By AnnMarie Bedard | LSU Manship School News Service
BATON ROUGE–The Louisiana House voted 63-28 Thursday to eliminate the New Orleans clerk of criminal court position, a move that would prevent newly elected clerk Calvin Duncan from serving his term.
Duncan, who was sworn in Wednesday after winning 68% of the vote in a November election, will be unable to take over the job as planned May 4 if the measure is signed into law by Gov. Jeff Landry, who has supported the proposal.
Duncan, who was wrongfully convicted and spent years in prison before being released and later exonerated, worked as a “prison lawyer” during his incarceration and later graduated from law school.
Citing his struggle to access his own legal records, Duncan ran and won the election for Orleans Parish Clerk of Criminal Court, unseating the incumbent, Darren Lombard.
The legislation, authored by Sen. Jay Morris, R-West Monroe, targeted Orleans as the only Louisiana parish with separate civil and criminal court clerks.
Morris had said that the bill would save the state money by consolidating the offices.
Members of the Legislative Black Caucus said they felt disrespected by what they described as an overreach.
“It is not right for a member from West Monroe to tell New Orleans what to do in their elections,” said Rep. Denise Marcelle, D-Baton Rouge.
Lawmakers noted it is rare for the legislature to pass a bill strongly opposed by representatives from the affected district.
“This deteriorates democracy,” opponents said during more than two hours of debate, as Black Caucus members stood alongside New Orleans representatives on the House floor to urge colleagues to reject the bill.
They cited concerns about the state constitution and the precedent of removing an elected official before the completion of a term.
Rep. Dixon McMakin, who handled Morris’ bill in the House, said the proposal is intended to align New Orleans with the rest of the state.
“We have to do something the legislatures before us should have done,” McMakin said.
Rep. Kyle Green Jr., D-Marrero, proposed an amendment that would allow Duncan to serve out his term before the merger, but the measure was not adopted.
Under the bill, employees in Duncan’s office would receive job protection for one year and transition to a single, unified clerk structure.
With the governor’s support, Morris and McMakin also have bills to eliminate three criminal court judges in Orleans Parish.
Louisiana Attorney General Liz Murrill, a close ally of the governor’s, supported Duncan’s opponent in the Orleans clerk race. During the campaign, she questioned whether Duncan had technically been exonerated, though there is consensus among criminal law practitioners that his name has been cleared.