Connect with us

Louisiana

AG Liz Murrill’s office can hire husband’s law firm to defend death sentences, court rules

Published

on

AG Liz Murrill’s office can hire husband’s law firm to defend death sentences, court rules


Attorney General Liz Murrill’s office can employ the Baton Rouge law firm where her husband is a partner to help the agency defend death sentences, the Louisiana Supreme Court ruled Tuesday.

The decision in the case of condemned inmate Darrell Draughn of Caddo Parish clears the way for Murrill’s office to employ the Taylor Porter firm in other capital post-conviction cases as well.

Murrill has stepped into a host of post-conviction cases involving death row prisoners since Louisiana resumed executions in the spring after a 15-year hiatus. The Republican attorney general has said she’s intent on speeding up their path to the execution chamber, and a recent state law that Murrill supported forces many long-dormant challenges forward.

With the ruling, Taylor Porter attorneys are expected to enroll in more capital post-conviction cases for the attorney general. The firm currently represents the state in four such cases, according to Murrill’s office, under a contract that allows it to charge up to $350 hourly.

Advertisement

Among them is the case of former New Orleans Police Department officer Antoinette Frank, the only condemned woman in Louisiana.

Murrill’s husband, John Murrill, is one of about three dozen partners in the Taylor Porter firm. Capital defense advocates argued that the arrangement amounts to a conflict of interest.

Ethics experts say state law requires a higher stake than John Murrill’s 2.7% share of Taylor Porter to amount to a conflict. The state Ethics Board agreed in an advisory opinion in June, which the high court cited in its opinion.

The Louisiana Supreme Court earlier this year cleared Murrill’s office to represent the state in capital post-conviction cases when a district attorney requests it. Its ruling on Tuesday makes clear that the attorney general can outsource the work.

“Taylor Porter has been selected by the Attorney General pursuant to her clear statutory authority to hire private counsel to defend the warden and state. There is little as fundamental to a litigant as one’s ability to select the counsel of your choice,” the court stated.

Advertisement

Murrill says the government work done by Taylor Porter has been carved out from their income since she took office early last year.

“Neither my husband nor I profit off of this work. We won’t be deterred from our mission to see that justice is served, despite frivolous bad faith attacks from anti-death penalty lawyers,” Murrill said Tuesday in a statement.

Defense advocates, however, point to reduced funding for capital defense and a higher workload under the deadlines of the new state law. They say the state is paying outside lawyers at three times the rate of capital appeals attorneys.

“It’s just outrageous,” said James Boren, immediate past president of the Louisiana Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers.

“What is absurd is after the attorney general and governor and legislature decrease funding for capital defense, increase the workload, decrease the amount of time to do it, the attorney general’s husband’s law firm is awarded a contract for hundreds of thousands of dollars for less work.” 

Advertisement

Prosecutors and capital defense attorneys both say it’s unusual to see a private law firm step into a post-conviction proceeding for the state. Taylor Porter is one of three contractors doing post-conviction work for Murrill’s office, according to state records show.

While the court freed the firm, one of its lawyers remains barred from representing Murrill’s office on those cases. The ethics board found that Grant Willis, who previously led appeals for the attorney general, must sit out for two years. The blackout period for Willis ends next month.



Source link

Louisiana

Goon Squad victim arrested by Louisiana Police, held without bond on multiple charges

Published

on

Goon Squad victim arrested by Louisiana Police, held without bond on multiple charges


TALLULAH, La. (WLBT) – One of the two Goon Squad victims who later won a civil suit against Rankin County and the Rankin County Sheriff’s Department was arrested by the Louisiana State Police Wednesday night.

According to officials, Eddie Terrell Parker is currently being held in the Madison Parish Jail without bond on at least two pages of charges.

These charges include multiple narcotics violations, possession with intent to distribute, felon in possession of a firearm, and carrying a concealed weapon.

No other information has been released at this time.

Advertisement

This is a developing story. More updates will come as further information is released.

Want more WLBT news in your inbox? Click here to subscribe to our newsletter.

See a spelling or grammar error in our story? Please click here to report it and include the headline of the story in your email.



Source link

Advertisement
Continue Reading

Louisiana

Louisiana lands another $10 billion AI data center

Published

on

Louisiana lands another  billion AI data center


play

  • Hut 8 is building a new $10 billion artificial intelligence data center in Louisiana’s West Feliciana Parish.
  • The project is expected to employ more than 1,000 construction workers at its peak.
  • AI company Anthropic has signed a long-term deal to use the new facility.
  • This is the second major data center project announced in Louisiana, following Meta’s investment in Richland Parish.

Louisiana has finalized details on another $10 billion data center, this one from Hut 8 in West Feliciana Parish.,

Hut 8, which develops and operates an integrated portfolio of power, digital infrastructure and compute assets, said more than 1,000 construction workers will be on site of its River Bend artificial intelligence (AI) data center campus at its peak.

Advertisement

Anthropic, an artificial intelligence company whose flagship chatbot is Claude, has signed a long-term deal to use the facility, Hut 8 and the state announced Dec. 17.

“It’s a transformational and generational project for our parish and region,” West Feliciana Parish President Kenny Havard said in an interview with USA Today Network. “The possibilities really are endless.”

The official announcement and details come after months of preparation from the parish government and its partnership with the state for the data center on which construction has been underway for months.

It’s the second $10 billion plus data center announced in Louisiana during the past two years. Meta’s massive data center project is under way in northeastern Louisiana’s Richland Parish. Meta originally announced a $10 billion investment but has since increased that scope to at least $25 billion.

Advertisement

“Hut 8’s investment in River Bend builds on our track record of attracting global-scale projects in the industries of the future,” Gov. Jeff Landry said in a statement. “As the campus grows, it will further cement Louisiana’s position as a national leader in energy and innovation, creating thousands of jobs and reaffirming our ability to compete and win on the global stage.”

Construction is scheduled to be complete in the second quarter of 2027.

“River Bend demonstrates that Louisiana’s economic strategy is taking our state from plans to progress,” Louisiana Economic Development Secretary Susan Bourgeois said in a statement. “This project will generate high-wage jobs and create pathways for Louisianans to build long-term careers in the industries of the future. It’s a clear example of how aligning policy, partnership and people translates into lasting opportunity.”

Greg Hilburn covers state politics for the USA TODAY Network of Louisiana. Follow him on Twitter @GregHilburn1.

Advertisement



Source link

Continue Reading

Louisiana

Louisiana man arrested for allegedly planning attack in New Orleans – UPI.com

Published

on

Louisiana man arrested for allegedly planning attack in New Orleans – UPI.com


Dec. 16 (UPI) — A suspect identified as Micah James Legnon has been arrested by agents from the FBI’s New Iberia office for allegedly planning an attack on federal agents.

Legnon, 29, was a member of the Turtle Island Liberation Front and had communicated with four members who were charged with allegedly planning a series of New Year’s Eve terrorist attacks in the Greater Los Angeles area on Monday, WDSU reported.

He is a resident of New Iberia and was arrested on Friday while driving to New Orleans after FBI agents saw him loading a military-style rifle and body armor into his vehicle and telling others in a Signal chat group that he was traveling to New Orleans.

New Iberia is located about 120 miles west of New Orleans, and Legnon allegedly shared a video that showed multiple firearms, gas canisters and body armor before leaving on Friday.

Advertisement

In that post, Legnon said he was “On my way to NOLA now, be there in about two hours,” but the FBI arrested him while driving east on U.S. Highway 90, according to WWL-TV.

In a Dec. 4 post, Legnon shared a Facebook post showing Customs and Border Protection agents arresting someone and said he wanted to “recreate Waco, Texas,” on the federal officers while referencing the 1993 federal siege on the Branch Davidians compound there.

He is a former Marine who was trained in combat and a self-professed satanist who used the alias “Black Witch” in group chats with four suspects accused of targeting locations throughout California.

Federal prosecutors filed a federal complaint against Legnon and asked the magistrate judge to seal it and related records due to an ongoing investigation.

They asked that it be unsealed on Tuesday, which is a day after the four suspects accused of planning the California terror attacks were charged with related crimes.

Advertisement

The FBI said Legnon had been communicating with the four suspects in California before the arrests were made and charges filed in the respective cases.

The Turtle Island Liberation Front is a far-left, anti-government, anti-capitalist and pro-Palestinian group, according to Attorney General Pam Bondi.



Source link

Advertisement
Continue Reading
Advertisement

Trending