By Danny Monteverde | WWL | September 30, 2019 NEW ORLEANS — Chief public defender Derwyn Bunton left the Orleans Parish criminal courthouse on Monday with one order from Criminal District Judge Paul Bonin: come back another day. Bunton is looking to have public defenders Beth Sgro and James Brockway recused from a case they…
By Jeff Adelson and Matt Sledge | NOLA.com | September 25, 2019 New Orleans City Council members want to wipe the slate clean for tens of thousands of people with unpaid fines and fees, some almost two decades old, in the city’s municipal and traffic courts. The council’s Criminal Justice Committee on Wednesday gave the…
By Paul Murphy | WWL | September 24, 2019 NEW ORLEANS — According to city data — there are more than 55,000 outstanding warrants in Municipal and Traffic Court in New Orleans. If you do the math, that means there is 1 outstanding warrant for every 7 people in the city of New Orleans. “The…
By Natasha Robin | Fox 8 | September 4, 2019 NEW ORLEANS, La. (WVUE) – Crime watchdog Rafael Goyeneche viewed the NOPD Swat Team body camera footage, from what unfolded inside the Juvenile Justice Center last month (Aug. 15), when investigators say several juveniles barricaded themselves in a cell and threatened staff. “It demonstrates that…
By Gordon Russell, Bob Warren and Ramon Antonio Vargas | Nola.com | August 29, 2019 Federal authorities announced Thursday that Jack Strain, once a looming political figure in St. Tammany Parish politics whose legacy is now tainted by political scandal and accusations of sex crimes, has been charged in a corruption case stemming from his…
By James Gill | Nola.com | August 7, 2019 If a federal grand jury has your financial dealings under investigation, and a state auditor comes knocking on the door, it might be a good idea not to open it. Jazz superstar Irvin Mayfield and his friend and fellow musician Ronald Markham sure wish they had…
By David Hammer | WWL | August 1, 2019 Grammy winning trumpeter Irvin Mayfield’s federal conspiracy and money laundering trial has been delayed a fourth time, pushed back to Jan. 21, 2020. Mayfield was indicted in December 2017 along with his longtime friend, business partner and band mate, Ronald Markham. They were initially charged with…
By Natasha Robin | Fox 8 New Orleans | July 23, 2019 Members of the Criminal Justice Committee heard a proposed plan Tuesday (July 23), that would eliminate money bails at Orleans Criminal District Court, along with court fines and fees for anyone arrested. John Wool of the Vera Institute said money bail does not make people…
By Nicholas Chrastil | The Lens | July 23, 2019 The Vera Institute of Justice — along with the ACLU Louisiana, the Foundation for Louisiana and Stand With Dignity — on Tuesday made their case for eliminating cash bail and conviction fees to the New Orleans City Council’s Criminal Justice Committee. The presentation was based on a report…
By Chad Calder | Nola.com | July 20, 2019 A Gretna police officer posted a comment on his Facebook page this past week calling U.S. Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez a “vile idiot” who “needs a round, and I don’t mean the kind she used to serve.” The comment, which alludes to the freshman Democrat’s past work…