Michael Carroll News
Federal judge suggests there may be some grounds for delaying Louisiana inmate's execution
A federal judge has partially rejected a motion by the Louisiana attorney general to dismiss death row inmate Jessie Hoffman's lawsuit, which challengers the state’s planned use of nitrogen gas to execute Hoffman for raping and murdering a woman in 1996.
Louisiana charter school: State education agency's takeover of school's governing board 'unlawful'
A Baton Rouge-area charter school is suing the Louisiana Board of Elementary and Secondary Education (BESE) for removing the school’s Board of Directors in February, calling the action illegal and unconstitutional.
Federal lawsuit challenges Louisiana's new execution protocols using nitrogen gas
A death row prisoner scheduled to be executed next month has filed a federal lawsuit challenging Louisiana's plans for capital punishment using nitrogen hypoxia, calling the execution method cruel and unusual and shrouded in secrecy.
Appeals court reverses order to reinstate LSU law professor amid legal battle over academic freedom
A Louisiana State University law professor who was suspended after making some expletive-laden political comments in class suffered a setback last week when an appeals court reversed a lower court order to reinstate him.
Louisiana attorney general: Orleans Parish Sheriff's Office's 'sanctuary' policies must end
An Orleans Parish Sheriff’s Office consent decree that limits cooperation with federal requests to detain inmates suspected of immigration violations should be dissolved, the Louisiana Attorney General’s Office said in a federal court motion.
Disability rights group seeks to drop lawsuit challenging Louisiana's absentee voter restrictions
A Louisiana advocacy group for the disabled has asked a federal court to drop its voting-rights lawsuit after Disability Rights Louisiana failed to find any instance of officials rejecting a disabled voter’s ballot in November or December of last year.
Victims of New Orleans terror attack sue city, contractors over 'preventable' deaths
Twenty-one victims of the New Year’s Day terrorist attack in New Orleans are suing the city, Police Department and city contractors, alleging that the carnage caused by a speeding pickup truck in the French Quarter could have been prevented.
Judge rejects Louisiana insurance regulators' cease-and-desist order, fines against MMA law firm
The Louisiana Department of Insurance did not have the authority to issue fines and a cease-and-desist order against a Texas law firm accused of massive fraud involving hurricane damage claims, an administrative judge ruled.
Federal jury rejects free-speech allegations in lawsuit filed by St. John Parish environmental activist
A federal jury has rejected allegations by an environmental and racial justice advocate in St. John the Baptist Parish that parish elected leaders violated her free speech rights and the state’s open-meeting law during a public meeting in 2023.
Federal judge: Louisiana's police officer buffer zone law 'unconstitutionally void for vagueness'
A federal judge has barred Louisiana officials from enforcing a new law that creates a no-approach zone around police officers whenever officers tell citizens to back off.
LMU law professor files academic-freedom lawsuit after being relieved of teaching duties
A Louisiana State University law professor is suing LSU after being suspended from his teaching responsibilities for making some humor-laced political comments in class, including phrases such as “F– Landry” and “F– Trump.”
Environmental group sues Port of South Louisiana, export company over alleged unpaid taxes
A company that spearheaded a now-defunct grain elevator project in St. John the Baptist Parish is being sued for failing to make payments in lieu of taxes to the Sheriff’s Office and other public agencies in the parish.
Louisiana shipbuilder to pay $1 million settlement over charges of hiring ineligible workers
A Louisiana shipyard company has agreed to pay more than $1 million to settle a legal dispute in the Eastern District of Louisiana brought by federal prosecutors who alleged the firm used ineligible workers to build fast-response cutters (FRC) for the U.S. Coast Guard.
Louisiana sues Biden administration over new ban on offshore oil and gas leasing
Louisiana and four other states have filed a federal lawsuit against the Biden administration over the offshore oil and gas leasing ban announced in its waning days, arguing that only Congress has the power to “regulate property.”
Louisiana set to sue Biden administration over new offshore drilling ban in eastern Gulf of Mexico
Louisiana officials are poised to file another federal lawsuit against the Biden administration’s energy policies, the latest salvo directed against the president’s Jan. 6 withdrawal of the eastern Gulf of Mexico from future oil and gas leasing.
Louisiana high court sides with state agencies, backs removal of homeless encampments
In a split decision, the Louisiana Supreme Court has dissolved a lower court’s restraining order that limited state agencies’ ability to clear homeless encampments in public areas of New Orleans.
Louisiana real estate associations sued in federal court over alleged anticompetitive practices
Two Louisiana real estate agents and two brokers have filed a federal lawsuit against several real estate associations, including the National Association of Realtors (NAR) and Louisiana Realtors Association (LRA), accusing them of engaging in anti-competitive practices.
Tort-reform advocates criticize state Supreme Court's reversal in personal-injury damages case
Tort-reform advocates are expressing dismay at the Louisiana Supreme Court’s decision last month to reinstate most of an eight-figure jury award in a personal-injury case, reversing an earlier opinion that slashed the damages amount by more than half.
Louisiana high court gives librarian avenue to advance defamation lawsuit
A Louisiana appeals court will have to consider whether or not a librarian’s defamation lawsuit against a group advocating for government transparency has merit, the state Supreme Court decided last month.
Louisiana attorney general urges most school districts to display Ten Commandments in classrooms using her guidance
State Attorney General Liz Murrill on Friday offered public school districts in the state four sample Ten Commandments displays to comply with the provisions of House Bill 71, which civil rights groups have challenged in federal courts as unconstitutional.