Louisiana
Louisiana Recovery Capital Conference coming to SLU
Southeastern Louisiana University’s two-day learning experience for mental health professionals is set for March 13-14.
The Louisiana Recovery Capital Conference will focus on enhancing Louisiana’s capacity to build and sustain recovery communities.”
“We are honored to host this conference through our partnership with the Office of Behavioral Health, Florida Parishes Human Service Authority and our conference partners,” said Assistant Director of LION UP Recovery CRP and Intervention Annette Baldwin.
Continuing education will be provided for licensed professional counselors, social workers, certified health educators and those certified through the Louisiana Addictive Disorders Regulatory Authority. Topics to be covered include updates on Louisiana drug trends, family health and recovery, substance use disorder within diverse populations, and ethics in recovery spaces, among others.
Claudia Black, the keynote speaker, will discuss working with the young adult population with addictive disorders. Her presentation will focus on the dynamics of underlying trauma that fuels these disorders, Baldwin said.
Black’s work with children impacted by substance abuse in the late 1970s created the foundation for the adult children of the alcoholic’s movement. She was the first to name the dysfunctional family rules — don’t talk, don’t trust, and don’t feel.
She is the author of many books, including “It Will Never Happen to Me,” which has sold over two million copies. Her latest books are “Undaunted Hope: Stories of Healing from Trauma, Depression and Addictions;” and “Your Recovery, Your Life for Teens.” She is a senior fellow and clinical architect of the Claudia Black Young Adult Center at The Meadows in Arizona.
“The second annual Louisiana Recovery Capital Conference offers a vital opportunity to strengthen Louisiana’s recovery communities, particularly within higher education, fostering hope and healing for individuals and families affected by addiction” said Baldwin. “We are excited to host a book signing with Claudia Black as one of our conference highlights on Friday, March 14.”
For more information, such as registration, visit southeastern.edu/lionup-recovery/crc/.
A state lawmaker whose district includes Iberville and nine other parishes will lead the way on the drawing of a new congressional map when the committee convenes Friday.
Sen. Caleb Kleinpeter, R-Port Allen, will chair the hearings to draw a new congressional district map. He currently serves as chairman of the U.S. Senate and Governmental Affairs Committee.
On Wednesday, Kleinpeter said he has not worked on any maps. He is letting the committee members and the members of the Senate work on this with staff.
The move will come nine days after the U.S. Supreme Court on a 6-3 vote ruled one of Louisiana’s two majority-Black U.S. House districts unconstitutional.
“We can’t base it on race anymore, so the minority party is the Democrats,” he said. “The Democrats have migrated away from the New Orléans area, so we’re looking at Democrats versus Republicans, so the minority party — the Democrats — which means it’s more favored toward Baton Rouge.”
The move would work in favor of incumbent 6th District Congressman Cleo Fields, who was a candidate for the race which Gov. Jeff Lndry suspended in the wake of the Supreme Court decision.
The ruling stemmed from Louisiana vs. Callais – a consolidation of Robinson vs. Callais – that centered on racial gerrymandering and redistricting in the state of Louisiana following the 2020 United States census. The lead plaintiff, Phillip “Bert” Callais, is a resident of Brusly.
The Supreme Court vote came despite the African American population comprising nearly one-third of the state’s population.
According to the 2020 Census, the Black or African American population in Louisiana was approximately 1,464,023,representing 31.4%of the state’s total population. Louisiana has one of the highest percentages of Black residents in the United States, ranking second behind Mississippi.
The Baton Rouge district would likely be the area to undergo the remap, he said.
It amounts to an intricate balancing act.
“What far-right Republicans don’t understand is that with Congress maps, you have to be within 776, 280 votes – within 50 votes of the other districts,” Kleinpeter said. “It’s not like our legislative maps where you can be off by thousands … when you start changing a precinct, it can run down a rabbit hole chasing this precinct over here and over there.
“We can easily draw a really strong nine Republican and one strong Democrat, so if you start watering districts down you could wind up with a 4-2 map.”
Republicans currently have a two-vote super majority vote.
“But some Republican districts are strong and others are weak,” Kleinpeter said. “If you take 58 percent Democrats and put them in Republican districts, you could end up losing Republicans.
“Drawing congress maps is very difficult – you have the leader of the party, and you have the Speaker of the House you have to protect,” he said. “You don’t want to jeopardize their maps at hole.”
One other issue is looming for the state, Kleinpeter said.
“What people don’t understand is that we will have to do this all over again in five years, after the next census comes out,” he said. “Hopefully we’ll people by that time.”
The 2030 Census will play a key role in the process, but it still requires participation.
“I had plenty of next-door neighbors who didn’t want to fill out their census” he said. “I’m going to push to fill out their census. We miss out on federal money and potentially risk losing a seat. “
Neuty, the iconic Bucktown nutria visits the state capitol, with Myra Lacoste, Denny Lacoste, Lieutenant Governor Billy Nungesser, Dennis Lacoste Sr., and Louisiana state Senator J. Cameron Henry Jr. Neuty was an orphan, rescued by the Lacostes. In March 2023, LDWF agents attempted to confiscate the illegal pet.
VIDALIA, La. — Louisiana State Police arrested 18-year-old Gregory Steele early Sunday morning on two counts of vehicular homicide, one count of underage operating a motor vehicle while intoxicated, one count vehicular negligent injuring and one count careless operation, according to Concordia Parish Jail records.
Steele, 18, a white male, was arrested in connection with an accident that occurred at approximately 1:54 a.m. on Sunday morning on Minorca Road in Vidalia. Two passengers in the vehicle were killed. Steele and another passenger were able to escape the vehicle.
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