The Advocate 02-28-2025

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Bowlers roll into BR

Nation’s largest tournament brings in $110M to city

BY TIMOTHY BOONE

Business editor

For the third time in 20 years, Baton Rouge is hosting the nation’s largest bowling tournament, an event local tourism officials say will have the economic impact of more than six big LSU football games.

More than 58,000 people are expected to come to Baton Rouge over the next five months for the United States Bowling Congress Open Championship, beginning Saturday in the Raising Cane’s River Center

Bowlers compete in the Doubles Competition II of the Special Olympics North America National Unified Bowling Tournament on Thursday at the Raising Cane’s River Center. The Special Olympics tournament was held in advance of the United States Bowling Congress Open Championship, which begins Saturday and will run for the next five months. A competitor cleans off his bowling ball as bowlers compete in Thursday’s event.

The tournament’s economic impact on the city is expected to reach $110 million, said Jill Kidder, president and CEO of Visit Baton Rouge By comparison, a conference or rivalry LSU home football game adds up to $18 million to the local economy “It’s like having a large state convention every night for five months,” she said. “They’re going to take up 300 hotel

rooms every night.” So far, more than 11,600 fivemember teams representing 50 states and foreign nations have signed up for this year’s

event, said Aaron Smith, communications manager for the national bowling championship. That’s the highest number of teams since the last time the tournament was held in Baton Rouge, when there were nearly 11,800 teams.

“That speaks volumes to bowlers who went on previous trips enjoying their time here,” Smith said “They enjoy seeing a new place.”

About 400 bowlers will arrive every three days. They will bowl one day at the temporary lanes set up in the River Center take a day off, then return to the River Center for a final day of competition, said Laura Cating, a spokeswoman for Visit Baton Rouge. The event will end on July 28.

“They’re going to bowl almost 24/7 for 150 days,” Cating

ä See BOWLERS, page 6A

Southern student dies off campus

Club recruiting activities halted

BY AIDAN McCAHILL Staff writer

Southern University on Thursday halted indefinitely all club recruiting activities, including those related to Greek life, following the off-campus death of a student earlier that day.

A university spokesperson said the pause on the Baton Rouge campus was due to the death of Caleb Wilson, 20, a junior from Kenner studying mechanical engineering. Wilson’s mother is a student at Southern University’s New Orleans campus.

Wilson’s father, Corey Wilson, worked 35 years as a deputy with the Jefferson Parish Sheriff’s Office. He also served on security details for Gayle Benson, owner of the New Orleans Saints and New Orleans Pelicans.

Caleb Wilson died at a Baton Rouge hospital Thursday morning after being found unresponsive in a Baton Rouge park.

An unconscious Wilson was brought to the hospital by people who found him at North Sherwood Forest Park, Baton Rouge police said. Officers were called

ä See STUDENT, page 6A

State pushes measles vaccine

Outbreak

in Texas has

killed one child

BY ALYSE PFEIL Staff writer

As neighboring Texas faces a growing measles outbreak that killed an unvaccinated child Tuesday night, two top Louisiana officials who are physicians are encouraging residents to get vaccinated against the disease.

Republican U.S. Sen. Bill Cassidy, a gastroenterologist from Baton Rouge who worked on hepatitis B vaccination efforts before entering politics, noted in a social media post Tuesday that a measles alert was issued in San Antonio, east of where the outbreak originated. In a press call, Cassidy said the measles outbreak “is moving across the I-10, and it’s now in San Antonio, which means it’s moving to us.”

“By golly, if it’s coming down the I-10, it’s gonna be in Houston, it’s gonna be in Lake Charles,” he said “It’s gonna be in Laffy and Baton Rouge, and then it’s gonna go up the I-49 to Shreveport.”

Louisiana Surgeon General Ralph Abraham, also a physician, said in a social media post Tuesday the Louisiana Department of Health “is on alert and ready to respond if the virus spreads to Louisiana.”

“The measles vaccine (known as MMR) has proven to be safe and effective, and I recommend it to my patients,” he said. “Adults and children should consider getting the vaccine if they haven’t already received it. Be sure to talk to your doctor before making that decision.”

The MMR vaccine is the best way to protect against measles and is generally recommended for children and adults, said Health Department spokesperson Emma Herrock.

ä See MEASLES, page 7A

Mystery surrounds death of actor Hackman, wife

Bodies discovered in Santa Fe home of Oscar winner

BY SUSAN MONTOYA BRYAN and BRIAN MELLEY Associated Press

SANTA FE, N.M. Oscar-winner

Gene Hackman, his wife and one of their dogs were apparently dead for some time before a maintenance worker discovered their bodies at the couple’s home in Santa Fe, New Mexico, investigators said. The bodies were found Wednesday Denise Avila, a sheriff’s office spokesperson, said there was no indication they had been shot or had any wounds that would indicate foul play. But Santa Fe County Sheriff’s Office detectives wrote in a search warrant affidavit investigators thought the deaths were “suspicious enough in nature

to require a thorough search and investigation.”

Hackman, 95, was in an entryway, and his 65-year-old wife, Betsy Arakawa, was lying on her right side in the bathroom. A space heater was next to her head and may have fallen when she abruptly dropped to the floor, according to the affidavit.

The New Mexico Gas Co. tested the gas lines in and around the home after the bodies were discovered, according to the warrant. At the time, it didn’t find any signs of problems and the Fire Department found no signs of a carbon monoxide leak or poisoning A detective wrote that there were no obvious signs of a gas leak, but he noted that people exposed to gas leaks or carbon monoxide might not show signs of poisoning.

The gruff but beloved Hackman was among the most accomplished actors of his generation, appearing

ä See HACKMAN, page 6A

ASSOCIATED PRESS FILE PHOTO

Actor Gene Hackman arrives with his wife, Betsy Arakawa, for the 60th Annual Golden Globe Awards in Beverly Hills, Calif., in 2003.

STAFF PHOTOS By HILARy SCHEINUK

Miss. Senate passes

redistricting of 10 seats

Voters from 10 Senate districts in Mississippi will have to redecide in November special elections who should represent them in Jackson, pending court approval, under a resolution the Senate approved on Wednesday

The chamber passed the plan 33-16. Two Democrats joined with the GOP majority to support the plan, while three Republicans joined with the Democratic minority to oppose it.

Even though voters just elected members of the Legislature in 2023, the 10 races will be held again because a three-judge federal panel determined last year that the Legislature did not create enough Black-majority districts when it redrew its districts. The panel ordered the state to redraw the districts and create a new majority-Black district in the DeSoto County area in the Forrest County area.

Senate Rules Committee

Chairman Dean Kirby, R-Pearl, told senators that the newly redrawn map complies with federal law and will allow Black voters in the two areas to elect a candidate of their choice

“It’s not a partisan ordeal,” Kirby said. “We have a court order, and we’re going to comply.”

The map creates one new majority-Black district each in DeSoto County and Forrest County, with no incumbent senator in either district. To account for this, the plan also pits two pairs of incumbents against one another in newly redrawn districts.

The proposal puts Sen. Michael McLendon R-Hernando who is White and Sen. Reginald Jackson, D-Marks, who is Black, in the same district. The redrawn District 1 contains a Black voting-age population of 52.4%.

McLendon spoke against the proposal, arguing the process was not transparent and it was not fair to the city of Hernando, his home city.

“I don’t want to be pushed out of here,” McLendon said

The House earlier in the session approved a plan that redrew five districts in north Mississippi and made the House district in Chickasaw County a majority-Black district. Under the legislation, the qualifying period for new elections would run from May 19 to May 30. The primary election will be held on Aug. 5, with a potential primary runoff on Sept 2 and the general election on Nov 4.

Bezos to launch fiancée, Perry, King into space

Blue Origin owner Jeff Bezos plans to launch an all-female crew into space that includes pop star Katy Perry, journalist Gayle King and his fiancée, Lauren Sánchez.

Also aboard the New Shepard rocket will be former NASA scientists Aisha Bowe and Amanda Nguyen, along with film producer Kerianne Flynn. The flight is scheduled to take off some time this spring, Blue Origin announced in a press release.

Sánchez, a news reporter, author and actor, has worked closely with Bezos on many projects over the course of their near seven-year relationship.

She’s also a licensed pilot who founded Black Ops Aviation, the first female-owned aerial film and production company She and the billionaire Amazon founder have been engaged since May 2023, though no wedding date has been announced Bezos, who also owns The Washington Post, founded Blue Origin in 2000 The company completed its first mannedmission into sub-orbital space in 2021, with Bezos himself onboard

Pope continues to improve

Vatican says prognosis remains guarded

BY NICOLE WINFIELD and SILVIA STELLACCI Associated Press

ROME Pope Francis continued to improve from double pneumonia Thursday the Vatican said, working from his hospital room and going to his private chapel to pray, though doctors said he needs more days of “clinical stability” before they revise their guarded prognosis.

The 88-year-old pope, who had part of one lung removed as a young man, was able to begin alternating high-flow supplemental oxygen, delivered by a nasal tube, with a mask in a sign of his improved respiratory condition, the Vatican said in a late update.

For the second day in a row, doc-

tors avoided saying Francis was in critical condition. But they said that given the complexity of his lung infection, “further days of clinical stability are needed” before they revise their prognosis and decide he is out of danger

Francis has been in Rome’s Gemelli hospital since Feb. 14 after a bout of bronchitis worsened.

He has shown steady, albeit slight improvements since a respiratory crisis and kidney trouble over the weekend sparked fears for his life. The improvements, as he nears the two-week mark on Friday, beat back speculation of an imminent death, resignation or conclave and signaled that he was still very much in charge.

Nevertheless, his near-term upcoming calendar of events was

being changed: The Vatican cancelled a Holy Year audience scheduled for Saturday, and it remained to be seen if Francis would skip his Sunday noon blessing for the third week in a row Longer term, Ash Wednesday loomed on the horizon March 5, the start of the church’s Lenten season leading up to Holy Week and Easter which this year falls on April 20. In past years, when Francis has battled bronchitis and influenza in winter, he has had to cut back his participation in Ash Wednesday and Holy Week events, which call for the pope to be outdoors in the cold leading services, participating in processions and presiding over prayers in the solemn period in which the faithful commemorate Christ’s crucifixion and resurrection. Beyond that, Francis has a few major events coming up that he

Iowa OKs bill removing gender identity protections

BY HANNAH FINGERHUT Associated Press

DES MOINES, Iowa — Iowa lawmakers became the first in the nation to approve legislation removing gender identity protections from the state’s civil rights code Thursday, despite massive protests by opponents who say it could expose transgender people to discrimination in numerous areas of life.

The measure raced through the legislative process after first being introduced last week. The state Senate was first to approve the bill on Thursday, on party lines, followed by the House less than an hour later Five House Republicans joined all Democrats in voting against it.

The bill would remove gender identity as a protected class from the state’s civil rights law and explicitly define female and male, as well as gender, which would be considered a synonym for sex and “shall not be considered a synonym or shorthand expression for gender identity, experienced gender, gender expression, or gender role.”

The measure would be the first legislative action in the U.S. to remove nondiscrimination protections based on gender identity said Logan Casey director of policy research at the Movement Advancement Project, an LGBTQ+ rights think tank

The bill now goes to Republican Gov Kim Reynolds, who signed earlier policies banning sports participation and public bathroom access for transgender students If she signs the bill, it will go into effect on July 1.

Hundreds of LGBTQ+ advocates streamed into the Capitol rotunda on Thursday There was a heavy police presence, with state troopers stationed around the rotunda. Of the 167 people who signed up to testify at a 90-minute public hearing before a House committee, all but 24 were opposed to the bill.

Protesters who watched the vote from the House gallery loudly booed and shouted “Shame!” as the chamber ad-

journed. Many admonished Iowa state Rep. Steven Holt, who floor managed the bill and delivered a fierce defense of it before it passed.

Supporters of the change say the current law incorrectly codified the idea that people can transition to another gender and granted transgender women access to spaces such as bathrooms, locker rooms and sports teams that should be protected for people who were assigned female at birth. Holt said the inclusion of gender identity in the civil rights codes threatens recent “commonsense” laws to ban transgender participation in sports and access to bathrooms.

“The legislature of Iowa for the future of our children and our culture has a vested interest and solemn responsibility to stand up for immutable truth,” Holt said.

Sexual orientation and gender identity were not originally included in the state’s Civil Rights Act of 1965. They were added by the Democratic-controlled Legislature in 2007, also with the support of about a dozen Republicans across the two chambers.

Iowa state Rep. Aime Wichtendahl was the last Democrat to speak out Thursday against the bill removing those protections, becoming emotional as she offered her story as a transgender woman, saying: “I transitioned to save my life.”

“The purpose of this bill and the purpose of every anti-trans bill is to further erase us from public life and to stigmatize our existence,” Wichtendahl said. “The sum total of every anti-trans and anti-LGBTQ bill is to make our existence illegal.”

Iowa’s Supreme Court has expressly rejected the argument that discrimination based on sex includes discrimination based on gender identity

Several Republican-led legislatures are pushing to enact more laws this year creating legal definitions of male and female based on the reproductive organs at birth following an executive order from President Donald Trump.

Suspect in Tesla dealership vandalism charged in federal court

BY COLLEEN SLEVIN

Press

and $20,000 in damages, with an estimated $5,000 in damage to the vehicles

presumably would hope to keep if well enough. On April 27, he is due to canonize Carlo Acutis, considered to be the first millennial and digital-era saint. The Vatican considers the Italian teenager, who died of leukemia in 2006 at the age of 15, as an inspiring role model for today’s young Catholics. Another important appointment is the May 24 commemoration of the 1,700th anniversary of the Council of Nicea, Christianity’s first ecumenical council. The spiritual leader of the world’s Orthodox Christians, Patriarch Bartholomew I, has invited Francis to join him in what is today’s Iznik, Turkey to commemorate the anniversary, which he has called an important sign of reconciliation between the Catholic and Orthodox churches. Before he got sick, Francis said he hoped to go, though the Vatican hasn’t confirmed the trip.

Menendez family criticizes L.A. DA

BY JAIMIE DING Associated Press

LOS ANGELES Cousins of Erik and Lyle Menendez spoke out Thursday criticizing the Los Angeles district attorney’s recent decision to oppose a new trial for Lyle and Erik Menendez, who have spent nearly 30 years in prison for the 1989 killing of their parents.

The Menendez cousins applauded California Gov Gavin Newsom for his decision a day earlier to order the state parole board to investigate whether the brothers would pose a risk to the public if they are released, the first step for the governor to eventually decide whether or not to grant clemency

The brothers, 18 and 21 at the time, were found guilty in the murders of their mother, Kitty Menendez, and entertainment executive father, Jose, and sentenced to life in prison without parole. They began their latest bid for freedom in recent years after their attorneys said new evidence emerged about their father’s sexual abuse, and with the support of most of

their extended family In a lengthy press conference last week, District Attorney Nathan Hochman cast doubt on the new evidence of sexual abuse and characterized the brothers’ own testimony of sexual abuse as untrustworthy because they had told five different explanations for why they committed the murder Anamarie Baralt, Jose Menendez’s niece, called Hochman’s decision “extra hurtful” to the family after they had met with his office weeks prior to share their experiences.

“It ignores how far we have come in recognizing the long-term effects of abuse and the systemic barriers that keep victims silent,” Baralt said. “The expectation that victims should have immediately disclosed their abuse ignores the reality of trauma.” Baralt said their relationship with the current administration was different than theirs with the previous district attorney George Gascón, and questioned whether Hochman’s decision took into account current knowledge of trauma.

ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO By CHARLIE NEIBERGALL

Trump plans tariffs on Mexico, Canada, China next week

BY JOSH BOAK and FABIOLA SANCHEZ Associated Press

WASHINGTON President Donald Trump plans to impose tariffs on Canada and Mexico starting Tuesday, in addition to doubling the 10% universal tariff charged on imports from China.

In a Truth Social post Thursday, Trump said illicit drugs such as fentanyl are being smuggled into the United States at “unacceptable levels” and that import taxes would force other countries to crack down on the trafficking.

“We cannot allow this scourge to continue to harm the USA, and therefore, until it stops, or is seriously limited, the proposed TARIFFS scheduled to go into effect on MARCH FOURTH will, indeed, go into effect, as scheduled,” the Republican president wrote. “China will likewise be charged an ad-

BY CARSON SWICK

The Baltimore Sun (TNS)

The Social Security Administration has been instructed to reduce its staff by half as President Donald Trump’s administration continues to pursue widespread cuts across the federal government, according to multiple media reports.

Headquartered in Woodlawn, Maryland, the Social Security Administration is one of the agencies that employs Maryland’s large federal workforce The state is home to more than 160,000 federal workers.

Some SSA staffers anonymously told The Washington Post on Wednesday that the agency was directed to “swiftly produce plans” for staffing cuts. The General Services Administration says terminations at the SSA are “imminent,” according to an X/Twitter post from

ditional 10% Tariff on that date.”

The prospect of escalating tariffs has already thrown the global economy into turmoil, with consumers expressing fears about inflation worsening and the auto sector and other domestic manufacturers suffering if Trump raises import taxes. But Trump has also at times engaged in aggressive posturing only to give last-minute reprieves, previously agreeing to a 30-day suspension of the Canada and Mexico tariffs that were initially supposed to start in February

Asked Thursday about the fact that tariffs are largely paid for consumers and importing companies, Trump dismissed any concerns by saying: “It’s a myth.” It’s possible for a stronger U.S. dollar to offset some of the costs of tariffs, but Trump’s statement goes against most economic modeling given

Post reporter Jeff Stein.

According to sources cited by The American Prospect, acting SSA commissioner Lee Dudek requested Tuesday that managers present him with a plan to reduce the staff’s 57,000 employees by Thursday afternoon. The cuts could impact more than 1,200 Social Security field offices across the country, the outlet reported Department of Government Efficiency leader Elon Musk has framed the cuts as necessary and consistent with his department’s efforts to curb wasteful spending while insisting that the Trump administration is only targeting nonessential employees.

“We wish to keep everyone who is doing a job that is essential and doing that job well,” Musk said during the Trump cabinet’s first meeting on Wednesday. “But if the job is not essential or they’re not doing the job well, they

the breadth of his planned taxes.

Trump intends to put 25% tariffs on imports from Mexico and Canada, with a lower 10% tax on Canadian energy products such as oil and electricity. The move, ostensibly about drug trafficking and immigration, led Mexico and Canada to respond by emphasizing their existing efforts to address these issues. Canada created a fentanyl czar, and Mexico sent 10,000 members of its National Guard to its border with the United States.

Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum said Thursday that she hoped to speak with Trump after the Cabinet-level meetings occurring in Washington this week. Mexico’s Foreign Affairs Secretary Juan Ramón de la Fuente was scheduled to meet with Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Thursday afternoon.

Trump, “as you know, has

obviously should not be on the public payroll.”

The SSA closed both its Office of Transformation and Office of Civil Rights and Equal Opportunity this week, leading to about 190 workers being put on administrative leave. Dudek — who assumed leadership of the agency upon the resignation of previous leader Michelle King over DOGE access concerns has publicly railed against these offices as “wasteful” and “duplicitous,” respectively

The SSA maintains a total staff of about 57,000 federal workers, plus 12,000 SSA personnel who are technically state employees. About 120,000 people visit SSA field offices around the country each day, as these offices allow eligible individuals to sign up for Social Security and Medicare benefits, as well as apply for disability or survivor benefits.

his way of communicating,” Sheinbaum said. But she said that her government would stay “cool-headed” and optimistic about an agreement coming together to avoid the tariffs.

“I hope we are able to reach an agreement and on March 4 we can announce something else,” she said. She said Mexico’s security chiefs were discussing intelligence sharing with their American counterparts that would allow for important arrests in the U.S. On the economic front, she said Mexico’s goal is to protect the free trade pact that was negotiated during the first Trump administration between Mexico and the United States. That 2020 deal, which included Canada, was an update of the North American Free Trade Agreement from 1994.

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said his

country has invested more than 1 billion Canadian dollars to improve border security, adding that his government’s ministers and officials are also in Washington this week.

“There is no emergency for the United States at the border with Canada when it comes to fentanyl, and that is exactly what we are demonstrating at this time,”

Trudeau said in Montreal.

“If the United States goes ahead and imposes tariffs, we already shared the details of our plan. We have $30 billion worth of U.S. products that will be subject to tariffs. And $125 billion of tariffs that will be applied three weeks later But we don’t want to be in that position.”

Trump did impose a 10% tariff on China for its role in the manufacturing of chemicals used to make fentanyl, and that tax would now be

doubled, according to his social media post. On Thursday, China’s Commerce Minister Wang Wentao wrote to Jamieson Greer the newly confirmed U.S. trade representative, that differences on trade should be resolved through dialogues and negotiations. The 25% tariffs on Mexico and Canada would amount to a total tax increase on the U.S. public of somewhere between $120 billion to $225 billion annually, according to Jacob Jensen, a trade policy analyst at the American Action Forum, a center-right think tank. The additional China tariffs could cost consumers up to $25 billion.

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End of war can’t award ‘aggressor,’ U.K.’s Starmer says

Trump says talks to end invasion of Ukraine are ‘very well advanced’

BY JILL LAWLESS and AAMER MADHANI Associated Press

WASHINGTON President Donald Trump said Thursday that talks to end Russia’s invasion of Ukraine are “very well advanced” but cautioned that there is only a narrow window to get a deal done to end the grinding war

Trump made the comments as he hosted Prime Minister Keir Starmer at the White House for talks in which the British premier made his case that American leadership would be critical to maintaining the peace in Ukraine should the three-year war end.

Trump also expressed confidence that Russian President Vladimir Putin won’t press to restart the war if a truce can be reached.

“I think he’ll keep his word,” Trump said of Putin “I’ve spoken to him, I’ve known him for a long time now, we had to go through the Russian hoax together.”

The mention of “Russia hoax” is a reference to the FBI and Justice Department special counsel investigation that examined whether Trump’s 2016 presidential campaign illegally coordinated with Russia to sway the outcome of the U.S. election.

Special counsel Robert Mueller found that although the Trump campaign welcomed Russia’s help in the form of the release of hacked emails stolen from Democrats, there was insufficient evidence to prove that the campaign had colluded with Moscow Starmer’s trip, coming a few days after French President Emmanuel Macron’s

own visit to Trump, reflects the mounting concern felt by much of Europe that Trump’s aggressive push to find an end to the war signals his willingness to concede too much to Putin Trump’s rapprochement with Russia has unsettled America’s historic allies in Europe. They have found themselves on their heels with Trump returning to the White House with a determination to dramatically make over U.S. foreign policy to correspond with his “America First” world view

The Trump administration held talks last week with Russia without Ukrainian or other European allies represented. And this week, the U.S. refused to sign on to resolutions at the United Nations blaming Russia for the war which began three years ago when Moscow invaded. The drifting White House view of Ukraine under Trump is leading to a tectonic shift in transatlantic relations. Starmer on Thursday fol-

lowing private talks with Trump applauded his push to end Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, but said that “it can’t be peace that rewards the aggressor.”

“History must be on the side of the peacemaker, not the invader,” Starmer told reporters, with Trump by his side.

The White House is pushing back on the notion that Trump is ignoring Europe or is too eager in his push for settlement talks with Putin.

“He hasn’t conceded anything to anyone,” Vice President JD Vance said. “He’s doing the job of a diplomat.”

At a White House meeting Friday, Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy are expected to sign off on a contentious agreement that would give the U.S. access to Ukraine’s critical minerals, which are used in the aerospace, defense and nuclear industries. Zelenskyy had chafed at a deal without specific security guarantees from Washington.

Trump was noncommittal about any coming American security guarantees, and underscored that Russia would think twice about attacking Ukraine should the U.S. build an economic footprint in Ukraine to extract critical minerals. “We are a backstop because we’ll be over there, we’ll be working in the country,” Trump said.

But Trump also offered a measure of caution, suggesting that a deal might be at hand but the window to complete it is narrow

“If it doesn’t happen quickly it may not happen at all,” Trump warned.

If a truce can be reached, Starmer and Macron have agreed to send troops for a potential peacekeeping mission to Ukraine to ensure that fighting between Ukraine and Russia doesn’t flare up again.

But White House officials are skeptical that Britain

and France can assemble enough troops from across Europe, at least at this moment, to deploy a credible peacekeeping mission to Kyiv

Starmer is hosting a Sunday meeting in the United Kingdom of international leaders that will focus on Ukraine, and Zelenskyy is expected to attend. The prime minister also announced plans this week for the U.K. to bolster defense spending, something that should sit well with Trump, who has been critical that European allies are spending too little on defense. Starmer on Thursday extended a state visit invitation to Trump on behalf of King Charles, and Trump accepted. The prime minister said the invitation for a second state visit Trump already received the honor during his first term was “historic” and “unprecedented.”

BY JANIE HAR Associated Press

SAN FRANCISCO A federal judge in San Francisco on Thursday found that the mass firings of probationary employees were likely unlawful, granting some temporary relief to a coalition of labor unions and organizations that has sued to stop the Trump administration’s massive trimming of the federal workforce.

U.S. District Judge William Alsup ordered the Office of Personnel Management to inform certain federal agencies that it had no authority to order the firings of probationary employees, including the Department of Defense “OPM does not have any authority whatsoever, under any statute in the history of the universe,” to hire or fire any employees but its own, he said.

Alsup handed down the order on a temporary restraining order sought by labor unions and nonprofits in a lawsuit filed by the coalition filed last week. The complaint filed by five labor unions and five nonprofit organizations is among multiple lawsuits pushing back on the administration’s efforts to vastly shrink the federal workforce, which Trump has called bloated and sloppy Thousands of probationary employees have already been fired and his administration is now aiming at career officials with civil service protection. The plaintiffs say the Office of Personnel Management had no authority to terminate the jobs of probationary workers who generally have less than a year on the job They also say the firings were predicated on a lie

of poor performance by the workers.

Lawyers for the government say the Office of Personnel Management did not direct the firings, but asked agencies to review and determine whether employees on probation were fit for continued employment. They also say that probationary employees are not guaranteed employment and that only the highest performing and mission-critical employees should be hired.

There are an estimated 200,000 probationary workers — generally employees who have less than a year on the job across federal agencies.

Unions have recently struck out with two other federal judges in similar lawsuits attempting to stop the Trump administration’s goal of vastly reducing the federal workforce.

GETTy IMAGES NORTH AMERICA PHOTO

By CARL COURT

President Donald Trump meets with British Prime Minister Keir Starmer center left, alongside U.S. Vice President JD Vance, right, and British Foreign Secretary David Lammy, left, at the White House in Washington on Thursday.

USAID workers clear desks as agency

BY GARY FIELDS and ELLEN KNICKMEYER Associated Press

WASHINGTON — U.S. Agency for International Development workers — many in tears — carted away belongings through cheering crowds in a final visit to their now-closed headquarters Thursday as the Trump administration’s rapid dismantling of the congressionally authorized agency moved into its final stages.

Notices sent out in mass mailings this week are terminating over 90% of USAID’s contracts for humanitarian and development work around the world, and the Supreme Court has temporarily blocked a judge’s order requiring the administration to release billions of dollars in foreign aid.

The administration notified most USAID staffers in recent days that they were on leave or being fired, then gave thousands of those who worked in the Washington headquarters 15-minute time slots to clear out their desks under the escort of federal officers.

Some staffers wept as they carried out grocery bags and suitcases with what was left from their life’s work

“Heartbreaking,” 25-yearold Juliane Alfen said, carrying a small bag with a stuffed rabbit sticking out.

Like hundreds of colleagues, Alfen received a form notice Monday that her firing “was in the best interest of government.”

“I felt like we made a difference,” Alfen said. “To see everything disappearing before our eyes in a matter of weeks is very scary.”

Supporters shouted encouragement and waved signs outside or drove by tapping their car horns. A little girl stood next to her mother holding a handwritten sign saying, “I am proud of you Daddy.” A woman who left the building loaded down with bags burst into tears at the cheers greeting her A small crowd enveloped her in hugs.

USAID has been one of the biggest targets of a broad

campaign by President Donald Trump and cost-costing chief Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency, or DOGE, to slash the size of the federal government.

serted without evidence that its work is wasteful. In addi-

Their actions have left only a small fraction of USAID employees on the job, slashed $60 billion in assistance overseas and upended decades of U.S. policy that foreign aid helps American interests abroad by stabilizing other countries and building alliances.

Trump and Musk have called USAID programs out of line with the Republican president’s agenda and as-

Trans troops ordered removed

BY TARA COPP and LOLITA C. BALDOR Associated Press

WASHINGTON The military services have 30 days to figure out how they will seek out and identify transgender service members to remove them from the force — a daunting task that may end up relying on troops selfreporting or tattling on their colleagues.

A memo sent to Defense Department leaders on Thursday after the Pentagon filed it late Wednesday as part of a response to a lawsuit — orders the services to set up procedures to identify troops diagnosed with or being treated for gender dysphoria by March 26 They will then have 30 days to begin removing those troops from service.

The order expands on the executive order signed by President Donald Trump during his early days in office setting out steps toward banning transgender individuals from serving in the military. The directive has been challenged in court

A senior defense official said Thursday they believe there are about 4,200 troops diagnosed with gender dysphoria currently serving in the active duty, National Guard and Reserves.

The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said that between 2015 and 2024, the total cost for psychotherapy, gender-affirming hormone therapy, genderaffirming surgery and other treatment for service members is about $52 million

There are about 2.1 million troops serving

However, the issue has taken up a large part of the Pentagon’s attention and time as Trump and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth work to root them out, arguing that their medical condition doesn’t meet military standards.

“The medical, surgical, and mental health constraints on individuals who have a current diagnosis or history of, or exhibit symptoms consistent with, gender dysphoria are incompatible with the high mental and physical standards necessary for military service,” Darin Selnick, who is serving as defense undersecretary for personnel, said in the new memo.

It claims that the lethality and integrity of the military “is inconsistent” with what transgender personnel go through as they transition to the gender they identify with, and it issues an edict that gender is “immutable, unchanging during a person’s life.”

On Thursday, U.S officials said early rough numbers suggest about 600 transgen-

der troops can be quickly identified in the Navy, between 300 and 500 in the Army and fewer than 50 in the Marine Corps.

The officials noted, however, that the early numbers likely fall short of actual totals because some service members may have joined the service after any transition and may not have had medical or surgical procedures that could identify them. And officials also have warned that they may be limited by health privacy laws on what they can and can’t discern or report from records.

The new Pentagon policy provides two exceptions: if transgender personnel who seek to enlist can prove on a case-by-case basis that they directly support warfighting activities, or if an existing service member, who was diagnosed with gender dysphoria, can prove they support a specific warfighting need and never transitioned to the gender they identify with and proves over 36 months they are stable in their biological sex “without clinically significant distress.”

If a waiver is issued the applicant would still face a situation where only their biological sex was recognized for bathroom facilities, sleeping quarters and even in official recognition, such as being called “Sir” or “Ma’am.”

tion to its scope, the effort is extraordinary because it has not involved Congress, which authorized the agency and has provided its funding. Already organizations reported that thousands of USAID contracts for HIV programs in South Africa were permanently canceled And despite an assertion from Musk that funding to fight Ebola outbreaks had been restored, The Associated Press obtained a termination notice for a project by the Baylor College of Medicine Children’s Foundation that was poised to respond to Ebola cases in Uganda.

Devon Behrer, a USAID worker hired just three months ago, said helping carry out that work had always been her dream. “My plan was to come here and go into development work. My plan went up in smoke Monday,” she said. The way people’s lives

were being swept away was “incredibly disrespectful,” Behrer, 34, added. “There seems to be a lack of acknowledgment that we’re human.”

Staffers had pressed for weeks for permission to reenter the building to collect work shoes, family photos and other belongings. Some took flowers from a bucket on their way inside to place at a memorial wall honoring 99 USAID workers killed in the line of duty over the agency’s six decades. Staffers said security stopped them from placing the flowers. Late Wednesday, the Supreme

as villains, heroes and antiheroes in dozens of dramas, comedies and action films from the 1960s until his retirement in the early 2000s. “He was loved and admired by millions around the world for his brilliant acting career, but to us he was always just Dad and Grandpa,” his daughters and granddaughter said in a statement Thursday “We will miss him sorely and are devastated by the loss.”

According to the search warrant affidavit, a maintenance worker reported that the home’s front door was open when he arrived to do routine work Wednesday, and he called police after finding the bodies But in a 911 call, the maintenance worker said he was unable to get inside when the operator asked whether the people in the house were breathing.

“I have no idea,” the subdivision’s caretaker said. “I am not inside the house. It’s closed. It’s locked. I can’t go in. But I can see she’s laying down on the floor from the window.”

He and another worker later told authorities that they rarely saw the homeowners and their last contact with them had been about two weeks ago Hackman appeared to have fallen, a deputy observed. A cane was nearby A dead German shepherd was found in a bathroom closet near Arakawa, police said. Santa Fe

BOWLERS

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said. Tournament participants will bowl from 7 a.m. to 3 a.m. every day, with just a short break for cleanup. Admission is free for spectators.

This is the third time Baton Rouge has hosted the giant national bowling event. It was home for the event in 2005 and 2012, and also hosted the Women’s Championship in 2017.

To accommodate the tournament, 54 bowling lanes have been temporarily installed at the River Center Visit Baton Rouge has paid $1.125 million to the bowling congress to bring the tournament to the city and cover the cost of building a temporary bowling center That fee could end up topping $1.375 million based on how many bowlers participate in the tournament. Over the years, Visit Baton Rouge has changed how it promotes the city to the visiting bowlers, from posters taped around the River Center to touch screen

STUDENT

Continued from page 1A

to the hospital, after authorities ruled Wilson’s death “suspicious in nature.”

Wilson’s death likely resulted from an off-campus incident involving a student organization, university officials said, though they have not indicated which organization they think was involved. Southern leaders suspended all recruitment for fraternities, sororities and student clubs on the Baton Rouge campus.

A university spokesperson said

County Sheriff Adan Mendoza said during a press conference Thursday that the dog was found in a kennel. Two healthy dogs were found on the property — one inside and one outside “There was no indication of a struggle,” Mendoza said. “There was no indication of anything that was missing from the home or disturbed, you know that would be indication that there was a crime that had occurred.”

Results of autopsies conducted on both bodies are not available yet, sheriff’s officials said, noting that carbon monoxide and toxicology test results are pending.

The search warrant affidavit suggests that police appear to have a working theory that “some kind

of gas poisoning” happened, but that they don’t know yet and aren’t ruling anything out, Loyola Marymount University law professor Laurie Levenson said.

“They don’t have clear evidence that it’s any type of homicide, but they’re asking for blunt instruments or other weapons that could be used,” said Levenson, who has no connection to the investigation. “It doesn’t also look like some kind of planned double-suicide.”

William & Mary Law School professor Jeffrey Bellin said the request for a search warrant was somewhat unusual because investigators who file one usually believe a specific crime was committed In this case, no alleged crime was mentioned, Bellin said.

Police tend to overstate what they know, but this is the opposite, said Bellin, who also isn’t tied to the investigation. “It just struck me as very careful in a way that search warrant affidavits often are not,” he said. Hackman routinely showed up on Hollywood lists of greatest American actors of the 20th century He could play virtually any kind of role, from comic book villain Lex Luthor in “Superman” to a coach finding redemption in the sentimental favorite “Hoosiers.”

Hackman was a five-time Oscar nominee who won best actor in a leading role for “The French Connection” in 1972 and best actor in a supporting role for “Unforgiven” two decades later His death comes just four days before this year’s ceremony Tributes quickly poured in from Hollywood.

“There was no finer actor than Gene,” actor-director Clint Eastwood, Hackman’s “Unforgiven” co-star, said in a statement “Intense and instinctive. Never a false note. He was also a dear friend whom I will miss very much.”

Hackman met Arakawa, a classically trained pianist who grew up in Hawaii when she was working part-time at a California gym in the mid-1980s. They soon moved in together and relocated to Santa Fe by the end of the decade.

Their Southwestern-style ranch on Old Sunset Trail sits on a hill in a gated community with views of the Rocky Mountains. The sprawling four-bedroom home on 6 acres was built in 1997 and had an esti-

Bowlers compete in the Doubles Competition II of the Special Olympics

Bowling Tournament on Thursday at the Raising Cane’s River Center

kiosks. This allows the participants to use technology to build their itineraries and spreads the tourists out to beyond downtown, Cating said. Another way of promoting the city is a blend of technology and good old customer service. The Capital City Champions Academy

the pause was due to the student’s death.

Wilson, whose bandmates called him “Cheese,” played trumpet for the Human Jukebox, Southern University’s famed marching band.

“He had a lot of potential,” said Lonnie Robinson, a senior at Southern and leader of the band’s trumpet section.

The two had met during a summer band camp when Wilson was still attending Warren Easton Charter High School in New Orleans.

“He was always smiling,” Robinson said of his friend. “He just had the best sense of humor.”

is a free online hospitality training program that gives frontline workers in hotels, restaurants and attractions information on how to answer basic questions, like finding good places to eat and fun things to do in the region. The program is a reminder that customer service is something that

Wilson first picked up a trumpet in middle school, playing for the Roots of Music, an afterschool youth music program in New Orleans.

“He was a great kid with a great future that I loved dearly,” said Derek Tabb, member of the Rebirth Brass Band and co-founder of The Roots of Music. “I will miss his smile and our conversations.”

Meanwhile, Southern’s Winton R. Anderson, director of student leadership and engagement, wrote a letter to university chapter advisers and presidents explaining the university’s club activities suspension.

mated market value of a little over $4 million, according to Santa Fe County property tax records.

Hackman and his wife also owned a more modest home next door

Hackman also co-wrote three novels, starting with the swashbuckler, “Wake of the Perdido Star,” with Daniel Lenihan in 1999, according to publisher Simon & Schuster He then penned two by himself, concluding with “Pursuit” in 2013, about a female police officer on the tail of a predator In his first couple of decades in New Mexico, Hackman was often seen around the historic state capital, known as an artist enclave, tourism destination and retreat for celebrities.

He served on the board of trustees for the Georgia O’Keeffe Museum from 1997-2004, the museum said in a statement. In recent years, he was far less visible, though even the most mundane outings caught the attention of the press. There were articles about him attending a show at a performing arts center in 2018, as well as pumping gas, doing yard work and getting a chicken sandwich at Wendy’s in 2023.

Aside from appearances at awards shows, he was rarely seen in the Hollywood social circuit and retired from acting about 20 years ago. His was the rare Hollywood retirement that actually lasted.

Hackman had three children from a previous marriage. He and Arakawa had no children together but were known for having German shepherds.

Since 2018, the open bowling championship has been held in either Las Vegas or Reno, Nevada, both of which have major bowling stadiums. Last year’s event in Las Vegas drew 11,012 five-member teams.

The fact that the event is being held in the South and not in Nevada makes travel easier for some bowlers, Smith said. This year, a large number of teams are from Illinois, Michigan, Ohio, Wisconsin and Texas.

The bowling congress open isn’t the only bowling event going on in the city this year Side tournaments sponsored by Bowler’s Journal and Bowling This Month will be held at All Star Lanes through July, said Kim Bogan, general manager of the Airline Highway facility. Thousands of bowlers will participate in those events.

everyone can help with, Cating said. While the Capital City Champions Academy was set up for the national bowling championship, the hope is to keep the website going, add more information and have it serve as an educational resource for tourism.

The key points of his directive are prohibiting initiation processes, any induction of new members and any rushes or interest meetings. Existing membership activities of current members may continue, Anderson wrote. Benson released a statement Thursday, mourning the 20-yearold’s death.

“Today, we are deeply saddened by the tragic passing of Caleb Wilson, a very bright, young Southern University student,” she said. “Our hearts go out to his family, friends, and the entire Southern University community during this incredibly difficult time.”

The Jefferson Parish Sheriff’s

As a result of the bowling congress events in 2005 and 2012, All Star Lanes saw a substantial amount of increased business for months after the events ended, Bogan said.

“It put bowling back in the forefront again,” she said. “It helped us, and we saw more activity.”

Office also offered condolences to the Wilson family After retiring last year as a sergeant, Corey Wilson is working as a part-time deputy with the Sheriff’s Office. Baton Rouge police continue investigating his son Caleb’s death.

“This tragic loss has hit very close to my heart as his father, (Sgt.) Corey Wilson, has worked with our team for many years,” Saints owner Benson said.

“I have a deep and personal connection to his family We mourn with him today on this senseless passing, our thoughts and prayers are with all those affected by this heartbreaking loss.”

STAFF PHOTO By HILARy SCHEINUK

North America National Unified

ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO By ROBERTO ROSALES

Law enforcement officials talk outside the home of actor Gene Hackman on Thursday in Santa Fe, New Mexico. Hackman, his wife, Betsy Arakawa, and their dog were found dead in the home a day earlier

While most children in Louisiana typically receive two doses of the MMR vaccine before entering kindergarten, those unsure of their vaccination status can talk to their health care provider or access vaccine records through the website myirmobile.com.

Those who don’t have a health care provider can visit a parish health unit. Locations of parish health units across Louisiana are listed on the health department website.

The measles death in Texas is the first in the U.S. since 2015, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

As of Thursday, no measles cases have been reported in Louisiana this year, LDH said.

Last year there were a total of three measles cases in Louisiana and 285 nationwide, according to preliminary CDC data. In 2023, there were no measles cases in Louisiana and a total of 59 nationwide.

Measles, a respiratory virus, “is

one of the most contagious of all infectious diseases,” according to the CDC “Up to 9 out of 10 susceptible people with close contact to a measles patient will develop measles.”

It is “uncommon” for someone fully vaccinated against measles to contract the infection, the CDC says. “Two doses of MMR vaccine are 97% effective at preventing measles, 1 dose is 93% effective.”

Measles can spread airborne or via infectious droplets, and symptoms typically show up seven to 14 days after infection. Symptoms include fever, cough, runny nose, pink eye, white spots inside the mouth and a rash of red spots that begins on the face and then spreads down over the body Vaccines and politics

The statements from Cassidy and Abraham on the measles vaccine follow contentious political debates at the local and national levels over vaccine policy Cassidy chairs the U.S Senate committee that confirmed Robert F. Kennedy Jr. as the country’s top health official. Cassidy publicly voiced concern over statements Kennedy has made questioning the

safety and effectiveness of vaccines and unsuccessfully pressed Kennedy to publicly embrace them

In voting to confirm Kennedy as U.S. Health and Human Services secretary, Cassidy said the new health chief and the Trump administration committed to work within current vaccine approval and monitoring systems and maintain current immunization practices, among other promises.

Cassidy, amid a surge of measles cases in 2019, decried a debunked myth linking vaccines to autism after that idea, which has its roots in a discredited study, was raised on the senate floor of the State Capitol.

There were 1,274 measles cases that year, the largest spike in the U.S. since the early 1990s.

Meanwhile, Abraham, a skeptic of COVID-19 vaccines, on the day of Kennedy’s confirmation issued a formal directive to Louisiana Health Department employees ending the agency’s promotion of long-standing mass vaccination efforts.

The directive says conversations about vaccines “are best had with the individual’s health care provider.”

Vaccines won’t be promoted by LDH through parish health units, community health fairs or media campaigns, the memo says, although parish health units will continue to stock vaccines.

Vaccine promotion

Cassidy on Tuesday acknowledged he and Abraham diverge somewhat on vaccine policy

“He encouraged people to call their physician and to get their child vaccinated through their doctor’s office. I’m OK with that.

I love strengthening the patientphysician relationship,” the senator said.

But Cassidy referred to his previous work on hepatitis B vaccination programs, saying he knows it can sometimes be difficult to get in and see a doctor for a routine vaccination.

“That’s why community health centers are there, and that’s why I favor things like vaccine fairs,” he said.

But Cassidy said that, with respect to both his stance and the surgeon general’s on the measles, mumps and rubella vaccine, “there’s no daylight between us.”

“Dr Cassidy and Dr Abraham

are on the exact same page that your child needs to be vaccinated,” he later added.

Since becoming Louisiana’s surgeon general, Abraham has railed against many federal and state public health policies.

Talking to state lawmakers last fall about “tyrannical forces” that drove the government response to the COVID-19 pandemic, Abraham said nearly all government interventions were “ineffective” and “antithetical to the core principles of a free society.”

He also called the patient-doctor relationship “sacred” and argued it should be tighter than even a marriage bond.

Nonetheless, the February memo Abraham issued to LDH staff about state vaccine policy said the state Office of Public Health plays “an indispensable role in responding to emergent disease outbreaks that may require vaccine promotion as part of the mitigation of the spread of infectious disease.”

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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

Entergy to close $484M sale of natural gas firm

Entergy Corp. started notifying customers Thursday that the $484 million deal to sell its natural gas business to Delta Utilities is set to close in the second half of the year

The company said the change will not impact current natural gas customers and will not have an impact on existing services

Customers will continue to pay their natural gas bill through Entergy and notify the utility company if they have any outages, emergencies or service questions. Entergy said it will provide additional information and instructions to customers as the transition date gets nearer Entergy announced in October 2023 it had reached a deal to sell its natural gas business to Delta Utilities, which was set up by Bernhard Capital Partners. The sale was approved by the Louisiana Public Service Commission in August and the New Orleans City Council in December

Delta Utilities is also in the process of acquiring CenterPoint Energy’s natural gas distribution operations in Louisiana and Mississippi. That deal is expected to close in the first half of the year Once the deals are complete, Delta Utilities will be the leading natural gas utility in Louisiana and Mississippi and one of the top 40 natural gas providers in the U.S., said Jeff Jenkins, Bernhard founder and partner Delta Utilities will have nearly 600,000 customers across the Gulf Coast.

CFPB drops Capital One, Rocket Homes lawsuits

The Consumer Finance Protection Bureau has dropped several enforcement actions against companies like Capital One and Rocket Homes, just weeks under new leadership and turmoil at the agency caused by orders from Trump administration In notices of voluntary dismissals filed on Thursday the CFPB dropped lawsuits it had brought against Capital One, Rocket Homes, Vanderbilt Mortgage and Finance, owned by Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway, and others.

Those suits were all filed under the agency’s previous director, Rohit Chopra, who President Donald Trump fired just weeks ago. The CPFB has since plunged into turmoil — with the White House later ordering it to halt nearly all its work. The administration also closed the agency’s headquarters and moved to fire scores of its workers

Number filing for jobless benefits rises

Applications for U.S. jobless benefits rose to a three-month high last week but remained within the same healthy range of the past three years

The number of Americans filing for jobless benefits rose by 22,000 to 242,000 for the week ending Saturday, the Labor Department said Thursday. Analysts projected that 220,000 new applications would be filed. The four-week average, which evens out some of the week-toweek volatility climbed by 8,500 to 224,000.

Some analysts say they expect layoffs ordered by the Department of Government Efficiency to show up in the report in the coming weeks or months.

Pending home sales hit all-time low

High mortgage rates, record prices slow market

BY MICHELLE CHAPMAN Associated Press

Pending home sales in the United States slid to an all-time low in January as high mortgage rates, record-high home prices, and possibly the terrible weather last month hindered those seeking to buy

The National Association of Realtors said Thursday that its Pending Home Sales Index, which is an indicator of home sales based on contract signings, declined 4.6% to 70.6

last month Pending transactions fell 5.2% from the year-ago period. There were month-over-month declines in the Midwest, South and West, with the most significant drop in the South. Despite stretches of high winds and low temperatures, sales in the Northeast rose modestly “It is unclear if the coldest January in 25 years contributed to fewer buyers in the market, and if so, expect greater sales activity in upcoming months,” NAR Chief Economist Lawrence Yun said in a statement. “However it’s evident that elevated home prices and higher mortgage rates strained affordability.”

Mortgage rates in January were between 6.91% and 7.04%.

On Friday NAR said that sales of previously occupied U.S. homes slipped 4.9% last month from December to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 4.08 million units.

Sales rose 2% compared with January last year marking the fourth straight annual increase.

The latest home sales, however, fell short of the 4.11 million pace economists were expecting, according to FactSet.

Home prices increased on an annual basis for the 19th consecutive month The national median sales price rose 4.8% in January from a year earlier to $396,900.

The U.S. housing market has been in a sales slump dating back to 2022, when mortgage rates began

to climb from pandemic-era lows.

Sales of previously occupied U.S. homes fell last year to their lowest level in nearly 30 years.

Shares of publicly traded homebuilders have been punished this year and those prices slipped again Thursday Tariffs threatened by President Donald Trump have led to rising unease in the sector due to the possibility of higher prices for lumber and metals. And mass deportations under the Trump administration could also raise costs for builders.

The builder Toll Brothers is down 11% this year D.R. Horton and Lennar are down between 7% and 9%. Beazer Homes is down nearly 17% in 2025.

Plans for U.S. natural gas power grow

Move complicates progress on climate

BY MARC LEVY Associated Press

HARRISBURG,Pa.— A spike in demand for electricity from tech companies competing in the artificial intelligence race is upending forecasts for natural gas-fired power in the U.S., as utilities reconsider it as a major new power source

That is not what many scientists and climate activists envisioned in the fight against climate change And it is endangering progress on the greenhouse gas-reduction goals that scientists say are necessary to manage the damage from burning fossil fuels that warms the planet.

Across the nation, tech companies are snapping up real estate and seeking new power projects to feed their energy-hungry operations. One example is the 2,300-megawatt plant Entergy wants to build to serve Meta’s $10 billion data center in Richland Parish The utility company is also building a $1.8 billion power plant in Orange, Texas, slated to open in 2026

In some cases, Big Tech is building climatefriendlier projects like solar, wind, geothermal or battery storage.

But industry decision-makers are also turning to natural gas for what they say is a cheap and reliable source of power raising the prospect that gas-fired power will play a bigger role — and for a longer period of time — than even they had anticipated.

“Gas is growing faster now and in the medium term than ever before,” said Corianna Mah, a power and renewables analyst at data analytics firm Enverus.

Before the spike in electricity demand last year, many in the industry had assumed that there would be few new gas plants and that the nation’s fleet would gradually retire in

ASSOCIATED

The foundation for a warehouse is visible in the foreground as crews work Monday at Entergy’s Orange County Advanced Power Station, a 1,215-megawatt facility under construction in Orange, Texas.

favor of a grid powered by wind, solar, geothermal, batteries and possibly the next generation of nuclear power — sources that don’t emit the planet-warming greenhouse gas carbon dioxide. For many countries, that ramp down is happening as they work toward the goal of slashing their emissions to zero — or at least, net zero — by 2050, which scientists say could help the world avoid the worst effects of climate change.

In the U.S the electric power sector is the second-biggest emitter of greenhouse gases, according to government figures. And the construction of every new natural gas plant — built to last for decades — is a setback for climate goals, said John Quigley, a senior fellow at the University of Pennsylvania’s Klein-

man Center for Energy Policy

“At a top level, we will not get to net zero by 2050 if we are building new gas plants. Period,” Quigley said.

Across the U.S., gas pipeline operators are exuberant about the new demand and are reporting strong interest in extending their lines.

“Data center guys are trying to source power and trying to get to market with their data centers as fast as possible,” said Chris Kalnin, the CEO of BKV the largest natural-gas producer in the Barnett Shale gas reservoir in Texas. The key to signing up cloud-computing customers “is getting your facility online quickly and getting your facility online quickly requires you to have power and dependable power and a cost-efficient power source.”

Wall Street falls sharply as Nvidia tumbles

BY STAN CHOE AP business writer

NEW YORK U.S stock indexes fell sharply Thursday as Wall Street’s frenzy around artificial-intelligence technology faltered some more.

The S&P 500 sank for its fifth drop in six days after setting an all-time high last week. Concerns about the U.S. economy’s future have been behind much of the drop, including worries about how tariffs pushed by President Donald Trump could worsen inflation, and Wall Street’s main measure of health has lost all but 1.4% of its

rally since Election Day

The Dow Jones Industrial Average and the Nasdaq composite also tumbled.

Weighing most heavily on the market was superstar stock Nvidia, one of Wall Street’s most influential companies that’s been leading the market for years. After initially rising at the open of trading following a better-than-expected profit report, Nvidia quickly slid to a loss of 8.5%.

Better-than-expected earnings reports have become routine for Nvidia, whose chips are powering the surge into artificial-intelligence technology, but this was the

company’s first since DeepSeek shook the entire AI industry

After the Chinese upstart said it developed a large language model that can compete with the world’s best without using the most expensive chips, Wall Street had to question all the spending it assumed would go into Nvidia’s chips and the ecosystem that’s built around the AI boom, such as electricity to power large data centers.

Nvidia’s performance for the latest quarter, along with its forecasts for upcoming results, were “good enough to keep the debate moving in a positive direction,” according to analysts at UBS led

by Timothy Arcuri.

But it apparently wasn’t enough to send Nvidia’s stock higher, particularly given criticism that its price had already leapt too high, too quickly After more than tripling two years ago, Nvidia’s stock more than doubled last year as its sales exploded. The market also soured on Salesforce, which fell 4% despite topping analysts’ profit expectations for the latest quarter Several analysts called the performance solid, and the company continued to tout its AI offerings, but it gave a forecast for upcoming revenue that fell short of expectations.

PRESS PHOTO By DAVID J PHILLIP

BY STEPHEN MCGRATH, ANDREEA

ALEXANDRU and DANIEL KOZIN Associated Press

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla Influencer

brothers Andrew and Tristan Tate, who are charged with human trafficking in Romania, arrived Thursday in the U.S. after authorities lifted travel restrictions on the siblings, who have millions of online followers.

The brothers landed in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, around midday

The Tates who are dual U.S.British citizens — were arrested in late 2022 and formally indicted last year on charges they participated in a criminal ring that lured women to Romania, where they were sexually exploited Andrew Tate was also charged with rape. They deny the allegations.

In December, a court ruled that the case could not go to trial because of multiple legal and procedural irregularities on the part of the prosecutors. The case, however, remained open, and there is also another ongoing investigation against them in Romania.

Romania’s anti-organized crime agency DIICOT, said in a statement Thursday that prosecutors approved a request to change the travel restrictions on the Tates, but it did not say who made the request.

The brothers are still required to appear before judicial authorities when summoned.

“The defendants have been warned that deliberately violating these obligations may result in judicial control being replaced with a stricter deprivation-of-liberty measure,” the statement said.

After the brothers arrived in Florida, state Attorney General James Uthmeier said in a social media post that his office would conduct a preliminary inquiry” into them.

“Florida has zero tolerance for human trafficking and violence against women. If any of these alleged crimes trigger Florida jurisdiction, we will hold them accountable,” said Uthmeier an appointee of Republican Gov Ron DeSantis.

Speaking to reporters at the airport, Andrew Tate repeated his in-

sistence that the siblings had done nothing wrong.

“We live in a democratic society where it’s innocent until proven guilty And I think my brother and I are largely misunderstood. There’s a lot of opinions about us, things that go around about us on the internet,” he said.

In other developments Thursday, a court ruled in favor of an appeal by the Tates to lift the seizure of multiple assets, according to Tate spokesperson Mateea Petrescu. The assets include six luxury vehicles, land and properties, and company shares. All previously frozen bank accounts have been unfrozen, she said.

“While some assets remain under precautionary seizure, this ruling marks a significant step toward justice,” she said.

Andrew Tate, 38, a former professional kickboxer and selfdescribed misogynist who has amassed more than 10 million followers on X, has repeatedly claimed that prosecutors in Romania have no evidence against him and that there is a political conspir-

acy to silence him. He and Tristan Tate, 36, are vocal supporters of U.S. President Donald Trump.

Just weeks ago, Andrew Tate posted on X: “The Tates will be free, Trump is the president. The good old days are back. And they will be better than ever Hold on.”

The Tates’ departure came after Romanian Foreign Minister Emil Hurezeanu said this month that a Trump administration official expressed interest in the brothers’ case at the recent Munich Security Conference. The minister insisted no pressure was applied to lift restrictions on the Tates after a Financial Times report on the meeting caused a stir in Romania.

Asked if his administration pressured the Romania government to release the Tates, Trump told reporters Thursday in the Oval Office that he did not know anything about the circumstances: “I just know nothing about it. We’ll check it out. We’ll let you know.”

The Bucharest Court of Appeal’s decision that the Tate case could not proceed was a huge setback for DIICOT, but it did not mean the de-

fendants could walk free, and the case has not been closed.

Last August, DIICOT also launched a second case against the brothers, investigating allegations of human trafficking, the trafficking of minors, sexual intercourse with a minor, influencing statements and money laundering. They have denied those charges as well.

After the Tate brothers were arrested in 2022, they were held for three months in detention before being moved to house arrest. They were later restricted to the Bucharest municipality and nearby Ilfov County, and then to Romania. Andrew Tate was placed back under house arrest last year in the second case, but that measure was lifted last month.

Four British women who accused Andrew Tate of sexual violence and physical abuse are suing him in the U.K., after the Crown Prosecution Service decided not to prosecute him. The women said Thursday in a joint statement that they are “in disbelief and feel retraumatized” by news that the travel restrictions were lifted.

Landry promises budget funding fix

Governor responds to domestic violence shelters cuts

BY MEGHAN FRIEDMANN Staff writer

Gov Jeff Landry has promised to work with the Legislature to find a consistent source of funding for domestic violence shelters, after critics pointed out that his proposed budget did not include $7 million that has helped

expand domestic violence victim services in Louisiana for the past two years.

“Throughout my years as an elected official, I have never wavered in my support of domestic violence services. They are necessary, lifesaving, and essential, and must be treated as such,” Landry said in a statement last week.

“That is why I am committed to working with the Legislature to ensure there is a higher funding base for these services, and that it remains permanently in our budget, rather than as one-time funding.”

Commissioner of Administration Taylor Barras, Landry’s chief budget official, also promised

to work toward such a solution, according to a release from the governor’s office.

“Governor Landry has been a staunch advocate for a reoccurring fund in the state ted toward domestic services. We will work alongside him to make sure this

RISE AND SIGN

critical aid is protected — not just for this year but for every year,” he said.

During the current and previous fiscal year, the state has allotted $7 million to the Louisiana Coalition Against Domestic Violence. That money has been considered a one-time expenditure in the budget in other words lawmakers have not promised it for the

School audit finds misappropriated funds

er High School club and the board didn’t comply with all aspects of the Louisiana open meetings law

The report from the Louisiana Legislative Auditor’s Office covered the 2024 fiscal year

BY HALEY MILLER Staff writer

BY CHRISTOPHER CARTWRIGHT Staff writer

A recent audit of the St. James Parish School Board found that a former employee misappropriated more than $8,000 from a Lutch-

According to the audit, Aliska Jones-Franklin, of Paulina, deposited around $8,400 in Lutcher High School Flag and Majorette Club funds in a bank account not owned by the board. The audit reviewed club receipts, including those for tryout fees, uniforms and other fees, dating back to the fall of 2021. The board hasn’t filed a claim for restitution, but the St James Parish Sheriff’s Office said JonesFranklin was arrested on Aug. 26 and was charged with one count of felony theft. Her arraignment is scheduled for March 24. Jones-Franklin, who no longer works for the district but now works for a different school system, did not respond to a request for comment.

said the board couldn’t comment further on personnel matters. In response to the audit’s findings, though, the board said it plans to continue providing training to all employees, and that it is “working toward reducing cash collections by implementing an electronic payment platform.”

The audit also found a violation of Louisiana law that requires meeting minutes to be posted in a local newspaper within 20 days.

St. James Parish Schools spokesperson Sarah Forsythe

STAFF PHOTO By MICHAEL JOHNSON

A crew from Gibko lifts a new sign into place at the Rouses Market on Florida Boulevard in Baton Rouge on Monday.

Boeing to lay off 89 people at Michoud

Rocket manufacturing facility located in New Orleans

BY STEPHANIE RIEGEL Staff writer

Boeing, the lead contractor on NASA’s Artemis space program, will lay off 89 employees at its Michoud Assembly Facility, raising fresh doubts about the future of the program and the role New Orleans may play in getting astronauts back to the moon. In a letter to the Louisiana Workforce Commission dated Feb. 15, the company said it had made the “difficult decision” to reduce its workforce beginning April 18, according to information posted on the agency’s

website. The cuts at Michoud are the latest sign of potential trouble ahead for the Artemis program, NASA’s $24 billion initiative to return manned crews to the moon and, eventually, to Mars. Boeing employs more than 1,000 workers at the 43-acre Michoud facility where they construct a key component of the Space Launch System rockets used in the program.

President Donald Trump and his top adviser, SpaceX CEO Elon Musk, are reportedly considering phasing out or altogether scrapping the program, which has been plagued by delays and cost overruns. A NASA watchdog last year found the rocket program was seven years behind schedule and more than $1 billion over budget. The job cuts are a blow to Michoud. The program has been touted as one of the

NEW ORLEANS

Pair booked in fatal overdose released

BY MISSY WILKINSON Staff writer

A man and woman arrested on counts of seconddegree murder last weekend for allegedly selling fentanyl-laced heroin to a Tulane University student who died from a fatal overdose have been released from jail, after court commissioners found no cause to hold them at back-toback appearances, according to records.

A recent ruling by the Louisiana Supreme Court appears to have influenced those decisions.

Kyle Stoufflet, 66, and Michelle Zahn, 35, were booked into Orleans Justice Center on Feb. 22, after selling the student “some s*** that will literally kill Tarzan and his entire family,” Zahn told the student, according to a Jan. 28 warrant for her arrest. Orleans Parish magistrate commissioner Jay Daniels signed the warrant, but a month later shifted course, finding no probable cause on Saturday to hold Zahn on a second-degree murder count.

Magistrate commissioner Jonathan Friedman issued the same finding on Sunday with Stoufflet. On Thursday, the Orleans Parish District Attorney Jason Williams’ office refused both cases.

Keith Lampkin, a district attorney spokesperson, pointed to a Feb. 6 ruling by the Louisiana Supreme

Continued from page 1B

on Sunday

“We made the decision to move back to Baton Rouge, where there were clear guidelines and processes and partners who were willing to collaborate, regardless of whatever took place, to make sure that the event was successful,” 225Fest founder Myra Richardson said. This year, organizers planned to hold the festival at Airline Highway Park, or the BREC fairgrounds, in St. George to avoid hosting an event downtown on the same day as the Spanish Town Parade.

But differences over the public safety portion of the event permit caused organizers to change the location Richardson said the price tag of providing security in St. George for the festival made it difficult to justify keeping it there.

The festival also already had partners in Baton Rouge, she said, that made it easier to complete the permit process. “It is disheartening,” Richardson said. “It’s a

bright spots in New Orleans East, which has struggled to attract jobs and commerce. The recent announcement comes less than a year after an earlier round of layoffs at Michoud. Last April, Boeing said it would lay off an “unspecified number” of workers at Michoud and other facilities around the country involved in building the SLS rockets. At the time, Boeing said it was working with NASA to “evaluate and align budget, resources, and schedules to execute the program’s goals and objectives.”

Boeing did not cut as many workers as initially feared in that round of job cuts last year, company spokesperson Joshua Barrett said earlier this month.

As to the upcoming layoffs, Barrett said they are needed to “drive efficiency and cost effectiveness on

SHELTERS

Continued from page 1B

following years.

Court that set the bar for proving someone guilty under the statute.

“The law requires evidence that the victim ingested the exact drugs provided by the defendant AND that those drugs were the direct cause of the victim’s death,” Lampkin said in a written statement. “The commissioners in each case reviewed the new case law as well as the toxicology report, and found no probable cause for the murder charges.”

Lampkin said prosecutors are working with police to hold the defendants accountable for distributing the deadly drugs.

New Orleans police said a family friend found the 21-year-old victim dead on the couch at his apartment in the 7600 block of Burthe Street on Nov 4. He was surrounded by syringes, cotton balls and a plastic bag filled with fentanyllaced heroin.

Text messages on his cellphone offered police a window into a transaction allegedly conducted three days before his death, according to an arrest warrant.

“This better be h,” the victim texted. “Not fent mixed w h lol”

“It’s strong s — t. I have ppl coming back for this s t bc it’s fire,” Zahn allegedly responded. A month earlier, Zahn allegedly used a near-death experience as a selling point.

very difficult thing as an event organizer to have to make these hard decisions.”

St. George Mayor Dustin Yates wrote in a statement that the festival’s failure to provide a comprehensive public safety plan meant the city could not move forward with an event permit St. George “cannot compromise” on security, he added “While it’s unfortunate we were unable to approve their permit, the safety of our residents is paramount,” Yates wrote St. George is a new city with its first mayoral election next month — Yates was appointed interim mayor by Gov Jeff Landry before those elections. Voters in the southeast part of the parish voted to create the new city in 2019, but a lengthy legal battle delayed it from getting up and running until this year Richardson said the situation is not about finding who is in the wrong. 225Fest is focused on providing an event that’s accessible and continues to be free for the community, she said.

“I think that St. George is figuring it out,” Richardson said. “I think that it is a new thing. I don’t think it’s malicious.”

the program as portions of Boeing’s SLS work matures from development to production.”

He declined to say whether additional layoffs are likely, but said, “We will redeploy teammates where possible.”

NASA dec line d to comment.

A rocket history

The Michoud Assembly Facility in New Orleans East has played a key role in NASA’s rocket programs since the Apollo rockets were built there in the 1960s.

For the past decade, the facility has been used to build the 322-foot “core stage” of the SLS rockets that power the spacecraft used in the Artemis missions. In 2022, NASA successfully launched Artemis I, which traveled 280,000 miles into space without a crew

Teams at Michoud have been working on SLS rockets for Artemis II and III. But last spring, their launch dates, originally scheduled for late 2024 and late 2025, were pushed back at least one year Now, under fresh scrutiny from the Trump administration, it is unclear if they will be further delayed or eliminated altogether

Even before Trump took office, the Artemis program and Michoud’s role in building the rockets have been criticized by some. Last summer, NASA’s inspector general issued a scathing report that blamed, in part, Boeing workers at Michoud for some of the space program’s delays and cost overruns.

Problems cited in the report focused on the development of the upgraded version of the SLS rocket that was originally slated to be

launched in 2021 and now isn’t expected to be ready until the Artemis IV mission, currently scheduled for mid2028.

The report didn’t blame the delays and cost overruns entirely on the quality and workforce issues at Michoud, though it said that “lack of a sufficient number of trained and experienced aerospace workers at Boeing” contributed to the problems. The report suggested the issues were due, in part, “to Michoud’s geographical location in New Orleans and lower employee compensation relative to other aerospace competitors.”

Economic development officials and leaders with Nunez Community College, which specifically trains students to work at Michoud, took issue with the report and defended the local workforce.

At a budget presentation last week, state Rep. Denise Marcelle, D-Baton Rouge became upset when she noticed the governor’s proposed budget did not include the $7 million for the coalition.

At the meeting, Landry’s top budget officials explained they had eliminated many “one-time” expenditures to create a “standstill” budget.

“I certainly want to make sure that we’re not going backwards in that area,” Marcelle told them, adding that women seeking shelter do not care whether the $7 million was considered a one-time expense.

Cutting $7 million for domestic violence victim services would have real, tangible and dangerous consequences, says Mariah Wineski, head of the Louisiana Coalition Against Domestic Violence, which distributes the money to shelters across the state.

“It would have an almost immediate effect in a very devastating way,” she said.

Losing the money would eliminate 229 domestic violence shelter beds at least 11 outreach offices, where domestic violence victims go to connect with services.

Domestic violence is more prevalent in Louisiana than in other states, Wineski said. In 2023, a Tulane survey of more than 1,000 Louisianans found that 51% reported experiencing intimate partner violence at some point in their lives.

National averages, which say that up to 1 in 4 women and 1 in 9 men are domestic violence victims, are lower In 2021, the Louisiana Legislative Auditor released a report about domestic violence in the state.

AUDIT

Continued from page 1B

However, the report noted that the meeting minutes were posted to the board’s website in a timely manner, which Forsythe pointed to when asked for comment.

“The board meeting minutes were timely published on the St. James Parish School Board website, and we have taken actions to ensure they continue to be properly published in all formats as required by Louisiana state law,” she wrote via email.

The law states that a violation can be punishable with a fine between $25 and $500, an imprisonment of between 10 days and six months, or both.

The document stated that both corrective actions were anticipated to be completed by June 30.

Email Christopher Cartwright at christopher cartwright@theadvocate. com.

It found that, between 2015 and 2020, the state had an average of 2,659 annual unmet requests for shelter That means that, “2600 times a domestic violence victim was calling needing a shelter and couldn’t get it because the beds were full,” Wineski said.

She said the $7 million in funding that the Legislature gave made a real difference: The state drastically reduced its number of unmet requests for shelter to 1400 annually, according to Wineski.

“These investments are absolutely working. They are doing what they are meant to do,” she said. “We’re just really hopeful that we can stay on that same path and keep serving victims who need it.”

Email Meghan Friedmann at meghan.friedmann@ theadvocate.com.

New Orleans City Council bans mayor’s travel

Move comes after Cantrell backed out of school settlement

BY JAMES FINN Staff writer

Weeks after Mayor LaToya Cantrell backed out of a settlement that was poised to deliver millions of dollars to New Orleans schools, the City Council responded by banning travel by the mayor and other city officials.

The temporary ban, which the council approved unanimously during its regular meeting Thursday, follows blistering criticism of Cantrell for spending hundreds of thousands of taxpayer dollars on overseas travel to conferences and forums during her second term. Council members cast the restrictions as a response to the mayor’s about-face on

La.

residents asked to watch for rare crab

Staff report

As part of National Invasive Species Awareness Week, the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries is asking residents to keep an eye out for the Chinese mitten crab, a rare visitor to Louisiana waters.

First spotted in 1987, sightings have been extremely rare, according to a department statement, but in January 2025, two were found near the mouth of the Mississippi River in Plaquemines Parish. They are believed to have originally arrived in the United States as hitchhikers on ships or through ballast water

These crabs are easy to recognize by the fuzzy “mittens” on their claws and the lack of paddles on their rear legs. While they live most of their lives in fresh water, they migrate to marine waters to spawn and have been known to travel over 750 miles up rivers in other regions.

LDWF requests any sightings be reported to (225) 765-3977 or aquaticinvasives@wlf.la.gov If possible, snap a picture of the top and underside of the crab and keep it for future examination.

the $90 million settlement deal earlier this month.

School officials had hoped to use two up-front payments to plug a significant budget hole caused by an internal accounting error But the mayor’s deputies now argue the city’s finances are too dire to pay up.

The travel ban is not a punishment, council members said but an attempt at curtailing frivolous spending in light of Cantrell’s argument that belt tightening is in order

“This is not punitive,” said council President JP Morrell, who sponsored the legislation containing the restrictions. “This is in response to representation made by the head of the finance department that our budget is in crisis, that spending is out of control.”

Cantrell’s press office did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the travel ban.

Cantrell administration officials last fall endorsed the

settlement would Orleans Board April million next deal a lo batt practice the es the city collects on the School Board’s behalf.

But early this month, Cantrell stunned school officials and council members by claiming she’d never personally agreed to the settlement terms, and that as a result, the deal wasn’t binding The fight has spilled into court, where the School Board and City Council is asking a judge to hold the mayor to the terms of the deal, which was funded in the annual city budget Cantrell has already signed.

Under pointed questioning from council members, the mayor’s top deputies argued recently that the city

afford to pay to the sudfiscal crisis product of fic camera revenue, confusion President Trump’s posed federal spending cuts and multimillion-dollar ity did not know about until now Council officials have pressed for more explanation of the professed fiscal challenges, noting that much of the spending described in the administration’s arguments has already been budgeted or is not finalized.

The ordinance approved Thursday bans through April all travel by city employees to conventions, festivals, conferences or any other purpose that isn’t necessary for legal proceedings or required under a contract. Amendments introduced by Morrell and council budget chief Joe Giarrusso, respectively, allow

exceptions for members of the city’s Aviation Board and in cases where travel costs are covered by state or federal grants.

Giarrusso said he carried the latter amendment to “get away from the assertion” that the ordinance was devised as punishment against the Cantrell administration.

“Sometimes funds are granted by the federal government or the state that either allows for or mandates travel,” he said. “I have zero problem with that. This is in response to, ‘We have a crisis, and so therefore what are we looking at?’ I feel like this is a very fair way of doing that.”

Last week, Morrell took an implicit swipe at Cantrell in an Instagram post outlining the proposed ordinance.

at the state championship

“We are devastated by the tragic passing of Dillon Reidenauer who was taken from us much too soon,” said Dennis Shaver, head coach of the LSU Track and Field team. “Everyone in our LSU Track & Field family is keeping Dillon’s loved ones in our

Elicia

“There

to this story

Email Quinn Coffman at quinn.coffman@ theadvocate.com.

February meant to raise awareness of issues

BY ALENA MASCHKE Staff writer

When Katie Eddington’s OB-GYN first told her she had a heart murmur, she was surprised but not shocked. Eddington, who was 29 years old when the murmur was first detected, had lost her brother to heart disease when he was 31. Still, Eddington wondered: “How did I get this far and it’s never been heard before?” She had given birth to a baby girl four years earlier and had run multiple marathons, including the Boston Marathon, just two years before the murmur was detected.

Most heart surgery patients fall into one of two categories, Our Lady of Lourdes cardiac surgeon Dr Robert Chance DeWitt explained. Those, like Eddington, with a family history of heart disease often require intervention at a younger age, but symptoms can go undetected or unrecognized because they’re outside of the age range when most people start experi-

“No more flying around the country,” he said. “No more eating out. No more other related nonsense, because if we can’t afford to take care of the kids, we can’t afford to do anything else.” The directive passed quickly with no objection and little discussion. The tightening of rules around official travel follows heavy scrutiny of Cantrell’s packed travel schedule during her second term, in which she faced accusations of being involved in a romantic relationship with her New Orleans Police Department bodyguard and a federal investigation. Through it all, members of the council have emerged as some of her loudest critics. Cantrell’s travels took her outside of New Orleans on one out of every five days in 2023 and for the first half of 2024, according to an analysis published last year by The Times-Picayune. The newspaper found those trips cost taxpayers $250,000 including costs of other city employees who accompanied her.

Email James Finn covers at jfinn@theadvocate.com.

Lourdes heart patients, doctors reunite

Heart

‘Jerry’ Guidry and his wife, Amanda, are

Lafayette on Tuesday.

encing cardiac issues later in life, when heart problems are more common.

On Tuesday, Eddington, along with another patient was reunited with her care team at Lourdes Heart Hospital in a celebration of their recovery and Heart Health Month. Heart disease is the leading cause of death in the United States and Louisiana.

“Get checked out early,” DeWitt said “And a lot of times we see that in pa-

tients, they’ll describe: ‘I’m getting old, I’m working, I’m stressed. I have all these issues.’ And really they neglect their own health due to the outside pressures they have from family, work and different things.”

That was the case for Jarachin “Jerry” Guidry 44, who suffered a heart attack in October, a day before he was scheduled to have some tests run on his heart after a heart murmur had inten-

sified.

“He had a valvular problem that, over time, he didn’t recognize it, whether he was having symptoms or not, he just didn’t recognize it,” DeWitt said of his patient.

“So he progressed a little farther, to the point that his heart was fairly damaged.”

Guidry’s heart required a temporary heart pump to get back on track after surgery, technology that has only become available

at local hospitals in recent years.

“This new technology prior to us getting this, he would have had to be transferred to another facility, usually a bigger facility,” DeWitt said, noting that a patient like Guidry would have likely been sent to a specialty hospital in Houston just four years ago. The results surpassed expectations. “I didn’t expect to be this good, this soon,” Guidry said. Just a few months after the surgery, Guidry’s heart function is practically back to normal, DeWitt noted, unusual for the severity of his condition. For Guidry, who just became a grandfather for the first time, it’s a great relief.

“I can at least carry and play around with her now, not just sit in a chair and people having to give her to me,” the 44-year-old said of his granddaughter Eddington, too, has made an impressive recovery She’s back to work as the children’s director at Our Savior’s Church and back in her running shoes, as well. She’s completed another 5K run since and she’s already eyeing the next marathon. Boston again, maybe.

Email Alena Maschke at alena.maschke@ theadvocate.com.

STAFF PHOTO By ALENA MASCHKE

surgery patient Katie Eddington, from left; her husband, Evan; surgical technician Raquel Bonin; heart surgeon Dr. Robert Chance DeWitt; and heart surgery patient Jarachin

reunited at Our Lady of Lourdes Heart Hospital in

Louis Barrio, Sr. de‐

parted this life on Monday February 17, 2025, at West Jefferson Medical Center in Marrero, LA. He was 80, a native of Napoleonville, LA and a resident of New Or‐leans LA Funeral service on Saturday, March 1, 2025, at St John Baptist Church 3659 Hwy 1, Napoleonville, LA at 11:00am Interment in the church cemetery Arrangements by Williams & Southall Funeral Home 5414 Hwy 1; Napoleonville, LA. 70390. (985)369-7231. To sign the guest book or offer condolences, visit our website at www william sandsouthallfuneralhome. com

It is with profound sorrow and solemn reverence that we announce the passing of Mr. Lionel Emery, who departed this earthly life on the 21st of February, in the year of our Lord 2025, at the distinguishedage of seventyfive. Apublic viewing shall be held in his honor on Saturday, the 1st of March, commencing at 10:00 AM at Renew Church, 8160 Pettit Road, Baker, Louisiana, Louisiana. The celebration of life servicesshallfollow at 11:00 AM. His earthly remains shall be laid to rest at Heavenly Gates Mausoleum. The distinguished &solemn arrangements have been entrusted to the care of Winnfield Funeral Home of Baton Rouge & Marcus K. Lewis, FDIC

Nora Jane Fontenot "Janie"passed away on February 19, 2025, at the age of 82. Janie was an avid participant in the Senior Olympics earning multiple gold medals.She was an excellent grill master of beef BBQ;a skillshe learned as achild growing up in the West Texastown of Sweetwater. She is survived by her son, Danny Fontenot of Slidell, LA; her daughters, Kristie Bankston (Ames) of Madisonville, LA, and Sheila Napoli of Denham Springs, LA; her grandchildren, KayleeProctor,Brett Bankston, Brady Bankston, Brooks Bankston; greatgrandchildren, Brielle, Blase and Carter. She was preceded in death by her parents, Chester Thomas Harris and OzyWinfred Price Harris; husband, Byron Paul Fontenot; daughter, ChereeCatherine Fontenot; and sister, Nancy Harris Denicola. Avisitation will be held at Greenoaks Funeral Home on Saturday, March 1, 2025, from 10 am untilfuneral services at 12 pm. Burial will follow in Greenoaks Memorial Park. Pallbearers will be Danny Fontenot, Ames Bankston, Brady Bankston, and Brooks Bankston. Please visit www.greenoaksfnerals.co mtoleave condolencesto the family.

Dotson, Margarette 'Hattie' Margarette "Hattie" Dotson entered into eternal rest at her residence in Baker, Louisiana on Wednesday February 19, 2025 She was an 84-year old na‐tive of Jackson, Louisiana Viewing at Bethany North on Saturday March 1, 2025 at 8:00 am

Gentile, Jennie

rounded by her loved ones. She was born on September 7, 1959, in Baton Rouge Louisiana to Johnie M. Robison, and Margaret R. Tuiller. She graduated from Belaire high school. Jennie married Steven Louis Gentile on April 14, 1979. She was known for her kind heart,her laugh, her cross stitches and her passion for The NewOrleans Saints. Jennie loved music and dancing. Jennie was a devoted and beloved wife. She loved more than anything being ahomemaker to her twochildren and husband. She is survived by her husband,SteveL Gentile; son, Travis A. Gentile (Candace); daughter Kimberly G. Morris (Christopher); grandchildren, Owen Gentile (Bella), Dylan Gentile, Megan Morris, Brylee Morris; great granddaughter Mrynn Gentile, sisters Marla Robison Colligan, Joni Robison, Cindy Robison Ezell, Kerri Robison; brothers, Charles and Buddy Scott and her childhood best friend, Lynette Paxton. She was preceded in deathbyfather Johnie M. Robison, grandfather John Robison, grandmother Lula Mae Robison, grandfather Raymond Tullier, grandmother Bertha Tullier, mother-inlaw Jeanette Gentile, father-in-law GeorgeGentile and her beloved angel granddaughter Savannah Marie Gentile. Jennie was a big fan of the Saints, so if anyone would like to wear black and gold in her honor, please feel free to do so.I have fought agood fight, Ihave finished my course, Ihave keptthe faith: Henceforth there is laid up for me acrown of righteousness, which the Lord,the righteous judge, shall give me at that day. A visitation will be held on Saturday, March 1, 2025 from 2:30pmto3:30pm at Ourso funeral Home, 13533 Airline Hwy, Gonzales, LA 70737. The celebrationof life will begin at 3:30pm In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to the Cushing's Disease foundation or American Stroke Association.

day, March 6, 2025, at St. Charles Borromeo Catholic Church in Port Charlotte, followed by committal at Restlawn Memorial Gardens Cemetery also in Port Charlotte, FL. Friends may visit online at www.robersonfh.comto extend condolences to the family. Arrangement by Roberson Funeral Home Port Charlotte Chapel. and friends. She is preceded in death by her parents, Henry Sr and Oleavia Williams, two brothers, Henry Williams, Jr. and Hebert Williams, two sisters Heneritta Williams andMary VOdkins. Services are entrusted to Desselle Funeral Home 263 Eddie Robinson Sr. Drive, Baton Rouge, La. 70802 wife.

Haynes Jr., Lee Tillman 'Sonny'

Lee Tillman Haynes, Jr., abeloved musician and proud inductee of the Louisiana Music Hall of Fame, passed away on February 24th 2025, in Baton Rouge, LA. Born on February 1st, 1936 in Denham Springs, LA to Inez Drake Haynes and Lee Tillman Haynes Sr., "Sonny" was "Inez and Bootsie's only boy."Heenjoyed playing golf, reading the newspaper, and spending time with family. He is survived by his children: Bruce, Kevin (Rosezel), Kim, Gina, Angel (Troy), Dana, Dalana, Lee Tillman Haynes III"Trey", and Shelby. He is also survived by ahost of grandchildren, great-grandchildren, a great-great-grandchild, nieces, nephews, cousins, and alongtime partner, Marilyn Graham. He was preceded in death by Kerri "Chetty Boy" Haynes (son), Tazmine Robinson (granddaughter), Lee Tillman Haynes Sr. (father), Inez Drake Haynes (mother) BrendaEames (sister), Rosemary Collier (sister), and Marvelle Hayes (sister). Viewing, Monday, March 3rd, 2025 from 35pm followed by amemorial service on Wednesday. March 5th, 2025 at 11am, both at Hall Davis &Sons Funeral Home at 9348 Scenic Hwy. Lee'sspirit and music will forever live on, resonating through the heartsofall who were touched by his gift

Percy Allen Kelson, 75 years old, anative Darrow, LA and resident of Gonzales, LA, passed away on February 14, 2025 in Baton Rouge, LA. Services on Saturday, March 1, 2025 at TrueLight Worship Center 1012 West Orice RothRd, Gonzales, LA. Visitation 9AM service at 10AM. Bishop Adrien Claiborne officiating. Burial services will be held on Tuesday, March 4, 2025 at the Port Hudson National Cemetery located at 20978 Port Hickory Rd., Zachary, LA 70791.

Langford, Charles Funeral services for Charles Langford will be held Saturday, March 1, 2025 at Saintsville COGIC 8930 Plank Rd A public vis‐itation will be held from 11:00 a.m until 12:00 p.m with religious services be‐ginning at 12:00 p.m Inter‐ment: Strangers Home, 8525 Lemon Rd Slaughter La. 70777. Professional ser‐vices entrusted to

Ihave fought agood fight,I have finishedmy course, Ihave kept the faith: Henceforth there is laid up for me acrown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, shall give me at that day. Jennie Alane Robison Gentile, 65, of Prairieville, Louisiana, passed away on February 19, 2025, surroundedbyher loved ones. She was born on September 7, 1959, in Baton Rouge Louisiana to Johnie M. Robison, and Margaret R. Tuiller. She graduated from Belaire high school.Jennie married Steven LouisGentile on April 14, 1979. She was known for her kind heart, her laugh, her cross stitches passion for The Orleans Saints. loved music and dancing. Jennie was a devoted and belovedwife. She loved morethana thing being ahomemaker to her two chil husband. She is by her husband, Steve Gentile; son, A. tile (Candace); daughter Kimberly G. Morris (Christopher); grandchil-

Susan Elaine Harper (Vance) of Port Charlotte, Florida, departed this life on February 23, 2025, at the age of 64 after acourageous battle with cancer. Born in San Diego, she later resided in Grand Prairie, Texas, and St Louis, MO. She met her husband Charles while working in Baton Rouge, La. After 28 years in Baton Rouge, she returned to St Louis with Charles, before finally settling in Port Charlotte, FL.Throughout her life, Susan held various jobs. In Baton Rouge, she became the first female president of the Society of Saint Vincent DePaul district council. Susan retired from the Postal Service in 2021 and moved to Southwest Florida. Susan was avibrant and fearless wife, mother, and human. She never backed down from adversity, meeting challenges headon withcourage. She loved animals, LSU baseball, rollercoasters, her husband Charles' cooking, and her family. Above all, she loved God and put her unwavering faith in Him. She was adevoted handmaiden to ourFather, and her faith was as steadfast as her tenacity. She is survived by her husband of 40 years, Charles S. Harper, her daughters Lizand Rebecca, her sister Melissa Vance, niece Jennifer Anderson and nephew James Cooper. She is preceded in death by her parents, Bud and Sarah Vance (Bell), her sisters Becky and Ann Marie Vance.

Mass of Christian burial will be held 1Pm on Thursday, March 6, 2025, at St Charles Borromeo Catholic Church in Port Charlotte, followed by committal at Restlawn Memorial Gardens Cemetery also in Port Charlot may visit online at www.robersonfh.com to extend condolences to the family. Arrangement by Roberson Funeral Home Port Charlotte Chapel.

Born February 10, 1947, Jenitt Jones, aresident of Baton Rouge, passed away Thursday, February 13, 2025, at East JeffersonHospital in Metairie, LA. A graduate of McKinleyHigh School and Southern University. She was aretired teacher. Visitation will be held at Mt Carmel Baptist Church, 5262 PrescottRoad on Saturday, March 1, 2025, from 9amuntil religious services at 11:00 am conducted by Dr. Andra Johnson. Interment in Southern Memorial Gardens. She is survived by one Sister Gladys Alexander, five grandchildren, Darius Jones, Demarcus (Chanel) Jones, Jasmine (James) Bethley, Demiracle Jones, and Marell Jones. Eight great-grandchildren, and ahost of nieces nephews, other relatives and friends. She is preceded in death by her parents, Henry Sr and Oleavia Williams, two brothers, Henry Williams, Jr. and Hebert Williams, two Williams kins. Services to Desselle 263 Eddie Robinson

Ruth Stearns LeCompte 78, a resident of Baker, LA, died on Thursday, February 20, 2025. There will be a visitation at Charlet Fu‐neral Home, inc in Zachary, LA on Saturday, March 1 2025 from 9:00 am until memorial services at 12:00 noon. She was an ex‐tremely passionate person, a

Drive, Baton Rouge, La. 70802

Kelson, Percy

Barrio Sr., Louis

LeCompte, Ruth Stearns

Patterson Jr., Alvin

Southall Funeral Home,

Harper, Susan Elaine

Jones, Jenitt

Pe LA s ta‐

tion on Friday, February 28, 2025, at Williams & Southall Funeral Home from 2:00pm to 4:00pm. Visitation on Saturday, March 1 2025, at Greater Israel Baptist Church from 9:00am to religious ser‐vices 11:00am Interment in the church cemetery Sur‐vived by his wife Norma Jean Myles Patterson; 1 son Neville Patterson (Gina); 2 brothers, Stanley Eugene Patterson and Kevin Gregory Patterson; 2 sisters, Patricia Ann Jacobs and LaNore Patterson; 1 aunt, Neomie Plank; 2 un‐cles, Harold Patterson (Shirley) and Robert Pat‐terson (Joyce); 6 grandchil‐dren; 1 great-granddaugh‐ter; a host of other rela‐tives and friends Preceded in death by his parents Mary Evelyn and Alvin Pat‐terson Sr.; his mother and father in law, Dorothy and Edwin Myles Arrange‐ments by Williams & Southall Funeral Home, 5414 Hwy 1; Napoleonville LA. 70390. (985)369-7231. To sign the guest book or offer condolences, visit our website at www william sandsouthallfuneralhome. com

Ann Pedescleaux, age 95, passed awayonSaturday morning, February 22 2025, at Gonzales Healthcare Center. Aresident of Darrow, LA and native of Cheneyville, LA. She served in the Education field in Ascension Parish for more than 25 years as a School Teacher and once retired continued as aSubstitute Teacher for another 15 years. Survived by daughter, Warrine Lightfoot, Goddaughter and Caregiver, Minister Jessica Geason, adopted daughter Juliette Burke, one sister, one grandson, three greatgrandchildren, eight greatgreat-grandchildren,

Geason, adopted daughter, Juliette Burke,one sister, one grandson, three greatgrandchildren, eight greatgreat-grandchildren, nieces, nephews, family and friends. Visitation (910:45 am) and Funeral (11 am) serviceswill be Saturday, March 1, 2025, at St. Philip Baptist Church -7471 La Hwy 405 Donaldsonville (Modeste), LA 70346. Rev Roland Julien, Pastor/Officiant. Burial immediately following servesat Ebenezer Baptist Church Cemetery in Darrow, La. Funeral arrangements entrustedtoAscension Funeral Home of Gonzales, LA.

Scott, Georgeiana Golden

Georgeiana Golden Scott passed away peacefully on Saturday,February 22, 2025, at the age of 94. Visitation will be held at Wesley United Methodist Church on Saturday, March 1, 2025, from 8a.m. until the religious service at 10 a.m. conducted by Pastor Frederick Sweetwyne. The interment will be Monday at 11:00 a.m., PortHudson National Cemetery, Zachary, Louisiana. Survived by two sons, Randolph Scott Jr.and Brent Scott; adaughter, Kim Scott. Precededindeath by her husband, Randolph Scott, Sr., parents, John Theodore and Lucille T. Golden; ason, John Gregory Scott; daughter-in-law, Florence RayfordScott, grandson, Kenneth Scott, and parents- in-law, Henry and Bertha AllenScott. Services entrusted to Desselle Funeral Home.

Walker Kelley, Debra

Entered into eternal rest on February10, 2025 at the age of 60. Survived by her husband, RonaldKelley; daughter, Chelsea Kell

Entered intoeternal rest on February 10, 2025 at the age of 60. Survived by her husband, Ronald Kelley; daughter, Chelsea Kelley; mother, Georgiana Jones; 3 sisters; 3brothers; host of aunts, uncles, nieces, nephews and cousins. Preceded in deathbyher father, Benit Walker, Jr. grandparents, Benit and Mary Walker, Sr. Visitation Saturday, March 1, 2025, Greater Mount Olive Baptist Church, 3155 Victoria Drive, Baton Rouge, LA., 8:00 am to 9:45 am. Funeral begin at 10:00 am. Interment Southern Memorial Gardens, Baton Rouge, LA Funeral Service Entrusted to Hall Davis and Son. www.halldavisandson.com

Claire Burroughs Wright of Baton Rouge, LA passed away after a lengthy illness on February 26, 2025 withher family at her side. Julie was born in Shreveport,LAonNovember 6, 1952, the first of four children of Frank and Mary Emma Burroughs who preceded her in death. Julie attended St. JosephSchool and St. Vincent Academy in Shreveport,LA. She received her undergraduate degree and master's in education in 1975 from Northeast University in Monroe. Julie and David were married in Shreveport in 1983 at St.Joseph Catholic Church and established their home in Baton Rouge thereafter. She devoted herself to teaching for many years in Baton Rouge

Church and established their home in Baton Rouge thereafter. She devoted herself to teaching for many years in Baton Rouge at St. George Catholic and Audubon Elementary schools. Always asmiling and jovial soul, Julie loved her family and her lifelong friends in Shreveport and Baton Rouge. She was proud to be aCatholic Christian and reared her children to loveGod and neighbor and excel in their studies. She loved to play golf in her early years (12 handicap) and was an avid sportsfan particularly when the LSU Tigers were playing. She and David were proud to be parents to twoLSU graduates. Julie's green thumb won the admiration of all who visited her home. Her gardening prowess received glowing recognition in the Morning Advocatenewspaper. She loved gardening, cross stitching, cooking, dancing, calligraphy, playing Pokeno, scrapbooking and was aholiday decorator supreme. Julie is survived by her husband David Gravel Wright and their two beloved children Jordan Burroughs Wright (Jill Wright)and son Vincent James Wright of BatonRouge; Caroline Gravel Wright McCauley (Aaron McCauley) and daughter Collins Jane McCauley and son Major Wright McCauley of Lafayette; her sister Gail Burroughs Boucvalt (Chris Boucvalt) and son Gabe Boucvalt (Megan Boucvalt)and nieces Emma and Alden Boucvalt of Baton Rouge; and brothers: Gerry Burroughs and Richard Burroughs of Shreveport.Julie's family would like to thank Pinnacle Hospice, Griswold, The Crossing at Clarity Hospice and Bon Jour Social Center who have assisted in caring for Julie in thelast weeks of her life among us. Their professionalism in attending to Julie's needs and compassionfor the family will not be forgotten. Blessed are those who mourn, forthey shall be comforted (Mt 5:4). Visitation will be held at St. Patrick's Catholic Church. 12424 Brogdon Ln,Baton Rouge, LA 70816, on Friday, February 28, 2025 from 9:00 a.m. until Mass of Christian Burial at 10:00 a.m. Interment will followat Resthaven Gardens of Memory. Family and friends may signthe online guestbook or leave apersonal notetothe family at www.resthavenbatonroug e.com.

ton Rouge; CarolineGravel Wright McCauley (Aaron McCauley) and daughter Collins Jane McCauley and son Major WrightMcCauley of Lafayette; her sister Gail BurroughsBoucvalt (Chris Boucvalt) and son Gabe Boucvalt (Megan Boucvalt) and nieces Emma and Alden Boucvalt of Baton Rouge; and brothers: Gerry Burroughsand Richard Burroughsof Shreveport. Julie's family would like to thank Pinnacle Hospice, Griswold, The Crossing at Clarity Hospice and Bon Jour Social Center who have assisted in caring for Julie in the last weeks of her life among us. Their professionalism in attending to Julie's needs and compassion for the family will not be forgotten. Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted (Mt 5:4). Visitation will be held at St. Patrick's Catholic Church. 12424 Brogdon Ln, Baton Rouge, LA 70816, on Friday, February 28, 2025 from 9:00 a.m. until Mass of Christian Burial at 10:00 a.m. Interment will follow at Resthaven Gardensof Memory. Family and friends may sign theonline guestbook or leave apersonal note to the family at www.resthavenbatonroug e.com.

Democracy thrives when a fair-minded press keeps citizens informed and shines a light on issues of widespread

With the help of large and small donors across Louisiana, we are striving to publish journalism that makes a difference in people’s lives and that improves the state we all love

But this mission requires continued support. We need to fortify, expand, and sustain our work for years and decades to come.

Wright, Julie Burroughs

Pedescleaux, Ann Sylvia Johnson

OPINION

State’s education improvements a bright spot

We hear often about all the surveys that rank our state near the bottom in measures we would prefer to be at the top. With that said, it is great to read an analysis of the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) results where Section 3 of the executive summary is entitled, “Louisiana is a rare bright spot.”

It is a tremendous achievement for our schools in Louisiana to be a bright spot in the gold standard of school performance NAEP is called the Nation’s Report Card and is calculated every other year to objectively assess educational progress in our country On the national rankings by NAEP tests, Louisiana improved from 50th in the 2019 state rankings to 16th in 2024 in fourth grade reading and from 45th in 2019 to 29th in eighth grade reading. This occurred because Louisiana led the nation in reading growth over

the last two cycles in 2019-2022 and 2022-2024. Over the same period, Louisiana fourth grade students improved from 50th to 38th in fourth grade math ranking top five nationally in growth in math.

Phillip Rozeman GUEST COLUMNIST

The NAEP assessment is not like those surveys found in magazines or online that have multiple subjective factors. The Nation’s Report Card is simply about student performance. Every child is measured by the same criteria. What makes the work of our Louisiana schools even more amazing is that there was no adjustment of results by demographics. Louisiana students perform better than those students in California or Utah or New York or Georgia states with much higher average family income. The wisdom of “a rising tide raises all boats” is confirmed by this work of our Louisiana schools

Among several reasons for our

Program can help in choosing the right Medicare plan

As a hospital CEO, people often ask me for advice or information about health care trends and how the system works Lately, Medicare eligible individuals have been asking me about what Medicare Advantage plan to select.

Edgardo Tenreiro GUEST COLUMNIST

Launched in 2003, MA plans were supposed to reduce overall Medicare costs by using private insurance plans. The idea was that the federal government could harness the power of competition between private MA plans in a “free market” to lower costs, like what happens in the free market of other goods and services, like TVs and smartphones.

The program now has MA plans that cover all services under Part A and Part B, prescription drugs, gym memberships and the like without the need for a supplemental plan like traditional Medicare, and with premiums that are many times zero, making them a good option for some seniors. But as is always the case, when something seems too good to be true, well, it is. The lower costs for consumers come at the expense of a narrower choice of physicians and hospitals and with difficulties in accessing health care services when you are sick and need them the most. There is no free lunch. Stories of MA plans denying care, charging unexpected out of network fees to seniors and not paying their hospital bills are abundant.

As a result of these difficulties, many hospital systems no longer accept MA plans Mayo Clinic, for example, announced a couple of years ago that they would no longer accept MA plans, and we at Baton Rouge General, for a period, elected to be out of network with one national MA plan. Becker’s Hospital Review now lists some 32 systems that no longer accept MA plans, including

Vanderbilt Health, Baptist Health, and Scripps. As is often the case when government erroneously thinks that it can harness the power of the free market for its own purposes, it creates severe distortions. MA plans themselves have been enormously successful. These companies make 250% more profit per MA enrollee than they do for commercial health insurance sector members.

That adds up to more than $100 billion per year

But it is also true that the cost of insuring Medicare beneficiaries through MA is 22-35% higher than traditional Medicare, as a recent report shows. Moreover, once medically fragile seniors in MA plans experience denials or delays in care, restrictions in the network of hospitals and physicians they can access, out of network fees, etc., they drop MA plans and move to traditional Medicare. This reduces costs for MA plans (which then tend to insure a healthier less costly population) and disproportionately increases the costs to traditional Medicare (which ends up with a sicker and more costly population) For seniors determining which way to go — traditional Medicare plus a supplement or Medicare Advantage I would say, if you value choice, if you can afford it or if you expect to use health care services because of your medical history choose traditional Medicare plus a supplement. If choice of doctors and hospitals is less important to you, you are healthy or you cannot afford a Medicare supplement, pick an MA plan that has your preferred physicians and hospitals in network.

Edgardo Tenreiro is the president and CEO of Baton Rouge General.

success is our state’s dedication to intense concentration on literacy with a back-to-basics approach emphasizing phonics.

We learned this from looking across our borders and learning from the work of Mississippi schools Continual improvement will require continued intense concentration on literacy — no letting off the pedal.

Louisiana has invested in improving access in early childhood education for our youngest citizens Having more children ready to succeed in reading in pre-K is a reason for improvement and will require continued investment.

Louisiana has a new accountability system that rewards both school performance and school growth and will redefine the importance of career education. Louisiana has spent time, talent and treasure in school districts and statewide on individualized academic attention through tutoring and developing individual plans for students. Teachers talk

about the use of testing data to make a plan that meets the need of each student.

The Louisiana Department of Education and the vast majority of school districts in our state did not panic with the pandemic Although not in the way they would have preferred, our schools continued to make efforts to develop the best learning environment they could for our students.

A report by the education advocacy group 50 Can: The 50 States Campaign for Achievement Now, noted: “After spending billions in recovery funds, some states deliver progress in key metrics of 4th and 8th grade reading. The fact is no state delivered more significant progress than Louisiana.”

“Money alone can’t buy a recovery It takes leadership, advocacy and policy that puts kids first,” the report concludes.

This is what is happening at BESE, Louisiana DOE and in school districts and schools across our state.

One of the main reasons we are making progress in education in Louisiana is that we have leadership that has established priorities, set goals and worked diligently to achieve those goals. With that approach, we achieve successes in other areas as well.

A fantastic turnaround will require a fantastic follow through to maintain our momentum in Louisiana. Every Louisiana score in the nation’s education report card is the highest it has been in a decade of reporting.

In Louisiana, we spend far more time focused on talking about our weaknesses than celebrating our successes. This will have to change if we are ever to meet our potential as a state. This seems like a good place to start. Let’s tell a friend, post on social media and give thanks to every teacher we know

Dr. Phillip Rozeman is a cardiologist and co-chair of Leaders for a Better Louisiana.

Girl Scouts has been crucial to Louisiana’s girls for 100 years

Rebecca Pennington GUEST COLUMNIST

Two years ago, New Orleans high school student Calcea Johnson achieved international acclaim when she and high school classmate Ne’Kiya Jackson were able to prove the Pythagorean theorem by using trigonometry a feat that had not been accomplished before. The pair were the subjects of numerous articles and features, including in American Mathematical Monthly and on “60 Minutes.”

Johnson was an Ambassador Scout and has attributed her feat, in part, to her participation in Girl Scouts and her troop’s Lego League Team participation.

Calcea is just one of thousands of girls who go through Girl Scout programs in south Louisiana. For all of them, Girl Scouts Louisiana East, the local council, provides a raft of opportunities and experiences that give them a chance to shine and develop in ways that will benefit them, their communities and the world.

Those programs are especially important, given that in the 23 parishes served by GSLE, girls face significant challenges:

n Nearly 23% of females aged 18-44 live below the poverty level

n Louisiana has one of the highest teen birthrates in the country

n One in 3 girls experiences bullying

n Forty percent of women have faced domestic violence

Girl Scouts is on the forefront of addressing these issues by providing a safe, nurturing environment where girls can grow learn and build confidence. The organization fosters self-esteem and essential leadership skills, helping to combat bullying, poverty and domestic violence.

Leadership development is a core focus, aiming to cultivate girls of courage, confidence, and character GSLE equips young women with tools for community leadership through programs in areas such as entrepreneurship, life skills, STEM and outdoor activities. A well-known example is the Girl Scout Cookie Program, which allows girls to earn badges while developing their skills in

goal setting, decision-making, money management, people skills and business ethics.

Additionally, Girl Scouts promotes community and connection. It creates lasting bonds among girls, volunteers, and mentors, emphasizing friendship, teamwork, and collaboration, which are crucial for personal growth. A perfect example is the GSLE’s Equestrian Program, which focuses on developing skills at every age level to guide girls through their own individual experiences. The program is operated for girls by girls. Older girls who volunteer for the Wrangler and Spur programs are responsible for managing activities for younger Girl Scouts. These programs have helped produce successful women leaders, including notable figures in the U.S. Congress and numerous female business owners. Growing up in Baton Rouge, I was a Girl Scout in second through fourth grade and still treasure the memories, especially my experiences at Camp Marydale during summer resident camp. I wholeheartedly attribute my successful leadership career to the strong foundation I learned through Girl Scouts.

In 2027, we will celebrate a pair of milestone anniversaries. Camp Covington will turn 100 and Camp Marydale will turn 80.

These treasured institutions have provided outdoor experiences for more than 250,000 girls.

Camp Marydale is located 45 miles north of Baton Rouge near

St. Francisville. The camp was established with a donation of 100 acres in 1947 and has grown to more than 400 acres with the purchase of 300 acres in 1973. Over the years, Girl Scouts have enjoyed a low ropes challenge course, hiking trails, archery, a swimming pool and canoeing. The shining star of Camp Marydale is its herd of 27 horses.

Camp Covington is a 23-acre camp purchased in 1927, making it one of the oldest Girl Scout camps in the United States. It is located along the Bogue Falaya River, about 7 miles northwest of Covington. The camp includes cabins and platform tents, an archery pavilion, hiking trails and access to the river

As GSLE looks to celebrate the milestones of Camps Covington and Marydale’s 100th and 80th anniversaries in 2027, reconnecting with alumnae is crucial.

Alumnae know that Girl Scouts is more than an organization; it’s a life-changing experience essential for shaping girls’ futures. Their support is critical to sustaining Girl Scouts Louisiana East’s mission. By connecting with their roots, Girl Scouts can inspire future generations while enriching their lives and those of young girls in southeast Louisiana. Together, we can build a strong community that nurtures growth, empowerment and leadership for girls now and in the future.

Rebecca Pennington is the CEO of Girl Scouts Louisiana East.

STAFF FILE PHOTO By BRETT DUKE

St. Mary’s Academy graduates Ne’Kiya Jackson and Calcea Johnson were interviewed on ‘60 Minutes’ several years ago.

COMMENTARY

ROOM FOR DEBATE MARDI GRAS

In recent years, a vexing issue has arisen along Mardi Gras parade routes. In our effort to help bring attention to it, we are reprinting a favorite of ours expressing the frustration that many feel as well as an alternate perspective. Feel free to clip and share with your favorite Chad.

Make way for the Chads!

In 2013, I became annoyed with people spray-painting “their” territory on the Orleans Avenue neutral ground before the Krewe of Endymion parade, so I began taking photos of the practice and posting it on the Gambit website. Turned out I wasn’t the only one who didn’t like it. One of those painted squares was blocked off for the “Krewe of Chad,” and Will Samuels — the late founder of the King Cake Hub — popularized the term on social media.

Now Krewe of Chad has become a term of art to describe Carnival paradegoers who hog public space, make ladder walls on the street, get aggressive over beads, swipe throws from kids (!), and despoil the spirit of Mardi Gras by acting piggishly and antisocially No one likes a ton of rules, especially not at Mardi Gras. But some rules are needed. New Orleanians depend on the streetcar to go to work and get around — impossible if Chads are camping on the tracks. Curb cuts are vital for people in wheelchairs, but we saw Chads blocking those as well before parades The city bans private port-o-lets on public property, but last year there was a photo of a wall of “portable popup privacy tents” being used for private toilets — and blocking the neutral ground. In response, New Orleans passed new rules regulating quality of life violations on the routes, but after the Bourbon Street terrorist attack last month, the city said safety issues, rather than quality of life matters, would take precedence. Will the Chads be emboldened this year? We should find out when we enter the heart of parading season this weekend. Meanwhile, all that Chaddery inspired a poem. (Apologies to Dr Seuss and readers.)

But Super Bowl is now all done Taylor’s gone; here come the fools Why can’t the cops enforce the rules? When Chads like them all flout the law At Mardi and at Family Gras; They make our fun a living hell LaToya? Helena? JP Morrell? At Lent they leave, and we’re all glad But they’ll be back, those Chads so bad I do not like to be this mad! I do not like you, Krewe of Chad! Kevin Allman

Do you like the Krewe of Chad? I do not like them; they are bad. I do not like their tarps and nets. I do not like their port-o-lets. I do not like their scaffolds high When I would like to just get by. I do not like those dudes and bros I do not like them, eaux neaux neaux. I do not like their spray-paint squares I do not like their rows of chairs; I do not like the stakes they pound Into the public neutral ground. I do not like their ladders tall I do not like their ladders’ sprawl Chained together, one and all. They start a fight, invite a brawl I do not like them, not a one At Bacchus nor Endymion; All those Chads make me grow grim And make me scream and scram like Scrim. I dread the Chads; they run in packs They barricade the streetcar tracks With chairs and tents and tarps and snacks I want to tell them, “Dudes: Relax!”

I do not want to stop the fun

Kevin Allman is the former editor of Gambit. He is on X, @KevinAllman.

Chads, Cherubs need a neutral ground in turf battle

With all due respect to the members of the New Orleans City Council (many of whom I admire for their service to the community), I find the most recent local legislation restricting common Mardi Gras seasonal items, such as tents, tarps and grills, to be misguided and gratuitous. It’s an attempt to eradicate a behavior by taking away something physically connected to the behavior rather than focusing on the behavior itself. I do the same thing to my 4-year-old, and it doesn’t work. In addition, I find it a hasty generalization that all Mardi Gras attendees who utilize these newly banned items to create a space to enjoy the parades are “Chads.” This generalization represents how “out of touch” the members of the city council may potentially be with respect to the Mardi Gras

culture that exists on the ground. Sure, we all have experienced individuals who embody the spirit of “Chads.” They believe themselves to be entitled to space on the neutral group because they were there first. They are territorial and obstinate to city officials who attempt to hold them accountable. They do not share their food, drink, ladders, music and most important: a desire for authentic fraternity and community I estimate that these individuals represent roughly 20% of the attendees that view Mardi Gras parades uptown.

The other 80% of those who attend Mardi Gras are “Cherubs.” I don’t mean that these individuals act angelically In fact, I guarantee that no small amount of these individuals should probably go to confession on Ash Wednesday

That said, their behavior is in juxtaposition to that of the “Chads.” “Cherubs” embody the spirit of accessibility that the New Orleans City Council wants to encourage. They use tents, grills, generators and other newly banned items to enjoy Mardi Gras uptown. The difference is the spirit in which “Cherubs” use the items. The tent is for protection if it rains, and all are welcome to seek shelter

“Cherubs” use grills pots, fryers and propane to cook the most delicious food the city has to offer, and they place it on tables for all to enjoy

“Cherubs” use generators to power the speakers to play music and point the speakers outward to the street to encourage all passing by to participate in the spontaneous dance party And yes, they do turn it down when the bands pass by

With this comparison in mind, I don’t think we should let a few bad

apples spoil the bunch. If we do, we risk limiting the natural “wow” factor of Mardi Gras culture on the ground. Where else are you going to see an entire pig roasting over coals with oysters chargrilling underneath? What about local police dancing in the streets with Catholic priests while holding bowls of pastalaya?

It simply cannot be the way it used to be. Twenty years ago, you could just walk up with a chair and a box of chicken. That was when the parades were smaller and the experience simpler How do they expect that the Mardi Gras super-krewes would grow to gargantuan sizes over time, and the attendees on the ground not also grow their scale of operation? It doesn’t make sense. Here’s an alternative: Moderate the behavior, not the infrastructure. No individual should be allowed to rope off an inordinate

amount of space for an oversized crowd that will not arrive for several hours. No individual should be allowed to string up or chain any chair ladder or standing apparatus on the edge of the street to reserve viewing space. Respect should be given to all residents of the uptown area, and all residents of uptown should have a spirit of accommodation (to an extent) during Mardi Gras. With everything going on in the world, why does any of this matter? It matters because what happens in New Orleans during Mardi Gras is one of the few occasions for a divided society to come together We need to protect this sacred mandate to feast and celebrate life together We can meet in the middle on this.

Please don’t take away my grill. James Rosenbloom is a financial planner and cellist in New Orleans.

James Rosenbloom GUEST COLUMNIST

Baton Rouge Weather

BACK IN RHYTHM

LSU gymnast Bryant looks to step up in Podium Challenge

Who would have figured that when Haleigh Bryant announced she was returning in 2025 for a fifth gymnastics season at LSU, it would be a season spent mostly at a slow simmer?

A now well-documented injury to the ulnar collateral ligament (UCL) in her elbow, suffered while vaulting Dec. 16 in the Tigers’ Gymnastics 101 exhibition meet, left her out of the lineup to start the season before adding one routine after another bit by bit.

Finally, this past Friday at Kentucky, Bryant added uneven bars, the most stressful event on a tender elbow, to her repertoire. At last, she was an all-arounder again

The results: good, promising, most importantly pain free, though not quite her best. Bryant posted a 39.500, finishing second to LSU freshman phenom Kailin Chio (39.575), who has won four straight all-around titles

“It felt really good just to be back on all four events,” Bryant said Monday “It’s been a little bit, so just getting the opportunity to do all four events for the first time this year was really cool.” What wasn’t cool was trying to replicate the success she had last season, a season in which she hit

LSU falls short in OT loss to Alabama

BY REED DARCEY Staff writer

For the second game in a row, the LSU women’s basketball team fell into a doubledigit first-half deficit on the road. The No. 7 Tigers erased a 16-point lead on Sunday in a win over No. 15 Kentucky And on Thursday, even though they overcame the 13-point lead that Alabama built in the second quarter and forced overtime, they couldn’t steal a win from a No. 20 Crimson Tide team that hung on to win 88-85. With LSU trailing 86-85 with 31 seconds to play, Mikaylah Williams had a chance to hit a game-winning shot. She drove right around one defender and tried to finish a layup in between three more but forward Essence Cody blocked it away, sending Williams down to the floor without finding a decent look at the rim.

ä See OT, page 2C

approaching, it’s clear what is now expected of the gymnast who is probably LSU’s greatest ever: It’s time for Haleigh Bryant to be Haleigh Bryant again.

Scott Rabalais

9.90 or better in 56 of 62 routines.

“That got in my head a little bit,” Bryant said. “Going into this weekend I’m going to take the mistakes from this past week and use them to move forward.”

With the regular season meets dwindling to a precious few and the all-important postseason fast

This week’s meet for No. 2-ranked LSU, the Podium Challenge against George Washington at the Raising Cane’s River Center, would appear to be as good a place for a re-launch, as it were, as any It’s certainly where Bryant’s season took off last year, reaching new heights even by her incredible standards.

ä See RABALAIS, page 6C

LSU gymnast Haleigh Bryant hits a split over the beam during her routine on the balance beam in the SEC meet against Missouri on Jan. 31 at the PMAC. STAFF FILE PHOTO By MICHAEL

JOHNSON

‘Superhuman’ Eyanson battled rare digestive disease

As a child, LSU pitcher was hospitalized with rare disease — his game never wavered

BY KOKI RILEY Staff writer

FRISCO, Texas It was another hot day in southern California when Anthony Eyanson decided to take his shirt off.

BY LUKE JOHNSON Staff writer

INDIANAPOLIS When the New Orleans Saints hired Kellen Moore, they were bringing in not only the new head coach, but also the man responsible for what the offensive side of the football is going to look like for the foreseeable future.

One of Moore’s most important first tasks in that role was to figure out who his counterpart would be on the defensive side. That process eventually led him to hire former Los Angeles Chargers head coach Brandon Staley

But once it was gone, all his mother could do was hold back tears.

“I had to kind of put myself in check because I could feel myself starting to tear up and the choke up,” Kristen Eyanson said, “and I was like, ‘What am I looking at right now?’ “ In roughly a month, because of a rare

The future LSU right-handed pitcher was in the backyard with his younger cousin. They had started playing with water balloons and a garden hose, prompting him to take his top off before he got wet.

digestive disease called achalasia, a 10-year-old Anthony had gone from 107 pounds to around 75. He’d lost so much weight that Kristen could see the outline of his bones through his skin.

The disease, which prevents the esophagus from allowing food into the stomach, mostly occurs with patients between the ages of 25 and 60, according to the Cleveland Clinic. Only 5% of cases are from children under 16.

“I was normal. Just eating (like a)

ä See LSU, page 2C

“Alignment on the other side of football is a big, important thing,” Moore said this week at the NFL Scouting Combine. “Games are complementary football. To win games takes all three phases, and having a guy on the other side in Brandon that certainly has an experience with, but he’s had success more importantly in this league, is going to be a huge asset for us.”

In some ways, Staley is a lot like Moore. Once he got his foot in the door of an NFL coaching staff, he rose to prominence quickly, spending one fantastic season as a defensive coordinator with the Los Angeles

STAFF FILE PHOTO By MICHAEL JOHNSON LSU coach Kim Mulkey draws up a play during a timeout in the third quarter of a game against Texas A&M on Jan. 26.

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After Alabama hit two free throws, LSU ran a set to give Williams another shot to tie the game. But the 3-pointer she shot from the top of the key drew the back of the rim.

Before it faced Alabama, LSU learned that it was ranked seventh overall and penciled into a No 2 seed in the NCAA Tournament selection committee’s current bracket picture. Six Southeastern Conference teams earned a spot inside the top 16.

Though the Tide was not one of them, it did have spot in the top 20 of the NCAA’s NET rankings, and it had won five of its previous six games, which gave it a puncher’s chance of cracking that group by Selection Sunday Alabama first had to upset LSU, however, something it did by attacking the rim, creating open 3-pointers, forcing turnovers at the other end and keeping the Tigers off the offensive glass.

The Tide scored 44 points in the paint — only four more than LSU — shot 46% from the field and forced the Tigers into 13 turnovers. Three starters — Essence Cody, Sarah Ashlee Barker and Aaliyah Nye combined to score 66 points on 25of-42 shooting Nye finished with a game-high 28 after she shot 9 of 12 from the field before she fouled out late in the fourth quarter LSU’s trio of stars was less productive.

LSU

Continued from page 1C

normal kid,” Anthony said “I just remember one day it started happening.”

But the disease never affected his baseball career

The junior posted a 3.07 ERA in 82 innings at UC San Diego last year and made the U.S. Collegiate National team before transferring to LSU this past summer

He then made the Tigers’ weekend starting rotation before the start of the season and has allowed just one earned run in 11 innings — across two starts — heading into LSU’s three game series at the Frisco College Baseball Classic, which begins at 2 p.m. on Friday against Kansas State (D1Baseball).

“I thought he was significantly better this week than he was last week,” Johnson said following Anthony’s second start against Omaha. “It’s a good sign for us.” But for about a month a decade ago, Anthony wasn’t in a good place.

The sight of skin and bones alone put Kristen into action immediately, first bringing him to his doctor before they were directed to the emergency room at Long Beach Memorial Hospital.

“The minute (the doctor) saw him, she just shook her head and was like, ‘Nope, you need to go (to the hospital) right now,’ “ Kristen said “ ‘ This is not okay.’ “ He was there for the next 15 days receiving treatment for a disease that affects roughly one out of every 100,000 people in the United States, per the Cleveland Clinic.

“The frustration of knowing there’s something wrong and knowing that we need to do something,” Kristen said “but knowing that it’s out of our hands and there’s nothing that we can do... it kind of just frustrates you as a parent.” Anthony had trouble digesting anything, and whatever he ate would often feel like it was stuck in his throat.

Usually, about half an hour after trying to eat something, he’d have to throw up. He was also salivating and spitting a lot, enough to the point where he had to carry around a cup.

10

2-way star Hunter won’t work out at NFL combine

INDIANAPOLIS — Heisman Trophy winner Travis Hunter insists he’s a different kind of player

He’s just waiting until March to put on his dazzling show for NFL scouts.

The two-way star said Thursday he does not intend to work out with the defensive backs Friday or the receivers Saturday at the NFL’s annual scouting combine and instead will wait until Colorado’s Pro Day to give everyone a glimpse of his uncanny skills.

Williams notched 22 points on 8-of-17 shooting after she battled third-quarter foul trouble, and Aneesah Morrow scored 16 points on 6-of-14 shooting, to pair with 9 rebounds. But Flau’jae Johnson added only 6 points after she missed 10 of her 12 field-goal tries, snapping her 38-game double-figure scoring streak.

The Tigers shot 46% from the field but drained only three 3-pointers and grabbed only 10 offensive rebounds — the second fewest they’ve corralled in a game this season.

Across a three-minute stretch of the second quarter, LSU gave away six of eight possessions. Most of those turnovers were unforced, caused by bad passes, lost balls and traveling violations. Alabama capitalized with 10 points off Tiger giveaways, converted over 50% of its first-half field goals and began halftime with a 46-35 lead. Three of its starters entered the break with doublefigure scoring totals. Williams and Mjracle Sheppard combined to score 12 points in the third quarter, reenergizing the

The only food his body was able to tolerate was Pepsi and Pringles. He still has no idea why

“When I see those, they’ve got a special place in my heart,” Anthony said. “Because they were there for me when no other food was.”

‘He’s superhuman’

Anthony was pitching and playing third base for his 10-and-under All-Star team. Others noticed that he had lost weight, but somehow his play on the field never wavered.

His father, Jeff, said he played in every game. His team even won a tournament, claiming the East Long Beach Pony Mustang championship

“I watched him get heat exhaustion during one of his Pop Warner games — (he) threw up at halftime, and they were like, ‘I don’t want to hear anybody complain.

Eyanson’s over there throwing up,’ “ Kristen said. “And then he went back and played the whole second half.”

“He’s superhuman.”

As his condition worsened, Jeff

would “hide” with Anthony in between games to help him eat.

He’d nibble through a sandwich, moving each morsel around in his mouth so they could soften.

“It would take him hours to eat the food,” Jeff said.

The Eyansons tried solving Anthony’s digestive issues sooner But anytime he needed to take a certain test, it would take a week or two for their insurance to approve the referral.

There were also a couple of instances where the family was referred to a place that had a test he needed, only to find out that they never had that test.

Eventually, Anthony received the treatment he needed in the hospital. He underwent four tests and had a Heller Myotomy, the surgical procedure that treats achalasia.

To pass the time while stuck in bed, he’d watch eating challenge shows. Kristen remembers him watching “Man vs Food,” the reality TV show where Adam Richman — the show’s host — travels the United States taking on the country’s top eating challenges.

LSU offense and helping it shave five points off the Tide’s lead.

Then Williams tied the game with the difficult mid-range shot she hit with 23 seconds left in regulation. But she couldn’t hit two more clutch shots in overtime.

The Tigers could have set a program NCAA-era record for most regular-season wins had they beaten Alabama, but now they’ll have to try again when they face Ole Miss in their regular-season finale, a game that will tip off at 3 p.m. Sunday in the Pete Maravich Assembly Center

ON DECK

WHO: Kansas State (4-4) vs. LSU (8-1)

WHEN: 2 p.m. Friday

WHERE: Riders Field, Frisco,Texas

ONLINE: D1Baseball

RADIO: WDGL-FM, 98.1 (Baton Rouge); WWL-AM, 870 (New Orleans); KLWB-FM, 103.7 (Lafayette)

RANKINGS: LSU is No. 2 by D1Baseball; Kansas State is unranked

PROBABLE STARTERS: LSU — LHP

Kade Anderson (2-0, 1.74 ERA); Kansas State — LHP Jacob Frost (00, 3.38)

PREGAME UPDATES: theadvocate. com/lsu ON X (FORMERLY TWITTER): @KokiRiley WHAT TO WATCH FOR: Anderson cruised through the first five innings of his last start against Omaha but ran into a speed bump in the sixth, allowing two runs. Friday will be his greatest challenge yet. Kansas State took down two ranked teams last weekend in Arkansas and TCU Koki Riley

“All he did was watch food, the whole time he was there,” Kristen said. “I was like, ‘Why are you torturing yourself?’

All Anthony wanted once he got out of the hospital was a burger from In-N-Out Burger And with the help of a gift card provided by a neighbor, it was the first meal he had out of the hospital. Anthony still remembers his order: A double-double burger, two patties and two slices of cheese. As he took his first bite, with his family watching, he anticipated getting the feeling that had haunted him for a month. The food stuck in his throat. The saliva building up in his mouth.

But none of that came to pass.

All he felt was relief.

“I’m not somebody that’s super emotional or cries or anything like that,” Anthony said “but I remember being there in the moment hiding some tears, holding them back.”

Email Koki Riley at Koki.Riley@theadvocate.com.

“I’ve been doing this for a long time, so I feel like I can keep doing it,” he said, acknowledging he hopes to play both positions next fall. “Hopefully they’ll let me go out there 100% (at both), but that’s up to the organization.”

Knapp shoots a 59 at Cognizant Classic

PALM BEACH GARDENS, Fla. — Jake Knapp knew he was on the verge of something special on Thursday, with a run of five straight birdies to open his round at the Cognizant Classic.

In the end, he joined one of golf’s most elite clubs.

Knapp — the No. 99 player in golf’s current world rankings joined the PGA Tour’s sub-60 club on Thursday, shooting a bogeyfree 59 in the opening round at PGA National. It was the 15th time that someone has broken 60 in a PGA Tour event.

Knapp finished one shot off the tour scoring record of 58, done by Jim Furyk in the final round of the 2016 Travelers championship. Knapp became the 14th player to shoot a sub-60 round.

Chiefs TE Kelce plans to return next season

KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce plans to play next season rather than retire.

The 35-year-old Kelce had been mulling whether to return for a 13th season. But the four-time All-Pro made his feelings clear in a text to Pat McAfee that the host read during “The Pat McAfee Show” on Thursday

“My dawg!!! I’m coming back for sure,” the four-time All-Pro wrote, according to McAfee. “Gonna try to get to the best shape I’ve been this offseason and get back to the mountaintop. I can’t go out like that!!!!”

The Chiefs’ quest to become the first team to win three straight Super Bowls ended with a 40-22 loss to the Philadelphia Eagles on Feb. 9.

Sinner dropped from Laureus awards list

LONDON The nomination of star Jannik Sinner for the Laureus sportsman of the year award was withdrawn Thursday because of the top-ranked tennis player’s three-month ban for his two positive doping tests nearly a year ago.

Laureus World Sports Academy chairman Sean Fitzpatrick said in a statement that the Italian player’s ban resulting from a settlement with the World Anti-Doping Agency prompted the decision.

“Following discussions by the Laureus Academy it has been decided that Jannik Sinner’s nomination for this year’s Laureus world sportsman of the year award is to be withdrawn,” Fitzpatrick said.

“We have followed this case, the decisions of the relevant global bodies and feel that the three-month ban renders the nomination ineligible.”

Yankees reliever Effross has hamstring strain TAMPA,Fla Yankees reliever Scott Effross has a grade two left hamstring strain, according to Yankees manager Aaron Boone, New York media reported Thursday Effross, a 31-year-old side-arming right-hander, left his second spring training appearance after just one pitch Tuesday against Minnesota at Fort Myers. He had a plateletrich plasma injection on Thursday, Boone said, adding that Effross is “going to take some time” to return Acquired from the Chicago Cubs on Aug. 1, 2022, Effross had a 2.13 ERA in 122/3 innings over 13 appearances for the Yankees that season, then had Tommy John surgery on Oct. 13 of that year Effross has a 2.89 ERA in 76 relief appearances and one start over three seasons with the Cubs and Yankees. He has an $800,000 salary this year

PROVIDED PHOTO By KRISTEN EyANSON Anthony Eyanson spends his time after surgery watching ‘Man vs. Food’ and other food challenge shows as he recovers.

ASSOCIATED PRESS FILE PHOTO By JESSICA HILL

LSU guard Aneesah Morrow, left, slaps hands with guard Mikaylah Williams in the first half of a game against Seton Hall on Dec. 17 in Uncasville, Conn.

‘PEOPLE THINK

I’M HOLLYWOOD’

LSU’s Miller is making own name outside of rap family

BY TOYLOY BROWN III Staff writer

Vyshonn Miller prefers to be in the shadows.

The 49-year-old better known as rapper Silkk The Shocker watched his son Vyctorius Miller experience the lowest point of his young basketball career

The LSU basketball freshman’s production and playing time dropped midseason against Southeastern Conference opponents. He missed three games after rolling his left ankle, was ineffective in his return against No. 1 Auburn and a couple games later had his first non-injury related DNP did not play

Vyshonn, a New Orleans native, never contacted the cocahing staff.

“His dad’s done a good job of letting us coach him,” LSU associate head coach David Patrick said “He’s obviously in the background, and doesn’t hound us on what his son should be doing, because VJ has got a chance to play at the next level.”

Vyshonn expected adversity to hit. The 90s No Limit Records artist also knew his son would persevere because Vyctorius has always chased challenges.

“Everything he has to do, he got to fight for it,” his father said.

“He ain’t never got nothing easy. Everybody (say)

‘Oh he got it easy because his family got money.’ I never let him get anything easy I never let him spoil, that’s why he’s driven like he is.”

Vyctorius relied on his work. The 20-year-old started beating LSU leading scorer Cam Carter to the gym in the morning. The freshman re-emerged when his opportunity arrived again.

He is now a starter, averaging 9.3 points on 45.2% shooting, and most recently had an impressive 17-point outing against against No. 5 Tennessee

‘I’m never too big’

Miller has multiple family members in the music business, most notably his dad and his uncle Percy Miller, a rapper and music executive better known as Master P. Vyshonn tried his best to insulate his son from the attention that follows the family, part of why he raised him in Los Angeles, California instead of New Orleans was so to distance Vyctorius from the city where the family is most known. Even so, there’s only so much he could do. Vyctorius, who started playing basketball at his local YMCA at 6, is proud to be a Miller However, he is aware of the assumptions those who don’t know him may make.

“People think I’m Hollywood because of who my people is and what not,” Miller said. “I’m never too big.”

Unfounded ideas of is ar-

ä LSU at Mississippi St. 2:30 P.M.SATURDAy SECN

rogance is squashed when you meet him. The 6-foot-5 guard is just a ball player dedicated to his craft who enjoys joking with his teammates and raising his French Bulldog named Blitz. He also possess a humility and respectfulness that not all athletes have, regardless of their family’s fame.

Before Vyctorius entered his senior year at AZ Compass Prep in Arizona, he considered finishing transferring to a high school back in California He ultimately decided against it

Upon returning, his high school coach Pete Kaffey informed his star that he was going to come off the bench and would have to earn back his starting role.

The top-65 player in the country was unfazed, his ego still intact. Vyctorius never complained and played himself back into the starting lineup.

After the freshman answered every question in his first postgame press conference at LSU, he walked to every reporter in the room to give them a fist bump, thanking them for their time.

After teammates in future presser saw him do this, they followed the freshman’s lead and did the same This is done after every home win and loss.

Vyshonn didn’t know his son started this mini tradition but is unsurprised Vyctorius did what felt natural even if not needed

“Just grateful for everything,” he said Making his own name

Before the dunk there was a gutsy proclamation LSU led by three with 1:08 left in triple overtime against Central Florida. The Tigers drew up a play dur-

ing a timeout for Vyctorius to curl around a screen and score.

The freshman unexpectedly revealed his exact plans.

“I’m a dunk on him.”

Dji Bailey passed to Miller who delivered on his declaration and looked like his dad who was once a 6-5 highflyer in his playing days.

Vyctorius sprang off two feet outside the restricted area and hammered a onehand jam on top of a 6-10 defender in the Tigers’ eventual win.

“The high belief that he had and saying that in that moment,” Patrick said, “speaks to who VJ is and the confidence he has.”

His work ethic forged the self-assuredness. His audacity is a family trait as bravado is a prerequisite in the entertainment industry His silky scoring arsenal is complimented by a fearlessness that is traced back to the eighth grade, playing on the same court as NBA players such as Lonzo Ball, Chris Paul, DeMar DeRozan and LeBron James.

While music was an option, basketball was his calling.

“He could rap for sure if he wanted to,” Vyshon said, “He just always gravitated to being a hooper, it came naturally.”

Vyctorius has his sights on one day playing in the NBA, a feat his dad and uncle both pursued before choosing hip-hop.

Accomplishing this will also go further in establishing himself apart from the his last name.

“I definitely believe that he’s going to make his own name,” Vyshonn said. “Hopefully he’d be one of the biggest out of all of us.”

Email Toyloy Brown III at toyloy.brown@ theadvocate.com

Tigers remain No. 2 seed in NCAA tourney bracket update

BY REED DARCEY Staff writer

Tate lifts Southern past Florida A&M

BY CHARLES SALZER Contributing writer

Jocelyn Tate sank two free throws with 1.5 seconds left to play lifting the Southern women to an improbable 65-63 win over Florida A&M Thursday night in Tallahassee, Florida.

Southern had trailed since midway through the first quarter but took advantage in the final minute when Florida A&M missed three free throws The misses left just enough room for Southern to extend its winning streak to six games.

The win allows Southern (15-13, 13-2 SWAC) to take sole possession of first place in the Southwestern Athletic Conference. Texas Southern and Alabama A&M are one game behind in the loss column while Jackson State is two back.

“(Tate) struggled early but she came up with a great defensive play,” Southern coach Carlos Funchess said. “She jumped the passing lane and got the steal I don’t know if she would have made it to the basket or not, but (Griffin) grabbed her.”

Aniya Gourdine led

Southern with 22 points while Aleighyah Fontenot added 11. Both players made three 3-pointers. Tate finished with 3 points, all from the foul line.

Florida A&M (9-18, 6-10) dominated the boards outrebounding Southern 4619. Southern took care of the ball well, committing only eight turnovers. The Jaguars also made 9 of 17 from 3-point range.

“We found a way to get the win,” Funchess said. “That’s what you have to do sometimes, especially on the road. We were fortunate to get the win, but we played tough. We hit the big shots late.”

Southern trailed by 12 points early in the fourth quarter and 61-56 with less than one minute to play

Including a 3-pointer by Fontenot, both teams sank key baskets in the closing seconds before FAMU’s Sabou Gueye scored in the lane to give the Rattlers a 63-61 lead with 6.8 seconds left.

Gueye missed a free throw that would have converted a three-point play, and Southern’s Taniya Lawson was fouled at the other end while hurrying

up a 3-point attempt. Lawson made 2 of 3 at the line, setting the stage for Tate’s heroics. Working from half court after a time out, Florida A&M’s Cheyenne McEvans tried to inbound the ball to D’Mya Griffin. Tate tipped the ball away and was fouled by Griffin on her way to the basket. After Tate’s free throws, FAMU inbounded the ball but was unable to get off a shot.

Southern kept close to FAMU in the second quarter, and trailed 24-22 midway through. Griffin hit a 3-pointer from the left corner to spark an 11-2 run that closed the half. The Rattlers went 6-for-6 at the foul line in the closing minutes and led a 35-24 at halftime. The points allowed and the deficit were the largest in SWAC play this season for Southern. Southern trailed 49-39 entering the fourth quarter, but eventually closed to within 57-56 after Gourdine scored in the lane with two minutes left. Saige Glover and Gueye each hit two free throws to give FAMU a 6156 lead.

Popovich says he will not return to Spurs this season

BY TIM REYNOLDS AP basketball writer

Gregg Popovich will not coach this season. He is not ruling out a comeback in the future.

Popovich met with the San Antonio Spurs on Thursday, releasing a statement afterward to make his decision on this season — and hope for next season — public. The 76-year-old Popovich the NBA’s all-time coaching wins leader, had a stroke at the team’s arena in San Antonio on Nov 2 and has been away from the team since.

“I’ve decided not to return to the sidelines this season,” Popovich said in a statement distributed by the team. “(Acting coach) Mitch Johnson and his staff have done a wonderful job and the resolve and professionalism the players have shown, sticking together during a challenging season, has been outstanding.”

Popovich has been in regular contact with Johnson, some team officials and has talked with some players at times during his absence — but he has not been seen at games or been known to be at any practices since the stroke happened.

“I will continue to focus on my health with the hope that I can return to coaching in the future,” Popovich

said.

Popovich’s visit to the team came a week after the Spurs announced that AllStar center Victor Wembanyama — the defensive player of the year favorite at the time and someone who was a serious candidate to make the All-NBA team — will not play again this season after deep vein thrombosis, or a blood clot, was found in his right shoulder Wembanyama, who came to San Antonio as the No. 1 pick in the 2023 draft after playing as a pro in France, has called Popovich his biggest basketball influence.

“Pop isn’t just a coach or a boss,” the 21-year-old Wembanyama said earlier this month. “Pop is a leader.”

The Spurs have not updated Popovich’s rehabilitation process in some time, other than saying that he is expected to make a full recovery The team has not revealed what, if any, issues Popovich has been dealing with since the stroke.

Popovich agreed to a five-year contract extension with the team in 2023, one that would have him signed to be on the sideline through the 2027-28 season.

His only public comment prior to Thursday about his health and his future came in mid-December, when he said he and his family were

overwhelmed by “the outpouring of support we’ve received during this time.” Popovich mentioned returning to coaching in that statement, but did not reveal any timetable in a self-deprecating quip. “No one is more excited to see me return to the bench than the talented individuals who have been leading my rehabilitation process,” Popovich said in the December statement. “They’ve quickly learned that I’m less than coachable.” Popovich’s record was 1,388-824 when he had the stroke, and the Spurs’ record since — 22-30, all with Johnson serving as the active coach — also goes toward his career numbers by league rule, since he is still listed as the team’s head coach. No coach has been with one team for more games than Popovich, who has led the Spurs to five NBA championships and guided USA Basketball to an Olympic gold medal at the Tokyo Games in 2021. Popovich is one of only three coaches to win the NBA coach of the year award three times, Don Nelson and Pat Riley being the others. He’s one of five coaches with at least five NBA titles; Phil Jackson (11), Red Auerbach (nine), John Kundla (five) and Riley (five) are the others.

Not much changed for the LSU women’s basketball team between the NCAA Tournament selection committee’s two bracket reveals. The Tigers are still a No. 2 seed, according to Thursday’s unveiling of the top 16 teams, and they’re still penciled into the Spokane 1 region The only difference is that they’re now ranked No. 7 overall, one spot lower than where they sat in the committee’s first reveal, which it released on Feb. 16. That day, LSU lost on the road 65-58 to Texas, and South Carolina fell to UConn at home. Those games left the Longhorns as the only No. 1 seed from the Southeastern Conference. The Gamecocks are now a No. 2 seed. Overall, six SEC teams are ranked in the top 16: No. 2 Texas, No. 5 South Carolina, No. 7 LSU, No. 12 Tennessee, No. 13 Oklahoma and No 14

Kentucky If the Tigers hold that position, then they’ll earn their highest NCAA Tournament seed in four seasons under coach Kim Mulkey Each of her first three teams at LSU, including the one that took home the 2023 national championship, was given a No. 3 seed The full bracket won’t be

finalized until March 16. Every team that earns a top-four seed will host the first two rounds of the tournament. The groups that reach the Sweet 16 will then travel to either Spokane, Washington, or Birmingham, Alabama, for the next two rounds. In the bracket’s current configuration, LSU is grouped in one of the two Spokane regions alongside No. 1 UCLA, No. 10 North Carolina and No. 15 Kansas State.

The Tigers can improve their seeding with a strong finish to their regular season and an SEC Tournament title.

STAFF PHOTO By HILARy SCHEINUK

LSU guard Vyctorius Miller sits on the bench before team introductions before tipoff against Tennessee on Tuesday at the Pete Maravich Center

THE VARSITY ZONE

Simple approach has Broadmoor in playoffs

Bucs rebound from 5-21 season to postseason berth

BY ROBIN FAMBROUGH

Staff writer

It started with one play.

Boys basketball

After a 5-21 season a year ago, Broadmoor High school boys basketball coach Terrence Gillette wanted to make a point to the nine players who completed spring workouts.

“Once we figured out we

can’t play unorganized ball and be successful, there was change,” Gillette said. “It started in summer league. All we put in was one base play

“When they saw the possibilities and realized everyone had a chance to score off that one play that’s when the buy-in started.

“That helped us get us where we are.” Now the Buccaneers are back in the LHSAA play-

offs for the first time in two years. Broadmoor (19-11), the 23rd seed, travels to play No. 10 Albany (25-8) at 6:30 p.m Friday in a Division II nonselect bidistrictround playoff game. Breaking it down to such a base level sounds extreme. But with a team that includes players who started their careers at other EBR schools, the plan was perhaps the perfect way to get everyone on the same page.

Playing in District 6-4A also provided an important gauge. League champion McKinley, Brusly, Plaquemine and St. Michael offered a week-to-week measure of where the Buccaneers stood. Broadmoor has just three seniors and no player taller than 6-foot-4. A balanced scoring attack illustrates the team’s balance. Jason Pitcher a 6-foot senior, leads the way averages of 12 points and six rebounds.

Walker surges to victory

BY CHRIS CHAPPLE

Contributing writer

Walker High School’s girls basketball team is headed back to the state tournament for the fourth straight year No. 2 Walker relied on the inside play of senior Arionna Patterson and its fullcourt pressure defense in Thursday’s 47-30 Division I nonselect quarterfinal playoff victory over No. 10 Sulphur in Walker Walker (31-2) advances to a semifinal game next week against No. 3 Zachary, a 5945 winner over Natchitoches Central.

Walker 47, Sulphur 30

Sulphur 0 10 7 13 30 Walker 6 19 10 12 -47

SCORING: SULPHUR: Presley Gunter 9, Therese Martin 8, Sianna Gunter 6, Ivy Broussard 4, Saige Martin 3; WALKER: Arionna Patterson 18, Logan Cookmeyer 11, Kadyn Green 10 La’Shantae Clay 5, Kiera Fountain 3 3-POINT GOALS: Sulphur: 3 (T Martin, S. Gunter, Broussard); Walker: 4 (Cookmeyer, Fountain, Green, Clay)

RECORDS: Sulphur (24-4); Walker (31-2)

“I’m proud of this year’s team making it to the state tournament for the fourth straight year,” coach Korey Arnold said. “We didn’t play our best tonight but we stuck together and found ways to win. I always tell them an ugly win is better than a pretty loss. We’re going to celebrate and then start preparing for our next game.” Walker held Sulphur scoreless in the first quarter. Walker got off to a sluggish

offensive start in the first quarter and led 1-0 with one minute remaining. Patterson, a 6-foot senior scored five points in that final minute capped by a steal and coastto-coast layup for a 6-0 lead.

Walker’s Kadyn Green hit a baseline 3-pointer off a Kiera Fountain assist for a 9-3 lead early in the second quarter Sulphur’s Sianna Gunter drove for a basket to cut it to 9-5. Walker went on a 16-5 run to finish the second quarter and led 25-10 at half.

Sulphur (24-4) started the third quarter on a 7-2 run. Walker then went on an 8-0 run to finish the third. Logan Cookmeyer hit a 3-pointer and Green scored four points in that run.

Walker enjoyed its largest lead (23 points) on a Green layup with six minutes left. Patterson, a UL basketball commitment, led the Wildcats with 18 points and nine rebounds. Patterson scored 26 points in Walker’s regional win over Mandeville and has over 1,000 points in her career Cookmeyer added 11 points, Green 10 and La’Shantae Clay five. Clay added seven rebounds and four steals. Fountain led Walker with five assists and added a 3-pointer Presley Gunter led Sulphur with nine points. Therese Martin added eight and Sianna Gunter six.

Junior Eric Jordan (5-10) is next with averages of 11 points and two steals, while sophomore Carl Blakes (63) adds 10 points and five rebounds.

“Yes, we have added more plays since the summer,” Gillette said. “This is still a fairly young team. They have responded to what we ask them to do. But there is more to it than that. “One goal we have at our school is to find ways to allow every student to experience some kind of success.

As this team has experienced success they have been praised, which is good. We’ve also gotten them to understand that responsibility on and off the court comes with success.” As he watched his players practice Thursday afternoon, Gillette offered one final thought. “Our defense has gotten better along with the offense,” Gillette said. “But we’re still not where we need to be. We’re a work in progress.”

Torrid Parkview topples Hannan

BY WILLIAM WEATHERS Contributing writer

It was the ultimate compliment to Parkview Baptist’s offense that found visiting Archbishop Hannan sitting in a 2-3 zone to start Thursday’s Division II state select quarterfinal playoff game.

Midway through the second quarter, torrid shooting from No. 3 Parkview Baptist forced No. 6 Hannan into Plan B that wasn’t the answer either in a 60-38 victory at Parkview

“With the 2-3, they’re sinking down when we had the 3-point shooters and all of a sudden they went to manto-man,” Parkview Baptist guard Anna Richerson said.

“We have people who can shot fake, drive it and shoot the mid-range (jump shot).”

Two-time reigning state champion Parkview Baptist (21-6) returns to the state tournament against No. 2 Vandebilt Catholic, a 70-43 winner over Leesville, in next week’s state tournament at the University Center in Hammond.

Richerson, an honorable mention Class 3A choice last year, led the Eagles with 18 points. She was followed by Ella LeFors with 10, Ansley Bernhard nine and Laidyn Wilson with eight.

“It helps to play on your home court and they were eager to play,” PBS coach Brett Shelton said. “We really wanted to make them play fast and I thought we did that and made them un-

comfortable.” Parkview scored 15 unanswered points, led by seven from Bernhard, to bolt to a 20-4 lead on the strength of 7-of-10 shooting to end the first quarter They bridged the end of the first quarter with the start of the second, getting 3-pointers from LeFors and Wilson in the first 11/2 minutes for a commanding 26-4 advantage. Wilson scored all eight of her points in the second, and Richerson fed Emma Shoaf for a basket following a turnover to make it 30-7. Wilson’s second 3-pointer from the corner, the last of the team’s four 3s, helped the Eagles take a 35-7 lead their largest of the game — with 1:11 to go before halftime “Live-ball turnovers will kill you,” said Hannan coach Jon Lanter, whose team committed nine of its 17 turnovers in the first half and shot 27% (10 of 37) overall. “They’re one of the best teams in the state in our division. When they change ends and get those deep corner 3s because we’re slow getting back, it hurts you.”

Boys basketball Friday’s bidistrict

BY ROBIN FAMBROUGH Staff writer

Zachary High School coach Tami McClure asked her team what kind of legacy they wanted to leave before Thursday’s game. With the Broncos trailing by two points going into the fourth quarter, senior Tiarra McPipe provided the response. Seconds into the final period, McPipe made a 3-pointer from the left corner to give her team the lead once again, igniting 24-6 run that powered Zachary to a 59-45 victory over Natchitoches Central in a Division I nonselect quarterfinal in Zachary

“We knew what we came here to do,” McPipe said.

“Me being able to make some 3s made a big difference and helped us win this one. “I felt it on that shot and I just kept knocking them down.”

With the win, the thirdseeded Broncis (23-4) advance to the LHSAA state tournament for first time since 2018 Thursday’s win comes after back-to-back quarterfinal losses. McPipe, a Loyola signee, scored a game-high 17 points, 10 of which came in the fourth quarter The other half of the Zachary backcourt duo, Ava Raymond, added 15. With the win, the Broncos advance to face secondseeded Walker (31-2), a 4730 winner over Sulphur, in a semifinal next week in Hammond Jordan McDaniel led sixth-seeded Natchitoches

Central (29-5) with 17. Annalise Newton added 10.

Zachary set the tone and led 19-14 after the first quarter and 33-29 at halftime.

The pace slowed in the third quarter Zachary made just 2 of 10 shots from the field, opening the door for a 10-4 NCHS run.

A 3-pointer by McDanie from the right wing with 39.8 seconds left sent the Chiefs into the fourth quarter with a 39-37 lead. Enter McPipe and Raymond, who helped snatch the momen-

tum back for the home team.

“We were all dog tired after the third quarter, but coach (McClure) told us to keep pushing we had this,” Raymond said. “So we pushed through and we won. Going to state means so much.”

The Broncos also ratcheted up their defense. NCHS scored only one basket in the final five minutes of the game. Senior post player Madison Alcerro helped punctuate the effort with a late 3-pointer and a layup for the winners.

“Whenever they needed a basketball or a rebound they got it,” Natchitoches Central coach Nikki Jones said. “They are a very good team. We wish them luck.”

Fans stayed afterward to celebrate, watching the Broncos and their coaches cut down the net.

“I am so happy for these girls,” McClure said “They play for each other. They worked for this and they deserve it.

“Now, instead of it being, Zachary got close again it’s they did it.”

(15-16) at No. 5 Donaldsonville (15-7), 6 p.m. No. 27 Kinder (16-14) at No. 6 French Settlement (20-12), 6 p.m. No. 26 Port Allen (15-17) at No. 7 Loreauville (16-8), 6:30 p.m. Division IV No. 24 Centerville (13-11) at No. 9 White Castle (14-14), 7 p.m. No. 20 Northeast (16-14) at No. 13 Lake Arthur (13-12),

Defensive line coach Davis joins Saints staff

BY LUKE JOHNSON and MATTHEW PARAS Staff writers

The Saints are expected to hire Bo Davis to be their defensive line coach, according to a league source, adding one of college football’s most respected defensive coaches to their ranks.

Davis most recently coached at LSU, where he was an all-conference nose tackle as a player. He’d spent one year on the Tigers’ staff as one of the highest-paid position coaches in college football.

He comes to the Saints with a proven track record for developing defensive line talent. Most of Davis’ coaching experience has come with major college football programs, including notable stints with Alabama and Texas, and in his more than a decade in college football he worked directly with multiple first-round picks and seven All-Americans.

He is the third defensive coach the Saints have hired from the college ranks in the last week, joining defensive backs coach Terry Joseph and linebackers coach Peter Sirmon. Reflecting on the process

Before hiring Kellen Moore, the Saints conducted a thorough coaching search that saw several candidates withdraw themselves from the process. And for some, that only seemed to further solidify

the perception that the Saints’ job wasn’t ultimately attractive for opposing coaches

But Saints general manager Mickey Loomis always disagreed with that idea — and that didn’t change after the process concluded.

“That happens every year for a variety of reasons,” Loomis said, referring to coaches pulling out of searches. “And so I don’t want to speak to any specific one but sometimes candidates pull out because they aren’t candidates. Right? Sometimes it’s the old, ‘You’re fired.’ ‘Well, you can’t fire me. I

quit.’ And then sometimes they have another job in mind that they feel pretty confident about “I’m not saying that any of one of those are the reasons for anybody that pulled out, but that’s just what happens.”

The Saints interviewed six known candidates before hiring Moore and were linked to two others. Of those, four dropped out of the process. Aaron Glenn became the New York Jets’ head coach. Buffalo Bills offensive coordinator Joe Brady opted to stay with his team. Washington Commanders offensive coordina-

LSU will need to find a new defensive line coach — again

BY WILSON ALEXANDER Staff writer

Two years ago, LSU lost its defensive line coach in the middle of spring practice when Jamar Cain left to become a pass rush specialist with the Denver Broncos under Sean Payton. His departure forced Brian Kelly to make a late hire, and now the situation is repeating itself. LSU defensive tackles coach Bo Davis is expected to become the New Orleans Saints’ defensive line coach after one year with the Tigers. LSU now has to find a defensive line coach once again, a position it has found itself in year after year over the past decade. With spring practice beginning March 8, edge rushers coach Kevin Peoples will likely oversee the entire defensive line while LSU searches for a replacement Peoples, who helped improve LSU’s pass rush last season, has coached the whole defensive line multiple times during his career, including at Tulane and Indiana.

But in the long term, defensive coordinator Blake Baker will likely want a dedicated defensive tackles coach. He used separate coaches for the defensive ends and defensive tackles during his two years at Missouri, a strategy he brought to LSU this past season When LSU hired Davis away from Texas, he had the potential to provide stability to a job that has lacked any

SAINTS

Continued from page 1C

Rams before accepting his first head coaching job at 39 years old.

His head coaching tenure did not go particularly well he went 24-24 over parts of three years, with one devastating playoff loss, before the Chargers fired him. But the Saints are banking on his experience being a benefit to them as they try and rebuild their own defense.

Before his stop with the Rams as the defensive coordinator, Staley spent three seasons working under Vic Fangio — who was on the Eagles staff with Moore this past season. Moore saw how that defensive style could positively impact a team throughout the season.

“Stylistically, obviously, the last two stops I’ve had have been with Vic and Brandon, so it gives us a lot of flexibility from a ros-

for the past decade. Davis had returned to his alma mater and he signed a three-year deal worth an average of $1.35 million per year that made him one of the highest-paid non-coordinators in college football. He did not owe a buyout if he left for an NFL job, according to his contract. Instead, LSU is searching for a replacement 13 months later, the latest example of an unusually high rate of turnover LSU has not employed the same defensive line coach for two full years since Brick Haley from 2009-14. Since then, it has gone through the following coaches for a variety of reasons, including sudden departures, retirements and health issues:

2015: Ed Orgeron

2016: Ed Orgeron/Pete Jenkins

2017: Pete Jenkins

2018: Dennis Johnson

2019: Bill Johnson

2020: Bill Johnson

2021: Andre Carter

2022: Jamar Cain

2023: Jimmy Lindsey/John Jancek

2024: Bo Davis

Even when Bill Johnson was hired in 2019, he joined the team during preseason camp because of an injury to Dennis Johnson, giving him less than two full years on staff.

The 2023 season was particularly chaotic. Cain left in the spring, and after Chatman served as the interim coach, Lindsey had to step away on the eve of preseason practice because of a health issue. LSU moved Jancek to

ter structure (standpoint),” Moore said. “I think he does a tremendous job of being a gameplan-oriented coach, giving us a lot of different versatile pieces that we can play with on defense. It’s a long season in the NFL, and the more different tools and ways you can play are going to hold up as the season goes on.” That will require some changes to identifying which players fit what the Saints are doing defensively, however.

Like Fangio, Staley has largely employed a 3-4 defense throughout his career meaning, when his teams have been aligned in their base looks, they feature three defensive linemen and four linebackers. Under former head coach and defensive play-caller Dennis Allen, the Saints were a 4-3 defense.

Those two structures require different types of players. The 6-foot-6, 270-pound defensive ends that were an obvious fit for the old scheme

the defensive line, a position he had never coached before, and brought Jenkins out of retirement in the middle of the season. Lindsey and Jancek were not retained as LSU overhauled its defensive staff.

With Davis leaving, LSU has to find a coach who can continue to develop the players on its roster and build the position. In the 2025 class, Davis signed four-stars Walter Mathis, Brandon Brown and Zion Williams and threestar Dilan Battle. He also added Texas transfer Sydir Mitchell during the first portal window In the 2026 class, LSU holds a commitment from four-star Edna Karr defensive lineman Richard Anderson a top 50 overall recruit according to the 247Sports composite. Five-star U-High offensive and defensive lineman Lamar Brown, who has not committed, said Thursday “MY recruitment doesn’t change for me Tigers still #1” in a post on X.

The new coach will inherit a young group of defensive tackles. Other than sixthyear senior Jacobian Guillory, who’s recovering from a torn Achilles, every player has multiple years of eligibility Sophomores Dominick McKinley and Ahmad Breaux played significant snaps during their first seasons, and they will need to take a step forward.

Whoever gets the job has to make LSU better upfront. And now, for the fourth time in his four years at LSU, Kelly is looking for a defensive line coach.

aren’t necessarily a fit for the new one, but the 240-pound edge rushers that New Orleans had traditionally overlooked may now be a fit. Staley is in Indianapolis with the Saints this week for the NFL combine, helping identify the players that best fit

“The prototypes on defense are going to change because they’re a different structure,” said college scouting director Jeff Ireland. “We’re looking for different ends and different nose tackles and different linebackers.”

Transitions sometimes with regards to scheme, and sometimes with regards to wholesale philosophy — are “inevitable” in the NFL, Moore said. But he also said he sees some core pieces already on the roster that should marry nicely with Staley’s scheme.

“We feel like there are a lot of pieces that will be very complementary to how Brandon is going to present it,” Moore said.

tor Kliff Kingsbury did the same. Former Dallas Cowboys coach Mike McCarthy decided to focus his attention on the 2026 coaching cycle.

Among those four, the Saints were expected to interview McCarthy but a meeting never happened. The team also didn’t interview Kingsbury, who told teams that he’d wait to speak with them until after the Commanders were eliminated from the playoffs — something that didn’t happen until after the NFC championship.

Glenn and Brady had virtual interviews with New Orleans, but both made their decisions before getting a chance to meet with the Saints in person.

“I can’t imagine someone looking at New Orleans and saying it’s not attractive,” Loomis said. “Ownership is fantastic. I think we’ve got a long history of doing things the right way And so I think those are the most important things. Rosters fluctuate and change from year in to year out.

“So sometimes you have to look beyond the surface things. Look, I get it. Somebody looks from the outside and see the (salary) cap, and go, ‘Oh wow.’ But again, you have to look beyond that. You have to dig a little deeper and understand the nuances behind it.”

The Saints are again significantly

over the salary cap ahead of the new league year But the Saints have been accustomed to navigating such challenges and the team has become compliant each time. Moore, sitting next to Loomis, said he felt “very comfortable” about how the Saints approach the cap and their situation.

“From afar, you see that they’ve handled it for a number of years now,” Moore said, adding, “You recognize the competitiveness and creativity that they’ve had. They’ve been doing this for a long time.”

NFL salary cap set

The NFL and the NFLPA agreed upon next season’s salary cap figure Thursday, setting the number at $279.2 million.

That’s higher than the projections last year and falls in the middle of the $277.5 million and $281.5 million range that the league sent to teams last week in a memo. For the Saints, that means the team is now a projected $47.1 million over the cap, according to the salary cap website Over The Cap.

The Saints have to get cap compliant by the start of the next league year in March. The team can clear space through a number of measures, such as releasing players and restructuring contracts.

Email Matthew Paras at matt. paras@theadvocate.com

BY JOSH DUBOW AP pro football writer

The NFL scouting combine provides a blizzard of data with hundreds of prospects running through various drills ranging from the 40-yard dash to the vertical jump to a short shuttle.

Sifting through all that can be overwhelming for the most seasoned of NFL executives, much less the countless fans who will spend the next few months trying to become draft experts.

The NFL’s NextGen Stats team has partnered with Amazon QuickSight’s machine learning tool to put all those numbers in a more comprehensible form as part of Combine IQ, which was released to the public on Thursday on the NFL’s website.

“It’s in the name: Combine IQ. We came up with that because that is what we want people to take away, which is to make you smarter about the combine,” said Mike Band, the senior manager for research and analytics at NFL NextGen Stats. “We want fans to really understand the numbers that are being collected and the ways you can visualize and make this data digestible and yet insightful.”

The dashboard will post results on all of the drills, including tracking data from RFID sensors on each player, and put them into a player projection model that also takes into account

college production, size and a consensus big board of 10 draft rankings to grade each player on a scale of 50 to 99 in athleticism, production and an overall draft score.

The NextGen stats team has modeled combine data back to 2003, allowing fans to compare players over a more than two-decade stretch with the rankings correlating well to NFL success based on measurements like becoming a starter or a Pro Bowler

The NextGen stats team will validate all the data as its being collected to make sure it is accurate before being posted on the website, typically within 10 minutes or less of a player finishing a drill The numbers and analysis will be avialable to fans on the website and used by NFL Network on the broadcast

of the combine. The data will be able to be sorted by the top performers in various aspects of each event, as well as having spider graphs that compare players at the same position in every drill and measurement, including the NextGen Stats’ production and athleticism scores. “These are professional level analytics that were previously only available to NFL teams, and we’re making them accessible to fans everywhere, which is pretty cool,” said Ari Entin, the head of sports marketing at AWS. “This is a new way to capture, visualize and analyze athletic performance data in real time.” For players who don’t test in the drills at the combine, the model will produce estimated athleticism scores based on college data that has been collected.

STAFF FILE PHOTO By HILARy SCHEINUK

LSU defensive line coach Bo Davis looks on before kickoff against Baylor in the Texas Bowl on Dec. 31 at NRG Stadium in Houston.

CAPITAL’S CULTURE

225 Fest again will celebrate what makes Baton Rouge special from 1 p.m. to 6 p.m. Saturday and Sunday at Airline Highway Park/ Fairgrounds. There will be live performances, food trucks, vendors, health and wellness activities and more. The event is free. RSVP at eventbrite.com.

THINGS TO DO THIS WEEKEND

UPCOMING PARADES

BATON ROUGE: Southdowns, 7 p.m., Friday; Spanish Town, noon, Saturday; Shenandoah, 6:30 p.m., Monday l NEW ROADS: Chemin Neuf, 6 p.m., Saturday; Community Center, 11 a.m., Tuesday; Lions Club, 2 p.m., Tuesday l PORT ALLEN: Good Friends of the Oaks, 1 p.m., Sunday l PLAQUEMINE: Comogo, 7 p.m., Sunday

Festive finale

8 Baton Rouge-area parades rolling through Fat Tuesday round out season

BY JUDY BERGERON Staff writer

Haven’t made it out to a Mardi Gras parade yet? No worries there are eight more chances in the Baton Rouge area before the season wraps up. Temperatures look to be mild for all the celebrations, but there may be raindrops to dodge on Fat Tuesday Be safe, and Happy Mardi Gras!

FRIDAY

KREWE OF SOUTHDOWNS PARADE: 7 p.m., beginning at Glasgow Middle School along Glasgow Avenue to Whitehaven Street, Lee Drive, Hyacinth, Arrowhead, Stuart, Whitehaven to Stephens. For its 38th parade, Southdowns is taking on a safari theme

SATURDAY

KREWE OF SPANISH TOWN PARADE: noon, starting at Fourth Street and Spanish Town Road, to Ninth, North, Fourth, Main, Ninth, Laurel, Fourth, Florida, Seventh to Convention streets and River Road, ending at North Street The largest parade in town, the flamingo-filled procession takes the theme “In Smiley Town, Smiley Says …,” honoring the late Advocate columnist and local personality Smiley Anders. https://mardigrasspanishtown.com/.

KREWE OF CHEMIN NEUF PARADE: 6 p.m., New Roads, starting at Jackson and Parent streets, to New Roads, Main, Olinde, Napoleon and Poydras streets, ending at Poydras and New Roads. Making its inaugural run, the familyfriendly parade will feature lighted floats, local performances and a festive atmosphere.

LIVE ON STAGE

Jacob Shane Roshkow also known as Jake Shane, an American influencer and comedian, will appear at the Raising Cane’s River Center Performing Arts Theater at 8 p.m. Saturday. In 2023, his TikTok videos featuring humorous reenactments of historical events went viral. Tickets are $34-$108. raisingcanesrivercenter.com.

ALL ABOARD!

Train Day at the Library takes place from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday at the Main Library at Goodwood. The free event will feature model trains, including Thomas and Friends and toy train classics; LEGO displays; model and toy train vendors; a train set raffle and door prizes. Free. ebrpl.com.

COMMON GOALS

BY JUDY BERGERON Staff writer

Robert King ha involved in th ish Town Mar parade for 40-plus years. Across Julie Crow is her second year shepherding Krewe of Shenandoah parade. This is the tale of two ve ferent processions: one time tradition, the other s newbie; one drawing a cro 200,000 in 2024, the oth augural run last year attracting 25,000 spectators. And the pa rades’ respective themes? Try Smiley and Star Wars.

PROVIDED PHOTO

See if you can catch one of the Krewe of Shenandoah’s new signature bead throws. They’ll be 1,200 up for grabs.

It’s crunch time this week for both King and Crow: Spanish Town rolls at noon Saturday and Shenandoah at 6:30 p.m. Monday (Lundi Gras). See accompanying parade maps. The organizers did, however,

take a break to talk about this year’s ride.

Super-duper Spanish Town

“I went to the second year (of the parade) on Spanish Town

Road and saw it and I said, ‘Oh, got to be part of this. This is great,’ ” King recalled. That was 1982.

“Back then the parade started the Capitol on Spanish Town Road. It was Boyd Avenue at the time, not Spanish Town Road,” King continued. “And it turned at the grocery store and kind paraded through the neighborhood. A lot different than what it now.”

As president of the Society for Preservation of Lagniappe Louisiana (SPLL), which puts the biggest parade in Baton Rouge each year, King’s in charge of an event featuring the cityregulated maximum of 75 floats, along with numerous marching groups — The Flamingeauxs and The BeignYAYS among them. The route now weaves through 10 streets downtown.

BY JOHN WIRT Contributing

By The Associated Press

Today is Friday, Feb. 28, the 59th day of 2025. There are 306 days left in the year

Today in history

On Feb. 28, 1993, a gunbattle erupted at a religious compound near Waco, Texas, when Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms agents tried to arrest Branch Davidian leader David Koresh on weapons charges; four agents and six Davidians were killed as a 51-day standoff began.

On this date: In 1844, a 12-inch gun aboard the USS Princeton exploded as the ship was sailing on the Potomac River, killing Secretary of State Abel P. Upshur Navy Secretary Thomas W. Gilmer and several others; President John Tyler, who also was aboard the ship, was uninjured.

In 1953, Francis H.C. Crick announced that he and fellow scientist James D. Watson had discovered the double-helix structure of DNA.

In 1975, 43 people were killed in London’s Underground when a train failed to stop at Moorgate station, smashing into the end of a tunnel.

In 1983, the final episode of the television series

“M*A*S*H” aired; nearly 106 million viewers saw the finale, which remains the most-watched episode

PARADES

Continued from page 1D

Preceding the parade will be the Chemin Neuf Mardi Gras Festival from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. in downtown New Roads. https://www kreweofcheminneuf.com/.

SUNDAY

KREWE OF GOOD FRIENDS OF THE OAKS PARADE: 1 p.m., Port Allen, starting at the La. 1 Service Road at Oaks Avenue to South Jefferson Avenue, Court to Sixth, Louisiana Avenue, North Jefferson to South Jefferson and Oaks returning to the starting point For its 40th year, it features kings and queens, marching bands, floats and throws, all in a family-friendly atmosphere. https://www. facebook.com/kogfoto1985.

KREWE OF COMOGO PARADE:

7 p.m., Plaquemine, starting at St. John the Evangelist Church, to La. 1, and Eden Street to Belleview Drive, ending at the Carl F. Grant Civic Center https://

In a Friday, Feb 21,

of any U.S television series to date.

In 1986, Swedish Prime Minister Olof Palme was assassinated while walking on a Stockholm street with his wife; his assailant was never captured and remains unidentified.

In 2013, Benedict XVI became the first pope in 600 years to resign, ending an eight-year pontificate. (Benedict was succeeded the following month by Pope Francis.)

In 2014, delivering a blunt warning to Moscow, President Barack Obama expressed deep concern over reported military activity inside Ukraine by Russia and warned “there will be costs” for any intervention.

Today’s birthdays: Architect Frank Gehry is 96. Rock singer Sam the Sham (aka Domingo Samudio) is 88. Actor-director-choreographer Tommy Tune is 86. Hall of Fame auto racer Mario Andretti is 85. Actor Mercedes Ruehl is 77.

Actor-singer Bernadette Peters is 77. Nobel Prizewinning economist Paul Krugman is 72. Basketball Hall of Famer Adrian Dantley is 70. Actor John Turturro is 68. Actor Maxine Bahns is 55. Actor Robert Sean Leonard is 56. Musician Pat Monahan (Train) is 56. Actor Tasha Smith is 54. Hockey Hall of Famer Eric Lindros is 52. Actor Ali Larter is 49.

kreweofcomogo.com/

MONDAY

KREWE OF SHENANDOAH PARADE: 6:30 p.m., from Tigerbend Road along Jones Creek Road to Shenandoah Avenue, Vicksburg Drive, Malvern Hill Avenue, Antioch Boulevard, Shenandoah Avenue and Jones Creek back to Tigerbend. Reigning over its second parade will be King and Queen Anthony Moody and Ashley Bartel. https://www kreweofshenandoah.com/.

TUESDAY

NEW ROADS COMMUNITY CENTER PARADE: 11 a.m., downtown New Roads. Starting on New Roads Street, left on Main, right on Olinde, right on Napoleon, left on Poydras and right on Parent.

NEW ROADS LIONS CLUB PARADE: 2 p.m., downtown New Roads. Starting and ending at Park Avenue and Community Street, with a right on Main, right on Oinde, right onNapoleon,leftonPoydras, right on Parent, left on New Roads, left on Main, then Communitybacktothestart

parking spaces in the church parking lot. Tickets are $40 per spot for single vehicles, and more for larger vehicles occupying multiple spots. The Advocate regrets the error CORRECTION

SPIRIT

Continued from page 1D

Leading the procession for the last two years is the U.S. Army Marching Band based in Shreveport. “It’s pretty cool,” King said. “You would think that they play military stuff, but now they play all kinds of other music and people seem to enjoy that.”

The floats, dancers, bands and the like that roll, sashay and march in Spanish Town share a few characteristics they’re usually drowning in the parade’s signature bright pink color, flaunting the flamingo mascot, keeping to the comi reverant and carryi year’s being Smiley Says The theme to longtime umnist and fixture Smiley passed away “Smiley son. He’ said, enumerating contributions Town par cluding reigning 1984. “Everybody days wo their newspaper won wha parade judging) Smiley’s always a highly missed.”

This includes King Queen Ch Grand Marshal Kiran Chawla.

encourages everyone to dress in costume, especially in the style of the

A sophomore run

In 2024, a crowd of 25,000 watched the first Krewe of Shenandoah parade make its way through the eastern Baton Rouge subdivision.

Founder and chairman Crow saw that as a great start and is optimistic for another successful run on Monday

BRIGHT EYES

Continued from page 1D

ly sing. His voice worsened once the tour began.

Following a few troubled shows in September, the band canceled its remaining tour dates. Singer-songwriter Oberst, the Bright Eyes website posted, had “developed a condition that is exacerbated by excessive singing, requiring both treatment and recuperation.”

Regrouped and recovered, Bright Eyes returned in January for a West Coast tour An ambitious 2025 schedule includes Sunday’s show in Baton Rouge at Chelsea’s Live To the best of Mogis’ knowledge, Bright Eyes, despite an almost three-decade career, has never performed in Baton Rouge. Mogis, 50, the multi-instrumentalist who produces, records and mixes recordings for Bright Eyes and other artists, has known Oberst, 45, since Mogis was a student at University of Nebraska-Lincoln and Oberst was a 14-year-old songwriting prodigy

The krewe is sticking to its same 2.9-mile route, with the possibility of expanding next year, Crow said. Paradegoers can, however, look for a different kind of king and queen this year “It’s more of a character

“I helped Conor record songs when he was 15, 16 years old,” Mogis said from his home in Omaha, Nebraska. “We started Bright Eyes shortly after that. It’s been quite a journey, with varying degrees of success, but a lot of fun. We’re family now Yeah, we’re old, but I hope we’ll be doing it another 25 years more.”

Bright Eyes has enjoyed a varied audience since it began. Mogis credits the wide appeal to Oberst’s introspective, universal lyrics.

“It’s about the human condition,” he said. “As long as you’re a human, there’s something for you in the message and presentation of our music people in their 30s, people in high school, but also 50-year-old guys and gals. The fans this band I play in has, they’re really special. People in other bands are like, ‘Wow, your fans are really enthusiastic and supportive.’ I’m grateful for that.”

Bright Eyes made studio album number nine, “Five Dice, All Threes,” at Another Recording Company, the facility Oberst and Mogis own in Omaha. Inspiration for

than it is I mean, we obviously have people, but our king (Anthony Moody) is Darth Vader, and our queen (Ashley Bartel) is going to be Princess Leia,” she said. Yes, it’s obviously a “Star Wars” theme this year Crow

the project included the Replacements, one of the wilder rock bands of the 1980s, and Pixies leader Frank Black’s solo studio recordings.

“There’s a raw catchiness in the Replacements’ records from the ’80s,” Mogis said “Conor has always been influenced by that. We hadn’t made a record like that yet, so we tried it.”

Bringing Alex Levine of the So So Glos in as a guest helped Mogis, Oberst and Walcott give “Five Dice, All Threes” in-performance energy

“Alex brought punk-rock writing and vocals that felt natural,” Mogis said. “Those songs naturally lent themselves to that upfront production.”

The album’s other guests are Cat Power Matt Berninger (the National) and Hurray for the Riff Raff frontwoman Alynda Segarra, a longtime New Orleans resident who moved to Chicago last year

“Alynda has such a cool voice and she’s such a cool human being,” Mogis said. “I’m stoked that she’ll be playing with us in Baton Rouge.”

joy many parades this year herself, but said she and her husband did make it to the Krewe of Orion over the weekend and brought her guests from Wisconsin. “They had never seen a Mardi Gras parade before,” she said. “They thought it was fantastic.”

Email Judy Bergeron at jbergeron@theadvocate. com.

With their September health issues resolved, Mogis, Oberst and Walcott are on the bright side of the street again.

“It’s night and day,” Mogis said. “It was smart to take a little time. Because we are getting older, we’re taking a new approach to how we rehearse and how we treat ourselves. It’s an adjustment for us, but now we’re coming out swinging.”

The band’s now five-yearplus reunion began with a phone call Oberst made to Mogis during the 2018 holiday season.

“I was Christmas shopping with my kids when Conor called,” Mogis recalled. “We had been making music together in different capacities. I’d worked on some of Conor’s solo albums. I worked with Nate on films scores throughout that hiatus. And we’re all such close friends. We’re family It felt inevitable that we’d get back together, but you never know So, it was a happy moment when Conor called and said, ‘I’ve got some songs.’” Email John Wirt at j_wirt@ msn.com.

The Golden Guys celebrate LSU’s history of sports national championships during the inaugural Shenandoah Mardi Gras Parade in 2024.

FILE PHOTO By PATRICK DENNIS

FRIDAY

KILEY MCDONNEL: Colonel’s Club, 6 p.m.

ORIGINAL MUSIC GATHERING: La Divina Italian Café, 6 p.m.

3:05 EXPRESS: T’Quilas, Denham Springs, 6 p.m.

ERIC BASKIN DUO: Sullivan’s Steakhouse, 6 p.m.

FLOYD BROWN: Pedro’s Siegen, 6 p.m.

KYLE WILSON: Big J’s Side Porch, Clinton, 6 p.m.

MAIN EVENT ACOUSTIC: Galvez Seafood, Prairieville, 6 p.m.

STEVE GUSTAFSON: Stab’s Restaurant, 6 p.m.

TOBY TOMPLAY: Crowne Plaza, 6 p.m.

DUSTIN LEE GUEDRY: Le Chien Brewing Co., Denham Springs, 6:30 p.m.

EDDIE SMITH: El Paso, Denham Springs, 6:30 p.m.

RHETT ANTHONY: 18 Steak at L’Auberge, 7 p.m.

3 BLIND MICE: On The Half Shell, Prairieville 7 p.m.

DIZZY: Bin 77, 7 p.m.

THE LEE SERIO BAND: The Legacy, 7 p.m.

PHIL CHANDLER: Riverbend Terrace II at L’Auberge, 8 p.m.

JOE SCOTT: Mid City Ballroom, 8 p.m.

CAITLYN RENEE: Jack’s Place, Port Allen, 9 p.m.

DEEBREW: Swamp Chicken Daiquiris, St. Amant, 9 p.m

JOVIN WEBB: The Vineyard, 9 p.m.

MUSCADINE BLOODLINE/ COLBY ACUFF: The Texas Club, 9 p.m.

RYAN FORET & FORET TRADITION: Southern Rhythm, Denham Springs, 9 p.m.

WHISKEY BENT: Fred’s on the River, Prairieville, 9 p.m.

BOUND

The Basin Music Hall, 3 p.m. GLAM GALS SPANISHTOWN AFTER PARTY: Mid City Ballroom, 3 p.m. OPEN JAM SESSION: The Smokey Pit, 4 p.m.

ECHO FORGE: Brickyard South, 4 p.m.

3:05 EXPRESS: T’Quilas, Zachary, 6 p.m.

SHOWS TO WATCH — BATON ROUGE

FRIDAY PURPLE AND GOLD CLASSIC: NCAA PODIUM CHALLENGE: 6:30 p.m., Raising Cane’s River Center Arena. LSU vs. George Washington. $10 and up. raisingcanesrivercenter. com.

SPOOF NIGHT! WITH “PRETTY IN PINK”: 7:30 p.m., Manship Theatre, 100 Lafayette St. The Family Dinner Comedy Troupe presents an interactive movie experience packed with live commentary, drinking games and laughs that poke loving fun at the iconic film. Costumes encouraged. $17. manshiptheatre.org.

FRIDAY NIGHT LECTURE: 7:30 p.m.-8:30 p.m., BREC’s Highland Road Park Observatory, 13800 Highland Road. Skygazing tips, physics phenomena, space programs and famous events are covered. For ages 14 and older. Free. https://hrpo.lsu.edu/. Also, evening sky viewing 7:30 p.m.-10 p.m. Saturday

SATURDAY

TUESDAY

EDDIE SMITH: On The Half Shell, Prairieville, 6:30 p.m.

WEDNESDAY

LAUREN LEE: Galvez Seafood, Prairieville, 5:30 p.m.

SONGWRITERS OPEN MIC: Le Chien Brewing Co., Denham Springs, 6 p.m.

JOEL COOPER & SCOTT JORDAN: The Vineyard, 9 p.m.

RIVER RAIN: Phil Brady’s 9 p.m

SWEET SOUTHERN HEAT: Churchill’s, 9 p.m. THE AWEN TRIO: Hayride Scandal, 10 p.m.

SUNDAY JUSTIN BURDETTE TRIO: Superior Grill MidCity, 11 a.m.

ROBERT CALMES: Cocha, 11 a.m.

JAZZ BRUNCH: Red Stick Social, noon OPEN MIC JAM: Fat Cat Saloon, Prairieville, 7 p.m.

FLORIDA STREET BLOWHARDS: United States Bowling Congress Kickoff Second Line, Raising Cane’s River Center, 6:30 p.m. WILL WESLEY: GolfSuites, 7 p.m. DIZZY: On The Half Shell, Prairieville, 7 p.m. IAN & JARRETT: Bin 77, 7 p.m. LIVE WITH JAKE SHANE: Raising Cane’s River Center Theater, 8 p.m.

RIVER CITY ALLSTARS: On The Half Shell, Prairieville, 11 a.m.

MONDAY VICTOR, SKIP & CARRIE: Phil Brady’s, 6 p.m.

KIRK HOLDER: Bin 77, 6:30 p.m.

SONGWRITERS OPEN MIC W/ HEATH RANSONNET: Coop’s on 621, Gonzales, 7 p.m.

ANDY PIZZO TRIO: Hayride Scandal, 7:30 p.m.

DIXIE ROSE’S ACOUSTIC

CIRCLE: Teddy’s Juke Joint, Zachary, 8 p.m.

OPEN MIC JAM: Brickyard South, 8 p.m.

THURSDAY

KYBALION: El Paso, Sherwood, 6 p.m.

OPEN MIC W/AMANDA JO

HESS: Istrouma Brewing, St. Gabriel, 6 p.m.

THE STARDUST BOYS: The Brakes Bar, 6 p.m. THE BISHOP ELLIS TRIO: Hayride Scandal, 7 p.m.

TOBYMAC WITH CROWDER,

CAIN, RYAN STEVENSON AND TERRIAN — HITS DEEP TOUR: Raising Cane’s River Center Arena, 7 p.m.

HENRY TURNER JR. & ALLSTARS: Henry Turner Jr.’s Listening Room, 8 p.m.

BRITTON MAJOR: O’Haras Irish Pub, 8 p.m.

BLUES JAM: Phil Brady’s, 9 p.m.

LAUREN LEE: Spanky’s, Prairieville, 9 p.m

RHETT GUILLOT: The Vineyard, 9 p.m.

OUTLYING

SATURDAY

WAYNE TOUPS: Mári Showroom at Paragon Casino, Marksville, 8 p.m.

THE LEE SERIO BAND: The Rock House, Innis, 8 p.m.

Compiled by Marchaund Jones. Want your venue’s music listed? Email info/ photos to showstowatch@ theadvocate.com. The deadline is noon FRIDAY for the following Friday’s paper

BATON ROUGE MARDI GRAS FESTIVAL: 10 a.m.-7 p.m., North Boulevard Town Square, 222 North Blvd. The 12th annual festival will feature live music, art, fashion and food. Free and familyfriendly. Lawn seating; bring a chair. https://ultimatelouisianapar.wixsite.com/ brmardigrasfest.

FAMILY HOUR STARGAZING: 10 a.m., Irene W. Pennington Planetarium at the Louisiana Art & Science Museum, 100 S. River Road. Learn about the stars and constellations in the local nighttime sky, followed by an all-ages show. lasm.org.

MONTHLY CONTRA DANCE: 4 p.m.-6 p.m., St. Alban’s Chapel, corner of Highland Road and Dalrymple Drive. Newcomer instruction at 3:45 p.m. Singles and couples welcome. $7 per person; free for first-timers. Louisianacontrasandsquares.com or (225) 8039194.

SATURDAY-SUNDAY HERPS BATON ROUGE EXOTIC REPTILE AND PET SHOW: 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Saturday and 10 a.m.- 4 p.m. Sunday, Lamar Dixon Expo Center, 9039

S. St. Landry Ave., Gonzales. Adults: $10, one day; $15, both days; kids 5-12: $5, one day; $8, both days; kids 4 and younger, free.

PROVIDED PHOTO FROM THE MEDIA COLLECTIVE

Contemporary Christian music artist TobyMac plays the Raising Cane’s River Center Arena at 7 p.m Thursday, March 6. Also on the bill: Cain, Ryan Stevenson and Terrian.

PISCES (Feb. 20-March 20) Take the initiative and implement your agenda. Plan every detail, and you will enjoy turning something you desire into a reality. Be true to yourself, and you'll find the happiness you seek.

ARIES (March 21-April 19) Refuse to give up, give in or let anger come to the surface. Your best response is success. Personal growth is yours to make. Where there is purpose, there is meaning.

TAURUS (April 20-May 20) Discover the pleasure of positive change and concentrate on making your surroundings comfortable. Stick to the people and pastimes that put your mind at ease.

GEMINI (May 21-June 20) Take one step at a time. Minimize your plans to ensure you do your best and achieve your goal Personal growth comes at a cost, but ultimately, it will help set the stage for a better tomorrow.

CANCER (June 21-July 22) You'll have the drive, imagination and skills to outperform any rival. Put your energy to good use, do your best and promote who you are and what you can do.

LEO (July 23-Aug. 22) Pay attention to how you look at and respond to others. Be the one to make positive suggestions, lend a helping hand and use your skills and knowledge to make situations easier.

VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22) Put your plans in motion. Build momentum, put a smile on your face and engage in talks

that change how people perceive you and what you are trying to achieve

LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 23) Get out and about. Participate, engage in exciting events and broaden your sense of what's possible. Use your home base as a springboard, and you'll evolve in a direction that surprises everyone

SCORPIO (Oct. 24-Nov. 22) Relax, enjoy and let the chips fall where they may. Put your heart and soul into exploring what brings you joy. Look into new possibilities, and forge ahead with stamina, ingenuity and a smile.

SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 23-Dec. 21) Be aware; leave nothing to chance. Say less, listen more, read between the lines and be prepared to do whatever it takes to surpass even your own expectations.

CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19) You are in a better position than you realize, so don't slow down or give anyone a chance to step in and take charge. Rise above conflict and let your precision and actions speak for you.

AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 19) The best improvements you can make are the ones you do yourself. Put a cap on spending and use your skills and creative imagination. Keep your eye on the goal and on any competition you encounter.

The horoscope, an entertainment feature, is not based on scientific fact. © 2025 by NEA, Inc dist. By Andrews McMeel Syndication

FAMILY CIrCUS

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

TODAy'S CLUE: C EQUALS K

CeLebrItY CIpher

For better or For WorSe

SALLY Forth

beetLe bAILeY

Mother GooSe And GrIMM

LAGoon

Sudoku

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

Yesterday’s Puzzle Answer

THe wiZard oF id

BLondie

BaBY BLueS

Hi and LoiS

CurTiS

Yesterday’s Puzzle Answer

BY PHILLIP ALDER Bridge

R.K. Milholland, an author of web comics, said, “Friendship is being there when someone’s feeling low and not being afraid to kick him.”

That would work with a lot of people, but would make some feel even worse.

We“kick”partnerbyleadingalowcard from a long suit to tell him that we have at least one honor in it. And this applies during the play if a defender shifts to a suit not yet led by either side.

Here is a classic example. West leads the spade four against three no-trump.

South captures East’s jack with his king and plays a low diamond. What should happen next?

West was right to overcall one spade, not to make a takeout double. He was hoping to introduce hearts on the next round if it seemed expedient.

South has eight top tricks: two spades and six clubs He needs one diamond trick to get home. And it is usually best to try to sneak an extra winner immediately, while the defenders are still half asleep.

However, an awake West knows from the first trick that South has the spade ace and king. Why isn’t declarer running for home? He must be trying to get a ninth trick. So West must win with his diamond ace and shift to the heart three. This low card says that West has honors in hearts and is trying to win tricks in this suit. East should take the trick with his king and return the heart two, not go back to spades. If West had begun with ace-10-fifth of spades and had wanted East to return a spade, West would have led a high heart, not his lowest. © 2025 by NEA, Inc., dist. By Andrews

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

today’s thought “And they served their idols: which were a snare to them.” Psalms 106:36

marmaduKe

Bizarro

hagar the horriBle

Pearls Before swiNe

garfield

B.C.

PiCKles

880 North Alexander Avenue, Port Allen Thursday,February 13, 2025 5:30 PM

The Following Minutes AreSummarized For Brevity,For Precise Meeting Information Please Refer To Meeting Audio Or Video

1. CALL MEETING TO ORDER &REQUEST ALL ELECTRONIC DEVICES BE SILENCED

ARegular Meeting of the West Baton Rouge Parish Council was held on Thursday,February 13, 2025 and called to order at 05:30 PM. Council Chairman Carey Denstel asked that all electronic devices be placed on silent.

2. OPENING PRAYER Councilman Atley Walker Jr.led everyone in an opening prayer

3. PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE Chairman Denstel recognized Councilwoman Katherine Andre who led everyone in the Pledge of Allegiance.

4. LOG ATTENDANCE

The following members wererecorded as being present: Messrs. Daryl “Turf” Babin, Atley Walker,Brady Hotard, Carey Denstel, Alan Crowe, and Mrs. Katherine Andre.

Absent: Messrs. Kirk Allain, Kenneth Gordon,Gary Joseph

Also present were, Mr.Jason Manola, Parish President, Mr.Phillip Bourgoyne, Executive Assistant, Mr.Chance Stephens, Director of Finance, Mr.Brandon Bourgoyne, Director of Public Works, Ms. Kristen Canezaro, Special Legal Counsel, and Mrs. Michelle Tullier,Council Clerk

5. ELECTION OF OFFICERS

A. Approval of Minutes from January 9, 2025 Regular Meeting.

Amotion was made by Council Member Alan Crowe, seconded by Council Member None to approve Approval of Minutes from January 9, 2025 Regular Meeting.

The vote was recorded as follows:

YEAS: 6(Daryl “Turf” Babin, Atley Walker,Brady Hotard, Carey Denstel, Alan Crowe, Katherine Andre)

NAYS: 0(None)

ABSENT:3 Kirk Allain, Kenneth Gordon, Gary Joseph

ABSTAIN: 0(None)

As aresult of the votes, the motion Passed.

6. CONSIDER ANY AMENDMENTS TO THE AGENDA

A. Showtime Sports Bar LLC- Located at 4119 Hwy 1South Port Allen, La 70767 -Requesting Class ALiquorLicense. Change of Ownership (Previously The Hangout) Chairman Denstel explained the request for the amendment and noted theremust be aunanimous vote of the Council in order to add this item to the agenda.

Amotion was made by Council Member Daryl “Turf” Babin, seconded by Council Member Katherine Andretoapprove amending the agenda to include Showtime Sports Bar LLC.Located at 4119 Hwy 1South Port Allen, La 70767 -Requesting Class ALiquor License.

The vote was recorded as follows:

YEAS: 6(Daryl “Turf” Babin, Atley Walker,Brady Hotard, Carey Denstel, Alan Crowe, Katherine Andre)

NAYS: 0(None)

ABSENT:3 Kirk Allain, Kenneth Gordon, Gary Joseph

ABSTAIN: 0(None)

As aresult of the votes, the motion Passed.

7. STATEOFTHE PARISH Parish President Jason P. Manola was recognized and gave the 2025 State of the Parish report which can be found at the end of these minutes.

President Manola also brieflyupdated the Council on the following items: WBR Parish awarded Water Sector Grant for Sewer consolidation on south end totaling 10 million dollars.

8. PUBLIC COMMENTS

Therewerenocomments to consider at this time.

9. CONSIDER COST OF LIVING INCREASE FOR PARISH EMPLOYEES

Mr.Chance Stephens was recognized and read aloud amemo from the Administration recommending atwo percent (2%) Cost of Living increase, along with a1step (2%) increase to all pay scales of WBR Parish, also recommending the WBR FireDepartment receive atwo percent (2%) Cost of Living increase, noting the fire department automatically receives atwo percent (2%) anniversary date increase. Mr.Stephens noted this increase would be effective February 3, 2025. Therewerenoquestions from the Council at this time.

Amotion was made by Council Member Alan Crowe, seconded by Council Member Daryl “Turf” Babin to approve The two percent (2%) Cost of Living increase, along with a1step (2%) increase to all pay scales including to all classified full time, permanent part-time employees, which includes the following named departments: Council Clerk, Coroner,Registrar of Voters(Parish portion), Administration, Planning/Zoning, Building Maintenance, Emergency Management, Engineering, Animal Control, Recreation, Roads, Health unit, Drainage, Community Center,Community Action, E-911, Judges, District Attorney/ Legal Counsel, Public Utilities, Sales Tax, Detention center,JP’s &Constables, and KWBR Beautiful, also recommending the WBR FireDepartment receive atwo percent (2%) Cost of Living increase. Effective February 3, 2025.

The vote was recorded as follows:

YEAS: 6(Daryl “Turf” Babin, Atley Walker,Brady Hotard, Carey Denstel, Alan Crowe, Katherine Andre) NAYS: 0(None) ABSENT:3 Kirk Allain, Kenneth Gordon, Gary Joseph

ABSTAIN: 0(None)

As aresult of the votes, the motion Passed.

10. COMMUNICATIONS WITH COUNCIL MEMBERS AND/OR ELECTED OR APPOINTED OFFICIALS

A. Consider the Following Items As Scrap/Surplus: Fire Department

2001 FORD EXCURSION VIN# 1FMNU40F91EC00459

1988 ISUZU JALB4B1HXJ7005727

Mr.Stephens was recognized and explained the need for the following items to be designated as scrap/surplus.

Amotion was made by Council Member Alan Crowe, seconded by Council Member Katherine Andretoapprove the Following Items

As Scrap/Surplus: FireDepartment

2001 FORD EXCURSIONVIN# 1FMNU40F91EC00459

1988 ISUZU JALB4B1HXJ7005727

The vote was recorded as follows:

YEAS: 6(Daryl “Turf” Babin, Atley Walker,Brady Hotard, Carey Denstel, Alan Crowe, Katherine Andre) NAYS: 0(None) ABSENT:3 Kirk Allain, Kenneth Gordon, Gary Joseph ABSTAIN: 0(None) As aresult of the votes, the motion Passed.

Mr.Phillip Bourgoyne was recognized and updated the Council on recent Roads and Drainage projects happening around the Parish. 11.PUBLIC HEARING ON PREVIOUSLYINTRODUCED ORDINANCES

A. AN ORDINANCE TO AUTHORIZE THE LEVY AND COLLECTION OF ASPECIAL TAXOF5.00 MILLS (THE “TAX”) ON THE DOLLAR OF ASSESSED VALUATION OF ALL THE PROPERTY SITUATED WITHIN THE LIMITSOFTHE PARISH OF WEST BATON ROUGE, STATEOFLOUISIANA (THE “PARISH”) FOR APERIOD OF TEN (10) YEARS, BEGINNING WITH THE YEAR 2025 AND ENDING WITH THE YEAR 2034, SUCH TAXHAVING BEEN AUTHORIZED TO BE IMPOSED, LEVIED AND COLLECTED AT ASPECIAL ELECTION HELD IN THE PARISH ON DECEMBER 7, 2024. The Chairman opened apublic hearing for the purpose of receiving comment regarding the aforementioned item. Mr.Stephens explained this ordinance was to adopt the election results from December 7, 2024. No public comments for or against said ordinance werepresented.

No written protests opposing the ordinance werereceived. The Council Chairman at this point declared the Public Hearing closed. Amotion was made by Council Member Brady Hotard, seconded by Council Member Katherine Andretoapprove AN ORDINANCE TO AUTHORIZE THE LEVY AND COLLECTION OF ASPECIAL

TAXOF5.00 MILLS (THE “TAX”) ON THE DOLLAR OF ASSESSED

VALUATION OF ALL THE PROPERTY SITUATED WITHIN THE LIMITS OF THE PARISH OF WEST BATON ROUGE, STATEOF LOUISIANA(THE “PARISH”) FOR APERIOD OF TEN (10) YEARS, BEGINNING WITH THE YEAR 2025 AND ENDING WITH THE YEAR 2034, SUCH TAXHAVING BEEN AUTHORIZED TO BE IMPOSED, LEVIED AND COLLECTED AT ASPECIAL ELECTION HELD IN THE PARISH ON DECEMBER 7, 2024.

The vote was recorded as follows:

YEAS: 6(Daryl “Turf” Babin, Atley Walker,Brady Hotard, Carey Denstel,Alan Crowe, Katherine Andre)

NAYS: 0(None)

ABSENT: 3Kirk Allain, Kenneth Gordon, Gary Joseph

ABSTAIN: 0(None) As aresult of the votes, the motion Passed. Ordinance 4of2025 can be found at the end of these minutes.

12. INTRODUCTION OF ORDINANCES

Mrs. Tullier,Council Clerk read by title the below proposed ordinance/s being introduced and publicized by title, and considered for adoption following apublic hearing as specified below,at5:30 pm in the Council Chambers, located at 880 North Alexander Avenue, Port Allen, La.:

A. An Ordinance Amending Chapter 104 Zoning To Incorporate Amended Zoning Designation Map(Zoning Plan) Under Section 104-3 Establishment Of Districts, Official Zoning Map For Rezoning Request Of Kacie Lynn Q. Parault. Regarding Property located at 4156 S. River Road Port Allen, La 70767. File #2025-01: Described by the WBR Assessor as: LOT Q-1 CONT 1.52 AC IN SEC 2T8S R12E &SEC 77 T7S R12E 54-28. Rezoning 1.52 acres from AG-2 (Agricultural Moderate Scale) to R-M (Minor Subdivision Residential District), with waivers. PublicHearing Date: March13, 2025

B. An Ordinance To Amend And Reenact Part III (“Unified Development Code”), Chapter 101 (“General Provisions”), Section 101-1 (“Definitions”) Of The West Baton Rouge Parish Code Of Ordinances To Provide Clarification On Code Definitions. Public Hearing Date: March13, 2025

C. An Ordinance Amending Chapter 104 Zoning To Incorporate Amended Zoning Designation Map(Zoning Plan) Under Section 104-3 Establishment Of Districts, Official Zoning Map For Rezoning Request Of Steve LeBlanc representing Raymond Blanchardand Randy Austin. Regarding Property located at 4535 RebelleLane and 760 Jules Lane. Port Allen, La 70767. File #2025-03: Described by the WBR Assessor as: 4.28 AC SEC 17 T7S R12E DESIG LOT 6(A)-2-B CONT 3.28 AC &LOT 6(A)-2- ACONT 1.00 AC BEING P/O JULES REBELLE SR PROP 44B-44 &LOT 6(A)-2-C SEC 17 T7S R12E CONT 0.72 AC BEING P/O JULES REBELLE SR PROP 44B-44A. Rezoning from AG-1 (Agricultural Small Scale) and AG-3 (Agricultural Large Scale) into AG-2 (Agricultural

For Rezoning Request Of Steve LeBlanc Representing TMI Enterprise, LLC. Regarding Property located at 5511 N. River Road, Port Allen, La 70767. File #2025-04: Described by the WBR Assessor as: LOT CL-1-A CONT 7.263 AC &LOT A-13-B CONT 33.21 AC IN SEC 43 T6S R12E BEING P/O LORIO TRACT50-93. Rezoning From R-SF-3 (Residential Single Family) to AG-3 (Agricultural Small Scale). Master Plan Change Public Hearing Date: March 13, 2025

E. An Ordinance Amending Chapter 104 Zoning To Incorporate Amended Zoning Designation Map(Zoning Plan) Under Section 104-3 Establishment Of Districts, Official Zoning Map, And Section 111-78 (Special, Conditional Use Requirements And Procedures) For Rezoning Request Of LJA Rail. Regarding PropertyLocated At 1100 River West Park Port Allen, La 70767. File #2025-05: Described by the WBR Assessor as: PORTION OF TRACT D-1-A-1 CONT 118.124 AC TRACTD-1-B-1 CONT 192.682 AC TRACT GCONT 0.303 AC TRACTH CONT 2.389 AC REMAINDER OF OURSO TRACT CONT 89.109 AC UNION PACIFIC TRACTCONT 19.642 AC IN SEC 59 T7S R12E P/O POPLAR GROVE PLTN 51-52. Rezoning to I-3 with aSpecial Use Permitfor Utilities, Major Services. PublicHearing Date: March13, 2025

13. CONSIDER STATUS REPORT, CHANGE ORDER AND/OR OTHER MATTERS AS REQUIRED ON CURRENT PROJECTS Therewerenoitems to consider at this time.

14. RESOLUTIONS A. AResolution To Authorize The Parish President To Execute The Entity-State Agreements Between The Parish Of West Baton Rouge And The Louisiana Department Of Transportation For State Project H.015540, To Replace Section Road Bridge Over Bayou Poydras. Mr.Brandon Bourgoyne was recognized and explained the reasons for the aforementioned resolution. Amotion was made by Council Member Daryl “Turf” Babin, seconded by Council Member Katherine Andretoapprove A Resolution To Authorize The Parish President To Execute The Entity-State Agreements Between The Parish Of West Baton Rouge And The Louisiana Department Of Transportation For State Project H.015540, To Replace Section Road Bridge Over Bayou Poydras.

The vote was recorded as follows: YEAS: 6(Daryl “Turf” Babin, Atley Walker,Brady Hotard, Carey Denstel, Alan Crowe, Katherine Andre) NAYS: 0(None) ABSENT: 3Kirk Allain, Kenneth Gordon, Gary Joseph ABSTAIN: 0(None) As aresult of the votes, the motion Passed. Resolution 5of2025 can be found at the end of these minutes.

15. CONSIDER SUBDIVISION PLATS, CONDEMNATIONS, WAIVERS AND MATTERS RELATED THERETO Therewerenoitems to consider at this time.

16. ALCOHOL PERMITS A. Cactus Flower,LLC. dba Cactus Flower Mexican CuisineLocated at 4151 Hwy 1South Port Allen, La 70767 -Requesting Class A/RLiquor License -Change of Ownership (formerly DC’sGrill) Mrs.Tullier noted the aforementioned alcohol establishment has met all of the requirements of Chapter 6AlcoholicBeverages of the Compiled Ordinances of the Parish Of West Baton Rouge, Louisiana.

Amotion was made by Council Member Brady Hotard, seconded by Council Member Katherine Andretoapprove Cactus Flower LLC dba Cactus Flower Mexican Cuisine -Located at 4151 Hwy 1 South Port Allen, La 70767 -Requesting Class A/R Liquor License -Change of Ownership (formerly DC’sGrill).

The vote was recorded as follows: YEAS: 6(Daryl “Turf” Babin, Atley Walker,Brady Hotard, Carey Denstel, Alan Crowe, Katherine Andre)

NAYS: 0(None) ABSENT: 3Kirk Allain, Kenneth Gordon, Gary Joseph

ABSTAIN: 0(None) As aresult of the votes, the motion Passed.

B. Showtime Sports Bar LLC.- Located at 4119 Hwy 1South Port Allen, La 70767 -Requesting Class ALiquor License. Change of Ownership (Previously The Hangout) Mrs. Tullier noted the aforementioned alcohol establishment has met all of the requirements of Chapter 6AlcoholicBeverages of the Compiled Ordinances of the Parish Of West Baton Rouge, Louisiana. Amotion was made by Council Member Daryl “Turf” Babin, seconded by Council Member Brady Hotardtoapprove Showtime Sports Bar LLC.- Located at 4119 Hwy 1South Port Allen, La 70767 -Requesting Class ALiquor License. Change of Ownership (PreviouslyThe Hangout).

The vote was recorded as follows: YEAS: 6(Daryl “Turf” Babin, Atley Walker,Brady Hotard, Carey Denstel, Alan Crowe, Katherine Andre)

NAYS: 0(None) ABSENT:3 Kirk Allain, Kenneth Gordon, Gary Joseph

ABSTAIN: 0(None) As aresult of the votes, the motion Passed.

Spillman was recognized and spoke briefly, Mr.Adrian Genrewas recognized and spoke briefly. Councilman Hotardnominated Mr.Adrian Genretobeconsidered. Chairman Denstel explained we would vote for each nomination in the order received, noting the first vote would be to appoint Mr.Gary Spillman to the Capital Area Groundwater Commission. The vote was recorded as follows: YEAS: 5(Daryl “Turf” Babin, Atley Walker,Carey Denstel, Alan Crowe, Katherine Andre) NAYS: 1(Brady Hotard) ABSENT:3 Kirk Allain, Kenneth Gordon, Gary Joseph ABSTAIN: 0(None) As aresult of the votes, the motion Passed, Mr.Gary Spillman was appointed as the representative for WBR Parish

Sincerely Jason

TAXOF5.00 MILLS (THE “TAX”) ON THE DOLLAR OF ASSESSED VALUATION OF ALL THE PROPERTY SITUATED WITHIN THE LIMITS OF THE PARISH OF WESTBATON ROUGE, STATEOFLOUISIANA (THE “PARISH”) FOR APERIOD OF TEN (10) YEARS, BEGINNING WITH THE YEAR 2025 AND ENDING WITH THE YEAR 2034, SUCH TAXHAVING BEEN AUTHORIZED TO BE IMPOSED, LEVIED AND COLLECTED AT ASPECIAL ELECTION HELD IN THE PARISH ON DECEMBER 7, 2024.

WHEREAS, under the provisions of Article VI, Section 26 of the Constitution of the State of Louisiana of 1974 and other constitutional and statutory authority supplemental thereto, and an election held on December 7, 2024 (the “Election”), the Parish of West Baton Rouge, State of Louisiana (the “Parish”), acting through its Parish Council, acting as the governing authority (the “Governing Authority”)ofthe Parish, do now desiretolevy and