Louisiana

Lawsuits expected over Louisiana’s Ten Commandments law

Published

2 years ago

June 21, 2024

Lawsuits expected over Louisiana’s Ten Commandments law

NEW ORLEANS (WVUE)—A new Louisiana law requiring public schools to display the Ten Commandments is fueling debate inside the state and around the country, with promises of legal challenges.

Governor Jeff Landry, a Republican, signed House Bill 71 into law this week, but the ACLU of Louisiana plans to sue Landry in federal court over the new law, citing constitutional grounds.

“When children have the Ten Commandments, which are a very sacred Judeo-Christian text within the context of the classroom, we’re certainly suggesting to them, if not, in fact, even endorsing a particular religion in the classroom, and that we find to be violative of both the Constitution and the First Amendment,” said Alanah Odoms, Executive Director of the ACLU of Louisiana.

However, Christian conservatives and others who support the new law strongly support the requirement.

“We’re certainly, at [La.] Family Forum, excited about the possibility of reintroducing authentic history and a little bit of Western civilization in the education system. So, we think it’s a positive move in the right direction, and done appropriately, will have positive effects,” said Gene Mills, President of Louisiana Family Forum.

Odoms said two clauses in the U.S. Constitution apply to problems with the new law.

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“The first is called the free exercise of religion clause and that means that each person has the opportunity and the right to be able to decide what faith they will be, and they also have the opportunity to decide whether they will have a faith at all,” Odoms said. “And so, that actually works in conjunction with another really important clause in the First Amendment called the establishment clause.”

Further, she said, “The government cannot select or prefer one religion over another, and cannot prefer religion over a non-religion. So, it can’t proselytize. it can’t coerce people to choose a certain faith and so what we find with HB 71 is that it actually violates both clauses, the free exercise clause and the establishment clause of the first amendment.”

Mills said in response, “I disagree. I would follow up with a question that’s not a rhetorical question, which religion does it impose?”

Some argue that if opponents do not prevail in court against the new law, it could allow those of other faiths to demand that tenets of their religion be posted in Louisiana’s public school classrooms.

“I think people certainly could make an argument that in order to ensure that the government is not favoring one religion over another, that other religious ideas and other religious texts, perhaps should also be in the classroom,” Odoms said. “But I think the more important thing to think about is the fact that there’s 40 years of longstanding precedent in this country, which was articulated in a case called Stone versus Graham, that says that you cannot pass a law that has a non-secular purpose or a religious purpose. and you cannot essentially validate the government choosing a religion, one religion over another.”

Mills believes the law will withstand legal challenges.

“My sense is this is going to withstand constitutional challenge because it was written in such a way to reflect both the secular and the historical context that the Decalogue has had in both America’s foundation and in Western civilization. There is no censorship, there’s no forced religion, there is no imposing, there’s no public expenses. This is done at not a taxpayer dollar, but with resources that are found outside of taxpayer dollars,” he said.

Decalogue is another term for the Ten Commandments.

Odoms said, “And if we mandate that children go to school, we also have to be really careful that the government is not mandating a certain religion.”

Louisiana Republican Attorney General Liz Murrill issued the following statement:

“The 10 Commandments are pretty simple (don’t kill, steal, cheat on your wife), but they also are important to our country’s foundations. Moses, who you may recall brought the 10 Commandments down from Mount Sinai, appears eight times in carvings that ring the United States Supreme Court Great Hall ceiling. I look forward to defending the law.”

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Louisiana bill would impose tougher penalties for operating unlicensed gambling websites

Published

8 hours ago

February 27, 2026

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Louisiana bill would impose tougher penalties for operating unlicensed gambling websites

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New legislation in Baton Rouge would reclassify some illegal gaming-related offenses as racketeering law violations, elevating potential consequences.

Louisiana has already stepped up its enforcement of its gaming laws related to potential illegal gaming but a new bill in the state legislature would give prosecutors’ actions more teeth. The proposal would elevate certain crimes involving unlicensed gaming in the state to a racketeering charge with more severe penalties linked to convictions.

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Louisiana bill changes classification of gaming-related charges

Louisiana Rep. Bryan Fontenot has pre-filed HB 53, which could rewrite the state code as it pertains to unlicensed gaming sites. The legislation has been provisionally assigned to the House Committee on Administration of Criminal Justice, as the 2026 session does not begin until March 9.

Under the proposal, the state’s definition of racketeering would expand to include “gambling, gambling by computer, gambling on cockfights, gambling by electronic sweepstakes, unlawful wagering, and bribery of sports participants.” Under current statutes, racketeering convictions carry penalties of fines of “not more than one million dollars, or imprisoned at hard labor for not more than 50 years, or both.”

Additionally, racketeering convictions that result in sentences of fines of at least $10,000 revoke recipients’ eligibility for parole. The enactment of this bill as currently composed could have a significant impact on the operation of sweepstakes-based online casino sites for real money in Louisiana.

At the same time, many of the companies in that space have already ceased potentially infringing actions within Louisiana.

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Louisiana has already been off-limits for sweepstakes casinos

In 2025, Louisiana gaming regulators and law enforcement took multiple actions to restrict residents’ access to unlicensed platforms for playing casino games online. Louisiana Attorney General Liz Murrill shared a public notice about the illegality of sweepstakes-based online gaming sites, in addition to issuing cease-and-desist orders to the companies affiliated with those sites. As a result, many of the operators of those sites geofenced Louisiana out of their service areas.

The Louisiana Gaming Control Board supplemented that action with its additional cease-and-desist letters. Fontenot’s bill could add additional weight to these demands if it becomes law.

There is currently no legal framework for playing online casino games or redeeming casino bonus codes in Louisiana. While online sports wagering is legal in most of the state, officials in Baton Rouge have not yet tackled the issue of iGaming.

Even if voters in Louisiana someday do clear the way for the utilization of Fanatics Casino promo codes, that would involve licensed gaming and not affect the implementation of Fontenot’s bill. However, such deliberations do not seem imminent.

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If HB 53 becomes law, Louisiana could levy some of the toughest penalties for illegal gaming activity in the United States. Many potential targets of prosecution have already pulled out of the state.

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Louisiana

Governor’s Office of Strategic Community Initiatives | Office of Governor Jeff Landry

Published

20 hours ago

February 27, 2026

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Governor’s Office of Strategic Community Initiatives | Office of Governor Jeff Landry

Driving Louisiana Forward Program

Commerical Driver’s License (CDL) Training

In partnership with the Louisiana Workforce Commission and South Louisiana Community College, this program aims to provide African American males with financial assistance to obtain Commercial Driver’s License (CDL) training, strengthening the resilience and contributions of this key demographic and improving equitable access to workforce opportunities. This initiative aims to reduce high unemployment rates within this community but also focuses on ensuring participants come from rural and economically disadvantaged areas.

Earn your CDL Class A license with this comprehensive classroom and behind-the-wheel program to drive tractor[1]trailers, dump trucks, tow trucks, delivery trucks, tanker trucks, and flatbed trucks.

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Landry asks Louisiana’s Washington delegation to redraw federal judicial districts

Published

1 day ago

February 26, 2026

Press Room

Landry asks Louisiana’s Washington delegation to redraw federal judicial districts

BATON ROUGE, La. (WAFB) – Gov. Jeff Landry is asking Louisiana’s congressional leaders to amend the state’s federal judicial districts, citing caseload growth and public safety concerns.

Landry sent letters to Speaker Mike Johnson, Sen. John Kennedy, Congressman Cleo Fields, and Congresswoman Julia Letlow requesting the change.

The request

Louisiana is currently divided into three federal judicial districts: Eastern, Middle, and Western. Landry is asking that West Feliciana Parish be moved from the Middle District to the Western District.

In the letters, Landry cited significant growth in the Middle District and an increased caseload for its judges. He said a major driver of the Middle District docket is Louisiana State Penitentiary.

Public safety argument

Landry said moving West Feliciana Parish into the Western District would improve judicial efficiency and better address public safety needs in East Baton Rouge Parish and the state.

He said East Baton Rouge Parish continues to battle violent crime. According to the Baton Rouge Police Department, recent numbers show violent crime in the parish has decreased.

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