Concerned Mothers and Children Denied Access to Senator Landrieu

This morning, at 11:45 a.m., the Baton Rouge, Louisiana Children’s Defense Fund Stroller Brigade – parents, grandparents, and children in strollers – made their way by bus and car to the federal building to meet with Senator Mary Landrieu to stand up for critical change needed in health care reform to protect our children. Senator Landrieu knew in advance that “The Strollers Are Coming.” But instead of meeting these concerned moms, dads, and children, she sent out the federal police to deny them all access to the building. “Senator Landrieu’s office is closed and you may not enter the building ,” was the pronouncement by the U.S. Marshall Service officers.

Reached for comment this afternoon, Senator Landrieu’s Washington, D.C. Office personnel stated, emphatically, the Baton Rouge office had not been closed and, indeed, Senator Landrieu is in Louisiana today.

The Champions for Children’s Health Stroller Brigade Rally moves to New Orleans, Louisiana on Saturday, November 7th, with a rally on the steps of the Hale Boggs Building 500 Poydras and a parade to the River at New Orleans Council for Young Children Monument in Woldenberg Park. Events will begin at 9am and parade will start at 10am.

We extend, again, the invitation to Senator Landrieu to meet with our moms, dads, and children to discuss health care reform.

Staff Dysfunction at the New Orleans Office of Inspector General

Featured below is an excerpt from the recent Louisiana Justice Institute report A Vote of No Confidence: The Case for Re-Organization of the New Orleans Ethics Review Board and Office of Inspector General. We continue to highlight sections of this report in this space because we believe that the debate over the future direction of these institutions is important to New Orleans' future. You can download the complete report at NolaPublicRecords.org.

Below, we discuss staff dysfunction and questionable hiring and firing practices at the Office of Inspector General.

The New Orleans Office of Inspector General (OIG) has seen a revolving door of personnel. Since January 2009, 10 of 23 employees have either been fired or have quit. Most of the terminations occurred in the aftermath of controversial events within the OIG, often involving the terminated individuals. Furthermore, all but two OIG employees are classified as civil servants and, therefore, the rules governing their hiring and termination must follow the civil service commission regulations, which carry mandates for hiring selections and due process prior to termination.

There have been several grievances filed by former employees in the OIG, alleging disturbing conflicts with senior management. In his departure letter to the OIG, Daniel Benbow stated,

“The apparent lack of organization and proper tools are extremely detrimental to staff recruitment and retention. While management may muddle around under the present conditions, any staff worth keeping will not. This office has passed the point of no return on excuses, finger-pointing, and other means of procrastination several months ago. It’s time everyone either step up to the plate or get out of the game.”

In response to Benbow’s letter, then Inspector General Robert Cerasoli stated,

“It is my understanding that [Benbow]’s title is Deputy of Audit and Review. I wasn’t aware that [Leonard Odom, Neely Moody], or I were reporting to him. He should concern himself with the functions of the Audit side…I find this e-mail highly offensive…I stepped up to the plate on Sept. 5, 2007 and have been there for one year now. I will not be getting out of the game. I would suggest if [Benbow] wants to, now is a good time."

Another example of the lack of cohesiveness in the OIG is the abrupt ousting of Leonard Odom. In an effort to quickly seat Edouard Quatreveaux as the new Inspector General, Odom’s termination occurred after a series of incriminating reports about the Office of Inspector General were published under Odom’s leadership. In an interview with a reporter of the Times Picayune regarding the abrupt departure of Interim Inspector General Leonard Odom, ERB Chairman Wildes stated, “I wanted to avoid any last minute hires or expenditures.”

Most disturbing has been the October 2009 terminations of two Auditors. These Auditors were fired from the OIG after having produced the report Assessment of the Transition of the New Orleans Office of Inspector General from Inspector General Robert Cerasoli to Interim Inspector General Leonard Odom on January 30, 2009, that was critical of Cerasoli’s management.

In July 2009, Susan Brown and Laura East were directed to prepare a performance review of the OIG to determine the position of the office from its inception through the time of Cerasoli’s departure, and in preparation for the new Inspector General. While working on this performance review, according to East and Brown, they were placed in an office separate from the regular office, given separate keys to this office, and instructed to keep the door locked at all times, for security purposes.

East and Brown uncovered information that they believed had possible implications of waste, abuse, and mismanagement, and took these observations to Interim Inspector General Odom, who directed them to document their findings and, pursuant to City Code Article XIII, Section 2-1120(11)(o), and report it to the appropriate legal authorities, in this case the State Ethics Review Board and the State Inspector General.

On August 28, 2009 the State Inspector General directed Brown and East to meet with the State Legislative Auditor, who informed them that the OIG was being placed under investigation and/or audit.

East and Brown were scheduled to meet with the State Legislative Auditor beginning September 9, 2009, but were denied access. Later, they discovered their offices had been broken into, and documents removed. The report of break-in was made to Chief of Investigations Hugh Fox, who disclosed that the office of the OIG Personnel Manager Sam Stoute had also been vandalized and locked drawers containing confidential records compromised.

The OIG Assessment of the Transition report was particularly critical of Dave Westerling, the Supervisory Forensic Engineer hired from Massachusetts by Cerasoli. It was Westerling who was named Interim Inspector General after Quatrevaux temporarily left office after only one week on the job – and one meeting with the State Legislative Auditor – and Westerling who fired East and Brown.

On September 22, 2009, East and Brown attended an approved forensic accounting conference in Orlando, Florida. However, on September 23, 2009, after Interim Inspector General Westerling received notice from the State Legislative Auditor that East and Brown must be made available for interview immediately upon return from this conference, Westerling sent notice by certified mail and overnight mail – that very same evening – of their termination from employment.

Westerling stated the reason the auditors were fired was because “they failed to show up for work and efforts to reach the two employees about their absences were unsuccessful.” Public records show that Westerling’s statement is false. Leave requests show that both employees had requested time off for a work-related conference related to their functions at the OIG.

Two days after Westerling fired East and Brown, on September 25, 2009, Hugh Fox, the OIG Chief of Investigations charged with investigating possible criminal activity within the OIG, voluntarily separated himself from the Office of Inspector General – effective immediately.

LJI Presents Guest Writer Lance Hill: "The Most Racist City in the US?"

By Lance Hill, Ph.D.
Executive Director, Southern Institute for Education and Research, Tulane University

This week's comments by Ed Blakely, the former New Orleans recovery czar, caused quite a controversy in New Orleans. His criticism that New Orleanians were "lazy" was not new, but his observation about the white community's efforts to "recapture the political apparatus" and "put their foot back on Black people's throats" was the first time a high-ranking recovery official said in public what is a widespread sentiment in the local African American community. It is likely that this perception of a "power grab" will influence voting in the February 2010 city election. The tendency in the white community to ignore or dismiss this Black sentiment is reflected in the Times-Picayune's editorial response that completely omits Blakely's comments on the "blood in the water."

Transcribed from the YouTube interview:

"Everyone's a racist. It's part of something we have in this country, but it's deeper, more viral, and more visible and more entrenched in New Orleans than any place I've ever seen...There is a sense, now, in the white community, [that] there's blood in the water, and they can recapture the political apparatus and kind of put their foot back on Black people's throats. And that will be explosive and very dangerous. And I think unless the next mayor is very clever, it's going to explode and there are going to be race riots in New Orleans."
-Ed Blakely, Former New Orleans "Recovery Czar"

Click here to see the Blakely Interview.

Click here to see the Times-Picayune Editorial on Blakely - which omits the "Blood in the water" reference.

Protests in Support of Health Care Reform Planned for This Weekend

As health care reform slowly moves its way through Congress, the final shape of what the results will look like is still unclear. Unfortunately, real reform - like single payer - was never on the table, and Republicans and conservative Democrats have been standing in the way of even mild improvements, like a robust public option. In New Orleans, the fight over Charity Hospital continues, while Louisiana ranks near the bottom of most indicators of health. Overall the state is 46th in access to healthcare and healthcare outcomes, with the fifth highest rate of uninsured in the country, including a third of African Americans uninsured. The state is also fifth to last in employer-sponsored health insurance

Nationwide, chapters of the Children's Defense Fund (CDF) have been organizing protests called Stroller Brigades, saying, "it is astonishing that we are still begging to make sure children are better off, not worse off," in the legislation. They demand that "Congress and the President support changes that provide comprehensive, affordable, accessible care for all children no matter where they live."

The Louisiana chapter of CDF is organizing rallies in several cities across the state, including Baton Rouge, Alexandra, and Lafayette. The New Orleans protest will be this Saturday, November 7, starting at the Hale Boggs Federal Bldg., 500 Poydras St. Participants assemble at 9:00am, and the march begins at 9:30am.

Photo of Save Charity Hospital Secondline by Taslim VanHattum.

Tell the Obama Administration that the Federal Government Needs to Take Responsibility for Gulf Coast Recovery

Last week, President Obama announced that he was establishing a Long-Term Disaster Recovery Working Group, which will be convening public meetings for input on disaster recovery policy and practices. Gulf Coast activists have expressed hope that this is an opportunity to advise the Obama administration on the steps that need to be taken to ensure the just and equitable recovery that we have been needing for four years.

The Long-Term Disaster Recovery Working Group is co-chaired by Janet Napolitano, Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security, and Shaun Donovan, Secretary of the Department of Housing and Urban Development. Other members of the working group include the secretaries and administrators of 20 departments, agencies, and offices. The Working Group will convene a series of meetings that are detailed on the website www.disasterrecoveryworkinggroup.gov.

The Disaster Recovery Working Group website features a questionnaire for public feedback. The questions display an assumption that the federal government does not bear responsibility for Gulf Coast recovery. For example, question number ten asks, "As disaster recovery is primarily a state and local leadership issue, what are best practices for the timing (including start and end) and form of federal assistance and coordination?"

We encourage you to take the time to carefully complete the questionnaire, and please consider including the recommendations by the Gulf States Human Rights Working Group (which you can find at KatrinaAction.org) and the Katrina Citizens Leadership Corps (online at childrensdefense.org), which call on the Obama administration to implement the UN Guiding Principles on Internal Displacement, which call for the US government to take responsibility for the recovery of internally displaced people.

You can go to www.disasterrecoveryworkingroup.gov to complete and submit the Long-Term Disaster Recovery Working Group questionnaire for public feedback online.

Photo of President Obama in New Orleans by Abdul Aziz.

New Orleans' Housing Crisis Takes Violent Turn

On Thursday, many New Orleanians were captivated and alarmed by the story of Richard Scearce, 59, who apparently turned suicidal when faced with eviction from his apartment. "I'm old, fat and crippled," he told a Times-Picayune reporter. "I'm not going out on the streets to live. Let them come get me." Scearce had apparently rented from landlord Craig Tolbert since 2005, but had fallen behind this month and was facing an impending eviction. Instead of leaving, Scearce barricaded himself in his apartment, started a small fire, and repeatedly fired an assault rifle into his neighborhood.

While the background and many details of Scearce's story remain unclear, the incident comes at a time of continued job loss and economic instability. Evictions around the US are still increasing, and anxiety about housing is everywhere.

In New Orleans, rents are now more than 50% higher than before Katrina, more than 65,000 residential addresses remain empty or unlivable, and the city's homeless population is estimated at about 12,000. This means that more than 3% of the city's population has no place to live. If New York City had a similar percentage, the equivalent proportion would add up to a quarter million people. It's for exactly this reason that our city hosted United Nations Special Rapporteur on Housing Raquel Rolnik last weekend. We are in a crisis, locally and nationally.

In cities around the country, people are turning to direct action. The US Human Rights Network has formed The Land and Housing Action Group, with "an ambitious campaign to house tens of thousands displaced by the destruction of public housing, foreclosures, and other means of forced eviction." According to organizers, "the overall objective of this campaign is to compel the United States government to recognize that housing is a fundamental human right and to meet its obligations under international law." Organizations like Take Back The Land in Miami have already taken the lead, moving homeless families into empty homes in defiance of banks and local sheriff's departments, and have received wide support from their community.

Hopefully, the combination of grassroots action and international pressure will result in real change for those who need it the most.

The New Orleans Ethics Review Board's Questionable Hiring Practices

Featured below is an excerpt from the recent Louisiana Justice Institute report A Vote of No Confidence: The Case for Re-Organization of the New Orleans Ethics Review Board and Office of Inspector General. We continue to highlight sections of this report in this space because we believe that the debate over the future direction of these institutions is important to New Orleans' future. You can download the complete report at NolaPublicRecords.org.

Below, we highlight more reasons that the Ethics Review Board has squandered the public trust - questionable hiring practices overseen by the Board.

Executive Director Jill Poutré

If the ERB would serve as a catalytic agent for governmental accountability in New Orleans, no doubt there would need to be strong leadership at its helm. However, based on the recommendation of then Inspector General Robert Cerasoli, the the ERB hired Jill Poutré to serve as its Executive Director, when she was an inexperienced 22 year old college senior, who had not yet graduated. Mr. Cerasoli had been Ms. Poutré’s college instructor. The ERB did not advertise the executive director position even though the salary and benefits come to $90,000/year. The duties of the ERB executive director include management of the budget for the office, handling of evidence, scheduling hearings, reports, and investigations. However, at the time of her hiring, Ms. Poutré had no relevant job experience, and never worked in a full-time professional position. Her previous employment was working part-time at a window treatment business with compensation of $10/hour.

Inspector General Eduoard Quatrevaux

In the wake of Robert Cerasoli’s departure from the Office of Inspector General, the ERB launched a nationwide search to find his replacement. That search ended in early September 2009 with the hiring of Edouard Quatrevaux. As a result of the OIG’s lack of established hiring protocols, there are several major issues with the search and subsequent selection process.

From public records, it appears that the Inspector General position was advertised inconsistently in several places. The Inspector General position that was posted on the Career Builder website in the “Accounting and Audit” area, where many people with accounting backgrounds, but no experience or certification as an Inspector General, applied.

The same can be said for applicants who found the position posted on the Nola.com website, the Association of Certified Fraud Examiners website, the Council on Governmental Ethics Laws website, the Association of Local Government Auditors website, and the Institute of Internal Auditors website. Thus, the applications were insufficient. The advertisement instructed applicants to send their résumé, letter of interest, three letters of recommendation, and college transcripts by August 31, 2009.

Overall, it appears that sixty-two (62) of the sixty-four (64) rejected applications were missing one or more critical items. Although the OIG cast a wide net for its job search, it resulted in few qualified applicants. Of the 68 applicants who applied, only four, according to the Ethics Review Board (ERB), were deemed qualified to serve as the Inspector General. According to the ERB, the other 64 applicants “were found ineligible due to lack of Certified Inspector General (CIG) certification and/or inability to meet the four (4) year absence from the City requirement per City Code Sec. 2-1120 (3) (h).” One of the four, Gary Weishaar, does not list CIG certification in his résumé. Another, current IG Quatrevaux, appended his application package on August 21, 2009 to include notification of his CIG certification on that date.

The office announced the hiring of its new IG on September 3, 2009, just three days after the final application deadline.

While the ERB is not responsible for the deficiencies in the majority of the applications, the decision to hire an IG from a weak pool of applicants is entirely an ERB decision. This search, which lasted more than six months, yielded only four qualified candidates. It is understandable that the office was eager to fill its top position in a timely fashion, but the rationale of the hiring committee to make a selection among only four qualified applicants is questionable.

It is unclear how many individuals have CIG status, and how large the pool of individuals qualified for the Inspector General position really is. The designation of CIG status is conferred by the Association of Inspectors General, a national organization of which certified Inspectors General are members. The Association of Inspectors General did not respond when inquired about their program and its former attendees. There is no way to know if a pool of four was representative of only a small number of people being qualified for the post, or if the search simply yielded few results from a much larger pool.

The lingering question is why Mr. Quatrevaux was selected to be interviewed for a position that he did not qualify for, while so many other candidates with equal, if not better qualifications, were not selected to be interviewed. For the public, the issue is whether the OIG has the best person at the helm, and whether there was a level playing field for every non-CIG candidate, like Mr. Quatrevaux, to be interviewed for the position of the Inspector General.

Interim Inspector General David Westerling

The ERB appointed David Westerling – a former Cerasoli colleague in Massachusetts – as the Interim Inspector General during Inspector General Edouard Quatrevaux’s leave of absence. Prior to the appointment, Mr. Westerling (pictured above) worked in the OIG as the Supervisory Forensic Engineer. However, the ERB’s appointment of Mr. Westerling may have violated the Article XIII, Section 2-1120(3)(i) proscription, [n]o officer or employee of the office of the inspector general shall hold office in any political party or political committee, or participate in any political campaign of any candidate for public office, or make any campaign contribution or campaign endorsement, while an officer or employee of the office of inspector general.”

Mr. Westerling was elected to public office as Town Moderator of Harvard, Massachusetts in 2003 and served until June 9, 2008. Westerling back-dated his resignation letter, and his notice to the Harvard Town Hall (written from his home in Harvard) was not received until June 11, 2008 – nine (9) days after he began work at the New Orleans OIG, which is a clear violation of the New Orleans municipal code. Further, there is no evidence he resigned all political affiliation associated with that position.

The New Orleans Ethics Review Board's failure to file financial disclosures

Featured below is an excerpt from the most recent report from the Louisiana Justice Institute: A Vote of No Confidence: The Case for Re-Organization of the New Orleans Ethics Review Board and Office of Inspector General. We believe that the debate over the future direction of these institutions is important to New Orleans' future. You can download the complete report at NolaPublicRecords.org.

Loss of Public Trust

The loss of public trust is evidenced by the citizen outcry for complete system reform. To date, many troubling issues have gone unaddressed, including financial reporting by the ERB, concerns of cronyism/favoritism in hiring at ERB and OIG, and staff dysfunction and instability.

The Louisiana Code of Government Ethics, §1124.2.1: "Financial disclosure; members of boards and commissions, requires each member and any designee of a member of a board or commission that has the authority to expend, disburse, or invest ten thousand dollars or more of funds in a fiscal year, to annually file a financial statement as provided by law." Notwithstanding this legal requirement, on October 16, 2008, ERB President Kevin Wildes sought and obtained an Advisory Opinion from the State of Louisiana Board of Ethics that was premised on the ERB’s claim that it “does not have the authority to expend, disburse, or invest $10,000 or more in funds, and does not have the authority to make recommendations that must be followed on the expenditure, disbursement or investment of such funds.”

The ERB’s statement to the Louisiana Board of Ethics was materially false, however. In fact, the ERB and OIG had already received authority to independently expend $300,000 and $3,130,000, respectively, for FY 2008, and $300,000 and $3,197,300 respectively for FY2009.

Furthermore, municipal ordinance proscribes the Mayor and the New Orleans City Council from controlling the ERB and OIG expenditures.

The ERB’s claim that it is exempted from the state law financial reporting requirement is a material breach of trust by the ERB, especially considering the Home Rule Charter and Municipal Code of the City of New Orleans mandate that the ERB is responsible for enforcing a similar reporting requirement for the Mayor, members of the City Council, city department directors, and other high ranking city employees.

LJI Community Profile: Housing Advocate Sam Jackson Speaks Out About Tomorrow's Visit From The UN

Sam Jackson is a housing activist and the founder of the housing rights organization May Day New Orleans. Below is a short discussion with Sam about tomorrow's visit from United Nations Special Rapporteur on Housing Raquel Rolnik.

LJI: What should New Orleanians know about tomorrow's visit from the UN Special Rapporteur on Housing?
Sam: This is a very important visit for New Orleans and the Gulf Coast. Having these high profile international guests should bring hope to all us concerned about Gulf Coast recovery, because it shows that even if our government doesn't view adequate housing as a human right, maybe there are people around the world that do.

LJI: What is adequate housing?
Sam: Decent housing, low income housing, fair housing. Anything that would make a family comfortable. For instance, folks in New Orleans can't afford to rent right now. We need adequate, affordable housing, so low income folks can have a place to stay.

LJI: What can the UN do to improve conditions on the Gulf Coast?
Sam: I'll be honest with you. The UN cant do anything directly. They can't change US law. They can't bring a lawsuit. But what the UN can do, they can raise questions with the US government about these issues, and bring international pressure on the US to do something. They can raise the issue about doing something to fix some of our laws - like the Stafford Act, which doesn't guarantee any kind of rights to the victims of disasters.

As it is now, we cant get anyone in the government to pay attention to what happened here. So we bring in the UN representatives and let them know what's happening, and then people start to ask, why do we have to get folks from outside the country to come visit us? Why couldn't we get folks from our own government to visit?

That's why we need international pressure. The UN is important for the pressure they bring. And this is not just for New Orleans, this is happening in six cities. This visit has already been a major event in New York and all other places they've been visiting.

LJI: Why should people from New Orleans come out tomorrow night to make their voices heard by the UN?
Sam: I urge people to participate, come out and speak their mind. Folks got human rights. All of us. Folks need to come out to let the world know what happened here. I would say to people: This is your country, most of you have lived for generations and generations here. If you don't fight now, our grandchildren will be going through the same thing. Right now, all around the US, the poor is really left out. This could be a once in a lifetime chance to do something that takes this struggle up to another level.

New Interviews with Tracie Washington Online

Journalist Robert Corsini, writing in Truthout.org, has posted two new short interviews with Louisiana Justice Institute director Tracie Washington.



Tracie can also be seen regularly on the local television show Table Talk with Blayne Bondy and host Paul Beaulieu. You can see the first three episodes online via the Louisiana Justice Institute youtube account at www.youtube.com/user/LAJusticeInstitute.

A Year Of Crisis: A Timeline of Upheaval at New Orleans' Ethics Review Board and Office of Inspector General

Featured below is an excerpt from the most recent report from the Louisiana Justice Institute: A Vote of No Confidence: The Case for Re-Organization of the New Orleans Ethics Review Board and Office of Inspector General. We believe that the debate over the future direction of these institutions is a vital part of New Orleans' future. You can download the complete report at NolaPublicRecords.org.

Beginning in December 2008 to the present day, the ERB and OIG have been plagued by news headlines and reports evidencing both internal and external upheaval. A brief timeline follows:

∙ December 17, 2008 – OIG releases the Interim Report on the Management of the Administrative Vehicle Fleet, finding that Mayor Ray Nagin's administration violated several state laws and city ordinances governing take-home vehicles, costing taxpayers nearly $1 million.

∙ January 16, 2009 – Controversy erupts with news reports that the OIG requests additional funding to arm its staff with semiautomatic pistols, miniature rifles, laser sighting devices, bulletproof vests, handcuffs and leg irons.

∙ January 29, 2009 – Inspector General Robert Cerasoli abruptly resigns for health reasons. Leonard Odom takes over as Interim Inspector General.

∙ February 27, 2009 – The OIG releases the report Installation of Crime Surveillance Cameras 2003-2008, finding potential violations of federal law.

∙ July 16, 2009 – Interim Inspector General Leonard Odom announces that he has selected the new Independent Police Monitor. After protests by community members claiming the IPM application process was too short, and the search too limited, Odom retracts the selection.

∙ August 5, 2009 – The IPM selection committee intervenes with four applicants, and votes to recommend selection of Neely Moody for the position, despite complaints by community members and two selection committee members.

∙ August 11, 2009 – Interim Inspector General Odom hires Neely Moody to serve as the Independent Police Monitor, and Holly Wiseman as the Deputy Police Monitor.

∙ September 3, 2009 – The ERB selects Edouard Quatrevaux as the new Inspector General. Interim Inspector General Odom is immediately relieved of his duties by the ERB Chairman Kevin Wildes.

∙ September 4, 2009 – Inspector General Quatrevaux announces that Leonard Odom will return to his former position as First Assistant Inspector General for Criminal Investigations.

∙ September 8, 2009 – Leonard Odom resigns his position with the OIG.

∙ September 10, 2009 – Inspector General Quatrevaux announces that the OIG will set up a contract monitoring unit to review city contract solicitations and examine whether bidders have criminal records.

∙ September 12, 2009 – Inspector General Quatrevaux requests and is granted 5-week leave of absence.

∙ September 14, 2009 – ERB Chairman Kevin Wildes appoints OIG staff engineer David Westerling to serve as the Interim Inspector General.

∙ September 16, 2009 - Neely Moody resigns from his position as the Independent Police Monitor, and reportedly threatens to malign the office.

∙ September 17, 2009 – News reports focus on the submission of a report by OIG auditors Susan Brown and Laura East, Assessment of the Transition of the New Orleans Office of Inspector General from Inspector General Robert Cerasoli to Interim Inspector General Leonard Odom on January 30, 2009, to the State of Louisiana Legislative Auditor. The date of the report is August 27, 2009.

∙ September 23, 2009 - New Orleans City Councilman James Carter urges that the search for a new independent police monitor be suspended until the city council develops new selection procedures to address the criticism of the prior selection process.

∙ September 25, 2009 – Interim Inspector General Westerling terminates auditors Susan Brown and Laura East, alleging that they failed to show up to work.

∙ October 4, 2009 – An OIG report, Review of 2009 Budget Process for City of New Orleans, criticizing the city council’s budget practices and priorities, is published online by the Louisiana Justice Institute, a non-governmental organization.

∙ October 6, 2009 – Public records released to the Louisiana Justice Institute show that terminated OIG auditors Susan Brown and Laura East were not AWOL but, in fact, were granted leave to attend the AICPA National Forensic Accounting Conference from September 22 – 25, 2009.

Criminal Justice Reform Advocates Win Victory at Youth Study Center

Congratulations to the Juvenile Justice Project of Louisiana (JJPL) on their continued success in the fight for reform of the city's criminal justice system.

An article by Katy Reckdahl in today's Times-Picayune reports, "Juveniles at the Youth Study Center will no longer be subject to long hours of confinement, sporadic schooling, spotty medical care and inadequate meals. These improvements are spelled out in two proposed agreements involving the city, which runs the detention facility in Gentilly, and the Orleans Parish School Board, which is responsible for providing educational services to the detainees. The Juvenile Justice Project of Louisiana, which filed a federal lawsuit in December 2007 alleging unconstitutional conditions at the Youth Study Center, filed consent decrees in court on Monday after 22 months of negotiations with the city and the School Board."

For further evidence of how bad things have gotten at the facility, the article notes that - as part of the consent agreement: "Facility staff will create a new policy and procedures manual, to replace the one that was lost after the facility flooded."

Apparently, they needed a lawsuit to force them to actually state their policies in writing.

If you want to help JJPL continue this work, you have two opportunities this weekend.

You can buy Hornets tickets through a special offer listed on JJPL's website, and $5 of every ticket goes to support JJPL. The offer is here.

Or you can come to a car wash fundraiser sponsored by Young Adults Striving for Success (YASS) the youth group organized by JJPL. The fundraiser is this Saturday, from 10am to 2pm, at Hope Academy on 2437 Jena St.

Photo by Abdul Aziz.

United Nations Special Rapporteur on Housing Coming to New Orleans This Weekend

Is New Orleans’ housing crisis a human rights violation? United Nations Special Rapporteur on Housing Raquel Rolnik will be in New Orleans this week gathering evidence. Local housing activists and national human rights advocates have arranged a town hall meeting this Friday for New Orleanians to speak up and be heard.

Rolnik’s visit is part of an official mission to the United States from October 22nd - November 8th. This will be the first-ever official country visit to the United States by a Special Rapporteur on Housing. The Special Rapporteur is appointed by the UN Human Rights Council to examine and report back on the housing situation of a given country.

The National Economic and Social Rights Initiative (NESRI) and the National Law Center on Homelessness and Poverty will be coordinating the visit, with significant involvement from grassroots groups around country - including MayDay New Orleans.

The visit will focus on public housing, Section 8, homelessness and the foreclosure crisis. The Rapporteur's office has selected Chicago, Los Angeles, New Orleans, New York, DC, Pine Ridge, South Dakota and Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania for site visits. The New Orleans visit will be a follow-up to the recent International Advisory Group on Forced Evictions (AGFE) fact-finding mission.

NESRI's Human Right to Housing Program Director Tiffany Gardner comments, "Mrs. Rolnik's U.S. visit is profoundly important because it recognizes that Americans do have a human right to housing and that right is so deeply imperiled that it merits international monitoring at the moment."

The meeting is this Friday, October 30th at 6:30 pm at St. Bernard Church, 3938 St. Bernard Ave. For more information, call 504 319 3300.

LJI Guest Writers Bill Quigley and Deborah Popowski: When Guantanamo and Abu Ghraib Come Home

The Louisiana Board that licenses psychologists is facing a growing legal fight over torture and medical care at the infamous Guantanamo and Abu Ghraib prisons.

In 2003, Louisiana psychologist and retired colonel Larry James watched behind a one way mirror in a U.S. prison camp while an interrogator and three prison guards wrestled a screaming near-naked man on the floor. The prisoner had been forced into pink women’s panties, lipstick and a wig; the men then pinned the prisoner to the floor in an effort “to outfit him with the matching pink nightgown.” As he recounts in his memoir, Fixing Hell, Dr. James initially chose not to respond. He “opened [his] thermos, poured a cup of coffee, and watched the episode play out, hoping it would take a better turn and not wanting to interfere without good reason…”

Although he claims to eventually find “good reason” to intervene, the Army colonel never reported the incident or even so much as reprimanded men who had engaged in activities that constituted war crimes.

Sadly, the story of Dr. James’ complicity in prisoner abuse does not end there. The New Orleans native and former LSU psychology professor admits to overseeing the detention, interrogation and health care of three boys, aged twelve to fourteen, who were disappeared to Guantanamo and held without charge or access to counsel or their families. In Fixing Hell and elsewhere, Dr. James proudly proclaims that he was in a position of authority at Guantanamo.

Government records indicate that, as the senior psychologist consulting on interrogations, his decisions affected the policy and operations of interrogations and detention on the base. During his time there, reports of beatings, sexual abuse, religious humiliation and sleep deprivation during interrogations were widespread, and draconian isolation was official policy. Prisoners suffered, and some continue to suffer, devastating physical and psychological harm. Dr. Trudy Bond, a psychologist under an ethical obligation to report abuse by other psychologists, filed a complaint against Dr. James before the Louisiana State Board of Examiners of Psychologists in February 2008.

Dr. Bond’s complaint says that Dr. James’ conduct violated Louisiana laws governing his psychology license. As a psychologist and military colonel, he had a duty to avoid harm, to protect confidential information, and to obtain informed consent, as well as to prevent and punish the misconduct of his subordinates. How did the Louisiana licensing board respond? Rather than investigate, the Board dismissed the complaint, and when asked again, reaffirmed its decision. Dr. Bond has now taken the case to the Louisiana First Circuit Court of Appeal in Baton Rouge.

Dr. James played an influential role in both the policy and day-to-day operations of interrogations and detention in the notorious prison camps built to hold men and boys captured during the U.S. “War on Terror.” According to his own statements, he was a senior member of interrogation consulting teams that, as documented by government records, were central in designing interrogation plans that exploited psychological and physical weaknesses of individual detainees. In one example cited by the New York Times, a military health professional told interrogators that “the detainee’s medical files showed he had a severe phobia of the dark and suggested ways in which that could be manipulated to induce him to cooperate.”

Had Dr. James chosen to cast himself as a brave, but ultimately ineffective voice against torture, he may have fooled some people into believing him. Instead, he’s presented an utterly implausible portrait: one of a man “chosen” by “the nation” to “fix the hell” of Guantanamo and Abu Ghraib, a feat he claims to have accomplished so successfully that ever since he was first deployed in January 2003, “where ever [sic] we have had psychologists no abuses have been reported.” This is patently untrue. The real “fact of the matter,” as documented by government records, reports from the International Committee of the Red Cross and eyewitness accounts, is that serious abuses were widespread both during Dr. James’ tenure as senior psychologist for the Joint Intelligence Group at Guantánamo, and after he left.

One would imagine that such disregard for a law designed to protect the public welfare would greatly concern the body charged with its enforcement. But the Louisiana State Board of Examiners of Psychologists, which issued James his license, has refused to investigate whether he violated professional misconduct law.

The Board’s conduct should alarm all Louisiana health professionals and their patients. The Board demeans the profession when it fails to seriously address the possibility that a Louisiana licensee was involved in torture. It also strips the Louisiana psychology license of meaning and value. How can patients rely on a license issued and enforced by a body that arbitrarily refuses to look into allegations of grave misconduct?

As the legal battle wears on, the people of Louisiana need to ask the Board’s members what “good reason” they await in order to act. They should demand that the Board of Examiners conduct a thorough investigation of Larry James and, if what he admits is true, revoke his privilege to practice.

Bill Quigley is a Loyola Law professor working at the Center for Constitutional Rights. Deborah Popowski is a Skirball Fellow at the Harvard Law School Human Rights Program. Both authors are involved with the campaign When Healers Harm: Hold Health Professionals Accountable for Torture. Bill can be contacted at quigley77@gmail.com. Deborah can be contacted at dpopowski@law.harvard.edu.

Louisiana Justice Institute Presents: Guest Writer Joe Blakk reflects on Congressional Black Caucus Convention

Joe Blakk is a rapper, small businessman, and longtime community activist in New Orleans. He is also a community organizer with the organization VOTE: Voice of the Ex-Offender. Last month, VOTE staffers Norris Henderson, Joe Blakk and Rosana Cruz traveled to Washington DC to attend the Congressional Black Caucus’ Annual Legislative Conference. Below are Joe Blakk’s reflections on the trip.

The Congressional Black Caucus Convention was an event made up of four days of information and sharing, addressing the state of African Americans in America. This years theme was Reinvest, Rebuild and Renew, where we focused on solutions, as opposed to only talking about our problems. The seminars were mind blowing with the biggest issue being trying to decide on which seminar to attend.

The more seminars you attend, and the more you talk and listen to others, you begin to understand that the struggles in the black community are universal, whether it is gentrification, the cradle to prison pipeline, or gerrymandering. You also begin to realize that the 13th Amendment wasn’t the end of the line for slavery; it was only a stop we had to make to transfer to a bus that made less noise.

This was my third time attending the Congressional Convention and they are always empowering and motivating. It’s not every day you get a chance to be hands on with congressmen and other powerful and influential black people in our country. I wish there were a way we could bring more of the people from our community next year to experience this. I always leave more empowered and energized. It was a mind blowing experience. In the Post-Obama America, nothing will be handed to us. We can no longer wait on the bus; we must be that bus.

A Vote of No Confidence: The Case for Re-Organization of the New Orleans Ethics Review Board and Office of Inspector General

Featured below is the introduction from the most recent report from the Louisiana Justice Institute: A Vote of No Confidence: The Case for Re-Organization of the New Orleans Ethics Review Board and Office of Inspector General. We believe that the debate over the future direction of these institutions is a vital part of New Orleans' future. You can download the complete report at NolaPublicRecords.org.

INTRODUCTION:

A “vote of no confidence” signifies that a majority of a constituency does not support a governing body or official. Recently, the citizens of New Orleans have voiced an informal vote of no confidence or disfavor with the City of New Olreans’ Ethics Review Board (ERB), and its governance of the Office of Inspector General (OIG).

This public disfavor is in response to recent news that the ERB has fumbled its fundamental public duty, which is the hiring of a qualified Inspector General for the City of New Orleans. Additionally, there is public concern regarding recent break-ins in OIG offices that were involved in reporting problems within the office and the hiring of unqualified personnel to serve in high-level positions at the ERB and OIG. The management of the OIG and the ERB has created dysfunction that prevents these offices from pursuing their mandates. Furthermore, decisions and other actions taken by the ERB and OIG are shrouded in secrecy, which defeats the principles of transparency and governmental accountability that these offices were established to uphold in the public interest.

Some members of the New Orleans City Council argue that these offices will right themselves on their own. However, in their current posture it is difficult to envision these offices ever regaining the public trust without significant public involvement that ensures reform.

The complete Louisiana Justice Institute report presents the governance structure and mandate of the ERB and OIG, a summary of the currently known controversies involving these offices and their genesis, and recommendations for structural change that can restore public trust in these fledgling offices so that they can perform the work required for effective governmental oversight.

Louisiana Justice Institute Releases Report and Recommendations on Office of Inspector General and Ethics Review Board

Since it's inception, controversy has surrounded the City of New Orleans' Ethics Review Board (ERB), and its governance of the Office of Inspector General (OIG). In recent weeks, actions taken by the board and employees of the office, as well as revelations of past conduct, have badly tarnished the reputation of both offices, and public disapproval has grown. Louisiana Justice Institute, believing in the importance of an Office of Inspector General, has stepped into the discussion with a new report that highlights both the problems of the office as well as clear solutions.

The new report released today - A Vote of No Confidence: A Case for Reorganization of the New Orleans Ethics Review Board and Office of Inspector General - presents the governance structure and mandate of the ERB and OIG, a summary of the currently known controversies involving these offices and their genesis, and recommendations for structural change that can restore public trust in these fledgling offices so that they can perform the work required for effective governmental oversight.

The report is available online at: http://www.nolapublicrecords.org/sites/default/files/docs/governance/A%20Vote%20of%20No%20Confidence%2010-20-09%20Final.pdf

"The Ethics Review Board has fumbled its fundamental public duty, which is the hiring of a qualified Inspector General for the City of New Orleans. Additionally, there is public concern regarding the break-ins in OIG offices involved in reporting problems within the office, and the hiring of unqualified personnel to serve in high-level positions at the ERB and OIG," reports LJI Managing Co-Director Tracie L. Washington. The decisions and other actions taken by the ERB and OIG are shrouded in secrecy, which defeats the principles of transparency and governmental accountability that these offices were established to uphold in the public interest. "The management of the OIG and the ERB has created dysfunction, preventing these offices from pursuing their mandates, which New Orleans residents believe are critical," states Washington.

AMONG THE RECOMMENDATIONS OF THE REPORT:

The Louisiana Justice Institute recommends that the New Orleans City Council immediately mandate a suspension of all substantive functions of these offices to conduct a full management audit that examines all the functions, activities, transactions, and governance of these offices. This management audit must begin with an assessment of the governance of the ERB and OIG that determines whether the missions and functions of the ERB and OIG overlap in a way that creates confusion and inefficiency.

Furthemore, the personnel practices of the ERB and OIG must be overhauled. The internal turmoil concerning hiring, termination, and qualifications of candidates - and the troubling issue of potential conflicts of interest in hiring personnel who served in elected offices that are subject to investigations by the OIG - has led to public disdain and the lack of confidence in the ERB and OIG to ethically and effectively fulfill their missions.

The Battle for Health Care Justice Continues

Louisiana Justice Institute Co-Director Jacques Morial was recently interviewed about the state of health care in the city by journalist Robert Corsini, who produced this video clip:



Jacques also joined Mayoral candidate James Perry on the Pacifica radio network show Flashpoints, discussing Obama's recent visit and the state of recovery in New Orleans.

President Obama’s visit Brings Celebrations and Concerns

Today President Obama and several cabinet secretaries came to New Orleans, as part of Obama’s first visit to the Gulf Coast since he was elected president. While he was met with ecstatic crowds and tickets to his town hall at UNO were the most sought-after item in the city, there were also notes of concern from the grassroots.

The Institute of Southern Studies reported that many Gulf Coast activists they have spoken to expressed concern about the President’s commitment to Gulf Coast recovery. The Institute’s executive director Chris Kromm writes on their blog Facing South, “Rebuilding communities, bringing people home, ensuring access to health care and good schools: these are the basic building blocks of renewal which have, for many, come too slow and too little -- and for the 25% of the city that hasn't returned, hasn't come at all.” Organizations such as All Congregations Together gathered signatures for open letters to the president, attempting to nudge him into action.

The STEPS Coalition, an alliance of grassroots organizations in Mississippi also expressed concerns about Obama’s visit, saying in an open letter, “Recent visits by cabinet members to the Gulf South have not always included Mississippi and when Mississippi was included, community groups have been ignored and/or denied an audience to personally express unmet needs and federal agency gaps.”

Several articles in the Times-Picayune have also expressed wishes that the President would see more on his trip, from environmentalists hoping he will see the vanishing wetlands to housing activists who want the President to see the vacant lots that used to be thousands of units of public housing.

In the end, most advocates agree; it’s not about what Obama saw or didn’t see during his four hour visit to the Gulf – the question is what will he do for Gulf Coast recovery once he’s back in Washington. And without organized pressure from the grassroots, it's unlikely the change we need will come.

Is justice finally on its way for police actions in the aftermath of Katrina?

Two weeks ago, a federal judge partially granted class certification in a lawsuit seeking to hold the Gretna Police Department and the Jefferson Parish Sheriff's Office accountable for their actions in the aftermath of Katrina. The lawsuit addresses the actions of police on the Crescent City Connection Bridge, when New Orleanians who tried to escape from the flooded city were shot at by police.

Last week, attorneys filed an offshoot case in Orleans Civil District Court, which also names Crescent City Connection Police Chief Michael Helmstetter and the state of Louisiana as defendants. The Times-Picayune reports, “As state entities, they are immune under federal law, but not state law, said attorney Adele Owen of the Schmolke Firm in Baton Rouge, which filed the case with Cleo Fields.”

According to a copy of the lawsuit obtained by Louisiana Justice Institute, “The police officers employed by the Gretna Police Department, Jefferson Parish Sheriff’s Office, and the Crescent City Connection Bridge Police acted willfully, deliberately, maliciously, and with reckless disregard for the petitioners’ safety…Further, said policy resulted from an intentional choice, among various alternatives, to follow a course of action which evidences deliberate indifference to the constitutional rights and safety of the petitioners.”

This is no rash action in a crisis. There is an abundance of evidence that Gretna police knew exactly what they were doing – and still feel no remorse about it, even to this day. Those that participated in this terrible action felt no empathy for the people of New Orleans.

As the LA Times reported way back in September of 2005, “Little over a week after this mostly white suburb became a symbol of callousness for using armed officers to seal one of the last escape routes from New Orleans — trapping thousands of mostly black evacuees in the flooded city — the Gretna City Council passed a resolution supporting the police chief's move. 'This wasn't just one man's decision," Mayor Ronnie C. Harris said Thursday. "The whole community backs it.'"

If a whole community is responsible for a crime, how do you rebuild justice? We hope these lawsuits are a step in the direction of accountability.