Orleans Parish District Attorney Jason Williams says an "extensive internal review" of what happened in court earlier this week when an assistant district attorney appears to have gone rogue and refused charges on 16 persons arrested for carrying weapons in the French Quarter and other parts of the city during Mardi Gras.
ADA Emily Maw refused to press charges on Tuesday against the defendants on the condition they surrender their firearms to the Parish.
The Orleans Parish Criminal Court then turned 15 of the defendants loose.
Acting to hold down the lid on the controversial move by an underling, DA Williams released a statement saying Maws actions were "improper and does not represent our office policy or procedure."
The statement went on to explain: "DA Williams has ordered an extensive internal review of each matter brought before magistrate court on this date, as well as appropriate remedial measures to prevent similar unauthorized activity in the future. This instance will otherwise be handled as an internal personnel matter."
The release of the statement came some time after NOPD Interim Chief Superintendent Michelle Woodfork stated during a press briefing the department had taken just short of 250 guns off the streets during the Mardi Gras period.
But the fury at the decision to not press charges and release the defendants was still palpable as Lieutenant Governor Billy Nungesser sounded off to WWL-TV: "Shame on the people that let them go. When they kill somebody, cause they will, cause they had no consequences for carrying the gun the first time, take the gun, let them go home, they'll go buy another gun. Until they kill someone, they won't spend anytime in jail."
FULL STATEMENT OF THE DISTRICT ATTORNEY'S OFFICE:
Taking guns off the street through aggressive enforcement and prosecution under existing gun laws is a top priority of our office. Prior to Mardi Gras, the DA met with our law enforcement partners at LSP and NOPD to reaffirm our joint support for this work.
The DA’s Office is committed to a thorough screening process for each charge delivered from law enforcement, the Assistant DA assigned to the initial review of these cases during first appearances deviated from our standard practice. We communicated this to our law enforcement partners and reaffirmed our shared commitment to the importance of prosecuting gun crimes to abate violence in our streets.
The Assistant DA’s strategic decision to refuse these misdemeanors in exchange for forfeiture of the weapons at first appearance was improper and does not represent our office policy or procedure. DA Williams has ordered an extensive internal review of each matter brought before magistrate court on this date, as well as appropriate remedial measures to prevent similar unauthorized activity in the future. This instance will otherwise be handled as an internal personnel matter.