The Advocate 10-29-2025

Category5storm slamsintoJamaica

Island suffersheavy flooding andwinddamage

Wavessplash in Kingston, Jamaica, as HurricaneMelissa strikes the island on Tuesday

BY JOHN MYERS JR and DÁNICA COTO Associated Press

KINGSTON,Jamaica Heavyfloodwaters swept acrosssouthwestern Jamaica, winds tore roofsoff buildings and boulders tumbled onto roadsTuesday asHurricane Melissa came ashore as acatastrophic Category 5storm,one of the strongest Atlantic hurricanes on record.

Landslides, fallen trees and numerous power outages were reported as Melissa hit with 185 mph winds near NewHope, with officials cautioningthat the cleanup and damageassessment could be slow.

“There is no infrastructure in the region that can withstand a Category 5,” Prime Minister Andrew Holness said. “The question now is the speedofrecovery That’sthe challenge.”

Floodwaters trappedatleast three families in their homes in the community of Black River in western Jamaica, and crews were unable to helpthem because of dangerousconditions, said Desmond McKenzie, deputy chair of Jamaica’sDisaster Risk

Management Council. “Roofs were flying off,” he said. “Weare hoping and praying that thesituation willeasesothat some attempt can be madetoget to those persons.” He notedthat extensive damage was reported in the southwestern parish of St. Elizabeth, which he said “is underwater.”

McKenziesaid there are no confirmed reports of deathsand stressed thatitwas too early to talk about the extentofthe damagebecause thehurricane —the strongesttohit the island since recordkeeping began174 years ago —was still pummeling the country Rohan Brown, of Jamaica’sMeteorological Service, warned that as Melissa moves offthe coast, its counterclockwise rotation will bring aheavy stormsurge to northern Jamaica through the night. The storm is headed toward Cuba, where it was expectedtomakelandfall as amajor hurricane early Wednesday

Nearly15,000 people werein shelters in Jamaica andsome 540,000 customers, or 77%, were

ä See JAMAICA, page 4A

ä Louisiana newlyweds

Town and LexiPerkins traveled to Jamaica fortheir honeymoon but found themselves trapped on the island as Hurricane Melissa cameashore on Tuesday. Page 8A

ä Fewstorms have formed in the Caribbean and Gulfthishurricane season. Page 6A

West Feliciana signsbig deal fordatacenter

Parish settoget up to $90M ayear

BY AIDAN McCAHILL Staff writer

West Feliciana Parish is set to receive up to $90 million ayear in new revenue through a30-year agreement withHut 8, aMiamibasedcompanyplanning to build a$2.5billion data center near St. Francisville.

The deal —approved Tuesdayatthe parish’sfirst IndustrialDevelopment Board meeting —creates anew revenue structure unique to the parish. The board, formedlastweek as anonprofit public corporation,allows theparish to collect payments in lieu of traditional property taxes. Parish officials sayitwill generate more revenue than Louisiana’sstandard tax in-

centive programs. The board, whichwas approved by the Parish Council, consists of representatives from the parish’sthree largest taxing authorities: Sheriff Brian Spillman, School Superintendent Hollis Milton and former councilmember ClayPensen. Each entity is expected to receive roughly one-third of the revenue.

“This is atremendous new industry for Louisiana,” Parish President Kenny Havard said. “It’sgoingtobeour next oil boom.” Hut 8operates15Bitcoin mining and data center sites across the U.S. and Canada. It also owns an 80% stake in American Bitcoin, acompany formed by Eric Trump and Donald Trump Jr., and serves as its exclusive infrastructure and operating

ä See DEAL, page 7A

RENDERING

Gov. Landry wants N.O. bailoutrejected

StateBond Commissionto consider measure

BY BLAKE PATERSON Staff writer

Gov.Jeff Landry on Tuesdayurged state leaders to reject cash-strapped New Orleans’ request fora $125 million bailout and called for astate administrator to manage thecity’sfinances, promptingcityleaders to scramble to convincethe state to chart adifferent course. The city needs the approval of the State Bond Commission —which is scheduled to meet Thursday— to sell $125 millioninshort-term revenuebonds,essentially payday loans for distressed governments. Officials hopedtouse themoney to make payroll through the end of the year,after Mayor LaToya Cantrell’sadministration saidlast week that delaysinfederal grantpayments threatened the city’s cash flow.The city is also looking for ways to plug a $160 million budget deficit. But Landry in asocial mediapostTuesday came out against the proposaland urgedRepublican leaders

ä See BAILOUT, page 7A

11 killed in plane crash flying tourists to Kenya NAIROBI, Kenya A plane crash killed 11 people, mostly foreign tourists, in Kenya’s coastal region of Kwale early Tuesday while they were en route to the Maasai Mara National Reserve in heavy rain.

The airline, Mombasa Air Safari, said in a statement that eight Hungarian and two German passengers were on board, and the Kenyan pilot was also killed. The plane crashed in a hilly, forested area about 25 miles from the Diani airstrip, authorities said.

The airline did not confirm what time the aircraft departed Diani, saying the pilot failed to communicate upon departure and that the airport control tower tried to reach him for 30 minutes before the plane was located.

Investigating agencies were looking into the cause of the crash, Kwale County Commissioner Stephen Orinde told The Associated Press. Authorities initially said the crash happened at 5:30 a.m. but the transport minister in a statement gave the time as 8:35 a.m.

The aircraft burst into flames, leaving charred wreckage, officials said. Witnesses said they heard a loud bang and found unrecognizable human remains at the scene.

Flight diverted after two teens stabbed with fork

BOSTON A man from India stabbed two teenagers with a fork, slapped a female passenger and a crew member and mimicked shooting himself during an international flight, authorities said.

The Lufthansa flight from Chicago to Frankfurt, Germany, on Saturday was diverted to Boston, where the Praneeth Kumar Usiripalli, 28, was arrested and charged with one count of assault with a dangerous weapon. According to the U.S. Attorney’s Office, a 17-year-old passenger awoke to find Usiripalli standing over him. Usiripalli stabbed at the teen’s clavicle with a fork and then stabbed another 17-year-old boy in the head, causing a laceration, prosecutors allege. The first teen, who wasn’t injured because he was wearing a thick sweatshirt, told investigators he had exchanged pleasantries with the man seated next to him during boarding but otherwise had not interacted with him according to the criminal complaint.

‘Fawlty Towers’ actress Scales dies at 93

LONDON Actor Prunella Scales, best known as acid-tongued Sybil Fawlty in the classic British sitcom “Fawlty Towers,” has died, her children said Tuesday She was 93 and had lived with dementia for many years Scales’ sons, Samuel and Joseph West, said she died “peacefully at home in London” on Monday “Although dementia forced her retirement from a remarkable acting career of nearly 70 years, she continued to live at home,” her sons said. “She was watching ‘Fawlty Towers’ the day before she died.” Scales’ career included early roles in a 1952 television version of “Pride and Prejudice” and the 1954 film comedy “Hobson’s Choice,” followed by her TV breakthrough starring opposite Richard Briers in “Marriage Lines,” a popular 1960s sitcom about a newlywed couple In “Fawlty Towers” she played the exasperated wife of hapless Basil Fawlty, played by John Cleese, whose efforts to run a seaside hotel inevitably escalated into chaos. Only 12 episodes were made in 1975 and 1979, but it is regularly cited as one of the funniest sitcoms of all time.

CORRECTION

The Advocate in its Oct 20 edition reported incorrectly that at its Oct. 16 meeting, the EBR Parish School Board approved by an 8-0 margin a $40 million bond sale used to upgrade public high schools in Baton Rouge. The actual vote margin was 7-0. Board member Nathan Rust attended the meeting, but was not present for that vote.

The Advocate regrets the error

Ceasefire in Gaza is tested

Israel, Hamas exchange fire and blame

BY WAFAA SHURAFA and RENATA BRITO Associated Press

DEIR AL-BALAH, Gaza Strip — The Israeli army launched a barrage of attacks in Gaza on Tuesday as tensions with Hamas grew two weeks into a fragile ceasefire, and the militant group responded by saying it would delay handing over the body of a hostage. At least seven Palestinians were killed, health officials said The flare-up of violence presented one of the biggest tests so far for the truce and had international mediators scrambling to prevent it from collapsing U.S. Vice President JD Vance attempted to play down the fighting, saying he expected “skirmishes” to quickly die down.

The order from Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to launch “powerful strikes” came after an Israeli official said its forces were fired upon in southern Gaza and after Hamas handed over body parts on Monday that Israel said were the partial remains of a hostage recovered earlier in the war Netanyahu called the return of these body parts a “clear violation” of the ceasefire agreement, which requires Hamas to return the remaining hostages in Gaza as soon as possible. Israeli officials also accused Hamas of staging the discovery of these remains on Monday, sharing a 14-minute edited video captured by a military drone in Gaza.

Israel notified the United States before launching the strikes on Tuesday, according to two U.S. officials who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss sensitive matters.

In Gaza City, at least two Palestinians were killed by strikes, according to Rami Mhanna, the managing director of Shifa hospital, where the bodies were taken. In Khan Younis, an Israeli strike on a vehicle killed five Palestinians, including two children, according to Ahmed al-Farra, the head of pediatrics at Nasser hospital, where the bodies were taken.

Earlier in the day, Israeli troops were shot at in the southern city of Rafah and returned fire, according to an Israeli military official who spoke on condition of anonymity because there hasn’t been an official announcement yet.

In a statement, Hamas denied involvement in the gunfire in Rafah

and reiterated its commitment to the ceasefire. “The violent strikes carried out by Israel across the Strip is a blatant violation of the ceasefire deal,” said the group, calling on mediators to pressure Israel to stop.

The U.S. vice president expressed confidence that the ceasefire would hold. “That doesn’t mean there aren’t going to be little skirmishes here and there,” Vance told reporters on Capitol Hill.

The ceasefire that began on Oct. 10 has largely held despite at least two previous flare-ups in violence.

On Oct. 19, Israel said two Israeli soldiers were killed by Hamas fire. Israel responded with a series of strikes that killed over 40 Palestinians, according to local health officials. And over the weekend, Israel carried out an airstrike against what it said were Islamic Jihad militants planning an attack, wounding several people.

There are still 13 bodies of hostages in Gaza. Hamas said Tuesday it had recovered the body of a hostage, but after Israel announced the plans to strike Gaza, Hamas said in a statement it would delay the handover

An AP videographer in Khan Younis witnessed Tuesday what appeared to be a white body bag being carried out from a tunnel by several men, including some masked militants, and then transported into an ambulance. It was not immediately clear what was in the bag.

The slow return of hostages’ bodies is posing a challenge to implementing the next stages of the ceasefire, which will address even knottier issues, such as the disarmament of Hamas, the deployment of an international security force in Gaza and deciding who will govern the territory

Hamas has said it is struggling to locate the bodies amid the vast destruction in Gaza, while Israel has accused the militant group of purposely delaying their return.

Over the weekend, Egypt deployed a team of experts and heavy equipment to help search for the bodies of the remaining hostages.

An Arab official involved in negotiating the ceasefire between Israel and Hamas said talks were underway with both sides to try to prevent the truce from collapsing. “Both sides violated the agreement, but there was no significant breach,” said the official, who spoke on condition of anonymity due to the sensitivity of the matter

The official said violations included delays in handing over bodies, the limited scaleup of aid delivery, and “minor skirmishes” on the line that separates Israeli troops from the rest of Gaza.

Johnson says ‘no path’ for Trump third term

Trump repeatedly raising idea

BY LISA MASCARO AP congressional correspondent

WASHINGTON President

Donald Trump’s musings about a potential third-term bid for the White House have run up against at least one obstacle: House Speaker Mike Johnson. Johnson, the Republican leader who has built his career by drawing closer to Trump, said they have discussed the issue, but

the speaker held the line against a Constitution-bending third term.

“I don’t see a path for that,” Johnson said Tuesday at his daily news conference at the Capitol, on day 28 of the federal government shutdown.

Johnson said he thinks Trump understands the situation: “He and I have talked about the constric-

tions of the Constitution.”

The speaker described how the Constitution’s 22nd Amendment does not allow for a third presidential term and changing that, with a new amendment, would be a cumbersome, decade-long process tow in over states and votes in Congress.

“But I can tell you that we are not going to take our foot off the gas pedal,” he said “We’re going to deliver for the American people, and we’ve got a great run ahead of us — we’re going to have four strong years.”

The speaker’s remarks

U.S. launches strikes on 4 alleged drug-running boats

14 killed in eastern Pacific, officials say

BY KONSTANTIN TOROPIN Associated Press

WASHINGTON Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth announced Tuesday that the U.S. military has carried out strikes in the eastern Pacific Ocean on four boats accused of carrying drugs, killing 14 people and leaving one survivor in the deadliest single day since the Trump administration began its divisive campaign against drug trafficking in the waters off South America

It was the first time multiple strikes were announced in a single day as the pace of the attacks has escalated. The nearly two-month campaign and U.S. military buildup have strained ties with allies in the region and opened speculation that the moves are aimed at ousting Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro, whom the U.S has accused of narcoterrorism.

A statement provided by a Pentagon official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to freely discuss the operation, said the strikes were conducted Monday off the coast of

ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said the U.S military carried out strikes on four boats in the eastern Pacific Ocean accused of carrying drugs.

Colombia.

Following one attack on a boat, the military spotted a person in the water clinging to some wreckage. The military passed the survivor’s precise location to the U.S. Coast Guard and a Mexican military aircraft that was operating in the area, the official said.

However, the Mexican navy says it is searching about 400 miles southwest of the Pacific city of Acapulco, suggesting the possibility that the strike may have taken place far away from Colombia and closer to Mexico’s coast It wasn’t immediately clear exactly where the strike took place, and the Pentagon did not give more details.

Hegseth said Mexican search and rescue authorities “assumed responsibility for coordinating the rescue” of the sole survivor but didn’t say if that person

was successfully rescued or would stay in Mexico’s custody or be handed over to the U.S.

Mexico’s navy still was attempting a search and rescue operation, the military said in a statement Tuesday a day after the strikes occurred. The American attacks drew renewed criticism from the regional ally

Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum said during her daily news conference that she asked the foreign affairs secretary and the navy to meet with the U.S. ambassador in Mexico to discuss the issue because “we do not agree with these attacks.”

“We want all international treaties to be respected,” she said.

The strikes also have strained ties with other historic allies like Colombia, a country whose intelligence is crucial to American antinarcotics operations in the region. In an escalating clash between the Republican U.S. president and Colombia’s first leftist leader, the Trump administration imposed sanctions Friday on Colombian President Gustavo Petro, his family and a member of his government over accusations of involvement in the global drug trade. Petro vehemently denies the allegations.

come as Trump, just 10 months in office in his second term, is testing the powers of the presidency in new and often jarring ways and repeatedly has raised the idea of trying to stay in power at the White House.

Hats blazing “Trump 2028” are passed out as souvenir keepsakes to lawmakers and others visiting the White House, and Trump’s former 2016 campaign manager-turned-podcaster Stephen Bannon has revived the idea of a third Trump term.

Trump told reporters Monday on Air Force One on his trip to Japan that he’d love to run again.

“I would love to do it,” the president said.

Trump went on to say that his Republican Party has great options for the next presidential election — in Marco Rubio, the secretary of state, who was traveling with him, and Vice President JD Vance, who visited with senators at the Capitol on Tuesday

“All I can tell you is we have a great group of people,” Trump said.

Customer Service: HELP@THEADVOCATE.COMor225-388-0200

Vancesayshethinks troops canstill be paid

Pressure builds as shutdown continues

BY KEVIN FREKING and STEPHEN GROVES Associated Press

WASHINGTON Vice President JD Vance saidTuesday he believes U.S. military members will be paid at theend of the week, though he didnot specify how the Trump administration will reconfigure funding as pain from the second-longest shutdown spreads nationwide.

The funding fight in Washington gained new urgency this week as millions of Americans facethe prospect of losing food assistance, more federal workers miss their first full paycheck and recurring delays at airports snarl travel plans.

“Wedothink that we can continue paying the troops, at least for now,” Vance told reporters afterlunch with Senate Republicans at the Capitol. “We’ve got food stamp benefits that are set to run out in aweek. We’re trying to keep as muchopen as possible. We just need the Democrats to actuallyhelp us out.”

The vice president reaffirmed Republicans’ strategy of trying to pick off a handful of Senate Democrats to vote for stopgap funding to reopen the government. But nearly a month into the shutdown, it hasn’tworked. Just before Vance’svisit, aSenate vote on legislation to reopen the government failed for the 13th time.

The strain is building on Democratic lawmakers to end the impasse. That was magnified by the nation’s largest federal employee

union, which on Monday called on Congress to immediately passa funding bill andensure workers receive full pay.EverettKelley, president of theAmerican Federation of Government Employees, saidthe two political parties have made their point.

“It’stime to pass aclean continuing resolution and end this shutdowntoday No halfmeasures, and no gamesmanship,” said Kelley, whose union carries considerable politicalweight with Democratic lawmakers.

Still,Democratic senators including those representingstateswithmanyfederal workers, did not appear readytobackdown. Virginia Sen. TimKaine said he was insisting on commitments from the White House to prevent the administration from mass firing more workers.

Democrats also wantCongress to extendsubsidies for health plans underthe Affordable Care Act

“We’ve got to geta deal with Donald Trump,” Kaine said.

But shutdownsgrow more painful thelonger they go. Soon, with closures lasting a

fourthfull week as of Tuesday, millions of Americans arelikely to experience the difficulties firsthand.

“This week, morethan any other week, the consequences become impossible to ignore,” said Rep. Lisa McClain, chair of theHouse Republican Conference.

The nation’s1.3 million active duty servicemembers wereatrisk of missing a paycheckonFriday. Earlier this month, the Trumpadministration ensured they were paid by shifting $8 billionfrom military research and developmentfunds to makepayroll. Vance did not say Tuesday how theDepartment of Defense will cover troop pay this time.

Larger still, theTrump administration says funding will run out Friday for the food assistance program that is relied upon by 42 millionAmericans to supplementtheir grocery bills.

The administration has rejected the use of more than $5 billion in contingency funds to keep benefitsflowing intoNovember.And it says stateswon’tbereimbursed if they temporarily cover thecost of benefits next month

BY JANIE HAR Associated Press

SAN FRANCISCO Afederal judge in SanFrancisco on Tuesday indefinitely barred theTrump administration from firing federal employees during thegovernment shutdown, saying that labor unionswere likely to prevail on their claims that thecuts were arbitrary andpolitically motivated.

U.S.DistrictJudge Susan Illston granteda preliminaryinjunction that barsthe firings while alawsuit challenging them plays out. She had previously issued atemporary restraining order against the jobcuts thatwas settoexpire Wednesday

Illston,who was nominated by Democratic President Bill Clinton, has said she

believes the evidence will ultimately showthe mass firings were illegal and in excess of authority

Federalagencies areenjoined from issuing layoff notices or acting on notices issued since the government shut down Oct. 1. Illstonsaid thather orderdoes notapply to notices sent before the shutdown.

The Republican administration has slashed jobs in education, health and other areas it says are favored by Democrats.

The administration has also said it will not tap roughly $5 billion in contingencyfunds to keep benefits through theSupplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, commonly referred to as SNAP,flowing into November

The American Federation of Government Employees and other labor unions have sued to stop the “reductions in force” layoffs, saying the firings were an abuse of power designed to punish workers and pressure Congress.

“President Trump is using the government shutdown as apretense to illegally fire thousands of federal workers —specifically those employees carrying out programsand policies that the administration finds objectionable,” said AFGE National President Everett Kelley,ina statement thanking the court. The White House referred arequest for comment to the Office of Management and Budget, which did not immediately respond.

without power,officials said. ColinBogle,aMercy Corps adviser,saidmost families were sheltering in place despite the government ordering evacuations in flood-prone communities

He was sheltering with his grandmotherinPortmore, where everything went dark after aloud explosion.

“The noise is relentless,” he said. “People are anxious andjusttrying to hold on until the storm passes.”

On Tuesday evening, Melissa had top sustained windsof145 mphand was moving north-northeast at 8mph as its center moved into the Caribbean Sea,according to the U.S. National Hurricane Center in Miami. The hurricane wascenteredabout15miles eastof Montego Bay,Jamaica, and about 200 miles southwestof Guantánamo, Cuba.

Its 185 mph winds and 892 millibars of central pressure tied two records for the strongest Atlantic storm at landfall. The pressure —the keymeasurement meteorologists use— tied 1935’sLaborDay hurricane in Florida. The wind speed tied the 1935hurricane and 2019’sHurricane Dorian, said hurricane scientists Phil Klotzbach, of Colorado State University,and Brian McNoldy,ofthe University of Miami.

“It’sbeen aremarkable, just abeast of astorm,” Klotzbach told The Associated Press.

With alife-threatening storm surgeofupto13feet expected, officials were concerned about hospitals along the coast. McKenzie said four mainhospitalswere damaged, with thestorm knocking out power to one of them, forcing officials to evacuate 75 patients.

One man called aradio station saying he urgently needed to help awoman in western Jamaica who had gone into labor as the storm neared landfall. The show’s host pleaded with listeners

to lethim knowthe safest hospital before an obstetrician called in to provide detailed directionsonhow to deliver ababy, if necessary In Kingston, officials warned residents of thesurroundingarea to watch out forcrocodiles that might be displaced from their habitatsbyflooding.

McKenzie said the governmentwas preparedfor rescues immediatelyafter the storm passes through: “We have boats, helicopters,you name it.”

The storm was already blamed for sevendeaths in theCaribbean, including three in Jamaica, three in Haiti and oneinthe DominicanRepublic, where another person remains missing.

Tuesday evening, officials huddled in meetings to determine how besttoclear thedebrisafterthe storm andlaunch the distribution of emergency relief supplies to avoidbottlenecks at Jamaica’sports,said Richard Thompson,acting general director forJamaica’s emergency managementoffice.

FewstormshaveformedinCaribbean,Gulf

BY KASEY BUBNASH Staff writer

With wind speeds that reached awhopping 185 mph by Tuesday morning and rain bands that could flood the Caribbean with feet of water,Hurricane Melissa likely will go down as the most devastating Atlantic stormof2025and among the strongest ever to hitJamaica’sshores.

But when Melissaformed last week, it made history in another way: It was the first named storm of the yearto make it into the Caribbean Sea, where, despitewarmer than average water,things have been eerily quietthis hurricane season.

Only two named storms, Melissa and Tropical Storm Barry,have tracked through the Caribbean or the Gulf so far this year, less than half the historical average, accordingto Colorado State University hurricane researcher Phil Klotzbach.

From 1991 to 2020, Klotzbach said the Atlantic produced an average of about sixnamed storms that tracked through the Caribbean or Gulf each season, whether they were “homegrown” storms or systems that started astropical waves farthereast in the Atlantic. Last season produced nearly twice the average, with 11 named storms that either formedover or tracked through the Caribbean or Gulf.

State Climatologist Jay Grymes said it’snot unheard of for an Atlantic season to end having produced just one or two storms in the Gulf, and this year’smerciful lack of activity in the region canbeattributedto acouple of obvious environmental factors—and others

that are notsoobvious.

ButGrymes said the past 25 years havebeen brutal for Louisiana in terms of tropicalactivity, the busiestonrecordfor theBayou Statesincerecordkeeping began in the 1850s.That, he said, more than anything has made this year feel abnormal.

“Wehave becomehypersensitiveinthe centralGulf Coast. And it’snot just the last coupleofyears, it’sthe last two decades.”Grymes said. “It’smore about psyche thanitisabout the atmosphere sometimes.”

Still, the atmosphere has certainly played its role this season, too.

Despitenear-record-high sea-surface temperaturesin the Gulf and temperatures hovering around themid- to upper 80s in theCaribbean, Grymes said warm water is justone of many criteria neededtofueltropical storm formation and growth

“The real driver for storms is the atmosphere,” he said Avast majority of this year’s13named storms started as seeds west of Africaand thencurved away from the U.S., most avoidingdirect hits to land, frequently called afish storm.

This is thanks to what meteorologists call the”Azores high,”asemipermanent ridge of high pressure over aportionofthe Atlantic Ocean that steers tropical systems.

Grymes said the high-pressure ridge expands andcontracts in acycle throughout the year,and itsphasesare knownbytwo names: the Bermuda and Azoreshigh.

In itsexpanded, Bermuda phase, theridge stretches so far west across theAtlantic that it sometimes reaches the U.S.EastCoast or Gulf, creating abarrier that forces tropical systems to move low along its rim.That can result in thekindoflongtrack storms that start near Africa andgoontocomplete the morethan 3,000-mile trek across the ocean and into theGulf.

ButGrymes said theridge hasbeen in its contracted, Azores phasefor much of this season, allowing systems to turn north well before reaching the U.S. Dry air that hampers storm formation contributed to alull in activityinthe tropical Atlantic late this summer at what is normally consideredpeakseason, Grymes said. It’slikely that similar con-

ditionshaveprevented systems from bubbling up on their own in the Caribbean and Gulf, too.Grymes said acertain set of factors

warm water,amechanism that can create acluster of storms, an environment conducive to strengthening —need to coincide fora system to get astorm to pop up on its own in the Gulf. Forwhateverreason,those things just haven’tcome together so farthis year

“There’s no real clear explanation,” he said. “But even homegrownstorms often have atropical that’s come in fromthe eastand then that wave starts to get organized.”

Jill Trepanier,a professor and hurricane researcher at LSU, agreed, saying dry air and wind shear have posed a persistent problemfor systems brewing in the warm waters of the Caribbean and Gulf this year

ButTrepanieralso said itstypical forhomegrown formations in the Caribbean andGulf to pickuplater in

the season, generally by September,asconditions across the restofthe Atlantic grow increasingly hostile to storm formation.

While water temperatures have usually droppedand wind shear hasintensified throughout much of the Atlantic by this timeofyear, parts of the Gulf and Caribbean are ready to burn.

“And so Melissaisa good example of that,” Trepanier said.

Echoing Grymes’ point, Trepanier said this year likely feels stranger than it is to many Louisianans in comparison to recent, hyperactive seasons.

“I find that thelastfew years have been so dramatic in thelandfalling signature of major events, so muchof that has madeeverybody kind of keyed up,” shesaid, “like, ‘Oh, every year will be like this now.’”

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partner Hut 8purchased a611-acre tract off La. 964 in February and began site work in August, whenEntergy started building an electrical substation and switchyard. Construction is expected to finish in2026, with full operations starting in 2027.

“They intend to build adata center providing computing services primarily for artificial intelligence,” Parish AttorneyDannie Garrett said.

Garrett estimates the project’s total value at between$8 billion and $10 billion, with roughly 75% of that tied to AI computing infrastructure using Graphics ProcessingUnits —specialized electronic circuits thathavebecomecentral to training and operatingartificial intelligence. Those GPUs are also the key to the parish’srevenue structure. Instead of paying propertytaxes on thefacility, Hut8willdonateits

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in the state Legislatureto join him. He also suggested appointing afiscal administrator to oversee the city’s finances.

The state committee responsible for making that recommendationisholding an emergencymeeting Wednesday

“It is imperative that (New Orleans) address its financialmatters promptly,” the governor said on X. He added that the Legislature’s Republicans, many of whom serve on the state Bond Commission, should “deny the city’srequesttoaccumulate debt on thebacksof its citizens.”

Landry’ssocialmedia post kicked off a48-hour sprint among New Orleans’ political leaders to convince state officials that they’re capable of managing the city’s finances without outside interference, that asimilar fiscal crisis won’treemerge in the future and that ashortterm infusion of cash is the best routetofixing the city’s budget woes.

Mayor-elect Helena Moreno, who is currently serving as City Council vice president, said she called Landry after he published the post anddetailed measures the council planstotake to provide oversight of the bond proceeds and create efficiencies in next year’sbudget.

“I think we started working toward amore workable path,” Moreno said.

Both Moreno and council President JP Morrell are planning to travel to Baton RougeonWednesday to ask the state’sFiscal Review Committee not to recommend that NewOrleans receive afiscal administrator They also plan to appear before the State Bond Commission on Thursday The City Council is scheduled to hold aspecial meeting Wednesday at which theywillintroduce acharter amendment that would require the mayor to get

611-acre site to the Industrial DevelopmentBoard.The boardwill then lease thepropertyback to the company,charging rentequal to what property taxes on the GPUs would havebeen

“The tax breakthey are getting on building is what’s facilitating them bringingthe entire $10 billion project here.” Garrett said.

Garrett added the parishassessorwill determine the values of the GPUs annually,and that first-year estimates could reach $7.5 billion to $8 billion, translating into about $90 million in lease payments.

“If they depreciate, that number will drop, but that’sjust like any otherproperty,”hesaid.

Aplannedsecondphase,expected tobecompleted in three to five years, would add another 600,000-square-foot building andadditional GPUs. Under that phase, Hut8would pay 50% of the equivalent property tax value, potentiallygeneratinganadditional $30million to $40 million ayear, Garrett said.

Revenue will flow through the Industrial Development Board and be distributed among parish

approval from thecouncil to move money around or spend in excess of the budget, Morrell said.The item, if approved, would likely appear on theballot for next year’smidterm election,he said.

The council is also planning to introduce aresolution inviting Louisiana Legislative Auditor Michael Waguespack —who city leaders called on last month to examine the city’sbudget deficit —towork withthe city’sInspectorGeneral on a deeper dive into city spending from 2022 to the present. Waguespack chairs theFiscal Review Committee.

“The concerns around financial responsibility, they’rewarranted,” Morrell said. “But give us theopportunity to right this ship in a way that’ssolventand puts the city in aproper stance.”

It’s not clear how New Orleans wouldclose its short-term funding gap if the Bond Commission decides toreject theirrequest to issue emergency bonds. Cantrell’sadministration did not respond to arequestfor commentTuesday

ButMorrellsaiddiscussions are already underway with Cantrell’sfinance department in the event that New Orleans’ request is denied, including furloughing city workers andsteeper cutstocity services.Still, he said, there’s “noeasy solution.”

“If the Bond Commission declinestogive us the money, it would devastate thecity of New Orleans,” Morrell said, adding that he’d expect major conventions scheduled two to three years out to pull out of New Orleansand a“complete desertion” of city workers who couldn’tstomach adisruption in payroll.

“It will lead to theabsolute undermining of the cityof New Orleans as adestinationfor any major event, he added

Morrell, who chaired the stateSenate’stax committee during histenure in the Legislature, saidthe loss of tourism dollars would also “devastatethe state’s bot-

“Wesell ourselves short and we always have. Ididn’t want to do that …ifour tax structure in Louisiana is so damnbroken that we have to invent schemes to bring peoplehere, then fixthe wholetax system.”

KENNy HAVARD West Feliciana Parish president

entities,with the Sheriff’s Office, school boardand parish government each receiving about$30 million annually.Other beneficiaries include thelibrary, the fireboard andthe 911 district

“You have in place an IDBthat has an incentive to do what’s right,” Garrett said. “Nobody has to worry aboutgetting hamstrung.”

Garrett said theagreement’s 30-year term ensures long-term revenue while tying payments to theassessor’syearlyvaluations.Anadditional 30-year term wouldcover theproject’s second phase.

tom line.” The state collects a5-cent sales tax in New Orleans and mostofthe city’s hotel and motel tax revenue. The first hurdle forNew Orleans’ political leaders will be convincing the Fiscal Review Committeetoforgo recommending the appointmentoffiscal administrator Landry in his social media post Tuesday urgedthe committee —which includes Treasurer John Fleming and Attorney General Liz Murrill or theirdesignees, and Waguespack —to“utilize all necessary measures to thoroughly review thecity’s fiscal affairs and, if deemed necessary,appoint afiscal administrator.” If the committee’s members reach aunanimous agreement that New Orleans isn’tfinancially stable, as defined in state statute, the attorney generalwould then file amotion in Orleans Civil District Courtgiving the city the opportunity to show causefor whya fiscal administrator shouldn’tbe appointed. In February, a state judge appointed afiscal administrator to oversee the cityofBogalusa’sfinances upon the committee’srecommendation.

Murrill last week told Axios New Orleans that she was considering taking over thecity’sfinances under a newly amended law and in astatement Mondaysaid Moreno hadpledged to work with the legislative auditor, “which Isupport and have encouraged her to do.”

Waguespack said Tuesday thatthe committee will takeintoconsideration the fact thatMoreno will take over as mayor in January. Fleming, who also chairs the Bond Commission,said in atextmessage said he is in discussion with thegovernor,state Legislature and “the NOLA administration to plan and coordinateassistance on theNOLA budget shortfalls.

The next hurdle will be convincing the14members of the State Bond Commission, all of whom are Republicans, to give New Orleans permissiontosellrevenue bonds.

Havard andGarett both said the deal avoids the pitfalls of Louisiana’straditional Industrial Tax Exemption Program,which grants 80%propertytax exemptions,and differsfromother data center deals like Meta’sinRichland Parish, because it was negotiated without involving the State’s Department of Economic Development.

Because of arecent state law, Hut 8won’t be requiredtopay sales taxes on constructionand equipment, which may have prompted the local leaders to design the new structure to capture revenue.

“Wesellourselves short and we alwayshave,” said Havard, who negotiated directly with Hut8.“I didn’twant to do that …ifour tax structure in Louisiana is so damn broken thatwehave to invent schemes to bring people here,then fix thewhole tax system.”

The site, located near the River Bend Nuclear Power Plant, has easy access to both natural gas and transmission lines, making it ideal for an energy-intensive operation. It initially drew controversy this spring after several members of

the PortCommissionaccusedHavard of orchestrating adeal where theparish undersold part of the land to alocal firm,M/V industrial, which they claim then sold the property for 20 times the original price to Hut 8. Those claimshave not been corroborated.

“M/V Industrial took achance on West Feliciana,” Havard said. “Theyhad no ideaHut 8would show up to the party.”

Hut 8plans to generate revenues by leasing computing services to aclient whohas not yet been disclosed. First payments to theparishare projected formid-2027, though earlier disbursements are possible.

Havard said the parish first plans to use its new revenue to invest in infrastructure,including road widening, anew jail, and other community improvements.

“Webuilt trust with Hut 8people by being completely transparent,” he said. “They have been acommunity partner with us from the beginning.”

Email Aidan McCahill ataidan. mccahill@theadvocate.com.

BY QUINN COFFMAN Staff writer

TwoLouisiana newlyweds who traveled to Jamaica for their honeymoon were trapped on the island’snorth shore Tuesday as HurricaneMelissa made landfall as aCategory 5storm.

High school sweethearts Stone Town, 21,and Lexi Perkins, 20, were married at abarn in Clinton on Oct. 18. Less than aweek later,after days spent meeting localsand enjoying Jamaica’s beaches, the couple were calling familyfromtheir room at their resort and trying to get aflight off the island.

“They told us the airports are in distress; there’snoway for the planes to land or to fly out,” Town said, speaking over ashaky phone connection just before noon Tuesday At the same time, Hurricane Melissa was making landfall on Jamaica’ssoutherncoast

Hurricane Melissa carried wind speeds reaching 185mph, according to news reports. In addition to being the strongest storm to ever strikeJamaica, it is one of the strongeststormsinthe historyof the Atlantic Basin. Afterroaring over Jamaica, the stormwas expected to reach Cuba by Wednesday morning.

Sevenpeople have already died as aresult of thestorm, according to reports.

Town’sand Perkins’vacation was only meant to last throughSunday.But as storm fears gathered throughout the week, their original flightshome were canceled. “Wetried booking flightsfor Friday,and they were all taken. There

was no way for us to get aflight,”

Town said. “We’vebeen trying to arrange some privateflights to get out of here, but it’s not looking good.”

The couple’s resort is on the northern shore of theisland, and they have been told by Jamaicans that themountains usually work to break up winds.Still, Stone and

Perkins are anxioustoget home and seetheir1-year-old daughter, Emerson. Perkins said she began to cry when she realized thestorm was going to keep them on the island.

“Our daughter is noteven11/2 years oldyet,” Perkins said, “so Iwas hesitantabout leaving her already.And then for them to tell us that we weren’tgoing to be able to leave for at least another week, Iwas like ‘OK, Idon’t want to do this. I’m ready to go home.’”

Thetwo were moved from their ground-floor room to oneonthe third floor,tohopefully avoid flooding. While Town described thebuilding as “up on acliff,” he said the water’sedge was probably only100 yards from where they are staying.

Contacted just before 5p.m.

Tuesday, Town said thatthe storm’s eye had passed over their resort andthatwinds andflooding had both increasedsince the start of the day.Hesaid floodwaterhad reached into some of the rooms.

Food and water have been provided by the resort, and internet and television access have remained mostlyconnected. Town said employees have kept them up to date and been very supportive. The resorthadn’tlost power yet and has backup generators, Town said.

Amber Williams, Town’s mother, said she was abletospeak with the couple earlier this morning.

“It’sascary situation; they don’t know what’stocome,” Williams said. “They’rejustpraying and asking everyone for prayers. It’s just unknown.”

The resort has other American familieswho arealso trapped, Town said, as well as afew British tourists whotell him they have no experience with severe storms and are very scared.

Town said that earlierinthe week most of thelocalswerenot very concerned, telling the newlyweds not to worry about evacuating.

But Monday night things changed, Perkins said, with locals telling her that on ascale of one to 10, their worries wereata10.

“I asked, ‘Are you worried about you here, the resort, or theisland in general?’ Theywere like‘the island in general, our families,’ ” Perkins said.

The pair are stressed and anxious, but say they are grateful for their friends, families andchurch at home, whoare supplying them with prayers.

“If anything, keep sending prayers,” Town said. “Keep sending love and support.”

“Especially forthe people of the island,” Perkins added. “Obviously we pray that we’re safeand everything will be fine withthe storm, but the island will have devastating effects forthem.”

Email Quinn Coffmanatquinn. coffman@theadvocate.com.

BY CHRIS MEGERIAN Associated Press

GYEONGJU,South Korea After acharm offensive in Japan that culminated in $490 billion in investment commitments, President Donald Trump is set to meet with South Korea’s leader on Wednesday as atrade deal with that country appears more elusive.

Topofficials in Washington and Seoul say the sticking point for an agreement continues to be the logistics behind Trump’sdemand that South Korea invest$350 billion in the United States.

Korean officials say adirect cash injection could destabilize their economy,and they’dratherdoloans and loan guarantees instead. The country would also need a swaplinetomanage theflow of its currencyinto the U.S.

The disparity between whatTrump is asking for and what South Koreacan deliver threatens to overshadow the meeting between Trump and South Korean President Lee Jae Myung in Gyeongju, ahistorical city playing host to the annual Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit

stuck with a25% tariff on automobiles, putting automakers such as Hyundai and Kia at adisadvantage against Japanese and European competitors, which face 15%.

whetherthey should even do it.”

Oh Hyunjoo, adeputynational security director,told reporters thatthe negotiationshave been proceeding “a littlebit more slowly” than expected.

“Wehaven’tyet been able to reachanagreement on matters such as the structureofinvestments, their formatsand howthe profits will bedistributed,” she said Monday.

It’s acontrast from Trump’sexperience in Japan, where the government has worked to fulfill itscommitmentof$550billion in investments as part of an earlier trade agreement. Commerce Secretary HowardLutnick announced up to $490 billion in commitments

during adinner with business leaders in Tokyo.

TrumpbondedwithJapan’snew prime minister, Sanae Takaichi, on histrip Tuesday,taking her with him as he spoke to U.S.troops aboardanaircraft carrier and then unveiling several major energy and technology projects in America to be funded by Japan.

In contrast, U.S.Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, speaking to reporters aboard Air Force One on Monday,said adeal wasn’t ready in SouthKorea.

“Just alot of details to work out,” he said, although he suggested they were close. For now, South Korea is

Lee took office in June and hada warm meeting with Trump at theWhite House in August,when he cranked up theflattery.But there’sbeen pointsoftension since then, notably aU.S. immigration raid on aHyundaiplantin Georgia in September.More than300 SouthKoreans were detained, sparking outrage and asenseofbetrayal Lee said companies would likely hesitate to make future investmentsunlessthe visa system was improved.

“If that’s not possible, then establishing alocal factory in theUnited States will either come with severe disadvantages or becomevery difficult for our companies,” he said. “They will wonder

South Korea’sForeign Ministry said in early October that the U.S. had agreed to allow South Korean workers on short-term visas or avisa waiver program to help build industrial sites in America.

Asked Monday about the immigration raid, Trump said, “I was opposed to getting them out,” and he said an improvedvisa system would make it easier for companies to bring in skilled workers.

While in South Korea, Trumpisalso expected to hold aclosely watched meeting on Thursdaywith Chinese leader Xi Jinping.

Washingtonand Beijing have clashed over trade, but both sides have indicated that they’re willingtodial downtensions.

He hasalsodangled the possibility of meeting with

NorthKorean leader Kim Jong Un, expressing disappointment that Kim hadn’t yet responded to his outreach.

NorthKorea hassofar dismissed overtures from Washington and Seoul, saying it won’tresume diplomacy with the United States unless Washington drops its demand for the North’sdenuclearization. North Korea said Wednesday it fired seato-surface cruise missiles intoits western waters, in the latest display of its growingmilitary capabilities as Trumpvisits South Korea.

“I got along great with Kim JongUn. Iliked him. He liked me,” Trump said. “If he wants to meet, I’ll be in South Korea.” Trumpeven said he would be willing to extend his trip —South Korea is his final scheduledstop—ifthere wasanopportunity to talk with Kim.

RepublicanssendBiden autopenreporttothe JusticeDept.

More investigation urgedonits use

BY MATT BROWN and JOEY CAPPELLETTI Associated Press

WASHINGTON House Republicans on Tuesday unveiled their long-promised report on former President Joe Biden’suse of the autopen, delivering ablistering critique of histimeinoffice and inner circle that largely rehashes public information whilemaking sweeping accusations about the workings of his White House.

The GOP report does not include any concrete evidence that aides conspired to enact policies without Biden’sknowledge or that the president was unaware of laws, pardons or executive orders signed in his name. But Republicans said their findings cast doubt on all of the Democrat’s actions in office. They sent alettertoAttorney GeneralPam Bondiurging

afullinvestigation.Republican

President Donald Trump ordered asimilar inquiryearlier this year

At its core, the report advances contested claims that Biden’s mental state declinedtoadegree that allowed White Houseofficials to enact policies without his knowledge. It focuses heavily on thepardons he granted in office, includingtohis son, Hunter Biden, based on depositions with close Bidenaides “Thecost of the scheme to hide thefallout of President Biden’sdiminished physical and mental acuity was great but will likely never be fully calculated,” thereport reads. “The cover-up put American national security at risk and the nation’strust in its leaders in jeopardy.”

Biden has strenuously denied he was unaware of his administra-

tion’sactions, calling such claims “ridiculous and false.”Democrats on theHouse Oversight committee denounced theprobe as adistraction and awaste of time.

Rep. RobertGarcia, thetop Oversight Democrat,said in a statementthe GOPreportwas a “sham investigation” and that testimoniesfrom Bidenaides“make it clear the former president authorized every executive order, pardon, and use of the autopen.” He added that Democrats were more focusedonthe government shutdown than debates over the last administration.

Republicans are shifting attention back to Biden at apolitically tumultuous time, 10 monthsinto Trump’spresidency,withthe government shut down and Congress at astandstill over legislation to fund it. House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-Benton,has kept theHouse out of session for nearly amonth, with most public-facingcommittee work grinding to ahalt.

Johnsontouted the100-page

Trumpadministrationshakes up ICEleadership, sourcessay

Fieldoffice directors arereassigned, official says

BY REBECCA SANTANA and ELLIOTSPAGAT Associated Press

WASHINGTON The Trump administration is reassigning at least half the top leadership at Immigration and Customs Enforcement offices around the country in amajor shake-up of the agency responsible for carrying out the president’svision for mass deportations, accordingtoone current and one former U.S. government official.

The current official, who was not authorized to speak publicly on the matter and spoke on condition of anonymity,said 12 ICE field office directors —the officers who run the network of field offices around the country responsible for immigration enforcement —were being reassigned.

Half are to be replaced by existing or retired Customs and Border Protectionstaff, while the other half would be replaced by ICE officers, both the current and former officials said. The changes were initiated by the Homeland Security Department, the current official said, without specifying which cities were impacted.

The former official,who has direct knowledge of thechanges and spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss information that was not intended for public release, said on top of the12 reassignments, leaders in another four cities were being swapped out through retirementsorother circumstances. He said the cities include major immigration enforcement targets such as Chicago, Los Angeles and Washington.

AU.S.Immigration and Customs Enforcementagent takes partin an early morning operation in September

He added that ICE leadership hasbeen discussing the changes with otherTrump administration officials for some time as part of abroad review of the agency Thereason for the personnel changes wasn’t immediately clear.But they indicatea greater integration of Border Patrol agents in ICE at atime whenCustomsand Border Protection has been accused of using heavy-handed tactics in its immigration enforcement. With atotal of 25 field offices around the country, the reassignments amount to turnover of abouthalf or more of the top staffers carrying out the president’s hardline immigration enforcement plans, whichhas seen amajor deployment of lawenforcementinmajor American cities,thousands of arrestsand surging fear among residents, especially in immigrant communities. Homeland Security and theWhite Housedid not commentonthe reassignments and each instead highlighted thatall elementsofimmigration enforcementwereworking as one team. Putting Customsand Border Protection officers into toppositions within Immi-

gration and Customs Enforcement would create an expanded role foranagency that is already at theforefront of manyofthe aggressive tactics seeninboth Los Angeles andnow in Chicago. CBPofficers—specifically Border Patrol agents —have carriedout some of the mostcontroversialoperationsaspart of immigration crackdownsinboth of those cities, including arecent raid in Chicago where officers rappelled down onto abuildinginanapartment complexfroma helicopter BorderPatrol agentshave also popped outofamoving truck and chased after people andconducted patrols through downtown Chicago. Border Patrol agents protect the land andwater between the official border crossings to prevent human trafficking, drug smuggling or other typesofcontraband from entering the U.S.ICE, sinceits creation in 2003, is the main agency responsible for immigration enforcement inside the country

But during theTrump administration,Border Patrol agents have been taking part in immigration enforcement operations around the country,far from their more traditional duties.

report at anewsconference and said thefindings could have “majorimplications” forthe legality of Biden’sactions as president, including pardons.

“The president waschecked out of his job for quite some time, and everybody knows it,” Johnson said.

The reportonBidenwas largely compiled over several months beforethe shutdown. Basedoninterviews with more than adozen membersofBiden’sinner circle, the report offers fewnew revelations, instead drawing broad conclusions from unanswered questions.

It includes repeated references to polls of Biden’sapproval rating andperceptions of his public gaffes and apparent aging, much of it publicly known.

It alleges a“cover-up of the president’scognitive decline”orchestrated by Biden’s innercircle andtakes particularaim at Biden’s doctor,Kevin O’Connor,who invoked his Fifth Amendment right against testifying. Republicans also singled out senior aides An-

thony Bernal and Annie Tomasini, who similarly pleaded the Fifth. All three “should face further scrutiny” from the Justice Department, Republicans said. Republicansalso sent aletterto the D.C. BoardofMedicine urging that O’Connor face “discipline, sanctionorrevocation of hismedical license” and “be barred from the practiceofmedicine in the District of Columbia.” Lawyers for O’Connor told Oversight Republicans over the summer that doctor-patient confidentiality precluded him from discussing his conversations with Biden or any medical care he mayhave provided. While doctor-patientprivilege is alegal principle that often protects communications between medical providers and patients, courts andstate laws aredividedonits scope. Congressional Republicans dismissedO’Connor’s useofthe principle before he citedhis Fifth Amendmentrightsduring testimony

Huge raid on Rio gang leaves at least 60 dead

Violent operation

biggest in city’s history

BY ELÉONORE HUGHES and DIARLEI RODRIGUES Associated Press

RIO DE JANEIRO About 2,500 Brazilian police and soldiers launched a massive raid on a drug-trafficking gang in Rio de Janeiro on Tuesday, arresting 81 suspects and sparking shootouts that left at least 60 suspects dead, officials said

The operation included officers in helicopters and armored vehicles and targeted the notorious Red Command in the sprawling low-income favelas of Complexo de Alemao and Penha, police said The police operation was one of the most violent in Brazil’s recent history, with at least one human rights organization calling for an investigation into each death

Rio’s state Gov. Claudio Castro said in a video posted on X that 60 criminal suspects were “neutralized,” 81 arrested and 75 rifles

seized during the massive oneday raid that he called the biggest such operation in the city’s history

A large amount of drugs also was seized, the state government said.

Louvre security

‘not

in

line’

An Associated

with modern standards, officials say

French senators say improvements are necessary

BY SYLVIE CORBET

Associated Press

PARIS

A delegation of French senators visited the Louvre on Tuesday and acknowledged that the museum’s security was “not in line” with modern standards, calling for improved measures at the Paris landmark that was the scene of a stunning heist earlier this month.

Thieves took less than eight minutes on Oct. 19 to steal jewels valued at $102 million from the world’s most-visited museum French officials described

how the intruders used a basket lift to scale the Louvre’s façade, forced open a window, opened a breach in display cases and fled.

Two suspects were arrested on Sunday and are being questioned by police.

Sen. Laurent Lafon, head of the Culture Committee at the Senate, said “we all noticed that the security equipment is not suitable for a 21st-century museum such as the Louvre. It is our flagship, it must be exemplary, and today we cannot describe the security conditions at the Louvre as exemplary.”

Speaking to reporters after visiting the Louvre with fellow senators, Lafon said “there are many improvements to be made. Our security system does not meet

nowadays’ standards.”

Lafon acknowledged there was a “weakness” regarding outdoor cameras that allowed the robbery, but would not enter into further details for “confidentiality reasons.

The senators called for a speedy start of massive renovation work that was already planned as soon as possible, since France’s budget for 2026 is currently being debated in the parliament.

The decade-long “Louvre New Renaissance” plan, which includes security improvements, was launched earlier this year It is estimated it would cost up to $933 million to modernize infrastructure, ease crowding and give the famed Mona Lisa a dedicated gallery by 2031.

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Police did not immediately confirm the deaths of officers.

An unknown number of people also were wounded.

César Muñoz, director of Human Rights Watch in Brazil, called Tuesday’s events “a huge tragedy” and a “disaster.”

“The public prosecutor’s office must open its own investigations and clarify the circumstances of each death,” Muñoz said in a statement.

Footage on social media showed fire and smoke rising from the two favelas as gunfire rang out. The city’s Education Department said 46 schools across the two neighborhoods were closed, and the nearby Federal University of Rio de Janeiro canceled night classes and told people on campus to seek shelter

Suspected gang members blocked roads in northern and southeastern Rio in response to the raid, local media reported.

At least 50 buses were commandeered to be used in the blockades, the city’s bus organization Rio

Onibus said. The operation Tuesday followed a year of investigation into the criminal group, police said. Castro, from the conservative opposition Liberal party, said the federal government should be providing more support to combat crime — a swipe at the administration of leftist President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva.

Gleisi Hoffmann, the Lula administration’s liaison with the parliament, agreed that coordinated action was needed but pointed to a recent crackdown on money laundering as an example of the federal government’s action on organized crime.

Emerging from Rio’s prisons, the Red Command criminal gang has expanded its control in favelas in recent years.

Rio has been the scene of lethal police raids for decades.

In March 2005, some 29 people were killed in Rio’s Baixada Fluminense region, while in May 2021, 28 were killed in the Jacarezinho favela.

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Edwards suggests delay for ICE

Mayor-president’s texts spark stir

BY PATRICK SLOAN-TURNER Staff writer

Baton Rouge Mayor-President

Sid Edwards on Monday said he doesn’t think an increased ICE presence is needed in the city — a response to widely circulating texts in which he urged delaying such a move until after voters weigh in on his proposed tax measure in two weeks.

Landry may furlough some state workers

Federal shutdown impacts Louisiana funding

BY MARK BALLARD Staff writer

WASHINGTON Gov Jeff Landry raised the possibility of furloughing state employees in an executive order Tuesday, blaming the ongoing federal government shutdown.

Landry’s order states “due to the lapse in federal funding, the furlough of some employees whose positions are supported by federal funds is expected.”

Specifically Landry ordered the Louisiana Department of Health and the Louisiana Workforce Commission to identify which units and tasks are supported by federal funds for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program and begin State Civil Service procedures to furlough those employees.

Those plans include warning employees and submitting plans to State Civil Service Director Byron P. Decoteau Jr. for consideration. Civil Service had not received those plans as of Tuesday afternoon, a spokesperson said.

Just how many employees would be sent home is unknown

Officials with the Louisiana Health Department and the Louisiana Workforce Commission did not respond to repeated questions.

The Governor’s Office did not respond to requests for additional information.

SNAP, which is paid mostly by the federal government and administered by the state, provided food stamps for an estimated 792,769 Louisiana residents in October, according to Landry Landry already has issued an order preparing the state to cover the costs for the first few days of November And the state House voted to allow state money to be used about $150 million while the federal government is shut down.

Landry also ordered the Department of Administration to find a way for the furloughed employees to keep their health care policies and to compile a list of resources available to the employees.

Half the nation’s states and the District of Columbia filed a lawsuit Tuesday seeking a court order to require the U.S Department of Agriculture, which funds SNAP, to tap a contingency fund and allow the temporary continuation of food stamps. Louisiana was not part of the lawsuit. Roughly 42 million low-income Americans will lose their food stamp benefits when regular appropriations dry up on Saturday Adopting the talking points of

In September, Edwards texted a political consultant and asked her to tell the deputy Immigration and Customs Enforcement director that he didn’t want ICE agents in the city until after the election, warning the move could jeopardize the measure’s passage.

But in a statement Monday, Edwards said the texts were the result of a misunderstanding. “I do not believe ICE involve-

ment is needed in our community,” the mayor said. “My focus has always been on addressing violent crime and ensuring that the residents of Baton Rouge feel safe in their neighborhoods.”

In the Sept. 10 text exchange — verified by The Advocate after originally being posted by an account called “factCheckGovLandry” the mayor noted he had spoken with federal officials days earlier during an LSU football game. “If it’s just ice agents we would

like to wait till at least after thrive election. I think it will hurt us getting passed,” Edwards texted political consultant Sarah Bennett.

“We can revisit post November.”

In the exchange, Edwards also wrote that he didn’t want to disappoint Deputy ICE Director Madison Sheahan. The consultant later replied, saying she “let Madison know we are at a halt until after November.”

“She is now aware and said for me to let her know once we get started,” Bennett said to the may-

or The texts do not make clear what level of ICE deployment or other federal presence was being discussed.

In his statement Monday, the mayor said that he had misunderstood the discussion at the LSU game, believing it referred to a different kind of federal assistance.

“At the time, I understood that offer to refer to a federal task force similar to Operation Violent

ROW OF TREATS

Plan to delay Louisiana elections nears passage

Republicans advance bills to shift primaries

BY ALYSE PFEIL Staff writer

Louisiana Republicans are one step away from delaying the state’s primary elections next year, batting away accusations from Democrats that they are setting the stage to get rid of majority-Black

the United States to get more Republicans in seats in Congress,” said state Rep. C. Denise Marcelle D-Baton Rouge.

“It looks like we are aligning ourselves to assist by making sure that we have something in place to quickly — and I heard that used a couple times come in and draw maps.” Regardless of whether Republicans want to admit it, Marcelle said, the

ABOVE: Elise Fauveau, 7, throws a mini javelin through a hoop at the track and field booth during the Trick or Treat Down the Row on Sunday in Baton Rouge.

BELOW: A tick-or-treater visits the Alpha Delta Pi house.

LSU committee prepares to interview candidates

Presidential search group moves toward selecting finalists

BY CHRISTOPHER CARTWRIGHT Staff writer

The LSU Presidential Search Committee is set to interview at least four candidates to be the university system’s future president, as the board quickly moves toward selecting finalists. Interim LSU President Matt Lee; McNeese State University President Wade Rousse; Dr Giovanni Piedimonte, vice

president of research at Tulane University; and Dr Robert Robbins, former president of the University of Arizona, are set to be interviewed at the committee’s meeting Wednesday Last week, the committee invited a total of six people to interview; should they accept, they were required to make themselves publicly known by Wednesday The other two invited candidates were Julius Fridriksson, vice president of research at the University of South Carolina, and a person whose name and biographical information were

Suingoil firmswillhelpdrilling, lawyer says

Carmouche: Fixing environmental damagegoodfor industry

BY DAVID J. MITCHELL Staff writer

For years, oil and gas companies have argued that litigation seeking to have the industry pay for historic environmental damage to Louisiana’scoast and groundwater has been adeal-killer for new drilling, creating financial risks that have scared off operatorsand stymiednew jobs

But one of the chief architects of lawsuits filed by Louisiana parishes againstthe oil companies is contending that the opposite would be true over the long term if the suits are ultimatelysuccessful BatonRouge lawyer John Carmouche says addressing the decades of environmental damage and leftoveroiland-gas infrastructure on the coast would clear away amajorobstacle fornew drilling by operatorslooking to enter the market.

“They can’tgooperate because they don’twant to be held responsible for something they didn’tdo,” Carmouchetoldthe Press Clubof Baton Rouge on Monday.“So, my opinion is,which Istrive for,and Italk to independent oilcompanies all over the country,is, ‘Hey,let’sget rid of the liability and come ‘drill, baby,drill.’That’swhat the state needs.”

“Nobody’sfighting oil companies to come in and be responsible and put the jobs back, but they will not come unless somebody takes responsibility for themess that’sinour coast,” he added “So when these lawsuits are over,Ithink it’sgoing to be an

ICE

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Crime Crackdown,which Ihave publicly supported and continue to support as part of our effort to reduce violent crime in East Baton Rouge Parish,” he said. Themayor said hispriority is violent crime in Baton Rouge’sBlack community.

LANDRY

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congressional Republicans, Landry blamedSenate Democrats for not going along with aRepublican House-passed resolution that would continue government operations while finishing up appropriations for

LSU

Continued from page1B

redacted from the public.

It is not clear if the two are still potentialcandidates or if they have withdrawn Before the scheduled interviews, the agenda lists an item to consider additional applicants. Arequest formore information to the LSU Board of Supervisors and auniversity spokesperson was not immediately answered.

Planned schedule

According to the posted agenda for Wednesday’s meeting, the committee is expected to choose finalists in the presidential search The search beganwith the hiring of the SSA Consultants search firm. Last week, that group presented the committee with alist of 30 interestedpeople, organized by level of qualification.At the end of Thursday’smeeting, thecommittee voted 11-4 to invite ahalf-dozento apply After the committee selects finalists, aseries of town halls is planned across campus Oct. 30-31 and Nov

3. The schedules include forums with staff, faculty and students, along with invitation-only meetings for

DELAY

Continued from page1B

economic boom in thestateof Louisiana.”

Carmouche’sfirm, Talbot, Carmouche& Marcello,has played acentral role not only in the42 coastal damage lawsuits but also so-called “legacy” cases over onshore soil and groundwater contamination and abandoned infrastructurefrom past drilling.

Carmouche told the Press Club thatthe coastal suits are tryingtohold accountable companies that left behind oil infrastructure, dug damaging canalsordumped highly salineproduced water and other contaminated exploration waste into unlined pitsthat,healleges, played a part in destroying Louisiana’s swampsand marshesand broke thelaw

After coastalprotections were adopted in 1980, companies were required to get state permits that forced them to restore the damage theycaused to coastallands, including backfilling dredged canals, he said. Only companies that didn’tcorrect their actionsafter 1980 have been sued,hesaid. Ninety-nine percent of the defendants didn’teven get the required permits, he said “They ignored the law,” Carmouchesaid

Thechief trade groupfor drillers, the Louisiana Oiland Gas Association, argues that thewave of coastal suits has had ameasurable impact on Louisianaoffshore and inland drilling. It pointstostate data showing revenues and productionlevelsfromstate leases on inlandand offshore waters have fallen offtonearly nothingsince thefirst suits were filed in 2013.

“With the stigma oflegacy lawsuitsalready tainting Louisiana’sreputation, it didn’ttake long for the word to getout to theinvestment world thatany company fil-

Earlier this month, Edwards said he believes a National Guard presence likethe one Gov.Jeff Landry has requested —could help with violentcrime in Baton Rouge.

Landry’soffice didnot respond Monday when asked if the governorhas had any discussions about apossible ICEdeployment to Baton Rouge. In his statement, Edwards

thefiscal year that began Oct. 1. Without Senate approval,which requires five Democrats to goalong, the government has no authorization to spend money Johnson, whosentthe HousehomeinSeptember, says no negotiations can happen until theDemocrats agree to reopen government Democrats contend that

studentleaders and campus and athletic administrators.

Search launched

Thepresidential search began following formerPresident William Tate IV’sdeparture for Rutgers University in May

Under Tate’sleadership, the university system saw expanded research activity in five focus areas: food production; health; thecoast and climate change; defense; and energy.That research activity surpassed $540 million last academic year,arecord amount that was nearly$200 millionhigherthan in 2020

Professors who spoke at last week’scommittee meeting said they wanted aleader with astrong educational background who wouldcontinue to prioritizesuch research.

LSU BoydProfessor R. Eugene Turner,who studies oceanographyand coastal sciences, urged the committee to select acandidate with astrongbackground in highereducation.

“The new president must have arecord of significant, on-the-ground academic experience teachingand conducting research,” he said.

EmailChristopher Cartwright at christopher cartwright@theadvocate. com.

ing dredging permits would be named in coastal suits,” Mike Moncla, president of LOGA, said in astatement. “Thisdecimated investment in our state’sinland waters.”

Other analyses point to a combination of factors contributing to thedecline in onshore drilling, including demand, price and the cost of extraction, among others.

In the first of the coastal cases to go to trial, Carmouche’s firmwon a$745 millionjury verdict in April over coastal damage caused by Chevron through its predecessor,Texaco, in Plaquemines Parish.

JurorsheldChevron responsible forTexaco’sdumping of 4.2 billion gallons of briny,contaminated produced water in parish marshes, finding the actions bore 25% of the responsibility for coastal erosion in the parish.

Attempting to dispute claims that thecoastal suits are a“money grab” for plaintiffs’ attorneys, Carmouche saidall of thePlaquemines award would go toward financing the state’scoastal restoration plan. Anyattorneys’ fees and costs would have to be awardedbya judge on top of the verdict.

But uncertainty remains over the legal battle, and the nation’shighest court will soon weigh in.

In June,the U.S. Supreme Court agreed to hear argumentsoverwhether thecase —and at least 10 other coastal lawsuits —should be tried in federal court because the oil and gas activity in question was tied to federal wartime needs during World WarII.

Plaintiffs have disputed that thisconnection is sufficient to force the change of courts and have prevailed three times previously,including aruling before the U.S. 5th Circuit Court of Appeals that allowed the

said he was worried voters might think troops in Baton Rouge would be funded by local tax dollars.

“Our concern at the time was that the presence of federal resourcessoclose to theelection could have caused confusion among voters —potentially leading them to believe local taxpayers were footingthe bill forthatpresence while we areworking through a

Republicans refuse to negotiateanextension of tax credits used by low-income workers andsmall businesses to help pay premiums for healthinsurance on the Affordable CareAct marketplace.

Plaquemines trial to proceed. Carmouche speculated Monday that the high court mayhaveagreedtoconsider theissuebecauseofadifferent rulinginanother appellate court.Heexpects oral argumentsinWashington, D.C.,inJanuary with apotential ruling in March or April.

While theTrump administration has recently sided with Chevron, stateAttorney General LizMurrill has been an ardent backer of parishesand recently said the Plaquemines verdict resultedfrom aclear-cut case of legal violations about which Texaco repeatedly lied to state regulators. Gov.Jeff Landry hasalso supportedthe litigation.

“It’snot like they didn’t makedecisions,” Carmouche added about themanydefendants, “that put them in the position they are in today.”

Whatever promise Carmouche argues the coastal suits maybring in the future, Moncla, LOGA’s president, saidthe suits have had an effect on thepresent,decimating the inlanddrilling industry,costing property owners value and the state royalty and severance tax revenues.

Moncla offered the exampleofhis family’scompany, MonclaMarine, thelargest of the niche barge companies that worked over inland wells. The company employed more than 250 people but had to file for bankruptcy and liquidateits assets, including itsvaluablebarge fleet, for less than 15% of its value.

“These lawsuits demolished an entireservice sector that will never recover,sent thousands of Louisianans to seek employmentelsewhere, and to date have cost the state well over abillion in revenues,” Moncla said.

significant budgetdeficit,” he said. ICEhas notrespondedto requestsfor comment.

ongoing special session is that theU.S.Supreme Court will strikedown or undermine theVoting Rights Act, afederal law that for decades has governed how race can be used as afactor in redistricting.

Shesaidany move toward reducing Black representation in Congress is “racist” and “unconscionable.”

Rep. Mike Johnson, aPineville Republican whohas played akey role on Louisiana redistricting matters forthe state Legislature, disputed that idea.

“There’s no nefarious purpose behind this,” said Johnson, the No. 2Republican in the Louisiana House.

“We’re simply giving the time in hopes that the court will rule so that we can still have legal maps.”

Both Johnson and Marcelle were referring to an impending decision by the U.S. Supreme Court in Louisiana v. Callais, acase that dealswith whether race can be usedasa factor to draw congressional districts.

Some think there’sa chance the high court will rule on the case this year, whichcould create an opportunityfor Louisiana to drawanew congressional mapahead of the 2026 midterm elections.

Others say it’simpossible to predictwhen an opinion will come downorwhat it will say.And still others expect adecision to come in summer,atwhich point it would likely be too late for Louisiana to drawa new map.

“Allwe’redoing is pushing election dates back,”

Sen. CalebKleinpeter,the bill sponsor,assured his colleagues during the meeting, reiteratinga message he’shewed to throughout the several days of the session.

“This hasnothing to do with moving party lines or anykind of redistrictingat all,” he said of thelegisla-

tion. Kleinpeter,R-PortAllen, said he expectsthe Legislature to eventually follow whatever guidancethe Supreme Court provides with respect to redistricting —whether thehigh court determines Louisiana’s currentcongressionalmap is constitutional or unconstitutional.

Legislative Black Caucus Chair Rep. Edmond Jordan, D-Baton Rouge, toldhis colleaguesthe ongoing special session focused on delaying the April primary is a“pretext.”

“Weknow what this is,” Jordan said in an interview after the meeting. “The whole reason is to set up an opportunity to change these maps andredraw these maps so that we would not have two minority representatives in Congress in the next election cycle.”

The Legislature is expected to pass the GOP-backed plan Wednesday and end its special session, which was called by Gov. Jeff Landry forthe sole purpose of delaying the April primary one month. Should it pass,noelection would be held in April. Instead,anelection would be held on May 16 forclosedparty primaries for U.S. House and Senate races.Openprimaries for some municipalraces and statewide votes for five constitutional amendments would also be held that day Possible runoffs forthe U.S. Houseand Senate closed partyprimaries would be pushed back to June 27, along with municipal general elections.

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PayPal, UPS send stocks to more record highs

The U.S. stock market pushed further into record heights on Tuesday

The S&P 500 added 0.2%. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 161 points, or 0.3%, and the Nasdaq composite climbed 0.8% All three indexes set all-time highs for a third straight day. Moves were also relatively modest in the bond market as Wall Street waits for a few events that could shake things up. On Wednesday, the Federal Reserve will announce its latest move on interest rates, while some of the stock market’s most influential companies will report how much profit they made during the summer On Thursday, President Donald Trump will meet China’s leader Xi Jinping.

United Parcel Service rallied 8% after delivering stronger profit and revenue for the latest quarter than analysts expected. UPS also gave a forecast for revenue in the all-important holiday shipping season that was slightly above analysts’ expectations.

PayPal climbed 3.9% after saying it made a bigger profit during the summer than analysts expected. It also said it plans to pay its shareholders a dividend every three months, while announcing a deal where internet users will be able to pay for purchases through OpenAI’s ChatGPT

Consumer confidence dips modestly in October

WASHINGTON — Consumer confidence weakened slightly in October as Americans remain anxious about their future financial prospects. The Conference Board said Tuesday that its consumer confidence index fell by 1 point to 94.6 in October from an upwardly revised September reading of 95.6. Economists were expecting the reading to come in unchanged from the previous month. One year ago, the reading was 109.5.

A measure of Americans’ shortterm expectations for their income, business conditions and the job market dipped by 2.9 points to 71.5, remaining well below 80, the marker that can signal a recession ahead.

However, consumers’ assessments of their current economic situation rose 1.8 points to 129.3. Write-in responses to the survey showed that prices and inflation remained consumers’ biggest concern. Mentions of tariffs declined again this month but remain elevated, according to the Conference Board.

UnitedHealth tops

3Q forecasts

UnitedHealth has returned to better-than-expected growth after starting the year swamped by medical costs and then withdrawing its forecast for 2025.

Leaders of the health care giant said Tuesday that care use is now climbing at rates they expected, and the company envisions annual growth next year that accelerates in 2027. In the meantime, UnitedHealth is going through a transition year, resetting health insurance prices and trimming unprofitable parts of that business

That includes cuts to its individual health insurance enrollment and losing about 1 million customers from its Medicare Advantage business. That provides privately run versions of the government’s coverage program mainly for people age 65 and over

With 8.4 million customers, UnitedHealth is the nation’s largest provider of Medicare Advantage plans. The company said Tuesday that it now expects adjusted earnings this year of at least $16.25 per share. That tops analyst forecasts of $16.21 per share, according to FactSet.

UnitedHealth started 2025 with expectations of making as much as $30 a share. But the company later cut and then withdrew its forecast. In May, former CEO Andrew Witty abruptly left the company UnitedHealth Group Inc. runs one of the nation’s largest health insurance and pharmacy benefits management businesses Its Optum business also provides care and technology support.

Amazon cuts 14,000 corporate jobs

Spending on artificial intelligence accelerates

BY MICHELLE CHAPMAN Associated Press

Amazon will cut about 14,000 corporate jobs as the online retail giant ramps up spending on artificial intelligence while cutting costs elsewhere.

Teams and individuals impacted by the job cuts will be notified on Tuesday Most workers will be given 90 days to look for a new position internally, Beth Galetti, Senior Vice President of People Experience and Technology at Amazon, wrote in a letter to employees on Tuesday Those who can’t find a new role at the company or who opt not to look for one will be provided transitional support including severance pay, outplacement services and health insurance benefits.

Amazon has about 350,000 corporate employees and a total workforce of approximately 1.56 million. The cuts announced Tuesday amount to about a 4% reduction in its corporate workforce.

In June, CEO Andy Jassy, who has aggressively sought to cut costs since becoming CEO in 2021, said that he anticipated generative AI would reduce Amazon’s corporate workforce in the next few years.

Jassy said at the time that Amazon had more than 1,000 generative AI services and applications in progress or built, but that figure was a “small fraction” of what it plans to build.

Amazon has announced plans to invest $10 billion in building a campus in North Carolina to expand its

cloud computing and artificial intelligence infrastructure.

Since 2024 started Amazon has committed to about $10 billion apiece to data center projects in Mississippi, Indiana, Ohio and North Carolina as it builds up its infrastructure to try to keep up with other tech giants making leaps in AI. Amazon is competing with OpenAI, Google, Microsoft, Meta and others. In a conference call with industry analysts in May, Jassy said that the potential for growth in the company’s AWS business is massive.

“If you believe your mission is to make customers’ lives easier and better every day, and you believe that every customer experience will be reinvented with AI, you’re going to invest very aggressively

Flight delays may spread amid stress

Air traffic controllers going without pay during shutdown

BY JOSH FUNK

AP transportation writer

Air traffic controllers missed their paychecks Tuesday because of the ongoing government shutdown, and that has Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy and the head of the controllers’ union concerned that flight delays could multiply as increasingly stressed-out controllers call out sick.

Recent absences have led to a number of isolated delays around the country because the Federal Aviation Administration was already extremely short on controllers prior to the shutdown. The FAA restricts the number of flights landing and taking off at an airport anytime there is a shortage of controllers to ensure safety

major airports nationwide have still been on time this month.

Though a two-hour-long staffing-related ground stop at Los Angeles International Airport made national news on Sunday, a major thunderstorm in Dallas that day had a bigger impact on flights when only about 44% of flights were on time.

Cirium said 72% of the flights out of LAX were still on time Sunday

But Duffy and the president of the National Air Traffic Controllers Association Nick Daniels have continued to emphasize the pressure that controllers are feeling. They say the problems are likely to only get worse the longer the shutdown continues.

cause of their frustration with the situation and because controllers need the time off to work second jobs instead of continuing to work six days a week like many of them routinely do.

Duffy has said that controllers could be fired if they abuse their sick time, but the vast majority of them have continued to show up for work every day

Air traffic controller Joe Segretto, who works at a regional radar facility that directs planes in and out of airports in the New York area, said morale is suffering as controllers worry more about money

“The pressure is real,” Segretto said. “We have people trying to keep these airplanes safe. We have trainees — that are trying to learn a new job that is very fast-paced, very stressful, very complex — now having to worry about how they’re going to pay bills.”

in AI, and that’s what we’re doing You can see that in the 1,000-plus AI applications we’re building across Amazon. You can see that with our next generation of Alexa, named Alexa+,” he said. Amazon’s workforce doubled during the pandemic as millions stayed home and boosted online spending. In the following years, big tech and retail companies cut thousands of jobs to bring spending back in line.

The cuts announced Tuesday suggests Amazon is still trying to get the size of its workforce right and it may not be over It was the biggest culling at Amazon since 2023, when the company cut 27,000 jobs. Those cuts came in waves, with 9,000 jobs trimmed in March of that year, and another 18,000 employees two months later Amazon has not said if more job cuts are on the way

OpenAI may move forward with new business structure

BY MATT O’BRIEN and THALIA BEATY Associated Press writers

OpenAI said Tuesday it has reorganized its ownership structure and converted its business into a public benefit corporation after two crucial regulators, the Delaware and California attorneys general, said they would not oppose the plan. The restructuring paves the way for the ChatGPT maker to more easily profit off its artificial intelligence technology even as it remains technically under the control of a nonprofit.

OpenAI

CEO Sam Altman said in a call Tuesday that “the most likely path” for the newly formed business is that it becomes publicly traded on the stock market, “given the capital needs that we’ll have and sort of the size of the company,” though a Wall Street debut was not a part of the announcements detailed Tuesday Delaware Attorney General Kathy Jennings and California Attorney General Rob Bonta said in separate statements that they would not object to the restructuring, seemingly bringing to an end more than a year of negotiations and announcements about the future of OpenAI’s governance and the power that for-profit investors and its nonprofit board will have over the organization’s technology

The company also said it has signed a new agreement with its longtime backer Microsoft that gives the software giant a roughly 27% stake in OpenAI’s new for-profit corporation but changes some of the details of their close partnership. Microsoft’s $135 billion stake will be just ahead of the OpenAI nonprofit’s $130 billion stake in the for-profit company

The attorneys general of Delaware, where OpenAI is incorporated, and California, where it is headquartered, had both spent months investigating the proposed changes.

“We will be keeping a close eye on OpenAI to ensure ongoing adherence to its charitable mission and the protection of the safety of all Californians,” said Bonta. OpenAI said it completed its restructuring “after nearly a year of engaging in constructive dialogue” with the offices in both states.

There’s no way to predict when or where delays might happen because even a small number of absences can disrupt operations at times. Sometimes the delays are only 30 minutes, but some airports have reported delays more than two hours long and some have even had to stop all flights temporarily

So far, most of the delays have been isolated and temporary Aviation analytics firm Cirium said that normally about 20% of all flights are delayed more than 15 minutes for a variety of reasons

The data Cirium tracks shows there has not been a dramatic increase in the total number of delays overall since the shutdown began on Oct. 1. Nearly 80% of the flights at a sample of 14

“Air traffic controllers have to have 100% of focus 100% of the time,” Daniels said Tuesday at a news conference alongside Duffy at LaGuardia Airport in New York “And I’m watching air traffic controllers going to work. I’m getting the stories. They’re worried about paying for medicine for their daughter I got a message from a controller that said, ‘I’m running out of money And if she doesn’t get the medicine she needs, she dies. That’s the end.’”

Controllers gathered outside 20 airports nationwide Tuesday to hand out leaflets urging an end to the shutdown as soon as possible. Worrying about how to pay their bills is driving some to take second jobs to make ends meet.

The number of controllers calling in sick has increased during the shutdown both be-

Duffy said the shutdown is also making it harder for the government to reduce the longstanding shortage of about 3,000 controllers. He said that some students have dropped out of the air traffic controller academy in Oklahoma City, and younger controllers who are still training to do the job might abandon the career because they can’t afford to go without pay

“This shutdown is making it harder for me to accomplish those goals,” Duffy said.

The longer the shutdown continues pressure will continue to build on Congress to reach an agreement to reopen the government. During the 35-day shutdown in President Donald Trump’s first term, the disruptions to flights across the country contributed to the end of that disruption. But so far, Democrats and Republicans have shown little sign of reaching a deal to fund the government.

“OpenAI has completed its recapitalization, simplifying its corporate structure,” said a blog post Tuesday from Bret Taylor, the chair of OpenAI’s board of directors “The nonprofit remains in control of the for-profit, and now has a direct path to major resources before AGI arrives.” AGI stands for artificial general intelligence, which OpenAI defines as “highly autonomous systems that outperform humans at most economically valuable work.” OpenAI was founded as a nonprofit in 2015 with a mission to safely build AGI for humanity’s benefit. It later started a for-profit arm. Microsoft invested its first $1 billion in OpenAI in 2019, and the two companies formed an agreement that made Microsoft the exclusive provider of the computing power needed to build OpenAI’s costly technology It was a lifeline for the startup research lab, which is now valued at $500 billion but continues to lose more money than it makes. In turn, Microsoft heavily used the technology behind ChatGPT to enhance its own AI products

Obituaries

Badeaux, Brenda Bello

Brenda Bello Badeaux, 78, of Baton Rouge, LA, passed awaypeacefully Monday, October 20, 2025. Brenda enjoyed reading, playing cards, and traveling. But her true joy came from being with her family and her dogs and from her faith. She was aloving wife, mother, grandmother, aunt and friend and will be missed by all who knew her. She was preceded in death by her stepson, Bradley (Brad) Badeaux; parents, Mr. and Mrs. J.B. Bello; siblings,StellaPeck J.B.Bello, and Ronald Bello; father and mother-in-law, Mr. and Mrs. W. A. Badeaux; niece, Janice Leckert; and nephews Kelvin Duke and Brent Bello. Brenda is survived by her devoted husband, Willis "Billy" Badeaux; stepson, Andrew "Andy Badeaux(Susan);grandchildren, Jordy andKelsey Badeaux; sister-in-law, Pam Wilson; brother-inlaw, Richard Badeaux; and niecesand nephews, Carolyn Duke, Terry Duke, Angela Ferrara, Ivan Duke, Charles Bello, Stanley Bello, Steve Bello, Neal Bello, Tina Bello,Anna Duke, and Nicole Melancon. She also had numerous great nieces and nephews that she loved dearly and enjoyed spending time with. Visitation will be held at St. Alphonsus Catholic Church, Greenwell Springs, Thursday, October 30, from 10 a.m. until Celebration of Mass at 11 a.m. Burial will follow at Louisiana National Cemetery, Zachary, at 1

p.m. Please share your condolencesat www.sealefuneral com. In lieu of flowers, please consider donations to St. Jude Children's Research,St. Alphonsus Catholic Church.

Cage, Percy Celebration of LifeServices: Visitation, Hall'sCelebrationCenter, 9348 Scenic Highway, Baton Rouge, LA, Thursday, October 30 202511am. Funeral Serviceat12pm. Interment, Louisiana National Cemetery, Zachary, Louisiana

Lynn Calongne Hendry, affectionately known as "MeMe," passed away peacefully on Monday,October 20, 2025, surrounded by her loving family. She was 79. BornonJuly29, 1946,inNew Orleans, Lynn was the daughterofMae StellaCalongneand Charles Octave"C.O."Calongne. Shewas the eldest of five children,and loved her siblings dearly. Lynn was aproud graduate of St. Joseph's Academy and LSU,whereshe earneda degree in Elementary Education. She dedicatedher life to teaching and shaping young minds. For more than 25 years, she taught first grade, influencing the livesofcountless children with patience, wit, and just enough "mean" to keep everyone in line. Shewas beloved by herstudents and fellowteachersalike. AdevoutCatholic, Lynn was amemberofSt. AloysiusCatholic Church.Her home overflowedwith love and warmth. Shefound joy in simplethings- family gatherings, her newspaper and morning coffee,cooking,her flowerbeds, her dogs,and most of all, her beloved grandchildren.

Christmas Eve at her home was acherished tradition that she loved- lively, loud, and full of laughter -that perfectly exhibitedher unmistakable knack forentertaining.She is survived by her four children: Shannon Hendry Hernandez (Todd), Kelley Hendry Thompson (Todd), Tre Hendry (Brittney), and Michael Hendry (Leigh); herformer husband and father of herchildren, John Seaton Hendry, Jr.; 14 grandchildren: Ben Hernandez (Ashley),Brant Hernandez (Erin), Jordan ThompsonBowlin (Danny), Anna ThompsonRaetzsch (Wilson), Grace Hernandez, Clay Thompson, Lauren Hendry, Brady Hernandez, Mae Thompson, Emma ClaireHendry, Grant Hendry, Harrison Hendry, Banks Hendry, and Wells Hendry; six great-grandchildren, MallieAnn Hernandez, HuddHernandez John Todd Hernandez, Cohen Bowlin, Grady Bowlin and Sawyer Bowlin; her siblings: Don Calongne (Sheila), Terry Calongne (Kyrne), Ken Calongne (Ann), and LeslieCalongne Chauvin (Larry); and numerous nieces and nephews. She was preceded in death by her parents, C.O. andMae Calongne, and by her infant granddaughter, Harper Hendry. She leavesbehind notjust her family,but alifetime of laughter, stories, and recipes that willberetold and remadefor generations. The family extends heartfeltgratitude to her devoted caregivers, Esther Brady, Eloyace Scott,Teresa Thomas, and Latrica Scott;her physicians, Dr. Daniel LaVieand Dr. Lara Falcon, and thecompassionateteam at Audubon Hospice. Visitation willbe held on Monday, November3,2025, at St.Aloysius CatholicChurch in Baton Rouge from 9:00 a.m. until 11:00 a.m.,followedbya funeral Mass at 11:00 a.m. Burial willfollow at

Roselawn Cemetery. In lieu of flowers,donations may be madetothe Alzheimer'sAssociation, theAmerican CancerSociety, or Metanoia Manor. She willbedeeplymissed by allwho knew and loved her.

RosieLee Lawrence en‐tered into eternalrestat her residenceinBaker, Louisiana,October 26 2025. Shewas a93-year old nativeofBaton Rouge, Louisiana.Viewing at New Light BaptistChurch on Fri‐day,October 31, 2025 at 10:00 am until Celebration

of Life Serviceat11:00 am conducted by Pastor Gil Wright; intermentPort HudsonNationalCemetery. Survivors,niecesincluding DeniseLockett (Williams) and Jacqueline Savoy; God‐sons, Jermineand Darrell Moses;nephews,other rel‐ativesand friends. Arrangementsentrusted to Miller& Daughter Mortu‐ary Rouge, LA 70806, on Thursday, October30, 2025, from 9:00 a.m. until the Mass of ChristianBurial at 10:00 a.m. Burialwillfollow at Resthaven Gardens of Memory, 11817 Jefferson Hwy, Baton Rouge,LA 70816.

Matherne, J. Marion

J. Marion Matherne, a native of Edgard, LA, and resident of Baton Rouge, LA, passed away peacefully on Monday, October 27, 2025, at the age of 101. Marion honorably served his country in the United States Navy for two years before attending and becoming aproud graduate of Louisiana State University anda lifelong, devoted LSU fan. After earning his degree from LSU, Marion built along and successful career as aself-employed electrical engineer. Dedicated and hardworking,he continued to work well past retirement, always committed to excellencein his profession. He was a cherished member of his Coffee Call socialgroup, where his warmth, humor, and friendship were treasured. Aboveall, Marion adored his grandchildren and great-grandchildren, who were truly the lightof his life. He was preceded in death by his beloved wife, Rita Lorio Matherne; two sisters; eight brothers; and great-granddaughter, Katie Smith. He is survived by his children, Anne Marie Matherne, Ph.D., of Albuquerque, NM; Joan Matherne Grambihler, of Gilbert AZ;Deacon Paul G. Matherne, M.D., of Biloxi, MS; andCurtM.Matherne, D.V.M., Ph.D., of Morretes, Brazil. He is also survived by his grandchildren, Lauren M. Matherne, Brian W. Matherne, Justin M. Matherne, Michael P. Matherne, Renee N. Grambihler, and Steven M. Grambihler; and his great-grandchildren, Nathaniel Smith, Aaron Smith, Jack Matherne, Lily Matherne, Julia Matherne and Josephine Matherne Pallbearers honoredto serve are Brian Matherne Michael Matherne, Justin Matherne, and Steven Grambihler. Family and friends are invited to attendvisitation at Our Lady of Mercy CatholicChurch, 445 Marquette Ave, Baton

Rodrigue, Irene

Irene Juso Rodrigue, age 87, of White Castle, Louisiana,passed awayon Sunday,October 19, 2025, the Lord's day. She was born in Terraville, South DakotaonSeptember 7, 1938, tothe late Edwin and Elizabeth Juso. Irene graduatedfrom Lead High School in South Dakota. Irene was united in marriage to LouisJoseph Rodrigue, and together they shared 50 yearsoflove and devotion, beforehis passing in 2009. Aloving and devoted wife, mother, grandmother, andfriend, Irene cherished herfamily deeply. She especially enjoyedplayingpiano,crossstitching, watching her children and grandchildren playsports, singing in the choir, cooking and aerobics. Shewas awoman of strong faith and moral values, encouraging her children to always be excellent in spirit, honest, hardworkingand just. She loved to gatherher family formeals and holidays. Herwarmth and creativity touchedeveryone she knew. Sheissurvived by her childrenLaurene (Mike) Lecoq,Angie(Mason)Druhan, Lynn (Nicole) Rodrigue, Rodney Rodrigue, Michael (Heidi) Rodrigue and daughter-inlaw, GailRodrigue. She leaves behind 17 beloved grandchildren— Kyle, Kendall, Morgan, Rachel, Jacob, McKenzie, Joseph, Caroline,Micah,Mallory, Madelyn, Hannah, Jared, Connor, Michael,Nathan, and Gabrielle —and 12 great- grandchildren. She is also survived by her sisters, Corrineand Eileen Irene was precededin death by her husband of 50 years, LouisJoseph Rodrigue, her son Steven LouisRodrigue (Joe Willie), her grandsonJohn Louis Rodrigue,her parentsEdwin and Elizabeth Juso and her brothers Edwin and Johnny Juso. The familyinvites relativesand friends to come celebrate and re-

member thelifeofIrene, a woman whose kindness, love,and faithcontinue to inspire everyone who knew her. Visitation willbe held at First Baptist Church of White Castle on Saturday, November 1, 2025, from 10:00am tilnoon. Funeral services willbeginat noon, followedbyinternment at Our Lady of Prompt SuccorCemetery In lieu of flowers,the family kindly requeststhatdonations be madeinmemory of Irene to theMichaelJ FoxFoundation for Parkinson's Research to support Parkinson's disease research. Giftsmay be made online at https://michaeljf ox.org/give.

Rouillier, Nelson Charles

Nelson CharlesRouillier, a resident of Gramercy passedawayonSunday, October 26, 2025 at theage of77. Belovedhusband of Belinda Rouillier for53 years.LovingfatherofJen‐nifer Rouillier (Todd Provenzano) andHeather Mistretta (Thomas).Grand‐fatherofTyler Provenzano (Sammantha), Zachary Mistretta (Courtney),Cas‐sidyPoirrier(Taylor), and AlexProvenzano. Greatgrandfather of Kyla,Char‐lotte,Trace,Joel, Westyn Vivian, Auriel,and Evelyn Son of thelateCharles Rouillier andAudreyMire Rouillier.Brother of ThomasRouillier (Debbie), Peggy Bourgeois(Termite), Ann Roussel, JohnnyRouil‐lier(Marcia), andthe late Charles Rouillier, Jr.Also survivedbynumerous nieces, nephews, and cousins.Relatives and friends areinvited to at‐tendthe Visitation andFu‐neral Mass at Sacred Heart Catholic Church,616 E. MainSt.,Gramercy, LA on Thursday,October 30, 2025 Visitationatthe church from9:00a.m.to11:00 a.m. followedbya FuneralMass at11:00 a.m. Burial will im‐mediately follow theser‐vices at St.JosephCeme‐tery. Thefamilywould like toextendspecial thanks to DwayneLabatut andOur Ladyofthe Lake NCCU staff forthe excellentcare thatwas provided

Arthur John Schexnayder, Jr 85, of Welcome, LA, passed away peacefully on October17, 2025. Bornon January14, 1940, in Welcome, he liveda life marked by faith,dedication, and love forhis family,farming, and hiscommunity. Arthur attended Louisiana StateUniversity before proudly servinghis country in theU.S.Army where he played football and servedasa military police officer. Arthur worked in Operationsat Ormetfor 13 years. Following in his family's footsteps, he took over the family sugarcane business and built asuccessfulcareer as asugarcane farmer. Hisleadershipextendedbeyond thefarmhe served as President of

West St.James FarmBureau andcontributed his time and expertise on variousstateboards andcommissions. Arthur was married to his loving wife, Elsie, for sixtyyearsand togethertheyraised five children: Nancy (Kert) Granier, Beverly(Jerome) Zeringue, ArthurSchexnayderIII,Mary Keller,and Kandis(Chaney) Gonzales. He wasthe proudgrandfather of twelve grandchildren andnine great-grandchildren, all of whom broughthim immense joy. Arthurwas also survived by siblings, Mary AnnLabat andEugene"Genie" Schexnayder.Hewas proceeded in death by parents, Arthur and Alice Schexnayder;infant daughter, KimMarie Schexnayder;brother LawrenceSchexnayder; andgodchildren, Linda Johnson andJacinta Labat. Arthurwillbedeeply missed by all whoknew andloved him. Hislegacy of hard work, integrity, and hisdevotion to hisfaith andfamilywill live on through the generationshe cherished.Visitationwill begin on Saturday, November1,2025, at St.Francis of Assisi Catholic Church, Donaldsonville from9:00

Entombmentwill follow in Ascension Catholic Mausoleum. Honorary pallbearers will be hisgrandsons.Arrangements entrusted with Church Funeral Services.

OUR VIEWS

Thrive isn’t perfect, but it’s worth supporting

East Baton Rouge Parish faces adire financial situationbeginning next year,largelydrivenby the creation of St. Georgeand itssubsequent takingofits share of a2-cent sales taxthatformerly went to city-parish government

Mitigating that crisis is whyweurge support of Mayor-President Sid Edwards’ Thrive EBR plan, which would rededicate taxesthatcurrently go to the parish library system, mosquito abatement and the Council on Aging.The funds will be used to pay down debtand fundinfrastructure projects.

The three propositions that makeupthe plan aren’tperfect, and their road to appearing on the Nov.15ballot wasn’tasmoothone.But we believe it is the best path rightnow to ensure that city-parish government continues to provide services and the other agenciesretainsufficient dedicated funding tokeep themoperating at or near current levels.

Early voting begins Saturday andruns through Nov.8,excluding Sunday Under Thrive’sterms, voters will consider three propositions. The first will renewfor 10 years the existing 11.1 mill property taxthat hasbeenusedfor the library.Aportionofthat, 2.8 mills, would be rededicated to the cityparish’sgeneral fund while the remainder, 8.3 mills,would remain dedicated to library use Theproposition would also rededicate approximately $52.4 million of thelibrary’s$100-plus million fund balance to thecityparish to pay down debt

The second proposition would renew for10 yearsmosquitoabatement’s1-mill property tax, half of which would berededicated to the parish generalfund. And thethirdwould renew for10years the2.25-mill Council on Agingtax, with one-quarter mill rededicated to the parish’s general fund.

Together,the three propositions would result in approximately $26 million forthe city-parish in new and freed-up revenue.

Getting to this point was alaboriousprocess for the first-year mayor.Edwards’ first proposal, which would have rededicated allofthe library system’ssubstantial revenue andreserve fund to the city parish to fund pay increases for Baton Rouge police officers, faced immediate pushback from officials andusers of thefirstrate library system. Edwards hada choice: Dig in andprepare for afight or gobacktothe drawing board and do what has becomeadirty word in American politics: compromise.

He chose the latter,and after some work with members of the Metro Council and leaders of the other agencies, they jointly presented the plan currently before voters. It cannot be ignoredthat Thrive EBR has won the support of an impressive array of stakeholdersthat includes the leadersofeach of theaffected agencies, all 12 Metro Council membersand the East Baton Rouge Parish Republican andDemocratic parties. That sort of broad ideological and geographic support is notable. We addour voice to it.

LETTERSTOTHE EDITOR ARE WELCOME. HERE AREOUR

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

TheAdvocate |The Times-Picayune require astreet address andphone number for verification purposes, but that information is not published. Letters are not to exceed 300 words. Letters to the Editor,The Advocate, P.O. Box 588, Baton Rouge, LA 70821-0588, or email letters@ theadvocate.com.

OPINION

Clearly, Sen. Bill Cassidy is unable to face reality

Iwas saddened to seeSen. Bill Cassidy’sletter of desperation to the newspaper Obviously,hestill can’tface the realitythat his political career as asenator for Louisiana is over.He crossed President Donald Trumpby doing something that rarely occurs nowadays in thepolitical arena; He voted his conscience by supporting the impeachment of Trumpduring his first term. For that, he was censured by the LouisianaRepublican Party andimmediately put on Trump’soutcasts’ list. In alast feeble attempt to mend fences with Donald Trump, Cassidy jeopardized theentire medical care of the U.S. by his approval of Robert F. Kennedy Jr., asnake oil salesman with no medical training, as secretary

of the Health and Human Services Department. It is also evident from this recent action that Cassidy obviously learned from his past mistake by not voting his conscience again. Cassidy did do alot forLouisiana, especially in comparison to our other Louisianacongressional members, but theonly issue that really matters is that he crossed Trump, and Trump never forgets. This is quite evident by thevigorous retribution campaign he is presently championing against his perceived adversaries of the past. AndCassidy is on that list. Hopefully, he will continue toserveLouisiana by reverting to his previouscareer as a gastroenterologist

JIM ANDERSON Ponchatoula

Hate thepolicy, notICE agents and Guardtroopsthatcarry them out

ICE agents and theNational Guard are thenew Vietnam veterans. The recent political landscape in theUnited States has becomeincreasingly polarized, with thedebatesurrounding immigration policy as an example.

The Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency and theNational Guard, under administrative direction, enforce immigration law and often face strong criticism from multiple groups. These groups view theimmigration debateasa symbol of oppression and moral decline, similar to how theVietnam war was viewed during the1970s. The current political hatred toward

Heading intofluseason, I’m up to dateonmyvaccinations.

While gettingthe shots, Irealized a side benefit from thesuperb leadership of Gov.Jeff Landry,Louisiana Surgeon General RalphAbraham and U.S. Sen. Bill Cassidy: There is virtually no wait to get your vaccines. These gentlemen —alawyer,aveterinarian and aphysician —have successfully squelched demand for vaccinations in Louisiana. Back in theday,when flu, pneu-

ICE and theGuard is the samethat Vietnam veterans encountered upon returning homefromthe war. Vietnam veterans nor ICEagents northe Guard control the political landscape. Veterans and governmentagents are obligated to enforce the policies of our elected officials. Judgments of these groups are misplaced and should be redirected towhere it belongs: our elected officials. Write, call or vote out your politicians but do not blamethe men andwomen who must conduct their policies.

DANNY DICKSON Gretna

monia, COVID, shingles, RSV and measles used to be problematic, there were wait lines. Now you can just score that miracle drug, ivermectin, without aprescription if you get any symptoms. If these politicos can reduce the lines at grocery stores and the airport, perhaps by spreading someadditional misinformation, they could achieve even more.

DAVE WHIDDON NewOrleans

Protests putlie to idea that Trump acts likea king

It amazes me when the leftopens its mouth to complain about President Donald Trumpbeing aking. Do they not know that if he werea king, they would not be to protest his being aking? They would all be rounded up, arrested, sent into exile or worse. But once again, the Democrats never let facts and truth stand in their way.

MUNN Zachary

Lawmakersshoulddo theright thing, with or withoutVotingRightsAct

I’mamother of eight children who cares deeply about the Louisiana they will inherit. Iwant them to grow up in astate where democracy works foreveryone, not just for those in power.That begins with fair representation.

Nearly 60 years ago, the Voting Rights Act of 1965 was passed to protect the rights of Black Americans whohad long been excluded from shaping their own futures. From the days of poll taxes to the drawn-out fights forfair mapsthat still continue today,Louisiana’shistory is part of that story.Wehave seen how systemscan bend to protect political interests while ignoring the people those systemsare meant to serve. Our legislators now have both a moral and constitutional duty to uphold fair representation. This special session must not be used to silence or sideline Black voters. Whether lawmakers act now or delay action forlater,they must ensure that any process moving forward centers the voices of the communities mostaffected.

If lawmakers no longer stand by Senate Bill 8orexpect the Supreme Court to overturn it, their responsibility remains the same: to pass mapsthat reflect the real diversity of this state and honor the equal citizenship of all its people.

Fairness meanstransparency,inclusion and respect forcommunity voices. My children deserve to live in aLouisiana that keeps that promise.

CRYSTAL ELLIS Baton Rouge

When ICEcamefor aU.S. citizenand Army veteran

OneImmigration and Customs Enforcement agent’sknee wasonhis neck, another’swas grinding his back. Drenched with tear gas andpepper spray,George Retes might have wished that his 137 pounds were back in Kirkuk, Iraq, one of his Army deployments. Herewith, aglimpse of your tax dollars at work Born 26 yearsago in Ventura, California, where his motherwas born,heenlisted after high schooland callsthe Army “the best job ever,” adding,“Ilove the infantry.” He marrieda woman he deployed with, thereby acquiring a stepson, soon adaughter,and areasonto leave the Army: to avoid long absences from his children.

He loves Ventura (“The beachismy life”), where he landed ajob with asecurity firmprotectinganagriculture plant, which he approached by car mid-afternoon on July 10. ICE agents wearing gas masks —indicators of their dispositions —wereblocking entry,herecounts, saying the plant was not operating. This was notthe last ICE lie. The ICEmenwere presumably looking for undocumented immigrants. Retes’sdriver’slicense, which he says the ICEmennever asked to see, identifies him as “Veteran Army.” His license plate includes “DV”: disabled veteran. While ICE’swarriors weretryingand ultimately succeeding in smashing his driver’s-side window(the better to pepper spray him), they apparently did not notice his rear window’s“Iraq Combat Veteran” sticker

Amid atorrent of shouted and contradictory ICEmen commands, and after he asked for an agent’sbadge number, he says, Retes was draggedfrom his car,his wrists were zip-tied behind his back, and he was seated on the roadside ground for four hours He was taken to aNavy base, wherehe wasstrip-searched,then ontoincarceration in LosAngeles, he says, handcuffs having replaced the zip ties.Nocharges had been made against him, but amouth swab collected his DNA without his consent. He says his requestsfor alawyer and for ashower to ease the discomforts of tear gas and pepper sprayresidues, were ignored. After threedays,during which he missed his daughter’sthird birthday,anagent told himthe charges against him had been dropped. What

Over the last decade, we’vetalked a lot about toxic masculinity. We’ve spent much less time discussing whattoxic femininity looks like.

Conservative writer Helen Andrews has stepped in to fill that gap. The social science literature on men and women suggeststhat, on average, we differ psychologically and physically.There are tall, disputatious women (I’m one of them) and short, empathic men, but on average, women are still shorter than men. We’realso more empathetic, more averse to risk and conflict, and more likely to prioritizefeelings and relationships over abstract rules

charges?”herecalls asking. Silence.

When, twomonths later,Retes publishedanewspaperop-ed about his experience, ICE suddenly claimed Retes had beenresistingits agents.Video from a LosAngelestelevision station’shelicopter monitoring ICE’soperation seems to refute theagency’sfabrication.

An anonymous spokespersonfor the Department of Homeland Security, which includes ICE, dismissed Retes’s accountas “garbage.” Not much of an argument,but evidence of the milieu andmentality thatproduces ICEmen like those Retes met In today’shiring binge, ICE recruiting adsask:“Which way,American man?” Testosterone is thenot-very-sub subtext. Recruits will “defend the homeland,” “recaptureour national identity,”stymie an “invasion,” halt “cultural decline” and even save“civilization.”

Something uncivilized is indeed happening. Whatjobs,ifany,are recruits leaving for the glory of donning battle gear andmasks (hiding what from whom?) and roaming U.S. communities, throwing their weight around and throwingunarmedpeople to the ground?

Reteshad never been east of Texas before coming to Washington recently He and an Institute for Justice attorney (Anya Bidwell, born in Kyrgyzstan, reared in Ukraine, serious about liberty), visited congressional offices urging legislators tofacilitateholding federal

might evencall it “toxic femininity.”

(My phrase,not hers.) Since that phrase will probably raise some hackles, let me explain:anall-outreputational attack that seems to come from everywhere at once and nowhere in particular It’sadynamic that will be familiartoanyone who has attended an all-girls camp.

officials accountable. Reteswantstoadd the italicized five words to an existing statute: “Every person who, under color of any statute…ofthe United States or of any State…subjects, or causes to be subjected, any citizen …tothe deprivation of any rights, privileges, or immunities secured by the Constitution and laws, shall be liable to the party injured…” Trying to interest today’s legislators in legislating is, however,difficult.Furthermore, Republicans who control the supposedlegislative branchare reluctant to risk seeming less ferocious than ICE’s make-believe warriors areregarding the supposedly uncivilizedinour midst.

A1971 Supreme Court ruling opened the door for holding abusive federal agentsaccountable for constitutional violations. Subsequent cases, however, have almost closed thedoor.This might explain ICE agents’ auraofimpunity when abusing Retes for days. How many appalling incidentsare occurring during today’s tsunami of sometimes lawless“law enforcement?” ICE might not know and, if it does, might not speak truthfully Retes, who laughs easily and often, is ebullient,not angry. He is merely miffed about the difficulty of holding accountable those whosebehaviorsbesmirch the reputation of the nation he served. Email George Will at georgewill@washpost.com.

District of Columbia Superior Court Judge Kendra Briggs wasquite understanding with the 15-year-old who had pepper-sprayed a manwhile afriend pummeled him, andwhile others in her group tried to steal his car.The young perpetrator has had adifficult life, Briggs noted. “I know you are not unfamiliar to trauma,” the judge said. “I don’tdisagree that the trauma you’ve already suffered in life is kind of how you ended up on UStreet that day.”

Apicture of the victim, sitting on the ground, shirtless, bloody, ribs broken, had gone viral on the internet. The reason for that wasthat he wasEdward Coristine, ayoung Trump administration staffer who hadreceived attention for his work on the DOGE project. President Donald Trump himself posted the photo. “Crime in Washington, DC is totally out of control,” Trump wrote. “Local ‘youths’ and gang members, some only 14, 15, and 16 years old, are randomly attacking, mugging, maiming, and shooting innocent citizens, at the same time knowing that they will almost immediately be released.” The Coristine attack was oneof the reasons Trump began the ongoing crime crackdown in Washington.

AMetropolitan Police report of the attack noted that “ten juveniles” surrounded Coristine’scar.Awoman who waswith Coristine managed to get inside the car and lockthe doors, while Coristine stayed outside to try to fend off the attackers. When police noticed whatwas happening, they jumped outoftheir own cars to approach, and the attackers scattered. Officers were able to catch two of them —the 15-year-old girl, who did the pepper spraying, and a15-year-old boy,who did the beating.

Recently,the girl pleaded guilty to one count of simple assault. Briggs took note of the girl’sdifficult life —“the trauma you’ve already suffered in life is kind of howyou ended up on UStreet that day.”

The 15-year-old boy got an even betterdeal. Briggs sentenced him to 12 months’ probation even though he pleaded guilty to four counts —attempted robbery and simple assault on Coristine and “felony assault and robbery at anearby gas station shortly before,” in the words of aWashington Post account.

It would be surprising if that didn’t make for some fireworks as women flooded into male-dominated institutions. In her recent essayfor Compact magazine, Andrews argues thisculture clash is perhaps the conflict of our time, explaining the excesses of the “GreatAwokening” and the intensity of its cancel culture. “Cancel culture,” she writes, “is simply what womendo whenever there areenoughofthem ina given organization or field.” Andrews views all this rather apocalyptically,suggesting thefeminine style threatens civilization itself because female modes of interaction, however excellent in their own way,“are not well suited to accomplishingthe goals of many major institutions.” Shefears courts will abandon the rule of law in favor of nurturing everyone’sfeelings, that journalismand academia will strive to conceal unpleasant truths and that business will lose its“swashbucklingspirit.

This has, predictably, triggered pushback. Cancel culture, for example, does feel like female-style aggression —one

The right has its cancellations, too, often led by men,as when Vice President JD Vance suggested his followers call the employers of anyone who celebrated Charlie Kirk’sassassination.The conservative, male-led version isn’tanimprovement,but it is abit of achange —most strikingly,because it hasaleader.The classic “Great Awokening” cancellations involved mobilizinga group againstsome target while fadinginto the background, sheltering behind anonymouscomplaints (rememberthe list of bad media men that circulated during the #MeToo movement?) or mass petitions. Womenlean more left than men, which mightexplain why they have proliferated in progressive spaces. Other explanationsinclude the left’sgrowing insistence on the primacy of subjective feelingsand “lived experience,” and its elevation of microaggressions into major causes of action. Ithink civilization will survive all right, though Iconcede that the progressivecancellationswere in some waysmore damaging than their current conservative counterpart, not because they were progressive, but because they were leaderless. The ability to fade into the mob lowers thepersonal risk of launching an attack, which meansyou get more of them. Also, when no one is in charge, there are no rules for targetingand no way to halt theattack UnlikeVance going after his ideo-

logical opponents, progressives often launched friendly-fire assaults on leftleaning institutions, from the Poetry Foundation to The New York Times. No one was trying to bog left-wing advocacy organizations in an endless cycle of infighting, but unfortunately that also meantnoone had thepower to stopit. This was amanagement problem, not asocial crisis. Traditionally maledominated institutions had manyways to control male-type aggression and fewer mechanisms to curb female-style excesses. They were thus unprepared when social media opened up vast possibilities for anonymous, indirect, manyon-one attacks. Eventually,they adapted and stopped treating every social media storm as aDefcon 1emergency Things might be somewhat less muddledifweacknowledge the reality of male-female differences and remember that thosedifferences are manageable. Most traits aren’tgood or bad in themselves; they’re just more or less useful depending on the degree and thecontext. Extreme risk aversion is a splendid qualityinabank regulator, and acrippling handicap in an entrepreneur We don’tneed to protect institutional integrityfrom theinsufficiencies of women so much as craft institutions that maximize the complementary strengths of both men and women —while also minimizing our respective weaknesses. If you’re tempted to say that’s impossible, remember that men and women have been cooperating for avery long time. We managed to propagatethe species for hundreds of thousands of years, under very difficult conditions. I’m quiteconfident that if we put our heads together,wecan also build better institutionsfor the coming century MeganMcArdle in on X, @asymmetricinfo.

The two no-jail sentences were the work of the judge but also of local prosecutors, who, the Post reported, “had not asked the judge to commit either teen.” Those local prosecutors are not the hard-on-crime federal prosecutors in the district under U.S. Attorney Jeanine Pirro that you have probably read about. In this case, the Washington Post said, “the judge’ssentence in each case reflectedprosecutors’ requests.”

As it turned out, everything Trump predicted turned out to be correct. The perpetrators —atleast the two out of 10 who were caught —were indeed 15 years old. And they were immediately released and will notserve any time, including the boy who had committed assault and robbery shortly before attacking Coristine.

Not surprisingly,Trump called Briggs’ decision “terrible” and said she “should be ashamed.” White House spokeswoman Karoline Leavitt, while noting Pirro’sefforts in the federal office, said, “One of the big issues in D.C. is these juveniles. They just get aslap on the wrist. Theysay you need rehabilitation, not incarceration. This administration has acompletely different philosophy.Weneed law and order,period. If you commit acrime, you’re going to face consequences. If you commit aviolent crime, you are going to see jail time.”

In the big picture, the case shows that it is agood thing that Trump decided to highlight the issue of crime. It eats away at the quality of life in cities around the country.Ithas led to aridiculous criminal-processing system, like in the district, that essentially helps direct asteady flow of new offenders into society.And it makes amockery of the idea of justice. Trump should receive credit for any effort to break up that system.

Email Byron York at byork@washingtonexaminer.com.

“This opportunity is so much bigger thanme. It’s our flagship state university We have tremendous prideinit.”

FRANK

Head ‘caretaker’

Interimcoach Wilson promises LSUwill finish season strong

BY KOKI RILEY Staff writer

Frank Wilson has been working toward this moment for nearly three decades

ä Wilson vows team will runthe ball better PAGE 4C

First as agraduate assistant at Nicholls and now as the running backs coach andrecruiting coordinator at LSU, Wilson’scareer —spanningfrom the time he was ahead coach at Texas-San Antonio and McNeese State and to two stints coaching at LSU —prepared him for Sunday’s shocking news.

LSU coachBrian Kelly was fired, and Wilson was tabbed toreplace him as the interim coach.

“I’m apart of the fiber of thisstate

BY LUKE JOHNSON Staff writer

Aquarterback change is coming for the Saints.

RookieTyler Shough will start Sunday against theLos Angeles Rams, according to aleague source. Shough willreplace Spencer Rattler in the startinglineup. Saints coachKellenMoore declined to name a starter Monday after the Saints dropped to 1-7 with a23-3 loss to Tampa Bay,saying the staff wasgoing to decide after dissecting the game film.

“Wejust got done closingthe book on thisTampaBay game,” Moore said. “We’ll now begin really starting here soon our plan of action on L.A., and we’ll makea decision shortly and just go down that path to maximize as many reps and opportunities as we can moving forward.”

The move was expectedafter what transpired againstTampa Bay Shough saw his most extensive playing time in place of anineffective Rattler during the second

(I am) extremely humbled, extremely honored to be given this opportunity, Wilson said Tuesdayduring anewsconference. “It’ssomething that you would dream of, something that you don’tknow if it wouldever come true.”

Wilson insiststhatthismoment isn’t abouthim.Hewalkeduptothe podium

Tuesday discussing what had happened in practice

Therewas no mentionofthe opportunity bestoweduponhim until reporters started firingquestions.

“This opportunity is so much bigger than me,” Wilson said.“Ijusthappen to

be the caretaker at this moment for this wonderful institution that we so love. It’s our flagship state university.Wehave tremendous pride in it.”

The circumstances under which Wilson is taking over are far from ideal. Kelly’s firingwas theresult of adisappointing5-3 start to aseason manyexpected would end in aCollege Football Playoffappearance.

Three defeats in four games, however sealed LSU’splayoff fate. The final loss came Saturday against TexasA&M,a 4925 drubbing in Tiger Stadium that was the straw that broke the camel’sback on Kelly’s time in Baton Rouge.

With its playoff dreamsdashed and its coach gone, LSUisstill locked into

ä See WILSON, page 4C

BuccaneersonSundayatthe

Louisville is expected to startagainst

halfofthe TampaBay loss. Before Sunday’sgame, Shough had been on the field onlyone offensive series late in ablowout loss to Seattle. He threw two incompletionsasthe Saintswentthreeand out. Butagainstthe Buccaneers, Shough attempted 30 passes in the final 18 minutes, leading four drives. Moore saidafter thegame he turned to Shough in search of aspark, andithad less to do with Rattler’sperformance than that of theoffense as awhole.

Now theSaintshavedecidedto see what their rookie can do in a starting role. NewOrleans selected Shough

with theNo. 40 pick in thesecond round of this year’sdraft.Atthe time, he joined ateam that included veteran Derek Carr as well as Rattler and 2023 draft pick Jake Haener Carr retired in theweeks followingthe draft, in part because of ashoulder injury that did notbecomepublic until April and likely would have cost him most, if not all, of the 2025 season. His retirement created avoid at themost important position on the roster Shough, Rattler andHaener entered training camp in a ä See SHOUGH, page 3C

If Tigers don’t hire Sumrall, they’llsee him soon enough

Jon Sumrall is aformer linebacker,soit was no surprise that he saw the blitz coming Tuesday

As reporters assembled forhis weekly news conference, the Tulane coach —the hottest young coaching prospect in college football —anticipated the questions about his candidacy forseveral vacant major college jobs and attacked them like he was rushing the Agap.

Asked about his candidacy forthe vacant LSU job, Sumrall deftly audibled to talk about Texas-San Antonio, the Green Wave’s upcoming opponent Thursdaynight in a nationally televised game on ESPN.

Jeff Duncan

“I knowyou all have gotajob to do to ask me that question, and I’ve gotajob to do and it’stocoach the Tulane football team,” Sumrall said, avein pulsing in the side of his thick neck. “The coaching carousel is not even athought because we’re in the midseason phase. UTSA has100% of my focus right now. Sumrall’spassion is understandable. He’s been down this road before. Only ayear ago, he wasone of the leading candidates forthe North Carolina job that eventually went to Bill Belichick. He’s been the apple of Kentucky fans’ eyes since he left the schoolfour years ago as an assistant to take overthe programatTroy.It’snosurprise whenhis name pops up atop the list of leading candidates at places such as Florida, Penn State, UCLA and LSU.

“I’ve dealt with (coaching speculation) every year as ahead coach,” he said. “I understand it comes with the territory.I get those questions becausewe’re having success.” And Sumrall knows the questions won’t go away anytime soon. It’s the reality of the business when you’re as spectacularly successful as he’s been at aGroup of Five programlike Tulane.

ä See DUNCAN, page 4C

Saints’longest look at Shough just atease

BY LUKE JOHNSON Staff writer

It took nearlyeightweeksto really seewhatTylerShough looked like on an NFL Sunday,but it’sgoingtotake moretimetoreally see what he can offer

The New Orleans Saints rookie quarterback did some nice things after taking over forSpencer Rattler late in the third quarter of a23-3loss, even if an unremarkable 17-for-30 passing,128-yard statistical line doesn’tback that up. There were also miscues and head-scratchingmoments that made Shough look like arookie playing on a1-7 team

But in totality, theperformance was not an embarrassment,and for ateam that is in line to have the No.1pickinnextyear’s draft, it is worth getting amore extended look at Shough in the second half of theseason. First,the good: Shough was decisive, with an average timeto throw of 2.48 seconds, according to NextGen Stats, the third quickestamongNFL quarterbacksin Week 8. That not only showed up on short throws, which madeup

the bulk of Shough’s30attempts, but also the deep shots. Twice, Shough quicklyidentified coverage at the snap and saw an opportunity to hunt for abig playdownfield before pressure could gethome. Neither pass was complete, but both werethe right decision and gave only the receiveranopportunitytomake aplay Shough narrowly misseda touchdowntoRashid Shaheed on asix-man pressure that he let fly when Shaheed was only 6yards into his route. Shough threw the pass withsafety Antoine Winfield barreling in on him andleftitjust beyond Shaheed’s reach.Earlier in the game, he gave Chris Olave ashot on apass 40 yards downfield, throwing it with anticipation before Olaveran past his man He also showed improved pocket feel —something coach Kellen Moore brought up Mondayafternoon as an area where Shough had improved the most since he last playedinthe preseason —though therewere still some chaotic

REVIEW, page 3C

WORLD SERIES

Dodgers win 18-inning thriller

L.A. matched feat from 7 years earlier

BY RONALD BLUM Associated Press

LOS ANGELES The World Series Late Show was so good the Dodgers produced a sequel: The Late, Late Sho. Seven years and one day after outlasting the Boston Red Sox over 18 innings in Game 3, Los Angeles did it again, beating the Toronto Blue Jays 6-5 Monday night on Freddie Freeman’s 18th-inning home run off Brendon Little to take a 2-1 lead in the best-of-seven matchup.

Dodgers rookie reliever Justin Wrobleski, having gotten five outs in the sixth and seventh innings, was astonished at what he saw “I look up at the scoreboard, and the innings that I pitch are no longer on the scoreboard,” he said. “That’s probably the craziest thing.” Shohei Ohtani, used to a dual life as a batter and pitcher, had what amounted to a double game at the plate. He homered twice and doubled twice in the first four-extrabase-hit World Series game since Frank Isbell in 1906. He then walked five times, four of them intentionally three times with no one on base. He tied the record of reaching base nine times. He even stayed in the game after being stricken by a leg cramp while he was caught stealing in the ninth inning.

“And he’s got to pitch in like, I don’t know, 12 hours, 13 hours,” Dodgers pitcher Clayton Kershaw marveled.

A night to remember saw 609 pitches thrown over 6 hours, 39 minutes. Forty-four players appeared, including 19 pitchers. The Dodgers outhit the Blue Jays 1615 in a game that included a 10-inning double shutout — no runs were scored from innings eight through 17. Los Angeles went 2 for 14 with runners in scoring position and stranded 18 runners, and Toronto was 2 for 12 with RISP with 19 left on base.

“It takes everybody to win a World Series,” said the Dodgers’ Max Muncy, who hit the winning 18th-inning homer against Nathan Eovaldi in 2018 — the only LA win

ä Blue Jays at Dodgers, Game 5

in that series.

In an array of defensive gems, right fielder Addison Barger cut down Freeman at the plate with a 98.5 mph missile, Toronto first baseman Vladimir Guerrero threw out Teoscar Hernández at third with an 87.6 mph rocket, Dodgers second baseman Tommy Edman gunned down Isiah Kiner-Falefa from short right field and Hernández relayed to Edman to throw out Davis Schneider at the plate.

“Crazy, crazy, crazy, crazy game,” Toronto starter Max Scherzer said.

Kershaw helps bullpen

Sandy Koufax, a three-time World Series champion two months shy of his 90th birthday stayed until the end.

A three-time Cy Young Award winner who plans to retire after the World Series, Kershaw came out of the bullpen with the bases loaded in the 12th inning to Fun’s

“We Are Young,” in what the 37-year-old left-hander thought was his first extra-innings outing

at any level. Nathan Lukes fouled off Kershaw’s second full-count pitch, a 91.9 mph offering that was his fastest since July 31, 2024, then grounded to second.

“I throw gas now,” Kershaw said, laughing. Kershaw had “51” written on his cap like other Dodgers relievers in a tribute to Alex Vesia, who is missing the World Series because of what the team said was a “deeply personal family matter.”

“I was warming up for like four innings,” Kershaw said. “That’s bullpen life. I’m learning.”

Los Angeles set a World Series record by using 10 pitchers. Will Klein got the win with 72 pitches over four scoreless innings, both double his previous big league highs. He stranded runners at second and third in the top of the 18th by striking out Tyler Heineman.

“There were times when you’re starting to feel down and you feel your legs aren’t there or your arm’s not there, and you just got to be like, ‘well, who else is going to come save me?’” Klein said. “So I had to dig deep, do it myself.”

Game 1 starter Blake Snell was unavailable. Yoshinobu Yamamoto approached manager Dave

Roberts and pitching coach Mark

Prior volunteering to relieve, two days after throwing 105 pitches to win Game 2 in his second consecutive complete game. Yamamoto was warming up while Klein pitched the 18th.

“He was in the next inning,” Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said. “He would have gone as long as we needed. He would have been the last guy.”

Rojas was ready to pitch

Second baseman Miguel Rojas, who made four mop-up pitching appearances during the season, entered the game as a pinch hitter in the 13th and realized a few innings later he might be called on to pitch on 115 days’ rest and become the first position player to take the mound in a World Series.

Rojas threw 120 big-league pitches over the past three seasons and mentally readied his arsenal, which ranged from 36.6 mph to 69.8 mph during this year’s outings.

“I was the only one who had done it before and feel like I had the best chance to kind of get outs if I needed to be out there for the boys,” he said.

Ohtani encourages kids to follow his two-way footsteps

BY RONALD BLUM Associated Press

LOS ANGELES Of the 20,000-plus players to appear in Major League Baseball, only one has been an AllStar as a pitcher and batter

Shohei Ohtani is unique, with a skillset and drive that haven’t been duplicated in 150 years.

“It’s aweing,” Dodgers teammate Freddie Freeman said “Sometimes you just like to make sure it’s not a machine under there.” Ohtani showcased his unique two-way talent when he starts World Series Game 4 on the mound for Los Angeles against the Toronto Blue Jays on Tuesday night. The start came about 17 hours after he finished one of the greatest games in World Series history, tying an MLB record by reaching base nine times, including two homers and four extrabase hits, in an 18-inning classic that ended on Freddie Freeman’s homer Ohtani hopes he is setting an example of what is possible and doesn’t remain unique.

“I like to encourage kids who are trying the two-way to do it as long as possible, as long as they’re allowed to, as much as their talent level could take them,” he said through a translator

Teammates with an up-close view of Ohtani aren’t sure anyone else could do what he does Los Angeles shortstop Mookie Betts, an eight-time All-Star who has excelled in the infield and outfield,

says desire isn’t enough to create a two-way player

“Man, we got to be careful because not everybody is Shohei Ohtani. Not everybody’s 6-4 (actually 6-3), however much he weighs, throws 100 (mph) and hits like that. There’s only one man that can do that,” Betts said. College baseball has an award for best two-play player, named after John Olerud, an All-American first baseman and pitcher at Washington State in the 1980s. He became an All-Star first baseman during a 17-season big league career but never pitched professionally Olerud Award winners include Brendan McKay Spencer Schwellenbach and Paul Skenes,

who hit 24 homers with 81 RBIs in 100 games at Air Force in 2021 and 2022. His two-way career ended when he transferred to LSU for 2023. “They stopped putting me in BP groups,” Skenes said. “I went to LSU and I stopped catching, but I was hitting still. And I wanted to keep hitting as long as I could, but the upside on the mound, I think, was a lot better than upside hitting. So kind of gave it up, and I wasn’t too broken up about it because we had the opportunity to win the national championship, and we ended up doing it So I think it was worth it.” Freeman was once a two-way player at El Modena High School. He doesn’t think about

Giants receiver Nabers has surgery on torn ACL

Former LSU receiver Malik Nabers had surgery Tuesday to repair a torn ACL in his right knee, the New York Giants said, adding that their top receiver will begin his rehabilitation process upon his discharge from the hospital Wednesday Nabers went under the knife roughly a month after getting injured while trying to make a catch during a home game against the Los Angeles Chargers. Beyond that, he’s out for the rest of the season and a timeline for when Nabers might resume football activities was not immediately clear

It’s the second surgery in three days for a key Giants player after rookie running back Cam Skattebo’s to repair a dislocated right ankle. Skattebo had the operation Sunday night.

Pacers sign slam dunk champ McClung to deal

The Indiana Pacers signed guard Mac McClung on Tuesday after a rash of early season injuries. Terms of the deal were not immediately available.

McClung won each of the past three NBA Slam Dunk contests. He’s spent most of his career in the G-League. The 6-foot-2, 26-year-old has averaged 5.5 points in six career NBA games with the Chicago Bulls, Los Angeles Lakers and Orlando Magic. He played college basketball at Georgetown and Texas Tech. Indiana opened the season last week without two-time All-Star guard Tyrese Haliburton, who is expected to miss the season following Achilles surgery in June. Backup point guard T.J. McConnell injured his hamstring and was ruled out of at least the first 10 games.

Norrie knocks Alcaraz out of Paris Masters

Top-ranked Carlos Alcaraz looked out of rhythm in his 4-6, 6-3, 6-4 loss to unseeded Cameron Norrie in the second round of the Paris Masters on Tuesday

The six-time Grand Slam winner even had an animated discussion with coach Juan Carlos Ferrero after losing the second set.

“I’m really disappointed about my level,” Alcaraz said. “I didn’t feel well today A lot of mistakes.”

Norrie sealed the victory on his second match point with a strong first serve that Alcaraz returned long. It was Norrie’s first career win against a No. 1-ranked player Alcaraz made 54 unforced errors and won only 64% of his first-serve points as he slipped to a third loss in eight matches against Norrie. It was their first meeting indoors.

Trump granddaughter gets exemption for LPGA event

President Donald Trump’s granddaughter will be taking a detour on her way to playing college golf at the University of Miami as Kai Trump will make her LPGA Tour debut next month.

what could have been if he had remained on the mound.

“If I kept pitching, my arm would have blown out, I promise you,” he said. “My elbow was hurting in high school.”

Ohtani at age 31 has a .282 average with 280 homers and 669 RBIs in eight major league seasons — more career home runs than Hall of Famers Joe Morgan, Derek Jeter and Paul Molitor

And Ohtani is 39-20 with a 3.00 ERA on the mound with 670 strikeouts in 528 2⁄3 innings, limited to 100 starts because he didn’t pitch in 2019 and 2024 following elbow operations. In Game 4 of the NL Championship Series against Milwaukee, he pitched six scoreless innings, striking out the side in the first, and hit three homers. Baseball commissioner Rob Manfred called it “probably the greatest game of all time.”Don’t expect another super human soon. The forces of the 30 big league organizations discourage two-way players.

“We don’t even see too many switch-hitters,” said New York Yankees special assistant Omar Minaya, a former general manager of the New York Mets and Montreal Expos. “Relievers are one inning starters are starters, right-handed hitters are righthanded hitters, left-handed hitters are left-handed hitters. The game has evolved into a specialty sport, meaning that it discourages versatility in how you play the game.”

Kai Trump received a sponsor exemption Tuesday to play in The Annika at Pelican Golf Club on Nov 13-16, the penultimate event on the LPGA schedule that typically has one of the strongest fields of the year outside of the majors. Trump, the eldest daughter of Donald Trump Jr., is a senior at The Benjamin School in Palm Beach County who has committed to play for the Miami Hurricanes next year She competes in amateur events nationally with the American Junior Golf Association.

Michigan football, Moore drop appeals with NCAA

The University of Michigan and football coach Sherrone Moore have dropped their appeal against NCAA penalties stemming from a sign-stealing operation. Michigan was fined tens of millions of dollars, and Moore was suspended for a third game by the NCAA in August as punishment for a sprawling scandal that has loomed over the Wolverines for two years, including during their run to the national title in the 2023 season The 21st-ranked Wolverines (6-2, 4-1 Big Ten) host Purdue (2-6, 0-5) on Saturday Moore withdrew his appeal on Sept. 29 after serving the school’s self-imposed, two-game suspension. He will also be suspended for the 2026 season-opening game. The school withdrew its appeal on Oct. 6.

Commandersseeingseasonslipaway

Washingtonloses thirdstraight game as injuries keep mounting

BY HOWARD FENDRICH

AP national writer

WASHINGTON The losses and theinjuries keepmountingfor theWashingtonCommanders, who are on athreegame losing streak as their season appears to be slipping away They are just 3-5 at roughly the halfway mark —already the same number of defeats they had while going 12-5 and making it all theway to theNFC championship game in January,carried there by the dynamic quarterback-wideout duo of AP NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year Jayden Daniels and 13-TD scorer Terry McLaurin.

This time around, Washington is missing the magic that helped produce all of those last-minute wins, and it hasn’thelped that Daniels was sidelined for three games so far,including Monday night’s28-7 setback against the Kansas City Chiefs, and McLaurin has been forced to sit out four There also are all sorts of other absences on offense, defense and special teams.

REVIEW

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moments when Shough was forced to navigatepressure in the backfield. None looked moreerratic than his skippedthrow to tight end Jack Stoll well short of the sticks on fourth and 11 after he spun out of asack.

Most of Shough’sthrows went outside the numbers

Some of that is because of thesituation, chasing multiple scores againstadefense that was trying to limit big plays. It will be interesting to see whether that trend continue after Shough is given aweektoprepare as the starter

At least four of Shough’s 13 incompletions, including the interceptionhethrew on his fourth drop backofthe game, were catchable passes. Twoofthem likelywould have moved thechains on third or fourth down. Two more would haveresulted in solid gains.

This is not exactly anew phenomenon for the saints but the unsure hands dis-

SHOUGH

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entered training camp in a competitionfor the starting job. New Orleans whittled the competition down to Shough and Rattler,and Rattler won the job with his steady performance and command of the offense. Though the Saints were not winning games, Rattler performed admirably to start the season.

He compiled a91.9 passer rating through the first six weeks while throwing six touchdowns against one interception.

New Orleans was 1-5, but with theexception of the Seattle loss, the Saints were competitive in everygame against some of the NFL’s better teams.

ButRattler’splay declined in recent weeks, as the second-year quarterbackreverted to some of his worst tendencies from his rookie season. He turned theballover four times in aloss to the Bears, fumbling on the Saints’ second offensive play andthrowing three interceptions. Againstthe Buccaneers, he lost afumble on the opening drive and then threwa poor interceptionthat was returnedfor atouchdown. He also took seven sacks

When theCommanders practice Wednesday,coach Dan Quinn said, “We plan on (Daniels) being apart of that.” Washington simplyhas not played very well, with two victories coming against also-ran opponentsinthe New York Giants andLas Vegas Raiders. They’ve been something less than competitive for stretches, includingtheirpast twooutings,inwhich they were outscored by an averageof21.5 points.

Against AndyReid, Patrick Mahomes, Travis Kelce and the rest of the Chiefs, theCommanders managed to hang in there for ahalf, reaching the break tied at 7-7.

Still, Quinnwas not pleased with missed chances by anoffense beingrun by Marcus Mariota in place of ahurt Daniels, who wasout with abad righthamstring. Everything fell apartin the second half.

“Man, did we leave alot of opportunities out there tonight,” Quinnsaid. “You cannotleavethatmanychances out there and expect towin.”

rupted some of the good from Shough’sperformance.

■ On his second pass attempt, Shough drovethe ball on adeepcomeback to Shaheed, who could not maintain possessionof the ballthrough contactwith the ground. It would’ve been againofatleast9 yards on first and 10 ■ Twoplays later,Shough pinned athrowtoOlave’s chest on third and 3. Olave’s momentum was carrying him past the sticks, and New Orleans would’vehad a new set of downs in Tampa Bay territory.Thiswas the best opportunity to make a game of it. Instead, Winfield ripped the ball out of Olave’s hands for an interception.

■ Afterhitting Shaheed for 6yardsonthird and8 to set up amanageable fourth downnearmidfield, Shough gave tight end Juwan Johnson achance to make a contested catch to keep the drive alive.Johnsonran an angle route, runningtoward the middle of the field before snapping backtowardthe sideline.Shough’sthrowwas on the money,toward the sideline andawayfromthe

It might not get any easier over the next two weeks, when Washingtonwillface theSeattle Seahawks, then theDetroit Lions. It seems as if arecord of 3-7 could be areal possibility by thetime Week 10 is done.

defender.Johnson couldn’t haul it in, and the Saints turned it over on downs.

nTrailing by 20 with 2:29 to go, Shough had Johnsonopen on acorner route downfieldfor whatwould have been at least a15-yard gain on the first play of a drive.

Of thesefour plays,this was the worst throw,with Shoughsailing it alittle high. Even takingthat into account, this was aplay a tight end making $10 million per year should make.

Overall, Shough played 39 offensive snaps, all of them in comeback mode. It’sobviously notenough to truly evaluate either his playor command of the offense.

Butthe Saintssaw enough to namehim the starter this Sunday againstthe LosAngelesRams. Now thereal evaluation can begin.

Lookingahead

The Saints get abit of atriple whammy this week:Not only do they have to face one of the NFC’sbetter teams in the5-2 Rams but they also have to travel acrossthe country to face ateam com-

Saints

Tyler

while just three of the 18 drives he led over the past two weeks resulted in points.

NewOrleans inserted Shough into the lineup after aseries in which the Saints committed two holdingpenalties and adelay of game neartheirown goalline. Shough did not fare much better against the Buccaneers, completing17of 30 attempts for 128 yards with a53.2rating. ButNew Orleans now will get an opportunity to seewhathecan do when givena fullweekto prepare as the starter Hisfirst start will come against achallenging opponent. The Rams arecomingoff of an open date and have one of the most effec-

tivepass rushes in theNFL, ranking second in the league with 26 sacks. This is probably not going to be aone-game experiment. Moore said after the gamethat he did not want to put his players in aposition where they wereflip-flopping in thestartinglineup. “I love Spence. Ilove Tyler.Ilove these guys to death,” Moore said after the game.“These are never easy things. They are really, really challenging, because Iknowwhateach of these guys puts intoitevery single day.But we’re just trying to findaformula that works to our advantage.”

Staff writer MatthewParas contributed to this report.

“You’re kind of putting yourself in ahole,”linebacker Bobby Wagner said. “You don’twant to dig yourself in adeeper hole.”

McLaurin’sreturnMondaywas abig deal after he was unavailable for amonth

ing off of an open date.

At 37 years old,Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford is still playing at an elitelevel. The LosAngeles passing gameranks No. 7in the NFL in Expected Points Added perdrop back (+.13), andStafford ranks fifth in theNFL in passingsuccess rate(52.6%).

Stafford and the Rams are one of the NFL’s better play-

quarterbackJayden Danielsbefore Monday’s

at 3-5 for the season.

because of aquadriceps injury.Hescoredhis first touchdown of the season with aterrifictoe-tapping grab. He made another “How didhedothat?” catch on a head-first dive.

“Itfelt good just to contribute,” McLaurin said. But as often hasbeen the case forthe Commanders, every step forward comes with astep back. McLaurin exited thegame after aggravating his bad leg.

action offenses this season. Los Angeles head coach and offensive play-caller Sean McVay is calling play-action passes on 31.6% of passing plays, the second-highest rate in the NFL, and Stafford has a133.8 rating on such plays. Eight of Stafford’s league-high 17 touchdowns have come on play-action passes. Defensively,the Rams lean heavily on their young, talented defensive line. Edge rushersByron Young (nine sacks) and Jared Verse (foursacks) have more sacks between them than six entire NFL teams. Even afterits bye,Los Angeles rankssecondinthe NFL with 26 team sacks. Email Luke Johnson at ljohnson@theadvocate.com.

You knowhim well. Scotthas beencovering LSU since 1992. He is the author of three highly acclaimed booksonLSU and was chosen as an LSU Expert forESPN’s SEC 150 Documentary

Each Monday,Scottwillput his thoughts on the last week’sgameand thenextweek’sgame into avideo essayplacingthe game in its context anddrawing historical parallels

SouthernquarterbackAshtonStrother throwsa passagainst PrairieViewonOct. 18 at A.W.MumfordStadium

Strother has thrown for ateam-high 626 yardswith one touchdown and twointerceptions.

Southern namesStrother starting QB forrestofyear

BY TOYLOYBROWN III Staff writer

Southern interim coach Fred McNair saidTuesday that Ashton Strother will start at quarterback for the rest of the season.

“He’sbeen playing well for us,” McNair said. “And you know, with some of the things that we got to correct on him, it’scorrectable.”

Underformercoach Terrence Graves, Southern decided on the starting quarterback eachweek based on how they performed in practice. Aftermakingbackto-back starts andthreeoverall, Strother has done enough to earn McNair’ssupport.

Entering a2 p.m. game at Arkansas-Pine Bluff on Saturday, Strother has thrown for ateam-high 626 yards passing, two interceptions and atouchdown.

He is completing 54.2%of his passesinsix games

The junior joined the program eight days before the season opener Aug. 23 and eventuallybecame the third Southern quarterback to see action this year. His first start was in the team’s38-13 loss to Jackson State on Sept. 27.

When McNair was asked whether dual-threat quarterback Cam’Ron McCoy still would have a package of plays the teamcan use, McNair saidthatisapossibility

“Wehave that in,” McNair said. “I think Cam has been doing a

DUNCAN

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Green Wave fans are notgoing to like it, but it’sonly amatter of time until aschool comes along with an offer he can’trefuse.It’s notamatter of if he is hiredaway but when. He’salready attracted the interest of Florida, Penn State and UCLA, according to industry sources, and would be among the leading candidates, if notthe favorite, for both the Auburn and Kentucky jobsifeither open up Some Vegas oddsmakers have installed Sumrall as the favorite to land the coaching job atLSU, which opened Sunday when Brian Kelly was fired after three-plus seasons in Baton Rouge.ESPN listed him No. 2onits listoftop candidates for the Tigers’ gig behind Ole Miss coach LaneKiffin. Sumrall makes alot sense for LSU. He owns asterling .791 winning percentage in three-plusseasons as ahead coach, and hewon twoSun Belt championshipsin two yearsatTroy.Inhis firstseason at Tulane, he made the American Conference title game.Hehas theWave at 6-1 this season despite losing 17 starters from last year’s team, including quarterbackDarianMensah (Duke) and star runningback MakhiHughes (Oregon) to the transfer portal. In coaching circles, Sumrall is viewed as the complete package, ashrewd in-game tactician,apassionate recruiter with an expert eyefor personnel, anda charismatic leader and culture-builder

As former Troy head coach Neal Brown told TheAthletic, “Whatever ‘it’ is, Jon Sumrall hasit.” The question is not whether Sumrall would be agood hire for LSU. Of course, he would.A former Kentucky linebackerand

“He’sbeen playing well for us. And you know,with some of the things thatwegot to correct on him,it’scorrectable.”

FRED McNAIR, Southerninterim coach

ä Southern at UAPB.

2P.M. SATURDAy

greatjob of getting to practice and doing thethings thatwecan expect outofhim.You know,if we need him, we’ll put him in, and we’ll gofrom there.”

McCoy,a junior transfer from Jackson State, hascompleted 37 of 76 passes for 417 yards with three touchdowns and two interceptions in six games. He also has rushed 31 times for 181 yards andtwo touchdowns.

Theoffense looked at its best in Southern’smost recent43-35 loss to Florida A&M. In that game, Strothercompleted 12 of 28 passes for 197 yards. He also rushed nine times for 36 yards and three touchdowns.

McNair,who played quarterback at Alcorn State and in the Arena Football League, saidthe biggest lesson Strother can learn from last week’souting is to improve at goingthrough his progressionslate in games. That was most evident in theJaguars’ final drivethat started

at their own 48 with 1:42 remaining.

“Some of his readsthis pastweek against FAMU,” McNair said, “we thought that he could do abetter job,atthe end of the game, at that one minute and 27 seconds left,a couple of reads that he missed. But those are correctable. We are making sure thatweget thatjob done during thecourse of this week of practice of things that he miscued on.”

For the secondseason in arow, Southern hasstarted three different quarterbacks, including its lone returner,Jalen Woods. The redshirt sophomorewas the presumed starter in the offseason but hasn’tplayed since suffering a concussion, his second in less than ayear,during the Jaguars’ 34-29 win againstMississippi Valley StateonAug. 30.

McNair didn’tsay whether Southern will have Woods on the field again this year

“Wegot to be very careful with that,”McNair said. “Having so many concussions andstufflike that,and bringing him back too soon …but he’s been positive,been coming to practiceand throwing balls. And, you know,I wish we could have himout there, but we have to be careful (in) asituation of that kind.”

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

Huntsville,Alabama, native, he has followed, played and coached in the Southeastern Conference for most of his career

He is arguably more qualified than Ryan Day or Kirby Smart were when they were hired at Ohio State and Georgia, respectively.Ditto the hottest young head coaches in the land, Marcus Freeman and Dan Lanning, both of whom had nohead coaching experience before taking over at Notre Dame andOregon, respectively

The better question is whether LSUwouldconsiderhiring Sumrall in the first place.

LSUhas hired 27 coaches in the 121-year history of itsfootball program.Inthat time, it has never hired one from Tulane, itsonetime SEC rival locatedjust 90 miles to the south.

If school officials are smart, they won’tworry about optics or historical precedents.

Sumrall is the hottest coach in collegefootball forareason. He is young, innovative and energetic.

Wilson makes ‘promise’LSU will runthe ball

BY REED DARCEY Staff writer

Frank Wilson chuckledasheanswered thequestion. It was raised early in his first news conference as the LSU interim football coach,and he usedthe opportunity to share aglimpse intowhat may change about the struggling offense.

The Tigers, Wilson said, have used theopen datetoimprove their rushing attack.

“I promise you,” Wilsonsaid Tuesday,“we will run the ball.”

LSUfired coach BrianKelly on Sunday,thencanned offensive coordinator JoeSloan on Monday,endinghis underwhelming two-year tenureasits offensive play-caller

Now Wilson, the running backs coach,and Alex Atkins,the rungame coordinator,oversee the offense, which means that theunit could undergo ashiftinstyle. No Southeastern Conference team has thrown more passes this season than LSU Wilson indicated Tuesday that the Tigers should have runthe ball more often than they did across the past twoseasons.

“In the run game, we have the ability to do it,” Wilson said. “We need to be able to runthe ballto have relief in the passing game. At times,we’ve done it. But we want to do it more consistently, andI think if we do that, it’ll allow our game, our team, our offense, to be that much moreeffective.”

In 2024, Garrett Nussmeier threw for more than 4,000 yards,and the Tigers converted third downs at oneofthe 10 highest rates in thecountry,but they finished last among SECteams in rushing offenseand struggled to turn redzone trips into touchdowns. Many of thosesamestruggles carried over to 2025.

LSU is ranked 83rd nationally in scoring offense, 98th in total offense and124thinrushing offense. The Tigers also have convertedonly 39 percent of their third-down attempts— thefifthlowest rate in the SEC —and scoring touchdowns on just 59 percentoftheir tripstothe red zone. Only two league teams had lower red-zone conversion rates.

LSUstruggled to run the ball for most of the season, but its rushing efficiency quietly has improved in recent weeks.

TheTigersaveraged at least5 sack-adjusted yards perrushing attempt in their games against SouthCarolina and Vanderbilt. Then in the first half of the loss to Texas A&M,they picked up an average of 4.9 yards per carry LSUshifted thebulkofits backfieldtouchestowardfreshman Harlem Berry for the first time this season, andherespondedbyinjecting the offensewith an infusion of speed.

ButBerry touched the ball only once in the second half as the gamegot away from LSU.

LSU could run the ball more often in hopes of fielding amore productive, efficient offense.

“I think it complements,” Wil-

WILSON

He instills an undeniable toughness and swagger into theteams he coaches. He knows how to hire good coaches and manage astaff. His players love him and play their tails offfor him

In short, he is everything Kelly was not.

Sumrall would be adifferent kind of hire for LSUathletic director Scott Woodward, assuming he is actually allowed to makethe decision. Woodward has atrack record of hiring proven commodities rather than ascending types such as Sumrall.

“If I’m the executive producer of afilm, and Ican get Paul Newman and Robert Redford, hell, yeah, I’m going to do it,” he once said. Sumrall might not be aleading man yet, but rest assured, he is on the fast track to becoming one. If LSUdoesn’thire Sumrall, the Tigers are going to be going against him very soon.

Email Jeff Duncan at jduncan @theadvocate.com

son said, “anditallows us to be that more (much) effective in the pass game where we have tremendous weapons that we haven’tutilized to the full potential, forwhatever reason.”

Effectonrecruiting

The recentfirings so farhave notaffected the program’srecruiting efforts.

As of Tuesday, no prospects had backed offtheir verbal commitments to the Tigers, and no players on the current roster have decidedtoforgo any of the four games leftonthe schedule.

“I think it’satestament to the quality of young men that we have,” Wilson said, “that they signed up to come to school here. They came at the helm of coach Kelly as our head coach, and they were also committedtothisuniversity,and theywerecommitted to one another.”

LSU actually added to its 2026 recruiting classsince it fired Kelly and Sloan. Three-star wide receiver Kervin Johnson announced Monday that he had flipped his commitment from Louisiana Tech to the Tigers —even as uncertainty swirledaround the program Freshmen cornerback DJ Pickett and running back Harlem Berry were five-star recruits last year, and they’ve already stepped into leading roleseight gamesinto their freshman seasons. Sophomore tight end Trey’Dez Green also has emerged as one of Nussmeier’sfavorite targets, and he can’t declare forthe NFLdraftfor another year

LSUalso hascommitments from Lamar Brown —a U-High defensive linemanrated as one of the nation’sfive best recruits —aswell as Trenton Henderson,a Florida edge rusher who’sone of the top-50 prospects in 247Sports’ composite rankings. When Kelly was fired, LSU’s 2026 class was the 11th-best groupinthe country.Onlytime will tellwhether the Tigers can hang on to those commitments through acoaching change. Full-timejob

Wilson was asked Tuesday whether he’sdiscussed the possibility of applying for LSU’spermanent head coaching job. Wilson declinedtodiscuss his future beyond therest of this season,saying insteadthat“we didn’tindulge too much into it.”

“I cannot peer across the fence to look at something else and not be where my feet are,” Wilson said. “I have to be here. Ihave to be in the moment. We have to be in this moment. We have to live in this momenttoallow us to take care of our business right now

“And Ithink to do anything besides that is amistake.”

Wilson has worked as ahead coach before.Heran the TexasSan Antonio program from 201619, then took over as the head coach at McNeese from 2020-21. He has acareer head coaching record of 26-40.

coach and run game coordinator Alex Atkins to the position

finishing theseason strong, Wilson said.

“When in atime that’sperilous as this, youbattendown the hatches,you go shoulder to shoulder,you go back to back, and you stand firm with oneanother,”Wilson said, “and to the commitment of what your intentions were from the beginning.”

Wilson’s first game as interim coach won’t be an easy one. LSU travels to Tuscaloosatoface No 4Alabama on Nov. 8, and it will makethe trip with notjust anew coach butalsoa newoffensive coordinator LSUfired offensive coordinator and quarterbackscoach Joe Sloan on Monday,promotingtight ends

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Buteven with allofthe changes,Wilsonsaidhis team is ready to answer thecall, notingthatno playershaveopted outofplaying the rest of the year

Thedifficulties of the last 72 hours, he said,have brought the team closer together.

“We’ve taken up the slack for those who may not have been as strongasotherstobesupportive of oneanother during this time,” Wilson said.

“And so Ithink it’s atestament of our student-athletes and our coaching staffinthis university, in this community.The biggest thing for us is to stay close, stay together,and let’sfinish what we’ve started.”

Email KokiRiley at Koki.Riley@ theadvocate.com.

Dutchtown wins District 5-I title

BY JACKSON REYES Staff writer

Dutchtown volleyball set the tone early against Live Oak.

The Griffins won the first eight points of the match, including three aces by junior outside hitter Chloe Phillips. Dutchtown (20-10, 6-0) would maintain its momentum en route to a 3-0 win over Live Oak on Tuesday night at Live Oak High School The win helped the Griffins finish undefeated in District 5-I play and take home a fourth straight district title. Dutchtown won by scores of 25-13, 25-11, 25-11.

“It’s a great accomplishment for this senior group,” Dutchtown coach Patrick Ricks said. “We really wanted that. That was one of our goals, and I was really happy that they were able to achieve that this year.”

On top of the streak of district titles, Dutchtown did not drop a single set in district play this season.

“It shows how we’re keeping the standard every single year,” senior setter

Olivia Songy said “It shows our character in district.”

A bulk of the team has played together for years, with 12 seniors on the roster Songy said her team is beginning to feel the anticipation of the playoffs and hopes her team can bring the same energy level it brings each night

Senior setter Kinsey Phillips echoed Songy’s sentiments. She added that her team has shown growth in skill and mindset this season. The experience as a senior-heavy team played a key role in that.

“Playing together over the years has really grown us together,” Phillips said.

Senior outside hitter Anna White led the team with 13 kills, while senior middle back Hayden Herring tallied 10. Phillips finished with a team-high six aces and 21 digs.

Live Oak (18-13 4-2) rallied to trail 18-12 in the first set. Dutchtown closed out the set on a 7-1 run to take the first set, 25-13. Ricks said he didn’t know how his side would start the match. He felt his team’s en-

ergy was weird throughout warm-ups, but once the first set began, he could tell the Griffins were ready to play

“I talked to them in the huddle about extending leads, making runs,” Ricks said, “and they did everything I asked of them. I was really pleased.”

The Eagles kept it close to begin set two, trailing 5-4.

The Griffins then ripped off 14 straight points to take a commanding 19-4 lead. Dutchtown held on to take a 2-0 lead after winning the set, 25-11.

The Griffins continued to string together runs in the third set, taking it 25-11.

“They were able to stay grounded on what’s right there in front of them,” Ricks said “Hopefully this is step one of what’s going to be a good week for us.”

The sky is the limit for his Dutchtown side, who he feels hasn’t peaked yet ahead of the postseason.

“We’ve had a couple of good wins, but I don’t think we’ve played a complete match yet,” Ricks said. “If we can do that, I feel like our division is wide open.”

LSU gym adds ninth pledge to Class of 2027

BY SCOTT RABALAIS

Staff writer

LSU has added one more star commitment to its glittering 2027 recruiting class.

Tatum Drusch of White Bear Lake, Minnesota, announced her decision to pick LSU over the weekend, adding a ninth name to the Tigers’ list of pledges.

According to CollegeGymNews.com, LSU now has three five-star prospects and six four stars, including Drusch. She is ranked in a tie for the 11thbest prospect nationally, according to that website.

“I’m so blessed and excited to announce I have verbally committed to Louisiana State University on a full athletic scholarship!” Drusch posted on her Instagram account. “I’m so

honored to become a tiger and continue the legacy of @lsugym.”

Drusch went on to thank LSU head coach Jay Clark, and assistants Garrett Griffeth, Haleigh Bryant and Courtney McCool Griffeth.

“You have created such an amazing culture at LSU that I can’t wait to call home!!” Drusch wrote.

Drusch, who will turn 17 next month, competed in August in the U.S Gymnastics Championships at the Smoothie King Center Another future Tiger, 2024 U.S. Olympic team gold medalist Hezly Rivera, won the senior women’s all-around national title at the event.

Drusch also competed earlier this year in the Winter Cup in Louisville, Kentucky, tying for first on balance beam and finishing fourth in the all-around.

Drusch picked LSU after official visits to three other gymnastics powerhouses: reigning NCAA champion Oklahoma, Florida and UCLA.

Drusch joins five-star prospects Josie Lynch, Reese Esponda and Jada Oliver in LSU’s Class of 2027, along with four stars Sage Bradford, Zoe Cadrin, Lia Redick, Myla Ruck and Kiari Sparks.

None of the nine will be able to enroll at LSU until 2027 and would compete starting in January 2028. Some of the class is expected to defer the start of their collegiate careers until after the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics.

For more LSU sports updates, sign up for our newsletter at theadvocate. com/lsunewsletter

WNBA offers negotiation extension

BY DOUG FEINBERG AP basketball writer

NEW YORK The WNBA has offered a 30-day extension to players to continue negotiations for a new collective bargaining agreement, two people familiar with the decision told The Associated Press on Tuesday night. The current CBA is set to expire Friday and tensions have been rising in recent weeks as the sides try to work toward a new deal. The league is willing to push back the deadline, according to the people who spoke on condition of anonymity because no official announcement has been made. An extension would give both sides more time to come up with a new deal that would be transformational for the players in terms of salary In 2019, when the last CBA deal had expired, the sides agreed to a 60-day extension and eventually ratified the current CBA in January 2020. It’s unclear if the union will accept the extension. The sides had meetings over the past few weeks, including once in New York earlier this month, according to a person familiar with the situation.

The players exercised their right to opt out of the current CBA last year with hopes of getting, among other things, increased revenue sharing, higher salaries, improved benefits and a softer salary cap.

The WNBA’s offers to this point have not been to the players’ liking, although it is unclear how far apart the sides are in terms of salary parameters. WNBA commissioner Cathy Engelbert said during the WNBA Finals that the league — like the players — wants a “transformative deal” done with significant increases to salary and benefits.

Volleyball

Tuesday’s scores St. Michael 3, Glen Oaks 0 (25-4

25-5, 25-2)

Family Christian 3, Thrive Academy 0 (25-20, 25-11, 25-7)

West Feliciana 3, Madison Prep 0 MadisonPrep 18 20 28 WestFeliciana 25 25 30 Teamleaders: WEST FELICIANA:

Ascension Catholic 3, Prairieville 0 (25-17, 25-20, 25-14)

Belaire 3, Tara 0 (25-22, 25-13, 32-30)

Brusly 3, Plaquemine 0 (25-13, 2522, 25-11)

St. Amant 3, Denham Springs 2 (2516, 25-22, 23-25, 23-25, 15-11)

East Ascension 3, Walker 0 (25-20, 25-16, 26-24) Central 3, Liberty 0 (25-22, 25-7

25-14) Collegiate Baton Rouge 3, North Iberville 1 (25-9, 25-19, 24-26, 25-19) University 3, Port Allen 0 (25-7, 25-7, 25-10) West Feliciana 3, Madison Prep 0 (25-17, 25-20, 30-28) Zachary 3, Woodlawn 0 (25-12, 25-14, 25-19)

Tailgate of theWeek: LifelongLSU fans keep theTiger spirit alivedespite rain anda roughseason

By Amanda McElfresh, amcelfresh@theadvocate.com

Theheavy rainsdidn’tput adamperon Tailgate 702onOct.25ahead of LSU’s contestagainst TexasA&M in Tiger Stadium

LocatedneartheIndianMounds,Tailgate 702pridesitselfonbigcookouts,oftenwith amenucenteredaroundthe opponent’s mascot.Therewas an 80-pound alligator on thegrill forthe Floridagame, andthe crew prepared about85poundsoffried andsmokedchickenwhenSouthCarolina came to town.Theywerea bitstumped to findsomething to cook in recognition of theAggies, andultimatelywentwith abig pastalaya.

“Therecipecalledforcreamcheeseand Velveeta.Iwas skeptical, but it turned out reallygood,”saidQuint Dejean,one of the leadersofTailgate702.“Therainmade it hard to have anythingonthe grill, so we decidedtokeepitsimpleand just use onepot.Everyoneloved thepastalaya,so it definitelypaidoff.”

Dejean,Henry Hingle,CarterHigbee andJames Herron –all lifelong Tiger fans –have beenleading Tailgate 702 since2017. With aprime location near the stadiumand plenty of beerand musicon hand,theyregularlyhaveabout150people each time they areout

“It’slikemyvacationinBaton Rouge,” Dejeansaid.“Itreallyistheentireweekend Friday throughSunday.”

Dejean said Tailgate 702had higher

hopesfor this season.Yet,lessthan24 hoursafterLSUlosttoTexasA&M,Brian Kellyhadbeenfiredastheheadcoach,the Tigers were unranked in themajor polls andits CollegeFootballPlayoff hopes were alostcause

Still, Tailgate 702willlikelybeback on campus forLSU’s contestagainst Arkansas,its last home SECopponentin 2025.They’llbecheeringonInterimHead CoachFrankWilsonandhisstaff,complete with LSUhelmets as thecenterpiece of theirtailgate, andwillbebackin2026 as anew regime takesover.

“I hope thenextcoach embraces more of what Louisianaisabout andthe love that everyone here hasfor LSU,”Dejean said.“That’s thebig thingI’m hoping for –and gettingusintothe playoff at abare minimum.”

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Pels reverted to last season’s form aheadof3-gametrip

If you’re afan of the New Orleans Pelicans, you probably said these three words at some point

Monday

“Here we go again.”

Perhaps you said it around 2p.m. when the team announced that Zion Williamson was “questionable” for Monday night’s game against the Boston Celtics with a bone contusion on his left foot.

Rod Walker

Or maybe it was three hours later when Pelicans coach Willie Green downgraded Williamson from “questionable” to “out.” If not then, you most surely said it as the Pelicans laid another fourthquarter eggon their way to a12290 loss to the Boston Celtics.

“They just took the fight to us,” Pelicans coach Willie Green said. “They were atougher team, mentally tougher than we were. Physically tougher than we were. This is something that we have to getback to the drawingboard, and we have to come back and be atougher team.”

If all this sounds familiar,it’s because it is. The Pelicans lost 12 games by 25 points or more last season. Three games into this season, they’ve already lost their first one by that many.Withathree-game road trip to face the Denver Nuggets,the Los Angeles Clippers and the Oklahoma City Thunder, things don’tget any easier

Making this latest loss even more disturbing is it cameagainst the Celtics, ateam thatisnot anywhere close to the team that won the NBA title two seasonsago The Celtics’ best player,Jayson Tatum, sat on the bench in street clothes just like the Pelicans’best player did. Williamson is listed as questionable for Wednesday night’sgame in the MileHigh City

Pelicans forwardHerb Jones, right, defends Celticsguard Payton Pritchard on Monday at the Smoothie King Center

“In theNBA, you’re going to have gameswherethe margin looks like that,” Williamson said after Tuesday’s practice. “But that was more self-inflicted on us.We cameintoday and got some good work in.We’vegot aplace we’re trying to go. So we can’thave selfinflicted wounds like that.”

The Pelicans were actually 3.5-pointfavorites against Boston until Williamson was ruled out. At that point, the Celtics became 4-pointfavorites. TheCeltics ended upwinning by 32.

“Disappointed,”Green said. “Disappointed in how we approached the game. Disappointed in just the lack of toughness on thefloor more than anything. It’s one thingtonot win agame. It’sa whole ’nother thing to kinda get punked onyour home floor.I’m a part ofthat.”

Just likethat, all that goodwill thePelicansbuilt up with their fanbase in close losses to Memphisand SanAntonio to start the season was out thedoor.They

went from two moral victories —ifyou want to call the first two games that —toone demoralizing defeat in amatter of five days. Anyoptimism all of asudden became areality check.

Justthree nightsearlier in an overtimelosstothe San Antonio Spurs, Pelicans forward Trey Murphy talked about how this year’s team feels different and has abit morefight thanteams of the past

ButMonday night?

“Wedidn’tshow that at all,” Murphy said. “… They fought harder than we did. Simple as that.”

It’sonly three games in an 82gamemarathon, so it’sprobably too soon towrite the obituary on ateam with alot of new faces. Butall three games had stretches where thePelicansdisappeared and let the Grizzlies, Spurs and Celtics have their way

“It’s anew group,”Green said. “Weare learning each other,trying to figure it out together.And as much as we want it to happen quickly,sometimes it takes alittle time.”

The winning may taketime, but theeffort should already be there. That falls on Green holding theplayers accountable. If Green can’t, it’ll be up to Joe Dumars to find someone who can.

Dumars vowed when he took over in April as the executive vice president of basketball operations that the Pelicans would be ateam the fan base could be proud of. Regardless of thewins and losses, theproduct on the floor would excitethe fans.

“Weare here to raise thebar,” Dumars said. “We’re not here to be happy withmediocrity.”

The season is still young, but Monday’sperformance was about as mediocre as it gets.

Zion talksfootinjury, timeline forhis return

“Landedonsomeone’sfootand the side of my foot just banged theground,”Williamson said “The pain level didn’treally pick up until aday or two days later Ispoke with the team,made the best decision on it.Got it looked at.”

BY RODWALKER Staff writer

Zion Williamson sprinted up and down the court at the New Orleans Pelicans’ practice facility Tuesday morning. It was agood sign for Williamson, whomissed Monday night’s losstothe BostonCeltics with a bone contusion on his leftfoot. Williamson was limited in Tuesday’spractice and is “questionable” for the Pelicans’ Wednesday night road gameagainstthe Denver Nuggets. “Right nowwe’re in aday-today thing,” Williamson said. “But nothing major.Nothingthat is goingtokeep me outfor alongtime Just day to day.” Williamson said he injured the foot in Friday’sgame against the SanAntonioSpurs on aputback dunk.Hestepped on thefoot of SpurscenterVictor Wembanyama when he landed.

SCOREBOARD

Croskey-Merritt 9-25,McNichols1-4,Rodriguez 1-2, Samuel 1-1.Kansas City,Pacheco 12-58, Hunt 9-40, Mahomes 4-30, Rice 2-12, B.Smith 3-8. PASSING—Washington, Mariota 21-30-2-213. Kansas City,Mahomes 25-34-2-299. RECEIVING—Washington, McNichols 5-64, Ertz 4-16, McLaurin 3-54, McCaffrey 3-24, Samuel 3-11, Bates 1-22, Sinnott 1-22,Lane 1-0. Kansas City, Rice 9-93,Kelce 6-99, Worthy 5-53, Smith-Schuster 2-29, Gray

Presbyterian

Droppedout: South Dakota (21) Othersreceivingvotes: South Dakota (5-4 3-2 MVFC),99; WesternCarolina (5-3,4-0 SoCon), 95;Alabama State (5-2,3-1 SWAC), 21; Dartmouth(5-1,3-1 Ivy),17; Lafayette (5-3, 3-0 Patriot), 15;Delaware State (5-3,1-0 MEAC),14; West Georgia (6-3,3-3 UAC),14; Gardner-Webb (5-3,3-1 OVC-Big South),

Dayton (6-2,4-1 Pioneer), 8; Prairie View (6-2 4-0 SWAC), 4; UT Rio Grande Valley (6-2,2-2 Southland), 4; New Hampshire (5-4,3-2 CAA), 2; Sacramento State (4-4,2-2 BigSky),2 Pro basketball

EASTERN CONFERENCE

0-74 515 Minott 28:04 6-92-2 2-91 315 Queta 22:10 3-80-0 7-11 03 6

Pritchard30:41 7-15 2-22-3 82 18 White 31:03 5-14 0-00-3 72 11 Simons 32:08 9-17 1-12-6 13 25 Hauser 26:00 3-10 0-00-3 21 9

Garza19:18 5-73-4 3-61 416 Scheierman 13:58 1-30-0 0-60 03 Tillman 6:30 2-20-0 0-01 04 Boucher 3:01 0-10-0 0-00 10 Harper Jr.1:24 0-00-0 0-00 00 Walsh1:24 0-00-0 0-00 00 Totals 240:0046-9512-1516-542524 122

Percentages: FG .484, FT .800. 3-Point Goals: 18-53, .340 (Simons 6-13, Garza3-4, Hauser 3-10, Pritchard2-7, Brown 1-3, Minott 1-3, Scheierman 1-3, White1-9, Boucher 0-1). Team Rebounds:12. Team Turnovers: 1. BlockedShots:7(Queta4,Hauser,Minott, White).

Turnovers: 11 (Brown3,Simons 2, Boucher, Garza, Hauser, Pritchard, Queta, White). Steals: 5(Hauser, Minott, Pritchard, Scheierman, Simons). Technical Fouls: Brown, 1:34 second. FG FT Reb

NOLA Min M-AM-A O-TAPFPTS Jones 22:40 3-83-4 0-20 511 MurphyIII 33:37 3-11 1-20-5 52 7 Missi 19:26 3-45-5 3-73 211 Fears 26:31 1-11 0-01-2 22 2 Poole 34:20 5-14 9-91-2 43 22 Bey 24:15 4-90-0 0-20 011 Queen 21:41 3-76-6 1-30 412 Alvarado 21:40 2-60-0 1-32 05 Hawkins 15:05 0-50-0 1-21 00 Jordan 10:58 3-41-2 1-50 17 Matkovic 3:16 0-10-0 0-00 00 McGowens 3:16 0-20-0 0-0 00 0 Peavy3:16 1-20-0 2-20 02 Totals 240:0028-8425-2811-351719 90

Percentages: FG .333, FT .893. 3-Point Goals: 9-36, .250 (Bey3-7, Poole3-8, Jones 2-4, Alvarado 1-4, Matkovic 0-1, McGowens 0-1, Queen0-1,Hawkins0-2, Fears 0-4, Murphy III 0-4) Team Rebounds:11. Team Turnovers: 1. Turnovers: 13 (Fears 4, Bey3,Jones 2, Alvarado, Missi, Poole, Queen). Steals: 7(Alvarado 2, Bey2,Fears, Poole, Queen). Technical Fouls: Poole, 4:15 fourth. Boston 34 31 22 35 —122 NewOrleans 26 28 24 12 —90 A—16,787 (16,867). T—2:14. Pro baseball MLBpostseason glance x-ifnecessary WORLDSERIES (Best-of-7) LosAngeles2,Toronto2

Williamsonwas addedtothe Pelicans’ injury report on Monday,about five hours before the gameagainst the Celtics.

Williamson,who averaged 27 points, 9.5rebounds, 6assists and 4steals in the first two games of theseason, saiditwas tough havingtowatchMonday’sgame from the bench.

“I’ve been saying ‘it feels good to feel good,’ but it wastough,” Williamson said. “It’salongseason. Even thoughit’sday to day,it was definitelystill frustrating to be on the sideline.”

The Pelicansbegina threegame road trip thisweek. After Wednesday’sgame against the DenverNuggets, the Pels (0-3) play the Los Angeles Clippers on Fridayand the Oklahoma City Thunder on Sunday Email RodWalkeratrwalker@ theadvocate.com.

—Washington, Mariota 8-28

&Pie.

LIVING

Sliceoflife

This BatonRouge man hasaloveaffairwith Elsie’sPlate &Pie.He’s ordered1,564 dishes

Rowley’spies from Elsie’sPlate &Pie

Out of 1,564dishes ordered, here’show manypie items Craig DavisRowleyordered from 2017 to 2025.

Sweet pie: 700

two months after the restaurant opened. For Rowley’s700th visit in October,they created aspecial, Craig’s700th Curry —a green coconut curry with grilled shrimpand afried cilantro rice cake.Theycameupwiththe dish while sitting on their front porch, their spotfor dreaming up ideas forthe restaurant.

BY MADDIE SCOTT Staff writer

SinceElsie’sPlate & Pie opened in 2017, oneman hasproven to be therestaurant’s No. 1fan —and he’s recorded every dish he’sever ordered across 706 visits.

Baton Rouge native Craig DavisRowley,38, haskepttrack of the 1,564 items he’sordered from theMid City restaurant in adetailed 48-page digitaldocument.

Savory pie: 80

Sweet pie nachos: 42

“I usedtoeat pretty much nothing,” Rowley said. “Picky eater as akid —the classic burger-fries-pizza child.”

Others: 740 74

Source:Rowley'srecord

Savorypie nachos: 2

Staffgraphic

Ibasically watch all the specials,because I’ve had everything on the regular menuatleast twice.”

CRAIGDAVIS ROWLEy,Elsie’sPlate &Pie No. 1fan

BY MARGARET DELANEY Staff writer

Dumpling &Bao, an authentic, “100% Asian food” spot serving dumplings,

Aroundthe time he attended Baton Rouge Magnet High School, his aversion tofood lost outtohis aversion to family memberspoking fun at him.

Now,Rowley eats everything except rawoysters. The first time he laid eyes on the Elsie’s Plate &Pie menu, Rowley was impressedbythe unique selection of dishesfrom Southern classics to sweet pies.

“I was like, ‘Well, I’mgoing to try everything on this,’”Rowley said.

The foodie forged afriendship with mom-and-pop co-owners (and highschool sweethearts)

Pauland Lindsay Dupréafter his first visit in November 2017,

“Weput alot of hard work into it,” Paul Dupré said about the restaurant. “Wecare alot. We’re here every day.That all makes sure the quality stays up.”

By thenumbers

“It’sa work in progress,” Rowleysaidabout his color-coded, 48-page record. “It startedout as me writing in an oldcomposition notebook.”

ä See ELSIE’S, page 2D

5713 Essen Lane, Baton Rouge Anything made withbread from St.Bruno is awinner in my book. At Zorba’s, such is thecase withthe lamb burger that features aSt. Bruno briochebun filledwithspicy tzatziki, grilledonions,kasseri cheese andpickles. The dishcomes withfeta fries. First, the fries weretoptier —perfectly

burger wasextra crispy on the outside and tender on the inside, while being just big enough to cut in half forleftovers. Ilove alamb burger because it offers something different than the American burger I’mused to with meat and cheddar cheese. Alamb burger often opens the gates fortzatziki and pickled onions, which is the mostzesty

and

Thefirst 23 pages liste eryitem ever offeredo the menu in alphabetical or der and by category: sweet pies,other sweets, appetiz ers, soups,salads, sides, savory pies, stuff on bread, melts,gourmet hot dogs, kids’ meals, brunch, drinks, mocktails and collabs.

The longest category by far is sweet pies, with 10 pages of dishes.

Twopages are dedicated to listing dishes and spe cials Rowley didn’ttry,title “Stuff Imissed”with acry ing emoji.

The rest of the document, starting from page 26,lis each dish he’seaten and the date, followed by what he ordered. Sometimes he notesthings like when he received items for free or ameal was shared.

Often, he visits just for slice of pie and sits at the bar.Sometimes he orders multiple courses and pie. Sometimes he justgrabs quick entree and no pie. It fluctuates.

Over 706 visits, he ordered 1,564 menu items —700 slices of sweet pie and 80 slices of savory pie. He’salso orderedsweet pienachos42 times, adish with pie dough lightly fried and topped with vanilla ice cream and pie filling. The rest of the 740 items include everything else he’s ordered, like specials, sides or beverages.

“There is no specific goto,” Rowley said about his ordering strategy.“Ibasicallywatch allthe specials because I’ve hadeverything on the regular menu at least twice. If there’ssomething new,I’m probably goingto go get it unless I’m outof town.” His frequency of visits ranges.When the COVID-19 pandemicshook the world in 2020, the restaurant shut down in-persondining for about two months, andRowley ordered nearly every new food item that was offered to-go. He was also there the first day they opened limited capacity dining in mid-May 2020.

On Sept. 10, 2024, he visited the restaurant twice in oneday,anoccurrence that has happened28times.

He visited three separate times on Nov.27, 2019, the day beforeThanksgiving

one of those people who everybody loved. They lived in Lockport, and to thisday, we’ve been open for eight years, and we’ll have people just becausethey’re from Lockport andtheyknew Miss Elsie.”

Many of Elsie’s recipes have been featured on the menu, including her specialties like buttermilk pie and lemonmeringue pie, but Paul Dupré believes those tworecipes maygoback to generations even before Elsie.

national attention whenit wasfeatured on “Guy Fieri’sDiners, Drive-Ins and Dives.”

“With anyartistic thing, whether you’re talking about food or movies or paintings, there’ssome littleitfactor that makes it pop and stand above the rest,” Paul Dupré said. “I don’tknow what it is that makes us have it.”

One of the driving forces forthe Duprés is thecreative element they exercise every day

“If you’re just painting esamepainting overand over again amillion times, becomes uninteresting,” Paul Dupré said. “Doesn’t mean it wasn’t good or isn’t good anymore, but to an artist, there needs to be some evolution. That’swhere the specials come in.”

Creating specials hasbecomeone of Paul Dupré’s vorite tasks, and he’s enjoyed the ever-changing aspect of it.Sometimes he’ll return adishthat’sbeenoff the menu for ayear,orhe’ll createanew andimproved pie flavor

ghtyears of friendship

It’s hard to recreate something like Elsie’sPlate &Pie, and the couple isn’tthinking aboutopening asecondlocation, but they did recently build akitchen next door rcatering orders. Lindsay Dupré hopes theycan open aspace dedicated to events one day,but thatwon’t be anytime soon.

“At the end of the day,you want the heart of thebusiness to stay the same,” Paul Dupré said.

For Rowley,people often suggest he pursueaninfluencer approach to his foodie lifestyle, but he feels that would add pressure to ahobby he loves. As of now,he enjoys posting his plates to aFacebook group called Eat The Boot, with over 117,000 members.

that year.Hewrote: n 139. [11.27.2019] Crab & Corn Bisque (cup), Boudin StuffedPortobello, Caramel Apple Pie Nachos n 140. [11 27.2019]Takeand-Bake Thanksgiving sides:ParmesanWhipped Sweet Potatoes, Queso Mac &Cheese,Cornbread and Sausage Dressing n 141. [11.27.2019] Blue Chicken Sandwich (Fried), Crispy Brussels Sprouts, Grasshopper Pie Hismost-ordered item are the home cut fries (87 orders), followed bythe red beans andrice (44)

“I love thered beans,” Rowley said. “I think they have areally goodtexture, areally good flavor to them. If you get the fried chicken red beans entree, their fried chicken is amazing.”

He’sordered varying burgers 40 times. He ordered the Colorado burger withhomecut fries almost four days in arow on Oct. 12, 13, 14 and 16 in 2020. He said he enjoysthe BBQ burger (ordered six times) and the Highway One burger (ordered eight times)

By averaging each menu itemat$14.46, thevalue of his orderhistory is about $22,600.

Family history

Lindsay Dupré’sgrandmother,Ena, also cooked a lot,and therestaurant uses her custard recipe for the chocolate pieand coconut cream pie. With along history of pies in both of their families, centering thebusiness around the dessert “just made sense,” Lindsay Dupré said.

Therestaurant has found great success andisincluded as alocal favorite by many.The businessdrew

“I go to so manyplaces,” Rowleysaid. “I don’twant to be looking at notifications from my phone constantly.” The eight-year friendship between Rowley and the Duprés has even grown symbiotic. Paul and Lindsay Dupré have the perfect critic to test potentialspecials, somethingthathappens“every once in awhile,” Rowley said. In Paul Dupré’swords, Rowley is “kind of the guinea pig.”

Whether it’s Rowleysitting at thebar witha glass of water and his second slice of strawberry fluff pie or the Duprés working in the kitchen,the three seem to have found their happy spot in Baton Rouge.

The Duprés opened Elsie’sPlate &Pie in 2017 and dedicated therestaurantto Paul’sgrandmother,Elsie MarieCampeau Rupe.It’s afamily restaurant through andthrough, startedbyfamily for family.Many grandchildrenand cousins still get their first jobsatElsie’s.

“Family is veryimportant to us, which is part of why Iwanted ourrestaurantto be afamily restaurant,” Lindsay Dupré said. It’s just another part of the family now.”

Elsie grew up in Lafourche Parish and cooked alot of pies for her husband’ssweet tooth

“She was very talkative,” Paul Dupré said. “She was

Continued from page 1D

Al Pastor tacos

n La Mexicana, 7034 Siegen Lane, Baton Rouge

Tacos sounded good for a quick weekday lunch break, and now looking back, my instincts were correct.

The server brought a basket of chips and a small bowl of salsa to start. It feels silly to hype up free chips and salsa, but the salsa was exceptionally good. Very fresh and very flavorful.

I ordered two al pastor tacos and two beef barbacoa tacos, and both were good, but the al pastor was particularly delicious. The meat was tender and juicy

The server also brought a bowl of lime wedges and a squeeze bottle of salsa verde that added a little kick.

I was three tacos deep until remembering to snap a picture of the last taco, which I devoured later that night before going out with friends.

— Maddie Scott, features reporter

Cuban sandwich n Iverstine Butcher, 7731 Perkins Road, Baton Rouge

I’m on a personal mission to find the best Cuban

sandwich in Baton Rouge, and Iverstine was my first stop. I’ve got to say, it’s craveable.

Piled high with housesmoked ham and pulled pork, the sandwich overflows with Swiss cheese, mayonnaise, mustard and pickles on a hot-pressed Cuban loaf. Every single bite offers a new burst of flavors — whether it be tangy pickles and mustard or smoky pulled pork and the bread is near perfect.

I ate the first half of the sandwich and put the other half in the refrigerator for lunch the next day An hour later, on the phone with a friend, I asked out loud, “Should I have that other half of my sandwich?”

I sure did.

If you have a favorite Cuban sandwich in the city, email me at lauren.cheramie@theadvocate.com.

Lauren Cheramie, features coordinator

Continued from page 1D

cornstarch or flour slurry

The dumplings are some of the best the newspaper has tried outside of Asia. Other highlights on the menu include spicy, redcolored crawfish and pork dumplings, green-colored veggie dumplings and bao buns, egg rolls, fried rice, chow mien and scallion pancakes. The restaurant is decorated with bright red walls, floating wicker lanterns and cartoon dumpling figures which are all sat beneath Chinese linen banners mounted to the ceiling. Dumpling & Bao is open daily from 11 a.m. to 9:30 p.m. and is available for online ordering and pick-up.

Email Margaret DeLaney at margaret.delaney@ theadvocate.com.

By The Associated Press

Today is Wednesday, Oct. 29, the 302nd day of 2025. There are 63 days left in the year Today in history:

On Oct. 29, 1929, ‘Black Tuesday’ descended on the New York Stock Exchange. Stock prices collapsed amid panicked selling, $14 billion in value was lost, and thousands of investors were wiped out, triggering America’s Great Depression.

Also on this date:

In 1922, Benito Mussolini, the founder of fascism, is appointed Italian prime minister by King Victor Emmanuel III. (He was dismissed by Emmanuel in 1943 after the Allied invasion of Italy and was executed by partisans in 1945).

In 1956, the Suez Crisis began as Israel invaded Egypt to seize control of the vital waterway, backed

by France and Britain, after its nationalization by Egypt. (Their forces eventually withdrew after U.S. President Dwight D. Eisenhower’s administration refused to back the effort and threatened sanctions).

In 1998, Sen. John Glenn, at age 77, returned to space aboard the shuttle Discovery, retracing the trail he had blazed as the first American to orbit the Earth in the Friendship 7 Mercury space capsule in 1962.

In 2012, Superstorm Sandy slammed ashore in New Jersey and slowly marched inland, devastating coastal communities and causing widespread power outages; the storm and its aftermath were blamed for at least 182 deaths in the U.S.

and a flight-control system was implicated in the crashes.)

In 2022, more than 150 people were killed and dozens more were injured in South Korea after being crushed by a

In 2018, a Boeing 737 MAX operated by the Indonesian airline Lion Air crashed after takeoff from Jakarta, killing all 189 people on board. (Five months later, an Ethiopian

RedCross in Louisiana serves4.65millionresidentsacrossall64parishesandextendshopeto communitiesacrossthenationandaroundtheworld.Whenyousupportyour localRedCross,youmakeadirectimpactinyourcommunity Poweredbygenerosity. TheRedCrossisnotagovernmentagency.Wearea501(c)(3) nonprofitthatreliesonthepowerofvolunteersandthegenerosity ofdonorstocarryoutourhumanitarianmission. RedCrosssupportersprovideabeaconofhope.Fromhelping duringdisasters,toprovidinglifesavingtrainingandsupporting militarycommunities,theRedCrossistherewhenhelpcan’twait.

sCoRPIo (oct. 24-nov. 22) Express your needs. It's time to implement positive lifestyle changes. It's up to you to create the life that suits you. Travel, educating yourself and new beginnings are in the stars.

sAGITTARIus (nov. 23-Dec. 21) Buildtoward a brighter future. Let go of what has no meaning for you and gravitate toward what excites you and makes you happy. It's time to invest in yourself, your dreams and what fills your heart with passion.

CAPRICoRn (Dec. 22-Jan. 19) Rethink your motives and intentions, and how the choices and actions you take will influence others. How you handle matters will determine your success. Do what's right.

AQuARIus (Jan. 20-Feb. 19) Make health or fitness a goal, and you won't be disappointedbytheresults.Self-improvement, personal growth and financial gains are on the rise.

PIsCEs (Feb. 20-March 20) Keep your plans to yourself until you have everything in place. Check into the legalities and protocols necessary to get your ideas and goals up and running.

ARIEs (March 21-April 19) Send a message with your actions. Change what you don't like and keep moving forward. Utilize your intelligence, conduct thorough research and adapt to meet your specific needs.

TAuRus (April 20-May 20) Update timesensitive documents and schedules that require attention. Spend more time at

home taking care of repairs or moving things around to make your space flow better.

GEMInI (May 21-June 20) Take advantage of any opportunity you get to learn something new. Put your best foot forward, but don't feel pressured to exaggerate to make a lasting impression; truth matters.

CAnCER (June 21-July 22) Avoid overspending on entertainment or when trying to impress someone. You are best off investing in yourself rather than letting money slip through your fingers.

LEo (July 23-Aug 22) You'll devise a unique plan to help a cause or people searching for solutions. Your kindness will offer hope and help you recognize what you can do to make a difference in your community.

VIRGo (Aug. 23-sept. 22) Invest in your space or your future. Make changes for the right reason, not because you are bored.Maintainfocusanddiscipline,and say no if someone crosses a line or asks for too much.

LIBRA (sept. 23-oct. 23) You are ready to undertake an adventure. Ensure you are following a path dedicated to your advancement or something you are passionate about. You'll get higher returns investing in yourself and your happiness.

The horoscope, an entertainment feature, is not based on scientific fact. © 2025 by NEA, Inc., dist. By Andrews McMeel Syndication

Sudoku

InstructIons: Sudoku is anumber-placing puzzle based on a9x9 grid with several given numbers. Theobject is to place the numbers 1to9 in the empty squares so that each row, each column and each 3x3 box contains the same number only once. Thedifficulty level of theSudoku increases from Monday to Sunday.

Yesterday’s Puzzle Answer

nea CroSSwordS La TimeS CroSSword

Bridge

By PHILLIP ALDER

Thomas Fuller,anEnglish curate, author and historian who died in 1661, said, “Ifthou arta master,besometimes blind; if aservant,sometimes deaf.”

If thou art abridge player, be never deaf nor blind. Listen carefully to the auction and watchclosely everycard played.

In today’s deal,South did not draw the logical conclusion from the auction. Look at hishand. He dealt and opened onespade,Westovercalledoneno-trump (strong), and North responded three diamonds. After East passed, whatshould Southhave done?

West’s choice of overcall would not have appealed to everyone. It described the hand strength, but hidher five-card major.

North’sthree-diamond response described her hand well —agood long suit and nothing else. (With astrong hand, shewould have doubled for penalty.)South had no extravalues and no good fit for diamonds, so he shouldhave passed, reaching acontract that could have been made.

Three no-trump, though, had no chance. West, thinking that herpartner had no points, led the heart two, which was theoretically fourth-highest. She purposely falsecarded.

South, thinking Westhad thespade ace and queen, won with his heart jack, played adiamond to dummy’sjack, and ledaclub to his queen. West wonand continued with the heartnine. South wonand played another diamond, but West took her ace and cashed her three heart tricks. East discouraged in spades, and South also pitched twospades.Then West accurately exited with aclub, leaving South stuck in his hand. Thecontract went downfour.

©2025 by NEA,Inc., dist. By Andrews McMeel Syndication

Each Wuzzle is awordriddlewhich creates adisguised word, phrase, name, place, saying, etc. For example: NOON GOOD =GOOD AFTERNOON

Previous answers:

word game

InsTRuCTIons: 1. Words must be of fourormore letters. 2. Words that acquire fourletters by the addition of “s,”such as “bats” or “dies,” are not allowed.3 Additional words made by adding a“d” or an “s” may not be used. 4. Proper nouns, slang words, or vulgar or sexually explicit wordsare not allowed

ToDAy’s WoRD RETAIn: rih-TANE: To keep in possession or use.

Average mark 18 words

Timelimit 35 minutes

Can you find 29 or morewords in RETAIN?

yEsTERDAy’s WoRD —AnALyZED

adze analyze nyala lade laden lady land lane laze lazy lead lean lend zany zeal elan eland dale daze deal dean delay deny

is an equaloppor‐tunity employer anden‐courages theparticipa‐tion of Disadvantaged Business Enterprises (DBE)inall of itspro‐jects. Pro‐posers/Prospective Con‐tractors arestronglyen‐couraged to make posi‐tive effortstoutilize mi‐nority subcontractors for aportion of this project. Proposersare requested to includeintheir pro‐posal adescription of l f i it ti

RECREATION AND PARK COMMISSION FOR THE PARISH OF EAST BATON ROUGE SpecialMeeting –5:00 p.m.

BREC AdministrationBuilding 6201 Florida Boulevard Baton Rouge, Louisiana Commission Minutes October 9, 2025

Call to Order

Aspecial meeting of the Recreation and ParkCommissionfor the Parish of East Baton Rouge (BREC) was held at BREC’sAdministrative Offices on October 9, 2025. The meeting was calledtoorder at 5:00 p.m. by Chairwoman Donna Collins Lewis. Commissioner Dwayne Rogers offered the invocation and Commissioner Mike Polito led the Pledge of Allegiance. Roll was takenand aquorum of Commissioners waspresent, including Donna CollinsLewis, Chair; Clarice Gordon, Vice Chair; Kenneth Pointer,Treasurer; Mike Polito, Collis Temple,III,Dwayne Rogers, Lon Vicknair,Wade Evans, David McDavid, Carl Stagesand Dustin Yates. Staff members present wereJanet Simmons, Interim Superintendent; Reed Richard, Assistant Superintendent of System Planning; Aneatra Boykin, Chief AdministrativeOfficer; Maurice Velasquez, Interim Chief Operating Officer; Johanna Landreneau, Interim Chief Human Resource Officer; Corey Luttrell, Robyn Lott, Jim Fleshman, Angela Harms, RaHarold Lawson, Mike Raby,Steven Knight, Tia Edwards and Ebony Allen. Murphy Foster,legal counsel, was also in attendance. The rest of the audience consisted of other BREC staff, sign languageinterpreters, media, and the public.

Public Comment

Chairwoman Lewis announced that public comment would be allowed prior to avote being taken on any agenda action item and explained the process to be observed.

Adoption of Minutes

Resolved, That the reading of theminutesofthe RegularRecreation and Park Commission Meeting of August 28, 2025, and RegularMeeting of September 25, 2025, be dispensed with, and that they be approved as written Motion by Mr.Evans

Second by Mr.Temple

Therebeing no discussion, Chairwoman Lewis calledfor thevotewith the following results: Yeas: 11

Nays: 0

The motion was approved unanimously

Commissioner Politomade the motiontomove item IX.A, under UnfinishedBusinessand General Orders, to be addressed prior to the ReportsofOfficers and Standing Advisory Committees.The motion was secondedbyCommissioner Evans.

Therebeing no discussion, Chairwoman Lewis calledfor thevotewith the following results: Yeas: 11

Nays: 0 The motion was unanimously approved.

Unfinished Business and General Orders

Chairwoman Lewis read the followingresolution:

Resolved,That the Commission approve the newly proposed draft of the BREC and Civic Collaborative Foundation agreement. Motionby Mr.Polito Second by Mr.Evans

ChairwomanLewis requested clarificationfromlegal counsel, Murphy Foster,regarding how to proceed.

Mr.Foster stated that sincetherewas amotionand asecond on the agenda item, public comment must be held prior to Commission discussion.

Chairwoman Lewis then opened the floor forpublic comment, beginning with comments receivedbyemail.

Thefollowing individuals expressed opposition to the cooperative endeavor agreement (CEA) via email: Myrtis Fontenot, Don Zito, Paulette Hargroder, Blake Panepinto, Vincent Fornais, Marques Leger,Phillip Lillard, Bill Huey,KyleLandrem, Matthew Melsheimer,Jay Lastrapes, Liz Centanni, Barry Landry,John Johnson, III, Jordan Stage,Stephanie Potts, Bill &Jill Jones, and Kim Faulk.

Also via email, Dan Boudreaux proposed that the CEA be deferredto the next meeting.

Chairwoman Lewis then announced the members of theaudience who submitted public comments but did not wish to speak, all of which wereinopposition to the CEA:Lynn Simon, LarryJonas, Ji Ji Jonas, and Debi O’Neal.

ChairwomanLewis then acknowledgedthe membersofthe audience who wished to speak, noting that eachspeaker would be allotted two minutes.

Peter Davis, representingFriends of CityPark, expressed opposition to the CEA. Coleman Brown, representingEast BatonRouge Parish Chamber (Small Business), expressed opposition to the CEA

Brian D. McDaniel expressed opposition to the CEA

Gi Gi Grimes requested clarificationabout the conservancy and ultimately expressed opposition to the CEA

Commissioner Polito calleda point of order,requesting that ChairwomanLewis advise speakers to limit comments to the master plan, noting that it does not involve aconservancy

Stan Spring, representing Friends of City Park, expressed opposition to the CEA.

Susan E. Dixon expressed oppositiontothe CEA

Brian Dubreul expressed opposition to the CEA

Christina Melton, representing KnockKnock Children’sMuseum, stated that regardless of the outcome, as an integralpart of City-Brooks Park, theMuseum should be informed of and included in any future planning decisions.

Chairwoman Lewis then opened the floor fordiscussionbythe Commissioners.

Commissioner Polito asked Chairwoman Lewis for permission to read acomment he had received.Chairwoman Lewis granted the request.

Commissioner Polito then read amessage from Rob Stewart, Head of the LSU Foundation, expressing support for the CEA

Commissioner Evanscommented that theCEA doesnot assign any property or establish afutureoperation that BREC is bound to. He emphasizedthat it is amaster plan forthe entireCity-BrooksParkarea. He further stated that this is an opportunity tocome togethertocreate something great for the future, noting that the $300,000 investment is small compared to what BREChas spent in the past on plans that were never implemented.

Commissioner Polito asked Reed Richard, Assistant Superintendent ofSystem Planning, if he waspart of the decision to hireSasaki forthe creation of the master plan. Mr.Richardconfirmed that he was.

Commissioner Politothen inquired about Mr.Richard’sedits to the CEAand his goals in making those changes. Mr.Richardexplained that the edits stemmed from concerns about maintaining the lakes. He noted that the original master plan from 2016 statedthat BatonRouge Area Foundation (BRAF) wouldbecreatingaconservancy,and in Fall 2024, partners wereapproached regarding how to sustain and maintain the lakes after completion. At that time, therewas no discussionabout the park, only the lakes project. He addedthat the conversation about a master plan was separate, as BREC plans to construct acontemporary artscenter and improve connectivity within City Park.

posal a description of plans for minority partic‐ipationunder this Con‐tractassuppliers or sub‐contractors. Allquestions concerning theSolicitationand Con‐tractDocuments must be received in accordance with theScheduleof Events cited in theSolici‐tation documentsand as furtherdefinedinthe Proposer InquiryPeriods sectionofthe same doc‐ument. *Note: BREC haselected to useLaPAC,the state’s online electronic bid postingand notification system,inaddition to its standard meansofad‐vertisingthisrequire‐ment.LaPAC is resident h i ment LaPAC is resident on StatePurchasing’s websiteat https:// wwwcfprd.doa.louisiana. gov/osp/lapac/pubMain. cfm andisavailable for vendor self-enrollment. In that LaPACprovides an immediatee-mailno‐tification to subscribing biddersthata solicita‐tion andany subsequent addendahavebeen let andposted, notice and receiptthereof is consid‐ered formally givenasof theirrespectivedates of posting. Though notre‐quired if receivingsolici‐tation andaddendano‐ticesfrom LaPAC, BREC will mail addendatoall vendorscontactingour office andrequestingto be put on ouroffice Ven‐d Li ti f thi li i

be put on our office Ven dor Listing for thissolici‐tation RECREATION AND PARK COMMISSION FORTHE PARISH OF EAST BATONROUGE /s/ JanetSimmons BREC Interim Superintendent THEADVOCATE BATONROUGE LOUISIANA To be Published# Times: 10/29/25, 11/4/25 and 11/10/25 164435 Oct. 29, Nov. 4, 10, 3t $139.62

Commissioner Polito asked Mr.Richardifhewas stating that thereis aneed for amaster plan to interconnect the area. Mr.Richardconfirmed that he was. CommissionerPolitothen responded that hiseditstothe CEAdid not appear to address those concerns and again asked Mr Richardtoclarify hisgoal in making the edits. Mr.Richardstated that hisprimary goal was to ensurethat management controlremained with BREC.Commissioner Polito asked Mr.Richardif, based on his edits, he was attempting to restrict the master planner.Mr. Richardresponded no.

Commissioner Gordon asked Mr.Richardif, at any point in BREC’s history,another nonprofitorganization had been hiredtomanagea master plan without BREC maintainingtotal control. Mr.Richardresponded no.

CommissionerGordon then read apersonallydrafted statement expressing her commitment to working collaborativelyonbehalf of BREC to meetthe community’sneeds. She stated that the current CEAdoes not reflectatruly collaborative approach.

Commissioner Rogers expressed concernregarding the urgency to executethe CEA. Commissioner Rogers then asked Mr.Richardifa master plan for City-Brooks Park already exists. Mr.Richardresponded no, noting thatthe previous plan had been completed and was no longer active.

CommissionerVicknairstated that the community’sconcernwas that the park would be taken over and BREC would relinquish control. He clarified that the CEAcontains no such language. He further explained that the concerns expressed wererelated to improvements, design updates, and changes to the park, and confirmed that the purpose of the CEAisto accomplish those goals.

Commissioner Yates commented on stakeholder involvement in the master plan process. He stated that thereisnothing in the CEAthat prohibits groups from participating in the development of the master plan. He emphasized that thisisnot aunilateral takeover and that BREC is not relinquishing control.

Commissioner Pointer asked Mr.Foster if,inhis opinion, entering into thisagreement withBRAFwould be goodbusinessfor BREC

Mr.Foster responded that the decision ultimatelyrests withthe Commission, not withhim.Headded that the Commission should first clarifywhich CEAthey arevoting on, as the version submitted by BRAF and the version edited by Mr.Richardare two different agreements. He further explained that BREC is not obligatedtoimplement the plan once developed; the vote wouldsimply authorizeBRAFtoproduce aplan on behalfofBREC.

Commissioner Yates then asked Mr.Foster whether the stakeholders listed in the CEAconstituteanexhaustive list. Mr.Foster confirmed that it is an exhaustive list and noted that,while BREC is aparticipant, the agreement gives BRAF fullauthority to make final decisions and does not requireBRAFtoconsider inputfromothers.

Commissioner Stages stated that apotential compromise would be for BREC to fund the entire study and provide it to the community as abasis for moving forward. He then expressed his intent to make a substitutemotion.

Commissioner Temple, IIIasked the publicinattendance if their opinions wouldchange, knowing that golf wouldbea priority Susan Dixon approached the podium and stated that she would remaininopposition. Brian Dubreul also expressed continued opposition.

Commissioner Temple, IIIadded that he had been presented withreimagined designs forgolfand noted that he is hearing from the community that theydonot want those changes.

Commissioner Polito raiseda point of order regarding whether the agenda item under discussion was Mr.Richard’sedited version of the CEA.

AneatraBoykin, Chief Administrative Officer,confirmed that two versionsofthe CEAwereattached to the agenda and the Commission wouldneed to designatewhich version they areapproving.

Commissioner Polito then clarified his motion: he intended to move forwardwiththe unedited version of the CEAsubmitted by BRAF the previous week. He proposed removing the words “and Conservancy Model” from the Preamble and adding to Article 3.1 that BREC would have inputintothe methods and procedures used to collectinput from the community. Commissioner Evans seconded the revisions to the motion.

Commissioner Rogers raiseda point of order,asking whether Commissioner Polito’sclarificationnullified hisoriginal motion or was simply aclarification. He added that Commissioner Stages had attempted to make asubstitutemotionatthe appropriatetime but had not been able to,and asked which motionshouldbeaddressed first.

Mr.Foster provided guidance, stating that Commissioner Polito’s clarificationofhis motion, after learning that multiple versions of the CEA withdiffering languageexist,was proper

Chairwoman Lewis asked for clarificationofwhat Commissioner Polito’schange was meant to do. Commissioner Polito explained that the conservancy modellanguage was causing confusion and should be removed, as establishing aconservancy is notthe goal

Chairwoman Lewis asked whether the removalofthe conservancy language applied throughout the agreement or onlyinthe Preamble. Commissioner Polito clarified that hisproposal applied onlytothe Preamble.

Ms.Boykinapproached the podium to read Commissioner Polito’s clarified motion, referencing the original CEAsubmitted by BRAF,page one, last paragraph.

Chairwoman Lewis asked why the languagewas being removed from one place and not elsewhereinthe document

Commissioner Polito responded that he wasn’tasked to.Hefurther statedthat the version of the CEAhehad did not contain the same language.

Chairwoman Lewis noted that he was reading aversion of the CEA that was not attached to the agenda.

Commissioner Evans asked how it was possibletohave two CEAs on the agenda.

Ms.Boykinexplained that BRAF submitted two CEAs on Friday,and on Monday,Mr. Richardrevised the CEA, which was then sent to the Commission the same day

Commissioner Evans questioned why Mr.Richardwas making edits to the CEAifhewas not BREC’s Partnerships and Development Manager

Ms.Boykinexplainedthat Mr.Richardisanexpert in master planning and has always been involved in that area. She deferred to Mr.Richard, who confirmed that statement and added that he had been part of the initial conversationswithBRAFinApril 2024.

Commissioner Evans asked whether the original CEAsubmitted by BRAF designatedthem as the manager of the master plan and whether Mr.Richardwould have the time to manageithimself.

Mr.Richardstated that he would not have time to manageit, which is why BREC wouldhireaconsultant

CommissionerEvans asked if paying Sasaki $600,000 would allow BREC to maintain control of the master plan. Mr.Richardclarified that the payment would be for developing amaster plan specifically forCityPark, not the entire area.

Commissioner Gordon asked Mr.Richardthe cost of the master plan. Mr.Richardexplainedthat it was approximately $400,000.

Chairwoman Lewis asked Ms. Boykin to read the motiononthe floor.

Ms. Boykinstatedthatthe motion provides, that whereverthe term “conservancy” appears, it would be deletedfromthe agreement,and that Article 3.1would be amendedtoinclude language providing for input from thecommunity

Commissioner Polito asked howmanytimes theterm “conservancy” appeared in theagreement

Ms. Boykinthenidentified andnotated each instance of theterm

Commissioner Polito noted that theterm “conservancy” does notappear in theFriday document,but that he received an additional document with edits on Tuesday.Hereiteratedhis motion to accept the BRAF agreement as submitted, withthe inclusion of language providing input from thecommunity

Some confusion arose among theCommissionersregardingwhether theCEA received on Friday, October3rd,could be votedon, since it was notthe version listedonthe agenda

Mr.Fosterprovided guidance,statingthatthe Commission maymake edits during themeeting as longastheyare germane to theitemunder consideration

Commissioner Rogers confirmedthathealso received theCEA on Friday, October3rd,which did notinclude theconservancylanguage

Commissioner Polito clarified that he is opentomovingforwardwith theBRAFagreement that is on theagenda, rather than theFriday version, while retaining thepreviouslyproposed language regardingcommunity input.Hefurtheremphasized that he does notwantanyonetobe excludedfromthe process.

For clarification, Ms. BoykinreadCommissioner Polito’sclarified motion: Resolved, That theCommission accept theversion of theBRAF agreement includedin theagenda packet,toremove theconservancy modellanguage throughoutthe agreement andtoinclude language in Article 3.1thatallowsfor community input that BREC directs. Motion by Mr.Polito SecondbyMr. Evans

Mr.Fosterasked if therewereany questions regardingthe motion currentlyonthe floor

Commissioner Stagesmade asubstitute motion to rejectthe draft of theCEA beforethe Commission andthatisproposed to be amendedand to authorize BREC stafftohireSasaki to conduct amaster plan anddothe study for City-Brooks Park andthe Lakes District.

SecondbyMs. Gordon

ChairwomanLewis openedthe floor for discussion on thesubstitute motion.

Commissioner Gordon commentedthatthe substitute motion would address theissueofinvolvinganintermediary,which hasnot been donebeforeatBREC. ShestatedthatBRAFisnot collaborative and emphasizedthatBRECismoreeffective workingcollaborativelyonits own. Shefurtheraddedthatshe is inviting theCity-Parish andLSU to partner with BREC in this collaborative effort

Chairwomancalled for arollcall vote on thesubstitute motion. The resultsare as follows: Yeas: 7Ms. Lewis, Ms. Gordon,Mr. Pointer, Mr.Rogers, Mr.Temple, Mr.McDavid, Mr.Stages Nays: 4Mr. Polito, Mr.Vicknair, Mr.Evans,Mr. Yates

Absent: 0 Thesubstitute motion passed.

Commissioner Wade Evans left themeeting.

Reports of Officersand Standing Committees

ChairwomanLewisacknowledged Interim Janet Simmons for the Superintendent’sReport.

Commissioner DustinYates left themeeting.

Interim Superintendent Janet Simmons beganher report by presentingthe Obsolete Land List for theCommission to reviewand provide guidance on next steps.

Commissioner Stagesasked what theprocess wasondeciding how to dispose of theproperties.

Interim Superintendent Simmons stated that she wasunsureofthe exactprocess but assumed theCommission would need to revieweach property to determine next steps. Shenoted that reducingthe amountof property ownedbyBRECwas atask identified in theIYP3 masterplan. ChairwomanLewisinquired about Item 20 on theObsolete Land List, askingifitwas theproperty across thestreetfromthe church.Interim Superintendent Simmons confirmedthatitwas.

Commissioner Stagesasked if Mr.Richard could provide detailed steps for theprocess. Mr.Richard explained that once theCommission approvesthe list, properties would either be returnedtothe city or school board. If aproperty is to be sold, BREC would introduce an ordinance,hold apublic hearingatthe followingregularmeeting to hear anyopposition, andthen, with Commission approval, proceed with advertisingand receivingbids for theproperties.

Commissioner David McDavidleftthe meeting.

Chairwomanasked if appraisals aredoneonthe properties. Mr Richardconfirmed that they areand that BREC cannot sell them for less than what they areworth

ChairwomanLewisasked if therewereany additional questions.

Commissioner Stagesasked what themotion would be for this item.

ChairwomanLewisreadthe followingresolution:

Resolved, That theCommission reviewthe proposed Obsolete Land List, RepurposedRec Center List, andCapitalProject List presented by BREC staff.

Commissioner Rogers asked whether theCommission wasadopting each of these lists.

Interim Superintendent Simmons clarified that theCommission was only reviewing theObsolete Land List. Sheexplained that multiplelists were submittedfor review, but theprocess hadnot beencompleted. She added that AI software trackingfoottrafficatBRECparks is being used to determine whichparks mayneed to be added to theObsolete Land List in thefuture.

Commissioner Stagesnoted an erroronthe agenda,statingthathis resolution read: Resolved, That theCommission approve theproposed Obsolete Land List, RepurposedRec Center List, andCapitalProject List presented by BREC staff.

It wasconfirmed during themeeting that theresolution wasan erroneousmistakeand that no vote wastaking placeonthe Obsolete Land List.

Adjournment Commissioner Polito made amotion to adjournthe meeting. The motion wasseconded by Commissioner Gordon.ChairwomanLewis adjournedthe meeting at approximately6:50 p.m. without objection

Janet C. Simmons,Interim Superintendent Donna Collins-Lewis,Chairwoman andEx-Officio Secretary

DRAFT

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