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THE
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T H E A C A D I A N A A D V O C AT E.C O M
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F r i d ay, M a r c h 13, 2026
2026 LEGISLATURE
$2.00X
ACADIA PARISH
Recreational hunting of alligators proposed
Priest charged with indecent behavior with a juvenile BY CLAIRE TAYLOR Staff writer
STAFF FILE PHOTO By JAVIER GALLEGOS
Chandler Franklin lifts a 6-foot alligator out of the water as Dwain Hodge, left, anchors the boat and Eric Edwards wraps up the string used to catch it during an alligator hunt in 2024.
Bill would create a season for licensed hunters BY JOSIE ABUGOV Staff writer
A $50 lottery could soon give anyone a chance to reel in one of Louisiana’s 3 million alligators. Senate Bill 244, sponsored by state Sen. Robert Allain, R-Franklin, would expand alligator hunting by adding a recreational season. Currently, the state has a three-month commercial period when licensed hunters can harvest alligators on land they own or des-
ignated public land and water bodies. of alligator habitat. If the Louisiana Legislature passes “We’re trying to kind of kill two Allain’s bill, the Louibirds with one stone: “We’re trying to kind increase the availabilsiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries ity to go and harvest of kill two birds with would be able to issue one stone: increase the an alligator and, at the 10,000 tags for recresame time, not upset availability to go and the commercial marational hunters, accesharvest an alligator and, ket,” Allain said. sible via a lottery. at the same time, not Increasing hunting Cole Garrett, the of the reptile could upset the commercial general counsel of help address overLDWF, said hunters market.” would be able to get population of the onceendangered species SEN. ROBERT ALLAIN, R-Franklin up to two tags in the lottery, which would without disturbing the cost $50 to enter. The commercial industry, recreational season could begin Oct. according to Allain. The added season would also give a 1 in areas south of Interstate 10 if the broader swath of people the opportu- bill gains approval. The hunting would nity to hunt, as the commercial indusä See ALLIGATORS, page 4A try mostly serves private landowners
An Acadia Parish priest has been formally charged with alleged indecent behavior with a minor. Korey LaVergne, 37, was named on March 5 in a bill of information by the 15th Judicial District Attorney’s Office charging him with three counts of felony indecent behavior with a juvenile, court records show. A bill of information is a charge directly from the District Attorney’s Office, while an indictment is a charge determined by a grand jury. LaVergne previously was arrested on Jan. 16 on the same charges. The bill of information al- LaVergne leges on or about Jan. 1, 2024, LaVergne “did willfully, unlawfully, knowingly, and intentionally commit lewd and lascivious acts upon a juvenile,” age 15, or in the presence of a juvenile where there is at least a two-year age difference. LaVergne, through his attorney, Kevin Stockstill of Lafayette, entered a not guilty plea on Wednesday, court records show. He has a pretrial hearing scheduled for June 12. Stockstill filed several pretrial discovery motions on Thursday asking: n that the district attorney disclose any criminal arrests and convictions of any witnesses. n that officials provide copies of arrest warrants, warrants for search and seizure and affidavits related to those warrants. n that officials provide all initial reports on the case. n that the district attorney disclose the substance of any grant of immunity, plea bargain, agreement or consideration to witnesses or prospective witnesses. n that he reserve the right to move to suppress and/or conduct a preliminary examination of evidence. LaVergne’s case comes as the Catholic Diocese of Lafayette faces a growing number of sexual abuse allegations in civil court. At least 13 lawsuits were filed against the Catholic Diocese of Lafayette in 2025, alleging sexual abuse by priests and other employees against minors across Acadiana, bringing the total pending lawsuits filed since June
Iran’s leader vows to keep up attacks BY JON GAMBRELL, DAVID RISING, MIKE CORDER and NATALIE MELZER Associated Press
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates — Iran’s secretive new supreme leader vowed ThursCO ONFLICT day to keep up IN THE T attacks on Gulf MIIDDLE Arab countries and use the effecEAST AST tive closure of the strategic Strait of Hormuz as leverage against the United States and Israel. It was his
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official said was wounded in the opening salvo of the war, has not ä Pro-Iranian hackers starting to appeared in public since then. In stretch into the U.S. Page 5A the statement read by a state TV news anchor, he vowed to avenge ä Oil prices jump to $100 per those killed in the war, including in barrel. Page 6A a strike on a school that killed over ä Trump now trying to paint high oil 165 people. costs as positive. Page 6A His comments signaled no plans for talks to end the war, which has disrupted global energy supfirst public statement since he suc- plies, international travel and the ceeded his father, who was killed relative safety enjoyed by the Gulf Arab states. in an Israeli strike. Supreme Leader Ayatollah Mojä See ATTACKS, page 4A taba Khamenei, 56, who an Iranian
Business ......................6A Commentary ................3B Nation-World................2A Classified ..................10C Living............................5C Opinion ........................2B Comics-Puzzles .....7C-9C Metro ...........................1B Sports ..........................1C
ä See PRIEST, page 4A
An oil tanker burns after being hit by an Iranian strike in the ship-toship transfer zone at Khor al-Zubair port near Basra, Iraq, late Wednesday. ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO
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