COASTAL LAWSUITS: LANDRY SAYS ‘FINAL SETTLEMENT’ REACHED WITH EXXON 3A THE
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W e d n e s d ay, J u n e 24, 2026
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ELECTION 2026
Winner of Democrat primary will make history STAFF PHOTOS By LESLIE WESTBROOK
Lafayette Parish Mayor-President Monique Boulet helps firefighters load flood relief supplies into a trailer Tuesday at the Central Fire Station in downtown Lafayette. The Lafayette Fire Department collected supplies from area residents and businesses over the past week to aid in the recovery of people affected by recent flooding in Avoyelles Parish.
LENDING A HELPING HAND ABOVE: Jeff Bourgeois and other firefighters load cases of water into a trailer. LEFT: Fire Chief Earl Borden and other firefighters load flood relief supplies.
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Davis or Crockett will be first Black U.S. Senate campaign finalist in La. since Reconstruction
BY TYLER BRIDGES Staff writer
One of two men who grew up in rural northeast Louisiana will make history Saturday by becoming the first Black U.S. Senate campaign finalist in Louisiana since Reconstruction. Jamie Davis, a farmer from tiny Tensas Parish, is vying for the Democratic Party Senate nomination on Saturday against Gary Crockett, a Crockett business owner in New Orleans who is originally from Madison Parish. Davis is heavily favored in the runoff. He nearly captured the May 16 primary outright, has far more money than Crockett, has a full camDavis paign staff — unlike Crockett — and has endorsements from the Louisiana Democratic Party and New Orleans Mayor Helena Moreno. Meanwhile, U.S. Rep. Julia Letlow and state Treasurer John Fleming are competing Saturday for the Republican Senate nomination in a separate party primary. The winners of each race will face off in the general election on Nov. 3, with the Republican candidate expected to win.
ä See SENATE, page 6A
ä 86 people, 20 pets rescued from
catastrophic Avoyelles Parish flooding. ä Floodwaters head for St. Landry.
Court rules La. man can’t sue prison staff Rastafarian’s dreadlocks forcibly shaved in 2021
BY MARK BALLARD Staff writer
WASHINGTON — Though sympathetic that his religious rights had been violated when his dreadlocks were shaved, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled Tuesday morning that a Louisiana inmate can’t sue prison officials for monetary damages. A 6-3 majority agreed that the federal law intended to protect the religious rights of inmates does not include language that would allow Damon Landor, of New Orleans, to hold financially responsible state prison officials who violated his rights. “I am disappointed but not defeated,” Landor said in a statement. “What happened to me violated my faith and my dignity. I will continue pursuing accountability. What happened to me should not happen to anyone else.”
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tion. Justices Ketanji Brown Jackson, who wrote the dissent, Elena Kagan and Sonia Sotomayor — all of whom were nominated by Democratic presidents — disagreed with the majority’s findings. The Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act was enacted in 2000 and said prisons could not “impose a substantial burden on the religious exercise of a person residing in or confined to an institution.” RLUIPA doesn’t provide clear notice that state officials could be personally liable for PROVIDED PHOTOS violating religious liberties, the court ruled. Lower courts had ruled against Landor Damon Landor’s dreadlocks were forcibly and others who have made similar claims. cut at Raymond Laborde Correctional Center Landor argued that, without the threat in 2021. of monetary damages, enforcement of the law was meaningless. Religious organizaChief Justice John Roberts, and Justices tions — 35 in all, including those of Jewish, Neil Gorsuch, Clarence Thomas, Samuel Ali- Muslim and Christian faiths — filed “friend to, Brett Kavanaugh and Amy Coney Barrett of the court” briefs supporting Landor’s po— all of whom were nominated by Republi- sition. can presidents — formed the majority. ä See DREADLOCKS, page 4A The high court accepted Louisiana’s posi-
Trump changes to housing rules spark new lawsuit Funding for Acadiana program placed at risk
BY STEPHEN MARCANTEL Staff writer
The Trump administration is again facing a legal challenge after issuing new rules that could significantly reshape how federal homeless housing programs are funded. Earlier this month, the Department of Housing and Urban Development released updated Continuum of Care grant regulations that shift funding priorities toward transitional housing and reduce the amount of funding guaranteed to existing programs.
Business ...................10C Commentary ................3B Nation-World................2A Classified .....................6A Deaths .........................4B Opinion ........................2B Comics-Puzzles .....7C-9C Living............................5C Sports ..........................1C
ä See HOUSING, page 4A
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