Why is New Orleans Mayor LaToya Cantrell hiding and refusing to answer questions about Kyshun Webster, the recently-resigned head of the city’s Juvenile Justice Intervention Center, who has been the center of an investigation and controversy?
WWL-TV investigative reporter Mike Perlstein revealed the trouble-plagued JJIC has been led by a man who has mostly been absent from his leadership role while escapes and rapid staff turnover have exacerbated the problems that existed when he took over the position.
WWL-TV is requesting city records to document that Webster spent a significant amount of time collecting his annual salary of $143,412 while heading a private insurance company in Kenner where he is believed to have collected a salary of at least $130,000 a year.
Mayor Cantrell granted Webster special permission through the “Outside Employer Authorization Form” to devote 3 to 5 hours per week to running an insurance company in Kenner - Operation Society Benefits.
But current and past JJIC staff members report that Webster was rarely to be found at the facility unless it was time to discipline or fire an employee. Staff members said it was not unusual to go a week or two without seeing Webster. Mayor Cantrell essentially gave Webster permission to collect his salary while running a separate business.
It has also been revealed that as the CEO of Operation Reach, a non-profit education program for young people for 12 years, Kyshun Webster appears to have been guilty of extravagant personal spending to pad his $130,000 a year salary. A federal audit shows that close to $1 million in grant money cannot be accounted for under Webster’s leadership. Following the federal audit, state and local agencies pulled their grants to Operation Reach.
Mayor Cantrell has refused to answer questions about Kyshun Webster’s position with the JJIC and his special permission to pursue a private business. The mayor is also refusing to answer questions about whether she was aware of Webster’s problems with Operation Reach when she appointed him to be the head of JJIC.
When issues surrounding Webster heated up and the City Council wanted to question him, he suddenly took a leave of absence on March 18; and yesterday, he officially resigned his position as head of JJIC.
As if all of this is not troubling enough - there is talk that Kyshun Webster may be in line for another important position with the city of New Orleans.
Is Mayor Cantrell running the city like a dictator? Why does she hide and refuse to answer questions about controversies involving her choice appointees? Why did the mayor fail to hold Webster accountable for the massive amount of time he appears to have devoted to his private business while collecting $143,412 in an annual salary from a city that is broke? And if it is all so innocent, why is Webster refusing to answer questions?
We know the city of New Orleans is a haven for corruption, but we would like to think it’s getting better. This controversy with Mayor Cantrell’s selection of Kyshun Webster as head a juvenile facility that could play a vital role in changing the criminal paths many young people have chosen and the revelations of Webster’s alleged behavior only remind us that becoming mayor of New Orleans is not about doing the work for the people of the city - the job seems to be more about turning the keys to the city’s money over to the mayor and those she chooses to reward with the appointments of dishonest individuals.
When will the citizens of New Orleans realize that the mayor assumes you are stupid and that she is entitled to get whatever she can get while in office and to set her up after she leaves office.
The city of New Orleans is broke, and the mayor has complained about the lack of funds to perform basic duties - and yet, she has shown an instinct to disregard the citizens of New Orleans in favor of her political whims. And how can the mayor continue to hide from questions about her actions in office that have compromised the integrity of the city of New Orleans?
