The leader of the Louisiana Supreme Court strongly opposes a proposal from five of his colleagues to redraw the justices’ seven election districts. He says they created a new map without any public input, and he implies state lawmakers might have already agreed to approve it.
Chief Justice John Weimer made his comments in a letter sent late Friday to the incoming governor, attorney general and legislative leaders. Gov.-elect Jeff Landry is expected to call the legislature into special session Jan. 15-23 to update Louisiana’s congressional districts. A federal court has set an end-of-January deadline for lawmakers to add a second majority-Black district to the state’s six U.S. House seats.
Weimer’s missive is the third Louisiana Supreme Court justices have sent to incoming state leaders this week. The Louisiana Supreme Court districts five associate justices have proposed.
The first came Wednesday from Associate Justices Willie Crain, James Genovese, Piper Griffin, Jefferson Hughes and Jay McCallum. They requested support for a proposed map that creates a second majority-Black district among the seven Supreme Court seats. Griffin, who represents the New Orleans-centered District 1, is the only Black and lone woman on the state’s highest court.
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Census numbers for 2020 show Louisiana’s population of 4.67 million was close to one-third Black, which Democrats and voting rights advocates argue should be reflected through redistricting.
In his letter, Weimer said he also supports an additional minority district but not in the format his fellow justices have suggested.
“I am already on the record for years now, openly and vigorously supporting providing an opportunity for additional minority representation on our state’s highest court,” the chief justice wrote. “The proposed redistricting plan creates polarization, rather than balance, which serves no one. We can and should do better.”
Associate Justice Scott Crichton sent his own letter Thursday in which he opposed his colleagues’ map. He supported their call for a second minority district but took issue with how the justices’ proposal “obliterates” District 2, which he represents. It goes from being a largely contiguous area across northern Louisiana to one that stretches along the Mississippi River from northeast Louisiana down to Baton Rouge, stretching out to include central parts of the states and part of the Florida Parishes.
Weimer also criticized the justices’ cartography, describing districts as “rambling, disconnected” and “grossly and oddly shaped.” Their proposal disregards the requirement in state law for districts to preserve “communities of interest,” he said.
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The proposed boundaries of the 6th District, which Weimer represents, split his home Lafourche Parish between two Supreme Court seats. It’s one of a dozen parishes divided between different districts in the proposed map, an alignment that “unnecessarily creates administrative issues” for the court, the chief justice wrote.
Weimer said he was not shown the proposed districts the five justices submitted until Tuesday when he was asked to sign their letter. He also noted documents that accompanied the map were dated Dec. 5, which Weimer said indicated they were prepared early in the month but not shared with him until this week.
“I was not informed who drafted the map or who proposed these districts; however, I was told it reflects a map offered by the NAACP and is designed to protect three current justices who face reelection,” Weimer wrote.
The current Louisiana Supreme Court districts.
“Also, I have been advised everyone who has received the letter from my colleagues and the majority of the legislature and the parties to the litigation have all decided that this redistricting plan is final and complete and non-negotiable,” the chief justice continued. “I am not privy to who is ‘calling the shots’ such that the legislature has possibly already capitulated to this proposed plan before a public hearing can be held.”
Rather than add the Louisiana Supreme Court’s redistricting to the nine-day special session in January, Weimer wants lawmakers to make it part of their regular session.
“…Redistricting should be conducted openly, above board, and transparently, and not behind closed doors or without public input or in haste during a special session devoted to the far different question of representation in the U.S. Congress,” he wrote “There is absolutely no need to rush through the process of redistricting in a special legislative session with a host of brand new legislators.”
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Louisiana Supreme Court justices want their districts redrawn
Louisiana law doesn’t require state lawmakers to redraw boundaries for the Supreme Court districts, unlike the legally mandated decennial updates to boundaries for its U.S. House, legislative and state school board seats. Yet justices anticipate a pending 2019 lawsuit that challenges its districts to gain momentum with the added attention to the case over U.S. House seats.
The legislature met twice in 2022 to redraw Louisiana’s congressional districts, but the Republican majority has refused to create a second minority U.S. House seat. Black voters sued the state in federal over the status quo districts, not only in Congress but also the Louisiana House and Senate. The U.S. Department of Justice has intervened on behalf of the plaintiffs in the case over legislative districts.
During the last year’s first special session, state lawmakers were also presented with four different versions of new Louisiana Supreme Court districts. Three of them, all House bills, added a second majority-Black district and advanced from a redistricting committee, but none were brought up for a House floor vote.
Weimer addressed a separate topic in his letter that has created divisions within the state’s judiciary. He suggested its recipients stress to all state judges the need to participate in a National Center for State Courts study of their workload and needs. The findings are expected to factor into if and how the Louisiana Supreme Court adjusts the state’s 42 judicial districts, five appellate courts and the number of judges who serve them.
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“Approximately $150,000 of taxpayer funds was invested in this study before some judges on the courts of appeal and district courts reversed themselves and refused to participate,” Weimer wrote. “Having the right number of judges in the right place is essential to our system of justice. A systemic and complete analysis is necessary because of falling filings over the last 20 years and substantial shifts in population.”
Louisiana burst out to a 20-point halftime lead and then tacked on two late scores to beat Troy 51-30 on Saturday at Cajun Field in Lafayette, La.
The Trojans (3-8, 2-5 Sun Belt Conference) led 14-7 after one quarter but allowed 27 straight points in the second to fall behind 34-14 at halftime. After Troy cut the lead to 37-30 in the fourth quarter, Louisiana (9-2, 6-1) scored the final 14 points of the game to pull away.
“As crazy as this game was and the ride this season has been, I could not be more proud of the way that the team came out in the third quarter to get us back into this football game,” Troy coach Gerad Parker said. “There are so many good things, but there weren’t enough good things early. They got up on us, and then, some self-inflicted things made it so we could not get up on them in the second half.”
Troy’s four possessions in the second quarter ended in two interceptions, a three-and-out/punt and a turnover on downs. Louisiana, meanwhile, scored five straight times — three touchdowns and two field goals — in the quarter.
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Matthew Caldwell threw for 230 yards, four touchdowns and a pair of 2-point conversions for Troy, but was intercepted twice. His 1-yard TD pass to Trae Swartz and 2-point pass to Devonte Ross with 11:31 to play made it a 7-point game, but Robert Williams returned the ensuing kickoff 96 yards for a touchdown to put the Ragin’ Cajuns back up by 14.
Louisiana’s Bill Davis added a 1-yard touchdown run — his third of the game — with 1:09 left to set the final score. Chandler Fields passed for 323 yards and two TDs for the Ragin’ Cajuns, who can clinch the Sun Belt West championship by winning at Louisiana-Monroe next Saturday.
Kenneth Almandares also kicked three field goals for Louisiana, while Fields threw scoring passes of 20 yards to Tavion Smith and 44 yards to Lance LeGendre. Keyon Martin had a pair of interceptions to lead the Ragin’ Cajuns’ defense, which broke up nine Troy passes.
In addition to the 1-yarder to Swartz, Caldwell’s touchdown passes covered 30 yards to Ross, six yards to Brody Dalton and four yards to Jackson Worley. Caldwell also threw two-point passes to Ross and Landon Parker.
Troy finishes the season at home next week vs. Southern Miss, with kickoff set for 1 p.m. at Veterans Memorial Stadium. The game will stream live via ESPN+.
It’s the final home game of the season for the Arkansas Razorbacks as they host the Louisiana Tech Bulldogs in a pivotal matchup at Donald W. Reynolds Razorback Stadium.
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With kickoff set for 4 p.m. ET on ESPN+, the stakes couldn’t be higher for the Razorbacks, who are eyeing bowl eligibility in their final push of the 2024 season.
Jonas Nantze #60 of the Arkansas Razorbacks runs onto the field before a game against the Texas Longhorns at Donald W. Reynolds Razorback Stadium on November 16, 2024 in Fayetteville, Arkansas. Jonas Nantze #60 of the Arkansas Razorbacks runs onto the field before a game against the Texas Longhorns at Donald W. Reynolds Razorback Stadium on November 16, 2024 in Fayetteville, Arkansas. Photo by Wesley Hitt/Getty Images
How to Watch Arkansas vs Louisiana Tech:
Date: Saturday, November 23, 2024
Time: 4:00 PM ET
Channel/Stream: ESPN+
Stream: ESPN+ (watch now)
For Arkansas, this game is about seizing an opportunity to secure bowl eligibility after falling short in two previous attempts. The Razorbacks enter the matchup at 5-5, fresh off a 20-10 loss to Texas where offensive struggles and costly turnovers proved to be their undoing. With only two games left in the regular season, this matchup is a must-win for Arkansas to punch their ticket to the postseason.
On the other side, Louisiana Tech is playing spoiler while clinging to its slim bowl hopes. The Bulldogs are 4-6 but riding high after a gritty 12-7 victory over Western Kentucky last week, where their defense served the Hilltoppers their first conference loss of the year. This will be a battle on Saturday, make sure to tune in.
WATCH: Arkansas vs. Louisiana Tech on ESPN+
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Louisiana voters will decide whether to make it easier to send younger teenagers to adult prisons in a constitutional proposal next spring.
The Louisiana Legislature approved Senate Bill 2 Friday with a 70-25 vote in the House of Representatives and 28-10 vote in the Senate. The measure will be on the March 29 ballot that will also feature a major rewrite of state financial policy.
It would remove constitutional limits on crimes that can get people under age 17 sentenced as adults. Legislators would then have to enact new laws outlining how courts could send those minors to adult facilities.
Republican Gov. Jeff Landry backed the proposal and sat in the Louisiana House of Representatives as legislators debated and voted for the bill Friday. Still, it barely made it through the legislative process. The proposal only received 70 votes in the House, the exact number it needed to advance to voters.
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Ahead of the narrow victory, Republican leaders appeared anxious to get through the House vote quickly and moved to cut off debate and questioning early. House Speaker Phillip DeVillier, R-Eunice, also told Rep. Denise Marcelle, D-Baton Rouge, she had missed a deadline to amend the legislation and refused to let her bring up her proposed change for debate or a vote.
One of the sponsors of the legislation, Rep. Debbie Villio, R-Kenner, also made a last-minute change to the bill to limit the offenses for which youth could be moved to adult prisons to just felonies, in part to address reservations lawmakers had about moving more young people into adult facilities. Prior to that change, the amendment would have allowed the Legislature to draft new laws to move minors to adult prisons for “any crime.”
Fifteen- and 16-year-olds, and in more restricted circumstances 14-year-olds, already face adult prison sentences for limited crimes without the constitutional amendment. Those offenses include murder, attempted murder, manslaughter, rape, armed robbery, kidnapping, aggravated battery, a second or subsequent burglary of an inhabited dwelling and a second or subsequent violation of some drug crimes.
Youth advocates have said the broadening of that list to new offenses would do lasting harm to young teens caught up in the criminal justice system.
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Teenagers transferred into adult prisons are at much higher risk for sexual abuse from other inmates and don’t receive the same counseling and educational services available in the juvenile system. Adult sentences are also often years or even decades longer than what youth in juvenile facilities serve, advocates said.
Supporters of the constitutional amendment, which include the Louisiana District Attorneys Association and Louisiana Sheriffs’ Association, have said prosecutors need a larger list of crimes in order to hold younger teens accountable.
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Villio and Sen. Heather Cloud, R-Turkey Creek, the sponsors of the legislation, mentioned a few crimes they think should be added to the list. Cloud said she would like to make the law applicable to carjacking, drive-by shootings and human trafficking. Villio said she was interested in adding fentanyl offenses.
Attorneys who represent youth in criminal matters said many of those offenses can be used to transfer teenagers to adult prison under current law.
They also questioned why human trafficking was being brought up as a concern because prosecutors rarely charge adults with that crime. Any teens accused of the offense are also likely being trafficked themselves, advocates said.
In an interview Friday, Villio said her intention is to get more crimes that “involve serious bodily injury” added to the list. Youth in the juvenile justice system who attack security guards and other workers at those facilities should receive harsher punishment, she added. Villio’s proposal comes on the heels of another law that greatly expands the transfer of teens to adult facilities. Earlier this year, Landry and lawmakers passed legislation that treats all 17-year-olds as adults in the criminal justice system. The measure took away discretion from district attorneys to put accused 17-year-olds through the juvenile justice system instead of adult courts.
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