Louisiana

ABA backs call by Louisiana chief justice to provide necessary funds for public defenders

The American Bar Association is backing calls by Louisiana public defenders and the chief justice of the state’s supreme court to provide adequate funding for the representation of indigent defendants. Faced with a possible cut of nearly 62 percent in a budget that is already stretched to the breaking point,…

Apr 1, 2016 3:30 PM CDT

Court requires Hispanic probationers to enroll in pricey, subpar English classes, group tells DOJ

A court in suburban New Orleans is requiring some Hispanics to enroll in expensive English classes as a condition of probation, according to the Southern Poverty Law Center. The classes required by the 1st Parish Court of Jefferson Parish in Metairie do a subpar job of teaching English, the SPLC…

Mar 31, 2016 7:42 AM CDT

Cops post Ebola-tainted meth ruse to catch drug users; does it erode trust?

Some police departments are posting hoax warnings online that purportedly alert drug users that methamphetamine and other drugs could contain Ebola. The sting, posted on Facebook by at least two police departments, tells drug users to stop by the police station for testing, the Associated Press reports. The tactic has…

Mar 30, 2016 7:30 AM CDT

Supreme Court blocks enforcement of Louisiana abortion clinic restrictions

Last month, a federal appeals court in New Orleans refused to block a Louisiana law that could close three of the state’s four abortion clinics, staying an injunction issued by a trial court. But on Friday, the U.S. Supreme Court effectively reversed that 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruling…

Mar 4, 2016 4:55 PM CST

Last ‘Angola Three’ inmate is released; his time in solitary may be the longest in US history

The last member of the “Angola Three” was released on Friday after pleading no contest to manslaughter in the 1972 death of a prison guard. Albert Woodfox, who turned 69 on Friday, had spent more than 40 years in solitary confinement, which may be the longest served in solitary in…

Feb 22, 2016 11:11 AM CST

Proposed consent decree would reform Ferguson policing and municipal courts

The U.S. Justice Department has reached a proposed agreement with the city of Ferguson, Missouri, to reform its police department and its municipal courts. The consent decree still must be approved by the city council, report USA Today and the New York Times. The agreement follows a Justice Department report…

Jan 28, 2016 11:54 AM CST

Disbarment recommended for lawyer who called disciplinary counsel a ‘pimp’ and ‘Oreo’

A hearing committee of the Louisiana Disciplinary Board has recommended permanent disbarment for a lawyer accused of calling the disciplinary counsel a “pimp” and an “Oreo.” The committee recommended disbarment of lawyer Ashton O’Dwyer Jr., saying his “anger bordering at times on rage” is a serious concern. As an example,…

Jan 28, 2016 10:43 AM CST

Federal judge allows removal of Confederate monuments in New Orleans

A federal judge has cleared the way for New Orleans to remove four Confederate monuments. In a decision (PDF) on Tuesday, U.S. District Judge Carl Barbier denied injunctive relief to groups opposing the removal, report the Associated Press, the New Orleans Times-Picayune and the New Orleans Advocate. Barbier said the…

Jan 27, 2016 8:29 AM CST

ACLU lawsuit challenges waiting list for PD representation

The American Civil Liberties Union has filed a federal lawsuit that claims arrestees are being placed on a waiting list for a public defender in New Orleans in violation of their Sixth and 14th Amendment rights. The would-be class-action suit says the three name plaintiffs were put on a waiting…

Jan 15, 2016 10:13 AM CST

PD’s office says it will begin refusing serious felony cases

The public defender’s office in New Orleans announced on Monday that it would begin refusing felony cases with the potential for lengthy sentences. Colin Reingold, litigation director of the Orleans Public Defenders office, said the overburdened office needs more funding or reduced caseloads, the New Orleans Times-Picayune reports. Reingold said…

Jan 12, 2016 12:41 PM CST

Louisiana lawyer sues People magazine over story about his wife’s cold-case slaying

A Louisiana lawyer is suing People magazine over a story he alleges falsely portrays him as his late wife’s killer. Baton Rouge attorney Joel Porter is seeking damages for emotional distress and for the harm he says that the story and a related live Internet broadcast caused to his personal…

Dec 22, 2015 1:10 PM CST

Federal judge acquits 2 attorneys on multiple counts in movie tax-fraud case

A federal judge on Wednesday reversed multiple jury convictions against a prominent New Orleans attorney and a Hollywood movie producer who is also an attorney. Nearly a dozen counts against attorney Michael Arata were nixed by U.S. District Judge Martin Feldman, who said prosecutors in the case used “mean-spirited hype,”…

Dec 9, 2015 4:40 PM CST

Lawyer’s marijuana-sting arrest put him on the right path, he says

Arrested after allegedly agreeing to accept marijuana in exchange for legal services from a purported client, Louisiana criminal defense attorney James Mecca might be expected to be angry or upset about the experience. But instead he is grateful that the arrest put him on a path to a better life,…

Dec 2, 2015 4:45 PM CST

Man disarmed deputy, committed suicide in courthouse, authorities say

A defendant in a Louisiana courthouse for a status hearing on Tuesday got into a scuffle with deputies, disarmed one and apparently shot himself to death. The shooting occurred at about 2 p.m. at the Morehouse Parish Courthouse in Bastrop, a state police spokesman and Sheriff Mike Tubbs told KNOE.…

Dec 1, 2015 4:55 PM CST

PD’s office says it can’t accept any more cases; ethics prof sees triage system

Citing an overload of cases, public defenders in New Orleans say they need a moratorium on any new case assignments. In a “bombshell request,” the Orleans Parish Public Defenders office asked Judge Arthur Hunter on Friday to stop assigning it any new cases, the New Orleans Times-Picayune reports. The office…

Nov 23, 2015 9:34 AM CST