| BY BOB WARREN | Staff writer |
Killed by the cartel: The murder of Barry Seal in a Baton Rouge parking lot in 1986 made headlines across the U.S. Seal, a federal drug informant, had paid the ultimate price for turning on Colombian drug kingpin Pablo Escobar and the infamous Medellín cartel. Escobar himself was killed before he could ever stand trial in Seal's murder, but three other men did -- and James Finn writes that one of them might soon go free. And they’re off: Thanksgiving traditionally brings the opening bell of the holiday shopping season. Too soon? It also brings the opening of New Orleans’ horse racing season. Columnist Jeff Duncan tells us what’s new as the Fair Grounds prepares for its 151st meet. Apartment fire: Part of a vacant apartment complex on the west bank went up in flames this morning, and additional resources were called in to battle the stubborn blaze. The four-alarm fire is the latest trouble for an Algiers apartment complex that’s been in the news quite a bit over the years. Getting better: We told you yesterday that public schools across the New Orleans area are getting back to their pre-pandemic performance levels. Wanna know how a specific school’s score? Our data ace Jeff Adelson has just the thing. Thanks for reading Lunch Line today — and remember, you can keep up all day long at NOLA.com. Bob | 