United States Attorney’s Office Eastern District of Louisiana | justice.gov | March 20, 2026 Including this jury trial, sixty-three (63) defendants have been charged in the federal probe into the staging of automobile collisions with other vehicles in the New Orleans metropolitan area NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA — The U.S. Attorney’s Office and the Criminal Division of…
By: John Simerman | nola.com | March 1, 2026 The words of a slain federal witness are expected to loom large in a New Orleans courtroom this week as a trial begins for two local lawyers and two others accused in a wild scheme to stage vehicle wrecks with big rig trucks across the Crescent City. The trial, slated…
By: Sabrina Wilson | fox8live.com | February 13, 2026 NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – While the status of DHS’ Operation Catahoula Crunch in Louisiana remains unclear, Attorney General Liz Murrill said her office worked with NOPD leadership to make sure the police department’s immigration policy complies with state and federal law. “My office worked with the…
By: Gabby Killett | fox8live.com | February 3, 2026 NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – A local crime watchdog called Tuesday’s arrest of New Orleans Police Department Sgt. Henry Burke a step in the right direction, saying the criminal investigation could help the city recover lost funds. Metropolitan Crime Commission president Rafael Goyeneche said the allegations against…
By: Winston Reed | wwltv.com | January 22, 2026 NEW ORLEANS — As January comes to a close, New Orleans has recorded fewer homicides than during the same period last year, according to new crime data. Investigators are still working to solve several recent cases, including two homicides. Last week, 19-year-old Kareem Harris was shot and…
By: Aubry Killion | wdsu.com | January 21, 2025 NEW ORLEANS — The city of New Orleans has started a new chapter with Mayor Helena Moreno. WDSU Investigates dug into what benefits former Mayor LaToya Cantrell has now that she’s a private citizen. NOPD says all executive protection security for former Mayor Cantrell was terminated…
By: Ashley Hamilton | wdsu.com | January 15, 2026 NEW ORLEANS (WGNO) — According to a new report from the New Orleans Office of the Inspector General, between Jan. 1 and July 31, 2025, the New Orleans Police Department reported more than $260,000 overtime hours. This cost the city more than $16.4 million. “We found that the…
By: Nolan McKendry | nolacitybusiness.com | December 10, 2025 New Orleans has cut major violent crime nearly in half over the past two years while sending more felony defendants to prison, according to a new report from the Metropolitan Crime Commission. From 2022 to 2024, reported homicides, nonfatal shootings, carjackings and armed robberies fell 55%,…
By: Gabby Killett | fox8live.com | December 4, 2025 NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – A motion filed in criminal court Thursday (Dec. 4) accuses New Orleans defense attorney Tanzanika Ruffin of defrauding her client and his family out of at least $250,000. The payments sent by a New York family to Ruffin included $66,000 in April,…
By: Chris Joseph | fox8live.com | November 24, 2025 NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – A Fox 8 investigation found the Orleans Parish Civil District Court paid $206,988.45 to send judges to conferences since 2021. Orleans Parish court records show Chief Judge Nicole Sheppard led all other judges in travel reimbursements from 2021-25, with $40,189.38. The records…
By: Rob Krieger & Dannah Sauer | fox8live.com | November 18, 2025 NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) — The New Orleans Police Department has changed how officers clock in for overtime shifts following an investigation that found potential timesheet violations by high-earning officers. The order says, beginning immediately, NOPD officers working scheduled overtime shifts must clock in…
By: Rick Gogreve | wgno.com | November 13, 2025 NEW ORLEANS (WGNO) — With the New Orleans Police Department lacking hundreds of officers, the department is searching everywhere for recruits, and with New York City seeing a wave of officers leaving, the question is, would they come here for a change of scenery? Just last month,…
By: Gregory R. Rusovich | nola.com | October 30, 2025 A sense of optimism is in the air. New Orleanians are hopeful that lingering infrastructure and quality-of-life issues will finally be addressed by Mayor-elect Helena Moreno and the new city council. But they face additional stiff challenges intertwined with great opportunity. No issue can shatter…
By: Ashley Hamilton | wgno.com | October 10, 2025 ATLANTA, Ga. (WGNO) — Nearly five months after escaping from the Orleans Parish jail, Derrick Groves will return to Louisiana after agreeing to be extradited during a court appearance in Georgia. “I want to return where I am from,” said Groves. “Do you want to return to Louisiana?” asked…
By: Jeremy Alford & David Jacobs | businessreport.com | September 23, 2025 Louisiana lawmakers are likely to again consider changing the rules around whether criminal defendants must face a jury or only a judge, which would require changing the Louisiana Constitution. Currently, defendants who are not facing capital punishment can waive their right to a…
United States Attorney’s Office Eastern District of Louisiana | justice.gov | August 15, 2025 NEW ORLEANS – Acting U.S. Attorney Michael M. Simpson announced that LATOYA CANTRELL (“CANTRELL”), age 53, and JEFFREY PAUL VAPPIE, II (“VAPPIE”), age 52, both residents of New Orleans, were charged in a superseding indictment today on federal charges concerning wire fraud and obstruction of justice. CANTRELL and VAPPIE were…
By: Stephen Stock, Dannah Sauer, and Jon Turnipseed | fox8live.com | July 30, 2025 NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – A Fox 8 investigation finds members of the New Orleans Police Department working long hours for months on end without a single day off. That raises concerns for one former NOPD chief about the effectiveness of those…
By: Chris Welty | fox8live.com | July 29, 2025 NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – The Louisiana Attorney General’s office is partnering with the Orleans Parish District Attorney’s office to clear a court’s backlog of hundreds of felony cases. AG Liz Murrill and Orleans Parish DA Jason Williams met Monday (July 29) to discuss splitting the pending…
By: Cassie Schirm | wdsu.com | July 14, 2025 NEW ORLEANS — A confidential grievance filed by a New Orleans police officer is now at the center of a growing investigation into how internal information is being exposed to the public. WDSU Investigates has confirmed that the grievance, which includes allegations against an NOPD captain,…
By: Cassie Schirm | wdsu.com | July 9, 2025 NEW ORLEANS — Just walking into the French Quarter, you are being watched. It’s not just by tourists or business owners, but by facial recognition cameras scanning faces in real time. New Orleans is the first city in the country to deploy facial recognition alerts across…
By: Jillian Kramer | nola.com | July 26, 2025 An Orleans Parish Criminal District Court judge quietly stepped away from the bench last month, prompting the Louisiana Supreme Court to install a temporary replacement. Retired Judge Calvin Johnson began presiding over Judge Darryl Derbigny’s courtroom on May 27, according to the court order appointing Johnson as a pro…
By: Chris Welty | fox8live.com | June 25, 2025 NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – Louisiana State Police say Troop NOLA is making a measurable impact in its first year and could expand its presence in the city when a new class of cadets graduates in December. Troop NOLA launched in March 2024 with a mission to…
By Stephen Stock, Dannah Sauer and Jon Turnipseed | fox8live.com | May 27, 2025 NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – The ongoing search for two remaining Orleans Parish jail escapees is costing New Orleans hundreds of thousands of dollars each week and draining law enforcement resources from other duties, Fox 8 has learned. A top city official tells Fox 8 that…
By: Jasmine Franklin | wdsu.com | May 19, 2025 NEW ORLEANS — Louisiana Gov. Jeff Landry issued multiple executive orders after 10 inmates escaped the Orleans Parish Jail early Friday morning. In a news conference Sunday, Landry ordered an audit of the Orleans Correctional Facility by the Department of Corrections. The audit would remove all…
By: Ken Daley and Rob Masson | fox8live.com | April 16, 2025 NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – Longtime New Orleans criminal court Judge Darryl Derbigny costs city taxpayers millions in jailing and police overtime costs because of the glacial pace with which cases progress through his courtroom, according to a new watchdog report on judicial efficiency. Derbigny…
By: Ken Daley | fox8live.com | April 14, 2025 NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – The city’s Civil Service Commission found Monday (April 14) that Mayor LaToya Cantrell improperly infringed on the promotion of high-ranking New Orleans Police Department officers last year in a specific effort to benefit Lt. Sabrina Richardson. The commission noted Cantrell’s refusal to…
By: Thanh Truong | fox8live.com | March 5, 2025 NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – The heightened police presence in New Orleans during Mardi Gras helped deliver one of the safest Carnival seasons in recent history, according to law enforcement officials and public safety advocates. Following the deadly New Year’s Day attack on Bourbon Street, the U.S.…
By: Chris Joseph | fox8live.com | February 24, 2025 (WVUE) – A federal judge sentenced former NOPD Sgt. Todd Morrell to five years probation plus restitution and community service on Tuesday (2/25) for six counts of wire fraud. Judge Jay Zainey ordered Morrell to pay a $5 thousand fine, avoid taking on additional debt without…
By: Missy Wilkinson | nola.com | January 5, 2025 Bryan Lagarde spent New Year’s Eve as he usually does: facing a bank of video screens, working. The criminologist and former police officer, who for years has directed the Project NOLA National Crime Camera Program, was monitoring nationwide feeds and helping law enforcement where he could.…
By: Anthony McAuley and Stephanie Riegel | nola.com | January 1, 2025 As New Orleans officials responded Wednesday to a horrific attack that killed at least 15 people and wounded dozens more, they also faced questions about the city’s readiness to host one of the world’s biggest sporting events — Super Bowl LIX — in…
By: Thanh Truong | fox8live.com | December 19, 2024 NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – In a press briefing Wednesday and multiple releases Wednesday and Thursday, the New Orleans Police Department shared major updates on several violent crime investigations. Police announced the arrests of two suspects in the mass shooting near the Nine Times Second Line parade that left…
By: Jonah Gilmore | wdsu.com | December 19, 2024 NEW ORLEANS — Members of a gang were indicted in connection with violent crimes across New Orleans, according to the Orleans Parish District Attorney’s Office. Orleans Parish District Attorney Jason Williams announced the indictment Thursday afternoon. The indictment lists six counts dating from July 1 to…
Some judges fail to act when defendants on ankle bracelets defy them. By: Mike Perlstein | wwltv.com | December 12, 2024 Matt Dennis was visibly angry as he displayed the more than 40 violation reports compiled against convicted multiple-time felon Nicholas Miorana for breaking his home incarceration orders. French Quarter Shooting New Orleans Criminal Court Judge…
By: Aubry Killion | wdsu.com | December 10, 2024 ST. CHARLES PARISH, La. — A criminal watchdog says the St. Charles Parish sheriff owes the public an explanation after three former top deputies pleaded guilty to payroll fraud and other charges. Records show ex-Chief Deputy Rodney Madere was allowed to retire before he was arrested…
By: Rachel Handley | wwltv.com | December 5, 2024 NEW ORLEANS — The NOPD is searching for a suspect it said rammed a police unit Wednesday night. Its Public Integrity Bureau is also investigating one of the officers inside the unit who fired at the suspect’s car before it sped off, as it is required…
By: Michelle Hunter | nola.com | December 3, 2024 Three former high-ranking deputies from the St. Charles Parish Sheriff’s Office, who were arrested this summer on allegations of theft and payroll fraud, have pleaded guilty in the case, the St. Charles Parish District Attorney’s Office announced Tuesday. Former Chief Deputy Rodney Madere Jr., who served…
U.S. Attorney’s Office Eastern District of Louisiana | justice.gov | October 31, 2024 NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA – The United States Attorney’s Office announced that ANTOINE CLARK (“CLARK”), age 34, of New Orleans, pled guilty on October 30, 2024, to Conspiracy to Commit Wire Fraud, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 371. Today’s guilty plea brings the…
By: Rob Masson | fox8live.com | October 24, 2024 NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – The city’s two largest police organizations are accusing Mayor LaToya Cantrell of delaying NOPD promotions due to an investigation into her relationship with her former bodyguard. The Metropolitan Crime Commission (MCC) has also received complaints alleging political retribution. These complaints center on…
By: Amelia Strahan | wwltv.com | September 30, 2024 NEW ORLEANS — Mayor Cantrell still has over a year left in office. With a potential indictment looming over the rest of her term, some are wondering if she can effectively govern the city of New Orleans. “The city is not well run right now, and…
By: Chris Joseph | fox8live.com | September 27, 2024 NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – The U.S. Department of Justice and the City of New Orleans have asked a federal judge to start the process of freeing the NOPD from court oversight and begin the final stages of the department’s consent decree. The parties filed a joint…
By: Aubry Killion | wdsu.com | August 19, 2024 ST. CHARLES PARISH, La. — Former St. Charles Parish Sheriff’s Office employees are calling on Sheriff Greg Champagne to resign following a WDSU Investigation. After WDSU Investigates first story aired, revealing allegations that the agency was described as “intimidating, secretive, untrusted, unfair and a good ole boys…
By: Ken Daley and Maddie Kerth | fox8live.com | July 10, 2024 NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – A wanted man who allegedly drove against oncoming traffic on Interstate 10 while being pursued by state troopers was ordered held without bond on Wednesday (July 10). The wild chase Monday night in New Orleans East was initiated by…
By: Anum Siddiqui | June 12, 2024 | wdsu.com NEW ORLEANS — According to the NOPD Citizens Satisfaction Survey, overall satisfaction within the police department is at 40 percent – that’s an improvement of nine points since last year. The survey results last year showed that the satisfaction rating was the lowest since the survey…
Chris Welty / Fox 8 / May. 22, 2024 NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – Shoplifting incidents across New Orleans have surged by 35% compared to last year, according to NOPD. On Monday, a video posted on social media showed three women allegedly stealing armfuls of clothes from a store on N Peters in the French Quarter.…
By Lee Zurik and Ken Daley / Fox 8 / May. 13, 2024 NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – Mayor LaToya Cantrell’s request for a restraining order against a citizen who has photographed her in public with her former police bodyguard is a “pathetic” attempt to deflect attention from her own questionable actions, a crime watchdog said Monday (May…
Chris Miller/. WWL / May 7 The New Orleans Police Department is hiring a law firm to investigate whether any rules were broken when Jeffrey Vappie, a police officer on Mayor LaToya Cantrell’s bodyguard team, dined with the mayor at a French Quarter restaurant. The third-party investigation is meant to avoid the appearance of impropriety,…
DREW BROACH/ Nola.com / May 6, 2024 Operation Wrinkled Robe was the FBI’s name for its nine-year investigation and prosecution of Jefferson Parish Courthouse corruption. It produced 14 criminal convictions: of judges Ronald Bodenheimer and Alan Green of Louisiana’s 24th Judicial District Court, three executives of Bail Bonds Unlimited, five sheriff’s deputies and four other people. Three other…
David Jones/ Fox 8/ May 2 NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – With a little more than two months until Louisiana’s new “permitless” carry legislation takes effect, New Orleans leaders continue to push for carveouts for the city but keep hitting walls in the legislature. Governor Jeff Landry has not taken a public stance on carveouts, but…
Mike Perlstein/WWLTV/ May 1 NEW ORLEANS — Louisiana’s new gun law that allows almost anyone to carry a concealed weapon once they turn 18 has sparked concerns about more senseless bloodshed in a state that already ranks among the worst in the nation. So far, those grim warnings have fallen on deaf ears, as New Orleans officials…
Lee Zurik and Mykal Vincent/ Fox 8/ May 1 ST. BERNARD PARISH, La. (WVUE) – Questions surround the misuse of taxpayer money in St. Bernard Parish after Coastal Director John Lane hosted a wedding reception for his son at the historic courthouse without paying to rent the facility. The event took place on Dec. 30, 2023, while…
Nola.com/April 17/ There’s a difference between honest criticism and personal attacks or piling on. Legitimate criticism arises from legitimate differences of opinion or violations of legal or ethical rules, whereas the latter uses accusations or innuendo to garner attention by shocking the sensibilities and doing harm. This is true in our daily lives, but especially so in politics. The…
WDSU/ Cassie Schrim/ April 15 NEW ORLEANS — The Metropolitan Crime Commission is calling for an investigation into the New Orleans mayor and one of her security detail officers. The MCC released a letter Monday that was sent to the Public Integrity Bureau The letter asks that the PIB investigate a lunch between Mayor LaToya…
Lee Zurik and Dannah Sauer/ Fox 8/ April 15,2024 NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – The head of the Metropolitan Crime Commission, Rafael Goyeneche, is calling on the New Orleans Police Department to launch an internal investigation into a meal shared between Mayor LaToya Cantrell and a member of her executive protection team, Officer Jeffrey Vappie. Photos obtained by…
The FBI New Orleans Field Office is proud to announce the Metropolitan Crime Commission of New Orleans will receive the FBI Director’s Community Leadership Award at a ceremony in Washington, D.C., on April 19, 2024. Special Agent in Charge Lyonel Myrthil will join MCC Vice President Michelle Foster at the event that celebrates outstanding accomplishments…
On Friday, April 19, 2024, FBI Director Christopher Wray presented the Metropolitan Crime Commission (MCC) with the FBI Director’s Community Leadership Award (DCLA) for its service to the people of the Greater New Orleans area. Receiving the award on behalf of the MCC, was Michelle Foster. Foster serves as Vice President of the organization that…
Aubry Killlion | WDSU | Mar 29, 2024 NEW ORLEANS —A fired assistant sheriff filed a bombshell lawsuit against Orleans Parish Sheriff Susan Hutson. Pearlina Thomas claims she got fired after raising concerns about how your tax dollars were being spent. Hutson disputes the allegations in the lawsuit. Richard Richthofen Jr. is representing Thomas. “Through…
Kia have been the subject of a surge in car thefts. By: WWL Staff, March 22, 2024 METAIRIE, La. — A Kia dealership in Jefferson Parish said they would offer free upgrades to drivers from Friday to Sunday amid a car theft trend. The event has been scheduled from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. at…
WWL-Radio We’ve heard crime has dropped in New Orleans from 2022 to 2023. The decreases continue into 2024. New Orleans Metropolitan Crime Commission President Rafael Goyeneche gets into some of the reasons why. As the NOPD lost officers, the department went from proactive policing to reactive answering of 911 calls. Goyeneche says that meant fewer…
By Erin Lowrey/WDSU/ Mar 7, 2024 NEW ORLEANS —The Metropolitan Crime Commission issued a scathing report on the Orleans Parish District Attorney’s Office on Thursday. The watchdog group reported that District Attorney Jason Williams’ Office prosecuted less felony crime in the past two years than the previous administration despite a surge in violent crime. The…
PRESS RELEASE: MARCH 6, 2024 A report released today by the Metropolitan Crime Commission (MCC) documents how the Orleans Parish District Attorney’s (DA’s) Office undermined the work of the New Orleans Police Department (NOPD) and public safety during the first two years of DA Jason Williams’ administration. The felony arrest to conviction analysis applied in…
By Rob Masson/ Fox 8/ Feb. 29, 2024 NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – Residents awaiting a unit at the Upper Pontalba Apartments are growing increasingly impatient, waiting for the French Market Corporation to take control of the unit ordered to be turned over by Mayor LaToya Cantrell last year. They say it’s time that the City of…
by: Jordan Lippincott/CBS/Feb 20, 2024 / NEW ORLEANS (WGNO) — Some lawmakers hope to curb violence in New Orleans by passing new laws, but the president of the Metropolitan Crime Commission believes one of the proposals could hinder crime prevention. According to statistics from the Metropolitan Crime Commission, during the first 14 days of February, New…
By: Shay O’Connor /WDSU/ Feb 19, 2024 BATON ROUGE, La. — Monday was the start of the special session, and crime is front and center at the state capitol during a special session as lawmakers are hoping to tackle crime across Louisiana. According to the Metropolitan Crime Commission, violent crime in Orleans Parish is down compared…
By:Sabrina Wilson/ Fox 8/ Feb. 8, 2024 NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) -A special legislative session focused on crime starts soon at the state capitol and lawmakers will likely consider some of the recommendations a committee appointed by incoming governor Jeff Landry came up with. Landry appointed a Crime Transition Council and Rafael Goyeneche of the Metropolitan…
By WL Ian Auzenne | WWL| February 6, 2024 Governor Jeff Landry says the New Orleans Police Department is in shambles. He blames the federal consent decree for handcuffing the NOPD, but one local law enforcement analyst says a bigger problem plagues the department. “The greatest problem with the police department isn’t the consent decree. It’s the…
By Cassie Schirm | WDSU | January 25th, 2024 NEW ORLEANS — Just weeks after the New Orleans City Council confirmed Anne Kirkpatrick as the New Orleans Police Department Superintendent, two grievances were filed back in November. One complaint is in regard to a uniform violation, and the other accuses Kirkpatrick of lying on the job.…
By Cassie Schirm | WDSU | January 19, 2024 NEW ORLEANS —The city of New Orleans and the Orleans Parish Sheriff’s Office has entered a new contract to help supplement security during Carnival Season. The Cooperative Endeavour Agreement provides funding for extra security details during Carnival parades. The council approved the CEA during its council meeting…
Nola.com-BY MICHELLE HUNTER | Staff writer-Jan 13, 2024 Fast response times, quick arrests credited for fewer crimes Unincorporated Jefferson Parish saw an 11% drop in major crime in 2023, mirroring a trend seen across the United States, according to statistics released by the Sheriff’s Office. The agency recorded decreases in every category of crime reported to the FBI except…
Fox 8/ By Lee Zurik and Dannah Sauer/Jan. 12, 2024 at 3:49 PM CST NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – A crime watchdog says the federal indictment charging former NOPD Sergeant Todd Morrell with 12 counts of wire fraud shows the Federal Government is paying close attention to allegations of corruption within the NOPD. The indictment lays out 12 times…
January 4, 2024 | By: FOX 8 Staff | fox8live.com NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – A New Orleans Police Officer has been reassigned amid an internal investigation into a complaint that he was using narcotics on duty. Sources tell Fox 8 that Officer Maurice Bailey was caught on his body-worn camera smoking illegal narcotics inside of…
Auto thefts up 77% this year, an average of 20 each day By Gabriella Killett | nola.com | December 16, 2023 Having fallen on hard times, John Malley and his wife, Alexandria Thibodeaux, moved Dec. 6 from Colorado to New Orleans, where relatives offered them a place to stay until they could get back on their feet. They…
November 27, 2023 | fox8live.com | By: Ashlyn Brothers NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – The Orleans Parish District Attorney’s office has allowed nearly 1,300 felony defendants remain fugitives without having to forfeit their bonds after they failed to appear for scheduled court hearings, the Metropolitan Crime Commission said in a new report. “This is a system failure,”…
By David Jones| Fox8 | Nov. 8, 2023 NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – The New Orleans Office of Inspector General (OIG) on Wednesday (Nov. 8) released the results of its investigation into alleged bid-rigging in the city’s procurement process for the now-abandoned “Smart Cities” project. The report says two city employees might have violated state ethics law in awarding…
By Rachel Hernandez, Jordan Lippincott| WGNO | Nov. 1, 2023 NEW ORLEANS (WGNO) — Anne Kirkpatrick was sworn in as the new Superintendent of the New Orleans Police Department on Wednesday, Nov. 1. New Orleans Mayor LaToya Cantrell issued the oath of office to Kirkpatrick during a ceremony at Gallier Hall, making Kirkpatrick NOPD’s first permanent female…
In interviews by IG investigators, members of the sheriff’s staff who were offered rooms told the top brass up front that they didn’t think the rooms were necessary. By Mike Perlstein | 4WWL | Nov. 1, 2023 NEW ORLEANS — The controversy over Orleans Parish Sheriff Susan Hutson’s decision to pay for hotel rooms for 13…
By Ken Daley | Fox 8 | Oct. 17, 2023 NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – Orleans Parish District Attorney Jason Williams and his 78-year-old mother were carjacked at gunpoint Monday night (Oct. 16) in New Orleans, his spokesman said. “OPDA confirms that DA Williams and his 78-year-old mother were carjacked at gunpoint as he was helping her…
Kate O’Keeffe and Cameron McWhirter, Wall Street Journal September 17, 2023 Prosecutors work with former intelligence officers and artificial-intelligence tools to gather and analyze evidence. The case against Dijon Dixon, accused of killing Cornelius Smith in 2019, looked to be falling apart after a key witness backed out following an online death threat. Then prosecutors presented the defense…
Lee Zurik and Dannah Sauer, FOX8 September 13, 2023 The Lafourche Parish District Attorney’s Office won’t file criminal charges against coroner Dr. John King, who is accused of performing unnecessary autopsies to pad his paycheck. However, after reviewing a Louisiana State Police investigation into the allegations, D.A. Kristine Russell said her office found no evidence…
Eleanor Tabone, 4WWL September 13, 2023 For the first time in more than two years, there hasn’t been a homicide in 12 days in the City of New Orleans. Crime analysts believe the hot weather and gun enforcement could be the reason for the reduction in violent crime. Two years after Hurricane Katrina devastated Southeast…
Ashlyn Brothers, FOX8 September 12, 2023 Civic leaders assessing the qualifications of NOPD superintendent nominee Anne Kirkpatrick on Tuesday (Sept. 12) lauded her experience leading other law enforcement agencies and suggested her status as a New Orleans newcomer could provide valuable fresh perspective. “This is the first city head that any New Orleans City Council…
Raven Poole, WGNO September 12, 2023 The City of New Orleans hasn’t experienced a homicide in 10 days, according to the Metropolitan Crime Commission. The organization’s crime map for the dates of Sept. 5 through 10 shows the city has not had a homicide for the past 10 days. Officials report this is the first…
Morgan Lentes, WDSU September 11, 2023 Alton Williams, a valet at the Ace Hotel, was shot and killed in December 2021. A local mother is speaking out after news broke that New Orleans Mayor LaToya Cantrell has chosen who she would like to lead the city’s police department. Cantrell announced Anne Kirkpatrick as her top…
Ian Auzenne, WWL Radio September 11, 2023 Anne Kirkpatrick is Mayor LaToya Cantrell’s choice to become the next superintendent of the New Orleans Police Department. Cantrell’s nomination became known early Monday and was confirmed by Metropolitan Crime Commission president/CEO Raphael Goyeneche. He told WWL’s Newell Normand that he’s not surprised by the choice. “I also…
Morgan Lentes, WDSU September 5, 2023 A federal monitor has claimed the investigation violated the department’s consent decree. City leaders returned to federal court Tuesday to discuss the New Orleans Police Department’s handling of an internal investigation into Officer Jeffrey Vappie. Vappie, who serves on Mayor LaToya Cantrell’s protective detail, was accused of payroll fraud,…
Chris Nakamoto, WBRZ 2 Corruption watchdogs are calling for a top-to-bottom audit of a contract that was awarded in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic costing you nearly $50 million dollars. In June of 2020, the WBRZ Investigative Unit exposed a questionable contract awarded to a company while no-bid provisions were in effect due to…
By David Jones, FOX8 August 30, 2023 The federal judge in charge of overseeing the implementation of the consent decree in New Orleans called city leaders to court to answer questions surrounding the police department’s investigation into Officer Jeffrey Vappie. The hearing on Thursday (Aug. 31) will focus on the Public Integrity Bureau (PIB) and…
Darryl Forges, WDSU August 29, 2023 New trends are emerging about crime in New Orleans, as the city looks for their next permanent police chief. The newest Metro Crime Commission numbers show crime is still down 18 percent compared to this time last year, but shootings and killings amongst juveniles are up. Data from the…
By Fox 8 Staff August 28, 2023 Longtime criminologist Peter Scharf died Sunday (Aug. 27) at the age of 78, his employer the LSU Health Sciences Center New Orleans announced Monday. “Dr. Peter Scharf, an accomplished member of the faculty of LSU Health New Orleans’ Schools of Medicine and Public Health, passed away after a…
By Shay O’Connor August 28, 2023 New Orleans Police Department officers were called out to a hotel in New Orleans East on Sunday to investigate reports of shots fired. When they arrived at the Siegel Select, once known as Motel 6 at 12330 Interstate 10 Service Road, officers said two gunshot wound victims were located…
By WWL Staff August 24, 2023 One of the principal concerns facing Louisiana voters is the continuing increase in violent crime, which tops the survey as the most important problem in the state. In an exclusive WWL-TV Gubernatorial Election poll of 800 voters, one of the principal concerns facing Louisiana residents is the continuing increase…
By Fox 8 Staff August 23, 2023 New Orleans police are investigating multiple separate overnight shootings that left at least one person dead and four people injured on Tuesday (Aug. 22). Two of the surviving victims were juveniles. Police found a man shot and killed in the 2400 block of Eads Street near St. Roch…
By Maddie Kerth, Fox 8 August 21, 2023 New Orleans’ Inspector General Ed Michel on Monday (Aug. 21) advised the City of New Orleans to take a firmer stand over code violations at the blighted downtown Plaza Tower. With multiple calls for service, fires and a falling death in 2023 alone, the Office of Inspector…
By Joseph Cranney, nola.com (photo credit: Sophia Germer) August 19, 2023 Days after a private security guard shot a man in the back outside the New Orleans library’s main branch this month, library staff members and administrators gathered to air a host of complaints about the firm that has held the library security contract for the last several years. In that…
By Natasha Robin, Fox 8 August 15, 2023 Leaders of New Orleans’ criminal justice system on Tuesday (Aug. 15) touted a $30 million planned technology upgrade that they say will replace computers and data systems that have been outdated for decades. “This is going to cost a lot of money,” Orleans Parish District Attorney Jason…
By Cassie Schirm, WDSU Updated August 15, 2023 A federal hearing to discuss the consent decree and NOPD’s handling of an investigation into Mayor Latoya Cantrell’s executive detail is pushed back another week. This comes after Cantrell’s administration asked the federal Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals to intervene in a hearing ordered by the federal…
August 11, 2023 NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA – United States Attorney Duane A. Evans announced that ANTOINE CLARK(“CLARK”),age 33, of New Orleans, Louisiana; DIMITRI FRAZIER (“FRAZIER”), age 31, of Westwego, Louisiana; SHIRLEY HARRIS (“HARRIS”), age 38, of New Orleans, Louisiana; ADONTE TURNER (“A. TURNER”), age 25, of New Orleans, Louisiana; and TIFFANY TURNER (“T. TURNER”), age 52, of New Orleans, Louisiana were indicted on August 10, 2023.…
By Fox 8 Staff August 9, 2023 A 14-year-old juvenile has been arrested in connection to the fatal shooting of 13-year-old Juelz Brock, according to the New Orleans Police Department. Officers responded to the shooting on Aug. 6 in the 7700 block of Shubert Street, where Brock was found suffering from a gunshot wound to…
By Jordan Lippincott, WGNO August 8, 2023 A growing number of shooting victims in New Orleans are juveniles. New numbers show the increase, and despite all categories of violent crime being down compared to 2022, the president of the Metropolitan Crime Commission, Rafael Goyeneche, says juvenile violence remains a significant area of concern. The 13-year-old…
By Maddie Kerth, Fox 8 August 7, 2023 A 13-year-old boy shot and killed in New Orleans East Sunday night is the twenty-first juvenile to die by gunfire so far this year, according to a New Orleans crime watchdog report. The alarming trend is shocking neighborhoods across the city just as school starts for the new year.…
By Chris Miller, WWL August 7, 2023 New Orleans Mayor LaToya Cantrell’s administration is asking the federal Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals to intervene in a hearing ordered by the federal judge overseeing the NOPD consent decree. U.S. District Judge Susie Morgan is seeking more information on NOPD Public Integrity Bureau’s investigation of alleged payroll…
By David Hammer, WWL4 August 1, 2023 The International Association of Chiefs of Police finished its review of six candidates, and gave the highest score to former Henderson, Nev., police chief Thedrick Andres. But there are still major questions about how the IACP process was handled and how it scored the candidates, something that means…
By Eli Brand, WDSU July 31, 2023 Former Orleans Parish prosecutor and current attorney Blake Arcuri says Orleans Parish District Attorney Jason William’s track record of refusing charges has allowed some suspects to commit other crimes. Arcuri says an example can be seen from this Wednesday when NOPD arrested Keddrick Butler for allegedly breaking into…
Paul Murphy, WWL4 July 28, 2023 New Orleans police are investigating yet another series of vehicle break ins in the CBD. An employee from a CBD hotel spent part of the morning helping guests whose vehicles were burglarized late Thursday or early Friday morning. They were parked in a high-rise garage at O’Keefe Avenue and…
By Eleanor Tabone, WWL4 July 28, 2023 As violent crime continues to cause pain and bloodshed across our city, New Orleans Councilman Oliver Thomas is proposing a tool to catch those firing guns. ShotSpotter alerts police on where gun fire is coming from. Some say, however, the police department simply doesn’t have the manpower to…
Rob Masson, FOX 8 July 26, 2023 In the face of criticism over the transparency of the process to select the next NOPD superintendent, Mayor LaToya Cantrell says she is letting the process play out. “This is one of the largest decisions, I’ve had so many, but this is the most recent large decision I’ve…
By Leslie Turk, The Current July 26, 2023 Around a decade ago, district attorneys across Louisiana ramped up pretrial diversion programs, drawing ire from critics who saw a money grab in their proliferation. A lack of oversight, critics said, made it hard to evaluate what benefit such programs had on the justice system. Citing such…
By Alyssa Curtis, WWL4 July 25, 2023 The parking lot at the Hilton, near the Riverwalk was a recent target for car burglars. According to the Hilton, they are aware of recent reports of vehicle break ins. Hotel officials tell WWLTV, in a statement, they are working with partners to increase security presence. Data from…
By Holly Matkin, The Police Tribune July 21, 2023 The City of New Orleans has begun making fine payments that could add up to tens of millions of dollars for failing to keep a sufficient number of officers on the city’s police force. The New Orleans Police Department (NOPD) has lost so many officers in…
By Gabriella Killett and John Simerman, nola.com July 20, 2023 A day after Mayor LaToya Cantrell’s administration revealed six semifinalists for New Orleans police chief, the pool of remaining candidates and the secretive process behind it drew a chorus of criticism. The remaining candidates began two days of interviews Thursday at Gallier Hall before two…
By Natasha Robin, FOX 8 July 18, 2023 The City of New Orleans is being fined tens of millions of dollars by a police retirement group due to the drastic decline in police officers. The Municipal Police Employees’ Retirement System (MPERS) will fine the city starting at $50,000 per month, which will escalate to $214,000…
Lee Zurik and Dannah Sauer, FOX 8 July 18, 2023 New Orleans Mayor LaToya Cantrell’s recent overnight stays at the city-owned Upper Pontalba apartment during Essence Fest weekend may have violated a newly passed City Council ordinance. Video footage obtained by Fox 8 from a public-owned camera shows Mayor Cantrell entering the apartment on several…
By Lily Cummings, 4WWL July 17, 2023 NEW ORLEANS — Two kids were shot Sunday night in New Orleans East. The 10-year-old girl and 13-year-old boy were inside a home on Curran Road in Little Woods when shots were fired around 9PM, according to the New Orleans Police Department. The two juveniles were taken to…
By David Hammer June 30, 2023 NEW ORLEANS — The chairman of the board overseeing New Orleans’ 911 communications has called an emergency board meeting for next Thursday to discuss possible criminal allegations against the city’s 911 director, Tyrell Morris. “The meeting will take place at OPCD board room to discuss the incident involving Director…
June 29, 2023 Written by: Meg Gatto NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – New audio recordings FOX 8 obtained reveal the moment 911 center chief Tyrell Morris got into an accident in his city-owned vehicle. We’ve also learned from a City Hall source that the Inspector General’s office sent investigators to the 911 center Thursday, seizing cell…
June 29, 2023 Written by: Sabrina Wilson NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – Mayor Latoya Cantrell says she is not on board with calls to have embattled 911 Center chief Tyrell Morris leave his position sooner than his planned September 15 resignation. A day after city council members Helena Moreno and J.P. Morrell sent a letter to…
June 27, 2023 Written by: FOX 8 Staff NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – In a letter written to the chairman of the board for the Orleans Parish Communication District, the president and vice president of the City Council are requesting the immediate suspension of the 911 center’s executive director. Tyrell Morris announced his resignation from his…
June 22, 2023 Written by: FOX 8 Staff NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – A New Orleans police officer who has been at the center of an internal investigation has returned to his duty on the mayor’s executive protection team. At a press conference Thursday afternoon, Mayor LaToya Cantrell got out of her SUV, greeted by Officer…
By Cassie Schirm, June 23, 2023 Orleans Parish Communication Executive Director Tyrell Morris is under investigation by the Office of Inspector General of New Orleans regarding the altering of public documents as well as a car accident he was involved in back in May. That’s according to sources within City Hall. WDSU Investigates confirmed the…
By: FOX 8 Staff | fox8live.com | July 10, 2023 NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – A second suspect has been arrested in the armed robbery, shooting, and paralyzation of UNO student Noah Hansard. Police say Hansard, 24, was robbed and shot in the 2400 block of Paris Avenue in the Lake Terrace neighborhood of New Orleans…
By: Kenny Lopez | wgno.com | June 22, 2023 NEW ORLEANS (WGNO) — Igor’s is the latest business in New Orleans to be hit by criminals. In this case, police say employees did fight back. Crime experts say in that split second, you have to make a decision, and it must be a smart one.…
By: Lee Zurik and Dannah Sauer | fox8live.com | June 16, 2023 NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – The head of a New Orleans crime watch group calls an investigation into a former member of the mayor’s security team “flawed” and “incomplete.” The New Orleans Police Department’s Public Integrity Bureau (PIB) launched an investigation into Officer Jeffrey…
By Missy Wilkinson | NOLA.com | June 1, 2023 Days after a 17-year-old boy was shot while driving on Interstate 10 near the Elysian Fields exit, New Orleans police on Thursday remained tight-lipped about the shooting and potential strategies they may be considering to end the bloodshed on highways that feel increasingly unsafe. The teen was…
By: Danae Columbus | uptownmessenger.com | June 1, 2023 Lawyer Bill Aaron, a former city attorney under Mayor Sidney Barthelemy, raised a few eyebrows recently when he posted support for Republican state Rep. Debbie Villio’s House Bill 321, the Truth and Transparency Act, which would make public the criminal records of juveniles over the age of 13…
By Kenny Kuhn | WWL-TV | May 15, 2023 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS — The New Orleans Police Department is investigating four separate shootings that left three people dead and one wounded Sunday night, two of those shootings happened just minutes apart from each other. The first was a shooting in the 2300 block of Toledano…
By Joseph Cranney | NOLA.com | May 12, 2023 A controversial Orleans Parish Sheriff’s Office employee whom Sheriff Susan Hutson said she was dismissing in March has still not been let go, and it’s not clear when she might be on her way out. Instead, Kristen Morales is working remotely, doesn’t submit timesheets and has…
By Natasha Robin | WVUE | May 12, 2023 NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – Three women have lost their lives in separate incidents over the past 24 hours, adding to the concerning rise in the number of female victims across the city. Two women were shot multiple times in the 1000 block of North Claiborne early…
By Dionne Johnson | KLFY | May 10, 2023 CLICK FOR VIDEO LAFAYETTE, La. (KLFY) A bribery scheme of kickbacks that involved a former contract employee within the 15th Judicial District, Lafayette’s District Attorney’s has captured the attention of the Metropolitan Crime Commission. The commission president, Rafael Goyeneche, says he has never seen anything that…
By David Jones | WVUE | May 5, 2023 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – A man arrested for carrying an automatic weapon in the French Quarter, who was then released after the charges were refused, now faces federal charges. An indictment by a grand jury charged Keaton Manghave, a Tennessee resident, with illegally…
By Andres Fuentes | WVUE | May 4, 2023 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – Thursday afternoon (May 4), Orleans Parish District Attorney Jason Williams stood side-by-side with notable New Orleans East figures – all united against the crime wave plaguing the city. Business owners, faith leaders and city officials were at the eastbound…
By Lee Zurik & Dannah Sauer | WVUE | May 3, 2023 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – The federal monitor in charge of overseeing the New Orleans Police Department’s compliance with the consent decree says the department’s Public Integrity Bureau has been “backsliding.” The monitor’s 44-page report specifically cites the internal investigation into…
By Lee Zurik & Dannah Sauer | WVUE | May 2, 2023 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – New Orleans police officer Jeffrey Vappie was removed from Mayor LaToya Cantrell’s security detail in November 2022 amid a series of Fox 8 investigations. Those reports focused on his time spent with the mayor, both on…
By Mike Perlstein | WWL-TV | April 29, 2023 CLICK FOR INTERVIEW TRAIL LED TO ARREST AFTER KILLING Johnell Hampton and his Uber driver Andrew Stiller were riddled with bullets during an ambush-style shooting on Lundi Gras. Stiller’s devastating injuries caused him to crash onto the Interstate-10 and into a passing car, injuring the…
By Gordon Russell, Claire Taylor, & Sam Karlin | The Advocate | April 28, 2023 A broad kickback scandal tied to the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries and at least two Louisiana district attorney’s offices has officials scrambling, opting to put some contracts on ice while commissioning audits aimed at assessing the scope of the damage. The scandal’s…
By Cassie Schirm | WDSU | April 27, 2023 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS — A call for more supervision over those protecting the New Orleans mayor, the Office of Inspector General just released a report raising concerns over a lack of procedure in place for Mayor LaToya Cantrell’s executive detail. “We determined that the executive protection…
By Rob Masson | WVUE | April 27, 2023 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – Thursday (April 27), a federal consent decree monitor told a federal judge that NOPD manpower issues might be causing the department to regress. The NOPD did not attend a consent decree hearing for the first time, causing the federal…
By Meg Farris | WWL-TV | April 25, 2023 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS — Last year was the highest homicide rate in New Orleans since 1994. That’s according to numbers compiled by the Metropolitan Crime Commission. So far this year, all types of homicide are down five percent, but does that mean there are…
By Natasha Robin | WVUE | April 25, 2023 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – The New Orleans Police Department is preparing to increase patrols over the summer, joining forces with Louisiana State Police to launch Operation Golden Eagle for the third time. The program aims to deter crime and catch the most violent…
Department of Justice U.S. Attorney’s Office Eastern District of Louisiana Monday, April 24, 2023 NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA – United States Attorney Duane A. Evans announced that LOIS RUSSELL (“RUSSELL”), age 63 of Gibson, Louisiana, was sentenced on April 20, 2023 after previously pleading guilty to Conspiracy to Commit Mail Fraud, a violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section…
By Natasha Robin | WVUE | April 21, 2023 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – An Eleanor McMain student, just 12 days away from graduating, lost his life to gun violence. He’s one of three juveniles killed in four separate shootings in New Orleans. Five people died in a matter of hours across New…
By Kiran Chawla | Unfiltered with Kiran | April 19, 2023 BATON ROUGE — The Baton Rouge Police Department has rehired an officer who was fired over 20 years ago bringing the question of potential disparate discipline to the forefront. BRPD Officer Tramelle Neldare in 1998 in the 61st Academy graduating class The now 56-year-old…
By Arielle Brumfield | WDSU | April 10, 2023 CLICK FOR VIDEO Easter weekend, a time usually spent with family, friends, and honoring religion, became a time of despair for some and a time of mourning for others. A hot spot location for shootings over the weekend, Councilman Eugene Green of District D says it’s…
By Kaare Johnson | New Orleans Neutral Ground | April 7, 2023 CLICK FOR INTERVIEW CLIP
NOIG Press Release – OPCD Credit Cards Audit – Apr. 6, 2023
By Mike Perlstein | WWL-TV | April 6, 2023 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS — Long before controversy gripped the Orleans Parish Sheriff’s Office over the decision to get hotel rooms for 13 top deputies while they helped with Carnival security, acrimony had been brewing among the agency’s top executives. In fact, according to multiple sources and…
By Natasha Robin | WVUE | April 4, 2023 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – After New Orleans Mayor LaToya Cantrell refused to allow city employees to speak at public hearings on the consent decree without her permission, a federal judge has ordered the presence of several of the city’s top officials. In a court…
By Amy Russo | WGNO | April 4, 2023 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS (WGNO) — The federal judge overseeing the NOPD consent decree is ordering several high-ranking city leaders to court next week. Some of those include Police Chief Michelle Woodfork and Chief Administrative Officer Gilbert Montano. The order comes after Mayor Latoya Cantrell’s…
Department of Justice U.S. Attorney’s Office Eastern District of Louisiana Friday, March 31, 2023 NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA – United States Attorney Duane A. Evans announced that, on March 29, 2023, U.S. District Judge Sarah S. Vance sentenced TROYLYNN BROWN (“BROWN”), age 35, after she pleaded guilty to Conspiracy to Commit Mail Fraud in violation of Title 18, United States…
By Rob Masson | WVUE| March 29, 2023 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – New Orleans Mayor LaToya Cantrell said she opposes any changes to her use of the city-owned Upper Pontalba apartment. In a routine press conference on Wednesday (March 29) Mayor Cantrell also said there is nothing inappropriate about her security team…
By Mike Perlstein | WWL-TV | March 29, 2023 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS — While Orleans Parish Sheriff Susan Hutson explained that her dismissal of four of her top executives was already in the works as part of a transition as she approaches the one-year mark of her time in office, one of those employees…
By Mike Perlstein | WWL-TV | March 23, 2023 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS — This is Part 3 of “Room Service,” an ongoing investigation into the Orleans Parish Sheriff’s use of high-end hotel rooms for top commanders during Carnival. You can read the first and second parts here. Responding to criticism over the use of public money to…
Department of Justice U.S. Attorney’s Office Eastern District of Louisiana Wednesday, March 22, 2023 NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA – MARVEL FRANCOIS (“FRANCOIS”), age 54, of Houma, Louisiana, was sentenced today for Conspiracy to Commit Mail Fraud, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 371, arising out of staged automobile accidents with tractor-trailers occurring in New…
By Ken Daley & Natasha Robin | WVUE | March 22, 2023 CLICK FOR INTERVIEW NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – A defiant Mayor LaToya Cantrell called an investigation into timesheet irregularities involving members of her executive protection team a “witch hunt,” and said she felt vindicated by the failure of a petition seeking to force her…
By Nick Chrastil | The Lens | March 22, 2023 Earlier this month, Orleans Parish District Attorney Jason Williams announced that he was going back on his campaign promise to never utilize or threaten to use the state’s habitual offender law, which can dramatically increase prison sentences for people who have been convicted of prior felonies.…
By Chris Nakamoto | WBRZ | March 21, 2023 CLICK FOR VIDEO BATON ROUGE – State corruption watchdogs, lawmakers and legal experts are questioning why Louisiana State Trooper Kaleb Reeves wasn’t arrested when he caused a crash that killed two sisters in north Louisiana in October 2020. It comes amid renewed outrage, triggered by a WBRZ Investigative…
By Rob Masson | WVUE | March 16, 2023 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – The city’s independent Police Monitor says it will not investigate alleged missteps in the Jeffery Vappie investigation. That was after statements made by the mayor’s former security officer were sent to the city attorney’s office. The head of the…
Bu Paul Murphy | WWL-TV | March 16, 2023 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS — A dog training company out of Vermillion Parish near Lafayette offered to cover nearly $20,000 in hotel expenses for top Orleans Sheriff’s Office commanders. Sheriff Susan Hutson thanked LAK9 owners Paul Leblanc and Lance Broussard. Broussard’s Facebook page showed Hutson…
By Arielle Brumfield | WDSU | March 16, 2023 CLICK FOR VIDEO Orleans Parish District Attorney Jason Williams has invoked the habitual offender statute for violent offenders for the first time this week. The habitual offender statute is a tool Williams said he wouldn’t use, but now, more than two years into his administration, he’s…
Department of Justice U.S. Attorney’s Office Eastern District of Louisiana Wednesday, March 15, 2023 NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA – TROY SMITH (“SMITH”), age 58, of Houma, Louisiana, was sentenced on March 8, 2023 for Conspiracy to Commit Mail Fraud, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 371, arising out of staged automobile accidents with tractor-trailers occurring in…
WVUE | March 15, 2023 CLICK FOR INTERVIEW
By Aubry Killion | WDSU | March 14, 2023 CLICK FOR VIDEO Major questions are being raised toward the Orleans Parish Sheriff’s Office. Records obtained by WDSU investigates show $19,149 in taxpayer money was spent on housing OPSO employees at expensive downtown hotels during Carnival 2023. Rooms were booked at the Omni, Marriott, and Sheraton.…
By Mike Perlstein | WWL-TV | March 14, 2023 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS — New Orleans police officers were all hands on deck to return this year’s Mardi Gras parades to their traditional routes. And Carnival’s return to its full glory could not have happened without a big assist from the Orleans Parish Sheriff’s…
By Natasha Robin | WVUE | March 13, 2023 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – A violent weekend in New Orleans saw an uptick in carjackings, which had been trending down through the first two months of the year. New Orleans police investigated four carjackings across town, some of which involved multiple gunmen. On…
By Elizabeth Kuebel | WDSU | March 9, 2023 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS — New Orleans District Attorney Jason Williams is now considering using the habitual offender law in certain instances involving violent offenders. It reverses course on a campaign pledge. Williams says using the law could be possible after a comprehensive review and…
By Andres Fuentes | WVUE | March 8, 2023 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – People gathered in the hundreds before Pontilly Coffee to trek along Chef Menteur Highway to Louisa St. and back again. Many carried signs of kindness, love, peace and prayer as they walked behind Bobby Belcher, who carried a wooden…
By WWL Staff | WWL-TV | March 8, 2023 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS — New Orleans District Attorney Jason Williams said Tuesday that his office is reviewing transcripts after charges were refused in more than a dozen gun cases against individuals arrested on Lundi Gras. In a news conference announcing a partnership with Morris Bart’s…
By Jillian Kramer | NOLA.com | March 7, 2023 As violent crime surges, Orleans Parish District Attorney Jason Williams will begin using a prosecutorial tool his office long avoided that can significantly lengthen the prison sentences of people convicted of multiple felonies. In a shift from the progressive reforms promised during his campaign for office, Williams on…
Department of Justice U.S. Attorney’s Office Eastern District of Louisiana Friday, March 3, 2023 NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA – United States Attorney Duane A. Evans announced that BERNELL GALE (“GALE”), age 46 of Raceland, Louisiana, TANYA GIVENS (“GIVENS”), age 45, of Gibson, Louisiana; and DAKOTA DIGGS (“D. DIGGS”), age 27, of Ft. Smith, Arkansas, were each sentenced on March 1, 2023 in United States District…
By Natasha Robin | WVUE | March 3, 2023 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – “I mean it was throw me something mister and she was throwing ‘get out of free’ cards 15 times to gun cases,” says Rafael Goyeneche. The Metropolitan Crime Commission obtained and shared with FOX 8 the Magistrate Court transcripts…
By Natasha Robin | WVUE | March 2, 2023 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – An Orleans Parish Magistrate Judge set a $2.8 million bond for a man accused of killing two people and wounding a third in an interstate shooting in New Orleans East on Feb. 20. “It’s senseless. It’s barbaric. I’ve never seen anything…
By Lee Zurik & Dannah Sauer | WVUE | March 1, 2023 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – In about two years, Dr. John King, the longtime coroner in Lafourche Parish, earned an extra $69,900 of taxpayer money on top of his salary. A 2011 ordinance set King’s salary at $25,000. Before the council…
By Natasha Robin | WVUE | February 28, 2023 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – Gun violence has sent over 100 people to the hospital in New Orleans through the first two months of the year, according to data from the Metropolitan Crime Commission, not counting victims who died from their injuries. In the…
By Jordan Lippincott | WGNO | February 28, 2023 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS (WGNO) – Data from the Metropolitan Crime Commission shows some violent crimes are down, like carjackings and armed robberies, but when it comes to shootings, the stats are a little more complicated. According to Metropolitan Crime Commission President Rafael Goyeneche, the…
By Ka’Cell El-Mansura | WGNO | February 25, 2023 NEW ORLEANS (WGNO) — On Tuesday (Feb. 21) during Mardi Gras, the NOPD confiscated around 250 guns, but those accused of carrying the illegal firearms will not be facing charges. According to the New Orleans Metropolitan Crime Commission, during a bond hearing the District Attorney’s office…
By David Jones | WVUE | February 24, 2023 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – A Tennessee man allegedly caught carrying a modified machine gun on Bourbon Street was among more than a dozen arrestees whose cases were refused by a prosecutor from Orleans Parish District Attorney Jason Williams’ office on Mardi Gras. Keaton…
By Rob Masson | WVUE | February 24, 2023 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – A decision made by a top prosecutor within the Orleans Parish District Attorney’s office freed over a dozen people who were found illegally carrying a weapon during Mardi Gras festivities and is now facing heavy criticism. A crime watchdog group and…
By WWL Staff | WWL-TV | February 23, 2023 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS — Louisiana’s Lt. Governor slammed the prosecutors’ decision to refuse charges against almost two dozen individuals who were arrested in New Orleans on Lundi Gras. Court documents revealed that the Orleans Parish District Attorney’s Office refused charges in 19 cases, including 15 cases against individuals…
By Bun Choum | WDSU | February 23, 2023 CLICK FOR VIDEO The New Orleans District Attorney is ordering an extensive internal review after a prosecutor in his office refused charges on more than a dozen carnival arrests. In a statement to WDSU, the DA’s office wrote in part: “The Assistant DA’s strategic decision to…
By Natasha Robin | WVUE | February 22, 2023 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) -15 people, arrested for illegally carrying a weapon during Carnival, walked free when the Orleans District Attorney’s office refused the charges. “I’ve never seen this happen before,” says Rafael Goyeneche. “The charges were refused on the spot by the District…
Department of Justice U.S. Attorney’s Office Eastern District of Louisiana Thursday, February 16, 2023 NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA – United States Attorney Duane A. Evans announced that JOHN DIGGS (“J. DIGGS”), age 62, of Thibodaux, Louisiana, and JAMES WILLIAMS (“WILLIAMS”), age 68, of Gibson, Louisiana, were both sentenced February 14, 2023 to 10 months in prison by U.S. District Court Judge…
By Mike Perlstein | WWL-TV | February 14, 2023 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS — New Orleans District Attorney Jason Williams, a career criminal defense attorney, took office in 2021 as a reformer. But as a prosecutor, Williams quickly learned that the system to keep the city safe is only as strong as its weakest…
By Mike Perlstein | WWL-TV | February 14, 2023 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS — John Honore racked up at least seven arrests and 25 separate charges as juvenile, but he was back on the street when police say he carjacked 73-year-old Linda Frickey, who was dragged to her death, her arm severed from her…
Department of Justice U.S. Attorney’s Office Eastern District of Louisiana Friday, February 10, 2023 NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA – United States Attorney Duane A. Evans announced that DAVID BROWN (“BROWN”), age 51, of Morgan City, Louisiana; GILDA HENDERSON (“HENDERSON”), age 70, of Morgan City, Louisiana; LATRELL JOHNSON (“JOHNSON”), age 30, of New Orleans, Louisiana; and STACIE WHEATEN (“WHEATEN”), age 51 of Fairburn, Georgia, were sentenced on…
Department of Justice U.S. Attorney’s Office Eastern District of Louisiana Monday, February 6, 2023 NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA – United States Attorney Duane A. Evans announced DASHONTAE YOUNG (“YOUNG”), age 28, of Houma, Louisiana, was sentenced today for Conspiracy to Commit Wire Fraud, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 371, arising out of a staged automobile accident…
Department of Justice U.S. Attorney’s Office Eastern District of Louisiana Monday, February 6, 2023 NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA – United States Attorney Duane A. Evans announced that, on February 1, 2023, U.S. District Judge Sarah S. Vance sentenced ASHLEY McGOWAN (“McGOWAN”), age 36, to serve 24 months in prison, to be followed by one year of supervised release, for Conspiracy…
By Lee Zurik & Dannah Sauer | WVUE | February 6, 2023 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – Newly obtained emails show New Orleans Mayor LaToya Cantrell may have crossed an ethical line and possibly violated state law by letting out-of-town family members stay at a city-owned apartment. The French Market Corporation, a city…
By Matt Delaney | The Washington Times | February 6, 2023 New Orleans being named the nation’s “murder capital” ahead of Mardi Gras has local officials scrambling to bolster security while business owners are concerned that the reputation will scare away festival-goers. “I have had remarks that said because of the crime we don’t come to New…
WWL-Radio with Tommy Tucker | February 3, 2023 CLICK FOR INTERVIEW Rafael Goyeneche joins Tommy to talk about the police search for NOPD chief. Plus, how will the recall impact Mayor Cantrell’s search?
By Lee Zurik & Dannah Sauer | WVUE | February 2, 2023 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – On Wednesday, Sept. 7 at 6:27 p.m., a public security camera mounted outside the city-owned Upper Pontalba Apartments shows New Orleans Mayor LaToya Cantrell arrive at the apartment. Minutes later, the camera recorded her on the…
By Natasha Robin | WVUE | February 1, 2023 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – New Orleans Mayor LaToya Cantrell said she’s encouraged by violent crime trends in the city. In a press conference on Wednesday (Feb. 1), Mayor Cantrell pointed to armed robberies, carjackings, and homicides, which she says are all trending down…
The Neutral Ground with Kaare Johnson | January 30, 2023 CLICK FOR INTERVIEW Rafael Goyeneche returns to discuss January homicides, criminal justice, Mardi Gras concerns, and the consistent automobile thefts throughout Orleans Parish / AP’s Brett Martel is live from the P-Mac talking LSU bball, Sean Payton, Super Bowl LVII
WWL-Radio with Tommy Tucker | January 26, 2023 CLICK FOR INTERVIEW Rafael Goyeneche joins Tommy to talk about crime and NOPD in New Orleans.
Department of Justice U.S. Attorney’s Office Eastern District of Louisiana Monday, January 23, 2023 NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA – United States Attorney Duane A. Evans announced that LUCINDA THOMAS (“THOMAS”), age 67; MARY WADE (“WADE”), age 58; and JUDY WILLIAMS (“WILLIAMS”), age 62, all of Houma, Louisiana, were sentenced on January 19, 2023 for Conspiracy to Commit Wire Fraud, in violation of Title 18,…
By Rob Masson | WVUE | January 23, 2023 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – Members of New Orleans’ criminal justice community are responding to Mayor LaToya Cantrell’s statements made on national television about the city’s crime fight. Cantrell claimed New Orleans’ murder rate and police officer attrition were on the “decline” and expressed little…
By Lily Cummings | WWL-TV | January 20, 2023 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS — In 2022, New Orleans saw the highest number of vehicles thefts in a decade. According to the City of New Orleans’ crime dashboard, there were 4,011 auto thefts. Now 20 days into 2023, the numbers are alarming. “618 reported car…
By Danae Columbus | Uptown Messenger | January 19, 2023 Watching yesterday’s special City Council meeting on crime was very painful. It put a spotlight on the fear, frustration and anger of thousands of New Orleanians who recognize that the city has probably never been so unsafe. Voters also realize that New Orleans political, business,…
By Lee Zurik & Dannah Sauer | WVUE | January 17, 2023 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – A source tells Fox 8 a new court filing accuses New Orleans Mayor LaToya Cantrell of having an extramarital affair with a member of her security team. The wife of New Orleans police officer Jeffrey Vappie…
WWL-Radio with Newell Normand | January 16, 2023 CLICK FOR INTERVIEW Rafael Goyeneche, President of the Metropolitan Crime Commission, joins Newell to give the latest on the crime stats in New Orleans, the national search for an NOPD superintendent, and the Mayor’s Violent Crime Task force.
Department of Justice U.S. Attorney’s Office Eastern District of Louisiana Wednesday, January 11, 2023 NEW ORLEANS – The United States Attorney’s Office announced that former Louisiana State Senator and Chair of State Political Party “A,” KAREN CARTER PETERSON, age 53, from New Orleans, Louisiana, was sentenced today by United States District Judge Sarah S. Vance to…
By Eleanor Tabone | WWL-TV | January 3, 2023 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS — Three days into the new year and the city’s crime problem continues to take lives. It’s the most recent bloodshed in New Orleans – four people were shot Tuesday evening on S. Rocheblave Street, near Washington Avenue. All of them…
By Lee Zurik & Dannah Sauer | WVUE | December 1, 2022 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – FOX 8 obtains records the City of New Orleans first refused to turn over after a FOX 8 attorney sent a demand letter to the City Attorney’s Office. The City Attorney first said the records were…
Department of Justice U.S. Attorney’s Office Eastern District of Louisiana Wednesday, October 12, 2022 NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA – United States Attorney Duane A. Evans announced today that HERBERT ALLEN (“ALLEN”), age 37, and DION RIDLEY (“RIDLEY”), age 23, agreed to plead guilty to count one (1) of their indictment, charging Conspiracy to Commit Mail Fraud in violation of Title…
By Michaela Romero | WGNO | September 20, 2022 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS (WGNO) — New Orleans has skyrocketing homicide rates in 2022. According to the Wall Street Journal, New Orleans has the highest homicide rate of any major city so far this year. Their data shows that there are about 41 homicides per 100,000 residents.…
By Shay O’Connor | WDSU | September 20, 2022 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS — The city of New Orleans has been declared the murder capital of the United States for the first half of 2022, according to the Metropolitan Crime Commission. The MCC said when comparing the number of homicides with the population, the…
By Natasha Robin | WVUE | September 19, 2022 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – New Orleans has become the homicide capital of the country. “It’s no wonder that we are the homicide capital of the United States, when you’re seeing a 46 percent surge in homicides,” said Rafael Goyeneche, president of the Metropolitan…
By Cameron McWhirter | Wall Street Journal | September 16, 2022 Violent crime in New Orleans has grown to the point that Ibrahim Rabee no longer feels safe at his auto shop. At least seven people have been killed within blocks of his store since the beginning of the year, according to police records. Customers bring…
By Natasha Robin | WVUE | September 14, 2022 NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – According to data from the Metropolitan Crime Commission, gun violence in New Orleans has sent 584 people to the hospital this year. Of those injured, the MCC says 208 of them died since Jan. 1. “Since 2019, homicides are up 140%. Shootings…
By Joseph Cranney & Blake Peterson | NOLA.com | September 11, 2022 Two weeks after Orleans Parish District Attorney Jason Williams was acquitted on federal tax evasion charges, he made headlines for another reason: He accepted a side job with the law firm that successfully defended him in his criminal trial. Williams might not end up joining Schonekas, Evans, McGoey…
By Mike Perlstein | WWL-TV | September 8, 2022 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS — From almost the day she took office, Orleans Parish Sheriff Susan Hutson has been hit by one crisis after another, from an inmate’s death in a fight, to a suicide, to a standoff with inmates who took over an entire…
By Natasha Robin | WVUE | September 7, 2022 NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – Since Monday (Sept. 5), seven carjackings unfolded across New Orleans. “This city is like the wild wild west,” says Richard Launey. One of the latest incidents happened in the 3000 block of St. Claude Avenue where police say a carjacker pulled a…
By Erika Ferrando | WWL-TV | September 7, 2022 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS — In seven separate cases overnight Monday, victims were approached by armed men trying to steal their cars. NOPD is investigating three carjackings, two attempted carjackings, an armed robbery where a car was stolen, and an armed robbery where suspects tried…
By Shay O’Connor | WDSU | September 7, 2022 CLICK FOR VIDEO A violent Labor Day weekend in New Orleans with a string of carjackings left people across the city on edge. The Metropolitan Crime Commission reports at least four carjackings Monday. Including one near Monkey Hill Bar on Magazine Street at about 10 p.m.…
By Olivia Vidal | WVUE | September 7, 2022 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – A violent Labor Day weekend and a fatal double shooting Tuesday afternoon (Sept. 6) have pushed New Orleans’ homicide count beyond the total number recorded in 2020. There have been 205 homicides in New Orleans so far this year according to the latest data…
By Shay O’Connor | WDSU | September 7, 2022 CLICK FOR VIDEO A violent Labor Day weekend in New Orleans with a string of carjackings left people across the city on edge. The Metropolitan Crime Commission reports at least four carjackings Monday. Including one near Monkey Hill Bar on Magazine Street at about 10 p.m.…
By Natasha Robin | WVUE | September 7, 2022 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – Since Monday (Sept. 5), seven carjackings unfolded across New Orleans. “This city is like the wild wild west,” says Richard Launey. One of the latest incidents happened in the 3000 block of St. Claude Avenue where police say a…
By Lee Zurik & Dannah Sauer | WVUE | September 7, 2022 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – Emails from FOX 8 News to the Orleans Parish Sheriff’s Office go unanswered. Those emails asked if Sheriff Susan Hutson overpaid one of her former top employees. “I think it flies in the face of what…
By Matt Sledge & John Simerman | NOLA.com | September 4, 2022 With New Orleans’ murder rate in the red zone and cops fleeing the force, Mayor LaToya Cantrell has dusted off a quarter-century-old playbook: She’s called in the NYPD. Just as former Mayor Marc Morial did when crime and killing engulfed the city in…
By Natasha Robin | WVUE | September 2, 2022 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – In the past week, the NOPD investigated more than 10 homicides bringing the total murder count to 198 so far this year. “Carjackings are up 7 percent and armed robberies are up 42 percent,” says Rafael Goyeneche. Rafael Goyeneche…
By Aubrey Killon | WDSU | September 1, 2022 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS — New documents raise questions over consulting work done for the Orleans Parish Sheriff’s Office. Kyshun Webster, the former Juvenile Justice Center director for the city of New Orleans, did a few weeks of consulting work for Orleans Parish Sheriff Susan…
By Paul Murphy | WWL-TV | August 30, 2022 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS — In a story first reported by our partners at the Times Picayune, New Orleans Advocate, New Orleans Mayor Latoya Cantrell may be on the hook for close to $30,000 in air travel upgrades. Travel documents obtained by WWL-TV show Cantrell,…
By Natasha Robin | WVUE | August 30, 2022 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – The New Orleans Police Department’s average response time is getting worse as the department continues to face a critical manpower shortage. “The average is roughly 30 minutes, but if you’re in some districts, it’s like 40 or 50 minutes,”…
By Mike Perlstein | WWL-TV | August 30, 2022 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS — The beginning of the end of Kyshun Webster’s tenure as the director of city’s juvenile jail was marked by accusations that he was rarely at the lockup, heavy-handed leadership when he was there, and numerous instances of violence, including the…
By Lee Zurik & Dannah Sauer | WVUE | August 30, 2022 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – A political analyst says an office that promised transparency and accountability was dishonest in a response to Fox 8. “It doesn’t make sense. You know, it doesn’t pass the smell test,” said Dillard University public policy…
By Anthony McAuley | NOLA.com | August 23, 2022 A New Orleans-based commodities and fuel storage firm has given The Nola Coalition advocacy group a donation of $1 million, the alliance’s largest contribution so far as it campaigns for a new strategy to deal with violent crime in the city. International-Matex Tank Terminals’ Chief Executive…
By Morgan Lentes | WDSU | August 23, 2022 CLICK FOR VIDEO The Mayor’s Office of Gun Violence Prevention has been working to combat crime in New Orleans for just over a year. The office, which was created in April 2021, is run by director Patrick Young. He spoke exclusively with WDSU on Monday about…
By Kim Chatelain | NOLA.com | August 23, 2022 The Nola Coalition, advocacy group formed last month to attack the city’s violent crime problem, has received a $1 million donation from a New Orleans-based commodities and fuel storage company. International-Matex Tank Terminals’ Chief Executive Carlin Conner said his firm put up the money because it sees crime as…
WWL Radio | Audacy | August 22, 2022 CLICK FOR INTERVIEW The Metropolitan Crime Commission says a pause in the violent crime in New Orleans was short-lived. “Relatively quiet week until this past weekend – since Friday, TWELVE people have been injured in ten shooting incidents, at least one of whom has died,” the MCC…
By Mike Perlstein | WWL-TV | August 16, 2022 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS — The riot by the Orleans Justice Center inmates in Block 2E over the weekend forced Sheriff Susan Hutson to resort to a very rarely used call for help. “As a last resort we conducted a joint operation with the (State)…
By Josh Roberson | WVUE | August 13, 2022 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – Hoping to put a dent in the city’s rampant gun violence, New Orleans city councilman Freddie King III and others hosted a citywide firearm buy-back event Saturday (Aug. 13) at St. Stephen’s Baptist Church in Algiers. Residents lined up…
By Billy Sinclair | The Crime Report | August 12, 2022 This is a tale of two men who, as teenagers, committed crimes of murder. One is black, the other is white. Henry is the black teenager; Andrew, the white teenager. Their cases are about the failure of justice in the Louisiana criminal justice system.…
By Mike Perlstein | WWL-TV | August 8, 2022 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS — When Kyshun Webster was named director of New Orleans’ juvenile jail, questions already swirled about his fitness for the job. Years earlier, Webster’s non-profit education program for youngsters was flagged by federal auditors when nearly $1 million was unaccounted for.…
By Anna McAllister | WGNO | August 5, 2022 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS (WGNO) — Violence continues to cast a shadow on the City of New Orleans. Thursday evening two separate shootings in the Lower Ninth Ward left two men dead and another man injured. The first happened at the intersection of Lamanche and…
By Natasha Robin | WVUE | August 5, 2022 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – In a case that Orleans District Attorney Jason Williams prosecuted himself, along with two other ADAs and a jury found Damond Scott guilty of second-degree murder, attempted second-degree murder and obstruction of justice. “This was an incident that rocked…
By Mike Perlstein | WWL-TV | August 5, 2022 When Kyshun Webster was named director of New Orleans’ juvenile jail, questions swirled about his fitness for the job. Years earlier, Webster’s nonprofit education program for youngsters was flagged by federal auditors when nearly $1 million was unaccounted for. The audit also noted extravagant personal spending…
By Danae Columbus | Uptown Messenger | August 4, 2022 Growing up in a small Arkansas town, I was around guns frequently. I spent many an hour watching my cousins who were national skeet shooting champions. One of them, a female, is still ranked on the national circuit. I knew that guns were for hunting…
WDSU Digital Team | August 4, 2022 CLICK FOR VIDEO The Orleans Parish Sheriff’s Office is investigating multiple stabbings in one week at the Orleans Parish Justice Center. The center confirmed four stabbing incidents happened at the jail over eight days. The center issued the following statement regarding the stabbings: “Today, the Orleans Parish Sheriff’s…
By Eli Brand | WDSU | August 2, 2022 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS — The New Orleans Police Department has hired five new crime scene investigators. This increases their investigators from nine up to 14. They say this will help them cut down evidence processing times and help with burnout in the department. “Think…
Department of Justice U.S. Attorney’s Office Eastern District of Louisiana Monday, August 1st, 2022 NEW ORLEANS – The United States Attorney’s Office announced that former Louisiana State Senator and Chair of State Political Party “A”, KAREN CARTER PETERSON, age 52, from New Orleans, Louisiana, pleaded guilty as charged today before United States District Judge Sarah…
By Natasha Robin | WVUE | August 1, 2022 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – With a film crew in tow, Orleans Parish District Attorney Jason Williams returned to a courthouse as a prosecutor instead of a defendant on Monday (Aug. 1). “I’m ready to get back in the courtroom and try a case…
By James Finn & Lea Skene | The Advocate | July 30, 2022 Long before the murder-suicide, Van Hopkins had been warned. His own business partner accused him of running his ankle-monitoring business in a way that risked “failing to actually supervise people.” Hopkins, at least a decade into his career, was familiar with the…
By Kenny Lopez | WGNO | July 29, 2022 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS (WGNO)— Orleans Parish District Attorney Jason Williams was acquitted on all charges of Federal tax fraud in court yesterday. Now Williams is expected to return to work after the two work hiatus. WGNO’s Kenny Lopez talked to The Metropolitan Crime Commission…
By Anna McAllister | WGNO | July 25, 2022 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS (WGNO) —”I have saved more lives and protected myself and others more with a tourniquet or a trauma kit than I have with a firearm,” said Brannon LeBouef. Because LeBouef was at the right place at the right time Sunday night,…
By Olivia Vidal | WVUE | July 25, 2022 CLICK FOR INTERVIEW NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – The Metropolitan Crime Commission reports the number of shootings in New Orleans is up 104 percent through seven months this year compared to all of 2019. Homicide totals are up 139 percent. “Violent crime in this city continues to…
Department of Justice U.S. Attorney’s Office Eastern District of Louisiana Thursday, July 21st, 2022 NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA – United States Attorney Duane A. Evans announced today that STACIE WHEATEN (“S. WHEATEN”), age 51, of Fairburn, Georgia, pled guilty on July 21, 2022 to count one (1) of her indictment, charging Conspiracy to Commit Mail Fraud in violation of Title 18,…
Department of Justice U.S. Attorney’s Office Eastern District of Louisiana Thursday, July 21st, 2022 NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA – United States Attorney Duane A. Evans announced that LARRY WILLIAMS (“WILLIAMS”), age 49, of New Orleans, was sentenced today for Conspiracy to Commit Wire Fraud, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 371, arising out of a staged…
By LBJ | WGNO | July 20, 2022 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS (WGNO)— Facial recognition software for the NOPD is back on the table. Many business and neighborhood leaders, fed up with violent crime, support the technology, in spite of criticism that it violates privacy rights. Tomorrow, the city council is set to vote…
By Fox 8 Staff | WVUE | July 19, 2022 CLICK FOR VIDEO BATON ROUGE, La. (WVUE) – About half of the juvenile inmates at the troubled Bridge City Center for Youth will be transferred within the next month to a special wing being prepared at the Louisiana State Penitentiary at Angola, Gov. John Bel…
By David Jones | WVUE | July 18, 2022 CLICK FOR VIDEO BRIDGE CITY, La. (WVUE) – Governor John Bel Edwards will address the future of the troubled Bridge City Center for Youth on Tuesday (July 19), with sources confirming to Fox 8 those plans include quickly reducing the number of violent offenders housed at…
By Michael Lee | Fox News | July 18, 2022 New Orleans business owners are fed up with the rise in crime in the city, which has seen its murder rate spike to highs unseen in almost three decades. “I think there is a lot of people that have worked in the French Quarter and…
By Nick Chrastil | The Lens | July 15, 2022 More than two years after he was federally indicted on charges of tax fraud, Orleans Parish District Attorney Jason Williams is set to go to trial on Monday, the outcome of which has the potential to upend the criminal legal system in New Orleans. If convicted…
By Rob Masson | WVUE | July 14, 2022 NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – A mother has been issued a municipal summons after another two-year-old was shot in New Orleans East Wednesday night. The boy was just the latest victim in a string of shootings involving children, and community concern is growing. “We somehow dropped the ball in…
Department of Justice U.S. Attorney’s Office Eastern District of Louisiana Thursday, July 14th, 2022 NEW ORLEANS – The United States Attorney’s Office announced that former Louisiana State Senator and Chair of State Political Party “A”, KAREN CARTER PETERSON, age 52, from New Orleans, Louisiana, was charged today in a one-count bill of information with wire fraud,…
By Sabrina Wilson | WVUE | July 12, 2022 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – The public outcry over violent crime has brought together a broad coalition of people to tackle the problem. They said Tuesday (July 12) they hope to help the New Orleans Police Department and also address the root causes of…
By Anthony McAuley | NOLA.com | July 12, 2022 In an effort to pressure the city’s elected officials to act more aggressively, nearly 180 New Orleans-area businesses, civic organizations and activists announced Tuesday they have banded together to craft their own plan to combat the unrelenting surge of violent crime, which they believe will send…
By Mike Perlstein | WWL-TV | July 9, 2022 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS — It was broad daylight on Feb. 12 when police say April Butler, 36, shot a woman in both hips in an auto parts store parking lot, narrowly missing a 7-year-old boy. Butler was quickly arrested, and is now awaiting trial…
By Jillian Kramer | NOLA.com | July 9, 2022 Revolutionaries and martyrs look down from the walls of Orleans Parish District Attorney Jason Williams’ office: An innocent 14-year-old Black boy who was boosted on books to fit into the electric chair that killed him. An abolitionist deemed unhinged for taking up arms to fight slavery.…
Letters to the Editor | The Advocate | July 7, 2022 Covering the crime problem in one article is “Mission Impossible.” I will address three organizations that, hopefully, have universal appeal and will attract the collective involvement of individuals to make a difference in the quality of life in our city. I hope that many…
By Jamiles Lartey | Louisiana Illuminator | July 6, 2022 This article was published in partnership between The Marshall Project and NBC News. NEW ORLEANS — Fatima Muse still reaches for the phone to call her godmother, before remembering she’s not there to pick up. Portia Pollock was stabbed to death in front of her home in…
By Jasmine Baehr | Fox News | July 1, 2022 CLICK FOR VIDEO New Orleans Mayor LaToya Cantrell’s city could be on its way to record-setting crime as violence plagues blue cities nationwide. She is the latest to follow the pattern of Democratic leadership laid out by mayors like Eric Adams of New York, Lori…
By Kenny Lopez | WGNO | July 1, 2022 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS (WGNO) — We are nearly halfway through 2022 and so far more than 150 people have been killed in New Orleans, that means we’ve had fewer than 30 days go by without a homicide. In June alone the number of homicides…
By Erika Ferrando | WWL-TV | June 30, 2022 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS — A woman is in critical condition after being shot while driving on I-10 Wednesday near the Carrollton exit. NOPD investigators believe she was likely targeted and deliberately shot. Police still don’t know the motive. This marks the 13th shooting on…
By Natasha Robin | WVUE | June 27, 2022 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – Violent crime plagued New Orleans again over the weekend. Police investigated multiple homicides, shootings, and 10 different armed robberies. On Sun., June 26, police say three robberies happened back-to-back in the Marigny. In each of the cases, police say…
By Natasha Robin | WVUE | June 23, 2022 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – Chief Ferguson decided to make a plea to the public after what he calls a concerning trend of negligent homicides. Wednesday evening (June 22), a 2-year-old boy died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound in the 8600 block of Apple…
By Mid-City Messenger | June 22, 2022 A woman was carjacked near the Lafitte Greenway on Tuesday afternoon (June 21), the New Orleans Police Department reported. She was walking to her vehicle in the 2100 block of Lafitte Street at about 3:55 p.m. when a man approached her from behind. He grabbed the keys from…
By WDSU Digital Team | WDSU | June 22, 2022 NEW ORLEANS — The Metropolitan Crime Commission has added a new data set to their Orleans crime trends that they routinely track. The commission unveiled new district-level crime statistics. The commission will update these statistics weekly. The data shows crime in New Orleans broken down…
By Mykal Vincent | WVUE | June 22, 2022 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – Two people were killed and a third was injured in two separate overnight shootings in New Orleans, police say. According to the New Orleans Police Department, two men were gunned down just before 11 p.m. Tues., June 21 in…
By Kiran Chawla | Unfiltered with Kiran | June 21, 2022 CLICK FOR VIDEO Sgt. John Dauthier was placed on administrative leave on Monday, June 20, 2022. “Yesterday, for reasons unknown and undisclosed, John was put on administrative leave by BRPD,” said Dauthier’s attorney Cliff Ivey. “This came just moments after a meeting I had…
By Natasha Robin | WVUE | June 21, 2022 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – Mayor LaToya Cantrell says addressing crime is the city’s top priority. Meanwhile, crime victims say they’re fed up, and in some cases, ready to leave the city. “I feel like I am the crisis mayor,” Cantrell said. “For four…
By Natasha Robin | WVUE | June 20, 2022 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – After three of his vehicles were broken into in a matter of weeks, a man living on St. Charles Avenue decided to hire his own armed security, who was also victimized. “It’s concerning to think that we have this…
By David Jones | WVUE | June 17, 2022 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – It’s no secret that New Orleans struggles with violent crime, but new statistics paint a grim picture of the Crescent City being on pace to be the murder capital of the United States if trends don’t change in 2022.…
By Kevin Gallagher | LouisianaRadioNetwork.com | June 16, 2022 A crime & corruption watchdog group calls for review of a Tangipahoa Parish case wherein a rape victim was ordered to pay child support to her alleged attacker. Metropolitan Crime Commission director Rafael Goyeneche says the victim was just 16 when the attack occurred, and the…
By John Simerman | NOLA.com | June 16, 2022 Public confidence in the New Orleans Police Department has nosedived, while a dwindling minority of residents feels the city is safe, according to a newly released survey from the New Orleans Crime Coalition. The rising sense of peril and frustration with police crossed neighborhoods, races and…
By David Jones | WVUE | June 15, 2022 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – Orleans Parish Sheriff Susan Hutson again dodged FOX 8′s cameras Wednesday afternoon, declining to speak to the news outlet following her presentation to the city council on the events that transpired at the jail over the weekend. Two inmates…
By Matt Sledge | NOLA.com | June 15, 2022 The New Orleans Police Department has moved patrol officers to 12-hour shifts and hopes to lure cops from other agencies to reduce 911 response times and stem violent crime, Superintendent Shaun Ferguson said Wednesday. Five months after Ferguson faced a grilling during a carjacking surge,…
By Meg Farris | WWL-TV | June 14, 2022 The Metropolitan Crime Commission says a lot went wrong when Orleans Parish Sheriff Susan Hutson made the decision to pull deputies from the courthouse on Monday, forcing the court’s closure. “There’s actually a Louisiana law that mandates that every sheriff has to provide court security, so she…
By FOX 8 Staff | WVUE | June 14, 2022 NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – Two men who died in the Orleans Parish Justice Center have been identified by the parish coroner’s office. One man, identified as Philip Soublet Jr., was killed in a jailhouse brawl while awaiting trial for second-degree murder. Officials say Soublet died…
By Jillian Kramer | NOLA.com | June 14, 2022 Orleans Parish Sheriff Susan Hutson, who said this week that a critical staffing shortage played a role in the weekend deaths of two men held at the Orleans Justice Center, would not provide information Tuesday on jail staffing levels, saying it could pose a new security…
By Roby Chavez | PBS | June 14, 2022 NEW ORLEANS – Moments after Morris Jeff Community School’s graduation ceremony ended May 31, gunshots pierced the air. The crowd of students, many still in caps and gowns, and family members scattered. Some attendees fell to the ground as the joyful moment turned deadly for members…
By Chris Nakamoto | WBRZ | June 14, 2022 CLICK FOR VIDEO PONCHATOULA – A corruption watchdog told WBRZ Tuesday he’s requesting an outside law enforcement entity to come in and review the case where a rape victim was ordered to pay her perpetrator child support. Less than 24 hours after the WBRZ Investigative Unit…
By Missy Wilkinson | NOLA.com | June 14, 2022 A man sitting in his pickup truck in Mid-City was yanked from the vehicle by a carjacker Monday afternoon, New Orleans police said. Police responded to the carjacking at the intersection of South Murat and Banks streets at around 5:14 p.m. They said that after the…
By Jackie Galli | Mid-City Messenger | June 14, 2022 Bianka Lebeouf was putting up fliers this weekend with her children for a neighborhood public safety meeting when she heard gunshots. One of the shots she heard resulted in a man’s death. Those gunshots were just one of several incidents Lebeouf experienced this past weekend;…
By LBJ & Anna McAllister | WGNO | June 13, 2022 NEW ORLEANS (WGNO)— After the Orleans Parish Criminal Court closed its doors on Monday, local officials were questioned about why. WGNO’s LBJ spoke with Orleans Parish Sheriff Susan Hutson for an exclusive insight on the court’s operations and what role law enforcement plays. And,…
By Michael Perlstein | WWL-TV | June 13, 2022 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS — After a fight involving four inmates at the Orleans Justice Center on Friday that left one inmate dead and two in the hospital, followed by an inmate suicide on Sunday, Sheriff Susan Hutson announced she was pulling deputies from criminal court…
By Rob Masson | WVUE | June 13, 2022 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – A courthouse shutdown, implemented by newly-elected Orleans Parish Sheriff Susan Hutson, caught many off guard Monday morning. Criminal court judges said they were shocked on Sunday when they learned of Hutson’s decision to pull deputies from courthouse security to…
By Kaitlin Rust | WVUE | June 10, 2022 CLICK FOR VIDEO There have been at least 11 murders in just the past five days across New Orleans. We’re now up to at least 135 homicides this year as police start 12-hour shifts to try to fight back. “It’s disheartening, first and foremost,” NOPD Chief…
By Kenny Kuhn | WWL | June 10, 2022 CLICK FOR INTERVIEW The violence continues in New Orleans with four people shot dead in less than 12 hours says the New Orleans Police Department. It started Thursday evening when two people were shot dead in the 1900 block of O’Reilly Street in the 7th Ward.…
By James Finn and John Simerman | The Advocate | June 9, 2022 The U.S. Department of Justice on Thursday announced a major civil rights investigation of Louisiana State Police over troopers’ use of excessive force and claims of racially biased policing — the kind of intensive federal probe that often lands police agencies under…
By Janon Fisher | Daily Mail | June 9, 2022 A New Orleans city councilman is suggesting bringing in reinforcements as crime in the city spikes, homicides are on track to reach record highs and the police force struggles with chronic understaffing. ‘Maybe it’s time to talk about bringing in the National Guard,’ District E Councilman Oliver…
By Shay O’Connor | WDSU | June 8, 2022 New Orleans had a violent start on Tuesday night. At least three shootings overnight. One along Louisa Street where one man was shot, another shooting along Aviators Street where a man and woman were hit. One also along Franklin Avenue and Royal Street in front of…
By Gregory Rusovich | The Advocate | June 8, 2022 “The French Quarter is disgusting,” shouted a recent Times-Picayune headline quoting a local worker. For years, French Quarter residents and leaders have been howling about the crumbling streets, pervading stench, aggressive panhandlers, uncontrolled homelessness, rampant graffiti, a general sense of lawlessness and surging violent crime.…
By Chris Miller | WWL | June 7, 2022 CLICK FOR INTERVIEW How can NOPD deal with surging violence and wanton disregard for the law like many in New Orleans witnessed Sunday? It will likely take a lot of creative thinking. New Orleans Metropolitan Crime Commission President Rafael Goyeneche says there is no short-term fix,…
By John Simerman | NOLA.com | June 6, 2022 Oris Buckner III, a former New Orleans Police Department officer who broke ranks in the early 1980’s to help convict three other detectives for brutalizing residents in the notorious “Algiers 7” civil rights case, died Wednesday in Houston, where he lived. He was 70. Buckner, who…
By Ken Daley | WVUE | June 6, 2022 NEW ORLEANS – A person was found slain Monday morning (June 6) in a far eastern section of New Orleans, police said. The NOPD offered scant details of the killing, declining to reveal the victim’s identity, age or gender in an initial public bulletin. The department…
By Louisiana Weekly | June 6, 2022 The heart-wrenching murder of Mrs. Augustine Greenwood, 80, in Xavier University’s Convocation Center parking lot last Tuesday is the last damn straw! The mother of six and grandmother to 15 was there to witness her grandson, Corey Lashley Jr., graduate from Morris Jeff High School. They walked to…
By Will Weissert and Zeke Miller | Associated Press | June 3, 2022 WASHINGTON – ”Enough, enough!” President Joe Biden exclaimed over and over Thursday night, as he delivered an impassioned address to the nation imploring Congress to take action against gun violence after mass shootings he said had turned schools and other everyday places…
By Joshua Arnold | LifeNews.com | June 3, 2022 When states are red, but cities are blue, abortion battles begin anew. Fearful that the Supreme Court will overturn Roe v. Wade and send abortion policy back to the states, some pro-abortion officials in some progressive cities are preparing to draw it down to the local…
By Kenny Kuhn | WWL | June 2, 2022 CLICK FOR AUDIO In less than 12 hours, eight people were shot in New Orleans from Wednesday afternoon to early this morning as violent crime continues to rise out of control. According to New Orleans police reports, one man was shot on the edge of the…
By Gerald Herbert | Associated Press | June 1, 2022 NEW ORLEANS (AP) — An elderly woman was killed and two males wounded when an argument between two females erupted into gunfire Tuesday at a university campus after a high school graduation there, New Orleans police said. The males received wounds that were not life-threatening…
By Natasha Robin | WVUE | May 27, 2022 CLICK FOR VIDEO The NOPD says it has a plan to address crime. Starting June 1, next Wednesday, patrol officers will go on 12 hours shifts. The NOPD believes this will help to be more proactive and have officers visible on the street. On top of…
By Jim Mustian and Jake Bleiberg | AP | May 27, 2022 BATON ROUGE, La. — With racial tensions still simmering over the killing of George Floyd, Louisiana Gov. John Bel Edwards and his top lawyers gathered in a state police conference room in October 2020 to prepare for the fallout from a troubling case closer to…
By Kevin Gallagher | Louisiana Radio Network | May 27, 2022 Research website “GunViolenceArchive.org” reports Louisiana leads the nation in mass shootings per capita. Just this calendar year alone, there have been 16 mass shootings that killed 9 people and injured 79 others. New Orleans Metropolitan Crime Commission director Rafael Goyeneche says gang activity &…
Department of Justice U.S. Attorney’s Office Eastern District of Louisiana Thursday, May 26th, 2022 NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA – United States Attorney Duane A. Evans announced today that on May 25, 2022 DONIESHA GIBSON (“GIBSON”), age 31, of New Orleans, Louisiana and ERICA LEE THOMPSON (“ERICA LEE”), age 47, of Harvey, Louisiana, were sentenced for Conspiracy…
By Mike Perlstein | WWL-TV | May 25, 2022 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS — Some shootings and killings in New Orleans have been etched into the city’s collective memory. Three killed and seven wounded at Jazz Daquiris on Claiborne in 2018. Seventeen wounded at Bunny Friend Playground in 2015. Nineteen shot at the Mother’s…
By Kaitlin Rust | WVUE | May 25, 2022 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – Louisiana leads the entire nation in mass shootings per capita according to the Gun Violence Archive. 79 people have been injured and 9 killed in 16 mass shootings so far this year. To put that in perspective, Texas had…
BY MISSY WILKINSON | NOLA.com | MAY 23, 2022 The New Orleans coroner on Monday released the names of three people slain during a violent weekend that included two mass shootings — one in the Lower 9th Ward on Friday night, which wounded four people, one fatally, and one in the Central Business District early…
By Natasha Robin | WVUE | May 23, 2022 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – Since the weekend began Friday at 4 p.m., 15 people have been wounded by gunfire in nine different shootings across New Orleans. Four of those victims died. “The fact that it can happen anywhere on any street makes it…
By Natasha Robin | WVUE | May 19, 2022 CLICK FOR VIDEO When it comes to homicides in New Orleans, the number of female victims has increased every year since 2019, when 15 women were killed. In 2020, 28 women were slain and in 2021 the number rose to 33. One of the most high-profile…
By Victor Skinner | The Center Square | May 19, 2022 Legislation to increase the penalty for carjackers who cause serious injury has cleared the Louisiana House and could soon head to Gov. John Bel Edwards for final approval. Senate Bill 161, sponsored by Sen. Kirk Talbot, R-River Ridge, was presented for a vote on the…
By Mike Perlstein | WWL-TV | May 18, 2022 CLICK FOR VIDEO The vast majority of violent felony prosecutions in New Orleans last year ended with dismissal or plea to a lesser charge, WWL-TV revealed Tuesday in its investigative report “Discounted Justice.” The story got quite a response, and among those who reacted was New Orleans…
BY KASEY BUBNASH | NOLA.com | MAY 18, 2022 Two men killed within about one block and three days of each other in the St. Claude area were identified Wednesday by the Orleans Parish coroner’s office as Dwan Carson, 27, and Maurice Motten, 31. Carson was shot dead Friday in the 4200 block of North…
By Mike Perlstein | WWL-TV | May 18, 2022 CLICK FOR VIDEO In 2020, Horace Toppins was already on New Orleans Police radar as a frequent domestic abuser, with a fresh warrant out for his arrest. Seventh District officers were serving that warrant in April that year when Toppins opened fire, shooting officer Kevin Doucette…
By Aubry Killion | WDSU | May 16, 2022 NEW ORLEANS — The city of New Orleans has surpassed more than 100 murders this year. New Orleans has recorded 110 homicides as of Monday morning. This is the fastest the city has reached 100 murders since before Hurricane Katrina. According to the Metropolitan Crime Commission, the last…
BY MISSY WILKINSON and CARLIE KOLLATH WELLS | NOLA.com | MAY 16, 2022 A 31-year-old man was killed in a shooting Monday morning in the Musicians’ Village area of St. Claude, New Orleans police said. It’s the second homicide in the area in less than a week. On Friday, a person was killed a block away…
By Meg Gatto | WVUE | May 12, 2022 CLICK FOR VIDEO Every day in New Orleans someone becomes a crime victim. The violence touches every neighborhood and affects all walks of life. Carjackings, armed robberies, and murders are happening at an alarming rate in New Orleans and sometimes the crimes can have more than just…
By Charisse Gibson | WWL-TV | May 11, 2022 CLICK FOR VIDEO Violent crime in New Orleans has unfortunately left many families with a familiar feeling – a feeling of devastation and loss. While some arrests have been made in homicide cases, giving families some closure, others are left in the dark. That’s the case…
By Ken Daley | WVUE | May 11, 2022 NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – A man was shot to death in the Seventh Ward on Tuesday night (May 10), New Orleans police said. The NOPD said the 58-year-old victim, whose identity has not been disclosed, was shot multiple times around 10:23 p.m. near the corner of…
By JOSEPH CRANNEY and FAIMON A. ROBERTS III | NOLA.com | MAY 11, 2022 Months before Kenner’s abrupt and controversial decision in 2020 to replace its long-term garbage collector with IV Waste, a top city official helped the company secure a separate contract with a city-supported agency by sharing a competitor’s quote. Top Kenner administrator Chad…
By WDSU Digital Team | May 9, 2022 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS — Residents in the New Orleans Metro area have a chance to help solve crimes and get paid an extra $1,000 for doing it. Crimestoppers announced the new initiative to solve violent crimes at a news conference Monday. The program offers $1,000…
By Kaitlin Rust | WVUE | May 9, 2022 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – The Orleans Parish District Attorney and New Orleans Police Chief respond for the first time to last Friday’s mass shooting, the second mass shooting in just a week’s time. “This is excellent police work, working through the night, responding…
By John Simerman & Missy Wilkinson | NOLA.com | May 5, 2022 Police say it was months of deadly tit-for-tat between well-armed groups on either side of the Mississippi River that reached Magazine Street last Friday night, in a roll-up gun attack that left six people shot at Balcony Bar. As details emerge on the man…
By David Jones | WVUE | April 29, 2022 CLICK FOR LINK NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – A man who was gunned down Thursday evening while walking home in the Irish Channel marks the city’s 92nd homicide victim since the start of the year. If the trends continue, New Orleans could be looking at its bloodiest…
Department of Justice U.S. Attorney’s Office Eastern District of Louisiana Thursday, April 28th, 2022 NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA – United States Attorney Duane A. Evans announced today that DAVID BROWN (“BROWN”), age 50, of Morgan City, pled guilty on April 27, 2022 to Count One (1) of his indictment, charging him with Conspiracy to Commit Mail…
Department of Justice U.S. Attorney’s Office Eastern District of Louisiana Wednesday, April 27th, 2022 NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA – United States Attorney Duane A. Evans announced today that DONISESHA LEE, a/k/a DONISHA LEE (“DONISHA LEE”), age 32, of Harvey, Louisiana, was sentenced today for Conspiracy to Commit Mail Fraud, in violation of Title 18, United States…
By Morgan Lentes | WDSU | April 27, 2022 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS — The year is off to a violent start in New Orleans, according to data compiled by the Metropolitan Crime Commission. A recent report by the organization found that armed robberies, carjackings, homicides and shootings have all increased year-over-year. President Rafael…
Department of Justice U.S. Attorney’s Office Eastern District of Louisiana Wednesday, April 20th, 2022 NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA – United States Attorney Duane A. Evans announced today that CHANDRIKA BROWN (“BROWN”), age 31, and AISHA THOMPSON (“THOMPSON”), age 44, both of New Orleans, Louisiana, were sentenced today for Conspiracy to Commit Mail Fraud, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 371,…
Department of Justice U.S. Attorney’s Office Eastern District of Louisiana Wednesday, April 20th, 2022 NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA – United States Attorney Duane A. Evans announced that KEISHIRA ROBINSON (“K. ROBINSON”), age 27, of New Orleans, Louisiana was sentenced today for Conspiracy to Commit Mail Fraud, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 371, arising out of her…
Department of Justice U.S. Attorney’s Office Eastern District of Louisiana Thursday, April 14th, 2022 NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA – United States Attorney Duane A. Evans announced today that GILDA HENDERSON (“HENDERSON”), age 69, of Morgan City, pled guilty on April 13, 2022, to Count one (1) of her indictment, charging Conspiracy to Commit Mail Fraud in…
By Gary Forster (Contributing Columnist) | The Advocate | April 13, 2022 New Orleans is under attack. Gangsters running thugs, especially repeat offenders, are having their way with a dysfunctional criminal justice system. At least 18 people were shot over last weekend, and six have died. It’s been 10 years since New Orleans has had…
By Anna McAllister | WGNO | April 12, 2022 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS — A bouquet of flowers and balloons sits outside of a home on the 1200 block of Sumner Street, where 63-year-old Kenneth Faggin took his last breath. His family, beside themselves in grief after learning he was gunned down on Friday. “He…
By Amanda Roberts | WVUE | April 12, 2022 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – Planning a retirement trip around the country, Terence and Barbara Curren said they couldn’t leave New Orleans off the itinerary. “We scheduled taking a riverboat from Memphis down to New Orleans,” said Terence Curren. They met family in the…
By Erika Ferrando | WWL-TV | April 11, 2022 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS — Violent crime has been rising every year in New Orleans since 2019, according to the Metropolitan Crime Commission. According to NOPD, carjackings are up 47 percent between 2021 and 2022. There have been 114 carjacking calls for service since the…
By Andrés Fuentes | WVUE | April 7, 2022 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – A bill that will keep mugshots private until a court is able to secure a criminal conviction passed in the Louisiana House of Representatives and is now heading to the Senate. New Orleans representative Royce Duplessis said releasing mugshots…
Department of Justice U.S. Attorney’s Office Eastern District of Louisiana Wednesday, April 6th, 2022 NEW ORLEANS – U.S. Attorney Duane A. Evans announced that former long-time St. Tammany Parish Sheriff RODNEY J. STRAIN (a/k/a Jack Strain), age 56, from Abita Springs, Louisiana, was sentenced today to 120 months imprisonment by United States District Judge Jane…
By Peyton LoCicero Trist | WGNO | April 5, 2022 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS (WGNO)- “Alarming” is how most Orleans Parish residents are describing the recent spike in crime. Just about every day there are reports of shootings, murders, and carjackings. The Metropolitan Crime Commission keeps a watchful eye on what is happening in…
Department of Justice U.S. Attorney’s Office Eastern District of Louisiana Friday, April 1st, 2022 NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA – United States Attorney Duane A. Evans announced today that ASHLEY McGOWAN (“McGOWAN”), age 35, agreed to plead guilty on March 31, 2022 to Count One (1) in her indictment, charging Conspiracy to Commit Mail Fraud in violation of Title 18, United…
By Andrea Gallo | The Advocate | March 31, 2022 Over the last 15 years, Attorney General Jeff Landry has funneled more than $420,000 from his campaign war chest into a staffing company that he owns, an unusual arrangement that circumvents the common practice of political figures around the state and ensures the public does not know…
By Chris Nakamoto | WBRZ | March 30, 2022 CLICK FOR VIDEO BATON ROUGE – A State Police Commission member is under investigation as part of an inquiry into questionable extra duty by police officers in New Orleans. The State Police Commission oversees troopers’ employment and manages discipline. The commission meets monthly in Baton Rouge. New…
By Peter Finney Jr. | Clarion Herald | March 29, 2022 Overlaid on a map of the city of New Orleans, the color-coded circles with skull-and-bones on Rafael Goyeneche’s computer screen are a nightmare canvas of 21st-century homicidal pointillism. In 1994, the city of New Orleans’ murder spree, fueled by drug warlords, produced 424 homicides,…
By Ken Daley | WVUE | March 29, 2022 NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – One man was killed and another wounded early Tuesday (March 29) in a double shooting near the intersection of South Derbigny and Josephine streets in the Hoffman Triangle neighborhood, police said. The shooting was reported at 3:43 a.m. The NOPD said responding…
By Shay O’Connor | WDSU | March 29, 2022 CLICK FOR VIDEO In New Orleans, the Metropolitan Crime Commission reports homicides are up by 49% from this time last year. The month of March is seeing an unusual spike with 24 homicides as of March 28. It’s the second-highest total in a month since MCC…
By Holly Matkin | The Police Tribune | March 28, 2022 New Orleans, LA – A New Orleans father has been arrested for allegedly murdering the suspect accused of killing his son as the suspect was on his way to a court hearing last week, according to police. Hollis Carter, 21, was out on bond…
By Anders Anglesey | Newsweek | March 27, 2022 A Louisiana father is alleged to have fatally shot his son’s accused killer in a case of “street justice,” according to police. The New Orleans Police Department (NOPD) said Bokio Johnson, 46, fatally shot and killed one person and left a second injured in a shooting at Chef…
By Rob Masson | WVUE | March 24, 2022 https://www.fox8live.com/2022/03/24/double-murder-suspect-out-bond-was-murdered-while-heading-court/ NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – A crime watchdog raises concerns about the snowball effect of crime, after Wednesday’s murder of a man who was out on bond, in spite of two second-degree murder charges pending against him. Hollis Carter was killed in Gentilly, after his arrest…
By Mike Perlstein | WWL-TV | March 24, 2022 CLICK FOR INTERVIEW NEW ORLEANS — Of the four teenaged defendants who appeared in juvenile court Wednesday after being booked in the fatal carjacking of 73-year-old Linda Frickey, who was dragged to her death Monday afternoon in front of horrified witnesses, 17-year-old John Honore stood out.…
Thursday, March 24th, 2022 NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA – United States Attorney Duane A. Evans announced today that on March 23, 2022 ISHAIS PRICE (“PRICE”), age 41, of New Orleans, Louisiana, entered a plea of guilty today to Conspiracy to Commit Mail Fraud, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 371, before United States…
By Carlie Kollath Wells & Missy Wilkinson | NOLA.com | March 22, 2022 The New Orleans coroner identified five people killed by gunfire recently in New Orleans, including a Bourbon Street bartender. Two teenagers are also among the dead. Over the last seven days, 13 people have been murdered in New Orleans, according to the Metropolitan Crime Commission.…
By Kevin McGill | Associated Press | March 22, 2022 NEW ORLEANS — Four teenagers face murder charges in connection with a carjacking that left a 73-year-old woman dying on a New Orleans street, her arm severed after she was dragged a block by her own car while neighbors looked on helplessly, officials said Tuesday.…
By Mykal Vincent | WVUE | March 21, 2022 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – An elderly woman was killed Monday afternoon in Mid City, police say. According to the New Orleans Police Department, the incident happened at the intersection of Bienville and N. Cortez Streets in broad daylight. Family members confirm the victim’s…
March 17th, 2022 NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA – United States Attorney Duane A. Evans announced today that LATRELL JOHNSON (“JOHNSON”), age 30, of New Orleans, pled guilty on March 16, 2022 to count one (1) of her indictment, charging Conspiracy to Commit Mail Fraud in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 371. In exchange,…
By Danae Columbus | Mid-City Messenger | March 17, 2022 Thirteen year-old Byron “Little B” Kelly Jr. was just a normal kid who enjoyed haircuts and football. Kelly’s decision to walk to the corner store Tuesday evening (March 15) inextricably placed him in harm’s way. Unfortunately, Kelly’s life — like those of many other victims of senseless…
By Mike Perlstein | WWL-TV | March 16, 2022 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS — Local construction worker Luis Medina, 49, was booked Feb. 3 with attempted aggravated rape and sexual battery. Court records show that a short time later, he was released after posting a $30,000 bail. But the records show that Medina’s release…
By Danae Columbus | Mid-City Messenger | March 11, 2022 District Attorney Jason Williams, who pledged to redesign the city’s justice system so that it “equitably serves all people,” is among the busiest public officials in town. With criminal trials having resumed this week after a long Covid-19 hiatus, Williams is personally arguing a murder case. He…
By Natasha Robin | WVUE | March 10, 2022 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – A brazen carjacking unfolds at a New Orleans East gas station, and the manager says it’s happened there more than a dozen times this year. “It made me think, and there weren’t a dozen different perpetrators,” says Rafael Goyeneche.…
By Harrison Golden | WDSU | March 9, 2022 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS — Rose Preston spent years fantasizing about getting revenge on the person who killed her husband and mother-in-law in 2003. She felt panicked and alone. Certain triggers still spark unease, like the fact that her wedding anniversary was Tuesday. Ariel Jeanjacques’…
Associated Press | March 8, 2022 NEW ORLEANS (AP) — Jury trials resumed Monday in New Orleans, where they have been suspended for most of the past two years. But the process is slow. More than 12 trials were scheduled Monday, but several were rescheduled and only two had begun choosing juries, The Times-Picayune/The New Orleans…
By Rich Collins | Biz New Orleans | March 8, 2022 CLICK FOR INTERVIEW The New Orleans Police Department is designed to function with more than 1,500 police officers on the force but currently has less than 1,000 patrolling the streets. Rafael Goyeneche, longtime president of the Metropolitan Crime Commission, believes this is one of…
By Meg Farris | WWL-TV | March 7, 2022 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS — Victims of violent crimes and those accused of committing them, could finally have their day in court in New Orleans. It’s been two years since there were daily jury trials in Orleans Criminal District Court, but Monday, half of the…
By Ken Daley | WVUE | March 7, 2022 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – Despite a brief respite during the final days of Carnival season, violent crime in New Orleans continues to surge in 2022, the Metropolitan Crime Commission reported Monday (March 7). The independent watchdog agency’s latest weekly report on city crime trends shows…
By Kaitlin Rust | WVUE | March 2, 2022 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – NOPD investigates a shooting spanning two scenes in the Holy Cross Neighborhood and leaves two men hospitalized. NOPD says it started in the 800 block of Gordon Street just before 1:30 p.m. and ended a few blocks away on…
By John Simerman | NOLA.com | February 26, 2022 The son of a state judge in St. Bernard Parish was arrested this week for allegedly punching his girlfriend in the eye, leaving a gash that prompted the judge to drive her to his brother’s plastic surgery clinic for stitches. Eric Bopp Jr., 30, spent two…
By Mike Perlstein | WWL-TV | February 24, 2022 CLICK FOR INTERVIEW NEW ORLEANS — We’ve seen the alarming videos of carjackings in New Orleans. We’ve heard from frustrated and frightened victims. Now, with NOPD carjacking data compiled exclusively by WWL-TV through a public records request, we have a much clearer picture of who is…
By Kiran Chawla | Unfiltered With Kiran | February 23, 2022 A Baton Rouge Police Officer has violated policy twice in two years. The latest one involves the officer admitting to falsifying military orders to take off work. But his discipline appears to be regressive instead of progressive. Is there disparate discipline or preferential treatment…
By Chris Miller | WWL Radio | February 23, 2022 The New Orleans Metropolitan Crime Commission today debuts a new online tool, for tracking the work of the New Orleans District Attorney’s office. “We’re going to be tracking all of the felony arrests made by the police department, and what the screening decisions are, acceptance and refusals…
By Natasha Robin | WVUE | February 21, 2022 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – A 31-year-old man accused of stealing an Amazon delivery truck full of packages was previously arrested on similar charges and released earlier this year after the district attorney failed to bring charges. At 2:30 p.m. on Saturday afternoon, an…
By Chris Nakamoto | WBRZ | February 16, 2022 CLICK FOR VIDEO BATON ROUGE – Seasoned legal experts and auditors told WBRZ Wednesday that Louisiana State Police violated laws when the agency allowed top officials to get their cell phones wiped in the wake of Ronald Greene’s death. “The period for maintaining public records is…
By Ken Daley | WVUE | February 15, 2022 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – A defendant charged with first-degree murder had her bond reduced by an Orleans Parish judge from $302,000 to $7,600 on Monday, a decision that District Attorney Jason Williams’ office immediately said it would appeal. Criminal District Court Judge Angel…
By John Simerman & Matt Sledge | NOLA.com | February 15, 2022 When a pregnant employee of McDonald’s was arrested on a 4-year-old domestic violence warrant last week, a prosecutor working for Orleans Parish District Attorney Jason Williams pitched the court on a $100,000 bail. A public defender called it outrageous. Her 23-year-old client wept.…
By David Jones | WVUE | February 15, 2022 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – New Orleans Mayor LaToya Cantrell responded Tuesday to the news that five NOPD officers had received federal target letters following the FOX 8 Lee Zurik investigation “Attention to the Details.” The five officers who sources said received the letters are…
By Shay O’Connor | WDSU | February 11, 2022 CLICK FOR VIDEO Carjackings and robberies have become more of a common occurrence in neighborhoods across New Orleans. With these crimes bleeding into normally safer areas, people are now taking action to stay safe. A report by the Metropolitan Crime Commission shows there has been a…
By David Jones | WVUE | February 10, 2022 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – Following FOX 8 reporting that showed more than 1,500 accused criminals timed out of either jail or their bond obligations, Orleans Parish District Attorney Jason Williams said he owns the high number of releases and vowed to make changes. Williams called…
By Devin Bartolotta | WWL-TV | February 10, 2022 CLICK FOR VIDEO LAKEVIEW, La. — The flashing blue lights of police cars have become all too familiar. But in Lakeview Thursday night, they signaled a community coming together against the violent crime surge in New Orleans. Residents met with the Lakeview Crime Prevention District Officers…
By Natasha Robin | WVUE | February 10, 2022 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – Police are investigating five separate shootings over a 24-hour span in New Orleans. Two people were killed and four were injured in total. According to the Metropolitan Crime Commission, police have investigated more than 55 shootings, 29 classified as…
February 9th, 2022 NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA – United States Attorney Duane A. Evans recently unsealed the indictment of FLORENCE RANDLE (“RANDLE”), age 70, of Gibson; STACIE WHEATEN (“WHEATEN”), age 50, of Atlanta; JOSEPH BREWTON (“BREWTON”), age 56, of Houma; DAVID BROWN (“BROWN”), age 50, of Morgan City; GILDA HENDERSON (“HENDERSON”), age 69, of Morgan City;…
By Missy Wilkinson | NOLA.com | February 8, 2022 Nadia Sanchez was relaxing in her Gentilly home when she heard what she thought was her 11-year-old sister and 12-year-old brother roughhousing in the front yard. She went outside and witnessed her mother being killed. A carjacker had stolen Jeannot Plessy’s SUV and run over her while…
By Travers Mackel | WDSU | February 7, 2022 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS — Just days after WDSU Investigates broke the story on a controversial policy inside the Orleans Parish District Attorney’s office, the Metropolitan Crime Commission released its own report on the matter. WDSU’s story centered on what’s called a “701 release,” which…
By Lee Zurik & Dannah Sauer | WVUE | February 7, 2022 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – A recent FOX 8 investigation revealed hundreds of accused criminals essentially timed out of jail or their bond obligations because the District Attorney hadn’t charged them. However, the Metropolitan Crime Commission says the number of releases is much…
By Ken Daley | WVUE | February 7, 2022 NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – A man who died last weekend after being shot in mid-November was among the four latest homicide victims whose identities were revealed Monday (Feb. 7) by the Orleans Parish Coroner’s office. Terrance Jupiter, 51, succumbed Saturday to complications from gunshot wounds incurred…
By Rob Masson | WVUE | February 7, 2022 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – A 15-year-old boy was arrested Saturday night after a shooting following a shortened route for the Krewe of Chewbacchus parade. The route was cut in half due to a failure to get police officers to work and other security…
By Michelle Hunter | NOLA.com | February 6, 2022 Major crime in unincorporated Jefferson Parish dropped 12 percent in 2021, with decreases in four of the seven categories of offenses, according to the Sheriff’s Office. It marks the lowest level of crime since the agency began tracking the statistics in 1974, Sheriff Joseph Lopinto III said. “I’m…
By Andrea Gallo | The Advocate | February 4, 2022 Louisiana Attorney General Jeff Landry failed to report that he received more than $4,000 in travel reimbursements last year within the time period that state public servants are required to submit such expenses to the state’s Ethics Board. Tax forms filed Jan. 31 with the Internal Revenue…
By Missy Wilkinson | NOLA.com | February 3, 2022 New Orleans police responded to two carjackings that happened within five minutes of each other on Wednesday night. In the first month of 2022, carjackings were up from 26 to 50 compared to the same period in 2021, according to data compiled by the Metropolitan Crime Commission. In…
By Danae Columbus | Uptown Messenger | February 3, 2022 Many New Orleanians were disappointed in yesterday’s press conference (Feb. 2) featuring Mayor LaToya Cantrell and NOPD Superintendent Shaun Ferguson. Cantrell correctly described the city’s current crime wave as “domestic terrorism,” a hot buzzword on the national crime scene. Yet instead of hearing a full-fledged plan…
By Martha Sanchez | The Tulane Hullabaloo | February 2, 2022 In 2021, New Orleans Police Department’s second district — which includes Tulane University’s upscale neighborhood — experienced at least 12 reported carjackings. Now, that same area has recorded at least eight since January alone. Four carjackings and one attempted carjacking occurred on Jan. 15. The Tulane University Police Department issued a notice the following…
By Ken Daley | WVUE | January 31, 2022 NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – A person’s body was discovered inside a vehicle burning in New Orleans East early Sunday (Jan. 30), but New Orleans police have not immediately declared the case a homicide. The NOPD said the person’s identity, gender and age were not immediately known…
By Natasha Robin | WVUE | January 27, 2022 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – The NOPD isn’t arresting people for the majority of carjackings across New Orleans, according to recent city council data. While the police department disputes the numbers, one crime watchdog says the arrests shouldn’t reflect on the amount of carjackings…
By David Jones | WVUE | January 26, 2022 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – The New Orleans Police Department is looking at reimplementing a “proactive component” to address the city’s rise in incidents of violent crime. Anti-crime advocates expect to see a task force similar to the ones disbanded in 2020. On Tuesday,…
WWL-TV | January 24, 2022 CLICK FOR VIDEO
By Ken Daley | KNOE | January 24, 2022 NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – As New Orleans’ homicide count climbed to 19 in the first month of 2022, three more victims were identified Monday (Jan. 24) by the Orleans Parish Coroner’s office. Craig Magraff, 34, was the man stabbed to death last Wednesday (Jan. 19) at 1:56 a.m.…
By Olivia Vidal | WVUE | January 21, 2022 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – Police responded to reports of an armed robbery and car theft on Thursday, January 20 in the 6200 block of Marshal Foch Street in Lakeview. The incident happened shortly after 6 p.m., a busy time of day for the…
By Devin Bartolotta | WWL-TV | January 20, 2022 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS — New Orleans is grappling with both a serious crime problem and a cop problem. New Orleans Police Superintendent Sean Ferguson had a tough conversation with City Council Thursday, in which he said the department is getting about half the applications…
By Danae Columbus | Uptown Messenger | January 20, 2022 Every partner in New Orleans criminal justice system is partially responsible for the city’s spiraling crime rate and every partner must do their job to help alleviate it, Councilman at-large J.P. Morrell said on WWL-TV earlier today (Jan. 20). “People are afraid to leave their…
By Fox 8 Staff | WVUE | January 19, 2022 NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – The president of the Police Association of New Orleans penned a letter addressed to the city council where he laid blame for the broken criminal justice system on the district attorney’s office, city administration, and the current police manpower issue. In…
By Site Staff | Biz New Orleans | January 18, 2022 NEW ORLEANS — The Metropolitan Crime Commission — a private, nonprofit watchdog group — will begin issuing a weekly updated crime bulletin including year-to-date changes in major categories of violent crime in Orleans Parish since 2019 (homicide, shooting, carjacking and armed robbery), as well…
By Fox 8 Staff | WVUE | January 18, 2022 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – The Metropolitan Crime Commission on Monday (Jan. 17) launched a new weekly New Orleans crime trends bulletin that will allow the public to access data and maps for homicides, shootings, armed robberies and carjackings in the city. The…
By Matt Sledge | NOLA.com | January 18, 2022 Tensions continued to build on Tuesday between New Orleans Police Superintendent Shaun Ferguson and District Attorney Jason Williams ahead of an upcoming special City Council hearing on crime and following a wave of highly publicized carjackings over the weekend. Ferguson is scheduled to sit in the…
By Kaitlin Rust | WVUE | January 18, 2022 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – Police investigate another armed carjacking Uptown on Freret near Carrollton, an area of the city that saw five carjackings over the weekend. He’s been trying to keep his mind off of it, saying it angers him. He’s still shaken…
By Gregory R. Rusovich | The Advocate | January 17, 2022 New Orleans has become a more dangerous place to live, work and raise a family. Behind each grim crime statistic are many victims. Our quality of life and our city’s viability are at risk, and the New Year presents an opportunity for city leaders…
By Anna McAllister | WGNO | January 17, 2022 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS (WGNO) — As New Orleans City Council members gathered for a Martin Luther King Jr. memorial service, they vowed to address the issue of crime in their upcoming special meeting. “What you will see from these two meetings this week is…
January 14th, 2022 NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA – United States Attorney Duane A. Evans announced that RYAN WHEATEN (“WHEATEN”), age 54, of Lafayette, Louisiana, was sentenced on January 12, 2022 for Conspiracy to Commit Mail Fraud, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 371, arising out of staged automobile accidents with tractor-trailers occurring in…
By Danae Columbus | Uptown Messenger | January 13, 2022 As with most mayors entering a new term, LaToya Cantrell delivered an upbeat message at Monday’s Covid-restricted inauguration on the steps of Gallier Hall: Though New Orleans has endured a tough four years, citizens are resilient, and many opportunities lie ahead. “Our time is now, and…
January 12th, 2022 NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA – United States Attorney Duane A. Evans announced today that DONISESHA LEE (“DONISHA LEE”), age 30, of Harvey, Louisiana, entered a plea of guilty today to Conspiracy to Commit Mail Fraud, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 371, before United States District Court Judge Sarah S.…
By Shay O’Connor | WDSU | January 11, 2022 CLICK FOR VIDEO The NOPD announced that beginning this week the department will no longer issue citations for small possessions of weed alone in the parish. Monday the people of New Orleans spoke out. Ashana, a New Orleans resident said “It is about time. Marijuana has…
By Natasha Robin | WVUE | January 6, 2022 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – Chief Shaun Ferguson said last year the NOPD was presented with several challenges, especially when it comes to police manpower and violent crime. Overall crime was down in 2021, but violent crime went up. Ferguson says we ended 2021…
By Anna McAllister | WGNO | January 4, 2022 CLICK FOR INTERVIEW NEW ORLEANS (WGNO) — In less than a week and a half, seven-year-old Dillan Burton was shot and killed in her mother’s car in Algiers, and a one-year-old was shot multiple times, allegedly by his own father, in the Marigny. “Unless and until…
By Natasha Robin & Mykal Vincent | WVUE | December 31, 2021 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – Violent crime has taken its toll on New Orleans over the last 12 months. Criminologists worry the increase in violence will continue into 2022. “As bad as 2020 was from a violent crime perspective, 2021 was even worse,”…
By Danae Columbus | Uptown Messenger | December 30, 2021 Year-to-date crime trends in Orleans Parish, Dec. 26, 2019-21. (Metropolitan Crime Commission chart, NOPD data) More than 6,000 new Covid-19 cases were identified in Louisiana on Wednesday (Dec. 29). A teenage boy was injured in the second of two Desire-area shootings Tuesday evening. Three lions…
By Ken Daley | WVUE | December 28, 2021 NEW ORLEANS – The identities of five recent fatal shooting victims were revealed Tuesday (Dec. 28) by the Orleans Parish Coroner’s office, including that of 7-year-old Dillan Burton, the young girl killed Sunday night while riding in her mother’s car in Algiers. Burton’s family already had…
By Harrison Golden | WDSU | December 27, 2021 CLICK FOR VIDEO An Algiers family faces a task they never imagined: planning a seven-year-old girl’s funeral. The girl, Dillan Burton, was riding in her mother’s car just before 9 p.m. Sunday near Gen. DeGaulle Boulevard when someone shot her. Her mother rushed toward a hospital,…
By WDSU Digital Team | WDSU | December 23, 2021 The New Orleans Police Department said 29 of its officers appear to have violated rules related to off-duty details. The alleged violations amount to 2% of all off-duty details jobs, the NOPD said Wednesday in a statement about its findings. Some officers could potentially be…
By Adam Andrzejewski | Forbes | December 22, 2021 What began as a simple salary data search on officers in the New Orleans Police Department (NOPD) has led to a months-long undercover sting operation and has recently ended with cop suspensions, a retirement, and further investigation by the FBI. Now, the Public Integrity Bureau has…
December 16th, 2021 NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA – United States Attorney Duane A. Evans announced GENETTA ISREAL (“ISREAL”), age 53, of Houston, Texas, was sentenced today for Conspiracy to Commit Wire Fraud, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 371, arising out of staged automobile accidents with tractor-trailers occurring in New Orleans. Thus far,…
By Ben Myers | NOLA.com | December 15, 2021 Edward Michel, New Orleans’ interim inspector general, was permanently appointed Wednesday to the position to root out corruption, waste and abuse in municipal government. He is the fourth permanent appointment since voters agreed to create the Office of Inspector General in 2006. Michel assumed the interim…
By Mike Perlstein | WWL-TV | December 13, 2021 CLICK FOR INTERVIEW NEW ORLEANS — With an average of more than one murder a day so far in December, New Orleans has already surpassed its grim homicide total for 2020 with more than two weeks to go. With two murders over the weekend and another…
By JD Carrere | WWL-TV | December 11, 2021 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS — With 201 murders in the books for 2021, the City of New Orleans has equaled its murder total from 2020. Number 200 happened in the 9th ward around 2:30 in the afternoon. Number 201 less than a half-hour later uptown on…
By Lee Zurik and Cody Lilich | WVUE | December 10, 2021 NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – A senior special agent for the New Orleans Sewerage and Water Board has been suspended without pay after separate investigations by the Office of Inspector General and FOX 8 News questioned the employee’s use of the police detail program.…
By Fox 8 Staff | KALB | December 10, 2021 NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – Two people were killed in New Orleans on Fri., Dec. 10, pushing the city to over 200 homicides for the year. First, a man was shot multiple times in the Lower 9th Ward. The shooting happened around 2 p.m. in the…
By Paul Murphy | WWL-TV | December 9, 2021 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS — Homicides, carjackings and non-fatal shootings are all up in New Orleans. Not just for this year, but for the last two years according to Metropolitan Crime Commission President Rafael Goyeneche. “From 2019 to 2021, carjackings are up over 160 percent,”…
By Chris Nakamoto | WBRZ | December 7, 2021 CLICK FOR INTERVIEW BATON ROUGE- Watchdogs are raising questions about whether a law enforcement officer arrested for domestic violence battery with child endangerment should have been allowed to return to work even though his criminal charges are pending. Colby Burns was arrested last month after a woman…
By Fox 8 Staff | WVUE | December 7, 2021 CLICK FOR INTERVIEW NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – Two men were shot and robbed in New Orleans while waiting for police to respond to a crash. According to the New Orleans Police Department, the two men were involved in a crash just before 10 p.m. on…
By Natasha Robin | WVUE | December 7, 2021 CLICK FOR INTERVIEW NEW ORLEANS – Two men got into a crash on the South Clairborne overpass around 9:30 p.m. on Monday. Before police could arrive, three armed men showed up. “Obviously, the suspects were just looking for victims,” says Rafael Goyeneche. The suspects robbed the…
By Mike Perlstein | WWL-TV | December 3, 2021 CLICK FOR INTERVIEW NEW ORLEANS — The mother of New Orleans Criminal Court Judge Robin Pittman was shot and critically wounded Thursday near her home in eastern New Orleans, the apparent victim of stray bullets aimed at someone else, according to witnesses and security camera video…
By David Hammer | WWL-TV | December 2, 2021 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS — After a WWL-TV investigation prompted the FBI to raid the Sewerage & Water Board Plumbing Department in early November, the city blocked the head of that department, Jay Arnold, from getting permits for private gas line repairs and installation jobs.…
Wednesday, December 1st, 2021 NEW ORLEANS – U.S. Attorney Duane A. Evans announced that former long-time St. Tammany Parish Sheriff RODNEY J. STRAIN (a/k/a Jack Strain), age 56, from Abita Springs, Louisiana, pleaded guilty today before United States District Judge Jane Triche Milazzo to Count 15 of the Indictment returned in August 2019, charging him…
By Ken Daley | WVUE | December 1, 2021 NEW ORLEANS – The city’s 2021 homicide count continued climbing toward 200 on Wednesday (Dec. 1), following a fatal shooting Tuesday night and word that a man shot in Broadmoor on Nov. 16 has died nearly two weeks later. The latest two shooting deaths brought New…
By Kenny Lopez | WGNO | November 23, 2021 CLICK FOR INTERVIEW NEW ORLEANS — According to The Metropolitan Crime Commission since 2019, carjackings are up 170 percent and 28 percent up from 2020. “Over the last four days here have been at least 7 carjackings. It has gotten progressively worse over the last two…
By Natasha Robin | WVUE | November 19, 2021 CLICK FOR INTERVIEW NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – “This is a grand experiment creating this external agency to the police department. I’m not aware of any other police department in the country that does it in this manner,” says Rafael Goyeneche. It’s an external agency running the…
Wednesday, November 17th, 2021 NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA – United States Attorney Duane A. Evans announced today that CHANDRIKA BROWN (“BROWN”), age 30, of New Orleans, Louisiana, entered a plea of guilty today to Conspiracy to Commit Mail Fraud, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 371, arising out of staged automobile accidents with…
By Lea Skene & John Simerman | NOLA.com | November 11, 2021 Union Parish District Attorney John Belton hadn’t yet seen all of the damning body camera footage of Louisiana State Police troopers repeatedly beating and tasing Ronald Greene before his death on a dark roadway in May 2019 — but what he viewed was…
By Matt Sledge | NOLA.com | November 10, 2021 For years as a member of the New Orleans City Council, Jason Williams fought against budget increases requested by former District Attorney Leon Cannizzaro, while questioning his leadership and financial stewardship. Ten months after Williams became district attorney, the tables were turned as he asked the…
Wednesday, November 3rd, 2021 NEW ORLEANS – U.S. Attorney Duane A. Evans announced that IRVIN MAYFIELD, age 44, a resident of New Orleans, and RONALD MARKHAM, age 43, also a resident of New Orleans, were sentenced today for defrauding the New Orleans Public Library Foundation out of approximately $1,316,232. The Honorable Jay Zainey sentenced the…
By Garey Forster | The Advocate | November 3, 2021 The Census Bureau says 391,000 people live in New Orleans. Louisiana’s secretary of state says Orleans Parish has 266,856 registered voters. Yet only 51,342 picked LaToya Cantrell to be mayor, and merely 41,564 elected Jason Williams as district attorney. Those were two different election cycles.…
By Ken Daley | WVUE | November 3, 2021 CLICK FOR INTERVIEW NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – Grammy-winning trumpeter Irvin Mayfield and his business partner Ronald Markham each was sentenced to 18 months in federal prison Wednesday (Nov. 3), nearly a year after they pleaded guilty to a scheme that defrauded the New Orleans Public Library…
By David Hammer | WWL-TV | November 3, 2021 CLICK FOR INTERVIEW NEW ORLEANS — Grammy-winning New Orleans trumpeter Irvin Mayfield and his business partner Ronald Markham were each sentenced to 18 months in federal prison Wednesday, a year after admitting that they diverted over $1.3 million in New Orleans Public Library donations to their…
By Natasha Robin | WVUE | November 3, 2021 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – Violent crime continues to plague New Orleans. Carjackings are up more than 151% since 2019 across the city. Last year, there were 84 carjacking cases. This year, police investigated more than 211. More than 400 people have been shot…
By Jim Mustian and Jake Bleiberg | Associated Press | November 2, 2021 NEW ORLEANS (AP) — A reexamined autopsy ordered by the FBI in the deadly 2019 arrest of Ronald Greene has rejected the Louisiana State Police claim that a car crash caused his fatal injuries, narrowing prosecutors’ focus on the troopers seen on…
By Nicholas Chrastil | The Lens | October 29, 2021 As a city councilmember in 2017, Jason Williams was one of the most outspoken critics of then-District Attorney Leon Cannizzaro’s treatment of victims and witnesses who were reluctant to testify. That year, The Lens revealed that Cannizzarro’s prosecutors were using fake subpoenas to pressure witnesses to talk…
By Marlisa Harding | American Press | October 28, 2021 A report released on Wednesday by the Metropolitan Crime Commission outlined the state of Calcasieu Parish’s criminal justice system. The report looked at over 9,000 cases that went through the 14th Judicial Court over 2015, 2016 and 2017 and identified the system’s strengths and weaknesses.…
By Theresa Schmidt | KPLC | October 28, 2021 CLICK FOR VIDEO Lake Charles, LA (KPLC) – How efficiently do law enforcement, prosecutors and judges work together in the judicial system? President of the Metropolitan Crime Commission Rafael Goyeneche says there are positives. “You don’t hold people accountable if you stop at probable cause,” Goyeneche said. “You…
By Natasha Robin | WVUE | October 25, 2021 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – When not enough New Orleans Police officers volunteered to work detail for the Krewe of Boo parade, organizers cut out about a dozen blocks of the route. While so many spectators enjoyed seeing a parade once again in New Orleans,…
Project by Michael Isaac Stein, Caroline Sinders, and Winnie Yoe | The Lens | October 21, 2021 “WHAT’S UP WITH THESE CAMERAS?” That’s what Dee Dee Green remembers thinking the first time she saw one of New Orleans’ police surveillance cameras in 2018, flashing red and blue lights over a community garden she manages in…
By Missy Wilkinson | NOLA.com | October 16, 2021 The first time the guy in the hooded sweatshirt and face covering passed my car, I ignored the needle prick of fear that ran through me. It was 8:30 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 2. I was parked and Googling directions to a costume party, dressed as a…
By William Patrick | The Center Square Louisiana | October 15, 2021 (The Center Square) – New Orleans has one of the highest homicide rate increases of any major city in the country since the COVID-19 pandemic began, according to a recent crime analysis. Researchers for the personal finance website WalletHub compared homicide rates of…
By Danae Columbus | Uptown Messenger | October 14, 2021 Times are tough since Hurricane Ida decimated New Orleans, and they don’t seem to be getting better quickly enough. Blue tarps dot the horizon as homeowners wait for their insurance settlements. Storm debris is disappearing slowly, and trash pickup is down to one day a…
By Travers Mackel | WDSU | October 13, 2021 CLICK FOR INTERVIEW NEW ORLEANS — A recent report by the nonprofit watchdog agency Metropolitan Crime Commission says the Orleans Parish District Attorney’s Office has refused or dismissed 937 violent felony cases since January of 2021. That’s when District Attorney Jason Williams took office as the…
By Matt Sledge | NOLA.com | October 13, 2021 Orleans Parish District Attorney Jason Williams is rejecting more battery, assault and robbery charges than his predecessor, leading to a sharp decline in the share of violent felony arrests that are prosecuted, a watchdog group said Wednesday. The business-aligned Metropolitan Crime Commission claims in a report that Williams,…
By LBJ | WGNO | October 13, 2021 CLICK FOR INTERVIEW NEW ORLEANS (WGNO)— New District Attorney Jason Williams was elected on a promise, not to throw so many people in jail, but the Metropolitan Crime Commission (MCC) says it means more violent criminals walk free. In March of this year Orleans District Attorney Jason…
By Mike Perlstein | WWL-TV | October 13, 2021 CLICK FOR INTERVIEW NEW ORLEANS — Orleans Parish District Attorney Jason Williams swept into office in January riding a wave of reform, promising second chances to low-level defendants, but serious consequences for violent offenders. In a report released today, however, the non-profit Metropolitan Crime Commission said…
By FOX 8 Staff | WVUE | October 13, 2021 CLICK FOR INTERVIEW NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – Orleans Parish prosecutors refused more felony cases than they accepted in the first eight months of District Attorney Jason Williams’ tenure, and have become far less vigorous about holding accountable those accused of violent crimes in the city, a…
Thursday, October 7th, 2021 NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA – United States Attorney Duane A. Evans announced today that AISHA THOMPSON (“THOMPSON”), age 43, of New Orleans, Louisiana, entered a plea of guilty on October 6, 2021 to Conspiracy to Commit Mail Fraud, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 371, arising out of staged…
By Travers Mackel | WDSU | October 7, 2021 CLICK FOR VIDEO Zero jury trials have happened in New Orleans at criminal court since the pandemic started over a year and a half ago. It comes as crime is on the rise and police are making arrests. Criminal defense lawyer John Fuller is ready to…
Wednesday, October 6th, 2021 NEW ORLEANS – U.S. Attorney Duane A. Evans announced that DAVID HANSON, age 63, from Abita Springs, Louisiana, and CLIFFORD “SKIP” KEEN, age 53, from Covington, Louisiana, were each sentenced today to 50 months imprisonment by United States District Judge Ivan L.R. Lemelle, after they previously pleaded guilty as charged to…
By Mike Perlstein | WWL-TV | October 4, 2021 NEW ORLEANS — A high-ranking supervisor at the Orleans Parish Communications District Access has been barred from a sensitive but commonly used federal criminal database for more than a year because she has a felony conviction, the New Orleans Office of Inspector General revealed Friday. Wendy…
By Ramon Antonio Vargas | NOLA.com | October 1, 2021 For nearly two years, a key supervisor at the office that dispatches New Orleans’ first responders to 911 calls had access to a national criminal records database despite having a prior felony conviction that should have barred her from using it, the city’s Office of…
By Jasmine Anderson | KNOE | September 29, 2021 CLICK FOR INTERVIEW MONROE, La. (KNOE) – A police watchdog group wants changes to the pension of police officers. Across the country, some get their pension even if convicted of a felony. In Louisiana, there’s a law that says pension can be garnished, but only for financial…
By Kiran Chawla | Unfiltered with Kiran | September 20, 2021 CLICK FOR INTERVIEW An important vote is expected at Tuesday’s New Roads council meeting to override Mayor Cornell Dukes’ veto. It goes back to Mayor Dukes’ security detail that’s provided by the New Roads Police Dept. officers. There is no ordinance for New Roads…
By Wesley Muller | Louisiana Illuminator | September 16, 2021 In a radio interview Wednesday, Gov. John Bel Edwards downplayed reports that Louisiana State Police troopers engaged in an attempted cover-up of the 2019 death of Ronald Greene, saying many of the cover-up allegations are “overblown or just false.” “Sometimes the media is incomplete in…
Monday, September 13, 2021 NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA – United States Attorney Duane A. Evans announced today the August 26, 2021 Indictment of ASHLEY McGOWAN (“McGOWAN”), age 35; LERTRICE JOHNSON (“L. JOHNSON”), age 45; DAVIENQUE JOHNSON (“D. JOHNSON”), age 27; HERBERT ALLEN (“ALLEN”), age 36, TROYLYNN BROWN (“T. BROWN”), age 34; DION RIDLEY (“RIDLEY”), age 22;…
By Ken Daley | WVUE | September 13, 2021 NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – Federal prosecutors announced the indictment of seven more New Orleans defendants Monday (Sept. 13), accusing the group of conspiring to stage accidents in the city involving 18-wheelers in order to defraud trucking companies and their insurance providers. Charged in the scheme involving…
By Elyse Carmosino & Andrea Gallo | The Advocate | August 27, 2021 The chief regulator of Louisiana’s private security industry, who already faces allegations of financial and sexual misconduct, is now in the crosshairs of the state’s public corruption watchdog. State Inspector General Stephen Street confirmed that his office is investigating Fabian Blache III,…
By Mike Perlstein | WWL-TV | August 26, 2021 CLICK FOR INTERVIEW NEW ORLEANS — Louisiana State Police Trooper Carl Cavalier said he was on assignment at the COVID field hospital at the New Orleans Convention Center in early 2020 when he first heard about a violent arrest by fellow troopers in North Louisiana in…
By Garey Forster | The Advocate | August 18, 2021 When writing about uncontrolled crime spikes in New Orleans, all the numbers indicate an obvious solution: Hire more police. Don’t be deceived by Mayor LaToya Cantrell’s sudden interest in this solution. It’s election season. Expect news conferences, radio, TV, and Facebook ads, but know Cantrell has…
By Lee Zurik & Cody Lillich | WVUE | August 18, 2021 CLICK FOR VIDEO BATON ROUGE, La. (WVUE) – The leader of the state’s board over private security has been placed on leave after numerous allegations of wrongdoing surfaced around his leadership of the agency. The Louisiana State Board of Private Security Examiners placed…
Wednesday, August 11, 2021 NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA – United States Attorney Duane A. Evans announced today that DEWAYNE COLEMAN (“COLEMAN”), age 22, of Marrero, Louisiana, entered a plea of guilty today to Conspiracy to Commit Mail Fraud, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 371, arising out of staged automobile accidents with tractor-trailers…
Wednesday, August 11, 2021 NEW ORLEANS, LA – The U.S. Attorney’s Office announced today that BRIAN MEDUS, 44, of Covington, pleaded guilty as charged to violating Title 18, United States Code, Sections 371 and 1952(a)(3), conspiracy to use an interstate facility with intent to carry on unlawful activity. According to Court documents, MEDUS, the Assistant…
By FOX 8 Staff | WVUE | August 11, 2021 NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – A former City of New Orleans safety inspector pleaded guilty Wednesday (Aug. 11) in federal court to a scheme in which he accepted bribes in exchange for issuing fraudulent work permits for heating and air conditioning jobs. Brian Medus of Covington…
By Greg LaRose | WDSU | August 11, 2021 A former city inspector admitted Wednesday he accepted bribes from a contractor to approve permits for work in New Orleans although the contractor didn’t hold the required city license, according to federal court records. The U.S. Attorney’s Office said Brian Medus, a mechanical inspector in the…
By WDSU Digital Team | WDSU | August 9, 2021 The New Orleans Police Department held a news conference Monday to address concerns after a second violent weekend in a row. NOPD Superintendent Shaun Ferguson said the common theme amongst crime and arrests over the weekend was with people who do not live here bringing…
By Harrison Golden | WDSU | August 8, 2021 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS — In New Orleans’ fight against violence, the wheels are turning. Bicycles filled the city’s streets Saturday, as dozens of children rode from Mid-City’s First Grace United Methodist Church to City Park. They shared a route ― and a cause: stopping…
By WDSU Digital Team | WDSU | August 2, 2021 CLICK FOR VIDEO After violent shootings occurred over the weekend, New Orleans Police Department Superintendent Shaun Ferguson held a news conference to address the public. Ferguson called the violent crime incidents that occurred over the weekend “alarming” and “disturbing.” The following shootings were reported over…
Monday, August 2, 2021 NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA – United States Attorney Duane A. Evans announced that GENETTA ISREAL (“ISREAL”), age 53, of Houston, Texas, pled guilty today to Conspiracy to Commit Wire Fraud, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 371, arising out of staged automobile accidents with tractor-trailers occurring in New Orleans. …
By Thanh Truong | WWL-TV | July 30, 2021 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS — Crime data released this week show a startling spike in violent crime in New Orleans, and there are serious concerns that the trend will only worsen without a major shift in strategy. Findings by the Metropolitan Crime Commission reveal crimes…
By William Patrick | The Center Square | July 29, 2021 U.S. Sen. John Kennedy of Louisiana has filed federal legislation aimed at reducing crime in areas where tourism is a key segment of state and local economies. The Louisiana Republican’s “Tourism District Protection Act” bill would apply nationally, though Kennedy said crime and economic…
By Danae Columbus | Uptown Messenger | July 29, 2021 Raphael Goyeneche, head of the Metropolitan Crime Commission, said Wednesday (July 28) that the city’s political leadership “must step up and give the NOPD the resources they need to protect and serve the community. Politics needs to get out of the way of public safety. Citizens…
By WDSU Digital Team | WDSU | July 28, 2021 CLICK FOR VIDEO New Orleans Police Superintendent Shaun Ferguson shared statistics during a news conference Wednesday that addressed the city’s significant increase in violent crime, although he said such activity has ebbed in recent weeks thanks to recent police initiatives. There have been 14 homicides…
By Fox 8 Staff | WVUE | July 28, 2021 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) -New Orleans Police Superintendent Shaun Ferguson will held a news conference Wednesday to update the department’s efforts to combat violent crime. Ferguson said Wednesday that officers have confiscated 90 guns in the last 2 weeks and more than 1,100…
By Trinity Velazquez | July 27, 2021 WASHINGTON (BRPROUD) On July 27, Senator John Kennedy introduced the Tourism District Protection Act to combat crime in areas in which tourism represents a vital part of the economy. “The pandemic lockdowns took revenue away from Louisianians who live in tourism-dependent areas, and now crime is rising across the country. The Tourism District Protection Act…
By Mike Perlstein | WWL-TV | July 27, 2021 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS — A recent citywide survey showed that New Orleans residents are increasingly worried about violent crime. Now a study by the Metropolitan Crime Commission shows that people have good reason to be concerned. The study shows that during the first six…
By Natasha Robin | WVUE | July 26, 2021 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – Violent crime across New Orleans is up, and the latest Metropolitan Crime Commission report gives the public a chance to see the types of crime unfolding in each particular neighborhood. According to the report, the 7th District of New Orleans East, the…
By Anna McAllister | WGNO | July 26, 2021 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS (WGNO) — The Metropolitan Crime Commission released its latest violent crime report for New Orleans, and the data is alarming to say the least. “50% of the violent crime over the last three years has occurred in the seventh and fifth districts.…
By Gordon Russell, Andrea Gallo, and John Simerman | NOLA.com | July 25, 2021 When Jeff Landry took office as Louisiana’s new attorney general in January 2016, he brought in his friend and benefactor, businessman Shane Guidry, as a special aide. Among other changes, Guidry helped him “rebrand” the office’s investigative division, changing its name…
By Kiran Chawla | Unfiltered With Kiran | July 19, 2021 CLICK FOR INTERVIEW Officer Michelle Patterson made headlines in 2018 when she was fired by Baton Rouge Police Chief Murphy Paul on May 4. Patterson, 29 at the time, was arrested in Oct. 2017 by BRPD for injuring public records and malfeasance in office,…
Staff Editorial | July 17, 2021 When the attorney general of Louisiana is on your company payroll, why not whistle up his investigators to help you with a family dispute? That is what businessman Shane Guidry of Jefferson Parish did, seeking help from his friend Attorney General Jeff Landry. Investigators from Landry’s office went well beyond the…
By John Simerman | NOLA.com | July 9, 2021 Shane Guidry, the Louisiana oilman and major GOP political donor, needed help. On a Saturday night in late January, Guidry’s adolescent daughter found out — via a text message from her biological mother — that she was adopted as a toddler. Lacey Hooper, who has bounced…
By Rob Masson | WVUE | July 7, 2021 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) -Faced with low manpower levels, and rising crime, two groups ask the Cantrell administration to do more when it comes to the hiring and retention of police officers. They want the city to follow the president’s recommendation and tap into…
By Natasha Robin | WVUE | July 6, 2021 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) -Criminal District Court is expected to get much busier in the weeks ahead. We’re told jurors have already been empaneled for a Grand Jury and a Special Grand Jury. Court officials say the prospective juror’s response was promising. From here,…
WDSU Digital Team | July 6, 2021 NEW ORLEANS — Jury trials have been put on pause for 16 months due to the coronavirus pandemic in New Orleans, resulting in a massive backlog of cases. Jury trials are set to resume Tuesday in the city. The City of New Orleans said the public can volunteer…
By Mike Perlstein | WWL-TV | July 1, 2021 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS — New Orleans police have linked 21-year-old Don Robiho to as many as 80 car burglaries. Police viewed him as enough of a menace last fall to broadcast a “be on the lookout” bulletin with security camera video footage and his…
By Danae Columbus July 1, 2021 It will take a lot more than worn-out platitudes to make New Orleanians feel safe in their homes, cars and neighborhoods. While the three-pronged effort Mayor Cantrell presented earlier this week that focuses on prevention, apprehension and intervention might sound good, the results are disappointing. “Crime is up in…
WEDNESDAY, JUNE 30, 2021 NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA – United States Attorney Duane A. Evans announced that ANTHONY ROBINSON (“A. ROBINSON”), age 67, and AUDREY HARRIS (“HARRIS”), age 54, of New Orleans, were sentenced today for participating in a scheme to defraud a trucking company and their insurer by staging an automobile accident with a tractor-trailer…
By Natasha Robin | WVUE | June 28, 2021 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – A woman still lives in fear after a teenager carjacked her, beat her, and then ran over her last November. “It’s troubling because I can’t go anywhere without thinking it’s going to happen again. I can’t,” says Diane Rogers.…
By Jim Mustian | Associated Press | June 25, 2021 MONROE, La. (AP) — More than a year and a half after Louisiana state troopers were captured on body camera video brutalizing Black motorist Ronald Greene during his fatal arrest, police brass were still trying to blame his death on a car crash at the…
Thursday, June 24, 2021 NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA – United States Attorney Duane A. Evans announced that JAMES “CURTIS” WILLIAMS (“WILLIAMS”), age 66 of Gibson, Louisiana, and RYAN WHEATEN (“WHEATEN”), age 53, of Lafayette, Louisiana, entered a plea of guilty on June 23, 2021 to Conspiracy to Commit Mail Fraud, in violation of Title 18, United…
By John Simerman and Lea Skene | NOLA.com | June 23, 2021 A federal investigation into a series of beatings of Black motorists by Monroe-based state troopers has spawned a broader probe into systemic problems within Louisiana State Police, according to an attorney for the family of Ronald Greene. Attorney Lee Merritt said federal authorities…
By Chris Nakamoto | WBRZ | June 18, 2021 CLICK FOR VIDEO BATON ROUGE – A newly-obtained email from inside State Police revealed how the agency’s top lawyer was monitoring use-of-force complaints and even provided her opinion on how troopers could avoid possible lawsuits or complaints. The email from Faye Morrison, the general counsel for…
Thursday, June 17, 2021 NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA – United States Attorney Duane A. Evans announced today that DANNY PATRICK KEATING, JR., age 52, of New Orleans, Louisiana, entered a plea of guilty today to Conspiracy to Commit Mail and Wire Fraud, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 371, arising out of staged…
Wednesday, June 16, 2021 NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA – United States Attorney Duane A. Evans announced today that DONIESHA GIBSON (“GIBSON”), age 29, of New Orleans, Louisiana and ERICA LEE THOMPSON (“ERICA LEE”), age 46, of Harvey, Louisiana, entered guilty pleas today to Conspiracy to Commit Wire Fraud, in violation of Title 18, United States Code,…
By Matt Sledge | NOLA.com | June 16, 2021 Visibly frustrated New Orleans City Council members, under pressure to respond to high violent crime rates, held a hearing Wednesday to publicly question why a judge released on bail the man accused of later killing Portia Pollock outside her 7th Ward home, and whether her death…
By Mike Perlstein | WWL-TV | June 16, 2021 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS — Recently disclosed body cam video from State Police Lieutenant John Clary of Troop F in Northeast Louisiana shows motorist Ronald Greene being dragged from his car by fellow troopers, shocked with a stun gun, beaten while in handcuffs, dragged by…
By Anna McAllister | WGNO | June 15, 2021 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS —Tuesday morning Judge Angel Harris revoked Bryan Andry’s bail. This hearing was for two armed carjackings he’s accused of committing last year, prior to allegedly stabbing Portia Pollock to death. Harris is the same judge who reduced Andry’s bail on the…
By Rob Masson and Mykal Vincent | WVUE | June 15, 2021 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – An Orleans Criminal Court judge has revoked bond for the man accused of killing Portia Pollock. Bryan Andry was out on bond for armed robbery charges when he allegedly killed Pollock during a carjacking, according to…
By Kaitlin Rust | WVUE | June 14, 2021 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – A call for more answers follows the arrest of Bryan Andry in the fatal stabbing of 7th Ward physical therapist Portia Pollock. Many want to know why a man with a criminal history like his was released on a…
By Matt Sledge | NOLA.com | June 11, 2021 New Orleans police monitor Susan Hutson resigned Friday, barely a month after she began a leave of absence to run in the Oct. 9 election against Orleans Parish Sheriff Marlin Gusman. The resignation was announced in an email and takes effect Monday, leaving Hutson’s small agency,…
By Jasmine Anderson | KNOE | June 10, 2021 CLICK FOR VIDEO MONROE, La. (KNOE) – The Associated Press released new body camera footage of a May 2020 arrest in Franklin Parish after a high-speed chase. State police say Antonio Harris got out of his car and immediately laid on the ground. Investigators say three troopers used excessive and…
By Kenny Lopez | WGNO | June 10, 2021 CLICK FOR VIDEO KENNER, La.— Another carjacking case that started in New Orleans, ended in a crash today in Kenner. The car chase spanned about 20 miles starting in Orleans Parish and ending in Jefferson Parish. First, the carjacking happened in New Orleans East on the 12300…
By Jim Mustian | Associated Press | June 9, 2021 CLICK FOR VIDEO BATON ROUGE, La. (AP) — The same Louisiana State Police unit whose troopers stunned, punched and dragged Ronald Greene on video during a deadly 2019 arrest is now under internal investigation by a secret panel over whether its officers are systematically targeting…
By Emily Lane & Greg Larose | WSDU | June 9, 2021 CLICK FOR VIDEO The pandemic-related backlog of cases ready for jury trial in Orleans Criminal District is “monumental,” said Rafael Goyeneche, president of the New Orleans Metropolitan Crime Commission. “Even more daunting than Katrina,” he added. Orleans Criminal District Judge Camille Buras on…
By Amanda Roberts | WVUE | June 7, 2021 Click for video NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – New Orleans has always been a little different than the rest of the state of Louisiana, but the city may have been leading the state in policing marijuana. Senate legislators voted 20 to 17 to approve House Bill…
By Danae Columbus | Uptown Messenger | June 3, 2021 Operation Golden Eagle, the new collaborative partnership between the Louisiana State Police and the New Orleans Police Department, began Tuesday (June 1). Though Mayor LaToya Cantrell is unable to quantify exactly how many state troopers are participating, both she and NOPD Superintendent Shaun D. Ferguson…
By Andrea Gallo | The Advocate | May 31, 2021 Louisiana Attorney General Jeff Landry’s newly disclosed role as a paid board member for his top political ally’s oil services company is raising questions about whether Landry is following a state law that instructs the attorney general to devote “his full time” to the Attorney General’s office…
Tuesday, May 25, 2021 NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA – United States Attorney Duane A. Evans announced that LOIS RUSSELL (“RUSSELL”), age 61 of Gibson, Louisiana, TANYA GIVENS (“GIVENS”), age 43, of Gibson, Louisiana; HENRY RANDLE (“RANDLE”), age 64, of Gibson, Louisiana; JOHN DIGGS (“J. DIGGS”), age 60, of Thibodaux, Louisiana; and DAKOTA DIGGS (“D. DIGGS”), age…
By Kaitlin Rust | WVUE | May 24, 2021 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – Two 15-year-olds suspected of killing a 52-year-old woman in January will be charged as adults for murder. This comes after New Orleans District Attorney Jason Williams made a campaign promise not to try juveniles as adults. “The decision to…
By Jim Mustian/Associated Press | WWL-TV | May 24, 2021 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS — In perhaps the strongest evidence yet of an attempted cover-up in the deadly 2019 arrest of Ronald Greene, the ranking Louisiana State Police officer at the scene falsely told internal investigators that the Black man was still a threat…
By Olivia Vidal | WVUE | May 20, 2021 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – The New Orleans City Council is looking at several ordinances and a motion that would fully decriminalize simple possession of marijuana. Something Council President Helena Moreno said would help NOPD officers focus more on violent crimes. But opponents to the motion…
By Paul Murphy | WWL-TV | May 19, 2021 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS — The Louisiana House has rejected a bill to tax the sale of pot. The bill’s author, Rep. Richard Nelson, then tabled a separate measure that created the legal framework to sell and possess recreational marijuana. The Mandeville republican said while…
By Danae Columbus | Uptown Messenger | May 13, 2021 In New York, Boston, Seattle, Atlanta, Detroit and even Jackson, Mississippi, crime and police reform have emerged as the go-to issues in the many 2021 races for mayor across the U.S. As New Orleans’ crime rate continues to escalate and the federal consent decree lingers…
By Natasha Robin | WVUE | May 12, 2021 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) -Homicide cases are surging, up 108 percent from two years ago. “It’s sad when you hear about shootings especially night after night in New Orleans,” says Ken Caron. Every unsolved violent crime, like homicides, creates the potential for…
By Morgan Lentes | WDSU | May 10, 2021 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS — On Monday, New Orleans Mayor LaToya Cantrell was joined by NOPD Superintendent Sean Ferguson and Saints player Cam Jordan to announce the expansion of a new training program for police officers. The program began with 10 NOPD officers, who received…
By Amanda Roberts | WVUE | May 10, 2021 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – Neighborhood handy man Bert Skidmore can do nothing but shake his head at what brought him to this project. “It could’ve been a lot worse but like I said what are we going to do about it,” said Skidmore.…
By Kenny Kuhn | MSN/WWL-Radio | May 5, 2021 New Orleans has a big problem on its hands when it comes to police staffing according to an NOPD watchdog. Violent crime in New Orleans continues to plague the city despite the New Orleans Police Department hiring 1,100 new police officers. However, the President of the…
By Mike Perlstein | WWL-TV | May 4, 2021 CLICK FOR VIDEO ST. CHARLES PARISH, La. — Three days after he was booked in the fatal hit-and-run that took the life of construction worker Brady Ortego, Hunter Johnson was a free man. Johnson, 22, is accused of plowing into Ortego on the Hale Boggs bridge…
By Natasha Robin | WVUE | April 30, 2021 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) -Police investigated 5 interstate shootings so far this year, four of them in the last month. Someone shot a man and a woman last night as they drove on the I-10 Eastbound near the High Rise. “We know for sure,…
NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – CLICK FOR VIDEO New Orleans neighbors like Monicka Henry are concerned about violent crime in the city. “I think it’s awful. I think we need to have things in place to actually do something with the youth,” Henry said. New Orleans Police Chief Shaun Ferguson says within the last week and…
By Kenny Lopez | WGNO | April 26, 2021 NOPD has 27 new recruits from 7 different states to help combat crime on city streets NEW ORLEANS– The NOPD needs police officers to help combat crime on the streets. Today, a recruitment ceremony was held for 27 new NOPD recruits from 7 different states. These recruits…
By Jessica Williams | Nola.com | April 23, 2021 Herbert Jackson can easily recall the New Orleans East he left behind for the military 25 years ago. He could always go to the Plaza when it was time for a new outfit, or sit down at Morrison’s Cafeteria or any number of other restaurants when…
By Emily Singer | The National Memo | April 22, 2021 In a memo obtained by Forbes reporter Andrew Solender on Wednesday, Rep. Steve Scalise (R-LA) says Washington, D.C., shouldn’t be made a state because it “can’t even perform basic governmental duties like protecting its residents from criminals.” Scalise pointed to a “spike in murders” as well…
By WDSU Digital Team | WDSU | April 19, 2021 NEW ORLEANS — A Kenner man and a Covington man have been federally indicted and accused of taking bribe money in return for fraudulent permits for HVAC jobs in both Kenner and New Orleans. The U.S. Attorney’s Office announced today that James Mohamad, 52, of…
By Mike Perlstein | WWL | April 16, 2021 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS — “Blindsided. Hit hard. Shocked.” That was how Dorothy Tardy described her reaction after getting a call from Angola State Penitentiary that inmate Michael Davis was being released nearly 19 years after he was convicted in the barroom robbery that led…
By Nicholas Chrastil | The Lens | April 15, 2021 For nearly two decades, when former judge Calvin Johnson presided in Orleans Parish Criminal District Court, he handed down prison sentences to defendants that he himself felt were too harsh. “That happened all the time,” Johnson said. “So many of them were around, of course,…
By LBJ | WGNO | April 12, 2021 New bill from NOLA lawmaker aims to address violent crime NEW ORLEANS— Crime in New Orleans and other metropolitan communities is not new. What is new is the spike of a dangerous variety of crime that has many citizens shaken. Rafael Goyeneche of The Metropolitan Crime Commission(MCC) says, “Violence…we…
By Danae Columbus | Uptown Messenger | April 8, 2021 It probably was a case of mistaken identity that could have turned deadly for Jhamal Shelby Jr., a soft-spoken St. Augustine High School star athlete and honor student. One recent afternoon after practice, Shelby drove to his father’s home in New Orleans East. Before he…
By Natasha Robin | WVUE | April 5, 2021 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – The family of slain NOPD Officer Christopher Russell is very upset. The victim’s mother told FOX 8, she received a call from Angola, not the DA’s office to notify her that a man previously convicted of an armed robbery…
By Nicholas Chrastil | The Lens | March 29, 2021 The state of Louisiana has set arrest “targets” for the New Orleans Police Department as part of a federally funded grant program meant to boost traffic enforcement — possibly violating laws against quotas, according to lawyers who spoke to The Lens. Similar grants have gone…
By Natasha Robin | WVUE | March 26, 2021 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) -A rat is trapped in a cage, doused with lighter fluid, and set on fire. While experts say the act is disturbing enough, they say what’s being said in the background on the social media post raises the level of…
By Natasha Robin | WVUE | March 24, 2021 NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – In his first month in office, Orleans District Attorney Jason Williams dismissed 415 criminal cases. Of those cases, more than 800 charges were dismissed. “It’s alarming. I haven’t seen numbers like this even after Katrina,” says Rafael Goyeneche. Rafael Goyeneche of the…
By Nicholas Chrastil | The Lens | March 18, 2021 Years after previous efforts were scrapped due to poor oversight, lack of clear procedures, technological failures, and funding disputes, city officials in New Orleans are once again looking to set up an electronic monitoring program run by public agencies — in partnership with a private…
By Liz Reyes | WVUE | March 17, 2021 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – The spike in violent crimes has many more women in the metro New Orleans area worried about their safety and the safety of their families. They cite the media reports of burglaries, robberies, and carjackings; the most recent fatal…
By Matt Sledge | NOLA.com | March 12, 2021 While his predecessor made do with a $152,500 annual salary, newly elected Orleans Parish District Attorney Jason Williams has given himself a 22% pay bump that puts his compensation in line with other top prosecutors in Louisiana. Williams now earns $185,000, less than north shore District…
By Mike Perlstein/WWL Staff | WWL-TV| March 12, 2021 CHARLES PARISH, La. — Ever since construction worker Brady Ortego was struck by a hit-and-run driver on the Hale Boggs Bridge and sent flying into the river, his widow Adele has been waiting for a phone call from the State Police. After waiting nearly eight weeks,…
By Mike Perlstein | WWL-TV | March 5, 2021 LULING, La. — The driver in the Jan. 14 fatal hit-and-run accident on the Hale Boggs Bridge has been identified in a wrongful death lawsuit filed Friday on behalf of the victim’s widow and stepdaughter. The suit filed names Hunter Johnson, 22, of Reserve as the…
By ArLuther Lee | The Atlanta Journal-Constitution | March 5, 2021 A New Orleans judge will take another week to decide whether the man who shot and killed former New Orleans Saints player Will Smith will be granted bond after an emotional virtual court hearing Thursday. Cardell Hayes, who gunned down Smith in 2016 after…
By Natasha Robin | WVUE | March 4, 2021 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – When police arrested a juvenile on Tuesday, they say they found a stolen black Glock, a rifle and several rounds of bullets. “Something is definitely wrong if a juvenile can have his hands on those types of weapons,” says…
By Olivia Vidal | WVUE | March 4, 2021 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – An emotional day in court today as a bond hearing took place for the man convicted of killing former Saints player Will Smith. The hearing comes after the U.S. Supreme Court vacated the manslaughter conviction for Cardell Hayes, as the jury was not unanimous…
By Tommy Tucker | WWL Radio | Occasionally stories pop up that run parallel to each other. Sometimes its coincidence; sometimes its cause and effect. That was the case today as we discussed raising the curfew age in Orleans Parish. The parallel story to curfew age concerned a teenager whom, according to the Advocate, was…
By Sam Hanna Jr. | The Ouachita Citizen | March 3, 2021 Editor’s Note: This column was first published the week of Feb. 3, 2020. Twelve years ago in Gov. Bobby Jindal’s first year in office, the newly elected governor called a special session for lawmakers to entertain a package of reform bills to improve…
By Natasha Robin | WVUE | February 24, 2021 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – Orleans District Attorney Jason Williams announced his new Juvenile Division Chief as well as his plan moving forward on how to handle juvenile offenders. Williams announced Tenee Felix as the new Juvenile Division Chief. Felix was formally an attorney…
By Newell Normand | WWL Radio | February 22, 2021 Click below to listen to full interview: A recent consent decree monitor report states the NOPD has not met its goals and that there is more work that needs to be done. Areas of concern include ‘supervision, stop searches and arrests, and performance evaluations.’ Newell invited…
By Garey Forster | The Advocate | February 17, 2021 Eleven months into the pandemic and everyone’s personal behavior, work patterns and consumption choices have changed. Governments have collected fewer taxes, budgets have shortfalls, and services are cut at the state and local levels since only the feds can deficit-spend. It’s anyone’s guess when things…
By Aaron Murch | WSWS.org | February 10, 2021 Four Louisiana State Police (LSP) troopers were arrested this week for multiple instances of excessive force following a lengthy internal investigation. On Monday the officers arrested were Jacob Brown, 30; Randall Dickerson, 34; Dakota DeMoss, 28; and George Harper, 26, who served with Troop F in…
By Chris Nakamoto | WBRZ-TV | February 9, 2021 CLICK FOR VIDEO BATON ROUGE, La. – Training academy documents obtained by the WBRZ Investigative Unit through sources at State Police show one of four state troopers arrested Monday in an excessive force probe should never have been allowed to graduate from the State Police academy.…
By Lester Duhé and Nick Gremillion | WAFB-9 | February 8, 2021 CLICK FOR VIDEO BATON ROUGE, La. (WAFB) – Officials with Louisiana State Police say investigators have filed charges against four Monroe area troopers for excessive force in two separate incidents. Authorities say the charges stem from an incident in July of 2019 and…
By Nicholas Chrastil | The Lens | February 5, 2021 Harry Connick became Orleans Parish District Attorney in 1974 promising to reduce crime in the city, and while an article in the New Orleans States-Item assessing his first eight months in office said it was too early to tell if Connick was effective, his strategy…
By Kenny Lopez | WGNO | January 28, 2021 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS– The New Orleans City Council voted today on a resolution for the media to stop using New Orleans East as a broad location term when describing events and crime that happens in this area. Danny Jones lives off of Bundy Road and…
By Jessica Williams | NOLA.com Staff Writer | January 28, 2021 The neighborhoods east of the Industrial Canal — commonly referred to as New Orleans East — too often get a bad rap in the media, said City Council members on Thursday, and they argued that reports on crimes there should be more specific to…
By Kenny Lopez | WGNO | January 27, 2021 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS– There’s been a spike in crime in New Orleans East and neighbors want something done about it. Folks living in New Orleans East are scared because they say crime is out of control. “This has to stop. Innocent people are losing their…
By Natasha Robin | WVUE | January 27, 2021 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – District Attorney Jason Williams directs his prosecutors to no longer oppose the parole of an inmate, no matter the nature of the crime. “What we’re not going to do is blanketly oppose all parole hearings,” says Jason Williams. District…
By Natasha Robin | WVUE | January 26, 2021 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) -The Criminal Justice Stakeholders come together, recognizing there’s a crime problem. They say there’s a need for some changes in the new year to solve it. Violent crime over the last year skyrocketed in some areas. The leaders in the…
By Kimberly Curth | WVUE | January 25, 2021 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – Carjackings are up more than 50% in New Orleans compared to this time last year, according to city calls for service data. City leaders addressed the spike in violent crime during a Criminal Justice Committee meeting Monday, Jan.…
Friday, January 22, 2021 NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA – United States Attorney Peter G. Strasser announced MARIO SOLOMON (“SOLOMON”), age 48, of New Orleans, was sentenced today for Conspiracy to Commit Wire Fraud, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 371, arising out of staged automobile accidents with tractor-trailers occurring in New Orleans. …
By Victoria Cristina | BRproud.com | January 22, 2021 NEW ORLEANS — On January 21, the Metropolitan Crime Commission released a report examining crime trends over the last five years in Orleans Parish. The report shows trends for major felony offenses, broken down by the eight Districts of the New Orleans Police Department. New Orleans has…
By Ramon Antonio Vargas | NOLA.com Staff Writer | January 22, 2021 Friday’s retirement of a New Orleans Police Department captain who served the force for nearly half a century created a domino effect and prompted the agency to announce numerous personnel changes at the command level. Capt. James Scott is leaving after 47 years.…
By Newell Normand | WWL Radio | January 22, 2021 District Attorney Jason Williams has taken office in New Orleans and is already making changes to the city’s criminal justice system. Rafael Goyeneche from the Metropolitan Crime Commission joined Newell Friday morning to discuss what’s new, and what’s staying the same as the city…
By Ramon Antonio Vargas | NOLA.com | January 22, 2021 New Orleans East and an area including the 9th Ward have borne the brunt of the gun violence that perennially plagues the city’s streets over the last five years, according to a recent analysis from the Metropolitan Crime Commission. About half of all homicides and…
By Natasha Robin | WVUE | January 21, 2021 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – The majority of the violent crime in New Orleans over the past five years, happened in the two areas of the city. That’s according to the Metropolitan Crime Commission report. The New Orleans Police Department agrees with the findings…
By WDSU Digital Team | WDSU | January 21, 2021 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS — Many New Orleans residents have reported that their cars have been broken into many times in recent weeks. A new report by the Metropolitan Crime Commission shows there has been a substantial increase in both car thefts and burglaries…
By Kenny Lopez | WGNO | January 21, 2021 Metropolitan Crime Commission discusses new 5-year trend crime report for New Orleans NEW ORLEANS– The Metropolitan Crime Commission released a 5-year trend crime report which takes a look at all the crime in the various districts in New Orleans. Rafael Goyeneche, the President of the Metropolitan Crime…
By Victoria Cristina | WGNO | January 21, 2021 NEW ORLEANS — On January 21, the Metropolitan Crime Commission released a report examining crime trends over the last five years in Orleans Parish. The report shows trends for major felony offenses, broken down by the eight Districts of the New Orleans Police Department. New Orleans has…
“Some people who have been committing car burglaries have apparently graduated to robbery,” Goyenche said. By Mike Perlstein/Eyewitness Investigator | WWL-TV | January 21, 2021 NEW ORLEANS — The increase in violent crime in New Orleans in 2020 compared to 2019 is actually part of an even more troubling five-year upswing, according to a report…
By Nicholas Chrastil | The Lens | January 20, 2021 Public defenders in Orleans Parish are hopeful that a new reform-minded district attorney, Jason Williams, will help them come up with innovative ways to address the thousands of open cases that are clogging the dockets at Criminal District Court due to months of COVID-19-related court closures…
By Travers Mackel | WDSU | January 15, 2021 CLICK FOR VIDEO A former client of both the newly installed Orleans Parish District Attorney Jason Williams and a member of Williams’ leadership team entered a plea agreement Thursday that prompted a local watchdog group leader to allege a conflict of interest. Dan Bright had faced…
By Garey Forster | NOLA.com Contributing Columnist | January 13, 2021 When governors and mayors begin and end terms of office there are several objective data points to look at to determine if they will be or were successful in carrying out their duties. Budgets and taxes come to mind. When a new district attorney…
By Kevin McGill | Associated Press | January 11, 2021 NEW ORLEANS (AP) — A New Orleans city council member took the oath of office as the city’s new district attorney Monday, facing a pandemic-related backlog of cases and high expectations from criminal justice reform advocates who rallied around him — despite his indictment on…
By Emily Lane and Greg LaRose | WDSU | January 7, 2021 CLICK FOR VIDEO LaRicha Roussell has slept next to her son’s football jersey each night since the eighth grader was shot dead on Christmas. Before gunfire killed her son, 14-year-old Ja-Mere Alfred, outside a Walgreens store in eastern New Orleans, his team had…
By Natasha Robin | WVUE | December 30, 2020 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – “It’s getting out of control,” says a 7th Ward resident. A carjacking unfolds at six in the morning in the 2100 block of Lapeyrouse Street. As 2020 comes to an end, the violence that plaques the city continues. “In…
By Natasha Robin | December 24, 2020 CLICK FOR VIDEO Rafael Goyeneche of the Metropolitan Crime Commission says 200 people have now become homicide victims in the city of New Orleans. The 200th victim, a female, who police say may also be the suspect of an armed carjacking. Police say she was shot in the…
By Josh Roberson | WVUE | December 17, 2020 NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – On Thursday, the New Orleans Police Department, the FBI and Louisiana State Police met to discuss how they plan to combat the recent uptick in crime around the city. This comes as New Orleans is struggling to keep officers on the payroll.…
By Mike Perlstein | WWL-TV | December 17, 2020 NEW ORLEANS — Amid a surge in killings, shootings and carjackings in New Orleans over the past year, the NOPD abruptly changed its crime-fighting tactics, eliminating localized district task forces. In its place, the department formed a citywide crime-fighting squad known as the Violent Crime…
Thursday, December 17, 2020 NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA – United States Attorney Peter G. Strasser announced that ANTHONY ROBINSON (“A. ROBINSON”), age 67; AUDREY HARRIS (“HARRIS”), age 53; JERRY SCHAFFER (“SCHAFFER”), age 66; and KEISHIRA ROBINSON (“K. ROBINSON”), age 26, of New Orleans, Louisiana entered a plea of guilty today to Conspiracy to Commit Mail Fraud,…
By Paul Murphy | WWL-TV | December 16, 2020 METAIRIE, La. — Murders are up in Jefferson Parish for the second year in a row. So far, there have been 49 killings in JP compared to 48 for all of last year. Rosalie Bossier lives in Metairie’s Fat City neighborhood, near the parking lot where…
By Kimberly Curth | WVUE | December 15, 2020 NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) -An armed suspect pointed a gun at a woman’s head while she was unloading groceries in an Uptown neighborhood around 10:15 Monday morning. It happened in the 1500 block of Henry Clay Avenue, not far from St. Charles. Just last week, a nearly…
By Newell Normand | WWL-AM870 | December 15, 2020 The NOPD is coming under fire for utilizing a partnership with the FBI and Louisiana State Police because they use certain investigatory tools, including facial recognition software. The ACLU and others are outraged that the NOPD has not revealed that they have these partnerships and use…
By Thanh Truong | WWL Eyewitness News | December 10, 2020 NEW ORLEANS — They are the ones who run to the emergency, but that responsibility in New Orleans is getting more complicated because of the pandemic and the economic disaster accompanying it. Some first responders like New Orleans firefighters and police are…
By Staff Writer | WWL Radio | December 10, 2020 In recent days, the New Orleans police department has had their hands full investigating a series of violent crimes. Crime across the city is skyrocketing and the statistical data shows just how bad the situation has become. Murders in New Orleans have shot up to…
By Paul Murphy | WWL-TV | December 9, 2020 NEW ORLEANS — A 26-year-oldwoman was shot and killed inside a car in the 6000 block of Music Street in Gentilly. It was one of four shootings reported in New Orleans during a span of 8 hours overnight. It’s the latest example of a violent crime…
By Fox8live.com Staff | WVUE | December 5, 2020 NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – Jason Williams will serve as the District Attorney of Orleans Parish after a win on Saturday night. Former Judge Keva Landrum and City Council President Jason Williams were in a tight race to replace Leon Cannizzaro. In the primary election, Landrum…
By Kimberly Curth | WVUE | December 1, 2020 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) –Rafael Goyeneche with the Metropolitan Crime Commission says the backlog in cases at Orleans Parish Criminal District Court right now due to the ongoing pandemic is similar to what New Orleans experienced following Hurricane Katrina, with one big difference. “The…
By Kenny Kuhn | WWL Radio | November 25, 2020 Click to listen to full interview It came as no surprise when the city of New Orleans announced the Louisiana State Police would no longer have troopers patrolling in the French Quarter. Spokesperson for the Metropolitan Crime Commission, Rafael Goyeneche says the ‘sunset clause’ on…
By WBRZ Staff | WBRZ | November 24, 2020 NEW ORLEANS — Louisiana residents are paying more in car insurance, in part, due to a comprehensive scam that involves people intentionally hitting 18-wheelers and then fraudulently claiming injuries that result in million dollar settlements with insurance companies. According to a WWL-TV investigation, these staged accidents have…
By Mike Perlstein | WWL-TV | November 23, 2020 NEW ORLEANS — Dozens of staged accidents. Scores of hustlers. Millions of dollars paid to settle fraudulent lawsuits with fake injury claims. And, as a result, the entire state of Louisiana suffering from some of the highest car insurance rates in the country. “It affects…
By Josh Roberson | WVUE | November 23, 2020 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) -A violent night in New Orleans leaves two people dead and seven others shot. The first of those incidents happened Sunday afternoon and continued late into the night. New Orleans police say four people were shot at one location near…
By Matt Sledge | NOLA.com | November 20, 2020 Since a troubled electronic ankle bracelet program ended two years ago, Orleans Parish Juvenile Court judges have lacked options for keeping watch on young people ahead of trial. Last month, however, the city launched a new program it hopes will keep more kids out of the…
By Kenny Kuhn | WWL Radio | November 13, 2020 New Orleans Superintendent Shaun Ferguson announces key arrests and guns confiscated as the department deals with a spike in violent crime. During a Friday press conference, he says significant arrests have been made in all eight police districts. Homicide arrests are up by over…
By Natasha Robin | WVUE | November 13, 2020 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – Police Chief Shaun Ferguson says he wants the public to know that his officers are committed and working hard to keep the city safe. At the same time, he says murders are up, according to the Metropolitan Crime Commission…
By Garey Forster | Contributing Columnist/The Advocate | November 13, 2020 Headlines are a curious thing, especially when they work, grabbing the attention of a reader just passing by. When I saw “Furious” LaToya Cantrell on NOLA.com, I thought the mayor must be upset about all of the shootings and murders, or maybe another building under…
By Kenny Lopez | WGNO | November 12, 2020 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS– The New Orleans Police Department presented their 2021 proposed budget to the City Council today. WGNO talked to the Metropolitan Crime Commission to help analyze what the proposed budget means. The Commission said with crime spiking, and budget costs reducing, this could…
By Paul Murphy | WWL-TV | November 12, 2020 NEW ORLEANS — The Cantrell administration is asking all city departments to cut their budgets in the coming year. That’s because the Coronavirus and efforts to control it have drastically reduced tax revenue in New Orleans. Thursday, NOPD Superintendent Shaun Ferguson presented his 2021 spending plan…
By Nicholas Chrastil | The Lens | November 12, 2020 The New Orleans Police Department presented its budget proposal to the City Council on Thursday, which absorbs an 8 percent cut in funding from this year’s budget by relying on continued officer furloughs, cuts to overtime spending, and leaving non-critical vacancies unfilled, according to…
By Thomas Perumean | WWL Radio | November 12, 2020 The Metropolitan Crime Commission reports in October of last year there were 3 carjackings. This year there were 32. An increase of 106%. Carjackers are getting more frequent, more brazen. On Monday a woman, putting her son in a car seat, was carjacked at gunpoint.…
By Chris Nakamoto | WBRZ | November 11, 2020 CLICK FOR VIDEO BATON ROUGE – Despite a three-year-old case being closed and not under criminal investigation, it took Louisiana State Police two months to make records related to that case available to the WBRZ Investigative Unit. Now, it’s what was missing from those documents that…
By Kenny Kuhn | WWL Radio | November 11, 2020 Armed carjackers shove an 84-year-old woman to the ground and steal her car Tuesday afternoon according to police. An NOPD report says it happened about 2:30 p.m. in the 5700 block of Crowder Boulevard. Police say someone approached the woman and threatened to shoot her…
CLICK FOR VIDEO By Natasha Robin | WVUE | November 10, 2020 NEW ORLEANS, La. (WVUE) – 168 People were killed on the streets of New Orleans so far this year. “This year, we know and acknowledge that homicides are up,” says NOPD Police Chief Shaun Ferguson. It’s an 87 percent spike, according to the Metropolitan Crime…
By WGNO Web Desk | November 10, 2020 CLICK FOR VIDEO NEW ORLEANS — According to a report released by the Metropolitan Crime Commission, the number of carjackings in New Orleans is up by 126% so far this year. But the numbers are much higher in some months. We’ll show you some of those cases in…
By Newell Normand | WWL Radio | November 10, 2020 The Metropolitan Crime Commission has released their 2019-2020 Orleans Parish crime report, which includes some eye-catching statistics about calls for service, arrests, inmate population trends and more, and today, Mayor Cantrell’s administration reacted by sending out Communications Director Beau Tidwell to deliver comments. “We…
By David Hammer | WWL-TV | November 10, 2020 NEW ORLEANS — Grammy-winning trumpeter Irvin Mayfield and his business partner Ronald Markham pleaded guilty to conspiracy to defraud by transferring more than $1 million in public library donations to their jazz orchestra and lying about it in fabricated records. They entered the plea in…
Tuesday, November 10, 2020 NEW ORLEANS – The U.S. Attorney’s Office, Eastern District of Louisiana (EDLA) announced that IRVIN MAYFIELD, age 43, a resident of New Orleans, and RONALD MARKHAM, age 42, also a resident of New Orleans, pleaded guilty today to one count of conspiracy to defraud the New Orleans Public Library Foundation out…
By Paul Murphy/Eyewitness News | WWL-TV | November 9, 2020 NEW ORLEANS, Louisiana — New Orleans is now on track to reverse a four-year trend where the number of murders fell year over year. “We’re experiencing a violent crime surge in this city that we haven’t seen in many years, right now,” Metropolitan Crime…
By Morgan Lentes | WDSU | November 9, 2020 CLICK FOR FULL VIDEO NEW ORLEANS — A local nonprofit has released a report highlighting an uptick in homicides, shootings and other violent crime in New Orleans this year. Rafael Goyeneche, president of the Metropolitan Crime Commission, said given these trends, Mayor LaToya Cantrell should reconsider…
By Ramon Antonio Vargas | NOLA.com | November 9, 2020 City statistics suggest that New Orleans is experiencing a sharp rise in violent crime this year, and the head of the watchdog Metropolitan Crime Commission warned Monday that it could get worse if Mayor LaToya Cantrell’s administration continues furloughing police officers. The remarks from the…
By LBJ | WGNO | November 9, 2020 CLICK FOR FULL VIDEO NEW ORLEANS— The Metropolitan Crime Commission released it’s annual report on crime in New Orleans and it’s frightening. New Orleans is a much more violent city than it was at this time last year. Rafael Goyeneche of MCC states, “Violent crime calls are going up. Homicides are…
By Kenny Kuhn | WWL Radio | November 9, 2020 The New Orleans crime statistics are out and they do not look good. According the President of The Metropolitan Crime Commission, Rafael Goyeneche, violent crime have spiked in the city of New Orleans. “Particularly, shootings, and homicides, and carjackings, so those are some of the…
By Newell Normand | WWL Radio | November 9, 2020 Newell talks to Rafael Goyeneche from Metropolitan Crime Commission about disturbing trends emerging in New Orleans’ crime data sets Press play below to listen to full interview
By James Gill | NOLA.com | November 8, 2020 The big question in New Orleans DA’s races used to be who would do a better job of locking ’em up and throwing away the key. In those good old days, the best way to whip the public into a fury was to explain that some…
By Mike Perlstein/Eyewitness Investigator | WWL-TV | November 5, 2020 NEW ORLEANS — After 32 defendants were previously indicted as street-level scammers over the past year, the sprawling federal investigation into staged truck accidents has led to its first criminal charge against an attorney. New Orleans attorney Daniel Patrick Keating, 51, faces one count of…
Thursday, November 5, 2020 NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA – United States Attorney Peter G. Strasser announced today the Indictment of DANNY PATRICK KEATING, Jr., age 51, of New Orleans, Louisiana, who was charged in a one-count federal indictment with Conspiracy to Commit Mail and Wire Fraud in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 371.…
By Natasha Robin | WVUE | November 4, 2020 NEW ORLEANS, La. (WVUE) –“You’re looking at an almost 50 percent turnover in the court,” Rafael Goyeneche said. Six of the 13 N.O. Criminal Court Judges are newly elected. In Section L, Angel Harris beat incumbent Franz Ziblilich. In Section D, Kimya Holmes wins. In Section E, Rhonda Goode-Douglas…
By David Hammer / Eyewitness Investigator | WWL | November 4, 2020 The change in plea would seem to indicate that one or both are now prepared to plead guilty in the case. Grammy-winning trumpeter Irvin Mayfield and his business partner are scheduled to be rearraigned next Tuesday, indicating one or both of them are…
Travers Mackel/Chris Slaughter | WDSU | November 2, 2020 NEW ORLEANS — Is a race for judge in New Orleans being improperly held? State law seems to indicate that’s what’s happening. Here’s why. Back in 2014 the state Legislature in Baton Rouge, under a directive from then-Mayor Mitch Landrieu, agreed to downsize the number of…
By Jim Mustain and Lester Duhé | Associated Press/WAFB | October 30, 2020 BATON ROUGE, La. (AP) – A Black trooper with the Louisiana State Police was on a break when his cellphone buzzed with an unusual voice message. It was from a white colleague, unaware his Apple Watch had recorded him, blurting out the Black trooper’s name followed by…
By Natasha Robin | WVUE | October 23, 2020 Click for video NEW ORLEANS, La. (WVUE) – The City of New Orleans is requesting relief from court orders to build a new jail building, and do away with a temporary facility that now sits behind the main jail building. The 89-bed facility is…
By Talis Shelbourne | Heavy.com | October 21, 2020 Jeff Perilloux, full name Elzey Jeffrey Perilloux, will serve 14 years in prison for the multiple counts of sex crimes he was convicted of committing against teen girls, some of whom were his daughters’ friends, according to The New Orleans Advocate. Perilloux, 53, won his judgeship in 2016, yet was prevented from…
By Chris Miller | WWL Radio | October 19, 2020 City officials say they can furlough police officers, fire fighters, and paramedics without endangering public safety, but a local crime watchdog thinks the math just isn’t there. Police chief Shaun Ferguson says it won’t be easy, but they can schedule officers around furlough days. “The…
By Travers Mackel | WDSU | October 16, 2020 NEW ORLEANS — Federal charges have been filed against four people for their alleged roles in the wide raging staged wrecks investigation by the Department of Justice. Anthony Robinson, Audrey Harris, Jerry Schaffer and Keishira Robinson all face mail fraud charges. The feds say the four…
Friday, October 16, 2020 NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA – United States Attorney Peter G. Strasser announced today the Indictment of ANTHONY ROBINSON (“A. ROBINSON”), age 66; AUDREY HARRIS (“HARRIS”), age 53; JERRY SCHAFFER (“SCHAFFER”), age 65; and KEISHIRA ROBINSON (“K. ROBINSON”), age 25, of New Orleans, Louisiana. These four defendants were charged in a three-count federal…
By Matt Sledge | Staff Writer/NOLA.com | October 14, 2020 In years past, Keva Landrum’s race for Orleans Parish district attorney might have been more of a walk. She’s the only leading candidate with experience as a prosecutor. She was the first woman to lead the office, as interim DA from 2007 to 2008. And…
By WDSU Digital Team | WDSU | October 2, 2020 A new investigative unit within the New Orleans Police Department will aim to combat a more than 60% increase in murders, Superintendent Shaun Ferguson said Friday. The startling uptick in fatal and nonfatal shootings compared to last year reflects a similar increase in cities across…
PRESS RELEASE | October 1, 2020 | Contact: Ken Daley, Public Information For Immediate Release Members of a joint New Orleans task force of cold-case rape prosecutors and investigators were honored Thursday (Oct. 1) at District Attorney Leon Cannizzaro’s office, where they received the prestigious 2020 Excellence in Law Enforcement award from the Metropolitan Crime…
By Kimberly Curth | WVUE | September 24, 2020 NEW ORLEANS, La. (WVUE) – The FBI is now involved in the murder investigation of a New Orleans man at the center of a Federal investigation. Someone killed Cornelius Garrison just days after the Feds indicted him in a sprawling probe involving staged tractor-trailer accidents. The FBI confirms to…
BY MATT SLEDGE | NOLA.COM | September 23, 2020 Orleans Parish district attorney candidates are set to speak at a forum Wednesday night hosted by a coalition of groups backing a dramatic set of policy changes, a sign that progressive criminal justice reformers have secured a prominent platform to shape the Nov. 3 election. All…
By WWL-Radio | September 23, 2020 State Trooper Chris Hollingsworth, who was set to be fired for his role in the death of a Black man in police custody, has died from injuries sustained in a single-car crash near Monroe. The FBI is investigating whether Hollingsworth and other troopers covered up how Ronald Greene of…
By JIM MUSTIAN | Associated Press | September 21, 2020 A Louisiana state trooper was critically injured early Monday in a single-vehicle highway crash that came hours after learning he would be fired for his role last year in the in-custody death of a Black man. Master Trooper Chris Hollingsworth received word Sunday that State Police…
BY KATELYN UMHOLTZ | NOLA.COM | SEPTEMBER 18, 2020 Nine more people have been indicted on federal charges in a scheme to crash vehicles into buses and big trucks in the New Orleans area, in order to defraud insurance companies. They join 19 other defendants already under indictment. Insurers have paid hundreds of thousands of…
Friday, September 18, 2020 NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA – United States Attorney Peter G. Strasser announced today the indictment of nine additional defendants bringing the total to twenty-eight charged for intentionally staging automobile accidents. Today’s indictment charges CORNELIUS GARRISON (“GARRISON”), age 54, of New Orleans, Louisiana; DONIESHA GIBSON (“GIBSON”), age 29, of New Orleans, Louisiana; CHANDRIKA…
UPDATE: On Thursday evening, the NAACP Baton Rouge Branch responded to the allegations against Louisiana State Trooper August McKay in a Facebook post, saying McKay “should be forced to immediately resign” and calling his actions “deplorable.” Click here to view the NAACP’s full statement. **** BATON ROUGE – A Louisiana State Trooper who was caught calling…
By Thanh Truong | WWL Eyewitness News | August 21, 2020 “As of August 16th, we’ve seen about a 63 percent rise in shootings, and 39 percent rise in homicides versus last year,” said one researcher. NEW ORLEANS — On Friday evening a drive-thru viewing was held for Kim Boutte, a Mardi Gras Indian Queen…
By Travers Mackel | WDSU | August 21, 2020 NEW ORLEANS — Eleven more people have been indicted, accused of staging wrecks in New Orleans to benefit themselves. Federal prosecutors also say in their filing that lawyers are part of the alleged conspiracy. It’s a follow-up to a WDSU Investigates report — and a story…
Friday, August 21, 2020 NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA – United States Attorney Peter G. Strasser announced today the Indictment of RODERICK HICKMAN (“HICKMAN”), age 49, of Baton Rouge, Louisiana; LOIS RUSSELL (“RUSSELL”), age 61, of Gibson, Louisiana; JAMES WILLIAMS (“WILLIAMS”), age 65, of Gibson, Louisiana; TANYA GIVENS (“GIVENS”), age 42, of Gibson, Louisiana; JOHN DIGGS (“J.…
By Danae Columbus | Uptown Messenger | August 20, 2020 The Metropolitan Crime Commission (MCC), New Orleans’ premier criminal justice watchdog agency, is urging the New Orleans Police Department to refocus on violent offenders during a time when shootings and murders are surging and fewer arrests are being made for violent and weapons felony offenses.…
By Newell Normand | WWL Radio | August 18, 2020 City leaders can’t or won’t stand up to social justice reformers Every day seems to bring more bad news about crime in New Orleans. Like many of America’s major cities, New Orleans is experiencing an uptick in crime and gun violence, amid a vitriolic…
NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA – United States Attorney Peter G. Strasser announced that DAMIAN LABEAUD (“LABEAUD”), age 48, of New Orleans, entered a plea of guilty today to Conspiracy to Commit Wire Fraud, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 371, arising out of staged automobile accidents with tractor-trailers occurring in New Orleans. According…
BY MATT SLEDGE AND JEFF ADELSON | NOLA.com | August 1, 2020 A 9-year-old boy gunned down in front of his family in Treme. A 34-year-old man shot and killed in a dispute over a car title. Three men shot, one of them fatally, on a sunny afternoon in St. Roch. The events of the…
BY MATT SLEDGE | NOLA.com-The Advocate | JUL 29, 2020 New Orleans police would have to swiftly turn over body-worn camera footage to criminal defendants, and police would have less leeway to arrest people for minor crimes under a pair of ordinances the City Council’s Criminal Justice Committee discussed this week. Council President and Committee…
By Newell Normand | WWL Radio | July 29, 2020 It’s been said time and again that we should be able to do two things at the same time. Can we? Disproportionate impact, over-incarceration and allegations that the criminal justice system is fraught with systemic racism has not only defined, but painted the picture of…
By Chris Miller | WWL Radio | July 28, 2020 Violent crime is on the rise in New Orleans, with shootings and murders grabbing attention from crime watchdogs. Raphael Goyeneche with the Metro Crime Commission says they have recorded a 47 percent increase in shootings for the year, and a 190 percent increase this July…
Travers Mackel | WDSU | July 24, 2020 St.JOHN THE BAPTIST PARISH, La. — An embattled St. John judge who was benched but still paid after being indicted for sexual misconduct with minors has now qualified to run for the same judge seat he has been suspended from for years. St. John the Baptist Parish…
By John Simerman | NOLA.com | July 14, 2020 Arthur Hunter, who parlayed a brief stint as a New Orleans police officer into more than two decades as a Criminal Court judge known as a champion for public defenders, has announced that he will join an intensifying race for Orleans Parish District Attorney. Hunter,…
By Matt Sledge | NOLA.com | July 13, 2020 For more than four years after her daughter Renata was stabbed to death in St. Roch, Bobbie Vaughn has been waiting for the alleged killer to go on trial. Vaughn, 72, prays every day that God will give her the strength to go on. She is…
By Nicholas Chrastil | The Lens | July 2, 2020 The New Orleans Safety and Freedom Fund, an organization that posts bail for people being held at the New Orleans jail, is planning on bailing out dozens of people over the July 4 weekend. Montrell Carmouche, who heads the organization, said the group plans to…
By Danae Columbus | Uptown Messenger | July 2, 2020 Metropolitan Crime Commission President Rafael Goyeneche said yesterday that NOPD Superintendent Shaun D. Ferguson deserves the highest accolades for his handling of the department since the pandemic and Black Lives Matter protests began. “Chief Ferguson has been dealing with an issue that no police chief…
By John Simerman, Michelle Hunter and Ramon Antonio Vargas | NOLA.com-The New Orleans Advocate | June 27, 2020 A shooting last month that left a Black welder dead in Marrero after he bolted from deputies was only the latest episode of fatal force by Jefferson Parish deputies to raise suspicions that will not be settled…
By Matt Sledge | Nola.com | June 26, 2020 New Orleans police task force officers routinely stop people on a questionable legal basis, engage in unsafe practices, keep shoddy records and operate with lax supervision, according to a report released Friday by federal monitors. Near-identical problems were identified in a report nine years ago by…
By Chris Finch | WVUE | June 15, 2020 New Orleans City Council member Jared Brossett said he is going into rehab, Monday, following a DWI arrest and crash with another vehicle. “The last 48 hours have been very difficult for me and my family. Due to the series of events that have recently occurred,…
By Natasha Robin | WVUE | June 12, 2020 In the ‘fake subpoena’ lawsuit, a Federal Judge rules in favor of D.A. Leon Cannizzaro, but more allegations in the lawsuit remains open. The lawsuit was filed back in 2017 against the district attorney’s office and several ADA’s. It alleges the D.A.’s office unlawfully compelled witnesses…
By: Chris Nakamoto | WBRZ | June 11, 2020 BATON ROUGE – A contract awarded to a company while no-bid provisions were in effect due to the coronavirus, has raised questions about whether one of the people employed by the company that received the contract crossed the line. The contracts were awarded by the Governor’s…
By Natasha Robin | WVUE | June 9, 2020 Calls from protestors to defund the police grows louder. “It means different things to different people. This is a case where a hashtag should be replaced with a 700 page novel,” says FOX 8 Political Analyst Mike Sherman. Sherman says in some cases, there’s a call…
May 29, 2020 NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA – United States Attorney Peter G. Strasser announced MARIO SOLOMON (“SOLOMON”), age 48, of New Orleans, entered a plea of guilty on May 28, 2020 to Conspiracy to Commit Wire Fraud, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 371, arising out of staged automobile accidents with tractor-trailers…
By Aubrey Killion | WDSU | May 27, 2020 ST. JOHN THE BAPTIST PARISH, La. —The coronavirus has crippled courts across southeast Louisiana. One is in St. John the Baptist Parish, where a judge there was suspended after being accused of inappropriately touching juveniles. Records WDSU Investigates has obtained show he’s been getting paid not…
By Staff | KPLC | May 26, 2020 LAKE CHARLES, La. (KPLC) – For years the public has been able to access financial disclosures of elected officials through the State Ethics Board, except for judges. But after being nudged by a watchdog group, the State Supreme Court is making such information more easily available to…
Staff Editorial | Nola.com | May 21, 2020 How embarrassing was it for Louisiana’s secretive Supreme Court when the Metropolitan Crime Commission of New Orleans put the judges’ financial disclosure forms online? The Legislature’s disclosures are online, and so are the governor’s. But the justices were making members of the public file a records request…
By Matt Sledge | Nola.com | May 20, 2020 After nearly two weeks of decline, the number of inmates at the New Orleans jail testing positive for the novel coronavirus spiked to its highest point yet on Wednesday, raising concerns that the virus is infecting inmates who once appeared safe. There were 94 inmates in Orleans Parish…
By John Simerman | Nola.com | May 15, 2020 The Louisiana Supreme Court began posting the current financial disclosures of state judges on its newly revamped web site this week, the latest step to quell rising public pressure for more transparency within the state’s elected judiciary. The move by the state’s highest court to post…
By Matt Sledge | Nola.com | May 8, 2020 Orleans Parish District Attorney Leon Cannizzaro announced on Friday that he was furloughing 56 employees, including investigators and victim counselors, as the economic impact of the coronavirus pandemic hit home for a criminal justice agency that weathered past downturns without cuts. The full-time furloughs, which affect…
By David Hammer and Gordon Russell | WWLTV and Nola.com | April 28, 2020 NEW ORLEANS — Ray Nagin’s abrupt release from prison Monday amid the coronavirus pandemic brought down the final curtain on the biggest City Hall corruption scandal in New Orleans’ colorful history to wind up in a courtroom. The former mayor was…
By Matt Sledge and Lea Skene | Nola.com | April 25, 2020 A federal judge made his dismay plain this week after he surveyed the conditions inside a state prison in Washington Parish with at least 29 confirmed coronavirus cases. Nearly 80 prisoners were sleeping in bunks an arm’s length apart in the Rayburn Correctional…
By Matt Sledge and Jeff Adelson l Nola.com I April 11, 2020 New Orleans residents are calling 911 a hundred fewer times each day since the city shut down to halt the novel coronavirus, with crime reports falling in major categories like homicides, robberies, carjackings, auto burglaries and thefts. Serious crime stats have dropped in…
By Matt Sledge l Nola.com I April 6, 2020 Three days after a reputed 6th Ward gang leader was released from jail — in part because of the danger posed to inmates by the novel coronavirus — he was shot dead on the block where police accused him of peddling heroin. The Sunday afternoon death of 33-year-old Glynn…
By Mike Perlstein l WWLTV I April 6, 2020 NEW ORLEANS — Due to the threat of the coronavirus, the accused leader of a New Orleans drug gang was released from jail Thursday on a recognizance bond, a form or release requiring no money. Glynn McCormick’s release came less than two years after his original…
By Matt Sledge and Mike Perlstein l Nola.com and WWLTV I March 30, 2020 The commander and three members of an Orleans Parish Sheriff’s Office internal investigations unit abruptly resigned on Friday. The departures came amid an internal investigation into irregularities involving work hours and private employment, according to multiple sources with knowledge of the…
By Mike Perlstein l WWLTV I March 30, 2020 The commander and three veteran investigators of the Orleans Parish Sheriff’s Office internal investigations unit abruptly resigned Friday amid an internal investigation into irregularities involving their work hours and time spent away from the office, according to multiple sources with knowledge of the situation. The resignations…
NEW ORLEANS – U.S. Attorney Peter G. Strasser of the District of Louisiana today urged the public to report suspected fraud schemes related to COVID-19 (the Coronavirus) by calling the National Center for Disaster Fraud (NCDF) hotline (1-866-720-5721) or to the NCDF e-mail address disaster@leo.gov. In coordination with the Department of Justice, Attorney General William…
By Sam Hanna Jr. | The Franklin Sun | March 4, 2020 While tort reform is expected to dominate the headlines in the regular legislative session that begins next week, it isn’t the only hot topic the Legislature will entertain. Among the 1,120 bills that lawmakers pre-filed in the House and Senate as of close…
By Andrea Gallo and John Simerman | Advocate | March 2, 2020 Louisiana’s judges have promised the Legislature over and over again that they can clean up their own scandals and hold themselves to an ethical standard that instills respect from the public. But if the bills pre-filed for the upcoming legislative session are any…
By John Simmerman and David Hammer | Nola.com | February 18, 2020 Some of the New Orleans city building inspectors who signed off at key points of the construction of the Hard Rock Hotel before it pancaked and collapsed on Oct. 12, killing three laborers, do not appear to have been properly certified for the…
By Sara Pagones | Nola.com | February 16, 2020 A St. Tammany Parish task force studied a proposal to create a parish inspector general’s office for months in 2013 before finally scrapping the idea. Now, the citizens group that had pushed the proposal appears ready for another go. During a panel discussion on public corruption…
By Tom Aswell | Louisiana Voice | February 14, 2020 A two-hour public corruption forum in Abita Springs Thursday night produced little in the way of solutions to the growing problem of official wrongdoing in St. Tammany Parish but one question from an audience member did produce a buzz among the audience and some uncomfortable…
By Zeta Cross | Louisiana Record | February 9, 2020 Thanks to the Metropolitan Crime Commission (MCC), Louisiana citizens now have easy access to the same basic financial information about judges that is readily available about all other Louisiana elected officials. “If a judge is deciding a case that may affect somebody’s life, citizens have…
By Kenny Kuhn | WWL.com | February 7, 2020 Juvenile crime, particularly vehicle burglary, is a growing problem for residents and city leaders in New Orleans. But city leaders announced they are taking action in the form of electronic ankle monitors. “This monitor is a mechanism, that forces the child the juvenile to comply or…
By David Hammer | WWL Tv | February 7, 2020 NEW ORLEANS — Two top city officials met with the media Friday to explain why Mayor LaToya Cantrell signed a $50,000 contract with former U.S. Attorney Kenneth Polite last week, saying they sought an outside investigation of the city’s permitting office in response to a…
By David Hammer | WWL Tv | February 6, 2020 NEW ORLEANS — The city of New Orleans is spending $50,000 for a New York-based law firm to investigate possible bribery and misconduct in its Safety & Permits Department, even as at least four local and federal law enforcement agencies and the City Council are…
By Natasha Robin | Fox 8 | February 6, 2020 NEW ORLEANS, La. (WVUE) – “The offenders appear to have gotten more consideration than the victims of these crimes of violence,” says Rafael Goyeneche. Goyeneche, of the Metropolitan Crime Commission, calls some recent bonds at Criminal District Court, unfortunate. Three suspects appeared before a Magistrate…
By Sam Hanna Jr. | The Franklin Sun | February 5, 2020 Twelve years ago in Gov. Bobby Jindal’s first year in office, the newly elected governor called a special session for lawmakers to entertain a package of reform bills to improve ethics in state government. Jindal specifically targeted politicians, and one of the cornerstones…
By John Simerman | Nola.com | February 3, 2020 Orleans Parish Criminal District Court Judge Arthur Hunter has stepped down after 24 years on the bench, filing his resignation letter on Monday. He is rumored to be readying a run for district attorney. Hunter, who was considered to be among the most liberal of the…
By Editorial | Nola.com | February 2, 2020 In 2008, Gov. Bobby Jindal and the Legislature pledged the state to attain the “gold standard” of ethics in government. And when it comes to filling out forms, particularly for financial disclosures by elected officials, in many ways it was. But there turned out to be ways…
By James Gill | Nola.com | February 2, 2020 If we didn’t assume that judges are smarter and more honest than the general run of humanity, we wouldn’t let them boss us about. Sure, they can order a cop to enforce their will whether we respect them or not, but coercion cannot sustain their hegemony…
By The Advocate Staff | Featured on The Ouachita Citizen | February 2, 2020 In 2008, Gov. Bobby Jindal and the Legislature pledged the state to attain the “gold standard” of ethics in government. And when it comes to filling out forms, particularly for financial disclosures by elected officials, in many ways it was. But…
By Nick Reimann | Nola.com | February 1, 2020 State District Judge Jeff Perilloux hasn’t heard a case in 21 months. But that hasn’t stopped the suspended judge in St. John the Baptist Parish from collecting his taxpayer-paid salary while he awaits trial on charges of sexual misconduct involving three of his daughter’s teenage friends. Records…
By Mike Perlstein | WWL Tv | January 30, 2020 NEW ORLEANS — A contentious eight-year legal battle between the Clerk of New Orleans Criminal Court and City Hall over funding has been resolved, with the clerk’s office getting the full $4.6 million annual budget allocation it requested. In previous years, the city argued that…
By Jamie Ostroff | KTBS | January 30, 2020 The Metropolitan Crime Commission, a non-profit watchdog group based in New Orleans, published a searchable database that allows the public to look up financial disclosure forms for any Louisiana judge. Elected officials in Louisiana are required to disclose where their money comes from, whether it’s from…
January 30, 2020 NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA –United States Attorney Peter G. Strasser announced LARRY WILLIAMS (“LARRY WILLIAMS”), age 46, of New Orleans, LUCINDA THOMAS (“THOMAS”), age 63; MARY WADE (“WADE”), age 55; JUDY WILLIAMS (“JUDY WILLIAMS”), age 59; and DASHONTAE YOUNG (“YOUNG”), age 25; all of Houma, Louisiana, entered a plea of guilty today to Conspiracy to Commit Wire Fraud, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 371,…
By WWL Newsroom | WWL Radio.com | February 28, 2020 The public now has a new way to find details about the salaries of Louisiana state judges. President of New Orleans Metropolitan Crime Commission, Rafael Goyeneche, announced Today a new search engine on the Crime Commission’s website which lists the judicial financial disclosure statements of every state…
By Sula Kim | WDSU | January 28, 2020 The public now has online access to the personal financial disclosure statements of Louisiana judges. The Metropolitan Crime Commission has launched a new portal in an effort to keep judges accountable. Prior to this, there was no online access to the financial disclosures, and people would…
By Andrea Gallo | Nola.com | January 28, 2020 Every year, judges across Louisiana file financial disclosure forms meant to shine a light on how members of the judiciary earn their incomes. But most members of the public never see them. Though they are public documents, judges’ financial disclosure forms have only been available upon…
By Kiran Chawla | WAFB9 | January 28, 2020 For the first time, forms filed by Louisiana judges that show their income from the bench as well as any side businesses will be made publicly available through an online database. Previously, the forms were only accessible through public records requests filed with the Louisiana Supreme…
Today, the Metropolitan Crime Commission (MCC) launched a new search engine that enables the public to access the financial disclosure statements of all 289 Louisiana District Court Judges, Appellate Court Judges, and Supreme Court Justices for the past five years. Click Here to Access the MCC Judicial Financial Disclosure Search Engine Prior to today, the…
By Matt Doyle | Louisiana Radio Network | January 28, 2020 You can now view 5 years of financial disclosures for all 298 judges in the state of Louisiana at the New Orleans Metropolitan Crime Commission’s website. MCC President Rafael Goyeneche says they’ve made it easy to find out how much your local judge makes, and…
By Natasha Robin | Fox 8 | January 28, 2020 NEW ORLEANS, La. (WVUE) – New City Council data shows police investigated more than 6,000 car burglary incidents last year and officers made arrests in 9 percent of those cases. 48 percent of the time those arrested are juveniles. “Some of those are repeat offenders,…
By Matt Sledge | Nola.com | January 28, 2020 For years, jail-reform advocates and bail bondsmen have argued over whether making defendants post bail while awaiting trial keeps New Orleans safer. On Tuesday, the New Orleans City Council was presented a data analysis saying that defendants released without paying bail are no more likely to…
By Tom Aswell | Louisiana Voice | January 28, 2020 Regular readers of this site know of my often expressed frustration with the lack of transparency of our elected officials, particularly after Bobby Jindal so shamelessly gutted the enforcement powers of the Louisiana Board of Ethics back in 2008, just days after taking office—a move,…
By Paul Murphy | WWL Tv | January 17, 2020 New Orleans’ top prosecutor is encouraging Odell Beckham Junior Jr. to surrender to police. “I have not spoke to him or any of his attorneys as of this time,” Orleans District Attorney Leon Cannizzaro said. “I would hope that he would turn himself in so…
Orleans Parish District Attorney’s Office | January 17, 2020 District Attorney Leon Cannizzaro on Friday (Jan. 17) hosted city leaders, police, judges and victim advocates at the 2020 New Orleans Domestic Violence Summit. The Summit, subtitled A Symposium for Solutions, brought together a wide spectrum of domestic violence stakeholders for a productive and enlightening discussion…
By Sue Strachan | Uptown Messenger | January 15, 2020 Having your car broken into via smashed windows has become the new normal in New Orleans. On Tuesday, Jan. 14, a group of neighborhood associations hosted a community meeting at the Jewish Community Center to “discuss the recent uptick of crimes and ways to combat…
By Kendra Smith-Parks | Fox8 | January 9, 2020 NEW ORLEANS, La. (WVUE) – A new policy is now in effect at Orleans Juvenile Court. Any juvenile that is arrested and has an open court case won’t be released from custody until they see a judge. It is a new measure that is aimed at…
By Kiran Chawla | WAFB | January 8, 2020 BATON ROUGE, La. (WAFB) – When the Louisiana Assessor’s Association administers its certification classes, you are often paying for those taking the exam to stay multiple nights in a Baton Rouge hotel. The exams are administered on Fridays at the Crowne Plaza Hotel off Constitution Avenue…
By Stephanie Grace | Nola.com | January 7, 2020 In general, New Orleans politicians aren’t shy about speaking up when they’re not happy with how their peers behave. But you’ve got to admit that Orleans Parish Clerk of Criminal District Court Arthur Morrell has a special flair for expressing his pique. Morrell had what can…
By The Hour Staff | The Hour | January 6, 2020 NEW ORLEANS (AP) — New Orleans’ clerk of criminal district court announced a furlough Friday that would’ve crippled the city’s criminal justice system, only to rescind the threat the next day. The moves by Orleans Parish Clerk of Criminal District Court Arthur Morrell are…
By Michelle Hunter | Nola.com | January 5, 2020 The number of homicides in unincorporated Jefferson Parish doubled in 2019, a statistic officials called an anomaly that came on the heels of a year that saw a huge drop. Jefferson Parish Sheriff’s Office detectives investigated 48 homicides, according to statistics provided by the department, up from…
By Matt Sledge | Nola.com | January 3, 2020 Orleans Parish Clerk of Criminal District Court Arthur Morrell announced Friday that he is going nuclear in his long-running budget dispute with the city of New Orleans. In a move that will essentially cripple the rest of the city’s criminal justice system, he said nearly all…
By Robb Hays | WAFB | January 2, 2020 BATON ROUGE, La. (WAFB) – As of this week, the principal of LSU’s prestigious University Lab School has been on paid leave for one entire year and there is no indication that will change anytime soon. Frank Rusciano, who makes $144,347 per year, was placed on leave on…
By Amanda Roberts | Fox8 | January 2, 2020 NEW ORLEANS, La. (WVUE) -The 3NG gang has been tied to some of the most horrific crimes in years past: multiple murders, drug activity, and weapons charges. But Rafael Goyeneche with the Metro Crime Commission says now some of those crimes may not be translating to…
By Newell Normand | WWL.com | January 2, 2020 With 2019 now firmly in the rear-view mirror, Newell invited Metropolitan Crime Commission President Rafael Goyeneche into the studio Thursday morning to discuss the most important trends in crime-fighting over the last year, and what’s on the horizon as we move into 2020. “Y’all had a…
NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA – United States Attorney Peter G. Strasser announced today the Superseding Indictment charging three additional defendants: GENETTA ISREAL (“ISREAL”), age 51, of Houston, Texas; MARIO SOLOMON (“SOLOMON”), age 48, of New Orleans; and LARRY WILLIAMS (“LARRY WILLIAMS”), age 46, also of New Orleans. Previously, the following five defendants were indicted: DAMIAN K. LABEAUD (“LABEAUD”), age 47, of New Orleans; LUCINDA THOMAS (“THOMAS”), age 63; MARY WADE (“WADE”), age 55; JUDY WILLIAMS (“JUDY WILLIAMS”), age 59; and DASHONTAE YOUNG (“YOUNG”), age 25; all of Houma, Louisiana. The Superseding Indictment adds three new defendants, expands the conspiracy, adds two…
A rash of accidents staged by a connected circle of con artists are contributing to Louisiana’s high insurance rates. This is how it’s done. By Mike Perlstein | Eyewitness Investigator | November 21, 2019 NEW ORLEANS — At first glance, the police body camera seems to capture a New Orleans police officer handling a routine…
By Matt Sledge | Nola.com | November 13, 2019 Orleans Parish Criminal District Court judges forcefully defended their response to lawsuits targeting their reliance on court fees during a sometimes heated City Council hearing Wednesday as they asked the city to keep sending them an extra $3.8 million a year. The judges said during their…
Their trial, which has been delayed several times, is now scheduled for Jan. 21. By David Hammer | WWL Tv | November 13, 2019 NEW ORLEANS — A federal judge has ruled that recordings of Grammy-winning trumpeter Irvin Mayfield and his partner Ronald Markham, secretly recorded by a Louisiana auditor, can be used by prosecutors…
By Matt Sledge | Nola.com | November 12, 2019 When the judges of Criminal District Court went before the New Orleans City Council last year, they warned of a gaping hole in their budget from federal court decisions rejecting their practice of raising millions of dollars from fines and fees on mostly poor defendants. The…
NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA – United States Attorney Peter G. Strasser announced today the Indictment of DAMIAN K. LABEAUD (“LABEAUD”), age 47, of New Orleans and LUCINDA THOMAS (“THOMAS”), age 63, MARY WADE (“WADE”), age 55, JUDY WILLIAMS (“WILLIAMS”), age 59, and DASHONTAE YOUNG (“YOUNG”), age 25, all of Houma, Louisiana. These five defendants were charged in a six-count federal indictment with one (1) count of Conspiracy to Commit Wire Fraud in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 371 and…
By Lea Skene | The Advocate | October 15, 2019 Three State Police troopers were transferred out of the agency’s training division this week after their superiors concluded that recent exercises went beyond “normal parameters” and caused significant injuries to some of the cadets involved. Several cadets participating in the training academy received injuries last…
By WAFB Staff | WAFB | October 14, 2019 BATON ROUGE, La. (WAFB) – Louisiana State Police is trying to do some damage control after the 9News Investigators brought forth allegations of possible hazing and a cheating scandal. Three troopers have been transferred out of their positions with the training academy and two cadets have…
Shreveport, New Orleans, Lafayette, La. – Today, Patrick Hale Dejean, former Justice of the Peace for the Second Justice Court of Jefferson Parish, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Mary Ann Vial Lemmon to three years in federal prison for committing 13 counts of mail fraud and three counts of making false statements to a…
By David Hammer | WWL | October 2, 2019 Three months before their scheduled federal trial on 23 counts of conspiracy, fraud and money laundering, lawyers for Grammy-winning trumpeter Irvin Mayfield and his longtime partner tried to convince a federal judge Wednesday to keep out of evidence audio recordings an investigative auditor secretly made of…
By Newell Normand | WWL Radio | October 1, 2019 One in seven adults in New Orleans have a warrant out for their arrest, according a recent article in the Washington Post. The response by some of the City Council members resembles a series of dots that don’t really connect. Newell invited Rafael Goyeneche from the Metropolitan…
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…
By Thanh Truong | WWL | July 19, 2019 In New Orleans, we’ve heard quite a bit this week about the body-worn cameras police wear when they respond to calls. When turned on, body-worn cameras can back up police accounts, as they did in a shoot-out between New Orleans Police and two suspects at CVS last month.…
By Dan Fagan | The Advocate | July 6, 2019 Eighteen-year-old Theron Glover has been a busy young man as of late. Police have already arrested him several times this year, and he currently faces 160 pending charges in New Orleans Criminal District Court. Last week, police arrested Glover again for opening fire on a…
By Mike Perlstein | WWL | July 1, 2019 NEW ORLEANS — About one-third of suspects booked with violent felony crimes in New Orleans are deemed low-risk to re-offend or miss court in a risk assessment survey used by the court to determine bail, but those assessments are often ignored by the magistrates setting bail,…
By Rob Masson | Fox 8 New Orleans | July 1, 2019 at 1:09 PM CDT – Updated July 1 at 5:43 PM NEW ORLEANS, La. (WVUE) – The Metropolitan Crime Commission released a report calling the local inmate risk assessment program a waste of money Monday afternoon (July 1). “The Public Safety Assessment is…
By Amanda Roberts | June 24, 2019 at 9:42 PM CDT – Updated June 25 at 7:00 AM NEW ORLEANS, La. (WVUE) – Walking across the stage, it appears Ashley Crawford did earn a Juris Doctor degree from Loyola university in 2016. But earning the degree doesn’t give you the license to practice law. Rafael Goyeneche with the…
By Heather Nolan, NOLA.com | The Times-Picayune Criminal justice advocates look at New Orleans’ successful reduction in jail population — 1,200 inmates now compared to more than 6,000 pre-Katrina — as the first step in a movement toward reform. Now, they’re pushing for local policy changes that would eliminate money bail, a practice they say…
By Rob Masson | June 19, 2019 at 5:22 PM CDT – Updated June 19 at 5:59 PM NEW ORLEANS, La. (WVUE) – The Metropolitan Crime Commission is revealing some startling statistics as they prepare a report on a prisoner risk assessment system that’s now drawing criticism. The city, which operates the system says it’s…
BY RAMON ANTONIO VARGAS | STAFF WRITER PUBLISHED JUN 18, 2019 AT 11:42 AM | UPDATED JUN 18, 2019 AT 7:59 PM Wearing hooded sweatshirts to hide their faces and blue medical gloves that wouldn’t leave fingerprints, two men from Indiana barged into a CVS pharmacy on Prytania Street early Monday, bound two employees with…
“The absurdity of this defendant’s risk assessment speaks volumes about what is wrong with the criminal justice system in the City of New Orleans,” Cannizzaro said. Author: Mike Perlstein / Eyewitness Investigator Published: 4:55 PM CDT June 18, 2019 Updated: 6:51 PM CDT June 18, 2019 NEW ORLEANS — The two suspects arrested in Monday’s…
By Grace Toohey and Lea Skene Rogers Johnson Jr. spent six days behind bars for misdemeanor public intoxication because he couldn’t afford to post bail. He was released from East Baton Rouge Parish Prison on Saturday afternoon — just in time to spend Father’s Day with his three children. “I just want to hug them…
By David Blake | WWL | June 3, 2019 Juvenile crime has been talked about for months and it frequently makes headlines in New Orleans. Tonight, the new juvenile curfew takes effect and there are both skeptics and others optimistic it will work. Rafael Goyeneche, Director of the Metro Crime Commission, is hopeful this kind…
By Natasha Robin | Fox 8 New Orleans | May 23, 2019 at 5:25 PM CDT – Updated May 23 at 5:51 PM NEW ORLEANS, La. (WVUE) – With a juvenile crime problem escalating across New Orleans, Mayor Latoya Cantrell said one way to effectively stop it would be to create Evening Reporting Centers. “It’s a cooperative agreement…
By Kimberly Curth | Fox 8 New Orleans | May 21, 2019 at 9:57 PM CDT – Updated May 22 at 7:03 AM NEW ORLEANS, La. (WVUE) – The man charged in the 2015 armed robbery of a well-known television reporter is now accused in a double shooting and murder. Not only does he have a long criminal…
James Gill MAY 18, 2019 – 10:30 PM It wasn’t hard for the cops to identify suspects in the murder of New Orleans pizza deliveryman Richard “Chris” Yeager five years ago. Electronic monitors, which had been attached to the ankles of Rennel Brown and Shane Hughes while they awaited trial on other offenses, put them…
BY MATT SLEDGE | MSLEDGE@THEADVOCATE.COM MAY 15, 2019 – 7:33 PM After months with an electronic monitor strapped to his ankle, Aaron Jones was ready to leave the criminal justice system behind him when he walked into Orleans Parish Criminal District Court Judge Paul Bonin’s courtroom last May. Jones pleaded guilty to a felony and…
By Drew Broach, NOLA.com | The Times-Picayune For all of Chris Roberts’ political wheeling and dealing – plenty of it over 20 years in elected office – it wasn’t public corruption that the federal government ultimately alleged in the 29-count indictment against him. The defendant here is not so much Roberts the politician as Roberts…
MAY 9, 2019 NEW ORLEANS – The United States Attorney’s Office, Eastern District of Louisiana announced that CHRISTOPHER LORELL ROBERTS, JR., age 41, a resident of Gretna, Louisiana, was charged today in a 29-count Indictment with wire fraud, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 1343, and tax evasion, in violation of…
May 02, 2019 4:06 PM in News Source: WBRZ By: Chris Nakamoto and Erin McWilliams BATON ROUGE – Two weeks after a man broke into one of the state’s most secure homes staffed with security, Louisiana State Police have refused to answer any questions about the incident. “The Louisiana State Police can’t comment in regard…
By Heather Nolan, NOLA.com | The Times-Picayune A former fire marshal’s inspector who was convicted of attempting to injure public records for trying to hide his failure to inspect a Grand Isle motel where two people died in a fire was sentenced Thursday (April 25) to one year of probation. Nunzio Marchiafava, 73, was convicted…
By Kimberly Curth | April 19, 2019 at 5:17 PM CDT – Updated April 19 at 5:31 PM NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – For the first time, New Orleans Mayor Latoya Cantrell responds to criticism over her decision to lower the threshold for speeding tickets in school zones. But a local watchdog has concerns about how…
BY MATT SLEDGE | The Advocate | Apr 12, 2019 – 4:15 pm A former state fire inspector who tried to hide the fact that he failed to visit a Grand Isle motel months before a fatal fire was convicted of attempting to injure public records on Thursday, New Orleans prosecutors said. Orleans Parish Criminal…
District Attorney Leon Cannizzaro’s office on Friday (April 12) announced the felony conviction of a former inspector with the state fire marshal’s office who attempted to hide his failure to inspect a Grand Isle motel where two people died in a blaze in September 2012. At the end of a one-day bench trial, Criminal District…
By Rob Masson | Fox 8 New Orleans | April 4, 2019 at 4:30 PM CDT – Updated April 4 at 5:49 PM NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – A St. Claude business incubator has partnered with a new company whose goal is to eliminate wait times for people who get in car accidents in New Orleans. The New…
Author: Mike Perlstein / Eyewitness Investigator Published: 6:57 PM CDT March 28, 2019 Updated: 11:24 PM CDT March 28, 2019 NEW ORLEANS — The woman in charge of hiring new deputies at the troubled Orleans Justice Center jail was fired recently, the second human resources director to leave under a cloud in less than a…
BY MATT SLEDGE | MSLEDGE@THEADVOCATE.COM MAR 24, 2019 – 3:53 PM Louisiana taxpayers have spent more than $288,000 to pay the salaries both of two judges sidelined by sexual misconduct allegations and of their temporary replacements since May, and that figure is growing as investigations and court proceedings continue. The state has paid $114,000 to…
By Sara Pagones and Katie Moore | The Advocate | March 14, 2019 Terry Cederholm II, a patrol deputy who was fired by the St. Tammany Parish Sheriff’s Office this week following a felony drug arrest, had a rocky history with the agency, having resigned in 2009 under the cloud of a criminal investigation. But…
By Kiran Chawla | March 13, 2019 at 7:04 PM CDT – Updated March 14 at 10:26 AM PORT ALLEN, LA (WAFB) – Louisiana State Police says it is not investigating West Baton Rouge Sheriff Mike Cazes. The development comes as the FBI considers investigating after a report from the 9News Investigators showed an undocumented…
By Kiran Chawla and Nick Gremillion | March 12, 2019 at 5:59 PM CDT – Updated March 12 at 7:24 PM PORT ALLEN, LA (WAFB) – A law enforcement watchdog says the actions of West Baton Rouge Sheriff Mike Cazes may rise to criminal misconduct. “Sheriff took an oath to follow the laws and enforce the laws of Louisiana and…
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE FRIDAY, MARCH 1, 2019 WWW.USDOJ.GOV/USAO/LAE NEW ORLEANS – U.S. Attorney Peter G. Strasser announced that DAVID HANSON, age 61, from Abita Springs, Louisiana, and CLIFFORD “SKIP” KEEN, age 50, from Covington, Louisiana, pleaded guilty Wednesday, February 27, 2019 before United States District Judge Ivan L.R. Lemelle to conspiracy to commit honest services…
By Chris Nakamoto and Erin McWilliams | February 28, 2019 | WBRZ GONZALES – An alarming internal memo obtained by the WBRZ Investigative Unit issues a directive to officers working seatbelt patrols to issue two tickets per hour and those on DWI patrols to make one arrest per six hours worked. The memo was sent…
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Wednesday, February 27, 2019 SHREVEPORT, NEW ORLEANS, LAFAYETTE, La. – United States Attorney David C. Joseph announced today that a former Justice of the Peace for the Second Justice Court of Jefferson Parish was convicted by a federal jury in New Orleans for using his position to illegally obtain wage garnishments and…
By Tim Morris, Columnist District attorneys historically get elected and re-elected by putting people behind bars. No DA in Louisiana would be foolish enough to run on Blackstone’s maxim that “It is better that 10 guilty persons escape than that one innocent suffer.” The winning slogan is usually the opposite. That’s why a lot of…
NEW ORLEANS — Orleans Parish District Attorney Leon Cannizzaro, on Tuesday, identified violent juvenile offenders as New Orleans’ biggest local crime issue for 2019. Cannizzaro noted that the city’s 735 new juvenile felony cases in 2018 nearly exceeded the totals of 2016 and 2017 combined (776). The million-dollar question is: Why? What caused the numbers…
By Natasha Robin | February 5, 2019 at 5:41 PM CST – Updated February 5 at 5:42 PM NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – In a ballroom filled with state, federal and local leaders, Orleans District Attorney Leon Cannizzaro didn’t mince words about what he calls ill-conceived police decisions and social experiments. “We have a crime problem.…
Advocate staff report New Orleans’ Metropolitan Crime Commission presented awards Tuesday to law enforcement officials who secured convictions in two high-profile killings as well as one prosecutor who specializes in building gangland cases. One of the “Excellence in Law Enforcement Awards” given out at the Sheraton Hotel went to FBI agents and assistant U.S. attorneys…
Travis Mackel NEW ORLEANS — Hundreds of thousands of dollars in what the City Council calls questionable overtime have been paid out to one city agency. And that agency is now at the center of an investigation by the New Orleans Office of Inspector General. In some cases, city workers earned up to 90 percent…
By Natasha Robin | January 31, 2019 at 6:07 PM CST – Updated January 31 at 6:07 PM NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – “We are actually very lucky and we are very proud to say the least in that we ranked first,” says Tenisha Stevens. Mayor Latoya Cantrell’s Criminal Justice Administrator, Tenisha Stevens, says the MacArthur…
By Kimberly Curth | January 29, 2019 at 9:15 PM CST – Updated January 30 at 5:25 AM | Fox 8 New Orleans NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – The NOPD’s new police chief said Tuesday that the department, with the help of state, federal and local authorities, has arrested some of the city’s most violent offenders. “Many of…
By Robert Rhoden, NOLA.com | The Times-Picayune | Posted January 18, 2019 at 05:05 AM | Updated January 18, 2019 at 07:11 AM North Shore Judges Peter Garcia and Martin Coady were the most efficient judges in handling felony cases in St. Tammany Parish during 2016 and 2017, according to a study released Friday (Jan.…
BY SARA PAGONES | SPAGONES@THEADVOCATE.COM JAN 18, 2019 – 9:51 AM It took a month longer for a felony case to move through 22nd Judicial District Court in 2017 than it did just three years before, according to a report on St. Tammany Parish’s judicial efficiency that was released Friday by the Metropolitan Crime Commission.…
By Kevin Litten, NOLA.com | The Times-Picayune With the departure of New Orleans Police Chief Michael Harrison imminent, two City Council members said in interviews that they’re growing nervous that his departure could mean it could take longer for the NOPD to exit from a consent decree that has pulled on city finances since it…
By Kevin Litten, NOLA.com | The Times-Picayune Mayor LaToya Cantrell’s plan to name a permanent police chief from within the department only one week after Superintendent Michael Harrison’s announced departure for a new job in Baltimore is well within her mayoral authority. Her office said Wednesday (Jan. 9) that a replacement would be named Monday.…
BY RAMON ANTONIO VARGAS, MATT SLEDGE AND JESSICA WILLIAMS | Advocate staff writers JAN 8, 2019 – 5:22 PM After putting the New Orleans Police Department on its best footing in years, Superintendent Michael Harrison is leaving his post soon to become the top cop in the crime- and scandal-plagued city of Baltimore, officials announced Tuesday.…
By Beau Evans, NOLA.com | The Times-Picayune With Police Superintendent Michael Harrison set to leave for Baltimore in less than 10 days, New Orleans Mayor LaToya Cantrell’s spokesman said Tuesday (Jan. 8) she plans to name his replacement before Harrison departs. Harrison will step down from the New Orleans Police Department’s top post on Jan.…
By Hanna Krueger, NOLA.com | Times-Picayune New Orleans Police Superintendent Michael Harrison said last month that, although he had been approached about a job as Baltimore’s police chief, he didn’t want the position. On Tuesday (Jan. 8), however, Baltimore’s mayor announced that Harrison was her pick to lead law enforcement in her city. Harrison didn’t…
January 8, 2019 at 7:07 PM CST – Updated January 8 at 7:07 PM NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – Some local crime-fighting advocates said policing reforms in New Orleans made Police Superintendent Michael Harrison attractive to cities around the country. Still, they said Harrison could face pushback as he tries to overhaul the Baltimore Police Department.…
By Emily Lane, NOLA.com | The Times-Picayune Donald “Ducky” Adams Jr. went to New Orleans Saints training camp most summers to watch the players prep for the season. He cheered at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome at nearly every home game this past year and traveled to several away games, sometimes joined by relatives, his cousin said.…