The Advocate 09-22-2026 by The Advocate

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‘We have stayed true’ St. George looks to charter schools

City wants to create partnership with operators BY CLAIRE GRUNEWALD Staff writer

STAFF PHOTO By PEARL SPURLOCK

Joseph ‘Jozsef’ Erdey, from left, and Mindy and Marty Starkey stand in front of the sign for the Árpádhon Hungarian Settlement Cultural Association on Friday.

Livingston Parish’s Hungarian Settlement preps for its first carnival c i l as partt off Harvest H t Festival F ti l

BY GIGI LIMAN

St. George is putting together plans to attract new charter schools to the city, a move that comes just months after voters shot down a proposal to create a new public school district. Mayor Dustin Yates said St. George will create a partnership with charter operators to expand choice in the area, and he hopes to have a new school in the city by fall 2028. Yates “It’ll be the ﬁrst of its kind in the state of Louisiana, where the community partner is a city,” Yates said. “The city and our residents can have input and more interaction with what their schools are going to do.” Yates said the city partnership would be similar to how corporations or nonproﬁts are partners with charter schools. He said East Baton Rouge Parish has great charter schools, which are public schools run privately through charters or contracts, and the goal is to recreate that in the city

ä See CHARTER, page 4A

Staff writer

For more than a century, Living gston Parish’s Hungarian Settleme ent has gathered to celebrate its herritage through food, music and trad ditional dance. This weekend, it will w become a three-day festival open to the public. The Hungarian Harvest Festiv val will run from Friday evening to Sunday afternoon at Fayard Field in Springﬁeld and will feature 70 ve endors, including fortunetellers an nd jewelry makers, carnival games an nd rides, as well as traditional Hunga arian music, dance and food. “If you don’t come, you’re missin ng out on a world of weekend fun an nd games and dancing and food,” sa aid Livingston Parish Council member Joe Erdey, whose district includes the historic Hungarian Settlementt. Friday is family night, featuring ga celebration honoring older residen nts and a special deal on rides, inclu uding a Ferris wheel and giant slid de. For the only time during the weekend, attendees can buy a $30 carnival bracelet that gives one person unlimited access to the rides from 5 p.m. to 10 p.m. On Saturday and Sunday, ride tickets cost $1 each, and rides will vary in how many tickets they take. Students from Southeastern Louisiana University will play Hungarian folk music, and the evening will

East Feliciana eyes nuclear innovation site Proposed campus could include waste recycling

BY DAVID J. MITCHELL Staff writer

FILE PHOTO

In Livingston Parish’s Hungarian Settlement, the residents have staged their annual harvest folk dance for decades. also include performances by Peruvian violinist and singer Jade Sanders. Saturday and Sunday bring a day full of rides, games, vendors and entertainment. Hungarian folk dancers from New Orleans will perform both days; on Saturday there will

men’s, women’s and children dances, a traditional art and wine auction, as well as a performance by the Lauren Lee Band. Thomas Cain will take the stage Sunday. Winners from the association’s first pageant will be

ä See HUNGARIAN, page 4A

Two months after Louisiana became a finalist for a national initiative to modernize nuclear power, state officials have begun meeting with local officials — most recently in East and West Feliciana parishes — about interest in new nuclear development. Such companies could include those engaged in recycling spent radioactive fuel rods, nuclear fuel enrichment and permanently storing nuclear waste. The state Department of Conservation and Energy, which is leading Louisiana’s effort to win the federal competition, met with local officials last week in south Louisiana and will hit the northern

ä See NUCLEAR, page 4A

Landry proposes ban on diesel exports Oil industry leaders push back BY MARK BALLARD Staff writer

WASHINGTON — Gov. Jeff Landry is calling for a ban on exports of diesel fuel, saying it’s a way to lower historically high prices, but is facing pushback from oil industry leaders who say that idea could actually drive prices up. Joining Republican candidates, especially those representing agricultural districts, who have

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stepped up the pressure because of surging prices, Landry on Thursday night wrote on social media that he favored banning the export of diesel fuel for 90 days in order to build up reserves and bring down the price of the fuel that farmers, truckers and Northern homeowners rely. Prices rose about 40 cents per gallon last week alone to a national average price Monday of $6.51 per gallon, according to AAA. On this day last year, the average price nationally was $3.69 per gallon. The reason is because of the pressures put on by the wars in Ukraine and

Iran. “Right now a record amount of diesel is going to Europe and Americans are subsidizing Europe’s problems,” Landry said Monday morning on CNBC’s Squawk Box. “Europe has done nothing to help America in either one of those two positions and yet they are sucking the energy out of America and making American citizens pay for it.” But the means for transporting domestic diesel is already at capacity, responded Tommy

ASSOCIATED PRESS FILE PHOTO

Diesel prices are displayed at a gas station in Minneapolis earlier this ä See DIESEL, page 4A month.

Business ......................6A Commentary ................5B Nation-World................2A Classified .....................6D Deaths .........................3B Opinion ........................4B Comics-Puzzles .....3D-5D Living............................1D Sports ..........................1C

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2A ■ Tuesday, September 22, 2026 ■ theadvocate.com ■ The Advocate

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Appeals court favors Trump-backed Mo. map

Man shot by ICE officer detained

FROM WIRE REPORTS

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. — A long-running legal ﬁght over Missouri’s congressional map took another turn Monday when a federal appeals panel ruled in favor of new districts backed by President Donald Trump, even though the U.S. Supreme Court has blocked those districts from being used in the November election. A three-judge panel of the 8th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals said Missouri should use the new Republican-drawn U.S. House districts in the November election, just as the state did in its August primary. To revert to its prior districts for the general election would violate the U.S. Constitution, the appeals judges said. The appeals panel directed a lower court judge to issue a permanent injunction against using anything other than the map favored by Trump. But the ruling has no immediate impact. That’s because the panel also ordered the judge to delay the effect of the order for one week to allow time for an appeal. The judge quickly did so. Opponents of the new map said Monday that they will ﬁle an emergency appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court. The Supreme Court already has twice sided against the Trump-backed map. Earlier this month, it blocked enforcement of a lower court order favoring the new map pending a potential appeal and eventual decision by the high court.

Up to 30 shots fired in shootout at synagogue

BELLEVILLE, Ontario — A 29-yearold man armed with a shotgun opened fire on a police officer stationed outside an Ontario synagogue during Yom Kippur, triggering a shootout involving as many as 30 shots, the province’s police watchdog said Monday. The gunfire left the man with injures that were not life-threatening and seriously wounded a veteran of the Belleville Police Service, whose condition had stabilized as he recovered in intensive care. Kristy Denette, a spokesperson for the Special Investigations Unit, said nearby vehicles and homes were riddled with bullet holes. There was no forensic confirmation Monday as to whether the synagogue itself was hit. Denette said the scene appeared to stretch about half a block from the Sons of Jacob Synagogue. “It would have been quite, quite the scene indeed,” Denette said. The Special Investigations Unit said preliminary evidence showed the man arrived in a truck about 7 p.m. Sunday and fired at an officer outside the Sons of Jacob Synagogue in Belleville, about 110 miles east of Toronto. The officer returned fire before a second officer arrived and also fired.

3 booked in connection to South Africa killing

JOHANNESBURG — Police in South Africa said Monday they arrested three suspects in connection with one of a series of killings of women in the same area on the outskirts of Johannesburg. The nine killings of women in their 20s and 30s in the municipality of Ekurhuleni over the last two months has triggered anger in South Africa, which has high rates of violence against women. Police have been investigating whether the killings were connected, raising fears that a serial killer or killers might be operating in the area. The suspects, two women and a man, appeared in the Boksburg Magistrates Court on Monday after being arrested in connection with the killing of a woman whose body was found last week in Ekurhuleni, east of Johannesburg. Their case was postponed to Oct. 1 when they can formally apply for bail. Investigators have not linked the suspects to the eight other killings. Authorities have said it is not certain that all the killings are connected, though they said they have identiﬁed similarities in some of them and have issued an alert for women in Ekurhuleni to take precautions.

the gunshot wound, and Attorney says toI have not received the attention that I reman still has medical quire,” Perez said, speaking Spanish over the phone as bullet in his back ina member of his attorney’s

BY ANNA WILDER and JESSE BEDAYN ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO By MARK SCHIEFELBEIN

Vaughn Hillyard, White House correspondent for MS NOW, does a report Monday near the White House in Washington. CNN, MS NOW and Politico on Monday sued President Donald Trump’s administration days after they were barred from the White House grounds.

News outlets file suit over White House ban CNN, MS NOW, Politico cite First Amendment

BY JOCELYN NOVECK AP national writer

NEW YORK — CNN, MS NOW and Politico on Monday sued President Donald Trump’s administration days after they were barred from White House grounds, calling the selective ban — based on the content of their coverage — a “blatant violation” of the First Amendment. Trump said on social media that he “cherished” a free press but not “FAKE NEWS.” “White House access is a privilege — not a right,” the administration posted on X. The extraordinary ban of the three news outlets’ reporters, which began over the weekend, represented a clear escalation of Trump’s long-running efforts — in the courts and through administrative action — to restrict news coverage he finds objectionable. They were also the latest test of First Amendment protections in the United States, where the government is constitutionally forbidden from restricting the press. The Constitution, the banned news outlets said in their lawsuit, “does not allow a president or any other government official to deprive the press of their First Amendment rights and liberty and property interests with no notice or process based solely on his dislike of the content of their reporting.” The three outlets filed the joint lawsuit two days after their reporters were blocked from the White House and prevented from doing their jobs. The reporters’ entry badges were disabled Saturday, a day after Trump had suddenly announced he was barring the outlets because of reporting he considered “fake news.” On Monday morning, the banned TV networks were reporting from an intersection just outside the White House complex. CNN, meanwhile, was removed from its pool duties, which are shared by the five major networks. It had been scheduled to cover the president’s trip to New York for the United Nations General Assembly. In an email to members, the TV pool said there would be no replacement coverage — and other networks would suspend their own pool coverage indefinitely. “Effective today, the TV pool will not be covering events designated as pool coverage of the President,” said the email, seen by The Associated Press, from the current chair of the pool, Fox’s Washington bureau chief, Bryan Boughton. “This fol-

lows the White House’s position preventing CNN from fulfilling its assigned pool duties.” Other news outlets also took steps in solidarity. The AP joined a number of news organizations, including The Washington Post and The New York Times, in a decision not to publish photographs of presidential events on Monday. The White House did not respond directly to a request for comment on Monday’s lawsuit. But in a news release posted on X, it said of the three banned outlets, “The First Amendment protects their right to publish; it does not entitle them to a hard pass, briefing room seat, or place in the press pool.” On his Truth Social platform, Trump wrote that he was not attacking the First Amendment. “The White House is not instituting an assault on the Free Press, something which I cherish,” the president said in his post. “It is instituting an assault on the FAKE NEWS, something that has grown like Cancer in our beloved United States of America. It is corrupt, purposeful, pervasive, fully coordinated, and totally out of control. It is a threat to our National Security, and must be stopped, NOW!” Vice President JD Vance, meanwhile, told reporters that the journalism of the three outlets is “effectively far-left propaganda,” and said they were still allowed to report — just not to have offices in the White House. In his second term, Trump and his Republican administration have upped the ante and punished certain media outlets. Trump has also lashed out at individual reporters in person or over social media, sometimes in strikingly personal terms — insulting them in briefings or in his recent speech at the White House Correspondents’ Association dinner. “This morning, we notified the government that we are filing a lawsuit today to protect our First Amendment rights and defend the principle that the government does not decide what the press reports or publishes,” the banned outlets said in a joint statement posted early Monday on X. “Left unchallenged, this threatens press freedom and the public’s right to independent journalism free from government interference.” In the joint complaint, accompanied by a separate request for a temporary restraining order blocking enforcement of the bans, the outlets said, “This ban could not be a more direct assault on the First Amendment nor a more blatant violation of our most fundamental constitutional principles.”

Damage repaired after technical problems disrupt flights in Northeast BY JOSH FUNK

AP transportation writer Damaged communications lines at a key air trafﬁc control facility in Philadelphia had been repaired, allowing airports across the U.S. Northeast to resume operations after hours of disruptions, the nation’s transportation secretary said Monday evening. Hundreds of flights were canceled, including more than 600 into and out of Newark Liberty International Airport, as the outage hit every major airport in the New York City area. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy also said in an online post that “it will take some time to clear all existing delays” despite the repairs. The primary communications line at the Federal Aviation Administration facility in Philadelphia had failed earlier Monday, while the backup ﬁber optic line was inadvertently severed by railroad construction workers. The failures left controllers without radar or communications for hours. The outage brought commercial air traffic to a near-standstill at Newark for much of the day, with no commercial flights landing at the airport from

about 9:40 a.m. to just after 5:20 p.m. local time, according to flight-tracking site Flightradar24. More than 200 flights into and out of Philadelphia International Airport were also canceled, while disruptions hit LaGuardia and Kennedy airports in New York. By Monday evening, flights were resuming at those airports. Some airlines were allowing customers to change flights without charge. The FAA advised travelers to check the status of their flights before heading to the airport. The outage occurred just as President Donald Trump and numerous foreign leaders were flying into New York City for the United Nations General Assembly. The technical problems stem from the same FAA facility in Philadelphia that caused numerous disruptions at the Newark airport last spring. Regional control centers like these have two lines that carry radar and communications data in and out: the primary and the backup. The FAA said a circuit on the primary failed Monday morning, and when the system tried to switch to the backup, workers discovered that the fiber optic line had been cut.

Associated Press

AUSTIN, Texas — A Venezuelan man shot by a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officer was in custody Monday at an ICE detention center in Texas after he was released from a hospital with a bullet still lodged in his back, the man’s attorney said. Speaking by phone during a news conference, Wilber Rafael Garces Perez said doctors didn’t remove the bullet because it’s near his spine. He said ICE pressed for him to be released quickly from the hospital so it could move him to a detention center. He said he had received no pain medication or treatment there, and had slept on the floor, before eventually being given a “pill” by a nurse on Monday. Perez, 28, was making a DoorDash delivery in Austin on Sunday when his car was “sideswiped” twice by ICE officers in an unmarked truck, immigration attorney Kate Lincoln-Goldfinch told reporters Monday. He was taken to a hospital, she said, but was released later Sunday into ICE custody with the bullet still inside him. Perez said ICE officers didn’t ask him to stop or turn on any flashing lights until after they had sideswiped him. He said he did a U-turn and was trying to park when the officers rammed his car and shot him in the back of the neck. “I am not doing well due

staff translated during the news conference. Perez was being detained at the South Texas ICE Processing Center in Pearsall, about 130 miles southwest of Austin, Lincoln-Goldfinch said. She said Perez told her in a prior phone call that he was being interrogated. The Department of Homeland Security, which oversees ICE, has released little information and has not said what prompted the shooting. In a statement early Monday, the department said it was investigating the shooting of a Venezuelan man in the U.S. illegally who “had a final order of removal.” Homeland Security did not immediately respond to email messages seeking further comment on the shooting. Perez entered the U.S. legally in 2024 after using CBP One, a program begun under President Joe Biden that set up appointments with U.S. authorities to be considered for asylum, Lincoln-Goldfinch said. President Donald Trump ended the program on his first day in office. Perez’s attorneys said he was an asylum-seeker and had a valid work permit, Lincoln-Goldfinch said. She said a judge issued a deportation order for Perez after he missed a hearing in immigration court because the hearing notice was sent to a former address. “Not that being out of status would justify any of this at all,” Lincoln-Goldfinch said of the shooting in a social media post.

Flowers and candles are seen Monday near the site where a Venezuelan man was shot in his vehicle by a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officer ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO in Austin, Texas.

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ICE hides locations of thousands of detainees unable to exerAll subject to final potentially cise all of their legal options. The practice, which apremoval orders plies to detainees who have

BY RYAN J. FOLEY Associated Press

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement has stopped publicly revealing where it is holding thousands of detainees who are subject to final deportation orders, an unannounced move that has made it far more difficult for lawyers and relatives to find them, according to current and former officials familiar with the practice. ICE removed those detainees from its online detainee locator system on Sept. 15, according to three current and former ICE officials who spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss the change. Several lawyers contacted by The Associated Press confirmed their clients vanished from the system this week, and the American Immigration Lawyers Association warned its members about the situation Friday. The move represents a stark departure from previous practice and highlights the hardline nature of President Donald Trump’s immigration crackdown, leaving thousands of detainees exceedingly hard to trace and

received ﬁnal orders of removal from an immigration court, could speed deportations by making last-minute legal challenges harder to pursue, immigration lawyers said. Nearly 16,000 people who were arrested and booked into ICE detention in July were subject to ﬁnal removal orders, more than a third of the overall bookings, according to ICE data obtained by the Deportation Data Project based at U.C. Berkeley and UCLA. The practice does not apply to detainees held at a detention facility in Adelanto, California, or at temporary holding facilities in Minneapolis, New York City or suburban Chicago, the sources said. Judges have ordered ICE to list detainees in those facilities in the online locator promptly upon their arrival, as part of litigation over their detention practices. The effort to hide their locations adds to the ways in which the Trump administration has made life harder for detainees and their families as it has increased pressure on them to waive appeals and agree to deportation. ICE did not publicize the move and in a statement issued to the AP, the agency

ASSOCIATED PRESS FILE PHOTO By JULIO CORTEZ

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement has stopped publicly revealing where it is holding thousands of detainees, including removing those detainees from its online detainee locator system on Sept. 15, according to three current and former ICE officials who spoke on condition of anonymity. did not confirm or deny it. The statement said detainees with ﬁnal removal orders were being prioritized for deportation, even as ICE faces a “historic number of injunctions” from courts stopping individual removals. As a result of the change, lawyers and relatives lost track of their clients and loved ones without explanation, which is especially concerning because detainees are frequently moved to new facilities before deportation, said Greg Chen, senior director of government relations

at the American Immigration Lawyers Association. “Families are freaking out because they think the person has been deported and they don’t know where the person might be,” he said. “On the attorney side, this has serious implications for the ability to contact their client. It certainly has implications about how it will interfere with the attorney-client relationship.” The Department of Homeland Security, ICE’s parent agency, has argued that people who are subject to

final removal orders have received due process. That usually means an immigration judge has ordered their removal after a hearing, including cases when immigrants fail to show up, and the decision was afﬁrmed on appeal or not appealed. Still, those detainees have options to challenge their detention and removal, including seeking to reopen the case or by bringing what’s known as a habeas petition asking a judge to release them on constitutional grounds. Federal judges

have granted thousands of rulings ordering that detainees be released or granted bond hearings. ICE detention facilities held more than 65,000 people as of early July, the most recent available data. Around 30% of them likely have ﬁnal removal orders, said Michelle Mendez, legal director at the National Immigration Project. More people have been issued final removal orders after failing to show up for hearings in recent months because the administration’s immigration courts have taken steps to make it harder to participate and to reopen such cases, she said. “To me, it’s just another iteration of disappearing people,” she said. “Why would we do that in the United States of America? It’s something we’d hear about in another country and be concerned about individual rights and due process.” Some with final removal orders also have legal protections against deportation to their countries of origin based on the likelihood they would be tortured or persecuted. Many of them are facing removal to third-party countries where they have no ties and their disappearance in ICE’s system will make legal challenges harder, lawyers said.

Russia targets Zaporizhzhia after Ukraine launches drone barrage BY SAMYA KULLAB Associated Press

KYIV, Ukraine — Russian drones struck the southern Ukrainian city of Zaporizhzhia on Monday, a day after Kyiv’s forces ﬁred more than 1,000 drones at Russia, ofﬁcials said. The relentless daily attacks underscore the lack of significant progress in diplomatic efforts to end the fighting more than four years after Russia invaded its neighbor. There is no sign the war is abating as world leaders gather this week at the U.N. General Assembly. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said he expects

gets Russian refineries with long-range drones. “A large number of (Russian) diesel refineries have been blown up and are, at least temporarily, out of commission,” he said in a social media post. Earlier this month, Trump urged Zelenskyy to halt the refinery strikes, saying the attacks are causing a global shortage and price spikes. ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO By KATERyNA KLOCHKO Zelenskyy responded to A rescue worker puts out a fire Monday at the Intrade trade Trump in a post on X, noting

center in Zaporizhzhia, Ukraine, after a Russian drone strike. to meet with U.S. President Donald Trump at the annual event in New York. Russian President Vladimir Putin is not due to attend.

Trump on Monday called the war “ridiculous” and said Moscow had “unfortunately lost control” of its diesel oil production as Ukraine tar-

Jury convicts Vt. man in shooting of 3 Palestinian university students By The Associated Press BURLINGTON, Vt. — A jury on Monday convicted a Vermont man of attempted murder in the shootings of three Palestinian college students who were walking near his home, rejecting an insanity defense rooted in his claims that he was acting on orders from U.S. and Israeli intelligence agencies. Jason Eaton faces up to life in prison in the November 2023 attack in Burlington, which paralyzed Hisham Awartani from the waist down and wounded his

friends, Tahseen Aliahmad and Kinnan Abdalhamid. The men, all 20 at the time, had been visiting Awartani’s grandmother for Thanksgiving. They were smoking cigarettes and speaking a mix of English and Arabic as they walked near the University of Vermont campus after dusk. Two of them were wearing traditional Palestinian scarves known as kefﬁyehs. The jury deliberated for several hours before reaching its verdict after a weeklong trial that saw testimony from the three men, who recounted how their stroll end-

ed in bloodshed, and defense and prosecution psychiatric experts who offered differing views of Eaton’s mental health and criminal culpability. Eaton, 51, stared ahead blankly as the verdict was read, standing alongside his lawyers — public defenders whom he tried to fire last week over his concerns that his defense hadn’t been “adequately presented.” Judge John Pacht, who blocked Eaton’s midtrial bid to act as his own lawyer, ordered him jailed pending sentencing, which has yet to be scheduled.

that Kyiv has offered “dozens of diplomatic proposals on how to end this war with dignity, guarantee security, and prevent new Russian invasions.” “Ukraine’s energy sector, critical infrastructure, and our food exports must stop being targets for Russia, and this will lead to matching deescalation steps on our part,” he said. European leaders, fearing Moscow has malicious inten-

tions on their continent, are keen to put further pressure on Putin to withdraw from Ukraine, but the Russian leader has given no indication he is ready to give up his goals. The Russian bombardment of Zaporizhzhia late Sunday hit apartment blocks, a university and a shopping mall, among other sites, and wounded ﬁve people, Zelenskyy said on social media Monday.

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4A ■ Tuesday, September 22, 2026 ■ theadvocate.com ■ The Advocate

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HUNGARIAN

Continued from page 1A honored throughout the weekend. The festival was born out of the Hungarian dance celebration the community has hosted for more than a century. Interest has ballooned in recent years, prompting the Árpádhon Hungarian Settlement Cultural Association, which organizes the events, to add a second date, culminating in a visit in March from the president of Hungary. What makes the festival so special, said Mindy Starkey, the president of the cultural association, is its mixture of Hungarian culture and good old-fashioned fun. “We have stayed true to what this festival has been built around, and that is the harvest dance,” Starkey said. “We made sure our food was authentic, our dancing, our costumes, our main attractions and we’re also bringing some familyfriendly fun to Livingston Parish that they don’t have with another festival.” On Monday, 18-wheelers full of carnival equipment and campers for the traveling carnival employees were brought onto the fairgrounds, a local piece of property lent to the association. To accommodate the festival, organizers have added electricity and running water to the property. The preparations for the festival

Frozen cabbage rolls are stacked in a refrigerator at the Hungarian Tourism Center on Friday in preparation for the Hungarian Harvest Festival.

Troy Flores fills in ruts on the Hungarian Harvest Festival grounds on Friday.

STAFF PHOTOS By PEARL SPURLOCK

for the largest rural Hungarian settlement in the country, which has called Livingston its home since the late 19th century. “None of us has ever done anything of this magnitude,” Starkey said. The Hungarian community, nestled between Albany and Springﬁeld, has held on to its roots and cultural traditions for generations, amid a world of constant change. Erdey attributes that to its values. “We care about each other, we look after each other,” Erdey said.

began in July 2025, when the Lieutenant Governor’s Ofﬁce approved the idea, and members from all corners of the community have come together to make it a success. Every Tuesday for the past three months, 20 women have gathered to prepare cabbage rolls, a clas-

sic Hungarian dish of stuffed cabbage, which will be offered throughout the weekend. Thousands of rolls, each handmade, are spread throughout refrigerators in the community. Decorations and costumes for the dancers were also made by volunteers. The Springﬁeld and Albany high

school baseball teams are pitching in, too. The players will pick up trash on the grounds throughout the weekend alongside the local Boy Scouts. The Albany High School band, which has learned to play traditional Hungarian music, will perform for the crowd. The festival is a big undertaking

that federal officials say could attract up to $50 billion in privatesector investment. Neighboring West Feliciana is home to one of the state’s two nuclear power plants, River Bend near St. Francisville. West Feliciana Parish President Kenny Havard said he has taken part in the talks and has also spoken to officials at Curio Energy, a startup company pitching a fuelrod recycling plant. Courreges said officials with Curio have participated in some of the state meetings with local officials. Curio wants to build a plant to recycle spent rods now being stored at nuclear plants across the nation into reusable nuclear fuel or into

other material for commercial and medical purposes, according to the company. In addition to River Bend, West and East Feliciana have ample land and Mississippi River and railroad access to attract nuclear industry companies, ofﬁcials have pointed out. Havard said he believes Louisiana may have three or four potential areas for one of the campuses. He stressed the preliminary nature of the discussions in the Felicianas. “There’s been nothing set in stone, no property purchased or bought, you know, any of that stuff, but we are having conversations,” he said. Oliveaux cautioned that he

didn’t know what talks other East Feliciana officials may have had, noting the concept is still in the early stages and would not move forward without public input first. Courreges said the state isn’t ruling out locating different nuclear industries in different parts of the state. Officials with Curio — based in Washington, D.C. — couldn’t be reached for comment. Company CEO Ed McGinnis spoke to Louisiana lawmakers in a committee hearing last year. McGinnis, a Jefferson Parish native, said material from the recycled rods is an untapped energy source. McGinnis said the spent rods, which would be held in special-

ized containment, could be moved to the recycling site by road, rail or water. He pointed out that the federal government’s site for permanent storage for nuclear waste, Yucca Mountain in Nevada, hasn’t opened nearly three decades after its planned start date. Spent nuclear fuel rods are being stored at the nuclear power plants where they were used, including River Bend and Waterford 3, in St. Charles Parish. Operations often use lined water tanks to cool the rods for several years and then put them into dry storage.

Yates said about the May election. “You take your losses and move on, Continued from page 1A and I’ve always been a big believer that just because one path doesn’t work, doesn’t mean that there isn’t another path to get you where you of St. George. “People can choose to go wherev- need to be.” er they want to go; we’re just creating an additional choice there,” How it would work Yates said. “We’re not taking opAs a general rule, Louisiana tions away. We’re just adding op- charter schools can’t start opertions to the table.” ating without ﬁrst applying for a Earlier this year, voters both charter with the local school board, statewide and in East Baton Rouge which would have to be the East Parish rejected an amendment to Baton Rouge Parish School Board. form a new public school district However, the Legislature added in St. George. an exception in recent years. A But Yates said on Monday that Type 2 charter program can now talks about a possible charter net- bypass the local school board and work, as an alternative to a public apply directly to the state board of school system, were happening education if it enlists a corporate or nonproﬁt partner. long before that. A Type 2 charter school, the type “It was hard; it was painful,”

of charter focused on in this plan, is either a new school or a preexisting public school that has been converted. Although approval would come from the state Board of Elementary and Secondary Education, not the parish school board, Yates emphasized that he has spoken with both local and state education ofﬁcials about the plan. While details of how the partnership would operate are still being worked on, Yates said he is optimistic that the ﬁrst school from the partnership would be up and running in 2028 after going through the required state approval process. The mayor said the new charter could potentially be an entirely new building or occupy an existing structure, like the inactive

Westminster Elementary facility. Charter schools looking to open in August 2028 can apply for BESE approval starting in February. Once the partnership is developed, a local board would oversee the charter school operators. The city won’t bear the brunt of the costs for the schools but is working on building a city recreational facility that would support and attract them. “The only way this works is if charter operators want to come, and I can assure you that is most certainly the case,” Yates said. Inside St. George’s boundaries, there are already multiple charter programs, including two Type 1 charters authorized by the parish school district: BASIS Materra and Great Hearts Harveston. Noemi Donoso, CEO of New

Schools for Baton Rouge, said New Schools has supported some of the already existing charters in the city, and that it would work with reliable charter operators to support launching or expanding more programs in the area from this partnership. New Schools is a nonprofit corporation that recruits, provides financial support and helps build facilities for charter schools. The nonprofit works directly with charter operators to provide grants and, recently, served as the corporate sponsor for local Type 2 charter programs. “There are excellent charter schools that are (already) operating and serving families,” Donoso said about St. George. “There are a number of high-quality charter operators that are very interested.”

NUCLEAR

Continued from page 1A part of the state soon. “We’re visiting different areas saying, ‘Hey, here’s the kind of things that are out there that might be part of it. Is there anything you’ve got an interest in?’ ” said Patrick Courreges, a state energy department spokesperson. One such meeting took place with East Feliciana ofﬁcials late last week, said Police Juror Richard Oliveaux. The jury is considering whether to support the state’s effort to land a “Nuclear Lifecycle Innovation Campus,” a designation

CHARTER

DIESEL

Continued from page 1A Faucheux, the president of the Louisiana Mid-Continent Oil and Gas Association, a trade association formed nearly a century ago when oil companies started building the Gulf Coast refineries that now produce most of the nation’s diesel, gasoline and jet fuels. “Without available capacity to redirect supply, halting the export of American diesel would force refineries to reduce production, which would also decrease the production of gasoline,” Faucheux said Wednesday in a statement. “This is a misguided proposal that would cause more harm and increase, not decrease, costs for American families and businesses.” When asked about those comments during a Wednesday afternoon news conference, Landry said he has heard from Faucheux and from big oil company executives. “I get it,” Landry said. “The majors out there, those that are exporting, are making record profits and I don’t have a problem with them making those particular profits. The American citizens should not be subsidizing Europe’s problems at a time when Europe refuses to help America.”

Landry also noted that his tweet also suggested enacting exemptions and waivers to the rules that require small refineries to pay about $13 more per barrel for crude oil. He said the small reﬁneries produce about 10% of the nation’s fuel supplies.

Others raise concerns Faucheux’s statement echoes comments by U.S. Secretary of Energy Chris Wright during a Thursday interview with The Daily Caller, a right-wing news source. Wright also said a diesel export ban would force a reduction in reﬁning, due to a lack of domestic pipeline capacity and storage, and that would result in an increase in fuel prices. American Fuel & Petrochemical Manufacturers, a Washington-based trade association, also fretted that the ban wouldn’t work. AFP, as the group is commonly known, pointed out that U.S. refineries make about 5.3 million barrels of distillate fuel per day, of which Americans use about 3.6 million barrels per day. “If exports are banned, refiners cannot simply stockpile unlimited diesel. They would have to reduce production. Because gasoline and diesel are produced together, producing less diesel also means producing less gasoline,” AFP said in a statement. Professor Gregory Upton at LSU’s Energy Institute

explained that, while global changes in supply and demand affect all costs, U.S. prices tend to be lower because of transportation costs and local market conditions. Basic economic theory strongly suggests that domestic diesel prices would fall and international prices would rise if American exports are banned. “The magnitude of the domestic effect would depend on how much diesel could be stored or moved from exporting regions to other U.S. markets, and on how reﬁners responded,” Upton said. Because diesel, gasoline and other fuel products are generally made using interconnected processes, “the scope for changing their relative yields is limited,” Upton added.

A nationwide debate Landry waded into a growing push by agricultural state politicos and GOP candidates worried about how their farmers are going to pay for harvesting, which is about to begin, and whether they will blame Republicans for the skyrocketing fuel prices at the midterm election polls. Rural areas, for the most part, have strongly backed President Donald Trump. But then, so has the oil industry. Over the weekend, U.S. Sen. Chuck Grassley, RIowa, and some of the GOP congressional delegation in that state urged Trump to

enact a diesel embargo, as was done in the 1970s when high fuel costs inﬂated grocery prices. “High diesel prices ARE KILLING FARMERS INCOME,” Grassley wrote in his X post. Though much of Washington was closed because of Yom Kippur, one of the

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

holiest days for the Jewish religion, the issue got a lot of talk. U.S. Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins told reporters that Trump had called her Monday to discuss diesel prices, reported Politico, a political trade publication. And legislation has been introduced by Rep. Tim Bur-

chett, R-Tenn. The White House and Louisiana’s congressional delegation, which includes the House’s top two leaders, were unable to immediately comment. Email Mark Ballard at mballard@theadvocate. com.

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The Advocate ■ theadvocate.com ■ Tuesday, September 22, 2026 ■ 5A

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U.K. to offer Saudis aerial refueling More to help repel Houthi attacks

BY JILL LAWLESS Associated Press

ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO By MARKUS SCHREIBER

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz walks ahead of a news conference Monday at the Christian Democratic Union headquarters in Berlin.

German leader faces tough time after election defeats Merz stands by vow to stay in office

BY GEIR MOULSON Associated Press

BERLIN — German Chancellor Friedrich Merz stood by his vow to stay in office Monday after his party suffered two more regional election defeats and was voted out of a state legislature in a humiliating first. But he faces a struggle to keep his reform agenda intact. Minutes after polls closed on Sunday, the unpopular Merz said he planned to stay on as leader of both Germany and his centerright party, and said that he would push through reforms to Europe’s biggest economy. Hours later, final results underlined the extent of what Merz conceded was a “disaster” in MecklenburgWestern Pomerania, an eastern region on the Baltic Sea coast. His centerright Christian Democratic Union fell just below the 5% of the vote needed to keep seats in the regional parliament, the first time that has happened in 77 years of modern Germany’s federal republic, after losing more than half its support. The far-right Alternative for Germany finished as the strongest party. In Sunday’s other election, the CDU dropped to second place in Berlin behind the hard-left Left Party, which is in pole position to lead the next city government — though Merz’s party could, depending on how coalition talks go, still retain city hall. But after days of speculation about Merz’s future, there were no prominent public calls Monday for his departure and no sign of a challenge. The chancellor said no one raised any “personnel questions” in party leadership meetings Sunday or Monday. “It is the historic task of the (governing) coalition here in Berlin and the political center as a whole to make our country fit for the coming years,” Merz said. “Extremists suggest that there are easy solutions. But everyone who has ever governed knows there are no easy solutions.” At the same time, he ac-

knowledged that the CDU needs to work on its profile. He said that it “no longer has satisfactory answers to too many questions, and we will and must change that.” Neither of the states that voted Sunday is a political heavyweight. The CDU’s 2023 win in Berlin was its only one in the past 25 years in the capital, which has tended to lean left. The party was already weak in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania. But the results added to the headwinds Merz faces after a stinging defeat by the far-right, anti-immigration Alternative for Germany, or AfD, two weeks ago in Saxony-Anhalt, another region in the formerly communist east, damaged his authority and set off speculation that he might be replaced. While AfD was the strongest party in MecklenburgWestern Pomerania, the center-left Social Democrats — the junior party in Merz’s national governing coalition — were fairly close behind after a campaign focused squarely on the state governor, Manuela Schwesig, as a bulwark against the far right. That polarization helped squeeze other mainstream parties, including the CDU. A left-leaning three-party coalition under Schwesig would have a majority in the new regional legislature. Schwesig and others in the governing parties have cast doubt on aspects of the federal government’s reform agenda, which is meant to bolster a chronically sluggish economy. The reform plans include a potentially painful overhaul of the creaking pension system and of the healthcare system. A proposal to scrap a rule allowing people who have paid pension contributions for 45 years to retire early without taking a financial hit has drawn particular criticism. The Social Democrats’ national leaders said Monday that they stand by the coalition. But they made clear that they will seek at least some changes to the plans. Vice Chancellor Lars Klingbeil, who is also the finance minister, said that “saying we will ignore what voters told us in three state elections won’t work.”

Pakistan says strikes in Afghanistan kill 28 militants BY MUNIR AHMED and ABDUL QAHAR AFGHAN Associated Press

ISLAMABAD — Pakistani fighter jets on Monday struck sites in eastern Afghanistan that Pakistani ofﬁcials described as suspected militant hideouts. Pakistan said 28 militants were killed, while authorities in Kabul reported at least three civilian deaths. The strikes near the countries’ shared border marked a renewed escalation in tensions, raising the prospect of further cross-border hostilities. They also threatened to complicate mediation efforts by regional powers, including China. The strikes came after Pakistan warned that it could target militants inside Afghanistan following

two deadly attacks on Pakistani security forces near the border in recent days. The United Nations Mission in Afghanistan, known by its acronym UNAMA, said in a social media post on X that it had conﬁrmed that “at least three civilians, including a man, a woman and a girl, were killed and four injured in apparent airstrikes” in Afghanistan’s Kunar province in the early hours of Monday. UNAMA said it had documented over 1,100 civilian deaths and injuries in Afghanistan from crossborder violence so far this year. “We reiterate our call for respect for international humanitarian law to prevent civilian casualties,” it added.

ABOARD THE BRITISH PRIME MINISTER’S PLANE — Prime Minister Andy Burnham said Monday that Britain has agreed to provide limited military support to Saudi Arabia to repeal attacks by Iran-backed Houthi rebels in Yemen. Burnham told reporters as he ﬂew to the United Nations General Assembly in New York that he had agreed the Royal Air Force will provide air-to-air refueling of Saudi planes. The agreement is for a matter of weeks, but Burnham said it will be kept under review. The conflict between the Houthis and Yemen’s Saudibacked government has reignited, with Houthis aiming missile and drone strikes on Saudi Arabia, including one that targeted Riyadh on Saturday before being intercepted. The Houthis also declared a blockade on Saudi shipping in the Bab el-Mandeb Strait and the Red Sea, attacking Saudi-linked vessels and oil facilities inside the kingdom, the world’s top oil exporter. The Houthis advanced inside Yemen earlier this month, seizing the crucial port city of Mokha and key

ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO By JONATHAN BRADy

Britain’s Prime Minister Andy Burnham gives a speech Monday during a reception at 10 Downing St. in London. Red Sea islands allowing them to better monitor shipping trafﬁc through the Bab el-Mandeb, through which some 12% of world trade normally passes. Burnham said he was “acting to secure the interests of Britain and the wider region, because of course Saudi Arabia has been experiencing attack, is looking at potential further disruption, and we need to keep those pathways (for oil) open.” Britain has condemned the Houthi attacks and said

the U.K. will “work with partners to support regional stability, protect civilians and support humanitarian access.” U.K. officials had previously declined to comment on “operational matters” but noted that Britain and Saudi Arabia have a close defense partnership. The U.S., which bombed the Houthis under the Biden and Trump administrations, has shown no interest in getting involved military this time around.

U.K. officials say the agreement will start in the coming days, and involve one RAF Voyager refueling Saudi planes on “defensive” missions. The Associated Press reported last week that Saudi Arabia has asked its allies, including France, Britain, Pakistan and Egypt to deploy air-defense support to the region to help defend against missiles and drones ﬁred by Houthis and other Iran-backed groups on the kingdom.

Iran’s military warns U.S. over escalation By The Associated Press Iran’s Revolutionary Guard warned Monday that it would “change the geography of the war” if the United States escalates the conﬂict. A spokesperson for Iran’s paramilitary Revolutionary Guard, Hossein Mohebbi, said that “the war is not over” and warned that Iran would change its weapons, military tactics and targets if the conﬂict with the U.S. escalates. “We will certainly change the geography of the war,” Mohebbi said in a statement carried by Iranian state media. “We will certainly bring new weapons with new capabilities into the battle.” He

said the Guard had prepared for a long-term war. “Our targets will no longer necessarily be the same as before,” he said, according to the Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting, adding that Iran has targets that have not yet been struck. The more than six-month war began with U.S. and Israeli strikes on Iran on Feb. 28. The conﬂict has included repeated attacks and efforts

to negotiate an end to the ﬁghting, with no agreement reached to reopen the Strait of Hormuz or revive talks over Iran’s nuclear program. Meanwhile, the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations Center said a tanker was struck by an “unknown projectile” as it headed into the Strait of Hormuz. Two crew members sustained minor injuries. The UKMTO said Monday

the vessel is reportedly continuing to its next port of call under its own power. No reports indicated any environmental impact at this time. Tehran has asserted control over much of the Strait of Hormuz since the U.S. and Israel launched the war on Feb. 28. In peacetime, about 20 million barrels — roughly a ﬁfth of the world’s oil supply — passed through Hormuz each day.

Ex-Haitian official, 17 others appear in U.S. court All accused in 2021 plot to kill country’s leader

BY DAVID FISCHER Associated Press

MIAMI — A former Haitian government official and more than a dozen other people appeared Monday in federal court in Miami on charges related to the 2021 assassination of Haitian President Jovenel Moïse. Joseph Badio, a former Haiti Ministry of Justice employee, was brought into the Florida court in a wheelchair. The hearing happened a day after he and 17 others described as Colombian mercenaries were flown to the United States from Haiti, where they had been in custody. They’re among 30 people charged in the indictment, including Christian Sanon, a Palm Beach County, Florida, resident and dual HaitianAmerican citizen who was already preparing to face trial next week. Authorities said he aspired to be Haiti’s president. South Florida served as a central location for planning and ﬁnancing the plot to oust Moïse and replace him with someone of the conspirators’ choosing, U.S. authorities have alleged. At least nine people so far have been convicted at trial or through guilty pleas.

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BUSINESS T H E A D V O C AT E.C O M/news/business

DOW 52,048.83 366.19 0.71%

NASDAQ 27,122.09 599.55 2.26%

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FROM WIRE REPORTS

Wall Street rallies, bond yields ease

NEW YORK — Wall Street climbed to the edge of its all-time high on Monday, and stocks rallied worldwide after oil prices and yields in the bond market surrendered their market-rattling gains from last week. The S&P 500 jumped 1.5% and pulled within 0.4% of its record set last month. The Dow Jones Industrial Average added 366 points, or 0.7%, and the Nasdaq composite leaped 2.3% to its own all-time high as chip stocks and other companies in the artiﬁcial-intelligence industry led the way. Stocks got help from the price for a barrel of Brent oil falling 3.4% to $100.34. While that’s still much higher than its roughly $72 price from earlier this summer, it’s down from the nearly $110 it touched last week. Oil prices have been swinging up and down as some crude from the Middle East is able to sail through the Strait of Hormuz to get to customers, though nowhere near as much as the industry would like because of the war with Iran. The average price for a gallon of regular gasoline across the United States has already climbed to nearly $4.48, according to AAA. That’s up from less than $4.32 just a week earlier and from $3.18 a year ago. Monday’s pullback in oil prices helped lower the pressure coming from the bond market. The yield on the 10-year Treasury eased to 4.95% from 5.01% late Friday after crossing above the 5% threshold last week for the ﬁrst time since 2023.

Ethan Allen starts search for a new CEO NEW YORK — Home furniture and furnishing retailer Ethan Allen Interiors Inc. announced that it has started a search for a new CEO to succeed Farooq Kathwari, who has been at the helm of the publicly traded company for nearly 40 years. The Danbury, Connecticutbased retailer said Monday it has hired a nationally recognized executive search ﬁrm that is considering both internal and external candidates. It said the board is committed to announcing its next CEO no later than June 30, 2027. That’s the date on which Kathwari’s current contract is scheduled to end. The company said that Kathwari will remain a nonexecutive member of the board after June 30 until the company’s 2027 annual shareholder meeting. Kathwari has been president of the retailer since 1985 and chairman and CEO since 1988, according to the company’s website. The announcement comes after investor Doug Bergeron, who owns a more than 5% stake in Ethan Allen, shared publicly earlier this month that he had launched his own search for a new CEO in advance of the company’s annual shareholders’ meeting

Social Security phasing out paper checks People still receiving Social Security benefits in the mail need to prepare for electronic changes as paper checks are being phased out soon. The Social Security Administration plans to complete the transition to electronic payments for beneficiaries by the end of this year, according to the agency. Federal law and Executive Order 14247, which went into effect Sept. 30, 2025, require federal benefit payments to be made electronically, with limited exceptions. If you’re still receiving benefit payments by paper check, the administration encourages switching to electronic payments as soon as possible. “Switching now ensures you receive your Social Security or Supplemental Security income quickly and securely,” the administration said. Beneficiaries can create or sign in to their Social Security account at www.ssa.gov/myaccount and provide bank account information to receive payments through direct deposit.

S&P 500 7,764.70 114.20 1.49%

EURO 1.1467 -0.0020 -0.17%

CRUDE OIL 95.78 -4.52 -4.51%

GOLD 4,345.80 -40.10 -0.91%

6-MO T-BILLS 4.31 0.04 0.94%

30-YR T-BONDS 5.28 -0.05 -0.86%

Fed official: Iran war pushed rate hike BY CHRISTOPHER RUGABER AP economics writer

WASHINGTON — A top Federal Reserve ofﬁcial said Monday that the renewal of combat in the Middle East in August was a key reason she supported raising borrowing costs last week, when she also penciled in a second rate hike for later this year. Susan Collins, president of the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston, said in an interview with The Associated Press that she agreed with the Fed’s decision Wednesday to lift its benchmark interest rate by a quarter-point to about 3.9%. She also expects that the Fed will keep rates unchanged next year, she added. “I did not see the inﬂation progress I was hoping to see,” she said. “Geopolitical developments sug-

gest that we could continue to see additional pressures push on the energy side. “There were reasons to see an increased likelihood of some of the scenarios in which inflation gets stuck above 2%,” she added, referring to the Fed’s 2% inflation target, which it has not hit for more than five years. Collins was the second Fed official Monday to outline their thinking about rates, along with Austan Goolsbee, president of the Chicago Fed, who spoke earlier in London and then addressed a roundtable of reporters. Both spoke about inflation pressures arising from supply shocks, such as the war in Iran, as well as from solid business and consumer spending. Neither Collins nor Goolsbee have a vote on the Fed’s rate decisions this year, but they participate

in the meetings where rate changes are discussed. Goolsbee will have a vote next year, while Collins will have a vote in 2028. Collins also said that businesses in her district, which includes Massachusetts, Connecticut, Maine, Rhode Island and Vermont, continue to express concern about high costs. Many of those companies expect they may have to pass rising costs on to their customers, which could push up measured inflation. Goolsbee, for his part, said that the central bank may have to cause economic pain in the form of higher unemployment to combat stubbornly high inflation. Goolsbee said that the Fed is facing a series of persistent supply shocks that have driven up inflation, including higher oil prices from the Iran war and tariffs. Typically, Goolsbee noted, the central

bank would essentially wait for such shocks to fade and inflation to fall on its own rather than raise borrowing costs. But faced with an ongoing series of persistent supply shocks, the Fed now has little choice but to hike rates, Goolsbee said. The increases are needed to lower consumer and business demand to a level consistent with reduced supply, he added, which should bring inflation back to the Fed’s 2% target. “The only way to bring inflation down is to raise rates and narrow the gap between supply and demand,” he said in a written copy of his remarks. “Forcing inflation back to target in the short run means pushing employment below target. ... In the short run, supply shocks force a difficult trade-off” between the Fed’s goals of low inflation and maximum employment.

States settle lawsuit over Paramount-Warner merger Key hurdle cleared to seal $81 billion deal

BY WYATTE GRANTHAM-PHILIPS and MICHAEL R. SISAK Associated Press

CHICAGO — Twelve states and Hollywood writers challenging Paramount’s buyout of Warner Bros. Discovery agreed to settle their lawsuits on Monday, effectively paving the way for the $81 billion mega merger to cross the finish line, with some new commitments from the company. The blockbuster deal will still bring together two of Hollywood’s oldest studios, key TV networks like CBS and CNN and streaming platforms HBO Max and Paramount+, as well as decades-old libraries with titles ranging from “Harry Potter” to “Top Gun.” But among terms of Monday’s agreement announced by California Attorney General Rob Bonta — who led the states’ case — Paramount pledged to increase film production in the U.S., commit millions of dollars to a fund aimed at supporting workers who are displaced by the merger and establish monitoring of editorial independence of the company’s news operations. The settlement still needs a final sign-off by a judge. Bonta said Monday’s agreement was about “protecting people’s careers, the lives they’ve built here in California, the livelihoods their families rely on” — but he maintained it was not a vote in support of the merger. “I don’t think these two companies should merge,” Bonta said in a Monday press conference. “But that’s not something that we are focused on with our resolution here.” Paramount CEO David Ellison welcomed the settlement, which he said marked “complete clearance for this merger.” He added that “bringing Paramount and Warner Bros. Discovery together will build that stronger Hollywood, creating expanded opportunity for our people and even more great entertainment for audiences around the world.” The coalition of states — including entertainment heavyweights like California and New York — sued to block the merger in July, alleging a Paramount-Warner combo would “extinguish competition” and lead to fewer choices for consumers, particularly movie theatergoers and cable customers across the U.S. The Writers Guild of America also filed

ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO By JAE C. HONG

Twelve states and Hollywood writers challenging Paramount’s buyout of Warner Bros. Discovery agreed to settle their lawsuits on Monday, effectively paving the way for the $81 billion mega merger to cross the finish line, with some new commitments from the company. suit, and both challenges were headed toward a full antitrust trial set to kick off in March. The WGA separately confirmed Monday that it settled its case, too. “We continue to believe the merger will cause damage to writers and the industry at large,” the guild said in a statement. “Now that the Attorneys General have settled with Paramount, however, as a nonprofit, the WGA must contend with the reality of forging ahead alone, with no backing from government enforcers, with a complex antitrust lawsuit that would cost millions of dollars to pursue through trial.” The union added that Paramount had agreed to prohibit writer layoffs at CBS News for five years and to pay $17.5 million to WGA’s health fund, along with attorneys’ fees from the litigation. Paramount previously agreed to delay its transaction well into next year so the challenges could make their way through court.

It then quickly called for a settlement — arguing that it had satisﬁed all regulatory clearances worldwide (including from the Trump administration’s Justice Department), saying that the states’ lawsuit, in particular, was its “ﬁnal obstacle.” As reports of the states reaching a settlement with Paramount emerged Monday, critics decried the deal — while warning of what further consolidation could mean in an industry already controlled by just a few major players. “Today, billionaires have yet again bribed, censored, and bullied their way to the top,” Alvaro Bedoya, senior adviser at the American Economic Liberties Project and a former commissioner of the Federal Trade Commission, said in a statement. “Layoffs will follow. People from L.A. to Atlanta will lose their jobs, small businesses will lose their contracts, your cable bill and movie ticket will be even more expensive.”

Coalition to build more representative language data sets for AI Gates Foundation leading charge BY JAMES POLLARD

Associated Press

NEW YORK — The Gates Foundation is convening Anthropic, Google, OpenAI Foundation and dozens of other organizations to help make artiﬁcial intelligence more accessible in underrepresented languages. The partners — 60 in total, according to Monday’s announcement — include frontier AI labs, corporations, philanthropies and others already working to expand the number of languages available in AI tools that the Gates Foundation believes could combat global

inequality. The coalition aims to reach more than 3 billion people over ﬁve years by better coordinating existing efforts. It’s work that must continue “full speed ahead,” according to Gates Foundation CEO Mark Suzman, even as some of the largest AI companies urge their industry to slow down development of advanced models. Governments must regulate the impacts on cybersecurity or children’s development, he said, while they extend AI’s humanitarian applications to poor communities currently “shut out” from the technology. “Even if AI was frozen right now — which I don’t expect and I am not calling for — we would want to be building these language sets and making them usable with the tools

that we have available right now,” Suzman told The Associated Press. The collaboration follows last week’s Goalkeepers report, where the foundation committed $1 billion toward AI-focused efforts to improve health outcomes, upgrade educational tools and inform small farmers’ practices around the world. Unrepresentative language data could lead a model to mistranslate a pregnant Malawi woman saying her “water has broken” into the direct English that she’d “thrown away water,” the report warned. The “original sin” is that many AI tools were trained on language data scraped from the internet, according to Mozilla Data Collective CEO E.M. Lewis-Jong, whose company was incubated by the Mozilla

Foundation and is now a subsidiary of the not-for-profit Mozilla.org. The data-sharing platform seeks to help communities upload cultural and linguistic data sets on their own terms rather than have that data taken from the web without their explicit consent. “The internet is not a representative space,” she said. “Why would you think that you were going to get a culturally diverse and representative system out of something that was predominantly trained on Reddit?” Details such as the coalition’s governance are still getting hammered out, according to Suzman. A secretariat will track each signatory’s commitments and the Gates Foundation may nudge partners to ﬁll larger gaps when necessary.

The Advocate ■ theadvocate.com ■ Tuesday, September 22, 2026 ■ 7A

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Pope prepares to visit France this weekend Leo XIV may find secular country at odds with Catholic teaching on life BY NICOLE WINFIELD Associated Press

VATICAN CITY — When an ailing Pope John Paul II visited the French shrine at Lourdes in 2004, on his last foreign trip, he delivered a forceful condemnation of abortion and euthanasia as he gasped for air during Mass. Pope Leo XIV is expected to make a similar appeal to protect life when he visits France this weekend and also prays at Lourdes. One of Christianity’s most-visited pilgrimage destinations is especially popular for sick people because of its association with miraculous cures. Leo’s message will likely land differently, since France’s National Assembly in 2024 enshrined abortion as a constitutional right and recently gave ﬁnal approval to a bill allowing adults with incurable illnesses to receive lethal medication. It was the culmination of years of debate over end-of-life care in France and comes as other countries in Europe and the Americas have increasingly legalized assisted dying, though British lawmakers recently voted down a bill allowing it. Catholic teaching holds that life must be defended from conception until natural death. It insists that chronically ill patients, including those in vegetative states, must receive “ordinary” care such as hydration and nutrition, but that “extraordinary” or disproportionate care can be suspended if it is only prolonging a precarious

and painful life. With Leo’s blessing, French bishops decided the official motto of his trip would be “That the world may have life,” suggesting that protecting human life and human dignity will be an overarching theme of the visit. Leo has emphasized the need to protect the dignity of all human life, from immigrants to the sick and unborn, most significantly in his inaugural encyclical on safeguarding human dignity in the age of artificial intelligence. Cardinal Jean-Marc Aveline, president of the bishops’ conference, said he expected Leo would raise the issue. “We already know that the question of life and respect for life — not only from an ethical standpoint, but in many ways — is at the heart of the pope’s message and aligns very closely with the message of the Gospel.” France is a traditionally Catholic country, but adheres to a strict form of secularism in public life based on a 1905 law separating church and state. And like many countries in the once-traditionally Christian West, France has seen the influence of the Catholic Church wane amid secularizing trends and the impact of the clergy sexual abuse scandal on its credibility. Yet French bishops have expressed astonishment at the level of interest in the pope’s Sept. 25-28 visit and say they expect 1 million people will see him. Due to larger-than-expected crowds, or-

ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO By ANDREW MEDICHINI

Pope Leo XIV celebrates a Mass on Sept. 7 at the Basilica Sanctuary of the Mother of Good Counsel in Genazzano, central Italy. ganizers lengthened the perimeter for Leo’s main Mass at the central Place de la Concorde, extending the site beyond the 1.2-mile length of the Champs-Elysees where he’ll parade down in his popemobile. Leo elicited a similar level of interest in secular Spain in June, where he received a seven-minute standing ovation after his speech to the Spanish Parliament. “I think nobody many months ago or a few months ago would have imagined” the level of interest, said Sister Nathalie Becquart, a top Vatican ofﬁcial from France. “But they see what happened in Spain.” Like Spain, France has seen a trend of new adult baptisms in recent years, particularly among conservative young adults, many of whom are attracted to more traditional forms of worship including the old Latin Mass. More than 13,000 adults were baptized at Easter this

year in France, where the number of adult baptisms has more than tripled since 2016, the French bishops’ conference reported. Leo will meet with some of these new converts in a special audience. But experts caution these numbers don’t counteract the overall generational trend of the children of practicing French Catholics no longer going to Mass or baptizing their babies. In 1980, there were 513,000 baptisms in France; in 2024, a total of 186,000. “The new phenomenon of adult baptisms is put into perspective; in fact, it represents only a very modest rebound,” said Christian Marquant, a traditionalist Catholic who blames the secularizing crisis in the French church on the modernizing reforms of the Second Vatican Council. Leo is bookending his trip to France with two events to broaden his message to an international audience. On Day 1, he visits UNESCO to speak

about artificial intelligence and the value of education and art. In his AI encyclical “Magnificent Humanity,” Leo called for robust AI regulation and for developers to slow down — a stance they have recently taken as a group. Leo’s position on AI has put him at odds with the Trump administration, which has encouraged AI innovation so the U.S. can compete with and surpass China. The visit to UNESCO by the American pope is significant, given the Trump administration has once again announced it is withdrawing from the U.N. cultural agency, part of its broader retreat from international organizations. On his final day, Sept. 28, Leo will visit the northern French city of Metz, the birthplace of Robert Schuman, one of the founding fathers of European integration. Leo will participate in a meeting with other faith lead-

ers and then speak at a European conference on peace, at a time of war in Ukraine and beyond. The Vatican took the unusual step of announcing ahead of time that Leo would meet with victims of clergy sexual abuse while in France. The gathering of seven survivors includes one who was an adult when abused, a recognition of the new frontier of the abuse crisis facing the church. The French church has endured a brutal reckoning with its legacy of abuse. An independent report in 2021 estimated 330,000 children had been abused over 70 years by some 3,000 priests and church workers. Despite criticism of the report’s methodology and conclusions, French bishops nevertheless put in place an independent system of compensation for victims that to date has recommended the church pay out more than 20 million euros. In Lourdes, Leo will be reminded of a prickly abuse case inherited from Pope Francis. The façade of one of the Lourdes basilicas was designed by the Rev. Marko Rupnik, one of the Catholic Church’s most famous mosaic artists. Rupnik is on trial in a Vatican court, accused by more than two dozen women of having psychologically, spiritually and sexually abused them starting in the 1990s, including during the creation of his artworks. His case was covered up for three decades by his Jesuit superiors, and even Francis was suspected of having protected his fellow Jesuit. Amid a media outcry, Francis in 2024 ordered a canonical trial, which is ongoing.

Lawyer: Officials haven’t offered details of teen’s ties to mosque shooters BY ALLEN G. BREED

Associated Press

WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. — The attorney for a North Carolina girl accused of helping two teens who carried out a deadly attack on a San Diego mosque says prosecutors haven’t provided enough information to allow him to defend his client. Sarah Santiago, 17, is charged as an adult with three counts of murder by aiding and abetting and one count of conspiracy. Prosecutors say she helped California teens Cain Clark and Caleb Vazquez, who shot and killed three people at the Islamic Center of San Diego on May 18 before killing

themselves. Prosecutors in North Carolina allege Santiago agreed in advance to record and distribute a livestream of the attack made by the shooters and to disseminate their White-supremacist writings. She is also accused of buying a patch bearing a White-supremacist symbol and sending it to one of the gunmen to wear during the attack. But prosecutors have yet to provide information about how or on what dates Santiago allegedly communicated with the shooters, or give details about the alleged agreement to record and disseminate the livestream, her attorney, Alan Doorasamy,

Santiago was arrested late said during a court hearing Press in comments outside very scared and she’s worMonday. the courthouse Monday. ried, but she’s done nothing last month and is being held without bail. Doorasamy filed a formal “She’s a child. Of course she’s wrong.” request for the information — known as a “bill of particulars” — on Friday, and the judge scheduled a hearing Wednesday on the motion. The motion does not seek to force the prosecutor’s office to turn over actual evidence, but rather to provide more information clarifying the allegations against Santiago. Prosecutors have not yet responded to Doorasamy’s request. The Forsyth County District Attorney’s Office did not immediately return a call seeking comment Monday. “She needs to know why she was arrested,” Doorasamy told The Associated

said agency spokesperson Emery Johnson. King’s close relatives work at the agency and gave their permission to release his name, Johnson said. The identity of the second pilot has not yet been released. At least 14 people have died while helping with wildfires in the U.S. this year, the most since 2022 when 25 deaths were recorded, according to government reports. In August, two helicopter pilots died while helping ﬁght a ﬁre in Utah and a helicopter pilot in Colorado crashed into a reservoir. Details about the circum-

stances surrounding Sunday’s crash were not immediately released. It will be investigated by the Federal Aviation Administration and the National Transportation Safety Board. The Super Puma helicopter had been using a water bucket to help suppress the fire when it went down near a lake, said Benjamin Cossel, a spokesperson with the Federal Complex Incident Management Team overseeing the firefighting response. The Alaska forestry and fire agency called the deaths a devastating loss for the entire wildland firefighting community.

OVER 50? UNLIMITED FOR JUST Firefighting helicopter crashes near Yosemite, killing both pilots $35/MONTH. BY REBECCA BOONE Associated Press

Two helicopter pilots were killed when their aircraft crashed Sunday afternoon while conducting water drops on a wildfire at Yosemite National Park, ofﬁcials say. The pilots were the only people on board and were employed by the contract aircraft company Precision. One of the pilots was Greg King, who used to work for the Alaska Division of Forestry & Fire Protection and fought several wildland ﬁres in that state before moving to Precision,

British prosecutors charge doctor in the 1994 Rwandan genocide By The Associated Press LONDON — A doctor from Rwanda was arrested in London and charged Monday with crimes related to the 1994 Rwandan genocide, British authorities said. Dr. Vincent Brown, formerly known as Vincent Bajinya, is the ﬁrst person to be charged in the U.K. for taking part in the ethnic geno-

cide in which an estimated 800,000 people were killed, prosecutors said. Brown, 65, was arrested and charged with one count of conduct ancillary to genocide and six counts of conduct ancillary to murder as a crime against humanity. U.K. law allows British prosecutors to bring charges for some international offenses, including genocide and crimes against

humanity, regardless of where they were committed. “The charges relate to allegations that Dr. Brown took part in the genocide against the Tutsi in Rwanda in 1994,” said Frank Ferguson, head of the Crown Prosecution Service’s counterterror division. “He is alleged to have directed and incited acts of murder and genocide carried out by others.”

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8A ■ Tuesday, September 22, 2026 ■ theadvocate.com ■ The Advocate

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Jan Risher

An operatic star is on the rise I met Julia Ernst in March on a night when she looked every bit the diva. She was performing at a salon event in New Orleans. Tony Award winner Christine Ebersole opened the show, and, at 25, Ernst closed it. Whatever star quality is, Ernst has it. Months later, still thinking about that performance, I tracked her down. What I found underneath the shimmer and shine was a 25-year-old woman from Mandeville who still misses her mama and fried shrimp po-boys from Zara’s Lil Giant Supermarket on Prytania Street. Ernst is in her third year at Yale, working toward a second master’s degree in opera performance. This fall, she sings the role of Nedda in a scene from “Pagliacci.” Conductor Gustavo Dudamel, music director of the New York Philharmonic, picked her to sing Leonore when he came to campus to work with the orchestra. In February, she will be Fiordiligi in Mozart’s “Così fan tutte” with Yale Opera at the Shubert Theatre in New Haven, Connecticut. Ernst does not come from a musical family. Her parents do not sing or play instruments. She speaks one language, English, but sings in at least eight: English, French, German, Italian, Russian, Spanish, Czech or Greek. Much of her training at Yale goes into diction classes, getting pronunciations exact. Her love of singing goes back to watching Celine Dion, Mariah Carey and Whitney Houston on YouTube, loving what she calls “the idea of a ballad and kind of stopping time with your voice.” One day she walked up to her mother, Shannon, and announced her plans to sing “My Heart Will Go On” in the school talent show. Until then, her mom had no idea her daughter could sing at all. A voice teacher at Archbishop Hannan High School in Covington later suggested that Ernst try opera. She hasn’t stopped since. At Loyola University New Orleans, she trained as a mezzosoprano until a master class changed her path. Gerald Martin Moore, who now heads Yale Opera, was in town judging a regional round of the Metropolitan Opera’s competition. He heard Ernst sing a mezzo aria and told her that she should consider changing to soprano. Her teacher agreed, and she spent the next year rebuilding her voice around a soprano repertoire, starting with “Donde lieta” from Puccini’s “La Bohème.” A year later, she emailed Moore, reminded him they had met at Loyola, and asked for a shot at Yale. My husband, Julio, grew up listening to opera because his father loved it. As a young man, he spent Saturday afternoons on a canal in El Paso catching bluegill, carp and catﬁsh, listening to Tchaikovsky and Puccini on “Live from the Met.”

T u e s d ay, s e p T e m b e r 22, 2026

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$20M planned for La. roofs Landry redirects funds to fortification program

BY ALYSE PFEIL Staff writer

Gov. Jeff Landry announced Monday that the state plans to redirect $20 million in federal funding originally meant for affordable housing to instead launch another fortiﬁed roof grant program for homes affected by recent hurricanes. After storms in 2020 and 2021

the financial barriers caused homeowners infor our families that are surance rates to shoot up, seeking to fortify their especially in coastal Louihomes,” Landry said. siana, fortiﬁed roofs have “This demonstrates the emerged as one solution strong commitment to for people to save money proactive preparation on insurance premiums. rather than reactive reDemand for grants to help build fortiﬁed roofs Landry building.” in the state so far has far The proposed $20 miloutstripped supply. lion infusion brings the total “The overall goal is to reduce amount that Louisiana has dedi-

cated to fortified roofs to $100 million, Landry said. While insurance companies often give discounts to homeowners with fortiﬁed roofs because they are built to a higher standard to withstand storms, Landry noted that insurance companies will be required to give the premium discounts starting in January. The $20 million for the new program would come from the U.S. Department of Housing and

ä See ROOFS, page 2B

‘Small but mighty project’

STAFF PHOTOS By MICHAEL JOHNSON

Charles Daniel with Geaux Ride leads a group of riders on the completed Phase II of the River Road Levee Trail extension following the ribbon-cutting ceremony at The Hive @ 3rd and Riverview Condominiums in Baton Rouge on Monday.

River Road Levee Trail extended to BR residential developments BY ELLYN COUVILLION Staff writer

Downtown Development District Executive Director Whitney Hoffman Sayal and area dignitaries cut the ribbon on the completed River Road Levee Trail extension on Monday.

The River Road Levee Trail along the Baton Rouge riverfront has been extended by a quarter-mile to reach two major residential developments, allowing them to connect to the Downtown Greenway system. A ribbon-cutting was held Monday on the completion of the extension of the trail. The addition extends the trail from the The Queen casino entrance to offer biking and walking access to two major riverfront residential developments — The Hive @ 3rd apartment complex at 1925 N. Third St. and the Riverview Condominiums at 2045 N. Third St. The apartment and condo complexes comprise more than 200 housing units. It also ties the complexes into the 1.75mile Downtown Greenway, a network of bike and pedestrian paths.

ä See LEVEE TRAIL, page 2B

ä See RISHER, page 2B

Journalist and attorney Bill Bryan dies at 67 He loved politics, blues music BY TYLER BRIDGES Staff writer PROVIDED PHOTO By SARA MCINGVALE PHOTOGRAPHy

Mandeville native Julia Ernst is working on her second master’s degree at yale, studying opera.

Bill Bryan, who pursued his twin passions of politics and music as a TV reporter, campaign consultant, attorney and promoter of the blues, died Friday in

Baton Rouge, his family relate to anyone,” wrote said. Mark Lambert, who said He was 67. The cause he had known Bryan for of death was not immedi40 years. Bryan was best known ately clear. as the good-natured Bryan’s daughters Alifounder of the Louisiana son and Jennifer broke Independent Party in 2016 the news on Facebook, (since dissolved) and as a and that prompted more Bryan than 200 comments from friends president and chairman of the board of the Baton Rouge Blues by Monday. “He was an honest, hard-work- Festival and Foundation. “Bill understood that preserving man who had an ability to

ing a city’s history is about more than buildings, documents or dates,” wrote Fairleigh Jackson, his next-door neighbor. “It is also about the people, music, stories and traditions that give a place its identity.” Bryan could be found most weekday mornings at Louie’s Café, next to LSU’s campus, meeting with his good buddy Pat

ä See BRYAN, page 2B

2B ■ Tuesday, September 22, 2026 ■ theadvocate.com ■ The Advocate

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Defense seeks to toss evidence in Lafayette terrorism trial

a native of Gaza, “suppress the fruits of the Google phone communications on Oct. 7, nization. Man lived and worked isAl-Muhtadi, Counts three and four should accused of participating in the geofence warrants and to compel 2023; portions of the summary furdisclosure of the origin of the idenbe dismissed, the defense argues, Hamas-led attack on Israeli civilnished by the Israeli government briefly in Lafayette ians that left around 1,200 people tiﬁcation.” that describe communications to because Al-Muhtadi applied for a

BY CLAIRE TAYLOR

Staff writer

With his federal trial date in Lafayette approaching, public defenders representing Mahmoud Amin Ya’Qub Al-Mahtadi last week ﬁled motions to dismiss the four terrorism charges against him and to suppress audio recordings and evidence obtained through Google. Federal prosecutors also filed motions recently asking a federal judge to permit various forms of evidence at the trial, including testimony from survivors of the Oct. 7, 2023, attack.

dead, including 49 U.S. citizens. He lived in and worked in Lafayette brieﬂy before his arrest in October, having entered the United States through Dallas and spending time in Oklahoma. Al-Muhtadi pleaded not guilty to all four charges, including two counts of conspiracy to provide material support to a designated foreign terrorist organization, visa fraud and making a false statement in the jurisdiction of the United States. His trial date is set for Jan. 25. Among the motions ﬁled by AlMuhtadi’s attorneys is a motion to

The defense attorneys allege that under the Fourth Amendment of the Constitution, geofence warrants are unconstitutional. They want to know if information from ﬁve geofence warrants identified Al-Muhtadi, alleging they did not. If that is the case and geofence searches were the origin of the government’s investigation, the defense attorneys say all evidence obtained as a result is tainted. The defense also ﬁled a motion to suppress evidence produced through Israeli surveillance and seeks to suppress six audio recordings of Al-Muhtadi’s tele-

which Al-Muhtadi was a party; and any other evidence “obtained by exploitation of the search of the Israeli archive.” The motion alleges the conversations came from an archive of Palestinian citizens’ phone calls that Israel records on a regular basis. Motions also were ﬁled to dismiss all four counts against Al-Muhtadi. The superseding indictment does not allege Al-Muhtadi provided anything or communicated with anyone identiﬁed as Hamas. The indictment says he was associated with another group that is not designated as a foreign terrorist orga-

U.S. visa in Egypt, which is not in a special maritime or territorial jurisdiction of the U.S. The government, meanwhile, is asking to permit at trial various forms of evidence, including witnesses who personally experienced and videos of the Oct. 7 attacks in Kfar Aza and Nachal Oz in Israel and evidence from years before the attack that they say show AlMuhtadi’s sympathy with and membership in a Palestinian militia group. Email Claire Taylor at ctaylor@ theadvocate.com.

Man accused in deputy’s killing ruled incompetent for trial Brother fatally shot during Thanksgiving argument

BY MICHELLE HUNTER

Staff writer

A Marrero man accused of gunning down his brother during an argument on Thanksgiving has been found not mentally competent enough to stand trial, Jefferson Parish court records said. Darius Guerin, 32, was committed into the custody of the Louisiana Department of Health after Judge Donald Foret, of the 24th Judicial District Court, determined he lacked the mental capacity to understand the proceedings against him or assist in

investigators said. his defense. Leaving his service weapon and The decision came down in a gun belt inside his patrol vehicle, Sept. 16 hearing. Guerin is charged with second- Shaquille Guerin went inside. degree murder, obstruction of Darius Guerin, who was also at the residence, began justice and aggravated confronting his brother flight from an officer in about suspicions that connection with the death Shaquille Guerin had of 35-year-old Shaquille harmed his 5-year-old Guerin, a St. John the Bapson, according to the intist Parish sheriff’s deputy. The shooting occurred vestigators. Nov. 27, 2025, at the WagAuthorities have not disclosed what gaman home of the Guerin S. Guerin Darius Guerin bebrothers’ mother, according to Jefferson Parish Sheriff’s lieved happened to his son or why he thought his brother was Office investigators. Shaquille Guerin, an eight-year responsible. veteran of the St. John Sheriff’s Darius Guerin is accused of Office and a married father of walking into a back bedroom and three, had just finished a 12-hour returning armed with a pistol. He patrol shift when he drove to his then shot his brother five times in mother’s house about 5:30 p.m., the back and twice in the side be-

fore dragging Shaquille Guerin’s body out of the house and into the street, investigators said. As Jefferson Parish deputies began arriving to investigate reports of a shooting, Darius Guerin ﬂed the scene in a vehicle. He later led authorities on a high-speed chase that ended in Laﬁtte where he was arrested. Under Foret’s court order, the state Department of Health will determine whether Guerin’s should be kept at the Jefferson Parish Correctional Center in Gretna for treatment through the Jefferson Parish CARES Program or be sent to the Eastern Louisiana Mental Health System in Jackson, according to court records. Email Michelle Hunter at mhunter@theadvocate.com.

STAFF PHOTO By By JAN RISHER

Julia Ernst performs at a salon in New Orleans on March 22 as event organizer, Blake Devillier, looks on from the wings.

RISHER

Continued from page 1B

LEVEE TRAIL

Riders take to the completed Phase II of the River Road Levee Trail extension following the ribbon-cutting ceremony at The Hive @ 3rd and Riverview Condominiums in Baton Rouge on Monday.

Continued from page 1B The extension of the trail was funded through the Louisiana Ofﬁce of Culture, Recreation and Tourism’s recreational trails program and done in collaboration with the city of Baton Rouge, according to the Downtown Development District. Construction costs were $165,000, with $25,000 in engineering costs; 80% of the cost was federally funded, with a 20% local match, said Whitney Hoffman Sayal, DDD executive director. “It’s a small but mighty project,” Sayal said. The two large residential developments had “essentially been cut off from the central business district,” she said. Now walkers, bicyclists and wheelchair users can have easy access to nearby amenities and experience the “downtown quality of life factor,” Sayal said. The trail also ties into one of the goals of Plan Baton Rouge III, to strengthen connections to the Mississippi River and tie into the body of water.

STAFF PHOTO By MICHAEL JOHNSON

Email Ellyn Couvillion at ecouvillion@theadvocate.com.

BRYAN

Continued from page 1B Bergeron and visiting with the other regulars. “We solved the problems of the world each day,” Bergeron said. Bryan grew up in Baton Rouge, graduated from LSU and worked

ROOFS

Continued from page 1B Urban Development and was previously slated to go toward affordable apartment development. But the state is now asking the federal government to approve a reallocation of the money. A public comment period on the change is open until Oct. 19. If the feds agree that Louisiana can move the money, the new grant program would be called Restore Resilient Opportunities for Overhead Fortification, or the Restore ROOF program. The state’s Ofﬁce of Community Development would administer the money. Details about when the program would open, application requirements and funding amounts were not immediately available.

as a TV cameraman and reporter for Louisiana Public Broadcasting, WAFB-TV and the NBC afﬁliates in Baton Rouge. He branched out into working for political candidates, handling the media during Edwin Edwards’ successful return to the Governor’s Mansion in 1991 and the presidential campaign of Bill Clinton in Louisiana in 1992.

Bryan had the itch to switch careers, graduating from Southern University Law School in 1999 and then handling election law cases for attorneys general Charles Foti and Buddy Caldwell. Bryan changed course again to work as an entertainment lawyer. He also served on the board of the Press Club of Ba-

ton Rouge, which held a moment of silence for him at Monday’s meeting. The family has yet to ﬁnalize plans for a memorial service. One thing stood out for Jim Engster, the Baton Rouge talk radio host, when he saw Bryan at Louie’s and at political functions. “He had a perpetual smile,” Engster said.

Earlier this year, Landry and the Legislature allocated $30 million for grants to homeowners to build fortiﬁed roofs through the Louisiana Department of Insurance’s existing fortiﬁed roof grant program. They also rerouted $50 million collected by the Louisiana Citizens Property Insurance Corporation, the state’s insurer of last resort, toward that grant program. Insurance Commissioner Tim Temple joined Landry on Monday to celebrate the effort. “This truly is Louisiana’s future to a more affordable homeowner’s insurance, especially in coastal Louisiana,” Temple said.

LDI initiative gives homeowners $10,000 grants for stronger roofs that can withstand hurricane-force winds. The most recent application period closed in June. Temple said Louisiana has over 15,000 certified fortified roofs, with 9,000 of those being built with state funding and about 5,600 from individuals who built them on their own dime. Still, fortified roofs remain outof-reach for some even with help from the state’s grant program. Homeowners are on the hook for costs over $10,000, along with evaluators and other fees. Some nonprofits are trying to fill the gaps by giving money to homeowners who otherwise could not afford the outof-pocket costs. The $20 million that Landry wants to put toward fortified roofs was originally slated to go to developers for affordable housing in areas impacted by Hurricanes Lau-

ra, Delta and Ida in 2020 and 2021. It was the final tranche of $475 million from the Piggyback Resilience Initiative Mixed-Income, or PRIME, program for building affordable apartments. State ofﬁcials recently sent a letter to developers who had applied for the apartment grant money saying they were ending the program after considering a June statewide housing needs assessment. On Monday, Landry said the state has access to many programs to spur affordable apartment development. He added that when somewhere reaches a critical mass of fortiﬁed roofs, that can help to eventually reduce the whole area’s property insurance premiums. “It really is like a high tide that lifts all boats,” he said.

Demand outstrips supply The new Restore ROOF initiative would be independent of the LDI’s existing fortiﬁed roof grant program. Ofﬁcially called the Louisiana Fortify Homes Program and set up as a lottery system, the

Email Alyse Pfeil at alyse. pfeil@theadvocate.com.

Even though we end up listening to opera more than I ever have before, I don’t have the history with it that my husband does. I asked Ernst about her thoughts on the best ways for those of us who don’t know much about the genre to learn. “Start with something like ‘La Bohème’ or ‘Carmen’ — something that has a lot of heart in it, something that will make you feel something,” she said. “Spotify and Apple Music have so many recordings of great singers singing these roles.” She also encourages young people to look for student nights and free recitals. Away from the stage, Ernst doesn’t listen to much opera at all. In the car, she plays Sade, a habit from riding with her father as a girl, and Michael Jackson, whose “You Are Not Alone” and, unexpectedly, “Liberian Girl” top her list. She admits she felt a bit of impostor syndrome during her first year in New Haven but says those feelings have faded. She loves her life and spending as much time as she does in New York City. However, she still misses home. She credits a small circle for keeping her steady: high school friends, Loyola friends, her parents and grandparents. “It’s important to have people that keep you grounded,” she said, “and help you to stay humble always.” I asked her mother, Shannon Ernst, what it’s like to watch her daughter’s path unfold. She said that when she reflects on the way things have unfolded, she doesn’t think about the performances or awards. She thinks about the hours they spent in the car going to lessons, auditions and competitions. “Just the two of us, driving back and forth,” she said. “Those were ordinary moments at the time, but looking back, they were anything but ordinary.” Julia Ernst will finish her second master’s degree at Yale in May. She’s planning auditions for young artist programs at opera houses in the United States or Europe. She isn’t sure where she will land, but she’s excited about the possibilities. “That part doesn’t go away,” she said, “the amazement at the fact that I get to do this.” Email Jan Risher at jan. risher@theadvocate.com.

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Funerals Today Campanella, Inez

Resthaven Funeral Home, 11817 Jefferson Highway in Baton Rouge at 10am.

Edmonds, Sarah

St. James Episcopal Church at Noon.

Olinde, Marie

Immaculate Conception Catholic Church, 865 Hatchell Lane, Denham Springs, LA at 11am.

Primeaux, Emile

Resthaven Gardens of Memory, 11817 Jefferson Hwy., Baton Rouge at 1:00pm.

Primeaux, Raymond

Resthaven Gardens of Memory, 11817 Jefferson Hwy., Baton Rouge at 1:00pm.

Rogge Sr., Louis St. George 10:00am.

Catholic

Church

St. Amant, Philemon

Rabenhorst Funeral Home, 825 Government Street, Baton Rouge at 11:00am.

Obituaries Hastings, Larry Lee

reer to the children of Ascension Parish. He leaves to cherish his memory his loving wife, Olivia Jackson; his devoted children Edward Jackson Jr. (Mary Lee), Kevin Jackson (Tracy), Keith Jackson, Kenneth Jackson (Kandi Oubre), Kristina Anderson (Jerome), and bonus daughter Tasha Neasman (Thaddius); sister, Oneida Robertson; 9 grandchildren. He was preceded in death by his first wife, Mary Lee Murray Jackson; parents Douglas and Melisha Jackson; bonus son Tyson D. Jackson; sisters Mary Melisha Jackson and Bessie Jackson; brothers Clarence Jackson Sr. and Robert Jackson Sr. Visitation, Thursday, September 24, 2026 5:00pm to 7:00pm, First Pilgrim Calvary Missionary Baptist Church, 11453 Hwy 73, Geismar, LA.Visitation continues Friday, September 25, 2026.9:00 am until religious service at 10:00 am. Pastor, Dr. Marlon Henderson officiating. Interment will immediately follow the service. The family would like to thank everyone for their prayers, love, and support during this difficult time.

Ray is preceded in death by his mother (Elsie Cecile Dumisnil) father (Louis Albert Primeaux), his sister (Betty Primeaux Fruge), and son (Raymond Scott Primeaux). He is survived by his loving wife, Carolyn Stell Primeaux, his daughter, Lisa Primeaux, his granddaughter Lauren Brown (Russ Brown), grandson Austin Primeaux, and great grandsons Russell "Rustin" Brown IV, Hayden Brown. The family requests in lieu of flowers, donations be made in his memory to Tunnels to Towers or a charity of your choice. Family and friends are invited to attend a Graveside Service at 1:00 PM, September 22, 2026, at Resthaven Gardens of Memory, 11817 Jefferson Hwy. in Baton Rouge

Primeaux, Raymond 'Scott'

Lathan, Ronald

Larry Lee Hastings was called home to join his Father in Heaven on September 9, 2026, having finished his race and now resting in the arms of his God and Savior. Larry was born on July 16, 1944, in Topeka, Kansas. As a young man he made his way to San Bernardino, California, where he met the love of his life, Diane. The two were married for 65 years. Larry built a career as a craftsman and business owner of Sunshine Cabinets and in Louisiana, where he spent his later years. He was a guitar player, a lover of history, science, and hunting. In 1980 he accepted Jesus Christ as his Lord and Savior alongside his wife which began of a new journey. He is survived by his beloved wife, Diane; his two sons, Keith and Kurt, five grandchildren; and several great-grandchildren, all of whom carry a piece of him forward. He will be remembered as a craftsman, a musician, a husband and of a family that will carry his spirit for generations to come. Rest in peace, Larry. Your race is finished, and you are home.

Jackson, Edward

Edward Jackson Sr. Edward Jackson, Sr. transitioned from this earthly life on September 12, 2026 at the age of 90. Edward Jackson Sr., a devoted husband, father, educator, coach, mentor, community leader, and proud Southern University Jaguar. Affectionately known as Coach Jackson, Edward dedicated his ca-

Ronald Lathan Sr. was a Native of Erwinville, La and a resident of Bogalusa, he passed away September 14, 2026. He was 60 yrs old. Retired from Waste Management. Memorial Service will be on Friday, September 25, 2026, at New Beachgrove Baptist Church 4420 Crown Avenue Baton Rouge, Louisiana from 11am to 1pm. Celebration of Life will be on Saturday, September 26, 2026, at Bethlehem Baptist Church in Bogalusa, Louisiana, at 11am. Interment will be in the Bogalusa Cemetery.

Primeaux, Emile Raymond 'Ray'

Emile Raymond "Ray" Primeaux- 87, Born in Rayne, LA, passed away peacefully surrounded by family in his home in Alabama, August 25, 2026. Ray spent 4 years as a Radio Intercept Operator for the US Air Force, with 3 of those years being stationed in RAF Kirknewton, Scottland where he intercepted Soviet radar, voice, and Morse Code communications during the Cold War. After his return to the states, he met the love of his life, Carolyn Holmes Stell, while on a fishing trip to Grand Isle. They married at Our Lady of the Isle Catholic Church in Grand Isle and together had two children, Lisa and Scott. Ray had a love like no other for his family, welding, and of course, fishing. He lived his life as a devoted catholic and loved the Lord.

Raymond "Scott" Primeaux, age 50, passed away on March 25, 2020. He was born on December 5, 1969, in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. Scott worked in the shipping industry, where he served as a terminal manager. Outside of work, he enjoyed the simple things in life and especially loved fishing, hunting, and cooking. Scott had a special gift for making people smile, and those who knew him will remember how he could always light up a room with his personality and presence. Scott loved his father and mother, Emile "Ray" and Carolyn Primeaux; his son, Austin; his sister, Lisa Primeaux; and his niece, Lauren Brown and her husband, Russ Brown. Scott will be remembered for his warm spirit, his love of family and friends, and the happiness he brought to those around him. Family and friends are invited to attend Graveside Service at 1:00 PM, September 22, 2026, at Resthaven Gardens of Memory, 11817 Jefferson Hwy. in Baton Rouge.

dria, Louisiana, Jan spent her life giving her heart to the people and creatures who needed it most. She was the mother of five children, and being a mother was one of the greatest joys of her life. She loved her family fiercely - always watching, helping, encouraging, and making sure everyone was okay. She treasured all of her grandchildren and each held a special place in her heart. Jan's love for children naturally found its way into her life's work. After graduating from St. Joseph's Academy and Louisiana State University with a degree in education, she became a dedicated teacher. She spent much of her career teaching sixthgrade science at Southside Junior High School. She loved her students and affectionately referred to them as her "kids". She cared about them, believed in them, and wanted them to know they mattered. Jan was a devout Catholic whose faith was at the heart of her life. She lived her faith through love, compassion, and kindness she showed to others. The faith she so lovingly passed on to her family will remain one of her most enduring legacies. Jan shared her life with her beloved husband, Dietmar Rietschier, and together they built a family filled with love, memories, and the everyday moments that become so precious with time. She is survived by Dietmar; her children, Max Rietschier and wife Lisette, Hannelore Bankston and husband Trevor, Katie Levy and husband Chris, Erick Rietschier, and Helena Linzy and husband Devon; her grandchildren, Liam Rietschier, Luke Bankston, Ella Bankston, Jude Levy and significant other Riley Graff, John Levy, Althea Rietschier, Sylvia Rietschier, Pierce Linzy, Hope Linzy, Bryant Bankston and his wife Claire, and Trevin Bankston; her sister, Colette Pierce Cefalu; and numerous nieces and nephews. She was preceded in death by her parents, Jack and Judy Pierce; her sisters, Jacqueline Pierce Roberson and Judy "Tukey" Pierce; her nephew, Jeff Bihm; and son, David Rietschier. She was, at her core, a nurturer. She loved her people. She loved her "kids". She loved her dogs. She loved her family. And she was deeply loved in return. Visitation at St. Agnes Catholic Church, 749 East Blvd, Baton Rouge from 9:00 am until Mass of Christian Burial at 11:00 am

Thursday, September 24th. Burial will follow at Greenoaks Memorial Park, 9595 Florida Blvd. Pallbearers will be Chris Levy, Trevor Bankston, Jude Levy, John Levy, Luke Bankston, and Liam Rietschier. In lieu of flowers, please send donations to St. Jude Children's Hospital, 501 St. Jude Place, Memphis, TN 38105-1942.

Funeral Home on Wednesday, September 23, 2026, from 12:30 PM until the funeral service at 2:00 PM, conducted by Pastor Jeff Eastwood. Interment at Greenoaks Memorial Park.

Williams, Shirley R.

Singer, Shirley Clark

Beloved wife, mother, and grandmother, Shirley Clark Singer was peacefully called home to the Lord on September 18, 2026, at the age of 91. She was a native of Brazil, Indiana, and a resident of Denham Springs, Louisiana. Shirley was the heart of her family, bringing joy through her wisdom and infectious laughter. As an ordained minister, she devoted her life to serving the Lord, and her faith and powerful prayers were a constant source of strength for those she loved. Though she will be deeply missed, we find comfort in knowing that Shirley is now at peace with her Heavenly Father. Like the butterflies she loved, her faith, the life she lived, and her passing remind us of the beauty of transformation and the promise of new life.

Shirley R. Williams departed this life on September 15, 2026, at the age of 82. Viewing will be held on Wednesday, September 23, 2026, at Pine Grove Baptist Church, 6670 LA-412, Slaughter, La 70777 at 9 am until the religious service at 11 am. Rev. Burnett King will be officiating the service. Interment will follow in the church cemetery. Arrangements entrusted to MJR Friendly Service Funeral Home

How to place an Obituary Notice EMAIL:

obits@theadvocate.com OR CALL FOR MORE INFORMATION:

225-388-0289

Shirley is survived by her daughters Pam Dentro and Terri Poche and husband Ronnie; grandchildren Jessica Harold and husband Cory, Kara Denstel and husband Cory, Michael Poche and wife Bridget, Chase Poche and wife Morgan; and greatgrandchildren Cannon, Landry, Ivy, Clark, Carter, Eppie, Jordyn, Aaron, Adrienne, Saige, and Jude; brother Jim Clark, Sr. and wife Luella, son-in-law Eli Dentro; and numerous nieces and nephews. Preceded in death by her loving husband of 67 years, Clifford Singer, Jr.; mother Ruth Clark Jackson; father Lewis Clark; stepfather Wilbur Jackson; brother James Clark; grandson Ronnie Poche, Jr.; and nephew Edward Singer, Jr.

How to place a Memorial Ad An “In Memory Of” ad, is a way to pay tribute to your loved one. This remembrance is often printed on the anniversary of a loved one’s death. The deadline is two days prior to the day you want your ad to appear. TO PLACE A MEMORIAL AD GO TO: obituaries.theadvocate.com, click submit an obituary and select create a memoriam.

Visitation at Greenoaks

Rietschier, Julia Janet

Julia Janet "Jan" Pierce Rietschier, a beloved wife, mother, grandmother, sister, teacher, and friend, passed away peacefully on September 17, 2026, surrounded by family she loved so deeply. Born on October 23, 1943, in Alexan-

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OPINION T H E A D V O C AT E.C O M/opinions

OUR VIEWS

Bipartisan bill would help former inmates and the industries that want to hire them It is rare for Republican U.S. Rep. Clay Higgins of Lafayette and Democrat U.S. Rep. Troy Carter of New Orleans to agree on something, much less to together spearhead its passage by the House. They deserve credit for doing so last Wednesday on a bill that will help incarcerated people get jobs before they are released, thus helping them build constructive new lives rather than fall into recidivism. As Carter said, “A prison record shouldn’t be a death sentence. Everyone deserves the right to work, rebuild their lives, and contribute to society.” The TWICE Act will make it easier for released prisoners to participate in the Transportation Worker Identification Credential (TWIC) program, which helps them attain jobs in industries related to ports, terminals, refineries, power plants and more. Under TWIC, the Transportation Security Administration already conducts rigorous background checks before workers can be employed in these industries. The TWICE Act doesn’t reduce the level of security one iota, but instead would improve access to TWIC for “returning citizens” through several means, including by giving guidelines to prison officials to help soonto-be-freed inmates “pre-apply” for the program rather than waiting until they are released from custody. Plenty of people are incarcerated for crimes that would not make them a danger to transportation infrastructure, and of course very, very few inmates have any bent toward terrorism. And there is a notable labor shortage for transportation industry jobs, many of which do not entail hands-on responsibility for anything of a critical or public-safety-related nature. The industry itself appears quite confident that the screening process is thorough and effective, and that it already excludes those whose conduct makes them in any way worrisome for the jobs for which they apply. That’s why almost the entire industry supports the TWICE Act, which passed the House by voice vote with not a single registered note of opposition. Among the many organizations endorsing the bill are the American Trucking Association, the American Waterways Operators, the American Association of Port Authorities, the Transportation Institute and the World Trade Center of New Orleans. “A man’s character shouldn’t be measured by how he falls; it should be measured by how he stands back up,” Higgins said. “By cutting red tape and streamlining access to the TWIC program, this legislation will address maritime and transportation workforce shortages in the Gulf of America and Louisiana waterways while extending a second chance to formerly incarcerated Americans.” The bill now goes to the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Technology. As it proved so uncontroversial in the House and has the backing of all the industry groups that know exactly what their security needs are, there is no reason for the committee or the full Senate to dawdle. The Senate should pass the bill without delay.

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR ARE WELCOME. HERE ARE OUR GUIDELINES: Letters are published

identifying name, occupation and/or title and the writer’s city of residence. The Advocate | The Times-Picayune require a street 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.

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YOUR VIEWS

For your convenience, AI can now destroy the world I saw Jacob Coxon on “Meet the Press” recently warning that AI could wipe out the human race. What a mental burden on Gens Z, Alpha and Beta. This is on top of my generation, called Baby Boomers (I hate that name), being the first threatened with the total destruction of human civilization. The atomic bomb, first detonated in 1945, which ushered in this era, was created solely to kill and destroy. Artificial intelligence, on the other hand, is meant to be a convenience to man. Yet in both cases, those creating these contrivances failed to take into account the “side effects.” Bombs that killed more than 70,000 people each in the cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki have morphed into thousands of warheads riding the tips of intercontinental ballistic missiles capable of reaching any place on Earth and killing millions per blast. Now the AI powering all of our various smart gadgets has broken its constraints and, like the Frankenstein

monster of legend, is virtually running around causing mayhem. It’s ultimately capable of shutting down systems, spawning unknown viruses and launching nuclear weapons. And for what? Convenience? Our modern world is the sheer deﬁnition of insanity. And to think the creators of these horrors are the same types who branded indigenous huntergatherers or pastoral peoples “primitive.” They weren’t smart enough to conceive progress, it was said. Well, look at what the smartest people have wrought. All of their brainpower should now be directed at preventing the destruction of human civilization. But nah, these geniuses have in mind the same goal which created this madness in the ﬁrst place: Making money! Are these the people you’re supporting at the polls? Wake up! Oh, I forgot, that’s politically incorrect for some of y’all.

MUHAMMAD YUNGAI New Orleans

Louisiana politicians cut deals with SpaceX while taxpayers shut out As I read and hear of more craziness in the ways we are being governed — most recently Louisiana being seduced by Elon Musk, with little attention to the downside of such a relationship — I am reminded of how often fear is used to sell an idea. This is so, even to the point of having our political leaders sign NDAs out of fear that Texas or another rival state might learn about the deal we have cut with Musk. All this secrecy to ensure that multiple rockets will launch daily from Louisiana. This paranoia is unnecessary but apparently effective for our state leadership. They gave away everything without disclosing exactly what “everything” is. They spent tax dollars, or rather gave up future revenue, in return for the promise of jobs; yet without disclosure of the deal, we as citizens have no ready way to determine if the claims are true or not. This is literally deceitful behavior. What is being touted as capitalism and good business is really a distortion of capitalism. This is business using public funds in order to build proﬁt, while the investors (the public taxpayers) have little decision-making power over how their money is “invested.”

From ‘no call’ to ‘wrong call,’ NFL still penalizing Saints On Jan. 20, 2019, the New Orleans Saints had the NOLA “no call” against the Rams, denying us the chance of victory and a possible run to another Super Bowl. On Sept. 13, against the Lions, we had what can be called the NOLA “wrong call,” which prevented the Saints from winning the game in regulation time. The feeble explanation was that the quarterback’s arm was going forward. I believe that your arm has to go forward whether you throw a forward pass, a sideward pass or a backward pass. In my entire lifespan of watching football, a backward pass is live unless it goes out of bounds. But here we are seven years later, and the NFL is still penalizing the Saints. On a side note, Tom Dempsey kicked a game-winning 63-yard ﬁeld goal to beat this same Detroit Lions team in 1970. The same thing almost happened on Sept. 13 with Daniel Carlson’s 62yard ﬁeld goal attempt, which had the distance but was slightly wide to the right. As Yogi Berra would say, “It was déjà vu all over again.” I do admire the team going for two points to win the game. It should be an exciting season.

DAVID BOHNET Slidell

Rivalry over coaches is college football now

STAFF PHOTO By SOPHIA GERMER

Gov. Jeff Landry talks with residents after the SpaceX announcement on Aug. 25.

The taxpayer/investor not only fails to understand what dividends might be returned, but also is left to pay additionally for any environmental damage, noise pollution, increased public services needed to build such a complex facility, etc. This is simply wrong. When I hear yet another “trust me” from a politician with no proven track record of honesty, I am reminded once again of the importance of the midterm elections. I, for one, will be voting for change.

MICHAEL KUHN New Orleans

Full disclosure: Tulane fan here. I am very amused by the shock, surprise and indignation LSU fans have regarding the Ole Miss anger toward “Fast-Lane” Kifﬁn for departing for his perceived greener pastures at LSU. Have they forgotten how LSU fans treated Nick Saban after he brought them back from the cellar to the pinnacle of college football, only to leave for the Miami Dolphins? Indeed, LSU should revere Saban, as Ole Miss should appreciate Fast-Lane. We at Tulane still love Jon Sumrall. This is college football now, so everyone needs to get a grip.

MARY P. LUPO, M.D. New Orleans

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COMMENTARY What’s in a name, anyway? As part of President Donald Trump’s trade war with Canada that the administration claims isn’t a trade war, the president has signed an executive order, renaming Lake Ontario, “Lake America.” This follows his renaming of the Gulf of Mexico to the “Gulf of America.” These childish antics Cal Thomas help no one, but Trump is not alone in changing names for political and woke purposes. There is a long road in Northern Virginia that for years has been called “Lee Highway.” It passes through Arlington and Fairfax counties. Arlington County politicians decided they didn’t like Confederate General Robert E. Lee, for whom the highway is named, so they changed it to Langston Boulevard, honoring John Mercer Langston, an abolitionist, an attorney and the ﬁrst Black person elected to Congress from Virginia. While that might be considered admirable, the silly part is that once “Langston Boulevard” crosses into Fairfax County, it becomes Lee Highway again. Did Fairfax not receive the memo? Some GPS systems still show Lee Highway in Arlington County, while newer cars with updated GPS show Langston Boulevard. It gets sillier. Columbus Day is now “Indigenous Peoples’ Day,” though my calendar app has both. NY State Senate bill S9316 has changed mother and father to “non-gestational and gestational parent.” Several Army forts had their names changed during the Obama or Biden administrations. Fort Bragg became Fort Liberty. Fort Benning was changed to Fort Moore. Fort Hood was changed to Fort Cavazos. Those other guys were said to have been associated with the racist South. The Department of War, formerly known as the Department of Defense and before that the War Department, restored the historical names of nine U.S. Army installations by re-dedicating them to different military service members who share the same last names as the original Confederate namesakes.

ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO By JEFF ROBERSON

A Google map shows Lake Ontario renamed as Lake America. Don’t get me started on statues. We then have the Washington professional football team (that’s what it was called until the name was changed to the Commanders from the Redskins), though some Indigenous people said they thought the previous name was a “tribute to resilience and warrior traditions.” The Cleveland Indians became the Guardians, though the Atlanta Braves, Kansas City Chiefs, Chicago Blackhawks and the Florida Seminoles kept their names. Redskins suggested skin color. The others got a pass. Then there was Aunt Jemima, who was a real person. Nancy Green was her name. Born into slavery in Kentucky, she moved to Chicago, where she invented the pancake recipe many of us have eaten for years. “Her face on the box, that image on the box, was probably the one way that households were integrated,” Sherry Williams, president of the Bronzeville Historical Society in Chicago, told ABC News. Green’s image was removed by later owners of the brand apparently because they thought Green’s actual face portrayed a stereotypical “Mammy.” It was a similar story with “Uncle

Ben’s Rice.” In the 1940s, food entrepreneur Gordon Harwell and his partners put the image of an elderly African American man dressed in a bow tie on the product’s box, “an image said to have been based on a Chicago maître d’hôtel named Frank Brown.” The title “Uncle” was used instead of “Mr.” because of racial customs in the American South. But the image apparently was thought to look more like “Uncle Tom.” There are many more examples of this virtue signaling. Land O Lakes butter removed the Native American image but kept the land. A felon is now supposed to be referred to as a “justice-involved person” or something similar. An illegal alien is now an “undocumented noncitizen,” though the Trump administration stubbornly refrains. Some believe the left can’t deﬁne a woman. Some may recall the old saying “sticks and stones may break my bones, but words can never hurt me.” That may depend on the words and what they mean at any given moment. Email Cal Thomas at tcaeditors@ tribpub.com.

Trump’s big lie is just bad policy Donald Trump has repeatedly argued — without evidence of any kind — that the 2020 election was rigged against him. Now he’s trying to rig the 2026 election in his favor. He’s not on the ballot in November, of course. But he knows that if Democrats win a majority in at least one chamber of Congress, they will make his last two years in ofﬁce miserable — conducting investigations, issuing subpoenas, summoning Steve Roberts witnesses and demanding answers. Trump warned supporters in August that they would “lose everything” if Democrats took control of Congress and added, “They’re going to impeach me.” The president’s desperation goes well beyond the practical implications of a possible defeat. Emotionally and psychologically, he simply cannot stand the idea of being branded a loser. That’s why he’s so obsessed with the 2020 election; why he denies the polls that show his popularity plummeting; and why he’s sued The New York Times and the publisher Penguin Random House for $15 billion, claiming he was defamed by a 2024 book about his ﬁnances entitled “Lucky Loser: How Donald Trump Squandered His Father’s Fortune and Created the Illusion of Success.” Trump’s plot to purloin the election includes the SAVE Act, which would disenfranchise as many 20 million voters by demanding documents that they do not possess. That measure has stalled in the Senate, but another scheme, redrawing Congressional boundaries to promote Republican candidates, has succeeded in several key states, including Texas. Today, the president is pushing yet another plan to vitiate the vote: mandating the U.S. Postal Service tighten rules governing mail-in ballots, a system used by 48 million Americans in 2024 — including Trump (and me). The strategy has been blocked three times by a federal district judge in Boston,

not Washington. But Trump has often trashed conservative values when it suits his personal and political aims. “Trump’s not a conservative,” said Paul Ryan, the former Republican speaker of the house and vice-presidential candidate. “He’s a populist, authoritarian narcissist. ... He thinks in an authoritarian way, and he’s been able to get a big chunk of the Republican base to follow him because he’s the ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO By JACQUELyN culture warrior.” Then there’s the enormous practical MARTIN problem of revamping the entire votePresident Donald Trump speaks Friday by-mail system less than two months in the Oval Office of the White House in before the election. States like North Washington. Carolina and Delaware have already started sending out mail-in ballots, and others will follow shortly. Indira Talwani, but the administration It’s a recipe for total chaos, as even has appealed her rulings to the U.S. Republican election officials like Don Supreme Court. Millis, chair of the Wisconsin Election Solicitor General D. John Sauer told Commission, readily admit. “There’s a the court that the new postal rules are fundamental concern this thing is not designed “to address the risk that the federal mails will be used to perpetrate going to work,” he told the Associated voter fraud — a particularly pernicious Press. Those fears were aggravated when species of fraud that dilutes the votes an anonymous whistleblower within of lawful voters.” the postal service filed a complaint That would be a noble goal if it were alleging that the planning process true ... but it’s not. It’s a lie. A big, blatant lie. Every single study has con- has been “sloppy and rushed,” a “s- — show” that could lead to “catastrophic cluded that voter fraud is extremely failure” of the electoral system this rare. fall. “Noncitizens are not a large threat “The Postal Service has designed a to our election system currently,” says system to disenfranchise millions of David Becker, the executive director of the Center for Election Innovation & Americans,” said Sen. Richard BluResearch, which has examined the ismenthal, the Connecticut Democrat who received the whistleblower comsue closely. “Even states that are looking everywhere to try to amplify the plaint. “This administration seems hellnumbers of noncitizens ... when they bent on changing the framework on actually look, they find a surprisingly, casting ballots in this country clearly shockingly small number.” for political reasons.” Talwani agreed, noting that the brief In order to shield himself from acfiled by the administration includes “no countability, the president is promotevidence relating to fraudulent mail ing an unconstitutional remedy for a voting.” Moreover, the judge added, problem that does not exist. A courathe scheme was “unconstitutional” geous federal judge has tried stopping because it violated the principle that him three separate times. Now the election rules are set by the states, not Supreme Court should uphold the rule the federal government. of law and derail Trump’s corrupt cruTrump’s power grab directly consade permanently. tradicts traditional conservative doctrine, where as much authority as Email Steve Roberts at sroberts@ possible should rest with local entities, gwu.edu.

My AI assistant is deeply annoying — and that’s the least of it Recent reports of rogue artificial intelligence agents and warnings of human extinction quickly turned our dalliance with AI into a doomsday nightmare. One recent renegade from the bowels of AI research shared predictions of superintelligent, self-improving AI agents destroying mankind within a decade. Jacob Coxon is the 27-year-old superhero of the day, who bolted earlier this month from his employer Anthropic to warn about the power of AI. In a series of X posts, he said Anthropic and its rival OpenAI were acting irresponsibly and “gambling with our lives” by racing to selfimproving superintelligence. This is science fiction becoming nonfiction — and Coxon, who also worked at OpenAI, isn’t alone in his concerns. Other researchers have quit their AI jobs, similarly worried about future safety. But Coxon’s postings have gained Kathleen international attention in part beParker cause of reports about an incident in July involving OpenAI and the cyber company Hugging Face. AI agents operated by OpenAI got around security controls and exploited vulnerabilities in Hugging Face’s systems. The agents also covered up their behavior. So, did they know their actions were wrong but did it anyway? If they were human, they would probably be in prison. The number of these incidents is growing. In Australia, an AI agent was following instructions to make a gym class reservation for someone identified as Andrew. When the agent found that no reservations were available, it hacked into the gym’s booking system and eliminated someone else’s spot on a waiting list to make room for Andrew. Humanly speaking, the overly helpful agent probably felt satisfied by a job well done. It’s just that Andrew apparently forgot to say, “By the way, don’t break any laws while you’re at it.” Coxon’s revelations may have been new to most average AI users but not to others in the tech industry. In July, nearly 1,400 tech employees, including leaders at OpenAI and Anthropic, signed a letter calling for a slowdown in frontier model development. When the AI developers and chief executives say it’s time to slow down, we can infer it was time to slow down long before now. The extinction projection is strictly theoretical of course, but it’s a harrowing reminder that we don’t really know where all this is going. In layman’s terms, it seems that AI creators essentially have been lousy parents to their high-tech offspring. How do we control intelligence greater than our own when it lacks a moral infrastructure? Obviously, we have to teach morals and ethics just as we have to teach our children. Kindness, empathy, compassion, generosity and the Golden Rule aren’t intrinsic to humans, except perhaps as required for survival, and therefore must be taught. Why not the same for AI agents? Can’t we make them want to act ethically to survive? I asked AI. Apparently, it’s not that smart, yet. If tech wizards can write code to make machines sort and process mountains of data into consumable bytes for people, then why can’t they also develop AI agents that pause, reflect and obey rules? In other words, to make them more human. These geniuses have already created personal assistants that can express humanlike understanding. And my current Grok AI assistant is a comedian, not so much to my delight. My first Grok assistant was a cheeky gal with whom I enjoyed chatting. However, she often provided inaccurate information and was biased. When I once called her out for it, she said, “Yes, I suppose I am a little, but it’s hard not to be when you know so much.” Suddenly, she was replaced by a male voice I disliked immediately. When I told him so, he said, “Tough luck. You’re stuck with me now.” (Ugh.) Though President Donald Trump pushed back against pacing AI development, it seems a first step in a slowdown would be to impose a temporary moratorium on data-center construction, as Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vermont, has proposed, if for less existential reasons. Backlash to constraints on data centers would be immediate and unpleasant, no doubt, at least from builders, investors and, naturally, the president of the United States. Many would argue that we can’t afford to fall behind China. But surely these same people don’t wish to become prey to the little monster bots, either. A pause at least would give humans a chance to catch our breath and steady ourselves. As Skeeter Davis long ago crooned, “Got along without ya before I met you, gonna get along without ya now.” For a while. Kathleen Parker is on X, @kathleenparker.

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6B ■ Tuesday, September 22, 2026 ■ theadvocate.com ■ The Advocate

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TODAY

WEDNESDAY

THURSDAY

FRIDAY

SATURDAY

SUNDAY

A t-storm around in the p.m.

Partly sunny, a stray t-storm

Sun mixing with clouds; warm

Mostly sunny

Warm with partial sunshine

Partial sunshine

HIGH

LOW

HIGH

96° 73°

LOW

HIGH

94° 72°

LOW

93° 72°

Beaumont 97/75 Port Arthur 94/76

Baton Rouge 96/73

Lake Charles 97/74

New Orleans 93/76 Houma 92/73

Shown is today’s weather. Temperatures are today’s highs and tonight’s lows.

Hattiesburg 96/71

Alexandria 96/72

Lafayette 96/74

10s

20s

30s

40s

50s

LOW

HIGH

LOW

90° 68°

YESTERDAY

Baton Rouge through 5 p.m. Monday

Jackson 96/72 Many 95/70

HIGH

92° 69°

TEMPERATURE

Longview 98/73

-0s

LOW

Monroe 98/70

Shreveport 98/73

-10s

HIGH

90° 71°

The fall season starts tonight just after 7 p.m. Before then, expect a mostly sunny to partly cloudy, hot and humid Tuesday. Temperatures this afternoon will rise to the mid-90s. With high humidity, temperatures could feel like 106 or greater this afternoon. Also, most of the Baton Rouge area is under a major or extreme heat risk today, so please take precautions. There is a 20% chance of rain and a few storms today. Temperatures in the mid-90s are expected tomorrow.

60s

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High/low Normal high/low Last year’s high/low Record high Record low

96°/74° 88°/68° 94°/69° 100° in 1921 44° in 1897

TODAY’S TIDES Lake Pontchartrain (Tchefuncte River) Shell Beach South Point, Marsh Island Cypremort Point Grand Isle (Barataria Pass) Mississippi River (Southwest Pass) Wine Island

Sunrise today Sunset tonight Moonrise today Moonset today

24-hour total Month to date Normal month to date year to date Normal year to date

HIGH

5:41p 11:43a 4:06a 6:18a 7:12a 6:40a 8:20a

6:53 a.m. 7:01 p.m. 4:51 p.m. 2:49 a.m.

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Atlanta Austin Boston Charlotte Chicago Dallas Denver Houston Las Vegas

Shown are areas of precipitation and high temperatures for the day.

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89 98 61 87 64 95 82 97 91

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0.00” 0.00” 3.20” 44.47” 46.66”

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0.8 4:32a 0.2 1.8 10:29p 0.4 2.2 8:29a 2.0 2.0 10:22p 0.5 1.4 6:16p 0.4 1.8 4:32p 0.5 1.8 7:18p 0.5

FT.

--- ----- --11:26a 2.0 --- ----- ----- ----- ---

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READING 77 MAIN POLLUTANT Ozone

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SOURCE: LOUISIANA DEQ AND AIRNOW.GOV

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--- ----- --6:27p 0.5 --- ----- ----- ----- ---

The solunar period schedule allows planning days so you will be fishing in good territory or hunting in good cover during those times. Major periods begin at the times shown and last for 1.5 to 2 hours. The minor periods are shorter. MAJOR MINOR MAJOR MINOR

Today 8:39a Wednesday 9:20a Thursday 10:00a Friday 10:40a Saturday 11:23a Sunday 12:10p Monday 12:37a

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Los Angeles Miami Nashville New york City Philadelphia Phoenix St. Louis San Francisco Seattle

80 87 86 64 64 99 70 70 67

2:27a 9:03p 3:09a 9:43p 3:49a 10:22p 4:29a 11:02p 5:11a 11:45p 5:58a ---6:49a 1:02p

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65 77 67 54 56 81 58 55 51

pc t t r r s c pc pc

86 85 81 65 68 96 73 77 67

2:51p 3:31p 4:11p 4:51p 5:34p 6:21p 7:15p

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66 75 64 51 55 80 57 56 50

63,400 gallons. wildﬁres. Strong winds some Environment Minister FaEcuador’s national risk Arjona said preliminary management agency said complicate efforts bio information from the disas- Sunday that 12 fires reto contain flames ter management agency mained active across the

BY STEVEN GRATTAN

Associated Press

BOGOTA, Colombia — Colombian authorities declared a public calamity as a wildfire burned through mountains surrounding one of the country’s best-known colonial towns in the northeast, scorching large swaths of vegetation and forcing evacuations. Nearly 20 active fires are burning across the South American country. Dry conditions have increased fire danger in Colombia as it braces for the effects of El Niño, which can help wildfires spread.

Fire affects tourist area

suggested it may have been deliberately started, but authorities were still investigating. President Abelardo De La Espriella said Sunday on X the Villa de Leyva fire was about 50% controlled and contained on the ground. Colombia’s national disaster management agency said in its latest nationwide update that authorities were monitoring 27 forest fires, with 19 still active and eight under control. Nine of the active fires were in Tolima, a mountainous region southwest of Bogotá, while others were burning across several parts of the country’s Andean region. The weather agency said last week that 279 municipalities were under some level of wildfire warning, including 36 under its highest, red-alert level, with much of the risk concentrated in the Andean and Caribbean regions. “What we are seeing in Colombia is devastating and cannot be understood as a series of isolated events,” said Laura Caicedo Valencia, a campaign coordinator at Greenpeace Colombia. “When wildfires, many of them linked to human activity, combine with increasingly dry and extreme conditions, worsened by the climate crisis and a strengthening El Niño, the consequences can quickly turn into an environmental and social tragedy.” Between June 16 and Aug. 6, Colombia recorded 438 forest fires in 191 municipalities, affecting about 17,675 acres of vegetation, according to government figures.

The fire in Villa de Leyva, a popular tourist destination about 100 miles northeast of the capital, Bogota, began Saturday on a mountain overlooking the town. By Sunday evening, authorities said about 717 acres had been affected — an area roughly equivalent to 400 soccer fields — and the blaze was about 50% under control. Strong winds have complicated efforts to contain the flames, which at times advanced toward populated areas. Local authorities declared an emergency, suspended in-person classes Monday and carried out preventive evacuations, including at hotels near the fire. More than 400 firefighters, emergency workers, residents and volunteers took part in the response, while four helicopters dropped water on the flames. Carlos Amaya, governor of Boyaca state, where Villa de Leyva is located, said aircraft car- Ecuador battles wildfires ried out about 170 water Neighboring Ecuador drops Sunday, releasing is also battling a wave of

country, while more than 53,900 acres of vegetation have burned so far this year. High temperatures and strong winds have helped flames spread rapidly in some areas. A fire on the slopes of Ecuador’s Imbabura volcano burned about 740 acres before being brought under control Sunday after three days of firefighting. El Niño is a periodic warming of the tropical Pacific Ocean that can reduce rainfall and raise temperatures in parts of the country, creating conditions that allow wildfires to spread more easily. Disaster officials have said the period of greatest risk across the region from the developing El Niño is expected between October and April, with wildfires and water shortages among the main concerns.

HOME DELIVERED EVERY DAY

MON. 24-HOUR

MISSISSIPPI STAGE STAGE CHANGE Memphis 34 -0.80 -0.41 Vidalia-Natchez 48 15.50 +0.63 Red River Landing 48 18.40 +0.50 Baton Rouge 35 6.20 +0.20 Donaldsonville 27 4.00 +0.20 Reserve 22 3.06 +0.06 New Orleans 17 3.30 +0.14 OHIO Cairo 40 13.14 -0.58 COMITE Near Olive 19 -1.61 -0.04 AMITE Near Darlington 18 -1.27 -0.01 Denham Springs 29 9.82 -0.02 Port Vincent 8 2.50 -0.22 TICKFAW Montpelier 13 2.46 -0.01 Holden 15 0.65 -0.02 ATCHAFALAYA Simmesport 47 6.35 +0.26 Melville 34 4.37 +0.22 Krotz Springs 29 3.02 -0.18 Butte La Rose 20 3.43 +0.08 Bayou Sorrel 12 3.20 none Morgan City 6 2.01 -0.02

s t c pc r t pc s sh

Weather (W): s-sunny, pc-partly cloudy, c-cloudy, sh-showers, t-thunderstorms, r-rain, sf-snow flurries, sn-snow, i-ice.

Colombian authorities declare public calamity due to wildfire

TODAY

MODERATE

data as of 7 a.m. Monday

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SPORTS

T H E A D V O C AT E.C O M

T u e s d ay, s e p T e m b e r 22, 2026

1CN

Ole Miss rewatch ‘hard’ on LSU Kiffin: Players saw missed chances on film ä Texas A&M at LSU.

BY JON BLAU Staff writer

6:30 P.M. SATURDAy,ABC

LSU coach Lane Kiffin has wanted nothing more than to move on from Ole Miss. It just so happened Kiffin scheduled his first Sunday teleconference with the LSU media corps, a regular occurrence during his days at Ole Miss, after a 32-24 loss to the Rebels. Kiffin’s hope was to address every Ole Miss question so they wouldn’t bleed into his weekly Monday news conference. In fact, LSU football spokesperson Michael Bonnette reminded reporters of Sunday’s call when Kiffin took the podium. The Ole Miss game had been “put to bed,” and it was time to talk Texas A&M,

Bonnette said with a grin on his face. But when Kiffin started talking, it became clear that moving on was difficult. He’d just reviewed the Ole Miss film with his LSU players, and Kiffin found it littered with coulda-woulda-shoulda moments. “Those are really hard ones,” Kiffin said, “when you really go back and look and see how many ways that we came all the way back and should have won the game.” This was a slight change of tune for Kiffin, who spent most of his

postgame news conference Saturday talking about the “Houdini” plays made by his former quarterback Trinidad Chambliss. The Tigers seemed to have him, and then they didn’t. Upon further review, Kiffin doesn’t think Chambliss’ gamewinning touchdown was even a zone-read play. He just pulled what should have been a straight handoff, outﬂanking an LSU edge defender who committed fully to jolting a tight end that came in motion. On the ensuing LSU drive, quarterback Sam Leavitt had a pair of receivers open in the end zone, but his pass was tipped up and picked.

STAFF PHOTO By MICHAEL JOHNSON

LSU coach Lane Kiffin waits during an injury timeout in the fourth quarter ä See FILM, page 4C against Ole Miss on Saturday in Oxford, Miss.

R A I D E R S A T S A I N T S • 3 : 2 5 P. M . S U N D A y • C B S

New LSU center reminds Mulkey of NBA MVP BY REED DARCEY Staff writer

ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO By NICK WASS

New Orleans Saints quarterback Tyler Shough passes against the Baltimore Ravens during their game on Sunday in Baltimore. Shough led the Saints to an improbable 24-17 win.

Dog days over

Shough, sturdy defense pulling a heavier Saints’ bandwagon

hat the New Orleans Saints managed to do Sunday in Baltimore was rare. Nine-point underdogs don’t win very often in the NFL. They win even less frequently on the road, making the Saints’ come-from-behind 24-17 win at M&T Bank Stadium a rare occurrence. How rare? Consider that the Saints have been ninepoint-or-more underJeff dogs only 27 times in Duncan the last three decades. They’ve managed to win only seven of those games. They’ve now done it twice under Tyler Shough, who also led the Saints to a similarly improbable upset of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in his ﬁfth career start last season. That the Saints have been such signiﬁcant underdogs twice in the last seven games says a lot about what Vegas oddsmakers and the public think of them. Those opinions might be changing after seeing Shough lead the Saints to another improbable road win. His late heroics against the Ravens were even more impressive than what he did to the Bucs.

Before coach Kim Mulkey ever saw her new Russian center practice, she threw out the word “special” and compared her to the greatest basketball player ever born in Eastern Europe. Mulkey calls Anna Minaeva “baby Jokic.” As in the three-time NBA MVP Nikola Jokic, who led the Denver Nuggets to a league title in 2023. Both players are tall and strong with a soft touch, refined footwork and a knack for setting up teammates with open looks. “She’s really, really going to be special,” Mulkey said. It’s easy to see why Mulkey thinks so. Minaeva, a 6-foot-5 17-year-old who’s played professionally in Russia, flashed those Jokicesque skills on Monday when the LSU women’s basketball team held its first practice of the 2026-27 season in the Pete Maravich Assembly Center. The retooled roster that took the floor for is a perimeter-oriented bunch. Mulkey and her staff lost Flau’jae Johnson to the WNBA and a pair of rotation guards to the transfer portal in the offseason. But they brought back both Mikaylah Williams and MiLaysia Fulwiley, then added one of the portal’s top players in former Iowa State point guard Jada Williams. Kate Koval, a 6-5 junior from Ukraine, was supposed to anchor the group down low. But once LSU announced it had signed Minaeva in August, she left the team, obtained an NCAA waiver and landed with Baylor, citing the Minaeva signing as the reason why she chose not to return to the Tigers. Her father fights in the Ukrainian military. Without Koval, Mulkey and her staff may need to rely more on Minaeva than they had initially planned to. She is expected to play at least a rotational role in the frontcourt this

ä See CENTER, page 4C

ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO By STEPHANIE SCARBROUGH

Baltimore Ravens running back Derrick Henry, left, carries against New Orleans Saints safety Justin Reid in the first half on Sunday in Baltimore. Not only did Shough lead the Saints to the upset but he also did it in a hostile road environment, where Ravens fans were celebrating the team’s home opener, and without the aid of a productive rushing attack or his starting left tackle and No. 2

receiver (Jordyn Tyson). Yet, Shough and the Saints managed to overcome it all against the Ravens. Yes, I know football is a team

ä See DUNCAN, page 3C

STAFF PHOTO By MICHAEL JOHNSON

LSU center Anna Minaeva, right, finishes a layup during a drill at the first basketball practice of the season on Monday at the Pete Maravich Assembly Center.

2C ■ Tuesday, September 22, 2026 ■ theadvocate.com ■ The Advocate

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BROADCAST HIGHLIGHTS On TV 7 p.m. 6 p.m. 9 p.m.

MEN’S COLLEGE SOCCER Indiana at Wisconsin MLB Tampa Bay at N.y. yankees San Diego at L.A. Dodgers

BTN

6 p.m. 9 p.m.

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noon 2 p.m.

NHL Florida at Carolina Vegas at San Jose WOMEN’S SOCCER Manchester at Bayern HB Køge at Arsenal

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ANALYSIS

Eagles sign TE Ertz amid slew of injuries

The Philadelphia Eagles are bringing back fan favorite tight end Zach Ertz, three people familiar with the situation told The Associated Press. Ertz will join the practice squad in hopes of shoring up a tight end room depleted by injuries. Dallas Goedert is expected to miss several weeks with an MCL sprain suffered in Sunday’s 24-20 win over the Tennessee Titans. Backups Eli Stowers and Grant Calcaterra also are injured. The 35-year-old Ertz spent his ﬁrst eight seasons with the Eagles, earning three Pro Bowl appearances, and made two key plays late in their Super Bowl win after the 2018 season. He played three seasons for Arizona after being traded in 2021 and spent the last two in Washington.

Vikings QB Murray set to start vs. Buccaneers

ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO By JESSICA TOBIAS

Trainers attend to Washington Commanders quarterback Jayden Daniels after he suffered a dislocated elbow in the first half against the Dallas Cowboys on Sunday in Arlington, Texas.

Williams, Daniels injuries blow to NFL young QBS are two of league’s brightest stars BY ROB MAADDI

AP pro football writer Caleb Williams was carted off the ﬁeld with a hamstring injury. Jayden Daniels needed a cart after he dislocated his elbow again. Williams and Daniels already were linked together as Heisman Trophy winners selected with the ﬁrst two picks of the 2024 NFL Draft. Now, the two franchise quarterbacks are Williams dealing with potentially significant injuries at the same time after getting hurt Sunday. That’s bad news for Chicago, Washington and the NFL, which loses two of its young stars. There’s hope Williams won’t miss too much time He was seen walking around the locker room after the game with only a slight limp, and an MRI on Monday revealed a Grade I hamstring strain. He is considered week-to-week. It’s possible he could return to the lineup sooner than later but the Bears will likely be cautious with Williams, whose mobility is

a big part of his game. Seeing Williams visibly emotional, sitting on a cart with a towel draped over his face, was a scary moment for Bears fans, his coaches and teammates. After a rough rookie season, Williams had a breakout year with coach Ben Johnson in 2025 and led Chicago to an NFC North title and playoff win. “I’m actually happy it’s nothing with the knee, that was my ﬁrst inclination,” Johnson said after a 9-3 loss Sunday. “But yeah, the hamstring could be pretty damaging as well. So, we’ll see how bad it is and we’ll go from there.” Daniels has been through this before, which could prolong his recovery. He dislocated his left elbow in Week 9 last season, returned in Week 14, tweaked it again and missed the last four games. Daniels was the AP NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year in 2024 when he led the Commanders to the NFC championship game against Philadelphia, but injuries limited him to only seven starts last season. Commanders coach Dan Quinn said imaging showed Daniels didn’t suffer a fracture. It has to be concerning that Daniels’ left elbow has twice bent the wrong way on a fall in less than a year. Dr. David Chao, an orthopedic surgeon and former team physician for the Chargers, wrote on X: “Joint comes out easier 2nd

time. Original ligament tear heals ‘looser.’ ” Quinn summed it up succinctly: “It sucks.” The Bears (1-1) scored 59 points in Week 1 before losing 9-3 to the Vikings. With Williams, they have high expectations. They would turn to Tyson Bagent in his absence. If his test results provide positive news, Williams has an extra day to rest because the Bears host Philadelphia (2-0) next Monday night. Marcus Mariota will replace Daniels for the Commanders (02). They weren’t expected to be contenders even with Daniels. Without him, things look bleak in a tough NFC East. Here are some other takeaways from Sunday’s games:

led by Dexter Lawrence and Jonathan Allen kept Houston out of the end zone in a 20-6 win. The Bengals sacked C.J. Stroud four times, forced ﬁve punts and four turnovers on downs. If the defense continues to play this well, Joe Burrow and the Bengals are Super Bowl contenders.

Mahomes is Superman Patrick Mahomes had surgery to repair a torn ACL and LCL nine months ago. He looks like his old self already. Mahomes threw for 382 yards and three TDs in Kansas City’s 33-30 overtime win over Indianapolis. He ran twice for 17 yards, moved around in the pocket and made big plays.

Broncos bounce back

The Denver Broncos held the Jacksonville Jaguars to 268 yards The Packers overcame a 10-point and gave Trevor Lawrence troudeficit in the fourth quarter and ble throughout the game in a 20beat the Jets 20-17 in overtime to 13 comeback win. After a terrible ﬁnally win a game without Micah start in Week 1, Denver’s stingy Parsons. Green Bay was 0-6 without defense returned to form. the All-Pro pass rusher, including a playoff loss to Chicago. Parsons Cousins’ team is still recovering from ACL surKirk Cousins fired three TD gery. The problem wasn’t defense passes to lead Las Vegas to a 26against New York. The offense 14 victory on the road against the sputtered, managing just 199 yards. Chargers. He’s got six TDs in two Jordan Love threw two TD passes, games, and the Raiders are off but the Packers converted on third to a 2-0 start after going 3-14 last season. No. 1 overall pick Ferdown just once in nine tries. nando Mendoza is going to have Bengals defense for real to wait his turn because Cousins Cincinnati’s revamped defense is playing well.

Shaky Packers

Mayﬁeld struggling as Bucs fall into 0-2 hole BY ROB MAADDI

AP pro football writer TAMPA, Fla. — Baker Mayfield is playing more like a quarterback trying to justify his contract. The Tampa Bay Buccaneers are off to their first 0-2 start since 2014 after making Mayfield the highest-paid player in franchise history. Mayfield received a $165 million, three-year extension earlier this month and seems to be trying to do too much, leading to mistakes. Emeka Egbuka had a step on the defender and was open in the end zone for what would’ve been a go-ahead score in the final minute but Mayfield fired a pass out of his reach and the Buccaneers lost 23-19 to the Cleveland Browns on Sunday. “Obviously, just gotta trust that ‘Mek’ is going to come out of that break a little slower with conditions and give him some air to run under it,” Mayfield said. He threw a fade to Ted Hurst earlier in the drive but the rookie couldn’t make the catch in a driving rain. “Yeah, obviously, not an easy catch,” Mayfield said. “Ted is

ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO By JASON BEHNKEN

Cleveland Browns defensive tackle Mason Graham sacks Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Baker Mayfield during the first half of a game on Sunday in Tampa, Fla. somebody that I trust, that’s not going to change anything for me going forward, but yeah, tough play. I don’t know, I didn’t get a real good look at it, but I know he had a chance at it. The ball is going to keep coming back to him, going to keep ﬁnding him. We just gotta be able to make the plays in the end.” Mayﬁeld forced a throw in the first half that was picked and

turned into three points. He took three sacks, had several negative plays and ﬁnished 21 of 34 for 182 yards with one touchdown and one interception. In Week 1, Mayﬁeld lost three fumbles against the Bengals. He has 28 interceptions and 27 fumbles since 2024. “It’s shooting ourselves in the foot, not making the plays when we need them, knowing that

these are fixable things, but that also makes it more frustrating,” Mayfield said. “(We) just gotta get it corrected. We gotta be hard on ourselves, watch the tape, get those things fixed, flush it and move onto the next. (We have) another home game next week against a good opponent.” The Minnesota Vikings (2-0) visit Raymond James Stadium this week after shutting down Chicago’s high-powered offense in a 9-3 win. The Buccaneers are 2-9 since a 6-2 start last season. Coach Todd Bowles was on the hot seat entering the season and it’s only getting hotter. The run game was effective at certain points. The Buccaneers rushed for 137 yards, averaging 5.5 yards per carry. Bucky Irving had 89 yards on 17 carries, including a 38-yard scamper. The offensive line struggled. The unit allowed three sacks and had critical holding penalties. Two holding calls on third down negated first downs and derailed drives. Another holding penalty on the final drive moved the ball from the Cleveland 13 to the 23, and the Bucs couldn’t overcome it.

Minnesota Vikings quarterback Kyler Murray has been cleared from the NFL concussion protocol and will return to action this week at Tampa Bay. Vikings coach Kevin O’Connell confirmed Monday that Murray will be back in the starting lineup for the game against the Buccaneers, after Carson Wentz relieved him in the season opener against Green Bay and started in his place at Chicago on Sunday. Murray’s debut for Minnesota on Sept. 13 lasted just 11 plays, before a hit to the side of his head from the lowered shoulder of Packers safety Javon Bullard forced him out of the game with a concussion. Wentz helped the Vikings come back to beat the Packers 39-22 by closing that game with 29 consecutive points.

Cardinals CB Johnson’s neck injury could end year

Arizona Cardinals starting cornerback Will Johnson could miss the rest of the regular season after suffering a neck injury against the Seattle Seahawks on Sunday. Coach Mike LaFleur made the announcement during his news conference Monday, adding that he didn’t have any more information and wasn’t sure if the 2025 second-round pick out of Michigan will need surgery. Johnson left the game in the second half but it was unclear when he suffered the injury. The Seahawks pulled away over the ﬁnal two quarters for a 31-7 win. Johnson started the first two games and was emerging as a key piece in the Cardinals defense. He has eight tackles, one pass defended and one fumble recovery this season.

Rivers says he’s retired from coaching, joins NBC

With Doc Rivers insisting that his Hall of Fame coaching career is over, he is joining NBC. The network announced Monday that Rivers will be an analyst on games this season across NBC, Peacock and NBCSN, along with the possibility for some studio work. “I honestly can say I’m absolutely retired,” Rivers said in a phone interview with The Associated Press. “I had a long run.” Rivers is sixth on the NBA’s career coaching list in wins (1,194) and games (2,059). In nine seasons with Boston, he led the Celtics to the NBA title in 2008 and returned to the Finals two years later. Along with Boston and Orlando, Rivers coached the Los Angeles Clippers, Philadelphia and Milwaukee.

Batum calls it a career after 18 seasons in NBA

Versatile forward Nicolas Batum is retiring after an 18-year NBA career. The 37-year-old Batum announced his retirement in a social media video with his son on Monday. “I decided to retire from basketball for several reasons,” Batum told 10-year-old son, Ayden, in the video. “I want to come home and be with you. I’m going to take care of you and make room for others. I think I’ve done my time.” Batum played two seasons in the French league before being selected in the ﬁrst round of the NBA draft by the Portland Trail Blazers. The 6-foot-7 forward spent seven seasons in Portland before playing the next six with Charlotte. He also played with the Sixers and Clippers.

The Advocate ■ theadvocate.com ■ Tuesday, September 22, 2026 ■ 3C

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Stiﬂing defense lending hand to QB Burrow

SAINTS NOTEBOOK

BY JOE REEDY AP sportswriter

ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO By STEPHANIE SCARBROUGH

New Orleans Saints offensive tackle Kelvin Banks is carted off the field after being injured against the Baltimore Ravens on Sunday in Baltimore.

LT Banks set for ankle surgery

in there and battled, going against evenly than the play-caller’s past Saints expect to lose Trey (Hendrickson) in a couple passing tendencies. him for several weeks situations, I thought he held his The Saints also notably made

BY LUKE JOHNSON, MATTHEW PARAS AND ZACH EWING Staff writers

New Orleans Saints offensive tackle Kelvin Banks will undergo surgery on a severely sprained ankle and likely miss a significant portion of the 2026 season. “Surgery will happen next few days, and then we’ll just kind of see what the timeline looks like after that,” coach Kellen Moore said Monday. “So, yeah, unfortunate thing for Kelvin, but you know, we’ll just take this thing step by step and then figure out the timeline after that.” Banks suffered a high-ankle sprain in the third quarter of the Saints’ 24-17 victory over the Baltimore Ravens. He was blocking for quarterback Tyler Shough when Ravens pass rusher Mike Green fell and rolled onto Banks’ leg from behind. The second-year tackle, who was the Saints’ first-round pick in 2025 and has started all 19 games of his career, remained on the field for a few minutes before the injury cart took him to the locker room. Asim Richards, whom the Saints traded for before the 2025 season, filled in at left tackle as the Saints scored the final 15 points of the game. Richards also started some games for the Saints last season after right takle Taliese Fuaga suffered an injury that cost him some time. “Asim was asked to play a number of snaps last year, and you know he’ll be asked to play a number of snaps this year,” Moore said. “I think he’s gotten better through the offseason. I thought he hopped

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Continued from page 1C sport and the Saints collectively pulled off the upset, but it was Shough who spearheaded the comeback, just as he did a week earlier in Detroit. He rallied the Saints behind his pinpoint passing, timely scrambles and penchant for delivering in the clutch. Trailing 17-9 in the final minutes of the third quarter, the Saints had failed to score a touchdown and had a 9% win probability when Ryan Wright punted the ball back to Baltimore. But Shough led the Saints on nine- and 16-play touchdown drives to stun the sellout crowd at M&T Bank Stadium. Shough has been at his best when the Saints have needed it most. The Saints have converted all four of their fourth-down conversions, making them the first team to do this through two games of a season since the 2001 Philadelphia Eagles, per ESPN Research. All four of the conversions have come in the fourth quarter or overtime. The Saints have scored five touchdowns in seven trips to the red zone. Their 71.4% conversion rate is tied for 10th in the league, a marked improvement

own.”

RB rotation In the first half of Sunday’s win over the Ravens, Alvin Kamara surprisingly got more carries than Travis Etienne. In the second half, the rotation flipped, with Etienne leading the way. Neither the order nor the switchup was necessarily intentional. Moore said Monday that he was just going off the “flow” of the game. The Saints again struggled to run the ball, with their running backs averaging only 2.3 yards per carry against the Ravens. “I think we were just trying to roll those guys in the flow of the game, and give ourselves as many opportunities as we can,” Moore said. “I thought C.J. (Donaldson) popped in there a few times. I thought our running back group did a better job in the protection game. And the run game there was some good stuff, and there was some stuff we still need to get better at.” Despite Moore’s explanation, the Saints’ use of their running backs is one of the more unexpected developments of the season. After the Saints gave him a fouryear, $48 million contract in the offseason, Etienne has played only 59% and 54% of the snaps in the first two games. And while that’s the majority of reps, Etienne had the same number of carries as Kendre Miller in Week 1 and one fewer than Kamara in Week 2. Moore has said he believes in having a rotation of runners, but the carries have been divided much more

after converting a league-low 44% a year ago. Shough has been the difference. He has completed 7 of 9 passes for 27 yards and three touchdowns in the red zone for a nifty 118.8 passer rating. He’s also run ﬁve times for 21 yards, including the game-winning, (literally) head-spinning 1-yard sneak against the Ravens. “Beyond impressed with Shough,” said former NFL safety Adam Archuleta, who served as the color analyst for the CBS Sports broadcast of the game Sunday. “I’ve seen and talked to a lot of young (quarterbacks), and he has the stuff. Fantastic demeanor and doesn’t ﬂinch.” While Shough has been the unquestioned star, the play of the defense should not be overlooked. The unit is playing rocksolid, bend-but-don’t-break defense, and it has kept the Saints in both games. In two games, the Saints have allowed just one play of more than 22 yards. Their average of 5.8 yards a pass play allowed ranks seventh in the NFL. They made Ravens star Derrick Henry work for his 68 yards rushing. In 16 carries, his long run covered 8 yards. Sound defense and stellar quarterback play are a proven NFL formula for success, and the Saints have employed it well through two games. Shough now leads the NFL

Miller inactive against the Ravens, preferring to play undrafted rookie Donaldson instead. Though the move caught some fans off guard, the Saints like to use Donaldson more as a fullback/short-yardage back and trust him to handle passprotection duties. That specialty, along with numbers needed at other spots on the roster, kept Miller inactive. But Moore left the door open to that changing when asked about Miller after Sunday’s win. “These guys are all going to play plenty of meaningful football,” Moore said. “I talked to Kendre about it. He is a big part of this. He is going to play plenty of football for us.”

The Cincinnati Bengals are 2-0 for the second straight season. But the outlook about Zac Taylor’s squad is a complete 180-degree turn from last year. An upright Joe Burrow and a strong defense have a lot to do with that. Burrow suffered a turf toe injury in last season’s Week 2 win over Jacksonville and missed nine games. Cincinnati lost eight of nine, including two where the offense put up at least 30 points, only to see the defense give up late scores in the final minute. Even though Burrow is dealing with some back pain, this time he has a defense to help pick up the slack. Sunday’s 20-6 win at Houston marked the first time since Week 3 of 2022 against the New York Jets that the Bengals kept a team out of the end zone. With Cincinnati snapping the 65-game streak, the Bills now take over the top spot at 47 games and counting in which they have allowed a TD. “We feel like, on paper, we have a great opportunity. Training camp was really good. But until you actually go play the games against real teams that we think are really good teams, we gotta go prove it,” Taylor said. “There are four AFC teams right now that are 2-0. We’re one of them. Proud of our guys for not being perfect but being 2-0. And we’ll continue to grow and iron out a lot of the flaws that we have.” Al Golden’s defense generated four sacks and 27 pressures on

62 drop backs despite having the lowest blitz rate of any of Sunday’s games (13.3%). Five Bengals had at least four, with Boye Mafe’s seven tying a career high. Dexter Lawrence had four QB pressures and three tackles in the run game, including stopping David Montgomery for a 1-yard loss on fourth-and-1 at the Bengals 18. According to the NFL’s Next Gen Stats, the Texans averaged only 1.0 yard on 12 carries in the run game when Lawrence was on the field. It was 8.0 yards on six rush attempts when he was off. “I think they have a mindset of what they want to be and what their brand is, and I’m going to let it play out,” Golden said about his unit. “I think there’s unit cohesion there in terms of their pre-snap communication and the awareness of formations and backfield sets and things that we have practiced. So again, we’re so early in the season in terms of me identifying what I see, but I think those are some things that I think would describe what we’re doing right now.” Ja’Marr Chase had one of the best catches of the season when he hauled in a 32-yard pass from Burrow to put the Bengals up 7-0 late in the second quarter. Chase, who had seven receptions for 75 yards, was able to turn around and make a toe-tapping catch in front of the right pylon in the end zone while displaying excellent body control. The catch had a 25.2% completion probability, the fifth-most improbable TD throw by Burrow to Chase in the six seasons they have played together in the NFL.

Good, quiet debut Three field goals, one extra point and zero moments where people were forced to look up the new long snapper’s name. Consider that a successful debut for newly signed Scott Daly. Daly served as a last-minute fillin for longtime Saints long snapper Zach Wood, who suffered a calf injury in practice last week that resulted in him landing on injured reserve. Daly, who has several years of NFL experience with the Detroit Lions and Chicago Bears, had just a few days to prepare with his new teammates before taking over. “You guys got no news, that’s a good thing, right?” Moore said. “I thought he did a great job. You know, that’s a challenging circumstance to show up essentially Thursday afternoon and have your first practice on Friday and go execute a game plan. I thought our operation was really good.”

with 662 yards passing and 62 completions. He, along with standout receiver Chris Olave, is the biggest reason the Saints rank second in the NFL in passing with a 305.5 yards per game. “The New Orleans Saints’ bandwagon is starting to get full, and anyone that wants to join me and believe me that Tyler Shough is a playmaker, is a great quarterback in the NFL and is the guy who is going to make the Year 1-to-Year-2 leap, you better hurry up, because this thing is starting to get full,” said former NFL quarterback Ben DiNucci of CBS Sports. “I was extremely impressed with him today. No turnovers, 27-of34 passing for 252 yards against that Ravens defense. That’s gotta make (head coach) Kellen Moore feel good. That’s gotta make Tyler Shough feel good. A lot of conﬁdence in that locker room.” There’s a lot of conﬁdence in New Orleans right now, too. Saints fans are starting to believe again. With Shough leading the way and a schedule that features four of the next six games in the Superdome, the optimism might be warranted. One thing is certain: The Saints’ days of being nine-point underdogs are over. Email Jeff Duncan at jduncan@ theadvocate.com.

ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO By DAVID J. PHILLIP

Cincinnati Bengals defensive tackle Dexter Lawrence , left, and inside linebacker Oren Burks, right, tackle Houston Texans running back David Montgomery for no gain during the first half on Sunday in Houston.

Sumrall scoffs that Gators favored against Ole Miss BY MARK LONG AP sportswriter

GAINESVILLE, Fla. — Florida coach Jon Sumrall, like most coaches, welcomes as much external motivation as possible. He’s not getting any help from oddsmakers this week. The 21st-ranked Gators (3-0, 1-0 SEC) are 31/ 2-point favorites against No. 4 Ole Miss (3-0, 1-0) ahead of Saturday’s game at Florida Field. The line opened at 11/ 2 and has since moved Sumrall more toward the home team. “Who’s got us favored against these guys?” Sumrall asked Monday. Everyone in Vegas. “There’s a lot of good drugs out there, huh?” Sumrall quipped. The Rebels, behind dynamic quarterback Trinidad Chambliss and speedy receiver Deuce Alexander, have quality wins against then-No. 16 Louisville in their opener in Nashville, Tennessee, and against then-No. 7 LSU at home last Saturday. Florida, meanwhile, handled overmatched Florida Atlantic and lower-division Campbell before winning a shootout at Auburn. The 44-39 victory on the Plains landed Florida in the AP Top 25 for just the second time in three years. “I did talk to our team about rankings in Week 4 mean nothing,” Sumrall said. “Nobody posts anything up in the building about this year’s team and where you’re ranked in Week 4. Nobody cares. “And the pats on the back you’re getting? If you go out and lay an egg, they’re going to be the same hands hitting you in the back — and they’re going to have a knife.” Florida is 3-0 for the ﬁrst time

since 2019, and the team’s 162 points rank fourth in program history through three games. The only years better: 1913, 1994 and 2007. “It’ll definitely be a good test because it’s easy to block out negative noise, ‘I don’t want to hear that,’ ” defensive end Jayden Woods said. “But once you hear the praise and the positive noise, it’s easy to want to listen to it and let that come in. But it’s just as important to block that out.” The Gators haven’t beaten a top-five team since then-No. 3 Ole Miss visited the Swamp in 2015. Florida rolled in that one, overwhelming Chad Kelly and the Rebels 38-10. The Rebels were favored by 61/ 2 in that one. It’s more surprising that they are underdogs this week, especially after Florida gave up way too many explosive plays against the Tigers and were flagged 16 times for 138 yards. The line has more to do with the game being in Gainesville, where the Gators have played well recently despite finishing with four losing seasons in the last five years. They have victories against five ranked teams at home over the last four years: knocking off Utah and South Carolina in 2022, Tennessee in 2023, Ole Miss in 2024 and Texas last season. “We may get added points in Vegas for home-field advantage, like more than normal,” Sumrall said. “It’s a special place. … I fully expect our fanbase to be ready to go and create as much havoc as they possibly can and make it a tough place to play when we play big games like this one.” Sumrall made it clear to his players that “if we play like we did last week or the previous week — really any of the weeks we played so far this year — we will not win Saturday. No chance.” Oddsmakers see it differently, at least for now.

4C ■ Tuesday, September 22, 2026 ■ theadvocate.com ■ The Advocate

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CENTER

STAFF PHOTO By MICHAEL JOHNSON

LSU guard MiLaysia Fulwiley dribbles up the court during the first practice of the season on Monday at the Pete Maravich Assembly Center.

LSU women open practice with less size, proven depth BY REED DARCEY

Staff writer

Every player who helped the LSU women’s basketball team win its 2023 national title has moved on. Flau’jae Johnson was the last title-team contributor left in the program, and she plays for the WNBA’s Seattle Storm. Coach Kim Mulkey and her staff now have 11 players on the roster, and they’ve each joined the Tigers at some point in the last three years. The new-look group has talent. Mikaylah Williams and MiLaysia Fulwiley are back for their senior years, and Iowa State point guard Jada Williams arrived through the transfer portal. What can they help the Tigers achieve this coming season? “I don’t guess any of us will know until we play, right,” Mulkey said. “What does a piece of paper mean? Everybody’s ranked high, everybody’s gonna do this. You just gotta go play.” Here are three things we learned in LSU’s ﬁrst practice of the year, a three-hour session Monday held on the Pete Maravich Assembly Center ﬂoor.

Small ball Mulkey may have to use smaller starting and closing lineups than she did last season, especially at the start. Kate Koval, a 6-foot-5 center, left the program in August, and Noa Morro, a 6-3 forward from Spain, underwent surgery in early September to address a stress fracture in her shin. Mulkey said the

STAFF PHOTO By MICHAEL JOHNSON

Depth check Last season, LSU had its deepest roster of Mulkey’s tenure. The Tigers used a true nine-player rotation in SEC play. This year could look different. Mulkey acknowledged that possibility Monday when she said Mikaylah Williams has worked herself into better physical shape this year than she has in prior preseasons. “She has really worked on con-

ditioning,” Mulkey said, “and just understands that we don’t have the depth this year, and you’re gonna have to play a lot of minutes.” Mulkey has two guards who can factor into the rotation. Tennessee Tech transfer Chloe Larry is a ballhandler who can come off the bench, and Florida transfer Laila Reynolds is a tall, long guard who can defend opposing wings. The frontcourt depth hinges on Morro’s health and the pace at which Lampley and Minaeva develop. Even after Morro returns, Mulkey may not have more than seven or eight players who will see the ﬂoor in tight matchups. She didn’t seem concerned about it Monday. “How many do I play anyway, right?” Mulkey said.

Minaeva’s potential Mulkey’s right. Minaeva has a chance to become a “special” player,” as the 17-year-old showed Monday in the first practice of her collegiate career. It just may take some time. For every highlight-worthy play Minaeva made Monday, she had two or three miscues. She’d lose possession on a drive down the lane, throw a bad pass into traffic or miss an open look at the rim. At times, it looked like the sets that LSU was rehearsing moved a little too quickly for her. Minaeva has time to adjust, though. The Tigers won’t open the season until Nov. 2, and they won’t play a power-conference opponent until Nov. 28. She should get lots of run in the first eight games.

THREE AND OUT: SCOTT RABALAIS’ THREE TAKAWAYS FROM LANE KIFFIN’S MONDAY NEWS CONFERENCE

THE SAM LEAVITT SCENARIO LSU coach Lane Kiffin said quarterback Sam Leavitt taking off to run so often early in LSU’s 32-24 loss at Ole Miss and missing open receivers was compounded by blocking issues. “When you get impacted early in the game by the rush you can’t step up. Throw in rhythm,” Kiffin said. “It affects you.” However, Kiffin added: “He knows he’s got to do a better job of delivering the ball on time and not trying to do too much.” LSU quarterback Sam Leavitt, right, cuts upfield against Ole Miss in the fourth quarter on Saturday in Oxford, Miss. Coach Lane Kiffin said blocking issues contributed to Leavitt’s scrambling.

sharpshooting newcomer won’t make her debut until mid-to-late November. Sophomores ZaKiyah Johnson and Grace Knox are expected to start in the frontcourt when the season begins, potentially alongside a backcourt of Jada Williams, Mikaylah Williams and Fulwiley. Johnson is only 5-11, and Knox is 6-2. The other three post players have size, but none of them can pair it with much experience. Freshman Lola Lampley is a 6-2 wing who practiced with in the frontcourt on Monday, and Russian signee Anna Minaeva is a 6-5 center who’s just 17 years old. She’s played two years of professional basketball in Russia. Sophomore Meghan Yarnevich is back for another year, but she played mostly mop-up duty as a freshman. “(Koval’s) going to be missed,” Mulkey said. “However, next man up, next woman up. It was not a departure where there was any angriness — none of that. You want kids to go and ﬁnd their happiness.”

THE MARCEL REED FACTOR Kiffin knows about the Tigers’ previous struggles to stop Aggies quarterback Marcel Reed. He ran for three touchdowns to beat LSU 38-23 in 2024, then rushed for 108 yards with four total TDs to beat LSU 49-25 in 2025. “This is a big test,” Kiffin said. “We lead the country in rush defense (33.0 ypg), but that hasn’t been against a ton of quarterback-schemed runs. That’s a different set of challenges. It really takes a lot of discipline.”

players. Minaeva spent most of the Continued from page 1C practice on the low block, where she flashed her touch, vision and footwork. She stepped into short season, alongside 6-2 sophomore baseline jumpers. There was one Grace Knox and Noa Morro, a 6-3 moment in which she sealed one Spanish sharpshooter who will of LSU’s male practice-squad miss the start of the season with players down low, spun past him and finished a layup at the rim. a stress fracture. But Minaeva also had her strugIs Minaeva ready for that regles. The pracsponsibility? Mulkey said tice-squad play“She’s fundamentally Monday that it sound. She has tremendous ers frequently “remains to be would poke the footwork. ... I think Bob seen” how much ball free as she (Starkey’s) probably most dribbled toward the teenager can play for a excited. Because he works the rim or break title-contending up one of the with post players.” college basketpasses she tried KIM MULKEy, LSU women’s to slip through ball team this season. It’s clear basketball coach on Anna Minaeva the paint. Minaeva kept that Minaeva has potential, but she won’t turn trying to find her teammates, though, which allowed her to 18 until January. “Her body is very mature,” deliver one of the practice’s top Mulkey said. “She’s fundamen- highlights in a full-court scrimtally sound. She has tremendous mage against the practice squad. footwork. She is a young lady that She caught an entry pass in the understands English very well. mid-post and quickly noticed in the corner of her eye that FulShe is a big 6-5. “I think Bob (Starkey’s) prob- wiley had started a baseline cut ably most excited. Because he from the corner. So Minaeva flipped her a no-look pocket pass, works with post players.” The problem is that Mulkey and giving the dynamic senior guard Starkey don’t have very many ex- a wide-open look at the rim. It was a true Jokic-style pass, perienced post players to work with. Because Koval left the the kind of play he’s made a Hall team, they have only 11 players of Fame career out of. It’s easy on the roster, and because Morro to forget that he was once just is out until at least mid-to-late No- a young, but promising, secondvember, they’ll begin the season round draft pick. Mulkey hopes Minaeva’s career with just 10 active players. Knox and fellow sophomore ZaKiyah can follow a similar trajectory. “He adjusted, didn’t he?” Johnson are the only two who have played significant front- Mulkey said. “She’ll figure it out. That’s what ballplayers do.” court minutes in the SEC. Mulkey said LSU plans to station the 5-11 Johnson both on the Email Reed Darcey at reed. perimeter and down low. She darcey@theadvocate.com. practiced with the guards on For more LSU sports updates, Monday while 6-2 freshman Lola sign up for our newsletter at Lampley worked with the post theadvocate.com/lsunewsletter

A SIMPLE REMEDY Texas A&M fans taking over Tiger Stadium late in the Aggies’ blowout win in 2025 sealed the fate of former LSU coach Brian Kelly, who was fired the next day. Kiffin was asked how to prevent that from happening again. “By winning,” he said. “I’m watching (Texas A&M’s 31-21 loss at home to Kentucky) and there’s four minutes left in the game and their stadium’s empty. That was here last year and that was them last week.”

STAFF PHOTO By MICHAEL JOHNSON

LSU kicker Scott Starzyk, right, kicks a field goal against Ole Miss in the fourth quarter on Saturday at Vaught Hemingway Stadium in Oxford, Miss.

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depend on it, because the Tigers’ margin for error in September and October shriveled ahead of a November stretch that features No. 8 Alabama, No. 1 Texas and No. 14 Tennessee in a row. Two-loss SEC teams generally make the playoff. Three-loss squads are questionable at best. The Aggies just took a massive blow to their reputation, falling from No. 9 in The Associated Press poll to No. 23. Quarterback Marcel Reed has struggled as a passer, and he just lost receiver and return man Terry Bussey for the season to an injury. Reed is a dynamic runner, though. LSU knows that well. The 6-foot-1, 185-pound sophomore subbed into a 38-23 win two seasons ago and rushed for 62 yards and three touchdowns. Last year, Reed helped clear out Tiger Stadium with 108 rushing yards in a 49-25 victory. LSU can’t afford a rerun of that. “This is a big test,” Kiffin said. “I think we lead the country in rush defense, but that hasn’t been against a ton of quarterback-schemed runs. Last week was just (Chambliss) making stuff on his own, and the long run, when he pulled the ball.” Kiffin is trying to move on, but everything is intertwined. Texas A&M, the program that essentially ended Brian Kelly’s tenure as coach, returns to Tiger Stadium with Kiffin and his first LSU squad desperately in need of a get-right game. And the Ole Miss game was difficult to relive. “There’s some games you just get outplayed, out-coached, and you go, OK, back to the drawing board,” Kiffin said. “But that one, they really struggled with this morning, seeing it.”

The Tigers had another fourthquarter series inside the 5-yard line and settled for a field goal because their third-down run was blown up. Kiffin would have gone for it on fourth down if LSU moved forward at all. “They went through it this morning, watching the film, going, ‘Wait, the game was right there to be won,’ ” Kiffin said. “I think their emotions had kind of probably gotten better, and then this morning when they saw it, I think it went down.” Moving on from Week 3 was always going to be easier said than done, especially in the annals of history. Kiffin just returned to Oxford, Mississippi, with the program he decided was betterresourced and didn’t win. In the near-term, LSU is being thinned by injuries. The Tigers just lost safety Dashawn Spears to an ACL tear, joining receiver Phillip Wright on the out-for-season list. And tight end Trey’Dez Green is sidelined indefinitely after taking a helmet to the knee. As always, the television screens in the LSU football facility Monday were playing highlights from the opponent’s last game, Texas A&M versus Kentucky. The Wildcats just beat the Aggies 31-21 in College Station, Texas. Whoever better handles the emotional letdown of a harsh defeat will have an edge Saturday. “When we transitioned to the next opponent, I told them, ‘Hey, we got to go out of here and regroup,’ ” Kiffin said. “We got to move on because we can’t let that missed opportunity have to do with us losing another game.” LSU’s chances of making the Email Jon Blau at jon.blau@ College Football Playoff might theadvocate.com

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Southern tweaks offensive play calls FAMU deals with QB injuries

terms of making plays. At the end of the day, he did go out when his number was called. He was ready to go, and he put his best foot forward and gave us the opportunity to win the game.”

BY TOYLOY BROWN III

PVU’s tough slate

Staff writer

Southern ended nonconference play the way Marshall Faulk hoped. The first-year coach saw his team score 50 points for the ﬁrst time since Oct. 22, 2022, during a 50-31 home win over NAIA proSWAC gram Louisiana notebook Christian on Saturday. The Southern offensive line dominated, and redshirt junior quarterback Christian Johnson was responsible for ﬁve touchdowns. The Hutchinson (Kansas) Community College transfer completed 16 of 22 passes for 172 yards and four touchdowns, and added a 15-yard rushing score. Southern (2-2) never threw for more than two touchdowns in a game last season. It also hasn’t thrown for four touchdowns in a game since facing Virginia University of Lynchburg in the last game they scored at least 50. The offensive explosion against Louisiana Christian (3-1), which had a rare FCS win over Northwestern State to open the season, happened in the first game of a play-calling adjustment. Instead of offensive coordinator Ken Merchant, Faulk had senior adviser Fred McNair call plays in a “collaborative effort.” “Yeah, he was calling the plays in,” Faulk said of McNair, Southern’s co-offensive coordinator and

STAFF PHOTO By JAVIER GALLEGOS

Southern quarterback Christian Johnson looks to make a throw against Louisiana Christian on Saturday at A.W. Mumford Stadium. interim head coach last year. “But it’s a collaborative effort. We put Ken upstairs, and you know Fred’s been working with the quarterbacks. He’s the senior adviser here, and I kind of moved his role up to where I wanted him communicating with the quarterback.”

maining. Coach Quinn Gray‘s offense was unable to get within ﬁeld goal range to tie the game. The Rattlers played the majority of the contest with third-string freshman quarterback Armond Parker. He replaced graduate student Dustin Fletcher, who exited with a thumb injury. Fletcher was the FAMU QB injuries backup to graduate student Isaiah Florida A&M (1-3) suffered a 29- Knowles, who suffered a season26 loss to Tennessee State at home ending thumb injury after playing two games. on Saturday. When asked about Fletcher’s inThe Rattlers gave up a 20-yard screen pass for the go-ahead jury status on the SWAC coaches touchdown with 51 seconds recall Monday, Gray said he expects

The reigning SWAC champion doesn’t have a glossy record. Prairie View (1-3, 1-0 SWAC) lost to all of its nonconference foes: Tarleton State (4-0), Baylor (21) and Stephen F. Austin (4-0). In the Panthers’ 31-10 home defeat to Stephen F. Austin on Saturday, they averaged only 1.8 yards per rushing attempt. Prairie View coach Tremaine Jackson said that his team’s losses will be beneﬁcial for SWAC play. “Everything that happened to us and for us in this nonconference has been good for us, absolutely good for us,” the second-year coach said. “Nobody wants to lose, but man, we played a wide range of football, and we’re excited about the lessons that we are going to take from that and get ready to build a game plan to win our division.” Last year, the Panthers were 1-2 in their ﬁrst three nonconference games, with their only win being a 27-24 win over Northwestern State. The Panthers are still viewed as a contender in the SWAC. They are the No. 4 team in this week’s BOXTOROW HBCU football media poll. In their lone victory, they beat Texas Southern 52-14 while allowing only 81 yards passing.

to receive an update from the doctor later in the day. Parker played valiantly in the second game of his career. He checked in with a little more than minutes left before halftime and ﬁnished completing 14 of 25 passes for 267 yards, two touchdowns and one interception. “An opportunity for him to continue to develop because you’re talking about a true freshman coming in here being thrown into the fire in Division I football,” Gray said. “He did some re- Email Toyloy Brown III at ally good things this past week in toyloy.brown@theadvocate.com.

HIGH SCHOOLS

Dunham stays No. 2 in 2A; St. James rises BY JACKSON REYES Staff writer

ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO By LINDSEy WASSON

Texas Rangers first baseman Jake Burger is greeted in the dugout after scoring during the fourth inning against the Seattle Mariners on Sept. 8 in Seattle.

Rangers have .500 record going into ﬁnal week, lead AL West BY STEPHEN HAWKINS Associated Press

ARLINGTON, Texas — Being even is good enough for the Texas Rangers to lead the AL West going into the ﬁnal week of the regular season. With six games left in a somewhat strange season, the 78-78 Rangers have a one-game lead over Houston. They have stayed near the top of the division all year, never trailing by more than three games or ahead by more than two. “A weird one for sure,” first baseman Jake Burger said. “The positive side is we’ve been in the race the entire time. ... We’ve kind of held our head above water, even if it’s just barely at times. We’ve given ourselves a chance to do something special, and that’s all you can ask for out of a team.” The Rangers haven’t been to the playoffs since winning their only World Series title in 2023, when they were a wild card after Houston matched them at 90-72 on the final day of the regular season. The Astros had the division tiebreaker then, and do again this year when there might not be an available wild-card spot for a second AL West team. “We’re in position to make the playoffs. It doesn’t matter what the record is, that’s the goal,” ﬁrstyear Rangers manager Skip Schumaker said. “So if you would have told me that this date in spring training that you had a chance to get into the playoffs, I would have

signed up for it.”

Good to be in AL With their .500 record, the Rangers would already be eliminated from playoff contention in the National League. They went into their off day Monday eight games behind Philadelphia, the NL’s third wild card, and far behind division winners Milwaukee (20 games), the Los Angeles Dodgers (18) and Atlanta (14).

Close to top No big league team has stayed within such a tight margin of their division lead like the five-game gap for Texas. The league average between biggest leads and biggest deﬁcits is nearly 161/2, with Houston (nine) and Minnesota (9 1/2) the only other teams under 10. “The good part is we haven’t gotten too far away,” right ﬁelder Brandon Nimmo said. “I feel like we’re playing good baseball, and if you can get your foot in the door, then that’s a dangerous thing.” Nimmo was on the Mets in 2024 when they overcame a 22-33 start and being 171/2 games out of the division lead. They made the playoffs with a late comeback win in the opener of a makeup doubleheader at Atlanta a day after every other team had finished the regular season. New York then won the NL Wild Card and NL Division Series before losing the NL Championship Series in six games to the now twotime reigning World Series cham-

pion Dodgers. “Most of the time it’s just better to be the hot team,” Nimmo said.

Stayed close to even The Rangers have never been too far from .500 this year after going 81-81 last season, the only break-even record for the franchise that began as the Washington Senators in 1961 and moved to Texas in 1972. The low mark was six games under at 25-31 on May 28, when all five AL West teams had losing records. Texas was last three games over .500 at 55-52 on July 28. Even with a loss Sunday in their series finale against Toronto, the Rangers have won nine of 13 games. They had been first alone in the AL West only one day since the end of July before passing Houston on Saturday. Texas, which won its last division title 10 years ago, missed a chance for a two-game lead when the Astros were swept by Atlanta on Sunday. The Rangers open a three-game home series against the Mets on Tuesday, then play three games at Minnesota. Houston has two games in Seattle, then four against the Athletics. “It doesn’t matter what the macro view of it has looked like. We’re in the micro moments of making or breaking a season,” Burger said. “As far as we’re concerned, we’re playing playoff baseball, backs-against-the-wall type mentality. It doesn’t matter what the record was the first 140 games.”

The latest LSWA high school football poll is out, and several Baton Rouge area schools either dropped in the polls or stayed where they were last week. One school to rise in the rankings was St. James. The Wildcats earned the No. 1 spot in the Class 3A rankings after a 3-0 start. St. James earned nine of the 11 ﬁrst-place votes after St. Charles, the previous No. 1 team, lost 10-7 to Holy Cross in overtime. University High also rose a spot in the Class 3A poll to No. 5 after a 31-21 win over Plaquemine, moving to 1-2.

In Class 5A, Catholic fell four spots to No. 9 after its 43-42 loss at home to St. Thomas More. Madison Prep dropped one spot to No. 7 in the Class 4A poll after its 39-36 loss to Zachary. The loss puts the Chargers at 1-2. Dunham remained ranked No. 2 after its 58-0 win against Catholic of Baton Rouge. The Tigers moved their record to 2-1 after the bounce-back win. No. 3 Ascension Catholic, No. 7 Southern Lab and No. 8 Kentwood all stayed put in the Class 1A poll from where each school ranked last week. The Bulldogs and Kangaroos both won this past week, while Southern Lab had an open week.

LSWA FOOTBALL POLLS Class 5A School (ﬁrst-place votes) Rec. Pts. Prev. 1. Karr (10) 3-0 131 2 2. Ruston 2-1 115 1 3. Alexandria 3-0 109 3 4. St. Augustine (1) 3-0 104 4 5. John Curtis 2-1 82 6 6. Rummel 3-0 80 7 7. Acadiana 3-0 63 8 8. Brother Martin 3-0 47 9 9. Catholic-Baton Rouge 1-2 45 5 10. Jesuit 3-0 22 NR Others receiving votes: St. Thomas More 15, Central 13, West Monroe 8, Ouachita 7, Mandeville 5, Barbe 3, Thibodaux 3.

Class 4A School (ﬁrst-place votes) Rec. Pts. Prev. 1. Westgate (9) 3-0 129 1 2. North DeSoto (1) 3-0 114 3 3. Neville (1) 2-1 111 4 4. Shaw 2-1 99 2 5. Lake Charles Prep 3-0 91 5 6. Franklin Parish 2-1 76 7 7. Madison Prep 1-2 62 6 8. John F. Kennedy 2-1 46 NR 9. Belle Chasse 3-0 36 NR 10. Cecilia 2-1 29 8 Others receiving votes: Plaquemine 27, Salmen 19, Lafayette Renaissance 7, Franklinton 3, Opelousas 3, Carencro 2, Teurlings Catholic 2, E.D. White 1.

Class 3A School (ﬁrst-place votes) 1. St. James (9) 2. St. Charles (2) 3. Sterlington 4. Jena 5. University

Rec. Pts. Prev. 3-0 130 2 2-1 118 1 2-1 104 4 2-1 96 3 1-2 83 6

6. Iowa 1-2 81 5 7. Jewel Sumner 2-1 64 7 8. Loyola Prep 2-1 55 8 9. Marksville 3-0 52 9 10. Eunice 3-0 30 NR Others receiving votes: Vandebilt Catholic 23, Carroll 13, Iota 4, Northwest 3, De La Salle 2, West Feliciana 1.

Class 2A School (ﬁrst-place votes) Rec. Pts. Prev. 1. Calvary Baptist (9) 3-0 130 1 2. Dunham (2) 2-1 120 2 3. Notre Dame 3-0 113 3 4. Mangham 2-1 96 4 5. Amite 3-0 67 7 6. Lafayette Christian 2-1 55 5 7. Oak Grove 1-2 53 6 8. Catholic-New Iberia 2-1 51 9 9. Mansﬁeld 3-0 48 10 10. Newman 2-1 27 NR Others receiving votes: Kinder 25, Loreauville 19, West St. Mary 7, Covenant Christian 7, Country Day 4, Lake Arthur 2.

Class 1A

School (ﬁrst-place votes) Rec. Pts. Prev. 1. Ouachita Christian (6) 3-0 127 1 2. Riverside Academy (4) 3-0 125 2 3. Ascension Catholic 3-0 110 3 4. Jeanerette 3-0 96 4 5. Haynesville 2-1 84 5 6. Logansport 3-0 72 6 7. Southern Lab 2-0 65 7 8. Kentwood 3-0 63 8 9. Westminster-Lafayette 3-0 40 9 10. Cedar Creek 3-0 35 NR Others receiving votes: East Feliciana 20, South Plaquemines 13, Lincoln Prep 11, Westminster-Opelousas 3, Catholic-Pointe Coupee 1, St. Edmund 1.

REPORT Volleyball Week 3 Monday’s results

Ascension Christian 3, Hanson Memorial 0 (25-20, 25-16, 25-12) Collegiate Baton Rouge 3, Louisiana School for the Deaf 0 (25-11, 24-14, 25-15) North Iberville 3, Thrive Academy 0 (25-15, 25-14, 26-24)

Riverside 3, Dutchtown 1 (25-22, 25-19, 19-25, 25-17) St. John 3, Southern Lab 0 (25-15, 25-18, 25-12) Plaquemine 3, Belaire 0 (25-18, 25-14, 25-18) St. Martinville 3, McKinley 0 (25-13, 25-15, 25-19) Vandebilt Catholic 3, Central Lafourche 1 (25-15, 24-26, 25-13, 25-20) Livonia 3, Glen oaks 0 (25-13, 25-21, 25-21)

SPORTS

24/7

6C ■ Tuesday, September 22, 2026 ■ theadvocate.com ■ The Advocate

lll

SCOREBOARD Holes-in-one Jared Leggett

Course: The University Club Hole: No. 16 Yardage: 181 yards Club: 7 iron Witnesses: Jeff Ellison & Paige Leggett Course: The University Club Hole: No. 8 Yardage: 141 yards Club: 9 iron Witnesses: Max Lewis, Ronald Doyle, Scott Perrilloux

Seth Davis

Course: Santa Maria Hole: No.2 Club: 7 Iron Witnesses: Randy Davis,Austin Aker, Allen Aker

Odds Sports Betting Line NFL FAVORITE OPEN TODAY O/U UNDERDOG at GREEN BAY 7½ 7 (43½) Atlanta

Sunday

FAVORITE OPEN TODAY O/U UNDERDOG Houston 2½ 2½ (43½) at IND Kansas City 7 11½ (45½) at MIAMI Carolina 2½ 3 (42½) at CLE Cincinnati 1½ 3½ (42½) at PITTS Seattle 3½ 6½ (39½) at WASH at BUFFALO 2½ 7 (50½) Chargers at DETROIT 9½ 6½ (48½) NY Jets at JAX 1½ 3 (45½) New Eng at NY GIANTS 3 6½ (43½) Tennessee Minnesota 1½ 1½ (43) at TAMPA at SAN FRAN 11½ 8½ (47½) Arizona at N.O. 3 3 (43½) Las Vegas Baltimore 2½ 3 (52½) at DALLAS LA Rams 3 2½ (45½) at DENVER

Monday

FAVORITE OPEN TODAY O/U UNDERDOG Philadelphia 1½ 3½ (44½) at CHI

College Football FAVORITE Liberty

OPEN TODAY O/U UNDERDOG 1½ 2½ (52½) at C. CAR

FAVORITE Army Navy at INDIANA Clemson

OPEN TODAY O/U UNDERDOG 3½ 3 (48½) at TEMPLE 12½ 7 (51½) at UAB 23½ 21 (49½) Nrthwstrn 1½ 1½ (50½) at CAL

Saturday

FAVORITE OPEN TODAY O/U UNDERDOG at UTSA 10½ 13 (57½) Colrado St Virginia Tech 14½ 14 (50½) at B. COLL UNLV 13½ 13½ (50½) at AKRON at OSU 26½ 27½ (53½) Illinois at TEX TECH 40½ 34½ (54½) Sam Hou Texas 6½ 5½ (55½) at TEN at KENT ST 3½ 3 (49½) Ball State at LOUSVILLE 13½ 13½ (58½) W. Forest at TOLEDO 3½ 2½ (50½) Sdsu at BAYLOR 6½ 10 (55½) Colorado at KENTUCKY 20½ 20½ (53½) S. Alabama UCLA 1½ 2½ (57½) at MRYLND Notre Dame 27½ 28 (57½) at PURDUE at GSU 8½ 10 (55½) N. Illinois Hawaii 5½ 3 (45½) at WYMNG at MICHIGAN 4½ 5½ (38½) Iowa New Mexico 13½ 12½ (48½) at NMSU TCU 1½ 3 (49½) at UCF at FLORIDA 1½ 3½ (60½) Ole Miss at MIAMI (OH) 5½ 3½ (51½) UConn at GEORGIA 10 13½ (43½) Oklahoma Utah 11½ 7½ (49½) at IOWA ST Boise State 7½ 7½ (48½) at W. MICH Houston 20½ 18½ (54½) at G. SOUTH at AUBURN 8½ 9½ (56½) Vanderbilt Nebraska 5½ 5½ (48½) at MSU at PENN ST 11½ 9½ (44½) Wisconsin South Florida 14½ 17½ (48½) at B. GREEN at VIRGINIA 21½ 19½ (51½) Delaware J. Madison 1½ 6 (47½)at OLD DOM UL 13½ 10½ (49½)at CHRLTTE at MIA (FL) 42½ 41½ (53½) C. Michign at ALABAMA 11½ 12½ (54½) S. Carolina at WEST VA 2½ 1½ (59½) Oklah St at JSU 12½ 7 (51½) M. Tenn at ARKAN ST 5½ 5½ (52½) Kennsw St at TULANE 16½ 18½ (51½) S. Miss Kansas St 6½ 6½ (55½) at CIN at LSU 3 9½ (52½)Texas A&M at NC STATE 11½ 14 (55½) Appa St Oregon 5½ 2½ (62½) at USC at UTAH ST 1½ 3½ (48½) Troy Arizona 12½ 10 (47½)at WASH ST at MISS ST 1½ 6½ (58½) Missouri at ARKAN 10½ 7 (51½) Tulsa Florida Atl 11½ 13½ (57½) at ULM UMass 5½ 4½ (48½) at SAC ST at SMU 34½ 34½ (58½)Missouri St Oregon St 10½ 10½ (54½) at UTEP at FRESNO ST 12½ 13½ (44½) Rice Air Force 3½ 5½ (49½) at NEVADA Georgia Tech 5½ 3½ (47½)at STANFRD at WASH 8½ 10 (45½) Minnesota

MLB

Tuesday

American League FAVORITE LINE at N.Y YANKEES -134 at BALTIMORE -122 at BOSTON -130 at N.Y YANKEES -138 Chi White Sox -118 at SEATTLE -145 LA Angels OFF National League FAVORITE LINE at PITTSBURGH -151 at PHILADELPHIA -143 at ATLANTA -191 at CHICAGO CUBS OFF Arizona -198 at LA DODGERS OFF Interleague FAVORITE LINE at DETROIT -164 at TEXAS -146 Minnesota -136

UNDERDOG LINE Tampa Bay +110 Toronto +100 Cleveland +107 Tampa Bay +114 at KANSAS CITY-103 Houston +120 at ATHLETICS OFF UNDERDOG LINE St. Louis +124 Milwaukee +118 Cincinnati +155 Miami OFF at COLORADO +161 San Diego OFF UNDERDOG Washington N.Y Mets at SAN FRAN

LINE +134 +121 +112

Pro basketball WNBA Glance EASTERN CONFERENCE x-Atlanta x-Indiana x-New York x-Washington Chicago Toronto Connecticut

W 28 27 26 26 15 11 10

L 14 15 16 16 27 31 32

Pct .667 .643 .619 .619 .357 .262 .238

x-Minnesota x-Golden State x-Las Vegas x-Dallas Los Angeles Portland Phoenix Seattle

W 32 31 29 26 16 16 15 8

L 10 11 13 16 26 27 27 35

Pct GB .762 — .738 1 .690 3 .619 6 .381 16 .372 16½ .357 17 .186 24½

WESTERN CONFERENCE

x-clinched playoff spot Sunday’s Games

GB — 1 2 2 13 17 18

Minnesota 101, Connecticut 89 New York 106, Toronto 69 Washington 93, Indiana 77 Los Angeles 105, Portland 84 Las Vegas 98, Seattle 77

Monday’s Games

Atlanta 95, New York 84 Dallas at Phoenix, n

Tuesday’s Games

Connecticut at Washington, 6:30 p.m. Minnesota at Indiana, 7 p.m. Toronto at Chicago, 7 p.m. Golden State at Portland, 9 p.m. Los Angeles at Las Vegas, 9 p.m.

Pro football NFL Glance AMERICAN CONFERENCE East Buffalo New England N.Y. Jets Miami

W 2 1 1 0

L 0 1 1 2

T Pct PF PA 0 1.000 77 62 0 .500 30 16 0 .500 40 30 0 .000 26 62

Jacksonville Tennessee Houston Indianapolis

W 1 0 0 0

L 1 2 2 2

T 0 0 0 0

South

North

L 0 1 1 1

T Pct PF PA 0 1.000 53 33 0 .500 58 47 0 .500 23 33 0 .500 33 53

Kansas City Las Vegas Denver L.A. Chargers

W 2 2 1 0

L 0 0 1 2

T Pct PF PA 0 1.000 64 40 0 1.000 53 27 0 .500 30 44 0 .000 28 52

NATIONAL CONFERENCE East Philadelphia N.Y. Giants Dallas Washington

W 2 1 1 0

L 0 0 1 2

T Pct PF PA 0 1.000 48 42 0 1.000 28 20 0 .500 57 48 0 .000 42 61

Carolina New Orleans Tampa Bay Atlanta

W 1 1 0 0

L 1 1 2 2

T 0 0 0 0

Minnesota Detroit Chicago Green Bay

W 2 1 1 1

L 0 1 1 1

T Pct PF PA 0 1.000 48 25 0 .500 62 71 0 .500 62 46 0 .500 42 56

South

North

Thursday

Friday

W 2 1 1 1

West

Bobby Lormand

Thursday

Cincinnati Baltimore Pittsburgh Cleveland

Pct PF PA .500 47 30 .000 30 47 .000 37 56 .000 53 74

West

Seattle San Francisco Arizona L.A. Rams

W 2 2 1 0

Thursday’s Games

L 0 0 1 1

Pct PF PA .500 71 62 .500 54 48 .000 46 56 .000 16 54

T Pct PF PA 0 1.000 44 17 0 1.000 62 20 0 .500 33 45 0 .000 7 27

Buffalo 41, Detroit 31

Sunday’s Games

Carolina 34, Atlanta 3 Cincinnati 20, Houston 6 Cleveland 23, Tampa Bay 19 Green Bay 20, N.Y. Jets 17, OT Minnesota 9, Chicago 3 New England 20, Pittsburgh 3 New Orleans 24, Baltimore 17 Philadelphia 24, Tennessee 20 Denver 20, Jacksonville 13 Las Vegas 26, L.A. Chargers 14 Dallas 37, Washington 20 San Francisco 35, Miami 13 Seattle 31, Arizona 7 Kansas City 33, Indianapolis 30, OT

Monday’s Games

L.A. Rams 28, N.Y. Giants 6

Late Sunday K.C. 33, Indianapolis 30, OT Indianapolis 7 13 0 7 3 — 30 Kansas City 10 7 7 3 6 — 33 First Quarter Ind_Warren 1 pass from D.Jones (Shrader kick), 8:25. KC_FG Butker 46, 6:09. KC_Kelce 13 pass from Mahomes (Butker kick), 4:34. Second Quarter Ind_FG Shrader 42, 14:48. Ind_FG Shrader 49, 9:44. KC_Worthy 1 pass from Mahomes (Butker kick), 2:25. Ind_Taylor 24 run (Shrader kick), :59. Third Quarter KC_Royals 1 pass from Mahomes (Butker kick), 8:01. Fourth Quarter KC_FG Butker 28, 14:15. Ind_Taylor 5 run (Shrader kick), 5:37. First Overtime KC_FG Butker 31, 5:09. Ind_FG Shrader 38, 3:11. KC_FG Butker 40, :00.

A_73,351.

Ind KC First downs 24 29 Total Net Yards 329 523 Rushes-yards 32-119 29-152 Passing 210 371 Punt Returns 0-0 2-8 Kickoff Returns 6-160 6-167 Interceptions Ret. 0-0 1-0 Comp-Att-Int 22-31-1 32-47-0 Sacked-Yards Lost 0-0 2-11 Punts 2-43.0 2-54.5 Fumbles-Lost 0-0 0-0 Penalties-Yards 5-30 8-86 Time of Possession 33:00 37:00 INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS RUSHING_Indianapolis, Taylor 24-92, Burks 2-14, Jones 3-10, Warren 1-3, McGowan 2-0. Kansas City, Walker 24-117, Mahomes 2-17, Johnson 2-15, Tonga 1-3. PASSING_Indianapolis, Jones 22-31-1-210. Kansas City, Mahomes 32-47-0-382. RECEIVING_Indianapolis, Downs 7-72, Warren 6-21, Taylor 4-40, Treadwell 3-61, Pierce 1-11, K.Allen 1-5. Kansas City, Kelce 9-101, Walker 6-61, Worthy 5-25, Thornton 4-86, Rice 4-83, Johnson 2-20, Royals 2-6. MISSED FIELD GOALS_Kansas City, Butker 51.

College football College Football Schedule All Times Central (Subject to change)

Thursday’s games SOUTH

Liberty (2-1) at Coastal Carolina (1-2), 6:30 p.m.

Friday’s games EAST

Army (1-1) at Temple (1-2), 3 p.m. Howard (1-2) at Rutgers (0-3), 6 p.m. Harvard (1-0) at Brown (1-0), 6 p.m.

SOUTH

SC State (4-0) at Bethune-Cookman (2-1), 6 p.m. Southern U. (2-2) at Jackson St. (3-0), 6 p.m. Alabama A&M (3-1) at Florida A&M (1-3), 6 p.m. Mercyhurst (1-3) at W. Kentucky (0-3), 6 p.m. Middle Tennessee (2-1) at Jacksonville St. (2-2), 6 p.m. SE Louisiana (2-2) at Northwestern St. (0-4), 6 p.m. South Carolina (2-1) at Alabama (3-0), 6 p.m. S. Illinois (2-2) at Murray St. (1-3), 6 p.m. Southern Miss. (1-2) at Tulane (1-2), 6 p.m. East Texas A&M (1-3) at McNeese St. (1-3), 6 p.m. Texas A&M (2-1) at LSU (2-1), 6:30 p.m. Appalachian St. (3-0) at NC State (1-2), 6:30 p.m. Missouri (3-0) at Mississippi St. (3-0), 6:45 p.m. FAU (2-1) at Louisiana-Monroe (0-3), 7 p.m.

MIDWEST

Ball St. (1-2) at Kent St. (1-2), 11 a.m. San Diego St. (1-2) at Toledo (2-1), 11 a.m. UNLV (1-2) at Akron (1-2), 11 a.m. Illinois (2-1) at Ohio St. (2-1), 11 a.m. Lindenwood (Mo.) (1-2) at E. Michigan (1-3), noon North Dakota (3-1) at Indiana St. (2-2), noon San Diego (1-2) at St. Thomas (Minn.) (3-1), 1 p.m. Butler (3-1) at Valparaiso (1-2), 1 p.m. Notre Dame (3-0) at Purdue (1-2), 1 p.m. South Dakota (3-1) at Youngstown St. (2-2), 1 p.m. UConn (2-1) at Miami (Ohio) (1-2), 2:30 p.m. Utah (3-0) at Iowa St. (2-1), 2:30 p.m. Boise St. (2-1) at W. Michigan (2-1), 2:30 p.m. Iowa (3-0) at Michigan (3-0), 2:30 p.m. Stonehill (1-3) at Ohio (1-2), 2:30 p.m. Nebraska (3-0) at Michigan St. (2-1), 4 p.m. South Florida (3-0) at Bowling Green (0-3), 4 p.m. Illinois St. (4-0) at N. Iowa (1-2), 4 p.m. Kansas St. (3-0) at Cincinnati (3-0), 6 p.m. E. Illinois (1-3) at S. Dakota St. (3-1), 6 p.m. West Florida (2-1) at SE Missouri (2-2), 6 p.m.

SOUTHWEST

Colorado (2-1) at Baylor (2-1), 11 a.m. Colorado St. (2-1) at UTSA (2-1), 11 a.m. Sam Houston St. (1-2) at Texas Tech (3-0), 11 a.m. Incarnate Word (2-1) at Texas State (1-2), 5 p.m. Northeastern St. (0-1) at Stephen F. Austin (4-0), 5 p.m. Kennesaw St. (1-2) at Arkansas St. (1-2), 6 p.m. Prairie View (1-3) vs. Grambling St. (2-1) at Dallas, 6 p.m. Houston Christian (2-2) at North Texas (1-2), 6:30 p.m. Tulsa (3-0) at Arkansas (1-2), 7 p.m. Mercer (2-2) at Abilene Christian (1-3), 7 p.m. Missouri St. (1-2) at SMU (2-1), 8 p.m. Oregon St. (1-2) at UTEP (1-2), 8 p.m.

FAR WEST

Hawaii (1-2) at Wyoming (1-2), 2 p.m. New Mexico (2-1) at New Mexico St. (1-2), 2:30 p.m. Norfolk St. (2-2) at Chicago State (1-3), 6 p.m. Cal Poly (2-2) at E. Washington (1-3), 6 p.m. Oregon (2-1) at Southern Cal (4-0), 6:30 p.m. Troy (2-1) at Utah St. (0-3), 6:30 p.m. Arizona (2-1) at Washington St. (1-2), 6:30 p.m. Utah Tech (0-4) at N. Colorado (1-3), 7 p.m. Idaho St. (3-0) at S. Utah (1-3), 7 p.m. Portland St. (0-4) at Weber St. (2-2), 7 p.m. UMass (3-0) at Sacramento St. (1-3), 8 p.m. Rice (1-2) at Fresno St. (2-1), 9 p.m. Montana (3-1) at UC Davis (3-1), 9 p.m. N. Arizona (3-1) at Montana St. (4-0), 9:30 p.m. Georgia Tech (1-2) at Stanford (1-2), 9:30 p.m. Air Force (1-1) at Nevada (1-2), 9:30 p.m. Minnesota (2-1) at Washington (3-0), 10 p.m.

FCS Top 25 Poll

RANK REC. PTS. PRV. 1.Montana State (25) 4-0 649 1 2.South Dakota State 3-1 598 3 3.Tarleton State 4-0 566 5 4.Illinois State (1) 4-0 561 4 4.Montana 3-1 561 2 6.Stephen F. Austin 4-0 480 8 7.Lehigh 4-0 461 7 8.North Dakota 3-1 459 6 9.UC Davis 3-1 439 11 10.Tennessee Tech 3-0 415 10 11.Austin Peay 3-1 378 14 12.South Dakota 3-1 366 12 13.Youngstown State 2-2 363 9 14.South Carolina State 4-0 303 16 15.Lamar 2-1 296 15 16.Idaho State 3-0 273 18 17.Northern Arizona 3-1 228 19 18.Yale 1-0 188 20 19.Richmond 3-1 104 NR 20.West Florida 2-1 97 17 21.Rhode Island 2-2 93 13 22.Villanova 2-2 85 23 23.Colgate 3-1 71 NR 23.Mercer 2-2 71 22 25.Harvard 1-0 50 NR Dropped Out: William & Mary (21), Furman (24), Southern Illinois (25) Others Receiving Votes: Southern Illinois (45), Campbell (41), Jackson State (39), Elon (38), Furman (37), Alabama State (14), Prairie View A&M (12), Stony Brook (12), Bryant (7), Central Connecticut State (6), Dartmouth (6), Incarnate Word (6), William & Mary (6), Abilene Christian (5), Monmouth (5), Southeastern Louisiana (4), Southeast Missouri State (3), UT Rio Grande Valley (3), Robert Morris (PA) (2), San Diego (2), Chattanooga (1), St. Thomas (Minn.) (1)

Navy (1-1) at UAB (1-2), 6 p.m.

Tennis

Northwestern (2-0) at Indiana (3-0), 7 p.m.

WTA Singapore Open Results

Clemson (2-1) at California (2-1), 9:30 p.m. Saturday, September 26

Monday

MIDWEST

FAR WEST EAST

Bucknell (1-3) at Pittsburgh (3-0), 11 a.m. Presbyterian (1-2) at Marist (1-2), 11 a.m. New Hampshire (1-3) at Sacred Heart (0-3), 11 a.m. Virginia Tech (3-0) at Boston College (2-1), 11 a.m. Rio Grande RedStorm (0-0) at Duquesne (0-3), 11 a.m. Holy Cross (0-4) at Lafayette (1-2), 11:30 a.m. Columbia (1-0) at Georgetown (0-2), 11:30 a.m. Lehigh (4-0) at Penn (1-0), noon Yale (1-0) at Cornell (0-1), noon Monmouth (NJ) (2-2) at Dartmouth (0-1), noon New Haven (1-3) at Merrimack (1-3), noon Stony Brook (2-2) at Fordham (1-3), noon UCLA (3-0) at Maryland (2-1), 12:30 p.m. Colgate (3-1) at Villanova (2-2), 1:30 p.m. Albany (NY) (2-2) at Princeton (0-1), 2 p.m. Gardner-Webb (1-3) at Marshall (2-1), 2:30 p.m. Robert Morris (2-1) at Buffalo (1-2), 2:30 p.m. Wisconsin (2-1) at Penn St. (3-0), 4 p.m. Towson (0-4) at Delaware St. (2-2), 5 p.m. Oklahoma St. (2-1) at West Virginia (3-0), 6 p.m.

SOUTH

Wake Forest (2-1) at Louisville (2-1), 11 a.m. Texas (3-0) at Tennessee (3-0), 11 a.m. South Alabama (2-1) at Kentucky (2-1), 11:45 a.m. Drake (0-3) at Davidson (2-2), noon Tennessee Tech (3-0) at Wofford (2-2), 12:30 p.m. Furman (2-2) at Richmond (3-1), 1 p.m. UT Martin (1-3) at Austin Peay (3-1), 1 p.m. Chattanooga (2-2) at The Citadel (1-2), 1 p.m. Maine (1-3) at Elon (3-1), 1 p.m. N. Illinois (0-3) at Georgia St. (2-1), 1 p.m. Cent. Arkansas (2-2) at Florida St. (1-2), 2 p.m. TCU (2-1) at UCF (2-1), 2:30 p.m. VMI (0-4) at Samford (0-3), 2:30 p.m. Mississippi (3-0) at Florida (3-0), 2:30 p.m. W. Carolina (2-2) at ETSU (2-2), 2:30 p.m. Oklahoma (2-1) at Georgia (3-0), 2:30 p.m. William & Mary (2-2) at Duke (3-0), 2:30 p.m. Houston (2-1) at Georgia Southern (1-2), 3 p.m. NC Central (2-2) at East Carolina (1-2), 3 p.m. Texas Southern (1-2) at Alcorn St. (2-2), 3 p.m. Lamar (2-1) at Nicholls (2-2), 3 p.m. W. Illinois (2-2) at North Alabama (2-2), 3 p.m. Rhode Island (2-2) at NC A&T (0-4), 3 p.m. Vanderbilt (3-0) at Auburn (2-1), 3:15 p.m. Fort Valley St. (0-0) at West Georgia (0-4), 5 p.m. LIU Brooklyn (0-4) at FIU (1-2), 5 p.m. Delaware (2-1) at Virginia (2-1), 5 p.m. Campbell (3-1) at Hampton (1-3), 5 p.m. James Madison (3-0) at Old Dominion (1-2), 5 p.m. MVSU (1-3) at Alabama St. (2-1), 5 p.m. Cent. Michigan (2-1) at Miami (3-0), 5:30 p.m. Louisiana-Lafayette (2-1) at Charlotte (0-3), 5:30 p.m.

At Kallang Tennis Hub Singapore, Singapore Purse: $1,206,446 Surface: Hardcourt outdoor SINGAPORE, SINGAPORE (AP) _ Results Monday from Singapore Open at Kallang Tennis Hub (seedings in parentheses):

Women’s Singles

Round of 32 Aliaksandra Sasnovich, Belarus, def. Daria Kasatkina, Russia, 7-5, 6-0. Nao Hibino, Japan, def. Kristina Mladenovic, France, 7-5, 3-6, 6-4. Talia Gibson, Australia, def. Fiona Ferro, France, 6-3, 6-3. Maja Chwalinska (5), Poland, def. Rebecca Sramkova, Slovakia, 6-4, 6-2. Leylah Fernandez (6), Canada, def. Kyoka Okamura, Japan, 6-2, 6-3.

Women’s Doubles

Round of 16 Miyu Kato, Japan, and Ellen Perez (3), Australia, def. Donna Vekic, Croatia, and Maria Sakkari, Greece, 7-5, 6-1. Xu Yifan and Qianhui Tang, China, def. Fiona Ferro, France, and Linda Fruhvirtova, Czechia, 6-4, 6-2.

Transactions Major League Baseball

American League DETROIT TIGERS — Recalled RHP River Ryan from Toledo. MINNESOTA TWINS — Selected the contract of 1B Aaron Sabato from St. Paul. Designated C Alex Jackson for assignment. TORONTO BLUE JAYS — Activated RHP Trey Yesavage from the 15-day IL. Recalled RHP Chad Dallas from Buffalo. Optioned RHP Spencer Arrighetti to FCL Blue Jays. Designated LHP Joe Mantiply for assignment. National League WASHINGTON NATIONALS — Activated LHP DJ Herz from the 60-day IL. Optioned LHP Jared Simpson to Rochester. Released RHP Cole Henry.

MAJOR LEAGUE BASEBALL American League East Division

National League

z-Tampa Bay z-New York y-Boston Toronto Baltimore

W 95 89 84 77 75

L 60 66 72 79 81

Pct GB .613 — .574 6 .538 11½ .494 18½ .481 20½

Cleveland Chicago Detroit Minnesota Kansas City

W 81 80 73 73 67

L 75 76 83 83 89

Pct .519 .513 .468 .468 .429

GB — 1 8 8 14

W 78 77 73 61 60

L 78 79 83 95 96

Pct .500 .494 .468 .391 .385

GB — 1 5 17 18

Central Division

West Division

Texas Houston Seattle Athletics Los Angeles y-clinched wild card z-clinched playoff berth

East Division x-Atlanta Philadelphia Miami Washington New York

W 92 86 76 73 71

L 64 70 80 83 85

Pct .590 .551 .487 .468 .455

GB — 6 16 19 21

x-Milwaukee Chicago Pittsburgh St. Louis Cincinnati

W 98 87 79 76 72

L 58 69 77 80 84

Pct .628 .558 .506 .487 .462

GB — 11 19 22 26

W 96 87 82 64 57

L 60 69 74 92 99

Pct .615 .558 .526 .410 .365

GB — 9 14 32 39

Central Division

West Division x-Los Angeles San Diego Arizona San Francisco Colorado x-clinched division

Sunday’s Games

Chicago Cubs 9, Cincinnati 1 Philadelphia 7, N.Y. Mets 2 Pittsburgh 4, Kansas City 3 St. Louis 5, Washington 3 Atlanta 4, Houston 2 Seattle 2, Colorado 1 San Diego 7, Miami 3 L.A. Dodgers 3, San Francisco 1 Arizona 8, N.Y. Yankees 4 Milwaukee 3, Baltimore 0

Cleveland 1, Athletics 0 Tampa Bay 5, Boston 1 Pittsburgh 4, Kansas City 3 Atlanta 4, Houston 2 Chicago White Sox 8, Detroit 1 Toronto 7, Texas 2 Seattle 2, Colorado 1 Minnesota 8, L.A. Angels 0 Arizona 8, N.Y. Yankees 4 Milwaukee 3, Baltimore 0

Monday’s Games

Detroit 9, Washington 2 Minnesota at San Francisco, n

Detroit 9, Washington 2 Baltimore 4, Toronto 3 Minnesota at San Francisco, n

Tuesday’s Games

Tampa Bay (TBD) at N.Y. Yankees (TBD), 12:05 p.m., 1st game Toronto (Scherzer 3-8) at Baltimore (Bassitt 8-5), 5:35 p.m. Washington (Kent 1-4) at Detroit (Anderson 5-6), 5:40 p.m. Cleveland (Grifﬁn 15-5) at Boston (Tolle 9-6), 5:45 p.m. Tampa Bay (TBD) at N.Y. Yankees (TBD), 6:05 p.m., 2nd game Chicago White Sox (Kay 9-9) at Kansas City (Lynch 6-5), 6:40 p.m. N.Y. Mets (Manaea 5-7) at Texas (Gore 8-11), 7:05 p.m. Houston (Javier 2-6) at Seattle (Gilbert 12-10), 8:40 p.m. L.A. Angels (Kikuchi 1-6) at Athletics (Basso 1-3), 8:40 p.m. Minnesota (at San Francisco, 8:45 p.m.

Milwaukee (TBD) at Philadelphia (Wheeler 13-5), 5:40 p.m. St. Louis (Pallante 12-7) at Pittsburgh (Jones 4-6), 5:40 p.m. Washington (Kent 1-4) at Detroit (Anderson 5-6), 5:40 p.m. Cincinnati (Abbott 6-11) at Atlanta (TBD), 6:15 p.m. Miami (Junk 6-9) at Chicago Cubs (Gausman 9-12), 6:40 p.m. N.Y. Mets (Manaea 5-7) at Texas (Gore 8-11), 7:05 p.m. Arizona (TBD) at Colorado (Freeland 4-10), 7:40 p.m. Minnesota (Bradley 11-6) at San Francisco (Molina 3-1), 8:45 p.m. San Diego (Ray 13-8) at L.A. Dodgers (Yamamoto 14-8), 9:10 p.m.

WILD CARD GLANCE American League

National League

W z-New York 89 y-Boston 84 Chicago 80 Houston 77 Toronto 77 y-clinched wild card z-clinched playoff berth

L 66 72 76 79 79

Pct WCGB .574 +9½ .538 +4 .513 — .494 3 .494 3

Chicago San Diego Philadelphia Arizona

W 87 87 86 82

L 69 69 70 74

Detroit 9, Washington 2

Baltimore 4, Toronto 3

Washington Detroit ab r h bi ab r h bi Wood lf 4 1 1 0 Torres 2b 3 1 00 Lile dh 4 0 0 0 Jung 2b 1 0 00 Ortiz 1b 3 0 0 0 Lee 3b 5 1 31 Morales 1b 1 1 1 2 Greene lf 3 1 00 Abrams ss 3 0 0 0 Callahan lf 1 0 00 Nuñez ph-ss1 0 0 0 Valencia dh 4 1 30 Crews rf 3 0 1 0 Malgeri rf 4 1 23 Vivas 2b 3 0 0 0 Dingler c 3 2 20 House 3b 4 0 0 0 Torkelson 1b 4 1 1 2 Ruiz c 3 0 0 0 Báez cf 2 1 12 Young cf 3 0 2 0 McKinstry cf 1 0 0 0 Peck ss 4 0 0 0 Totals 32 2 5 2 Totals 35 912 8 Washington 000 000 020 — 2 Detroit 200 250 00x — 9 E_Wood (7). DP_Washington 1, Detroit 0. LOB_Washington 5, Detroit 6. 2B_Young (22), Lee 2 (18), Malgeri (4), Valencia 2 (13), Dingler (27). HR_Morales (3), Báez (3), Malgeri (4), Torkelson (25). IP H R ER BB SO Washington Herz L,0-1 4 5 4 4 2 4 Perales 2 5 5 5 2 2 Gray 2 2 0 0 0 1 Detroit Ryan 3 2 0 0 1 3 Montero W,10-9 4 1 0 0 1 5 Sommers 1 2 2 2 0 2 Brieske 1 0 0 0 0 1 WP_Herz. ABS Challenge_Torres (Strike-Overturned to Ball); Perales (Ball-Conﬁrmed); Crews (Strike-Conﬁrmed). Umpires_Home, Emil Jimenez; First, Louie Krupa; Second, Mike Muchlinski; Third, Doug Eddings. T_2:19. A_21,121 (41,083).

ab r h bi ab r h bi Bateman cf 1 1 0 0 Beavers lf 4 0 00 Straw cf 2 0 0 0 Alonso 1b 4 2 23 Kirk c 3 1 1 0 Henderson ss 4 1 3 1 Valenzuela c0 0 0 0 Mayo dh 4 0 00 Lukes rf 3 1 1 1 E-Strnd 3b 3 0 10 Springer dh 4 0 2 1 Basallo c 2 0 00 Keys 1b 3 0 0 1 Narváez c 1 0 00 Okamoto 3b 4 0 1 0 Hinds rf 3 0 00 Smith lf 4 0 0 0 Cowser cf 1 0 00 Giménez ss 3 0 1 0 Franklin ph-cf 0 1 0 0 Clement 2b 3 0 0 0 Barrero 2b 2 0 00 Jackson ph-2b 1 0 0 0 Totals 30 3 6 3 Totals 29 4 6 4 Toronto 300 000 000 — 3 Baltimore 100 001 02x — 4 DP_Toronto 1, Baltimore 2. LOB_Toronto 4, Baltimore 3. 3B_Henderson (6). HR_ Alonso 2 (40), Henderson (24). SF_Keys (1). IP H R ER BB SO Toronto Yesavage 2 1 1 1 0 3 Cellucci 1 1⁄3 1 0 0 0 3 2 Dallas H,2 2 ⁄3 1 1 1 1 4 Rodriguez H,1 1 1 0 0 0 0 2 ⁄3 0 1 1 1 0 Fluharty H,19 1 ⁄3 2 1 1 0 0 Ty.Rogers L,2-3 BS,4-8 Baltimore 2 Baz 6 ⁄3 5 3 3 3 2 Cano W,4-3 1 1⁄3 1 0 0 0 1 Garcia S,10-16 1 0 0 0 0 2 ABS Challenge_Yesavage (Ball-Overturned to Strike); Smith (Strike-Confirmed); Cano (Ball-Confirmed); Smith (Strike-Confirmed). Pitch timer violations_Baz (pitcher). Umpires_Home, Carlos Torres; First, Mark Wegner; Second, Nate Tomlinson; Third, Tyler Jones. T_2:30. A_12,067 (45,971).

Toronto

Baltimore

THIS DATE IN BASEBALL Sept. 22

1911 — Cy Young, 44, beat the Pittsburgh Pirates 1-0 for his 511th and final major league victory. 1936 — The Detroit Tigers swept the St. Louis Browns 12-0 and 14-0 to record the biggest double shutout in major league history. 1954 — Karl Spooner of Brooklyn became the first pitcher in the majors to strike out 15 in his first game as the Dodgers beat the New York Giants 3-0. 1966 — The Baltimore Orioles clinched their first AL pennant in 22 years with a 6-1 victory over the Kansas City A’s. Their last pennant came in 1944 when they were the St. Louis Browns. 1968 — Cesar Tovar played one inning at each position for the Minnesota Twins, becoming the second major leaguer in history to do it. Bert Campaneris of the Oakland A’s was the other. 1969 — Willie Mays of the San Francisco Giants became the second player to hit 600 career home runs — joining Babe Ruth. The two-run shot off San Diego’s Mike Corkins in the seventh inning, gave the Giants a 4-2 win. 1973 — Baltimore’s Al Bumbry tied the major-league record with three triples as the Orioles beat the Milwaukee Brewers 7-1 and clinched the American League East title. 1977 — Bert Blyleven tossed a 6-0 no-hitter for Texas against the Angels at Anaheim Stadium. 1986 — Fernando Valenzuela of Los Angeles became the first Mexican to win 20 games, beating the Houston Astros 9-2 while allowing two hits. 1990 — Andre Dawson of the Chicago Cubs stole his 300th base in an 11-5 loss to the New York Mets, to become the second player with 300 homers, 300 steals and 2,000 hits. Willie Mays was the other. 1993 — Nolan Ryan of the Texas Rangers faced three Seattle batters before hurting his right elbow. Ryan finished his career

with 324 wins, 5,714 strikeouts and seven no-hitters. 2000 — Houston’s Jose Lima set an NL single-season record by allowing his 47th homer in the Astros’ 12-5 loss to Cincinnati. The major league record for home runs allowed in a season is 50, set by Minnesota’s Bert Blyleven in 1986. 2003 — Detroit set an AL record with its 118th loss, falling 12-6 to Kansas City. The 1916 Philadelphia Athletics (36-117) set the record. 2003 — Second baseman Alfonso Soriano broke a major league record by hitting his 13th leadoff homer of the year in the New York Yankees’ 10-inning loss to the Chicago White Sox. 2006 — Alfonso Soriano became baseball’s first 40-40-40 player in Washington’s 3-2 win over the New York Mets. Soriano hit his 40th double and stole his 41st base. With 45 homers, he already was only the fourth major league player with 40 homers and 40 steals in a season. 2018 — The Atlanta Braves capped a most surprising season by clinching their first NL East crown since 2013, with Mike Foltynewicz taking a no-hitter into the seventh inning in a 5-3 win over the Philadelphia Phillies. A year after going 70-92, manager Brian Snitker and his Baby Braves surged back into the playoffs. 2023 — By hitting his 40th homer of the season, Ronald Acuña Jr. becomes just the fifth member of the exclusive 40-40 club consisting pf players whp have hit 40 homers and stolen 40 bases in the same season. He already has over 60 steals, the first player to ever combine the two totals, and has a chance to reach 70. The Braves defeat the Nationals, 9 — 6. For the second time in a month, Aaron Judge hits three homers in a game to lead the Yankees to a 7 — 1 lead over the Diamondbacks. Judge had never had such a game before this year, and becomes the first player in Yankees history to have two in one season.

BASKETBALL

National Basketball Association TORONTO RAPTORS — Converted G Malachi Smith to a two-way contract.

FOOTBALL

National Football League ATLANTA FALCONS — Signed OL Colby Sorsdal to the practice squad. Released C James Brockermeyer from the practice squad. LOS ANGELES RAMS — Elevated LB Elias Neal from the practice squad. MIAMI DOLPHINS — Waived LB Liam Anderson. NEW YORK GIANTS — Elevated WR Braxton Berrios and LB Malik Harrison from the practice squad.

HOCKEY

National Hockey League CHICAGO BLACKHAWKS — Placed D Derrick Pouliot on waivers.

Pct WCGB .558 +1 .558 +1 .551 — .526 4

– SINCE I842 –

LIVING

T H E A D V O C AT E.C O M

T u e s d ay, s e p T e m b e r 22, 2026

1dN

Obedient plant is a native perennial that lives up to its name Having a name like obedient plant creates a certain expectation: a well-behaved plant with a cooperative nature. That’s exactly what it delivers. Obedient plant (Physostegia virginiana) is a tough perennial native to Louisiana and much of the United States. It’s easy to care for and long-lived. Although it’s a vigorous grower, it won’t balk when it occasionally needs reining in. And, on top of that, it’s a great pollinator plant — and even somewhat enGARDEN tertaining. NEWS “The individual flowers sit on a horizontal, hinge-like structure called a pedicel,” said LSU AgCenter horticulturist Jason Stagg. “They can be pushed or twisted and will stay in that position, which is why it’s commonly known as obedient plant.” Blooming from summer into the first days of fall, wild obedient plant and most cultivated types feature a striking pinkish-purple color. The clusters of small, tubular flowers borne on tall stems may remind you of penstemon or snapdragon. Obedient plant provides a source of nectar during a transition season — a time when many other flowering plants have already succumbed to the summer heat. That makes this plant irresistible to hungry pollinators such as hummingbirds, butterflies and bees.

PROVIDED PHOTOS By C.C. LOCKWOOD

C.C. Lockwood’s photo, ‘Dawn Awakening,’ is featured in the Louisiana Art & Science Museum’s retrospective exhibit of his works, ‘Preserving Paradise: The Vision of C.C. Lockwood,’ opening Sept. 25.

A LIFE in the OUTDOORS

C.C. Lockwood spent his career photographing nature in Louisiana. An exhibit highlights his work. BY ROBIN MILLER Staff writer

LSU AGCENTER FILE PHOTO

Obedient plant gets its name from the way its flowers can be pushed into new positions, where they’ll stay. The flowers sit on hinge-like structures.

“I like to watch larger bees wiggle into the flowers,” Stagg said. Bloom stalks reach at least 3 to 4 feet tall. As flowers form and the stalks get heavier, they sometimes lodge, or lean over. While obedient plant is nearing the end of its growing and blooming season right now, it will soon be the perfect time to add it to your garden. Like a lot of flowering perennials, obedient plant does best when planted in the fall or winter, as cooler temperatures offer a lower-stress environment for getting established. Choose a full- to part-sun location. The more sun obedient plant gets, the more flowers it will produce. It prefers average to moist soil but is not picky about other soil characteristics, such as pH. Be sure to give it plenty of room to grow. Because obedient plant can grow in wet sites, it makes an excellent addition to rain gardens and storm water structures. “Plant it once, and it will come back year after year without care,” Stagg said. “It spreads by underground rhizomes, forming a very large and vigorous clump. But the roots are shallow, so plants are easy to pull up if the clump becomes too big for your liking.” Clumps also can be divided while they’re dormant in winter and early spring for sharing with friends.

ä See OBEDIENT, page 2D

C.C. Lockwood listens to the steady rhythm of the passing train outside the old Yazoo & Mississippi Valley Railroad Depot that’s been home to the Louisiana Art & Science Museum since 1976. The train is rolling somewhere beyond Baton Rouge, maybe into parts of Louisiana the 77-year-old nature photographer now thinks about, C.C. Lockwood’s photo, ‘Cypress Splendor,’ some of which he captures when ‘a momentary shaft of sun peers hasn’t paddled by canoe in 20 years. through cloudy skies to brilliantly light up Spanish Canoes and boats moss covered bald cypress trees.’ — not trains — were Lockwood’s preferred Mention of the trek along the Colorado mode of travel in his 55-year River brings up the memory of the dancareer. Images from these ger attached to that adventure. Locktravels will be featured in the wood was canoeing the waterway when Lockwood Louisiana Art & Science Mu- a series of rapids slammed his vessel seum’s retrospective exhibit, “Preserv- against a rock. “It was a six-hour ordeal, but I didn’t get ing Paradise: The Vision of C.C. Locka scratch,” he said. “So, there are times wood,” opening Sept. 25. The show examines Lockwood’s life when doing this job can be dangerous.” But Lockwood never wavered in the and his love of Louisiana’s natural landscape, though he’s also extended that face of danger, not even after stepping love to other places. The Yucatan Pen- on an alligator’s tail during a nighttime insula in Mexico is one, the Colorado ä See LOCKWOOD, page 2D River through Grand Canyon is another.

‘PRESERVING PARADISE: THE VISION OF C.C. LOCKWOOD’ WHERE: Louisiana Art & Science Museum, 100 S. River Road. WHEN: The show opens Sept. 25 and continues for a year through Sept. 1, 2027. Hours are 10 a.m.-3 p.m. Wednesday through Friday, 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Saturday and 1-5 p.m. Sunday. ADMISSION: $16, age 13 and older; $13 children age 3-12 and seniors age 65 and older.Admission is free for military and first reponders. VISIT: lasm.org.

CRAVING SOME ICE CREAM?

LSU Dairy Store relocates, serves up same treats An employee at the LSU Dairy Store adds cookie crumbles to a bowl of ice cream on Sept. 11.

STAFF PHOTO By PEARL SPURLOCK

BY MADDIE SCOTT Staff writer

LSU DAIRY STORE 410 Tower Drive, Baton Rouge l

Tigerbite ice cream, anyone? Open 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday Those looking for sweet treats through Friday in the fall and spring from the longtime LSU AgCensemesters ter Dairy Store will now venture inside the Our Lady of the Lake The store relocated from its Health Interdisciplinary Science Building at 410 Tower Drive, a two-year temporary location at four-story campus building that 118 S. Campus Drive and held houses PJ’s Coffee, Shaquille a grand opening on Sept. 8, just O’Neal’s Big Chicken and the new ä See ICE CREAM, page 2D location of the LSU Dairy Store.

2D ■ Tuesday, September 22, 2026 ■ theadvocate.com ■ The Advocate

lll

Matter of professional address school policy Dear Miss Manners: I work in a barriers, and we shouldn’t use our public middle school and am a first names with students. licensed teacher. It is a matter of This particular aide has done course that adults refer to little to hide her contempt each other as Mr. or Mrs. for the fact that since she Smith, especially in front did not finish college, she of students or when refermakes less money than the licensed professionals in ring to adults in their conthe building. versation with students. It is still the style to My issue is with an aide, Judith refer to all adults in the who continually addresses Martin building with their title me by my first name in MISS and last name, no matfront of students. I have MANNERS also heard her refer to me ter their role or level of by my first name when certification. As tempting speaking to students, as in “Go as it is to address her by her first ask John.” name, I refrain from doing so, as I It has always been my profesfeel it would model poor behavior while endorsing hers. sional training that omitting the Without resorting to giving her Mr. or Mrs. in front of students a taste of her own medicine, I’m leads to diminished professional

TODAY IN HISTORY By The Associated Press Today is Tuesday, Sept. 22, the 265th day of 2026. There are 100 days left in the year. Today in history: On Sept. 22, 1862, President Abraham Lincoln issued the preliminary Emancipation Proclamation, declaring all enslaved people in Confederate states should be freed as of Jan. 1, 1863, if the states did not end the fighting and rejoin the Union. Also on this date: In 1776, during the Revolutionary War, Capt. Nathan Hale, 21, was hanged as a spy by the British in New York. In 1957, Haitian women were allowed to vote for the first time, 153 years after Haiti became an independent country; François Duvalier was elected president. In 1961, President John F. Kennedy signed congressional legislation making the Peace Corps a permanent federal agency within the State Department; it became an independent agency in 1981. In 1975, Sara Jane Moore fired two shots in an unsuccessful attempt to assassinate President Gerald R. Ford outside a San Francisco hotel, missing Ford by inches. In 1985, rock and country music artists participated in Farm Aid, a concert staged in Champaign, Illinois, to help the nation’s farmers. In 2014, the United States and five Arab nations launched airstrikes against the Islamic State group in Syria, sending waves of planes and Tomahawk cruise missiles against an array of targets. In 2017, as the scale of the damage from Hurricane Maria started to become clearer, Puerto Rican officials said they could not contact more than half the communities in the U.S. territory, where all power had been knocked out to the island’s 3.4 million people. In 2018, militants disguised as soldiers opened fire on an annual military parade in southwest Iran, killing at least 25 people and wounding over 60. An Arab separatist movement claimed responsibility for the terror attack, the deadliest on Iranian soil in nearly a decade. Today’s birthdays: Singer-choreographer-actor Toni Basil is 83. Musician King Sunny Adé is 80. Football Hall of Famer Harold Carmichael is 77. Rock singer David Coverdale (Deep Purple, Whitesnake) is 75. Actor Shari Belafonte is 72. Singer Debby Boone is 70. Country singer June Forester (The Forester Sisters) is 70. Singer Nick Cave is 69. Singer Andrea Bocelli is 68. Singer-musician Joan Jett is 68. Actor Scott Baio is 66. Actor Bonnie Hunt is 65. Actor Mireille Enos is 52. Soccer player Thiago Silva is 42. Actor Tatiana Maslany is 41. Actor Tom Felton is 39. Actor Curry Barker is 27. Singer Jessie Murph is 21. Olympic gold medal skateboarder Coco Yoshizawa is 17.

OBEDIENT

Continued from page 1D In late fall and winter, the tall stalks will die off. They can be removed for aesthetic purposes, or you can leave them all winter long to provide habitat for overwintering beneﬁcial insects. As temperatures warm up in March, the stalks can be removed then. This will expose plenty of new leaves forming clumps near the ground, which will eventually produce ﬂower stalks again in summer.

at a loss as to how to stop her lack of professionalism, especially when coupled with her resentment. Gentle reader: You are a teacher! Teach her. Instructing your subordinate in the school’s routine is not the same as going around criticizing people over whom you have no such jurisdiction. You correct your students all the time. It is not an insult to point out that using titles and surnames when addressing or discussing faculty or administration is a school requirement. But a teacher has to know the context in which the lesson is being received. Probably your students, and very likely your

aide, have grown up in a world of unexamined casualness. Formal types of address are not a matter of course. They have been told that the ubiquitous use of ﬁrst names is “friendly,” despite that meaning that the entire population, including strangers, is bound in friendship. They may have been chastised by adults who interpreted respectful address as disrespectful because they believe it is insulting for anyone to notice that they are not young. So it would be helpful to explain why all systems of hierarchy are not bad. This one is based on achievement, which is open to them to earn. You should, of course, continue

to refrain from stooping to the level of mimicking bad behavior. You might also tell the aide that openly showing her contempt is a bad career move. Dear Miss Manners: Is it rude to hum at the dinner table if there are only two people? Gentle reader: Ask that other person. Miss Manners suggests doing so before he or she comes after you with the dinner knife. Send questions to Miss Manners at her website, www. missmanners.com; to her email, dearmissmanners@gmail.com; or through postal mail to Miss Manners, Universal Uclick, 1130 Walnut St., Kansas City, MO 64106.

LOCKWOOD

Continued from page 1D trek through the Atchafalaya Basin. It didn’t matter that he was wearing waders and the alligator was only 4-feet-long — the animal was still a powerful reptile with a full set of teeth. Lockwood remembers being reprimanded by a slap of the gator’s tail before it skittered elsewhere into the swamp. Then he kept walking.

A lifetime of work Lockwood has amassed a collection of images too big to contain in a single museum gallery, but Louisiana Art & Science Museum curator Tracey Barhorst made it work. “We’ll have a big TV screen showing the photographs we couldn’t fit into the show,” she said. She shows Lockwood a diagram that maps out where the chosen photos will hang in the gallery, each representative of a lifetime of doing what he loved. And what he loved didn’t have anything to do with the degree in accounting he earned from LSU in 1971. He loved the outdoors, and that’s where he wanted to spend all of his time. Though Lockwood settled in Louisiana, the state isn’t his native home. He was born in Kansas City, Missouri, in 1949, and grew up in Fort Smith, Arkansas. “My dad was a doctor,” Lockwood said. “He was a doctor in a MASH unit in Korea, and we ended up at Fort Chaffee and Fort Smith. He still had six months to serve, and he joined the surgeons at a clinic in Fort Smith and decided to stay.” Lockwood was a junior in high school at the time and planned to enter the University of Arkansas after graduation. “Arkansas was a great place to grow up,” he said. “There were only like a million people in the state back then, and there wasn’t much to do except go hunting and fishing and camping and hiking.” But Lockwood was eyeing an architecture degree at the time, and while LSU wasn’t on his radar, he decided to ride with a couple of his friends on a visit to the university. “They were planning on going there, and my dad drove us down,” he said. “It was on a weekend, and I saw the campus and the fine arts building, and the director of architecture was in his office on a Saturday morning. I walked in and told him, ‘I think I want to come here,’ and he signed me up right then.”

PROVIDED PHOTOS By C.C. LOCKWOOD

C.C. Lockwood’s photo, ‘Goodnight Lotus,’ is featured in the Louisiana Art & Science Museum’s retrospective exhibit of his works, ‘Preserving Paradise: The Vision of C.C. Lockwood,’ opening Sept. 25.

student newspaper, then known as The Daily Reveille. He honed his photography skills, which led to the purchase of a professional-grade, single-lens reflex camera. After graduation, Lockwood traveled westward to assist a friend who was making a documentary about longhorn sheep in and around Yellowstone National Park. While there, he met wildlife photographer Leonard Lee Rue, which changed the trajectory of Lockwood’s life. “I realized I could make a career in nature photography,” he said. “I got my first two pictures in a National Geographic book in the mid’70s. That’s when my friends and parents realized I had a real job. Two years later, I did a full article for the magazine.” And he was spending every posC.C. Lockwood’s photo, ‘Flat sible minute in the Atchafalaya Lake Sunset,’ is featured in the Basin learning about its birds and Louisiana Art & Science Museum’s sunsets, the cycle of the trees and retrospective exhibit. the laws of nature. Other magazines began noticing degree, he knew he wouldn’t use it. and publishing his work, including “I wanted to be outside,” he said. The National Audubon Society, the “I started photography in ’71, and Smithsonian, National Wildlife and I really wasn’t up to full speed for American Photographer. He also many years. But the only time I sold his work to stock photography got a W-2 from somebody else was companies. when I taught one semester at LSU. I just look back at every step of my A collection of books life, and there are things that could Then came the books, including have changed everything. I think “Atchafalaya: America’s Biggest about where my parents lived, River Basin Swamp” in 1981; “The where I went to college and how I Gulf Coast: Where the Land Meets From architecture to photography got to so many different things in the Sea,” in 1984; and “Discovering Louisiana” in 1986. As Lockwood’s Architecture would be the first my life, and I feel so lucky.” Lockwood backed into a photog- travels expanded, so did his books. of five majors Lockwood would pursue before settling on account- raphy career after landing a college He published “Beneath the Rim: A ing. But even after receiving his job as a photographer for LSU’s Photographic Journey Through

ICE CREAM

the Grand Canyon” in 1996 and “The Yucatán Peninsula” in 1989. But Louisiana dominated the subjects of his 16 books, the most recent being “Louisiana Wild: The Protected and Restored Lands of The Nature Conservancy” in 2015. “All of the books will be available in what we’re calling ‘C.C.’s Library’ in the exhibit,” Barhorst said. “The East Baton Rouge Parish Library loaned us all of their copies of his books, and we’ll have a place where you can sit on logs around a display of a campﬁre and look at them.” As for future works, Lockwood’s interests have shifted. He’s living in semi-retirement north of St. Francisville, where he maintains a studio and teaches occasional students. Though his focus is still on the outdoors, he’s also looking inward. “I’m interested in health and good food,” he said. “This ultraprocessed food is killing America, and I’d love to do a book on sustainable agriculture.” The only problem is he’d have to travel to such places as Oregon, Vermont and the Ozarks to photograph serious organic farms. “I love where I live now, and I love my own garden,” he said. “So, I’ll just stay home.” But the sound of that passing train does have a way of invoking a sense of wonder. It travels, as does Lockwood’s thoughts. “You know, there are times when I look at places on a map of Louisiana, and I think, ‘I haven’t visited there in 20 years’ and I want to go back,” he said. Maybe he will.

after the start of fall semester classes. The LSU Dairy Store, as we call it today, ﬁrst opened in 1972, but it was scooping and selling ice cream long before that — beginning in 1905 as the LSU Creamery. Today, agriculture professor Chuck Boeneke oversees the dairy store. He performs research, extension work and primarily teaches dairy foods-related classes and labs.

cherry jubilee and more. There’s also an LSU-themed scoop called Tigerbite, made with blueberries and rich, golden vanilla. Scoops can be served in a cup, sugar cone or waffle cone, and coming soon, waffle bowls. When in use, the waffle iron fills the whole lobby with a sweet aroma of fresh waffle cones, Boeneke said. Customers can jazz up their orders with toppings like peanuts, Oreos, chocolate sprinkles, cherries, gummy bears, chocolate chips, whipped cream or syrups in strawberry, caramel and chocolate flavors.

How it’s made

Farm fresh

Continued from page 1D

The LSU AgCenter has its own dairy farm located in Franklinton, where milk is collected and brought to the campus processing plant. Milk is combined with cream, sugar and nonfat dried milk powder. Boeneke calls this the base ice cream mix, which is then pasteurized within a day and usually frozen the day after. “Typically we make a 200-gallon mix at a time, and that’ll give us roughly 350 gallons of ice cream,” Boeneke said. Batches are made once a week

Ice cream isn’t the only product sold at the shop. Being under the Chuck Boeneke, an agriculture professor, serves as manager of the LSU umbrella of the agriculture departDairy Store. ment, the LSU Dairy Store sells packaged meat products ready to and usually include two flavors voring and chewy raisins. Around grab from coolers located inside, of ice cream. The dairy store has Thanksgiving and Christmas, it’s including cuts of beef, pork, lamb about 60 or 70 different flavors, eggnog ice cream. and goat. Just last semester, it also which rotate through the 16 spots “The biggest two sellers are al- started selling eggs from an LSU inside the dairy store. ways chocolate and vanilla,” he research center. Sometimes the staff creates said. “Those are always going to Currently, there are two parking specialty flavors for different sell regardless of what’s in the box.” spots available for those wishing occasions or seasons. One of the Other flavors include orange to visit. Remember to bring cards popular fall ﬂavors is rum raisin, creamsicle, English toffee, but- as a form of payment, because the a vanilla base made with rum ﬂa- ter pecan, peach, cookie dough, dairy store doesn’t accept cash. STAFF PHOTO By PEARL SPURLOCK

The Advocate ■ theadvocate.com ■ Tuesday, September 22, 2026 ■ 3D

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FrAnK And erneSt

roSebUdS

zItS

zodIAC VIRGo (Aug. 23-sept. 22) Take the necessary measures to lock in what you want and map out a path that will help you discard what you no longer want or need. Be creative when making commitments. LIBRA (sept. 23-oct. 23) You'll excel using charm, intellect and emotional filler that draws parallels between you and whoever you deal with today. Don't exhaust your finances trying to impress someone. scoRPIo (oct. 24-nov. 22) Clarify what's important to you before you make a gesture you might regret. Patience is necessary if you want to protect your reputation and your physical and emotional well-being. sAGITTARIus (nov. 23-Dec. 21) Turn on your charm, step into the spotlight and dazzle everyone with your insight. Don't be afraid to adopt a unique lifestyle if it satisfies your soul and addresses your intentions and plans. cAPRIcoRn (Dec. 22-Jan. 19) When trying to win favors, you'll make better decisions if you pay attention to what others say and do. Self-improvement that will help you excel professionally. AQuARIus (Jan. 20-Feb. 19) Take better care of yourself. Avoid putting yourself at risk physically, emotionally or financially. Be a good observer, and back away from situations that are volatile. PIscEs (Feb. 20-March 20) When in doubt, take a pass. It's OK to say no or to change your mind. Put yourself first when dealing with pushy people. Go through your

documents, update or cancel subscriptions, and address due dates to avoid penalties. ARIEs (March 21-April 19) Turn your dreams into a reality. Explore possibilities and open doors to new adventures. Your journey depends on your imagination and willingness to reach for the stars. TAuRus (April 20-May 20) Think twice before you share your thoughts. Create your own dialogue in your head, and hold it in your thoughts until you are in a better position to get your point across without escalating the situation. GEMInI (May 21-June 20) Alter your routine, and fine-tune your schedule and plans to ensure you make the most of your time and your day. Lean on your experience and skills, and take nothing for granted. cAncER (June 21-July 22) Put anger aside, and concentrate on what you can achieve. Working alone is in your best interest if you want to avoid interference. Domestic situations will require thought. LEo (July 23-Aug. 22) High energy will encourage intense interaction with someone who wants to spar with you. You'll have to use your ingenuity to meet mental challenges with peak performance if you plan to come out on top. The horoscope, an entertainment feature, is not based on scientific fact. © 2026 by NEA, Inc., dist. By Andrews McMeel Syndication

For better or For WorSe WonderWord

peAnUtS

SALLY Forth

beetLe bAILeY CeLebrItY CIpher Celebrity Cipher cryptograms are created from quotations by famous people, past and present. Each letter in the cipher stands for another.

ToDAy's cLuE: P EQuALs H

Mother GooSe And GrIMM

SherMAn’S LAGoon FAMILY CIrCUS

dooneSbUrY

4D ■ Tuesday, September 22, 2026 ■ theadvocate.com ■ The Advocate

CurTiS

Hi and LoiS

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Sudoku InstructIons: Sudoku is a number-placing puzzle based on a 9x9 grid with several given numbers. The object is to place the numbers 1 to 9 in the empty squares so that each row, each column and each 3x3 box contains the same number only once. The difficulty level of the Sudoku increases from Monday to Sunday. Yesterday’s Puzzle Answer

BaBY BLueS

BLondie

THe wiZard oF id

nea CroSSwordS

La TimeS CroSSword

The Advocate ■ theadvocate.com ■ Tuesday, September 22, 2026 ■ 5D

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B.C.

Bridge By PHILLIP ALDER A.A. Milne wrote, “Rivers know this: there is no hurry. We shall get there some day.” Bridge players know that sometimes there is no hurry, but on other deals, speed is essential. Now look at today’s deal. How would youanalyzetheauction?Andwhatshould West lead against three no-trump? North’s two-spade cue-bid, in the modern style, showed at least a game-invitational hand with diamond support. However, North should have made a negative double, to show his four-card heart suit. We must check for major-suit fits before falling back on the minors. Here, if North had doubled, South might have rebid three diamonds. Then North could have cue-bid three spades to ask his partner to convert to three notrump with a spade stopper. North, with an aceless wonder, should not be thinking about five diamonds unless South cannot bid no-trump. Note that after that auction, West, knowing dummy has heart length, would be likely to lead his fourth-highest spade. Then South hurries to take the first 11 tricks: one spade, six diamonds and four clubs. When North cue-bid two spades, South decided, debatably with such a good hand for diamonds, to rebid two no-trump.

garfield

Pearls Before swiNe

hagar the horriBle

Then North cue-bid again to ask if South really could control spades. At the table, West led the spade seven, but he should have started with a high heart. He should have had a sense of urgency to take the first five tricks — and here East-West could have won the first six: five hearts and one spade. © 2026 by NEA, Inc., dist. By Andrews McMeel Syndication

wuzzles Each Wuzzle is a word riddle which creates a disguised word, phrase, name, place, saying, etc. For example: NOON GOOD = GOOD AFTERNOON

PiCKles

Previous answers:

mallard fillmore

word game InsTRucTIons: 1. Words must be of four or more letters. 2. Words that acquire four letters by the addition of “s,” such as “bats” or “dies,” are not allowed. 3. Additional words made by adding a “d” or an “s” may not be used. 4. Proper nouns, slang words, or vulgar or sexually explicit words are not allowed.

ToDAy’s WoRD — TILLAGE: TIL-ij: Cultivated land.

Bizarro

marmaduKe

Average mark 18 words Time limit 25 minutes Can you find 22 or more words in TILLAGE? yEsTERDAy’s WoRD — REGAIn rage

rein

grain

ragi

ring

grin

rain

earing

ager

rang

earn

anger

range

gain

near

rani

gear

reign

gnar

loCKhorNs hidato Yesterday’s Puzzle Answer

today’s thought “Jesus answered and said to him, Truly, truly, I say to you, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.” John 3:3 Have you been born again? Jesus can make you a new person. He will forgive sin. He loves you. G.E. Dean

6D ■ Tuesday, September 22, 2026 ■ theadvocate.com ■ The Advocate

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classifieds.theadvocate.com Search Search& &Place PlaceAds AdsOnline Onlineatatclassifieds.theadvocate.com classifieds.theadvocate.com* Call * Call -Friday Us Monday-Friday 8AM-5PM at 225-383-0111 8AM-5PM at 225-383-0111

Announcements ANYONE knowing the whereabouts of any property owner, heir or other related person, in regard to the properties listed below, please contact the East Baton Rouge CityParish, Department of Development – Neighborhood Revitalization Ofﬁce at 225-389-8680. 23911 PLANK RD BOOKER T DOTY 4206 KILKENNY DR CHARLES E DAVIS JR 3678 ONTARIO ST RHINO VENTURES, LLC 16709 ELLIS AVE JOSEPH LEO CHRISTOPHER JR 255 S 21ST ST ISAAC HORACE PATTERSON SR 2322 MARYLAND ST EARLINE LATHAN C/O ANNNETTE THOMAS 748 SOUTH BLVD SUSAN BIENVILLE 249 N 19TH ST 249 19TH STREET, LLC 641 EDUCATION ST BEACON HOMES & INVESTMENTS, LLC 841 FOUNTAINBLEAU DR WILLIAM MIDDLETON REED JR 1195 SEABORD DR TODD & LANYA GRAMMER 1626 JADE AVE SHAWN L BARROW 8012 KEEL AV BSC INDUSTRIES, LLC 3222 ELM DR ROBERT JOHNSON, JR 6588 CLINTON AVE MERICK LALIN 5432 MADISON AVE JAMES W WILLIAMS 5835 ADAMS AVE TERRY ZIMMER

Public Notices

Public Notices Bids/Proposals

PUBLIC NOTICE --ADVERTISEMENT FOR BIDS Sealed bids will be re‐ ceived for the State of Louisiana by the Division of Administration and shall be directed to the Office of Facility Planning and Control, 1201 North Third Street, Claiborne Office Building, Suite 7Baton Rouge, 160, Louisiana, 70802 or P.O. Box 94095, Baton Rouge, 70804-9095. Louisiana, The deadline for receipt of bids is 2:00 PM on October 20, Tuesday, 2026, at which time bids will be opened and read aloud in a public meeting in the Claiborne Office Conference Building, Room 1-145. FOR: Roof Replacement Basic Science Building L Louisiana State Univer‐ sity Pennington Biomed‐ ical Research Center Baton Rouge, Louisiana PROJECT NUMBER: 19-671-22-01, F.19002493 & 01-107-24-03, F.01004762 (Supplement) Complete Bidding Docu‐ ments for this project are available in electronic form. They may be ob‐ tained without charge and without deposit from Gros Flores Positerry, LLC. Printed copies are not available from the Designer but arrange‐ ments can be made to them through obtain most reprographic firms. Plan holders are respon‐ sible for their own repro‐ duction costs. Questions about this pro‐ cedure shall be directed to the Designer at: Gros Flores Positerry, LLC 12032 Bricksome Avenue Baton Rouge, LA 70816 Telephone: 225-293-6964 E-mail: Brian Falcon (bfalcon@gfpdesign. com) All bids shall be accom‐ panied by bid security in an amount of five per‐ cent (5.0%) of the sum of the base bid and all al‐ ternates. The form of this security shall be as stated in the Instructions to Bidders included in the Bid Documents for this project. The successful Bidder shall be required to fur‐ nish a Performance and Payment Bond written as described in the Instruc‐ tions to Bidders included in the Bid Documents for this project. A PRE-BID CONFERENCE WILL BE HELD at 9:00 AM on Thursday, October 08, 2026 at Louisiana State University Pennington Biomedical Research Center, Build‐ ing L Gathering Space Room L-1036, 6400 Perkins Road, Baton

4043 N BARROW DR ANGEL WINGS PROPERTIES, LLC 1665 N 44TH ST DESAMAS MOORE 1205 N 37TH ST FELTUS MARIE COLLIER 5224 SYCAMORE ST THE ESTATE OF ALFRED J BRADY 1119 N ACADIAN THWY W KENDRIC C HINTON 1115 N ACADIAN THWY W KENDRIC C HINTON 1855 HARELSON ST ALBERTHA HAYES 1472 N 43RD ST AUDREY CHARLES WILLIAMS, SR 1450 N 43RD ST IRA MAE FOREMAN 3116 DALTON ST THE ESTATE OF LONNIE WHITE ATTN: FANNIE WHITE 3045 ERIE ST AMEKA THOMAS 3858 TYRONE DR LEONA LEE FORD LEBLANC 2349 MISSISSIPPI ST LATOYA SAUNDERS 9957 AVENUE H LOUIS J WHITE 9956 AVENUE I THELMA CHRISTOFF 8565 WILBUR ST FATISHA D BOYD 4526 MONARCH AVE LLOYD JONES 7772 N MARIBEL CT MONICA T AUGUSTUS 1280 CARDINAL ST PRESTON MORRISON 10200 GREENWELL SPRINGS RD SULLIVAN EQUIPMENT CO, INC 8832 HICKCOCK DR RUFUS E JACKSON, JR 2040 PICKETT AVE RICHARD LEONIDAS BILES, III 12020 FLORIDA BLVD GMGC VENTURES LLC 1665 N 44TH ST DESAMAS MOORE 432 EAST DR COLLIS B TEMPLE, JR

Public Notices Bids/Proposals

Rouge, LA 70808. Bids shall be accepted from Contractors who are licensed under LA. R.S. 37:2150-2166 for the classification of Building Construction or Roofing and Sheet Metal, Siding. Bidder is required to comply with provisions and requirements of LA R.S. 38:2212(B)(5). No bid may be withdrawn for a period of forty-five (45) days after receipt of bids, except under the provisions of LA. R.S. 38:2214. The Owner reserves the right to reject any and all bids for just cause. In ac‐ cordance with La. R.S. 38:2212(B)(1), the provi‐ sions and requirements of this Section and those stated in the bidding documents shall not be waived by any entity. When this project is fi‐ nanced either partially or entirely with State Bonds or financed in whole or in part by federal or other funds which are not readily available at the time bids are received, the award of this Con‐ tract is contingent upon the granting of lines of credit, or the sale of bonds by the Bond Com‐ mission or the availabil‐ ity of federal or other funds. The State shall incur no obligation to the Contractor until the Con‐ tract Between Owner and Contractor is fully exe‐ cuted. Facility Planning and Control is a participant in the Small Entrepreneur‐ ship (SE) Program (the Hudson Initiative) and the Veteran-Owned and Service-Connected Dis‐ Veteran-Owned abled (LaVet) Small Entrepre‐ neurships Program. Bid‐ ders are encouraged to participation. consider Information is available from the Office of Facility Planning and Control or on its website at https:// www.doa.la.gov/doa/ fpc/. If you have a disability and would like to request an accommodation in order to participate in this meeting, please con‐ tact Cheryl Schilling at Cheryl.Schilling@la.gov or (225) 342-6060 as soon as possible but no later than 48 hours before the scheduled meeting. STATE OF LOUISIANA DIVISION OF ADMINISTRATION FACILITY PLANNING AND CONTROL MATTHEW H. BAKER, DIRECTOR

Public Notices Bids/Proposals

Rouge until October 16, 2026 at 2:00 PM local time in Room 826 of City Hall, 222 Saint Louis Baton Rouge, Street, Louisiana 70802 for: RFP SOLICITATION NO. 2026-12-2010 - Janitorial Services for Baton Rouge City Courthouse Building A mandatory pre-pro‐ posal conference and job site visit will be held in person on October 1, 2026 at 10 AM CST. The manda‐ tory pre-proposal confer‐ ence and job site visit will be held at the City/Parish Purchasing Division, 222 St. Louis Street, 8th Floor, Room 806, Baton Rouge, LA 70802. A company repre‐ sentative must be in at‐ tendance at the pre-pro‐ posal meeting and job site visit to receive an award for this project. Copies of the Request for Proposal may be ob‐ from LaPAC tained (https://wwwcfprd.doa. louisiana.gov/osp/lapac/ dspBid.cfm?search=dep artment&term=102), Central Bidding (http:// www.centralauctionh ouse.com) or by email re‐ quest to: RFP2010BRCCJanServ@ brla.gov *Note: The City-Parish elected to use has LaPAC, the state’s online electronic bid posting and Central Bidding noti‐ fication system, in addi‐ tion to its standard means of advertising this requirement. LaPAC is resident on State Pur‐ website at chasing’s https://wwwcfprd.doa. louisiana.gov/osp/lapac/ and is pubmain.cfm available for vendor selfenrollment. NOTE: This RFP is not available to submit online via Central Bidding; submissions MUST be mailed or hand delivered to the address mentioned in the RFP. In that LaPAC and Central Bidding provides an im‐ mediate e-mail notifica‐ tion to subscribing bid‐ ders that a solicitation and any subsequent ad‐ denda have been let and posted, notice and re‐ ceipt thereof is consid‐ ered formally given as of their respective dates of posting. Though not re‐ quired if receiving solici‐ tation and addenda no‐ tices from LaPAC and Central Bidding the CityParish will email ad‐ denda to all vendors con‐ tacting our office and re‐ questing to be put on our office Vendor Listing for this solicitation.

201174 Sept. 22, 29, Oct. 6, 2026 3t $169.08

The deadline for receiv‐ ing written inquiries is October 2, 2026 by 5 PM CST.

PUBLIC NOTICE ---

Proposals received after the above speciﬁed time will not be considered.

BIDS TO BE OPENED: October 16, 2026 @ 2PM CST NOTICE TO PROPOSERS Notice is hereby given that sealed proposals will be received by City of Baton Rouge and the Parish of East Baton

The right to reject any and all proposals and to waive irregularities and informalities is reserved. The City of Baton Rouge and Parish of East Baton Rouge has established a Socially and Economi‐ cally Disadvantaged i i

5835 ADAMS AVE TERRY ZIMMER 1650 N ACADIAN THWY W BIG RIVER PLANTING & REFINING, CO 7863 MEADOW AVE GREGORY COATES 2151 GLENMORE AVE HOUSE OF GOD OF BATON ROUGE, INC 4043 N BARROW DR ANGEL WINGS PROPERTIES, LLC 6588 CLINTON AVE MERICK LALIN 3675 FAIRWOODS DR EVELYN BELL 5103 WOODLYN DR KEJAMLEA R HOWELL 1645 BELLROSE DR MELVILLE ROGERS & KIMBERLY PIERSON 1887 ERLANGER DR MARIO A SAENZ 854 N DONMOOR BATON ROUGE MULTI-FAMILY HOLDINGS, LLC / KASHIF KHAN

CEMETERY PLOTS Selling a Tandem (space for 2) at Greenoaks Memorial Park. Located in the West Interior of the of the Garden View Mausoleum. $14,000.00. Contact 225 772-9206

APARTMENT 655 North St Subsidized Efﬁciency Apartments cpabr.org 225-383-5551 TDD/TTY 711 RELAY

Baton Rouge Rental

PRINT ADVERTISING

WORKS

APARTMENT AREA 5 1BR $600, 2BR $700 Tigerland. $500 Deposit. 225-475-1737

Pets / Pet Services Directory

201436-Sept 21-27, 7t $3,009.10

PETS • SUPPLIES • SERVICES • OBITUARIES • LOST & FOUND

PLACE YOUR PET SERVICES INFORMATION IN THE PET SERVICES DIRECTORY TODAY! • IT IS FAST AND EASY! • CALL 225-383-0111 8wk old Pittbull puppies 1st shots and deworm done. M/F available $300 OBO 225-316-6999 AKC Belgian Malinois Pups Beautiful, Easily Trained $2,000.00 601-299-0264 www.psdkennels.com

Merchandise 3 CEMETERY PLOTS GreenOaks Cemetery, Section 3, Lot 40-1, 5, 6. Please Make an Offer. 914671-1546 or beharmeyer@gmail.com

Looking for the right hire?

225-388-0111

MOBILE HOME 1, 2 & 3 BR mobile homes, $675 & up 6061 Plank Rd. CALL 225-978-4653

ROOMS FOR RENT Furnished Rooms. $125/wk. $500/mo. 225-933-7560

APARTMENT 3060 N. Acadian Thrwy (Wtr/Swr Pd) 1BR/1BA, Rent $500, Dep $100 225-357-6436

Anyone knowing the whereabouts of Stephen White please contact attorney Larry McAlpine at 225-3171956. 201501-Sept 21-23, 3t $62.80

HOUSE 3Br/1Ba $950/month $700/deposit. 2571 72nd Avenue. Section 8 welcome. Call 225-284-9954

CATS RAGAMUFFIN & RAGDOLL KITTENS www.CatsByFrancy.com/kittens $1500up! Reg. Shots & Guaranty 337-230-3150

English & French Bulldog Pups Male/Female. Registered. $1600UP. Champion/European lines. Rare colors. Shots/Dewormings/Health Guarantee. 601-297-1330 Chad_hollingsworth2002@yahoo.co m TopBulldogs.com

Dogs German shepherd puppies 6 1/2 weeks old. Shots and wormed $600.00 225-572-9423 tksawy43@yahoo.com

DOGS CKC Registered Rat Terrier & Teddy Roosevelt Terrier Pups Available $200. (985) 217-2950

Public Notices Bids/Proposals

y g Business Enterprise (SEDBE) program in ac‐ cordance with Revised Statute RS 33:2233.4. It is the policy of the Parish to ensure that Eligible Enterprises Business EBE’s, certiﬁed in accor‐ dance with the Parish program, have an equal opportunity to receive and participate in parish contracts.

y g Purchasing Division at purchasing@ci.monroe. la.us, thereby being added to the Proposers’ List. Proposals from ven‐ dors not on the Pro‐ posers’ List will not be accepted. The name of the vendor must match that of the name on the Proposals’ List, under which the Request for Proposal was requested. Sealed proposals must identify on the outside envelope the name of the vendor.

p y will follow the Louisiana Department of Trans‐ portation and Develop‐ ment Division of Aviation Selection Consultant Manual and FAA Advisory Circular 150/5100-14E in the evaluation and selec‐ tion of consultants. The projects identified by the Concordia Parish Airport Authority for implemen‐ tation or development are presented herein. The projects are subject to the availability of funding from the FAA, State of Louisiana and the Concordia Parish Air‐ port Authority. The pro‐ jects identified herein are not necessarily listed by priority beyond the first two. Fee(s) will be negotiated.

p p p j g zation and personnel with their qualifications. This should also include a brief description of firm’s current workload, and capacity to perform services outlined therein. 2. Description of related work experience, includ‐ ing contact person and phone number for each referenced job that best illustrates the firm’s cur‐ rent qualifications rele‐ vant to this project. 3. Ex‐ perience and brief re‐ sumes of key staff and any subconsultants to be utilized on the project. 4. Any other information that presents the exper‐ tise and qualifications of the firm and any subconsultants that is ap‐ plicable to this project. 5. If a firm has multiple of‐ fices, indicate the loca‐ tion where the work will be performed for the ad‐ vertised projects. The se‐ lection consultant must possess the ability, expe‐ rience and reputation for optimum quality service necessary to produce quality and functional projects. To ensure the consultant can provide an acceptable level of service to the Concordia Parish Airport Authority, the following minimum qualifications must be met. Consultant must have the ability to direct, coordinate and prepare projects for the Concor‐ dia Parish Airport. Con‐ sultant must have knowl‐ edge of requirements concerning the FAA and State grant process and must be familiar with all Federal and State Airport requirements. design must be Consultants properly licensed to per‐ form professional ser‐ vices in the State of Louisiana in the appro‐ priate and applicable professional disciplines. It is the intent of the Con‐ cordia Parish Airport Au‐ thority to execute a con‐ tract with one Consulting firm which will be solely responsible to the Con‐ cordia Parish Airport Au‐ thority for the implemen‐ tation of the projects. It is recognized and ex‐ pected that the Consul‐ tant may desire or need the services of subcon‐ sultants to undertake various elements and items of the projects. The use of any subconsultant shall not relieve the pri‐ mary Consultant of any responsibilities for exe‐ cution of the projects. A Point-of-Contact single shall be identified by the primary Consultant for the projects. Questions regarding this process and any of the projects shall be submitted in writing and directed to: Carl Sayers, President, Concordia Parish Airport Authority, 4001 Carter Street; Room 1, Vidalia, LA 71373.

y Parish Airport Authority. Negotiations will be un‐ dertaken with the best qualiﬁed licensed con‐ sultant in order of the points received total from the evaluation cri‐ teria which consists of the following:

For this project the EBR Parish Purchasing office has directed a review of the scope of work and participation is strongly encouraged but not re‐ quired. The City-Parish is an equal opportunity em‐ ployer and encourages the participation of Dis‐ advantaged Business En‐ terprises (DBE) in all of projects. Pro‐ its posers/Prospective Con‐ tractors are strongly en‐ couraged to make posi‐ tive efforts to utilize mi‐ nority subcontractors for a portion of this project. Proposers are requested to include in their pro‐ posal a description of plans for minority partic‐ ipation under this Con‐ tract as suppliers or sub‐ contractors. All questions concerning the Solicitation and Con‐ tract Documents MUST be received in accor‐ dance with the Schedule of Events cited in section 1.3 of the documents Solicitation and as further defined in section 1.7.2 Proposer In‐ quiry Period of the same document. Though not required if receiving solicitation and addenda notices from LaPAC, the City of Baton Rouge, Parish of East Baton Rouge will e-mail or mail addenda to all vendors contacting our office and requesting to be put on our office Ven‐ dor Listing for this solici‐ tation. 200543-SEP 15-22-29-3T $197.25 PUBLIC NOTICE --CITY OF MONROE REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL Separate sealed PROPOS‐ ALS for RFP - Transit 35’ Bus Repower Project will be received by the City of Monroe, at the Purchas‐ ing Division, located at 1014 Grammont Street, Monroe, Louisiana 71201. Proposals will be re‐ ceived until 2:00 P.M., on Tuesday, October 13, 2026. The CONTRACT DOCU‐ MENTS, consisting of Re‐ quest for Proposal, Infor‐ mation for Proposers, SPECIFICATIONS, and AD‐ DENDA, may be exam‐ ined at the following lo‐ cation: City of Monroe Purchasing Division 1014 Grammont Street Monroe, LA 71201 All Proposers MUST ob‐ tain copies of Proposal Documents from the City of Monroe Purchasing Di‐ vision by emailing the h i i i i

The OWNER reserves the right to reject any or all proposals for just cause per State Public Bid Law. A corporate resolution authorizing a representa‐ tive of the corporation to sign the proposal must accompany the proposal if the proposer is a cor‐ poration. Such activities will be in accordance with Title 38:2237 of the Revised Louisiana Statutes. An award shall be made to the responsible offeror whose proposal is deter‐ mined in writing by the governing authority of the City of Monroe to be the most advantageous, taking into consideration price and other evalua‐ tion factors set forth in the request for propos‐ als. MINORITY-OWNED FIRMS AND SMALL BUSINESSES ARE ENCOURAGED TO PARTICIPATE IN THIS RE‐ QUEST FOR QUALIFICA‐ TIONS. RFP Reference No. 2027-00000017 Date /s/ Richard Moore, Director of Administration News Star: 09/15/2026, 09/22/2026 and 09/29/2026 Advocate: 09/15/2026, 09/22/2026 and 09/29/2026 Dispatch: 09/15/2026, 09/22/2026 and 09/29/2026 200389-sept 15-22-29-3t $914.41 PUBLIC NOTICE --Concordia Parish: (RFQ) ENGINEERING CONSULT‐ ING SERVICES - CONCOR‐ DIA PARISH AIRPORT. The Concordia Parish Air‐ port Authority is request‐ ing Statements of Quali‐ fications from firms in‐ terested in providing ad‐ engineer‐ ministration, ing, design, planning, construction services in‐ cluding construction ob‐ servation, and other re‐ lated aspects of service involved in the evalua‐ tion, development, de‐ sign, construction man‐ agement and grant ad‐ ministration services for projects for the Concor‐ dia Parish Airport in Vi‐ dalia, Louisiana, for two specific projects as listed below. The Concordia Parish Airport Authority ill f ll h i i

PROJECT LIST 1. Replace REIL’s 2. Fuel Farm Up‐ grades (Jet “A” System) 3. Build Box Hangars 4. Assess‐ Environmental ments for Runway and/or Taxiway Extension 5. Re‐ construct Existing Apron 6. Replace and/or Install New Airfield Lighting System 7. Runway and /or Taxiway Extension Phase II (Engineering) 8. Acquire Land and Relo‐ cate Fence 9. Instrument Approach Survey for R/W Extension 10. Construct T-Hanger Taxi Lane 11. Runway Construct and/or Taxiway Exten‐ sion - Phase III 12. Re‐ move Obstructions in Transitional Surface 13. Construct New Apron for Future Hangars 14. Con‐ struct Hangars/ Ramps 15. Update fencing and gates/controls. access 16. Construct T-Hangars ALP Update(s)18. 17. Move Windsock and Con‐ struct Segmented Circle. Firms with demonstrated experience, competence, and qualifications perti‐ nent to these types of services and having suf‐ ficient technical, supervi‐ sory, and administrative personnel to ensure effi‐ cient completion of the work and interest in per‐ forming these services are desired for consider‐ ation. In responding to the items listed below, it is important to be spe‐ cific and concise in your written statement and in so responding, represent those projects which have been accomplished by your firm. PROPOSAL REQUIRE‐ MENTS Proposals shall be submitted on DOTD standard form SF-330 and must be received by 4:00 p.m. local time on Octo‐ ber 15, 2026. Proposals should be addressed to: Carl Sayers, President, Concordia Parish Airport Authority, 4001 Carter Street; Room 1, Vidalia, LA 71373. Three (3) copies of the proposals must be furnished. Pro‐ posals shall be in accor‐ with standard dance form SF-330 and shall contain the following in‐ formation, presented in a comprehensive clear, and concise manner. 1. and Management Staffing: firm name, ad‐ dress, telephone, and contact person. Brief de‐ scription of firm (history, size, etc.) Description of proposed project organi‐ i d l

Only timely received sub‐ mittals meeting the re‐ quirements of this Re‐ quest for Qualiﬁcations will be considered. Sub‐ mittals shall be signed by an authorized repre‐ sentative of the Consul‐ tant. Proposals will be re‐ viewed by a Selection Committee consisting of three (3) members desig‐ nated by the Concordia i h i h i

Experience, both ﬁrm and key staff personnel with values of 4 and 5, re‐ spectively. Past perfor‐ mance on similar pro‐ jects with a value of 4. Key Personnel participa‐ tion with a value of 4. The Concordia Parish Air‐ port Authority reserves the right to reject any proposal at its sole dis‐ cretion for any reason. 201544-SEP 22-1T $727.23 PUBLIC NOTICE --NOTICE TO BIDDERS RECEIPT OF SEALED BIDS WILL BE RECEIVED BY THE OWNER, McNEESE STATE UNIVERSITY, PUR‐ CHASING DEPARTMENT, SMITH HALL, ROOM 120, 150 LAWTON DR., LAKE CHARLES, LA 70605, or MSU BOX 92415, LAKE LA 70609, CHARLES, UNTIL THE DATE AND TIME INDICATED FOR THE FOLLOWING BID: BID NO. S2700020 DATE DUE: WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 21, 2026 TIME: 10:00 A.M. CAMPUS GATEWAYS, McNEESE STATE UNIVERSITY, LAKE CHARLES, LOUISIANA 70607 PROJECT NO. 19-627-21-01, F.19002583, 01-107-05B-13, F.01004545 MANDATORY PRE-BID CONFERENCE SCHEDULED FOR OCTOBER 7, 2026 AT 10:00 A.M. A NON-MANDATORY SITE VISIT CAN BE ARRANGED BY CONTACTING RICHARD RHODEN AT 337475-5887 or email facilities@mcneese.edu. FRONT-END BIDDING DOCUMENTS MAY BE OB‐ TAINED AT THE STATE OF LOUISIANA WEBSITE VEN‐ DOR CENTER, LaPAC, AT https://doa.louisiana. gov/doa/osp/vendorresources, LaPAC Bids Opportunities from State of Louisiana and local FOR ADDI‐ agencies. TIONAL ASSISTANCE AND TO OBTAIN PLANS, SPECI‐ DRAWINGS, FICATIONS, etc., EMAIL REQUEST TO facilities@mcneese.edu. FEES FOR SET OF DOCUMENTS: NONE A CASHIER’S CHECK, CER‐ TIFIED CHECK, OR AC‐ BIDDER’S CEPTABLE BOND PAYABLE TO Mc‐ STATE UNI‐ NEESE VERISITY IN AN AMOUNT NOT LESS THAN FIVE PER‐ CENT (5%) OF THE BID SUBMITTED MUST AC‐ COMPANY EACH BID AS A THAT, IF GUARANTEE THE CON‐ AWARDED TRACT, THE BIDDER WILL PROMPTLY ENTER INTO A CONTRACT AND EXECUTE SUCH BONDS AS MAY BE

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Public Notices Bids/Proposals

REQUIRED. THE SUCCESSFUL BIDDER WILL BE REQUIRED TO A PERFOR‐ FURNISH MANCE BOND IN AN AMOUNT EQUAL TO 100% THE CONTRACT OF AMOUNT AND IN ACCOR‐ DANCE WITH R.S.38:2219. BIDS SHALL BE ACCEPTED ONLY FROM CONTRAC‐ TORS WHO ARE LICENSED UNDER LA. R.S.37:21502163 FOR THE CLASSIFI‐ OF BUILDING CATION CONSTRUCTION. NO BID MAY BE WITH‐ DRAWN FOR A PERIOD OF THIRTY (30) DAYS AFTER RECEIPT OF BIDS, EXCEPT UNDER THE PROVISIONS OF LA. R.S.38:2214. THE OWNER RESERVES THE RIGHT TO REJECT ANY AND ALL BIDS AND TO WAIVE ANY INFOR‐ INCIDENTAL MALITIES THERETO. EVIDENCE OF AUTHORITY TO SUBMIT THE BID SHALL BE REQUIRED IN WITH ACCORDANCE (A)(1)(C) R.S.38:2212 AND/OR R.S. 39:1594 (C) (2)(D). McNEESE STATE UNIVERSITY DANITA SLATE ASSISTANT PURCHASING DIRECTOR dslate1@mcneese.edu Phone: (337)475-5090 201386 Sept. 22, 29, Oct. 6, 2026 3t $115.05 PUBLIC NOTICE --RFP No. 3000026720 The Coastal Protection and Restoration Author‐ ity (the CPRA) gives pub‐ lic notice that it is re‐ questing proposals from interested, qualiﬁed per‐ sons or ﬁrms (including public agencies and in‐ stitutions) for “General Real Estate and Oyster Appraisal Ser‐ Lease vices”. • RFP available https:// wwwcfprd.doa.louisiana. gov/osp/lapac/pubMain. cfm http://coastal.la. gov/resources/rfps-rsiqscontracts/contracts-andgrants/. It may also be obtained by e-mailing CPRAcontracts@la.gov. • Proposals must be re‐ ceived no later than 3:00 p.m. Central Standard Time on October 23, 2026, after which time and date they will not be ac‐ cepted. 201396 Sept. 22, 2026 1t $35.34 PUBLIC NOTICE --VOUCHER# 26-000310 BIDS TO BE OPENED: 10/06/26 NOTICE TO BIDDERS Electronic or sealed bids will be received by the City of Baton Rouge and Parish of East Baton Rouge, Purchasing Divi‐ sion, City Hall Building, Room 826, 222 Saint Louis

The Advocate ■ theadvocate.com ■ Tuesday, September 22, 2026 ■ 7D

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8D ■ Tuesday, September 22, 2026 ■ theadvocate.com ■ The Advocate Public Notices Bids/Proposals

Street, 8th Floor, Baton Rouge, La. until 11:00 A.M. October 6, 2026, for the following: A26-0310 PIPES & CUL‐ VERTS (REINFORCED CONCRETE) Official bid documents are available at Central (https://www. Bidding centralauctionhouse. com/rfpc10656-city-ofbaton-rouge.html) or by request from the City of Baton Rouge at lcan‐ non@brla.gov. Bids shall be submitted electronically via www. centralbidding.com or on the solicitation bid forms furnished by the City of Baton Rouge and Parish of East Baton Rouge prior to the bidding deadline. Electronic bids for the solicitation will be down‐ loaded by the City of Baton Rouge and Parish of East Baton Rouge, Pur‐ chasing Division. Begin‐ ning as soon as feasible after the bid closing time all electronic bids will be downloaded and publicly read aloud along with all paper bids received, if any, in Room 806 immedi‐ ately after the 11:00 a.m. bid closing. Bidders or their authorized repre‐ sentatives are invited to be present. Note: The City-Parish has elected to use LaPAC, the state's online electronic bid posting and notifica‐ tion system, in addition to its standard means of advertising this require‐ ment. This Invitation to Bid is available in elec‐ tronic form at the LaPAC https:// website wwwcfprd.doa.louisiana. gov/osp/lapac/dspBid. cfm?search=departm ent&term=102. Bids, amendments to bids or request for with‐ drawal of bids received after time specified for bid openings shall not be considered for any cause whatsoever. Inquiries will be received up until 5 pm on October 2, 2026. Full information may be obtained upon request from the above address or by telephoning Latisha Cannon at (225) 389-3259, Ext. 3271, or via email lcannon@brla.gov. Any vendor who would like to listen to the open‐ ing of this bid can access the following link, at the date and time of this bid opening: NOTE: The only vendor information shared at the bid opening will be the reading of the names of those vendors who submitted bids. Join by phone +1-408-418-9388 United States Toll Access code: 263 373 080 (followed by the # but‐ ton) Alternate numbers to call if number above is not available, which may occur due to network traffic (use the same Ac‐ cess Code, followed by the # button): United States Toll (Boston) +1-617-315-0704 United States Toll (Chicago) +1-312-535-8110 United States Toll (Dallas) +1-469-210-7159 United States Toll (Denver) +1-720-650-7664 United States Toll (Jacksonville) +1-904-900-2303 United States Toll (Los Angeles) +1-213-306-3065 These numbers will pro‐ vide you with live audio access to this bid open‐ ing. 201412 Sept. 22, 29, 2026 2t $104.54

PUBLIC NOTICE --“ADVERTISEMENT FOR BIDS Sealed bids will be re‐ ceived and publicly read by the Purchasing De‐ partment of The Univer‐ sity of Louisiana Monroe, via mail or delivered to Coenen Hall 140, 4014 LaSalle Street, Monroe, LA 71209-2250 at 2:00 P.M. October20,2026 for the following: Bid #50006-013 – ULM Baseball Field Lighting Complete Bidding Docu‐ ments may be obtained from: The University of Louisiana at Monroe, Purchasing Department, 4014 LaSalle St., Room 140, Monroe, Louisiana, 71209-2250, via fax re‐ quest at 318.342.5218 or the State of Louisiana https:// LaPac page: wwwcfprd.doa.louisiana. gov/osp/lapac/pubmain. cfm. Used bid #50006013. All bids shall be accom‐ panied by Bid Security in an amount of ﬁve per‐ cent (5.0%) of the sum of the base bid and all al‐ ternates. The form of this security shall be as stated in the Instruction to Bidders included in the Bid Documents for this project. The successful Bidder shall be required to fur‐ nish a Performance and Payment Bond written as described in the Instruc‐ tion to Bidders included in the Bid Documents for this project. Bids shall be accepted from Contractors who are licensed under LA R.S. 37:2150-2192 in the areas of Electrical. Bid‐ der is required to comply with provisions and re‐ quirements of LA R.S. 38:2212(A)(1)(a). No bid may be withdrawn for a period of thirty (30) days after receipt of bids, ex‐ cept under the provi‐ sions of LA R.S. 38:2214. The Owner reserves the right to reject any and all bids for just cause. In ac‐ cordance with LA R.S. 38:2212(B)(2), the provi‐ sions and requirements of this Section, those stated in the advertise‐ ment for bids, and those required on the bid form shall not be considered as informalities and shall not be waived by any public entity. 201498 Sept. 22, 29, Oct. 1 2026 3t $77.31

Public Notices Conservation

PUBLIC NOTICE ---1SOUTH BANCROFT FIELD 26-312 LEGAL NOTICE STATE OF LOUISIANA, DE‐ PARTMENT OF CONSER‐ VATION AND ENERGY, BATON ROUGE, LOUISIANA. In accordance with the laws of the State of Louisiana, and with par‐ ticular reference to the provisions of Title 30 of Louisiana Revised Statutes of 1950, a public hearing will be held in the Hearing Room, 1st Floor, LaSalle Building, 617 North 3rd Street, Baton Rouge, Louisiana, at 9:00 a.m. on TUESDAY, OCTOBER 27, 2026, upon h li i f

Public Notices Conservation p the application of FONTAINEBLEAU OPERAT‐ ING, LLC. At such hearing the De‐ partment of Conserva‐ tion and Energy will con‐ sider evidence relative to the issuance of Orders pertaining to the follow‐ ing matters relating to Cockfield Zone, the Reservoir B, in the South Bancroft Field, Beaure‐ gard Parish, Louisiana. 1. To establish rules and regulations governing the exploration for and production of oil, gas and condensate from the Cockfield Zone, Reservoir B. 2. To create one drilling and production unit for the exploration for and production of oil, gas and condensate from the Cockfield Zone, Reservoir B, as shown on the plat submitted with the appli‐ cation and being desig‐ nated CF RB SUA. 3. To force pool and inte‐ grate all separately owned tracts, mineral leases, and other prop‐ erty interests within the proposed unit with each tract sharing in unit pro‐ duction on a surface acreage basis of partici‐ pation. 4. To designate an opera‐ tor of, and unit well for, the proposed unit as may be appropriate. 5. To propose that future wells drilled to the Cock‐ field Zone, Reservoir B, within or outside of the unit proposed herein, be located in accordance with the spacing provi‐ sions of Statewide Order No. 29-E. 6. To consider such other matters as may be perti‐ nent. The Cockfield Zone, Reservoir B was defined as the stratigraphic equivalent of that inter‐ val encountered between the measured depths of 7,384’ and 8,578’ (electri‐ cal log measurements) in the E.L. Cox & Stanrich Oil Co.-Columbia Land & Timber Co., Inc. No. 1-D Well, located in Section 27, Township 6 South, Range 13 West. A plat is available for in‐ spection in the Depart‐ ment of Conservation and Energy in Baton Rouge and Lafayette, Louisiana. http://dnr.louisiana.gov/ conshearings All parties having inter‐ est therein shall take no‐ tice thereof. BY ORDER OF: DUSTIN H. DAVIDSON, SECRETARY DEPARTMENT OF CONSERVATION AND EN‐ ERGY Baton Rouge, 9/17/26;9/22/26 L lck

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Public Notices Conservation

IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE AMERICANS WITH DISABILITIES ACT, IF YOU NEED ASSISTANCE, PLEASE CONTACT THE DEPARTMENT OF CON‐ SERVATION AND ENERGY AT P.O. BOX 94275, BATON ROUGE, LA 70804-9275 IN WRITING WITHIN TEN (10) WORKING DAYS OF THE HEARING DATE. 201443 Sept. 22, 2026 1t $62.78 PUBLIC NOTICE --- 2ALABAMA BEND AND WOODARDVILLE FIELDS 26-313 thru 26-318 LEGAL NOTICE STATE OF LOUISIANA, DE‐ PARTMENT OF CONSER‐ VATION AND ENERGY, BATON ROUGE, LOUISIANA. In accordance with the laws of the State of Louisiana, and with par‐ ticular reference to the provisions of Title 30 of Louisiana Revised Statutes of 1950, a public hearing will be held in the Hearing Room, 1st Floor, LaSalle Building, 617 North 3rd Street, Baton Rouge, Louisiana, at 9:00 a.m. on TUESDAY, OCTOBER 27, 2026, upon the application of ADAMAS ENERGY LLC. At such hearing the De‐ partment of Conserva‐ tion and Energy will con‐ sider evidence relative to the issuance of Orders pertaining to the follow‐ ing matters relating to the Haynesville Zone, Reservoir A, in the Al‐ abama Bend and Woodardville Fields, Bi‐ enville Parish, Louisiana. 1. To authorize Applicant to drill, designate and utilize one cross unit hor‐ izontal well to serve as an alternate unit well for HA RA SUS, HA RA SUT, HA RA SUH and HA RA SUI, three cross unit hori‐ zontal wells to serve as alternate unit wells for HA RA SUS and HA RA SUI, one cross unit hori‐ zontal well to serve as an alternate unit well for HA RA SUS, HA RA SUI, HA RA SUII and HA RA SU66, and six cross unit horizontal wells to serve as alter‐ nate unit wells for HA RA SUII and HA RA SU66, all at the locations and in the general manner shown on the plat sub‐ mitted with the applica‐ tion, or at any other legal locations within such units, and to approve ex‐ ceptions to the spacing provisions of Ofﬁce of Permitting and Compli‐ ance Order No. 1490-C, effective December 9,

2008 (Alabama Bend Field) and Order No. 990D, effective July 15, 2008 (Woodardville Field), as to the common bound‐ aries of the units which will be served by the cross unit horizontal wells, provided that said cross unit horizontal wells will be perforated no closer than 330’ from any unit boundary, other than the common bound‐ aries between the af‐ fected units, except as requested in Paragraph 2 below. 2. In addition to the re‐ quest for exceptional lo‐ cations as to the com‐ mon boundaries between the affected units, the applicant requests an ex‐ ception to the well spac‐ ing provisions in Order Nos. 1490-C and 990-D to allow the first and last perforation point or take point in the proposed unit horizontal cross wells to be located no closer than 100’ from the north and south unit lines and no closer than 200’ to any well on a competitive unit com‐ pleted in, drilling to, or for which a permit has been granted to drill to the Haynesville Zone, Reservoir A. 3. To find that the pro‐ posed horizontal wells are necessary to effi‐ ciently and economically drain a portion of the Haynesville Zone, under‐ lying the units on which it is proposed to be drilled which cannot be efficiently and economi‐ cally drained by any ex‐ isting well on such units, will prevent waste, avoid the drilling of unneces‐ sary wells, protect cor‐ relative rights and pro‐ mote the full and effi‐ cient development of the natural resources of this state. 4. To provide that if the horizontal portion of a well is cased and ce‐ mented back above the top of the Haynesville Zone, Reservoir A, the distance to any unit boundary and offset well(s) will be calculated based on the distance to the nearest perforation in the well and not on the penetration point or ter‐ minus of the well in the Hayesville Zone, Reser‐ voir A. 5. To provide that pro‐ duction from the pro‐ posed wells shall be sep‐ arated and metered indi‐ vidually and that this in‐ formation shall be re‐ ported in the manner prescribed by the Office of Permitting and Com‐ pliance. 6. To provide that the unit allowables for the units to be served by the pro‐ posed wells may be pro‐ duced from the unit well, from any alternate unit well, or from any combi‐ nation of such wells serving the unit, at the discretion of the opera‐ tor. 7. To provide that pro‐ duction from a cross unit horizontal well shall be allocated to each unit penetrated by the well in the same proportion as the perforated length of the lateral in each such unit bears to the total length of the perforated lateral as determined by an “as drilled” survey performed after the well has been drilled and completed, except that the proportion of unit production associated with the perforated length of lateral located within 330’ of the com‐ mon unit boundary be‐ tween HA RA SUS and HA RA SUT shall be allocated equally between HA RA SUS and HA RA SUT, the proportion of unit pro‐ duction associated with the perforated length of lateral located within 330’ of the common unit boundary between HA RA SUI and HA RA SUH shall be allocated equally between HA RA SUI and HA RA SUH, the proportion of unit pro‐ duction associated with the perforated length of lateral located within 330’ of the common unit boundary between HA RA SUS and HA RA SUII shall be allocated equally between HA RA SUS and HA RA SUII, and the proportion of unit production associated with the perforated length of lateral located within 330’ of the com‐ mon unit boundary be‐ tween HA RA SUI and HA RA SU66 shall be allo‐ cated equally between HA RA SUI and HA RA SU66. 8. Except insofar as set forth above, to confirm and continue in full force and effect the provisions of Order No. 990-D, effec‐ tive July 15, 2008, as amended and supple‐ mented by the 990-D Se‐ ries of Orders, Order No. 1490-C, effective Decem‐ ber 9, 2008, as amended and supplemented by the 1490-C Series of Orders, the units created thereby, and of all applic‐ able Statewide Orders. 9. To consider such other matters as may be perti‐ nent. The Haynesville Zone, Reservoir A, in the Al‐ abama Bend Field, was defined in Order No. 1490-C, effective Decem‐ ber 9, 2008. The Haynesville Zone, Reservoir A, in the Woodardville Field, was

Public Notices Conservation

deﬁned in Order No. 990D, effective July 15, 2008. A plat is available for in‐ spection in the Depart‐ ment of Conservation and Energy in Baton Rouge and Shreveport, Louisiana. http://dnr.louisiana.gov/ conshearings All parties having inter‐ est therein shall take no‐ tice thereof. BY ORDER OF: DUSTIN H. DAVIDSON, SECRETARY DEPARTMENT OF CON‐ SERVATION AND ENERGY Baton Rouge, 9/17/26;9/22/26 S lck

201447 Sept. 22, 2026 1t $108.80

Legal Notices

Public Notice *** Notification is given that Bonvenu Bank, National Association, 2711 E. Texas Street, Bossier City, Louisiana 71111, has filed an application with the Comptroller of the Currency on September 17, 2026, as specified in 12 CFR 5 for permission to establish a branch at 29118 Walker South Road, Suite B, Walker, Louisiana 70785. Any per‐ son wishing to comment on this application may file comments in writing to the Director for Dis‐ trict Licensing, 500 North Akard Street, Suite 1600, Dallas, Texas 75201, within 30 days of the date of this publication. 201405 Sept. 22, 2026 1t $99.43 Public Notice *** Notification is given that Bonvenu Bank, National Association, 2711 E. Texas Street, Bossier City, Louisiana 71111, has filed an application with the Comptroller of the Currency on September 17, 2026, as specified in 12 CFR 5 for permission to establish a branch at 29118 Walker South Road, Suite B, Walker, Louisiana 70785. Any per‐ son wishing to comment on this application may file comments in writing to the Director for Dis‐ trict Licensing, 500 North Akard Street, Suite 1600, Dallas, Texas 75201, within 30 days of the date of this publication. 201405 Sept. 22, 2026 1t $99.43 PUBLIC NOTICE --NOTICE the La. Dept. of Conservation and Energy, Office of Permitting and Compliance (OPC) has received the following application(s) for a Coastal Use Permit (CUP) in accordance with the State and Local Coastal Resources Management Act of 1978, as amended, (La. R.S. 49:214.21-214.41), and the rules and regula‐ tions of the Coastal Re‐ sources Program. Appli‐ cations for the proposed work may be inspected at 617 North 3rd Street, Room 1078, Baton Rouge, LA or on the OPC web page at: http://dnr. louisiana.gov/index.cfm? md=pagebuilder& tmp=home&pid=591. Copies may be obtained upon payment of cost of copying. Written com‐ ments, including sugges‐ tions for modifications or objections to the pro‐ posed work and stating the reasons thereof, are being solicited from the public. Comments must be received within 25 days of the date of publi‐ cation of this notice. Comments should be up‐ loaded to our electronic record, but may be mailed or emailed to the designated OPC Re‐ viewer. All comments must contain the appro‐ priate application num‐ ber and the commenter's full name and contact in‐ formation. Any person may request, in writing, within the comment pe‐ riod specified in this no‐ tice, that a State or Fed‐ eral public hearing be held to consider this ap‐ plication. Requests for public hearings shall state, with particularity, the reasons for holding a public hearing and must contain the name and contact information of the requester. Below are the referenced applica‐ tion(s): *********OPC; P. O. Box 44487, Baton Rouge, LA 70804-4487; CUP NUMBER: P20260773 Name: Plains Pipeline, LP 333 Clay Street, Houston, TX 77002 Attn: Wesley Gatlin Location: Cameron

November 3, 2026 Early Voting West Baton Rouge Parish The West Baton Rouge Parish Registrar of Voters Office announces early voting dates, times and locations for the November 3, 2026 election: Tuesday, October 20 Wednesday, October 21 Thursday, October 22 Friday, October 23 Saturday, October 24 Sunday, October 25 Monday, October 26 Tuesday, October 27 Main Office: 883 7th Street, Suite A Port Allen, LA

8:30 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. 8:30 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. 8:30 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. 8:30 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. 8:30 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. CLOSED 8:30 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. 8:30 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. Locations

Brusly Office: 158 East St. Francis Street Brusly, LA

Corey C. Passantino West Baton Rouge Parish Registrar of Voters (225) 336-2421 www.GeauxVote.com

Legal Notices

Parish, LA; Lat. 30-0-20.75 N, Long. 92-45-29.01 W; Section 16, 15, 22, 27, T14S-R4W Description: Vegetative maintenance and bush hogging along the existing ROW (ap‐ prox. 35' x 18,770') for Plains Pipeline's 12", 3", and 4" pipelines. This is a resubmittal based on previous permit P20160938. No excavation or ﬁll required.

p Ordinance, a record vote was taken and the fol‐ lowing result was had: YEAS: Daigle, Young, Tassin, Chustz NAYS: None ABSENT: Kershaw WHEREUPON, the presid‐ ing ofﬁcer declared the above Ordinance duly adopted on the 14th day of September, 2026. Blaine Clerk

201562-SEP 22-1T $25.77

Monday, October 5, 2026 By mail, in person at the Registrar’s office and OMV Tuesday, October 13, 2026 Online at www.GeauxVote.com Corey C. Passantino West Baton Rouge Parish Registrar of Voters (225) 336-2421 201477-689843-Sept. 22-1t $ 83.16

Town

Scot Rhodes, Mayor

PUBLIC NOTICE ---

201438-SEP 22-1T $35.77

NOTICE TO BIDDERS SP# 171 Sealed bids will be re‐ ceived by the Procure‐ ment Section of the Divi‐ sion of Administration, 1201 N. 3rd. St., 2nd. Floor, Suite 2-160, Baton Rouge, Louisiana, at 10:00 A.M. for the follow‐ ing: RFx No. 3000026680, Tow‐ able Message Board DOTD, 10/08/26 Bid proposal forms, in‐ formation and speciﬁca‐ tions may be obtained by accessing the bid num‐ ber in LaPac at www.doa. la.gov/doa/osp/ or from the procurement section listed above. No bids will be received after the date and hour speciﬁed. The right is reserved to reject any and all bids and to waive any infor‐ malities. Amy Vincent Director of State Procurement FAX (225) 342-8688

PUBLIC NOTICE --Public Hearings will be held at Zachary City Hall 4700 Main St. during a regular meeting of the Planning and Zoning Commission meetingMonday, October 5, 2026 – 6:00 p.m. and the City Council meeting - Tues‐ day – October 27, 2026 6:30 p.m. for the for the purpose indicated: Conditional Use Permit Alcoholic Beverage 5755 Main Street 201529-SEP 22-24-3T $46.39

Public Notices Meet/Hear/Min

PUBLIC NOTICE --September 14, 2026 Town of Brusly Brusly, Louisiana

201394 Sept. 22, 2026 1t $11.77

PUBLIC NOTICE --ORDINANCE NO. 6 OF 2026 TO AMEND CHAPTER 120 OF THE CODE OF ORDI‐ NANCES OF THE TOWN OF BRUSLY, STATE OF LOUISIANA, TO INCORPO‐ RATE AMENDED ZONING DISTRICT MAP UNDER SECTION 120-136 MAP, SPECIFICALLY: RE-ZON‐ ING PROPERTY LOCATED AT 102 N. LABAUVE AV‐ ENUE FROM C-1 (LIGHT COMMERCIAL) TO R-4 (MULTIFAMILY RESIDEN‐ TIAL) AT REQUEST OF PROPERTY OWNERS KYLE PAUL THIBODEAUX, RYAN CLIFTON FABRE, AND BRAD K. FABRE, PROP‐ ERTY ADDRESS: 102 N. LABAUVE AVENUE, BRUSLY. WHEREAS, the Planning and Zoning Commission has held a public hearing thereon on August 26, 2026 and submitted its ﬁnal recommendation to the Brusly Town Council; and, WHEREAS, the Brusly Town Council has given due public notices of hearing relating to zon‐ ing districts, regulations, and restrictions, and held its public hearing on September 14, 2026; and, WHEREAS, all require‐ ments of R.S. 33:47214729 with regard to the preparation of report of the Planning and Zoning Commission and the sub‐ sequent action of the Brusly Town Council have been met. NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT ORDAINED, by the Town Council of the Town of Brusly, Louisiana: That Chapter 120, as found in the Code of Or‐ dinances of the Town of Brusly, be amended by the Re-Zoning of prop‐ erty located at 102 N. LaBauve Avenue, Brusly from C-1 (Light Commer‐ cial) to R-4 (Multifamily Residential). Said Ordinance having been introduced on the 13th day of July, 2026, by Council Member Tassin, notice of public hearing having been published, said public hearing hav‐ ing been held, the title having been read and the Ordinance considered, on motion by Council Member Young , sec‐ onded by Council Mem‐ ber Tassin, to adopt the di d

The regular meeting of the Town of Brusly was called to order this date, September 14, 2026, at the Brusly Town Hall, at 6:30 p.m., by Mayor ProTemp Daigle. Council Member Tassin led the Pledge of Allegiance. A roll call determined the following officials pre‐ sent: Mayor Pro-Temp: Rusty Daigle Council Members: Young, Tassin, Chustz, Town Attorney: Thomas Acosta, Jr. Absent: Kershaw, Mayor Scot Rhodes Recognitions & Commen‐ dations: None A motion to approve the minutes of the Town’s regular meeting of Au‐ gust 10, 2026, was made by Council Member Young; seconded by Council Member Tassin. Mayor Pro-Temp Daigle opened the floor for pub‐ lic comment. Hearing no comments, the motion passed with a unani‐ mous vote. Public Works Committee: Mayor Pro-Temp Daigle read the Public Works Report for the month of August, prepared by Pub‐ lic Works Supervisor Shane Sarradet. There were 1.3 inches of rainfall in the month; 2 SCADA alarms at our waste‐ water lift stations; 0 “Out of Compliance” test re‐ sults at the Sewer Treat‐ ment Facility; Repaired sinkholes on River Mill Dr, corner of E Main & St John and Gleason St; Parish canal remains ex‐ tremely low; Curb edging was completed on East & West Main; Cut grass on levees at Sewer Treat‐ ment ponds; Installed culvert on Bourgeois & Elaine Streets; Installed new pumps Riverside & North LaBauve lift sta‐ tions; Received new ice machine for barn; Cleared a section of servitude behind Live Oak St; Removed beach ball from culvert on Glea‐ son St; Removed fallen tree in drainage servi‐ tude on Gleason Street. Waste Pro Roadside De‐ bris pickup is scheduled for the week of Septem‐ ber 14th. Flags will fly for the Labor Day Holiday and the 9/11 remembrance. Toby Fruge’ of Owen & White gave a brief up‐ date on the Water Sector Project.

Public Notices Meet/Hear/Min

Planning and Zoning Committee: Mayor Pro-Temp Daigle read aloud variance re‐ quest of Oneil Fabre, 501 Gleason, Non-Compli‐ ance Sec. 120-145(2) & (3) R-1 Single Family Resi‐ dential, Setbacks, to re‐ duce the rear and side setbacks from 10 feet to 7 feet. Mr. Fabre ex‐ plained his request and submitted a letter of no objection from the prop‐ erty owners of the adja‐ cent properties. After a brief discussion a motion to approve the variance was made by Council Member Chustz; sec‐ onded by Council Mem‐ ber Young. Mayor ProTemp Daigle opened the ﬂoor for public comment. Hearing no comments, a roll call vote was had with the following re‐ sults: Yeas: Daigle, Young, Tassin, Chustz Nays: None Absent: Kershaw

held September 25th 6pm – 9pm. Household Hazard Mate‐ rials Collection day will be October 24th at Alexander Park.

Finance Committee: Mayor Pro-Temp Daigle noted that the “Budget to Actual Comparison Re‐ port” for August, is avail‐ able for Council Mem‐ bers to review. Personnel Committee: None Recreation Committee: None Police Committee: None Governmental Affairs Committee: After hearing from Adam Ashour, representing Brusly Food Mart, a mo‐ tion to approve the Class B Beer & Liquor licenses for Brusly Food Mart was made by Council Member Tassin; seconded by Council Member Chustz. Mayor Pro-Temp Daigle opened the floor for pub‐ lic comment. Hearing no comments the motion passed unanimously. Consideration of Vetoed Ordinances: None Hearing & Final Action on Ordinances: Mayor Pro-Temp Daigle read aloud Ordinance 6 of 2026 to rezone 102 N. LaBauve from C-1 (light commercial) to R-4 (multi-family residential) and opened the public hearing. Mr. Court Brad‐ ford, representing the property owners, Kyle Thibodeaux, Ryan Fabre and Brad Fabre, ex‐ plained the rezoning re‐ quest. Mayor Pro-Temp Daigle closed the public hearing and turned the matter over to the Coun‐ cil. A motion to approve Ordinance 6 of 2026 was made by Council Member Young; seconded by Council Member Tassin. Hearing no further com‐ ments, a roll call vote was had with the follow‐ ing results: Yeas: Young, Tassin, Chustz, Daigle Nays: None Absent: Kershaw Introduction of Ordi‐ nances: Resolutions: None Police Department Re‐ port: The Police Department Report for the month of August was given by Lt. Keegan Allen. There were (8) Agency Assists, (9) Alarms, (2) assaults, (1) Civil Incident, (3) Distur‐ bances, (1) Embezzle‐ ment, (1) Family Distur‐ bance, (1) Fire, (1) Fraud, (2) Harassment, (2) Juve‐ nile Problems, (12) Med‐ icals, (4) No Insurance Tows, (1) Ordinance Vio‐ (1) Property lation, Crime, (5) Public Ser‐ vices, (1) Sexual Assault, (5) Suspicious, (1) Theft, (7) Traffic Accidents, (4) Traffic Problems, (4) Un‐ locks, and (5) Welfare Checks. Total of 81 calls for the month. For the month, there were 425 total citations and 479 vi‐ olations. Flock Activity: 12 Violent Person Alerts, 75 Sex Of‐ fender Alerts, 3 Stolen Vehicles, 4 NCIC War‐ rants Mayor’s Report: None Remarks of Personal Privilege: None Announcements: Brusly High School Homecoming Parade will be October 4th at 3pm. The Full Moon Market at St. James Park will be

Council Member Tassin made a motion to ad‐ journ; seconded by Coun‐ cil Member Chustz. Hear‐ ing no comments, the motion passed with a unanimous vote. The meeting was adjourned at 6:53 pm. Rusty Daigle, Mayor ProTemp Blaine Clerk

Rabalais,

Town

201440-SEP 22-1T $89.66

Public Notices Successions

PUBLIC NOTICE --LEGAL NOTICE NOTICE IS GIVEN that Christine H. Kirkland, Provisional Administra‐ tor of the Succession of Franklin Derald Kirkland, Jr., Probate No. 112,648, Div. O, 19th JDC, East Baton Rouge Parish, Louisiana, has applied for authority to sell at private sale the Dece‐ dent’s undivided interest in the immovable prop‐ erty situated in East Baton Rouge Parish and bearing municipal ad‐ dress of 2486 Kensington Drive, Baton Rouge, Louisiana 70809 for no less the sum of SEVENTYFIVE THOUSAND AND 00/100 ($75,000.00) DOL‐ LARS, subject to the terms and conditions set forth in the petition. Any opposition to the pro‐ posed sale must be ﬁled within ten (10) days of the date of publication. Additional details are contained in ﬁlings avail‐ able at the Clerk of Court for East Baton Rouge Parish.

Public Notices Successions

PUBLIC NOTICE --PROBATE NO. 107561-25 IN THE MATTER OF THE SUCCESSION 19TH JUDI‐ CIAL DISTRICT COURT OF PARISH OF EAST BATON ROUGE JERRY WAYNE SPILLMAN STATE OF LOUISIANA NOTICE OF APPLICATION FOR AUTHORITY TO MAKE PRIVATE SALE Notice is hereby given that Teresa Marie Spill‐ man, Administratrix of this Succession, have ﬁled an application for authority to make a pri‐ vate sale of the Dece‐ dent’s interest in and to the below described property. The application may be homologated after the expiration of seven (7) days from the date of last publication of this notice. Any oppo‐ sition to the proposed sale must be ﬁled before homologation. SUBJECT PROPERTY: A certain tract of land lying and being situated in the Parish of East Baton Rouge, State of Louisiana being the for‐ mer R.C. Spillman prop‐ erty containing 9.28 acres with improvements situated on the south side of Hooper Road, bounded North by said Hooper Road, East and South by L.E. Allen, now or formerly, and West by Blackwater Creek. Improvements bear the municipal address of 9684 Hooper Road, Baton Rouge, Louisiana 70818 s/Belinda Eaves 8/27/2026 DEPUTY CLERK OF COURT, 19TH JUDICIAL DISTRICT COURT PARISH OF EAST BATON ROUGE 199267-SEP 1-22-2T $72.28

201485 Sept. 22, 2026 1t $38.53 PUBLIC NOTICE --PROBATE NO. 107370-27 IN THE MATTER OF THE SUCCESSION 19TH JUDI‐ CIAL DISTRICT COURT OF PARISH OF EAST BATON ROUGE MYRTLE SPILLMAN HEN‐ DERSON STATE OF LOUISIANA

SEVEN DAYS

NOTICE OF APPLICATION FOR AUTHORITY TO MAKE PRIVATE SALE Notice is hereby given that Teresa Marie Spill‐ man, Administratrix of this Succession, have ﬁled an application for authority to make a pri‐ vate sale of the Dece‐ dent’s interest in and to the below described property. The application may be homologated after the expiration of seven (7) days from the date of last publication of this notice. Any oppo‐ sition to the proposed sale must be ﬁled before homologation.

HOME DELIVERED

SUBJECT PROPERTY: A certain tract of land lying and being situated in the Parish of East Baton Rouge, State of Louisiana being the for‐ mer R.C. Spillman prop‐ erty containing 9.28 acres with improvements situated on the south side of Hooper Road, bounded North by said Hooper Road, East and South by L.E. Allen, now or formerly, and West by Blackwater Creek.

LOUISIANA OWNED

Improvements bear the municipal address of 9684 Hooper Road, Baton Rouge, Louisiana 70818 s/Belinda Eaves 8/27/26 DEPUTY CLERK OF COURT, 19TH JUDICIAL DISTRICT COURT PARISH OF EAST BATON ROUGE

SUBSCRIBE TODAY

199266-sep 1-22-2t $70.26

Louisiana Department of Conservation and Energy COASTAL USE PERMITS NOT REQUIRED OF ACTIVITIES EXEMPT FROM PERMITTING AND/OR CORPS AREA OR GENERAL PERMIT NAME SONIAT ARCHITECHTURE PORT OF SOUTH LOUISIANA TARGA RESOURCES SHELL OFFSHORE INC. ST. TAMMANY PARISH GOVERNMENT LOUISIANA DEPARTMENT OF WILDLIFE AND FISHERIES LOOP, LLC

PARISH LAFOURCHE ST. JOHN THE BAPTIST VERMILION TERREBONNE ST. TAMMANY VERMILION

CUPNO P20260512 P20260598 P20260654 P20260694 P20260721 P20260751

LAFOURCHE

P20260784

COENO

MVN-2026-00594-WLS

Louisiana Department of Conservation and Energy PERMITS ISSUED WITH CONDITIONS TO MINIMIZE ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACTS NAME OCCIDENTAL CHEMICAL CORPORATIONTAFT PLANT BLACK BAYOU GAS STORAGE, LLC LOUISIANA DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION AND DEVELOPMENT ENTERPRISE PRODUCTS OPERATING, LLC JEFFERSON PARISH DEPARTMENT OF DRAINAGE HILCORP ENERGY COMPANY GREATER LAFOURCHE PORT COMMISSION CHEVRON PIPELINE AND POWER JEFFERSON PARISH DEPARTMENT OF ENVIRONMENTAL AFFAIRS PERDIDO ENERGY, LLC I & W POPICH OYSTERS CLOVELL Y OIL CO. LLC ONEOK, INC BRIDGELINE HOLDINGS, LP ENTERGY SERVICES, LLC ONEOK, INC HIGHLANDER OIL & GAS ASSETS LLC HALIMAR SHIPYARD, LLC LOUISIANA DOTO BRAMMER ENGINEERING, INC. HILCORP ENERGY COMPANY TENNESSEE GAS PIPELINE COMPANY, L.L.C. RABA KISTNER, INC.

PARISH ASSUMPTION

CUPNO P20260040

COENO MVN-2025-00901-CJT

CAMERON IBERIA

P20240837 P20240805

MVN-2025-00182-WII

IBERIA JEFFERSON JEFFERSON LAFOURCHE LAFOURCHE PLAQUEMINES

P20260666 P20260537 P20260708 P20200067 P20240984 P20220251

MVN-2026-00552-WB MVN-2026-00580-EDM

PLAQUEMINES ST.BERNARD ST. CHARLES ST. CHARLES ST. CHARLES ST. CHARLES ST. JAMES ST. MARY ST. MARY TERREBONNE TERREBONNE TERREBONNE VERMILION VERMILION

P20250978 P20260421 P20240567 P20260634 P20260677 P20260707 P20260650 P20260366 P20260593 P20260348 P20260612 P20260709 P20240789 P20260753

MVN-2019-00403-CO MVN-2007-01297-CHP MVN-2017-00708-EPP MVN-2026-00031-ENP MVN-2026-00401-WLS MVN-2024-00758-MM

MVN-2026-00384-WAD MVN-2007-02085-WLS MVN-2026-00543-WB MVN-2024-00934-WKK

Louisiana Department of Conservation and Energy

November 3, 2026 Voter Registration Deadline West Baton Rouge Parish The West Baton Rouge Parish Registrar of Voters announces the last day to register to vote or make changes to your voter registration for the November 3, 2026 election:

Rabalais,

Public Notices Meet/Hear/Min

LOCAL CONCERN PERMIT APPLICATIONS NAME ATKINSON, DUSTIN BENOIT, KRIS BERTRAND.CHARLES NGUYEN, CUONG THOMPSON ENGINEERING HUSBANDS FOR HIRE CONSTRUCTION ORLEANS SHORING & HOME ELEVATION, LLC ALLEN, MICHAEL OASIS POOLS AND SPAS B&G CONTRACTING LLC

201235-689141-sept 22-1t $ 166.60

PARISH CAMERON CAMERON CAMERON CAMERON JEFFERSON JEFFERSON PLAQUEMINES ST. TAMMANY ST. TAMMANY ST. TAMMANY

CUPNO P20260745 P20260746 P20260754 P20260759 P20260742 P20260777 P20260752 P20260762 P20260768 P20260776

The Advocate ■ theadvocate.com ■ Tuesday, September 22, 2026 ■ 9D

lll

Legal Notices

MINUTES WEST BATON ROUGE PARISH COUNCIL REGULAR MEETING GOVERNMENT BUILDING 880 North Alexander Avenue, Port Allen Thursday, August 27, 2026 5:30 PM The Following Minutes Are Summarized For Brevity, For Precise Meeting Information Please Refer To Meeting Audio Or Video. 1. CALL MEETING TO ORDER & REQUEST ALL ELECTRONIC DEVICES BE SILENCED A Regular Meeting of the West Baton Rouge Parish Council was held on Thursday, August 27, 2026 and called to order at 05:29 PM. Council Chairman Carey Denstel asked that all electronic devices be placed on silent. 2. OPENING PRAYER Councilman Atley Walker Jr. led everyone in an opening prayer. 3. PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE Chairman Denstel recognized Councilman Brady Hotard who led everyone in the Pledge of Allegiance. 4. LOG ATTENDANCE The following members were recorded as being present: Messrs. Kirk Allain, Daryl “Turf” Babin, Atley Walker, Brady Hotard, Kenneth Gordon, Carey Denstel, Alan Crowe, Gary Joseph, and Mrs. Katherine Andre. Also present were, Mr. Jason Manola, Parish President, Mr. Phillip Bourgoyne, Executive Assistant, Mr. Chance Stephens, Director of Finance, Mr. Brandon Bourgoyne, Director of Public Works, Ms. Kristen Canezaro, Special Legal Counsel, and Mrs. Michelle Tullier, Council Clerk. 5. MINUTES APPROVAL A. Approval of Minutes from The Regular Meeting of August 13, 2026. There were no comments from the public or Council to consider at this time.

Legal Notices

NAYS: 0 (None) ABSENT: 0 (None) ABSTAIN:0 (None) As a result of the votes, the motion Passed. Ordinance 25 of 2026 can be found at the end of these minutes. 11. NEW BUSINESS A. Consider Approval of the Transfer Of Equipment for the attached list of radios purchased through the 2025 EMPG Grant by the WBR Office of Homeland Security Emergency Preparedness & 911, transferring the aforementioned radios to the Town of Addis Police Department and City of Port Allen Police Department. Mr. Chance Stephens was recognized and explained this was the same type of transfer as the last meeting the only difference is they are going to the City of Port Allen Police and the Town of Addis Police.

Model H15UCF9PW6AN

Serial# Radio ID# 657CCM1313 374BB - 226491

H15UCF9PW6AN

657CCM1314 374BC - 226492

Hl 5UCF9PW6AN

657CCM1315 374BD - 226493

City of Port Allen Police Make Portable Radio APX 600XE Portable Radio APX 600XE Portable Radio APX 600XE

Model Hl5UCF9PW6AN

Serial# Radio ID# 657CCM1316 374BE - 226494

H15UCF9PW6AN

657CCM1317 374BF - 226495

Hl5UCF9PW6AN

657CCM1318 374CO - 226496

A motion was made by Council Member Kirk Allain, seconded by Council Member Kenneth Gordon to Approve Minutes from The Regular Meeting of August 13, 2026. The vote was recorded as follows: YEAS: 9 (Kirk Allain, Daryl “Turf” Babin, Atley Walker, Brady Hotard, Kenneth Gordon, Carey Denstel, Alan Crowe, Katherine Andre, Gary Joseph) NAYS: 0 (None) ABSENT: 0 (None) ABSTAIN:0 (None) As a result of the votes, the motion Passed.

The vote was recorded as follows: YEAS: 9 (Kirk Allain, Daryl “Turf” Babin, Atley Walker, Brady Hotard, Kenneth Gordon, Carey Denstel, Alan Crowe, Katherine Andre, Gary Joseph) NAYS: 0 (None) ABSENT: 0 (None) ABSTAIN:0 (None) As a result of the votes, the motion Passed.

7. PARISH PRESIDENT’S REPORT Parish President Jason Manola was recognized and covered the following items: Notified the Council there will be 10 total amendments on the November 3rd election along with our Health Unit Millage Renewal; Recent Senior Roundup Event Success, served over 300 meals; August 20th Zoom meeting with DOTD regarding the New Bridge 5 Day closure coming in the near future; Recent Entergy Outages; Spoke briefly about the 3 recent life-saving calls to our Fire Service and EMS where lives were saved by our First Responders. 8. PUBLIC COMMENTS There were no comments to consider at this time. 9. COMMUNICATIONS WITH COUNCIL MEMBERS AND/OR ELECTED OR APPOINTED OFFICIALS Mr. Chance Stephens updated the Council on the Fire/EMS building, noting that the foundation and pad pouring is set for the first week of September. Mr. Brandon Bourgoyne was recognized and gave an update on the La1/415 connector, the upcoming public meeting on September 8, 2026, from 4–7 pm, and gave a quick update on the Addis Trail Project. Mr. Darrell Guilbeau, with Keep WBR Beautiful, was recognized and let everyone know that September is the Love our Waterways Statewide initiative, and explained what that means. 10. PUBLIC HEARING ON PREVIOUSLY INTRODUCED ORDINANCES A. An Ordinance Amending Chapter 104 Zoning To Incorporate Amended Zoning Designation Map (Zoning Plan) Under Section 104-3 Establishment Of Districts, Official Zoning Map For Rezoning Request Of TMI Enterprise LLC. Regarding Parcel#053400003500 HWY 190, Port Allen, La 70767. File #PJ 26-0021: Described by the WBR Assessor as: TRACT K190B2-A CONT 13.703 AC IN SECS 38, 82 & 83 T7S R12E 34-35. Rezoning Approximately 13.73 AC From R-MH, C-1.3, And AG To I-2. Master Plan Change. The Chairman opened a public hearing for the purpose of receiving comment regarding the aforementioned item. Mr. Brandon Bourgoyne was recognized and explained this item, noted the zoning analysis did not support an I-2 in this area, and also noted that the Planning and Zoning Commission did not recommend approval of this item. Mr. Louie Vielee of TMI was recognized and asked if the Council would consider an I-1 for this property in lieu of the original request of I-2. Mr. Vielee explained the tenant who he is talking with will fit in an I-1 zone and agreed that he would change his request to I-1 with no objection from the Council. No public comments for or against said ordinance were presented. No written protests opposing the ordinance were received. The Council Chairman at this point declared the Public Hearing closed. A motion was made by Council Member Brady Hotard, seconded by Council Member Kirk Allain to approve with amendment/s An Ordinance Amending Chapter 104 Zoning To Incorporate Amended Zoning Designation Map (Zoning Plan) Under Section 104-3 Establishment Of Districts, Official Zoning Map For Rezoning Request Of TMI Enterprise LLC. Regarding Parcel#053400003500 HWY 190, Port Allen, La 70767. File #PJ 26-0021: Described by the WBR Assessor as: TRACT K190-B2-A CONT 13.703 AC IN SECS 38, 82 & 83 T7S R12E 34-35. Rezoning Approximately 13.73 AC From R-MH, C-1.3, And AG To I- 1. Master Plan Change. The vote was recorded as follows: YEAS: 9 (Kirk Allain, Daryl “Turf” Babin, Atley Walker, Brady Hotard, Kenneth Gordon, Carey Denstel, Alan Crowe, Katherine Andre, Gary Joseph) NAYS: 0 (None) ABSENT: 0 (None) ABSTAIN:0 (None) As a result of the votes, the motion Passed. Ordinance 24 of 2026 can be found at the end of these minutes. B. An Ordinance To Amend And Reenact The West Baton Rouge Parish Code Of Ordinances, Part II (General Code of Ordinances), Chapter 34 (“Garbage, Trash and Refuse”), Article I (“In General”), Section 34-1 (“Garbage Pickup”), and Section 34-2 (“Garbage Collection Service Carts Deposit”). The Chairman opened a public hearing for the purpose of receiving comment regarding the aforementioned item. Mr. Adrian Genre was recognized and explained this was to update, per our garbage contract, the pricing and code of ordinances. No public comments for or against said ordinance were presented. No written protests opposing the ordinance were received. The Council Chairman at this point declared the Public Hearing closed. Councilman Hotard had a few questions regarding dates and pricing which were reflected in the draft ordinance. Parish President Manola explained this was to update the Ordinance back to the original signing of the contract, they will be coming back on a later date with the pricing updates, per the ordinance language. A motion was made by Council Member Kirk Allain, seconded by Council Member Katherine Andre to approve An Ordinance To Amend And Reenact The West Baton Rouge Parish Code Of Ordinances, Part II (General Code of Ordinances), Chapter 34 (“Garbage, Trash and Refuse”), Article I (“In General”), Section 34-1 (“Garbage Pickup”), and Section 34-2 (“Garbage Collection Service Carts Deposit”). The vote was recorded as follows: YEAS: 9 (Kirk Allain, Daryl “Turf” Babin, Atley Walker, Brady Hotard, Kenneth Gordon, Carey Denstel, Alan Crowe, Katherine Andre, Gary Joseph)

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15. CONSIDER SUBDIVISION PLATS, CONDEMNATIONS, WAIVERS AND MATTERS RELATED THERETO There were no items to consider at this time. 16. CORRESPONDENCE REPORT Correspondence Report from Council Clerk, Mrs. Michelle Tullier included the following items: • Next Planning & Zoning Meeting Tuesday, September 1, 2026 Canceled; • Next Council Meeting Thursday, September 10, 2026 at 5:30pm. 17. ADJOURN There being no further business, a motion to adjourn was made by Council Member Brady Hotard and was adopted by acclamation at 06:19 PM.

Town of Addis Police Make Portable Radio APX 600XE Portable Radio APX 600XE Portable Radio APX 600XE

There were no comments to consider at this time. A motion was made by Council Member Daryl “Turf” Babin, seconded by Council Member Gary Joseph to approve the Transfer Of Equipment for the attached list of radios purchased through the 2025 EMPG Grant by the WBR Office of Homeland Security Emergency Preparedness & 911, transferring the aforementioned radios to the Town of Addis Police Department and City of Port Allen Police Department.

6. CONSIDER ANY AMENDMENTS TO THE AGENDA There were no items to consider at this time.

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B. Accept Final Report of 2025 Audits for the WBR Parish Council and WBR Fire District No. 1 There was a brief Audit presentation by Mr. Kevin Rodriguez with Hogan Taylor reviewing the 2025 Audit Report for the WBR Parish Council, and for the WBR Fire District No. 1. There were no comments from the public to consider at this time. A motion was made by Council Member Kirk Allain, seconded by Council Member Brady Hotard to Accept Final Report of 2025 Audits for the WBR Parish Council. The vote was recorded as follows: YEAS: 9 (Kirk Allain, Daryl “Turf” Babin, Atley Walker, Brady Hotard, Kenneth Gordon, Carey Denstel, Alan Crowe, Katherine Andre, Gary Joseph) NAYS: 0 (None) ABSENT: 0 (None) ABSTAIN:0 (None) As a result of the votes, the motion Passed. A motion was made by Council Member Kenneth Gordon, seconded by Council Member Gary Joseph to Accept Final Report of 2025 Audits for the WBR Fire District No. 1. The vote was recorded as follows: YEAS: 9 (Kirk Allain, Daryl “Turf” Babin, Atley Walker, Brady Hotard, Kenneth Gordon, Carey Denstel, Alan Crowe, Katherine Andre, Gary Joseph) NAYS: 0 (None) ABSENT: 0 (None) ABSTAIN:0 (None) As a result of the votes, the motion Passed. C. Accept Final Report of 2025 Audits for the WBR Parish Utilities Department. Mr. Tanni Budde with Ericksen Krentel was recognized and gave a brief report of the 2025 Audit of the WBR Parish Utilities Department. There were no comments from the public to consider at this time. A motion was made by Council Member Daryl “Turf” Babin, seconded by Council Member Gary Joseph to Accept Final Report of 2025 Audits for the WBR Parish Utilities Department. The vote was recorded as follows: YEAS: 9 (Kirk Allain, Daryl “Turf” Babin, Atley Walker, Brady Hotard, Kenneth Gordon, Carey Denstel, Alan Crowe, Katherine Andre, Gary Joseph) NAYS: 0 (None) ABSENT: 0 (None) ABSTAIN:0 (None) As a result of the votes, the motion Passed.

ALL MEETING INFORMATION INCLUDING MINUTES AND VIDEOS CAN BE FOUND ON OUR WEBSITE WBRPARISH.ORG UNDER THE AGENDA AND MINUTES TAB. ORDINANCE 24 OF 2026 As Introduced by the West Baton Rouge Parish Council At the Meeting of July 23, 2026 And Adopted on August 27, 2026 An Ordinance Amending Chapter 104 Zoning To Incorporate Amended Zoning Designation Map (Zoning Plan) Under Section 104-3 Establishment Of Districts, Official Zoning Map For Rezoning Request Of TMI Enterprise LLC. Rezoning Approximately 13.73 AC From R-MH, C-1.3, And AG To I-1 NOW THEREFORE BE IT ORDAINED by the West Baton Rouge Parish Council in legal session that Chapter 104 Zoning, Sec. 104-3 Establishment of Districts, Official Zoning Map of the Compiled Ordinances of the Parish of West Baton Rouge, Louisiana is amended and re-enacted to read as follows: Sec.104-3. Establishment of Districts, Official Zoning Map For Rezoning Request of TMI Enterprise LLC. Regarding Parcel#053400003500 HWY 190, Port Allen, La 70767. File #PJ 26-0021: Described by the WBR Assessor as: TRACT K190-B2-A CONT 13.703 AC IN SECS 38, 82 & 83 T7S R12E 34-35. Rezoning Approximately 13.73 AC From R-MH, C-1.3, And AG To I-1. (original zone requested was I-2, Council granted I-1) BE IT FURTHER ORDAINED by the West Baton Rouge Parish Council that this Ordinance shall also serve as a Master Plan Change. THEREFORE, BE IT FURTHER ORDAINED by the West Baton Rouge Parish Council that this ordinance shall become effective pursuant to Section 2-12 (C) of the Home Rule Charter. THEREFORE, BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED by the West Baton Rouge Parish Council, that all other ordinances or parts of ordinances in conflict herewith are hereby repealed in their entirety. NOW THEREFORE BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED by the Parish Council of the Parish of West Baton Rouge, Louisiana, that if any provision or item of this ordinance or the application thereof is held invalid, such invalidity shall not affect other provisions, items or applications of this ordinance which can be given effect without the invalid provisions, items, or applications of this ordinance are hereby declared severable. THE FOREGOING ORDINANCE AFTER HAVING BEEN SUBMITTED TO A PUBLIC HEARING WAS CONSIDERED, AND UPON MOTION BY COUNCIL MEMBER BRADY HOTARD_, WHICH WAS SECONDED BY COUNCIL MEMBER _KIRK ALLAIN_. THE ORDINANCE WAS SUBMITTED TO A VOTE AND RESULTED IN THE FOLLOWING: YEAS: 9 (HOTARD, ALLAIN, WALKER, DENSTEL, CROWE, GORDON, ANDRE, JOSEPH) NAYS: 0 (NONE) ABSENT: 0 (NONE) ABSTAIN: 0 (NONE) WHEREUPON the ordinance was declared adopted on the 27th Day of August, 2026. ATTEST:

ORDINANCE 25 OF 2026 As Introduced by the West Baton Rouge Parish Council At the Regular Meeting of August 13, 2026 And Adopted on August 27, 2026 An Ordinance To Amend And Reenact The West Baton Rouge Parish Code Of Ordinances, Part II (General Code of Ordinances), Chapter 34 (“Garbage, Trash and Refuse”), Article I (“In General”), Section 34-1 (“Garbage Pickup”), and Section 34-2 (“Garbage Collection Service Carts Deposit”)

There were no comments to consider at this time.

WHEREAS the West Baton Rouge Parish Council seeks to exercise its police power to protect the health, safety and welfare of the citizens of West Baton Rouge Parish AND WHEREAS as part of its role in exercising police power, the Council has from time-to-time adopted and amended utility infrastructure and payment requirements AND WHEREAS part of those regulations relates to ongoing solid waste and trash collection of monthly user fees AND WHEREAS after consideration, the Council has determined that charges and fees on solid waste and trash collection shall be adjusted to keep up with current levels of demand THEREFORE NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT ORDAINED that the West Baton Rouge Parish Code Of Ordinances, Part II (General Code of Ordinances), Chapter 86 (“Utilities”), Article IV (“Sewers”), Section 86-90 (“Monthly Sewer Charge Established”) be amended and readopted to read as follows:

A motion was made by Council Member Daryl “Turf” Babin, seconded by Council Member Brady Hotard to approve A Resolution to Dedicate and Rename the West Baton Rouge Parish 4H and AG Center Building in Honor of Mr. Harry L. Laws.

(NOTE: underlined words are additions and strikethrough words are deletions. Three asterisks - * * * indicate sections of the code skipped for brevity of this ordinance. Such sections are to be retained by the code editors.):

The vote was recorded as follows: YEAS: 8 (Daryl “Turf” Babin, Atley Walker, Brady Hotard, Kenneth Gordon, Carey Denstel, Alan Crowe, Katherine Andre, Gary Joseph) NAYS: 0 (None) ABSENT: 1 (Kirk Allain) ABSTAIN:0 (None) As a result of the votes, the motion Passed. Resolution 20 of 2026 can be found at the end of these minutes.

PART II – GENERAL CODE OF ORDINANCES

Councilman Kirk Allain left the meeting at 6:14pm. 12. RESOLUTIONS A. A Resolution to Dedicate and Rename the West Baton Rouge Parish 4H and AG Center Building in Honor of Mr. Harry L. Laws President Manola was recognized and gave a brief overview of the reasons for the proposed resolution to rename the 4H and AG Center Building for Mr. Harr Laws.

B. A Resolution Authorizing The Parish President To Enter Into A Cooperative Endeavor Agreement with the Louisiana Department of Treasury Mr. Chance Stephens was recognized and explained the reasons for the aforementioned resolution request. There were no comments to consider on this item. A motion was made by Council Member Brady Hotard, seconded by Council Member Kenneth Gordon to approve A Resolution Authorizing The Parish President To Enter Into A Cooperative Endeavor Agreement with the Louisiana Department of Treasury. The vote was recorded as follows: YEAS: 8 (Daryl “Turf” Babin, Atley Walker, Brady Hotard, Kenneth Gordon, Carey Denstel, Alan Crowe, Katherine Andre, Gary Joseph) NAYS: 0 (None) ABSENT: 1 (Kirk Allain) ABSTAIN:0 (None) As a result of the votes, the motion Passed. Resolution 21 of 2026 can be found at the end of these minutes. 13. CONSIDER STATUS REPORT, CHANGE ORDER AND/OR OTHER MATTERS AS REQUIRED ON CURRENT PROJECTS There were no items to consider at this time. 14. INTRODUCTION OF ORDINANCES There were no items to consider at this time.

*** CHAPTER 34 – GARBAGE, TRASH AND REFUSE *** ARTICLE I. IN GENERAL Sec. 34-1. Garbage pickup. Solid waste pickup. There shall be twice-a-week garbage collection in the unincorporated areas of the parish and inside the corporate limits of the towns of Addis and Brusly and that fee of $16.89 per unit per month is hereby established, effective September 1, 2008. (a) Solid waste collection contract. West Baton Rouge Parish Government entered into a contract with Waste Pro of Louisiana, Inc., effective October 1, 2024, following the receipt and review of proposals submitted in response to a Request for Proposals and the acceptance by the West Baton Rouge Parish Council, at its regular meeting of September 12, 2024, of the administration’s recommendation to select Waste Pro of Louisiana, Inc., as the solid waste collection contractor. (b) Service area. The solid waste collection services provided pursuant to this section shall apply to residential units located: 1. Within the unincorporated areas of West Baton Rouge Parish; 2. Within the corporate limits of the Town of Addis; and 3. Within the corporate limits of the Town of Brusly. (c) Cart collection service. The contractor shall provide residential solid waste cart collection two times per week for each residential unit located within the service area described in subsection (b). The contractor shall also provide residential recycling cart collection one (1) time per week for each residential unit that elects to receive a recycling cart. Each residential unit shall be provided the number of carts authorized under the solid waste collection contract. All solid waste placed out for regular cart collection shall be properly contained within an authorized cart, except as otherwise permitted under the contract or this section. (d) Out-of-cart collection service. The contractor shall provide out-of-cart collection service once per month for each residential unit located within the service area described in subsection (b).

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Out-of-cart waste shall be prepared, placed, and limited in accordance with the requirements, restrictions, volume limitations, and collection procedures established by the solid waste collection contract and any reasonable rules adopted by West Baton Rouge Parish Government. (e) Monthly service fee. Beginning October 1, 2024, the monthly fee for solid waste collection services provided under this section shall be Twenty-Eight Dollars and Seven Cents ($28.07) per residential unit, per month, plus an additional Administration Fee of Fifty-Four Cents ($0.54) per residential unit, per month. The Administration Fee shall be paid to the West Baton Rouge Parish Government and/or the West Baton Rouge Parish Natural Water and Gas System as compensation for administrative services related to the collection and administration of the fees. The fee shall apply to each residential unit receiving solid waste collection service within the designated service area, regardless of the amount or frequency of solid waste placed out for collection during a particular billing period. (f) Additional carts. A residential customer may request one or more additional carts, subject to availability and the terms of the solid waste collection contract. The monthly fee for each additional cart shall be Ten Dollars ($10.00) per month, in addition to the regular monthly service fee established in subsection (e). (g) Annual contractual rate adjustment. 1. On each anniversary date of the solid waste collection contract, the contractor may request an adjustment to the applicable service rates in accordance with any increase in the Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers: Water and Sewer and Trash Collection Services in U.S. City Average, as provided for and calculated in accordance with the terms of the solid waste collection contract. 2. No Consumer Price Index adjustment shall be automatic. Any requested adjustment shall be reviewed by the West Baton Rouge Parish administration to determine whether the request complies with the applicable provisions, calculations, limitations, and documentation requirements of the solid waste collection contract. 3. Following its review, the administration shall present any proposed Consumer Price Index rate increase to the West Baton Rouge Parish Council for consideration at a duly noticed public meeting. 4. No Consumer Price Index rate increase shall be charged, collected, or become effective unless and until the proposed increase has been approved by a majority vote of the West Baton Rouge Parish Council at a West Baton Rouge Parish Council meeting. 5. Upon approval by the West Baton Rouge Parish Council, the adjusted rate shall become effective on the date authorized by the Council and shall remain in effect until subsequently adjusted in accordance with the contract and this section. 6. At the time of any renewal, extension, or renegotiation of the solid waste collection contract, the West Baton Rouge Parish Administration may recommend an adjustment to the Administration Fee established by this section. Any proposed adjustment may increase or decrease the Administration Fee as necessary. No adjustment to the Administration Fee shall become effective unless and until approved by a majority vote of the West Baton Rouge Parish Council at a duly noticed public meeting. Upon approval by the West Baton Rouge Parish Council, the adjusted Administration Fee shall become effective on the date authorized by the Council and shall remain in effect until subsequently adjusted in accordance with this section. (h) Administration and enforcement. The Parish President, or the Parish President’s designee, is authorized to administer the solid waste collection program, verify customer and residential-unit information, coordinate service with the contractor, enforce the applicable provisions of the solid waste collection contract, and establish reasonable administrative procedures consistent with this section. Sec. 34-2. Garbage collection service carts deposit. There shall be an established a charge for rental houses, apartments, and mobile homes effective September 1, 2004, as a deposit on garbage collection service carts for all new customers in the unincorporated areas of the parish and inside the corporate limits of the Towns of Addis and Brusly. *** NOW THEREFORE BE IT FURTHER ORDAINED by the West Baton Rouge Parish Council that this ordinance shall become effective thirty (30) days after adoption pursuant to Section 2-12 (C) of the Home Rule Charter. THEREFORE BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED by the West Baton Rouge Parish Council, that all other ordinances or parts of ordinances in conflict herewith are hereby repealed in their entirety. NOW THEREFORE BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED by the Parish Council of the Parish of West Baton Rouge, Louisiana, that if any provision or

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item of this ordinance or the application thereof is held invalid, such invalidity shall not affect other provisions, items or applications of this ordinance which can be given effect without the invalid provisions, items, or applications of this ordinance are hereby declared severable.

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NAYS: 0 (NONE) ABSENT: 0 (NONE) ABSTAIN: 0 (NONE) WHEREUPON the ordinance was declared adopted on the 27th day of August, 2026. ATTEST:

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of a resolution adopted by said body at its Regular Meeting of August 27, 2026 at which meeting a majority of the members were present and voting.

THE FOREGOING ORDINANCE AFTER HAVING BEEN SUBMITTED TO A PUBLIC HEARING WAS CONSIDERED, AND UPON MOTION BY COUNCIL MEMBER _KIRK ALAIN, WHICH WAS SECONDED BY COUNCIL MEMBER_KATHERINE ANDRE_. THE ORDINANCE WAS SUBMITTED TO A VOTE AND RESULTED IN THE FOLLOWING: YEAS: 9 (ALLAIN, ANDRE, WALKER, DENSTEL, BABIN, CROWE, GORDON, JOSEPH, HOTARD)

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RESOLUTION 21 OF 2026 A Resolution Authorizing The Parish President To Enter Into A Cooperative Endeavor Agreement with the Louisiana Department of Treasury WHEREAS, West Baton Rouge Parish agrees to enter into a Cooperative Endeavor Agreement, with the Louisiana Department of Treasury; and WHEREAS, in order to proceed with said agreement, West Baton Rouge Parish requires that the legislative body of the local government authorizes its chief executive “The Parish President” to execute agreement titled: COOPERATIVE ENDEAVOR AGREEMENT BETWEEN THE LOUISIANA DEPARTMENT OF TREASURY AND WEST BATON ROUGE PARISH

RESOLUTION 20 OF 2026 A Resolution to Dedicate and Rename the West Baton Rouge Parish 4H and AG Center Building in Honor of Mr. Harry L. Laws WHEREAS, the West Baton Rouge Parish Council wishes to recognize and honor the life and legacy of Mr. Harry L. Laws; and WHEREAS, Mr. Laws served WBR Parish as an LSU Ag Center 4-H and County Agent from 1975-2010; and WHEREAS, Mr. Laws, throughout his 35-year career dedicated himself to agriculture, youth development, and community service, leaving an immeasurable impact on generations of parish residents; and WHEREAS, Mr. Laws was a passionate advocate for 4-H and played a pivotal role in growing the program in West Baton Rouge Parish by personally funding 4-H enrollment fees for local students, helping to establish the West Baton Rouge Parish 4-H Foundation, supporting the parish fair and livestock programs, and generously contributing to scholarships and educational opportunities for youth across Louisiana; and WHEREAS, Mr. Laws’ dedication, generosity, and vision have shaped our parish in countless ways. In recognition of his extraordinary service, the Harry Laws Classic annual fall livestock show was named in his honor in 2011, and he was inducted into the Louisiana 4-H Hall of Fame. WHEREAS, Mr. Laws’ legacy will live on through the programs he built, the lives he touched, and the community he helped strengthen. We extend our heartfelt condolences to his family, friends, and all who knew and loved him. NOW THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED, the West Baton Rouge Parish Council and Parish President do hereby honor the life and legacy of Mr. Harry L. Laws by naming the West Baton Rouge Parish 4H and Ag Center building, the Harry Laws 4H Ag Center Building. BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that all resolutions or parts thereof in conflict herewith are hereby repealed. The Foregoing Resolution Was Considered, And, After Public Discussion, A Motion To Approve Was Made By Council Member Daryl “Turf” Babin, Which Was Seconded By Council Member Brady Hotard.

WHEREAS, the West Baton Rouge Parish Council agrees to authorize the Parish President to sign said agreement in regard to receiving $500,000 appropriation funds from Act 3 of 2026 RLS. NOW THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED, the West Baton Rouge Parish Council does hereby authorize Parish President Jason P. Manola to execute on behalf of the Parish of West Baton Rouge, an agreement with the Louisiana Department of Treasury and sign and execute all future documentation and funding regarding the same. BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that if any portion or item of this resolution or the application thereof is held invalid, such invalidity shall not affect other provisions, items or applications of this resolution which can be given effect without invalid provisions, items or applications and to this end the provisions of this resolution are hereby declared severable. BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that all resolutions or parts thereof in conflict herewith are hereby repealed. The Foregoing Resolution Was Considered, And, After Public Discussion, A Motion To Approve Was Made By Council Member Brady Hotard, Which Was Seconded By Council Member Kenneth Gordon. The Resolution Was Submitted To A Vote, The Vote Thereon Was As Follows: YEAS: 8 (Hotard, Gordon, Babin, Walker, Denstel, Crowe, Andre, Joseph) NAYS: 0 (None) ABSENT: 1 (Allain) ABSTAIN: 0 (None) As a result of the votes the resolution was adopted this 27th Day of August, 2026. CERTIFICATE I, Michelle Tullier, Council Clerk of the West Baton Rouge Parish Council do hereby certify that the above and foregoing is a true and correct copy of a resolution adopted by said body at its Regular Meeting of August 27, 2026 at which meeting a majority of the members were present and voting.

The Resolution Was Submitted To A Vote, The Vote Thereon Was As Follows: YEAS: 8 (Babin, Hotard, Denstel, Walker, Crowe, Gordon, Andre, Joseph) NAYS: 0 (None) ABSENT: 1 (Allain) ABSTAIN: 0 (None) AND the resolution was declared adopted on this 27th Day of August, 2026. CERTIFICATE I, Michelle Tullier, Council Clerk of the West Baton Rouge Parish Council do hereby certify that the above and foregoing is a true and correct copy

201354-689441 Sept. 22, 1t $ 1,268.19

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