| By Drew Broach | Deputy metro editor
HIS WORD IS BOND: When he ran for Orleans Parish district attorney in 2020, Jason Williams wore the "progressive" mantle, pledging to to wean the criminal justice system of mass incarceration and trying to minimize the practice of cash bail. But amid the violent crime that has washed across New Orleans in 2023, Williams' prosecutors have started requesting eye-opening bail amounts from a set schedule that his office has provided them.
DOUBLE MASKED: Carnival masks alone won't be enough for indoor public events during Mardi Gras season in New Orleans. That's because the Louisiana Supreme Court has declined to hear an emergency request from more than 100 plaintiffs seeking to strike down Mayor LaToya Cantrell’s public health mask and vaccine rules. Louisiana health officials, meanwhile, are easing school quarantine guidelines in an effort to keep more students and educators in the classroom. And masked or not, you can watch the 2022 parades from the comfort of your own home via our parade cam. See the complete schedule.
FORCED OUT: Erica Payne, 26 and eight months pregnant, had just unpacked and put away the baby shower gifts she received for her first child when fire broke out Tuesday at her Metairie apartment building. Her mother and his sister's family, including two toddlers, also had been staying with her, since Hurricane Ida damaged their LaPlace home last summer. Now they're all looking for a place to stay, along with several other families displaced when the fire destroyed two apartment buildings.
Thanks for starting your day with us. More news all day on NOLA.com. D.B. | 
