The advocates who wrote this report accuse Gov. Bobby Jindal of breaking his pledge to improve juvenile justice. Advocates for young people slipping into the clutches of the criminal justice system took to the steps of the statehouse today and called on Governor Bobby Jindal to stop “backsliding” on his commitment to reform the state’s […]
Author Archives: Tom Gogola
Tom Gogola covered criminal justice for The Lens from February 2012 to May 2013. He is a veteran journalist and editor who has written on a range of subjects for many publications, including Newsday, New York, The Nation, and Maxim. Gogola was a 2011 winner of the Hillman Foundation Sidney Award, for his groundbreaking report in New York magazine detailing regulatory waste in the commercial fishing industry.
Posted inCriminal Justice
Last inmate leaves facility; new pretrial program ends 1st week
By Tom Gogola, The Lens staff writer | It was the eve of National Lemonade Day in the state of Louisiana – and the day that the notorious Orleans Parish Prison House of Detention was emptied of its last prisoners. Orleans Parish Sheriff Marlin Gusman invited reporters to the corner of Perdido and South Dupre […]
Posted inGovernment & Politics, Investigations, Land Use
Katrina Cottages: Years late and $1 million over budget in the 9th Ward
An emergency housing program finally reaches the market at a cost half again as high as budgeted.
Posted inCriminal Justice
Public Defender, sheriff resolve lawsuit over attorney visits
By Tom Gogola, The Lens staff writer | The Orleans Parish Public Defender’s Office and the Orleans Parish Sheriff’s Office resolved a lawsuit Thursday with a deal designed to end persistent complaints about a lack of attorney-client privacy at the Orleans Parish Prison. Following a private meeting with lawyers Thursday morning, Civil District Court Judge […]
Posted inCriminal Justice
Judge tells sheriff, public defenders to negotiate solution to privacy complaint
Orleans Parish Sheriff Marlin Gusman’s attorneys were told to work with the Public Defender’s Office to find a solution to complaints over attorney-client privacy. Photo by Tom Gogola Orleans Parish Sheriff Marlin Gusman’s attorneys were told to work with the Public Defender’s Office to find a solution to complaints over attorney-client privacy. Photo by Tom […]
Posted inCriminal Justice
One OPP escapee still being sought after slipping under fence Saturday night
By Tom Gogola, The Lens staff writer | One of two inmates who escaped from Orleans Parish Prison Saturday is back in custody, though authorities were still searching for the other earlier today, the Sheriff’s Office said. Sherrick Brumfield, 27, who was awaiting trial on second degree battery charges, remains free. Reginald Young, 22, was […]
Posted inCriminal Justice
City Council seeks to expand CeaseFire to include more social-outreach services
By Tom Gogola, The Lens staff writer | New Orleans Crime Commissioner James Carter was called before the City Council’s Criminal Justice Committee Wednesday to talk about the implementation of the city’s new CeaseFire initiative in crime-ridden Central City. He didn’t have much to talk about because the program is just getting underway, so lawmakers […]
Posted inCriminal Justice
Gusman closes House of Detention
Surrounded by deputies, Orleans Parish Sherriff Marlin Gusman announced today that he is closing the Orleans Parish Prison House of Detention facility on Perdido Street. He said the move is based in part on “the mounting criticisms” and the “inspections by the federal people.”
Posted inCriminal Justice, Government & Politics
Sheriff finds job for chief judge's wife despite lack of appraisal experience
Orleans Parish Sheriff Marlin Gusman hired the wife of Municipal Court Chief Judge Paul Sens as a real-estate appraiser about the same time the judge hired Gusman’s wife.
Posted inCriminal Justice, Government & Politics
New Orleans tightens rules on who gets the boot – and parking revenues soar
By Tom Gogola, The Lens staff writer | Feel like the city’s got a boot on your neck? How about on your tire? There’s a reason why. In the past year, New Orleans parking officials have become much more aggressive in the use of devices that immobilize cars with outstanding parking tickets. “[W]e used to […]