The Advocate 07-09-2025 by The Advocate

The USS NewOrleans lost its bowbattling the Japanese in the Southwest Pacificin1942.

PROVIDED PHOTO

FROM THE DEPTHS

BowfromUSS NewOrleans,lost during WWII,found in PacificOcean

BY MARKBALLARD | Staff writer

WASHINGTON— On adark night with no moon andheavily overcast skies on Nov.30, 1942, the USS New Orleans was one of 11 cruisers and destroyers sailing in formation into the waters near theSolomon Islands in the south PaciﬁcOcean.

“A light southeast breeze scarcely rufﬂed the surface of the water,” aNavy report on that night’seventsstates.

Then came the surprise attack.

EightJapanesedestroyers and an unknown number of submarinespounced on theAmerican ships. The BattleofTassafaronga —one of theU.S.Navy’smost disastrous days of WorldWar II was underway

Afew minutes after the USS New Orleans opened fire, the American force’slead cruiser, theUSS Minneapolis, was struck by two Japanesetorpedoes on the left side, according to the damage report.

To avoid acollision, the New Orleans abruptly made asharp right turn and was struck by aJapanese “Long Lance” torpedo, which ignited ammunitionstored at the front of the ship. An explosiontoreoff the front thirdofthe vessel.More than 180 sailors werekilledinthe blast;

threewere posthumously awarded the Navy Cross for their actions.

Theship’sbow tore looseand was observed ﬂoating intact and upright behind the New Orleans before sinking, according to the damage report.

Butsomehow,the surviving crew managed to keepthe restof the ship aﬂoat

“By all rights, this ship should have sunk, but due to the heroic damage control efforts of her crew,USS New Orleans became oneofthe most grievously damaged U.S. cruisers in World WarII to actually survive,” said Samuel J. Cox, aretired U.S. Navy rear admiral and director of the Naval History and Heritage Command in Washington.

ä See WRECKAGE, page 7A

Court clears wayfor federalworkforce cuts

BY MARK SHERMAN Associated Press

WASHINGTON The Supreme Court on Tuesday cleared the way forPresidentDonald Trump’splans to downsize thefederal workforce despite warnings that critical government services will be lost and hundreds of thousands of federal employees will be out of their jobs. The justicesoverrode lower court orders that temporarily froze the cuts, which have been led by the Department of Gov-

Trump

ernment Efﬁciency. The court said in an unsigned order thatno specific cuts were in front of the justices, onlyanexecutiveorder issued by Trump and an administration directive for agencies to undertake job reductions.

Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson was theonly dissenting vote, accusing her colleagues of a“demonstrated enthusiasmfor green-

lighting this President’slegally dubiousactions in an emergency posture.” Jackson warned of enormous real-world consequences.“This executive action promises mass employeeterminations, widespreadcancellationoffederal programsand services,and the dismantling of much of the Federal Government as Congress has created it,” she wrote. The high court action continued aremarkable winning streakfor Trump, whothe justices have allowed tomove forward with signiﬁcant parts of his

plan to remake thefederal government. The Supreme Court’s interventionsofar hasbeenon the frequent emergency appeals the JusticeDepartment hasﬁled objecting to lower-courtrulings as improperlyintruding on presidential authority. The Republican president has repeatedly said voters gave him amandate for thework, and he tapped billionaire ally Elon Musk to lead thecharge through DOGE.Muskrecentlylefthis role.

ä See CUTS, page 6A

113-home addition at University Club gets go-ahead

Roundabout,buffer zone addedinattempt to appease residents

BY CLAIRE GRUNEWALD Staff writer

The proposedadditionof113 newhomes in the University Clubneighborhood has gotten agreen light, with apromised traffic roundabout and anew development conditiontoappease some residents who have publicly opposed the proposal for months.

The St.George Planning Commission approved Monday the rest of the preliminary platfor the 113-homedevelopment that nowincludesa30-foot nature buffer zone behind ahandful of homes directly in front of wetlands.

DeveloperSinclair Kouns and his team redesigned the buffer zone into the plat after acontentious June planning commission meeting about the development. This buffer would provideagreen spacebetween property lines forafew homeowners contiguous to wetlands and the areas of proposed homes.

“Hopefully that helps their view.It’ll be requiredtohave landscaping, so it’ll stay green,” said attorney Erik Piazza, about the 30-foot buffer.

The proposal is split in twosections and wouldbuild 113single-family homesin the neighborhood. Most of the wetlands adjacent to the University Club subdivision would be destroyed to build the new homes. Residentshaveexpressed concern and dissatisfaction with the plan since it was first proposed in 2024 over potentially losing their scenic views as well as worries about flooding, traffic issues and loss of wildlife.

BYJULIA GUILBEAU Staff writer

After months of inﬁghting and political haggling, Republican congressional lawmakers in Washington, D.C.,cametogether to pass the One Big Beautiful Bill, President Donald Trump’smainpolicy agenda, last week. Theact,which Trumpsignedintolaw at aceremony Friday,sets out aspending plan and tax cuts forthe country With nearly 900 pages included in the far-reachinglaw,the legislation willaffect health care, taxes, social safety nets, immigration and more. Here’salook at the maincomponents and how the changes could play out in Louisiana.

Taxcutsand changes

What’schanged: Much of the focus of the One Big Beautiful Bill surrounded creating additional tax cuts, while offsetting much of the subsequent revenue loss by

ä See BILL, page 6A

Dog helps rescuers find man who fell in glacier GENEVA Rescuers are hailing as a “four-legged hero” a furry Chihuahua whose pacing atop an Alpine rock helped a helicopter crew ﬁnd its owner, who had fallen into a crevasse on a Swiss glacier nearby

The man, who was not identiﬁed, was exploring the Fee Glacier in southern Switzerland on Friday when he broke through a snow bridge and fell nearly about 26 feet, according to Air Zermatt, a rescue, training and transport company

Equipped with a walkie-talkie, the man connected with a person nearby who relayed the accident to emergency services. But the exact location was unknown. After about a half-hour search, the pacing pooch caught the eye of a rescue team member

As the crew zeroed on the Chihuahua, the hole the man fell into became more visible. Rescuers rappelled down, rescued the man and flew him and his canine companion to a hospital.

“Imagine if the dog wasn’t there,” Air Zermatt spokesman Bruno Kalbermatten said by phone. “I have no idea what would happen to this guy I think he wouldn’t survive this fall into the crevasse.”

On its website, the company was effusive: “The dog is a four-legged hero who may have saved his master’s life in a lifethreatening situation.”

Greece shuts Acropolis due to high temps

ATHENS, Greece Authorities in Athens closed the Acropolis to visitors for several hours Tuesday due to high temperatures as work restrictions remained in effect in other parts of Greece.

The closure lasted for 4 hours, the Culture Ministry archaeological service said.

Mandatory work breaks were imposed in several other regions, mostly on islands and parts of central Greece, where temperatures exceeded 104 degrees. The measures started Monday for outdoor workers. Workplaces that don’t comply face a $2,350 ﬁne per worker

Authorities said the risk of wildﬁres, already at “very high” across the eastern mainland, is expected to increase during the week.

Elsewhere in Europe, a wildﬁre in northeastern Spain burned roughly 7,400 acres on Tuesday with authorities ordering some 18,000 people in Tarragona province to remain indoors.

Italy outraged at killing of heroic police dog

ROME The horrific killing of a police bloodhound, who helped find nine people over the course of his sniffer-dog rescue career, has outraged Italians and sparked a criminal investigation to find his killers.

Bruno, a 7-year-old, 195-pound bloodhound, was found dead Friday morning in his shed in southern Taranto His trainer, Arcangelo Caressa, said he had been fed bits of dog food laced with nails. Caressa said he suspected the killing was revenge against him — not Bruno — for his volunteer animal rescue work.

“It was deliberately a horriﬁc act to cause the dog intense suffering, because feeding him bites filled with nails means tearing apart his insides, tearing apart his esophagus and internal organs and causing excruciating pain,” Caressa said Premier Giorgia Meloni, who was photographed with Bruno after one of his heroic rescues, said that his slaughter was “vile, cowardly, unacceptable.” Lawmaker Michael Vittoria Brambilla, a longtime animal rights activist, filed a criminal complaint with prosecutors under a new law that she helped push through stiffening penalties for anyone who kills or mistreats an animal.

The editor of the Il Giornale daily Vittorio Feltri voiced outrage, saying Bruno had done more civic good in Italy than most Italian citizens.

Caressa said that he had told prosecutors he suspected that he was the ultimate target of Bruno’s killers, and that Bruno was killed “to get to me.” Caressa runs a volunteer public animal rescue organization that rescues dogs from dogﬁghts.

Over 160 still missing in Texas, governor says

Hotline set up for families as rescue operations continue

BY NADIA LATHAN and JOHN SEEWER Associated Press

HUNT,Texas

More than 160 people are believed to be missing in Texas four days after ﬂash ﬂoods killed over 100 people during the July Fourth weekend, Gov Greg Abbott said Tuesday The huge jump in the number unaccounted for — roughly three times higher than previously said — came after authorities set up a hotline for families to call.

Those reported missing are in Kerr County, where most of the victims have been recovered so far, Gov Greg Abbott said. Many were likely visiting or staying in state’s Hill Country during the holiday but did not register at a camp or hotel, he said during a news conference.

“We will not stop until every missing person is accounted for,” Abbott said during a news conference in Hunt, Texas, after taking a helicopter tour of the area.

Search-and-rescue teams are using heavy equipment to untangle and peel away layers of trees, unearth large rocks in riverbanks and move massive piles of debris that stretch for miles in the search for the missing people. Crews in airboats, helicopters and on horseback along with hundreds of volunteers are part of one of the largest search operations in Texas history Reports reveal that Texas inspectors signed off on Camp Mystic’s emergency planning just two days before the catastrophic ﬂooding.

The Department of State Health Services released records Tuesday showing the camp complied with a host of state regulations regarding “procedures to be implemented in case of a disaster.” Among them: instructing campers what to do if they need to evacuate and assigning specific duties to each staff member and counselor

Five years of inspection reports released to The Associated Press do not offer any details of those plans at Mystic, raising new questions about the camp’s preparedness ahead of the torrential rainfall.

Public ofﬁcials in charge of locating the victims are facing in-

Tuesday.

tensifying questions about who was in charge of monitoring the weather and warning that ﬂoodwaters were barreling toward camps and homes.

The Republican governor, who took a helicopter tour of the disaster zone, dismissed a question about who was to blame for the deaths, saying, “That’s the word choice of losers.”

“Every football team makes mistakes,” he said. “The losing teams are the ones that try to point out who’s to blame. The championship teams are the ones who say, ’Don’t worry about it, man, we got this. We’re going to make sure that we go score again and we’re going to win this game.’ The way winners talk is not to point ﬁngers.”

Abbott promised that the search for victims will not stop until everyone is found. He also said President Donald Trump has pledged to provide whatever relief Texas needs to recover Trump plans to visit the state Friday

Outside the cabins at Camp Mystic where the girls had slept, mudsplattered blankets and pillows were scattered on a grassy hill that slopes toward the river

Among those who died at the camp were a second grader who loved pink sparkles and bows in her hair, a 19-year-old counselor who enjoyed mentoring young girls and the camp’s 75-year-old director

The ﬂash ﬂoods erupted before daybreak Friday after massive rains sent water speeding down hills into the Guadalupe River causing it to rise 26 feet in less than an hour The wall of water overwhelmed people in cabins,

tents and trailers along the river’s edge, pulling them into the water

Some survivors were found clinging to trees. Questions mounted about what, if any, actions local officials took to warn campers and residents who were spending the July Fourth weekend in the scenic area long known to locals as “flash flood alley.”

Leaders in Kerr county, where searchers have found about 90 bodies, said their ﬁrst priority is recovering victims, not reviewing what happened before the ﬂoods.

“Right now, this team up here is focused on bringing people home,” Lt. Col. Ben Baker of the Texas Game Wardens, said during a sometimes tense news conference.

Kerr County Judge Rob Kelly, the county’s chief elected ofﬁcial, said in the hours after the devastation that the county does not have a warning system.

Generations of families in the Hill Country have known the dangers. A 1987 ﬂood forced the evacuation of a youth camp in the town of Comfort and swamped buses and vans. Ten teenagers were killed.

Local leaders have talked for years about the need for a warning system. Kerr County sought a nearly $1 million grant eight years ago for such a system, but the request was turned down by the Federal Emergency Management Agency

Local residents balked at footing the bill themselves, Kelly said. Some camps were aware of the dangers Friday and monitored the weather At least one moved several hundred campers to higher ground before the ﬂoods.

AI used to mimic Marco Rubio and contact officials, U.S. says

State Department warning diplomats

BY MATTHEW LEE AP diplomatic writer

WASHINGTON The State Department is warning U.S. diplomats of attempts to impersonate Secretary of State Marco Rubio and possibly other officials using technology driven by artiﬁcial intelligence, according to two senior ofﬁcials and a cable sent last week to all embassies and consulates.

The warning came after the department discovered that an impostor posing as Rubio had attempted to reach out to at least three foreign ministers, a U.S. senator and a governor, according to the July 3 cable, which was ﬁrst reported by The Washington Post.

The recipients of the scam messages, which were sent by text, Signal and voice mail, were not identified in the cable, a copy of which was shared with The Associated Press.

“The State Department is aware of this incident and is currently monitoring and addressing the matter,” department spokeswoman Tammy Bruce told reporters. “The department takes seriously its responsibility to safeguard its information and continuously take steps to improve the department’s cybersecurity posture to prevent future incidents.”

It’s the latest instance of a high-level Trump administration ﬁgure targeted by an impersonator, with a similar incident revealed in May involving President Donald Trump’s chief of staff, Su-

sie Wiles. The misuse of AI to deceive people is likely to grow as the technology improves and becomes more widely available, and the FBI warned this past spring about “malicious actors” impersonating senior U.S. government ofﬁcials in a text and voice messaging campaign.

The hoaxes involving Rubio had been unsuccessful and “not very sophisticated,” one of the ofﬁcials said. Nonetheless, the second ofﬁcial said the department deemed it “prudent” to advise all employees and foreign governments, particularly as efforts by foreign actors to compromise information security increase.

The ofﬁcials were not authorized to discuss the matter publicly and spoke on condition of anonymity

“There is no direct cyber threat to the department from this campaign, but information shared with a third party could be exposed if targeted individuals are compromised,” the cable said.

The FBI has warned in a public service announcement about a “malicious” campaign relying on text messages and AIgenerated voice messages that purport to come from a senior U.S. ofﬁcial and that aim to dupe other government ofﬁcials as well as the victim’s associates and contacts.

This is not the ﬁrst time that Rubio has been impersonated in a deepfake. This spring, someone created a bogus video of him saying he wanted to cut off Ukraine’s access to Elon Musk’s Starlink internet service. Ukraine’s government later rebutted the false claim.

Several potential solutions have been put forward in recent years to the growing misuse of AI for deception, including criminal penalties and improved media literacy

Trump avoids talk of scrapping FEMA

President plans to visit state on Friday

BY DARLENE SUPERVILLE Associated Press

WASHINGTON President Donald Trump has avoided talking about his plan to scrap the federal disaster response agency after the catastrophic ﬂash ﬂood in Texas that killed more than 100 people, including children attending a girlsonly camp. Asked shortly after the disaster whether he still intended to phase out the Federal Emergency Management Agency, Trump said it wasn’t the right time to talk about it.

Nor did he mention such plans during a nearly two-hour meeting with his Cabinet on Tuesday

The Republican president instead opened the meeting by having Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem talk about her visit to Kerrville, Texas, on Saturday, a day after ﬂoodwaters swept away riverside campers and homeowners in the wee hours of the Fourth of July holiday Her voice breaking, she recounted leading the federal response, telling the meeting that she was overcome with emotion during the trip and had “kind of fallen apart.”

“Very emotional,” she said, “but also just so tragic.” Noem said “Texas is strong” but insisted that, “we, as a federal government, don’t manage these disasters. The state does. We come in and support them, and that’s exactly what we did here in this situation.”

“We’re cutting through the paperwork of the old FEMA streamlining it, much like your vision of how FEMA should operate,” Noem said of Trump’s promise to scrap the agency. Noem added, that Americans helping one another after such tragic events is proof that “God created us to take care of each other.”

Trump said his wife, ﬁrst lady Melania Trump, will accompany him when he visits Friday It will be his second trip to survey the wreckage of a natural disaster

ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO By ASHLEy LANDIS

Volunteers help clean up a house after flooding in Kerrville, Texas, on

Trump says weapons to Ukraine will resume

BY AAMER MADHANI, SEUNG MIN KIM and TARA COPP Associated Press

WASHINGTON President Donald Trump’s decision to send more defensive weapons to Ukraine came after he privately expressed frustration with Pentagon ofﬁcials for announcing a pause in some deliveries last week

— a move that he felt wasn’t properly coordinated with the White House, according to three people familiar with the matter

The Pentagon, which announced last week that it would hold back some air defense missiles, precisionguided artillery and other weapons pledged to Ukraine because of what U.S. officials said were concerns that American stockpiles were in short supply Trump said Monday that the U.S. will have to send more weapons to Ukraine, effectively reversing the move.

Two of the people, who spoke on the condition of anonymity about the sensitive internal discussions, said there was some internal opposition among Pentagon brass to the pause coordinated by Pentagon policy chief Elbridge Colby before it was announced.

One of the people described Trump as being caught “ﬂat-footed” by the announcement. The White House did not respond to queries about whether Trump was surprised by the Pentagon pause.

The pause in critical weapons deliveries had come at a difficult moment for Ukraine, which has faced increasing — and more complex — air barrages from Russia during the more than three-year-old war Trump acknowledged that in announcing the reversal

on Monday night, saying, “They have to be able to defend themselves They’re getting hit very hard now.”

Asked by a reporter

Tuesday who approved the pause, Trump bristled at the question while he was gathered with his Cabinet. “I don’t know Why don’t you tell me?”

The president also laid into Russian President Vladimir Putin, suggesting he was unnecessarily prolonging the war that Trump has said he’s determined to quickly conclude. Trump has struggled to find a resolution, with talks between the sides stalled.

The Republican leader has sounded increasingly exasperated with Putin in recent days. The two spoke by phone last week

“We get a lot of bull*** thrown at us by Putin, if you want to know the truth,” Trump said during Tuesday’s Cabinet meeting. “He’s very nice all the time, but it turns out to be meaningless.” He has threatened, but held off on, imposing new sanctions against Russia’s oil industry to try to prod Putin into peace talks.

Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., said last week that Trump has given him the goahead to push forward with a bill he’s co-sponsoring that calls, in part, for a 500% tariff on goods imported from countries that continue to buy Russian oil. The move would have huge ramiﬁcations for China and India, two economic behemoths that buy Russian oil.

Trump said Tuesday that he’s “looking at it very strongly.”

The weapons pause announced last week impacted shipments of Patriot missiles, precision-guided GMLRS, Hellfire missiles and howitzer rounds and more, taking not only Ukrainian officials and other allies by surprise but also U.S. lawmakers and other parts of the Trump administration, including the State Department.

The Pentagon said late Monday that at Trump’s direction, it would resume weapons shipments to Ukraine “to ensure the Ukrainians can defend themselves while we work to secure a lasting peace and ensure the killing stops.”

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Trump to evaluate military shipments worldwide continues as part of “America First” defense priorities.

The Pentagon did not immediately respond to a request for comment on whether Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth consulted with the White House prior to pausing weapons shipments and whether or not those shipments have now resumed.

It’s also unclear which weaponry would now be sent, though Trump said that the U.S. will primarily be assisting Ukraine with defensive weapons.

On Tuesday, each of the services and the combatant commands — the multiservice organizations that spearhead U.S. military operations around the world were still sending up information on their stockpiles of speciﬁc munitions to Pentagon leadership, a U.S.

ofﬁcial said.

“They are literally still doing the math,” the official said.

The information was being presented on a stoplight chart — where munitions were either in a red, yellow or green status, similar to slides that had been created the week before, the ofﬁcial said. That earlier study had concluded that some munitions were OK to keep sending to Ukraine — but others were reaching concerning levels.

Getting a full visibility on the numbers of actual munitions on hand takes time, the official said, because while Patriot missiles, for example, initially belong to the Army, once they are requested and sent to a combatant command, such as U.S.

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Still, spokesman Sean Parnell added that its review for

President Donald Trump, center, addresses members of his cabinet Tuesday at the White House in Washington.

Study tallies kills from menhaden fishing

Results show redfish bycatch is below legal levels

BY MIKE SMITH Staff writer

A closely watched study of how many redﬁsh and other species the industrial menhaden industry nets and ultimately kills off of Louisiana’s coast shows the numbers are not as bad as some had feared, but recreational anglers called the results concerning nonetheless.

Industry officials pointed to the study as evidence that they did not deserve to be vilified, particularly given their economic contributions to the state. Conservationists highlighted the effects on redfish in particular while calling for further precautions.

The results showed the industry’s overall bycatch for all species remains significantly below the amount allowed under state law Still, further battles may be ahead over where and how the menhaden industry should drop its expansive nets.

State Rep. Joe Orgeron, R-Golden Meadow, who has previously worked to tighten regulations on

the menhaden industry, praised the rigor of the study and said he was glad to see the survivability of redﬁsh that become entangled in menhaden nets was higher than previously thought.

“At least we’ve got a baseline now on how this very important industry here in Louisiana operates,” Orgeron said. “I look forward to continuing to see where this takes us.”

The study released Tuesday is the latest chapter in a long struggle involving recreational anglers, charter captains and the three plants that process menhaden caught in waters off Louisiana.

The oily ﬁsh, also known as pogy and averaging about 8 inches long, are ground up for use in products such as animal feed, fertilizer and supplements.

Louisiana accounts for nearly all Gulf menhaden commercial catch.

Other Gulf states, known for their beach tourism, have far tighter regulations on industrial-scale fishing. Louisiana’s river-nourished coastal habitat also means menhaden are especially plentiful here.

Mixed results

Charter captains and conservation groups have repeatedly raised

10 held in ‘planned ambush’ at Texas detention center

Officer injured in shooting outside immigration facility

BY KATHY MCCORMACK Associated Press

Ten people have been arrested on attempted murder charges after attackers in black military-style clothing opened ﬁre outside a Texas immigration detention center in a “planned ambush” that left one police officer wounded, a prosecutor said.

The ofﬁcer was shot in the neck on Friday the night of the Fourth of July, after reporting to the Prairieland Detention Center in Alvarado, about 40 miles southwest of Dallas. He was treated at a hospital and released, the Johnson County Sheriff’s Ofﬁce said.

The shooting took place as President Donald Trump‘s administration ramps up deportations, which will be turbocharged by a massive spending bill that became law last week. Initially, the attackers set off ﬁreworks, and damaged cars and a guard structure by spray-painting “traitor” and ”ICE pig” on them. The attack “seemed to be designed” to draw U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement personnel outside the facility, “and it worked,” Nancy Larson, acting U.S. attorney for the Northern District of Texas, said at a Monday night news conference in Fort Worth.

Two unarmed corrections

ofﬁcers spoke to the group in the detention center’s parking lot as someone standing in nearby woods appeared to signal with a flashlight, according to a criminal complaint. Then the Alvarado police officer arrived and someone in the woods opened ﬁre, Larson said.

“Another assailant, who was across the street, nowhere near the corrections ofﬁcers, shot 20 to 30 rounds at these unarmed corrections officers,” she said.

“There was an AR-style riﬂe found at the scene” that was jammed, she said. A flag saying “Resist fascism, ﬁght oligarchy,” and flyers with words such as “Fight ICE terror with class war” also were recovered near the center

The group fled Sheriff’s deputies stopped seven people about 300 yards from where the ofﬁcer was shot.

“Some were wearing body armor, some were covered in mud, some were armed, and some had two-way radios on them,” Larson said.

“It was a planned ambush with the intent to kill ICE corrections officers,” she said.

Sheriff’s deputies also stopped a van leaving the area and found two AR-style riﬂes and a pistol, along with ballistic-style vests and a helmet, the complaint said.

The driver, the only person in the van, said he had been at the detention center He said he had met some people online and drove some of them to the detention center from Dallas to “make some

alarms over what they see as damage to the state’s already fragile redﬁsh and speckled trout populations. The industry has stressed the jobs and residual economic beneﬁts it brings to the state, while contending its bycatch is minimal in comparison to the overall recreational catch.

The bycatch study, ﬁnanced by the state but carried out by an independent ﬁrm under the guidance of the Gulf States Marine Fisheries Commission, was conducted in 2024. The results were detailed at a meeting of the state’s Wildlife and Fisheries Commission on Tuesday

The numbers were mixed They showed that significantly more redﬁsh survive after being netted and released by the industry than some had feared, and total bycatch of all species amounted to 3.6% by weight — well below the 5% threshold allowed by law

The raw numbers showed about 22,000 redfish, officially known as red drum, killed by the industry in 2024. An estimated 791,000 redfish were landed by recreational anglers in the same year, though that number does not include fish that were thrown back and later died.

The Department of Wildlife and Fisheries used the results to ex-

trapolate across the decade from 2015 to 2024. Its scientists calculated that the industry accounted for 9.9% of dead redﬁsh, measured by weight, over that time period and recreational anglers the remainder As for trout over the same period, the menhaden industry killed an estimated 2.7% by weight, it said.

Additional steps?

The results prompted sharply different conclusions. Francois Kuttel, president of Westbank Fishing, whose menhaden fleet fishes out of Empire, said the industry had adopted equipment upgrades for 2025 related to its excluder devices that had helped improve the survivability of redfish. Further upgrades were being evaluated.

He said the study “corrected the perception that this industry is out there just raping and pillaging.”

“It’s shown us a way forward, and it’s not necessarily the way forward that we’ve been going at each other up until now,” he said, referring to battles with recreational anglers and conservation groups. Chris Macaluso, of the Theodore Roosevelt Conservation Partner-

10 men and women, most of them from the Dallas-Fort Worth area, have each been charged with three counts of attempted murder of a federal officer and three counts of discharging a firearm at the Prairieland Detention Center in Alvarado, Texas.

noise,” according to the complaint.

justice and conspiracy for attempting to conceal and destroy evidence, Larson said.

On Monday, a man with an assault rifle fired dozens of rounds at federal agents and a U.S. Border Patrol facility more than 400 miles south in McAllen, injuring a police officer Authorities shot and killed the attacker

Asked if the two shootings were connected, Larson said she could not comment because of the ongoing investigation.

Additional searches in Alvarado led to masks, goggles tactical gloves, more body armor, weapons, spray paint and ﬁreworks, Larson said.

An extra layer of protection has been provided for staff at the Prairieland center, said Josh Johnson, the acting Enforcement and Removal Operations ﬁeld ofﬁce director in Dallas.

The 10 men and women, most of them from the Dallas-Fort Worth area, have each been charged with three counts of attempted murder of a federal ofﬁcer and three counts of discharging a ﬁrearm in relation to a crime of violence.

Another person was charged with obstruction of

ship, said the estimated 22,000 redfish killed last year still signaled a problem, especially since many of those fish were likely of spawning age. His organization also pointed to the tens of millions of smaller fish important to the food chain killed by the industry “I would suggest that there be some potential additional steps that could be taken in this industry to allow more of those redfish to escape and survive and therefore spawn,” he said at the meeting.

The long-brewing controversy led to changes last year that extended the buffer zone for menhaden ﬁshing from a quarter-mile to a half-mile off the coast for most areas. Larger buffer zones are in place for sensitive areas such as Holly Beach and Grand Isle.

A series of spills and resulting dead fish by the industry helped draw attention to the issue. Industry officials say they have since invested in significantly stronger nets that have greatly reduced such incidents.

The industry says it includes some 700 jobs and contributes $25 million in state and local tax revenue.

Email Mike Smith at msmith@ theadvocate.com.

slashing spending.Some of the main tax changes added were:

n Retained tax breaks: The law makes permanent aseries of tax cuts passed in 2017 during Trump’s firstpresidential term, keeping roughly $3.8 trillion dollars of temporary individual and business tax breaks.

n New tax breaks: Severalnew tax breaks were added,including those that add new deductions for overtimeand auto loans, allow businessestowrite off equipment and research costs, and quadruple the cap on state and local deductions.

n Tipchanges: The bill temporarily allows workers to deducttipsand overtime pay

n Boost for olderadults: Most adults 65 and older who earn no more than $75,000 ayear can now temporarily get a$6,000 deduction. This change is in effect from 2025 to 2028.

In Louisiana: Generally, taxanalysis experts estimate that 85% of the nation’shouseholdswould receivea taxcut in 2026 because of the bill. Lowerincome filers would save about $150. Middleincome filers, who make $66,801 to $119,200 annually,would see abouta$1,750 tax reduction on average.High income filers, those earningover $217,100 annually,would save about $12,540 on average. The median household incomein Louisiana was $58,229 as of 2023, according to the latest available U.S. Census Bureau data Workers who receive tips in Louisiana will also see aboost. According to Louisiana WorkforceCommission data, over 197,000people in the state reported working in accommodation and food services at the end of 2024, an industry that frequently relies on tip wages.

Medicaid

What’schanged: To pay for the additionaltax cuts, thelegislation reducesfederal spendingonMedicaid by 18%, a$1.1trillion reduction over the next 10 years. Around 17 million Americanswould lose health care coverage under the plan, according to the Congressional Budget Ofﬁce. The full changes include:

n Work requirements: The lawwill require most adults from the ages of

CUTS

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“Today’sU.S.Supreme Court ruling is another definitive victoryfor the President and his administration. It clearly rebukes the continued assaults on the President’sconstitutionally authorized executive powers by leftist judges who are trying to prevent the President from achieving government efficiency across the federal government,” White House spokesperson Harrison Fields said in astatement. Tens of thousandsoffederal workers have been fired, have left their jobs via deferred resignation programs or have beenplaced on leave. There is no official figure for the job cuts, but at least 75,000 federal employees tookdeferred resignation and thousands of probationary workers have already been let go.

President DonaldTrump signshis bill of tax breaks and

nearly 900 pages included in the

nets, immigration and more.

18 to 65 to work,volunteer or go to school at least 80 hours amonth in order to qualify.Stateswill have to verify eligibilitytwice ayear beginning in 2027.

n New copays:A new $35 copayment can be charged to some trvices underthe act.

n State contributions:The legislation addsrestrictionsonhow states can tax hospitals, clinics and other health care providers to raise money for their portion of Medicaid expenses. In Louisiana: Louisiana has the nation’ssecond-highest percentage of residents on Medicaid,withonethird of the population enrolled in the program. The Kaiser Family Foundation and othernonpartisan experts estimate that 267,550 Louisiananscould lose theirMedicaid coverage over the next 10 years because ofthe changes Louisiana is one of many states that have relied on provider taxes on hospitalstofund Medicaid Some healthcare leadersworry limiting those taxes could affect Louisiana hospitals. Theadjustments may also lead to Louisianapayinganestimated $4 billion more for the program. If the state chooses not to paythe extra costs, it would have to let somepeople gowithout health insurance. However,many of the

In May, U.S.District Judge Susan Illston found that Trump’sadministrationneeds congressional approval to makesizable reductions to the federal workforce.Bya 2-1vote, apanel of theU.S. 9thCircuit Court of Appeals refusedto block Illston’sorder,ﬁnding that the downsizing could have broader effects, including on the nation’sfood-safety system and healthcare for veterans.

Illston directed numerousfederalagenciestohalt acting on the president’s workforce executive order signed in February and a subsequent memo issued by DOGE and the OfﬁceofPersonnel Management. Illston wasnominatedbyformer Democratic President Bill Clinton.

Thelabor unionsand nonproﬁt groups that sued over the downsizing offered the justices several examples of what would happen if it wereallowed to take effect, including cutsof40%

changes do not go into effect until after midterm elections in 2026. Food stamprestrictions

What’schanged: As another cost saving measure, the OneBig Beautiful Bill shifts some of the payments for food assistance, or Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program beneﬁts, from thefederal government to states. Stateswill now have to pay 75% of administrative costs for the program —up from 50%. Additionally,starting in 2028, states will be required to pay aportion of SNAP food beneﬁts if their payment error rate, which includes underpayments and overpayments, is above 6%.

The new law also expands work requirements for SNAP, requiring that most adultsunder 65 workor volunteer for 80 hours amonth. Previous rules required workor volunteer hours foradults 54 and under

In Louisiana: Around 840,000 Louisianans, or about 18% of the state’s population, receive food stamps, according to data from the Louisiana Department of Children and Family Services. In May,75% of the state’sSNAP recipients lived below the poverty level. Work requirements arelikely to decrease those numbers.

Louisiana’sshare of SNAP ad-

to 50% at several agencies. Baltimore, Chicagoand San Francisco were among the cities that also sued.

“Today’s decision has dealt aserious blow to our democracy and puts services that theAmerican people rely on in grave jeopardy.Thisdecision does notchange the simple and clear fact that reorganizing government functions and laying off federal workers en masse haphazardly withoutany congressionalapproval is not allowed by our Constitution,” the parties that sued said in ajoint statement.

Amongthe agencies affected by the order are the departments of Agriculture, Energy,Labor,the Interior, State, the Treasury and Veterans Affairs. It also applies to theNational Science Foundation, Small Business Administration,Social Security Administration and Environmental Protection Agency

The case now continues in Illston’scourt.

charge of managing immigration enforcement and operations, is also located in NewOrleans. The ofﬁce is responsible for enforcementoperations in Louisiana, Alabama, Arkansas, Mississippi and Tennessee.

Offshore oilrevenue

What’schanged: Aless talked-about provision in the One Big Beautiful Bill changes the formula that determines theshare of offshore revenue that Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama receive each year,increasing the amount of money the states can get.

In Louisiana: As the state that receives the most offshore oil and gas revenue, Louisiana could see up to around $50 million moreper year for over adecadebecause of the change in revenue sharing. The extra money must be used for coastalprotection andrestoration projects, agrowing need in the state.

Cleanenergycuts

ministrative costs forthe 2025 ﬁscal year is expected to be around $38.5million,according to DCFS spokesperson Amy Whitehead. If costs remained the samenext year,Louisiana would need to pay more than $9 million moreunder theact’snew rules.

In 2024, Louisiana hada 6.62% payment errorrate,according to theUSDA. If the state maintained that same rate by 2028, it would be requiredtopay between5%and 15% of SNAP beneﬁts.

Border enforcement

What’schanged: Trump’s immigration plans received amajor funding boost thanks to the new legislation, which set aside $350 billion for bolstering national security,ﬁnishing the border wall and ramping up deportation efforts. Of that, $45 billion is allocated for immigration detention centers and another $30 billionisset aside to hire moreImmigrationsand Customs Enforcement personnel.

In Louisiana: Though it’s notclear yet how the money will be distributed among ICE facilities across the U.S., Louisiana houses nine immigrationdetention centers the third most in the country and could see them,and their staff numbers, grow One of ICE’s25ﬁeld ofﬁces, in

What’schanged: Taxbreaks designed to boost clean energy projects, specifically wind andsolar power,were rolled back dramatically as part of the new law

The taxcredits, created under former President Joe Biden, will phase outswiftly in the next few years. Projects would need to start construction within thenextyear to qualifyfor the old tax credit.

In Louisiana: The tax credit rollback willlikelythreaten jobsand solarand wind investments in the state,and slow Louisiana’sefforts to grow its clean energy industry alongside its oil and gas industry

Currently,Louisiana has 14 utility-scale solar farms, ﬁve of which were builtlastyear, according to clean energy project tracker Clearview

Though therearen’tany landbased wind farms in Louisiana yet, currently,atleast ﬁve utility-scale wind projects are in development in the state.

However,last-minute tweaks by the U.S. Senate keeping sometax breaks forhydrogen, battery storage and nuclear plants protects someLouisiana-area investments, including aproposed $4.7 billion facility in Ascension Parish.

The Associated Press and staff writers Mark Ballard and Blake Paterson contributed to this report. Email Julia Guilbeau at jguilbeau@theadvocate.com.

ASSOCIATED

The crew was able to keep the heavy cruiser aﬂoat and sailed to Australia for mending enough to return to the United States, traveling backward, where the ship was repaired and continued ﬁghting for the rest of World WarII.

On Monday,more than 70 yearsafter thebattle, researchers identiﬁed the bow of the USS New Orleanson theseaﬂoor near Guadalcanal.

“Tofind the bow of this ship is an opportunity to remember the sacriﬁceofthis valiant crew,even on one of the worst nights in U.S. Navy history,” Cox said.

Crucialbattle, historic find

The discovery was made duringa four-hourdive in a remotely operated vehicle investigating the seaﬂoorin what is called Iron Bottom Sound, whereﬁve major naval engagements took place betweenAugust and December 1942 as part of theBattle of Guadalcanal, one of the major turningpoints in the war with Japan.

More than 20,000 personnel were killed during the ﬁvemonth period. Some 111 naval vessels and1,450 aircraft were lost betweenAllied and

HOME

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In June, the commission approved the firstpart of the 113-home development preliminary plat with the stipulation thatanew trafﬁc roundabout right outside the neighborhood would haveto be completed before certiﬁcates of occupancy are issued for the new homes.

“The biggest comment is about the roundabout on Bluebonnet,” Commissioner Billy Aguillard said Monday Aguillard emphasized the processitwilltaketoget to finaldevelopment plat approval, saying that even if the ﬁnalplat is approved, it is subject to the completion of the roundabout before certificates of occupancy can be approved.

Theplanning commission approved the rest of the preliminary plat for the development in a3-1 vote, with Jason McAllister voting no Commissioner Bobby McKey was absent.

Resident Steve Taylor, who has taken the leadin advocating against the development, saidthat before Monday he met with the developer’srepresentative and city leadershipand that the buffer space offered is about all there was to give. Taylor is one of the few residentswho is contiguous to the wetlands that would be impacted by this development and has been worried about losing thebackyard sanctuary he bought into decadesago.

“Giving us somethingis better than nothing,” Taylor saidabout the buffer zone. Email Claire Grunewald at claire.grunewald@ theadvocate.com.

Japanese forces. Thebow represents the largest piece of the ship still in existence, saidCory Graff, curator and restorationmanager at The National WWII Museum in New Orleans. The rest of thevesselwas scrappedin1959 in Baltimore.

Thebow also representsa war grave, he added.

“Some183 USSNew Orleans sailors were killed on the ship that night, and many went down with the number one turret and separated bow section,” he said.

The National WWII Museum on MagazineStreet is preparing an exhibit on the city’snamesake shiptoopen next year

Working with the families of veterans, the museum plans to use artifacts, including ﬁre-scorched coins found on thedeck after thebattle and aslice of the wooden shoring that stabilized the front of the vessel, as well

as documentation to tellthe story of the“venerable vessel that nearly‘saw it all’ in the Paciﬁc War, from the attack on Pearl Harbor to the Japanesesurrender,”Graff saidin an email.

The bow was first identified during mapping operations by the University of New Hampshire’suncrewed surface vessel, DriX. Acrewof archaeologists and experts aboardthe Exploration Vessel Nautilus analyzed structuraldetails,paintworkand anchor configuration to confirm the wreckage as part of the USS New Orleans (CA32),then took images.

“The wreck was located during seafloor mapping operations by an uncrewed surface vehicle, theninvestigatedshortlythereafter by adeep-diving remotely operated vehicle,imagery from which wasviewed in real-time by hundreds of expertsaround theworld, who all worked together to make

apositive identiﬁcation of the ﬁnding,” Daniel Wagner,chief scientist with Ocean Exploration Trust, said in astatement. Ocean ExplorationTrust is anonprofittrust supported by theNational Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Ocean Exploration, which was authorized by Congress in 2009.InadditiontoNOAA Ocean Exploration, theexplorers included the U.S. Naval History andHeritage Command, the government of the Solomon Islands, the UniversityofNew Hampshire Center for Coastal and Ocean Mapping/Joint Hydrographic Center,and representatives from Japan, Australia and New Zealand.

Ahighlydecorated vessel Cruisers like the USSNew Orleans werecombat vesselsused to ﬁght off air attacksand bombardtargets. They weresmaller, faster and cheaper thanbattleships, but more heavily armed than destroyers.

This particular version of the USS New Orleans was

built at the Brooklyn Navy Yard and launched on April 12, 1933. It was sponsored by Cora S. Jahncke,the daughterofErnest L. Jahncke whowas president of Jahncke Shipbuilding Co. in New Orleans. He hadbeen theassistant secretary of theNavy under President Herbert Hoover andoversaw theconstruction of theseawallalong Lake Pontchartrain fromthe West End to Spanish Fort.

The USS NewOrleanswas at PearlHarboronDec. 7, 1941, and responded to the Japaneseair attack.Later,the vessel pulled USS Lexington sailors from thewater during the Battle of the Coral Sea andscreened theUSS Enterpriseaircraftcarrierduring theBattleofMidway.

Even getting its bow blown offwasn’tenough to stopthe ship.

Stabilized, the New Orleans proceeded to the nearby island of Tulagi. By the next daybreak,the crew had camouﬂaged the ship, as the Japanese were nearby.They then cleared away wreckage,

removed damaged equipment, mademinor repairs and attached timber stays to stabilize the damaged front of theship, accordingtothe Navy damage report. TheNew Orleans then sailed1,800 miles to Cockatoo Island near Sydney,Australia, for more extensive repairs. The ship then headed 7,800 miles back to the U.S., making briefstops at Pago Pago and Pearl Harbor TheUSS NewOrleans spent five months being refurbishedand repaired at PugetSound NavalShipyard near Seattle. The New Orleans reentered the war in August 1943. The vessel then participated in the bombardments of Wake Island, the Marshalls and Caroline Islands, and theBattleofLeyte Gulf. It was part of the invasions of Okinawaand the Philippines. The vessel was decommissioned in 1947. The USS New Orleans received 17 battle stars, among themost awarded during WorldWar II.

Family of Ala. teen shot by police seeksvideo

BY KIM CHANDLER Associated Press

HOMEWOOD,Ala. Lawyers representing the family of aBlack teenager shot and killed by police in an Alabama suburb said the state’s refusal to release body-camera video during an investigation is fueling mistrust over the shooting.

“All this family wants is transparency plus accountability.And that’show we get back to trust. We’re not asking for anything elsethat you wouldn’twant if it was your child,” Ben Crump, a civilrightsattorney, said during aTuesday press conference withfamily members

Family members of Jabari Peoples and lawyers representing the familyheld a news conference Tuesday as they continue to seek access to the body-camera footage of the fatal shooting.

Peoples, 18, was shot June 23 by apolice ofﬁcer in the parking lot of asoccerﬁeld in Homewood, an affluent suburb near the central city of Birmingham.

The Homewood Police Department said the officer fired his weapon after Peoples grabbed at agun from acar door during ascuffle as the officer was tryingto arresthim for marijuana possession.

The family is disputing the police version of events

and said Peoples did not have agun when he was approached, according to an eyewitness. Leroy Maxwell Jr., an attorney representing the family,said Peoples was shot in the back.

The Homewood Police Department said the details surrounding the incident are “clearly captured” on the ofﬁcer’sbody camera. The department has not released theidentity of the ofﬁcer

The Alabama Law Enforcement Agency,which is reviewing the use of force, has possession of thevideo buthas declined to release it during theinvestigation. A 2023 state law that governs release of police recordings says an agency may choose to notdisclosethe recording if it would impact an active law enforcementinvestigation

“ALEA’s investigation into the ofﬁcer-involved shooting that occurred in Homewood remainsongoing,”Amanda Wasden, aspokespersonfor the Alabama Law Enforcement Agency,wrote ina Tuesday email.

Activists have staged regular protests in Homewood since the shooting Crump said Tuesday that police could “shut us up” by releasing the video.

“Justreleasethe video. Showusthe ofﬁcer did nothing wrong, Show usthat it was justiﬁed.It’samatterof trust, because too often we

see ourchildrenget killed and theytry to justify unnecessary,unjustiﬁable killings,” Crump said.

People’sparents held portraits of their son. He had dreamsofﬁnishing multiple degrees and wanted to be a policedetective anda pilot in the future, they said.

“He had alot of dreams, and he waswilling to work for his dreams,” Vivian Sterling, his mother said.

Hundreds of people attended avigil for Peoples last week at the soccer complex where he was shot

The family released doves and white balloons and brought in alarge photoof Peoples with angel wings Candles spelled out “Jabari” at the spot where he was killed.

Theshootingunfolded about9:30 p.m. when apolice officer approacheda car at theHomewood Soccer Complex where Peoples and afemale friend were parked.

The Homewood Police Department posted astatement on social media thatthe officer smelled marijuana and noticed ahandgun in the pocket of thedriver’sside door.The officerattempted to putPeoples in handcuffs to arrest him for marijuana possessionand astruggle ensued, according to the statement. Police have not released the nameofthe officer

Mental evaluation orderedfor man convictedofkilling LakenRiley

Venezuelan seeks anew trial

BY KATE BRUMBACK Associated Press

ATLANTA— Ajudge has ordered amental evaluationofthe Venezuelan man convicted of killing Georgia nursing student Laken Riley.

Ajudge in November found Jose Ibarra guilty of murder and other crimes in Riley’sFebruary 2024 killing and sentenced him to life in prison without the possibility of parole. Ibarra is seeking anew trial, and his lawyers asked thejudge to order amental evaluation as partofthat process.

Clarke CountySuperior Court Judge H. Patrick Haggard’sorder for amental evaluation was sent to the

state Department of BehavioralHealthand Developmental Disabilities Tuesday, according to aletter filed with the court.

Riley’skilling became part of thenational debate about immigration during last year’spresidentialcampaign. Ibarra had entered the U.S. illegally in 2022 and was allowedtostay while he pursued his immigration case, federal immigration authorities said after his arrest.

President Donald Trump in January signed into law the Laken Riley Act, which requires the detentionof unauthorized immigrants accused of theft and violent crimes.

Prosecutors saidIbarra encounteredRileywhile she was running on the University of Georgia campus on Feb. 22 and killed her during

astruggle. Riley,22, was a student at Augusta UniversityCollege of Nursing, which also hasacampus in Athens, about 70 mileseast of Atlanta. In acourt ﬁling last month, Ibarra’spost-conviction attorneys, James Luttrell and David Douds, said they believe Ibarra suffers from “congenital deﬁciency” that could make him“incapable of preparing adefense and standing trial.” Ibarra “lacks the mental capacity” to understand the proceedings, and his attorney wrote that he believesthat was the case at the timeofthe killing and at the timeoftrial. Ibarra, 27, had waivedhis righttoajurytrial,meaning it wasuptoAthens-Clarke County Superior Court Judge H. Patrick Haggard alone to hear and decidethe case.

BY STEVE KARNOWSKI Associated Press

MINNEAPOLIS— Minnesota state Sen. John Hoffman, who was shot nine times by agunman posing as apolice ofﬁcer who authorities say went on to kill another lawmaker,isout of the hospital and is now recovering in a transitionalcareunit, his family said.

“John has been moved to arehabfacility,but still hasalong road to recovery ahead,” the family said in a statement Monday night.

of their homeinthe Minneapolis suburb of Champlin whosaid he was apolice of-

ﬁcer

The family released a photo showing asmiling Hoffman giving athumbsup while standing with a suitcase on rollers, ready to leave the hospital. Hoffmanand hiswife, Yvette, were awakened around2 a.m. on June14by aman pounding on the door

Yvette Hoffman told investigatorsthey opened the door,and they realizedthat the manwas not apolice ofﬁcer.Hethen said something like “this is arobbery.” The senator then lunged at the gunman and was shot nine times.YvetteHoffmanwas hit eight times

ASSOCIATEDPRESS PHOTO By KIM CHANDLER

Vivian Sterling,center,and William Peoples holds aphoto of their son, Jabari Peoples, as attorneyBen Crump, farleft, speaks to reporters in Homewood, Ala., on Tuesday

Macron begins three-day state visit to U.K.

Says France, Britain will ‘save Europe’

BY JILL LAWLESS Associated Press

LONDON French Presi-

dent Emmanuel Macron on Tuesday urged Britain to stick close to its neighbors despite its exit from the European Union, saying France and the U.K. will “save Europe” by standing for democracy law and international order in a dangerous world.

On a state visit that mixed royal pageantry with tough political talks on Ukraine and migration, Macron said Europe must strengthen its economy and defenses and reduce its dependence “on both the U.S. and China.”

Macron’s three-day trip, at the invitation of King Charles III, is the ﬁrst state visit to the U.K by a European Union head of state since Brexit, and a symbol of the U.K. government’s desire to reset relations with the bloc after Britain acrimoniously left the EU in 2020.

Macron addressed members of both houses of Britain’s Parliament packed into the building’s ornate Royal Gallery

Britain’s King Charles III and France’s President Emmanuel Macron, right, travel in a State Landau on a drive to Windsor Castle in Windsor, England, on Tuesday.

Tuesday evening, with 160 guests including politicians, diplomats and celebrities such as Mick Jagger and Elton John.

As monarch, Charles is expected to be above politics, but he spoke about the support Britain and France give Ukraine “in defense of our shared values,” noted the challenge of “irregular migration across the English Channel” and said the two countries face “complex threats, emanating from multiple directions.

“The United Kingdom and France must once again show the world that our alliance can make all the difference,” Macron said, adding that “we will save Europe by our example and our solidarity.”

He said that even though Britain has left the EU, “the United Kingdom cannot stay on the sidelines. Because defense and security, competitiveness, democracy — the very core of our identity are connected across Europe as a continent.”

He said the two countries represent “a world order based on law, justice and respect for territorial integrity an order that is today being attacked on a daily basis.”

The French president and

his wife, Brigitte Macron, were treated to the full force of British ceremonial charm, a far cry from the chilly relations of 2022, when then-Foreign Secretary Liz Truss said that the “jury is out” on whether Macron was a friend or a foe.

The Macrons were greeted at London’s RAF Northolt air base by Prince William and his wife Catherine — wearing a dress by French design house Christian Dior — before being met by King Charles and Queen Camilla in Windsor, west of London. They were driven to the almost 1,000-year-old royal residence of Windsor Castle in horse-drawn carriages, through streets bedecked

Houthi rebels attack another ship in Red Sea

Three killed in bombing

BY JON GAMBRELL

Associated Press

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates

An attack by Yemen’s Houthi rebels on a Liberian-flagged cargo ship in the Red Sea killed three mariners and wounded two others, a European Union naval force said Tuesday, highlighting the danger of the group’s renewed campaign targeting a key maritime route for international trade.

The attack on the Greekowned Eternity C follows the Iranian-backed Houthis attacking another vessel on Sunday in the Red Sea that they said subsequently sank. The assaults are the ﬁrst Houthi attacks on shipping since late 2024 on the waterway that had begun to see more ships pass through in recent weeks.

“We haven’t seen any real attacks on merchant shipping since December last year,” said Wolf-Christian Paes, a senior fellow at the International Institute for Strategic Studies. “And they’re back with a bang.”

The bulk carrier had been

heading north toward the Suez Canal when it came under ﬁre by men in small boats and by bomb-carrying drones Monday night. The security guards on board ﬁred their weapons. The EU Operation Aspides and the private security firm Ambrey both reported those details.

While the Houthis haven’t claimed the attack they can take days to claim one — Yemen’s exiled government and the EU force blamed the rebels, as did the U.S Embassy in Yemen

“The Houthis are once again showing blatant disregard for human life, undermining freedom of navigation in the Red Sea,” said the embassy, which has operated out of Saudi Arabia for nearly a decade due to Yemen ‘s wider war “The intentional murder of innocent mariners shows us all the Houthis’ true colors and will only further the Houthis’ isolation.”

The EU force offered the casualty information, saying one of the wounded crew lost his leg. The crew remains stuck on board the vessel, which is now drifting in the Red Sea.

The Houthis on Sunday attacked the Liberian-ﬂagged,

Greek-owned bulk carrier Magic Seas with drones, missiles, rocket-propelled grenades and small arms ﬁre, forcing its crew of 22 to abandon the vessel loaded with fertilizer and steel billets for Turkey

On Tuesday night, the Houthis released a propaganda video that included their forces hailing the vessel in English over VHF radio, threatening it. The footage included masked Houthi gunmen later boarding the empty vessel.

The gunmen stormed the ship’s bridge They then appeared in drone footage chanting the Houthis’ slogan: “God is the greatest; death to America; death to Israel; curse the Jews; victory to Islam.” Finally, explosives likely planted on the vessel exploded, sinking it. The Houthis released a similar video after their attack on the tanker Sounion in 2024.

The attack on the Magic Seas drew international criticism.

“It is the ﬁrst such attack against a commercial vessel in 2025, a serious escalation endangering maritime security in a vital waterway for the region and the world,” the EU warned.

in Union Jacks and French tricolor ﬂags.

The king and queen hosted a banquet for the Macrons at Windsor Castle on

“As friends and as allies, we face them together,” Charles said. Politics will take center stage on Wednesday, when Macron sits down for talks with U.K. Prime Minister Keir Starmer on migration, defense and investment including a 12.5% stake by French energy ﬁrm EDF in a new nuclear power plant

planned for eastern England. At a meeting on Wednesday and a U.K.-France summit on Thursday Macron and Starmer will discuss ways to stop migrants from crossing the English Channel in small boats and try to advance plans for a postceaseﬁre security force for Ukraine, despite apparent U.S. indifference to the idea and Russia’s refusal to halt the onslaught on its neighbor Britain receives fewer asylum-seekers than Mediterranean European countries, but thousands of migrants each year use northern France as a launching point to reach the U.K., either by stowing away in trucks or — after a clampdown on that route in small boats across one of the world’s busiest shipping lanes.

curb

ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO By ANDREW MATTHEWS

China extends visa-free entry

Efforts to increase country’s tourism

BY FU TING Associated Press

WASHINGTON Foreign tourists are trickling back to China after the country loosened its visa policy to unprecedented levels. Citizens from 74 countries can now enter China for up to 30 days without a visa, a big jump from previous regulations.

The government has been steadily expanding visa-free entry in a bid to boost tourism, the economy and its soft power More than 20 million foreign visitors entered without a visa in 2024 — almost one-third of the total and more than double from the previous year according to the National Immigration Administration.

“This really helps people to travel because it is such a hassle to apply for a visa and go through the process,” Georgi Shavadze, a Georgian living in Austria, said on a recent visit to the Temple of Heaven in Beijing

While most tourist sites are still packed with far more domestic tourists than foreigners, travel companies and tour guides are now bracing for a bigger inﬂux in anticipation of summer holiday goers coming to China.

ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO By ANDy WONG Tourists take a selfie at the Temple of Heaven in Beijing, China. Citizens from 74 countries can now enter the country for up to 30 days without a visa, a big jump from previous regulations.

“I’m practically overwhelmed with tours and struggling to keep up” says Gao Jun, a veteran Englishspeaking tour guide with over 20 years of experience. To meet growing demand, he launched a new business to train anyone interested in becoming an English-speaking tour guide. “I just can’t handle them all on my own” he said.

After lifting tough COVID-19 restrictions, China reopened its borders to tourists in early 2023, but only 13.8 million people visited in that year, less than half the 31.9 million in 2019, the last year before the pandemic. In December 2023, China announced visa-free entry for citizens of France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Spain and Malaysia. Almost all of Europe has been added since then. Travelers from five Latin American countries and Uzbekistan became eligible last month followed by four in the Middle East. The total will grow to 75 on July 16 with the addition of Azerbaijan. About two-thirds of the

countries have been granted visa-free entry on a one-year trial basis.

For Norwegian traveler Øystein Sporsheim, this means his family would no longer need to make two round-trip visits to the Chinese embassy in Oslo to apply for a tourist visa, a time-consuming and costly process with two children in tow “They don’t very often open, so it was much harder” he said.

“The new visa policies are 100% beneﬁcial to us,” said Jenny Zhao a managing director of WildChina, which specializes in boutique and luxury routes for international travelers. She said business is up 50% compared with before the pandemic.

While the U.S. remains their largest source market, accounting for around 30% of their current business, European travelers now make up 15–20% of their clients, a sharp increase from less than 5% before 2019, according to Zhao. “We’re quite optimistic” Zhao said, “we hope these beneﬁts will continue.”

Trump pledges that he won’t punt on tariffs again

BY STEPHANIE LAI Bloomberg News (TNS)

WASHINGTON President Donald Trump said he would not offer any extensions for the implementation of increased tariffs on many goods imported into the U.S., pledging that new rates would hit at the beginning of August.

“TARIFFS WILL START BEING PAID ON AUGUST 1, 2025. There has been no change to this date, and there will be no change,” Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform on Tuesday “In other words, all money will be due and payable starting AUGUST 1, 2025 — No extensions will be granted.”

Trump began notifying trading partners of the new rates on Monday ahead of

what was initially a deadline this week for countries to wrap up trade negotiations with his administration.

But the new letters, unilaterally setting duties on countries that had failed to reach deals, came alongside an executive order delaying the tariff date for three weeks, effectively giving trading partners an extension for talks.

Trump also said Monday night that his Aug. 1 deadline was “not 100% firm” when speaking with reporters, indicating then that he could be swayed by offers of additional concessions.

That caveat — paired with Trump signaling that he was still negotiating additional deals — fueled skepticism among some in Washington and on Wall

Street that the president would follow through on his latest tariff threats.

On Tuesday, Trump adopted a more strident tone as he addressed reporters during a Cabinet meeting, saying that despite previously indicating he was close to a trade deal with India, he still planned to punish the country for its participation in the BRICS forum. Trump said the group of developing countries was “set up to hurt us.”

“I can play that game too so anybody that’s in BRICS is getting a 10%” tariff addition, Trump said.

Trump also said that he was close to sending the European Union a letter unilaterally setting tariff rates, despite reported progress in trade talks with the bloc.

BY EVELYNE MUSAMBI

Associated Press

NAIROBI, Kenya

— The death toll from Kenya’s anti-government protests on Monday has surged to 31, marking the highest single-day toll since the demonstrations began earlier this year, the state-funded human rights commission said Tuesday It said another 107 people were injured and more than 500 were arrested amid widespread destruction of property, including supermarkets. The arrest figure largely tracked with the one issued by police. The death toll did not say whether any security forces were included. For weeks, youth and other citizens have taken to the streets to protest against police brutality and poor governance and to demand President William Ruto’s resignation over alleged corruption and the rising cost of living. Ruto has not commented on Monday’s protest or its toll. The U.N. high commissioner for human rights, Volker

Türk, on Tuesday urged that the grievances leading to the protests are addressed. Spokesperson Ravina Shamdasani said he “renews his call for calm and restraint, and full respect for the freedoms of expression, association and peaceful assembly.”

Monday’s demonstrations, which were met with police roadblocks preventing access to downtown Nairobi, were planned to coincide with the 35th anniversary of the historic Saba Saba prodemocracy protests. Saba Saba is Swahili for Seven Seven.

July 7 holds deep signiﬁcance in Kenya, marking the first major pro-democracy protests in 1990 that called on then-President Daniel arap Moi — Ruto’s political mentor to transition from a one-party state to a multiparty democracy That demand was realized during the 1992 general elections.

This year’s wave of protests was sparked by a blogger’s death in police custody last month. Police shot a civilian at close range during a protest on June 17. On June 25, thousands of youths

turned out across the country

A total of 50 people have been killed in the protests over the last two weeks.

The Kenya National Cohesion and Integration Commission, a government body whose commissioners are appointed by the president, on Tuesday urged politicians not to fuel ethnic tensions and criticized police for using excessive force towards protesters.

Interior Minister Kipchumba Murkomen last week told police to “shoot on sight” anyone who approaches police stations during protests after several were burned.

The public anger has built on Ruto’s efforts to make Kenyans pay more to help pay off massive government debt. Last year, thousands of young people protesting rising taxes stormed parliament, leading Ruto to promise to cut government spending.

With some people taking advantage of the chaos, some businesses have said they have lost large amounts of goods.

Residents still shaken a day after L.A. park sweep

Designed to sow fear in immigrants, local leaders say

BY JAIMIE DING and CHRISTOPHER WEBER Associated Press

LOSANGELES Hector Velasquez was playing cards with friends at MacArthur Park in Los Angeles early Monday when a young man with a megaphone walked through announcing federal agents were on their way

Another man drove past in a car, shouting out the window, “Immigration is coming!”

The people in Velasquez’s group who did not have legal status scattered. Others with U.S. citizenship like Velasquez — lingered to see what would happen.

Two hours later, federal authorities and National Guard troops arrived with guns and horses.

By then, the park that is normally bustling with vendors was mostly empty Activists had also spread word about the raid on social media.

After sweeping through the park, the convoy that included armored vehicles left as suddenly as it had arrived, Velasquez said.

He described the scene Tuesday as he once again sat in the park playing cards — this time only with those who were citizens.

“I thought this was like a war,” said Velasquez, who was reminded of his native country of El Salvador “Only in war do you see the tanks.”

The Department of Homeland Security wouldn’t say what the purpose of the operation was, why it ended abruptly, or whether any-

MacArthur Park in Los Angeles is in an area home to many

other immigrant populations.

one had been arrested. The agency said in an email that it would not comment on “ongoing enforcement operations.”

But local officials said it seemed designed to sow fear Mayor Karen Bass announced at a Tuesday afternoon news conference that Los Angeles was joining a lawsuit to challenge what they say are unlawful tactics used by the Trump administration in immigration enforcement.

“They are essentially pressing the envelope to see how far the American public will tolerate the federal seizure of power,” Bass said.

“This random thing is just a way of creating a sense of terror and fear in our community.”

Immigrants across the Los Angeles area have been on edge for weeks since the Trump administration stepped up arrests at car washes, Home Depot parking lots, immigration courts and a range of businesses.

Rumors of an upcoming raid at MacArthur Park had been swirling. The park is in an area home to many Mexican, Central American and other immigrant populations that has been dubbed by local ofﬁcials as the “Ellis Island of the West Coast.”

Just two miles west of downtown, MacArthur Park has a lake ringed by palm trees, an amphitheater that hosts summer concerts and sports fields where immigrant families line up to play soccer in the evenings and on weekends. A thoroughfare on the east side is often crammed with food stands selling tacos and other delicacies, along with vendors speaking multiple languages and hawking T-shirts, toys, knickknacks and household items. The area had already been quieter than usual due to the city putting up fencing at the start of the year after a shooting, preventing many vendors from selling there.

Fernando Rodriguez

Chinese national charged in stealing COVID-19 research

He’s accused of hacking university computer systems

By The Associated Press

HOUSTON A Chinese national has been arrested on suspicion of hacking into several U.S. universities’ computer systems to steal COVID-19-related research, authorities announced on Tuesday Xu Zewei is charged in a nine-count indictment in the Southern District of Texas for his alleged involvement in computer intrusions between February 2020 and June 2021. Another Chinese national, Zhang Yu was also charged in the indictment.

Xu was arrested on Thursday in Italy and is awaiting extradition to the U.S. Authorities said Zhang remains at large.

Xu and others are accused

of targeting and hacking several U.S.-based universities, immunologists, and virologists conducting research into COVID-19 vaccines, treatment and testing, according to court documents.

“The hacking of these American universities is not just a violation of intellectual property rights It’s an attack on American scientiﬁc innovation,” Nicholas J. Ganjei, the Houstonbased U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Texas, said at a news conference.

Authorities declined to name the universities that had been targeted but said two were located in the Southern District of Texas.

Authorities allege that officers of China’s Ministry of State Security, or MSS, directed Xu and others to conduct the hacking.

A spokesman for the Chinese Embassy in Washington did not immediately

reply to an email seeking comment.

Authorities allege Xu and Zhang were part of a group known as HAFNIUM, that targeted over 60,000 U.S. entities, successfully victimizing more than 12,700 in order to steal sensitive information. One of those targeted was a law ﬁrm with offices worldwide, including in Washington, D.C.

The charges against Xu include wire fraud, obtaining information by unauthorized access to protected computers and aggravated identity theft. The wire fraud charges carry sentences of up to 20 years in prison.

Tuesday’s announcement comes after the Justice Department earlier this month said two Chinese nationals had been charged with spying inside the United States on behalf of Beijing, including by taking photographs of a naval base.

the Westlake neighborhood warning of immigration enforcement happening that day

“You look Latino, they take you. Even if you show papers, they say they’re fake,” he said. “What they’re doing is evil.”

He was open again Tuesday but said nearby businesses including Peruvian and Thai restaurants have been quiet in the weeks since the federal crackdown began.

“There’s no people anymore,” he said, gesturing to the street he said would usually packed with pedestrians on a sunny morning.

Response Network had volunteers monitor the area starting at 6 a.m. Monday

The network sends out observers who communicate via the messaging app Signal. Cabrera said the group does not post content to the public at large or run its own website.

He said Tuesday that the streets surrounding the park have been unusually empty in recent weeks as many vendors have not been out. He wasn’t sure if they left the area because of concerns about stepped-up immigration raids.

closed down his variety store near the park on Monday after seeing flyers in

Jorge-Mario Cabrera, a spokesperson for the Coalition of Humane Immigrant Rights in Los Angeles, said there had been rumors that there could be an enforcement action around MacArthur Park, and the LA Rapid

“This was a reality show to intimidate Los Angeles,” Cabrera said. “This was an attempt to show the administration’s military might, cause as much chaos as possible, remind Angelenos that the president is in charge and that he can cause terror at any moment’s notice.”

ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO By DAMIAN DOVARGANES

Mexican, Central American and

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Police Jury opposes reservoirs

Amite River flood control master plan calls for dams

BY JAMES MINTON Contributing writer

Facing an overflow crowd that demanded action, the East Feliciana Parish Police Jury voted Monday to oppose reservoirs in an Amite River ﬂood control master plan and booted its representative on a regional panel that proposed it.

Jurors voted 7-1 to replace Ed Parker, of Jackson, who represents

Teen killed in shooting, another injured

CRIME BLOTTER staff reports

A recent high school graduate was killed in a Monday evening shooting in Baker that left another seriously injured. Terrence Freeman, 18, was identified as the teen killed. Another victim was transported to a hospital and is being treated for serious injuries, according to the Baker Police Department.

The shooting happened around 6:05 p.m. Monday on Seville Avenue, near Groom Road according to Baker Police Chief Carl Dunn. Both Baker police and the East Baton Rouge Parish Sheriff’s Department were called to the scene. Dunn said police have one suspect in custody He said the shooting was the result of “some type of dispute,” but authorities have not released additional details.

Angola official accused of smuggling cellphones

Longtime officer resigns after arrest

BY AIDAN McCAHILL Staff writer

A longtime Louisiana Department of Corrections officer resigned Sunday after being arrested for allegedly smuggling contraband into Angola State Penitentiary Judy Robertson McDowell, a corrections lieutenant with 12 years of service, was taken into custody on July 6 for allegedly smuggling cellphones and SIM cards into the prison, according to the West Feliciana Sheriff’s Office. The Department of Corrections confirmed that McDowell resigned the same day she was arrested Sheriff Brian Spillman stated that McDowell was booked on a count of introducing contraband into a state penal institution, a felony that carries a potential sentence of up to 10 years in prison under Louisiana law. On Monday, McDowell posted a $15,000 bond and was released from custody Officials have not yet released additional details and the investigation is ongoing.

jury President Louis Kent on the Amite River Basin Drainage and Water Conservation Commission.

Kent abstained from the vote to replace Parker, while Juror Richard Oliveaux, of Port Hudson, voted against the resolution.

Residents who were opposed to two master plan proposals for reservoirs straddling East Feliciana and St. Helena parishes packed the jury’s small meeting room and what

EAST FELICIANA

appeared to be an equal number waited outside the building. Others left when they found they could not get inside

The two proposals in the master plan drawing ﬁre are “Upper Amite Detention (Major) Site 2” and another labeled “Upper Amite Detention and Retention (Major) Site 3.”

Site 2 would include a 3-mile-long, 90-foot-high dam west of Darlington to intercept rainfall runoff from approximately 700 square miles of upstream watershed.

Site 3 would require a 3.25-milelong, 112-foot-high dam near La. 432 in East Feliciana to hold ﬂood discharges up to the 100-year ﬂood stage before engaging a spillway A “wet pool” would extend into Amite County, Mississippi. But Tuesday before the Amite commission, some residents who are opposed to a large permanent

reservoir offered a potential compromise from what the river panel had envisioned by creating areas that could temporarily detain ﬂoodwater over a smaller footprint — a few hundred to a few thousand acres from willing landowners. “I think the citizens of East Feliciana will work with you if you

NEW PERSPECTIVE

A pedestrian walks by a mural painted on a building on Brice Street recently in the Garden District.

Baton

Rouge

He’s sentenced to 35 years in shooting of National Guardsman

BY MATT BRUCE Staff writer

One of the men involved in a drug deal that turned into a deadly shooting pleaded guilty Monday inside a Baton Rouge courtroom and was sentenced to 35 years in prison. District Judge Tarvald Smith sentenced Devin Harris after he pleaded guilty to manslaughter and conspiracy to commit armed

man pleads guilty in 2018 killing

robbery, according to 19th Judicial District Court records. Harris, 25, and his brother, Kendrick D’Mitirious Wesley, 26, were both indicted on charges of second-degree murder and armed robbery in the Feb. 26, 2018, killing of Charles Bowah. They were set to be tried on the charges this week and faced the possibility of mandatory life sentences if they were convicted of murder Harris instead opted to plead guilty to reduced charges. Court records show Smith sentenced Harris to 15 years for manslaughter and to 35 years in prison without the possibility of parole for the conspiracy to commit armed

robbery charge. Harris will serve both sentences simultaneously Harris and Wesley told police they arranged to meet with Bowah to buy drugs from him in the 800 block of Peach Street and said he was shot during the meeting, according to arrest afﬁdavits. An anonymous tipster told detectives that Harris shot and killed the victim. Harris was 17 at the time. Bowah, a 20-year-old Baton Rouge man, was a medical assistant in training who joined the Army National Guard shortly after he graduated high school in 2016. Police said after he was shot, Bowah ran one block east

from Peach Street to Eddie Robinson Drive, where he collapsed and died.

A witness told ofﬁcers the two men involved in the shooting ﬂed the scene in a black car that investigators later determined was Bowah’s Nissan Altima. Detectives tracked Harris and Wesley to their Mid City apartment and questioned them there. While they admitted to being at the scene during the shooting, neither admitted to pulling the trigger, according to arrest reports. Harris told investigators he got in Bowah’s car afterward

See GUILTY, page 2B

STAFF PHOTO By JAVIER GALLEGOS

ä See JURY, page 2B ä See BLOTTER, page 2B

Massey pleads not guilty to domestic abuse

Former jail escapee was on the run for 6 weeks

BY MARCO CARTOLANO Staff writer

Antoine Massey, one of the 10 Orleans Parish jail inmates who escaped in May and the most recent to be recaptured, was arraigned in court Tuesday on domestic abuse and vehicle theft charges.

He pleaded not guilty to charges of domestic abuse battery involving strangulation and motor vehicle theft between $5,000 to $25,000, records show.

Massey’s lawyer, Leo Cail-

lier III said Massey intends to prove his innocence on domestic violence matters

“We feel confident that my client will be found not guilty of all domestic charges and will prove to the public that he should not have been in custody in the ﬁrst place,” Caillier said. Massey, 33, appeared Tuesday via Zoom from Louisiana State Penitentiary at Angola, Caillier said. After six weeks on the lam, Massey was arrested at a home in the 9400 block of Stroelitz Street in Hollygrove on June 27 after Orleans Parish Sheriff Susan Hutson received an anonymous tip.

Massey was previously ordered held without bail on charges of aggravated escape and simple/aggravated

Police intentionally crashed van in chase

Pursuit started in BR, closed I-10 for hours

BY KRISTIN ASKELSON Staff writer

A crash that closed Interstate 10 eastbound Monday afternoon between Lafayette and Baton Rouge was intentionally caused by a state trooper, ofﬁcials said A driver was being pursued after failing to pull over for a trafﬁc stop by the Baton Rouge Police Department, according to a statement from Louisiana State Police.

Troopers were notiﬁed at approximately 12:15 p.m. Monday of a vehicle pursuit involving a stolen 2017 Chevrolet Express van and ofﬁcers from the BRPD, according to the statement. Troopers in the area responded to assist with the ongoing pursuit, and one trooper became the lead unit.

“Based on prior crashes that occurred and the dangerous driving behavior of the suspect, the trooper determined that the ﬂeeing vehicle posed an imminent threat of death or serious bodily injury to the public and pursuing officers,”

GUILTY

Continued from page 1B

Continued from page 1B and drove it to his apartment along 17th Street. He said he searched the vehicle and took a small package of marijuana, a pair of Beats headphones and a U.S. military-issued bag from inside the car Investigators searched Harris and Wesley’s apartment and found the headphones and package of marijuana inside the residence,

JURY

Continued from page 1B

that our families have owned since the 16- or 1700s in some places,” Felixville resident Jeffrey Devall told the commission on Tuesday At that meeting, East Feliciana Police Juror Chrissie O’Quin appeared and presented the jury’s resolution opposing the plan’s permanent reservoirs idea accompanied with a contingent of East Feliciana and St. Helena residents that included Devall.

John Clark, president of the Amite basin commission, told residents and O’Quin that the panel would take up consideration of the police jury’s resolution next month. He also backed away somewhat from permanent reservoir proposals that have stirred opposition, suggesting they were mentioned in the plan as part of a previous legislative mandate to consider stormwater retention ideas in the upper Amite River Basin. Clark left open the

escape stemming from the jailbreak. Caillier said state prosecutors requested he also be held without bail on the abuse and theft charges.

The same woman was accused of helping Massey after the jailbreak and was booked into the Jefferson Parish Correctional Center in May

than on the 10 inmates who escaped through “a hole in the wall.”

State Police said. “To mitigate this threat, the trooper utilized a pursuit termination technique, making intentional contact with the van as it traveled eastbound on Interstate 10 The van lost control and began to rotate.”

The driver, a 41-year-old male, was ejected from the vehicle and was initially unresponsive, authorities said. He was taken to a hospital with serious injuries, and a female passenger in the vehicle suffered minor injuries.

No law enforcement ofﬁcers were injured during the incident, police said

The driver of the stolen Chevrolet will be charged with aggravated flight from an officer, State Police said, and Baton Rouge police are expected to bring charges related to the initial reason for the traffic stop and pursuit. The investigation remains active. Anyone with information, pictures or video is urged to share that information with detectives. Residents can anonymously report information through the Louisiana State Police online reporting system by visiting File a Report, or calling the State Police Fusion Center Hotline at (800) 434-8007.

according to reports. They did not recover the military bag.

Court records show Harris was already serving a 10-year prison sentence before he stepped in the courtroom Monday In May 2023, he pleaded guilty to charges tied to a December 2017 armed robbery

Case records did not show when Wesley’s next court date is.

Email Matt Bruce at matt. bruce@theadvocate com.

possibility for other ideas.

“So, it ain’t over until it’s over, so maybe we can ﬁnd some middle ground,” he said moments after Devall made his offer on Tuesday People opposed to the reservoirs have said, as Devall did, that they will lose property that has been in their families for generations. Others have said they don’t think the reservoirs will do much to stop ﬂooding.

“I’m losing land for a ﬁshing hole, not to save people from ﬂooding,” Roy Schmidt told police jurors on Monday. These kinds of concerns were aired at the Police Jury and commission meetings Monday and Tuesday and a public input session for the Amite commission that drew more than 300 people to a Bluff Creek church on June 30.

The potential for a middle path offered by some residents on Tuesday didn’t ease pressure on Parker, the Amite basin commissioner in hot water for the master plan’s reservoir proposals, though he remains on the panel while the jury seeks

A bail hearing and pretrial conference were scheduled Aug. 4. Caillier said Massey is focused on proving his innocence on the domestic violence and theft charges.

Massey has a criminal record dating back to 2009 that includes violent felony convictions.

The domestic violence charge is related to what police described as a harrowing ﬁght in November 2024, when Massey’s girlfriend was reportedly left with a bruised and bloodied face, raspy voice, eyes swollen shut and trouble swallowing.

The Times-Picayune does not identify alleged victims of domestic violence.

Massey also was wanted in St. Tammany Parish for counts of rape and kidnapping.

While on the run social media videos allegedly showed Massey pleading his innocence in the violence cases. Massey also claimed he was “let out” of jail.

Caillier said the jailbreak was a “breakdown in the system,” and that the focus should be on ﬂaws in the legal and prison system that led to the jailbreak rather

Massey was one of the last two inmates who remained at large before his June 27 arrest. He had ﬂed custody four times before his latest escape, including two times he cut off ankle monitors.

Derrick Groves, 28, is the final escapee who has not been recaptured. Groves has been convicted of two counts of second-degree murder and two counts of attempted second-degree murder and he has pleaded guilty to two counts of manslaughter in separate cases.

Email Marco Cartolano at marco.cartolano@ theadvocate.com.

Raising Cane’s founder donates $1 million to Texas flood relief

Todd Graves pledges support for Red Cross

BY CLAIRE GRUNEWALD Staff writer

Todd Graves, the owner and founder of Raising

Cane’s, has donated $1 million to the American Red Cross to provide relief to the victims of the flash ﬂoods in Texas Hill Country that have killed at least 100 people.

Graves announced the donation Tuesday and said he is grateful for the efforts of first responders and organizations like the American Red Cross for providing critical support.

new applicants. A day earlier, before the Police Jury, Parker had told jurors and the audience he was against including reservoirs in the master plan. Parker said he was injured in a Joor Road automobile accident while on the way to the Amite basin meeting at which the panel voted to accept the master plan.

“I was going to oppose it. I have never been for the reservoirs since jump street,” he said.

Parker said the idea of including upper basin reservoirs in flood control plans resurfaced after state Sen. Valerie Hodges, R-Watson, sponsored a 2024 Senate concurrent resolution asking the state Department of Transportation and Development to evaluate areas of the upper basin.

The resolution asked DOTD to look at areas “with the potential capacity to detain or retain stormwater runoff through a system of structures.”

Parker said he wants the commission to purchase abandoned gravel pits, in-

“Our hearts break as we witness the devastating impact of the ﬂooding in Kerrville and the surrounding communities. We’re deeply saddened by the lives impacted and the loved ones lost, and our hearts and prayers go out to everyone impacted,” Graves said in the news release

While Cane’s has its roots and corporate headquarters in Baton Rouge, the chicken chain has more than 200 restaurants in Texas. It also has a large support office in Plano, Texas, that employed nearly 500 team members as of 2024.

The Red Cross has activated in Texas with local partners to support several emergency shelters

cluding two near Denham Springs and Watson, for storing storm runoff because the land is not being used at this time.

O’Quin said a video of the Amite basin commission meeting has circulated on social media in which Clark, the commission chairman, stated he had talked with Parker and another absent member and both said they supported the master plan with permanent reservoirs.

Before the commission a day later O’Quin raised Clark’s comments with him directly Clark clariﬁed that he didn’t say Parker supported the reservoirs but the overall plan.

Parker, who attended the commission meeting, didn’t speak on Tuesday but had previously denied talking to Clark, a claim some East Feliciana jurors questioned.

In moving to oust Parker on Monday East Feliciana Juror Kristin Chasteen charged that he had “bald-face lied.”

Chasteen also mentioned Parker’s comments about his health and his lack of an engineering degree as reasons for

Shortly before Freeman was identiﬁed, JT Stroder, superintendent of the Baker school system, released a statement on Facebook indicating the two victims had recently graduated from a local high school.

“We are deeply saddened to learn that a shooting in our community has resulted in the loss of one of our recent graduates and life-threatening injuries to another,” he said. “Our thoughts and heartfelt condolences go out to the families and individuals affected by this senseless act of violence.”

Separate accidents claim two lives

Two separate single-vehicle accidents resulted in the deaths of two drivers Monday night in Livingston and Pointe Coupee parishes.

Fiery truck crash

Edward Mathis, 61, of Dickinson, Texas, was killed in a singlevehicle crash just before 6:45 p.m. Monday in Livingston Parish.

Mathis was driving eastbound in the right lane of Interstate 12, near mile marker 25, when he crashed for reasons still under investigation. The truck exited the roadway to the right, striking multiple trees and becoming completely engulfed in ﬂames, Louisiana State Police said. Mathis was pronounced dead on the scene. Due to the severity of the crash, it is unknown if Mathis was impaired or wearing his seat belt.

Overturned truck

Brenton Pickett, 39, of Livonia, was involved in a second accident a few hours later in Pointe Coupee Parish. Pickett had been driving a 2005 Chevrolet Silverado east on La 415 before crashing near Driftwood Drive, State Police said. For reasons still under investigation, the Silverado exited the right side of the roadway and overturned.

that provide food, relief supplies and other critical resources. The Red Cross also has two reuniﬁcation centers open now to help reconnect families and loved ones, according to its website. Flash floods in Texas along the Guadalupe River killed more than 100 people over the July Fourth weekend and left an unknown number of others still missing. Kerr County, the hardest-hit area, is home to Camp Mystic, an all-girls Christian summer camp, which said Monday it lost at least 27 campers and counselors. Email Claire Grunewald at claire.grunewald@ theadvocate.com.

replacing him, leading Juror Dexter Armstead to ask why so much “vitriol” was being directed at Parker

“Ed Parker does not represent anyone who would be affected by reservoirs on the east side of the parish,” said Bonnie Hurst. “Everything that we own that was passed down by generations will be taken from us.”

Kent will accept “letters of interest” through July 15 from people interested in serving as his designated representative on the basin commission, but has said the ﬁnal decision will be his.

David J. Mitchell contributed to this story

Pickett, who was unrestrained, was ejected from the vehicle. He was transported to a hospital, where he succumbed to injuries sustained in the crash. A standard toxicology sample was taken and submitted for analysis. Both crashes remain under investigation.

ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO By JULIO CORTEZ

People climb over debris on a bridge atop the Guadalupe River after a flash flood swept through the area on Saturday in Ingram, Texas.

b1Bank reaches deal for $79.9M acquisition

b1Bank said it has reached a $79.9 million deal to acquire north Louisiana-based Progressive Bank.

B1Bank will issue more than 3 million shares of stock to Progressive shareholders, which will give them a 9.3% stake in the business. At the end of Tuesday, b1Bank stock closed at $26.07 a share.

The deal, which is set to close in early 2026, has received unanimous approval from the board of directors for both banks. It still needs approval from regulators and Progressive shareholders. Progressive Bank was founded 50 years ago in Winnsboro The bank has nine branches in Winnsboro, Monroe, West Monroe, Bossier City and Shreveport. Progressive Bank had $680.7 million in deposits as of June 2024, according to the fdic.gov. Baton Rouge based b1Bank had nearly $5.6 billion in total deposits.

B1Bank is the largest Louisiana-based bank, in terms of total deposits statewide Ofﬁcials said the deal will expand the bank’s presence in north Louisiana

“It deepens our Louisiana footprint, strengthens our deposit and liquidity proﬁles, and results in an economically strengthened shared franchise,” Jude Melville, b1Bank chair, president and CEO said in a statement.

Plans are for George Cummings III, chair and CEO of Progressive Bank, to join the b1 board of directors. David Hampton, the president of Progressive Bank, will become b1Bank’s vice chair of the north Louisiana market.

Wall Street ends mixed amid new tariff deadlines

A choppy day in the markets left major U.S. stock indexes little changed Tuesday as the Trump administration pressed its campaign to win more favorable trade deals with nations around the globe by leaning into tariffs on goods coming into the U.S.

The S&P 500 slipped 0.1% a day after posting its biggest loss since mid-June The benchmark index remains near its all-time high set last week.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average gave back 0.4% The Nasdaq composite eked out a gain of less than 0.1%, staying near its own record high.

The sluggish trading came as the market was coming off a broad sell-off following the Trump administration’s decision to impose new import tariffs set to go into effect next month on more than a dozen nations.

Trump Media files for ‘Crypto Blue Chip ETF’

President Donald Trump continues to expand his crypto-related offerings, this time with a planned exchange-traded fund tied to the prices of ﬁve popular cryptocurrencies

Trump Media & Technology Group, a Florida company that operates the Truth Social media platform, announced Tuesday it had ﬁled paperwork with the Securities and Exchange Commission for approval to launch the “Crypto Blue Chip ETF” later this year

The proposed ETF would have 70% of its holdings in bitcoin, the world’s most popular cryptocurrency, 15% in ethereum, the second-most popular and 8% in solana, a cryptocurrency popular in the meme coin community

The fund would hold 5% in the cryptocurrency developed by the company Ripple and 2% in the crypto created by the exchange Crypto.com, which will act as the ETF’s digital custodian.

Trump Media previously announced plans for a crypto ETF with just bitcoin and ethereum. It’s unclear if the company plans to move forward with that ETF offering. Trump Media did not immediately return a request for comment.

Cryptocurrency-based ETFs make it easier for investors to gain exposure to cryptocurrencies without having to buy them directly These funds have exploded in popularity since bitcoin ETFs began trading in U.S. markets last year

Amazon extends its Prime Day discounts

BY ANNE D’INNOCENZIO AP retail writer

NEWYORK Amazon is extending its annual Prime Day sales and offering new membership perks to Gen Z shoppers amid tariff-related price worries and possibly some consumer boredom with an event marking its 11th year

For the first time, Seattlebased Amazon is holding the now-misnamed Prime Day over four days. The e-commerce giant’s promised blitz of summer deals for Prime members started Tuesday morning and ends Friday Amazon launched Prime Day in 2015 and expanded it to two days in 2019. The company said this year’s longer version would have deals dropping as often as every 5 minutes during certain periods.

Prime members ages 18-24, who pay $7.49 per month instead of the $14.99 that older customers not eligible for discounted rates pay for free shipping and other beneﬁts, will receive 5% cash back on their purchases for a limited time.

Amazon executives declined to comment on the potential impact of tariffs on Prime Day deals. The event is taking place two and a half months after an online news report sparked speculation that Amazon planned to display added tariff costs next to product prices on its website.

White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt denounced the purported change as a “hostile and political act” before Amazon clariﬁed the idea had been floated for its low-cost Haul storefront but never approved.

Amazon’s past success with using Prime Day to drive sales and attract new members spurred other major retail chains to schedule competing sales in July

Best Buy, Target and Walmart are repeating the practice this year

Like Amazon, Walmart is adding two more days to its promotional period, which started Tuesday and runs through July 13. The nation’s largest retailer is making its summer deals available in stores as well as online for the ﬁrst time.

Amazon expanded Prime Day this year because shoppers “wanted more time to shop and save,” Amazon Prime Vice President Jamil Ghani recently told The Associated Press.

Analysts are unsure the extra days will translate into more purchases, given that renewed inflation worries and potential price increases from tariffs may make consumers less willing to spend. Amazon doesn’t disclose Prime Day sales ﬁgures but said last year that the event achieved record global sales.

Adobe Digital Insights predicts that the sales event will drive $23.8 billion in overall online spending from Tuesday to Friday, 28.4% more than the similar period last year In 2024 and 2023, online sales increased 11% and 6.1% during the comparable four days of July

Vivek Pandya, lead analyst at Adobe Digital Insights, noted that Amazon’s move to stretch the sales event to four days is a big opportunity to “really amplify and accelerate the spending velocity.”

Caila Schwartz, director of consumer insights and strategy at software company Salesforce, noted that July sales in general have lost some momentum in recent years. Amazon is not a Salesforce Commerce Cloud customer, so the business software company doesn’t have access to the online giant’s e-commerce sales and so is not privy to Prime

Day ﬁgures.

“What we saw last year was that (shoppers) bought and then they were done, ” Schwartz said. “We know that the consumer is still really cautious. So it’s likely we could see a similar pattern where they come out early, they’re ready to buy and then they take a step back.”

Amazon executives reported in May that the company and many of its third-party sellers tried to beat big import tax bills by stocking up on foreign goods before President Donald Trump’s tariffs took effect. And because of that move, a fair number of third-party sellers hadn’t changed their pricing at that time, Amazon said.

Adobe Digital Insights’ Pandya expects discounts to remain on par with last year and for other U.S. retail companies to mark 10% to 24% off the manufacturers’ suggested retail price between Tuesday and Friday

Salesforce’s Schwartz said she’s noticed retailers becoming more precise with their discounts, such as offering promotion codes that apply to selected products instead of their entire websites.

Amazon Prime and other July sales have historically helped jump-start back-to-school spending and encouraged advance planners to buy other seasonal merchandise earlier. Analysts said they expected U.S. consumers to make purchases this week out of fear that tariffs will make items more expensive later

Brett Rose, CEO of United National Consumer Supplies, a wholesale distributor of overstocked goods like toys and beauty products, thinks shoppers will go for items like beauty essentials.

“They’re going to buy more everyday items,” he said.

TSA eyes shoes-off policy end

BY MICHELLE CHAPMAN AP business writer

For the ﬁrst time in almost 20 years, travelers may no longer be required to take off their shoes during security screenings at U.S. airports.

The Transportation Security Administration is looking to abandon the additional security step that has for years bedeviled anyone passing through U.S airports, according to media reports. If implemented, it would put an end to a security screening mandate put in place almost 20 years ago, several years after “shoe bomber” Richard Reid’s failed attempt to take down a ﬂight from Paris to Miami in late 2001.

The travel newsletter Gate Access was first to report that the security screening change is coming. ABC News reported on an internal memo sent to TSA ofﬁcers last week that states the new policy allows travelers to keep their shoes on during standard screenings at many U.S. airports, beginning Sunday That would expand to all airports shortly

The plan is for the change to occur at all U.S. airports soon the memo said. Travelers have previously been able to skirt the extra security requirement if they participate in the TSA PreCheck program, which costs around $80 for ﬁve years. The program allows airline passengers to get through the screening process without removing shoes, belts or light jackets.

All passengers between the ages of 12 and 75 are required to remove their shoes, which are scanned along with carry-on luggage.

The TSA has not ofﬁcially conﬁrmed the reported security screening change yet.

“TSA and DHS are always exploring new and innovative ways to enhance passenger experience and our strong security posture,” a TSA spokesperson said in a statement Tuesday “Any potential updates to our security process will be issued through ofﬁcial channels.”

The TSA began in 2001 when President George W. Bush signed legislation for its creation two months after the 9/11 attacks The agency included federal airport screeners that replaced the private companies airlines had used to handle security Over the years, the TSA has continued to look for ways to enhance its security measures, including testing facial recognition technology and implementing Real ID requirements.

One of the most prominent friction points for travelers is the TSA at screening checkpoints. Trump’s Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy asked the public in an April social media post what would make travel more seamless.

Investors snap up growing share of U.S. homes

Traditional buyers struggle to afford one

BY ALEX VEIGA AP business writer

LOS ANGELES Real estate inves-

tors are snapping up a bigger share of U.S. homes on the market as rising prices and stubbornly high borrowing costs freeze out many

the share of homes bought by investors averaged 18.5%. All told, investors bought 265,000 homes in the January-March quar-

ter an increase of 1.2% from the same period a year earlier, the

said. Despite the modest annual increase, the rise in the share of investor home purchases is more a reﬂection of how much the housing market has slowed as traditional buyers face growing affordability constraints, according to BatchData. The U.S. housing market has been in a sales slump since early 2022, when mortgage rates began to climb from pandemic-era lows. Home sales fell last year to their lowest level in nearly 30 years. They’ve remained sluggish so far this year as many prospective homebuyers have been discouraged by elevated mortgage rates and home prices that have kept climbing, though more slowly As home sales have slowed, properties are taking longer to

sell. That’s led to a sharply higher inventory of homes on the market, beneﬁting investors and other home shoppers who can afford to bypass current mortgage rates by paying in cash or tapping home equity gains.

“As traditional buyers struggle with affordability, investors with cash and ﬁnancing advantages are stepping in to maintain transaction volume,” according to the report.

BatchData analyzes U.S. home sales records to determine which properties were purchased by investors. These could include vacation homes or rentals, but not a homebuyer’s primary residence. Investors bought 1.2 million homes in 2024, up from an average of 1.1 million homes a year going back to 2020, according to BatchData. Even so, investor-owned homes account for roughly 20% of the

nation’s 86 million single-family homes, the ﬁrm said. Of those, mom-and-pop investors, or those who own between 1 and 5 homes, account for 85% of all investor-owned residential properties, while those with between 6 and 10 properties account for another 5%.

Institutional investors that own 1,000 or more homes account for only about 2.2% of all investorowned homes, the ﬁrm said. And that number could get smaller, amid signs that large institutional investors are scaling back home purchases.

Out of a group of eight of the biggest companies that own and lease single-family houses, including Invitation Homes and American Homes 4 Rent, six sold more homes in the second quarter than they bought, according to data from Parcl Labs.

ASSOCIATED PRESS FILE PHOTO By DAVID ZALUBOWSKI

E-commerce giant

ends Friday.

theadvocate.com

Delaune,Barbara St.IsidoreCatholic Church,5657

acedarDr, Baton Rouge, LA 70816, or condolencesmay besubmitted online at dignitymemorial.com/ obituaries/baton-rouge-la/ bertha-freeman-12437390 and then click "add memory .Family and friends are invited to signthe online guestbook at www.gre enoaksfunerals.com

Thomas Road,Baton Rougeat11:00am Gaudet, Susan Elizabeth

Hazlip,Adele Young’sFuneral Home Chapel in Ferriday, LAat 10am.

Mabile,Marilyn WilbertFuneral Home in Port Allen at 11am

Melancon, Reginald

St.Joseph’sCatholicChurch,2130

RectorySt, Paulina, LAat 11am

Obituaries

Robert Paul Brunet, age 78,passed away peacefully on June 26, 2025. He shared 59 wonderful years of marriage with his wife, Lydia Tidwell Brunet. Together they raised two daughters, Kristi Brunet Shuckrow (Gordon) and Nicole Brunet Cureton (Robert). He wasa loving and proud Poppa to Alli Nicole Wesley (Damian), Robert Paul Cureton, and EmilyGrace Brunet Shuckrow. Services will be held on Friday, July 11, 2025, at Victory Harvest Church on North Flannery Road in Baton Rouge. Visitation willtake place from 2:00 to 4:00 p.m., followed bya memorial service and atime of fellowship at the church. Burial willtake place at alater date. In lieu of flowers, the family requests that donations be made to Caring to Love Ministries, aministry close to Robert's heart. https://secure.anedot.com /caring-to-love-ministries/ brunet For full obituary, please consult www.churchfunera lservices.com/obituaries/ robert-brunet

Bertha Mae Freeman, 86, of Baton Rouge, LA,died peacefully at her home on June 30, 2025. Bertha was aperson who knew no stranger and was Big Mamatoall. She was known for her warm sense of humor and her beautiful smile. Bertha was bornin Helena, AR on February 3, 1939, to Birdann Shaw and Lexie Prescott (both deceased). Visitation will be at Greenoaks Funeral Home, 9595 Florida Blvd, Baton Rouge, LA 70815,on Friday, July 11, 2025, from 5pm to 8pm. Visitation will resumeatSt. Paul Missionary Baptist Church, 1334 Napoleon St, Baton Rouge, LA 70802, on Saturday,July 12,2025, from 11:30am until the time of funeral services at 12:30pm. Burial will immediately follow at Greenoaks Memorial Park. Expressions of sympathy may be sent to 3172 Ser-

Anative of Baton Rouge, born on August4,1953, Susan passed awayonThursday, July 3, 2025, at Our Lady of the Lake hospital. Shewas 71, abeloved daughter, sisterand friend to many. Ahard-working accountingprofessional for the first partofher life shethen had to face the challenges and pitfalls that come with living with schizophrenia. "Rejoice with those who rejoice, andweepwith those who weep." (Romans 12:15). To walkinthe shoes of someone who liveswith schizophrenia is alesson forusall.She wasthe daughter of Louisand PearlGaudet, and the sisterofKevin James -all of whom precededher in death. Survivors include her two brothers, Louis Michael andJohn Stephen. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the National Alliance on Mental Illness (nami.org). VisitationwillbeatGreenoaks Funeral Home, 9595Florida Blvd., Baton Rouge,LA, on Friday, July 11, 2025, from 9am until the time of memorialservicesat 10am.

Hazlip,Adele Ziegler Eckert

Adele Eckert Hazlip,65, passedawayonSaturday, July 5, 2025, at home on Lake Concordia,LA. Adele was born on December30, 1959, in New Orleans, LA to Adele ZieglerEckertand later adopted by William Eckert.She was agraduate of GraceKingHighSchool inMetairie, LA,and receiveda B.A.inSpeech Pathology from Louisiana Tech University in 1982.

Adele was precededin death by herstepfather WilliamEckert.

Sheissurvived by her husband Emile Patout "Pat" Hazlip, her daughter Emily Elizabeth Hazlip of Vidalia,LA; her son James Stanton Hazlip and wife Olivia of Natchez, MS; granddaughterSylvia Corinne Hazlip and grandson JamesCallon Hazlip; motherAdeleZiegler Eckert; herbrotherStanley Eckert,wife Sherri;and her sister Leslie EckertRicalde, husband Paul Adele and Pat were introducedbycollege friends whileattending Mardi Gras festivities in New Orleans. Theyspent that evening watching parades from herfamily's

balcony on St.Peter Street in theFrench Quarter and havebeeninseparable since then, recently celebrating 42 years of marriage.

Adele spent part of her childhoodinYokohama, Japan when her father worked forLykes Brothers Steamship Company. After her marriagetoPat,she workedfor theConcordia Parish School Systemfor twenty years beforejoining him at theHazlip Companiesasa licensed insurance brokeruntil her retirement in 2020.

Adeleserved as amemberofthe Boardof Directorsfor Huntington School in Ferriday, LA,and she and Patloved rooting forEmily and Stan's HuntingtonHounds athletic teams, never missing a game, amatch or track meet. Adeleenjoyed playing competitiveUSTAtennis at Duncan Park in Natchez.Serving as captain,she ledher team to twoMississippi Championships. She was a skilledseamstress, artist, cook,and enjoyed traveling with Pattothe Caribbean.

Servicesfor Adele will be at 10:00 a.m. Wednesday, July 92025, at Young's Funeral Home Chapel in Ferriday, LA.with Reverend LesHegwoodofficiating. Burial willfollow at theNatchez City Cemetery.Visitation will take place prior to theservice at 9:00 a.m. Pallbearers will be Zack Brown, Magruder Hazlip Mike Rabb, Michael Rabb, Blake Ricalde,and David Ricalde

The family requests that memorialsbemadeto CathedralSchool, 701 NorthMartin Luther King Jr.Street, Natchez, MS 39120 or acharity of your choice

To leaveanonline condolence for thefamily please visit www.youngsfh.com.

Jordan, Genevieve LeBeau

Genevieve LeBeauJordan, alovingwife,mother, grandmother, great-grandmother passed away peacefully on 7/2/2025 at her home in BatonRouge. She was born on 2/14/1925 in HermitageinPointe Coupee parish and livedto be 100 yearsold.She was a member thegirls basketball team in highschool and lovedfootballand baseballespeciallyifitinvolved LSU. She also loved to fish butonlyfromthe pier at thecamp.She was amember of St Thomas More CatholicChurch since its beginning. Visitation willbeatSt. Thomas More Catholic Church at 10:00 am on Thursday,July 10 followedbya funeral mass at 11:00 am, with interment to follow at GreenoaksMemorial Park. Sheissurvivedbya daughter and son-in-law Dottie Jordan Liddell(Jim), twosons and daughters-in -law Paul Jordan (Judy), Malcolm Jordan (Beverly) seven grandchildrenJennifer LiddellBarfoot, Jessica LiddellCronin, LaraJordan, Bryan Jordan, Kevin

Jordan, Gail Jordan, and RandallJordan, and twelve great-grandchildren. She waspreceded in deathby her husband Janis Robert Jordan, parents Mr. and Mrs. JosephHazael LeBeau, threebrothers Francis LeBeau, Joseph LeBeau, and Elton LeBeau, and four sisters Mable Deville,Thelma Chustz, Vivian Baillio,and Gladys Dabadie andgreat grandson RileyGardiner. In lieu of flowers,donationsmay be madetothe charity of your choice

Dr. Erat S. Josephwas born on August 16, 1936, a husband,father, grandfather and professor emeritusfound his eternal peace on Saturday,July5,2025, with his children by his side.Hewas marriedfor nearly 60 years to his beloved wife, Mary,who passed away in 2019. He devoted much time taking care of Mary in her later years. He was born in Kerala, India. Joeattended Trivandrum Engineering College, and during his four-year stintthere, he won theChess championshipevery single year. After getting his Masters in CivilEngineering, he emigrated to theUSin1967 to pursue adoctorate at the University of Colorado, Boulder.With aPhD in hand,Joe moved to Pennsylvania, and he was acollege professor at Keystone College,Lafayette College in Eastonand University of Pittsburgh. He won an award for thebestarticle of theyear in amathjournal for introducing anew tool to solve amathproblem. Subsequently,he moved to Southern University in BatonRouge and served as theChief of Civil Engineering department for many years. He brought many research grantfundstothe University. After retirement, he obtainedtwo patents relatedtoWind and Wave Energy and foundeda company in this regard. Joeissurvivedbyhis son, Dr. BobbyJoseph (Dr. Jasmine Joseph); daughter, Dr. Bina Mampilly (Dr GeorgeMampilly); grandchildren, Dr. Michelle Joseph, Anju Bottcher (Jake), and Joey Mampilly; siblings, Tomy Zachariah (Celine), PhilipZachariah, CicilyPerumpanani, and Bridget Joseph(Abraham); and ahost of other family members. He is preceded in death by brother, Kurien;and sisters,Mercy and Sally. Visitation will be at St.Mark Catholic Church, 42024 Hwy 621, Gonzales, LA,onFriday, July 11, 2025, from 9am until Mass of ChristianBurial at 11am. Burialwillimmediately follow at Greenoaks Memorial Park in Baton Rouge. We appreciate the gracious care and services provided by theHospice of Baton Rouge,Mr. and Mrs. Nikolay and NelliBoyadzhiev, as wellasthe help,comfort and prayers of Rev. Fr.Rubin Reynolds and of allour friends and family.Inlieuofflowers please considera donation

to TheHospice of Baton Rouge or MD Anderson CancerCenterinHouston TX. Familyand friends are invited to sign theonline guestbook at www.greeno aksfunerals.com

Keller, Richard Tyrone'Ty'

Richard Tyrone ("Ty") Keller,ofBaton Rouge, Louisiana, passed away Thursday, July 3rd,2025. He was85yearsold. He is survivedbya wife,Jennifer Keller;a son, Jason Keller; adaughter-in-law, Tama Keller;a grandson, Christian Keller;a stepson, Brandon Malonson; astepgrandson JaxonMalonson; threesisters: CherieHann, Bodhi Avinasha, and Janet Litster;threenephews: JamesBirkenshaw,Peter Litster,and John Litster; members of the CoffeeCall Crew;his Life Drawing group; a20-year-old Toyota Yaris, and asmall zoo. Tabernacle Chorist. Karmann Ghia Enthusiast. Hawaiian Exchange Student.NYC Bohemian Dumpster Diver. Sardonic Wit. Tango Dancer. Sketch(y) Artist/Painter/ Sculptor/Woodworker/Musician.Crossword Puzzlist (the real hard one). 1st Place,Fredrick P. Gruenberg Award Winner.Excommunicate. Sushi Buffet Enthusiast. Modern-Day Renaissance Man. Cheap Bourbon &DietCoke Connoisseur."Pawpaw." Theseare only some of the nameshe'sbeen called. In lieu of funeral services, there will be acelebration of life wherefriends and familywill come together to no doubt come up with others (date/time/place TBD).

Carl Wesley Lott, Sr passedawayonJuly1, 2025 in WhiteCastleLa.,at theage of 72. Visitation will be held at St.Johnthe BaptistinDorseyville, La on Thursday,July10that 9:00 am followed by Fu‐neralService at 10:00 am Intermentwilltakeplace at Port Hudson National Cemetery at 20978 Port Hickey Rd Zachery, La 70791. Demby& SonFu‐neralHome, 900 Magnolia St., Donaldsonville,La in charge of arrangements

Major, Jeffery Fidelis

With heavy hearts and deep love,weannounce thepassing of JefferyFidelisChustz Major,who departed this life on July 3, 2025, at the age of 50. Born on November 26, 1974, Jefferywas abeloved son, father, brother, uncle andfriend. Agraduate of False RiverAcademy, Jeffery went on to attend both Louisiana State University, Southeastern Louisiana University and in hisearlier years, he workedasa dedicatedcattleman,embracingthe landand animals withthe same compassion he broughttoeverypartof hislife. Jefferyhad akind and generous heartand he was easily the funniestperson in anyroom. He entertainedmany friends with hishilarious outlookon life. Hiscompassion and thoughtfulness touched many lives.Hefound great joyand purpose in working alongside hisfather in support of theShrinersorganization, often lendinga helpinghandatShriners Hospital fundraisers— causesthatweredear to hisheart.Jefferyissurvived by his daughter, Mary Major; hisdevoted parents, Craig and Patrice Major; his sister,Stacie MajorGreene; his nephew JulesCifreoand wife Jackie,and great-nephew Stephen;his nieceBaylee Bergeron andhusbandDylan,and great-nieces Charlotteand Caroline; and his nieceAudreyJarreauand husband Cole, and soon-to -be great-nephewKason Jefferywas preceded in death by hisgrandparents: Arthur"Nook" Majorand Dora Major, George "Blackie"Chustz,Odessa Chustz Irvin"Man"Bergeron and MarthaBergeron,and John andRowenaReaux. Hiswarmth, sense of humor, and deep empathy will be dearlymissed, but hisspirit will live on in the memories he made and the love he gave so freely. Jeffery's legacyisone of kindness, loyalty, andan enduring commitmentto helpingothers. Visitation will be at St Augustine Catholic Church at 809 NewRoads St.in NewRoads on Thursday, July 10, 2025 from 10:00 am to 11:30 am. Mass will be at 11:30. In lieu of flowers, donationsmay be made in Jeffery's name to theShriners Hospitals forChildrenat https://donate.Lovetother escue.org

Chustz

Joseph,Dr. Erat S.

Brunet, RobertPaul

Lott Sr., Carl Wesley

Freeman, Bertha Mae

Mayer, Randy

Jeanette Mayer, two brothers, Kevin Mayer (Brenda), and Doug Mayer (Lanya).

He also leaves behind many nieces and nephews; Jason Titone (Jessica), Rachel Fleming (Jeff), Lauren Titone, Chelsea Drury (Mike), Andy Mayer, Brittany Roser (Josh), Mallory Achord (Gannon), Taylor Daigle (Alex), Ashton Verdicanno, Jordan Verdicannoand Mikayla Mayer. Randy had numerous great nieces and great nephews who loved and adored him. Randy is also survived by his loving godchildren, Mallory Achord, Randi Smith, and Tyler LeBouef, who held aspecial placein his heart.

The family would liketo recognize his girlfriend, Linda Dugas Barbay, who gaveunwavering love, support, and tireless care to Randy during hisillness. Linda's presence brought comfort and peace, making aprofound difference in Randy's final journey Special thanks to Lori Dugas Palmer for her kindness and dedicationduring adifficult time.

Randy was preceded in death by his father, Rodney Mayer, and his brother,Michael Mayer.

Randy moved to Baton Rouge in the summer of 1978. He graduated from Broadmoor High School in 1981 and went on to obtain acollege degree in business. Whileemployed as a manager of the Aquatic Club and the YMCA, he had great impact on the lives of children, whom he enjoyed working with in this capacity. He was later employed withJacobs Engineering and Tetra Tech where he developed longlasting relationships with many people. He enjoyed boating and water sports and was affectionately called "CaptainMayer." He lovedthe beach, especially sunrises,traveling, outdoor activities, gatherings with familyand friends, and attending LSU events.

Pallbearers willbeDennis Smith,Russ Joffrion Tanner LeBouef, Tyler LeBouef, Kevin Mayer, Doug Mayer, and Andy Mayer.

Greenoaks Funeral Home is in charge of arrangements. Visitation will start at 9:00 a.m. with the Mass of Christian Burial at 9:45 a.m. on Thursday, July 10, 2025. Both the visitation and funeral will be at Our Lady of Mercy Catholic Church, 445 Marquette Ave., Baton Rouge, Louisiana.

born on January 6, 1949, in Cottonport, Louisiana to Reeves Plauche and Mamie Dee Guillory Plauche. His father was alongtime Scoutmaster, this was adriving factor in Rodney's timein Boy Scouts, where he earned numerous medals and recognitions. While attending St. Joseph, he met the love of his life, Cynthia Dufour. Their love wasevident to all that knew them, and they marriedin1969. He was a graduate of the University of Louisiana at Lafayette, receiving his master's degree from Louisiana State University. He retired from SGS Petroleum Service Corporation as their Director of Health, Safety and Environmental.

Retirement didn't last long for him, as he took an opportunity with BREC, that allowed him to spend time outside, meet people and partake in one of his favorite hobbies -golf. Rodney was adevout member of Our Lady of Mercy CatholicChurch and Knights of Columbus Council 969. He enjoyed diving and earned diving certifications with his son. Rodney and his wife enjoyed countless trips to the casino and avacation of alifetime together in Hawaii. He would always find ways to keep himself busy, among them time in his wood workshop, where he could fix anything, build cabinets and even made his son ahumidor!

He is preceded in death by his parents; his daughter Diane Elizabeth Plauche; and his grandson Dalton Plauche.

Rodney is survived by his beloved wifeof56 years, CynthiaD."Cindy" Plaucheand their loving son Todd Plauche and wife Liz.Heisalsosurvivedby his adoring grandchildren, who lovingly calledhim "Pops", including Avery Plauche, Laken Carpenter and husband Nick,Kaitlin Guidry and husband Brian, and Lauren Newman and husband Leslie;aswellas numerous otherloving family and friends.

The family wouldlike to acknowledge the staffat HeritageManor and Life Source Hospice for the committed and compassionate care

Rodney willforever be known for his sense of humor, his intellect, and being everyone's go-to guy. For his family he willalways be the best husband, father, grandfatherand father-in-lawthat we could have ever asked for! We love you and willforever cherishthe memories made.

Relativesand friends arerespectfully invitedto attend avisitation thatwill be held at ResthavenFuneral Home,11817 Jefferson HighwayinBaton Rouge commencing at 9:00 a.m. Funeral Servicewillbe conducted at 10:30a.m. followedbyinterment at ResthavenGardens of Memory

The pallbearersare Brian Guidry,Nick Carpenter, Dwayne Dufour, Scott Whitfield, CareyDenstel, and Patrick Guelfo.

Family and friends may signthe online guestbook or leave apersonal note to the family at www.resthav enbatonrouge.com

Rogers Jr., Eugene Eddie'Gene'

Eugene "Gene" Eddie RogersJr. passed at the ageof80onJuly 1, 2025. He was borntohis parents Eugene Eddie Rogers Sr and Callie MaeRogers in BatonRouge, Louisiana on December11, 1944. Alongtime resident of Walker, Gene workedasa pump mechanic for many years and was an active member at the Denham Springs Council on Aging. He was also adevoted memberof Immaculate Conception CatholicChurch.Genewas proud to servehis country as amemberofthe United States Airforce. Hewill be deeply

and love him. He is survivedbyhis daughter Janean Rogers Durbin (EricWayne Durbin), sons John Eric Rogers (Gina) and Joey Rogers, grandchildren Brennon, Callie, Evan, and Ella, and numerous nieces and nephews. He is preceded in death by hisspouse of 56 years Geraldine Gautreau Rogers.

The family wantstogive aspecial thankstothe ICU staff at OchsnerofBaton Rouge for their love and careduring this time. In lieu of flowers,please make adonationtoThe Alzheimer'sAssociation. There willbea visitation held at Seale Funeral Home in DenhamSpringsonSunday, July13from 5:30pmto 7:30pm. Visitation willresume thefollowing morning at ImmaculateConception CatholicChurch on Monday, July 14 from 10:00am to 11:00am with a mass starting at 11:00am. Burial willfollow at Vickers Cemetery

WalterLoclonSmith,III belovedhusband, father, grandfather and friend passed away on FridayJuly 4, 2025. He was born in BatonRouge,LAtoWalterLoclonSmith,Jr. and Adeline Landry Smith on March 20, 1952. Walterattended JeffersonTerrace Elementary School, Glasgow Junior High and Robert E. Lee High School, where he met his future wife, Carol.Walterthenreceivedhis Bachelor's degree in Marketing fromLSU in 1975 and Juris Doctorate in 1980 from LSU Law School. Thereafter, Walterwas in privatepractice of law until his retirement in December 2019. Walterissurvived by his loving wife, CarolLambremont Smith; his sons, Bradford Loclon Smith (wife Haylie Nola Smith) and Matthew Benjamin Smith (wifeLeah Waters Smith); and grandchildren: Bradford LoclonSmith,II, Collin RuthSmith,Allyson Marie Smith,Caroline May Smith,and AnnieJane Smith. He is also survived by his sister, Jan Smith and brother Ray Smith (wife CarolynSmith)and sistersin-law,Suzanne Lambremont (husband Rob Jesson), Barbara Peters (husband Warren), YLambremont. He is also survived by his nieces and nephews, John Lambremont,Jr.,Chad Smith,Paul Lambremont,Sarah LambremontChristakis, Lauren Peters Mitchell, Ryne Smith, Elizabeth Call, and LewisPeters. Walterispreceded in death by his parents, WalterLoclonSmith Jr., Adeline Landry Smith and hisbrother-in-law, John Lambremont.Walter's grandchildrenwere

thelight of his life,and he enjoyed every opportunity to spend time with them. He was an avid LSUbaseball and footballfan. In the lateryears he enjoyed taking Loclon, ahuge LSU baseballfan, to LSUbaseball games. Walter has been blessed with many close friends for many decades, and they have enjoyed fishing, hunting and golfing together. Walterand Carol attended The Chapel on the Campus many years, until they joinedCommunity Bible Church. Walterhas an abiding faith in God through Jesus and was not afraid to leaveand go to theother side.Walter's family wouldliketothank Dr. RoyCullota and Dr. Michael Yorek for their care over theyears, and Hospice of BatonRouge, Nurse Debbie, Aide LaMarla and theentirestaff at theBRHospice Butterfly Wing fortheir care during thelast few weeks.Inlieu of flowers,Waltersaidhe wouldappreciate any donations be madetothe Community Bible Church MissionsFund.Visitation willbeonThursday, July 10, 2025, at Rabenhorst Funeral Home East,11000 FloridaBlvd, from 5pmuntil8pm.Visitation willresume on FridayatCommunity Bible Church, 8354 JeffersonHwy, from 1pmuntil serviceat2pm. Entombment willfollow at GreenoaksMemorial Park Mausoleum.

Donna StaplesVetter (Tutta),a lifelong resident of Baton Rouge, Louisiana, passed away peacefully on July5,2025, at theage of 82, comfortable and secure in thehome she built and loved. Born on June 11, 1943, Tutta was aproud graduateofSt. Joseph's Academy and Louisiana StateUniversity, bothinstitutions that wouldremain closetoher heart throughout her life

Early in her career, Tutta

demonstratedher concern for childrenand familiesas aHead Start counselor. Shewas an active andappreciatedpresence in Baton Rouge's social and philanthropic circles, generouslylending hertime, energy, and leadership to causesshe caredabout deeply.

Shechaired the fundraiser that was the origin of theSt. Joseph's Academy Scienceand Technology Center,ensuringfuturegenerationsof students wouldhave access to STEM resources. Tutta's love for LSUextendedfar beyond the classroom; sheservedas Chair of theLSU AlumniAssociation Board and on the LSUAthleticCouncil championingthe university's mission andspirit.She wasalso adevoted supporter of theLSU School of VeterinaryMedicine,playinga pivotal roleinhelping theVet School acquire radiologyequipment to bettercarefor animals and train futureveterinarians. Herservice in those roles wascut short by adiagnosis of Multiple Sclerosis.

Aboveall,Tutta cherished herfamilyand friends. Shewas atalented chef and served as Executive Chef in herfamily's Baton Rouge restaurant. Shemade an early cooking video, butdecidedshe didn'twant to promote it because she "didn't wanther hairtoalways smell like roux."Tut had an eye for fashion and wasknown for herunique style. Shehad an active lifestyle. Before MS slowedher down, she enjoyed powerlifting,golf, andrunning. Andwhenit didslowher downshe began to paint andher paintings are treasured by her family.

Sheissurvived by her loving husband CyrilVetter hertwo daughters, Heather (Mark) Schaefer of Nashvilleand Gabrielle Vetter of Baton Rouge;her threeadored granddaughters, Ellie, Claire,and Ava Schaefer, all of Nashville, andher sister Lou Staples of Baton Rouge

Tutta will be rememberedfor herwarmth, her spirit,her easy andinfectiouslaugh, andthe legacy of service andlove she leaves behind. Herfamily andall whoknewher take comfortinher love,her peacefulpassing andthe

lives she touched.

Visitation willbeonFriday, July 11 from 11AM12PM, followedbya short service at noon. RabenhorstFuneral Home, 825 Government Street.Inlieu of flowers, if so inclined, considera donation to St Joseph's Academy or the LSUSchool of Veterinary Medicine in hermemory Wilson,Juanita

Juanita Wilsontransitioned to hereternalrest on Monday, June 30, 2025 at the age of 90 in Baton Rouge,LA. Shewas born on November 27, 1934 to the lateBerthaMurphy andHenryWilsoninSt. Francisville,LA. Sheissurvivedbyher daughters, BerthaJoseph, Mary Hubbard, Clarissa Wilson, Roslyn Daniel; sons, Levell Wilson, Clifford Wilson; 50 grandchildren and ahostofother relativesand friends. She is preceded in death by her parents; daughters, Lillie Carey,RoseNellWilson, JoannWilson; brother, Luke Davis andgrandson, DerrickYoung Familyand friends of Juanita are invited to attend the Visitation on Friday, July 11, 2025 at Hall's Celebration Centerfrom 9:00am to 10:00am with the Funeral Servicesimmediately following. Shewillbe laidtorest in Heavenly Gates Cemetery of Baton Rouge,LA. ServicesEntrustedtoHallDavis and SonFuneral Services. www.halldavisandson.com

Smith III, WalterLoclon

Vetter,Donna Staples 'Tutta'

Plauche, Rodney

OUR VIEWS

Delays to riverbridge projectare disappointing

Anyone who drives through Baton Rouge regularly understands what achoke point the Mississippi River Bridgecan be.

Officially named the Horace Wilkinson Bridge, the Interstate 10 crossing is notorious for regular,lengthy backups that can push traffic back formiles in both directions. For years, officials and residentshave known that anew bridge, the third in the capital region, is necessary That’swhy we, along with members of the Capital Area Road and Bridge District, are very disappointed to learn that the process of buildingthat bridge has been pushed back again. The latest delays were announced last month after officials received sitestudieslater than expected. That meansthata federal environmental review under the National Environmental Policy Act, which will take at least a year and had been expected tobegin this week, won’tstart until later in the summer.That study could, in turn, trigger amore in-depth environmental review,which would take even longer

As of now,the earliest thebridge could open would be 2033, two years later than previous estimates.

That’sjust too long.

For comparison, the Huey P. Long Bridge in Baton Rouge, often known as the “Old Bridge,” opened in 1940. The Horace Wilkinson Bridge opened 28 years later,in1968, 65 years earlier than the current 2033 target datefor the new bridge

These days, approximately 100,000 cars per day cross the Mississippi River Bridge. It, and the interchanges on either side, were simply not build to accommodatethatlevel of trafﬁc. Iberville Parish President Chris Daigle expressed the frustrations of many when he learnedofthe latest delay

“It’sjust something always delaying the project,” he said. “And here we are again.” Former Louisiana Department of Transportation and Development Secretary Joe Donahue, who sits on the district board, described himself as “ata loss” over the project’sglacial pace.

We certainly understand that the construction of a$2billion project is abig undertaking and must be accompanied by the proper preparation. Currently three routes, identiﬁed in 2022, are being studied, each of which would cross the river in Iberville Parish.

We also agree that local input should be taken into account. Each of the proposed routes could have anumber of impacts, from neighborhood trafﬁc and the moving of utilityor industry infrastructure to the bisection and potential demolition of the rare old-growthcypress forest in the Plaquemine Point community

These are significant concerns that should be fairly addressed, but it is long past time for that to have happened already.Commuters and travelers, from Louisiana and everywhere, deserve to know when their long traffic nightmare will finally be over

LETTERSTOTHE EDITOR ARE

WELCOME. HERE AREOUR

GUIDELINES: Letters are published identifying name, occupation and/or title and the writer’scity of residence

TheAdvocate |The Times-Picayune require astreet address andphone 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.

OPINION

Teachers finallysee payraise, butitmay be cold comfort

Iamwriting to proclaim how happy Iamthat thestate government has ﬁnally decided to raise teacher pay,but also I’m frustrated that this sudden act of generosity comes after years of Louisiana utterly failing to do even thebare minimum for its front-line teachers.

After all, this new pay raise comes at the end of aprocess that started with the Jindal administration’sdestruction of the New Orleans public school system and ended with the legislative pearl-clutching at theidea of local cities daring to levy taxes on BigOil.

For far too long, thestate leaned on thegood hearts of elderly teachers who were already collecting retirement, being talked intoreturning to theclassroom as long-term substitutes, often forcing them to pause theirretirement beneﬁts entirely

Irun asmall school for children and adults with autism. Most of them are on the more profound end of the spectrum,i.e., their needs are signiﬁcant. Because of this, we have an extremely low student-to-teacher ratio. This makes ourﬁnancial situation rather tenuous. We makeupfor shortfalls in several ways,including fundraising and grant writing. We also form strategic partnerships withother organizations. Oneofthese is AmeriCorps. Modeled after the Peace Corps, AmeriCorps places volunteers in underresourced communities throughout theUnited States. My school getsone to three volunteers every year.Inad-

Iwas verysad after reading Edward Pratt’slastcolumn, “A fond farewell, for now,” in thenewspaper on June 14 For years, Ilooked forwardtoreading hiscolumns,asthey provided insight, wisdom and guidance. Prattoften introduced me to ideas, people, places and situationsIwould otherwise never have known. He offered me adifferent perspective along withaninvitation to seemyown life through adifferent lens. For all of this and more, Ithank him and encourage him to keep writing.

Starting teacher salaries in Louisiana are 46th in the country,with an average starting salary of $45,593, making theaverage take-home pay, barely enough to cover rent in the state’slargest city

Now the state has ﬁnally decided to try andpermanently raise teacher pay just in time for the federal government to start slashing educational and Medicaid funding for the entire country.Iamforced to wonder if the state’smodest raise will really be worth it once so many schools in Louisiana lose their federal grants and theirstudentslose their health care coverage. Allofthis proves that our state’s climb in national rankings for education was accomplishedinspite of the state government, notbecause of it. DANGALLO Metairie

dition to helping us balance ourbooks, thevolunteers acquire critical job skills and work experience. Many of them end up working fornonproﬁts like ours. It is aclassic win-win. The Department of Government Efﬁciency,orDOGE, recently cut funding to AmeriCorps. Thousands of employees were immediately laid off, and social programs across the countryare currently being scuttled. Our volunteer’slast day wasinJune. LosingAmeriCorps impacts our budget.This, in turn, affects ourprogramming. Ultimately,itends up hurting our community’smost vulnerable.

FOLWELL DUNBAR NewOrleans

But Ican certainly understand his desire to quit.The hostility and egregious actsofhatred that he and his family have endured are simply unconscionable. All Ican sayisthat Iamvery sorry, and Isincerely hope that Pratt understands thatthere are many,like myself, who appreciate his stories. In today’s world, he offersa light for us all. I pray he continues to write and shine brightly

CATHERINE

ALTAZAN Port Allen

The tenor of J. Gerald Kennedy’s recent letter stipulating that liberalism is moreprevalent on college campuses because it is somehow moreintellectual illustrates the real problem It exposes the left’ssanctimony,its belief that its opinions are correct and just, whereas those of the right are uninformed and thus, unjust. Its greater intelligence trumps those uninformed, informationally uncurious hordes with whom it disagrees. He fails to mention that liberalism is no longer,bydeﬁnition, liberal. In fact, it is illiberal. It protests against conservatives at universities nationwide and often disallowsspeakers with differing viewpoints from delivering addresses on campus. Its“theater of the politic” protests regularly prevent right-leaning free speech while falsely declaring that its speech is under attack. Itsprofessors and their minions intimidate conservative thinkers at colleges, hoping to deprogram them of their ignorance or simply exclude them entirely

This country is in dire need of intellectual, unemotional discourse with areal exchange of ideas without recrimination. And it will not be found on today’suniversity campuses. The pomposity of the uberintelligent leftwill never permit it. CHARLEY IRELAND Robert

Shaking my head as Isaw another display against the “greatest threat to democracy” —you know the left’s favorite foolish phrase —inNo Kings Day protests across the state. Ithought honoring the results of a free and clear election was the true sign of democracy.Amajority vote winmeans nothing to those whoresist because the winner wasn’ttheir choice. We had to live though the last four years with whoknowsrunning the country.Itcertainly wasn’tJoe Biden. As always, the left’shollow protests fall on deaf ears.

BETTY CHAMPAGNE Covington

HasEssence lost itsessence?

TheEssence Festival of Culture wasbirthed by NewOrleans, in New Orleans, and through NewOrleans, it reached the nationand the world.

Igrew up in the Lower 9th Ward and Gentilly with Ebony and Jet on my family’sliving room tables, along with the Louisiana Weeklyand The Times-Picayune They were an important part of keeping up with our Blackpeople, businesses, communities, entertainment and all things Black. But something was missing. In 1970, Essence magazine was launched. Iwas ateen then. ABlack mother birthed me, Ihad Black sisters, cousins, grandmothers and girlfriends They were captured in some of thepages of the other periodicals,but Essence highlighted my collectivesisters with beauty,fashion and news —through a Black prism. We didn’trealize whatwe had been missing.

The magazine celebrated 25 years of success in 1995, and aone-time celebration in New Orleans was plannedwith then-Mayor Marc Morial.Aswesaid back in the day,itwas so nice,theyhad to do it twice. Then again. And again. Andit’sstill going.

There have been challengesthrough the years. And this year feltdifferent There weren’tasmany signs promotingthe festival. The big Essence letters were missing outsidethe convention center.There were longwaits in between entertainment acts at night. One act didn’tfinish until 3:37a.m. Saturday.There were hurt feelings with fans who were expectingatraditional Superlounge experience,only to find that things had changed. Essenceapologized. Essence fans and supportershave had concerns, andthey’velet Essenceand others know U.S. Rep. Troy Carter,homefrom his duties in Washington, D.C., attended the festival and got an earful. “I have been there since Day One,” he told me. “I was ayoung City Council memberwhen Marc Morial broughtthistoour city.” He said things have changedand he doesn’tlike what he’sheardthis year Essence is important to New Orleans and Louisiana, he said,and the festivalcannot disconnect from its New Orleans-specific cultural roots. That means engaging local businessesand

staying connected withour local culture,headded. “Recognizing that this yearthings were out of whack, and therewereafew hiccups,” thecongressmansaidit’simportant to learn from these lessons,these mistakes and move beyond 2025.

One high-profile nonprofit executive told me that it’stoo difficult to do business with Essence now,and that’s whythere area number of “Essenceinspired,” ‘Essence-related” and “Essence-adjacent”eventsnot connected with the festival.

“I’mconﬁdent that theleadersofEssenceare goingtohear what their fans andcustomersare saying about the experience, and Icertainly urge them to hearand take heed to forever be on the sideofmaking Essence better,” added Morial, the president and CEO of the NationalUrban League for morethan 20 years. “Thehistoric team had built relationships with theleadership and the community. from the beginning Ithink the newleadership of Essence. have to think anew about how they build andrebuild some of thoserelationships —and Ibelieve (Essence Ventures owner)RichelieuDennis is committed to that.”

DuringaMorial Convention Center festival conversation Saturday afternoon,Dennistoldmeheiscommitted to making Essence better.Hetold me his company is in thethird year of a ﬁve-yearplan and they’remaking decisions based ondata and businessplanning. There has been negative festival chatterinhotel and venue hallways androoms, among family and friends texting and in quiteanumber of nega-

tive social media posts.But Dennis said that’snot the whole story. He acknowledged some problems, attributing them to growing pains. “We’ve grown this festival almost twice its size,” he said. “With thatgrowthcomes alot of changes,challenges.” He said real-time data collected during this year’sfestival shows festival-goersare moreengaged and more satisfied. People are staying at the daytime festival eventslonger.There were complaints about not being able to get intosome scheduledevents, including film festival showings.Hecharges that to quality programming. People can’tshow up and expect to get in the door.“It’s athing of effectiveness, efficiency and delivering on apromise,” he said. Through theyears, things have changed. Jet is gone. Ebony is ashadow of what it was.Essenceisstill here. New Orleans has Carnival, second-line and other traditions thatwill live on forever.But the cityisn’twhat it was when Iwas growing up. There are parades, krewes and festivals thatdidn’texist. The festival isn’twhat it used to be. Nor should it be.But it is an important part of New Orleans that we want to see thrive. While some say thefestival has lost its luster,Dennis says thefestival will never loseits foundational purpose, but it mustevolve. The question for New Orleans and Dennis is,can we get through these changes and evolve together? The answer is easy: Like real love in committedrelationships,wemust.

Email Will Sutton at wsutton@ theadvocate.com.

Not many people today remember the exhilaration so many Americans felt after Israel’svictoryinthe Six-Day War in June 1967. The liberalfolks around me at workand law school then had been frustrated and puzzled at the lack of progress being made in Vietnam by the 448,000 U.S. troops stationed there, and the sudden and astonishing success of the Israel Defense Forces, symbolized by the eye-patched Gen. Moshe Dayan, was arefreshing contrast. No talk then of Israelisascolonialist settler oppressors Youwill not encounter much in the way of exhilaration in similar milieus today at Israel’smultifront and even more astonishing victory,capped off by the U.S. bombing of Iran’snuclear facilities, in what is now called the 12-day war of June 2025.Incontrast to the success in 1967, when therewas minimal Americaninvolvement,this success owed much to American collaboration, appropriately kept secret before the fact. It came also amid aseries of signiﬁcant and largely unexpectedpolicysuccesses for President Donald Trump —China trade concessions, NATO summit agreeing to 5% of GDPdefense spending, Supreme Court overturning of single-judge national injunctions, G7 ﬁnance ministers’ climb-downonglobalcorporate tax, negotiation of aRwanda-Congo peace deal, Canada’srepeal of adigitalservices tax, S&P stock index at an all-time high, Senate passageofthe “Big Beautiful bill.” We are at “Peak Trump,” as Matthew Continetti wrote in The Free Press. Democrats’ sour responses to Trump’s domestic successes, based on some mix of principled disagreements and opportunistic politicking, are understandable. Their sour responses to the Israeli and American success against the Iranian regime’snuclear program are another matter The result of the Six-DayWar elated both liberal and conservative Americans. The result so far of the 12-day war

LETTERS TO

was, by many Democratsand manyin thepress, denounced as the overture to amassive ground war like the 2003 Iraq invasionand deconstructedbyleaked memos suggesting the mullahs would have their nuclear weapons program up and running in afew weeks.

has surely gotten Putin’sand Xi’sattention.

Goodnews! Republicans ﬁnally found away to bring downcosts. All it took wasmagically declaring expensive things to be free. At least, that’sthe lesson of their ginormous budget bill, whose passage last week required reinventing the lawsofaccounting.

There are manyunpopular features in the GOP’sOne Big Beautiful Bill, including draconian cuts to Medicaid and food stamps, higher energy prices and trillions of dollars in additional debt. Both Republican lawmakers and President Donald Trumpseem to realize this, given that they’re jammed the bill through with little timefor the media (and, by extension, voters) to catch up to what’sinit.

They’ve also spent recent weeks smearing the refs, including the Congressional Budget Ofﬁce and the Joint Committee on Taxation, the professionals tasked with crunching numbers on the bill’sconsequences. And recently,Republicans hid from the Senate parliamentarian to avoid hearing her latest rulings about the cost of their bill.

Always agood sign when the response to “Do you wanttoknow what this thing costs?” is “La la la, Ican’thear you.”

Earlier in the week, GOPlawmakers wenta step further.Asthey had previously signaled they might do, they voted to stop pretending to care about what the bill costs or what the parliamentarian rules. Instead, they simply declared huge chunks of it to be free. Here’show:

The package’stax provisions alone would cost, on net, $4.5 trillion over the next decade. But Republicans said, “Eh, mostofthat tax package [about $3.8 trillion of it] shouldn’treally count as costing anything.”

That’sbecause Republican lawmakers had passed similar provisions in 2017, which are scheduled to expire at the end of this year Republicans argue that Americans got used to having that part of the tax code around. So extending these lower tax rates wouldn’t, you know,feel different.

As I’ve explained before, this is not how budgets work. It’s like saying renewing your Netﬂix subscription should count as free, because you got used to having the streaming service already.Oreach time you buy another Starbucks coffee, it doesn’tcost you anything, because you’ve enjoyed Frappuccinos before.

The reason we’re discussing these arcane accounting acrobatics is that when Republicans ﬁrst passed their regressive tax-cut package in 2017, they deliberately scheduled their tax cuts to “turn off” early,in2025, rather than last forever.They did this to makethe cost of what they were doing look smaller.What to do when those tax cuts expired —and how to pay for them —would be tomorrow’sproblem

Well, tomorrow has arrived. And GOPleaders’ solution is not just to cook the books; it’s to torch them entirely,bypretending their tax cuts werealready baked into future budgets, when they deliberately weren’t.

It’s hard to resist The Wall Street Journal’sWalter Russell Mead’sconclusion that Trump’ssecond term is “the most consequential foreign-policy presidency since Richard Nixon left the White House.”His scorn for outworn shibboleths and changed circumstances has produced successes thatdeserve respect, if not total agreement from his domestic opponents, instead of the knee-jerk oppositionand shopworn sloganeering seen so far The aggressive nationalism of Russian President VladimirPutin and Chinese President Xi Jinping, both rooted in historic tradition, has relegated the hopes of the Clinton and Bush eras that apost-communist Russia and apostimpoverishedChina would adhere to internationalrules and foreswear predatory expansion. The Russian invasion of Ukraine has prompted NATO partners, which ignored the Obama administration’squiet goal of 2% defense spending, to agree to Trump’slouder demand and meet his raise to 5%. Farfrom destroying NATO, as his critics feared, he has strengthened it. Similarly,hehas ignored demands, like thoseof2024 vice presidential nominee TimWalz, that he pressure Israel to accept the outworn goal of a“two-state solution.” Instead, he is working for a Middle East free from the Iranian nuclear threat and open to mutually beneﬁcial agreements like his ﬁrst-term Abraham Accords.

Trump’sadherence to his pre-escalator vows that Iran should not get nuclear weapons, while ﬂummoxing supporters like Tucker Carlson and Steve Bannon,

They surely didn’tmiss, when Israel began its precision bombing and targeted drone attacks on June 13, thatTrump told Reuters thathehad given Iran 60 days to reach an agreement,“and today is the 61st day.” Democratswere still busy disparaging Trump’swillingness to back down on trade deals with the acronym TACO (“Trump always chickens out”).But Xi maynot want to risk a61st day on Taiwan. And while Democratsdismiss Trump’sboast thatPutin didn’tlaunch an attack on Ukraine while he was president, the fact is thathedidn’t. Will he risk a61st-daysurprise if Trump, losing conﬁdence as his recent statementssuggest he has in his good intentions, sets a time limit on his aggression in Ukraine?

Israel’sstrikesonIran, the historian Niall Fergusonposted, are “a decisive victory for the West.” Just as the Six-Day Warlargely removed the threat of Israel being overrun, the 12-day war largely removed the threat of Israel being annihilated by an Iranian nuclear attack.

The Six-Day Warwas followed in time by Nixon’sresupply of Israel in the October Warof1973 and by his simultaneous maneuver of splitting Russia and China in what had been astalemated bipolar world. His opening to China, though criticized in bothparties’ presidential primaries, was followed by presidents of both parties past well behind what now appears to have been its sell-by date. What will follow the 12-day war can’t be known for sure. But it looks like Trump’spolicies have moved toward a more peaceful Middle East, aEurope more alert to Russianaggression, and perhaps an increasing caution by the leaders of Russiaand China. These are consequential achievements, like Nixon’s, that deserve tobetaken seriously even by the president’sdetractors.

Michael Barone is on X, @MichaelBarone.

Meanwhile, Republicans who should knowbetter are outright lying to the public about what’s happening. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent called himself a“ﬁscal hawk” on BloombergTV and declared that “everyone believes this is a start” to reducing the national debt. Other(ostensibly) ﬁnancially literate aides in the administration have made similar claims.

Most voters probably haven’tnoticed these comments or might be moreconcerned about the prospect of losing their insurance. But you know who(or what) is paying attention? Bond markets.

For decades, U.S. Treasury instruments have been considered the safest assets to invest in. This was true even as we ran up enormous deﬁcits without any plan to ever deal with them which is not usually afeature of sovereign debt considered essentially risk-free. Nevertheless, investors around the world remained willing to lend us money on the cheap because no one questioned whether,ultimately,wewould repay them

But the tide might be turning. In May Moody’s, the last outstanding major credit agency that had still considered U.S. debt to be effectively riskless, finally downgraded it. Moody’sspecifically cited the expectation that Congress would extend these costly tax cuts the ones that it is calling “free” —asareason forits decision. Shortly after,aroutine auction forU.S. Treasury debt didn’tgosowell. Fewer buyers than expected were interested in lending us money At the time, this waswidely interpreted as reflecting jitters about the One Big Beautiful Bill and the country’sswelling debt.

The Republicans’ accounting gimmick might seem obscure, but it sets aterrible precedent forhow future Congresses will handle difﬁcult budget choices. And it’sabig, fatwarning sign to bond investors. We might not have been terribly serious about getting our deﬁcits under control before, but at least we attempted to tally them correctly.Now,you can’teven say that.

Email Catherine Rampell at crampell@washpost.com.She is on X, @crampell.

STAFF PHOTO By KEITHSPERA

Tenminutes before the performance of Ms. Lauryn Hill started,most of Caesars Superdome was empty during the2025 Essence Festival of Culture.

Catherine Rampell

Michael Barone

Will Sutton

Big12’s Yormark says

BY STEPHEN HAWKINS AP sportswriter

FRISCO,Texas— Big 12 Commis-

sioner Brett Yormark is doubling down on his preference to stay with only ﬁve automatic qualiﬁers if the College Football Playoffdoes expand from 12 to 16 teams as many expect after this season, instead of each of the four power conferences being guaranteed multiple bids.

Scott Rabalais

Wind blew confettiingreat swirls aroundthe LSU Tigers on that bright and glorious June Sunday afternoon in Omaha, Nebraska, as they celebrated another College World Series title. Theskies filled with fireworks three days later at Alex Box Stadium for another championship victory party The confetti and thefireworks may have been cleared away,but acouple of weeks past those championship parties the good vibes remain for an LSU program that occupies the pinnacle of itssport.That will probably be the case until the start of next baseball season, at least, when the 2026 Tigers will be charged with chasingCWS title No. 9. Forall the feel-good energy created byLSU’seighth CWS crown,there is abyproduct, like the spentradioactive fuel from anuclear reactor.And it’s aimed rightatthe LSU football team and coach Brian Kelly While LSUbaseball and its

coach, Jay Johnson, have been properly feted for their second national championship in three seasons, thevictory has served as areminder for what Kelly and LSU football has not done. Not only no national championship, which of course is somethingmightydifﬁcult to do, but no contention for one on Kelly’swatch, which now enters its fourth season as well (he and Johnson started in 2022). The Tigers’ one and only appearance in the College Football Playoff came in 2019, when the Joe Burrow/Ed Orgeron LSUteam went all the way to the championship. It is unfair to label Kelly’s

tenure at LSU as unsuccessful to this point and ridiculous to say he is on the hot seat. In three seasonshis Tigers have had aHeisman Trophy winner in Jayden Daniels in 2023, reached the SEC Championship Gamein2022 and won all three of their bowlappearances among a29-11 record overall.

Despite some woefulparts of the program (see special teams in 2022, defense in 2023), Kelly’stimeatLSU can in no way be realistically labeled afailure.

For failure, see Florida State

ä See RABALAIS, page 3C

“Wehave the responsibility to do what’sright for college football notwhat’sright forone or two or moreconferences,” Yormark said Tuesday at Big 12 footballmedia days. “I think 5-11 is fair. Earn it on theﬁeld, assuming we want to expand. Ilove thecurrentformat, but if we’re goingtoexpand, let’s do it in away that’sfair and equitable and giveseveryone achance.”

While the Southeastern Conference and Big Tenwill have more of asay on theplayoffformatstarting in 2026, when ESPN’s$7.8 billioncontract kicks in, Yormark believes the5-11 format wouldbe good fornow and in the future.He said ACC Commissioner JimPhillips feels thesame way,and is expected to express that during his league’smedia days in two weeks. “Wedonot need aprofessional model because we arenot the NFL,”Yormark said. “Weare college football and we must act like it.”

In the 12-team format still in placefor this season, the five

Christian Shumateissucha high riser that he landed aspot on ESPN’s“SportsCenter” Top10plays nine times this past season Dunking comeseasy for Shumate TheChicago native threwdownhis ﬁrst slam the summer heading into his seventh-grade year.

High-flying rookie from McNeese impressing N.O. coachesearly on Rod Walker

NowShumate is hoping to soar even higher as he tries to makethe leap from undraftedrookietothe NBA. Shumate,a 6-foot-6 forwardon the New Orleans PelicansSummer League roster, gets his opportunity justthree hours away from Lake Charles where he starred at McNeese State.

“It means the world to me,” Shumatesaid. “I’ve grown to call Louisiana home. When Ifound out that I’dbestationed herefor thetimebeing as far as Summer League, Iwas really excited. I’ve been through some of the lowest timesofmylife and some of the highest times of my life in Louisiana. So I’mkindofrooted here and itwas kind of afull circlemoment being able to comeback here and try to make strides to stay.It’sbeen ablessing. I’m very grateful for the opportunity.”

One of those low points atMcNeesecame inthe 2022-’23 season when the Cowboysﬁnished 11-23. Shumate, whose careerstartedatTulsa, entered the transfer portal and contemplatedwhat would have been his third school. McNeesehired Will Wade and Shumate stuck it out andbecameakey cog in theprogram turning things around and winning 58 gamesover the next two seasons.

There have been just six players from McNeese to ever play in an NBA game.Shumatewouldlike nothingmore than to become the seventh, joining alist that includes Pelicans’ executive director of basketball operations Joe Dumars. Shumate and Dumars are bothonMcNeese’sall-

PROVIDED PHOTO McNeese State’sChristian Shumate became an ESPN SportsCenter Top10regular with his spectacular dunks during his career in LakeCharles

time scoring list. Dumars is ﬁrst;Shumate is ninth.

Shumate is third on therebounding list and first in double-doubles (40).Heaveraged 10.4 points and 6.5 rebounds this past season and helped McNeese to its first NCAA Tournament victory in school history.He was named the Southland Conference’sDefensive Player of the Year Shumate is also the first player in McNeese State to hit the 1,000 mark in points, rebounds, blocked shots, assists and steals. It’s that ability to do alittlebit of everything that he wants to put on display in Las Vegas. The Pelicans play their Summer League opener Thursday against theMinnesota Timberwolves.

Shumatelooking to make huge leap to Pelicans ä See WALKER, page 4C

BY HOWARD FENDRICH AP tenniswriter

LONDON— Aryna Sabalenka was having ahardtimedealing with her Wimbledon quarterfinal opponent’sunusual gamestyle. The mistakes were mounting Tuesday. The stress was rising. The deficit was troubling. As things went awry,Sabalenka would look at her box with a quizzicalexpressionand raise her hands. After missing one forehandoff ashort ball, she knelt on the grass near the net, the very pictureofexasperation. Amonth afterher loss to Coco Gauff in the French Open final, Sabalenka knew she needed to keep her emotions in check and straighten out her strokes Did just that, right on time. Sabalenka trailed by aset,then twice was downabreak in the third, before grabbing thelast three games to return to the semifinals at the All England Club by overcoming 104thranked Laura Siegemund 4-6, 6-2, 6-4 at CentreCourt.

“She pushed me so much,” said Sabalenka, No.1 sinceOctober.“Afterthe ﬁrst set, Iwas just looking at my box, thinking, ‘Guys,Imean, book the tickets. Ithink we’re about to leave this beautiful city,country, place.’

Wimbledon is the only Grand Slam tournament where Sabalenka never has been to atitle match. She can change that this week if shebeats No. 13 Amanda

Aryana Sabalenka of Belarus reacts after losing apoint against Laura Siegemund of Germany during theirquarterfinal match TuesdayatWimbledon. Thetopseeded Sabalenka rebounded for a4-6, 6-2, 6-4 victory.

Anisimova of the UnitedStates on Thursday.Anisimova reached her first major semifinal since the 2019 French Open, when she was just 17, by getting pastAnastasia Pavlyuchenkova 6-1, 7-6 (9). The first men’ssemifinal was established Tuesday,too: No 2Carlos Alcaraz,the two-time reigning champion, against No 5Taylor Fritz.

Sabalenka won theAustralian Open twice and the U.S. Open once, and wasthe runner-up at this year’s Australian Open (losing to Madison Keys) and French Open (losing to Gauff). The 27-year-old Belarusian lost in the semiﬁnals at Wimbledon in 2021 and 2023. Sabalenka hadn’tdropped a set during thisyear’strip to the grass-court major until Tuesday —but she alsohadn’t faced an opponent quite like

Yormark

STAFF FILEPHOTO By MICHAEL JOHNSON

LSU coach Brian Kelly watches the spring game on April 12 at TigerStadium.Kelly and the Tigers sawthe baseball team winits eighth national championship in June. The expectations will be nearly as highwhen the LSU football team kicks off Aug. 30 at Clemson.

Alcaraz makes quick work of Norrie at Wimbledon

By The Associated Press

LONDON Two-time defending champion Carlos Alcaraz reached the Wimbledon semifinals by beating Cameron Norrie 6-2, 6-3, 6-3 on Tuesday

Alcaraz extended his winning streak to 23 matches and became the just second Spanish player in history to reach the men’s singles semiﬁnals at Wimbledon on three occasions — the other was Rafael Nadal.

After Norrie held serve to open the match on Centre Court, the second-seeded Alcaraz took control by rattling off the next ﬁve games against the left-handed Briton Alcaraz never let Norrie into the match facing only five break points and saving all of them. He compiled 39 winners and 13 aces to go with 26 unforced errors.

“To be able to play another semifinal here at Wimbledon is super special,” Alcaraz said in an on-court interview after finishing off the quarterfinal match in 1 hour, 39 minutes.

Alcaraz will face No. 5 Taylor Fritz for a spot in the ﬁnal.

SABALENKA

Continued from page 1C

the 37-year-old Siegemund The German, who eliminated No 6 Keys last week, was the oldest and by far the lowest-ranked of any woman in the quarterﬁnals, as well as the one with the fewest career titles (two).

She arrived at Wimbledon with a career record there of 2-5 and with a 4-9 mark on tour in 2025.

But her ability to change the depth speed angles and spins of her shots over and over can frustrate any opponent and dull the type of power that Sabalenka brings. And, make no mistake: Sabalenka was frustrated, especially in the ﬁnal set.

“It’s not like it’s an annoying game. It’s a smart game. She’s

Olympian

BY KARU F DANIELS

New

WIMBLEDON

Electronic calls system malfunctions during match

BY KEN MAGUIRE AP sportswriter

LONDON A malfunction with Wimbledon ‘s new electronic line-calling system required a point to be replayed during a quarterﬁnal match between Taylor Fritz and Karen Khachanov on Tuesday

The latest issue with the system occurred during the opening game of the fourth set on Court No. 1 after Fritz had served at 15-0 and the players exchanged shots. Then came a random “fault” call.

Chair umpire Louise AzemarEngzell stopped play and a few moments later announced: “Ladies and gentlemen, we will replay the last point due to a malfunction.”

The system had tracked Fritz’s shot in the rally as if it was a serve, the All England Club said.

“The player’s service motion began while the (ball boy/ball girl) was still crossing the net and therefore the system didn’t recognize the start of the point

As such the chair umpire instructed the point be replayed,” the club said in a statement.

After the “fault” call, a perplexed Fritz turned to the umpire’s chair and spread his hands as if asking “what was that?”

Neither player seemed upset and Khachanov won the replayed point, but the ﬁfth-seeded Fritz advanced to the semiﬁnals with a 6-3, 6-4, 1-6, 7-6 (4) victory

“If it would happen on a break point or deuce or maybe tiebreaker, OK, you can get more mad,” the 17th-seeded Khachanov said.

“But it was just beginning of the set, 15-Love or Love-15. I don’t remember It was maybe not that important moment. That’s why I stayed really focused and calm.”

Wimbledon switched this year to the electronic system that replaced human line judges but it’s been anything but smooth.

On Sunday, there was a glaring mistake at Centre Court during Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova’s three-set victory over Sonay

ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO By KIN CHEUNGP

Amanda Anisimova of the U.S. celebrates winning her quarterﬁnal match against Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova of Russia on Tuesday in London.

really making everyone work against her,” Sabalenka said.

“You know you have to work for every point It doesn’t matter if

you’re a big server, if you’re a big hitter You have to work. You have to run. And you have to earn the win.”

Kartal in the fourth round. A shot by Kartal clearly landed past the baseline but wasn’t called out by the automated setup — called Hawk-Eye — because it had been shut off.

On Monday, club officials blamed “human error” for the oversight. Club chief executive Sally Bolton said the technology was “inadvertently deactivated” by someone for three points in the match.

Fritz, who will face either defending champion Carlos Alcaraz or Cameron Norrie for a spot in the ﬁnal, said he still prefers the new system.

“There’s going to be some issues here and there but, to be honest, I still think it’s much better to just have the electronic line-calling (system) calling the lines as opposed to umpires,” he said “I do like not having to think about challenging calls in the middle of points,” Fritz continued. “I do like that we don’t have to argue about calls and all this stuff. I think it’s a better system.”

Trailing 4-3 in the last set, Sabalenka broke to open her matchending run.

In the next game, she delivered her lone two aces, at 103 mph and 116 mph.

When Sabalenka produced a volley winner to break again and end things after nearly three hours, she shut her eyes, spread her arms wide and let out a big scream.

Who’s playing next?

The last two women’s quarterﬁnals are No. 7 Mirra Andreeva vs Belinda Bencic, and No 8 Iga Swiatek vs. No. 19 Liudmila Samsonova.

The men’s matchups are No. 1 Jannik Sinner vs. No. 10 Ben Shelton, and 24-time major champion Novak Djokovic vs No. 22 Flavio Cobolli.

Retton uses status to avoid DUI arrest

Newly released bodycam footage of Mary Lou Retton’s recent DUI arrest shows the five-time Olympic medalist attempting to use her star status to avoid being detained, at one point telling police that she’s “West Virginia’s first daughter.” Retton, who was nabbed on a DUI charge on May 17 in Marion County, West Virginia, appears dazed, distressed and disheveled throughout the lengthy clip, released by Entertainment Tonight on Tuesday Retton was initially pulled over when she was allegedly seen driving “all over the roadway,” according to an incident report obtained by TMZ. Officers who questioned her said she smelled of alcohol and was slurring her words, while a screw-top bottle of wine was seen in her passenger seat. The bodycam video shows the 57-year-old mom of four getting testy after refusing to blow into a breathalyzer and failing a field sobriety test conducted by a Fairmont City police officer “I’m West Virginia’s first daugh-

ter!” she tells the cop. “Bob Huggins gets away and, well, whatever,” she adds, referring to the former West Virginia basketball coach who was arrested for DUI in Pittsburgh in 2023. Throughout the footage, the trailblazing athlete can be seen with a portable oxygen tank, which she has reportedly relied on daily since a near fatal bout of pneumonia in 2023. Later, after being transported to the police station, Retton is seen fussing with paramedics when they advise her to go to the hospital to get her oxygen checked.

“No, f–k that! Put me in a cell,” she snaps. “I’ll die here. I’ll die here and you guys will live with that.” After being taken into custody, Retton was charged with one count of driving under the inﬂuence of alcohol, controlled substances or drugs. She was released that same day on $1,500 bond, according to online records.

During a court appearance last month, Retton entered a no contest plea to the first-time, nonaggravated DUI charge and was ordered to pay a $100 penalty

Nussmeier among LSU players for SEC Media Day

Quarterback Garrett Nussmeier, wide receiver Chris Hilton and linebacker Whit Weeks will join LSU coach Brian Kelly at SEC Media Day next week when the four-day event is held in downtown Atlanta. SEC Media Days takes place July 14-17 at the Omni Hotel and the College Football Hall of Fame in Atlanta. LSU will be joined on Day 1 by Ole Miss South Carolina and Vanderbilt. LSU’s rotation runs from 8 a.m. until 11:45 a.m. Nussmeier is the third quarterback in LSU history to make two appearances at SEC Media Days, joining Jordan Jefferson (2010-11) and Zach Mettenberger (2012-13). LSU reports to camp later this month to begin preseason practice in advance of the season opener at Clemson on Aug 30 in what is expected to be a Top 10 matchup.

LSU LHP ace Anderson wins Corbett Award

Kade Anderson, the ace lefthanded pitcher for the LSU baseball team, was selected as the Allstate Sugar Bowl’s James J. Corbett Award winner as the top male athlete in Louisiana.

Anderson, a native of Madisonville and a St. Paul’s graduate, closed one of the top pitching seasons in LSU history by turning in a pair of sensational College World Series outings to earn Most Outstanding Player honors as LSU captured its eighth national championship. For the year, Anderson recorded a 12-1 record with a 3.18 ERA and 180 strikeouts (No 1 in the nation) in 119 innings (tops in the SEC). Opponents hit just .211 against him and he walked just 35 batters.

Clark set to return after missing from groin injury

INDIANAPOLIS Caitlin Clark expects to play Wednesday when the Indiana Fever host the Golden State Valkyries after missing the past ﬁve games with a left groin injury

The All-Star captain participated in practice Monday which was open to season ticket holders, playing in a 5-on-5 scrimmage. It was the first time she’d done that since getting hurt on June 26. Barring any setbacks, Clark will be available to play Wednesday It was Clark’s second injury of the season. She’s only played in nine of the team’s 18 games this season as well as the WNBA Commissioner’s Cup final which saw the Fever beat the Minnesota Lynx. Clark had a left quad injury that forced her to miss five games last month.

NHL, NHLPA ratify CBA extension through 2030

The NHL and NHL Players’ Association have ratiﬁed their extension of the collective bargaining agreement, securing labor peace in the sport through 2030. The league and union announced in a joint news release Tuesday that the deal had been approved. It took a vote of the Board of Governors and the full NHLPA membership The sides came to a tentative agreement on the four-year extension late last month.

It includes an 84-game regular season with less exhibition play, shorter maximum contract lengths, a playoff salary cap, no mandatory dress code for players and the creation of a full-time traveling goaltender position to eliminate the practice of emergency backup goalies from entering games.

Bonner rejoins Mercury after signing as free agent PHOENIX DeWanna Bonner has rejoined the Phoenix Mercury, signing as a free agent on Tuesday She helped the franchise win two WNBA titles in her previous stint with the team which drafted her ﬁfth in 2009.

Bonner spent the first 10 years of her career with the Mercury and helped them win titles in 2009 and 2014. She left for Connecticut and helped the franchise reach the WNBA semifinals for five straight years from 2020-24. The 37-year-old Bonner is third all time on the league’s scoring list and is a six-time All-Star She originally signed with Indiana as a free agent to start the year before deciding that the fit wasn’t right for her and asking to be waived by the franchise.

AP PHOTO By KIRSTy WIGGLESWORTH

Carlos Alcaraz of Spain celebrates defeating Cameron Norrie of the United Kingdom during their men’s singles match at Wimbledon in London on Tuesday.

ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO By KIN CHEUNG Taylor Fritz of the U.S reacts during his men’s singles match against Karen Khachanov of Russia at

york Daily News (TNS)

2017,

UCF’s Frost tries to skip talk of failed Nebraska tenure, but falls short

BY SCHUYLER DIXON AP sportswriter

FRISCO, Texas Scott Frost’s celebrated return as coach at UCF comes with the backdrop of a failed tenure at Nebraska, the alma mater he said he didn’t want to talk about at Big 12 football media days Tuesday Even though he did. Frost said, “I really want to keep it about UCF,” just a few hours after telling a reporter that he never wanted to take the Nebraska job in the first place coming off a 13-0 season in 2017 that sparked debate about whether the Knights should have had a chance to play for the national championship in the four-team playoff.

“I said I wouldn’t leave unless it was someplace you could win a national championship,” Frost said. “I got tugged in a direction to try to help my alma mater and didn’t really want to do it.

League

BY STEPHEN HAWKINS AP sportswriter

FRISCO, Texas There are no official Big 12 predictions going into this season, so there will be no last-to-ﬁrst narrative like what Arizona State had in its league debut. Going into its 30th football season, the Big 12 didn’t conduct a preseason media poll predicting the order of ﬁnish for the 16-team conference. The results were way off last year

“I try to ignore it as best I can,” Kansas State coach Chris Klieman said Tuesday at Big 12 media days “It’s one of the reasons we as coaches did not do a coaches poll because I think the narrative has really hurt our league. I know it hurt Arizona State and I know it hurt BYU last year.” Arizona State won the Big 12 championship game last season after being picked to ﬁnish at the bottom of the Big 12 standings. The Sun Devils were in a four-way tie for ﬁrst place in the regular-season standings, beat Iowa State in the title game and were the only league team to make the College Football Playoff. Sun Devils coach Kenny Dillingham said he couldn’t care less about any of the predictions last year, or what anybody might have guessed for this season They do have back quarterback Sam Leavitt, who was picked as the league’s preseason offensive player of the year since media still voted on a preseason All-Big 12 team.

It wasn’t a good move. I’m lucky to get back to a place where I was a lot happier.”

When the same reporter asked Frost in a one-on-one interview what he learned from his time in Nebraska, the former Cornhuskers quarterback said, “Don’t take the wrong job.”

Frost’s tone was quite a bit different in two different settings with reporters at the 12,000-seat indoor stadium that is also a practice ﬁeld for the Dallas Cowboys.

“When you go through something that doesn’t work, just ready for another chance, and I’m ready for another chance,” Frost said.

“This is about the Big 12. This is about UCF Everybody has success in life and has failures in life, for all sorts of different reasons I’m excited to get back in a place where my family and I get treated well.” Frost inherited an 0-12 team at UCF and turned it

into an undefeated American Athletic Conference champion in just two years. Nebraska fans were ecstatic when he made the move 20 years after leading the Cornhuskers to a perfect 1997 season and a split national title with Michigan in the ﬁnal season before a championship game was established. Three games into his ﬁfth season in Lincoln, Frost was fired with a 16-31 record. Almost three full college seasons later, it’s back to Orlando after one year working under Los Angeles Rams coach Sean McVay

“I really enjoyed two years off,” Frost said. “I got to spend a whole year with Ashley and the (three) kids, and I’ll never get that time back. I played more catch with my son and touch football in the yard with him and going to Little League and seeing my daughter do gymnastics. And then some time out in L.A. really, really

helped reset me, too.”

Images endure of Frost celebrating a 34-27 Peach Bowl victory over Auburn that clinched UCF’s perfect 2017 season almost a month after he had been named the coach at Nebraska.

Fast-forward almost eight years, and Frost was delaying a roundtable with reporters to take a few pictures with the players he brought with him to media days.

“Yeah, being around the guys,” Frost said of that moment. “I’m sorry I’d rather be around the guys than you guys.”

And there are times when Frost brings up the old days with his new guys.

“We talk to them about all those things,” Frost said. “What happened in 2017 is at times relevant, but this is a new team. So we only point those things out, not to live in the past, but just to help them with any lessons that we want to learn.”

RABALAIS

Continued from page 1C

ﬂopping out of the preseason top 10 to ﬁnish 2-10 this past season, or Big 12 contender Oklahoma State going 0-9 in the league.

But the pressure is real for Kelly and his krewe.

And the comparisons to LSU’s other top-level successful programs raise that pressure with each passing title.

It’s not just baseball.

Three of the ﬁve major hires LSU athletic director Scott Woodward has made have won national championships when you include women’s basketball’s Kim Mulkey (2023) and gymnastics’ Jay Clark (2024).

Again, no one should expect that if LSU doesn’t make the CFP this season, much less play for or win a college football national championship, that Kelly’s job is in jeopardy He’s done too well, too reasonably well, for that to be true.

If you want a real hot seat, look under men’s basketball coach Matt McMahon, another Woodward hire.

But the wood and kindling to build a bonﬁre under Kelly’s seat is stacking up pretty high, and it’s not only in the form of national championship trophies won by Kelly’s fellow LSU coaches. His former program at Notre Dame reaching this past season’s CFP title game brings a match. And Kelly doesn’t mind letting the fuse burn by saying that the team LSU has assembled for this season with returning players, transfer portal pieces and high school recruits is his most talented Tigers team yet.

BIG 12

Continued from page 1C

highest-ranked conference champions are guaranteed spots in the playoff. The difference this year is that the top four highest-ranked champions are no longer guaranteed the top four seeds that come with ﬁrstround byes.

Among potential 16-team formats would be four automatic qualiﬁers from both the SEC and Big Ten, and two each for the Big 12 and ACC. The Big 12 last season had only conference champion Arizona State make the playoff last season.

There are those who still wonder how much Kelly wants it — “it” being the elusive major college national championship trophy that is the one empty space in his College Football Hall of

tions are. In December, he announced he would match up to $1 million in NIL donations to LSU’s Bayou Traditions collective. By February when the fundraiser ended, it had generated a total of $3.23 million. If Kelly was not serious about making a run at the top then he would have sent his money to a Swiss bank, not Bayou Traditions. But now that run has to take place. That’s

Arguably, this will be LSU’s toughest sports championship

compared to

the others. What will be in the

for the Tigers when this coming season reaches its end? Will it be ﬁlled with confetti and ﬁreworks or something much less celebratory?

intended in enforcing the rules in the remade system

“It will. I have a lot of faith in Bryan Seely,” Yormark said of the former Major League Baseball executive named CEO of the new CSC. “It should create a level playing ﬁeld, and I’m not giving that up.”

BYU was picked to ﬁnish 13th in the Big 12, and was part of that four-way tie at the end of the regular season with 7-2 conference records. The Cougars ﬁnished 11-2 overall, including a 9-0 start in which they had an early win over ACC newcomer SMU, which made the 12-team playoff field even after losing its conference championship game.

Big 12 Commissioner Brett Yormark said there’s no value to such preseason football polls, especially with the ever-changing landscape in the game these days. He felt Arizona State was disadvantaged because of being picked 16th long before even playing its ﬁrst game.

“With the transfer portal and with roster management and what goes on as you build that roster, no one knows what they really have. They know what they have on paper, but it hasn’t played out,” Yormark said.

“And that was the case with Arizona State last year So I don’t know if it’s a trend or not but certainly it’s the right thing for the Big 12 and I’m glad we did it.”

The Big Ten Conference has long forgone doing preseason polls.

“I don’t really care where people put us. Vote us ﬁrst, vote us last, vote us in the middle. If we’re so focused on other people’s expectations of us, then you’re going to limit yourself,” Dillingham said Tuesday “Who knows? Are we supposed to win six games? Are we supposed to win nine games? Are we supposed to go undefeated? Are we supposed to win zero? All I know is when we show up to work, we should be the very best version of ourselves And if we compete in something, you better compete to win.”

Arizona State went into the Big 12 title game last December at 15th in the CFP rankings, behind three SEC teams with three losses and Mountain West Conference champion Boise State. The Sun Devils were then 12th in the final CFP rankings, but got a ﬁrst-round bye as one of the top four-ranked conference champions before the format changed for this season to more-direct seeding.

A series of tiebreakers had put Arizona State and Iowa State in the Big 12 title game, and eliminated BYU and Colorado from title contention.

Utah, which like Arizona State made its Big 12 debut last year, was the preseason favorite to win the league. The Utes won all three of their non-conference games, but went 2-7 otherwise to ﬁnish near the bottom of the Big 12 standings.

Oklahoma State was last after going 0-9 in conference play The Cowboys had been picked third.

Global stages

The Big 12 season will open Aug 23 with Kansas State playing Iowa State in Ireland. TCU will play its 2026 season opener there against North Carolina.

“I’ve been on the record to say that I want this conference to be a global conference,” said Yormark, who is going into his fourth year as Big 12 commissioner. “I think we can win globally big time. Playing in Ireland obviously is that ﬁrst step.”

Football isn’t the league’s only sport going international for a league in which

Yormark said 11% of the student-athletes are from outside the United States.

“Just from a recruitment standpoint, it makes sense to carry that ﬂag outside of the domestic marketplace,” he said.

Baylor’s women’s basketball team will open the upcoming season in Paris.

Yormark said there is a good chance of a baseball game in Mexico City next spring, and that there are conversations about events in other international markets, like Germany

“We want to earn it on the field,” Yormark said. “It might not be the best solution today for the Big 12, given your comments about (automatic qualiﬁers) but long term, knowing the progress we’re making, the investments we’re making, it’s the right format for us.”

Yormark, who is going into his fourth year as Big 12 commissioner, believes that the landmark NCAA House settlement will have a positive impact for all conferences, especially if the College Sports Commission works the way it is

The Big 12 was already in transition and still at 10 teams when Yormark arrived in 2022. BYU, Cincinnati, Houston and UCF joined the league the following year Texas and Oklahoma, who won football national championships while in the Big 12, completed their longplanned move to the SEC last year That is when Pac-12 schools Arizona, Arizona State, Colorado and Utah came into what is now a 16team Big 12.

“I think parity matters, and I think ultimately over time, and that’s hopefully sooner than later, there’ll be a couple of our schools that will emerge, you know, as elite schools that are always part of the conversations at the highest levels. And that’s what we’re working toward,” Yormark said. “But it starts with parity and being competitive top to bottom. And I think we’re there.”

ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO By LM OTERO

UCF coach Scott Frost speaks during Big 12 media days on Tuesday in Frisco, Texas. Coming off a 13-0 season at UCF in

Frost took the job at Nebraska ad was fired early in his fifth season with a 16-31 record. He was hired back at UCF.

Schauffele triesto flushhis worstseasonyet

NORTH BERWICK, Scotland The best thing Xander Schauffelehas going for him in the worst season of his careerisagood attitude. That much was evident Tuesday when he walked into the media center at the Scottish Open and sawhis picture.

It was on awall beneath asign that said, “TOILETS.”

“That was heartwarming, Schauffele said with agrin that neverseems too far away

your career’ —and I’vebacked it up currently with the worst year of my career.It’sbeen ahot one.”

This is notwhere he expected to be coming into the ﬁnal stretch of theyear

“The belief is good,” he said. “I don’tthink I’ve givenmyself a lot of reasons to believe that I’m playing OK. It’s been apretty bad year to becompletely honest

“Summed up how Ifeel about what’s going on right now Iactuallychuckled when Isaw that one.”

He is theonly American to win the Scottish Open over the last 10 years. He defends his title next week in the British Open, avictory that made him adoublemajor winner in 2024, which allowed him to take his place amongthe elite in golf.

That can feel like much longer than ayear ago.

Schauffele had reason to have big expectations this year.What he didn’tsee coming was atwinge in his ribs to start the season in Hawaii that turned out to be much worse —anintercostal strain and acartilage tear

He missed two months with the first significant injury of his career.Hehas not been the same since then,with only one top-10 finish,atie foreighthinthe Masters. His greatest achievement was extending his cut streak on the PGA Tour to 67 consecutive tournaments, the longest such streak in 20 years.

“I probably downplayed it in my own mind —‘Yeah, you’ll beﬁne, you’ve been playing great golf, youjust came off the best year of

Ithink the best part of my game hasprobably been my mental just fortitude, whatever you want to call it, just to try to stay positive andbehaveasifI am playing really well.

“But coming off ayear like last year,gettinghurt, coming back, my expectationsand playing ability have notcuedupvery nicely.”

The injury is nolonger an issue. The game has looked good at times. What he lacks is aspark, which comes from results, to get himgoing.

Schauffele has great discipline that gets lost behind that San Diego vibe of his. He chose to not add tournaments to his schedule to make up forlost time, even though he ﬁnds himself chasing this late in the year

He won twice as arookie, includingthe Tour Championship. Chasingisnot something he does.

The Ryder Cupisnot an issue. Winning the PGA Championship and theBritish Open has allowed himtostay at No. 2inthe U.S. standings.

ButheisatNo. 57 in the FedExCup —onlythe top 70 make the postseason —and these two weeksonlinksgolf could go a long way toward making sure he gets there.

“It’sbeen aweird year for me just from coming offthe year I had last year into sort of what Idid, justkindof disappearing and then playing bad coming out

of it,” he said. “So any expectation Ihad of whatever Ithought I was capable of doing from afeel standpoint has been sort of reset, andIaminfull chase mode, like akid.”

He hopes links golf will be part of the tonic.

PartofSchauffele wishes he could have come earlier across theAtlantic, where he could play golf that consists of seeing the target and hittingthe ball, nothing morecomplicated than that.

“Somethingabout being here, you start taking your hands off thewheel, and that’show Iplayed my best,” he said.

All-Star Buxton’s greatest powerhas been hisavailability

BY DAVE CAMPBELL

AP sportswriter

MINNEAPOLIS For allthe evidence that Byron Buxton has had an All-Star season, the supporting statistics start and end with this simple number: 73.

That’sthe total of gamesin which the Minnesota Twinshave had their dynamic center ﬁelder in the starting lineup, puttinghim on pace for the second-most of his 11-year career.Availability has long been the elusive piece to make Buxton one of the most complete players in the major leagues, and his age-31 season has brought afresh wave of allaround production fueledbygood health.

“It’samonumentalreturn, manager Rocco Baldelli said “He’sbeenone of thetop players in baseball. To be able to get prime Buxton, basically every day,that’s awhole differentdeal. Whenyou actually see it and you actually get it, and it’sinfront of youevery day, it’sabeautiful thing.”

His second All-Star Game selection will go down as oneofhis greatestsatisfactions in the sport, considering the path he’staken to get here and the fact that the festivitiesnextweekwillbeinhis native Georgia.

“Going back home to do something like this is aonce-in-a-lifetime thing. Iknow I’m not going

to play 30 moreyearstoget back to Atlanta,” said Buxton, who was previously an All-Star in 2022 whenthe game wasinLos Angeles.

Family was front of mind when Buxton was informed he’d made the team. His youngest of three sons, Baire, wasn’tborn when he wentthe last time. The host site this year atTruistPark, thehome of the Braves, is aboutathreehour drive from his tiny hometown,Baxley. Then there’s his participation in theHomeRun Derby,whichwill fulﬁll the wish of his oldest son,11-year-old Brix, to deliver atowel and adrink duringhis breaks.

“Out of everybody there, all the people he’s goingtosee,that’s what he wants and cares about. So it’sthe small things that add up to thebig ones,” Buxton said.

With five of his 20 home runs leading off the game for the Twins, Buxton has14career leadoffhomerstotie Chuck Knoblauch for thefourth-most in Twins history.He’salso one of only six players in the major leagues this season with at least 15 homersand 15 steals. Buxton ranksamong the top10 batters in the American League in slugging percentage, OPS, triples, homers,runs, RBIsand steals, plus anumber of other advanced statistics while providing his usual Gold Glove-caliberde-

fense in center.Heis16for 16 on stolen-base attempts, too, as sure of asign his hips and knees are as healthyasever. With 109 steals in 121 career attempts, Buxton is the onlyplayer in Major League Baseball historywithmore than 100 attempts and a90% or better success rate.

His home run on June 11 was measured at 479 feet, the secondlongest in MLB thisseason and thelongest of his career.The only setback was aconcussion that cost him 11 games in May,stemmingfromanoutfield collision with teammate Carlos Correa.

Aftertopping the 100-game mark in 2024 foronlythe second time in his career,Buxton has not only built on that injury-prevention progress but experienced the full beneﬁts of being consistently healthy enough toplay

Onlytwice has Baldelli slotted Buxton as thedesignated hitter this year

“Once you get those at-bats and getbackintothe groove of things, you tendtostarttaking off,” Buxton said.

TheTwins, who took a43-47 recordintotheir three-game series starting Tuesday against the Chicago Cubs, would be in bigtrouble without him.

“He does it at thehighest level, everything he does,”Correa said.

“He’sfun.He’selectric, full of energy,and our team needs that.”

Schauffelewas in peak form a year ago. He broke through with his ﬁrst major at the PGAChampionship that asked alot of him on asoft course at Valhalla, particularly the last hole.

He had to stand in abunker to play ashot from the rough with a4-iron, the ball wellabove his feet, water downthe right side. From there, he pitched to 6feet and swirled in the birdie putt for aone-shot victory over Bryson DeChambeau. Twomonths later,hewithstood rain and wind at Royal Troon with a65inthe ﬁnal round to give him asecond major.Hewas No.2in

the world. Scottie Schefﬂer was still miles ahead, but Schauffele was at apoint where he felt he could winwherever he played.

Those were happy times. This only feels like the worst of times. There is also something about the chase that takes him back to being akid, when he wasn’tthe highly recruited star and was virtually an unknownbefore he earned his recognition.

This feels like starting over

“I’ve been spoiled to play at a pretty high level forquite some time,” he said. “This has been a funexperience to try to get back on the horse.”

Padresslugger Machado gets 2,000thcareerhit

By The Associated Press

SAN DIEGO Manny Machado of theSan Diego Padres gothis 2,000th career hit Monday night against the ArizonaDiamondbackswith asharp single off the gloveofdivingshortstop Geraldo Perdomo.

Themilestone hit cameagainst starter Zac Gallen leading off the fourth inning. Machado received astanding ovation from the crowd at PetcoPark, where he’sbeen a fan favorite sincejoining the Padres in 2019.

“Doing it in front of the home crowd deﬁnitely is alot better,and hopefully there’smore,” Machado said after San Diego’s6-3 loss.

TheAll-Starsluggersingledto left field in the first forhis 1,999th hit.Machado’sthird hit of the night was ahomer against Kyle Backhus leadingoff theeighth, his 15th of the season and 357th of his career Machado becamethe fifth active playerand 297th all-time to reach themilestone. He is the 12th play-

WALKER

Continuedfrom page1C

“I think Ican bring versatility and energy,” Shumate said. “I’m an athletic guy.Ihave areally high motor.I’ve been working on my shot alot, so Ican pretty much be a‘3and D’ guy.I can knock down some shots. Ioffensive rebound very well. But Ithink the highest things would be my motor and toughness.”

Shumate didn’ttake long to show his athleticism at practice this week, skying to catch amissed shot and slamming it home.

“He’sareal athlete,” said Pelicans’ Summer League coach Corey Brewer.“Some dudesare athletic, but he’s an athlete.” Brewer and the Pelicans staff knew that already.It’sthe other parts of Shumate’sgame that have really opened eyes. Particularly Shumate’sability to score.

“In college, he wasn’treally knownasashooter,” Brewer said. “But the last three days he’s really shot theballamazingly. And he’sathletic. Christian hasbeen the surprise and hasreally helped himself.” Shumate hasn’tsurprisedonly his coaches. In away,he’seven surprised himself.

“I’ve learned that I’mmore versatile than Ithought,”Shumate said. “I’ve always been notone-dimensional, but Itried to do what I was good at all the time. But there

er to have 350 homers and 2,000 hits by his age-32 season.

“It’sspecial and an honor to be apart of that list,” Machado said. “Deﬁnitely would have wanted the victory,but steppingawayfrom that, it’spretty cool.”

He tipped his batting helmet to the crowdwhile standing on ﬁrst base.

“Wow,literally hats off. What an accomplishment,” Padres manager Mike Shildt said. “We’re happy forit. He earned it.”

Machado madehis debut with Baltimore in 2012 and got 977 hits with the Orioles before being traded to the Los Angeles Dodgers on July18, 2018. He had73hitswith the Dodgers before signing as a free agent with the Padres on Feb. 21, 2019.

He has 950 hits with San Diego, whichranks ﬁfth on the franchise list. Hall of Famer Tony Gwynn had 3,141 in his 20-season career Machadowas votedthe starting third baseman for the National League All-Star team this year

PROVIDED PHOTO

McNeeseState’sChristian Shumate answers questions after an NCAA Tournament game in March.

are more things that I’mgood at on the ﬂoor that Itry to go to more often. So Ithinkthat’sbeen the main thing. Trying to show my skill in alot of different areas instead of just the main thing.” Thatdoesn’tmean the dunks they referred to as ShuSlams in Lake Charles are going away He’ll still likely create aposter or two in Vegas. But he’s equally focused on what he can do below the rim and notjust above it. He’s notjust trying to show fellow McNeese alum Dumars what he can do.The other 29 NBA teams will be watching, too.

“He’sproven that he hasguard skills and he can do alot of different things,”Brewer said. “I think forguys like that, when you’re in college, youkind of getput in abox. Thenyou getout here and you’re able to do different things and yousurprise yourself. Ithink he hassurprisedhimself and that conﬁdence is going to help him.

ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO By BRUCE KLUCKHOHN

Minnesota Twins outfielder Byron Buxton roundsthird baseagainst the Seattle Mariners on June 25 in Minneapolis.

ASSOCIATEDPRESS PHOTOByJESSICA HILL

Xander Schauffele reacts to his tee shot on the fi rst holeduring the second round of Travelers at TPCRiver HighlandsinCromwell, Conn. on June 20.

Doug Ferguson

Brownready forpressure as Knicks’new head coach

BY BRIAN MAHONEY AP basketball writer

GREENBURGH, N.Y.

MikeBrown

knows there’sgoingto be pressure that comes with coachingthe Knicks. He also knows there’sa greatrosterand great restaurants waiting in New York.

He’sexcited about all of it

The new Knicks coach shook off any concerns abouttaking over ateam that ﬁred TomThibodeau despite getting two wins from the NBAFinals,pointing to thepositives Tuesday that made him want the job.

“Nobody has any bigger expectations, ﬁrst of all, than Ido. Imean, my expectations are high,” Brown said. “But this is the Knicks. Italked aboutMadison SquareGarden being iconic. Youtalk about our fans. Ilove and embrace the expectations that come along withit, so I’m looking forwardto it.”

Brownwas hired alittlemore than amonth after the Knickssurprisingly fired Thibodeaudespite getting to the Eastern Conference finals for the first time in 25 years. Brown didn’t want to talk too much about that decision, nor the Sacramento Kings’choice to fire himlastseason.

“First of all, Tom’satremendous coach and he is afriendofmine, but Idon’twant to get to thepast,” Brown said. “I’m just excited about the roster.I’m excited about thethings that we’re going to put in place here and where we could go with the guys that we have.”

The Knicks went 51-31last season and have one of the strongest starting ﬁves in the league, headlined by All-NBA selections Jalen Brunson and Karl-Anthony Towns. They would have goneinto next season as one of the favorites in the East if they brought back their same team.

Instead, teampresident Leon Rose and owner James Dolan decided they needed to change coaches as they continuesearching for their first championship since 1973.

“Our goal, starting with Mr

Dolan to Leon to the players all the way downtothe fans, is to build asustainable, winningculture that produces championships. That’s why I’mhere,” Brown said. “I’m fortunate to know what it takes to create that success: alot of hard work, ahighlevel of commitment and afocusontoday.”

Brown talkedabout wanting to winand called NewYork“agreat placethat has like thinking.”Heis eager to builda partnership with Rose,the former player agent who represented LeBron James when he playedfor BrowninCleveland.

“And then looking at theroster andthe reality of it is, Ro said, ‘We better move to New York because I’m afoodie,” Brown said, referring to his ﬁancee who was seated in the front row.“So when you combine all those things, it was a no-brainer for me.”

Brown is 454-304 in 11 seasons, winning NBA Coach of theYear honors in 2009 withCleveland and 2023 inSacramento, when he led the Kings to the playoffs for the

first time since 2006. They fired him 11/2 seasons later

The Knicks equally valuedhis success as an assistant coach, winning an NBA titlein2003 under GreggPopovichinSan Antonio andthree morechampionships under Steve KerrinGolden State. He also led the Nigerianteam to an upset victoryover theU.S. in apreOlympic exhibition gamein2021.

“When Iwas in San Antonio with David (Robinson) and Tim(Duncan), it was aboutplaying insideout, and now fast-forward to my time with Steveit’sabout pace and space and that’swhere the gameis,”Brown said. “If you can’t evolve you’re going to get left behind, and so Ifeel like I’mtryingto do that and hopefully we’ll be able to bring someofthat here.”

Brown believes he takes over ateam that can play fastlike he prefers, but also hasthe versatility to playother styles thanks to Brunson. He addedthatthe Knicks’ success in the postseason shows their potential.

Clarktakes IndianateammateBoston No.1inWNBAAll-StarGamedraft

BY DOUG FEINBERG

AP basketball writer

NEW YORK Caitlin Clarkpicked her Indiana teammate Aliyah Boston No. 1while Napheesa Collier took her Unrivaled business partner BreannaStewart ﬁrst in the WNBA All-Star Game draft on Tuesday Clark, who had the ﬁrst overall pick by being No. 1inthe fan vote, had said Monday there was “a high chance” that Boston and Kelsey Mitchell of the Fever would be on herteam. Clark’sother choices for starters were New York’sSabrina Ionescu, Las Vegas’ A’ja Wilson and Phoenix’sSatou Sabally,and she picked Mitchell as areserve.

“I feel good. My team is very well-rounded. Love the team we have to start —the first five, I think we’re off to agood start, Clark said.

Collierdrafted Atlanta’sAllisha Gray,Seattle’sNneka Ogwumike andDallas rookiePaige Bueckers to complete her starting ﬁve.

“We’redynamic, gotpeople that can score at all levels, apoint guard,” Collier said.

AfterColliertook Minnesota teammateCourtney Williams ﬁrst in the reserve portion of the draft, Clark selected Mitchell. TwoSeattle players went next with Skylar Diggins going to Collier and Gabby Williams to Clark,who passed up on the chance to draft fellow second-year player and longtime rival Angel Reese. Clark and Reese teamed up during last season’sAll-Star Gamethat pittedthe WNBA’s best against the U.S. Olympicsquad.The WNBA All-Stars won Collier took Reese with thethird pickinthe reserve draft. She roundedout her squad with

Phoenix’s Alyssa Thomas, Los Angeles’ KelseyPlum and Atlanta’s Rhyne Howard. Clark also drafted Washington rookies Sonia Citron andKikiIriafen,Las Vegas’ Jackie Young and Golden State’sKayla Thornton. Williams, Citron, Iriafen and Thorntonare making theirAll-Star debuts.

When thedraft wasover, the captains traded coaches to put Cheryl Reeveofthe Lynx back with her players, Collier andWilliams. Reeve was coach of the U.S. Olympic team lastseason thatwon gold in Paris.Clarkdidn’tmake the squadand some people blamed Reeve forthat, although the Lynx coach had nothing to do withthe selection of players.

Sandy Brondello of the New York Liberty will coach Clark’steam. The game will be played on July 19 in Indianapolis.

Seattleusessolid defense to disruptteams,climbs up WNBA standings

BY DOUG FEINBERG AP basketball writer

NEW YORK The Seattle Storm have been disruptive on defense this season behind stars Skylar Diggins, GabbyWilliamsand Nneka Ogwumike.

They have theversatility to switch whothey are guarding on screens which makes them more difficult to score against. The group also is great at being active in passing lines that has created moresteals and turnovers.

Diggins, whoisaveraging 1.3

steals, joked that she might be the worst of the group defensively

“I don’thave any shameinthat, thethingyou got is Erica (Wheeler) hogging the ball like she does. Youknow,you got Gabby who can run and guard people. We’re just really good on that end.”

The Storm are fifthinpoints allowed agame, but are coming off an impressive effort against New York,where theteamheld the Liberty to just six ﬁeld goals in thesecond half,including two in the decisive third quarter Seattlehas wonthree of its past four games and has ahome-andhome with lowly Connecticut in itsnext two. The team is 12-7, one game behindPhoenix for second place in the standings.

Reesecalls foul

Chicago forward Angel Reesesaid after theteam’slossat Minnesota on Sunday that the league’sofficiating “has to be ﬁxed.”

“It’s tough whenyou talk to ofﬁcials, and Iasked them, ‘Hey, we’ve only been to the free throw line twice up until the fourth quarter,’and she tells me it’snot

her job,” Reese said after the game.“So it’sfrustratingbecause Iknowhow hard we arebattling inside, and Ithink that we came downand fought as hard as we could with what we had, and I just know we continue to grow in this.”

In thefive-point loss, theSky went to the foul line eight times to Minnesota’s17attempts. “I think this is aleaping step for us, and obviously we know we can compete with thebest,but (the officiating) hastobefixed. And Idon’tgive adamnifIget fined because that (stuff) is cheap, and I’mtired of this. ’Cause I’ve been nice, and I’ve been humblewith it, but Iamtired of this.”

Powerpollrankings

Minnesota still is theNo. 1team with Phoenix and Seattle behind the Lynx. Atlanta andNew York were the next two. Golden State, Indiana andLas Vegas followed the Liberty.Washington and Dallas were ninth and 10th. Los Angeles, Chicago and Connecticut rounded out the poll.

Player of theweek

NapheesaCollierofMinnesota averaged 23.7 points, six rebounds and1.7 blocks to help the Lynx go 3-0intheir regularseason games last week. Other players receiving votes were Aliyah Boston of Indiana, Gabby WilliamsofSeattle and Courtney WilliamsofMinnesota.

Game of theweek

GoldenState at Indiana, Wednesday. Caitlin Clark is expected to make herreturn to the lineupafter missingﬁve games with agroin strain.

ASSOCIATEDPRESS PHTO By LINDSEy WASSON Indiana Feverforward Aliyah Boston drives to the basket against Seattle Stormguard Skylar Diggins during the first halfonJune 24 in Seattle.

ASSOCIATDPRESS PHOTO By SPENSER HEAPS

Newyork Knicks coach MikeBrown,who took over from the fired Tom Thibodeau, said expectations will be highinNew york after the team went 51-31 last season.

Lauren Cheramie BONVIVANT

Catchsweet July deals around BR restaurants

Bon vi·vant /noun/ asociable personwho has cultivatedand reﬁned tastes, especially with respect to food and drink

Markets, festivalsand more

Melon Mania: 8a.m. Saturday at Red Stick FarmersMarket, 501 Main St., Baton Rouge Enjoy melon mania at the farmers market’sFreshFest an eight-week celebration of the height of the state’sagriculture season. The event highlights adifferent product each week with cooking demonstrations from local chefs, food tastings, kids’ activities, live music and more.

PROVIDED PHOTO

Enjoymelon mania Saturdayat the Red Stick Farmers Market’s Fresh Fest.

Baton RougeNeighbor Hood Fest:

noon to 8p.m. Saturday at the Main Library at Goodwood, 7711 Goodwood Blvd., Baton Rouge

The second annual(Neighbor) Hood Fest will feature live music with Henry Turner Jr., local ﬁlm screenings with panel discussions, afood court and vendors’ village to celebrate the city’sneighborhoods and culture. For those interested in being avendor,contactDon Schwarzkopf at (832) 413-2217 or don@ewmediagroup.com

Newfood on theblock

Trythe July po-boy of the month at Jed’sLocal,672 Jefferson Highway,Baton Rouge.For every order of the Cajun hot dog —made withgrilled alligator sausage, sauteed onion and peppers, provolone and Creole mustardsauce on atoasted briochebun —Jed’swill donate money to Hands Producing Hope, which empowerswomen locally and globally

Check out the new menu at Bengal TapRoom,421 N. Third St., BatonRouge, from chef Danny Wilson. Feast on chili cheese hot dogs, burgers, meat pies, boudin balls and more.

Rock-n-Sake,3043 Perkins Road, Baton Rouge, released the July roll of the month for Tuesdays: The “One Hot Summer” roll is made with torched salmon, jalapeño,spring mix, cucumbers, snowkrab, kimchi and eel sauces, chili-garlic, ponzu, green onions and black sesame seeds. Dine in to get your choice of arodeo roll or tiger roll for $6 when you purchase any regular-pricedroll. Restaurant 1796 at The Myrtles, 7747 U.S. 61, St. Francisville, releasedits summer menu with old favoriteslike the grilled redﬁsh and trufﬂe mac and cheese.Dinner service is 5p.m. to 9p.m. Monday through Saturday,while brunch is hosted 11 a.m. to 2p.m. Saturday and Sunday In theknow

The CarriageHouse at Houmas House and Gardens, 40136 La. 942, Darrow,has anew chef de cuisine, Ty Lassere, who will join forces withexecutive chef Jeremy Langlois to revitalize the Sunday brunch offerings.

FRESHTAKE

CBY SERENA PUANG Staff writer

eviche is adish best served cold —which makes it the perfect summer food in Baton Rouge.

At its core, ceviche is raw ﬁsh or shellﬁsh marinated in citrus juice, spices and alittlebit of something extra. The acid from the citrus fruits initiates aprocess called denaturation that breaks down proteins.The result is similar to cooking with heat. For theuninitiated, it can seem intimidating, but to Suly Salazar,owner of Blue Corn Modern Mexican, ceviche is simple.

The restaurant’s house ceviches have the same base of marinated ﬁsh or shrimpthat are made fresh daily at 9a.m., so it’sreadytoserve at 11 a.m. when customers arrive. Thedifference between good and badceviche,Salazar said,ishow fresh theingredientsare.

Thedishisknown to originate from Peru, whereit’sstill the national dish. Indigenous people in the region have been eatinga version of ceviche for thousands of years. The dishalsoevolved to include lime, which was brought over by Spanish colonizers and Japanese immigrantstoPeru in the 1800s —who contributed their cooking techniquesand sushiexpertise to evolve the dish closer to what it is today

Each ceviche dish is theresult of adaptation and worlds colliding.

“In Sinaloa, where I’mfrom, the culture of the food mixed with Asian andPaciﬁc Islanders over time through trade andmigration,” said RosaRojo, owner of Los Plebes, speaking Spanish through atranslator

The seafood dishes in Sinaloa now feature black sauces like soy sauce and many chili peppers that originate from Southeast Asia. This fusion, Rojo said, has transformed modernSinaloan culture into what it is today

Theceviche offerings at each

restaurant vary widely.The dishes aremadewith different ingredients and come from differentfusionsofcuisines,culturesand familyrecipes. In some countries,cevicheismarinatedfor hours, while in others, it’sa matter of minutes. Some people serve ceviche with tortilla chips,otherswith plantain chips, corn or sweet potato. Here are someofour favorite ceviches in Baton Rouge. Did we miss your favorite? Let us know by emailing Serena.Puang@ theadvocate.com

Rouge.

STAFFPHOTOSByJAVIER GALLEGOS

The MangoHabanero ceviche at Blue CornModernMexican

Ceviche Veracruz is accompanied by chips, guacamole and ashot of tequila at Veracruz.

ä See CEVICHE, page 2D

Continued from page1D

Brasas Peru

n 7520 Perkins Road, Baton Rouge

The ceviche at Brasas features raw corvina (a white fish) marinated in freshly squeezed lime juice, sliced red onions, cilantro and ají amarillo (chilipeppers). It’s served with Peruvian corn on the cob, sweet potato and Peruvian chulpe corn —perfect for those who enjoy alittle more sour and acidic ceviche. The Ceviche Carretillero Fish is topped with battered and fried ﬁsh, which owner Giannina Chavez said is amore modern take on ceviche that adds to the texture.

Los Plebes

n 9830 FloridaBlvd., Baton Rouge; 17535 Airline Highway, Prairieville

Los Plebes started as a food truck blending the raw,seafood-heavy cuisine of north Sinaloaand the cooked-meat-based cuisine of south Sinaloa. Co-owners Rojo and Fernando Luviano arefromthose areas respectively,and liketheir relationship, the restaurant brings those cuisines and cultures together Theirhouse ceviche, El Codiciado, is ahuge mix of shrimp and squid served in achalice with aside of three oyster shots with the house redsauce —a mix of soy sauce,various pepper-based sauces, tomato and tajin. It’s

Continued from page1D

Tickets go on sale at midnight Tuesday,July 15, for the annual St. Francisville Food and Wine Festival,slated for Nov.8-9.Learnfrom acclaimed chefs, enjoy creative wine pairings, cocktails, craft beer,live entertainment and more. Pilates at sunset: 6:30p.m. to 7:30 p.m. Tuesday,July 15, at Tsunami, 100 Lafayette St., Baton Rouge

Get your ticket to a golden hour glow every third Tuesday of the month at Tsunami downtown with

to spoil theactual meal.

Blue Corn:

ModernMexican

n 7673 Perkins Road SuiteA5, Baton Rouge

Blue Corn’sceviches are marinated fresh every morning. Themenufeatures three differentceviches withthe same base: Mexicano, Mango Habaneroand Mahi Mahi Peruano. The standout among these is the Mango Habanero,which combinesthe sweettaste of mango withtart seafood.

Mestizo Louisiana

an impressivesize forthe priceand extremely delicious.

The same ownersalso ownaPrairieville restaurant with the same name. The menu is slightly different —the Florida location is heavier on seafood,and this one focuses more on other meat.

Veracruz Restaurant

n 3510 Drusilla Lane,Baton Rouge

This coastal Mexican place, basedonthe cuisine of Veracruz, Mexico, has a seafood-forwardmenu and a fewitems with alittle bitof Louisiana ﬂair (hellotothe oyster tacos).The ceviche includes drum ﬁllet marinated in lime juice, tomatoes, red onions, avocado andserrano peppers. It’sa simple dish andthe perfectappetizer.Warning:One may forgethow many tortilla chips they’ve eaten while enjoying this ceviche.Becarefulnot

instructor Tanesha Craig

Tickets are $25 per person, available for purchase by texting “sunset” to (225) 200-1969.

Cobblers &Crisps: Noon to 2p.m. Friday,July 18,at Red Stick Spice Company, 660 Jefferson Highway,Baton Rouge Make the most of your summertime fruit and learn how to make cobblers yearround with frozen fruit. Participants will learn the basics of pie dough and crumbled toppings forstone fruitand berries, as well as how to achieve golden-brown perfection on crusts and toppings.Tickets are $110 per person, available forpur-

By The Associated Press

Today is Wednesday, July 9, the 190th day of 2025. There are 175 days left in the year

Todayinhistory:

On July 9, 1868, the 14th Amendment tothe US Constitution was ratiﬁed, granting citizenship and “equal protection under thelaws” to anyone “born or naturalized in the United States,” including formerly enslaved people.

Also on this date:

In 1896, William Jennings Bryant delivered his famous “Cross of Gold” speech at the Democratic National Convention in Chicago.

In 1918, 101 people were killed in atrain collision in Nashville, Tennessee, in the deadliest U.S. rail disaster in history

In 1937, aﬁre at 20th Century Fox’s storage facility in Little Ferry,New

Jersey,destroyed mostof the studio’ssilent ﬁlms.

In 1947, the engagement of Britain’sPrincess Elizabeth to Lt. Philip Mountbatten wasannounced.

In 1965, the Sonny & Cher single “I Got You Babe” wasreleased by ATCO Records.

In 1982, Pan Am Flight 759, aBoeing 727, crashed in Kenner shortly after takeofffrom New Orleans International Airport, killing all 145 people aboard and eight people on the ground.

In 2004, aSenate Intelligence Committee report concluded the CIAhad provided unfounded assessments of the threat posed by Iraq that the Bush administration had relied on to justifygoing to war.

In 2018, President Donald Trumpnominated Brett Kavanaugh to ﬁll the seat leftvacant by the retirement of SupremeCourt

Justice Anthony Kennedy Today’sbirthdays: Artist David Hockneyis88. Author Dean Koontz is 80. Actor Chris Cooper is 74. Musician andTVpersonality JohnTeshis73. Country singerDavid Ball is 72. Business executive/TV personality Kevin O’Leary (TV:“Shark Tank”) is 71. SingerDebbie Sledge (SisterSledge)is71. ActorJimmy Smits is 70. U.S. Sen. LindseyGraham, R-S.C. is 70. ActorTom Hanks is 69. SingerMarcAlmond is 68. ActorKelly McGillis is 68. Rock singerJim Kerr (Simple Minds) is 66. Actorrock singerCourtneyLove is 61. ActorPamelaAdlon is 59. ActorScottGrimes is 54. ActorEnrique Murciano(TV:“Without a Trace”)is52. Musician/ producer Jack White is 50. Rock singer-musician Isaac Brock (Modest Mouse)is 50. Actor-director Fred Savage is 49.

Mexican Cuisine

n 2323 S. Acadian Thruway, Baton Rouge

AfusionofMexican and Louisiana ﬂavors,Mestizo’s menu has awidevariety of choices, over half of which are owner and executive chef Jim Uridales’ inventions. The ceviche is made with shrimp, scallops and mole verde sauce with wheat chips.

Tacos del Cartel

n 10155 Perkins Rowe,Suite 110, Baton Rouge

ThecevicheatTacos del Cartel is agreen, squid and red snapper-based dish with green apple,watermelon radish, cilantro oil, tostada, avocadopuree andjalapeño leche de tigre. PaolaSantiagocontributed tothis report.

Email Serena Puang at serena.puang@ theadvocate.com.

chase at redstickspice.com.

Wine andspirits

The Summer Spritz: 6p.m. to 7:30 p.m. Thursday at Martin’s,6463 Moss Side Lane, Baton Rouge Tasteanarray of sparkling wine cocktails, along with aselection of ready-todrink beverages. The lineup includes alimoncello spritz, pink pamplemousse and more. Tickets are $23.18 per person, available for purchase at eventbrite.com.

If you have an upcoming food event or akitchen question, emaillauren. cheramie@theadvocate. com. Cheers!

PROVIDED PHOTO

Ceviche at Mestizo Louisiana Mexican Cuisine

STAFF PHOTO By SERENA PUANG

El Codiciado, the house ceviche at Los Plebes

Family ambushed by housewarming party

Dear Miss Manners: My parents decided to throw us a housewarming party —the day after we moved our family of ﬁve into anew home. They invited some people around town who’d known me as akid. They also invited my friends, andthen asked them to invite more people. And they brought their own snacks. We had been cleaning the apartment we had moved out of, and still needed to put up curtains and assemble beds in the new place. The guests were polite, but did not help us unpack, except for my brother,who helped me with my daughter’s bed.

admit to drivingthe getaway car,you had noidea your friendintended to rob the bank

Your audience will be skeptical —ifnot outrighthostile andyou cannot rely on thepeople who know the truth to back up your story

Gender revealsnot foreveryone

Dear Heloise: Iagree that gender reveal “parties” are just another way of asking for gifts. You’ll probably be invited toababy shower and take agift, and to me, one gift is plenty.

One giftisenough unless you want to give asecond one, but this is entirely up to you. Personally,I’ve only attended one gender reveal party,and no one brought agift.

Judith Martin MISS MANNERS

Wasthere apolite way I could have asked these unexpected guests to leave so we could continue working?

Gentle reader: Trying to explain to guests that,while it is truethey were invited to your new home, you are not responsible for making them feel welcome because you were unawareaninvitation had been sent is abit like trying to explain to the police that, although you

BEST

Continued from page1D

My husband ordered The Vintage ﬂatbread, aclassic ﬂatbreadwith marinara, pepperoni, tomatoes,mozzarella and basil. Simplebut quality ingredients gave it a savory,pizza-like moment. The Vintage may have great drinks and coffee, but the food is also tasty

—Joy Holden, Louisiana Inspired coordinator

Barbecue, desserts n Salt Pepper Oak, 6721Exchequer Drive,Baton Rouge

There are places that serve barbecue, places that pride themselves on their barbecue, and then there’s Salt Pepper Oak —arestaurantthat smells like barbecue as soon as you pull into the parking lot, livestreams trimming brisket throughout the day and somehow manages to have amazing dessert options. One does not go to aplace

MissManners says this to encourage youtopay greater attention to your parents’ plans in the future, in case you missed an earlier opportunity to squelch thisone. By thetime everyone had arrived,the most you could do politely was look so tired andoverwhelmed that the guests decamped voluntarily— or pitched in. Dear Miss Manners: Iprepared somehand-dipped chocolate goodies and delivered them to acouple of ladies in my neighborhood. Afew dayslater,one of theladies called me to tell me she was diabetic and couldn’t eat them Iwas sad that “the thought that counts”must notcome intoplay anymore. Ifelt her phonecall was rudeand unnecessary

Am Ibeing petty,orwas she being rude? It will makemethink twice next time Itry to be thoughtful. This friend certainly won’t see goodies from meagain. Gentlereader: Then you will not want tohear that this lady spent the intervening time fuming over the thoughtlessness displayed in putting her healthatrisk —asif, instead of trying to brighten her day,you had attempted to force-feed her MissManners recommends saying, “I’m sorry to hear that. Thanks for letting me know” —and then tossing theconversation in thememory dustbin and, as was your plan, not repeating the gesture. This is alsoanapproximation of what Miss Manners would have counseled the lady with diabetes, had shebeen asked.

Send questions to Miss Manners at her website, www.missmanners. com; to her email, dearmissmanners@gmail com; or through postal mailtoMiss Manners, Universal Uclick,1130 Walnut St., Kansas City, MO 64106.

like Salt Pepper Oak without orderingbrisket

It’sworth thehype. It’s legitimately very good barbecue,and thesides are prettygood too, but if you go, youneed to get yourself achocolate-chip cookie or acheesecake from the dessert case. They arephenomenal

—SerenaPuang, features writer

Ground Pat’i Burger

n The Ground Pat’i,2303 JohnstonSt., Lafayette

The GroundPat’i reopened its original location on Johnston Street this year, near the University of Louisiana at Lafayette. The cozy diningroom with its dark wood andfriendly booths is much the same as

it always was —and so are therecipes.

Ihad the signature Ground Pat’iburger,a half-pound of charbroiled meat withthe restaurant’sfamous shredded cheese on top. Cooked well done, the ﬂavors of the grill shine through on this burger,which is ahearty sandwich on atoasted bun withcrunchy lettuce and onions on top.

Ground Pat’i has been a staple for the Lafayette and universitycommunity for decades, and it’s easy to see why this burger has fans. It’snot overdressed, and it doesn’tcome with any gimmicks—but when you’re craving agreat burger, Ground Pat’i’sdoors are open.

—Joanna Brown, staff writer

I’ve also seen “sprinkle” parties for asecond or thirdchild, which they say is ascaledback baby shower To me, theseexpectant parentsare just asking for too much nowadays. —Margie, in Lisbon, Ohio Margie, Ihave to agree and disagree. Iknow most ﬁrst-timeparents are excited about their ﬁrst child and love to celebrate this happy occasion. Idon’t believe in giving agift at a gender reveal partyifyou have already given them a gift or have one that you’re ready tooffer them at a baby shower

Hints from Heloise

—Heloise

Composting tips

DearHeloise: Ihave been amaster recycling volunteer for 12 years and have taught composing to dozens of audiences. In addition to your list of what can go into compost, other critical components include shredded paper (no tape, cellophane or staples), water and air.Paper (carbon) should make up two-thirds of the mix to avoid getting asoupy mess. The water and air are crucial forthe microbes (largely bacteria), which are doing the “work” of decomposition. Throw in

afew handfuls of native soil (not potting soil and no chemicals), and you’re adding trillions of decomposers. Voilà! Free fertilizer! —Kris La M., in Oregon Paperproblem

Dear Heloise: Recycling clean paper is important to our communities, but there can be issues with processing shredded paper.Local rules about recycling shredded paper vary from one community to the next. In my community, shredded paper is only accepted forrecycling if it is bagged. Other clean paper is not supposed to be bagged. Before recycling things, people should know the local rules because not following the rules can muck things up. —Kenton M., via email

Sendahinttoheloise@ heloise.com.

STAFF PHOTO By SERENA PUANG

Choppedbarbecue with six-cheese mac and Creole potatoes

STAFF PHOTO By JOANNA BROWN

AGround Pat’i burger in Lafayette

CANCER (June 21-July 22) Be open to suggestions,but do what you feel is right and bestfor you. Let your emotions andinsight carry you toward your goal. Happiness is your responsibility.

LEO (July 23-Aug. 22) Participation will change how you feel about the people youencounter. Monitor situations as they unfold and pay close attention to relationships, andyou'll know exactly whattodo.

VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22) Organizeand host eventsthatencourage connecting with people who can help you bring about the changes you want. Youremotions and money matters will clash.

LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct.23) Engage in physical activity, travel or skill-based tests. Opportunity comes fromchallenging yourself andexpanding your mind. It's your life; choosewhat makes you happy.

SCORPIO (Oct. 24-Nov. 22) Afinancial opportunity looks promising. Consider all the pros and cons, and fact-check the information youreceive. Don't feel pressedtotake the first offer.

SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 23-Dec. 21) Chill, observe and let your intuition lead theway.Serioustalks with someone whoemotionally impacts youwill help clear any misconceptions aboutyour direction.

CAPRICORN (Dec.22-Jan. 19) Sit tight, let situationsunfoldand gauge your next move, and you'llcontrol the outcome.

Participating in eventsoractivities that challengeyou to useyourabilitieswill ease stress.

AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 19) Keep your feelings to yourself.Yourconfidence will get the boost it needs if you negotiatepersonal or professional deals with key peopleyou want to impress and stand alongside.

PISCES (Feb. 20-March 20) Open doors can lead to opportunities. Market and demonstrate what you can offer to grab someinterest. Take the initiative and leave nothing undone.

ARIES (March 21-April 19) You'llbeprone to overreaction. Youcan learn alot by observing others and implementingwhat you learn into your plans. Explore possibilitiesand turn your ideas into something concrete.

TAURUS (April 20-May 20) Offer handson help, not lectures. Take the high road andlook at the positives in any situation.You have more to gain if you are supportive, create asafe atmosphere and offer sound advice.

GEMINI (May21-June 20) Refuse to let what others do or say get in your way or deter youfrom followingyourheart. Start slow; build asolid base thatwill stand the test of time,and you won't have regrets.

By Andrews McMeel Syndication

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

TODAy'S CLUE:R EQUALSC

CeLebrItY CIpher

Sudoku

InstructIons: Sudoku is anumber-placing puzzle based on a9x9 grid with several given numbers. The object is to place the numbers 1to9inthe 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.

Puzzle Answer

THe wiZard oFid

BLondie

BaBY BLueS

Hi and LoiS

Bridge

BY PHILLIPALDER

A.J. Liebling, ajournalist and author who diedin1963, said, “Freedom of the press is guaranteed onlytothosewho ownone.”

That does not seemtobeguaranteed. Outside influences might exert pressure. At the bridge table, some plays are guaranteed;oneexampleisasafetyplay. Otherplays,though,arenotsuretowork. You just hope thatthey do.

In today’s deal, against four spades, West starts with the heart queen: six, four, two. What should Westlead at trick two?

After North opened one club and East overcalledone heart, South’s one-spade response guaranteed at least afive-card suit, because with only four spades, he would have made anegative double. Westappliedmaximum pressure with his jump to four hearts —inacompetitive auction, usuallybid to the10-trick level with a10-card fit.Then North raised to fourspades. This was aslight overbid.IfWesthadpassed,Northwould have rebid three spades.But in competition you may bid one level higher than youwouldhavedoneinanoncompetitive sequence. Also, maybe bothfour hearts andfourspadeswere making. West cannotbesure where fourdefensive tricks will come from.But unless East hasthe spadeking, thedefenders need three minor-suit tricks. Although not underwrittenbyLloyd’s of London, West’s best shift is to thediamond queen. Here, South will winwith dummy’s kinganddrawtrumps,butwhenheturns to clubs,Easttakes atrickand returns a diamond throughSouth’s jack, which is trapped by West’s A-10tenace. ©2025 by NEA,Inc., dist. By AndrewsMcMeel Syndication

wuzzles

Each Wuzzle is awordriddle which creates adisguised word, phrase, name, place, saying, etc. For example: NOON GOOD =GOOD AFTERNOON

Previous answers:

word game

InstRuctIons: 1. Words mustbeoffour or moreletters. 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 BEGRuDGED: be-GRUJ’D: Conceded reluctantly or with displeasure.

Average mark 27 words

Time limit 40 minutes

Canyou find 36 or more words in BEGRUDGED?

YEstERDAY’s WoRD—LIAIsons

marmaduKe

Bizarro

hagar the horriBle

Pearls Before swiNe

garfield

B.C.

July 30,2025, forthe CrossDrain Rehabilita‐tion Project. STATEMENTOFWORK: Work includes rehabilita‐tion of atriple-barrel 72inch CMPculvert,instal‐lation of aconcretecol‐lar, andrelated grading. PROJECTDURATION: 30 Calendar Days BIDOPENING: July 30, 2025, at 1:00 PM at De‐Quincy Industrial Airpark Terminal,100 Airpark Drive.

PRE-BIDMEETING: (nonmandatory):July16, 2025, at 1:00 PM,samelo‐cation.A webcastoption will be available. Access credentialswillbe posted on thebidding website www CivCastUSA.com (ENTER PROJECTNAME) BIDDOCUMENTS: Bid Documentsmay be downloaded at: www CivCastUSA.com (ENTER PROJECTNAME) Hard copies mayalsobeob‐tained from theengineer: Infrastructure Consulting andEngineering, LLC, 4000 Sherwood Blvd BatonRouge,LA70817, Engineer’s Representa‐tive:Ken Morales(225) 328-7419, ken.morales@ ice-eng.com. CONTRACTOR LICENSE: Biddersmustholda valid LouisianaContractor’s LicenseinHeavy Con‐structionorHighway Street,and Bridge Con‐struction FUNDINGADVISEMENT: Notice is hereby given that theproject is funded throughState Grants whichfunds will notbe availableatthe time of bidding. TheOwner may reject allbidsand cancel this solicitation should adequate fundingnot be securedwithinSixty (60) days afterbid opening. Thetimelimitsstipu‐latedinLA. R.S. 38:2215(D) do notapply baseduponthe statutory exceptionthat“thecon‐tractisto be ﬁnanced in wholeorinpartbyfed‐eral or otherfunds which will notbereadily avail‐able at thetimebidsare opened.”

BIDSECURITY: BidBond of ﬁve percent(5%)of thetotal bidamount is required

BIDWITHDRAWAL: No bidmay be withdrawn within 60 days after opening, except as per‐mitted by LA R.S. 38:2214.

OWNER’SRIGHTS: The City reserves theright to reject anyand allbids perLAR.S.38:2212(A)(1) (b). Allprovisionsand re‐quirements stated in the biddocuments shallre‐main in effect andmay notbewaivedbyany en‐tity

NOTICE

BIDS Sealed bids will be re‐ceived forthe Stateof Louisianabythe Coastal Protection andRestora‐tion Authority, 150 Ter‐race Avenue,4th Floor Conference Center BatonRouge,Louisiana 70802 until 2:00 P.M. Tuesday, July 29, 2025

ANYPERSONREQUIRING SPECIALACCOMMODA‐TIONSSHALL NOTIFY THE COASTALPROTECTION ANDRESTORATION AU‐THORITYOFTHE TYPE(S) OF ACCOMMODATION RE‐QUIRED NOTLESSTHAN SEVEN(7) DAYS BEFORE THEBID OPENING. FOR: BayouCaneMarsh Creation Project St.Tammany Parish Louisiana PROJECTNUMBER: PO-0181 Complete BidDocuments forthisproject areavail‐able in electronic form They maybeobtained withoutchargeand with‐outdeposit from http:// coastal.la.gov/resources/ rfps-rsiqs-contracts/ bids/. Printedcopiescan also be obtained from: COASTALPROTECTION ANDRESTORATION AU‐THORITY(CPRA) 150 TerraceAvenue BatonRouge,LA70802 Attn:Sharissa Felder E-mail: cpra.bidding@la.gov Phone: (225) 342-0811 Fax: (225) 800-5599

Allbidsshall be accom‐panied by bidsecurityin an amount of ﬁve per‐cent (5.0%) of thesum of thebasebid andall al‐ternates.The form of this security shallbeas stated in theInstructions to Biddersincludedin theBid Documentsfor this project. ThesuccessfulBidder shallberequiredtofur‐nish aPerformance and PaymentBondwrittenas describedinthe Instruc‐

OWNER: City of DeQuincy By:/s/ RileySmith Mayor PUBLISHED: TheDeQuincyNewsand TheAdvocate, July 2, July 9, andJuly16, 2025 147960 July 2, 9, 18, 3t $981.30 p g Bidsmust besubmitted on theformenclosed herewith,and in strict conformity with thein‐tent of same without modiﬁcations. Bids must be signed in ink, dated, andtitle of person sign‐ingbid

Lacombe,

Thejobsite visitisnot mandatory, butitis highly encouraged for thosesubmittinga bid. Thejobsite visitisbeing conductedbyCPRAand BigBranchNational Wildlife Refuge to facili‐tate airboataccessto projectfeaturesthatare locatedonthe Refuge Contractorsshall be re‐sponsiblefor providing theirown boat andany rental andboatlaunch‐ingfees.Refugestaff will provideairboat access to interior marshareas ContactApril Newman at (225) 342-6412 with any questionsorissuesre‐latedtothe non-manda‐tory pre-bidconference or directions to thenonmandatoryjobsite visit. It is theresponsibilityof allpotential biddersto visitthe jobsitetoas‐sess thelocation, logis‐tics,and site conditions priortobidding Bids shallbeaccepted fromContractors who arelicensedunder LA R.S. 37:2150-2192 forthe classification of Heavy Construction or Dredg‐ing.Inaccordancewith LA.R.S.37:2165(C),any‐oneobjecting to theclas‐sification must send a certified letter to both theLouisiana StateLi‐censingBoard forCon‐tractors andthe CPRA at theaddresslistedabove Thelettermustbere‐ceived no laterthanten (10) workingdaysprior to theday on whichbids aretobeopened. Bidderisrequiredto comply with provisions andrequirementsofLA R.S.38:2212(B)(5). No bid maybewithdrawn for a period of forty-five (45) calendar days afterre‐ceiptofbids, except under theprovisionsof LA.R.S.38:2214. TheOwner reserves the righttorejectany andall bids forjustcause.Inac‐cordance with La.R.S 38:2212(B)(1), theprovi‐sionsand requirements of this Section; andthose stated in thebidding documentsshall notbe waived by anyentity. When this projectis fi‐nanced either partially or entirely with StateBonds or financed in wholeorin part by federalorother fundswhich arenot readilyavailable at the time bids arereceived, theaward of this Con‐tractiscontingentupon thegrantingoflines of credit,orthe sale of bondsbythe Bond Com‐missionorthe availabil‐ityoffederal or other funds. TheState shall incurnoobligationtothe Contractor until theCon‐tractbetween Ownerand Contractor is fully exe‐cuted. CoastalProtectionand RestorationAuthority is aparticipant in theSmall Entrepreneurship (SE) Program (the Hudson Ini‐tiative) andthe VeteranOwnedand Service-Con‐nected Disabled VeteranOwned(LaVet) SmallEn‐trepreneurshipsPro‐gram.Bidders areen‐couragedtoconsider participation. Informa‐tion is availablefrom CoastalProtectionand RestorationAuthority or on itswebsite at http:// www.coastal.la.gov/ STATEOFLOUISIANA COASTALPROTECTION ANDRESTORATION AUTHORITY J. CLAY PARKER DEPUTY EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR 146316-jun25-jul2-9-3t $230.08

NOTICE ADVERTISMENT July 3,

BID Sealed bids will be

ceived by thePurchasing Department,GRAMBLING STATEUNIVERSITY, Gram‐bling, La.On July 29, 2025 at 2:05,P.M.for:“50018260000” Game DayPark‐ingAttendant At whichtimeand place thebidswillbepublicly opened andreadaloud Anybid received after closingtimewillbere‐turned unopened Copies of thespecifica‐tionsmay be obtained in electronic format by vis‐itingthe Stateof Louisiana, Office of State Purchasing,LaPAC Web Site, https://wwwcfprd. doa.louisiana.gov/osp/ lapac/dspBid.cfm?sea rch=department& term=53 Copies of specifications areon file in theOffice of theDirectorofPurchas‐ing, GRAMBLINGSTATE UNIVERSITY,Grambling, La.Toobtaina copy of thespecificationsfrom GramblingState Univer‐sity,call(318)-274-3280 or il lk

y e-mail walkere@gram edu. Bids must be returned to thePurchasingOffice at purchasingbids@gram. edubythe duedateand time referenced.Bids must be submittedon theforms enclosed with thebid specification,and in strict conformity with theintentofsamewith‐outmodifications. Bids must be signed in ink, dated, andtitle of person signingthe bidshouldbe shownonthe bid. Evidence of GeneralLia‐bility Insurance, Auto Li‐abilityInsurance,and WorkersCompensation Insurancerequiredfor this contract.Nobid may be withdrawnafter the scheduledclosing time forreceipt of bids forat leastthirty(30) days TheUniversityreserves theright to reject anyor allbids, andtowaive any informalities. Evidence of authorityto submit thebid shallbe required in accordance with R.S. 38:2212(B)(5) and/or R.S. 39:1594(C)(4). An EqualOpportunity Employer GRAMBLINGSTATE UNIVERSITY

GRAMBLING, LOUISIANA Erin Walker Director of Purchasing TO APPEAR:7/3/2025 BIDDUE:7/29/2025 146681-jul7-9-13-3t $85.02

Meet with ourOptimize team. Getthe specificinformation and recommendation forinstallation on yourhome: Safe generatorlocation, required clearances,kWSize/NEC load calculation,install details,Optimizeinstall process, and receive your specificquote.

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