Louisiana Governor Jeff Landry says he will sign a bill that would eliminate the Orleans Parish Criminal Clerk of Court position if it clears the Louisiana House.
That bill, sponsored by Monroe Senator Jay Morris, cleared the Senate on a Republican party-line vote and awaits action in the House. It's one of several bills that Morris is carrying to drastically overhaul the Orleans Parish court system.
Gov. Landry says New Orleans needs to function more like the rest of the state.
"It's time for the parish of Orleans to be treated like every other parish," the governor told our partners at WWL-TV. "If they think that we need to have two clerks, then we should have two clerks in every parish."
During testimony before a legislative committee, Morris alluded to ulterior motives behind the bill. Last week, Sen. Morris told reporters last week that the bill is designed to keep Duncan from taking office before his term begins. If lawmakers give the bill final approval and if Gov. Landry signs the bill before May 4, Duncan would indeed be prevented from taking office despite being duly elected by Orleans Parish voters.
Duncan believes officials are retaliating against him personally. In 2021, Duncan was freed from state prison after a court ruled he was convicted of murder unjustly and made that a central plank in his platform. During the clerk of court campaign, Louisiana Attorney General Liz Murrill sent a letter to Duncan telling him to stop saying the state exonerated him "to avoid further action."
"This is totally wrong," Duncan told legislators. "Two clerks in New Orleans have been forever, and why eliminate the criminal district court, the court that affects people's liberty at a degree that's unbelievable."
