GONZALES, La. (AP) — Former Louisiana Gov. Edwin Edwards — Louisiana’s only four-term governor — is back home after a weekend hospitalized for tests that were not related to COVID-19.
“All is well,” family spokesman Leo Honeycutt told The News-Star on Monday. He said the tests were related to respiratory and heart issues.
Edwards is 93 years old and was hospitalized in November with pneumonia.
Edwards’ wife, Trina Edwards, said on Facebook on Saturday that Edwards was flown to Shreveport for a scheduled check-up. She said he did not have symptoms of COVID-19 but was tested as a precaution, and the test was negative.
Edwards lives near Gonzales, southeast of Baton Rouge — about 230 miles (370 kilometers) from Shreveport. A statement released Saturday by Honeycutt said he flew on a plane provided by Ruston trucking and energy magnate James Davison. The two are longtime friends.
Edwards was hospitalized Saturday in Ochsner LSU Health Medical Center. In November, he was hospitalized in Baton Rouge for pneumonia. Saturday’s statement said he had heart bypass surgery 24 years ago and gets pneumonia every year.
“EWE just got back,” Honeycutt said Monday. “No coronavirus, no pneumonia, nothing. Happy New Year!”
Davison, who lives in Choudrant, and Edwards are long-time friends.
Edwards was governor from 1972 to 1980, from 1984 to 1988 and then from 1992 to 1996.
Edwards, who has continued to say he was innocent, was convicted in May 2000 on 17 counts of racketeering, mail and wire fraud, conspiracy, and money laundering. in a plot to rig riverboat casino licenses. He served eight years in prison ending in 2011.
