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T h u r s d ay, J u ly 24, 2025
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Judge keeps Horton suit in state court
Builder had sought arbitration for dispute over youngsville home BY MATT BRUCE Staff writer
A lawsuit that alleges one of the nation’s largest homebuilders erected single-family residences with mold and water intrusion issues across south Louisiana will remain in state court for now, a
Baton Rouge judge has ruled. Donald Johnson, the 19th Judicial District Court’s chief judge, meted out the judgment in a 22page order released late Tuesday afternoon. He determined the sales contract that West and Alicia Dixon signed to buy their Youngsville home in 2014 “is not legally
binding or enforceable.” The ruling means the Dixons’ lawsuit won’t be relegated to arbitration, where plaintiff attorneys said evidentiary rules of disclosure are more restrictive and the expense to litigate could cost the Dixons tens of thousands of dollars. Instead of arbitration, the
case will remain in district court, where it could proceed to trial for a jury to decide whether D.R. Horton should pay the couple damages. That remains a long way off. Johnson’s decision is almost certain to be challenged in the 1st Circuit Court of Appeal, and possibly
La. cane farmer optimistic about Coca-Cola’s sugar push
the Louisiana Supreme Court. Attorneys and spokespersons for D.R. Horton were not immediately available for comment Tuesday evening after the ruling came in. Lance Unglesby, the New Orleans attorney leading the Dixons’ legal team, called it a “big win” that will hold up in appeals. “We are confident Chief Judge
ä See JUDGE, page 4A
La. to join anti-DEI college accrediting initiative Southern states uniting to create new agency
BY PATRICK WALL
Staff writer
STAFF FILE PHOTO By MICHAEL JOHNSON
The Louisiana sugar cane industry brings in approximately $4 billion annually.
Expert says move won’t have immediate effect on price, expansion BY STEPHEN MARCANTEL and HALEY MILLER Staff writers
Coca-Cola will create a cane sugar version of its quintessential soda, the company said Tuesday after President Donald Trump called for the company to make a version that doesn’t contain corn syrup. Youngsville cane farmer Eddie Lewis III said the move could benefit farmers during a time of increasing costs and shrinking margins. “(Trump) is carrying out his words,” Lewis said. “He’s selling American
products. He’s selling Louisiana.” The Louisiana sugar cane industry is a major economic driver for the state, bringing in approximately $4 billion annually, and Louisiana is the secondlargest producer in the United States, behind Florida. The industry, at least in Louisiana, shows no signs of shrinking, with acreage growing in recent years. However, like most industries, inflation and rising labor costs have had an impact, Lewis said. He expects sugar prices to drop over the next two to three years, but said that a cane sugar Coke product may help stabilize prices.
If price or production are affected, those changes will likely be modest and over the long term, said LSU agricultural policy professor Michael Deliberto. That’s partly because beverage products make up only 8% of total sugar consumption in the U.S., he said. “When you look at beverage use, it can begin as a long-term driver for the industry,” Deliberto said. “I don’t think it’s going to have any kind of immediate effect on price or immediate expansion in our state just from increased use in the beverage category.”
ä See CANE, page 4A
Louisiana will join other Southern states that are developing a new accrediting agency for public colleges and universities, Gov. Jeff Landry said Tuesday, echoing a conservative complaint that existing accreditors have imposed liberal values on the institu- “This task force tions they evaluate. will ensure Accrediting agenLouisiana’s cies hold significant public sway over universiuniversities ties, which must meet move away accreditors’ quality standards in order for from DEI-driven students to receive mandates federal financial and toward a aid. Lately, the littlesystem rooted known private agenin merit-based cies have come under fire from conservative achievement.” critics. GOV. JEFF LANDRy In April, President Donald Trump said some accreditors “abused their enormous authority” by requiring schools to meet standards related to diversity, equity and inclusion, or DEI. Last month, Florida’s Republican governor, Ron DeSantis, said the public university systems in Florida and five other Southern states — Georgia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee and Texas — will create a new accreditor to compete with the “accreditation cartel.” On Tuesday, Landry signed an executive order creating a task force to explore adopting that new accreditor, which he said will offer “an alternative to the out-of-touch accreditation system.” “This task force will ensure Louisiana’s public universities move away from DEIdriven mandates and toward a system
BREAKING A SWEAT
As Saints training camp opens in the sweltering heat of New Orleans, coaches and doctors offer tips and tricks on how to stay cool BY EMILY WOODRUFF Staff writer
The New Orleans Saints opened training camp Wednesday in Metairie, preparing for a season that will largely transpire inside the climate-controlled Caesars Superdome. But first, they have to endure playing in a different kind of dome.
WEATHER HIGH 91 LOW 78 PAGE 6A
A massive heat dome — a highpressure system that traps hot air near the ground — has settled over much of the United States, pushing temperatures into dangerous territory from Texas and the Midwest to the Northeast. In Louisiana, that dome is helping to drive heat index values as high as 114 degrees, with the National Weather Service warning that heat illness “can oc-
cur quickly” without precautions. Louisiana recorded 51 heat-related deaths last year and 88 in 2023, according to the Louisiana Department of Health. So far this year, five people have died and nearly 1,900 have visited an emergency room for heat-related illnesses. Keeping football players cool
ä See COLLEGE, page 4A
Sweat flies off Saints quarterback Tyler Shough as he throws during the first day of training camp on Wednesday in Metairie. STAFF PHOTO By DAVID GRUNFELD
ä See SWEAT, page 4A
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101ST yEAR, NO. 24