The Orleans Parish School Board may once again approve annual charter renewal decisions — dictating which schools close and which remain open — but board members are considering whether to lower the threshold required to override the superintendent. For years, the highly anticipated closure announcements, communicated annually in November and December, were made with virtually […]
Posted inEnvironment
Leaks beneath pump stations responsible for New Orleans’ drinking water went uninvestigated for two years
Leaks from beneath one of three Sewerage and Water Board pump stations that distribute the majority of New Orleanians’ drinking water went uninvestigated by the Board for nearly two years. The drinking water leaks were discovered during major upgrades to the Claiborne Avenue Pumping Station on the northern edge of the Carrollton Water and Power […]
Posted inCriminal Justice
How will the DA’s decision to revive the habitual offender law impact plea negotiations in New Orleans?
Earlier this month, Orleans Parish District Attorney Jason Williams announced that he was going back on his campaign promise to never utilize or threaten to use the state’s habitual offender law, which can dramatically increase prison sentences for people who have been convicted of prior felonies. And for the first time last week, prosecutors with […]
Posted inEnvironment
Lawsuit: Buildout of industrial facilities in Black areas of St. James Parish is discrimination
The St. James Parish government’s long history of locating highly pollutive industrial facilities in areas of the parish home to large concentrations of Black residents constitutes discrimination, and the parish must cease the practice, residents and environmental groups argued in a lawsuit filed in federal court this week. “We stand here today to say we […]
Posted inOpinion
The City Council must stand up for our neighbors and culture
As the artist Phlegm says, “Everything you love about New Orleans is because of Black people.” You can’t say you love and appreciate the culture we’re famous for while simultaneously hollowing out the Black neighborhoods responsible for it to serve wealthy tourists who call us “ghetto” and “sketchy.” Just check the Airbnb reviews in Central City or […]
Posted inEnvironment
U.S. Gulf Coast helps the world with natural gas exports, but at what cost?
About 30 miles south of New Orleans, a construction site visible from space is rising. Sandwiched between the Mississippi River and disappearing wetlands, the 256-hectare (632-acre) site is visited by a stream of tipper trucks and concrete mixers that stir up dust on Louisiana 23, the state highway that goes down to Venice, the last […]
Posted inBehind The Lens
Behind The Lens episode 197: ‘You can’t come out later and say it was in the name of safety’
Jurors are back in the criminal district courtrooms after a pause due to summons issues. Environmental groups review their options after a judge dismisses their lawsuit over an LNG facility.
Posted inCriminal Justice
Proposal to give police 25-foot buffer raises constitutional concerns
Getting within 25 feet of a police officer after being told to stop would be a crime under a measure being pushed by a Louisiana lawmaker, but the idea is raising constitutional concerns among advocacy organizations, who say it could deter people from witnessing and recording police abuse when they see it taking place. State […]
Posted inNews
School zone lights must now work in order to ticket drivers
An ordinance passed by the New Orleans City Council requires school zone flashing yellow lights to be working properly for camera tickets to be valid
Posted inEnvironment
Judge dismisses suit over Plaquemines LNG facility, environmental groups review options
Judge Wilson Fields of the 19th Judicial District Court in Baton Rouge on Monday sided with the state in dismissing the group’s petition but did not rule on the merits of their case. The environmental groups are now evaluating their legal options.