The Times-Picayune 02-13-2026 by The Advocate

LADIES NIGHT

Carnival weekenddrawing bigcrowds

BY STEPHANIE RIEGEL and KASEY BUBNASH Staff writers

Donna, Randy,Steph and Mike Brown hadset up ashady spot in Lafayette Square facing St. Charles AvenuelateThursday as they waited for Chaos, Babylon and Muses to roll.

It was husband-and-wife

Mike and Steph Brown’sﬁrst time at Mardi Gras. It was Donna Brown’seighth time.

She’d convinced her in-laws to tagalong to check outthe two things that keep her coming

back to New Orleans. “The food and the parades,” Donna Brown said.

TheBrowns areamong the thousands of revelersdescending onNew Orleans this weekend forthe ﬁnal days of parades, parties and festivities that willmark theculmination of Carnival 2026.

So far,data suggests the city’s biggestannual celebrationisattracting healthy crowds, who are filling local hotel rooms and short-term

ä See CROWDS, page 12A

Moreno addresses ICEpolicy changes

Mayor blames 2024 statelaw for NOPD decision

BY JAMES FINN Staff writer

EPArevokes key scientific finding

BY MATTHEW DALY Associated Press

The Trump

The rule ﬁnalized by the Environmental Protection Agency rescinds a2009 government declarationknown as theendangerment ﬁndingthatdetermined that carbondioxideand othergreenhouse Trump rollsback climate regulations

regulations.

ä See TRUMP, page 10A

BYBLAKEPATERSON Staff writer

The Essence Festival of Culture owes the Ernest N. Morial Convention Center morethan $400,000 from last year’sevent andispastdue on paying at least oneothermajor contractor,alarming some local officials and complicating efforts to securecrucial state funding for the 2026 festival in July The Convention Center said that New York-basedSundial Media Group, whichpur-

The New Orleans Police Department’sdecision to repeal apolicy limiting officers’ coordination with federal immigration agents spurredfury fromimmigration attorneysand advocates Thursday —and adefense from Mayor Helena Moreno, who blamed the change on aLouisiana law banning “sanctuary” policies in the state.

For adecade, the NOPD adhered to the policy devised under afederal consentdecree that both barred officers from asking people about their immigration status and prevented them from complying with immigration detainers —requests forlocal police to hold people with outstanding warrants until they can be taken into federal custody But NOPD repealed and replaced the policySundaywith language directing officerstoremand people with detainers to federal custody if thelocal jailwon’t accept them.Officersare still directed not to ask people about their immigration status. But the newpolicyalso appearstobroaden the type of information NOPD officers can share with immigration agents,suchasbirthdates and whether an arrestee has aforeign passport, according to attorneys who reviewed the new rules for The Times-Picayune. Moreno defended the department’s decision in an interview Thursday after The Times-Picayune publisheda news story detailing the changes. Her office had

MORENO, page 8A

chased Essence in 2018, had an outstanding balanceof $456,000 as of Tuesday,representingmorethan60% of its charges forhosting three days of panels, workshops and other events from July 4to6 last year.The Convention Center, which shared the information in response to apublic records request, requires that balances be settled within 30 days of an event. On Wednesday,the Convention Center said it received a $50,000 payment fromEssence, bringing theoutstanding balance downto$406,000. Essence also owes alocal production company morethan $1 million, according to asource familiar with the situation who

page 8A

ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO By EVAN VUCCI

President DonaldTrump speaks during an event Thursday with Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Lee Zeldin announcing thatthe EPAwill no longer regulate greenhouse gases.

STAFF PHOTOSBySOPHIAGERMER

The Krewe of Musesparade rolls on Magazine Street on Thursday.The Ducks is one of the signature floatsthe krewe rides on.

The Ladies Godivaride on horses during the Krewe of Muses parade on Thursday

Indian farmers protest against U.S. trade deal

Thousands of Indian farmers gathered across the country to demonstrate against a longawaited trade deal with the United States, an agreement that protesters say could hurt domestic agriculture.

Thursday’s rallies — which went ahead even after the U.S. watered down its language around the deal — underscore the challenge faced by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, as he seeks to slash punitive U.S. tariffs while still shielding India’s rural economy and maintaining some trade with Russia.

India’s tens of millions of small farmers are a vital political constituency in the world’s most populous nation, and any threat of sustained nationwide protests evokes memories of 2020 and 2021, when growers paralyzed the capital and mounted Modi’s most significant challenge in over a decade at the helm

Crowds of farmers in Punjab — joined by industrial and rural workers chanted slogans against Modi and U.S. President Donald Trump, as the gathering also voiced opposition to other rural policies, including employment initiatives and proposed legislation on seeds and electricity Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal has emphasized that sensitive agricultural products, including dairy and poultry, are excluded from negotiations, and has said would be no concessions on imports of key genetically modiﬁed crops, a hotbutton issue for the ruling party

Hospitality executive named for park service

President Donald Trump has nominated for director of the National Park Service an executive from a hospitality company that holds extensive contracts with the agency he would lead

The nomination of Scott Socha late Wednesday follows widespread ﬁrings within the Park Service as part of efforts by Trump’s Republican administration to sharply reduce its size.

The administration also has faced blowback for the removal or planned removal of national park exhibits about slavery climate change and the destruction of Native American culture. Administration ofﬁcials have said they are removing “disparaging” messages under an order last year from Trump. Critics accuse it of trying to whitewash the nation’s history.

Socha is a president for parks and resorts at Delaware North, which describes itself as one of the world’s largest privately owned hospitality and entertainment companies, with more than $4 billion in revenue in 2022.

The company provides services in at least six national parks including Grand Canyon Yellowstone and Shenandoah, said spokesperson Cait Zulewski.

The Buffalo, New York-based company has more than 40,000 employees, according to its website. Socha has been with it since 1999 and will continue in his role there while his nomination is pending, Zulewski said.

The company referred further questions to the White House, which did not immediately respond to an email from The Associated Press. The Park Service has gone more than a year without a conﬁrmed director Community college bus crashes in Iowa; 1 dead TWIN LAKES,Iowa — Authorities on Thursday identiﬁed a 19-yearold from South Dakota as the sole fatality of a bus crash in rural Iowa that injured 32 other members of a community college’s baseball team.

Carter Johnson was an outfielder from Rapid City in his ﬁrst year at Iowa Lakes Community College, according to the team roster Johnson died Wednesday after the bus overturned in a ditch alongside a highway about 85 miles northwest of Des Moines, authorities said Thursday The bus went off the road for “unknown reasons,” said Iowa State Patrol Lt. Aaron Smidt, and the crash is under investigation. All of the other occupants on the bus — 32 teammates — were injured in the crash but are stable and recovering, Smidt said

Homan hails ‘safer’ Minnesota

Trump administration says it’s ending massive immigration crackdown

BY STEVE KARNOWSKI Associated Press

MINNEAPOLIS

The Trump administration is ending the immigration crackdown in Minnesota, border czar Tom Homan said Thursday of the two-month operation that led to thousands of arrests angry mass protests and the fatal shootings of two U.S. citizens.

The operation, which the Department of Homeland Security called its “largest immigration enforcement operation ever,” has been a flashpoint in the debate over President Donald Trump’s mass deportation efforts, ﬂaring up after Renee Good and Alex Pretti were killed by federal ofﬁcers in Minneapolis.

The U.S Immigration and Customs Enforcement operation focused on the Minneapolis-St. Paul area resulted in more than 4,000 arrests, Homan said, touting it as a success.

“The surge is leaving Minnesota

safer,” he said. “I’ll say it again, it’s less of a sanctuary state for criminals.”

criminal illegal aliens,” many of them are people with no criminal records, children and U.S. citizens.

ing, loving neighbors and they’re also some of the toughest people you’ll find. And we’re in this as long as it takes.”

The governor called on Washington to help fund the recovery

The announcement marks a signiﬁcant retreat from an operation that has become a major distraction for the Trump administration and more volatile than prior crackdowns in Chicago and Los Angeles. It comes as a new AP-NORC poll found that most U.S. adults say Trump’s immigration policies have gone too far

Trump initially said the surge was an effort to root out fraud in publicly funded programs, for which he blamed the state’s large Somali community most of whom are U.S. citizens. But the drive soon shifted gears toward other ethnic groups such as Latinos. While the administration has portrayed those caught up in the Minnesota sweeps as “dangerous

Judge blocks Pentagon from punishing Kelly

Senator was in video that called on troops to resist unlawful orders

BY MICHAEL KUNZELMAN and JOEY CAPPELLETTI Associated Press

WASHINGTON A federal judge agreed Thursday to block the Pentagon from punishing Democratic Sen. Mark Kelly, a former Navy pilot, for participating in a video that called on troops to resist unlawful orders.

U.S. District Judge Richard Leon ruled that Pentagon ofﬁcials not only violated Kelly’s First Amendment free speech rights, but they also “threatened the constitutional liberties of millions of military retirees.” The judge invoked an old-fashioned rebuke — “Horsefeathers!” — in response to the government’s claim that Kelly is trying to exempt himself from the rules of military justice.

“To say the least, our retired veterans deserve more respect from their Government, and our Constitution demands they receive it!” wrote Leon who was nominated to the bench by Republican President George W. Bush.

Kelly, who represents Arizona, sued in federal court to block his Jan. 5 censure from Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth. Leon’s order prohibits the Pentagon from implementing or enforcing Kelly’s punishment while his lawsuit is pending. The judge instructed the parties to provide him with an update in 30 days.

In November, Kelly and ﬁve other Democratic lawmakers appeared on a video in which they urged troops to uphold the Constitution and not to follow unlawful military directives from the Trump administration Republican President Donald Trump accused the lawmakers of sedition “punishable by DEATH” in a social media post days later.

Earlier this week, a Washington grand jury declined to indict the lawmakers over the video.

Michigan Sen. Elissa Slotkin has said she has been told the Justice Department could seek a new indictment as soon as Friday Kelly and Slotkin said at a news conference Wednesday that they are keeping all legal options on the table regarding potentially suing the administration.

Hegseth said the government will appeal Leon’s decision “Sedition is sedition, ‘Captain,’” he posted on his X account, referring to Kelly by his rank at retirement.

Leon said that Kelly “is likely to succeed on the merits” of his free speech claim. “He has also shown irreparable harm, and the balance of the equities fall decidedly in his favor.”

Hegseth said Kelly’s censure was “a necessary process step” to proceedings that could result in a demotion from the senator’s retired rank of captain and subsequent reduction in retirement pay

The judge concluded that Kelly’s speech is entitled to full First Amendment protection.

“Rather than trying to shrink the First Amendment liberties of retired service members, Secretary Hegseth and his fellow Defendants might reﬂect and be grateful for the wisdom and expertise that retired service members have brought to public discussions and debate on military matters in our Nation over the past 250 years,” Leon wrote Kelly said in a video statement posted after the ruling that the case was about more than just him and that the administration “was sending a message to millions of retired veterans that they too can be censured or demoted just for speaking out.”

He added that the ruling was unlikely the end: “This might not be over yet, because this president and this administration do not know how to admit when they’re wrong.”

The 90-second video was ﬁrst posted on a social media account belonging to Slotkin. Reps. Jason Crow of Colorado, Chris Deluzio of Pennsylvania, Maggie Goodlander of New Hampshire and Chrissy Houlahan of Pennsylvania also appeared in the video. All of the participants are veterans of the armed services or intelligence agencies.

State and local officials, who have frequently clashed with federal authorities since Operation Metro Surge started in December, insist the swarm of immigration officials has inflicted long-term damage on the state’s economy and its immigrant community Democratic Gov Tim Walz urged residents Thursday to remain vigilant in the coming days as immigration ofﬁcers prepare to leave, saying he’s not going to express gratitude for the Trump administration ofﬁcials who caused “this unnecessary, unwarranted and in many cases unconstitutional assault on our state.”

“It’s going to be a long road,” Walz said at a news conference where he proposed a $10 million aid package for businesses that have lost revenue because of the immigration enforcement operation.

“Minnesotans are decent, car-

“The federal government needs to pay for what they broke here. You don’t get to break things and then just leave without doing something about it,” he said.

Homan was vague about a timeline for the drawdown. But Walz said Homan had assured him that federal ofﬁcers would start leaving immediately

Homan said immigration enforcement won’t end in the state when the Minnesota operation is over and that the local ICE office will stay in the fight. “President Trump made a promise of mass deportation and that’s what this country is going to get,” Homan said. Todd Lyons, the acting director of ICE, said during a hearing in Washington on Thursday that ICE officers are still looking for about 16,840 people in Minnesota with final orders of removal.

Search for Nancy Guthrie seeks month of area videos

BY TY O’NEIL Associated Press

TUCSON,Ariz. — Investigators in Arizona want residents near Nancy Guthrie‘s home to share surveillance camera footage of suspicious cars or people they may have noticed in the month before she disappeared.

The alert went across a 2-mile radius in neighborhoods close to where the mother of “Today” show host Savannah Guthrie went missing 12 days ago, the Pima County Sheriff’s Department said Thursday

It asked for video of “anything neighbors deem out of the ordinary or important to our investigation” since the beginning of January

Federal and local ofﬁcers have been going door-todoor in Tucson neighborhoods around 84-year-old Nancy Guthrie’s house while also looking for clues around her other daughter’s nearby home, which she had visited just hours before disappearing. Investigators have recovered and are analyzing several pieces of evidence, including a pair of gloves, the sheriff’s department said.

Authorities on Thursday brieﬂy put up a tent in front of Nancy Guthrie’s entryway where her blood was discovered in the early days of the investigation and where a doorbell camera captured images of a masked person the night she went missing.

Authorities have said Guthrie was taken against her will She’s been missing since Feb. 1, and authorities say she takes several medications and there’s concern she could die without them.

Savannah Guthrie on Thursday shared on Instagram a vintage home video of her mom with two children sharing pink flowers, writing “we will never give up on her thank you for your prayers and hope.”

On Wednesday, FBI agents

fanned out across a nearby neighborhood, knocking on doors and searching through cactuses, brush and boulders.

“They were just asking some general questions wondering if there was anything, any information we

could shed on the Nancy Guthrie issue. Wanted to look around the property and after that, cameras and such,” Ann Adams, a neighbor of Nancy Guthrie’s oldest daughter, Annie Guthrie, told The Associated Press on Wednesday

ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO By Ty O’NEIL

A small vigil grows near Nancy Guthrie’s house Wednesday in Tucson, Ariz.

Homan

Kelly

National Guardtouts impact of operationinN.O.

Officialssay deploymenthas ledto‘positive

trends’

BY SOPHIE KASAKOVE Staff writer

Louisiana National Guard officials on Thursday took credit for New Orleans’ low crime rate, saying that their deployment to the city on the federal government’s dime has led to “positive trends,” including 175human trafﬁcking arrests.

Under acollaborative operation that enables local police to ﬁght crime, aspokesperson said, police wereable to make the arrests, remove more than 100 ﬁrearms and seize 20 kilogramsofcocaine.

The spokespersonalso cited the police’srecent rescue of four victims of human trafﬁcking, and the National Guard’swork to control crowds during Carnival, the Sugar Bowl and New Year’s Eve.

Members of the Louisiana National Guard maketheir presence known

the

of Bourbon and Canal streets Jan. 23.

scufﬂes.”

city’smurderrateled the nation, NewOrleans’ homicide rate decreased by 55%, ofﬁcials said in January

Killings, shootings,and robberies that surged for three years beginning in early 2020 fell fora third straight year in 2025. Nonfatal shootings, armed robberies and carjackings also fell in 2025.

President Donald Trump in January pointed to the deployment of the National Guard as one reason crime in NewOrleanswas “down to almost nothing.”

Similar deployments in Illinois and Oregon have been blocked by courts. In Louisiana, ofﬁcials have largely welcomed the deployment and noted that the National Guard has along history of assisting locallaw enforcement during major tourist events.

The federal deploymentof up to 350 Louisiana National Guardmembers, paidfor by President DonaldTrump’s administration at Gov. Jeff Landry’srequest, began ahead of New Year’s Eve

“The Guard’simpact on crime is primarily as aforce multiplier,enabling law enforcement ofﬁcers to make arrests; furthermore, law enforcement officials are notingpositivetrends,” said Lt. Noel Collins, aspokesperson for the Louisiana National Guard.

festivities and will continue through theend of February.For weeks, the Guard hasbeen aconsistent presence in the French Quarter and downtown, with groups of twoorthree ofﬁcers patrolling streets and manning vehicle checkpoints.

In addition to their other work, Collins said the“soldiers’ presence is noted as deterring pettycrimeand

“Pettycrimes and prevention of physical altercations may not be accounted for in quantifiable data,” Collins wrote.

While Landry cited crime in thecityinhis requestfor the deployment, theguard’s operation beganasthe city endedthe year witha 50year low in homicides. Comparedwith 2022, when the

In theFrench Quarter,reviewsofthe National Guard presence have been mixed, with some neighborhood leaders and business owners raising concerns that the armed ofﬁcers makethe neighborhood appear less safe, and others saying that the heightened law enforcement presence contributes to security

On Wednesday, Col. StuartWest, commander of the 61stTroop Command, said that “ever since we hitthe ground, the community, the locals, everyone has been so welcoming and polite.” West saidthatlocal law enforcement have informed him of statistics showinga “noticeable decreaseinviolent crime, person-on-person crime, since the Guard has been in place. He did not share speciﬁc statistics. Local ofﬁcials have commended national andstate law enforcement fortheir collaboration during Carnival. At anewsconference on Feb.2,New OrleansPolice DepartmentSuperintendent Anne Kirkpatrick saidthat residentsand visitorscould expect to seeanincreased presence of “our wonderful partners, our state patrol our National Guard” in leadup to Mardi Gras.

“I just want to thank all the partners coming together,and we are just working better and better every single day,” said Mayor Helena Moreno at the sameevent.

Email SophieKasakove at sophie.kasakove@ theadvocate.com.

Race to fill Letlow’s congressionalseatgains anothercandidate

BY ALYSE PFEIL Staff writer

The fieldina competitive race for Louisiana’s 5th Congressional District continued to expand Thursday after state Rep. Michael Echols ofﬁcially signed up to run, telling reporters he has “a servant’sheart” and blasting his main challenger for living outside the district.

“People want someone that understands the needs of that district,” saidEchols, R-Monroe. “Those that are just ofﬁce-shoppers needto stay where they are.”

The “office-shopper” Echols referred to is state Sen. Blake Miguez, aRepublican from Acadiana who earlier thismonth ended a statewide campaign for U.S Senate to instead run for the U.S. House —and days later got an endorsement from

PresidentDonald Trump. Miguez, who qualified Wednesday,lives just outside New Iberia, butsays he hasowned ahome in Baton Rouge for decades and intendstomake ithis primary residence if elected StateSen.Rick Edmonds, aBaton Rouge Republican who was instrumental in the creation of thecityofSt. George, and Misti Cordell, aMonroe Republican who chairs theBoard of Regents and is afriend and an ally of Gov.Jeff Landry, are also running.

The Republican-leaning 5th District includes the Florida parishes,Baton Rouge area, Monroe and northeastLouisiana. It’s the only truly competitive race of the six House seats up for election after Rep. Julia Letlow, R-Baton Rouge, won Trump’sendorsement in mid-January and decided to

run for theSenate.

Primary elections will be held May 16. Candidatequalifying opened Wednesday and closes Friday afternoon. Echols saidasamember of Congress,hewouldﬁght for resourcesfor small townsand for Louisianaasa whole, and he’d keep up his support of Trump’sagenda. He saidheplans to put over $1 million of his own money towardhis campaign and fundraiseanother $1 to $2 million.

Othercandidatessignup

U.S. House MajorityLeader Steve Scaliseshowed up in Baton Rouge on Thursday to formally qualify forhis 1st Congressional District seat. Scaliseisnot expected to face any signiﬁcant challengers this year

“It’s truly an honor to represent thepeople of southeast Louisiana in Congress,”

Scalise told reporters.

He said voters during the midtermelections this year face achoicebetweenafarleft Democratic Partyand aRepublican Party thatis working hard to improve the U.S. economy

“We’re gonna notonly hold this razor-thin majority,but we have opportunities to growthe majority,” Scalise saidofRepublicans’ control in the House.

U.S.House Speaker Mike Johnson, aRepublican from thetownofBenton northof Shreveport, drew two more challengers Thursday.Matt Gromlich,aprofessor at

LSU Shreveport who lives in Caddo Parish, signed up to run as Democrat in the 4th Congressional District. Mike Nichols, aresident of the townofPitkin, signed up as aRepublican. Johnson, who qualified Wednesday, is expected to easily winreelection.

Louisiana’sSenaterace is primarilybeing fought by incumbent Sen. Bill Cassidy, R-BatonRouge; Letlow; and Louisiana Treasurer John Fleming. That race drew another candidate Thursday in Mark Spenser,a Belle Chasse resident running as aRepublican.

StateRep.Stephanie Hilferty,aMetairieRepublican,signedupThursdayto runfor thePublic Service Commission, representing District 1, which covers parts of Orleans and Jefferson Parish along with Plaquemines, St. Bernard and the Northshore.

“The role of the Public Service Commission is to monitor andholdthe utilitiesaccountable,” Hilferty told reporters.

State Rep. Mark Wright, R-Covington, and aMetairie resident named “Big John” Mason, both qualified for that race Wednesday

BY KONSTANTINTOROPIN

Associated Press

WASHINGTON— TheU.S. military on Thursday reported two major incidents that occurred in recent days tied to the massive buildup of forces in the Caribbean Sea —a Marine who died after falling overboard and acollision between two Navy ships that left two sailors with minor injuries. Areport was made Saturday that Lance Cpl. Chukwuemeka E. Oforah, 21, of Florida, had fallen from the USS Iwo Jima amphibi-

ous assault ship,the Marine Corps said in anews release. It appears to be the first publicly announceddeath of aservice member during theU.S. military operation in theregion. The Trump administrationbuilt up the largest military presence in theregioningenerations before carrying outaseries of deadly strikes on alleged drug boatssince September, seizingsanctioned oil tankers and conducting asurprise raid last monththat capturedVenezuela’sthenpresident, Nicolás Maduro. Also Thursday,U.S. South-

ern Commandannounced that thedestroyer USS Truxtun and the supply ship USNS Supply collided as thewarship was getting a newload of supplies.The maneuver typically has the vessels sailing parallel, usually within hundreds of feet, while fuel andsuppliesare transferred acrossthe gap via hoses and cables.

The collision occurred when thesupply ship was refueling thecruiser USS Gettysburg on one side and the Truxtun approached from the other side, according to aU.S. ofﬁcial.

corner

Congress leaves D.C. without DHS funding deal

BY SAVANNAH BEHRMANN and VALERIE YURK CQ-Roll Call (TNS)

WASHINGTON Lawmakers left Washington on Thursday without a deal on an immigration enforcement overhaul, virtually guaranteeing a partial shutdown of the Homeland Security Department when current funding runs out this weekend. Unless progress is made, neither chamber is expected to return to the Capitol next week, when Congress is scheduled to be in recess.

Bipartisan negotiations on an immigration plan were expected to continue over the recess. Leaders of both chambers told members they would be given 48 hours notice to return to the Capitol if a deal is reached.

The decision to leave came after the Senate fell short of the 60 votes needed to move forward on a House-passed full-year Homeland Security appropriations bill. The vote was 52-47, with all Democrats except Sen John Fet-

terman of Pennsylvania in opposition. Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., ﬂipped his vote to a “no” when it was clear the motion lacked enough support, in order to be able to reconsider the vote at a later time.

After the vote, Sen. Katie Britt, R-Ala., the chair of the Senate Homeland Security Appropriations Subcommittee, immediately brought up a motion for a two-week continuing resolution under

unanimous consent.

“We are working in good faith to ﬁnd a pathway forward,” she said. “What we’re asking is ‘let us continue to do that.’”

Sen. Chris Murphy DConn., objected, saying Democrats had not received text from the White House until Wednesday night — “far too late to be able to engage in any compromise before the deadline.”

Democrats have made

clear they will not vote for another stopgap extension of DHS funding without progress on an immigration enforcement deal. And that message did not waver on Thursday, even after White House border czar Tom Homan announced immigration agents would pull out of Minnesota, the site of two fatal shootings of U.S. citizens last month.

This “is not what law and order looks like,” Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, DN.Y., said Thursday after the vote “Republicans simply cannot pretend that this outrage does not exist. It’s their responsibility now to step forward, heed the calls of the American people and work with us to pass real reform.”

A senior White House ofﬁcial told reporters Thursday that the administration’s offer to Democrats addressed “at least a portion” of their demands. But the official said the administration could not accept the Democratic demand for requiring judicial warrants whenever

immigration agents want to search private property, saying such a constraint would hamstring immigration enforcement operations. Currently only an administrative warrant is typically required.

“There’s some obviously red lines that Democrats have and that the White House has,” Thune told reporters. “Every iteration of this gets a step closer, because I think the White House is giving more and more ground on some of these key issues.”

On Wednesday night, the White House had sent Senate Democrats legislative text similar to the counterproposal sent earlier this week, which many called a nonstarter

Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse, D-R.I., said it was “not serious (and) not being taken seriously.”

Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., called the White House proposal “unresponsive and unserious,” adding, “It’s essentially more cosmetic and window dressing

than real reform.” Thune countered that the White House had made “a real offer” and Democrats should be blamed for a partial shutdown. “We don’t have a solution yet and the Democrats, at least at the moment, evidently, have no interest in funding the Department of Homeland Security,” he said. While the Senate focused on DHS funding, the House this week was embroiled in more than just shutdown politics.

Speaker Mike Johnson, R-Benton, saw an embarrassing defeat on the ﬂoor late Tuesday night when three Republicans joined Democrats in sinking a procedural vote that would have blocked the chamber from acting against President Donald Trump’s tariffs. Even more Republicans voted with Democrats on Wednesday to reverse Trump’s tariffs on Canada the first of many measures aimed at the tariffs expected to go to the ﬂoor in upcoming weeks.

Johnson says he disapproves of DOJ logging searches of Epstein files

BY ERIC TUCKER and ALANNA DURKIN RICHER Associated Press

WASHINGTON Republican House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-Benton, said Thursday that he did not think it was appropriate for the Justice Department to be tracking the search histories of lawmakers who are reviewing files from the Jeffrey Epstein investigation.

The rare rebuke to the Trump administration came as photographs emerged revealing an apparent index of records reviewed by a Democratic member of Congress who was among the lawmakers given an opportunity to read less-redacted versions of the Epstein ﬁles at a department annex and on department-owned computers.

Rep. Jamie Raskin, the top Democrat on the House Judiciary Committee, asked the Justice Department’s inspector general to investigate what he characterized as “spying,” and Johnson, a close ally of President Donald Trump, offered his own scolding when asked about the issue Thursday “I think members should

obviously have the right to peruse those at their own speed and with their own discretion I don’t think it’s appropriate for anybody to be tracking that,” Johnson told reporters. “I will echo that to anybody involved with the DOJ and I’m sure it was an oversight.”

The Justice Department said in a statement that, as part of the process of permitting lawmakers to review the Epstein files, it “logs all searches made on its systems to protect against the release of victim information.”

Photographs taken during Attorney General Pam Bondi’s hearing before the House Judiciary Committee on Wednesday showed her with a printout that said “Jayapal Pramila Search History” and that listed a series of documents that were apparently reviewed Pramila Jayapal, a Democratic congresswoman, was among the Judiciary Committee members who pressed Bondi during the hearing about the department’s handling of the Epstein ﬁles.

Jayapal called it “totally

BY JUSTIN MUSZYNSKI Hartford Courant (TNS)

A Yale University professor has been removed from teaching classes while university ofﬁcials review a sixyear correspondence he had with Jeffrey Epstein, which included his description of a student to the accused sex trafﬁcker as a “goodlooking blonde.”

The back-and-forth dialogue was discovered within numerous emails released in recent weeks by the U.S. Department of Justice as part of the agency’s “Epstein Library,” which showed a number of communications between computer science professor David Gelernter, 70, and Epstein. Within their correspondences between 2009 and 2015, Gelernter in one email appears to be recommending a then-student as part of his software startup.

“I have a perfect editoress in mind,” Gelernter wrote in an email dated Oct. 11, 2011, according to the DOJ. “Yale sr worked at Vogue last summer, runs her own campus mag, art major, completely connected, v small goodlooking blonde.”

In an email sent last week to Jeffrey Brock, dean of the School of Engineering and Applied Science Gelernter defended what he wrote and said he was recommending the student for a job he “thought she’d like.”

“This one was obsessed with girls (like every other

unmarried billionaire in Manhattan; in fact, like every other heterosex male), and if I hadn’t said what I did in that letter 10-odd years ago, he would certainly have called me & asked for a lot more aesthetic detail. (This is how men behave.)” Gelernter wrote in the email, which was also sent to computer science professor Holly Rushmeier and shared to media outlets, the Daily Beast reported.

“So long as I said nothing that dishonored her in any conceivable way, I’d have told him more or less what he wanted,” Gelernter wrote. “She was smart, charming & gorgeous Ought I to have suppressed that info? Never! I’m very glad I wrote the note.”

According to a Yale spokesperson, Gelernter has been removed from teaching his computer science class until university officials can review his conduct. Gelernter is known for authoring the book “Mirror Worlds,” which was published in the early 1990s and is credited for predicting the rise of the modern Internet. In 1993, Gelernter was sent a bomb in the mail from Ted Kaczynski, known more commonly as the Unabomber Gelernter suffered permanent damage to his right hand and eye from the explosion. In a letter, Kaczynski criticized Gelernter’s work in “Mirror Worlds” for asserting that the advancement of computers was inevitable.

unacceptable” and said lawmakers will be “demanding a full accounting” of how the department is using the search history “Bondi has enough time to spy on Members of Congress, but can’t ﬁnd it in herself to apologize to the survivors of Epstein’s horriﬁc abuse,” Jayapal said in a post on X.

The Justice Department statement did not explain why Bondi came to the House hearing with information on lawmaker searches.

A bipartisan contingent of lawmakers has traveled in recent days to a Justice Department outpost to review less-redacted records from the ﬁles, but some who have seen the

documents have complained that too much information about Epstein associates remains withheld from view.

The Trump administration Justice Department said last month that it was releasing more than 3 million pages along with more than 2,000 videos and 180,000 images related to Epstein investigations. In a statement, Raskin said that not only had the Justice Department withheld records from lawmakers “but now Bondi and her

team are spying on members of Congress conducting oversight in yet another blatant attempt to intrude into Congress’s oversight processes.”

He added: “DOJ must immediately cease tracking any Members’ searches open up the Epstein review to senior congressional staff, and publicly release all ﬁles — with all the survivors’ information, and only the survivors’ information, properly redacted — as required by federal law.”

ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO By J SCOTT APPLEWHITE

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.y., speaks to reporters Thursday at the Capitol in Washington.

Jayapal Bondi

Continued from page1A

previously declined to explainthe new policy,while NOPD ofﬁcials conﬁrmed which changes had taken effect but declined to explain how they would workinpractice.

The department, Moreno argued, had no choice buttochange the policy due to the ban on “sanctuary cities” the Louisiana Legislature passed in 2024. Attorney General Liz Murrill, aRepublican, invoked the law latelast year when shewrote to city ofﬁcials threatening legal action if they did not revise the NOPD policy

The law contains language ordering law enforcement agencies to “comply with therequests made in immigration detainers.”

“When the state law was passed, whether there’sapolicy or not, law enforcement agencies across the state are required to follow it, “ Moreno said. “I see obviously there are some people who are upset with NOPD and theirpolicy. But it’snot really NOPD they should be upset with —it’sthe law.”

Her response highlights thetenuous position Moreno andother local leaders are navigating between President Donald Trump’songoing immigration crackdown,which is supported by Louisiana’s solidly conservative state government, and New Orleans’ Democratic voting base.

Moreno, aDemocrat, won her mayoral election last fall in alandslide, including with support from immigrant-rights advocates.

ESSENCE

Continued from page1A

asked not to be named to avoid upsetting business relationships in New Orleans. The delay in payments is the latest issue to crop up for Essence, which brings tensofthousands of people and an estimated hundreds of million of dollars in economic impact to New Orleans each year.In2025, it faced complaints from some attendees over aspects of theshows in theCaesars Superdome.Essence officials are also preparing,as in earlier years, to ask the

Some of those advocates this week said the Mayor’sOfﬁce and NOPD had not made an effort to engage with them or explain changes to the public before they took effect.

Alack of information from ofﬁcials about the policyhas ledto fear and confusion among immigrants, saidTaniaWolf, southeast advocacy manager for the National Immigration Project.

“What we want is clarity and correctionofthe misinformation that’sconfusing the community, andﬁguring out whether the leaders of this city are aligned with the community or not,” she said.

NOPD officials have declinedto answer questions abouthow the newpolicy will be implemented, including requeststoidentify scenarios in which officers will refer people they encounter to federal authorities. Moreno on Thursday said she was unsure whether the department had beguntraining officers on the policy,directingthe question to NOPD.

In astatement this week, police spokesperson ReeseHarper denied that the departmenthad implemented apolicy“granting federal immigration agents additional authority.”

“NOPD does not conduct civil immigration enforcement, does not make immigration determinations,does not issue or act on detainers, and does not control federal enforcement actions or jail operations,” Harpersaid. “Any implication otherwise is inaccurate.”

Harper didnot respond to additional questions. The NOPD did not immediately respond Thursday to a

“We value our relationships with the City,the State, theConvention Center,and ourvendor community,and we continue to meet our obligations as we settle2025 and aredeep in planningfor the 2026 festival with allofour core vendors returning for 2026,”Essence ofﬁcials said. Essence said thepayment to the Convention Center is part of a“formal agreement” to settle thebalance. Aspokesperson forSundial Media Group also disputed that thefestival owed alocalproduction company more than amillion dollars. Essence declined to say how much it still owes vendors. TheConvention Center,in

“When the state lawwas passed, whether there’sa policyornot, lawenforcement agencies across the state are required to follow it. I see obviously there are some peoplewho are upset with NOPD and their policy. But it’s not really NOPD they should be upset with —it’sthe law.”

NEWORLEANS MAyOR HELENA MORENO

request to interview Superintendent Anne Kirkpatrick about the policy Amid the criticism,Moreno signed an executive order Thursdaysaying that the city will not enter287(g)agreements, or deals with thefederal government under which local police aredeputized for immigration enforcement.

The executive order “confirms the position of the Moreno Administration regarding theproper use of the limited resources of the New OrleansPolice Department, which has maderemarkable gains in reducing violentcrime despite persistent understaffing and stark fiscal constraints,”a statementaccompanying theorder reads.

Sincethe department changed the policyonSunday, immigrationattorneyshave been combing throughit, trying to understand its ramiﬁcations.

Mary Yanik, aTulane University law professor anddirector of the school’sImmigrant RightsClinic, called the new policy “clear as mud,” saying language raised

amostlyempty audienceat 3:37 a.m. Some festivalgoers also complained about anew policy requiring VIP tickets to seeperformances in the Superdomelounges.

Essenceofficialsapologizedafter last year’sfestival and committed to do better

In July,then-CityCouncil memberMoreno called for the creation of alocal host committee to work with Essence year-round toironout its issues.

“As mayor,I’m going to do everything possible to make sure thatwekeep Essence here,” Moreno saidin an Instagram video in the run-up to theelection. “But

questions. “Hundreds of ofﬁcers are immediately responsible for implementing it and probably have the same questions we all do,” she said.

One such question stemsfrom aportion of thenew policywhich directsofficers to remand people with detainers to the OrleansParishSheriff’s Office, whichrunsthe city’slocal jail. If the Sheriff’sOffice won’t acceptsomeone, officers are instructed to give them to the feds.

Thatlanguage appears to direct ofﬁcerstohand people with civil immigration detainers directly to immigration agents, according to immigration attorneys and two former U.S. Department of Homeland Security ofﬁcialswho reviewed thepolicy.Those people, theysaid, wouldn’tbeeligibleto be held in alocal jail forpeople accused of felonies.

An OPSO spokesperson didnot respond this week to questions about the new NOPD policy

If someone in theFBI-run National Crime Information Center hasanoutstanding immigration warrant, ofﬁcers must now treat the encounter “as a17-F,”orfugitive scenario, the policy now reads.

“My ofﬁce worked collaboratively withthe leadership of NOPD to ensure that its immigration policy complies with state andfederal law,”Murrill said Thursday.“We agreed on common-sense changes, and Ibelieve its revisedpolicy is now compliant.”

Moreno in Thursday’sinterview likened the 2024 state law that led to the new policy to other conservative-ledstate initiatives that

Isis Casanova, said themayor “continues to bring stakeholders together to ensure a successful Essence Festin 2026 and years to come.”

“Honest discussions about challenges and solutions must take place,and those conversations are ongoing,” Casanova added. Moreno, in lastyears’ video, attributed some of theissues with EssenceFesttoa decline in statefunding.

The Legislature in 2025 set aside $1.2 million for the festival, down from $3 million in 2024. It’sunclear how muchthe festival received before that.

NewOrleans leaders have been forced to comply with, including an expanded concealed carry law

Asked if ongoing negotiations betweencityand federalofficials over federal grant money contributed to the rule change, Moreno said no. In her understanding, she said, thefeds’ decisiontolabel NewOrleans a“sanctuary city” adesignation the feds have used to withhold funds from some cities —stemmed from aseparate noncooperation policy in use at the Sheriff’s Office. Alawsuit Murrill’soffice has filed over that policy is awaiting aruling. Moreno insistedthatNOPD would notprioritize immigration-related work despitethe newpolicy.

“NOPD is required to follow laws,” she said. “Their priority is alwaysgoing to be that they keep peopleinthe city of New Orleans safe, that it’sreally violent crime they’re focused in on.”

The removal last year of the NOPD’s federal consent decree left the city with little legal recourse but to comply withthe state law from 2024, Moreno said.

“The questions aboutoperation and all that needs to go back to the author of that legislation as to what their intent was,” she said.

That legislation’ssponsor was state Sen. BlakeMiguez, R-Erath, who filed it while he was in the state House. Miguez, who is now running for the U.S. House, did not immediatelyrespond to amessage abouthow theNOPDpolicyshould be implemented.

Email James Finn at jﬁnn@ theadvocate.com.

Essence officials have repeatedly said theyneed moresupport from the city and state to makethis year’s festival asuccess.

“The festivalisa very expensiveentity to put on,” Richelieu Dennis, executive chairmanofSundialMedia Group,said in aJulyinterview on WBOK.“We need the city andthe state funding to keep pace with the increase in costs.” Dennis said the festival also had“signiﬁcantlylower” support from corporate sponsors in 2025, attributing the decline to adrop in spending by companieson

Featherweight Scooter

diversity,equity and inclusion efforts. Essence ofﬁcials didn’trespond to aquestionoverhow much money they planto seek from the state forthis year’sevent, but in November,the CEO of Sundial MediaGroup,KirkMcDonald, told The Times-Picayune that Essence Fest planned to ask formore support. “As we go forward, we’re being really clear: We’re going to invest more,” he said. “And yes, there is going to be aneed andrequirement forthe other partner in this relationship to also do more.”

gases threaten public health and welfare. The Obama-era ﬁnding is the legal underpinning of nearly all climate regulations under the Clean Air Act for motor vehicles, power plants and other pollution sources that are heating the planet.

The repeal eliminates all greenhouse gas emissions standards for cars and trucks and could unleash a broader undoing of climate regulations on stationary sources such as power plants and oil and gas facilities, experts say Legal challenges are near certain.

President Donald Trump called the move “the single largest deregulatory action in American history, by far,” while EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin called the endangerment finding “the Holy Grail of federal regulatory overreach.”

Trump called the endangerment ﬁnding “one of the greatest scams in history ” claiming falsely that it “had no basis in fact” or law “On the contrary, over the generations, fossil fuels have saved millions of lives and lifted billions of people out of poverty all over the world,”

Trump said at a White House ceremony, although scientists across the globe agree that carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases are driving catastrophic heat waves and storms, droughts and sea level rise.

Environmental groups described the move as the single biggest attack in U.S. history against federal authority to address climate change. Evidence backing up the endangerment ﬁnding has only grown stronger in the 17 years since it was approved, they said.

“This action will only lead to more climate pollution, and that will lead to higher costs and real harms for American families,” said Fred Krupp, president of Environmental Defense Fund, adding that the consequences would be felt on

dustry can make even more money.”

Dr Lisa Patel, a pediatrician and executive director of the Medical Society Consortium on Climate and Health, said Trump’s action “prioritizes the proﬁts of big oil and gas companies and polluters over clean air and water” and children’s health.

“As a result of this repeal, I’m going to see more sick kids come into the Emergency Department having asthma attacks and more babies born prematurely,” she said in a statement. “My colleagues will see more heart attacks and cancer in their patients.”

could hinder future administrations from imposing rules to address global warming

The EPA action follows an executive order from Trump that directed the agency to submit a report on “the legality and continuing applicability” of the endangerment ﬁnding. Conservatives and some congressional Republicans have long sought to undo what they consider overly restrictive and economically damaging rules to limit greenhouse gases that cause global warming.

were intended to encourage U.S. automakers to build and sell more electric vehicles. The transportation sector is the largest source of greenhouse gas emissions in the U.S.

The Trump administration announced a proposal in December to weaken vehicle mileage rules for the auto industry, loosening regulatory pressure on automakers to control pollution from gasoline-powered cars and trucks.

Americans’ health, property values, water supply and more.

The EPA also said it will propose a two-year delay to a Biden-era rule restricting greenhouse gas emissions by cars and light trucks Zeldin, a former Republican congressman who was tapped by Trump to lead EPA last year, has criticized his predecessors in Democratic administrations, saying that in the name of tackling climate change, they were “willing to bankrupt the country.”

The endangerment ﬁnding “led to trillions of dollars in regulations that strangled entire sectors of the United States economy, including the American auto industry,” Zeldin said. “The Obama and Biden administrations used it to steamroll into existence a left-wing wish list of costly climate policies, electric vehicle mandates and other requirements that assaulted consumer choice and affordability.”

The endangerment ﬁnding and the regulations based on it “didn’t just regulate emissions, it regulated and targeted the American dream. And now the endangerment ﬁnding is hereby eliminated,” Zeldin said The Supreme Court ruled in a 2007 case that planetwarming greenhouse gases, caused by the burning of oil

and other fossil fuels, are air pollutants under the Clean Air Act.

Since the high court’s decision, in a case known as Massachusetts v. EPA courts have uniformly rejected legal challenges to the endangerment ﬁnding, including a 2023 decision by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit.

The endangerment finding is widely considered the legal foundation that underpins a series of regulations intended to protect against threats made increasingly severe by climate change. That includes deadly ﬂoods, extreme heat waves, catastrophic wildfires and other natural disasters in the United States and around the world.

Gina McCarthy, a former EPA administrator who served as White House climate adviser in the Biden administration, called the Trump administration’s actions reckless. “This EPA would rather spend its time in court working for the fossil fuel industry than protecting us from pollution and the escalating impacts of climate change,” she said.

Former President Barack Obama said on X that repeal of the endangerment ﬁnding will make Americans “less safe, less healthy and less able to ﬁght climate change — all so the fossil fuel in-

David Doniger, a climate expert at the Natural Resources Defense Council, said Trump and Zeldin are trying to use repeal of the finding as a “kill shot” that would allow the administration to make nearly all climate regulations invalid The repeal could erase current limits on greenhouse gas pollution from cars, factories, power plants and other sources and

Withdrawing the endangerment ﬁnding “is the most important step taken by the Trump administration so far to return to energy and economic sanity,” said Myron Ebell, a conservative activist who has questioned the science behind climate change.

Zeldin and Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy have moved to drastically scale back limits on tailpipe emissions from cars and trucks

Rules imposed under Democratic President Joe Biden

The EPA said its two-year delay to a Biden-era rule on greenhouse gas emissions by cars and light trucks will give

CARNIVAL 2026

rental units and packing parade routes.

Occupancy at the city’s roughly 26,000 hotel rooms in the French Quarter and downtown is expected to average around 90% this weekend, on the heels of two busy nights last weekend, according to the city’s tourism promotion agency, New Orleans & Co. Individually, some hotel operators report near full occupancy

“This weekend is chock-a-block,” said Chris Valentino, whose family owns six downtown hotels and operates parade stand seating “We have holes here and there, but no length-of-stay availability.”

But the crowds that have lined St. Charles Avenue and roamed downtown streets in recent days haven’t translated into big revenue gains for everyone. While some local businesses say they’ve gotten a boost from Carnival sales, others report a slow start to the season.

Allison and Glenn Charles, whose growing portfolio of restaurants includes the recently opened House of Buns on Bourbon Street, were expecting bigger crowds than they’ve seen so far, which is potentially troubling.

“It really sets the tone for the year,” Allison Charles said. “If Mardi Gras is strong, it can offset our slower months.”

Ofﬁcials with New Orleans & Co. say it’s too soon to say for sure how the season will shake out, as last weekend’s occupancy rates aren’t in. And officials at Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport were unable to provide information on passenger counts. Based on reported occupancy projections from downtown hotels for the coming weekend, however 2026 appears to be on par with Mar-

di Gras 2025, when hotel occupancy averaged 87% for the five-night weekend and 95% on Saturday During the ﬁve-night celebration in 2024, by comparison, hotel occupancy averaged 81% and never even reached 90%.

A search of major downtown hotels Thursday showed few properties have available rooms this weekend Those that do command rates of $500 per night or more. The city’s 6,000 short-term rental units also appear near capacity A check of the Airbnb website Thursday listed fewer than 150 available units.

“We seem to be facing what are traditionally high levels of occupancy for the Mardi Gras weekend ” said New Orleans & Co. President and CEO Walt Leger

III. “If anything, we’re expecting number to go up a little because of President’s Day weekend, which may enable people to extend their stays by a day.”

Ticket sales at parade stands, another bellwether of the season’s health, also appear to be trending in a positive direction, according to Valentino, whose family also operates six sections of grandstand seating and the stands across from Gallier Hall. Spots for all but a few parades are sold out. Though crowds in 2025 and 2026, so far are up over 2024, they’re still below pre-pandemic levels, when Mardi Gras revelers regularly took up 95% or more of the city’s hotel rooms during the ﬁveday weekend. New Orleans & Co. has been work-

ing to return crowds to those record levels, hiring inﬂuencers and bringing journalists to the city for the festivities to tell the stories of New Orleans Mardi Gras to the world.

The afternoon before the city’s ﬁrst ﬂoat parades were set to roll last week, Bourbon Street was abuzz with the usual blend of tourists draped in Mardi Gras beads, musicians hauling equipment and tarot card readers setting up folding tables.

At Jezebel’s, a vintage clothing and costume shop on the corner of Bourbon Street and Ursulines Avenue, artist Melody Morrill was alone, waiting for customers who didn’t come. She attributed to the slower activity to several factors, including frigid weather earlier in Febru-

ary and the presence of National Guard troops, which she believes have scared some tourists and locals away

Restaurateur Dickie Brennan said massive road and sewer construction projects on St. Peter and Decatur streets have disrupted business at his French Quarter restaurant, Tableau.

Nearby restaurants, shops and tour operators have also complained for weeks about slow sales.

Perceptions about public safety, a year after the Jan. 1 ramming attack on Bourbon Street, have also contributed to sluggish activity they say, at a time when tourism overall has been down due to economic uncertainty and the Trump administration’s trade war with Canada a longtime trading and cultural exchange partner

“The French Quarter has to build back,” Brennan said. “We are not back.”

Elsewhere across the city, activity has been brisk, including at Brennan’s Uptown restaurants, he said. And the Uptown parade route appeared to be as crowded last weekend, for the ﬁrst three days of parades, as it traditionally has been on Mardi Gras weekend.

“I’ve never seen St. Charles as packed as it was last weekend,” he said. “Uptown was crazy, busier than normal.”

Fleurty Girl owner Lauren Haydel, whose popular apparel chain has several locations across the metro area, including Uptown and in the French Quarter, said some of her stores have performed better than others.

“We’re holding our own this year,” she said. “For us, last year was better because the season was three weeks longer, so we had time to sell more stuff.”

Email Stephanie Riegel at stephanie.riegel@theadvocate. com.

STAFF PHOTOS By SOPHIA GERMER

2026 Honorary Muse Soledad O’Brien rides in the giant shoe during the Krewe of Muses parade on Thursday

ABOVE: The Grammy Award-winning St. Augustine High School Marching 100 perform during the Krewe of Muses parade on Thursday LEFT: Les Bonnes Vivantes are a signature feature of Muses

The crowd calls for throws as floats roll by during the Krewe of Muses parade on Thursday

La.delegationpushesfor winter stormdeclaration

Alleight members seek federal recovery money

BY MARK BALLARD Staff writer

WASHINGTON All eight membersofLouisiana’s congressionaldelegation are askingPresident Donald Trump to issue adisaster declaration, which would open thespigotsoffederal recovery money,for the winter storm in late January that killed nine people, closed Interstate 20, andcut power to more than 175,000 homes. On Feb. 4, Gov.Jeff Landry requested federal help to recover from the Jan. 23-27 storm that brought ice accumulation, power andwater outages, dangerously low temperatures and signiﬁcant damage to infrastructure.

He requested the federal governmentpick up all the costs for 30 days and asked for additional ﬁnancial assistance for resilience projects to protect against future winter weather threats.

State agencies already spent$11,394,461, which meets thethresholdfor adisaster declaration. Landry requested federal help for Bienville, De Soto, East Carroll, Franklin, Morehouse, Ouachita, Richland, Tensas and West Carroll parishes, primarily in northeast Louisiana.

Trumpauthorizedsome services before thestorm, but he needs to signthe declaration for thefullfunding to ﬂow to Louisiana.

In alettertoTrump, Louisiana’sdelegation painted a dire picture of the storm’s impact on North Louisiana.

“At its peak, the storm left over 175,000 residential customers without power.The

ice shut downInterstate 20 and numerous state highwaysfor severaldays. Widespread power outages and damage to water systems resultedin32,487 customers completely withoutwater.Upto187,359 residents were placedunderBoilWater Advisories,” they wrote. The letter continued: “We thank you for your swift emergency declaration for Louisiana issued on Jan.24 and eagerly await your response.”

Rep. Julia Letlow,R-BatonRouge,whose district includes North Louisiana, wrote aletter to constituents saying, “this was very personal to me, as my roots lie in northeast Louisiana andmyparents lost power themselves.”

“While mostfamilies have had their power turned back on,the storm created signiﬁcantdamagethatwon’t go away overnight,” Letlow

said.

U.S. Sen. Bill Cassidy,RBaton Rouge, told reporters that agovernormust make theinitial expedited major disaster declaration. Now is thetimefor thedelegation to contact the president and FEMA to make sure it happens.

Cassidy saidhealsohas requested extensions for ﬁling incometaxes and penalty waivers so Louisiana taxpayers can focus on recoveryratherthan getting their taxes in on time.

“Winter Storm Fern may be over,but we in Louisiana are still dealing with theaftermath,” Cassidy said. “I keep going to it because it is so compelling.”

Letlow is runningtounseat Cassidy from his seat in the U.S.Senate.

The delegation also asked Trumptoinclude FEMA individual assistance grants that provide money for some

cleanup costs and expenses, like medical careand hotel stays, related to the disaster Landry didn’tinclude that in his request. Along with Cassidy and Letlow,the letter to Trump wassigned by Sen. John Kennedy,R-Madisonville; Speaker of the House Mike Johnson, R-Benton; House Majority Leader Steve Scalise,R-Jefferson; Reps. Troy Carter Sr D-New Orleans; Cleo Fields, D-Baton Rouge; andClayHiggins,R-Lafayette.

Louisiana’sisone of 15 “DeclarationRequests” currently being processed at FEMA, two of whichare on appeal, according to the FederalEmergency ManagementAgency’sdaily brieﬁng. The requests date back to Nov.26.

An Associated Press analysis in September calculated an average wait of 34 days for the two dozen or so majordisasterdeclarationssinceTrump took ofﬁce asecond time in January.That’sfour times longer than the early 1990s and the average26daysunder former President Joe Biden. The 51,500 recipientsof food stamps —now called SNAP forSupplemental Nutrition Assistance Program —fromCaldwell, DeSoto, East Carroll, Jackson, Ouachita, Red River,Richland andWestCarroll parishes are receiving an additional 20% in their January benefits, whichwas added to theirEBT cardsWednesday,Louisiana Health Department Secretary Bruce Greenstein announced. Additionally,the U.S. Small Business Administration is offering businesses loans to aidrecoveryfor residents from West CarrollParish south to Concordia Parish, and west to Bossier and Caddo parishes, Landry said.

Getmoreelectricity from coal,Trump tellsDept. of Defense

BY HAYLEY SMITH Los Angeles Times (TNS)

President Donald Trump on Wednesday issued an executive order directing the Department of Defense to buy electricity from coalﬁred power plants. He also announcednew fundingto restart and upgrade coal plants in severalstates.

The executive order directs Secretary of Defense PeteHegseth and Secretary of Energy Chris Wright to enter into long-term contracts with coal-ﬁred plants to serve military installations and facilities. The order will “ensure military installations and criticaldefense facilities have uninterrupted, on-demand baseload power,” theWhite House said.

The Department of Energy will also award $175 million for six projects to “extend the useful life of coalﬁred power plants” in rural and remote communities,including West Virginia, Ohio, North Carolina, Kentucky, and Ohio, the agency said Hundreds of coal plants haveclosedinthe United States in recent years as inexpensive and cleaner natural gas and renewables became super-abundant.

Coalisrelatively inexpensive to produce butisthe dirtiestfossil fuel, releasing considerable particulate air pollution, sulfur dioxide and

mercury,and nearly twice the planet-warming carbon dioxide as natural gas.

Trump announced the initiatives ataWhite House event wherehe alsoreceived an “Undisputed ChampionofCoal” award fromthe WashingtonCoal Club,apro-coal group.

Theactions continue the administration’s efforts to turn back the clock on the transition to cleaner energy and reverse efforts

to address climatechange. In 2025, coalwas down to roughly 17% of the country’s electricity generation, from about 50% in 2000, according to the U.S.Energy Information Administration.

The announcement comes as Trump takes steps to block electric vehicle initiatives and the development of renewable energy sources such as wind and solar —including ongoing legal battles over offshore wind projects

on theEastCoast andchallengestoCalifornia’sauthoritytoset stricttailpipeemission standards.

During Wednesday’s event, Trump creditedcoal with keeping thepower on during recent winter storms while “solar and wind totally collapsed.”

“I’mnot afan of those crazywindmills that areall madeinChina,”Trumpsaid. Butenergy costsare rising acrossthe U.S., and

renewables represent the fastest,cheapestand cleanest resources available, said Julie McNamara, associate policy director of the climate and energy program at the nonprofitUnion of ConcernedScientists. She described the president’s order as a“staggering, staggering waste of money,time and opportunity.”

“Forcing the use of increasingly unreliable and relentlessly uneconomic coalplants will risk outages and send high electricity costs higher,”McNamara said.“Recklessly slashing health, safety and environmental standards will harm people’shealth and the environment.Communitiesthat produce coal she said, need “actual, durable transition solutions.”

TedKelly,director and lead counsel for U.S. Clean Energy at the nonproﬁt Environmental Defense Fund, said theadministration’s efforts are “focused on the coal industry’sprofits, not the costs to American families and businesses.”

“Thisabsurdmisuseof public funds will lead to more airpollution, more asthmaand higher electricitybills —all forancient coal plants that barely work,”Kelly said.“At the same time,the Trump administration is blocking and canceling the cleanest, most affordable energy options

from the grid, driving up costs even higher.”

Kelly notedthe costs of coal are increasing: 99% of coal plants cost moretorun than would it cost to replace them with renewableenergy,according to an analysis from the nonpartisan think tank Energy Innovation. A separate analysis fromthe consulting ﬁrm Grid Strategies found that forcing the continued operation of coal plants slated to retire could costratepayersmorethan $3 billion per year

Somerepresentatives from the coal industry were appreciative of the new order

“As demand increases and our lives become increasingly electriﬁed, America needs to generate moreelectricity, not less,” said Kayla Blackford, aworker at Bear Run Mine in Cougar,Indiana, during Wednesday’sevent. “For years, coal miners have felt the weight of policies that made ourfutureuncertain. Over the past year that weight has begun to lift.” But even some within the industry have questioned the administration’sefforts. Last month, theowners of theCraig Generating Station in Colorado said the Department of Energy violatedtheir constitutional rights when it ordered them to continue runningacoalﬁredgenerator thattheyhad been planning formore than adecade to retire.

BY DÁNICA COTO Associated Press

SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico Puerto Rico’sgovernor on Thursday signed abill that amends a law to recognize afetus as a human being, amove doctors and legal experts warn will havedeep ramiﬁcationsfor the U.S. Caribbean territory The amendment was approved without publichearings and amid concerns from opponents who warned it wouldunleashconfusionand affecthow doctorsand pregnant or potentiallypregnant women aretreated The new law will lead to “defensive healthcare,” warned Dr.Carlos Díaz Vélez, president of PuertoRico’sCollege of Medical Surgeons. “Thiswill bring complex clinical decisions into therealm of criminal law,” he said in aphone interview

He said that women with complicated pregnancies will likely be turned away by privatedoctors and will end up giving birth in the U.S. mainland or at Puerto Rico’s largest public hospital,noting that theisland’shealth system isn’tprepared.

Díaz notedthat the amended lawalsoallows athird person to intervene between adoctor and apregnant woman, so privacy laws will

be violated, adding that new protocols andregulations will have to be implemented.

Gov.Jenniffer González, aRepublican and supporter of President Donald Trump, said in abriefstatementthat “the legislationaimstomaintain consistency between civil and criminal provisions by recognizing theunborn child as ahuman being.”

The amendment, in Senate Bill 923, wasmadetoanar-

ticle within Puerto Rico’sPenalCodethatdeﬁnesmurder.

The government noted that the amendment complementsalaw that among other things, classifiesas first-degree murder when apregnant woman is killed intentionally andknowingly,resulting in the deathof the conceivedchildatany stageofgestation.The law was named after Keishla Rodríguez, who was preg-

nantwhenshe was killed in April 2021. Her lover, former Puerto Rican boxer Félix Verdejo, receivedtwo life sentences after he was found guilty in the killing. “A zygote was given legal personality,” said Rosa Seguí Cordero,anattorney andspokesperson forthe National Campaign forFree, Safeand Accessible Abortion in Puerto Rico. “Wewomen were stripped of our rights.”

ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO By EVAN VUCCI

President DonaldTrump signs an executiveorder regarding coal during an event Wednesday in the East Room of theWhite House in Washington as Interior SecretaryDoug Burgum House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-Benton, Environmental ProtectionAgency directorLee Zeldinand coal minerswatch.

FiredNOPDofficerloses appeal

Accusedofstalking,man arrestedmultipletimes

BY MISSY WILKINSON Staff writer

The Civil Service Commission on Monday upheld the ﬁringofaformer New Orleans Police Department special operations officer for stalking,agreeing with NOPD

N.O. East school adopts new name

Academywillnow be SarahT.ReedHigh

School

BY MARIE FAZIO Staff writer

One evening last month, Livingston Collegiate Academy students escorted groups of alums through the New Orleans East school, showing off classrooms and the building’sstate-of-the-art gym.The alumswerefrom Sarah T. Reed High School, theneighboring, soon-to-closeschool whose name Livingstonwilladopt

Last year the charter operator that has run Reed for the past decade said it was closing the historic school because of low enrollment, poor academic performanceand abuilding in dire need of repairs. Reed’salum network sprang into action,imploring theOrleans Parish SchoolBoard to ﬁnd away to keep their beloved school’slegacy alive. Collegiate Academies, which operates several high schools in the city, soon agreedtorenameand

State, localofficials tout push to build newspans ä See SCHOOL, page 2B

BY WILLIE SWETT Staff writer

chiefs that aman arrested multiple times for domesticviolence shouldn’tbeacop.

“Hewas …being arrestedover andover again for domestic violence incidents, and allowing him to continue his service with the Police Department would certain-

ly cause the public to question the PoliceDepartment’s legitimacy,” NOPD DeputySuperintendent Nicholas Gernon saidatanAug. 15 chief’s panel,according to the commission’sdecision.

Kaja Rhea, 25, was arrested twice in OrleansParishlast spring

after usinghis police unit to stalk his ex-girlfriend and her new boyfriend andtrying to ﬁght the boyfriend. He was arrested in March on onecount of stalking, then arrestedagain in Aprilontwo counts of violating aprotective order and 36 countseach of obscene phone calls and stalking.

Rhea also received two municipalsummonses in Kennerfor dis-

turbing the peace, according to thedecision, aftertakinghis ex’s phone from her in aTarget parkinglot andshowing up at aKennerhotel,where he impersonated arelative to determinewhether she had stayed there with her new boyfriend. In March, he was reassigned to

CHAOTIC NIGHT

CHAOS: AKnights of Chaos ﬂoat makes fun of U.S. SecretaryofHealth and Human Services RobertF.Kennedy Jr.onThursday during the krewe’sparade in New Orleans.The satirical, all-male krewe is named for astate of disorder

CARNIVAL 2026 FOR MORE, NOLA.COM

BABYLON: Riders toss throws to the crowd as the Knights of Babylon parade rolls Thursday in New Orleans. Founded in 1939, the krewe is named for the legendary kingdom on the banks of the Euphrates River

Twobridgeconstructionprojects in St. Tammany Parish, one worth of tensofmillions and the other worth $2 million, were the center of attentionfrom local and state ofﬁcials on Thursday, including Gov.Jeff Landry Landry was on hand to cut the ribbon of the recently opened new U.S. 190 bridge in Covington, which promises to ease congestion in abusy corridor

BY RICH COLLINS Staff writer

Former Washington Postjournalist Hank Stuever is joining TheTimes-Picayune and The Advocateasits managing editor forenterprise journalism, addinganother veteran editor to the newsroom’sranks as it expands its ambitions across Louisiana andthe Gulf Coast.

Stuever,who twice has been nameda Pulitzer Prize finalist in featurewriting, will start in his new role next month,according to an internal announcement this week. During his 26 years at The Washington Post, Stueverworked as areporter, chief TV critic, andeditor.His last leadership role therewas

Stuever

STAFFPHOTOSByCHRIS GRANGER

AntoineMasseysentenced to 60 years

N.O. escapeewill face more chargesrelating to jailbreak

BY WILLIE SWETT Staff writer

Anorthshore judge sentenced Antoine Massey to 60 years in prison Thursday,two months after a jury in St. TammanyParish found him guilty on multiple charges including rape and kidnapping.

During ahearing in Covington, Judge Alan Black of the 22nd Judicial District handed down sentences of 40 years for seconddegree rape,20years for second-degree kidnapping, three years for battery of adating partner involving strangulation andtwo years for violating aprotective order.The 40-year and 20-year sentenceswill run consecutively.The other sentences will run concurrently Massey was one of 10 men involved in abrazenjail-

OFFICER

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desk duty pending criminal and internal investigations. He was ﬁred in August.

PROJECTS

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drivers aday.Later Thursday,the governor headed to Lacombe to help kick off construction of the soon-tobe-replaced bridge on La 36 that is part of anew state initiative to build 62 bridges by the end of the year

Awho’swho of St. Tammany politicians gatheredto hear Landry during anews conference at the new U.S. 190 bridge, which crosses theBogue FalayaatClaiborne Hill.

“Wehave hada tremendous backlog of infrastructure improvements that we’ve needed in this state for quite some time,” the governor said. Infrastructure on the northshore “not only has not been maintained,but it hasn’tkept with that growth,” he added.

Atwo-lane bridge has stood at Claiborne Hill for more than 50 years, said state Department of Transportationand Development Secretary Glenn Ledet. But that two-lane bridge was overwhelmed as St. Tammany’spopulation boomed over thedecades,including around 30,000 newresidents between 2010 and 2020.

The bridge also serves as an evacuationroute,said Parish President Mike Cooper Anew bridge built along-

SCHOOL

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rebrand LivingstonasSarah T. Reed. It’sanunusual arrangement —not aschool takeover but an identity transfer —that could beneﬁt stakeholders at both schools Livingston could gain about 150 former Reed students this fall, giving its 550-student enrollment abig boost,saidCollegiate President Stacy Martin. It also willinherit Reed’slarge and active alum network. And thosealums, about adozen of whom toured Livingston last month, will get anew school to carry on the Reed legacy “If you erase the high schools, you erase our heritage,” said Reed Alumni Association President Gregory Lee, Jr.“Youerase our cultureinNew Orleans.” Historic schoolnames hold special signiﬁcance in New Orleans, where your alma mater is often alifelong

thecourt considers.”

breakinNew Orleans last May, andwas considered to have played aleading role in the escape that captured the attentionofthe region forweeks. Policelaterapprehended Masseyata short-term rentalhome in Hollygrove in June. At the time of his escape, Massey wasbeing heldin the New Orleans jail on charges of domestic abuse andtheftofa motor vehicle, stemming from the same underlying incident as the charges in St. Tammany.Massey now also faces charges related to the escape.

Duringthe sentencing, Black admonished Massey forthe severity of the crimes, as well as his extensive prior criminal record, accordingtoanews release from northshore District Attorney Collin Sims.

“Your criminal history is significant and started along time ago,” Black told him, accordingtothe newsrelease. “Thiscrime herewas over an extensive amountofhours.Itwas brutal …and extreme violence —this all adds up to what

In September 2025, Rhea pleadedguiltyinOrleans ParishCriminal District Court to asingle count of stalking and received a30day suspended sentence andone year ofinactive probation, accordingto

Despite the guilty verdict, Massey has maintained his innocence,said Leo Caillier, one of his attorneys.

“We’re disappointed,” Caillierafter the sentencing, adding that Massey plans to take advantage of all of his appellate rights.

Sims, meanwhile, applaudedthe investigators and prosecutorswho secured the unanimous jury conviction during Massey’s trial in December

The 60-year sentence ensures Massey is “removed from our streets for avery long time,” Sims said in a statement

Prosecutors said Massey beat andthreatened to kill awoman in November 2024, after discovering in her purse adomesticviolencecomplaint that she hadmadetothe St. Tammany Parish Sheriff’s Ofﬁce. They said Massey then forcibly drove thewoman to New Orleansand back to St. Tammany,before once again forcing her to return to New Orleans, where the woman escaped after continued abuse.

court records. Rheahad petitionedfor relieffromdisciplinary action handed down by NOPD chiefs in August, arguing that the punishment wasn’tcommensuratewith the violations. His attor-

side theexisting structure has doubled the capacity. The $30million projectbegan in the summer of 2023. During the construction, the parish also madeimprovements to thenearby Tammany Trace bike trail, Cooper said.

The state is alsocurrently in theplanning and design phase for afurtherwidening of U.S.190 northof the newbridge andnew roundabouts, said Ledet.

La.36bridge

Later Thursday, Landry wasinLacombe to highlight thereplacementofa La 36 bridge over Bayou Lacombe.

That project is being run by the state’snew Office of HighwayConstruction, which launched in summer 2025

Thenew ofﬁce is charged

identifier.After Hurricane Katrina, somelegacy high schools never reopened, leaving their flocks ofalums untethered to anycampus or student body.Bycontrast, post-Katrinaschools thatkept their historic namesalsomaintainedvibrant alum networks ready to donate money, march in parades alongside theband and mentor students. Now as an ongoing enrollment decline is likely to force more schools to close, the city facesthe daunting question of whattodoabout with the schools’ names —and alums. The arrangement between Livingston and Reed is onepossible solution This semester,preparationsfor Livingston’stransformation into thenew Reed are underway.Withinput from alumni, Collegiate administrators have selected newstudent uniforms in Reed’ssignature blue and red plaid and are finalizing anew schoollogofeaturing Reed’sOlympic torch. “We’re verymuchexcited to write achapter within the

Whiletestifying in December,the victim made it clear she did not want to be thereand wasfoundtobe texting someone from the stand whohad advocated for Massey,according to theDistrict Attorney’s Ofﬁce. The court subsequently conﬁscated their phones.

Caillier said thevictim, while testifying, had texted that she wanted to leave the courtroom, but theperson shewas texting with persuaded her not to do so.

Partlybased on that text exchange, in amotion ﬁled after theguilty verdict, Caillier arguedthere should be anew trial. The judge denied that motion.

Caillier also noted thevictim’stestimony during trial that she had not been raped or kidnapped. TheDistrictAttorney’s Office accused Massey of trying to coach the victim.

Massey is scheduled to go to trial in New Orleans in April on the domestic abuse charges,Caillier said. That samemonth,Massey is also scheduled to have ahearing on amotion relatedtothe escape charge.

ney,Eric Hessler, did not return arequest for comment.

The commissionfound the discipline “appropriate,” citing the multiple warrants andsummonses thedecision states.

La. 36 around thebridge That hascausedsome frustration for nearby residents, as drivers have had to findalternative routes around the closure, including many who are using nearby Horseshoe Island Road.

TheSt. Tammany Parish Sheriff’s Office is increasing enforcement of Horseshoe Island Road, which is ownedbythe parish,and has issued “numerous”speeding tickets on the road, sheriff’s spokesperson Suzanne Carboni said.

with upkeep of 2,800 bridges and does not have to follow thesamebid process as DOTDafter statelawmakers temporarily gave it emergency procurement powers.

The newofﬁceissupposed to be “lean andmean and fast”and move “atapace at which we don’ttypically see with(DOTD),” said Archie ChaissonIII, the executive director of the highway constructionofﬁce.

In Lacombe, the new concrete bridge will replace an old 53-foot-long bridge built on wood piles,Chaisson said.

Thebridgeis“absolutely in need of replacement, saidstate Rep. Peter Egan, R-Covington, who described it as going “up and down under gravel trucks and logging trucks.”

The statehas now closed

book of Sarah T. Reed’slegacy,” Jerel Bryant, CEO of Collegiate Academies,told Reedalumsahead of thetour.

Themergedschools

In theyears after Katrina, Reed wasoperatedbythe Recovery School District, astate-run school district that took over struggling schools. It closed in 2014 after earning severalFratings from thestate.

After an uproar from Reed alums, Einstein Charter reopened the school two years laterinits historicNew Orleans East home on Michoud Boulevard. Severalmiles away,Livingston’sbuilding opened in 2015 on the site of amiddle school that closed after Katrina.

Becauseitisonlya decade old, Livingston lacks alarge alum contingent. Its new namewill change that.

Reed’s alum groupisheavily involved at the school. Its memberswill march alongside Reed’sband in this year’sMardi Gras parades and give students Gatorade, Lee said. Theassociation

BryanCooley,aHorseshoe Island Road resident who attended thegroundbreaking, said threedifferent cars have hit his mailboxsince theclosure,while other residentsininterviews complained of inadequate signage and communication about the closure.

“These areconstruction projects,” Landry said in an interview.“Thesekinds of things will happen. Remember,this was not happening at all.”

If the bridge fell in, he said, “these residentsweren’tgoing to get anywhere.”He saidresidents should inform the state when there areproblems

The replacement project is supposed to be ﬁnished in September,said Chaisson, and the new bridge, which he said costsaround $2.1 million, is supposed to last for the next 50 to75years.

also organizeda three-day career fair next month and is raising money to pay for afew students’ prom expenses.

The group hopestodothe same for the newiteration of Reed, Lee said. Thesupport would include programming for the “Battle of the East,” the annual rivalry football game between Reed and Abramson Sci Academy,the two longtime New Orleans Easthighschoolsthatwill now bothbeunder Collegiategovernance.

“It’sa partnership here and they’rewise to utilize us as aresource,” Lee said. “Theyknowwe’re averyengaged alumni association.”

Lee said his group will hold an alum picnic in June to bid farewell to the historic Reed campus.

Lessonslearned

At Livingston, somestudents have embraced the namechange —and thenew alums.

LivingstonfreshmanKiminie Henry said the school’s expanded alum network

JOURNALIST

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bases that have allowed them to expand regionally bucking some of the industry’sbroader trends.

Born and raised in Oklahoma City,Stuever graduated with ajournalism degree from Loyola University in New Orleans. He said the city made abig impression on him, which is why he wants to return.

“I left witha good journalism education and adesire to tell stories about life and how it is lived, in all of its challenges as well as its joys and dramaand scope,” Stuever said. “I can think of no better place right now than Louisiana to return and share someofwhat I’ve

could help her attain her goal of attending atop-tier law school.

“When anew namecomes, we’llhavemore opportunities,” she said. When about adozen Reed alums—including aMandeville police officer,aNASA employee and aschool dean —came to visit Livingston last month, Henry was oneoftheir tour guides.

Wearing ablue and green letterman’sjacket with “MissFreshman”emblazoned on the back, she pointed to alist of student names posed in the 12th grade hallwaybelow a“4.0 GPA” sign.

“This is avery important part of ourschool,” Henry said. “Whenwewalkpast, it’sbasically motivation for us to hit the books.”

RoylettePayton,anurse at aHead Start center who graduated from Reed in 2001, looked admiringly at the names. She said she’s hopeful about Reed’sfuture in the Collegiate network, andoptimistic that the school will continue to mold

learned with the hardworking journalists at all the Advocate newsrooms.” In his new position, Stuever will be based in NewOrleans but will also workwith editors and reporters in Baton Rouge,Lafayette and Shreveport. Before joining the Post, Stuever worked as areporter for the Austin AmericanStatesman and the Albuquerque Tribune. He is the author of two books: “Tinsel,” alook at the emotional and economic impact of Christmas; and “Off Ramp,” acollectionofessays and articles. In 2012, he was the T. Anthony Pollner visiting professoratthe University of Montana’sSchool of Journalism.

Email RichCollins at rich. collins@theadvocate.com.

students the way it did her “I wanted to become a nurse so Icould help people,” she said, “and Igot that from Reed.” Bryant,the Collegiate Academies leader,thanked thealums at theend of the tour forshowing up.

“We’ve learned this lesson again and again,”he said. “The best culture that moves kids the mostiscreated frombothwithin (the school) and the outside too.”

STAFF PHOTO By BRETTDUKE

Gov. Jeff LandryspeaksThursdayaspeople gather for agroundbreaking ceremonyfor the La. 36 bridge replacement in Lacombe.

BRIEFS FROM WIRE REPORTS

Stocks drop sharply as investors hunt for losers

NEW YORK U.S. stocks fell sharply Thursday as the market punished companies seen as potential losers from artiﬁcialintelligence technology

AppLovin lost nearly a fifth of its value and tumbled 19.7%, even though it reported a stronger proﬁt for the latest quarter than analysts expected. Like other software companies, it’s come under pressure from worries that AI may undercut its business while fundamentally changing how people use the internet.

AppLovin CEO Adam Foroughi pushed back on the concerns, saying in a conference call with analysts that indicators show his company is doing well “There’s a real disconnect between market sentiment and the reality of our business,” he said.

The AI worries have hit software stocks particularly hard, but they’re spreading to other industries and other markets. For bonds, for example, “AI disruption risk” looks set to knock down prices, even if the threat still looks hazy, according to strategists at UBS.

Outside of tech, McDonald’s rose 2.7% after reporting a stronger profit for the latest quarter than analysts expected

The chain credited moves to improve its value and affordability, including cutting prices on some U.S. combo meals in September.

Walmart’s rally of 3.8%, meanwhile, was the strongest single force pushing upward on the S&P 500.

Top Trump antitrust official leaves post NEW YORK — The top antitrust official in the Trump administration is leaving her post amid tension about greenlighting big mergers in recent months.

Gail Slater, the Justice Department’s assistant attorney general for antitrust, posted on X Thursday that it was with “great sadness” that she was leaving after just a year in the role. The move comes after a back-and-forth decision about whether to allow Hewlett Packard Enterprises to buy a rival business last year

The Justice Department initially tried to block the $14 billion deal with Juniper Networks, arguing in a lawsuit the two would control 70% of the market in the industry, a dominance that “threatens higher prices and less innovation.” But the suit was soon settled, and the merger allowed to go through.

Slater’s role reviewing deals was thrown into the spotlight again recently when President Donald Trump announced he would personally examine Netflix’s proposed purchase of Warner Bros. Discovery Trump later backed away from inserting himself into a process normally handled by Justice, promising not to get involved.

Conagra ordered to pay $25M in Pam lawsuit

A jury awarded a Los Angeles man $25 million in a lawsuit against Chicago-based Conagra alleging its butter-ﬂavored Pam cooking spray caused a rare chronic lung disease that will require a double lung transplant.

The verdict last week in the Superior Court of Los Angeles found that Conagra did not adequately warn consumers about the potential dangers of inhaling fumes from Pam cooking spray containing diacetyl, a butter-flavored chemical linked to respiratory illness. During the trial, Conagra said it removed the ingredient from its Pam formulation in 2009. Roland Esparza, 58, who had used butter-flavored Pam regularly since the 1990s, filed the lawsuit in 2022, alleging the since-discontinued ingredient is responsible for his condition, according to his attorney Esparza was diagnosed with bronchiolitis obliterans, a severe and progressive respiratory disease better known as “popcorn lung.” The disease was first identified in workers at a microwave popcorn plant who inhaled the butter-flavored chemical diacetyl during the manufacturing process

BUSINESS

NOLA.COM/BIZ

Homes sales fell sharply in January

Drop comes even as mortgage rates continue to ease

BY ALEX VEIGA AP business writer

Sales of previously occupied U.S. homes fell sharply in January as higher home prices and possibly harsh winter weather kept many prospective homebuyers on the sidelines despite easing mortgage rates.

Existing home sales sank 8.4% last month from December to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 3.91 million units, the National Association of Realtors said Thursday That’s the biggest monthly decline in nearly four years and the slowest annualized sales pace in more than two years. Sales fell 4.4% compared with

January last year The latest sales ﬁgure fell short of the 4.105 million pace economists were expecting, according to FactSet

“The decrease in sales is disappointing,” said Lawrence Yun, NAR’s chief economist. “The below-normal temperatures and above-normal precipitation this January make it harder than usual to assess the underlying driver of the decrease and determine if this month’s numbers are an aberration.”

Home sales slowed sharply across the Northeast, Midwest, South and West But sales had their biggest annual and monthly drop in the West, which wasn’t as affected by last month’s winter storm as the other regions of the country Plus, there’s usually a month or two lag between a contract signing and when the sale is ﬁnalized, so many of January’s sales reﬂect contracts signed late last year

Despite the sharp drop in sales, home prices continued to climb last month The national median sales price increased 0.9% in January from a year earlier to $396,800.

Home prices have risen on an annual basis for 31 months in a row

The U.S. housing market has been in a sales slump dating back to 2022, when mortgage rates began to climb from pandemic-era lows.

The combination of higher mortgage rates, years of skyrocketing home prices and a chronic shortage of homes nationally following more than a decade of below-average home construction have left many aspiring homeowners priced out of the market. Sales of previously occupied U.S. homes remained stuck last year at 30-year lows.

Many of the homes purchased last month likely went under contract in November and December when mortgage rates eased to their lowest levels of the year

The average rate on a 30-year mortgage briefly dropped last month to 6.06%, the lowest level since September 2022, according to mortgage buyer Freddie Mac. It has since inched higher remaining this week at just above 6%, but close to a percentage point lower than a year ago. Even so, affordability remains a challenge for many aspiring homeowners, especially ﬁrst-time buyers who don’t have equity from an existing home to put toward a new home purchase. They accounted for 31% of homes sales last month. Historically, they made up 40% of home sales.

There were 1.22 million unsold homes at the end of January, down 0.8% from December and up 3.4% from January last year, NAR said. That’s still well short of the roughly 2 million homes for sale that was typical before the COVID-19 pandemic.

Damage to Fla. crops could top $1B

Below-freezing temperatures caused major harm

BY CAMILA GOMEZ Orlando Sentinel (TNS)

ORLANDO, Fla.

— As forecasts called for freezing weather, David Hill planned to run sprinklers overnight, hoping a coating of ice would protect the crops at his Clermont farm.

But Hill, who owns Southern Hill Farms, had never tried freeze protection in temperatures as low as were predicted for the early hours of Feb. 1. So he decided to spray water on only half his ﬁelds.

The sprinkler plan didn’t work, as a heavy, milky ice formed, which broke branches and ruined crops. But the other ﬁelds suffered damage too as the temperatures plummeted into the low 20s on the ﬁrst days of February

The freezing weather wiped out all the farm’s sunflowers, half its blueberries and a third of its strawberries, taking a good chunk of revenue with it.

“There will be no normal about this season That’s for sure,” Hill said.

That is true across the state.

The cost of freeze damage to Florida’s farmers might top $1 billion, the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services said in a statement this week

Every farmer as far south as Lake Okeechobee who was actively growing crops was hurt by the record-setting cold snap, said Matt Smith, a commercial crop agent for Lake and Orange counties with the University of Florida’s Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences.

Smith said it may take months to understand the severity of the freeze. Farmers may see signs of fruit damage within two to four weeks but wood damage may not be evident until April.

And many farmers will be facing tough decisions soon. If the

Scott West, owner of Tom West Blueberries, shows the inside of a blueberry damaged by the recent freezing weather on Monday in Ocoee, Fla.

damage in a crop hits a certain level, it’ll be unsustainable to bring the rest of the crop to the market.

The agriculture sector in Florida “is deﬁnitely hurting right now, and it’s going to take a little time to see to what extent,” he added.

Hank Scott, the general manager at Long & Scott Farms near Lake Apopka, said his cabbage suffered minimal damage But cabbage is a leafy winter vegetable better able to survive during the cold.

His farm lost some strawberries but still planned to open for “u-pick” customers this month.

Blueberry crops, however, were hit hard. Blueberry bushes are particularly susceptible to the cold, and when sprayed, their bushes couldn’t handle the weight of the ice that formed.

Scott West, the owner of Tom West Blueberries in Ocoee, said the ice likely reached 100 pounds per plant

“This amount of ice just

breaks the plant to pieces,” he said.

West said his farm lost from 70% to 80% of its blueberries, which covered 20 acres. It will be a while before the plants bounce back, if they are healthy enough to survive. In the meantime, he’ll need plenty of workers to help remove broken branches, start a fungicide program, and stake the plants, West said.

“I don’t think we have a choice but try to keep the workers on because you can’t spring back without the best farming practices,” he said.

It’s too soon to tally his ﬁnancial losses, West said, but he expects some farms might go out of business.

On Tuesday, Gov Ron DeSantis issued an executive order in response to “last week’s winter weather event.” Without providing speciﬁcs, the message posted on X said the state was working to help “facilitate emergency

harvesting,” protect “Florida agriculture from further losses” and provide “prompt assistance” to farmers.

Though the state still has staff assessing damage from the freeze, “we do know that the damage to Florida crops will be signiﬁcant, possibly over $1 billion,” said Agriculture Commissioner Wilton Simpson in his department’s statement.

He added, “Our farmers are resilient and we believe they will continue to weather the storm.” Hill said farmers have no choice but to keep working. Southern Hill, which is a family-run farm, opened its land to the public last weekend but had no produce to sell. Visitors were invited for food trucks and amusement park rides.

“You feel like somebody suckerpunched you to the stomach. You feel like you’re dreaming and you’re going to wake up but you never do. But you learn to cope,” Hill said.

EPA ends credits for automatic start-stop vehicle ignition

BY ALEXA ST JOHN Associated Press

DETROIT The Environmental Protection Agency announced an end Thursday to credits to automakers who install automatic start-stop ignition systems in their vehicles, a device intended to reduce emissions that EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin said “everyone hates.” In remarks with President Donald Trump on Thursday at the White House, Zeldin called start-stop technology the “Obama switch” and said it makes vehicles “die” at every red light and stop sign He said the credits, which also applied to options like improved air conditioning systems are now “over done, ﬁnished.”

Zeldin repeated the generallydebunked claims that start-stop systems — which are mostly useful for city driving — are harmful to vehicles, asserting Thursday that “it kills the battery of your car without any signiﬁcant beneﬁt to the environment.”

This latest Trump administration move to cut automotive industry efforts to clean up their cars and reduce transportation-driven emissions came as Zeldin and Trump also announced a broader repeal of the scientiﬁc ﬁnding known as endangerment that has been the central basis for regulating U.S. greenhouse gas emissions. Start-stop is a technology that automatically shuts down a vehicle’s engine when a driver comes

to a complete stop, and then automatically restarts the engine when the driver takes their foot off the brake pedal. Developed in response to the 1970s oil crisis, the feature was intended to cut vehicle idling, fuel consumption and emissions.

About two-thirds of vehicles now have it, providing drivers with anywhere from 7% to 26% in fuel economy savings, according to the Society of Automotive Engineers.

Start-stop also causes a split-second lag in acceleration, a point of irritation for some consumers and automotive enthusiasts.

Burning gasoline and diesel fuel for transportation is a major contributor to planet-warming gases such as carbon dioxide, methane

and more, according to the EPA.

By implementing the systems, automakers could earn credits toward meeting federal emissions reduction rules.

“Countless Americans passionately despise the start/stop feature in cars,” Zeldin wrote in a post on X on Tuesday teasing the announcement. “So many have spoken out against this absurd start-stop-startstop-start-stop concept.”

The announcement made good on Zeldin’s promises last year to “ﬁx” the feature. Start-stop is “where your car dies at every red light so companies get a climate participation trophy,” Zeldin said in a post on X last May “EPA approved it, and everyone hates it, so we’re ﬁxing it,” he wrote at the time.

ORLANDO SENTINEL PHOTO By RICARDO RAMIREZ BUXEDA

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Obituaries

Camese Jr., Eddie

“Donot letyourhearts

betroubled. Youbelieve in God;believe also in me.My Father’shouse hasmany rooms; if that were not so, would Ihavetoldyou that I amgoing theretoprepare a placefor you? AndifI go and preparea placefor you,I will come back and takeyou to be with me thatyou also maybe where Iam.”John3:16. The Lifeand Legacy.Eddie Camese, Jr lovingly known to thoseclose to him as “Tubby,” peacefully departedthislifeonFriday, February6,2026. Sur‐rounded by theloveofhis devoted wife andfamily, hetransitionedfromthis lifetohis heavenly home, leaving behind alegacy cherished by allwho knew him.Hewas 68 yearsold Eddiewas born on August 6,1957, to thelateEddie Camese, Sr.and Betty Jane Harrell Camese.Hewas a nativeofNew Orleansand later made hishome in Belle Chasse,Louisiana, where he wasknownand loved by many.OnJuly24, 2009, Eddiewas joined in HolyMatrimony to his beloved anddevoted wife, SheilaTurnerCamese, whomheabsolutely adoredand cherishedwith all hisheart.Hewas the proud andlovingfatherof EddieCameseIII (Morgan) Through marriage to Sheila, Eddiewas blessed toembrace theroleofa lovingstepfather to Charles Williamson (Mor‐row), MoniqueRagasSylve,Tabitha Powell (An‐thony)and Hershell Ragas. Eddiehad alovingand cherished bond with his siblings, Patricia Carpenter (Nathaniel),LisaBrown, David (Myra) andSteven Camese, KeeyshaCamese Southall(Byron),and the lateNathaniel andWanda Camese. He wasthe loving and dedicatedgrandfather ofBrayden,Payton, Cam‐dyn,Breanna,Kendrick, Jr., Kenan,Collin, Cameron, Caleb,Vaughnsha,Charles, Dertell,Kaylin, andJazlin Hewas thebrother-in-law ofVerna Ragas, Mary Parker, Althea Pepper (Michael) Myra Manuel (Alton),Lorraine, Vincent (Deborah) andthe late Vic‐tor Turner.Eddiewas the proud GodfatherofJeane’ and SaleyJohnson Kryshun Freeman, and

Kryshun Freeman and Shantell Murdock. Eddie shareda specialclose friendshipwithMarty Grif‐fin. Eddie’slifewas apow‐erful reflection of his steadfast faith in God. He was baptized at St.Paul Baptist Church in Ironton, Louisiana by Rev. Willie Watts,III. As adevoted memberofGreater Saint Peter MissionaryBaptist Church,under thepastor‐age of Dr.Darnell Smith, Sr.,withunwavering dedi‐cation, Eddiefaithfully servedonthe Deacon Board,attendedThursday night bibleclassesand SundayWorship service. His commitment reflected the deep meaningbehind his favorite hymn,“My Soul isAnchoredinthe Lord,” Eddiethoroughlyenjoyed lifeand livedittothe fullest.Alwaysstepping out lookinglikehejust fin‐ished aphoto shoot with GQMagazine, Eddieloved dancing.Hewas so lighton his feet at timesitseemed asthoughhewas floating verysmooth. Hisenthusi‐asm forlifeled himto enjoy traveling, seeing and exploring newadventures. LikeothersEddiewas a die-hardSaintsfan,cheer‐ing them on with unwaver‐ing loyaltyand pride. Eddie was agraduateofJohn McDonogh High School After graduating,hewent ontofurther hiseducation atLouisiana StateUniver‐sity. Eddie’sloveofservice leadhim to a42yearoflaw enforcement.Withinthose 42years,Eddiewas the firstAfrican American to beemployedasWardenin the PlaqueminesParish Sheriff Office.Witha yearningtowanttolearn moreabout Godand en‐hance hisspiritual growth Eddiewentonthe enroll and graduate from Christ‐ian BaptistCollege.Eddie leavestocherish hismem‐ories andwillbesadly missedbyhis loving wife, children, stepchildren grandchildren,aunts,un‐cles, ahostofloving nephews,nieces, cousins, other relativesand friends. Eddiewas preceded in death by hisparents,ma‐ternaland paternal grand‐parents,one brother, and one sister.Relatives and friends of thefamilyare in‐vited to attend thecelebra‐tionof life servicewhich willbeheldonMonday, February16, 2026 at Greater St.Peter Baptist Church 182WestSaint Peter Street BelleChasse LA70037.The visitation will begin at 8a.m andthe service will begin at 10 a.m.Rev.Dr. DarnellSmith Sr.,officiatingand entomb‐mentwillfollowatWest‐lawnMemorialParkCeme‐tery, Gretna,LA. Thefamily willalsoreceive guestfor a visitationonSundayFebru‐ary 15,2026 at Robinson FamilyFuneralHomefrom 4 p.m.,to6 p.m. Funeral planningentrusted to RobinsonFamilyFuneral Home(504) 208- 2119. For onlinecondolences please visit www.robinsonfamilyf uneralhome.com

childrenWayne Campos, Sr. (Brenda), Pamela Campos Straub (Marty), MichaelCampos,Stephen Campos (Shawn) and sonin-law,AlTemes, Jr. She wasa beloved"Granny"to her grandchildren- Adrian Straub (Netty), Teva Williams (Jacob), Justin Montamat,CelesteStraub Badeaux (TJ), Danielle Montamat Faller (Derek), Courtney Campos,Wayne Campos,Jr. and Sierra Temes. She also treasured her great-grandchildren Tyler, Brianna and Holly Williams, Hunter, Sophia, Scarlette,Harper and Daniel Badeaux, Kevin and DJ Faller, Ethan Moguel and Melina Porter. Family and Friends are invitedtoattendthe funeral servicesatLake Lawn Metairie Funeral Home at 5100 Pontchartrain Blvd., NewOrleans, LA on Saturday, February 14, 2026. Visitation willbegin at 11 am with ablessingto follow at 1pminthe chapel. Interment willfollowatLakeLawn Park. To view and signthe family online guestbook and share your memories of Jackie,please visit lakelawnmetairie.com.

On September22, 1953

Dan AnthonyCavalierSr. was born to Harry and Anna Cavalier.Hewas a lifelongresidentofNew Orleans,La. Danattended and graduatedfromFran‐cis TNichols High school and laterenrolledinDel‐gadoCommunity College for architecture.Hewas an employeefor Arthur Shineys ﬂoral shop and thenlater became afore‐man at Sewerage andWa‐terboard. Danmet and married theloveofhis life Shirley Smith, andtothis union 5childrenwereborn: Acacia, DanJr, Ronald Sr Johnathan,and Richard. He was alifelongmemberof StMary’softhe Angels (St. Josephine Bakhita) Church OnFebruary1,2026, Dan Anthony enteredeternal restatthe ageof72. He leavestomourn hiswife Shirley,3 children Acacia RonaldSr, Johnathan (Lisa), 12 grandchildren, one greatgranddaughter, fourbrothers: David(Geri), Gregory(Elaine), Gerald, Terry,and ahostofnieces, nephews,relatives,and friends.Proceeded in death by histwo sons Dan Jrand Richard, parents: Harry andAnna,and one brother JefferyHarris. Familyand friendsare in‐vited to attend theFuneral Service on Saturday,Febru‐ary 14, 2026, for10:00 a.m. atSt. JosephineBakhita Catholic Church,3501 N. MiroStreet,New Orleans, LA70117. Visitation will begin at 9:00 a.m. Father Francis Kamau, FMH, ofﬁci‐ating.Interment will follow atMount Olivet Cemetery Guestbook Online:www anewtraditionbegins.com (504)282-0600. Linear BrooksBoydand Donavin D.BoydOwners/FuneralDi‐rectors

Robinson (Randall) Tamika Richards,Lelia Richards, Marlene Jonesand Darlene Jones.Inaddition to her children, granddaughter and siblings,LaTaunda alsoleavestocherish pre‐cious memories,a host of other loving relatives, nieces, nephews, aunts and dear friends. Relatives and friends; Pastor,ofﬁ‐cersand membersofPen‐tecostand Tulane Memor‐ial BaptistChurches,as wellasall otherneighbor‐ing churches;formercoworkers;Staff andemploy‐ees of Mount Olivet Ceme‐teryand Mausoleumare invited to attend thefu‐neral.A Celebrationser‐vicehonoringthe life and legacyofthe late LaTaundaTyneika Seals FriscowillbeheldatTu‐laneMemorialBaptist Church,3601 ParisAvenue, New Orleans, LA 70122 on Saturday, February 14, 2026 at10am, Rev. Ross John‐son,HostPastor, Rev. Ron‐nie London,Ofﬁciant. Inter‐mentPrivate.Visitation9 aminthe church.Please signthe online guestbook atwww.charbonnetfuner alhome.com. JefferyK Jenkins,FuneralDirector. CharbonnetLabat Glapion, Directors (504) 581-4411.

G. Frisco,III peacefullytransitioned intoeternal rest on Tues‐day,January 20, 2026 at the age of 52. Belovedson of the late Victor G. andMer‐leneJ.Frisco. Devotedand lovinghusband of thelate LaTaundaSeals Frisco Dedicated andsupportive fatherofVashonand Tierra Frisco. Proudand adored “Pawpaw”ofDehlani The‐riot. GodfatherofJayla Quest.Survivors include his loving andcaringsis‐ters, Pamela Yost,Patrice (Zachary, Sr.) Journee, Stephanie (Damon)Murray and StacyFrisco. Vicwill alsobemissedbya host of aunts, uncles,nieces, nephews,mother-in-law sisters andbrothers-inlaw,cousins,other rela‐tives,friends andco-work‐ers.Relatives andfriends; Pastor, ofﬁcers andmem‐bersofFranklinAvenue and Tulane Memorial Bap‐tistChurches as well as all other neighboringchurches; former co-workers; Staff andemployees of TriState OilCompany,Gala‐toire’s,BRAVO!Italian Kitchen,Tommy’s Cuisine, CheesecakeBistroby Copeland’sand patronsof Vic's catering service, Sim‐ply Southern Soul arein‐vited to attend thefuneral A Celebrationservice hon‐oring thelifeand legacy of the late Victor G. Frisco,III willbeheldatTulane MemorialBaptist Church 3601 ParisAvenue,New Or‐leans,LA70122 on Satur‐day,February14, 2026 at 10 am, Rev. Ross Johnson, HostPastor, Rev. Ronnie London, Ofﬁciant. Inter‐mentPrivate.Visitation9 aminthe church.Please signthe online guestbook atwww.charbonnetfuner alhome.com. JefferyK Jenkins,FuneralDirector. CharbonnetLabat Glapion, Directors (504)581 4411

1701 Estalote Ave Harvey LA 70058. Thevisitationwill begin at 8:30 a.m. followed bya 10 a.m. service. Pastor Ricky Johnsonwillofﬁciate and intermentwill follow in RestlawnCemeteryin Avondale. Arrangementby RobinsonFamilyFuneral Home(504) 208-2119. For onlinecondolences,goto Robinsonfamilyfuneral‐home.com

Johnson,Barry With sadnessweshare thepassing of Barry John‐son, on January16, 2026. Please visitwww.rhodesf uneral.comtoviewservice information, sign online guestbook,sendﬂowers andshare condolences.

Johnson Sr., Joseph Lawrence 'Big Joe'

Joseph Lawrence John‐son, Sr., affectionately knownas“BigJoe,” was born in NewOrleans,LAto MajorieFournette and Willie Johnson. He entered eternalrestonJanuary 29, 2026, leavingbehinda legacy of music, laughter serviceand love.Big Joe attended George Washing‐tonCarverHighSchool and proudlyservedinthe United States Navy during theVietnam War. He was employed forover20years with theNew Orleans Coroner’sOfﬁce andwas a devotedman of faithwho worshippedatMorning Star BaptistChurch and laterGreater LibertyBap‐tist Church,where he sang in themalechoir.Known as “Mr. Bo Jangles,”Big Joe wasa recordingartist, en‐tertainer, andlocal legend whose voice, humor,and

whose voice humor and signaturegreeting—“Good Evening”—could lightup anyroom.Inhis younger years, he wasalsoa pro‐fessionalboxer,admired forhis strength,heart and resilience.One of the greatest lovesofhis life washis wife,IrisGailJohn‐son, whom he marriedin 1983. They shared 34 years of marriage until herpass‐ingin2017 andraisedtheir family in love,loyalty,and unity.Heleavestocherish hismemory, sons,Troy Johnson, Joel Johnson, ShakaZulu(Nahima), Kirk Washington (Irma) and Jerry Martin (Chiquilla); bonus daughter,Andrea Ratliff; brothers,Allen Thompson,Sr. (Theresa), Adrian Valentine, Sr (Stella), andAbe Thomp‐son(Kim);sister, Gwen‐dolynValentine Drew;God‐children,HiKingDupree andAaron Ratliff; nineteen grandchildrenand ahost of otherlovingfamilyand friends. Family,Friends, membersofGreater Lib‐erty andUnitedFellowship BaptistChurches;mem‐bers of theYellowPoca‐hontas Indian Tribe; staff of VA hospital areinvited to attend thefuneral.A Celebrationservice honor‐ingthe life andlegacyof thelateJosephL.Johnson Sr., will be held at Gentilly BaptistChurch,5141 Franklin Ave.,NOLA70122. on Friday,February13, 2026 at 11am. Internment St Vin‐cent De Paul,1401 Louisa Street.visitation10amin the church.Pleasesignon‐line guestbook at www.cha rbonnetfuneralhome.com. TraditionalJazzFuneral. Charbonnet LabatGlapion, Directors(504)581 4411.

Jacquelyn"Jackie" BorneCamposofMetairie, LA peacefully passed away at the age of 92 on Sunday, February 8, 2026 after a brief illness. Shewas married to the late Celestino "Frenchie" CelsoCampos for62½ years when he passedawayonMay 28, 2014. She is also preceded in death by her father Clifton"Peter"Borne, her mother,BerthaGrote Borne Davis, her step-father,GeorgeDavis,Jr.,her in-laws,Diego and Juliette Campos,and herprecious daughter,Kim Campos Montamat Temes Frenchieand Jackie both attended FrancisT Nicholls High School where he was avarsity football player and she was an outstanding cheerleader. Theywerehighschool sweethearts. After high school, they married and she began workingatand retiredfromthe only job she ever had -Kirschman's Furniture Store.She workedwith three generationsofthe Kirchman family. Frenchieand Jackie enjoyed dancing throughout their wonderful marriage. Theywerealwaysthe center of attention whenever they took to the dance floor.Jackiealsoenjoyed memberships in the Krewe of Rhea Carnival Cluband the Greater New Orleans Corvette Club. Jackie is survivedbyher

Frisco,LaTaunda TyneikaSeals

LaTaundaTyneika Seals

Friscowas born on August 31, 1973 to Joycelyn and the late LeonardDominick inNew Orleans, LA.On Tuesday,January 20, 2026, LaTaundapeacefullytran‐sitionedfromthislifeand gainedher heavenly wings. Devoted wife of 30 yearsto her belovedhusband,the lateVictorG.Frisco, III. Proud andlovingmotherto son,VashonJ.Friscoand daughter, Tierra V. Frisco Grandmother to herpre‐cious granddaughter, Dehlani Theriot. Devoted sisterofLeonard Seals, Terry Richards,Patrick Gre‐sham, Tequila Dominick (Bryan),Lakisha DominickRobinson (Randall), Tamika

Terrence Christopher HallofHarvey, LA,de‐partedthislifeonTuesday February3,2026 at Pas‐sages Hospice. He was43 years oldand amemberof Mt. OliveBaptist Church in Harvey. Belovedson of the lateJuliusHallJr. andthe lateOphelia Miller Hall.Fa‐therofTaniyah andLeyana Hall. BrotherofYolanda, BryantSr. (Joanne), and Darrell (Sylvia) Hall.Ter‐rence is also survived by his nieces,nephews cousins,other relatives and friends. Relativesand friends areinvited to at‐tendthe funeralservice on Friday, February 13, 2026 at Mt. OliveBaptist Church 1701 Estalote Ave.,Harvey

Frisco III, Victor G.

Victor

Cavalier Sr., DanAnthony

Leonard, Chris With sadnessweshare

Campos, Jacquelyn Borne

Hall,Terrence Christopher

With sadness we share thepassing of Chris LeonardonFebruary6, 2026. Please visitwww.rho desfuneral.comtoview serviceinformation,sign online guestbook, send ﬂowers andshare condo‐lences

5th 2026 at East Jefferson GeneralHospital. He was 73years old. He accepted Christuponthe confession ofhis faith at an earlyage and wasbaptizedat FairviewBaptist Church in New Orleans, LA.Here‐ceivedhis educationinthe Orleans School District where he attended George W.CarverHighSchool in 1970. He received hisCDL atInternational Driving School.Claudeworkfor J.B.Hunt Trucking Com‐pany, Marriott Hotel, Char‐ity Hospital,LeRichelieu Hotel,Royal Sonesta Hotel and he wasa Painter/Dry‐wallSheetrock Finisher ClaudeLeviTapletteSrwas precededindeath by his parents ChesterTaplette Sr and Esther DellaCharles Taple4tte andhis brothers George“Butch” Taplette Sr RonaldTaplette Sr,Chester Taplette, PercyTaple ArnoldMichael Taplet Patrick Eugene Taplette and ChesterArthur plette Jr.Heleavese lasting memories to beloved wife Adrien Payne Taplette.Their uni produceda son, Claude plette Jr anddaugh Crystal Taplette.Hea leaves to cherishhis me

leaves to cherish his mem ories, four grandchildren, Calia,Cheyenne,Calis and KylaTaplette andtwo brothers, Donald andCur‐ley Taplette.Relatives and friends of thefamilyare in‐vited to attend theMemor‐ial servicewhich will be heldonSaturday, February 14, 2026, at Robinson Fam‐ily FuneralHome9611 La -23, Belle Chasse ,LA70037 Serviceswillbegin at 11 a.m., Reverend JohnnyByrd ofﬁciatingand interment willbeprivate.Funeral planningentrusted to RobinsonFamilyFuneral Home(504) 208 -2119. For onlinecondolences please visit www.robinsonfamilyf uneralhome.com

BernadineWalkerVidal age 79, enteredeternal rest atOchsner MedicalCenter MainCampusonMonday, February2,2026. Shewas a nativeofAma,LAand a residentofHarvey, LA Bernadine wasa graduate ofLincoln High School and a former Custodianwith

Vidal Daughter of the late Albert andElnoraWalker. Devoted Sister of Albert Walker, Jr., Ruth Small‐wood, AudryDixon,Myrtle Weber,and thelateWilbert Walker. Daughter-in-lawof the late John Vidal, Sr.Sis‐ter-in-lawofthe late Em‐malee, Gerald,and Loraine. Alsocherishingher memo‐riesare 7grandchildren,4 great grandchildren, anda hostofnieces, nephews, cousins,other relatives and friends. Relativesand friends of thefamily, also pastors,ofﬁcers,members ofMorning Star Missionary Baptist Church andall neighboring churches are invited to attend the Homegoing Celebrationat Morning Star Missionary Baptist Church,1000 Walk‐ertownWay,Marrero,LA onFriday, February 13, 2026, at 10:00a.m. Pastor

sign the guestbook please go to www.davismortua ryservice.com

Wilson,Clarence Sherman With sadnessweshare the passingofClarence Sherman Wilson on Febru‐ary 3, 2026. Please visit www.rhodesfuneral.com to viewservice information, signonlineguestbook, sendﬂowersand share condolences

Vidal, BernadineWalker

Taplette Sr., Claude Levi

OPINION

Roseland residentsstill waitingfor Smitty’s answers

Six months after an industrial explosion and fire disrupted their lives,residents of Roselandare still seeking answers. They gathered not for politics, but because they still do not know what they were exposed to, or why so many answers arrived filtered through technical language and repeated assurancesof“no imminent threat.” The Smitty’sSupply explosion in Roseland fits this pattern. In August, the facility burned for days. Smoke and soot settled across neighborhoods. Residentswere evacuated, then allowed to return while cleanup continued As debris accumulated, official messaging shifted to reassurance, while fundamental questionssuch as what was released, where it traveled and the potential effects of long-term exposure wentunanswered. Air monitoring detected extremely elevated levels of fine particulate matter,specifically a microscopicsoot produced when oil and industrial materials burn This soot is not asinglechemical, but cumulative combustion pollutionthat penetrates the lungsand bloodstream.

Tim James GUEST COLUMNIST

Under the EPA’sAir Quality Index, levels of this material at or above250 micrograms per cubic meter are hazardous. In Roseland,regulators used an incident-specific threshold of 300 micrograms per cubicmeter,which is higher than theEPA’s benchmark. Neither theair nor the instruments changed, only the standard for action As aresult, air that metthe hazardous definition was described as “below action level.” Official statements assured residents there was “no imminent threat,” withoutexplaining that this relied on araised, incidentspecific threshold. Meanwhile, chemical-specific monitoringwas reported as “below detection limit,” but detection limits were not disclosed. “Below detection limit” does not mean absent; it means below areporting threshold that was not disclosed. Without that context, residents could not assess what might have been present at lower levels. This distinction is critical because this particulate matter carries toxic compounds, whether or not each chemical is individually identified.

No data needed to be falsiﬁed or numbers hidden —accountability was reduced by redeﬁning what constituted concern.

The timelineofevents is important.The ﬁre began on Aug. 22. Smoke and other materials spread across thearea, causing evacuations. Over the ensuing month,air monitoring detected elevated particulate matter,but because of the 300 micrograms per cubit media standard, regulatorssaid it was “below action levels” and “below detection limit,” without ever disclosing what those thresholds were.

In early October,federal and stateinspectors documented hundreds of hazardous wastefailures resulting from theSmitty’s ﬁre.

On Oct. 15, cleanup responsibility shifted toSmitty’s and the state under EPAoversight AndinJanuary,the EPAissued an order,based on the earlier inspections, citing hazardouswaste violations including failure to identify,contain and manage waste.

This sequence matters because reassurances about air safety were issued before regulators documented hazardous-waste mismanagement. The enforcementaction cited failures in spill

Fear is keepingNICUparents away;babiespayingthe price

Isat in the armchair close to theincubator.It’simpossibletoforget thesoundsofa neonatal intensive care unit,or NICU: The endless hums and beeps of monitors echo through the otherwise quiet unit.

Ababy girl —perfect, small, precious —was fast asleep in her bed. Tubes went through each nostril, and another was attached to her mouth. Iwas Facetiming thegirl’s mom, angling the camera so she could see her baby as clearly as possible. Her mom saidlittle, just repeated her daughter’s name over and over as she looked at her for theﬁrst time in weeks. Iwork for Saul’s Light, alocal nonproﬁt that supportsNICU and bereaved families, and we were seeing aworst-casescenario emerge. Due to the ICE and Border Patrol sweep in Louisiana that began in December,ithas become the new reality.Fear has gripped immigrant communities. Businesses throughout the city closedoremptied School-aged childrenbegan to stay home. Andsome mothers —mothers whohave recently given birth to medically fragile babies —have been forced to make the impossible choice:shelter at home or risk journeying to the hospital to visit their newborn babies.

The sweep has forced parentstostay home,trusting doctors and nurses to care for their babies while they have been unable to be there. Strong NICU medicalteams are critical for premature babies’survival, butsoare parents

control, container integrity and planning. This was not hindsight, but thewithholding of context.

Gov.Jeff Landry promised to restore the site. Yetthroughout theresponse, residents were told there was “no imminent threat,” even as regulators had air-monitoring data and chemical inventories that were never fully explained.

EPAand state leaders had access to all monitoring data. The issue is not compliance, but whether they chose transparency over reassurance.

Other disasters show that adifferent approach is possible. After thechemical plant explosion in PortNeches, Texas, regulators reported air-monitoring results, disclosed detection limits, issued broad evacuation orders and then reassured thepublic.

In Roseland, monitoring served moreasaclearance mechanism than awarning system

Public-health language gave way to liability language, and uncertainty wasframed as reassurance. Residents returned to homes coated in soot, cleaning up without knowing what they were removing. Questions about soil, water and long-term health ef-

fects met conclusions but no explanations. Louisiana is not without inﬂuence: aLouisianan is speaker of the house, another is majority leader and the governor represents U.S. interests abroad.

Yetwhen aLouisiana community faced disaster,this was the response —afailure of priorities.

When standards are adjusted to manage outcomes rather than clarify risk, trust erodes. When reassurance replaces transparency,accountability is conditional.

The central question in Roseland remains:

“Why wasair that met the deﬁnition of hazardous treated as if it did not warrant action?”

Until that question is answered, Roseland will remain morethan the site of an industrial ﬁre. It will stand as evidence of what happens when truth is reshaped to serve institutions rather than the public.

Ademocracy cannot function with conditional accountability, nor can it exist when truth is negotiable.

TimJames is aretired U.S Navy ofﬁcer and an independent writer andresearcher basedin Louisiana.

Moreno is offtoagood start, so let’skeepitgoing

Sophia Rosenblatt GUEST COLUMNIST

The NICU experience isolates anddestabilizes any family.Fear and deportations have exacerbated these feelings,preventing parents from delivering crucial care to sick infants.

Evidence shows that premature and medically fragile infants are dependent on their parents for touch, bonding and, often,breast milk.Milk providesantibodies, nutrients and white bloodcellsthat can be lifesaving for these infants.

According to aMarch of Dimes report, theprematurity rateinLouisianaroseto 14% in 2025, exceeding the national averagebynearly 4%.

Babies can be in theNICU for ahost of reasons, but preterm birthand low birth weightare driving factors for many.Exact causes for premature birth vary: from environmental factors to lack of medical access to stress.

New Orleans Mayor Helena Moreno and her team areoff to afaststart. Repairing the lightsinNew Orleans East, ensuring full funding of the New Orleans Police Department budget and launching astreets program in Tremé arethe type of actions citizens crave. Finally,New Orleanians are witnessing steps being taken to improve theirneighborhoods and the community overall. Against this backdrop of positive energy,however,there is alot of national tensionand clamor, which has the potential to deraillocal focus and momentum.Let’snot take the bait. New Orleanians prefer collaboration to conﬂict.It’sinour DNA to seek common ground and build relationships. Through decades spent working on civic issues, Ihave always found that New Orleanians withwide-ranging national political beliefs can work together effectively to resolve local challenges.Omitting ideologies from thediscussions ensures that the mostinformed and engaged citizens remain at the table and greatly increases chances of success.

Many of these parents haveother children or dependent family members to care for.Their babies in the NICU are oftenstill learning to breathe on their own.

In January,the unthinkable happened— amother with ababy in aLouisianaNICU received adeportation order.Rather than face the prospect of detention andrisking other family members, shechose to self-deport.Her premature infant,onlya few pounds and too vulnerable to be discharged from the hospital, remained in the NICU.

In the moment when it is most critical for afamily to remain together —for both the physical and mental health of parent and baby —she felt she hadtoleave. At Saul’s Light,wehavekicked into overdrive since the ICE raidsbegan,supporting impacted and vulnerable families throughmaterialitems and NICU visits. This is the ﬁrst time we’veheard of a mother self-deporting.

But it’sdoubtful this is the ﬁrst such occurrence, despite prior ICE policiesstating that postpartum, nursing andpregnant mothers would not be detained or deported.

Oneunarguable factor in having a healthy, full-term pregnancy is accessible andreliable medical care. In Louisiana, the rate of inadequateprenatal care among babiesborn to Hispanic moms was nearly two times thestate average from 20222024.

It begsthe question: What conditions in Louisiana have permitted this to happen?

If this is the statistic before themost recentICE raids, to what extremes will we see these inequities continue to grow?

Border Patrol andICE are moving across thecountry,targeting immigrant hubs. Fear still lies in thewake of the places they have touched

In the New Orleansarea, community members are slowly returning to work, andkids have reported back to school. But NICU mothers are still afraid and torn, unsurewhen it will be safe to visit their infants.

Many still shelter in place, waiting for their babies to be healthy enough to ﬁnally comehome. Butwithout the parents’ presence at thebedside to hold their baby,talk to them, feed them with their own milk, when will that be?

Sophia Rosenblatt is the director of programsand partnerships at Saul’s Light.

Gregory Rusovich GUEST COLUMNIST

Staying focused on improving municipal quality-of-life issues transcends partisan divides. We can expect consensus building and positive outcomes when we identifyand action areas of agreement rather thanengender disagreement.

We can all agree on the need for public safety, well-paved streets, effective drainage, good-paying jobs, quality schools and solid recreational programming for our youth. As witnessed in the post-Katrina years, cohesive issue-based coalitions supportedbystrongpoliticalleadership achieve solid results.

Team Moreno has auniqueopportunity to once again harnessthis community spirit and unity.Crime reduction can quickly boost the public’ssense of conﬁdence and save lives. Technology continues to advance and acts as aforce multiplier.Drones, facial recognition, license plate readers, DNA testing and ballistics analysis areall effective tools. Polls also showoverwhelming support for the use of these lifesaving technologies.

The Jefferson ParishSheriff’s Ofﬁce demonstrates best practices in the deployment of impactful technologies. About 15 years ago, then-Sheriff Newell Normand implemented apervasive license plate reader system throughout the parish. Sheriff Joe Lopintohas doubled down through the recent launch of aparishwide

drone program. Already,using dronesas first responders, response time has been cut from an average of 5minutes to alightning-fast 90 seconds. Jefferson Parish is notalone,as morethan1,400 policeagencies nationwide deploy drones. Canyou imagine drones as first responders answering a911 callabout violence in NewOrleansEast in 90 seconds or less? Combined withother vital technologiesand officer engagement,drones speed up response time andenhancepublic safety Recreational programs provide another opportunity to lift our community.Reimagining the New Orleans Recreation Department into asuccessful citywide program that upgrades playground infrastructure while partnering with programmatic providers will elevate our youth, reduce crimeand improve public health. Several high-performing nonprofitrecreational youth programscurrentlyexist in ourcity. They providediverse activities andare able to scaleand grow withthe right support.Following these examples, thecityhas the abilitytofill program gaps andensureall playgrounds are in good condition. Ideally,arobust public-private partnership that alignsthe best of both sectors would laythe groundwork forfuture corporate support of youth recreation Moreno also has launched an Infrastructure Coordination Council and tasked the team to rapidly respond to potholes, crumbling sidewalks and other critical infrastructure needs. She has requested “Super Bowl-level of service all the time” for the entire city Dusting off the winning SuperBowl playbook of multiagency coordinationand weekly meetings, council co-chairs Stephen Nelson(Deputy CAO of Infrastructure) and Michael Hecht (CEO of GNO, Inc) and team are well-positioned to get the job done right citywide. While we face immense challenges, Team Moreno is thus far on the case. Delivering critical city services, fixing the basics and keeping our community clean and safe will require continued laserfocus, discipline and teamwork. Becoming absorbed in the national fray can only slow or even derail progress for New Orleans. We all have atremendous opportunity to turn our city around —let’sstay on mission.

Gregory R. Rusovich is acivic and business activist.

COMMENTARY

ON THE PARADE ROUTE

Carnival season offers us abreak from the usual cares of the world. So as Mardi Gras approaches, we giveyou twoperspectivesonwhat makesour celebrations so unique.

CapturingCarnival’s unique paletteoncanvas

New Orleans is like abeautiful, intricate painting —layered,colorfuland one of akind.

Splashed in apalette burst of sun and sultry sea air onto araw canvas the color and texture of moss and sugar cane

Her shadowsand highlights deftly added to through the centuries by the brush strokes of the manydenizens,artisans all, who strolled and sashayed her curved streets.

Framed by natural andmanmade bounds erected to bracket her indomitable spirit on all sides that have failed in their futile attempttotamperdown her meanderings. Like the city itself, apainting is aromantic medium from abygone era thatis intended to endure the test of time,tobe passed from generation to generation,to be asubject to marvel andcritique. And there are no better examples of this type of lasting imagery portraying the city than the ones immortalized in oils and acrylics.

and freezing bundled-up nights out on all the different parade routes around the city spentjoyously throughout the years with family and friends.

In there too is theexhilaration of those of us fortunate enoughtobemembers of the many krewes who make up this greatest free showon earth and what it feels like to ride or march from high above thecrowds or right there among them.

MardiGrasiscalling,someet us on theneutral ground

Frank Duffy GUEST COLUMNIST

So too was the feeling evoked recently by homeowners down New Orleans’ grand avenues, broad boulevards and simple back streets when puttingupelaborate housedecorations as makeshift stationary floatsasa form of civic defiance and determination during theCOVID Carnival that we refused to sacrifice.

Theoverwhelmingreason for returning to parade six monthsafter Katrina and even before reclaiming our city and some of her dead could be felt deep down in its beautiful soul as well.

Youcan even almost smell theking cake.

World! Yeah, you. Wherever you’re reading this from, consider this your standing invitation. No tickets. No velvet ropes. No “sold out”signs. Just show up. Bringyour good sense, alittle patience and shoes you don’tmind sacriﬁcing to the streets. Louisianaiscalling, and when Mardi Gras calls, you don’tsend it to voicemail. Youanswer or you miss something you’ll be hearing about for the rest of your life. Down here, Mardi Gras doesn’tarrive politely.Itslides in sideways, drags achair intothe street and asks who’scooking.

Camera phones, though handy, frankly just don’tdoher justice.

No, that is left to the more extravagant and permanent paintingsofour talented localartists,likeDegas, Rodrigue, Michalopoulos, Audubon andChase.

Andlike one of Lautrec’smodels, New Orleanslounges in alluring fashion ready for the world to see.

Scenes of Carnival —betheyofregal royalty,reveredrevelry or mere rascally rambunctiousness —offervignettes frozenintimefrom apainter’seasel memorializing the city and this pageant wehold so dear to our hearts and anxiously await to resume each and every TwelfthNight. And it is about one of thesepurple, green and gold-hued masterpieces thatI share my musings this Mardi Gras weekend.

My wife and Iwererecently enjoying an evening of drinks and hors d’oeuvres at our friends’ Uptown homebefore an 8p.m., dinner reservation at Clancy’s —quite the accomplishmentgiven that it was the ﬁrst week of Carnival, when Iwas struck by asightfrom across the room that perfectlycaptured thespirit of the season.

The portrait Iwas ﬁxated on was bathed in agolden light that could have easily been the original illumination when this elegant home was built around the turn of the last century,giving it a vintage feel.

At the mere sight of this incredible work, commissioned by my friends from local artist Gretchen Armbruster,I could feel the joy and heartfelt love that Carnivalconveys to our citizenry as we approachyet another perfect weekend and Fat Tuesday crescendo. The painting stirred memories of all the warm sunshine-soaked afternoons

As for its composition, it was abeautifully captured vision of amasked lieutenantofone of our mostprestigious carnival organizations, his identityguarded, mid-parade dressed in thecostume of what is normally reserved for aduke of high standingriding ahorse and stooping down to receive thelove and adoration of hiswife in an embrace. We later learned that the subjects were our gracious hosts, newlyweds who like manyofusenjoy the immersion of Carnival into thefabric of ourlives.

Toocan be seen the paradegoers lining theroute, trying to catch beads, or hear one of ourgreat marching bands thundering by or see asimple, quiet, tender moment like the one they are witnessing here. Andunlike spectators to other parades around the country who can only hope for an errant wave or two, those who await anxiously those blue lights comingtoward them in thedistance under thecanopyofour majestic oaksare full-ﬂedged participantsinthis centuriesold pageant. The painting was, in short,aperfect microcosm, meticulously captured, of what makesour carnival season so special and onewelive for throughout the year Andbecause their faces are obscured, thesubjects have graciously,ifsurreptitiously,offered each of us theprivilege of putting ourselves in that wonderful setting,just as Carnival itself does by inviting each of us to join in on theprocession each andevery year All are welcome.

Frank Duffy is anative New Orleanian, playwright and businessman, who lives in Atlanta and returns to his hometown regularly

Youdon’tgotoMardi Gras. You stand in it.You wait in it. Youlaugh in it. Youmake new friends you’ll never see again but somehowtrust with your cooler.Time gets real ﬂexible out there. Youtell yourself you’re just catching one parade. Next thing you know,the sun’sgone, your phone battery’sonlife support and you’re holding beads, cups, aplush toy and one object you absolutely cannot explain.

dance and suddenly it’sofficial business. Youmight catch an officer sliding into the steps, pretending it’scasual while clearly knowing the routine. Then comes Muses. Grown adults start hollering like the rent’sdue. Somebody waving both arms like they directing planes. Another person climbing a ladder they definitely shouldn’tbe on, bargaining with the universe. When ashoe finally flies, it’schaos. Screaming. Jumping. Astranger hugging the winner like they just came back from war.That shoe ain’tjust athrow,it’satrophy,a flex, and alifelong conversation starter

The Dancing Dolls step through and remind everybody how joy is supposed to look. It’s beauty with backbone and joy with receipts.

And when the noise dips just enough, the Mardi Gras Indians appear.Noﬂoats. No engines. Just hand-sewnsuits layered with beads, feathers, patience, and time. Chiefsmeeting to show beauty,not bravado. Drumsspeaking. Chants answering back.

The parades roll like they always do right on timeornot at all. Zulu comes through early,proud and loud,coconuts ﬂying withintention. Rex follows, dressed like tradition itself, calm and royal but still down tohave agood time.

Bacchus shows up big and playful, ﬂoats so massive they feel like theygot personalities. Andthen Endymion …whew Endymion ﬂips theswitch on the night. Especially under theClaiborne Bridge, where thebrass bands don’tjust play,they stretch out, sound bouncing off concrete like it’sgot somewhere to be.

Then theMystic Krewe of Femme Fatale rolls through, and the energy shifts. Conﬁdence thick in theair.Strength wrapped in sparkle. They don’trush, don’t beg for attention. They glide like they know exactly who they are, and they do.

As daylight fades, theﬁre comes out.

The flambeaux step into the street carrying flame, spinning it smooth, dancing like thefire knows them personally.Long before floatslit themselves up, these men lit the way

What started as work turned into art. Even now,when lightsflash everywhere, theflambeaux still matter.The crowd quietsjust abit. Phones lower.Fire has away of commanding respect. Here comethe Knights of Chaos, rolling through with jokes sharp enough to cut the tension of the whole year.Nobody safe. Politics catching it.Pop culture catching it. Local nonsense catching it. Sportsheartbreak? Oh,definitely catching it. It’sanopen roast on wheels, and thecrowd loves it because laughing is how New Orleanssurvives what could’ve broken it Between floats, thestreet fills itself Kids throwing footballs like they’re in the playoffs.Somebody’suncle starts aline

Under bridges and downneighborhood streets, everything slows. Youdon’tinterrupt that moment. Youdon’trush it. You just feel lucky to be standing there.

There’sastory folks tell that’snot written anywhere, but somehow everybody knowsit. They say one year,the Spirit of Mardi Gras got tired. Said the partying wasloud but hollow.Too much shine, not enough soul. Tried to leave. But early Lundi Gras morning, it heard drumsunder abridge. Saw ﬁre spinning in the dark. Watched suits stitched with patience step into the street. And the Spirit sat right back downonthe curb and said, “Nah. I’m home.” Long as those drumsbeat and that ﬁre spins, Mardi Gras remembers whoit is.

Across Louisiana, the rhythm spreads. Metairie turns Family Gras into afull weekend. Covington brings river landings and second lines like muscle memory. Lafayette blends courir traditions with zydeco and dust ﬂying off boots. Baton Rouge, Shreveport, Slidell —every townadds its own seasoning. Nobody copies. Everybody contributes. Nowlisten, we got affection foreverybody.Truly.But AlabamaMardi Gras? Bless it. It’s cute. It’s trying. But Louisiana Mardi Gras been slow-cooked, passed down, danced through, lit by ﬁre and held together by laughter,music and snacks. That’snot shade, that’sseasoning. So world, this is your invite. Comestand in the street with us. Lose your voice. Catch something shiny.Laugh too loud. Dance with strangers. Let the good times roll is laissez les bons temps rouler! Kateb Shunnar is awriter basedinNew Orleans.

Kateb Shunnar GUEST COLUMNIST

STAFFPHOTO By CHRIS GRANGER

Krewe of Pygmalion parades in NewOrleans on Saturday.

LSU coach Johnson studied old sports dynasties,

BY KOKI RILEY Staff writer

Two murals cover an entire wall in Jay Johnson’s ofﬁce.

All he has to do is look up from his desk to see them — dogpiles celebrating two LSU national championships in three seasons.

At the bottom is 2025, a win that capped off an undefeated run through Omaha and the program’s eighth national title. The 2023 scrum stands above it, showcasing a team that was

arguably the most talented group in recent college baseball history

They are reminders of the legacy Johnson has started building in Baton Rouge.

“It’s 150 wins in the last three years. It is two national championships,” LSU’s coach said. “And it’s remarkable in any sport It’s really remarkable in baseball because of the nature of the game.”

It’s not just the championships that show it.

and now he will try to build his own

So what comes next for a program that has already accomplished it all? Johnson will never say it, but it boils down to a seven-letter word.

Dynasty “I appreciate that,” Johnson said, reacting to the word mid-interview “My thoughts are like, what is my purpose here? This is coach

ä See LSU, page 3C

LSU has become the standard in college baseball, producing three top-three MLB Draft picks in the last three years, posting an 11-2 record in Omaha and winning at least 40 games every year Johnson has been in charge.

Tulane hopes to buck history in West Coast

BY GUERRY SMITH Contributing writer

History has been harsh to the Tulane baseball team on West Coast trips, but its season-opening series at Loyola Marymount is a good opportunity to change the narrative. The Lions have reached one NCAA regional (2019) since 2000 and have finished above .500 once in the past six seasons. They are a projected middle-of-the-pack West Coast Conference team and were outscored 24-4 in the final two games at Turchin Stadium last February after taking the opener Of course, Tulane followed those results with an embarrassing series loss the next weekend at Pepperdine, which endured a wretched 12-42 season. A trip-salvaging win at Cal State Fullerton two days later left the Green Wave a miserable 5-13 out West under fourth-year coach Jay Uhlman. Uhlman, who spent most of his life on the West Coast before coming to Tulane as an assistant in 2020, is well aware of the difficulties in traveling to the Pacific Time Zone

“Last weekend we scrimmaged at 8 (p.m.), 5 and 3 trying to get the clocks on a little bit of a schedule,” he said. “We’re doing some

ä See TULANE, page 3C

From left, LSU shortstop Steven Milam, outfielder Jake Brown, coach Jay Johnson and outfielder Derek Curiel pose

host Milwaukee on Friday to open the baseball season. STAFF PHOTO By MICHAEL JOHNSON

Tulane pitcher Trey Cehajic throws against yale in the ninth inning on March 3, 2024, at Turchin Stadium.

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IN BRIEF FROM STAFF AND WIRE REPORTS

Mavericks rookie Flagg is out for NBA’s Rising Stars

DALLAS Dallas Mavericks rookie teenage standout Cooper Flagg will miss their ﬁnal game before the All-Star break and not play in the NBA’s Rising Stars game on Friday night because of a left midfoot sprain.

The Mavericks announced Wednesday night than an MRI revealed the injury that occurred in their 120-111 loss at Phoenix a night earlier, when he had 27 points in 36 minutes. They said further updates “will be provided as appropriate.”

Flagg was the No. 1 draft pick last summer, is averaging 20.4 points, 6.6 rebounds and 4.1 assists in his 49 games with the Mavericks.

St. Paul’s Sears stepping down

Wolves coach says he’s looking for a ‘new challenge’

BY JOSEPH HALM Staff writer

St. Tammany Parish’s longesttenured head football coach stepped down on Thursday

St. Paul’s coach Kenny Sears spent the past 27 seasons as coach, leading the Wolves to a 9-3 record last season that ended with a second-round playoff loss at Evangel.

Sears leaves St. Paul’s with a career record of 198-101 as the Wolves have won 19 consecutive district games and three straight undefeated district titles St. Paul’s has gone 23 straight regular seasons with a non-losing record.

Sears, 59, said he feels like the program is in a good place.

“Our program is going to be fantastic with me gone because of the kids there,” Sears said.

“I’ve been having this feeling that I need a new challenge I need to build something. I built something special there, and I need to look for an opportunity to build something special somewhere else. Building is the fun part. The hard part is maintaining.”

St Paul’s coach Kenny Sears stepped down after 27 seasons at the school after compiling a record of 198-101.

The Holy Cross graduate came to St. Paul’s in 1990 as an assistant coach under Harry Nunez, whom he had played for at Holy Cross. It was his ﬁrst coaching job out of college, and it turned into a 36-year journey Sears coached the offensive line and

linebackers, then served as defensive coordinator before he was elevated to head coach in

1999.

“My tenure was incredible at St. Paul’s,” Sears said. “Just wonderful people there. I’m appreciative of all the kids who played for me, and some of them are my current kids’ dads since I’ve been there for a while. I’m so proud of how hard they played for me. I’m appreciative and grateful to every coach who has coached with me. It’s a wonderful place. It’s been my home for 36 seasons, and I will always love it.”

Sears called Nunez, former St. Paul’s coach Gene Bennett and former St. Paul’s president Brother Ray Bulliard “three of the most important men in my life.”

After going 2-8 in his ﬁrst season, Sears built St. Paul’s into consistent winners, including a Division I semiﬁnal run in 2021 and numerous district titles. But despite all the fond memories over more than three decades on Jahncke Avenue, it was time for a change.

“This decision for me was just having a yearning to build again and face a new challenge,” Sears said. “It was a very tough decision, and it was very tough to talk to the kids today It’s something that I’ve been feeling, and I look forward to what comes next. I’m excited about it.”

St. Paul’s administration said the search for a new coach will begin immediately

Contact Joseph Halm at jhalm@sttammanyfarmer.net.

McDonogh 35, McMain coaches have Karr ties

BY CHRISTOPHER DABE Staff writer

Nick Foster and Darian Hays have football coaching experience that includes working as an assistant coach for Edna Karr during some of their state championship winning seasons.

Now, with Karr coach Brice Brown named Executive Director of Football Operations for the InspireNOLA Charter Schools system, the other two high schools within the network will be headed by those two coaches.

Foster will take over the McDonogh 35 program while Hays takes charge at McMain, the school system announced Thursday

Foster has been a head coach for the past six seasons, at St. Augustine for four seasons and the past two at L.B. Landry He announced his departure from Landry with a thank-you message posted last week. He also served as an associate head coach at Karr during a stretch that included four consecutive state titles from 2016-19.

“I’m grateful for the opportunity to lead at McDonogh 35,” Foster said in a release. “This is a proud school with a powerful legacy, and I’m excited to work with our students, staff and community to build something meaningful and sustainable.”

Hayes coached at Karr for the past six seasons as a rungame coordinator, offensive

Newman makes

Greenies advance to Division IV quarterfinals

BY SPENCER URQUHART Staff writer

Newman is a three-time reigning girls soccer state champion but faced a tough test during a regional playoff matchup against Northlake Christian on Wednesday Freshman Eleanor Robinson scored a ﬁrst half goal to give Newman the lead, which was the only goal Northlake goalkeeper Samantha Raimondi allowed No. 6-seeded Newman went on to prevent No. 11-seed Northlake from scoring in a 1-0 win at Michael Lupin Field. Raimondi had nine saves to keep Northlake within one goal. Newman applied pressure

line coach, strength and conditioning coordinator and JV head coach. He previously coached at McMain as an assistant.

“Returning to Eleanor McMain as head coach is an honor,” Hays said in a release. “I’m committed to building a program that develops young men of character while competing at the highest level.”

InspireNOLA on Tuesday announced Brown as the Executive Director of Football Operations for the school system, a role in which he will provide strategic support to the coaching staffs at McDonogh 35 and McMain.

Contact Christopher Dabe at cdabe@theadvocate.com

goal count to top Wolverines

throughout the match to advance to the Division IV quarterﬁnals, ﬁnishing with 10 shots on goal and 20 shots taken.

“(Northlake) came out and gave us everything they had,” Newman coach Doug Freese said. “They played really well.

You’re going to get everyone’s best game (in the playoffs), and we certainly got their best game tonight.”

Robinson’s goal occurred near the 14-minute mark in the ﬁrst half. She drilled a long shot that was one of the toughest shot attempts that Newman took on the night.

“(The goal) deﬁnitely brought the team up,” Robinson said.

“Jane (Summerour) passed (the ball), and it kind of wove through the defenders, and I received it and shot it.”

“Eleanor has scored some clutch goals for us this year,” Freese said. “She’s a very conﬁ-

dent player; she strikes the ball well. We had 14 or 15 chances (to score), and that was probably the most difﬁcult one we had.”

Senior Alyse Dulitz led Newman in shots and had multiple shots on goal Northlake ﬁnished with three shots, and sophomore goalkeeper Bizzy Guy made plays to prevent any goals.

Newman senior Lili Arjmand also finished with multiple shots on goal. She left the game in the first half with an injury but was able to return. “(Northlake) had two good opportunities in the first half, and our keeper stepped up big on both of those,” Freese said. “(Arjmand) was kind of limited She had one really good finishing opportunity that the keeper (Raimondi) made a good stop on.” Northlake (10-7-3) lost 4-0 to Newman earlier in the regular season but the postseason ended up closer with Raimondi and

Northlake’s eight other seniors showing resolve.

“My girls showed out and left their heart on the field,” Northlake coach Mason Morise said. “Few chances bounce the other way and maybe we’re pushing overtime. Our keeper Sam Raimondi had a fantastic game, but all the girls contributed.”

Newman (11-7-3) has an eightplayer senior class looking to win a fourth straight state title. Up next is a quarterﬁnal matchup at No. 3-seeded Loyola Prep, which the Greenies beat in last year’s state title game.

“We’ve got a good strong senior class that have been leaders all year,” Freese said. “(Loyola Prep) is going to prepared to turn (last year’s) result around unless we can play our best game.”

Email Spencer Urquhart at surquhart@theadvocate.com.

Utah Jazz forward Ace Bailey will replace Flagg in the Rising Stars game.

Phillies release Castellanos due to lack of trade offers CLEARWATER, Fla. — The Philadelphia Phillies released outfielder Nick Castellanos on Thursday after the team was unable to make a deal to trade him. Castellanos then revealed he was benched last season after bringing beer into the dugout during a game.

The team wanted the situation resolved before its ﬁrst full-squad workout at spring training, which is Monday Castellanos was benched last season after he made what Phillies manager Rob Thomson described as “ an inappropriate comment ” after he was pulled for a replacement. Adolis García is expected to replace Castellanos in right field after he signed a $10 million, oneyear contract with Philadelphia in December

NASCAR busts Gragson for hand out his window

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. — Noah Gragson was caught red-handed by NASCAR.

Gragson was the first driver busted during Daytona 500 qualifying for violating the new rule that specifies drivers are banned for sticking their hands out the opening of the window during the qualifying run. Gragson’s time in the No. 4 Ford for Front Row Motorsports was thrown out Wednesday because he used his left hand in an attempt to deflect air and gain an advantage on the track.

“I completely forgot about that rule so that one’s on me,” Gragson said.

Teams believed that drivers could earn an aerodynamic advantage on with the gesture before NASCAR made the call to ban it

Dodgers make ’27 deal with infielder Muncy

LOS ANGELES — The Los Angeles Dodgers have agreed to a 2027 contract with inﬁelder Max Muncy, adding $10 million in guaranteed money Los Angeles also agreed to a $4.5 million, one-year deal with utilityman Kiké Hernández.

The Dodgers exercised Muncy’s $10 million option for this year shortly after the end of the postseason, part of a deal that will wind up paying him $34 million for 202426. Now he’s set to make $7 million in 2027, with a $10 million team option for 2028 or a $3 million buyout. Muncy is entering his ninth season with the Dodgers. He hit 243 with 19 home runs and 67 RBIs last year.The 35-year-old Muncy holds the team record with 16 postseason home runs.

North Carolina loses star Wilson to hand fracture

Caleb Wilson has powered No 11 North Carolina all year The Tar Heels will now have to ﬁgure out how to play without their freshman star

The team said Thursday that the high-end NBA prospect had suffered a fracture in his left hand, an announcement coming two days after the 11th-ranked Tar Heels’ loss at Miami. It’s unclear exactly how long he’ll be out, but it’s potentially a huge blow for UNC coming roughly a month from Selection Sunday for the NCAA Tournament. The lean 6-foot-10 forward leading the team in

STAFF FILE PHOTO By SCOTT THRELKELD

STAFF PHOTO By BRETT DUKE

L.B Landry football coach Nick Foster looks on during practice in New Orleans on August 14, 2025.

TULANE

Continued

things hopefully, that educate our guys on thetime change of going from east to west, but ultimately it still comes down to the guys on the ﬁeld and are they prepared or are they not.”

Tulane’swestern travel struggles began long before Uhlman’s tenure, starting with a1-5 trip to Hawaii in 1976. Discounting three successful appearances in theRiverside Invitational during the 1980s under former coach Joe Brockhoff —mostly against opponents that also traveled along way —the Wave has won morethan it lost only three times in 24 visits to California,Hawaiiorthe Paciﬁc Northwest.

The exceptions werea2-1 series win at Long Beach State in 1998 ayear Tulane hit aschool-record .340 —and 2-1 series triumphs against Pepperdine in 2005 (when the Wave made its second College World Seriesappearance) and 2016 (when the Wave won its last regular-season conference championship)

“Weare going to learn about our identityright awaybecausewe weren’tthe best on the road last year (9-11),” said senior shortstop Kaikea Harrison, aHawaiian nativeinhis second year with Tulane. “Ifweget offtoa good start, then

we’ll learn alot about ourselves.” Ayearago,Tulane’shopeofgetting in range for an at-large bid to aregional essentially died at Pepperdine when the bats never woke up. The Wave lost 2-1 on

Friday andagain on Saturday to ateam that hadbeenoutscored 80-22 in its first nine games, was outscored 49-11 in its fivegames immediately after that series and finishedwith an RPI of 280 out of

307 Division Ischools. Loyola Marymountismuch betterthan Pepperdine was,but a series loss to the Lions would not bode well forthe Wave in its quest to be worthy of an at-large regional

berth forthe ﬁrst timesince 2016. Tulane finishesthe trip with a statement-makingopportunity on Tuesday at UCLA, the preseason No. 1inthe nation according to D1Baseball.com.

Uhlman is notlooking ahead, though.

“I showed theguys ourschedule in aPowerPoint presentation, and the only game that was on it wasFriday nightatLMU,”he said. “We’re really trying to take that andrun withit. We want to put ourselves in aposition to be considered foranat-large bid, but you can’tget there without Game 1. Our sole focus is on Friday.”

Trey Cehajic (5-2, 4.89 ERA in 2025) will startthe opener against LoyolaMarymount’sZach Bender (1-1, 3.99), followed by Oklahoma transferBeau Sampson on Saturday and Liberty transfer Jack Frankel on Sunday.Sampson and Frankel are two of 23 newcomers compared to 17 returners on theroster

“Obviously,getting off to agood start will carry momentum, especially with all the new players,” Sampson said. “We’vebeen practicing alittle later to get ready for the timechange, so Ithink we’ll be ready.”

They would love to create good vibes by the time theyhostHarvard for their homeopener on Feb. 20.

“Wehave achip on our shoulder,” Harrison said. “Ifwecome back 4-0, we’re in agood spot.”

(Skip) Bertman’sprogram.So, Idon’thave to say,like,‘Hey,the goalistobeinOmaha competing for the nationalchampionship.’

“My thoughts are around, ‘Hey canevery player,coach,person connected to LSU baseball,can they be more successfulintheir life and in baseball because they wereapart of this?’ If you’re asking for my mission …someday, would somebodylook back at this time here and go, like, ‘That’show you do it.’ “

The word dynasty should never be used lightly,especially in asport that hasn’tseen it accomplished since Bertman patrolledthe dugout in Baton Rouge in the 1990s. And even he didn’tachieve what LSU is trying to pull offthis season win athird national championship in fourseasons. Acollegebaseball team hasn’t done that since Southern Calwon ﬁve consecutive titles to open the 1970s.

But as LSU begins the 2026 seasononFriday againstMilwaukee at Alex Box Stadium (2 p.m., SEC Network+), Johnson knowsthe blueprint his team must follow to becomeadynasty.He couldboil down his research on the topic this offseason to three keys: avoiding complacency,maintaining accountability,and preserving aculture of selﬂessness.

They won’tguarantee athird championship in four years, but Johnson views these pillarsasa start.The tools needed to begin an uphill climb that many have often failed to conquer “Weall have avery individualresponsibility to do our job,” Johnson said, “so that we can continue to be successful.”

Complacency

The 2008 Boston Celtics knew how to win. Coach Doc Rivers remembers theextrashotsthey’d putupafter practice. Their best players were the ﬁrst ones in the gym and the last ones to leave. They’d hang around the training room and study ﬁlm. What happened next was the culmination of theirhard work. The Celtics won the NBA championshipin2008, breaking a22-year title drought and bringing championship excellence back toa franchise that had dominated the league decades earlier

But when Johnson was researching those Celtics teams over the offseason, there wasn’tmuch he could take away from 2008. What caught his interest was what happened the next year

That season, Johnson remembers Rivers saying, their best players stopped staying after practice to put up more shots. They didn’t hangaround thetrainingroom or watch extra film. The Celtics weren’tlazy,but perhapsa level of complacency had creptin.

“There was this thoughtlike, ‘Hey,did you get your shots up? No, I’m good. Did you get in the training room? No, I’m good. Did youwatch your video? No, I’m good.,’ ”Johnson said. “Andthey didn’thave the same type of success after that.” Boston didn’twin another championship with its core group after 2008. Complacency may not have been theonlyreason, or even the main one, but it was afeeling Johnson could relate to. When LSU tried chasing anation-

al championshipin2024, Johnson acknowledged that the program wasn’t in the rightplace to win it all for asecondyear in arow.To further clarify his point, Johnson turns back to the NBA.

Under coach Pat Riley,the Los Angeles Lakers won four NBA championships. ButRiley noticed adifference inhis team’s mentalitythe year following oneoftheir titles.

“They had ayear that was alittle tougher in there, where they kind of (just)wanted to win,” Johnson said. “They still loved basketball, but in the beginning, he talked abouthow they needed it,like they would do anything,they had to have it. And there’s adifference in those two things.”

It’s tooearly to tell which side this LSUteam landson, wanting to win or needingtowin.There’s been no adversity.The grind of along season hasn’tcaught up to the players.

ButJohnson heads into this year more aware ofthe signs that lead to apathythaneverbefore.

“Ifyou’remoreaware of them,”

Johnson said, “you canattackthem the rightway.”

Accountability

Johnson’s research into dynastic success this offseason went beyond theNBA.

He spokewith former New England Patriots defensivecoordinator MattPatricia, discussing the differencesinapproach from the ﬁrst time the Patriots tried defendingtheirSuper Bowl in 2015 to the second time they attempted to do so in 2017. He already idolizes Nick Saban and the six national championshipshewon at Alabama.

But there was an ESPN article that stood out in particular for Johnson. After winning the World Series in 2004, Boston Red Sox general manager Theo Epstein called Patriots coach Bill Belichick to ask how the Soxcould continue to win championships.

Belichick’sresponse was simple

“You’re f*****.”

“Belichick basically told him, you’rescrewed becausepeople stop doingwhat took them to get there in the ﬁrst place,”Johnson said. “People will want the credit And people won’tbehonest with you. When you get to acertain level, they’re almost afraid to nobody wantedtotellBillBelichick the truth,ifyou will.”

From thestory,Johnsonalso learned that people will want individualcredit for the team’s success, fostering atoxic environment in the group’sdrive toward future championships.

For Epstein, that’sultimately

whathappenedinBoston.Itbrieﬂy drove him out of the organization theyear after the Red Sox won the World Series. He left the club for 80 days.

“Epsteinfeltthatsome of his bosses were obsessed with optics andcredit,” thestory said,“more worried aboutpersonally winning anews cyclethanhelping create theculturethat had developed in Theo’sworld.”

Johnson is already ensuring this doesn’thappen inside LSU’s walls. This preseason,heshowed theplayersa clip from “The Last Dance,” the 10-episode documentary serieschronicling the final year of the MichaelJordan-led Chicago Bulls dynastyinthe 1990s

Theclipfeatures Jordandiscussing howhewas “pullingpeople alongwhentheydidn’twanttobe pulledalong.”Johnsonalso told his team thestoryofhow Jordan once punched his teammate, Steve Kerr, in theface during practice, further emphasizing the importance of the workthat goes intopreparing for games.

“Wedon’thave to get to that point. But there was thisthought on those teams that the practices were so intense that the games really sloweddown,” Johnson said.

“So youlook at what can happen here,especially thepitchersthat threwyesterday,that’s some real high-level pitching stuff. Can the hittersmake it hard on those guys and vice versa? So when we get to gameday,itslows down.”

Maintaining that culture of accountability is amessage the playershaveseemingly received.For juniorshortstop Steven Milam that means nottaking anything for granted.

“Take every intra-squad and get better at something, not just going through themotions,” Milam said.

“Whether it’s the weight room, whetherit’shitting, whether it’s doing the boring drills that you see us doing on the side,it’strying to be perfect and master it

“Jake(Brown) is going to hold me accountable, (Stanﬁeld)isgoing to hold me accountable, Trent Carawayisgoing to hold me accountable if I’m notdoingitthe right way.And you know,that’s how agreat team wins.”

The real challenge LSU faces is what happens next. Can the players be honest witheach other after aroughseries on the road?Dothey learnfromadversity or start pointing ﬁngers at one another?

That’sthe true testofchampionship culture. “Wementioned accountability. It’svery difﬁcult for young people

ON DECK

WHO: Milwaukee (0-0) vs.LSU (0-0)

WHEN: 2p.m. Friday

WHERE: Alex Box Stadium

ONLINE/TV: SECNetwork+

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

RANKINGS: LSUisNo. 2by D1Baseball; Milwaukee is not ranked

PROBABLE STARTERS: LSU— RHP Casan Evans (0-0, 0.00 ERA); Milwaukee —LHP MatthewMueller (0-0, 0.00 ERA)

PREGAME UPDATES: theadvocate com/lsu ON X(FORMERLYTWITTER): @KokiRiley

WHATTOWATCH FOR: Evans makes hisﬁrst opening daystartand fourth career startafter dominating lineups out of the bullpenlast season. He posted a2.05 ERAwith 71 strikeouts in 522/3 innings.Muellerwill face LSU’slineup afterhehad a5.23 ERA and 55 strikeouts in 411/3 innings as ajunior.HetransferredtoMilwaukee last year after twoseasons at Gonzaga.

—Koki Riley

to be willing to do that, to step out of the comfort zone,” Johnson said, “becausealot of times they’re more worried about being liked and respected.”

Selflessness

If anyone understands what Johnson is trying to accomplish, it’sBertman.

Bertman ledLSU to win ﬁvenational titles in 10 seasons, creating astandard for theprogram that helped Johnson get the Tigers to where they are today.But Bertman isn’tenvious of what Johnson does year after year to maintain a championship-level roster

“I coached for50years,” Bertman said. “And what I’msaying is that (what) Jay Johnson has to do is much moredifﬁcult than (what) Ihad to do.”

Bertman’spoint?The transfer portal andNIL have fundamentally changed the challenges associated withbuilding acollege baseballteam in 2026. Allhehad to do was recruit players out of high school and ﬁndthem enough scholarship money

Back then, Bertman could count on redshirting freshmen and developing them within the program to thepoint wheretheywere major contributorsbythe time they were third, fourthorﬁfth-year players. Theonly freshman during Johnson’s time whosat out their ﬁrst year —and it wasn’t because of injury —and stayed on theteam for more thantwo years is redshirt junior left-hander DJ Primeaux.

“Let’sjust cut to the chase here: Jay’sa magniﬁcent coach. Idon’t mean he’sjust agood one. He’s magniﬁcent,” Bertman said. “His attitude and the timeheputs in, the wayhetreats the kids, the amount of baseballinformation that he has, thecoaching staffthat he has.

“Jay,atthistime, theway baseball works now,isamuch, much, much better coach than Iwas.”

With so many players coming andgoing, fostering aprogramof selflessness andprioritizingthe team’s needsabove all elseonly becomes more difﬁcult. NIL money is an alluring factor.Playingtime can be apointofcontention

enough so that aplayer can leave before the end of apostseason run forthe portal. And there’snoguarantee that the players Johnson brings in will ﬁt the team-ﬁrst culture he preaches. Player evaluation has always been important, but it’snever been more criticalincollege baseball than it is today

“He gets (transfers) from other schools like he has now and has had last year.And you’re right, he does agood job of picking them, andthenhedefinitelypicks the best freshman. No doubt about it,” Bertman said. “Kids wanttocome to LSU, but then you have to pay them.”

It remains to be seen whether Johnson has found the right mix of personalitiestofield aselfless team in 2026. Last year,LSU brought back nine notablecontributors from theseason before and still wonachampionship. The Tigers in 2023 weresupremely talented and used the portal effectively,but they also had an existing core of veterans hungry to win their ﬁrst title.

LSU’smakeupthis year is differentfrom those teams, and it’s unique from the last timeJohnson had to put together ateam following anational championship.

“The majority of the guys that contributedtothat(2023) championship moved on,” Johnson said. “I think Iknew we were at adifferent starting point, maybe going into that 2024 season than into this season.”

Between Milam, sophomore center fielder Derek Curiel,Brownin right field and Stanfield in left, LSU has astrong groupofstarters on the positionplayer side back for another year.Milam and Brown were freshmenonthe last LSU team looking to chase achampionship. Pitching-wise,LSU has akey group of sophomores returning after strong freshman campaigns. It also has veteranscoming back, including senior right-hander Zac Cowan and redshirt junior righthanders Jaden Noot and Gavin Guidry

There’splenty of championship DNA on this year’steam,but not everything is set in stone. New faces will flood the infield, and LSU still must replace its top twostarting pitchers from last season. In time, Johnson will have to answer those questions. But as LSU tries to win its third national championship in four seasons and build another dynasty in Baton Rouge, his thoughtsare squarely on mastering themundane: promoting selfless play,creatinganenvironment of accountability and ensuring his players avoid complacency He knows that’sthe best path to adding another muraltothe back wall of his office.

“Every element of recruiting, player evaluation, player development,operating andrunning aprogram, developing ateam culture anddynamic that people would want to model someday,that’skind of where my thoughts go,” Johnson said. “Because if theystay there, then I’m kind of living out what I want the players to do, which is focus on the boring stuff

“And then it gives us the best chance to put ourselves in aposition to accomplish the things like you’re talking about.”

Email Koki Rileyatkoki.riley@ theadvocate.com. For more LSU sports updates,signupfor our newsletter at theadvocate.com/ lsunewsletter

STAFF FILE PHOTO By SOPHIA GERMER

Tulane inﬁelder Kaikea Harrison swingsatthe ball during agameagainst UNO on March 25 at Maesri Field Tulane opens itsbaseball season at Loyola Marymount on Friday

STAFF PHOTO By MICHAEL JOHNSON

LSU coachJay Johnson poses for aphoto on Feb.2 at Alex BoxStadium Johnson and the Tigers are on the hunt forasecond consecutivetitle.

MI LA N CO RT IN A OL YM PI CS

UKRAINIAN OLYMPIAN

DISQUALIFIED OVER HELMET: As the men’s skeleton competition got underway, all the attention was on a Ukrainian athlete who wasn’t on the track.

Vladyslav Heraskevych was barred from racing after refusing to give up his plan to race in a helmet commemorating athletes who have been killed since Russia invaded his country.The International Olympic Committee says it breaks rules against making statements on the field of play.

IOC president Kirsty Coventry turned up at the sliding track in a last-minute bid to change Heraskevych’s mind ahead of the opening run of the competition Thursday morning Heraskevych, who had been a medal contender, refused and was excluded from the competition. Heraskevych said it “looks like discrimination” to bar him from competing

13 MEDALS BUT NO THREE-PEAT FOR FONTANA: The most decorated short-track speedskating Olympian of all time has yet another medal.

Arianna Fontana of Italy earned her 13th career medal from six Olympics with silver in the women’s 500 meters but missed out on a three-peat in the event she won in 2018 and 2022 XandraVelzeboer of the Netherlands won and also broke her own world record in the semifinals.

In a major upset,CooperWoods of Australia won freestyle skiing gold in men’s moguls by edging Canadian great Mikael Kingsbury — the sport’s most decorated skier — on a tiebreaker American skier Jessie Diggins overcame bruised ribs to take bronze in the women’s 10-kilometer crosscountry skiing race.Frida Karlsson won her second gold medal by leading a 1-2 finish for Sweden.

CANADA REBOUNDS FROM U.S. LOSS TO DEFEAT FINLAND: Canada’s Emily Clark netted two goals, with Jennifer Gardiner, Daryl Watts and Kristin O’Neill also getting on the scoresheet, as Canada earned a 5-0 win over Finland on Thursday. The victory clinched the second seed in Group A for the Canadians and a quarterfinal meeting against Germany on Saturday. More significantly,it represented Canada’s response to a 5-0 loss to theAmericans onTuesday,marking the team’s most lopsided loss and first shutout in Olympic play.

BRIGNONE BACK IN STYLE: For much of last year it wasn’t clear if Italian skier Federica Brignone could compete at her home Olympics at all,let alone contend for a medal. She came away with gold in the women’s super-G on Thursday, following a year spent largely in rehab after breaking multiple bones in her leg She only returned to racing last month

Brignone shrugged off difficult, foggy conditions to win her fourth career Olympic medal and become, at 35, the oldest female gold medalist in women’s Alpine skiing Romane Miradoli of France took silver and Cornelia Huetter of Austria got bronze. —TheAssociated Press

U.S. hockey rolls over Latvia

BY STEPHEN WHYNO AP hockey writer

MILAN The U.S. goal song “Free Bird” by Lynyrd Skynyrd — blared seven times during over arena speakers on Thursday night Twice, the celebration was only shortlived.

Bouncing back from having a pair of goals wiped out by coach’s challenges, the U.S. opened the Olympics by rolling past Latvia 5-1 on Thursday night in a dominant showcase of some of the country’s best NHL players. Brock Nelson scored twice, four players had two assists apiece and there was production up and down the lineup.

“We believe in the depth we have,” winger Jake Guentzel said. There’s good players on every line. That’s just where American hockey is right now.”

After a weird ﬁrst period with a couple of video reviews and a tying goal by Latvia, the Americans found their groove and for long

stretches barely let their opponents have the puck. The U.S. outshot Latvia 38-18 and needed starter Connor Hellebuyck to make only 17 saves.

“I felt like we controlled the play,” center Jack Eichel said “We’re going to continue to get better every game in this tournament, every period in this tournament That’s our goal, and it’s a good start for us.”

Elvis Merzlikins was under siege at the other end, and after Nelson’s second goal he sat in the crease with his head bowed in his lap. An odd-man rush became a version of the Harlem Globetrotters on ice with pass after pass: Jack Hughes to brother Quinn to Matthew Tkachuk, back to Jack and then to Nelson to tap into a half-open net with 11.1 seconds left in the second period.

“I don’t think there’s much to do,” Merzlikins said. “If that guy wouldn’t score, probably the other guy would score because I felt completely two open guys, and it’s hard to

save something like that.”

Brady Tkachuk scored the ﬁrst U.S. goal of the tournament less than six minutes in, and Tage Thompson roofed a nifty backhander on the power play, making coach Mike Sullivan look smart for putting the 6-foot-6 winger on the loaded top unit. Four goals on 32 shots was enough to chase Merzlikins, who was pulled to start the third for Arturs Silovs.

Captain Auston Matthews welcomed Silovs to the Olympics with a power-play goal, assisted on by Eichel and Quinn Hughes. Each of them had two assists, along with Matthew Tkachuk and Jack Hughes.

“I just think the depth that we have, it showed,” Brady Tkachuk said “I thought everybody played a great game tonight. You just see the buy-in. You see the buy-in of every line playing the right way.”

The U.S. plays Denmark on Saturday night before wrapping up the preliminary round 24 hours later against Germany

Kim falls short of three-peat, taking silver

BY JOSEPH WILSON Associated Press

LIVIGNO, Italy Chloe Kim fell short in her bid to become the first Olympic snowboarder to win three consecutive gold medals, finishing second to Choi Gaon of South Korea in the women’s halfpipe on Thursday Choi dethroned the two-time defending champion after she bounced back from an ugly crash that had silenced the crowd. The 17-year-old drew another gasp when she jumped into the lead with a score of 90.25 on her final run.

Kim had one more shot to get back on top, but the 25-year-old American wiped out on her ﬁnal run and settled for silver Japan’s Mitsuki Ono claimed bronze.

Kim, whose parents emigrated to the U.S. from South Korea, had encouraged Choi throughout her young career Now she has handed over the Olympic title to the teenager she inspired.

“It’s all about passing the torch, so there’s no one else I would have rather stood next to on the podium than her,” Kim said. “I’m so proud of her and I’m so excited to see what she does next.”

Choi’s chances in the final looked to be in jeopardy when she slammed into the incline of the halfpipe and slid to the middle of the course, where she remained for several minutes. After being attended to by medical staff, she rode off the course unassisted.

“After I took my first half I

thought, ‘Do I need to give up?’”

Choi said. “I cried, clenched my teeth, and started walking and felt the energy came back into my legs. I thought I can keep trying and I could get back into these Games.” It wasn’t clear that she would even come back for her second run, but she did and got it down. Then came her turn down the halfpipe that was good for gold.

“This feels surreal I can’t believe my ﬁrst Olympic medal is gold,” Choi said.

Choi became the youngest X Games winner in 2023 at age 14. Now the first-time Olympian is ﬁrst non-American woman to win gold in snowboarding’s premier

event since Torah Bright of Australia in 2010. Kaitlyn Farrington won for the U.S. in 2014 at the Sochi Olympics, and Kim triumphed in Pyeongchang and Beijing.

Kim injured her shoulder four weeks ago, disrupting her leadin to the Games She competed wearing a brace, which didn’t stop her from dominating the ﬁeld in qualifying. But after Thursday’s ﬁnal, the California native said she would need surgery on her shoulder — and that winning an Olympic medal of any color was a victory given that she was riding hurt.

“I think that there was a lot of conversation happening about the three-peat,” she said. “I was think-

ing about it before, but I think the minute I injured myself I was like, that doesn’t matter anymore. So this feels like a win to me because a month ago it didn’t seem too possible.”

Another gold-medal celebration had looked likely after Kim scored 88 points on her ﬁrst run, while Choi and most of the other ﬁnalists wiped out.

But Kim couldn’t stay upright on either of her remaining runs, and her score from the first wasn’t good enough.

Kim is not alone in letting the milestone of golds in three consecutive Winter Olympics slip away at these Games. Czech Ester Ledecka fell short in Alpine snowboarding’s parallel giant slalom, as did Austria’s Anna Gasser in big air Both were also two-time defending champions.

American snowboarding great Shaun White won three gold medals on the halfpipe, but not consecutively He won in 2006, 2010 and 2018. He ﬁnished fourth in 2014. White was in the crowd Thursday and cringed after Kim fell on her ﬁnal run. Kim’s boyfriend, Cleveland Browns defensive end Myles Garrett, was also in her cheering section, along with Snoop Dogg. Like many in the crowd, they had gathered to watch one of the biggest names in snowboarding go for Olympic history Instead, they watched Choi wipe away tears as she held up her medal, one step up on the podium from the rider who has been her idol.

ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO By ABBIE PARR

Silver medalist Chloe Kim, left, of the United States applauds as gold medalist Choi Ga-on of South Korea celebrates winning the the snowboarding halfpipe final on Thursday in Livigno, Italy

ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO By CAROLyN KASTER

The United States’ Auston Matthews, center, celebrates with teammates after scoring his team’s fifth goal during a match against Latvia on Thursday in Milan, Italy

NBAAll-StarWeekend opens forsecond time in California

BY DAVID BRANDT Associated Press

All-Star weekend is back in California for the second straight year, this timemoving to Inglewood for the NBA’s annual midseasonshowcase. Among the on-court events are the celebrity game and Rising Stars competitiononFriday night, 3-point, Shooting Stars and slamdunk contestsonSaturday and a newAll-Star game format on Sunday that features the USAvs. the World.

The U.S. vs. the World concept was talked about for years before ﬁnallybecoming areality this season. TheNBA andthe National Basketball Players Association unveiled the long-awaited plan earlier this season, after trying yet again to ﬁgure out the latest waytospark renewed interest in the game

Wheretowatch theevents?

Friday —All-Star celebrity game, 7p.m. (ESPN); Rising Stars competition, 9p.m. (Peacock), NBAHBCUClassic, 11 p.m. (Peacock) Saturday —NBA All-Starmedia

day,1:30 p.m. (NBA TV); Commissioner Adam Silver pressconference, 4p.m. (NBA TV); 3-point contest, Shooting Stars and slam-dunk contests,startingat5 p.m. (NBC, Peacock)

Sunday —NBA All-Star Game, 5p.m. (NBC, Peacock)

Whoare theAll-Stars?

The All-Stars are split among three teams, which were selected by NBA.

USA Stripes: Boston’sJaylen Brown, New York’sJalen Brunson, Golden State’sStephen Curry is injured and will be replaced by Toronto’sBrandonIngram, Houston’s Kevin Durant, Los Angels Lakers’ LeBron James, Los Angeles Clippers’ Kawhi Leonard, Cleveland’s Donovan Mitchell and San Antonio’sDe’AaronFox.(Fox is theinjury replacement for Milwaukee’s Giannis Antetokounmpo).

Coach: San Antonio’sMitchJohnson USA Stars: Toronto’sScottie Barnes, Phoenix’sDevin Booker,

Detroit’s Cade Cunningham and Jalen Duren, Minnesota’s Anthony Edwards,OklahomaCity’sChet Holmgren, Atlanta’sJalen Johnson andPhiladelphia’sTyrese Maxey

Coach: Detroit’sJ.B. Bickerstaff. World: Antetokounmpo, Portland’sDeni Avdija, Los Angeles Lakers’ Luka Doncic, Oklahoma City’sShai Gilgeous-Alexander is injured and will be replaced by Houston’sAlperen Sengun, Denver’sNikola Jokic andJamalMurray,Indiana’sPascalSiakam,New York’sKarl-Anthony Towns, San Antonio’sVictor Wembanyama and Miami’sNorman Powell. Coach: Toronto’sDarko Rajakovic.

What’s thegameformat?

The two U.S. teams both have eight players while the World team has nine players. Games will be onestandard NBAquarter,or12 minutes long.

The USA Stars will play the World in Game1.The winner of that game will play the USA Stripes in Game2.The loser of Game 1will play the USA Stripes in Game3

The teams with thebesttwo records will play in the championship game. If all three teams are 1-1, point differentialwould be the tiebreaker

Whoare thebetting favorites?

According to BetMGM Sportsbook, Team USA Stripes is the favorite to winthe All-Startournament at +160, followed by the World (+170) andthe USAStars (+200).

Thefavorites for All-Star MVP areWembanyama(+700),Doncic (+1000) and Cunningham (+1100). Who are the 3-point and slam dunk participants?

The eight 3-pointcontest competitors are Booker,Murray,Maxey Powell, Mitchell, Milwaukee’sBobby Portis, Charlotte’sKon Knueppel and Portland’sDamian Lillard

The four slam dunk competitors are San Antonio’sCarter Bryant, Miami’sKeshadJohnson, LosAngeles Lakers’ Jaxson Hayesand Orlando’sJase Richardson. Whoisperforming?

Several artists will be performingatthe NBA Crossover event, starting with CORTIS, aﬁve-memberK-Pop grouponThursday night. Ludacris will perform on Friday night while Shaboozey will be on Saturday.All performances are at the L.A. Convention Center CORTIS will also perform at halftime during Friday’scelebrity game.

PELICANS

Continued from page1C

season made them no-brainers for the Castrol Rising Stars showcase that will take place Friday night as part of the NBA’s AllStar weekendinLos Angeles.

“I’mextremely proud of them,” saidPelicansinterimhead coach James Borrego.“They’ve earned it.They belong there. Theyhave been two bright stars in this draft class and we are proud to have them.”

Fears leads all rookies in games played. He’splayedinall 56 games for the Pelicans. Queen ranks second amongrookieswith 55 games played.

Fears’ 13.2 points per game ranks fifth among rookies in scoring. Queen (12.2) ranks seventh.Queen is also second among rookies in both rebounds (7.2) and assists (4.1). Fears recorded hisfirst double-double in Wednesday’slossand was twoassists shy of hisfirst triple-double. Queen, meanwhile,has recorded two triple-doubles. But if Queen dishes out any assistsduring the Rising Stars game,they won’tbetoFears. The two are on different squads in the four-team tournament, consisting of first and second-year players as well as one team of G-League players. Fears is playing on the team coached by formerNBA great Carmelo Anthony,while Queen’s team is coached by VinceCarter

“It doesn’treally matter (what team I’mon),” Queen said. “It’sall aboutthe experience. Iwould have liked to have (Fears) on my team so we can cheat alittle bit. But it’s

going to be agood experience.”

It’sthe seventh straight year the Pelicans have had at least one player in the Rising Stars Game

“I’m really excitedfor both of us,” Fearssaid. “May thebest team win.” Fears has one mainobjective.

“Give the fans ashow,” Fears said.“Allthe toptalent is goingto be in one setting. It’sgoing to be really entertaining. It was super funwhen Iused to go watch (AllStar) as akid. I’mgoing to be up andcloseand personalthistime.”

Queen’sfondest All-Star memory wasthe epic Slam Dunk contest between Zach LaVine and Aaron Gordon. That was 10 years ago. Queen wasonly 11 years old at the time. Fears was 9— an indication of just how young the Pelicans’ two Rising Stars are.

“I’m excited forwhat’sahead for them,”Borrego said. “This is justthe beginning. It’sanhonor to make that game. Idon’tcare where you’re drafted. It’s an honor to be acknowledged like that, not just from our group, but also from outside in the NBAworld.” Fearsand Queenare theonlytwo Pelicans participating in All-Star weekend. There are no Pelicans in Saturday’s3-pointcompetition or SlamDunk contest.Nor are there Pelicans in Sunday’sAll-Star game. Former Pelicans forward Brandon Ingram, now with the Toronto Raptors, wasaddedtothe game Tuesday.The last Pelicans player to be named an All-Star wasZion Williamson in 2023.

So it’llbeuptoFearsand Queen to represent NewOrleans. “I want them to go and enjoy this L.A. trip,” Borrego said. “Then come back ready to go and get us to the ﬁnish line.”

Oklahoma City Thunder guard

Shai GilgeousAlexander, right, looks to makea pass against Pelicans guard Jeremiah Fears, center and center DerikQueen on Jan. 27 in Oklahoma City

AP PHOTO By GERALD LEONG

ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO By JAEC.HONG

Los Angeles Lakers forward LeBron Jamesdrives to the basket during a game against theGolden State Warriors on SaturdayinLos Angeles.

Going deeper

Nine Inch Nails’ visually striking NewOrleans concertsoughtthe humanity in ‘Hurt’

BY KEITHSPERA Staff writer

For all its collective industrial rock fury and rage, Nine Inch Nails is, at its core, the anguished howl of adamaged, exposed and alone individual. That was made clear from the outset of the band’svisually and aurally stunning presentation at afull Smoothie King Center on Feb. 5, the opening nightofthe second North American leg of the Peel It Back Tour

Review

Trent Reznor Nine Inch Nails’ mastermind, opened the show by himself on asmall, square stage atthe center of the arena ﬂoor.Under bare, interrogation-style lights, he accompanied himself on piano for “Something ICan Never Have,” from Nine Inch Nails’ debut album, “Pretty Hate Machine.”

“I’m down to just one thing and I’m starting to scaremyself,” he pleaded. “You make this all go away/you makethis all go away.” The effect was to collapse the arena to the sizeofa club and draw thousands of fansin close. They remained mostly silent as Reznor unspooled his stark confessional.

The other musicians joined him one-by-one for “Non-Entity,” an outtake from the 2005 album “With Teeth.” Reznor ﬁrst performed “Non-Entity” 20 years ago on an MTV special after Hurricane Katrina devastated New Orleans,the city he called home for apivotal, intense span of years in the late 1990s and early 2000s. Still on the small B-stage, the musicians ratcheted up the energy and unease with “Piggy (Nothing Can Stop Me Now),” as Reznor was lit by ajerky,hand-held spotlight. They hustled to the main stage for araging “Wish,” now at full arena strength.

A3Deffect

The evening’sfull-immersion environment was established during the opening set byBoys Noize, the stage name of German-born electronic dance music DJ and producer Alexander Ridha. He conjured dark club beats and sonic washes from a satellitestage at the rearofthe floor as the entire arena was bathed in red light. Reznor and his bandmates steppedinto this unsettlingatmosphere. Both the setlist and the band were tweaked forthe PeelItBack Tour’snew leg. At least one song from adozenplus albums turned up in the set. “The Downward Spiral,” Reznor’s1994 magnum opus, supplied the most cuts, at five. New Orleans was the first date to feature Stu Cooks on bass and other instruments, after he replaced Alessandro Cortini. Josh Freese, Nine Inch Nails’ drummer in the

I’ve never been much of the spectator kind. I’m not good at it. Game, sport,dance, performance, exhibition, competition —Idon’twant to watch; Iwant to do. Observing makes me restless. Not so out there, really. Remember Nike: Justdoit?

I’m an unapologetic culture vulture in that regard. Academics call it Zelig syndrome, absorbing thelook and mannerisms of thoseinclose proximity.I’ve had mates call me childish on account of my untamed enthusiasms. But Ithink child-like comes closer to it and Iembrace that. Life can be a grand adventurefor thosewho refuse to surrender their adolescent senses of wonder and want for newexcitements. That’s how Iwound up riding with thepainted ponies and satinclad mardi-gras on Fat Tuesday mornings, stomping through muddy crawﬁsh ponds and trampling

mediately signed up. Well, not immediately —not exactly.Nothing happens that fast in Cajun Country.What happened was: It was during my younger and Defyingterminaldisease,he’ssaddling up at thewildCourirdeMardi Gras

Chris Rose and companion PaigeClifford

finale of the Courir de Mardi Gras in downtown Eunice in 1992.

over ratoon ﬁelds of moldy winter sugarcane, getting chicken-chasing drunk in some of thedamndestpagan deviltryyou’ll ever witnessinsouthwestLouisiana. At least, you might witness it. When Iﬁrst heardabout it,Iim-

Lineup announcedfor KeithLee’s

STAFF PHOTO By KEITH SPERA

Inch Nails performs at the Smoothie King Center on

FILE PHOTO By JOHN ROWLAND Colorful costumes abound as revelers dance on the backs of their horsesduringthe Mamou Courir de Mardi Gras

Franklin Fresh Nwigwe

Chris Rose

COURIR

Continued from page1D By The Associated Press

Today is Friday,Feb. 13, the 44th day of 2026. There are 321 days left in the year

Todayinhistory:

On Feb. 13, 1945, Allied forces in World WarII began athree-day bombing raid on Dresden, Germany,killing as many as 25,000 people and triggering aﬁrestorm that swept through the city center

Also on this date:

In 1935, ajury in Flemington, New Jersey, found Bruno Richard Hauptmann guilty of ﬁrst-degree murder in the kidnap-slaying of Charles A. Lindbergh Jr., the 20-month-old sonof Charles and Anne Morrow Lindbergh. (Hauptmann was executed the following year.)

In 2002, John Walker Lindh, who was captured by U.S. forces as an enemy combatant in 2001, pleadednot guilty in federal court in Alexandria, Virginia, to conspiring to kill Americans and supporting the Taliban and terrorist organizations. (Lindh later pleaded guilty to lesser offenses and was sentenced to 20 yearsinprison.)

In 2018, President Donald Trump’spersonal attorney,Michael Cohen, said he hadpaid $130,000 out of his own pocket to Stephanie Clifford (aka Stormy Daniels),a porn actor who claimed to have had asexual encounter with Trump.

In 2021, Donald Trump was acquitted by the Senate at his second impeachment trial —the ﬁrst to involve aformer president —inwhich he was accused of inciting the attack on the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6. Seven Republicans joined all 50 Democrats in voting to convict, less than the two-thirds threshold required.

Today’sbirthdays: Actor Kim Novak is 93. Actor Stockard Channing is 82. Democratic Sen. Richard Blumenthal of Connecticut is 80. Basketball Hall of Fame coach Mike Krzyzewski is 79. Musician Peter Gabriel is 76. Musician Peter Hook is 70. Singerwriter Henry Rollins is 65. Hockey Hall of Famer Mats Sundin is 55. Singer Robbie Williams is 52.

NAILS

Continued from page1D

mid-2000s, returned last year after being ﬁred by theFoo Fighters (who then replacedFreese with Nine Inch Nails drummer Ilan Rubin).

Freese worked hard to replicate the torrent of beats in Nine Inch Nails recordings. His full-body pounding, combined withRobin Finck’s white-noise guitar and Atticus Ross’ electronic effects, created ascalded effect on “Somewhat Damaged” and elsewhere.

Long sheets of translucent fabric stretched from the lighting rig to the stage. Projecting live, black-andwhite footageofthe band, frenetically shot by asingle cameraman moving among the musicians, onto that fabric produced athree-dimensional effect. It was as if the band was performing inside aholograph.

Acrowd of cloned Reznors appeared on the diaphanous strips during “Copy of A.” In “Heresy,” he attempted to elicit an arena rock clap-along to a chorus of “God is dead and

FAMILEE

Continued from page1D

reviews in Las Vegas, often focused on independent, family-owned establishments,onTikTok. Hismatter-of-fact style resonated and his popularity on the platform exploded. He won TikTok’sCreator of the Year award and, in 2025, was named one of

more vulnerableyears and we were out roadhousehopping somewherebetween Church Point and Big Mamou (Friendly’s Lounge it was —and it was) and Ifoundmyself dancing aslow waltzwith thestout, silver-haired, proudlygraceful wife of a slender old quiet guy who was sittingwith myown companion over in abooth. He never took his eyes off us. Andaswedanced, thestrangest thing— she began to cry,very softly, against my shoulder.

“What’s wrong!” I asked her.“Oh,nothing is wrong,” she said. “It’s just…” She picked her head offmyshoulder and looked at me and said:

“Thisisthe ﬁrst time I’ve danced since my wedding night.” She smiled and sighed and we ﬁnished our dance. She was beaming as we walked back to our booth. Her husband looked like an eighty-pound weight had been liftedoff his own shoulders. She’d been waiting 40 years for someone to askher to dance. And, apparently,so had he.

Best of friendsnow,they invited us for gumbo the next day and among the stories theytold about life out on the prairie was one about the courirs de Mardi Gras —the costumed, nearly-Medieval horse parades through theAcadiana countryside where much mischief is beheld and hijinks abound.

That’snot exactly how theyput it, but it was this crazy story about entire towns out west of the AtchafalayaBasin saddling up at Mardi Gras and riding wild all over the prairies dressed like bespoke tasseled psychedelic spirits, with grotesquely caricatured screen masks and towering conical tops, begging rice and roots and vegetables —and live chickens —from farmers to bring back and make a communitygumbo.

Each of the kaleidoscopic riders is called amardi gras and all day long, for fourteen very slow miles, theydrink Boone’sFarm easy peace from their saddle bags and yell “Hey you Mardi Gras!”and wrestle for the chickens. At the end of the day someone

no one cares/ifthere is a hell, I’ll see you there.” A mini-mosh pit brieﬂy broke outinthe stranding-roomonly front section of the ﬂoor during“GaveUp.”

Reznor returned to the B-stage, where hewas joined by Boys Noize fora four-songset highlighted by aremixed “Closer,” the insidious, industrialearworm ode to animalistic sex. As with AtticusRoss, with whom he has crafted AcademyAward-winning soundtracks, Reznor’s collaboration with Boys Noize goesdeep. In April, they’ll appear at theCoachella festival in California as “Nine Inch Noize.”

Back on themain stage, the3Dstripsdisappeared as thepresentation transformed to amore traditional arenaconﬁguration.The musicians pummeled away, bearing downonintense cuts from theNIN catalog. ‘Good to be back home’ The nightbeforethe concert, they reportedly dinedatJacques-Imo’s,the Oak Street eatery that was afavorite of Reznor’sin the years he lived in New Orleans. But he was fully in character onstage. Not

Time Magazine’s100 most inﬂuential creators. “New Orleans showed my family andmesomuch love and that stayed with me,” Lee saidina news release “FamiLee Day is my way of giving that love back, bringing people together supporting local businesses, and celebrating the culture and food that makes New Orleanssospecial.” MorrowHospitality is the New Orleans-based restau-

for generations. “Not really supposedtodothat —some of the shots and all —but the vets don’twant to come outhere,”hesays. “Theydon’t want to come outhereand getkicked by cows.”

counts up all the riderless horses and drives apickup back out along theroute to collect thefallen, the injured or thepassed-out stragglersfrom rice paddies and roadside ditches

What astory!Iexclaimed to ourhosts. We’re gonna need some horses, Isaid to my companion.

Andasthe way things go out west of the Atchafalaya Basin, they knew aguy who knew aguy who knew aguy named Cowboy D. The firstblack Cowboy

Darryl Guillory was a completely different kind of stoutthan theaforementioned Mrs. Cajun lady above. (Unfortunately,our original hosts’ names are losttomymemory —but my gratitude endures.)

Cowboy Dwas more the brick-layin’, load-bearing kind of stout, with an additional paunch of the sort that often indicates arobustcongeniality,aknowing grin and an easylaugh. He always has aprominent limp from one mishap or another and lost an eye to baling wirewhen he was a kid. He was the ﬁrst Black cowboy Iever met Cowboy Dhas been a cherished friend for 35 yearsnow —outﬁtting me for thesix or seven courirs Ihave runover thedecades. Iused to bunk in the Kool Shack on his farm —a sturdy-enough lean-tothat doesn’tactually lean to, or against, anything —its exterior siding comprised entirely of dozensofthose big green plasticKool cigarette ads you see in bus stopsand on the outside walls of sketchy corner liquor stores. It has served over the years primarily as aprairiemancaveofsorts, asafehouse for Guillory’s

wanting to break thespell, he limited his banter in the ﬁrst hour to acouple quick thank you’s.

Finally,with only four songs left,heintroduced theother musicians and, though he now lives in Los Angeles withawife and gaggle of kids, offered an enthusiastic, “It’sgood to be back home!”

Nine Inch Nails has endured long enough to qualify as classic rock; the band’sdebut is three years shy of its40th anniversary Butlines like, “Bow down before theone you serve/ You’re gonna get what you deserve,”from that album’s “Head Like aHole,” and “I’mAfraid of Americans,” Reznor’scollaboration with David Bowie, are open to a range of fresh interpretationsinthe current political climate.

The evening’sﬁnal “Hurt,” however,remains what it always was: achilling, bleak meditation on isolation, loss and loneliness.

With “Hurt,” Reznor brought theshow thematically back to how he started it —alone.

Email KeithSpera at kspera@theadvocate.com.

rant group that launched in 2018 with Morrow’srestaurant on St.Claude Avenue. It nowincludesseveral restaurants, among them Morrow Steak,Hide Seek,Sun Chong and Monday Ticketsfor FamiLee Day go on sale at 10 a.m. Tuesday Feb.10. Go to famileeday.com for moreinformation.

Email KeithSpera at kspera@theadvocate.com.

married buddies who are temporarily on theouts with their misses —opting for theKool Shack instead of the Dog House.

At 72, Cowboy Dstill cowboys, “just alot slower now,” he says. Hisstable of horses is down from 30 to just two. “AndI’vegot seven or eight dogs that do the work of 20 men,” he says. “I think it’s about seven or eight dogs right now.” He muses. “They always run off.”

Cowboy Disnot only wholly committed to the doctrine of the free range —but is as outwardly untroubled about life’s vicissitudes as,well… as a child.

“MyDaddy saidtwo things,” saysGuillory—a fourth-generation scion of proud Creole cowboy blood. “Don’t let nobody useyou. Anddowhat you like to do —because you’re going to be doing it for the rest of your life.”

He hires out to corral other men’scows to run them to fresher ﬁelds or to market. He’salso known all over St.Landry Parish as awhisperer of sorts, askilled inoculator bone-ﬁxer,soothing balm for acolicky horse. He’s not schooled or licensed as such, but he knows the healing arts of his forbears, theCreolegriots who have sustained this lonely and dangerous life

Arough trade Horseskick, too, and that’swhatworriesme currently as CowboyD describes the curious pony Iwill be riding this year, Mullah, aveteran of the Mexican rodeocircuit in Cajun Country —and yes, that’sa thing. Afrisky palomino half linger, Mullah is compact,sturdy,intelligent… andfast. Guillory fell offher acouple weeks agoand bustedthreeribs. “And youwantmeto ride her?” IaskedGuillory —myown encroaching ageand inﬁrmities ever present on my mind these days. “Yeah,noproblem,” he says, in the exact same laconic wayhehas said yeah no problemtome before and—truth be told —there have been some problems. Athrown shoeone year.Adislocated shoulder, anotheryear (Notmine,bygrace, but thatofanunfortunate guest.) And, last time I rode —back before COVID –mypartnerwas saddled with asullen, dispiritedoxenwith acatatonic stride anda black heart. A wantonly anti-social beast, Irecall.

Incidents andaccidents aretobeexpected in such an adrenaline andliquorfueled environment as a courir.Our parade makes astopata small, rural hospitaltodance and pantomime for the patients and, as oftenasnot, afew riders staybehind to salve fresh wounds. The courirs in ChurchPoint andMamou arenotoriously rough trade —all male,all white, sloppy drunk andnoplace for dilettantes like me These boys take this annualritualseriously,some settling yearlong scores in the trenches, literally Catching achickenismore thana badge of honor in

these small prairie towns —it’sa rite of adult passage as big adeal as losing your virginity —only alot harderfor ayoung manto lie about. My partnerand Iwill be riding the FatTuesday courir in Eunicethis year —the same courir Ihave run from the beginning. It’sasclose to a“familyfriendly” courir as it gets, openly welcoming women, Black andbrown folks and —oh, the horror! —Yankees,like me

Anothermaskedsavage

My terminaldiagnosis hasbeen well-documented publicly —end stage cirrhosis, for which there is no treatment or cure. And as Ikeep living well past the Best Used By date stamped on the back of my neck,I ﬁnd Ikeep adding things to my bucket list. Sentimental do-overs, as it were.Sothis will be my Last Ride Idon’t live in Louisiana anymore;these days ﬁnd me offinthe woods somewhere, far from the masses.And Idon’t getchickenchasing drunk anymore —that’sa youngerman’s game —and Isuppose I will die avirgin in that regard. And although Isuppose Mullah’sdisposition will ultimately determine whether Ifeel comfortable enough to rise up in my bootsand dancetall in the saddle onemoretime…I’m pretty sure Iwill. It’sthe best vantage point to take in asweeping viewofthe beautiful chaos strewn acrossthe graywinterhorizon, the turbulent seaofmyunruly, wind-burnt, ass-chapped fellow mardi grasonthis blessedday of riotous debauchery andcarnalwhimsy.Hey youMardi Gras! Here,I am just another masked savage in the crowd. Astranger in their midst, gotherebythe kindnessesofotherstrangers Imet alongthe way. That Road of Life thing. But here —curiously,inexplicably,longingly —Ifeel home again.

AQuARIus(Jan. 20-Feb. 19) Getinthe grooveand make things happen. If you want something, do your part to ensure it is accomplished. Let compassion set the mood. An open heart and ahelping hand can do wonders.

PIscEs (Feb. 20-March 20) Setthe pace andfocus on your goal.Anopen mind andaclear sense of what you want to achieve will helpyou complete your plans. Challenges can be addressed with honesty and fair play.

ARIEs (March 21-April 19) Reflect, reveal andrevise. You are overdue for an overhaul. Consider what's dragging you down and thetype of pick-me-up you require to jump-start your enthusiasm.

tAuRus (April 20-May 20) You may need to use brute force to complete ajob or fulfill your promises. Positive change comes with theability to do the right thing at the right moment.

GEMInI (May21-June 20) Achange is not always the answer. Beforeyou move on, make sure to tidyuploose ends. Carrying the burden of the past will prevent you from giving your all to something new and exciting.

cAncER(June 21-July22) Gather information until you are sure you can make thebestpossible choice for you and those you love. Do what works best for you, and don'tfeel obligated to compensate for someone else's poor choices.

LEo(July 23-Aug. 22) Themovers and shakerswill attract your attention. Try

not to get wrapped up in someone's piein-the-sky ideas. You can be enthusiastic without contributing.

VIRGo (Aug. 23-sept. 22) Socializing, love and romance are all on the rise. If you use your imagination, you can turn something you do into amagical memory. Personal and lifestyle changes will enrich your life.

LIBRA(sept. 23-oct. 23) Mixed emotions regarding your living arrangements will surface. Putyourenergyinto fixingupyour place or moving elsewhere. An event that allows you to promote what you can do will lead to something you least expect.

scoRPIo (oct. 24-nov. 22) Stay calm, stick close to home and relax and rejuvenate. The timeyou spend analyzing the past and present will help youmake better choices moving forward.

sAGIttARIus (nov. 23-Dec. 21) Spend money only on necessities. Refuseto pay forsomeone else or to squander on indulgences you don't need. An impulsive decision will lead to regret. Live up to your word and avoid backlash.

cAPRIcoRn (Dec. 22-Jan. 19) Share your thoughts and feelings, and you'll find out where you stand. The input you receive will be very tellingastowhat other people think you can do.

CelebrityCipher cryptograms are created from quotationsbyfamous people,pastand present.Each letterinthe cipher stands for another.

toDAy's cLuE: tEQuALs B

CeLebrItY CIpher

For better or For WorSe

beetLe bAILeY Mother GooSe And GrIMM

Sudoku

InstructIons: sudoku is anumber-placingpuzzle based on a9x9 grid with severalgiven numbers. The object is to place the numbers 1to9 in the empty squaressothat each row, each column andeach3x3 box containsthe same number only once. The difficultylevel of thesudoku increases from monday to sunday.

Yesterday’s Puzzle Answer

THewiZard oF id

BLondie

BaBY BLueS

Hi and LoiS

CurTiS

By PHILLIP ALDER

In golf, there is usually morethan one way to hit ashot to the green —assuming, of course, you areskillful enough to do that. In bridge, many dealsgive only one side achance to do something meritorious: declarer or thedefense.But sometimes both sides willhaveanopportunity,although one sidemight requirethe other to err. That applies in this deal Would you prefer to declare or defend in three no-trump after Westleadsadiamond to dummy’s bare ace?

If you like to declare, look at only the North-South hands andplan theplay. Alternatively, cover the West and Southhands. At trick two, declarer leads theclub king fromthe board. How would you, East, defend?

South starts with only six top tricks: two spades, one heart and three diamonds.

The other tricksmust come from clubs,but dummy is short of entries. South should be happytolose two club tricks and to do it as quickly as possible. So, at trick two, he leads alow club from theboard.Afterthat,everythingisunder control. If thedefenders must get two tricks in asuit you wish to establish, makethemtake those tricks as quickly as possible. If South makes the mistake of

syndication

Each Wuzzle is awordriddle which createsa disguised word, phrase, name, place, saying, etc. For example: nOOngOOD =gOOD aFTErnOOn

Previous answers:

word game

InstRuctIons: 1. Words must be of four or moreletters. 2. Wordsthat acquire four letters by theaddition of “s,” such as “bats” or “dies,” are not allowed. 3. additional words made by adding a“d” or an “s” may not be used. 4. proper nouns, slang words, or vulgar or sexually explicit words arenot allowed.

toDAy’s WoRD FLIPPAncy: FLIP-en-see: Inappropriate levityorimpertinence.

Average mark 23 words

minutes Can you find34ormore words in FLIPPANCY?

loCKhorNs

marmaduKe

Bizarro

hagar the horriBle

Pearls Before swiNe

garfield

B.C.

PiCKles

hidato

mallard

ScrabbleGramS

dIrectIons: make a2-to 7-letter word fromthe lettersineach row. add pointsof each word, using scoring directionsat right.Finally, 7-letter words get 50-point bonus “Blanks” used as any letter havenopoint value.all the words are in theOfficial sCraBBlE® players Dictionary, 5th Edition. Formore information on tournaments and

Puzzle Answer

playersassociation: info@scrabbleplayers.org.Visit

ken ken

InstructIons: 1 -Each row and each columnmust containthe numbers 1thorugh 4(easy) or 1through 6 (challenging) without repeating. 2 -The numbers within the heavily outlined boxes, called cages, mustcombine using the given operation (in any order) to produce the target numbers in the top-left corners. 3 -Freebies: Fill in the single-box cages withthe number in the top-left corner.

WiShinG Well

HErE is aplEasanT

Get fuzzy

jump Start

roSe iS roSe

9@08cbf485-1cb7-4a029a21-0dd9b45b9ff7

Datesare subjectto changesvia an adden‐dumpostedbythe

andthe Stateof Louisiana.

TheBureauofPurchas‐ingusescommodity codestonotifysuppliers of therelease of asourc‐ingevent andsubse‐quentmodiﬁcationsvia addendum. Note that you wouldreceive thosenoti‐ﬁcationsifyou selected thefollowing commodity code(s) before there‐leaseofthe sourcing event: COMMODITYCODE(s): 912-40

TheCityofNew Orleans strongly encourages mi‐nority-owned and women-ownedbusi‐nesses, socially andeco‐nomicallydisadvantaged businessesand small businessestorespond to this solicitation,orto participateinsubcon‐tracting opportunities pursuant to this solicita‐tion Formoreinformation aboutthissourcing event, goto www.nola. d li k

after

ary26, 2026 at 3:30 p.m. at WoodsSchool,1037 31st St Kenner,LA70065, to allowprospective bid‐ders to review thejob Social distancing as per requirementsofthe state will be followed.Sealed proposalsshall be marked on theenvelope cover, plainlyand promi‐nently with thefollowing: a) bidder’s name,ad‐dressand telephone numberb)State License Number of Contractor if thebid is in excess of $50,000.00 andc)the statement“Proposal for (project name andnum‐ber)”. Biddershavethe option to submit bids electroni‐callyinaccordance with LouisianaRevised Statute38:2212 E(1) Please ﬁnd bidrelated materialsand placeelec‐tronic bids at www.cen tralbidding.com.

SUBSTITUTE NO.R-25-612 BY:COUNCILMEMBER GIARRUSSO (BYREQUEST) SECONDED BY:COUNCILMEMBER MORENO

WHEREAS, the New Orleans City Council on November 6, 2025 enacted Ordinance No.30522 M.C.S. establishing the City of New Orleans Employee Emergency PayrollFund in Chapter 70, Article III, Division 55 of the Code of the City of New Orleans (the “Fund”) and imposing aseries of requirements regulating the payment of expenses from the Fund; and WHEREAS, Section70-415.347(b) of the Code provides that no expenditurefromthe Fund shall be permitted unless authorized by one or moreCouncilresolutions and further provides that any such authorization shall be limited to specificcategories of expenditures delineated in the Code; WHEREAS, the administration, in accordance with City Code §70415.347(c), has submitted abudget and expenditureplan estimating up to $11,361,025.02 in payroll-related expenses for City employees (other than the police and fire departments) forthe payroll period beginning November 23, 2025 and ending December 6, 2025 (the “December 12 Pay Period”); and WHEREAS, on November 25, 2025, the Council adopted Resolution No R-25-611, authorizing the release of $6,539,097.91 from the Fund to cover the cost of payroll-related expenses for City employees (other than the police and fire departments) for the December 12 Pay Period; and WHEREAS, ResolutionNo. R-25-611 noted that the remainder of the city’scostsfor the December 12 Pay Periodencompassed various fringe benefits and other payroll-related payments thatwould be finalized and processed on asubsequent date and addressed in aseparate resolution; and WHEREAS, the Louisiana Legislative Auditor,working in concert with the Department of Finance, has confirmed an additional $3,680,452.14 in fringe benefits and other payroll-related costs relatedtothe December 12 Period, payment of which represents an allowable use of the Fund; and WHEREAS, the Council desirestoapprove the use of the Fund to cover the cost of the foregoing fringe benefits and other payroll-related payments, as described herein; NOWTHEREFORE BE RESOLVED BY THECOUNCIL OF THECITYOFNEW ORLEANS, That the Council, in accordance with City Code §70-415.347, does hereby approve and ratify the release of $3,680,452.14 from the City of

also e-mail addressfor receivingad‐denda. Apre-bid meetingwillbe held on Tuesday, March 3, 2026 at 9:00 a.m. at AlexanderSchool,600 W. EsplanadeAve Kenner LA 70062, to allow prospectivebidders to

ficcategoriesofexpenditures delineated in the Code;and WHEREAS, the administration,inaccordance with City Code §70415.347(c), hassubmitteda budget andexpenditureplanestimating up to $19,604,369.17inpayroll-related expenses for employees of the police and fire departments (as well as certainemployees paid weekly) for the payroll period beginning November30, 2025 andending December 13, 2025 (the“December 19 Payroll”); and WHEREAS, the Louisiana Legislative Auditor,working in concert with the Department of Finance, hasconfirmedthatthe December 19 Payroll includes$5,255,327.43inactualwagepayments andvarious withholdings, whichrepresents an allowable use of Fund proceeds that will be processed immediately upon adoption of this instrument and remittedtoemployees in their weeklypaychecks; and WHEREAS, the remainderofestimated plan of expenses encompasses various fringe benefits andotherpayroll-related payments thatwill be finalized andprocessed on asubsequentdateand maybepaidfromthe Fund if authorized pursuant to aseparateresolution; NOW THEREFORE BE RESOLVED BY THE COUNCILOFTHE CITY OF NEWORLEANS, That the Council, in accordance with City Code §70-415.347,doeshereby approve andratify the release of $5,255,327.43fromthe City of New OrleansEmployeeEmergency Payroll Fund to cover the cost of payrollrelatedexpenses for employees of the police and fire departments (as well as certainemployees paid weekly) for the payroll period beginning November30, 2025 andending December 13, 2025. The foregoing authorization shall be subject to concurrencebythe Louisiana Legislative Auditor,inaccordance with City Code §70-415.347(d). BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED BY THE COUNCILOFTHE CITY OF NEWORLEANS, Thatcertified copies of this resolution be delivered immediately to the ChiefAdministrative Officer,the Director of Finance, andthe Louisiana Legislative Auditor THE FOREGOING RESOLUTION WASREADINFULL, THE ROLLWAS CALLEDONTHE ADOPTION THEREOF,AND RESULTED AS FOLLOWS: YEAS: Giarrusso,

g p pp cationsmay be found at 12 C.F.R. 262.25. To obtain acopyofthe FederalRe‐serveBoard's proce‐dures, or if youneed more informationabout

acquisition of MC Bancshares,Inc 1204 Greenwood Street Morgan City,Louisiana 70380. We intend to ac‐quirecontrol of MC Bank &Trust,1204 Greenwood Street,MorganCity, Louisiana70380. TheFed‐eral Reserveconsiders a numberoffactors in de‐ciding whether to ap‐provethe applicationin‐cludingthe record of per‐formance of bankswe owninhelping to meet localcreditneeds. Youare invitedtosubmit comments in writingon this applicationand no‐tice to theFederal Re‐serveBankofAtlanta

262. Procedures forpro‐cessing protested appli‐i b f d

and regulatory requirements and known policies (including such policies identified in the Initiating Resolution) established by the Council; (6) evaluate the appropriateness of incorporating advances in technology,including, but not limited to, renewable energy,storage, and DERs, among others; (7) achieve arange of acceptable risk in the trade-offbetween cost and risk; and (8) maintain transparency and engagement with stakeholders throughout the IRP process by conductingtechnical conferences and providing for stakeholder feedback regarding the Planning Scenarios, Planning Strategies, input parameters, and assumptions; and WHEREAS, pursuant to the IRP Rules, the Council adopted its Initiating Resolution for the 2024 IRP,Resolution R-23-254, which established a procedural schedule for the 2024 IRP in new docket UD-23-01, and set forth certain policy objectives, as well as addressing other procedural matters;and WHEREAS, subsequent to the issuance of the Initiating Resolution, the Council declined to retain an independent consultant to perform aDSM Potential Study for the 2024 IRP cycle, noting that while it had engaged consultants in the 2018 and 2021 IRP cycles, this decision carries no precedential effect for futureproceedings; and WHEREAS, interventions in the proceeding were filed by the Alliance for Affordable Energy (“AAE”), Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (“Air Products”), the SouthernRenewable EnergyAssociation (“SREA”), and the Sewerage and Water BoardofNew Orleans (“SWBNO”); and WHEREAS, over the course of the proceeding, ENO held five technical meetings with the Advisors and Intervenorstodiscuss the details of the IRP analysis and get feedback from stakeholdersonvarious components of the analysis, including atechnical meeting to discuss the EnergySmart Implementation Plan. ENO also held three public meetings regarding the development of the IRP and the IRP report to assist in informing the public of the IRP and obtaining public comment on it; and WHEREAS,ENO submitted its IRP Report to the Council on December 13, 2024. AAE and the Office of Resilience and Sustainability (“ORS”) filed joint comments on the 2024 IRP Report with the Council on March 10, 2025. Thereafter,ENO filed responsive comments with the Council on April 28, 2025, the Advisors submitted their Advisors’ Report on June 2, 2025; and Final 2024 IRP Compliance with the Council’sRequirements WHEREAS, under Section 10.E of the IRP Rules, if the IRP fulfills the requirements of the IRP Rules and is developed in compliance with the procedural schedule, it is in compliance with the Council’ssubstantive and procedural requirements; and WHEREAS,the IRP Rules and Initiating Resolution set forth specific proceduralrequirements andaspecificprocedural schedule. The table below indicates whether each requirement of the IRP Rules and Initiating Resolution has been met; and

IRP Rules Requirement (IRP Rules Section 9and Initiating Resolution as modified by R-23-254) Action(s) Taken Whether Requirement WasMet

Initial public meeting (kickoff and educational meeting) no later than September 15, 2023.

Technical Meeting 1ofthe parties between October 30 and November 9, 2023 (discussion of Planning Scenarios and Strategies)

Meeting held August 23, 2023 Yes

Meeting held November 9, 2023 Yes

Completion of DSM Potential Studies by February 1, 2024 Filed February 1, 2024 Yes

Technical Meeting 2ofthe parties (to confirm Scenarios and Strategies), between February 20 and March 1, 2024.

Technical Meeting 3of the parties (finalization of Scenarios and Strategies and lock down of inputs) between May1 and May 14, 2024

Meeting held February 29, 2024 Yes

Meeting held May 7, 2024 Yes

Finalization of all IRP inputs, May 17, 2024 Final inputs received by ENO on May 16, 2024. ENO sent confirmation email on May 21, 2024 Yes

Completion of all optimized portfolio development and results by September 6, 2024 Completed on time, circulated to parties September 6, 2024, in advance of Technical Meeting 4 Yes

Technical Meeting 4of the parties (to review the optimized portfolios and finalize scorecardmetrics) between September 23 and October 4, 2024.

Meeting held October 2, 2024 Yes

2024IRP Final Report filed by December 13, 2024. Filed December 13, 2024 Yes

Second Public Meeting (present IRP Report) between January 21 and January 31, 2025.

ThirdPublic Meeting (to receive public comment on IRP Report) between February 18 and February 28, 2025.

Technical Meeting 5ofthe parties (to discuss Energy Smart Implementation Plan) between February 18 and February 28, 2025.

Meeting held January 31, 2025 Yes

Meeting held February 26, 2025 Yes

Meeting held February 27, 2025 Yes

Intervenor Comments filed by March 10, 2025. Comments filed March 10, 2025 Yes

ENO Reply Comments filed by April 28, 2025. Comments filed April 28, 2025 Yes

Advisor Report filed by June 2, 2025. Report filed on June 2, 2025 Yes

WHEREAS, the Advisors concluded that ENO did meet the procedural requirements of the IRP Rules and the Initiating Resolution, and no party has alleged that ENO had failed to meet the procedural requirements; and WHEREAS,the Council finds that ENO has met the procedural requirements of the IRP Rules and Initiating Resolution; and WHEREAS,the IRP Rules and Initiating Resolution set forth numerous substantive requirements for the IRP analysis and Report; and WHEREAS,the IRP Rules requirethe Utility to include areference Planning Scenariothat represents the Utility’spointofview on the most likely future circumstances as well as two alternative Planning Scenarios that account for alternative circumstances.4 The IRP Rules requirethe Utility to seek to develop aposition agreed to by theUtility,Advisors, and amajority of the Intervenors regarding assumptions surrounding each of the Planning Scenarios and that if such consensus is not reasonably attainable, the Utility shall model afourth Planning Scenario based upon input agreed to by amajority of the Intervenors.5 In this IRP Proceeding, ENO created three Planning Scenarios with the consensus of the Parties;6 and

WHEREAS, the Council finds that the three Scenarios modeled sufficiently

capturethe range of reasonably likely possible futures; and WHEREAS, the IRPRules then require thatthe utility develop two to four Planning Strategies which constrain the resource portfolios optimization process to achieve particular goals, regulatory policies and/or business decisions over which the Council,the Utility,orstakeholders have control. TheIRP Rules requirea Planning Strategy that allows the optimization to identify the lowest cost option for meeting the needs identified in the IRP process, areference Planning Strategy agreed to by the Utility,Advisors and amajority of the Intervenors, and alternate Planning Strategies that reflect known utility regulatory goalsofthe Council 8 The IRPRules requirethat if the Utility, Advisors and amajority of the Intervenors do not agree to asingle Reference Planning Strategy,the Utility shall model a separate Stakeholder Planning Strategy based upon input determined by amajority of the Intervenors;9 and WHEREAS, in this IRPproceeding the parties agreed to four Planning Strategies: Strategy 1 -the least cost planning strategy; Strategy 2 -the reference strategy; Strategy3 -anRCPScompliance strategy; and Strategy4 -the Stakeholder Planning Strategy;10 and WHEREAS, as is required in the IRP Rules,11 ENO included as Appendix Atoits Final 2024 IRPa Rules Compliance Matrix setting forth each requirement of the IRPRules and Initiating Resolution, and explaining how ENOmet each requirement,12 which the Council’s Advisors have verified;13 and no party has challenged; and WHEREAS, the Council finds that the Final 2024 IRP meetsthe content requirements of the IRP Rules and Initiating Resolution; and Whether or Not the Final 2024 IRP Should be Approved, Approved Subject to Conditions or With Modifications, Approved in Part and Rejected in Part, or Rejected WHEREAS, the second part of Section10.E of the IRP Rules states: Further,after consideration of allthe evidence entered into the record, the Council may approve the accepted Utility IRP, approve it subject to stated conditions, approve it with modifications, approve it in part and reject it in part, reject it in its entirety,orchoose to terminate the proceeding without either approving or rejecting the accepted Utility IRP. Nothing in this provision limits the Council’s ability to take any action with respect to the IRPthat is within its authority,including the Council’sability to open a prudence investigation for noncompliance on the part of the Utility. WHEREAS, having determined that the Final 2024 IRP should be accepted as in compliance with the Council’srequirements, the Council must now determine what further findings, if any,tomake with respect to the 2024 IRP; and WHEREAS, as ENO describes in detail in the Final 2024 IRP,ENO, the Advisors and the Intervenors agreed on threePlanning Scenarios representing arange of market drivers and possible futures, and came to consensus on four Planning Strategies (one of which included a sensitivity analysis) that informed or constrained the optimized portfolio development process consistent with defined objectives or policies.14 Then, using the AURORA Capacity Expansion Model (“AURORA”) 15 twelve optimized portfolios weredeveloped based on acombinationof each Planning Scenario and each Planning Strategy 16 Additionally,two additional manual portfolios weredeveloped under Strategy 1, but with two different earlier deactivation dates for UPSPB1;17 and WHEREAS, the three Planning Scenarios wereagreed to by the parties forinclusioninthe IRP.18 Planning Scenario 1was the reference case (i.e. continuation of the status quo) defined by reference load growth and gas prices, DSM additions and CO2reductions targets.19 Scenario 2was the Clean Air Act Section 111 Compliance Scenario defined by reference load growth and gas prices, high DSM additions, and moderatelyaccelerated coal and legacy gas retirements.20 Scenario 3was the Stakeholder Scenario (defined by the Intervenors), characterized by high load growth, gas prices, and DSM additions, as well as lowrenewable capital cost assumptions;21 and WHEREAS, the Planning Strategies weredeveloped to support arange of potential planning objectives, Council policies, and clean energy priorities.22 Strategy 1was the least cost planning strategy and selected demand and supply-side alternatives based solely on need and cost. Modeling this Strategy allows the Council to understand the impacts of Council policies on long-term planning. Strategy 2was the “But for RCPS” Strategyand was intended to represent the resource plan that would comply with regulatory policies in New Orleans that existed before the Council’s adoption of the RCPS.24 Modeling this strategy as an RCPS cost baseline allows the Council to determine the cost of RCPS compliance. Strategy 3was designed to meet the requirements of the Council’s RCPS policy and 2% DSM savings goal,and it excludes any resources that would not be compliant with the RCPS, such as fossilfueled resources.25 Strategy4isthe Stakeholder Strategy defined by the Intervenors, which uses lower renewables costs and forces the selection of all energy efficiency and demand response programs, as well as amounts of different renewables as specified by the Intervenors;26 and WHEREAS, the three Planning Scenarios and four Planning Strategies resulted in twelve different optimized portfolios,each of which reflects the least cost portfolioofresources under its particular combination of Planning Scenario and Planning Strategy,set forth in Figures 36, 37 and 38 of the Final 2024 IRP; and27 WHEREAS, the Council also observes that battery storage resources appear 10 of the 14 optimized portfolios from which they werenot specificallyexcluded in the modeling parameters.28 and WHEREAS, the IRPReport indicates that the long-term planning horizon will likely include additions of both renewableand energy storage technologies, theremay be increased value in additional flexiblepeaking and quick-response technologies, and that ENOremains committed to exploringclean, alternative technologies to ensurethe adaptabilityand longevity of these resources;29 and WHEREAS, DSM plays asignificant role in every portfolio, ranging from 183 to 518 MW by 2044, which supports continued growth and expansion of the Energy Smart program.30 The aggregate effects of ENO-sponsored DER, naturallyoccurring or organicenergy efficiency,aswell as customerowned solar installations areincluded in the load forecast as areduction in ENO’sload;31 and WHEREAS, as aresult of stakeholder discussions, ENOdeveloped three additional manual portfolios to further analyzetwo issues: (1) the impact of deactivating UnionPower Block 1(“Union”) in 2025 rather than its estimated retirement date of 2033, and (2) the impact of acquiring smaller amounts renewable capacity beforethe retirement of Unionin2033 in order to comply with the RCPS annual requirements solely through capacity additions; and WHEREAS, both Manual Portfolio 1a and Manual Portfolio1bwere informed by the optimized portfolio developed under Strategy 1/Scenario 1, but Manual Portfolio1aaccelerated the deactivation of Union1 to 2032 and Manual Portfolio1baccelerated it to 2035;32 and WHEREAS, the Advisors found that the DSM Potential Study had substantially metthe Council’s requirements, and noted the meritofthe following suggestions from the IRPDSM team forfurther consideration: (i) review and update the New Orleans TRM for high impact measures; (ii) consider including dynamicpricing DR options; (iii) analyze the merits of time-of-day usage as it aligns to grid-based energy resources (e.g. DERs) and their associated costs; (iv) explorecost-effective opportunities, pricing structures, and research on additional benefits to behind-themeter (“BTM”), including battery storage. The Advisors also noted that therewas no stakeholder participation in the concurrent development of the DSM Potential Study;33 and WHEREAS, the Advisors identified certain shortcomings of ENO’s treatment of DERs, but stated that the IRP Report is completeand substantially complies with the IRPRules and Initiating Resolution;34 and WHEREAS, the Advisors also noted that other ongoing Council dockets, such as UD-18-03 regarding CommunitySolar and UD-24-02 regarding DERs arelikely to implement changes to Council policies around DERs that will impact IRPanalyses, and that technological and market changes regarding DERs have occurred since the Council’s current IRP Rules wereadopted.35 The Advisors identified several areas wherethe current IRPRules need to be revised to better reflect these changes, and recommended that the Council consider opening aproceeding to evaluate revising the IRPRules with respect to howDERs areincluded in both the DSM potential study and the IRPanalyses to reflect these recent developments;36 and WHEREAS, the Council finds that allparties should have the opportunity to comment upon the Advisors’ recommendationsinadvance of the next IRPcycle; and WHEREAS, the Advisors recommend that the Council approve ENO’s 2024 IRPAction Plan subject to the following caveats: (1) approval of the ActionPlan does not constitute Council approval of any specificasset or resource acquisition, any such acquisitionmust still be submitted for Council approval consistent with the Council’srules and regulations; and (2) Council acceptance of the 2024 IRP and approval of the ActionPlan does not preclude the Council from considering and/or ordering further actions by ENO relative to resource planning and acquisition; in particular acceptance of the Final 2024 IRPshall have no precedential impact upon the Council’s considerations in the RCPS rulemaking docket (UD-19-01)

or anyotherrelated docket;37 and WHEREAS, the Council finds thatENO’sFinal2024 IRP should be accepted as consistent with the Council’sIRP Rulesand general policies andgoals, andthatthe Action Planshould be approvedsubject to the modifications set forth by the Advisors; NOW THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED BY THE COUNCILOFTHE CITY OF NEWORLEANS

THAT:

1. The Final2024 IRP is accepted as in compliancewith the substantive andprocedural requirements of the Council’sIRP Rulesand its Initiating Resolution.

2. The Final2024 IRP andits Action Planisapproved, noting that(a) consistent with Section 1.Dofthe IRP Rules, approvalofthe Action Plan does not constitute Council approvalofany specificasset or resource acquisition, anysuchacquisition must still be submitted for Council approvalconsistent with the Council’srulesand regulations; and(b) the Council approvalofthe 2024 IRP does not preclude the Council from consideringand/or orderingfurtheractions by ENOrelative to resource planning andacquisition; in particular,approval of the Final2024 IRP shall have no precedentialimpact upon the Council’sconsiderationsinany other relatedorfuturedocket.

3. Parties whowish to comment on the recommendations made by the Advisors for futureIRP proceedings may file such comments within 90 days of the adoption of this Resolution, andthe Council will take such comments into consideration whenissuing its Initiating Resolution for the next IRP cycle.

THE FOREGOING RESOLUTION WASREADINFULL, THE ROLLWAS CALLEDONTHE ADOPTION THEREOF,AND RESULTED AS FOLLOWS: YEAS: Giarrusso, Green,Harris, King, Moreno, Morrell, Thomas-7 NAYS: 0 ABSENT:0

AND THE RESOLUTION WASADOPTED. NO. R-25-630 BY:COUNCILMEMBERS MORRELL, MORENO, HARRIS, KING, GREEN AND THOMAS IN RE: 2024 TRIENNIAL INTEGRATEDRESOURCE PLAN OF ENTERGY NEW ORLEANS, INC. RESOLUTION AND ORDER APPROVING IMPLEMENTATION PLANS FOR ENERGY SMARTPROGRAM YEARS 16-18

Docket No. UD-23-01

WHEREAS, pursuant to the Home Rule Charter of the City of NewOrleans (“Charter”), the Council of the City of NewOrleans(“Council”)isthe governmentalbody with the power of supervision, regulation, andcontrol over public utilitiesproviding service within the City of NewOrleans; and WHEREAS, pursuant to its powers of supervision,regulation, andcontrol over public utilities, the Council is responsible for fixing andchanging rates andcharges of public utilitiesand making allnecessary rulesand regulations governing the terms andconditions of service, andtogovern applications for the fixing andchanging rates andcharges for public utilities; and WHEREAS, EntergyNew Orleans, LLC (“ENO”) is apublic utility providing electric service to allofNew Orleans; and WHEREAS, the Council approvesEnergy Smart programdesigns, savings target goals, andbudgets for threeprospective program years (“PY”) every three years upon the conclusion of ENO’sTriennialIntegrated ResourcePlan(“IRP”) analysis; and Background WHEREAS, the Energy Smart Programiscurrently approvedbythe Council until the endofPY15 on December 31, 2025; and WHEREAS, on June 8, 2023, the Council adopted Resolution No. R-23254 (“Initiating Resolution”), establishing the procedural schedule for ENO’s2024 IRP; and WHEREAS, the Initiating Resolution’s procedural schedule hasbeen completed; and WHEREAS, on June 16, 2025, ENOsubmittedan Application of Entergy NewOrleans, LLC for Approval of the Energy Smart Implementation Plan for Program Years 16 through 18 (“Implementation Plan”) to the Council setting forth its PY16-18 program designs, budgets, kWh savings targets, program scope, andrequested utility performance incentives; and WHEREAS, the Implementation Planoutlinesnine residential andincomequalified energy efficiency programs, four commercialand industrial energy efficiency programs, three residential demand response programs, andone largecommercialdemandresponse program; and WHEREAS, the Implementation Planincludes: twoEnergy Smart savings scenarios anda request for Council approvalofthird-party administrators andthird-party evaluators; and WHEREAS, the Implementation Planalso includeda request thatthe Council approve ENO’sproposal to draft areport, whichexaminedthe cost-benefitand performance impact of modifications to the scope of identified programs in PY13–PY15; and WHEREAS, on July 24, 2025, the Council adopted Resolution No. R-25406 establishing aprocedural schedule regarding the Implementation Plan; and Program Modifications WHEREAS, the Implementation Planproposes twoscenarios for kWh savings; and WHEREAS, the first scenario, the “2%Savings Scenario,” wasa recommendation from the Council in Resolution R-17-30 andgenerates 2% of ENO’ssaving rate equal to 2% of the totalannualkWh sales as follows: (1)akWh savings goalof119,727,794 kWh in annualsales and $44,995,773 program cost during PY16, (2)a savings goal of 120,033,825 kWh in annualsales and$47,490,983programcost during PY17, and (3)asavings goalof122,141,105kWh in annualsales and$48,233,015 program cost during PY18, whichgenerated atotalof361,902,724 in annualsales, andresultedinatotalprogramcost of $140,719,771 over allthree program years. The 2% Savings Scenarioalso includesannual kW savings targetsof33,578 kW for PY 16, of 42,055 kW for PY 17 and of 48,328 kW for PY 18; and WHEREAS, the second scenario, the “Reduced Cost Scenario,” saved $20,000,000 overall three program years, but decreases the annual kWh savings goals as follows: (1)88,242,694 kWh in annualsales and a$37,756,373 program cost during PY16, (2)93,565,652 kWh in annual sales anda $40,690,209programcost during PY17, and(3) 97,857,611 kWh in annualsales anda $41,567,800 program cost during PY18, whichgenerated 279,665,957kWh in annualsales andresultedinatotal program cost of $120,014,382for allthree program years. The Reduced Cost Savings Scenarioincludesthe same kW savings goals for PY 16-18 as the 2% Savings Scenario; and WHEREAS, both scenarios retainedthe utility performance incentives (“UPI”) utilized in PY13–PY15 with cost recovery through the Energy Efficiency Cost Recovery rider (“EECR”); and WHEREAS, the Implementation Planadds upfront incentivesfor the purchase of batteries for ongoing participation as ademandresponse resource, whichcould drive widespread adoption among residential, small commercialcustomers; and WHEREAS, the Implementation Planexpands the battery energy storage system (BESS) program to include multi-family andlow-to-moderateincome (“LMI”) housing in asubsequentPhase Three; and WHEREAS, ENOrevised the BESS Programinresponse to sunset provisions for solar photovoltaic taxcredits through the Public Law11921, reducing the totalbudgetfrom$10,200,000 to $9,379,400 for PY1618 (including $7,290,000 for upfront incentives, $1,110,000 for ongoing participation incentives, and$979,400 for administration costs), lowering residential installations while increasing incentivesfor this customer class andadding incentivesfor small commercial customers, with an estimated 14,175 kWh or 7.09 MW delivered based on the capacity figuresofa twohour duration battery; and WHEREAS, the Implementation Planincludesa proposed modification to the bring your own thermostat (BYOT) programtoraise participation by increasing incentives, andasa result increasing totalgross demand savings from 36.4MWto40.9MWand the totalprogramcost from $2,922,300 to $3,332,500 during PY16-18; and WHEREAS, the Implementation Planmodifies the Electric Vehicle Charging program based on the originalequipment manufacturers’ ability to engage in partner marketing, by implementing following adjustmentsfor PY1618: increased projected participants from 707 to 1,129, estimatedgross demand savings from 0.35 MW to 0.56 MW,and totalprogramcost from $508,270 to $541,790; and Intervenor Comments WHEREAS, on August 26, 2025, the Alliancefor Affordable Energy (“AAE”) filedcomments; and WHEREAS, AAE concludedthe 2% Savings scenario provided morebill savings, moretotalresource cost andutility cost test benefits regardless of whethera weightedaverage cost of capitalorasocietaldiscounted rate was applied andyieldedgreater

resilience hubs; and Advisors’ Report

WHEREAS,the Advisors examined the two primary DERproposals, participated in both technical conferences, reviewed all parties’ comments andproposals, analyzed the cost-benefitanalyses, and issued discovery to the parties, including two sets of discovery each to ENO and TNO/ AAE, all of which formed the basis of the 36-page Advisors’ Report, which thoroughly analyzed the proposals based upon the extensive record developed in the docket and was filed on July 16, 2025; and WHEREAS,inthe Advisors’ Report the Advisors analyzed applicable state and federal law,settled utility regulatoryprinciples, therelevant SERI-related settlement documents and resolutions, other practical considerations and long-standing Council practices and precedents and concluded that based upon the record, SERI Credits arenot available for the direct funding purposes proposed by some of the parties; and WHEREAS, the Advisors concluded that the recordsupported that the Council could proceed towardthe expansion of DERs in amanner similar to the Council’sapproach in the resilience docket UD-21-03 that was, in part, the genesis for this docket. In that docket, the Council cautiously evaluated ENO’sproposed $1.1 billion resilience plan, ultimately approving a$100 million two-year plan that could provide reliable data to inform futureresilience decisions by the Council; and WHEREAS, the Advisors noted that such ameasured DER approach could allow for expansion of DERs that could be accomplished through ENO’sEnergy Smart Battery Energy Storage System (“BESS”) Pilot Program, which both ENO and TNO/AAE have proposed toutilize; and WHEREAS,the Advisors further noted, that ameasured DER approach, would allow the Council to gather critical information along the way to evaluate what incentive levels work best, how much participation is achieved at agiven incentive level, what arethe localized impacts on the distribution system, what arethe identifiable benefits from an annual review of the actual results of the program, how the program cost effectiveness could be improved, and what is the ratepayer impact of expanding the penetration of DERs; and WHEREAS, RNO, PosiGen, and Enphase also support the expansion of the DERs through the Energy Smart program structuretoexpand the battery pilot; and WHEREAS, the Advisors also expressed concerns with the proposals and noted that with good-faith collaboration and the willingness to compromise, the parties could develop aDER expansion program, conductedinitially as apilot, possibly through Energy Smart, that would accomplish the Council’sgoals while amelioratingthe concerns; and WHEREAS, the Advisors recommended that the Council consider the development of aDER expansion pilot program based upon key elements from the input of the parties and the Advisors’ list of features that should be included in aDER pilot program; and WHEREAS, in addition to providing apath forwardfor theCouncil to implement aDER pilot program, the Advisors suggested that although RNO’sproposed New Orleans Carbon Offset project extends to parties outside the participation in this docket it is aconcept that the Council could exploreasasource of funds; and Revised Proposals WHEREAS, although 24 parties filed petitions for interventioninthe instant docket, only TNO/AAE, ENO, and RNO filed revised proposals, with TNO/ AAE and ENO providing some details upon which aDER Program could be developed for implementation; and WHEREAS, the revised proposals of TNO/AAE and ENO werefocused on near-term expansion of DERs, includingcertain incentives, costs, and participationestimates, and cost-benefitanalyses; and WHEREAS, TNO/AAE indicated in its revised proposal that throughout September2025, TNO/AAE and ENO convened three working meetings that produced substantial alignment on program architecture, grid integration, and market operations, but not on the scale of the program or the source of funds; and WHEREAS, ENO confirmed the meetings to discuss the frameworkfor a program and identify opportunities for alignment. ENO noted further that while these meetings have been helpful in identifying alignment between the parties on several aspects of program structure and administration thereiscontinued disagreement on the amount of funding that should be dedicated to the initial years of the BESS incentive program and the source of that funding; and WHEREAS, TNO/AAE continue to support their original proposed funding of $32 million, with approximately $10 million of funds in upfront incentivesallocated per year over three years. ENO’s revised proposal supports program funding of approximately $10 million over three years, or $3.4million per year,which includes the existing BESS Pilot Program (Phase 2) participants and incentives for participation for all enrollees; and WHEREAS, in its revised proposal, ENO supports ratepayer funding of the program under Energy Smart through the Energy Efficiency Cost Recovery (“EECR”) Rider tariff. TNO-AAE supports funding their proposal, including $29 million of upfront incentives, with SERI Credits. TNO/AAE presented two options: 1) use SERI Credits directly or 2) use the Energy Smart EECR Rider with adollar-for-dollar SERI Credit offset; and WHEREAS, the Council appreciates the parties’ efforts to work together and while both TNO/AAE and ENO suggest that thereisagreement between the parties except for two issues: 1) the amount of funding (scale of the program) and 2) the source of funding, the Council finds that there areother differences that remainbetween the TNO/AAE and ENO revised proposals; and WHEREAS,aCouncil decision on only the amount of funding and source of funding would not be sufficient to implement aprogram in an expedient manner; and Findings WHEREAS, based on the record, the Council finds that the growth of DER in New Orleans would best be enhanced at this time with athree-year DER Program (“DER Program”) implemented and operated under Energy Smart and consistent with the Advisors’ Report, using the existing DER management system (“DERMS”); and WHEREAS,further based on the record, the Council finds that the DER Program should be structured with athird-party incentive administrator selected by the Council, to implement, deliver,administer and conduct quality control/quality assurance for existing EnergySmart programs; and WHEREAS,also based on the record, the Council finds that customer upfront incentives arenecessary to achieve the Council’sgoal of increasing the availability of DERs, battery storage, and related facilities, and finds that an customer upfront incentive budget of $28 million over a period of three years is appropriate; and WHEREAS,because the DER Program would be implemented under and consistent with the goals of, Energy Smart, the Council finds that cost recovery for the DER Program can be accomplished equitably and effectively through the Energy Efficiency Cost Recovery (“EECR”) Rider tariff. This ensures that rate classes that primarily benefitfromthe customer upfront incentives of the DER Program areallocated the cost of the DER Program; and WHEREAS, because the Council finds that the DER Program is consistent with the goals of, and should be implemented under,the Energy Smart program, the Council has existing and separate authority to allocate SERI credits to customers as bill credits to mitigate any incremental rate impact resulting from the DER Program cost recovery through the EECR Rider; and WHEREAS, to ensurethat customer upfront incentives arewidely available, the Council finds that fifty percent (50%) of incentives should be earmarked for residential customersand that fifty percent (50%) should be earmarked for commercial customers, subject to periodic review and adjustment by the Council based upon data presented and evaluated regarding program demand; and WHEREAS, to ensureopportunity for low-to-moderate income (LMI) participation in the DER Program, the Council finds that forty (40%) of the total customer upfront incentives earmarked for residential customers should be earmarked for residential LMI customers, with the respective percentages being subject to periodic review and adjustment by the Council based upon data presented and evaluated; and WHEREAS, with respect to customer upfront incentives levels, the Council accepts the TNO/AAE proposed incentive level for residential and commercial customers of $1,000/kW based upon delivered capacity for residential and commercial /communitybattery systems; however,for implementation of the DER Program, the Council finds that establishing this incentive level on aper kWh installed basis is morestraightforward. Restating the $1,000/kW delivered incentive on aper kWh installed basis results in an incentive level of $400 per kWh installed.Therefore, the Council finds that an incentive level of $400 per kWh installed be used fornon-LMI residential and commercial customers, subject to feedback from the DER Program implementation advisors and to evaluation by the Council based upon data presented and evaluated; and WHEREAS, to facilitate and encourage residential LMI customer participation in the DER Program, the Council accepts the TNO/AAE proposedtwenty (20%) “adder” for residential LMI customers, and finds that an incentive level of levelof$480/kWh installed be used for

forseven (7)

and WHEREAS, to protect ratepayer funds, the Council finds that customers who receive incentives and do not participate in the DER Program “events,” as defined in the Program, should be subject to aclaw back of theupfront customer incentives. The Council further finds that the details of any potential claw back of upfront incentives should be fully described in the termsand conditions for participation, including objective standards for measuring non-participation and calculating any claw back amount, and that claw backs shouldonly occur following areasonable level of “event” non-participation by the customer; and WHEREAS, to prevent excessive use of the customers’ battery systems and to promote apositive customer experience with the DER Program the Council finds that it is appropriatetolimit the number of DER Program “events” per year to amaximum of thirty (30) “events” for ENO’suse of the customer’sbattery.The Council notes that this maximum is consistent with ENO’sBESS Pilot(Phase 2); and WHEREAS, ENO in its revised proposal has estimated program administration costs of $979,400 forthe 3-year program, and TNO had estimated $3 million in administrative costsfor the first 3years of its proposal; and WHEREAS, to keep the DER Program implementation and administration costs from becoming excessive, the Council finds that anot-to-exceed implementation and administration budget of $2 million over the initial three-year Program term is areasonable and supportable target budget To allow the Council to monitorthe DER Program’sadministrative costs, the Council finds that the DER Program should include arequirement for ENOtoinform the Council if its administrative costs areexpected to exceed the $2 millionbudget and to request Council approval prior to collecting any excess from ratepayers; and WHEREAS, to monitorthe DER Program and potentiallyadjust incentive levels or reallocate budget based on the annual results of the DER Program, the Council finds that periodicreporting, on botha quarterly and annual basis, regarding the budget and operational progress is required, andthat such reporting should have sufficient detail to allow the Council to adjust the program’sspending; and WHEREAS, the Council affirms its original goal that the DER Program be vendor neutral and finds that the DER Program developed as part of this docket must be vendor neutral to permit maximum participation; and WHEREAS, the Council finds that the DER Program must provide for third-party ownership of the customers’ DER installation; and WHEREAS, the Council has previously engaged the professional services of Apex Analytics and Emergent Grid Solutions as DER Program implementation advisors to assist CUROand the Advisors in the design and implementation of the DER Program, consistent with directives expressed in this resolution; and WHEREAS, the DER advisorsshould work with CUROand the Advisors to effectuate the design and implementation of the DER Program; and WHEREAS, to support planning, evaluation, and accountability, the Council finds it appropriate to establish annual participation benchmarks forthe DER Program by customer segment (residential low-to-moderate income, residential non-LMI, and commercial/community), as morefully set forth in the ordering paragraphs below; and WHEREAS, the Council finds that the DER Program as described herein is supported by the recordinthis proceeding and is in the public interest;

NOWTHEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED BY THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF NEW ORLEANS,

That 1. Establishment of the DER Program and Implementation Plan. Consistent with the Council’s features and findings described in this resolution, and no later than March1,2026, ENO, in consultation with CURO, the Advisors and the Council’s DER Program implementation advisors, shall file with the Council aproposed three-year DER Program implementation plan, under Energy SmartasPhase 3ofthe BESS Pilot Program, including program design, eligibilitycriteria, incentive structures, budgets, performance requirements, administrative arrangements, deployment goals, and any other provisions necessary for implementation. The implementation plan shall include quantified deployment targetsfor the three-year program term,expressed as the number of projects and aggregate kW of battery capacity deployed by year and by customer category; eligibilityand participation rules, including eligible technologies, participation standards, third-party ownership, participation terms and claw back provisions; upfront and ongoing incentive standards for program year 2026; defined administration roles forENO,the third-party incentive administrator and the Council’s designees.

2. Implementation Plan Approval. The Council shall review the proposed implementation plan, provide at least thirty (30) days for party comments and advisor input, and, thereafter,may approve, modify,orreject the plan in wholeorinpart, and may directthe responsibleentities to make revisions as the Council deems necessary,ortoimplement additional proceedings, to ensureconsistency with Council policy,ratepayer protections, and the public interest 3. Upfront incentivefunding. The DER Program shall include anotto-exceed budget of twenty-eight milliondollars ($28,000,000) for customer upfront incentives over the initial three-year Program term These customer incentive costs, together with approved DER Program implementationcosts, shallberecovered through the Energy Efficiency Cost Recovery (“EECR”) Rider

4. Use of Council-Discretionary Portion of the SERI Settlement to offset rate impacts. The Council directs that, to the extent practicable and subject to the annual ten milliondollar ($10,000,000) application cap established in ResolutionR-24-194, the remaining portion of the SERI Settlement whose use is left to the Council’sdirection, under the Agreement-in-Principle, be used to mitigate any net increase in customer rates resulting from the cost recovery of DER Program costs through the EECRRider,byproviding bill credits or other rate offsets to ENO customers. This resolution does not alter or affect the uses of settlement funds previously authorized in the Agreement-in-Principleadopted in R-24-194, including the $22 millioncredit under the FormulaRate Plan and the $44 millionregulatory liability

5. Administrationcost cap. The total DER Program administration budget —including program design, marketing and outreach, DERMS integration, third-party incentive administration, and evaluation, but excluding customer incentive payments —shall be capped at two million dollars ($2,000,000) over the initial three-year Program term.ENO shall submit an annual administration budget for Council approval. ENO shall not recover administration costs in excess of this $2,000,000 cap through the EECRRider without prior Council authorization, and shall promptly notify the Council if projected costs areexpected to exceed this cap.

6. Vendor Neutrality The DER Program shall be implemented in a vendor-neutral manner,permitting participation by any qualified installer and equipment provider meeting program standards.

7. Third-Party Ownership. Customers may participate in the DER Program whether their eligible battery or solar-plus-storage systems are owned by the customer or by athird-party entity, provided that allsystems meet program technical standards and all owners comply with the DER Program’sparticipation and performance requirements. The structureof the DER Program shallnot restrict or disadvantage participation based solely on ownership model. ENO shall apply all interconnection,metering, control, and data-access requirements in anondiscriminatory manner to customer-owned and third-party-owned systems.

8. Reporting After the DER Program is established and implementation has been initiated, ENO is directed to file the following reports:

a. Quarterly reports filedbyENO in coordination with the third-party incentive administrator and the Distributed Energy Resource Management System (DERMS) contractor (presently EnergyHub, or any successor DERMS provider) serving as the DERMSplatform operator.The quarterly reports shall begin with the first quarterfollowing initiation of the DER Program and continue thereafter forthe duration of the DER Program, with the filingsbeing made no later than 30 days after the end of each quarter b. Annual reports,beginning with areport covering calendar year 2026 shall be filed on or beforeMarch 1, 2027. Each subsequent annual report shall include results for the applicable reporting period consistent with the reporting requirements enumerated below and shall provide conclusions and recommendations with respect to the Council’s objectives for the DER Program. An annual report for each succeeding calendar year of the DER Program shall be filed no later than March1

c. Allquarterly and annual reports shall include the following information:

•number of residential non-LMI, LMI, and commercial participants;

•factors influencing enrollment rates;

•grid locations and any related gridissues (including interconnectiondelays);

•number of events each month;

•number of participants per event and average kW per event;

•funds expended for upfront incentives and ongoing incentives for residential non-LMI, LMI, and commercial participants compared to budgeted amounts;

•funds expended for ongoing incentives from residential and commercial participants, forcontinued participation in DER Program;

•administrative costs for ENO, the third-party incentive administrator and the program implementer compared to budget;

•any reported issues with customers or participants, including incentive disbursement;

•recommendations for adjustments to better accomplish the goals of the DER Program (annual report only).

THEFOREGOING RESOLUTION WASREAD IN FULL, THEROLL WAS CALLED ON THE ADOPTION THEREOF ANDRESULTED AS FOLLOWS:

YEAS: Giarrusso,King,Moreno, Morrell, Thomas -5

NAYS: 0 ABSENT:Green,Harris-2 AND THE RESOLUTION WASADOPTED. NO. R-25-670 BY:COUNCILMEMBERS MORRELL, MORENOAND GIARRUSSO ARESOLUTION requesting the Department of Public Works, Department of Finance, andthe ChiefAdministrative Officer to take allnecessary steps to halt allwork on Joint InfrastructureRecovery Request projects as of December 31, 2025 andhaltpayments for anywork completedafterthe December 31st deadline andtonotify allcontractors performingundera JIRR contract of these actions andthatany work performed underaJIRR contract in 2026 shall be at the contractor’sown risk unless anduntil the City receives afunding extension from the federal government. WHEREAS, the City of NewOrleansestablished the Joint Infrastructure Recovery Request (“JIRR”) Programnearly20years ago, fundedbymore than$2billion in FEMA funds awarded to the City afterHurricaneKatrina to address roadway andinfrastructures damaged in the storm; and WHEREAS, the City’saccesstothe JIRR funding expiresonDecember 31, 2025; and WHEREAS, an extension request for continuedfunding until December 1, 2028 is still pending anditisunclear if or whenFEMA will approve the extension; and WHEREAS, without accesstoFEMA funding, allcosts incurredbyJIRR projects afterDecember 31st will have to be paid out of the City’sGeneral Fund; and WHEREAS, the City is facing serious andprofound financialcircumstances, with abudgetdeficitof$160 million andinsufficientcash reserves to meet the City’sweeklypayroll obligations; and WHEREAS, the budgetary crisis forced the City to seek aRevenue Anticipation Note (“RAN”) of $125 million to fund its payroll obligations, whichcomeswith significant financialconstraints thatare legally binding upon the City; and

WHEREAS, the City’scompliancewith the RAN terms is monitored by the Louisiana Legislative Auditor anda failureofthe City to adhereto the terms mayresult in the Auditor restricting the City’saccesstothe RAN proceeds, resulting in City employees will not be paid, among other severe financialconsequences for the citizensofNew Orleans; and WHEREAS, the RAN agreementrestrainsthe City from paying for JIRR projects without accesstoFEMA reimbursement dollars, andsuchan expenditurejeopardizes the City’sability to accessRAN funds; and WHEREAS, the Legislative Auditor recommends the City pause all contractstiedtoongoing andfutureJIRR projects until it is certainFEMA will reimburse the work; and

WHEREAS, disregarding the terms of the RAN agreementand the Legislative Auditor’sadvice, Mayor LaToya Cantrellstatedthatshe “will not engage in anycontract suspensions or terminations” andinstead is relying on “hope”thatFEMA will grant the extension beforeits expiration at the endofthis month; and WHEREAS, the Mayor maintains thatany pause to JIRR projects“will need to be made by the MorenoAdministration at noon on January 12th” notwithstanding the earliercommitment to eithersuspend or stop work; and WHEREAS, the Legislative Auditor worries thatinthe 12-daygap between January 1st andMoreno’sswearing-in, moneywill be pulled from the General Fund to pay for JIRR projects—even afterthe City laid-off employees andslashed spending in its 2026 budget andnotwithstanding the terms of the RAN,towhichthe City is aparty; and WHEREAS, the Council firmlyagrees with Legislative Auditor Michael Waguespack’sstatement that“Every dollar needs to be saved right now andwecan’t go out of pocket”; and WHEREAS, the continuation of JIRR projectswithout FEMA funding will have serious anddirect impactsonresidents andCity employees andthe vital services theyprovide, including but not limitedtoadditional furloughs andlayoffs; and WHEREAS, the Council strongly condemns the decision of the Cantrell Administration to continue JIRR projectswithout an extension of FEMA funding; and WHEREAS, should acontractor elect to continue work undera JIRR contract afterDecember 31, 2025, thatcontractor performs the workat its own risk as the Council andthe Mayor-Elect will not allocatefunding to pay anycosts incurredin2026 unless anduntil FEMA grants afunding extension; NOW THEREFORE

BE IT RESOLVED BY THE COUNCILOFTHE CITY OF NEWORLEANS, That the NewOrleansCity Council requests the ChiefAdministrative Officer to direct andthe Department of Public Works to issue notices to suspend or stop workfor allJIRR contractseffective January 1, 2026. BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, Thatthe City Council requests the Department of Financetonot issue payment for anywork occurringunder aJIRR contract on or afterJanuary 1, 2026.

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, Thatthe City Council assertsthatany contractor performing workundera JIRR contract on or afterJanuary 1, 2026 does so at its own risk andshould not expect costs incurred in 2026 to be reimbursedbythe City if the City does not receive an extension from FEMA.

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, Thatthe Clerk of Council transmit certified copies of this resolution to Mayor LaToya Cantrell, ChiefAdministrative Officer Joseph Threat,Deputy CAO for InfrastructureLaNitrahHasan Director of Department of Public Works Rick Hathaway, andDirector of Finance Romy Samuel. THE FOREGOING RESOLUTION WASREADINFULL, THE ROLL WASCALLEDONTHE ADOPTION THEREOF,THE RESULT WASAS FOLLOWS: YEAS: Giarrusso, King, Moreno, Morrell, Thomas-5 NAYS: 0 ABSENT:Green,Harris- 2 RECUSED: 0 AND THE RESOLUTION WASADOPTED ORDINANCE ON FIRST READING CAL. NO. 35,325 -BY: COUNCILMEMBER GREEN (BY REQUEST) -AN ORDINANCE to authorizethe Mayor of the City of NewOrleanstoenter into an agreementtogranta servitude to an adjacentproperty owner for encroachments on/overportions of public right-of-way located at the municipal address 1544 Gentilly Boulevard;to fixthe minimum priceand terms of said servitude agreement; to declarethatsuchuse as granted in the servitude agreementwill incorporate space thatisneitherneeded for public purposes nor shall such use interferewith the use of the public right-of-way; to set forth the reasons for said servitude agreement; and otherwise to provide with respect thereto.

THE FOREGOING ORDINANCE WASLAID OVER AS REQUIRED BY LAW.

Therebeing no furtherbusiness, on motion of CouncilmemberGiarrusso, seconded by CouncilmemberMorrell, andwithout objection, the Council meeting adjournedat2:11P.M.

LORAW.JOHNSON CLERK OF COUNCIL DM/jmr NOCP 8885

NO:856-553

U.S. BANK TRUSTCOM‐PANY,NATIONAL ASSOCIATION, AS TRUSTEE, AS SUCCESSOR-ININTEREST TO U.S. BANK NA‐TIONAL ASSOCI‐ATION, AS TRUSTEE, FOR RESIDENTIAL ASSETSECURI‐TIES CORPORA‐TION,HOME EQUITY MORT‐GAGE ASSETBACKED PASSTHROUGHCER‐TIFICATES, SE‐RIES 2005-EMX2 VS THEUNOPENED SUCCESSION OF FRANCISJONES BUTTON,III Byvirtueofand inobedience to a Writ of SEIZURE AND SALEfromthe 24thJudicial DistrictCourt, ParishofJeffer‐son,State of Louisiana,inthe above num‐bered andenti‐tledcause, dated August 7, 2025, Ihave seizedand will proceed to sell tothe highest bidderatpublic auction,atthe Jefferson Parish Sheriff'sOfﬁce Complex,1233 WestbankEx‐pressway, Har‐vey,Louisiana, 70058, on March 25, 2026 at 10 o'clock a.m. the following de‐scribed prop‐ertytowit:

Square No.24of ValleyRealty Company Subdi‐vision, bounded by Farrington Drive, Thir‐teenth Street, MansonDrive and Twelfth Street,desig‐nated by theNumberTwo Hundred and Eightyona sur‐vey made by Alvin H. Hotard, Civil Engineer,dated January 11, 1957, acopyof which is an‐nexed to ven‐dor's setof purchase,and, according to which,saidlot commences at a distanceofone hundred feet from the cornerofThir‐teenth Street and Farrington Drive,and mea‐sures thence ﬁftyfeet front onFarrington Drive,by a depth between equal andparal‐lel linesofone hundredand ten feet.The im‐provements thereonbear the Municipal No. 1236 Farrington Drive.

This sale is sub‐jecttoall supe‐riorsecurityin‐terests,mort‐gages,liens and privileges.

TERMS- Thefull purchaseprice isdue at the timeofthe sale

TheNew Orleans Advocate: February 13, 2026, March20, 2026 Feb13-mar20-2t $98

STATEOF LOUISIANA NO:859-145

Byvirtueofand inobedience to a Writ of FIERI FACIASfromthe 24thJudicial DistrictCourt, ParishofJeffer‐son,State of Louisiana,inthe above num‐bered andenti‐tledcause dated Decem‐ber 4, 2025, I haveseizedand willproceed to selltothe high‐est bidder at publicauction atthe Jefferson ParishSheriff's Ofﬁce Complex, 1233 Westbank Expressway, Harvey Louisiana, 70058, on March 25, 2026 at 10 o'clock a.m. the following de‐scribed prop‐ertytowit: UNIT 306 OF THE 1161 LAKE CON‐DOMINIUMS more particu‐larly described as follows, to-wit: Acertain con‐dominiumunit, located in Jef‐fersonParish, Louisiana in 1161 Lake Condominiums (previouslyPey‐ton Place, A Condominium), I,

ONECERTAIN LOT OF GROUND, together with all thebuildings and improve‐ments thereon, andall the rights,ways, privileges, servitudes and advantages thereunto belongingorin anywise apper‐taining,situated inthe Parish of Jefferson,State of Louisiana, in

NOTE:All funds mustbe Cashier's Check, Certiﬁed Check, Money Order, or PersonalCheck withBankLetter ofCredit.

EMILYA MUELLER Attorney for Plaintiff JOSEPH P. LOPINTO, III Sheriff Parish of Jefferson

1161 LAKE CON‐DOMINIUM AS‐SOCIATION, INC. VERSUS DR.MARIA CORTEZ

which wascre‐atedbya condominium declaration datedAugust 21, 1979, recordedinJef‐fersonParish, Louisiana, in COB 965, folio 210, on Septem‐ber 5, 1979, and amended April 15, 1980, which amendment wasrecordedin the Parish of Jefferson on April 15, 1980, in COB979, folio 999, 1161 Lake Condominium (previouslyPey‐ton Place, A Condominium), is situated in all ofSquare86of Metairieville, Jefferson Parish Louisiana; sub‐jecttorestric‐tions,servi‐tudes,rightsof way andout‐standingmin‐eral rights of record affectingthe property.

Improvements bear aMunici‐pal Number 1161 Lake Av‐enue,No. 306, Metairie, LA 70005.

This sale is sub‐jecttoall supe‐riorsecurityin‐terests,mort‐gages,liens and privileges.

TERMS- Thefull purchaseprice isdue at the timeofthe sale

NOTE:All funds mustbe Cashier's Check, Certiﬁed Check, Money Order, or PersonalCheck withBankLetter ofCredit.

DAVIDS.FOS Attorney for Plaintiff

JOSEPH P. LOPINTO, III Sheriff Parish of Jefferson TheNew

is recorded and evidence of recordation is submitted to the City Planning Commission. If the development plan is not approved and recorded, within the timeframes provided in the Comprehensive Zoning Ordinance, then this Ordinance shall be null and void with no legal force or binding effect. Furthermore, if the requirements of Section 4.3.H.1 of the Comprehensive Zoning Ordinance arenot satisfied within the timeframe allotted by Sections 4.3.H.1 and 4.3.H.2of the Comprehensive Zoning Ordinance, the conditional use will expire, and this Ordinance will be null and void.

ADOPTED BY THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF NEWORLEANS

DECEMBER 18, 2025

JP MORRELL

PRESIDENT OF THE COUNCIL

DELIVERED TO THE MAYOR ON DECEMBER19, 2025

APPROVED: DECEMBER 23, 2025

LaTOYACANTRELL

MAYOR

RETURNED BY THE MAYOR ON DECEMBER29, 2025 AT 4:55 P.M.

LORA W. JOHNSON

CLERK OF COUNCIL ROLL CALL VOTE:

YEAS: Giarrusso, Green,Harris,King, Moreno, Morrell, Thomas -7

NAYS: 0

ABSENT:0

RECUSED: 0 **Copies of the attachment may be seen in full in the Clerk of Council’s Office, 1300 Perdido Street, Room 1E09, City Hall.

ORDINANCE

CITY OF NEW ORLEANS

CITY HALL: November 20, 2025

CALENDARNO. 35,316

NO. 30547 MAYOR COUNCIL SERIES BY:COUNCILMEMBER HARRIS (BY REQUEST)

AN ORDINANCE to authorizethe Mayor of the City of New Orleans to enter into Amendment No.2toa previously executed Cooperative Endeavor Agreement (CEA) between the City of New Orleans (“City”), and Volunteers of America Southeast Louisiana, Inc., relative to public purpose of providing medical respite to unhoused individuals in New Orleans by managing and reserving four (4) respite beds to provide respite caretothe unhoused population in New Orleans, desiretomodify the provisions of the CEA and extend the term thereof for an additional 12 months as more fully set forth in the Amendment No. 2form attached hereto as Exhibit “A” and made apart hereof; and otherwise to provide with respect thereto. WHEREAS, pursuant to the authority contained in Article 7, Section 14(C) of the LouisianaConstitution of 1974, and statutory authority supplemental thereto, the State of Louisiana and its political subdivisions, including the City,may enterinto cooperative endeavors with each other or with any public or private corporation or individual; and further pursuant to Section 9-314 of the HomeRule Charter of the City of New Orleans, the City may enter into cooperative endeavors with any public or private association, corporation, or individual for activities in support of economic growth and other public purposes; and WHEREAS, the City and Volunteers of America Southeast Louisiana, Inc. desiretomodify the provisions of and extend the term thereof for an additional 12 months to the previously executed CEA between the City and Volunteers of America Southeast Louisiana, Inc. relative to the valued public purpose of providing medical respite to unhoused individuals in New Orleans by managing and reserving four (4) respite beds to provide respite caretothe unhoused population in the City of New Orleans; and WHEREAS, the City and Volunteers of America Southeast Louisiana, Inc. desiretoenter into this Amendment No. 2toprovide for medical respite to unhoused individuals and to set forth certain other matters in connection therewith; NOW THEREFORE

SECTION I. THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF NEW ORLEANS HEREBY

ORDAINS, That the Mayor,onbehalf of the City of New Orleans, is hereby authorized to enter into Amendment No. 2tothe Cooperative Endeavor Agreement, in the form attached hereto as Exhibit “A”, to the previously executed CEA between the City of New Orleans and Volunteers of America Southeast Louisiana, Inc. to modify the provisions of and extend the term thereof for an additional 12 months to the previously executed CEA relative to the valued public purpose of prov ding medical respite to unhoused individuals in New Orleans by managing and reserving four (4) respite beds to provide respite caretothe unhoused population in the City of New Orleans.

SECTION 2. That said Amendment No. 2tothe Cooperative Endeavor Agreement is attached to this ordinance as “Exhibit A” and incorporated and made apart hereof.

ADOPTED BY THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF NEWORLEANS DECEMBER 18, 2025

JP MORRELL PRESIDENT OF THE COUNCIL

DELIVERED TO THE MAYOR ON DECEMBER19, 2025

APPROVED: DECEMBER 23, 2025 LaTOYACANTRELL

MAYOR

RETURNED BY THE MAYOR ON DECEMBER29, 2025 AT 4:55 P.M.

LORA W. JOHNSON

CLERK OF COUNCIL

ROLL CALL VOTE:

YEAS: Green, Harris, King, Moreno, Thomas -5

NAYS: 0 ABSENT:Giarrusso, Morrell -2

RECUSED: 0 **Copies of the attachment may be seen in full in the Clerk of Council’s Office, 1300 Perdido Street, Room 1E09, City Hall.

ORDINANCE CITY OF NEW ORLEANS CITY HALL: December 4, 2025

CALENDAR NO. 35,321 NO. 30548 MAYOR COUNCIL SERIES BY:COUNCILMEMBER HARRIS (BY REQUEST) AN ORDINANCE to authorize the Mayor of the City of New Orleans to enter into Amendment No. 1toa previously executed Cooperative Endeavor Agreement (“CEA”)

City’sHealthcarefor the Homeless program, desiretomodify the provisions of the CEA and extend the term thereof for an additional 5years, as morefully set forth in the Amendment No. 1inthe form attached hereto as Exhibit “A” and made apart hereof;

growth and other publicpurposes; and WHEREAS, the City and HealthCarefor the Homeless Advisory Board, represented by Antoinette Joiner,Chairperson, desires to modifythe provisions of and extend the term thereof for an additional 5years of a cooperative endeavor agreement in support of the City’s Healthcarefor the Homeless program in the City of NewOrleans; and WHEREAS, the City and HealthCarefor the Homeless Advisory Board, represented by Antoinette Joiner,Chairperson, desiretoenter this Amendment No.1 to the CEAinsupport of the City’s Healthcarefor the Homeless program and to set forth certain other matters in connection therewith; NOW THEREFORE

SECTION I. THECOUNCIL OF THECITY OF NEWORLEANSHEREBY

ORDAINS, That the Mayor,onbehalfofthe City of NewOrleans, is hereby authorizedtoenter into Amendment No.1tothe Cooperative Endeavor Agreement, in the form attached hereto as Exhibit“A”,tothe previously executed Cooperative Endeavor Agreement between the City of New Orleans and HealthCarefor the Homeless Advisory Board, represented by Antoinette Joiner,Chairperson to modifythe provisions of the CEA and extend the term thereof for an additional 5years to the previously executed CEArelative to the valued public purpose to support the City’s Healthcarefor the Homeless program in the City of NewOrleans.

SECTION 2. That said Amendment No.1 to the Cooperative Endeavor Agreement is attached to this ordinance as “ExhibitA”and incorporated and made apart hereof.

ADOPTED BY THECOUNCIL OF THECITY OF NEWORLEANS

DECEMBER 18, 2025

JP MORRELL

PRESIDENTOFTHE COUNCIL

DELIVERED TO THEMAYOR ON DECEMBER 19, 202

APPROVED: DECEMBER 23, 2025

LaTOYACANTRELL

MAYOR

RETURNED BY THEMAYOR ON DECEMBER 29, 2025 AT 4:55 P.M.

LORA W. JOHNSON

CLERK OF COUNCIL

ROLL CALL VOTE:

YEAS: Green, Harris, King, Moreno, Thomas -5

NAYS: 0

ABSENT: Giarrusso, Morrell -2

RECUSED: 0 **Copies of the attachment may be seen in full in the Clerk of Council’s Office, 1300 Perdido Street, Room 1E09, City Hall.

ORDINANCE

CITYOFNEW ORLEANS

CITYHALL: December 4, 2025

CALENDAR NO.35,322

NO.30549 MAYOR COUNCIL SERIES

BY:COUNCILMEMBER KING AN ORDINANCE to provide for the designation of public propertywithin a specified area of the City of NewOrleans as atemporary “Special Event Clean Zone” during the timeperiod beginning at 6:00 a.m., Monday April 13, 2026, and ending at 6:00 p.m., Monday,April 20, 2026, relative to the use of these public areas in conjunction with the 2026 French Quarter Festival (FQF) ANDduring the timeperiod beginning at 6:00 a.m., Monday,July 27, 2026, and ending at 6:00 p.m., Monday,August 3, 2026, relative to the use of these areas in conjunction with the 2026 Satchmo SummerFest (SSF),(“the Effective Period”) and related activities and events produced by French Quarter Festivals, Incorporated (FQFI); to provide for the temporary prohibition of certain commercial activities in the Special Event Clean Zone unless approved, sanctioned or authorized by the City or as set forth in “Sponsor’s” (as defined, below) special event permit, if and as applicable; to provide for the establishment of one or morepublic participation areas; to provide for the establishment of fines and penalties for violations of this ordinance; to establish the Special Event Clean Zone within the area bounded by the area generally bounded by the east bank of the Mississippi River,Orange Street, Tchoupitoulas Street, Calliope Street, RampartStreet, and Esplanade Avenue, including WoldenbergRiverfront Park, Spanish Plaza, Louis ArmstrongPark, Crescent Park, the Louisiana StateMuseum’sNew Orleans JazzMuseum at the Mint, Governor Nicholls Wharf Parkand the airspace above the specified boundaries; and otherwise to provide with respect thereto.

WHEREAS, the City of NewOrleans is hosting the 2026 French Quarter Festival (FQF) and 2026 Satchmo SummerFest (SSF) and related activities, collectivelydefined as the (“Event”), presented by French Quarter FestivalsInc. (“Sponsor”)

WHEREAS, the dates of the Event arescheduled to occur on April 16,2026, through April 19, 2026 for the 2026 French Quarter Festival (FQF);and as August 1, 2026 and August 2, 2026 for the 2026 Satchmo SummerFest (SSF);and WHEREAS, the Event will attract thousands of visitors and participants to theCity of NewOrleans and provide the city with national exposure; and WHEREAS, the Event will have atremendous positive economic impact on the City of NewOrleans and the StateofLouisiana; and WHEREAS, given the thousands of residents, participants, and visitors who willbeinattendance, it is necessary that certainpublic areas surrounding events related to the Event be regulated and controlledto provide for the health, safety,and welfareofall residents, participants, andvisitors; and WHEREAS, the sale or distribution of merchandise and commercial goods or wares on publicproperty in proximity to Event will exacerbate congestion, potentially lead to public safety hazards, and hinder security operations; and WHEREAS, the City desires to prevent the sale, offer for sale, or distribution of counterfeit, infringing, or otherwise illegal merchandise to residents, visitors, and participants within the Clean Zone; and WHEREAS, the proper regulation of the flow of peopleand goods on publicproperty willensurethat all that the Event eventshave to offer may be safelyenjoyed by all; and WHEREAS, to that end, it is necessary to establish aClean Zone in the area within the City whereEvent activities arescheduled to occur during the “Effective Period” and within the specified boundaries designated in this ordinance; NOWTHEREFORE

SECTION 1. THECOUNCIL OF THECITY OF NEWORLEANSHEREBY ORDAINS, That thereishereby established a“Special Event Clean Zone” consisting of all publicproperty located within the area bounded by the east bank of the Mississippi River,Orange Street, Tchoupitoulas Street, Calliope Street, RampartStreet, and Esplanade Avenue, including WoldenbergRiverfront Park, Spanish Plaza, Louis ArmstrongPark, Crescent Park, the Louisiana StateMuseum’sNew Orleans JazzMuseum at the Mint, and the airspace above the specified boundaries. The Special Event Clean Zone Area does not include private property, except as otherwise expressly provided herein.

SECTION 2. The Special Event Clean Zone shallcommence at 6:00 a.m., Monday,April 13, 2026, and continue through and until 6:00 p.m., Monday April 20, 2026, relative to the use of these public areas in conjunction with the 2026 French Quarter Festival (FQF) ANDduring the timeperiod beginning at 6:00 a.m., Monday,July 27, 2026, and continue through and until 6:00 p.m., Monday,August 3, 2026, for the use of these areas in conjunction with the 2026 Satchmo SummerFest (SSF),(the “Effective Period”), and related activities produced by French Quarter Festivals, Incorporated (Sponsor).

SECTION 3. The following activities conducted by any person or entity within the Clean Zone Area, except for those approved, sanctioned or authorized by the City, shall be regulated as follows during the Effective Period: a. The construction, placement, occupation, or use of any temporary structureorenclosureofany kind shall be prohibited, including but not limited to tents, canopies, and air-supported, air-inflated, and tensioned membranes except for those sanctioned or authorized by the City or as setforth in Sponsor’s special event permit.

b. Unless expressly permitted by the City,commercial activity and transactions shall be prohibited upon all public streets, sidewalks, or rights of way.This prohibition shall not apply to the following:

1. the commercial operation of permitted taxicabs, rideshares, limousines, charter buses, pedicabs, or similar permitted conveyances on public streets; 2. the continuation of ordinary business operations withinanexisting, permitted parklet attached to arestaurant or bar and/or currently permittedsidewalkuse, provided that (i) no holder of aparklet or sidewalk usepermitmay assign the rights to operate aparklet or sidewalkuse to any thirdparty during the Effective Period, and (ii) no advertising of any kind may be installed within or adjacent to aparklet or as part of a sidewalk use except as part of apermitted Aframesign; 3. ordinary vehicular usage of public streets; 4. ordinary pedestrian usage of streets and sidewalks to access private property and businesses;

SECTION

andthe economic benefits that flow to the City from the Event. The provisions of this ordinance shall constitute prohibitory laws and, as such, may be enjoined without the requisite showing of irreparableharm.Inaddition to anyother available remedy,the provisions hereof may be enforced by injunctive relief.

SECTION 9. That, if anyofthe provisions of this ordinance arefor any reasonheldtobeunconstitutional or invalid by acourt of competent jurisdiction, such holding shall not affect the validity of the remaining portions, andthoseremaining portions shall be andremaininfull force andeffect

ADOPTED BY THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF NEWORLEANS DECEMBER 18, 2025

JP MORRELL

PRESIDENT OF THE COUNCIL DELIVERED TO THE MAYOR ON DECEMBER 19, 2025 APPROVED: DECEMBER 23, 2025

LaTOYACANTRELL MAYOR RETURNED BY THE MAYOR ON DECEMBER 29, 2025 AT 4:55 P.M. LORAW.JOHNSON CLERK OF COUNCIL

ROLLCALL VOTE: YEAS: Giarrusso, King, Moreno, Morrell, Thomas -5

NAYS: 0 ABSENT:Green,Harris- 2

RECUSED: 0 **Copies of the attachmentmay be seen in full in the Clerk of Council’s Office, 1300 Perdido Street,Room 1E09, City Hall.

ORDINANCE

CITY OF NEWORLEANS CITY HALL: December 4, 2025 CALENDAR NO. 35324 NO. 30550 MAYOR COUNCIL SERIES BY:COUNCILMEMBERS GIARRUSSO, MORRELL, MORENO, HARRIS, KING, GREEN AND THOMAS AN ORDINANCE to respond to the currentbudgetchallengesfacing the City of NewOrleansthrough atemporary prohibition on spending anyfunds received from the Sewerage &Water BoardofNew Orleans (“SWBNO”), American RescuePlanAct (“ARPA”), Council of the City of New Orleansv.Edward Wisner Donation,etal.,Case No. 2022-06765 Civil District Court for the Parish of Orleans (“Wisner litigation”), or any other newsources of revenue; andotherwise to provide with respect thereto.

SECTION 1. THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF NEWORLEANSHEREBY ORDAINS, That, beginning on the date this ordinance becomes effective andcontinuinguntil January 12, 2026, no city department nor division, including but not limitedtothe Department of Finance, Bureau of Revenue or the ChiefAdministrative Office, shall spend anycurrentfunds held by the City or newfunds received from the SWBNO, the Wisner litigation, anyproceeds or interest accruing therefrom, or anyotherrevenue sources recognized by the NewOrleansCity Council on December 1, 2025. SECTION 2. THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF NEWORLEANSHERBY ORDAINS, That the Clerk of Council shall provide copies of this ordinance to the ChiefAdministrative Officer ADOPTED BY THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF NEWORLEANS DECEMBER 18, 2025 JP MORRELL PRESIDENT OF THE COUNCIL DELIVERED TO THE MAYOR ON DECEMBER 19, 2025

APPROVED: DISAPPROVED: MAYOR RETURNED BY THE MAYOR ON DECEMBER 29, 2025 AT 4:50 PM

LORAW.JOHNSON CLERK OF COUNCIL ROLLCALL VOTE: YEAS: Giarrusso, King, Moreno, Morrell, Thomas-5 NAYS: 0 ABSENT:Green,Harris- 2

RECUSED: 0 THIS IS TO CERTIFY THATTHE ABOVEORDINANCE VETOED BY THE MAYOR WASRETURNED TO THE CLERK OF COUNCIL AND AT THE COUNCIL’SNEXT REGULAR MEETINGOFJANUARY08, 2026, THE COUNCILVOTED 7YEASAND 0 NAYS TO OVERRULE THE MAYOR’S VETO. NOCP 8886

Orleans Advocate: February 13, 2026, March20, 2026

Feb13-mar20-2t

depth of one hundred ﬁftyseven and thirty-eight hundredths (157.38’)feet on both side lines; all accordingto sketch of survey by John E. Walker, CivilEngineer, datedNovem‐ber30, 1971 a copy of which is annexedtoan actpassedbe‐fore HelenC Manale,Notary Public,dated December 20, 1971,for ref‐erence

This sale is sub‐ject to allsupe‐rior security in‐terests, mort‐gages, liensand privileges.

TERMS- Thefull purchase price is dueatthe time of thesale.

NOTE:All funds must be Cashier'sCheck, Certiﬁed Check, MoneyOrder,or Personal Check with Bank Letter of Credit

DENNISWIG‐GINS,JR. Attorney for Plaintiff

JOSEPH P. LOPINTO, III Sheriff Parish of Jefferson

TheNew Orleans Advocate: February 13, 2026, March20, 2026 Feb13-mar20-2t

in accordance with aplanof subdivisionby J.J. Krebs& Sons, Inc.,dated Feb‐ruary24, 1982 approved by Or‐dinanceNo. 15100, registered in Cob1024, Folio 275, as amendedby that plan of re‐subdivisionby J.J. Krebs& Sons Inc.,CE& S, datedMay 11, 1982, approved by theJefferson Parish CouncilbyOrdi‐nanceNo. 15201, registeredin Cob1028, Folio 726, under Entry No 1021497, accord‐ingtowhich plan,saidlot is describedas follows:

By virtue of and in obedienceto aWritof SEIZUREAND

SALE from the 24thJudicial District Court, Parish of Jeffer‐son, Stateof Louisiana, in the abovenum‐beredand enti‐tled cause, datedJuly9, 2025, Ihave seized andwill proceed to sell to thehighest bidder at public auction, at the JeffersonParish Sheriff'sOfﬁce Complex, 1233 Westbank Ex‐pressway,Har‐vey, Louisiana, 70058, on March 25, 2026 at 10 o'clocka.m.the followingde‐scribedprop‐erty to wit:

Onecertain lot of ground,to‐gether with all thebuildings andimprove‐mentsthereon andall the rights,ways, privileges, servitudes,ad‐vantages and appurtenances, thereuntobe‐longingorin anywiseapper‐taining, being situated in the Parish of Jefferson, State of Louisiana, in that part thereofknown as Pontchar‐trainGardens Subdivision, in Unit 2, Section C, Square 24, bounded by KawaneeAv‐enue,Harvard Avenue,Jasper Street andLime Street,which said lotof ground is desig‐natedbythe number30, commences at a sidtance of two hundred ten andnohun‐dredths (210.00’)feet from thecorner of KawaneeAv‐enue andHar‐vard Avenue, and measures thence ﬁftyand no hundredths (50’)feet front on KawaneeAv‐enue, the same width in therearby a

JUDICIAL ADVERTISE‐MENT 24THJUDICIAL DISTRICT COURT PARISH OF JEFFERSON STATEOF LOUISIANA NO:865-302 WELLSFARGO BANK,NA‐TIONAL ASSOCI‐ATION, AS TRUSTEE FOR STRUCTURED ASSETSECURI‐TIES CORPORA‐TION MORT‐GAGE LOAN TRUST 2007-OSI VERSUS MARY LOUISE BUTLER By virtue of and in obedienceto aWritof SEIZUREAND SALE from the 24thJudicial District Court, Parish of Jeffer‐son, Stateof Louisiana, in the abovenum‐beredand enti‐tled cause, datedMay 28, 2025, Ihave seized andwill proceedtosell to thehighest bidder at public auction, at the JeffersonParish Sheriff'sOfﬁce Complex, 1233 Westbank Ex‐pressway,Har‐vey, Louisiana, 70058, on March 25, 2026 at 10 o'clocka.m.the following de‐scribedprop‐erty to wit: ACERTAIN LOT OR PORTIONOF GROUND,to‐gether with all thebuildings and improvements thereonand all of therights, ways,privi‐leges, servi‐tudes, appurtenances andadvantages thereuntobe‐longingorin anywiseapper‐taining situated in the Parish of Jeffer‐son, Stateof Louisiana, in that part for‐merly designated as ParcelF,Or‐leansVillage CorporateTract aportion being resubdivided into Parcel F-1; said Parcel F-1 beingresubdi‐videdwith a portionof Parcel Einto Parcel F-1A;said Parcel F-1A,now beingknown as LINCOLNSHIRE SUBDIVISION, SECTIONIII (3),

LOT20A SQUARE 27 is bounded by Rue LouisPhillipe, Fernando Court, Gentry Road andCon‐stantine Drive, and commences at adistanceof 326.74 feet from the intersection of Gentry Road andConstantine Driveand mea‐suresthence40 feet frontonCon‐stantine Drive, same in width in therear, by a depth of 95 feet between equaland paral‐lellines.All in accordance with asurveyby Gilbert, Kelly & Couturie Inc.,dated July 29, 1988. This sale is sub‐ject to allsupe‐rior security in‐terests, mort‐gages, liensand privileges.

TERMS- Thefull purchase price is dueatthe time of thesale.

NOTE:All funds must be Cashier'sCheck Certiﬁed Check, MoneyOrder,or Personal Check with Bank Letter ofCredit.

EMILYA MUELLER Attorney for Plaintiff

JOSEPH P. LOPINTO, III Sheriff Parish of Jefferson TheNew Orleans Advocate: February 13, 2026, March20, 2026 Feb13-mar20-2t

JUDICIAL ADVERTISE‐MENT

24THJUDICIAL DISTRICT COURT PARISH OF JEFFERSON STATEOF LOUISIANA NO:866-485

PENNYMAC LOAN SERVICES, LLC VERSUS GINO MONACO

Acertain piece or portionof ground with all of thebuildings andimprove‐ments thereonand all of theservi‐

tudes, rights andappurte‐nances there‐untoapplying, situated in the Parish of Jeffer‐son, Stateof Louisiana, in that part thereofknown as Maplewood Park,Addition No.1,all as more fully shownonthe plan of subdivi‐sion made by Adloe Orr, Jr.and As‐sociates,C.E., datedJune6 1966, andap‐proved by theJefferson Parish Council on June 30, 1966 by Ordinance #7788, regis‐teredin COB640, folio 84 andaccording theretosaidlot is designated andmeasures as follows, to-wit:

LotThirteen (13) of Square Four (4), which said square is bounded by Marvin Court, Otis Street,(the extensionof Marvin Court) Maplewood Drive, the northerlylineof the subdivisionand thewesterly line of thesub‐division,Lot Thirteen (13) measures sixty feet (60’)front on Marvin Court, same width in the rear by adepth of eighty seven and33/100 (87.33’)feet be‐tween equal andparallel lines. Lot13lies nearer to and commences sevenhundred sixtyone and fortyfeet (761.40’)from thecornerof Otis Street (the ex‐tensionofMar‐vinCourt)and Maplewood Driveall as more fully shown on survey made by AdloeOrr, Jr andAssociates, C.E.,dated July 30, 1968 andon anothersurvey made by Adloe Orr, Jr.and As‐sociates dated November 6, 1968.

This sale is sub‐ject to allsupe‐rior security in‐terests, mort‐gages, liensand privileges.

TERMS- Thefull purchase price is dueatthe time of thesale.

NOTE:All funds must be Cashier's Check, Certiﬁed Check, MoneyOrder,or Personal Check with Bank Letter of Credit

COREYJ.GIROIR Attorney for Plaintiff

JOSEPH P. LOPINTO, III Sheriff Parish of Jefferson TheNew Orleans Advocate: February 13, 2026, March20, 2026 Feb13-mar20-2t

JUDICIAL ADVERTISE‐MENT

24THJUDICIAL DISTRICT COURT PARISH OF JEFFERSON STATEOF LOUISIANA NO:867-940

ROCKET MORT‐GAGE,LLC F/K/A QUICKEN LOANS, LLC VERSUS VENICE LORAINE HENDERSON By virtue of and in obedienceto aWritof SEIZUREAND SALE from the 24thJudicial District Court, Parish of Jeffer‐son, Stateof Louisiana, in the abovenum‐beredand enti‐

tled cause, datedAugust 20, 2025, Ihave seized andwill proceed to sell to thehighest bidder at public auction, at the JeffersonParish Sheriff'sOfﬁce Complex, 1233 Westbank Ex‐pressway,Har‐vey, Louisiana, 70058, on March 25, 2026 at 10 o'clocka.m.the followingde‐scribedprop‐erty to wit:

ONE(1) CERTAIN LOTORPARCEL OF GROUND,to‐gether with all thebuildings andimprove‐mentsthereon, situated in the Parish of Jeffer‐son, Stateof Louisiana, in that subdivision knownasPELI‐CANBAY,and beingdesig‐natedonthe Of‐ficial Plat of said subdivi‐sion,on file and of record in the office of the Clerkand Recorderofthe Parish of Jeffer‐son, Stateof Louisiana, as LOTNUMBER TWENTY, SQUARE THIRTEEN (2013),saidsubdi‐vision,saidlot having such size,shape and dimensions and beingsubject to such servitudes as areshown on said map; sub‐ject to restrictions servitudes, rights-of-way andoutstanding mineralrights of record affecting the property

Commonly KnownAs: 4809 Ames Boule‐vard,Marrero, LA 70072

This sale is sub‐ject to allsupe‐rior security in‐terests, mort‐gages, liensand privileges.

TERMS- Thefull purchase price is dueatthe time of thesale.

NOTE:All funds must be Cashier'sCheck Certiﬁed Check, MoneyOrder,or Personal Check with Bank Letter of Credit

CANDACEA COURTEAU Attorney for Plaintiff

JOSEPH P. LOPINTO, III Sheriff Parish of Jefferson

TheNew Orleans Advocate: February 13, 2026, March20, 2026 Feb13-mar20-2t

JUDICIAL ADVERTISE‐MENT

24THJUDICIAL DISTRICT COURT PARISH OF JEFFERSON STATEOF LOUISIANA NO:868-978

LAKEVIEW LOAN SERVICING, LLC VS JERRY WAYNE

CRAMER,JR. A/K/AJERRY W. CRAMER,JR. A/K/AJERRY CRAMER,JR. ANDNINA UZARRAGA CRAMER A/K/A NINA U. CRAMER A/K/A NINA CRAMER

Complex, 1233 Westbank Ex‐pressway,Har‐vey, Louisiana, 70058, on March 25, 2026 at 10 o'clocka.m.the followingde‐scribedprop‐erty to wit: Onecertain lot of ground,to‐gether with all thebuildings andimprove‐mentsthereon andall the rights,ways, privileges, servitudes,ap‐purtenances andadvantages thereuntobe‐longingorin anywiseapper‐taining, situ‐ated,lying and beinginthe Village of Mar‐rero,Parishof Jefferson, State of Louisiana, in that part thereofknow as LouisPark Subdivision, in accordance with aplanof survey made by AdloeOrr, Jr C.E.,dated March14, 1956, acopyofwhich said plan is on ﬁle in theofﬁce of theclerk of courtfor the Parish of Jeffer‐soninbook of plansno. 29, folio 2A; approved by the JeffersonParish Police Jury,ordi‐nanceno. 3128, adoptedApril 11, 1956; andac‐cordingtosaid plan said lotis designated as thewhole of lot number (27),inthe square bounded by Fifteenth and Sixteenth Streets, Mimosa Street,and Mimosa Canal; andaccording to said plan, said lotno. 27 measures sixty andno/100 (60.00’)feet frontonMimosa Street,the same width in the rear,bya depth between equaland paral‐lellines of one hundred three and81/100 (103.81) feet and according to survey by Wilson J. Dufrene, Land Surveyor,dated August 28, 1975, acopyof which is an‐nexedtoanact of mortgage be‐fore NatB Knight,Jr.,N.P datedOctober 3, 1975, entry no.676-873 said Lot27has the same dimen‐sionsand desig‐nationsas hereinaboveset forthwhich said Lot27has the same dimen‐sionsand desig‐nations as hereinabove setforth which said Lot27com‐mences at adis‐tanceof60feet from thecornerof Mimosa andFif‐teenth Streets, more fully shownonthe survey of Sterling Mandle, L.S.,dated Au‐gust 6, 1977. This sale is sub‐ject to allsupe‐rior security in‐terests, mort‐gages, liensand privileges

TERMS- Thefull purchase price is dueatthe time of thesale.

NOTE:All funds must be Cashier'sCheck Certiﬁed Check, MoneyOrder,or Personal Check with Bank Letter of Credit COREYJ.GIROIR

Attorney for Plaintiff

JOSEPH P. LOPINTO, III Sheriff Parish of Jefferson

TheNew Orleans Advocate: February 13, 2026, March20, 2026 Feb13-mar20-2t

JUDICIAL ADVERTISE‐MENT 24THJUDICIAL DISTRICT COURT PARISH OF JEFFERSON STATEOF LOUISIANA NO:868-078 FEDERALHOME LOAN MORT‐GAGE CORP VS MILDRED ROBERT DRESEL A/K/AMILDRED R. DRESEL A/K/A MILDRED DRESEL,HEIROF ALBERT W. DRESEL,JR. A/K/AALBERT DRESEL,JR. AND DIANNE KATHRYNBENE‐FIELDA/K/A DI‐ANNE K. BENE‐FIELDA/K/A DI‐ANNE BENEFIELD A/K/ADIANNE KATHRYNBENE‐FIELDDAWSON SURCOUFA/K/A DIANNE KATHRYNBENE‐FIELDDAWSON A/K/ADIANNE KATHRYNDAW‐SON A/K/ADIANNE K. DAWSON A/K/A DIANNE DAW‐SONA/K/A DI‐ANNE KATHRYN SURCOUFA/K/A DIANNE K. SUR‐COUF A/K/ADI‐ANNE SURCOUF A/K/ADIANNE BENEFIELDDAW‐SONA/K/A DI‐ANNE B. DAW‐SONA/K/A DI‐ANNE BENE‐FIELD SURCOUFA/K/A DIANNE B. SUR‐COUF

By virtue of and in obedienceto aWritof SEIZUREAND

SALE from the 24thJudicial District Court, Parish of Jeffer‐son, Stateof Louisiana, in the abovenum‐beredand enti‐tled cause, datedSeptem‐ber3,2025, I have seized and will proceed to sell to thehigh‐estbidderat public auction, at theJefferson Parish Sheriff's Ofﬁce Complex, 1233 Westbank Expressway, Harvey, Louisiana, 70058, on March 25, 2026 at 10 o'clocka.m.the followingde‐scribedprop‐erty to wit: That certain portionof ground,to‐gether with all thebuildings andimprove‐ments thereon, allthe component partsthereof, andall of the rights,ways, privileges, servitudes,ap‐purtenances andadvantages thereuntobe‐longingtoorin anywise appertaining, situated in the Stateof Louisiana, Parish of Jeffer‐son,inthatpart knownasWood‐land Acres, des‐ignatedasLot 15-A, Square 14, which is bounded by West Metairie Avenue,Linden Street,Hodgson Street (side) (formerlyLinet), Lot15-A andthe west line of thesub‐division (side) andismore fullydescribed as follows: Beginningatthe intersection of thesoutherly right-of-way line of West Metairie Avenue andthe westerly rightof-way line of Linden Street, said intersec‐tion beingthe northeastcor‐nerofLot 15-A; Thence,go alongthe afore‐said westerly right-of-way line,in a southerlydirec‐tion,a distance of 38.76 feet to a pointatthe southeastcor‐nerofLot 15-A; Thence,turn

andgoin a westerly direc‐tion,a distance of 105.11 feet to apoint at the southwestcor‐nerofLot 15-A; thence,turnand go in anortherly direction, along the commonlineof Lots 15-Aand 15-B, adistance of 80.92 feet to a pointatthe northwestcor‐nerofLot 15-A, said pointison thesoutherly right-of-way line of West Metairie Av‐enue; Thence,turn andgoalong theaforesaid southerlyrightof-way line,in a southeasterly direction, adis‐tanceof113.25 feet to apoint at thenortheast corner of Lot15A, said corner being thepoint of be‐ginning.

The abovede‐scribedportion of ground con‐tains6289.80 square feet.All in accordance with aplanof survey by R. P. Fontcuberta, Jr., Registered Pro‐fessional Land Surveyor datedJune 20, 1991. Drawing No.BFM-14921.

This sale is sub‐ject to allsupe‐rior security in‐terests, mort‐gages, liensand privileges.

TERMS- Thefull purchase price is dueatthe time of thesale.

NOTE:All funds mustbe Cashier'sCheck, Certiﬁed Check, MoneyOrder,or Personal Check with Bank Letter of Credit COREYJ.GIROIR Attorney for Plaintiff

JOSEPH P. LOPINTO, III Sheriff Parish of Jefferson

TheNew Orleans Advocate: February 13, 2026, March20, 2026 Feb13-mar20-2t

JUDICIAL ADVERTISE‐MENT

24THJUDICIAL DISTRICT COURT PARISH OF JEFFERSON STATEOF LOUISIANA NO:868-914

NEWREZ LLC DBASHELL‐POINTMORT‐GAGE SERVIC‐ING VS BARBARADE‐NAIS SMITH By virtue of and in obedienceto aWritof SEIZUREAND SALE from the 24thJudicial District Court, Parish of Jeffer‐son, Stateof Louisiana, in the abovenum‐beredand enti‐tled cause, datedSeptem‐ber23, 2025, I have seized and will proceed to sell to thehigh‐estbidderat public auction, at theJefferson Parish Sheriff's Ofﬁce Complex, 1233 Westbank Expressway, Harvey, Louisiana, 70058, on March 25, 2026 at 10 o'clocka.m.the followingde‐scribedprop‐erty to wit: ALLTHATCER‐TAIN PIECEOR PARCEL OF LAND,together with allthe buildings andimprove‐mentsthereon, andall the rights,ways, privileges, servitudes, appurtenances andadvantages thereuntobe‐

longingorin anywiseapper‐taining, situated in the Parish of Jeffer‐son, Stateof Louisiana, in that part thereofknown as METAIRIEVILLE SUBDIVISION, in SQUARE 105, which square is bounded by West EsplanadeAv‐enue (late Dublin), Lake Avenue,Or‐pheumAvenue (lateOrleans) and Geneva Street (lateHickory), said portionof ground being designated as LOTV-2 on aplanofresub‐division made by Gilbert, Kelly &Couturie, Inc. datedOctober 30, 2004, approved by theJefferson Parish Planning Dept.onApril 4, 2005, registered in COB 3142, folio 920, in thecon‐veyancerecords of Jefferson Parish Louisiana, and accordingto which,saidLOT V-2commences at adistanceof 25.8.0feet from the corner of W. Es‐planadeAvenue (lateDublin) andOrpheum Avenue (lateOr‐leans), andmeasures thence 20.8.0 feet frontonOr‐pheumAvenue, thesamewidth in the rear,bya depth of 120 feet be‐tween qual and parallel lines. Said LotV-2 is composedof a portionoforigi‐nalLot V; sub‐ject to restric‐tions, servi‐tudes, rights-of-way andoutstanding mineralrights of record affect‐ingthe property Improvements thereonbear theMunicipal No.1502 Or‐pheumAvenue, Metairie, Louisiana70005. This sale is sub‐ject to allsupe‐rior security in‐terests, mort‐gages, liensand privileges.

TERMS- Thefull purchase price is due at the time of thesale.

NOTE:All funds must be Cashier'sCheck, Certiﬁed Check, MoneyOrder,or Personal Check with Bank Letter of Credit

BRIGHAMJ LUNDBERG Attorney for Plaintiff

JOSEPH P. LOPINTO, III Sheriff Parish of Jefferson TheNew Orleans Advocate: February 13, 2026, March20, 2026 Feb13-mar20-2t

JUDICIAL ADVERTISE‐MENT 24THJUDICIAL DISTRICT COURT PARISH OF JEFFERSON STATEOF LOUISIANA NO:871-084

FEDERALNA‐TIONAL MORT‐GAGE ASSOCIA‐TION VERSUS THEUNOPENED SUCCESSIONOF ROOSEVELT STERLING,JR (A/K/A ROOSEVELT STERLING) By virtue of and in obedienceto aWritof SEIZUREAND SALE from the 24thJudicial District Court, Parish of Jeffer‐son, Stateof Louisiana, in the abovenum‐

beredand enti‐tled cause, datedDecem‐ber16, 2025,I have seized and will proceed to sell to thehigh‐estbidderat public auction, at theJefferson Parish Sheriff's Ofﬁce Complex, 1233 Westbank Expressway, Harvey Louisiana, 70058, on March 25, 2026 at 10 o'clocka.m.the followingde‐scribedprop‐erty to wit:

ONECERTAIN LOTOFGROUND, together with allthe buildings andimprove‐ments thereon, situ‐ated in thetown of Westwego, Parish of Jeffer‐son, Stateof Louisiana, in that part thereofknowas

WESTWEGO HEIGHTSSUBDI‐VISION,and said lotis designated as LOTNO. 19-Aof SQUARE NO.20 of theWest‐wego Heights Subdivision, all in accordance with aplanof survey andre‐subdivisionof Wilton J. Dufrene, Sur‐veyor, dated Harvey Louisiana, March6,1979 ; theplanofsur‐veyand resubdivision wasapproved by theCity Westwego on June 11, 1979 by Ordinance No.837; LotNo. 19-AofSquare 20 of theWest‐wego Heights Subdivision measures seventy-ﬁve (75')feet front on CentralAv‐enue by the same widthin therearand by a depth between equaland paral‐lellines of one hundred sev‐enty-one (171') feet

This sale is sub‐ject to allsupe‐rior security in‐terests, mort‐gages, liensand privileges

TERMS- Thefull purchase price is dueatthe time of thesale.

NOTE:All funds must be Cashier'sCheck Certiﬁed Check, MoneyOrder,or Personal Check with Bank Letter of Credit

WILLIAMS TEBBE Attorney for Plaintiff

JOSEPH P. LOPINTO, III Sheriff Parish of Jefferson

TheNew Orleans Advocate: February 13, 2026, March20, 2026 Feb13-mar20-2t

beredand enti‐tled cause, datedNovem‐ber13, 2025, I have seized and will proceed to sell to thehigh‐estbidderat public auction, at theJefferson Parish Sheriff's Ofﬁce Complex, 1233Westbank Expressway, Harvey Louisiana, 70058,on March 25, 2026 at 10 o'clocka.m.the followingde‐scribedprop‐erty to wit: Allthatparcel of land in Vil‐lage of Marreo Jefferson Parish,State of Louisiana, as more fullyde‐scribedindeed book 2703,page 254, ID#49300, beingknown and designated as Lot10A,Block Sq.1,Hillcrest Ext.# 3, recorded 12/04/1978.

This sale is sub‐ject to allsupe‐rior security in‐terests, mort‐gages, liensand privileges

TERMS- Thefull purchase price is dueatthe time of thesale.

NOTE:All funds must be Cashier'sCheck, Certiﬁed Check, MoneyOrder,or Personal Check with Bank Letter of Credit

DENNISWIG‐GINS,JR. Attorney for Plaintiff

JOSEPH P. LOPINTO, III Sheriff Parish of Jefferson TheNew Orleans Advocate: February 13, 2026, March20, 2026 Feb13-mar20-2t

JUDICIAL ADVERTISE‐MENT

24THJUDICIAL DISTRICT COURT PARISH OF JEFFERSON STATEOF LOUISIANA NO:871-198 HIRAS,INC VERSUS PREMIERCON‐STRUCITON& MANAGMENT, L.L.C. By virtue of and in obedienceto aWritof SEIZUREAND SALE from the 24thJudicial District Court, Parish of Jeffer‐son, Stateof Louisiana, in the abovenum‐beredand enti‐tled cause, datedDecem‐ber12, 2025, I have seized and will proceed to sell to thehigh‐estbidderat public auction, at theJefferson Parish Sheriff's Ofﬁce Complex, 1233Westbank Expressway, Harvey Louisiana, 70058,onMarch 25, 2026 at 10 o'clocka.m.the followingde‐scribedprop‐erty to wit:

THAT CERTAIN PIECEORPOR‐TION OF GROUND,to‐gether with all thebuildings andimprove‐mentsthereon andall rights, ways,privi‐leges, servi‐tudes, appurtenances andadvantages thereuntobe‐longingorin anywiseapper‐taining, situated in the PARISH OF JEF‐FERSON,STATE OF LOUISIANA, FARM NO.15, SECTIONB, AMES SUBDIVI‐SION,inSQUARE 3ofMICHEL SUBDIVISION boundedby Carmadelle and Seventh Streets, Garden Road

and8th Street, designated as LOT1 which formsthe cor‐nerofCar‐madelleand 7th Streets, thence measures 50 feet fronton Carmadelle Street,same width in the rear,bya depth of 80 feet between equaland paral‐lellines,all as shownonsur‐veybyCharles V. Frey, datedJune 1, 1951.

Theimprove‐mentsthereon bear HouseNo. 701 Carmadelle Street;Marrero, Louisiana70072, which wasfor‐merly702 Car‐madelle.

This sale is sub‐ject to allsupe‐rior security in‐terests, mort‐gages, liensand privileges

TERMS- Thefull purchase price is dueatthe time of thesale.

NOTE:All funds must be Cashier'sCheck, Certiﬁed Check, MoneyOrder,or Personal Check with Bank Letter ofCredit.

KATILYNM HOLLOWELL Attorney for Plaintiff

JOSEPH P. LOPINTO, III Sheriff Parish of Jefferson

TheNew Orleans Advocate: February 13, 2026, March20, 2026 Feb13-mar20-2t

JUDICIAL ADVERTISE‐MENT

24THJUDICIAL DISTRICT COURT PARISH OF JEFFERSON STATEOF LOUISIANA

NO:871-208

WILMINGTON SAVINGSFUND SOCIETY, FSB, NOTINDIVIDU‐ALLY BUTSOLEY AS TRUSTEEFOR FINANCE OF AMERICA STRUCTURED SECURITIES ACQUISITION TRUST2018-HB1 VERSUS JESSIEDAY JACKSONA/K/A

JESSIED.JACK‐SONA/K/A JESSIEJACKSON A/K/A JESSIEL.JACK‐SONAND HENRY DAY

By virtue of and in obedienceto aWritof SEIZUREAND SALE from the 24thJudicial District Court, Parish of Jeffer‐son, Stateof Louisiana, in the abovenum‐beredand enti‐tled cause, datedDecem‐ber15, 2025, I have seized and will proceed to sell to thehigh‐estbidderat public auction, at theJefferson Parish Sheriff's Ofﬁce Complex, 1233 Westbank Expressway, Harvey Louisiana, 70058, on March 25, 2026 at 10 o'clocka.m.the followingde‐scribedprop‐erty to wit: Acertain piece or portionof ground,to‐gether with all thebuildings andimprove‐ments thereon, andall of therights, ways,privi‐leges, servi‐tudes, andap‐purtenances thereuntobe‐longingorin anywiseapper‐taining, situated in theParishof Jefferson, Stateof Louisiana, in that part desig‐natedasHarvey CanalSubdivi‐

sion,according to aplanofsubdi‐vision by Elbert G. Sandoz,C.E &Surveyor, datedSeptem‐ber19, 1927 revisedDe‐cember 21, 1927 which portionis designated as Lots 31 and32, Square 56, which lots ad‐joineachother andmeasure each 25 feet frontonEsther Avenue by a similarwidth in therear, by a depth of 120 feet between equaland parallel lines. Lot31com‐mences 200feet from thecorner of 38thStreet andEsther Avenue.Also beingmorepar‐ticularlyde‐scribedon a plan of survey made by Gilbert, Kelly &Cou‐turie, Inc.,Sur‐veying andEngi‐neeringdated October21, 1981, acopyof which is an‐nexedhereto.

This sale is sub‐ject to allsupe‐rior security in‐terests, mort‐gages, liensand privileges.

TERMS- Thefull purchase price is dueatthe time of thesale.

NOTE:All funds must be Cashier'sCheck, Certiﬁed Check, MoneyOrder,or Personal Check with Bank Letter of Credit DENNISWIG‐GINS,JR Attorney for Plaintiff JOSEPH P. LOPINTO, III Sheriff Parish of Jefferson TheNew Orleans Advocate: February 13, 2026, March20, 2026 Feb13-mar20-2t

JUDICIAL ADVERTISE‐MENT 24THJUDICIAL DISTRICT COURT PARISH OF JEFFERSON STATEOF LOUISIANA NO:864-214-"M

MIRYAM BERTRAN VERSUS KEVINM WILLIAMS CATHERINE HOLMES WILLIAMS, UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, U.S. SMALLBUSI‐NESS ADMINIS‐TRATION, STATE OF LOUISIANA AND STATEOF LOUISIANA, DI‐VISION OF AD‐MINSTRATION, OFFICE OF COM‐MUNITY DEVELOPMENT

By virtue of and in obedienceto aJUDGMENT from the24th Judicial District Court, Parish of Jefferson, State of Louisiana, in theabove num‐beredand enti‐tled cause, datedJanuary 12, 2026, Iwill offerfor sale to thehighest bid‐deratpublic auction, at the JeffersonParish Sheriff'sOfﬁce Complex, 1233 Westbank Ex‐pressway,Har‐vey, Louisiana, 70058, on March 25, 2026 at 10 o'clocka.m the followingde‐scribedprop‐erty to wit:

THAT CERTAIN PORTIONOF GROUND,to‐gether with all thebuildings and improvements thereon, andall of therights, ways,privi‐leges, servi‐tudes, appurtenances andadvantages thereuntobe‐

longingorin anywiseapper‐taining, situated in the Parish of Jeffer‐son, Stateof Louisiana, in that part thereofknown as GRETNA GAR‐DENS SUBDIVI‐SION,desig‐natedasLOT NO.3,of SQUARE 17; said Square bounded by Stafford, Twenty-First, Weyer, and Twentieth Streets; said Lot commences at a distance of 80 feet from the corner of Twen‐tiethStreet and Weyer Street,and measures thence 40 feet frontonTwenti‐ethStreet,same width in the rear,with a depth of 150 feet between equaland paral‐lellines.All in accordance with thesurveyof Mandle Survey‐ing, Inc.,dated August 5, 1981, resurveyed May 21, 1992.

Said measure‐mentsare more fullyshown on a plat of survey by DufreneSur‐veying & Engineering, Inc.,LandSur‐veyors,dated May21, 1996.

Improvements bear theMunici‐palNo. 910 20th Street,Gretna, Louisiana70053.

This sale is sub‐ject to allsupe‐rior security in‐terests, mort‐gages, liensand privileges.

TERMS- Thefull purchase price is dueatthe time of thesale.

NOTE:All funds must be Cashier'sCheck, Certiﬁed Check, MoneyOrder

WESLEY M. PLAISANCE Attorney for Plaintiff

JOSEPH P. LOPINTO, III Sheriff Parish of Jefferson

TheNew Orleans Advocate: February 13, 2026, March20, 2026 Feb13-mar20-2t

JUDICIAL ADVERTISE‐MENT 24THJUDICIAL DISTRICT COURT PARISH OF JEFFERSON STATEOF LOUISIANA NO:871-463 PENNYMAC LOAN SERVICES, LLC VERSUS ALVIND.OTT A/K/AALVIN DWAYNE OTT

By virtue of and in obedienceto aWritof SEIZUREAND SALE from the 24thJudicial District Court, Parish of Jeffer‐son, Stateof Louisiana, in the abovenum‐beredand enti‐tled cause, datedDecem‐ber22, 2025, I have seized and will proceed to sell to thehigh‐estbidderat public auction, at theJefferson Parish Sheriff's Ofﬁce Complex, 1233 Westbank Expressway, Harvey, Louisiana, 70058, on March 25, 2026 at 10 o'clocka.m.the followingde‐scribedprop‐erty to wit: ACERTAIN POR‐TION OF GROUND to‐gether with all thebuildingand improvements thereon, andall of therights, ways, privi‐l i

p leges, servi‐tudes, appurte‐nances and advantages thereuntobe‐longingorin anywiseapper‐tainingsituated in theCityof Westwego, Parish of Jeffer‐son, Louisiana, formingpartof theSala or Plan‐tation and accordingto a survey made by Hotard and Webb, C. E., datedFebruary 11, 1946, a copy of which is attached to an actofsale passedbefore C. A. Hotard, N.P.,dated March20, 1946, andaccording theretosaid placeorportion of ground is designated as LOTS "C" AND"D",and formsa portion of original Lots 51 and53, and commencesat a distance of one hundred twenty-five feet (125')fromthe corner of LarousiniStreet and fifteen foot roadway, the said lots adjoin each otherand thence measures each thirty two(32') feet fronton said fifteen feet roadway, same width in therear, by a depth between equaland paral‐lellines of one hundred twenty five feet; subjecttore‐strictions,servi‐tudes, rights-ofwayand out‐standing min‐eral rights of record affecting theproperty. Improvements thereonbear MunicipalNo. 117 Lane Street, Westwego, Louisiana 70094.

This sale is sub‐ject to allsupe‐rior security in‐terests, mort‐gages, liensand privileges

TERMS- Thefull purchase price is dueatthe time of thesale.

NOTE:All funds must be Cashier'sCheck Certiﬁed Check, MoneyOrder,or Personal Check with Bank Letter of Credit CANDACEA COURTEAU Attorney for Plaintiff JOSEPH P. LOPINTO, III Sheriff Parish of Jefferson TheNew Orleans Advocate: February 13, 2026, March20, 2026 Feb13-mar20-2t

JUDICIAL ADVERTISE‐MENT 24THJUDICIAL DISTRICT COURT PARISH OF JEFFERSON STATEOF LOUISIANA NO:871-289 DEUTSCHE BANK NATIONAL TRUSTCOM‐PANY,AS TRUSTEEFOR SECURITIZED ASSETBACKED RECEIVABLES LLCTRUST 2006WM4 VERSUS PAMELA LEONARDLEE A/K/APAMELA L. LEEA/K/A PAMELA LEE ANDTHE UNOPENED SUC‐CESSION OF ANDUNKNOWN HEIRSOFJOHN MORGAN LEE, JR. A/K/AJOHN MORGAN LEE, JR. A/K/AJOHN M. LEE, JR. A/K/AJOHNLEE, JR.

By virtue of and in obedienceto aWritof SEIZUREAND SALE from the 24thJudicial District Court,

Parish of Jeffer‐son, Stateof Louisiana, in the abovenum‐beredand enti‐tled cause, datedDecem‐ber22, 2025, I have seized and will proceed to sell to thehigh‐estbidderat public auction, at theJefferson Parish Sheriff's Ofﬁce Complex, 1233 Westbank Expressway, Harvey, Louisiana, 70058, on March 25, 2026 at 10 o'clocka.m.the followingde‐scribedprop‐erty to wit: Acertain piece or portionof ground,to‐gether with all thebuildings andimprove‐ments thereonand all therights, ways privileges, servitudes,ad‐vantages,pre‐scriptions and appurtenances theretobelong‐ingorinany‐wise appertain‐ing, situated in theState of Louisiana, Parish of Jeffer‐son, in Wood‐mere Subdivi‐sion,Section 7, allasper plan approved by the JeffersonParish CouncilbyOrdi‐nanceNo. 13812, in COB955 folio 226, andasper ActofDedica‐tion in COB957 folio 60, being designated as Lot1917, Square "YY"

This sale is sub‐ject to allsupe‐rior security in‐terests, mort‐gages, liensand privileges.

TERMS- Thefull purchase price is dueatthe time of thesale.

NOTE:All funds must be Cashier'sCheck, Certiﬁed Check, MoneyOrder,or Personal Check with Bank Letter of Credit DENNIS WIG‐GINS,JR. Attorney for Plaintiff

JOSEPH P. LOPINTO, III Sheriff Parish of Jefferson TheNew Orleans Advocate: February 13, 2026, March20, 2026 Feb13-mar20-2t

JUDICIAL ADVERTISE‐MENT 24THJUDICIAL DISTRICT COURT PARISH OF JEFFERSON STATEOF LOUISIANA NO:871-381 SELECT PORTFO‐LIOSERVICING INC. VS DONNIE K. SMALLAND RONNIE WEB‐STER SMALL (F/K/A RONNIE WEBSTER) By virtue of and in obedienceto aWritof SEIZUREAND SALE from the 24thJudicial District Court, Parish of Jeffer‐son, Stateof Louisiana, in the abovenum‐beredand enti‐tled cause, datedJanuary 5, 2026.,I have seized andwill proceed to sell to thehighest bidder at public auction, at the JeffersonParish Sheriff'sOfﬁce Complex, 1233 Westbank Ex‐pressway,Har‐vey, Louisiana, 70058, on March 25, 2026 at 10 o'clocka.m.the followingde‐scribedprop‐erty to wit: THAT CERTAIN PIECEORPOR‐TION OF GROUND,to‐getherwithall h b ildi

g thebuildings andimprove‐mentsthereon andall the rights,ways, privileges, servitudes appurtenances andadvantages thereuntobe‐longingorin anywiseapper‐taining, situated in the STATEOF LOUISIANA, PARISH OF JEF‐FERSON,in SQUARE NO 152, LINCOLN MANORSUBDI‐VISION, bounded by 31st Street,Duncan Street (side),Mayﬁeld Street (side) (lateLake),and Utah Avenue (lateOzark), designated as LOTS NOS. 17,18 &19. WhichsaidLots adjoin each otherand mea‐sure together 60 feet fronton 31st Street, same in widthin therear, by a depthof120 feet between equaland paral‐lellines.All as more fully shownonsur‐veyofGilbert, Kelly & Couturie,Inc., S &E,dated Octo‐ber31, 1991.

This sale is sub‐ject to allsupe‐rior security in‐terests, mort‐gages, liensand privileges

TERMS- Thefull purchase price is dueatthe time of thesale.

NOTE:All funds must be Cashier'sCheck, Certiﬁed Check, MoneyOrder,or Personal Check with Bank Letter of Credit WILLIAMS TEBBE Attorney for Plaintiff JOSEPH P. LOPINTO, III Sheriff Parish of Jefferson TheNew Orleans Advocate: February 13, 2026, March20, 2026 Feb13-mar20-2t

JUDICIAL ADVERTISE‐MENT 24THJUDICIAL DISTRICT COURT PARISH OF JEFFERSON STATEOF LOUISIANA NO:871-503

ROCKET MORT‐GAGE,LLC F/K/A QUICKEN LOANS, LLC F/K/AQUICKEN LOANS INC. VERSUS JAMESM ADAMSA/K/A JAMESMICHAEL ADAMSA/K/A JAMESADAMS AND ANGELLECOLON ADAMSA/K/A ANGELLEC ADAMSA/K/A ANGELLE ADAMS

By virtue of and in obedienceto aWritof SEIZUREAND SALE from the 24thJudicial District Court, Parish of Jeffer‐son, Stateof Louisiana, in the abovenum‐beredand enti‐tled cause, datedDecem‐ber23, 2025, I have seized and will proceed to sell to thehigh‐estbidderat public auction, at theJefferson Parish Sheriff's Ofﬁce Complex, 1233 Westbank Expressway, Harvey, Louisiana, 70058, on March 25, 2026 at 10 o'clocka.m.the followingde‐scribedprop‐erty to wit: Onecertain lot of ground,to‐gether with all thebuildings andimprove‐mentsthereon situated in the

Parish of Jeffer‐son, Stateof Louisiana, in that part thereofknown as RedgateWest Subdivision, which said lotis designated as Lot1-A,in a square bounded by Kinder Lane, Garden Road Paul Driveand SauveRoad. Lot 1-A measures 80 feet fronton Kinder Lane, same in widthin therear, by a depthof140 feet between equaland paral‐lellines.Lot 1-A formsthe cor‐nerofKinder Lane and Garden Road,all in accordance with asurvey made by J. J. Krebs& Sons Inc., datedOctober 2, 1973. Said measure‐mentsare more fullyshown on a Plat of Survey by Dading,Mar‐ques & Associations Inc.,LandSur‐veyors,dated August 26, 1995 This sale is sub‐ject to allsupe‐rior security in‐terests, mort‐gages, liensand privileges.

TERMS- Thefull purchase price is dueatthe time of thesale.

NOTE:All funds must be Cashier'sCheck, Certiﬁed Check, MoneyOrder,or Personal Check with Bank Letter of Credit DENNIS WIG‐GINS,JR. Attorney for Plaintiff

JOSEPH P. LOPINTO, III Sheriff Parish of Jefferson TheNew Orleans Advocate: February 13, 2026, March20, 2026 Feb13-mar20-2t

1. The Dictator –All Hail theAll-Seeing Visionary Leader of Le Krewed’Etat’s Revolution.Heand his legions will take controlofthe streetsofthe CrescentCityonthe FridaybeforeMardi Gras. In keepingwiththe traditions of Carnivalsecrecy,the identity of RichardXXIX is neverpublicly revealed. Should anyone be so foolish as to reveal it,hewillbesubject to apunishmentafter whichnoman has everbeen seen again. knowisthat thereisonlyone fatefor an

2. Dictator’s Banana Wagon –Return to forone of themost anticipated social eve atime-honored Carnivalorganization for floats (Louisianaisabanana republ hand, paraded through theUniversityn kisses. D’Etat salutes that bygone eraw

3. The Dic Blasts Oﬀ! –Space: the final fr Le Krewe d’Etat,toboldlyand satiricall mission: to explorethe strange creatur knowing, all-seeing jaundiced eye this Youwill never find amorewretched par to thestars!

4. The High Priest’s CandyWagon –LeK shape of theold RomanCandywagon

Priest insisted on theinclusionof a Candy Wagon in theparade to satisfyhis sweet tooth. If you

arelucky,you maycatch apieceoftaﬀyinaddition to some special CandyWagonthrows.

5. High Priest –The spiritual leader of our Krewe rarely appears in public, but when summoned through theproper incantations, theHigh Priest bringswithhim legions of Carnivalspecters,

who inhabitthe souls of those on our routefor thedurationofthe procession, whipping them into frenzied dervishes whocontort, dance, andimbibe in wild style during themanifestation TheHigh Priest will vanish as suddenlyasheincarnates. So, cherish the fleeting momentsyou have under hisspell, as youwill neveragain be as free in this lifeaswhenour Spirits move you.

6. Probe –LatoyaCantrell ends her scandalous reign as mayorofNew Orleansbyreceivinga parting giftofa federal indictment.The FBIwill spend theforeseeable future pokingand probing her andher “bodyguard,” Vappie, in aquite uncomfortableway.Travelfunds, bribes, fraud, and obstructionare just some of theprobes that arecomingher way. We betthe Feds will, in no way, find anysignsofintelligentlife.

7. WhereNoMan Has GoneBefore –Set your Subaru to warp speed to visit this nextplanet where comfortable shoes, softball games, andsub-parbasketball arecommonplace. This girl-power paradise givesnew meaning to thephrase “wherenoman has gone before.” These gals strapon

22. NOLA,WeHaveA Problem –Bubbling cratersand spewing geysers

17. Dictator’s RoyalNavy –Ahoy, ye swabs, theDictator’s Revolution now takes to thehigh seas. With hisvastknowledge of history,the Dictator realizesthat powerfulrulers of thepast,such as Charlemagne andNapoleon, either had no navy or one inadequatetodefeat their enemies. A hardygroup of mates willsailthe city streets on boardthis fine ship withCarnival-colored flags. Yo,ho, ho, anda barrel of rum

angersset out to corral them so they can continue firstsewer line to offer rogues aNew Hope; theDic h Startrash compactor.Witha newsheriff at the find futureescapes“to”easy. Greenland,Louisiana Governor Jeff Landry, is just on-to-be NewTigerland!Ifthere’s one thing for partywon’t go hungry:reindeer backstrap, seal menu. Cook some rice. stness of space andall of thosebig,beautiful pastimes afterall. Especiallywhenthe s. UrsaMajor, is that you? Ithought youwereUrsa ngfees andtaxes slurped up by OrleansParishgo, ness surrounding CityHall engulfseverything in its gravitational graspand sharesnosecrets frombeyond its black rim. Perhaps, though, one of the manyfederal probeslaunched intothe maelstrom willshed some lightonthe last mayor’smess, as sunshine is theultimatedisinfectant 16. Forbidden Planet –DANGER Eastbound Travelers! Preparetojump to Light Speed and raiseall blast shieldsasyou blow past what’s left of N. O. East! While we hope thedumpster fire roaring in those wilds cansomehowbedoused and salvaged, fornow,westrongly advise avoidingthose exits unlessyou’re looking foradroid,ahit man, or ahappyending.

18. Media Shower –Ashower of spacedebris burning throughthe atmospherewas long believed to be adivine omen andsign of great change. Now it marks thesweet sound of entitledtalking heads burning up on reentry–intothe workforce–ina fieryrainofirrelevance. Is it an extinction event forthesedinosaurs? Onlytime will tell, butthe funding well has run dry, and theratings slide is slick.Eventhe belovedSesame Street was no match forthe gravitational pull of this grandreckoning.

19. WhiteDwarf –Ahhh, MetryMardi Gras! The Dictator acknowledgesthe traditions established by our suburbanneighbors,such as dance teams(young,old,and of all sizes, which inspired thecreation of our ownDancin’Dawlins), routes that pass “historic”malls and chain restaurants, recycled floats, andcorporatesponsorship (won’t nobodysponsor Le Krewe d’Etat!?). Perhaps this is whymost of Jeﬀerson ParishisonSt. Charles Avenue forFrid’Etat! Wherey’at, Dawlin?

20. Speed of Flight –Planet NOLAisnot capableofsupportinghuman life, butthe AmtrakRocket can take youtoa brave new world.Alien ideas such as low taxes and minimal crimeare causing a lift-oﬀ to theGulf Coasttwice aday,aone-wayticket to Planet Paradise, Mississippi. Last one to leave,pleaseturn out thelights.

21. Eject! –AIEEEEE!!!! Gov. Landrytook it upon himself to hit theEJECTbuttononthe Fightin’ Tigers football program. WithG-force winds blasting himout of Baton Rouge, Coach Brian Kelly is gone.ADScottWoodwardisout as well. But don’tfeel so bad about theejectedhead coach –he’s floating comfortably out of town witha$50M golden parachute. Watchout Tiger fans(and college co-eds); CoachLaneKiﬃniscoming to town.

City Hall,NOONE CANHEAR YOUSCREAM. The famous line from thesci-fi horror classicAlienisplaying out in thehallsof theCity’scenter of (un)productivity. Workers in theZoning,Permits and Public Works oﬃces encapsulateaterrifying environment wherehuman vulnerabilityisamplified by theabsolute silenceand indiﬀerence of theCityHall that careforgot.

25. The WrongStuﬀ –MickeyLoomis has had anything butthe RightStuﬀ;piloting New Orleans sportsfranchises to spectacularcrashes and burns over thelast fewyears. The GM scolds ‘Aints and PeliCANTfansto‘look beyond theresults’ as thehouseDome is on fire.Tom mustberolling and Benson