District and charter officials say they are screening workers for temperatures before preparing food.
Posted inCoronavirus
Orleans Juvenile Court closed due to potential coronavirus exposure
Juvenile public defender worries that juveniles will languish in detention without hearings.
Posted inCoronavirus
New federal coronavirus drive-through testing centers opened in New Orleans for medical workers and first responders
City official says the centers should open to the public eventually, but the timeline for that is unclear.
Posted inCoronavirus
With schools out, Governor waives LEAP, attendance requirements for academic year
Educators say the move takes pressure off of students and teachers alike in an unprecedented time.
Posted inInside the News Room
Nicholas Chrastil joins Lens’ reporting staff
Nick covers criminal justice affairs and his reporting is featured in our Section G Project.
Posted inCriminal Justice
Sheriff’s Office says it has released 23 inmates in response to coronavirus crisis
Defenders office, advocacy groups have warned about the potential dangers of incarceration during the outbreak.
Posted inGovernment & Politics
Louisiana Supreme Court affirms that map of city surveillance cameras is public information
A public defender sued last year after the city denied her request for surveillance camera location data.
Posted inOpinion
The World, the Flesh, and the Devil: a Lenten meditation on COVID-19 in New Orleans
“Whenever we get to the here-on-out, will the decisions we make be based on the hope that a pandemic doesn’t happen again? Or will they be based on the reality that it can, with the understanding that no one should be in such desperate positions as some of us are now in?”
Posted inCoronavirus
NOLA Public Schools buys 5,000 wireless hotspots for students during statewide school closure
With public schools closed for a month, learning has largely shifted online.
Posted inCoronavirus
Facing potential layoffs, some city employees already not getting paid while others fear for their jobs and health
Despite assurances from Mayor Cantrell that quarantined employees will get “civil leave” pay, three employees told The Lens they are currently on unpaid leave.