Another election integrity bill is making its way through the legislature; and given the lack of opposition in committee, the odds are pretty good that it will end up on the governor’s desk. Andrew Greenstein reports.
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A Senate committee approves legislation that provides a new legal remedy for people incarcerated under non-unanimous jury verdicts. Sean Richardson has more.
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A bill that would ban wagering on the outcomes of elections advances to the full Senate; and given the unanimous vote in the Governmental Affairs Committee, the odds are strong that it could end up on Governor Landry’s desk. Secretary of State Nancy Landry testified in support of the bill, saying people with a money stake on elections will go to great lengths to ensure a certain outcome by illicit means.
Secretary Landry notes that such a rule already exists for election staff.
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Landry says Louisiana already has some of the most secure elections in the state, and she wants to keep it that way.
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A teenager is under arrest for the murder of a man outside an Amazon distribution center in Baton Rouge. Homicide detectives arrested 18-year-old Karl Nash in connection with the shooting death of 21-year-old Daylon Anthony. BRPD Sergeant Darren Ahmed says Nash turned himself in.
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Investigators say the two men were involved in a verbal and physical altercation outside the distribution center Monday night. Ahmed says Anthony was pronounced dead at the scene.
Nash has been charged with Second Degree Murder and Illegal Use of a Weapon and is currently booked into the East Baton Rouge Parish Jail. Ahmed says the investigation remains ongoing as detectives gather evidence.
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The number of students accepting TOPS funding has been going down for a few years. Commissioner of Higher Education Kim Hunter Reed says one requirement is that students attend a college within the state of Louisiana, and many students are being lured to other states.
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Reed says another reason is that some students decide not to continue their education beyond high school.
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Reed says the trend started taking a U-turn a few years ago.
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Reed notes that there are bills in the legislature designed to make Louisiana a more competitive state for college-bound students and to ensure an affordable path to higher education.
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New Orleans Senator Royce Duplessis has a bill that aims to provide a new legal remedy for people incarcerated under non-unanimous jury verdicts—also known as Jim Crow juries. The bill passed a Senate committee on a 5-1 vote and it now heads to the Senate floor. Promise of Justice initiative Attorney Claude Michael Comeau says it would allow individuals convicted by non-unanimous juries to seek post-conviction relief.
Comeau says the Louisiana Supreme Court previously declined to apply non-unanimous verdicts retroactively, leaving around 800 people without relief. Comeau says SB218 is a necessary step to address historic injustices and ensure fair trials for all Louisianans.
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Lafourche Parish District Attorney Kristine Russell focused on Child Abuse cases for 20 years and says when she looks at her non-unanimous verdicts it wasn’t a question of guilt.
Russell is concerned what this proposed law will mean for victims, who may have to face their offender again in court if they were previously guilty on a 10-2 or 11-1 decision…
The bill moved to the full Senate for debate.