Water cascades from a fountain on Tuesday, March 21, 2023, at Southern University in Baton Rouge. (Matthew Perschall for Louisiana Illuminator)
Gov. Jeff Landry has chosen career prosecutor Tony Clayton as chairman of the Southern University System Board of Supervisors, a role he’s previously held on the panel.
Clayton, who will become chair effective Jan. 1, is the district attorney for the 18th Judicial District, which encompasses Iberville, West Baton Rouge and Pointe Coupee parishes. He’s held the elected position since 2020, before which he worked with the office as first assistant and chief of felony trials.
Prior to that, he worked in the East Baton Rouge Parish district attorney’s office and was a Louisiana Supreme Court-appointed judge for the 19th Judicial District. Clayton is also founding partner in a Port Allen law firm. The governor counts Clayton among his allies in his push for stricter criminal justice measures, with Clayton appearing several times before legislative panels in support of Landry’s proposals. “I have known Tony for a long time and there is no one better suited for this position,” the governor said in a statement. “As a graduate of Southern University, he knows exactly what it takes to bring the University’s education to a higher standard and properly train students for the workforce. I look forward to his great work.”