A federal murder-for-hire trial has begun in New Orleans, marking the latest development in the FBI's long-running "Operation Sideswipe" investigation. The case centers around a sprawling, multi-million dollar scheme where "slammers" deliberately crashed cars into 18-wheelers to secure massive fraudulent insurance settlements.
Demolition of the long-abandoned Lindy Boggs Medical Center officially began. Heavy machinery moved into the Mid-City site in New Orleans, marking the end of a 21-year vacancy that turned the former hospital into one of the city's most prominent post-Katrina eyesores.
