| By Drew Broach | Deputy metro editor
CONTRACT CONFLICT: One of the basic tenets of Louisiana procurement law is treating all competitors fairly. But months before Kenner’s abrupt and controversial decision to replace its long-term garbage collector with IV Waste, a top official in Mayor Ben Zahn’s administration helped that company secure a separate contract with a city-supported agency by sharing a competitor’s price quote.
SIDEWALK ASSAULT: The murder trial of Garrett Ward, a Baton Rouge man accused of fatally beating Arnold Jackson on the sidewalk outside the Pontchartrain Hotel in New Orleans, ended with a manslaughter conviction. Ward now faces a prison sentence of as long as 40 years.
SOUR NOTE: The 2022 New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival’s most controversial moment involved a demand for more jazz at, appropriately, the WWOZ Jazz Tent. Our music writer Keith Spera gets to the bottom of how Cuban jazz trumpeter Arturo Sandoval’s 75-minute set ended.
Thanks for starting your Thursday with us. Check out NOLA.com for more news throughout the day. D.B. | 
