the Saints as having some of the best ball skills among corners in this year’s draft, and that trait showed up early in training camp.
“He made some plays in practice, seemed to make a pick every few days,” head coach Kellen Moore said.
Riley once credited his ball skills with his background as a baseball center fielder, but Brown had a different explanation: Riley has a rare ability to track multiple things at once — a trait that helps put Riley in position to make plays.
“He can cover his guy and still see the quarterback,” Brown said. “Some guys try to do that, and they’re looking at the quarterback, and that’s an eye violation — they never see their guy.” Riley opened the season playing almost exclusively on special teams, but he started carving out a role on defense by Week 3. When opening-day starter Isaac Yiadom suffered a hamstring injury, the door opened and Riley never looked back.
He’s been starting since Week 5, though he still comes off the field for Taylor when the Saints are in the base defense. According to Next Gen Stats, Riley has allowed just 16 completions on 29 targets as the nearest defender this season, and opposing passers have a 62.0 rating when throwing his way
Riley may not have opened the season as a starter, but he’s fully seized his opportunity and doesn’t look like a player who will give the job up any time soon. When Brown looks at Riley, he sees someone whose skill set marries well with what the Saints want to do defensively
“This experience that he’s gaining right now is priceless,” Brown said. “It’ll be an exciting career for him if we stay on track.”
ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO By RICK SCUTERI
Las Vegas Aces center A’ja Wilson holds up her MVP trophy after Game 4 of the WNBA basketball finals against the Phoenix Mercury on Oct. 10 in Phoenix.
the Pelicans their largest lead of the half. Portland charged back, and the lead changed hands eight times before Bey broke the eighth tie of the period with a dunk that gave New Orleans a 70-68 halftime lead.
STAFF PHOTO By DAVID GRUNFELD New Orleans Pelicans forward Trey Murphy goes in for a dunk against the Portland Trail Blazers at the Smoothie King Center on Thursday night. The Pelicans won 143-120.
SECwastesnotimepitting Kiffinvs. Rebels
BY REED DARCEY Staff writer
Mark your calendars. New LSU head coach Lane Kiffin will make his highly anticipated return to Oxford, Mississippi, next season on Sept.
19. That game againstOle Miss will be the firstSEC battle on theTigers’ newlook schedule, which ESPN unveiled Thursday night when it set kickoff dates for every matchup between SEC teams in 2026.
LSUwillhostTexas A&M on Sept. 26, Mississippi State on Oct. 17, Alabama on Nov
RABALAIS
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make aswift comeback.
7and Texas on Nov. 14
The Tigers will hit the road to faceKentucky on Oct. 10, AuburnonOct.24, Tennessee on Nov.21and Arkansas on Nov.28 in addition to their early clash with theRebels.
LSU still will have its customary open datebefore its matchup with Alabama.
Next year,for the first time ever,SEC teams will play nine league gamesinstead of eight. Each programhas threecontestsagainst annual rivals and sixagainst a rotatinggroup of opponents.
LSU willface its three annual foes —Texas A&M,
Ithink maybe Iwouldjustcall in sick that day.But something tells me Kiffin wouldn’tmiss this trip to Ole Miss for the world. If the Rebels want their revenge on the coach who gave them 55 wins over six seasons, then flewacross the border to coach one of their most hated rivals, Iimagine he is eager to pay them back for their animosity just as much.
LSU and Ole Miss, of course, will be permanent rivals in the SEC’snew nine-game scheduling format that debuts next season. As long as Kiffin is at LSU, this rivalry is likely to rise to alevel of volatility not seen since the days of Billy Cannon and Johnny Vaught.
It’simportant to remember that the SEC set the home-and-away opponents for each team for the 2026-29seasons back in September,long before there was an LSU job opening for Kiffin to fill. Truly, it just worked out this way.A fluke of the calendar or computer or whatever However it happened, it’sgoing to be appointment viewing for sure. Those road games overshadow the Tigers’ home schedule, but they should not. It may be the most compelling slate of LSU
Arkansas and OleMiss— every season untilatleast 2029. The other 12 teams in theSEC will each meet with the Tigers twice over that four-year stretch.
The league officially approvedthatnew format in August, then revealed the annual opponentsfor every team in September.The SEC saiditconsidered geography,competitivebalance and traditionalrivalries when it decidedthose yearly matchups, which will be reevaluated ahead of the 2030 season.
Thefirst year of the format will put old SEC West ri-
valries back on the schedule for LSU,while also giving the Tigers achancetotake some trips they hardly ever took when the league was split intotwo divisions.
LSU, for instance, will soon play Auburn and Mississippi Statefor the first time since 2023 —the year beforeTexas and Oklahoma joined the SEC,leadingthe conference to dissolve its east and west divisions. The Tigers also will travel both to Lexington,Kentucky,and to Knoxville, Tennessee, for just the fifth time since 2000.
Kiffin coached theVolunteers in 2009 beforeheleft
abruptlytotakethe Southern Cal head coaching job. Now,inhis first year at LSU, Kiffin will visit not one buttwo of hisformer schools: Ole Miss andTennessee. The Tigers have played road gamesagainst those twoteams in the same season only six timesever— andjust twiceacrossthe last 25 years. The Tigers have scheduledall threenonconference games for2026. They’ll host Clemson on Sept.5,Louisiana Tech on Sept. 12 andMcNeese State on Oct. 3. LSU finalizedanagreementtoplay the Bulldogs on Wednesday
LSU’S 2026 SCHEDULE
Sept.5:vs. Clemson
Sept.12: vs.Louisiana Tech
Sept.19: at Ole Miss
Sept.26: vs.TexasA&M
Oct.3:vs. McNeese
Oct.10: at Kentucky
Oct.17: vs.Mississippi State
Oct.24: at Auburn
Oct.31: Open date
Nov. 7: vs.Alabama
Nov. 14: vs.Texas
Nov. 21: at Tennessee
Nov. 28: at Arkansas
home games I’ve ever seen. After openingthe season in Tiger Stadium on Sept.5against Clemson, which will be making its first-ever visittoBaton Rouge, LSU will host TexasA&M on Sept. 26, Alabama onNov.7and Texas on Nov 14. Thelatter will be the Longhorns’ first visit to Tiger Stadium
since 1953. Arch Manning quarterbacking Texas in Tiger Stadium?Who isn’t looking forward to that?
Old SEC West Division rivals Mississippi State(homeonOct. 17) and Auburn (away on Oct. 24) also return to the schedule, as does Kentucky (away on Oct. 10),
NewLSU football coachLane Kiffin walks into the South StadiumClubat TigerStadium for hisintroductory news conference on Dec.1.Kiffin’s agent Jimmy Sexton, right, and LSU board of supervisors chairman Scott Ballard, left,flank him.
ateam LSU played every year from 1952-2002. And, as expected, permanentopponents LSU and Arkansas (away on Nov. 28) look like they will again be seasonending opponents, as they were mostyears from the Razorbacks’ arrival in the SEC in 1992 through 2013.
But those tworoad games at Ole Miss and Tennessee, man,those are the gold and silver medal-winning contests on the schedule. To borrow aKiffin phrase, “Get your popcorn.”
Email Scott Rabalais at srabalais@theadvocate.com
STAFF PHOTO By MICHAEL JOHNSON
AFLURRYOFFUN
The annual Let It Sneaux holiday event, hosted by BREC, will take place from 2p.m.to6 p.m. SaturdayatPerkins Road Community Park. Among the activities will be Mini Maker’sMarket, pettingzoo, holiday train and pony rides, livemusic, photos with Santa and holiday dronelight showat6 p.m. brec.org
THINGS TO DO THIS WEEKEND
GIFT AND GAME
Dispatch, Keeper,BallxPit highlight holiday gaming season
BY DOMINIC BAEZ
The Seattle Times (TNS)
The past few weeks have seen some major video game releases, including Ghost of Yotei, Battlefield 6, Pokémon Legends: Z-A and Call of Duty: Black Ops 7. On top of that, the nominee announcements for December’s Game Awards havebrought attention back to some titles that have gotten love all year,like Clair Obscur: Expedition 33and Hollow Knight: Silksong.
So it’stotally reasonable if youmay have missed some of the smaller,more worthwhile releases that have comeout recently (and don’tcost$70).
From one of the most engrossingscripts I’ve ever hadthe pleasure of experiencing toa surreal, wordless adventure, here are three new games worth every minute andpenny (ifyou haveany of thoseleft), each less than $30.
ADHOC STUDIO/TNS ILLUSTRATION
RobertRobertson III (voiced by Aaron Paul) is asuperhero without powers in Dispatch, an eight-episodeadventure game/ workplace comedy.
In 2012, developer Telltale Games released the first seasonofThe Walking Dead, an episodic adventure series based on the comic bookseriesofthe same. It was revolutionary for its branching, player-influenced narrative and for helpingtorevive theadventure genre.The series waned over theyears, thanksinnosmall part to alack of innovation goingforward So Iwas abit hesitant to check out Dispatch, developed and publishedbyAdHoc Studio, which was foundedbyformer Telltale staff, amongothers. Thathesitationwas fornaught: Dispatch is one of thebest games I’ve played in sometime In this eight-hour game, broken up into eight episodes, youcontrol Robert Robertson III (yes, that’s hisname),a powerless superhero whouses amechto fight crime in Los Angeles. One rough night later, he’sworking for the Superhero Dispatch Network,where he sends histeam of former villains out to save the day,from catchingfalling planestorescuing kittens in trees.
ASHOWOFGRATITUDE
The inaugural First Responders: Operation Save Santa Parade is scheduled to roll at 2p.m. Sundayand will honor the dedication, courageand sacrifice of the community’s first responders. The procession will startatFourth and North streets and conclude at the intersection of Fifthand North streets.
AWINTER TRADITION
Skating on the Riverhas opened forthe season at the Raising Cane’sRiver Center Arena. Sessions from 10 a.m. to 8p.m.run daily through Dec. 30 (except forChristmas and Zydeco game days). The 75-minute sessions starts at $23.50. Open to all ages. arena.raisingcanesrivercenter.com
Tunes under the tree
Here’s
alookatthe holiday’sfestive and reflective musicfor 2025
BY JOHN WIRT | Contributing writer
Anew slate of festiveand reflectivemusic arrived early this holiday season
In the tradition of Nat King Cole’s“The Christmas Song” andLouisiana’sVince Vance & the Valiants’ andMariah Carey’s “All IWant for Christmas Is You,”some of these fresh yuletide lyrics andmelodies may become perennials.
BY JUDY BERGERON Staff writer
Thisyear’s newsongs include country star Lainey Wilson’s“Peace, Love, &Cowboys (HolidayEdition),” Willie Nelson’s “Christmas Love Song” andNorah Jones’duetwith Leon Bridges, “ThisChristmas I’mComingHome.” Also on Santa’splaylistare albumsbythe traditional jazz musiciansofNew Orleans’ Preservation Hall, 90-year-old trumpetstar Herb Alpert,and acappella groupStraight No Chaser (with Acadianasingers HunterHayes and Marc Broussard).
BobDylan to performtwo
workahead,” Ticketmaster states
Basedoncurrent trends, tickets, which go on sale Friday,are expected to start around $75. According to Ticketmaster, this concert will be aphone-freeexperience. Email Judy Bergeron at jbergeron@theadvocate.com.
By The Associated Press
Today is Friday,Dec. 12, the 346th day of 2025. There are 19 days left in the year
Todayinhistory:
On Dec. 12, 2000, George W. Bush became presidentelect as adivided U.S. Supreme Court reversed a state court recount decision in Florida’stightly contested presidential election.
Also on this date:
In 1870, Joseph H. Rainey of South Carolina became the firstBlack lawmaker sworn into the U.S. House of Representatives.
In 1963, the east African nation of Kenya declared independence from Britain; it became arepublic exactly ayear later In 1985, 248 American soldiers and eight crew members were killed when an Arrow Aircharter crashed
after takeoff from Gander, Newfoundland. In 2010, the inflatable roof of theMinneapolis Metrodome collapsed in the early morninghours after asnowstormdumped 17 inches on the city.(There were noinjuries, butthe NFL had to shift an already rescheduled game between the MinnesotaVikings and New York Giants to Detroit’sFord Field.)
In 2015, nearly 200 nations meeting in Paris adopted thefirst global pact to fight climate change, callingonthe world to collectively cut greenhouse gas emissions but imposing no sanctions on countries that didn’tdoso. In 2020, thousands of supporters ofPresidentDonald Trumpgathered in Washington for rallies to backhis efforts to subvert the elec-
tion he lost to Joe Biden. In 2023, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, capping awhirlwind twoday visit to Washington, D.C., urged Congress to approve more assistance to fight Russia’sinvasion of his country Today’sbirthdays: Basketball Hall of Famer BobPettit is 93. Singer Dionne Warwick is 85. Hall of Famerace car driver Emerson Fittipaldi is 79. ActorBill Nighy is 76. Gymnast-actor Cathy Rigby is 73. Singer-musician Sheila E. is 68. ActorSheree J. Wilson is 67. Tennis Hall of Famer Tracy Austin is 63. Football Hall of Famer John Randle is 58. Actor Jennifer Connelly is 55. Actor Regina Hall is 55. Actor Mayim Bialik is 50. Model-actor BridgetHall is 48. Actor Lucas Hedges is 29. Actor and rapperSky Katzis21.
GAMES
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The gameplay is minimal, consisting of quick-time prompts during conversations and sequencesin which you decidehow to send your team out across L.A., both of which affectfuturein-game outcomes. (Tip: Don’tsend the hot-tempered member to de-escalate any situation. It never works.) The narrative, dialogue and pacing, however,are top of their class. In collaboration with Critical Role Productions, the companybehind the fantastic “The Legend of VoxMachina” series on Prime Video, Dispatch has some of the best writing in videogames,fullofcharm, wit and hilarious brashness. Apowerhouse voice cast including AaronPaul (as Robert), Laura Bailey,Erin Yvette, AlanahPearce, Matthew Mercer and Jeffrey Wright doesn’thurt either With Dispatch, AdHoc has taken up Telltale’sadventure game mantle, creating something uproariously clever, emotionally endearing and, most important, enjoyable to play.Ineed Season 2, ASAP Keeper n Available on:XboxSeries X|S and PC (also on Xbox Game Pass)
On the other hand,there’s not asingle word of dialogue
in Keeper,the latest creation from DoubleFine, known for ingeniousadventure games like Psychonauts and Broken Age. Yetyou can’thelp but be affected by the surreal journeyyou embarkon.
Anditissurreal, not least of all because you play as an animated lighthouse with abirdlike creatureasyour main companion. The path forward is fairly linear,and thepuzzles are only occasionally challenging.But it’s the environment that’sthe main draw here.It’slikea trippy watercolor come to life, vibrant in palette choice andgorgeousinits execution. Andit’sonly when the colorsstarttochange that you realizethe true danger you’rein.
Admittedly,the slow pace of Keeper won’tbe for everyone, butifyou’re looking fora five-hourescape full of unexpected surprise and beauty— and adorky little bird that likes to decorate you with seafaring ornaments —Irecommend you give it atry Ballx Pit
n Available on: PS5,Xbox X|S,Nintendo Switch, PC and macOS (also on XboxGame Pass)
And on the other,other hand,there’s aBallx Pit, whichalmostnever slows down. Developed by just onepersonand published by DevolverDigital, Ball x Pit throws you in apit filled
with monsters, whichyou must defeat with …balls. Shocking, Iknow. But it’s not as simple as it sounds. In fact, themain gameplaymechanic is surprisingly in-depth, thanks to the sheer number of ways different balls interact with each other and the enemies around you. As the player, youhaveaccesstoseveral different adventurers, each with their own destructive ball weapons. As you progress, you can level them up andevenfusethemtogether to create entirely new weapons. Randomness also plays aheavy role, making no two runs exactly the same. Levels getchaoticvery quickly,especially when you’re using area-of-effect balls or when allies join you on yourquest.But that’s only half the game.When you finish alevel (ordie), you’re sent to your town.It’s here where you’ll harvest resources thatcan be used to build and upgrade your town’sinfrastructure, which in turn helps enhance your adventurers. (I will say, the town interface is entirely too clunky and probably the worst part of the game.)
Butthen you return to the pit,with new knowledge and perhaps newfound strength, and it’sanabsoluteblast. It takes about 20 hours to beat Ball xPit, but it’s thetype of game youcould easily spend dozens of hours playing and you probably will.
MUSIC
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Here’s asampling of seasonal sounds: HERB ALPERT,“Christmas Time Is Here”: Alpert applieshis signature sound to “All IWant for Christmas Is You,” Rodgers and Hammerstein’s“My Favorite Things,”Vince Guaraldi’s“Christmas Time Is Here” and more.
DREW BALDRIDGE ANDMICKEY GUYTON, “Joy to Your World”: Baldridge and Guyton sing this duet in theHallmark Channelmovie “A Grand Ole Opry Christmas.”
ERICBENET,“It’sChristmas”: The smooth rhythm-andbluessingerinterprets “Please Come Home for Christmas,” “Christmas Time Is Here”and more classics.
LUKE BRYAN,“LukeBryan Christmas”: The country star and “American Idol” judge duets with Ella Langley for “Winter Wonderland,” a newrecording packaged with hispreviouslyreleased “Run Run Rudolph” and “O Holy Night.”
CELTIC WOMAN, “Nollaig —A Christmas Journey”: Includes standards plus the new “Nollaig na mBan” (“Women’sChristmas”) and Irish tunes withayuletide twist.
BING CROSBY,ROSEMARY CLOONEY, DANNY KAYE, VERAELLEN,“White Christmas”: The soundtrack to the1954 movie musical returns in vinyl LP format.
DAN+SHAY, “Long Live Christmas”: The country duofollows its 2024 Christmas album “It’sOfficially Christmas: TheDouble Album” withthe newsong“Long LiveChristmas.”
FLOWERVLOVE, “wishlist”: Twenty-year-old flowervlovelongs for romance in her first holiday song.
NATALIE GRANT,“Christmas”: TheChristian musicsinger’sholidaystandards album features a“Silent Night” duetwith MercyMe’sBart Millard.
THE JONASBROTHERS,“AVery Jonas Christmas Movie”: Seven newsongs plus the brothers’ 2019 holiday single “Like It’s Christmas.”
LADYA,“On This Winter’s Night: Volume 2”:The country trio’ssequel to 2012’s “On This Winter’sNight” features the new song “Wouldn’tBeChristmas.”
LAUFEY,“Santa Claus Is Comin’ To Town”: The popular jazz singer adds another track to her 2022 EP “A Very Laufey Holiday.” It can be seen and heard in aclay-animation music video at youtube.com/watch?v=tmy1mr0RhA.
LITTLE BIG TOWN,“The Innkeeper”: Following last year’s “The ChristmasRecord” album, thecountry quartet adds anew song toits holiday repertoire.
DEAN MARTIN,“Let It Snow!Let It Snow! Let It Snow!”: Pressed on a7-inch white vinyl single, the classic crooner’s 1959 recording of “LetItSnow! Let It Snow! Let It Snow!” pairswithB-side“Rudolph theRed-Nosed Reindeer.”
PAUL McCARTNEY,“Wonderful Christmastime”: His 1979 single reissued on 7-inch white vinyl with B-side “Rudolph theRed-Nosed Reggae.”
STRYPER, “The GreatestGift of All”: The first Christmas album from the head-banging Christian metal band.
THALIA, “SANTA(Crush on You/ TengoUnCrush Contigo)”: The Latin pop star continues herholidaystreak of the past several years.
PARKER McCOLLUM, “Santa Claus Is Comin’ To Town”: InspiredbyBruceSpringsteen’s1975 rendition, the country singertakes on “Santa ClausIsComin’ To Town.”
BONEYJAMES,“ ’Tis The Season”: Combinesthe smooth jazz saxophonist’stwo previous holiday albumswith his new “Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas.”
KYLIE MINOGUE,“Kylie Christmas (Fully Wrapped)”: Pressed in transparent red vinyl, this 10th anniversary edition adds new songs “Hot in December,” “Office Party” and “This Time of Year.”
WILLIENELSON,“Christmas Love Song”: The 92-year-old Nelsonkeepshis seasonal sentiment sweet and simple. “It don’tsparkle or shine,but it’sone of akind,” he sings.
“I putmywhole heartinto this Christmaslove song to you.”
OLD CROW MEDICINE SHOW
“OCMS Xmas”: Rootsy string band Old Crow Medicine Show goes off the snowy path with the Mississippi John Hurt-inspired“Jolly Man,”the zydeco-styled “All About aBaby,” “Corn Whiskey Christmas” and 10 more. The group is currently on itsfirst “Holiday Hootenanny” tour
DOLLYPARTON, “A Holly Dolly Christmas”: The picture disc fifth-anniversary edition of Parton’s hit holidayalbum from2020. Guests Miley and Billy Ray Cryus, Michael Bublé, Nelsonand Rod Stewart join the party BRAD PAISLEY,“Snow Globe Town”: A16-song collection including the official theme song forthe Hallmark Channel’s“Countdownto Christmas” and twosongs from theHallmark movie “A Grand Ole Opry Christmas.”
PRESERVATION HALL, “PreservationHall Wishes Youa Very Merry Creole Christmas”: New Orleans’ Preservation Hall community of traditional jazz musicians plays holiday classics.
LEANN RIMES, “Greatest Hits Christmas”: Rimes sings Brenda Lee’s“Rockin’ Around the Christmas Tree,” Joni Mitchell’s“River,” the “Today” show’s holiday theme song “Today Is Christmas” and more.
STRAIGHT NO CHASER, “HolidayRoad”: Acadiana singers Hunter Hayes and Marc
DIMITRI TIOMKIN,“It’sa Wonderful Life”: One of Hollywood’s golden age film composers, Tiomkin scored the 1946 classic“It’s aWonderful Life.” This soundtrack album’s31tracksinclude such pivotal scenes as “Uncle Billy’sBlunder” and “Potter’sThreat.”
LAINEYWILSON, “Peace, Love, & Cowboys (HolidayEdition)”: Country superstar and Louisiana native Wilson revamps “Peace, Love, &Cowboys” forChristmastime. Aduet with classic crooner Bing Crosby of “Let It Snow!Let It Snow! Let It Snow!” plus instrumental versions of thelatter songsmake it a four-track EP
TRISHA YEARWOOD,“Christmastime”: Asymphony orchestra accompanies the country star forher 12-song holiday album, including “You’re a Mean One, Mr.Grinch” and “Blue Christmas.”
VARIOUS ARTISTS,“The Chess Records Christmas Album”: Chicago’sChess Records released rock ’n’ rollhits and bluesclassicsinthe 1950s and’60sand jazz and gospel music,too.Chuck Berry headlines this collection (“Run Rudoph Run” and twomore), joining the Moonglows (“Hey Santa Claus”), Ramsey Lewis Trio (“Christmas Blues”), Sonny BoyWilliamson(“Santa Claus”), SalemTravelers (“Merry Christmas to You’) and more.
VARIOUSARTISTS,“AStrange Daisy Christmas”: This double album pressedin“lump of coal black”vinyl contains Louisiana underground artists performing standards and originals.
VARIOUS ARTISTS,“Verve//Remixed Holiday”: Thisexpanded edition adds five new tracks. DJs Tourist, Ginton, Bolden and more put their spin on Louis Armstrong, Dinah Washington, Nina Simone, Ella Fitzgerald and more classic Vervelabel artists. More singles, EPs and albums: DAVID ARCHULETA,“My Only Wish”; LEON BRIDGES “A Merry Black Christmas”; BELA FLECK,“Jingle All theWay”; THE FUTUREHEADS, “Christmas”; COCO JONES, “Skip My House”; GUYTON “FeelsLike Christmas”; TAYLOR MOMSEN (THE PRETTY RECKLESS),“Pretty Reckless Christmas”; MORNING JACKET, “Does Xmas Fiasco Style”; PENATONIX,“Christmas In The City”; MEGHAN TRAINOR, “Gifts forMe”; VENICE BEACH DUBCLUB,“Good King Wenceslas”; JOHN WATERS,“Little Cindy/A Pig Latin Visit From St. Nicholas”; DEBBIE WILEMAN,“AChristmas Garland: Debbie Wileman as Judy Garland”; and VARIOUS ARTISTS,“Punk Rock Christmas.”
Email John Wirt at j_ wirt@msn.com.
DEVOLVER DIGITAL/TNS IMAGE
In Ball xPit, youuse avariety of balls withdifferentabilities to slaythe foes in your way.
PROVIDED PHOTO By WILLIAMS HIRAKAWA Dan +Shay, ‘Long Live Christmas’
FRIDAY
GEEKSTER THE SUPERNERD: Henry Turner Jr.’s Listening Room, 3 p.m.
KEEPIN’ TIME BAND: T’Quilas, Denham Springs, 6 p.m.
THE COVERLY BROTHERS: Gonzales Holiday Fair, 6 p.m.
MELISSA SINGS: Le Chien Brewing Co., Denham Springs, 6:30 p.m.
THE VELVET FOGLE: The Brakes Bar, 7 p.m.
JOVIN WEBB: Bin 77, 7 p.m.
THE LONGNECK SOCIETY: On The Half Shell, Prairieville, 7 p.m.
DON POURCIAU & KONSPIRACY: VFW-Choctaw, 7 p.m.
CHRIS OCMAND: 18 Steak at L’Auberge, 7 p.m.
PHIL CHANDLER: Riverbend Terrace II at L’Auberge, 8 p.m.
JOEL COOPER & SCOTT JORDAN: Coop’s on 621, Gonzales, 8 p.m.
3:05 EXPRESS: Phil Brady’s, 8 p.m.
DOUSSAN GARRETT BENOIT: Fat Cat Saloon, Prairieville, 9 p.m. BRICKS IN THE WALL: Chelsea’s Live, 9 p.m. MIKE HOGAN: The Vineyard, 9 p.m. TREY MORGAN BAND: O’Hara’s Irish Pub, 9 p.m. VOYAGE: Churchill’s, 9 p.m.
KENDALL SHAFFER: Swamp Chicken Daiquiris, St. Amant
9 p.m ISSY: Brickyard South, 10 p.m.
SATURDAY
ACOUSTICRATS: Leola’s Café, 11 a.m.
TAYLOR HARRIS: Le Chien Brewing Co., Denham Springs, 1 p.m.
BR SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA: HOME FOR THE HOLIDAYS: Raising Cane’s River Center Theatre for Performing Arts, 2 p.m.
BEAUCOUP BOOGIE: Perkins Road Community Park, 2 p.m.
V-LO/DINA PRESTON/CLAY REDMOND: Henry Turner Jr.’s Listening Room, 3 p.m.
BRITTON MAJOR: Sullivan’s Steakhouse, 5:30 p.m.
SOUTH OF CENTRAL: Pedro’s, 6 p.m.
BLOCKER HARVISON: BLDG
5, 6 p.m.
DRAMA KINGS: T’Quilas, Denham Springs, 6 p.m
PAPO Y SON MANDAO: Pedro’s, Denham Springs, 6 p.m.
ARNETT HAYES: Stab’s Restaurant, 6 p.m.
IAN & JARRETT: Bin 77, 7 p.m.
PECAN PRALINES: Classic Vinyls, 7 p.m.
DENTON HATCHER: 18 Steak at L’Auberge, 7 p.m.
CHRIS ROGERS & TYLER BIGHAM: The Brakes Bar, 7 p.m
3 BLIND MICE: On the Half Shell, Prairieville, 7 p.m.
KENDALL SHAFFER BAND: Coop’s on 621, Gonzales, 8 p.m.
JOEL COOPER & SCOTT JORDAN: Spanky’s, Prairieville, 8 p.m.
THE RICOCHETS: Backstreet Lounge, 8 p.m.
CHRIS OCMAND: Riverbend Terrace II at L’Auberge, 8 p.m.
CHRIS LEBLANC BAND: Swamp Chicken Daiquiris, St Amant, 9 p.m.
WAYNE TOUPS/COTEAU GROVE PROJECT: The Texas Club, 9 p.m.
IAN WEBSTER & TAYLOR CLARK: The Vineyard, 9 p.m. THE MAIN EVENT: Crazy Dave’s, Livingston, 9 p.m. JOVIN WEBB: The Edge Bar at L’Auberge, 9 p.m. THE DRUNK UNCLES: Fat Cat Saloon, Prairieville, 9 p.m.
SUNDAY
KIRK HOLDER: On the Half Shell, Prairieville, 11 a.m.
BRADY GEORGE & ANDREW LANDRY: Leola’s Café, 11 a.m.
JUSTIN BURDETTE TRIO: Superior Grill-MidCity, 11 a.m.
ERIC GAUTREAUX: Red Stick Social, noon
OLD TIME MUSIC JAM: West Baton Rouge Museum, Port Allen, 3 p.m.
GIFTED AND TALENTED MUSIC WINTER CONCERT: Main Library at Goodwood, 3 p.m.
SONGWRITER SUNDAYS: La Divina Italian Cafe, 5 p.m. CHRIS OCMAND: Pizza Byronz, 5 p.m.
OPEN MIC JAM: Fat Cat Saloon, Prairieville, 7 p.m. THE JAZZ NURSE: BETSY BRAUD AND COMPANY: Mid City Ballroom, 8 p.m.
MONDAY
JEFF BAJON PROJECT: Pedros, Denham Springs, 6 p.m.
RHETT GUILLOT: Superior Grill-MidCity, 6 p.m.
MIKE ESNEAULT: Stab’s Restaurant, 6 p.m.
ISSY/THE SEYMOURS/ KNIGHTSHIFT KREWE: Mid City Ballroom, 8 p.m.
TUESDAY
KIRK HOLDER: Superior GrillMidCity, 6 p.m.
MIKE ESNEAULT: Stab’s Restaurant, 6 p.m.
EDDIE SMITH: On The Half Shell, Prairieville, 6:30 p.m.
Compiled by Marchaund Jones. Want your venue’s music listed? Email info/ photos to showstowatch@ theadvocate.com. The deadline is noon FRIDAY for the following Friday’s paper
7800 Independence Blvd. Ben-
FRIDAY
UNSCRIPTED IMPROV SHOW:
7 p.m., Cary Saurage Community Arts Center, 233 St. Ferdinand St. Featuring Just in the Femur Improv Troupe and LSU Improv Troupe. $15. 225theatrecollective.com.
FAMILY DINNER IMPROV
COMEDY TROUPE: 7:30 p.m., Hartley/Vey Studio Theatre, Manship Theatre, 100 Lafayette St. Improv comedy show, rated R-ish due to improv content. $14. manshiptheatre. org.
FRIDAY-SATURDAY
BATON ROUGE ZYDECO VS. TOPEKA SCARECROWS (ICE HOCKEY): 7 p.m., Raising Cane’s River Center Arena, 275 S. River Road. $25. raisingcanesrivercenter.com.
FRIDAY-SUNDAY
LISTENING ROOM FILM FESTIVAL: 3 p.m.-midnight FridaySaturday, and 3 p.m.-9 p.m. Sunday, Henry Turner Jr.’s Listening Room, 2733 North St. Local and regional music- and entertainment-driven film screenings, show business panels, music. Full pass, $50; one-day pass, $10; film block pass, $5. https://hitcitydigital. wixsite.com/htjmuseum/.
SATURDAY
BATON ROUGE ARTS MARKET:
8 a.m.-noon, Fifth and Main streets, downtown. Vendors sell a variety of unique, original works of art including pottery, woodwork, textiles, glass, paintings, sculptures, photographs, handmade soaps, handmade toys, jewelry and more. artsbr.org.
RED STICK FARMERS MARKET:
8 a.m.-noon, Fifth and Main streets, downtown. Farmfresh produce, goods, cooking demonstrations. breada. org.
FAMILY-HOUR STARGAZING:
10 a.m., Irene W. Pennington Planetarium at the Louisiana Art & Science Museum, 100 S. River Road. Learn about the stars and constellations in the local nighttime sky, followed by an all-ages show. lasm.org.
GREATER BATON ROUGE
MODEL RAILROADERS: 10 a.m.
to 2 p.m., Republic of West Florida Historical Museum, 3406 College St., Jackson. Electric trains of all sizes will be running on five different layouts. Free admission and parking.
“HOLIDAY NUTCRACKER”:
1 p.m. and 4 p.m., Dunham School’s Brown-Hold Theatre, 11111 Roy Emerson Drive. Cangelosi Dance Project’s annual holiday production. $30-$50. cangelosidp@gmail. com or cangelosidanceproject.com.
“THE POLAR EXPRESS” (FILM):
2 p.m., Irene W. Pennington Planetarium, Louisiana Art & Science Museum, 200 S. River Road. Holiday screening, hot cocoa, complimentary sleigh bell. $2-$20. lasm.org
DANCING THROUGH THE HOLIDAYS: 7 p.m., Arts Council of Greater Baton Rouge, 233 St. Ferdinand St. A festive evening of Christmasthemed dance numbers along with a Christmas musical performance by Clay Achee & Puppets. A fundraiser for 225 Theatre Collective. $55. 225theatrecollective.com.
SATURDAY-SUNDAY
“NUTCRACKER – A TALE FROM THE BAYOU”: 2 p.m. and 6 p.m., Raising Cane’s River Center Theatre for Performing Arts, 240 St. Louis St. Baton Rouge Ballet Theater’s annual holiday production. $40-$95. batonrougeballet.org.
TRI-PARISH BALLET’S “THE NUTCRACKER”: 6 p.m. Saturday and 2 p.m. Sunday, Independence Park Theatre,
efit performance on Saturday with admission a nonperishable item for two local food banks. Sunday, $25 in advance at etix.com, or $30 at the door.
SUNDAY “MUSIC OVERLAYS OUR WORLD – LOUISIANA SOUND
ARTS” EXHIBITION: 2 p.m., South Branch Library, 2210 Glasgow Ave. Presented by Palacios House of Arts, the event will begin with an opening art expo and recital at 2 p.m., followed by a second recital at 4:30 p.m. The collaborative exhibition bridges cultures and communities through color, rhythm, and creativity. ebrpl.com.
GIFTED AND TALENTED MUSIC
WINTER CONCERT: 3 p.m., Main Library at Goodwood, 7711 Goodwood Blvd. String and choral students from Baton Rouge High, Woodlawn High and McKinley Middle performing. Free. ebrpl.com.
SENSORY SECOND SUNDAY: 3 p.m.-5 p.m., Louisiana Art & Science Museum, 100 S. River Road. Dimmed lights, lowvolume music, designated quiet areas, headphones and sensory tools are available. Due to limited space, preregistration recommended at tinyurl.com/LASMSensorySunday. lasm.org.
TUESDAY BATON ROUGE CHESS CLUB: 6 p.m.-8 p.m., La Divina Italian Cafe, 3535 Perkins Road, Unit 360. A chance to play and learn; all levels welcome. Free.
TRIVIA NIGHT: 6:30 p.m., Burgersmith, 18303 Perkins Road. Collect your team and jockey for first place. loom. ly/y-CKtQ4.
WEDNESDAY SPECIAL COLLECTIONS OPEN
HOUSE: 6 p.m., Main Library at Goodwood, 7711 Goodwood Blvd. See what hidden gems are tucked away in the library’s archives. Free. ebrpl. com.
TRIVIA NIGHT: 6:30 p.m., Burgersmith, 27350 Crossing Circle, Suite 150, Denham Springs. Collect your team and jockey for first place. loom.ly/y-CKtQ4.
THURSDAY
RED STICK FARMERS MARKET: 8 a.m.-noon, Pennington Biomedical Research Center, 6400 Perkins Road. Farm-fresh produce, goods and more. facebook.com/redstickfarmersmarket.
BATON ROUGE ZYDECO VS. MONROE MOCCASINS (ICE HOCKEY): 7 p.m., Raising Cane’s River Center Arena, 275 S. River Road. $25. raisingcanesrivercenter.com.
WEEKLY SOCIAL BIKE RIDE: 7 p.m., Geaux Ride, 521 N. Third St., Suite A. Free. fareharbor.com.
ONGOING
ART GUILD OF LOUISIANA: Independence Park Theatre, 7800 Independence Blvd. “A Holiday Retrospective — AGL Member Show 2025,” through Jan. 8. (225) 773-8020 or artguildlouisiana.org.
BATON ROUGE GALLERY CENTER FOR CONTEMPORARY ART: 1515 Dalrymple Drive. Exhibitions by Sarah House and Craig McMullen, through Dec. 21. batonrougegallery.org.
CAPITOL PARK MUSEUM: 660 N. Fourth St. “Billy Cannon: They Called Him Legend,” through Jan. 10. “Grounds for Greatness: Louisiana and the Nation,” “The Louisiana Experience: Discovering the Soul of America,” “African American History,” “Music and Musicians” and “Mardi Gras,” permanent exhibits. (225) 342-5428 or louisianastatemuseum.org.
CARY SAURAGE COMMUNITY ARTS CENTER SHELL GALLERY: 233 St. Ferdinand
by artist Kevin Babb, through Dec. 31. Free and open during regular Shaw Center building hours unless there is a private event. LSU TEXTILE & COSTUME MUSEUM: Human Ecology Building, Tower Drive, LSU campus. “Dressing Louisiana Histoires de la mode de la Louisiane,” through March 6. (225) 5785992 or email textile@lsu.edu. MAGNOLIA MOUND MUSEUM + HISTORIC SITE: 2161 Nicholson Drive. Guided and selfguided tours. Hours are from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. MondaySaturday and from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. Sunday. brec.org/facility/MagnoliaMound.
OLD GOVERNOR’S MANSION: 502 North
PROVIDED PHOTO
Wayne Toups plays The Texas Club in Baton Rouge at 9 p.m. Saturday. Also on the bill is Coteau Grove Project.
sAGIttARIus (nov 23-Dec 21) Hasty choices will backfire, leaving you in a quandary that can cost you if you aren't careful. Ease into situations, mull over information and consider what works best for you before making a move.
cAPRIcoRn (Dec. 22-Jan. 19) Reach out to those you look up to for information with caution. Ask questions and listen carefully, but when it comes time to make a choice, rely on your instincts.
AQuARIus (Jan. 20-Feb. 19) Participating in something you enjoy will help you relax. Distancing yourself from stress will help you gain perspective on what's meaningful to you and how to cope with life's little challenges.
PIscEs (Feb. 20-March 20) Stick close to home and engage in something creative. Make positive changes to your routine and revamp your plans to encourage healthy lifestyle choices.
ARIEs (March 21-April 19) Focus on gaining experience and knowledge. Participate in events that address causes and concerns you are passionate about. Socializing with the wrong people will cost you.
tAuRus (April 20-May 20) You are overdue for a change. Consider how you can use your space to help develop new skills or pursue a project that can bring in extra cash. Be compassionate and understanding.
GEMInI (May 21-June 20) Don't sit back when interacting with others; it will
spark your imagination and get you moving in a new direction. Be a good listener, observer and communicator.
cAncER (June 21-July 22) Use your connections wisely and share your ideas only with those you trust. Avoid anyone who tends to dominate or bully. Discuss budgets, shared expenses and domestic matters to avoid financial setbacks.
LEo (July 23-Aug. 22) Engage in activities and conversations that offer insight into what those close to you want to do. Participating in social events and physical activities can connect you to someone special.
VIRGo (Aug. 23-sept. 22) You may desire change, but you are likely to meet with opposition if you move too quickly. Ask an expert, verify information and consider less risky alternatives.
LIBRA (sept. 23-oct. 23) Scout around your neighborhood, ask questions, gather information and make domestic choices that improve your living space or arrangements. Know when to say no and walk away.
scoRPIo (oct. 24-nov. 22) Chase knowledge and life experience What you learn will offer greater awareness of the possibilities. Discipline regarding the use of money will be necessary.
Celebrity Cipher cryptograms are created from quotations by famous people, past and present. Each letter in the cipher stands for another.
toDAy's cLuE: P EQuALs B
CeLebrItY CIpher
For better or For WorSe peAnUtS
FrAnK And erneSt
SALLY Forth
beetLe bAILeY
Mother GooSe And GrIMM
SherMAn’S LAGoon
bIG
Sudoku
InstructIons: Sudoku is anumber-placing puzzle based on a9x9 grid with several given numbers. Theobject is to place the numbers 1to9 in the empty squares so that each row, each column and each 3x3 box contains the same number only once. Thedifficulty level of theSudoku increases from Monday to Sunday.
Yesterday’s Puzzle Answer
nea CroSSwordS La TimeS CroSSword
THewiZard oF id
BLondie
BaBY BLueS
Hi and LoiS CurTiS
Yesterday’s Puzzle Answer
By PHILLIP ALDER
Yesterday, we saw that if the opener bids one of a suit, the next player makes a takeout double, and the responder bids a lower-ranking suit at the two-level, this showsaweakhand.So,whatdoesitmean iftheresponderredoublesfirst,thenbids a new suit on the second round?
Right logically, it must be forcing. The responder has promised at least 10 high-card points and the hunt is on for the right contract for the opening side.
Intoday’sdeal,afterresponder’sthreeclub rebid, South might continue with a three-diamond bid. Then North would presumably cue-bid three hearts to ask his partner to bid three no-trump with a heart stopper. Here, of course, South would be happy to oblige. And, as in the given sequence, South just plunges straight into our favorite contract when we have game values but no major-suit fit. (Note that five clubs fails, but five diamonds makes.) West leads the heart king. What should South do?
Unless the heart suit is blocked, if declarerlosesatrickbeforehehastaken nine, he rates to concede at least that lost trick and four hearts. So, South should concentrate on getting seven diamond winners.
After taking the first (or second) heart trick, South cashes the diamond ace.
