The Times-Picayune 07-06-2026

Clearviewdemolition settobegin

BY TYLER BRIDGES Staff writer

BY GRACEMAYER

Staff writer

The yearslong transformationofthe former Clearview Mall into amixed-use complex with newshops, restaurantsand apartments will take amajor step forward in the coming weeks, when demolition beginsonthe nearly 60-year old structure. Earlier this month,Zea Rotisserie &Bar relocated from the main portionofthe old mall to anew free-standingrestaurant building across the parkinglot,clearing the way for the shopping centertomeet the wrecking ball. The demolition, whichisexpected to be complete by November,isthe latest of several developments inthe $100 million

ä See MALL, page 3A

Nostalgiarules on second nightofEssence

LaBelle, Babyface havestrongsets; Brandy,Monica fall flat Keith Spera

Review

Patti LaBelle’shistory with the Essence Festival of Culture dates to 1995. She appeared at the first fiveEssence Festsin the Caesars Superdome, and many more since. On Saturday,she showcased why Essence keeps asking her back. At 82, she was both the night’ssenior performer and a

clear highlight. Compared to opening night, attendance dropped off significantly Saturday.Only the floorand plaza levels felt fully populated Following early setsbyJosh Levi and Leon Thomas,LaBelle, resplendent in yellow radiated old-school class with herpolished band. Butneither wasshe stuffy or pretentious. In keeping with her tendency to be “veryhonest,” she addressed the audience thusly: “Some of you are saying, ‘She

See ESSENCE, page 3A

Gov. Jeff Landry scored amajorvictory on June 27 whenU.S. Rep. Julia Letlow wonthe Republican nomination forthe Senate, after the governor aggressively defended her and raised big bucks to back her campaign. He neededthe win. Only amonth earlier,voters had decisively rejectedall of the constitutional amendments that Landry pushed, forthe secondtime in a year With Letlow’striumph behind him, the governor is expected to begin ramping up hiscampaign to secure reelection next year

Campaignreports $10.7M on hand,withnomajor challengersyet ä See LANDRY, page 4A

BY MARTHA SANCHEZ Staff writer

The growing crowds on Gulf Coast beaches are beginning to confrontanuneasytruth: They are now sharing the water with more sharks than they have in decades. Afteryears of conservation work,the population of many shark species thatlive near the coastline and out at sea are returning to levels not seen since the 1970s. Theirreturn is helpingrestore nature’s delicate balance. It is also raising new safety questions as record numbers of visitors arrive to swim andfish acrossAlabama and Florida.

STAFF PHOTO By SOPHIA GERMER

GETTyIMAGES FORESSENCE PHOTO By BENNETT RAGLIN

Patti LaBelle performs Saturday, the second night of the 2026 Essence Festival of Culture, at the Caesars Superdome in NewOrleans.

STAFF FILE PHOTOByCHRISGRANGER

U.S. Rep.Julia Letlow,left, gives athumbsup to Gov. Jeff Landryastheychat during Washington Mardi Gras in January.

BRIEFS FROM WIRE REPORTS

Delta pilot reports encounter with firework

NEW YORK A Delta Air Lines

flight and a highflying firework reportedly came into contact in the sky above Chicago as the city celebrated the Fourth of July holiday

The pilot of Delta Flight 1076 notified air traffic controllers just before landing at Chicago Midway International Airport on Saturday night that a firework hit the commercial airliner during its descent. In an audio recording published online by LiveATC.net, the pilot described feeling “a big bang” on the plane.

According to the recording, the incident occurred when the plane was flying at an altitude of 200 to 250 feet. The pilot said the crew hoped the bang “was just a mortar that went off,” referencing the tube that helps launch aerial fireworks.

Both the Federal Aviation Administration and Delta said the plane, which had taken off from Atlanta carrying 52 passengers and six crew members, landed safely just after 8:30 p.m. local time.

The incident didn’t result in any onboard injuries, and Atlanta-based Delta said Sunday that mechanics who inspected the Airbus A319 did not find any damage

The FAA said it would investigate the incident.

It’s unclear if fireworks struck other airplanes on Saturday

No bids to be sought to repair reflecting pool

NEW YORK The Trump administration will not seek new bids to repair the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool, Interior Secretary Doug Burgum said Sunday as he faced new questions about the troubled project and the taxpayer money involved.

Like President Donald Trump, Burgum said he was 100% sure that vandals caused the damage to the century-old reflecting pool on the National Mall Trump has charged that a 350-foot gash was cut into the pool’s liner in the midst of recent renovations, while Burgum described it as multiple cuts adding up to that figure. He also said the pool would have to be at least partially drained in the coming week to finish the repairs. The repairs will not be opened up to new contractors, he said.

“We’ll use the same company, because they did a fantastic job,” Burgum told CNN’s “State of the Union.” “Thankfully, the vandalism was small. It was bad. I mean, it could cost tens of thousands of dollars to repair, so then it could fall into a felony just like damaging any other government property could. But the job that was done to fix the reflecting pool was done extremely well.”

Trump this spring pledged to beautify the reflecting pool before the nation’s 250th birthday celebrations on July Fourth. Water was drained and the Republican president directed that the bottom be painted a color he called “American flag blue.” But after the site was restored, the water was plagued by an algae bloom for more than a week, and pieces of the new coating have appeared to be peeling off the bottom.

Lawyer: Doctor held by Israel in critical state

TEL AVIV Israel The lawyer for a prominent Palestinian doctor who was seized by Israeli forces 18 months ago said his client has been abused in captivity and is in critical condition, according to the human rights group representing him.

Hussam Abu Safiya, who served as director of the Kamal Adwan Hospital in northern Gaza, became the face of health workers struggling to treat patients throughout the IsraelHamas war He led the facility through an 85-day siege by the Israeli military, releasing videos in which he pleaded for help before he was arrested in December 2024. He has not been charged.

The Israeli military said Abu Safiya, 53, was being investigated on suspicion of cooperating with or working for Hamas. Staff and international aid groups that worked with him deny the claims.

Khamenei’s other sons attend funeral

Iran’s new supreme leader remains in hiding

BY NASSER KARIMI and JON GAMBRELL Associated Press

TEHRAN, Iran Iran’s top officials and brothers of the new supreme leader emerged into public view Sunday to attend funeral prayers for Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. Their appearance projected unity, defiance and confidence in their safety as Iran pushes back on U.S. demands in negotiations to permanently end the war

Crowds of hundreds of thousands chanted “Death to America” and “Death to Israel,” as they called for revenge over the Feb. 28 attack that killed the 86-yearold supreme leader and other top officials, triggering the war Some hard-liners called for the assassination of President Donald Trump. Iran’s new supreme leader, Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei, has yet to make an appearance in the funeral ceremonies, which are unfolding over several days. He is believed to be in hiding after reportedly being wounded in the airstrike that killed his father

At the height of the war, before an April ceasefire, Israel had targeted top leaders, in at least one case likely using their public appearance to fix their position. It has also threatened to kill the younger Khamenei.

The U.S. is meanwhile pressing ahead with negotiations with Iran aimed at fully reopening the Strait of Hormuz, rolling back its disputed nuclear program and reaching a permanent end to the war Talks appear to be on hold until after the burial.

Ziba Naderi, a nurse attending the funeral Sunday, said Iran needed to heed Mojtaba Khamenei’s commands. “I heard the call for revenge, but our leader should say what we need to do,” she said. “And we must listen to him.”

Ayatollah Jafar Sobhani, a 97-year-old Shiite cleric, led the prayers at Tehran’s Grand Mosalla for the late

Trump to meet with leaders of Ukraine and Syria at NATO summit

BY MICHELLE L PRICE Associated Press

WASHINGTON President Donald Trump plans to meet with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Syrian President Ahmad al-Sharaa on Wednesday while attending the NATO summit in Turkey, the White House said. Those discussions will come as Kyiv tries to refocus Trump’s attention on the conflict with Moscow and as Trump has publicly mused about Syria’s role in the Middle East.

White House spokesperson Anna Kelly confirmed the meetings in a call with reporters while previewing the upcoming summit in Ankara, where Trump also plans to meet with Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Tuesday. Before returning to the United States on Wednesday, Trump is scheduled to have a news conference, Kelly said. Trump’s meeting with Zelenskyy comes as Russia’s war in Ukraine is now

in its fifth year Both Zelenskyy and Russian President Vladimir Putin held phone calls with Trump on Saturday congratulating him on the July Fourth commemoration of the 250th anniversary of American independence.

Zelenskyy said in a statement on X after his call that he and Trump spoke about the situation on the front lines of the war, where analysts say Russian advances have sputtered. Ukraine, has stepped up its attacks on Moscow and demonstrated its ability to strike deeper into Russia.

The Ukrainian leader said there is “a real prospect of ending this war,” and that conversation would continue at the NATO summit in Ankara.

Kremlin foreign affairs adviser Yuri Ushakov said that in Putin’s call with Trump, the Republican president reaffirmed his “readiness to help achieve a quick cessation of hostilities and search for peaceful solutions to settle the crisis” in Ukraine.

8 hurt in shooting at July 4 cookout near Coney Island beach

By The Associated Press

NEW YORK A shooting at a Fourth of July cookout near New York’s Coney Island beach wounded eight people, including four children, police said.

One of the victims, a 21-year-old woman, was in critical condition while the others were described as being stable and expected to survive, Police Commissioner Jessica Tisch said Sunday

The shooting occurred Saturday night in the

courtyard of an apartment building about a block from the famed Coney Island boardwalk and not far from the site of the Nathan’s Famous hot dog eating contest held earlier on the holiday

The police commissioner said a suspect wearing a black mask fired into the courtyard where a family had gathered for a cookout. The shooter fled but police did recover a gun, Tisch said. The children shot are ages 6, 7, 12 and 14, Tisch said.

Khamenei and his family members killed in the strike.

On hand were Khamenei’s other sons, Masoud, Meysam and Mostafa, who had not been seen since the war Revolutionary Guard head Gen. Ahmad Vahidi, who was photographed for the first time since the war on Thursday, could be seen in the crowd by Associated Press journalists, flanked by plainclothes security forces and wearing a black baseball cap.

Iran’s President Masoud Pezeshkian, Parliament speaker Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf who has led the negotiations with the U.S. — and Esmail Qaani,

who leads the elite Quds Force of the paramilitary Revolutionary Guard, also attended.

The crowd had grown from the day before Mourners dressed in black carried banners and flags honoring Khamenei.

Posters and graffiti at the Grand Mosalla called for the killing of Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

“Why is the biggest bastard in the world still alive?” Mohammad Rasouli, a poet who emceed the event before the prayers, said to the crowd over loudspeakers, referring to Trump. “The world is no longer a good place” for Trump, he added

TENNESSEE

as the crowd cheered.

“I came here to shout and seek revenge,” said Gholamreza Sabooni, a 29-yearold man who works in a grocery “They killed our imam We should kill their leader, Trump.”

The U.S. president was giving a speech at the same time across the world in Washington, D.C. for the 250th anniversary of America’s founding.

“We’ve had tremendous success,” Trump said about the U.S. military “You look at Venezuela, you look at Iran. We wiped it out, wiped out their military.”

U.S. federal authorities have been tracking Iranian threats against Trump and other administration officials for years. The threats stem from Trump ordering the 2020 killing of Gen Qassem Soleimani, who had led the Quds Force. Iran repeatedly has denied plotting to kill Trump, though hard-line propaganda footage long has suggested Trump was in Tehran’s crosshairs.

Trump meanwhile promised to destroy Iran’s civilization during the war among other threats. Khamenei’s body will be transported to cities in Iran and neighboring Iraq, with authorities planning to drive his casket and others through the streets of Tehran on Monday Authorities have shut down streets, airspace and daily life for the mourning, which will end Thursday as he is buried at the Imam Reza shrine in Mashhad, Khamenei’s place of birth.

Police: Guard members on patrol fatally shoot man during pursuit

BY JACK BROOK Associated Press/ Report for America

Two Tennessee National Guard members assigned by the Trump administration to a crime-fighting patrol in Memphis fatally shot a man Sunday who turned toward the soldiers with a gun during a downtown pursuit, authorities said.

The administration has ordered National Guard deployments in Memphis and five other Democratrun cities, including New Orleans and Washington, D.C., to confront what President Donald Trump has described as an outof-control crime wave — though violent crime in dozens of cities led by Democrats is down significantly since a pandemic high. The Guard members in Memphis were part of a troop deployment the administration launched in Tennessee’s second-largest city last fall. Local leaders in these cities have said they do not believe the federal intervention is necessary, and some have challenged the deployments in court.

The soldiers in Memphis were responding with local police to reports of gunshots around 4 a.m. when they began pursuing an armed man fleeing on foot, the city’s police department said.

The guardsmen opened fire after the man turned towards them with his weapon, the department said.

The Tennessee Bureau of Investigation identified the man as 20-year-old Tyrin Johnson and said it is investigating the circumstances of the shooting. No law enforcement officers were injured, the agency added.

Johnson died at the scene after two National Guard medical specialists attempted first aid, Guard spokesperson Lt.

Col Darrin Haas said in a statement. Johnson’s older cousin, Terracle Nelson, 46, told The Associated Press that he was “as good a boy as can be.” Johnson was living in Nashville, working in construction and taking university classes, she said. He had just had his first child earlier this year, she added. Nelson was present with other members of Johnson’s family when authorities told them that Johnson had been shot twice in the chest. Law enforcement authorities did not immediately respond to requests for comment about the number of shots fired. The TBI declined to comment on Nelson’s account of the shooting.

ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO By ALTAF QADRI

A boy holds a picture of Iran’s new Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei holding a machine gun at the Imam Khomeini Mosalla Grand Mosque on Sunday during funeral ceremonies for the slain Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and members of his family in Tehran, Iran.

Trumpspeechmixes patriotism,partisanship

BY STEVEN SLOAN and MICHELLE L. PRICE Associated Press

WASHINGTON— President Donald Trump mixed partisan politics with patriotic appeals on Saturday as he commemorated the250th anniversary of Americanindependence,a moment he declared “one of the most joyous and glorious milestones of all time.”

Speaking in Washington after storms prompted aroughlytwohour evacuation of the National Mall, Trump honored veterans, including several from World WarII and one of the first Blackofficers to lead aSpecial Forces team in combat in Vietnam.They appeared beforeflags that symbolized some of the most significant and challenging momentsinAmerican history,from the one that wasdraped over Abraham Lincoln’scasket to the one that flew on the plane piloted by the Wright Brothers. YetTrumpalso leaned into partisan territory unusual for an Independence Day address, which

presidents typically use as amoment to unify the country.Instead, he stumped againfor the SAVE America Act, an elections bill that’sencountering challenges even from Trump’sfellowRepublicans in Congress. He highlighted his support for the SecondAmendment and revived denunciations of communism,whichare becoming an increasingly central partof Trump’smessageahead of the November midterms.

The speech capped aholidaythat Trump hasgone to great lengths to shapetohis own tastes. He was introduced by twomusical performers who often appear at his trademark rallies, includingLee Greenwood, who performed “God Bless the USA.”The event organizers were largely aligned with the WhiteHouse,supplantinga bipartisan organization that was launchedby Congressa decade ago.

“Wewill always be on top,”

Trump said.“We will never let our country fall. We will always be the best.”

Trumppardons include former Abramoff partner

BY MICHELLEL.PRICE Associated Press

WASHINGTON President Donald Trump on Friday pardoned 11 people,including aformerbusiness partner of Washington lobbyist Jack Abramoff andnine people identified by the White House as having helped people bypass emissions control systems on vehicles.

The acts of clemency come as Trump has issued aslew of pardonsinhis secondterm, particularly for allies, public figures and those seen as politically aligned.

His use of the presidency’s sweeping ability to unilaterally grant pardons and commute sentences is among the ways the Republican’sreturn to office has featured an expansiveuse of executive power

Trump earlier on Friday announced some of the pardons on social media, without identifying any of the recipients by name.

“It is my Great Honortohave just signed Pardons for six people who were persecuted by the Biden Administration, and were in,orbeing sent to, prison, for

‘fixing theircar,’”Trump wrote on his Truth Social media network.

“I AM SETTING THEM ALL FREE,RIGHT NOW!” he said.

In alist provided Friday evening by theWhite House,Trump pardoned 11 people, including nine who faced charges related to violations of the Clean Air Act by disabling emissions monitoring systems on vehicles or selling devices that enabled emissions systems to be bypassed

The pardons come after Trump on Monday signed amemo telling the Environmental Protection Agency that Americans can fix their own vehicles as they see fit.

As he signedthe memo, Trump referenced adiesel mechaniche pardoned last yearwho disabled emissions monitoring systems.

The memo also addressedaftermarket autoparts and would supersede theabilityofthe California Air Resources Board to evaluateparts thataffect vehicle emissions.

The White House, in releasing the listofthose pardoned, described Trumphaving “relieved consumers from these regulatory burdens.”

ESSENCE

Continuedfrom page1A

looks like she is pregnant.’ This is the first time I’ve worn this suit.Ilook like asize 85. Just in case you think Idon’tknow I’m big …Iknow.” Throughout her 40-minute set,she hit her signaturehigh notes and kept her tendency to sometimes over-emote in check. Unlike some other Essence performers, her vocals were live. What we heard on “OnMyOwn” and “Somebody Loves YouBaby” was all her When she disappeared to change looks, trombonist Jeff Bradshaw took aturn up front to promotehis album “The Cure.”

She returned in red. Her finale was “Lady Marmalade,” which she and vocal trio Labelle recorded withNew Orleans musicians in producer Allen Toussaint’s local Sea-Saint studio back in 1974.

She requested avariety of male audience memberstojoin her for “Lady Marmalade.”

Assessing theeight Black men who soon arrived, she joked, “Where theWhitemen?”

Their singing skills varied greatly.Regardless, LaBelle had fun, as she did theentire show

Babyface’snostalgia

LikeLaBelle, Kenneth “Babyface” Edmonds was originally booked for Sunday but switched at the request of Essence curator Teyana Taylor Alsolike LaBelle, he used alive band and sang without prerecorded vocals.

As he did at the 2025 Essence Fest, he sampled R&B hitshe wrote and/or produced for other artists in the 1980s and ’90s.

He handled theguitar solo on BoyzIIMen’s“ASong for Mama” as images of “Moms We All Love,” such as Michelle Obama, and “Moms We All Grew Up With,” including Phylicia Rashad, faded in and out onscreen.

He also touched on Karyn White’s“Superwoman,” Dru Hill’s“These Arethe Times,” Midnight Star’s“Slow Jam,” Bobby Brown’s“Don’tBe Cruel” and “Every Little Step,” Tevin Campbell’s“Can We Talk,” After 7’s“ReadyorNot” and Toni Braxton’s“You’re Makin’ Me High.” Nostalgia ran high, courtesy of Babyface’svoluminous catalog.

Toughnight forBrandy, Monica Lastyear,1990s contemporary R&B hitmakersBrandy

and Monica teamed up forThe BoyIsMine Tour.Named for their Grammy-winning 1998 duet, the tour visited afull Smoothie King Center in December.Itboasted atop-notch production, from concepttocostumechanges to choreography to cinematic film clips.

Without that full production at Essence Fest, the pacing of the showwas awkward at best. An hour into it, the “Essence exit”—atime-honored tradition in which attendees whoaren’t feeling thefinal performance start leaving early—commenced.

Justafter midnight, Brandy, wearing white, andMonica, in black, first squared offonstage witheight similarlycolor-coordinated maledancers apiece. While one singer did herthing, the other watched from achairat side stage. Oncethey both started leaving simultaneously forcostume changes —I lost count after a half-dozen —the show’smomentum suffered. Each time, the sound system went silent and the screens either wentdark or displayed asilver crown. At first, I thought they werehaving technical difficulties.

There was no cheering or applause during these pauses, which lasted 90 seconds or so —aneternity in themiddle of a concert.

Additionally,theirsetlistcontained toomany slow andmidtempo songs forSaturday night’s finale. Not having afull band onstage also made theshowfeel less alive.

Even Brandy realized it wasn’t connecting. “Y’all tired?” she asked after a peppy “Top of the World” failed to get aresponse. “Y’allneed to stand up or something.” Fans finally had areason to stand during “I Wanna Be Down,” Brandy’sdebut singlefrom 1994,

when rappers MC Lyte andYo-Yo —featured on a1995 remakeof the song —joined herassurprise guests in the Dome. They earned one of the mostenthusiastic cheers of the set.

Thespark proved short-lived. As on last year’stour, Monica brought out apairofwhite, heeled sandalslikethe pair she wore30years agointhe “Before YouWalkOut of My Life”video. Those shoes are now asocial mediameme.

“Y’allain’t tired of those shoes yet?” she asked, before moving on to “Angel of Mine.”

During yet another dead-air pause, aman seated near me shouted,“Is it over yet?”

Not yet. Brandy still hadto deliver her Whitney Houston tribute, singing chunks of “How Will IKnow”and “I Wanna Dance withSomebody (WhoLoves Me).” Monica still had to salute Mary J. Blige, whoconsistentlyfired up the crowdduring many Essence appearances over theyears. In acleversetlist pairing, Brandy’s1998 No. 1ballad“Have YouEver?,”whichlet her showcasethe clarity and control of hervoice, preceded Monica’s 1997 hit “ForYou IWill.” Both songs were written by hitmaker Diane Warrenand produced by David Foster, an illustration of just howclosely Brandy and Monica’s1990s artistic output was aligned.

Afteranotherpause,Brandy andMonicareturnedtoceremoniously place acrown on each other’shead.Monica’scrown fell off, but she caught it. Would theythenperform “The BoyIsMine,” their biggest hit? They’dplayeda snippettostart the show; afull version would be alogical way to wrap it up. But no.Atexactly 2a.m., they said goodbye.

EmailKeith Spera at kspera@ theadvocate.com.

overhaulofthe midcentury shoppingcenter,whichhas been rebrandedasClearview City Center In late 2024, a270-unit apartment complex on the 35-acre site, the Metro at Clearview,was completed and welcomed its first tenants. It’snow 99% occupied. Ayear earlier,Ochsner opened athree-story medicalfacilityonthe site of the former Sears.

Now,the Richards family, which has owned the property since it opened in 1969, is turning itsattentionto what the newly imagined retail portion of the center will look like oncedemolitionof the old mall is complete.

Thomas Richards,the head of the family company managing the project, said plans are still being finalized, but he confirmed that the family has signed alease with amajor national retailer

“Wehave alot of interested people, so I’m excited to start the leasing. That’s the fun part for me,” said Richards, athird-generation owner

Demand fordevelopment

Plans to transform the 35acre property have beenin the works since 2019, when Richards announced a$100 million project to redevelop the site into amixed-use complex. The project is intended to revitalize the mall, which languishedfrom declining foot traffic, as consumer habits changed and more of the retail landscape shifted online.

The original plan included demolishing the mall and rebuilding 230,000 square feetofrestaurant and retail space, and adding surrounding development projects,in-

cludinganapartment building, office space and ahotel. Over the pastfew years,the pieces have been gradually comingtogether

One component is the Metro at Clearview,a$55 million, high-end apartmentcomplex built on top of aformer parkinglot. Thefive-story building, locatedinthe southeast corner of the city center lot, began leasing to tenants in November2024

The building hasexperienced high demand forits units,accordingtoAndrew Schwarz, founder and CEO of Audubon, the manager for the complex, despite monthly rentsthat mirror prices in upscalebuildings downtown and in the WarehouseDistrict. Monthly rents for studios to three-bedrooms range from $1,545 up to $3,546, according to figuresposted on online. Since opening, the 270-unit complex hasconsistently hadoccupancyrates averaging in the upper 90s, Schwarz said. Tenants include medical professionals,engineers and those who maintain asecond residence in New Orleans for work or travel

“It’saunique propertyfor Jefferson Parish, andwe did thinkdemand would bethere for such ahigh-end product,”

Schwarz said.

Another relatively new developmentatClearview the nearby Ochsner Medical Complex, hashelpeddrive the demand for additional housingand stimulate nearby activity.

The local health caresystembuilt and opened a$115 million outpatient medical facility nearly three years agoonasite that once had been aSears location, oneof Clearview’soriginal anchor tenants.

Today,the 190,000-squarefoot facility employs 250 staff members and includes primary care and specialty clinics, avision center and imaging center,among other services

The combination of new employees in thearea amid abroaderhousing shortage has likely fueled demand for the apartments, according to commercial brokerLarry Schedler,who specializes in multifamily

“You’ve seen ageneral reduction in thenumber of apartments being built right now because of the shortage of land and the higher cost of building,” he said. “That’s helped keep apartment occupancy levels full.”

Smaller retailers have also

moved intothe siteinrecent years, including Regions Bank, which opened abranch on an undeveloped corner of the Clearview property,and Smalls Sliders, aburgerrestaurant backed by former NFLfootball player Drew Brees

Next chapter

Thelatest addition to the complex is the expanded Zea, whichcut theribbonTuesday on its new, largerhome in the Clearview parking lot, across from itsoriginallocation. Silver signage advertising the restaurant still hangs from the exterior of its oldlocation,but that will all come down soon.

“The mall is just slab and

columns, and some of the roof is already out,” Richards said. “Tuesday is when the last transformer comes off the roof, whichisabig milestone, and the mallwill start coming downthere very quickly after that.” Richards said he still intends for the Clearview City Center to add ahotel and additional office space. Those plans were stalled partly due to the pandemic, which diminisheddemand for these assets.

Once demolition begins, it will clear everything between the Ochsner building andthe Target, which, along with another longtime tenant —the AMC movie theater will remain in their current locations, Richards said. “Thenwewill startbuilding back the replacement plan, so we’re finalizing those plans now,” Richards said. That plan will include housingabig boxnational brand that hasalreadysigneda lease,Richards said. He declined to name thetenant, citing contract terms, but expectstoannouncethattenant sometime in November. His plan forthe rest of the mallwill include recruiting boutiquesand foodand beverage tenants, though he hasn’tsignedany leases for those types of tenants yet.

EmailGrace Mayer at grace.mayer@theadvocate. com.

STAFF PHOTO By SOPHIA GERMER Demolitionisunderway inside Clearview City Center in Metairie.

GETTy IMAGESFOR ESSENCE PHOTOByBENNETT RAGLIN Brandy, left, and Monica wear crowns at the end of theirEssenceFestival of Culture performance Saturdayatthe Caesars Superdome.

Landry especially needstowin back Republican voters whom he alienated during the Senate campaign by trashing Letlow’sGOP opponents, Sen. Bill Cassidy and state Treasurer John Fleming Landry boasts several strengths: He has announced arecord-setting number of big-ticket corporate investment projects. Crimehas dropped on his watch, while education test scores haverisen. He got theLegislature to reduce income taxes.Hehas deliveredfor social conservativesbytightening Louisiana’santi-abortion laws even further and getting lawmakers to approve putting the TenCommandments in classrooms.

“Wehave putthe data on the board that says we’re winning, and our policies are working,” Landry said during a30-minutephone interview on Tuesday He hadaccumulated aformidable amount of cash on hand —$10.7 million —atthe beginning of this year,when he had to file his latest campaignfinance report. No major figure is makingmoves to run against him, at least not yet. Beating an incumbent is difficult. No governor has lost his reelection bid in 35 years. But as the constitutional amendment defeatsshowed, voters don’t always warmlyembracehis pugnacious style. Agroup haslaunched adifficult-to-achieverecalleffort.

Black voters —who turned out in disproportionately low numbers when he was elected governorin 2023 —turned out in relatively large numbers last month when the constitutional amendments were on theballot. Thatelection occurred as Landryand legislative Republicans were turning a majority-Black congressional seat into one with amajority-White seat that would favor aRepublican candidate. Meanwhile, Landry angered supporters of Cassidy and Fleming during the primary by showing no hesitance to attack thetwo men.

He kept that up in the interview

“John Fleming tried to use alot of misinformation, disinformation andhype and scare people about an issue,” Landry said, referring to Fleming making hisopposition to carbon capture and sequestration acentral part of his Senatecampaign.

Asked about President Donald

SHARK

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“People are just going tohave to get used to seeing sharks,” said Dean Grubbs, an associate director of research at Florida State University, who hasstudied theanimals formorethan two decades. “And they’re going to have to take precautions.”

Florida Panhandle residents were rattledearlier thissummer when ashark attacked and severely injured aman swimming near a U.S.Navy Installation in Panama City.Days earlier,authorities near WaterColor,Florida,temporarily closed 5miles of beachfront amid reports of apossible shark bite after achild emergedfromkneedeep water with aleg wound.

The incidents made harrowing headlines for the first time since 2024, when sharks bit threetourists in one day at beaches along Florida’sScenic Highway 30A.

But researchers say beachgoers have little to fear.Sharksare already swimming in their midst, and the chances of being attacked

Trump’sreaction to Cassidy’sdefeat,Landry said,“The president hasalways been consistent in his displeasure with Bill Cassidy.It’s Bill’sfault. Billbeggedthe president for his endorsement, begged him, begged him, begged him.The president gave himeverything Bill asked for.Assoon as he gotsworn in, he turned coattail on the president.”

Three months afterwinning reelection in 2020, Cassidy voted to convict Trumponimpeachment charges of incitinghis supporterstoassaultthe Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021.

Landry spoke from Washington, D.C., where he was attending festivities marking the country’s 250th birthday.Heposted videos of himself being interviewed on Fox News and attending theLouisiana booth at Trump’sGreat American StateFair on the mall.

Politicalpull

During his 30 months as governor,Landry has earned areputation for flexinghis political muscles against opponents.Thatmay help him keep the field clear for his reelection next year

“I don’tbelieve his strength is based on his popularity,” said Bernie Pinsonat,aveteran pollster and political consultant. “Hisstrength for reelection is that he dominates everything and everybody in Louisiana. He’sout there building apolitical power base that effectively reducesthe opportunity foranyone to comeafter him.”

The Republican mentioned most often as apossible rival is Garret Graves, whoserved 10 years in theU.S. HousefromBaton Rouge untilLandrygot theLegislature to redraw thestate’scongressionalboundaries in away that left Graves without awinnable district Graves didn’treturn atext asking him whether he might challenge Landry

Lt. Gov.Billy Nungesser said he’s not ruling out apossible campaign for governornextyear but said he’s focused on running for reelection.

“I get calls everyday asking me to run, but Ilove what Ido,”said Nungesser, whosejob description includespromotingtourism in Louisiana.

On theDemocraticside, John BelEdwards has told friends that he has little interestinrunning next year.State Sen. JayLuneau from Alexandria is mentionedasa possiblecandidate.

“I’vebeenapproachedbylotsof folks interested inmedoing that.

are almostinfinitesimal.

“If everybody knew howclose they swamtosharks,they’d be terrified,” saidGavinNaylor,director of asharkresearchprogram at the Florida Museum of Natural History,which managesa database of shark attacksaround the world.

“Ifthe sharks really wanted to target people,we’d have about 5,000 shark bites aday,” he added.

“But the fact that we see so few of themmeans the sharks aredoing their level best to avoid these people.”

Sharkresurgence

It is difficulttotrack precisely how many sharksare living acrossthe Gulf. But researchers know thepopulation of manyspecies dropped when the U.S. opened tradewithChina in the 1970s, which gave fishermen access to international sharkfinmarkets

Fisheriesmanagement plans that began in the 1990s started to help populations bounce back.Now, theresurgence is posinga complex new questionfor manyfastgrowing beach communities: Are humans readyto live withsharks?

Some governments arealready

The job is what I’dreally like,” Luneau said. “I don’tknow if a Democrat can beat aRepublican in astatewiderace, but you never know. You’dbefoolish nottoconsiderthat he has alot of money in his account.”

Roy Fletcher,aveteran political strategist who worked for Fleming’sSenate campaign, said that race exposed fissures in the Republican Party with Landry

“Hehas some real accomplishmentshecan point to.There’sno question about that,” Fletcher said. “But he hasserious problems that remain with theelectorate— seriousenoughthattheyhad to spend awhole lot of money to defeat John Fleming, who made him an issuein thecampaign. He’skind of alienated the base of the party.Hehas to go back andrepair that.Ifheruns against astrong Democrat, he can’t let that Democrat get 30% of the Whitevote.”

One of those alienated conservatives is MarkT.Guillory,a resident of Pineville in central Louisiana whoisakey member of Save My Louisiana, agroup thatvehemently believes that carbon capture and sequestrationthreatens to pollute waterways and infringe on landowners’ rights.

“Inhis zeal to bring prosperity,he is trampling on our lives,our liberty and our property,” Guillorysaid. Governor claims bigwins

Landry wasted no time after taking office in January 2024 as the first Republican governorwith a Republican supermajority in the Legislature.

He got legislatorstoclose primaries for this year’sSenate, Public ServiceCommissionand Board of Elementaryand SecondaryEducationraces —achange that posed abarriertoCassidy’sreelection, since it meant he couldn’tdraw votes from conservative Democrats

Landry andlegislators reduced corporateand individual income tax rates, eliminated the corporate franchise tax, made it easierfor people on death row to be executed, made it more difficultfor people injured in accidents to sue forbig damages in an efforttobring down insurance rates and eliminated the unpopular vehicle inspection sticker for mostofLouisiana.

Twoweeksago,Landryannounced adeal to settlelong-standinglawsuits by coastal parishes againstExxonMobilthataccused thecompany’sdrilling activities of polluting wetlands and causing the

responding. President Donald Trumplast week signed legislationbacked by Alabama Sen. Katie Britt creating aprocessfor sending emergency cellphone alerts to beachgoers near anyfuture shark attacks.The bill is known as “Lulu’s Law” in honor of Lulu Gribbin, an Alabama teenager who survived the30A attack in 2024.

“The timing of this law couldn’t be better,” Britt said last week, “as countless Americansare enjoying ournation’s beaches this summer.”

Researcherssay the return of sharks, which Gulf Coast visitors sometimes spot from condo balconies overlooking the water, cankeep other species in check. Scientistshave documented the number of baby bull sharks in Mobile Bay,Alabama, hasgrown by fivefold over the past two decades as waterswarm there. Great white sharks aremigrating thousands of miles from thenortheast United States to the Gulf each winter, though most staymiles from shore.

The shift is also forcing fishermen to adapt. Oneangler was bit last month after he hooked abull sharknear Pensacola, Florida

SECTIONT Notice is giventhatthe above-namedLimitation Petitionershave filed a Complaint, pursuant to Sections 30501, et seq. of Title46ofthe United States Code (46U.S.C App. §30501, et seq.), for exonerationfromorlimi‐tation ofliability forall claims forany loss, dam‐age, injury,ordeaths caused on 17 April2026, when oneofthe three(3) barges in thetow of the M/VASSAULT came in contactwithan unseen underwater obstruction in theIndustrialCanal occasioned or arisingout of theincidentoccurring on that date,all as more fully setforth in the Complaint. Allpersons having such claims must file theirre‐spective claims,aspro‐

theright to limitation of liability, theclaimant shall file andserve on theattorneys forLimita‐tion Petitionersanan‐swer to theComplaint on or before theaforesaid date unless hisclaim has included an answer,so designated,orbede‐faulted. NewOrleans,Louisiana this 7thday of May, 2026. /s/CarolL.Michel CarolL.Michel, ClerkofCourt Date:May 07 2026 Respectfully submitted, MURPHY,ROGERS, SLOSS, GAMBEL &TOMPKINS /s/PeterB.Tompkins PeterB.Tompkins, T.A. (#17832) ptompkins@mrsnola. com PeterB.Sloss (#17142) psloss@mrsnola.com TimothyD.DePaula (#31699) tdepaula@mrsnola.com Tarryn E. Walsh(#36072) twalsh@mrsnola.com Donald R. Wing (#29486) dwing@mrsnola.com 701 PoydrasStreet Suite400, HancockWhitney Center NewOrleans,LA70139 Telephone: (504) 523-0400 Fax: (504) 523-5574 Attorneysfor War Admiral, L.L.C. andTurn Services,L.L.C 191707-jun22-29-jul6-134t $1,629.36

I, Al JamesSonnier have been convictedof 36010001 -21.11(a)(1) PC -Indecency w/Child Contact. TEXASDate Convicted: 01/09/2007 Details:Texas Statue IndecencywithChild Contact. Offenders victim wasa 12-year oldfemale..State Equivalent:14:81Indecent Behavior with Juveniles. 14:81Indecent Behavior with JuvenilesSexual Motivation.Details: Offendersvictimwas a 14 year oldfemale. Date Convicted: 09/16/2013. 3601000121.11(a)(1)PCIndecencyw/Child Contact. TEXAS. Date Convicted: 01/09/2007. StateEquivalent: 14:81 -IndecentBehavior with Juveniles. 14:81Indecent Behavior with Juveniles. Date Convicted: 09/16/2013 My Addressis: 7928 EDWARD ST NEW ORLEANS, LA 70126 Race:BLACK

disappearance of coastalmarsh.

In theinterview,Landry disclosed afew details of theagreement,saying that ExxonMobil would provide close to $200 million to cap many orphan wells in Louisiana.

“Wehave1,088 orphanwells,” Landry said, referring to the numberalong the coast. “We’ll be ableto knock outachunk of those orphan wells with this deal. Ithink it’sa good deal for the state of Louisiana. It’sagood deal forExxonMobil.”

That agreementappearstobe tied to more than 100,000 acresof landthatExxonMobil controlsnear Pecan Island in Vermilion Parish that SpaceX, Elon Musk’sspace exploration and artificial intelligence company,isbelieved to be eying as alaunch location. Landry said he couldn’tcomment on any potential SpaceX deal.

Thanks to Fleming, carbon capture andsequestration projects developedasaflashpoint during the Senate race. Landry notedthathe issued amoratorium on newprojects but said he remains committed to thetechnology

“We’vebeen putting things in the ground in Louisiana fordecades in asafe and reliablemanner,” Landry said. “What has happened is completepropaganda thatJohn Flemingtried to latch onto. And you can see, it was acomplete failure.”

Landry has announced major investment projects,includingMeta’s$27 billion data center in Richland Parish, Hyundai’s$5.8 billion steel plant in Ascension Parish and Venture Global’s$18 billion expansion of its liquefied natural gas facility in Plaquemines Parish.

“Wehave historic investment in thestate, right?” Landry said. “We might get to $200 billion by the end of the year in private investment. That’s equated to 124,000 new job opportunities.”

Landryhas cited that job figure previously,but Kate Kelly,the governor’spress secretary,later said it was actually 95,000 newjob opportunities.

Either way,Landry said, “There’s nobody in Louisiana who is looking for ajob that can’tfind ajob if they have theskill set.”

Yetjobs are not appearing in significant numbers, federal governmentstatistics show Since January 2025, Louisiana hascreated about14,000jobs, accordingtothe Bureau of Labor Statistics, an increaseof0.6% over that periodoftime, compared to an increase nationally of 0.7%.

Congress is considering establishing afederal task force that would help anglers solve thepeskyand growing problem of sharks snatching fish from their lines. And scientistsare confronting asurge of questions as they race to understandhow climate change will impact sharks’ behavior in the future. Researchers believe some shark species are now swimming closer to Gulf Coast shores earlier in theyear and staying there longeraswater temperatureswarm. But they are still studying how shark habitats might changeand what species will prove mostresilient as climate change intensifies.

“It is agiant unknown,”Grubbs said.

Rare attacks

Twenty-three unprovoked shark attacks have been reported over the past 25 yearsinthe waters between southeast Louisiana and theFlorida Panhandle, according to the Florida Museum of Natural History’sdatabase. Justone has been fatal: Abullshark killeda 14-year-old from Gonzales, who wasboogieboardingabout 100 yards offshore from abeach near

Jim Richardson, aretired LSU economics professor,said the strongest growthhas been in construction jobs thatwill disappear once the investment projectsopen. These projectsare so automated, Richardsonadded, the permanent jobs will be fewer than the construction jobs at these sites. Louisiana had a4.5% unemploymentrate in May,upfrom 4.3% in January 2025.

Signsofdissatisfaction

Landry’sscrappy nature elected him twice as attorney general and once as governor.But it led him to meddle in LSU’scoaching change last year in waysthat turned off manycollege football fans. His willingness to do Trump’s bidding led him to accept serving as the president’sspecial envoy to Greenland. But he has soft-pedaled that role in Louisiana, apparently because of the political dangers of being seen as inattentive to his job as governor Landry didn’tnotify the press in advance that he was traveling to Greenland in May.While he said in the interview that he keeps the public abreast of his activities through social media,hedidn’t tweet once about Greenland while there. Instead, he tweetedabout bill signings, the need for ateacher pay raise and the first dog, Blanc. Black legislators, particularly those in NewOrleans, arestill smarting from vetoes that Landry issued followingthe legislative session that targeted theirmeasures.

“These vetoes werenot aboutpolicy. Theywereabout punishment,” said state Sen. Royce Duplessis, DNew Orleans. “Funding forhealthcare, earlychildhood education housing, homeless youth and other critical community investments waswiped away.The people paying the price are not politicians. They areworkingfamilies,children, seniors, patients, nonprofits and small businesses.”

Landry said he based the vetoes on policy,not politics, adding that his predecessor, Edwards, aDemocrat, vetoed $500 million of Republican projectsduring his eight years in office.

Ayear ago, it was fellow Republicans who felt Landry’ssting. A full 16 of the 17 line-item vetoes that he issued in 2025 targeted spending projects sought by Republican legislators who had supported Insurance Commissioner TimTemple when he opposed legislation that Landry championed.

Destin in 2005.

Researchers say such tragedies areoften theresult of confusion. JohnCarlson, who researches sharksfor theNational Oceanic and AtmosphericAdministration told WJHG-TV in Panama City Beach that the recent attack there probably involveda bull shark in murky waters that mayhave confused the victim with asea turtle. The manwas hospitalized and remainedinintensive carelast month.

“It’sa very sadsituation,” Carlson toldthe news outlet. “Itwas a likely mistake.”

Many Gulf Coastbeach cities already monitor their waters for dangerous marine lifeand fly purple flags at beaches to warnvisitors of animals, including sharks, stingrays and jellyfish. Scientists say precautionary steps —like avoiding swimming near fishermen or in cloudy waters —could becomemoreimportantover the next decade.

“Everybody’salways saying there’s so many sharks around, Naylor said. “Their numbers are coming back to where they should be.”

Unbearable heat suspectedin19New Jersey deaths

High temperatures give wayto thunderstorms

BY COREY WILLIAMS Associated Press

Several days of scorching temperatures are suspected to have caused at least 19 deaths in New Jersey as a heat dome that had settled above parts of the central and eastern UnitedStates gives way to severe storms that have knocked out power to close to 1million homes and businesses.

New Jersey officials said Saturday that they began seeing what they believe are heat-related deaths as early as Thursday with most occurring in the central and northern parts of the state

“Unfortunately,many of these individuals were found in homes without air conditioning,” state Health Commissioner Dr.Raynard Washington told reporters Saturday.“Afew were out-

side their residences, some on thestreet and some even in parked cars.”

New Jersey Gov. Mikie Sherrill called the current weather “the hottest stretch we’ve seen in over 14 years.”

“The heat’shitting all of us, notjust seniors,not just with underlyinghealth conditions,

people of all ages,”Sherrill said.

On Thursday,LaGuardia Airport in New York set a new record high of 104 degrees, topping the previous record of 101 set in 1966, accordingtoBryan Jackson, ameteorologist with the National Oceanic andAt-

mosphericAdministration’s Weather Prediction Center Trenton, New Jersey, reached101, whichbroke therecord of 100 set in 1901. Newark’shigh Thursday was 105.

AtlanticCity, New Jersey, hit 103 on Thursday,breaking the city’srecord of 100

set in 1966, Jackson said. Atlantic City reached 105 on Friday and 106 on Saturday Heat domes canbedangerous and combine very high temperatures with high moisture, Jackson said.

“In alot of cases theyalso haddirect sunshine,” he said.“It wasrelentless. It was multiple days. It was notascoolovernight, as well. The low Fridaymorning in Atlantic City was 80. The body can’t recover as well. Youjust have that multiple day buildup and too muchaddedstress on the body.”

But even as theheat moved to the east, lowering temperatures abit, severe storms blewinwith heavy winds thattoppledutility polesand split trees,causing their boles and branches to fall onto power lines.

About 900,000 utility customers in parts of the central, eastern and southern United States were without electricity early Sunday afternoon, according to PowerOutage.com.

Morethan 223,000 customers in Michigan and close to

170,000 in Pennsylvania had lost power

PPL Electric reported 121,417 without power Sundaymorning, including about 47,000 in the Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, area. CentralHudsoninNew York state reported that it hadmorethan430 reported downed wires on Sunday. The utility said about 50,000 customers were affected by thestorm andthatabout 650 still were without power Sunday

Amanda Vesperwas putting her childrentobed Friday evening when the first storm rolled through the Detroit area, knocking out her power

“Itdidn’tseem that awful. It got quite windy,” said Vesper,40, of Commerce Township.

As of late Sunday morning, the electricity still was out.

“We’ve been going back andforth between ahotel and our homebecause we have dogs there,”she said “Wereally can’t stay there. Ihave asmallchildwith autism.Our well runs on an electric pump.”

Prosecutorstolay outtheir case in CharlieKirkkilling

BY MATTHEW BROWNand

HANNAH SCHOENBAUM Associated Press

SALTLAKE CITY Charlie

Kirk’swidow and parents areexpected this week in a Utah court where prosecutors seeking the death penalty will argue that the man charged withkilling the conservative activist should stand trial for murder

The five-day preliminary

hearing that startsMonday will be the firsttime members of Kirk’sfamily areinthe Utah courtroom with defendant TylerRobinson. The hearing will be livestreamed. Robinson turned himself in after the shooting. Prosecutors allege that he also senta text messageconfession to his partner and left anotesaying he had an opportunity to kill one of the

nation’sleading conservativevoices “and I’m going to takeit.”

He has not entered aplea in the case, however Robinson,23, is charged with aggravated murder in theSept. 10 assassination of Kirk, whowas addressinga crowd of thousands at Utah Valley University.His attorneys have not commented on his guilt or innocence. Months of legal jostling

leading up to the hearing centeredlargely on media access. Beginning Monday, the focus shiftstowhether there is enough evidence for atrial andifthe death penaltyiswarranted, said PaulCassell, aUniversityof Utah law professor and former federal judge. Cassell said evidence madepublic to dateincourt filingssuggests prosecutorshave “an overwhelming case.”

“This seems like the proverbial slam dunk at this stage of the case, where the only issue is whether there is asound basis for moving forward with atrial on the merits,” he said.

Adeathsentenceisan option in Utah only whena crime hasaggravating circumstances. Prosecutors will argue in Robinson’scase that Kirk’sshooting endan-

gered others in attendance. The proceeding will resemble aminitrial, with prosecutors planning to offerDNA evidence linking Robinson to the suspected murder weapon, testimony from investigators, autopsy findings, witness statements and video of Kirk’skilling. They are not required to presentall theirevidence and can use secondhand information, or hearsay

3firefighterskilledinColoradorememberedfor theirbravery

BY JESSICAHILL, WUFEI YU and JOHN SEEWER Associated Press

With wildfires burning across many Western states, wildland firefighters gathered Sunday to pay tribute to three of their own who died after they were trapped by flames aweek ago. Emily Barker,Nick Hutcherson and Sydney Watson were remembered forbeing courageous public servants who left alasting impact on the communities wherethey worked.

“They showed up to make order out of chaosday after day with purpose, dedication and heart,” U.S. Wildland Fire ServiceChief Brian Fennessysaidduringa memorial service in Grand Junction,Colorado,near where the firefighters died while battling flamesonthe Colorado-Utah border

While that fire is now almost entirely contained, nearly 40 largefiresare still going strong across the West

Most of thecurrent fires are scattered around Colorado, Utah and New Mexico while there are wildfires in eight other states—fromAlaska to Arizona

Over the holidayweekend, more evacuations in Colorado were ordered across four countieswhere theAspen Acres fire hadburned about 136 square miles south of Colorado Springs.

Thefire had damaged or destroyed more than 200 structuresasofSunday, authoritiessaid. National Guard soldiers were sent in Friday to helpwith staffing checkpoints on roads near the fire zone Monthsofdry weather and arecord lack of snow this past winter in someplaces alongwith erratic winds have been fueling the fires.

Thethree firefighters killed on June 27 in western Colorado weremembers of aHelitack crew that some-

times drops into remote areas by helicopters.

Barker,Hutchersonand Watson and two others who sustainedburn injuries were overcomebyflames from fast-moving fires in Mesa County.Theyhad deployed emergency protectiveshelters, which are considered a “last resort” for firefighters when there is no other way out Fennessy,the Wildland Fire Servicechief, saidSunday that“the weight of this tragedy is felt way beyond our wildland fire community.”

Photos of the firefighters were setuponthe stage at the memorialservice alongside flowersand flags.

They worked jobsthat require courage, selflessness, strength and heart, said Sarah Fisher,the U.S. ForestService’sdeputychief for fire and aviation management

“Thework demandslong days, heavy burdens andquiet acts of bravery,” shesaid.

“Wewill

remember them, we will honor their legacy andwewill carry theirlight forward.”

By The Associated Press

Photo: AnthonyLaMothe Photography

ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO By SyDNEy SCHAEFER Aperson shields themselves from the sun at Pier 57 on Saturdayduring aheat wave ahead of theInternational Parade of Sail in Newyork.

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Report details refinery explosion

Blast shot 13 tons of ‘catalyst material’ into air

BY DAVID J MITCHELL Staff writer

New details have emerged of a May explosion and fire at a Chalmette refinery that shook homes miles away, with a regulatory report divulging where the blaze began and pollutants released in the incident.

Streetcar krewe won’t have a streetcar

N.O. ended public charters of Rampart Street ride

BY DOUG MacCASH Staff writer

Retired musician David Roe says he tried to give the city of New Orleans $1,000, but was turned down when he tried to reserve a Rampart Street streetcar for a Carnival season kickoff party just as he’s done a few times before Roe, 69, said he filled out the online form and pushed the send button, ready to pay the required fee. But he was informed by the Regional Transit Authority that the public can no longer charter North Rampart Street streetcars, “due to operational constraints and fleet availability.”

However, he was told, he could still rent one of the streetcars on the St. Charles Avenue route. But that, Roe says, is out of the question. It defeats the whole purpose of the plan. For decades, Roe said, the Phunny Phorty Phellows krewe has thrown a costume party on a rented St. Charles Avenue streetcar to welcome in the Mardi Gras season on Twelfth Night, Jan. 6. For two or three years, Roe had been one of the Phellows.

In 2016, when shiny, red streetcars began rolling on Loyola Avenue and North Rampart Street, all the way downtown to Elysian Fields Avenue in the Marigny where Roe lives, he swiftly founded a streetcar-borne krewe of his own called the Societé des Champs Elysée. The Societé would be the downtown answer to the PPP It was an immediate success. Starting in 2017 Roe’s Societé sang nibbled king cake, played kazoos and otherwise celebrated Twelfth Night, while rumbling to the Union Passenger Terminal — where they piled out for a sip of Champagne before returning downtown. Like so many Carnival organizations, the Societé also became a charity collecting money, food, clothing and supplies for homeless people all year round. The group had a smooth ride for three years, but then you might say, things went off track. The tragic collapse of the unfinished Hard Rock Hotel in 2019, a broken water pipe and COVID all disrupted the downtown streetcar line and, by extension, the Societé des Champs Elysée’s annual Twelfth Night ride.

A streetcar krewe without a streetcar, the Societé contented itself with bar crawls and, once, a ride on a rental bus shaped like an old-time trolley In summer 2024, the Rampart Street streetcar was finally back in service, and the Societé staged a midsummer ride But, Roe recalled, for some reason,

The May 8 fire ignited around 12:51 p.m in a section of the Chalmette Refining complex where impurities are removed from oil constituents to meet air quality standards, according to the report. A reactor inside what is known as Retreater No. 1 lost “containment,” causing liquid hydrocarbons to ignite.

“Operations immediately began shutdown procedures and started to isolate the reactor and the heater,” company officials reported to state regulators. The fire was allowed to burn in a controlled manner, the company said, until a purge with the inert gas nitrogen began about 3:55 p.m. The fire was out 10 minutes later

More than 13 tons of a nickelbased catalyst designed to pull impurities from crude oil were “expelled” in the blast and fell to the ground, according to a report. The impurities include things naturally found in crude, such as sulfur and a variety of toxic heavy metals, and they can end up latching onto the catalyst.

The refinery says the fire led to no detectable air emissions that could pose a public safety risk, but one environmental group has questioned that assertion because, it contends, air testing didn’t account for likely dust emissions from the damaged catalyst. In addition to the 27,027 pounds of

Paella for the population

ABOVE: Nate Colbert, right, and Darin Setzer serve plates of paella from their Paella Nola catering stand at the Crescent City Farmers Market in New Orleans on Sunday LEFT: Customers stand in line to try food from the stand.

Jean Lafitte police chief dies at 75 following illness

BY MICHELLE HUNTER Staff writer

Marcell Rodriguez, police chief of the town of Jean Lafitte for the past 15 years, died Monday at West Jefferson Medical Center in Marrero following a brief illness. He was 75. “Marcell was a strong man with integrity and an honest toughness to do the job. But he had that compassion and heart,” said state Rep. Timothy Kerner Sr., a longtime friend and former mayor of Lafitte. Rodriguez grew up in Lafitte, later moving to Marrero, where he attended West Jefferson High

School. He was a star running back for the football team, according to his son, Christian Rodriguez. Though trouble at home led him to drop out before graduation, Marcell Rodriguez earned his high school diploma after joining the U.S. Army according to his son. His wife, Vanessa Rodriguez, followed him to Kansas, where he attended army training to become a welder. The family returned to Marrero until Marcell Rodriguez

built their family home by hand in Lafitte in 1980, Christian Rodriguez recalled. After leaving the military, Marcell Rodriguez did auto body work at a shop in Marrero. When Christian Rodriguez decided to go into law enforcement at the age of 20, Marcell Rodriguez, then 45, decided to join him. Father and son signed up for the Gretna Police Academy, graduating together in 1996. Both wanted to serve and to help their community

“It was pretty cool,” Christian Rodriguez said. “The academy only gives out four awards. I won one for physical fitness, and he got

‘Mr Congeniality’ because everybody loved him.” Marcell Rodriguez joined the Jefferson Parish Sheriff’s Office, working first in the Jefferson Parish jail, then as a bailiff in the courthouse. He later moved over to property and evidence.

That’s where he was serving in 2011 when Kerner, then mayor of Lafitte, appointed him to become the chief of police. Kerner said he knew Marcell Rodriguez would be a perfect fit.

“He’s a guy who was a mountain of a man, a

said

fellow but such a pure and

STAFF PHOTOS By ENAN CHEDIAK

M Rodriguez

Power restored to French Quarter after explosion

Transformer sparked fire, evacuations on Saturday

BY JONI HESS Staff writer

Power has been restored to portions of the French Quarter where a transformer explosion sparked

a fire and left parts of the area in the dark Saturday evening amid July Fourth

celebrations

Bourbon Street remained closed to vehicular traffic Sunday from Bienville to St. Louis streets and Conti Street from Dauphine to Royal as crews continued

CHIEF

Continued from page 1B

Kerner, who noted that Marcell Rodriguez helped make 30 arrests in his first six months to tackle the town’s budding drug problems

Marcell Rodriguez started prayer meetings and Bible studies to help those struggling with addiction.

Continued from page 1B

of a naphtha-hydrogen mixture pollutants that were released — about 13.3 tons in total. Under the refinery’s air permit, the section of the plant that burned can’t release any catalyst or nickel arsenide into the air and only about a half ton of naphtha annually

The company told Department of Environmental Quality neither the catalyst nor the naphtha was “extremely hazardous,” though the nickel arsenide was. The refinery’s letter did address potential air emissions of nickel arsenide, telling regulators its dust particles would be too big to inhale.

The environmental group Louisiana Bucket Brigade questioned whether that would occur in an explosive fire.

Chalmette Refining did test for air emissions commonly associated with fires involving petroleum products, including ammonia, hydrogen sulfide and volatile organic compounds, and found none in neighborhoods near the plant, including on the West Bank. But neither state nor company officials took air readings to determine whether particulates from the discharged catalyst or other aspect of the fire may have been sent into the air

Still under investigation

The disclosure of the expelled catalyst came in a “seven-day letter,” which companies must file with the state DEQ a week after incidents. The letters pro-

to work in the area, according to the city’s emergency alert service NOLA Ready The New Orleans Police Department evacuated parts of Bourbon and Conti streets, including the Royal Sonesta Hotel, late Saturday night after an underground electrical transformer exploded, causing flames to erupt in the street

NOPD spokesperson Jonathan Morris said the 400 block of Bourbon and 700 block of Conti had been evacuated by 11:25 p.m

NOPD tapped additional first responders to clear the Quarter and get crowds to safety Power was restored by 7:30 a.m. after Entergy New Orleans crews worked

“He was my hero,” Christian Rodriguez said. Marcell Rodriguez was married for 53 years before his wife died in 2024. Theirs was an incredible and devoted love, family members said.

“He was lost without my mama,” Christian Rodriguez said. Tributes to Marcell Rodriguez poured in Tuesday as word spread of his death.

vide a first estimate of what chemicals were released and an early explanation of what happened, though often the cause remains undetermined, as it is in this case.

The Advocate | TimesPicayune obtained the Chalmette Refining report through a request.

In the May 15 letter, the company didn’t fully describe what the catalyst was made of nor what impurities it may have had

In a one-sentence statement, Chalmette Refining would not say why it didn’t test for particulates nor provide more information about the catalyst’s makeup: “Chalmette Refining is continuing to work with the appropriate agencies on this matter and will update them as required.”

DEQ officials couldn’t say what the catalyst was made of but said the fire remains under investigation

The refinery did tell DEQ that the catalyst’s chemical active component was made of nickel and that the catalyst had small traces of the chemical byproduct, nickel arsenide. Both nickel and arsenic are metals with toxic qualities that can trigger respiratory problems in acute exposures.

Catalysts often have qualities that remain proprietary for competitive reasons. But reports from PBF Energy, the refinery’s owner, and chemical engineering groups indicate such catalysts often are made of nickel and molybdenum or cobalt and molybdenum. They can have an alumina base and can be embedded with the impurities they remove from crude.

Crews continue working in

after a transformer

and power outage in the area on the Fourth of July

overnight to get the touristcentric Quarter back online, Mayor Helena Moreno

“It’s just devastating It took us all by surprise,” said Lafitte Mayor Yvette Crain, who also spoke of his integrity and compassion. “He’s been a part of our community for as long as I can remember.”

Jefferson Parish Sheriff Joseph Lopinto called Marcell Rodriguez a humble individual who always asked what he could do, how could he help.

said in a Sunday morning update posted to social media.

“He was always more of a father figure, not necessarily an enforcer,” Lopinto said.

Jefferson Parish President Cynthia Lee Sheng order that flags at all Jefferson Parish facilities be flown at half-staff in Marcell Rodriguez’s honor until sunset on Thursday

“We had such a good working relationship that turned into a friendship I

‘Doesn’t make any sense’

A Louisiana Bucket Brigade chemist says the catalyst was likely embedded with heavy metals commonly found in crude oil and there “was no way” those metals weren’t sent aloft as tiny bits of dust along with other particles generated by the fire.

“It doesn’t make any sense not to measure all the particulates, especially because it is so easy to do, so they should have done that straight away,” said Corinne Gibb, an air monitoring coordinator for the organization.

Dust emissions from catalyst problems aren’t without precedent at Chalmette Refining. In early February, a different catalyst for a different part of the refinery “got into the system,” according to company officials, during a unit startup

and workers reported seeing dust emitting from a vent. Company officials told DEQ officials the dust emissions weren’t significant enough under regulatory standards to warrant further inquiry, according to a report.

The plant has had chronic alleged violations in the past that have led to costly settlements with the state. It is also the focus of a recent federal whistleblower lawsuit alleging poor maintenance in parts of the complex, though not where the May 8 fire happened, according to state and federal records.

In the past two years, the refinery has paid $100,000 in fines to DEQ and, in late April, agreed to pay another $160,000 under settlements to end dozens of alleged violations for self-reported emissions exceedances, accidental leaks, emissions

The explosion came during a lively Fourth of July weekend and as thousands flocked to the city for the annual Essence Festival of Culture

Many streets in the French Quarter were already blocked off for pedestrians and there was a heightened police presence to patrol the area.

“There’s a lot of people who are out and about and they may be going to very dark streets in the French Quarter right now,” Moreno said in a 1 a.m. briefing Sunday “Anytime there is a fire in the French Quarter, it is incredibly concerning.”

Email Joni Hess at joni. hess@theadvocate.com.

will always cherish,” she said.

Funeral services will be held Tuesday at Mothe Funeral Home, 7040 Lapalco Blvd., Marrero. Visitation for the public will begin at 10 a.m. Military honors and the ceremony will begin at 1 p.m.

Email Michelle Hunter at mhunter@theadvocate. com.

reporting failures and other breakdowns going back to 2017, according to state documents.

The complex had a fire in its renewable diesel unit in January 2023 that an independent federal safety regulator concluded stemmed from a tube rupture. In 2024, the refinery has had at least three small fires, according to state reports.

Since 2023, the refinery has also had a series of equipment failures and accidental releases of toxic or highly flammable chemicals that didn’t lead to fires, including a leak of more than 53 tons of compressed flammable gas over 15 minutes in mid-2023.

The company has also received 10 DEQ violation warning letters since February 2024 from alleged failures to keep up with equipment maintenance that led to leaks, elevated emissions or fires.

In some cases, the company has disputed the breakdowns were preventable and has told the agency it invests heavily in keeping equipment up to date.

The refinery has also been among a handful of facilities along the river that are the focus of frequent community complaints about rotten egg or pungent smells emanating from somewhere in the parish’s industrial zone.

Several of the facilities handle or emit gases like hydrogen sulfide and sulfur dioxide that can create smells. Often state inspectors aren’t able to determine the source, according to state reports.

David J. Mitchell can be reached at dmitchell@ theadvocate.com.

the streetcar was inoperable again at the start of Carnival 2025.

Last February, Roe’s krewe skipped the formality of reserving the streetcar and simply boarded one of the squealing vehicles en masse on the first night of Carnival. The feathered and glittered riders were cautioned not to cause a disturbance with too much music or merrymaking.

Unhappy 10th birthday

For the krewe’s 10th anniversary Roe planned for the Societé to return to form, with a proper, private party in a red streetcar that had been reserved a full halfyear in advance. But, the RTA advised, that would be impossible.

“Why have you changed the deal?” Roe asked via email.

“I understand your disappointment regarding the availability of the red streetcars,” wrote RTA associate marketing and sales manager Ana Marenco, “and we thank you for your continued support of our streetcar charter service over the years.”

Ironically, Roe was a North Rampart Street line enthusiast from the start. He was among the very first to board the new line, during a so-called soft opening on a Sunday morning in 2016. For Roe, the Twelfth Night wasn’t just about Carnival. It was about the mode of transportation. “I have a thing for trains,” Roe said. He’s fascinated by trolleys, hillside funiculars, passenger trains, etc. True, his love of tracked conveyances was shaken when he was aboard the City of New Orleans Amtrak train when it wrecked in 1999, killing 11 passengers. But he rides New Orleans streetcars nonetheless. When he can.

“This whole thing started because the streetcar was coming to the neighborhood,” he said, referring to the decadelong, halting history of the Societé des Champs Elysée.

In case a North Rampart Street streetcar remains unavailable on Jan. 6, Roe vows his krewe will have a big 10th anniversary bash anyhow If the Societé des Champs Elysée saves $1,000 on the streetcar rental, “we’ll take the money and give it the homeless,” he said.

The RTA did not respond to a request for comment. The mayor’s press secretary, Jonah Gilmore, referred comment to RTA.

STAFF PHOTO By ENAN CHEDIAK

the French Quarter on Sunday

explosion sparked a fire

STAFF FILE PHOTO By SOPHIA GERMER

Klein, Jerri Saux, Yvonne

Obituaries

Klein, Jerri Leonard

Jerri Leonard Klein, adevotedwife, mother, grandmother, great-grandmother,and dedicated community leader, passed away peacefully surrounded by the love of her family. Born on September 2, 1935, in Chattanooga, Tennessee, Jerri later moved to Birmingham before making New Orleans her lifelong home. It was there that she built aremarkable life with her beloved husband of more than 60 years,Burton G. Klein, who preceded her in death in 2023.Together they created ahome centered on love, generosity, andfamily.

Jerri is survived by her daughter, Carolyn Wooton (Michael), and her son, Stephen Klein. She was a proud and loving grandmother to Ryan Aldridge (Maddie) and Mason Wooton, and acherished great-grandmother to Carter Aldridge and Owen Aldridge, who brought her endless joy

She was preceded in death by her parents, Donnie Leonard and Michael Leonard; her husband, Burton G. Klein; her brother, BillLeonard; and her sister-in-law, Rosemary Leonard. She is also survived by numerous nieces and nephews, each of whom she loved dearly and remained close to throughout her life.

Jerri believed that family was life's greatest blessing. Whether celebrating holidays, cheering on her grandchildren, or simply spending time together, she treasured every moment with those she loved. Her kindness, warmth, and unwavering support left a

lasting impression on everyone fortunate enough to know her.

Beyond her family, Jerri devoted countless hoursto making NewOrleans abetter place.Her civic involvement earnedher numerous honors throughout herlifetime.She was recognized by the New Orleans City Council for her community service,served as President of Cancer Crusaders, was named JeffersonParish Woman of the Year,served onthe board of LafrenierePark, was President of the Jefferson ParishGeneral Hospital Women's Auxiliary, and wasanactive member of the Metairie Women's Association. Herdedication to charitable organizationstouchedcountless lives

Perhaps no organization held amore special place in Jerri'sheart than the Fore!Kids Foundation.For more than 50 years, she poured her time, energy, and passion into its missionofimproving the lives of childrenthroughout the region. Oneofher proudestaccomplishments came in 2006 when she served as Chair of the Zurich Classic, becoming the first womantochair a men's PGA Tour event. She consideredthe friendships she builtthrough Fore!Kids to be amongthe greatest blessingsofher life, and she was immenselyproud of the difference the organization continuestomake inthe community. Jerri'slegacy is one of service,compassion, generosity, and unconditional love. Shenever sought recognition for her efforts, but her impact on her family,her friends, and the New Orleans community willbefelt forgenerations.

The family findscomfort in knowing she is reunited with Burt, the love of her life, and that herlegacy livesonthrough her children, grandchildren,greatgrandchildren,nieces, nephews, and the many livesshe touched.

The family wouldlike to expresstheir heartfelt gratitudetoDr. AlanYager and his exceptionalnurse, Arlene, fortheir compassionate care and kindness. They also extend theirsincere thanks to Rabbi David Gerber,who was not only a treasured neighbor but also adearfriend, and to Brandy Pigeon, whose unwaveringlove, support, and presence meant so much to both Jerriand Burt

throughout theyears. She willbedeeply missed, lovingly remembered,and forevercelebrated Avisitationwillbeheld at Lawn Metairie Funeral Home,5100 Pontchartrain Boulevard, beginning at 10:00 a.m. on Friday, July 10, 2026, and willbefollowed by aprivategraveside service. In lieu of flowers,the family requests that memorial donations be madetothe Fore!Kids Foundation, acause that was especially close to Jerri's heart.

Saux, Yvonne Graffagnino

Yvonne Graffagnino Saux, abeloved wife, mother, grandmother,and great-grandmother, passed away peacefully on June 24, 2026, with her children by her side.She is now peacefullyreunited with her belovedhusband, Jack,the absolutelove of her life Born on February 9, 1941, to AlixFraysse Graffagnino and Peter

Graffagnino, Yvonne entered theworld alongside hertwinsister, Yolande She wasalso adeeplyloving sister to her younger siblings, Alix andPeter. Aproud 1959 graduate of Mt. Carmel Academy Yvonne went on to earna certificationincommercial art fromL.E.Rabouin Vocational School, sparking alifelong love for creativity. In 1963, she married Jack E. Saux, Jr.From that moment on, they were inseparable—it was never just Jack or Yvonne; it was always "Jack and Yvonne." Deeplyrootedintheir Catholicfaith, Yvonne and Jack shared aprofound commitment to their church community, serving devotedly formany years as Eucharistic Ministers. Together, they raised three children: Jack III, Jennifer Perry(Steve), and StephanieDesjardins (Gary). Their journey took them across thecountry withthe AirForce and DeltaAirlinesbefore they ultimatelysettled back home in NewOrleans.

As her childrenreached high school, Yvonne channeled her creativetalents intoentrepreneurship, cofounding an interior decorating business with two

close friends. Later,she further honedher craftat theNew OrleansFineArt Academy, truly letting her artistictalents shine. Today, herfamilyand friends are blessed to treasure beautifulpieces from herpersonal art collection WhethertheywereplayingtennisatThe Beach Club, sailing, catching a newmovie or embarking on traveladventureswith dear friends, Yvonne and Jacklived life to the fullest, always side-by-side.Above all,Yvonnewas fiercelydevotedtoher faithand familyalways makingtimefor hersiblings, friends, children,and grandchildren. Yvonne is survived by herthree children; her belovedgrandchildren, Emmie Saux, Claire Saux, Izzi SauxWale (Derrek), PaulPerry (Emily), BenjaminPerry,Stephen Perry, DominicDesjardins, Thomas Desjardins, and Michael Desjardins; and heradored great-grandchildren, Elyse, Quinn, and JackPerry,and Elliott Saux. Sheisalso survived by herbrother,Peter Graffagnino; hernephews, Sidneyand Peter Montecino, Jeffrey Metzler andKristopher Graffagnino; andmany

cherished cousins and friends. ACatholic Funeral Mass will be held forYvonneat St.Dominic's Church 775 HarrisonAve.NOLAon Saturday, September12, 2026. Visitation will begin at 9:30a.m. followed by Mass at 10:30a.m. Jackand Yvonne will be interred together at theUSNaval Academy at alater date. In lieu of flowers, the familyrequeststhatdonationsbemade to TheGood Shepherd School (www.the goodshepherdschool.org) or theAlzheimer's Association (www.alz.org)

Childabuse is

thelegacy of anation that has treated people as less than human

Iamalicensed clinical social worker and survivor of child abuse who is deeply concerned about the state of child welfare in Louisiana.

As Ilearned about child abuse through my social work education and career,Idiscovered that abuse is not rare. Inow see child maltreatment woven into the fabric of Louisiana culture, just like crawfish boils, potholes and Mardi Gras.

Those who feel entitled to abuse children have adesire to exert power over another human being. It stems from the belief that children are subhuman property.Just like enslaved people were seen as the property of White people. Just like women were seen as the property of their husbands.

The United States’ culture is a culture of abuse because we are anation of colonizers who bought and sold people and abused them because we could. Many people today believe they have aright to physical violence against others to exert their control.

The same attitudes that have caused people to attack trans people in bathrooms, to lock away undocumented immigrants in concentration camps,to criminalizehomelessness and disability,tobeat their spouses, to exploit workers for their labor in exchangefor pennies —these are the same attitudes that caregivers have when they abuse their children.

We will never be rid of this problem until we look at how we have been indoctrinated under a culture of abuse and make real efforts for cultural, systemic change. We needtounderstand that all human beings are worthy of dignity,respect, safetyand having their basic needs met.Until then, this problemwill persist.

MELANIE MANN Hammond

Fortified roof grantdemands coverage that is unaffordable

With theflick of apen, Gov.Jeff Landry has shown recently that he can change policy.Myplea is for him to correct the unfairness of the requirements for thefortified roof program and protect many like myself whocannot get wind and hail coverage at an affordable price.

I, too, would like to have anew roof meeting fortified standards. Iamwilling to pay thedifference from the grant.

We are two retired seniors who have always carried wind and hail coverage. After Hurricane Ida in 2021, our insurer dropped us. We had no claim for that storm andnohistory of claims other than asmall onefor Katrina. We were model clients for insurers: Pay thepremiums andfile no claims. Pure profit for theinsurers. We have been able to secure basic homeowners coverage, but we were toldtogo to Citizens for wind and hail at the cost of $11,000 ayear

Iwant to protect my family and homefrom potential hurricane devastation andhave applied for the fortified roof program.But, since Idonot have wind and hail coverage, I do not qualify for thegrant

What and where is thelogic here?

Requiring wind and hail coveragetoqualify seems like away to guarantee insurers their premiums and reduce payouts since roofs will be stronger.Those without wind and hail are not contributing to their income bucket

Ibeg Landry and Insurance Commissioner TimTemple to rethink this program forthe tensofthousands who are not abletoget wind and hail coverage due to the ultra-high cost. Beforebeing dropped, Iwas paying $4,000 ayear.Afterward, wind and hail coverage cost $11,000.

After all, this is America!

ALAN WEINSTEIN Kenner

Immigrants whododge hearings must nothavea good case

Thearticle “In New Orleans, ‘mega master’ hearingslatest tool of Trumpadministration’s deportation push” asserts hearings in NewOrleans are asubstitutefor the roundups of afew months ago —false.

The hearings are primarily for those who have made asylum claims at the border or a defensiveasylum claim after they have entered theU.S.

The roundups targeted all illegal immigrants —i.e., those who had no asylum claims, those who committed crimes after enteringthe U.S., those who were found wanted for crimes committed prior to illegal entry andthose with outstanding deportation orders.

for which they have not been arrested: i.e. illegally working in the U.S., stealing Social Securitynumbers, lying on the DOJI9form claiming to be aU.S. citizen, tax fraud/evasion and conspiring with human trafficking/ drug cartels paying them thousands of dollars to assist them in illegal entry

Those who don’tshow up for hearings do so because their claim is false or weak and believe they will lose and be arrested.

Alawyer cited in the article claims illegal immigrants are not being given due process.

Not only are they gettingone or morehearings to plead their case, they are being given apass for the crimes cited previously,which they committed while living in the U.S.

Since it may be awhile before we see gasoline prices come down, how about

siana.

While that doesn’tseem like much, consider that somelarge SUVs can hold up to 36 gallons. That driver would save $14 per fillup!

Even astandard SUVwith around a20-gallon tank could save almost $8 each time he pulls into agas station, which really adds up if you’re driving to avacation destination. Ifeel sorry forthe guys with the full-size heavy-duty trucks that hold 48 gallons, but at least they could save almost $19 afill-up.

came in second with 66.4 cents, based on U.S. Energy Administration figures.

BARBARA BABIN LACOUR Harahan

Thehearings are not asham,asthe proillegal immigration lobby asserts. They should tell the public that most of those who received letters requiring attendance at the hearing have committed anumber of crimes

It is Americanswho do not have due process: one law for Americansand another for illegal immigrants.

JOSEPH

MOLYNEUX Metairie

TO SEND US ALETTER SCAN HERE

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.

Oilcompanies need to cleanuptheir mess

Marc Ehrhardtofthe Grow Louisiana Coalition appeared in aguest columntodecry the ingratitude of the people and parishes of Louisiana for having theaudacitytobring legal action to compel oil companies to be held accountable forthe catastrophic damage they have visited upon our coast He complains of the protracted course of litigation without acknowledging the many delayssought by theoil industry’sattorneys. He suggests that, in deciding where to invest, global energy companies look for a skilled workforce, predictable tax structure andastable legal environment. Obviously,they drill where theoil is. They will drill in Angola, Ecuador,Nigeria or any-

where else there are accessible deposits.

Once there, what they actually want is a docile (nonunion) workforce, laxenvironmental protections and compliant politicians.

Ehrhardt worries about themessage this litigation is sending. The message should be theone Ireceived from my mother years ago: “Clean up your mess.”

Let us hope thepurely procedural setback of the recent Supreme Court decision doesn’t discourage effortstoobtain funds needed to clean up themess they have madeofour coast.

W. KEITH HURTT NewOrleans

With the strongest navy and air force in the world, we destroyed Iran’snavy and whatever air force they had.

Then we put an embargo on their oil shipments and ports. Iran then closed the Strait of Hormuz, and we let them

Instead of our navy keeping it open, we did nothing. Now, President Donald Trumpisnegotiating with knownterrorists, something the U.S. has never done before. What is going on? He is acting as though we need Iran. It is timefor Speaker Mike Johnson to act like the speaker of the House, not like the speaker of Trump. Congress has been dead in the water since Trumpwas elected. It is timefor them to go to work and run the country,not run and go home.

CLIFF LEONARD Hammond Congress needs to demand answersonIran

STAFF PHOTO By BRETT DUKE

WorkerswithSunbelt Roofs install afortified roof with impact-rated shingles on ahome in Jefferson.

ASSOCIATEDPRESS PHOTO

Speaker of the House MikeJohnson, R-Benton, takes questions about the war against Iran.

COMMENTARY

AMERICA250

An inconceivableoffer

LouisianaPurchasewas thedealthatbuilt ourcountry

By NancyLandry

statethey helped create.

ON THECALENDAR

As Louisiana’ssecretary of state, Ihave the privilege of overseeing our elections, business services, the Louisiana State Archives and many of ourstate museums. Those responsibilities may not seem to have much in common, buteach plays arole in preserving our state’shistory andhelping shape its future.

That responsibility carries even greatermeaning as we celebrate ourcountry’s250th anniversary

tate transaction in history

However,inwhat is now presentday Louisiana, the storywas more complicated. While ownership changed on paper,not every question was immediately answered.

Landry GUEST COLUMNIST

When most Americans think about the beginning of our country,they think about the Declaration of Independence, the Constitution and the Revolutionary War. Whentheythink about the country’sexpansion west,people often envision covered wagons crossing the plainsorrailroadsbeing built.

But one of the most important moments in American history centered on our state.

Like most people, Iappreciate a good bargain. Maybeitispurchasing ahome at just the right time, finding aused car at agreat price, or finding avacantpiece of landbefore anyone realizes itsvalue. No bargain in American history compares to the Louisiana Purchase. It was adeal thatnearly doubled the size of ourcountry and made America aworld power with the stroke of apen.

Vast landscape

President Thomas Jefferson originally sent Robert Livingston and James Monroe to Franceto purchase New Orleans andsecure control of the MississippiRiver.Instead, Napoleon Bonaparte, in need of money to finance his war against GreatBritain, offered something unimaginable.

He offered the entire Louisiana Territory,stretching from the Mississippi to the Rocky Mountains.

For $15 million, the United States acquired more than 828,000 square miles, or roughly four cents an acre.

Adjusted for inflation, thepurchase today would havecost around $438 million, or just $1 17 an acre. Today,that is less than 1% of Louisiana’sannual budget. Fifteen future states would be created in whole or in part from that land. Historians describe it as the greatest real es-

Parts of thewestern side of what we know as Louisiana became part of adisputed area between the United States and Spanish Texas. Unable to agree on aboundary line, the two nations agreed to aneutral strip of land —a place whereneither government exercises clear authority.It was called “No Man’sLand.”

TheFlorida Parishes were another exception. They were not included in the original purchase and became apart of theUnited States years later

Undefinedborders

As we celebrate America’s250th anniversary,it’sworth rememberingthat parts of theland beneath ourfeet were once places where no oneknew exactly where one nation ended and another began.

The lawless territory attracted settlers, traders and its share of outlaws. Without aclear government,people often had to rely on themselves and their neighbors.

This reminds us that America wasn’t built overnight or by asingle generation.

It was built over time by ordinary peoplewho faced uncertaintyand established communities and local governments

Less than adecade after the Louisiana Purchase, Louisiana entered theUnion much smaller than its original territory.But our culture has remained uniquely our own. Louisiana is agumbo of cultures, traditions and people unlike anywhere else in America.

Living history

Today,Louisianians have aunique chance to see and experience that historyfirsthand.

TheNational Archives has entrusted my office with oneofthe original Louisiana Purchase documentssigned by Napoleon. It is nowondisplay at the Louisiana Old StateCapitol through July 11.

While these historic documents have returned to Louisianabefore, this is the first time in morethan two decades they have revisited the

I’ve stood and looked at the documentseveral times since it arrived. Seeing it in person is different from seeing aphotograph in atextbook. LookingatNapoleon’ssignature, it’simpossible not to thinkabout the generations of Americanswhose lives were forever changed because of the agreement on those pages. When people talk about our country’sfounding documents, the Louisiana Purchasedeserves to be in that conversation. It changed thecourse of American history,and its effects continue to shape our lives today

Preserving these connections to our past is one of the great responsibilities entrusted to the Secretary of State’sOffice. Through our free museumsand theLouisiana State Archives, we preserve thedocuments andstories that explain who we are as astate.

Oursharedduty

Ialso have the privilege of helping safeguard another foundation of our democracy —our elections.

Preserving our history and administering our elections are deeply connected. While one reminds us of where we have been, theother helps shape where we aregoing.

President Ronald Reagan once said that freedom is never more than one generation away from extinction. It must be learned and appreciated by each generation.

Freedom isn’t just something we inherit,but something we must continue to practice. As we celebrate America’s250th anniversary,Ihope you and your family will takeafew hours to visit theOld State Capitol to see the LouisianaPurchaseinperson. By examining the document, you will be reminded of the journey our country has endured and gain arenewed sense of pride in theAmerican story

The LouisianaPurchase is one of the defining documents shaping our nation’shistory.Itisa legacy measured by morethan theland it added to amap. It opened the door for ayoung nation to becomethe world’sgreatest power

It is our responsibility to continue that growth and ensure our freedom for thegenerations to come.

Nancy Landry is the 45th secretary of stateofLouisiana.

Thereare several events around Louisiana to celebrate the 250thanniversaryofthe adoption of the Declaration of Independence. Here is alist of somegoing on now. For afull list, go to america250la.org

n Louisiana’sOld State Capitol, 100 NorthBlvd., Baton Rouge, is featuring the exhibit,“Bought fora Song: Ayoung Nation Expands,”whose only artifact is the French exchangecopyofthe convention between the Republic of France and theUnited Statesthat finalizedthe Louisiana Purchase. Through July 11. louisianaoldstatecapitol.org. n The Historic NewOrleans Collection, 520 Royal St NewOrleans, is featuring the exhibit,“American Revolution: The Augmented Exhibition,”where visitors can immerse themselvesin3Dinteractive reconstructions of keymoments in American history.This free, interactiveexperience,which runs throughJan. 17, utilizes360-degree augmented reality to immerse visitorsin20defining moments of the nation’sfounding,fromthe sparks of the Boston TeaParty to the victoryatyorktown.The “American Revolution” wasproducedand designed by Histovery withpromotional supportfrom New Orleans &Companyand Louisiana America 250. The exhibition offersa fresh, technologically driven waytoexplore the American story. For more,goto hnoc.org

n The Louisiana State Museum at the Cabildo, 701 ChartresSt.,New Orleans, is featuring the exhibit,“Gálvez and Louisiana in theAmerican Revolution,”which explores thelife of Spanish Gov. Bernardo de Gálvez and thediversepeople of Louisiana whofought forAmericanindependence. Through May15, 2027. louisianastatemuseum.org

ABOUTTHISSERIES

Throughout the year,the Opinion pages are featuring columns and conversations from historians, scholars, politicians and others about what this 250th anniversary of America means.To read previous pieces, go to the Opinion section of our website.

Laurent Dabos’ circa 18031804 portrait of Napoleon Bonaparte as First Consul of France.

PROVIDED PHOTO By ENGLISH HERITAGE, THE WELLINGTON COLLECTION, APSLEy HOUSE

Nancy

with meteorologist DamonSingleton

Today, expect amostlycloudy, hot, humid and breezy daywith scattered showers and storms.Likeyesterday, someofthe thunderstorms couldbeveryintense and result in minor flooding Temperaturesthis afternoon will be right about where theyshould be,rising intothe lowtomid-90s.Humidity will remainhigh, so heat index valuesfor many of us will be in the tripledigits. TheUV index willbeatthe very high level, so wear your hat, sunglassesand sunscreen.

Driver crashes into restaurant

BY KASEY BUBNASH

Staff writer

An unidentified driver was hospitalized and cited Saturday morning after crashing acar into the Italian Barrel over the busy July Fourthweekend, according to the New Orleans Police Department Police were called at 11:33 a.m.tothe restaurant at the corner of Decatur and Barracks streets in the French Quarter.

Paramedics transported the driver to ahospital and NOPD spokesperson

Jonathan Morris said Sunday the driver has since received three citations,

though he couldnot say for what.

Photos shared to social mediashow thewrecked sedan at astop on the sidewalk just outside the Italian Barrel, the building’s wooden shutters hanging offtheir hinges and what appears to be atrash can lying on its side. Thestructureofthe building appears largely unscathed WWL-Louisiana reported that the business was able to remain open for theholiday following an inspection.

EmailKasey Bubnash at kasey.bubnash@ theadvocate.com

Search underway formissing teen

BY JONI HESS Staff writer

The searchisunderway for aMississippi teen whodisappeared after taking atrip to Horn Island with friends on the Fourth of July,according to the Jackson County Sheriff’s Department.

Authorities say 18-year-old Nolan Wells was last seen Saturday around 3p.m. on thepopular barrier island off the Mississippi coastline near Ocean Springs wearing blackshorts andsunglasses.

The island drewlargeboating crowdsthroughout the holiday weekend and officials say Wells was last seen on the western tipofthe island’s northside.

It’sunclear if Wells ever made it back to the mainland.

“If youwereonHornIsland

on July 4, traveled by boat in the area, or believe youmay have seen Nolanoreven given him aride from theisland, please contact authorities immediately,”Gautier Mayor Casey Vaughan saidin astatement postedtosocial media. “Even thesmallest detail could make adifference.”

TheJackson County Sheriff’s Department,along with the Harrison CountySheriff’sDepartment, theUnited States CoastGuard andthe Mississippi Department of Marine Resources,are amongthe agencies searching for the teen

TheUnited CajunNavyis also assisting with the search.

CajunNavyincidentcommander Josh Gill saidWells is about 6feettalland weighs 180 pounds.Wells had gone to theisland on aboat with

PROVIDED PHOTO Authorities are searching for 18-year-old Nolan Wells,who went missing at HornIsland on Saturday

friends and was hanging out with agirlbefore he disappeared, Gill said. Gill did not immediately respond to arequest foradditional details, but encouraged boaters to look out for Wells on Sunday

“He has not been heard

from in close to 24 hours,” Gill said in avideo posted to Facebookearly Sunday.“So guys, if you’re out there fishing, if you’re out there jet skiing, doing whatever you guys are doing, keep your eyes out for Nolan.”

Wells’mother,Christine Wonsley,alsoasked for help with the search on social mediaSunday.She saidher son was at some point separated from his phone, which is back with his family in Mississippi.

Those with information are encouraged to call the MississippiDepartment of Marine Resources at (844) 937-6636 or (228) 523-4134, or the Jackson County Sheriff’sDepartment at (228) 769-3063.

EmailJoni Hess at joni. hess@theadvocate.com.

SPORTS

The World Cup came to my country this summer Iheaded overseas.

Not because of the World Cup. It wasn’tsomething for me to cover,and Iwasn’t going to spend athousand American dollars on aticket, so my wife Michell and Ilit outon vacation. We flewfrom here to London for afew days before making the transatlantic crossing back like our immigrant ancestors (admittedlyinmuch more comfort) on the Queen Mary 2.

I’m fairly certain the first Rabalais who came acrossfrom France in the 1730s didn’thave abalconycabin and private bathroom.

But every stop along theway for the two weeks of our journey, the World Cup was aconstant companion. Ifound myself immersed in the world’smost immense tournament daily,watching from pubs and planes as the dramaunfolded in acolorfulhigh-definition spectacle. Imay have had to leave home to truly appreciatethe World Cup in my home country,but it was well worth the trip. It may be abit lostonsome American sports fans who are consumed by our brand of football, but the World Cup is the biggest sporting spectacle around the globe —tout le monde. Ilearned that lesson well from achanceencounter backin1994, the last time this event visited our shores.

Iwas on assignment, returninga rental car at the Dallas-Fort Worth airport when Istarted chatting with the

REDMEANS GO

BY RONALD BLUM and MICHELLE L. PRICE Associated Press

SEATTLE U.S.President DonaldTrump intervened on behalf of American star striker Folarin Balogun, whose suspension was lifted in adecision that allows him to playina WorldCup match against Belgium on Monday.

Balogun, the American leader with three goals, receiveda red cardfor stepping awkwardly on the right ankle of Tarik Muharemovic of Bosnia andHerzegovina in a2-0 round of 32 win on Wednesday.Ared card triggers an automatic onegame suspension.

FIFAannounced Sunday that thesuspensionhad been lifted,triggering praise from Trumpand outrage from Belgium’s team.

Trump calledFIFApresident Gianni Infantino after the game asking FIFAto review the redcard,according to aperson familiar with the call who spoke on condition of anonymity becausethe personwas notauthorizedtospeak publicly about the matter

“Thank you to FIFAfor doingwhatwas right, and reversing agreat injustice!” Trumpsaidinastatement on social media

The Royal Belgian FootballAssociation (RBFA) said it was “astonished,” andBelgium coach Rudi Garciamocked FIFA’s action.

“I didn’tknow that in the offices of FIFA

the 5th of July was the1st of April in Europe,” Garcia said through atranslator in an April Fools’Day comparison. “The Belgian federation does notdefend itself, it does notprotect the national team,she defends football in general, she defends her integrity, her ethics. Ithink it’sthe first time in thehistory of theWorldCup that there is this kind of decision.”

Garcia wouldn’t respondwhenasked abouta possible appeal to the Court of Arbitration for Sport or whether he thought Trump affected FIFA’saction.

“In ordertosafeguard the legitimate rightsofall participating teams andto protect thefundamental principles of

BY LUKE JOHNSON Staff writer

There are alot of ways Erik McCoy can sum up his last twoseasons with theNew Orleans Saints, but he opted for brevity with adash of profanity

“S*** just happens,” McCoysaid. The Pro Bowl center of the New Orleans Saints is atrue differencemaker when he is on the field. Heis atechnician who is also asupreme athlete. He is the offensiveline’s nerve center and aquarterback’s best friend. And he is the unquestioned leader of the most tight-knit position group in the lockerroom. Unfortunately,he’sspent more time on the sidelines than on the field the last two seasons. He landed on injured reservetwice in 2024 —first for agroin injury,later for an elbow injury —and played in just seven games. He was limited to seven games again last season when he tore his bicepsagainst the ChicagoBears,landing on seasonending IR. That is why McCoy didn’twant to dwell too much on all the other

ways he could describe what the last two seasonswere like.Hecan analyzeitfrom everyangle and try to pinpoint whatwent wrong, or he canacceptthatsometimes stuff just happens “It’shard as an athlete, but it’sthe name of the game,” McCoy said. “Last year,the play where Itore my bicep was something I’ve done

amillion times,and Isaw people do it amilliontimesafter that. It just happened to be that impact angle and, you know,itended my season.

“It was tough. But I’m going to keep doing what Ican to mitigate those risks andhopefullyI’llbe lucky.Hopefully all of us will be lucky,but Iwant to be lucky,too.”

This is alessonhe’shad to learn

as apro,and he’sbeen on both sides of it.Herecalled amoment after his fifth season, when he earned his first Pro Bowl honor after appearing in all 17 games. At that stage in his career,McCoy had mostly dodged injuriesoutsideofa few soft-tissue issues.

He didaninterview forthe team’s in-house magazineahead of the 2024 season when he wastold he was theonlyplayer on the offense who stayed healthy for the entirety of theprevious season.

“Andmyanswer was, ‘It was theluck of the draw,’ ”McCoy said. “I still stick to that. Healthy unhealthy.Yes, there are certain things you can do to prepare, but at theend of the day,it’sfootball, s*** happens,and it’s just theluck of the draw.”

That 2024 season started off with abang. New Orleans scored91 points in its first two games as McCoy played an integral role in the team’snew wide zone run scheme Then, in Week 3, McCoy hurt his groin and the team’soffensecratered. New Orleans was betterposi-

tioned to handle McCoy’s seasonending injury last year thanks to its trade for veteran Luke Fortner duringthe preseason, buthis absence was still felt.

“Erik’sone of the top centers in this league, he’sareally talented player. Whenhe’sonthe field, we’re abetterfootballteam —always,” coach Kellen Moore said. “... Erik is an important part of this. When he’sout there, we’re abetter offensive line, abetter offense. So we’re excited to keep building.”

Oneofthe playerswho is particularlyexcited to get to work with McCoy is quarterback Tyler Shough, who has yet to take asnap from McCoy in agamesetting because he took over as the starter after McCoy’sinjury last year

“He’sbeen great for me,” Shough said. “Even though we didn’tget to play together we were around each other every single day.Wehad our sons

quarterback Spencer Rattler takes asnap from center Erik McCoyduring agame against the NewEngland Patriots at the Caesars SuperdomeonOct.12.

PHOTOS By JULIO CORTEZ

Referee Raphael Claus shows ared card to United States striker Folarin Balogun, right, during the WorldCup round of 32 match between the United States and Bosnia in Santa Clara, Calif., on Wednesday Bosnia’sTarik Muharemovic, left, reacts after atacklefrom United States striker Folarin Balogun during the WorldCup round of 32 match between the United States and Bosnia in Santa Clara, Calif., on Wednesday.

Scott Rabalais

STAFF PHOTO By SCOTT RABALAIS ANorwegian soccer fan enjoys himself in apub duringatransatlantic crossing on the Queen Mary2onTuesday.

Djokovic breaks another record

Tennis great sets

men’s mark for match wins at Wimbledon

By The Associated Press

LONDON After all the records Novak Djokovic has broken, the latest one left him rather unimpressed — even though he surpassed his great rival Roger Federer

Djokovic set a men’s record for most match wins at Wimbledon after overcoming a surprisingly tough challenge from 132ndranked qualifier Roman Safiullin on Sunday to reach the quarterfinals.

The seven-time Wimbledon champion screamed out his frustrations at times later referring to the outbursts as “meltdowns” — before winning 7-6 (6), 6-3, 3-6, 6-3 for his 106th match victory at the All England Club. That puts him one ahead of Federer atop the alltime list for men, although he still trails Martina Navratilova’s 120 match wins.

That’s clearly not the record he’s after at Wimbledon though. Not when he’s also trying to match Federer’s eight titles and become the first man or woman to win 25 major trophies.

“Not on my priority list,” Djokovic said. “Didn’t even know about it until after the last match win That’s really quite insignificant to me at the moment.”

The win also put him into the Wimbledon quarterfinals for the 17th time — one behind Federer’s record. But the Serb acknowledged that he will have to raise his game in order to go further “Survive to thrive, that’s how I feel,” Djokovic said when asked to sum up his first week of the championships. “So hopefully the thriving part is coming.”

A challenging opponent

The 39-year-old Djokovic has never lost a Grand Slam match against a player ranked as low as Safiullin, or to a qualifier, but he looked in danger at times on Centre Court.

Djokovic had to save two set points when trailing 5-2 in the first set and was warned for apparently yelling out an obscenity in Serbian on Centre Court when he was broken early in the third. He then drew boos from the crowd when he hit the ball away in frustration after losing that set.

In his on-court interview, he apologized for what he called “the outbursts, the meltdowns.”

“I had a few of those today,” he said.

Djokovic, who is renowned for his mastery of baseline tennis, also said he opted to play more at the net than usual after repeatedly being outplayed in long rallies by Safiullin.

“I don’t get to feel inferior from the back of court with too many players, to be honest, throughout my career,” Djokovic said. “Today it was one of those days where I didn’t want to stay in the rally for too long So I had to mix things up. And it worked.”

He quickly seized control in the fourth set by jumping out to a 3-0 lead, and then served out the match at love.

Djokovic will next face thirdseeded Felix Auger-Aliassime, who came through a five-setter against No. 22 Alejandro Davidovich Fokina.

No 1 Sabalenka falls

Naomi Osaka defeated topranked Aryna Sabalenka 6-2, 7-6 (2) to reach the quarterfinals at the All England Club for the first time.

Sabalenka had beaten Osaka in all three of their previous match-

es this year — including at the same stage of the French Open last month.

“On the clay courts I felt like she was pushing me back a lot. I just tried to do it to her first,” Osaka said.

Osaka’s pace and flat groundstrokes overwhelmed Sabalenka.

“Obviously we’re big ball strikers. It’s not like I’m going to start running around the court trying to draw an error from her I can only focus on my strengths,” Osaka said.

“I just tried to serve really well, because it’s grass. I also tried to get the upper hand in the rallies first.”

Osaka’s power had an even bigger impact than usual as her balls flew through the air faster on the warmest day of the tournament so far: The temperature during the match reached 82 degrees.

“She overpowered me,” Sabalenka said. “I felt like it was incredible level from her.”

Gauff’s buzzer-beater

There’s not usually a clock ticking down in tennis.

Yet for Coco Gauff, the All England Club’s 11 p.m. curfew made it seem like there was. And Gauff hit the winning shot

at the buzzer

Two minutes before 11, Gauff converted her first match point with a service winner out wide to reach the quarterfinals at the grass-court Grand Slam for the first time.

After beating Belinda Bencic 4-6, 6-3, 6-4, Gauff tapped her left wrist with the fingers on her right hand to acknowledge the timely ending.

Gauff said it “kind of reminded me of” Kawhi Leonard’s shot for the Toronto Raptors in 2019 that bounced off the rim four times before becoming the first Game 7 buzzer-beater in NBA history

Because if Gauff hadn’t ended it in that game, the match would have been suspended until Monday

“I was looking at the clock the last service game,” she said. “I was like, ‘I got to hit some big serves and some big shots.’ And honestly, that match point, I was going for a serve and volley because I was like, ‘I need to end the point.’

“That was probably the most dramatic finish. I’ve never had to race against time Playing tennis, we’re used to not having a clock. But honestly, today I felt the pressure. Glad I didn’t choose basketball.”

Vonn says Sinner’s skiing background helps his agility

BY ANDREW DAMPF Associated Press

LONDON Clay, grass, hard court or even snow

The surface underfoot doesn’t seem to make any difference for Jannik Sinner

The top-ranked player — who is currently attempting to defend his title at Wimbledon was one of Italy’s top junior skiers before he turned his attention full time to tennis.

Now Sinner excels on every type of court, and his background as a skier might have helped his tennis game.

Just like an elite slalom skier perfectly shifting their weight back and forth from one gate to the next, Sinner hardly ever seems off balance as he rushes back and forth across the baseline — despite his 6-foot-3 frame.

Fellow tennis player Casper Ruud agreed that the most impressive thing about Sinner is his movement.

“He’s strong also in balance and flexible to get to certain positions,” Ruud said. “He has good hip movement and knows how to slide (into) both corners.”

Skiing standout Lindsey Vonn also pointed to Sinner’s ability to stay in balance.

“He has an amazing kinesthetic sense which is an important skill in both sports,” Vonn said “He is

very aware of his body in space and time, so even though he is tall, he moves fluidly and in sync.”

Sinner won a national skiing championship at 8 and placed second in Italian nationals at 12.

In a 2009 giant slalom won by Sinner, Giovanni Franzoni — the breakout downhiller of last season finished 12th, four seconds behind.

Franzoni is now the Kitzbühel downhill champion and the Olympic silver medalist

“I was really good,” Sinner said after his first Grand Slam title in 2024. “But then I had a couple of so-so seasons when I started competing against older athletes in slalom and giant slalom, and when downhill came into the picture, I

weighed too little to compete.

“So I kept on playing tennis,” Sinner said. “In skiing, if you make a mistake you’re out; it’s a dangerous sport and you need to get up early in the morning and venture outside in frigid temperatures. Tennis is a bit more accessible. In the end, I think I made the right choice.”

Vonn, who shares a common sponsor with Sinner, once hit the slopes with the tennis star “He skis similarly to how he plays tennis; he is fluid, smooth, and makes it look easy,” Vonn said in written comments. “His knees and hips are always parallel, and he is always in balance I really enjoyed skiing with him and I hope to do it again, but after his

Baseball signee changes pledge from LSU to UCLA

LSU signee and middle infielder

CJ Weinstein flipped his commitment from the Tigers to UCLA, he revealed on social media Sunday Weinstein attends Orange Lutheran High in California and is the No. 149 player in MLB.com’s draft rankings. He was one of LSU’s two high school signees who played middle infield.

One scout who spoke with The Advocate described Weinstein as a second baseman whose best trait is his ability to put the bat on the ball.

“He’s a good fit, but he might have a tough time playing (at LSU) because you know how good the roster is going to be,” the scout said. With Weinstein’s departure, LSU still has 22 players committed to its 2026 recruiting class. The Tigers had 24 signees after the season ended in May, as they have also lost a commitment from lefthanded pitcher Colton Christman.

Yankees LHP Fried faces hitters in simulated game

NEW YORK New York Yankees starting pitcher Max Fried inched closer to a possible minor league rehab assignment, throwing 36 pitches in his second two-inning simulated game on Sunday Before the Yankees concluded a three-game series with the Twins, Fried faced third baseman Ryan McMahon and catcher Ali Sánchez. Manager Aaron Boone said Fried’s next simulated game would likely occur Thursday or Friday with an increased pitch count and pitching in a minor league game could be the next step.

The 32-year-old left-hander has been out since May 13. Fried is 4-3 with a 3.21 ERA in 10 starts.

Brewers RHP Woodruff goes back on injured list

PHOENIX Milwaukee Brewers right-hander Brandon Woodruff has gone back on the injured list with inflammation in his throwing shoulder, one day after a drop in velocity led to his early exit from a start against the Arizona Diamondbacks.

The Brewers recalled left-handed pitcher Drew Rom from TripleA Nashville in a corresponding move Sunday Woodruff, a two-time All-Star, was removed from the Brewers’ 4-3 loss at Arizona on Saturday in the fourth inning after striking out Adrian Del Castillo on a 75.1-mph changeup.

Although Woodruff struck out the only two batters he faced in the fourth, none of the pitches he threw that inning exceeded 87.3 mph.

White Sox 1B Murakami sent on Triple-A rehab stint

tennis career!” Many elite skiers include tennis in their summer training regimen.

Vonn’s fellow Olympic champion

Bode Miller was a state high school champion tennis player in Maine and his family ran a tennis academy in New Hampshire. He once attempted to qualify for the U.S. Open.

“I love playing tennis It’s good for my footwork, mental strength and general athleticism,” Vonn said. “I know of quite a few skiers who play tennis as a form of cross training. It’s a way to push myself physically and mentally When you get physically tired, you have to still be mentally strategic and cool under pressure. I love that about tennis.”

Vonn was the top World Cup downhiller last season at age 41 until her horrific crash at the Milan Cortina Olympics in February left her with a fractured left leg.

Ruud, who is Norwegian, also skied as a kid, “but I don’t move as good as him,” he said of Sinner

“I don’t necessarily believe because he did skiing when he was young, that’s why he moves so well,” Ruud said. “I mean, look at (Carlos) Alcaraz: He didn’t ski and he also moves pretty damn well.” Ultimately, Ruud suggested, it’s just healthy for kids to try as many sports as they can.

“No matter what it is, whether it’s skiing, running, golf. Doing things that keep you active is great. I have never seen Jannik ski other than videos. Would be fun to do a skiing competition one day,” Ruud said with a smile.

CLEVELAND White Sox rookie first baseman Munetaka Murakami will begin a rehab assignment Monday at Triple-A Charlotte, the slugger’s final step before rejoining Chicago’s lineup after being out with a right hamstring injury Murakami has been sidelined since suffering a Grade 2 strain on May 29, when he got hurt trying to beat out a double play grounder against Detroit. At the time of his injury, Murakami was tied for the AL lead in homers and was first in runs.

He’s been traveling with the White Sox and following Sunday’s 7-6 win over the Guardians, manager Will Venable said Murakami will leave to play with the Knights. If all goes well, it’s possible he could be back with Chicago before the All-Star break.

Gotterup closes with a 62, wins John Deere Classic

SILVIS,Ill.— Chris Gotterup made up a five-shot deficit Sunday by closing with a 9-under 62 to win the John Deere Classic for his fourth PGA Tour title in the past 12 months. Gotterup avoided a playoff when Ben Kohles, trying to win for the first time in his 120th start, hit his approach to the 18th left and into the water and wound up with a double bogey Gotterup next week defends his title in the Scottish Open, where he began his remarkable run to reach the top 10 in the world. He held off Rory McIlroy a year ago in Scotland, and then won the Sony Open and the Phoenix Open this year Gotterup received a sponsor exemption to the John Deere Classic in

ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO By BRIAN INGANGA

Novak Djokovic returns the ball to Roman Saffiulin in their fourth-round singles match at Wimbledon on Sunday in London.

ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO By BRIAN INGANGA

Jannik Sinner slides on the court during a third-round match against Jenson Brooksby at Wimbledon on Friday in London.

Vonn

Ex-Knick Robinson clarifies cause of his hand injury

The Associated Press

NEW YORK Newly minted NBA champion and Chalmette native Mitchell Robinson said the hand injury that left his status uncertain for the New York Knicks’ NBA Finals opener came after he punched a truck amid concern over his younger brother’s health Robinson, who last week agreed to leave the Knicks and sign with the Boston Celtics as a free agent, wrote a Facebook post Sunday that addressed the injury and other mental-health concerns he had during the season. His injury emerged after the Knicks eliminated Cleveland in the Eastern Conference finals and was strange because coach Mike Brown said it didn’t happen on the court. It was originally called a broken bone in his hand.

But Robinson clarified Sunday that it was an injury to his knuckle after he returned from the Knicks’ victory in Game 4 and learned one of his brothers had been hurt in a serious car crash.

“Upon returning to New York, I received an unexpected phone call, and my family members contacted me, informing me that my youngest brother had been involved in a car accident,” Robinson wrote.

“As the eldest sibling, I felt a deep sense of concern, and I immediately went into panic mode. I began returning calls and texts, and when I FaceTimed my brother I thought he was deceased. He was wearing a neck brace, unresponsive and not speaking. I broke down in tears, feeling like a failure for not being able to protect my siblings. Being 910 miles away, I

felt helpless. In a moment of frustration, I banged my hand on my truck.”

Robinson has a fondness for trucks — one of his was in the Knicks’ championship parade — but said his family was most important to him and referenced challenges that he faced last season while helping lead the Knicks to their first NBA title in 53 years.

“Before judging someone, it is essential to understand their circumstances, which may not be publicly known. Life is unpredictable, and it is how we respond to challenges that truly matters,” Robinson wrote, adding that he consulted with doctors. “So at the end of the day, I battled with so much throughout this season even made a huge sacrifice to not see my daughter as much this season because I needed to focus and lock

Harrington repeats as Senior Open champ

BY JOE REEDY AP sportswriter

COLUMBUS, Ohio Padraig Harrington’s first two U.S. Senior Open titles weren’t decided until the final hole

His record-tying third had no drama by the time he reached the back nine on Sunday Harrington became the fourth golfer to defend his U.S. Senior Open title, shooting a final-round 66 to win by four shots at Scioto Country Club.

The 54-year-old Irishman also joined Miller Barber as the only three-time winners in the tournament’s 46-year history

“I like creating records, and to be part of that is a big deal It just shows how hard it is,” Harrington said after capturing his fourth senior major. “I’m seeing guys coming along, and I’m kind of realizing there is only a window to win these tournaments. They have told me and other players that it’s kind of up to about 56-57, then it starts going downhill quickly

“But I was thinking and feeling that way, that you only have a set period to get your major wins on the Senior Tour because not that you’re getting older but new guys are coming in.” Harrington also joins Barber (1985), Gary Player (1988) and Allen Doyle (2006) as the only golfers to win the U.S. Senior Open back-to-back.

Harrington — who finished at 12-under 268 — birdied the first two holes and had four birdies with only one bogey Third-round leader Stewart Cink was runner-up for the second straight year Cink bogeyed two of the first three holes and struggled with accuracy most of the day, shooting 71 and finishing at 8-under 272.

“It feels great, but there wasn’t the drama we normally provide down the stretch,” said Harrington, who won by one shot in 2022 and 2025. “I knew I had a nice lead, which let me play to the middle of the greens and hit the shots. I hit some big shots coming home to take all the stress out of it.” It is Harrington’s 12th career PGA Tour Champions victory and

Guardians star Ramirez to begin batting soon again

BY TOM WITHERS Associated Press

CLEVELAND José Ramírez has made steady progress in his recovery from hand surgery and the Cleveland Guardians star third baseman will soon start taking batting practice. The seven-time All-Star has been out since having a portion of the hamate bone in his left hand removed on June 16. Ramírez injured his hand while making a swing against the Detroit Tigers three days earlier Chris Antonetti, the Guardians president of baseball operations, said Ramírez has been hitting off a tee and is scheduled to start overhand batting practice “over the next couple days.”

Antonetti said the 5-to-7-week recovery on Ramírez remains unchanged, and the team expects him back later this month following the All-Star break When the switch-hitting Ramírez had the same procedure done on his right hand in 2019, he returned in 30 days.

Antonetti stressed that Ramírez has more hurdles to overcome.

“It’s really individual specific,” Antonetti said Sunday when asked whether the 33-year-old could be back sooner “It’s how well the recovery site heals, how much discomfort they have over the surgery site and when they can progress to activity

“So far, Hosey has met or exceeded all of those checkpoints along the way So hopefully we’ll be on the shorter side of that. But again, he still has a lot of activity or a lot of boxes to check between now and then.”

One of the AL’s top players, Ramírez, a .278 career hitter was batting just .239 with 10 homers

his first since last July’s Senior British Open.

George McNeill — the other player in the Harrington-Cink grouping shot a 71 and finished with a 6-under 274. Ian Poulter (67) was fourth at 5-under 275 while Retief Goosen (67), Jamie Donaldson (68) and Paul Stankowski (69) were at 4-under 276.

Cink hit only 2 of 7 fairways on the front nine, ending his chances of becoming the first player to win the first three senior majors in a year

“It’s always fun going down the stretch with a lot on the line. Today, I played poorly enough that there was no championship on the line, but I was still battling hard for second,” he said. “It’s been a while since I had a day like that where start to finish it felt difficult, but today it did, and my scorecard tells the story.”

Cink had a one-shot lead after 54 holes, but Harrington took the lead with a five-shot swing on the first three holes. It was the second straight round to start early to beat the weather

Harrington made a 15-foot putt on the par-4 first to tie Cink. He then took a two-shot lead when his second shot on the No. 2 par-4 landed within 3 feet of the cup for an easy birdie while Cink bogeyed.

Cink got within two with a birdie on the par-4 seventh after Harrington bogeyed the No. 6 par-5.

The momentum shifted back to Harrington on the par-4 eighth. Cink chose driver off the tee, but it landed hot on the left side of the fairway, took a couple of hard bounces, and rolled into the creek on the right-hand side of the fair-

way

Cink ended up with a bogey while Harrington sank a 30-foot birdie putt to double his advantage. “That one was definitely kind of a crusher there. I finally straightened the tee ball out after I hadn’t hit very many good tee balls, and boom, I hit a great one, and it cost me a penalty shot. And then Padraig makes the putt,” Cink said. “We are so in the present that we don’t always feel those momentum shifts, but looking back, I’m sure it probably did.”

and 33 RBIs when he got hurt. He was leading the league with 24 steals.

The Guardians have managed to stay in contention without their best player Cleveland entered its four-game series finale against Chicago on Sunday at 4743, one-thousandth of a percent behind the White Sox (46-42) atop the AL Central.

Despite having to rely on numerous rookies, the Guardians have stayed more than competitive. They’ve also been without outfielder Angel Martinez and only recently got back rookie slugger Chase DeLauter from the injured list.

Ramírez, Martinez and DeLauter were all injured in the same game.

“It’s obviously been a lot to overcome,” Antonetti said. “But I think that’s been one of the hallmarks of this group, not only this year, but over the last few years is finding a way to overcome adversity We know we have our work cut out for us.

“There’s still a ways to go before we get to the break and we know we need to continue to try to find ways to string together some wins Our pitching staff has done a really good job of giving us a chance to stay in almost every game. We’ve found a way to score just enough to keep our heads above water Obviously, there’s continued room for improvement on both sides of the ball, but yeah, hopefully we can continue to find a way to win.”

Antonetti said Martinez, who is out with a nondisplaced fracture in his left foot, felt good after taking batting practice and fielding grounders on Saturday He also is projected to rejoin the club after the July 13-16 break.

SAINTS

Continued from page 1C

(from) and talk with him.”

Beyond their personal relationship, having McCoy back in the fold should help the young quarterback’s on-field development.

McCoy’s ability to identify where defensive pressure is coming from and make the appropriate calls to the offensive line should alleviate some of Shough’s need to make decisions at the line of scrimmage.

“Whatever he’s calling I trust him fully and implicitly,” Shough said.

McCoy just wants to be there for his team.

He and his wife welcomed their second child this spring, and while he said his growing family helped keep things in perspective, he

also realizes he has only so much time left to play this game Now entering his eighth season, it occurred to him that he’s closer to the end than the beginning.

So, add him to the list of people who are excited to see him back on the field. Just don’t expect him to change the way he plays based on how the last two years went.

“There’s always going to be an awareness (of injuries), but you can’t play with an awareness, you know what I mean?” McCoy said.

“It’s kind of just got to be reckless abandon, and whatever happens happens. I’m going to keep that same mentality

“I don’t want to be a guy that plays timid, that plays soft, that plays afraid to get hurt. If I play like that, I should quit football.”

Email Luke Johnson at ljohnson@theadvocate.com.

STAFF PHOTO By DAVID GRUNFELD

Saints center Erik McCoy, middle, protects the line after snapping the ball to Saints quarterback Spencer Rattler against the San Francisco 49ers during a game at the Caesars Superdome on Sept. 14.

ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO By DARREN ABATE

New york Knicks center Mitchell Robinson warms up prior to Game 5 of the NBA Finals against the San Antonio Spurs on June 13 in San Antonio.

AP PHOTO By JOSE REEDy

Padraig Harrington lifts up the Francis D Ouimet Memorial Trophy after winning the U.S Senior Open at Scioto Country Club on Sunday in Columbus, Ohio.

ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO By TONy GUTIERREZ Cleveland Guardians’ José Ramírez walks to the dugout after lining out to short in the eighth inning of a baseball game against the Texas Rangers on Sunday in Arlington, Texas.

WORLDCUP 2026

Haaland, Norway knockout Brazil

BY STEPHENWHYNO

Associated Press

EAST RUTHERFORD,N.J Erling Haaland scored, and Andreas Schjelderup jumped on his teammate’s back. Haaland scoredagain, and Schjelderup leapt up again.

Heading in the go-ahead goal in the 79th minute and scoringagain before the end of regulation time, Haaland put Norway on hisback and carrieditintothe WorldCup quarterfinals forthe first time with a2-1 defeat of Brazil on Sunday that showcased the towering striker on soccer’sbiggest stage.

“Maybe this will write history in Norway,” Haaland said.“Everyone just need to enjoy themselves. This is just an insane day.It’sone of the most insane days in Norwegian history.Just enjoyit, embrace it and enjoy the moment.”

After being anonfactor for much of the afternoon and havinglimited touches, Haaland spoke at the second-half hydration break with coach Ståle Solbakken, who told him to drain his energy andgo for it.

Haaland turned it on when it mattered most, getting the right side of his head on the ball after aperfect setup by Schjelderup who entered at halftime.Haaland scored alittle over minutes later for his seventh of the tournament, through Danilo’slegs to tie Argentina’sLionelMessi andKylian Mbappé of France in the race for the Golden Boot.

“It felt it was agift fromGod that it actually went into the net,” Haa-

Passionate fans

Erling Haaland,left,celebrates with Andreas Schjelderup after scoring his second goal for Norway during a WorldCup round of 16 match against Brazil on Sunday in East Rutherford, N.J.

land said after scoring in a14th consecutive competitivematch internationally. He has 27 in that stretch and 62 in 54 with Norway At the other end,goalkeeper Ørjan Nylandwas stellar.Hemade a crucialstopearly, diving to hisleft to denyBruno Guimarães’ penalty kick in the 14th minute, then got

ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO By SILVIA IZQUIERDO AMexico fan waits in the rain for the startofthe WorldCup match between Mexico and England on Sunday in Mexico City.The game was delayedone hour by thunderstorms.

Brazil left to second-guess PK choiceafter earlyexit

BY BRIAN MAHONEY Associated Press

EAST RUTHERFORD,N.J.— Vinícius

Júnior had the ball at the penalty spot, aperfect chance to giveBrazil the lead. And he handed it to Bruno Guimarães. And by the time Neymar took andmadeBrazil’ssecondpenalty kick, it was too late for the fivetime World Cup champion. Guimarães had his penaltyshot stopped by Ørjan Nylandinthe 14th minuteand Brazil couldn’t get one past Norway’sgoalkeeper until deep in stoppage time, losing 2-1 on Sunday in the round of 16 for its earliest World Cup exit since 1990.

The Brazilians will be left with four years of second-guessing, wondering why they chose not to have one of soccer’selitescorers take the penalty shot after Matheus Cunhawas taken down by asliding tackle in the box. No foul was called originally, to theBrazilians’ protest, butthe penalty was awarded after avideo review.Vinícius, who came into the gameleading Brazil with four goals in four games, had the ball in his hands, and it appeared he would take the kick. Instead, Guimarães walked to

thespotand Vinícius handed him the ball, then wentand stood tothe left of the box and watched as Guimarães stutter-stepped, then fired theshot that Nyland dived to his left to knock away It wasBrazil’sfirstunsuccessful penalty kick in theWorld Cup —not counting shootouts —since 1986.

There would be some morequality chances, but Nyland turned them awayeach time,many of themright in front of thelarge section of yellow-shirted fans behind thegoal Brazil was shooting at in thefirst half Vinícius wasdangerous with some speedy runs alongthe left side, andcoach CarloAncelotti brought on Neymar in the 68th minute for extra firepower.Their longtime great took and made the shot after another penaltywas called late, joiningPelé as the only Brazilian players to score in four World Cups. His team needed more than that and failed to reach the quarterfinals for thefirst time since falling to Argentina in theround of 16 in 1990.

The Braziliansreturned four yearslater when the U.S. last hosted theWorld Cup and won. The Seleção wontheirfifth title in 2002 but remain empty since.

his left hand on ashotbyEndrick late when Norway was hanging on to aone-goal lead. Theonly goal Nylandallowed was to Neymar on apenalty kick lateinstoppage time, which changed just the final score. Neymar,who is 34, saidthis was his final game playing forBrazil’sna-

tional team.

Nyland, who at 35 is his team’s oldest player,was ahugefactor in ahistoric victory that ranks among the mostsignificant in the country’shistory —atleast on themen’sside. Norway’swomen’s team won the World Cup in 1995.

“I think that all Norwegian citi-

zens are experiencing the night of alifetime,” Solbakken said. “Some people saythatwehavechanged Norway forever.Probably,they will party foraweek or so.” Norway next faces the winner of the Mexico-England round-of-16 game on Saturday in Miami Gardens,Florida.Solbakken said he had morethan adozen friends already book travel to SouthFlorida. Yellow-clad Seleção fans outnumbered those in Norway red, many of whom did the now-famous Viking Row in thestands —with Brazil supporters even cheering it before kickoff. Brazil’sfans were stunned silent when it returned after the game, with Haalandbanging the drum andleading the celebration.

“I’ve peaked acouple of times during this tournament, butthis was anew peak,” Haaland said.

Ronaldoagain says this WorldCup will be hislast

BY SCHUYLERDIXON

AP sportswriter

ARLINGTON, Texas Cristiano Ronaldo’ssometimes playful banter in arare WorldCup news conference ended in an exchange between Portugal’ssuperstar and a reporter from Argentina.

Ronaldo took the momenton theeve of around of 16 clash withborder rival Spain to repeat something he has said at least once before.

This sixth World Cup for the former Manchester United and Real Madrid star will be his last “What remains withmeisthe people —the people who love you. Ishare hotels with the staff, Latinopeople, and those are spectacular memories. Yesterdayon theflight, there was an Argentine flight attendant. And knew she wasArgentine by the way she looked at me: ‘I knewyou were Argentine by the way youlooked at me.Ifyou lookawayquickly, it means you don’tlike Cristiano,’”Ronaldosaid in translated remarks Sunday, breakinginto a smile.

“I want to enjoy what will be my last World Cup to thefullest,” Ronaldo continued. “Hopefully tomorrow won’tbemylast match That way,you can keep bashing me somemore.”

Ronaldo, thecareer leader in international goals with146, made similar comments in atelevision interview late last year,afew monthsafter Portugalwon the UEFANations League title with ariveting victory over Spain in a penaltyshootout

Many of the questions for the 41-year-old during a25-minute session at thehome of theNFL’s Dallas Cowboysreferred to what everybody in the packed room was assuming: This was it for Ronaldo.

Before the end, he joked with reporters that theywerepushing himout thedoor. Just aboutevery time he did, though, he would turn philosophical.

“There’snothing missing,” Ronaldo said. “God was so generous toward me. He gave me everything Ineverexpected to win, especially at thenationalteam.And personally,the same thing. So it’senjoying everymoment. I’m not going to be more Cristiano or less Cristiano because Iwin the World Cup. Of

Ronaldospeakstoreporters on Sundayduring anews conferenceahead of Portugal’s WorldCup round of 16 match against Spain in Arlington, Texas

course, we allhave hopes, myself especially,and we all want all the conditions to win. But we know thatonly one is going to win.”

Ronaldo’sfinale on soccer’s biggest stage —whenever that happens —will come eight years after he was the oldest to record aWorld Cuphat trick at 33. That was in a3-3 drawwith Spain in agroup stage opener considered one of the World Cup’sbest matches, althoughbothpowers didn’treach the knockout stage.

“Not to say that we have to do man-to-man marking, but in certain areas of thefieldyou’vegot to be aware that he’sthere,” Spain coach Luis de la Fuente saidin translated remarks. “He’sgot the talent,he’sgot theclass, andhe’s got thequality,and at any moment he can be decisive for the game. He can be thebest. So we’re well aware of this.” Portugalistrying for asecond consecutive trip to the quarterfinals. The only other timePortugal went deeper in the Ronaldo era was asemifinal runinhis World Cup debut in 2006. Ronaldo hadthe tyinggoalin Portugal’s2-1 win over Croatia in the round of 32. Three of his 11 WorldCup goalshavecome in this tournament. It wasamatchup of 40-somethings against Croatia’s LukaModric, his formerReal

Madrid teammate who was in his fifth World Cup at 40.

“What Ihave done throughout my career is to adjust to the nuances of age, knowing that I’m not the player Iused to be,” Ronaldo said. “But one thing Ican understand very clearly is nothing has changed because Ican still score agoal. Ihope Idothat tomorrow, and if Idon’t, Ihope others on the team do.”

Barring areplay of his hat trick from 2018 in Russia,Ronaldo is unlikely to challenge the Golden Boot co-lead of seven shared by Lionel MessiofArgentina and France’sKylian Mbappé, who also have asubstantial edge on the career World Cup goals list.

Messi set the record in this tournament and now has 20, while Mbappéisupto19. Ronaldo sometimesbristlesabout where he standsamong his rivals.But not on aday he reiterated his inevitable World Cup end.

“Besidessome different opinions that you may have, I’m not doing so bad, right?” Ronaldo said. “You know, Iscored three goals. Well, there are others that scored more, because they aredoing incredibly well, but I’m not doing so bad. And Ineed to continue onward.” For at least one moreWorldCup game.

fair play in our sport, both at this FIFAWorld Cup andat future editions of the tournament,the RBFAisinvestigatingall potential options,” the Belgian federation said in astatement.

American players learned of Balogun’savailability when social media posts started popping up during the 10-minute busride Sunday from their hotel to training at the Universityof Washington’sHusky Soccer Stadium.

Balogun’sred card had been one of the World Cup’s most controversial and consequential decisions.

“If you look at the foul, it was just zero intent at all,”

U.S. star Christian Pulisic said. “I felt like there was much worse ones that went on this tournament.”

The U.S. Soccer Federation learned of FIFA’saction in amessage sent by FIFAin its portal at 9:31 a.m.

“The implementation of the match suspension is suspended for aprobationary period of one year,” FIFAannounced. “If Folarin Balogun commits another infringement of asimilar nature andgravityduring

the probationaryperiod, the suspension shallberevoked andthe sanction enforced without prejudice to any additional sanction imposed for the new infringement.”

Balogun’sthree goals included ago-ahead strike against Bosnia.Hematched Landon Donovan in 2010 for the second-mostgoals by an American in aWorld Cup, behind onlyBert Patenaude’sfour in the initial tournament in 1930.

A25-year-old who plays for Monaco, Balogun scored 13 Ligue1 goalslast season He has 12 goals in 30 international appearances. He was borninBrooklyn to Nigerian parents who were living in Londonand in 2023 opted to change his national team affiliationfromEngland, which he had represented at the under-21 level.

“He strikes fear into alot of defenders,” U.S. defender Chris Richardssaid.

The hostU.S. is seeking to reachthe quarterfinals for the first time since2002. The Americanslost inthe round of 16 to Ghana in 2010, Belgium in2014 andthe Netherlandsin2022. They failed to advance from the group stage in 2006 and didn’tqualify for the 2018 tournament.

The USSF did not make Balogun availablefor comment Sunday, but Balogun

posted on social media a picture of himself in frontof U.S. fans and overlaid with music of Michael Jackson’s popsingle “Bad.”

On Friday, Balogun said he thought ayellow card instead of red “wouldhave been fair.”

FIFAsaid its decision relied on Article 27 of disciplinary committee rules.

“The judicial body may decide to fully or partially suspend the implementation of adisciplinarymeasure. By suspending the implementation of thesanction,the judicial body subjects the person sanctioned to aprobationary periodofone to fouryears,” the rule states.

FIFAinNovember deferred the final two games of athree-match banfor Portugal’sCristiano Ronaldo for a red card against Irelandina WorldCup qualifier,allowing him to playatthe start of the World Cup.

Argentine defender Nicolás Otamendi and Ecuadoran midfielder Moisés Caicedo in April had one-game bans deferred for red cards in qualifiers, also allowingthemto be availablefor World Cup openers.

Brazil’s Garrincha was ejected from a1962 semifinal but allowed to playin thefinalagainst Chileafter political pressure

United States

RABALAIS

Continuedfrom page1C

fellowbehind me in line. He hadbeen workingat the main broadcastcenter there. Every TV feed from everyvenue in the country apparently came to Big D and was thenbeamed out around the world.

“The thing youhave to remember,” he said, “is every game (in theWorld Cup) is someone’sSuper Bowl.” Indeed it is, and that makes time irrelevant. It was midnight Monday morning in Oslo (Sunday afternoon our time) when theNorwegians rowed theirway past five-time champion Braziland into thequarterfinalsfor the first time ever.The main stadium in Norway’s capital was packed with as many fans at that hour as if thematch had been played there instead of in theNew Jersey Meadowlands.

to the limit before falling 3-2 in extra timeinthe round of 32. All the passengers not dozing were gripped by their little in-seat screens andclapping forthe drama andthe brave west Africansafter it was over But back to earlier in the trip. Soon after we gotto surprisingly sweltering London, Imade my waytoa pub near my hotel to watch the England-Ghana group match. Apub with air conditioning. England finished in afrustrating scoreless draw, but Ifound awinner in The Prince of Teck pub near the Earl’sCourt Underground station, adelightfully cozy and thankfully cool little bar filled with flags, TVs and Oscar Wilde quotes on the walls.

My World Cup journey startedinMiami as we made our connection there from New Orleans to London. Miami International Airport is no misnomer,and the concourseswerefilled withfans wearing jerseys representing Argentina, Scotland, the USofA naturally,and even some from little Cape Verde,the small island nation off thewest coastofAfrica that did itself so proud in this World Cup. Cape Verde hadmanaged an opening draw with pre-tournament favoriteSpain, then had twomorewithUruguay and Saudi Arabia, positioning itself for an unexpected place in theknockout round.

“I can resist everything excepttemptation,” one Wilde quote read.Iresisted the temptationtoimbibe in apint as Iwas,inessence, working. It’swhatwould qualify there as abusman’s holiday.

Iwatched on the flight Friday from New York to Houston as Cape Verde took reigning champ Argentina and legendaryLionel Messi

Soon we were on the QM2 andheading into the Atlantic.The Cunard line made it well known thatall the World Cup matcheswould be available on board. Soccer centralonthe ship was its Golden Lion pub, packed for everymatch. Iwatched England get past Panama 2-0. Iwatched

two nights laterasParaguayeliminated Germany, soccer royalty,onpenalty kicks. Ayoung German fan didn’tmoveaninch from his seat as the winning Paraguayankickfound the net. Forall Iknow, he’s still sitting there,head in hand. Fans from every country were enamored by ajolly Norwegian fan who was making the journey to New York just in time to attend his country’sepic win Sunday over Brazil. Viking horns on his head, beer in hand, he sort of became the ship’smascot as he gleefully rooted on the U.S. to around of 32 victory Wednesday over Bosnia-Herzegovina. Ionly wish Icould have seen the smile on his face afterNorway got its biggest soccer win ever I’m home now,and will be watching from the couch Monday night as the Americans try to get past Belgium and into the quarterfinals for the first time since 2002. As Ido, I’ll think about what the World Cup, and indeed all of sports, reminds us. That despite our cultural, geographic and language differences, we are all much the same. Proud, passionate and convinced the referees are out of their minds. As aformer soccerreferee from my college days, Ican relate to that, too.

ASSOCIATEDPRESS PHOTOByJEFF CHIU

playerFolarin Balogun walks off the fieldafter receiving ared card during the WorldCup round of 32 match between the United States and BosniainSanta Clara, Calif., on Wednesday.

PensiveEngland fans insidethe PrinceofTeck pubinLondon

STANDING TALL

Whyisthere astatueof Winston ChurchillinNew Orleans?

BY RACHEL MIPRO

Contributing writer

Visitors to downtown NewOrleans may wonder why abronze Winston Churchill waves from a prominent perch near theMississippi River One reader’s question:“What’s thehistory of the Winston Churchill statueinNew Orleans?” Theanswer seemstobe thanks to one hotelier

The Churchill statue joined the New Orleans scene in November 1977, unveiled in apublic ceremony byChurchill’sdaughter, Lady Mary Soames, andsituated between the Hilton NewOrleans Riverside andthe World Trade Center of New Orleans.

The statuesits outside thehotel in the middle of atrafficcircle at the end of Poydras Street, now known as the British Plaza, near one of themain entrances to the aquarium, River Walk andSpanish Plaza.

The connection between the British wartimeprime minister andaCrescent Cityhotel is best understood throughhotel leadership.

International Rivercenter,the company that built theHilton, donated the plaza and statue to thecity,thanks toco-managing partner James Coleman Jr ,who served as an honorary consul for the Britishgovernment. Coleman championed British culture in thecity throughout his life, fielding ventures such as theWindsor Court Hotel, ahotel

meanttobring Britishstyle to the bayou.

He eventually received the Officer of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire recognition from Queen Elizabeth II, as well as theCommander of theMost Excellent Order of the BritishEmpire recognition, both

Japan’sEikoKadonostill believes in magicofbooks

BY YURI KAGEYAMA AssociatedPress

KAMAKURA, Japan Eiko

Kadono, the author behind Japan’smost famous —and almost certainly most beloved— literary witch, has alittletrouble going up the stairs these days. At 91,she’s stillwriting every day and hasn’tstopped lovingthe color pink, dressing up or believ-

inginthe magic of books. “Kiki’sDeliveryService,” which wasfirst published in 1985 and turned into a1989 animation film by Hayao Miyazaki’sStudio Ghibli, is among200 books shehas written.

“I nevertire of writing,” shetold The AssociatedPress at her homein thepicturesque seaside town of Kamakura, south of Tokyo

With alittle pink gate, the house is filledwithbooks, pink chairs andher collection of animal figures. “I’mprobably achild at heart,” Kadono says with asmall laugh. Wearing hersignature boldly framed glasses, Kadono is dressedina colorful smockthat her daughterdesigns especially for her She explains proudlythatthe sleeves are elasticatthe wrists so

they can be pulled up easily when she writes.

Thesedays, she uses akeyboard,punching thekeysslowly, one at atime. But when she is creating astory, it still all starts with writingbyhand. She also draws pictures.

“I want to writesothatthe reader can visualize whatIamwriting,” she said. “I love to write.”

Hit town

BY COREY WILLIAMS Associated Press

DETROIT The Motown Museum in Detroithas been resonating with adifferent signature sound —the rumble of trucks, the buzz of drills and the pounding of metal —asone of themost significant sites in American musical history undergoes a$75 million donor-driven face-lift ahead of its 2027 grand reopening. The expansion of the Hitsville USA campus —a housewhere chart-toppers by Stevie Wonder Marvin Gaye andDiana Ross andThe Supremes were written, rehearsed and recorded —aims not just to honor Detroit’smusical legacy,but also to increase the city’sfootprint as an education and tourism destination. The museum should enjoy the same level of promotion as other landmarksinthe United States, former Motown music arranger Paul Riser Sr., comparing the seminal label’spotential to a tourist mecca in New York City “The city can reallybenefitby furthermarketing this whole concepthere,” Risersaid. “We needtosee more pageantry of Motown.Everytime Ithink Motown, Ithink Times Square.” Cities across the U.S. have for years promoted musical heritage as aselling point to attract business conventions, exhibitions and tourists. The Rock and Roll Hall of Fameattracts 500,000 people each year to Cleveland, while Nashville’s music history andattractions tied to country,gospeland other genres bring in about 17 million people annually

The MotownMuseum says it logs morethan100,000 visitors each year andisexpecting at least 325,000 visitors per year after the expansion opens. “Motownfor many,manydecades has been just amagical source of pride and inspiration,” said Robin Terry,Motown Museum chair and chief executive. “Visitors come to the little housethat’sHitsville USA— what used to be the headquarters of Motown— just to touch the magical space where so manyoftheir musical icons… got their start.”

Motown,uniquelyDetroit

Motown was founded in 1959 by Berry Gordy in oneofthe three homes on West Grand Boulevard just north of downtown Detroit, that currently house the MotownMuseum Just ayear later,The Marvelettes’ “Please Mr.Postman” reached number one on the Billboard Hot100. Hits like “I Heard it Through the Grapevine,” “Baby Love,” “My Girl” and“The Tracks of My Tears” soon sent the Motownsound around the globe.

Gordy moved the label to Los Angeles in 1972 and sold it to MCA Records in 1988. His late

AP PHOTO By COREy WILLIAMS Former Motown music arranger Paul Riser Sr.poses outside Hitsville U.S.A. in Detroit on June 11.

AP FILEPHOTOS

Former British Prime Minister Winston Churchill, left, in aSept. 17, 1954, photo and LadyMaryChurch Soames on avisit to NewOrleans in 1977.

PHOTO By KANDACE POWERGRAVES

The Winston Churchill statue on British Plaza by the Hilton NewOrleans Riversidehotel.

Diseases spread by tick bite take time to transmit

Dear Doctors: Igot bitten byatick in April. That’searlier than our tickseason here usuallystarts. I went to urgent care, and thedoctor said that because Iwas sure it had been attached for less than an hour,a Lyme infectionwasn’t likely.Isthat true? Should Ihave doneanything else?

Dear Reader: To say it is unsettling to find atick attached to your skin is probably an understatement.To the tick, you represent the blood meal it needs to advance through itsnext stage of life. But to the mammal that has becomeits host —inthis case, you —the tick represents the risk of aseriousbacterial or viral illness. Themost common of these in the United States is Lyme disease.

CURIOUS

Continued from page1D

prestigious designations that recognize significant contributions.

The Churchill statue was designed and cast by British artist Ivor RobertJones, who is well-known for his Churchill statue across from the Houses of Parliament in London.

In 1977, Coleman officiated the unveiling of New Orleans’ Churchill statue, gathering together agroup of British and New Orleans leaders and businessmen. For the ceremony,Lady Soames, accompanied by her daughter and son-in-law, Mrs. and Mr.RichardHambro, traveled from Great Britain.

It was Soames’ first visit to the city,and she was greeted by awhirlwind of parties and receptions in her honor, along with opportunities for sightseeing and finedining. Among the highlights of her visit, she was reportedly struck by the Superdome “It’sawonderful stadium,” Soames said in achronicled

MOTOWN

Continued from page1D

sister,Esther Gordy Edwards, founded the museum in 1985. The 40,000-square-foot expansion is being constructed around the original Hitsville USA house and will feature atheater,a recording studio, retail space and acafe, as well as immersiveexhibits and asearchable back catalog of music and interviews.

“The expansion is so iconic and unique for Detroit,” said Riser,who joined Motown at age 17 and won aGrammy in 1973 for best R&B instrumental performance on The Temptations Papa Wasa Rollin’ Stone.”

“I would hope to see the legacies andthe historical content preserved,” Riser said. “It’sOKtohaving buildings…but if we don’t keep the legacies of these

BOOKS

Continued from page1D

Still quick with her retorts, laughs and thoughts, Kadono shrugs offhow she’s wearing awig. She doesn’t understand why people might want to hide that. She wears red lipstick and acts abit shy about her wrinkles. Still, her writing hasn’t basicallychanged over the years. Though whenshe looks back on her past writing, she feels it’swordier than her current crisp style. The Kikiseries in the original Japanese spans six books and three spinoffs. The first installment was translated into English in 2020 by Delacorte Press. It is now in 25 foreign languages Kiki andthe NewMagic Now,the second in the series, “Kiki and the New Magic,” is set for releasein August in English, translated by EmilyBalistrieri and illustrated by Yuta Onoda. Kadono, who won the prestigious Hans Christian AndersenAward in 2018, never set out to become awriter She was basically ahouse-

Dr.Elizabeth Ko Dr.Eve Glazier ASK THE DOCTORS

For those who are not familiar, Lyme disease is abacterial infectionthat can affect the skin, joints,nervous system and heart. It is transmitted by the bite of a black-legged tick infected with abacterium known as Borrelia burgdorferi. Anearly symptom of infectioncan be an expanding rash thatforms abullseye near the site

accountofher visit in The Times-Picayune.“It’s amazing and beautiful.”

The ceremony was packed with notables,among them U.S. Rep. Lindy Boggs, Lt. Gov. James Fitzmorris Jr., Mayor MoonLandrieu and EpiscopalBishop of Louisiana JamesB.Brown. The U.S.Navy’s Eighth Naval DistrictBand and the bagpipe group Pipes and Drums of NewOrleans played. Arecording of Winston Churchill’sspeecheswas broadcast to an audience outsidethe hotel. The local newspaper chronicled Soames’ cherry red suit, muted printscarf and triple-strandofpearls, in which shespokeofthe two countries’ “passionate love of freedom.”

“She put on her horn-

peoplewho built this masterpiece, keep them in mind, we’ve lost something.”

Marketingmusic history

The Motown Museum is a must-see for international and domesticvisitors, according to JenniferOllinger, senior director of tourism for Visit Detroit. TheMichigan city clawed its wayback frombankruptcy in 2014 and has seen somethingofa revival in recent years.

Motown is part of the pitch to businesses considering Detroit for conventions, conferences andother large gatherings,Ollinger said “Weare the only place in the world thatcan claim Motown musicasour own,” Ollinger said.

In Cleveland, rock ‘n’ roll is apillar of the Ohio city’s brand, said Emily Lauer, vice president of Public Relations and Communications at Destination Cleveland “Out-of-town visitors and

wife,married to adesigner andraisingadaughter.

She lived in Brazil for two years during her 30s and was asked to write about that experience. That’s when she discovered sheliked writing as afun thing to do, not as ajob. It was certainly notsomething shewas orderedorpushed to do

The character of the sprightly,no-nonsenseKiki was inspired by adrawing her daughter did when she was 12: Acute witch was flying on abroomstick toward the moon.

Kadono decided to create acoming-of-agestory about alittle witch who goes on an adventure, traveling with herblack cat Jiji

Therest is history Kiki’sMuseum of Literature, which opened in Tokyo in 2023, now sells Kadono’s smocks, as well as pink mugs and T-shirts decked with the characters shehas created, as well as displays rows upon rows of books,includingother authors.

“The other-worldly fantasy that Kadono creates has overcome theboundaries of language, to becomeappreciated bya wide global audience, includingchildren and

of the bite. However,this does not always happen. Additional symptoms can include headache, fever, fatigue and muscle and joint aches. When caught early,Lyme disease can be successfully treated with antibiotics. If left untreated, it can progress to amultisystem illness. The timingofyour tick bite played arole in your doctor’sactions. Amosquito bite or abee sting delivers biologically active compounds almost instantly.But themechanics of atick bite are a bit morecomplex. This leads to a time lag between attachment and thetransmission of the bacteria that cause Lyme disease. The Food andDrug Administration reportsthat for theLymebacterium to be transmitted, in most cases

This unusual, vivid photo of Sir Winston Churchill wastaken on the Riviera, where he once vacationed. The armatthe right is that of an attendant whoisadjustinga blanket around him

rimmed glasses to read her speech about how proud she was that her father was chosen to be asymbol of thebond between our two countries,” read the TimesPicayune account of events.

“Hail Britannia” played as she pulledoff the statue’s wrappings,and there Churchill has been ever since, facing the Superdome. He is portrayed wearing his naval cap and overcoat, flashing thevictory saluteas he leans on his cane.

Do you have aquestion about something in Louisiana that’sgot you curious? Email your questionto curiouslouisiana@ theadvocate.com. Include your name, phone number and the city where you live.

the Rock &Roll Hall of Fame areveryimportant for Cleveland,”Lauer said. “They are likelytostay overnight and spend moneyonhotel rooms, in our restaurantsand in our stores. Theyget to seeCleveland andthatstrengthens the likelihood to come back.”

Nashville’svibrant music scene, encompassing country,gospel and the storied GrandOle Opry,brings in tourist revenue totaling more than$11 billion annually

Deana Ivey,president and chief executive of the Nashville Convention &Visitors Corp., said music has been themain reason tourists visit Nashville for three decades. The Tennessee Department of Tourist Development agrees.

“We’re the second fastest growing state in America and we’ve done that without abeach or casinos,”department commissionerMark Ezell said. “Music is our draw to Tennessee.”

adults, and won international accolades,” reads astatementinpink lettering on the museum wall.

Five-year-old Tsukiko Fukuda, who was visiting the museum with herfamily had amore to-the-point reaction: Thebooksare fun, and pink is herfavorite color, too.

Thepower of books

Kadono hopes there will be acontinuous flux of talented writers of children’s books so that the future generation can grow up to love books Now is acrucial period, she believes, thatmay decide whether that can really happen.

The walks in thewoods and other activities that captured the imagination of childrenofthe past no longer exist, saidKadono. Thereare other digitaland moderndiversions.

Andsothey must read.

“People must think on their own to be able to create. That’s what being human means,” Kadono said with apassion in her voice.

“Booksare theonly thing now that can bring about creation and imagination.”

atick must be attached for36to 48 hours or longer.Because your bitewas just one hour,the urgent care doctor concluded that transmission was unlikely While the tick you found was large enough to see, this is not always the case. Even nymphs, which can be as small as apoppy seed, can transmitLymedisease. That makes taking precautions when spending timeoutdoors very important—especially when, as you have noted, tick season starts earlier in manyareas. In awooded or brushy area, protect yourself by wearing long pantsand along-sleeved shirt and tucking them in. Wearing light colors makes ticks easier to spot.Use insect repellent with 20% to 30% DEET on clothes and exposed skin. Be sure to read and follow the product instructions. At the end of any outdoor activities, do athorough tick check. Anyone whogets bitten by a tick and develops symptoms should always seek medical care. In your case, with aone-hour bite, the urgent care doctor’sassessmentappears reasonable. The prompt removal of the tick was the mostimportant action. Sendyour questions to askthedoctors@mednet.ucla edu, or write: Ask theDoctors, c/oUCLA HealthSciences Media Relations, 10880 Wilshire Blvd.,Suite1450, Los Angeles, CA, 90024.

Octogenarian baffled by deluge of compliments

Dear Miss Manners: The oddest thing started happening to me when Ireached my 80s:Strangers began approaching me to tell me how beautiful Iam. It continues regularly at the supermarket, at restaurants or on thebus.

It is unnerving and embarrassing. All my life, no one ever told me Iwas cute or attractive. Iamnot ugly,but I’ve never thought I was pretty,either Have you heard from other elderly ladies who have experienced this phenomenon? If so, what do they attribute it to? I’m stumped.

Gentlereader: Youare presumably classifying this with the patronizing remarks that are often made to old people, especially women: pretending to mistaketheir age, addressing them as if they were trying to pass for young, and speaking to them as if they were cute children. There is plenty of that going around.

Butthere is also aless condescending possibility: The admiration may actually be sincere. Oursociety is far from throwing off the notion that aging is unfortunate, if not reprehensible. But Miss Manners has seen small signs that older women are not considered

By The Associated Press

Today is Monday, July 6, the 187th day of 2026. There are 178 days left in the year

TodayinHistory: On July 6, 1957, Althea Gibson became thefirst Black tennis player to win aWimbledon singles title as she defeated fellow American Darlene Hard 6-3, 6-2.

Also on this date:

In 1777, during the American Revolution, British forces captured Fort Ticonderoga.

In 1885, French scientistLouis Pasteurtested an anti-rabies vaccine on 9-year-old Joseph Meister, who had been bitten by an infected dog; the boy did not develop rabies.

In 1933, thefirst All-Star baseball gamewas played at Chicago’sComiskey Park; theAmerican League defeated the National League 4-2 behind winning pitcher LeftyGomez of the New York Yankees.

In 1942, Anne Frank, her parentsand sister entered a“secret annex” in an Amsterdam building where they were later joined by four other people; they hid from Nazi occupiers for two years before being discovered and arrested.

In 1944, an estimated 168 people died in afire that broke out during aperformance in themain tent of the Ringling Bros. and Barnum &Bailey Circus in Hartford, Connecticut.

In 1945, President Harry

as invisible as they used to be. Powerful women are conspicuous in politics and business. Actresses who are no longer ingenues makestriking appearances, not only in dramas, but also at formal events. Even the fashion industry is beginning to realize that the slim youngsters they have always favored have considerably less buying power than their seniors.

Then it becomes noticeable that, as with older men,some are moreattractive than others. The standard forbeauty is obviously different. Beauty in the freshness of youth is not the sameasbeauty in the majesty of old age.

So you might consider the possibility that although you werenot considered pretty when young, you are now beautiful. And that somepeople are sophisticated enough to recognize that.

Dear Miss Manners: As a womaninher 70s who looks her age, Iincreasingly find myself in situations where service people talk downtome. They probably think they are being flattering, but Idon’tsee it that way.

For instance, Irecently had ahaircut and the stylist called me “Gorgeous” several times, as in,

S. Truman signed an executive order establishing the Medal of Freedom.

In 1967, Nigerian forces invaded the Republic of Biafra, sparking the Nigerian Civil War.

In 1988, 167 North Sea oil workers werekilled when explosions and fires destroyed adrilling platform.

In 2013, an Asiana Airlines Boeing 777 from Seoul, South Korea, crashed while landing at San Francisco International Airport, killing three passengers and injuring 181.

In 2016, Philando Castile, aBlack elementary school cafeteria worker,was fatally shot during atraffic stop in asuburb of St. Paul, Minnesota, by St. Anthony Police Officer Jeronimo Yanez. (Yanez was later acquitted on acharge of second-degree manslaughter.)

In 2018, six followers of the Aum Shinrikyo doomsday cult were hanged along with its leader,Shoko Asahara; they had been convicted of crimes including a1995 sarin gas attack that killed 13 people and madethousands of others sick on the Tokyo subway system

In 2020, the Trump administration formally notified the United Nations of its withdrawal from the World Health Organization; President Donald Trumphad criticized the WHO’sresponse to the coronavirus pandemic.

(The pullout waslater halted by President Joseph

“Would you like me to trim your bangs, Gorgeous?” Then there was an oral surgeon whokept calling me “young lady.” Ididn’t want to be snarky with a man whowas about to drill into my jawbone, so Isaid nothing. What can I(politely) say to these people to let them know their remarks aren’tappreciated?

Gentle reader: All right, this is the patronizing version of complimenting the elderly.Those whocall you “young lady” do not actually believe you are young; they believe that you want to pass for young. And there is adifference between blurting out that a womanisbeautiful and addressing her by the cheeky title of “Gorgeous.”

But as you said, it is often unwise to retaliate, pointing out that these people are trying —and failing to pass forcharming. Especially if they are armed with adrill. The real comeback will be when that surgeon is old and young men call him “young fella” and young womentell him he is cute.

Sendquestions to Miss Manners at herwebsite, www.missmanners. com; to heremail, dearmissmanners@gmail. com; or through postal mail to Miss Manners, Universal Uclick, 1130 Walnut St Kansas City MO 64106.

Biden’sadministration but wasformally completed in 2026 during Trump’ssecond term.)

In 2024, Sonya Massey, aBlack woman who had dialed 911 to report apossible prowler outside her Springfield, Illinois, home, was fatally shot by Sangamon County Sheriff’s Deputy Sean Grayson; Grayson, who testified at trial that he feared Massey was about to scald him with apot of steaming hot water that she had removed from the stove, wasconvicted of second-degree murderand sentenced to 20 years in prison. Today’sbirthdays: The 14th Dalai Lama, Tenzin Gyatso, is 91. Singer Gene Chandler (“Duke of Earl”) is 89. Actor Burt Ward (TV: “Batman”) is 81. Former President George W. Bush is 80. Actor-director Sylvester Stallone is 80. Actor Geoffrey Rush is 75. Retired MLB All-Star Willie Randolph is 72. Former first daughter Susan Ford Bales is 69. Actor-writer

Judith Martin MISS MANNERS

cAncER (June 21-July 22) Push forward regardless of what others choose to do or saytodeter you from following your intuition. Invest more timeand money in your skills and the things that bring you the most joy.

LEO (July23-Aug. 22) Listen to podcasts or watch documentaries that offer insight into something you want to pursue Knowledge is your ticket to positive change andunderstanding what'spossible.

VIRGO(Aug. 23-sept. 22) Pay attention to what's going on around you. Back away from people and events that have the potential tobecome out of control. Use common sense andpay attentionto detail.

LIBRA (sept. 23-Oct. 23) Await-and-see attitude will nothelpyou get ahead. Think outside the box to bring about change that encourages you to do your own thing and to live up to your expectations.

scORPIO (Oct. 24-nov. 22) Pickupthepace, askquestions, redefine what's necessary to reach your objective and exhaust your options. The moreyou put into the process of getting ahead, the better the outcome.

sAGITTARIus (nov. 23-Dec. 21) Stick close to home, and aimtomake your space convenient and comfortable. Eliminate clutter, and restructure your routine to ensure you aren't wasting timeonpeople and projects that are bringing you down moreoftenthancontributing to your life

cAPRIcORn (Dec. 22-Jan. 19) Say little, and do alot.Focus on what you can accomplish, and avoiddiscussions with people who offer little. Set high standards when dealingwithpeopleand projects.

AQuARIus (Jan.20-Feb. 19) Put more thought into how you earn and handle your finances. Investing more in yourselfand your surroundings will encourage you to turn something you enjoy doing into aprofitablepastime.

PIscEs (Feb.20-March 20) Sit tight, wait, watch and look inward to determine how to expand your knowledge, interestsand your abilitytogainmomentum where it will benefit you most.

ARIEs (March 21-April 19) Choosingaunique path that encourages you to push yourselfharder or in adirection that excites you will help you build momentum and outperform anyone trying to compete with you.

TAuRus (April 20-May20) Relax. Distance yourselffromtroubleorcomplicated situations, and take the road that leads to peace of mind, clarity andwhatand who brings you joy.

GEMInI (May 21-June 20) Research will not be wasted time. The more you learn, the better the outcome. Avoidunnecessary, overpriced physical changes when it's thelittle things youdothatwill make the most difference.

The horoscope, an entertainment feature, is notbased on scientific fact. ©2026 by nEa, inc dist. By andrews mcmeel syndication

Celebrity Cipher cryptograms are created from quotations by famous people,pastand present. Each letter in the cipher stands foranother.

TODAy's cLuE: TEQuALs R

CeLebrItY CIpher

beetLe bAILeY Mother GooSe And GrIMM

Sudoku

InstructIons: sudokuis anumber-placing puzzle basedona9x9 grid with several given numbers. The object is to place the numbers 1to9inthe empty squares so that each row,eachcolumn and each 3x3 boxcontains the same number only once. The difficulty level of thesudoku increases from monday to sunday

Saturday’s Puzzle Answer

THewiZard oF id

BLondie

BaBY BLueS

Hi and LoiS

By PHILLIP ALDER

Rene Descartes, aFrench mathematician,philosopherandwriter,said,“(Intuition and deduction are) the two operationsonwhichwehavesaidwemustrely in the acquisition of knowledge.”

At the bridge table, we make deductions and sometimes use intuition. Afew deals involve making one deduction and using that to draw asecond deduction. Today’s is an example.

Southjumpsintosixspades.Westleads the heart king. Howshoulddeclarer plan the play? After North made agameinvitationallimit raise, South knew that agrandslamwouldbegoodifhispartner held thespadeking, heartkingand diamond queen. But since he had no way to find out if North had that perfecto, South sensibly took ashot at six spades.

The contractlooks too easy. Draw trumps, run the diamonds and claim an overtrick. But ratherthan plunge recklessly forward, South shouldwonder whatmight go wrong. The only danger is abad split in each pointed suit. If diamonds are 4-0, there will be aloser only if Easthas all four.If spades are3-0, declarer can avoid aloser byguessingwhichopponentislonginthe suit and finessing through him.

Southshouldassumehehas adiamond loser. But if East has fourdiamonds, who is likely to be long in spades? Right West.

wuzzles

So, after taking the first trick with his heartace, declarer shouldcash his spade ace. Here, when Eastdiscards, South plays aspade to dummy’s jack, cashes the spade king, throwshis heartfiveonthe club ace and concedes adiamond trick when they do break 4-0. ©2026 by nEa, inc dist.Byandrews mcmeel syndication

Each Wuzzle is awordriddle which creates adisguised word, phrase, name, place, saying, etc. Forexample: nOOn gOOD =gOOD aFTErnOOn

Previous answers:

word game

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

TODAy’s WORD GInGIVAL: JIN-jih-vul: Related to the gums.

Average mark 12 words

Timelimit 25 minutes

Can you find 18 or more words in GINGIVAL?

sATuRDAy’s WORD —InFERRED

Puzzle Answer

hagar

dIrectIons: make a2-to 7-letter word from the letters in each row. add points of each word, using scoring directions at right. Finally, 7-letter words get 50-point bonus. “Blanks” used as any letter have no point value. allthe words are in the Official sCraBBlE® players Dictionary, 5th Edition.

Saturday’s Puzzle Answer

Formore information on tournamentsand clubs,email naspa –north americansCraBBlE playersassociation:info@scrabbleplayers.org. Visitour website: www.scrabbleplayers.org. For puzzle inquiries contact scrgrams@gmail.com. Hasbro andits logo sCraBBlE associated logo,the design of thedistinctive sCraBBlE brand game card, and thedistinctivelettertile designs are trademarks of Hasbro in the United states and Canada.©2021 Hasbro. allrights reserved.Distributed by Tribune Contentagency, llC.

ken ken

InstructIons: 1 -Each row and each columnmust containthe numbers 1thorugh4 (easy) or 1through 6 (challenging) without repeating 2 -The numberswithin the heavily outlined boxes, calledcages, must combine using the given operation (in any order) to produce the target numbers in the top-left corners. 3 -Freebies: Fill in the single-box cages with the number in the top-left corner.

WiShinG Well

HErE is aplEasanTliTTlEgamEthat will give you amessage everyday.it’s a numerical puzzle designed to spell outyourfortune.Count thelettersinyourfirst name. if the number of letters is 6ormore, subtract 4. if thenumberisless than 6, add 3. Theresult is your key number. start at theupperleft-hand cornerand check each of yourkey numbers, left to right. Thenreadthe message thechecked figures give you

Scrabble GramS

Get fuzzy

jump Start

roSe iS roSe

animal crackerS

DuStin

Drabble

Wallace the brave

breWSter rockit

luann

WALLACEDRIVE, MANDOLIN ANDST. AN‐THONYSTREETSAND

EASTERLY LINEOFTHE SUBDIVISIONSAIDLOT “II” COMMENCES AT

DISTANCE OF

FEET FROM THECORNEROF WALLACEDRIVE ANDST. ANTHONYSTREET AND MEASURES THENCE 42 FEET FRONTONWALLACE DRIVESAMEINWIDTH IN THEREAR, ALONGTHE EASTERLY LINEOFTHE SUBDIVI-SION,BYA DEPTHOF125 FEET BE‐TWEEN EQUALAND PAR‐ALLELLINES ANDISCOMPOSEDOF21FEET OF ORIGINAL LOT8 ANDTHE ADJOINING21FEET OF ORIGINAL LOT7 ALIAS MORE FULLYSHOWN ON SURVEY MADE BY GILBERT. KELLY& COU‐TURIES.&E DATEDJULY 12, 1969, EXCEPT THAT ST ANTHONYSTREET IS NOWPELOPIDAS STREET IMPROVEMENTS THEREONBEARTHE MU‐NICIPALNO. 315 WAL‐LACE STREET.Which has theaddressof315 Wal‐lace Drive, NewOrleans LA 70122. Anyone know‐ingthe whereaboutsof thepersons or heirsof thepersons listed above andanyoneclaimingan interest in theproperty should contactthe office of Graham,Arceneaux & Allen, LLC, 3850 N. Cause‐wayBlvd.,Suite 1695, Metairie,LA70002, 504522-8256. 192854-JUL6-13-2T $571

health,aswellasin-pa‐tientservicesfor the GreaterNew Orleans Area (Eastbankand Westbank)catchment area.Further information andproposaldocuments maybeobtainedelec‐tronically by download‐ingthe Requestfor Pro‐posals (RFP)documents locatedonthe LAEP web‐page: https://www.laep.us courts.gov/solicitations RFPdocuments will be availableelectronically beginningJune 16, 2026. Proposalsare duetothe United States Probation Office forthe Eastern District of Louisiana, 500 PoydrasStreet,Rm. B505, NewOrleans,LA 70130 by 5:00p.m.,onJuly 31, 2026. 188896-jun22-july 1-6-1317-21-6t