The Times-Picayune 02-24-2026

Majorwater line break knocks outservice

3AIdata centers coming to state

BY LIZ SWAINE Staff writer

Gov. Jeff Landry announced what he called “the largest investment in the history of northwest Louisiana” on Monday,two Amazon WebServices AI data centers to be built in Shreveport andBossierParish. Economic development officials say the third, in rural Caddo Parish near Blanchard, is “coming.”

The governor was joined by Amazon and STACK Infrastructure at the Shreveport Municipal Auditoriumtounveilthe $12billion development plans Constructiononthe centers is beginning “imminently,” said Roger Wehner,Amazon’svice president of economic development.

BY BEN MYERS and MARIE FAZIO Staff writers

An extensive break in an underground pipe early Monday along South Claiborne Avenue flooded streets,knocked out water service and forced schools and businessesto close as officialsadvised thousands of residents from the French Quarter to Mid-City to boil their water

It wasn’tclear as of Monday afternoon what caused the 88-year-old watermain near theintersection of Claiborne Avenue and Amelia Street to burst andbreak apart the roadway,surging water for several blocks along the busy commercial thoroughfare. It was thesecondmajor water main break to cause street flooding and aboil-water advisory in less than amonth

Crews managed to stop the flow of

“When you just look at the seriousness of it, the size of it, the scaleofitand just the cumulative nature of it,it’sreallyremarkable,” said Louisiana EconomicDevelopment SecretarySusan Bourgeois. “You layer that on to other things that we’ve been talking about. Iwould argue that north Louisiana hasn’tseen this kind of momentum.” Monday’sannouncement was the latest sign of how Louisiana is capitalizing on the rapid emergence of artificial intelligence data centers and

ä See CENTERS, page 5A

EPArollbackofclimate rule couldraise risksinLouisiana

BY ALEX LUBBEN Staff writer

The Trump administration has rolled back ascientific finding that serves as the backbone for federal climate change policy,a move that could leave Louisiana’sindustrial

players in astate of regulatory uncertainty whileexposing the state to more extreme weather,rising seas andhotter temperatures.

The Environmental Protection Agency on Feb. 12 rolled back the “endangerment finding,” which allowed planet-heating greenhouse

gaseslike carbon dioxide to be regulated like other pollutants under theClean Air Act. That finding has served as thefoundation of federal regulations aimed at limitingthe long-term impacts of climate change. In practical terms,standards for

tailpipe emissions andother climaterules aimed at powerplants andmajor industrialsources could be stalled, rewritten or struck down in court. That could leave companies andregulatorsoperating in agray areafor months or years as lawsuits play out.

“This radical rule becamethe legalfoundation forthe Green New Scam,one of the greatest scams in history,” saidPresident Donald Trump at anews conferenceannouncing the move.

BRIEFS FROM WIRE REPORTS

U.S. strikes alleged drug boat, killing 3

WASHINGTON The U.S. military said it killed three people Monday in a strike on an alleged drug-smuggling vessel in the Caribbean Sea as part of the Trump administration’s monthslong campaign against alleged traffickers

Monday’s attack brought the death toll to at least 151 people since the Trump administration began targeting those it calls “narcoterrorists” in small vessels in early September

As with most of the military’s statements on the more than 40 known strikes, U.S Southern Command said it targeted alleged drug traffickers along known smuggling routes. The military did not provide evidence that the vessel was ferrying drugs but posted a video on X that showed a small boat with outboard engines being destroyed.

“Intelligence confirmed the vessel was transiting along known narco-trafficking routes in the Caribbean and was engaged in narco-trafficking operations,” Southern Command stated in a post on X. “Three male narco-terrorists were killed during this action.”

President Donald Trump has said the U.S. is in “armed conflict” with cartels in Latin America and has justified the attacks as a necessary escalation to stem the flow of drugs into the United States But his administration has offered little evidence to support its claims of killing “narcoterrorists.”

Students in Iran protest against government

CAIRO Students held anti-government protests at universities across Iran’s capital on Monday, according to witnesses and videos circulating online, in a new sign of unrest as U.S. forces gather in the region for possible strikes. The protests, in which many students expressed support for the exiled crown prince of Iran’s long-deposed monarchy began over the weekend. Demonstrations erupted on at least three university campuses on Monday, in one instance leading to scuffles with the paramilitary Basij.

Iran launched a fierce crackdown in January on mass protests, killing thousands of people and detaining tens of thousands.

President Donald Trump threatened military action in response before shifting his focus to Iran’s disputed nuclear program and warning it to make a deal. American and Iranian negotiators are set to hold another round of indirect talks in Geneva this week, where Iran is expected to make a detailed proposal on reining in its nuclear program. The USS Gerald R. Ford, the world’s largest aircraft carrier is meanwhile heading toward the Middle East to join another carrier

Israeli settlers torch, vandalize mosque

TELL, West Bank Israeli settlers vandalized a mosque in the Israeli-occupied West Bank early Monday, spray-painting offensive phrases and setting a fire, according to the Palestinian Authority’s Ministry of Religious Affairs.

Worshippers arriving for the day’s first prayers found the damage and a smoldering fire that spewed black smoke across the entrance of the Abu Bakr Al-Siddiq Mosque in the town of Tell, near Nablus, and stained the ornate doorway

“I was shocked when I opened the door,” said Munir Ramdan, who lives nearby. “The fire had been burning here in the area, the glass was broken here and the door was broken.”

Security camera footage showed two people walking toward the mosque carrying gasoline and a can of spray paint, and running away a few minutes later Ramdan said.

The attackers spray-painted graffiti denigrating the Prophet Muhammad, as well as the words “revenge” and “price tag.” In “price tag” attacks, hard-line Israeli nationalists attack Palestinians and vandalize their property in response to Palestinian militant attacks or perceived efforts by Israeli authorities to limit settlement activity

Huge snowstorm slams Northeast

Weather forces millions to stay home, disrupts flights

BY ANTHONY IZAGUIRRE, CLAIRE RUSH, JULIE WALKER and ADAM GELLER

Associated Press

NEW YORK A massive snowstorm pummeled the northeastern United States from Maryland to Maine on Monday forcing millions of people to stay home amid strong wind and blizzard warnings, transportation shutdowns, and school and business closures.

Meteorologists said the storm is the strongest in a decade, dumping more than 2 feet of snow in parts of the metropolitan Northeast, shattering accumulation records in places, immobilizing transit and even leading the United Nations to postpone a Security Council meeting Officials declared emergencies, schools closed, including in New York City, which had its first “old-school” snow day in six years, and people grappled with power failures.

Even as the snow moved northward and tapered off in other areas, the National Weather Service said it is tracking another storm that could bring more snow to the region later this week.

The weather service referred to Monday’s storm as a “classic bomb cyclone/nor’easter off the Northeast coast.” A bomb cyclone happens when a storm’s pressure falls by

a certain amount within a 24-hour period, occurring mainly in the fall and winter when frigid Arctic air can reach the south and clash with warmer temperatures. While it was paralyzing and potentially dangerous for millions along the Eastern Seaboard, meteorologists found themselves rhapsodizing over the combination of power and beauty

The storm hit the “Goldilocks situation” of just the right temperature for wet, heavy snow: Any warmer and its precipitation wouldn’t have fallen as snow, any colder and there wouldn’t have been as much moisture in the air to feed that snowfall, said Owen Shieh, warning coordination meteorologist at the National Weather Service’s Weather Prediction Center

in Maryland. In Lower Manhattan, snow shovelers appeared to outnumber commuting office workers, and pedestrians walked freely in streets normally blocked by morning traffic.

“It’s very quiet, except for the howling winds,” said Luis Valez, a concierge at a residential tower just off Wall Street, as he cleared the sidewalk. “A couple of residents have gone out to get their essentials. Other than that, there’s nothing.” Schools were closed, and he said he hoped people would get out and enjoy the snow

“We have sleds at the ready,” he said. Karen Smith and Adele Bawden are tourists visiting New York from the United Kingdom.

“We’ve been dancing in

Times Square this morning in the middle of the road in rush hour,” Bawden said.

“We’ve just been dancing and not believing we could do it.”

Ingrid Devita said she liked to patrol the Lower East Side on skis, checking on people who might need help.

“I find people fall in the snow and they can’t get up,” she said.

Central Park in New York City recorded 19 inches of snow Warwick, Rhode Island, exceeded 3 feet, topping the nation so far The highest wind gust of 83 mph was recorded in Nantucket, with hurricaneforce gusts seen all over Cape Cod.

In Connecticut, crews at the Mystic Seaport Museum prepared to clear snow from a fleet of historic ships, including the 113-foot-long Charles W. Morgan, a wooden whaling ship from the 19th-century American merchant fleet. Shannon McKenzie, vice president of watercraft operations and preservation, said shipyard staff will clear the snow by hand using rubber or plastic shovels because machinery or metal shovels could damage the boats. New York, Philadelphia and other cities, as well as several states, declared emergencies.

More than 5,600 flights in and out of the United States were canceled Monday, and a further 2,000 flights scheduled for Tuesday were grounded, according to the flight tracking website FlightAware. Most of the cancelations involved airports in New York, New Jersey and Boston. Almost 2,500 flights were delayed. Rhode Island’s T.F. Green International Airport announced Monday that it was temporarily ending all airport operations. The Weather Service reported that the facility got 32.8 inches of snow, breaking a record set in 1978. Public transit ground to a halt in some areas, while DoorDash suspended deliveries in New York City overnight into Monday Meteorologists said strong winds and heavy, wet snow are a recipe for damaged trees and prolonged power outages. More than 450,000 utility customers nationwide remained in darkness Monday evening, according to PowerOutage.us, which tracks outages nationwide.

Rob Reiner’s son pleads not guilty in murder

Man accused in parents’ killing

BY ANDREW DALTON Associated Press

LOS ANGELES Nick Reiner, the 32-year-old son of Hollywood luminary Rob Reiner and Michele Singer Reiner, pleaded not guilty Monday to two counts of first-degree murder more than two months after their deaths, denying for the first time that he fatally stabbed his parents. Nick Reiner’s attorney Deputy Public Defender Kimberly Greene, entered the plea on his behalf as he stood behind glass in an enclosed custody area of the packed Los Angeles courtroom. The third of Rob Reiner’s

four children, Nick Reiner has been held without bail since his arrest hours after beloved actor-director Reiner and photographer and producer Singer were found dead on Dec. 14 at their home in the upscale Brentwood section of Los Angeles. Reiner appeared in court with a shaved head and light facial hair, wearing brown jail clothes. He talked to his lawyer briefly through the glass before the judge began the hearing. At one point a low door in the enclosure was opened and they crouched down and spoke face-to-face. During the hearing, he spoke only to answer yes when the judge asked if he waived

his right for next steps of the case to proceed speedily

Reiner was not wearing the suicide prevention smock he wore in his first court appearance in December days after his parent’s killings. It was the third time he had been set to enter a plea, but issues surrounding the high-stakes, closely watched case, including a surprising change in defense lawyers, kept it from happening until Monday

The judge told Reiner to return to court April 29 for the scheduling of a preliminary hearing where prosecutors will present evidence and a new judge will decide if it’s enough

Former ambassador arrested in U.K. probe into Epstein ties

BY PAN PYLAS and JILL LAWLESS Associated Press

LONDON British police on Monday arrested Peter Mandelson, a former U.K. ambassador to the United States, in a misconduct probe stemming from his ties to the late Jeffrey Epstein. It came days after a friendship with Epstein landed the former Prince Andrew in police custody Both men are suspected of improperly passing U.K. government information to the disgraced U.S. financier, and the high-profile British arrests are some of the most dramatic fallout from the trove of more than 3 million pages of Epstein-related documents released last month by the U.S. Justice Department.

Police force said “officers have arrested a 72-year-old man on suspicion of misconduct in public office” at an address in north London. He was taken to a police station for questioning. The man was not named, in keeping with British police practice, but the suspect in the case previously was identified as the former diplomat, who is 72. Mandelson was filmed being led from his London home to a car by plainclothes officers on Monday afternoon. Under U.K. law, police can hold a suspect without charge for up to 24 hours. This can be extended to a maximum of 96 hours. Mandelson could be charged, released unconditionally or released while investigations continue.

Mandelson over claims he passed sensitive government information to Epstein a decade and a half ago. He does not face allegations of sexual misconduct

His arrest came four days after Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, the former Prince Andrew, was arrested in a separate case on suspicion of a similar offense related to his friendship with Epstein. Andrew was released after 11 hours in custody while the police investigation continues.

Mandelson served in government roles under previous Labour governments and was U.K. ambassador to Washington until Prime Minister Keir Starmer fired him in September after emails were published showing that he maintained a friendship with Epstein after the financier’s 2008 conviction for sex offenses involving a minor

for Reiner to go to trial.

The case will now be handled by longtime Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Sam Ohta. He has had many prominent murder, manslaughter and public corruption cases in his courtroom in recent years, but none have drawn the national media attention this case has.

District Attorney Nathan Hochman said outside court

that his office still hasn’t decided whether it will seek the death penalty for Reiner Hochman said the death penalty decision “goes through a very rigorous process. We will be looking at all aggravating and mitigating circumstances.”

Reiner’s not guilty plea is common for criminal defendants at this stage of the case, whatever their longerterm plan might be.

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Police are investigating

Judge blocks release of special counsel report

Jack Smith investigated Trump’s classified documents case

BY ALANNA DURKIN RICHER and ERIC TUCKER Associated Press

WASHINGTON A federal judge on Monday permanently barred the release of a report by special counsel Jack Smith on his investigation into President Donald Trump’s hoarding of classified documents, a prosecution that was once seen as the most perilous of the four criminal cases the Republican faced.

U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon, who was nominated to the bench by Trump, granted a request from the president to keep under wraps the report on an investigation alleging that Trump stored sensitive documents at his Mar-a-Lago estate after he left the White House following his first term and that he obstructed government efforts to get them back Smith and his team produced a two-volume report on the classified documents investigation and a separate probe into Trump’s efforts to overturn the 2020 presidential election after he lost to Democrat Joe Biden. Both investigations produced indictments that were abandoned by Smith’s team after Trump’s November 2024

election win in light of longstanding Justice Department legal opinions that say sitting presidents cannot face federal prosecution.

said the release of the report would present a “manifest injustice” to the president and his two co-defendants.

Governor asks Education Department for investigation

BY HALEY MILLER Staff writer

Gov Jeff Landry has asked the U.S Department of Education to expand its investigation of diversity, equity and inclusion practices at the state’s higher education board to include all public colleges and universities in Louisiana, a news release Monday said.

from public postsecondary schools.

Federal officials said the practice appeared to violate Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which bans discrimination based on race, color or national origin in education programs and activities that receive federal funds.

“Title VI guarantees all students equal access to educational programs and opportunities regardless of race and OCR is committed to preserving these rights,” Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights Kimberly Richey said in the announcement.

Attorney General Pam Bondi had already determined that the report was “an internal deliberative communication that is privileged and confidential and should not be released” outside the Justice Department, according to court papers The Trump administration has characterized Smith’s investigation as politically motivated and said in recent court papers that the report belongs in the “dustbin of history.” Cannon’s order blocking the release also applies to Bondi’s successors at the Justice Department. Cannon, who in 2024 dismissed the case after concluding that Smith was unlawfully appointed after multiple other favorable rulings for Trump,

“Special Counsel Smith, acting without lawful authority obtained an indictment in this action and initiated proceedings that resulted in a final order of dismissal of all charges,” she wrote “As a result, the former defendants in this case, like any other defendant in this situation, still enjoy the presumption of innocence held sacrosanct in our constitutional order.”

A First Amendment group and a watchdog organization have been pressing for the report’s release.

Chioma Chukwu, executive director of American Oversight, said it “will continue using every tool available to force this information into the open and to defend the public’s right to the truth through the release of this report.”

“Let me be clear: Louisiana is done with woke DEI policies,” Landry said in the release. “Discrimination against ANY student will not be tolerated.”

In a letter dated Monday to the Office for Civil Rights within the Department of Education, Landry said, “it is vital to discover if any institution in this state is engaged in practices contrary to federal law and policies.”

The federal investigation, launched earlier this month, focused on performance targets laid out in the Board of Regents’ executive budget reports. The targets called for public universities to increase the number of underrepresented minorities — defined as races other than White or Asian — graduating

“OCR will fully enforce Title VI to ensure our education programs are defined by equality, not exclusion.”

The Department of Education did not immediately respond to a request for comment about whether the office will expand the investigation.

Diversity equity and inclusion policies in higher education have regularly surfaced as a contentious issue in Louisiana politics, particularly under the second Trump administration.

A bill advanced through the House in 2025 that would have banned those programs in state agencies and prohibited universities from mandating instructional content related to “critical race theory, white fragility, white guilt, systemic racism, institutional racism, anti-racism, sys-

temic bias, implicit bias, intersectionality, gender identity allyship, racebased reparations, or racebased privilege.”

Members of the Louisiana Legislative Black Caucus decried the legislation, with Rep Candace Newell, D-New Orleans, calling it “the most racially offensive piece of legislation that I think I’ve had to debate since I came into office.” The bill ultimately died in the Senate. Louisiana’s higher education institutions have also taken steps to remove or rename initiatives with ties to diversity, equity and inclusion in recent years. In 2024, LSU struck some references to diversity from its website and replaced the word “Inclusion” with “Engagement” in the renamed Division of Engagement, Civil Rights and Title IX.

LSU system President Wade Rousse said Monday that LSU would comply with an expanded investigation.

“The LSU System intends to be compliant with all state and federal laws and is prepared to cooperate with this expanded investigation,” Rousse said. In the letter shared Monday, Landry said his administration welcomes “efforts to root out remnants” of diversity, equity and inclusion practices in the state.

“If there are violations of federal law anywhere in our system, we want them corrected,” Landry said.

Ex-agency lawyer: ICE officer training ‘deficient,’ ‘broken’

BY REBECCA SANTANA Associated Press

WASHINGTON A former

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement lawyer who was responsible for training new deportation officers warned Monday that the agency’s training program for new recruits is “deficient, defective and broken.” Ryan Schwank’s comments during a forum held by congressional Democrats come at a time of intense scrutiny of the officers tasked with carrying out President Donald Trump’s mass deportation agenda. Critics, including rights groups and Democratic politicians, have accused deportation officers of using excessive force when arresting immigrants, attacking bystanders who record their conduct and failing to follow constitutional protections of people’s rights.

The Department of Homeland Security is rapidly scaling up the number of deportation officers, raising concerns that it will sacrifice proper screening and training of applicants in a rush to get them into the field. The department

denied it was cutting corners, saying new officers get trained on firearms, useof-force policies and how to safely arrest people. Schwank testified during a hearing hosted by Democratic Sen Richard Blumenthal of Connecticut and Rep. Robert Garcia of California. Blumenthal’s office said Schwank resigned from the agency on Feb. 13. “I am here because I am duty-bound to report the legally required training program at the ICE academy is deficient, defective and broken,” Schwank said.

He also accused the department of dismantling the training program for new deportation officers and lying about what they were doing.

“DHS told the public the new cadets receive all the training they need to perform their duties, that no critical material or standards have been cut,” he said. “This is a lie ICE made the program shorter and they removed so many essential parts that what remains is a dangerous husk.”

Monday’s was the third public forum held by the two Democrats to examine how ICE is training thousands of new officers and

the conduct of those officers once they’re on the streets. Both have been vocal critics of how ICE officers conduct themselves. At the beginning of the hearing, Blumenthal thanked the witnesses, including Schwank, for their “courage and strength.”

Blumenthal’s office said Schwank was one of two anonymous whistleblowers who came forward earlier to disclose a new ICE policy authorizing deportation officers to forcibly enter an immigrant’s home to remove them from the country even if they didn’t have a warrant signed by a judge.

His office also released dozens of pages of documents related to the training of new deportation officers, noting the disclosure came from whistleblowers.

Blumenthal’s office said the documents demonstrated “drastic cuts” to how new deportation officers are trained and tested. That includes changes to the number of exams new officers have to pass, the classes they have to take and the hours they train.

“The training has been truncated and reduced, both in numbers of courses and substantive policy,” the

senator said at the start of the hearing.

Ho me la nd S ec ur ity strongly denied that it has removed any training re-

quirements or lessened requirements for officers.

ICE recruits receive 56 days of training and 28 days on average of on-the-job

training, the department said Monday in response to an inquiry about the allegations made during the forum.

Ex-La. surgeongeneral stepping down from CDCjob

BY MATTHEW ALBRIGHT and MARK BALLARD Staff writers

Ralph Abraham, the former Louisiana surgeon general and congressman,is stepping down from his role as second-in-command at the Centers for DiseaseControl and Prevention to “address unforeseen family obligations,” theagencysaid in a statement.

“Dr. Abraham ledwithclarity and discipline, advancing theCDC’smission to protect the health and safety of the American people,” theCDC said in anews release. “He worked directly with career

staff and public health partners to strengthennational preparedness and improve the country’semergency response efforts.”

Abraham

Abraham didn’treturn requests for further comment.

Abraham was named pri ncip al deputy director in November,but didn’tassume office in Atlanta until Jan. 5. His appointment made waves nationally becauseofhis stance on vaccines;hewas afierce critic of COVID-era

vaccination mandates and requirementstowear masks in public places.

As Louisiana surgeon general in 2024 and 2025, Abrahamordered the Louisiana Department of Health to stop promoting universalvaccinations.

Health SecretaryRobertF Kennedy Jr., who leads the Department of Health and Human Services,has been making numerouspersonnel and policy changes in the agencies underhis charge, including CDC, theFood and Drug Administration and the Centersfor Medicare and Medicaid Services.

Under Kennedy,the CDC’s

budgethas been cut, staff hasleftand vaccinationpolicy adviserswere replaced largely with vaccine skeptics hand-pickedbythe secretary

The CDC has been without afull-time director for allbut four weeksofthe 13 months President Donald Trump has been president. The position is presidentially nominated and Senate confirmed.

SusanMonarez, whowas CDC director for about four weeks, was fired in August for notagreeing to the vaccinationrecommendations. Fourother high-ranking CDC officials resigned after Monarez was fired.

She was replaced as CDC director on an interim basis by JimO’Neill,who also is deputy secretary of Health andHumanServices.He stepped downfrom the CDC on Feb. 13.

Last week, the president named Jay Bhattacharya, director of the National Institutes of Health, to also becomethe CDC director.He’ll hold both jobs.

Abraham,a Republican from the townofAlto, between Monroe and Winnsboro,representedLouisiana’s5th CongressionalDistrict from 2015 to 2021. He ranfor governorin2020 but didn’tmake the runoff.

U.S. Rep.Julia Letlow’s husband, Luke,was Abraham’schief of staff and closest adviser.When Luke LetlowdiedinDecember 2020 of COVID-19 complications, hiswidow,who was administrator at the University of Louisiana at Monroe, ran for and was elected to Congress —with the help of Abraham. She had no comment on Abraham’sresignation. Abraham is expected to help out with Julia Letlow’s campaign to unseat Sen. Bill Cassidy,R-Baton Rouge Trump endorsed Letlow.The closed party primary is May 16, with early voting beginning May 2.

Cousin:Armed man killed at Mar-a-Lago uninterested in politics,guns

BY ALLEN G. BREED Associated Press

CAMERON, N.C. The 21-yearold North Carolina man who enteredagateatPresident DonaldTrump’sMar-a-Lago resort with ashotgun before he was shot and killed worked as agolf course groundskeeper and likedto sketch.

Austin TuckerMartin rarely,ifever,talked about politics, seemed afraid of guns, and came from afamily of Trump supporters,according to Braeden Fields,a cousin who said the two grew up together “I wouldn’tbelievehe would do something like this. It’smind-blowing,” Fields said. “He wouldn’teven hurt an ant. He doesn’teven know how to use agun.” Martin walked up to the secure perimeter at Mara-Lago early Sunday and went through agate when it opened for employeesto leave,aU.S. SecretService spokesperson said Monday.Martindropped agas canand raised ashotgun at two SecretService agents

and aPalm Beach County sheriff’s deputywho then opened fire “to neutralize thethreat,” saidSheriff Ric

Bradshaw

Trump, who often spends weekends at thePalmBeach, Florida, resort, was at the

White House at the time.

Investigatorshavenot identifiedamotive.Trump faced two assassination attempts during the 2024 campaign, including one just a fewmilesfrom Mar-a-Lago when aman was spotted aiming arifle through shrubbery while Trump was golfing.

Following Sunday’sincident, Secret Service spokesperson Anthony Guglielmi said investigators believe Martin bought his shotgun while driving to Florida. Authorities said his family hadrecentlyreported him missing.

Martin wasfromcentral North Carolina, where guns andhunting are apart of life, his cousin said. But whenever they’d go hunting or target shooting, Martin would neverpickupa gun, Fields told The Associated Press on Sunday He livedwith hismother in amodest modular house down arutted sandy road near thetownofCameron

No oneanswered the door Monday,and the large policepresence from the day before was gone. Martin’ssister wasjust 21 when she waskilled in acar accident in 2023, and he has an older brother who’s in the military,Fields said. Forthe past threeyears, Martin workedasagroundskeeper at Pine Needles Lodge &Golf Club.

“It’stragic. Ifeel for his family,” said Kelly Miller, president of thecourse in nearby Southern Pines. “It’s just unfortunate what transpired. It wastotally unexpected.”

Martin last year started a business to sell pen drawings he made, according to state records. Awebsite matchingthe company name features illustrations of golf courses, buildings andancient Roman architecture. Politicsdidn’tseem to be among his interests, his cousin said.

BY JACQUES BILLEAUD and FELICIA FONSECA Associated Press

TUCSON, Ariz. The disappearance of “Today” show host Savannah Guthrie’s mother three weeks ago has inspired asmall numberof volunteers to launch their ownsearchesinthe dense desert near herhome in hopes of cracking the case. The Pima County Sheriff’s Department said while

it appreciates the concern forNancy Guthrie, it asked peopleinquiring about volunteeringtogiveinvestigators space to do their jobs. “Weall want to findNancy butthisworkisbestleftto professionals,” the agency said in astatementover the weekend Nancy Guthrie, 84, was last seen at her home just outside Tucson on Jan. 31 andwas reported missing the followingday.Authori-

tiesbelieve she was kidnapped, abducted or otherwise taken againsther will Drops of her blood were found on thefront porch, but authoritieshaven’t publicly revealed much evidence. Despitethe sheriff’s requestfor people notto search on their own, volunteers have continued to look. Asmall group reported finding ablack backpack on Sunday,but it wasn’tthe same brand as oneidenti-

fied in video surveillance that the FBI released of a masked man at Guthrie’s home thenight shedisappeared.

Asheriff’sspokesperson told Tucson television stationKOLD thatthe bag and its contents didn’t appear to be viable leads. TheAssociated Press reached outto thesheriff’s departmentfor comment on Monday Twowomen from the group Madres Buscadoras

de Sonora, or “Searching Mothers of Sonora,” who were carrying digging tools Sunday outsideofGuthrie’s home, saidthey, too, would join the search. They posted flyers on Guthrie’s mailbox with her picture and their contact information.

LupitaTello,who joined the group after her son disappeared in Mexico in 2020, said Monday sheand two other volunteers will continue to post flyers on bus stops and utility poles near Nancy Guthrie’shome. Members of the group plan to do the sameinNogales, Mexico. She said thegroup was contacted by afriend of oneofNancy Guthrie’s daughters who asked them for help because of their experience. The group has found the remains of more than 5,000 people in Mexico since it was started 10 years ago by mothers with missing children.

CENTERS

theeconomic promise they hold. Over the past couple of years, Landry and other top state and local officials also have announced multibillion-dollar data center projects in Richland and West Feliciana parishes.

The two data centers announced Monday are part of amultitechnology campus that will total more than 7million squarefeet and will be located in west Shreveport and in Bossier Parish near Benton.

“Thisproject is so significant because it positions north Louisiana to be at the center of something that is shaping the global economy —that is artificialintelligence and digital infrastructure,” Landry told the gathered crowd.

In addition to site construction dollars, AWSalso plans to invest $400 million in public water infrastructure, said Landry,who wasadamant in his promise to state utility ratepayers. “WhatI’m telling you is that this is not going to cost the people of Louisiana anymore in their utility rates,” he said.

Public Service Commissioner Foster Campbell, who represents north Louisiana, said he and the commission would be “grading the papers” of SWEPCO, Caddo and Bossier’selectric utility,making

certain any costs incurred forthe data centers were not passed on.

It is amajor undertaking forthe utility.Ina newsreleasefollowing theannouncement, SWEPCO touted the investment already made to itssystem, but made no reference to aneedfor additional power generationsuch as Entergy needed to power thehuge Meta data center in Richland Parish.

The commissionsaid any similar request from SWEPCO would come to it first.

The projects will create540 permanent jobs with wages 50% higher than thestateaverage. A webpage with job openings will go live on Tuesday

Matt Vanderzanden, CEO of STACK Infrastructure, said to expect 1,500 construction jobs from the projects. “I can’twait to get started tellingthe contractors to get going.You guys should see dirt pushing imminently,”hesaid.

STACKisthe ownerand developer of the data centers andwill be leasing them to AWS.

“This development reflects confidence in northern Louisiana’s leadershipworkforce and ability to execute at scale,”Vanderzanden said. “We’re entering this market with along-termmindset.We’re notheretobuild aproject We’re committedtobeanexcellentpartner.”

“Louisianaismaking generational changes and it starts with what we are doing today,” Landry said.

snarled traffic for years before the S&WB completed it last spring.

some roadwork was underway Sunday night, but he did not know if that contributed to therupture. He said the S&WB was notinvolved with the roadwork

Hayman said he didn’tknow exactly how long it would take to repair the pipe and the roadway,but it could be arelatively quick fix if contractors don’trun into unforeseen problems.

“It’sconjecture until they havea chance to see it and evaluate it. But I’m hoping that we’reable to do all this in aweek —hoping,” Hayman said. The break appeared to be just upriver of a$26 million water main replacementproject along the 2600 through 3300 blocks of South Claiborne Avenue, which

Several schoolsand day cares in the areawere delaying classes or closing campuses because of the break. Most businesses between Louisiana Avenue and Napoleon Avenue were closed Monday morning, including fast-food restaurants, retail stores and acar wash

Low water pressure forced the S&WB to issuea boil-water advisory for the Central BusinessDistrict, theFrench Quarter and most Uptown neighborhoods stretching from Leonidas,Gert Town and B.W.Cooper to the Irish Channel, West and East Riverside, andthe Audubon area.

Watersamples werebeing tested for bacteria, with results expected Tuesday.The S&WBwill lift the advisoryonce the water is deemed safe for use Officialssaidresidents in the

affected areas should use bottled or boiled tapwater for drinking, cooking, cleaning food or brushing their teethuntil the advisory is lifted. Residents withcompromised immune systems should also use safe water to wash hands, shower or bathe. At least some businesses and homes lacked running water altogether.Employees at several businesses, including those that closed, said they showed up to workMonday morning to find water out of service.

Terrell Huntington, who was walkingalong South Claiborne Avenue, said thefriend’shouse he wasstaying at nearbyalso hadno water that morning.

“I’mhitting the faucet and nothing’scoming up,”Huntington said. It was notclear howmanycustomerslacked running water

Many schoolsacrossUptown alsoclosed forthe day,forcing

school buses full of students to turn around before dropping the studentsoff. The McGehee School notified parentsits bathrooms lacked sufficient water pressure to operate, forcing the Prytania Street school to close because of risks to hygiene andfire suppression.

“I share in your frustration about today’sclosure and the underlying infrastructure challenges, and thank you for your understanding as we work to assess and open school as soon as safely possible,” interim Head of School Hannah Dietsch said in anote to McGehee parents.

Albert Mims and Antoinette Harris Mims, whoown ahome in nearby Central City,said water has been springing up onto Claiborne Avenue near the intersection with Amelia Street formonths. The couple said they reported it to the S&WBbycalling the phone num-

ber on their bill about amonth ago, but nothing wasdoneand theproblem only seemed to get worse.

“It started off as awet area, and then it got it just got worse,” Albert Mims said. “The streets started getting slippery,and nobody cared.” Hayman said many of thecity’s water pipesare near or past 100 years old, which is generally considered the end of theirlife span.

“Wehave an old system,and we’re not unique. That’sacross the country,that there’sanold system. But there is aneedfor us to make sure that we have thecapacityto makerepairs,” Hayman said. There areabout 1,500 miles of water mains in New Orleans, and about one-third of that system is 100 years old or older,the former S&WB executive director,GhassanKorban, said in aNovember 2024 interview

Justices to hear from oil, gas firms

Industry trying to block climate change lawsuits

BY LINDSAY WHITEHURST Associated Press

WASHINGTON The Supreme Court said

Monday that it will hear from oil and gas companies trying to block lawsuits seeking to hold the industry liable for billions of dollars in damage linked to climate change.

The conservative-majority court agreed to take up a case from Boulder, Colorado, one of multiple lawsuits alleging the companies deceived the public about how fossil fuels contribute to climate change.

Governments around the country have sought damages totaling billions of dollars, arguing it’s necessary to help pay for rebuilding after wildfires, rising sea levels and severe storms worsened by climate change. The lawsuits come amid a wave of legal actions in California, Hawaii and New Jersey and worldwide seeking to leverage action through the courts

The case out of Boulder County likely will have implications for other lawsuits, some of which have been dismissed while others work their way through state courts.

Suncor Energy and ExxonMobil appealed to the Supreme Court after Colorado’s highest court let the Boulder case proceed. The companies argue emissions are a national issue that should be heard in federal court, where similar suits have been tossed out.

“The use of state law to address global climate change represents a serious threat to one of our Nation’s most critical sectors,” attorneys wrote. ExxonMobil said Monday that “climate policy shouldn’t be set through fragmented state-court actions.” President Donald Trump’s administration weighed in to support the companies and urge the justices to reverse the Colorado Supreme Court decision, saying it would mean “every locality in the country could sue essentially anyone in the world for contributing to global climate change.” Trump, a Republican, criticized the lawsuits in an executive order, and the Justice Department has sought to head some off in court.

Attorneys for Boulder had argued that the litigation is still in early stages and should stay in state court “There is no constitutional bar to states addressing in-state harms caused by out-of-state conduct, be it the negligent design of an automobile or sale of asbestos,” they wrote.

City officials said the case was about dealing with problems people are facing in Colorado. “Our case is, fundamentally, about fairness. Boulder is already experiencing the effects of a rapidly warming climate, and the financial burden of adaptation should not fall solely on local taxpayers,” said Jonathan Koehn, its climate initiatives director

The Supreme Court also asked the two sides to present arguments on whether the case is truly ready to be heard by the justices Arguments are expected in the fall.

Fed’s Waller says rate cut in March is a ‘coin flip’ WASHINGTON Federal Reserve

governor Christopher Waller said Monday that solid job gains in January could mean the central bank can skip a rate cut at its next meeting in March, a decision that would likely spur further attacks by President Donald Trump. At the same time, Waller said last month’s pickup in hiring, when employers added a more-than-expected 130,000 jobs, could have been a one-time gain He said he would need to see a similarly positive report next month to conclude the job market, which he noted was very weak in 2025, is improving.

Waller also said that the Supreme Court’s decision to strike down many of Trump’s tariffs would likely have only a limited impact

BUSINESS

NOLA.COM/BIZ

Stocks drop as Trump ramps up tariffs

BY STAN CHOE Associated Press

NEW YORK U.S. stocks slumped

Monday after President Donald Trump ramped up his newest tariffs, while investors continued to punish companies that could be losers in the artificial intelligence revolution.

The S&P 500 fell 1% after Trump said on Saturday that he would place temporary 15% tariffs on other countries. That’s up from the 10% rate he announced Friday following a Supreme Court ruling that struck down his sweeping “reciprocal” taxes on imports from around the world.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 821 points, or 1.7%, and the Nasdaq composite sank 1.1%.

Trump’s quick move toward more aggressive tariffs shows how much uncertainty still hangs over the global economy, even after the Supreme Court said the president lacked the legal authority to institute his sweeping “reciprocal” tariffs.

Beyond a 15% tariff that could last for up to 150 days, unless Congress extends it further, Trump is moving forward on other avenues to place more permanent tariffs on countries and industries. That has trading partners uneasy South Korea’s

EU hits pause on trade deal

BY DAVID McHUGH AP business writer

FRANKFURT, Germany Frustrated European officials pushed Monday for clarification on how President Donald Trump’s declaration of a 15% global tax on imports would affect the trade deal they struck with Trump this summer as EU legislators hit pause on the deal’s ratification until they get clarity

The European Parliament’s trade committee postponed a committee vote on ratification after Trump said he would impose the new tariff, after the U.S. Supreme Court struck down his use of an emergency powers law to set new import taxes. Trump then turned to another section of trade law to justify his imposition of the 15% global rate, which take effect Tuesday

The EU position is expressed in five words: “A deal is a deal,” said commission spokesperson Olof Gill. “So now we are simply saying to the U.S., it is up to you to clearly show to us what path you are taking to honor the agreement.”

The U.S.-EU deal called for a 15% cap on tariffs on most European goods imports, while tariffs on U.S. industrial goods would be lowered to zero. While the deal burdened consumers and businesses with a tariff increase from the previous average of 4.8%, it also gave businesses certainty so they could plan — a factor cred-

on the economy and inflation, and therefore wouldn’t affect his view on rates. The ruling could have “a positive impact on spending and investment,” he said, but “how large the impact may be and how long it could last is unclear.”

Waller also noted that the White House is seeking to reimpose the tariffs using other laws, creating “considerable uncertainty over to what extent tariffs will continue.”

If February’s jobs report is similar to last month’s, “indicating that downside risks to the labor market have diminished, it may be appropriate” to keep the Fed’s short-term rate “at current levels and watch for continued progress on inflation and strength in the labor market,” Waller said in remarks to a conference held by the National Association for Business Economists

trade minister, Kim Jung-kwan, said Monday that uncertainty may worsen if the Trump administration continues imposing new tariffs under alternative laws.

To be sure, Monday’s moves for markets weren’t close to as bad as the panic that swept the world in April, when Trump initially announced his “Liberation Day” tariffs. U.S stocks were modestly higher for a brief moment during the morning.

The U.S. dollar’s value edged lower against other currencies.

Bitcoin briefly fell below $64,000 but remained above its low point reached earlier this month. Gold continued to rise thanks to its reputation as something safer to own during uncertain times.

Investors may be sensing it will take a long time, as well as more court battles, before more clarity comes about how global trade will look.

“Stocks got a boost Friday from the Supreme Court’s tariff ruling, but it quickly became clear that the decision was simply going to open a new chapter in the trade saga, not end it,” according to Chris Larkin, managing director trading and investing, at E-Trade from Morgan Stanley On Wall Street, big losses hit companies under suspicion of getting undercut by AI-powered rivals. Investors have been

sharply and suddenly punishing stocks of such companies recently

CrowdStrike fell 9.8% to widen its loss for the young year so far to 25.3%. A new tool from Anthropic that scans codebases for security vulnerabilities and suggests targeted software patches for human review has been hitting stocks across the cybersecurity industry

AppLovin sank 9.1% and took its loss for the year to date to 43.5%. It’s among the software companies hurt by worries that AI competition will steal customers and fundamentally reset their industries.

Companies that have lent money to software companies whose revenues may be under threat also continued falling, and Blue Owl Capital fell 3.4% to bring its loss for the year so far to 30.1%.

More big moves may still be ahead for Wall Street this week, particularly with a profit report from Nvidia coming on Wednesday Worries are rising that companies like Alphabet and Amazon may be spending so much on Nvidia’s chips that they’ll never be able to recoup their investments through higher productivity and future profits.

Elsewhere on Wall Street, stocks of airlines fell after heavy

snow and high winds canceled thousands of flights across the busy Northeast.

United Airlines lost 5.2%, American Airlines fell 4.9% and Delta Air Lines sank 3.7%.

Novo Nordisk’s stock that trades in the United States tumbled 16.4% after the Danish drugmaker said a trial for its CagriSema drug showed people lost a smaller percentage of their weight after 84 weeks than with a similar one made by rival Eli Lilly Eli Lilly rose 4.9%. All told, the S&P 500 fell 71.76 points to 6,837.75. The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 821.91 to 48,804.06, and the Nasdaq composite sank 258.80 to 22,627.27.

In stock markets abroad, indexes mostly fell in Europe. They had risen on Friday after the Supreme Court’s ruling. In Asia, where markets got their first chance to react to the court’s ruling, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng jumped 2.5%, while South

contributed to this article.

ited with helping Europe avoid a recession last year Since the new 15% rate announced Saturday would be applied on top of the previous tariffs, it would break the agreed ceiling on tariffs, said Bernd Lange, chair of the parliament’s trade committee. Legislators postponed a committee vote on the agreement scheduled for Tuesday Questions surrounded other trade deals done with individual countries including Brazil, India and Britain. For instance, Britain agreed a 10% maximum tariff with the U.S., while India settled on 18% and Vietnam accepted 20%. Although the Supreme Court decision did not directly affect bilateral deals, they were negotiated using threats of imposing the now-invalidated tariffs as leverage. However re-opening

those deals could backfire because Trump has made clear he will pursue tariffs under other laws than the one the Supreme Court said he could not apply

U.S. Trade Representative Jamison Greer said Sunday on CBS’ “Face the Nation” program that the administration had made clear to negotiating partners that Trump was intent on tariffs whether the Supreme Court ruled against him or not, that “whether we won or lost, there were going to be tariffs.”

He said that the bilateral deals

“are good deals, we expect to stand by them, we expect our partners to stand by them.”

Moving from country-specific tariffs to the flat 15% global tariff

“will have considerable implications elsewhere,” said Atakan Bakiskan, economist at Beren-

berg bank. The new tariff means a reduced rate for some countries, for example Brazil, which faces a reduction of nearly 15 percentage points and China which sees a reduction of nearly 10 percentage points.

Under the law Trump relied on, these latest tariffs are in effect for only 150 days unless Congress votes to extend them. Trump could use that time to search for other legal provisions that would support his actions. While uncertainty hits European companies, it puts pressure on the U.S. economy as well, where consumers and companies pay the tariffs on goods purchased from abroad. “Uncertainty around trade policy appears here to stay, putting continued pressure on the U.S. economy,” Bakiskan said.

“But if the good labor market news of January is revised away or evaporates in February,” he continued, “a cut should be made at the March meeting.”

“As things stand today, I rate these two possible outcomes as close to a coin flip,” Waller added.

Kaiser Permanente health care workers end strike

LOS ANGELES An estimated 31,000 registered nurses and other frontline Kaiser Permanente health care workers will return to work on Tuesday after a four-week strike in California and Hawaii to demand better wages and staffing.

The United Nurses Associations of California/Union of Health Care Professionals said in a statement Monday that “significant movement at the bargaining table” prompted

an end to the walkout. There were no details about what progress was made during negotiations or what a potential deal might look like.

“According to the union returning members to their patients and their livelihoods is the clearest path to securing a final agreement and building on the progress achieved during the strike,” the statement said.

Kaiser Permanente officials didn’t immediately comment on the union’s announcement. They asked for a 25% wage increase over four years to make up for wages they say are at least 7% behind their peers.

NYC nursing walkout ends with new deal NEW YORK Nurses at a big New York hospital system approved a

new contract Saturday, voting to end a major nursing strike after more than a month.

More than 4,000 nurses in the privately run NewYork-Presbyterian system went on strike Jan. 12. They are now due to start returning to work in the coming week The union, called the New York State Nurses Association, said 93% of its members at NewYork-Presbyterian voted to ratify the three-year contract.

Two other big private hospital systems, Montefiore and Mount Sinai, ended their nurses’ walkout earlier this month by inking contract agreements with the same union. “We are so happy with the wins we achieved, and now the fight to enforce these contracts and hold our employers accountable begins,” union President Nancy Hagans said in

Mexico security forces keep up fight with cartel

BY MEGAN JANETSKY and MARÍA VERZA Associated Press

TAPALPA, Mexico

A day after the Mexican army killed the country’s most powerful drug lord, the picturesque town where it happened was a study in contrasts.

Tourist shops in Tapalpa were open Monday, and workers were on the job. But gunshots also rang out, and in the street was a dead man lying beside a bullet-pocked vehicle

Meanwhile, heavily armed Mexican security forces kept up their battle with cartel gunmen following the killing that sparked a surge in violence and put the country on edge. Cartel fighters continued to block roads as smoke rose on the outskirts of the town in the state of Jalisco.

More than 70 people died in the attempt to capture Nemesio Oseguera Cervantes and the after-

and the circumstances of most of the deaths were unclear

Oseguera Cervantes was the boss of one of the fastest-growing criminal networks in Mexico, known for trafficking fentanyl, methamphetamine and cocaine to the United States and staging brazen attacks against Mexican government officials. The organization responded to his death with widespread violence, including erecting more than 250 roadblocks across 20 states and setting fire to vehicles.

into custody and died on the way to Mexico City, Trevilla said.

In a different location in Jalisco, soldiers killed another high-ranking cartel member who Trevilla said was coordinating violence and offering more than $1,000 for every soldier killed.

Louisiana Attorney General Liz Murrill praised it as a step toward eliminating a slate of climate change policies, often referred to as the “Green New Deal,” that some Democratic lawmakers have championed.

“This is the single largest act of deregulation in U.S. history and will make buying a car more affordable for Louisiana families,” Murrill said.

The Trump administration estimated that the change will save $1.3 trillion in costs over three decades, mostly by reducing the price of new cars, though environmental groups like the Sierra Club have stressed that figure ignores the health and infrastructure costs of allowing additional air pollution

Many of those health impacts may fall on Louisianans, some of whom already live in areas with poor air quality

The move is also likely to increase Louisiana’s climate risk, potentially increasing already high insurance costs while making hurricanes stronger and more likely to rapidly intensify.

“This increases the likelihood

math, authorities said Monday

Known as “El Mencho,” he was the notorious leader of the Jalisco New Generation Cartel, one of the most powerful criminal organizations in

of another Katrina,” said Joshua Basseches, a professor of public policy and environmental studies at Tulane University “This is the single most damaging thing that this administration has done with regard to climate change.”

Louisiana is on the front lines of climate change, Basseches said It is a hurricane-prone state, and storms can be supercharged by hotter Gulf waters, which not only make the storms more powerful but also more likely to undergo rapid intensification giving the city less time to prepare and residents less time to evacuate.

Land loss and chronic flooding are also likely to become more severe on a hotter planet. Rising sea levels will eat away at Louisiana’s already diminished coastal marshes, giving metropolitan areas like New Orleans and Baton Rouge less buffer from storm surge. Day-today tidal flooding will get worse, too, particularly in places outside of levee systems, like Cocodrie.

Plus, New Orleans’ levee system is only built to withstand a so-called 100-year storm — one that has a 1% chance of happening during any given year As the climate changes, those storms are set to become more likely Congress has authorized but has not

Mexico. The body count taken by security officials included security forces, suspected cartel members and others. Officials did not offer details,

completely funded a study aimed at providing 200-year protection to New Orleans’ levee system on the east bank.

In the long-term, however, it’s not yet certain that the Trump administration’s move will stick. Already, the rescission has been challenged in federal court. Environmental and health groups, including the American Public Health Association, the Alliance of Nurses for a Healthy Environment, and the Environmental Defense Fund, filed a lawsuit on Wednesday

The endangerment finding traces back to a 2007 Supreme Court decision, Massachusetts v EPA, which held that greenhouse gases qualify as “air pollutants” under the Clean Air Act and required the agency to decide whether those emissions endanger public health or welfare.

The rollback is already headed for a legal showdown in the D.C. Circuit, and observers expect the dispute could ultimately return to the Supreme Court, which has previously recognized EPA’s authority to regulate greenhouse gases under the Clean Air Act. Industry may wait to see how the Trump administration’s latest move plays out before making

Oseguera Cervantes died after a shootout with the Mexican military Mexican Defense Secretary Ricardo Trevilla said Monday that authorities had followed one of his romantic partners to his hideout in Tapalpa.

The cartel leader and two bodyguards fled into a wooded area where they were seriously wounded in a firefight. They were taken

decisions based on it. Globally, investments in renewable energy have still been breaking records despite the Trump administration’s opposition. Energy experts in Louisiana don’t think that is likely to change now

“Trump isn’t dictating what happens in world energy markets,” said David Dismukes, a professor emeritus at the LSU Center for Energy Studies. “When you create this kind of uncertainty in policy, whether you think it’s ‘good’ or ‘bad,’ you start changing things that’s just not good for capital formation, regardless of what side of the political coin you’re on.”

“From a pure economist, financeguy perspective,” he added, “this isn’t a good thing.”

To Dismukes, a bigger deal than the rollback of the endangerment finding may be the Trump administration’s move to undo tax incentives for renewable energy that the Biden administration put forward.

“In the here and now, that has much bigger implications,” he said.

Keith Hall, the director of LSU’s Energy Law Center said if the endangerment finding is rescinded, that could open the door for cities run by Democratic administra-

The dead included 25 members of the Mexican National Guard who were killed in six separate attacks, Security Secretary Omar García Harfuch said. Harfuch said some 30 criminal suspects were killed in Jalisco, and four others were killed in the neighboring state of Michoacan. Also killed were a prison guard and an agent from the state prosecutor’s office.

As the threat of more violence loomed, several Mexican states canceled school Monday, while local and foreign governments warned their citizens to stay inside.

tions, such as New Orleans, or environmental groups to bring new lawsuits against companies for climate pollution.

“Some of these groups may feel like if nothing’s going to happen at the federal regulatory level, we need to file lawsuits,” he said. “But I think there’s going to be some wait and see, both because of the legal challenges and the fact that the next administration may take a different view.”

Under former Gov John Bel Edwards, the state convened a task force that put forward a plan aimed at guiding the state toward limiting its greenhouse gas emissions. But that plan appears to have been shelved by Gov Jeff Landry’s administration. That plan was not law, Basseches said, and had no framework for holding companies to account if they did not follow it. “But it was extremely important compared to nothing, which appears to be the direction that this state is going in now,” he said.

He added that the state’s plan was not reliant on the federal government’s climate regulation. “There’s nothing stopping Louisiana from reviving its climate action plan,” he said, “other than the lack of political will.”

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LOUISIANA

What’s beingbuilt across the South

Twelve graduate students took their turns standing on astage in Baton Rouge on Friday —each with one static slide, no notes and exactly three minutes to explain years of research. No pressure.

Ihad never heard of theThree Minute Thesiscompetition— 3MT,asit’sknown —before last week. Developedatthe University of Queensland in Australia, the format challenges master’s and doctoral students to present their original research to anonspecialist audience in 180 seconds or less. In other words:Take something really complicated and make it make sense to someonewho doesn’tknow anything about the topic.

When Mary Farmer-Kaiser, dean of the graduate school at the University of Louisiana at Lafayette, asked me to serve as acommunity judge at the Conference of Southern Graduate Schools’ regional competition at the Crowne Plaza, Ithought theevent sounded interesting, but Ididn’t appreciate the extent to which it would impact me.

In short, Iwalked in to score presentations, and Iwalked out reconsidering the future.

Five Baton Rouge community judges listened as 12 finalists— each awinner from theirhome university and of apreliminary round at last week’sregional competition —took the stage.

As judges, we didn’tknowthe topicsinadvance. We scored basedonly on the individual presentations. We didn’tknow where they were studying. That element of blind judging turned outtobe moreimportant than Iexpected.

One student explained how microRNA29a might help recharge cancer-fighting Tcells. Another mapped the implications of how North Carolina’shistoric 2024 floods redistributed microplastics.

One studied whether dolphins can recognize their own names amidthe rising noise of theocean —what she called, memorably, “the dolphin cocktail partyeffect.”

There was research on turning waste into sustainable iron composites for cleaner water.On coating probiotics so theysurvive the stomach and dissolve where they’re actually needed. On developing avaccine to prevent lameness in broiler chickens. On reexamining ancient plant-based remedies with modern chemistry

Hiding behind big words and jargon would have been easier. Instead, they told stories. They translated. They connecteddots. Judging the competitionwas not easy.Fellow judge RobynMerrick, of Southern University,said she was “absolutely blownaway” by both the innovation and the clarity of the presentations —and she was right. The range oftopics alone was alot to take in The discipline required to distill the information was even more impressive.

Somewhere along the way,I found myself rootingnot justfor one student but for all of them. They were earnest without being naive and serious without being self-important. They were doing both the hard work of discovery and the even harder workof making that discovery understandable. My top score went to Samadhi Nisansala Nawalage, whose research focuses on creating sustainable iron compositesfor

NOLA.COM | Tuesday, February24, 2026 1bN

Blazescorches180 acres

Officialswarnconditionsripefor wildfires

BY WILLIE SWETT Staff writer

Emily and Josh Smith were building anew fence for thegoat pen at their farm northofInterstate 12 in St. Tammany Parish on Sunday afternoon when they saw smokebillowing from thewoods. Josh Smith made his way to theback of theirproperty on Fish Hatchery Road in Lacombe, where the couple raise goats and cattle. He found even more smoke there. And, to the north,the area around apower linewas on fire.

TheSmiths,both34, loaded their kids and dogs into arelative’scar They watched the flames, fannedbyheavynorth winds, spread acrosshis propertytoward I-12. Alittle while later,they moved their livestock away from apasture that was nowon fire “I thought everything

was going to burn,”Josh Smithrecalled.

TheSmiths’ farm was part of an estimated 180 acres that the statesays burned on the northand southsides of I-12 near Lacombe on Sundayevening, forcing authorities to shut thehighway down for three hours as it was enveloped in adark cloud of ash andsmoke as fighters scrambled to contain thefast-spreading blaze.

Thehighway was reopened later Sunday night,and as vehicle passedthrough the I-12 corridorMondaybetween Lacombeand Mandeville, smoke still poured from blackened sections of pine forest as wellaslong stretches of the highway’s shoulders and median. Authorities warned drivers thatthe area might be hazy withsmokefor days to come.

The cause of thewildfires remained amystery

Monday,authorities said. Butbecause southeast Louisiana wasexpected to be under ared flag throughout the dayMonday— meaning weather conditions suchasthe gustywinds and low humidity were ripe forwildfires—authoritiespleaded with residents to forego any outside fires.

“Dispose of cigarettes properly;nooutside burning,”Lacombe-area Fire Department Chief Michael Geissler said.

The fire in St. Tammany largely affected an unpopulated wooded area anddamaged no homes or businesses. As of Monday, state officialssaid it was still smoldering but was contained, and firefighters weremonitoringthe area for any hot spots.

Fueled by the high winds, the St. Tammany fire was among 34 around the state Sunday,Louisiana DepartmentofAgriculture and

CITy SWEEP

Forestry Commissioner Mike Strain said. And it wasn’teventhe biggest blaze.

In nearby Livingston Parish, the “Gum Swamp Fire” burnedaround 100 acres,Strainsaid, while in the western part of the state in Allen Parish the “Winter’sFire” burned 131 acresand in northwest Louisiana in Webster Parish the “Cox Fire” burned over 200 acres, Strain said. Still, Sunday’sfire in St. Tammanywas unusual because of its path, St. TammanyParish Director of Homeland Security and Operations Clint Ory said.

The fire jumpedfrom the north side of I-12 to the south side andthen back again.

“The fact that it jumped the interstatetwice was definitely an anomaly,” Ory said. Theinterstate usually operates as afire break, Ory said.

Still,conditions Sunday were ripe for afire, Ory said. It was dry,there was low humidity,there were high winds and, because it wasthe winter,vegetation wasdeadand burned more easily The cause of the “Fish Hatchery fire,” as the St. Tammany blaze has been named, is under investigation, Strain said. He also said that although it is currently estimated that 180 acresburned, the state continues to conduct more mapping.

“People need to pay very close attention to what the weather conditions are. If

RTAbacktracksoncuts to paratransitservice

Agency makesmove amid public outcry, policy confusion

BYBLAKE PATERSON Staff writer

The Regional Transit Authority is backtracking on aplantoend paratransitservice forportions of Jefferson Parish and New Orleans amid public outcry and confusion over its new policy

Theagency in February began telling riders that effective March1,it would offer paratransit, or shuttle service for elderly and disabled riders, only for trips that begin and end within threequarters of amile of its bus system.That’sthe bareminimum required under federal law

The agency’splan would have excluded from its service area

nearlyall of theWest Bank and portions of Metairie and Kenner in Jefferson. It would have also excluded English Turn and New Aurora in Algiers, and Venetian Isles in New OrleansEast. In 2025, theagency completed around 11,100 trips in thoseareas, about7%ofall trips that year

Butthe agencyonFriday said it would delay thechange,after transit advocacygroup RIDE New Orleanssent aletter asking theagency to hold off and Mayor Helena Moreno’sdeputymayor for health and human services, Dr.Jennifer Avegno,askedfor more information,citing concerns from healthcare leaders. Jefferson Parish on Monday also sent aletter asking theagency to delay themove.

“Weare concerned that there

Sheriff’sOffice citesconsent decree in rejectionof ICErequests

BY JOSEPH CRANNEY Staff writer

Afederal judgehas referred several key legal questions to theLouisianaSupreme Court in adispute over the Orleans Parish Sheriff’s Office sanctuary policies,leaving the state’s high courttodecide if the New Orleans jail is subject to a2024 banonso-called “sanctuary cities.”

The ruling comes as Louisiana Attorney General Liz Murrill hasargued that the jail is out of stepwiththe law andintervened in afederal consent decree case

governing thejail’simmigration policies.Murrill has invoked the 2024 ban —signed by Gov.Jeff Landry,who has backed President Donald Trump’sillegal immigration crackdown—which prohibits local governments from having any“sanctuary policy” andrequires cooperation with federal immigration enforcement.

The Sheriff’s Office,however, has apolicy to reject most requestsfrom federal lawenforcementtoholddetainees pasttheir releasedates when their legal status is in question. The jail’spolicy is mandated by the 13-year-old consent decree, overseen by a federal judge.

Murrill has asked the court to rule that Louisiana’snew law renders the Sheriff’s Office’s

Uptown Winn-Dixie closing; Aldi moving in

BY STEPHANIE RIEGEL Staff writer

Another Winn-Dixie store in the New Orleans area is closing to become an Aldi.

The Winn-Dixie at 5400 Tchoupitoulas St., which has operated in the Riverside Market at the foot of Jefferson Avenue Uptown since the late 1980s, announced Monday via social media that it would be closing soon, thanking customers for “all the loyalty.”

The supermarket’s parent company, Southeastern Grocers, confirmed in an email that the store will be shuttered in late March and converted to an Aldi.

“Our priority is supporting our associates through the transition,” the statement said. “As with other converting locations, associates at this

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Continued from page 1B

there’s a red flag warning, do not light any kind of outdoor fire,” Strain said.

Strain said his agency’s airplane was in the air monitoring the conditions in the area, when it spotted the fire about 4 p.m. Sunday Michael Geissler, chief of St. Tammany’s Fire District No. 3 based in Lacombe, said his department responded to the fires around I-12 at 3:55 p.m., then later put out a separate fire on North Pontchartrain Drive closer to U.S 190 in a more populated area of Lacombe.

“This is one of the larger woods fires I’ve seen in our area,”

RISHER

Continued from page 1B

cleaner water I was fully committed to her presentation before I knew anything about her background. When she ended up winning second place, I learned she is pursuing her degree at my alma mater, Mississippi State University It startled me, and I couldn’t help but be especially proud of and for her The overall winner, Natasha Khatwani, of the University of Miami, earned first place for her presentation, “From exhausted to energized: Recharging cancerfighting T cells.”

The audience selected Alyson M Ackerman Olivelli’s research on upgrading ancient remedies with modern chemistry for the People’s Choice Award. Olivelli studies at the University of Kentucky Afterward, I spoke with the winners and several of the finalists

I asked Nawalage what she took away from the experience

RTA

Continued from page 1B

has been little to no meaningful outreach to paratransit users or to the providers and organizations that support them,” Courtney Jackson, executive director of RIDE New Orleans, wrote in Friday’s letter

“Equally troubling, despite multiple attempts by RIDE to obtain clear information through various agency channels, we have received inconsistent and incomplete answers about the scope, methodology, and rider impact of the proposed changes. Riders cannot prepare for service changes when even basic details remain unclear,” Jackson added.

Agency CEO Lona Edwards Hankins, in a statement on Friday, said the agency was “pausing the planned 3/4 mile clarification communications so we can engage directly with regional partners to ensure alignment and clarity.”

The agency in another statement Monday acknowledged that its initial message “did not provide sufficient context and may have created confusion for some riders” while also saying that it “is not discontinuing or reducing paratransit service.”

The back-and-forth is the latest issue to entangle the public transit authority’s troubled paratransit service, which has faced repeated criticism for missed pickups and excessively long trips and was dinged by federal regulators in September for violating disabilityrights laws.

Federal requirements

The agency, as a condition of its federal funding, is required under the Americans with Disabilities Act to provide paratransit that is

store received advance notice and will have the first opportunity to apply for roles at the new ALDI store.”

Aldi did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Earlier this month, the Winn-Dixie on Veterans Boulevard near the 17th Street Canal in Metairie announced it would close this spring to prepare for its conversion to an Aldi. The rapidly growing Aldi chain has stepped up its expansion across Louisiana since acquiring hundreds of WinnDixie locations from the legacy grocer’s parent company in 2024.

In the months since, Aldi has announced or completed conversions of several former Winn-Dixie stores across south Louisiana, including locations on Airline Highway in Metairie, and in Algiers, Slidell, Prairieville and Zachary

The new Tchoupitoulas Street

Geissler said of the Fish Hatchery fire, based on his 20 years at the department.

St. Tammany Parish Council member Joe Impastato, who represents Lacombe, praised the quick response from firefighters across the parish. “Pretty damn impressive,” he said.

Firefighters from around the parish were on scene Sunday including Fire District No. 1 in Slidell, which sent multiple trucks, according to spokesperson Brian Macaluso, and Fire District No. 4 from Mandeville, which continued to operate a drone as of Monday to monitor lingering hot spots, according to spokesperson Jeremy Windom.

State Police said, unrelated to the wildfires, they also responded to a

“To enjoy what you do — and to enjoy what you do, you have to really know where it connects in the big picture, in the big story,” Nawalage said. If you find where it fits in the big story, you can narrow it down and find purpose in what you do.”

She’s 28. I wanted to hug her and assure her of the promise she and her generation hold.

Something about the brief intersection of our lives still almost makes me cry — and I can’t fully explain that. Perhaps it’s in knowing that she and her colleagues don’t yet see all the ways life will stretch them.

And yet, they’ve already shown that they know how to do hard things.

I have written plenty over the years about what’s broken — in institutions, in communities, in public life Sitting in that hotel ballroom Friday, listening to young scholars explain how they are tackling cancer, pollution, water quality, animal health and more, I was reminded that something else is happening, too. People are still building.

comparable both in trip duration and geographic access — to the level of service offered on its fixed-route bus system.

At a minimum, the law requires that paratransit service be offered within three-quarters of a mile of an agency’s bus routes.

But for several years, the agency has serviced a much larger area. In 2022, the agency adopted a policy allowing riders traveling between Jefferson Parish and New Orleans to use the service.

And in 2024, the agency signed a five-year agreement with Jefferson Parish — which operates its own paratransit service — in which they agreed to handle interparish trips for residents of their respective parishes.

Before that agreement, riders had to coordinate getting picked up and dropped off by the agency and Jefferson Parish at designated drop-off points. They also paid twice as much in fares.

The agency discussed a potential change in policy at its October board meeting, with officials saying the status quo has put a strain on their operations. Hankins said that around 10% of paratransit riders take trips outside of the three-quarter mile boundary, and said the agency is “looking to communicate and pull that back.”

She said the agency was also considering offering a “premium fare,” so riders who wanted to continue traveling outside the boundary could do so without transferring to Jefferson’s system.

In December, an agency spokesperson said the agency was in the “research and planning phase of re-aligning paratransit services” with the boundary and that “any next steps would require board consideration and public notice.”

Yet on Feb. 1, the agency began informing riders about the shift

location will be Aldi’s fourth in the metro area and 32nd in the state. All but two of the stores are concentrated in southeast Louisiana between Baton Rouge and Slidell.

Aldi, founded in Germany more than a century ago, has been aggressively expanding across the U.S. in recent years. In January, the company announced plans to open more than 180 new stores by the end of this year, including converting nearly 80 supermarkets formerly owned by Southeastern Grocers.

The changes are shifting the balance of power in the local supermarket sector and come amid several other recent changes that are reshaping the market at a time of greater consolidation.

In October, Langenstein’s, New Orleans’ oldest family-owned grocer, sold two of its three stores to Robert

report of a person in their vehicle on the westbound I-12 off-ramp in Lacombe at 7:40 p.m. Sunday night who was threatening to harm themselves. A State Police spokesperson, Trooper Marc Gremillion, said the person died after being shot. Gremillion would not say if the person shot themselves, but said none of the officers who responded had fired at the person.

The incident is under investigation, he said.

Strain said his department had two bulldozers out to maintain fire lines Monday Still, smoke was still visible on I-12 near Lacombe as of Monday afternoon and could be smelled for miles around.

Kory Kraus, who lives just south of I-12 on Fish Hatchery Road, said

Fresh Market, giving the Metairiebased chain control of seven local supermarkets A third Langenstein’s in River Ridge that was not part of the deal closed in December In November Rouses Markets purchased 10 former Winn-Dixie locations that were not part of the Aldi deal from Southeastern Grocers and began rebranding them.

The first two of the newly converted Rouses locations reopened last month on Chef Menteur Highway in New Orleans East and in Franklinton.

Trader Joe’s also is expanding locally Last year, it opened its first New Orleans location on Tulane Avenue in Mid City A Napoleon Avenue store Uptown and a northshore location in Mandeville are under construction and scheduled to open later this year

he had a baby at home and was not using his heat or air conditioning system because of air quality concerns. The Smiths, meanwhile, said they will have to replace fences that were damaged by the fire and regrow vegetation on their pasture. Josh Smith guessed that 40 to 50 acres of his property burned. Still, he said he was thankful to the first responders, including the firefighters who set up a command post on his property, and also neighbors who helped him move his cattle. He’s dealt with hurricanes and even a tornado. Still, Josh Smith said, “wildfire was not on my bingo card about what was going to happen yesterday.”

Jan Risher celebrates Samadhi Nisansala Nawalage’s second-place win in the Three Minute Thesis competition in Baton Rouge. Nawalage’s research focuses on creating sustainable iron composites for cleaner water She is pictured in the middle of the photo surrounded by other Mississippi State University grad students and their faculty adviser From left are, Risher, Brien Henry, Meghan Wolf, Nawalage, Jeremy Montgomery, Lilli Harris and Haleigh Duke. Risher is a graduate of Mississippi State University

in an automated phone message.

The board did not approve the plan, and Jefferson Transit didn’t learn of it until Feb. 11, when parish officials reached out to ask about rumors circulating among Ochsner employees, according to emails Jefferson Transit Director Ninette Barrios sent Hankins Hankins confirmed that a “clarification” had been issued to riders and that “effective March 1st, RTA Paratransit service is limited to the following boundary areas,” providing a list of streets.

“Trips outside these boundaries are not eligible for RTA Paratransit service,” Hankins said.

The agency’s chief external affairs officer Kelder Summers said on Friday the changes were part of a “broader effort to improve efficiency, strengthen oversight, and provide more reliable customer service for our paratransit riders while maintaining compliance with federal requirements and our intergovernmental agreements.”

Summers disputed that the move represented a reduction in service, though a map she provided of the three-quarter-mile boundaries excluded nearly all of Jefferson Parish’s West Bank, as well as portions of Metairie and Kenner and New Orleans.

A spokesperson for Ochsner said Friday that they had “recently learned” of the changes and were “working to understand the potential impacts.”

Moreno eyes changes

The transit authority first vowed to improve its paratransit service in 2024, after The Times-Picayune reported on an internal audit that found the agency likely violated federal disability laws. Since then, the agency has made marginal improvements.

In September, the Federal Tran-

Continued from page 1B

policies moot.

U.S. Magistrate Judge Janis van Meerveld last week rejected Murrill’s arguments that the consent decree can be terminated under a federal prison litigation law That law is irrelevant because it covers prison conditions, not immigration policies, van Meerveld wrote in her decision.

Instead, van Meerveld said the Louisiana Supreme Court must first weigh in on the case’s main questions: Does the 2024 ban apply in Orleans Parish, despite the Sheriff’s Office’s consent decree and other “home rule” protections for New Orleans in the Louisiana Constitution?

It’s unclear when the high court would take up those questions. Louisiana’s Supreme Court consists of three Republicans, two Democrats and one political independent. A seventh seat sits vacant, and a special election to fill it is scheduled for November

“These questions are not hard to answer,” Murrill said Monday through a spokesperson. “This is just another delay tactic by the judge to resolve a very easy matter.”

Attorney Mary Yanik, who co-represents the plaintiffs in the consent decree case, said in a statement that she’s “encouraged that the judge acknowledged that we have raised important legal questions about the state law that no court has yet to answer.”

The judge’s decision confirms the Sheriff’s Office’s consent decree will remain in place, at least for now, Yanik added. The jail is also under a separate 2013 consent decree covering many other aspects of its operations.

The case that led to the consent decree over immigration policies was brought by a pair of former Orleans Parish detainees who said they were illegally held for months at the request of immigration officials. The settlement from that case prohibits the Sheriff’s Office from complying with detainer requests from U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement unless the person is charged with murder rape, kidnapping, armed robbery or treason. It also forbids the Sheriff’s Office from allowing ICE to conduct immigration investigations at the jail.

sit Administration notified the agency that its paratransit service was in violation of the ADA. Federal regulators cited the internal audit, adding that more than a year after its publication, “no corrective actions had been implemented.” The agency submitted a corrective action plan to the FTA in December Moreno, meanwhile, is preparing to make her mark at the agency As mayor, she has the power to appoint five of the seven board commissioners that govern the agency and said in January that she wanted to see “big changes.”

She’s yet to name her appointees, though her chief of staff, Kevin Ferguson, told agency board chair Fred Neal Jr earlier this month that Moreno’s picks would be in place by mid-March.

In January, the board — still controlled by former Mayor LaToya Cantrell’s appointees voted 6-1 to award a five-year, $1.3 million paratransit software contract to Carahsoft Technology Corporation. Agency officials said the contract was necessary to improve paratransit operations. Commissioner Mitchell Guidry Jr whom Moreno appointed while serving on the City Council, dissented, arguing it would be cheaper to update the agency’s existing software.

A Moreno spokesperson said Monday that the mayor “is deeply focused on building equity and expanding regional cooperation in public transportation and that is why she is moving swiftly to recruit new leadership on the RTA board.”

The agency board is scheduled to meet at 10 a.m. Tuesday in the agency board room at 2817 Canal St.

Email Blake Paterson at bpaterson@theadvocate.com.

Since Trump’s administration began its immigration crackdown in last year, Orleans Parish Sheriff Susan Hutson has cited those policies in rejecting more than two dozen requests from ICE to turn over information on undocumented people in the jail’s custody, The Times-Picayune reported earlier this month.

After the Sheriff’s Office rejected requests to hold nine detainees, ICE took the rare step of issuing subpoenas to compel the Sheriff’s Office to turn over the men for questioning. The Sheriff’s Office refused in each case.

The subpoenas also seek jail records documenting the men’s addresses and government ID, among other paperwork. ICE sought other lists of other jail detainees who upon booking, didn’t have government ID “to ascertain the identities of potential aliens in (Sheriff’s Office) custody who have not yet been encountered by immigration officials,” U.S. government lawyers wrote in court papers.

Yanik has described ICE’s tactics as an attempt to compel the Sheriff’s Office to hand over custody of detainees so they can be deported, and praised Hutson for refusing to comply “Sheriff Hutson has done exactly what she promised voters and what her office requires: She is following the law,” Yanik said.

ICE has sent 170 detainer requests in the past four years, and the Sheriff’s Office has rejected all but 1% of them, court records show

Adams, Walter Burst, David Haack,Ann

JacksonSr.,Terrence

LeBlanc, Victoria

McClelland, Louise

Morrison, Emmet

Passman,Robert Pisciotta,Anthony EJefferson

Garden of Memories

Pisciotta,Anthony NewOrleans Charbonnet

JacksonSr.,Terrence JacobSchoen

Burst, David Lake Lawn Metairie

Haack,Ann St Tammany

EJ Fielding

Passman,Robert West Bank

Mothe

LeBlanc, Victoria

Obituaries

Adams, Walter

Walter Vertrees"Vert" Adams, of Independence, Louisiana, passed away at his home on Sunday, February 22,2026, at the age of 86. He was born on September 26, 1939, in Bogalusa, Louisiana, the son of the late Densil Adams Sr. and Bessie Williams Adams. Vert was the co-owner of V. Adams Construction and Mister V's Lounge in Covington with his wife, Anne. He loved the outdoorsand was an avid fisherman and hunter. Vert was amember of the Operating Engineers Local 406 in New Orleans. He was legendary as an old fashion officer of the law in Washington and St. Tammany Parishes. He was amember of First Baptist Church in

Independence.Vertwas a proud and dedicatedmember of the Ideal Independence Masonic Lodge #367, Hammond YorkRite Bodies,and ScottishRite Freemasonry of Louisiana where he attainedthe 32nd Degree. Vertissurvived by his wife of 42 years, Anne Arnone Adams;nieces and nephews, Allen Adams, Libby Ebarb, Joey Campo (Wanda), JackieCampo, and Janice Ferrara (Ronnie); and many great nieces and nephews. In addition to his parents, Vert was precededindeath by his brother, Densil Adams, Jr.; sister, Geraldine Sunberg;and parents-inlaw, Felixand Lena Arnone. Visitation at Harry McKneely &Son Funeral Home, 2000N.Morrison Blvd, Hammond, LA 70401 on Thursday, February 26, 2026from9:00 am until 11:00am. The Masonic Funeral Rite conducted by theIdeal Independence Masonic Lodge #367 will take place at 10:30am, followed by the Funeral Serviceat11:00am. Pallbearers: JoeyCampo, Ronnie Ferrara, Scott Biggers, Willy Brown, David Hursey, and AllenAdams. HonoraryPallbearers: Wallace Laird, LarryBilbo, PeteVicari, and Bobby Travis. Interment at ColonialCemetery Mausoleum in Independence. An on-line guest book is availableat www.harrymckneely.com

Burst, David Michael'Dave' David“Dave”Michael BurstofMetairie, LA passedawayathis home in NewOrleans at theage of 49 onFebruary16, 2026. ANew Orleansnative, Dave wasborn on November 4, 1976, to FrankDonald Burst andBetty Jean “BJ” (Fricken)Burst.After at‐tendingSt. Edward the Confessorand then gradu‐atingfromArchbishop RummelHighSchoolin 1994, he attended LSU (class of 2001),where he met, befriended,and fell head over heelsfor the love ofhis life,Michelle. They marriedinOctober of 2005 at abeautiful beach‐side celebrationinRose‐mary Beach, FL.Dave worked as an international pilotforAtlas Airfor over 20 years, proudlyachieving therankofCaptain in 2017. Beyond hisinterestinavia‐tion, he lovedtotravel, was asportscar enthusiast,en‐joyed fine food, wines, and bourbons,was an animal lover, likedtoskateboard andplaytennisand rac‐quetball,and wasanavid fan of musicand deejay‐ing.Davewas quick-witted with akindsmile anda welcomingheart andwas always pressedand ready forfun ortohelpothers. Lovedoneswillmissthe wayhereallylistenedand remembered life’s impor‐tant details, as well as the comfortofhis big, longlastinghugs. He is survived by his wife of 20 years, Michelle LeeBryant; mother,BJBurst of New Orleans, LA;sister, StephanieBurst Wotiz, brother-in-law,Frank Blake Wotiz, nephew,Brody Don‐aldWotiz, andniece, SloaneHarperWotiz, of At‐lanta, GA;father-in-law, MichaelBradford Bryant

andmother-in-law,Sandra (Kroll)BryantofFolsom, LA;sister-in-law,Anne Noel Bryant-Breaux, brother-inlaw, Timothee Breaux,and niece, Morgan LeeBreaux of NewOrleans,LA; and many dear friendsfrom around theworld.Hewas preceded in deathbyhis belovedfather, Donald anduncle,Raymond Lee Fricken, as well as his grandparents,Thelma Mitchell Burst, FrankBurst Gladys LeeWest, andRay‐mond MorrisFricken.The funeralwillbeheldonSat‐urday, February 28,2026, withvisitationfrom12:002:00 andservicesfrom 2:00-3:00, at JacobSchoen &Son FuneralHome(3827 CanalStreet), andfollowed by intermentatGreenwood Cemetery (5190 Canal Blvd.) in NewOrleans,LA. Thefamilywishestoex‐tend theirdearthanksto thepallbearers and friends, ChrisGomez JameyOsborne,Ted Alven‐dia, ChristianCole, Eric Perdomo, Dominick Liccia‐rdi, andBlake Wotiz. In lieu of flowers, memorial dona‐tionstoMDAndersonCan‐cerCenterand St.Jude’s Children’s Research Hospi‐talare appreciated.

Haack, Ann Kendall Hobson

AnnKendallHobson Haack diedpeacefully at home on January 18, 2026. She was 96 years old. Born in Vidalia, LA,on November 9, 1929, Ann was thedaughterofWilliamJ Kendall and Mary Louise NettervilleKendallof Natchez,MS, where she grew up.Ann graduated fromThe Masters School in DobbsFerry,NY, and attended SophieNewcomb College, where she met John B. Hobson, III. In their early married life,she and John livedinNatchez, MS, and then moved to New Orleans to raisetheir five children. John Hobson died tragicallyonJanuary 2, 1971. One world ended but anotherone openedin 1973 when Ann met Frederick Haack. Ann and Frederick were soon married and moved to Saudi Arabia.They livedan amazing life togetherfor 45 years and resided in Saudi Arabia,India London, and California and traveling extensively throughout five continents before settling back in NewOrleans 15 years later. Ann and Frederick immersed themselves in New Orleans life forthe next 30 years, until Frederick's death in 2018 at 98 years old. Many summers were spent in Maine with old and new friends and family,but aboveall,theytreasured their timetogether at their belovedfarm in

Mississippi. Annissurvivedbyher son, J. Kendall Hobson of Murphy, NC and New Orleans;and her four daughters, Ann Soniat, Dodge Hobson (Ivens Robinson), Mary Louise Hobson, allofNew Orleans; and Laura Hobson Larson (John Keith), of Alexandria,VA; 8grandchildren: Jessica Elder, John K. Hobson (Sarah), Lessley Fitzpatrick (Fletcher),William Feltus, Eliza Feltus (JP), Langley Robinson(Jo), Welles Robinson, and Emma Hobson Feltus(Dan), and 7 greatgrandchildren, and by Frederick's children Scilla Smith and Frederick L. Haack, Jr.and theirchildren and grandchildren. Ann'ssister, Mary Louise KendallRobinson, predeceasedher. Ann was amember of Garden Study Club of New Orleans, theNew Orleans Country Club, theNew Orleans Lawn Tennis Club, theBiltmore Forest Country Club, NC,and the Colony Club,NY. The family wouldliketo thank LeobardaYates Dolores Trejo, Nidia Zeledon, CarolynMayo, and Sandra Crawford for thekindness and compassion they showed Ann. Amemorial service will be held at Trinity Episcopal Church, 1329 Jackson Ave. in NewOrleans, on Thursday,February 26, 2026, at 1:30pm. In lieu of flowers,please considermaking adonation in Ann'shonor to TrinityEpiscopal Church. To view and signthe online guest book, please visit LakeLawnMetairie.com

JacksonSr.,Terrence Demitrius

Terrence DemitriusJack‐sonSr. enteredeternal rest on Sunday,February8, 2026. He wasbornonAu‐gust 25, 1965, in NewOr‐leans, LA,tothe union of thelateHodgesand Inez AlverezJackson.Terrence wasa proudgraduateof Alfred B. LawlessHigh School,Class of 1984. He laterattendedDelgado CommunityCollege.He wasa former employee of Costco WholesaleCorpora‐tion andU.S.Gypsum.De‐votedhusband of Tracey SmithJackson.Beloved fa‐ther of Toia TiaraJackson Smith(Justin), Tesha TierneiJackson,Terrence DemitriusJackson Jr., and MykiaSmith (niece). Adored grandfatherof Austin andAmirSmith BrotherofLechall,Bruce, andlateBarreyLee Jack‐son(Tania).Alsosurvived by ahostofnieces, nephews, aunts, uncles, otherrelatives,and friends. ACelebrationSer‐vice honoring thelifeof thelateTerrenceDemitrius Jackson, Sr.willbeheldon Thursday,February26, 2026, at Franklin Avenue BaptistChurch,8282 I-10 ServiceRoadSouth,New Orleans, LA 70126 at 10:00 am.Visitation9:00amin thechurch.LiveStream Celebration: www franklinabc.com. Please sign theonlineguestbook at www.charbonnetfuner alhome.com.Charbonnet

LabatGlapion Directors, (504) 581-4411.

LeBlanc, Victoria Richoux

Victoria Richoux LeBlancpassedawayon February 14, 2026, sur‐rounded by herlovingfam‐ilyatthe ageof91. She wasa native of Larose,LA anda resident of Marrero, LA forthe past 65 years. Shewas thebeloved wife of thelateMalcolm LeBlancfor 57 years. Lov‐ingmotherofHeidi Leblancand thelateTim Leblanc. Grandmotherof Cory Boudreaux, Jason Boudreaux, Jaime Boudreauxand Bridget Faucheaux(Jason).GreatgrandmotherofCurtis, Ava, Ela, Marc,and Hunter Daughter of thelateMr. EdwinRichoux Sr.and Mrs. Victoria D. Richoux. Sister of Jean Jacob(Curtis), Ronald Richoux(Becky), thelateJimmy Richoux (Dian),the late EdwinRi‐chouxJr.,the late Mae Knockart,the late LeroyRi‐choux, thelateHermanRi‐choux, thelateVerna Schmidt, thelateJune Punch, andthe late LeeRi‐choux. Victoria wasa parishionerofMaryHelpof Christians Church,for‐merlyknown as St.Rosalie, in Harvey,LAfor many years. Sheretired from Jef‐ferson Parish School Board

Candidates, listen to the concerns of real Louisianans

With the slate of candidates set forupcoming congressional elections, we wish we could take the hopefuls aside for afew wordsonbehalf of the people ofLouisiana.

The May 16 party primary election features someimportantoffices, mostnotablythe seat nowoccupied by Republican U.S.Sen. BillCassidy.Among those seekingtotake downthe incumbent is state Treasurer JohnFleming, aRepublican firebrand, and U.S. Rep. Julia Letlow, who is banking on the endorsementofPresident Donald Trump to carryher over the finishline Democrats haven’tput up well-known challengers, but three are seekingthat party’snod for Senate In heavily red Louisiana, most of theaction so far has been on the Republican side —with attacks and counterattackstrying to paint opponentsastoo liberal.

We’re not naive enoughtothink that national politics shouldn’tplay arole in ourelections. With the House and Senatesonarrowly divided, we know that eachseat matters to either party’sprospects to gain amajority. Addto that Trump’sability to marshal his supporters behind anyone who shows loyalty tohis agenda, and it’snowonder candidates are wary of straying too far from the national party line Still, we would hope that some room in these important races can be reserved fora discussion of issues that matter to our state. We would invitethe candidatesasthey visitcitiesand towns to listen to what is on the mindsofLouisianans.They might be surprised

We want to see candidates offer solutionsto the problems we face, not just whip up division and anger.Werealize, too, that ifweasvoters wantadifferent kind of politics, we must support candidates who embody that.

In addition to the Senateseat,all six of Louisiana’sHouse seats are up forelection, though five are considered safe forthe incumbents. Letlow’s5th District seat, however,has drawn fierce competition —withstate Sen. BlakeMiguez, whohas Trump’sendorsement, state Sen. Rick Edmonds and state Rep. Michael Echols among the top Republican names. It’snot encouraging that the candidates seem to be vying more to cozy up to the president— Echols has gone so far as to propose abill thatwould name abridge after Trump —than to addressconcerns we hear from voters.

Other races on the ballot include the Louisiana Supreme Court, Public Service Commissionand the state Board of Elementary and Secondary Education.

We’ll be eager to hear what all the candidates have to say in the run-up tothe primariesand possible party runoffs, andall the way to the Nov.3general election.

Elections are when voters get their sayon what direction our country is going. Smartpoliticians will recognizethey’re not inthe driver’s seat.

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 SENDUS ALETTER SCANHERE

OPINION

Councilmember’sinsults aboutFreretuncalledfor

Asitting CityCouncil member went on Instagram and called members of the Krewe of Freret “douchebags” over a Mardi Gras throw

The item at issue was akoozie with a QR code. The krewe has stated it was unauthorized and not approved. Instead of addressing enforcement and process, JP Morrell chose to escalate with insults aimed at residents. The QR code directed users to apublic statement from Crescent Canna opposing aproposed federal hempban that could shut down hemp-derived beverage companies nationwide. Agree or disagree with that industry,itislawful under current rules. Engaging in public policy advocacy is not acrime. It is how regulated industries operate.

This year’sking of Freret was thecompany’sco-founder,aNew Orleansentrepreneur who built anationally distributed brand headquartered here. Cities across

theSouth compete to attract founders who create jobs and bring revenue home. We should be competing to keep them Instead, we get Instagram outrage. Since 2020, New Orleans’ population has declined by roughly 5.6%. Insurance rate impacts have averaged double-digit increases in recent years. Developers report permit timelines stretching into months in Orleans Parishwhile neighboring parishes move projects in days. The city has faced abudget deficit exceeding $200 million. Those are thereal threats to stability

An unauthorized koozie is not shrinking thepopulation. AQRcode is not driving up insurance. Name-calling does nothing to makethis citymoreaffordable, competitive, or functional.

Morrell owes the members of Freret an apology.Leadership demands accountability not only in policy,but in conduct. ERICK SANCHEZ NewOrleans

Column paints false picture of community solar’scost

Iamthe congregational leader of the Sisters of the Holy Family,which has served New Orleanssince 1842 guided by the mission to bring hope and healing to all. That missioniswhy we’re partnering with Together New Orleans to build the city’sfirst community solar farm to lower energy bills forNew Orleans families.

In arecent column, Will Sutton wrote that implementing “consolidated” billing for communitysolar would raise energy bills. That would be alarming, if it were true.Itisnot!

Sutton claims consolidated billing would cost Entergy $200 million over 20 years. Entergy,inits official filing to the CityCouncil, put thatcost at $6 million a30-fold difference.

More fundamentally,Mr. Sutton assumes those costswill be shifted onto Entergy and so to customers. But the city’sCommunitySolar Rules explicitly prohibit thatcost shift. Any administrativecosts are paid, not by Entergy,but by developers through autility administrationfee, which means consolidated billing cannot raise people’sbills.

So why the controversy?

Community solar will bring solar savings to thousands of families who cannot afford solar panels. Entergy has opposed this for years, seeing it as competition. The City Council has advanced the program anyway.Now Entergy appears to be trying to use consolidated billing as away to reopen that settled debate. Construction on the Sisters/TNO project will begin in afew months, allowing some 700 families to cut their utility bills by 20% and helping preserve our Earthbyusing clean energy.Our residentsneed that relief.

As community solar becomes areality,weshould all make sure the factsremain our guide.

SISTER ALICIA COSTA Sisters of theHoly Family

If column on MardiGrasart left youwanting more, here’s wheretogo

Ienjoyed reading the guest columnabout art on canvas capturing the spirit of Mardi Gras. Since the author Frank Duffy wasinaprivate home, the audience forthat workislimited. I recently discovered an exhibit at Gallery 600 Julia of several artists and avariety of pieces: costumed revelers, flambeaux carriers, marching bands and more. And it’sopen until the end of February

ELISKA JUAREZ Mandeville

Glad to measureHarris’ characteragainst Trump’s

In response to George McMillian’s letterthat Mayor Helena Moreno should not have invited“deplorable” Kamala Harris to herinauguration,Iwish he would please

On Feb.10, theDavidShribmanarticleonthe editorial page made astatementthatwas not correct. He said, “Itiswellknown what went intoVietnam:adisproportionate number of Black soldiers. It’s well knownwhat happened to them:Adisproportionate number senttothe front in the earlyyears of combat, producingadeath rate higher thanthat of Whites, andahigher rate of military punishment.” It was an unpopularwar,and there was much misinformation aboutit, mostlysupporting those who opposed thewar.Here are some of the myths alongwiththe facts.

Myth: The U.S. soldiers were young and poorlyeducated.Fact: the averageage was 23 and79%

list the deplorable things she’s done compared to all the deplorable things Donald Trump hasdone.

WENDELL DUPUY Gonzales

of ourtroopswere high school graduates.

Myth: thesoldiers weremostly poor andminorities. Fact: Only 30% of the58,000 killedcame from thelowest thirdofincome. Twenty-sixpercentcame from thehighest third,12.5% were Black

There are many other bits of misinformation whichcan be corrected by contacting the keepers of record of each person who diedand whose name appears on theVietnam Memorial. Please publishfacts not opinions aboutVietnam.Itisadisservice to those of us who served. Iwas an 11-year veteran of theMarine Corps andserved in Vietnam 1969-1970. Semper Fi WILL LANNES NewOrleans

Whysomuchfaith in politics? The2020

It’sonly February and other than the almost nonstop coverage of the Nancy Guthrie kidnapping story,especially cable networks are obsessed with the November election, though it is more than eight months away So much can —and likely will —change before then. Why all the attention?

When Iwas active on the lecture circuit, my openingline was,”I’m happy to be here tonight from Washington, D.C., where the only politicians with convictionsare in prison.” Another laugh-getter was, “Do you know the meaning of politics? Poly means many andticks are blood-sucking insects.”

Whydosomany put so much faithin politicians when they have repeatedly proven they can’t, or won’t, deliver on important issues? Like Social Security andMedicare reform and the massive national debt, which is at $38 trillion and counting because Washington refuses to cut spending, despiterecord amounts of revenue flooding intothe Treasury Politics is afalse god. Its “altar” is the Capitol and its required sacrifices consist of taxpayer (and borrowed) money.Somuch of that money is wasted.Child care fraud in Minnesotais only one of many examples and Minnesota is only one of many states with lax control of welfare spending. We keep electing them —one party and then the other —expecting better outcomes. Instead, many spend too much time fundraising and cementing their careers. Few read the bills they vote on, relying instead on staff and lobbyists, the latter who contribute to their campaigns.

As we approach another tax season, aprime example of the havoc Congress has imposed on the public is the U.S. tax code. It is mostly indecipherable but gives breaks to those donors favored by incumbents. The taxcode is 6,871 pages. When IRS tax regulations and official tax guidelines are included, the number of pages jumps to about 75,000. This should violate Article 32 of the Geneva Convention, which, among other things, prohibits torture.

The dirty little secret about politics andpoliticians is that if they solve a problem, they no longer have an issue to run on. Keeping their place in office with all its perks hasbecomethe primary objective of too many members.

Need Imention how some members and/or their spouses become multimillionaires on alow six-figuresalary?

Term limits used to be ahot issue as ameans tosolvethe problems that accompany incumbency.Itwent nowhere because members of Congress are not about to limit themselves. As previously mentioned here, an Article 5Convention of States remains the only way power will be transferred from the politicianstothe people where the Founders intended it to reside.

Kansas recently became the 20th state to vote for aConvention of States. Thirty-four areneeded. According toConvention of States Action, the following states will be considering this year whether to vote

Ourbrainscan’t

Asked whatshe thought of an attack on the poet Lord Byron’smorals, awit replied, “It is the first time Iever heard of them.” Youmight say the same if asked whatyou think about proofs that the 2020 presidential election was stolen.

for an Article 5convention: Hawaii, Illinois,Iowa, Kentucky,Massachusetts, New Jersey,North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Dakota, Washington and Wyoming. The latestphony and unnecessary partial government “shutdown” should add to the momentum. Democrats and the left are mobilizing to opposesuch aconvention because they know it would mean aloss of their power.That’s why people who are fed-up with theway things are had better turn up theheat on these remaining states if they wanttomaintainanything resembling thenation that has been passed down to them. EmailCal Thomas at tcaeditorstribpub.com.

handle amoderneconomy

Aficionados of internet discourse may recall the vogue fordeeming things “stochastic terrorism.” Astochastic process has astrong elementofrandomness, even when the overall result is predictable. Thus the idea of stochastic terrorism, which has been defined as “the use of mass media to provoke random acts of ideologically motivated violence that are statistically predictable butindividually unpredictable.” (For example, how the Islamic State used social media to inspire attacks.)

The term was used ceaselessly and carelessly,and eventually became a calumny against any speaker someone disagreed with. But the idea of stochasticity remains useful. Lately,I’ve been thinking about what you might call the stochastic economy —the things we pay for to avoid outcomes that are statistically likely but individually rare. Because I keep having conversationswith folks who claim that the economy simply stopped getting better some decades back, and I think one reason they feel this way is that stochasticity makes it harder to see real and valuable improvements. These discussions are happening as the disconnect grows between healthy economic indicators and Americans’ negative perceptions of the economy

My interlocutors concede that a few things have improved, such as flat-panel televisions, but they think we’ve lost at least as much as we’ve gained. Sure, we got better screens, but social media ruined our politics, attention span and culture. OK, maybe trade and immigration made goods and services cheaper,but they’ve also disrupted tight-knit communities. There’sa spirited debate to be had about whether the benefitsofthese developments outweigh their costs. But that’sanargument for another day, because Iwant to focusonhow many amazing improvements this sort of debate ignores.

Take automobile safety.You’ve probably read about how theaverage price of anew vehicle is more than $50,000. If you’re of acertain age, that number seems insane. In 1990, theaverage new vehicle price was $15,000, which would be about $38,000 in today’s dollars. Acar is amajor and unavoidable purchase for most families —it’s something they pay alot of attention to when they thinkabout how well they’redoing. Doesn’tthat huge number mean we’re worse off?

Well, no.One reason cars are more expensive is that as the economy grew,consumers decided to spend some of the surplus on larger,plusher vehicles —for one thing, we’re buying more SUVs and fewer sedans. Another reason is that cars today have more bells and whistles, including features thatmakethem much safer, such as air bags, stabilitycontrol and advanced driver-assist systems. We’re not buying the same vehicles we were 30 years ago; we’re buying much betterones, and that shows up in crash data: In 1995, we lost 1.7 American livesfor every 100 million vehicle miles traveled, but only 1.2 in 2024. Compared with thevalue of ahuman life, afew grand more for acar seems like abargain. Butthat doesn’tmean it feels like abargain when you’re at the dealership. Sure, your chance of dying in acrash hasbeen reduced significantly,but that chance was small to begin with. You’veentered the stochastic economy,paying asignificant sum to prevent an accident that is statistically likely to happen to someone butnot particularly likely to happen to you. Many things we nowspend money on have this quality,such as car and homeowner’sinsurance. That’s particularly true when it comes to health care, which accounts for almost afifth of the U.S. gross domestic product Nowhere is the improvement in our quality of life more apparent: acure for hepatitisC,treatments for cystic fibrosis, immunotherapies for cancer, retroviral medications that turned HIV into amanageable disease rather

than adeath sentence, much better treatments for cardiovascular disease, and mRNA vaccines that stopped a pandemic in itstracks. Yetnowhere is that improvementmore debated. Vaccines create aparticular kind of dissonance, because if they work, you’ll never know whether you benefited from takingthem. Butamilder disconnect pervades almostall health care spending, because the improvements are invisible to most consumers. Unlike the consumer-goods bonanzathat drovethe midcentury economic boom or the internet revolution of the2000s, these gains become clearer only when you get sick.

Odds areyou will end up with a condition for which medical treatment has greatly improved over the pastthree decades.But you probably don’trealize how much they’ve improved, and you alsodon’tknow which treatmentyou’ll need, so you pay abit for each of them every year through insurance premiums.Until you’restruck down withsome illness, it’s hardtosee what you’re getting for your money.All yousee is your premiums marchingupward.

Stochasticityhelps explain the mystery of good economic dataand bad economic vibes. It might alsoexplain another mystery: why so manyseemingly normal people cheered the assassination of UnitedHealthcare chief executive Brian Thompson. People absolutely hate healthinsurers, because it feels as though they take your money and give younothing back. That’snot true —insurersare legally required to spend most of our premiums on care, and their profit margins averaged under 1% in 2024. Butmost people don’tknow that. All they know is they’re paying alot for what feels like nothing. Ourbrains just aren’t adept at parsing those sorts of unknowns.Sadly they may be better able to process stochastic terrorism than to handle stochastic economics.

Megan McArdle is on X, @asymetricinfo.

Donald Trump’sbelief in widespread fraud in the casting and counting of 2020 ballots is entailed by his belief that it is theoretically impossible for him to lose at anything. His certitude infects millions of Americans, some of whomthink it inconceivable that he could ever be mistaken. Others doubt that anyone could win the presidency while obsessing about acomplex conspiracy for which there is no evidence.

Remember,however,the aftermath of the assassination of President John F. Kennedy Many people, reluctant to believe thatimmense consequences could result from an insignificant person, concluded that the complete absence of evidence of the conspiracy was conclusive evidence of how vast and competent the conspiracy to kill Kennedy had been.

The 2020 election’scontribution to humanity’s history of gullibility continues through Sidney Powell, aformer Trump post-electionlawyer. Five days after the election, she appeared on Fox News to say there had been “massive and coordinated” malfeasance to “delegitimize and destroy” Trump votes, and “manufacture” votes for Joe Biden. She spoke of a“computer system” in Dominion voting machines “flipping votes” or manufacturing them.

Dominion sued Fox News and collected $787.5 million. Now Powell is defending herself against adefamation suit involving another voting-technology company.Powell is merely acuriosity —anexotic (even by today’sstandards) flavor of paranoia, or cynicism,orboth. Tulsi Gabbard, however,isimportant.

She is director of national intelligence.Inher spare time, of whichshe evidently hastoo much, she is asleuth who last month appeared at a warehouse in Fulton County,Georgia. There, the FBI, which surely has better things to do,seized ballots from 2020. Gabbard was there to To do nothing proper.Writing for the Dispatch, Kevin Carroll, senior counsel to the Homeland Security secretary during the first Trump administration, says the National Security Act of 1947, which established the CIA, was passedby areluctant Congress only after it was amended to stipulate that the agency “shall have no police, subpoena, or law enforcement powers or internal security functions.” Carroll says the “entire intelligence community is prohibited fromcollecting information on U.S. persons solely to monitor First Amendment-protected activity —such as voting.” An executive order, updated since Ronald Reagan issued it, prohibits all elements of the intelligence community,otherthan the FBI, from “acquiring informationconcerning the domestic activities” of Americans.

Aparticularly sinister aspect of Richard Nixon’sbehavior in the wake of the Watergate break-in washis attempt to draw the CIA into the subsequent cover-up by claiming there was a “national security” dimension to the matter.The Trump administration has offered no intelligible national security rationale for Gabbard’sGeorgia grandstanding.

The FBI was there to placate the president, who in January said he should have ordered the National Guard to seize ballot boxes in 2020 swing states —presumably not in any he won. This spoken regret wasfollowed by his wish that congressional Republicans would “nationalize” elections.

Hours after the FBI’sGeorgia stunt, Trump posted some conspiracy theories, including speaking of the exotic —this: China coordinated the use of Italian military satellites to cause U.S. voting machines to flip Trump votes to Biden. Someone should read to him “Lost, NotStolen,” a2022 report by eight conservatives (two formerRepublican senators, three former federal appellate judges, aformer Republican solicitor general, and two Republican election law specialists). They examined all 187 counts in the 64 court challenges filed in multiple states by Trump and his supporters.

Twenty cases were dismissed before hearings on their merits, 14 were voluntarily dismissed by Trump and his supporters before hearings. Of the 30 that reached hearings on the merits, Trump’sside prevailed in only one, Pennsylvania, involving far too few votes to change the state’sresult. Trump’sbatting average? 0.016. In Arizona, the most exhaustively scrutinizedstate, aprivate firm selected by Trump’sadvocates confirmed Trump’sloss, finding 99 additional Biden votes and 261 fewer Trump votes. It would be reassuring to think that Trump believes nothing he says about 2020: Cynicism in the presidency is less disturbing than delusion. But reassurance is not plausible. As the poet William Blake wrote, “The manwho never alters his opinion is like standing water,and breeds reptiles of the mind.”

EmailGeorge Will at georgewill@washpost. com.

A freeze warning is in effectuntil 9a.m. due to the sub-freezing temperatures that we are experiencing across Southeast Louisiana this morning.Unlikeyesterday, after sunrise, the temperatures will rise to the low60s thisafternoon. With mostly sunnyskies, winds will be light and variable before becoming southerly at 5to10mph. your rain chanceswill remain

in 2000 after 30 yearsof employment. Shewas a lovingmotherwho loved being with herfamilyand cherished everymoment withher precious grand‐childrenand great-grand‐children. Friendsand fam‐ily areinvited to attend a funeral mass at Mary Help ofChristiansCatholic Church,(Formally St.Ros‐alieCatholicChurch), 600 SecondAve in Harvey,LA onWednesday,February 25, 2026,at1 p.m. Visitation willbegin at 10 a.m. until1 p.m.Interment at West‐lawnMemorialParkCeme‐teryinGretna, LA immedi‐ately followingthe funeral mass. In lieu of flowers, pleaseconsiderdonations toMaryHelpofChristians Church.Mothe Funeral Homeisassisting thefam‐ily during this most diffi‐culttime. Thefamilyin‐vites youtoshare thoughts, fond memories and condolencesonlineat www.mothefunerals.com

Louise Maxine

Louise Maxine Samrow McClelland "Sammie" of Elton, Louisiana left this world and entered aheavenly oneonFebruary 20th 2026 at 105 years young. Louise was born April 14th 1920 to George and Viola Nunez Samrow in the family home in Slidell, Louisiana.

Apublic visitation will be held at Miguez Funeral Home in Jennings on Wednesday, February 25, 2026 from 3:30pmto9:00 pm, with arosary being recited at 6:00 pm. Visitation will continue Thursday morning at St. Paul's Catholic Church in Elton from 8:30 am until the time of Service at 11:00 am.

Burial willfollow the next day on Friday,

2026at11:00

Morrison,Emmet 'Stirling'

Emmet"Stirling" Morrison,age 48, of Charleston, SC, passed awayonMonday,February 2, 2026.Stirling will be rememberedasa fiercely lovingand dedicated husband and father. Stemming from his NewOrleans roots, Stirling's love language was cooking for family and friends. Taking careofothers,often with a homemade gumbo,such as the one he made this past Thanksgiving in Seville, was what brought him joy. Hewas detail-orientedand an inherent caretaker, noticing meticulousminutiae to make his guests feel comfortable, and attentive to others' needs, whether they were his closest friends or people he met in hisvarious walks of life.Through his workinhis familyrealestate company,hecultivated and established longlasting relationships with ease; he was an entrepreneur at heart.We wouldberemiss not to mention that he wasan impeccable dresser and had alove for wonderfully tailoredclothing. Stirling's life changed foreverwhen he andhis wifeof23years, Emily, welcomed threebeautiful triplets into this world. He pouredhis energy into raisingthem and instilling alove forexplorationand curiosity. As afamily of five,they packedinmore travelinthe triplet's almost 14 years than most people do in alifetime. Mostrecently, he and his family spent the fall of 2025 in Seville, Spain where hecherished thesimpler, slower paceoflife, embracingthe culture with wonder and joy. Beingwith his family was the most important thinginthe

Avenue)from 4PM -7 PM

world to him. He had azest forlifeand was a"doer," whether it was an impromptucrawfish boil coaching his kids'softball team, mountain biking with Emily, surfing,or sharing with his kids his passionfor outdoor activities. He was so proud of his childrenand valued their education of life aboveall else. He also cherished his many lifelong friendsfromNew Orleans as wellasnew friends and families who deeply impacted his life

Stirling had an artistic eyeand lovedfinding beauty in nature, architecture,and design. He and Emily cultivated abeautiful home in NewOrleans, picking out curatedart work fromtheir travels and were so excitedtobe buildinga family home on Sullivan's Island. He was looking forward to the many opportunitiesthat layahead; most recently he had set his sightson learning to flya plane and traveling with his family to Japan. He also cherished his dog, Biscuit, who he lovedtaking on long walks on theIsland

He is survivedbyEmily and their threechildren, Logan, Stirling, and Rhett Morrison, as wellashis motherand father, Patand JJ Morrison; brother and sister-in-law, Kent and Jennifer Morrison, and their children Caroline and Emmet;brother and sisterin-law, Parker and Laura Morrison and their children Katherineand Celeste;aswellashis mother-in-law and fatherin-law,Libby and Rhett Myers; and sister-in-law and brother-in-law, Elizabethand SkipWhite and their children Ashby Chilton, and Owen. Asmall family memorial willbe held with awalkonthe beach, which he lovedso much, on Saturday, February 7th followed by a celebration of life forall family and friends at 3:45 PM at thefamily home on Sullivan's Island. Aceremony in NewOrleans will be held on Friday, March 13th at TrinityEpiscopal Church, 1329 Jackson Avenue,withvisitation from10AMto11AMand servicebeginning at 11 AM. Acelebrationoflife (casual attire) willfollow at theNew Orleans Lawn Tennis Club,5353 Laurel Street (cornerofLaurel Street and Jefferson

In lieu of flowers, Stirling lovedtreesand wanted to plant oak trees on Sullivan's Island.To contribute to his memory and for moreinformation, please contact Ellie Gray at elliereesegray@gmail.com. Arrangementsare by J. HenryStuhr,Inc Mount Pleasant Chapel. Amemorial message may be sent to thefamily on our website at www.jhenrystuhr.com.

Robert Zay Passman passed away peacefully on Friday, February 20, 2026, in Covington, Louisiana. He was 77. He was theson of the late Emerson Zay Passman and Marie Steinhauer Passman. He is survived by his sisters, Genell Huebinger (Wayne) and Barbara Passman Pineda, and also survived by his nephews, Emerson Paul Huebinger and Charles Isaiah Pineda and numerous cousins. He was anativeof Covington, Louisiana, and enjoyed outdoor life and was adairy farmer Relatives and friends of thefamily are invitedtoattend theFuneral Service on Wednesday, February 25, 2026, at 11:00 a.m. at E. J. FieldingFuneral Home, 2260 West21st Avenue, Covington, Louisiana, with visitationfrom 10:00 a.m. until servicetime. Interment will follow in Willie Lee Cemetery in Folsom, Louisiana. E.J.Fielding Funeral Home has been entrusted with funeral arrangements. Please sign the guestbookat www.ejfieldingfh.com.

card game-especiallya livelyround of Vegaswith those he lovedmost. He willbefondlyremembered for his“uselessknowl‐edge” on almost anysub‐ject, hisunforgettable tick‐les andrib-counting games,and thewarmthhe brought into everyroom. Heenjoyed baking Italian cookies, decorating,and lovinglyhosting St.Joseph Altar at hishomefor many years.Traveling theworld brought himgreat happi‐ness, buthewas just as content taking asponta‐neous “triptonowhere”if itmeant spending time withthe people he loved. Anthony’s life wasa testa‐menttohis family, his strongworkethic,and the manyfriendships he built throughouthis life.His legacylives on in the countless memories he created andthe deep love hesharedsogenerously. The familyextends a heartfelt thanks to the medical professionalsat EastJefferson Hospital for providing extraordinary carewithdignity,compas‐sion, andgenuine human‐ity.Relatives andfriends of the familyare invitedtoat‐tendthe visitation at Gar‐den of Memories Funeral Home& Cemetery,4900 Airline Drive, Metairie,LA 70001 on Thursday,Febru‐ary 26, 2026, beginningat 10:00 am,withMassbegin‐ningat1:00pmfollowedby burial. He will be deeply missedand foreverloved Toorder flowersoroffer condolences,pleasevisit www.gardenofmemorie smetairie.com

Anthony“Tony”Pis‐ciotta,age 77, of NewOr‐leans,Louisiana,passed awaypeacefully on Febru‐ary 11, 2026, surrounded by the love of hisfamily. Born onNovember25, 1948, An‐thony liveda full andvi‐brant life centered on faith, family, friendship,and hardwork. He is preceded indeath by hisbeloved wifeof53years,MaryAnn Salvant Pisciotta; hispar‐ents, thelateFrank and Rosie Pisciotta;and hissis‐ter-in-law, AnnSalvant Reason(late Douglas).He issurvivedbyhis devoted son,Timothy Pisciotta (Stormie);his cherished granddaughter,PaislyPis‐ciotta;his sister,AnniePis‐ciotta Chiasson;his brother-in-law, Lionel Sal‐vantJr. (Georga);and his godmother,Laura “Goo Goo” Ianetta.Anthony is alsosurvivedbyhis beloved nieces and nephews:Cynthia Chias‐son,ChristenChiasson, Kasie SalvantBarraco (late Joseph),ChadLacy, Tony McKinney, andMichael McKinney, alongwith manygreat-niecesand nephews,cousins,ex‐tendedfamilymembers, and dear friends. Anthony was theproud co-ownerof A &M Security andElec‐tric, alongsidehis beloved wife, Mary Ann. He also dedicated more than 26 years of servicetothe Or‐leans LeveeDistrict, where heservedasFacilityMain‐tenance Manager. Anthony had alovefor antiqueau‐tomobilesand found great joy in travelingand attend‐ing greatcar showsacross the country. He wasanac‐tivememberofseveral car clubs,including Horseless CarriageNew Orleans, Early V8 Slidell, andSt. Bernard CarClub. Whether cruisingaround theworld withfamilyand friendsor gathering with fellow en‐thusiasts,hetreasured every mile andevery mem‐ory.Anthony wasalsoa proud member of the11th WardMen’s Club,and neverpassedupa good

SPORTS

Mended Murray

Pelicans guardset for season debutafter tackling Achilles recovery

BY RODWALKER Staff writer

Dejounte Murray doesn’t know whenthe emotions will hit himTuesday night, but he knows they will.

Perhaps when he puts on his No. 5New Orleans Pelicans jersey.Ormaybe when he runs outof the tunnel onto the court for thefirst time in 389 days. Or maybe during thenational anthem or when he makes his first basket. After all, he hasn’tplayedinanNBA game since Jan. 31, 2025.

That was the night he missed ashotagainst the Boston Celtics, then planted his right foot to try to get the rebound beforecrumbling to the Smoothie King Centerfloor andgrabbing the back of his leg. Murray limped to thebench and

Combinecan give Saints glimpseintoo

Dejounte Murray on Pelicans media dayin Metairie on Sept.23.

STAFF FILE PHOTO By CHRIS

GRANGER

BY REED DARCEY Staff writer

When thescore got outofhand, coach KimMulkey started experimenting. Sheplayed four guards. Thenshe played five. She even defied her nature and threw out azonedefense —something she hardly ever does. All of it worked against Missouri, the overmatched foe that visited the Pete Maravich Assembly Center on Sunday and leftwith a 53-point loss. The LSUwomen’s basketball team never hasbeaten an SEC team by awider margin, so Mulkey found herself with arare late-season opportunitytotoy around with the depth and versatility her roster has to offer “You neverthink you’re goingtowin by that much,” Mulkey said. If Mulkey needs to go big, she can go big. If sheneeds to go small,she can go small. Alineup thatfeaturedboth 6-foot-2AmiyaJoyner and 6-5Kate ä Tennessee at LSU, 5P.M.THURSDAy,ESPN

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. The LSU baseball Tigers won all three of their games in the Jax CollegeBaseball Classic here over theweekend. Theywon thetournament title. And yes, of course, LSU fanswon theattendance battle over fansfrom Notre Dame, Indiana andCentral Florida during the three-day event. Now 8-0, with 16 straight victories dating back to last year’sNCAABaton Rouge regional (remember that loss to Little Rock?), the Tigers have far outclassed their competition by outscoringthem 97-34. But what do we really know aboutLSU to this point? Here are five topics as theNo. 2-ranked Tigers return home to host McNeese State at 6:30 p.m. Tuesday at Alex Box Stadium: Brownstill hot JakeBrown looks alittlemore like afirst-year P.E. teacher than atop-shelf college athlete. Numbers don’tlie,however He definitely is the latter.Brown hasbeen LSU’sbest overall hitter since last June’s College World Series, where he ledthe Tigers with a.385 average. Brown said he bulked up in

against Milwaukee and Kent State are still traveling. Brown batted second or third in coach Jay Johnson’sorder over the weekend. He looks primed to make good use of LSU leadoff hitter Derek Curiel’stable setting.

Curiel is Curiel

Before the season, Ifigured contact-hitting

Iwasn’tsosure. Oh, me of little faith. Curiel was golden against the UCF Golden Knights, going 3for 4with three RBIs, including adouble off the 22-foot brick wall in right-center at VyStar Ballpark. Curiel’sseason average is back up to asolid .333 and figures to rise from here. Schmidtmovingup?

the offseason and clearly has elevated his offensive game. The junior right fielder is batting a robust .459, hitting acool .400 (6 for 15) in Jacksonville with LSU’s first four-hit game of 2026 in Saturday’s9-4 win over Notre Dame. And those four home runs he hit last week in consecutive games

Another sophomore, righthanded pitcher William Schmidt, earned MVP honors in the event with five shutout innings of threehit ball against UCF that included seven strikeouts and one walk. Aslightly surprising choice since the Tigers hit the ball, but Schmidt’sonly rival for top pitcher honors was Notre Dame’sJack Radel, who cameout after six perfect innings Saturday against

Auriemma makes AP Top 25 history

BY DOUG FEINBERG Associated Press

Geno Auriemma broke a tie with Tara VanDerveer of Stanford for most appearances by a coach in The Associated Press women’s basketball Top 25 on Monday when UConn was again a unanimous No. 1.

Auriemma has the Huskies ranked for the 655th time. UConn was atop all 31 ballots from the national media panel. The Huskies (29-0) are the last unbeaten team in Division I basketball and have won 45 consecutive games dating to last season.

The top five teams remained unchanged in the rankings this week with UCLA, South Carolina, Texas and Vanderbilt following the Huskies. The rest of the top 10 changed as Michigan, Louisville, Duke and Ohio State all lost games last week.

LSU moved up one spot to sixth with Oklahoma jumping up four places to seventh. Michigan dropped two spots to eighth, and Iowa was ninth.

The Hawkeyes moved up four places after beating the Wolverines on Sunday Louisville was 10th.

Duke, which ended its 17-game winning streak Sunday in a loss to Clemson, dropped to 12th, and Ohio State was 13th.

Falling Lady Vols

Tennessee dropped out of the

BY AARON BEARD Associated Press

Duke’s win against Michigan has propelled the Blue Devils to a familiar perch: No. 1 in The Associated Press men’s college basketball poll.

The Blue Devils climbed two spots to top Monday’s poll, marking the 148th appearance at No. 1 to add to what was already the record for any program. Duke (25-2) claimed 56 of 61 first-place votes to supplant Michigan (25-2) after Saturday’s 68-63 win against the Wolverines in Washington.

That win came in a matchup of the top two teams in the NCAA men’s selection committee’s preliminary top 16 seeds for March Madness, released hours before the game. The Blue Devils enter this week with a national-best 12 Quadrant 1 wins, along with nine wins against AP Top 25 teams. And now the latest such win has pushed the Blue Devils back to a No. 1 ranking for the second straight season under fourth-year coach Jon Scheyer Last year’s Final Four team sat atop the past two polls entering the NCAA Tournament, the first time Duke had reached No 1 since Scheyer took over for retired Hall of Famer Mike Krzyzewski in 2022. Arizona rose two spots to No. 2 after beating BYU and winning at Houston, and secured the other five first-place votes. Michigan fell to No. 3 as its first appearance at No 1 since January 2013 turned into a one-week stay, followed by a pair of Big 12 teams in Iowa State and Houston.

The top tier

UConn fell one spot to No. 6 after a week that included a home loss to Creighton, while reigning national champion Florida leapt five spots to No. 7 to return to the top 10 for the first time since late November The Gators were ranked No. 3 in the preseason and spent a week among the unranked

Conference supremacy

The SEC remained the top conference with nine teams in the poll. The Big Ten is next with seven. The Big 12 has four teams, the Atlantic Coast Conference has three and the Ivy League and Big East each has one.

Games of the week

poll for the first time this season after losing last week to Ole Miss, Texas A&M and Oklahoma.

The Lady Vols have dropped seven of nine games for the first time in school history Tennessee had been ranked for the past 31 polls.

“We’ve had an incredibly tough stretch,” coach Kim Caldwell said after Sunday’s loss to Oklahoma.

“You just (have to) be honest with your team, and they can handle it or they cannot. And sometimes the honesty is not good and some-

times the honesty is good.” The schedule doesn’t get any easier for the Lady Vols with regular-season games left against LSU and Vanderbilt. Welcome back Princeton re-entered the poll this week at No. 25. The Tigers (21-3) fell out last week after losing to Columbia on Feb. 13. The Lions have beaten the Tigers twice this season, and Princeton’s other loss came to No. 14 Maryland.

No 8 Michigan at No 13 Ohio State, Wednesday The two rivals meet with Big Ten Conference seeding on the line. The Wolverines lost their last game, falling at then-No. 13 Iowa on Sunday. The Buckeyes have dropped two of their past three games.

No. 12 Duke at No. 21 North Carolina, Sunday The Blue Devils beat the Tar Heels in the first meeting earlier this month and will look to wrap up the ACC regular-season crown with another victory

in early January They have won seven straight and 12 of 13. Purdue, Gonzaga and Illinois rounded out the top 10.

Selection committee vs. AP

The selection committee had Michigan, Duke, Arizona and Iowa State as the No. 1 seeds in Saturday’s revelation of the preliminary top 16 seeds. The Cyclones edged UConn and Houston for the fourth 1-seed, with the Huskies’ loss to Creighton and then Iowa State’s head-to-head win against Houston to start last week swinging the vote to T.J. Otzelberger’s squad.

Monday’s poll largely aligns with the committee’s reveal, starting with the same four teams at the top in a shuffled order — with Iowa State moving up two spots even after Saturday’s loss at nowNo. 19 BYU.

In addition, the AP Top 25 and committee align on 15 teams being ranked among those top 16 seeds. The outlier is St. John’s at No. 15 in the AP poll, taking a slot that went to Vanderbilt with the Commodores seeded 15th overall

by the committee Saturday but sliding to No. 25 in Monday’s poll.

Rising Alabama had the week’s biggest jump, rising eight spots to No. 17 after a thrilling double-overtime home win against Arkansas and a win at LSU pushed the Crimson Tide’s win streak to six games.

Florida had the week’s secondbiggest gain, while BYU rose four spots after the Arizona loss and Iowa State win. In all, 11 teams moved up from last week’s ranking.

Sliding No. 14 Kansas joined Vanderbilt with the week’s biggest slide of six spots. The Jayhawks are coming off a 16-point home loss to a Cincinnati team that was reeling in early February but has won four straight. The Commodores lost at Missouri and at home to Tennessee last week, falling to 5-6 since a 16-0 start that carried them to a No. 10 ranking as of mid-January Saint Louis tumbled five spots to No 23 after last week’s loss at

Rams finalize staff with Kingsbury as assistant HC

LOS ANGELES Kliff Kingsbury will have the title of assistant head coach on Sean McVay’s staff with the Los Angeles Rams.

Kingsbury’s formal title was revealed Monday when the Rams finalized their coaching staff for McVay’s 10th season in charge. The Rams also announced that recently retired receiver Robert Woods will be their assistant wide receivers coach.

Kingsbury, the former Arizona Cardinals head coach, is joining his friend’s staff following two years as Washington’s offensive coordinator He is also bringing Brian Johnson as a senior offensive assistant after the former Philadelphia offensive coordinator worked for Kingsbury with the Commanders.

Mayweather, Pacquiao agree to rematch in Vegas

LOS ANGELES Floyd Mayweather and Manny Pacquiao have agreed to a rematch of their landmark 2015 bout.

Their second fight will be held Sept. 19 in Las Vegas, the boxing icons said Monday The rematch, which will be streamed on Netflix, will be the first boxing event to be held at Sphere, the immersive event venue east of the Strip.

Mayweather, who turns 49 on Tuesday, announced his intention last week to end his nine-year retirement from competitive boxing. The 47-year-old Pacquiao ended his own four-year retirement last year, and he is scheduled to meet Ruslan Provodnikov on April 18 in the second bout of his comeback. Mayweather and Pacquiao didn’t announce a weight class or length for their second bout.

U.S. women’s hockey team declines Trump invitation

WASHINGTON The U.S. women’s hockey gold medal-winning team has politely declined an invitation from President Donald Trump to attend his State of the Union address on Tuesday

“We are sincerely grateful for the invitation extended to our gold medal–winning U.S. Women’s Hockey Team and deeply appreciate the recognition of their extraordinary achievement,” the U.S. women’s team said in a statement released Monday Trump also invited the U.S. men’s gold medal-winning team. Logistics played a role in the decision, as many on the women’s team were not scheduled to arrive in North America until Monday evening.

Two-time WNBA champion dies at 43 after car crash

Two-time WNBA champion Kara Braxton died after being in a car crash in Atlanta on Saturday She was 43.

The athletic department at Georgia, where Braxton played in college, texted The Associated Press confirmation of her death on Monday and posted on social media. Her son, Jelani Thurman, posted a photo of his younger self in her jersey on social media and wrote that he we will miss his “queen.” Braxton last played in the WNBA in 2014 while finishing up a fouryear stint with New York. She won two titles with the Detroit Shock in 2006 and 2008.

Rhode Island ended an 18-game winning streak, while 11 teams fell from last week but remained in the poll.

Coming and going

Tennessee was the lone new addition at No. 22, with the Volunteers beating Oklahoma and Vanderbilt last week to push its winning streak to four games. This starts a third stint in the poll for Rick Barnes’ Volunteers, who fell out for two weeks in mid-January returned for a week at No. 25 to start February, then were unranked again for the past two weeks.

The Vols replaced Wisconsin, which fell out from No. 24 after last week’s loss at Ohio State. Conference watch

The Big 12 led all conferences with six ranked teams, while the Big Ten and Southeastern Conference each had five. The Atlantic Coast Conference was next with four, followed by the Big East with two.

The West Coast Conference, Mid-American Conference and Atlantic 10 each had one ranked team.

The 6-foot-6 Braxton was drafted by Detroit with the seventh pick in 2005 She earned All-Rookie honors that season after averaging 6.9 points and 3.0 rebounds.

McGowens’playresults in newcontractwithPels

The stat line for Bryce McGowens in the New Orleans Pelicans first game after the All-Starbreak went something like this Friday night. Tenpoints. Twosteals.

One rebound. And awhole lot of congratulations.

ä Warriors at Pelicans, 7P.M.TUESDAy, GCSEN

ersand the LosAngeles Lakers. He’s playedinmoregames (34) this season than the total minutes (31) he playedall of last season with theBlazers

together prior to this season. But Borrego was familiar with McGowens’game.

“I’ve hadmyeye on him for a while,” Borrego said. “Early on you could seesomething in him. I’ve always liked him from afar Justhis energy every day.He’sa pro. He’sa winner,and Ibelieve in him.”

McGowens, who had played allseason as atwo-way player,was given a standard NBA contract Friday prior to the game against the Milwaukee Bucks.

“I was kinda speechless,” McGowens said. “Just the course of the year has been aheavy grind, day in and day it. Just sticking to the routine and competing any chance Iget. Ijust thankedthe Lord about athousand times.” McGowens is in hisfirst season in New Orleans after playing his first two NBA seasons with the Charlotte Hornets and last season with the Portland Trail Blazers The Pelicans signed himduring the offseason.

The signing itself didn’t garner many headlines, but McGowens has made sure the coaching staff noticed him. He’saveraging 7.9 points and1.9 rebounds thisseason, includinga career-best23 points in games against the Blaz-

Most of his time last season was with theRip CityRemix, the Blazers’ G-League affiliate.But this year,hedidn’tspend any time playing withthe Birmingham Squadron, the Pels’ G-League affiliate. He’sbeen in New Orleans all seasonlong, giving him achance to mesh with his teammates. “It’sabig accomplishment for him to come in here and battle hisway and play as well as he has,” Pelicans interim head coach James Borrego said. “He’searned it. Bottomline. Credit to him. He’s bustedhis tail fromDay One.”

The openrosterspot became available whenthe Pelicans traded Jose Alvaradotothe New York Knicks.The Pelicans received Dalen Terry but waived him the next day, openingaspot for McGowens.Itvalidated McGowens’ decisiontosign with the Pelicans

“I trustedmyself and thought I’d fit wellhere,” McGowens said. “I just trustedmywork.”

McGowens’rookieseason in Charlotte was right after Borregowas firedbythe Hornets, so the two of them hadn’t worked

More importantly,McGowens believes in himself.

His scoring, field goal percentage (47.5%) and 3-point shooting percentage (43.3%) arethe highestofhis career.Hehas started 13 games,including Friday’s loss to the Bucks on the day the Pelicans converted his two-way contract. McGowens had to turn his cellphone off because he was getting bombarded withsomany messagesfromfriends and family members.

“I’ve gota lot of messages to get to,” he said.

McGowens followed up Friday’s game withasolid performance in Saturday’swin over thePhiladelphia 76ers. He came off the bench and finished with 13 points,including knocking down threeofhis four 3-pointers.

His goals for therestofthe season?

“Continue to grow my all-around game,” McGowens said. “On the defensive end and leading into next year,trying to be astaple on defense to help us win games.”

Pelicans

Source:WNBAsaysnew deal by March10toavoid season delay

BY DOUGFEINBERG AP basketball writer

NEW YORK

The WNBA toldthe players’ union that it needs to get adeal in place by March 10tostart the season on time at avirtual collective bargaining agreement negotiating session Monday,a person familiar with the discussionstold

The Associated Press

The person spoke to the AP on condition of anonymity because of the sensitive nature of the negotiations. With an expansion draft for two teams neededtoget done, as well as 80% of the league free agents, there’splenty to get accomplished and little time to do it. Adelay would hurt both sides.

LSU WOMEN

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Koval sparkedLSU’s come-frombehind win over No. 17 Ole Miss on Thursday,and agroup without either one of them laidthe foundation of its beatdown of Missouri on Sunday Forward ZaKiyah Johnson, a 6-foot freshman, anchored the two most productive lineups Mulkey used against Missouri. The one that featured guards Jada Richard,MiLaysia Fulwiley,Flau’jae Johnson and Mikaylah Williams next to her outscored the visiting Tigers 30-10 in the 10 minutes it spent on the floor

That group did most of itsdamage in the first half. Mulkey pivoted to it quickly because Missouri ruled 6-3 starter JordanaReisma out of action on the availabilityreport it released two hours before tipoff.

Mulkey needed asmaller,quicker group of players to match up with the starting lineup Missouri threw out instead, butshe and associate head coach Bob Starkey already had decided to start Joyner “Bob and Iwere like, ‘Wegot a problem here,’ ”Mulkeysaid. “I said, ‘Go ahead with the lineup we had planned to start, and thenwe’ll just adjust and move (Williams) inside with (Johnson) andjust play small.’Itworked, and it was entertaining.”

Mulkey has those options now LSU has played 14 league games and she still isn’trelying on her stars nearly as much as she did in the previous two seasons. Only six Tigers played more than 15 minutes per night in SEC matchups last season. AneesahMorrow, Flau’jae Johnson and Williams each logged more than 33 minutes per game.

Now LSU has eight players who are seeing, on average, more than 15 minutes of run in league play, and none of them are playingmore than 28. That group doesnot include guard BellaHines, afreshman who’sbeginning to carve out aconsistent role in Mulkey’srotation. She didn’tplay more than 14 minutes in any of LSU’sfirst 10 league contests, but now she’s earned more than 15 minutes in three of the last four Williams is playing three fewer minutes and taking fourfewer

The season issupposed to start May 8and every gamemissed is lost revenue, sponsorships, TV money and fansupport.Monday’s meeting was the firstbetween the sides thatinvolved players and the league sincetheymet at the WNBA offices on Feb. 2. Because of the winter storm that hit New York, it was decided to hold the meeting virtually More than50players were on the call, whichlastednearly two hours, theperson said The two sides are still far apart on revenuesharingand housing. Theleaguesaid in the meeting on Monday that it wouldneedtohave at least ahandshake agreement by March 10 for there not to be adelay to the startofthe season.

Theleague, in itslatest proposal that was sent Friday,offered 70% netrevenue forthe players. That came afterthe unionhad asked foranaverage of 27.5%ofthe grossrevenueoverthe course of the CBA, beginning with25% in the first year of the new deal. In its previous offer,the union had asked for an average of more than 30% The league at that pointsaid in a statement the revenue-sharing percentage remainedunrealistic and would cause“hundreds of millions of dollarsoflossesfor our teams.”

Also on Monday,the union confirmed to theAPthatthe WNBA will give itsplayers $8 million from revenuesharing from last season as the league generated enough to triggerrevenue sharing for the

PHOTO By PATRICK DENNIS

LSUfreshmanBella Hines pulls down adefensiverebound in the second half of LSU’s108-55 win over Missouri on Sunday at the Pete Maravich AssemblyCenter

shots per game than shedid last year. Flau’jaeJohnson is taking three fewer shotsper night and playing fivefewer minutes

LSU began SEC playleading the country in bench points. It’snow receiving 39.4 ppg from its reserves, which means it still hasn’t fallen off the top spot.

“You can get really creative,”

ZaKiyah Johnson said. “Everybody on the floor is sprinting. They got adifferent bag, and you just have alot of weapons all the way down the bench,even when you go to the bigs, but when we can get in there andrun,it’salways morefun.”

Conventionalwisdom says that playing smaller lineups hurtsa team’schances of grabbing rebounds.Thatlogic, however,did notapply to LSU’s win over Missouri —one ofthe best rebounding games theNo. 6Tigershave ever

produced.

LSUcorralled awhopping72 boards on Sunday,setting its NCAA-era single-game rebounding record. They pulled 30 of those boards off the offensive glass, two shy of the program record. With only tworegular-season contests left, LSUisoutscoring SECopponents by 23.3 points per 100 possessions, according to Her Hoop Stats. That rating would be the highest theTigers have posted in league play since Mulkey took over in 2021.

What’sdriving that success? Startwith LSU’sadded depthand versatility. It looks like Mulkey is ready touse it in thepostseason.

“We’refortunate to have depth on the perimeter,” Mulkeysaid, “and fortunate that we have acouple perimeter playersthat can go inside and defend.”

first timeinleague history

The players will decide how much eachplayer will receivefromthat distribution. The union has 60 days from Feb. 9, when it wasofficially notified of the revenue-sharing money,tocome up with how it will disperse the funds. That money will be distributed by the teams, whichwill then be reimbursed by the league. Under the 2020CBA that hassinceexpired, players received 50% of shared revenue —defined in the CBA as the amount of revenue that’sabove apredetermined threshold amount minus 30% forexpenses.

Neither theleague northe union would saywhat that thresholdis.

Theleague hashad in nearly allof its proposals that it would do away

MURRAY

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got helped to the locker room with what turned out to be aruptured Achilles. Murray makes his return Tuesday, back at the crime scene where he wasrobbedofmost of his first season in NewOrleans. He can hardly wait.

“Let’sdoit,” Murray said after practiceMonday. “. Whenthis game gets taken away from you andyou love it like Ido, it’s not agreat thing. There’llbesome emotions, but alot of excitement.”

Murray has had to bounce back before.Hemissedthe entire 2018-19season with atorn ACL in his third year withthe San Antonio Spurs. Last season, just 31/2 months afterthe Pelicans acquired him in atrade with the Atlanta Hawks, he fractured his left hand in the season opener Sevendays earlier,his mother had astroke. He leftthe team to be with her,but she insisted he get back forthe opener Then three months later came the Achillesinjury.All of that explainswhy Murray saidona podcast that last season was the worst experience he’shad since coming to the NBA.

“I don’tlike to make excuses, butI wouldn’t wish what Iwent through off the floor on anybody that’sa normal human being that doesn’tplaysports,” Murray said. “So playing sports made it that muchharder.But Itookiton the chin, held my head high, put the work in, and I’m excited to go out there and show all of my supportersand my family that I’m built forit.”

The Pelicans, just 16-42 this season, surely could use his help. And no, notjustthe 17.5 points and 7.4 assists he averaged in the 31 games he played last season. The Pelicanswill count even more on his leadership and ability to playonboth ends of the court.

“Dejountewillraise ourlevel,” Pelicans interim head coach JamesBorrego said.“…He’s worked his tailoff, so there’s probably alittle bit of relief of ‘I’m finally back.’ But morethan anything, Ijust want himtogo outthere and compete and em-

with the threshold needed to be reached for revenue sharing.

In its latest offer,the league said teams would continue to pay for housing for allplayers this season, another person familiar with the negotiationstoldthe AP on Saturday.After that, franchises would payfor housing forplayers on minimum-salary contracts, rookies in their first season and the two developmental players teams would be allowed to have.

The unionhad askedfor teams to continue paying forhousing for players in the first few years of the new agreement, but in the last two years of theCBA the franchises would no longer have to pay for housing forplayers who are making near the maximum salary

brace the moment andbethere with his teammates.”

Pelicans forward Saddiq Bey wasMurray’steammate with the Atlanta Hawks twoseasons ago. Bey suffered atorn ACL that season, so he can relate to what Murray has gone through.

“Once he gets back, everyone is going to look at wins and losses and how we are doing,” Bey said. “But I’m just happy as a mantoanother manseeing him get healthy.(He brings) overall leadership. He’safloorgeneral, andhis wisdomand being able to play both sides of the ball and get people involved and score. He can do everything.”

SomeofMurray’smost important teammates during his rehab were guys who play elsewhere. He kept in constant contact with fellow NBAstars Jayson Tatum, Damian Lillard and Tyrese Haliburton, who allsuffered Achilles injuries last season. They leaned on each other forsupport. Murray never got discouraged. “I’vebeen through so much,” he said. “This is part of the journey.Injuries are apart of sports. It’s not how you fall. It’s how you get back up. For me, it was attacking the processday-by-day andstaying level-headed and tryingtofind somepositiveand funout of it.”

Murray knowshecould have satout these last 24 game, but he refusedtodosobecause he’s just not wired that way.Basketball is his love and he needed to get back to it.

“What I’ve been through, what Igothrough, Iuse that all to fuel the fire,” Murray said.“Icould have sat outand been achump and been like, ‘Nah, I’mnot playing. I’m going to get my money and I’m going to get more rest, more recovery.’But forme, I love the game and Iput myself in aposition to be able to say Iwant to go outand playfor notonly my family and organization but also the city of New Orleans.” That begins Tuesday whenhe plays in his first gameinover a year.Heplans to treat each of these last 24 gamesasifthey were championship games. “Life’sachallenge,” Murray said. “I accept the challenge.”

Email RodWalker at rwalker@ theadvocate.com.

JOHNSON

Reds aceGreene workingtostay healthyin2026

BY JAYCOHEN AP baseball writer

GOODYEAR, Ariz. The Cincinnati Reds like theirchanceswhen Hunter Greene is on the mound. The 6-foot-5 right-handerhas one of baseball’sbest fastballs,togo along with anasty sliderand an improving split-finger fastball.

But keeping him on the mound has been achallenge.

Going into his fifth year in the majors, Greene added morelower-half strengthening exercises to his offseason routine. The end resultofhis durability pursuit could go along way to determining the course of the Reds’ season.

Greene, 26,was selected by Cincinnati withthe No. 2pickin the 2017 amateur draft. After undergoing Tommy Johnsurgery while he wasinthe minors, he earneda spotinthe Cincinnati rotation in spring training in 2022. Greene had his best season in 2024, making theNLAll-Star team forthe first time while going 9-5 with a2.75 ERA in 26 starts. He also had 169 strikeouts in 1501/3 innings, but he also spent timeonthe IL that year with elbow soreness.

last Fridayonthe

LSUgym playingit cautious with injuries

BY REED DARCEY Staff writer

The LSU gymnasts posted a season-highroad score at No. 1 Oklahoma on Friday,but they also picked up acouple of injuries ahead of the meet.

Coach JayClark saidMondaythat junior all-arounder Konnor McClain suffered an arm contusion on the uneven bars in pre-meet warmups He also said that sophomore allarounder KaliyaLincoln started battling inflammation in her Achilles tendon in the days before theNo. 2 Tigers’ road trip. McClain is day-to-day,Clark said.She satout themeetwith the Sooners, while Lincoln performed on vault and balance beam but not on floor.Clark said that LSU will continue to take a cautious approach to herinjury as it readies to competetwice in one weekend —first onFriday against No. 3Alabamainthe Pete Maravich Assembly Center and again on Sunday in the annual PodiumChallenge at Raising Cane’s River Center

“I hope that we’ll do the same thing with (Lincoln) this weekend that we did last weekend,”Clark said, “and that’sreally just outof abundanceofcautionjust because we’ve just got to preserve her “That last stretch, when weget into the postseason, we need that floor routine, and so we’ll do everything we can to make sure that that

RABALAIS

Continued from page1C

UCF before the Irish fell 4-2 in 10 innings. Should Schmidt get bumped up in the LSU weekend rotation?Tap of the brakes time. Friday starter Casan Evans was better in retrospectthan Ifirst thought in a14-7 win against Indiana: fiveinnings, three runs (two earned), just three hits, two walks and four strikeouts. Similar story for Saturday starterCooper Moore against Notre Dame: 52/3 innings, three earned runs, eight hits, onewalk andsix strikeouts.

SAINTS

Continued from page1C

clients ahead of free agency.Will there be ademand for Saints cornerbackAlontae Taylor?Before the Saints opted to keep him at the trade deadline, the Indianapolis Colts and Chicago Bears were reportedly in the mix to trade for him. There should be no shortage of suitors thisspring, but the potential gap in his value will be worth monitoring. The league’s highest-paid nickel cornerback is Chicago’sKylerGordonatthree years, $40 million —good for a $13.3Mannualaverage value. But Taylor,who also has played as an

remains the case.”

LSU put sophomore Lexi Zeiss in thefloorlineupinplace of Lincoln against the Sooners, and shedelivered astrong9.925 score in the first such routine of hercareer

Clarksaid he was impressedwith howthe Tigers responded to the lineup shuffling against Oklahoma.

“They just were matter of fact,”

Clark said,“and that’s good. That’s the mark, Ihope, of ateam that’s mature and that understands what we’re asking of them and handles thosethings.Because circumstances can change quickly,one way or another.”

Chio keepsposting 10s

Only three NCAA gymnasts have earned multiple perfect 10.0 scores this season,and sophomore Kailin Chio is one of them. She picked up 10s on both vault and balance beam on Friday,becoming the first athlete to earntwo perfect scores in one meet thisyear.She now has four on theseason. Team

USA starand UCLA senior Jordan

Chiles is the onlygymnast with more

“There’sjust not awhole lot you can sayother than, Wow,’”Clark said. “I mean, she’soperatingatsuchanefficient, consistent, extremely high level, and seems to really rise to the occasion in momentswhere we need hertobe. Ithink every team needs

Evans’ ERA of 6.48 after two starts is still ayellow caution flag, but there are many lapsleft in this race. The Tigers stillhavetwo nonconference series andchange to figurethings out before openingSoutheastern Conference play March 13 at Vanderbilt. My betis therotation stays the same, but if Schmidt makestwo more starts like this one,look out.

Dardar on radar

Back in the early 80s, my folks sat next to afan in TigerStadium who so loved defensive lineman RamseyDardar he would yell, “Give the ball to Dardar!” Well, these days, give thebat to second baseman Seth Dardar.Asmuchas

outside cornerback, just watched former teammatePaulsonAdebo sign for an average of $18 million last year with the New York Giants. That’squite adifference. The Saints tried to negotiate anew deal with Taylor this past season but didn’treach an agreement. Oldguysrewarded Taylor isn’tthe only Saints defender with apossible complicated negotiation. After bounce-back seasons from Cam Jordan and DemarioDavis, New Orleans is left in atricky spot of how much to pay for past performance when factoring futurecontracts. It’snot often that 36-year-olds get araise in the NFL, but both Jordan and Davis might not be willing to take much

somebody like that.”

Chio said Monday she was surprised that judges deemed her vault worthy of aperfect score Friday.She thinks she’sdone better vaultsthis season.

“I’ve been wanting it for so long,” Chio said with alaugh, “but it was just funny that it came on thatone instead of all the other ones.”

Busy weekend

The string of postseason meets that Clark likestocalla “meat grinder” is right around the corner as there are only threeweeksleft in the regular season.

So taking on two meets in three days, which LSU will do this weekend, is anice way to prepare for not only the SEC championships but alsothe NCAA regionals.

“Our regionalwill be aThursdaySaturday type situation,” Clark said, “assuming we advance. So, it’s just more of asemantic, sort of logistical preparation for thosekinds of thingsthat areonthe horizon.”

Sunday’smeet in the River Center will be staged on apodium —the softer,elevated surface that teams compete on in the NCAA Tournament.

LSU’sperformance in that quad meet can count toward itsnational qualifying score (NQS) as aroad score. No.3Alabama,No. 17 North Carolina and No.27Arizona are also competing in thatmeet,which will begin at 3p.m. Sunday.

The Tigers will host theCrimson Tide at 8:30 p.m. Friday

possible

The fifth-year senior from Mandeville came to LSUthe atypical way:Columbia in Manhattan, New York; then Kansas State in Manhattan, Kansas; andnow home (Big Apple to LittleAppletoBaton Rouge). He’sbeen an instant asset, batting .400 for the season with ateam-high fourdoubles and two homers.

Dardar seems entrenched at second with six starts in the past seven games, including all three in Jacksonville. Yes, he uncorked athrowwellwide of Zach Yorke at first against Notre Dame after making anifty stab on ashift into right field, but overall he looks like the veteran he is

of adiscount this time around. Andifthey don’t, how manyother teams will be interested in them? This week might provide some clarity Dazzling defenders?

The prevailing thought,atleast among draft analysts and other media members, is that the Saints shouldlook to juicetheir offense to surround quarterbackTyler Shough with better weapons. But if that narrative is goingtochange, the combine could be thestart of the shift. This is astrong class of edge rushers —another need for the Saints —and perhaps the Saintswill be tantalized enough by Miami’sRueben Bain, Texas Tech’s David Bailey or OhioState’sArvell

“Definitelyset personal goals,” Greenesaid Sunday.“Youknow for me it’sbeing able to gettoa high amount of innings, obviously strikeouts, all that good stuff, but it’s being able to go out there and stay out there as long as Ican and be healthy andmake all my starts.”

Greene went 7-4 with a2.76 ERA last year, helping Cincinnati earn an NL wild card for its first playoff appearance since 2020. But he was limitedtoa career-low 19 startsand 1072/3 innings.

He wasplaced on the 15-day injured list on May 9with aright groin strain. He returned on May 23 and made three starts before goingback on the IL with the same injury.This time, he was sidelined until Aug. 13. The Reds have adeep rotation that also includesAll-Star lefthanderAndrewAbbott, Nick Lodolo and BradySinger. Rhett Lowderand Chase Burns —two former first-round picks outof Wake Forest University —are in themix forthe fifth spot. Butahealthy Greene takes the group to another level.

“He looks good, he’singood shape,” Cincinnatimanager Terry Francona said. “These guys, they work really hard,theyget after it pretty good.”

“I’m 6-5, 230 pounds. Igot alot of body that’s coming down the hill, alot of force, alot of output,”Greene said. “SoI got to makesure that allthe boxesare checked whenitcomes to, you know,health and output. So it’sa long process, but it’smyjob and Iembrace it.”

Greene describedthe potentialofthe Cincinnati rotation as “through the roof,” and he thinks they feed off each other

“Our relationships are strong and there’sanaccountability factor too withall of us,”hesaid. “I think that helps with the production on the team.”

Greene got ataste of the postseason last year when Cincinnati was swept by the Los Angeles Dodgers in an NL wild card series. He surrenderedfive runs andsix hitsinthreeinnings in Game 1inhis first career playoff start.

Greene, who signed a$53 million, six-year contract with the Reds in April 2023, has been around Cincinnati long enough to have an idea of what along Octoberrun would mean for thecity. The franchise hasn’twon aplayoff gamesince 2012, and it hasn’t advanced in the postseason since 1995.

“I think it’d be very special,” he said. “I mean, therichhistory of Cincinnati and the World Series that they’ve been able to bring to the city,and they deserve it. It’s a baseballcity. Theirheartiswith baseball.”

Measuringstick

So howgood are the Tigers? The offense is outstanding, hitting .367 overall.

Pitching could be atweak better, butitappeared to make progress fromthe opening weekend. And fielding —a.976 percentage so far compared to .981 in 2025 needs abit of polish.

That said, most of LSU’s foes so far have been solid, if not SEC timber. Kent State left a10-7 loss at LSU on Feb. 16 and won two of threeatTennessee. Indiana is not its football team (neither is Notre Dame), but those twoand Central Florida are Power Four programs.

Reese to merit consideration when they’re on the clockatNo. 8come April (ifany of them are stillleft on theboard). There’salso Ohio Statesafety Caleb Downs, whobecomes an intriguing option should Taylor boltinfree agency Kamara buzz NFL.com recently listed Saints running back AlvinKamara as a possible cut candidate, giventhe Saints can save $8.5 millionwith apost-June 1release.But parting ways with Kamara is not as simple as it seems. For one, Kamara’s$18 millioncap hit still wouldbefully on the books until June, so New Orleanswouldn’ttruly benefit from thatmoney until building next season’sroster (or for arare late sum-

LSU could get tripped up between now and Nashville on avisit to UL next week, or aMarch 10 game with Creighton. Likely the Tigers will go into SEC play with one or twolosses, max. Are they ready? Not quite yet. But the building blocks of another stellar team are there.

“The blueprint of our baseball is at avery high level,” Johnson said on his way out of Jacksonville. “Very sustainable.” From the early results, an argument against the Tigers is not sustainable.

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

mersigning). The better question could be whether Kamara is open to staying on apay cut, though it’s unclear whether the Saints have engaged in such discussions. Carr interest

If Derek Carr is serious about coming out of retirement, the combine could be agood way to findout if theinterestismutual —meaning the Saints could reap some return in atrade. The former Saints quarterback said on his podcast that he’d only do it forachancetowin aSuper Bowl, which would limit his market. Will any of those contending teams want to take achance on a soon-to-be 34-year-old coming off amajor shoulder injury?

THE VARSITY ZONE

Jefferson Rise set for first playoff run

BY CHRISTOPHER DABE

Staff writer

Joshua Wilkins felt the buzz of

his phone and saw three letters from his coach: MVP

The 6-foot-1 senior guard had been named District 9-3A’s most valuable player But as much as the honor meant, Wilkins was thinking about something bigger — helping Jefferson Rise host its first playoff game. When Wilkins sent a thank-you message, head coach Da’Vanti Bryant responded: “That’s for you, son. It’s your name on there You put in the work.” Wilkins replied, “Thank you for believing in me.” Belief wasn’t always easy to come by at the Harvey-based school that operates inside a remodeled Winn-Dixie grocery store Jefferson Rise graduated its first class in 2022 and didn’t win a game in its inaugural varsity season. Now the Blazers are playoff bound, and they’ll host the game inside their 300-seat gym with eight rows of bleachers lined against one side of the court

When the LHSAA brackets were released Monday, the 15th-seeded Blazers (17-8) saw their name in the Division III select field for a

first-round game against No. 18

Notre Dame (11-8)

“When we started, we had a goal to get to the playoffs and see how far we could go as a team,” Wilkins said. “The whole season, we stayed

close and built a bond that nobody could break.”

There were early signs this season could be special, starting with Avan Richardson’s overtime buzzer beater to defeat L.B. Landry in

HIGH SCHOOL BASKETBALL PLAYOFFS

Watson, Episcopal thwart Newman

Senior tallies 32 to end Greenies’ season

BY LES EAST Contributing writer

Episcopal knew senior guard Caroline Watson would be ready. So did Newman. Watson, who recently became the fifth player in Episcopal’s history to score 2,000 career points, added 32 points to her total and the No. 9-seeded Knights defeated the eighth-seeded Greenies 47-38 in a Division III select regional playoff game Monday night at Newman

“That’s about (normal) for her,” Knights coach Taylor Wharton said. “I knew she would be ready. She’s a senior. She doesn’t want to go home.” Watson and Episcopal won’t be going home just yet because they advanced to face top-seeded Lafayette Christian in the quarterfinals later this week.

“She’s a very good player,” Newman coach Tracy Blackerby said

of Watson “and she went at us.”

While Watson mostly took care of the offense, Episcopal’s signature 1-2-2 zone defense took care of the other end of the floor Newman was unable to get the ball inside with any consistency, and the Knights never had to extend the zone because the Greenies made just 3-of-27 3-pointers.

“Our shots didn’t fall,” Blackerby said. “We couldn’t score in the second and third quarters.”

Episcopal had a 10-point halftime lead, but the Greenies’ Jordin Daniels scored from the lane for the first points of the third quarter They crept within 28-23 but didn’t score during the final 4:30 of the period.

Watson made a 3-pointer and added two free throws during a 7-0 run that gave the Knights a 35-23 lead going into the fourth quarter Madison Williams, who played just three minutes in the first half because of foul trouble, scored Newman’s first two baskets of the fourth and added another later, but Watson matched her six points to

keep Episcopal in control.

“It was hard for us to get into a rhythm with Madison playing just three minutes in the first half,” Blackerby said. Williams and Piper Christian finished with 11 points each to lead the Greenies.

The lead changed hands five times and the score was tied twice in the first quarter before Lilly Keyser, who finished with nine points, made a 3-pointer to help the Knights hold a 13-12 lead at the end of the period.

Watson scored five points in the second quarter before Newman scored and she finished with 10 in the period as a 13-4 edge pushed Episcopal’s lead to 26-16 at halftime.

The Greenies’ attempts to come back were hampered by them being out-rebounded 21-7 in the second half after having a 14-13 edge in the first half.

“They’re a good team on offense and defense, especially in their gym,” Watson said of Newman. “We knew we would have to come out strong, and we did.”

the second game.

“We rushed the floor, and the coach, he rushed the floor,” Wilkins said “It was crazy Nobody thought we were going to beat them.”

The MLK Classic victory in January against McMain also turned heads. Then came the rivalry win against Young Audiences.

“It’s been a nonstop grind,” Bryant said. “Last year we lost the district championship to Thomas Jefferson. I hate to be defeated.”

Wilkins is a three-sport standout as the starting quarterback in football and a district champion sprinter

“He takes over the game,” Bryant said. “This boy plays like a madman as a quarterback in football. He probably scored 15 touchdowns this year, running over everybody Anybody in his way is moving out of the way.”

Wilkins isn’t carrying the Blazers alone. Averaging 22 points per game, he’s joined by junior Tyler Ranson, who scores 17 per contest. Juniors Landon Cockerham and Jhayre Pennwright are leading rebounders.

“I show up for my teammates,” Wilkins said. “I wouldn’t want anybody to show up and give half effort. I show up for my team and show up for my coaches.”

From winless beginnings to playoff basketball, Jefferson Rise has proven what belief can build.

Contact Christopher Dabe at cdabe@theadvocate.com

Carver girls pull away in second half to top Willow

BY SPENCER URQUHART Staff writer

No 13-seeded Willow trailed by just four points at halftime, but a strong second-half scoring effort from No. 4-seeded Carver resulted in a 56-40 win for the Rams on Monday at Carver to advance to the Division II select girls quarterfinals. Carver outscored Willow by 12 points in the second half, which included a pair of 8-0 runs. Willow cut the lead to nine points in the closing minutes, but a 7-0 Carver run followed to seal the win.

“The girls did a good job of staying disciplined,” Carver coach Blair Brinson said. “The intensity was high early on, but they stayed solid throughout the duration of the game. Everybody’s record is 0-0, so it’s about staying poised and understanding that it’s a marathon and not a race.” Carver junior Raven Harrison finished with 10 points, nine of which came in the second half. She also finished with seven rebounds, which were tied for second on the team with junior Amiya Montgomery and senior Tyroland Day

“Coming out in the second half, we talked in the locker room about needing to step up our game,” Harrison said. “That’s what I did.”

Montgomery and sophomore

Legend Washington scored a team-high 13 points for Carver Montgomery finished with a team-high five assists, and Washington had a team-high four steals.

Day was Carver’s fourth double-digit scorer, finishing with

11 points off of the bench. She played extended minutes with junior Tommia Johnson in foul trouble.

“(Day) came in and did exactly what we needed her to do,” Brinson said. “She put us on her back when we needed her most. Our seniors delivered for us. Amyrie Dixon played her heart out for us on defense.” Johnson managed to pull down a team-high eight rebounds despite playing reduced minutes. Dixon had four points and a steal. Willow freshman Sa’Niyah White recorded a double-double, finishing with 23 points and 11 rebounds to lead her team in both categories. Senior Michaela Jenkins was second on the team with 12 points and seven rebounds.

“We have a tight rotation,” Willow coach Sean Joseph said “We had opportunities, and (Carver) took advantage of us being a little tired. (White) is a very good player She’s still learning the game and has a whole lot of potential ahead of her.”

Carver will be back at home later this week for a quarterfinal matchup against the winner of No. 5-seeded Buckey and No. 12-seeded Loranger The winner advances to the semifinal round, which takes place next week at the University Center in Hammond.

Carver (24-4) has won its last 11 games Willow (14-9) had won its last five games prior to Tuesday’s second-round loss.

Vonn says surgery saved left leg from being amputated after crash

By The Associated Press

VAIL, Colo. American skier Lindsey Vonn says she nearly lost her left leg following a frightening crash in the women’s downhill at the Milan Cortina Olympics.

Vonn shared in an Instagram post on Monday that her injuries went far beyond the complex tibia fracture in the leg she initially revealed after clipping a gate and sailing off course just 13 seconds into her run on Feb. 8. The 41-year-old Vonn said the trauma from the crash led to compartment syndrome in the leg Compartment syndrome involves excessive pressure building up inside a muscle, either from bleeding or swelling. High pressure restricts blood flow and can lead

to permanent injury if not treated quickly

“When you have so much trauma to one area of your body so that there’s too much blood and it gets stuck and it basically crushes everything,” Vonn said.

Vonn credited Dr Tom Hackett, an orthopedic surgeon who works for Vonn and Team USA, for conducting a fasciotomy to salvage her leg.

“He filleted it open, let it breathe, and he saved me,” she said.

Vonn noted that Hackett was only in Cortina because she was competing after tearing the ACL in her left knee shortly before the Olympics.

“If I hadn’t had done that, Tom wouldn’t have been there (and he) wouldn’t have been able to save

my leg,” she said.

Vonn, who said she has been discharged from the hospital also broke her right ankle in the crash.

“It has been quite the journey and by far the most extreme and painful and challenging injury I’ve ever faced in my entire life times 100,” she said.

Vonn underwent multiple surgeries during a week-long stay at a hospital in Treviso, Italy, following the accident. She credited both Hackett and Italian doctors for their efforts to repair her leg, which she said was “in pieces” following the accident.

She says she struggled with pain and blood loss in the immediate aftermath and had to receive a transfusion to help raise her hemoglobin levels.

LIVING

CARNIVAL

IN RETROSPECT

Iwas a meerkatfor MardiGras. My youngest daughter was mortified.

Agirl on the cusp of 14 is not thrilled by the prospect of her father going out in public as a meerkat. Not even on Mardi Gras.

Keith Spera

Celia was even more mortified that her meerkat dad would be driving her and two friends to the parades: “If we get in acar crash, I’m going to say we were kidnapped.”

The final morning of the Carnival season required digging deep. The previous days and nights involvedhosting aprocession of houseguests, dancing on an Orleans Avenue porchafter Endymion and giving late-night rides to my 18-year-old Sophie, brieflyback in town to showher University of Tennessee sorority sisters the meaning of laissez les bons tempsrouler Come Fat Tuesday,mywife was Mardi Gras’d-out. She would spend the day at home. Mostly in bed.

PROVIDED PHOTO

Staff writer Keith Spera costumed as ameerkat on St. Charles Avenue during theRex parade on Mardi Gras.

It was up to me to make Mardi Gras happen for four teenagers: Celia, her brother Samand her friends Addi and Ariel. As Zulu rolled at 8a.m., I was still cooking pancakes and bacon to the soundtrack of the 1976 Mardi Gras Records compilation album “Mardi Gras in New Orleans.” If “Go to the Mardi Gras,” “Carnival Time,” “Big Chief,” “New Suit” and “Second Line Part 1,” all on pristine vintage vinyl, don’tget you in the spirit, nothing will. Breakfast served, Idisappeared and reemerged as The Meerkat:A head covering topped by abug-eyed face and tuft of fur.Afuzzy full-body suit with astout, conical,battering ram of atail. Floppy, awkward paws.

ä See MARDIGRAS, page 2D

The Metropolitan Opera recently announced it will present 17 productions, its lowest totalina nontruncated season since the company movedtoLincoln Center in 1966.

MINCHILLO

JOHN

ä To seea more complete list of theother Louisianans whohave competed on “The Voice,”their hometownsand howtheyplaced, GO TO TINyURL. COM/2PVMAyCV

PROVIDED PHOTOS/ STAFF ILLUSTRATION

BY JUDYBERGERON| Staff writer

Twenty-eight seasonsin, “TheVoice” has yet to crownaLouisiana winner. But thestate keeps sending singersdeep into thecompetition— and turning national exposure into momentum long after thecameras stop rolling.

The 29th season of “The Voice” premieres 8p.m. Monday on NBC with judgesJohn Legend, Kelly Clarkson andAdamLevine. The show streamson Peacock theday after airing.

MeghanLinsey came oh-so-close to winning “The Voice” in 2015, finishing as runner-up. It was abanner Season 8for four other fellowLouisianans whoalso fared well in thecompetition, among them NewOrleans’ Tonya Boyd-Cannon. ä See 'THE VOICE', page 2D

By The Associated Press

NEWYORK Despite encouraging box office figures for the season’sfirst half, thefinancially strapped Metropolitan Operascaledback its 2026-27 schedule with its fewestproductions in at least 60 years. The Met announced Thursday it will present17productions, itslowesttotal in anontruncated season sincethe company moved to Lincoln Center in 1966. There are just five newstagings, andrevivals of three popular operas account for71ofthe 187 individual operaperformances (38%): Puccini’s“Tosca”and “La Bohème,” and Verdi’s“Aida.” “Itmakes moresense forus, andthis is an experiment —to present these works in extended runs,” Metgeneral manager Peter Gelbsaid. “And by double-casting them, it also is more economic in termsof how manydifferentshows are playing in one week.” Ticket sales of 72% this season are up from 70% in the first half of 2024-25. “Basically,it’sback to

ä See OPERA, page 2D

By The Associated Press

Today is Tuesday, Feb. 24, the 55th day of 2026. There are 310 days left in the year

Today in history: On Feb. 24, 1868, the U.S House of Representatives impeached President Andrew Johnson by a vote of 126-47 following his attempted dismissal of Secretary of War Edwin M. Stanton; Johnson was later acquitted by the Senate by a single vote.

Also on this date:

In 1803, in its landmark Marbury v. Madison decision, the U.S. Supreme Court established the foundational principle of judicial review of the constitutionality of laws and statutes.

In 1942, the SS Struma, a charter ship attempting to carry nearly 800 Jewish refugees from Romania to British-mandated Palestine, was torpedoed by a Soviet submarine in the Black Sea; all but one of the refugees died.

In 1981, a jury in White Plains, New York, found Jean Harris guilty of second-degree murder in the fatal shooting of “Scarsdale Diet” author Dr. Herman Tarnower (Sentenced to 15 years to life in prison, Harris was granted clemency by New York Gov Mario Cuomo in December 1992.)

In 1988, in a ruling that expanded legal protections for parody and satire, the Supreme Court unanimously overturned a $200,000 award that the Rev Jerry Falwell had won against Hustler magazine and its publisher Larry Flynt.

In 1991, the United States began

MARDI GRAS

Continued from page 1D

Maybe I was Timon from “The Lion King.” Maybe I was just a generic meerkat in prescription Ray-Bans.

Sam first wore the costume in a school play I’d insisted on ordering a size big enough for me to borrow

After a brief outing on Halloween, The Meerkat made its formal debut, like many debutantes, on Mardi Gras.

It takes a meerkat

The first stop was a grocery store. Celia was too embarrassed to accompany The Meerkat inside. Only Addi tagged along

A woman in another checkout line asked loud enough for the entire store to hear: “What are YOU supposed to be?”

A meerkat. See my tail?

She peered at the appendage: “The tail is key.”

A couple of ladies senior enough to have seen Louis Armstrong reign as Zulu’s king in 1949 smiled in approval. Back in the car, tail tucked to the side, WWOZ-FM broadcast “Mardi Gras Mambo,” the seasonal classic by Art Neville and the Hawketts. Instead of “It takes a cool cat to blow a horn,” Sam sang, “It takes a meerkat to blow a horn.”

He was immediately promoted to Favorite Child Status.

Driving out of Lakeview, a critical strategic decision loomed: should we get off the Pontchartrain Expressway at Howard Avenue and approach the parade route from Uptown, or keep going downtown?

I opted for downtown. But the Loyola and St. Charles off-ramps were closed and dozens of cars clogged the Tchoupitoulas exit.

So we continued across the Crescent City Connection for an unplanned West Bank detour, wasting valuable Mardi Gras minutes.

The Meerkat is a fool, I thought to myself.

We U-turned, crossed back over the Mississippi and discovered that the Tchoupitoulas off-ramp coming from the West Bank was totally free of traffic.

The Meerkat is a genius!

We parked just five blocks off the parade route at Constantinople and Chestnut and set out for St. Charles Avenue.

‘That’s embarrassing’ Oaks are not a meerkat’s natural habitat, but we settled in on the lava-like flow of a giant tree’s roots. A 5-year-old boy in a purple green and gold tie tried to guess my species. “An otter?”

Close, young sir, but not quite.

In their crisp white militarystyle uniforms, the Ross Volunteers from Texas A&M University, my alma mater, led the Rex parade. A chaperone who graduated a decade after I did eyed my costume: “That must be hot.”

ground operations in the Gulf War by entering Iraqi-held Kuwait.

In 2008, Cuba’s parliament named Raul Castro president, ending nearly 50 years of rule by his brother, Fidel, who announced days earlier that he would not seek reelection. Raul Castro served as president until April 2018.

In 2011, Discovery, the world’s most traveled spaceship, thundered into orbit for the final time, heading toward the International Space Station on a journey marking the beginning of the end of the shuttle era.

In 2020, Hollywood movie mogul Harvey Weinstein was convicted of rape and sexual assault in New York and was led off to prison in handcuffs in a pivotal moment for the #MeToo movement. An appeals court later threw out the verdict and ordered a new trial, but Weinstein remained behind bars after other convictions.

In 2022, Russia began a fullscale invasion of Ukraine, launching airstrikes on cities and military bases and sending troops and tanks from multiple directions.

Today’s birthdays: Actor Dominic Chianese is 95. Nike co-founder Phil Knight is 88. Actor Barry Bostwick is 81. Actor Edward James Olmos is 79. Musician George Thorogood is 76. Baseball Hall of Famer Eddie Murray is 70. Actor Billy Zane is 60. Boxing Hall of Famer Floyd Mayweather Jr is 49. Tennis Hall of Famer Lleyton Hewitt is 45 Actor Daniel Kaluuya is 37. Singer-songwriter Domenic Innarella is 15.

No, sir meerkats are cool by nature.

Dancing to a marching band, I swung my massive tail. It whacked Celia on the legs. “Will you stop? That’s embarrassing.”

That’s the point.

“That’s enough from you,” she replied, sounding like the parent.

Most Rex riders didn’t seem to know what to make of this adultsized male meerkat They preferred to toss beads to children and young women

The boy who thought The Meerkat was an otter blew a soccer horn in my ears.

“That horn isn’t going to make it home, is it?” I asked his father

The last one didn’t,” he replied.

A woman in a “Krewe of Peniston” jacket asked permission to stand in front of us to see a friend on a float. She turned out to be the nurse at a summer camp Sam attends. New Orleans is especially small when everyone is on the streets.

Celia, Addi and Ariel popped over to the neutral ground side to find a friend of Ariel’s mom on float 19. They returned laden with temporary treasures.

As Rex wound down, we sat on the oak tree’s roots and snacked on sandwiches. Curb sludge stuck to The Meerkat’s paws

The kids were psyched for the truck parades after Rex because the riders throw all sorts of stuff. Addi would successfully plead with an Elk’s Krewe of Orleanians rider for a Baby Yoda stuffie, the prized catch of the day

But The Meerkat’s tolerance for semi-truck airhorn blasts was finite. After the 119 truck floats of Elk’s, it was time to call it a Carnival.

Hunger trumps embarrassment

In the car, the kids lobbied for fast food A deal was offered: we’ll stop at the Popeyes at Carrollton Avenue and Earhart Boulevard, but only if everyone goes in with The Meerkat. Celia’s hunger trumped her embarrassment. She agreed Cars in the drive-thru line backed up onto Carrollton. As we waited to pull into the parking lot, a woman sitting on the sidewalk with all her earthly possessions in bags spotted The Meerkat driving a Mazda and cracked up.

“You’re cute!” she shouted, then requested a large order of red beans and rice.

Inside the Popeyes, no one batted an eye at the meerkat in their midst. The lesson for the kids? Just be yourself especially on Mardi Gras.

Back outside, The Meerkat presented hot red beans and rice to the lady on the sidewalk. She was grateful and greatly amused

When she tells the tale of a meerkat buying her lunch, people will think she’s crazy But it wasn’t crazy It was Mardi Gras.

Email Keith Spera at kspera@ theadvocate.com.

OPERA

Continued from page 1D

pre-pandemic levels,” Gelb said. “We’re not grossing as much money because the average price per ticket is slightly less than it was, because we have a younger audience and more discounted tickets.

Mason Bates’ “The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & Clay,” which opened the current season in its world premiere, sold 84% of tickets in a success rate that prompted the Met to schedule an extra four performances this month.

“One of my goals at the Met is to stimulate new audiences with new works,” Gelb said. “This one was one of the most successful we’ve presented so far.”

“Kavalier” was followed by an English-language holiday time staging of Mozart’s “The Magic Flute” (83%), Bellini’s “I Puritani” (82%), Puccini’s “Turandot” (77%), Puccini’s “Madama Butterfly” (74%), “The Gershwin’s Porgy and Bess” (73%), and Donizetti’s “La Fille du Régiment,” Bizet’s “Carmen,” Bellini’s “La Sonnambula” and “Bohème” (68% each).

‘THE VOICE’

Continued from page 1D

Fast forward to Season 25, when Louisiana’s Karen Waldrup placed fifth and Zoe Levert reached the top 12.

Last season, Acadiana’s Dustin Dale Gaspard brought something new to “The Voice,” wowing the judges in his blind audition by singing Sam Cooke’s “Bring It On Home To Me” in both English and Cajun French. He made it to the knockouts round before being eliminated.

Here, we catch up with BoydCannon, Levert and Gaspard, and give a glimpse of what those five Louisianans from Season 8 have done post-”The Voice.”

‘She is unafraid and she’s bold.’

When someone tells Boyd-Cannon she’s a busy woman, she’ll quickly correct with, “No, I’m blessed.”

According to the Mississippiborn-and-Louisiana-raised BoydCannon, 46, the blessings have only multiplied since her 2015 appearance on “The Voice.” The NBC singing competition wasn’t her first stop on the road to national TV She had pursued “Star Search,” “Showtime at the Apollo” and “American Idol.” She was turned away from the last one not because she lacked an impressive voice, but for being “too gospel.”

However, Boyd-Cannon, who grew up in New Orleans’ Lower 9th Ward, had early success on “The Voice” with soul, pop, rock, gospel and rhythm-and-blues performances. She advanced to the live playoffs, when contestants were trimmed from 20 to 12, before being eliminated.

At one point, her coach, Maroon 5’s Adam Levine, had this to say: “She is unafraid and she’s bold. The No. 1 one thing I try to tell everybody else on my team, do what Tonya does.”

“That makes me feel amazing, to know that someone, that he saw me in that light, because it’s such a great opportunity to be able to do what I love to do, be bold and just to take a chance,” she said.

Nevertheless, Boyd-Cannon needed time to heal post-”The Voice,” leaning on the words of another of the show’s four coaches.

“I recalled something Pharrell (Williams, singer, songwriter and record producer) told me on that same day (of her elimination). He said, ‘Tonya, this is your springboard. Don’t let nobody take this moment from you,’” she said. “And so I left remembering that.”

Following that pause, her music picked back up in a big way Since 2015, Boyd-Cannon has toured around the globe, released multiple singles and albums. She also teaches voice in the Black American music program at Tulane University as an adjunct professor, at an after-school program at the Leah Chase School, and at a vocal workshop at the Jazz and Heritage Center

She described her most recent record, 2025’s “The Cluster,” as “a Dear Tonya letter.” Her latest single, the lively fun “Everywhere Else It’s Tuesday,” dropped just before Mardi Gras.

She currently has 21,000 followers on Facebook and 27,100 on Instagram. Levert makes her move

Things have been moving quickly for folk/pop/contemporary Christian artist Levert since her move to Nashville, Tennessee, last year The New Orleans native and former Baton Rouge resident, 23,

Lagging were Mozart’s “Don Giovanni” and Strauss’ “Arabella” (64% each) and Giordano’s “Andrea Chenier” (57%). Next season opens on Sept. 22 with a new production of Verdi’s “Macbeth” starring soprano Lise Davidsen and directed by Louisa Proske. Composer Missy Mazzoli’s “Lincoln in the Bardo,” based on George Saunders’ novel, has its world premiere on Oct. 19 and stars Christine Goerke, Stephanie Blythe, Anthony Roth Costanzo and Peter Mattei in a staging directed by Lileana Blain-Cruz. There are three new-to-the Met productions: Janácek’s “Jenufa” starring Asmik Grigorian in a Claus Guth staging that debuted at London’s Royal Opera in 2021 (Nov 16); Puccini’s “La Fanciulla del West” with Sondra Radvanovsky and SeokJong Baek in a Richard Jones staging that premiered at the English National Opera in 2014 (Dec. 31); and the company premiere of Kevin Puts’ “Silent Night” featuring Elza van den Heever and Rolando Villazon in a James Robinson staging first seen at the Houston Grand Opera last month (March 8, 2027).

A gala with more than two dozen stars is scheduled for May 25,

By ROBIN MILLER Former Louisiana ‘The Voice’ contestants Karen Waldrup, left, and Zoe Levert duet on the Chris Stapleton ballad ‘Tennessee Whiskey’ during a past show of Waldrup’s at the Manship Theatre in Baton Rouge.

has signed with By Design music company and WME, a talent and booking agency She’s writing and releasing songs, scoping out gigs and mapping her future in Music City

Reflecting on Season 25 of “The Voice,” where she reached the top 12 in 2024, Levert calls the experience “incredible.”

The then-20 year old, in what was essentially her stage debut, impressed the judges and the voting viewers at home with her spins on songs like “Cowboy Take Me Away” by The Chicks, Little Big Town’s “Better Man” and “Iris” by the Goo Goo Dolls.

“It was my first time really performing on a stage like that. I had to learn how to perform and how to be captivating on stage,” she said.

With John Legend as her coach, Levert says the many vocal coaches and choreographers put her through what she calls “artist boot camp.” She had a crash course in the facets of the music industry, building a brand and becoming an artist.

Levert adds that she feels like she thrived the most on the singing competition series when she started being herself requesting songs that she loved and talking about her faith.

“I definitely carry that into my career now; just trying to be who I am and who God designed me to be and tell stories that I’m passionate about,” she said.

Those stories surface in the three singles Levert has dropped in the last five months, including this month’s breakup song, “sharing Jesus with an ex.” Now happily married to fellow musician Ryan Turner, she reached into her past for inspiration.

“I remember when I was younger, going through a really bad breakup and having this temporary thought of, ‘I feel like Jesus would be on my side in this breakup,’ which isn’t exactly fair to the guy that I ended the relationship with,” she explained. “The song is kind of a sarcastic, funny way to deal with that feeling of wishing Jesus would only take your side, especially when it’s a guy that didn’t treat you super well.”

Levert initially posted the song on TikTok, attracting millions of views With the amount of people who were relating to the story, she decided to release the song with her label.

The singer-songwriter’s other two recent singles are “Custody,” released in October — a song about who gets custody of coffee shops and friend groups after a breakup — and “Dear Carpenter,” released

2027, to mark the company’s 60th season at Lincoln Center

“We’re in a kind of golden age of opera singing,” Gelb said. “The only difference between today and 30 or 40 years ago is that 30 or 40 years ago opera was much more in the cultural mainstream.”

“Lincoln” was not included among the eight simulcasts to move theaters due to a post-pandemic drop in audience.

“A title that is unknown, even with whatever maximum efforts of marketing and publicity that are done, will underperform to a degree where it is not really financially viable for the movie theaters or for us,” Gelb said.

A Simon McBurney staging of Mussorgsky’s “Khovanshchina” was postponed as part of budget tightening that included 22 layoffs and 4-15% temporary salary cuts.

“Unfortunately, I have to wear two hats,” Gelb said. “I have to wear my artistic hat, and I have to wear my financial hat.”

Next season will be Gelb’s 20th anniversary season as general manager and he says he intends to retire when his current contract expires in 2030.

“That certainly is our current plan,” Gelb said.

in December

“In the Bible when we talk about how Jesus was a carpenter and a craftsman, there’s gotta be something there with him being a carpenter and him fixing things and how the love of Jesus can fix and heal us,” Levert said. “Instead of saying, ‘Dear God,’ I say ‘Dear Carpenter,’ and I use the language of fixing and refining and rebuilding.”

Plans for an album from Levert in the near future are still fluid. For now, she and her team are focused on producing one song at a time. Levert currently has 1,000 followers on Facebook and 26,200 on Instagram.

Gaspard on the road again

Acadiana’s Gaspard can sum up the difference in his music career since competing on “The Voice” last fall in one word: volume.

“Nothing has changed except the volume, you know? Everyone is finally paying attention, so I have opportunities that I’ve never had before,” Gaspard, 33, said by phone on Monday “And the frequency of which those doors open is a little more often, but besides that, I’m still performing as much as I can, playing as often wherever I can to wherever people will have me.”

On Lundi Gras, that “wherever” was the 20th annual Swamp Pop Reunion Show in Ville Platte. The Cow Island native performed three songs: Rod Bernard’s “Allons Danser Colinda,” Van Broussard’s “Feed the Flame” and a reprisal of “Bring It On Home To Me.” Soon, he’ll do 10 days of shows on Prince Edward Island, off Nova Scotia. Gaspard will follow that with a four-week tour across British Columbia.

Audiences at these above-theborder performances aren’t like back home, Gaspard has observed.

“Oh, far off rowdy I hate to use the word respectful, but it’s just a different environment,” he said. “People are there to consume music, not to be entertained by it. It’s not like a background feature of the culture or atmosphere It’s actually the feature that you’re going to witness, you know? That’s the biggest difference.”

Likewise, song choices vary greatly while in Canada from Lafayette on Saturday night.

“When I’m there, I’m doing folk music and telling stories. When we’re playing somewhere here out on Saturday night, we’re trying to keep the people on the dance floor,” said Gaspard.

Gaspard says he “had one of the best times of my life” while working with the coaches on “The Voice.” The main lesson he took away from the experience is that all artists, no matter where they are, have the same passion, sacrifice and humility to share their craft with the world.

Gaspard, who’s released a few singles, also hopes to make an album happen. Meanwhile, his fan base has grown exponentially since his global exposure on “The Voice.” Tens of thousands of followers on every platform, videos viewed by millions of people across the world and many requests to perform and produce new music.

“And I’m hoping to find a way to keep them all satisfied because it feels like a lot of pressure,” he said. “And it’s hard to keep up with when there’s so many people that you care about because they care about you.”

Gaspard currently has 51,000 followers on Facebook and 21,000 on Instagram.

Email Judy Bergeron at jbergeron@theadvocate.com.

PISCES (Feb. 20-March 20) Embrace change. Check out your options, and make choices that allow you to grow and excel. Know when to walk away from restrictive situations and toward the happiness you deserve.

ARIES (March 21-April 19) Spend your money wisely. Be creative in your thought process when making home improvements or dealing with institutions or agencies. Set high standards and fulfill your promises.

TAURUS (April 20-May 20) Reconfigure your plans to suit demands. Being receptive to whatever comes your way and able to step up and lead quickly will pay off Personal and financial gain are within reach.

GEMINI (May 21-June 20) Put your energy into something that offers high returns Refuse to let anyone compromise your emotional or physical health and wellbeing. Know when to say no and walk away.

CANCER (June 21-July 22) Check out what's available for you professionally Consider how to market yourself for a position that interests you. Follow the path that leads to your happiness.

LEO (July 23-Aug. 22) You'll feel good if you give back. Donate, volunteer or help people who appear to be struggling. A kind word or gesture is all it takes to make the world a better place.

VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22) Don't let your emotions stop you from doing what's right. Set high standards and pursue the path that is most meaningful to

you. It's time to expand your interests, friendships and prospects.

LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 23) Set a budget and stick to it. You'll have more willpower than usual, so set your sights high, and don't stop until the results satisfy you. Think big, but live and operate within your means.

SCORPIO (Oct. 24-Nov. 22) Hunker down and tidy up loose ends before heading out into a social setting. Let your charm, knowledge and experience open doors to new friendships, possibilities and prospects.

SAGITTARIUS (Nov 23-Dec 21) Use your imagination and rearrange your space to make it more convenient Bringing in additional income by doing something you enjoy or by selling items you no longer need or use will be liberating.

CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19) It's up to you to discover opportunities and to make things happen. Take responsibility for your happiness and financial wellbeing, and you'll find it easier to move forward.

AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 19) Rethink how or where you want to live. A change at home can create a new income source. Follow your heart, your dreams and your passion. Explore the possibilities.

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. Theobject is to place the numbers 1to9 in the empty squares so that each row, each column and each 3x3 box contains the same number only once. Thedifficulty level of thesudoku increases from monday to sunday.

Yesterday’s Puzzle Answer

Bridge

BY PHILLIP ALDER

Supposedly, confession is good for the soul. But Peter De Vries, anovelist and an editor who died in 1993, said, “Confession is good for the soul only in the sense that atweed coat is good for dandruff.”

Regardless,Iwillconfesstoanerrorin today’s deal. Look at the South hand. You open one spade and partner raises to two spades. What would you do now?

Iwas in Phoenixfor the Fall North American Championships, playing for afew hours with friends. North was Eddie Kantar, atwo-time world championandanexcellentteacherandauthor We were playing against Eddie’s wife, Yvonne,andVinitaGupta,whowasfresh from winning the Baze Senior Knockout Teams, her first national title. When Kantar raised to twospades, I thought Iwould keep my heart suit hidden, so jumped to four spades. Error! Gupta led the diamond six. Iput in dummy’s 10 and ruffedEast’s queen. Then Iled my low club, but West, who couldseethreemajor-suitwinners,went inwithheraceandshiftedtoalowspade.

Ihad to lose two spades, one heart and one club. If Ihad sensibly rebid three hearts, North would have raised to four hearts. Then, it is true, Imight have bid again, becauseNorthcouldhaveheld,forexample,king-thirdofspadesandking-fifthof hearts, when six hearts would have been excellent. But we would have stopped in five hearts. Then, after Idrove out the club ace, cashed the heart ace, and discarded two spades on the king-queen of clubs, aspade-diamond crossruff would have produced 11 tricks. ©2026 by nEa, inc.,dist. By andrews mcmeel syndication

wuzzles

Each Wuzzle is aword riddle which creates adisguised word, phrase, name, place, saying, etc. For example: nOOn gOOD =gOOD aFTErnOOn

Previous answers:

word game

InstRuctIons: 1. Wordsmustbeoffour or more letters.2.Words that acquire four letters by the addition of “s,” suchas“bats” or “dies,” are not allowed. 3. additional words made by adding a“d” or an “s” may not be used. 4. proper nouns, slang words, or vulgar or sexually explicitwords are not allowed.

toDAY’sWoRD WAtcHFuL: WACH-ful: Carefully observant or attentive.

Average mark 15 words

Time limit 25 minutes

Can you find 22 or more wordsinWATCHFUL?

YEstERDAY’sWoRD —VItIAtEs

vase vast vest visa vise visit vista vita vitiate ivies taste teat test east sate save seat site stat state stave stet

today’s thought “Give us help from trouble: for vainisthe help of man. Psalms 108:12

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