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BATON ROUGE, LOUISIANA
T h u r s d ay, F e b r u a ry 6, 2025
FOR THE FANS Super Bowl Experience opens in New Orleans
FEB. 9 NEW ORLEANS
$2.00X
Landry’s civil service proposal halted
State board blocks governor’s effort to remove hundreds from system
BY ALYSE PFEIL Staff writer
STAFF PHOTOS BY CHRIS GRANGER
The Super Bowl Experience opened to fans at the New Orleans Ernest N. Morial Convention Center on Wednesday.
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he Super Bowl Experience opened to the public Wednesday in New Orleans. The event transforms 700,000 square feet — an area roughly the size of 12 full NFL football fields — at the Ernest N. Morial Convention Center into an “experiential and exhibitory space,” said Nicki Ewell, senior director of NFL Events. “We know not everybody is lucky enough to get that coveted Super Bowl ticket,” Ewell said, “but we still want those that are local or visiting to know this is for them — for fans of all ages.” More Super Bowl coverage in Sports, 1C.
ä See HALTED, page 4A
Palestinians reject Trump’s Gaza takeover BY WAFAA SHURAFA, SAMY MAGDY and JULIA FRANKEL
Carlnetta Rabb, of New Orleans, gets her photo taken by Jamal Brown as she stands behind a New Orleans Saints football player mannequin at the Super Bowl Experience on Wednesday.
Student sneaks loaded gun into school BY CHARLES LUSSIER
ä Two pre-K teachers put on leave after taking video of students fighting. PAGE 1B
sion from Woodlawn High, under Louisiana’s zero-tolerance policy related to student misconduct. Casey Rayborn Hicks, a spokesperson For the second time in a month, a student at Woodlawn High in Baton Rouge East Baton Rouge Parish Sheriff’s Office. for the East Baton Rouge Parish Sheriff’s was arrested for sneaking a loaded fire- He faces charges of illegal carrying of a Office, said Evans had a Glock 17, a 9 mm arm past a metal detector, this time by firearm, carrying a firearm or dangerous gun, with an extended magazine holding hiding it in the cushion of his wheelchair. weapon on school property, and bringing roughly 23 rounds. Evans told authorities Kevin Evans III, 17, a freshman, was a firearm into a firearm free-zone. ä See GUN, page 4A Evans will be recommended for expultaken into custody Wednesday by the
Staff writer
WEATHER HIGH 83 LOW 64 PAGE 10A
Gov. Jeff Landry’s administration is trying to permanently remove civil service employment protections for hundreds of attorneys and engineers in agencies across state government. But that plan ran into opposition from a state commission Wednesday after one member warned the move may not be constitutional. Louisiana’s civil service system gives government employees extra barriers against being fired and is meant to limit patronage and political retaliation. But the system is sometimes criticized as an obstacle to holding employees accountable when they underperform. Landry’s administration said the changes would help hire top professional talent, fill critical vacancies and make government more efficient. “We’ve heard from so many about the difficulty of recruiting,” said Patrick Goldsmith, deputy commissioner of the Division of Administration. The move would help alleviate “the brain drain from Louisiana,” he said. But the State Civil Service Commission, which oversees the civil service system,
Associated Press
DEIR AL-BALAH, Gaza Strip — Saeed Abu Elaish’s wife, two of his daughters and two dozen others from his extended family were killed by Israeli airstrikes over the past 15 months. His house in northern Gaza was destroyed. He and his surviving family now live in a tent set up in the rubble of his home. But he says he will not be driven out after President Donald Trump called for transferring all Palestinians from Gaza so the United States could take over the devastated territory and rebuild it for others. Rights groups said his comments were tantamount to a call for “ethnic cleansing” and forcible expulsion. “We categorically reject and will resist any plans to deport and transfer us from our land,” he said from the Jabaliya refugee camp.
Business ......................8A Commentary ................5B Nation-World................2A Classified .....................6D Deaths .........................3B Opinion ........................4B Comics-Puzzles .....3D-5D Living............................1D Sports ..........................1C
ä See GAZA, page 4A
100TH YEAR, NO. 221