The Times-Picayune 02-03-2026

Moreno unveilsplan forMardi Gras security

Measures includestreetclosures,increased lawenforcement

City employeeArthurBaylor putsafresh coat of purple paintacross abannister

Department of Property Management workersconstruct

BY SOPHIE KASAKOVE Staff writer

Over 1,800 local, stateand federal law enforcement officers will comb thestreets of NewOrleans in the lead-up to Fat Tuesday,part of adesigned to mimic the city’ssecurity for Super BowlLIX,Mayor Helena Moreno and other city officials said Monday Bourbon Street, asignature destination during Carnival and the target of adeadly vehicle-ramming attack last January,will be closedentirely to vehicular trafficinthe season’s first and secondbig weekends, officials said. The French Quarter will be partially closed totrafficin thefirst weekend andfully closed, with some exceptions, during the

ä See SECURITY, page 7A

MayorHelena Moreno, center,isjoined by city officials as she talks about the2026 MardiGras season during anewsconference on Monday

Resignations increase leveeboard turmoil

Batteryallegation

intensifies dispute

BY ALEX LUBBEN Staff writer

ELECTION 2026

Attacks beginin Senate race

Cassidyreleasesadagainst Letlow as pollsput herinlead

BY TYLER BRIDGES Staff writer

U.S. Sen. Bill Cassidy and U.S. Rep. Julia Letlow are suddenly engaged in apitched battle as Cassidy triestofendoff herand other Republican challengers in his race forreelection this year

On Saturday, asuperPAC supporting Cassidy launched aTVadthat slammed “liberal Letlow.”

The ad linked Letlow to twoleading Democrats —former President Joe Biden and former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi —and accused her of voting withBidenmorethanany of theother four Republican members of Louisiana’scongressional delegation.

On Sunday,Letlow responded by playing her strongest card.

“I am so proud to have earned theendorsementofPresident Donald Trump, and nowI’ll continue fighting alongside him to secure ourborders and to continue to grow our economy,” Letlow posted on X, formerly known as Twitter

She also said: “Well, it didn’t takelong forBill Cassidy and his never-Trumper,pro-impeachment alliestobegin attacking me.”

The opening salvo by the proCassidy superPAC,Louisiana Freedom Fund, and Letlow’s response took place nearlytwo weeks before candidates qualify for the race over athree-day period beginning on Feb. 11. The closed Republican primary— which also allows unaffiliated voters to participate —isonMay 16.

Three different polls show Cassidy trailing in head-to-head races against Letlow and another Republican challenger,state Treasurer John Fleming.

The board that oversees much of New Orleans’ $14.5 billion hurricane-protection system, which has faced upheaval over the past year duetoresignations and new appointments, is facing anew round of turmoil.

In recent months,Attorney General Liz Murrill’soffice has opened an investigation of the nine-member board Misdemeanor battery charges have beenfiledbythe agency’spolice chief against one of its board members. And state lawmakers areconsidering stepping in, including Metairie Republican Cameron Henry,the powerful state

Senatepresident Now,the tworemaining board members who were not chosen by Gov.Jeff Landryare resigning, effective Monday. One of them, Deborah Settoon, a67-year-old former Shell engineer, stands accused of punching the agency’s46-year-old police chief, Joshua Rondeno, at aclosed-door meetingin

ä See TURMOIL, page 5A

La.artists grab afew Grammy Awards

JonBatiste, PJ Morton among thewinners

BY KEITH SPERA

Staff writer

New Orleans andLouisiana art-

istseked outa handful of wins during the pre-telecast portion of the 2026 Grammy Awards on Sunday.

Jon Batiste, the Kenner native andSt. Augustine High School and New OrleansCenter for the Creative arts graduate, added to hisextensiveGrammycollection as “Big Money” was named Best AmericanaAlbum.

Batiste didn’tfareaswellin theBest American Roots Performance orAmericanRoots Song categories.HelosttoMavis Staples in theformer andI’m With Her in the latter

During the Sunday night CBS Grammy telecast, Batisteperformed alongside Lauryn Hill and othersaspart of the show’s “In Memoriam” remembrance of recently deceased musicians. The Best Regional Roots Music Album category was guaranteed to producealocal winner, as all five nominees were Louisiana affiliated.

Besides Letlow and Fleming, three other Republicanshavealso announced intentions to run in the Senate race: state Sen. Blake Miguez, Public Service Commissioner Eric Skrmetta andSt. TammanyParish Council member Kathy Seiden. No major Democratic officeholder has announced plans to run yet.

Pearson Cross, apolitical science professor at theUniversity of Louisiana at Monroe, finds it noteworthy thatthe Louisiana Freedom Fund would launch the attack ad so early

“This shows the seriousness of the threat that Julia Letlow poses to Bill Cassidy,” Cross said. “The Cassidy campaign and their aligned super PACrealize they have alimited window to

BRIEFS FROM WIRE REPORTS

Va. man in ‘au pair affair’ case convicted

A Virginia man having an affair with the family’s Brazilian au pair was found guilty Monday of murdering his wife and another man that prosecutors say was lured to the house as a fall guy

Brendan Banfield, a former IRS law enforcement officer, told police he came across Joseph Ryan attacking his wife, Christine Banfield, with a knife on the morning of Feb. 24, 2023. He shot Ryan and then Juliana Magalhães, the au pair, shot him, too.

But officials argued in court the story was too good to be true, telling jurors that Brendan Banfield set Ryan up in a scheme to get rid of his wife. It later came out that Brendan Banfield and Magalhães had been having an affair

The verdict comes after the gruesome and complicated double homicide was catapulted into mainstream media in Brazil, the U.S. and elsewhere in the world Magalhães pleaded guilty to manslaughter in 2024 and testified against her former lover at trial. She said they had impersonated Christine Banfield, a pediatric intensive care nurse, on a website for sexual fetishes. She said they used the site to lure Ryan to the house for a sexual encounter involving a knife, staging the scene to look as if they had shot an intruder who was attacking the wife.

Punxsutawney Phil sees shadow, officials say

PUNXSUTAWNEY, Pa Punxsutawney Phil predicted six more weeks of wintry weather Monday, a forecast sure to disappoint many after what’s already been a long, cold season across large parts of the United States. His annual prediction and announcement that he had seen his shadow was translated by his top hat-wearing handlers in the Punxsutawney Groundhog Club at Gobbler’s Knob in western Pennsylvania.

The news was greeted with a mix of cheers and boos from the tens of thousands who braved temperatures in the singledigits to await the annual prognostication. The extreme cold kept the crowd bundled up and helped keep people on the main stage dancing. Usually guests can come up on stage and take pictures of Phil after his prediction but this year the announcer said it was too cold for that and his handlers were afraid to keep him out too long Instead, the audience was asked to come to the stage, turn around and “do a selfie.”

The Punxsutawney club says that when Phil is deemed to have not seen his shadow, that means there will be an early spring. When he does see it, it’s six more weeks of winter Phil tends to predict a longer winter far more often than an early spring

Turkey seeks to broker U.S.-Iran talks

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates Turkey is attempting to bring both the U.S. and Iranian officials to the negotiating table, possibly by the end of the week, in hopes of easing the threat of U.S military action against Iran. Neither the U.S. nor Iran has confirmed whether they plan to take part in any negotiations. Two Turkish officials, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak to the media, said Turkey is trying to organize a meeting between U.S. special envoy Steve Witkoff and Iranian leaders. The meeting could take place as soon as the end of the week, one of the officials said The military has moved the USS Abraham Lincoln and several guided-missile destroyers into the Middle East, but it remains unclear whether President Donald Trump will decide to use force against the Iranian government, as he has suggested he might do in retribution for their devastating crackdown on last month’s protests.

Noem: DHS officers to get bodycams

Move comes after two killed by officers in Minnesota

BY REBECCA SANTANA Associated Press

WASHINGTON Every Homeland Security officer on the ground in Minneapolis, including those from Immigration and Customs Enforcement, will be immediately issued body-worn cameras, Secretary Kristi Noem said Monday, in the latest fallout after the shooting deaths of two U.S. citizens at the hands of federal agents. Noem said the body-worn camera program is being expanded nationwide as funding becomes available

“We will rapidly acquire and deploy body cameras to DHS law enforcement across the country,” Noem said in a social media post on X.

The news of the body cameras comes as Minneapolis has been the site of intense scrutiny over the conduct of federal officers after two U.S. citizens protesting immigration enforcement activities in the city were shot and killed.

It is the latest apparent effort by the Trump administration to ratchet down tensions after the shootings triggered protests and widespread criticism.

In the immediate hours after ICU nurse Alex Pretti’s death, Noem went on the offensive, saying several times that Pretti “came with a weapon and dozens of rounds

of ammunition and attacked” officers, who took action to “defend their lives.” Other administration officials painted a similar picture. Multiple videos that emerged of the shooting contradicted that claim, showing Pretti had only his mobile phone in his hand as officers tackled him to the ground, with one removing a handgun from the back of his pants as another officer began firing shots into his back.

Homeland Security has said that at least four Customs and Border Protection officers on the scene when Pretti was shot were wearing body cameras. The body camera footage from Pretti’s shooting has not been made public.

The department has not responded to repeated questions about whether any of the ICE officers on

the scene of the killing of 37-yearold mother of three Renee Good earlier in January were wearing the cameras.

The shootings, and the narrative coming from some in the administration, sparked demands for accountability, including among some Republicans.

President Donald Trump sent his border czar Tom Homan to Minneapolis to take control of operations there, displacing Border Patrol commander Gregory Bovino, who has become a lightning rod for criticism in the various operations he’s joined in cities like Chicago and Los Angeles.

The Justice Department has also opened a federal civil rights investigation into Pretti’s shooting, which it has not done in the case of Good

‘Today’ show host’s mom missing in Ariz.

Authorities suspect crime

BY JACQUES BILLEAUD Associated Press

Nanos said a family member received a call from someone at church saying Guthrie wasn’t there, leading family to search for her at her home and then calling 911.

Medical evacuees from Gaza head for Egypt

Rafah crossing reopens

BY SAMY MAGDY and JOSEF FEDERMAN Associated Press

CAIRO A small number of medical evacuees from Gaza entered Egypt on Monday as the Rafah border crossing reopened, marking a key step in the Israel-Hamas ceasefire but a mostly symbolic one. Few people will be allowed to travel in either direction and no goods will pass through.

About 20,000 Palestinian children and adults needing medical care hope to leave the devastated territory via the crossing, according to Gaza health officials. Thousands of other Palestinians outside the territory hope to enter and return home.

The crossing had been closed since Israeli troops seized it in May 2024. The number of travelers is expected to increase over time if the system is successful. Israel has said it and Egypt will vet people for exit and entry

Ambulances waited for hours at the border before ferrying patients into Egypt, the state-run Al-Qahera News satellite television channel showed. The

office of the North Sinai governor confirmed that the first Palestinian patient crossed.

It was unclear if anyone had been allowed into Gaza.

Before the war, Rafah was the main crossing for people moving in and out of Gaza. The territory’s handful of other crossings are all shared with Israel.

Under the terms of the ceasefire, which went into effect in October, Israel’s military controls the area between the Rafah crossing and the zone where most Palestinians live.

Violence continued across the coastal territory Monday. Gaza hospital officials said an Israeli navy ship had fired on a tent camp, killing a 3-yearold Palestinian boy Israel’s military said it was looking into the incident.

Rajaa Abu Mustafa stood outside a Gaza hospital where her 17-yearold son Mohamed awaited evacuation. He was blinded by a shot to the eye last year as he joined desperate Palestinians seeking food from aid trucks outside the southern city of Khan Younis.

“The health ministry called and told us that we will travel to Egypt for (his) treatment,” she said.

About 150 hospitals

across Egypt are ready to receive patients evacuated from Gaza through Rafah, authorities said But the isolated crossing is separated from Cairo by a six-hour drive. The Egyptian Red Crescent said it has readied “safe spaces” on the Egyptian side of the border to support those evacuated.

More than 10,000 patients have been evacuated from Gaza since the war began, according to the World Health Organization. But Israel’s seizure of the Rafah crossing brought the pace of evacuations to a crawl, with an average of 17 patients a week leaving for most of the time since.

Israel has banned sending patients to hospitals in the Israeli-occupied West Bank and east Jerusalem since the war began, cutting off what was previously the main outlet for Palestinians needing medical treatment unavailable in Gaza.

U.N. officials on Monday called on other countries to take in more patients from Gaza “so that everyone receives the treatment they need.”

Gaza residents said the reopening of the crossing also promises the return of family members who fled earlier in the war

Musk joins his rocket, AI businesses into single firm before expected IPO y

BY BERNARD CONDON and MATT O’BRIEN AP business writers

An Arab diplomat who spoke on condition of anonymity because the meeting has not been confirmed said there had been discussions about Turkey hosting a high-level meeting to bring Arab and Muslim countries together with the United States and Iran.

NEW YORK Elon Musk is joining his space exploration and artificial intelligence ventures into a single company before a massive planned initial public offering for the business later this year His rocket venture, SpaceX, announced on Monday that it had bought xAI in an effort to help the world’s richest man dominate the rocket and artificial intelligence businesses. The deal will

combine several of his offerings, including his AI chatbot Grok, his satellite communications company Starlink, and his social media company X. Musk has talked repeatedly about the need to speed development of technology that will allow data centers to operate in space to solve the problem of overcoming the huge costs in electricity and other resources in building and running AI systems on Earth.

It’s a goal that Musk said in his announcement of the deal could become

much easier to reach with a combined company

“In the long term, spacebased AI is obviously the only way to scale,” Musk wrote on SpaceX’s website Monday, then added in reference to solar power, “It’s always sunny in space!” Musk said in SpaceX’s announcement he estimates “that within 2 to 3 years, the lowest cost way to generate AI compute will be in space.”

It’s not a prediction shared by other many companies building data centers, including Microsoft.

The disappearance of the 84-year-old mother of “Today” show host Savannah Guthrie over the weekend is being investigated as a crime based on what authorities saw at her home, an Arizona sheriff said Monday Asked to explain why investigators believe the Tucson-area home is a crime scene, Pima County Sheriff

Chris Nanos said Nancy Guthrie has limited mobility and said there were other things indicating she did not leave on her own, but he declined to further elaborate.

“I need this community to step up and start giving us some calls,” Nanos said during a news conference.

The sheriff said Guthrie, who lived alone, was of sound mind.

“This is not dementia related. She’s as sharp as a tack. The family wants everyone to know that this isn’t someone who just wandered off,” Nanos said, adding that she needs her daily medication.

Guthrie was last seen about 9:30 p.m. Saturday at her home in the Tucson area and her family reported her missing around noon Sunday, the sheriff said.

Searchers were using drones and search dogs to look for her, Nanos said. Search and rescue teams were supported by volunteers and Border Patrol and the homicide team was also involved, he said. It is not standard for the homicide team to get involved in such cases, Nanos said.

“This one stood out because of what was described to us at the scene and what we located just looking at the scene,” Nanos said Sunday He was not ruling out foul play On Monday morning, Nanos said search crews worked hard but have since been pulled back.

Even so, a sheriff’s helicopter flew over the desert Monday afternoon near Guthrie’s home in the affluent Catalina Foothills area on the northern edge of Tucson.

Savannah Guthrie issued a statementonMonday NBC’s “Today” show reported. “On behalf of our family, I want to thank everyone for the thoughts, prayers and messages of support,” she said. “Right now, our focus remains on the safe return of our dear Nancy.”

Trumpurges quickvotetoend partialshutdown

BY LISA MASCARO AP congressional correspondent

WASHINGTON

President

Donald Trump implored the House on Monday to end the partial government shutdown,but neither Republicans nor Democrats appeared ready to quickly approve the federal funding packagehebrokeredwith the Senate without first debating their own demands over immigration enforcement operations.

Democrats are refusing to provide the votes House SpeakerMike Johnson,RBenton, needs to push the package forward as they try to rein in the Trump administration’s deportation operations after the shooting deaths of two Americansin Minneapolis.That’sforcing Johnson to rely on his slim GOPmajority, which hasits own complaints about the package, to fall in line behind Trump’sdeal with Senate Democrats.

Voting could begin as soon as Tuesday,which wouldbe day four of the partial shutdown. The Pentagon, Homeland Security and other agencies saw their funding lapse Saturday.And while many operations at those depart-

President Donald Trumpasked the House on Mondaytoend

shutdown.

mentsare deemed essential, and still functioning, some workersmay go without pay or befurloughed.

“Weneedtoget theGovernment open, andI hope all Republicansand Democrats will join me in supporting this Bill, and send it to my desk WITHOUT DELAY,” the president wrote on social media

“Therecan beNOCHANGES at this time,” Trumpin-

sisted. “Wewill work together in good faithtoaddress the issues that have been raised, but we cannot have another long, pointless, and destructive Shutdown.”

The stalemate pointstoa difficult week ahead as Johnson relies on Trump to help muscletothe packagetopas-

sage The president struck a deal lastweek with Senate Democratic Leader Chuck

Schumer in which Homeland Security would onlybe funded temporarily,though Feb. 13, as Congress debates changes to immigration enforcementoperations. The Senate overwhelmingly approved thepackage with the rest of the government funding ahead of Saturday’s deadline.

HouseDemocraticLeader

Hakeem Jeffries made it clear Mondaythathis side

sees no reason to help Johnsonpush the bill forward in aprocedural step, something that the majority party typically handles on its own.

With Johnson facing arevolt from his own Republican ranks, Jeffriesisseizing the leverage it provides Democrats to demandchanges to immigration operations.

“On rare occasions have we stepped in to deal with Republican dysfunction,” Jeffries said at the Capitol.

Democrats are demanding restraints on Immigration andCustomsEnforcement that go beyond $20 million for body cameras that alreadyisinthe bill.Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem announcedMonday that officers on the ground in Minneapolis, including ICE, will be immediatelyissued body-worn cameras, and the program would be expanded nationwide as funding is available.

But Democratsare pressing for more. They want to require that federal immigration agents unmask notingthatfew,ifany,other lawenforcementagencies routinely maskthemselves in the U.S. —and they want officers to rely on judicial, ratherthanadministrative,

warrants in their operations. They also want an end to roving patrols, amidother changes.

Jeffriessaid theadministration needs to begin negotiations now,not over the next twoweeks, on changes to immigration enforcement operations. Certain Democrats, however,are splintering with theleader, andpushingfor quicker passage of the funding package to avoid government disruptions. At thesametime, House Republicans, with some allies in the Senate, are making theirown demands, as they work to support Trump’s clampdown on immigrants in the U.S.

The House Freedom Caucus hasinsisted on fuller funding for Homeland Security whilecertain Republicans are pushing to include other measures, including the SAVE Act, alongshot Trump priority thatwould require proof of citizenship beforeAmericansare eligible to participate in elections and vote.

Johnson andGOP leaders saidthey would be talking with lawmakers to see what it will take to win over support.

BY STEPHENGROVES

Associated Press

WASHINGTON FormerPresident Bill Clinton and former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton agreed late Monday to testifyina Houseinvestigation into convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, but the Republican leading the probe said an agreement had not yet been finalized.

Rep. James Comer,the chair of the House Oversight Committee, wasadvancing criminal contempt of Congress charges against both Clintons Monday evening for

defying acongressional subpoena when attorneys for the Clintons emailed stafffor the Oversight panel, sayingthe pair would accept Comer’s demands and “willappear for depositions on mutually agreeabledates.”

Theattorneys requested that Comer,aKentucky Republican, agree not tomove forward with the contempt proceedings.Comer,however,said hewas not immediately dropping the charges, which would carry the threat of asubstantial fine and even incarceration if passed by theHouse and successfully

prosecuted by theDepartment of Justice.

“Wedon’thave anything in writing,”Comer told reporters, adding that he was open to accepting the Clintons’offer but “it depends on what theysay.”

The last-minute negotiating came as Republican leaderswere advancingthe contempt resolution through the House Rules Committee —a final hurdle beforeitheaded to the House floor for avote. It was potentially agrave moment forCongress, the first time it couldholda former president in contempt

and advance the threat of prison time.

Comer earlier Monday rejectedanoffer from attorneys for theClintons to have Bill Clinton conduct atranscribed interview and Hillary Clinton submit asworn declaration.Heinsistedthat both Clintonssit for sworn depositions beforethe committeeinorder to fulfillthe panel’ssubpoenas.

Aletter from the committeetoattorneys forthe Clintons indicated that they had offered forBill Clintonto conduct a4-hour transcribed interview on “matters relat-

ed to the investigations and prosecutions of Jeffrey Epstein” and for Hillary Clinton to submit asworn declaration.

“The Clintonsdonot getto dictate the terms of lawful subpoenas,” Comer said.

The formerpresident and secretary of state had resisted the subpoenas for months after theOversight panel issued subpoenas fortheir testimony in August as it opened an investigation into Epstein and his associates. Their attorneys had tried to argue against the validity of the subpoena.

However, as Comer threatened to begin contempt of Congress proceedings, the Clintonsstarted negotiating toward acompromise. The Republican-controlled Oversight committee advanced criminal contempt of Congress charges last month. Nine of the committee’s21Democratsjoined Republicansinsupport of the charges against Bill Clintonastheyarguedfor full transparency in the Epstein investigation. ThreeDemocratsalso supportedadvancing the charges against Hillary Clinton.

Father of detained boydisputesgovernmentassertion

Mansayshe didnot abandon 5-year-old

BY MIKE CATALINI, STEVE KARNOWSKI and SHARON LURYE

Associated Press

MINNEAPOLIS The father of a5-year-oldboy who was detainedbyimmigration officers and held at afederal facility in Texas denied government accounts Monday that he abandoned his son last month while being pursued by authorities. As the pair returned to Minnesota, Adrian Conejo Arias, who is originally from Ecuador,told ABC News that he loves his son, Liam, andwould never abandon him, disputing statements from the Department of Homeland Security,which alleged that Arias had left his child in avehicle. He also said his son got sick while in federal custody but was denied medicine. Assistant Homeland Security SecretaryTricia McLaughlin said in astatement that Arias fled on foot before he was arrested, “abandoning his child.” She saidImmigration andCustoms Enforcement officers

stayed with the boy

“The facts in this case have NOT changed: The father who was illegally in the country chose to takehis child with him to adetention center,” shesaid McLaughlin did not addressArias’ statementthat hisson wasdeniedmedication while in custody Ariasalso saidhe was arrested unjustlyand contended he wasinthe country legally,with apending court hearing forasylum. The comments comeafter afederal judge ordered over the weekend that thepairbe freed. They were released Sundayand returned to Minnesota,according to Rep. Joaquin Castro of Texas.

Thefamily’s arrest andrelease unfolded during President DonaldTrump’scrackdown on immigration, which hasled to daily protests that included theshooting deaths of two American citizensby federal officers.

The president last week ordered his top border adviser to oversee the crackdowndaysafter the fatal shooting of 37-year-old Alex Pretti, an intensive care nurse at aVeterans Affairs hospital. Border czar Tom Homan suggested that mistakes have been made, but he said agents would continue to enforce federal law

and called on local and state officials to cooperatewith federal officers.

Even as neighbors celebrated the boy’sreturn, police said school in the Minneapolis suburb of Columbia Heights, whereheattends class,was canceled after bombthreatswere called in.

Authorities said they did not find anydangerous devices, and school was set to resume Tuesday Even before thethreats, thedistrict has felt under siege. Over two dozen parents of students at Liam’s school, Valley View Elementary,havebeen detained, Principal Jason Kuhlman said Friday in an interview, leaving children without their caretakers.

“WehateMondays. And it’s because we find outhow many of our parents were taken over the weekend,” Kuhlman said.

Theschool startedoffering online schooling last week because many parents were afraid to come to school, even withvolunteers patrolling school grounds during drop-off anddismissal times. Almost 200 studentswereabsent one day in aschool of around 570, said Kuhlman, compared to normal days when only 20 or 30 kids are absent.

The boy’sdetention drew

outrage as images of immigration officers surroundingthe youngboy in ablue bunny hatand Spider-Man backpack began to surface. McLaughlin saidICE did not targetorarrest the boy,

and she repeated assertions that hismother refusedto take himafterhis father’s apprehension. His father told officers he wanted Liam to be with him,she said. McLaughlin also said last

month that the child was abandoned and that officers tried to getthe motherto take custody of the child.

“Officers even assured her she would NOT be taken into custody.”

Victims report threats after Epstein file release

DOJ says it’s fixing redactions

BY MICHAEL R. SISAK, LARRY NEUMEISTER and PHILIP MARCELO Associated Press

NEW YORK The Justice Department said Monday that it had withdrawn several thousand documents and “media” related to disgraced financier Jeffrey Epstein after lawyers complained to a New York judge that the lives of nearly 100 victims had been “turned upside down” by sloppy redactions in the government’s latest release of records.

The exposed materials include nude photos showing the faces of potential victims as well as names, email addresses and other identifying information that was either unredacted or not fully obscured.

The department blamed it

on “technical or human error.”

In a letter to the New York judges overseeing the sex trafficking cases brought against Epstein and confidant Ghislaine Maxwell, U.S. Attorney Jay Clayton wrote that the department had taken down nearly all materials identified by victims or their lawyers, along with a “substantial number” of documents identified independently by the government.

Clayton said the department has “revised its protocols for addressing flagging documents” after victims and their lawyers requested changes. Documents are promptly pulled down when flagged by victims, then evaluated before a redacted version of the document can be reposted, “ideally within 24 to 36 hours.”

Two lawyers for Epstein victims wrote the court Sunday seeking “immediate judicial intervention” because

of what they described as thousands of instances when the government had failed to redact names and other personally identifying information.

Eight women who identify as Epstein victims added comments to the letter to Judge Richard M. Berman. One wrote that the records’ release was “life threatening.” Another said she’d gotten death threats after 51 entries included her private banking information, forcing her to try to shut down her credit cards and accounts.

“There is no conceivable degree of institutional incompetence sufficient to explain the scale, consistency, and persistence of the failures that occurred particularly where the sole task ordered by the Court and repeatedly emphasized by DOJ was simple: redact known victim names before publication,” the lawyers, Brittany Henderson and Brad Edwards, wrote.

South enters second week of biting cold, prolonged outages

BY GARY D ROBERTSON, TRAVIS LOLLER and RUSS BYNUM Associated Press

RALEIGH, N.C.

— Four homes blasted by icy winds on an eroding North Carolina island collapsed into the ocean and Florida farmers anxiously waited for frozen plants to thaw Monday as people across the eastern half of the United States coped with more than a week of sub-freezing weather

Thermometers hovered below freezing throughout the day Monday across the northern U.S. from the Dakotas to Maine, and subfreezing temperatures were forecast to return to the Southeast overnight, reaching into parts of northern Florida. As residents of the Carolinas and Virginia dug out from deep snow more than 70,000 homes and businesses in Tennessee and Mississippi began a second week without electricity since an earlier snow and ice storm inflicted severe damage on power lines and utility poles. In hard-hit Nashville, Tennessee, Terry Miles said Monday was his ninth day without power Miles said he has been living with his wife and their dog in a bedroom that he tried to insulate by hanging up blankets. He’s cooking and heating water outdoors on a propane grill. On Sunday someone loaned him a small gas generator with enough power to run a couple of space heaters.

“We’re roughing it,” Miles said. “I’ve been camping before and had it easier than this. I feel like Grizzly Adams.” The death toll has surpassed 110 in states afflicted by the dangerous cold since Jan. 24.

In New York City Mayor

Zohran Mamdani said Monday that hypothermia played a role in the deaths of 13 people found dead outside in the bitter cold, according to preliminary findings. More than a dozen other suspected hypothermia deaths were reported in Indiana, Louisiana, South Carolina and Texas.

On the East Coast, where a weekend bomb cyclone brought heavy snow and fierce winds, the National Park Service said four unoccupied homes along North Carolina’s Outer Banks collapsed into the Atlantic Ocean since Sunday A bystander recorded one of them toppling into the water Photos taken by the agency showed piles of debris along the shoreline in the village of Buxton

The Outer Banks’ narrow, low-lying barrier islands have been eroding for years as rising seas swallow the land Prior to the latest storm, more than two dozen houses, usually built on stilts at the water’s edge, had collapsed since 2020. Most fell in extreme weather In Florida, where some farmers spray water on their fruit trees and plants ahead of freezing weather

Berman, who presided over Epstein’s sex trafficking case, scheduled a conference for Wednesday

Also Monday, a section of the Justice Department’s Epstein files website that had contained public court records from Epstein and Maxwell’s criminal cases and civil lawsuits was no longer functioning.

A message seeking comment on the website issue was left for the Justice Department.

Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche said in an interview Sunday on ABC’s “This Week” that there have been sporadic errors in redacting, or blacking out, sensitive information but that the Justice Department has tried to work quickly to address them.

“Every time we hear from a victim or their lawyer that they believe that their name was not properly redacted, we immediately rectified that And the numbers

we’re talking about just so the American people understand, we’re talking about .001% of all the materials,” Blanche said.

Dozens of Associated Press reporters analyzing the files have so far found multiple occasions where a name was redacted in one document, only to be left exposed in another version of the same file.

In other places names and email addresses are crossed out but not fully blackened out, so they’re still visible.

Other text redactions can be easily overridden by simply double clicking on them to reveal the hidden text underneath.

The Justice Department has said all nude or pornographic images were redacted from the 2,000-some videos and 180,000 images in the release, even if they were commercially produced, as the agency considered all women depicted in the images as potential victims. But reporters with The New York Times still found dozens of uncensored photos of naked young people with their faces unredacted. The newspaper said the images have since been largely removed or redacted after it notified the Justice Department. It said some of the images appeared to have been taken on the beach at Epstein’s private Caribbean island while others are in a bedroom setting. In another instance, the AP found a set of more than 100 images of a young, unidentified female lounging on a bed, standing on a beach and at other summertime locations while wearing a short top. The images are almost fully blacked out so only the person’s arms and legs are clearly visible, save for the very last image, a profile photo that is completely unredacted and reveals her face.

to help protect them from even deeper cold, fern growers were waiting Monday for a protective layer of ice coating their plants to melt away so they could assess damage. Florida got so cold over the weekend that the Tampa-St. Petersburg area saw snow flurries and coldstunned iguanas were motionless on the ground.

The timing was especially awful for fern growers, who had been busy shipping plants to reach retailers ahead of Valentine’s Day on Feb. 14.

“It is just terrible timing,” said Victoria Register, director of sales and marketing at FernTrust, a growers’ cooperative in Seville, Florida. “It’s right in the middle of our busiest shipping time of the entire year.”

In Tennessee, frustrations were growing with the Nashville Electric Service over lingering outages after the earlier storm knocked out power to about 235,000 homes and businesses — about half its customers. More than 20,000 remained without electricity Monday after more than a week, and won’t be fully restored until Feb. 9, the utility said.

BY TYLER BRIDGES and ALYSE PFEIL Staff writers

Kyle Ruckert is stepping down as Gov Jeff Landry’s chief of staff to oversee an outside PAC that’s working for Landry’s reelection next year

Landry announced the move Monday, without disclosing Ruckert’s replacement.

Ruckert will chair Protect Louisiana Values, which was created just before Landry took office to promote his agenda.

“Kyle has been an instrumental part of the tremendous progress we have made in reducing crime, the largest tax cut in Louisiana history, drastically improving education scores, and reforming insurance to reduce costs,” Landry said in a statement.

millions of dollars from wealthy business owners and spent heavily to win all seven Senate races it targeted and 15 of the 16 House races it targeted.

Taking over the Protect Louisiana Values PAC “is a smart move for everyone in Ruckert’s political orbit because he’ll have a lot of flexibility to assist important donors with work that’s important to them,” said Mary-Patricia Wray, a lobbyist in Baton Rouge who also works on political campaigns.

“While leaving our official office, Kyle’s continued leadership at Protect Louisiana Values will take our message directly to the people to accomplish even bigger and bolder improvements for Louisiana.”

The new position puts Ruckert in a familiar role because he has been perhaps the preeminent Republican political operative in Louisiana over the past decade. He has been a key strategist for then-U.S. Sen. David Vitter, for U.S. Sen. John Kennedy’s reelection campaign in 2022 and for the governor

During the 2023 campaign, Ruckert served as an adviser to Landry, who won outright in the primary Ruckert also oversaw the Louisiana Coalition for a Conservative Majority, a super PAC that raised

Protect Louisiana Values is a nonprofit group set up as a 501(c) (4) social welfare organization, a status that allows it to spend money on political activity without disclosing its donors.

The group advocates “for Governor Jeff Landry’s policy agenda and seeks to support conservative leaders engaged in the process of moving Louisiana forward,” according to its website.

Protect Louisiana Values has played a role in some high-profile moments connected to Landry For example, it helped secure funding to bring a live tiger to an LSU game at Death Valley in 2024 and was part of arrangements for an appearance last year by U.S Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr at Pennington Biomedical Center It’s also backed the governor’s agenda on auto insurance and major tax code changes.

At the PAC, Ruckert will work with “senior Advisors Brent Littlefield, Courtney Guastella, and Jay Connaughton who are working to drive PLVs message,” Littlefield said in a statement. As Landry’s chief of staff, Ruckert kept a low public

profile as he helped keep the governor’s agenda on track. Lobbyists and legislators said he acted at times as an enforcer for the governor warning that his boss would punish those who didn’t support his agenda. In a text response, Ruckert said he was too busy to be interviewed and didn’t have anything to add to the official statements. Ruckert did receive one piece of unwanted publicity when it was disclosed last April that he was part of a group that included Landry and several prominent legislators who traveled to Texas to go turkey hunting and talk politics with several prominent trial attorneys, including Gordon McKernan. While working as a political strategist before becoming the governor’s chief of staff, Ruckert also worked as a business lobbyist, and that led to questions in 2024 about possible conflicts of interest. He and his wife, Lynnel Ruckert, who has her own extensive career as a Republican staffer operated a Baton Rouge-based firm called Bold Strategies. The two met as congressional staffers for Vitter Kyle Ruckert turned over his lobbying clients to Lynnel when he became executive director of Landry’s transition team in October 2023. State law prohibits Ruckert from lobbying the Governor’s Office for the next two years, but he can lobby legislators — many of whom he helped elect. Ruckert has longtime ties with one of the two most powerful legislators, Senate President Cameron Henry, R-Metairie. They were fellow members of Jesuit High School’s class of 1992. Henry was on the wrestling team, while Ruckert played basketball.

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That winner turned out to be “A Tribute to the King of Zydeco,” an all-star tribute to Clifton Chenier pegged to the 100th anniversary of his birth.

Released via southwest Louisiana musician Joel Savoy’s Valcour Records, the album consists of songs written by or associated with Chenier, all redone by Louisiana musicians collaborating with special guests, including The Rolling Stones.

The Stones contributed their take on the zydeco standard “Zydeco Sont Pas Salés.” Mick Jagger sings in Creole French atop a foundation laid down by a band of Cajun and zydeco musicians, including accordionist Steve Riley and Chenier’s old drummer, Robert St. Julien.

The Stones’ contribution was produced by southwest Louisiana guitarist C.C. Adcock; he also produced Lucinda Williams’ collaboration with 85-year-old swamp pop legend Tommy McLain. Joel Savoy and Los Lobos’ Steve Berlin produced the album’s other 10 tracks.

The other nominees in the Regional Roots Music category in-

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October Settoon called the accusation absurd and part of a pressure campaign to force her to resign.

“I think the board as a whole has become completely and utterly dysfunctional, and the entire board needs to be replaced,” said Henry He added that legislators may put forward a bill this year to “get this board under control.” With the resignations of Settoon and Randall Noel, board President Peter Vicari said he hopes the agency can start fresh. “It’s for the betterment of the authority,” he said. “We’re moving on.”

But with only five members currently on the board, the agency will not be able to approve any major infrastructure projects, such as levee improvements. Vicari hopes the agency’s nominating committee will act fast and put forward new members.

The turmoil began last year, as Shane Guidry, a confidant of Landry, started to push changes intended to expand the agency’s small police force and he says, to address mismanagement at the agency Former board members have questioned the role of Guidry, a successful businessman who holds no elected or appointed office, in overseeing reforms.

Guidry and his allies argue that the controversy is manufactured, part of a politically motivated campaign to stop reforms that are sorely needed at the agency, formally known as the Southeast Louisiana Flood Protection AuthorityEast. Waste and fraud have proliferated, they say At the same time, residents in the lakefront neighborhoods patrolled by levee board police have voiced support for the increase in police funding. Policing has improved since Rondeno took his post, they say “The people are ecstatic about the police coverage they’re getting,” Guidry said. “The 10% of liberals out there might not be, but the rest of them are.” Until recently, the agency was heralded as a model of post-Katrina reforms. But in the last year, the board’s recurring controversy has raised questions about whether the critical work of maintaining the city’s hurricane protection system is still being properly overseen. Meetings have turned into shouting matches, and board members have resigned in protest. Good government groups like the Bureau of Governmental Research have raised concerns about the increase in the flood agency’s police budget, and questioned whether that spending is aligned with the agency’s core mission. Landry’s office has not publicly explained the rationale for changes on the board. Spokesperson Kate Kelly has not responded to questions or to requests to interview the governor about the flood agency

on Sunday.

cluded Preservation Hall Jazz Band keyboardist Kyle Roussel for “Church of New Orleans;” Co-

rey Henry & the Treme Funktet for “Live At Vaughan’s”; Preservation Brass & Preservation Hall

Jazz Band for “For Fat Man”; and Trombone Shorty & the New Breed Brass Band for “Second Line Sunday.”

New Orleans-based guitarist Samantha Fish didn’t take home the Best Contemporary Blues Album for her “Paper Doll.” Instead, the award went to Robert Randolph’s “Preacher Kids.”

“Young Fashioned Ways,” a cross-generational Louisiana blues summit from 91-year-old Bobby Rush and Kenny Wayne Shepherd, lost out in the Best Traditional Blues Album category to fellow Louisiana native Buddy Guy’s “Ain’t Done With the Blues.”

PJ Morton, the St. Augustine High School graduate who is a member of Maroon 5 as well as a solo R&B/gospel artist, received multiple nominations for his collaboration with Houston-based contemporary gospel artist Darrel Walls. Their “Heart of Mine” album won Best Gospel Album but their “Amazing” didn’t win Best Contemporary Christian Music Performance/Song.

The singer Ledisi, who spent her childhood in New Orleans before moving with her family to California, was nominated for Best Traditional R&B Performance for “Love

You Too.” Leon Thomas won that award for his “Vibes Don’t Lie.” Thomas’ “Mutt” also bested Ledisi’s “The Crown” for Best R&B Album. Saxophonist Branford Marsalis, who moved back to New Orleans in 2024 after decades of living in North Carolina, received a Best Jazz Instrumental Album nomination for his quartet’s “Belonging,” a reimagining of the 1974 Keith Jarrett album of the same name. But another New Orleans native, NOCCA graduate and jazz pianist Sullivan Fortner, won for “Southern Nights,” a tribute to Allen Toussaint credited to “Sullivan Fortner Featuring Peter Washington & Marcus Gilmore.” After NOCCA, Fortner earned degrees from the Oberlin Conservatory of Music and the Manhattan School of Music. He was a longtime member of bands led by vibraphonist Stefon Harris and trumpeter Roy Hargrove. Fortner released his debut album as a leader, “Aria,” in 2015. In 2025, Fortner won Best Jazz Performance for his collaboration with singer Samara Joy on the song “Twinkle Twinkle Little Me.” Email Keith Spera at kspera@ theadvocate.com.

Whatever his goals for the flood authority are, Landry is now free of the last two board members who stood in the way of his vision for the agency

‘On the line for this’

The authority operates and maintains the vast system of levees and pumps on the Mississippi River’s east bank, rebuilt by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers after Katrina.

Before Katrina, the region’s various levee boards were widely viewed as plagued by patronage and corruption. After the storm, the boards were consolidated and their operations overhauled. An independent nominating committee was created and required the board to be largely made up of engineers and scientists.

For nearly 20 years, that system has remained in place. But recently, Landry has attempted to sidestep the nominating committee. Bruce Thompson, chair of the nominating committee, said he worries that efforts to remove Settoon and Noel will make it more difficult to recruit new members.

“I personally would not put my name forward to serve on this levee board knowing what’s going on. I would not put myself, my family, or my reputation on the line for this,” he said A significant change at the agency since Landry’s appointees took over has been a 45% increase in the budget for its 50-officer police force.

Some residents have voiced their support. At a public board meeting last October, Frank Barrett, a Realtor who lives in a lakefront neighborhood, said that he would take a bullet for Rondeno.

“If anybody shoots, I would stand in the way,” he said.

Residents elsewhere in New Orleans pay taxes to support the flood protection authority Some say they receive little benefit from the levee police.

“They never come out,” Dawn Hebert, who has lived in New Orleans East for about 25 years and previously served on the board of Lakefront Management Authority, said last month.

“You rarely see a police car on Lincoln Beach Boulevard.”

A simmering dispute

Rondeno’s conflict with Settoon started early last year, when she and Noel voted to limit the police chief’s power at the agency Rondeno had taken on duties historically assigned to the regional director, the top staff role at the agency, which was vacant at the time The board, which still had a majority of members who were not appointed by Landry, voted to effectively demote Rondeno, appointing the then-director of engineering, Chris Humphries, as interim regional director

At the February 2025 meeting, Settoon publicly accused Rondeno of threatening employees and causing them distress. She also

alleged Rondeno and thenboard President Roy Carubba, who was tapped by Landry, coerced an employee into removing an item from the meeting’s agenda.

Rondeno denied the accusations and called them defamatory. Shortly after that meeting Rondeno, who is Black, filed a lengthy formal complaint against Settoon, who is White, alleging racial discrimination Carubba said that Rondeno’s complaint prompted him to “get the attorney general involved.”

In March, four board members resigned in protest over the changes at the agency, clearing the way for Landry to tap new members. The public meetings in the months that followed often turned into shouting matches. At the agency’s June meeting, Carubba and thenboard member Clay Cossé appeared to nearly come to blows, with Carubba calling Cossé an expletive and Cossé responding, “Hit me.”

Guidry has hinted that the attorney general’s investigation would reveal explosive findings demonstrating “waste, fraud and abuse.”

He suggested that the board members resigned because they were hiding something that they feared would be uncovered, an assertion they deny So far, Murrill’s office has not made any findings public, and Guidry said he does not believe it is likely to do so.

“I really wish they would,” he said earlier this year “But everything’s going to come out eventually You can’t keep skeletons in closets because they don’t like being in there.”

‘With a closed fist’

Months after the public confrontations between Settoon and Rondeno, at the agency’s October 2025 meeting, board members convened in a closed-door session. The agenda listed the topic to be discussed as “investigative proceedings regarding allegations of misconduct by commissioners.”

Settoon and Noel weren’t permitted to attend. Both board members believe that they should have been given an opportunity to understand any accusations against them. Settoon briefly managed to enter the meeting room, was told to leave and ultimately complied.

When the board reemerged, its members voted on whether to remove Settoon and Noel. The motions ultimately failed.

The following day, Rondeno gave a statement to a New Orleans police captain, alleging that Settoon “struck him multiple times with a closed fist on his arm” while she attempted to enter the meeting room.

Carubba said he witnessed it. “She started pushing him, then it turned into her slapping him,” Carubba said. “Then she cocked back and hit him in the shoulder.”

Settoon insists she never touched Rondeno, and she has pleaded not guilty

“It’s ludicrous that a woman who’s almost 70 years old,

with all these physical problems, is going to approach a fully armed police officer,” said Settoon, who has carpal tunnel syndrome, she said, and plantar fasciitis — and recently underwent surgery to correct a bunion. Rondeno declined to comment citing the ongoing legal proceedings.

‘Patently unfair’

Three months later, at the agency’s Jan. 12 board meeting, members once again convened behind closed doors. This time, board members were joined by lawyers from Degan, Blanchard & Nash — the law firm conducting the investigation on behalf of the Attorney General’s Office — and a representative from Murrill’s office.

Again, Settoon and Noel were denied entry Lester Duhé, a spokesperson for the attorney general, declined to comment on the

investigation and referred to the police report for details about the battery allegation.

Settoon and Noel said they still don’t know what they stand accused of, if anything.

“I think it’s a miscarriage of justice. I don’t feel like I’m even in the United States,” said Settoon. “This is just not due process.”

She said that she hired a lawyer when she was informed of the investigation and had accumulated $50,000 in legal bills. She also said that last summer, an attorney with the Degan, Blanchard & Nash law firm offered to drop the investigation and cover her legal bills if she resigned. She rejected that offer

Attorneys at the law firm have not responded to requests for comment.

“I’d like to know what is in the report,” Noel said. “This has been going on for a year It just seems patently unfair

that no one’s willing to talk to us about it.”

Carubba wants the investigation’s findings made public and has alleged that Senate President Henry was keeping the findings from being released, which both the Attorney General’s Office and Henry flatly denied.

Through all the turmoil, regional director Jeff Williams, the top staffer at the agency who oversees its 250 employees, said he is trying to keep the staff focused on their jobs. He stressed in January that he was “focused on the agency’s main mission, and that is flood protection.”

“All of this stuff, I’d rather not focus on it,” he said. “It does not take energy from me or my staff. We’re doing what we’re tasked to do.”

Email Alex Lubben at alex.lubben@theadvocate. com.

BUSINESS

BRIEFS

FROM STAFF AND WIRE REPORTS

U.S. to create reserve for rare earth elements

WASHINGTON The Trump administration plans to deploy nearly $12 billion to create a strategic reserve of rare earth elements, a stockpile that could counter China’s ability to use its dominance of these hard to process metals as leverage in trade talks.

The White House confirmed on Monday the start of “Project Vault,” which would initially be funded by a $10 billion loan from the U.S. Export-Import Bank and nearly $1.67 billion in private capital. The minerals kept in the reserve would help to shield the manufacturers of autos, electronics and other goods from any supply chain disruptions.

During trade talks last year spurred by President Donald Trump’s tariffs, the Chinese government restricted the exporting of rare earths that are needed for jet engines, radar systems, electric vehicles, laptops and phones.

China represents about 70% of the world’s rare earths mining and 90% of global rare earths processing That gave it a chokehold on the sector that has caused the U.S. to nurture alternative sources of the elements, creating a stockpile similar to the national reserve for petroleum.

Judge says New York can resume wind project

A federal judge on Monday ruled that an offshore wind project aimed at powering 600,000 New York homes can resume construction, the fifth such project put back on track after the Trump administration halted them in December.

In clearing the way for Sunrise Wind to proceed, Judge Royce Lamberth found that the government had not shown that offshore wind is such an imminent national security risk that it must halt in the United States.

President Donald Trump has said his goal is to not let any “windmills” be built and often talks about his hatred of wind power His administration froze five big offshore wind projects on the East Coast days before Christmas, citing national security concerns. Developers and states sued to block the order White House spokesperson Taylor Rogers has repeatedly said during the legal battle over the pause that Trump has been clear that “wind energy is the scam of the century” and the pause is meant to protect the national security of the American people.

Danish company Orsted sued the administration over halting both Sunrise Wind and its Revolution Wind for Rhode Island and Connecticut. In a preliminary injunction hearing on Sunrise Wind at the U.S District Court for the District of Columbia on Monday, Lamberth cited many of the same reasons that he used when he ruled in January that construction could continue on Revolution Wind. Sunrise Wind said it would resume work as soon as possible New York and the U.S. Department of the Interior’s Bureau of Ocean Energy Management did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

New York’s attorney general, Letitia James, sued the Trump administration over halting Sunrise Wind and Empire Wind because she said the pause threatens New York’s economy and energy grid. Labor Department delays January jobs report

WASHINGTON The Labor Department, citing the partial federal government shutdown, said Monday that it will not release the January jobs report Friday as scheduled.

In a statement, the department’s Bureau of Labor Statistics said: “Once funding is restored, BLS will resume normal operations and notify the public of any changes to the news release schedule.” It is also postponing the December report on job openings, which was supposed to come out Tuesday

The jobs report and other key economic statistics were previously delayed by a record 43-day government shutdown last fall.

Economists had expected the January jobs report to show that employers added 80,000 jobs last month, up from 50,000 in December

Trump to lower tariffs on India

Modi agrees to stop buying Russian oil

BY JOSH BOAK, AAMER MADHANI and RAJESH ROY Associated Press

WASHINGTON President Donald Trump said Monday that he plans to lower tariffs on goods from India to 18%, from 25%, after Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi agreed to stop buying Russian oil. The move comes after months of Trump pressing India to cut its reliance on cheap Russian crude. India has taken advantage of re-

duced Russian oil prices as much of the world has sought to isolate Moscow for its February 2022 invasion of Ukraine.

Trump said that India would also start to reduce its import taxes on U.S. goods to zero and buy $500 billion worth of American products.

“This will help END THE WAR in Ukraine, which is taking place right now, with thousands of people dying each and every week!” Trump said in a Truth Social post announcing the tariff reduction on India.

Modi posted on X that he was “delighted” by the announced tariff reduction and that Trump’s “leadership is vital for global peace, stability, and prosperity.

“I look forward to working closely with him to take our partnership to unprecedented heights,” Modi said. Trump has long had a warm re-

lationship with Modi, only to find it complicated recently by Russia’s war in Ukraine and trade disputes.

Trump has struggled to make good on a campaign pledge to quickly end the Russia-Ukraine war and has been reluctant since his return to office to place pressure on Russian President Vladimir Putin. He has simultaneously imposed tariffs without going through Congress to achieve his economic and foreign policy aims.

The announcement of the agreement with India comes as his special envoy, Steve Witkoff, and sonin-law Jared Kushner are expected to hold another round of three-way talks with Russian and Ukrainian officials in Abu Dhabi later this week aimed at finding an endgame to the war, according to a White House official who requested anonymity to describe the upcoming meeting.

Disney reports strong first quarter earnings

Entertainment company warns international tourism on decline

BY MICHELLE CHAPMAN AP business writer

The Walt Disney Co. posted a strong first quarter, powered by box-office hits “Zootopia 2” and “Avatar: Fire and Ash.”

But the entertainment giant cautioned that in the second quarter, its Experiences division, which includes its theme parks, will likely see modest operating income growth due in part to a decline in visits from international tourists to the U.S.

There’s been a drop in foreign visitors to the U.S. attributed to several factors, including President Donald Trump’s return to the White House, tariffs, an immigration crackdown and repeated jabs about the U.S. possibly trying to acquire Canada and Greenland.

Disney earned $2.4 billion, or $1.34 per share, for the three months ended Dec. 27. It earned $2.64 billion, or $1.40 per share, a year ago.

Removing one-time charges and costs, earnings were $1.63 per share. That’s better than the $1.57 per share that analysts polled by Zacks Investment Research expected.

Disney, based in Burbank, California, reported revenue of $25.98 billion Wall Street was calling for slightly higher revenue of $25.99 billion.

Revenue for Disney Entertain-

ment, which includes the company’s movie studios and streaming service, climbed 7%, while revenue for the Experiences division, rose 6%

“We are pleased with the start to our fiscal year and our achievements reflect the tremendous progress we’ve made,” CEO Bob Iger said in a statement on Monday “We delivered strong box office performance in calendar year 2025 with billion-dollar hits like Zootopia 2 and Avatar: Fire and Ash, franchises that generate value across many of our businesses.”

The Experiences division, which includes Disney’s six global theme parks, its cruise line, merchandise and video game licensing reported operating income climbed 6% to $3.31 billion and revenue hit a record $10 billion. Operating income rose 8% at domestic parks. Operating income increased 2% for international parks and Experiences. Disney said attendance at domes-

tic parks edged up 1%.

The company took note over the quarter of weakening international tourism, so it pivoted marketing, sales and promotional efforts toward its domestic audience, which helped keep its park attendance up Chief Financial Officer Hugh Johnston said during the company’s conference call. In the Sports segment, operating income declined to $191 million from $247 million as an increase in advertising revenue was offset by higher programming and production costs and a drop in subscription and affiliate fees. The company said that a temporary dispute with YouTube TV dragged down operating income by about $110 million.

Disney and YouTube TV reached a new deal to bring channels like ABC and ESPN back to the Googleowned livestreaming platform in November, ending a blackout for customers that lasted for over two weeks.

Stocks climb as gold, silver prices keep falling

BY STAN CHOE AP business writer

NEW YORK — U.S. stocks rose on Monday following sharp swings that shook financial markets overnight, including tumbles for Asian stocks. Gold and silver prices sank further following their latest wild moves.

On Wall Street, the S&P 500 added 0.5% and snapped a three-day losing streak. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 515 points, or 1.1%, and the Nasdaq composite gained 0.6%.

Stocks of companies that make computer storage helped lead the market, adding to gains from last week following several profit reports that topped analysts’ expectations. Airlines and cruise-ship operators were also strong, benefiting from a sharp easing of oil prices. The center of action in financial markets was again precious metals, where momentum has suddenly halted after gold’s price roughly doubled in just 12 months. Gold briefly dropped below $4,500 per ounce in the overnight

hours, down more than $1,000 from its high point reached just last week It then climbed back above $4,800 before settling at $4,652.60, down 1.9% from Friday

Silver’s price has been on an even wilder ride recently, and it swung from a 9% loss overnight to a modest gain and back to a loss of 1.9%.

Gold and silver prices had surged as investors looked for safer things to own amid a wide range of worries, including a Federal Reserve that may be set to become less independent, a U.S. stock market that critics say is expensive, threats of tariffs and heavy debt loads for governments worldwide.

Their prices cratered on Friday, including a 31.4% plunge for silver Some on Wall Street saw it as a result of President Donald Trump’s nomination of Kevin Warsh as the next chair of the Fed. Warsh’s reputation as a former Fed governor may have raised expectations that he may keep interest rates high to fight inflation, which would reduce the need to hide out in gold and silver for

The announced tariff reduction comes days after India and the European Union reached a freetrade agreement that could affect as many as 2 billion people after nearly two decades of negotiations That deal would enable free trade on almost all goods between the EU’s 27 members and India, covering everything from textiles to medicines, and bringing down high import taxes for European wine and cars.

The deal between two of the world’s biggest markets also reflected a desire to reduce dependence on the U.S after Trump’s import tax hikes disrupted established trade flows. While the cost of Trump’s tariffs have largely been borne by American businesses and consumers, the taxes can reduce trade volumes among countries.

Tabasco maker taps industry vet as CEO

BY ADAM DAIGLE

Acadiana business editor

The McIlhenny Co. has named a new CEO following the retirement of the founder’s great-greatgrandson from the position last April.

The Iberia Parish-based maker of Tabasco products announced Monday that Nestle USA executive Adam Graves has taken over the position, effective last week to replace Harold Osborn, who retired after five years leading the company Graves, a veteran of the packaged goods industry with 20 years at Nestle, was recently president of its pizza and snacking division, which sold popular products such as DiGiorno and Tombstone pizzas and Hot Pockets. Graves brings a growth mindset emphasizing empowerment, collaboration and a respect for tradition, McIlhenny officials said. His previous jobs include president at Nestlé Waters Canada, general manager of Purina Pet Care Latin America and group business manager at Nestlé’s North American food and beverage unit.

“Leading McIlhenny Company and the iconic Tabasco brand is the role of a lifetime,” Graves said.

The Tabasco brand is poised for significant growth. Christian Brown, the company’s board chair and fifth-generation McIlhenny family member, said Graves’ experience made him an ideal candidate to lead the company during what Brown called “an exciting juncture.”

“Gen Z cravings for ever-spicier and more exciting foods continue to drive significant growth in the hot sauce category globally and create an unparalleled opportunity for the Tabasco brand,” Brown said.

protection. But many on Wall Street are also skeptical of that initial reading and say the expectation from Trump is likely that Warsh will cut interest rates, something the president has been demanding. That could give the economy a boost but also worsen inflation over the long term.

The Fed’s chair has a big influence on the economy and markets worldwide by helping to dictate where the U.S. central bank moves interest rates. That affects 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.

The recent swoons for gold and silver may also simply mark the return of gravity for two investments whose price shot very high, very fast. They’re likely more about the washout for some traders who had borrowed money to bet on metals’ prices continuing to soar, rather than about a wholesale change in expectations for demand for metals, according to Darrell Cronk, chief investment officer for Wealth & Investment Management at Wells Fargo.

Founded in 1868, the McIlhenny Co. is one of the oldest familyowned-and-operated companies in the U.S. Its founder, Edmund McIlhenny, had been wiped out financially by the Civil War but found a market in New Orleans for the pepper sauce he made at home on Avery Island In 2019, the company had 220 employees and sold products in 197 countries and territories. Email Adam Daigle at adaigle@ theadvocate.com.

second. Security equipment will line parade routes, and residents and visitors were also reminded to leave tall ladders, open flames or grills and other similar items at home.

“The preparations that have been underway, it’s monthslong preparations,” Moreno said after finishing her first major public safety roundtable as mayor. “We do have very enhanced security for this upcoming Mardi Gras. We are thankful to have federal support from our partners.”

The increased protection and street closures have become something of a new normal for major events since the Bourbon Street attack last year exposed gaps in New Orleans’ homeland security response. Under its framework to identify what federal help local municipalities need for major events, the federal Department of Homeland Security granted Super Bowl LIX and Mardi Gras 2025 a Special Event Assessment Rating 1 designation, which unlocks the greatest amount of resources.

The city is again receiving that designation for this year’s final big Carnival weekend, and it will receive the second-highest level of resources during the first big weekend, which typically draws fewer crowds.

At the peak of Carnival, local law

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introduce and define Letlow before she can introduce herself to Louisiana voters.”

What the polls are saying

The pro-Cassidy super PAC’s attack ad comes as polls begin to surface with alarming numbers for the second-term senator

While the Cassidy campaign said its own polling is more optimistic, showing him winning the first primary it does show he has ground to make up in a headto-head matchup.

The worst news for Cassidy comes from veteran New Orleans pollster Greg Rigamer He surveyed Republican primary voters for prominent business lobbyist Alton Ashy, who has dozens of federal and state clients and who helped organize a major fundraiser for Letlow during the just-completed Washington Mardi Gras.

The poll showed Letlow leading the field with 27%, followed by Cassidy with 21%, Fleming with 14% and Miguez with 5%. About 6% favored other candidates, who were not identified, while the rest said they hadn’t decided who to support.

Rigamer’s poll found that only 22% of Republican primary voters believe Cassidy deserves reelection, while 63% favored giving someone else a chance.

Head-to-head in a Republican runoff, Letlow led Cassidy, 57% to 22%. The question may have skewed the result somewhat in her favor because it identified her as “Trump-endorsed Julia Letlow.”

enforcement will receive support from 500 federal personnel and 230 state personnel, Moreno said.

About 175 Orleans Parish Sheriff Office deputies will also be deployed per parade day, said Deputy Mayor of Public Safety Michael Harrison, who joined Moreno and other city officials at a news conference to announce preparations.

That’s in addition to the 900 New Orleans Police Department officers who will be on duty both weekends.

Drones, Coast Guard boats and nuclear biological detection teams will be at work, and barriers will be deployed to block streets in and around the French Quarter

“You’re going you see hard closures with barricades on streets, you’re going to see archers on sidewalks, you’re going to see heavy equipment closures on all of the side streets,” Harrison said.

Officials said rules prohibiting ladders larger than 6 feet, enclosures and other equipment that paradegoers use to secure their spots on the neutral ground during parades would be posted along neutral grounds by the Department of Parks and Parkways.

But officials did not say how the administration planned to enforce those rules, which were introduced by the New Orleans City Council in 2024 in an effort to re-

strict the practices of overzealous paradegoers known by many locally as “Chads,” along with bans on confetti cannons, which can cause fires and power outages.

Regional Transit Authority CEO Lona Hankins said that people camping out on parade routes blocks the RTA’s streetcars and “causes a challenge for us — getting workers home from work that late night after the parade.”

She asked that people “respect the right of way.”

Paradegoers ultimately saw relatively lax enforcement of those rules last year after city officials said they were shifting priorities to security rather than quality-

of-life enforcement, in the wake of the Bourbon Street attack. It is unclear whether the Moreno administration intends to step up enforcement this year

The city will also operate first aid stations during the 10 major parade days to handle injuries and arrange transport to hospitals as needed, said Deputy Mayor of Health and Human Services Dr Jennifer Avegno.

The Department of Sanitation is deploying 200 additional workers to help clean up during and after parades.

The Orleans Parish Communications District has also staffed up to prepare for higher call volume, Harrison said.

More than 300 DJs have entered a lottery to perform at Gallier Hall for the Carnival celebrations, Moreno said. Those selected will be paid through private donations secured by the administration, after an earlier announcement that it would cut funding for musical entertainment for its annual party and seek free options amid budget problems drew criticism. Moreno said she is likely to repeat that approach in the future.

“Our main priority is to make sure that the city of New Orleans puts on a really fun and amazing and memorable Mardi Gras, but at the same time that everyone stays safe,” Moreno said. “The efforts that we are taking are to ensure that there are no major accidents, that there are no major acts of violence.”

Fleming led Cassidy, 45% to 28%, the poll found

If Rigamer’s numbers are correct, this would mean Cassidy has limited chances to grow his support and win because he’s already so wellknown among Republican voters in Louisiana.

Rigamer interviewed 600 voters — 85% were Republicans and 15% were unaffiliated voters who can vote in either party primary — Jan. 20-22.

“I did this for clients at the federal level,” said Ashy, who helped organize fundraisers for Gov Jeff Landry and Letlow during Washington Mardi Gras. “We wanted a good indication of what’s going on in the race. We didn’t ask leading questions. It’s a purely independent view of the situation as it stands today.”

The Cassidy campaign however, said its polling shows him leading in the primary, and that he would ultimately win the June 27 runoff election.

“We are extremely confident in our results that show Sen. Cassidy with a doubledigit lead on the full ballot as well as significant movement to the Senator once voters learn more about how the Senator’s record of delivering conservative accomplishments for Louisiana stands in stark contrast to Julia Letlow’s record,” the Cassidy campaign said Monday

Cassidy’s poll, taken by Public Opinion Strategies, a veteran Republican firm, showed him with 32% of the Republican primary vote, followed by Letlow with 21%, Fleming 16%, Miguez 9% and Seiden with 1% The rest were undecided.

But the Cassidy campaign acknowledged that its own

poll showed Letlow leading him by six points in a twoperson race, 46% to 40%.

The campaign added, however, that its polling also showed 57% of primary voters “prefer the candidate with the experience to get things done above all measures.” The campaign also said Cassidy led Letlow 69% to 22% once voters “were informed” of the records of Cassidy and Letlow

The Cassidy survey was conducted from Jan. 20-22 of 600 likely Republican primary voters.

Meanwhile, a poll taken for Fleming showed him soundly defeating Cassidy in a head-to-head election, 44% to 26% — a similar number to Rigamer’s poll. The rest were undecided.

“My record is that I have voted more conservatively than either one of them,” Fleming, who served in the House from 2009 to 2017, said of Cassidy and Letlow “I’m one of nine founders of the House Freedom Caucus, which was created to anchor conservatism in the Republican House of Representatives.”

The Fleming survey was conducted by Baton Rouge pollster John Couvillon from Jan. 12-14 of likely Republican primary voters. Letlow jumped into the race on Jan. 21, three days after Trump endorsed her Seiden lamented the attack on Letlow, saying, “I wish we lived in a world where each person could tell their story and platform, like I chose to do on my website, but that’s not reality.”

Skrmetta and Miguez didn’t immediately respond to messages on Monday

The bigger picture

On Monday, the Cassidy

campaign said it and the Louisiana Freedom Fund raised $1.4 million during the just-completed Washington Mardi Gras, adding to his big fundraising advantage. Under federal law Cassidy cannot coordinate his activities with the Louisiana Freedom Fund.

The Cassidy campaign noted it is spending $500,000 to launch the first TV ad in the race last week. In it, Cassidy highlights that Trump signed a Cassidy-sponsored law that toughens laws against fentanyl distributors.

Cassidy won reelection in 2020 with Trump’s backing after voting strongly with the president during his first term. But Cassidy

voted afterward to convict Trump on an impeachment charge of inciting the Jan. 6, 2021, assault on the Capitol by his supporters. Trump began bad-mouthing Cassidy and his poll numbers plummeted.

Cassidy has voted consistently with Trump since he took office again a year ago and rarely misses an opportunity to praise the president.

Polls show Trump remains enormously popular among GOP voters.

Miguez, unknown to most Republican primary voters, had a 15% to 6% favorable to unfavorable split in Rigamer’s poll. If no candidate receives more than 50% in the May 16 Democratic and Republican primaries, the top two finishers will face off in a head-to-head runoff on June 27. The runoff winners will advance to the November general election.

Rigamer’s poll found that Trump had a favorable rating of 76% and an 18% unfavorable rating among Republican primary voters. Landry had a 74% favorable rating and a 24% unfavorable rating. Cassidy had a 35% to 51% favorable to unfavorable rating, while Letlow’s split was 43% to 10%. Fleming had a 44% to 10% favorable to unfavorable rating.

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LOUISIANA AT LARGE

Adventure in simplicity

“I want topick up my purse, get in the car and go.”

That’show Opal Broussard describes her plans for the move she and her husband, Harvey Broussard, are making at theend of this month, when they leave their New Iberia house of 50 yearsand head to Vermont Opal Broussard turns 79 this week. Harvey Broussard follows in July.They have alreadybought necessities for asmall apartment they’ve rented in Vermont near the campground where they’ve spent summers for the past decade.

They are not packing boxes. They are not renting astorage unit. They are giving it all away, which is how Icame to hear about their big adventure.

I’ve known the Broussards for 15 years. Years ago, Iwentto their home for abook clubdiscussion. Irecognized thenthat it was ahouse full of carefully chosen things —the kind that hold stories. The Broussards contacted me shortly afterthe August fire that destroyed our home. They asked me to come by and see if there was anything we could use. Isaid yes, grateful, but not fully understanding what they were doing. When Ivisited their home in mid-January,the larger picture came into focus.

They are giving their thingsto friends and local nonprofits. They realized their daughter was collecting her own stuff and didn’t needtheirs.

So, what to do with the daybed for their grandson? The rolling deskfor theirsofa? TheBordallo Pinheiro green cabbage dishes? This is all accumulated evidence of decades lived carefully in one place “I used to make bread, andwe had sourdough jarsall over the place,” Harvey Broussard said of afoldableproofing box.

The couple has one daughter, and they are practical people.

ä See RISHER, page 2B

Harvey grandfather charged with killing wife

Police sayhewas aiming gunatson

BYMICHELLE HUNTER Staff writer

Robbie Walker loved keeping a well-appointedhome. The68-yearoldgrandmotheroftwo took pride in decorating her Harvey house, but not because she wanted to showoff to others.

Quite the opposite, Walkerliked her privacy and rarely entertained guests.

“She fixed her house up really nice,but you would never know unless you were close toher,” niece Shekema Williams, 45, said. “She never had company over.” Walker also mostly kept mum about the troubles in her44-yearoldrelationshipwith husbandZed Walker Jr 66.

“They’ve been toxic the whole time,” said RobbieWalker’sbrother,Millard Watler,70. Those troubles boiledoveron

See WALKER, page 2B

UNO fixesestimated at $46M

School seekstoupgrade tech aheadofreturntoLSU system

BY MARIE FAZIO Staff writer

The University of New Orleans needs somemajor improvements —including nearly $50 million in technologyupgrades— as the struggling schoolseeks to rebuild ahead of its return to the LSU system, accordingtoanew report.

Thereportbyuniversity officials and business leaders includes alaundrylist of upgrades and changes they say will help stabilize UNO’sfinances and grow its enrollment as it getsset to join the LSU system this year.Any upgrades mostlikely would happen after the governance change, which is scheduled for July 1.

The recommendations —which also cite nearly $60 million in deferred maintenance costsand float anumber of other ideas, including an on-campus hotel would cost well over $100 million.

It’sunclear where the money wouldcomefrom, or howmuchof thebill the Legislature would cover after allocating $23 million last

year to help clear some of UNO’s longstanding debt. University officials saythe changes could help raise revenue by boosting enrollment. LSU system President Wade Rousse said in astatement that the system is evaluating the tran-

See REPORT, page 2B

GROCERIESGATEWAy

Officialsgatherfor Rouses ribbon-cutting in NewOrleans East

BY JONAH MEADOWS Staff writer

Mayor Helena Moreno and other cityleaders joined Rouses Markets executives on Monday to mark the formal opening of theregional grocery chain’snew New OrleansEast location, which includes aNew Orleans Police Department substation anda variety of upgradedofferings.

Rouses acquired theChefMenteur Highway location and nine others last year from Winn-Dixie as that chain movedtoconsolidateits operations in Florida. CEO Donny Rouse Jr.saidhe jumped at theopportunitytotake over

the stores.

“We’vewanted these locations for the last 10 years,” Rouse said following aribbon-cutting ceremonythatincluded Moreno, City Council memberJasonHughes, New Orleans Police Chief Anne Kirkpatrick and others. “Wejust always felt that with our brand we could do agreat job in thoselocations, andwe’reseeing the success right now as we’returning these stores over.”

Moreno saidshe hadbeen working with Rouse on theproject since her timeonthe council. After becoming mayor,Rouse asked for hersupport withlighting, public safetyand sanitation, which she said was important for businesses across thecity “We’re really focusing in on retentionand recruitment of businesses in New Orleans,” Moreno said. “This is just astart. This is the beginning and much moretocome.”

New Orleans East residents said the opening offered ahopeful sign after manyhave complained for years about alack of retail and business investmentacross thecity’sneighborhoods east of the Industrial Canal.

Moreno said residents have also been begging for apolice substation to provide agreater presence across the 7th District, the department’slargest.

“Wenever could get traction on the substation piece. No one ever waslike, ‘Oh yeah, let’sjust go and do it,’”she said. “Chief Anne understood kind of thenecessity andthe need forit. And then whenwehad somebody also provide aspace, Imean, easy.”

Rouses is providing the space for the police department rent-free.

While the newRouses replaces an existing supermarket andisnot an ad-

See ROUSES, page 2B

Gretna’s former police chief sues over brewpubproject

Lawson wants replacement removedfrom facilities board

BY LARA NICHOLSON Staff writer

Gretna’sformer police chief hasfiled alawsuit against Jefferson Parish government and oneofits public benefit corporations over his removal from the board overseeing the$10 million brewpub project in Gretna. Arthur Lawson, who retired last year after two decades in elected office, is asking a24th Judicial District Court judgeto removehis replacement,Jeff Adam Sr.,from the Jefferson Facilities Inc. board and to fully reinstate Lawson as vice president. Thelawsuit,filed Wednesday comes as theJefferson Parish

Council considerswhether to ask foranexpansion of theboard from three to five members. It also comes as the parish wrestles with how to proceed on the controversial brewpub project organized by JFI. Jefferson Parish Council member Timothy Kerner Jr who sought Lawson’s replacement, said in afour-page news release Thursday thatbothLawson’s lawsuit and theproposal to expand the JFIboard, brought by council member Deano Bonano, were part of “a deliberate and coordinated effort to obstruct lawful oversight”and “preserve insider control” over the board. “JFI has become abarrier to transparency,not atool for economic development,” Kerner said in therelease. “Its structure has benefited insiders and political favorites, not taxpayers.” With no discussion, the Jefferson Parish Council unanimously approved Lawson’sreplacement

on the board at its Jan. 14 meeting. Butinhis lawsuit, Lawson claims that only the parish president can remove an appointee from the board based on the nonprofit’s bylaws, and that Adam’sappointment would addan unlawful fourth membertothe board.

Kerner,onthe other hand, said theParish Council is tasked with appointing board members, and that those members serve forthe duration of the parish president’s term, or “untiltheir successors have been appointed.”Because Lawson was appointed to the boardin2021 during Parish President Cynthia Lee Sheng’sprevious term, Kerner said Lawson’s term had already expired and was up for reappointment. The Parish Council previously replaced anotherboard member, Ryan Templet, with Joseph William Meerman back in August

See GRETNA, page 2B

Work continueson road damage

BY MARCO CARTOLANO Staff writer

The Sewerage &Water Board liftedaboil-water advisory covering alarge portion of Uptown NewOrleans on Monday as crews finished repairstoamajor water main that broke because of the freezing temperaturesoverthe weekend.

On Saturday evening, a48inch watermain broke in two places near Carrollton Avenue and Panola Street after temperatures plunged below freezing. Thebreak caused more thana foot of watertoflood streets, swallowing the front end of a sedan that crews pulled out on Sunday.

See REPAIRS, page 2B

Like many who reach their late 70s, they have been thinking about what comes next. They don’t want their only child left with the emotional and logistical weight of sorting through a lifetime of belongings. They don’t want her to have to clean out a house making a thousand decisions in the fog of grief. They don’t want her to be responsible for arrangements that could be made now, while they are very much alive.

A book helped set their plan in motion. “All That Remains,” by Sue Black, led them to make arrangements to donate their bod-

REPAIRS

Continued from page 1B

Following the break, S&WB officials signed an emergency declaration for expedited repairs, allowing crews to begin work Sunday morning. Repairs to the pipe were finished Monday, S&WB Executive Director Randy Hayman said in an interview with local television stations.

Workers are continuing repairs to the roadway along the portion of Panola Street where the break occurred. Hayman said the street is expected to be passable by Wednesday and road repairs should be completed this weekend.

Hayman said the pipes, installed more than a century ago, were more susceptible to the cold conditions because of their age.

“New Orleans is like a lot of other cities. It has an old infrastructure, out of sight, out of mind,” Hayman said Monday “(The old pipe) is very susceptible to cold weather, and the freezing and thawing breaks the material. That’s what happened here, and it could happen anywhere.” Hayman warned that other pipes in the city installed around the same time could also break during freezing weather including pipes in the same portion of Uptown. Temperatures are expected to drop again later this week, but will remain above freezing, according to National Weather Service forecasters.

Hayman said S&WB has run into issues securing funding to replace the city’s older pipes and is working with lobbyists and the city’s financial teams. The costs of repairs for the Panola main were still being assessed as of Monday afternoon.

GRETNA

Continued from page 1B

without litigation.

Lawson did not respond to requests for comment and his attorney, Stephen Petit, declined to comment David Colvin, JFI’s attorney, declined to comment on the lawsuit but said the board canceled a meeting that was scheduled for Thursday He did not respond to a follow-up request for comment regarding Kerner’s statements. Lee Sheng also declined to comment.

Kerner also accused Bonano of “board-stacking” for a proposed resolution that would request JFI to expand its board from three to five members, with the three West Bank council members, one at-large council member and the Jefferson Parish Chamber of Commerce’s Board of Directors each getting an appointee.

ies to science. If they die in Louisiana, they will donate to Tulane. If they die in Vermont, they have made arrangements with the University of Vermont. They don’t speak of their decisions in a morbid way Everything is practical and intentional, including their choice of Vermont In 2012, they went all the way to Eugene, Oregon, to buy a specific camper. It was the only one in the country with the lighter interior finish they wanted. The only problem was that they didn’t own a truck. So they bought a truck the same day They drove to Oregon At the camper lot, they took a few lessons. Opal Broussard climbed behind the wheel, drove the camper off the lot and through the mountains of Northern

REPORT

Continued from page 1B

sition committee’s recommendations. He cautioned that there is “not an endless supply of money to support this effort,” suggesting that many of the changes will have to funded through cost savings at UNO.

“While additional funding from the state may be needed, we will rebuild UNO primarily through fiscal discipline, stronger management and by making the tough choices a struggling institution demands,” Rousse said. “It will not be easy, but we remain committed to restoring UNO to its rightful place as a thriving, urban university.”

Enrollment, revenue Released in December, the report was produced by a transition committee tasked with shepherding UNO through its change in governance. The committee is made up of 23 executive members from LSU, UNO and local industries, along with dozens of other people who will advise the committee on specific issues related to the transition, including finance, real estate and academics.

The dozens of recommen-

ROUSES

Continued from page 1B

ditional grocery store in New Orleans East, parts of which qualify as a food desert,” the investment by Rouses is a win for the community and affirms the local company’s commitment to the area.

According to a 2018 City Planning Commission study, Rouses representatives said it was financially challenging to open a grocery store in New Orleans East because of the proliferation of dollar stores, which disrupt the market by selling cheap merchandise.

It costs about 20 times more to open up a Rouses than a Dollar General, the Small Box Retail Diversity Study said at the time, noting that an overconcentration of

The bylaws currently state that three board members are appointed by the Parish Council, although historically, the District 1 council member decides who to nominate.

Kerner, the District 1 member, said the proposed board makeup would reduce his ability to oversee JFI’s active projects in his district, including the brewpub and co-working space in Gretna and grant a seat to the Chamber of Commerce, whose president is Ruth Lawson, Arthur Lawson’s daughter-inlaw

“When lawsuits, board changes, and family connections all move at the same time, the appearance of impropriety is unavoidable,” Kerner said in his statement.

Bonano said he would not go “tit for tat” with Kerner, and that he is seeking to expand JFI’s board so that it can assist in his efforts to renovate Hope Haven’s campus and lease out some

California, until she backed it neatly into its space at a campground. For several summers, they chose a different state to explore in their camper: Arkansas, Georgia, Texas, Florida, Alabama.

“Like Arkansas,” Opal Broussard said, “I had no idea how beautiful Arkansas is.”

Eventually, their wandering took them to Vermont, a place Opal Broussard had wanted to see since elementary school, when she read a story about a traveling circus there. Once they found Vermont, the pattern changed.

They stopped choosing a new state each year and went back to Vermont.

They fell in love with a campground on Lake Champlain, becoming part of a community that re-

dations in the report all reinforce the message that UNO must grow its enrollment, which has dropped to about 6,000 students from its peak of 17,000 students before Hurricane Katrina.

The enrollment decline culminated in a full-blown financial crisis last year which led the university to enact layoffs and furloughs, freeze hiring and spending freeze and close dilapidated buildings.

Amid the crisis, state legislators voted last year to move the school from the University of Louisiana system back to the LSU system, which governed UNO from its founding in 1956 to 2011.

In the report, the transition committee characterized the shift as a “once-ina-generation opportunity” to financially stabilize UNO, modernize its operations, boost enrollment and position it to attract people to the state.

“Combining the brand equity of LSU with that of New Orleans could be the most catalytic economic development project that the city of New Orleans has seen in decades,” the report said. Recommend upgrades

Steady enrollment is key to financial stability, the report said. Noting that tuition revenue is expected to

discount stores was likely crowding out full-service grocers. The study prompted an ordinance that imposed limits on their further expansion.

Several dollar stores in the area have since shut down.

The full-time presence of NOPD officers in the store, which the mayor described as a “win-win,” was also among the recommendations of the 2018 study Kirkpatrick, on Monday called the collaboration one of the department’s first public-private partnerships.

“When you see economic development, it is hand-inhand with public safety,” Kirkpatrick said. “We’re going to do our part.”

Shoppers navigating their carts through the hubbub of activity at the ribbon-cutting welcomed the new grocery options.

of its spaces.

“Why create another public benefit corporation when you already have one whose service area is the entire West Bank of Jefferson Parish?” Bonano said.

Ruth Lawson said Thursday the Chamber was not notified of its proposed board appointment before the resolution was filed, but that it is “ready to support” the parish with economic development efforts.

“After review of the resolution, any appointment to the JFI Board of Directors would be made by the Jefferson Chamber’s Board of Directors; I would not be the appointee and I do not have a vote in that process,” Ruth Lawson said in a statement.

JFI was created in 2001 as a nonprofit economic development entity for Jefferson Parish’s West Bank. In recent years, it’s taken on major ventures in Gretna on behalf of the parish: the $3.5 million renovation of a

turns year after year Opal Broussard has learned to play mahjong and has made great friends. Harvey Broussard has met fellow musicians and plays guitar by the lake.

“I always thought I’d love Lake Champlain,” Opal Broussard said. “And I do.”

Last year, after nine consecutive Vermont summers, they rented a small apartment outside Burlington, about 30 miles from the campground. It’s next door to friends from the campground. They furnished it simply Opal Broussard has no regrets about letting go of things. Harvey Broussard admits he sometimes wonders whether he’ll need something later, but he is fully in the spirit of their adventure. He’s already set to play his guitar for a new

be down by about $3 million in the fall due to shrinking enrollment, the transition committee recommended hiring an enrollment consultant and expanding online classes.

The report also flagged millions of dollars in infrastructure upgrades that it said UNO needs, adding that all of the school’s “critical” information technology infrastructure is past its useful life.

The $46.1 million in IT upgrades include Wi-Fi, cybersecurity and classroom technology improvements. It would cost more than $13 million for UNO to integrate its systems with LSU on Workday a platform for billing, registration, financial aid processing and other services.

The report also cited $59 million in deferred maintenance costs, including $3 million in near-term repairs to student housing. The report said more specific details about deferred maintenance will be available after the state conducts its annual assessment and the university releases the findings of a facilities-usage survey

“Physical campus conditions directly influence enrollment growth, student retention, faculty recruit-

“They got a lot of more stuff, a whole lot of more stuff,” said Bridget Wilson, who lives walking distance away but said she previously would travel to Walmart for groceries.

Wilson’s son, Morris, said he was satisfied with the new store layout, but the sushi was the real draw.

“They had the sushi,” he said. “I really came here for it, too.”

The shuttered store was closed for a week while three shifts of workers completed the necessary work to convert to the Rouses brand. That includes more lights, more variety, new paint, equipment and decor, the CEO said. Ahead are more planned offerings, such as salad bars and lobster tanks.

“It’s so much more organized and everything, it looks like we got a little bit more

Gretna schoolhouse into a co-working space, and the $10 million construction of a brewpub and taco restaurant atop a parish-owned surface parking lot owned by JFI.

The brewpub project has become the center of a political firestorm over the last two years over whether its contracts were procured ethically and transparently as required by law

Under the plan, the parish will send $10.3 million to JFI to build the commercial space, which will then be leased out to Port Orleans Brewery and Avo Taco restaurant, who would pay rent to JFI, not the parish. Supporters at the time claimed those funds would act as a local match for an adjacent parking garage and greenspace, which altogether would cost roughly $34 million.

Much of the debate subsided after construction on the brewpub began, until last October when the state said the brewpub wouldn’t

young friend who will perform at his school later this spring in Vermont.

On Monday morning, Opal Broussard came across a quote attributed to Buddha and shared it with her husband — and then read it aloud to me: “In the end, only three things matter: how much you loved, how gently you lived and how gracefully you let go of things not meant for you.”

The Broussards are leaving New Iberia without the weight of what they no longer need. They’re excited about the future and cleareyed enough to know they can always come back.

At an age when many people tighten their grip, the Broussards are loosening theirs — trusting that what matters most doesn’t need to be packed.

ment, and LSU New Orleans’ competitiveness in the region,” the report said.

Other actions that the transition group recommended for UNO include:

n Use artificial intelligence to automate student support services such as routine academic advising, class registration and financial aid assistance, which would leave staff members to students with complicated cases, the report said.

n Work with Ben Franklin High School, which has outgrown its campus nearby and has offered to purchase or lease university space to expand. The report suggested Milneburg Hall, which the university decommissioned last year because of its poor condition.

n Explore the possibility of an on-campus hotel that would be used for hands-on training by students in the hospitality, restaurant and tourism program and possibly generate revenue for the university

n Consider upgrading the Lakefront Arena, which is used for concerts, the Cove, an on-campus space for students, and the Engineering Complex so it can better match modern maritime, defense and shipbuilding sectors.

variety,” said shopper Paulettee Stern, who is a fan of Rouses from her time living in Mississippi.

“Rouses has stuff that Winn-Dixie didn’t have at all,” she said. “And I’m one of those people who’ll be looking at the prices and the items.”

The final two former WinnDixies are due to reopen as Rouses next week — in Marrero and Hattiesburg, Mississippi.

Once complete, Rouses Markets, second only to Walmart in grocery store market share for the New Orleans area, will have 76 locations along the Gulf Coast.

“New Orleans East is a food desert,” Rouse said.

“There’s no really good option for it, and that’s why we were excited to get here. The community supports us, and we’re ready to serve them.”

actually qualify as the local match.

Kerner, who opposed the brewpub during his campaign for office last year, is considering asking the parish to scrap the brewpub altogether as a result, which opponents say could result in litigation.

Kerner also said during his campaign against former Parish Council member Ricky Templet that there was a political “machine” in Old Gretna. Lawson said at the time that Kerner’s comments made him lose trust in Kerner and since then has said Kerner’s actions against him and the brewpub are part of a “political vendetta.”

“This is one of the most organized and unethical efforts I’ve seen in Jefferson Parish and it raises a serious question: Why is the establishment fighting so hard to brush this under the rug?” Kerner said in his statement. “You don’t fix failure by hiding it.”

the morning of Dec. 6, when authorities say Zed Walker fatally shot his wife while taking aim at their 36-yearold son during a disturbance at the family’s home. The couple’s daughter, Jerlisa Walker, 34, said she’s still trying to make sense of her mother’s death and the role her father is accused of playing in it. “I know it was an accident. I know he didn’t mean to do what he did,” she said, “but I’m still in pain. We’re all still in pain.”

Domestic disturbances

A Jefferson Parish grand jury on Thursday indicted Zed Walker with second-degree murder and attempted second-degree murder, according to court records. He pleaded not guilty Friday

The shooting occurred at the Walker residence in the 2200 block of Deerlick Lane. Zed and Robbie Walker had been arguing something that happened frequently, according to authorities and family members. Jefferson Parish Sheriff’s Office investigators said there was a history of domestic disturbance calls at the residence.

The couple’s son came over to mediate, according to the Sheriff’s Office. At some point, Zed Walker armed himself with a gun. Investigators said Zed Walker then tried to shoot his son, but Robbie Walker intervened. She was shot in the upper torso. When deputies arrived at the house, Zed Walker was on the ground holding his wife, according to the Sheriff’s Office. She was pronounced dead at the scene. The couple’s son was not injured.

Zed Walker was arrested and booked with manslaughter. But the grand jury voted to indict him with seconddegree murder, a more serious charge that carries a mandatory sentence of life in prison.

The best mom

“I miss my sister every day,” Watler said. “I still hurt. I still cry for her I’m just sad that I can’t even call her and talk to her anymore.”

Robbie Walker was the second oldest of four siblings. She was born and raised in New Orleans’ Tremé neighborhood, part of a close family. She graduated from Joseph S. Clark Preparatory High School. Watler remembered her quiet and ladylike presence.

“She always carried herself with respect and loved her family and children,” he said.

Williams described her aunt as a nurturer and great listener who was always positive Robbie Walker cherished spending girl time with her daughter, granddaughter and niece.

“She was the very best mother to me,” Jerlisa Walker said.

Robbie Walker also loved to shop, according to relatives. She was always on the lookout for new decor, and Christmas was her favorite holiday for decorations.

“She had just put her tree up the week before everything happened,” Williams said.

Robbie Walker was an anesthesiologist technician at Manning Family Children’s hospital, where she’d worked for about 23 years, according to relatives. But she’d been making plans to retire in 2026 to do more traveling, to enjoy life.

“I’m still in shock,” Watler said. “It’s just so hard to believe, hard to accept.”

Email Michelle Hunter at mhunter@theadvocate. com.

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Weber, Claudette

Obituaries

Gina MariaDiLeo August 22, 1957- January31, 2026. Gina passedawayonJanu‐ary31, 2026, at theage of 68 yearsold.She wasa graduate of Mount Carmel Academyand Charity NursingSchool.Preceded in deathbyher parents, Dr VincentDiLeo,Sr. An‐toinette Russo DiLeoand brother, Dr.MarcusDiLeo Sister of VincentDiLeo,Jr. andAnnette Shaw (David). Sheleavesbehinda host of nieces,nephews,cousins andgodchildren whom she loveddearly. Gina wasa devotedmothertoLauren Jones(Bryan) andClaudia Cedor(Andrew)r,loving grandmotherto( Rhett, Katherine, Anthony),and a nurse whose life wasde‐finedbycompassion, ser‐vice,and deep care foroth‐ers. Nursingwas notjust Gina’s profession;itwas hercalling.Throughouther career,she worked in the emergencyroom and pedi‐atrics,bringingskill,and reassurancetopatients andfamiliesduringsome of theirmostvulnerable moments. In the finalyears of herpractice, Gina found hertrueheart’s work in hosp gentle empa noto theirl Fami spok lovedG beredh herl ways seen caredf gift fo fering during transi receiv Februa 12 No SonF Cana ianB brated GaricS Father branta Durr tomb Di Le Saints Meta lences scho ment SonF

Echeagaray,Jose’ Fernando

Jose’FernandoEchea‐garay, born on 10/31/59 to Fernando Echeagaray and Patricia BarbierSimmons, passedawayon01/29/26 at 66 yearsofage after battlingcancer. He was preceded in deathbyhis maternal andpaternal grandparents,his parents, hisUncle AugieBarbier andother uncles,aswell as hisAunt Amalia.Heis survived by hisbeloved wife of 38 years, Donna,his son, Nicholas (Lorayne) andhis grandchildren (whomheadored),Lyla Echeagaray andJoseph “Bear” Echeagaray.Heis also survived by hisAunt Verlyn Barbier, andother aunts, hisstep-siblings Larry Simmons(Kay),Jan Pillsbury, NancyRichards andClint Simmons(Mary Ann),cousinBarbara Dildy (Dr. Gary), andnumerous othercousins,niecesand nephews, andmanyclose friends. Fernando wasem‐ployed by Premier Nissan as aFinance Managerfor many years, andloved his co-workers,who became hisextendedfamily. Phil andFrancois were like brothers to him. He was larger than life,kind, com‐passionate,had awonder‐fulsense of humor,and lovedbyall who trulyknew him. He was fluent in Span‐ishand enjoyedtraveling to Spainwithhis wife.Fer‐nando enjoyedattending NewOrleans Saints games withhis son, andhewas a staunchsupporter of FC Barcelona. He wasa true NewOrleans ‘foodie,’ who enjoyedtryingnew restau‐rantswithhis friendsand family. Hisfavoriterestau‐rant wasBarcelona Tapas, locatedUptown. He loved hotsausage po-boysand rawoysters.His family memberswillremember himfor hislove, selfless‐ness andhumility. He truly enjoyedserving andhelp‐ingothers. Sundayswith Fernando were specialto hisfamily. They enjoyed barbequing andswimming in thebackyard, watching football andgoing outto eat. They enjoyedlaughing together,and Fernando wasknown forhis tremen‐dous andoften mischie‐vous senseofhumor.He washappy that hisson Nicholas found Lorayne, andwords cannot describe howhefeltabout the grandchildrenthatthey gave him.Fernandowillbe deeply missed by hisfam‐ily, friends, co-workers, andmanyothers. Mayhe rest in peaceinthe arms of hisHeavenlyFather. Visita‐tion will be held on Friday February 6, 2026 from Noon to 2p.m followed by a Mass at Garden of Memo‐ries FuneralHome, 4900 Airline Drive, Metairie, Louisiana70001. Interment will be private. In lieu of flowers, donationsmay be made to theAmericanCan‐cerSociety in Fernando’s name

dog, Jack,who broughther endlesshappiness and companionship. Sheissur‐vivedbyher former spouse,James “Scott” Is‐rael;her daughter,Alyssa Israel Condreyand her husband Kyle;and her cherishedgrand dog, Jack Sarahwas preceded in deathbyher parents, Rus‐sell DeLaneyNewtonIII andBarbara LeonaPoole; herbrother BrettJay New‐ton; herdaughterMalorie FrancisIsrael; andher un‐born granddaughterMade‐lynn GraceCondrey.Sarah will be remembered forher quietloveofhome, herde‐votion to herfamily, and themeaningfulmoments shesharedwiththose closesttoher.Relatives andfriends areinvited to Sarah'sVisitationon Thursday,February5,2026 from 9amto11amatSt. Philip's EpiscopalChurch, 3643 Aurora Drive, NewOr‐leans, LA 70131. AFuneral Servicewillbegin at 11am, andInterment will follow at Westlawn Memorial Park,1225 WhitneyAvenue Gretna,LA70056.

CurseanDyNeal Kelly Mar 7, 1972 -Jan 25, 2026 Professional Funeral 1449 NClaiborne,NOLA February 7, 2026, 0900

Lambert, Lexton H.

Lexton H. Lambert,79, of Harvey, Louisiana,passed away on January 16, 2026, aftera lengthy and courageous health battle. He wasborn on September10, 1946, to Hayward James Lambert and Christine Steward Lambert

He is survived by his loving wife and bestfriend of 58 years, Kathie CangelosiLambert; his threechildren,Christie Lambert Trumbleand her husband Bryson, Jason Lambert and hiswife Courtney, and Jeremy Lambert and his wife Heather; hisbrothers DaftonLambert and Larue Lambert; and hisfive grandchildren—Madison, Cristian, Mason, Evelyn, and Tyler —who brought him immenseprideand joy.

Lexton builta long and dedicatedcareer in the oil and gasindustry beforeretiring. Outsideofwork, he found joy and friendship in the New Orleans dance community. He wasa true dancepartner in life with his beloved wife,sharing not only the dancefloor but alifetimeoflove, family, and companionship. He also enjoyed working in his garden, which he filled with avariety of vegetables.

Lexwill be deeply missedbyhis family, friends, and allwho were fortunate enough to share in his life

anduncle,PaulO'Neill (Rochelle)and he held a specialplace in thehearts of hisnumerousnieces, nephews, andcousins,in‐cludingthe late Joey Li‐uzza.His memory will be cherishedbyhis grand‐mother,Veronica(Nana) Ohlmeyer,and he waspre‐cededindeath by his grandparents,Josephand CarolLiuzza; Thomas and JoannO'Neill;and Morris Ohlmeyer.Chris's life was atestament to hisunwa‐vering courageand the profound love he hadfor hisfamily. Hispride and joywerehis children,and he wasa dedicatedhus‐band who cherishedthe life he andDesiree built andfoughtfor together Chris'sinterests reflected hiszestfor life andhis love forhis family. He wasan avid cook who found joyin preparingmeals while ser‐enaded by thetimeless tunesofFrank Sinatra. An outdoor enthusiast,herel‐ishedthe momentsspent riding hisbike, andnothing wasmoreimportant to him than thequality time he spentwithhis familyand hisbestfour-leggedfriend, Zeke.Chris dedicated16 yearsofhis life to lawen‐forcement, beginninghis career with theOrleans ParishSheriff'sOffice be‐fore serving14years with theJefferson Parish Sher‐iff'sOffice.His commit‐ment to public servicewas recognized with multiple lettersofrecognition and citizen'scompliments as well as servingasa Field Training Officer, preparing thenextgenerationoflaw enforcement. He recently joined theTrafficdivision, where he proudlyserved as amotorman. Deputy Ohlmeyer served hiscom‐munity with honor, andhis legacy of braveryand dedi‐cation to hiscommunity were unwavering.His ab‐sencewillbedeeply felt by hiscolleaguesand those he served.Aswebid farewelltoDeputyChristo‐pher Paul Ohlmeyer,we celebratea life livedwith purposeand filledwith boundless love.His spirit will continue to inspireus, andhis memory will be a guidinglight forgenera‐tionstocome. Chris'sjour‐neyonearth hascon‐cluded,but theimpactof hislifewillbefeltforever Services will be held on Thursday,February5,2026 at JeffersonPerforming Arts Center,6400 AirlineDr, Metairie,LA70003. Public visitation will beginat 10:00 am with services starting at 1:00 pm fol‐lowedbyprocessionto Garden of Memories Ceme‐tery, 4900 AirlineDr, Metairie,LA70001 forlaw enforcementhonors. To offercondolences,please visitwww.gardenofmem oriesmetairie.com. A fundraisingaccount has been setuptosupport the familyathttps://www gofundme.com/f/jpsodeputy-chris-ohlmeyerfund?lang=en_USoryou maysenda checktoSher‐iffJosephLopinto Commu‐nity Foundation,Attn: Ohlmeyer family, 1233 Westbank Expressway, Harvey,LA70058.

Payne, KimM. With sadnessweshare thepassing of KimM PayneonJanuary 22, 2026. Please visitwww.rhodesf uneral.comtoviewservice information, sign online tbook

great-grandchildren,extendedfamilymembers, and lifelong friends Daltonvaluededucation andattendedXavier and Dillard Universities. He consistently encouraged andsupportedhis children in pursuinghighereducation andpersonal growth He proudly served his countryinthe militaryand wasanactive member of PrinceHallMasons, Mt. Olive Lodge No. 21. Dalton retiredasasupervisor with theUnited States Postal Service.Inhis leisure time,heenjoyed playing golf at Pontchartrain ParkGolf Course andwas an avid sportsenthusiast, faithfully watching football, basketball,tennis, and track andfield He wasa member in goodstandingofBethel Missionary Baptist Church in Stafford, Texas, where he remained grounded in faithand fellowship

Robert Earl Thompson, age 66, passed away on Friday, January30, 2026 at the Colonial Nursing Home in Marksville Mr.Robertisa native of NewOrleans,Louisiana. He wasanintelligent soul with acurious mind, known from ayoung age for hislove of reading and learning. He hada deep appreciationfor music, found joyingoodfood, and wasalways quickwith a joke that could bring smiles and laughterto those around him. Above all,heloved theLord, and hisfaithguidedhis life and theway he treatedothers. Hishumor, wisdom, and love will be deeply missed by all whoknewhim. Thoseleft to cherish his memory are hisdaughter, NatalieJohnson (Kevin) of NewOrleans;sisters, Deborah Thompson Ogisi of Iowa, LA, Tammy Mack of Kentucky, Michelle Jones of Kentucky, and SandraThompson Thornton(Donald) of Kentucky; brothers, Patrick Thompson of Sulfur, LA, Nelson Thompson of New Orleans, and RonaldJones (Elenora) of Orange,Texas. He is also survivedby11 nephews, 9nieces, 22 great nephews, 17 great nieces and1 great-great niece. He wasprecededin death by hismother, Queen EstherThompson. Kilpatrick'sRose-Neath Funeral Home of Marksville have been entrusted with funeral arrangements.

Claudette McNeil Weber wasbornonNovember24, 1938, to Mary McNeil and thelateGeorgeMcNeil. Shelived afulland vibrant life,known forher strength,candor, compas‐sion,and unwavering love forher family. Shewas unitedinmarriagetoher devotedhusband,Curtis Weber, with whomshe shared 68 yearsoffaithful partnership. Together,they raised sixdaughters and builta legacy of love, per‐severance, andfamily unity.Asa devotedmother andmatriarch,Claudette was fiercely protective and deeply nurturing.Her loved ones always knew where they stood—withher heart andher loyalty. Claudette found greatjoy in caring forothers. Sheexpressed herlovethrough hercook‐ing, always believingthata goodmealcould bring comfortand connection Shewas also skilledin cro‐chetingand sewing,tal‐ents throughwhich she createdwarmthand last‐ingmemoriesfor those around her. Claudette was preceded in deathbyher father,GeorgeMcNeil; her sister,Shirley MaeParks; andher belovedgreatgrandchild,MinaAnn Fuller.She is survived by herlovinghusband,Curtis Weber; herdaughters, Jolane Lee, Doreen Kincaid, Patricia Mason, Claudia Simmons(andhusband Edwin),Curchel Smoot, andShannah Wright (and husband,Taray); her mother,MaryMcNeal; her 15 grandchildren; Ronica Scales,MaverickHender‐son, Jr.(andwife, Dinah) Delisa Fuller (and husband, Kyle), Ashlee Mason-Cleary (and husband,Ben), Lau‐renMason (and husband Matt),Christopher Kincaid, Jasmyn Green,Edwin Sim‐mons Jr., Eric Simmons, Kyra Green,CurtisSmoot Tony Smoot,TiyE Green,Al‐bert Green Jr., andArye Green;her 7great-grand‐children;Raeda Scales,Bri‐hanna Scales,Rihanna Scales,OliviaHenderson, Eric SimmonsJr.,Natalie Bystrom, andKatelyn Kin‐caid.Alsoa host of nieces nephews, andextended familymembers.“ …Well done,good andfaithful servant; thou hast been faithfulovera fewthings, …enter thou into thejoy of thylord.”(Matt. 25:23,KJV) Visitationwillbeheldon Saturday,February7,from 11:30 AM to 1:30 PM,fol‐lowedbyfuneral services from 1:30 PM to 2:30 PM at MotheFuneralHome, 7040 LapalcoBlvd.,Marrero Louisiana. Intermentwill follow at Restlawn Park Cemetery,3450 Highway90 West,Avondale, Louisiana 70094. Thefamilyinvites youtoshare your thoughts,fondmemories, andcondolences online at www.mothefunerals com.

No room forviolence along aparade route

This weekend’sshooting ata parade in East FelicianaParish remindsusasthe Carnivalseason gets into full swing that even in our celebrations, Louisiana residents often can’tescapethe toll of violence. And it shouldnot be that way. On Saturday,shortly afterthe “MardiGras in the Country” parade began rolling through the streets of the tiny town of Clinton, shots rang out. Live video on social media showed paradegoers running for cover,aonce beautiful dayturned into ascene of chaos. Five people,including a 6-year-old girl, were hitbybullets. In addition, aman was hit by afleeing car and awoman was trampled by the crowd.Thankfully,all are expected to survive, though one victim could be paralyzed as aresult, officials said. Malik Liggins, 15, Noah Basquine,19, and Phillip “Choppa” Williams,25, were arrested inconnection with the shooting. Liggins will be triedas an adult.

Officials say more arrests could be forthcomingasgang activity is suspected. To fireintoa crowd of revelers requires arecklessnessthat we cannotcomprehend —the crime labcollected 29 bullet casings from the scene. But in acountry awash in guns, and astate intent on letting nearly anyone carry one with little oversight, wecan no longer say such tragedies are shocking. Indeed, we have seen it beforeatCarnival events— and not justinNew Orleans, where the most stringent law enforcement efforts are focused.Lastyear, two people were killed and a dozen injured at Mardi Gras celebrationsinMamou, prompting the cancellationofsomeevents this year

In 2024, New Orleans sawtwo peopleshotnear Canal Street on MardiGrasjust asfestivities were coming to an end.

This is despite the best efforts of law enforcement and city officials to keepeveryone safe. We are glad to see that New Orleans requestedand received aSpecial Event Assessment Rating 1 for the height of the Carnivalparade season,as it did for the first time last year. There will be an expanded presence of federal agents as well as the usual cadre of state troopers, New Orleans Police Department officers andpersonnelfrom local sheriff’s offices around the state. But their hard work has its limits. Violence of the kind displayed in Clintonmust be addressed at acultural level.

Of course, the shootingled to aspate of headlines around the country,anotherblackeye for our state as we showcase what makesour culture unique That is unfortunate because atCarnival, the best of Louisiana is on display asthousands come together from all walks of lifein arareoutpouringofcommunal joy.Ittakes months of planning and the talents of awholehostofcreative people to put on this show Sadly though, all it takesisone person with a gun to spoil it for everyone.

LETTERSTOTHE EDITOR ARE WELCOME. HERE AREOUR

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

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

Airportneeds to be astopinN.O.-BR line

Building successful passengerrail corridors is notaneasytask, yet it can be done. Amtrak’sMardi Gras service, twice daily between New Orleans and Mobile, Alabama,has demonstrated remarkable promise and garnered great rider enthusiasm. This success could never have been accomplished without the complete cooperation of CSX and Norfolk Southernfreight railroads.

The Louisiana Association of Railroad Passengers receives frequent requests about twothings: theextension of the servicetoPensacola and passenger servicetoBaton Rouge.LARP hasbeen advocating for servicetoBaton Rouge sinceits inception in 1980.

One of the largest hurdles for service

to BatonRouge is traversing the freight rail corridorinJefferson Parish. Coordination and cooperation fromall six Class 1railroads that converge on East Bridge Junction, as well as the NewOrleans Public Belt,would be requiredfor the project to be asuccess. Even with afreight rail alliance, the track rights would passa great distance from the airport Passengerrail service between New Orleans and BatonRouge would be woefully incompletewithout astop at the airport.There are closer options which, if considered in afuture study, would allow for atrain station by the old airportterminal and avoid freight rail interference, whichcan cause sig-

UNOmustbeapriorityfor Moreno

We should all be in for New Orleans and UNO. It should be agreat relief for all of us to thinkthat Mayor Helena Moreno has surrounded herself with very experienced professional people who will contributetocreating avision of what the future of thecity should looklike.

After discussing withher team critical issues facing our community—from public safetyand economic growth to legislative priorities, Moreno is ready Onecannot help but agree with theneed to balance thebudget and address the root causes of crime, support theeconomic development in New Orleans —Tulane’splan to turn CharityHospital into anew research center,the redevelopment of the former Naval Baseinthe Bywater into affordable housing and startup incubator,the long-delayed River District Project, etc. All these projectsmerit the government’s and citizens’ support In addition, what should not be left out is the upgrading of the

Thanks to President Donald Trumpfor providing theopportunitytouse descriptive words and terms not in ordinary conversation. The president’scommunications, spoken and on social media, are fraught with folderol, thersitical invective, thrasonical bloviation and bombastic blather —all Trump’s trumpery.

grounds surrounding the UniversityofNew Orleansand its internal infrastructure. We need to return theuniversitytothe roleitoccupied until two decades ago: a prestigious public university and research institution that graduated manyfuture professionalsasbachelor’s, master’s or Ph.Ds in many fields.

Agood start would be to complete thereconstruction of the streets to thesouth of the campus —facing Leon C. Simon; they have been an abandoned disaster formany decades: There are potholes everywhere and alack of curves, drains, etc. This offers avery discouraging environment to attract students and families to thearea for temporary or permanent residence. It is intolerable to accept these conditions near auniversitythat is essential to our community.Let’shelp our mayor makeUNO regain its once prestigious status.

BETTY SPEYRER NewOrleans

Andthe general theme of what he speaks and writes is welldescribed by one of Tennessee Williams’s favorite words, used in “Cat On A Hot TinRoof:” mendacity.Don’t know what all these mean? Look ‘em up and see that they all apply to Trump.

EARL HIGGINS River Ridge

nificant delays. The alternative is the old L&A rail corridor,which is clearly visible on the riverside of Airline Drive. This corridor is anearly contiguous 6.5-mile rightof-way from Orleans Parish to Kenner Junction, where the passenger service could merge onto the CPKC and progress to Baton Rouge.

Elevation of the track would be necessary to remove grade crossings. But service to the airport would be worth it.

JOHN ADRIANI, JR. secretary, Louisiana Association of Railroad Passengers on behalf of JOHN SITAJR.,president ANDREWC.LODRIGUSS,vicepresident LOUIS BANGMA, treasurer

In reading the Jan. 6article, “Aymond to meet with abuse survivors,” written by Stephanie Riegel, staffwriter,I’m confused.

First, the archbishop promotes them (ex. the Rev.Hecker). Then, he apologized fortheir crimes and is praying fortheir victims.

Personally,I’m praying forthe arrest and prosecution of those clergy named as possible perpetrators of sex crimes related to the Archdiocese of New Orleans, accused of these crimes. Otherwise, the message still says to me: “Everyone, everywhere named as asuspect of acrime should be pursued, arrested and prosecuted —that is, all except forsex crimes by clergy associated with the New Orleans archdiocese.”

KERRYERMON River Ridge

Good to be reminded of ourdaily miracle

Joining the letters of praise of our beloved local newspapers, The Advocate and The Times-Picayune.

Thank you Karin Giger and Peg Usner foryour letters and expressions of gratitude.

Isay amen and bravo as wellfor the daily “gift” of our newspapers.

For manydecades, growing up in the Slidell area, it has been astart to my day with acup of coffee.

Keepupthe good work. Congrats! MARIS PRAVATA HELFRICH Covington

Americansknowwhatthey’re up against

Aproven antidote to political division is acommon enemy.The greater thepowers organized against people, the stronger the bond becomes among disparategroups. Think 9/11. Now turn your gaze to Minneapolis. Never did Iimagine that the existential threattoAmerica’s democratic republicwould be posed by our own government Maybe I’ve been naive, butI’vealways believed that aconstitutional commitment to moralprinciples,especially the rule of law,meant we were protected from the fates of less blessed nations. America wasthe exceptional country, createdbyaconfluence of greatmen and minds at aunique moment in history But something has happened to the nation.We’re notthe same people we were as recently as 2016, when the norm-shattering Donald Trumpcame to power.Hestepped into arole tailormade for him at atime when the future seemed up for grabs. His vision for the United States has hardened intosomething unrecognizable while his methodshave escalated into lawlessness. I’m reminded of the character Randall Flagg from Stephen King’s1978 novel, “The Stand.” Flagg was asorcerer and cult leader who served chaos, darkness, destruction and conflict to bring down civilization.

andperhapstied to the midterms and 2028 election,bothofwhich Trump probably wouldn’t mindcanceling. By creating chaos, this unrestrained president can justify imposing stricter controls, potentially leading to more military occupation across the country.That’sone way to obstruct the nation’selectoral system. The Jan. 6stormingof the U.S.Capitol didn’tquitedo the trick I’m convinced by theevidence —thanks to citizen cameras —and my own eyes that using lethal force against Renée Good and Alex Pretti wasnot justified. My colleague George F. Will hitasweet spot with his column arguing“it is good citizenship to assume that everything ICE says, and everythingthe administration says in supportofits deportation mania, is untrue untilproved to be otherwise.”

Jonathan Rauch, writing in the Atlantic, laid out aconvincing case for calling Trump’spolicies “fascism,” discardingthe word he previously used, patrimonialism, to describe them. Patrimonialism,heexplained, is agoverningstyle while fascism is ideological, aggressiveand,atfirst,revolutionary Rauch provided 18 examples of Trumpstyle fascism,including glorifying violence and amight-is-right worldview Notusing “fascist” now,hesaid, would be “perverse.”

King’shorror story,whichculminates in ashowdownbetween good and evil, could be ametaphor for today’s partisan hostility. The recent killings of two Minnesota citizens protestingthe roughly 3,000-strong federal invasion and stormtrooper tactics makeKing’s masterpiece seem hauntingly prescient and, perhaps, prescriptive.

The Minneapolischaosisn’trandom butlikely politicallyretributive (note the preference from Immigration and Customs Enforcement forbluestates)

Do yourself afavor and read the article. Then mentally scroll through what you’veseen in Minneapolis: Masked, armedmen girded withbulletproofvests and other military effects, draggingpeople out of their homes into frigid streets, tossing women to the ground, detainingchildren, and shootingand killing civilians who are peacefully protesting. Pretti was holding a phone when agentsused pepper spray on him, before he was beaten and shot multiple times.

Although Trumphas taken some measures to mitigatethe public outcry following Pretti’skilling, they’re not enough. He sidelined HomelandSecuritySecretary Kristi L. Noem for her mindless jabber that included calling Pretti a“domestic terrorist”for using acellphone to film agents abusing awoman. Noem should be sent home to SouthDakota. Trumpalso swapped out his top gun in Minnesota, Border Patrol commander Gregory Bovino, for border czar TomHoman, who said he plans to “draw down” agentsthere. Somecold comfort, that. ICE agents involved in the killings should be charged rather than merely suspended. ButTrump’sWhiteHouse, whose officials lately have been posting racist and antisemitic coded messages on social media, doesn’tsee things this way.Trumplikes chaos, and his selfserving goals becomemore achievable as long as it lasts. This meansICE will continue its dangerous deployments with Trump’sblessing —and journalists who try to exposethe realityon theground pay theprice. On Thursday night and Friday morning, former CNN anchor Don Lemon and independent journalist Georgia Fortwere arrested by federal agentsinconnection to their coverage of an anti-ICE protest at a church in St.Paul. Into this darkness, aslice of light pierces thegloom. The worm seems to be turning. Most Americansoppose what is happening, while other countries file formal protests and issue travel warnings to citizens considering aU.S. destination. Even someMAGA voters must loathe what they’re seeing. Welcome to the light, friends. America’spartisans, and all of those trapped between, have acommon enemy and a unifying mission to stop themadness. It’stime to take astand.

Email KathleenParker at kathleenparker@washpost.com.

Noem isn’tthe only reason Americansshouldnot trustICE

Language we usecan help heal or wound each other

Cal Thomas

Ancient proverbs can be helpful in adjusting our language and behavior in ways that can benefit every generation. They have become ancient because they work. One example: “A gentle answer turns away wrath, but aharsh word stirs up anger “ (Proverbs 15:1). It means calm, patient and kind words can deescalate conflict, while harsh, angry responses provoke further rage. Tryitsometimewhen you are in an argument with someone. Display humility,orsay “I can see how you feel that way,but mayIshare my view?”

The language we use to communicate with one another can heal or wound, producing positive, or negative results.

The latest of many examples is language used by President Trump, members of his administration, Minnesota governor TimWalz and Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey over their differing views on ICE agents seeking to arrest violent criminals.

President Trump has called Walz “Whacked Out” and “Grossly Incompetent.” Asked if he would call the governor,Trump said, “Why would Icall him? The guy doesn’thave a clue. He’samess.”

When KristiNoem was —what? informed? reminded? —that her meeting with North Korea’sdictator Kim Jong Un, which she reported in aprepublication manuscript of her memoir, never happened, this did not ruffleher sang-froid.She placidly said thatthe “anecdote” about the meetingwould be “adjusted” before the book was published. Today,Noem, aformer member of Congress and former governor of South Dakota, is secretary of homeland security,under whose supervision Immigration and Customs Enforcement operates. There are, however,many reasons, beyond Noem’snature, that multiplying millions of Americansdo not and should not trust ICE. Much has been saidabout thesocial ripples from what began withthe introduction of the smartphone. Some consequences, such as instantaccess to torrents of information, are excellent Others, such as addictive access to oceans of rubbish, are awful. Butaninsufficiently appreciated benefit of this device is that most Americans most of the time are carrying video cameras. Governments around the world are using myriad technologies, some of them sinister,tosurveiltheir populations. U.S. governments —national, state local —are not impervious to the temptation to overdo this. But today,asalutary effect of theubiquity of smartphones is thesurveillance of the government by citizens. Including those exercising their constitutional right to petitiongovernment forredress of grievances, and people watching other people do this Graphic journalismcan changethe world. It did so in May 1963, when Theophilus Eugene “Bull” Connor commissioner of public safetyin Birmingham, Alabama, used bodyslamming fire hoses and snarling dogs against young Black civil rights demonstrators. The nation was appalled and, as important, embarrassed by photos and videos of what wasbeing done in its streets by government Minneapolis is today’sBirmingham Citizens with smartphones are supple-

Homeland Security SecretaryKristi Noem speaksSaturday during anews conferenceatFederal Emergency Management Agency headquarters in Washington.

menting journalists in gathering facts. It is infuriating, yet grimly sublime, that thecurrentnational administration,which will not stop banging on abouthow it is restoring America’s greatness, isincessantly embarrassing (aboutGreenland, vaccines and much else). Theadministration requires an addition to thetypologies of government:loutocracy For aglimpse of what government of, by and for louts looks like, find on the internet the video, taken by acitizen in Minneapolis, in which aparticipant in theexcitement of amelee —tear gas andother instruments for combating citizens—exclaims: “It’slike ‘Call of Duty’! So cool huh?” “Call of Duty” is avideo game,away from which some new agentswere perhaps lured by the signing bonuses, someupto$50,000, that havefueled the agency’sbreakneck expansion. Policingisa hard, dangerous profession. Donewell, it demands of its practitioners disciplineand judgment,

and deserves from society arespect approaching reverence. The current administration, by erasing the distinction between police work and military operations —byallowing marauding ICEmen to pose as police —has grievously wounded the dignity of policing.

This is unsurprising. In aJuly 2017 speech toalaw enforcement audience, President Donald Trumpurged police, “don’tbetoo nice” to suspectstaken into custody.The International Association of Chiefs of Police responded tartly:

“Managing use of force is one of the mostdifficult challenges faced by law enforcement agencies.” They “develop policies and procedures, as well as conduct extensive training, toensure that any use of force is carefully applied and objectively reasonable.”

Trust,including trust in government, is the glue that gives successful societies the cohesion requisite for collaborativedynamism. It is calamitous when government forfeitsthe public’strust. Butwhen, as today,such forfeiture occurs, assume theworst.

Today,itismore than prudent,itis good citizenship toassume that everythingICE says, and everything the administration says in support of its deportation mania, is untrue until proved to be otherwise. Or,asNoem might say, until it has been “adjusted.”

Someadministration loutshave said that the most recent (as of this writing) person killed in Minneapolis by afederal officer was a“would-be assassin” and, of course, a“domestic terrorist.” Because Republicans control congressional committee gavels, and because today’spresident controls congressional Republicans, there will be no oversight of ICE’srampages. The Senate, which disgraced itself by confirming Noem and others unqualified for Cabinet positions, is especially unlikely to suddenly acquire the inconvenience of aconscience.

So, expect more killings, and more political smearing of the victims. That ICE’sdisgraces will continue is, in its revolting way,apromisekept: loutocracy

Email George Will at georgewill@ washpost.com.

He eventually called him. Trump also said Walz and Frey have been “inciting insurrection,” “spreading misinformation” and using “dangerous rhetoric,” such as comparing ICE agents to the Gestapo and Walz comparing children he claimed are afraid to leave their homes to Anne Frank. DHS Secretary Kristi Noem called protesters “domestic terrorists.” Frey said ICE should “get the f***” out of Minneapolis. Trump’suse of language, even foul language, to demean and diminish his political opponents is nothing new.Such language diminisheshim and the office of the presidency None of this latest exchange of nuclear rhetoric has been helpful in producing a resolution of the tensions or resolving the problem of undocumented immigrants in the city and state. In fact, escalating and using vile rhetoric is guaranteed to make things worse. It can also fire up one’spolitical base and raise money On this latter point Ihave twostories. One involved apastor of alarge Florida church who had decided to dabble in politics. He told me of criticism he had received for sending out so many negative letters about how he saw the condition of the country.Hedecided to try apositive letter and described the response this way: “No one sent any money.” The second story is acorollary to the first. I once asked atop fundraiser for conservative causes why he never sent any positive letters to donors. He replied: “You can’traise money on apositive.” How cynical is that?

Youmight make money and shore up your base by denouncing others and using foul language, but the result is adeeper and wider divide and ahatred of fellow Americans. Ronald Reagan maybethe best example of how to lower the rhetorical temperature and not make enemies more than one might expect from members of the opposition. Reagan said things like “Our friends on the other side” and “The trouble with our liberal friends is not that they’re ignorant, it’sjust that they know so muchthat isn’tso.” Reagan rarely engaged in personal attacks. It wasn’this nature, but he also believed he would rather win the issue than demean an opponent. The result? He often got Democrats to work with him on issues important to the country As some of the ICE agents begin to withdraw from Minneapolis, the left will likely claim victory,but at what cost? The original issue of undocumented immigrants, some of whom may be criminals, who remain in Minneapolis and the fraud involving some Somali immigrants and misspent taxpayer money have yet to be resolved. Using better language would be agood place to start.

Email Cal Thomasattcaeditors@tribpub. com. He is on X, @CalThomas.

Well, we’re finally getting abreak from thosemorning lows in the teens and 20s; however, there’sstill plenty coldoutside with temperatures in the 30s and 40s.Today,expect apartlytomostlycloudyand cool daywitha light breeze. Temperatures this afternoon will rise to the upper 60s to low70s.There is a20 to 30% chance of scatteredrain in partsof SELA, most likelyinthe evening and overnight. A cold front will move throughthe areatomorrow, bringing scatteredrain, cooler airand breezy conditions.

SPORTS

Saints land 1stNFL game in France

BY JEFF DUNCAN Staff writer

TheNew Orleans Saints will play the first-ever NFL game in France, the team and league announced

Monday

The game is part of the NFL’srecord nine-game International Series for the 2026season. Although the release did not specify adate or opponent, media reports over the weekend indicated the Saints

will play theCleveland Browns on Oct. 25.

“Weare excitedtobeselected to playinthe first regular season gametobeheld in France,” Saints

ownerGayle Benson said in anews release. “Thismoment is special not only because ofthe strong cultural connectionbetween Louisiana and France, but also because we will compete before agrowing Saintsfan base in Paris.”

NFLcommissioner Roger

Goodellformally announced the International Series at his stateof-the-league news conference

Monday “Paris is one of the world’sgreatest sporting and cultural cities with tremendous success in hosting global eventsthat unitefans on the biggest stages,” Goodell said in arelease. “Playing our first-ever regular season game at theimpressive Stade de France, together with the New Orleans

Saints,underlinesour continued globalgrowth ambitions and we look forward to bringing the NFL to our passionate fans in France.” The announcement comes after months of speculation andnegotiationsbetween league and French officials. In November,Saints president Dennis Lauscha said he expectedthe Saints to play a gameinFrance as early as 2026, but as recently as last month, it appeared the game would be

Inside thebubble

BY REED DARCEY Staff writer

One of the first things associatecoach BobStarkeydoes after agameissift through the film. It’s not always apleasant undertaking, especially when the LSU women’sbasketball team plays as poorly as it did in aloss to Kentucky on Jan. 1.

What Starkey saw in his rewatch of the Tigers’ worst rebounding performance of the last five seasons was anew problem. Andnew problems need new solutions. So Starkey drew on his 40 years of experiencetosearchfor afix, andwhen the lightbulblit up inside his head,he relayed the ideatoteam staff member

Emily Ward. “Weneed to orderabubble,” Starkey recalled telling her Arebounding bubble,that is.A hard, clear,plastic, circular shell with14protrudingbumps. It looks almost like the bottom of acarton of eggs, and it snaps on to therim,sealing off the cylinder and sending shots flying into the air at unpredictable angles. It trains rebounding instincts. LSU hadn’tusedabubble in practice before, at least not since coach Kim Mulkey hiredStarkey to her staff in 2022. Nowthe No.5 Tigers(21-2,7-2 SEC) popitonto therim “just about everyday,”

pushedbackto2027toallow French officialsmoretimeto meet NFLdemands at Stade de France, where the game will be played. In recent weeks, the sides moved quickly to complete the deal in time to meet the league’s deadline.

The NFLhas targeted Paris as apriority international market in recent years as league officials

Pelicans go cold in 2nd half against Hornets

BY RODWALKER Staff writer

TheNew OrleansPelicanswere about as cold as the temperature outside of the Spectrum Center in Charlotte, North Carolina, on Monday The Pelicanscollapsed in thesecond half of a102-95 loss to the surging Charlotte Hornets. ThePelicansled 64-49athalftime, thenscored just 31 points the rest of the way.They scored just 13 points in the fourth quarter

“Wehad four layups andwemissed them,” Pelicans interimcoach James Borrego said. “Either you miss them or you makethem.I think we hadgood looks there, at least in the third quarter.They picked up their aggression. They got to the free-throw line more. Butingeneral, you’ve gottoscore more than31points in ahalftoget a win.”

Trey Murphy scored 27 points to go withfour assiststolead the Pelicans (13-39). Zion Williamson finished with 14 points and 11 rebounds, his fourth double-double in the last six games. It was the 26th straight game Williamson has played in. That’sthe most consecutive games Williamson hasplayedin his career Charlotte (23-28) has wonseven straightgames,the longestactivewinning streak in the NBA.

Because of inclement weather,the NBAchanged Monday’sgame time from 6p.m. to 2p.m. The earlier start didn’tseem to affect the Pelicans early on.Theyfellbehind 7-0, then outscored the Hornets 30-16 the rest of the quarter fora30-23 lead.

The Pelicansaddedtothat lead by outscoring the Hornets 34-26 in the second quarter.The Pels led by as manyas22points in the quarter Things fellapart in the second half after Charlotte scored the first 10 points. The fourth quarterwas more of the same. ThePelicansstarted the quarter in adrought that lasted almost five minutes. The first points didn’t comeuntil Murphy hit three free throwswith 7:27 left.

ThePelicansallowedjust 102 points,

After LSU dismantled Alabama 10363 on Sunday afternoon, LSUwomen’s basketball coachBob Starkey thought Alabama coachKristy Curry could use a hug —and an explanation.

“He said they hadn’tplayed that well all year,” Curry said afterward. Indeed the Tigers had not.Not against aquality opponent,atleast.

Sunday’smasterpiece victory —coming against aCrimson Tide team that Monday actually climbed three spots in the AP poll to No. 21 despite being blown

Louisville rises to sixth in AP poll

BY DOUG FEINBERG

Associated Press

Louisville moved up to sixth for its best ranking in four years in The Associated Press women’s Top 25 basketball poll released Monday UConn remained the unanimous No. 1 from the 31-member national media panel. The Huskies are the lone undefeated team in women’s college basketball and kept that streak going Sunday with a 96-66 rout of thenNo. 15 Tennessee. UConn has won 39 consecutive games dating to last season. UCLA, South Carolina and Texas remained behind the Huskies in an unchanged top four The Bruins had an impressive win over then-No. 8 Iowa on Sunday The Hawkeyes dropped

to 10th. The Longhorns topped then-No. 10 Oklahoma on Sunday as well. The Sooners fell to 11th. The rest of the top 10 shuffled. LSU moved back up to fifth, and Louisville climbed to its highest ranking since 2022 after wins at Stanford and Cal Vanderbilt dropped two spots to seventh after a loss to Ole Miss. Michigan and Ohio State were next. It’s the Buckeyes’ first appearance in the top 10 in a year

Falling Tigers

Princeton fell four spots to No. 23 after ending a 15-game winning streak Friday in a loss to rival Columbia. The Tigers rebounded with a victory over Cornell the next day Princeton was having its best year since going undefeated during the regular season in 201415.

Conference supremacy

The SEC has a record 10 teams in the poll for the second consecutive week. The Big Ten is next with seven The Big 12 has four teams, the Atlantic Coast Conference has two, and the Big East and Ivy League each have one.

Games of the week

No. 17 Duke at No. 6 Louisville, Thursday. First place in the ACC will be on the line. The Blue Devils have a 13-game winning streak and the Cardinals have won 14 straight.

No. 2 UCLA at No. 8 Michigan,

Sunday The top two teams in the Big Ten will face off when the Bruins visit the Wolverines UCLA hasn’t lost a conference game this season, while Michigan has just one loss.

Michigan jumps UConn for No. 2 in poll

BY DAVE SKRETTA Associated Press

Arizona remained the unanimous No. 1 in the AP Top 25 men’s college basketball poll Monday while Michigan jumped over UConn and into second place following wins over previously unbeaten Nebraska and rival Michigan State. The Wildcats, who are off to a school-record 22-0 start earned all 59 votes from a national media panel to stay atop the poll for the eighth consecutive week. UConn and Michigan were followed by Duke and Illinois in rounding out the top five.

“We value steadiness,” said Arizona coach Tommy Lloyd, whose team visits Oklahoma State on Saturday before a four-game grinder against Kansas, Texas Tech, BYU and Houston. “A lot of people talk about momentum, momentum, momentum. I understand what momentum is, but I think there’s way more value in being steady and consistent.” If the Wildcats beat the Cowboys, they would set a school record with their 23rd consecutive win. This bunch is currently tied with Arizona teams from 1914-17 that won 22 in a row under its arena namesake, Pop McKale, over a three-year span. Gonzaga remained at No. 6 while Iowa State and Houston climbed one spot apiece. The Huskers fell four spots to No. 9 after losses to Michigan and the Illini, while the Spartans fell three spots to No. 10 after beating Rutgers and their

own loss to the Wolverines. The losses by Nebraska left only Arizona and No. 23 Miami (Ohio) unbeaten in Division I men’s college basketball. “Obviously, back-to-back losses, we just have to look at the film and learn from it,” Huskers forward Pryce Sandfort said. “Keep our heads high and flush it as we get ready for Rutgers this week.” Miami (Ohio) bumped up one from last week and is at its highest point since it was No. 22 on Nov 30, 1998.

“The further you go,” RedHawks coach Travis Steele said following a win over Northern Illinois on Saturday, “the harder it gets.”

Rising and falling Kansas, Vanderbilt and St. John’s made up the most ground this week, climbing three spots apiece, while the Volunteers — who were ranked as high as No 13 this season climbed back into the poll at No. 25 after two weeks out of it. Tennessee returned at the expense of Alabama. The Crimson Tide had the fifth-longest active poll streak snapped at 42. Update on the NET The latest NET rankings, which the NCAA uses to help select its tournament field,

Packers add Gannon as defensive coordinator

GREEN BAY, Wis. — Former Arizona Cardinals head coach Jonathan Gannon is joining the Green Bay Packers’ staff as defensive coordinator

Coach Matt LaFleur announced the hire of Gannon on Monday Gannon will take over for Jeff Hafley, who left after two seasons when the Miami Dolphins hired him as head coach.

The Cardinals fired Gannon the day after their season ended with a ninth straight loss. Gannon went 15-36 in three years, including a 3-14 record this past season.

Gannon had been the Philadelphia Eagles’ defensive coordinator for two seasons before Arizona hired him.

In his second season in Philadelphia, the Eagles ranked second in the NFL in total defense.

Florida State OC Malzahn announces retirement

TALLAHASSEE,Fla.— Florida State offensive coordinator Gus Malzahn announced his retirement from coaching Monday

The 60-year-old Malzahn spent last season with the Seminoles after serving as head coach at UCF (2021-24), Auburn (2013-20) and Arkansas State (2012). He won the 2010 national championship as an offensive coordinator at Auburn.

“After 35 years, it’s time for me to step away from coaching,” Malzahn said in a statement. “I am excited to spend more time with my family and focus on the next chapter of my life.”

Coach Mike Norvell promoted co-offensive coordinator and receivers coach Tim Harris to be the Seminoles’ offensive coordinator FSU led the Atlantic Coast Conference in total offense and rushing offense in 2025.

Winningest

VCU women’s hoops coach O’Boyle fired

RICHMOND,Va Virginia Commonwealth fired coach Beth O’Boyle, who was in her 12th season leading the women’s basketball program, the school announced Monday The Rams are 8-15 overall and 4-7 in the Atlantic 10 Conference this season. Hired in 2014, O’Boyle is the winningest coach in school history, going 191-168. She led the school to the regular-season A-10 title in 2019 and the conference tournament title and an NCAA Tournament bid in 2021. VCU went 7-22 in 2022-23, then won 26 games the next season — the nation’s biggest turnaround. Rams assistant coach Kirk Crawford will serve as the interim coach for the rest of the season.

Arbitrator rules embattled Rozier should get salary

MIAMI An arbitrator has decided Miami Heat guard Terry Rozier should be receiving his $26.6 million salary for this season despite being on administrative leave while facing federal gambling-related charges, the National Basketball Players Association said Monday Rozier’s paychecks for this season have been placed into an interest-bearing account. While the collective bargaining agreement between the league and its players allows for the withholding of salary in certain situations, the union argued that Rozier’s case did not apply Rozier was arrested in October as part of a sprawling probe that saw charges brought against more than 30 people, including Portland coach Chauncey Billups.

MLB to produce more teams’ local broadcasts

The Cincinnati Reds, Kansas City Royals, Miami Marlins, Milwaukee Brewers, St. Louis Cardinals and Tampa Bay Rays will have their local television broadcasts produced and distributed by Major League Baseball this season.

The Royals, Marlins, Brewers and Cardinals made their plans official on Monday with the other two clubs expected to make their announcements in coming days. The six clubs — along with the Atlanta

and

ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO By NELL REDMOND

Pelicans forward Karlo Matkovic drives to the basket against Charlotte Hornets center Ryan Kalkbrenner, right, during a game in Charlotte, N.C., on Monday.

PELICANS

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which is usually enough to win a game. But the offense didn’t do its part.

“I like where our defense is at,” Borrego said. “I think the defense is giving us a shot. We said that’s where we’re going to hang our hat the rest of the year Now we’ve got to find some more offense.” It didn’t help that the Pelicans got outrebounded 59-34.

“I thought we were disruptive defensively upfront,” Borrego said. “We were switching a lot of their stuff and taking them out of their patterns. But then you’ve

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as Starkey told The Advocate before their 103-63 win over No. 21 Alabama on Sunday

The device, which costs about $160, helped LSU tighten up a problem area. After the Tigers dropped close games to Kentucky and Vanderbilt to start 0-2 in SEC play, Mulkey began to question their toughness.

The primary reason why? They weren’t grabbing nearly enough rebounds. They let the Wildcats pull 17 off of the offensive glass, then gave up two crucial fourthquarter boards to the Commodores off of missed free throws.

Now LSU is on a seven-game winning streak — the SEC’s longest active string of victories. It’s still in contention for both a conference regular-season title and an NCAA Tournament No. 1 seed It also hasn’t lost a rebounding battle since their first matchup of league play

“I think the Kentucky game woke us up,” Mulkey said Thursday “We were outrebounded, and we were, I would say, embarrassed. We should have been. And I think since that game, we have really, really done a better job

“And it’s coming from everybody It’s not just your four post players. It’s coming from our perimeter players, and we’re the kind of team that has to do that this year.” Few things are more important to Mulkey than rebounding. Her teams can’t just be OK in that area. They have to excel at it or else they’ll start losing the possession battles they’re built to win. Defense would start to suffer, and transition offense would lie dormant. Everything would fall apart. For the past three seasons, Mulkey could enjoy the luxury of having either one or two of the

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LSU is playing as February opens. A month that will determine a great deal about this season for the Tigers, whether they can cut down SEC championship nets and whether they can make a run at a second NCAA title.

Mulkey couldn’t ask for much more heading into such an important time frame, especially in three key areas: Rebounding: LSU solved its rebounding woes that led to an opening SEC loss to Kentucky on New Year’s Day The Tigers have outrebounded all eight opponents they’ve faced since then. Six times in that span, LSU has wiped its opponent off the boards by a double-digit margin. The LSU guards are rebounding

Aguilar files lawsuit seeking additional year of eligibility

ByTheAssociated Press

KNOXVILLE,Tenn. — Tennessee quarterback Joey Aguilar has filed a lawsuit as he bids for an extra year of eligibility that would allow him to play this fall.

The complaint filed Friday in Knox County Chancery Court in Tennessee argues that Aguilar should be allowed a fourth year of playing Division I football rather than having the years he spent in junior college count against his eligibility The Knoxville (Tennessee) News Sentinel first reported on the lawsuit

got to finish with the boards, and obviously we didn’t get that done at the level we needed to.” LaMelo Ball led the Hornets with 24 points, eight rebounds and five assists.

For the Pelicans, Derik Queen finished with 16 points and eight rebounds.

The Pelicans are now 3-3 with the starting lineup of Williamson, Murphy, Queen, Herb Jones and Saddiq Bey Guards Jordan Poole and Jordan Hawkins didn’t play for the fifth consecutive game.

The Pelicans play at the Milwaukee Bucks on Wednesday in the team’s final game before Thursday’s NBA trade deadline.

Email Rod Walker at rwalker@ theadvocate.com

best glass cleaners in the history of women’s college basketball in her locker room. Angel Reese and Aneesah Morrow were responsible for 37% of all the rebounds LSU grabbed from 2022-25.

Now they’re both gone. And LSU didn’t have one or two players ready to replace their production on the boards. Its five frontcourt players are all newcomers, to both the Tigers and the SEC.

Four of them saw the floor against Kentucky and they combined to grab just 13 rebounds.

Mikaylah Williams was the only contributor who corralled more than five Flau’jae Johnson and MiLaysia Fulwiley pulled down one apiece.

Perhaps they just needed some time to adjust to the SEC’s size and muscle. Or something that could instill the toughness that they need to pursue boards — like a rebounding bubble.

LSU has cleaned the glass as well as any of its league peers since the calendar flipped to 2026.

The Tigers will enter their rematch with No. 4 Texas on Thursday with the top average rebounding margin in the SEC (+12.6). Only one team in the league has a better offensive rebounding rate than LSU, according to Her Hoop Stats, and only two have a higher defensive rebounding rate.

“Kim put in some rebounding drills,” Starkey said. “Some of her favorite rebounding drills that generally you don’t do in the middle of the season cause you (could) get a player hurt They’re pretty violent drills. But we needed to do something to change our attitude about rebounding.”

LSU is far from the only team that uses a rebounding bubble. On the men’s side, Houston coach Kelvin Sampson is known to champion the odd-looking contraption. In 2023, his top-seeded Cougars were even bounced out of the postseason in the Sweet 16 by a Miami team that, coincidentally, had also

better, and the post player rotation of Kate Koval, Amiya Joyner Grace Knox and ZaKiyah Johnson has been doing the job no matter which combination is on the court.

The fact that LSU leads the nation in rebounding margin (+19.3) can’t just be attributed to a light nonconference schedule anymore.

“It’s toughness and grit,” Johnson said. “How much do you want the ball? It should be ours.”

Point guard play: The rise of sophomore Jada Richard to meet the challenge of running the point for the Tigers may be the biggest reason for the seven-game winning streak and greatest hope for trophy gathering come March and April. Coming into the season, there was a legitimate question about whether South Carolina transfer MiLaysia Fulwiley, Richard or someone else would run the point in Mulkey’s high-octane offense.

Aguilar played at Diablo Valley (California) Community College from 2021-22 before transferring to Appalachian State, where he spent the 2023 and 2024 seasons. Aguilar then transferred to Tennessee and completed 67.3% of his passes for 3,565 yards with 24 touchdowns and 10 interceptions this past season.

He also redshirted at City College of San Francisco in 2019 before his 2020 season was canceled due to the pandemic.

“Aguilar needs relief now to know whether he should report to spring practice or prepare for the NFL draft,” the complaint says.

Aguilar is seeking an emergency temporary restraining order and preliminary injunction requiring the NCAA to permit him to play one more season for Tennessee in 2026.

Aguilar had recently removed himself from the list of plaintiffs in a federal lawsuit that Vanderbilt quarterback Diego Pavia had filed in federal court Pavia’s law-

suit had challenged an NCAA rule that counts seasons spent at junior colleges against players’ eligibility for Division I football.

Pavia initially sued the NCAA in November 2024 and won a preliminary injunction that allowed him to play for Vanderbilt in 2025. He finished second in the Heisman Trophy balloting and helped Vanderbilt go 10-3.

The NCAA appealed the Pavia ruling but issued a blanket waiver that granted an extra year of eligibility to former junior college players whose situations were similar to the Vanderbilt quarterback.

“Despite Pavia’s injunction, the NCAA’s blanket waiver for JUCO players and the record-breaking successes of the 2025 season, the NCAA decided to enforce the JUCO rule again in 2026,” the complaint says. “It refuses to grant waivers, even on an individual basis, to any athletes who ask

broken out the bubble. The Hurricanes did so earlier in the year after suffering a string of losses.

Mulkey and Starkey didn’t wait for things to spiral They ordered the bubble as soon as the rebounding problem surfaced. When it’s stuck on the rim, LSU’s so-called

Fulwiley is an amazing talent but prone to making too many turnovers to adequately fill that role. Richard has been both an excellent ballhandler and an improving point producer — on Sunday the Opelousas native scored 16 points, the second time in the past three games she has led the Tigers in scoring. Richard is the best true point guard LSU has had since Alexis Morris led the 2022-23 Tigers to the NCAA title, a key component for any top-shelf Mulkey team.

Defense: LSU always has been able to score this season the Tigers lead the nation in scoring, scoring margin, bench points and points per 100 possessions But as Mulkey is fond of saying, defense leads to offense, especially for a team like LSU so eager to run the fast break. The Tigers are also fourth nationally in field goal percentage

“Dream Team” — a practice squad of male undergrad students shoots onto the bubble, and if the Tigers don’t rebound the guaranteed miss, they have to run.

“I think that’s something that we kind of have in the back of our heads (going) into the game,” Wil-

defense. Richard has been a big part of that as well, not only taking the scoring pressure off of Flau’jae Johnson and Mikaylah Williams but also turning in to the defensive stopper Mulkey has been looking for on this team.

“Jada Richard is our glue,” Mulkey said. “She’s our coach on the floor You can’t get off Jada (defensively) because she will light you up. She’s proven she can defend. She understands angles and foot speed with who she’s guarding.”

Three baskets a buzzer beater by Kentucky, and a couple by Vanderbilt in LSU’s 65-61 loss the next game in Nashville — are all that separates the Tigers from being 23-0 at this point. It was always going to take some growth to get here, but LSU is here. The Tigers (21-2,

that their junior-college years not be counted against them. The NCAA has given no rational explanation for that disparate treatment.”

Although Pavia now plans to enter the NFL draft, he continued his lawsuit to assist other former junior college players. Norris’ complaint notes that a ruling on the Pavia case won’t come until at least Feb. 10.

“This sequence of events put Aguilar in an untenable position,” the complaint says. “He cannot wait much longer to know whether he is eligible to play college football in 2026.”

According to the complaint, Aguilar removed himself from the Pavia case and filed his own lawsuit in hopes of a quick ruling Norris wrote that Aguilar has a spot on Tennessee’s roster waiting for him and that he could make about $2 million playing college football this year.

liams said Jan. 11 after the Tigers’ win over Texas. It’s not just the bubble. LSU has other ways of driving home the point that rebounding matters. Starkey, for example, had about a dozen of Reese’s “Mebounds” Tshirts sitting in boxes somewhere since before the season began. He and Mulkey were waiting for the right time to dust them off and give them to the players, so they decided to drape one on every chair in the locker room before practice ended the Tuesday after the loss to Vanderbilt.

Every player also has an LSU football helmet Each time one of them grabs more than 10 rebounds, she gets a sticker for it.

“Nobody’s better at it than Kim,” Starkey said. “Kim’s really good at calling out somebody who’s not rebounding, but she’s even better at going nuts over somebody who is.

“I tell people all the time. Sure, she gets on players. But you ought to hear how loud she is when she praises them.”

Mulkey will keep stressing the need to clean the glass through the last seven games of the regular season. That stretch includes matchups with both Texas and South Carolina — two of the country’s most physically imposing teams.

LSU can position itself to land a No. 1 tournament seed for the first time since 2006 if it takes even one of those games and also avoids stumbling down the stretch.

The Tigers won’t win either contest if they don’t grab enough rebounds. They learned that lesson quickly this season, not long after Starkey dug into the tape of the Kentucky loss and decided to order the bubble.

Does it look like his idea was the right solution?

“So far,” Starkey said. “But it’s like anything. If we stop emphasizing (it), I’m sure it’ll drop off again.”

7-2 SEC) are a half-game back of South Carolina (7-1 in SEC). A lighter three-game stretch helped LSU get back into contention, but now the Tigers’ SEC fate hangs in the balance in the next three contests. No. 5 LSU goes to No. 4 Texas on Thursday, goes to face struggling Auburn on Sunday, then returns home for a prime-time showdown with No 3 South Carolina on Feb. 14. If LSU can win those games, it would set the Tigers up as the team to beat for the SEC title.

“We’ll see where this winds up,” Mulkey said. “It’s fun to be in the mix. We don’t have to rely on any teams winning or losing. Go win seven straight and we might win an SEC title. If not,

Manninga polarizing case forHallofFame

Goodellsays18games ‘not agiven’for NFL

BY ROBMAADDI AP pro football writer

SAN JOSE, Calif. Notsofast on an 18-game NFLseason. Aweek afterNew England Patriots ownerRobert Kraft made it seem inevitable,NFL commissioner Roger Goodellsaidexpanding theregularseasonto18 games is “not agiven.”

“Wehavenot hadany formal discussionsabout it and, frankly, very little, if any,informal conversations,” GoodellsaidMonday at his annualstate of theNFL news conference aheadofthe Super Bowl.“I’ve heard people talk aboutitinthe context. It is not a given that we will do that. It’s not something we assume will happen. It’ssomething we want to talk about with the union leadership.”

LastTuesday,Kraftmade it seem 18 games was aforegone conclusion.

“I want to tell you guys that we’re going to push like the dickens now to makeinternational (games) moreimportant with us,” Kraft told98.5-FMlast week.”Everyteamwillgoto18 (regular-season games) and two (preseason games) and eliminate oneofthe preseason games, and everyteam every year will play one game overseas.”

Clearly,word reached Goodell.

we got to 18 (regular season) and two(preseason), that’snot an unreasonable thing.” He’s walked it back previously but not to this point.

The NFL added a17th game in 2021 in the mostrecent CBA. Goodell also said Monday that the NFL will look into New York Giants co-owner Steve Tisch and his association with Jeffrey Epstein after his name showed up more than 400 times in files released by the U.S. Justice Department regarding Epstein.

Editor’snote: Information for this column was compiled from the presentation made by Gary Meyers of the Pro Football Hall of Fame selection committee. The debate overEli Manning’s Hall of Fame candidacy is oneofthe most polarizingin recent memory There’slittle middle ground when it comes to Manning, the former Isidore Newman School standout who starred for the New York Giants from 2004-19 and is oneof15 finalists for the Class of 2026. Critics point to his career 117117 regular-season record and lack of All-Pro selections to question his worthiness.They cite his mediocre 84.1 passer rating and 366-244touchdown-to-interception ratio. While those numbers are part of his story,they don’tcapture the essence of his greatness. Manning was aquarterback defined by durability,legendary postseason performances and a knack for delivering under the most intense pressure. Acloser look reveals acareer not just worthy of Canton but also one that embodies the very definition of aHall of Famer Manning’scritics fixate on the .500 record, but it didn’tstop Dan Fouts (86-84-1) and Warren Moon (102-101) from earning gold jackets. Manning’srecord in his first eight seasons (2004-11) was 69-50, ahealthy 58% winning mark

Thesubsequent eight seasons, where his record fell to 48-66, were aproduct of organizational decay. The infrastructure around Manning collapsed as general manager Jerry Reese dismantled two championshiprosters and was forced totrade the team’s best offensive weapon, Odell

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expandthe international series to new cities across the globe. The 80,698-seat Stade de France is the national stadium of France and the largest sporting facilityin thecountry.Itserved as thehost site for various events at the 2024 Summer OlympicGames,including the opening and closingceremonies.

Thegameistechnically oneof nine home games on the Saints’ 2026 schedule. Team officials said season-ticket holders will be given a10% price reduction on tickets and parking to reflect the cost of the lost game on the home schedule. Fully paid season-ticket holders willreceive acredit and refund. Season-ticket holders alsowill be allowed priority presale access to alottery fortickets for the Paris game.

This will be theSaints’fourth game abroad since theNFL launched the International Series in 2007. They played in Lon-

Beckham Jr., to Cleveland after thestar receiver grew disgruntled.

Thetrue, undeniable argument forManning lies in thepostseason. He is oneof 13 quarterbacks to wintwo or more Super Bowls

But Manningdidn’t just win two SuperBowls.Hewas theMVP bothtimes, orchestrating dramatic fourth-quartercomebacksto upsetTom Brady and the mighty New EnglandPatriots twice.

Thefirst one prevented the 2007 Patriots from completing an unprecedented19-0season. Trailing 14-10 with less than three minutes left, Manning marched the Giants 83 yardsfor thego-ahead score, throwing the game-winning 13yard touchdown passtoPlaxico Burresswith 35 seconds left.

In the2011 Super Bowl, he erased a17-15 deficit with less than four minutesleft by orchestratinganine-play,88-yard drive that ended ina6-yard touchdown runbyAhmad Bradshaw with57 seconds remaining “(Manning) played his best football in the biggestgames most notably in theSuper Bowl, former Patriots coaching legend Bill Belichick said. “Hehad two game-winning drives at the most critical times of theseason; otherwise, we would have won eight SuperBowl titles.”

In those two Super Bowl runs, Manning threw 15 touchdown passes and just two interceptions. He set an NFL postseason record during his 2011 postseason run with 1,219 yards passing. Manning’spostseason legend is bolstered by his 5-2 career record in road playoff games. He remains the only quarterback to beat both Brett Favre and Aaron Rodgers in the playoffs at Lambeau Field. He survivedsubzero temperatures to beat Favre in overtime in the NFC championship and endured aphysical

donin2008, 2017and 2022. The Saints previouslyplayed exhibition games in Tokyoand Mexico City

Thehistoric Stade de Franceis theonly stadium to have hosted aFIFAWorld Cup,Rugby World Cup, UEFAChampionsLeague final andUEFAEuropean Championship final. Italsoplayed a prominentroleinthe 2024 Olympic Games.

The International Series has grown from asingle game per year in England to arecord ninegame schedule in sixcountries next season.

League officials hope to expand theInternational Series to afull slate of 16 games, with each team playing one international game per season, by the end of the decade.

“The ambition that we have is to be aglobalsport,” Goodell said Monday.“We’re hearing from cities all over the world. I’ve said many times that 16 (international) games is important for us.Ithink we’re well on our way. Some of thegreatest cities in the world are asking us (to be apartofthe

beatingagainst the 49ers to win the2011 titlegame, also in overtime.

“Eli is one of the toughestplayers I’veever been around,” former Giants coach TomCoughlin said. “Great player in thebig moments,anunbelievable teammate, and ahard worker.Ijust can’t say enough about the guy,and I know there’snoway we win those championships without him.”

Beyond the statistics, Manning epitomized the intangible core principles of the Hall of Fame commitment, integrity,courage, respect and excellence. His210 consecutive starts rank thirdalltime for aquarterback and speak to his commitment. Hislegendary performances in hostile conditionsinthose NFC championship games speak tohis courage. As do his 42 game-winning drives, which are more than 23 Hall of Fame quarterbacks, including Joe Montana and Roger Staubach. Fiveofthose were in theplayoffs

“He was agreat player in this league for along time,” Hall of Fame coach Bill Parcells said. “Highly productive and had alot of great moments.And playing in New York is different.Believe me, Iknow.It’snot like other places. Buthedealt with it, and he beat thebest team in the history of the league twice in the Super Bowl. Imean, what more do you have to do?”

Fair or not,quarterbacks are judged by wins, losses, championships and moments —the kind that define careers and forge legacies.Manning ranks 11th all-time in passing yards and touchdowns. He won multiple Super Bowls.And on top of it all, he delivered two of the greatest moments in NFL history

He didn’tjust participateinhistory. He wrote it.

That’snot aborderline résumé.

That’sa Hall of Fame résumé.

international series).”

In 2023,the Saints weregranted the international marketingrights in France —the first NFLclubto select and be awarded the French market —aspart of the league’s global markets program. Theinitiative awards NFL clubs marketing rightsinmarkets outside of theU.S. to build brand awareness and fandom through fan engagement, events and commercial opportunities

OwnerGayle Bensonand linebacker Demario Davis led aSaints contingent that visited Paris in July to market and promote the team. Bensonalso has cultivated relationships withU.S. French ambassador Charles Kushner and Prince Albert II of Monaco, who shehosted in her suiteatthe Superdome for Super Bowl LIX last year

Earlier this year,the Saintsannounced astrategic partnership with theParis Musketeers,who playinthe European League of Football, through which the team hopestogrowthe American game whilealsoincreasingits own brandvisibility in France.

He mentionedthatthe NFL Players Association will be goingthrough aleadership transition and that the conversation will be complex. Goodell pointed out player-safety concerns, competitive issues, the potential need to addanother byeand roster sizes as areas that have to be addressed through collective bargaining.

The current CBA between the NFL and its players’ union expires in 2030.

“As(the NFLPA) determines theirpriorities, we are doing the same at the ownership levelso that whenweget together, we can address these issues together,” Goodell said.

The momentum for an 18th game took off when Goodell made an appearance on the “Pat McAfee Show” at the 2024 NFL Draft in Detroit andsaid: “I’d rather replace apreseason game with aregular-season (game) any day,that’sjust picking quality.If

“Absolutely we will look at all thefacts,” Goodell said. “We’ll look at the context of those and try to understand that. We’ll look at howthatfalls underthe (league personal conduct) policy Ithink we’ll take one step at a time. Let’sget the facts first.” Tischsaidlastweek he knew Epstein and that they “exchanged emails aboutadult women” and “discussed movies, philanthropy andinvestments.” ButTisch,76, deniedgoing to Epstein’sisland and wasnever charged in the investigation.

Epstein killed himself in aNew York jail cellinAugust 2019, a monthafter being indicted on federal sex trafficking charges. The documents weredisclosed underthe EpsteinFilesTransparency Act, thelaw enacted after months of public andpolitical pressure that requires the government to open its filesonthe late financierand his confidant andonetime girlfriend, Ghislaine Maxwell.

LSUreceivesnopenalty in unreported NILdeals case

BY WILSON ALEXANDER Staff writer

LSU has resolved an inquiry from theCollege Sports Commission over unreported name, image and likeness deals.

The school said in astatement Monday night that any “non-reporting hasbeen resolvedwith no disciplinary action.”

“Anydeals that require submission to NIL Go have been submitted,” LSU spokesperson Zach Greenwell said. “Weappreciate the CSC’s prompt review and resolution.”

LSU received notice Jan. 15 from the CSC that at least one athlete wasbeing investigated for apotential rules violation, according to an email obtained by The Advocate through apublic records request. While it was the first known example of amajor athletic programbeing looked into by the CSC, severalother schoolsrecentlyreceivedsimilar inquiry letters.

The inquiry at LSU was not related to thefootball program, asource said. Other details are unknown

“The College Sports Commissionisinvestigating whether amemberofone of your institution’ssports teams failed to report oneormorethird-party Name, Image, and Likeness (NIL) dealsinaccordance with appli-

cable rules,” the CSC’shead of investigations, Katie Medearis, wrote Jan. 15 to LSUathleticdirector Verge Ausberry Medearis asked to set up a phonecallwithAusberry or a member of LSU’scompliance staffwithin thenext week.The inquiry wasresolved18daysafter the initial email.

Greenwellsaidina previous statementthatLSU has“been in regularcommunicationwith the CSC since the organization’s formation and appreciate their ongoing collaboration and guidance.”

The CSC previously indicated that it reached out to several schools about investigations into unreported NIL agreements. As part of the House settlement, everydeal of more than$600 must be approvedbya clearinghouse calledNIL Go.The clearinghouse is supposed to determine whether dealshavea valid business purpose and fall within a reasonable range of compensation.

The CSC is the newenforcement arm within college sports that wasset up last summer when the House settlement took effect, bringing with it new rules around player compensation. It is designed to police spending by the schools and verify the legitimacy of NILdeals between athletes and third parties.

Davis, Dominican down district rival Mount Carmel

BY SPENCER URQUHART

Staff writer

Dominican junior Gabby Davis made a pair of free throws that ended Mount Carmel’s chance at a comeback in a matchup of district

rivals

Mount Carmel trailed by six points when Davis was sent to the free-throw line in the closing seconds. Dominican took an eightpoint lead after the made free throws by Davis, which were the last points scored in a 35-27 Dominican win on Monday at Mount

Carmel. Davis led Dominican in scoring and rebounding, finishing with 11 points and 11 rebounds to record a double-double along with two steals.

“I knew I had to do something and just made it work,” Davis said.

“Got those rebounds and made those free throws. It was pretty hectic (shooting late free throws), but I had to be consistent, follow my form, and it went pretty good.”

Dominican delivered a strong defensive effort throughout the game, holding Mount Carmel to

just five points in the fourth quarter

“We lost (Mount Carmel) a few times before halftime, but I think in the second half we really made it a point to get out on the shooter,” Dominican coach Ryan Reuter said. “(Gabby Davis) is by far the most improved player from last year to this year She’s been our goto person the past several games.” Dominican sophomore Addison Shannon was second on the team in scoring with 10 points and made three free throws in the closing minutes of the fourth quarter to

John Curtis point guard drives team’s run toward title contention

Known for scoring, Manning rounds out his game with better defense, endurance

BY CHRISTOPHER DABE Staff writer

Long before Autrail Manning ever suited up for John Curtis, he was already in the gym, learning to dribble not long after he took his first steps. Basketball has always been a constant in his life, introduced by his father, who shares his name.

“He had me in the gym every day,” Manning said. “He had me grinding.”

Now 6-foot-1, Manning has grown into Louisiana’s top-rated point guard in the Class of 2026, becoming a focal point for a Curtis team with sights on state championship contention.

Always known for his scoring ability, Manning has developed a strong all-around game, expending equal energy on both ends of the floor

After once scoring 51 points and making 12 3-pointers against International High as a freshman, Manning’s offensive focus extends beyond simply putting the ball through the hoop.

“My eighth, ninth and 10th grade year that’s all I was trying to do,” Manning said. “Now, I’ve been making a lot of plays for others, just finding the open man.” His intensity on defense also has increased.

“I was never a defensive player,” Manning said. “I started off, everything was about scoring — everything.”

Manning, who averages 16.5 points per game, began to improve his approach on defense after Curtis hired Biko Paris as head coach in 2023, just after Manning completed his freshman season.

Paris saw Manning as “a skinny, scrawny little kid with a ton of confidence” when they first met. “He played with swagger on the court — a tough-shot maker.”

The two met during a team meeting, and “he stared in my eyes the whole time,” Paris said. After the meeting, “He walked up to me and said, ‘I want to play for you.’” That was a good start. Getting him to play better defense was more challenging.

“It took some time and teeth pulling and long, tough conversations,” Paris said.

“Coach Biko, he told me I need to start playing more defense,” Manning said. “I can’t be the only one out there lacking on defense.” The biggest change for Manning

as a senior has been his increased physical endurance

A year after sometimes asking to get subbed out because he was exhausted from playing harder on defense, Manning now rarely wants to leave the floor

“His endurance is way higher,” Paris said. “His stamina is so that he’s able to push himself longer and harder.”

Increased work in the weight room has made him into a more durable player, now weighing 165 pounds up from the 130 or so when Paris first arrived as coach.

mother Most of the training now takes place at Curtis.

“His father did a terrific job training him and having him in the gym before I ever worked with him,” Paris said.

“He wants to be coached hard. He wants to be pushed. He wants to be held accountable.”

JOHN CURTIS COACH

Manning and senior Midnight Martin are the two longest tenured players at Curtis, each a fifth-year varsity player after making their debuts together in eighth grade.

BIKO PARIS ON SENIOR AUTRAIL MANNING

“He wants to be coached hard,” Paris said. “He wants to be pushed. He wants to be held accountable.” Manning also has college aspirations, though he remains uncommitted During the summer, he considered leaving Curtis for a prep school, believing it could boost his recruitment. He visited DME Academy in Florida and spoke with a few other schools.

After weeks of consideration, he decided to stay home.

“I wanted to get a ring with the guys because I never got a chance to get a ring,” Manning said. “I feel like this was my home.”

Manning arrived at Curtis already skilled at scoring and ballhandling, owed largely to the work he put in with his father, who starred for Shaw in the early 2000s and graduated from John Ehret — before later playing at Dillard University.

“His father had the ball in his hands when he was 2 years old,” said Latashia Rousell, Manning’s

help keep the lead.

Senior Molly Baker delivered a strong all-around effort for Dominican with seven points, four rebounds and four assists. Eighthgrader Amelia Theriot was second on the team in rebounding with six rebounds, and freshman Samantha Cardwell had six points on two 3-pointers.

“A lot of what (Baker) does doesn’t always show up on the stat sheet,” Reuter said. “She’s asked to do a lot of stuff Whenever someone’s in trouble, we always look to give her the ball to get us into what

we’re doing.” Mount Carmel freshman Sabrina Berner finished with a team-high nine points, all of which came in the second half. Senior Kate Cerise had six points and a team-high six rebounds. Monday marked the last district matchup of the season for both Dominican (16-11, 2-3) and Mount Carmel (11-13, 2-3).

Next up for Dominican is a home game against Kenner Discovery on Wednesday Mount Carmel’s next game is a road matchup against McDonogh 35 on Tuesday

Ranked third in world at 45, Rose says he still has ‘gas in the tank’

BY DOUG FERGUSON Associated Press

They reached the state semifinals last season, falling on a buzzer-beater to St Thomas More. At 20-2 this season, the Patriots sit atop the LHSAA Division I select power ratings heading into a key home district game against reigning state champion St. Augustine.

Martin said Manning has always had the ability to “get 15 points straight by himself.”

He now can control the game better

“Not just score the ball,” Martin said. His scoring and leadership have shown in recent games. Against Jesuit in December, Manning forced overtime with a tying 3-pointer at the buzzer and finished with 28 points.

Scoring has always come easily for Manning. What he’s added — defense, endurance and leadership has positioned him for a potential college future and perhaps a state championship to go with it.

Contact Christopher Dabe at cdabe@theadvocate.com

SAN DIEGO Justin Rose doesn’t pay attention to his age no matter how much he gets reminded. His victory Sunday in the Farmers Insurance Open was historic on a couple of fronts. At age 45, he became the oldest winner of a tournament that dates to 1952. He became the first wireto-wire winner at Torrey Pines in 71 years. He broke the 72-hole tournament record at 23-under 265, beating by one the mark held by Tiger Woods (1999) and George Burns (1987). He also moved to No. 3 in the world, making him the secondoldest player behind Vijay Singh to be ranked that high. Rose must not have received the memo. The PGA Tour is supposed to be a young man’s game

“Yeah, listen, I don’t read into it,” Rose said. “I don’t buy into the narrative of it, but I take the pride out of it, that I’m doing something that’s not easy to do. But I don’t wake up in the morning and believe that narrative, either.”

He left Torrey Pines a year ago at No. 55 in the world He ended the year at No. 10 having lost another playoff at the Masters (to Rory McIlroy), won the FedEx Cup playoff opener and qualified for his seventh Ryder Cup appearance. He was the oldest player on the team by seven years. There’s that age thing again. But it’s no less remarkable considering how the numbers are dwindling.

Rose is among just 10 players 40 or older who have full PGA Tour status That includes 50-year-old Tiger Woods, who last played in 2024 because of injuries, and 62-year-old Vijay Singh, who took a career money exemption and probably won’t play but a few times this year Harris English, the previous winner at Torrey Pines who qualified for the Ryder Cup last year, is 36 and found himself not taking anything for granted.

“I don’t know how much time I have left, maybe 10 years,” English said last week at The American Express. “It’s getting way more competitive.”

Joel Dahmen is trying to make do on conditional status this year

He’s 38.

“The tour is so deep,” he said.

“These kids are so good. I think nine or 10 guys have their cards who are over 40.” The others with full cards

40 and over are

The age really isn’t an issue. Rose works hard, keeps fit and has added speed.

It’s the motivation, the willingness to keep trying to improve when he has already accomplished so much — U.S. Open title, Olympic gold medal, reaching No. 1 in the world, and one of the few players who can claim victory on all six continents where golf is played.

“I’m still loving it,” Rose said.

“I’m still working hard. You’ve got to love it to work hard. I still believe there’s good stuff in front of me.

Woods was his motivation on Sunday Rose had a six-shot lead and focused on little goals to keep him pointed in the right direction. He wanted to expand his lead for the third straight day And he was aware the tournament record was 266, last matched by Woods in 1999. No one got closer than six shots — his lead at the start — and he won by seven. And closing with six pars gave him the tournament record.

“Those days or those weeks or those rounds are definitely showing me that the gas is still in the tank,” Rose said. “Obviously, accessing it is the job now How do I do that more often? That’s always the trick, but at least knowing it’s there builds a lot of confidence.”

His goals are clear The next chance is April at Augusta National. Rose not only joins Ben Hogan as the only players who twice lost a playoff in the Masters, he has played with the Masters champion three times on Sunday — McIlroy last year, Sergio Garcia in 2017 and Jordan Spieth in 2015. He also has six top 10s in the majors since turning 40. But his lone title was the 2013 U.S. Open at Merion.

Rose doesn’t want to end as a one-time major champion, regardless of a career that is all but certain to land him in the World Golf Hall of Fame

“I think I just need to be patient with myself when the weeks slip by that aren’t great and just know that it’s still there,” he said. “Just know I’m pretty good at gearing up for the weeks I want to play well and having that experience to do that.

“Listen, I’d love to find a way to play well every single week,” he added. “But if I can find a way to hone in on the weeks that I really want to play well, that would be enough for me to chase down some of the goals I have left in my career.”

PMAC to host debut of Breaux documentary

BY SCOTT RABALAIS Staff writer

The week-to-week competition is always the most important thing with LSU gymnastics, but this week the current Tigers will share the spotlight in the Pete Maravich Assembly Center with a tribute to the program’s past.

Notebook

On Wednesday night, the PMAC will host the premiere of the SEC Storied documentary “The Fighting Tiger,” chronicling the life and legacy of former LSU gymnastics coach D-D Breaux

The event begins at 6:30 p.m. and is free to the public. The documentary will get its first showing on the SEC Network at 9:30 p.m. Feb. 13, immediately after LSU’s home meet with Auburn on the network.

“It is very appropriate that she be celebrated in the same vein as her generation of coaches like Suzanne Yoculan, Sarah Patterson and Greg Marsden,” said current LSU gymnastics coach Jay Clark who Breaux brought in to be her lead assistant in 2012. “They all had similar battles, but D-D had a steeper hill to climb because she didn’t always have the support of the AD early on.

“It will be nice to celebrate D-D’s career and look at the foundations

of what we currently get to enjoy.”

Latest rankings

Despite improving its season average from 197.467 to 197.519, LSU slipped from No. 2 in the RoadtoNationals.com national rank-

ings to No. 3 after Florida posted a 198.050 on Friday in a win over Arkansas. That score by the Gators tied the Tigers’ best season score two weeks ago against Kentucky LSU, Florida, Oklahoma (198.425) and UCLA (198.150) were

the only schools to surpass the 198 mark in January Individually, Tigers sophomore Kailin Chio continues to lead the nation on balance beam with a 9.969 average after a 10.0 on beam against Kentucky and a 9.975 this past Friday at Missouri. Chio is also third nationally on vault (9.931) and fifth in the all-around (39.500).

Fifth-year senior Courtney Blackson is fifth nationally on uneven bars (9.919), while junior Amari Drayton is tied for seventh on beam (9.925).

Sophomore Kaliya Lincoln is tied for ninth on floor (9.919).

On Penn State

With the Southeastern Conference now having nine gymnastics programs with the addition of Oklahoma in 2025, one school always has a bye from SEC dual meet competition. This week that team is LSU, as the Tigers host No. 14 Penn State at 7:30 p.m. Friday in the Pete Maravich Assembly Center Because it is a nonconference meet, it will be seen streaming only on SECNetwork+.

“I want to bring in recognizable teams,” Clark said. “Name-brand teams Penn State is a Big Ten school and has a rich tradition in our sport We owe it to our fans to bring in good competition, schools

they’re familiar with.”

Because it’s a nonconference meet, LSU will be able to have gymnasts do exhibition routines in addition to the six in each rotation who will be eligible for team scoring and individual titles.

“It gives us a greater variety of people,” Clark said, “people we can get out there who might not otherwise have been in the lineup.”

In, not out

Clark was accompanied to Monday’s weekly gymnastics news conference by freshman Nina Ballou and junior Madison Ulrich a transfer from Denver

Since Clark became co-head coach with Breaux in 2019 and solo head coach after the 2020 season, LSU has brought transfers into the program but never lost one, a rarity in today’s transfer portal-heavy world of college athletics.

“I’m proud of that,” Clark said. “We try to approach that with guardrails in place. We don’t take just anyone.”

LSU has two other transfers who joined the roster this season: Blackson, who competed four years at Boise State, and senior Emily Innes from Washington.

“The (current gymnasts) accept people coming into the program and don’t see them as a threat,” Clark said.

Master P’s son joins UNO hoops roster midseason

BY SPENCER URQUHART

Staff writer

One of Percy “Master P” Miller’s sons, Hercy Miller, has joined the UNO men’s basketball team as a midseason addition after being deemed eligible by the NCAA.

One of the most well-known music and entertainment moguls

from New Orleans, Master P is in his first season as the UNO president of basketball operations. Hercy Miller joined the roster ahead of Saturday’s game and saw playing time in a 75-64 win over Northwestern State. Hercy Miller is in his fifth year of Division I college basketball after transferring to UNO from

Southern Utah. He’d “been dealing with the NCAA since the beginning of the school year to get his year back,” according to an Instagram post made by Master P on Sunday

The post said that Hercy Miller “lost two years of college basketball due to a season-ending hip injury He tried to play through the

pain one year at Louisville After his surgery this challenging process took a toll on him physically and mentally.” Miller played for Tennessee State as a freshman and transferred to Louisville the next year, where he played for two years before landing at Southern Utah. Listed as a 6-foot-3 guard, Hercy

SCOREBOARD

State men’s schedule Sunday’s games Tulane 78, Memphis 76 Monday’s games Lamar 73, Southeastern 54 Stephen F. Austin 67, McNeese 60 UNO 94, East Texas A&M 85 Nicholls 61, Northwestern State 58 Southern at Jackson State, n Grambling at Alcorn, n Tuesday’s games No games scheduled. Wednesday’s games UL-Monroe at Old Dominion, 2 p.m. UL-Lafayette at James Madison, 6 p.m. New Mexico State at Louisiana Tech, 6:30 p.m.

Men’s national scores

Monday’s games

EAST Boston University 72, Holy Cross 64 Howard 72, Coppin State 53 Penn State-Altoona 97, Pittsburgh-Bradford 86 Shepherd 84, Shippensburg 57

SOUTH Alabama State 79, Florida A&M 66

Claflin 79, Johnson C. Smith 72 Nicholls State 61, Northwestern State 58 North Carolina 87, Syracuse 77 North Carolina Central 65, Maryland-Eastern Shore 63 Point Park 91, Davis & Elkins 77 SOUTHWEST Lamar 73, Southeastern Louisiana 54 New Orleans 94, East Texas A&M 85 Stephen F. Austin 67, McNeese 60 FAR WEST Texas Rio Grande Valley 74, Houston Christian 57 State women’s schedule

7:30 p.m. Seattle at Anaheim, 9 p.m. Golf

0-0 1-7 2 4 12 Murphy 37:20 10-20 4-4 0-1 4 1 27 Alvardo30:01 1-7 0-0 0-0 3 3 3 Fears 15:18 3-7 2-2 1-2 0 2 9 Mtkvic 13:47 1-5 0-0 0-1 2 1 2 Missi 10:38 2-2 0-0 0-1 0 3 4 Totals24033-8418-255-34232395 Percentages: FG .393, FT .720. 3-Point Goals: 11-34, .324 (Jones 4-7, Murphy III 3-8, Fears 1-2, Queen 1-2, Alvarado 1-6, Bey 1-6, Matkovic 0-3). Team Rebounds: 12. Team Turnovers: 1. Blocked Shots: 4 (Fears, Jones, Matkovic, Queen). Turnovers: 7 (Murphy III 2, Queen 2, Fears, Missi, Williamson). Steals: 9 (Queen 3, Fears 2, Bey, Jones, Matkovic, Murphy III). Technical Fouls: None. FGFTReb CHAR Min M-A M-A O-T A PF PTS Bridgs 30:35 3-11 3-4 0-4 1 4 9 Knuppl 35:35 4-13 5-6 2-9 2 1 17 Diabte 28:17 1-2 0-0 2-9 2 1 2 Ball 29:58 8-20 5-5 0-8 5 2 24 Miller 36:42 7-21 0-0 2-8 4 3 16 Willims 19:33 5-7 4-4 3-9

FG .400, FT .815.

3-Point Goals: 12-50, .240 (Knueppel 4-12 Ball 3-14, Williams 2-4, Miller 2-12, Sexton 1-3, James 0-1, Bridges 0-4). Team Rebounds: 11. Team Turnovers: 1. Blocked Shots: 3 (Kalkbrenner 3) Turnovers: 16 (Knueppel 4, Ball 2, Bridges 2, Kalkbrenner 2, Miller 2, Green, James Sexton, Williams). Steals: 3 (Ball 2, Miller). Technical Fouls: None. New Orleans30341813—95 Charlotte23262924102 A_17,263 (19,077). T_2:18. Pro football Super Bowl LIX Sunday, Feb. 8 At Santa Clara. New England vs. Seattle, 5:30 p.m. College basketball

Sunday’s games LSU 103, Alabama 63 Monday’s games No games scheduled. Tuesday’s games No games scheduled.

Wednesday’s games Old Dominion at UL – Lafayette, 6 p.m. Georgia State at UL –

PGA Tour Statistics Through Feb. 1 FedExCup Season Points 1, Chris Gotterup, 546. 2, Ryan Gerard, 542. 3 (tie), Justin Rose and Scottie Scheffler, 500. 5, Si Woo Kim, 371. 6, Pierceson Coody, 307. 7, Matthew McCarty, 235. 8, Patrick Rodgers, 230. 9, Ryo Hisatsune, 217. 10, Jason Day, 200. Scoring Average 1, Scottie Scheffler, 68.338. 2, Chris Gotterup, 68.531. 3, Ryan Gerard, 68.742. 4, Jake Knapp, 68.781. 5, Si Woo Kim, 68.998. 6 (tie), Corey Conners and Jordan Spieth, 69.033. 8, Jacob Bridgeman, 69.047. 9, Harry Hall, 69.163. 10, Hideki Matsuyama, 69.281. Driving Distance 1, Aldrich Potgieter, 329.8. 2, Gary Woodland, 326.1. 3, Min Woo Lee, 326. 4, Chris Gotterup, 325.8. 5, Michael Brennan, 325.7. 6, Corey Conners, 324.3. 7, Scottie Scheffler, 323.9. 8, Sudarshan Yellamaraju, 323.5. 9, Isaiah Salinda, 321.8. 10, Jesper Svensson, 321.3. Driving Accuracy Percentage 1, Chan Kim, 83.33%. 2, Andrew Putnam, 79.76%. 3, Michael Block, 78.57%. 4, Joel Dahmen, 77.68%. 5, Blades Brown, 76.79%. 6, Si Woo Kim, 73.81%. 7, David Lipsky, 72.32%. 8 (tie), Harry Higgs and Adam Long, 71.43%. 10, 2 tied with 70.54%. Greens in Regulation Percentage 1, 10 tied with .00%. Total Driving 1, Aldrich Potgieter, 15. 2, Blades Brown, 21. 3, Corey Conners, 23. 4, Min Woo Lee, 25. 5, David Ford, 49. 6, Rickie Fowler, 50. 7, Adam Scott, 51. 8, Jesper Svensson, 52. 9, Matt Fitzpatrick, 56. 10, 2 tied with 63. SG-Putting 1, Davis Riley, 1.940. 2, Kris Ventura, 1.901. 3, Christiaan Bezuidenhout, 1.716. 4, Michael Kim, 1.573. 5, Jake Knapp, 1.501. 6, Karl Vilips, 1.432. 7, Sam Ryder, 1.344. 8, Matt Kuchar, 1.308. 9, Zach Johnson, 1.232. 10, Kevin Roy, 1.199. Birdie Average 1, Scottie Scheffler, 8. 2, David Lipsky, 6.13. 3, Jacob Bridgeman, 6. 4, Justin Rose, 5.86. 5, Harry Higgs, 5.67. 6, Robert MacIntyre, 5.63. 7, Davis Riley, 5.6. 8, Si Woo Kim, 5.58. 9, Stephan Jaeger, 5.57. 10, 4 tied with 5.5. Eagles (Holes per) 1, Aldrich Potgieter, 30. 2, Joel Dahmen, 36. 3, Tony Finau, 40.5. 4 (tie), Michael Brennan and Michael Kim, 42. 6, Sahith Theegala, 43.2. 7 (tie), Emiliano Grillo, Kristoffer Reitan and Adam Svensson, 54. 10, 2 tied with 60. Sand Save Percentage 1, 10 tied with .00%. All-Around Ranking 1, Si Woo Kim, 272. 2, Min Woo Lee, 274. 3, Scottie Scheffler, 286. 4, Rickie Fowler, 301. 5, Ben Griffin, 324. 6, Justin Rose, 343. 7, Ryan Gerard, 344. 8,

Miller played two minutes and had an assist on Saturday against Northwestern State. He averaged 7.2 points per game in 26 games last season at Southern Utah. UNO is 9-13 on the season and has improved to 7-6 in Southland Conference play after winning its last two games against Nicholls State and Northwestern State.

346. 9, Harry Hall, 349. 10, Chris Gotterup, 353. LPGA Tour Statistics Through Feb. 1 Scoring 1, Nelly Korda, 67.67. 2, Amy Yang, 68.67. 3, Brooke M. Henderson,

Korda, 272.17. 2, A Lim Kim, 271.5. 3, Jeeno Thitikul, 271.33. 4, Youmin Hwang, 270.67. 5, Haeran Ryu, 270.33. 6, Yuka Saso, 264.5. 7, Jennifer Kupcho, 264.33. 8, Rio Takeda, 263.83. 9, Lottie Woad, 262.17. 10, Amy Yang, 260.5. Greens in Regulation 1, Jeeno Thitikul, .85%. 2, Nelly Korda, .83%. 3, Rio Takeda, .78%. 4 (tie), Ayaka Furue, Youmin Hwang, Haeran Ryu and Amy Yang, .76%. 8, 5 tied with .74%. Putts per GIR 1, Brooke M. Henderson, 1.66. 2 (tie), Nelly Korda and Chanettee Wannasaen, 1.67. 4, Moriya Jutanugarn, 1.68. 5, Angel Yin, 1.69. 6 (tie), Youmin

NewOrleans-bornartist made modern art masterpiecesfrom humble coat hangers

BY DOUG MacCASH

Staffwriter

Hayward L. Oubre Jr.was born in NewOrleans in 1916 and became the first student to earn aBachelor of FineArts degree from Dillard University His career as apracticingartist and college professor took him away from his hometown for the rest of hislife—hediedin 2006.

But his splendid soloexhibit “Hayward Oubre: Structural Integrity” that opens Friday at theNew Orleans Museum of Art, gives us achancetoreclaim him as one of our own.It’s anot-to-miss show,particularly for fans of elegant, mid-century modernism.

Oubre was skilled in several media, from etching to oil painting to wood carving. At age 40, he had an artistic epiphany,when he twistedsome

LILyBROOKS |THE PAUL R. JONES COLLECTION OF AMERICANART AT THE UNIVERSITy OF ALABAMA

Hayward L. Oubre, Jr.SelfPortrait,1948, etching and drypoint on paper

| Tuesday, February3,2026 1dN ä See OUBRE, page 2D

coat hangers into theshape of a crowing rooster

The sculpture was simple, just athree-dimensional sketch really.Yet theflowing and wound wire captured thespirit of the proud bird perfectly.This was afolky,handmade rooster, thatwas also spare and sophisticated Oubre had found theart form that would define him. Hiscomplex coathanger sculptures of ahorse, abongo player,the face of Christ and severalabstract designs are the highlights of the NOMA show

For instance, his sculpture of abighorn ram at the rear of the exhibit is amasterpiece. Its rippling coat seems soft as wool, but is hardassteel.The artwork’stranslucence makes it seem weightless, butthe meticulously wrapped wirejoints

Readythe yard to attractbirds as migrationbegins

BY COLETTE DEAN Contributing writer

Longerdaysahead mean migrating birds will soon be making their way back fromCentral andSouth America to Louisiana fora quick stopover or to stay all summer to breed and nest.

JANE PATTERSON

“Millions of birds will migratethrough theMississippi Flyway to Louisiana as early as February through March, withpeak migrationmid to late April,” said Jane Patter-

son, president and education chairman of the Baton Rouge Audubon Society. Given Louisiana’sproximity to the flyway, chances are excellent that residentssee one or more of these colorful songbirds at theirfeeders. If planning starts now,they’ll havea perfect hostyard fortheseflying visitors Patterson saidthatbirds can be attracted to the homelandscape if fourbasicneedsare provided: food, water,shelter

and aplace to nest and raise young. In the South, permanent residents likethe Northern cardinal,mockingbird, blue jay, Carolina chickadee and wrens are alreadygettingtheir nests readythismonth.These birds are poking around in thick foliage forpossible nest sites, so if someonetypically prunetrees and shrubs in early spring, waiting afew weeks will avoid ruining apotentialnesting spot. Apile of dead leaves and

twigs might seem messy,but to birds it’sagold mine forfood, shelterand buildingmaterials, so it’simportant to leave leaves or stick piles in the yard. Charles Fryling, retired professor of landscape architecture at LSU,and co-author of “Attracting Birds to Southern Gardens,” explained that birds thrive when agardenhas layers, including groundcover, shrubs and taller trees. This

ä See BIRDS, page 2D Thistle (nyjer)

Wine makesfor aproblematic ‘default gift’

Dear Miss Manners: Ihave just receivedadelivery notice that two bottles of wine are on the way to me.This is the fourth such delivery,from afinancial professional who manages some of my accounts. I have always sent anice thank-you afterward.

The problem: Idon’t drink wine!Ijust give it to someone who does appreciate it. What bothers me is that while Iamnot an alcoholic, Ihave close friends and family who are. Ithink it is quite thoughtless for aprofessional hoping to curryfavor to send agift that could be really offensive,or even harmful, to someone. Whatifhe sent abox of cigars to someone

who wastrying toquit smoking?

My husband says, “People just give wine.Nobodythinksabout it.” Should Ijust keep saying“thankyou” and not mentioning that it ends up in other hands?

Gentle reader: Not all presents succeed, which is a goodreason not to direct them to people you know nothing about, as abusiness ploy

Kind-hearted folks keep telling Miss Manners that donating to charity in other people’s honor should,ineffect, replace the custom of giving presents. Those havinganevent —a wedding, birthday partyorsuch —that is associated with presents, butwho don’t want stuff,

often suggest making acharitable donation instead. Those who don’t know what togive makedonationsinthe names of people to whom they owe presents.

Anddonating to charity is the common solution for disposing of unwanted presents, but that is kind of problematic in this particular case. It often is, when the recipient has no interest in —or even objects to —the charity.

Andwhat ashameitwould be to destroy theancient custom of exchanging symbols of thoughtfulness.

If this werefrom friends, it would be unkind to let them know how thoughtlesstheir presentswere. Butabusinessacquaintance who is not expected to know your preferences may be thanked and then

When spraying abakingpan

Dear Heloise: Ibake alot of bread to give as gifts. Iuse nonstick cooking spray to grease my loaf pans. My husband suggested that I open the dishwasher and spray the pans over the top rack. This way, it’seasy and clean! —Marian B.,in New Orleans

Scavenging forkids

told, “Actually,wedonot drink.”

Andyour husband is correct that wine has becomemerely a default offering, especially as host presents. Never mind that this used to be considered insulting —not because of anything related to alcohol problems, but because it insinuated that the host’s wine wouldn’tbedrinkable.

Dear Miss Manners: Iretired afew years ago. Iuse words like stewardess, actress and waitress. My sister tells me that these words are no longer in use.

Arethese words obsolete? Has thewoke mob been tampering with our dictionary?

Yes, various jobs are no longer gender-specific.

Miss Manners would be sorry to think that retirement had leftyou oblivious to the dynamics of life, which, indeed, lexicographers must follow.You may not always like the way the world evolves, but to deny it is to condemn yourself to social stagnation.

Sendquestions to Miss Manners at herwebsite, www missmanners.com; to her email, dearmissmanners@gmail.com; or through postal mailtoMiss Manners, Universal Uclick, 1130 Walnut St., Kansas City,MO 64106.

Gentlereader: Surely you must have been wide-awake enough to notice that the person whodelivered your peanuts on an airplane wassometimes male, and that another malesometimes took your order at the local eatery

Dear Heloise: I printed out alist (or multiple lists) of a scavenger-type activityfor my grandkids to do. You can make your ownrules (i.e., to stay on certain property or stay in the house).

An older child can be the organizer/readerfor the younger ones. First, make alist of suitable items to be found. The kids can all look for their own collection, or they can workasagroup or in pairs. Each needs asmall box or basket (like an Easter basket) to put the items in. Things to find could be something flat, some-

BIRDS

Continued from page1D

diversity offers food, nesting sites andprotection from predators. Native plantssuch as wildflowers, berry bushes and trees attract local insects and provide seeds and fruit that birdslove. Insectsalso mean soft caterpillars —a major food source for baby birds

The Audubon Society has alist of “plants for birds” on its website. Plug in a ZIP code to learn the plants for that area. Audubon’s goal is to have its membership plant amillion native plants for birds, Patterson said. The society also has a website link called “plants for hummingbirds,” listing nectar-rich varieties. Eastern bluebirds, chickadees,wrens and prothonotary warblers are cavitynesters and will be scopingout territories and nest boxes. The end of February and early Marchwill see yellowthroated warblers and prothonotary warblers darting in and out of wooded areas and Louisiana swamps for nest-building.

If you one is inclined to put up abirdhouse, make sure it’s mounted 5to10feet off the ground, facing awayfrom direct sunlight andstrong winds. Abaffle, dome or cone-shaped barrier placed underneath abirdhouse and feeders will deter squirrels and other predators When setting up multiple bird feeders, vary their heights to create amulti-level buffet, mimicking nature. Black-oilsunflowerseeds appeal to most seed-eating species. Peanuts are good for jays (and squirrels too, so beware). Millet attracts doves, sparrows and buntings. Mealworms, fresh or dried, are treats for robins, chickadees, bluebirds and wrens. Leave dead flower heads on plants throughfalland winter so birds can pickat the seeds.

Clean feeders regularly Moldy or stale food can be harmful;thisisparticularly important for hummingbird feeders. Hang hummingbird

thing straight,something round, atoy with wheels, something to writewith, something with fakeeyes (likeastuffed animal),a prettyleaf, somethingto read, something soft, somethinghard,etc. This is a“busy activity” that my grandkidsloved,and they wanted to share whatthey’d found with me. Luckily,wehave an acre that they could run aroundon, butmost parents could accommodateitindoors, too. —Pat S.,inCollege Station,Texas

Physical newspapers

Dear Heloise: ForMarvin Tiffany of York,Nebraska, Iagree about missing the old dayswhen an actual printnewspaper arrived at the house in the morning Here in our part of Oregon, Ican get thelocal paper by mail threedays aweek, and it costs afortune. Ithink theprice of paper the cost of home delivery

and the lack of advertisers for print media is causing theproblem.Ihope Marvin can find asolution. Thanks for your column, Heloise. SaraJ., in Lebanon, Oregon Sara, there is nothing as certain as change. The news, which was printed on paper,was astaple in nearly every home in America for many years. Many of us learned to read by reading thecomics with asibling or aparent. The first page that somemen read in the morning or the evening was the sportspage. AndIthink we all liked to read the advice columns. Imiss these days, but I doubt they’ll ever come back. We receive the news much faster now,sometimes even minute by minuteasithappens. We get weather warnings faster, which has saved lives. With thedisadvantages of losing aphysical newspaper came new advantages. —Heloise Send ahinttoheloise@ heloise.com.

PROVIDED PHOTO By JANE PATTERSON

It pays tokeep an eyeonyour feeders. AHammond home waslucky enough to host abroad-billed hummingbird one winter —ararevisitor to Louisiana.

feeders near flowering plants to attract insectsthathummingbirds need for protein.

Patterson said awater feature is one of the most important items needed to attract birds, asthey need fresh water for drinking and bathing

“Chooseashallow dish witharough bottom so the birds can grip the edge. Adding afew flat stonesinside the dish is good forsmaller species to perch on,” sheadvised.

Birdsare also fond of moving water,soadding adrip or mistfeature or asmall dripping fountain is apositive enhancement.

“Place abirdbath near a shrub or tree, ideally notin the middle of the lawn; birds needa safe placetoperch while they preen afterthey bathe,” she said. Once thebirds havefound their yard, it’simportantfor theowner to protect them. Reduce pesticideuse, which is harmful for them and their food sources.

n Keep yourcat inside. Outdoor catsare one of the biggest threats to outdoor birds, especially during nesting season when young birds arevulnerable.Inthe

U.S.,it’sestimated that cats kill 2.4 billion birds ayear,so the best solutionistokeep kitty indoors.

n Reduceoutdoor lights. Spring brings nighttime visitors like owls, so reducear-

tificial lighting at night so as not to disrupt their behavior andencouragethemtovisit theyard.

n Make windows birdsafe. Each year,millionsof birds die from windowcollisions. To prevent crashes, add window decals or patterned film, closeblinds or curtains during peak daylight hours, and move feeders closer to windows so birdsdon’t buildupspeed before impact

Once the yard is prepared, sit back and enjoy the music of birds chirping in the garden. Allthat is needed is a pair of binoculars and abird guide to keep track of all the visitors.

Patterson suggests using the Merlin Bird ID App to help identify bird calls.The app is afree tool from the Cornell LabofOrnithology designedtoidentify birds via photos, sound recordings or descriptions, covering thousands of species worldwide.

Planning now will make for an enjoyable spring of backyard birdwatching.

This articlewas supplied by the Louisiana Master NaturalistsofGreater Baton Rouge,which seeks to advance awareness, understanding and stewardship of the natural environment.For more information, emailinfo@ lmngbr.org.

OUBRE

Continuedfrom page1D

imply utter sturdiness.

The structural soundness of his workmay be traceable to Oubre’sservice as aU.S. Armyconstruction draftsman during World WarII.

KateCrawford, acurator at the Birmingham Museum of Art, where the exhibit originated, said that Oubre asked his studentsto save coat hangerstoprovide him withraw material for his art. He wasn’tknown to make preliminary drawings for his wire sculpture. Amazingly,hejustset outbending andjoining the wire “with pliers andexceptional hand strength,” she said. So, in addition to all else, hiscoat hangersculptures resonate with spontaneity and experimentation. Eventually,the nature of thewireworkmanship becameparamount, and Oubre left subject matter behind to create sculptures that are purely abstract. His works such as “Radar Tower,” “Space Rhythms” and “Convolutions,” are marvels of visual movement.

ByThe Associated Press

Today is Tuesday,Feb. 3, the34th day of 2026. There are 331 days left in the year

Todayinhistory: On Feb.3,1959, which would become known as “the day themusic died,” rock ’n’ roll stars Buddy Holly,Ritchie Valens and J.P.“The Big Bopper” Richardson died in asmall plane crash near Clear Lake, Iowa.

Also on this date:

In 1870, the15th Amendmenttothe U.S. Constitution,granting Black American men theright to vote, was ratified.

In 1913, the16th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, providing for afederal income tax, was ratified.

In 1917, theUnited States broke off diplomatic relationswith Germany,the sameday an American cargo ship, theSSHousatonic, was sunk by aU-boat

Abstractions suchas‘SpaceRhythms’ set the

It’stoo bad that Oubre’s one-man museumshow didn’ttake place decades ago. He might have been better known.Ofcourse, Black artists didn’tget the sameopportunities of their White contemporaries. According to Crawford, the professor said he “fought racism with his art.”He also resisted by inspiringgenerationsofBlack students at Alabama State University in Montgomery andWinston-SalemState University in North Carolina to become theartists of the future.

TODAYINHISTORY

off Britain (after the crew was allowed to board lifeboats).

In 1943, during World WarII, the U.S. transport ship SS Dorchester,which was carrying troops to Greenland, sank after being hit by aGerman torpedo in the Labrador Sea; only some230 of the 900 aboard survived.

In 1966, the Soviet probe Luna 9became the first man-made object to make asoft landing on the moon

In 2007, atruck bomb exploded in abusy street market in Baghdad, killing morethan 100 people in one of the deadliest single attacks in the Iraqi capital.

In 2015, aMetro-North Railroad commuter train slammed into an SUV stuck on the tracks at a suburban rail crossing 20 miles north of NewYork City,killing five train passengers and the SUV driver and injuring about 30 others.

The “HaywardOubre: Structural Integrity” exhibit continues through May3onthe first floor of the New Orleans Museum of Art, at One Collins Diboll Circle, City Park. Hoursare from 10 a.m.to 5p.m. on Sunday,Tuesday, Thursday,Friday and Saturday; noon to 7p.m. on Wednesday; closed Monday.Adult admission is $23 or $18 for Louisiana residents.

Email Doug MacCashat dmaccash@theadvocate. com.

In 2023, morethan three dozen freight cars of a train carrying hazardous

AQuARIus (Jan. 20-Feb. 19) Be a leader, not a follower. Gravitate toward security and maintaining what you already have. Put your energy into detail, precision and perfection as you move forward.

PIscEs (Feb. 20-March 20) Sit tight and let whatever is happening around you unfold naturally. Focus inward and pay attention to relationships and how you can connect in ways that will help you get along better.

ARIEs (March 21-April 19) Think before you act, especially when money or your career is at stake. Put more energy into helping others and finding ways to make your life more efficient.

tAuRus (April 20-May 20) Play by the rules and pay attention to detail, and you'll make headway. Be wary of anyone using manipulative tactics to push you in a questionable direction.

GEMInI (May 21-June 20) Put your best foot forward and rise to whatever task requires your undivided attention. Be bold, do your best and refuse to let anyone's negativity or ego stifle your glory.

cAncER (June 21-July 22) Be open to suggestions and willing to try new things. What you learn will open doors to all sorts of new and exciting pastimes and people. Make your space user-friendly.

LEo (July 23-Aug. 22) Refuse to let anyone put demands on you. Question, communicate and change what isn't working for you. Do your best and expect the

same from your colleagues. Pay attention to high-pressure situation.

VIRGo (Aug. 23-sept. 22) Keep your emotions in check and your eye on what you want to achieve. Be the go-getter, the one to ask questions and put everything in its place. The bolder you are, the more respect and help you will receive.

LIBRA (sept. 23-oct. 23) Refuse to let excessive behavior and procrastination win when you have so much to gain by pitching in and making a difference. Socializing and networking can lead to promising opportunities.

scoRPIo (oct. 24-nov. 22) Learn through observation, and don't be afraid to ask questions or walk away. A change of heart will encourage you to find a path that better suits your preferences and your budget.

sAGIttARIus (nov. 23-Dec. 21) Put your energy into moneymaking opportunities and investing in yourself and your future. Mix and mingle with people just as vibrant and eager as you.

cAPRIcoRn (Dec. 22-Jan. 19) Sort through investments, financial and legal documents, and any medical issues that need attention. A couple of healthy lifestyle changes can make a difference to your mobility, clarity or longevity.

The horoscope, an entertainment feature, is not based on scientific 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 1to9inthe 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

By PHILLIP ALDER Bridge

The International Bridge Press Association jury does a tough job in choosing the annual award winners in four categories: bidding, declarer play, defense and juniors. This deal, which would have been my junior winner, could have also been in the declarer-play list. South was Adam Kaplan of New Port Richie, Fla. In the auction, one club showed 16-plus points; four clubs was a control-bid (cuebid); four spades was Roman Key-Card Blackwood; five clubs indicated one keycard (an ace or the heart king); five clubs asked for the heart queen; and six hearts showed that card and denied a side-suit king. After winning with dummy’s spade ace, declarer cashed the heart ace. When East dropped the 10, South deduced that hearts were 3-1. He cashed dummy’s club king, played a club to his ace, and led his last spade. If West had found the best defense, discarding a diamond, declarer would have won with dummy’s spade king and ledanotherspade,discardinghisremaining diamond — the key play. Probably East would have led a spade, but Kaplan would have ruffed high, played a diamond to dummy’s ace, ruffed dummy’s diamond seven, and crossruffed the rest of the tricks.

Instead, West trumped the second spade and returned his third heart. Kaplan claimed, saying that he would discard his last diamond on dummy’s spade king and ruff his two low clubs on the board. Brilliant, especially for someone who was only 16 years old. © 2026 by nEa, inc., dist. By andrews mcmeel syndication

Each Wuzzle is a word riddle which creates a disguised word, phrase, name, place, saying, etc. For example: nOOn gOOD = gOOD aFTErnOOn Previous

InstRuctIons:

toDAy’s WoRD — MInoRIty: muh-NAR-ih-tee: A percentage equaling less than half of a total.

Average mark 17 words

Time limit 30 minutes

Can you find 23 or more words in MINORITY?

yEstERDAy’s WoRD — oFFsHoRE

dIrectIons: make a 2- to 7-letter word from the letters in each row. add points of each word, using scoring directions at right. Finally, 7-letter words get 50-point bonus. “Blanks” used as any letter have no point value. all the words are in the Official sCraBBlE® players Dictionary, 5th Edition.

Yesterday’s Puzzle Answer ken ken

InstructIons: 1 Each row and each column must contain the numbers 1 thorugh 4 (easy) or 1 through 6 (challenging) without repeating. 2 The numbers within the heavily outlined boxes, called cages, must combine using the given operation (in any order) to produce the target numbers in the top-left corners. 3 Freebies: Fill in the single-box cages with the number in the top-left corner. HErE is a

WiShinG Well

PUBLIC NOTICE (NOTICEOFINTENTION TO INTRODUCELOCAL BILL –HLS 26RS-46) Public notice is hereby given, as provided by Section13, ArticleIII of theConstitutionof Louisiana, that therewill be introduced at the forthcomingsession of theLegislature of Louisiana, to be con‐venedonMarch 9, 2026, a bill relative to Orleans Parish;tocreateand pro‐vide forthe Real Timbers CrimePreventionand Im‐provement District;to providerelativetothe boundaries, purpose, governance,and powers anddutiesofthe district; to providefor district funding, includingthe imposition of aparcel fee; to authorizethe gov‐erning authorityofthe city of NewOrleans to impose amaximum fee of $315 perparcelper year,subject to voterap‐proval;toauthorize the district's governing boardtoincreasethe fee, withoutelection, not

Morial

Exhi‐bition Hall Authoritywas held on Wednesday, De‐cember 10, 2025. PresidentRussAllen called themeetingto orderat2:32p.m.and askedfor arollcall. The resultswereasfollows: RussellAllen Present Geri BroussardAbsent JamesCapella Present StephenCaputoPresent EdgarChase,IVPresent ElizabethEllison-Frost Present RalphMahanaPresent OctavioMantillaPresent Jack RizzutoPresent Desi Vega Present CamilleWhitworth Pre‐sent Eric Wright Present Thetotal numberpresent at roll call waseleven (11) PresidentAllen askedfor

PresidentAllenre‐questeda motion to ap‐provethe NOEHABoard MeetingMinutes of No‐vember 19, 2025. Com‐missionerMantilla movedapproval; Com‐missionerRizzuto sec‐onded. Motion approved AlitaCaparotta pre‐sented the2026Budget. CommissionerCaputo movedapproval; Com‐missionerMantillasec‐onded. Motion approved AlitaCaparotta pre‐sented theInsurance Re‐newals –1.Directors & Officers, EPLI, andCrime; 2. CyberLiability;3 WorkersCompensation; 4. Flood –MCCNO; 5. DroneAircraft. Commis‐sioner Rizzutomoved ap‐proval;Commissioner Mahana seconded.Mo‐tion approved AlitaCaparotta pre‐sented thefollowing con‐tracts –1.Lot F– ADAAc‐cessibilityImprovements –OtwellServicesLLC.; 2. Vertical Transportation Commissioning Agent Services Stage2 – VDA, Inc.;3.Third PartyCom‐missioning AgentSer‐vicesfor MEPStage 2 –Thompson Building En‐ergy Solutions, LLC. Com‐missionerRizzuto moved approval;Commissioner Mahana seconded.Mo‐tion approved AlitaCaparotta pre‐sented theOctober 2025 FinancialReport. Com‐missionerMantilla movedapproval;Com‐missionerMahanasec‐onded. Motion approved JimCook gave theCon‐ventionCenterChief Ex‐ecutiveOfficer’sReport. JimCook presentedthe MCCNOCompany Goals &CEO Goals. Commis‐sioner Rizzutomoved ap‐proval;Commissioner Vega seconded.Motion approved In OtherBusiness, Presi‐dent Allenrecognized Adam Straight forhis serviceatMCCNO. PresidentAllen askedfor amotiontoadjourn CommissionerCaputo movedadjournment; CommissionerWhit‐worthseconded. Motion approved andthe meet‐ingadjourned at 3:21 p.m. ATTEST: JACK RIZZUTO, SECRE‐TARY 176044-FEB

PUBLIC NOTICE

Services for IT Projects –TEKsystems Global Services,LLC.Di‐rector Mahana moved approval;DirectorRiz‐zuto seconded.Motion approved AlitaCaparotta pre‐sented theOctober 2025 FinancialReport. Director Rizzutomoved approval; Director Whitworthsec‐

STATEOFLOUISIANA 24THJUDICIALDISTRICT COURTFOR THEPARISH OF JEFFERSON No.: 849-878 DIVISION “D SUCCESSIONSOFMYRTLE FOLSECORTEZ, wife of/and MURPHYL CORTEZ,a/k/a MURPHY L. CORTEZ,Sr. NOTICE IS GIVENthatthe ProvisionalAdministra‐trix of thesesuccessions hasPetitionedthisCourt forauthority to sell im‐movablepropertybe‐longingtothe decedents at privatesaleinaccor‐dancewiththe provi‐sionsofArticle 3281of theLouisiana Code of CivilProcedure forTwo HundredThirty-Four Thousand Nine Hundred and00/100($234,900.00) DOLLARS,cash, in accor‐dancewiththe termsin thePetitionfor Private Sale of ImmovableProp‐erty.The immovable property proposed to be sold at privatesaleisde‐scribedasfollows: Myrtle FolseCortez' un‐dividedone-halfinterest in thefollowing de‐scribedproperty: THAT CERTAINPIECE OR

PORTIONOFGROUNDto‐gether with allthe build‐ings andimprovements thereon, andall of the rights,ways, privileges servitudes andadvan‐tagesthereuntobelong‐ingorinanywise apper‐taining, situated in the Parish of Jefferson, State of Louisiana, in that sub‐division thereofknown as OAKFORESTSUBDIVI‐SION,inaccordancewith aplanofsubdivision by J.J. Krebs& Sons,Inc.C.E &S datedMarch 16, 1978, approved by the JeffersonParishCouncil on July 17, 1978, under OrdinanceNo. 13442, reg‐isteredinCOB 933, folio 351, andaccording to said plan,saidlot is des‐ignatedasLOT 3, SQUARE 1, andLot 3mea‐suresSixty-five and no/100 (65.00’)feet front on RedOak Drive, same widthinthe rear,by depths of onehundred andno/100 (100.00’)feet between equaland paral‐lellines.All as more fully between equaland paral‐lellines.All as more fully shownonsurveyof DufreneSurveying &En‐gineering, Inc.,dated March17, 1994, revised to show improvements April4,1994, attached hereto Theimprovements thereonbearthe munici‐palno. 4732 RedOak Dr Marrero, Louisiana701. Beingthe same property acquired by Myrtle Folse Cortez,wifeof/andMur‐phyCortezfromAnthony R. Collura, Inc. by actbe‐fore RobertaM.Gattuso Notary Public,dated May 20, 1994, registered at COB2894, folio 750, Ent. no.94-29928, Parish of Jefferson, Stateof Louisiana. Murphy L. Cortez,a/k/a Murphy L. Cortez,Sr.'s di id d h lf i p y undivided one-half inter‐estinthe followingde‐scribedproperty: THAT CERTAINPIECE OR PORTIONOFGROUNDto‐gether with allthe build‐ings andimprovements thereon, andall of the rights,ways, privileges servitudes andadvan‐tagesthereunto belong‐ingorinanywise apper‐taining, situated in the Parish of Jefferson, State of Louisiana, in that sub‐division thereofknown as OAKFORESTSUBDIVI‐

REQUEST FOR QUALIFICATIONS

Our Lady of theAngels Hospital, Inc. in Bogalusa,

MEETINGMINUTES OF THEBOARD OF DIREC‐TORS ERNEST N. MORIAL NEW ORLEANSPUBLIC FACIL‐ITYMANAGEMENT, INC. AMeetingofErnestN Morial NewOrleans Pub‐licFacilityManagement, Inc. washeldonWednes‐day, December 10, 2025 Chairman Russ Allen called themeetingto orderat2:04p.m.and askedfor arollcall. The resultswereasfollows: RussellAllenPresent Geri Broussard Absent JamesCapella Present StephenCaputoPresent EdgarChase,IVPresent ElizabethEllison-Frost Present RalphMahanaPresent OctavioMantillaPresent Jack RizzutoPresent Desi Vega Present CamilleWhitworth Pre‐sent Eric Wright Present Thetotal numberpresent at roll call waseleven (11) Chairman Allenasked for public commentsof agenda items. There were none Chairman Allenre‐questeda motion to ap‐provethe NOPFMI Board MeetingMinutes of No‐vember 19,2025.Director Whitworthmoved ap‐proval;DirectorChase seconded.Motionap‐

to sell thefollowing de‐scribedProperty, to wit: ACERTAIN LOTOF GROUND together with allthe buildingsand im‐provements thereon, and allthe rights,ways, privi‐leges, servitudes,appur‐tenances andadvan‐tagesthereuntobelong‐ingorinanywise apper‐taining, situated in the ThirdDistrictofthe City of NewOrleans,in Square No.1479, bounded by Louisa,Piety Lawand FloridaAvenue (orFlorida Walk), desig‐natedasLot No.Twelve (12) andmeasuring 29 feet,5 inches and0 fines frontonLouisaStreet thesamewidth in the rear,bya depth of 118 feet,6 inches between equaland parallel lines, allinaccordancewith survey by Gilbert& Kelly Surveyors, datedJanuary 16,1922,a copy of which is annexedtoanact passedbefore John C. Foster,NotaryPublic, datedSeptember 13 1944

Theimprovements thereonbearthe munici‐palnumber2621-21 ½ Louisa Street,New Or‐leans, LA Paulette Learson,the duly appointedExecutrix of theSuccession, has received an offertopur‐chasethe Property at privatesaleonthe terms of SixtyThousandand 00/100($60,000.00) Dol‐lars,all cash NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that an ordergranting such authoritymay be is‐sued afterthe expiration of seven(7) days from thedateof finalpublica‐tion andthatanopposi‐tion maybe filedatany time priortothe is‐suance of such order. Attorney:Timothy F. Hand 901DerbignyStreet Gretna,LA70053 (504) 368-1118 175992-FEB3-24-2T $90.46

MEDICAL OFFICE BUILDING Bogalusa,Louisiana RFQ FMOLH 01-26

Request for Qualifications package may be obtained from the Central Bidding website at this link: https://www.centralauctionhouse.com/Category/10930/FMOLHealthOurLadyoftheAngels or from theSolicitationCoordinator (todd.mann@westwoodps.com).

Attendance at aMandatory Pre-Proposal Conference is requiredinorder to submitan SOQ. Conference to be conducted at 10:00 am local timeThursday, February 19, 2026 at the site:409 Plaza St., Bogalusa, LA 70427. All questions regarding thissolicitation shallbesubmitted to the Solicitation Coordinator (todd. mann@westwoodps.com)by2:00PMlocal time Monday,February 23, 2026. Responses