Kellen Moore’s journey to the Saints started in a small town in Washington 1C
N O L A.C O M
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S u n d ay, a p r i l 13, 2025
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Vietnamese Americans reflect on 50 years in New Orleans, their traditions and their future
STAFF FILE PHOTO By SOPHIA GERMER
Three years since revelations that federal agents were probing Mayor LaToya Cantrell’s financial and political dealings, prosecutors have yet to accuse her of any crimes. With each passing day, they appear increasingly unlikely to do so.
‘A special place’
Questions swirl around probe of Cantrell Prosecutors have yet to accuse mayor of any crimes
BY JAMES FINN | Staff writer Six months ago, LaToya Cantrell appeared to be in imminent legal peril. The New Orleans mayor’s former bodyguard, a city police officer, had been charged in July with federal crimes, accused of lying on timesheets to conceal an illicit relationship with Cantrell. Then, in late September, a private electrical inspector whose business flowed through City Hall was indicted for allegedly bribing the mayor with football tickets and meals as he tried to shirk scrutiny over his business practices. Describing Cantrell as “Public Official 1,” the feds peppered both indictments with descriptions of the sitting mayor’s involvement in each of the alleged schemes. It seemed only a matter of time before she, too, faced charges. That hasn’t happened. Nearly three years since revelations that federal agents were probing a series of Cantrell’s financial and political dealings, prosecutors have yet to accuse her of any crimes. With each passing day, they appear increasingly unlikely to do so, eight people familiar with the case, plus six legal and political experts, said in interviews.
STAFF PHOTOS By SOPHIA GERMER
Vietnamese Americans from across the United States gather on April 4 in New Orleans for the 50th reunion of former residents of the fishing region Phuoc Tinh, located in Vietnam. About 500 people were in attendance. BY DESIREE STENNETT | Staff writer
Vy Linh Ky cooks her mother’s signature soup Bún bò Hue at her home in New Orleans. Her mother fled Vietnam for the United States, died in 2018 and was known for her soups.
The red hardback journal sits on the bookshelf in Vy Linh Ky’s Uptown apartment. The cover is plain and unassuming and the binding is coming undone. But inside, the pages are pristine. On each sheet is a recipe, handwritten by her mother. Most are just lists of ingredients — onions, lemon grass, lime leaves, fresh herbs, beef and pork bones — with no measurements and no cooking instructions. Written entirely in Vietnamese, they are Ky’s road map to the dishes of her childhood. Her mother, who died in 2018, was known for her soups, which would simmer late into the night, the only time for cooking after a long day of caring for Ky and her three sisters. Ky, who works as the head of human resources for a New Orleans hotel, began cooking from it during the pandemic. Translating the recipes, mixing and matching ingredients, cooking until her kitchen smells like her mother’s did — it is Ky’s way of reconnecting with her mom, with Vietnam and with a half-century of Vietnamese American tradition in New Orleans.
ä See VIETNAMESE, page 4A
In 1970, only about 700 people living in Louisiana reported being born in Vietnam. A decade later, more than 10,000 people statewide identified as Vietnamese, according to the U.S. census. Now, there are more than 36,000 people of Vietnamese descent living in Louisiana. More than half live in the New Orleans metro area.
ä See CANTRELL, page 8A
Governor’s path through legislative session will require deft politics Landry opens regular session Monday
BY TYLER BRIDGES | Staff writer Gov. Jeff Landry was riding high when he kicked off the regular legislative session a year ago. Only months before, he had outpaced the field to be elected governor. Shortly after taking office, he called two special sessions where state lawmakers approved almost everything he wanted.
WEATHER HIGH 79 LOW 60 PAGE 8B
But Landry is now facing headwinds when he convenes his second regular session as governor on Monday. On March 29, voters handed Landry his worst defeat in his 15 months as governor by soundly rejecting all four changes to the state constitution he sought. Landry is also encountering a restive Republican freshman class in the House that is pushing for changes in car insurance laws that the governor and his trial lawyer allies oppose. “His political honeymoon is over,”
said veteran pollster and political consultant Bernie Pinsonat. “He has to do a better job of selling his accomplishments and bringing stuff to the public that will satisfy their problems.” A poll conducted by Pinsonat and Greg Rigamer for conservative business owner Lane Grigsby immediately after the March 29 ballot box defeat showed that voters were evenly divided on Landry, with 45% offering favorable and unfavorable views of him.
ä See LANDRY, page 6A
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Gov. Jeff Landry faces challenges over the state budget, auto insurance and his private school voucher program, among others. STAFF PHOTO By HILARy SCHEINUK
12TH yEAR, NO. 244