Federal Judge Assigned to NOPD Consent Decree Calls State Police Expansion Plan “Confusing and Contradictory”

By Anitra D. Brown
The New Orleans Tribune

Judge Susie Morgan, who presides over the federal consent decree in which the New Orleans Police Department is under, began a Thursday morning status hearing to discuss progress made in how NOPD’s officers conduct stops, searches and arrests by offering her opinion on a different, though slightly related topic.

The question: Will Troop NOLA—an expansion of state police presence in the city that has been pushed by Gov. Landry and even lauded by some local officials—be compelled to operate under the guidelines of the federal consent decree?

The short answer is “No.” Because the Louisiana State Police is not under federal oversight, Troop NOLA would not be subject to or required to operate under the consent decree, Judge Morgan said.

Morgan’s opinion went further as she expressed concern about that proposal, stating that as she sought details about the plan to assign the troop to the city, a move that proponents claim will help an overwhelmed NOPD and make the city safer, the responses she received were “confusing and contradictory.”

Among questions, the federal judge says she still has: How many state police officers will be deployed in New Orleans?

When will they arrive? What sort of training will they have? And just how will Troop NOLA coordinate with NOPD?

“In my opinion, that’s not a good start,” Morgan said, ultimately urging NOPD’s leadership to carefully consider how it will work to avoid regressing on the improvement its has made while under the consent decree if and when Troop NOLA is deployed.

“Think through and plan ahead . . . to ensure that NOPD maintains its high standards and commitment to constitutional policing,” Morgan said. “No one wants to return to the practices that (resulted in NOPD being paced under a consent decree).”

Judge Morgan noted that Louisiana State Police officers are, in fact, obligated to police within the guidelines of the U.S. Constitution, as well as LSP’s own policies.

Even so, that plain statement of fact may be of little comfort to New Orleans residents who question how officers from a state police department that arguably ought to be under a consent decree of its own will wield authority in New Orleans.

In June 2022, the U.S. Department of Justice launched a pattern or practice investigation into the Louisiana State Police to assess whether LSP uses excessive force and whether it engages in racially discriminatory policing. The investigation came on the heels of a string of complaints and civil suits, alleging the use of excessive force and racial profiling on the part of state troopers, including the beating death of Ronald Greene, an unarmed motorist whose killing state troopers initially falsely claimed was the result of a crash after withholding body camera footage.

Judge Morgan is not the only one with questions about Landry’s Troop NOLA plan. For his part, New Orleans City Councilman Oliver Thomas, who oversees the Council’s Criminal Justice Committee, raised concerns shortly after Gov. Landry announced plans for the special troop in New Orleans, inviting the Governor and Louisiana State Police leaders to appear before the committee to provide more details about the plan.

Of course, that never happened.

And oddly enough, in his effort to exact more control over the City of New Orleans, Landry pointed to the consent decree as the reason NOPD was in so-called “shambles” and in dire need of his aid vis-a-vis Troop NOLA.

However, if the today’s hearing is any indication, Gov. Landry is out of touch and, quite frankly, wrong about the impact of and need for the consent decree.

While NOPD may not be ready to be out of the federal order, representatives from the Department of Justice, as well as the Judge Morgan and the Consent Decree monitor each praised progress the Department has made as it related to changes in officer training, policies and monitoring in an effort to ensure that more NOPD stops, searches and arrests complied with the Constitution.

Judge Morgan announced the next status hearing on the NOPD federal consent decree will be held on April 18 and will focus on updates in the area of bias-free policing.