NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – Deputy units parked outside Orleans Parish Criminal District Court on Saturday (July 19) were a visible sign of compliance after Sheriff Susan Hutson was found in contempt for pausing the staffing.
On weekends and holidays during the COVID-19 pandemic, OPSO stopped providing courthouse security and bringing defendants to the courthouse for first appearances. But in June, Chief Judge Tracey Flemings-Davillier ordered Hutson to resume the duties, saying a failure to do so would infringe upon due process for defendants awaiting their hearings.
Hutson claimed she lacked the funding and personnel to do so. She said the order could cost hundreds of thousands of dollars in overtime pay…