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 a job, an inheritance, an investment or any other source. They are also required to disclose their spouse’s financial information on the forms.
“People have to know that their case is being treated fairly, it’s not being pre-judged, and the only way to know that for sure is by there being total transparency about what judges do from a standpoint of what their biases may be, what their business connections or affiliations may be,” said Shreveport-based attorney Royal Alexander, who is not affiliated with the non-profit. “The only way to know that is to know who the judge contributes to, where does their income come from?”
Click here to visit the database.