Louisiana shuts down easternmost oyster harvesting areas, recalls mollusks

by Louisiana Illuminator, Louisiana Illuminator
February 5, 2025

The Louisiana Department of Health has closed down oyster harvesting in the area east of Lake Borgne and issued a recall for any catch taken from the area since Jan. 10.

State officials say 15 people have become ill with a “norovirus-like” illness after eating oysters from Area 3, which includes the area north of Eloi Bay, the Chandeleur Islands and surrounding marshes. The recall includes shucked, frozen, breaded, post-harvest processed and oysters on the half-shell. 

According to the health department, the people who became ill ate at unnamed New Orleans restaurants from Jan. 15-31. Their illnesses were not life-threatening, but two people had to be hospitalized and have since been discharged.

Officials noted all oysters harvested outside Area 3 and all other Louisiana seafood statewide are safe for consumption. 

Norovirus is the virus that causes the “stomach flu,” with symptoms that can include nausea, cramping, vomiting and diarrhea. Symptoms usually begin 12 to 48 hours after exposure. Some  people report a low-grade fever, chills, headache, muscle aches and general fatigue from norovirus. The illness is usually brief, with symptoms lasting a day or two. 

Contaminated oysters are not the only culprit for norovirus. Health officials said it can be contracted by eating food or drinking liquids contaminated by infected food handlers. Cooking kills the virus, but other outbreaks have occurred from eating undercooked oysters harvested from contaminated waters.

The Area 3 closure is expected to be in place for at least 21 days, the health department said. Its staff has notified local oyster harvesters who work in the affected area and the Louisiana Oyster Task Force. 

The area will be reopened as soon as its oysters meet Interstate Shellfish Sanitation Conference (ISSC) standards, a determination the state Office of Public Health’s Molluscan Shellfish Program makes. 

The process of decontamination solely involves nature, as oyster waters are cleaned by the natural cycle of tides. Oysters are filter feeders and can accumulate contaminants and microorganisms, which can in turn affect people who eat raw or under-processed contaminated oysters. 

Anyone who suspects they have become ill from contaminated oysters is asked to contact their regional state epidemiologist or submit a report at https://redcap.link/oysterillnesses.

Louisiana Illuminator is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Louisiana Illuminator maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Greg LaRose for questions: info@lailluminator.com.

U.S. Senate confirms Florida’s Pam Bondi as U.S. attorney general

by Ashley Murray, Louisiana Illuminator
February 4, 2025

WASHINGTON — The U.S. Senate Tuesday night confirmed Florida prosecutor Pam Bondi as the attorney general of the United States under President Donald Trump.

Senators voted 54-46 to install the former Florida attorney general at the top of the U.S. Justice Department, an agency Trump has in his crosshairs after federal prosecutions targeted his actions following his loss in the 2020 presidential election.

Democratic Sen. John Fetterman of Pennsylvania voted in favor of Bondi’s confirmation.

Bondi easily gained the support of the Republican-led Senate Committee on the Judiciary, which put her on a glide path to confirmation. The panel split along party lines Wednesday to advance her to a full floor vote.

Grassley support

“I’m disappointed that none of my Democratic colleagues on the Judiciary Committee voted for Ms. Bondi, and I hope the full Senate takes a different approach,” Committee Chair Chuck Grassley of Iowa said on the floor Monday.

“If my colleagues won’t cross the aisle for this qualified nominee, they’ll show that they’re intent on opposing President Trump’s picks for purely partisan reasons,” Grassley said.

Senate Majority Leader John Thune said Tuesday that Americans have “lost faith” in the Justice Department.

“Pam Bondi has promised to get the department back to its core mission: prosecuting crime and protecting Americans from threats to their safety and their freedoms,” the South Dakota Republican said Tuesday afternoon on the floor, accusing the department of political bias under former President Joe Biden.

‘Real concern’ from Whitehouse

Democrats spoke out against Bondi ahead of the confirmation vote, highlighting Bondi’s indirect response to Democratic committee members’ questions over who won the 2020 election.

Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse, a Rhode Island Democrat on the Judiciary Committee, said Tuesday that Bondi’s responses during her confirmation hearing were cause for “real concern.”

“She said a lot of the right things about independence of the department and rule of law. What I couldn’t get over was how things changed when she got to a topic that would have been sensitive to Donald Trump, something that would have gotten Donald Trump all twitchy,” Whitehouse said on the floor.

“She couldn’t say obvious things, things like,’ Did President Biden win the 2020 election?’ That’s an easy answer, ‘Yes, he did, sir or ma’am.’ Super simple. When she can’t say that, that’s a sign,” Whitehouse continued.

The former president faced charges for scheming to overturn the 2020 election results and for hoarding classified documents in his Florida estate. The Justice Department dropped the cases after Trump won the election, citing a long-term policy of not prosecuting sitting presidents.

Trump’s interim U.S. attorney in Florida’s Southern District last week dropped the classified documents case against Trump’s two co-defendants.

Trump has fired a round of Justice Department officials who were involved in prosecuting him as well as those involved in prosecutions of those charged after the violent attack on the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021.

On his first night in office, Trump granted clemency to all of the nearly 1,600 defendants charged in the attack.

Last updated 8:03 p.m., Feb. 4, 2025

Louisiana Illuminator is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Louisiana Illuminator maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Greg LaRose for questions: info@lailluminator.com.

Trump administration begins first detention flights to Guantanamo Bay

by Ariana Figueroa, Louisiana Illuminator
February 4, 2025

WASHINGTON — The Trump administration on Tuesday sent the first flight of detained migrants on military aircraft from the United States to the naval base in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, as President Donald Trump continues high-profile displays of his immigration crackdown.

Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem posted photos on social media of men in handcuffs and chains, being escorted by immigration officials dressed in tactical military gear.

“Guantanamo Bay will hold the worst of the worst,” Noem wrote. “That starts today.”

Trump announced last week that he would direct the Defense Department to use the migrant detention center on the base to detain up to 30,000 people who lack U.S. legal status. It would nearly double the current bed space that U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement has funding for across the nation, which is roughly 41,500.

More than 150 U.S. Marines and U.S. Army members started arriving at the base over the weekend, the U.S. Southern Command Public Affairs Office said in a press release. More than 300 military personnel are already stationed at the base. 

The base is known for holding suspects accused of terrorism in the wake of the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks. Advocates have pressed for the base to be shut down, citing human rights violations.  

White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt also confirmed flights were taking place Tuesday during a segment on Fox Business.

“The first flights from the United States to Guantanamo Bay with illegal migrants are underway,” she said, adding that the president is “not messing around.”

During a Sunday interview with NBC’s “Meet the Press,” Noem was asked if women, children and families would be detained at Guantanamo Bay, but Noem would not address the question.

“You know, if you look at what we are doing today of targeting the worst of the worst, we’ve been very clear on that,” Noem said during the interview. “The priority of this president is to go after criminal aliens that are making our streets more dangerous.”

While Guantanamo Bay has been used in the past to detain migrants, it’s usually been to intercept refugees fleeing from Cuba and Haiti during the 1990s, not used to transport people from within the U.S.

The Department of Homeland Security did not respond to States Newsroom’s request on where the flights departed from or how many detained migrants were on board the C-17 military jet, and if they had a criminal status. 

Last updated 4:36 p.m., Feb. 4, 2025

Louisiana Illuminator is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Louisiana Illuminator maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Greg LaRose for questions: info@lailluminator.com.