The Acadiana Advocate 01-31-2026

‘Louisiana

has the assets to be incredibly successful’

Commerce Secretary Lutnick sees bright future for state

BY MARK BALLARD Staff writer

WASHINGTON — U.S. Commerce

Secretary Howard Lutnick pointed to huge projects being developed in Louisiana and said the pieces are in place for the state to become the next generation’s economic powerhouse.

“Great assets left in the garage don’t produce anything. You need leadership. You need the talent You need drive,” Lutnick said in a luncheon at Washington Mardi Gras on Friday “Louisiana has the assets to be incredibly successful.”

Gov Jeff Landry said the state’s energy economy and infrastructure is fueling that growth

WASHINGTON MARDI GRAS INSIDE

ä While in town for Mardi Gras, New Orleans Mayor Moreno gets chance to meet with President Trump. Page 5A

ä Photos from Friday’s activities in Washington. Page 5A

Eight escape from jail in N. La.

2 men facing murder charges in Lafayette among escapees

BY CLAIRE TAYLOR Staff writer

Two men who face murder charges in Lafayette escaped from the River Bend Detention Center in Lake Providence alongside six other detainees. The escape took place late Thursday, according to a spokesperson for the East Carroll Parish Sheriff’s Office. Other details are slim.

One of the men, Kopelon Vicknair, 18, of Arnaudville, was due in a Lafayette Parish courtroom for sentencing on Wednesday, the day before his escape. Vicknair and fellow escapee Kolin Looney, 21, were charged with second-degree murder in separate incidents.

Vicknair signed a plea deal pleading guilty to the reduced charge of manslaughter and agreeing to a 10-year sentence, according to a defendant’s sentencing brief his attorney filed Tuesday While incarcerated at the Lafayette Juvenile Detention Center, he became the first ever inmate to graduate from the Reformative Instruction and Skills Enhancement, or R.I.S.E., program. He also passed the high school equivalency test.

“For so long, our citizens have been used to bad news. They don’t know or they don’t believe because when they heard good news before, they didn’t believe it was sustainable,” Landry said. Landry and Lutnick addressed the Washington Mardi Gras Economic Development Luncheon & Reception, one of the centerpieces of the four-day event. Since the 1940s, the annual carnival festivities have given business leaders and elected officials a chance to socialize and

ä See ASSETS, page 4A

Addison Rae gets billboard after Grammy nomination

Display part of Spotify campaign

BY JA’KORI MADISON Staff writer

A Spotify-sponsored billboard in Lafayette is honoring Addison Rae’s first Grammy nomination for Best New Artist at the 68th annual Grammy Awards. The billboard, located on Ambassador Caffery Parkway and Robley Drive and facing south, features a baby photo of Rae wearing a pageant sash and crown alongside the tagline: “Pageant beginnings. Pop stardom destiny.” The display is part of a global

Spotify campaign spotlighting this year’s Best New Artist nominees. Other rising stars featured include KATSEYE, Olivia Dean and Leon Thomas. Each ad uses a childhood image to highlight the early dreams and passions that helped shape the artists’ paths to success.

“We had a feeling Addison Rae was one to watch from the moment her debut single ‘Obsessed’ landed on New Music Friday in 2021,” Spotify said in a news release on its website.

Born in Lafayette and raised in Shreveport, Rae began building her following in 2019 by posting dance and lip-sync videos on TikTok. Her

Looney’s trial was supposed to take place in August, but he was not transferred from River Bend Detention Center in Lake Providence. His trial has been reset for March 9.

Looney is accused in the shooting death of Paul Bernard Jr., 18, whose body was found Jan. 13, 2024, in the 400 block of Leisure Field Drive in Broussard.

Officers with the Broussard

DOJ opens civil rights probe of Minn. killing

BY MICHAEL BIESECKER,

SANTANA and

DURKIN RICHER Associated Press

WASHINGTON The Justice Department has opened a federal civil rights investigation into the shooting of Alex Pretti, the Minneapolis resident killed Saturday by Border Patrol officers, Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche said Friday

“We’re looking at everything that would shed light on what happened that day and in the days and weeks leading up to what happened,” Blanche said during a news conference. Blanche did not explain why

the DOJ decided to open an investigation into Pretti’s killing, but has said a similar probe is not warranted in the Jan 7 death of Renee Good, who was shot by an Immigration and Customs Enforcement officer in Minneapolis. He said only on Friday that the Civil Rights Division does not investigate every law enforcement shooting and that there have to be circumstances and facts that “warrant an investigation.”

“President Trump has said repeatedly, ‘Of course, this is something we’re going to investigate,’” Blanche said of the

ä See PROBE, page 6A

Thousand face arctic blast without power

BELZONI, Miss. As tens of thousands of people endured nearly a week with no electricity, another storm loomed on the East Coast where residents braced for nearhurricane force winds, heavy snow and potential flooding.

More than 230,000 homes and businesses were without electricity Friday, with the vast majority of those outages in Mississippi and Tennessee, according to the outage tracking website poweroutage.us.

In Mississippi’s Lafayette County, where about 12,000 people were still without electricity midday Friday, emergency management agency spokesperson Beau Moore said he knows not everyone will get power back before the cold hits.

Workers are attacking the project by ground and air A video on the Tennessee Valley Authority’s Facebook page shows a worker sitting on the skids of a hovering helicopter so they can repair a giant power structure.

Arctic air moving into the Southeast will cause already frigid temperatures to plummet into the teens on Friday night in cities like Nashville, Tennessee, where many still lacked power nearly a week after a massive storm dumped snow and ice across the eastern U.S., the National Weather Service said.

Forecasters say the subfreezing weather will persist in the eastern U.S. into February and there’s high chance of heavy snow in the Carolinas, Virginia and northeast Georgia this weekend, possibly up to a foot in parts of North Carolina. Snow is also possible along the East Coast from Maryland to Maine Satellite photos show activity at Iran nuke sites

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates As tensions soar over Iran’s bloody crackdown on nationwide protests, satellite images show activity at two Iranian nuclear sites bombed last year by Israel and the United States that may be a sign of Tehran trying to obscure efforts to salvage any materials remaining there.

The images from Planet Labs PBC show roofs have been built over two damaged buildings at the Isfahan and Natanz facilities, the first major activity noticeable by satellite at any of the country’s stricken nuclear sites since Israel’s 12-day war with Iran in June. Those coverings block satellites from seeing what’s happening on the ground right now the only way for inspectors from the International Atomic Energy Agency to monitor the sites as Iran has prevented access. Iran has not publicly discussed the activity at the two sites. The IAEA, a watchdog agency of the United Nations, did not respond to requests for comment President Donald Trump repeatedly has demanded Iran negotiate a deal over its nuclear program to avert threatened American military strikes over the country’s crackdown on protesters.

Extreme cold delays manned Artemis launch

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. — NASA has delayed astronauts’ upcoming trip to the moon because of nearfreezing temperatures expected at the launch site. The first Artemis moonshot with a crew is now targeted for no earlier than Feb. 8, two days later than planned.

NASA was all set to conduct a fueling test of the 322-foot moon rocket on Saturday, but called everything off late Thursday because of the expected cold. The critical dress rehearsal is now set for Monday weather permitting. The change leaves NASA with only three days in February to send four astronauts around the moon and back, before slipping into March.

DOJ releases more Epstein files

Department says it’s releasing 3 million pages

BY ERIC TUCKER, MICHAEL R. SISAK and ALANNA DURKIN RICHER Associated Press

NEW YORK The Justice Department on Friday released many more records from its investigative files on Jeffrey Epstein, resuming disclosures under a law intended to reveal what the government knew about the millionaire financier’s sexual abuse of young girls and his interactions with rich and powerful people including Donald Trump and Bill Clinton.

Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche said the department was releasing more than 3 million pages of documents in the latest Epstein disclosure, as well as more than 2,000 videos and 180,000 images. The files, which were being posted to the department’s website, include some of the several million pages of records that officials said were withheld from an initial release of documents in December

The documents were disclosed under the Epstein Files Transparency Act, the law enacted after months of public and political pressure that requires the government to open its files on the late financier and his confidant and onetime girlfriend, Ghislaine Maxwell. Lawmakers complained

when the Justice Department made only a limited release last month, but officials said more time was needed to review an additional trove of documents that was discovered and to review the records to ensure no sensitive information about victims was inadvertently released.

“Today’s release marks the end of a very comprehensive document identification and review process to ensure transparency to the American people and compliance with the act,” Blanche said at a news conference announcing the disclosure.

Friday’s disclosure is likely to represent the largest document dump about a saga that the Trump administration has struggled to shake and that has long animated online sleuths, conspiracy theorists and

others who have suspected government cover-ups and clamored for a full accounting, demands that even Blanche acknowledged might not be satisfied by the latest release.

“There’s a hunger, or a thirst, for information that I don’t think will be satisfied by review of these documents,” he said. After missing a Dec. 19 deadline set by Congress to release all of the files, the Justice Department said it tasked hundreds of lawyers with reviewing the records to determine what needed to be redacted, or blacked out. But it denied any effort to shield Trump, who says he cut ties with Epstein years ago despite an earlier friendship, from potential embarrassment Among the materials being withheld from release Friday is information that

could jeopardize any ongoing investigation or expose the identities of potential victims of sex abuse. All women other than Maxwell have been redacted from videos and images being released Friday, Blanche said.

“We did not protect President Trump We didn’t protect or not protect anybody,” Blanche said. The number of documents subject to review has ballooned to roughly 6 million, including duplicates, the department said.

The latest batch of records shows that prosecutors over the years received tips from people with wild stories about being sexually abused by famous figures. In some instances, FBI investigators diligently reached out to these tipsters and alleged victims and listened to their implausiblesounding stories — some

involving the occult and human sacrifice — and then wrote dry reports summarizing what the people had to say and sent them to their superiors.

The cache also included email correspondence between prosecutors, printouts of thousands of emails that Epstein either sent or received, news clippings and reports written by FBI agents summarizing their interviews with witnesses and alleged victims in the investigation.

As was the case with many previous releases of documents related to Epstein, much material was blacked out. Some of the reports on FBI interviews had entire pages blacked out, along with the name of the person who was being interviewed.

The Justice Department released tens of thousands of pages of documents just before Christmas, including photographs, interview transcripts, call logs and court records. Many of them were either already public or heavily blacked out.

Those records included previously released flight logs showing that Trump flew on Epstein’s private jet in the 1990s before they had a falling out, and several photographs of Clinton. Neither Trump, a Republican, nor Clinton, a Democrat, has been publicly accused of wrongdoing in connection with Epstein, and both have said they had no knowledge he was abusing underage girls.

Don Lemon charged in anti-ICE church protest

Journalist faces federal civil rights counts

BY JAIMIE DING, ALANNA DURKIN RICHER and ERIC TUCKER Associated Press

LOS ANGELES Journalist

Don Lemon was released from custody Friday after he was arrested and hit with federal civil rights charges over his coverage of an anti-immigration enforcement protest that disrupted a service at a Minnesota church

Lemon was arrested Thursday while across the country in Los Angeles, while another independent journalist and two protest participants were arrested in Minnesota.

The arrests brought sharp criticism from news media advocates and civil rights activists including the Rev Al Sharpton, who said the Trump administration is

taking a “sledgehammer” to “the knees of the First Amendment.”

The four were indicted on charges of conspiracy and interfering with the First Amendment rights of worshippers during the Jan. 18 protest at the Cities Church in St. Paul, where a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement official is a pastor In federal court in Los Angeles, Assistant U.S. Attorney Alexander Robbins argued for a $100,000 bond, telling a judge that Lemon “knowingly joined a mob that stormed into a church.”

He was released, however, without having to post money and was granted permission to travel to France in June while the case is pending.

Defense attorney Marilyn Bednarski said Lemon

plans to plead not guilty and fight the charges Lemon, who was fired from CNN in 2023 following a bumpy run as a morning host, has said he has no affiliation to the organization that went into the church and he was there as a solo journalist chronicling protesters.

“Don has been a journalist for 30 years, and his constitutionally protected work in Minneapolis was no different than what he has always done,” his lawyer, Abbe Lowell, said in a statement. “The First Amendment exists to protect journalists whose role it is to shine light on the truth and hold those in power accountable.”

Attorney General Pam Bondi promoted the arrests on social media.

“Make no mistake. Under President Trump’s leadership and this administration, you have the right to worship freely and safely,” Bondi said in a video posted online. “And if I haven’t been clear already, if you

Judge bars feds from seeking death penalty against Luigi Mangione

BY MICHAEL R. SISAK and LARRY NEUMEISTER Associated Press

NEW YORK Federal prosecutors can’t seek the death penalty against Luigi Mangione in the killing of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson, a federal judge ruled Friday, foiling the Trump administration’s bid to see him executed for what it called a “premeditated, coldblooded assassination that shocked America.” Judge Margaret Garnett dismissed a federal murder charge that had enabled prosecutors to seek capital punishment, finding it technically flawed. She wrote that she did so to “foreclose the death penalty as an available punishment to be considered by the jury” as it weighs whether to con-

vict Mangione. Garnett also dismissed a gun charge but left in place stalking charges that carry a maximum punishment of life in prison. To seek the death penalty, prosecutors needed to show that Mangione killed Thompson while committing another “crime of violence.” Stalking doesn’t fit that definition, Garnett wrote in her opinion, citing case law and legal precedents. In a win for prosecutors, Garnett ruled they can use evidence collected from his backpack during his arrest, including a 9 mm handgun and a notebook in which authorities say Mangione described his intent to “wack” an insurance executive. Mangione’s lawyers had sought to exclude those items, arguing the search was illegal because

police hadn’t yet obtained a warrant.

During a hearing Friday, Garnett gave prosecutors 30 days to update her on whether they’ll appeal her death penalty decision. A spokesperson for the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Manhattan, which is prosecuting the federal case, declined to comment Garnett acknowledged that the decision “may strike the average person — and indeed many lawyers and judges as tortured and strange, and the result may seem contrary to our intuitions about the criminal law.” But, she said, it reflected her “committed effort to faithfully apply the dictates of the Supreme Court to the charges in this case. The law must be the Court’s only concern.”

violate that sacred right, we are coming after you.”

Since he left CNN, Lemon has joined the legion of journalists who have gone into business for himself, posting regularly on YouTube He hasn’t hidden his disdain for President Donald Trump. Yet during his online show from the church, he said repeatedly: “I’m not here as an activist. I’m here as a journalist.” He described the scene before him, and interviewed churchgoers and demonstrators.

A magistrate judge last week rejected prosecutors’ initial bid to charge the veteran journalist Shortly after, he predicted on his show that the administration would try again.

“And guess what,” he said. “Here I am. Keep trying. That’s not going to stop me from being a journalist. That’s not going to diminish my voice. Go ahead, make me into the new Jimmy Kimmel, if you want. Just do it Because I’m not going anywhere.”

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INSIDE WASHINGTON MARDI GRAS

ASSETS

from page 1A

talk business.

Carnival events take place at the Washington Hilton, which renames its bar the “65th Parish.” Corporations, trade associations and public interest groups also hold parties around town to take advantage of the crowds gathering for Washington Mardi Gras.

The luncheon was hosted by COLAB, a regional economic development organization for Assumption, Lafourche, St. Mary and Terrebonne parishes.

About 800 attendees dined on burrata salad and roasted chicken that was somewhat spicier than what’s usually served at Washington hotels Organizers said they had a long waiting list.

“The luncheon was a tougher ticket this year probably because Secretary Lutnick was speaking,” said Christy Zeringue, head of COLAB. “The bayou region contributes to the maritime economy, oil and gas, and national defense. We are proud to represent the region at Washington Mardi Gras.” The dining room was elbow-toelbow, despite the wintry weather in both Louisiana and Washington that kept many participants from attending this 77th edition of Washington Mardi Gras.

Entergy Louisiana CEO Philip May, for instance, was unable to attend as he remained in Louisiana to oversee getting the lights back on after the winter storm this past weekend, said Jody Montelaro, Entergy Louisiana’s vice president of public affairs.

Washington Mardi Gras King Gray Stream said one of the biggest reasons for accepting the kingship was his position chairing the Louisiana Economic Development Partnership Board, a panel of private sector advisers developing a strategic plan for economic development.

Louisiana’s pull in White House

As chair of this year’s Washington Mardi Gras, House Majority Leader Steve Scalise, R-Jefferson, chose Lutnick to address the economic development luncheon. He

is the first Cabinet secretary to address the retreat in at least the 17 years Scalise has been in Congress, he said.

“Howard is one of the shining stars in President Trump’s Cabinet,” Scalise said.

As former head of Cantor Fitzgerald, a worldwide financial services firm, Lutnick understands that a partnership between business leaders, legislators, and officials in state and federal government is necessary to build a good business climate, Scalise said.

In most of the major projects that have come recently to Louisiana, Lutnick sat in the White House’s Oval Office, along with the president, business moguls, and elected officials negotiating terms and identifying hurdles, Scalise said.

“These deals don’t just happen,” Scalise said. Lutnick knows how

to get deals done. “We’ve been the beneficiaries in Louisiana.”

The luncheon coincided with the 54th birthday of House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-Benton.

Lutnick joked about how fun it was to celebrate Johnson’s birthday, saying he was surprised the speaker had so many friends.

Lutnick talks Trumponomics

The Trump administration’s largest support comes from economic successes and its biggest danger is voters not understanding what the president is up to.

Lutnick explained that Trump is using tariffs levied on other countries to level trade imbalances and to raise money that could be used to offset taxes being paid by Americans.

The U.S. invents new technologies, new products, new conveniences, he said But those inno-

vations are turned over to other countries that can manufacture the goods cheaper, then sell the products back to American consumers.

Then those other countries use the sales profits to buy American assets, Lutnick said.

In 2024, other countries owned $26 trillion more in American assets than U.S. investors owned in other countries, he said.

Critics have argued the tariffs have raised prices for Americans and angered longtime allies across the globe.

“That is what Donald Trump called out,” Lutnick said.

Trump wants to return manufacturing capabilities to the U.S., then use American innovation to make products, Lutnick said.

“We’re going to help get permits. We’re going to drive investment,” he told the crowd.

For instance, computer chips made overseas should be made in the U.S. and could provide high wages.

“Affordability means, how much am I making versus how much does stuff cost,” Lutnick said. “The way you hit affordability is you get people’s incomes up. That’s where we’re focused.”

Louisiana all in on energy

Landry focused his speech on Louisiana’s energy

“Energy has always shaped Louisiana’s economy But today it’s driving growth that we haven’t

seen certainly in decades,” Landry said. “We’re winning projects in Louisiana because we can deliver energy, not just in the form of oil and gas but in the form of electricity.”

When Meta was looking for a site to construct the company’s largest artificial intelligence center in Richland Parish at a cost of about $10 billion — executives were looking primarily for a place that could provide a lot of power immediately and for the long term, Landry said.

Energy is more important than financial incentives and tax breaks, he said.

“The most important commodity in the world today is a reliable uninterruptible megawatt of power,” Landry said. “Louisiana can provide that.”

Landry also pointed to the recent decision for Hyundai to locate a 1,700-acre, $5.8 billion state-of-theart steel mill in Ascension Parish.

“It wasn’t financial incentives, it was power,” he said.

The company needed capacity on the state’s electricity grid industrial infrastructure and a reliable source of a lot of electricity

“The future is no longer a dream, it’s a decision,” Landry said. “When Louisiana wins, our communities win, our families win, our way of life wins.”

He continued: “This is the moment you have been waiting decades for We get to define the next 100 years of Louisiana.”

N.O. mayor meets with Trump on sidelines of events

‘I thought it was really important that he heard from me directly’

BY BLAKE PATERSON Staff writer

New Orleans Mayor Helena

Moreno had a surprise meeting with President Donald Trump in Washington, D.C., on Thursday and pitched him on the need for federal support for infrastructure improvements.

The meeting occurred at the Kennedy Center, where Trump was attending the world premiere of “Melania,” a new movie about his wife, Melania Trump, and Moreno was visiting a Washington Mardi Gras reception hosted by Saints owner Gayle Benson and Ochsner CEO Pete November Gov Jeff Landry and his wife, Sharon Landry were also present. Moreno, in an interview Friday, said she explained to Trump the need for infrastructure improvements in New Orleans and “just how important it is to have the federal government’s support in that moving forward,” as the city seeks additional time from FEMA to spend $1.7 billion in grants for post-Katrina roadwork.

“He seemed receptive to my request. He was complimentary of

me, which I appreciated. So, you know, we’ll see what happens,” Moreno said.

She also touted the work of the New Orleans Police Department and noted that the city is at a 50year low for its homicide rate “due to our efforts.” Trump earlier this month pointed to the deployment of the National Guard to New Orleans last month as one reason crime was “down to almost nothing.”

Trump addressed the meeting in his Oval Office briefing Friday, calling Moreno “great,” while offering a slightly different recollection of their conversation.

“I believe she’s a Democrat. She came over, she thanked me so much and she said crime is down more than 50% in New Orleans, and you couldn’t even walk down the street in New Orleans, it was so bad,” he said.

“Now they let us in there, and she was thanking me so much, so profusely She was great last night.”

Moreno, presented with Trump’s remarks, said she “explained to the president the work of our NOPD and that we are at a 50-year low in our homicide rate. These drastic

cial profiling and fear-mongering and said officials with the U.S. Border Patrol failed to provide basic information to local officials.

“I will always say what needs to be said, and I’ll take the appropriate action to protect the people of New Orleans. That doesn’t mean, though, that those who are in power, that I will shut them out due to the fact that we are not aligned in the same political party,” she said.

“I said to him, ‘Obviously we’re not the same political party but New Orleans is an extraordinary city, and it needs the right kind of support from the federal government,’” Moreno said.

ment to be more productive with the city of New Orleans,” Moreno said. “I think we just feel like there’s like this target on our back, and that’s not necessary.”

Moreno, a former Democratic state lawmaker in Republican-led Louisiana, is no stranger to working with Republicans.

reductions began about a year and a half ago.”

Landry, through a spokesperson, said he talked to Trump about public safety and “the success of the National Guard.” He didn’t recall discussing infrastructure.

November declined to comment Moreno, a Democrat who was sworn in earlier this month by Trump’s 2024 foe, former Vice President Kamala Harris, hasn’t shied away from criticizing the president’s policies In testimony before Congressional Democrats on Monday, Moreno accused Trump’s immigration enforcement operation in south Louisiana of ra-

TAKING IN THE SITES AND SIGHTS

The opportunity to meet the president was presented with only a few hours’ advance notice. Greg Bensel, a spokesperson for Benson, said Trump knew that Benson was having a party at the Kennedy Center “and wanted to have her come over for a quick hello.”

Benson invited Moreno to join her and saw it as an opportunity for the new mayor to connect directly with the president “for the betterment of New Orleans,” Bensel said.

The meeting lasted around 20 minutes, Moreno said. It was her first time meeting Trump.

“I just thought it was important that he meet me and that we just find a way for the federal govern-

“I’ve always had to do this,” Moreno said. “Find a way to work with those who aren’t your same political party who don’t agree with you, and find a path to figure out what you can work on.” Moreno was in D.C. for Washington Mardi Gras, the annual bacchanal celebrating Louisiana culture, where the state’s most powerful business and political leaders gather to hobnob and hash out deals. Moreno paid for the trip with campaign funds. She arrived on Wednesday and planned to return Friday ahead of an extreme cold weather warning in New Orleans.

“I’m sure that some people, you know, may be upset that I ended up meeting with this particular president,” Moreno added. “But as mayor of the city, I thought it was really important that he heard from me directly on what was needed and hopefully find that path to be able to get the resources and the

Continued from page 1A

popularity quickly skyrocketed, turning her social media presence into fame just before she began attending LSU. She continued gaining followers at a rapid pace and now has more than 90 million followers across platforms. Rae has since expanded into music and acting, with film roles in “He’s All That” and “Thanksgiving,” as well as a recent appearance in Ryan Murphy’s series “Monster: The Ed Gein Story She officially launched her music career in 2021 and earned a lot of praise in 2024 with her single “Diet Pepsi.” She released her debut album, “Addison,” in June, which included “Diet Pepsi.” Last year, her song “Headphones On” was named one of Spotify Editors’ Picks: Best Songs of 2025. The 68th annual Grammy Awards will take place Sunday in Los Angeles. The main ceremony airs live at 7 p.m. on the CBS Television Network and will stream on Paramount+.

Email Ja’kori Madison at jakori madison@theadvocate.com

PROBE

Continued from page 1A

Pretti shooting.

Steve Schleicher, a Minneapolisbased attorney representing Pretti’s parents, said Friday that “the family’s focus is on a fair and impartial investigation that examines the facts around his murder.”

The Department of Homeland Security also said Friday that the FBI will lead the federal probe into Pretti’s death.

Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem first disclosed the shift in which agency was leading the investigation during a Fox News interview Thursday evening Her department previously said Homeland Security Investigations, a departmental unit, would head the investigation.

“We will continue to follow the

ESCAPE

Continued from page 1A

Police Department arrested Looney on a charge of second-degree murder

Vicknair was accused of the shooting death of Justin Broussard on Jefferson Street in downtown Lafayette on Dec. 31, 2023. The two had a history According to the defendant’s sentencing brief, Vicknair grew up in Lafayette but moved to Mississippi at age 15 with his mother He moved back to Arnaudville without his mother’s permission and stayed with a cousin, Russell Henry The Jan. 27 statement by Vicknair’s attorney, Deuce Domengeaux, states the victim, Broussard, shot at Vicknair on July 30, 2023. The shooting allegedly was unprovoked.

On Dec 31 2023

Domengeaux wrote, Henry and Vicknair went to Lafayette. Vicknair, at 17, was too young to enter any nightclubs, so Henry allegedly gave Vicknair drugs and Vicknair stayed on Jeffer-

investigation that the FBI is leading and giving them all the information that they need to bring that to conclusion, and make sure that the American people know the truth of the situation and how we can go forward and continue to protect the American people,” Noem said, speaking to Fox host Sean Hannity Homeland Security spokesperson Tricia McLaughlin said Homeland Security Investigations will support the FBI in the investigation. Separately, Customs and Border Protection, which is part of DHS, is doing its own internal investigation into the shooting, during which two officers opened fire on Pretti. DHS did not immediately respond to questions about when the change was made or why The FBI did not immediately respond to a request for comment. It was not immediately clear

whether the FBI would share information and evidence with Minnesota state investigators, who have thus far been frozen out of the federal investigation.

In the same interview, Noem appeared to distance herself from statements she made shortly after the shooting, claiming Pretti had brandished a handgun and aggressively approached officers.

Multiple videos that emerged of the shooting contradicted that claim, showing the intensive care nurse had only his mobile phone in his hand as officers tackled him to the ground, with one removing a handgun from the back of Pretti’s pants as another officer began firing shots into his back.

Pretti had a state permit to legally carry a concealed firearm. At no point did he appear to reach for it, the videos showed.

The change in agency comes after two other videos emerged of an

earlier altercation between Pretti and federal immigration officers 11 days before his death.

The Jan. 13 videos show Pretti yelling at federal vehicles and at one point appearing to spit before kicking out the taillight of one vehicle. A struggle ensues between Pretti and several officers, during which he is forced to the ground. Pretti’s winter coat comes off, and he either breaks free or the officers let him go and he scurries away When he turns his back to the camera, what appears to be a handgun is visible in his waistband. At no point do the videos show Pretti reaching for the gun, and it is not clear whether federal agents saw it.

Schleicher, the Pretti family attorney, said Wednesday the earlier altercation in no way justified the shooting more than a week later

In a post on his Truth Social platform early Friday morning, President Donald Trump suggested that the videos of the earlier incident undercut the narrative that Pretti was a peaceful protester when he was shot.

“Agitator and, perhaps, insurrectionist, Alex Pretti’s stock has gone way down with the just released video of him screaming and spitting in the face of a very calm and under control ICE Officer and then crazily kicking in a new and very expensive government vehicle, so hard and violent, in fact, that the taillight broke off in pieces,” Trump’s post said. “It was quite a display of abuse and anger, for all to see, crazed and out of control. The ICE Officer was calm and cool, not an easy thing to be under those circumstances!”

Associated Press reporter Eric Tucker contributed from Washington.

son Street while Henry entered a club

Vicknair alleges he saw Broussard enter the club Nite Town and fled to The Office bar to find Henry, asking him to leave the area. Instead, Domengeaux wrote, Henry told Vicknair to fetch a gun from his car He did and returned to Jefferson Street, Domengeaux wrote, to find Henry in a verbal confrontation with Broussard and his friends. Henry allegedly brandished a weapon. When Vicknair saw Broussard reach for his waistband, he wrote, Vicknair thought Broussard was reaching for a gun and shot him, purportedly to save his cousin.

No firearm was found on Broussard’s body, Domengeaux wrote, but there were unsubstantiated accounts that someone touched Broussard’s body before the police arrived Vicknair, Looney and six other men escaped late Thursday from River Bend Detention Center in East Carroll Parish. U.S. Marshals are currently searching for the escapees, officials confirmed. The other escapees who

are still being sought are:

n Destin Brogan, 22, who faces second-degree murder and obstruction of justice charges in East Baton Rouge Parish, according to court records.

n Krisean Salinas, 21, who faces a number of counts in four parishes, including a St Mary Parish arrest on counts of aggravated flight from an officer theft and more, according to records.

n Kevin Slaughter, 25, who faces counts of aggravated assault with a firearm, obstruction of justice, parole violations and more in Rapides Parish, according to the parish’s jail records.

The following inmates were involved in the escape, but were back in custody by Friday afternoon:

n Trenton Taplin, 29

n Savon Wheeler, 31

n Hugo Molino, 27.

Attorney General Liz Murrill said her office offered assistance in the search.

“I have been in contact with East Carroll Sheriff Wydette Williams and Sheriffs’ Association President Kevin Cobb, and have offered the full assistance of my office, including the Fu-

gitive Apprehension Unit. I am actively monitoring the situation,” Murrill said. The escape comes after 10

inmates escaped last spring from the New Orleans jail, leading to national headlines and a monthslong search. It ended in October with

remained on the lam, Derrick Groves, in Atlanta.

Senate passes government funding deal

BY MARY CLARE JALONICK and LISA MASCARO Associated Press

WASHINGTON The Senate voted Friday to fund most of the government through the end of September after President Donald Trump made a deal with Democrats to carve out Homeland Security funding and allow Congress to debate new restrictions on federal immigration raids across the country

With a weekend shutdown looming, Trump made the rare deal with Senate Democrats on Thursday in the wake of the deaths of two protesters at the hands of federal agents in Minneapolis. Under the agreement, the Homeland Security money will continue at current levels for two weeks while lawmakers consider Democratic demands to unmask agents, require more warrants and allow local authorities to help investigate any incidents.

The bill passed in a 71-29 vote. It will now head to the House, which is not due back until Monday That means the government could be in a partial shutdown temporarily over the weekend until they pass it.

As lawmakers in both parties called for investigations into the fatal shootings by federal agents, Trump said he didn’t want a shutdown and encouraged members of both parties to cast a “much needed Bipartisan ‘YES’ vote.”

The president’s conces-

sions to Democrats prompted pushback from some Senate Republicans, delaying the final votes and providing a preview of the coming debate over the next two weeks.

In a fiery floor speech, Trump ally Sen. Lindsey Graham, of South Carolina, warned that Republicans should not give away too much.

“To the Republican party, where have you been?” Graham said, adding that Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents and Border Patrol agents have been “slandered and smeared.”

Still, some Republicans said they believe that changes to ICE’s operations were necessary, even as they were unlikely to agree to all of the Democrats’ requests.

“I think the last couple of days have been an improvement,” said Kentucky Sen. Rand Paul. “I think the rhetoric has been dialed down a little bit, in Minnesota.”

Irate Democrats say that they won’t vote again to fund the Department of Homeland Security until Congress puts new curbs on ICE and other federal agencies conducting the raids

“These are not radical demands,” said Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer “They’re basic standards the American people already expect from law enforcement.”

Democrats have asked the White House to “end roving patrols” in cities and coordinate with local law enforcement on immigration arrests,

including requiring tighter rules for warrants.

They also want an enforceable code of conduct so agents are held accountable when they violate rules. Schumer said agents should be required to have “masks off, body cameras on” and carry proper identification, as is common practice in most law enforcement agencies.

Alex Pretti, a 37 year-old ICU nurse, was killed by a border patrol agent on Jan. 24, two weeks after protester Renee Good was killed by an ICE officer Administration officials, including Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, originally said

that Pretti had aggressively approached officers, but multiple videos contradicted that claim.

Republicans countered with their own demands, including restrictions on socalled “sanctuary cities” that they say do not do enough to enforce illegal immigration.

“There no way in hell we’re going to let Democrats knee cap law enforcement and stop deportations in exchange for funding DHS,” said U.S. Sen. Eric Schmitt, R-Mo., ahead of the vote.

Graham held the spending bills up until Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., agreed to give him a vote on his sanctuary cities bill at a later date.

Separately, Graham was also protesting a repeal of a new law giving senators the ability to sue the government for millions of dollars if their personal or office data is accessed without their knowledge as happened to him and other senators as part of the so-called Arctic Frost investigation into the Jan. 6, 2021, attack by Trump supporters at the Capitol.

The spending bill, which was passed by the House last week, would repeal that law

But Graham said that Thune had agreed to consider a separate bill that would allow “groups and private citizens” who were caught up in Jack

Smith’s probe to sue. The unusual bipartisan talks between Trump and Schumer, his frequent adversary came after Pretti’s death. Schumer called it “a moment of truth.”

The standoff threatened to plunge the country into another shutdown, just two months after Democrats blocked a spending bill over expiring federal health care subsidies. That dispute closed the government for 43 days as Republicans refused to negotiate. That shutdown ended when a small group of moderate Democrats broke away to strike a deal with Republicans. But Democrats are more unified this time after the fatal shootings of Pretti and Good by federal agents. House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-Benton, has said he was opposed to breaking up the funding package, but “if it is broken up, we will have

Israel to reopen Gaza’s border crossing with Egypt on Sunday

BY SAM METZ Associated Press

JERUSALEM Israel said Friday that it will reopen the pedestrian border crossing between the Gaza Strip and Egypt over the weekend, marking an important step forward for U.S. President Donald fire plan.

COGA tary body ordinating in a statement on Sunday ment of be allowe

fah crossing, Gaza’s main gateway to the outside world. The announcement followed statements from Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Ali Shaath, newly appointed to head the Palestinian administrative committee governing Gaza’ daily affairs, that

leave each day 50 medical patients with two family members, an official familiar with the situation told The Associated Press, speaking on condition of anonymity because they were discussing diplomatic talks Up to 50 people who fled during the retu daily the

out of reach.

COGAT said both Israel and Egypt will vet individuals for exit and entry through the crossing, which will be supervised by European Union border patrol agents. In addition to screenings at

the crossing, Palestinians leaving and returning will be screened by Israel in the adjacent corridor, which remains under Israeli military control.

The crossing has been under a near complete closure

since Israel seized it in May 2024, saying the step was part of a strategy to halt crossborder arms smuggling by Hamas. It was briefly opened for the evacuation of medical patients during a short-lived ceasefire in early 2025.

Emmy-winning comicactor CatherineO’Haradiesat71

BY ANDREW DALTON andJOCELYNNOVECK

AP entertainment writers

LOSANGELES Catherine O’Hara, agifted Canadian-born comic actor and“SCTV” alum who starredasMacaulay Culkin’sharried mother in two “HomeAlone” movies and won an Emmy as the dramatically ditzy wealthy matriarch MoiraRose in “Schitt’s Creek,” died Friday.She was 71.

O’Hara died at her home in Los Angeles “following abrief illness,” according to a statement fromher representatives atCreative Artists Agency.Furtherdetails were not immediately available

O’Hara’scareerwas launchedwiththe Second City comedy group in Toronto in the 1970s. It was there that she first worked with Eugene Levy,who would become alifelong collaborator—and her“Schitt’s Creek” costar.The two would be amongthe original cast of the sketch show “SCTV,” short for “Second City Television.” Theseries, which began on Canadian TV in the 1970s and aired on NBC in the U.S., spawned alegendary group of esoteric comedians that O’Hara would work with often, includingMartin Short, John Candy,AndreaMartin, Rick Moranis and Joe Flaherty

O’Hara would win her first Emmy for her writing on the show Her second, for best actress in acomedy series, came four decadeslater,for “Schitt’s Creek,” acareer-capping triumph and the perfect personification of her comic talents. The small CBC series created by Levy and his son, Dan, about awealthy family forced to live in atiny town would dominate the Emmys in its sixth and finalseason.Itbrought O’Hara, always abeloved figure, anew generation of fans and put heratthe centerof cultural attention.

ShetoldThe Associated Press thatshe pictured Moira, aformer soap opera star,as someone who had married rich and wanted to “remind everyone that(she was) special, too.” With an exaggerated Mid-Atlantic accent and obscure vocabulary,Moiraspoke unlike anyone else,usingwords like “frippet,” “pettifogging” and “unasinous,” to show her desire to be different, O’Hara said. To perfect Moira’svoice, O’Harawouldpore through old vocabularybooks,“Moira-izing” the dialogue evenfurther than whatwas already written.

O’Hara also won aGolden Globeand two SAG Awards for the role At first, Hollywood didn’tentirely know what to do with O’Hara and her scattershot style. She played oddball supporting characters in Martin Scorsese’s1985 “AfterHours” and TimBurton’s1988 “Beetlejuice” —arole she would reprise in the 2024 sequel. Sheplayeditmostly straightasa horrified mother who accidentally abandonedher child in the two “Home Alone” movies. The

ASSOCIATED PRESS FILE PHOTO Catherine O’Hara, acomic actor whostarred as MacaulayCulkin’sharried mother in two ‘Home Alone’ movies and wonanEmmy as the dramatically ditzywealthymatriarch MoiraRose in ‘Schitt’sCreek,’died Fridayat age71.

films were among the biggest boxoffice earners of the early1990s andtheir Christmas setting made them TV perennials. They allowedher moments of unironic warmth that shedidn’tget often. Her co-star Culkin was among those paying hertribute Friday

“Mama, Ithought we hadtime,” Culkin said on Instagram alongside an imagefrom “HomeAlone” and arecent recreationofthe same pose. “I wanted more.Iwantedtosit in achair next to you. Iheardyou. But Ihad so much more to say. Ilove you.”

Meryl Streep, who worked with O’Hara in “Heartburn,” saidinastatementthat she “brought love and light to our world, through whipsmart compassion forthe collection of eccentrics she portrayed.

Roles in bigHollywood filmsdidn’tfollow “Home Alone,”but O’Hara would find hergroove with thecrew of improvpros brought together by Christopher Guest for aseries of mockumentaries that began with 1996’s “Waiting for Guffman” and continued with 2000’s “Best in Show,”2003’s“AMighty Wind” and 2006’s“For Your Consideration.

“Best in Show” was the biggest hit and bestremembered film of the series. She andLevy play marriedcouple Gerry andCookieFleck, who take their Norwich terrier to adog show and constantly run intoCookie’sformerloversalong theway

“I am devastated,” Guest said in astatement to the AP.“We have lost one of the comic giants of our age.”

Born and raised in Toronto, O’Hara wasthe sixthofseven children in aCatholicfamily of Irish descent. She graduated from Burnhamthorpe Collegiate Institute, an alternative high school. She joined SecondCity in herearly20s, as an understudy to Gilda Radner before Radnerleft for “Saturday Night Live.” (O’Hara would briefly be hiredfor “SNL”but quit before appearing on air.)

Winds and frost expected in Acadiana

BY JA’KORI MADISON Staff writer

The next cold arctic air mass is beginning to move through Acadiana with temperatures dropping below freezing.

Gusty north winds on Friday were the first notice of the air mass change, with below freezing temperatures arriving Friday night.

A low around 28 with north winds around 10 to 15 mph, with gusts as high as 25 mph were expected Friday night. “The coldest temperatures are expected on Saturday night into Sunday morning with a hard freeze for a majority of the area,” said Joe Rua, lead meteorologist at the National Weather Service in Lake Charles.

A wind advisory in effect from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday A cold weather advisory remains in effect from 2 a.m. Saturday to 10 a.m. on Sunday For the cold weather advisory, very cold wind chills, which is how cold the air feels to exposed skin, are expected to be as low as 12 expected. For the wind advisory north winds to 20 mph with gusts up to 30 mph are expected.

“If you must go outside, dress in layers, including a hat and gloves,” said forecasters. “Keep pets indoors as much as possible.” Saturday night a widespread frost will occur after 2 a.m. There is a very small chance as the secondary surge of arctic air moves across on Saturday morning into the afternoon that some of the area could see snow flurries, added Rua. “But no accumulation is expected and therefore no travel issues with any snow flurries,” she said.

On Sunday, expect a widespread frost before 7 a.m., and otherwise, sunny, with a high near 46. Otherwise, mostly clear, with Sunday night showing a low around 21. Below freezing temperatures will be possible at night through Sunday night-Monday morning. On Monday, expect areas of frost before 9 a.m Otherwise, sunny, with a high near 62.

Email Ja’kori Madison at jakori. madison@theadvocate.com.

FOOD TRUCKS FOR THOUGHT

ABOVE: Hungry guests choose from a variety of cuisines on hand at Parc de Oaks food truck park in Lafayette on Friday. The park hosts up to eight food trucks at a time. Each week’s lineup of vendors is advertised on the park’s Facebook and Instagram pages. LEFT: Mindy Duhon picks up lunch from one of the food trucks on Friday STAFF PHOTOS By BRAD BOWIE

BY STEPHEN MARCANTEL

writer

BY JA’KORI MADISON

Judgedeniesmotiontoend desegregationorders

BidbySt. John Parish is rejected

BY PATRICK WALL

Staff writer

Afederal judge has rejected abid by the St. John the Baptist Parish School Board to lift longstandingdesegregationorders, the latest instance of courtsresisting efforts to summarily dismiss cases that Louisiana andTrump administration officialssay should have ended long ago.

U.S. District Court JudgeJay Zainey acknowledged in his Jan. 22 ruling that school desegregation orders never were intended to be permanent, and said it is a “legitimate question” whether the School Board should remain under judicial oversight due to a lawsuit dating to the 1960s. But he also said the board“must domore than simply argue” that the case is moot because the school system long ago stopped requiring Black and White students to attendseparate schools.

The “Court is not persuaded that the Board’sreliance on the doc-

trine of mootnessisthe correct approach,”wrote Zainey,who was nominated to theEastern District of Louisianacourt by former President George W. Bush.

Federal judges overseeing the desegregation orders in at least two other parishes —Concordiaand St. Mary —also recently declined to dismiss those cases, which theschool boards argued were moot because the original plaintiffs are long gone and racial segregation is no longer enforced.

Thestate Attorney General’soffice, which is representing the districts,appealed to the5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals.

Civil rights groups and some parentssay courtoversight remainsnecessary because racial discrimination persists in such areas as school discipline practices and building quality.The U.S. Supreme Court has saidthatschool districts must show they made a good-faith effort to address the effects of past segregation before the cases are closed.

“School boards in these desegregation cases can’t simply go to the court after many years andsay ‘It’stime to wrap this case up,’

said Victor Jones, senior counsel at the NAACP Legal Defense and Education Fund, alegal nonprofit that is opposing efforts to endthe orders in several parishes,including St. John. “Theyneed to show that they have fulfilled those requirements.”

But state officialsand the U.S. Department of Justice under President Trumpwant to end the dozen or so desegregation casesthatremain open in Louisiana. Over the past year,the state hashelpedthe school boards in Plaqueminesand DeSoto parishes get out from under theorders, which Louisiana’s Republican leaders say are outdated and represent federal overreach.

“Those desegregation orders are really wreaking havoc on our school systems,”Gov.Jeff Landry said in an interviewlast week, adding that districts are forced to spend money on legal fees that should go to schools. “It’s time for the federal government to getout of our educational system.”

Case stretchesbackdecades

The St.John Parish school system, adistrict of about5,000 stu-

dents just west of New Orleans, was sued by Black parents in 1963 over itspolicy of racial segregation.Another group of parents filed suit in 1990, andthe two cases were combined.

The Legal Defense Fund, or LDF, which represented the original plaintiffs, revived the case in 2023 when it argued that thedistrict had violated the desegregation orders by operating amajority Black school near an industrial plant that emits hazardous chemicals.

Theboard arguedthatthe environmental concerns werea separate issue, but it still voted to close the Fifth Ward Elementary School in Reserve and relocate the students.

(Inhis ruling this month, Zainey said it had been “improper” for the LDF to invoke the desegregationorders to address the health concerns.)

Last year,the School Board asked the court to dismiss the decades-oldcase and lift the orders.

The caseis“permanently moot” becausethe district long ago ended itspolicyofracial segregation, the board argued, adding that continued judicial oversight undermines local control of the schools.

“After all, responsibility for educating our children belongs to state andlocal governments, not the federal government,” the boardsaidina court filing in October

The LDFargued that legal precedent required theschool district to provideevidence that it had complied with the desegregation orders and did its best to eliminate any traces of past discrimination.

TheSchoolBoard “has not shown, and has not even attempted to show,that it hassatisfied its obligationsunderthe operative court orders or the Constitution,” the LDFwrote in November In his ruling, Zainey expressed openness to the ideaoflifting the St. John desegregation order,calling it “rather implausible”that present-day racial imbalances are due to past segregation and saying that the School Board is “hampered” by theorders. But he also said the board must do more than claim that the “plaintiffs’claims are moot” if it wants to be released from the court’soversight.

The board president and its lawyer did not respond to arequest for comment Wednesday

LSUtopartner with national labs on energy research

School to help bridge technology, Gulf Coast

BY HALEY MILLER Staff writer

LSU will partner with twoU.S. Department of Energy national laboratories on researchprojects focused on nuclear energy,chemical manufacturing and other technologies, the university announced

Friday

Theresearchpartnership agreementsare in place “to ensure America’sworldwide competitiveness andenergydominance,” accordingtoanews release.

“Theseagreementsplace LSU at the center of the nation’senergy and national security priorities,”

LSU Chancellor Jim Dalton said in the release.

LSU will work with Argonne NationalLaboratory in Illinois and Oak Ridge National Laboratory in Tennessee as a“bridge” between

national energy research andthe implementation of researchfindings on the Gulf Coast,according to therelease.

Argonneand OakRidgeare two of 17 nationallaboratories operated by theU.S.DepartmentofEnergy

The research agreement with Argonne NationalLaboratory will allowfor afaculty,student,staff and postdoctoralexchange program.

“Our partnership will address critical needs, fromsecuring materials supply chains toadvancing energyand chemical technologies that

Chalmette19-year-old gets prison time in hit-and-run

BourbonStreet bartenderwas killed whilebiking

BY JOHN SIMERMAN Staff writer

AChalmette teenager who admitted he fled after fatally striking abicyclist in the Bywater neighborhood before dawn one morning last July is going to prison for nine years Criminal DistrictJudge Kimya Holmes on Friday sentenced 19-year-old Thomas Riggio, who had just takenthe witness stand to apologize to the familyofthe victim, Michael Milam.

An award-winning Houston bartender,Milam had recentlymoved to New Orleans and landed ajob at Cafe Lafitte in Exile, ahistoric gay bar on Bourbon Street, when he was struck alittle after 4a.m. on July 12 as he tried to turn onto Alvar StreetatSt. Claude Avenue.

POSED

Continued from page1B

avictim to his home under the guise of needing ananny to care for aperson with special needs.

In January,LSP Special Victims Unit detectivesbegan an investigation into human traffickingthrough online platforms used to connect families withnannies.

Deas is alleged to have posed as someone seeking a nanny to assist in the care of aperson with special needs. Once the victim arrived at his Lafayette residence, Deas portrayed himself as the person with special needs andrequiredthe victim to perform infant and toddler care acts, including diaper changes Deas was previously arrested on the same charges in November 2019 and December 2021 in cases similar in nature, according to the

Riggio, who was behind thewheelofthe Infiniti, didn’tstop. Prosecutors said he promised his passengers that he’d report it but waited. Holmes said Friday that Riggio, who was out at bars that night, underwent atoxicology test 12 hours afterthe fatal collision.He registered ablood-alcohol level of .07%, slightlybelow thelegal driving limit, and had cocaine in his system.

Milam’ssiblingstestified tearfullyofthe loss of a36-year-old bartender revered in theHouston LGBTQ+ community,and their incredulity at what they viewed as cavalier comments by Riggioina jail call to his girlfriend soon after the deadlycollision.

Family urged the 10-year maximum that Riggio faced after he pleaded guilty ascharged to a hit-and-run causing death.

Some of Milam’ssiblings considered the charge itselftoo lenient and said

announcement. The 2021 incident occurred in Jefferson Parish,and the2019incident occurred in Orleans Parish. In 2022, Deas pleaded guilty to the trafficking charges in Jefferson Parish’s24th Judicial District Court. The judge suspended nine years of a10-year sentence andordered Deas to serve five years on active probation.

At thetime of his plea, Deas was already serving probationafter pleading guilty to fourcounts of humantrafficking in Orleans Parish after he was accused of posingasa fictitious younger brother,“Corey Deas,” who was on the autismspectrum. Deas received a10-year suspended sentence in the OrleansParish case and was ordered to five years ofprobation.

Louisiana trafficking statue make it illegal to obtain services or labor through fraud or coercion. Deas

they suspectedhecaught breaks from having astepfather in the St. Bernard ParishSheriff’s Office.

Riggio,a former ChalmetteHighbaseball player, insisted uponhis remorse from the witnessstand.He addressedMilam’s family before his sentence.

“Sincethe day of the accident, I’ve wanted nothingmorethantolookeach and everyone of you in the eyes and apologize,” he said, adding that hislawyer directed against it

“I could notbegin to imagine how Iwould feel if any of my three siblings weretaken from me …the way Itook your brother.”

Holmes said she didn’t understandwhy Riggio failed to stop, rejecting his early claimthathehadn’t known what he hit. She pointed to adriving history that includedstriking a vehicle while doing doughnuts in one case and speeding into aditch in another “His behavior has escalated andescalated,” Holmes said.

was accused of victimizing at least four women. At the time, Deas attributedhis actionstosevere trauma he alleged to have endured during childhood.

The woman in theOrleansParish case said they changed his soiled diapers and trained Deas to use the toilet.Awoman reported Deas on the babysitting app, and his account was shut down.

When State Police arrested him at his Marengo Street homeinNew Orleans, they found methamphetamine, a clear glass pipe and diapers. He was placed under $1.5 millionbail.

Deas is currently booked at theLafayette Parish CorrectionalCenterona $25,000 bond. The investigation is ongoing, and additional victims mayemerge

Anyone who believes they may have been avictim of Deas is urgedtocontact detectives at (504) 310-7012.

GUIDE

can be deployed at scale,” Argonne National Laboratory Director Paul Kearns said in the release. The agreements, alongwitha memorandum of understanding signed with the Idaho National Laboratory last year,advance LSU’s work in advanced nuclear energy, cybersecurity and integrated energy systems. The university worked with the Idaho National Laboratory andgovernment agencies on acybersecurity training andresearch model for the defense of industrial control systems last year,according

to the release.

The announcement named energy security andprotectionofthe nation fromemerging threats as ongoing research priorities forLSU

“As an energy technology proving ground and longtime energy partner,LSU will help solve the nation’senergy challenges where they should be solved first —in Louisiana—toensure American energy dominance andcompetitiveness on aglobal scale,” LSU System President Wade Rousse said in the release.

Continuedfrom page1B

Friday, Feb. 13: 6:30 p.m., Krewe of Allons Kick-Off Parade Saturday, Feb. 14: n 12:30 p.m., Children’s Parade (Note: Parade begins at Lafayette Street and West VermilionStreet and ends at Cajun Field) n 6:30 p.m., Krewe of Bonaparte Parade (Streets reopen briefly between parades) Monday, Feb. 16: 6p.m., MondayNight Parade Honoring Queen Evangeline LXXXVII Tuesday, Feb. 17 (Mardi Gras Day): n 10 a.m., King Gabriel’s Parade n 1p.m., Lafayette Mardi Gras FestivalParade n 2p.m., Independent Parade All parades, exceptKrewe Des Canailles andthe Children’sParade, begin at Pontiac Point (JeffersonStreet at Surrey Street) andend at Cajun Field. LafayetteTransit System Operations

Due to parades, LTSwill operate night servicefrom 4:30 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. with detours on Feb. 6, 7, 13, 14 and 16. The following segments of roads will notbeserviced those nights, resulting in route detours: n Johnston Street (Garfield to Doucet/VitalRoads)

n Lee Avenue (Garfield to University Avenue)

n CongressStreet (University to Cypress)

n Jefferson Street (Underpass to Moss) Transitservices will not operate on Mardi Gras Day, Feb. 17.

Safety Information

Lost Children:

n Designated lost child stations:

n Fire Station No. 1 (Vermilion and Lee streets)

n Fire Station No. 5 (Johnston Street and St. Julien Avenue)

n Lost or found children can be brought to any officer along the parade route or one of the designated locations.

n Parents are encouraged to place anote in their child’s pocket with theirname, address, and acontact number

Medical Assistance:

n Acadian Ambulance Service units will be stationed along the parade route.

n Notify alaw enforcement officer alongthe route or dial 911 foremergent medical assistance.

Parking:

n Click here to access the of-

ficial 2026 parade route map with public parking locations.

n No parking on streets or sidewalks alongthe parade routes. The Buchanan and Vermilionparking garages are convenient downtown parking options during Mardi Gras festivities. Please note theVermiliongarage will temporarily close to the public during parade roll-throughs, as it is located along the parade route. Gates are expected to close approximately 45 minutes before the parades start and will reopen once the parade has safely passed.

n Blackham Coliseum parking (inside thefenced area) is

reserved for floats, band members and parade participants.

n There will be no parking in Downtown Lafayette along theKrewedeCanailles parade route on Friday.The Parking Division will bag downtown meters beginning at 1p.m.that day in an effort to maintain public safety for all parade attendees.

Handicap Viewing: n An accessible Mardi Gras ParadeZonewill be availableatFireStation No. 5(Johnston Street and St. Julien Avenue) Prohibited items

The following items are prohibitedalong theparade route: n Snaps, pops, cracker balls, and similar noisemaking devices; silly string; animals (except service animals); whips; glass containers; flashing(indecentexposure); throwing items back at float riders; drones EmailJa’kori Madison at jakori.madison@ theadvocate.com.

BRIEFS

FROM WIRE REPORTS

U.S. producer prices

rose in services inflation

WASHINGTON U.S. wholesale prices rose a hotter-than-expected 0.5% in December

The Labor Department reported Friday that its producer price index — which measures inflation before it hits consumers — rose from November to December at the fastest pace in three months and faster than the 0.3% economists had forecast. Compared to December 2024, producer prices were up 3% last month, which was in line with what forecasters expected.

Services prices were up 0.7% from November the biggest increase since July, mostly reflecting fatter profit margins at wholesalers and retailers. But the price of goods — such as appliances and autos was unchanged last month and up 2.5% from a year earlier Economists had worried that President Donald Trump’s double-digit taxes on imports would drive inflation higher Their impact has so far been more modest than expected although inflation remains above the Federal Reserve’s 2% target. (The Fed on Wednesday announced that it would keep its benchmark interest rate unchanged.)

Friday’s producer price report came out more than two weeks late, delayed by the 43-day federal government shutdown last fall. Europe sees growth, but weak U.S. dollar looms

FRANKFURT, Germany — The European economy recorded modest growth at the end of last year, pushing past turmoil over higher U.S. tariffs. Now the economy faces another hurdle: a stronger euro against the dollar that could weigh on exports. Growth in the 21 countries that use the shared euro currency came in at 0.3% for the last three months of 2025, matching the figure from the third quarter the EU statistics agency Eurostat reported Friday Growth compared with the fourth quarter of 2024 was 1.3%. Moderate growth has defied recession fears from earlier in the year, when President Donald Trump threatened to raise tariffs to levels that could have devastated trade. Talks settled on a 15% cap on U.S. tariffs, or import taxes, on goods from the European Union. The higher tax isn’t great for business — but the certainty resulting from the deal let companies at least go ahead and plan. That assurance was dented after the quarter ended when Trump on Jan. 17 threatened EU member countries with higher tariffs for supporting Greenland against his calls for a U.S. takeover Trump later withdrew the threat.

Farmers’ Almanac bets on a digital reboot

PORTLAND, Maine The Farmers’ Almanac isn’t going out of business after all, but it is leaving Maine for the bright lights of New York City and a new owner Beloved by farmers and gardeners, the almanac was first printed in 1818 and like the arguably more famous Old Farmer’s Almanac — relies on a secret formula of sunspots, planetary positions and lunar cycles to generate longrange weather forecasts. It’s been acquired by Unofficial Networks, a digital publisher focused on skiing and outdoor recreation. That means the almanac will keep operating despite announcing in November that its 208-year run was coming to an end. A new Farmers’ Almanac website will be “a living, breathing publication with fresh, daily content” and there are plans to bring back a print edition, said Tim Konrad, founder and publisher of New York-based Unofficial Networks. The deal will prioritize “preserving and sustaining the iconic publication,” according to a statement from Unofficial Networks and Peter Geiger, the almanac’s longtime publisher The Farmers’ Almanac was founded in New Jersey before moving its headquarters to Lewiston, Maine, in 1955. The Old Farmer’s Almanac is based in New Hampshire.

Warsh could reshape bank

Trump’s Federal Reserve choice may affect global economy

BY CHRISTOPHER RUGABER AP economics writer

WASHINGTON President Donald Trump’s nomination of Kevin Warsh to chair the Federal Reserve could bring about sweeping changes at a central bank that dominates the global economy and markets like no other Warsh, if approved by the Senate, will be under close scrutiny from financial markets and Congress given his appointment by a president who has loudly demanded much lower rates than many economists think are justified by economic conditions. Whether he can maintain the Fed’s long time independence from day-today politics while also placating Trump will be a tremendous challenge.

Still, former associates and friends of Warsh say that he has the intellectual heft and people skills to potentially pull it off. His family also has connections to Trump that could reduce the pressure from the White House.

Warsh has “a judicious temperament and both the intellectual understanding but also the hopefully diplomatic talents to navigate what is a challenging position at this point,” said Raghuram Rajan, an economics professor at the University of Chicago and formerly head of India’s central bank.

Warsh would replace current chair Jerome Powell when his term expires in May Trump chose Powell to lead the Fed in 2017 but this year has relentlessly assailed him for not cutting interest rates quickly enough.

“I have known Kevin for a long period of time, and have no doubt that he will go down as one of the GREAT Fed Chairmen, maybe the best,” Trump posted on social media Friday. “On top of everything else, he is ‘central casting,’ and he will never let you down.”

Trump said later Friday in the Oval Office that he didn’t ask Warsh to commit to cutting rates calling such a question “inappropriate” and adding, “I want to keep it nice and pure.”

But Trump added, “But he certainly wants to cut rates.”

The appointment, which requires Senate confirmation, amounts to a return trip for Warsh, 55, who was a member of the Fed’s board from 2006 to 2011. He was the youngest governor in history when he was appointed at age 35. He is currently a fellow at the right-leaning Hoover Institution and a lecturer at the Stanford Graduate School of Business.

In some ways, Warsh is an unlikely choice for the Republican president because he has long supported higher interest rates to control inflation. Trump, by contrast, has said the Fed’s key rate should be as low as 1%, a level few economists endorse, and far below its current level of about 3.6%.

During his time as governor, Warsh objected to some of the low-interest rate policies that the Fed pursued during and after the Great Recession of 2008-09. He also often expressed concern at that time that in-

flation would soon accelerate, even though it remained at rock-bottom levels for many years after that recession ended.

More recently, however, in speeches and opinion columns, Warsh has voiced support for lower rates, seemingly coming in line with Trump’s point of view

Reactions

Financial markets reacted in ways that suggest investors expect Warsh could keep rates a bit higher over time. The dollar and yields on long-term U.S. Treasurys ticked higher U.S. stocks fell about 0.5%. The biggest moves were in the volatile metals markets, where gold dropped more than 5% and silver sank more than 13%.

In Congress, Sen Thom Tillis, a North Carolina Republican, reiterated in a social media post that he will oppose Warsh’s nomination until a Justice Department investigation into Powell is resolved. Tillis is on the Senate committee that will consider Warsh’s nomination. He added that Warsh is a “qualified nominee,” but stressed that “protecting the independence of the Federal Reserve from political interference or legal intimidation is nonnegotiable.”

Tillis’s opposition could complicate the confirmation process. Asked late Thursday whether Warsh could be confirmed without Tillis’s support, Senate Majority Leader John Thune said, “probably not.”

Separately, Democratic Sen Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts, the highest-ranking Democrat on the committee, accused Warsh of reshaping his views to appease Trump ahead of his nomination.

“I don’t know how to interpret that, except to say, that’s exactly what a sock puppet does,” she said. “If Donald Trump says it, then Kevin Warsh echoes it, even though it contradicts everything he had done for years.”

Changes coming to Fed?

Warsh has frequently criticized the Fed for its ownership of trillions of dollars in government and mortgage-backed securi-

ties, which it accumulated after the Great Recession and during the pandemic.

Warsh has charged that the massive bond-buying, which was intended to lower longer-term interest rates and boost the economy, enabled Congress to ramp up spending without concern for higher borrowing costs.

Reducing the Fed’s $6.6 trillion balance sheet, however, will be a fraught exercise because banks have become accustomed to the large amounts of cash in the financial system that it provides.

Warsh has also said the Fed’s economic models wrongly assume that rapid economic growth threatens to elevate inflation. Instead, “Inflation is caused when government spends too much and prints too much,” he wrote in a November column in The Wall Street Journal.

Controlling the Fed

The announcement comes after an extended and unusually public search. The chair of the Federal Reserve is tasked with combating inflation in the United States while also supporting maximum employment. The Fed is also the nation’s top banking regulator

The Fed’s rate decisions, over time, influence borrowing costs throughout the economy, including for mortgages, car loans and credit cards.

Trump has sought to exert more control over the Fed. In August he tried to fire Lisa Cook, one of seven governors on the Fed’s board, in an effort to secure a majority of the board. Cook, however, sued to keep her job, and the Supreme Court, in a hearing last week, appeared inclined to let her stay in her position while her suit is resolved.

Powell revealed this month that the Fed had been subpoenaed by the Justice Department about his congressional testimony on a $2.5 billion building renovation. Powell said the subpoenas were “pretexts” to force the Fed to cut rates.

Stocks fall; gold fever sends metals prices plunging

BY STAN CHOE Associated Press

NEW YORK Financial markets churned on Friday as investors tried to figure out what President Donald Trump’s new nominee to lead the Federal Reserve will mean for interest rates.

U.S. stocks fell, with the S&P 500 down 0.4% after sinking as much as 1.1% earlier in the day The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 179 points, or 0.4%, and the Nasdaq composite lost 0.9%. The value of the U.S dollar rallied, but only after swiveling a couple times following Trump’s nomination of Kevin Warsh. And some of the wildest action was again in precious metals markets, where gold and silver prices plunged following their stellar runs over the last year Whoever leads the Fed has a big influence on the economy and markets worldwide by helping to dictate where the U.S. central bank moves interest rates. Such decisions lift or weigh on prices for all kinds of investments, as the Fed tries to keep the U.S. job market humming without letting inflation get out of control. Trump has been pushing for lower interest rates, which usually help goose the

economy but can also cause higher inflation. A fear in financial markets has been that the Fed will lose some of its independence because of Trump. That fear in turn helped catapult the price of gold and weaken the U.S. dollar’s value over the last year On Wall Street, stocks of metals miners tumbled as the price of gold dropped 11.4% to settle at $4,745.10 per ounce. Gold’s price suddenly ran out of momentum following a tremendous rally where it roughly

doubled over 12 months. It topped $5,000 for the first time on Monday and was around $5,600 at one point on Thursday Silver, which had been on a similar, jaw-dropping tear,

after the iPhone maker reported a stronger profit for the latest quarter than analysts expected. All told, the S&P 500 fell 29.98 points to 6,939.03. The Dow Jones Industrial Average dipped 179.09 to 48,892.47, and the Nasdaq composite sank 223.30 to 23,461.82. In the bond market, the yield on the 10-year Treasury inched

to 4.25% from 4.24% late Thursday It got near 4.28% in the overnight and early-morning hours before falling back. A rise in a bond’s yield indicates that its price is weakening.

ANOTHERVIEW

Could Democrats flip theSenate?

Donald Trump looms large over,well, everything. Democrats want November’s midterm electionstobeareferendumonhim. Republicans wantsomething else. They want to lock in their 2024win, expand their majoritiesand turn Trumpism into adurablegoverningcoalition. At stake is control of Congress —a bigprize thatRepublicans haveheld for thepast twoyears. Since this column last scanned the national midterm map,political handicappers havenudged victory prospects toward Democrats. The reason is simple: Midterms are usually toughfor the party in power, andTrump’snumbers have been softeningonmost issues. Republicans worry thatwithout Trump’s name on the ballot,they’llstruggletoget hisbasetothe polls. They’realsoirritated that the White House hasn’t effectivelyexplained its policies —and has instead let thedaily churn of messy events keep them on defense. Meanwhile, they seeDemocrats with firein their eyes, primedtovote in bignumbers. It won’tbemuch of asurprise if Republicanslosetheir narrowHouse majority (218-213, with four vacancies). It would be asetback, for sure. ButifRepublicansalso lose their 53-47 Senate majority,itwould be a stinging rebuke Of course, if Republicansbeat theodds andmaintain control of both chambers, it would be yet another example of Trump bouncing back after rough times.

Ron Faucheux

In recent weeks, attention has startedshifting to Senateelections where Democratsneed anet gain of four seatsto makeamajority.Mosthandicappersstill doubt they can get there, but Democratic strategists insist it’s increasingly plausible, especially if swing voters decide to use their votes as acheckonTrump’spower At the moment, there are three especiallyvulnerable Republican Senate seats —inNorthCarolina, Maine and Alaska. Democrats are going allinoneach one. North Carolina is an open seat.Democrats have astrong contender in former Gov.Roy Cooper,68. Polls showhim leading former Republican National CommitteeChairman Michael Whatley,57. Sen. Susan Collins, 73, Maine’sRepublican incumbent, has often been labeled “beatable” in her pastfive Senate races—but in theend, she’swon them all. This time could be different.The latest PanAtlantic poll shows Democratic Gov.Janet Mills, 78, thefavorite of herparty’s establishment, running even withCollins.Italso haspopulist Democrat Graham Platner,41, onepoint ahead of the incumbent.

Alaskahas voted Republicaninevery presidentialelection since 1964,but occasionally strays in statewide contests. Democratic challenger Mary Peltola,52, aformer U.S. House member,poses areal threat to Republican Sen. DanSullivan, 61. Recent polling showsPeltola up by two points. That’sthree potential Democratic pickups. Noneasure thing,but each within reach. Handicappersrate twoas toss-ups and one as leaning Republican

Some Democrats argue thatOhiocould be afourth gain, even though Trump has carried thestate threetimesby comfortable margins. Former Democratic Sen. Sherrod Brown, 73, who lost reelection in2024, is attempting a comeback. He’schallenging Republican Sen. Jon Husted, 58, appointed to theseat afterJDVance became vice president.A DecemberEmersonCollege poll hadHusted ahead by three points —close, but still uphill forDemocrats.

Texas could be another Democraticopportunity,depending upon primary outcomes. Onthe Republican side, Sen. John Cornyn, 73, is in aclose fight against AttorneyGeneral Ken Paxton, 63. On theDemocratic side,state Rep. JamesTalarico, 36,isbattlingU.S.Rep. Jasmine Crockett, 44,for their party’snod. If Republicans nominate Paxton, with his heavy legal and ethical baggage, andDemocrats nominate Talarico, anew face withsharpmessaging skills,anupset becomes conceivable.

Even if Democrats somehow managetoflip four seats, they still have to defend twooftheir own shakyseats— Georgia, where Sen. Jon Ossoff,38, is running for reelection, and Michigan, an open seat.Both arerated tossups. OptimisticDemocrats wagerthat by November, ablue wave will crest and carry the close races theirway.But that bet may be underestimating their ownweaknesses —new Economist/YouGov poll findsvotersthreepoints more favorabletoward RepublicansinCongressthan Democrats —and how national conditions, whichoften impact midterm elections, can have unpredictable consequences.

RonFaucheux is anonpartisanpoliticalanalyst, writer and pollsterbased in Louisiana.

InMinneapolis,human failings contribute to ongoingtragedy

After seeing the video, taken by an ICE bodycam, Ican’thelp but thinkhow Christ-like Renee Nicole Good’slast five words on Earth were when she told amasked ICE agent, “I’m not mad at you.”Simple words of forgiveness that parallel: “Forgive them father,for they know not what they do.” As odd as it may sound, I’m not blaming ICE. They’re following orders and doing what they’ve been directed todobythe current administration, although the masked faces would seem to indicate that they are not proud of this assignment. I’m alsoobviously not blaming Renee Good. She appeared to be an innocent and forgiving child of God who truly cared about her friends and neighbors. Unfortunately,she responded in thewrong way to our bodies’ fight-or-flight threat response instinct.The samecould probably be said of the ICE agent. However,hewas also apparently a potential ticking time bombdue to his prior experiences. The convergence created the perfect storm

Almosteveryone was in favor of “getting thebad guys out of here” —agilded promise that has morphed intoanall-encompassing harvest of the low-hanging fruit. People who might not be here legally,but who nonetheless have been productive, hardworking contributorstosociety are being snared in

ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO Minneapolis Public Schools families, educators and students hold signs during anewsconferenceatLake Hiawatha Park in Minneapolis on Jan. 9, demanding Immigration and CustomsEnforcementbekept out of schools and Minnesota.

theprocess —church choir directors, teachers, nurses and everyday hard-working people. People willing to do thelaborious and sometimes downright nasty jobs that many birthright citizensare no longer willing to do comprise the majority of those arrested. Through due process, Istill favor gettingthe bad guys out. However, through thesame due process, let’s identify the true contributors and find away to put them on apathway to legalization. Wake up, America! Together,let’s do what’s right.

JOSEPH POLLETT NewOrleans

Folktale foretellshow Trump’sbullyingwillend

Uncle Remushas something to teach us about our current political situation.

Ourcurrent president seemsto be constantly hunting for someone, anyone, to hit. Much like Brer Rabbit (whoalways did have something of achip on his shoulder)

Brer Fox presented him with somethingtohit.Namely,atar baby,adoll made of tar,that would not respond correctly (or at all) when queried.

Furious at the effrontery,Brer Rabbit hit thetar baby and promptly became stuck to aproblem he could not shake free of.

The story has an unfortunate racist history,but itspoint is well taken.

If you go around picking fights, you are bound to find an opponent capable of creating aproblem you cannot shake free of.

The list of countries, states and people that this president has deliberately insulted, belittled and threatened grows longer each day At somepoint, he is going to cross thewrong party or parties. And at that point, it becomes our problem

Perhaps we should consider not letting that happen. Perhaps it’s time to stop tolerating aboring, obnoxious vandal whodelights in chaos.

Perhaps it’s timetofree ourselves of this tar baby

DANIEL DELAUREAL Lacombe

If Landry took Greenlandrole seriously, he coulddocountry aservice

Irecently went to Gov.Jeff Landry’swebsite to offer my opinion that he really has no business being a“special envoy” or whatever he is regarding Greenland.

It seems he agrees, since the list of suggested topics aLouisianan might wish to contact him about includes neither “foreign affairs” nor “Greenland” nor “international envoy of mystery.” Landry seemed to want pretty badly to be our governor,and he got that wish. I think that’sahard job that deserves hard work, but it must be easy for him, since he’salso busy meddling in university sports and tense diplomacy on the world stage.

Since he accepted (or maybe asked for) the president’sjob as some sort of liaison to or viceroy of Greenland, Ithink responsibility falls on Landry to ask the president to please, pretty please, stop with his foolish interest in that island and move on to maybe find helpful ways of addressing actual concerns of Americans.

And if the president won’tlisten, Landry should resign from his extra job. Today Then he really ought to publicly apologize to the citizens of Greenland and Louisiana for having been associated with that mess in the first place. Or he should resign his post as governor of our great state.

JEFFREY

KERBY NewOrleans

SPORTS

BY KEVIN FOOTE Staff writer

There were so many things to like about UL’s 82-72 victory over second-place Georgia State on Thursday at the Cajundome. The Ragin’ Cajuns ended the Panthers’ fourgame winning streak and built a little more momentum heading into the season’s stretch drive.

“These kids fight every single day, they practice the right way and they never give up,” UL coach Quannas White said. “Georgia

“Man, it felt good.”

De’VION LAVERGNE, Cajuns guard

State is a really good team That team was in second place so that’s a really good ball club that we beat tonight.”

UL is 6-16 overall and 4-6 in league play, while Georgia State dropped to 9-13, 6-4. The Cajuns next will play Georgia Southern at 3 p.m. Saturday in the Cajundome.

On Thursday, a UL offense that was dormant for most of the season showed plenty of explosive-

ness over the first 22 minutes.

There was a 19-4 run to build a 30-16 lead with 7:22 left in the first half, which was sparked by a pair of 3-pointers from Dariyus Woodson and one by Kyran Ratliff.

UL then stretched its lead to 5428 with 18:04 left to play after a Jaxon Olvera 3-pointer For the game the Cajuns made nine 3-pointers at a 50% clip while also outscoring Georgia State 3218 in the paint. The continued progress from De’Vion Lavergne was another encouraging sign. The former North Central High standout finished with a career-high 23 points on 8-of-13 shooting.

“Man, it felt good,” Lavergne said of the win. “I felt like we did a good job of moving the ball, the points were spread out, and we did a good job just continuing to trust each other, like, have faith in each other We know what we can do.” Lavergne also delivered clutch baskets when the Cajuns really needed them.

When Georgia State cut that 26-point lead to nine, it was Lavergne’s jumper that ended the Panthers’ run. Then when UL’s lead was trimmed to 65-60 with 8:32 left, Lavergne’s jumper kept the Panthers from getting closer

Senior standouts

BY TOYLOY BROWN III Staff writer

Matt McMahon said he believed LSU was prepared for Mississippi State

The fourth-year LSU coach was mistaken. His team trailed 44-21 at halftime and lost 80-66 on Wednesday at the Pete Maravich Assembly Center

The home defeat cemented the rough reality that LSU (13-8, 1-7 SEC) is in. McMahon acknowledged this difficult place, but he doesn’t want the hardship to overwhelm his team and its goals.

“I think when you get in these tough stretches, the only way forward is to stick together,” McMahon said. “It’s easy to separate and start blaming and making excuses and complaining in a locker room. I think you have to keep everyone tight and connected and find ways to get better.”

The Tigers hope that starts when they face South Carolina (11-10, 2-6) at noon Saturday at Colonial Life Arena in Columbia, South Carolina This is the second time the teams will meet this season. In the last matchup, the Gamecocks won 78-68 after building a 50-25 halftime lead on Jan. 6 at the PMAC. LSU thought it had improved after an 84-81 road loss to No. 15 Arkansas last Saturday, which was the second game with top player Dedan Thomas back from an injury But upon its return to Baton Rouge, the Tigers replicated none

Ten players

BY MATTHEW PARAS Staff writer

in Mobile who could be good match for Saints

MOBILE,Ala Members of the New Orleans Saints coaching staff got a good, up-close look at the American Team at the Senior Bowl. Members of the Saints scouting staff closely watched the National Team since they could rely on their coaches’ feedback for the other squad. Now, it’s time for the two teams to actually play each other

Senior Bowl week concludes Saturday when the American and National teams face off in the all-star event at Hancock Whitney Stadium at the University of South Alabama. It has been a productive week for the Saints, who have seven assistants helping with the game and had their staff on hand to examine this year’s prospects. With three days of practices in the books, here are 10 players who stood out relative to the Saints’ needs:

Mike Washington, Arkansas RB

If the Saints are searching for a lead back — and they don’t select Notre Dame’s Jeremiyah Love in the first round — Washington has emerged as a fascinating option. Not only was his 6-foot, 226-pound frame fully noticeable on runs, but the Arkansas product was one of the fastest players at the Senior Bowl. He clocked an impressive

BY REED DARCEY Staff writer

At one end, Kate Koval rotated over and blocked a layup attempt. At the other, she rebounded a missed jumper and drew a foul.

Those two plays which Koval squeezed into back-to-back, thirdquarter possessions on Thursday in a win over Arkansas helped the LSU women’s basketball team shake off a cold shooting start, gain some momentum and coast to a 22-point victory They also impressed coach Kim Mulkey and the LSU bench They applauded the effort right as the whistle blew “I think (Koval’s) solid,” Mulkey said. “I think she’s a calming effect for our team whether she’s having

double-doubles or scoring the ball or whatever.”

Koval, a 6-foot-5 sophomore from Notre Dame, grabbed 10 rebounds in 15 minutes on Monday in a win over Florida, leading Mulkey to say she wished she would’ve given her more playing time. So she did three days later, when the No. 6 Tigers (20-2, 6-2 SEC) pulled away from the Razorbacks and extended their winning streak to six games.

In 21 minutes, Koval tallied 12 points, 15 rebounds, five blocks and three steals. It was one of the best games of her career and it showed that the Ukrainian trans-

fer center might be starting to figure out how to play in the SEC. Koval averaged only 3.3 points and four rebounds per game in LSU’s first four league matchups. She also shot just 5 of 14 (36%) from the field. In the four games the Tigers have played since then, Koval has put up 10 points and 9.3 rebounds per game, while shooting 15 of 25 (60%) from the field and blocking almost two shots each night. Mulkey now is leaving her on the floor for about five more minutes per game than

Vikings GM Adofo-Mensah let go after 4 seasons

MINNEAPOLIS — The Minnesota Vikings won 43 games over the last four years. The organization has frequently received high marks on recent player report cards. Their fan support, for a franchise that has not won a Super Bowl, is among the strongest in the league Dissatisfaction with above average or pretty good results was never more apparent than on Friday, when general manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah was fired after four seasons and a contract extension just eight months ago.

9

9

2

1:30

Djokovic, Alcaraz to meet in final

BY JOHN PYE AP sportswriter

MELBOURNE, Australia Novak

Djokovic finally beat one of the two men who’ve been blocking his path to an unprecedented 25th Grand Slam singles title when he edged Jannik Sinner in five sets to reach the Australian Open final Friday To get that coveted No. 25, he’ll have to beat the other: top-ranked Carlos Alcaraz.

They’re both chasing history in Sunday’s championship decider, with Alcaraz striving to become the youngest man at 22 ever to complete a career Grand Slam.

“There’s always, for me, also for Carlos because of his age and everything he’s achieved, history is on the line for both of us,” Djokovic told reporters packed into a small room deep inside the stadium in a brief interview approaching 3 a.m. “Finals of a Grand Slam. There’s a lot at stake.”

The top-ranked Alcaraz came through his own grueling five-setter He overcame cramps and a sore right leg to fend off No. 3 Alexander Zverev 6-4, 7-6 (5), 6-7 (3), 6-7 (4), 7-5 in a match that started in the warmth of the afternoon and, 5 hours, 27 minutes later, became the longest semifinal ever at the Australian Open.

That pushed the scheduled start of the Sinner-Djokovic semifinal back a couple of hours, and the 38-year-old Djokovic finally won 3-6, 6-3, 4-6, 6-4, 6-4 just after 1:30 a.m.

Former

“It feels surreal,” Djokovic said of his 4-hour, 9-minute triumph.

“Honestly, it feels like winning already tonight. I know I have to come back and fight the No 1 of the world I just hope that I’ll have enough gas to stay toe-to-toe with him.

“For me, this is a win that almost equals winning a Grand Slam.”

Djokovic conceded he was lucky to even get to the semifinals He narrowly missed hitting a ball girl with a reckless swipe in the third round to be almost defaulted from the tournament, got a walkover in the fourth round, and felt he was heading home in the quarterfinals when he trailed Lorenzo Musetti by two sets until the Italian retired with an injured right leg.

Djokovic hadn’t won a set since the third round but against Sinner, the two-time defending champion, Djokovic was at the

peak of his attacking and defensive powers. He fended off 16 of the 18 breakpoints he faced and stifled Sinner’s opportunities. It ended a run of five losses to Sinner, and a run of four semifinal exits for Djokovic at the majors.

“Had many chances, couldn’t use them, and that’s the outcome,” Sinner said. “Yeah, it hurts, for sure.”

Alcaraz and Sinner have split the last eight major titles between them since Djokovic won his last title at the 2023 U.S. Open.

But nobody knows how to win more often at Melbourne Park than Djokovic. He has won all 10 times he’s contested the Australian Open final. He has been saying for months that Alcaraz and Sinner have been playing at a higher level than everyone else. He also said he never doubted he could rise to that level.

“I never stopped doubting. I never stopped believing in my-

self,” he said. “There’s a lot of people that doubted me a lot of experts all of a sudden that wanted to retire me.

“I want to thank them all because they gave me strength. They gave me motivation to prove them wrong, which I have tonight.”

Final 4

The top four seeds reached the men’s semifinals for just the fifth time and Day 13 was destined to produce some much-needed drama. The season-opening major had been a relatively slow burn until the back-to-back five-setters lasting a combined 9 hours, 36 minutes.

Alcaraz and Zverev, the 2025 runner-up, surpassed the 2009 classic between Rafael Nadal and Fernando Verdasco as the longest ever Australian Open semifinal

Medical timeout

Alcaraz was as close as two points from victory in the third set but was hampered by pain in his upper right leg and his medical timeout became contentious.

He said initially it didn’t feel like cramping because the pain seemed to be just in one muscle, the right adductor, and he needed an assessment. He endured the third and fourth sets and was behind in the fifth after dropping serve in the first game. He kept up the pressure but didn’t break back until Zverev was serving for the match. He then won the last four games.

“Physically we pushed each other to the limit today We pushed our bodies to the limit,” Alcaraz said. “I rank this one in the top position of one of the best matches that I have ever won.”

teammates Knueppel, Flagg face off

Ex-Duke players battling for NBA Rookie of the year

BY STEVE REED AP sportswriter

CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Cooper Flagg entered the season as the overwhelming favorite to win NBA Rookie of the Year

But his old college roommate is giving the No. 1 draft pick a run for his money Charlotte’s Kon Knueppel is in the midst of the most productive rookie season in Hornets history, ranking third in the league in 3-pointers made (151) behind only Stephen Curry and Donovan Mitchell. He’s on pace to make 269 3s this season, which would obliterate the NBA rookie record of 206 set by Sacramento’s Keegan Murray in the 2022-23 season. That production has allowed Knueppel to close the gap in the running for Rookie of the Year

He’s currently listed at +280 odds to win behind only Flagg (-450), according to BetMGM Sportsbook. Before the season, Knueppel was +2000 to win.

On Thursday night, Knueppel went head-to-head with Flagg and poured in a career-high 34 points on eight made 3-pointers. He deflected a pass from Flagg

and made two free throws with 4.1 seconds left to lift the Hornets to their fifth straight win, 123-121 win over the Dallas Mavericks.

Flagg finished with 49 points, setting an NBA record for points scored by a teen in an epic duel of the league’s young stars.

“Ten years down the road we will be looking back on this as a pretty special thing,” Flagg said after the game.

Although Flagg remains the heavy favorite to win NBA Rookie of the Year, Knueppel’s stats are comparable, if not better given his shooting acumen.

Flagg is averaging 19.5 points, 6.5 rebounds, 4.1 assists and 1.2 steals per game for Dallas, while shooting 29% from 3-point range. Knueppel is averaging 18.9 points, 5.4 rebounds, 3.6 assists and 0.7 steals while shooting 42.9% on 3s.

Knueppel said he and Flagg remain in communication, but haven’t discussed the battle for top rookie. A selfproclaimed basketball junkie, Knueppel spends most of his free time watching other NBA games, and has paid close attention to his former Duke teammate’s accomplishments.

“We see the game in the same way Cooper makes his team-

mates better and we talk about that — how to help the team,” Knueppel said. “He’s a guy that likes to do it as a whole. He’s not out there to get his, per se. He wants to do it the right way.”

Golden State coach Steve Kerr recently compared Knueppel to Warriors legend Chris Mullin.

“Really good size on the wing, big strong body, catch-and-shoot, but also incredible IQ, passing, making the right play over and over again. He’s already a really really (darn) good player,” Kerr said.

“He’s got a knack, he’s got a feel for the game, you can tell. And the pump fake and the sidestep three to turn a decent three into a great three that’s just feel. And the poise that he has on the floor is really impressive.”

Kerr praised Knueppel’s movement without the basketball, and his ability to free himself up for open looks.

Facing older, taller and more physical competition, he quickly learned the importance of moving without the ball and getting his shot off quickly

“That is an area, especially in our country, that is a struggle with the young players,” said Knueppel, who like Flagg has twice won

NBA Rookie of the Month. “They don’t know how to move off the basketball. And that really really helps you at this level.”

Knueppel said that has gotten tougher for him as the season has progressed with opposing teams paying closer attention to where he’s at on the floor

But he’s continued to flourish, while remaining remarkably consistent. He and Denver’s Nikola Jokic are the only players this season to average at least 15 points and five rebounds per game while shooting better than 42% from 3-point range.

Knueppel’s 13 games with at least five 3s ties a rookie record — and he still has 33 games to play

“He’s been incredible,” Flagg said of Knueppel, both of whom spent one season at Duke before entering the draft. “He’s been really impressive and that’s nothing new to me. I know what he is capable of. I knew what to expect and I’m really happy for him.”

Whether or not Knueppel can beat the odds and overtake Flagg for NBA Rookie of the Year with two months left in the season remains to be seen.

But the No. 4 pick in the 2025 draft said just being in the same conversation with Flagg — a player many observers consider to be a “generational talent” is rewarding.

Executive vice president of football operations Rob Brzezinski was appointed as the interim replacement through the NFL draft, after which the full general manager search will take place The timing of this decision was unusual nearly four weeks after the regular season.

Ravens hiring Doyle, 29, as offensive coordinator

BALTIMORE New Ravens coach Jesse Minter is hiring Chicago Bears offensive coordinator Declan Doyle to be Baltimore’s offensive coordinator, a source with direct knowledge of the situation confirmed to The Baltimore Sun.

Doyle replaces Todd Monken, whom previous coach John Harbaugh had hired in 2023 and is now the coach of the Cleveland Browns.

Next to Minter the position is perhaps the most important — and scrutinized — on the coaching staff. Doyle, 29, is viewed as another rising young assistant in NFL circles. He’s the youngest offensive coordinator in the league. Though he was the Bears’ offensive coordinator this past season, he did not call the plays.

Packers extend contracts for GM, coach LaFleur GREEN BAY, Wis. — Green Bay Packers general manager Brian Gutekunst and executive vice president/director of football operations Russ Ball have joined coach Matt LaFleur in signing multi-year contract extensions. Packers president/CEO Ed Policy announced the extensions for all three on Friday The extensions come after the Packers went 9-8-1 and made their third straight playoff appearance, and sixth in the last seven years. A 31-27 loss at Chicago in the NFC wild-card playoff round capped a five-game skid that ended Green Bay’s season, though one of those defeats came when the Packers rested their starters in their regular-season finale.

WNBA, players’ union to resume CBA negotiations

The WNBA and the players’ union will meet Monday in New York for the first time in several weeks to try to move the stalled collective bargaining negotiations forward.

Kelsey Plum, who is vice president of the players’ union, mentioned the meeting to reporters while she was preparing for a game in Philadelphia with the 3-on3 league Unrivaled.

Plum will be joined at the meeting by other members of the executive council, including Nneka Ogwumike and Napheesa Collier, as well as union leadership. The league will have its regular negotiating team, including WNBA Commissioner Cathy Engelbert, the labor relations committee and a few other owners.

Kane becomes top-scoring NHL player born in America DETROIT Patrick Kane became the highest-scoring United States-born player in NHL history passing Mike Modano with an assist for his 1,375th point on Thursday night for the Detroit Red Wings against the Washington Capitals. He was surrounded by teammates, including those who emptied the bench to join a brief celebration. As Kane skated away, the spotlight was put on him and he raised his stick to acknowledge the crowd while appearing to be on the verge of tears. Modano held the mark for 18plus years. Kane reached the milestone a

SAINTS

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21 miles per hour on one of his rushes, a staggering number given his size.

Zion Young, Missouri DE College scouting director Jeff Ireland said that the Saints’ prototype for defensive ends has changed under defensive coordinator Brandon Staley’s scheme That said, Young sure looked like the type of pass rusher the Saints have become enamored with over the years. He’s 6-foot-5, 262 pounds and was a consistent presence off the edge. He might not be on the board when the Saints pick in the second round, but he’d be a fun player to pair with Chase Young.

Ted Hurst, Georgia State WR

Most any list of Senior Bowl standouts has Hurst on it. The 6-3, 207-pound receiver stood out in a big way throughout the week. He’s not the fastest receiver, but he displayed crafty footwork to win his routes. He also can excel at contested catches. As The Athletic’s Dane Brugler noted, Hurst had the most 20-plus yard catches in the FBS over the last two seasons with 34.

Malachi Fields, Notre Dame WR Fields may not have put up eye-popping stats (36 catches for 630 yards and five touchdowns) in his lone year at Notre Dame last season, but the former Virginia transfer caught plenty of eyes during the week of Senior Bowl practices He’s a physically imposing receiver at 6-4 while also having the speed and smoothness to get by defenders. He made an impressive diving catch deep down the field Wednesday on which he split the cornerback and the safety to break free.

Jeremiah Wright, Auburn OL

Wright dominated his one-on-one battles in practice, including the last rep of Tuesday’s practice in which he threw Alabama defensive lineman LT Overton to the ground. The circle of teammates around him went nuts, and for good reason. It was a big-time move, one that Wright showed he could consistently make. The 6-5, 340-pounder started 12 games at right guard for Auburn last season.

“I feel like I’m in the best spot I’ve been in all season,” Lavergne said. “All season, coach has been telling me that it’s going to come they’re going to need me. Just slow down and I’m going to figure it out. I appreciate him and my teammates for putting confidence in me.”

Dorian Finister was his normal steady self with 18 points and six rebounds for the Cajuns, Woodson added six points, and Ratliff scored four points and had five rebounds in 12 minutes.

“Huge,” White said of Ratliff’s effort. “He had five defensive rebounds. He’s getting a little more comfortable and we’re finding ways to get him involved. It just takes time and patience. This is the first time I’ve ever coached Kyran Ratliff.” Karris Bilal played 33 minutes and contributed 13

KOVAL

Continued from page 1C

Koval hasn’t started in three weeks, but Mulkey opened the second half of Thursday’s win over Arkansas with Koval at center and LSU built an 11-0 run.

Flau’jae Johnson and Mikaylah Williams handled most of the scoring responsibilities during that pivotal stretch. But Koval kickstarted a few of their transition chances by protecting the rim and cleaning the glass. In the third quarter alone, she corralled five rebounds, blocked three shots and forced two turnovers. LSU outscored the Razorbacks by 28 points when Koval was on the floor The lineup Mulkey used with her at center flanked by Williams, Flau’jae Johnson, Jada Richard and ZaKiyah Johnson — won its minutes by 10 points. No other group

TIGERS

Continued from page 1C

of that intensity and sound fundamental play

A recurring issue has been 3-pointers, both the offense’s difficulty making them and the defense’s inability to prevent opposing teams from getting hot from beyond the arc. When LSU lost to South Carolina on Jan. 6, it closely mirrored the most recent loss to Mississippi State. Both times, LSU got off to abysmal starts. Against South Carolina, it trailed 24-5 after about six minutes. Against Mississippi State, the Tigers were down 27-9 with 11:35 remaining in the

points and three boards. Milan Mejia left the game injured after 11 minutes and didn’t return.

“I brought Lavergne and Karris to the sidelines and said, ‘Hey, you guys are not coming out. You’ve got to finish this game,’ ” White said of Lavergne, Olvera and Bilal all playing 31 or more minutes. “So I just told all of our guys how proud I am of how tough they are.”

The Cajuns limited the Sun Belt’s second-leading scorer and reigning player of the week Jelani Hamilton to 14 points on 2-of-15 shooting.

“We knew he was kind of a foul baiter type of guy,” Finister said, “so we just tried our best to keep our hands up.”

As a team, the Panthers shot only 30.9%. Malachi Brown led the way with 25 points.

“I thought our defense led to us getting those offensive opportunities,” White said.

“We got some stops early and that really fired us up. We have some guys make some plays, defensively put some pressure on them,

she put together was more productive.

“She was blocking shots,” first-year Arkansas coach Kelsi Musick said. “She takes up space, and she’s hard to block out, and she can rebound. She does a really good job for what coach Mulkey needs her to do, and she executes at a really high level.

“She runs the floor She’s a phenomenal player in the paint for them.”

LSU will need Koval to keep controlling the interior moving forward. Once the Tigers get past their game against No. 24 Alabama on Sunday, they’ll quickly run into their rematch with No 4 Texas and their annual showdown with No 3 South Carolina. Both teams are standing in the way of LSU’s shot at the SEC regular-season title — and its chances to earn a No. 1 NCAA Tournament seed for the first time since 2006. They also have size they can throw at the Tigers.

first half LSU never led in either game and trailed by 28 and 27 points, respectively, in the first half. When McMahon was asked how to keep the team’s chances of making the NCAA Tournament alive, he said solving issues one game at a time is the approach

“I think the focus for us has to be short-term,” McMahon said. “How do we fix our start here (Wednesday)? How do we show improvement on the defensive side of the ball from the 3-point line, and ultimately, you got to be able to score. We just scored 81 Saturday, and then (Wednesday), credit to Mississippi State’s defense, we scored 21 points in the first half. So we got to really get back and focus on getting

cause some turnovers.”

On the downside, the season-long free-throw discrepancy remained. Georgia State entered the game No. 9 nationally in free-throw shooting and was 33 of 35 at the line compared to UL making 17 of 21 attempts.

During its big comeback in the second half, Georgia State went on a 32-11 run that included only four baskets in that stretch. That troubling stretch for the Cajuns also featured several turnovers.

“We just had to get organized,” White said.

Lavergne credited a coaching adjustment for allowing UL to maintain its lead.

“Coach just took us from a stack to just a one-guard, since he knew they were trapping,” he said. “After that, I felt like it gave us space to work, so if they did trap, you could just throw it back and then bring it up the court.”

Email Kevin Foote at kfoote@theadvocate.com.

The Longhorns have been starting 6-4 Breya Cunningham and bringing in 6-6 Kyla Oldacre off the bench behind her. The Gamecocks have been playing four players who stand taller than 6-4 — 6-5 Madina Okot, 6-7 Alicia Tournebize, 6-5 Adhel Tac and 6-4 Maryam Dauda.

Koval is the only LSU contributor who’s 6-3 or taller Amiya Joyner and Grace Knox are listed at only 6-2, while ZaKiyah Johnson is just 6-foot.

The good news for LSU is that Koval may have figured out how she can earn herself a larger role, just in time for the schedule to stiffen again.

“Kate’s not going to get too high or too low,” Mulkey said. “I think Kate is doing extremely well, and she’s so valuable to our team, but I don’t think she’s had what I would just say was a bad game.”

Email Reed Darcey at reed darcey@theadvocate.com

our team better.” McMahon said one letdown was the team’s mindset. While he thought it was in a good place before the game, it led to poor play

“I’m a big believer in the mindset, and so that was probably my disappointment,” McMahon said. “Just thought coming out of shootaround, there was great energy, great communication. I thought we’d have a certain pop to us. A certain urgency there. So you know, we had really improved our start here of late. But you got to look at both sides of the ball, because 3-point line defense, but then offensively, we didn’t score enough to give ourselves a chance either there. So it all works together.”

Tyren Montgomery, John Carroll WR Montgomery’s emergence is what makes the Senior Bowl fun. The little-known 5-11 Montgomery popped on people’s radars this week as he looked like he belonged, despite competing at the Division III level in college. He didn’t play football until his junior year of college at Nicholls State. He played basketball in high school and even spent a semester of his freshman year as a walk-on basketball player at LSU.

Keylan Rutledge, Georgia Tech OL Coaches had to warn Rutledge several times to stop being overly aggressive in practice, and Saints fans everywhere had flashbacks to Trevor Penning. Still, Rutledge’s aggressiveness is an appealing aspect to his game, and the 6-3, 316-pound guard can bully people on the inside. Primarily a guard in college, Rutledge worked at all three interior spots throughout the week to display his versatility The Saints need interior offensive line help, making Rutledge someone to keep an eye on.

Kaelon Black, Indiana RB Black could be a fun weapon for the Saints as a third-down, change-of-pace back. The 5-9 rusher stood out in the passing game, where he excelled as a receiving threat. Though he was hardly used as a receiver in college he had just four catches for 36 yards with the Hooisers — perhaps that could change at the next level. It was also noteworthy that Black attended the Senior Bowl after playing in the national championship just a week earlier Will Kacmarek, Ohio State TE With Foster Moreau and Jack Stoll set to be free agents, the Saints could use a physical, run-blocking tight end to complement starter Juwan Johnson. Enter Kacmarek. The 6-6, 240-pound tight end had only 15 catches for 168 yards last season, but that hardly matters. Kacmarek can help a team in the NFL if he blocks the way he did in college and during these practices.

Kyle Louis, Pittsburgh LB Linebacker isn’t a huge need for New Orleans, but we’re bending the rules a little bit here. Even if Demario Davis leaves in free agency, the team’s brass has confidence in 2025 fourth-rounder Danny Stutsman. But Louis drew rave reviews in Mobile, including from ESPN analyst Louis Riddick, who said the Pittsburgh product was among the National Team linebackers who “set the tone” for three days of practice Perhaps undersized at 5-11 and 224 pounds, Louis still hits with a thud.

New LSU 3B Caraway’s tweaks paying off

BY KOKI RILEY

Staff writer

Power never has been a problem for Trent Caraway

Last June for Oregon State, he hit five home runs at the Corvallis Regional. He blasted another ball over the fence in the Beavers’ Omaha-clinching win over Florida State in the super regional.

But consistency was an issue for Caraway. He had only six homers before the postseason, and he went on an eight-game stretch with just one hit. So instead of going pro last summer, Caraway transferred to LSU. He always has had the tools to make it to the majors. He was a top-150 draft prospect in 2025 as a draft-eligible sophomore and a top-100 player in the draft as a high school senior in 2023, according to MLB.com’s rankings. He just didn’t think he was ready for professional baseball

“I just felt after last year, I didn’t really play up to my level,” Caraway said. “I thought I needed another year of college to play at

that level and be as pro-ready as possible.” As LSU coach Jay Johnson and his staff already had done

with several transfers — most notably Chris Stanfield last year — they went to work on making adjustments to Caraway’s of-

fensive game once he arrived on campus.

“He has great power hit double-digit homers last year at Oregon State,” Johnson said on the LSU Sports Insider podcast.

“But can we be a better hitter without having to sell out to get to that?”

The biggest change for Caraway has been the mechanics of his swing. For his entire career, Caraway would tap his front toe on the ground as a way to time pitches before shifting his weight to his back leg otherwise known as his load — and swinging.

The mechanism isn’t unheard of — New York Yankees legend Derek Jeter did it for years. But the LSU coaching staff since has eliminated the toe tap to help simplify his load, and therefore his swing.

“I’m just not trying to do too much,” Caraway said, “keeping everything a lot more simple than years previous.”

The LSU staff also has helped keep Caraway’s head more still as he swings, allowing him to see the ball better

SCOREBOARD

STATE COLLEGE BASKETBALL STANDINGS

Brown, Chappelle

The mechanical adjustments are simple, but Caraway already has started to see the fruits of his labor He cranked a homer off sophomore left-hander Cooper Williams during Thursday’s scrimmage that went 112 mph off the bat.

“It started working towards the end of the fall and got a lot better,” Caraway said, “and then went home for winter break, kept working on it, and then I started to really see results lately.”

Caraway is expected to be a critical piece of the LSU lineup. With Ethan Frey and Jared Jones off to professional baseball, the Tigers needed to replace their power from the right-handed side. The loss of Michael Braswell also meant that LSU needed a third baseman.

Johnson is banking on Caraway as his answer for both areas. Whether Caraway can fill those holes will go a long way in determining LSU’s success.

“I believe in his tools,” Johnson said. “And there’s definitely major league teams that believe in his tools.”

Bilal

Olvera

Finister 0-3) Team Rebounds: 4. Team Turnovers: 1. Blocked Shots: 4 (T.Jones 2, Lavergne Ratliff). Turnovers: 10 (Lavergne 4, Finister 2, Olvera 2, Bilal, Evans). Steals: 4 (Bilal, Finister, Lavergne, Mejia). Technical Fouls: None Georgia State2844—72 Louisiana4636—82 A_2,436 (11,550). State women’s schedule Thursday’s games James Madison 96, UL 45 Lamar 57, Southeastern 44 Southern 67, Jackson State 43 McNeese 70, Stephen F. Austin 64 Louisiana Tech 72, Kennesaw State 44 East Texas A&M 90, UNO 73 Northwestern State 57, Nicholls 47 Friday’s games None scheduled. Saturday’s games UL at Marshall, noon UL-Monroe at Appalachian State, noon Southern at Alcorn, 1 p.m. Grambling at Jackson State, 1 p.m. Southeastern at Stephen F. Austin, 2 p.m. Jacksonville State at Louisiana Tech, 2 p.m. Temple at Tulane, 2 p.m. Northwestern State at UNO, 2 p.m. Nicholls at East Texas A&M, 2:30 p.m. McNeese at Lamar, 3 p.m. Sunday’s games Alabama at LSU,

New taste on the block

Fast food restaurant, Flayva,opens first location in BR

BY MADDIE SCOTT Staff writer

Flayva, anew fast food spot in Baton Rouge, held its grand opening Jan. 18 with cheesesteaks, burgers, wings and more.

In aformer Jack in the Box at theintersection of Florida Boulevard andSouth Flannery Road, Flayva’sfirst location has both dine-in and drive-thru options. Yanal Muhaisen, one of Flayva’sfour co-owners, plans to open more locations statewide, with one spot soft opening in three weeks in Hammond. He hopes to eventually expand nationally

“Weare specialized in Philly cheesesteaksmainly,” Muhaisen said, “but we also serve burgers, wings, some salads and pastas.”

There are six different cheesesteaksranging from $11 50 to $12.50, like the Flayva Cheesesteak withgrilled steak, onions, bell peppers, mayonnaise and white Americancheese. Add shrimp, and that’sthe Surf &Turf Cheesesteak. Or there’s theFlayva Rancher with grilled steak, onions, bell peppers, mayonnaise, ranch sauce, jalapeñosand pepper jack cheese.

The menu also includes a selection of appetizers like crawfish or cheesesteak egg rolls, cheesesteak fries, crab balls and cheese curds.There arealso seafoodbaskets and sandwiches. The sides include Flayva fries, cheese fries, onion ringsand garlic bread.

“They’re fresh,daily cooked and reallygood,” said co-owner Omar Alshammari said about the egg rolls, his favorite menu item. “Crispy,juicy.” For those craving something sweet, milkshake flavorsinclude vanilla,chocolate, strawberry,Oreo, caramel and coffee,availableinsmall($4.99) or regular($6.99) sizes. There are fountain drinks available, which customers can getfor free if they followthe business’ social accounts,aonetime deal. Inside, the dining space has some two and four-seater tables with acouple of televisions on the walls. Customers canorder at the register,touchscreen kiosks or the drive-thru.

The owners commissioned an artist for various paintings on the walls, the art noddingto Tupac and the LSU and Southern football teams.

Flayva, 13520 Florida Blvd., Baton Rouge. Open 10:30 a.m. to 3a.m. seven days aweek

LIVING

DRESSTO IMPRESS

Sixsuitcases andcounting—atWashington MardiGras, fashionispartofdoing thejob

BY JANRISHER Staff writer

For some, Washington

Mardi Gras is about celebration. For others, it is aboutbusiness development or even the survival of an organization.

The annual gathering draws hundreds to Washington, D.C., where conversations —often happening in meetings, ballrooms, hallways and the Hilton lobby —can determinethe future of nonprofits and institutionsback home.

Dressing for the moment is not optional.

“In D.C., with acaptain of industryora member of the legislative delegation, you don’twant to be worried about what you’rewearing,” said BeverlyBrooks Thompson,a longtime fundraiser who lives in Baton Rouge.

Endurance, notextravagance

Washington Mardi Gras is political, social andeconomicall at once.

“It’saneconomic development week for me,” she said. “It’sa business development week for other people.”

Stylists whowork Washington Mardi Gras say thechallenge isn’t extravagance —it’sendurance.

ningfor long days andconstant movement. Comfortable shoes are essential,leadingonoccasion to tennis shoes under ballgowns.

“My clients typically are moving or on the go,” she said.

Lookingthe part

Since Thompson’searly days working at LSU in the late 1990s, she has spent decades representing institutions in rooms where perception matters.

“You know,wehave to be in big fancy rooms all the timewith big fancy clothes, but we don’tmake big fancy money,” said Thompson, who now works as managing director with Carter Global.

That tension led her,20years ago, to worktoward asolutionfor women who, likeher,need to look thepart but don’thavethe budget required to do so.

“I starteda closetthatwomen Iworkwithcould recycletheir dresses,” she said.

Overtime, Thompson’scloset has grown.

Wardrobe budgets run across the board.

“You can spend $200 for agown or you can spendupwards of $2,500 forasingleevent,” said Aimee Gowland, founderofALG Style in NewOrleans.

What matters, shesaid,isplan-

Forthe dressesand gowns more than three or four years old, Thompsonallows alterations, which, combined with different body shapes, often change the look

ä See FASHION, page 6C

Kaylee HartungtomakeSuper

Staff and wire reports Louisiana nativeKaylee Hartung

King CharlesIII eyes legacy in documentary

BY DANICA KIRKA Associated Press

WINDSOR, England King

Charles III is clearly thinking about his legacy

In his new film, “Finding Harmony: AKing’sVision,”

Charles delivers asimple message —that humanity needs to restore the balance between man and nature if it hopes to solve global warming and many of the other problems facing the world today.Helping spread that gospel,hehopes,willbe his legacy

“It all boils down to the fact that we are actually nature ourselves, we are apart of it, not apart from it, which is really how things are being presented for so long, Charles says in the closing moments of the documentary beforeturningtoShakespeare.“Maybe, by the time Ishuffle off this mortal coil, there might be alittle more awareness …ofthe need to bring things backtogether again.”

‘Criticismsreallyupset him’

Charles and Amazon Prime unveiled the film on Wednesday at Windsor Castle,near London, ahead of ared-carpet premiere attended by celebrities including Kate Winslet, who narrates the film. The film spells out the king’sphilosophy that humans will only thrive if they

learntoworkwithnature, not against it, because they are as much apartofthe naturalworld as animals, insects and trees. Charles first addressed these ideas in his 2010 book “Harmony: ANew WayofLooking at Our World.” It also gives him the chance to confront those whohavelampooned him as adilettante flittingaimlessly from onecause to another with norhyme or reason.On thecontrary,the film argues,

climate change, urbanplanning, sustainable agriculture, traditional crafts and fostering understanding between religions— causes to which the king has devoted much of hisadult life —are inter-related issues that must be dealt withtocreate sustainable communities.

Charles, 77,was “haunted” by press coverage that mocked himfor a1986 TV interview in which he said he talked to his plants, Winslet says in the narration,accom-

Theobligatorystandingovation

Dear Miss Manners: Overthe years,Ihave noticed that at most live performances —from professional concerts and operas to dance recitals and school plays —the audience automatically gives astanding ovation at the end. Igrew up believing that astanding ovation was an expression of appreciation for atruly extraordinary performance —aperformance at which the audience was so deeply moved that they couldn’t stay seated. Now when Iattend performances and Iam satisfied or pleased,but not overcome withemotion, I feel churlish for staying seated when everyone else is standing and yelling “bravo” or “brava.”

What is the etiquettefor appreciatinglive performances these days?Should Igive in to peer pressureand stand, even if my opinion of theperformance is “meh”?

panied by images of critical newspaper headlines.

“Those criticisms really upsethim. He gottreated very unfairly,seen very unfairly,and those of us that knewhim better were quite upset by that,” Ian Skelly, co-author of the king’s2010 book. “It was difficult to know how to respond, but I really felt for him.”

Lifelong campaign

Charleshas been campaigning on environmental

issues since at least 1971 when he gave his first speech on conservation while still an undergraduate at the University of Cambridge. He has since started asuccessful organic food firm and helped build asustainable village in western England.

Environmentalist Tony Juniper, who worked with the king on both the film and book, believes the king is uniquely qualified to deliver his message because he beganspeaking outonenvironmental issueslongbefore they were popular and because he continues to do so, even as other world leaders shun environmental protection in favor of energy security and economic growth.

“I do feel as though the world is now hungry for some new big ideas,” Juniper said. “And Idohope that one of those big ideas that people would like to consider as we face into these multiple challenges of the 2020s and beyond is the idea of harmony.”

While Charles first addressed the idea of harmony 16 years ago, he is returning to the topic partly because thegrowth of streaming platforms like Amazon Primegivehim achance to reach new audiences worldwide.

Amatteroflegacy

Butthe king also wantsto

shiftthe focus back to an issue he hopeswill define his legacy after two years in whichthe media, andthe public, were distractedby other matters, saidEdOwens, author of “AfterElizabeth: Can the Monarchy Save Itself?” First there was acancer diagnosis, which forced him to step away frompublic duties forseveral months in early 2024 and raised nagging questions about his health. Then there were the continuing tensions with his younger son, Prince Harry and thescandal surrounding his brother Andrew’s links to the convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. With Charles apparently past theworst of his cancer treatment and Andrew stripped of his royal titles, now may be the timetoturn the page.

“He wants to set outwhat hislegacy is as amonarch —asasignificant member of this Windsor family for going on 80 years,” Owens said. “This is abouthim giving us aclear indication of what he thinks matters in terms of his public image andpersona, whathewants us to take away from him as his defining characteristics.”

The documentary—“Finding Harmony: AKing’sVision” —will be available on Amazon Prime from Feb. 6.

Free gospel concertonFeb.6

Gentle reader: No, you do notneed to stand for a“meh” performance. But Miss Manners also knows that sometimes onehas no choice, if one wants to see the curtain call. In that case, theenthusiasm with which one applaudsmay be emphatically lessened. That will teach ’em. Dear Miss Manners: We have asmall half-bathroom downstairsthatismainly used by guests.Asacourtesy,Iusually haveperiod products readily available to visitors. For larger gatherings, I’vehad them in

RELIGION BRIEFS

FROM STAFFREPORTS

The Rev.Mike Vaughn will lead a“Southern and Country Gospel Fest” at 5:30 p.m. Friday,Feb. 6, at Good News Fellowship Church, 13101 La. 442 West, Tickfaw Doors will open at 5:30 p.m., and singing will start at 6:30 p.m. with Vaughn,followed by Greg Sullivan at 7:30 p.m.

This is afree concert, but aloveoffering will be re-

ceived.A concessionstand will servedesserts. For further information, contactBarbara Vaughn at (985)974-0507 or mvmgoodnews.com. Louisiana justice to speak atchurch

Louisiana SupremeCourt

Associate Justice John M. Guidry will speak at Fairview Baptist Church, 1636 Braddock St., Baton Rouge, at 11 a.m. Sunday,Feb.8

plain sight of anyone using therestroom, but normally they’re stowed under the sink. How should Istorethese sensitive itemstobeavailable to guests? Should I assume people will do a quick search under the sink if they’re in apinch, or is it best to just have them out?

Gentlereader: Is there a pretty,opaque container that you can put them in on ashelf? Puttingthem out in the open is abit unseemly,and under-the-sink snooping is not something Miss Manners necessarily wants to encourage. You never know what can get thrown in there when one is cleaning up quickly for guests.

Send questions to Miss Manners at her website, www.missmanners.com.

FASHION

Continuedfrom page5C

of thedress —creating in oneinstancewhatshe calls “Sisterhood of the Traveling Mardi Gras Dress.”

The program will honor Annie MaeJones, “Mother of the Church.”All are invited. St.James Baptist holds celebration

St.James BaptistChurch, 1105 N. 44th St.,Baton Rouge, will celebrate the second-year appreciation for the Rev.J.L. Franklin, pastor, andfirst lady Lisa Franklin.

Ameal will follow.All are invited.

By The Associated Press

Today is Saturday, Jan. 31, the 31st day of 2026. There are 334 days left in the year

Todayinhistory: On Jan. 31, 2020, the United States declared apublic health emergency over the new coronavirus, and President Donald Trump signed an order to temporarily bar entry to foreign nationals, other than immediate family of U.S. citizens, who traveled in China in the preceding 14 days. Also on this date: In 1863, during the Civil War, the First South Carolina Volunteers, an all-Black Union regiment composed of many who escaped from slavery, was mustered into federal serviceatBeaufort, South Carolina. In 1958, the United States

entered the Space Age with its first successfullaunch of asatellite, Explorer1, fromCape Canaveral. In 1971, astronauts Alan Shepard, Edgar Mitchell and Stuart Roosa blasted off aboard Apollo 14 on a mission to the moon. In 1988, Doug Williams, the first Black quarterbacktoplay in theSuper Bowl, led the Washington Redskins (now Washington Commanders) to a42-10 victoryoverthe Denver Broncos and was named Super Bowl MVP. In 2001, aScottish court sitting in the Netherlands convicted oneLibyan and acquitted asecondinthe 1988 bombingofPan Am Flight 103 over Lockerbie, Scotland. (Abdel Baset Ali al-Megrahiwas given a life sentence but was released after eight years on

compassionate grounds by Scotland’sgovernment. He died in 2012.) In 2023, BoeingCo. delivered its last 747 wide-body jet to acustomer,capping morethan ahalf-century of production of the iconic jumbojet.

Today’sbirthdays: Composer Philip Glass is 89. Blues singer-musician Charlie Musselwhiteis82. Actor Glynn Turman is 79. Baseball Hall of Famer Nolan Ryan is 79. Actor Jonathan Banks is 79. Rock singer John Lydon is 70. Actor Anthony LaPaglia is 67.

Actor Minnie Driver is 56. Actor Portia de Rossi is 53. Actor-comedian Bobby Moynihan is 49. Actor Kerry Washington is 49.

Singer Justin Timberlake is 45. Country singer Tyler Hubbard (FloridaGeorgia Line) is 39.

“I can show you thesame ballgown worn by four different women in four differentyears—and it doesn’t look like thesamedress,” shesaid. “I have several racks of clothes, and people, by invitation, come ‘shopping’ every year.” The closet functions because of reciprocity

Participants contribute back,sometimesinlarge numbers —including one personwho moved outof state and donated her 30 ballgowns.

Still, Thompson is certain that she doesn’twant to operate aconsignment store.

“I don’tmind loaning stuff to people who will take care of it the way Iwould take care of it,” shesaid. “I have spent my career breaking down barriers to access. If I can assist awoman in being outfitted and feeling confident to do her work to make Louisiana abetter place to live, workand play, I’m going to do so.”

Logisticsare daunting

Washington Mardi Gras is not for thefaint of heart. It’s also nota one-dress event. Even getting therecan be tricky.

“Ballgowns are bulky,” Thompsonsaid. “Ifyou’re going to wear aballgown, you’ve gottowear two one on Friday night and one on Saturday night to the floor.”

Andthen there are cocktail dresses for Thursday night Tweed suits for Capitol Hill.

Dresses hang in Beverly Brooks Thompson’s Washington MardiGras lendingcloset in Baton Rouge.Thompsoninvites nonprofitleaders and educators sheknows are attendingthe event to browse the dresses if theyneed to supplement their wardrobe.

And coats and boots because it’scold. Athousand milesfrom home plus wardrobe changes meansaluggage extravaganzafor Louisiana travelers headed to D.C.

Sixsuitcases betweentwo

Many couples traveling to Washington MardiGras take six suitcases —even more for krewe royalty and princesses. Through the years, some Washington Mardi Gras royalty have been known to trucktheir full wardrobes to the capital rather than attempt to fly with them

Men attending the events have certain fashion standards to meet,but the packing list is easier to manage than thevarietyofdresses, suits andgownsrequiredfor women.

Buying less —buyingwell

Many women who attend

Washington Mardi Gras

annually have developed a system to build their wardrobe

“I can’tspeak for other people, but Ibuy one nice dress ayear.And Itry and recycle other things depending on what I’mdoing,” Thompson said. “And Ibuy onereally fantasticdress every year.Everything else is kind of hit or miss.” Warmth andversatility matter

Reuse is intentional, but social media plays arole in wardrobe curation.

“I mightwearthemagain forsomething else, but your photographs —all of those things.Facebook is abeast with thisstuff,”Thompson said.

Thecostofattending Tickets alone are asignificant expense, costing $400 per person foreach event on Friday and Saturday evenings. The Mystick Krewe of Louisianians and the hotel work together to create a makeshift hair/makeup salon in the hotel’smeeting space, bringing in around 30 stylists.

“Estimated costs are around $300 aday forhair andmakeup, eyelashes— and that’swithout the tip,” Thompson said.

Many longtime attendees plan their wardrobes to stand out, but in away that makes them feel comfortable —and when in doubt, they add moresparkle.

However,for Thompson and other attendees, the goal is notexcess— it’s assurance.

“I don’twant people to think I’mwealthy,” she said, “because Iamnot, but Ihave to look like Iam.”

Email Jan Risheratjan. risher@theadvocate.com.

AQuARIus(Jan. 20-Feb. 19) It's up to you to create what you want to happen. Find adirection that allows you to use your mind, body and skills in gratifying ways.

PIsCEs (Feb. 20-March 20) Mingle, socialize and attendevents that broaden your outlook and encourage you to up your game andsatisfyyour soul.How you project your intentions will determine who wants to spend time with you.

ARIEs (March 21-April19) Don't waitfor things to go wrong. Take precautions to ensureyou have everything, including abackup plan,inplace. Your efficiency will payoff andhelp you say no to temptation or excess.

TAuRus (April 20-May20) Stick close to home and surround yourselfwith people youtrust.The time and effort you put in will yieldrewards beyondyourexpectations. Protect yourself from illness.

GEMInI (May 21-June 20) Take charge and follow through with your promises. Participatinginanevent or socializing with friends will give you achance to impress someone you love

CAnCER(June 21-July 22) Time and effort will pay off if you make changes that can fill avoid in your community. Think of alternativelifestyles that lower your overhead but notyour comfort

LEo(July 23-Aug. 22) Observe how others react, and you'llgain insight into how you can make your lifeand your rela-

tionshipseasier. What youdotomakea difference will frame how others rateor accept you.

VIRGo (Aug. 23-sept. 22) Attend functions or participateinactivitiesthatinterest you and gettoknow others whoshare your heart's desires. Attending or organizing areunion will help you reconnect with someone special.

LIBRA (sept. 23-oct. 23) Look over your options andsize up your situation. Stop procrastinating and let your uniqueness shine.Loveand romance are apparent Don't be afraidtomake the first move.

sCoRPIo (oct. 24-nov. 22) Refrainfrom believing everything you hear. Do your homework, and you'll uncover the truth. Base your relationships on how others treat you and respect your boundaries.

sAGITTARIus(nov.23-Dec. 21) Put your energyintomaking,investingandsaving money. Review your financial management plan and fine-tune it to suit your long-termneeds.

CAPRICoRn (Dec.22-Jan. 19) Plan to spend time with someone you adore. Achange at home that leads to greater commitment or plans that bring you closer to someone or something youlovewill encourage you.

The horoscope, an entertainment feature,isnot basedonscientific fact. ©2026 by NEA, Inc.,dist. By Andrews McMeel Syndication

Sudoku

InstructIons: Sudoku is anumber-placing puzzle based on a9x9 grid with several given numbers. The object 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. The difficulty level of the Sudoku increases from Monday to Sunday.

Yesterday’s Puzzle Answer

Bridge

By PHILLIP ALDER

The2013RichardFreemanJuniorDeal of the Year went to Chen Yuechen from China. The deal, which was described by Fu Tsiang, occurred during the Chinese JuniorChampionships,playedinSuzhou, some 60 miles from Shanghai. In theauction, two heartswas either natural or abig, balanced hand. Over the forced two-spade puppet,two no-trump promised 24-26 points. After Stayman, North invited aslamwithfour no-trump, andSouthaccepteddespitehisminimum countbecause he hadall of those aces andkings.

Without aclear opening lead, Chen (West) chose his lowest club. Cao Jiahao(East) correctly put in his nine,and South wonwith his ace. Declarer played adiamond to dummy’s jack,then ran the heartjack. How did West defend?

West realized that declarer needed two more dummy entries, one to repeat the heart finesse and one to cashthe 13th heart. Those entries had to comein spades.

West won with his heart ace and led another diamond, akey play. (A club would have given South four tricks in the suit with agood guess. And aspade would have been won by dummy’s 10.)

South took this trick, cashedthe club king to try to drop the queen, thenled hisspadeseven.Westwasready,playing his jack to kill the second dummy entry. Now thecontract had to fail. Southtook only threespades, two hearts, four diamonds and two clubs ©2026 by NEA, Inc., dist. By Andrews McMeel Syndication

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

Previous answers:

word game

InsTRuCTIons: 1.