The Acadiana Advocate 05-04-2026

NorthLa. rattled by rash of earthquakes

EPAtells statetomonitor effectsofoil,gas operations

BY SAM KARLINand DAVID MITCHELL Staff writers

Federal regulatorsare asking Louisiana to stepupoversight of oil andgas operationsafter arash of earthquakes inthe northernhalf of the state, including onetremor that matched the largest in state history

In aletter last month,the Environmental Protection Agency told stateregulators to more closely watch how oil and gas companies inject brine into the ground. Both regulators and scientists are hominginonsuchwastewater wells as apotential culprit for theearthquakes.

The 11 earthquakes recorded in the region over the pastmonth warrant“acloserexamination to ensure the safety of underground sources of drinking water,”the EPAtold Louisiana’s Department of Conservation andEnergy Now,researchers are installing seismometers and aftershock monitors across northwest Louisiana and the state’sDepartment of Conservation and Energyisinvestigatingsaltwater disposal wells in abid to find thecause. Theearthquakes ratcheted up in 2022, and since then, 35 earthquakes witha magnitude of 2.5ormore have struck northwestern

ä See EARTHQUAKES, page 5A

Community questions possible changes at LeRosen

Rumors swirlover alternativeschoolmoving to online-onlyclasses

BY ASHLEY WHITE Staff writer

Families and other stakeholders have raised concerns about the Lafayette Parishschool system’salternative program,LeRosen Preparatory School, after rumors spreadthatthe in-person learning optionwill not be available afterthisschool year

Concerns include that moving to an onlineonly environment would negatively impact students in an alternative education setting and that, if adecision was alreadymade, familiesweren’t told about thechange.

But Tracy Wirtz, adistrict spokesperson, said the program is analyzed everyyear to ensure it is properly serving students, anda decision about removingthe in-person learning option has not been made.

“Our goal is to get students backtotheirbase campuses and on the right track,” Lafayette

BY TYLER BRIDGES Staff writer

ForJamie Davis, his decision to run for theU.S. Senate came last year after formerGov.John Bel Edwards chose to stay out of the race.

ForNick Albares, his decision to run came after President DonaldTrump and theRepublican Congresspassed abill last year that will lead to big cutsinthe Medicaid program for the working poor

ForGary Crockett, his decision to run came after seeing Sen. Bill Cassidy,House Speaker MikeJohnsonand Gov.Jeff

The world-famous Crawfish Festivalcame to aclose Sunday withthe paraderollingindowntown BreauxBridge.The festival has been around since1960 andthis year featured thesounds of Cajun, zydeco andswamp popmusic on three stages, crawfish cooked all sorts of ways by food vendors, a dancecontest, acrawfish-eating contest, crawfish races,Cajun dancelessons,acrawfish étouffée cookout, aparade, arts andcrafts boothsand acarnival.

and Crockett —all

crats —are crisscrossing the state as each one mounts along-shot bid to be the state’s

next senator. Here’sameasure of the odds: Louisiana has not elected aDemocrat sincethen-U.S. Sen. Mary Landrieuwon reelectionin2008.

separate party primaries on May 16, with early voting running through Saturday.No-party voters will have to decide whether to vote for the Republican or Democratic slate of candidatesinall races on the ballot.

Hoax calls prompt zoo evacuations, closures

Hoax calls involving alleged bomb threats and even claims of active shooters have prompted evacuations and closures at several zoos around the U.S in recent days, disrupting family plans and taxing public safety resources in some cities.

No explosives or real dangers have been found in the latest string of what authorities are describing as swatting incidents. The FBI considers swatting an increasing national problem. Aside from diverting resources, such calls can cost thousands of dollars per incident, endanger first responders and the public and can lead to federal charges.

In the latest case, police on Sunday swept the Akron Zoo in northeast Ohio after a threat led to the evacuation of visitors. Authorities gave the all-clear, but zoo managers opted to close for the rest of the day Just hours later, police were seen stationed outside the Cleveland Metroparks Zoo as visitors were evacuated due to a threat there. Some visitors took to social media, expressing anger that they had to leave.

The Columbus Zoo and Aquarium in central Ohio was evacuated on Saturday. Zoo president and CEO Tom Schmid told television station WCMH that due to similar threats at other zoos, employees had a safety drill last week and an exercise Saturday morning that helped prepare them for the emergency evacuation.

“This is part of life now around the country, around the world,” Schmid said, noting the uptick in such threats. “And so we have to make sure we’re vigilant.”

Threats also have been called in to zoos in Kentucky, Tennessee, Florida and Arizona.

Police seek 2 in fatal Texas party shooting

AMARILLO, Texas Police are asking for the public’s help in identifying assailants in a shooting at a party in Amarillo, Texas, that killed two teenagers and wounded 10 other people.

City authorities say they are looking for two people who opened fire at an apartment complex about 2 a.m Saturday and are asking residents to check their doorbell and surveillance cameras for any unusual activity around that time. Details on a motive were not released Surveillance video released by police shows two people opening fire outside of an apartment.

Yelling and screaming follow, then more gunshots ring out

“When I looked outside and came outside it was complete chaos,” neighbor Phillip Thrasher told KTVT-TV “I mean there was kids running everywhere, just screaming and running. They didn’t even know where they were running to, you know And then moms and dads showed up and came to their kids’ rescues. The ones that could, the ones that couldn’t were so upset I mean there was nothing you could do.”

Amarillo police said two teens, ages 16 and 17, were killed and 10 others injured. The conditions of the wounded were not released.

Fire destroys lab on university campus in Fla.

ST PETERSBURG, Fla. — Firefighters worked through the night to extinguish a blaze at a laboratory on the University of South Florida campus in St. Petersburg and officials said Sunday that the building could be a total loss.

The fire Saturday night prompted evacuations and sent up plumes of billowing smoke from the marine science lab building. No injuries were reported and no hazardous materials were released, USF President Moez Limayem wrote in a message to students and staff.

The cause of the fire remained under investigation.

Limayem said damage assessments were ongoing, but the destruction was extensive.

“Our recovery teams are working with the College of Marine Science to prioritize key research material and equipment for salvage assessment when the building is cleared,” Limayem wrote Classes and exams scheduled for the lab building will be relocated.

Trump: U.S. to guide ships from strait

President says operation to help stranded vessels to start Monday

BY ADAM SCHRECK, MELANIE LIDMAN and CARA ANNA Associated Press

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates

President Donald Trump announced a project that will start on Monday to help stranded ships leave the Strait of Hormuz, which Iran has effectively closed, but offered few details.

In a social media post on Sunday, Trump said “neutral and innocent” countries have been affected by the Iran war, and “we have told these Countries that we will guide their Ships safely out of these restricted Waterways, so that they can freely and ably get on with their business.”

“Project Freedom” would begin on Monday morning in the Middle East, Trump said and added that his representatives are having discussions with Iran that could lead to something “very positive for all.”

Iran’s grip on the strait, imposed after the United States and Israel launched the war on Feb. 28, has shaken global markets Trump spoke hours after Iran said it was reviewing the U.S. response to its latest proposal to end the war but made clear these are not nuclear negotiations.

Cargo ship attacked

A cargo ship near the Strait of Hormuz said it was attacked by multiple small craft, the British military’s United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations center reported earlier Sunday It was the latest in

at least two dozen attacks in and around the strait since the Iran war began.

All crew on the unidentified northbound cargo ship were safe after the attack off Sirik, Iran, east of the strait, the British monitor said. Iranian officials have asserted that they control the strait and that ships not affiliated with the United States or Israel can pass if they pay a toll, challenging the freedom of navigation guaranteed by international law

Iran denied an attack, the semiofficial Iranian outlets Fars and Tabnak reported, and said a passing ship had been stopped for a documents check as part of monitoring.

The monitor said it was the first reported attack in the area since April 22. Tehran has effectively closed the strait by attacking and threatening ships, and the threat level in the area remains critical.

Iranian patrol boats, some powered only by twin

outboard motors, are small, nimble and hard to detect.

Trump last month ordered the U.S. military to “shoot and kill” small Iranian boats that deploy mines in the strait.

The fragile three-week ceasefire appears to be holding, though Trump on Saturday told journalists that further strikes remained a possibility Tehran reviews response Tehran is reviewing the U.S. response to its latest proposal, Iran’s judiciary Mizan news agency cited Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmail Baghaei as saying.

But “at this stage, we have no nuclear negotiations,” Baghaei said. Iran’s nuclear program and enriched uranium have long been the central issue in tensions with the U.S., but Tehran would rather address it later Iran’s proposal wants other issues resolved within 30 days and aims to end

the war rather than extend the ceasefire, according to Iran’s state-linked media.

Trump on Saturday said he was reviewing the proposal but expressed doubt it would lead to a deal, adding on social media that “they have not yet paid a big enough price for what they have done” in the nearly 50 years since the Islamic Revolution there.

Iran’s 14-point proposal calls for the U.S. lifting sanctions on Iran, ending the U.S. naval blockade of Iranian ports, withdrawing forces from the region and ceasing all hostilities, including Israel’s operations in Lebanon, according to the semiofficial Nour News and Tasnim agencies, which have close ties to Iran’s security organizations.

Iran sent its proposal via Pakistan, which hosted face-to-face talks last month between Iran and the United States.

Pakistan’s prime minister, foreign minister and

army chief continue to encourage the U.S. and Iran to speak directly, according to two officials in Pakistan who spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak to the media.

Also on Sunday, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi spoke with his counterpart in Oman, which oversaw previous rounds of talks before the war, and in Brazil and Spain.

Iran stands firm on strait Trump has offered a plan to reopen the Strait of Hormuz at the mouth of the Persian Gulf, where about a fifth of the world’s trade in oil and natural gas typically passes, along with fertilizer badly needed by farmers around the world. The British military monitor on Sunday said it had received reports that ships near Ras al-Khaimah, the northernmost emirate in the United Arab Emirates and close to the strait, have received radio warnings to move from anchorages. It was not clear who sent the VHF messages.

Tehran “will not back down from our position on the Strait of Hormuz, and it will not return to its prewar conditions,” Iran’s deputy parliament speaker, Ali Nikzad, said Sunday while visiting port facilities on strategic Larak Island.

The U.S. has warned shipping companies they could face sanctions for paying Iran in any form, including digital assets, to transit the strait safely Meanwhile, the U.S. naval blockade since April 13 is depriving Tehran of oil revenue it needs to shore up its ailing economy The U.S. Central Command on Sunday said 49 commercial ships have been told to turn back.

2 U.S. service members missing after exercises

BY OPE ADETAYO and AKRAM OUBACHIR Associated Press

CASABLANCA,Morocco — Two

U.S. service members are missing in southwestern Morocco after taking part in annual multinational military exercises in the North African country the United States Africa Command said Sunday

The service members are U.S. Army soldiers who went missing while on a hike, a U.S. defense official told The Associated Press on condition of anonymity as they were not allowed to speak publicly about the issue.

“They were not actively taking part in any training. The day’s exercises had concluded, and from

our understanding, they were out on a recreational hike,” the official said.

AFRICOM said the U.S., Morocco and other countries participating in the African Lion exercise have launched a search and rescue operation.

“The incident remains under investigation and the search is ongoing,” it said in a statement.

The incident happened about 9 p.m. Saturday, the Moroccan military said, near the Cap Draa Training Area near Tan Tan, close to the Atlantic Ocean. The terrain is mountainous, a mix of desert and semidesert plains.

The search team includes helicopters, ships, mountain rescue units and divers, the defense official

told the AP

“The soldiers were last seen near ocean cliffs in the vicinity of the Cap Draa Training Area during scheduled training. When they did not return as expected, U.S. and Moroccan personnel immediately initiated a joint search effort,” the official added.

The war games exercise started in April and runs across four countries, including Tunisia, Ghana and Senegal. It is scheduled to end in early May

The exercise began in Tunisia with active-duty members of different branches of the U.S. military, including the National Guard, Army Reserve, Air Force, and the Marine Corps.

In all, over 7,000 per-

Officials: Buckshot from D.C. dinner attack suspect’s gun struck agent

By The Associated Press

WASHINGTON Authorities have determined that buckshot from the gun of the man charged with trying to storm the White House Correspondents’ Association dinner in an attempt to kill President Donald Trump struck a Secret Service agent, according to the federal prosecutor overseeing the investigation.

Jeanine Pirro, the U.S. attorney for the District of Columbia, said last week there was no evidence the agent was hit by friendly fire during the incident at a Washington hotel on April 25, but she went beyond that Sunday in saying a shot from one of Cole Tomas Allen’s weapons hit the offi-

cer’s bullet-resistant vest.

“We now can establish that a pellet that came from the buckshot from the defendant’s Mossberg pump-action shotgun was intertwined with the fiber of the vest of the Secret Service officer,” she told CNN’s “State of the Union.” “It is definitively his bullet.”

Allen, who remains behind bars for now pending his trial, was injured during the attack but was not shot. The officer survived. His attorneys on Sunday filed a document with the court saying they learned he was no longer on suicide watch and sought to withdraw a motion formally seeking to remove him from such supervision.

On Thursday, Pirro post-

ed a video on social media showing the moment that authorities say a man with guns and knives attempted to storm the media gala. Questions have lingered about whose bullet struck the officer as the suspect ran through security with a long gun toward the ballroom packed with journalists, administration officials and others.

A phone call to lawyers representing Allen went unanswered on Sunday Allen has been charged with attempted assassination of the president, as well as two additional firearms counts, including discharging a weapon during a crime of violence. He faces up to life in prison if convicted of the assassination count alone.

sonnel from more than 30 nations are participating across the four host countries.

African Lion, which has been running since 2004, is

the largest U.S. annual joint military exercise on the continent and usually features high-ranking military officials from the U.S. and its top African allies.

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ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO By VAHID SALEMI

People walk under Iranian flags in the Grand Bazaar in Tehran, Iran, on Sunday

MOROCCO

Ukraine hits key Russian oil-loading port, 3 tankers

By The Associated Press

KYIV, Ukraine Ukraine on Sunday launched a wave of strikes against Russian oil targets, hitting a key loading port on the Baltic Sea and two tankers that Ukraine alleges were illegally used to transport Russian crude

A nighttime drone strike sparked a blaze at Russia’s largest oil exporting port on the Baltic Sea, the port of Primorsk, according to Russian regional Gov Alexander Drozdenko.

The port operated by Russia’s state oil firm Transneft, is capable of handling hundreds of thousands of barrels per day Primorsk, which was targeted multiple times in March, lies over 620 miles from Ukraine, between the Russian-Finnish border and Russia’s secondlargest city of St Petersburg.

Local Gov Drozdenko said that the drone strike did not cause an oil spill, but gave no immediate further comment regarding casualties or damage.

But Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said that Ukrainian forces de-

stroyed several military and other targets, while also inflicting significant damage on oil port infrastructure.

“One more Russian carrier of Kalibr missiles is out of action. Major General Yevhen Khmara reported on the successful destruction of targets in the Primorsk port,” Zelenskyy wrote in a Telegram post on Sunday

According to Zelenskyy,

OPEC+ countries OK modest rise in oil production

By The Associated Press

VIENNA Seven countries in the OPEC+ grouping of oil-producing countries including Saudi Arabia and Russia — say they’ve decided to a modest increase in production starting in June as part of a commitment to “market stability.”

The commitment from the seven countries, also including Algeria, Iraq, Kazakhstan, Kuwait and Oman, to raise production by 188,000 barrels per day comes after a virtual meeting they held on Sunday

The move is mostly symbolic because it comes as Iran blocks the Strait of Hormuz at the mouth of the Persian Gulf, where about a fifth of the world’s trade in oil and natural gas typically passes, in the midst of the U.S.Israeli war That has stopped much of the oil shipped from Gulf producers and knocked millions of barrels a day off the global market.

Ukrainian drones also hit a Karakurt missile ship, a patrol boat, and a tanker belonging to Russia’s socalled shadow oil fleet, used to evade Western sanctions and price caps on Russian energy

In a separate post earlier on Sunday, Zelenskyy said that Ukrainian forces had struck two more “shadow fleet” tankers near the en-

It also follows a decision by the United Arab Emirates to leave the OPEC oil cartel, shaking up the 65-year-old alliance that produces some 40% of the world’s crude oil and exerts major influence over the price of energy around the globe.

Iran is one of OPEC’s 12 member countries, and Russia is not — it works with the Vienna-based oil producers alliance through the OPEC+ grouping.

The seven countries said they would hold monthly meetings “to review market conditions, conformity, and compensation” and plan to meet again on June 7.

WHO: Suspected hantavirus outbreak on cruise ship kills 3

BY GERALD IMRAY Associated Press

CAPE TOWN, South Africa A suspected hantavirus outbreak on a cruise ship in the Atlantic Ocean has killed three people and sickened at least three others, the World Health Organization said Sunday In a statement to The Associated Press, the WHO said an investigation was underway but that at least one case of hantavirus had been confirmed. Hantavirus, found throughout the world, is spread by contact with urine or feces of infected rodents, most often rats or mice.

Israeli

One of the patients was in intensive care in a South African hospital, the U.N.’s health agency said, adding that it was working with authorities to evacuate two other passengers with symptoms from the ship

“Detailed investigations are ongoing, including further laboratory testing, and epidemiological investigations,” WHO said. “Medical care and support are being provided to passengers and crew Sequencing of the virus is also ongoing.”

trance of the Russian Black Sea port of Novorossiysk.

“These tankers were actively used to transport oil. Now they won’t,” he said. He added the operation was led by the chief of Ukraine’s general staff, Andrii Hnatov Moscow did not immediately acknowledge Zelenskyy’s claims regarding either strike.

Kyiv has recently stepped up its attacks on Russia’s oil export infrastructure.

Ukrainian officials argue that oil revenue directly funds Moscow’s full-scale invasion of the country, now in its fifth year

Elsewhere, two people were killed and three others wounded as Russian drones struck Ukraine’s southern Odesa region overnight into Sunday, Ukraine’s Emergency Service reported It said the attack damaged three residential buildings.

The drones also hit port infrastructure, causing a fire that was later extinguished by emergency teams, the emergency service reported.

Nighttime Russian strikes also wounded six people in the Dnipropetrovsk region in central Ukraine, the agency said. A passenger bus transporting 40 children was damaged, but no one inside was injured, it added.

In Russia, a Ukrainian drone strike west of Moscow killed a 77-year-old man, local Gov Andrei Vorobyov reported on the Telegram messenger app. He said the fatal attack occurred near

AUSTRIA

the town of Volokolamsk, some 75 miles from central Moscow Vorobyov added that six drones were shot down in the Moscow region, which surrounds but does not include the Russian capital. At least five more drones were downed on the approach to Moscow itself, according to Mayor Sergei Sobyanin. Separately in Russia’s western Smolensk region, a man, woman and child were injured after Ukrainian drone debris flew into an apartment block, according to local Gov Vasiliy Anokhin.

Russia’s Defense Ministry reported on Sunday that a total of 334 Ukrainian UAVs were downed overnight over Russia and occupied Crimea. Also overnight into Sunday, Russia attacked Ukraine with 269 drones and ballistic missiles, according to the Ukrainian Air Force. Ukrainian forces shot down and repelled 249 drones, while hits from ballistic missiles and 19 drones were recorded in 15 locations, the air force said in a Facebook update.

Suspect booked in case of rat poison found in baby food jars

By The Associated Press

VIENNA Police in eastern Austria say a 39-year-old suspect has been arrested after rat poison turned up in some HiPP baby food jars on supermarket shelves in central Europe.

HiPP, which recalled some of its baby food jars in Austria, Slovakia and the Czech Republic after the case came to light last month, said in a statement Saturday it was “greatly relieved” by the arrest, and would provide further updates as verified details come in.

The Burgenland State Criminal Police Office, under the direction of prosecutors, said a probe was launched after poison turned up in a baby food jar purchased at a supermarket in the city of Eisenstadt on April 18.

pered baby food jars were seized before they could be consumed, APA reported.

Authorities said previously they believe the tampering occurred in 6.7-ounce jars of baby food made with carrots and potatoes for 5-montholds that were sold from SPAR supermarkets in Austria.

HiPP responded by recalling all of its baby food jars sold at SPAR supermarkets — which include SPAR, EUROSPAR, INTERSPAR and Maximarkt stores — in Austria as a precaution. Vendors in Slovakia and the Czech Republic also removed all of the

brand’s baby jars from sale. The company said the recall was not due to any product or quality defect on its part, and said the jars left its facility in “perfect condition.”

Police said a customer at the time of the discovery had reported that a jar appeared to have been tampered with, but no one had consumed the baby food. Pfaffenhofen, Germanybased HiPP said it has been a “victim of extortion,” adding that an unspecified “blackmailer” sent a message to a shared mailbox in the case, prompting it to immediately inform police.

WHO didn’t identify the vessel, but South African media reports said the outbreak happened on the MV Hondius cruise ship while it was sailing from Argentina to Cape Verde off the coast of West Africa.

The MarineTraffic global shipping website identified the vessel as a Dutchflagged passenger cruise ship. It located it as docked in Praia, the capital of Cape Verde, on Sunday night.

Hantavirus infections are typically linked to exposure to the feces or urine of infected rodents, WHO said. While rare, WHO said they can be spread between people and they can lead to severe respiratory illness. There is no specific treatment or cure, but early medical attention can increase the chance of survival.

raid in

West Bank leaves 1 Palestinian dead and 4 wounded

BY AREF TUFFAHA Associated Press

NABLUS, West Bank One Palestinian man was killed and four others seriously wounded during an Israeli military raid in the Israeli-occupied West Bank city of Nablus on Sunday, the Palestinian Red Crescent said. The Palestinian Health Ministry said the man’s wife was in labor at a local hospital when she was informed of his death. The Red Crescent said five people were hit by gunfire during an Israeli military operation. Nayef Firas Ziad

Samaro, 26, was killed, according to the Health Ministry, and his body was brought to the hospital where his wife was giving birth. Additionally, a 12-year-old was shot in the shoulder, according to the Red Crescent. The raid took place as schools were letting out for the day, in an area crowded with civilians, witnesses said. Israel’s military in a statement said it responded to a confrontation in the Nablus area in which several “terrorists” threw rocks toward soldiers. Soldiers fired and “several hits were identified.”

Palestinians, rights groups and international observers are warning about the worsening violence, where young Palestinian men are being killed with increasing regularity amid a broader climate of arson, vandalism and the displacement of farming communities near Jewish settlements and outposts in the West Bank. At least 42 Palestinians have been killed since the start of the year, according to the United Nations humanitarian office. Armed settlers were responsible for at least 11 of those fatalities.

It said the suspect was being questioned, and that no further details would be immediately provided. The Burgenland public prosecutor’s office has announced an investigation into suspected “intentional endangerment of the public.”

In an email to The Associated Press on Sunday, the Burgenland police office said the suspect was arrested in Salzburg state, to the west The Austrian Press Agency reported that an expert report on the toxicity of the poison was pending. A total of five tam-

NoticeisherebygivenpursuanttoArticle7, Section23(C) of theLouisianaConstitution andR.S.47:1705(B)thata public hearing of theAcadia Parish Police Jury in Acadia Parish will be held at itsregular meeting placeinthe Police Jury MeetingRoom 3rdFloor locatedat500 NParkerson Ave. Crowley, Louisiana 70526onTuesday,June 9, 2026,at6:00p.m.toconsiderlevying additional or increasedmillage rateswithoutfurther voterapproval or adopting the adjusted millage ratesafter reassessment androllingforwardtorates nottoexceed theprioryear’smaximum.The estimated amount of taxrevenuestobecollected in thenextyearfromthe increasedmillage is $8,505,705,and theamountofincreasein taxesattributabletothe millage increase is $212,584.

PHOTO PROVIDED By UKRAINIAN EMERGENCy SERVICE

A Ukrainian emergency crew responds to a fire in Ukraine’s southern Odesa region after a Russian attack overnight on Sunday.

ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO By FATIMA SHBAIR

Cargo ships sail Friday near the Strait of Hormuz, as viewed from a rocky shoreline near Khor Fakkan, United Arab Emirates.

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EARTHQUAKES

Continued from page1A

Louisiana. A4.9-magnitude earthquake on March5in Red River Parish tied for the largest in state history,causing people to scramble out of bed as the ground rattled under them. It was felt as far as 150miles away

“Anybody living in atrailer home—and there area lot up there —they bounce with everything bigger than about a2.5,” said Cynthia Ebinger aTulane University professor who is studying the seismic activity

While officials are notyet certainofthe cause, it appears increasingly likely that oil and gas drillers’ disposal of saltwater deep underground is behind the rise in earthquakes in the region, according to regulators and scientists.

Many of the Haynesville Shale drillers use hydraulic fracturing, or fracking, whendrilling for natural gas. As part of that process, they blast water into the rock formation.

Thedrillers also extract brine, high saline water with heavy metals and other toxic materials, as abyproductof drilling. To dispose of allof the waterthatcomes up,they inject it deep underground, aprocess regulated by the state Department of Conservation and Energy.The EPA regulateswastewater wells in some other states.

That process has caused earthquakes in other oil and gas plays, including in nearby Texas and Oklahoma.

Dustin Davidson, head of the Department of Conservation and Energy,said Louisiana’sHaynesville Shale play has only recently seen aboom in drilling similar to that in places like Oklahoma and Texas.

“What we’re dealingwith is an increase in production overall,” he said. “With the (oil) prices we’re seeing right now,with the need for more energy nationwideand globally,both Texas and Louisi-

If no candidate wins at least 50% in eitherparty primary in the Senate race, the top two finishers advance to arunoff on June 27 to determine who will be the party’s candidate in the November generalelection.

The Senate race, which is statewide, is unaffected by aU.S. Supreme Court ruling that will likely forceLouisiana to postpone its elections for the U.S. House of Representatives.

The three Democratic candidates sharply criticize Trump, favor at least doubling the federal minimum wage andwanttomake life more affordable for struggling people.

Whytheyentered therace Davishas raised themost money of the three, has the official backing of the Louisiana Democratic Party and

LeROSEN

Continued from page1A

Parish public schoolsSuperintendent Francis Touchet Jr.saidinastatement.“My focus will always be on student success and determining the best way to make that happen.” LeRosen serves elementary through high schoolstudents. Elementary students, who are separated on the campus from older students, are in aface-to-face learning environment, Wirtz said.

Middle and high school students, who attend school on an A/B schedule, attend face-to-faceoronline classes whileenrolled at LeRosen, depending on their accommodations and exceptionalities, Wirtz said. Community members, including attorney Corrie Gallien, have raised concerns that LeRosen will transition to online-only classes at the end of the school year.Ina memo sent to the Louisiana

Earthquakes shake north Louisiana

Arashofearthquakes in northLouisiana during thepastyearhas raised concerns that oilactivityiscausing seismicactivity.

ana play alarge roleinthat.”

The production happening right now couldbe“causingsubsurfaceimpact,” he added, though he said state officials havenot concluded that’s the cause. The biggest concern for regulators is making sure the brine disposal doesn’timpactunderground sources of drinking water. If the state finds that wastewaterinjectioniscausing the earthquakes, “Wecan determine that there should be no injection in this location,” Davidsonsaid.

Aspokesperson for the LouisianaOil andGas Associationdid not respond to

tellsaudiences that he is a farmer whogetshis hands dirty Davis, 55, said he hoped that Edwards, the two-term predecessorofLandry, would challengeCassidy ButwhenEdwards decided he didn’tsee apath to victory,Davis felt aneed to step up andbecame thefirst candidate to announce inDecember

“Democrats needed areason tostand, and Ichose to stand,” said Davis, who farms cotton, corn and soybeans on 3,200 acres in Tensas, Catahoula, Franklin and Concordia parishes.

Albares, who has an undergraduate degree from Notre Dame and amasters in public policyfrom Georgetown University, hasthe chops to talk fluently onmost issues Albares, 39, saidwhat pushed him to run was Republicans passingthe One Big Beautiful Bill that contained tax cuts weighted to benefit the wealthy and up to $1 trillion in cuts over the

Board of Elementary and Secondary Education and theLafayette school system, Gallien wrote that the decision would need more transparency,public input and public disclosure. Her memo outlines what she noted as potentiallegal deficiencies with movingthe program to an entirely virtual setting, including that the decision might not meet allofBESE’srequirements foralternative education programslike LeRosen.She raised concerns that without proper assessments,students who havedisabilities or individualizededucation plans maybeharmed by the decision and“creates nearcertain”violationsfor those students.

Gallien,who works as ajuvenile public defender,also saidshe worries the change would harm high-risk youth whoattendthe program by removing them from a structured and supervised environment.

Students who are suspended for more than 10 days or

messagesseeking comment.

Aspokesperson for theLouisianaMid-ContinentOil and GasAssociationdeclinedto comment. Thetwo organizations arethe biggest representativesofthe industry in the state

Potentialsmoking gun

Thekey question forresearchersisexactly how deep theearthquakes are happening. If theearthquakes are abovewhere saltwater injectionishappening, the operators may be pumping the brine at too high apressure, Ebingersaid. But if thequakesare be-

next 10 years for theMedicaid expansion, according to theKaiser Family Foundation

“Wehave to reverse these cuts that go into effect on Jan. 1,”Albares said.

“Healthcareisonthe ballot.”

Crockett, 61, is the only oneofthe three who has militaryexperience, sayinghespent 24 yearsinthe Navy.Hesaid he owns five companies with 21 full-time employees.

Crockett said he decided to run afterconcluding that political leaders were not serving thepeople.

“I saw citizens being ignored, and the same thing happening over and over again,” he said.

Crockettsaidheownsfour companies that operate under theumbrella of Branae Holdings. They do workin the fields of aerospace, construction, management consultingand cybersecurity. A fifthcompany is MixedBag Entertainment,which he said distributes musicfilms

expelled from school will “remainunder the supervision of the school system using an alternative education program”inanalternative educational placement, according to Lafayette school system policy

Students placed in an alternative school or program are required to participate and aparent, guardian or tutorhas to ensure astudent attends.

Howlonga student is enrolled in LeRosen depends on the minimum number of school days assigned by ahearing officer anda student’s performance while at LeRosen, according to the school’swebsite.But as a program,rather than an alternative educationschool, students can attendfor only 45 or fewer consecutivedays and accountability remains withthe base campus,accordingtothe state Department of Education. ContactAshley White at ashley.white@theadvovate. com.

low theso-called “injection horizon,” which appears more likely,multiple factors could be at play. It’s possible the weight of the basinisincreasing because of the brine disposal, creating an “underground dam” of sorts, she said. That can cause the faults to slip, something that has happened in other oil plays in North America Wastewater injection has been theculprit of earthquakesinother oilstates, she said.

“Thatisa potential that’s asmoking gun,” she said “There’sa possibilityremainingthatsomething in

and TV shows.

Crockettsaid he grew up in Tallulah in northeast Louisiana, obtained an associatedegree from Delgado Community College and an undergraduatedegree from Samford UniversityinBirmingham, Alabama.

He said he decidedtomove to New Orleans in 2019 to be closer to family

“I became quite disenchanted after moving here,” he said. “Weride on roads that arehorrible,the lack of services.Wehad trash pickup twice aweek.Now it’s once. Seeing all of this,itwas like:Run or runaway. I’m running (for theSenate).”

Wherecampaigns stand

Crockett’scampaign finance report, through March 31, shows he did not receive any contributions. He did lend his campaign $350,000 andspent only about $12,000 of that.

Albares grew up in Dothan, Alabama, worked as abudgetanalyst for Invest

Louisiana is very weirdand allowedthis to happen. (But)itseems less likely to be thecase.” Ebinger’sresearch has found that earthquakesin north Louisiana have increased in both numberand magnitude over the last 8 years. Last October,she got funding from the United States GeologicalSurvey to install equipment to better understandtheir cause USGS seismologist Justin Rubinsteinsaidtheyseek to find more earthquakesthat haven’talreadybeen found and to use that larger data settounderstand howthe quakeshavedeveloped over time.

The researchers also intend to determinethe relationshipbetween oiland gas operationsand theearthquakes. Rubinstein said detailedscientific studiesand more oil and gas drilling data are needed to make a specific determination EPAtakes notice

Preliminary findings show the earthquakes are happening deep underground along a70million-year-old fault line, likely between oneto two milesdeep.

Most of the earthquakes felt this year happened in early March. Six happened in oneday on March9,including 4.1- and4.4-magnitude quakes that occurred aminute apart near Coushatta and Edgefield, in rural northwest Louisiana.

The most recent was April 9.

Around the sametime, the state Legislature held hearings on two bills thatwould loosen regulations on saltwater injection wells. Hpuse Bill 496byRep.Danny McCormick, R-Oil City,would prohibit the state from limiting injection wells at certain pressures. House Bill 706 by Rep. Neil Riser,R-Columbia, would establish abaseline pressure in state law

The day before the committee hearing on Riser’sbill, the EPAsent its letter.During testimony in theHouse Natural Resources Commit-

in Louisiana, aprogressive group in BatonRouge, worked as apolicy analyst for two years for Gov.Edwards and workedfor VolunteersofAmerica’s New Orleans office before stepping downtocampaign full time.

Edwards has endorsed his candidacy

“When Ilooked at this race, Ilooked at theRepublican side and saw candidates only focusedonfighting each other to seewho was closesttothe president,” Albares said. “I felt like we needed someonewho is closest to the people.”

Hiscampaignfinance report showed that he had raised only $70,000 through March 31, hadlenthis campaign $5,200 andhad $54,000 on hand.

Davis said he attended LSU for two years before beingput on academic probation, dropping out and returning home.

“I got aPh.D. in partyology,”hesaid. “I made abad

tee, Davidson presented the letter from theEPA,noting the federal regulator is alreadytaking notice of the earthquakesinthe region, citing wastewater wells as a potential culprit. The committeerejected Riser’sbill. McCormick’s bill is still pending. In an interviewlastweek, McCormick pointed out that surrounding states, like Arkansas,allow greater injection pressures,which means more saltwatercan be sent down the well more quickly and economically He disputed that the greater saltwater injectionpressures he is seeking could contribute to earthquakes. He said the saltwater wells his bill would affect are about 5,000 feet deep, well above the depth of the earthquakes, and that they are lower volume, noncommercial wells.Theyare also a fewparishes over from Red River, wherethe bigquake happened in March.

McCormick said he is talkingwithstate regulators about his bill.

“We’rediscussing theissue,” he said.

Troy Hill, director of the EPARegion 6water division, wrote in the letterthat the brine disposal can cause undergroundformations to break downand faults to slip. Though McCormick downplayedthe potential impact of greater injection pressures, Hill toldstate regulators to conduct a “comprehensivereview” of the pressuresatwhichoperatorsare injecting wastewater

“Pressure managementis vital,” Hill wrote, citing the EPA’spastexperiencewith induced earthquakes in the states of EPARegion 6. Hill wrote that the state should implement“enhanced pressure andvolume monitoring that includes athorough review of fault mapsand geologic data like formation fracture pressures, and areview of injection activities within several miles of therecent earthquakes.”

choiceinnot focusing on my school work,” he said. “I was asmall-townguy in a big city.Myfocuswas noton education at the time.” Davis got focused back home.Hesaidhehas taken over his family’ssmallfarm on Lake St.JohninTensas Parish and expanded his holdings into neighboring parishes.

“When Iamnot in politics, Idrive tractors, order chemicals, buyseed, order fertilizer and makedeals on buying and selling grain and cotton,” he said. “I’m areal day-to-day farmer.” Davis served aterm on theTensas ParishPolice Jury but was defeated for reelection. He also lost races to be astate representative and to serve on the Democratic StateCentral Committee. He did win aspot on thecommittee because he chairs the Tensas Parish Democratic Party Davisraised$315,000,lent his campaign $10,000 and had $141,000 as of March 31.

Coushatta

Trump keeps us up in the air over batch of UFO files

Possible release generates buzz, skepticism

BY COLLIN BINKLEY Associated Press

WASHINGTON President Donald Trump says the Pentagon is preparing to release some “very interesting” UFO files uncovered by his administration, generating a mix of buzz and skepticism as he hints at new revelations around questions of alien life.

Trump started stoking interest in the extraterrestrial in February, directing federal agencies to release their records related to extraterrestrial life and UFOs. Since then, he has built suspense with tantalizing updates, teasing an imminent release of documents never before shared by the U.S. government

“We’re going to be releasing a lot of things that we haven’t,” Trump said Wednesday at a White House event celebrating NASA astronauts. “I think some of it’s going to be very interesting to people.”

Trump has relished in portraying himself as the president who spills the secrets In the first week returning to office, he ordered the release of records related to the assassinations of President John F. Kennedy, Sen. Robert F. Kennedy and Martin Luther King Jr The disclosures revealed little beyond what was already known. In the buildup to that release, Trump said “the American people deserve transparency and truth.”

Now, as he turns to the sky, the president has struck a similar tone, suggesting answers to decades-old questions may be on the way His February directive on social media called for transparency around “alien and extraterrestrial life, unidentified aerial phenomena (UAP),

and unidentified flying objects (UFOs).”

“The first releases will begin very, very soon,” he told supporters in April at a Turning Point USA event in Phoenix. “So you can go out and see if that phenomena is correct. You’ll figure it out.”

Even before Trump’s directive, the Pentagon was years into a process to declassify and release government documents related to UFOs, now often referred to as unexplained anomalous phenomena, or UAP

Citing concerns over national security Congress created an office in 2022 to investigate UAP and declassify as much material as possible. The office’s 2024 debut report revealed hundreds of new UAP incidents but found no evidence that the U.S. government had ever confirmed a sighting of alien technology A second report covering more recent sightings is expected to come soon

That agency, the All-domain Anomaly Resolution Office, is now working with the White House to release “never-before-seen UAP information,” according to a Pentagon statement.

The office’s previous director, however, said Trump’s promises were bluster, a “shiny object” to distract Americans from the war with Iran. Sean Kirkpatrick, a physicist and former career intelligence officer who led the office until 2023, said he has seen the government’s records and believes there are no bombshell revelations to be found

“Readers should not get their hopes up that there’s going to be some document with photos, interviewing the aliens when they came down,” he said. “Because that just doesn’t exist.”

Videos purporting to show alien technology tend to have mundane explanations, he said. Modern infrared cameras used by the U.S. military often capture jet engines and other hot

objects in a long thermal bloom, which, Kirkpatrick said, explains viral videos of speedy, pill-shaped objects.

On Capitol Hill, those types of videos have caught the attention of a small group of Trump-aligned Republicans who insist the Pentagon is holding back secrets.

The Task Force on the Declassification of Federal Secrets has been conducting its own investigation into reports of mysterious aircraft near U.S. military installations, which the panel says pose a threat to national security and the armed forces.

Last fall, the task force heard testimony from current and former service members who described UAP encounters. In one case, a senior Navy officer said he was off the coast of California in 2023 when he saw a glowing “Tic Tac” shaped object emerge from the ocean and link up with three similar objects. They

Landlords want to be paid for pandemic losses in lawsuit

Plaintiffs hope to reach a deal with the feds

BY MICHAEL CASEY Associated Press

BOSTON Just months into the pandemic, Matthew Haines, like landlords across the country learned he was barred from evicting tenants who didn’t pay their rent under a federal eviction moratorium that lasted almost a year costing him and his investors over $1 million.

Now, the 57-year-old Texan is hoping to get some relief. Haines is among more than 1,500 property owners who filed a federal lawsuit arguing the moratorium enacted by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention violated the Fifth Amendment by unlawfully denying them compensation. Plaintiffs range from those who lost thousands of dollars to one who lost over $14.5 million. After initially losing in the Court of Federal Claims in 2022, the plaintiffs won on appeal and are now in settlement discussions with the Justice Department. Landlords are hoping to recoup as much as $1.5 billion a fraction of what the industry lost.

“It’s important for us to stand up when a group like the CDC unilaterally, functionally, decides that they have a right to oversee our business,” said Haines, who owns three rental communities with 240 units in Arlington and Irving, Texas.

“What I hope that we will accomplish and, to some extent, we already have, is vindication for ourselves,” he said. “But what’s more important to me is that hopefully my investors will recover some of that money that they should have had coming in over the last six years.”

The federal eviction moratorium lasted from Septem-

ber 2020 through July 2021, and was among the pandemic’s most divisive policies. It ended after the Supreme Court ruled the CDC lacked authority to impose the ban without congressional authorization.

The Justice Department, responding to Associated Press questions about the landlords’ case, said it does not comment on ongoing litigation.

Moratoriums were also imposed in 43 states and scores of cities, which lasted longer than the federal ban because states and cities have broader regulatory powers than federal agencies like the CDC.

Landlords say the bans devastated their businesses. Unable to collect rent, many were forced to take on debt, lay off staff delay repairs and, in some cases, sell their property They say the impact lingers, with longer delays for evictions, tighter screening for riskier tenants and growing numbers of owners getting out of the rental business altogether

Tenant advocates counter that eviction bans were a lifesaver. They credit them with keeping millions of tenants housed during the pandemic and slowing the spread of the coronavirus. They also argue landlords were already paid — in the form of tens of billions of dollars in rental assistance.

From the moment the pandemic hit, Haines said he knew he was in trouble: Many tenants lost their jobs, so he didn’t require new leases and tried to be flexible with those who couldn’t pay

But when the moratorium took hold, it was the biggest threat he’d faced in 30 years in real estate

“It was terrifying,” Haines said. “We knew almost immediately that we were going to a massive deficit in cash flow that we probably weren’t going to be able to cover.”

A survey by the National

Rental Home Council, a trade association, published weeks after the federal moratorium ended, found that half of small landlords had tenants who missed rent and a third sold or planned to sell properties. The moratorium and backlog of eviction cases cost owners $57 billion, according to the lawsuit, with more than 10 million delinquent renters in just the ban’s first four months.

“Public health measures like this, they may be well intentioned,” said Creighton Magid, a lawyer for the plaintiffs. “But when the government imposes this type of moratorium, the financial burden should be borne by the government, not individual property owners.”

Liz Leone, who has 52 apartments in Las Vegas and is part of the lawsuit, said the moratorium almost forced her out of business. She lost over $250,000, she said, and borrowed $60,000 from the federal Small Business Administration “just to keep my nose above water.” She’s still paying it off.

“I was definitely questioning whether I would survive,” said Leone, who’s been in the business for 35 years. “You delay all the expenses you can, but we still had to pay our property taxes. We still have to pay our utilities. So that’s what you did: I borrowed.”

Housing advocates maintain the policy kept families housed, noting a significant spike in evictions after the moratorium ended.

Eviction bans “were a powerful intervention to keep people in their homes,” said Kathryn Leifheit, assistant professor at the UCLA Fielding School of Public Health and lead author of a study

in April in the

sped away in an instant, he said.

Trump’s interest in the subject has energized congressional Republicans, including Florida Rep. Anna Paulina Luna, an Air Force veteran who co-chairs the task force. Luna has criticized what she calls “less than adequate” transparency from the Pentagon.

In a March letter to Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, Luna demanded dozens of UAP videos identified by whistleblowers and labeled with names such as “Spherical UAP in clouds.” Her deadline for Hegseth came and went, and no videos were produced.

Trump’s entry to the UFO fray drew applause from Luna, who last year told podcaster Joe Rogan that she has seen evidence of “interdimensional beings.” The Pentagon “can’t hide from our docs request anymore!” Luna said on social media after Trump’s directive.

Trump appears skeptical about the existence of extraterrestrial life. Addressing the Turning Point USA crowd in Phoenix, he said, “I figured this was a good crowd because I know you people, you’re really into that. I don’t know if I am.”

Why he made the revelation at that event held at a megachurch, is unclear

A day earlier, Trump had spoken in Las Vegas, not far from Area 51, a top-secret Cold War test site that has fueled UFO conspiracy theories.

Vice President JD Vance has described himself as “obsessed” with UFO files.

In March, he said he has been trying to find time to investigate Area 51 since he took office.

“I’ve still got three more years as vice president,” Vance told conservative podcaster Benny Johnson. “I will get to the bottom of the UFO files.” Invoking his Christian faith, Vance

said he believes sightings reported to be aliens are actually the work of spiritual demons.

Even before Trump tackled the topic alien buzz was already in the air It’s back in Hollywood with an upcoming Steven Spielberg movie, “Disclosure Day.” Former President Barack Obama made a splash in February when he declared on a podcast that aliens are real. He later clarified that he had seen no evidence but that “the odds are good there’s life out there.” Trump is hardly the first president drawn to UFO mysteries. President Bill Clinton has said he once ordered a review of the Roswell Incident something had crashed in 1947 at a New Mexico ranch and officials later said the debris was the remnants of a high-altitude weather balloon around its 50th anniversary in 1997. Presidents Jimmy Carter and Ronald Reagan claimed to have seen UFOs before their time in the White House. The U.S. government has been investigating UFO reports since the 1940s, in part to determine if they represent advanced technology from competing nations or “evidence of off-world technology,” according to the Defense Department’s 2024 report. In online communities devoted to UFOs, some see Trump’s promise as a step in the right direction; others believe it will come to nothing. For people who follow the topic closely, promises of big revelations have never lived up to the hype, said Greg Eghigian, a Pennsylvania State University professor who wrote a book on the history of UFO sightings. “There is almost no satisfaction that is possible for many of the really diehard folks,” he said. “So in a sense, I think disappointment can almost be guaranteed to be expected no matter what comes out of this.”

ASSOCIATED PRESS FILE PHOTO By ERIC DRAPER

President Donald Trump says the Pentagon is preparing to release some ‘very interesting’ UFO files uncovered by his administration, generating a mix of buzz and skepticism.

Rapper moves annual Boosie Bash

BY JA’KORI MADISON Staff writer

As Boosie Bash headsinto its seventh year,things are different, withthe event coming to Lafayette for the first time.

On Wednesday,rapper Torrence Hatch Jr., better known as BoosieBadazz, visited Northgate Mall ahead of astring of events in Lafayette, including the annual Boosie Bash, which will beatthe Cajundome this summerwith a lineup of special guest appearances.

“I’m blessed, and every year I getmore excited. It’smy biggest show of the year,” Hatchsaid. “I do it by myself, and of course, I have ateam around me,but it’s something Iinvested in and prepare for mentally allyear round as soon as the previous bash is over.” Lafayette Parish School Board member Joshua Edmondand the athleticdepartmentatCarencro High School, including coach Gavin Peters, welcomed Hatch with an official Carencro High football jersey featuring his birth year,along with ahelmet signed by students.

“Wewantedtopresentsomething to him, raise the bar for ourstudents and give theman experiencetheycan remember while also bringingexposure to our schools,” Edmond said.

The bash has been held in Baton Rouge, the rapper’shometown, since its inception in 2017.

But this year,itwill be in Lafayette. Saturday’sBoosie Bash VII will feature guests YFN Lucci, Plies, SexyyRed,Big Boogie, H3ADBAND, BG, Baby Mel and Flau’jae.

“I wanted to bringittothe flats this time. Ithinkitwill not only give adifferent atmosphere and vibe, but it also brings revenue to the city.So it’sawin on both ends,” Hatch said. When asked why Lafayette, Hatch said things in hishometown were not aligning.

“You know,Ihad problems. Between prices with extra fees and just some people beingagainst me, it just felt like Ineededto try adifferent space,”hesaid

“I mean this is aplace for fun and it has shown that because every year has been successful with no issues.”

Back in February, Louisiana Attorney General Liz Murrill took legal action against Hatch, saying the rapper used thehazing deathofSouthern University student Caleb Wilson to promotethe 2025 BoosieBash. Wilson was atrumpet player in the university’sHuman Jukebox. Hatchannounced at thetime that he was working with theWilsonfamilyand the HumanJukebox to launch the Caleb Wilson Memorial Scholarship, and added

CAN’TSTOP, WON’TSTOP

Gymset to move into Office Depotspace

ing, but theworkisvalued at $1.5 million.

BYADAMDAIGLE Acadiana business editor

Abig-box office supply retailer in mid-city Lafayette will close later this year and afitness chain will move into the space. Planet Fitnesswas granteda building permitfrom Lafayette ConsolidatedGovernment to begin construction on the Office Depot space at 1879 W. Pinhook Road, documentsshow The Office Depot’slease withthe shoppingcenterends in October andthe store is expected to close by then, saidRyan Pecot, senior retail leasing anddevelopment adviserwith Stirling Properties No details were available for Planet Fitness’ plans for the build-

OfficeDepot has quietly closed stores in recent years, reports indicate. The brand has closed about 1,100 stores sinceitmerged with competitor OfficeMax in 2023, reportsindicate.

OfficeDepot officials did not respond to apress inquiry.Anemployee whoanswered acallMondaysaid he was unaware about the store closing. The store hasbeen in itscurrent spotsince summer 1996 when the shopping center was anchored by an OldAmerica Store, archives show. It was named Store of the Year for thecompany’sWestern division in 1999.

Theshuttered Pizza Hut locationnext door could have atenant soon, Pecot said. Negotiations are ongoingwithanother restaurant concept for the space.

Facility planned alongAmbassador Caffery

BY ADAM DAIGLE Acadianabusiness editor

ATexas-based electrical supplier will build adistribution center in Lafayette after closing on alarge piece of property alongAmbassador Caffery Parkway LoneStar Electric Supply bought 4acres at the corner of Walker Road just north of Cameron Street for$1.25 million from the Sonnierfamily,land records show. The company will build a 40,000-square-footdistribution center at the location, said Javier Perea, vice president of marketing. It will include awarehouse,

Incumbent, challenger tout leadership

BY JOEL THOMPSON

ture. Whiteservesonthe Regional Watershed Board, which focuses on mitigating flooding issuesthat many communities face alongthe Teche and Vermilion rivers. “Weare susceptible to tidal surge and rainwater coming down from the north,” White said. “Fundamentally,the bestthing we can do for drainageiscome up with projects that can mitigateit. We can’tdrain Abbeville until the Vermilion River starts flowing out. We have to work

They SeeMeRollin’ teammembers Phillip Olivierand hiswife, Krystal, exchange their tricycle Saturday during theAcadiana 500 Tricycle Race in City Park in New Iberia. Teams raced around acourse in theevent hosted by theOptimistClubof New Iberia, Raising Cane’sChicken Fingers andthe New IberiaRecreation Department

PHOTO By LEE BALL

to

laydown yard, salescounterand awill callarea.

Once operational,the facility will employabout 20

“The greater Lafayette market has astrongbaseofcommercial contractors,” Perea said. “Wewanttobethe local, independentoptionthatcan keep up withthem. We’llalso be set up to support residential and industrial work in the region.”

Lone Star,awholesale distributorofelectric supplies, opened a Lafayette facility in Marchat 106 Emerald Drive thatemploys 12. The companyismade up of local,independently owned and operated wholesale electric supply distributors. It also has locations in BatonRouge andMetairie.

Email Adam Daigle at adaigle@theadvocate.com.

on large-scale regional watershed management.”

Beef up soccer coverage before U.S. hosts WorldCup

On March31, the last of 48 teams bookedtheir place in this summer’sFIFAMen’sWorld Cup

The U.S. Men’sNational Team hosted Belgium and Portugal in some of their final matches before the tournament starts. The stage is now finally set for what is advertised to be themost well-attended edition of themostwatched sporting event on Earth There are much more important topics to discuss right now.But,I wasdisappointed to see no mention. Soccer is often relegated inthis publication. Full-length stories are nonexistent.Neither MLS nor NWSL scores appear.Readers are left to scrape the wire reports and peruse highschool scores. Perhaps understandably so. Louisianahas no professional team and other sports rationallydeserve attention.

But, will the content come? This summer,the United States, along with Canada and Mexico,will host the Men’sWorld Cup. The last time the United States hosted the tournament was in 1994. This golden opportunity to embrace the sport may not come again for another three decades.

Some may balk at such arequest. The sport is, relatively speaking, unappreciated in Louisiana. But, its popularityconsistentlygrows. Sources vary and aredifficult to localize, but nearly as many Americans watch soccer as they do baseball.Exposure and coverage are vital to the growth of asport.Just look at the explosion of the WNBA. This newspaper’scoverage of the last Men’sWorld Cupleft muchtobedesired. In 2018, reporter Stephen Rea passionately educated us. In 2022, however, nearly all of the coverageappeared as sports betting andprop betadvice, which minimized the sporting spectacle.

Storylines of the tournament already abound. The World Cup trophy willvisit New Orleansin May. Will the publicknow? When soccer arrives, will you inform your readers commensuratewith this once-in-a-generation chance?

MJ HERNANDEZ NewOrleans

YOUR VIEWS

Utility linesand apower pole stand on March 23 along Claiborne Avenue in NewOrleans as part of EntergyNew Orleans’ accelerated resilience plantostrengthen the electric grid

WhyruinLouisiana’s affordable electricity?

Louisiana’s electric grid is thenation’smost affordable. According to theconservative American Legislative Exchange Council, Louisianans paid an average of 8.8 cents per kilowatt hour to rank second in affordable electricity in the U.S. in 2024. While electricity priceshave increased acrossthe country due mainly to therising price of natural gas and the expense of deferred maintenance, this monthElectricChoice.com ranks Louisiana numberone for least costly for residential powerat12.44-centsper kWh in April 2026. It’s atestament to theeffectivenessofthe elected regulators of the Louisiana Public Service Commission. But the conservative Pelican Institutefor Public PolicyinNew Orleans justpublished “Shock to theSystem” calling for radical changes to themanagement of Louisiana’selectricity supplychain. In short,every change the Pelican Institute calls for would make Louisiana more like the mismanaged and moreexpensive grids

of Texas and California.

The Pelican Institute calls for breaking apart the supply chain into independent components to give consumers choices for electricity suppliers. As therankings demonstrate, every statewith so-called “consumer choice”has electricity thatcosts morethan Louisiana. These electric suppliers would buy electricity from thesame generatorsLouisiana usestoday and, of course,add markups to thecustomers.

In my home state of Texas, the retailers aren’t requiredtoprovide reliable service, andTexas consumers were forced by the legislature to paybillions of dollars to bail out the retailers following thedeadly grid failure of 2021. Why does thePelican Institute want to bring those sameunreliable retailers to Louisiana?

It begs the question, if theLouisiana grid isn’t broken, why does thePelican Institute want to fix it just to benefit special interests?

ED HIRS energyeconomist, University of Houston

SchulerStatuedeservesplace of honor

Iwas very disappointed with your article aboutthe Schuler Statue. It was my understanding that the statue was commissioned to honor UncleJack, not to show him as humble andsubservient. In 1926, the sum of $4,300 was asmall fortune. Statues were being made of generals andpresidents, not old Black servants. As he stood in thecircular entrance to the

LSURural Life Museum, one of the finest historical exhibitsinthis country,I took it as aplace of honor,welcoming us to the facility Now he is back somewhere in the woods where you almost have to search tofind him.Let us be adultsand move him back to the entrance. I would be glad to donatetothis cause.

MICHAEL DEFELICE

Zachary

True cost of data centersnot fullyunderstood

Legislature’s disgracefulact in Duncan case will be remembered by voters

As avoter,watching the governor and Republicans in the Legislature race to nullify the election of Calvin Duncanfor Clerk of Orleans Criminal Court before he could even be inaugurated was painful. It is undemocratic, un-American, disrespectful to Duncanand disrespectful to all voters, including supporters of other candidates. If the powers-thatbe in Baton Rouge wantedtoconsolidate the two clerk of court offices in New Orleans because they think it is more efficient, why didn’tthey do it in 2023, or 2024, or 2025? That would have allowed timefor transition. Moreover,itwould have allowed the voters to pick who would hold that new office. Instead, it was only after Duncan won the election last fall by awide margin, no less —that the push to eliminate the office became an urgent priority.Itdoesn’thave to be this way.The bill to reduce the number of judges is timed to the end of the sitting judges’ terms. That does right by both elected officials and voters. Targeting Duncan for different treatment —Why? Because he was wrongfully convicted and later exonerated? —isshameful and unjustifiable.

We,the people, should get to vote forour local officials —not have the governor and his legislative allies nullifyour choices. I wonder how they would feel if this happened in their city or town, or to them personally? These are the samepoliticians that supported posting the TenCommandments in classrooms. Maybe we need to post the Golden Rule in the State Capitol: “So in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you, forthis sumsupthe Law and the Prophets.”

Isincerely hope the governor and Legislature reconsider what they have done and respect the will of the voters.’

STEVENSPIRES NewOrleans

OUR GUIDELINES: Letters are published identifying name and the writer’scity of residence.The Advocate |The Times-Picayune require astreet address and phone number for verification purposes, but that information is not published. Letters are not to exceed 300 words. Letters to the Editor,The Advocate, P.O. Box 588, Baton Rouge, LA 70821-0588, or email letters@theadvocate.com. TO SEND US ALETTER SCAN HERE

Data centershave moreimpacts than just on energy and water consumption. They drive an influx of newcomerstoanarea, and manyof those areas are quiterural and thus unprepared in terms of infrastructure. Consider: The higher volume of traffic on unequipped streetsand roads, ahighercompetition for food and goods in places already likely food deserts, the lack of enough space to accommodate public “slots” such as hospital beds or school seats,and so on This all drives up costs for locals and increases bills and the cost of living.

Iprompt the imagining of an even worse scenario: the rerouting of water and ousting

of people who can no longer afford to live and work in an area, again, often farmland in such acase, leading to less food readily available; which, again, would drive up costs, but now in agreater area, and then, given the scale of these projects, later nationwide. Idon’tmean to be an alarmist or adoomsdayer,but Iurge greater thought regarding the impacts of data centers, not just within our state, but within our nation. This is an issue that will transcend generational and geographic boundaries and needs to be taken very seriously ELISE VERHEUGEN Metairie

Trumphas no business tellingpopeanythingabout Christianity

President Donald Trump criticized Pope Leo XIV,saying the Pope is “a veryliberal person,” “not doing avery good job”and “radical left.” Examplesofirony would be afire station burning down, apsychic canceling an appointment due to unforeseen circumstance andbe-

ing stuck in traffic on your waytothe gym

Now top of the list: Trumptelling the pope how to be aChristian. Anonymous quote could be thepope’sresponse: “It’sOKifyou don’t like me, not everyone has good taste.” TERRYGRUNDMANN Kenner

Worrymore aboutvictims than criminals in EBRjustice system

Letter writer TiaFields bemoans the loss of judicial control of the East Baton Rouge Parish District and the number of Black criminals on death row

Twopoints should be brought up. These criminals were convicted of such serious crimes they merit the death penalty.They put themselves in this situation. It wasn’tshoplifting or parking tickets.

What about the impact on the families of these victims who have lost abrother,husband or wife,father or mother? Where is their justice? Who is going to be afather or mother to achild killed by one of these criminals?

Fields worriesabout the criminals on death row? Where is the advocate for the victims?

RICHARD LEVY NewOrleans

STAFF FILE PHOTO By DAVID GRUNFELD

Duncan

COMMENTARY

TheSupreme Courtstruck down amajority Black congressional district in Louisiana on Wednesday in a landmarkruling withwide-reachingeffects across the country.

What kind ofdemocracy will we leave forour kids?

The Supreme Court’sdecisioninLouisiana v. Callais is more than alegal ruling. It is amoment that asks all of us, regardless of party or background, to reflecton a simple but powerful question: Who gets to be fully represented in ourdemocracy? Here in Louisiana, that question is not abstract. It is real, and it affects communities across our state. At its core, this case is about whetherevery citizen has afair chance to elect leaders who understandtheir lives, their concerns and their hopesfor the future. For generations, the Voting Rights Act of 1965 has servedasa guardrail. It was never meant to sit quietly on ashelf. It was designed to ensure that the right to vote leads to real representation. Over time,wehave seen those protections weakened. This latestdecisionraises serious concerns about whether that promise can still be fully realized.

tunity.When representation is weakened, those issuesdonot disappear.They simply become harder for some communities to influence.

High courtgot Louisiana redistrictingrulingright

Some will say this ruling movesustoward amore neutral, colorblind system. But Louisiana’shistory reminds us that policies that seem neutralcan still have unequal effects. We have seen it before Rules once defended as fair were used in ways that left many voices unheard. That is alesson we cannot afford to forget. The reality is that representation matters. When people feel seen and heard in government, trust grows. Whenthey do not, that trust beginstoerode. And when trust erodes, our entire system feelsthe strain. This is not just about maps orlines onpaper.Itisabout whether communitieshave ameaningful voice in decisions that shape their daily lives. It is about health care, education, jobs, publicsafety and oppor-

This decisionalso has implications beyond Louisiana. It signals ashift that could affect how representation is shaped in states acrossthe country That is why this moment matters, notjust to onegroup or one region, but to the integrity of our democracy as awhole. We arenow at acrossroads.We canchoose apath that strengthens participation and builds confidence in our institutions. Or we can allow divisions to deepen and voices to be diminished. Ibelieve Louisiana is better than that. Ibelieve our country is betterthan that. The promise of America has always been rootedinthe idea thatevery voice counts. Thatpromisehas never been easy, and it hasnever been automatic. It requireseffort, vigilance and ashared commitment to fairness

While Ivehemently disagree withthis decision, Iremain committed to the work ahead. That meanscontinuing to engage, to listen and to seek solutions that bring peopletogether rather than pull them apart.

At the end of the day,this is not just about one ruling. It is about the kind of democracy we want to leave for the next generation.

And that is something every Louisianan hasa stakeinprotecting.

Troy Carter represents Louisiana’s second district in the U.S. Houseof Representatives

Consider this hypothetical. Anew governor takes officealong with asubstantially new legislature. On day one, thegovernor fires hundreds of attorneys, engineers and other state employees. Mostof those dismissed are longtime classified government workers who have developed expertise in matters related to state contracts, procurement, administrative procedure and, in thecase of engineers, road and bridgedesign and construction practices. All of the new employees hired to replace them are paid substantially more than their predecessors. Most have made campaign contributions to the governororwell-placed legislators. Far-fetched? Improbable? Unlikely? Not if Amendment 1onthe May 16 ballot is passed by voters statewide Currently almost 90% of stateemployees are classified and cannot beremoved at the whim of an elected official. They cannot engage in political activity either.This is afair trade-off. Unclassified employees, on the other hand, are “at will” workers answerable only to theofficial appointing them. They can be politically active.Many typically supportthe political campaigns of the individuals for whom they work. They also generallyare paid ahigherwage than their classified counterparts.

After theSupreme Court decisionin Louisiana v. Callais, state legislators must return to the congressionalmap drawing board. This time,don’t use race. The Supreme Court struckdownthe congressional maps, saying that states may notredistrict to achieve racial purposes. When legislative sponsors in Baton Rouge were asked during debateonthe now-overturned mapswhy theydrew theoffending map in Callais, they were honest: They wanted districts based on skin color Vice Chair of the House and Governmental Affairs Committee Rodney Lyons, DMarrero, saidthey wantedto“create two majority Black districts.” When Rep.Beryl Amedee, R-Houma,asked committee chair and map sponsor Rep.Beau Beaullieu, R-New Iberia, if thebill was intended to create Black districts, he responded: “yesma’am.”

moral side of history.Myorganization’samicus brief on behalf of eight legislators, including Rep. Amedee, stakedout the moraland historical imperative of treating people equally andwithout regard to race. The authors of the Fifteenth Amendment to the Constitutionprohibitedthe use of race to allocatepolitical power.It was arainbowafter the storm. The amendment containedthe promise thatvoting rights and powerallocation should never be leveragedbased on race. Since1870, ournation has struggledtofulfill the raceblind promisesinthe Constitution. Separate wasn’tequal. Soon afterpassage, the dream of the Fifteenth Amendment began to wither in state capitals, registration offices andinthe gunfire of the White League on New Orleansstreets.

The legislative record is full of explicit statements from lawmakers about how they deliberately created congressional districtstoallocate power by race. It was 1960 all over again —but the racial gamesmanship was reversed. It is immoral and wicked to give one person power because he is Black, just as it was to give others power a century ago because they were White.

The courtheld that Section 2ofthe Voting RightsAct is alive and well, and sometimes remedial districts must be drawn after aplaintiff satisfies an extraordinary burden. The Supreme Courtdecision is on the

Thenthe pendulum swung toofar the otherdirection, with racial setaside districts, seemingly endless court battlesand thenthe brazen racial gerrymandering like the Supreme Court struckdowninCallais. With this decision, the dignity of everyAmerican wasprotected. Place this opinionalongside other great moments of courage from the high court —like Brown v. Board, Loving v. Virginia andStudents for Fair Admissions vHarvard.

J. Christian Adams is the president and general counsel for the Public InterestLegal Foundation and serves on the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights.

Proponentsofthe proposed amendment argue that it is toodifficult to fire bad employeesand thatthe state has difficulty attracting good talent. The latter is often true, but it will not be remedied by passage of this amendment It is correct to saythat thereisa process for firing aclassified worker.Itcan take moretime than firing an unclassified employee and it certainly takes documentation, but this is precisely what managers must do. They mustmanage their workforce, provide counseling when needed and properly record deficiencies thatultimately may justify termination. Ispent almost 20 years running three departments of Stategovernment: the SecretaryofState’soffice; the Department of Culture, Recreation and Tourism and the Division of Administration. Iwas authorized to hire alimited number of unclassified employees and supervised thousands of classifiedemployees,the vast majority of whom were hard working, dedicated publicservants. Ialso fired anumber of individuals, some unclassified but most classified. Under the regimes of Huey Long, Earl Long and others, therewas no classified civilservice system.This changed with reform governors suchasSam Jones and Bob

Kennon. During the latter’s single term, the Department of Civil Service obtained constitutionalstatus. Gov.Jones implemented early vestiges of acivil service program only to seeitrepealed during asubsequent Earl Long term. Until Gov.Kennon made it afocal point of his 1952 campaign andsaw it enshrined in thestate constitution, political spoils werethe order of the day.The civil servicesystem created an opportunity for workers to obtain employment with the securityofknowing thatthey could notbe fired, without cause, for political reasons. In 2025, Gov.Jeff Landrysought to reclassify 394 attorneyslots and 506 engineer positions from classified to unclassified. The proposal would not have affected anycurrent employees.However,ifthose positions had been reclassified, thedoorwould be opened for politics to inevitably impactthe hiring process. The constitutionally created Civil Service Commission, which is the human resourceentityfor state government, properly refused this request. Thereafter, this proposed constitutional amendment passed the Legislature. Stateemployees are subject to pay scales that allow for advancement and raises, but they typically earn far less than comparable positions in theprivate sector.This is as it should be. State employees are protected from political abuse andben-

efit from astrong retirement system and benefits package. Numerous studies have been undertaken to makestate pay more competitive, but it will never nor should it exceed that in the private sector.Itis inconceivable that well paid professionals will leave the private sector to enter unprotected employment with the state unless unclassified salaries go up dramatically

The ballot language is deceptively simple:

“Doyou support an amendment to allow the legislature to remove or add officers, positions, and employees to the unclassified state civil service?”

Without any details identifying potential next steps, it will be lefttoamajority of the Legislature to provide the proverbial “devil in the details.”

The passage of Amendment 1would be ahuge step backward forLouisiana at a timewhen we need manyforward steps to improve our overall economy and to make government moreresponsible and efficient. Converting classified jobs to unclassified jobs will not do so.

JayDardenneisa former Louisiana state senator,secretary of state, lieutenant governor andcommissioner of administration

Jay Dardenne GUEST COLUMNIST

ASSOCIATED PRESS FILE PHOTOByRAHMATGUL

J. Christian Adams GUEST COLUMNIST

U.S. Rep. Troy Carter GUEST COLUMNIST

Limits on 4-dayschoolweekspark debate

Billseeks to tighten requirements over calendar

BY CHARLESLUSSIER Staff writer

Roughly aquarter of the school districts in Louisiana hold classes only four days aweek, most of them shifting to shorter weeks since COVID. State lawmakers are poised to make it much harder for any more districts to join them.

In doing so, they may force the latest adopter,East Feliciana Parish, to pull the plug on plans to move to four-day weeks in August. Instead the parish would need to revert at the 11th hour to a five-day-a-week calendar

Sen. Beth Mizell, RFranklinton, is leading the charge. She suggests that four-day weeks, if expanded further,could reverse recent gains on national standardized tests that have led to accolades for Louisiana.

“We’ve gotten to the pinnacle and are beginning to chisel away at what we have accomplished,” Mizell said In Louisiana, 15 out of 69 schooldistricts have fourday weeks.Twelve of those have adopted the shortened week since 2020.Many of them did so to attractand retain teachers during atime of historic teacher shortages. They tend to be smaller, rural schoolsystems. They range from Catahoula Parish, home to about 800 students, to Acadia Parish, with about 9,000 students.

Mizell’sproposed legislation, Senate Bill 82, aims to halt that growth. Her bill sailed throughthe Senate and, more recently,cleared theHouse Education Committee by a10-3 margin. It awaits action on the House floor.The legislative session ends June 1.

Mizell floated asimilar bill in 2024, initially with no exemptions, but it diedinthe Senate. She proposed that measure after adistrict she

represents, Bogalusa City Schools, shifted in 2023 to a four-day week. State law currently gives public schools, including charter schools, the authority to set their own annual calendars —infact, it forbids state education leaders from imposing or requiring preapproval for calendars. Schools justhave to hold classes for aminimum numberofminuteseach year SB82 would add anew restriction on that authority. It wouldrequire that schools operatefor “fiveconsecutivedays” each week, except for legal holidays. Mizell’slatest billwould exempt school districts with astate academic letter grade of an A— her2024 bill, as revised, would have also exempted districtswith Bletter grades. There are 12 Adistricts currently in Louisiana. Two of them, Cameron andVernonparishes,already have four-day school weeks. Cameron is theoldest in the state, having adopted afourdayweek in 2008. Vernon shifted to afour-day week last fall.

Crosshairs

The proposed legislation would also grandfather“any city,parish,orotherlocal school system that participates in afourday school week on or before December31, 2025.”

The 15 districtswithfourday weekswould qualify.St. HelenaParish would also likelyqualify;itgoes back and forth between four- and five-dayschool weeks.

East Feliciana Parish, however, would notqualify It didn’tadopt afour-day week until Feb. 3—33days too late.

East Feliciana’spublic schools Superintendent Keisha Nettervilleand seven other administratorsfrom herdistrict testified against SB82 at the April 23 House Education Committee meeting.

Netterville noted that East Feliciana has improved its state letter grade from aD to aBinrecentyears.

“When districts are meet-

ing expectations and making thoughtful decisions, their authority should be respected and not removed retroactively,” Netterville said.

“Employees have signed contracts, families have made arrangements and districts have alignedinstructional plans. Reversing thesedecisions at this stagecreates confusion and instability andultimately impacts studentsthe most.”

Mizell was unmoved.

The state senator told the committee that the fifth day of school children miss each week is too crucial to allow schools to skip. She waved away arguments that districts canoffsetstudent’s learning loss and hunger with special programs held on out-of-school days or that an extra day away from schoolwill free families to do productive thingson those days.

“It would be lovely if on the fifth day when they are notattending school,they could be attending music lessons, they could be going on family outings, theycould be having appointments to have their braces done,” Mizell said. “That’s notthe realityinlots of Louisiana.”

Changessought

SB82still has at least one hurdle to surmount.

Rep. RoyDaryl Adams, D-Jackson, hasproposed aHouse floor amendment that would push back the grandfathering date until Feb. 20, after East Feliciana, aparish he represents, made its decision. If theHouse approves SB82 with Adams’ amendment, it would need to return to the Senatefor afinal vote.

Adams saidthat before the House Education Committeeheasked Mizell to consider his amendment then,but he saidMizell was unwilling to consider any changes to her bill.

Adams said the state should notbeimpinging on localautonomy in favorof aone-size-fits-all approach.

“What worksinShreveportmight not workinEast Feliciana,” Adams said.

During the committee

BOOSIE

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that some of the proceeds from thefestival would go to that scholarship fund. But according to Murrill, neither Wilson’sparents nor Southern gave consent for organizers touse their son’s name in connection with the event. Murrill saidina statement she intended to take legal action, “due to theirmisappropriation of his name and image

to promote their for-profit event. This isnot acharitable event.”

Hatch did not directly respondtoMurrill’sallegations.

“Outsideofwhatpeople may portray this fest to be thisisall about agood time andbringing something back to my state,” the rapper said. “I lookforward to doingthiseveryyear,so nothingcan stop that.It’s for thecommunitytohave something fun and enjoyable.” For information on Boosie Bash tickets,VIP

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meeting, Rep. Barbara Freiberg, R-Baton Rouge, aretired educator,asked Mizell if she would be willing to amendher bill to grandfather in East Feliciana or perhaps addwaysthatdistricts could get awaiver so they couldhaveafour-day week, but Mizell did not express any willingnesstodo so.

Freiburg saidshe also has been hearing from charter school leaders —atleast onecharterschool,A-rated SlaughterCommunity Charter School, has afour-day week,dating back to when it opened in 2011.

“The whole reason for acharter school is to try something different,” Freiberg said. “They’re concerned you might be tying their hands for things their schools might want to do.”

Mizellcounteredthat school leaders are urging her to removethe four-day week as an option.

“I’vehad superintendents come to me and say,‘Please run the bill. We’re getting so much pressure in our districts. We need something to give us guidance so we

CANDIDATES

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owners to ahigher standard in order to increase their values.”

Levy,White’sonly opponent in the race, has touted herexperience running alocalnonprofit, theLevyCancer Foundation, as evidence she can expand the city’s economic footprint.

“If you want to bring revenue from other parishes, you have to grow,” Levy said.“I’ve seen peoplemove to Youngsville, open abusiness anddoreally well. We need to leverage all thatwe have to keep thosepeople in Abbeville.”

Levy proposededucational courses that the citycould

can quit talking about it,’ ” Mizell recounted.

‘Fried’or‘engaged’

Four-day school weeks have clearly increased in popularity nationwide since theCOVID pandemic. For instance, in Texas, the number of schools using such a schedule increased from 30 pre-pandemic to more than 500 today.

Theresearchoverthe past fewdecades on the impact of afour-dayweek has been mixed.

In areview of 11 studies publishedinJune,the University of Oregonfound that overall“therewas no evidenceoflarge positive effects.” Theschoolsthat faredbest, though,did not cutback on overalltime in class.

School districts typically compensatefor thelossof instruction by extending the length of the four remaining school days. Mizell said longer school days are counterproductive

“If youextend the day, they may have the same (number of) hours in the week, but they are having

offer to aspiring business owners.

“Wecan have classes whereweteach people how to open anonprofit or abusiness,” Levy said.

Levy’snonprofit hasfocused on raising funds for cancer patients in Vermilion Parish. Key tenets of her campaign include an opendoor policy and prioritizing first responders.The city was sued in 2023 for allegedly underpaying seniorofficials in theAbbeville Police Department. Acourtruling earlier this year found that several officers were entitled to highercompensation under the city’spay scale than they had been receiving.

Levycredited White’s performance on lowering crime rates in the city,how-

very long school days,” Mizelltoldcommittee members. “A child’sbrain is pretty well fried by 2 (o’clock)inthe afternoon.” Jackson Elementary Principal Megan Phillips disputed that assertion. She said manyofher students stay in school late in theafternoon as part of after-school programs.

“Those kids are still engaged even though they have days later than we would have withour fourdayschool week,” Phillips testified. Jonathan Loveall, adata andcommunicationssupervisor in East Feliciana, rattledoff multiple benefits of alonger school day,sayingitallows teacherstoreally dig into whattheyare teaching.

“Whatitreally allows for are extended blocks throughout the school day for our students to have moretimewith reading, more time with math,” Loveallsaid.

Email Charles Lussier at clussier@theadvocate. com.

ever,has suggested that the city hasnot done enoughto supportpoliceofficersand other first responders. While White and Levyare opponents in the election, both candidates say they respect each other

“It’sincredibly difficult to decide to serve. Iknowshe loves this community the same way Ido,” White said.

“I loveAbbeville. Ifeel like there’saneed for change There’salways room to improve things in this city, but there is absolutely no ill will,” Levy said. “I just want peopletogoout and vote. If you want to change things, youhave to vote.”

PROVIDED PHOTO Lafayette Parish School Boardmember JoshuaEdmond,left, and Carencro High football coach Gavin Peters, right, welcomerapperBoosieBadazzwith custom jerseys.

Derby win pitted brother vs. brother down the stretch

BY JON HALE

Lexington Herald-Leader (TNS)

LOUISVILLE,Ky.— Brotherjockeyshavesquared off against each other in the Derby 11 times, but never before has a family rivalry played out like the 152nd Run for the Roses.

Down the stretch, brothers Jose and Irad Ortiz on Golden Tempo and Renegade, respectively, both came charging from the outside. As the pair passed leader Ocelli, it appeared either could win, but Golden Tempo gained the edge, eventually winning by a neck.

Neither brother had won the Derby in a combined 19 starts. Now Jose, the younger by a year, can walk away with familial bragging rights in addition to the careerdefining victory

“Good for him, he ran second,” Jose said

of his brother with a smile “Hopefully, he gets the opportunity to win it one day. But it wasn’t today.”

Of the 11 previous matchups between brother jockeys in the Derby, Jose and Irad accounted for eight. They had squared off in each of the past five Derbys, but neither had finished in the money since 2019.

That year, Jose finished third on Tacitus and Irad finished fourth on Improbable in the previous best combined finish for brother jockeys. Jose finished second on Good Magic in 2018, but Irad finished seventh on Hofburg. Entering Saturday, Irad appeared to have the better shot at the win.

Renegade was the morning-line favorite and went off at 5-1. Golden Tempo was a

ä See RIVALRY, page 4C

Good for him, he ran second. Hopefully, he gets the opportunity to win it one day. But it wasn’t today.”

JOSE ORTIZ Jockey on his brother Irad Oriz Jr

Healthy pitching lifts LSU past S.C.

BY KOKI RILEY Staff writer

LSU’s pitching was in a bad place last week. The Tigers had lost their Friday starter less than an hour before the game. Their Saturday starter was already out for the year with an elbow injury, and their bullpen had struggled for much of the season. Those issues resulted in LSU getting swept on the road against Mississippi State. But even without sophomore right-hander Casan Evans for another week, this weekend against South Carolina (22-27, 7-17 SEC) back at Alex Box Stadium was a completely different story LSU (28-21, 9-15) took down the Gamecocks 7-0 on Sunday thanks to another lengthy outing from senior right-hander Zac Cowan. The Tigers only needed four pitchers to get through 18 innings during Saturday’s doubleheader before Cowan tossed six innings to start the series finale. Sunday’s victory completed a series sweep over South Carolina, LSU’s first of the season in Southeastern Conference play “It’s great to sweep a series,” LSU coach Jay Johnson said. “Taking a look at the names that aren’t on the roster, this is a pretty good accomplishment for this group.” Cowan, in his second start in six days, allowed just two hits and didn’t give up a run. He threw a season-high 82 pitches after tossing 73 pitches (his season-high before Sunday) on Tuesday. After surrendering a two-run walk-off home run last weekend at Mississippi State, Cowan has 14 strikeouts in 10 shutout innings this week. “(He) should be hands down SEC pitcher of the week,” Johnson said. “I’ve talked about him for two years, how important he

Tigers earn first sweep of season in SEC play ä See LSU, page 4C

Cajuns’ dramatic double play secures win, series sweep

BY KEVIN FOOTE Staff writer

It wasn’t hit overly hard, but UL’s freshman shortstop Blaze Rodriguez smelled blood. The bases were loaded with one out at the top of the ninth with his Ragin’ Cajuns clinging to a one-run lead.

The grounder off Cole Griffith’s bat was also to Rodriguez’s right, running toward third base, but the spectacular infielder turned the double play anyway to secure the hard-fought 4-3 win over Georgia State on Sunday at Russo Park. The win completed the series sweep for the Cajuns to get to 30-18 overall and 12-12 in league play Georgia State dropped to 22-25 and 10-14. The Cajuns are now in sole possession of sixth place in the league standings — one game behind Troy (13-11) and two behind South Alabama (14-10) with two weekends left.

“We were up by one and we had one out,” Rodriguez said. “So I knew if all got hit to me, I was going to throw it to (second baseman) Lee (Amedee), no matter what.” Part of that is his aggressive nature, but also his preparation from assistant coach Seth Thibodeaux.

“Coach Thib does a really good job relaying the speed of the runners before the atbat,” Rodriguez added. “So I knew that he was a slower runner, so I knew I had time. Whenever he hit it a little bit slower I still knew that we could get him.” What UL coach Matt Deggs especially admires about his young shortstop is that going 0-for-3 with two strikeouts didn’t bother him at all.

“What’s nice is having a kid who can play great defense without taking at-bats out there,” Deggs said. “He took one on the chin offensively today, but the defense was truly

by his brother Irad Ortiz Jr on Saturday at Churchill Downs in Louisville, Ky AP PHOTO

FILE PHOTO By MICHAEL BACIGALUPI

LSU pitcher Zac Cowan warms up in a game against Texas A&M on April 19 at Alex Box Stadium. Cowan tossed six innings in Sunday’s series finale against South Carolina.

Kaplan falls short in state final

BY ERIC NARCISSE Staff writer

Things started off well for the Kaplan Pirates’ offense on Sunday But as their championship game progressed, the Pirates’ bats cooled off significantly with runners in scoring position.

That proved to be costly as the Pirates fell 5-4 to the Sterlington Panthers in the Division III select state final at Frasch Park.

“I don’t think we played bad,” Pirates head coach Brittany LeBouef said “I think softball’s a game of momentum, and they had the momentum, then we had the momentum, and then they had the momentum again. We could never get it back.”

The Pirates were leading Sterlington 4-2 going into the top of the sixth inning, but the Panthers scored three runs on a two-out three-run homer by Neely Kilpatrick in the inning to take the lead, which they didn’t relinquish

“It’s a state championship game,

with two great teams playing and we just got the short end of the stick today,” LeBouef said.

“I don’t think we have anything to hang our heads over It was a

great season. It’s hard to be a state runner-up. It’s hard to make the semifinals or the quarterfinals Overall, I think we had a great season and our kids fought until

the very end.”

Lexi Greene was the losing pitcher after allowing five runs (three earned) on nine hits and one walk, while striking out three in seven innings.

“She threw a pretty good game (Sunday). I don’t think one pitch defines somebody,” LeBouef said.

“We committed a couple of errors, which allowed them to score. She’s taken the loss pretty hard. But she’s a great player, a great person, and I promise you, we will be back. This is a sour feeling for us.”

Offensively, the Pirates’ top performers were Greene, Emma Sherman, Jenna Duhon and Gabrielle Braus, all of whom drove in runs.

“We left some runners in scoring position, and an extra run or two probably would have sealed the game for us,” LeBouef said.

“It just wasn’t in the cards for us to win a state championship (Sunday) Our kids didn’t do anything wrong. We just left runners stranded, and that’s how it goes sometimes.”

Northside Christian cruises to state crown

BY ERIC NARCISSE Staff writer

It has been a banner season for the Northside Christian Warriors. And when they decide to hang one up, it will now read “state champions.”

The Warriors won the Class C softball state championship Sunday defeating Claiborne Christian 10-4 at Frasch Park in Sulphur

“We are very excited,” Warriors head coach Ryan Hanagriff said. “It has been a great season, and this is well-deserving for these kids.”

It’s the first softball state championship for the Warriors since 2021.

“I’ll tell you what, we were prepared,” Hanagriff said. “We were prepared for what we knew about this team, and these girls were ready to go. They executed our plan perfectly.”

Brooklyn Hebert was the win-

ning pitcher after allowing four earned runs on nine hits, while striking out eight in seven innings of work.

“Brooklyn did good a good job,” Hanagriff said. “She really controlled the game, and I thought she did a great job. She really kept us in the game the whole time.”

Offensively, the Warriors were led by Khyra Abshire, Jade Guidry and Miley Ashby Abshire was 3-for-4 with two doubles, three RBIs and two runs scored, Guidry went 2-for-4 with two doubles and two RBIs and Ashby was 1-for-3 with two RBIs.

“No matter who you face, you have to have a plan at the plate,” Hanagriff said. “I thought we did a great job of having a plan. We looked for our pitch early in the count and made adjustments when we got two strikes. We did a great job at the plate.”

Email Eric Narcisse at enarcisse@theadvocate.com.

After Sunday’s win, Northside

and the Warriors will bring a state

after years of making state

STATE SOFTBALL TOURNAMENT

Raman’s journey to Seattle includes accident, law career

BY ANDREW DESTIN Associated Press

SEATTLE Sonia Raman’s coaching career has its roots in an unfortunate accident that sidelined her as a young player

The new Seattle Storm coach was a junior guard for Division III Tufts in the mid-’90s when she was hit by a car as she crossed the street. She broke the tibia and fibula in her left leg, an injury that can still cause mild flareups 30 years later

“My first reaction was ‘Scary,’ and, ‘Am I OK?’ ” Raman said recently as she prepared for her first season at the helm of the Storm. “And, it was painful. And, I remember my second reaction being, ‘Oh no, I’m not going to be able to play basketball.’” She missed the second half of her junior season and the first half of her senior season. As Raman was rehabbing to get back into game shape, she became interested in finding other ways to help her team.

“I really think that was where the coaching element started to take shape,” Raman said. “ It made me see the game from a different perspective, from the sideline, because I would stand right next to my assistant coach, or right behind my head coach.”

It became commonplace for Raman to corner head coach Janice Savitz and the rest of the staff in their offices. Raman begged them for videotapes so she could watch more games in her free time.

Her goal wasn’t to become a coach She left Tufts with an international relations degree in 1996 and then received a law degree from Boston College Law School in 2001. Yet when Raman graduated from Tufts, she asked Savitz if she could stay on as an assistant. Raman’s coaching career easily could have come to an end after law school She took a job in the U.S Department of Labor Simultaneously, she accepted an offer to help out for one season at Wellesley College, where head

coach Kathy Hagerstrom was going on parental leave. Raman ended up spending six seasons there.

Hagerstrom frequently encouraged Raman to consider a head coaching role, which she ultimately did when she accepted a job at MIT in 2008.

MIT, a school that has historically struggled to win, went 91-45 across Raman’s final five seasons as she became the winningest coach in school history

Following 12 seasons at MIT, Rich Cho, vice president of basketball strategy for the NBA’s Memphis Grizzlies, asked for Raman’s services.

Despite some initial skepticism, Raman made the jump in 2020 to the Grizzlies as an assistant coach.

“It was a huge risk,” Raman said. Raman trusted her gut and became the first person of Indian descent to coach in the NBA, as well as the 14th woman to be named as an NBA coach.

Toronto Raptors head coach Darko Rajakovic was an assistant

Young finishes off his wire-to-wire win at Doral

DORAL,Fla Cameron Young went wire-to-wire alone on the lead at the Cadillac Championship, a final round of 4-under 68 getting him to 19 under and six shots clear of world No. 1 Scottie Scheffler (68). With President Donald Trump in place to watch most of the round at Trump National Doral, Young picked up $3.6 million for the second-biggest payday of his career. He made $4.5 million earlier this year for winning The Players Championship.

Scheffler finished second for the third consecutive start, after finishing a shot behind Rory McIlroy at the Masters and losing a playoff to Matt Fitzpatrick at Hilton Head. Ben Griffin (68) was third at 12 under, while Si Woo Kim (70), Sepp Straka (66) and Adam Scott (64) tied for fourth at 11 under

Sinner wins record fifth straight Masters 1000 title

MADRID Top-ranked Jannik Sinner cruised past Alexander Zverev in the final of the Madrid Open to win the tournament for the first time and become the first man to win five consecutive Masters 1000 events.

Sinner beat the third-ranked Zverev 6-1, 6-2 on Sunday for his 23rd straight win. He had already won Master 1000 tournaments in Monte Carlo, Miami and Indian Wells this year and in Paris last year

“I think there is a lot of work behind it,” Sinner said.

Zverev lost to Sinner in the semifinals of each of those tournaments. He won in Madrid in 2018 and 2021, and was runner-up to Carlos Alcaraz in 2022.

Korda crushes in Mexico, nabs third win of season

PLAYA DEL CARMEN, Mexico Nelly Korda delivered an early knockout punch Sunday and stretched her lead to as many as seven shots before cruising to the finish line with a 3-under 69 and a four-shot victory in the Riviera Maya Open at Mayakoba for her third win of the young season.

Korda went 60 consecutive holes without a bogey She finished at 17-under 271, four shots ahead Arpichaya Yubol of Thailand, who celebrated her 24th birthday with a 70 to finish alone in second. Yu Liu of China (69) was another shot back. Arkansas senior Maria Jose Marin, who delighted the crowd with her Augusta National Women’s Amateur title last month, had a 69-69 weekend to finish fifth. The top 10 would make her eligible for next week at the Mizuho Americas Open, but she has finals.

Cink adds another senior major with a 3-shot win

BIRMINGHAM, Ala Stewart Cink pulled away with consecutive birdies early on the back nine Sunday that stretched his lead to four shots, and he closed with a 3-under 69 for a three-shot victory in the Regions Tradition for his second major this year on the PGA Tour Champions.

Cink, who won the Senior PGA Championship two weeks ago in Florida, became the second player in two years to capture the first two majors on the 50-and-older circuit.

Angel Cabrera won the Senior PGA and the Tradition last year in consecutive weeks.

Scott Hend (65) was the runnerup.

alongside Raman from 2020-23 and was impressed by her ability to get buy-in from the team.

“What players want is somebody who cares about them and has extensive knowledge,” Rajakovi said. “And Sonia checks all of those boxes. From Day 1, never had an issue with players. Players loved her.”

Such also seems to be the case in Seattle already

Raman, an assistant last season with the New York Liberty, has won over Storm players like Dominique Malonga and Lexie Brown with offseason visits; and rookie Flau’jae Johnson with her calm demeanor

“Coach, she’s cool. She’s like a 180 from Kim Mulkey, right?” said Johnson, who played for Mulkey at LSU.

Raman said she believes she’s always going to be prepared for any role she takes.

“I’ve spent a lot of time preparing for this moment,” she said. “I do feel really ready for this opportunity and this season.”

Lindberg notches his first European tour victory ANTALYA,Turkey Mikael Lindberg closed with a 3-under 69 to win the Turkish Airlines Open on Sunday for his first European tour victory that earned him a spot in the PGA Championship by leading the tour’s Asian swing. Lindberg has three birdies on a four-hole stretch on the front nine at National Golf Club to take control, and he added consecutive birdies on the back nine. He two-putted for par on the last to finish at 10-under 278 and win by two over Daniel Rodrigues (71) and Guido Migliozzi (70). The PGA Championship to be played May 14-17 at Aronimink, set aside spots for three players from the Asian swing. Lindberg will be joined by Bernd Wiesberger and Jordan Gumberg.

STAFF FILE PHOTO By BRAD KEMP

Christian softball coach Ryan Hanagriff

championship trophy back to Crowley

tournament runs.

FILE PHOTO By ROBIN MAy The Kaplan Pirates lost to Sterlington in the Division III nonselect state championship game on Sunday.

LSUfootballadds

JUCO CB Williams

Tigers land five-star 2027 commitment

BY REED DARCEYand KOKI RILEY Staff writers

Coach Lane Kiffin and his staff were looking for cornerback depth,sotheydippedintothe junior college ranks to find it.

LSU’snewest defensive back is Lavonte Williams, aGeorgia Military Academy corner who toldRivals on Saturday that he’smoving to Baton Rouge.

Williams, aSouth Carolina native, appeared in 11 gameslast season,his first in juniorcollege. He recorded 17 tackles, an interception and five pass break-ups.

Now he’ll join acornerback room at LSU that was in need of an extra player.Inaspring scrimmage, sophomore Aidan Anding suffered atorn Achilles whileintercepting apass. He was expected to play areserve rolein2026, behind starters DJ Pickett and PJ Woodland.

After Anding was injured,LSU’s second-team cornerbacks were Ja’Keem Jackson and Michael Turner

In previous years, the Tigers could’ve added atransfer to replenish their depth, but this offseason, the transfer portal will notreopen in the spring. So they recruited ajunior college cornerback instead. Williams is expected to enroll this summer,Rivals reported.

LSUadds five-starcommitment

Five-star tight end andClass of 2027 recruitAhmad Hudson has committedtoLSU football, he announcedonsocialmedia Sunday Hudson is the No.1tight end in the nation and the No. 18 player in thecountry,according to the

STAFF FILE PHOTO By JAVIER GALLEGOS

LSU coachLane Kiffinwatches his team rundrills during spring practice onMarch 24 at the team’s practice facility.

247SportsComposite. He attends Ruston High in Ruston and is listed at 6-foot-6 and 239 pounds

He’s also astarbasketballplayer with scholarship offers from LSU, Alabama, Nebraska, Texas A&M and Ole Miss,among others. Nebraska wasthe other finalist in his football recruitment.

Hudson is the fifth high school recruit to join LSU’s2027 class, joining five-star edge rusher Jaiden Bryant, four-star quarterback Peyton Houston, four-star athlete BraylonCalais andfour-star wide receiver Ah’Mari Stevens. With Hudsoncommitted to LSU, the Tigers nowhave pledges from three of the top-10 players in Louisiana’s 2027 class, per the 247Sports Composite. Hudson is theNo. 3player in Louisiana, only trailing five-star wide receiver and Texas commitEaston Royal and five-star interioroffensive linemanAlbert Simien.

DeVaux must decide if Golden Tempo will runPreakness

BY GARYB.GRAVES

Associated Press

LOUISVILLE, Ky.— Soon afterCherie DeVaux’swait-and-seeanswer Sunday morning about her Kentucky Derby winner’snextstop on the Triple Crown trail, an official from the Preakness called to congratulate the history-making trainer and invite Golden Tempotothe series’ middle jewel in Maryland. Getting an official invitation checked off one detail for DeVaux, who on Saturday became the first woman to train aKentuckyDerby winner.Golden Tempo’sPreakness fate could be answered later this week as DeVaux monitors the horse’srecovery from aremarkable yet demandingrally from last place that won the 152nd Derby at Churchill Downs by aneck as a 23-1 long shot.

“As long as he’s in tip-top shape, we’ll talk about it,” said DeVaux, who vanned Golden Tempo over to Keeneland in Lexington, Kentucky, themorning after the race. “It is on the table, but it’sreally up to him.” The usual postDerby dilemma for trainers and owners is whether their horses are up for the two-week turnaround at the Preakness. This year, the raceisat Laurel Park on May 16 while the traditional Pimlico Race Course is rebuilt. The Triple Crown’smiddle jewel will go off at ashorter 13/16mile distance with apresumably smaller field.

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remarkable.

Thegreat defensive playallowed TylerPapenbrock to collect his second save of the season. The seniorleft-handergot thosefinal two outs.

“Credit Pappy,coming in, got ice water in his veins, and was able to get aground ball there, and let’sgo,” Deggs said.

It appeared freshman lefty Hayden Pearson might getthe save opportunity,but he was relieved three batters into the ninth with one out and two on.

Pearson allowed onerun on threehits, no walks and two strikeoutson41pitches.

The Panthersgot arun on him in the seventh when speedy John Beverley singled, stole two bases and scored on athrowing error

Ty Roman almostcompleted fiveinnings to be in line for the victory,but allowed two hitsand awalk after getting thefirst two battersout

Romanallowed onerun on four hits, onewalkand struckout two in 42/3 innings over 72 pitches.

He was relieved for 11/3 innings by freshmanright-handerSaw-

yer Pruitt,who gave up onerun on three hits, one walkand struck out one.

“I thought he (Pearson) was great,” Deggs said of the pitching. “I thought Sawyer was doing fine. They’re just finding holes. I thought Ty gave us agreat start. Ireally do.”

UL’s offense was limited to five hitsinthe game, but found away to get four runs.

“Offensivelyour approach was offtoday,” Deggs said. “Wecannotbecomea victim of alittle bitofsuccessthatwe’vehad, andstartpulling offofstuff. But credit their guy.He(starter Cole Roberts) executed some pitches on us today,too.”

In the third, Drew Markle led off with alongdouble in the gap andscoredona fielder’schoice grounder by Lewis of MarkCollins singled fora1-0 lead. Then the most unlikely hero ignitedthe critical three-run fourth.

Rigoberto Hernandez washit by apitch in the first inning and was notable to continue. Deggs went to Hebert,who is hitting .156 on the season, to batinthat cleanup spot.

So what does Hebert do to lead offthe fourth? Hit ahome run, of course.

“For me,it’sjust trusting God, praying alot, talking with Godand

pitch at.”

is to our program and tome. That was awesome.

The healthypitching planallowed LSU’soffense plenty of time to build leadsonSaturday and Sunday, when theTigers jumped outtoa6-0 advantagejust before Cowan exited the contest.

just keeping life simple andeasy Keeping everything in line grades, showing up, everything.” Hebert saidencouragement from assistantcoach Zach Lafleur allowed him to have an aggressive approach at the plate.

“Coach Zhas been saying, ‘I’m hitting, I’m hitting, I’m hitting,” Hebert said. “So when that first pitch game, Iwas like, ‘I’m hitting.’ It was inside andIgot into it.”

Colt Brown followed that wallop with asingle and reached third on Steven Spalitta’sbloop double. First, Brown scored on awild pitch and then Spalitta scored on Markle’s groundout forthe 4-0 lead.

UL wonthe game despitegetting outhit 11-5.

“Wow,the sweeprightsa lot of wrongs in the Sun Belt,” Deggs said. “What Imean by that is now, all of asudden, you didn’tget swept at TexasState.You took a game. Because of this, you got more than you should have this weekend.

“I know that logic seemsalittle different, butit’snot, really.When you look at the overall big picture of things, you’re stealing agame.”

Email KevinFoote at kfoote@theadvocate.com.

and LSU’sleadoff hitters finished the day going 6-for-8.

lied to lead at the1/16 pole before finishing 3/4 lengths behind Renegade, was“doing fine,” but offered no indication about the Preakness. Trainer Bill Mottsaid atrip to Maryland isn’tinthe cards for Chief Wallabee, who finished fourth.

“Nobodytalks about the Preakness,” the Hall of Famer Mott said.

“The Belmont at Saratoga; we need todiscussthat. (Co-owner) Kay Kay (Ball) was thrilledwith the way he ran (Saturday). He hasdone alot since the first of the year.

The focus nonethelessremains on Golden Tempo and apossible encore to his gutsyDerby run with jockey Jose Ortiz.

“There is alot of racing in him.

Dead last of 18 horses early on andmostly off theradar,the bay colt weaved through traffic to find spaceoutside and then hitoverdrive to outrun the field and edge Renegade in awild finishwith just one length separating the top three. Golden Tempo earned his third wininfive career starts, (placing thirdinhis two losses), and collected $3.1 million.

We’reall just absorbing this and we have to have a lotofconversations. Factors likethat arenot what’sat the forefront of our minds. We want to do what’s bestfor the horse.”

CHERIE DeVAUX, Golden Tempo’strainer

Golden Tempo appeared at ease in the Sunday chill, occasionallystickinghis head out of hisstall to munch on feed. Meanwhile, DeVaux wastrying to regain her bearings from a whirlwind 12 hoursthat involved acelebratory family dinnerata local steakhouseand just afew hoursofsleep.

Some entrants will be rested from skipping the Derby altogether or being scratchedinthe days leading up to the “Run For The Roses.” In either case, it’satough askofSaturday’scompetitors.

Hall of Fame trainer Todd Pletcher said Sunday that second-place Renegade “came backingoodorder” after a“tough beat,” which also involved arally from the back. He will take the colt and his other Kentucky horses to Saratoga in New York, the site of next month’s Belmont Stakes, on Tuesday. Whit Beckmansaid third-place Ocelli, a70-1 long shot who ral-

Shestill has congratulatory phone messages to answer along with fulfilling media requests. As packed as DeVaux’simmediate future will be, herpriority is helping determine ifGolden Tempo’ssixth start comes sooner or later

“There isalot of racing in him,” shesaid. “I really am grateful that he’sthe horse that you can just do what you need to do and he responds well and kind of just does whatever

“We’re all just absorbing this and we have to have alot of conversations. Factors like that are notwhat’satthe forefront of our minds. We want to do what’sbest for the horse.”

“Super proud of him.Pitching staff all weekend was great, and no outing was better than that one today.”

His outing further preserveda Tigers staff that used 20 pitchers at Mississippi State. This weekend, sophomore right-hander William Schmidt tossed six innings in Game 1onSaturday,and freshman right-hander Marcos Paz got through fiveinnings in Game2

“It started on the mound,” Johnson said. “That’saheck of alot closer to the standard we want to

LSUadded two runs in the third inning on atwo-run home run from freshman Omar Serna, scored twice more in the fifth on asac fly and arun-scoring single, and took a6-0 advantage on freshmanJack Ruckert’sbase-hit that eventually drove in freshmanWilliam Patrick because of an error andSerna’sground ball fielder’s choice that allowedRuckert to touch home.

Sophomore Cade Arrambide andRuckert finished with two hits apiece. Serna drove in three runs,

“Weneeded this, not only to boost our chances in the postseason and everything, but we needed this as ateam to feel confidence going forward,” Arrambide said. “Our next twoweekends are against really good teams.” LSUfaces Tulane in itsfinal nonconference midweek gameof the season on Tuesday.First pitch from Alex Box Stadium is set for 6:30 p.m and the gamewill be available to stream on SEC Network+

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

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long shot at 23-1.

GoldenTempohad usedhis closing styletowin the Lecomte Stakesinhis first race as a 3-year-old but finished third with thesame strategy in the RisenStarStakes and Arkansas Derby in his lasttwo races before theDerby.Hewas last of the 18 horses, more than 3/4 of a mile into theDerby

“It’s not like we really did anything different thathehadn’tdone in his previous starts,”trainer Cherie DeVaux said. “Therewas alot of speed on tap, on paper,and that materialized.Iwatched Jose come up and get himselfinpositiongoing intothe final turn, and at aboutthe 3/16pole, Ithought we’re probably going to win this.”

TheDerbywin cappeda historic weekend for Ortiz,who also wonthe KentuckyOaksaboard Alwaysa Runner on Friday.Heis just theninthjockey to win both of Churchill Downs’ signature races in the sameyear

He won six races across Friday and Saturday

“When you’re riding in azone, it’svery good,” he said. “It seems like you makeevery right move. Youmove at the right time. I’m glad Ihad thatthis weekend. Some other times, every move you makeiswrong.

Kentucky Derby results Saturday’s 152ndKentucky Derbyresults with jockeys and odds.Surface: dirt. Race length, track: 11/4 miles, dirt. Winning time: 2:02.27. 1. Golden Tempo-Jockey JoseOrtiz (Odds 23-1; Win: $48.24, Place: $19.14, Show: $11.90)

2. Renegade-Irad Ortiz Jr. (5-1; Place:$7.14, Show: $5.45)

3. Ocelli-Axel Concepcion(7-1; Show: $36.34); $2.00 Exacta (19-1, $278.86);$1.00 Trifecta (19-1-22, $11,250.78);$1.00 Superfecta (19-1-22-12, $94,489.95)

4. Chief Wallabee-John Valazquez (7-1)

5. Danon Bourbon-Ryusei Sakai (14-1)

6. Incredibolt-Flavien Prat (27-1)

7. Commandment-Tyler Gaffalione (7-1)

8. Wonder Dean-Luis Saez (20-1)

9. So Happy-Frankie Dettori (6-1)

10. Emerging Market-JoelRosario(11-1)

11. Further Ado-Brian HernandezJr. (7-1)

Potente-Juan Hernandez (23-1)

Six Speed-Junior Alvarado (40-1)

Robusta-Julien Leparoux (50-1)

Albus-MannyFranco(50-1)

Litmus Test-Umberto Rispoli (34-1)

Pavlovian-Javier Castellano (52-1)

“I’m32. I’mhitting kind of prime for ajockey. …Ithink I’myoung still, but I’m very experienced. I’m calm, trust my horses. Part of remaining calm is to have theconfidence of the trainers Iride for, who believe in me, trust me, trust my judgment andlet me ride the horse the wayIwant to ride my horses.”

Ortiz won the Eclipse Award for outstanding jockey in 2017. That year,hewon his first Triple Crown race on Tapwrit in theBelmont Stakes.Hewon thePreakness Stakes on Early Voting in 2022. He has wonsix Breeders’ Cup races,includingthe 2024 Breeders’ Cup Mile on More Than

Looks, who wasalso trained by DeVaux.

As oneofthe topjockeys in the world, Ortiz likely could have found his wayonto aDerby horse with better odds than Golden Tempo. DeVaux admitted to some apprehension when she called Ortiz’sagent to confirm he would be available to ride Golden Tempoin the Derby

“Wealways knew this horse had alot of ability,but he’svery lazy, as you can see early in the race,” Ortiz said. “...(DeVaux) hasbeen very loyal to me, so Ifeel like I should give that back. Iknew always Golden Tempo was gonna be my mount.”

That confidence served Ortiz well when Golden Tempo appeared out of contention almost as soon as the race started. He pointed to more experience in recent years at Churchill Downs as being key in identifying the points on thetrack when he needed to make his move. Knowing his brother’shorse was acloserwho should be in contention forthe windidn’thurt either Jose identified Renegade as one of the horses he should follow and imagined he would be battling his brother at some point, even if he didn’texpect it to be forthe win.

When Irad and Renegade moved to the outside, Jose took Golden Tempoeven farther outside. “Wecameflying late,” Irad said. “But the winner just got the jump on me.”

ASSOCIATEDPRESS PHOTOByGEORGE WALKER IV

Jockey Jose Ortiz, left, is congratulated by his brother,jockeyIrad OrtizJr.,atop Renegade after riding Golden Tempo to victoryinthe 152nd running of the Kentucky DerbyonSaturdayatChurchill Downs.

CLOSE TO HOME

Thered brickhouse on BatonRouge’s NorthStreet is obscured by treestoday.What’s itsstory?

BY ROBIN MILLER Staffwriter

The story of theorphanage was relegated to amention on page eight of theMorningAdvocate’s Aug. 12, 1926, edition, downpage from afiery story about gangster outfits battling it outin Chicago. “Protestant OrphansWill Get New Home,” theBatonRouge headlineannounced.“Plans are now being made by theboard of the ProtestantOrphans Home for the erection of anew home on the site of the North Streetorphanage property in the near future.” Anew homefor orphaned girls was news in thecapitol city, but not the kind that warranted front page headlines. Ayear later,next to the silentmovie listingsfor the downtown Columbia, Louisiana and People’stheaters, the

ä See CURIOUS, page 6C

BY IRIS KWOK Los Angeles Times (TNS)

$31 million for the fashion department’soperations, exhibitions, publications andacquisitions. The2026 galawill be thefirsttotakeplace at the museum’snew Condé M.

Institute. Last year’sgala collected arecord

Farfromthe original in Philadelphia, thesefanshuntfor theLiberty Bell replicaineachstate

BY ALLEN G. BREED AP national writer

RALEIGH, N.C. Want to seethe

Liberty Bell this semi-quincentennial but don’thave the time or cheese forapilgrimageto Philadelphia? Have no fear: Chances are, there’sone at a state Capitol, museum or even afire station near you.

It won’tbethe original, but it’ll be adead ringer For asavings bond drive in 1950, the Treasury Department commissionedcopies of the famously broken bell, one for each U.S. state and several territories. Exceptfor theserial numbers, they were faithfulreplicas —right downtothe Pass and Stow trademark and a faux crack. There’sasmallbut growing group of “bell hunters” who’ve dedicated themselves to visiting as many of the replicas as possible.Iftheywereagang, TomCampbell would be the ringleader “It was acasual thing that turned into an obsession,” Campbell, agraphic designer,said.

Letfreedom ring!

Although Fort Collins, Colorado, is now his home, Campbell was born andraised in Philadelphiaand visitedthe original Liberty Bell as aboy Ordered for the Pennsylvania State House, now known as IndependenceHall, thebellcracked on its first test ring in the 1750s, wasmelted down and cast anew There’snoevidence it was even rung on July 4, 1776;abolitionists rechristened it in the 1830s forthe Bible verse encircling itscrown,“ProclaimLiberty Throughout All the Land Unto All the Inhabitants thereof.” No oneknows exactlywhen or how the bell cracked again, but the last major attempt to restore it to ringing condition was in the 1840s. Campbell didn’tknowabout the replicas until he moved to Denver in the late 1990s.

“I was wandering around, meetinga friend at abar fora drink, and cutacross the Capitol lawnand saw afull-size Liberty Bellsitting there,” he recalled. He read about the bond drive on asmallbronze plaque, and a quest was born.

As Campbell and his wife, DawnPutney, traveled the country,they began building bell trips into their itinerary One day,she surprised him with hisown website: tomlovesthelibertybell.com

“Itwas just akindofa fun goof,” he said. Butthree decades after he stumbled on that first bell, Campbell has become the go-to expert on these pieces of Americana.

From France,avecamour

The replicas were cast by the Paccard Foundry,run by afamily who’ve been making bells in southeastern France since 1796. ä See BELL, page 6C

Beyoncé

STAFF PHOTO By ROBIN MILLER

The redbrick house, built as the Protestant Orphanagein1927, as it appears todayat1328North St. in Baton Rouge

AP PHOTO By JENNy KANE Aperson walks by aLiberty Bell replicaatthe Oregon state Capitol on April 14 in Salem, Ore.

By The Associated Press

Today is Monday, May 4, the 124th day of 2026. There are 241 days left in the year

Today in history: On May 4, 1970, Ohio National Guardsmen opened fire on student demonstrators during an anti-war protest at Kent State University, killing four students and wounding nine others.

Also on this date:

In 1886, at Haymarket Square in Chicago, a labor demonstration for an eighthour workday turned into a deadly riot when a bomb exploded, killing seven police officers and at least four civilians. In 1904, the United States took over construction of the Panama Canal from France. In 1961, the first group

CURIOUS

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newspaper announced the building’s completion on page 12 in its Sept. 15, 1927, edition.

“The new home is of red brick with white pillars in front giving a colonial effect,” the article states “Modern comforts have been provided within the building, which include a hot water heating system a small infirmary and other equipment.”

Total construction cost was $42,000.

Which answers Dee Jeffers’ question about the grand red brick building standing atop a hill at 1328 North St.

What’s the story?

“I grew up in Branch, Louisiana, so I wasn’t familiar with the house’s history,” she said. “A friend told me it was once an orphanage, but from the street, it just looks like a big house. What’s its story?”

The house is actually the conclusion of the orphanage’s story, which was said to have been established in 1847 as the Female Orphan Asylum.

But reporter Orene Muse’s Nov 19, 1939, front page feature for the Morning Advocate offered up a comprehensive history that uncovered orphanage records from as early as 1845.

“The ‘asylum’ was formed here at least 95 years ago,” she wrote. “For in the files of the orphanage are musty old documents, brittle with age and slightly yellow now, which tell of the days of 1845. There is no mention made of the founding of the institution, so it is presumed that its inception must have ante-dated 1845.”

Late author Mark T. Carlton, best known as the Louisiana history professor at LSU, wrote in his 1981 book, “River Capital, An Illustrated History of Baton Rouge,” that the first buildings of the asylum were built before 1854 with contributions from Baton Rouge ladies who supported the home with dues, money and donated items. Yet he provided no definitive location.

Orphanage’s third home

Muse’s story points out that the red brick house was the third home for the orphanage, its first being the “Bird Building,” which stood on the 500 block of Main Street in downtown Baton Rouge. It was rented out in 1870 to the Louisiana School for the Blind, now known as the Louisiana School for the Visually Impaired, and the orphans moved to a “conveniently located” cottage on Main Street.

Where on Main Street?

Again, no definitive address is provided, but what is known is that the orphans were living in this cottage when their North Street home was completed. According to The Morning Advocate’s Sept. 15, 1927, article, once the orphans moved out, the “old home facing Main Street will be offered for sale and will be torn down by the successful bidder.” So began the story of the North Street house. These

of “Freedom Riders” left Washington, D.C., to challenge racial segregation on interstate buses and in bus terminals.

In 1998, Unabomber Theodore Kaczynski was given four life sentences plus 30 years by a federal judge in Sacramento, California, under a plea agreement that spared him the death penalty In 2023, former Proud Boys leader Enrique Tarrio and three other members of the far-right extremist group were convicted of orchestrating a plot to attack the U.S. Capitol seeking to keep Donald Trump in power after the Republican lost the 2020 presidential election. (Tarrio was later sentenced to 22 years in prison but was pardoned by Trump when

he began his second elected term in January 2025.)

Today’s Birthdays: Jazz musician Ron Carter is 89. Pulitzer Prize-winning political commentator George Will is 85. Actor Richard Jenkins is 79. Country singer Randy Travis is 67. Comedian Ana Gasteyer is 59.

Actor Will Arnett is 56. Basketball Hall of Famer Dawn Staley is 56. Rock musician Mike Dirnt (Green Day) is 54. Designer and TV personality Kimora Lee Simmons is 51. Sportscaster/ TV host Erin Andrews is 48. Singer Lance Bass (NSYNC) is 47. Actor Ruth Negga is 45. Golfer Rory McIlroy is 37. Singer-songwriter Rex Orange County is 28. Actor Navia Robinson is 21. Soccer player Kenan Yildiz is 21.

Volunteers from the community redid the room for the oldest girls in the Protestant Orphanage with bright paint and new draperies and spreads in 1963

days, the house is obscured by trees on an otherwise pristine lawn. It stands about a block from U.S. Interstate 110, where North Street flows into Spanish Town, the city’s oldest neighborhood.

The concrete steps the girls climbed each day stretch from the street level sidewalk to the entrance’s French doors.

Accommodated 25 girls

According to the Genealogy Trails History Group’s website, genealogytrails. com, the house accommodated 25 girls, and the staff consisted of a superintendent, two matrons, a cook and laundress.

“According to journals and letters, the home also provided and paid for weddings, camps extended education to business schools and LSU,” the genealogy site continues.

“Records provide a powerful insight as maintenance of this orphanage and its orphans was not your ordinary ‘orphanage.’ Great lengths were taken to provide a natural home environment for the children, one that was kind and understanding with always the welfare of the child its priority. It is noteworthy that the home was always a private institution, and at one time was paid by the Department of Welfare $60 per month per child to house their children until they were found foster homes. The children were accepted on a case by case basis subject to the approval of the association’s board and were expected to live by the rules set up by the association.”

The genealogy site is correct the Protestant Orphanage was a happy environment for its occupants.

Advocate reporter Carol Anne Blitzer found proof of this in Anna Bryant Hingst’s memoir, “Memories of a Louisiana Girlhood,” in the Lousiana State Archives’ permanent collection.

Blitzer included excerpts from Hingst’s memoir in her April 24, 2000, feature for The Advocate. A happy place

Though Hingst lived in the orphanage when it was in the Main Street cottage, her manuscript describes the orphanage as a happy place.

“Born in Lottie in 1901, Hingst and her two sisters were moved to the home on June 12, 1912, after their father a railroad worker fell from a railroad bridge and

MET GALA

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Is Art,” with guests asked to explore their relationship to fashion as an embodied art form and celebrate depictions of the dressed body throughout art history

Who are the chairs?

Beyoncé — returning after a 10-year hiatus — Nicole Kidman, Venus Williams and Anna Wintour will co-chair this year’s gala.

The host committee, cochaired by Yves Saint Laurent creative director Anthony Vaccarello and Zoë Kravitz, includes Sabrina Carpenter Doja Cat Gwendoline Christie, Alex Consani, Misty Copeland, Elizabeth Debicki, Lena Dunham, Paloma Elsesser, Lisa, Chloe

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They weigh the same as the original — 2,080 pounds — but differ from the OG bell in one very important respect: metallurgical makeup.

According to the National Park Service, the original was 70% copper, 25% tin and “small amounts of lead, gold, arsenic, silver, and zinc.” In a bell, those other metals amount to “impurities,” said Anne Paccard, the foundry’s communications director and chief for “art of sound” projects, like sculptures that feature bells.

Malle, Sam Smith, Teyana Taylor, Lauren Wasser, Anna Weyant, A’ja Wilson, Yseult, Adut Akech, Angela Bassett, Sinéad Burke, Rebecca Hall, Aimee Mullins, Tschabalala Self, Amy Sherald and Chase Sui Wonders.

Who else is on the guest list?

The guest list is always a tightly guarded secret, but frequent guests include Lady Gaga, Zendaya, Blake Lively, Sarah Jessica Parker, Gigi and Bella Hadid, members of the KardashianJenner family and Rihanna, who revealed her third pregnancy at last year’s gala.

Amazon founder Jeff Bezos and his wife, Lauren Sánchez Bezos, are expected to attend, as lead sponsors of the event. Saint Laurent and Condé Nast are also sponsors. Anne Hathaway, Meryl

to the elements have taken their toll.

Some of the painted-on cracks have faded or disappeared completely Others bells are displayed without their clappers and/or yokes, or in steel frames that prevent them being rung.

“At that point, it really transitions to more of a monument than a functional bell,” Campbell said. “And, to me, that’s kind of sad.”

But as the nation prepares to celebrate 250 years of liberty, some of those orphan bells are getting a new life.

Streep and Emily Blunt, stars of the fashion extravaganza “The Devil Wears Prada 2,” may also attend the gala. The sequel hits theaters a few days before the gala. There are typically 400 to 600 attendees. Last year, individual tickets cost $75,000, according to CBS. In a break from tradition, New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani and wife Rama Duwaji will not be attending. How can I watch the livestream? Vogue will livestream the Met Gala starting at 6 p.m. Eastern across its digital platforms, including YouTube and TikTok. The livestream will be hosted by Ashley Graham, La La Anthony and Cara Delevingne, and influencer Emma Chamberlain will return as red carpet correspondent.

cent visit to Arizona’s newly restored bell — which was touring the state, complete with a rope for the tugging — brought his toll up to 40. Why does the Liberty Bell resonate with him?

“The fact that a cracked bell is the symbol of the United States is really the perfect symbol of an imperfect union,” he said.

Nothing to see here

drowned in the Atchafalaya River,” Blitzer writes. “There was no assistance at that time from the government for widows and orphans, and the railroad company provided no compensation.”

Hingst wrote that each of the older girls were given a smaller child to care for, and each of the orphans attended Sunday School in the downtown church of her original denomination, followed by services at one of the four downtown Protestant churches.

Blitzer also shared Hingst’s recollection of how she and a group of girls broke into “hard-to-control laughter” when they realized they could see the minister’s undershorts through his white linen suit.

“I had to hide on the floor and found it hard to keep from laughing out loud!”

Hingst wrote.

By 1969, only two orphans lived in the house, and the orphanage’s board couldn’t maintain its “home atmosphere” while meeting all of the state and federal governments’ rules and regulations.

The orphanage’s assets were liquidated with part of the money divided among the Cancer Radiation and Research Foundation, Capital Area United Givers Fund and the Methodist Children’s Home in Ruston. The remainder of the funds were placed in a trust with the annual income going to the Baton Rouge Area Foundation.

“In 1970, attorneys Bill Beck and Joe Thompson purchased the home,” Blitzer writes. “In 1983, Beck bought out Thompson’s interest in the building. Beck had his law office in the matron’s suite on the first floor from 1983 until 1996. After renting the remainder of the building to several organizations, Beck decided to convert it to nine apartments.”

Today a “Private Property” sign is posted on one of the entrance’s French doors.

In the end, Blitzer writes, “nearly 1,000 children had lived at the home, with many staying 10 years or longer.”

Do you have a question about something in Louisiana that’s got you curious? Email your question to curiouslouisiana@ theadvocate.com. Include your name, phone number and the city where you live.

“I must say that the original Liberty Bell is a very poor quality bell, metallurgically speaking,” she told The Associated Press in a recent email. “The bells we delivered in 1950 are made of a specific alloy of bronze called ‘airain’: 78% copper, 22% tin, nothing else.”

The Treasury bells toured the country on the backs of flatbed Ford trucks equipped with loudspeakers and festooned with redwhite-and-blue banners.

“You could buy a savings bond, ring the Liberty Bell, have a party,” Campbell said. At drive’s end, Treasury gifted the bells to the 48 states and the then-territories of Alaska, Hawaii, the U.S. Virgin Islands, and Puerto Rico. The District of Columbia and the Treasury Department each got one as well. (Three others went to Tokyo, a church in Paccard’s hometown and the Harry S. Truman Presidential Library and Museum in Independence, Missouri, giving that state two bells.)

Trouble is, they came with no guidance and no funds to preserve them.

“A local or state historian described it to me as an ‘unaccessioned artifact,’ ” Campbell said. “Not every state wanted them necessarily, and not every state knew what to do with them.”

Virginia held a contest, and the people voted to send the bell to Thomas Jefferson’s Monticello. It later went into a storage shed until finally finding a home outside a local fire station. More than half have spent most of their lives outdoors. Time, neglect and exposure

Just like new sort of Kansas’ bell languished, disassembled, for years in a Capitol parking garage until state Sen. Elaine Bowers got involved. In October, the reassembled bell — resting on a heated concrete pad and supported by a custommade wooden yoke, but still sans clapper — was given a place of honor outside the new Docking State Office Building.

“It just belongs here,” said a beaming Bowers as she stood beside bell No. 21. “It’s a fascinating piece of artwork, but also history that we all should be proud of.”

The Alabama and Idaho bells were shipped to the Bell Foundry Christoph in Charleston, South Carolina, for restoration and are expected to be home in time for the Fourth. Several other bells have also received recent touchups.

Campbell doesn’t set out to guilt states into fixing up and displaying their bells. But if his website happens to nudge them a bit, “maybe I’ll take a little credit for that.”

He’s also helped inspire a new generation of bell hunters. By age 4, Zoe Murphy of Morris County, New Jersey, knew all the state capitals and their flags. At 5, she saw her first replica in Allentown, Pennsylvania. Now a 14-year-old high school freshman, she has her own website zlovesamerica.com. She’s visited 39 of the bells over the years, from Alabama to Wyoming and even far-off Alaska.

Zoe says traveling the country has given her a deeper appreciation for America’s “collective mix of people and our culture.” Meanwhile, Campbell’s re-

Try as they might, it’ll be nearly impossible for these Liberty Bell fans to check all the replicas off their list. Three replicas remain totally unavailable to the public this anniversary year, as far as Campbell can tell. Ironically, one of them is Pennsylvania’s.

For many years, the Treasury bell was the centerpiece of a museum in the former Zion’s Reformed Church of Allentown, where the original was briefly hidden to prevent the British redcoats from melting it down for munitions. But the building changed hands in 2023, and the bell is no longer accessible to the general public while the church is being renovated. (Local officials are placing a lighter, taller replica in front of the church for the anniversary.)

Last June, North Carolina’s bell was hoisted from its spot across from the Legislative Building in Raleigh amid a multiyear renovation of the state history museum. When the AP asked to see it, the request was politely denied

“Our Liberty Bell is in a secure storage facility,” spokeswoman Mary Huntley said. The only replica that’s truly lost is the one sent to Washington, D.C., which went missing from storage in the early 1980s. Campbell suspects it’s long since been melted down.

“That’s 2,080 pounds of bronze,” he says. “So, that has a scrap value.” But if anyone has information about the capital bell, feel free to give Campbell a ring.

Associated Press writer John Hanna in Topeka, Kansas; and video journalists Thomas Peipert in Fort Collins, Colorado; and Ted Shaffrey in Mount Olive, New Jersey, contributed to this report.

FILE PHOTO

One of the bedrooms as it appeared when the two-story, red brick house at 1328 North St. was the Protestant Orphanage.

tAuRus (April 20-May 20) Choose your words wisely Focus on self-improvement, not trying to change others. Refuse to let stubbornness be your downfall.

GEMInI (May 21-June 20) Concentrate on creating partnerships, learning and keeping busy. The less time you focus on who and what you don't like, the easier it will be to let go of the past.

cAncER (June 21-July 22) Think matters through. Size down, not up, and protect your rights, possessions and reputation. Stick to the truth and do what you can to be of help. Stress will require a positive outlet.

LEo (July 23-Aug. 22) It's what you do that counts. Honor promises, mix business with pleasure and be kind to those you encounter throughout your day. Go out of your way to lend a helping hand and to offer support to those who need it most.

VIRGo (Aug. 23-sept. 22) Observe what's happening in silence and make small adjustments to counter any fallout that might put you in a vulnerable position. Let kindness and practicality lead the way.

LIBRA (sept. 23-oct. 23) Learn from the experiences you encounter. Taking a bold step in a direction that offers others insight into what you can do will also make you fully aware of who you can and cannot count on for backup.

scoRPIo (oct. 24-nov. 22) Think matters through before you say something you regret. Revealing personal information

will put you at a disadvantage. Ask questions and show interest in what others think and do.

sAGIttARIus (nov 23-Dec. 21) Stop procrastinating; put your ideas into practice. Make domestic changes that will add to your convenience and comfort, and sign up for activities that will encourage looking and feeling your best.

cAPRIcoRn (Dec. 22-Jan. 19) A simple lifestyle will help you handle any trials and tribulations that surface. Keep your communications honest and brief, and refuse to let anger and impatience seep into your dialogue.

AQuARIus (Jan. 20-Feb. 19) Stick close to home. Focus on personal money management and how you can generate more cash or lower your overhead. An interview will go better than anticipated.

PIscEs (Feb. 20-March 20) Erratic behavior can lead to miscommunication. Think before you speak, and search for a kind and helpful agreement without putting your health or financial wellbeing in jeopardy.

ARIEs (March 21-April 19) Focus on what you can do, not the impossible. Happiness comes from doing what's best and right for you. Speak up, ask questions, show interest and give back.

The horoscope, an entertainment feature, is not based on scientific fact. © 2026 by NEA Inc., dist. By Andrews McMeel Syndication

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FAMILY CIrCUS

CeLebrItY CIpher

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Mother GooSe And GrIMM SherMAn’S LAGoon

Sudoku

InstructIons: Sudoku is anumber-placing puzzle based on a9x9 grid with severalgiven numbers. Theobject is to place thenumbers1 to 9inthe emptysquares so that each row, each column andeach3x3 boxcontains thesamenumber only once. Thedifficulty level of theSudoku increases from Monday to Sunday.

Saturday’s Puzzle Answer

THe wiZard oF id

BLondie

BaBY BLueS

Hi and LoiS

By PHILLIP ALDER Bridge

Percival, one of King Arthur’s Knights of the Round Table, supposedly said, “One hour of thoughtful solitude may nerve the heart for days of conflict — girding up its armor to meet the most insidious foe.”

Many play far too quickly at the bridge table. True, taking one hour would be considered excessive. But a minute or so is perfectly acceptable. And if someone complains to you, reply, “You have just ruined my train of thought. I will have to start all over again.”

In this deal, West leads the club ace against four spades. How should he plan the defense?

North’s auction showed four spades and game-going values. So South, who also had four spades, corrected from three no-trump to four spades.

Many would cash the club king at trick two, then look around for the next step. But that would be too late. West needs to realize that his partner has only one heart. (South showed four, dummy has three and West holds five.) West must also hope that his partner has a speedy trump entry.

At trick two, West shifts to a heart.

Declarer wins on the board and plays a trump, but East wins with his ace and returns a club. West takes the trick with his carefully conserved entry, the king, and gives his partner the lethal heart ruff.

Finally, note that if North had raised one no-trump to three no-trump, West probably would have led the heart nine, top of nothing. Then, when East got in with his spade ace, he

By Andrews McMeel Syndication

Answer

marmaduKe

Bizarro

hagar the horriBle

Pearls Before swiNe

garfield

B.C. PiCKles