Latest news with #NewOrleansCityCouncil
Yahoo
23-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Orleans Parish sheriff boasted about jail security days before 10 inmates escaped
Orleans Parish Sheriff Susan Hutson sent a campaign fundraising email highlighting security at the Orleans Justice Center three days before 10 inmates escaped from the facility, prompting criticism from a lawmaker who wants her to resign. State and federal law enforcement officials have captured five of the 10 inmates who escaped from the Orleans Justice Center on May 16. Hutson took accountability for the jailbreak during a New Orleans City Council meeting on Tuesday. "It is deeply troubling to me as your sheriff, and I know it is equally troubling to you and the public that we are sworn to protect. As your sheriff, I take full accountability for this failure, and it is my responsibility to make sure it is addressed with urgency and transparency," she told the council. Three days before 10 inmates escaped from the Orleans Justice Center, Hutson sent a campaign fundraising email that boasted about security improvements at the jail. Democratic Lawmakers Demand Louisiana Sheriff Resign After 10 Inmates Escape Jail "Since I became Sheriff, we've worked hard to make the Orleans Justice Center safer for everyone," Hutson wrote. "Preventative maintenance is a priority, from taking out things that could be used as weapons to making sure the air conditioning and bathrooms work as they should." Read On The Fox News App In a separate YouTube video included in the email, Hutson said there have been improvements to the Orleans Justice Center since she took over as sheriff. "As we have had a population that is 50% greater than when I got into office, it has taxed all of our systems from air conditioning to plumbing to electric. And we've got to maintain that. And it was not maintained before I got here. So we now have regular preventative maintenance, which you know is much cheaper than actually having to replace a whole system such as an air conditioning system," Hutson said. "We are trying to be a well-run organization as well, put our plans in place, we assessed, put our plan in place, and now we're carrying that forward," Hutson said. Democrat Louisiana House Rep. Aimee Adatto Freeman, who represents a portion of New Orleans, told Fox News Digital she thinks the campaign email was ironic given it was sent just before 10 inmates escaped. Louisiana Attorney General Expects More Arrests In New Orleans Jail Escape Investigation "My reaction was how ironic that you would send this out, and you seem to be asking for help, but yet you aren't presenting any – I didn't see any solutions being presented. And that is another reason why I don't think she should be sheriff," Freeman said. "But you are the sheriff, the buck stops with you. I mean, I appreciate the sheriff apologized yesterday and took accountability at the City Council meeting, but it took her five, four or five days to actually come to that conclusion. That's unacceptable." Freeman said she called on Hutson to resign because of her alleged leadership failures. "She is a failure of leadership, and her inadequacy in keeping the inmates locked up in prison is a failure at multiple levels. Her one job is to keep those inmates safely in custody and away from the general public and the citizens of our city and our state." Hutson, who's up for re-election in the fall, temporarily suspended her campaign on Tuesday night but didn't drop out. Paul Mauro: New Orleans Jailbreak Exposes Flat Out Failures Of Federal Oversight Freeman's colleague, Rep. Jason Hughes, also called on Hutson to resign. Since 2013, the Orleans Justice Center has operated under a federal consent decree. Every six months, federal jail monitors question deputies at the jail, according to Fox 8. Every time, they wrote reports finding jailers "incapable of describing what an acceptable security check would be like." Kendell Myles, Robert Moody, Gary Price, Dkenan Dennis and Corey Boyd have been recaptured by law enforcement, leaving five inmates at large. Boyd, the most recent inmate to be recaptured, was in jail on charges of second-degree murder, attempted second-degree murder, aggravated battery and threatening a public official. The following inmates are still at large: Lenton J. Vanburen Jr., 26, faces charges of illegal carrying of weapons, possession of a firearm or weapon by a felon, obstruction of justice and introducing contraband in prison. Jermaine Donald, 42, faces charges of second-degree murder, aggravated battery, possession of a firearm or weapon by a felon and obstruction of justice. Antoine Massey, 32, faces charges of domestic abuse involving strangulation, theft of a motor vehicle and a parole violation. Derrick Groves, 27, faces three counts of attempted second-degree murder, two counts of second-degree murder and battery of a correctional facility employee. Leo O. Tate Sr., 31, faces charges of simple burglary of an inhabited dwelling, possession of a firearm or weapon by a felon, illegal carrying of a weapon, motor vehicle theft and multiple drug counts. Fox News Digital reached out to Hutson for article source: Orleans Parish sheriff boasted about jail security days before 10 inmates escaped
1News
21-05-2025
- 1News
New Orleans jail worker helped inmates escape after stabbing threat
A New Orleans jail maintenance worker has been arrested and is being held on a US$1.1 million (NZ$1.8 million) bond after admitting he turned water off to a toilet covering a hole in a cell wall, allowing 10 men to squeeze through the gap in one of the largest jailbreaks in recent US history. The inmates pulled off the daring escape from a jail early Friday (local time) by yanking open a faulty cell door, moving the toilet and slithering through the hole. Graffiti on the wall included the message "To Easy LoL," with an arrow pointing to the gap. Officials have underscored multiple security lapses, including ineffective cell locks and that the inmates escaped when the lone guard monitoring them went to get food. The absence of the inmates, many charged with or convicted of violent offenses such as murder, was not reported to law enforcement for hours. Four have since been apprehended and six remain at large. During a tense New Orleans City Council meeting, Orleans Parish Sheriff Susan Hutson, who oversees the jail, said she takes "full accountability" for the escape. "There were procedural failures and missed notifications, but there were also intentional wrongdoings. This was a coordinated effort aided by individuals inside our own agency who made the choice to break the law," Hutson said. "We are continuing to pursue everyone involved." Responding to a question from Council member Oliver Thomas, Hutson said she couldn't guarantee inmates would not be left unattended again, noting the jail is operating with 60% staffing capacity. The inmates escaped by removing a sink-toilet combination unit from a cell, then cutting steel bars behind the cell room sink, Hutson said. After bending the bars they slipped out. It's unclear what they used to saw through the bars. Authorities believe sheriff's employees helped, and three have been suspended. On Tuesday, authorities made their first staff arrest. Maintenance worker Sterling Williams, 33, admitted that one of the escapees "advised him to turn the water off in the cell" before the men slipped through the hole, the Louisiana Attorney General's office said in a statement. Williams is charged with 10 counts of principle to simple escape and one count of malfeasance in office, with a US$100,000 (NZ$168,600) bond per charge. Michael Kennedy, Williams appointed attorney, said that at this time "we have every intention of entering a plea of not guilty". Several of Williams' family members did not respond to requests for comment. Williams said one of the escapees threatened to "shank" him if he did not turn off the water, according to an arrest affidavit. Another inmate tried to take Williams' phone and attempted to get him to bring a book with cash app information. Attorney General Liz Murrill said Williams "made some bad decisions" and should have brought the threat and escape plan to someone's attention. Thomas said the sheriff's office has a responsibility to protect employees and create a safe environment for them to report threats and other problems. "We cannot allow the inmates to run the facilities. That can't happen," Thomas said. "We cannot allow them to threaten the men and women who work there." The affidavit says Williams "willfully and maliciously assisted with the escape" and, without his help, they would have flooded the cell and drawn attention to their escape efforts. Murrill told reporters that no additional charges have been filed against other employees but that the investigation continues and "there could be more arrests". Officials have pointed to other security lapses before, during and after the jailbreak. New Orleans officials grilled the sheriff's office about why there was an hours-long delay in reporting the escape. While a head count of inmates normally starts around 6.30am and takes less than an hour, sheriff's officials said they were still verifying whether inmates had escaped more than two hours later, according to Jeworski "Jay" Mallett, the jail's chief of corrections. City and state police did not find out about the escape until around 10.30am, more than nine hours later. Local police, who have "exponentially vaster" resources to track down the inmates, should have been notified immediately, Councilmember JP Morrell said. "There were failures, failures in our personnel," Hutson said. Many state and local officials say blame rests squarely on Hutson. "As sheriff I take full accountability for this failure," she told the New Orleans City Council. "Our community deserves answers and more importantly it deserves action." Six of the fugitives remain on the run. Many of them were in jail awaiting trial or sentencing, including for murder charges. "There are witnesses and victims, and all of those people are very, rightfully, unnerved by all of this," Murrill said. The sheriff's office says more than 200 law enforcement personnel are part of the search. Up to US$20,000 (NZ$33,700) is being offered for information leading to the capture of each escapee. Antoine Massey, who is identified in the affidavit as the inmate who threatened to stab Williams, is one of the men still at large. According to the Morehouse Parish Sheriff's Office, Massey also escaped from a jail in northeast Louisiana in 2019 and was recaptured the same day in a town in Texas, some 480km away. "He was in the exercise yard and somehow cut part of the chain-link fence, enough to shimmy through the hole," Morehouse Parish Sheriff Chief Deputy James Mardis said, adding that an accomplice was waiting with a car. Superintendent Anne Kirkpatrick, of the New Orleans Police Department, said she believes most of the escapees are within city limits. Officials have warned that anyone aiding the fugitives will face charges. Meanwhile, around 60 inmates at the ailing jail facility have been transferred to more secure state prisons.
News Lens
21-05-2025
- News Lens
賴清德「併購說」是不是賣台？耍嘴皮子，是我唯一能想到的四個大字
NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) - A local provider of electronic monitors says at least one of the Orleans Parish fugitives should never have never been given extended freedom of movement inside the lockup. Matt Dennis says escapee Antoine Massey is an breakaway artist with a dangerous history. 'You're astonished that they keep this level of risk on the first floor of that jail,' said Dennis, owner of New Orleans' Assured Supervision Accountability Program (ASAP). A jail maintenance worker -- 33-year-old Sterling Williams -- was arrested Monday on accusations of aiding the prisoners in their escape. Williams has told authorities that Massey threatened to stab him if he didn't turn off water to a toilet that the inmates tore from a cell wall as part of their escape plan. 'There isn't an ounce of this man's history that doesn't say 'escape,'' Dennis said. Dennis says Massey, wanted for rape and kidnapping in St. Tammany Parish, and accused of domestic abuse and theft in Orleans Parish, has three prior escapes dating back to 2007. Dennis said the lengthy escape history meant he no longer was a candidate to be released from custody on an electronic ankle monitor if he made bond. Massey was one of 10 inmates seen jumping off of a jail loading dock on May 16, an escape caught on a surveillance camera that was not being monitored in real time. As New Orleans City Council members investigate vulnerabilities in the jail security system, Dennis said he is assisting police trying to locate the escapees. 'The minute these escapes happened, State Police, New Orleans police, US marshals went instantly into our Information management system and identified individuals that wore our ankle monitors,' Dennis said. Dennis says that when someone cuts off an ankle monitor, he notifies the public immediately. Last Friday, it took the Orleans Parish Sheriff's Office more than seven hours to realize the escape had occurred and another two-plus hours before notifying the NOPD and public, after media outlets had reported the news. See a spelling or grammar error in our story? Click Here to report it. Please include the headline. Subscribe to the Fox 8 YouTube channel . Copyright 2025 WVUE. All rights reserved.
Yahoo
09-05-2025
- Yahoo
New Orleans police officers honored for response to New Year's Day terror attack
NEW ORLEANS (WGNO) — The New Orleans Police Department held a ceremony to honor its officers and others for their response to the New Year's Day terror attack on Bourbon Street. On Thursday, officers received certificates at the awards ceremony in Gallier Hall. New Orleans City Council honors Saints' Cam Jordan with his own day Among those being honored were the officers who shot and killed the person behind the attack. One of those officers is Sergeant Nigel Daggs. 'We just had to do, unfortunately, a deed that had to be done out that ensure to save the individuals of the city. We're just in a position where we had to make a response on that horrific accident. Incident was something that was unforeseen in the city ever before, but it was just one of the things that we were called to be at that place in time to get,' said Daggs. Other professionals and support staff who responded to the attack were also Casino & Hotel celebrating Mother's Day with seafood brunch Chinch bugs, live poultry seized at South Texas border crossing REVIEW: 'Clown in a Cornfield' is campy, bloody fun Homebuying season: 4 things to know about the 2025 housing market NBA Hall-of-Famer Paul Pierce says he walked 20 miles in robe to pay off on-air bet Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
08-05-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
New Orleans City Council declares May 8 'Cam Jordan Day'
Congratulations are in order for Cameron Jordan. The New Orleans City Council will declare May 8 "Cam Jordan Day" in recognition to his contributions to the city in his 14-year career with the Saints. The occasion will be marked with an event from the City Council on Thursday, May 8 at 9 a.m. CT. Jordan, who turns 36 in July, has earned his place as one of the greatest players in franchise history. He owns the Saints' official all-time sacks record with 6.5 more takedowns than Rickey Jackson had before he went into the Pro Football Hall of Fame. He's three games away from breaking the record Drew Brees set for the most games played in black and gold. Advertisement And his efforts to be a good citizen and make a positive impact on the community are even greater. Every week, usually on Tuesdays during the season when players have a day off from practice, Jordan has visited a local school in the New Orleans area to speak with students and offer words of encouragement. He's used his platform to reach out to thousands of young fans over the years. That's commendable. So now he's getting some well-deserved recognition from the city. Good for him. Maybe in a few years after retirement he'll start making these appearances while wearing a gold jacket. This article originally appeared on Saints Wire: New Orleans City Council to honor Saints star with 'Cam Jordan Day'
