Louisiana

2 lawyers, 2 law firms indicted in burgeoning Louisiana staged accident case

Published

1 year ago

December 10, 2024

2 lawyers, 2 law firms indicted in burgeoning Louisiana staged accident case

A sweeping indictment in the Louisiana staged accident scam charges eight individuals – two of them attorneys – as well as two Louisiana-based law firms with involvement in the scam, which authorities say included the murder of a potential witness who was gunned down in his home.

While the murder charges are the most jarring part of the statement releasedMonday by the U.S. attorney for the Eastern District of Louisiana about the indictments, Ryan J. “Red” Harris already had been indicted in connection with the death of Cornelius Garrison. Garrison, who had pleaded guilty to charges in the scam and was cooperating with investigators, was shot in the doorway of his home on Sept. 20, 2020.

Harris and Jovanna Gardner were indicted in May in connection with Garrison’s death. The charges in the superseding indictment related to the slaying are an extension of those initial allegations, though they do not mention Gardner, who pleaded guilty to witness tampering soon after she was indicted on the murder charge.

The rest of the indictment has long been expected, given that the on-the-ground individuals involved in staging accidents with trucks (and in one case a bus) in order to pry loose insurance payouts have pleaded guilty over the past several years and are assumed to mostly be cooperating.

Total charged in Operation Sideswipe: 63

The most recent plea came Oct. 31. It brought the count of individuals who have pleaded guilty to 49. None of the indictments has gone to trial. With the latest indictments, 63 individuals have been charged, according to the U.S. attorney, which has dubbed its investigation “Operation Sideswipe.”

There are 10 counts in the indictment. Besides the murder-related charges against Harris and Gardner, the charges include a variety of wire fraud, mail fraud, obstruction and witness tampering allegations.

All of the individuals previously indicted, including those who have pleaded guilty, were facing some combination of wire fraud and mail fraud charges.

The indictment charged two New Orleans law firms that have long been reputed to be connected with the staged accident scam: the King Law firm and the Motta Law Firm.

The Motta Law Firm is run by Vanessa Motta, 43, a stuntwoman turned lawyer whose web page for the Motta Law Firm cites truck accidents as an area of specialty. She also reportedly was Garrison’s attorney. Motta was indicted individually as well as her firm.

Jason Giles, 45, is described in the indictment as a former member of the King Law Firm. He was indicted in the case.

Other indictments of individuals:

Sean Alfortish, 57, a disbarred attorney who has served time in federal prison on charges he attempted to rig an election for a horse racing association. He portrayed himself as an attorney in helping to direct some of the collisions behind the scenes, though he had long been disbarred.

Leon Parker, aka Chunky, 51, who is described as a friend of Harris. According to the indictment, he was involved in at least three staged collisions.

Diaminike Stalbert, 34, who is charged with being involved in staged collisions and obstruction.

Carl Morgan 66, who is a member of Harris’ family and was involved in at least one staged collision, according to the indictment.

Timara Lawrence, 34, who is described as being in a romantic relationship with Harris and also involved in staged collisions.

According to the prepared statement, Harris already was in custody. Parker made an initial appearance before a U.S. magistrate Monday. The others will have initial appearances soon, the U.S. attorney’s office said.

Other “lettered” attorneys not charged

One notable aspect of the indictment: It refers to attorneys, C,D, E and F as being involved in the scam. Earlier indictments had referred also to attorneys A and B, who were specifically not listed in the latest indictment, leading to speculation that they may be Motta and Giles. It also suggests that indictments of attorneys might not be finished.

The indictment puts the start of the scam back almost 13 years exactly, to Dec. 12, 2011. It also alleges Giles was behind the first staged collisions, working with Damian Labeaud, who pleaded guilty to his indictment for mail fraud in August 2020 and whose sentencing has been delayed multiple times. It is now set for Jan. 9.

Giles also worked with Roderick Hickman, who also pleaded guilty in October 2020. He was sentenced in October 2023 to three-and-a-half years in jail, the second-longest sentence after a husband and wife team who received four years for their involvement.

The two law firms, according to the indictment, “pursued fraudulent lawsuits knowing they were based on staged collisions.” Giles joined the King Law Firm in 2015, according to the indictment, and continued working with Hickman and Labeaud in staging accidents even after the move. The indictment also said the King Law Firm was aware of Giles’ activities.

“Giles and the King firm paid Labeaud and Hickman via cash and checks for bringing them staged collisions,” the indictment said. The two men also allegedly had been “spotters” and “slammers” in the collisions.

The slammers drove the car into the collision, then escaped while another person in the car moved into the driver seat, authorities said. Spotters, according to the U.S. attorney’s office, were individuals “who drove getaway cars that allowed the slammers to flee the scene after causing a collision and evade detection by law enforcement. The spotters would sometimes also pretend to be eyewitnesses and would flag down the commercial vehicles after the staged collisions, alleging that the commercial vehicles were at fault.”

The indictment said Labeaud and Hickman were also “runners,” who brought in people willing to be passengers in the car that struck a vehicle. They received $1,000 for each person recruited into the scam, according to the indictment.

The indictment says Labeaud first met with attorney Danny Keating in 2017 and told him of the scam. Keating then offered $1,000 per passenger for the same service, and he began orchestrating staged collisions, the indictment said.

Another delay for Keating sentencing

Keating pleaded guilty in June 2021, the only attorney indicted prior to this week’s set of charges. His sentencing has been delayed multiple times. It was scheduled for later this month; it’s now set for March 13, the change having just been made Monday.

Eleven separate collisions are identified in the indictment as having been staged by Keating or Giles as the attorneys and Lebeaud and Hickman for their spotter/slammer/runner activities. None of the collisions spelled out in the indictment identify the name of the carrier, but other legal proceedings have done so; C.R. England is the most notable name.

As defense attorneys were beginning to catch on to a pattern, according to the indictment, “Giles and the King Firm committed various acts of obstruction of justice and witness tampering.” The indictment spells out a variety of steps taken as part of that obstruction, including having Labeaud leave town and getting the passengers in the collision to sign documents called Verification of Facts, which were not actually factual: They did not note that the collisions were staged.

Alfortish and Motta, according to the indictment, then began staging collisions working with Harris, who had been trained on how to pull them off by Garrison. That discussion in the indictment also spells out collisions staged by Alfortish, who though disbarred in connection with his earlier conviction had persuaded others he was still an active attorney, and Motta. The number of incidents attributed to their activities is the same as for the Giles/Keating collisions: 11.

According to the indictment, Alfortish and Motta also engaged in obstruction when they learned federal investigators were looking closely at the rash of collisions between cars and trucks.

All of the charges in the indictment related to Garrison’s slaying deal with Harris. There is nothing in the indictment that suggests any of the attorneys in the case ordered Garrison’s killing or worked with Harris to have it carried out.

Louisiana attorney J. Edward McAuliffe of the Louisiana law firm of Mouledoux, Bland, Legrand & Brackett, who has written several blog posts on his firm’s website about the investigation, summarized the case Tuesday, which he described as “huge.”

“This new indictment sheds more light on federal prosecutors’ progress in investigating accident stagings,” McAuliffe wrote. “The naming of additional attorneys and further allegations related to the murder of Cornelius Garrison have been hotly anticipated for some time.”

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The post 2 lawyers, 2 law firms indicted in burgeoning Louisiana staged accident case appeared first on FreightWaves.

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Related Topics:Cornelius Garrison Eastern District of Louisiana Featured indictment King Law firm staged superseding indictment Vanessa Motta

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Louisiana

Louisiana Tech launches Center for Literacy and Learning to support students, educators

Published

7 hours ago

June 4, 2026

Press Room

Louisiana Tech launches Center for Literacy and Learning to support students, educators

RUSTON, La. (KNOE) – Louisiana Tech University’s College of Education and Human Sciences announced it has established a new Center for Literacy and Learning designed to expand evidence-based reading support for children and professional development for educators across North Louisiana.

The university’s Department of Curriculum, Instruction, and Leadership said the launch of the Center for Literacy and Learning at Louisiana Tech, also known as L3, will provide diagnostic assessments, tutoring and workshop opportunities, combining academic research with hands-on clinical practice.

“As literacy rates and reading achievement continue to present challenges across Louisiana and the nation, the Center for Literacy and Learning is rooted in supporting evidence-based instruction, applied research, and community partnerships,” said Dr. Dustin Whitlock, interim department head of Curriculum, Instruction, and Leadership.

Officials said planning for the center began more than a decade ago as faculty sought to expand literacy services for local schools and the surrounding community, but the effort faced delays due to space and funding challenges.

University leaders said momentum increased after faculty partnered with the Louisiana Department of Education and literacy experts nationwide to create a professional learning course for Louisiana K-3 educators. The course, “The Science and Art of Teaching Reading,” focuses on structured literacy practices aligned with Science of Reading research. Louisiana Tech said funding connected to the course and the state education department helped make the center possible.

Megan Hunt, a teacher at A.E. Phillips Laboratory School, was selected to lead the center. Whitlock said Hunt brings a strong background in foundational literacy instruction and is working toward becoming a certified UFLI coach.

“Mrs. Hunt’s skill and expertise allow her to support both students and educators through high-quality literacy instruction and professional learning,” Whitlock said.

Hunt said the center is aimed at building long-term support for literacy instruction through collaboration with districts, families and community partners.

“Literacy affects all aspects of life and is ultimately how people access opportunity and how communities grow stronger,” Hunt said. “When children become proficient readers, it represents more than just academic progress; it changes the trajectory of their lives.”

Local school leaders also praised the partnership. Michelle Thrower, K-2 facilitator for Lincoln Parish Schools, said professional development and resources connected to Louisiana Tech have supported literacy growth in the district.

“Our collaboration with Louisiana Tech has been a cornerstone of our success in elevating literacy proficiency across Lincoln Parish Schools,” Thrower said, citing DIBELS growth tied to the UFLI Foundations curriculum in K-2.

Louisiana Tech said the center will operate through three main components:

The Literacy Clinic
The Literacy Institute
The Literacy Resource Center.

The center is expected to provide individualized assessments, targeted intervention services, literacy workshops and educator professional development.

Officials said the components will be developed in phases over the next few years.

For more information, Louisiana Tech said the public can contact Dr. Dustin Whitlock at whitlock@latech.edu.

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Louisiana

Louisiana among states selected to receive federal funding for rare earth projects

Published

17 hours ago

June 4, 2026

Press Room

Louisiana among states selected to receive federal funding for rare earth projects

The U.S. Department of Energy announced Tuesday that Louisiana was one of the few states chosen for a $134 million rare earth element initiative in a move that would give the U.S. more independence from China, Reuters reports.

ElementUSA has been awarded about $67 million for a rare earth refining facility projected to cost $850 million in St. John the Baptist Parish to ramp up its production of core material for military vehicles, naval ships and aircrafts.

Louisiana’s rare earth element initiatives are aimed at relocating the critical American minerals supply chain for electric vehicles, renewable energy and national defense. The minerals include bauxite residue, which is a waste product from aluminium production. The plant is expected to produce roughly 150-1,000 metric tons of rare earths annually.

Oklahoma was also chosen to receive grant money for a refining facility in Tulsa.

Reuters has the full story.

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Louisiana

DHS watchdog finds use-of-force issues and safety and sanitation concerns at Louisiana ICE center

Published

1 day ago

June 4, 2026

Press Room

DHS watchdog finds use-of-force issues and safety and sanitation concerns at Louisiana ICE center

A Department of Homeland Security watchdog report revealed that staff members at an ICE detention center in Louisiana used a prohibited chokehold to “gain control” of a person being held there and stabbed another in the hand with a pen when an officer could not close the door to a housing unit.

The newly released findings about Winn Correctional Center in central Louisiana follow the DHS inspector general’s review of video of the use-of-force incidents as part of an unannounced facility inspection. The report, which was published on the DHS website, also noted that the officer who stabbed the detainee with a pen was disciplined.

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Staff members failed to maintain safe and sanitary conditions, the report says, noting leaking vents and ceilings with insulation falling through. Staff members used napkins and Styrofoam containers to collect the water from the leaks, according to the report.

Scrutiny of conditions inside ICE detention centers that house more than 60,000 detainees has been growing.

Earlier Wednesday, Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin defended his agency’s detention standards on Capitol Hill amid complaints about ICE’s Delaney Hall detention facility in Newark, New Jersey. That center has been the site of frequent protests.

Rep. Tim Kennedy, D-N.Y., accused Mullin of leaving detainees without food or medical care.

Mullin rejected the claims. “You can say all you want, but don’t accuse me of something that’s not accurate,” he said.

The inspector general made nine recommendations, ranging from environmental health and safety standards to proper handling of use-of-force incidents and maintaining food service standards.

ICE is working to address all of the issues, including by providing additional staff training, a spokesperson for the agency said.

“These minor infractions included failing to provide detainees exercise equipment, record keeping errors and leaking vents. Another infraction included providing a shared computer for legal research that would allow other detainees to see other detainees’ case information,” the spokesperson said.

A spokesperson for DHS said the report shows that the facility complies with detention standards.

“ICE has higher detention standards than most U.S. prisons that hold actual U.S. citizens,” the spokesperson said.

Winn Correctional is one of the largest ICE detention centers in the country, housing more than 1,500 men. It opened in 1990, and ICE took it over from the state in 2019.

The report was produced after an unannounced inspection by the DHS inspector general, whose office recently got an infusion of $20 million and plans to boost its inspections from four to six per year to potentially as many as 40 to 60.

ICE lists 70% of the 1,500 detainees at Winn as having “No ICE threat level,” meaning they do not have violent criminal histories.

Winn is an hour north of Alexandria, which is one of four hubs for ICE deportation flights around the country.

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