FEMA is covering the majority of the costs for the facility, but the city has reallocated nearly $30 million for the project.
Author Archives: Nick Chrastil
Nicholas Chrastil covers criminal justice for The Lens. As a freelancer, his work has appeared in Slate, Undark, Mother Jones, and the Atavist, among other outlets. Chrastil has a master's degree in mass communication from Louisiana State University, where his research focused on New Orleans' newspapers during the Reconstruction era. During his time at LSU, he also covered the Louisiana state legislature as part of the Manship Statehouse Bureau. He is a native of Minneapolis, Minnesota.
Posted inCriminal Justice
Several detainees injured by DOC officers during shakedown of New Orleans jail last week
Sheriff’s Office again offers little information on the operation or the alleged injuries.
Posted inCriminal Justice
US Dept. of Justice official expressed concerns over state’s ‘problematic’ plan to move kids to Angola, offered assistance
The transfers could violate federal law and open the state up to litigation, a juvenile justice official at the federal agency wrote days after the state’s plan was announced.
Posted inCriminal Justice
Hearing on suit challenging juvenile transfers to Angola ends without ruling from bench
The judge presiding over the suit, who called the case against the state ‘thin,’ will issue a ruling later this month.
Posted inCriminal Justice
Federal judge hears testimony on state’s plan to transfer youth to Angola
The lead plaintiff in a class-action suit against the state, a detainee at Bridge City Center for Youth, testified behind closed doors on Tuesday.
Posted inCriminal Justice
‘I almost died’: More New Orleans jail detainees say they sustained serious injuries in a raid last month, despite claims made by sheriff
One man said he suffered two collapsed lungs after officers shot him with a bean-bag round and beat him, even as he was complying with orders. The Sheriff’s Office declined to comment on the new accounts.
Posted inCriminal Justice
Jail detainee says officer kicked him in the face during raid to end protest
Ronald Craige, who is diabetic, said he was not offered insulin for three-days during the standoff, despite Sheriff Susan Hutson’s claims that detainees refused their meds.
Posted inCriminal Justice
State turns over documents related to housing youth at Angola
The documents confirm that the facility will house a maximum-security behavioral treatment program.
Posted inCriminal Justice
Internal document outlining program for youth at Angola raises concerns among advocates
A ‘program summary’ suggests that the Angola facility could be used as a maximum-security unit for youths housed at any OJJ facility, not just Bridge City.
Posted inCriminal Justice
Federal judge in consent decree case blasts Sheriff Hutson for lack of transparency
Hutson has not consulted the court on recent jail violence, meetings on jail improvements.