Court clears way for Louisiana law requiring Ten Commandments in classrooms to take effect

The 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals has cleared the way for a Louisiana law requiring displays of the Ten Commandments in public classrooms to take effect. The full court voted 12-6 to lift a block placed on the law that a lower court first issued in 2024. In the opinion released Friday, the court said it was too early to make a judgment call on the constitutionality of the law. But the six judges who voted against the decision wrote a series of dissents, some saying that the law exposes children to government-endorsed religion in a place they are required to be, presenting a clear constitutional burden.

Former Louisiana House speaker arrested for alleged cypress relic theft • Louisiana Illuminator

The historically significant cypress board, measuring 20 feet by 6 feet, was last seen at Schexnayder’s legislative office in Gonzales.

Louisiana cancels $3 billion coastal restoration project

Louisiana is officially canceling a $3 billion coastal restoration project funded by the Deepwater Horizon oil spill settlement. The Mid-Barataria Sediment Diversion Project aimed to rebuild over 20 square miles of land in southeast Louisiana to combat erosion and sea level rise. Conservation groups supported the project as a science-based solution to climate change. However, Republican Gov. Jeff Landry opposed it, citing harm to local oystermen and the fishing industry. On Thursday, a coalition of federal agencies overseeing the settlement funds declared the project "no longer viable" because of litigation and a suspended federal permit after the state halted work.

Supreme Court doesn't rule on Louisiana's second majority Black district

The Supreme Court is putting off ruling on a second Black majority congressional district in Louisiana, instead ordering new arguments in the fall. The court issued a brief order Friday. The case is closely watched because at arguments in March several of the court’s conservative justices suggested they could vote to throw out the map and make it harder, if not impossible, to bring redistricting lawsuits under the Voting Rights Act. The case involves the interplay between race and politics in drawing political boundaries in front of a conservative-led court that's been skeptical of considerations of race in public life. In 2023, the court ruled in favor of Black voters in an Alabama case.

Louisiana voters reject constitutional amendments championed by Republican governor

Louisiana voters soundly rejected four constitutional amendments championed by Republican Gov. Jeff Landry related to crime, courts and finances. Voters said no to each amendment by margins exceeding 60% according to preliminary results from the secretary of state’s office. Landry and his allies had crisscrossed the state in support of an amendment that would have made sweeping changes to the revenue and finance section of the state’s constitution. But opponents criticized the proposed amendment as lacking transparency. Landry blamed voters' rejection of the amendments on “far left liberals” and the billionaire George Soros.

NO to them ALL, Y'all

Trump administration to drop lawsuit against Louisiana chemical manufacturer, AP sources say

The Trump administration plans to drop a federal lawsuit against a synthetic rubber manufacturer accused of worsening cancer risks for residents near its Louisiana plant, according to two sources familiar with the matter. The plant is located near an elementary school in a majority-Black community about 30 miles outside New Orleans. The Biden administration filed suit against the Denka Performance Elastomer plant, alleging it posed an unacceptable cancer risk to nearby residents and demanding cuts in toxic emissions of cancer-causing chloroprene. The suit was part of the Biden administration's efforts to improve conditions in poor and minority neighborhoods disproportionately harmed by decades of industrial pollution.

Texas v. Kennedy (formerly Texas v. Becerra): What it is and How You Can Help Stop the Attack on Section 504 | DREDF

This page explains what the lawsuit Texas v. Kennedy (previously Texas v. Becerra) is, how Texas v. Kennedy threatens Section 504, and why Section 504 is important. Learn what you can do to help protect 504.