Paincourtville Officer Died After Sting Operation An Assumption Parish Sheriff's deputy was killed Wednesday night during an undercover drug operation, Sheriff Mike Waguespack said this morning. Sgt. Jeremy Newchurch, 31, of Paincourtville, died at Assumption Community Hospital following the 8:30 p.m. shooting, Waguespack said. Newchurch was shot in the upper chest area just above his bullet proof vest during a scuffle with a man officers were trying to arrest after a high-speed chase, Waguespack said. Newchurch and seven other drug agents were trying to execute felony drug warrants, Waguespack said. [continues 117 words]
Prosecutors Turn to Little-Known Law When a jury determined earlier this year that Jake Johnson had been murdered, it had seen no weapon. Prosecutors didn't even try to establish intent, and they conceded the victim played a key role in his own death. Yet the second-degree murder conviction brought the killer the same mandatory life-without-parole sentence handed out routinely to shooters and stabbers. All prosecutors had to establish was that defendant Jeanie Hano, 42, had sold methadone to the 16-year-old victim and that the same pills contributed to his death by overdose. [continues 1350 words]
Prosecutors Turn To Little-Known Law When a jury determined earlier this year that Jake Johnson had been murdered, it had seen no weapon. Prosecutors didn't even try to establish intent, and they conceded the victim played a key role in his own death. Yet the second-degree murder conviction brought the killer the same mandatory life-without-parole sentence handed out routinely to shooters and stabbers. All prosecutors had to establish was that defendant Jeanie Hano, 42, had sold methadone to the 16-year-old victim and that the same pills contributed to his death by overdose. [continues 1345 words]
He Could Get 120-Year Sentence For Plea In Three Cocaine Deals Lutcher Police Chief Corey Pittman, accused of selling more than 50 grams of crack cocaine to an undercover federal operative this summer, pleaded guilty to three counts of cocaine distribution Wednesday and could face up to 120 years in prison. Pittman, 29, pleaded guilty to three counts of distribution of 5 or more grams of crack cocaine in front of U.S. District Court Judge Ginger Berrigan and faces a mandatory minimum sentence of five years for each count and a maximum of 40 years per count. Pittman also could face a $2 million fine per count. [continues 360 words]
I'm writing about Marian Wright Edelman's thoughtful column: "Increasing criminalization of children: How did we get here?" (Nov 28th issue). The answer to Edelman's question is: the war on drugs. Even though whites and blacks use illegal drugs at about the same rate, blacks are 13 times more likely to go to jail or prison for drug crimes than whites are. It's obvious that the so-called war on drugs is actually a war on (politically selected) people--and black people are those politically selected people. [continues 56 words]
He Stole Bus, Rescued Others After Katrina An Algiers man hailed by some as a hero for commandeering a school bus the day after Hurricane Katrina to take 60 stranded residents to safety in Houston has been arrested on drug charges where his bus journey began: the Fischer public housing complex. Jabar Gibson, 20, who garnered a movie deal and national attention as the renegade bus driver, was booked Friday with possession with intent to distribute heroin after police stopped his rental car for allegedly driving erratically, New Orleans police said. [continues 426 words]
Methadone Sold Illegally, Cops Say The owner of a Slidell drugstore that was one of the nation's top purchasers of methadone in September was arrested Wednesday on charges of selling narcotics without prescriptions at his pharmacy. Gary Richardson, a pharmacist who owns the Medicap Pharmacy at 140 Gause Blvd., was arrested Wednesday morning after he sold methadone to two undercover narcotics agents who didn't have prescriptions for the drug, Slidell Police Chief Freddy Drennan said. Richardson, 54, 13477 Riverlake Drive, Covington, had been under investigation for about six months after authorities received several complaints about him dispensing unprescribed narcotics, Drennan said. [continues 276 words]
When Michael Burton started selling designer drugs over the Internet, he never imagined anyone would get hurt. That was before James Edward Downs -- a 22-year-old St. Francisville quadriplegic -- dipped the tip of his tongue into a little blue vial of white powder from American Chemical Supply, developed a 108-degree temperature, had a seizure, went into a coma and died. "This is definitely a wake-up call of actions versus consequences," the 25-year-old Burton said Friday in federal court before he was sentenced to 13 years in prison. "There are things that could happen you might never foresee." U.S. District Judge Frank Polozola also ordered him to pay nearly $16,000 in restitution to Downs' family, and more than $5,000 to Ingenix Subrogation Services, a firm involved in Downs' health-care costs. [continues 628 words]
Marcus Goudeau, 22, and John Marcotte, 40, both died Friday morning 2-1/2 hours apart and in separate homes. A third unidentified man was in critical condition in the ICU of Opelousas General Health System, according to St. Landry Parish Chief Deputy Laura Balthazar. While Balthazar would not speculate on the cause of the deaths, she did confirm that drug screens were taken from all three men. Test results may be in today or Tuesday, she said. The deaths occurred the same day Balthazar and Chief Detective Rene Speyrer announced their investigation into tainted drugs being sold in Melville. According to Balthazar, the problem may cover the entire southwestern region of the state. [continues 314 words]
Two Melville Men Die The Day Sheriff Warns Of 'Tainted' Drugs MELVILLE - The suspicious deaths of two Melville men come on the heels of an ongoing investigation by the St. Landry Parish Sheriff's Department of "tainted" illegal drugs being sold in the area. Marcus Goudeau, 22, and John Marcotte, 40, both died Friday morning two-and-a-half hours apart and in separate homes. A third unidentified man was in critical condition in the ICU of Opelousas General Health System, according to St. Landry Parish Chief Deputy Laura Balthazar. [continues 382 words]
People Suffer Withdrawal While Fleeing Hurricane, Search For Treatment Before Katrina hit, untold numbers of its victims already were suffering a different kind of wrath: drug addiction. Now, thousands of addicts are thought to be among the hundreds of thousands displaced by the storm, seeking drug fixes, recovery or simple compassion in the new places they are temporarily calling home. The diaspora has created challenges in communities from Alexandria and Baton Rouge, La., to Houston and San Antonio, where taxed addiction counselors already have full caseloads and, in some cases, all staffed treatment beds are full. In communities where addicts are arriving, there is concern about the long-term worsening of local drug problems, but also stories of heroic compassion. [continues 1023 words]
NEW ORLEANS -- A federal grand jury accused Lutcher Police Chief Corey Pittman on Thursday of selling crack cocaine, once in June and twice this month, to an undercover Drug Enforcement Administration operative. The three-count indictment came eight days after Pittman's arrest and 13 days after he allegedly sold crack to the DEA operative for $900. That alleged sale occurred Aug. 12 at an Airline Highway truck stop in Reserve and was monitored by video, audio and physical surveillance, federal authorities said. [continues 437 words]
River Parishes children playing a game of cops and robbers last week may have forgotten that there's supposed to be a distinction between the two sides. In two neighboring parishes, law enforcement officers were arrested and accused of playing the role of the bad guys. A sheriff's deputy in St. John the Baptist Parish was fired after his superiors watched a surveillance video that, they say, showed him stealing items from a School Board vehicle. Meanwhile, the elected police chief in Lutcher, in adjacent St. James Parish, was booked with distributing drugs. [continues 272 words]
Re: "17 held in Grand Isle drug sting: Undercover officer worked year on case," Metro, Aug. 11. Grand Isle is not a big place. An estimated 1,500 full-time residents shrimp, fish or work in the oil patch. Everyone knows everyone else and there are few real secrets. However, on Aug. 10, Grand Isle had a rude awakening. At 6:30 a.m. it was raided by DEA, State Police, and the National Guard. No local officials were notified or brought in on what was coming down. [continues 201 words]
He's Accused In Sale Of Cocaine, Pain Pills The Lutcher police chief, accused of selling $5,000 worth of narcotics to undercover federal officers, was denied bond on Friday after a federal judge determined he represented too much of danger to society to be released. Corey Pittman, 29, was remanded without bail to the custody of U.S. marshals by Magistrate Judge Louis Moore Jr. during a detention hearing in federal court in New Orleans. A grand jury will be convened to determine whether Pittman will be indicted on charges of selling $5,200 worth of crack cocaine, cocaine and prescription drugs to federal Drug Enforcement Administration officers during a sting operation over the past three months, said Jan Maselli Mann, the first assistant U.S. attorney. [continues 393 words]
NEW ORLEANS -- Despite an impassioned plea from Corey Pittman's mother, a magistrate ruled Friday that the Lutcher police chief must remain in federal custody while awaiting indictment and trial on charges he allegedly sold crack cocaine and other narcotics to an undercover Drug Enforcement Administration operative for more than $5,000. Pittman, who was arrested by federal authorities Wednesday, could be indicted as early as next week. A federal grand jury in New Orleans met Thursday to consider his case. The grand jury did not meet Friday. U.S. Magistrate Louis Moore Jr. agreed with a federal prosecutor and a U.S. Pretrial Services official who said Pittman posed a danger to the community if released on bond. When a chief law enforcement officer is accused of selling drugs, Moore said, "it gives the citizens grave concern." "This is a grave charge," the magistrate said, reminding everyone in his courtroom that Pittman is presumed innocent until proven otherwise. "It casts a long shadow across the community. You pose a danger to the community." [continues 459 words]
He's Accused of Cocaine, Crack, Pill Sales Corey Pittman, the youngest police chief ever in Lutcher, went to the St. Charles Parish Sheriff's Office on Wednesday morning under the pretense that he would learn more about a pending arrest in his jurisdiction. Little did he know that he was about to be arrested. Pittman, 29, was booked with five charges of distributing controlled substances. Authorities say he sold cocaine, crack cocaine and pain pills to an undercover operative during a three-month period. [continues 1071 words]
Pittman Accused Of Selling Drugs Lutcher Police Chief Corey Pittman was arrested Wednesday morning by FBI and DEA agents who accused him of selling crack cocaine, painkillers and other drugs to undercover officers and pocketing $5,200 in cash. U.S. Magistrate Louis Moore Jr. ordered the 29-year-old Pittman held in federal custody until a hearing Friday morning to determine whether the police chief will be detained without bond. "This case is nothing more than the fox guarding the henhouse," James Bernazzani, special agent-in-charge of the FBI's New Orleans office, said during a news conference at the Drug Enforcement Administration's Louisiana headquarters in Metairie. [continues 1154 words]
Cold Medicine Access Restricted In Meth Fight When Lashonta Faciane went into her neighborhood Walgreens drugstore last week, she could hardly believe her eyes. In the cough and cold section, where boxes of Tylenol Sinus, Sudafed and other nonprescription drugs once dangled from hooks in the Mid-City store, she saw only tags bearing pictures of their packaging, along with instructions, in English and Spanish, to take the appropriate tag to the pharmacy clerk to make a purchase. "That's ridiculous," Faciane said, rolling her eyes. [continues 1077 words]
Mourners Recall Faith And Dedication Family, friends and co-workers painted a vivid picture Saturday of a spiritual man who considered law enforcement his mission as they laid to rest Terry Melancon Jr., the narcotics detective killed Wednesday in a shootout with a suspected drug dealer. Melancon's neighbor Lori Daigle told the crowd that one of her last conversations with Melancon was Monday night after he learned that Daigle's grandmother had died. "He said, 'we should be jealous of your grandmother,'" she said, "He said, 'Sometimes this world seems so bad I say, God, you can take me, I'm ready.'" [continues 524 words]
Inside Louisiana
