News -> INDReporter TUE, SEP 20 11:05AM by Leslie Turk

Supreme Court sends LHA board saga back to Rubin

Joe Dennis, John Freeman and Leon Simmons could soon be back in the sympathetic courtroom of District Judge Ed Rubin. The former Lafayette Housing Authority board of commission members have been fighting for reinstatement more than a year. City-Parish President Joey Durel removed them in August 2010 after a blistering audit of the agency led to an FBI investigation, and Rubin reinstated them Oct. 27, 2010, calling their dismissal arbitrary and capricious because board member Donald Fuselier was allowed to stay on.

(Fuselier subsequently resigned from the board in February of this year.)

Durel, however, again removed Dennis, Freeman and Simmons last November claiming the trio illegally went into executive session (although board members asked the media to leave the room so they could go into executive session, a visiting judge found that they had not violated the law).

After the council upheld their November dismissal, the three went back to Rubin, asking that Durel and the council be held in contempt of court for violating Rubin's original order to reinstate them.

Arguing that the second dismissal was a new removal unrelated to Rubin's order, the administration appealed, and the Third Circuit Court of Appeal ruled against LCG this April, noting it was premature to challenge the contempt issue. Durel et al also sought to have Rubin recused, claiming the order for contempt was secured through ex parte contact with the plaintiffs’ counsel. LCG also alleged bias and prejudice on Rubin's part, noting in court filings some of the judge's comments in a conference call:

a. “I’m irate about this matter. I’ve seen nothing but disregard of my October 27 Order.”
b. “I’m tired of this [expletive deleted].”
c. “I almost held them in contempt last time but Pat Ottinger took responsibility. Now they’re doing it again.”
d. “I’m tired of being in the middle of this [expletive deleted].”
e. “Mr. Hebert, unless the two of you can work something out before Friday, there’s
going to be a hearing on this matter.”

After Rubin's suggestion the parties try to settle, Hebert received an email from the former board members' counsel offering to discuss settlement terms to avoid a March 11, 2011, contempt proceeding, according to court filings. “It is unclear how a settlement between litigants can avoid contempt proceedings, but this email made it clear that both counsel who participated in the conference call with Judge Rubin had the same understanding of comment 4(e) above – a settlement between the parties would avoid the imminent contempt proceedings,” Hebert writes in the filing. “The only possible relief available to Respondents would be a reinstatement to their positions as Commissioners on the Lafayette Housing Authority, and/or payment of some sum of money.”

After the circuit court also declined in April of this year to reverse Rubin’s decision to recuse himself, LCG appealed to the state Supreme Court. On Sept. 16, the higher court declined to hear the case, effectively sending it back to district court.

For now at least, this entire costly legal battle is an exercise in futility. There no longer is a board of commissioners of the LHA. The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development has taken over the troubled agency's operations, having recently hired Katie Anderson as chief operating officer. When a new board might be seated is anybody's guess.



Comments (17)add
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written by Charlie B , September 20, 2011 - 04:22 pm
Personally I would be ashamed to show my face in public if I had done such a horrible job of maintaining the public trust.
Let it rest!
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written by LHA Watcher , September 20, 2011 - 04:58 pm
For now at least, this entire costly legal battle is an exercise in futility. There no longer is a board of commissioners of the LHA. The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development has taken over the troubled agency's operations, having recently hired Katie Anderson as chief operating officer.

Is Rubin capable of understanding this? I admire Durel for standing up to the corruption that Freemin, Dennis and others committed at the LHA. But, why should he continue to fight against what might just be a corrupt judge, maybe even involved with the LHA? We appreciate that you are doing the right thing for the right reasons Mr. Durel, but nobody would blame you if you gave up on it, now.
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written by Pawn in the game of life , September 20, 2011 - 07:03 pm
Here we go again. There is no more board. There is a on-going federal investigation for fraud both in Lafayette and Opelousas. Why would Rubin even want to continue pushing this issue. Why would the ex-commissioner want to keep this going other than for racial motives. What ae they going to say when Walter Guillory, Chris William and others are arrested for fraud. Recently, Joe Dennis who's non-profit gave Chris Williams a contract to run the parking at Grant Street. Was this even bid out. I forgot, The P in PHD stands for Parking and thus no one else qualified. We wonder what is wrong with our country, look no further than the Federal Programs.
The only one that is trying to clean this up in the Black community is Ricky Hardy. Enough of ths Bu--sh I want use the curse word, but use the same one that Judge Rubin uses.
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written by Eye Kia , September 20, 2011 - 07:38 pm
"this entire costly legal battle is an exercise in futility. There no longer is a board of commissioners of the LHA."
-------------------------

Our tax dollars at work. . .
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written by realitycheck , September 20, 2011 - 07:52 pm
Durel did not fight corruption. He saw opportunity to control vast sums of federal money and sought to put in like-minded cronies. Combine his new board described as people with an understanding of finance (read here "yes men to agree that money funnels only to Durel and cronies"), with his "numbers guy" (presently under ethics investigation) controlling all the money coming from HUD and Baton Rouge, along with his over reaching power grab and eminent domain abuse with HB531 and you will see that the little man had only left to grab the crown and put it on his own head, a la Napoleon! or so he thought....
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written by NORTHSIDIAN SHOTGUN , September 20, 2011 - 08:48 pm
Joey Durel is the perfect example of a lowlife, thieving, crony-butt kissing, couillion.

And Joey's behavior reflects his arrogance, he could not care a whit who, witnesses his largesse, towards ZOOSCHLAG AND the FESTERMAN SURVEYOR, with the half bubble survey scope.....
ITS REALLY A WONDER ISN''T IT THE PROGRESS THIS CITY HAS MADE WITH JOEY AND HIS CRONYS, FNG UP THE ENTITLEMENT PROGRAMS......
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written by the original northsidian , September 20, 2011 - 08:58 pm
realitycheck: This is one time I HAVE TO AGREE with you. You know, Joe-Du and his peeps must be pissed off now!!
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written by WOW , September 20, 2011 - 09:18 pm
Wow. I bet the N word is flying around at City Hall.
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written by Whats your beef? , September 20, 2011 - 09:44 pm
To Northsidian Shotgun; Whats your beef with Zuschlag and Fenstermaker. Almost every issue that comes up, you somehow bring these guys into it.

Why don't you tell us?
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written by NORTHSIDIAN SHOTGUN , September 21, 2011 - 04:50 am
Personally between you " WHATS YOUR BEEF, I, and every living breathing morally righteous, Tax Paying citizen in Lafayette Parish, I'll tell you this ! I want every damn bid let out by Joey Durel, to be witnessed and notarized by Joey's, Zooschlag's, Festermaker's,and the Yellow Page Attorney's, GRANDCHILDREN.
And have these couillions show their Grandchildren just how they are accumulating their College Tuition and Inheirtance, I can hear it now, Oooh, Paw Paw, not "YOU, not my Paw Paw. Hah, yes, your PAW PAW.
Now ! Should I draw you a schematic showing the pipeline funneling or can you just read, TheIndy and the Daily Rag, or better yet, you justify to me THE UNHONORABLE Mr Joey Durel caught having a clerk signing a contract renewing a service by a Garbage Company, and letting him off the hook of being faulted of sliding the contract to his cronys under the table.
Explain this Mr Dummy Whats Your Beef, and I'll cease my negative comments of the three, oops make that 3 & A HALF MEN.....
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written by Rinkelstein , September 22, 2011 - 04:39 pm
The problem the NS has with the business owners in this town is completely fabricated to use as a campaign platform. NS = Stagg.
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written by Southsider , September 23, 2011 - 12:50 am
3 to 1 these clowns are back on the board, with backpay AND with lawsuit money in hand, all thanks to the idiot judge. Any takers?
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written by HARD HAT , September 23, 2011 - 03:45 am
Rinkelstein, YOU DON''T HAVE A VOICE, at least not a credible platform to stand on with your LCG Inbred Pedigre.
We THE business owners are throughly fed up to our craw with the under the table letting of public projects to the " CRONYS.
And ...I see " Mr. Couillion Whats Your Beef, doesn't want to subject the PAW-PAW's and the Cronys chirin to unnecessary trauma, EH ?
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written by Rinkelstein , September 23, 2011 - 01:35 pm
HARD HAT = NS = Stagg

The businesses don't have a voice, yet they flock to Lafayette in droves? You can't really believe that you will sell the citizens of Lafayette on the idea that the current administration has hampered economic development?

Stagg = Epic Fail
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written by NORTHSIDIAN SHOTGUN , September 24, 2011 - 03:34 am
RinkelStupido, everyone who lives in this parish who reads the local writeups about joeys notorious under the table shameless sliding of the public's money to his favorite puppetmasters, is fed up....If, you are on the take shame on you. Go to work man and wipe the brown off your lips. Hard Hat is paying more taxes in a month than you and your LCG comrats pay in a year. You should get off joey's teat sac and get a job. You won't have to lie to " YOUR GRANDCHILDREN, 20 years from now. HELL BY THEN YOU'LL BE SO ADEPT AT FABRICATING BULLSHIT, YOU'LL HAVE TO GIVE THE BEBE'S SOME WADERS, SURELY, THEY'LL BE IN IT KNEE DEEP, eh paw paw.
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written by NORTHSIDIAN SHOTGUN , September 24, 2011 - 03:42 am
" SO JOEY, throws the voters some crumbs and gives the PIE to his cronys and the cronys children, is this the progress you speak of rinklebrain. don't be so backwards, Lafayette businesses would have tripled with any other leadership, joey only dances to the Zooschlag and the Gnome Surveyor fiddle.
I predict the Federal Marshall's will bust the local crony circle jerkers 2 months before the next election, this is from the Horse's Mouth.
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written by Rinkelstein , September 24, 2011 - 08:35 pm
You mean Mike Stagg's mouth.

Your rants are still as pointless as the first day that I tried to read them. I get it, you're angry. But the facts are there for anyone to see. Lafayette has been prosperous under Durel's leadership. You can't deny that. Every time you do, people see you for the "chicken little" that you are.
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