YOUNGSVILLE, La. (KPEL News) — Art LeBreton formally announced his candidacy Monday for Chief of Police of the City of Youngsville, setting up what could be a rematch-adjacent showdown with incumbent Chief JP Broussard in November.
LeBreton, a retired executive with the Lafayette Parish Sheriff’s Office, tried to run for the same seat in 2024 but was ruled ineligible before qualifying opened. According to an Attorney General opinion, he had not satisfied Louisiana’s requirement that a chief of police candidate be domiciled in the municipality for at least the full year before qualifying. LeBreton had moved to Youngsville in August 2023, just weeks before the qualifying window opened the following summer.
That clock has now run its full course. With the 2026 regular election qualifying set for July 29-31, LeBreton will have been a Youngsville resident for nearly three years by the time he files.
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LeBreton’s Law Enforcement Background
LeBreton spent his entire law enforcement career at the Lafayette Parish Sheriff’s Office, joining the reserve unit in May 1983 and retiring in November 2018. According to his campaign website, he was selected as patrol commander under Sheriff Michael Neustrom in July 2000, where he oversaw more than 120 employees and the agency earned national accreditation from the Commission on Accreditation of Law Enforcement Agencies.
He was later promoted to Enforcement Commander at the rank of Major and served as Chief Deputy, overseeing uniform patrol, criminal investigations, forensics, metro narcotics, community services, and critical incident management. He held that role until his retirement…