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6 reading recommendations: Notable Louisiana nonfiction
This short list of notable, Louisiana-focused nonfiction books might help folks with gift-giving this holiday season. I picked up most of the following books at the public library, so there’s a good chance you can find them at your local branch as well. I do read novels, but for whatever reason, I have read a […]
Louisiana runs into problems distributing lawmakers’ pet project money
For months, Louisiana has struggled to fund a handful of legislators’ controversial pet projects because lawmakers inserted the wrong information into state budget documents or used vague language that financial staff can’t decipher. Legislators have been voting on a rolling series of corrections to the pet project portion of the state budget since early June. […]
Louisiana spent $550,000 making Angola suitable for incarcerated youth
The Office of Juvenile Justice spent $550,000 to renovate the former death row facility at Louisiana State Penitentiary at Angola so they could use it to house incarcerated youth over the next year. Interim Deputy Secretary Curtis Nelson told state senators Friday the money was spent on security cameras, new classrooms, a medical facility and […]
Lacking space, Louisiana officials ask judges to release incarcerated youth early
The Office of Juvenile Justice has asked judges to release people from its facilities as Louisiana runs out of space to put children and young adults in custody for committing crimes. “It is a day-to-day task to try to release a child from OJJ’s custody so we can receive a child,” Assistant Secretary Curtis Nelson […]
Louisiana should remove incarcerated youth from Angola immediately, federal official says
A juvenile justice program administrator for the federal government told Louisiana officials Wednesday that incarcerated youth should be removed immediately from the campus of Louisiana State Penitentiary at Angola. “Let me be clear on this point: Children do not belong in adult courts and certainly not in adult prisons and jails,” Liz Ryan, administrator of […]
Louisiana looks to cover tattoo removal for human trafficking survivors
Louisiana may soon cover the cost for people to remove tattoos forced upon them by sex traffickers. The Louisiana Crime Victims Reparations Board is considering a regulation that would make it easier to provide public money for human trafficking survivors. Bob Wertz, the board’s chief staff member, said the state can only award a victim […]
More than 1/4 of Louisiana’s public defenders can’t cover their costs
Eleven of Louisiana’s 41 public defender offices did not bring in enough money to cover their costs during the 2020-2021 state budget cycle, providing more evidence the state’s public defender system is in a financial crisis. The 19th Judicial District Court in East Baton Rouge Parish had the largest cost overruns, spending $243,000 more than […]
Legislators want Edwards administration to spread around water, sewer money
Louisiana lawmakers put off a vote on funding 100 water and sewer projects worth $406.4 million Thursday after legislators raised concerns that too much of the money was going to Northshore parishes. The Louisiana Department of Environmental Quality recommended a single Northshore project – the combination of 10 sewer systems near the city of Amite […]
Royce Duplessis, Caleb Kleinpeter win elections to join Louisiana Senate
Tuesday’s election didn’t do much to change the political dynamic of the Louisiana Senate, though two new members will join the upper chamber. State Rep. Royce Duplessis beat out fellow Democrat Rep. Mandie Landry to take a Senate seat in New Orleans. He replaces former Sen. Karen Carter Peterson, a Democrat who resigned shortly before […]
John Bel Edwards launches second investigation into Ware Youth Center
Gov. John Bel Edwards has announced he will launch a second state investigation – one that includes the Department of Children and Family Services and the Office of Juvenile Justice – into Ware Youth Center, a large juvenile detention facility in Coushatta. Ware’s staff allegedly engaged in sexual abuse, choking and other physical violence against […]
Louisiana health department declines to answer doctors’ questions on abortion law
The Louisiana Department of Health refuses to answer questions from doctors about the state’s abortion ban, making it difficult for physicians to determine what medical care for pregnant people might put them at risk for criminal charges. The health department’s lead attorney Stephen Russo said his agency is not responsible for clearing up physician confusion […]
Both sides of abortion debate criticize Louisiana’s list of exceptions
Few people appear happy with Louisiana’s approach to carving out medical exceptions for the state’s sweeping abortion ban. Doctors and anti-abortion advocates criticized the state’s list of two dozen “medically futile” pregnancy conditions that could still be used to access a legal abortion. They spoke Tuesday at a sparsely attended public hearing held on the […]