A new report by the national non-profit Human Rights for Kids has found that the degree to which the United States punishes crimes committed by kids is far out of line with international standards, calling the mass incarceration of children as adults “one of the largest government-sanctioned human rights abuses against children in the world […]
Category: Top Story
Posted inEnvironment
Petrochemical industry in Louisiana plans a ‘defense’ amid growing opposition
After residents of America’s ‘Cancer Alley’ in Louisiana put a national spotlight on their fight for a healthy environment, the state’s economic interests and petrochemical giants are backing the creation of a new “sustainability council” to counter grassroots activists, documents show. In recent years, the activists have successfully fought construction of two multibillion-dollar plastics facilities […]
Posted inCriminal Justice
A Louisiana lawmaker wants mandatory life without parole sentence for fentanyl distribution
A measure that would add a conviction for fentanyl distribution to the short list of crimes punishable by a mandatory life sentence without the possibility of parole is being backed by Louisiana prosecutors as a response to the opioid epidemic in the state, while advocates warn that the harsh sentence will throw people away for […]
Posted inEnvironment
Oil sprayed on neighborhood from S&WB plant for second time
Residents living across Spruce Street from the Sewerage and Water Board’s Carrollton Power Plant found their homes and property coated in oily residue over the weekend of April 8-9 — for the second time in just over a year. The pattern and distribution mimic a 2022 venting of lubrication oil from the exhaust stack of […]
Posted inEnvironment
Nonprofit: Greenfield owes $200 million in property taxes for grain elevator project
A nonprofit opposed to the construction of a grain elevator in St. John the Baptist Parish sued the company behind the project, Greenfield Louisiana, along with the parish’s tax assessor, arguing Greenfield is being shielded from $209 million in property taxes. The Descendants Project, founded by twin sister Jo and Joy Banner, said in a […]
Posted inCriminal Justice
Sheriff turns over information related to questionable uses of force
After weeks of delay, civil rights attorneys representing people locked up in the New Orleans jail are now satisfied that the Orleans Parish Sheriff’s Office has turned over all the records they have related to several questionable uses of force at the facility earlier this year. But they say many investigative records they requested that […]
Posted inGovernment & Politics
SWB outages leave pumping system, city vulnerable
Over half of the machines which provide antiquated 25 cycle power to drainage, water, and sewer pumps across the city’s east bank are currently out of service, the New Orleans Sewage and Water Board said, sinking the utility’s ability to quickly move water off streets during severe spring storms below its own stated needs. The […]
Posted inCriminal Justice
Orleans Parish Sheriff Hutson withholding investigative records related several ‘serious’ uses of force on mental health tier
In late January, a sergeant working in the New Orleans jail called for backup because a detainee, who was housed on a tier reserved for people with mental health needs, had a broomstick in his cell. When three deputies arrived, they found the cell window covered in feces and “a large amount of unknown liquid […]
Posted inUncategorized
These global banks made emission pledges. They’re still investing billions in expanding US gas exports
America’s massive gas export boom is about to get bigger. By the end of the decade, the Gulf Coast could see as many as 12 new liquefied natural gas terminals (LNG) built along its shores. This expansion would triple the amount of gas the US currently exports to be burned around the world, adding more […]
Posted inCriminal Justice
Drug-related deaths at Angola prompted strip searches, but who is bringing in contraband?
Abdullah Muhammad entered the gates of the Louisiana State Penitentiary at Angola as a 25-year-old with a freshly issued life sentence. At intake, before he was issued a prison jumpsuit, guards searched him and told him to disrobe. “Anytime anyone forces you to take your clothes off, it’s traumatizing,” Muhammad said. He remembers feeling tense […]