It will more than double thesizeofRichlandParishsite
BY STEPHANIE RIEGEL Staff writer
Meta is planning amajor expansion of its Hyperion data centerin Richland Parish, more than doublingthe size of the already massive project and making Louisiana akey part of the social media giant’sartificial intelligence strategy The Facebook parent, which began construction of Hyperion last year,now plans to spend asmuch
as $50 billiononthe project and relatedinfrastructure, up from $10 billion two years ago. The site will encompass more than 3,200 acres —more than four timeslarger than New York City’sCentral Park —and increase itscomputational capacity to 5gigawatts, making it amongthe largest in theworld.
The expansionwill increasethe number of construction jobs in Richland, which has just 20,000 residents, to some 7,500 —about 50% more than originally an-
nounced.And it will double the number of permanent jobs to 1,000 once bothphasesofthe projectare fully operational, which is estimated to be in 2036. For Louisiana, thesize and scope of theMeta expansionisunprecedented.Itrepresents awin for Gov.Jeff Landry,who has aggressively pursued large economic development projectsinthe state. It’salso setting anew barfor Meta, one of the world’slargesttech giants.
“It is huge for us,”Meta President Dina Powell McCormick said in an interview Sunday.“We could not be moreproud to be an investor in this amazing state.”
At the same time, the expansion is likely to raise newquestions about the power demands of the “hyperscale” data center,its water use and its impact on Richland Parish, where manyresidents have cheered the project while others
‘FROMEVERY ANGLE’
Hayden Barnes, right,makes notes as he and Kayla Melancon, back center,taketurns arguing a‘case’ beforeJudge Marcus DeLargeat the Criminal District Courthouse in NewOrleans on Friday. Theyand other aspiringlegal students are taking partin the Mayor’s Summer youth Employment Program.
BY MATT BRUCE Staff writer
Hayden Barnes has always been interested in the law
He’sworked as alegal aide inthe past, but recently,Barnes, 20, got his first taste of becominga lawyer while participating in asummerinternship through City Hall.
Barneswas among agroup of New Orleans high school and college students who completed their internships at the Orleans Parish Criminal District Court. Itwas part ofacitywide effort dubbed the Mayor’sSummer YouthEmployment Program, which offers hundredsofteensand young adults job placementsinthe profession of their interest
Under thetutelageofDistrict Judge Marcus DeLarge, 14 aspiring lawyers and judges observed criminalproceedings andspentsix weeks learning areas of law like the constitutional protections against illegal searches and seizures.
Barnes, who just completed his freshmanyearatRhodesCollege in
Memphis, Tennessee, saidexposure to the real-life stakes of criminal courtbolstered hisgoalofone day becoming adefense attorney
“It was probably oneofthe most educationalexperiences of my life,” he said, standing outside one of the courtrooms Friday.“Ithought Iknew the law in like atextbook setting. But notina practical,livesetting on the fly. Everything changesevery day.
Judge Marcus DeLarge listens as students argue their cases before him at the Criminal District Courthouse in New Orleans on Friday.
So it was agreat experience.”
The city began theSummer Youth Employment Program during former MayorLaToya Cantrell’s administration, using federal stimulusdollars from the American Rescue Plan to help fund theprogram Participants standtogainexperience in all areas of government and
ä See INTERNSHIPS, page 3A
Neoprene plantsettles hazardouswaste probe
DenkaPerformance Elastomertopay nearly $1 million
BY DAVID J. MITCHELL Staff writer
The now-idled Denka neoprene plant in LaPlace has reached asettlement with the federal governmentover allegations
it mishandled hazardous waste anddisposedofthe material in landfills notdesigned for it. Under afederal consent agreement, Denka Performance Elastomer has agreed to pay anearly $1 million penalty
to settle the hazardous wasteviolations. Theplant, which suspended production in May 2025, had long been the subject of regulatoryaction and concern from residents over itsemissions of chloroprene, classified as alikely carcinogen. For at least seven years, Denka
ä See PROBE, page 4A
worry about the rapid changes it is bringing to therural farming community
As part of its expansion, Meta saiditwill spend $1 billionupgrading roads, water and wastewater systems in theparish, whichis amongthe poorestinLouisiana andisnow dealingwitha construction project and an influx of workers.
It is also providing $5 millionto theLouisiana DeltaCommunity College to train area residents for data center jobs and also donating
ä See META, page 4A
U.S. Sen. Lindsey Graham dies at 71
BY SEUNG MINKIM, MARYCLARE JALONICK and MEG KINNARD Associated Press
U.S.
WASHINGTON— Sen. Lindsey Graham, one of President Donald Trump’sclosest allies in Congress who traveled the globe to advocatefor a moreaggressive U.S. foreign policy,has died after a“brief and sudden illness.” He was 71. His office’sstatement posted on social media early Sundaysaidhis family “appreciates prayers at thistimeand asks for privacyduring this incredibly difficult period.” It did notprovide anyadditionaldetails about the circumstances surrounding the Saturday night death of the prominent South Carolina Republican, aformer Air Forcelawyer who served in Congress for three decades. Hours later, another statement from Graham’soffice said the Medical Examiner of the District of Columbia’spreliminary findings are that the senator died of aortic dissection due to arterioscleroticcardiovasculardisease. That is an aorta rupture stemming fromhardening of Graham’sarteries.
Trump, who talked to Graham frequently,said he was “like amember of thefamily.It’svery tough.” He said on NBC’s”Meet the Press” that Graham had called him on Saturday night after returning from atrip to Ukraine and “sounded alittle bit tired, but perfect.” The president ordered that flags across the country be flown at half-staff until Saturday evening.
Anoted hawk, Graham wasone of the most influential figures in Washington on foreign affairs and he advised Trumponmatters such as the Iran war and Russia. On Friday,Graham hadannouncedanagreement with the Trump administration to moveforward on apackage of Russia sanctions.
As chairman of the Senate Budget Committee, Graham also had acentral role during Trump’s second term as Republicans pushed major legislation on party-line votes while holding anarrow 53-47 majority in the chamber
UnderSouth Carolina law, Republican Gov Henry McMaster will appoint atemporary replacement forGraham,who was seeking afifth term in November.Anew nominee will be selected in aspecial primary,which is required to be held within weeks of avacancy.The winner
STAFF PHOTOSByCHRIS GRANGER
PROVIDED PHOTOByTNS
Sen. LindseyGraham, R-S.C., died Saturday night. He was 71.
McCormick
BRIEFS FROM WIRE REPORTS
Fire breaks out at pub in Bangkok, killing 27
BANGKOK A huge fire engulfed a pub in Bangkok early on Monday morning, killing at least 27 people before firefighters brought the blaze under control, officials said.
Footage shared online by first responders shows a huge blaze raging and plumes coming out of the front door of the Na Ladprao pub in the northern part of the Thai capital. People are seen trying to flee as thick black smoke billows into the sky Rescuers said the fire was reported around midnight.
Thailand Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul told reporters at the scene that 27 people died and that several of the injured have been taken to the hospital. He said the cause of the fire is under investigation.
Anutin said a musician who was performing at the pub told him that he saw smoke coming out of a circuit breaker near the stage before the power went out, then an explosion was heard and thick smoke quickly filled the place.
Many of victims were found at the restrooms, at the back of the pub, Anutin added.
Firefighters took about half an hour to bring the fire under control. Photos of the aftermath show charred tables and chairs, and the damaged interior of the pub.
Shooting near Toronto street festival kills 2
TORONTO A shooting near a Toronto street festival killed two men and wounded four other people Saturday evening, police said, adding that what initially prompted an active-shooter warning was an exchange of gunfire between two people targeting each other
Toronto Police Deputy Chief Frank Barredo said investigators recovered two firearms after the shooting that was reported at 8:12 p.m. near St. Clair Avenue West and Arlington Avenue, where the Salsa on St. Clair festival was underway No suspect or suspects had been arrested by the time of a late-night news conference, where Barredo confirmed both of the deceased victims were men. Officers initially urged the public to avoid the area before later announcing the scene had been secured.
“There was some concern about an active shooter. That turned out not to be the case,” Barredo said. But the two gunmen involved in the shooting “indiscriminately put vast numbers of people in danger.”
A large police presence remained around the festival an annual celebration of Latin American culture that draws thousands of people to Toronto’s St. Clair West neighborhood for live music, dancing, food and cultural performances
Keystone Pipeline’s operator to pay penalty
TOPEKA, Kan. — A proposed legal settlement with the U.S. government would require the Keystone Pipeline system’s operator to pay a $26.9 million civil penalty over a major oil spill in Kansas in December 2022 and spend about $40 million more to prevent future accidents. The agreement would resolve allegations from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and Kansas that South Bow, based in Canada, violated U.S. and state clean water laws. The rupture dumped nearly 13,000 barrels of heavy crude oil into a creek running through a rural pasture in Washington County, Kansas, about 150 miles northwest of Kansas City The accident was the largest onshore crude pipeline spill in the U.S. in nine years and surpassed all 22 previous ones on the same pipeline system combined, according to a 2021 report from the U.S. Government Accountability Office. The total amount of oil spilled would have nearly filled an Olympic-sized swimming pool.
South Bow also would pay Kansas more than $3 million for environmental restoration projects under a proposed decree filed Friday in U.S. District Court in Kansas. A judge would have to approve the proposal after a 30day public comment period
U.S. launches more strikes in Iran
Standoff over Strait of Hormuz escalates
BY JON GAMBRELL, WILL WEISSERT and KONSTANTIN TOROPIN Associated Press
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates The United States launched several waves of strikes on Iran on Sunday over an Iranian attack on a container ship in the Strait of Hormuz that set it ablaze and left a crew member missing earlier in the weekend. Iran responded with attacks on Bahrain, Kuwait, Qatar, Jordan and Oman — the nation on the other side of the strait that Tehran has pressed to collaborate in managing shipping traffic.
The U.S. military said it was seeking “to degrade” Iran’s “ability to attack commercial ships freely transiting” the strait. The statement came after a third round of strikes late Sunday night and into Monday in Iran.
Iranian state media acknowledged the latest attacks early Monday, describing explosions in several locations
The first wave of strikes, on Sunday morning was in response to an Iranian strike on a container ship in the critical waterway the day before. In response, Iran hit Gulf Arab states in an escalating cycle of violence that left the negotiations between Tehran and Washington to end the war at the edge of collapse.
The U.S. struck again
later Sunday The governor of Qeshm Island near the strait told Iran’s state-run IRNA news agency that projectiles were fired at military targets, with no casualties. Explosions were also heard in the coastal city of Bandar Abbas and Hajiabad city to the north.
A U.S. official said a few strikes targeted missile and air defense systems and paramilitary Revolutionary Guard boats. The official spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to publicly discuss military operations.
Iran and the U.S. are nearly at the midway point of the 60-day period of their interim deal aimed at reaching a permanent end to the war The strait, a key route for the global supply of oil and natural gas and long considered an international waterway, has become a sticking point in negotiations that seem in
danger of collapse.
“A return to full-scale hostilities would have catastrophic consequences,”
United Nations SecretaryGeneral António Guterres said, according to a statement.
The U.S. military earlier Sunday said it hit some 140 targets, including missile and drone launch sites, ammunition dumps, communication equipment and other sites.
The attacks were heavier than in recent days. The U.S. has launched three rounds of airstrikes targeting Iran in the past week over attacks on ships heading through the strait using a route off Oman, seeking to avoid the Islamic Republic’s territorial waters.
“We bombed the hell out of them last night,” President Donald Trump told NBC’s “Meet the Press.” Semiofficial Iranian news agencies reported that a
navy officer was killed. Iran retaliated by attacking nations in the region hosting U.S. military forces, while insisting it alone must control the strait and potentially charge vessels for traveling through it.
“The era of one-sided deals is OVER,” Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf, the speaker of Iran’s parliament and a main negotiator, wrote. “We told you: keep your word or pay the price. Reality is knocking.”
Qatar’s military said it intercepted incoming Iranian fire, with explosions heard in the neighboring United Arab Emirates. Three people, including a child, were wounded by shrapnel from the interception of attacks, Qatar’s Interior Ministry said.
Missile alerts sounded in Bahrain, home to the U.S. Navy’s 5th Fleet.
Kuwait’s Defense Ministry said three “land border posts” in the north and an offshore drilling platform of the Kuwait Oil Company were damaged, with one worker wounded. Three Iranian missiles struck areas across Jordan, causing minor damage but no injuries, Jordan’s state news agency reported. And the Omani state news agency said drones struck sites in an area on the waterway a day after Oman and Iran held talks on the strait and agreed to continue discussions. The strait sits in Iran and Oman’s territorial waters.
Oman summoned the Iranian ambassador to protest the strikes, the first such move since the war began, calling Iran’s acts “irresponsible.”
Iran said the strait was closed until calm is restored, and Tehran would consider targeting “additional enemy bases in the region” if it faced more attacks. The U.S. military and Trump asserted that the strait remained open. The U.S. military said over 140 ships had transited over the past week. A multinational body overseen by the U.S. Navy said traffic continued “at reduced levels” off both Oman and Iran, and that nearly 140 vessels transited daily before the war About a fifth of all traded oil and natural gas passed through the strait before the war Iran’s grip on it led to a global energy crisis, though oil prices have sharply dropped since wartime highs of $120 a barrel. Missile alerts sounded across several Gulf Arab countries.
Philadelphia area digs out from storm damage
By The Associated Press
PHILADELPHIA Residents in some Philadelphia neighborhoods and surrounding counties were cleaning up Sunday from widespread damage caused by a line of severe, short thunderstorms that passed through.
The storms, called microbursts, passed through Saturday afternoon, downing trees and power lines, flooding a handful of streets and causing structural damage. A building that collapsed in a West Philadelphia neighborhood threw bricks into the street, crushing cars and blocking trolley tracks.
The National Weather Service said at least four of the microbursts brought straight-line wind gusts of 60 to 70 mph to Montgom-
ery and Philadelphia counties between about 2:30 and 3:15 p.m. Saturday Despite speculation that the damage — including part of a roof torn off a Philadelphia Housing Authority apartment building had been caused by a tornado, NWS officials confirmed the
straight-line winds were to blame.
The microbursts in Philadelphia were among a range of severe weather across the U.S. this weekend that included heatwaves flooding and wildfires.
In a news release early
Mitch McConnell says fall led to his hospitalization
BY MARY CLARE JALONICK Associated Press
WASHINGTON Sen. Mitch McConnell on Sunday revealed for the first time that a fall led to his hospitalization, breaking the silence about his condition after weeks of mounting speculation about the Kentucky Republican’s health McConnell, 84, said in a statement that he was “briefly unconscious” around the time he was first taken to the hospital and has undergone a battery of tests to try and determine what led to his fall. He said he was also treated for mild pneumonia and has been moved to a rehabilitation facility
don’t have any tumors or hemorrhages,” McConnell said, adding that he is now “regaining my strength.”
McConnell’s statement came on the heels of the unexpected death of his fellow Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina. McConnell said he cannot return to the Senate “quite yet.”
Coupled with Graham’s passing, that will temporarily whittle the GOP majority in that chamber down by two, to 51-47, as Republicans try to increase military funding, advance President Donald Trump’s agenda and confirm Trump’s nominees.
with growing older.”
“Even in the public eye, I feel that same instinct — I can’t help it,” he said.
McConnell said he will continue to work with his staff on Senate business. His statement included a smiling picture of the senator with his wife Elaine Chao, a tacit response to speculation online that McConnell had died or was incapacitated.
Sunday from Philadelphia officials, Mayor Cherelle Parker said she had toured the damage in multiple neighborhoods in her city throughout Saturday afternoon and evening The city issued a Declaration of Disaster Emergency related to the storms.
“Every level of government is working together today, tonight, and for as long as it takes to respond to this storm, restore services, and help our residents recover That is our commitment,” she said. Philadelphia Housing Authority officials said 11 residential units were affected by the roof and water damage at its apartment building. All residents were safely evacuated to temporary shelter before being relocated to a nearby hotel. Philadelphia Office of Emergency Management staff also helped evacuate at least one private residential property because of damage as well, city officials said.
“My doctors have confirmed that I didn’t break any bones or suffer a concussion. I didn’t have a heart attack or a stroke. I
McConnell explained the four-week silence about his condition by saying that “folks of my generation often hesitate to share the vulnerability that comes
McConnell had provided little information since his hospitalization on June 14, his office insisting only that he was “receiving excellent care” and recovering. Speculation about his condition grew so intense that Kentucky’s Democratic Gov Andy Beshear took the extraordinary step last week of issuing a public letter asking McConnell to update the public in a “transparent manner.”
McConnell is retiring at the end of January
ISNA PHOTO By AMIRHOSEIN KHORGOOI
Commercial vessels sail on June 30 in the Strait of Hormuz off Bandar Abbas, Iran.
PROVIDED PHOTO By WPVI-TV/6ABC
A broken tree branch blocks a street Sunday after a line of severe, short thunderstorms passed through the city the day before in Philadelphia.
McConnell
Epsteinsurvivors pressKennedy to oppose AG nominee
Blanche’srelease of the files incomplete, some say
BY MARK BALLARD Staff writer
WASHINGTON Based largely on his tough crossexaminations of FBI Director Kash Patel last year, Jeffrey Epstein’s“Minor Victim No. 1” is pressing U.S. Sen. John Kennedy to oppose the confirmation of Todd Blanche, President Donald Trump’s nominee for attorney general.
merAttorney General Pam Bondistepped down April 2.
BothKennedy and Sen. Bill Cassidy,R-Baton Rouge, in March 2025 backed Blanche’sappointment as second-in-command of the Department of Justice.
As deputy attorney general, Blancheoversaw the organizationand releaseof nearly 3million files gathered by lawenforcement looking into allegations that thewealthy financier recruited more than athousand young girlsfor sex.
“I feel like he’s somewhat, yo u know,starting to feel like that there’s something much bigger going on here. And Ithink he wants to find out,” Marina Lacerda said of Kennedy,R-Madisonville, in an interview Palm Beach, Florida, policebeganinvestigating Epsteinafter hearing stories about his sexually exploiting and trafficking underage girls. Epstein pleaded guilty in 2008 to state charges of soliciting aminor for prostitution. He served 13 months under acontroversial deal offered by then-U.S. AttorneyAlexander Acosta, of Miami, that gave Epstein immunity from federal charges.
Kennedy,who has agood relationship with President Donald Trump, was added to thelist after survivors reviewed his questioning of Patel over several committee hearings late last year
In particular,Lacerda said, Kennedy challenged Patel, who saiddespite the legal issues raised by the2008 federal nonprosecution agreement, “all credible information” had been released and that nothing had been found to warrant further prosecutions.
there (and) Donald Trump.” The housekeeper led Lacerda to the third-floor massage room that was decorated with paintedclouds and drawings of nude women, she said. For the next three years, untilLacerda was deemed “too old” at 17, Epstein paid to sexually abuseher,she said. She dropped out of school to work for Epstein.
ates in other countries. In the United Kingdom, former Prince Andrew lost his position as aBritish royaland was forced to move out of a palace owned by his family
Survivors also question whyinvestigators aren’tfollowing up on the information found in the files and revealed through sworn testimony at theHouse CommitteeonOversight and Government Reform.
“We’reforgetting about the people that we have just questioned,” Lacerda said.
with Epstein years ago and was unaware of underage girls being used forsex.No evidencehas been revealed that Trump or Clinton had sex with underage girls.
Otheropposition
The Epstein survivors aren’tthe only opponents of Blanche’snomination.
Blanche Kennedy
In 2019, afterseveral of the now-adultwomen went public with their allegations, federal prosecutors arrested and charged Epstein with sex trafficking minors out of his New York City mansion as well as his estatesinFlorida, NewMexico andaCaribbean island Epstein killed himselfwhile in detention.
Lacerda is one of 20 Epstein survivors working to blockBlanche’s confirmation as the nation’s leading law enforcement official.
Blanche has been acting attorney general since for-
INTERNSHIPS
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industry.The internships range from Smoothie King and Bourbon Street cafes to major sporting events and mechanic shops.
Many of the students are also assigned to detailsat CityHall.
“I think it’simportant to invest in our kids,” said New Orleans City Council member Freddie King, who watched Friday at the courthouse as interns staged a mock hearing before DeLarge. “When they see city leaderspresent forthem, that gives themmotivation to continue to do good things.”
During the six-week program, DeLarge spent time teaching the students acurriculum of legal principles each day afterthey watched him go through his docket.
DeLarge has hosted a handful of interns in his section of court in years past But he said he and his staff, led by his executive administrative assistant, Rosean Porter,put the summer syllabus together on the fly after the Mayor’sOffice unexpectedly assigned them 17 interns in the early stages of this year’sinternship.
“They kept calling,and I kept accepting them,” Porter said. Three dropped out, butthe remaining 14 completed the program.
“It was rewarding to see that they took it seriously because you never know how kids are going to respond to this kind of stuff. Butthey really rose to the occasion,” DeLarge said. “This is a good depiction of our future. Not what, oftentimes, we see in this courtroom. This is the reality of what our kids can do when we give them the resources, alittle structure and we care.” Preparing for acareer
Blanche has said repeatedly that no evidence that adult menhad sex with girls was found in theinterviews, transcripts, notes and other materials gatheredduring the investigations into Epstein’s conduct, even thoughatleast one accuser claimed shewas senttohave sexwithmen in Epstein’scircle.
“Wecan’tallow for this man to comeinand gaslight in saying that there’s nothing here to lookat,” Lacerdasaid.“There are things to look at.”
Lobbying to stop nomination Lacerda and 19other survivors wrote in aletter that they were concerned that Blanche was among senior administrationfigures who adopteda strategyof minimizing the Epstein files instead of choosing to pursue “investigative leads and try to figure outwhat actually happened. These revelations confirm ourworst fears about the administration prioritizingpolitical expediency over justice for survivors and truth for the American people.”
Thesurvivors need one Republican senator on their side to kill Blanche’snominationinthe SenateJudiciary Committee, which will hear fromthe nomineeon Wednesdayand Thursday Kennedy isa member of that committee. Survivors have focused their efforts on two GOP incumbentswhose reelections
in criminal justice wasn’t thecatalyst for allthe internstolearn the law.Some had more personal goals.
Her’Shea Everett, 18, a recentstandout student at John F. Kennedy High School, where she was student body president, said her motivation is to helpher father fight his case from behind bars.
ForSylvanceEmery, a rising senior at Eleanor McMain Secondary School, it was preparinghimself to enter the world as aBlack man.
“Because Black men, they’rethe ones being targeted the most by law enforcement,” he said.“So I wanted to know what Ican and can’tdosoIcan protect myself when Igoout into theworld.”
Kayla Melancon, a 19-year-oldpoliticalscience major at Loyola University,has participatedin theinternship program two previous summers in her godmother’s courtroom,fellowcriminal judge Rhonda Goode-Douglas. Recognizing theoverlap between law and politics, Melanconenvisions it as good training for her ambitions of becoming aU.S. congresswoman.
“It’sexactly how Iwould debate somebody arguingapolitical subject,” she said. “You have to be quick on your feet,think about it, knowwhatthey are going to say.Overalltome, it’sjust fun.”
The students visitedFirst 72+, atransitional living facility in Mid-City thathelps prisoners reintegrateafter they’re released. They also took tripstothe OrleansParish Coroner’sOffice, New Orleans Police Department’sReal Time Crime Center,worked closely with ateam of prosecutors from District Attorney Jason Williams’ office and went to the Louisiana State Penitentiary at Angola to see areentry
“This issue is not going to go away.Ithink the essential questionfor theAmerican people is this: Theyknow thatEpstein trafficked young women for sex to himself.Theywanttoknow who, if anyone else, he traffickedthese young women to. Andthat’s avery fair question. Iwant to know thatanswer And Ithinkyou’re going to have to do more to satisfy the American people’s underst andable curiosityinthat regard,”Kennedy said.
Lacerda, now38, filedan anonymous complaint and prosecutorslined herupto testify in 2008, before the trial was averted by the plea bargain, and then again in 2019 before Epstein took his own life.
Lacerda said therelease of investigation materialshas been sloppy at best Blanche’steam struck out the names of wealthy and influential men associated with Epsteinbut left hernameand heraddress in Florida exposed in at least 46 instances, she said, adding that she and other survivorshave sincereceived death threats.
Patel responded, “I agree.” Neither Blanche nor Kennedy respondedtorequests for comment.
‘I wasstunned’
Born in Brazil, Lacerda moved to New York City at theage of 8. Her immigrant family jammedinto asmall apartmentand survivedon instant ramen noodles. Lacerda took on small jobs to help out. Afriendmentioned “a kind, olderman”would pay$300 for young girls to massage him without wearing atop, she said.
Lacerda was 14 in 2002 when she first arrived at Epstein’sManhattan mansion.
“The moment Iwalked into his house, Iwas stunned,” Lacerda said. “Luxury furniture,framedphotographson thewalls of famous people, mostofthem Ididn’trecognize but Bill Clinton was
program tailored to young adult prisoners.
“I loved it,” said Nyla Bridges, an 18-year-old criminology student going into hersophomore year at Howard Universityin Washington, D.C. “I feel like it gave me aview of what my lifewill be like when I do becomea defense attorney.Taking the field trips Seeing everyside. Not only defense,but prosecution as well.
In the courtroom, some of the participants witnessed DeLarge sentence some of their former classmates to prison. Others sawrelatives come to court to fight cases It was asobering look at the criminal justicesystem designedfor hopeful officers of thecourt.
“They got everything from starttofinish,” Porter said. “They saw it fromevery angle.”
Theinterns gottoshowcasetheir newly honed skills in court on Friday arguingthe merits of one of DeLarge’sreal-life cases that hassincebeen disposed.
New Orleans police officers investigating aburglary pulled over a43-yearoldGretna man as he drove homefrom work in July 2022. Theyorderedthe man outofhis vehicle and patted himdownduringthe traffic stop, finding apill bottle in his pocket that contained methamphetamine.
The man was arrested and booked on afelonycountof meth possession.But his attorneys convinced DeLarge to quash key pieces of evidence, including selfincriminating statements the man made while he was detained. He’d not yet been arrested,but DeLargeruled the officers still should’ve read the man his rightsprior to thestatements.
State prosecutorsdismissedthe charge earlier this year after DeLarge suppressed the statements
Blanche testified on May 19 that the errors made while blacking outnames were inevitable because of the strict timelinerequired.
TheJusticeDepartment was careful not to makepublic uncorroborated information to avoid tarringinnocents, he added.
Investigations frustration Lacerda saysshe andher fellow survivorsare frustrated that only two people have been prosecutedby U.S.authorities—Epstein in 2008 and his longtime girlfriend Ghislaine Maxwellin2022. Maxwell is serving a20-year sentence at aminimum security Texas prison campthat usually doesn’thouse sex offenders. Blanche interviewed her, thenfacilitated the movein August2025from aFlorida penitentiary,where security is not as relaxed.
Consequences have been greater forEpsteinassoci-
andruledother evidenceinadmissible
The studentsfaced off during Friday’smock session, with some arguing the case as prosecutors andothers serving as defenseattorneys.
After the arguments were done, DeLarge saidthe exercise forced the interns to study up on so-called Terry stop-and-frisks, search and seizure laws and Miranda rights.
“These six weeks definitely changed my perspective of thelaw andmade me want to do it more than ever,” said 17-year-old Bailey Powell, who’sstarting hersenioryear at Benjamin Franklin High this fall.
Email Matt Bruce at matt bruce@theadvocate.com.
Forinstance,LesleyGroff, Epstein’sassistant for18 years, told the panel in June that she did not know of his sexual predilectionsand had never met anyofthe underage masseuses.
“She’s lying. Ihavemet her in the office plenty of times,” Lacerda said. “I was paid by Leslie. Fresh hundred bills that came in envelopes.”
Additionally,Groff’sdesk was just outside the room that monitored activity throughout his New York City mansion.
“Wewerebeing watched 24/7,” Lacerda said. “Weare wondering, as well, where are those videotapes?”
In late June, Blanche was scolded by afederal district judge overseeing alawsuit claimingthe Justice Department violated the law Congress passedinNovember that required the public release of the Epstein records.
SeniorU.S. DistrictJudge Emmet G. Sullivan, of Washington, said Blanche essentially admitted to the violations by failing to address the lawsuit’sallegations that a13-year-old’sclaims against Trumpwas withheld.
Trump repeatedly has said he ended his relationship
More than 1,200 former agents, analysts, immigration judges,lawyers and other staffers wrote to the SenateJudiciaryCommittee on Monday detailing why they are against making him the attorney general.
“Sincehis confirmation as deputy attorney general, Todd Blanche has shown timeand again that his guiding star is fealty to the President, not the Constitution,” Stacey Young, executive director and founder of Justice Connection, aWashington-based organization for department alumi, said in a statement. “Thatfealty led to the purge of thousands of experienced career employees.”
About 16,000 of the agency’s40,000 employees have left since Trump’ssecond term began.
SomeDemocrats and Republicans also fretthat Blanche will act moreasthe president’srepresentative than thenation’s toplawyer.Herepresented Trump when, in March2023, he was indicted in New York on 34 felony counts forfalsifying business records to hide “hush money” paid to porn starStormy Daniels, aBaton Rouge native whose real nameisStephanie Clifford. He was convicted on all 34 counts on May 30, 2024.
“This is notabout Trump. We just want those files to be released and people to be investigated,” Lacerda said.
Epstein
Lacerda
$250,000 to the New Orleans Career Center,anonprofit that provides technical training to high school juniors and seniors.
Landrysaid that the partnership betweenthe state, Meta andEntergy,which is building new power plants to supply electricity to Hyperion, is amodel forhow to bring economic growth to the state.
“WhatMetahas done in cooperation with Louisiana and the way we havepartneredand what we have built with Entergy shouldbe the template and not the exception for these facilities,” Landry said.
Long expected
For months, signs have been growing that Meta’sinvestment in northeast Louisiana would expandbeyond the 4million-square-foot data center that was originally announced in 2024.
Last summer,MetaCEO Mark Zuckerberg disclosed the potential increase in the size of the facility,an announcement later promoted by President Donald Trump on social media.
Earlier this year,agents for the company boughtup 1,400 or so acres of corn and soybeanfields just west of the construction site. And in March, Entergy filed applications with the Public Service Commission seeking approval to build seven additional natural gas power plans along with solar farms and battery storage.
Together,they wouldgenerate an additional 4.5 giga-
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workersferried and dumped byproducts laterdetermined to be hazardous waste in open air,new federal settlement papers allege. That process also emitted toxic and flammable chloroprene fumes at levels tens to hundreds of thousands of times greater than the long-term federal air safety standards, they say
The chloropreneemissions,which federal regulators say were “excessive and dangerous,” were around workers and eventually wafted into neighborhoods near the plant that at one time had the highest cancer risk from air pollution in the nation. Workers were required to wear full-face respirators around some of the work questioned for its open-air emissions, regulators said.
The company also agreed to cleanupthe site and put in newprocesses,improved equipment and worker training programs to control emissions if operations restart under itscontrol or another company’s. The propertyhas no chloroprene currently in inventory,according to the EPA.
“Denka’smishandling of hazardous chloroprene
wattsofelectricity,nearly five times the amount it takes to power thecity of New Orleans on ahot day
Supportand concerns Meta and other companies in the AI race, known ashyperscalers, have beenspending billionsoncomputing powertotrain their models, which has meant building massive data centers to hold those computers. As they do, concerns have grown across
waste andits many violations of the law exposed workers and the surrounding community to excessive chloroprene and potentially serious health risks,” Jeffrey A. Hall, an EPAassistant administrator,said in a statement.
“Although this facilityhas suspended operations for business reasons separate from these enforcement actions, this order ensures thatifthe facility resumes operation, it will be in compliance with the law.”
Denka didn’tadmittoany of thesix alleged hazardous waste violations and avoided apenalty thatcouldhave reached in the hundreds of millionsofdollars at maximum, though aprecise total isn’tclear
In astatement, Denka officials said that the modified processes required under an earlier 2022 agreement “improved waste handling at ourfacility anddelivered furtheremissions reductions, reflecting the company’s additionalinvestment andinnovation by our dedicated employees.”
“DPE is pleasedtohave this matter fully andcomprehensively resolved,” the company added.
‘Didn’tslipthrough’ Denka operated the only neoprene productionplant in the United States. The
the U.S. about their impact on local communities.
So far,most Louisiana elected officialshavewelcomed data centers, seeing it as a new industry that could help reverse decades of population declines and lackluster economicgrowth. But the plans have faced some criticism, particularly fortheir electricityuse, which consumer groups fear could raise power costs for residents.
Forits part,Meta has agreed to pay for the construction of all 10 new power plantsEntergy is building and has committed to funding 2.5 gigawatts of newrenewable energyresources, 240 milesofnew transmission lines and battery energy storage systems. McCormick said one of Meta’sbiggest prioritiesis“to notonlymakesurethatwe arepayingfor what we use
synthetic rubber is usedin many products, from wet suits, engine hosesand fan beltstoelectrical insulation andmouse pads.
In 2010,however,EPA scientistsdetermined chloroprene —the critical chemical building block of neoprene —would be considereda likely human carcinogen.
Theannouncement setoff years of regulatory efforts, community activismand litigation to have DuPont, which inventedneoprene in the early1930s,and then Denka, whichbought the plantfrom DuPont in late2015, slash chloroprene emissions.
The latest agreement stems fromanunresolved EPAhazardous waste inquiry dating to 2022.
Since 2023, other regulatory actions against the company have been dropped amid the shifting focuses of the Biden andTrump administrations. The Trump EPA is also reconsidering chloroprene airstandards finalized by the Biden EPAin2024.
Thelatter administration has seen the former’semphasis on environmental justiceasaninappropriate racial focus and legal overreach that hurts economic growth
Some allegedviolations, including those related to hazardous wastehandling and disposal, continued for sev-
but thatweare investing in the grid in away thatmakes energy even less expensive for citizens.”
Landry saidthat“projects like this arestrengthening thegrid.” In June, he directed his economicdevelopment agency to come up withnew rules to guide futuredata center development in the state to protect consumers from shouldering the cost of newplants.
Amid theconcerns, Meta has made investments in the community whereHyperion will be located. Though data centers employ fewer workers on apermanent basis than those who arrive to build them, the company has said it will make an effort to hire as many current residents for permanent positions as possible.
Teachers in Richland Parish recently received annual bonuses of up to $50,000,
en yearsuntil an EPAorder in late 2022 directed interim changes. Butthe violations also faultedthe companyfor notidentifyingthe waste as hazardousfor more than a decade.
Under the law,the EPA couldhaveassessed fines of as much as $124,426 for each dayofa violation, plus inflation, undereach of the six hazardous waste counts. The precise penalty is $996,703.35, representing abouteight days of violations at maximum penalty.
Arepresentative for aSt. Johncommunity group that, for years, has highlighted toxic pollutionconcerns said theywelcomed thesettlement.
“Weare very happy that this actually didn’tslip throughthe cracks justto be totally removed,because everyother protection that’s been giventoushas been reversed, so this makes us feel really good,” saidTish Taylor, programdirector for Concerned Citizens of St. John.
Taylor added the penalty seemed sufficient, given Denka is no longer operating, but said she wouldlike it to remain closed.
Previous investigations
For years, Denka attempted to challenge the EPAcancer risk standard for chloroprene and hadchargedthat
while other school workers received $17,000 supplements funded by increased tax revenuesfromMeta’s data center project.
Every public school and many youth programs in Richland Parish have also receivedsupportfromMeta through direct giving and the company’sgrant program
Deal terms
In return for its investment, Meta will be exempt from all state and local sales taxes fora wide range of spending that coversmostdata center costs, including servers, chillers, electric infrastructure andconstruction.
The 100% exemption will apply to Meta’sadditional spending in the next phase of theproject, state officials confirmed. It wasnot immediately clearhow muchthe exemption will be worth
The original deal also in-
anow-dropped Clean Air Act suit the EPAfiled against the companyin2023 waspolitically motivated after it had spent $35 milliontocut emissions.
EPAsays the interim changes to the waste handling had cut chloroprene emissions by 1ton, asmall portionofDenka’s overall air emissions.
In 2016, Denka emitted 119 tons of chloroprene into the air.By2024, the last full year of operations, annual emissionshad fallen by 90%to 12 tons, according to an EPA database.
Before EPAinspectors uncovered the hazardous waste handling process, Denka and Dupont hadfaced earlier federal andstate investigations. It reached an earlier consent agreement with the state in 2017 to cut emissions.
Theopen-air, hazardous wasteprocesscontinued, however,according to the consent agreement. State hazardous waste inspections also did not flag that process, as asite inspectionin2021 found no violations.
Known as “Poly Kettle StrainerWaste” andas treated chloroprene andbutadiene popcornwaste,the materials areamix of chloroprene,butadiene,toluene and other chemicals and were theresult of Denka’s batch production of neoprene.
Construction is underway at Meta’s Hyperion data center in Richland Parish on March10. The parent companyof Facebook is more than doublingthe initialsize of the project.
cluded alocal property tax break thatMeta negotiated with Richland Parish, making it eligible for a60% break on local property taxes if it creates 300 permanent jobs that pay 150% of the state average salary Meta negotiated anew paymentinlieuoftaxes, or PILOT,with Richland Parish officialsfor thesecondphase of the project. It also makes the company eligible for a 60% propertytax break by 2032, provideditcreates 300 permanent jobspaying 150% of the state’saverage salary —about $93,000 —bythen. The incentive increases with the number of jobs, making the company ultimately eligible foran80% reduction once it creates 500 permanent jobs.
Email Stephanie Riegel at stephanie.riegel@ theadvocate.com.
That process involved reacting chemicals, then washing and straining them and carrying them in open carts to open, outdoor brine pits to solidifythe material. An excavator was then used to grab and move the solidified waste into open waste bins for landfill shipment, according to the consent agreement.
EPAtesting showed the material was highly reactive and could easily catch fire. It also found high chloroprene emissions from the waste handling.
In one example, EPAinspectors found that when the Poly Kettle Strainer Waste was ferriedtothe open brine pits, chloroprene levels hit 243,000 micrograms per cubic meter,which is 810,000 times the lifetime exposure standard allowed at the plant’sfence line.
Thebrinepitswereused to reduce the “PolyKettle” waste’spotential risk for fire and explosions before disposal in residential or industrial landfills notdesignated forhazardouswaste.The EPAsaysthis process was never authorized; Denka began using ahazardous waste landfill in early 2023.
EPAfound similar unauthorized treatment and disposal with the butadiene and chloroprene popcorn, which are now sent to ahazardous waste incinerator
PHOTO By SOPHIA GERMER
of November’sgeneral election will start afull six-year term in January
Complicatedrelationships
Graham, elected to the Senate in 2002 after serving in the House, long promoted a policy of robust U.S. military interventionism and strong national defense that in later years would put him at odds with the growing isolationist wing of his party Over time, Graham became well-knownfor hisclose ties with Trump, whom the senator briefly ran against for the presidential nominationin 2016. Their relationship would begin on aroughnote, with Graham calling the then-New York businessman “unfit for office.” Graham used aprofanity to describe Trump after Trump made disparaging commentsabout Arizona Republican John McCain, Graham’sbest friend in the Senate and aVietnamWar veteran. McCain and Graham, along with Sen. Joe Lieberman, I-Conn., were known as the “Three Amigos” and frequently traveled togetherto promote their foreign policy views around the globe. During acampaign rallyin South Carolina, Trump read out Graham’spersonal cellphone number and continued to belittlehim throughout the 2016race as Graham made it clear he would not support Trump. Graham, however, shifted significantly once Trump wonthe WhiteHouse and emerged as one of Trump’s top allies —speakingwith himfrequently andbecoming aregular presenceon the golf course alongside the president —even as McCain remained acritic. In a2018 interview with The Associated Press, Graham explainedhis pivot by saying McCain taught him that the country must move forward afterelections and that meant “you have an obligation” to help the president. McCain ran twice for the
White House. “And I’ve tried to be helpful where Icould because Ithink he needs all the help he can get,”Graham said of Trump. “You can be abettercritic when peopleunderstand that you’re trying to help them be successful ” Graham was aprominent defender of Trump during the president’s two first-term impeachments —a reversal from Graham’srole as aHouse prosecutor during Democratic PresidentBill Clinton’simpeachment in 1998, when he urged senators nottomake up their minds before listening to allofthe arguments. Both Trump and Clintonwere eventually acquitted.
Graham appeared to break with Trump after the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol, saying in adramatic speech on the Senate floor that night, “Countmeout.Enough is enough.” But the senator soon returned to Trump’s sideand thetwo remained closeduring Trump’ssecond term.
Foreignpolicya focus
Graham had just been in Ukraine to meet with UkrainianPresident Volodymyr Zelenskyy,who said the senator visited hiscountry 10 timesduring the years since Russia invaded in February 2022. “Lindsey was atrue defender of freedom and the values that make our world safer,”Zelenskyy said He was also oneofthe chief backers of Trump’swar in Iran, having advocated for years for direct confrontation betweenWashingtonand Tehran. Graham continued to defendTrumpthis summerevenasmany of his fellowRepublicans questioned atentative June ceasefire agreement that they worried couldsend billions of dollars to Iran.
“I’d rather try diplomacy than take itoff thetable,” Graham said of Trump’s memorandum of understanding with Tehran. Graham’s travels made him afamiliar face to dozens of worldleaders.
IsraeliPrime Minister Benjamin Netanyahusaid
Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn.,saidGraham was “over the moon” with the Russian sanctions deal announced Friday. “The last thinginthe worldI would have guessed wasthat he was sick or ill or in any way vulnerable,” Blumenthalsaid.
Graham understood that the securityofIsraeland the United States was inseparable.
“Israel has lost one of its greatest friends. America has losta great patriot. Ihave lostabeloved friend,” Netanyahu said.
Multiple committees
As Budget Committee chairman, Graham helped overseeaSenate procedure that allowed Republicans to pass significant policiessuch as last year’stax law without thethreat of aDemocratic filibuster
He had previously led the SenateJudiciary Committee when Republicans confirmed Amy Coney Barrett to the Supreme Court in 2020. The senator was in line to regain that gavel if theparty kept its majority after the midterm electionsand hadpledged to confirm “asmanyconservative judges as possible.”
Graham was akey player in the Senate’sefforts to craft amassive immigrationoverhaul in 2013 as amember of abipartisan group. Thelegislation passed theSenate with 68 votes but was never taken up by the House, so it did not become law Graham’s views on immigration, particularly an endorsement of apath to citizenshipfor people in the U.S. without legal status, put him at odds with some Republican factions.
Illinois Sen. Dick Durbin, aDemocrat whowas hisally on that issue, saidGraham was “part of every important
policy issue and an indispensable player” in bipartisan negotiations.
An ‘irreplaceable’force Graham often worked across theaisle,evenashe remained fiercelyloyal to Trump. Virginia Sen. Mark Warner,aDemocrat, said in astatement that“personal relationships often mattered more to himthan thepolitical disagreements of theday.”
JaimeHarrison, aformer national and state Democratic Party chairmanwho unsuccessfully ran against Graham in 2020, said that even during their “fiercest political battles,” thetwo men “could still share aconversation, alaugh anda mutual respect forSouth Carolina.” Grahamwas unique in the Senate forhis influence notonlyonTrump,but also with his fellowRepublicans who were aware of his abilitytosometimes move the president’sthinking. He was also known for his sense of humor, oftendeployedtodiffuse tensions.
Wyoming Sen. John Barrasso, the second-ranking Republican, said Graham will be missed for his “quickwit and infectious laughter.”
McMaster saidina statement thatGrahamwas “irreplaceable.” Former Republican President George W. Bush said Graham“understood howthe world works” and “was akind and funny man who loved our country andloved serving it.” Graham often spoke about his humble roots, growing up in the back of aSouth Carolina bar and helping to raise hissister,Darline, after his parents diedata young age. Graham was not married and did nothavechildren. Graham won 57% of the GOP vote in South Carolina’s primary in June and wasup against DemocratAnnie Andrews, apediatrician,and several minorparty and independent candidates in November His deathwill likely prompt ascramble to fill arare open Senate seat Anumber of Republican names begancirculating as possible replacements to serve out the rest of Graham’sterm,including Reps. NancyMace andRussell Fry
• That’s Right...No Co-Pay!NoExamFee! No AdjustmentFee! If youhavethiscard, youmay qualifyfor free hearing aids! Call today to verifyyour benefits
Moreno taps team to explore City Hall options
Landry blocked state funds that would have aided revamp
BY VIOLET BUCARO Staff writer
Mayor Helena Moreno has tapped an advisory committee to explore how best to redevelop New Orleans’ aging City Hall and
ST. TAMMANY PARISH
School Board approves staff pay raises
Governor’s stipend order will cost $9 million
BY JIM DERRY Staff writer
After hours of debate, the St. Tammany Parish School Board on Thursday agreed to give its 6,000 employees a one-step raise for the upcoming school year despite concerns of a looming potential budget deficit and the possibility that open positions won’t be filled. The raise will give certificated employees a bump of $500 per year while support staff will get $350 annually, starting in the 2026-27 school year This does not include the expected additional $2,000 one-time stipend recently mandated by Gov Jeff Landry’s executive order for teachers and $1,000 for support workers, which will come out of the budgets of local school districts. Nearly all of the 10 school board members in attendance at the monthly finance and administrative committee meeting in Covington fired questions at school system administration Most of those queries focused on the potential deficit and weighing whether the modest raise was more important than the possibility of having to eliminate positions.
Superin tende nt Frank Jabbia a nd Chief Financial Officer Terri Prevost repeated a message throughout the meeting that described the tough position they say the order has put them in. Prevost said the stipends will cost the school system $9 million while an additional $9 million of their funding must be transferred to charter schools. There also is a potential loss of up to $5 million in state funding through what’s known as the Minimum Foundation Program due to expected lower student enrollment. And when they factor in other cost increases, there’s a potential for a deficit of $30 million for the 2027-28 fiscal year budget that exceeds $500 million. In all, the words “tough times” or “tough decisions” were said by Jabbia or school board members 12 times throughout the meeting. In
Civil District Court after Gov Jeff Landry blocked state funding that would have assisted that effort.
The mayor has asked 11 civic leaders to kick off planning for the revamp of the 1950s-era buildings, which have been a thorn in New Orleans mayors’ sides for decades. She sought $5.1 million in cash from the Legislature this session and was approved for $2 million.
But Landry vetoed that amount,
a move Moreno at the time called “deeply disappointing.” It was just a slice of the $33 million total in state funding to New Orleans approved by lawmakers but blocked by the governor this year “Now is the time to look forward to New Orleans’ future and an opportunity to deliver a people-centric civic complex,” said Moreno in a Thursday statement. “This diverse committee of experienced leaders is focused on improving how residents experience public service, how we steward public resources responsibly and how we position New Orleans for the next generation.” The committee members include: n Joseph Bouie Jr., chancellor, Southern University at New Orleans n Kim M. Boyle, partner Phelps Dunbar LLP n Cynthia “Cindy” Connick Va-
risco, senior associate, Connick & Associates; past CEO, New Orleans Building Corp.
n Jasmine Brown DeRousselle, chief external affairs officer, GNO, Inc. n Paul Flower, chief executive officer, Woodward Design + Build n Roy A. Glapion, vice president/ member, The Beta Group n Andy Kopplin, president and
LET’S GET GLOWING
LEFT: Jonathan, from left, Ella Kate, 9, Sydnee, 7, and Jennifer Campbell ride the Tilt-a-Whirl during Glow in the Oaks at Carousel
Jazz musician James Rivers dies
He performed on the soundtracks of several Clint Eastwood films
BY KEITH SPERA Staff writer
James Rivers, a multi-instrumentalist fixture of New Orleans nightclubs who was fluent on everything from saxophone and clarinet to bagpipes, died July 5. He was 89. His saxophone was featured on such classic New Orleans R&B recordings as Al Johnson’s “Carnival Time” and Frankie Ford’s “Sea Cruise.” His jazz band, the James Riv-
ers Movement, logged countless gigs everywhere from Tyler’s Beer Garden on Magazine Street to Mel’s Lounge in Faubourg Marigny to annual appearances at the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival. His fans included director and actor Clint Eastwood. Rivers performed on the soundtracks of several Eastwood films, including the New Orleansshot 1984 thriller “Tightrope” and 1988’s “Bird,” the biography of jazz musician Charlie Parker Rivers also appeared on screen in Eastwood’s “The Bridges of Madison County” in 1995. Born in the Treme neighbor-
hood on April 18, 1937, Rivers grew up in a close-knit family of six siblings. He first started playing music at age 8. He attended Walter L. Cohen High School and graduated from Booker T. Washington High School.
Determined to be a professional musician, he studied at the Houston School of Music. He toured as a backing musician with the Impressions, Jerry Butler and the New Orleans R&B band Huey Smith & the Clowns. While on tour with the Clowns, he was badly injured in a car accident. After being hospitalized, he formed the James Rivers Movement. In the book “Up from the Cradle
BY MARTHA SANCHEZ Staff writer
A bottlenose dolphin that washed into the Gulf during Hurricane Katrina and was later brought to the Atlantis island resort in the Bahamas has died, Ceta-Base,
STAFF PHOTOS By ENAN CHEDIAK
Visitors walk through the lights Saturday during Glow in the Oaks at City Park’s Carousel Gardens in New Orleans
Gardens.
Harry Stumpf, 9, goes down the slide Saturday during Glow in the Oaks. More, 2B
Jabbia
NOPD investigatingBroadmoor man’sdeath
Manarrestedin fatal
Harvey shooting
BY MICHELLEHUNTER Staff writer
The New Orleans Police Department is investigating the death of aman whose bodywas discovered in thebackyardofa home in the Broadmoorneighborhood late Sunday morning. The victim hasnot yet been identified by authorities. His body was found in the 1800
block of SouthWhiteStreet about 11:50 a.m., police said. New Orleans Emergency Medical Services responded to the scene, and hewas pronounced dead. Police classified thedeath as ahomicide. No other details were immediately available.
Anyone with information is asked to contact NOPDHomicide Section at (504) 658-5300. Thepublic may also provideinformation anonymouslybycallingCrimeStoppers of Greater New Orleans at (504) 8221111 or toll-free at (877) 903-7867.
The deathisthe second homicide reportedSundayinthe New Orleans area. Jefferson Parish Sheriff’sOfficedetectivesare also investigating after aman was shot dead inside a business in the2000 block of WoodmereBoulevard in Harvey
The shooting was reported about 5:40 a.m. at an undisclosed business
Adeputy dispatched to the scene encountered asuspect outside of the business. He was armed with agun, according to Capt.Jason Rivarde, spokesperson for the Sheriff’s Office.
The deputy fired multiple times at
the suspect, who ran from the scene. He was quicklyarrested, according to Rivarde. The man was not injured, Rivarde said. Authorities have not yet released the names of the victim or thesuspect in the case.
Jail records show that the Sheriff’s Office arrested and booked aHarveyman namedDesmond Bergeron, 26, on counts of seconddegree murder and aggravated assault with afirearm on Sunday No other information was immediately available about the investigation
SWING SHOW
Visitors ride the swing ride
SaturdayduringGlowinthe Oaks at City Park’sCarousel Gardens in NewOrleans.
The Couret Farms neighborhood in north Lafayette has an unmistakably new air about it —the homes are freshly constructed, the street trees are amodest height, and crews arestill filling out the edges of the subdivision with new streets and residences. But even though the development is new,there is a sense of rootedness at Couret Farms, located off West Pont Des Mouton Road. Sidewalks connect residential streetsto Lafayette Renaissance Charter Academy,and the landscape offers the kind of variety youfind in established neighborhoods, such as a pond, park benches, community spaces, walking paths and amix of single-family and apartment homes. Southern Lifestyle Development is the firm behind thistraditionalneighborhood, which is modeled along the same lines as the company’sluxury developments at River Ranch in Lafayette and Sugar Mill Pond in Youngsville. General manager Chris Ventre said that the focal point of the developmentat Couret Farms is the neighborhood’scluster of seven live oak trees, which stand on the lawn outside ahistoric farmhouse that anchors the community’sclubhouse and common area. Rumors circulated recently that the trees could be removed to make room for additional lots. However,Ventre said the trees are there to stay
CITY HALL
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opment withthese mature old trees, which are really hard to find in alot of new developments,”hesaidof Couret Farms’central oaks.
“If youlook at these conventional neighborhoodcommunities across the country lotswillbeabout 50 to 60 feet wide, so youdon’thave much room to leave existing trees. Youhave to do earth work, comply with local stormwater drainageregulations, put in utilities —bythe time you’ve constructed the lot, the dirt has been turnedover in its entirety.”
normaloccasions, it’snot malice, like,‘I’mgonna get rid of all the trees.’ When youhavea development with someold-growth trees, Ithink it increases the value of the property,personally.”
Part of O’Keefe Avenue reopens to traffic
City closed streetfor ayear andahalf
BY MARCO CARTOLANO Staff writer
ACentral Business District street reopened to vehicle traffic this week,a year and ahalf after it was closed off following the partial collapseofa historic building.
“The trees are at least 250years old, and we just had some pruning done for their health,” said Ventre. “They’reinthe common area, which isalready part of the HOA, and we want to do everything we can toensure their longevitythere, for as long as the neighborhood’sthere and as longas they last.”
Thedebate over the live oaks reflectsa broader question facing one of Louisiana’sfastest-growing communities: Does new development have to come at the expense of mature trees?
While residential developers havefew restrictionson clearing private property, some say preserving century-old trees can strengthen aneighborhood’scharacter, increase property values and create the sense of place that attracts buyers in the first place
Couret Farms residents Dana and Glenn Latiolais have ahome directly across fromthe oaks, where they enjoysitting onthe porch
andchatting with neighbors.
The couple said the trees are agathering point foreverything from wedding receptionstograduation photos, which hashelpedbuild a sense of community in the new development
“Twice ayear,wehave alittle marketplace under theoaks, and sometimes we have 100 vendors in there, with food trucksand everything. It’s awesome,” said Dana Latiolais.
According to Ventre, trees are often part of the planned amenitypackage at traditional neighborhood developmentslike Couret Farms, where builders did clear hundreds of acres for homes—tobereplaced by rows of sidewalk trees and manicured green spaces that buffer tidylots.
“Any time you’re preserving alarge common area like this, it certainly costs the developer more money, because your densityis lower— but youimprove the value and longevity and marketabilityofthe devel-
walls,moldand other problems have beenrife in the 70-year-old City Hall, city officials have said.
chief executiveofficer, GreaterNew Orleans Foundation
n Zachary H. Kupperman, president, Kupperman Companies
n Reynold Verret, president, Xavier University of Louisiana
n Dominic Willard, principal/owner,Willard Design Group
n Sharonda Williams, vice president, regulatory &publicaffairs, Entergy New Orleans
Their charge is significant and is made all the more complicated by the lack of state funding for the project, which could cost hundreds of millions of dollars. Inoperable power outlets, stained ceilings and
The 360,000-square-foot building is also too small for municipalgovernment, and city workers must leaseadditional office space in nearby downtown buildings. Former Mayors Ernest “Dutch” and Marc Morial, Ray Naginand LaToya Cantrell each tried to overhaul the building during their tenures, withoutsuccess. The 11 leaders will create afinancing and development planfor City Hall andthe court building over the next six months. The committee will hold aseries of public meetings where they will evaluate their options, whichinclude renovating the existingbuildings, constructing new buildings across the street from the
Other Lafayette builders agree thattrees can enhance thevalue of aproperty,but keeping existing trees is entirelydependent on factors particular to the lot, homeowner and type of construction.Lafayette Parish codes provide strict guidelines for trees and landscaping on commercial projects and rights-of-way,but residentialdevelopers face few regulationswhen it comes to clear-cutting private lots.
Residential builder Stephen Gauthier,president of RonGauthier Homes Inc., said that theproperty’s ownershave the final call when it comes to clearing or preserving alot’s existing canopy
“Iftheydon’t want trees, if that’snot what their vision for their home is, they have the right to do what they want with that lot. But my experience hasbeen that if there’sabeautiful old tree on that lot, that’sprobably why the owner bought it. They want to feel theminute their home is complete that it’s beentherefor along time,” he said.
“Sometimes it just doesn’t work,orthe tree isn’t healthy.Sometimes it does happenthatifatree gets removed, Ican fit two more lotsinthis subdivision. On
current City HallatDuncan Plaza, or building new, smallerbuildings for the mayor,City Council and courtrooms, while leasing other officespace.
Theywill also explore whether the city canbuild aCity Hall annex in New Orleans East,one of Moreno’s campaignpromises
The leaders were appointedby Moreno, the City Council, and the city’sCivil District Court Judicial Building Commission, whichwas created in 2010 to plan for new construction of acourthouse and had collected over $20 millionbythe end of 2024 forthat purpose, according to an independent audit.
“I’m the type of person that does not like to count my chickens before theyare hatched,” said Civil District Court Judge OmarMason,the chair
South Louisiana is prized forits green,lush landscape, anda property withmature foliage can provide more than shelter —itevokes a sense of place. Sincetree removal is easy to accomplish on privatelots, preservation largely depends on what happens in the decision chainbetweendevelopers, owners, builders, architects and otherstakeholders. In Lafayette, theTreesAcadiana organizationadvocates for builders to strategize around tree preservation in the pre-development stage, so they won’tbetreated as construction obstacles once aplan is finalized.
Said TreesAcadiana president Kiera Frey: “Many of these trees were already mature before our neighborhoods, roadsand even some of ourinstitutions existed Once they’re gone, they’re gone.”
“Because our landscape has historically remained so green and resilient, we have often taken thatnatural advantage for granted,” she added. “When we hear about aspecific tree that is in dangerofremoval,usually from neighbors wholivenear it andenjoy it,wetry to provide guidance on preservation options. A200-year-old live oak isn’tsomething that can realistically be replaced within ahuman lifetime. So we try anddemonstrate as muchaspossible, in the pre-development stage, that trees are community assets, not just landscaping.”
Email Joanna Brown at joanna.brown@ theadvocate.com.
of the court’sJudicial Building Commission. “I trust and believe that the vision of amuch-needed, suitable facility forthe people of and whovisit the city of New Orleans to access our unique civil justicesystemisbeginning to take shape.”
The MunicipalComplex Advisory Committee has180 days starting next week to provide areport to Moreno andthe NewOrleans City Council, and the NewOrleans Building Corp. will facilitate the committee’swork. The firstcommittee meeting is scheduled July 22 at 1p.m. and is open to the public. It is located in the second-floor conference room at Union Passenger Terminal on Loyola Avenue.
Violet Bucarocan be reached at violet.bucaro@theadvocate.com.
O’KeefeAvenue reopened as aone-way street Wednesday,according to Jonah Gilmore, director of communications forMayor Helena Moreno. The street had been adead end as half ablock of the roadway remained closed to cars due to safety concerns following the December 2024 collapse of the Louisiana Endowment for the Humanitiesbuilding’s brick wall. The reopening will allowfor through traffic while restoration work continues on the building, city officials said. Crews were able to remove the barriers blocking the road afterthe building’s structural load was transferred onto anew permanent steel support system The structuralrepairs androad reopeninghad initially been slatedfor January Cars were driving through O’Keefe on Fridaymorning toward Poydras Street, but street signsadvising drivers to take adetour remained, along withbarriers protecting the workzone. Gilmore said the signs will be takendowninthe coming days.
Louisiana Endowment forthe Humanities ChiefOperating Officer Pat Carrier praised city officials,including the Mayor’sOffice and City Council, fortheir support in building construction.
“Wewould also like to thank the community for its patience as we worked to permanently stabilize this historic building and are excited to continue with the next phase of repairs and renovations,” Carrier said. Thestreethad been closed at the intersection with Lafayette Street nearthe Rouseson701 Baronne St. and Willa Jean, creating headaches forlocal businesses. Maypop, an upscale restaurant in thearea, shut down in April2025, andits co-ownerMichael Gulotta called the closure a“nail in the coffin.”
In early 2025, O’Keefe traffic waskept to one lane, but the street was closed after heavy truck traffic created ground vibrations near the work site. Work to restore the building began in August. Adate has not been given forwhenthe Louisiana Endowment forthe Humanities building may reopen.
STAFF PHOTO By JOANNA BROWN
Liveoak trees areclustered around the common area at Couret Farms, atraditional neighborhood development from SouthernLifestyle Development in north Lafayette Parish.
STAFF PHOTO By ENAN CHEDIAK
An 18-year-old’sdeath andfamily’ssearchfor answers
BY MICHAEL R. SISAK and CLAUDIA LAUER Associated Press
NEW YORK Aweek ago,18-year-
old Nolan Xavier Wells took aboat trip with friends to celebrate the Fourth of July on an island off Mississippi’sGulf Coast. He never came back.
Twodays later,hewas found dead. What happened, Wells’ parents say,isamystery riddled with conflicting stories, implausible explanations and missing details.It is acase shadowedbythe state’s fraught racial history and lingering distrust in law enforcement
At anews conference Friday in New York City,Christine and Elmore Wonsley called forathorough and transparent investigation into their son’sdeath, skeptical of claims that Wells told his friends to leave the island withouthim and suggestions that he, an elite athlete who knew how to swim, hadaccidentally drowned.
Wells’ body was found early Monday along the shoreofHorn Island, about 7miles off the Mississippi coast, more than aday after he was last seen alive.The roughly 11-mile long spit of land is near the Alabama state line. The island is uninhabited andaccessible only by boat. About 200 people were there on July 4, thefamily’s lawyers said.
“Wejust want to know what happened and why our baby didn’t come home,” Christine Wonsley said, looking upward several times as she stood alongside herlawyer,Ben Crump, and the Rev.Al Sharpton, who will officiate Wells funeral.
Family commissions autopsy Crump said Wells’ familyhas commissioned an independent autopsy,performed by aforensic pathologist in Washington,D.C. with no ties to Mississippi law enforcement, while theyawait theresults of an official autopsy,which could take weeks. They also plan to employ experts to recover messages that appeared to have been deletedfrom his cellphone, Crumpsaid. They will eventually turn the device over to authorities, he said.
Wells’familyalsoencouraged witnesses to come forward and
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the end, the measure passed 9-0 with only District 9representative Gia Baker abstaining. Five board members were absent.
“I feel like we did rightby the employees here, and we had to overcome awholelot with thegovernor throwing awrench in all our plans,” Jabbia said.
Meanwhile, Landry has continued to defend “tightening the belts” of school boards across the state, and his measures have been backed up by both the Louisiana House and Senate.
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of Jazz: New Orleans Music
Since World WarII,” Rivers recounted to co-author Jason Berry an unconventional musical inspiration.
“Sometimes Iused to practice and go out at night to Lake Pontchartrain, in contemplative moments, where it would be quiet and listen at the waves and the water,” Riverssaid.
“Just to be alone, like to hear the different sounds of the water beating against the seawall, and Icouldmeditate. You’d be surprised at the things you can work out.” Hisrepertoire of instruments included the tenor,soprano and alto saxophones, clarinet, flute, harmonica, piano, organ and guitar Aschool band’sperfor-
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to the nonprofit group, which estimated she was 41 years old. Bottlenose dolphins can live 40 to 60 years, and females typically live longer than males.
She gave birth to at least four calves between 1996 and 2012. Her home in Dolphin Cay Atlantis wasthe end of a
asked people to submit any video they recorded that may show him on Horn Island, echoing acall by theJackson County Sheriff’s Office to help shed light on the momentsbefore Wells’ disappearance anddeath
Aphoto posted on social media, purportedly from theboat ride to the island, shows Wells with his arms around three White male friends. Sheriff John Ledbetter said Wells’ friends were cooperating and that investigators don’t suspect foulplay. Crump said those friends now have lawyers and that his investigators haven’t attempted to speak with them yet.
Wells’deathhas led to rampant speculation and suspicion as peoplegrapple with Mississippi’s history of racial tension and what it meanstobeaBlack personina majority White space.
Actor andproducer TylerPerry is helping pay for Wells’ funeral, former NFL quarterback Colin Kaepernickishelping pay for his independent autopsy, and filmmaker Spike Leeshowed up to the news conference to show support for Wells’ family Family doesn’ttrust authorities
Crump said Wells’ parentshired himtoconduct an independent investigation into their son’sdeath because they don’ttrust that law enforcement officials will perform afair inquiry in astate still reckoningwith its Jim Crow past, including the1955 lynching of Emmett Till andthe murders of three civil rights workers in the1960s.
“The history of Mississippi is something that they don’tjust read about in books,” Crump told reporters at Sharpton’sNational Action Network headquarters in Harlem.“It’s alivedexperience for many Black Americans that oftentimes when ourchildren are killed in highlyquestionable situations that there is this notion that ‘Oh, there was nothing wrong, no foul play,let’s just sweep it under therug.’ Well, we refuse to sweep it underthe rug.”
It is thesecondcase that Crump hastaken on in the state in recent months. He also was recently retained by thefamily of aMississippi 1-year-old who was killedwhen police firedintoa movingcar Ledbetter told The Associated
The governor hassaidthe order “does not cut money from theclassroom.”
Oneway to potentially address thedeficitisby shrinking the work force. Jabbia said as employees leave the school system, in many cases they would not be replaced. And throughout the course of aschool year, he expects about 300 jobs would be eliminated “by no reduction in force, but rather byattrition. That wouldresult in a drop of approximately 5% of the work force, and with asavings of approximately $50,000 to $55,000 per eliminatedposition, theschool board would reduce expendituresbyabout $16.5mil-
mance during atelevised footballgame first piqued hisinterest in bagpipes. He ordered onefrom the music store Werlein’sand taught himself how to play from listening to bagpiperecords. During an interview with Berry at the 2017 Jazz Fest, Rivers clarified, “I am not really abagpiper, buta musician who learnedhow to play one.” Rivers wasa regularat Tyler’sBeerGarden,which opened on MagazineStreet in the1970sand burned in 1990. That was reportedly whereEastwood firstheard him.
Afavorite at jazz brunches, he also had astanding gig at Fat Harry’s on St.Charles Avenue. Hisrobust bagpipe renditionof“Amazing Grace” inspired drinkers to sing along with thereligious standard. Beyond the many record-
longjourney.The dolphin wasfirst captured in the Mississippi Sound in July 1988 for theMarine Life Oceanarium in Gulfport, Ceta-Base said In 2005,she was being held in the park’smainpool when Hurricane Katrina’s28-foot storm surge slammed the MississippiGulfCoast. Eight dolphinsrode out the storm on the property,4 feet above sea level, but were washed awayinto the Gulfwaters. The group was later res-
Press this week that investigators suspect that Wells “chose to stay on the island with the assumption that he was going to ride back to themainland with someone else.”
Didn’thavecellphone or keys
But Wells didn’thave his cellphone or his keys —his friends did.
“What teenager would leave their phone behind if they’re going to stay on this island?What teenager wouldn’ttaketheir phone?” Crumpsaid. “It’s notadding up at all.”
Crumpsaidbystandervideo from the island showed aperson he said was Wells arguing with someone to give him his phone back. In another discrepancy,Crump said thata witnessreported Wells had planned to leaveonthe boatwith hisfriends, contradictingthe sheriff’s theory “The friends comeback and he’s left there with some story about howhesaid leavehim behind,” Sharpton said. “But then by some magicone of thefriends has his keys and his phone.”
Thesheriff didnot return The AssociatedPress’messagesseek-
lion per year
In part, that wasa holdup of thevoteThursday night Someboard members were concerned employees would losetheir jobs for what amounts to a$10-per-week raise for the staff thatremains.
Jabbia assured the board no onewill be letgodue to budget concerns.
“Wehave to look at every department across the district,” he said. “You look at other school systems, and they’ve all hadtomake someserious decisions. As a superintendent,hands down this is my toughest time. COVIDwas tough, but it was a different kind of tough.
“This probablyisthe
ings by other artiststowhich he contributed, Rivers’ own discographyincludesthe 1978 album “Olé” and 1981’s jazz-funk collection “Thrill Me.”Recorded at Allen Toussaint’sSea-Saint studio in Gentilly andreleased on J.B.’sRecords, “Thrill Me” consisted mostly of songs writtenbyproducer Senator Jones. He alsoissued45rpm singles for J.B.’sRecords and other labels,including 1976’s“Disco Lady.” His 1996 CD “I’m theMan”included“Amazing Grace,” “Ave Maria,” “Cherokee” and “All These Things.” Berry,a friend formore than 50 years, recalled the spontaneous energy of Rivers’ 1970sgigsatthe Freret Street club Sylvia’s.
“He sometimes led patrons out of Sylvia’s, secondlining down the street,” Berry said.“Once he gotonthe
cued just off thecoastline, the Biloxi Sun Herald reported. They spent time rehabbing on thecoast before beingrelocated together to theAtlantis resort in 2006. Six of theeight rescued dolphins havesince diedof various causes, including respiratory failure, heart failure and old age, according to Ceta-Base records.Two of thedolphins —named Elijah and Toni —remain at Dolphin Cay Atlantis, therecords show
ing his response to the family’s concerns.
Parentstry to trackdownson
Wells’mother,Christine Wonsley,said she started to worry when afriend of his called her just after 11 p.m. on July 4. After trying to track him down on herown,she reported him missing to policeand wentwith her husbandtomeet an officer in a McDonald’sparking lot, she said, aprocess exacerbated by adispute over which lawenforcement agency had jurisdiction over the island. One of Wells’ friends had also reported him missing to the U.S. Coast Guard.
Wells’ father,ElmoreWonsley, said he went outona boatonthe morningofJuly 5looking for his son near Horn Island. Crewsfrom multiple local andstate agencies began an extensive search, and his body was recovered early Monday, family members confirmed.
“If he’sdrowning, nobody sees himdrown? Nobody offersassistance? Nobody tries to help?I mean, obviously he stands out,” Crumpsaid. “I think he’sthe only Black person Isaw when I’mlook-
toughest time for any school administration here since 2010 or 2011, and Iwasn’t even in administration yet,” he added. “I actually think it is probably one of themost challenging times for public education, honestly.”
Afirst-year teacher’sbase salary in St.Tammany not including stipends will now be anywhere from $51,533 to $56,477, depending on level of completed college education.Each salary step up is $500 annually Several other items were included in theMemorandum of Understanding that detailed the plans for raises. Employees are being granted up to threedays of bereavement leave, an extra dayof
Freret bus, serenadedthe driver forafew blocks, got off at Napoleon Avenue and met his dancing tribeonthe way back.
“He was ashowman of seamlessease.Offstage, he was an easygoing gentleman, adelight to hang with.” Visitation is from 11 a.m.
ing at the videos.”
Christine Wonsley said she used an app to track his phone and, aftera friend went to whereitwas on land to pick it up, noticed that some of his messages appeared to be deleted. Wells, ashutterbug at social andfamily events, had twoSnapchat accounts —but both were devoid of picturesorsaved messages, she said.
As they searched fortheirson, Elmore Wonsleywenttoretrieve Wells’keys from thehome where he stayed with his friends from the boat the night before their island trip. He said his son’scar was still parked in the yard.
Football aspirations
Wells, whowould have turned 19 next month, playedwide receiver on the football team at Southwest Mississippi Community College in Summit,Mississippi, and hadaspirations of playing at ahigh-level Division Iprogram
His coach, Les George,told WAPT-TVthat Wells “was aguy that never had abad day.Never.”
“He was very sociable with everyone, didn’tmeet astranger,” George said. “He would popup at my officeand come sit on the couch just to hang out and talk.”
Christine Wonsley said she and her husband schooled Wells in history and talked to him about navigating the racial tensions that still permeate the South.
Wells was apeacemaker who didn’tlike division, once breaking into adance while still in diapers to ease tensionswhile hisparents were arguing, they said. He wanted everyone to be included and shied away from confrontation.
“Nolan is aperson with abig heart,” Elmore Wonsley said.
Wells’ parents said they last saw himthe night before the boat trip. He cametotheir house, baked them salmon fordinner and hugged his mother goodbye.
As people mourn and protest Wells’ death, ChristineWonsley urged them to follow his example.
“Pleasebepeaceful,” she said. “Nolan wasnot someone wholiked fights, physical fights. He didn’t even really like arguments. Don’t go out there trying to be tough. Think about whatNolan would want,and he wouldn’twantthat type of behavior.”
personal leave and added stipends for paraprofessionals who are asked to spend time as substitute teachers.
Throughout the negotiations, both the school administration and the teacher’s unionsay they have been in lock step in trying to get the MOU completed.
St. Tammany Federation of Teachersand School Employees president Brant Osborn said after Thursday’s meeting he would have loved to be able to negotiate ahigher raise, but he understands the position Jabbia and the school board are in.
“Wehave negotiated together forfive years now, and (Jabbia) has aheart for these employees. If he could do more, he would do more,” he said. “At the same time, this is aplan where it’smore than just money —there are alot of quality-of-lifeissues here. “Wehavethe opportunity to comeback to the table, but as you heard here, we are facing sometough times financially,” he said. Email JimDerry at jderry@theadvocate.com.
to 1p.m. Thursday at Lake Lawn Metairie Funeral Home, 5100 Pontchartrain Blvd., in NewOrleans. Afuneral service will follow at 1 p.m.Burial will be at Lake Lawn.
In shielding Murrill,court exemplifies dangersof judicial power
Oh the irony of it all!The July 3newspaper included an opinion piece by Chief Justiceofthe Louisiana Supreme CourtJohn Weimer (“Judiciary’sresponsibility to fulfill Declaration’s promise”) in which he writes, “Alexander Hamilton metaphorically described the judiciary as the least dangerous branch of government, possessing neither the sword of the executive nor the purse of the legislature. The judiciary’s authority,heexplained, restsin‘neither force nor will but in judgment alone.’”
That same Friday,the Louisiana Supreme Court issued an order in State of Louisiana vs. Murrill, staying the indictment against the attorney general. Five justices voted for astay order: “Attorney General makes acompelling argument concerning the disturbing defects in the grand juryproceedings and in the trialcourt’s handling of those proceedings.”
Twojustices dissented, sayingthe appearance of the stay order is thatthe attorney general is gettingspecial treatment (i.e getting to cut the line”). They said, “This perilous and unprecedented action threatens this court’slongterm legitimacy in the eyes of the public.”
Majority and dissenting opinions, though expressing stark disagreement in strong words, don’tthreaten the legitimacy of the Louisiana judiciary.But,the concurring opinion by Justice McCallum does exactly that, referring to allegations by the attorney general on the indictment: “At worst,they are indicativeof invidious motives; at best,they suggest incompetence. In either case, if they prove to be even partially accurate, thenadditional proceedings beforethe newly reconstituted Judiciary Commission and Office of Disciplinary Counsel will no doubt become necessary.”
Maybe this is an example of why Hamilton referred to the judiciaryas“the least dangerous” branch of government, not abranch of government without danger.
CATHERINE BREWTON NewOrleans
Speechtherapists,audiologists in schoolsalsodeserve raises
Thirty yearsago, in 1996, Iwrotetothis
newspaper on thetopic of teacher pay raises andthe exclusion of communication professionals. It was based on anarrow reading of personnel categories and ignorance of the services provided to students. Back then, the point was acknowledged and the pay raise was amended, with apromisethat future raises and stipends would include educational professionals who provide direct services to students. That inclusion has continued until today Thecurrent stipend does not include professionals who provide critical services that allow students to progress educationally, includingspeech therapists and audiologists, who are not recognized for their daily contributions to student achievement,their qualificationsorthe critical role they play within schools.
SLPs and audiologists provide essential support for studentswith challenges in hearing, listening, understanding, speaking and expressingthemselves. They work with students throughout all school settings to support them. They use specialized knowl-
edge to help teachers and families support students. Their services are mandated by stateand federal law,which recognize that communication is abasic right and forms the basis for all educational skills.
SLPs andaudiologistsare paid on the teacher pay scale, and they perform manyof thesame duties as teachers within aschool. In schools, they are generally accepted as professional peers of the teachers. Their qualifications often exceed those of teachers: master’sand doctoral degrees, state licenses to practice, teacher certificationsand national credentials.
There is acritical shortage of SLPs and audiologists,and school settings are among the mostneedy.They are not less deserving than teachers,nor are their contributions less. The governor and thestate Legislature were wrong to structure this stipend according to anarrow definition of “teachers.”
Thirty years, and here we are again. We can do better,Louisiana.
ROSEMARYKERRIN past president, SpeechPathologists and AudiologistsinLouisiana Schools
Socialismisn’t what we
An op-ed by Megan McArdle on June 24
warns of socialism. What we should fear is plutocracy,which is theform of government we live under today.Republicans say we can’t afford funding for education, healthcare, infrastructure, reducing thedeficit or payingdown the national debt. Buttheykeep giving tax cut after tax cut to the wealthiest amongusand big corporations. We apparently can afford that
tax rebates
should fear
Stop the circus around executions
In the Opinion section under Our Views, the issue of nitrogen hypoxia executions wasdiscussed. Does anyone ever bring up the suffering of the victims? Any suffering by the prisoner cannot compare to the victims’ suffering. Once the prisoner has exhausted all state appeals, it is timetomove forward with the execution. Eliminate federal court appeals. It will save the taxpayers’ legal fees as well as the cost of housing and feeding the prisoners. Bring back the firing squad in all 50 states. If any prisoner survives the firing squad, then you can ask them if they suffered at all. Let the warden decide when the execution will be and get on with it. Do not reveal the date or time because no one needs to know.The family can be notified after the execution is over.It’satwo-sided coin: The victim’s family suffers and the prisoner’sfamily does too. My sympathy to both of the families.
Ukrainesupport notincompatible with MAGA
OUR GUIDELINES: Letters are published identifying name and the writer’scity of residence.The Advocate |The Times-Picayune require astreet address and phone number for verification purposes, but that information is not published. Letters are not to exceed 300 words. Letters to the Editor,The Advocate, P.O. Box 588, Baton Rouge, LA 70821-0588, or email letters@theadvocate.com. TO SEND US ALETTER SCAN HERE
Starting in 1981 (Ronald Reagan’spresidency),the wealthiestpeople and big corporations have had their taxes slashed. They have also benefited from numerous complex tax avoidance loopholes. Dozens upon dozens of big,profitable corporations have paid zero taxes on profitsyear after year.Many received millions (and sometimes billions) in
Since 1989, the wealthiest one-tenth of 1% of Americansincreased their share of U.S. wealth 13% to 25%. The rest of the top 1% saw their share of U.S. wealth increase from 22% to 30%. The wealthiest 1% of the population holds 55% of the total wealth of the nation.Everyone in the bottom 90% saw their share of total wealthdecrease. Meanwhile, Republicans wring their hands about fraud and waste while the current president pardons multi-millionaire white collar criminals and the Pentagon has “lost” (can’t account for) hundreds of millions of dollars in equipment.Achangeintaxes and oversight is long overdue.
ANDREW
GALLIEN Harahan
WorldCup visitors made us look at Americaanew
As arelative novice to theworld of soccer,I’ve been pleasantly surprised with my World Cup exposure. Thegames themselves have been inspiring. The athletes are so obviously proud to represent their countries. Instead of bored looks and/or kneeling during national anthems, they show notonly respect but genuine emotion They sing those anthems proudly and show thedepthsoftheir emotions without shame. Duringthe games, their camaraderie with not onlytheir teammates but also their opponents is refreshing.
Andthe reaction of fans from around the world to our United States is awonderful reminder of the blessings we have. Whether it’sBuc-ees, BassPro Shops, WaffleHouse, free drink refills, ranch dressing or just the friendly and welcoming nature of our people, thereviews are overwhelminglyfavorable.
As we celebrate our nation’s250th birthday year,perhaps we should takeafresh look at, and embrace anew appreciation for, the wonderful country our Founding Fathers brought forth—one of availability,abundance, opportunity,ingenuityand freedom.
TRUDYBORDELON Metairie
Itrust that our president is aware that it is possible to be MAGA and also adecided supporter of Ukraine. Polling has consistently shownoverwhelming American sentiment not only forUkraine’s survival but formeaningful material aid in its defense. The parallels between Russia’sterror bombing tactics and Adolf Hitler’s1940 Blitz on Britain seem obvious, and with the sameresult. The senselessness of targeting innocent victimsonly hardens their nation’sresolve —another strategic and tactical failure of the aggressor Putin has ridden this tiger nearly to an end. Russian military collapse and civilian disenchantment seem closer than ever.Touse President Donald Trump’scard gamemetaphor,Ukraine now holds the stronger hand. Isuggest that he channel the soul of Winston Churchill and encourage all peace-loving people that while we maynot be seeing “the beginning of the end” forVladimir Putin, we have clearly witnessed “the end of the beginning.” PETERMEISNER River Ridge
What is wrong with our Gov.Jeff Landry in that he is cutting funding foreducation to pay forateacher pay raise? The issue is that it has not been thought out clearly,inthat the reduction in funding will hurt everyone in the long run. The ones whoare really going to sufferare the children of this great state. What Landry should do is take someofthe money that is being paid not only to him as governor but also to all the administrators who are making apretty penny.That is where the teacher pay raise should come from and not take money from the education budget.
VINCENT YOUNG Baton Rouge
MICHAEL BOWEN Baton Rouge
FILE PHOTO
Lilah Bertucci, 4, whohas autism,receives speech, languageand behavioral therapypractice from line technician therapist Nicole Jordan at Spears Learning Center in Metairiein2017.
Government overreachwon’t
fixyouth gender medicine
The Trump administration’spolicymaking apparatus is often achaotically uncoordinated mess. TheWhite House issued awell-designed roadmap for American dominance in artificial intelligence, andthen the Defense Department launched aquixotic attack on Anthropic, one of the nation’sfrontier AI firms. Immigration and Customs Enforcement went back and forth on workplace raids after the Agriculture Departmentsecretary said that rounding up farm laborers would make it hardto deliver the lower food prices PresidentDonald Trump promised on the campaign trail.
that it would be unethical to do randomized controlled studies that might have providedproof of effectiveness, because how can we deny the control group treatments that are thestandard of care?
ega McArdle M n
Then some of WPATH’sinternal deliberationsbecame public via leaks and lawsuits, andgosh darnit, Iamrunning outofsynonyms for “absolutely gobsmacked.” WPATHseems to have axed minimum-age guidelines at the requestofaDepartment of Health and Human Services official in the Biden administration. The official, who is a pediatrician and atransgender woman,argued that settingminimum ages might spur “devastating legislation.”
But there’sone policy area where the administration is united and monomaniacally on-task: thewar on pediatric medical transition (PMT). From Trump’sexecutive order titled “Protecting Children from Chemical and Surgical Mutilation” to therecent Federal Trade Commission lawsuit against the World Professional Association for Transgender Health,the administration has done everything in its power —and some things that weren’t—tohalt these treatments.
True conservatives regard these efforts with uncomplicated glee. But we more libertarian-minded skeptics have something of aquandary.Onthe onehand, some of the administration’s actions have been novel —and dubiously legal —expansions of regulatory power.Onthe other hand, as the medical nonprofit Do No Harm wrote, “WPATHdeserves it.”
I’ve been covering this issuefor four years with growing dismay at the shoddy research and obvious confirmation bias of clinicians whoinsisted, based on thin observational studies, that these treatments were “evidencebased, medically necessary care.” I wasstunned when doctors claimed
This is not how serious medical professionals behave. It is not how science works. It is activism dressed up in alab coat. Is it adeceptive business practice, though?
Ican makethe argument: WPATH members earn quitealot of money from these interventions, and theFTC lawsuit alleges that the organization crafted its guidelines to maximize insurance reimbursement, “including by replacing objectivecriteria with provider discretion,removing age minimums,and issuing broad ‘medical necessity’declarations for nearly every medical-transition intervention. However,Idon’tthink they’re misinformingthe public for fun and profit Ithink they are convinced these treatments work, and that confirmation biasand groupthinkled them to behave like political activists rather than dispassionatescientists.Itdeserves areckoning, but it shouldn’t come from theFTC. Because this topic hasbeen so politicized, cracking down in this way comes uncomfortably close to free speech restrictions. False confidence isn’tthe samething as false advertising.
Andwhere, theskeptics might justly ask, will that reckoning come from? They believe that PMT amounts to grotesque medical experiments on children. It will be the“next lobotomy,”Ihave been told manytimes since Iwroteacolumn on the sordid history of that medical horror story Ihave sympathy for those who believe PMTisa disastrous medical mistake. That practitioners seem to ardently believe in their interventionsdoesn’tmean they work: Medical history’smost destructive quacks weren’tcharlatans selling snake oil, but people who believed withall their heart that they could cure patients by dunking them in ice baths or scarring theprefrontal regions of their brains. Given how little we know,Ican’trule out this becoming another one of those episodes. That said, medical history also contains pioneers who were wrong about small things and nonetheless right about somethingimportant: The 19th-century Hungarian doctor Ignaz Semmelweis didn’tunderstand the germ theory of disease, but he was still absolutely correct that doctors should wash their hands before touching patients. Gender clinicians may turn out tobeprematurely confident in treatments that eventually prove out, rather than grievously wrong. The cure for bad science is better science, not lawsuits. Yetofall the frenetic action, the one thing the administration has not done is to fund serious clinical trials with long-term follow-up to provide answers patientsneed. Instead, thegovernment canceled grantsfor youth gender research. Perhaps those studieswere shoddy, and grants for better-controlled trials are forthcoming. Butthey should have been thefirst resort,not the last. Megan McArdle is on X, @ asymmetricinfo.
Some French say‘non’ to air conditioning;otherssay ‘oui’
Supreme Courterrs in immigration ruling
The pungent odor of Kristi Noem lingers in Washington. Nearly four months after she was fired as homeland security secretary,afacetofher tenure produced aSupreme Court case, decidedlast month. Her behavior egregiously violated the pertinent law,but wasshielded from judicial rebuke by the court majority’stoo-mechanical textualism about the secretary’s“determination,” meaning decision. And by a blinkered nonrecognition of the animus behind Noem’s action.
A1990 statute allows the DHS secretary to grant temporary protected status, shielding aliens in America from having to return to nations afflicted by natural disasters, wars or persecuting regimes. When the Trump administration moved to end TPS for more than 350,000 Haitians and 6,100 Syrians, five of the former and seven of the latter sued, charging thatprocedural requirements had not been followed, andthat the TPS denial was tainted by racism.
The court ruled 6-3 for the Trump administration, with Justice Samuel A. Alito Jr., joinedinthe judgment by Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr.and Justices Clarence Thomas, Brett M. Kavanaugh, Neil M. Gorsuch and Amy Coney Barrett. The majority noted that the 1990 statute shields the DHS secretary’s“determination” from judicial review. And that the plaintiffs were unlikely to prevail regarding racism, because the Trump administration’s denial of TPS renewal was facially “race-neutral”: The administration has terminated every TPS designation that has comeupfor renewal.
Justice Elena Kagan, joined in dissent by Justices Sonia Sotomayor and Ketanji Brown Jackson, agrees that the TPS statute prevents judicial review of the DHS secretary’sfinal decision about TPS, but does allow judicial review of whetherthe secretary,inreaching that decision, “adhered to the procedures it mandates.” And Kagan noted thatalthough previous DHS secretaries had “repeatedly” found Haiti and Syria “too dangerous to permit safe return,” Noem declared them safe without complying with specific statutory proceduresthatdeny the DHS secretary “unfettered discretion.”
Froma Harrop
Europe is now the fastest heating continent, and Paris is suffering greatly under 100-plusFahrenheit temperatures.Thathas inspired some conservative Americans to politicize the Frenchaversion to air conditioning. In return, many in France are blaming Americans’ burning of planet-warming fossil fuels to power their ACs.
Whose voice hits the high note? Both, really The Wall Street Journal holds that the easy answer for France is to install air conditioners. It got allhuffy when Paris Deputy Mayor AudreyPulvar remarked, “As the second-largest emitter of greenhouse gases in the world, you bear asignificant responsibility for global warming and the consequences we, in France, are experiencing.” She specifically cited the energy Americans use to run theirACs.
Pulvar neglected to name the No. 1 emitter of greenhouse gases,which is China. And blaming the U.S. for the oppressive heat that is closing schools and offices —and endangering the health of the very young, old and those with certain medical conditions —does nothing to ease the current suffering. The French right is making thatsame argument.
All that said, air conditioning has become much more energy-efficient. The popular mini-splits —separate units in different rooms —use far less energy than central air.Ownerscan thuscool only the room they’reusing. However,the French antipathy to air conditioning has its reasons. Northern cities like Paris have traditionally experienced relatively cool summers Air conditioning units hanging out the windows mar the historicstreetscapes They make noise and send indoorhot airoutside whereit’salreadysweltering. And climate changeissomething that previous American administrations have addressed but the current
one denies even exists,despite evidencetothe contrary.It’swreaking havoconmuchofthis country as well, bringing massive wildfires, flash flooding, withering crops and water shortages in the West.The list goes on. It’snot truethat there’snothing we Americans can do about this long-term threat. But there’slittle the French can do about this and lastsummer’sheat Barring asudden spell of cool air,they will have to start bringing relieftothe people Otherwise,the economy will suffer along with the Parisians. The American Southknows the importance of air conditioning to its economic viability Air conditioning takes muchcredit for theSun Belt boom following World WarII. Atlanta, Houston, Phoenix and Miami became acceptable places for corporateoffices. Beforethe advent of AC, Southernersreliedonarchitecture and naturetomake high temperatures bearable. The older houses feature high ceilings, sleeping porches and shade trees (In the 19th century,many foreign dignitaries refusedtovisit Washington, D.C. in the summer because of the humid heat, nottomention mosquitoes
and malaria.)
Proposals for our cities,northern as well as southern, include digging up moreofthe urban hardscape. Pocket parks, putting greenery in schoolyards and on medians,and installing rain gardens to capturewater areinthe plans. Paris has tree-lined boulevards but not much moreinthe way of green spaces. Chicago and New York both do alot better on thatfront.Animpervious surface covers75% of Paris,whereas even Manhattan is only 63% enclosed by asphalt,parking lots,concrete sidewalks and other surfaces that water cannot easily soak through.
Paris,bythe way,has aplan to incorporate moreplantsintothe city’s landscape. That could help. And international effortstoseriously confront the threat of rising temperatures would save theentire planet.Inthe meantime, air conditioning can get the people throughthis andthe torrid summers to come. But what Parisians do is ultimately up to the Parisians, notpartisans in the United States.N’est-ce pas?
Follow Froma Harrop on X, @FromaHarrop.
In February,this columnnoted: The law required Noemtoreview conditions in Haiti after consulting with appropriate government agencies (note the plural). Instead, she made her decision, then conducted amake-believe “consultation.” ANoem staffer sent atwo-sentenceemail to aState Department staffer who, 53 minuteslater,sent acomparably brief judgment that Noem’spolicy triggered no foreign policy concerns. Kagan, however,noted the irrelevance of this: The law requires consultation not about foreign policy implications but about whether conditions are safe in the pertinent country.And Kagan refuted the majority’sclaim to see “no evidence that race played any role in the Haiti decision.”
Noem wasimplementing the president’sproclaimed animus even against immigrants who are in America legally,but whom he considers icky Kagan says prior court rulings establish thatthe Haitians needed to show only that “a racially discriminatory purpose” was a motivating factor” (emphasis added) in the termination of Haiti’sTPS designation. Well.
Noem’s former employer has said Haitians were eating Ohio pets (see below). He has said migrants such as they are “poisoning the blood” of America and Haitians “probably have AIDS.” Wasraceon the president’smind? Donald Trump hasclarified this: “Why is it we only take people from shithole countries” like Haiti and Somalia? “Why can’twe have some people from Norway [and] Sweden?” Kagan: “Haitians are Black. (Norwegians and Swedes not so much.)”
Three days after Noemterminated TPS for Haitians and Syrians, she recommended “a full travel ban on every damn country that’sbeenflooding our nation with killers, leeches, and entitlement junkies” who “slaughter our heroes” and “suckdry our hard-earned tax dollars.” She refrainedfromechoing Trump’sassertion about kitten-cooking Haitians in Springfield, Ohio. This marks her as aMAGA moderate. JD Vance spread the pet-eating fiction because he said creating “stories” (his word) makes the media notice Americans’ suffering. Surely justices are not required to ignore such rhetoric? And although thoughtful people disagree about whether,orhow much, justicesshould consider the downstream consequences of their rulings, Kagan writes:
One of the Haitian plaintiffs, an Alzheimer’sresearcher,has Type 1diabetes, which can be easily treated in America but can be a“death sentence” in Haiti “given that country’scollapsedhealth-care infrastructure.” And aSyrian plaintiff will have to return with her17-year-old daughter,who haslived here most of her life and “will have no future in Syria because she speaks little Arabic.”
Time and freshening breezes will cleanse Washington, dissipating the legacies of appointeeslike Noem, and of the president who chose them.The court’smistaken ruling she provoked will be more lasting.
Email georgewill@washpost.com.
George Will
ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO
Awoman shields herself from the sun with an umbrella as she walks in the garden of the Palace of Versailles, outside Paris, during aheat wave withtemperatures soaring above 104 degrees.
BY JON BLAU Staff writer
A reliable tight end and a strong running game can be a quarterback’s best friend.
LSU’s Sam Leavitt should have his security blanket in 6-foot-7, 237-pound tight end Trey’Dez Green, who is expected to have a standout junior season
A rushing attack is more of a hope, based on an expectation, because Lane Kiffin leaned so heavily on the run at Ole Miss. But it remains to be seen how quickly the Tigers’ 124th-ranked rush offense turns around in one season.
The rest of Leavitt’s posse? It’s a completely revamped receiving corps, which the ex-Arizona State quarterback has started building a chemistry with this summer after missing most of spring practice. Will any of them prove to be best-friend material? Here’s how the Tigers’ top receivers could earn Leavitt’s trust.
Jayce Brown
Leavitt loved to push the ball downfield in his time at Arizona State, throwing eight touchdown passes that traveled more than 20 yards in the air during his 2024 playoff season, according to Pro Football Focus. Brown, a 5-foot-11, 175-pound receiver who reportedly runs a 40-yard dash in the low 4.4 seconds, went deep for Kansas State regularly The Florida native finished just shy of 2,000 yards in three seasons, averaging 17.1 yards per reception — top 10 in program history The speedster was targeted, on average, 14.4 yards down the field in 2025, according to PFF That’s a lot of deep routes for a receiver who lined up in the slot 70 percent of the time, catching more than a few bubble screens and racking up yards after the catch.
ä See RECEIVER, page 3C
Five LSU relievers selected on Day 2
Tigers lose six signees in final day of MLB draft
BY KOKI RILEY Staff writer
get picked on Day
or in the early rounds of Day 2. Top
school signees Dominic Santarelli (OF), Malachi Washington (OF),
(RHP), Cooper Sides (RHP) and others were not selected in the
half of the draft, paving the way for all of them to join LSU’s roster in 2027. The five top recruits were all top-150 prospects in the MLB Draft, on either MLB.com, ESPN or The Athletic’s draft rankings. Washington was taken by the Pittsburgh Pirates in the 18th round, and Santarelli was selected by the Seattle Mariners in the same round. But it’s unlikely either will end up at their respective clubs. Pittsburgh and Seattle, in all likelihood, would have to fail to sign one of their top selections to have the money needed to sign Washington or Santarelli. Washington and Santarelli also posted on social media that they were going to LSU on Sunday, not long after they were taken in the draft. With the draft complete, LSU is on track to have 16 incoming freshmen in next year’s class. LSU coach Jay Johnson told The Advocate before the draft that they expected approximately 14 signeestomakeittoschool.
STAFF FILE PHOTO By MICHAEL JOHNSON
LSU wide receiver Winston Watkins settles under the ball for a catch during spring practice on March 26 at the team’s practice facility
STAFF FILE PHOTO By MICHAEL JOHNSON LSU pitcher Gavin Guidry flips a baseball before a game against Sacramento State on March 8 Guidry was selected by the New york Mets in the 16th round of the MLB draft on Sunday.
ä
ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO By CHRIS SZAGOLA
Former LSU standout Kade Anderson throws a pitch
Sinner wins Wimbledon again
Top-ranked star defeats Zverev for second straight Wimbledon title
BY ANDREW DAMPF Associated Press
LONDON Jannik Sinner is starting to make a habit of responding to adversity in Paris with titles at Wimbledon.
The top-ranked Sinner beat Alexander Zverev 6-7 (7), 7-6 (2), 6-3, 6-4 Sunday for his second consecutive title at the All England Club after his German opponent appeared bothered by a knee issue following a slip to the grass on a key point in the third set
Sinner’s fifth Grand Slam title came in his first tournament since a second-round meltdown at the French Open, when he wilted in a Paris heat wave When Sinner ripped a forehand winner up the line on his first match point, the Italian dropped to the grass on his back in celebration.
“There’s no better place to play tennis,” Sinner said during the trophy ceremony
A year ago, Sinner beat Carlos Alcaraz in the final at the All England Club after wasting three match points against his rival in the Roland Garros final.
It was Sinner’s 10th straight victory over Zverev, who was coming off his first Grand Slam title at the French Open.
Zverev’s previous best performance at Wimbledon was reaching the fourth round three times.
“I’m 29 years old and this is the first time I actually believe I can win this trophy,” Zverev said Prince William joined his wife, Kate, and two of their children for the final in a star-studded Royal Box that also included actors Dustin Hoffman, Nicole Kidman and Ben Stiller Linda Noskova beat Karolina Muchova in an all-Czech women’s final on Saturday for her first Grand Slam title.
Zverev slips
The top two seeds appeared perfectly matched until Zverev earned his only break point of the match at 3-3 in the third set — 2 hours and 42 minutes in. Sinner produced a drop shot and Zverev slipped and appeared to hyper-extend his right knee as he attempted to change directions
behind the baseline
Zverev grasped his knee in apparent discomfort and Sinner went around the net and helped his opponent up off the grass
Zverev quickly resumed playing but he appeared slightly hampered and slung his racket across the baseline in frustration when he missed a forehand and handed Sinner the first break of the match and a 5-3 lead in the third. Sinner then served it out.
Zverev had also lost 14 straight sets to Sinner and when he claimed the opening set of the final with a forehand winner up the line to conclude a tight tiebreaker, he let out a loud roar toward his box as he bent over in celebration.
Zverev cranked out serves at up to 139 mph, while Sinner produced a series of well-placed aces at a slightly lower speed.
But Sinner began to read Zverev’s serve better in the second-set tiebreaker, and Zverev started to miss forehands.
“He showed once again why he’s the best player in the world,” Zverev said.
Sinner produced 58 winners to Zverev’s 49 and had only 25 unforced errors to Zverev’s 45.
Zverev led 17-15 in aces.
Paris meltdown Amid stifling heat and humidity in Paris in late May Sinner had his
30-match winning streak ended after coming within one game of a straight-set victory over Juan Manuel Cerundolo, who was ranked No. 56. Conditions were cooler in southwest London for the final, with clear skies and a temperature of 82 degrees, but it was also breezy which led to a series of shanked shots from both players.
Sinner went in for medical exams in Milan after the Paris defeat and didn’t play an official match again until he arrived at
Wimbledon, where he twice had to come back from a set down in a five-set marathon against Miomir Kecmanovic in the first round.
Sinner then didn’t drop a set the rest of the way until the final, having dominated against Novak Djokovic in the semifinals.
Despite the defeat in the final, Zverev will leapfrog Alcaraz into the No 2 spot in the rankings on Monday Alcaraz missed both the French Open and Wimbledon this year due to a right wrist injury
Ryu prevails at Evian for 2nd straight major title
South Korean defeats former Evian champ Henderson in playoff
By The Associated Press
EVIAN-LES-BAINS, France A second major title in a three-week stretch. The lowest round — an 11-under 60 — in an LPGA major It was quite the weekend at the Evian Championship for Haeran Ryu, the latest South Korean sensation in women’s golf. Ryu, the winner of the Women’s PGA Championship at Hazeltine on June 29, gave up a three-shot overnight lead, birdied No. 18 to make a playoff, and beat Brooke Henderson on the first extra hole Sunday to win the fourth women’s major of the year
“This,” said the 25-year-old Ryu, drenched in Champagne and cradling the trophy in her left arm, “is just a dream right now.” A day after rolling in nine birdies and an eagle to set the scoring record for women’s majors, Ryu couldn’t make a putt at Evian Golf Resort and found herself teeing off on the par-5 18th without a birdie on her card and in a tie for the lead with Japanese golfer Aki Iwai. Henderson — a two-time major winner and 2022 Evian champion — was a shot
back and on a charge after backto-back front-nine eagles, including a hole-in-one. With Henderson hitting her second shot to 8 feet at the last, Ryu needed an elusive birdie from further out to ensure being in a playoff. A putt finally dropped to complete her level-par 71, Iwai missed her birdie putt to fall out of contention and Henderson curled in for eagle and a 64 to take the championships to extra
holes on a gorgeous day beside the Lake Geneva in the Alps. Ryu and Henderson, who were tied on 19-under par for the week, went back up No. 18 in separate golf carts. Ryu found the middle of the fairway, while Henderson drove left into the rough and had to lay up.
Ryu hit her second onto the green and left an eagle putt 3 feet short. That proved to be the distance needed for the win after Henderson could only make par,
Tulane pitcher taken in 16th round of MLB draft
Tulane pitcher Sam Larson was taken Sunday with the first pick of the 16th round by the Colorado Rockies in the Major League Baseball draft.
Larson, a right-hander who transferred to Tulane after spending two years at Division III Denison University, had a team-high four saves with an ERA of 3.95 while allowing 30 hits with 54 strikeouts in 41 innings. He became the closer after early-season success before moving into a starting role.
He has a year of eligibility left, but coach Jay Uhlman said he would sign with the Rockies.
Larson’s selection extended the Wave’s streak of having at least one player picked in the draft to 15 years. No other Tulane player was taken, but freshman signee Dominic Pellegrin, a star shortstop from Holy Cross, went in the fourth round to the Detroit Tigers at No 125 overall.
Johnson wins at Firestone for first senior major title
AKRON, Ohio Zach Johnson won his first PGA Tour Champions major in the final event at Firestone Country Club, closing with a 2-under 68 for a six-shot victory Sunday in the Kaulig Companies Championship.
Johnson had a 63 in the third round that staked him to a fourshot lead entering the final round, and even with a pair of bogeys in his opening four holes, no one came particularly close. Johnson chipped in from 20 feet on his last hole. It was Johnson’s third win in his rookie season on the 50-and-older tour, allowing him to close the gap on Stewart Cink in the Charles Schwab Cup. The win makes Johnson eligible for The Players Championship next year
Fisk outlasts Pendrith on third extra hole at ISCO LOUISVILLE, Ky. Steven Fisk outlasted Taylor Pendrith in the ISCO Championship on Sunday for his second PGA Tour title, two-putting for par on the third playoff hole. Fisk closed with a 3-under 67 at Hurstbourne Country Club to match Pendrith at 16-under 264. Played opposite the Scottish Open, the event was sanctioned by the PGA Tour and the European tour Fisk, 29, gets into the PGA Championship but not the Masters next year Last October he won the Sanderson Farms Championship in Mississippi for his first PGA title. Pendrith finished with a 65 The 35-year-old Canadian was trying to win for the second time on the tour Canadian Ben Silverman and Aaron Wise were a stroke out of the playoff. Silverman closed with a 66, and Wise shot 69.
and Ryu made no mistake.
“It was so tough today because my putt always missed the cup,” Ryu said. “Just made the one birdie on the last hole.
“Before these three weeks,” she added, “I didn’t have a major championship — now two in a row I am so happy, I can’t believe it.”
For the first time in women’s golf, there have been double major winners in the same year No. 1-ranked Nelly Korda won the first two of 2026 the Chevron Championship and the U.S. Women’s Open.
Henderson was looking to be the first repeat winner of the Evian Championship since it became women’s golf’s fifth major in 2013.
“Obviously very exciting to get into the playoff,” the 28-yearold Canadian said. “Wish I had played a little bit better, but Haeran has been playing great. Congrats to her.”
Iwai wept as she fell short of winning her first major title and becoming the fifth major champion from Japan since the start of 2024. Still, third place was her best finish in a major
“I got a little confidence,” she said, fighting back tears. “I never give up.”
The year’s final major — the Women’s British Open — is at Royal Lytham & St. Annes starting July 30.
D’backs place RHP Gallen on 15-day IL due to elbow LOS ANGELES The Arizona Diamondbacks placed right-hander Zac Gallen on the 15-day injured list with right elbow inflammation, while left-hander Mitch Bratt was recalled to start against the Los Angeles Dodgers on Sunday Gallen was supposed to start the final game before the All-Star break before manager Torey Lovullo announced a change late Saturday Gallen, 30, has struggled for more than a month, going 0-5 with an 8.24 ERA over his past eight starts, going back to May 29. He is 3-9 on the season with a 6.34 ERA. A 2023 All-Star and veteran of eight major league seasons, Gallen is 69-61 with a 3.83 ERA over 195 career starts.
McGregor had no prior knee injury, manager says LAS VEGAS Conor McGregor’s manager said in a social media post Sunday that the fighter did not have a previous knee injury prior to his shortened UFC 329 fight with Max Holloway McGregor’s first fight in five years lasted just 1:09 due to a knee injury sustained while attempting an opening roundhouse kick. “That opening jump switch kick was drilled daily for months, multiple times in warmup. Never an issue,” John Kavanagh wrote on Facebook. “Knee went when he (threw) the very first kick. Doesn’t get any worse than this.” McGregor’s highly anticipated return to the octagon ended in disappointment when he awkwardly landed on his right knee in the
ing seconds of
ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTOS By KIN CHEUNG
Jannik Sinner celebrates after winning a point against Alexander Zverev in the men’s singles final at Wimbledon on Sunday in London.
Jannik Sinner kisses the winner’s trophy after defeating Alexander Zverev at Wimbledon on Sunday in London.
ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO By LAURENT CIPRIANI
Haeran Ryu celebrates with the winner’s trophy after winning the Evian Championship on Sunday in Evian, eastern France.
‘Happy to be home’
Oubre Sr., father of NBA vet, hired to coach Abramson
BY CHRISTOPHER DABE Staff writer
Kelly Oubre Sr lived in five NBA cities through the first decade of his son’s professional basketball career — until the father returned home to New Orleans Now back in the Crescent City for the first time since evacuating before Hurricane Katrina in 2005, Oubre is about to try something new as the head basketball coach at Abramson Sci Academy.
The first-time high school head coach spent years teaching his son everything he could about basketball.
“I pretty much coached my whole life,” Oubre said. “This is in my comfort zone.”
Oubre and his 9-year-old son, Kelly Jr., fled New Orleans just before Katrina struck, packing everything they could into a Toyota Sequoia and leaving without knowing where they would end up. With no home to return to after Katrina, the father decided to stay near Houston, believing the city’s basketball scene would be best for his son’s development.
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The only issue for Brown: He had five drops on on-target throws last season, and came down with just six of his 12 contested-catch attempts.
He isn’t exactly a jump-ball receiver, but Brown can separate and run under a deep pass if Leavitt puts some air on it As he’s been known to do.
Jackson Harris
There is some projection with Harris because the former Stanford receiver returns to the Power Four after an All-Mountain West season at Hawaii. But as far as body type and skill set, Harris is similar to one of Leavitt’s favorite receivers of yesteryear, Jordan Tyson, who regularly sprinted his 6-2, 200-pound frame down the field and won his share of 50-50 balls. Harris, at 6-2, 200 pounds came down with 16 of 22 throws that were contested in 2025, according to PFF He averaged 19.7 yards per reception, along with an average depth of 15.7 yards on his targets. Those are numbers a gunslinging QB loves to see.
He has to prove he can do it in the SEC before Harris is in the
PELICANS
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Kelly Jr. became a star at George Bush High School near Houston before finishing at Findlay Prep in Nevada and playing one season at Kansas — and his NBA career has since spanned six teams. Oubre followed along each stop, handling many of his son’s business affairs until Kelly Jr., now 30, eventually took over those responsibilities himself.
“He’s a grown man now with two kids, married,” Oubre said about Kelly Jr who recently signed a two-year deal with the Indiana Pacers after past stops in Washington, Phoenix, Golden State, Charlotte and Philadelphia. “He’s a family man now that has a career.”
Abramson initially hired Oubre, a 1987 Cohen graduate, as a special education teacher — a job he held for five years at a school in Texas and for one year in Washington, he said. Only after talking with athletic director Daryl Williams did the school realize that he was the father of an NBA veteran.
When meeting new people, Oubre leaves out the fact that his son is in the NBA.
“I got a chance to talk with him,” Williams said, and I was like,
‘Wait a minute, I know your last name.’”
Abramson, coming off a sevenwin season, is looking for an uptick in competitiveness while joining a
discussion with Tyson, picked No 8 by the Saints in April, as Leavitt’s all-time favorite pass catcher But there’s a readymade role for Harris to play, if he can seize it. Same for Old Dominion transfer Tre’ Brown, another outside receiver who stands 6-2, 190 and averaged 20 yards per catch in 2025.
Winston Watkins
Watkins has a head start, endearing himself to his new quarterback because he should know Kiffin and Charlie Weis Jr.’s offense better than anyone.
The 5-10, 182-pound sophomore played his freshman season at Ole Miss, hauling in 26 passes for 373 yards and a score. He was in the slot for nearly 83 percent of his snaps, flashing his potential as a route-runner extraordinaire.
Those skills were on full display in a road win at Oklahoma Watkins finished with 111 yards on just four catches, gliding across the middle for a 40-yard catch-and-run to set up a go-ahead score. Then he crossed up a defensive back on a 43-yard slant and go.
Watkins is still young, but he really fits the bill as a reliable, sure-handed slot receiver who not only offers Leavitt an outlet in the quick passing game but also finds open space when the scrambling QB goes off-script.
Kim gets the engine back on track with a Scottish Open victory
By The Associated Press
NORTH BERWICK, Scotland Tom Kim played bogey-free during a tight race to the finish Sunday and closed with a 6-under 64 for a two-shot victory in the Scottish Open, his first PGA Tour title since the fall of 2023. It was the latest and best sign the 24-year-old Kim had his game on track after spending all season outside the top 100 in the world. He finished third in the U.S. Open, and then outlasted a strong field and a marathon day at The Renaissance Club. Kim who reached as high as No. 11 in the world at age 21 when he won in Las Vegas nearly three years ago, delivered the clinching blow with a shot from 203 yards to 6 feet on the par-4 16th, giving him a two-shot lead.
now they have tee times secured. Rory McIlroy got within one shot of the lead before the coleaders teed off when he shot 30 on the front nine. He wound up with a 64 to tie for seventh with Thorbjornsen. McIlroy was tied for the 18- and 36-hole lead until a 73 in the third round left him six shots back.
“It’s nice to sign this week off with a good score, but I know I need to do a bit of work between now and next Thursday to feel really comfortable with my game,” McIlroy said. “But I don’t feel like it’s too far away There’s definitely some positive signs.”
Charlotte Hornets. He was 0-for7 on 3-pointers in the first two games, but finally knocked down some treys (3-for-10) Sunday He also recorded three rebounds.
“I feel like I’ve shown my resilience, my toughness,” Pierre said.
4A district that includes Carver Kennedy, McDonogh 35 and McMain — each with varying levels of playoff success in recent years, including state titles for Carver and McMain.
Oubre has coached hundreds of young basketball players through the years — first by overseeing his son’s teams on the AAU and travel circuit. He recently coached eighth graders for a travel basketball organization run by former Newman star and coach Randy Livingston.
He plans to coach Abramson the same way he coached all those kids, including his son.
“I taught Kelly to play both sides of the floor,” said Oubre, who noted how his son commonly defends the other team’s guard starting at midcourt. “You maintain your value that way.”
Oubre attended multiple Abramson games last season and helped coach when asked.
“We want to be locked in on defense,” Oubre said. “My thing is all about tempo and being disruptive on the defensive end.”
Teaching his son those skills helped make him an established NBA veteran. Now Oubre hopes to build a consistent winner at Abramson.
“I’m happy to be home,” Oubre said.
Eugene Wilson
Wilson was a Freshman AllAmerican in 2023 but injuries limited the 5-11, 190-pound wideout to nine starts over the past two seasons at Florida.
He had more catches (61) and yards (538) as a true freshman than he produced in his next two seasons combined (46 receptions for 505 yards).
But if the former top-50 recruit rediscovers his playmaking potential, he’s a versatile athlete who can line up just about anywhere, comes in and out of his breaks efficiently, and flashes an ability to make tough catches.
The 5-11, 190-pound wideout lined up in the slot 52% of the time last season, but he was also brought in motion and stretched defenses horizontally on jet sweeps.
He’s just been on a downward trajectory since 2023, posting an 81.8 PFF grade as a freshman, then a 71.9 as a sophomore, then a 57 as a redshirt sophomore.
Maybe a fresh start helps. Maybe a more aggressive scheme he averaged just 7.4 yards of depth on his targets last season — better suits him. Wilson is more of a dark horse, but he’s very much in the running.
Email Jon Blau at jon.blau@ theadvocate.com.
“Just me being from New Orleans, I’m showing that dog that I’ve got.” Malik Dia, a 6-foot-9 undrafted forward from Ole Miss, led the Pelicans with 18 points and eight rebounds in his best game in Las Vegas. Dia, who came off the bench, shot 6-of-12 from the floor “It’s just being confident in who I am,” Dia said. “I love this game. I spend so much time on it and I’m just coming out here playing another game.”
“That second shot might be one of the best shots I’ve hit in my career so far,” Kim said. He finished with a 4-foot par putt on the 18th as his closest pursuer, Min Woo Lee, watched from the 18th fairway and realized he needed to hole out from the fairway to force a playoff Lee closed with a par for a 67 to finish alone in second. Matt Fitzpatrick, who shared the 54-hole lead with Robert MacIntyre when the fog-delayed third round was completed Sunday morning, had a 69 and tied for third with MacIntyre (69), Keita Nakajima (67) and Johnny Keefer (67). It was a big finish for Keefer, the Korn Ferry Tour player of the year in 2025 who earned one of three spots to the British Open next week at Royal Birkdale. The other two spots went to Michael Thorbjornsen and Victor Perez. Keefer had been the third alternate and Thorbjornsen the fourth alternate for the British Open, and
Kim got off to a fast start in his PGA Tour career with a third-place finish in the Scottish Open on a sponsor exemption as a 20-year-old. He won twice on the PGA Tour that year, added another Las Vegas title in 2023 and played in the Olympics and Presidents Cup in 2024.
But the last two years has been a struggle, and Kim said he worked hard without as much attention to get going in the right direction.
“I’ve had a tough couple of years,” he said. “I got to taste a lot of that humble pie, and I got to really learn about myself and I’m still trying to grow, still trying to learn — still got a long way to go. But this one I wanted to dedicate to the people that were in my corner the whole time and struggled with me and who celebrated with me.”
He opened with a birdie and said a 2-iron he hit into the wind to 7 feet on the second hole even though he missed the birdie putt — gave him confidence that his swing was good enough to win. And then he held off a strong chasing pack along the back nine without dropping a shot.
Royal Birkdale is a different British Open test than
it
was in 2017
BY DOUG FERGUSON AP golf writer
SOUTHPORT England Peter Uihlein was back at Royal Birkdale for the first time in nine years, and there were times late Sunday afternoon when he felt as though he was seeing the links course for the first time. The turf was more brown than green, a sign of hot weather that has been baking Europe and an ominous sign for what figures to be a fast and fiery British Open starting Thursday The wind was strong, not unusual for links golf along the Lancashire Coast.
From 256 yards away on the par4 14th, Uihlein hit 6-iron that landed short of the green and wound up 40 yards beyond the hole. From 226 yards into the wind on the 18th, he smoked a 2-iron — he can’t remember the last time he had a 2-iron in the bag — and was just short of the green. But it was the 15th hole that gave him pause.
“What the hell?” he said from the back of the tee of a 241-yard hole. It was only a few holes later that Uihlein, a former U.S Amateur champion now with LIV Golf, said to no one in particular, “I just don’t remember a 240-yard par 3.”
That’s because it wasn’t there in 2017, the last time the Open was at Royal Birkdale.
It’s the second time in four years the R&A has effectively built a new hole, and as Rory McIlroy said last week, it’s sure to be a talking point. Royal Birkdale began to fill Sunday for the final major of the year, a time to get reacquainted or to see it for the first time. Scottie Scheffler and Brooks Koepka were among those who played,
both coming down from the Scottish Open after missing the cut — a first for Scheffler, the No. 1 player in the world, in nearly four years.
Rickie Fowler shook off the jet lag on Saturday with a casual round at nearby West Lancashire and played all 18 holes on Sunday at Royal Birkdale with Akshay Bhatia, a Birkdale newcomer
While the changes got their attention — No. 15 is the only new hole, but the reachable par-4 fifth has been redesigned and a few angles on other holes are different — what really stood out is the color of the grass, the firmness of the turf and the forecast.
Sunscreen might outpace the sale of fish and chips this week.
“It’s as close to Carnoustie as I’ve seen,” said Joe Greiner, the caddie for Bhatia who worked at Carnoustie in 2018 when it was so yellow that players were driving the first green and Hideki Matsuyama hit a 3-wood into the burn nearly some 425 yards because the ball was rolling so much.
This is links golf at its best.
“It’s windy and firm and you need creativity to land it short very short — of the green and not be afraid of it,” Uihlein said. And then he flipped through the irons in his bag and said, “Loft means nothing when it’s like this.” Jordan Spieth arrived on the weekend to Royal Birkdale, where he won the third leg of the career Grand Slam in 2017 with an astonishing finish He was in deep grass in the dunes well right of the 13th fairway, took a penalty drop and then got free relief on the driving range and managed to save bogey He followed birdie-eagle-birdie-birdie to win by three.
Kobe Bufkin, who has been the Pelicans’ most productive offensive player in Summer League, chipped in 15 points. Bufkin, drafted by the Atlanta Hawks with the No. 15 overall pick in 2023, is averaging 21.3 points through the first three games. That includes a team-best 30 points in the opener New Orleans native Solomon Washington, a former Carver High standout who was named Louisiana’s Mr Basketball in 2022, got his first action in Summer League play The undrafted rookie missed his only shot attempt in his nine minutes of play, but recorded three rebounds and two assists. Melvin Council dished out a team-best four assists to go with his nine points. Phoenix rookie forward Koa Peat, the younger brother of former Saints’ offensive lineman Andrus Peat,
PROVIDED PHOTO
Kelly Oubre Jr and his father Kelly Sr pose after the Washington Wizards traded for him during the 2015 NBA draft.
WORLDCUP 2026
Star-studded semifinals set
Four previous champions, andabitter rivalryawaits
BY JAMES ROBSON
AP soccer writer
ATLANTA— It’saWorld Cupsemifinal lineup for the ages.
Four previous champions and the four top-ranking teams in the world. Five of thesix topscorers, one GOATand one of thebitterest rivalries in soccer Argentina, Spain, France and England went into the tournament as the top four in FIFA’srankings and are two wins away from being crowned champion of theworld again.It’sjust too close to call either semifinal matchup:France will play Spain in Arlington, Texas, on Tuesday and England will face Argentina in Atlanta on Wednesday Not since 1990 has thefinal four of aWorld Cup been made up entirely of previous winners. England and Argentina were involved then, although they didn’tplay each other.Then, like now,Argentinawas thedefending champion —after beating West Germany in the 1986 final in Mexico —and went on to lose to West Germany in the 1990 final. And this year couldalso see arepeat final from 2022 if France and Argentina both advance Abitterrivalry
Argentina must overcome England in amatch that resumes a fierce rivalry that goes beyond the soccer field, with tensions also re-
lating to the1982 conflict over the Falklands Islands.
On thefieldthere have been numerous flashpoints between the teamsonthe World Cup stage.
Argentina captainAntonio Rattin, whosedeath wasannounced on Saturday,was sent off in a bad-temperedquarterfinal match against winner England in 1966. England manager AlfRamsey tried to stop his playersfrom swapping shirts with their opponents after a1-0 victory Roll the clock forward20years and in 1986 Diego Maradona’sinfamous “Hand of God” goal helped Argentina to a2-1 win against England in thequarterfinals on the
Switzerlandfumes afterEmbolored card in WorldCup
BY DAVE SKRETTA AP sportswriter
KANSAS CITY,Mo. Switzerland forward Breel Embolo was sent off in the second half of its World Cup quarterfinal loss to Argentina on Saturday night, acontroversial decision following avideo review that is certain to fuel thosewho believe refereeshave beenbiased toward the reigningchampion throughout the tournament.
Dan Ndoye had just tied the game at 1-all in the 67th minute when Argentina’sLeandroParedes was shown ayellow card following atackle on Embolo. But video showed that the Swiss player was falling beforeParedes made contact with him, so Embolo was given ayellowcard under the “mistaken identity” protocol that’sbeing used at the World Cup. Embolo also had received a yellow card earlier in the match, so he was sent off and the Swiss were left to play with 10 men the rest of the way Switzerland managed toget the game to extra time, and was trying to survive to ashootout. But then Julián Alvarezscored from long range in the 112th minute, and Lautaro Martínez added another goal afew minutes later, sending Argentina to a3-1 victory “Wewere punished because of arule that in my opinion is completely unacceptable,”Swiss coach Murat Yakin said. “It’s very painful that we wereeliminated that way.Idon’tthink we deserve that today,and in my opinion, my boys are the real heroes. They putall theirheart and their passioninto their performance. Iamveryproud. They are very proud.” Yakin wasn’tdone with his criticism of Portuguese referee João Pinheiro, though.
“The referee made the wrong decision,” Yakin said. “It was in my opinion aharmless foul, if it even was afoul. Iknow theywill
protecttheir refereebut this rule destroyed our game today,and it’svery painful, and to be eliminated in that way hurts alot.”
Argentina coach Lionel Scaloni acknowledgedthat“luck was on our side because one of their players wassent off.”
It was the second time ayellow cardwas overturned using the “mistaken identity” protocol at the World Cup. Therelatively obscure ruleallows the video assistant referee to intervene when an incorrect player is shown a yellow or red card
“I thinkthe red card changed our game,” Swiss captain Granit Xhaka said. “This decision was difficult to accept now afterthe gamebecause thedressing room was very quiet, disappointed.”
Earlier this week,the Egyptian Football Association said it “cannotremain silent”after what it believed wasbiased officiating in its 3-2loss toArgentina in the Round of 16.Egyptcoach HossamHassan andseveral players had criticized the officiating after the defending champion scored three unanswered goals to pull off oneofthe biggest comebacks in World Cup history
“Nobodycan question theintegrity of the FIFAWorld Cup match officials,”FIFA’schief of refereeing Pierluigi Collina saidinresponse Wednesday.“When this happens, it mayprovoke reactions that lead to threats against them and their families. This is not right.”
Yakin stopped short of saying Argentina was being favoredby WorldCup referees. But he also didnot hold back about an incident that he believeschanged thecomplexion of Saturdaynight’smatch.
“Wewere punished by areferee’smistake,” he said. “I didn’t knowthis rule before. It was a very harmlesssituation, and then ayellow card was awarded. The VARinterfered. It was avery meaningful moment for us, and it wasdecisive in theoutcomeof thematch.”
nament,just two years sincegoinghead-to-head at the European Championship.
Spainwon 2-1witha then-16year-old Lamine Yamalonthe score sheet and went on to lift the Euros by beating England in the final.
Kylian Mbappé’spowers were diminished in that tournament aftersustaininga broken nose, while emerging stars like Michael Olise and Désiré Doué were yet to break through.
Twoyears on and France is widely regarded to have been the most impressive team of this World Cup with adizzying array of attacking talentand the joint leading scorer in Mbappé ahead of the semifinal on France’sBastille Day.
In contrast Spain had to contend with injuries to Yamaland fellowwingerNicoWilliams coming into the tournament and hasrelied on late goals from substitute Mikel Merino to edge past Portugaland Belgium in the last two rounds.
The nations have met on anumberofoccasionsatthe WorldCup or Euros. France beat Spain in the final of Euro 84.
Jude Bellingham and Harry Kane have six each,while OusmaneDembélé is on five.
Mikel Oyarzabal has four goals, so could yet challenge if Spain overcomesFranceinthe semifinals.
There’salso the contest for the all-time top scorer at World Cups overall with Messi on 21 goals and Mbappé on 20.
That manMessi
way to lifting the trophy
David Beckham was sent off in 1998 forkicking outatArgentina midfielder Diego Simeone, who was predictablycriticized by the English mediafor his reaction to what appeared to be lightcontact. Argentina won theround of 16 match on penalties. Beckham gothis revenge four years later by scoringa penalty in a1-0 winthatcontributed to Argentina being eliminated at the group stage.
France vs.Spain France andSpain meet again in the semifinals of amajor tour-
Theracefor theGoldenBoot
It hasbecomeathrilling competition within the tournament as many of the world’smost lethal finishers have allturnedupinpeak form.
Erling Haalandmay be outofthe race, but fiveofthe six top scorers are still standing and others could yetforce their way into the race for the Golden Boot.
Mbappéand Lionel Messi lead theway with eight goals each. Haaland has seven,but he cannot add to that number after Norway was eliminated by England in the quarterfinals.
LATE SATURDAY
He is already considered by manytobethe greatest of all time —the GOAT —and his performances at what is likely his lastWorld Cup, aged 39, haveonlystrengthened that argument. Thiswill be Messi’s first ever game against England. If Messi can lead Argentina to thetitle,hewouldsurpass the great Maradona by winning two World Cups forhis country Argentina would also become the firstback-to-backchampion since Brazil in 1958 and 1962. Soccer great Pelé waspartof those Brazil teams and also went on to winathird World Cup in 1970.
Alvarez’s112th-minute goal helpsliftArgentina
BY DAVE SKRETTA AP sportswriter
KANSAS CITY,Mo. Perhaps it is in Argentina’s character thatthe reigning WorldCup championalways finds away to win.
Perhaps it is simply itsabilityto suffer
Whether it was tiny Cape Verde taking them to extratime, or Egypt burying them in atwo-goal hole late in their match, Lionel Messi and La Albiceleste have always been able tosurvive. Andthat was the case once more on Saturday night, when Julián Alvarez’slongrange strike in the112th minute and Lautaro Martínez’sfinish later in extra time sent them back to the semifinals withathrilling 3-1 victory over Switzerland at raucous Arrowhead Stadium
“We’re among the best four,” Alvarez said, “so we’re meetingour objectives,and we knew it wasn’t going to be easy.The whole match washard, andwewould have loved to have thewin earlier,but we tried to get thewin however we could.”
“It seems like if there’snosuffering, it doesn’tcount,”Argentina’s Leandro Paredes added, “but as long as the resultscome through.”
Alexis MacAllisterhad theother goal offa corner kick from Messi for La Albiceleste, helping to send theminto ashowdown withEngland on Wednesday in Atlanta. The Three Lions beat Norway 2-1 earlier in the day
Messi’snine-game World Cup scoring streak ended, but his pursuit of asecond World Cup title continues.With Argentina and Englandjoining Franceand Spain in thesemifinals, it’sthe first time the topfour teams in the FIFA rankings have advanced that far “A matchiscoming up,” Paredes said, “that everykid dreams of playing.”
The game against Switzerland swung on acall sure torile up those whothink Argentina has been favored by World Cup officials.
The Swiss had just tied the game on Dan Ndoye’sgoal in the 67th
minute whenParedes wasshown ayellow card foratackle on Breel Embolo. Butvideo showedthe Swiss player falling before the Argentina midfieldermadecontact with him, andsinceEmbolo received ayellow card earlier in the match, he was sent off and Switzerland was left to defend with 10 players.
It was thesecond time ayellow cardhas been overturned using the“mistaken identity” protocol at the World Cup. The rule allows the videoassistant referee to intervene when an incorrect playeris shown ayellow or red card.
“Wewere punished because of arule that in my opinion is completely unacceptable,” Switzerland coach Murat Yakin said. “I don’t understand. It’svery painful that we were eliminated that way.I don’tthinkwedeserve that today, in my opinion.”
It was amaddening end to the Swiss’firstWorld Cupquarterfinal appearance since1954. They still have never made asemifinal, nor have they beaten Argentina in eight meetings —three of those in thetournament thatmatters the most.
“It was just adisaster,” Switzerland’sRemo Freuler said of the red card.
Argentina has made its base for the past month in Kansas City, training at the homeofMajor League Soccer club Sporting Kansas Citywhile winning over thousands of new fans. And on Saturday night, they filledArrowhead Stadium forthe secondtime this tournament, hoping to see Messi make more magic after his hat trickagainst Algeria in the same building afew weeks ago. It wasbrutally hot and humid throughout the day,but the temperatures begantofallwiththe setting sun, producing apicturesque setting for the 100th match of an expanded World Cup, and the finalmatch of the quarterfinal round.
Thedefensive-mindedSwiss had only conceded three goals in five games, andtheydominated the ball in the opening minutes. But leaveittoMessi, whose eight goals in thetournamentare tied forthe most with France’s Kylian Mbappé, to send ajolt through that heavilypro-Argentina crowdwhich included Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes.
He helped to earn an early corner kick with some nifty footwork,then delivered the ball that Mac Allister turned into a 1-0 lead.
ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO By CHARLIE RIEDEL
Argentinaforward Lionel Messi reacts after his team’s victoryover Switzerland in the WorldCup quarterfinal match on SaturdayinKansas City,Mo.
WORLDCUP GLANCE
with meteorologist DamonSingleton
Asurgeoftropical moisture from the Gulf interacting with astalled frontal boundarywill resultinwidespreadscattered to numerous showers and storms once again today. In fact, we are under aslight risk of excessiverainfallthat couldlead to somemeasure of flash flooding todayand tomorrow. So expect amostlycloudy, very warm, very humidand times windyday with rainand thunderstorms.While
flooding,lightning is
asignificant concern.
ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO By GENE J. PUSKAR Pittsburgh Pirates pitcherand former LSU standout Paul Skenes delivers during the secondinning of agame againstthe Milwaukee Brewers on SundayinPittsburgh
Skenes, Pirates rout Brewers14-5
BY WES CROSBY Associated Press
PITTSBURGH Paul Skenes won hissecondstraightstart aftergoingwinless fornine in arow as thePittsburgh Pirates scored 10 runs in the fourth inning to rout the Milwaukee Brewers 14-5 Sunday and head intothe All-Star break with athreegame sweep. What was slatedtobea highprofile matchup lost some of itslusterwhenMilwaukee scratched hard-throwing Jacob Misiorowski on Saturday because of arm fatigue. While Skenes and Misiorowskiare AllStars, both will skip pitching in Tuesday’sshowcase.
Skenes (8-8) allowed two runs and three hitsover 51⁄3 innings with one walk and seven strikeouts —including four amonghis
final five batters. He had been 0-6 in nine starts before beating Atlanta on Tuesday,and the Pirates lost all nine of those games.
Robert Gasser (2-4)gaveup
sevenruns and eight hits in three-plus innings Pittsburgh (50-47) took a4-2 lead into the fourth and scored seven runs before makinganout.
MarcellOzuna homered, Henry Davis had an RBIsingle and Jared Koenig hit Bryan Reynolds with apitchwiththe bases loaded, forced in arun by walking Esmerlyn Valdezand allowed Ryan O’Hearn’s run-scoring single thatboosted the advantage to 9-2. Nick Gonzales greeted Grant Anderson with atwo-run double, Triolo hit atwo-runsingle and, after avideo review reversed the call at first on what appeared to be an inning-ending double-play grounder by Davis, Jake Mangum hit an RBI triple.
Skenes tossed three perfect innings before giving up back-toback doubles starting the fourth to ChristianYelich and Chourio. Gary Sánchez hit into arun-scoring forceout. Brice Turang hit atwo-run homer in athree-run eighth.
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The Tigers did not get through the draft unscathed on Sunday with their high school signee class. They had sixsignees selected by teams on Day 2ofthe draft after losing three recruits to the draft on Saturday
TheChicago Cubs took righthander Dylan Blomker in the fifth round withthe 159th overall pick, andtwo more signees were snatched up in the11th round. The Pirates took left-hander Spencer Evans at No. 318 overall and the Detroit Tigersselected first basemanWill Adams at No. 336 overall. The Washington Nationals also took outfielder Anthony Murphy in the 16thround, but there’sa better chance thannot thathenever signs for reasons similartothose involving Washingtonand Santarelli.
LoganSchmidt(LHP),Jensen Hirschkorn (RHP) andWessley Roberson(OF)were thethree signees taken in the draft on Day 1. Schmidt was taken in the second round by the ClevelandGuardians, Hirshkorn was selected by theAtlanta Braves in the third round and Robersonwas snatched up by the Miami Marlins in thefourth.
On Sunday,five LSU relievers were taken in the later rounds.
Right-hander GrantFontenot waspickedinthe 10th roundby the KansasCity Royals at No. 299 overall; left-hander Santiago Garcia was taken in the 12th round by the Toronto Blue Jays at No. 372 overall; andthe Marlins took righthander Connor Benge in the 13th round at No. 385 overall.
TheNew York Mets also picked right-hander Gavin Guidryinthe 16th round with the480th overall pick,and the Guardians selected right-handerZacCowanwiththeNo. 573 overallpickinthe 19th round.
Outfielders Derek Curiel and Jake Brown, and right-hander Deven Sheerin were theTigers taken on Day 1ofthe draft. Curiel was the No. 5overall pick, selected by the Pirates, while the Seattle Marinerstook Brown in thesecond round andthe Philadelphia Phillies snatched up Sheerin in thefourth.
High school signeeslost Blomker was the first Tigerof any kind to be taken before the 10th round. At 6-foot-4 and 212 pounds, he attended LasCueva
High in Albuquerque, NewMexico. He has afastball that reaches the mid-90s, but his strength on the mound is his ability to throw multiple breaking balls at ahigh level.
One scout who spoke with The Advocate saidthathe’sthe best prospect to come out of New Mexico since LSU star Steven Milam
“He has all the ingredients if you read it on apiece of paper,”the scoutsaid. “That sounds like it’sa starter with four pitches, and they flash averageorbetter,and there are outings where you show up one time, and he’sthrowing 65% strikes. Andthen youshowupanother time, andyou read everything, and you’re like, this guyhas nothing.”
Evanswas theonly left-handed pitching signeefrom LSU taken in the draft. He attended TNXL AcademyinOcoee, Florida,and is from Ocoee. He was the No. 194 player in MLB.com’sdraft rankingsand throws afastballthatreaches the mid-90s, along with aslider His biggest issue, according to scouts, was his inabilitytoconsistently throw strikes.
Evans’ TNXL teammate and fellow LSU signeeColeton Brady announced Saturday night that he’d be going to school andwithdrawing fromthe draft. Bradywas oneof four LSU signees to withdraw their name from the draftbefore Sunday Adams wasthe top-ranked recruit in MLB.com’srankings who wasselectedafter the10th round. He attended Hoover High in Alabamaand is one of the top recruits in LSU’s2026class.Hewas theNo. 57 player in The Athletic’s draft rankings and atop-130 player in ESPN and MLB.com’s lists. He wonthe Gatorade Player of theYear Award in Alabama, hitting 13 home runs witha .489 batting average. He has some power, but is mostly knownfor his strong contact skills andpatienceatthe plate.Adamsisone of themostpolished players in LSU’s class.
“Great kid, good hitter.Probably going to be like acorner type of defender. Leftfield, right field, first base,because he’sa left-handed thrower,” ascoutsaid. “Good,good hitter. He could go there and play well as afreshman.”
The Nationals and Pirates took fliers on two of LSU’stop signees in the later rounds,incase they couldn’tsign one of their top picks. LSUplayers in laterrounds Fontenothad acareer year as a
fifth-year senior this spring. He spent three seasons with the Tigers, redshirting as afreshman in 2022before leaving theprogram fortwo yearsand returning to LSU in 2025. He posted a7.20 ERA in limited work in his return to Baton Rouge,but posted a4.18ERA in 321/3 innings as akey piece in the Tigers’ bullpen this year
“He got to pitch morethis year than he ever had,” one scout said. “So it kind of told you they believed in him more.”
Fontenot transferred to McLennan Community College after his freshman year at LSU.Hethen spent the 2024 season at Texas before returning to Baton Rouge.
After transferring in from Oregon,Garciaposted a5.96ERA in 222/3 innings in his lone season with the Tigers. He produced plenty of swings and misses —striking out 35 batters —but walks were an issue forthe junior. He issued17of them and threw eight wild pitches during his timeinBaton Rouge. He transferred to LSU fromOregon last offseason, posting a4.20 ERAasa sophomoreinhis only year with the Ducks. Before Oregon, Garcia spent hisfreshman season at Central ArizonaCommunity College, where he had a3.04 ERA in 232/3 innings.
Benge had a9.00 ERA in seven innings this season for the Tigers. He walked three batters and struck out 13 as asenior,spending two seasons with LSU after transferring in from Dallas Baptist.
In his first season at LSU, Benge had a6.75 ERA in 16 innings. He owned a5.73ERA in his only season at Dallas Baptist and spent his freshman year at LSU Eunice. In fourseasonswiththe Tigers, Guidry had a4.66 ERA in 962/3 innings. He began his collegiate career as an infielderbut moved to the mound midway through the year, ending the season with a3.77 ERA andrecording thefinalout of LSU’s national championshipin2023. “I could seesomebodytaking him;he’sbeen around awhile. He’s worn the (number) eight at LSU, so there are probably sometrustworthy traits there,” ascout told The Advocate. Cowan, meanwhile, was oneof LSU’smost important pitchers over the past twoseasons. He helped guide the Tigers to anational championshipin2025 and wasone of their top relief pitchers this spring.
EMMY AWARD NOMINATIONS
Runaway leader, surprise snubs
‘The Pitt’receives
themostnods
BY ALICIA RANCILIO Associated Press
The Primetime Emmy Award nominations are out and not-sosurprisingly “The Pitt” is an early winner with more nods than any other show.Also, it’sagreat start for the cast of “Widow’s Bay”who enter with 19 nominationsfor its freshman season. There were plenty of surprises and some snubs from Wednesday’s nominations, including some hits and misses for “Love Story: John F. Kennedy Jr.and Carolyn Bessette” and afirst nom for Connor Storrie —just not for the show most people know him for If “The Bear” star Jeremy Allen Whiteattendsthe Emmy Awards this year,itwon’tbeasanominee. The acclaimed series got several nominations for its final season, justnot an acting nod for itshead chef. Read on for more noteworthy nominees and those who gotoverlooked.
‘The Pitt’anEmmys juggernaut
Last year,Shawn Hatosy won best guest actor in adrama for “The Pitt.” This year,he’sgotten bumped up to supporting actor status and has an Emmy nomination to show for it. He is competing against co-stars Patrick Ball and Gerran Howell in the same category.Taylor Dearden, Fiona Dourif and Sepideh Moafi receivedtheir first nominations for best supporting actress in the HBO Max medical drama. While the cast racked up numerous nominations,two actors ended up being their own best cheerleaders. Brittany Allen and Jeff Kober each guest starred as ER patients on Season 2and self-submitted their work for nominations. Now,they’reEmmy nominees in the guest-acting categories.
ä See EMMY, page 2D
MARKING HISTORY
BY ROBIN MILLER Staff writer
Ask Louisianans to nameafamous naturalist, and John J. Audubon’sname will top the list.
It’sunderstandable, with Audubon’sname prominently attached to everything from zoos and aquariums to bridges and parks and,yes, even agolf trail.
tinction goes to William Bartram,who madehis way through the Louisiana territory in 1775, ayear before the Declaration of Independence wassigned and 10 years before Audubon’sbirth.
Audubon visited Louisianaoften, spent lots of time in New Orleans and even based his portfolio, “Birds of America,”onmany of the birds he collected and documented while living in St. Francisville.
But Audubon wasn’tthe first naturalisttodocument Louisiana’snatural landscape and its inhabitants. That dis-
BYERIK PEDERSEN
The OrangeCounty Register (TNS)
James Wolff is not his real name,but the former spy who writes under that nom de plume is the author of “Spies and Other Gods,” asplendid mystery set in the world of espionage. It’sgot aunique way of telling its story,which we won’tspoil, and characterswho are unexpectedlymore than you first imagine. Wolff agreed to answer our questions, and left his encoded responses at asecret dead drop location. Or did he?
Doubts? Well, proof is foundinthe historic markers documenting Bartram’strail through theBaton Rouge area, each bearing a local passage from his book, “Travels of William Bartram.”
Oneofthese markers piqued Cynthia Jardon’scuriosityabout the legendary naturalist
“I saw amarker relating to William Bartram on avisit to the Burden Center,” theAlexandria reader said. “I’ve been told there are moremarkers in
ä See MARKING, page 2D
Please tellreaders about your new book,“Spies and Other Gods.” The seed of the idea for “Spies and Other Gods”lies in an official report written by the U.K. parliamentary committee that oversees the spy agencies. In this report, thecommittee complained that spy chiefs were blocking their staff from whistleblowing directly to the committee, instead forcing them to make their complaints through internal channels. This started methinking along two lines. The first was that spies can be extremely obstructive and unhelpful! The second was
AmericannaturalistWilliam Bartram made hisway through the Louisiana territoryin1775.
a question:what would complaint number 1look like? From there, my story took me to an Iranian assassin, an international manhunt and an awful lot of dark secrets. Youworked in intelligence (as have other authors in yourgenre): Whydoyou think former intelligence officers write books (and do youall gettogether in an undisclosedlocation to compare notes)? Great question! Iwish Icould give you adefinitive answer For me, the answer lies in the way that spying is all about character,psychology and motive—which are things that preoccupy fiction writers too.
Spies are natural observers, natural watchers. They like to collect details that allow them to build up aprofile of an individual. As forthe secret meetings with other spies-turned authors in an undisclosed location, Ican’tpossibly comment Afollow-up to the previous question: Youwrite,“Anyonewho chooses writing spynovels over spying can’thavebeen much good in the first place,” and I’dlove to hear more about that. (While I’msure it’sawinking joke, if
Several William Bartram Trail Markers are in the Baton Rougearea.
PHOTO By ROBINMILLER
PHOTO PROVIDED By APPLE TV+
‘Widow’sBay’received 19 Emmy nominations, including star MatthewRhys.
STAFF PHOTO By LAUREN CHERAMIE LSUHilltop Arboretum Director Tara Titone passes the Bartram Trail Markeralong the WilliamBartram Trailatthe arboretum.
PROVIDED PHOTO FROM HBOMAX
Louisiana nativeKatherine LaNasa is again nominated foranEmmy for her role
TODAYINHISTORY
By The Associated Press
Today is Monday,July 13, the 194th day of 2026
There are 171 days left in the year
TodayinHistory:
On July 13, 1985, the “Live Aid” benefit rock concerts were held simultaneously in London and Philadelphia, raising millions for famine relief in Ethiopia. Also on this date:
In 1793, French politician physician and journalist Jean-Paul Maratwas assassinated by Charlotte Corday,who stabbed him to death in his bath.
In 1863, deadly rioting against the Civil Warmilitary draft erupted in New York City.(The insurrection was put down three days later.)
In 1923, asign consisting of 50-foot-tall letters spelling out “HOLLYWOODLAND”was dedicated in the Hollywood Hills to promote areal estate subdivision (the last four letters were removed in 1949).
In 1930, the first FIFA World Cup began in Uruguay In 1960, John F. Kennedy won the Democratic presidential nomination on the first ballot at his party’s convention in Los Angeles.
In 1973, former presidential aide Alexander P. Butterfield revealed to Senate Watergate Committee staff members the existence of President Richard Nixon’ssecret White House taping system.
In 1999, Angel Maturino Resendiz, suspected of being the “Railroad Killer” responsiblefor the deaths at least nine people, surrenderedinElPaso, Texas. He was convicted of capital murder in aTexas court and executed in June 2006.
In 2013, ajury in Florida cleared neighborhood watch volunteer George Zimmerman of all charges in the shooting of Trayvon Martin, an unarmed Black teenager whose killing unleashed furious debate over racial profiling, selfdefenseand equal justice.
In 2018, agrand jury indictment, sought by special counsel Robert Mueller, alleged that the Russian government was behind asweeping conspiracy to interfere in the 2016 U.S presidential election.
In 2020, Washington’s NFL franchise dropped the “Redskins” name and logo amid pressure from sponsors; the move followed decades of criticism that the name and logo were offensive to Native Americans. (The team was eventually renamed the Commanders.) Today’sBirthdays: Gameshow announcer Johnny Gilbert (TV:“Jeopardy!”) is 98. Author and Nobel laureate Wole Soyinka is 92. Actor Patrick Stewart is 86. Actor Harrison Ford is 84. Singerguitarist RogerMcGuinn (The Byrds) is 84. Rubik’s Cube inventor Erno Rubik is 82. Actor-comedian Cheech Marin is 80. Actor DaphneMaxwell Reid is 78 Actor Didi Conn is 75. Actor Gil Birmingham is 73. Singer Louise Mandrellis72. Former boxing champion Michael Spinks is 70. Actordirector Cameron Crowe is 69. Comedian TomKenny is 64. Actor Ken Jeong is 57. Singer Deborah Cox is 52. Actor AyaCash is 44. Former St. Louis Cardinals catcher Yadier Molina is 44. Actor Colton Haynes is 38. Actor Steven R. McQueen is 38. Soul singer Leon Bridges is 37.Actor Hayley Erin (TV:“General Hospital”) is 32.
SPY
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Lifestylechanges canhelpgut microbiome
Dear Doctors: Ijust finished atough year in grad school, and my diet hasn’tbeen that great.Iknow your gut microbiomehas alot to do with good health, and Iwant to get mineintobetter shape. I’m thinkingaboutprobiotic capsules, but it’sconfusing.How do you know which ones to take?
Dear Reader: When life gets challenging,itcan beall tooeasy to let healthyroutines fall by the wayside. As happened to you, this can include not always making the best food choices. Diethas adirect andpowerfuleffect on thetrillions of microbes that maketheir homes in ourgut.Asyou pointout, the gut microbiomeplays akey role in physical health It makes sense that you’re ready to focus on getting your gut health back ontrack.Considering probiotic supplements also has acertain logic. The term probiotics refers to live microorganismsthat can have abeneficial effect on thebody.The
EMMY
Continued from page 1D
Another commonality: Allen and Kober haveeach won Daytime Emmy Awardsfor “All My Children” and “General Hospital.”
The 25 nominations for “The Pitt” are nearly double what it received for its first season. Besides actingcategories, it’s nominated for best drama and behind-thecamera work like directing and casting
Otherfresh faces
In asea of regular nominees like Jean Smart, Quinta Brunson and Martin Short, somenew names managed to squeezein.
Less than one month after “Widow’sBay” completed airing its first season, thecomedy horror starring Matthew Rhys is planting aflag at theEmmy Awards. Kate O’Flynn, Kevin Carroll, Stephen Root andDale Dickey arecast members among thefirst-time nominees.
Thenewlywed characters in “Beef” Season 2split when it came to Emmy recognition. Charles Meltongot his first nomination, while Cailee Spaeny was overlooked.
“Monster: The Ed Gein Story”
MARKING
Continued from page 1D
Baton Rouge. So, whydid Bartram travel through Baton Rouge, and howwas itdecided where the markers would beplaced?”
Answeringthe last part of that question is easy. “Weplaced the markers according to locations in thepassages in William Bartram’sbook,” said Michele Deshotels, amember of the Bartram Trail Project Committee andthe LSU Hilltop Arboretum’s board of directors.
She refers to Bartram’s1791 book, “Travels of William Bartram,”inwhich he accurately chronicles his 1773-1777exploration of the southern colonies and southeasternregion of North America. In it, Bartramspecifically documents the findings of his visit to the “Baton Rouge settlement,” where henot only takes note of a bluff along the Mississippi River, but also ariver calledAmite and an area bythe name ofManchac. In hisblood
Whydid Bartram decide to conductthissurvey of theSouth’secosystem? It was in his blood.
Bartram’sfather was noted naturalist JohnBartram. Though dad was born in the “British Province of Pennsylvania” in 1699 and was aclose friend to Founding Father Benjamin Franklin, son William Bartram is celebrated as America’sfirst native born naturalist and
myself with this line. There’sa lot of myth-making in spyliterature. And there are alot of people in the spy world itself who take themselves just alittle bit too seriously.Iwantpeople to read this book because they enjoy the writing, the characters andthe humour,not because they think it waswritten by asuper spy
Without giving anything away,you havea unique approach to how you tell this story.
Is there away you can talk about that?
I’ve been preoccupied for a
Dr.Elizabeth Ko Dr.Eve Glazier ASK THEDOCTORS
word has also become shorthand for live microbial cultures that are available in capsule form. They differ in thetypes of bacteria they contain, the number of microorganisms they deliver and the purported benefitsthey claim.It’s no small wonder you find yourself confused. While takingprobiotic supplements is generally considered safe, thebenefits currently remain unclear.This is due to several factors. Oneisthat thegut microbiome is fantastically diverse, with between 400 and 800 different spe-
cies. Anotheristhat each person’s gut profile is unique. Add in the fact that the effects of probiotic supplements have been found to be modestand short-lived, and the limitations of the capsule approach becomeapparent. That leads us to the guidance we give our own patients. We don’t advise against taking probiotic supplements, but we do strongly urge that they be part of awider approach. Research showsthat, given thechance, the gut heals itself. One of the mostimportant thingsyou can do to bolster that is to eat avaried, high-fiber diet. This, in turn, feeds the microbes in thegut Fiber goalsdifferdepending on age and gender.For women 49 and younger,it’s25gramsoffiber per day.After age50, 21 gramsisfine. Up to age 49, men are urged to get 38 grams of fiber per day.Atage 50, the goal resets at 30 gramsper day
PHOTO PROVIDED By FX
Sarah Pidgeonisnominated for her portrayalasCarolyn BessetteKennedyin‘Love Story: John F. KennedyJr. &CarolynBessette,’but Paul AnthonyKelly was not nominated for his role as John F. KennedyJr.
didn’thave the buzz of previous monster stories about Jeffrey Dahmer or Lyle and Erik Menendez.Its star,Charlie Hunnamcan count himself an Emmy nominee though. Hiswork as the serial killer brought him his first nomination. File this next one under,“We’ll takewhat we can get.” While Con-
scientific illustrator
According to Allen Johnson’s 1929 entry on Bartram in the “Dictionary of American Biography,” thenaturalist’stalent for drawing was recognized by Franklin, who “offered to teach (young Bartram) printing, and then suggested for him thetrade of engraver ” Instead, Bartram tried his hand working as an independent trader in Cape Fear,North Carolina, before accompanying his father’s 1765-66 exploration of the St. John River in Florida.
The father and son duo wrote a book about that trip, titled “Travels on the St. John River,” and though it was published in 1791, it’sstill in print through the University of FloridaPress.
ButWilliam Bartram’slife journey would take adifferent path after that.
“His father’sfriend, the English naturalist Peter Collinson, had beforehis death in 1768 shown drawings by William —‘elegant performances’ —tothe Duchess of Portland, and to Dr.John Fothergill, a(British) botanist and aFriend, whosoon extended hispatronagetothe young American,” Johnson writes. “At Fothergill’sexpense,Bartram spent the years 1773-77 exploring the southeastern part of theUnited States. In return, Fothergill was to have seeds, specimens, and drawings; journalsand exquisite drawings.”
It was through Fothergill’spatronage that Bartram was able to travel as far west as Louisiana.
while now with the idea of collectiveidentities. In an organisation like MI5 or MI6, you have all the thousandsofemployees with theirseparate identities and then abovethem all, floating like a kind ofdeity,isthe organisation’s identity.Sooften it’s hard to pin down responsibilityfor adecision or apolicy to one individual, because the truth is that the decision has been taken collectively, by this supra-identity.Ithought it would be interesting to write a novel with the organisation itself providing thenarrative voice. In this case, avoice that is spiky, provocative, argumentative, defensive, cynical and—Ihope
lots of fun. What are you reading now?
Iamreading “Lonesome Dove,” which is every bit as gripping as Iwas led to believe. I’ve always loved Cormac McCarthy’swesterns, like “Blood Meridian,” and it’sbeen so interesting to see the samelandscape from adifferent perspective. It’s also made me very glad that Iwasn’tborn into that exceptionally violent and brutal world. Is there abook or type of book you’re reluctant to read?
Ihate to admit it, but Ivery rarely read spy novels. It might be that Ispent 15 years as aspy which gives me alow tolerance
Although fiber supplements can be tempting, we strongly encourage eating real foods. The different types of fiber they contain support gut diversity.Vegetables, leafygreens and fruit also deliver micronutrients and phytonutrients, which play important roles in metabolic health. Don’t forget fermented foods, which are natural sources of probiotics: yogurt, kefir, kimchi, pickles and sauerkraut. Interestingly,studies also show the gut microbiome needs sleep and regular exercise as much as the rest of you. Bottom line: The best path to ahealthy gut lies in lifestyle changes, not in the health food aisle.
Send yourquestions to askthedoctors@mednet.ucla. edu,orwrite: Ask the Doctors c/oUCLA Health Sciences Media Relations, 10880 WilshireBlvd., Suite1450, Los Angeles,CA, 90024.
While it’snosurprise that Jean Smart, Hannah Einbinder and Paul W. Downsgot recognized forthe final season of “Hacks,” anice addition to the list is co-star Meg Stalter,who is up forher first Emmy as best supporting actress. You’ve been snubbed
Let’sstart with the big one. After receiving twoEmmy Awards for best actor in acomedy,Jeremy Allen White wasnot nominated for the final season of “The Bear.” The show got nominated, however,as did AyoEdebiri for best comedy actress.
Sarah Pidgeon is nominated for her portrayal as Carolyn BessetteKennedy in “Love Story: John F. Kennedy Jr.&Carolyn Bessette” but that love only goes so far. Paul Anthony Kelly,who played Kennedy,was shut out.
nor Storrie of “Heated Rivalry” also received his first Emmy nomination, it’snot forthe show that made him astar.There’sa technicalitywhere showsfinanced outside the U.S. are ineligible for Emmys, and the samegoes for their cast. Storrie is instead acontender for guest-hosting “Saturday Night Live.”
Startedout in Philadelphia
Bartram was living in Philadelphia when he set out on his pioneering, four-year solo journey,which brought him through theCarolinas and the Gulf South to Louisianaand the Mississippi River.Heobserved and recorded native plants, animalsand people in his journal along the way. That includes adrawing of alligators, though he documented them in Floridabefore arriving in Louisiana.
“He didn’texplore awhole lot of Louisiana,” Deshotels said. “He only got as farwest as Pointe Coupee.”
Or,asBartram spelled it in his book, “Pointe Coupe.” Amarker stands across from St. Francis Chapel along La. 420 bordering the Mississippi River levee. Buthis chronicle of the Baton Rouge area wasthorough, as told through themarkers.
Each was spearheaded by Baton Rouge’sBartram Trail Project Committee, headed by the late Randy Harelson, in cooperation with the nonprofit Bartram Trail Conference.
Themarkers’locations
In Baton Rouge, they can be found:
n on the Mississippi River levee at theintersection of South Boulevard and River Road downtown; n BREC Airline Highway Park, 17200 Airline Highway near Bayou Manchac; n theLSU Hilltop Arboretum,
for unrealistic scenarios, or that writing my own spy novels means that I’m desperate forapalate cleanser at the end of the day
There are spy novels Ilove like “Harlot’sGhost,” “The Quiet American” or “The Untouchable” —but it’s not my genre of choice.
Is there aperson who made an impact on your reading life —ateacher,a parent, a librarian or someone else? Iremember an English teacher when Iwas aged around 12, and alessoninwhich we were going around the class reading our essays aloud. Mine was apretty unremarkable account of something, butI still remember the way the teacher stopped me,asked me to
“The Four Seasons” is about a group of friends but Colman Domingo is the standout this year Domingo was nominated for best supporting actor in acomedy while Tina Fey, who created the seriesand also stars, got overlooked Apple TV’s“Your Friends & Neighbors” stars Jon Hammasa man whosecretly steals from his wealthy neighbors. The show got adramaseries Emmy nomination. Hammdid not.
11855 Highland Road; n Burden Museum &Gardens, 4560 Essen Lane; n BREC Magnolia Mound Museum +Historic Site, 2161 Nicholson Drive; n and the Main Library,7711 Goodwood Blvd.
“The marker at the library was in storage at abotanical garden in Mississippi,” Deshotels said. “We approached the library and asked if they would be interested in having this original marker,which took an overall view of the area through the writing in the book. We thought it was just perfect for the library,and they even chose someplants that were related to Bartram fortheir landscaping.”
Markers also stand at the intersection of Plains-Port Hudson Road and Old Scenic Highway in the Zachary-Plains area, along La. 42 in Port Vincent and, again, along La. 420 in Pointe Coupeé Parish. Amarker commemorating Bartram’s journeys through the Lake Pontchartrain Basin also stands in Pelican Park at 63350 Pelican Blvd./Pelican Drive in Mandeville. Finally,the trail winding through LSU Hilltop Arboretum is named forBartram.
“All kinds of great things are associated with William Bartram,” Deshotels said. “And he was actually asked to go on one of the great explorations after the Louisiana Purchase, but he said no, because by then he was too old. He thought his fireplace in his own house would be amuch nicer place to be.”
re-read asentence and then said that the essay wasworth it for that one sentence on its own. Irealised in that moment that asentence can be athing of beauty What do you find the most appealing in abook: the plot, the language, the cover, arecommendation? Do youhaveany examples? When Henry James was asked about his books, he replied that his objective was to write interesting things in one beautiful sentence after another.I can’tthink of abetter way of putting it. Ilove words, adistinctive style, awriter whoknowswhat they’re doing and has interesting things to say along the way
cAncER (June 21-July 22) Be brave, ask forwhatyou wantand don'tshy away from setting boundariesifsomeone triestotakeadvantage of you. Achange of heart willresultifyou letcriticism and ego get in the way of common sense. LEo (July 23-Aug. 22) Explore creative possibilities. Consideryour skills and what youenjoy doing most,and search forcareer choices that can be instrumental in furthering your agenda.
VIRGo (Aug.23-sept. 22) Take amoment to breathe. Distance yourself from chaotic situations and people who contributetoyour stress and anxiety. Surround yourselfwith apeaceful environment LIBRA (sept. 23-oct. 23) Contemplate your alternatives, play each scenario out start to finish and rethink your objective. Pay attention to what's workingfor you and what is causing confusionand uncertainty
scoRPIo (oct. 24-nov. 22) Keep life simple, doable and affordable. Refuse to let temptation, overindulgence and poor influences take over. Avoidmaking hasty decisions regarding your health or financial welfare.
sAGITTARIus (nov. 23-Dec. 21) Open your eyes and your wallet. Take care of what'sdragging you downathome, medically or legally. Declutter your life and letgoofthe past.
cAPRIcoRn (Dec. 22-Jan. 19) Pull it together, make your move and live up to the promises you made yourself. A
change may not be easy physically or financially, but the result will be uplifting.
AQuARIus (Jan. 20-Feb. 19) Payattention to how you earn your living and how to channel your energy into prosperity and aprofession that excites you more than sucks the life out of you. A change will help you put your life back in perspective.
PIscEs (Feb. 20-March 20) High standards, expectations and drive will carry you forward. Don'tlet others manipulate youorleadyou astray.Takethe walk that leads you in adirection that makes you feel good.
ARIEs(March 21-April 19) Be honest with yourself andconsiderate of others. If youare willing to meet in the middle and accept the truth, you'll discover how to deal with the transparency issues you face.
TAuRus (April 20-May 20) Getinvolved, make adifference and do your part. Adversity may rear its ugly head, but if you proceed with kindness and love, you will be part of the solution, not the problem.
GEMInI(May 21-June 20) If you don't like something, change it. Research, find alternatives and make it happen. Take responsibility for your life, health and destination. Talk is cheap.
Celebrity Cipher cryptograms are created from quotations by famous people, past and present. Each letter in the cipher stands for another.
ToDAy's cLuE: MEQuALsn
CeLebrItY CIpher
beetLe bAILeY
Mother GooSe And GrIMM
LAGoon
Sudoku
InstructIons: sudoku is anumber-placingpuzzle basedona9x9 grid with several given numbers The object is to place the numbers 1to9inthe empty squares so that each row, each column and each 3x3 boxcontains the same number only once. Thedifficulty level of the sudoku increases from monday to sunday
Saturday’s PuzzleAnswer
BLondie
BaBY BLueS
Hi and LoiS
Bridge
By PHILLIPALDER
One of thetoughest card-play concepts forless experienced players is the “danger hand.” This occurs when declarer mustdohisutmosttokeeponeparticular opponentoff the lead.
Today’s deal, it will not surprise you to learn,isatextbook example. South is in three no-trump. Westleads the diamond six: five, two (lowest from threeworthlesscards),jack.Howshould South continue?
Note North’s two-heart rebid. With two low diamonds, it is preferable to raise hearts with only three than to rebid one no-trump. ThenSouth carefully jumps to three no-trump, notfour hearts, asking hispartner to choose between those two game contracts.
Southstartswithseventoptricks:three spades,oneheart,onediamond(fromthe first trick)and two clubs. The extra winnerscan obviously come from the club suit. But through which opponent should declarer finesse?
The first trick makes it clear that West has the diamond queen and ace. If East had either of those cards, he would have played it at trick one —third hand high. So,ifEast gainsthe lead, he will return adiamondstraight through South’s king 10, andWest will cash several tricks in the suit. But if West is on lead, South still hasadiamondstopper.Eastisthedanger hand.
Each Wuzzleisawordriddle which creates adisguised word, phrase, name, place, saying, etc. For example: nOOngOOD =gOOD aFTErnOOn
Previous answers:
InsTRucTIons: 1. Words must be of four or more letters. 2. Wordsthat acquire four letters by theaddition of “s,” such as “bats” or “dies,” are not allowed. 3. additional words made by adding a“d” or an “s” maynot be used. 4. proper nouns,
or sexually explicit words arenot allowed.
or
ToDAy’sWoRD REAMERs: REEM-ers: Rotatingtools with cuttingedges used to enlarge or shape ahole.
Average mark 14 words Time limit 20 minutes Can you find 19 or more words in REAMERS?
sATuRDAy’s WoRD— conVERsE
loCKhorNs
marmaduKe
Bizarro
hagar the horriBle
Pearls Before swiNe
garfield
B.C. PiCKles
dIrectIons: make a2-to 7-letter word from the letters in each row.add points of each word using scoring directionsat right. Finally, 7-letter words get 50-point bonus “Blanks”used as any letter havenopoint value. all the wordsare in the Official sCraBBlE® players Dictionary, 5th Edition. For moreinformationontournamentsand clubs, emailnaspa –north american sCraBBlE 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 thedistinctivesCraBBlE brand game card, and the distinctive letter tile designs are trademarks of Hasbro in the
ken ken
InstructIons: 1 -Each row and each columnmust containthe numbers 1thorugh 4(easy) or 1through6 (challenging) without repeating 2 -The numbers within theheavily outlinedboxes, calledcages, mustcombine using the given operation (in any order) to produce the target numbers in the top-left corners. 3 -Freebies: Fill in the single-box cages withthe number in the top-left corner.
numericalpuzzledesigned to spell out your fortune. Count
thenumberofletters is 6ormore, subtract
is your key number. start at theupper left-hand corner and check each of
bers, left to right. Then read themessage
Scrabble GramS
WiShinG Well
Get fuzzy muttS
jump Start
roSe iS roSe animal crackerS
PUBLIC NOTICE Public Notice TreatmentSolicitations TheUnitedStatesProba‐tion Office forthe East‐ernDistrictofLouisiana (LEAP) is currentlyac‐ceptingRequest forPro‐posals (RFP)for
OF PETITION FOR EXONERATIONFROMOR LIMITATIONOFLIABILITY NOWINTOCOURT throughundersigned counsel, come WarAdmi‐ral, L.L.C.,asowner,and Turn Services,L.L.C as operator,ofthe M/VAS‐SAULT(collectively,“Peti‐tioners”), to submit the followingNoticefor pub‐lication: IN THEMATTEROFWAR ADMIRAL, L.L.C.,AS OWNER, ANDTURNSER‐VICES, L.L.C.,ASOPERA‐TOR, OF THEM/V AS‐SAULT, PETITIONINGFOR
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
rear por‐tionsoflots19& 20 in square 260 of theFifth MunicipalDistrict; (c) 3617 ThirdStreet,desig‐natedaspartoflot 15 in square 459 of theFourth MunicipalDistrict; (d) 3621 ThirdStreet,desig‐natedaslotsB,C,E,& F in square 459 of the Fourth MunicipalDistrict; and(e) 3623 ThirdStreet designated as lotG in square 459 of theFourth MunicipalDistrict(col‐lectively, the“NORA Properties”);authorizing thetransferofthe land andimprovementscom‐prising2021 Danneel Street,designatedasLot A1 in square 293 of the Fourth MunicipalDistrict (the City Property”)
CERTAINPIECE OR POR‐TION OF GROUND,TO‐GETHER WITH ALLTHE BUILDINGSAND IM‐PROVE-MENTSTHEREON ANDALL THERIGHTS, WAYS,PRIVILEGES, SERVITUDES, APPURTE‐NANCES ANDADVAN‐TAGESTHEREUNTO BE‐LONGINGORINANYWISE APPERTAINING SITUATED IN THESTATE OF LOUISIANA, PARISH OF ORLEANS, IN THETHIRD DISTRICT OF THECITYOF NEWORLEANS,INGEN‐TILLYPARKSUBDIVISION WHICHSAIDLOT,AC‐CORDINGTOA SURVEY BY WILLIAMCASE, SUR‐VEYORDATED AUGUST 14, 1950, APRINT WHEREOFISATTACHED TO ACTPASSEDBEFORE LEONARD11. ROSENSON NOTARY PUBLIC,DATED SEPTEMBER11. 1950. IS DESIGNATED AS LOT“II IN BLOCK“E” BOUNDED BY WALLACEDRIVE MANDOLIN ANDST. AN‐THONYSTREETSAND THE EASTERLY LINEOFTHE SUBDIVISIONSAIDLOT “II” COMMENCES AT A DISTANCE OF 294 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
1-6-1317-21-6t $686.02
NOTICE
United States Code (46U.S.C App. §30501, et seq.), for exonerationfromorlimi‐tation of liabilityfor all claims forany loss, dam‐age, injury,ordeaths caused on 17 April2026, when oneofthe three(3) barges in thetow of the M/VASSAULT came in contactwithanunseen underwater obstruction in theIndustrialCanal occasioned or arisingout of theincidentoccurring on that date,all as more fullyset forthinthe Complaint. Allpersons having such claims must file theirre‐spective claims,aspro‐videdinRuleF,including paragraphs (4)and (5) thereof, of theSupple‐mental Rulesfor Admi‐raltyorMaritimeClaims andAssetForfeitureAc‐tionsofthe FederalRules
STATES DISTRICT COURT EASTERNDISTRICTOF LOUISIANA IN THEMATTEROFWAR ADMIRAL, L.L.C.,AS OWNER, ANDTURN SERVICES,L.L.C AS OPERATOR,OFTHE M/V ASSAULT, PETITIONING FOREXONERATION FROM OR LIMITATIONOF LIABILITY NO.26-cv-900 SECTIONT (1) JUDGEGregGerard Guidry MAG. JudgeJanis Van Meerveld NOTICE TO CLAIMANTS
“B locatedinSection 36, Township 7South Range 11 East,and Section25 South, Range11East, near Mandeville,desig‐natedasLot 126, acq. May24, 1985, registered in COB1204 Folio763 St Tammany Parish Notice is hereby given to allparties whomit mayconcern,including theheirs andcreditors of theDecedentherein, and to this Estate,beordered to make anyopposition which they have or may have to such application, at anytimeprior to the issuance of theorder or judgment authorizingor approvingand homolo‐gating such application andthatsuchorder or judgment maybeissued afterthe expiration of seven(7) days from the date of thelastpublica‐tion of such notice,all in accordance with thelaw BY ORDEROFTHE COURT ChelseaRichard Napoleon,Clerk SubmittedBy: LeePhillips(Bar#25826) Attorney at Law 2120 BienvilleStreet NewOrleans,LA70112 (504)236-0168 Publication: June 22,2026, andJuly13, 2026 –2t 191809-jun22-jul13-2t
